April and Her Friends

April did come home the next day, and her first order of business was to try to get back on track as far as her classes were concerned. She had been released that morning—and she actually attended one class in the afternoon.

I'm fine,

she struggled to convince herself.

Just fine. Melody doesn't know what she's talking about.

But when she came home to her rooming house after class, she saw both Melody and Rohit there, making dinner for the three of them.

"Hi, April," Rohit said hesitantly, looking her over as if to make sure she was in one piece.

"Hi, Rohit," April said. She had gotten so used to Melody going to his place that she hadn't seen him for weeks.

Rohit took a little break from chopping up some vegetables, walked stiffly over to April, and gave her a brotherly hug.

April clung to him, holding on to him even after he seemed to want to end the embrace. So he held on tight a little longer. He also gave her a little kiss on her cheek.

"You sit down," Melody said, preparing some pork chops. "We'll have dinner ready for you in a flash."

April magnanimously let the couple treat her like a visiting dignitary. When the meal was served, she found she was ravenous (

God, the food at the hospital is crap!

), and she dug in with gusto.

Instead of studying, they insisted on watching a light comedy on DVD, and they all laughed heartily at the inane and labored humor it featured.

It was only ten p.m., but April yawned exaggeratedly and said, "I'm pooped. Guess I'll go to sleep."

Melody and Rohit watched her saunter off to her room, where she closed the door but (as was usual) didn't lock it.

"You think she'll be all right?" Rohit said.

"I don't know. I really think she's in a bad way—and it's worse because she can't admit it to herself."

"I've always thought she's pretty strong," Rohit said, expressing more of a wish than a fact. "She'll come out of it."

"She's not as strong as you think," Melody said. "A lot of that brash exterior is an act."

The couple got a sense of that when, after they'd gone to bed themselves in Melody's room, they heard some telltale sounds coming from April's room.

"Omigod," Melody said when she heard the sounds.

"What? What?" Rohit said, alarmed. "What

is

that?"

"What do you think, you silly man? She's crying."

"Crying? Why?" he said, as if a woman crying was some kind of contravention of natural law.

"All kinds of reasons."

"You mean . . . from what happened at the frat house?"

"That's just a symptom. There's a lot more to it than that."

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, Rohit, you can't be so blind."

He took exception to that remark. In the months he'd been with Melody, he felt he'd learned a lot about women—and about himself.

"Should we do something?"

"Yeah, we should do something," Melody said acidly. "Or rather,

you

should do something."

"

Me?

Why me?"

"Rohit," Melody said as if speaking to a dim-witted child, "April's one of these women who look to men for sympathy and affection. She doesn't get it from women. She—"

"So what do you want me to do?" he said in increasing alarm.

"Go over there—comfort her," Melody said, as if stating the obvious.

"Right now? Like this?" He was referring to the fact that he was dressed in his usual nightwear—nothing but a pair of briefs.

"Yeah, right now, and like that."

"Oh, Melody—"

"Look, she really likes you and admires you. If anyone can help her right now, you can. Anyway, it's nothing she hasn't seen before!"

"But—"

"Rohit,

go.

Right now. Do it for her. You have to help her."

"But what if she doesn't want me?"

"She will. Trust me. I know her."

With extreme reluctance, Rohit slipped out of bed. For a moment he contemplated putting on a light robe, but then shrugged in defeat and headed out the door.

There were in fact other people in the rooming house, in the upstairs bedrooms, but the main floor was now vacant. Even so, Rohit dashed from Melody's room to April's on tiptoes. Poking his head into the room, he said:

"April, are you okay? Can I help?"

When she saw him, April—whose back had been turned to the door—rolled around on the bed and held out her arms like a little girl wanting her daddy. Her face was bathed with tears, and she was still sobbing.

He slipped into the room, closed the door, and approached the bed. As he stood irresolute, April said in the most plaintive possible voice: "Please . . ." And she held her arms up to him.

Okay, I guess she wants me.

He climbed into the bed, and at once April covered his body with her own, throwing her arms around his neck and resting her head on his hairless chest. To his dismay, she began wailing even louder than before, and he wondered if his presence was actually making things worse. But as he held her gently, his arms encircling her waist, he sensed that she needed some kind of outlet for her pain and misery, and he would have to serve that purpose for the time being.

