19 comments/ 21702 views/ 9 favorites Lightning Strikes Once By: amyyum I first met Vanessa Amstel when we were going through sorority rush together the second semester of our freshman year in college. Since I'm Alisha Allison, we were next to each other alphabetically all during the ordeal. I guess that we became best friends by bonding during rush and because opposites attract; and opposites we were. Vanessa is a jock. She was on a field hockey scholarship and the star of the university field hockey team all four years, and led the nation in scoring as a senior. She is the epitome of "cute." The old cliché that if you look up "cute" in the dictionary you'd see a photo of Vanessa could actually be true in her case. Plus, she has a sculptured hard body. I'm a girly girl. I eschew all athletics, although I think that my passion is just as challenging as playing sports. I've been dancing my whole life - ballet, jazz, modern, Latin, ballroom, you name it. I'm not cute or beautiful but I am "exotic" looking. My looks really appeal to some guys, and to others I'm blah or even weird. Everyone, male or female, thinks that Vanessa is cute. Half the people think that I am exquisite, the other half think "what?" Even though I have what I have been told are beautiful dancer's legs, especially my thighs, I surely do not have anything close to Vanessa's hard body. Although she's only about an inch taller than I am she outweighs me by twenty pounds, and has only 14% body fat, comparable to 6% for a man. Vanessa and I were also vastly different in what type of guy appealed to us. I don't think that Vanessa ever dated a guy that wasn't a jock, or at least had a jock body. I, on the other hand, liked the sensitive artistic type, and male muscle never turned me on. Vanessa was a biology major and loved all sciences. I was a dance major with a minor in finance. Vanessa liked comedy clubs; I liked stage plays, especially musicals. I don't want anyone to think that we were completely different, however. We had core values that were the same. We both sincerely believed in fidelity and trust and we NEVER cheated on a boyfriend. We also were egalitarian and hated all expressions of racism, sexism, or any other type of prejudice. Vanessa and I pledged the same sorority, generally regarded as the "best" on campus - I guess that means the one with girls that the most guys liked to ogle. However, by the middle of our sophomore year we were totally disgusted by the materialism, infidelity, and prejudice practiced by the majority of our sorority sisters and we de-activated at the same time. We got a two bedroom apartment together and got to be as close as sisters by the time that we graduated. In accordance with our tastes we fell in love with and married our perfect guys. Vanessa dated Kent Watkins for eighteen months and they got married a month after we graduated. Kent was the defensive star of the #2 lacrosse team in the country, and is six feet four inches, 225 pounds, with about 7% body fat - the male hard body equivalent of Vanessa. I dated Byron Bortles for fourteen months during college and three months after graduation before we got married. Byron is a serious contemplative artsy guy with a cute face, studious glasses, and an appreciation for all things aesthetic. I was Vanessa's maid of honor; she was my matron of honor. Although Vanessa and I didn't actually "plan" it, we certainly encouraged our spouses to locate in the same city; in fact we "just happened" to start out married life in the same apartment complex. Considering how different that they were, Kent and Byron got along very well. They never would be bffs, like Vanessa and I were, but there never was any acrimony or tension between them. I think one of the reasons for that was that Kent wasn't the least bit attracted to me or me to him, and the same with Vanessa and Byron. However, I always liked Kent because I thought that he was "cultured" for a jock, and he treated Vanessa well. Vanessa also liked Byron because he always acted "normal," rather than ethereal, around her, and treated me well. Byron and I had what I considered a great sex life. He was always gentle and compassionate, and we regularly made love rather than rutting like animals. I never talked about my sex life with others, but after Vanessa had a six pack of Amstel beer (yes, that is really what she did drink - she jokingly said that she got royalties on every case consumed) she would regale me about tales of the intensely passionate and vigorous sexcapades she and Kent had. I thought that I had an amazing life. In addition to my close friendship with Vanessa - I talked to her on the phone at least every other day, and we got together, mostly with spouses but sometimes without, at least once a week - Byron and I had a nice cadre of other friends, we had jobs that we liked, and we made decent money even though we never would be multi-millionaires. My job was as the managing director of the largest for profit dance studio in the state. I not only oversaw the finances, but I hired the instructors and even taught high level classes for adults - and one ballet class for teens - myself to keep up my skills. Although Byron loved watching dance, he had two left