An adult stories – Reignition by shakna,shakna “You want this girl to stay with me?” Ivan said into his phone.
“You have that whole place to yourself.” Harry replied, his voice scratching with static from the poor signal, “You can’t make room for just one friend?”
He gave a sigh, “It’s a Lonsdale street apartment. I can shit into the toilet from my shower.”
“Doubt she wants to share the bathroom.”
An apartment in Melbourne CBD is never very comfortable. They exist for the convenience of working, for those that never really want to go home. Fitting anything larger than a double bed wasn’t possible. Nor was it cheap.
Having anyone come and crash at his place wasn’t really something Ivan had ever done, because it was a single bedroom hole in the wall. Not something to celebrate and spin into a neighbourhood party.
“Look, I promise you she isn’t a kid. She can take care of herself.” Harry tried to encourage him, “Besides, who doesn’t want a gal around the place? You gotta get a bit lonely.”
“I work. That’s enough for me.”
Harry gave a heavy sigh, “That’s really the point of it all, is it?… Look, just… Help her out, would you? I know she’s a stranger, but I owe her.”
Ivan winced instantly. When it came to owing someone, he owed Harry more than he could ever reasonably repay. After their graduation, it was Harry who had kept him alive, after the car accident. Man’s hands on his chest, had been all that kept him around.
Not that Harry would ever bring it up.
Ivan fingered the scar on his chest, through his shirt, and gave a heavy sigh, “Well, if she’s happy living with a total stranger, and a guy at that, I’ll try and make it work.”
“I promise you, Grace is an angel.”
(TG)
“G-grace?”
Two weeks after Harry’s call, Ivan found himself looking at a young woman on his doorstep. She was towing a travel bag that was bright pink, and featured a unicorn, but her outfit was more fitting to her age.
A short black skirt, featuring an edge of roses. A grey pullover hoodie with a picture of a metal band, drinking something out of skulls. Lace-up boots that went all the way up to her knees.
Her hair was also dyed black, with a left fringe of purple. But seeing her green eyes, he remembered the hair being blonde. He remembered her grinning with a lopsided tooth, even though it was now straight. Same grin, but dentist’s had been at it.
She was grinning that grin, right now. “Oh. My. God! Ivy? Holy shit! Ivy!”
“It’s Ivan.” He winced at her childhood nickname for him, but stepped back from the door to let her in.
Instead of going by, though, she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged in tight. He smelled blackberries. “Thankyou, so much, Ivy.”
Grace leaned back, shook her head with a grin, and then walked her case into the tiny apartment. She leaned it up against the wall, and spun around with a flaring of her skirt. “Holy shit. Guess we’re both friends with ol’ Harry, then?”
“Met him at uni. We were… Trouble.” Ivan said, “How’d you meet him?”
“One of those troublesome nights.” She snorted, “Wow. My childhood boyfriend, all mine again. You better not get any ideas.”
“No ideas.” Ivan held up his hands nervously.
Grace gave a chuckle, but it seemed almost forced. Like she was building up her courage.
The two of them were in the main part of the apartment. Half of the open space was taken up with a desk, chair, and a single corner off a modular couch. The other half was fridge, stove, and bench worktop.
Two doors led off to the bedroom, and to the bathroom. Grace took it all in, and put both her hands into the front pocket of her hoodie, biting the corner of her lip nervously.
“I tried to warn Harry that it was tiny. Sorry.”
Grace shook her head, and sat up on the edge of the kitchen bench, “No, it’s okay. Actually, it’s kind of amazing. Two minute tram to the station, and I’m walking distance from work.”
“And all the garbage restaurants you can dream of, within walking distance.”
She grinned, “It’s Melbourne. Real Melbourne, not the suburbs. I don’t think your apartment could be terrible.”
“Still tiny.”
Grace shook her head, “I can’t thank you enough for this, Ivy. I know Harry probably forced you into this, and I’m sorry, but… I really didn’t have any other option.”
“It’s fine.” Ivan answered, “So long as we can make it work. Besides, it’s… You. I think we’ve got some catching up to do. Preferably with that.”
He pointed over at a small black box sitting under his tiny TV. It was the same game console he’d been given for his birthday by his parents, back when the two of them had still been working out what the difference was between boys and girls, and whether that should really be as significant as people treated it.
“Hell to the yeah!” Grace lit up excitedly, “Backstreet… Whatever. The beat ’em up thing we used to play! I can’t wait to kick your butt, like old times.”
Before they could launch right into the nostalgia, Ivan felt the need to be a little bit of a downer. “So… Um… I don’t exactly have a bedroom. Or… A bed for you.”
“Oh. Yeah.”
He shrugged, “I’ll be working most of the time, and we can trade the bedroom every couple of days or something. But… I grabbed a lilo. It’s beside… What I generously call my couch.”
She hopped down and skipped over, picking up the flat roll of plastic, “I should be at my internship most of the time, too. But I’m more than happy to sleep on this, no need for swapsies.”
“We’ll see how we go.” Ivan said, “And hey, maybe you’ll meet someone, and end up crashing at their place. Girl like you, city like this, it’s the horizons, right?”
Grace gave him a really odd look, but didn’t respond. His fault, he had probably just made things awkward, and seeming like he didn’t want her there.
Which wasn’t true, he just wanted something better for her.
(92)
The first few days were awkward.
Grace and Ivan shared memories of putting bandaids on each other’s knees, following falling over across the asphalt of the school yard. But now that they were both adults, there really wasn’t a lot to go on. They were strangers who just happened to know each other’s names.
And schoolyard crushes.
The size of the apartment did not help. Whatever moments the two of them had together, were filled with awkward accidents, and more uncomfortable incidents. The wooden hardness of a suited shoe upon bare toes, or an almost-boiling coffee down a shirtfront, it seemed like the only things they said to each other was apologies.
The awkwardness did not stop there, either.
At the start of the second week, Ivan was in the shower, just stepping in after his morning run around the block and still breathing hard, when the door cracked open.
“Shit!” He said in surprise, looking through the glass door at the girl whose cheeks were suddenly, entirely, bright red.
Grace slammed the door, and screamed a sorry, which also immediately had a neighbour yell at them about the noise.
Ivan went to breathe a sigh of relief, when the door cracked open a little. He frowned, looking at the eye in the doorway, “Grace…?”
“I…” She said, looking down, and whispered something he didn’t catch.
He turned the shower off, and leaned on the wall so he could see her better, “Try again?”
“I need to pee!” She said quickly, nervously.
“One second.”
Ivan grabbed his towel and wrapped, before opening the door and letting her in. She seemed still stuck in shock, so he had to edge around her, his bare chest brushing up against her, before she suddenly bolted in and shut the door.
That was probably the moment when he first realised he was sharing his home with someone who… In other circumstances… He would probably be asking out on a date.
(ZS)
Grace returned the favour, that weekend.
Ivan was in his bedroom, eyes rolling with exhuastion as he took an emergency work call. It was supposed to be his time off, but they did not seem to know what the heck they were doing without him there to hold their hand through it.
Frustrated by the end, he opened the door to go grab a beer from the fridge, and was instantly confronted by the sight of Grace’s naked calves.
She had laid out the pajamas across the couch, and had stripped down into exactly nothing. Her hair was hanging down her back, swashing back and forth above her perfectly symmetrical backside, and she was humming a pop song to herself.
“Shit.” Ivan said, and mirrored her, stepping backwards and slamming the door.
“Oi! No peeking!” Grace called out with a nervous laugh.
(Bp)
The next morning, at breakfast, Ivan thought that they might need to talk about it. “Sorry, about last night. Again.”
Grace went red, and mumbled something as she dipped her spoon into the chocolate rice pops of childhood, that nobody could tell you off for eating as an adult.
“I think… We might need some ground rules. Something to know when one of us is changing, so we can’t walk in on each other?”
She winced, “I thought about it, but… You were on a call. I didn’t want to make your boss angry, or whatever. It sounded intense.”
“Intense, yeah.” He frowned, thinking, “Maybe… I should knock, before I leave the bedroom.”
“Knock before leaving your own bedroom?” Grace said dubiously.
“Entering yours.”
She shrugged, poking at her breakfast, “My body isn’t so terrible you need to run from it. Maybe.”
