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Tiffany still held him close when he awoke. Her strong arms clutched him like a stuffed animal guarding her against whatever nightmares abound. He stayed still, waiting until she clawed herself back to the waking world. "Morning, sweetie," Felix whispered, twisting in her grip to meet her face to face.

He'd grown used to waking up and seeing those sharp fangs near his eyes. Even if she wasn't smiling, there was a comfort in knowing she was there with him, and he was for her. But today, her lips remained closed, her eyes drifted away, and scanned the room before closing and exhaling with a heavy sigh. He read her disappointment as clear as day. She didn't want to be here any longer.

After his talk with Isaac, he agreed. "Why does flying have to be so expensive?" The shark muttered, rising from her bed and yawning. "Maybe I should have borrowed the van or something. Then we could leave whenever."

"Hey," Felix leaned into her, brushing away the dyed hair she'd let hang to her side, "It's ok."

"No...I came here for stupid reasons."

He didn't say anything. Felix couldn't think of anything to say to it. He just rested against her, cradling the shark like she'd done for him so many times. "Maybe we could go out for breakfast? Clear our heads? I'm sure you know a good local place."

"I haven't been here for years, honey."

"Any good place would last long. Come on." He got up and pulled her hand. She didn't budge, and nothing he could do would make her move. Physically, if Tiffany wanted to stay, Felix didn't have the strength to make her.

"I'll..." she bit her lip, her amber eyes sifting around the floor, "I'll look some up. But I left the keys downstairs."

"You left them downstairs?"

"Old habit," She admitted, slouching over in embarrassment, "Just...just can you get them? I'll find us something and we can go out. I can't, well, I just can't face my family this morning. They're in the bowl by the kitchen, the seashell-shaped one."

He didn't press on. Felix made his way downstairs, surprising himself at how used to the humidity he'd gotten. Isaac and Nathan were at the kitchen table, having finished their own plate of eggs. "She coming down to eat?" Isaac asked, taking a hefty bite out of the toast. Felix still had the urge to hit him, even knowing full well how their fight would end with his fur turning a darker shade of pink. He simply shook his head and made his way to the kitchen, finding Mrs. Stern cooking up another batch of eggs.

"Oh, hello, dear." She kept a warm smile as he approached, "Mind calling Tiffany down? I have another set of eggs out for her."

"We're actually going out." Felix grabbed the rental keys inside the blue seashell bowl.

"Out?" Sarah blinked, holding a cracked and empty eggshell in her hand, "Why? I have breakfast for her."

"We just want to go out. I wanted to see the area and Tiff promised to show me around." Better to lie at this rate. No point in starting drama with them. Her mother's confusion didn't change, but the footsteps behind him rattled Felix's spine.

"So she's too good to eat with family? Has that west coast diet ruined her appetite for home cooking?" Her father shook his head and slipped past Felix, running the sink over his dirty dishes, "My own daughter, all these years, and she still thinks she's too good to sit with us."

"Nathan you're being irrational," Sarah intervened, taking his plate. "You know she doesn't think that."

"Really? Then how come she doesn't call? I haven't seen her in person for years and the first chance she visits she has one bad dinner and suddenly she doesn't want to share the room with us? If she weren't my daughter, I'd kick her out for being a bad guest."

Felix felt the keys dig into his paw as he clenched his hand, "I'd say it's due to the company of the host more than anything else." Nathan froze, slowly turning his head and gazing down at him with a cold glare. The devil on his shoulder told him to freeze up, to run and cower behind the amazon upstairs. Felix pushed that voice down, engulfing his fear in simmering rage.

"Excuse me?" Nathan spoke barely above a whisper, "What did you say to me?"

"You know what I said."

"No, I want you to say it again." The lanky shark towered over him, fangs bearing down, "Because I'm fairly certain my daughter wouldn't date someone so stupid."

"So you'd prefer she date a coward?" Felix straightened up, "Someone to just watch at how her entire family acts ashamed of her? I've done my share of running, but I won't stand by and let you treat her like crap."

