1 comments/ 10329 views/ 1 favorites The Pleasure of Your Company By: athena_by_night I had just slipped into the shower, warm water sluicing over my body, steam rising, misting, pooling at the ceiling. Thoughts of washing the day away uppermost on my mind. Dribbling lavender-scented body wash onto the loofah, I started to run it over my arm. Humming tunelessly to myself, I felt I could stay there forever. My face turned up towards the spray, my eyes closed, I did not hear the door open and snick shut softly. Frowning slightly at a small draft, I started to scream as a hand wrapped around the side of my neck and covered my mouth. Moving me inexorably against the hot, hard naked body standing behind me. Even wet, I could feel the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. Fear or excitement, you decide. I know my answer. He leant in and whispered against my neck "I am going to take you places you have never been. You are going to do things you have never done. And finally, if you are good my dear, you will enjoy me to the last drop." He then sunk his teeth into my neck, not puncturing, but there was force. This was done with such conviction that I knew I would be most assuredly used this evening. He eased his hand away from my mouth and rested his forehead on top of my head for a moment. I knew that any miscalculation, any perception of non compliance, any slight would result in a punishment or forfeit. If you haven't already guessed, I know the man behind me. Let's back up a bit. My name is Marie and I am in service to Sir (Steve in his everyday life or Steverino if you are feeling particularly jovial). I am never jovial. And I would never disrespect him this way. (In fact no one does, it just went with the flow of the story… sorry Steve! Author's prerogative.) When I am collared, I am respectful, pleasing and above all circumspect. I only use proper English and I am always prepared. I know that is the Boy Scout motto, but it applies. By prepared, I mean I am well-dressed, well-heeled (in more ways than one) and well-stocked. Despite the misunderstandings and misgivings of others who lack "certain knowledge", the relationship is actually one of equality. Our relationship was one filled with adventure, passion and commitment. We are not swingers, we don't allow the games we play to interfere with our daily lives and we are both highly intelligent and creative people who have found an outlet for our proclivities. Our rules are simple, our lives uncomplicated. And we always respect the wishes and limits of the other, but those are few and far between. For no other reason than we enjoy the mutual pleasures we bring. Whether you, gentle reader, are appalled or intrigued, enter freely to our world for a brief moment in time. (Our public service announcement has ended, back to the shower!) Sir placed both hands under my breasts testing and hefting their weight. His thumbs brushing against my hardened nipples, my head falling back against his shoulder. One penalty. I had forgotten the rule about posture. Sir's hands withdrew from my breasts abruptly and he stepped back slightly. I bent forward at the waist slightly and braced my elbows against the wall. Smack! Smack! Smack! Sir's hand fell in quick succession five times on each cheek. Then a hand on the back of my neck, fingers in my hair, grasping a hank and pulling me back up into an upright position; my bottom tingling where I had been punished. Once again, positioning me as he desired, I waited with bated breath for what was going to happen next. I should explain that I never knew what might occur. Sir would call or email his request and I would make arrangements from there. Obviously, tonight's events were starting in the shower. A rare occasion indeed, but one that would be cherished. Showers were a gift, Sir knowing how pleased I would be. One gift, one penalty, balance achieved. Luxuriating for a second more in the jets, I stepped aside to allow Sir to feel the pulsations and eddying of the water directly onto his body. I moved behind him and took that half-remembered loofah and used broad strokes down his back. My hands and fingers caressing his well-defined musculature, traveling everywhere, kneading the tension of the day away. Sir groaned and inhaled deeply under my ministrations. Redistributing his weight with the shift of my fingers, arching into them, like a cat. A very sinuous cat, one who valued touch. My hands moved up to his shoulders and down his arms carefully repeating the process. One hand reaching down playfully to test his tensile strength, knowing I would find him starting to harden. Too early yet to fully explore there, I had further places to find. Dropping softly to my knees, I started licking his cheeks, nuzzling them, nipping gently. My fingers on his hips to pull him closer, my nose traversing the length of his crack, up and down. Now, I was the cat, if momentarily. My fingers reaching under again to give a small tug, fingers brushing his balls. I was being very naughty, teasing him mercilessly. I would pay later, but for now I was enjoying the teasing. Returning once more to his backside and moving down further still, my tongue darting out at odd moments to caress and tickle him. Sir was standing still through this, his mind overturning the possibilities. He let the touch of a smile grace his lips as those thoughts tumbled randomly. He had hit upon the most perfectly delicious way to repay her for her waywardness. Marie thought herself to be in control for the time being, but Steve knew better. Mind you, he was thoroughly amused, but now was the moment for change. As I lapped at Sir's ankles, lavishing my tongue over and around the tops of his feet, I felt the almost imperceptible tension gathering itself through his body. Tingling awareness again evident at the back of my neck. Sir abruptly switched the shower off and started the tub, filling it, opening the curtain to reveal that he had lit the candles surrounding the tub. Extending a hand, he cast us in flickering light once he flipped the nearby switch. I sat back on my haunches and awaited his request. (Explanation here… this is a two-person tub we are speaking of, with water jets on the sides and the controls placed above out of the way. One of my tasks is to ensure this tub is kept gleaming at all times.) Sir slid elegantly down into the rapidly filling tub and leaned redolently at one end. My lips twitching in mischief, I hovered over him, watching his beautiful cock, as it bobbed gently there. I laid my head against one smooth thigh and licked my lips, just enjoying the sight of him. My tongue lazily reaching out to take a swipe. I looked up at Sir through half-lidded eyes and went to work. Sir is not a martinet, but I took heed of the banked embers in those orbs, he was in the mood for some serious cock-sucking! My lips encircled his tip, flicking my tongue once again. The roughness of my tongue in such contrast to his smooth head. Enthusiasm abounding, I soon had a mouthful of glorious cock and I was sucking for all I was worth. My hair swirling around his thighs and cock. My fingers keeping him firmly seated. I took Sir deep and I took him hard. I would change the tempo, the depth, the pressure at random, always keeping him in my mouth but not letting him cum yet. Splashing haphazardly (another penalty in store) I played the wanton to the hilt. One hand curling around his balls, I played with them, testing the weight and heft, as he had earlier with my breasts. Squeezing gently, I felt the drop of precum. Tasting but a second before it falling victim to my mobile mouth. Sir's breathing rapid and thready. I looked up at him, knowing he liked me watching his reactions with his cock stuffed in my mouth. Keeping my eyes trained on him, a furious pace now set. 'Ummmmmmmmmmm aarrrrrrrrghhhhh!' Sir shot his load straight and true and I was waiting. Sucking and fucking him with my mouth. Swallowing quickly and staying where I was, I wanted everything that Sir had to give. My body unconsciously throbbing, joy spreading through, knowing I had sated him for the time being. Once his orgasm neared its end, I reached above to turn off the faucet and leaned back against the other side. The tub filled to a nice depth, enveloping us in a cocoon of heated warmth. A smug look of satisfaction played about my mouth as I slid against the far side watching. I extended my tongue to my lips and licked them thoroughly and winked at Sir. ***** Sir cocked an eyebrow at my impertinence and grinned wickedly. He repositioned his leg so that his big toe was resting against my clit and stroked. Oh! I was in deep now. My thighs parting further apart, his foot resting on my mound. Just resting, no movement. Hmmm…. I was in deeper than I thought. Still grinning, he moved against me once and waited. My eyes pleaded with him, but I had been audacious. I bumped against his foot, encouraging him to no avail and no relief. A full minute passed. Then two. Another stroke then nothing. My body thrumming, straining, unfulfilled. Frustration had me setting my teeth, I was on edge. I should mention that while I am a good slave, I am a feisty one… it adds an element, trust me. There is much to be said for the pain, as the pleasure. In other words, I knew full well what I had done, and had done it anyway and was prepared for the consequences. Shivering in anticipation, I relaxed my jaw muscles and unclenched my teeth. 'Slave it has been a tiring day and you have drained the last of my energy. I think I will just lay back awhile and rest.' 'Yes Sir' I murmured my assent. I waited, as there was more to come, I was sure of it. 'Would you bring me a whisky neat? I have a craving that I want to satisfy.' 'Yes Sir.' I rose from the bath, water falling. My hands reached for a bath towel, stopping at Sir's muted growl. A penalty. I carefully stepped out of that warm bath and walked out in an unhurried manner. To hurry would have wrought another penalty, this one I was anxious to avoid... my body cooling rapidly. My nipples puckered tight, my thighs rubbing together, slightly uncomfortable. My cheeks were flushed though. I padded back with two fingers of whisky and waited patiently. Without opening his eyes, Sir extended his hand and wrapped it around the snifter. I waited patiently. He brought it to his nose, sniffed appreciatively and took a sip. With his free hand he languidly waved for me to take my place again in the tub. Gratefully I sunk under the water and waited. ***** Sir slowly savored that whisky, the corners of his mouth turned up. I wished those lips were on my body, realizing I was envious of two inanimate objects. I had no one to blame but myself. I was enjoying myself, who was I trying to kid anyway? Suddenly Sir's foot shot out again, unerringly finding my mound without opening his eyes. Re- invigorated by those sips, he rubbed ruthlessly up and down my seam, my lips and my clit. The sole of his foot grinding into my pussy, pushing the lips to the side. Desire flared to life and before I knew it was happening, I came all over Sir's foot. Wow, those things that Sir could do with ostensibly little effort. I bucked against that foot repeatedly, undulating waves washing all over me from head to toe. I was in heaven! I quivered against him for what seemed forever, replete with sensations. A kaleidoscope of brilliant colors flashing behind my eyes. 'Well, well, well Slave, who would have thought?' I giggled, I couldn't help it, and I was giddy. Sir cocked that eyebrow again for my unruliness, but remained quiet. We sat in silence for a moment in harmony. Once I felt I could stand firmly, I rose once more from the tub. This time when I reached for a bath sheet, with intentions of drying Sir off. He balanced that snifter on the ledge with assuredness and stood. Stepping carefully out of the tub and into the bath sheet I had waiting. Briskly toweling him off, rejuvenating him, he moved over to the mirror to brush his teeth. Taking that bath sheet, I wrapped myself and secured it at my breasts. I walked into the bedroom and sat at the vanity table, picking up my brush, intent on untangling my hair. Steve appeared behind me wearing his bathrobe and gently tugged the brush from my suddenly nerveless fingertips. My breath hushed, this was a treat indeed. I loved having my hair brushed. Working patiently, he stroked out the tangles, his hands gentle. Once completed, he stroked my cheek with the back of the brush. I smiled at him over my shoulder, my face radiant. He leaned down and brushed his lips to mine, whispering 'Come with me.' He clasped my hand and led me through the house to the deck and sat himself in one of the Adirondack chairs with arm cushions there. I gazed up at the brilliant night sky, feeling at peace with the world. Sir tugged gently on my hand, expansively indicating he wished me to join him on his lap. Boy was I wrong! He pulled me forward so that I was resting across his thighs, my elbows resting on one armrest and my lower legs across the other, suspended above his body. He ran one hand carelessly over the back of the closest leg, bringing the edge of the towel with him, exposing my ass to the night air and his inspection. I noticed then he still had my brush in his hand. Foolish girl. I squirmed in expectancy. Sir experimented with both sides of that brush. Teasing me at first with strokes interspersed with paddling. Soft, hard, soft, hard. The bristles tickling me as they moved on my ass. The back tattooing my bottom in response to my earlier transgressions. Once in a great while, Sir would soothe me by placing his hand there and rubbing his fingers against me, the palm of his hand cupping each cheek in turn. I have no idea how long we played this way, but my blood was heating again, especially when a finger would slip and tease my clit and lips. I was wet and I could feel Sir's cock protruding against my belly. 