“Your body is amazing.” Ivan said in shock.
She gave a tiny smile, “Really? Not what the last guy said. But you’re not bad either! That chest is solid, and… Running works for you.”
Ivan’s thinking stumbled, as he tried to work out which half of those incredible statements to respond to, but instead he said, “Housemates probably shouldn’t say those things about each other.”
“No, but…” Grace put down her spoon and shrugged, “Look, living here, like this, it’s going to let things happen. It shouldn’t be a big deal. It won’t be, unless we treat it that way. You’re going to see me again, and I’m going to see you. Maybe even what’s between those legs. It’ll happen. We just need to… Make it work.”
He was shocked. He would have thought most people in her position would throw a right fit about being violated. Instead, she was being mature, and just looking to make it work. She was taking everything in stride, and he was the one making it a thing.
“That… Makes sense.”
She gave a small smile, “That doesn’t mean you get to perv whenever you want.”
“Grace!”
(cy)
The two of them settled into an easy routine.
They did still occasionally walk in on each other, but it stopped being a big deal. An apology and turnabout foot was all it was. It helped that Grace’s internship, and Ivan’s job, just about ran the both of them into the ground.
Ivan was working six to seven days a week, a full ten hours every day. He didn’t have a lot of time to see her. Despite the offer of it, neither of them had played a game on the console since that first day, and certainly not together.
They just didn’t have the time.
The most they ever saw each other, was at the breakfast table. Or rather, Ivan leaning on the kitchen bench and scoffing down his food, whilst Grace brushed her hair with one hand and tried to beat him in a race to cram down the necessary calories to get through the day.
Watching TV on the weekends was something they did together. Usually Ivan would give her the couch, and lean up alongside it, but sometimes they’d swap and Grace would end up falling asleep with her head falling onto his legs.
They found a certain equilibrium to it all, tired and exhausted, but living in the same space.
Right up, until Grace caught him.
(B0)
Ivan was lying back in the bed, laptop lying beside him on the bed, one hand wrapped around his rather private piece.
He was in full flow, right near the tipping point, feeling the familiar stir deep inside his balls, when the door flew all the way open.
“Hey, Ivy! I just found the recipe! I…” She trailed off, mouth falling open.
He clenched his eyes shut and grabbed the pillow from behind his head to slam it across his privates.
“I’m… So sorry.” Grace said, the cringe plain in her voice. But she didn’t leave the doorway.
“Uh… Grace?”
“Right. Sorry. Uh… I was about to try and make some cookies? You remember the girl scouts cookies you always used to bum off me? I found the recipe! I thought we could watch a movie with them and… You know… Nostalgia…?”
“Grace!” Ivan snapped, eyes opening to stare at her.
She did actually look embarrassed, for how oblivious she was sounding. It took Grace a heartbeat before she suddenly realised, “Oh. Right.”
The door closed slowly, clicking shut quietly, as she slowly retreated. Far too slowly for his tastes. It had, however, absolutely killed the hard-on he’d had. That wasn’t coming back anytime soon.
Not that she wasn’t alluring. She was absolutely attractive, and might have been edging into his thoughts during his private times. But getting caught was not in Ivan’s turn-ons, and he didn’t know how it could be for anyone.
More than the embarrassment, though, his thoughts turned over to the relative stranger in his house. She’d just caught him in a rather private moment, and then behaved a little bit like an air head.
There was every chance she was freaking out in the main room of the apartment.
Ivan weighed it in his mind, moving back and forth several times. If he went out there, he could make it infinitely worse. Trying to talk about it could be the wrong move. It might be easier to drop it, forget it, and never mention it again.
However, he remembered Grace being a sensitive sort of girl. She put on a big front, and could trash talk with the best of them. Still, she was the kind of girl to pick a fight with the opposite team, and then be found crying in the shower by herself.
He cleaned up, pulled on a t-shirt and some trackies, before slowly coming out to the loungeroom.
He found Grace sitting by herself, curled up into a ball on the couch, staring at the black screen of the TV.
She looked up with a fright as she noticed him, “Ivan, I -”
“S’okay.” He held up his hands quickly, “Like you said. These things are going to happen. Just coming to apologise that you saw me like that. Saw… Yeah. Let’s not go there.”
“I’m the one who is sorry.” Grace cringed.
There was something about her that just seemed off to him, and Ivan did something he would never usually do. He crossed to her, bent over, and put his arms around her in a hug.
Grace immediately burst into tears, both breaking his heart and sending such a shock through him that he could swear his hair went saiyan.
“I’m ruining it all.” Grace sobbed, “You and this city… I can’t even remember the right coffees… And then I come here and you can’t even… You can’t be… A boy… Without me interrupting you.”
“Tough day, at work?” He asked, holding her lightly.
Grace gave a bitter laugh, “The fuck is the difference between a latte and a cappuccino? Is it really worth threatening to fire the shitty intern?”
“Melbourneans are coffee snobs.” He said and gave her a squeeze, before joking, “But, really. There’s a huge difference.”
Grace looked up at him with a red-eyed glare, “Shuddup.”
He grinned, “So… You want me to make you a cap?”
“Mocha.” She looked down, and glumly whispered, “I know that makes me a coffee-snobs worst shitstain on the bottom of their boot, but… It’s what I like.”
“Someone had to invent the damn thing. Of course there are people who like to drink it.” Ivan said reassuringly, and leaned up, before instinctively tousling her hair, “You’re doing fine.”
“It’s not fine.” Grace said, leaning over the couch to watch him, “You’ve had to change your whole life, for me. You can’t even piss privately! You can’t bring home any girls. You… Deserve to be able to hate me.”
Ivan called out over the boiling kettle, “Wasn’t doing that, before you got here, either.”
“Bringing girls over?”
“Yup.” He nodded, “I haven’t actually been on a date in… Five, six years? Not since I started this job. I guess I… Got caught up in all the career things and it was just… Too hard.”
It wasn’t as if he’d lost his urges, of course. The moment earlier was proof of that. However, he’d just never been interested in dating apps, and he wasn’t interested in a one night stand, either. He wanted a connection, but that took time and effort he didn’t have anymore.
Occasionally, in the horrors of post-coital clarity, he wondered how long it would be before he bought a dog and called an end to ever trying again.
“So, you’re not ruining anything.” He said, turning to her with a smile. “Having anybody to come home to, is kind of nice.”
“Even if it’s this dork?” She said sceptically.
Ivan laughed, “Who the heck calls you a dork? You’re just about a model.”
“Who likes computer games.” She pointed out. “And if you have to really know… Every single damn person at work. All of them call me the dorky whiner behind my back. I try and be so nice, and not complain at all about everything they get the useless intern to do… But… I’m apparently the worst complaint in the office.”
Ivan moved back to her, and crouched in front of her, “Hey now, that’s total rubbish. Who cares what those idiots think? You’re amazing, and right on the cusp of living the dream. You’re a lot of things, but a dork is not one of them.”
“You barely even know me, Ivy.” She said with a heavy sigh.
He nodded, “That’s fair. But I do like what I’ve seen so far. You’re working your butt off in a Melbourne firm, so you’re driven, and you’re smart enough to get your foot in the door. The last couple months must have been hell, but you’ve made it look easy. You’ve also made me laugh, and made me think, which does make me want to know you better. What more do I need to know about you?”
Grace jumped forward, hugging him, and pressing her face into the side of his neck with a heavy sniffle. “Thanks. You’re the best.”
He struggled not to fall over, with the bundle suddenly in his arms. He held her tight, and then leaned back and tried to make light of everything, because he wasn’t that great with deep and meaningful emotions. “Nah. And with how close we’re living, I s’pose it won’t be long until I catch you, at what… I just did.”
Her face went bright red, and she pushed on his shoulder, knocking him over. “Hey! I… I actually don’t… Do that.”
He looked up at from his hands and wrists, “Huh? Wait. Everyone does that. Even grandma does.”
“Ew!”
“Old people get more STDs than anybody else.” Ivan laughed, “It’s true, though. Nothing wrong with working out a little frustration. Hell, I’m pretty sure there’s some Song of Solomon stuff that talks about it.”
“You still can’t say the word.” She pointed out.
He shrugged, “Urges are altogether normal.”
“I… I’ve just never really got into it.”
