The people in Barcelona are wild. They make the city what it is. I lived there for six months and got to know quite a few of them. I even dated and slept with some of them.
One of those was Elena. We met in a bar towards the beginning of my stay. It was packed and I was there with some international friends. I had the best Spanish of the group, so I was ordering drinks. Elena was sitting nearby and overheard my accent as I shouted my drinks orders to the barman.
'Where are you from? I can't place your accent,' she asked in a melodious voice. Her English was impeccable. I later learnt she was in international marketing and had also lived abroad.
'I'll take that as a compliment. I grew up in the UK. My mother's Spanish, so I learnt a bit from her, but we mostly spoke English at home. I learnt a bit more on various trips here.'
'You like my country, then.'
'It's alright.'
She smiled. 'Here on vacation? Bachelor party?'
'Neither. I live here. Well, for the next few months at least. I'm a music producer. Based in London normally but I've been brought over to work on an album.'
'So, there's a chance we bump into each other again.'
'There's a chance. Maybe more than that. You live here, then?'
'Born and raised.'
'So, what's your favourite...'
'Place to visit in Barcelona? I'm not gonna show you around. I'm not a free tour guide.'
'I know my way around. I was going to say, what's your favourite thing to drink? Let me add it to our order.'
'That's kind, but I'm with some friends. I should probably get back to them.'
I was a little disappointed. I thought we had a vibe going. A wave of boldness overtook me.
'¿Me das tu número, entonces? Y tomamos algo otro dÃa.'
'There's that accent again. Your Spanish is actually alright. It makes you a little bit charming,' she said, as she entered her number into my phone.
Over the next month, we met up a few times for drinks, flirting and more. We were not yet exclusive, so we could still see other people if we wanted to. I was pretty sure she was doing that, as I noticed her surreptitiously checking dating apps on a couple occasions.
The first time we had sex was at my place. It was mostly awkward fumblings. The second time was at her place and it was mind-blowing. By then, we had gotten to know each other's bodies a little better. Elena was very loud and was practically screaming when she came.
We had arranged to hang out at her place the following weekend. I was already on my way when I got a text from her saying she had missed her train. She would be there in an hour or so. She said it was okay because her roommate Daniela was in.
Elena barely knew Daniela. They had matched with each other on a find-a-roommate app. Daniela was an aspiring actor and part-time waiter. Originally from near Madrid, she was here in Barcelona for a month filming something, mostly in the evenings. This meant the two women had completely different schedules and they barely saw each other. I do not think they liked each other much anyway. Daniela was quite untidy and never did her dishes, which annoyed Elena. Elena had to ask Daniela to clear up her mess and wrote passive aggressive notes to her, which annoyed Daniela.
When I knocked, there was a delay before anyone answered. Eventually, Daniela opened the door, not quite fully, and half hid behind it. Her hair was dishevelled and she was dressed in a large, baggy t-shirt with no pants or skirt. I could not tell if she was wearing underwear. She had a boyfriend but he was back home. It must have been one of his t-shirts.
'Oh, hi,' she said, pulling her t-shirt down to cover her crotch area. 'I wasn't expecting you. Elena's not in. Not sure where she is.' Daniela's breathing was a little heavy. I assumed that she had run to get the door.
'It's okay. She just texted me to say she missed a train and would be back in an hour. She said I could hang here to wait for her. Is that alright? She thought you would be in.'
'Sure. Come in.' Daniela had piercing eyes, long wavy hair, a cheeky smile and an incredible body. I could not help but admire her firm bum as she disappeared back into her room. The bottoms of her perfectly cupped cheeks were peeking out from under her t-shirt.
I sat on the couch and started flicking through the channels. After a short while, I went into the kitchen to get something to eat. Soon, Daniela re-appeared, in the t-shirt and some tiny cotton shorts. Again, she seemed slightly out of breath. She poured herself an enormous glass of water and started gulping it down.
I knew she was into yoga. 'Have you just been doing your hot yoga or something?' I asked.
'Something like that,' she said, flashing me a cheeky smile.
'I should get into yoga. You'll have to teach me some day.'
She ignored my comment and finished her water. 'So, you guys had a good time last weekend, then?'
'We didn't go out in the end, actually. We just chilled here.'
She looked at me for a bit without saying anything. 'I know you just chilled here. I also know that you had a good time. Well, I know for certain that Elena had a good time.'
'I see what you're saying now,' I said, feeling embarrassed. She must have been annoyed. 'Sorry if we woke you up or anything.'
'You didn't wake me up. I was awake. I was very much awake.' Another smirk.
I was feeling uncomfortable. I tried to change the topic. 'How's Juan?'
'He's good. We're trying to call each other a lot, but, you know, it's not quite the same.' She paused. 'I'm not getting all of my needs met, let's say.'
'It's hard doing distance.'
'It depends.'
'On?'
'On if you can find other ways to get your needs met.'
'I see. Like via other people, you mean?'
'Maybe.'
'You cheat on him?'
'Oh, please. We're not exclusive while I'm here in Barcelona. We let each other see other people. Juan knows I have way too high a sex drive to last the whole month without him. You guys aren't exclusive either, right?'
'No, not yet. We're still finding our feet.'
'Interesting.'
'Is it?'
'It is, to me.' As she said this, she was putting some music on. It was one of those explicitly sex-related RnB songs. 'I love this song. Wanna dance?'
She did not give me much of an option to say no. She put her arms around my neck and started swaying from side to side, mouthing the words to the song and looking me up and down. We got gradually closer and closer, until our faces were a few inches from each other. She lunged towards my ear and whispered into it.
'So, I have to know, what did you do to Elena that made her so happy?'
'That's between me and Elena,' I whispered back. Daniela smelt wonderful.
'I want you to show me.' As she said this, she gave my earlobe a lick. 'Was it something like that?'
'Maybe.'
She turned around and started grinding her bum on my crotch area. I grabbed her hips and pulled her closer towards me. She must have felt that I was getting hard. She bent over and continued writhing.
Still with her back to me, she turned her head and looked directly into my eyes. Her eyebrows were raised slightly, as though she were an innocent victim, and she fluttered her eyelashes. Gradually, she pressed a finger to her lips and began sucking on it. This made me rock hard and I could feel my penis starting to throb. She smiled and laughed, completely in control and knowing exactly what effect she was having on me. She placed her arms around my neck and brought her face close to mine again. Again, she spoke softly in my ear.
'You're being a very good boy. Are you sure you're not going to do something?'
'What do you mean, "do something"? You're crazy. Elena will be back soon.'
Daniela looked at her phone. Elena was not due back for another half an hour.
'There's still time for a lot of bad things to happen,' said Daniela.
The song had changed to an even slower, more bassy, more sensual one. Before I knew it, we had started making out. I held her close to me. Her lips were delicious. She knew not to rush with her kisses, ensuring there was a gradual buildup.
She reached down and lightly rubbed my bulge through my jeans. 'I think you want more,' she said.
My hands moved down her back slowly to her bum and I gave it a squeeze. Her breathing became heavier. It reminded me of earlier when I had arrived. Had she been on a video call with Juan? Or masturbating in her room? She gave me the answer.
'My imagination ran wild last weekend when I heard you and Elena, you know.'
'I can imagine,' I said, in between kisses.