feet and except for rock and roll impromptu shimming on the dance floor, he never danced. Despite how athletic she was, Vanessa also didn't do any more dancing than Byron, but surprisingly Kent was always willing to try new dance steps and sometimes he and I would dance a Latin dance or the waltz while Byron and Vanessa would throw out catcalls from a nearby table. After three years of marriage Vanessa and Kent - who made considerably more money than Byron and I did - bought a house about ten miles from our apartment complex. A year later Byron and I followed suit, only in a subdivision that was not as "tony" as Vanessa and Kent's but not surprisingly was only four miles away from their house. ************** Both couples had been married for around six years - we were all twenty eight at the time - and were thinking about starting families when Kent invited us to go to his company "picnic" with he and Vanessa on an early summer Saturday. Kent's company was a high class brokerage and the food, drink, and activities were sure to be spectacular, so Byron and I excitedly accepted. Despite my normal total aversion to anything athletic and despite how pathetic I was, I actually enjoyed playing beach volleyball, engaging in ring toss contests, kayaking, and playing with the kids of Kent's co-workers. Since both Vanessa and Kent were on one of my teams, and they were by far the best athletes there, I actually won a prize - my first ever for anything not having to do with dance. Byron also seemed to be having a great time. In the afternoon some clouds came up and very suddenly there was a cloudburst. Everyone ran for cover, some of us trying to hold an article of clothing, a blanket, or a piece of athletic equipment above our heads. Kent and I, along with a number of other people, ended up under a tree while Vanessa and Byron had scoped things out more intelligently before they ran for cover, and were under a pavilion's roof. When the first sound of thunder reached us I quaked in my shoes a little. Byron was yelling at us to run out from under the tree and to the pavilion. Kent and I marshalled all of the possible covers for the others under the tree - especially the kids - and sent them off to the pavilion. When they all made it Kent grabbed my hand and we started to run toward safety. I have been told, but of course do not remember, that Kent and I had taken about two steps when a bolt of lightning hit the tree we were under and jumped to us. I know that I seemed to go in and out of consciousness for some period of time before I opened my eyes in a hospital room. Byron was there, wet and without his glasses on, and with a totally distraught look on his face. When I opened my eyes he squeezed my hand, tears started to form on his cheeks, and he ran to get a doctor. Over the next day or two I found out that both Kent and I - since we were holding hands - had been hit by a "discharge" (that's what the doctors referred to it as, I don't know if it is a correct technical term) from the same bolt of lightning that hit and snapped in half the tree that we had foolishly been under. No one could tell us what our exact prognosis was, although apparently Kent and I were in about the same shape and we would both live. The managing doctor at the hospital we had been admitted to, and someone who claimed to have dealt with more than fifty victims of lightning strikes in his career, was direct: "The long term effects of lightning strikes on survivors are completely unpredictable. Ninety percent of the time there is some long term effect and ninety percent of those times the effect is negative. Only time will tell, but considering that both you and Mr. Watkins seem to be progressing nicely there doesn't seem to be any reason that you can't live basically normal lives." Vanessa wheeled me into Kent's room my second night in the hospital. Both he and I lit up when we saw each other, and confirmed that we would live. We squeezed hands and remarked about how lucky we were. We chatted, and Byron - who had been talking to the nurses about my care - soon joined us. There was something odd about how I felt as we chatted. I really couldn't put my finger on it. At one point a hallucination of Kent holding my hand and saying "I'll lead you to a better life" popped into my head. It was unsettling, especially since I wasn't religious. When Kent's bicep flexed as he pushed himself into a sitting position I felt a tingle in my spine, and he and I exchanged weird smiles. Although I was glad to be around my best friend, my husband, and Kent, I felt ill at ease. Kent and I were released after just seventy two hours in the hospital. On the drive home - together - Vanessa and Byron chatted up a storm. Kent and I remained silent, occasionally trading the same type of bizarre smiles we had exchanged in the hospital when we first saw each other after the lightning strike. Physically, I seemed to recover quickly from the incident. I was dancing almost normally within a week of being released from the hospital, and completely normally within two weeks. In fact it actually seemed - and this may have been Psychosomatic - that my flexibility had actually improved slightly, as had my skin tone. However despite my