Ivan hesitated instantly, wondering if he was pushing something ‘all natural’ on someone who might actually be asexual. He might be messing her up, instead of helping her out. There was every chance, and he didn’t want her thinking that she was sick or unusual.
“Do you… Have urges?” He asked cautiously, “It’s okay, if you don’t. That can be normal. I’m not trying to be a bigot.”
Grace burst out laughing, “No, I’m not ace. Actually, if you wanna run down that street, I’m pretty sure that I’m bi. One of my bosses at work, she treats me like absolute shit, but… Damn, if she ain’t hot. She is hot as fuck. But a bitch.”
“You into that?”
“No! No way!” She stared at him, “No. I like to be treated just right. When a guy does everything to let you know he thinks you’re worth it, that… That lights a fucking fire. See, I’m sexual.”
He blinked, “You ever dated a girl?”
“Mostly guys.” She shrugged, “I’ve dated a couple girls. But with the internship, and living here… Nothing’s gonna happen until I save enough for my own place. Still got desires though…”
She hesitated, and Ivan looked at her curiously, “Something on your mind?”
“Um…” Grace went bright red, “So… Seeing you tonight… I guess that was one way to make sure I know I ain’t ace. And weirdly, it kinda made me feel better. Knowing I’m not ruining everything for you, either.”
Ivan stood up to finish making her drink, “Well, so long as we’re both okay with rubbing one out, now and then.”
“No judgement here, but…” Grace gave a heavy sigh, “It just doesn’t really work that way for me. I can lie back and try, but my mind darts all over the place, and I just think about stuff left undone at work, or how much of a bitch my boss will be, and touching myself just ends up feeling weird.”
Ivan tried to go clinical, and not picture her in his own frustrated and horny mind. “Have you… Maybe tried… Uh… Other stimulus?”
“Like… Toys?” Grace asked cluelessly.
He occupied himself by stirring her drink, making sure it was full dissolved, so he wouldn’t look at her adorable curious face. “Sure. Or maybe, if you can’t focus on your thoughts, watching stuff?”
“Porn creeps me out. It’s either really fake, or really freaking weird.” Grace shook her head.
“There’s more things than just videos.”
Grace shifted, “There is?”
He brought her drink over carefully, making extra care not to spill it, and not to look at her. “Well, um… When you caught me, before. That wasn’t to a video.”
“You had your computer.” She said in surprise, taking the drink and staring right at him.
Ivan realised he couldn’t exactly sit crosslegged in front of her. Right now, it was just at the edge of things, but his incomplete moment was coming back to haunt him. It was a raging semi, and tracksuit pants hide absolutely nothing.
He decided to sit up on the bench, hopefully raising himself above her line of sight. Shrugging, and saying, “Porn doesn’t work for me, either. Not really. Hard to get off to a fake moan, when that’s when you realise you’re doing it wrong with your partner.”
“Mmm.” She nodded expectantly.
“So instead, I… Read stuff.”
Grace cocked her head, “Like romance books?”
“Sort of. Not really.” Ivan stumbled, not sure how to introduce someone to erotica for the first time. He gave up on finding the words and jumped down from the bench, “Two seconds.”
He went back to the bedroom, and came out with his laptop, turning it around as he walked over to present it to the innocent woman living in his house.
She looked at it curiously, before her eyes went wide, “Wow. Oh. People… Write sex stuff?”
“Erotica.” He said with a swallow, especially as he just remembered what kind of story he was showing to her. “It’s… Dirty stories. Works for me. Both imagination, and something to focus on, if that makes sense. Uhm… I hope it hasn’t creeped you out?”
“No, it’s fine.” She said, eyes glued to the screen in front of her, “It’s actually… Maybe romantic. Nobody has ever shared this kind of thing with me before. Most romantic thing anyone has ever done.”
“I don’t think it’s romantic.” Ivan shook his head.
She hesitated, and then pulled out her phone, typing quickly and pulling up the familiar colours of the website on it. “Thanks.”
He took back the laptop, “So… After all that… I think I’m going to head back to bed. It might feel weird to watch a movie, after that.”
“Yeah.” She nodded, looking up, “I might still make cookies. Something to take into work, in the morning. Win over some dickheads, maybe. But… Knock before you need to come in?”
Ivan heard the subtext there, and nodded, heading for his room. “Goodnight, Grace.”
“You too, Ivy. And… Thanks. Most people might find this too awkward.” She said softly, “I hope… You know that you make me feel lucky. Special. Sorry that I’ve taken up so much of your space.”
“Thanks.” He replied.
The door closed, his earlier thoughts, barely restrained, suddenly tumbled forth, and the ache that told him of the interruption raged away.
Ten minutes later, the guilt was heavy.
(aG)
A couple days passed, and the website fell into the background. Neither of them mentioned Grace’s new education, and neither of them caught each other.
It was not altogether forgotten for Ivan, but he tended not to indulge his dirtier thoughts, every single time they came around.
He was mostly too busy with his work to let it come up, and it was relegated to late night thoughts. They had crossed a couple of lines, that they probably shouldn’t, but it didn’t seem to have played out into a big deal. Neither of them pressed on the boundaries any further.
However, in those few days, summer arrived.
Melbourne became instantly, blisteringly, hot. The entire city seemed to sweat, as every piece of glass and metal became capable of burning you with an incautious touch.
The buildings trapped the heat, turning the streets into a muggy sweatbox. The trams and trains struggled with their aircon, making them of little relief. In fact, the only relief that Ivan could find, was at his work.
Unfortunately, with the way the mercury pushed up into the early forties, the aircon in their apartment building spluttered out and gave up the ghost. The building managers said it was on their urgent priority list, but freezing ice became a morning chore.
The two of them sat around at home, with their feet in ice water, lying against the walls, as the couch was too hot, and stared at the ceiling and rethought the process that had led them to this life.
Neither Ivan nor Grace said anything about it, but both slowly started to wear less around the apartment.
At first, it was just switching out of a shirt and into a tank-top, but the absolutely brutal heat soon had Grace in a bra and shorts. Ivan made no comment, and shed his own top.
Exposing the muscles he tried so hard to maintain, and utterly failed to prevent the little pouch at the bottom of his stomach. It was no worse than at the beach, a place that he thought about often, in this sort of heat.
Now and then, he caught Grace glancing at the scar running down the middle of his chest. But if she wasn’t asking about it, then he wasn’t interested in talking about it.
Unfortunately, the heatwave showed no signs of stopping, and the two of them found themselves watching TV from opposite sides of the room, usually in wilted silence.
A full two weeks from the beginning of the scorching sun, the two of them were watching some reality show, when two of the contestants starting hooking up, and forcefully at that.
She was grinding away in his lap, both arms behind his neck, as he explored every nook and cranny of her mouth. To be frank, it didn’t actually look that comfortable, but it was certainly desperate.
Ivan stood up, his back making a sucking sound against the wall as he did. “I’m headed to bed.”
“You gonna read?” Grace said with a smirk.
“Are you?”
Grace went red, and looked down, “I… Might. I mean… I’ve looked at a few things, but… There’s a lot. And so much of it is crap, but maybe a nugget or two? I… I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed?”
Ivan heard the desperation in that. A newcomer would struggle, until they found an authour that they really liked. Even then, not everything would be to their tastes. You just had to move along, or if you were a dick, downvote, comment about how much you hate it, and wait for the authour to call you out.
He didn’t understand the point of the trolls who did that. All you’d do, is get your favourite authour to stop writing, altogether.
“Well, there’s a few ways to find the popular ones.” He shrugged, “Ratings, and genres. Top lists. That sort of thing.”
Grace took a very deep breath, and then asked, “Could you… Recommend some?”
“I dunno if what turns me on, would work for you. So, that might be a little too private.”
Grace rolled her eyes, “Duh. But I’m not going to be judging or anything. I just… I don’t even know what good is, Ivy. Totally fish out of water here, just help a girl out.”
“Good helps you finish.” He smiled at her.
Grace glared and shook her head, rubbing absentmindedly at the edge of her bra where she was sweating. “Just… I’m not going to judge. Give me what you think is good. I can explore from there, right? Not like I’m asking to read over your shoulder. Still private.”
He gave a sigh, “I’ll… Find some stuff. Not necessarily to my tastes. Just good, across the board. A few popular ones from the big categories. Just this once.”
