"Oh God, I wanted to do this for so long." I'm in bed, making wild love with Roxanne. I groan aloud like a wounded animal as I push myself inside her.

"Gray, please don't stop."

"Yes... oh yes." I'm dying for release. Sweat running down from my forehead and my neck, soaking the bed sheets.

She runs her hands on my thighs urging me to go faster.

I grab a handful of her hair and look at her closely. Is she real?

Suddenly, I hear a voice inside my head, like an echo.

Is this what you really wanted, Gray? Ever since you saw her in the gym working out, your brain has messed up. You can't stop thinking of her. You think having sex with her is the solution? No way, man. You're in deep trouble. You're in deep trouble... you're in deep trouble...

No, I won't listen to you. What I have with Roxanne right now, is so great. Get lost!

The door suddenly opens, and Julia appears with a knife.

"You're a dumbass asshole! I told you not to fuck my best friend!" She's walking towards me, ready to stab my chest.

NOOooo! Get away from me!

I shouted so loud. My voice echoed in the basement.

I hear the neighbor's dog barking, followed by footsteps outside my bedroom door.

"Grayson! Are you okay?" My mom shouts behind the door. "What's going on? Why are you shouting?"

I exhale heavily, feeling frustrated and yet relieved that I was only dreaming.

"I'm okay, mom. I just had a bad dream."

"Are you sure? Do you want some water?"

"Yes please, and a bottle of tequila."

"Nice try. Go back to sleep, son."

I chuckle as I hear her walk away.

I find it hard to sleep again. My thoughts keep going back to Roxanne. I am surely attracted to her and now my brain is in riot. I can't stop thinking of her and even in my dreams, she's invading them too.

I don't know if this attraction is a good thing or not. A motivation or a destruction.

Dammit. I just got out of a relationship and getting involved into a new one is insane. I should stop thinking of women and concentrate on my goals. Distractions are not welcome now.

___

The following day, Riggs arrived early in the morning.

"How's the YouTube analytics?" Riggs asks.

"That video of Julia's daily routine got 500,000 views overnight. Now, this Part-2 that I uploaded last night never even reached 100K."

"It's because Roxanne is not in there. Your viewers got crazy when they saw her in that first video, they can't stop talking about her."

"Yeah, I read them. So weird that they're shipping us."

"Maybe because you were standing so close to her, and you did this thing with your eyes..." he laughs, making me wonder what I really did.

"What?"

"Your eye movements, dude. You were checking on her."

"I did not." I deny.

"You did. Don't deny it, the camera caught you. You want to see the video again? We can do it in slow mode."

I wave my hand, dismissing the idea.

"The viewers are very observant, they won't miss a thing." Riggs continues and settles on a chair opposite mine. He clears his throat then asks, "do you like her?"

"You mean Roxanne?"

"Of course. We're talking about her, right?"

"Are you kidding me? What kind of question is that?" My eyebrows frown, "She's like a younger sister to me. We grew up together."

"I don't see any problem with that. You're both singles."

"Stop it Riggs. That sounds so weird."

It's better to keep quiet about my dreams of Roxanne. I don't want to tell my best friends things that can complicate my friendship with her. Even the nude photo she sent me, I have told no one until this day.

"You know Gray, give what your viewers want. They're asking for Roxanne, so you should include her in your videos. I'm sure your channel will grow faster, dude."

"I can't afford another one on my payroll right now." I discourage the idea. "I can't give her a lower amount than Julia, that would be unfair. I haven't even paid you and Chance for your services."

"Don't worry about us, dude. You can pay us when your channel grows so big."

"Thanks. Most of the money I make on YouTube goes to Julia. I even got some expenses from my little savings. I'm thinking of withdrawing some money from my investments."

I have most of my savings invested in the stock market, bitcoin and cryptocurrency. I wanted to keep it there until they grow multiple times over the years.

"No, dude, just keep it there. Don't worry about money, I'll lend you some to pay Roxanne. I'm very confident that it won't be long, you'll be earning big bucks on YouTube."

"Thanks, Riggs. I'm grateful for your help. But we can surely come up with other content that won't include her."

"Why? It's your chance to grow the channel."

"She might feel like... I'm using her. I don't like that."

"You won't be using her, because she'll get paid. Just like your agreement with Julia. She mentioned that she's jobless, and she's willing to take any job. She'll be happy to work with us, dude. Especially that she'll be with her best friend."

"Well... you have a point there. I'll try to contact her later."

Riggs left and I'm alone again in my room. I press the app Facebook Messenger on my phone and look for Roxanne's name.

I open our chat box, and immediately, I see the unsent image. It was the nude photo she sent me years ago.

I have seen it multiple times, I even have a copy in my laptop filename: adobe program Virus File to make sure no one would open it. It's always a secret and I have no intention to share it with anyone.

I heaved a long sigh then decide to see Roxanne in person. I get my car key and head outside.