She cried and cried and cried, and Rohit himself shed a few tears in sympathy. In some ways it was the most awful thing he had ever experienced in his short life—a young woman whose heart was breaking for reasons not entirely clear to him, her tears coating his chest as he held her, seemingly impotent to stem the tide of her sorrow. But gradually, after many minutes, she fell silent—or at least lapsed into a kind of intermittent whimpering mixed, strangely, with little kisses she was plastering on his pectorals.

"You okay now?" he said naively.

She looked up at him, her face still a mask of sorrow. "I'm better, thanks to you."

What on earth did I do?

he thought. "Do you want to go to sleep now?" He was making efforts to pry himself loose from him.

"No!"

she exclaimed. "Hold me some more."

And she clung tighter to him, making it clear he was supposed to hold her tight as well.

Her body was fully draped over him, and he couldn't help but feel her heavy breasts pressed against his chest through the thin fabric of her nightgown. More awkwardly still, his member was gradually but systematically hardening, and he had to fight the urge to slip a hand down to her bottom, as he had done so many times with Melody when she was in the same position. But the idea of taking advantage of this poor girl in the height of her melancholy filled him with self-loathing.

He wondered if April, with all her experience with men, could really have failed to notice what was happening to his groin. But she seemed to be paying no interest to the rod that was nudging her in her belly; at times she even bucked her hips gently, making his member stiffer yet.

At one point she lifted up her tear-streaked face and gazed at him intensely. Holding his head between her hands, she fastened a kiss on his mouth that seemed to last an eternity.

He knew he should break away, but he couldn't—not only because it would hurt her and negate all the good (whatever that might have been) he had done in comforting her, but because he found the taste of her lips, the feel of her body, and the heady scent it was giving off so intoxicating that he wished the kiss could go on forever.

When, finally, April pulled her face away, she gave him a broken smile.

"You're so sweet, Rohit—so sweet. A good guy in every way."

The heartfelt compliment so affected him that two large tears were squeezed from his eyes.

April's smile broadened as she saw how moved he was. She gently brushed those tears away with her hand—and then kissed him again. This kiss too lasted many, many moments.

After that, she nestled herself back on his chest, making it plain that she expected him to continue holding her. And that's how they fell asleep.

And that's also how Melody found them the next morning as she opened the door to April's room and stuck her head inside. A curious flurry of emotions came over her—a thrill of joy that Rohit had done his work of providing sympathy to April so well, but also a tinge of jealousy that

she

had never fallen asleep in Rohit's arms. But April was the focal point of her attention: she was the one whom Melody wanted to make whole again after that horrible experience at the frat house. It didn't matter that April professed to enjoy the experience: clearly it was a traumatic event for her, one that signaled far greater emotional disturbance than she was letting on.

Melody, after watching the couple for several moments, finally said in a soft voice, "Hey, guys, better get up. We have to get to class."

Rohit's eyes popped open, and he became alarmed when he saw Melody staring at him. It was as if he wished April could somehow disappear from her position on top of him. April opened her eyes groggily and gave Melody a faint, sleepy smile.

"Do I really have to get up? I'm so comfortable here."

"Yes, you have to get up," Melody said, more severely than she intended.

Comfortable, are you?

April did arise, but not with very good grace. The whole right side of her face was red from spending all night on Rohit's chest, but this mark dissipated after she showered. The three of them trundled themselves off to their various classes and had little to do with one another until late afternoon, when they came back exhausted after a hard day of study.

They all helped prepare dinner, and Melody was heartened to see how much better April looked and felt. She was almost back to her bubbly self again.

But as the evening wore on, she seemed to become troubled and pensive. She finally drifted into Melody's room and sat on the bed as Melody was working at her desk.

"Hi, April," Melody said. "How are you feeling?" The question wasn't rhetorical.

"Pretty good," April said, although her bearing somewhat belied her words.

Melody had a sixth sense about what April was about to say. She had known her a long time and could—at times—read her like a book. But she waited for April to say it herself.

At last she did. "Melody, um, could I have Rohit again tonight?"

Melody sighed inwardly. The moment of truth had come.

"Yes, of course," she said with a light-hearted air. "I—I think he's good for you."

"Yes, he is."

Melody expected April to say a bit more, but she didn't. So it was incumbent upon Melody to say it.

"April, darling, I'm getting to understand how much Rohit means to you."