Grace grinned, “Thanks! And now you can go to… Bed.”
He rolled his eyes at her emphasis, and headed back to his room. Hand on the door a thought ocurred, and he looked back at her, “Just remember, with this stuff, liking the story, doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll like it in the real world. Being turned on, with a tale, doesn’t mean you’ll want it, out here.”
She blinked, “What?”
“Fiction is fiction. Doesn’t mean it’d work in the real world.” He shrugged.
Grace giggled, “Wow. What depravity are you going to foist upon me?”
“Oh, forget it.” Ivan said tiredly, the heat drowning him.
(Ug)
To get her back, Ivan might have added a story or six about a catgirl into the list he sent.
Grace was rather serious at the breakfast table, “I get what you shared with me, is private. Secret. Telling me what turns you on, is a private sort of thing. I’d never tell anyone, Ivy.”
He guiltily admitted to trying to shock her.
She giggled, “Bubbles is fuckin’ hot. And that’s the only time I’m ever going to tell you anything about that. But… No judgement, here.”
“So’s Toofy.” He admitted, “And end of conversation.”
The rest of the day was a nonevent. The usual crap and stress at work, solved with the usual diligence, followed by the same sweatbox of train and tram on the way home.
Neither of them seemed up to much, and dinner was eaten in front of yet another reality TV show, before heading off to their own rooms.
Two hours later, staring at the ceiling and still awake, Ivan felt his phone vibrate. He pulled it out and looked at it in surprise.
It was from Grace.
She was only in the very next room. Why the heck was she texting him, instead of her usual knocking on his door? She didn’t usually try to avoid waking him, because she never really thought about it before knocking.
% Liked the last batch. Could you send more stories?
Ivan gave a smile. She was right, not looking him in the eye for that request was a lot easier. There wasn’t any sort of guilt or embarrassment, for some reason.
$ Anything in particular?
There was a short silence, in which Ivan wondered if she had fallen asleep, or changed her mind about texting him.
% _shrug_
With zero guidance, Ivan decided to stretch further abroad. He dumped the idea of safety, and grabbed a bunch of things from every category that the site had. Romance, bisexual and gay, trans, a few forceful tales, and a few more mythic fantasy types.
Some with gods, some with catgirls, and some with strange things that were entirely the creation of the authour’s imagination. A story of a wife who sleeps with her husband’s best friend. Threesomes and sex parties.
He followed the ratings to pick a gay male one, another with two people having sex on the train in public, and a girl experimenting with a sybian for the first time.
The only categories he skipped over, were nonconsent and incest. Those tended to be a little too far, for people just dipping their toes in.
With the list together, he laboriously copied them into the SMS app, and fired off the text.
Following it up with a quick message.
$ Standard disclaimers apply.
The response was instantaneous.
% Thx! Ur the best!
Ivan briefly considered reading a couple of the stories that he had put together, but with the heat and everything, he just wasn’t in the mood. Instead, he dumped his phone beside the bed, and closed his eyes.
Right as he was beginning to drop off, he was jerked to full wakefulness by what he thought was a very feminine groan.
Heart pulsing in his ears, he didn’t hear it again, but it took a long time to get back to sleep.
(cG)
A fist pounding on his door woke him up, and Ivan jerked to his feet at the desperate sound, and quickly yanked it open, to find Grace in full work gear.
She stared at him, “Do you have any idea what the time is?”
“Oh fuck.” Ivan cursed, looking over to the phone he’d failed to put on the charger, and began the rush to prep for work. He didn’t have time for a shower, which meant extra deoderant was needed after last night’s sweats.
Grace was out of the door before he’d finished, and he found himself sprinting towards the tram. He saw her by the door, trying to keep it open, right as it pulled away.
The rest of his day, went just about as well.
(9p)
Ivan was just about collapsing, and in a real mood, when he got home.
Walking in, and dumping his blazer into a crumpled heap, he found Grace humming happily to herself, and spinning about in the kitchen. Her phone was nearby, pumping out the high kicks of some K-pop, that grated against his tired ears.
“Hey! Dinner’s nearly ready. Wanna grab a cold shower?”
He only grunted a reply, already heading that way.
When Ivan stumbled back into the main room, Grace was still grinning away. She served up some meatballs and pasta, and he found himself softening a little bit, and smiled back at her. “Well, I guess it’s kinda amazing to have a wife at home.”
“Oh, am I wife material?” She grinned back at him and did a twirl, despite only wearing a bra and shorts. Grace sat down beside him, and flicked on the TV, “Just trying to thank you, for last night.”
“Last… Oh. Right.” He said cautiously, “I guess they worked, then.”
“Aha.” She said pointedly, and then became enthralled in the TV. He didn’t push it, though he did have to confess that he was wondering which of the stories was her taste in things.
It didn’t take long for Ivan to finish dinner, and wash up the dishes. After his day, he didn’t stay up long, and waved off to Grace who was still watching her show. People ploughing through mud in freezing rain to grab at some cock-shaped golden statue.
Heading into his room, he stripped down to his boxers, ditching the idea of pyjamas with the increasing heat that made the windows creak in protest, and dropped face-first into bed.
(bn)
It was only about ten minutes later, when there came a knock at his door.
Before he’d rolled over, Grace was sitting nervously on the edge of his bed, and looking furtively towards him. Trying to think through whatever she was trying to say.
Ivan waited patiently, half expecting her to get up and leave, when Grace swallowed, “The stories you sent last night… They were… Really good. If you get me.”
“Sure.”
She swallowed again and rubbed the back of her neck, “I was… Kinda hoping… You’d send me… Some more?”
Ivan shrugged tiredly as he sat up, “Sure.”
“I’m not a freak, am I?”
He laughed, “What? No. Just because you’ve found something you like? Everybody has something.”
“I’m asking a lot. I do know that. So… Thanks.” Grace couldn’t look him in the eye.
He took a deep breath, and pushed a boundary. “You know… It might help, if I knew what worked for you. Instead of a little bit of everything.”
Ivan expected that Grace would struggle, and spin about, but instead she just launched right into it. “The couple stuff is cute, but I didn’t really get into them. I thought the lesbian stories would work, but they actually did nothing for me. Weird, huh? I like girls, but not girl tales.”
He shrugged, “Fiction isn’t like reality. That’s the first rule of fantasy, isn’t it?”
“Yeah, so… No to bondage. That was really gross, to me. No judgement for others! But not me.” Grace continued, “Threesome was okay-ish. A little purr, if you know what I mean. The public stuff? Hot as fuck.”
At that, she hesitated, going bright red as she realised what she’d just said.
“Cool. Public.” Ivan tried to reassure her.
Grace took a deep breath, “The one that really caught me, was two best friends. Uni couple? When they went into the bathroom, skipping a lecture, and just were loud as… Yeah. I liked that. The closeness? That.”
“I think I can find you more of those.” Ivan said, and then noticed the embarrassed anticipation.
Grace watched as he grabbed his phone off the nightstand, and kept watching even though she couldn’t see the screen, as he went through and picked out a few more stories. It was made easier, by his figuring that her tastes didn’t seem that far from his own.
He texted her a half-dozen titles, and then she leaned over and kissed his cheek quickly, “Thanks!”
Ivan was still surprised by that moment as the door closed behind her.
(Qg)
The next morning, Ivan drifted into the kitchen, or the small square of the apartment that served as it, on the smell of eggs and bacon.
Grace was bouncing about, grinning broadly. The two couldn’t exactly sit together to eat it, but an effort was made.
The couch corner was given to Ivan, and Grace sat up on the edge of it, proudly. She looked down at him when he was about halfway through, and said quickly, “Last night’s were… Really good.”
He blinked twice, and then in his coffee-deprived state, his mind sparked to life. He felt a moment of embarrassment, and then tried to pretend to be more grown up than he felt. “Oh. You liked them, then.”
“Aha.”
Another thought dripped slowly into form, “Wait… You read all of them?”
Grace gave a nervous giggle, “Um… Multiple times?”
“I’m going to run out of good stories to give you.”
She shifted how she was sitting a little, “Can I ask you something? That one you sent me, where the sheepgirl cheats on her bride? That was kinda hot… But I’m surprised you liked it.”
