HEAD OVER HEELS
Snow covered the frozen ground outside of Avery's apartment. His car was buried deep under the previous night's precipitation. The area was due for massive snowfall, and for once, the prediction delivered on its promise. He peered outside to see the sun hiding its face behind thick, grey clouds. It could snow again at any time. It was, after all, supposed to snow again that night. He walked back over to his computer and opened his email. Disappointment sank in as he saw that he had received no message from Jenna recently. It had been two days since he last heard from her and almost two weeks since she had left. With a week left until Christmas, Avery felt lonelier than he had the year previous. He missed her dearly. A bit disheartened, he opened a website to view the weather forecast for the evening. He hoped the snowstorm they were supposed to get was somehow going to be thrown off course. Unfortunately for him, it was well on its way to hit his sleepy town within a few hours. Avery turned his attention from the computer to a loud crunching sound outside of his apartment door. Someone was tapping the toe of their shoes, presumably to get any remaining snow free from the tread.
The sound of crunching and tapping soon gave way to the sound of knocking on his front door. The notion that someone might entertain his company while another monstrous downpour of frozen water encased the town made him feel special. And there was one person, if he could not spend this time trapped in the apartment with Jenna, who could warm his soul. He walked over to the door and took a peek through the hole. He could barely make out the person on the other side, but when he saw who it was, he grew anxious to open the door. When he did, neither person said a word to each other. Their smiling faces said everything that needed to be said. Mika handed him a bag that seemed heavy even for his strong arms. Avery took it from her and carried it to the kitchen. Inside of it was a miscellaneous collection of groceries. Mika walked into the apartment, placing down a large backpack she was carrying. She had a thick black coat covering her small frame. She wore some black leggings and pink boots, which she removed at the door. She draped her coat on his couch and waved her hands through her long, straight hair. She was wearing a pink Penn State sweater underneath the coat. Avery peered down at the big bag she had on her back.
"What's in your backpack?" he asked, carrying the food Mika brought into the kitchen to place it in its rightful place.
"Just a few things I thought I should bring with me. I don't think I'll be able to get home tonight. I hope that won't be a problem," she responded, opening the closet near the front door to secure her boots.
"Not a problem at all," he answered. Inside the bag were some of the essentials and some of the not-so important things. He was happy that Mika grabbed a container of cut pineapple. It was one of his favorite fruits. As soon as the food was put away, he walked over to a drawer and opened it to take out a fork. He popped the top off of the container of pineapple and scooped up a piece in his mouth. It was fresh and had the right amount of sweetness and tartness to it.
"Would you like some?" he asked her, holding up the plastic container for her to see.
"Sure," she responded, walking into the kitchen. She stood in front of him as he stuck the fork into a piece of the cut fruit and raised it to her. Rather than take the utensil from his hand, she leaned forward and wrapped her perfect lips around the end of it, taking the piece of fruit in her mouth. She pulled back and chewed it, smiling grandly at Avery. He reciprocated her smile. She reached for the fork and countered the gesture, choosing a piece for him and feeding it to him. It was a very intimate moment even for lovers, let alone two friends. Avery and Mika did not have a name for whatever their relationship was. Whatever it was, he was content that he did not have to spend the holiday season alone.
"I have a surprise for you for later," she said, opening the fridge to pull from it a cup of Greek yogurt.
"I like surprises," he exclaimed, chewing another piece of pineapple.
"Good," she answered, getting a spoon and indulging in the snack. She walked out of the kitchen and plopped down onto his couch, savoring the sweet taste.
"So, what are we going to tell Janelle and Maggie when they ask where you are?" Avery said, leaning against the wall that separates the kitchen from the living room.
"I was kind of wondering that myself. I don't really have a lot of close friends here, so my hope is that they don't try to sneak over here or text me to find out where I am," she said, brushing her hair out of her face.
"I doubt they'll just randomly come over. Especially with the weather being like it is now. Was it busy at the store?"
"Not really. The roads are pretty empty. I guess everyone got their shopping done earlier. Hopefully we'll only be stuck in the apartment for a day or two," she answered, running the spoon around the inside of the cup to get the rest of its contents.
"Thank you very much for going. You really didn't have to do that," he said, sitting down on the couch near her.
"It's fine. I figured if I was going to come over here, I might as well be the one to stop at the store," she said, placing the cup down on the table. "Now, I have a favor to ask you."
"What's that?"
"Bring the two black shopping bags from my car into the apartment? They have all the presents for everyone."
"No problem. Mind if I take a peek to see what you got everybody?"