'All right my dear, you know what I want. I know what you want. Fuck me here and now.' Sir's voice rasped over me. I was only too happy to oblige. Carefully wiggling my way out of my current position, I let the towel fall onto the deck unheeded. I untied his belt and eased my thighs over his, facing him. Leaning my arms towards the back of the chair, I kissed Sir for the first time that evening. This was a reward. (Are you keeping track of the checks and balances, I know I am. Where are the smileys that accompany emails when you need them?) This was a passionate kiss, ripe with promise. Our lips parted and tongues darted, dueling with each other, having battled before. In the warm spring air we meshed perfectly tangibly connected. Sir's hands tangled in my hair, my skin alive, tiny pinpricks dancing everywhere. My thighs sinking further onto his, sweetly, slowly building momentum, juice running from the insides of my thighs all over his. His cock pressed between our bellies, growing harder. My nipples matching up with his, our respective hardness rubbing against the other. I broke the kiss first. Reasonably so, as I wanted to suck his nipples, laving my tongue over them. Sir reciprocated with mine. Quickly overcome with lust, I reared back; lifting myself slightly and with one hand grasped his shaft to drive myself deep onto his waiting cock. One stroke, stilling there for pulse pounding seconds. I wanted to feel him throbbing inside of me; I wanted him to feel me throbbing over him. Locking our eyes together, we moved against one another in a rhythm as old as time. Time for us stood still, concentration fierce as we melted together, no longer two, but one. Fucking each other, a perfect complement of thrusts and balance. Seeking, searching, frantic in our movements now. Building pressure, building pleasure. My muscles squeezing him, his cock widening me. One of Sir's hands reached down to stroke my clit, me biting my lip in resistance. A brief power struggle, Sir wanting me to peak before taking his due. Me wanting to prolong until we came together. Guess who won? Not me! The first wave of my orgasm engulfed me and I screamed in triumph. Shaking uncontrollably I continued to fuck Sir. I fucked him for all I was worth, but he resisted my effort to have him join me. As the initial crescendos faded, I could feel myself building to a second, more powerful orgasm. Sir harder, longer, hotter than I imagined just watched the changing expressions on my face, as I watched his. When he felt me tighten once again around him, his movements became more frenzied, more pronounced. My Sir had stamina and was I ever blessed. Crashing over the precipice a second time, I felt Sir go with me. Both of us gushing against the other, our combined fluids mingling. Exhausted, I rested my forehead against his to gather our collective breath back, still held together by our throbbing bodies. Content for the moment, sated temporarily. Sir crushed his arms around me in a wonderful bear hug, solid familiarity consuming me. We stayed like that for a long time, drowsing. As the fingertips of dawn started breaking in the East, we shared a last lingering kiss. My Sir, always full of ideas, had outdone himself. 'Thank you Sir.' I whispered before I closed my eyes. Giving my shoulders a last squeeze my shoulders he repeated the same. So gentle reader let this be a conundrum for you. What you decide about our tale is up to you. Was it fear? Was it excitement? Something else? Only you shall be the wiser. Me? Long ago I decided it was…. The Pleasure of Your Company SS34: "The Pleasure Of Your Company" *** September 24th, 6:32 p.m. Another perfectly normal, fair, 70° Wednesday very slowly bid its adieu to the setting sun. Autumn had officially arrived twenty-four hours before, and was politely trying to indicate to summer that it must now be off. Summer, however, was not a season which took particularly kindly to dismissal. Yet here in the midwest, most folks preferred hot weather over the notorious cold, and too were dismayed to see summer pack its proverbial bags. If only they had the means, many would highly consider uprooting for a new start in a much warmer climate. Of course, then were there also the individuals who greatly enjoyed and appreciated the cold, who may have been fewer in number, but just as adamant in terms of their preference. Underway right now at the Redmond Recreation Center, at 6780 Five Flags Road, was meeting four of the center's semi-annual social club class. It was essentially a semester of weekly seminars in which an instructor—whose name was Dr. Kathleen Huxley, Ph. D. ("Kathleen, call me, please...or Kathy; no fancy titles necessary")—lectured students on the finer points of effective socializing. It was a paid event—though the fees were very modest and affordable—and similar to traditional curricular schooling in that it began just after Labor Day, and the students were technically given homework, tests and grades, though they were more abstract and subjective than would be those of regular organized education. More really than an academic course, it was a service for individuals who lacked skill or tact in relating to others, grappled with low self-esteem or loneliness and/or wished to make some friends, or simply found some leisure time on their hands and put it to use to meet new people. Kathleen made it clear from the beginning that only civil exchanging would be allowed and tolerated. The mantra was the borrowed adage discouraging from saying anything had one nothing nice to say. There was to be no judging, mocking, jeering or other rude and disruptive behavior, or the offender would be asked to leave. Fortunately, it was a code with which virtually no one had a problem, the youngest students in class nowhere under 20. Besides which, everyone in the room was rather intimidated by any sort of confrontation. Luckily, one thing on which the class would enlighten them was peaceful, polite ways to resolve altercations. Two attendees who had struck up an embryonic friendship upon meeting number one took their regular seats in the second row beside each other, Alexandra Philomene and Isaac Martin. On the class' very first meeting September 3rd, Alexandra had been running late and got in a few minutes tardy. Tardiness wasn't a big deal to Kathleen or to the other facilitators of the event, but Alexandra was disappointed in herself, and nevertheless had to bear the somewhat awkward moment of unwanted attention as she located and maneuvered around seats to one of the last unoccupied, which happened to be next to Isaac. Isaac felt bad for her, so he whispered that she was welcome to share his page of notes he'd taken down so far, if she so desired. It was a rare moment of kindness actually rather foreign to Alex, so she worked up a tiny smile and thanked him. Following roll call and introductions, Kathleen filled the class in on some basics and fundamentals of behavior, psychology and human interaction. She asked for some volunteers to play out some exercises, and then had them group up and work the same setups and variations thereof. In and around the lectures, exercises and play scenarios, Alex and Isaac snuck more snippets of chitchat back and forth. Ninety minutes later, after the first class, they had walked outside together. *** Three weeks earlier September 3rd, 8:04 p.m. "Well, that was pretty interesting, huh?" asked Isaac as they stepped outside. "Oh my gosh, beautiful evening, isn't it?" "Well, I guess..." agreed Alexandra. "...If you like beautiful evenings." "My car's over here," pointed Isaac. "Y'know, if you wanted to, you could...walk me over, or...or I could walk you to yours." Alexandra shrugged. "Why not." When they reached his car, a bit of inspiration struck. "Actually, you know, if this doesn't sound too...whatever," he gestured, "I don't really have anything else to do tonight. I wasn't sure if you, uh...if you wanted to, maybe..." Shrug. "...Go get something to eat or something, chat some more, I dunno..." "...Oh, gosh," said Alex. "I'm not too sure, uh...I'm not really looking for someone to date right now." "Oh, no, it wouldn't be a date," said Isaac. "Just as friends. I mean, I think Kathleen would be proud of us. And I can always use more friends and activities in my life. Sometimes I feel like if I spend one more night just goofing around alone at home, I'll go nuts." Alexandra considered the offer. "Well...I...am running a little short on cash..." "Oh—that's cool," he told her. "'S on me." "A'right, well...guess I could always use a free meal," she smirked. They got in their cars and met up at the Fish Bowl, a seafood restaurant by the bay, where Isaac ordered himself flounder with lemon, and Alex got a dish of shrimp sprinkled over a bed of pasta. They had a little trouble getting additional conversation off the ground, but Isaac didn't want to let the whole night get away without any exchanges. "So...how'd you like the meeting tonight?" he asked her. "Well, uh, heh..." She let out a wry chuckle. "Aside from the fact that I got there five minutes late, it was okay. I guess I...learned a few new things...thanks again for sharing your notes with me, Isaac, I appreciate it." "Oh, no problem, I was glad for the opportunity to help. And I learned some cool stuff as well." "Yeah..." mused Alex, "I was afraid it might be wasted money, so I guess I should make something of it." She mushed her food with her fork and swirled it around the plate, looking and sounding a bit down. Isaac gazed at her, wondering if something was wrong. Almost as if reading his mind, Alexandra looked back up at him after another moment. "Oh, I'm sorry," she said, "I'm...I'm..." She gestured with her hand, playing for time and words. "...There's something kind of big that's wrong with me, Isaac. I should explain this before we get to know each other too well. I know this is a big turn-off for most people, but I'm a...just a...pretty negative person, by nature, I'm afraid. And...I just hate it. I hate being like this. Oh—see? See? There I go again: negative." Isaac considered commenting that sounded more like a double negative, thereby canceling itself out—after all, hating being negative equaled wishing to be positive, did it not?—but he didn't. Instead, he went a different way, to try to make her feel better. "Well, y'know, everyone's got a little negativity inside them, right? I mean, I've had my really bad days too." Alex shook her head. "No, this is more than just a few rotten days, Isaac. Y'see, I..." She paused for dramatic effect. "...Am the queen...of bad luck. Seriously, that should be my real middle name: Alexandra 'Bad Luck' Philomene...Junior." She held up a single finger to signal that she wasn't yet done. "That's right, I said, 'Junior.' Cursed right outta the womb. My crappy luck started on day one. My Mom's name's Alexandra, my Dad's is Dale. Now...if they absolutely had to have a kid named after them, I would've been fine with Dale. Okay? I mean, Dale's a cool name. It can go either way, and besides, Dads name their kids after them; Moms don't! Who does that?? I'm born, BOOM: Alexandra Junior." Isaac nodded. "Well, I'm...sorry you feel embarrassed by that, but I think it's kinda...cute, actually." Alex smirked sourly. "Oh, yes, it's just darling. Meanwhile, my kid sister, a.k.a. Little Miss Perfect, got the original, unique name: Sasha Anastasia Philomene." Isaac raised his eyebrows. "Wow, that's beautiful." Alexandra let out a quiet snort, that reaction being predictable and typical. Nobody ever said her name was beautiful. But then again, she had just told Isaac her sister did in fact have the better, prettier name; why should she expect him to disagree? Alex's family surname was Greek, which she actually did feel was very lovely. If only she didn't have to share it with her sister. Her own middle name was Lorelei, which too struck her as awkward. But whenever she felt envious of her sister, she thought about the fact that both their initials spelled words, making her the name of a well-known mountain chain. And she would much rather be that than her sister, a plant cell fluid which was also another name for a loser. All the same, she hoped he wouldn't ask her middle name. She looked back up from her plate to hear Isaac pose his next question. "So if you don't mind me asking, Alex Philomene, what's your middle name?" She closed her eyes so he couldn't see her rolling them. She told him flatly. "Oh, I like that!" he said. "That's even prettier!" Her eyes snapped open in surprise. Really?? she thought. "Really??" "Absolutely! 