"He's very sweet and kind," April said, her head bent downward.

"I know. And he—he likes you a lot."

"Does he?"

"Of course he does. You must know that."

"I'm never sure. He doesn't say much."

"He's just shy. He really does think the world of you."

April fell silent, but Melody could see tears forming in her eyes.

"So," Melody went on, "I think you should feel free to—to do whatever you like with him." Then, pausing for emphasis: "Do you know what I'm saying?"

Now the tears were falling down April's face. But still she said nothing.

"April? Did you—?"

Without warning, April leaped up from the bed and almost flung herself in Melody's direction. She thrust herself onto Melody's lap and held her head close to her chest, exclaiming: "You're the best friend a girl ever had!"

"April," Melody said, laughing nervously, "get off of me!"

"No, I won't!" April cried, pressing her friend's head even tighter to her bosom and kissing her shampoo-scented hair. "You're such a sweetheart!"

"Well, April," Melody managed to say, her voice muffled by April's chest, "it's sort of like 'I scratch your back, you scratch mine,' isn't it?"

April knew exactly what Melody was referring to.

I shared Kumar with you, so now you're sharing Rohit with me.

Then a frightening thought came to April. "Do you—do you really think he wants me?"

"Oh, April, don't be silly. I think you know the answer to that question."

April tittered naughtily. "I guess I do."

I felt his hard-on last night—and wondered why he didn't make a move then. But I guess he didn't want to be "unfaithful" to his girl.

"Um, are you," Melody said, "able to, you know, perform?"

"I'm fine—just fine."

"Glad to hear it."

April finally clambered off of Melody. "Can I go to him now?" Rohit was in the living room, buried in books.

"I think he's still studying. He'll come to you when he's ready."

And with that, April drifted off to her own room. Melody sauntered into the living room, startling Rohit when she put a hand on his shoulder.

"What? What?" he said.

"Calm down, Rohit, it's just me," Melody said. "I just wanted to say that you're next assignment is to go back to April's room tonight. She needs you."

"Okay," he said blandly, not fully realizing the implications of Melody's words.

"You should feel free to"—Melody swallowed hard when she said this—"do whatever the two of you want to do."

It was as if a difficult mathematical conception had suddenly become clear to him. A look of amazement spread over his face. "You mean that?"

"Of course."

"You're really okay with it?"

"I just said so."

Rohit, like April, seemed overcome with emotion. He reached out, took Melody's hand, and kissed it fervently.

"You're an angel among women, dearest."

"Thank you."

"I'm sure it'll help April feel better."

"I'm sure it will."

And with that, she strode back to her own room and closed the door.

Rohit took his time finishing up his work. He seemed lost in thought. At last, around 10:30 p.m., he got his books and papers together, put them in a tidy pile on the coffee table facing the couch, and made for April's room. He had a full realization of the magnitude of what he, and she, were about to do.

As he entered the room and closed the door, he saw her lying flat on her back on the bed, holding the sheet and blanket all the way up to her neck. She too looked pensive, almost apprehensive. But she greeted him with a wistful smile.

"Hi, Rohit," she whispered.

"Hello, April," he said.

At first he did nothing but gaze down at her. Then he turned his back on her and slowly began undressing. He took exceptional care removing his shoes, socks, shirt, pants, and then—after a pregnant pause—his underwear. Then he turned around.

April let out a huge gasp. "Oh, my goodness!"

Of course, he was fully hard—and he was amused that she had just said the same thing Melody had said when she first saw that organ at maximum erection.

"Hope you're okay with this," he said, almost embarrassed.

"I, um, think I can manage," she said.

He knelt down and peeled the sheet and blanket away from her grasp. She was, of course, naked.

This time it was he who gasped. Taking in the gorgeous flesh now exposed to his gaze—the sloping shoulders, the flat stomach, the muscular thighs, the tapered calves, and especially the full, round breasts and the thick tuft of fur over her sex—he said, "Omigod, April, you're so beautiful."

"Thank you, sir," she said humbly.

At first, all he could do was to gaze reverently at the sight. Then he knelt down and gently squeezed her breasts with his hands. April arched her neck back and closed her eyes, uttering a little mew of pleasure. Then he sent a hand down her chest, stomach, and belly, glorying in the feel of the soft skin and firm flesh. He parted her legs and, with a meaningful look, bent his head down and began licking her.