“Fantasy, not reality.”
She rolled her eyes, “Yeah, yeah. Zero judgement. And whatever for the monstergirl thing. Just trying to understand, here. Didn’t you… Have a girl cheat on you, once? Harry warned me never to say the name ‘Taylor’. I know, I just did. I just… Wanna understand.”
The name punched him in the chest, but not as hard as Ivan was expecting. The scar was well and truly healed over, but usually it felt like a flaking scab.
He leaned back in the chair to look up at her, “Taylor… Well, for starters, Taylor wasn’t a gal. And he was a right prick. I am never, ever, going to forgive him. Everything to do with that was a mess. Harry was right to warn you.”
“Oh. Sorry.”
“I’m probably going to mope around for a couple days.” Ivan shrugged, “Ignore me. I should be over it. It has been years.”
Grace looked like she wanted to say more, but she hesitated, and then said, “So, I’m not the only bi one, then? Guess that means the bi stories are some of your favourites, too?”
“Not really. Like I say, fantasy -”
“Is not reality.” Grace rolled her eyes.
(b2)
The day at work was better than most had been.
He should have come home happy, especially as he ended work early. Instead, Ivan came home feeling crap. He wasn’t feeling angry, he wasn’t feeling annoyed, he was feeling exactly nothing at all.
An empty void that couldn’t find any walls to climb up and back into the sun.
He cooked some curries, but spent the whole of dinner staring at his phone. Grace tried to drag him into a dating show on TV, to laugh at the contestants, but her efforts were for nought.
By the time he finished dinner, she had given up on paying attention to her show, as well.
In fact, when Ivan glanced at her, about to get up and go to bed, he found her eyes staring very intently at her phone’s screen, and her cheeks slightly flushed.
He was about to ask what she was finding amusing, when a nearly breathless moan escaped from her mouth.
It was Ivan’s turn to go red, “Are you reading…?”
“Maybe.” Grace looked up innocently. He noticed that one of her hands was stuck tightly between her legs, and the button of her tight shorts was popped open, just revealing the skin of her stomach.
Ivan felt an instant sort of buzz, and decided to try and push his luck. “Was it one I sent?”
Still one-handed, Grace fumbled with her phone to fire off a text message. “Not exactly. An unofficial sort of sequel. An homage.”
“That might be the fanciest sounding word that I’ve ever heard you say.” Ivan teased, looking down at his phone buzz.
She justly swiped him across the back of the head, with the hand holding her phone.
He opened up the link that she had just sent him. It was a story, but by an authour he’d never read. An unofficial sort of epilogue to one of the stories he had sent through.
Not one he had particularly high hopes that she would like, however. He was actually half-surprised, that this was what she had been reading beside him. Something so hot, so consuming, that she just had to touch her clit.
That thought, particularly distracted him from what he was reading.
Grace clearly expected him to read it, though. She was still sitting on the couch cube, looking down at him, with a strained smile on her face, biting onto the corner of her mouth.
The story she’d given him was about a honeymooning couple. They’d ended up marrying at the end of the original, in the couple paragraph round up. The honeymoon started off, in the sequel, as an unmitigated disaster.
Luggage lost, raining from an offshore cyclone instead of tropics sun, downgraded from a suite and into a tiny room from flooding, resulting in ending up in a double bed.
Even the dance floor was closed, which became the catalyst of an argument between the two.
He wanted to make the best of the situation, while she was more inclined to wallow in self-pity. As their tempers flared, they found themselves saying things they didn’t mean, while their relationship started to unravel.
As the night wore on, they both retreated to their small room, vowing to ignore each other until things got better. It wasn’t until the next morning when they woke up to the sun shining through the window that they realized they had to make the most of their time together.
Venturing out being impossible, the two started to explore each other, beginning with make-up sex. Quickly followed by trying to work out each other’s kinks… And then where the other person would draw the line.
One particular scene stuck out to Ivan.
The two outside, in the middle of the storm.
Ivan turned his phone’s screen off and jumped quickly to his feet, spinning to head towards his bedroom. “I’m done.”
A finger caught the edge of his shorts, and with as loose as they were, they stretched out giving his roommate a bright view of the white of his ass, as bright as any moon.
“Uh… Grace?”
She leaned forward, eyeing him, and then grinned and looked up at him, “Just checking for size.”
Before he could splutter a response to that, she let go of the shorts, and they slapped into him. Bouncing the ship’s plank that may have appeared in front of him.
Flustered, and completely confused, Ivan mumbled something unintelligible and made a break for the bedroom, closing the door behind him. He hesitated, leaning up against it.
What had just happened?
Was… Was Grace interested him? Or was she just trying to stir him up? A bigger question than both of those – why was he so affected by it?
Reading the story had put him into a mood. Playful, but well over the line of what should be between roommates.
With her strange reaction, and the story in his head, Ivan found his frantic mind suddenly summoning up a picture of the two of them. Standing on a balcony, even though he didn’t have one, and taking care of what might be a common frustration.
He fell onto the edge of his bed, replaying it in his mind. He had no idea whether Grace was interested in him, or not. They did have something that wasn’t quite friendship, and not quite just roommates. Something of both, but not entirely just one.
She probably wouldn’t describe him as a friend. Just the man who lived with her.
She probably wouldn’t call him a roommate, either. Their distant childhood friendship meant that they were more comfortable with each other than ‘just roommates’ had any right to be.
Where the hell did that leave them?
He was still thinking on that, and getting nowhere, when the light in the loungeroom clicked off.
(Yg)
Ivan was late in the morning.
He burst out of his room, still putting on his tie, and was out the door before he realised that Grace had her mouth open, and had been about to say something to him.
He was still thinking about whether he should risk ducking back, when he stepped out of the building, and right into a brutal peppering of sand across the face.
His mouth snapped shut and he tried to shield his face and eyes. He had to lean his way into the wind, as the summer dust storm tried to completely bury him in Melbourne’s wrath.
Ivan ran for the bus stop, his suit shoes threatening to slip on the pavement under the gusts. The windows howled, and as he approached the bus stop, he found a crowd, and safety from the damn weather.
The bus arrived, and Ivan boarded it. He had to hold onto the straps tightly to keep himself upright. The bus was packed, and there was barely any room to stand. Ivan tried to balance himself, but the bus jerked to a start, and he was thrown off balance again.
As the bus moved through the stormy streets, Ivan felt disappointed with himself. If only he had woken up a little earlier, he wouldn’t be in this mess.
He might have even be able to talk things over with Grace.
(aX)
Considering the awkward conversation about where limits should be, that he knew was coming, Ivan stopped by the supermarket on the way home.
It didn’t take him long to grab what he wanted. Light things, the kind that bring the party, and don’t make anyone feel obligated about anything. Party foods, with memories of being a kid.
Wasn’t long before he was unlocking his door, whilst juggling backpack and paper shopping bags in the one hand.
The Lamingtons went up and on the bench, the dim sims into a microwaveable bowl so he could have something ready for when Grace got home. He started pre-heating the oven, and put the sausage rolls onto what little benchspace that there was.
Soft drink went by the couch square, along with a couple of mugs – because the glasses were waiting to be washed and he only owned the two of them.
A quick glance at the clock had Ivan stopping in his tracks. He knew that Grace, both of them really, did tend to work late. The hour that the job officially said was the end of things… Was rarely the time that they headed home.
However, he had worked late, and he had gone shopping, and he had set up the house, and she was nowhere to be seen.
Ivan did put the sausage rolls into the oven, when it was at the right temperature, but the worry was well and truly gnawing away at him. They had overstepped, and that meant guilt, but what if…
Grace felt uncomfortable, and somehow managed to find somewhere else to stay? She’d been at work long enough she might be able to convince someone there to help out for a night or two. Just to separate the two of them.
Something had happened at work? Grace might be lying in a hospital bed, all alone, and he just wouldn’t know. Unless she called or texted him, would anybody even know to contact him? Wasn’t like he was her brother.
A quick glance at his phone brought home even more worries. Right at the start of the peak hour for heading home, the tram right behind his own had apparently derailed.
A car had been parked in the middle of the rails, and another had tried to sneak through as well, and got sandwiched up the middle. The news had a wonderful phrase attached to the bottom of the article.
> It is unclear at this stage if there were any injuries.