"Absolutely not, because there is something in those bags for you, so I would appreciate it if you did not look," she said, getting up and walking over to her coat. She pulled her keys from her pocket and tossed them over to Avery.
"Just for my own edification, you don't mind being trapped in this apartment with me?" he said, placing the pineapple down on the table and standing up. He moved to get his boots from the closet.
"I would much rather be trapped here with you than at home with Janelle and Maggie. Between you and me, I think there's something going on between the two of them. It is okay with you that I'm here, right?"
"Fine with me," he said, finishing lacing up his boots. He walked over to the door and opened it. As Avery left the apartment, Mika picked up her backpack and carried it to the second bedroom. It was Avery's unofficial office. He had his large computer desk, a filing dresser, and a twin size bed all resting in the room. She put her backpack on the floor and reached back to put her long hair in a ponytail. Afterward, she unzipped her bag and started pulling things from it. First came some body wash and lotion. Then some deodorant and her toothbrush. She had three changes of clothes, though they were nothing particularly fancy. It was supposed to dump at least nine inches of snow on them, on top of the seven they got the night before, so she did not see the need to bring her best clothes just to lounge around the apartment with Avery. As she finished unpacking, she saw the hot pink bra and panty set she wore two days ago for Avery. It was still covered in him. She meant to wash it before bringing it but the snow accelerated her plans. Perhaps she could use the machines in his apartment. She doubted he would mind. Some strange fears began to crowd her otherwise excited mind. The two of them had not spoken about what happened three nights prior. Mika was certain she enjoyed it, and given the chance, would not mind it happening a second time. But she did not know how Avery felt. Another issue that bothered her was how trusting she was being with him. She was not sure if Avery would try to do anything more physical with her than they had already done. But what troubled her more was the realization that she would not try to stop him if that was what he wanted to do. In fact, she would do almost anything he wanted. As long as he brought his piercing eyes with him. She walked out of the room and saw a picture of him and Jenna together on the wall outside of the master bedroom. They were at the beach. Jenna was wearing a lime green bikini, a straw hat, and a pair of sunglasses. Her arms were wrapped around Avery, who was wearing a matching shirt to her bikini and black swimming trunks. Mika felt completely outmatched by Jenna. If she were here, would Avery be paying at much attention to her as he was? Whatever bond they had right now would undoubtedly change when Jenna returned. And if that was the case, then so be it. But for now, Avery was mesmerized by her and she was going to enjoy her time with him.
"Hey!" Avery cried out for her. Startled, Mika jumped and turned around. A hard, cold object slapped her in the face, momentarily suffocating her. She wiped her face off to see he had thrown a snowball at her. She gave him an angry look and ran after him. Avery quickly opened the door and raced outside into the snow. Mika went after him, disregarding the cold and her unprotected feet. She grabbed as much snow as her hands could muster and began tossing it at him. He retaliated in kind, missing some of his shots in an effort to dodge hers. She picked up some snow and packed it down until it was solid. She then ran over to him and jumped onto him, knocking him down and into the snow. She landed on top of him, and smashed the snowball into his face, moving it side to side to smear it in. They both laughed as she did it. Avery reached up with both of his hands and turned her around, pinning her onto the frigid ground. Mika's legs instinctively spread open and encompassed Avery's body. It took a few moments before either of them realized just how intimate their horseplay had become. Mika had a smile from ear to ear on her face. She reached up and patted him on his cheek, then started rubbing it back and forth. Her hand, at first, was as cold as the earth around them. It warmed quickly. Avery sat up, moving away from her small hand. Mika tried to reach for him again, but Avery took it as a sign that she needed help from the ground. He took her hand in his and pulled her up. Their playtime over, Mika wrapped her arms around her body. The adrenaline had worn off and she was freezing. They walked back into the apartment.
"I'm going to change. My clothes are all wet," she said, lifting up her sweater to reveal a white tank top and white bra underneath it. Her clothes did not show off much of her body, but Avery did not need that. He remembered all too well what was underneath her shirt. As she started to walk into the office, she stopped just outside of the door and turned back to him.
"Do you want to watch me?" she said. Avery looked at her. Her head was tilted downward a bit. Her hair was draped over part of her face, hiding behind it one of her eyes. It was, however, not enough to hide what she was feeling. Avery could discern in her visible eye the amount of yearning she had for him. He was nonetheless bowled over by the question. He initially believed that what happened the other night was a single happening that would not be repeated. But he was not about to turn down a free viewing of Mika.