"Oh? We treat her like crap?" The older shark chuckled, "You come into my house, and dare say I hate my daughter? The girl I raised without any gratitude? If I hated her, I'd have tossed her out a long time ago, like any deadbeat parent who can't stand their children." He jabbed against Felix's chest, "So don't you dare assume that my little rants are any indication of hatred, you arrogant little-"

"I didn't say hatred," Felix brushed his finger away, "I said ashamed. She always avoided talking about you all, and I'll admit, I don't have the complete story, but I have enough." He pointed to her room upstairs, "She's been miserable ever since we came to this state. And it's not just the money. As much as she needs it, I know she's smart enough to find another way. No, she's here because she wants you to support her to be herself. Not the person you think she's supposed to be. And yet all you can do is complain like she's faking it." His throat ached, tightening with every furious word but he kept speaking, "I thought my own parents were bad, but they are actually proud of me. It was my own fault why I felt the way I did. But you...you don't act like parents."

Nathan's face turned as white as his hair. Felix's heart pounded at the cold amber eyes peering down, every instinct inside him telling him to flee from the skinny shark. "You...I...you..." His hands curled the air as if to grasp at someone's neck. Then he stopped, his head turned to the stairs.

Tiffany waited on them, surprise blanketing her face. Silence echoed through the vacuum of their home, interrupted only by the screeching of a teapot. Without another word, Nathan marched off past Felix and the staircase without so much as looking at his daughter. Sarah returned to her cooking, only to take a deep breath and turn the burners off. Isaac grabbed his plate and started rinsing leftovers in the sink as if nothing happened.

"Tiff I-" She whisked him to the door without another word. The Arizona sun shined upon them, ridding Felix of the humidity inside. Tiffany said nothing, only beeping the car open with her keys and pushing him to the rental. In silence they sat, staring at the house for what had to be the most uncomfortable minute in his life.

"I've...I've never seen him go off like that," Tiffany said, the shock in her voice apparent as she began backing out.

Guilt tightened around his throat. "Tiff I didn't mean-"

"He never retreats." She faced forward, driving out from the neighborhood. "He always has a comeback, something to keep him on top in every conversation. And you...you made him run."

"If you want to leave now we can. I'm sure we can just find a motel to spend the rest of our time here." He reached for her shoulder, hoping for any sort of acknowledgment that he didn't fuck things up even worse. She just kept looking out onto the street, lost in a haze.

"Let's just get breakfast."

They decided on pancakes at an IHop. Afterwards Tiffany showed him the local attractions, or just drove around the wide empty spaces of her state. Felix did feel embarrassed walking around in a wetsuit, but he found it a fitting punishment for his actions. Not that the shark called it such.

She didn't talk much. Still staring into space when they returned to her home. "Tiff, I'm sorry," Felix said, unable to hold it in anymore. "I know I fucked up. It's not my place to get involved but the way they were talking I just..." He held his tears, not wanting to look like a pitiful mess for her sympathy. "I couldn't-"

Her arms pulled him close to her. "Shh..." She whispered, petting his headfur, "I'm not mad at you. Well...no, I'm a little mad. But I know your heart was in the right place." He fucked up, Felix knew it all too well despite her tone. His hands clenched around her chest, fearful of her letting go. Why was he crying? This was her struggle, and he was crying? Had he not grown? "It's ok, cutie. You did what no one else could do."

They sat in the car for the next hour, letting Felix regain his composure before heading back inside. Nathan was waiting for them, arms crossed and expression cold. "Long breakfast?" He asked.

"We went out to see some sights," Tiffany explained, holding Felix tight, "Look, dad, if you finally have a comeback to Felix, you can say it to-"

"We're going out to lunch. You're driving." The shark grabbed a baseball cap off the counter, "Ming's buffet. Let's go." Without another word, he stepped out and waited for them at the car. Tiffany and Felix blinked, unsure what to make of his demand. As they stepped out, her father pointed to him. "Not you. Father and daughter only."

"Dad, Felix can-"

"Are you two married?" He asked. Tiffany shook her head, "Did you two get engaged without telling us?" They both blushed and shook their heads. "Then this is a private family discussion. And he isn't family. Now come on, Ming's are gonna have a fresh batch of dumplings if we hurry."

***

She'd spent many a holiday at Ming's buffet when she lived with her family. As much as Tiffany hated the stereotype, her father had a love of Chinese food and made it a tradition to head there while everyone else was waiting for Santa. Not that she complained about it, she was just curious as to why her father wanted to eat lunch alone with her. The thought battered her mind throughout the silent drive up until they took their seat, behind the koi fish pond the restaurant kept out front.