physical condition, emotionally and mentally I was having the most difficult time of my life. I was having trouble concentrating at work, and it took a lot longer to do anything that required mental acuity than it had before the lightning strike. However, by investing more time I did OK. Dancing was a nice respite because my accident didn't adversely affect that at all. More troubling than my lack of concentration at work, however, was an inability to feel at ease around the two most important people in the world to me - Byron and Vanessa. Most troubling was a completely weird and unrecognizable feeling that I had whenever Kent was around. While Byron, Vanessa, Kent and I continued to interact with the same frequency as before the lightning strike to me it wasn't the same. I was nervous and fidgety. I chalked it up to the fact that when I was around Kent my mind spun back to the traumatic experience at the picnic. ************ It was near the end of the summer when my life changed completely. In the almost three months since the lightning strike Byron and I had only had sex half a dozen times. My libido was screwed up. I only had one orgasm in those encounters, but Byron seemed to be so hurt by my lack of responsiveness that after the first two less-than-stellar encounters I faked orgasms, the first time I had ever done so in my life. I had scheduled an appointment with a psychiatrist for the next week when on a Saturday morning Vanessa called. "Hey girlfriend," she started out, "I have some good news." "I could use some," I replied with a fake giggle. "Kent says that his company had insurance for the picnic and you might be able to get some money for pain and suffering - if you had any," Vanessa continued. The "if you had any" was obviously tongue-in-cheek because she was keenly aware of my malaise. "That is good news, Vanessa; how do I go about it?" "Kent wants to know if you can come over about two this afternoon to talk about it." "Sure - if you'll have some peach tea for me," I replied, trying to seem light-hearted. "Will do," she laughed, and then hung up. I told Byron about it and asked if he wanted to come with me. "I've got too much to do around the house, honey," he replied as he was mixing up some paint in the garage. "But I'm interested to see what plays out." I got ready to go starting about one p. m. My mind seemed to be wandering and I was almost like a robot when I showered, shaved my legs and crotch, and put on a sundress. I was already at my car door when I realized that I was so absent-minded that I hadn't put on panties or a bra - very unusual for me. I convinced myself that my sundress was highly opaque and that I wouldn't be there long, so I didn't return to the house to get undergarments. When I got to Vanessa and Kent's house as was normal I just lightly knocked on the door and yelled inside "anybody home?" as I walked inside. Vanessa met me in the hallway with a smile on her face and gave me a big hug. "Hey girlfriend I've made your tea and will pour you some, but then I've got to leave." That truly distressed me. I hadn't been alone with Kent since the accident. "Uh...what's...uh...up?" I stammered. "Mom called yesterday and needs help with something. I'll be back in three or four hours then Kent and I are going out to dinner. Want to come along?" Vanessa gushed. "Uh...maybe...uh...I'll ask Byron after I talk to Kent," I responded while at the same time thinking "why didn't she tell me she wouldn't be here when she called and asked me to come over." Kent was sitting at the kitchen table. "Hi, Alisha," he chirped, giving me a big, though weird, smile. How are you feeling?" "Uh, hi, uh, Kent. I'm doing OK today; Vanessa says that you're back to 100%," I uncomfortably replied as I took a seat at the table opposite to him. "Physically, yeah," he responded. "Not mentally or emotionally yet, but I see things in the future that will change that." That comment moved me from uncomfortable to disturbed. Vanessa brought my tea over to me, fussed over me a little, kissed Kent goodbye, and took off. "So what's this about possible compensation for pain and suffering," I asked, wanting to get right to the point and then get home. Kent talked slowly about some sort of insurance issue, but I could tell that he was distracted. He was looking out the front window - which he had a clear view of from his seat - until he saw something out the window that seemed to satisfy him. "Maybe he saw Vanessa's car disappear," for some reason popped into my mind. Whatever he saw out the front window, he turned toward me and looked at me more or less like I saw a hungry lion look at a gazelle on a nature show. "Alisha; I got you here under false pretenses. There is no possible insurance payment for pain and suffering," he said. Then instead of pushing his chair back to stand up he muscled the table to the side so that there was no barrier between our chairs, then he stood up. "Ever since that lightning strike the foremost thought in my mind has been fucking your brains out - and I believe it had the same effect on you!" he more growled than said. He then literally ripped off his T-shirt and very methodically undid his belt. I felt myself flush and my breath get shallow; I'm