It's not that I'm an evil. I'm not even a bitch. But faced with telling my boyfriend, Kevin, the truth, embracing my dark side was easier. And I think it worked out better in the end. Of course I also think I'm confusing 'better' for 'relief.'
I was pacing our apartment for an hour. Yeah, I was trying to sit on the sofa and watch a movie. I tried not to tap my foot on the floor. I was trying my damndest not to keep opening the refrigerator and stealing another uncooked hot dog. I just couldn't settle my nerves. When my cellular beeped in my pocket I about jumped out of my socks.
It was Kevin.
"Hey, hey. Tiffany my love. I am on my way home. Want anything at the store?"
"I just want you home, babe," I said as naturally as I could. I could hear the betrayal in my tone, though. I prayed that he couldn't, at least not yet. I hoped against hope that he would forgive what I had done to us only a few hours ago.
My heart really kicked into overdrive knowing he was on his way. He'd be here in about ten minutes. My stomach knotted painfully as I rehearsed in my head the words I would use. For the fiftieth time, I talked myself out of grabbing a beer to take the edge off. No. Why should I make it easy on myself? I deserved this horrible feeling.
With what I imagined was five minutes left, I checked myself in the hallway mirror. Somehow my green eyes were not teary or puffy. My shoulder length wavy blonde hair was still damp from the shower I'd recently taken. Once again I vetoed the idea of putting on makeup. Even though I was only wearing denim shorts and a Happy Bunny t-shirt, I made a point to pat down the wrinkles. I took a deep breath and for the first time since the cable guy had left, I began to relax.
My calmer heart beat only lasted about five minutes.
"I'm home, Tiff," Kevin called from the door. I waited in the middle of the living room as he walked down the hall. He greeted me, pecked me on the lips and hugged me. I hugged back, wondering if it seemed a desperate embrace. "Cable guy come?"
"Oh, yeah," I muttered. Fucking double entendres.
Kevin started his normal routine of putting his things away, grabbing a soda, changing shirts and keeping polite 'how was your day' small talk with me. My foot was tapping as I steeled myself for our impending battle. "So, we have super high speed internet now," he queried from the other room.
I felt myself shattering on the inside, my hands now shaking on the outside. This was just another day for Kevin. Maybe I should tell him later. "Yeah. We just have to set up passwords and junk. I planned on leaving that for you."
"That's cool."
"There's something else." Shit. My heart was pounding when I realized I had opened the door to my confession. I couldn't turn back now. Well, I could make up something lame like, "It's going to cost less than we thought." But I think deep down inside I recognized this was my only chance to tell him. So, before he could get his soda, I grabbed his hands and kept him there in the middle of the living room. I looked into his beautiful blue eyes. And I made myself breathe evenly.
"What," he asked, seemingly genuinely clueless that anything was amiss.
Fuck, I forget every word I had imagined telling him. Think, Tiffany. It started out with an "I love you," speech. It segued into a "I never want to hurt you" speech. That was closely followed by something about hoping he was the kind of guy who would forgive mistakes. Because, Dear God, I love you, Kevin. Right, that was how it ended. How did it fucking begin?
"What is it, Tiff," Kevin's voice was edgier now.
At that exact moment, clear as day, I heard my tenth grade English teacher's voice speaking inside my head. "Show, don't tell. Writers don't tell stories. They show them."
Ohhhh, it was a rush as evil, selfish empowerment flooded over my being. This destructive course I now plotted was infinitely better than the train wreck of guilt I was formerly rushing towards.
"Stand right here," my lips curled up in a nasty smile. Kevin obeyed while I turned to tamper with our stereo.
I walked back to stand in the middle of the room with him as AC/DC queued up. I was smiling when I closed my eyes and let my head swivel to Angus's sultry and sexy guitar intro. "You like this song, babe?"
"Um, yeah," he answered at the moment a snare drum announced the beginning of the rhythmic guitar rift that everybody knows. Now my body was getting into it, my hips swaying side to side with a hint of grinding into my four year boyfriend. It was great watching him ogle my tits as they did a dance of their own just for him.
"That's good. Because so did the cable guy."
*She was a fast machine.*
"What the fuck," Kevin started to push me away, but I didn't let him. I grabbed his ass and ground him hard into me.
*She kept her motor clean.*
"I'm the best damn woman that you've .... Ever seen," I told him, licking my lips. Fuck, I wish I had slut red lipstick on right then. He was tense and pissed. He was also hard and didn't stop me when I reached for his bulge over his jeans.
*...Telling me no lies. Knocking me out with those American thighs.*