'Lorelei'...'s gorgeous. Great old '70s Styx song too." For the first time, a genuine smile crossed her face. It suddenly became a cozily warm moment for her. "...Thank you." He smiled back. It was very nice to see her teeth. "Of course. You're so lucky. I mean, it's obvious your parents were creative. Then again, I guess I'm lucky too. Isaac Thomas Martin. There may not be a lot you can do with Martin, but now that I think about it, my folks could've named me Steve." They chuckled together. "I know I have a pretty unique name, but that doesn't always mean it's good. I mean, yeah, thank God my last name's not Newton, right?—or Asimov, for that matter—but that doesn't stop people I meet from saying, 'Oh, well, hey, how that's gravity thing comin'?'" He punctuated this jeering imitation with a mock chuckle, mimicking the folks who found it cute to tease him. Then he added, "But I actually have a brother, too, and he has probably the most common name in the country: John. My parents' names are Glen and Hallie, so I guess they were going for some sort of alphabetical thing. Y'know, G.H.I.J." "Oh...big brother or little brother?" "Little," Isaac nodded. "And I wouldn't say he's Mr. Perfect—though others might—but I've always been pretty jealous of him too." Alex's eyes crinkled and softened as she gazed across the table at him. So he too had a baby sibling, and he too felt envious. She had grown up to find that sibling rivalry was a pretty common phenomenon, but most of her life was spent in the company of fellow human beings who seemed to be the more successful or popular siblings in their families. Perhaps there was a bit of schadenfreude involved, but it felt really nice for once to come across another who was in her same boat, so to speak. It was an unusual, but remarkably effective basis for friendship. She felt an inkling of affectionate simpatico and even a hint of camaraderie with him. The hands of the clocks in the Fish Bowl traveled their slow, circular patterns as patrons entered, dined, paid their checks and departed. Isaac and Alexandra found satisfaction in taking their time, just becoming better acquainted on more and more discussion, as their plates gradually grew emptier. Their exchanges came much easier and more naturally than either anticipated. And the more conversational cards they played, the more they found in common. Among the mutual traits they unearthed other than a fondness for seafood, they discovered they both had Greek roots, they were both in their early 30s, they both lagged a bit scholastically and performed at best only slightly better than average in school, they both grew up on Far Side and Garfield comics, they were both over four hundred levels through Candy Crush Saga, they had both been in relationships as teenagers but never engaged or married, and were both currently single, and they both enjoyed art more than any other subject in school. "You know, I really actually like this," Isaac told her. "I'll be honest with you, Alex, when I asked if you wanted to get something to eat, I wasn't sure if you'd believe me when I said I just wanted to be friends. But this is nice: fun and relaxing. I feel like I can just be myself with you. We're not on a date, so I don't have to worry about being 'on my game,' or impressing you, or anything. "Oh, but please don't think I'm trying to work up some way to get out of paying for dinner," he quickly added. "I promised to take you out and treat you, and I am standing by that promise." Alexandra chuckled. "I know what you mean. Eventually it becomes exhausting trying to figure out if the romance is there, or potentially could be, or..." She shook her head. "...Whew. Just so complicated. I agree; this is much easier and more enjoyable." By the time the clock rolled around to a quarter to 10:00, they had finally brought dinner to a close. To add to their list of similar traits, they were both too full for dessert right now, and both a little disappointed to see their evening come to an end, but it was a work night, and they did have to get up the next morning. They adjourned back out to their cars with full bellies and smiles on their faces, shook hands, exchanged a tiny, modest hug, and bid one another farewell until next Wednesday. Following class number two—for which both arrived on time—they weren't able to go out to dinner together, but they went home and resumed contact online. In and around the following week they exchanged some Instant Message gab consisting of odds and ends that eluded their previous conversations. When the third Wednesday arrived, they had each grown at least fairly excited to meet in person once more. They refrained from speaking on the phone or getting together outside of the social gatherings just yet, though neither was quite 100% certain why. Had either of their minds in fact penetrated to the truth, the realization would have presented itself that they enjoyed the novelty of each other's presence as friends and didn't want it to wear off. After meeting/class number three on the 17th, they did again step out to supper together, to a large, beautiful Italian restaurant called Venizzi's. By now they'd grown comfy enough together that this time, Alex not only insisted they go Dutch, but she also offered to drive them. Their friendship continued only to deepen and strengthen. And though still neither of the two of them bore any design upon each other beyond casual companionship, a few subtle signs of flirtation did sneak their way through into the atmosphere. Completing a dinner at Venizzi's that stuffed them even fuller than the Fish Bowl and all but knocked them unconscious, Alex and Isaac started making their way back out to her car before inspiration hit yet again, and they mutually decided that they really enjoyed this visit with one another, and weren't ready to call it a night just yet. And so, choosing to ignore the fact that it was an identical weeknight, Isaac Martin and Alexandra Philomene sacrificed time and a bit of convenience for the extended pleasure of one another's company. They waited for the street signal to yield them permission to cross, and followed the sidewalk which led them past an outdoor shopping center that bordered Venizzi's, isolated only by unparkable pavement, until the winding sidewalk too disappeared, dropping them off behind the shopping center on a footpath which branched into a circle joining itself, forming a lasso around a duck pond. Alex gave off a chilled shiver, so Isaac took her hand, comfortingly smoothing his thumb over her cool fingers. It felt very nice, and even better, purely unconditional. They telepathically shared the joy in being able to hold hands without it having to mean they were anything more than buddies. They ambled the circular pond path, admiring the regal-looking ducks and geese and the reflections of the moonlight in the rippled water. They made a mental note to bring pieces of bread to throw the next time they came. They shared a chuckle at the sight of one goose honking and running at its gagglemates, making them panic and scatter. This imp seemed to take gratification in bullying the others. Isaac turned to Alex as they softly laughed together, standing still, hand in hand, beneath the stars. Granted barely enough light to make out her facial features, he took in the side view of her giggling eyes, crinkled nose, smile-framed cheeks and the lips that were making it all happen. After the approximately one and a half times he'd hung out with her in her less than stellar moods, he couldn't describe the warmth in his heart seeing her appear this happy. For just a shadow of a moment, he entertained an impure thought that vesselled in. No, he vetoed. Don't ruin it. I think we can definitely call her a friend by this point, but don't forget, we've still only known her two weeks. Don't risk messing it up. He listened to his sensible thoughts, and held off from doing anything inappropriate. Finally, they felt they had spent enough time together this evening, and began to tire out. So Alex took Isaac back to Redmond, and they said goodbye with a fonder, stronger hug. "Thanks for tonight, Isaac," said Alex, patting his hand. "I really had a fun time." "Thank you, mi amiga," he replied. "Look forward to next Wednesday." "Yep. Maybe talk to ya online in the meantime." A new dimension of sorts would be added to Isaac's and Alex's friendly relationship on their fourth Wednesday, September 24th. And no later than the following day, their bond would be changed forever. *** September 24th, 7:59 p.m. "Okay!" declared Kathleen with a clap of the hands. "Well, once again, ladies and gents, thank you so much for coming, I hope you took something away from tonight's meeting, and God bless you all. And as always, if you have any questions, or if you just have the need to talk a bit, you have my contact information, and I will see you once we ring in October! Cheers!" The majority of members stood to depart. Isaac turned to Alex as they got all their materials together. "So do you wanna do anything tonight?" he asked. "Sure, sure," she replied, looking through her purse to make sure she wasn't missing anything. "Be honest, I haven't been real hungry at all today, for some reason—not for 'real' food, anyway—but my sweet tooth's nagging me. Ice cream, maybe?" "Aha. A woman after my own heart." They egressed to the rec center's gargantuan parking lot and began heading for Alex's car. But a surprise awaited them on the car parked right beside hers, sitting right on the hood, only detectable under the streetlight in the setting sun. The 29-year-old redhead sitting on the front of the car hopped down on the ground. "Hi, babe!" she greeted, throwing a hug on her. Alex began to work up the energy to return the hug, but it was already concluded. "S—...Sasha?...W-what are you doing here?" "Surprising you, goofball!" Sasha beamed playfully. "How am I doing??" "Oh, so you're the famous Sasha! I'm Isaac. Isaac Martin." She turned to face him with a smile. "Why, aren't you too kind!" She gave Isaac a hearty hug, infused already with far more warm, bubbly affection than any physical contact he'd exchanged with Alex. "I don't know if I'd say 'famous,' though...but you can say it!" The Pleasure of Your Company The hug felt so good it made Isaac tingle. "Well, nice to meet you!" he chuckled. "Hey, we just decided to go out for some ice cream," he said, gesturing to himself and Alexandra, whose face panicked just a bit at this revelation. "You wanna come along?" It did not at all occur to Isaac that his pal might not want to share his company with her own sister, but Alex felt the need to jump in here. It wasn't that she was afraid Sasha would take her friend away, or pin him under some irresistible magic spell of hers, but... ...Well, yes, actually—yes, it was. It was exactly that. "Oh, I'm-...I'm sure Sasha's a little too occupied to join us, Isaac," she said, doing her best to maintain familial politeness. "She's-she's a busy bee. I'm, eh...I'm kinda surprised she found the time to come down here tonight, honestly." Oh, gosh, she thought embarrassedly, mentally smacking herself in the mouth. That only sounded incredibly rude. Nice job, Alex. Neither of them noticed. "Oh, no, I'm actually free as a bird tonight!" contradicted Sasha. "She's normally right, Isaac, I do travel and stuff a lot, but I'm actually in town from Toronto for a week, so while I'm home I'm staying with our Mom and Dad. So yeah, if you guys want me to join you, sure! I'm all yours!" "Oh, awesome!" said Isaac. GreeeeAAAAt, thought Alex sarcastically. Isaac motioned them to follow him to his car. "Here, I'll drive. I have a four-door, so no one'll have to climb in and outta the back." "Cool!" commented Sasha, scurrying alongside him. Alexandra ran to catch up. "Oh—shotgun!" she reflexively shouted out. Good Lord...I am a 32-year-old grown woman. Did I really just say that?? What was it about her sister's presence that always seemed to turn her into a blithering idiot? *** September 24th, 8:24 p.m. Fifteen to twenty minutes later, they pulled up in front of the local ice cream parlor. "So what do you gals think?" asked Isaac. "Should we get a table inside or outside?" Well, there was a decision Alexandra thought she could handle. "Oh, I'd be good with an inside ta—" she began to offer. However, he had asked them both, and her response overlapped with Sasha's. "Outside!" answered Sasha excitedly. Alex fought off the urge to throw her a glare. "...Or...or outside," she added, not wanting to argue. "Outside's good too." So they took a table outdoors, on the parlor's patio under an umbrella, which Alex wasn't very crazy about at first, it being a chilly, non-humid 63° outside. Alexandra was the more coldblooded Philomene sister, Sasha the more warmblooded, so sitting outside on a cool night eating ice cream made less than all the sense in the world to her. But the more she thought about it, the more she warmed to the idea (no pun intended), as they took in the lovely view of the western sky to catch the last remnants of the wonderful sunset. And Alex nabbed the seat right beside Isaac on the bench on one side of the table. She realized too that if she sat beside him, and the ice cream and temperature