"What do you want for your 19
th
birthday?" My best friend asked me, thrusting a candle into my hand.
I smirked at her, and joked, "A boyfriend!"
She laughed. "One who's good in bed!"
"Yeah!" I cheered in agreement. "One who gives me so much sex it feels like there's two of him!"
"How about smart?" She asked.
"Yep, and funny... um... good looking... but most importantly, I want him to treat me well. I don't want him to be a jerk like the last one!"
"Alright Shana, light the candle!" My best friend commanded. I found the request strange, but complied. She gestured for me to put the candle in the holder located in the center of the table. "Now, it's time to get drunk!"
She poured me another Long Island Iced Tea from the pitcher she'd made, and then poured one for herself. We clinked our glasses together, and exclaimed "Cheers!" It was fun to drink -- laughing, singing, and dancing -- until we both passed out.
The next morning, I woke up on the floor. I groaned, clutched my head, and slowly sat up. At first I didn't see my best friend anywhere.
"River...?"
"Oh, you're awake! Check this out," she beckoned. She was kneeling on a chair, leaning on the table.
I carefully got to my feet, and looked at the table.
"The wax from your candle melted into an interesting shape while we were passed out," she informed me.
Sure enough, there was now a puddle of cooled wax on the table in the shape of a heart. If a person were to cut two hearts out of paper, one slightly bigger than the other, and then layer them so that the smaller one was on top of but slightly to the side of the bigger one,
that
was what the wax heart looked like. I scratched my head.
"How'd it do that?"
River shrugged. "I think it's a sign that your heart will soon be joined to someone special."
"That'd be nice," I murmured, and then went in search of the bathroom.
*****
"Your name is Shana, right?" A cute guy asked me. We had at least one -- maybe two classes together, and I think we had ever since I started college last semester. I hadn't really paid him much attention because I was shy and tended to keep to myself.
"Yeah... and you're... J... something..." I cringed as I realized that I couldn't remember his name.
He smiled. "Yep. J.T."
"Really?" I asked, incredulous that I had actually gotten it right. Sorta...
"Have you ever been to the Fair Trade Café?" He wondered.
"No." I shook my head.
"Well then, come on! My treat," he invited me with a grin.
Ohhhh... This is him!
This
is the guy that River said I'd meet soon! I forced my shy nature to the back of my mind. "Um... okay."
He took my hand, and led me to the café, which was located off campus, but within walking distance. As we walked, I kept looking at our joined hands. My heart beat just a little bit faster than normal.
"So..." I searched for something to talk about. "What's this café you're bringing me to?"
"It's called the Fair Trade Café. It specializes in organically grown or humanely raised food -- local when possible."
"Sounds expensive," I murmured.
"Nah! Not really. I mean you
could
go to a fast food joint and buy a "value" meal for about 5-7 dollars,
or
for just 7-10 dollars, you can get a meal at the café that is chemical free and
won't
make you sick in the long run," he explained.
I laughed. "It sounds so simple when you say it like that."
"That's because it
is
simple," he grinned at me.
We soon arrived at the café, and sat at the counter. J.T. ordered a ham sandwich, and highly recommended that I get one too. I shrugged, and nodded. It came with a salad and a bowl of fruit. The trickiest part was deciding what type of bread to have it on. They had a variety of organic breads I'd never even heard of.
"Do you normally eat soft white bread or whole wheat?" J.T. asked me.
"Whole wheat," I replied.
"Then I recommend getting the sprouted sourdough. It's really good!" It was also what he had chosen, so I nodded.
When we got our food, I was amazed! I was expecting something that looked mostly like sandwich meat bought in a store, but this was slices of a real ham! It was also tender and juicy.
"Wow!"
"I know, right?" J.T. grinned at me.
After we finished eating, I glanced at the time and gasped. "I hate to eat and run, but I have to get to my next class!" I had plenty of time to get there if I left now, but if I didn't rush, I'd be tempted to linger or even skip it all together.
"Me too, let's walk back together," he suggested.
I nodded, blushing for some reason.
He paid the bill, and then took my hand again as we walked back to campus. I still had five minutes until class started after we got there, and he had to get to the other side of the building for his next class. Even so, we stared into each other's eyes for a moment.
"Blue and green," I murmured, referring to the fact that he had one blue eye and one green eye. He brushed some of my hair aside with a hand, and then kissed me. I think my toes curled! I was definitely blushing by the time he was done.
"See you tomorrow!" He stated and then rushed off.
I was on cloud nine! I probably should have skipped class after all because I didn't hear a word the teacher said, but I was in the habit of recording the lecture so I could listen to it while I did my homework.
The next day, J.T. playfully covered my eyes, and commanded me to, "Guess who!"
I laughed. Then, without giving it any thought, I blurted out, "My new boyfriend!"
He turned my head so that we were face to face. "That's right," he confirmed, and then rewarded me with a kiss for guessing correctly. I felt like I was floating, and had to look at my feet a couple of times to make sure they were firmly on the ground.
He brought me to the café again, and this time, he recommended the chicken sandwich. Once again, I was surprised to see actual chicken meat. It looked like they had marinated, baked, and then pulled apart a thigh so they could toss it on my sandwich.
I was in
love
with this café! I might be really close to being in love with my new boyfriend too...
The entire week passed in bliss, but I was nervous about the weekend. What if not seeing me for a couple of days made him change his mind? We got together on Monday, maybe a week was all he could stand to be around me...
"Are you busy this weekend?" He asked.
"Well... I plan to do homework, but other than that, no," I replied.
"Good, then we should go to a movie."
I was happy, but I looked away. He's bought me lunch every day for a week, and now he wants to go to a movie. I felt like he was spending way too much money on me. I think he could read my mind, because he stroked my cheek, and made me look at him.
"Hey, don't worry about it," he murmured, his green and blue eyes sparkling merrily, and then kissed me. I made a mental note to hug River when I got back to our dorm.
I am not sure I paid any attention at all to the movie! I was too busy watching him and thinking about what I really wanted to do with him when the movie was over. I do remember it being funny, but I couldn't tell you the plot.
"Do you want to come back to my apartment with me?" He asked.
I nodded, too overwhelmed to actually speak. His apartment was small -- a one bedroom -- but it was clean and smelled good. He started kissing me the moment his door was shut.
"Do you want to...?" He whispered in my ear before nuzzling my neck.
"Mmmhmm," I agreed, words still beyond me.
He removed my clothes as he led me to his bed, and then got rid of his. I was so nervous! This wasn't my first time, but it felt about ten times more special.
He totally took the lead, kissing me and stroking my body with his hands. He looked like he was playing with his favorite toy as he sucked on and fondled my breasts. Previously, I didn't really like guys playing with them -- it felt annoying -- but his touch made me hot.
He massaged my stomach, and then his hands explored my wet opening. His thumb rubbed my clit causing me to gasp. Oh wow! It seems like all he needs to do is touch me, and I quake with pleasure!
I grabbed a pillow and smothered myself as I screamed. I know it sounds silly, but I didn't want him to hear me making such an embarrassing sound. Not many of the guys I've been with have taken the time to make me feel this good.
"You want to help me put the condom on?"
"Sure," I replied even though it was hard to speak. He opened the package as I tossed the pillow aside, then handed me the condom. It was unlubricated, which was good, because the stuff they use on lubricated condoms always made me break out in a rash.
My hands shook as I put the condom on him. He was a bit bigger than my last boyfriend, but his shaft looked absolutely beautiful to me. Once it was on, he kissed me, pulling my legs around his waist.
"Are you ready?" He whispered into my mouth.