Suber: The Uber of Sex (Queer Erotica Short Stories)

Part 24: River

River scrolled through Suber for what had to be the eighth time. They sighed. "This is stupid."

They had filled out the form, closed it, filled it out, and closed it again twice in the last two days alone. This wasn't the app for them. Suber was for people who knew sex. Who liked sex. River couldn't be sure.

Then again...

What would you ask for

If you never had to

Feel guilty?

That was the app's advertisement. Openness. Acceptance. It was a good strategy. After all, who didn't want that? But River knew better than most people that advertisements were all about fantasy, not the truth. After designing advertisements for the better part of three years, River knew how little the truth really sold for.

Maybe that was why they hadn't told anyone. About any of it. The rest of the ad firm certainly didn't want to hear about 'nonbinary. And 'agender'? River might as well have been speaking Martian.

That would've been enough—but that wasn't all of it. Nine times out of ten, advertisements sold sex—heterosexual, romance-novel, white-picket-fence sex. A young man with his arm around a blonde in a convertible, looking over a starlit vista—don't you want a Firebird? A nervous, bespectacled teen with spinach in her teeth, talking to her burly jock crush—should've bought Colgate! A crop-top clad woman and a flannel-clad man sitting on hay bales, drinking beer with vapid smiles—it's always a great time for Bud Seltzer. Sex was just another sale item. It was all River had ever seen.

Of course, no one knew. They all just assumed—Of course the quiet, unsuspecting coworker in the cubicle was cis, straight, and in some kind of relationship. That was normal.

River didn't know what exactly drew them to Suber. Maybe because sex had become a sale item, a commodity, so it was easier to just buy it than work through the agony of explaining it all to a date—No, I'm nonbinary, actually. No, I haven't had sex. No, I'm not kidding. Or maybe because that image, the happy, smiling, hetero couple, felt so painfully fake, as thin as a picture postcard. The thought of finding someone, dating someone, having a relationship—it seemed like another job. So why not hire someone to help?

Somehow, 'normal' had affixed sex in an incomprehensible place; a sacred commodity, an essential vice—something to be sold, but never bought; needed, but never enjoyed.

Was sex essential? The pinnacle of the human experience that some seemed to think it was? No. That thought came and passed years ago. That was just another tagline for another sale item—don't you want a relationship and a family? It wasn't a need, or even a checklist item to tick off a list anymore. River didn't care. But something had changed. They were curious. For the first time in years. Maybe because of Suber. Maybe it was something else.

Tipping back the thick whiskey glass in their hand and finding only an orange peel and ice cubes, River realized it might've been the alcohol.

For the last time, River stared down at their laptop, looking at the last section on the Suber Request page;

Anything else you'd like to add?

River typed it out, deleted it, typed it out again. Their finger hovered over BACKSPACE.

I've never had sex with anyone. I'm not sure what to expect.

It seemed strange to say, but it seemed stranger not to.

"Fuck it." River chuckled. "Fuck me."

They hit ENTER.  

To be continued... 

... 

Author's note: 

Fridays do seem to work better! I'm not switching yet, but definitely considering it. 

For the record; it's totally normal to not have sex. (this in an erotica story? Whaaat? But for real.) That is totally up to each person. Sometimes it can feel pretty judgey out there; you have sex too soon or too late, too much or not enough. That's all BS. Also, you can be agender and have sex, or not, just like any man, woman or other nonbinary person (agender means not identifying as any gender, gender is irrelevant, where other nonbinary folks might be between male and female, or a third gender, or something else). Gender and sexual orientation/romantic interest are different! It sounds corny, but the very best and strongest and most rewarding thing you can do is to just do what feels right for you, and be honest about it. Not always easy, I know, but practice makes perfect :) 

In these chapters, our agender character River is going to enjoy a little open and honest sexual experimentation. Also a good point that will show up in these chapters--penetrative sex is not the only type of sex! There are lots of ways to explore, which River will learn :D 

Until next time, yall! (Still planning on Wednesdays, but we'll see how it goes) <3