Tiffany often wondered how much they changed the fish over the years. For all she knew, they just lived long lives. "Do you have to get shrimp?" Her father said as they sat down after arranging their plates. His own plate carried dumplings, orange chicken, Kung pao beef, noodles, fried rice that she was sure was shrimp-based, and eggrolls. How her father stayed as skinny as a twig was beyond her.

"I'm not practicing, dad. And besides, you realize that your fried rice is-"

"Stop." He raised his hand up, "Point taken. Just...nevermind." He twirled his fork into his lo mein, "Figured you'd care about your heritage is all."

Tiffany set her fork down before she could dig in. "Really?" She asked, "You're gonna be a kvetch right now?"

"Oh, like you have any right to call me a kvetch."

"What? Because I'm not practicing? Newsflash, dad, yiddish words like spiel and schtick are used day to day by everyone. That's what happens when you have a bunch of Jewish comedians throughout history use the language in their gimmicks."

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

She snarled, "You're the one complaining about it!" He put his fork down and grabbed a dumpling between chopsticks, popping them into his mouth as though she said nothing at all. Already they were fighting their way; with her getting riled up and him ignoring everything. First person who shouts loses, unless he shouted first. "Whatever," She muttered, ripping a piece of jumbo shrimp into her maw, "Just get what you need to say over with already. Can't be any worse than last night."

He munched down on his meal quietly, avoiding her gaze. Downing a glass of water in one gulp, her father took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "Isaac wants you to get a boob reduction. Figures you'll be happier if you identified as a man."

Tiffany didn't so much as blink as she stared into the endless abyss, cold rage piling up her spine blotted out all other feelings. "He...what?" She asked, begging somewhere that her father was making some sort of shitty joke. His look told her otherwise.

"He's been talking with me about it for the past year." Nathan swallowed another dumpling, "Says that the reason you're so against us is because we kept pushing you to be something you weren't. That you were happier as a boy."

"I was never a-"

"I know." His amber eyes showed an understanding she never expected. "Believe me, Tiffany, I know. You were always a girl, you just preferred being one of the boys when it came to playing. Roughhousing, running, the kind of shit kids always find a way to do. Well, until the internet turned them all into lazy couch potatoes.

"But it broke my heart when he brought up the idea. It made me...made me realize that your mother and I haven't been the best parents. We tried, but we were scared. What with all the stigma that came with being a hermaphrodite, we were worried you'd get taken advantage of by every horny kid in school." She heard those same stories. Herms being caught in sexual escapades because of their increased libido. It was true that on average, herms had a stronger sex drive, but it was also wildly over-exaggerated.

"Forcing me under strict home curfew and scratchy clothes wasn't the answer. Nor was scaring away all my guy friends. Hard enough to make friends when you have both genitals."

He sighed, "Yeah...if I could go back and do it differently, I would. As would your mother. Maybe if we'd been less strict you'd have turned out better. Got a real job."

"Excuse me?"

"Oh don't 'excuse me' me on this." He set his hand down, "Don't act like being in a band is a real job."

"Dad, we aren't some highschool garage band. We have a label. We have record sales. We-"

"I know you do!" He caught his voice, taking a deep breath before continuing, "I know you do. Believe me, I've been watching. Your mother and I have spent many nights awake talking about your career. Not many 'rockstars' make it big. For every big name, there are hundreds of small names. For every small name, there are thousands that failed to make it. And even if you did make it, what's your plan? Gonna play music until you're in your seventies? You even sure if your sound is unique enough to last? For fucks sake, Tiffany, I hear your band pop up whenever they talk about herms in entertainment. You're just an attraction to them, and they'll kick you to the curb when they find a better replacement. And then what?"

Her throat tightened, muscles tensed in bitter rage. She didn't disagree with being an attraction. After all, the topic of her sexuality or gender identity popped up in every interview she'd have about her music. "I didn't have anyone to look up to," She said under her breath. "I felt like a fucking freak inside my own home. I'm not so stupid to think that what's in my pants isn't a factor of my band's success, but I want to use that as a platform for other herms, whether they identify as boy, girl, or non-binary, to tell them that they aren't freaks." Tears pooled in her eyes, forcing her to pick up a clean napkin.

Her father softened. She could see the regret in his eyes, the shame building inside him. When was the last time she saw him so mournful? "What's your plan if you fail?" He asked, "Please tell me you have a backup plan."