The sound of the door opening jolted him out of his thoughts, and he turned to see Grace walk in.
Her beautiful and genteel face was gone. Her cheeks were puffy, her eyes red and bloodshot, and she was sniffling. If she had been crying, then it had still been going right before she opened that door.
Ivan crossed to her unbidden, unthinking, and grabbed her in a hug.
As his arms closed around her, he second-guessed himself on whether it was an appropriate thing to do. Did they know each other well enough for him to do much more than shake her hand?
Grace burst into tears again and pushed and rubbed her face into the spot below his shoulder, as if she was trying to plough her way into a tunnel. She didn’t speak. She didn’t howl. Her crying was silent, and of so very much pain.
He held her lightly, scared to pull in tight, as her hands turned into claws against his back. He didn’t have an idea of what to say, as she shook and shivered, crying away into him.
Ivan was still trying to think of something better to say than ‘It’s okay’, when it obviously wasn’t, when the oven’s sound changed. He looked over quickly and swore, “Oh shit. Um… Burning?”
Grace let go of him immediately, causing him a burst of angst that it was so easy, and then she dropped and curled into a ball on her couch square. He ran over to the oven, and used an oven mitt to quickly pull the sausage rolls and stick them on the stovetop.
He ducked it off and ran back to her side, kneeling down by the couch, “Well, I wanted to apologise. Looks like I had good timing for that. You up for a party, gal?”
“I am a gal.” She said quietly, sniffling, “That’s… All I am. I’m just a pretty little girl. A useless as fuck little girl. A nothing who knows nothing about anything and isn’t even good at making a fucked up coffee.”
She didn’t raise her voice.
There was no extra emotion as she spoke.
Grace said it, as if she was realising the truth of things. That really, when it came down to it, she was just a useless barista, who the company didn’t even need. She was just there to make things easier, taking up a little bit of space.
“Bad day, huh?” Ivan prompted gently.
She sat up instantly and glared at him, before giving a stronger sniffle, “Get a girl a tissue?”
He shrugged, leaning back and grabbing them off the coffee table and then holding the box out to her. “Really bad day?”
“Oh, just…” Grace snorted into the paper thing, and then looked at him with a lot of disappointment and pain. She rolled her jaw, took two deep breaths. “Ivan. I don’t need you making things worse, right now. I already feel worthless. You pitying me? That’s bullshit. I hate it worse than what happened at work. Because it means you can’t even fucking see me.”
“See you?”
She rubbed her eyes and let out a frustrated groan, “Yes! See me! God above, Ivan!”
He cocked his head, “You’ve lost me.”
“No shit, dickwad!” She snarled and then took a deep breathe. “Sorry. Frustrated. Let’s… Have dinner, have a laugh at TV, give up, and fall back into the routine of things. You made dinner. Thankyou. It was sweet of you.”
“I… Was trying to apologise for last night.”
She stared at him.
He shrugged weakly, “Things… Went a little too far last night. I let things go too far and -”
“Dude!”
Ivan blinked, “I miss something?”
“I. Want. In. Your. Pants.” She bit off each word, cheeks getting redder and redder with each one. “Ivan… You didn’t overstep, you monkey! I tried to get you to take me to bed. I tried to get you to fuck me. But instead, your were Mr. Polite, and stepped off, and then felt guilty and like it was your fault and that you needed to apologise…”
She broke off, grinning as two more tears slipped down her cheeks, shaking her head.
It was Ivan’s turn to stare.
Grace gave a small and weak little shrug, “I… Like you. We’re… Living together. I thought that maybe… We could skip a little, on the dating front. But, I overstepped. We’re just roommates. Nothing extra. I won’t do it again. So… We can forget it? Please? I don’t want to have to find another place. Please.”
Ivan rubbed his chin, “Grace…”
“Please! Forget.” She said quickly and jumped to her feet, moving over to the kitchen and beginning to serve the dinner onto some plates.
He barely managed to stumble upright, before Grace was pushing him onto the couch with a plate, and then sitting down beside it and turning on the TV. She was absolutely determined not to have a conversation about her confession.
However, it opened a door that he had thought locked, bolted, and shuttered.
If he was going to consider latching his life back together with someone else’s, after everything… Then Grace would be his first thought.
She was funny, she was forgiving. She was as intelligent as she was funny. She was the kind of gal to turn a party into a screaming nonsense, and she was the kind you could find the day after dragging around a rubbish bin – still with a smile across her face.
He didn’t know if he wanted to marry anyone, let alone her. He didn’t know if that would be the end goal.
He didn’t know if love was the right word for what was between them, just yet. Love might blossom at an instant, but sometimes it took time to grow. Sometimes it was a closed bulb, before you took the step. It only blossomed over time.
However… He did want to try and see if any blossom might happen.
It would ruin being just roommates. If they broke up, living together wouldn’t be something they could keep doing. Not in these tight sort of confines.
It was… A risk.
“So… If I was terribly rude, and ignored you telling me to forget everything, and asked you on a date, would you hate me and want to move out?” Ivan asked slowly, “Hypothetically.”
Grace dropped the plate she was carrying to the table, and it instantly shattered apart at her feet. Rolling innocent sausage rolls across a carpet that did not get nearly enough attention from him.
She stared at him, mouth open wide, and blinking, breathing, but nothing else.
Ivan shuffled over and tried to start cleaning things up. Grace’s fingers found his hair, clutching tightly and yanking him to his feet. He stood awkwardly, bent over, as she pulled his head to the level of her eyes.
She took a deep breath, “Say that again.”
“You hate me, don’t you?”
“Moron!” She let go of him and pushed his chest, which had him falling on his butt with a sharp crack. He flinched, and Grace’s face went white.
She fell onto her knees in front of him, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean that it’s just… You can’t do that to a girl, Ivan! I’ve been wanting to date you since we were freaking kids. You being the one, when I came here… Do you have any idea how hard that was? I… I…”
“So, I guess I should ask you on a date, then.” He said, with one hand rubbing uselessly at his sore tailbone.
“I should have asked you out.” Grace said guiltily.
He looked up at her, “Last night? That wasn’t you -”
“That was me being stupid and tryin’ ta skip the date.” Grace replied flatly and shook her head, “No. Screw being a slut, and screw the bitches at the office who always call me one. Let’s do this right. A date.”
“Yeah… Nah.” Ivan gave a small laugh, “Doing things right, would be me taking you to a fancy restaurant, in an uncomfortable dress, and us sharing one kiss. Let’s do this, as us. It’s freaking hot. Tomorrow, we both have off. So… Let’s go to a waterpark.”
She burst into a wide grin, “The two old people having way too much fun and embarrassing everyone else, at the waterpark?”
“Exactly!”
Grace ducked forward, her soft lips planting against his for half a breath of a moment, before she leaned back and stood up. She grinned down at him and winked, “It’s a date. But… Help fix dinner? After I screwed it up?”
“I’ll feed the hungry queen.” He laughed and rolled over to gingerly find his feet.
(Qg)
The night passed too quickly for Ivan.
He and Grace talked most of the night about the next day. They sat and watched the TV, laughing at the drama queens of the night’s reality show. Something to do with a giant wheel that the host very dramatically spun.
That first, brief kiss, stuck foremost in his mind, and with not even a hint of a repeat. Ivan wanted to put one hand in the small of her back, holding her close, and give every thought and skill into telling her that she was a gorgeous woman who didn’t deserve the jealousy and hatred of her fellow office workers.
Instead, Grace seemed to be floating on an emotional high, perfectly happy with everything, and he didn’t want to ruin that. A kiss now, unbidden, might just be the thing to undo this dream even as it just started to spin together.
The next morning found Ivan just dragging out of bed and into the main room, where Grace was sitting on her couch, smiling at the TV. She was already wearing her bathers.
A small but somewhat modest bikini bottom, paired with a top that he could see through a light white t-shirt, featuring an Australian band that probably no longer existed.
Beside her on the floor was her fancy bag for work, but the contents had been dumped beside it. Presumably to make room for a towel, and whatever else she was taking with them.
Grace had a crumpet in her hand, and was giggling at a cartoon that he was pretty sure that they used to sneak and watch together, way too early in the morning.
“You’re prepped.” He said, throat rumbling, as he went to the kitchen to make some toast.
