Jealousy
Tonin, August 26 2015

“Oh gods, they are doing it again.” Omar folded his ears against the rhythmic sounds coming through the bulkhead.

On her pallet along the narrow storeroom’s other side, Ming-Xue shifted. “Hmmf? Go back to sleep.”

“I wish I could sleep.” Omar raised a fist, but refrained from pounding it against the wall. “That makes three times, just tonight.”

“You are just jealous,” the white rat said.

“Jealous? Of some rutting herd beasts?” He twitched his whiskers to show what he thought of that. Annoyed wasn’t the same thing as jealous. Besides, no one here was the least bit attractive, except beautiful Ming-Xue, and she was his squadmate.

A throaty moan echoed through the air ducts, and Omar twisted his lips to keep from cursing. “All right, maybe I am. It is easy for them; UNA has no restriction on intra-unit liaisons.”

He glanced at Ming-Xue’s pale curves, then quickly away. Best not to think of what he couldn’t have.

She propped herself up on one elbow. “Is that all that stops you? We deserted. Indiscretion charges are the least we have to worry over.”

The room felt suddenly smaller. Less than an arm’s length separated them, and he could feel every millimetre. She was right. There was no reason to maintain that carefully cultivated platonic facade. He glanced over again, and his breath caught.

“I...you are very pretty.”

Her laughter tinkled like crystals in the wind. “The most beautiful mouse for a million miles. And even if poor Alexei was not gay, you would still be the most handsome rabbit.”

She leaned across the space between them and ran one claw through the fur on his shoulder. He shivered under her touch, but didn’t pull away. Didn’t even want to.

“Ming-Xue, are you sure this is...proper?”

She cocked her head at him and smiled. “We are friends, yes? And interested. What else matters?”

Before he could think what to say, she shed her sleeping shirt and slipped into his bed. Her soft fur rubbed against his own, and her tail wrapped itself around his legs.

“Now,” she whispered, “show me what you can do to make them jealous.”

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Across the hall, an old dog's ears twitched as a series of squeaks joined the low pitched moans. He roused enough to roll over and pull his pillow down on top of his head.

Young people had far too much energy.

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