outside made her too cold, she could again kindly ask him to hold her hand, or perhaps even slip his arm around her shoulders, and that thought in and of itself made her feel a good trifle warmer and cozier inside. The waiter dropped over and asked if they were ready to order. Upon informing him they'd just be having ice cream tonight, they determined they were all set. "Are we ready?" Isaac asked the girls. "We're ready!" Sasha replied. She reached across the table and laid her hand over Isaac's. "Gentlemen first!" This was an unexpected surprise to Isaac. It seemed he was being served a dose of affectionate...reverse-chivalry. He wasn't sure how exactly he was to feel about this, but his honest gut reaction was simple, logical gratitude. They were all just friends here, after all; he wasn't expected to behave in any certain manners other than to be himself, he reasoned. "Well...thank you," he smiled. Each chose a dish of their favorite flavor ice cream—Isaac's mint chocolate chip, Alex's strawberry, Sasha's black cherry—for the waiter, and conversation resumed upon his withdrawal. "So, Sasha, tell me about yourself," requested Isaac. "What do you do?" "Oh! I am the hostess of an international children's TV program. It's called I Wanna Go Too. It's a family geography-slash-travel show. It teaches kids about different countries in the world, their cultures, food, language, so on," said Sasha. "Right now its main markets are in Canada, Britain, the U.K., Australia and New Zealand. Y'know, most places where English is a main language. So they have me flying back and forth a lot to film it. How appropriate for the show's premise, right? The directors and producers really like the novelty of having an American host the show in their countries. We don't have it in the States yet, we can't really find a network that's interested, 'cause America has so many other kids' shows and travel shows already. But we're still trying." "Wow, that's fascinating!" said Isaac. "So you're...something of a celebrity, then." Sasha waved it off. "Oh, in those other places, maybe. Not here. But to be honest, I like it that way. America's my home, it's where me and Alex were born and grew up: our family's here, all our friends are here. And frankly, much as I adore my show, I think being famous here might feel kinda...well, overwhelming, actually." She shrugged. "I guess I like the knowledge that I won't get mobbed walking down the street. It doesn't really happen that much overseas. You do get recognized sometimes, but people don't try to permanently invade your space or anything, thank goodness. If we did get the show in the States, I'd probably ask them to find someone else to host. Don't get me wrong; I love kids, and I love entertaining them, but, I'm not sure how well I'd do just meeting a fan off the street." She chuckled modestly. "I really enjoy performing, but honest to goodness, I'm not good at improv at all. In fact, I'm just terrible at it," she laughed. "I totally freeze up. When I have a script and memorize it, I'm pretty great—at least that's what everyone tells me. But I'm not one of those geniuses who can just wing it and be awesome like that." Isaac studied her expressions as she described her occupation. She was beautiful. Her eyes were bright turquoise. Her hair was immediately between henna and auburn, and the curvaceous sculpture of her face was amply pleasing. He really liked the way her eyes opened big and bright when she spoke, as if enthusiasm just came so natural to her. And the way she smiled and laughed made his heart turn to butter. Alexandra was beautiful too, with slightly paler but pure green eyes and more brownish hair—Isaac just wished he got to see her grin and giggle a bit more. He was an absolute sucker for a pretty smile. What the sisters knew but wouldn't come right out and say was that in several ways, Alex and Sasha were polar opposites. Sometimes it was hard to believe they were actually sisters. Alexandra was rather mellow and pessimistic. It wasn't by choice, but by reality. She'd admit to being a pessimist, but would prefer to call herself a realist. She would not, however, allow anyone to refer to her as a cynic. She distinguished between the terms. A cynic, she reasoned, was someone who expected nothing but misfortune all day long. And this was not she. A pessimist, according to her standards, was one who took and appreciated good things as they came, but did not expect them. This description accurately fit her. Sasha, meanwhile, was upbeat, an eternal optimist, and with reason. Sasha was inexplicably blessed with good fortune, and had been her whole life. Sometimes Alex downright hated her guts for it. Alexandra Philomene was the queen of bad luck, Sasha Philomene was the queen of good luck. In this regard, Isaac was somewhere in the middle: not exactly a pessimist, but not a total optimist either. He just tried to take life one day at a time and do his best. Sasha finally stopped to take a breath. "ANYway," she giggled. "Thank you for listening to my super-long explanation. I think Alex is probably sick of death of hearing it. She's only heard me talk about it five zillion times. So how 'bout you, I.M., what do you do?" "I work at PetSmart." "Aw, how cute!" said Sasha. "So you get to play with the doggies and kitties and fishies and everything?" "Sometimes, yeah. Or help customers find stuff. But mostly I'm behind the checkout counter, so..." The ice cream arrived not too long after, as their conversation drew on. Sasha honestly didn't mean to monopolize it, it was just the way it seemed to turn out. Both she and Isaac were oblivious to Alex's modicum of discomfort spending this outing with the two of them together. To them, it simply appeared her sweet tooth was nagging her even more than she had let on, the way she was shoveling ice cream into her mouth. She was glad she'd suggested this, as she'd ended up needing the comfort food. Alexandra felt selfish not wanting her friend and her sister to get too close, as the hope was only for her own sake. Theoretically, if she was not in the picture, she could see them possibly getting together, dating, maybe even starting a relationship. And she would be happy for them, were it not for the practically ubiquitous dynamic between her and Sasha, when others were involved. Basically her entire life, whenever Alex befriended or became otherwise involved with someone, inevitably the someone in question met Sasha, and to her own eye, was then virtually whisked right out of Alex's possession, so to speak, by her sister's charms. It all began when she was almost three, and their mother and father had Sasha, and Alex was no longer the main spotlight in their life. The Philomenes and their friends literally went ga-ga over Sasha as a newborn, spending innumerable measures of time baby-chatting her in her crib, playing with her, tickling her, playing little "got-your-nose" games with her, calling her a tiny princess, until they were obligated to shift attention elsewhere. Alexandra didn't remember receiving such approval and accolades as an infant the way her baby sister did. She really did seem to epitomize the nickname Alex secretly gave her, Little Miss Perfect. Growing up was gradually more of the same. Once in a while, Alex would get a friend to come over her house and play, but again, with Sasha around, things seldom went as Alex planned. Even somehow as a child, Sasha was cheerful and charismatic, with what seemed to be a natural magnetism. Just like taking over conversations, she really didn't intend on stealing Alex's friends or potential lovemates away from her; it just happened. Simply an unfortunate pattern of event. By the time the sisters were old enough to start dating, Alex wasn't really interested, pretty much already aware of the outcome of the experience. Everyone knew that Sasha would grow up and find success. Sure enough, at the age of 25 she was already acting and singing in theatrical productions in the immediate area, until a television producer discovered her, and thus a career was born. Alexandra wasn't exactly thrilled when this happened for Sasha—not that this was the sort of vocation she was seeking, but—although when Sasha packed up to bounce over Canada and across the pond to England the first time, part of Alex did take a bit of comfort in having things..."to herself" again. Deep down, she was happy for her sister's success, but she was also happy for herself. In the past couple of years, Sasha came home to spend a few days with their parents every few months or so when she could, and spent some extra, more involved time at home in the summers before the next season of her TV show started up. The show broadcast on Saturday mornings, and Sundays through Thursdays were normally spent in read-throughs and rehearsals, before official filming took place on Friday. But this particular week, something out of the ordinary happened. Pilot season had arrived, and the networks were putting the existing shows on pause to test out new shows. As a result, the normally scheduled programming was pushed back a week. And Sasha and her fellow TV crew members found themselves on temporary vacation. With this pleasant surprise, Sasha elected to fly home for an unexpected visit with her folks and sister. Mr. and Mrs. Philomene explained to her that Alex had begun attending a social class on Wednesday nights, hence Sasha's presence, waiting for her just outside the building this evening. "So when did you guys meet?" Sasha asked them. "Oh, our first class, three weeks ago," Isaac told her. "You going out together as buddies? Or...anything more than that?" was the next thing Sasha thought she would ask. Again, Alex felt a cue sneaking up on her. "Oh, no," said Isaac, gesturing with his spoon. "We agreed early on it's much nicer and easier than dating. So we're just friends." Alexandra slipped her arm around Isaac's. "Really good friends, though," she amended assertively. "We've become pretty close." Isaac shrugged. "Well...moderately close, I guess, yeah." Alexandra was unable to help but feel just a bit territorial. She wouldn't think of Isaac as some sort of "property"—nor did she feel it necessary to do anything extreme, like mark her scent on him—but she did feel her apprehension justified, after having lost her umpteenth friend or boyfriend to Sasha. It wasn't her friends' fault, and if she were to be totally honest with herself, it wasn't really Sasha's fault either; Sasha was just being herself. She couldn't help it if people just liked her. Alex was about to accept all the blame and responsibility for the pattern herself, but she wondered at the last minute if this were a situation where anyone had to be at fault. Isaac was oblivious this was going on. He thought everyone was just having a nice time together. Had he privilege to know what was going on in the girls' minds, the truth would've surprised him. "Wow," commented Sasha. "You must have a really terrific girlfriend, Isaac. Not everyone would be that comfortable with their guy hanging out with another girl that much, even if he insisted they were just friends." "Hm!" Isaac chuckled, mouth full of mint chocolate chip. "Well, I'm sure she would be, if I had one." "Really?" asked Sasha softly, the corners of her mouth curling up. "A handsome gent like yourself?" Alex saw a big red flag go up. Isaac playfully tossed it off, following Sasha's earlier flirtatious example. "Oh, aren't you too kind...I don't know if I'd say 'handsome'...but you can!" Alexandra looked with growing anxiety in her eyes from her sister to her friend. Their mutual fondness seemed to be deepening. Oh, dear, she thought. This didn't look too good for her. She looked back down to her empty bowl of ice cream. She had a sudden craving for more. She grabbed the attention of their waiter as he passed by. "Oh, excuse me, sir?" she asked, handing him the bowl. "Could I have another of the same, please?" "Absolutely!" said the happy member of the wait staff, anticipating a generous tip. At this request, Sasha wouldn't dare say what she was really reflexively thinking (Seconds? Think that's a good idea, sis? Know what they say: minute on the lips, lifetime on the hips!), so she instead went with, "Oh, I know; it's so darn good, isn't it?? I can barely hold back from asking for more myself!" If only this were the sole reason Alex wanted more. Another bowl of ice cream later, Alexandra's tummy was bloated and happy, if showing tiny hints of queasiness. Mostly, though, she was chilly, thereby making now the time to step up her game, as it were. She gave a deliberate, but not too obvious shiver. "Oooooh!" she intoned. "Oh, gosh, am I cold now! Isaac, um...would you please put your arm around me?" she entreated. "Y'know, just to warm me up a little?" "Oh, of course!" he agreed. He slipped his adjacent arm around her shoulders, rubbing her outside arm vigorously up and down. It was more of a buddy-buddy gesture—not unlike a backslapping hug—rather than a romantic byplay, but felt very nice nevertheless. Alexandra looked around at the ice cream situation. Isaac's and Sasha's bowls were empty, only their spoons sitting in idle solitude in the porcelain. Her own second dish had been reduced to a