With a groan she pushed herself up off the pillow. She let her eyes roam. The room was small. But it had made her feel save from the first day. It had been the place where she felt private and free to reflect on all the incredible things happening to her. Some of them had been sweeter than she believed to be possible. Others had left her in confused tears, like now. And yet, they all seemed to belong together.
Was she being brainwashed?
She shrugged. She had never been one to reflect and analyse. Her emotions had always been clear and simple. If she loved, she loved without reserve. If she hated, she just avoided the source of it. But she 'd never hated anyone for long.
Ever since she was here, the whole structure of her simple life had been smashed. There had been good and bad, love and hate, light and dark. And now it all had fused.
How could she love a woman who violated her and laughed at her misery? But how could she hate a woman who made it so easy to love her? Then, shouldn't she hate her for selling out this same love? She had ridiculed it and discarded her trust.
Kristie shook her head. She told herself to stop it. There was only one way to save herself. She had to leave this place and this woman.
She pushed away the sheets and slid out of bed. Her curling toes searched for her slippers. At that moment the door opened. Angique entered. She looked paler than ever. There were dark rings under her eyes. She wore a simple red silk robe and Japanese slippers. She radiated tiredness.
"Did you sleep well, darling?" she asked. Her voice was a mere whisper.
Kristie did not answer. She just sat on the edge of her bed. Her legs dangled. When Angique tried to hug her, she shrunk away.
There was no reaction. The black haired woman merely stood back. Her hands hung straight down her sides.
"I know," she said. "If you want to leave, I wish you well."
Kristie stared. She felt her lower lip tremble.
"Please, Mistress, understand…"
The emerald eyes flashed. Then they extinguished.
"Ne m'apelle pas Mistress," Angique said. "If you can't accept this life, don't use its words."
She sank beside Kristie on the bed. Hesitatingly she lifted her arm to wrap it around the girl's shoulders.
"I can't ask you to forgive me and I won't. The only basis for your love is to accept me as your Mistress. With that acceptance you must bear the consequences. You can't tell me you are mine and not be it."
Kristie did not refuse the embrace. She just sat and stared.
"I have decided. I can't live this life," she whispered. Her voice broke halfway.
"I do love you, Angique. There is no doubt at all. But I can't believe you love me."
The pale woman studied Kristie's face. Her eyes widened in wonder.
"But darling, I don't love you. I never have and never will. I have told you this. You know it. There is no way I could love you or anyone. I do care for you, though. I know your needs. I think I am the only one able to give you what you need. If that is love, so be it. But I don't think so."
"I want to go home," Kristie said. Then she broke down crying. Angique held her shaking body. She whispered soft words. Her hand roamed the naked skin. She found the newly pierced breast. She cupped it softly.
Kristie cried out. She suddenly hugged Angique with both arms. She kissed her face and throat and chest.
"Oh God, Angique. I love you so. Why does this all have to be so difficult? I don't want to go, but I must. I don't want to hate you, but I must! Tell me what to do!"
Angique did not answer. She just held the girl. Then she searched for her mouth and kissed her deeply. Their tongues danced. They wrestled as they had done so often before. Kristie spread her thighs. She accepted Angique's hand on her still tender cunt lips. She shuddered at the touch.
Angique started a slow and sweet probing of Kristie's pussy. She felt her getting wet. The lovely pink petals blossomed open. They showed how their tiny pink treasure slipped from its hood.
Angique now took Kristie's right hand. She sucked her fingers into her mouth. Then she took them down to the girl's cunt. She made her rub herself.
The girls kissed. Their combined hands started a sweet slow fuck. They slid in deeper at every stroke. Kristie moaned in Angique's mouth. She made their tongues vibrate. Then she felt herself slide into the bliss she knew so well by now. It was the bliss she felt when she was with her Mistress.
The long, slow waves of her climax left her body tingling all over. Angique held her and rubbed her back.
"Show me your ring, darling".
Kristie slowly cupped her left tit. She displayed the silver ring that ran through a swollen, red nipple. Angique touched it softly.
"Will you accept it, Kristie? Just for thanks?"
The girl smiled an exhausted smile.
"Take good care of it, after you leave. Let it heal. The pain will be gone in two days. Use the ointment I gave you."
Kristie's brow furrowed. Angique kissed the tiny wrinkles.
"Yes, darling. Maybe you should go home for a while. This has all been too much too soon, perhaps. Maybe you should have the time to sort out your feelings. I don't want my girl doubting."
Angique smiled. Her hand touched the Kristie's face. She stared into the innocent eyes. They were still misty with climax.
"Take tonight's plane. You'll be there in early morning. Do all you want and need for a fortnight. Go to your sweet family. Go party. Fuck the stars off the skies. Then phone me. I shall accept whatever you decide."
Angique stood. She looked down on the girl.
"I hate goodbyes", she said. "Don't look for me, when you leave."
She turned. She closed the door behind her.
***
Home had changed.
Everything seemed smaller, uglier. She had walked past the restaurant where she'd worked. She did not enter. People at the fitness club greeted her enthusiastically. She felt reserved. The gossip they had did not touch her. It seemed to concern strangers.
Her mother had cried when she saw her again. Her father just stood and watched her. His eyes had been sad. They hugged. But something essential seemed to have changed.
Her apartment used to be her one precious place. It had been the proof of her pride and independence. Now it looked empty. It seemed small and insignificant.
Her boss at the restaurant called her the second day she was back. He asked her if she'd returned to stay. She said she wasn't sure. He said she could start again this same day. She had been missed sorely. She thanked him and said she'd think about it. Then she went to the beach and cried.
It took her only another day to call the number she knew by heart. Her fingers trembled. No one answered. She tried again and again. She listened into the void that only echoed silence.
That night she went to the club to work out.
She'd always felt great after physical exertion. She' d spun and lifted and stretched for hours, gradually emptying her mind. Then she'd taken an extended shower. And she'd felt all her disturbing thoughts rinse off her with the sweat.
This night she slipped into her blue lycra outfit and walked into the mirrored hall. All the memories crowded back into her head. The sheer ecstasy of meeting Angique. Silently she started her exercise.
The gym had always been a place for her to be with friends. It was an opportunity to talk and share experiences. This night few of her friends and acquaintances had shown up. She found it hard to find small talk. She answered all questions about her stay in far away Italy with vague and bland remarks. Then all curiosity dried up. Of course she knew she acted strange. But she did not know how to find her way back to the spontaneous Kristie they knew.
She had always considered showering after a work out the second best experience her body could give her. But today it wasn't. She felt tense. Her mind never shut down. Maybe it was because of her period. It had started on the flight back. But she knew it couldn't be just that.
Why had she ever given in to that woman? Had it been love? Ah, yes, it was so easy to love her. But why did it have to make her life so complicated? Before, her life had been straight and easy. Or had it? Oh, she didn't know. She just knew that she felt restless now. She felt incomplete as she walked home to her apartment.
The night was quiet and balmy.