She shrugged. Tiffany, as much as she hated to admit it, didn't plan so far ahead. "I don't know. I figured maybe I'd try to be a music teacher or something."

"Maybe?" Nathan shook his head, "You should have a more solid plan than that."

"Oh? So you have a plan?"

Sifting through his coat pocket on the chair, her father pulled out a length of paper. "Yes. One I've been concocting ever since your boyfriend decided to grow some balls. Honestly, I'm impressed that the femme boy can actually stand up to people. Didn't make him any less rude and I expect an apology in the future." He passed it to her, letting it unfurl in her hands.

From the first few lines alone, Tiffany knew she was holding a contract. "Dad, what is this?" She kept reading regardless of his answer, scouring past all the legal-speak and litigations that could happen if she didn't hold up her side of it. Then she saw the deal, her eyes growing wide at the lines.

"It's a loan," Nathan took another bite into his food, "An actual loan. I don't support dreams, I support business. If you can prove to me that this 'rockstar' gig is a real career, then I'll never bother you again about it. If you can't, you give up and I'll help you start a real career."

The contract was clear, if she did not meet the grand sum of her loan by the end of her tour, Tiffany would have to terminate her contract with W.I.L.D. records. Doing that so early in her career might as well be a death sentence. But she needed the money, and how else would she get it? Her teeth scraped against her lips, letting the steel taste of blood slip past her tongue.

"Check please." Her father got up and paid for them both. "Come on, there's something I want you to see before you make up your mind." She pocketed the contract and drove off as per his directions, finding herself in a large lot filled with RV's. "Your mother and I know we failed you," He said, strolling through the lot with her at his tail, "Sarah thinks you'll eventually find the right person and grow up. But you're too much of a Stern to just give up. Maybe if we supported your gender...supported you..." He sighed, hands deep in his coat pockets, "Tiffany, I can't change the past. And normally, I wouldn't want to. I firmly believe that I'd lose out on too many good things if I did. But how we raised you, how we pushed you away...well, I can't help but think of how different things would be if we didn't. Maybe you wouldn't be trying to be some muscle-bound rockstar eye candy for everyone."

She didn't respond. Her father rarely apologized for anything, and never to her. But now, with the regret in his voice, Tiffany could see how desperately he was trying to find the right words. Though at his core, he was still himself before being a father, she needed to prove him wrong.

"Catch." Tiffany snapped a pair of keys out of the air. "Unlock the door, will you?" Confused, she looked up to find the family camper out in front of her. Rain and sunlight had done a number against its paint job, but it still beeped when she clicked the electronic key. Inside was just as she remembered it. Cramped, poor rugging, one side with a couch and another at a table where she'd had so many birthdays. For the smallest moment, she saw her adolescence sitting at the table, a birthday cap over her white hair and dressed in tight shorts and a pink shirt she'd stained green after a day of rolling in the grass.

"I thought you sold this?" She muttered, tears in her eyes.

"Why? Cause we stopped using it?"

"Yes! You never keep something if you're not using it." Her fingers ran along the built-in cupboards, "You...why do you still have this? You and mom hated camping."

"Hated it?" He shook his head, "I complained about it a lot. But I never hated it. If I really hated something, I wouldn't talk about it."

"You should work on that. Makes you look like an insufferable ass."

He laughed, "Then you're seeing me right." Nathan sat down by the table and let his shoulders relax. "This," His thin finger tapped the table, "All of this is yours, regardless of whether you sign the contract or not. And don't-" He held his hand out flat to stop her from interrupting, "Don't say you can't take it, or say I'm trying to guilt you. You can do whatever you want with this. Sell it, use it as your tour bus, I don't care. This is my gift, my support, as your father. The money is my support as your financier."

She looked around the family RV again. All of this would be hers? There wasn't much space beyond living, and even that was cramped for a family of four. But she had shared sleeping space in Conner and Connie's van. Hell, they all practically bunched up together for warmth at least once. "Don't know if this has enough room for our gear. My drum set takes up a lot of space."

He shrugged, "So get one of those add-on haulers or something."

"The money you offered in the contract wasn't the original price."

"That's because you never start with the minimum of what you need." He grinned, "I think we both know you had it shot higher to pay for other expenses. Like a tour bus."

"And how would you know that?"

"Because I've seen enough idiots in business to raise my kids better. And...well..." He leaned back and locked his fingers together, mumbling under his breath.