pinkish-red glob accompanying her own also inactive spoon. Her gaze returned to Isaac, whose arm remained around her, but whose eyes were mingling—almost in fact dancing—together with Sasha's. The ice cream portion of the evening was through. All hands now free, Sasha engaged in sweet coyness, propping her left elbow on the table and resting her chin in its hand, walking her fingers of the other across the surface of the wood where Isaac's unoccupied hand lay, digitally dancing over his fingers and softly tracing an aimless pattern over the skin, riding the small curves and bumps of his veins. Her face remained tilted downwards, but her eyes shyly crept back up to meet his own. Alex's heart rate had doubled. Oh, this was bad news. While her sister's nature was sweeter than cherry pie, her flirting could be downright vicious when she got aggressive. Sasha had nary a malicious bone in her body, yet men were virtually effortlessly entranced by her. And not without good reason: she was not only a comely lass, Sasha Philomene was the truest and most devoted androphile known to man—pun intended. She cherished and treasured men so dearly, the feeling was almost too much to bear at times. Alex didn't know just how deep her love ran. And while she also honestly didn't know if Sasha was really trying to snatch away her friends and potential mates, she did know what—consciously or not—her sister was capable of. Worse yet, she was powerless to do anything about it. If she attempted to deter or discourage them from their interaction, Sasha would plainly hide behind her predictable defense: "Honey, what's the matter? We're just being friendly!" And Isaac would likely wonder whether she wasn't happy that he was hitting it off with her sister. Oh, "hitting it off" would be one right way to put it, yes, she thought, getting ahead of herself. As far as Isaac was evidently concerned, they were and would probably always be just friends. With which Alex would have been perfectly fine, were it not for the little detail sitting across this outdoor table from them. Finally, she did the only thing she could think to do. She placed her purse in the middle of the table, asked them to watch it for her, and excused herself to hit the ladies'. Luckily, the restroom was tidy and dry—a relief, as she didn't think she could handle any more unpleasantries tonight—and she slipped into a stall, undressed from the waist and perched her tush on the seat. She let her head descend back to the wall behind her and laid her hand on her brow. Despite the cold treat, the air-conditioned parlor, and her coldblooded body, she was now almost sweating. She had gotten herself into a troublesome situation. If her sister's devastating magnetic pull wasn't enough, she hadn't expected Isaac's embrace around her (intended simply to warm up her body) to achieve this effect. It was at this point she was abruptly compelled to consider whether her feelings for Isaac did in fact only run friendship-deep. His masculine arm around her shoulders, gently squeezing her own arm in his fingers, had accomplished its task, and overshot it by a yard. She did not actually need to relieve herself excrementally, but only to calm her heated breathing and accelerated heart. She ended up staying in the ladies' room for quite a little while. She sat actionless on the toilet for several straight minutes, eyes closed, mouth ajar, smoothing her fingertips over her arm, where her companion's hand had rubbed her to more than necessary warmth. But reliving the past moments was not exactly helping her to calm down. So she reminded herself of her sister's presence, intruding on this evening of theirs together. Actually, given this new realization, she had to keep herself from wondering what would have happened had Sasha not appeared in the picture. The Pleasure of Your Company Her body tingled. But she gave herself a slap on the cheeks with some cold water and ordered herself to stay under control. Just keep it under wraps till we get home, she told herself. We'll figure it out then. She arrived at a decision as she dried her hands and face and made her way back through the parlor to the exterior where they waited. She would not allow herself to allow her sister to do this again. She would stand up for herself and what was rightfully hers—keeping the point not to think of Isaac as any sort of property she'd claimed or staked a flag on—but with the new knowledge that his significance to her might be one of more than mere friendship, she marched with determination back outside. She would just have to tell Isaac how she felt. Or...how she thought she might feel. That as unlikely as it might have seemed, she thought she actually might be coming down with some romantic feelings for him, this man whom she'd never intended to date, but felt perfectly content having in her life as a pleasant buddy. In private, she thought at first, but as she weighed out the factors, it might prove beneficial to her to have her sister in on this conversation. If Sasha knew how she possibly felt about Isaac, she might actually back off and leave them be. Yes, Alex thought. She's not a vindictive person, not in the least. As much as she fantasized about painfully mutilating Sasha sometimes, Sasha, that perfect little snake, of course loved her. She was the eternal optimist. The fount of endless positivity. And it drove Alexandra in-sane. Don't get carried away, she warned herself as she turned the corner and they entered her sight line. They were standing. They had evidently paid for the dessert and left the waiter a tip, and would now be on their way. Ah, good, she thought. Perhaps she could do this while they were driving back to the rec center. She'd have the advantage of sitting beside Isaac up front in his car, laying it all out for him at her pace and convenience, and Sasha could still hear how she felt about things, in the backseat. They waved as they noticed her returning. "Hey, sweetie!" Sasha called to her. "Guess what?!" She neared them. She'd have to guess what later. "Sasha, Isaac...I've gotta tell you guys something. But maybe we c—" Isaac didn't mean to interrupt her, but he was too excited. "Alex, Sasha's taking me to London next week!" "... "...W—...what?" "Yeah! Well, I have to go back early next week to get going on the next show," Sasha took over, "And Isaac told me he's got some vacation time coming up from work, and, well, things just kinda went from there!" "She's got it all planned for us, Alex. She's gonna book us a couple of suites in one of the finest hotels they've got, then she's making me an itinerary of things I can do while she's working on the show. And when she's not busy she's going to take me sightseeing, then she wants to invite me to her TV taping on Friday, and then the best part—" "Oh! Lemme do this one," Sasha volunteered. "We're gonna go dancing in Trafalgar Square!" "I can't believe it!" exclaimed Isaac. "Isn't that incredible??" Alexandra was frozen. "Oh, gosh," said Sasha. "I think we might've overwhelmed her a little. She just came back outside, and we just sprang this on her right out of the blue." She approached Alex and took her hands. "I'm sorry this probably seems so sudden, Allie. It was just all so spur-of-the-moment. Honest to goodness, we were just chatting, everything was all casual and off-the-cuff, and then, just...boom!" Alexandra was still completely frozen. Isaac and Sasha began to get concerned. "Whoa, Alex, you all right?" asked Isaac. "Did we give you a little too much of a shock?" Alex told herself to move already before some pigeons flew over and perched on her. "Oh, no! No, of course not!" she waved. "It's...it's just...just such f—...fantastic news, that's all! That's awesome, guys!" She held out her arms and they came in together for a group hug. Alex, what the hell?! she berated herself. Come on, tell them what you have to say! No, she refused. I can't do that now. It might spoil things for them. "Spoil things"?! Alex, you can't tell them they don't deserve to be happy if that means being together, but in case you've forgotten this, you do too! Your life may be cursed, but you're still a good person! Yeah, well, whether or not I deserve to be happy, that's not gonna happen right now. This is a lose-lose situation for me. How the hell do you figure that?! Worst-case scenario: you tell them how you feel, they laugh in your face, go off on their little trip together and come back married with five kids. Come on, Alex, that is so not gonna happen. I'll assume for the moment you're joking. Okay, point taken, but regardless, I can't say anything right now. The timing's all wrong. They're not leaving until next week. I'll work it in sometime between now and then. They broke from the group hug and got in the car. Alexandra kept a smile showing on the outside of her face so that her happy façade wouldn't be betrayed by the gaping crack that had just opened in her heart. *** September 25th, 1:48 a.m. Shortly after midnight, Alex called her boss at work and left a message—thankful she'd be able to do this via voice-mail at this time of the night—feeling bad about it, but faking sick, which wasn't very difficult in her naturally deep, geared-down voice. She apologized for being ill (as well as to herself for lying about it), but she could tell she wouldn't be able to make it into work today. Bowl two of her strawberry ice cream had turned her belly a little upset, so it wasn't a complete lie. The greater truth, however, was that she was far more prepared physically to go to work than mentally. She didn't see herself being able to get a lot of sleep tonight. She booted her computer, opened a document and began typing out her feelings. She wasn't sure if she wanted to do this in the form of a letter to Isaac (and/or to her sister—though penning correspondence to Sasha might involve having to talk herself out of including death threats), or just a personal electronic journal entry, but either way, she had to get it all out and written down. She didn't think she could bear to keep it bottled inside. But after about half an hour of soul-searching and randomly pecking out things she wasn't even sure were entirely true or not, she decided her best course of action was to write a letter, just being totally honest, and determine later to whom to address it, and whether or not to send it. Dear... It's me. Hi. I'm writing this letter following our ice cream venture on the evening of the 24th. I've decided this is a necessary thing for me to do after having come to a realization this evening. Isaac, it may have been only three weeks ago, but when I signed up for our class I couldn't possibly have expected to meet someone like you, let alone strike up the sort of bond we have together. I'm not terribly good with words or articulately expressing myself, but I want to tell you that I definitely like you, Isaac. I don't know for certain if I can absolutely call you my best friend ever, but it hasn't exactly been an Earth-shaking horse race thus far, and I will say for sure that you've claimed a guaranteed spot in the top three. Now begins the hard part. Isaac, I will agree that when we went out for supper that first time, three weeks ago, I wasn't interested in you as anything more than my friend. I was being honest with you at that time, when I said I wasn't looking for anything romantic. I really wasn't. The scant amount of love I've come in contact with in my life has been too unkind to me. I know, shocker, right? I must sound like a broken record by now. I'm sorry for being such a whiner. But I've been much too scared of having my heart broken again. But Isaac, my dear (friend), the more time we spent together, the more I think my feelings for you have actually grown. I've enjoyed myself more during our visits together the last couple weeks than I can remember in years. Meeting and hanging out with you has been a breath of fresh air for me. I mean that. Things are nice when you're around, Isaac. You have a way of making me forget about my "curse." Really. I'm very very glad you asked me to spend some time with you that first night and I said yes. Now, this is not going to be easy for me to say. I know I said that already, but, I found out tonight I really like the way you touch me, and hold my hand, and put your arm around me. It feels very good, Isaac. And I really was cold, what with the ice cream—I wasn't lying about that either—and when I asked you to put your arm around me and you did, it warmed me up all right, but I didn't know it would warm me up quite this much. I promised myself I wouldn't tell you this, but I'm lousy at keeping promises. When I was in the restroom, I was thinking about the way you touched me, and the way it felt and all, and, I actually got a little, well, you might say excited. Not like out-of-control randy in a crazy way or anything, but it made me wonder if I actually like you more than I thought I did. Isaac, as terrible of me as this may sound, to say that I wish my sister hadn't shown up tonight is an understatement. Trust me, I know how selfish this must seem, but, I have lost what feels like ALL my friends and boyfriends to her my entire life. Oh, I feel like a slime ball for saying this—it feels like I'm throwing all the blame on her, when it's probably just me who's at fault—but Isaac, my friend, I swear, it's God's honest truth. And, tonight, it just seemed to happen all over again. Oh, gosh, now it also feels like I'm blaming you. I'm so sorry. I don't want to blame you for anything, Isaac. Now I wish I hadn't gone to the restroom. I feel horrible for saying that, 'cause when I came out and you told me you were going away with Sasha... Now what? She was entitled to her feelings, but she didn't know if she was entitled to tell him that the idea of him flying off anywhere with her sister deflated her heart and made her ill to her stomach. She reminded herself that this wasn't an Instant Message. She wasn't sending this straight to him sentence by sentence with every stroke of the Enter key. She could write down whatever she wished, and she didn't actually have to send this at all. She could edit all she wanted before sending. She wanted so much to be able to tell him all this, but she wanted even more to be able to do it in a way that wouldn't hurt anyone's feelings. Even Sasha's. Sasha drove her crazy, but she was her sister. Alex loved her. Even when she hated her, she loved her. She was family. She needed a short break. She got up, stretched, went to the kitchen and tapped herself a glass of water. She checked the clock. 