The Sauna
Jenny's eyes were fixated on the face of one of the parents at the football match. It was Saturday morning and all the eight-year-olds were running round the field kicking the round ball in what seemed to be a haphazard way. The parents were on the sidelines yelling out the kids' names and encouragement. Most of the kids didn't have a clue and it showed. Jenny couldn't believe that her ex fiancé would come to a school football match. The closer she got, the more she realised that it wasn't him at all -- this man was 3 inches shorter and had different colour eyes. By the time she realised this she was just a few yards away from him. She had not been aware that it had been so obvious that she was staring at him. It was a surprise when he came over and said,
"Why are you staring at me so closely?"
"You looked so much like my ex fiancé I couldn't believe it. You look identical in the face but have different colour eyes and he was 3 inches taller than you."
"Are you a parent too?"
"No. I'm a teacher. A lot of these kids are in my class and I just like to see how they play."
"I thought you must be a parent. That boy with the blonde hair who has got the ball right now -- that's my son. By the way I am Ben. "
"Where is your wife?"
"We are divorced. She is the blonde in the red coat down there."
"What happened?"
"She fell for a lesbian and decided she preferred to lick pussy. Sad. Sad. Very sad."
"That must be hard to take. That is really an insult isn't it?"
"Yes. I haven't really gotten over it."
"My friend Rachel often comes over after the game -- I have a pot roast going but today all the kids are going to McDonald's because it's the last game of the year so Rachel is not coming. Do you want to come over? We can walk to my apartment from here."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. I'm sure. There is far too much to eat for me."
After the strange introduction, there was sexual tension in the air. Neither Jenny nor Ben could get out of their minds that perhaps fate had delivered them a partner. Who knew? They continued on sparring in a very low-key but all the time edging closer to some sort of sexual connection.
As they entered Jenny's apartment the smell of the pot roast was overwhelming.
"Boy that smells great."
"Wait till you taste it."
They tucked into the pot roast and continued their discussions to find out more about each other. Ben was rather bitter that he had been rejected for a woman. That was galling. Jenny explained that her fiancé had only been with her for a few months and wanted sex from the start. Jenny had been prepared to do everything except penetration. She had promised her mother on her deathbed that she would get married a virgin. It was crazy but just one of those things. A few days before the wedding she arrived home and there was a note, "I'm going. You'll never see me again." And that was that. He disappeared off the face of the earth, never to be seen again. Every time she thought of him the word, "bastard, cabron, shit", came to mind.
While they were eating Ben remarked, "What's that?" pointing to a small structure in the corner.
"That's my sauna. I was an exchange student in Finland and discovered them. When one came up for sale second hand and cheap I couldn't help myself, I bought it.
"I've always wanted to try a sauna. Never even been near one."
"Sure. After lunch. You've got to wait a while before you can have a go. I will turn it on. It takes a while to warm up."