At the initial feel of his lips and tongue, April emitted a squeal, then settled down to the serious business of being pleasured for the first time by this wonderful young man. Her sex too, like Melody's, flowed copiously with its juices as Rohit used his mouth and his fingers to stimulate her. Her hands clutched the sheets as she gave way to the sensation, and at times her mouth hung open and her tongue protruded lasciviously as she received his ministrations with unaffected delight.

She was surprised how quickly she came. As the orgasm crashed down upon her, she let out something close to a scream as he, now gripping her bottom with both hands, held on while she bucked her hips in unrestrained passion. He continued licking gently, so that the climax lasted minute after minute.

When at last she collapsed bonelessly on the bed, relaxing her grip on the sheets, she gave him a look of intense gratitude. She now knew it was her turn to service him.

He sat upright against the headboard while she lay at full length on her stomach, placing her head directly at his groin. She had to raise herself up quite a bit to reach the tip of his cock, and she was able to get only a few inches of it into her mouth at the start. But as she warmed to the task, using her hands to pump the shaft and at times stroke his balls, she got more and more of it into her mouth: half, then three-quarters of it, disappeared down her throat, until she could take no more and started gagging. Withdrawing slightly, she continued to lick and suck until Rohit himself stopped her.

He was not intending to come in her mouth; he wished his seed to go elsewhere.

Urging her to lie on her back, he positioned himself on top of her. However conventional this position was, he (and she) felt that it was always a good way to begin an intimate union. He looked benevolently down upon her, smiling gently as he steered his large member into her pussy. He hoped she had recovered from the repeated penetration she had suffered at the fraternity, but figured she would not have agreed to this if she weren't ready.

As he entered her, inch by inch, her eyes widened more and more as the unusual length of his member caused her to feel stretched and filled as never before. She did her best to accommodate him by raising her legs and bending her knees; but even so, the size of his cock seemed to be difficult for her to endure, so he stopped about three-quarters of the way in. Then he began pumping softly. She now seemed able to take him without pain, so he thrust a little harder while also making his way deeper into her.

The excitement of this first coupling with this dear creature—his beloved's best friend but one who had herself come to mean a great deal to him—was such that he couldn't last as long as he wished. As he felt the initial traces of his climax coming over him, he lay down flat on top of her, holding her close as he continued to thrust; and as the voluminous discharge started issuing from him, he fastened his lips to hers to complete their physical and spiritual fusion.

He didn't want to pull out of her, but wasn't sure whether he could perform again without withdrawing. So he did come out, much to April's disappointment. But she tried to dismiss the empty feeling that came over her by saying enthusiastically:

"Oh, Rohit, that was so fabulous! You're just amazing!"

"You're pretty amazing, too," he said.

They cuddled a bit, knowing that much more was to come. He loved the feel of her back and bottom as he stroked them gently, and as he became fixated on her buttocks she sensed what would be next. Without a word, she reached over to the top drawer of the nightstand and pulled out a blue jar.

"I think you'll need this," she said bluntly.

He knew from experience with Melody that this was both women's lube of choice. But he still looked concerned. "Are you sure you're up for this, dear?"

My cock is pretty big—and your poor bottom was pretty brutally treated by those frat boys.

"I'm fine, I tell you," she said with a hint of impatience. "Just don't put it in all the way."

He lubed her up and got into position, placing her on her stomach and arranging his body over hers. The first touch of his member at that nether entrance did make her shiver a bit, as she anticipated some discomfort even if Rohit didn't insert himself all the way. He was especially careful to proceed slowly and cautiously; but April still experienced a sense of surprise, even shock, as his member went inexorably into her. Her eyes bugged out and her tongue again protruded from her mouth; but she felt a little better when he began to pump gently back and forth, as the lubricant made the process smooth and relatively painless. She also welcomed his seizing her breasts with both hands as he put his full weight on her. Bold and confident as she usually was, she enjoyed the momentary sensation of helpless passivity that this position created. There was something quintessentially feminine about receiving a man's member—and his thrusts—in this most delicate cavity. It was, after all, a brute fact that only a man could penetrate a woman; a woman couldn't penetrate a man in any meaningful sense. So she accepted his entry into her as something decreed by nature, even if this particular orifice wasn't exactly designed for this purpose.