2:44. Good Heaven. Yes, she had certainly done the right thing—or at least the smart, sensible thing—calling in sick from work. She still wasn't anywhere near ready for bed. She just had to finish the letter first, which by this time would appear solely addressed to Isaac. She slipped into the bathroom to tinkle and returned to the computer with her water. She gave her head a little shake, flexed her fingers and continued typing. ...it was a little too much for me to be able to handle. All I could think about was my sister taking you away from me. I know it probably didn't seem that way to you or Sasha, but... ...Oh...there's no end to that sentence. Isaac, you are my true friend, and I think I might want you to be more than just that. I'm so confused. I have no right to ask you to please not to go away with her, you're your own person, and you must make your own decisions, but... A tear plinked on her wrist. ...you mean so much to me, and I'm so scared of losing you, as a friend or anything else, that I'm actually crying as I'm writing this. That's so manipulative of me, but I really am. There are tears down my cheeks right now—if I lie, I die. I'm aware of what a rock and a hard place I'm putting you in if I do send this to you and you do read it. Believe me, Isaac, it feels really rotten to impose on you like this and put you in this position. I'm considering not including this part in this letter, because you just looked so happy and excited when you guys told me what was going on tonight. You're my friend, Isaac, and I want you to be happy. I just wish it doesn't have to come at the expense of my happiness. I wish I could be the one to take you on such a wonderful trip. I told you my sister was Miss Perfect, and how jealous I was of her, and I guess you can tell I was serious. I still haven't decided how much of this I'm going to include or if I'm even going to send this letter to you at all. To be honest, I'd rather have you come to visit me so I could read it to you. Writing to you about such intimate feelings, E-mail and the phone strike me as really impersonal. Although right now, believe it or not, it's actually about 3:00 in the morning, and if I thought you were awake, I would want to call you just to hear your voice. I can't think of too much more I want to say, so I guess I should go try to get some sleep. I really, really hope to be able to talk to you before next week. But if I don't get to, I hope you have the best time ever on your trip. God bless you, Isaac. I want you to be as happy as possible. Take care of yourself. I'll call or IM you soon. Lov Yours tru Sincer Your frie Love, Alex *** September 25th, 5:49 p.m. Alexandra did eventually get to sleep in the later wee hours of twilight, once her letter was done. When she woke, she took advantage of her day off, doing some household chores and grocery shopping. Isaac's normal shift at the pet store wrapped at 4:30-ish, give or take a few minutes depending on any supplemental tasks they sometimes asked he perform, like adding receipts or updating adoption statuses. Alex wished to lose as little time as possible. She made sure all her groceries were put away and concentrated on whatever additional fall cleaning touches she could apply until roughly 5:00, giving Isaac ample time to get home from work. She knew he was on the Net a lot, so not wanting to ambush him right as he walked in the door with an urgent call, she loitered online a bit, one eye on her contact lists. Sure enough, at 5:07 his name lit up under her buddy list, as subsequently did her eyes. She double-clicked on his name. When the window opened, she entered a Smiley Emoticon and typed— HI! After a moment, the screen showed that he'd seen her message and was responding. HEY ALEX, WHAT'S UP? WELL, ACTUALLY, ISAAC, THERE'S SOMETHING I WANNA TALK TO YOU ABOUT. AND IT'S A LITTLE COMPLICATED TO DO ON THE INTERNET, AND EVEN ON THE PHONE, HONESTLY. COULD YOU PLEASE COME OVER TO MY APARTMENT? The online conversation was very short. He could. He asked her for a quick recess so he could change into something comfier, quickly ran by the convenience store for a couple bottles of juice and a package of small microwaveable cheeseburgers—he got the feeling she could use a little quick comfort food—and followed the directions she'd given him to her apartment. She was happier to see him than he'd expected. She welcomed him in with a nice hug and a peck on the cheek. She gratefully took the cheeseburgers to go toss in the freezer, discreetly stopped by her printer to retrieve the letter she'd written to him which was now printed out, and sat with him on her sofa. He had meanwhile opened the bottles of juice. "Do you want the apple, orange, cranberry or grape?" he asked. "Oh, I...it doesn't matter," she replied. "I'll have whichever one you'd like to give m—... "Actually," she added, thinking about this long letter she was going to be reading him, "On second thought...cranberry." She read him the letter. She had actually opted not to take out or change a thing from the original draft. It may have been raw, but it was true, and straight-shot, right from her gut. Editing the letter, she felt, would compromise the sheer emotion, heart and honesty she'd put into the writing. Almost tearing up again reading the words she'd written approximately fifteen hours before, Alex had to clear her throat a number of times and take several swigs of cranberry juice to get through it. Isaac patiently let her finish, processing his thoughts. When Alex was done, she turned the pages over and laid them on her lap. She sat solemnly, head down, eyes closed, pacingly swallowing, awaiting what he would have to say. The juice and saliva soothed her now half-hoarse throat. A number of minutes passed. Finally, she heard his voice. "Gosh...this...wow..." She looked up. His face bore an unplaceable emotion. "...This is a lot for one span of twenty-four hours." She looked back down at her hands in her lap. "I...I had no idea you felt this way, Alex." She nodded. "I know," she mouthed. "I mean, I...y'know, I figured we were pretty good friends, and both of us were on basically the same page with that, and..." He let it trail off. Just like the previous night immediately following the news of the trip Sasha was taking him on, Alex was frozen in her position. She didn't want to move or speak until he kept talking. It was also quite amazing to her that as he said, all this had taken place in the equivalent of a single day. In another thirty minutes, it would be twenty-four hours since their most recent class. "Well, Alex, I mean...yeah, she's gonna take me on this trip, and I was certainly planning to go, but..." He laid his hand on top of hers. "...But, it's not like I'm just gonna stop being your friend! I mean, Sasha's an angel, and I've never met anyone like her, but even if she was plotting some sinister way to 'steal' me from you—which I'm sure she's not—it's not like she has this magical hold over me that makes me do whatever she wants," he chuckled. She lifted her head to gaze at him with her glassy, moist shimmering eyes. "But I've also never met anyone like you before, either. I mean, I think you two are such an amazing pair of sisters," Isaac went on. "I feel really privileged and lucky to have gotten to know both of you. I wouldn't want to lose either of you as my friends or have to choose between you, if it was up to me. Alex, you're so caring, and kind, and soulful, deep and wonderful..." The corners of Alexandra's mouth began to curl up into a smile again. His sweet words culled the tears from her eyes. "...And Sasha's just terrific too: she's so free, and spirited, and enthusiastic, and full of life and love...she's wonderful too!" Isaac went on, unaware that hearing about how great Sasha was made Alexandra want to do violent things. "And Alex, she loves you. She's always worshiped you, ever since you were kids. She told me herself. She said she couldn't ask for a greater big sister." Alex's face went into bewilderment. "She...told you that?...When, last night?" "No, no, actually, it was today at lunch. Alex, she had just so many nice things to say about you! She—" Alexandra's eyebrows almost leapt right off her forehead. She had to double-check that. She held up her hands. "Whoa, whoa, Isaac, hold on a second, back up," she said. "You two had lunch together today?" The Pleasure of Your Company Isaac failed to realize that he was...sort of in trouble for this. "Well, it...wasn't just lunch. We spent the afternoon at the mall. I've had a bunch of leave stored up at work and they've been trying to get me to take a vacation for a while, so I figured, why not take the rest of this week, and next week...and Sasha wanted to get together with me to pick me out some outfits and stuff for our trip, so...y'know, that's...just what we did." Towards the end of his explanation, Alex's head dropped again and began shaking. She had not needed to know that. It was true, all they had done together was harmlessly shop for clothing, but in Alex's mind, this was the last shove necessary to push her over the edge. All the lovely things Isaac had just said about her were buried by this bombshell. Regardless of his assurance that he wasn't controlled by Sasha's whims—and that he wouldn't stop being her friend just because he was friends with her sister—Alexandra's extreme insecurity flared back up. That was all it took for her last straw to snap. Her camel's back had been broken. She stood up. "Oh, that's great," she caustically mouthed. "That's great," she repeated, her voice becoming an audible husky whisper. She took a few steps away. "No, that's just great," she reiterated once more, at full volume, back turned to Isaac. "No, really, just fabulous," she said to the air. "Once again, just like always." Her voice was growing gradually louder. Isaac stood behind her. "Alex, wh—" "Congratulations, Sasha, you win again!" Alex declared, beginning to shout out loud at no one. "Endlessly undefeated! Sasha wins, Alex loses!" Her voice was cracking. "Sasha, one zillion, Alex, zip!" She let herself fall on her knees on the floor. "I FAIL!!" she proclaimed after another minute, flinging her hands in the air. "Nothing but a loser! Hell, they oughtta just put that right on my tombstone! 