also sure that my eyes got as big as baseballs. I couldn't take my eyes off of him. Kent's pants hit the floor. His horse cock was completely rigid and staring me in the eye. He stepped out of his pants and started slowly coming toward me. The logical part of my brain said "Run!" The emotional part of my brain said "So that's what you've been unsettled about - you want to fuck Kent and wouldn't admit it to yourself." I chastised myself for that thought, not only because it suggested that I was open to cheating, which was against my core principles - but also because I had used the word "fuck." I never swore, not even just to myself. I didn't move. Kent picked me up off my chair like I weighed nothing and planted the most passionate kiss of my life on my lips. I let my feet drop to the ground, and within seconds had thrown my arms around his neck as best that I could considering that he was almost a foot taller than I was, and returned the hunger of his kiss. Our mouth play along with his rock hard dick sticking me in the stomach caused a flow of liquid from my pussy down my thighs. After a long, intense, kiss, Kent dropped to his knees, lifted up my dress and moaned "fuck yeah," as he looked at my panty-less crotch. Suddenly my pussy was attacked by ten digits, two lips, and a tongue. I orgasmed in seconds; that didn't stop Kent or even slow him down. He not only kept up his invasion, he intensified it. I instinctively moved backwards until my back was against one of the kitchen walls, with Kent shuffling along on his knees after me. When my second orgasm hit I started clawing the wall and let out a banshee yell. My knees got weak, and I almost collapsed. Kent stood up, grabbed me by my ass cheeks, and lifted me off the ground with my back pressed against the wall. I jerked on my dress and pulled it up out of the way of his cock. The head of his dick was like a heat-seeking missile in locating the opening to my pussy. As he massaged my ass cheeks Kent slowly pushed his dick into my soaking wet cunt; I was surprised that his horse cock fit. After he rotated his hips a few times to ream my pussy, Kent started pumping. I did the best that I could to buck back while intermittently moaning, yelling "fuck yes!" and pressing my lips into his. Very quickly I felt his hot jism exploding into my anxious cunt and I screamed as the most powerful feeling of my life overtook me. My nerve endings fried; dopamine flooded my brain; my body spasmed. I seemed to go in and out of consciousness until I felt Kent's cock being extricated from my pussy and I slithered down the wall to the floor. Once my bare ass hit the tile on the kitchen floor I became fully cognizant. In just a few minutes Kent and I had both become covered by a thin layer of sweat. Kent was groaning in pleasure. His horse cock was still half hard and glistening with our combined juices. I felt a compulsion to suck it. For the first time in my life I stuck a cock into my mouth immediately after fucking. I hungrily sucked and tongued Kent's cock as his pleasure moans increased in frequency and strength. After a few minutes he grumbled "take off your dress!" I temporarily removed his cock from my mouth and lifted up my arms. He grabbed my dress and pulled it over my head. Once my chest was unencumbered by clothing I immediately went back after his cock. As I sucked his tool and manipulated his heavy testicles with both hands Kent alternately twisted my nipples and squeezed my boobs. After several minutes of this mutual pleasure Kent stood up, lifted me off the ground, and carried me into his living room. He tossed me onto the couch then pulled my ass and thighs off of it so that my knees were on the ground and my torso on the couch cushions. Then he lined up his once more rock hard cock, and penetrated my pussy a second time. Every nerve receptor in my body was energized as Kent alternately slowly stroked in and out, rotated counterclockwise, and pumped vigorously, all the while manipulating a tit with one hand, and playing with my asshole with fingers of the other hand. Lightning Strikes Once Even though I went through several really nice orgasms this time Kent must have worked on me for a good twenty minutes before I felt him stiffen and groan as he unloaded another large wad of cum into my pussy while concurrently shoving two fingers into my sweat-lubricated pucker-hole. My orgasm that was simultaneous with his was just as powerful as the one I had against the kitchen wall, and wonderfully I again went in and out of awareness. When I regained complete cognizance Kent had his arm around me while we both sat on the living room carpet, leaning against the couch. "WOW - you didn't disappoint, Alisha. That was the best sexual experience of my life," Kent said with an enormous grin. I pulled his face to mine and kissed him ardently. "I never knew I could cum so hard," I mumbled between kisses. After more expressions of mutual pleasure and gratitude we massaged each other's bodies, occasionally emitting satisfying sounds, but not really talking. I finally got enough presence of mind to look at my watch. It was four o'clock - we had been at it for two hours. "I have to leave, Kent; I'm not sure what the future holds, but