Anarchy and Love

Around her, the afternoon was filled with a multitude of shouts, one layered over another until a clear message was difficult to discern. Kat picked herself up from the ground where she had been thrown by the officers with their riot shields. She brushed off the knees and back of her jeans, then threw up her fist, yelling, "No justice, no peace!" repeatedly. At only five foot two, Kat had to be mindful of the many elbows of the other protestors right around head level. The shouting continued and with signs being raised up and down in the air until a voice cried out over the din, "Tear gas!"

The crowd then began to surge backwards as a number of tear gas grenades were launched into their midst. As the fumes came pouring out of the grenades, the elbows began to shove harder and people fought to push their way towards the nearby alleys to gain refuge. A few brave or reckless protestors grabbed some of the grenades and lobbed them back into the line of riot police, though their line held strong.

Kat reached the curb a few dozen yards from the worst of the gas, looked around and saw that in the surge backwards, a few people had fallen to the ground and were letting out cries of agony as the tear gas did its job. A man wearing a facemask ran forward towards the tear gas grenade, and scooped it up into an old battered thermos. He quickly capped the thermos and then began to shake it violently. After a few moments, he reopened the thermos and dumped out the grenade on the ground, only now no fumes came pouring out. He then set to guiding those still on the ground out of the noxious cloud. Others joined in, helping to walk the injured and gassed to a safe distance, underneath a nearby tree.

The man pulled off his mask and wiped his face with a rag he pulled from the backpack on his shoulders. He looked at the cluster of people sitting and standing nearby and said, "Is everyone okay? If you are hurt, I have a few friends who set up a pop up pavilion and have some medical supplies a block up from here." A few people broke off of the main mass, limping in the direction the man indicated. As the cluster around him dispersed, Kat drew closer and got her first good look at the man. He was a head taller than Kat, broad in shoulders, with olive colored skin and dark hazel hair, with a smile that seemed etched into his face, and the smile seemed to extend into his green eyes. As Kat drew nearer, he turned to look at her and his smile grew a little bit bigger. He reached up and scratched the back of his head saying, "Hey, how's it going?"

Kat gave him a flat look and responded, "Oh you know, the whole city is on a hair trigger, innocent people are getting gassed, and no one in power seems to give a damn."

The man paused for a moment, the smile dropping a little from his face. "Yeah, that was a pretty stupid question, sorry. My name is Darren. What's yours?"

Kat responded, "My name is Katrina, but please, just call me Kat." Kat paused for a second and looked back at the tear gas grenade Darren had put into his thermos. "What did you do with that grenade to put it out?"

The smile returned to Darren's face, but more mischievous than before. He lowered his voice conspiratorially and said, "Well, I have a friend who used to work on the other side of all of this and he taught me a top secret recipe to knock those fuckers right out." He removed the top from his thermos, took a step towards the tree, bent down and scooped a handful of dirt into the thermos and poured in some water from a canteen hanging from his backpack. He placed the lid back on, and gave the thermos a small shake as he stepped back near Kat.

Kat looked at him expectantly for a moment and asked, "Mud? Is that it?"

"Mud. That's it." Darren gave her a small wink and Kat couldn't help but smile back at him. "The mud will put out the chemicals burning in the grenade and turn it into a paperweight. It's bullshit that they use tear gas. You can't use it in war, but it's fine to use it on your own citizens." With that, Darren rolled his eyes. "So I made it my personal goal to do what I can to stop it. Wanna help me?"

"Fuck yes," Said Kat.

"Here, take my spare mask and thermos," Darren said as he pulled them out of his backpack.

Kat took them and they started off down the street, looking for other clusters of protesters and riot police. Each time they came across tear gas canisters, they put them out of commission. Anywhere that the spirits of the protestors seemed to have died down, Darren did his best to reinvigorate the crowds. He had a knack for injecting himself into the clusters of people and through pats on the back, little jokes, and his infectious smile. They continued in this way as afternoon turned to evening and evening turned to nightfall.

It would be impossible to describe something so visceral and full of passion as a protest on the verge of riot as fun, but Kat could not help but enjoy her time with Darren. As night fell, the protests turned more aggressive as police became freer with swinging their batons, became more willing to fire less than lethal rounds into the crowds, and protests turned to riots. Kat could smell the scent of something burning in the air and see billowing clouds of smoke rising in the distance for hours after darkness set in. Both Darren and Kat were exhausted, drenched in sweat and sporting more than a few cuts and bruises on their bodies. Darren looked at Kat and said, "It's getting late. Where are you staying at? I can walk you there."

Kat looked down at her feet and said, "No, it's not far, I can go myself."

"Please, I insist." Darren replied.

"I don't need to be escorted back to my place," she said, with a growing lump in her throat.