"What was that?"

"I follow...I follow your shows. I know you don't have a tour bus. It's not in any news and I have a few connections that could verify it." He turned his blushing face away. "I don't listen to your music if that's what you're assuming. Your mother does when she's folding laundry, the lyrics are too provocative."

"It's punk, dad." Tiffany smiled, "It's supposed to be."

***

Felix had a terrible time keeping himself preoccupied during Tiffany's lunch hour with her father. He offered to help around the house, preferring anything to avoid sitting near Isaac for what amounted to 'guy talk', but Mrs. Stern didn't have much for him to do. He considered texting Tiffany a few times but decided against it. She'd have his support when they came back. So instead he just minded his time at the TV with Isaac, checking his phone with messages from his friends back home.

Reflexes kicked in when the front door opened. He scooted from the couch, speed walking to the hall where Tiffany was waiting beside her father. "Clingy one, ain't he?" Nathan said with a small sneer as the lovers embraced themselves. Tiffany chuckled, lifting Felix off his feet. "Where are you two going?"

"Not far." Tiffany carried him like a newlywed bride, out the house, and toward an RV that he swore wasn't there before. No sooner than two steps inside did he find his back against the wall and her tongue down his throat. Hands crawling across his lithe form and digging into his wetsuit. "Almost a shame to take this thing off," She said between breaths as she hastily rushed for the zipper. "It really shapes your form and...ok where the fuck is the zipper?"

"It's in the back. Just let me-"

"Wait, wait." She took his hand, holding him steady, "We need lube." Without another word, she bolted from the camper, leaving Felix alone, confused, and aroused inside. What had happened with her father, and why had she become so randy all of a sudden? Now that he thought of it, she hadn't done any exercise since they arrived. She'd been so stressed that she simply shut down.

And now? Now she wanted to fuck. Not that he had anything against it. Thanks to Felix's own naturally limber arms and the stretches Tiffany had been having him do, he was able to unzip and slip out of his wetsuit, leaving him naked save for the twitching chastity cage. He took to the bed, spending the next minute practicing poses for his girlfriend only to be caught midway when she returned. "Well, I see you're ready." She pulled off her top, exposing those powerful arms and abs hidden underneath.

"I've been ready for a long time."

"Sadly, your butt needs lube," She laughed, crawling into bed and embracing their lips once again. His hands slipped around her, unhooking her bra for her tight nipples to meet his tongue. "That's a good boi," the shark cooed. Shivering in delight, his hand crawled down to her crotch, bracing against the hard rod hidden behind those tight jeans. One pull of her zipper, and an unbutton of her pants, and the cock flopped out in its glory.

Yes, her cock. He could smell its essence through her musk, feel its strength between his fingers, and the taste on his tongue...Felix purred, knees at the bed as he worshipped her rod. His own dick demanded freedom, to stand tall in the shadow of his girlfriend's mast. Felix ignored its cries, focusing on the amazonian shark's moans to motivate him further.

"I almost don't want you to stop," She cooed, petting his head gently before pulling him off her dripping cock. "Almost. Ass up, cutie." He pressed his head against the bed, raising his butt and tail high for her. Her pants hit the floor, and the bottle spurted cold lube against his pert pucker. "You have such a good ass."

"You mean, you do."

She giggled, spanking his rump and pushing a finger into him. It passed by without resistance, one of the many benefits to their play. "God, I just want to tear into you today. I can fit three fingers without much resistance, just imagine how much I could..."

"Do it."

"What?"

He shook his bum, "Take me to town."

"Felix, are you sure?" She asked, concerned. "We haven't tried going that hard."

He nodded, "I'll say when it's too much. Promise." He heard her gulp, followed by a shaky breath as she crawled up behind him. Her cockhead braced against the slicked-up pucker, slowly pushing its way inside. Felix purred, the barbs of his cock scratching at his cage in desperate agony. So filled, so vulnerable with her over his back.

Training had all but removed the reflex to push her away, keeping his ass nice and relaxed for her cock. Breasts pushed against his back, her tongue and teeth toying with his ears. "Fuck, you're got a talented ass."

"I think you mean skilled."

She chuckled softly, grabbing his hands from behind and pushing them against the bed. The thrusts started slowly, letting him adjust and feel for her cock pressing against his sensitive prostate. Gradually, Tiffany sped up. The wet schlicking noise of their lubed genitals filled the air, followed by squeaks from the bed and his pants.