I want to fuck again," I said, not even really realizing what was coming out of my mouth. "Wild horses couldn't keep me away," he replied with a big smile. "I'll call your cell this week." Kent smoothed out my dress after I put it on, and then told me "Go into the bathroom and wash off your face and straighten your hair a little. You have a just-engaged-in-incredible-sexual-activity look." "I wonder why," I giggled - my first spontaneous giggle since my hospital stay. Kent was still naked when I left. I kissed his horse cock goodbye, but evaded his grasp as my lips on his member caused it to twitch. As I drove home, made dinner for Byron, showered, and snuggled up to Byron as we watched TV, I was euphoric. I honestly don't think that I had ever felt better in my life. It didn't last. I woke up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat. I snapped my eyes open and I wondered how in the hell I could have gone against my core principles. I had never even come close to cheating before, and after betraying both my husband and my best friend I had been euphoric for hours. What in the fuck was wrong with me? I didn't get any more sleep that night. Byron worried about my health because of my drag-ass demeanor the next morning. My guilt consumed me. I was close to worthless all day Sunday, and the entire morning at work on Monday. The only thing that snapped me out of it was a robot reminder call from my shrink's office. "You have an appointment... Wednesday... at... 8:30 a.m... with Dr. Patterson. Please arrive twenty minutes early to fill out forms" the voice said. I had forgotten all about my appointment. Now it would be different than I had envisioned, but I had hope that I would be able to overcome my malaise without any further cheating. I was productive Monday afternoon, had a reasonable phone conversation with Vanessa, and was mostly affectionate to Byron that evening. Plus, I actually got some sleep Monday night. My hopes for a clean break and no repeat with Kent took a real hit when he called me Tuesday morning and invited me to lunch. I couldn't believe the effect his voice had on me. I started slightly shaking, I got a knot in my stomach, and my pussy started leaking. I told myself to accept his invitation and just use that as an opportunity to break it off with Kent. Ha! I met Kent at noon at a coffee shop in a condo building. After a few minutes of nervous chit-chat Kent said "My company has an apartment in this building. Why don't we grab a sandwich and go upstairs." Warning bells were peeling in the logical part of my brain. Just like on Saturday, however, the emotional part of my brain overruled the logical part. Once we got into the apartment on the sixth floor I weakly protested for only about ninety seconds before I let Kent disrobe me and I stripped him. We engaged in a frisky sixty-nine where I worshipped his cock and balls and he energized my pussy. With Kent actually laying on his back on the bed in the apartment I virtually jumped in the air and landed on his upright cock, and was fully impaled within seconds. I squeezed his nipples as he squeezed mine. With a creativity that I didn't know that I had, after I recovered from a first orgasm I spun my body around without Kent's cock disengaging, then rode him reverse cowgirl. As I did that I fondled his balls and he fingered my asshole. When he drove his hips completely off the bed as his first spurt of cum started to fill my vagina I went over the top and almost blacked out again. I did remain cognizant enough to thoroughly enjoy the next four shots into my pussy. As we kissed goodbye forty five minutes and a missionary fuck later Kent said "We can use this place two or three times a week." In a rare moment of clarity I responded "I'm going to see a shrink tomorrow to try to get my life back to where it was before we got struck by lightning." "You mean at the picnic or Saturday against my kitchen wall - which lightning strike," he grinned. "The bad one," I giggled. "This isn't me, Kent; I have to get back to my old self." "Let's meet for lunch on Friday and you can tell me about your appointment," he said before planting another passionate kiss on my face. I left the apartment; as I exited Kent was cleaning up with the intention of leaving ten minutes later. I again was in a state of euphoria, until just before bedtime that night. When the pleasure chemicals that the sex with Kent had given me wore off it was about ten that night. Again, wracked by guilt because of my dual betrayal, I barely slept at all, and had to look really bad when I showed up at the psychiatrist's office at 8:10 Wednesday morning. I wasn't sure how much I was going to tell Dr. Patterson; I planned on holding back my four other-worldly fucks with Kent and just deal with my pre-Kent problems, but she was easy to talk to. I ended up telling all. She let me talk for fifty minutes with only a few interruptions. When I finally finished what I had to say she had some initial comments. "Alisha, I've dealt with several other patients who have had problems after being hit by lightning or being shocked by high voltage lines. I'm also familiar with literature on the subject. I have heard of a fair percentage of victims having