Darren said back more softly, "I know. I just liked spending today with you, and walking back with you gives me a few more minutes before I have to say goodbye."

Kat's cheeks grew red and she further avoided his gaze as she said, "I don't have a place to stay." She paused and took a deep breath, then looked up at Darren. "I was evicted yesterday. I was hoping to see someone I knew and maybe stay on their couch for the night, but I haven't seen anyone today."

Darren's face fell as he met Kat's big brown eyes. "Fuck. This is bullshit. Look, my place is nearby, and it's small, but I have a couch. I'll sleep on the couch, the bed's yours." Before she could protest, he said, "And no arguing. Isn't this part of what we are fighting for? No one should be stuck on the street. Besides, once you taste my cooking, you'll be trying to leave the first chance you get." He gave a small smile at this.

Kat looked at him and gave a small smile back. "Okay, but there is no way in hell you're doing the cooking if it's that bad. I'll whip something up. Before all of this, I was a sous chef at a small mom and pop place on the other side of the city. They went belly up in the quarantine." Her voice trailed off for a moment. "But anyways, I should be able to whip up something edible for us."

They set off, making their way towards Darren's flat, filling the time with idle chit chat. Darren led Kat into an older building. Older, but not run down. Up 4 flights of steps and then down a short hallway, they walked. Darren unlocked the door and let Kat in, flipping on the light. It was a relatively plain studio apartment, with a small kitchenette, a single couch, and a bed in a loft with metal stairs leading up to it.

Darren indicated to the only other door in the apartment and said, "If you want to grab a shower, there is an extra towel in the cabinet beneath the sink, and I can give you a shirt to wear. I'll run your clothes over to the washing machine on this floor, so you'll have something to change into in the morning. Just set them outside the bathroom door when you are undressed."

Kat thanked him and stepped into the bathroom. She turned on the shower, pulled her shirt up over her head and let it fall to the floor. Her bra, jeans, socks and underwear soon followed. She cracked open the bathroom door and with her foot, nudged the small pile of clothing to just outside the door and reclosed it. She didn't even look at the mirror as she turned to step into the shower. The hot water washing away the grime from the past 2 days was pure bliss. She let herself become lost in the warmth and lost track of time before finally washing her hair and body. She eventually pulled herself from the shower and dried herself off with the spare towel Darren had mentioned.

As she dried her hair, she looked herself over in the mirror. The past few months had been hard, and she could see it in the small bags showing under her eyes. She had a narrow face and a small nose. Her high cheekbones were dotted with freckles. Growing up, many of her friends had been jealous of how full her eyelashes were; she rarely found it worthwhile to use mascara. Kat's mother had the biggest brown eyes, and they were one of the few things she inherited from her mother that she was happy to have.

She turned to the side and looked her body over. She was not athletic, but she had never been out of shape. And the past few months eating less than normal had trimmed away about 5 or so pounds from her stomach. She had always wanted to drop those few pounds, but not the way she had been forced to. She eyed her breasts, not overly large, D cups, but her short stature and small frame made them look large by comparison. They weren't quite as perky as they were in her college days, but she had nothing to complain about. A small amount of stubble had started to grow in between her legs, but she still had days before she would typically trim it. She turned further and looked at her butt and deemed it an ample amount of junk in her trunk. All in all, she was content with what she saw in the mirror and thought of her teenage years where she had felt anything but that. Running her fingers through her partially dry strawberry blonde hair, she stepped to the door, opened it, and found a t-shirt and a pair of athletic shorts hanging from the outside of the door knob. They were both much too large for her, but she slipped them on and tied the drawstring on the shorts as tight as she could manage to keep them from falling down. She hung the towel on an empty hook and stepped out of the bathroom.

Darren was sitting on the couch and he gave her a smile as she stepped out. He stood up, handed her the remote, and walked into the bathroom with a bundle of clothes in his arms. Before he shut the door, he stuck his head back out and said, "Feel free to grab whatever you like from the fridge."

Kat walked over to the fridge and grabbed out a can of sparkling water, then made her way back to the couch. She took a deep drink and then leaned back into the couch, shutting her eyes and savoring the feeling of comfort that had settled over her. She let herself relax, if only briefly, and drew in a long, slow breath. Her body ached, her mind felt frayed, and the world seemed to be on the verge of collapsing, but she tried letting in go for a little bit, doing her breathing exercises.

After a few minutes, Kat's mind began to drift to Darren. Each time they met eyes and he smiled his big smile, her heart felt like it skipped a beat and she found herself wanting to run her fingers through his thick, brown hair. I'm being silly, she thought to herself, thinking like a middle schooler with my first crush.

The bathroom door swung open as Darren stepped out in sweatpants and a plain white shirt.

But, Kat thought to herself, this is no crush, and I am no middle school girl.

