Please note that ALL characters are above the age of 18. Please enjoy!
"Happy birthday, honey"
Scott spoke as he pulled the covers to the side and proceeded to dangle his feet over the edge of the bed. He sat hunched over, dressed in a white t-shirt and gym shorts. From there, she could see the back of his head to her left. Mostly full head of hair still, but some greys were working their way into what was an otherwise grizzly-colored mane. Scott took a deep breath and proceeded to lift himself out of bed and grab a towel hanging from the door. With a slow turn and sleep still in his eyes, he turned to Sarah and offered,
"I'll bring home a pizza tonight (?)"
"Sure," she responded, fighting through the morning alarm herself.
"OK...great," Scott said, proceeding to walk across the room towards the bathroom, beyond which lay the shower. Scott, who had a slightly longer commute, always took the first shower. Being male, he didn't have to same morning routine of hair drying, makeup, etc. so it made sense for him to enter first. Sarah usually took this time to walk down the hall and wake Eric, who was 12, and Rachel, who was 9. She put her hair in a loosly tied knot and walked out the door, wearing sweatpants and a sweatshirt.
It was the same routine, the same fight. Knock on each one's door and prepare for knock number two when no one wanted to get up. It was 6:30 and the kids were in no mood to get out of bed. Fuck, neither was she, but there are some items in the world in which it is not advisable to go against the grain - waking up to be on time to school and work was one of them. When she was finally able to summon the children to be up and grab the nearest cereal box from the cabinet downstairs, Sarah made her way to the shower after Scott. The kids would go in afterwards in the other shower in the hall. Running both at the same time would send freezing water down at random times to either, so it was best that everyone take their turn.
Sarah spread her lips wide and made a smile in the mirror. Yellowed, for sure, but not too bad. Despite a few cavities over the years, her teeth were in good health. So was the rest of her, thank god. She had made it. 48 years old today and in good body and average spirit. After a quick brushing and use of the toilet, she turned the hot water on. Since Scott had just been in, there was no need to wait for the hot water heater to turn on, but she took a 30 second pause anyway.
Her body was healthy, for sure, but that doesn't mean it hadn't changed since her younger years. Sarah took off her sweatshirt and sweatpants. Wearing no bra underneath, the only thing left to remove was her underwear. She loosened the make-shift knot she created. Letting her hair fall just past her shoulder on either side. She took a hard look. There was no shock here -- no one's body changes overnight -- but there was no contentment either.
She was older, that's for sure. The skin on her face had fallen a little bit. The clean, innocent cute face of her college years had been replaced but a combination of slight wrinkles, crow's feet, and the beginnings of jowls. Her blue eyes were the slightest bit paler, as was her blonde hair. In the middle, her prominent nose had become slightly more so. A look further downward showed some darker age marks here and there. Her breasts still had a fullness but lost the perkiness of her younger years after Eric and Rachel. After both pregnancies her areolas had swollen to three inches across. And right in the middle were two nipples, which like her areolas, had remained larger than before. In college they were cute little pink buttons. They now resembled eraser heads. In all, her breasts showed the years of hard work feeding her children. Looking downward, her pubic hairs had the first signs of grey. Worst of all was slightly above.
Sarah was a beach girl. Surfer, in fact. When she was younger, every summer Saturday was spent hitting the waves and soaking in the sun after. And she'll tell you -- she could really rock a bikini. Flat stomach with the cutest little belly button. Those days were long gone.
Although Eric wasn't too bad, ever since the birth of Rachel, Sarah had grown what she called a "pouch". Light stretch marks here and there to accompany what was the female version of a beer gut. No overhang or anything but, as she called it, a little pouch that become defined by a few age marks. It was her biggest insecurity. She could pinch an inch and hated it so. No more bikinis. On the off-occasion Scott and her had sex, she usually tried to keep a blanket covering her mid-section, not wanting to remind him that she wasn't the same woman she was those years before.
After a summation of where she was at 48, Sarah walked into the shower, the water warm to the touch. Spending a brisk five minutes washing with soap, shampoo and water. She climbed out, grabbed her towel and walked into the bedroom. Scott was out the door by this point and on his way to the office. Sarah quickly put on panties, a clean, white 36 DD bra, jeans, and a loosely fitting brown top. Off to round up the kids.
The morning ride to school was to be expected: typical bullshit. Rachel tried to grab the front seat, only to face Eric shoving her out of way. Seeing her son push her daughter to the ground, Sarah laid down the law:
"Eric, cut the crap!"
"I'm older and have longer legs, I should get the front seat!"
"You have to take turns, Eric. You go in the front -- Rachel gets the radio."
Rachel got the radio, sure, but it was typical crap yet again. Once Sarah dialed into her favorite station. On came "Fresh Outta London", that obnoxious song by that YouTube star.
"Boring!!!" Eric yelled.
Rachel let out a scream of anger common with little girls. She reached for the dashboard, hoping to undue Eric's station change. In doing so, she connected with Sarah's right arm, sending hot coffee directly into her lap and soaking the seat and her jeans.
"What the hell!"
School drop-off went as expected, with Rachel and Eric leaving the car quietly and not looking forward to coming home. Sarah was a good mom but no stranger to grudges. From there, it was off to McConnel & Fahey, the accounting firm for which she was a staff member. She got her CPA while pregnant with Eric and worked at the firm ever since. After a younger life of taking it easy working as a waitress at the local Chilis, she figured she needed to get her shit together once she married Scott, who was once her college boyfriend. Largely, McConnell & Fahey represented what her life had become after having Eric; a series of boring tasks done solely to be a provider. She loved the three of them but it became that she no longer lived for herself...she was now meant to serve and shelter. That was the feeling experienced everytime she walked through those doors. It was the feeling she had now.
Sarah worked her way to her cube and began yet another day. It was Tuesday, meaning, that she had to be on point. Mid-week is typically when all emergency assignments and requests came in, so Sarah made sure to get a good head start on some larger projects the day before. When, surprisingly enough, her emails were slower than usual, she found herself with a little more time than usual.
Right by the water cooler was Emma's desk. Emma, one of the newer associates on the team, was the kind of girl who wore her emotions on her sleeve. Just a few years out of college, she was exploring the dating scene and having a little fun wherever she could. She could attract the attention too, with an age of 25 and a frame most girls would die for. Tall and slim with the cheekbones of a model. With her golden hair and thick lips, she got stares from most men who walked by her. Sarah had grown to like Emma and developed an eagerness to hear the newest drama. She was in that point of her life where the possibilities seemed endless and the options innumerable.
"How's it goin', Em?" Sarah said.
"Fine, I guess. How 'bout you?" Emma replied
"Same old same old. Except this morning I spilled hot coffee all over my pants..So..actually, yeah 'same old, same old'"
Emma chuckled. She'd grown to enjoy Sarah's dry sense of humor, which could only come from years of age. Years of being able to see all the lies and bullshit and point out where it will come from next.
"Sounds like a good time," Emma responded.
"Please...oh, anyway, how are things with that guy you were seeing...Jake was it?"
Sarah grinned and looked out the corner of her eye slyly and yet innocently.
"Good..."
"Do anything fun?"
"This weekend he came over and we..."
"Oooo," Sarah responded.
"He was all over me. He wanted it -- bad. He literally walked into the house with a boner!" Emma began to laugh.
"He really made me feel sexy...feel powerful...like this fit, hot guy could be reduced to a mess over one thing...me." Emma continued.