#twitick

This next client always came at the same exact time every other night. Earl’s cheeks burned a dull red at the very idea of seeing them again. He turned the shower off before stepping out, grabbing a towel to dry off before slipping on a pair of jeans. He always liked it when the radio host Cecil came to visit him. Things were always so much easier for the prostitute when Cecil came to see him.

He had just finished putting a pot of water on the burner when he heard a knock at the door. Earl smiled when he walked over and opened the door, stepping back to let the radio host inside. “Cecil! How was the show tonight?”

“Station Management has been riding me harder than ever,” Cecil sighed, shaking his head as he sat down on the futon Earl used, offering him a weak smile. “How have you been, Early?”

“I’ve been getting by,” he said with a shrug, walking over to sit beside the other. He nuzzled against him gently, letting his lips brush against Cecil’s neck. He smiled at the way Cecil giggled at this and he pulled back again, very much aware of how much physical contact Cecil liked before it became uncomfortable.

“Does this still pay a lot?”

“A lot more than that restaurant was willing to pay.”

“I suppose so. No one hurts you?”

“I’m well equipped to protect myself, Cecil. I was a Scoutmaster,” he reminded him.

Cecil laughed and nodded his head at that, running a hand through his hair. “Sometimes I forget,” he confessed.

“Usually that’s because you’re busy focusing on something else…so?”

“Hm?”

“So what has your interest now?” Earl prompted. He perked up when he heard the water starting to boil and he stood up to remove it from the burner. He looked back over at Cecil again, cocking an eyebrow as he waited for an answer.

“Well…”

“Well..?”

“There’s this new scientist who has come into town recently,” Cecil explained, watching as Earl poured boiling water into a cup with several spoonfuls of herbs at the bottom before handing it over to him. He took it, holding it between the palms of his hands. “…He’s perfect.”

“Are you going to go and talk to him about your feelings?”

“No!” Cecil squawked, eyes growing wide at the very idea.

“Why not?” Earl asked, taking back his place on the couch.

“He’s an Outsider.”

“So?”

Cecil chewed on his bottom lip, staring into the swirling hot water that slowly changed color as the herbs started to take effect. “I think I have feelings for him but I can’t be sure if he has feelings for me.”

“Well you haven’t spoken to him yet!” Earl reminded him.

“But what if I do start to talk to him and he dislikes me?”

“Why would he dislike you? I think you’re amazing,” Earl assured him.

“Well what if he wants a more…physically intimate relationship?”

Earl took a sip from his cup, lowering it to rest in his lap. “If he doesn’t like you because of your Asexuality then he’s not worth your time,” he said. “You should only worry about the opinions of people who know better than to care about that. Besides, you don’t even know if he’ll care or not! You’re just letting yourself get worked up over something that might not happen at all.”

Cecil thought over Earl’s words, slowly nodding his head as he started to feel a little more confident. “I suppose so…” he said.

“You can do this, Cecil. You’re the Voice of Night Vale! What’s not to like about you, hm?”

Cecil giggled and nodded his head at this, straightening up a little in his seat. “I suppose you’re right…”

“Of course I’m right! I’m always right.” He blushed a little when his childhood friend turned his head to look at him and he bit his bottom lip a little, coughing before letting himself relax again. “Feeling better?”

“Much,” Cecil agrees with a firm nod of his head.

He smiled a little sadly, turning his face away to drink again from his cup. “…And if he does have a problem with you being Asexual…I’ll skin him alive,” he added.

Cecil laughed at the warning. "You're always saying that!"

"Because I love you."

"Hm?"