Kat set her drink down, stood up and walked over to Darren, grabbed the front of his shirt in both hands, pulling him down to her, and then she kissed him full on the lips, open mouth, sliding her tongue inside his mouth. Darren leaned into her and started to wrap his arms around her. Before he could get his arms around her, she pushed him away and stepped back. With a sly smile she said, "I want to do this, but I have a few rules."

Darren looked shocked and said, "Sorry, what?"

Kat stepped forward and looked straight up into his eyes saying, "I want to fuck. But if you want this, you have to play by my rules. Rule number one, in the spirit of fighting the patriarchy, if you want to go to pound town, you're first gonna go down. And rule two, you better have a condom."

A smile crossed Darren's face and he said, "Deal." With that, Kat turned and walked up the steps to the loft where the bed was, with Darren right behind her. She pulled off the baggy shirt she was wearing and stepped out of the shorts, leaving them piled on the floor. Then she got onto the bed, keeping one leg crossed over the other, with her back against the soft cotton sheets. She propped herself up on her elbows and lifted her left leg, running her foot along the inside of Darren's thigh. She could feel the bulge starting to grow in his pants.

He lowered himself onto the bed and began to slowly kiss his way up the inside of her left leg, with his hand moving along the same path up her other leg, gently spreading them apart. Each kiss, almost imperceptibly light, one after another as he moved his way to between Kat's legs. He gave a full kiss to the hood of her clitoris and then, opening his mouth and letting his tongue out, he licked the full length of Kat's warm vagina, from bottom to top, ending with a flick of the tongue to her clitoris. Using the thumb of his left hand, he pulled back her clitoral hood and began to lick the tiny nub in small, slow circles. Darren could feel Kat shift to push herself harder against his tongue.

Then Darren started to mix in a few seconds of gentle suction on her clit after licking for a few seconds. Kat no longer propped herself up on her elbows, instead she laid flat while using her hands to squeeze at her breasts and tease her own nipples. As her vagina became increasingly damp, Darren slid the middle finger of his right hand into it, palm facing upward. He slowly slid the finger all of the way in and then pulled it nearly the whole way out over and over again, all the while keeping his rhythm of licking and sucking on her clit. Gradually, he increased the speed of his tongue and finger.

Eventually Darren slid his index finger into Kat's wet slot, the tips of both fingers pressing up into the erogenous zone inside of her. He continued to build speed, until he was licking and fingering rapidly. Darren looked up towards Kat's face and he could see her cheeks growing red. Her eyes met his and she could see the smile in his eyes. Kat's breathing was growing faster and she could feel her abdominal muscles tightening as she began to climax. Darren was pushed even closer into her when Kat squeezed his head tightly between her legs as pleasure spread through her whole body. He kept licking harder and fingering faster as Kat's breaths grew ragged and she quietly let out a low moan from deep within her. Her hips quivered slightly as she hit the peak of her orgasm. Gradually, her breathing began to slow and she loosened her legs from around Darren's head.

Darren stood and reached over into the nightstand beside the bed and pulled out a condom. He pulled off his sweatpants and opened the condom, putting it on quickly. Kat looked at his erection. In regards to length, it was an average five or so inches, but more had more girth than Kat was used to. Darren then grabbed Kat's legs and pulled her towards him so that her butt was resting at the edge of the bed. He spread her legs to either side and brought the tip of his penis to rest against the lips of her vagina. Their eyes met again and Kat could not help but mirror the big smile on Darren's face. With a slow but decisive thrust, Darren pushed his full length inside of Kat. He continued in this way, with slow thrusts, going from tip to base, then pulling nearly the whole way back out before repeating. Kat laid her head back and closed her eyes savoring the feeling of Darren inside her. Then he started building up speed.

With one hand, he grabbed onto Kat's hips pulling her towards him with each thrust, and with the thumb of the other hand, he began to rub lightly at Kat's clitoris, in an upward and downward motion matching the timing of his own thrusts. At this, Kat's back began to arch slightly. The bedframe began to squeak in time to the thrusts as Darren started to slam his penis into her dripping vagina harder and harder.

As he thrust faster and harder, Darren began to bend towards Kat. She then reached up with her arms, wrapping her fingers around his neck tightly and she pulled herself up to kiss him on the lips.Their tongues immediately found each other and began to intertwine. They kissed until both were left completely breathless. As their lips parted, Darren could feel his balls tightening and with a few final aggressive thrusts, Darren came, shooting load after load into the snug condom. Kat released her grip on his neck as Darren started to pull out of her. She pulled herself further up on the bed while Darren pulled off the condom and threw it into the trash can. Then he fell onto the bed beside Kat. She turned to him, kissed him lightly on the lips, then laid her head on his chest and shut her eyes.