'Alexandra Philomene, Junior: BIG, FAT, ZERO-NOTHING-LOSER.'" Isaac rushed to console her as she collapsed on the floor. "Wha—Alex, oh my gosh! Alex!" He knelt down beside her weeping body and laid his hand between her shoulder blades, stroking her back. "Alex, honey...I'm sorry! I...I didn't know you'd get so upset!" He was thrown into such a sudden panic by this eruption he began to cry right along with her. "Alex..." he wept, caressing her, "...Please...I'm really sorry, for...whatever made you so..." He shook his head, letting it go. He abruptly felt as defeated as she did. He let out a distressed sigh, laying down on the floor on his back beside Alex on her tummy. He wanted more than anything right now to be able to adequately console her back to stability, but he was simply at a loss. His friend was in the midst of a crisis, and there was nothing apparent he could do to soothe her turmoil. All he could manage was to rest his hand on his forehead and wait it all out. Somewhere between five and ten minutes later, the sounds died down to relative silence. Alexandra's body ceased trembling. Isaac turned on his side, stroking a tender hand over her hair. She let him caress her before she at last pushed herself back up off the floor. Again on her knees, Alex pawed stray strands of hair out of her eyes. Her face had turned into a wet mess, bits of fuzz stuck to it. She swiped it away. Her nose, elbows and bare knees were reddened and bore textured patterns of carpet. She blinked until her eyes would focus, to see the image of her friend Isaac Martin lying on his side, beside her on her floor. When his face swam into view, she saw that he too had been crying. She returned the heartfelt gesture, caressing his tears away. "Oh, Isaac...I'm sorry," she murmured. Isaac took her hand and sat up with her. "What? No! Oh, no, Alex! There's nothing to be sorry for. I...I mean, we kinda ran into an unusual bunch of circumstances here that turned into an unfortunate situation, but...but...I don't think anyone has to be at fault for it. I mean, I...I'm certainly not blaming you for anything here. I don't feel like I should be particularly blaming myself for anything either, except maybe just not being aware of these feelings you're having for me. "...I honestly didn't know, Alex. I wish there was more I could tell you, but..." He gave a shrug, nothing else to offer. For a short spell they just sat together in bemusement, not knowing how to feel. Following an inestimable amount of time, Isaac heard her voice. "Isaac...let me just ask you something, please? For me, as a friend?...I just have to know this." "Of course." Alexandra sighed and held out her hands in curiosity. "What IS it about her? I mean, what is so unforgettably special about Sasha? Is there... "...Is there something she has that I don't?" "Oh, Alex, please don't think of me as a competition between you and your sister." "I-I'm not trying to," Alexandra stammeringly half-lied. "I-I-I just want to know so that I can maybe follow her example, and...and better myself from it. Please, Isaac, this is important to me. Can you tell me?" He thought. "Well...I guess you might say...it's...something in the way she makes me feel when we're hanging out," he said. "...Special?" "Well, I'd...I'd say even better than special. It's-it's like..." He was trying to choose his words very carefully, as he wanted to be honest but also didn't want to chance hurting Alexandra's feelings. He finally came up with the frank and simple truth, and also a fine way to sum up Sasha in three easy words: "...She loves men." Alexandra arched an eyebrow, waiting for him to go on, but he said no more for the time being. "...Is...that all?" she asked after another minute. "But...I love men too." "No, but, I mean..." Isaac let his hands do the talking for him to pass the moment he needed to put this all together. "It's more than that. She doesn't just love men. She...adores men. Unconditionally. I mean, it's...it's amazing to me; I...no offense intended to your gender, Alex, but...I didn't think there were any women left with this capacity of devotion to offer the male species." No offense really taken, Alexandra was thinking, but was now paying a bit more attention to the conviction and heart into which Isaac was putting his speech. Sasha must have made a hell of an impression on him to have provoked such strong feelings. "You...got all that just from spending one afternoon with her?" "She is one expressive cookie, your sister," Isaac told her. "Like...like, take this one point today, for instance. She was picking out clothes to accessorize outfits for me, and I made the smallest, most casual comment to her about not liking belts very much, just because for some reason I don't care for the way they look on me, and she got me a pair of suspenders." Alexandra arched both eyebrows. This time he did continue right away. "I...I know it might not seem like any big deal, but she explained to me how they're one-size-fits-all, and asked me to put them on for her. So I did, and I realized...yeah. I like them; they're just as effective as a belt, and they look pretty nice too. "But Alex, when she asked me to come out and show them to her...I swear to God...she started to cry. To cry! At just how wonderfully and magically they frame my body, she told me! Honest to goodness, that's exactly what she said; she actually used the word 'magically'! I...I was going to put on a bow tie after that, but I was a little nervous what she might do next!" Isaac was again at a temporary loss for words. "...It was...it was astonishing. I have never seen a woman react in such a way to something as simple as an article of men's clothing before. I guess..." He exhaled. "I guess it's not so simple to her." Alex let her eyes dart back and forth. "So...she...likes men's clothes..." she mused. She supposed that made sense; she remembered the way Sasha used to play with their dolls. She always seemed to like the Ken more than the Barbie. The strange thing was, Alex was always more interested in taking off the dolls' clothes to determine their anatomical correctness, while Sasha was more fascinated with putting the clothes back on and making a fashion show out of them. She did have a thing for fashion. Isaac's response interspersed with her thoughts. "Well, yeah, but it...it was still more than just that too." He shifted his legs so he was sitting Indian-style on the floor facing her. "She went on telling me all these things about men's issues and dynamics I've never thought of before," he continued. "Like how she thinks guys could be capable of so much more, if society could just look past the nasty stereotypes they're labeled with, and just let them be their own individual selves. Like how men write and sing all these crazy-beautiful love songs about women that're just bursting with adoration and almost god-like worship, but when women write songs about guys, they just tend to be more bittersweet and angry, or about what a jerk or a loser the guy is...or how she's independent and free from him 'cause he's just trouble. She told me if she were a songwriter, she'd only write true-blue love songs. "She also told me every time a guy was about to hear something rotten said about men, she wished she could be there so she could cover his ears and he wouldn't have to hear it." He shook his head. "She just...really opened my eyes, Alex. I mean...I parted ways with her this afternoon with a new appreciation for my identity and my gender. I've... "I've never met anyone like Sasha before." This time Alex sat still before him, letting him explain this to her, forcing herself to keep from going to pieces again. It wouldn't be fair to specifically ask him about this and then become frustrated and upset at his answer. Her tears and sniffle dried away as she listened to him. These were things that never quite occurred to her either. So there was something particularly special about her sis. She thought about all this a while after he'd quieted down. Then she remembered one of her own Sasha stories to share with him. "Now that I think about it, I guess I know what you mean about her loving men, Isaac. I remember one time our parents took us to the beach, and we were grown up at the time, we were both in our 20s, and we were on the boardwalk together—just her and me, our folks were relaxing in the hotel—and it wasn't super-crowded on the boardwalk, but we were walking by these benches, and on one of them were these two gay guys together. It was pretty obvious they were a couple. They were making out, just...arms around each other...must've been pretending they were the only two people on the planet. I mean, they were just going to town on each other. "And for me, well, it was...nice, I'll admit, it gave me a kind of tingly feeling inside, but Sasha...she was just...mesmerized by them. God, Isaac, you should've seen the look on her face. She, was, melting. Heaven's sake, I thought I even heard her whisper, 'Oh, that is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen.' I finally had to pull her away, 'cause I didn't know if she was gonna cry, or go up and hug them, or get down on her knees and try to do something to them she might get arrested for!" She chuckled wryly. "She does have that way about her. She just about falls head over heels in love every time she sees an even halfway cute guy." Isaac returned the chuckle. "Yup, that sounds like Sasha, all right." "Actually, I probably would've been the one to try to do something naughty to them," Alex admitted sheepishly. "This feels kind of embarrassing to admit, but I guess I...just have a, uh...higher libido than Sasha does. That's kind of what I tried to mean saying I love men too. I really do, but I'm ashamed to say my sister's probably just more 'real' about it. Y'know? She falls in love, I fall in lust. Sasha's likely inclined to be more...soft, and romantic, and delicate. Like I guess you found out today, Isaac. And I guess conversely I'd be more..." She waved her hand, not sure how to put it. "...Wild and passionate?" Isaac guessed. Alexandra's eyes fluttered closed as she blushed. "You might say, yeah," she coyly squeaked. Clearing her throat, she added, "Not that you'd guess it from my low-key nature. I'd really love to be able to have the measure of devotion she does, though. Maybe, uh...maybe it's time for the big sister to learn something from the little sister for a change." "Oh, Alex," said Isaac. "You know what, I think deep down you already do have that devotion inside you. I think you are a spectacular person. You are really special to me too. I just wish you wouldn't always compare yourself to your sister." She tried to work up a smile for him. The things he had just said were wonderful and heartfelt, yet her bitter-salty nature would not allow them to completely penetrate and cheer her up. "Thanks, but...I wish I had a reason not to," she sighed. Pause. "Well, then, I'll give you one." And he did. Alex gasped through the kiss. Warmth penetrated her and extended to each nerve ending. This was not a friendly, casual peck. This was instant, hot magic. Her heart leapt to life and a kaleidoscope of butterflies unleashed through her. Faculties now dulled with flooding passion, Alex's blood heated and flew through her veins. Before she knew what she was doing, she threw her arms around Isaac and pulled him back down to the floor with her, again lying horizontally embraced and side by side. They were now powerless against the pull their lips held on each other. They broke from steamy kisses just long enough for necessary gulps of air before the magnetic hold drew them back together again. Hungry moans narrated their unspoken desire. Minute by minute, bit by wordless bit, raw physicality built and radiated within them. Every passing second decreased the possibility of being able to ever go home again. Their faces radiated pure, intoxicated euphoria and none other. Their hearts too tried madly to kiss, slamming desperately against their chests. They felt warm, safe and content in one another's arms. Then, surprising them both, Alexandra freed her hands long enough to press against the floor and push herself up on top of Isaac's body. Balancing herself atop him, she finger-brushed his hair and fondled the sides of his face, as her own hair spilled all over and tickled his ears and forehead. She felt like a warm, 98.6° blanket clinging to him like static electricity. Isaac reciprocated, hands roving all over her in turn. He refrained for now from groping her fragile lady-regions, unsure just how far things were to progress. One thing he could not hinder, however, was his eager manhood from making friends with one of those lady-regions. When she felt him stiffen into her, Alex turned into hot fudge, melting all over him. She moistened, tingled and achieved her own budding erections in her clit and nipples. Outlines of materializing sweat framed their faces. Needing more oxygen than she could breathe through her nose, she detached from the kiss with a gasp, and Isaac felt her hot breath pass over his skin. Eventually, they somehow pulled themselves up to their knees, and finally to their feet, letting never the kisses end. Hanging on to him, Alex began leading Isaac further into her apartment from the living room, towards the hall that led to the bedroom, keeping their lips fused. When they finally made it back to their destination, Alex flung the door closed behind, and they perched together on the mattress. Maneuvering their way all the way up onto the bed while maintaining steady lip contact was easier said than done, but a fun task. When they sidled up far enough so their feet were no longer over the edge, they ceased wriggling and began heavy petting. Alexandra again did something Isaac wasn't expecting her to do. One thing she hadn't exactly told him in their several encounters together was that she was a virtual virgin. She actively and regularly masturbated, but she didn't have many playmates. She'd only found one person she liked enough to feel comfortable making love to, back in her teens, and her 20s were a series of heartbreaks and a sexual drought. Eventually, she abstained from sex by choice, for about a dozen reasons. But now, she was very good friends with Isaac Martin, and when she felt his erection press up on her and cushion her pussy, and she realized she was actually about to get lucky and laid, her brain just about exploded. Lacking a world of experience in this area but not without her finesse, Alex sprung her next surprise on him. She snuck her hand down the front of his pants—which were fortunately loose enough to allow her to do so—and wrapped her fingers snugly around his stiffened cock. The action earned a muffled squeal from Isaac, which Alex found very flattering. The hard, spongy mass felt amazing in her palm. She tightened and loosened her grip