Notes: This is non-fiction -- a sort of NSFW love letter. It's my first narrative writing in several years, inspired by a chance encounter this morning. It alternates between that and flashbacks, so for readability's sake, I have separated them with "---" It felt most natural to write in the second person rather than to contrive pseudonyms, so thank you in advance for indulging that detail. Lastly, for scenes where there is more action as opposed to build-up, you can skip ahead to "***" Thank you for reading!
This morning, you jogged past me on the trail up to Gorrel Falls. I recognized you from behind by your figure and gait; a testament to how well you've kept in shape in the decade since I last saw you. I thought to call out and say hello, but you were clearly in the zone and had your headphones in anyway. I guessed that I would see you either at the falls or on your way back down the mountain, so I watched you jog on, nimbly bouncing up the rocks and out of sight as a cascade of faint memories of us came into a focused playback in my mind...
---
I remember the afternoon that our mutual friend invited me to join you and his girlfriend for dinner, unexpectly adding the instruction, "collared shirt and dress shoes, dude. It's casual, but you'll want to make a good first impression."
"With whom?" I asked, skeptical that he and his girlfriend knew my taste in women well enough to tee up anything of worthwhile interest.
"You'll see," was all I got in reply.
They didn't know that we'd already met -- we'd had a couple classes and a study group together -- but when our friend and I got to the restaurant and I saw you in your dark blue sun dress, it was as if I was seeing you for the first time. My impression of you as "cute" was suddenly doused with gasoline, exploding into "wow, she's a total smokeshow!" When you turned and saw me, I think the stupefied look on my face threw you because it took a moment for your smile to come into full bloom. We laughed and greeted each other by name, surprising our friends and kicking off a serendipitous evening of drinks, tapas, and revelry. I learned that you were recently single, which quickened my heartbeat. I must have tried too hard to play it cool, because my crushing was obvious enough that you generously threw me a lifeline and offered to drive me home. Our friends were thrilled as we walked to your car, and I admired you for ingratiating them as well as for not letting me become too awkward.
As you dropped me off, my primal physical inclinations were pleading with me to just dive in and make my move. From the evening's conversation about breakups and rebounds, I knew better than to lean over for anything more than a quick hug. I'm glad I'd shaved and even more glad that I dabbed on a little aftershave, because as our cheeks brushed against each other and we exchanged fragrances, I felt you suddenly inhale in surprise.
---
That aroma and the moment's sensation of supreme confidence and excitement were clear memories in my mind as I came around a corner on the trail to the base of Gorrel Falls. You were about twenty meters away, stretching your hamstring against a boulder where the trees met the water and looking down at your phone. When you stood up and arched your back, I was transported from that evening in your car to another evening a couple months later...
--- ***
After a few casual hangouts, we moved on to official dates that were definitely leading somewhere. One evening, we were at your place watching House, M.D. and drinking mulled wine. It must have had you feeling playful, because as the episode neared a cliffhanging end, you snatched the remote control and changed the audio to French without subtitles. Bemused, I tried to snatch back the remote to pause the episode and correct the situation, but you were too quick. In the ensuing keep-away scuffle, you flopped onto your back, deftly tucking the remote in between the couch cushions.
I tumbled on top of you as I reached for it and must have tickled your ribs, because you suddenly arched your back and laughed effervescently. In that moment, as your chest rose to meet my face, I felt my blood begin to rush. Collapsing back onto the couch, the smell of your hair surged into my nostrils as my face settled into the crook of your neck. Your laughter melted into a sigh as months of tension between us began to spring free into kinetic passion. We made out hungrily and passionately as the TV resumed into the next episode with French dialogue in the distant background of my consciousness. I remember the House, M.D. title music playing as I picked you up and carried you to your bedroom, buoying the mood.
I laid you on the bed and we made out some more. As our hands began to wander to our waistbands, you pulled back from me and whispered, "just a second."
I sat on the bed as you stood up, grabbed a lighter from your dresser and lit a couple candles. At this point, my blood was boiling over and I was in a dizzy euphoria. You pulled your shirt off over your head as you walked back towards me, silhouetted in the candlelight and making a graceful, intoxicating show of your feminine physique. In particular, I remember your navel piercing - a silver turtle with a tiny opal for its shell - slowly swimming toward me in the motion of your hips until you were standing between my legs. You ran your fingers through the hair on the back of my head and pulled my face into your midriff. I applied kisses there as you lifted my shirt over my head and I kept kissing, tracing upward to your bra as you lowered onto your knees in front of me. I kept kissing onto your neck, then lips, then forehead as you ran your hands down until they were resting in mine. As you looked up at me, I was in a glorious discomfort of arousal, head spinning and with an erection throbbing impatiently against my belt. You were smiling gently and in the dim flickering of your bedroom, your eyes shone like the northern lights. I ached for you.
"I think we're on the same page here," I said, "but I just want to say out loud that we can go as far or stop as soon as you want tonight. I'm enjoying this more than I can tell you, but I know we've been going slow and I don't want you to feel pressure or obligation from my end."
You squeezed my hands then threw your arms around my neck and embraced me tightly. "Thank you," you whispered in my ear. "Respect is sexy." This sent a shudder of excitement throughout my body, which I'm sure you felt. You stood back up, unbuttoned your pants, and as you shimmied out of them, you said, "I'll let you know if you'll do the same."
I knew what you meant, so I nodded as I ran my hands over your body, receding back into the swells of vertiginous excitement. You leaned me onto the bed, kissing me deeply, and as I pulled you onto me, I rolled us over. I worked my way down to kissing your thighs. You shuffled a pillow under your head, rolled your shoulders back, tucked your hips, and arched your back again, in a surging wave of anticipation. I lifted your feet up and over my shoulders, taking in the new and more intoxicating aroma of your arousal. I ran the tips of my fingers along the inside of one thigh while I kissed and licked the inside of the other.