“It’s gonna get hot, fast. Gotta get in quick.” Grace replied idly, not seeming perturbed that he was moving slower than her, today.
“Want a coffee?”
“Got one.” She said, holding up a mug from the other side of the couch as he glanced over at her.
Ivan swallowed, “So, um… About today…”
“We each pay our own way.” Grace said matter-of-factly. “Hang out the park. Do some slides and rides. Grab some lunch, and then we can head home, or if you have something else planned, that. But by dinner, can we be crashing back here, at least? I’m exhausted after my week.”
He breathed a sigh of relief, as the kettle began to boil, shouting over it, “Thankyou. Sorry! I’m exhausted, too!”
Grace grinned at him, her nose crunching up, “Not too exhausted! I hope!”
He frowned, too tired to get it.
She stood up and lightly skipped over on the balls of her feet, putting her hands across his naked chest with a guilty grin, before looking up at his face and then tapping their noses together.
She said something, but he didn’t hear it whispered beneath the roar of the kettle he really ought to replace. Grace’s hands slipped around his back, and her head landed on his chest. Her ear, to his heart, as she pulled them into a gentle hug.
His arms went around her, holding her warmth, her comfort, and feeling more at home than he had felt in years.
The kettle popped, the noise winding down, and Grace whispered, “I’ve missed you.”
He held her, looking down and kissing the top of her head. Giving her the first kiss he had, since they were dumb and young and didn’t know what they were doing. Kissing her with a meaning that he could only now understand.
Grace snuggled in tighter, and he could feel the angst falling out of her bones. She became so much softer, as all the stress of her work, especially the day before, was melted by the two of them being together.
This was faster than anything he had felt before, but all the same, he wasn’t nervous. It felt more like a key finding the right lock. This was always meant to be.
Grace farted.
Ivan let out a surprised laugh, regretting it immediately as he breathed in the gaseous fumes, and Grace raced across the room, jumping onto her couch and laughing at him.
He shook his head, smiling at her, “I’m going to get you back.”
“Oh, I know.” Grace giggled, “But, ya gotta know what you’re getting into.”
(YW)
Contrary to expectation, on board the tram, around about half of everyone there were wearing togs. It seemed that Saturday really was going to be busy as hell at all the waterparks across Melbourne.
Of course, for such a big moment, they couldn’t just go to any waterpark. Instead, it was more of a theme park. One with crazy rides, roller coasters, but also wide open rolling green.
Ivan felt the tension building as he and Grace stood in the line. He felt like there should be something that he was doing. He could remember making conversation in similar dates in the past, but she just looked hot and tired, and not really in the mood for talking about meaningless nothings.
She wasn’t upset or grumpy. More sort of… Exhausted and hot.
“Do you remember those portable fans that tourists always seem to have?”
“My life for an Aiur fan.” Grace gave a quiet moan.
“What?” Ivan stared at her.
She grinned and gave a quiet laugh, “Nerd reference. I cannot wait to hit the water. You been to ‘fields before?”
“Last time I came here, they’d booked the place out for a bachelor party. We did a lot of very dumb things.” Ivan mused, “But… Man’s honour. Can’t tell you any of it, at all. Especially as his wife would kill him if she knew half.”
“You better not be as experienced as you’re sounding.” Grace replied with a tone that told him his try at mirth had fallen completely flat.
“Says the girl who hits on a guy with shared erotica.”
She went bright red and stared at him, “Hey! We’re in public. None of that.”
“Wasn’t public…?”
“Reading and reality are different, you jerk!” Grace laughed and pushed him lightly. “Far out. Can’t you just be a romantic something, for this?”
“If you just wanted romance, we should have gone for a restaurant.”
She nodded, “True. And I cannot wait to dunk you.”
“Dunking is romantic?”
Grace nodded, “Completely.”
“So I should -”
“No!”
They were interrupted by reaching the front of the line. They each paid for their ticket separately, a flashy plastic wristband, and moved through the twisting bar and into the main part of the park.
Grace instantly stood on her toes and kissed his cheek, before dashing off with a laugh into the crowds ahead. Or at least, that’s what she tried to do, before immediately and loudly being shouted at by a security guard.
She was staring red-faced at her feet as Ivan walked up calmly, and then took a chance and took her hand. Her fingers interlaced into his, and they started walking along.
The two looked at the surrounding rides, and chatted back and forth about what they liked, and what they hated, before getting to a place where they could rent a locker.
They put on each other’s wristbands, getting a little bit of closeness, which Grace blushed at, and felt more to Ivan than he thought it really had any right to.
Grace’s t-shirt, bag, and his more prepared backpack, went into the locker, and the key got tied to his shorts and tucked into a pocket.
When Ivan turned, Grace had already disappeared.
He looked back and forth over the crowds, and couldn’t see her. Girl had been right excited for this, which he had to assume was the weather, but being polite enough to wait for him? That was on her.
He scratched his head, trying another slower scan of the crowd, when he heard a nearby giggle.
Ivan started and looked down, at the girl crouched right in front of him. Grace looked right back into his eyes, her smile practically reaching from ear to ear.
She jumped upright, stealing a quick kiss to his chin, before taking one of his hands and stepping backwards, pulling him in the direction of one of the wading pools. “You really do always miss what is right in front of you, don’t you?”
“Oh that hurts. And is corny as hell.”
She shrugged, and pulled him into the edge of the pool.
They both stopped and stared at each other with surprised and uncomfortable faces as the freezing water tangled around their ankles. Goosebumps popping and sweeping up his legs and causing something rather private to shrink and shrivel.
“Ow.” Grace laughed, putting one hand to her chest, “Well. My nipples hurt. How are you?”
He snorted at the confession, and laughed, “Uh… How about a race to the other side?”
She kicked a spray of water into his face, and bolted.
Ivan laughed and dashed after Grace. He followed the weave of her through the rest of the crowd. Most of who were laughing and splashing each other with more of the frigid water.
The water quickly moved up to his waist, and he was left floundering somewhere where running didn’t really work, but swimming wasn’t entirely allowed. A kind of floating gallop, like a unicorn out of a mythic epic, was all he was left with.
Grace, on the other hand, was every part her name. The water around her almost seemed to part, as if it was giving way to some movie princess, returning into her kingdom, with all the magic that Hollywood could shove up your nose.
He pushed forward, determined to catch her. He was every bit as competitive as she was, and had not got to where he had, by letting anybody win without a fight. Not that there’s much you can do against water, apart from pushing a bit harder.
Feet dragged at the concrete base, toes trying to find purchase against the rough surface, even as he threatened to float away from it.
All the same, as Ivan approached the side of the pool, Grace was sitting on the edge, idly kicking her feet. Stupid unfair rules of nature. He absolutely expected her to rub it in, as he got to her.
Instead, Grace just grinned at him, “Time for one of those crazy big slides? Race you to the bottom.”
He nodded, and she stood up and held out a hand to help him up. It was more awkward and slower than if he’d just used the edge, but it was sweet of her.
The thrill of the race and the touch of her hand sent a jolt of electricity through Ivan, and he couldn’t help but feel a rush of excitement. The two of them took a moment, both smiling and not sure whether to burst into laughter or not, as they dripped slowly.
In that moment, the childhood friend, come stranger, come roommate, was transformed into something angelic.
They were soon regretting the pool, and freezing, as they stood in line. Ivan tried to shield her with his body, wrapping her in his arms in what he had not intended to be romantic at all.
All the same, Grace leaned back into him, and they silently embraced each other.
When they reached the top, with the park supervisor timing off each next guest to race down the whirling depths to the pool below, Ivan realised he hadn’t done something, that he absolutely should have.
He realised that he really did love this woman. He wasn’t just a friend, and this wasn’t just the tip of something adventurous. He wanted, with every fibre of his being, for this to be the rest of his life. He never wanted this to end.
She had gifted him so much.
Ivan grabbed Grace’s wrist as she went to step up for the slide, and then without a care to the long line behind them, or the bored employee, he pulled her to him and planted a kiss on her lips.
Time stood still.
The rush of the water in the slide faded away, the calls of the crowds below fuzzed into nothing, and all that there was, all that there ever was… Was Grace.