on it, mischievously giggling at him through the kiss. That was good enough for Isaac. He returned the gesture, grasping and squeezing her breasts, smoothing his thumbtips over the aroused nipples. Suddenly, the act was no longer any laughing matter for her. Alex's mouth popped off Isaac's as her head flew backwards with a groan. Her hand lost its hold on his dick and was forced to slither back out of his pants. So he quickly removed them, kicking the legs off himself and whipping his shirt off as well. When Alex reared back to return her gaze to him, her eyes widened at his naked frame. His cock was standing out at a right angle from the rest of his body, and pointing at her. Suddenly, she felt very overdressed. Isaac leaned up to kiss her again, but he missed. Alexandra scrambled up to her knees to start practically ripping off her own outfit. By the time she finally got her top off, she'd nudged herself between his legs, encouraging him to turn over onto his back for her. She slid her knees behind her, laid down on her belly in front of him, and eagerly took his hardened dick in her mouth. Isaac moaned to her, signaling vast approval. Deep down, Alex was a little afraid she wouldn't be very good at this, but her ecstatic zeal to perform outweighed her apprehension. She was too excited for it to be bad at it. She pressed his dick firm and fully between her tongue and palate, wanting as much from this as she could get. Cock in mouth, she reached around to her back to undo her bra. When the bra came off, she whipped it off to the side and promptly stripped off her shorts and panties next. She momentarily had no more hands to play with him, so she tried to press her chest downward into him, cradling his balls between her tits. When she at last got her panties far enough that she could get them the rest of the way off with her feet, Alexandra's hands went right to work on Isaac's balls, massaging, fondling and tickling, as she leaned up, about to bring the fellatio to an end and let her pussy take over. Her mouth unoccupied, she licked her fingers, rubbed her clit and cunt to get them as wet as possible, pushed up on her knees, positioned herself over him, pulled herself open, lowered, and gingerly slid him up inside her. Releasing her labia, she echoed Isaac's intense moan of wonderment, feeling her body glow. As she pressed her palms to the bed, carefully letting herself back down, descending once more on top of Isaac's body, now naked skin on skin, one meaningful thought passed through her head. We are no longer just pals. Her mind was involuntarily steered in this direction temporarily, wondering if this would affect their friendship. It was a thought worthy of consideration, even if this wasn't exactly the appropriate time. Meeting and befriending Isaac was one of the finest things that had happened in her in quite some time. Would she be risking putting this in jeopardy? The Pleasure of Your Company Well... She let a few more minutes of carnal bliss pass, then whispered by Isaac's ear. "Isaac?" "Yes, Alex?" he breathed. "...I think I might wanna be your girlfriend," she shyly tittered. He smiled back. "I think I like that idea." "But, we can talk about that later," she offered. "For right now, I wanna keep making love to you...sweetheart." "Oh...I like that idea even better...darling." They resumed their kissing, gasping, fondling, hugging. Isaac did a bit of side-to-side rolling across the mattress so Alex could get both her arms all the way around him. Her pussy, afraid she might lose his cock in this tossing and turning activity, squeezed and clamped down on him, which felt so incredibly good for both of them it was indescribable. His dick bulged and throbbed inside her. They were both red and pulsating in their nether-regions, neither knowing how much more they could take. "Oh, m—...my gosh, I—...Isaac, I c-I can't believe we're doing this!" Alex whisper-laughed. "Me neither!" he chortled, pecking her cheek, making her redden in it as well. "Are you..." She paused for a kiss. "Are you gonna come, honey?" She asked in such an inviting, seductive tone, the words alone almost brought him right to the edge. "I think I...OH MY GOD...Alex, I think I am." Alexandra became so excited to hear it she let out another gasp, and laid a hearty, very aggressive smacker on him. "Oh, YES! Yes, yes, yes!" she celebrated. "Can I suck it? Please, I wanna taste it!" Isaac gave a small chuckle. "Okay, but hurry!" he urged. Alex summoned the energy and willpower she needed, planted her fists in the mattress, performed a push-up that would make any physical fitness trainer proud, and forced her pussy to release him. Losing as little time as possible, she hopped back between his legs, took his balls and the base of his dick in her fingers, and again lip-hugged his cock, now also slicked in her girl-juice. Her pussy gave off a frustrated whine, but she ignored it for the moment. She would get her turn in another couple of minutes. She drooled down his cock, swishing and flicking her tongue in sublime lashes across its bulging veins. She could feel it coming, even though she couldn't feel quite what he was feeling. Isaac was rendered immobile and entranced in the heavenly sensations. He hadn't really that much more sexual experience than Alex, and he too couldn't believe it, such brilliance in which this evening was suffused. If she had told him of her lack of know-how, he wouldn't have believed that either, the way she was performing. The woman was a genius. He would only have been able to figure that either she was a sexpert prodigy, or some semblance of her sister's undentable adulation for the male gender had rubbed off—or was also innately instilled in her. The come had welled up in his balls, and would soon be forced out. He couldn't keep it inside much longer if she kept up at this pace. And she definitely wasn't going to stop now. She sucked with as much heart and passion as she could muster, massaging and fondling his balls with one hand and herself with the other. The stars would align perfectly in just another few moments. Isaac's moans built and ascended in both volume and pitch. The sounds excited Alex so much, she giggled right through the blow job, giving him a little oral vibration. And for once in Alexandra Lorelei Philomene's life, something went perfectly right, as her vibrating giggle penetrated his fragile nerve endings just enough to send Isaac rocketing over the edge. He screamed until his lungs ached, trying to grab at anything on the bed he could to hold on as he frantically lurched and beautifully came in Alex's mouth. His shrieks of pleasure triggered Alex's eyes to shoot open, but his splashes of salty, bittersweet ejaculate all over the inside of her mouth caused them to flutter shut again and roll back in her head, speechless with the astonishing knowledge that she had just brought this man—whom she'd only known for three weeks—to marvelous orgasm, this man for whom she had grown to care so much, and now bore such deep affection. She loved him. She breathed through her nose as best she could, desperate for air but unable to release him. Finally, the last of his come squirted into her mouth and rode the waves of her saliva down her esophagus. When she realized that was all he wrote, she let his cock slip out of her mouth and drop lifelessly to his thighs. She blinked a few times, quietly clearing her throat. Wow, she thought, taking a deep breath. So that's what successful fellatio feels like. For the giver, anyhow. "Was it as good for you as it was for me, honey?" she half-joked with a chuckle. Isaac gave no answer but an audible snoozing breath. Awww, he fell asleep, realized Alexandra, not anticipating this result. But it made sense; after some of the best orgasms she gave herself, she too felt so knocked out she just wanted to doze off. She was a bit disappointed he'd no longer be able to consciously make love to her—at least for now—but he just looked so precious there in deep slumber and naked splendor, on her bed. She was... ...So happy. So this is something like how true happiness feels. ...I like it. Alex sprawled herself out alongside him, taking his hand, softly kissing each of his fingers, licked his fingertips, and slipped it between her legs. She again opened her pussy lips and granted his fingers access. When she touched and began to enter herself with his hand, she gave a silent, shut-eyed gasp. A wave of both warmth and chill crested over her and broke, shooting off a series of sparks in her body. As aroused as she already was, it didn't take much added stimulation to advance her to the no-return point. This was tricky to accomplish without waking Isaac up, but she found it hard to believe he wouldn't forgive her if she did. Alex gingerly went on jilling herself with Isaac's fingers until he would have brought her to orgasm right along with him, with no knowledge or consciousness. Quite a feat, Alexandra thought as the whirlpool of divinity swirled within her. Draining Isaac's balls had also drained much of her own stamina, but she'd held on to enough to share this evening's wonderful symposium of orgasms with her companion. Her face contorted into unfightable, prolonged desire and yearning. Just a few more seconds, and...and... Aaaaaaand... She didn't know how she did it, but she came, incredibly and magnificently...without making a sound. The concern of waking Isaac up was lost and forgotten during those several lovely moments outside of reality, but the presence of his fingers inside her was not. Her pussy could not stop thanking her for this exceptional evening. Her eyes remained open, but she had to give them a few moments to adjust for things to focus again. Now she understood Isaac's state of dead somnolence. She was just about to drift off and meet him in Dreamland, but as she did, a hundred thoughts were still flying through her ever-active mind. Oh gosh, I hope Isaac will let me be his girlfriend. I hope he enjoyed making love with me as much as I did with him. I hope he won't hate himself in the morning...or whenever he wakes up. I hope he won't mind me borrowing his fingers to get myself off. I wonder what we're going to do after this?...Oh, those hamburgers. I'm definitely gonna want some real food soon. After this, her thoughts began turning to matters which were plaguing and tormenting her prior to this point. Somehow, they didn't seem nearly as bad or intimidating anymore. Now that she and Isaac had had such glorious sex, she had a beautiful, positive experience on which to draw and validate herself when things did not go her way. Tonight was proof that life could be wonderful, and fortunate, and joyous. It may have taken virtually her entire life thus far, but fate had turned in her favor for a delightful change. Just before she fell asleep, she was met with a fantastic revelation. She didn't have to be insecure anymore. She had won Isaac's favor, and she could now rest in peace as her sister took him on her trip to London. She reminded herself that at no point had either Sasha or Isaac mentioned anything about a romantic encounter between them. Immediately before their relationship graduated to intimacy, Alex had told Isaac she'd wanted a reason not to compare herself to Sasha, and Isaac said he would give her one. She believed she had figured it out. Isaac loved Sasha, because she was a fabulous person, but he loved her as a friend, and that was it. He was not in love with her. He did not love Sasha the same way he loved her. They might go and travel together, they might share a cordial dance in Trafalgar Square, but Alexandra was no longer worried in the least about losing him. Sasha and he would do these things together...as friends! Just as she and Isaac had done in those first few weeks of their acquaintanceship. Sasha's relationship with him would pick up where Alex's left off. Isaac and Sasha would be friends, that was all, nothing more, and Alex could, and would be happy for them. She herself would have something more with Isaac, something invaluable to her. Something she'd wanted her whole life. Something not Sasha or anyone else could take away from her. Alex trusted her now. And she trusted Isaac. He could not possibly have made such splendid love to her this way were he not to be true. And she could trust life and love to no longer only hurt her. She was now blessed with ample evidence to the contrary, that her curse was, mercifully, averted. After Isaac came back home from London, they could resume their wondrous romantic escapades, in and around social class. They could go on getting to know each other, a future rife with possibilities being laid out before them. In the meantime, she could rest and go on, safe in the knowledge that she wasn't the queen of bad luck anymore. She was not a loser. She was not a failure. She did not pale pitifully in comparison to her sister. She now could believe Isaac when he told her how much Sasha really did look up to her and respect her. She didn't have to be jealous any longer. She didn't have to be caustic and pessimistic. She could begin looking up. The sunny side of life was waiting. And so was a wealth of grand moments to bask in the pleasure of her family's and friends' company.