Matt and Ava had been together for almost two years. The night he told her he loved her was one of the best nights of both their lives. Time wore on and the former "best friends" fell into a boring routine. They'd moved in together and time simply took its toll.
It was summertime and Matt had gone back to his native Wisconsin for a while. Truthfully, he needed a break from Ava, they'd been fighting constantly and he needed some time away. She'd been so sad when he left. He hadn't called much while he'd been gone. She fought with him about it for the first few weeks, but then her calls stopped being as frequent, and her voice was hollow when he did speak to her.
He thought they might break up when he got home. The sixteen-hour drive was longer than usual. He didn't feel like he had much to go back to. When he pulled up to their apartment building he sat staring at the steering wheel for almost ten minutes. He was almost afraid to go upstairs. He wasn't even sure if she was home.
He decided not to unpack the car quite yet, and headed upstairs with only one bag. He unlocked his front door, feeling his nervous anticipation grow as he pushed it open.
"Ava?" he called out.
There was no answer. Matt walked down his front hallway into the living room. He wandered around their home like a man in a trance. Her things lay around carelessly.
She hadn't been expecting him to be home. In their bedroom he picked up a pair of her earrings and touched the delicate beads tenderly. He was so entranced by them, and his own empty sorrow that he did not hear the door open and the rustling of bags.
"Oh my God, Matt!" a woman's voice cried out.
Matt turned sharply away from the dresser to see Ava standing in the hallway. Her hair was longer than when he'd left, falling far past her shoulders. Her body was covered only by a thin, white sundress. It was cut low and hugged her generous curves. The light color of the dress contrasted beautifully with her tanned skin and dark hair. It was almost as if she were glowing in the dying light of the evening.
Ava rushed towards him, then stopped dead just out of arm's reach, as if she'd just reminded herself of something.
"It's good to see you," she said coolly, looking down at the ground.
The lack of warmth in her voice hurt him. Her huge hazel eyes were turned towards the floor and he longed for her to look at him. He stepped forward a little and touched her face, gently coaxing her chin upwards.
Their eyes met. Her pupils grew dilated as she gazed at him and her entire body seemed to open. He was stunned a little by how beautiful she was. He'd somehow forgotten exactly what her face looked like.
He moved towards her and gently hugged her. He felt her relax a little in his arms. She hugged him back. One of her hands stroked the back of his head and her breath was on his neck. He felt her lips brush by his ear. He didn't know if she was trying, but she was arousing strong feelings of lust from deep within him.
When she pulled away from him he could see that she hadn't been trying. Ava was never trying to be sexy, she just was. He'd forgotten that too, and somehow the fact that she hadn't been trying made him want her even more.
Before she could say a word, or move too far away from him he grabbed her around the waist and pulled her against him. She let out a surprised gasp and her body almost instinctively leaned into his. In a flash she felt what he felt. Her skin grew hot and her fingers shook a little.