Her hand cracked across his ass. "Come on," She muttered through bit lips, "Fuck yes...come on." He pushed back into her cock, matching her rhythm despite the weight atop him. Muscular arms hooked under his own and locked behind his arms, forcing Felix face-first into the bed.

She'd never been so aggressive. The growls, the strength, the pressure between his prostate and the cage dragged along the bed. Her balls smacked his own without any care, the dull pain mixing with the strength stealing fucking she pushed inside him. Felix couldn't tell if it was him shaking, or the camper itself.

"Close!" He cried out underneath the muffling mattress. She sped up in response, unlocking her hold only to pull his head back by his hair. "Tell me when," the shark ordered, "Tell me when my boi is cumming."

The rush hit him harder than he expected, turning any words he tried to utter into empty cries and gasps as his cage sputtered. She didn't stop pushing, fucking him relentlessly through the orgasm and then some. "Fuck!" Tiffany clenched her maw, fingers digging into his ass and filling his insides.

Felix dug his fingers into the bed when she collapsed next to him, keeping him safe from the sudden shift. Drenched in sweat and stenched in sex, the two relaxed beside one another. He turned over, away from the small puddle of cum that had leaked from his cage. "I don't think I can feel my legs."

A quick pinch from Tiffany proved otherwise. "Ow!" He smiled, leaning into her. "Did you enjoy being rougher?"

"That depends, did you like it?"

"Yeah. But let's not make it our normal."

She nodded, "Wouldn't want to scare you more than average now, would I?"

"You don't scare me."

Tiffany grinned with her wide open fangs and wrapped her arm around him, pulling him closer to her chest. "Somewhere I do, deep down in the primal subconscious. But I think you like that adrenaline high."

If there was truth to that, he didn't press. He wrapped his arms around her, taking note of how soft her muscles really were at a glance. "So...how'd your talk with your dad go?"

"It went...differently than I expected." She sat up, resting over the side with her head hunched over. "Apparently my dad, hell, my family, has been following my career. Can't help but wonder how many times they've cringed or argued over a tweet I must have made."

"That's good, right?" Felix said, nesting against his girlfriend, "I mean, the following part, not the cringing. It means they care."

"I know it does. They've always been kind of bad about showing that. It's just...I know they don't approve, and even if I fulfill the contract they might not."

Contract? Felix blinked. "What contract?"

"That's what my dad wanted to talk about. He gave me an ultimatum, if I'm even using that word right. He loans out money, and I pay him back at the end of the tour. If I can't pay him back, then I toss my drumsticks and find a quote unquote real job."

He looked around the camper, eyes back on the bed where she'd just fucked him. It explained the aggression. "Did this come with it?"

"No." Tiffany shook her head, "He's giving this for free. Though I gotta drive it back. Probably gonna have to cancel my flight."

"Just cancel both."

"I wouldn't want you to be stuck with the long-"

"Tiff." Felix put his proverbial foot down, "Cancel both. I'm riding back with you."

The shark blinked, her cheeks turning red at his sudden tone. The smile that crept along her face made his knees weak. "You know, seeing you so defiant has the opposite effect."

"Oh?"

"Yeah." Her muscled form leaned in, pushing him back against the bed, "Makes me want to twist that face into a squealing mess all over." They returned to the bed, her hands hugging his bare chest hard enough to feel his heartbeat. "I already talked with the band about the deal. If we budget, scrounge, and sell lots of merch, we might be able to pay my dad back. Thankfully he's not asking for interest."

She didn't sound confident. "I know you can do it."

"I know I can sit through a desk job, but that doesn't mean I want to. I mean, yeah money is important but none of us really expected to make a lot when we started making music together. We didn't want to live in a big mansion or own private jets."

"I think you're overestimating how much money he's asking for."

"I don't know. Probably? It's just, knowing you need to make a certain amount adds another layer of stress. We need that money to make the tour, but can we make it back? What if we do but the label drops us anyway since we gave it away? What if-" He cut her off with a kiss, a small but longing hold against her lips to soften her fearful visage.

"You'll find an answer, Tiff." She had helped him through so much, even if it was only being a supportive voice. Since the shark came into his life, Felix had felt confidence he'd assumed only existed in movies. She was his rock, and he would be hers through this. "I know you will."