reduced libido - which would explain the situation with your husband. However, your sexual fixation and lack of control when it comes to your best friend's husband is beyond anything in my experience or that I have read about," she said. "I'm a freak, huh?" I replied. "Maybe," she smiled. "I'm going to do further research and talk to some of my colleagues about it. In the meantime, you need to use as much will power as you have to avoid one-on-one contact with your best friend's husband." "I have plenty of will power," I cynically replied. "It's the lack of 'won't' power that I'm worried about." I really did try to back out of my Friday "lunch" with Kent. I really did. He kept me talking on the phone too long, however, and my resolve diminished. "At lunch we'll talk about where we go from here, and if we break it off, so be it" was his last comment. "OK," I sighed. "See you Friday at noon." Shockingly, Friday we were naked in the condo apartment and trying to fuck each other's brains out within five minutes of meeting in the coffee house. I didn't even have a chance to remove all of my clothes before his cock was pulsating in my willing pussy. **************** The next several months were a roller coaster ride for me. For a day or two after talking to my shrink each time I thought that I could not only break it off with Kent but I had hope to return to my old self, faithful to Byron and Vanessa. However, I continued to fuck Kent two or three times a week at lunch. Each time I made the ridiculous assertion that "We have to stop this." His standard response was "I can't live without these sessions." I would feel ecstatic for eight to ten hours after every fuck session with Kent, and then be morose and feel guilty until my next appointment with Dr. Patterson. In an attempt to shock us apart, Dr. Patterson suggested that I bring Kent with me to one of the sessions with her. It was surprisingly easy to talk him into doing that. The end result of that was hopelessness, however. At the end of the joint session with Dr. Patterson we told her that we would do our best to stay away from each other, including not even calling each other for luncheon meetings. As we left her office, we walked to Kent's car - a big Mercedes - parked at a far corner of the parking lot of Dr. Patterson's building. As we hugged goodbye an overpowering feeling came over me. I opened the front passenger's door and moved the seat up all the way. Then I opened up the back door. "What are you doing Alisha?" Kent asked, truly perplexed. "Sit in the back seat," I ordered. He did. I climbed on top of him, closed the door, fished out his horse cock, and got it hard with just a few strokes from my tiny hand. Then I moved my panties to the side, lowered my expectant pussy on top of his upright flagpole, and we proceeded to vigorously fuck to another simultaneous over-the-top orgasm. After that, I knew that it was impossible to break away from Kent unless something drastic happened. We were addicted to each other. I have never taken drugs, but from what I know I assume that I had the same relationship with Kent than an addict has with heroin. I stopped seeing Dr. Patterson because of my hopeless condition. In my addled brain I thought that the only way back to respectability was for me to get hit by lightning again. I took to walking with a metal umbrella and metal cane during thunderstorms. After the third time that I did that, Byron got me involuntarily committed to a mental hospital. However, within less than a day after my admission I was completely lucid and convinced the hospital that I wasn't nuts. After my mental hospital stay I went through three more therapists of different types trying to figure a way out of my situation and to get back to the person that I had been before the lightning strike. None of them helped much. A holistic therapist was the only one who ventured an explanation for my situation. "Since you were holding hands with Kent when the lightning struck you, your libidos melded and there is nothing that will ever separate you," she said with a dreamy look on her face. I didn't want to believe that and chalked it up to psychobabble. Within eleven months after the lightning strike I was convinced that I would never be the same as I was before it, although not for the reason that the holistic therapist espoused. I had to accept my new reality. It wasn't fair to Byron - who was trying hard to accommodate the new me although it was very difficult on him - or to Vanessa - who realized that I had significant problems, although she had no clue about what the main one was. I also knew from discussions with both Kent and Vanessa that they were almost in the same boat that Byron and I were in. Fortuitously I had to travel to a city nine hundred miles away on business. I got Kent to "need" a business trip to the same city, overlapping mine. After we spent the first night we ever had together - and had four truly delicious, magnificent, fucks by eight the next morning - we had a heart-to-heart. "Kent; I'm going to divorce Byron and leave town. I'm moving fifteen hundred miles away. Once the divorce goes through I'll change my name and try to start over. I can't betray Byron or Vanessa any