Her lips moulded to his, becoming one with his. Hers, so very gentle and soft. His, cracked, maybe scarred, and barren of any care for them. All the same, firmness and softness somehow twisted and became one.
Grace’s tongue touched his own, and sparked off a deep and heart-thuddering journey into space. They lifted up, right off the planet, and into some starscape that exists only in pure fantasy.
She leaned back from him, cheeks bright red, eyes beaming and took a deep breath.
“I love you.” Ivan whispered.
Grace gave a small laugh, “Aw. Now I can’t ruin it by teasing you. Fine.”
“I’ll be right behind you.”
(xs)
It started on the tram home.
They were both tired, and so opted to sit, and were lucky enough to get seats before the vehicle filled right up. Grace leaned on his shoulder, and Ivan had his arm around her waist.
His eyes were threatening to close, tipping beyond exhaustion point. He was yawning, and struggling to blink between the stops of the vehicle. The irritatingly little ping going off with every stop.
Grace suddenly spun herself into his lap, with a look of determination on her face. Everyone watching or not, she put her hands around his neck, and leaned into a kiss.
Despite the ferocity of the actions, her lips were gentle. She didn’t press in hard, but instead seemed to try and eke him out. To feel where he was willing to go, and to respond in kind.
Adrenaline surged, and his hands went to the base of her spine. Holding her as he kissed back in what quickly surged into a kind of hunger. His tongue tried to reach deeper, and hers mirrored the action, and went deeper still.
Ivan counted off the stations in his head, the rest of his body completely occupied with the lithe and fit woman in his lap. Something embarrassing began almost at once – and Grace responded by subtly grinding down against him.
The tram’s brakes screeched, and then the old thing rattled away on the rails. The silence of the cabin hidden by the transport’s noises, as all the occupants became very aware of the world outside – the hurried pedestrians, the exhaust fumes, and the threatening sandstorm.
With each passing moment, the something between them grew. The emotions became bigger, hungrier. That they were surrounded by strangers, only heightened the desire. The risk of upsetting someone only increased it, setting fire to the intense chemistry between them, right on the verge of exploding.
Grace’s subtle grinding against Ivan sent shockwaves through him, the space between them seeming to disappear as they pressed closer, breathing through their noses on each other’s cheek, as they explored every centimetre of each other’s mouths.
As the tram approached their stop, Ivan reluctantly pulled away, and Grace, her hair a tousled mess, looked at him with a hurt confusion.
He nodded at the door, and the tram gave off it’s annoying ping. They moved quickly, stepping off and onto the pavement lightly. Moving by the bus stop, and adjusting the bag that each of them was carrying.
They didn’t say anything, just made a beeline for the apartment.
The elevator found Ivan pushing her flat against the wall.
The hallway found Grace unbuttoning the back of her bra.
By the time the door closed, Ivan found his new girlfriend poised on the edge of the couch cubicle, knees in place, and looking back over her shoulder at him.
The bikini bottoms hung limply around only one leg, and she smiled, “I think I might love you.”
He dropped his shorts, and positioned himself behind her. His member touched her skin for the first time, simultaneously cold from the weather, and raging hot from within. He felt goosebumps spread on her, as he gently slicked himself, in a woman who was absolutely ready.
“I love you, too.”
She eased herself back a little, unable to wait for him. He sucked in his breath, as he felt the head ever so slowly enter her, before putting his hands against her hips, waiting a moment for her to adjust, and then begin to enter her truly.
Grace let out a soft sigh, “Oh.”
The only sound in the apartment, was him gently striking against her rear, and their combined heavy breathing. The increasing wetness with each thrust, knocking against their ears. Joining them together.
With each strike against her hips, Ivan went deeper and deeper. Feeling the burning tunnel heave, twist and caress him with a skill he hadn’t known was actually in the realm of possibility.
Grace’s stomach tightened with every thrust, holding her breath for a moment with every movement. Heavy breathing became shallow grunting, and the waving movements picked up in intensity.
Her knuckles cracked as she held onto the wall of the couch, swaying with every movement and trying to push back in rhythm with him. The cheap thing creaked beneath her, as he drove her knees into the seat.
The smell of the two of them drifted upwards, dragging him downwards. His t-shirt disappeared, and his chest touched her back. His mouth kissing at the base of her neck, as the thrusts became smaller, deeper.
Grace shivered and moaned, twisting her head to brush a kiss against the bottom of his jaw. Her hands found his, dragging him into a deep hug, even as he continue to penetrate her.
Her legs spread, and he kissed all along the side of her neck. Gently rocking, flowing in and out of her tight and clutching inside.
Grace kissed at him, “Come on… A girl… Can only take… So much.”
“Where do you want me?”
She gave a small giggle, tightening radically around him as she did, “Are you freaking kidding me? Dump it.”
“Inside?”
She rolled her eyes, “Okay, making sure you’re right is hot. But yes. And get a move on. This girl’s knees are close to giving out.”
“We could try -”
“Fuck me!”
No polite man refuses a lady’s request. The couch almost immediately began creaking again, as he plumbed her depths. His hands traced around her waist, before holding on tight. The grip permitting him to increase the speed of each thrust.
His cock stimulated from tip to base, grasped and gripped so tightly by the woman in front of him. He moved away firmly in her, feeling the sweat forming at the base of his back. Heat not just from the stifling apartment, but from the two of them finally merging.
The smacks of colliding skin-on-skin grew louder, threatening to drown out her breathing, her ass clapping against him with ever movement.
She looked back at him for a second or two, before gasping and clutching her insides hard. Then her hips rose and slammed back down on him again, and again. She was right at her limit, right on the same edge he now found himself verging on.
In the midst of the embrace, the sound of wood cracking loudly echoed through the room.
The two of them stopped, startled by the unexpected noise. They exchanged puzzled glances before their eyes shift down to the corner couch beneath them.
To their disbelief, they see a large bulge forming along the backrest, beneath the material. The broken wooden frame suddenly gave in.
With a collective gasp, they found themselves landing in a heap of cushions on the floor. Laughter erupting from their lips in surprise.
“Are you okay?” Grace asked from where she was lying on the floor.
“Are you? Um. Yes. I think I’m okay.”
She stood up, both hands on her hips as she stretched her back, and looked at the broken piece of furniture, before giving a small giggle and glancing down at him, “So… We don’t have to… But wanna finish in the bed?”
“I am never letting you go.” He said as he slowly stood up, half-limping and ignoring the pain in his left ankle. Twisted, or something.
The two made a beeline for the bed, where Grace pushed him backwards, before quickly climbing onto him. She reached down, and he was gasping in surprise and sliding down into her slickness before he really knew it was happening.
Grace impaled herself on him, again and again, with reckless abandon. She grunted, small and incredibly sexy little exertions, with both every rise and fall.
Sweat ran down her neck, a little trail down between her beautiful breasts. He reached up, easing their bounce as she moved on him. Grace pulled one of the hands up, so she could kiss at his palm.
She was in complete control, giving her all to him. There was no room to move his hips, without taking it from her, and what she was giving him was altogether beautiful.
Now on top of him, she wasn’t quiet anymore. She moaned every single time she descended, groaning into his hand that she held tight to. Rocking her hips back and forth with the skills of a model or a dancer. Not someone relegated to fetching coffee.
Grace suddenly twitched, jerked forward, falling into his chest. Giving off a little whimper as her downstairs completely blew his mind. He knew instantly that he wasn’t going to last much longer.
“I’m -”
“Do it.” Grace groaned into him, hands going behind his back to hold on tightly. “Do me.”
“- gonna cum.”
“Do it!”
He bottomed out inside her tight passage, even as she convulsed on him. The two drenching each other in slick heat. He boiled over, pulsing and flooding into her canal.
Grace let out another loud cry, somewhere between shouting and screaming, her legs clamping down on him as he forced a second orgasm through her.
They both collapsed, breathing hard, and then heard the thunder of a neighbour on the wall, “Can it! Not everyone needs to hear you fuck!”
Their eyes met. They both laughed, and moved in for a kiss.
(Cg)
“How the hell are you already up?” Ivan groaned from the doorway, in front of a messy bed.
The woman in his kitchen twirled around, revealing the white mug between her hands. She grinned at him, already fully dressed and refined for work. “I s’pose… If I had to bring it down to one thing? I love coffee more than I love dick.”