further. I've contemplated suicide and I'm afraid that I'll eventually resort to that, or destroy Byron and Vanessa when they eventually find out about us," I was able to choke out with tears in my eyes. "I can't live without you, Alisha," Kent said as he held my hands in one of his, and wiped my tears with the other. "Those aren't just words - it's the truth." "What do we do, then? I can't go on betraying my husband and best friend," I cried. We discussed options, including faking our deaths on a joint canoe trip with Byron and Vanessa; and many other hair-brained schemes. Finally we came up with something that we thought could work - it would be hard on us, but would likely result in the least pain for Vanessa and Byron. **************** Ten days after I got back from my business trip, a Friday, I made love to Byron the best that I could. I didn't have an orgasm, but I did a great job of faking it. Then I hit him with that part of my plan that I was willing to reveal; with genuine tears in my eyes! "Byron. I've tried everything; Dr. Patterson, other therapists, the mental hospital; I'm not the same woman that you married. I never will be. The lightning strike has screwed up my libido; it's changed what's important to me and what isn't; and it's made me into someone that I don't like or respect. You're too loyal and too stand-up a guy to dump me, like you should. Therefore I'm filing for divorce - giving you everything - and getting out of your life." Byron made a perfunctory attempt to talk me out of it. I appreciated that, but obviously he knew that I was finally doing the right thing. The next morning I gave him the no-fault divorce papers that I had already signed. It left everything to him except for my most personal possessions and enough money for me to live on for three months regardless of other circumstances. He asked me to take more - I refused. That afternoon, when I knew that Kent wouldn't be there, I went to see Vanessa. I cried for fifteen minutes before I was able to pull it together and tell her what I needed to. When I did, she cried with me. "I'm so, so sorry that I'm not the friend that you deserve," I blabbered. Vanessa tried to assure me that I was - "if only she knew," I thought, then cried some more. We had been best friends for more than a decade, and now, after my betrayal, I was walking out of her life. "Please tell Kent my decision to leave," were my last words to her. "He'll be sad," Vanessa replied, "he has always liked you." Again I thought, "if only she knew," then got in my car and left. Monday I quit work in the morning (I had already lined up and prepped a qualified successor) and by the afternoon I was driving to my new home, fifteen hundred miles away. I had a line on a cheap apartment with a month-to-month lease, and by the next evening had rented it, purchased a cheap single bed, and moved my meager belongings in. To make sure that my three months' supply of money would last much longer than that I needed a job. Despite my lack of experience, my thighs got me a job as a cocktail waitress at a high end bar. I worked seven nights a week to keep my mind off of my situation and quickly learned how to dissuade "interested" customers while remaining pleasant enough to ensure decent tips. To keep occupied during the day I went to a dance studio and regularly worked out. The proprietor quickly recognized my talent and after a week of first visiting there I started work as a part-time dance instructor. I talked to Kent on the phone every other day. I was so hoping that he would stick to our plan, and based upon our conversations I was certain that he would. Three months to the day that I had rented my apartment I excitedly answered a rapid knock on my door. It was Kent, fresh from quitting his job and having made a speech to Vanessa similar to the one that I made to Byron. The way that I felt when he held me in my arms that night, and when we made love twice in addition to rutting once, made me believe that everything would be OK for us in the future. I quit my jobs the next day and within a week we had moved to yet another city, five hundred miles further from our original home. *************** Kent's knock on my door was three years ago. Once both of our divorces were final we legally changed our names. I'm now Kathy Burns, and he's Justin Cleaver. I found a therapist that got me to accept the right outlook on life. He told me "Even though it may be psychobabble, there is no reason for you not to believe that when you and Justin were hit by lightning when holding hands that that bonded you two together forever. Alisha Allison is dead. Mourn her death for a month, and then let Kathy Burns live a rewarding life free from the past." I've taken his advice and now I am happier than I ever have been given my unequivocal love for Justin. I have another reason to be happy. I just found out that I'm pregnant and Justin and I will be married in a simple civil ceremony next week. Vanessa and Byron never found out about us, and we intend to keep it that way. Our suburban home has lightning rods on it, and I now run for cover at the slightest indication of an approaching thunderstorm. Now that I'm finally at peace I can't get hit by lightning again!