Chapter 7 - Find Love
It was late when Fantine finished her tale. They were both tired and really needed some rest.
"I should leave and let you go to bed," Fantine said as she stretched and yawned.
"You must stay with me," asserted Liz. "Please, I insist. It's much too late to be driving about. And there is so much for us to talk about in the morning." She placed a hand on Fantine's. "Really. I would worry terribly if you left now and it's no trouble at all."
"Very well," said Fantine. She looked deep into Liz' eyes and smiled warmly.
Those soft eyes and pretty smile worked on Liz. Their encounter in the arcade was still fresh in her mind. The temptation was there to surrender herself to her lust and dive into the tangled bliss her new friend offered but she was wise enough to know lasting relationships were not founded on abrupt impulses. "You can sleep with me, if you don't mind," offered Liz. She did not mean to imply anything but it was the only bed she had and it would be callous to offer a guest anything less.
There was nothing to debate. She rose and led her new friend to her bedroom. "You must be tired," Liz offered. "It's not a hotel suite but it's comfy."
Liz took a spot between her bed and her dresser and began removing her clothes. She dropped her skirt to the floor and remembered she had left her panties in the car. She felt embarrassed and quickly dug into a dresser drawer to get a clean pair. As she removed her blouse the notion caught in her mind that she was shy about her body in front of Fantine. She really had no reason for coyness. She had shared deep intimacy with this woman. Albeit, through a hole, it was closeness and rapture like she had never known. Her precious Charm had penetrated deep into Fantine's pussy; it was not at all a casual encounter. Fantine had delved into Charm to a point beyond mere union and triggered ecstasy that verged on a spiritual experience. She shook off her momentary embarrassment and was glad to be rid of it. This would be the first night of a long personal relationship. Liz finally had someone she could bond with. Now at hand was the development of that relationship.
Fantine showed neither hesitation nor embarrassment, she simply stepped to the opposite side of the bed and began undressing. She slipped off her shoes and stepped out of her dress. With no ceremony, the slender, girlish-figured woman took down the bedspread and slid under the covers of Liz' bed. She propped herself up on her elbow and watched Liz.
Liz stood in her bra and panties, she was wrestling with the idea of putting on pajamas like she usually did but she knew it would be rude to humble her guest. She turned out the light and slid into bed facing Fantine. They bid each other good night and closed their eyes.
Liz opened her eyes again to study Fantine's face. She looked sweet and angelic and Liz knew it would be easy to become enamored with her as friend and companion. In spite of the sex they had shared tonight, she still wondered about the kind of love relationship she could surrender herself to. It involved opening up a part of herself that she had shuttered away in darkness for centuries. It would mean embracing behavior that was alien to her. She knew it was time to confront aspects of sensuality, sexuality and interpersonal accord like she had never known.
Fantine' eyes suddenly fluttered open. The two women smiled and they held each other's gaze.
"It is a scary thing, to trust a new friend," whispered Fantine; her voice was raspy from her long story. "It is hard to believe, over the years... I look for you,... you become very dear to me." She took Liz' hand and kissed it. "I come to you because I love you, my Elizabeth. I will protect you from all harm, now and always. If we are sisters or no."
Liz was touched that Fantine seemed to feel what she was struggling with. "Yes, thank you. We are two of a kind. We should be taking care of each other." She raised herself on her elbow, leaned over Fantine and they kissed. It was sweet and tender. Liz laid her head next to her new friend. They smiled at each other again and closed their eyes. 'Yes,' Liz thought. 'We will be lovers.' She could feel the notion as a seed planted in her heart. She needed merely to wait for it to sprout and love would finally be hers. Seconds later, she was sound asleep.
----
When Liz awoke, she found Fantine still sleeping peacefully beside her. She quietly slid out of bed, put on a robe she had hanging on the closet door and went to the kitchen to start a pot of coffee. It was some minutes later as she was reading the paper that Fantine padded into the room. With her dress pulled on and still unbuttoned, her hair fallen across her face, and her eyes all puffy she looked sweet and innocent like a girl at a sleep over.
Liz greeted her with a peck on the cheek. The two chatted lightly as Liz fixed them a light breakfast of toast and yogurt with fresh fruit. She was pleasantly shocked at how easy it was for her to relax in Fantine's presence and wondered if it was all they had in common, the intimacy they shared at the arcade, or if it was something deeper.
"Fantine, about last night... ," Liz began after she'd finally built up enough courage to broach the subject. "When you got into me... When you reached within me so deep, what happened?"
"You do not know," came the awestruck reply?
"I felt what you did to me... "
"Yes," Fantine coaxed?
"It was... Wow. It was fantastic... beyond anything, ever," Liz laughingly recalled.
"Yes, and then what," Fantine anxiously plied?
"Well, apart from what was going on in my head, I kind of blacked out."
"You do not remember?"
"No." said Liz flatly. "I just remember coming to on the floor. What happened?"
"Well... at first, you get real... Γͺtes devenu trΓ¨s tendu. Stiff. And then you sway, back and forth a little," she explained. "After that, you moan and laugh. Then you moan real loud. You screamed and I think maybe I hurt you. But you keep the hold on to me."
"I'm sorry," Liz said with a blush. "I hope I didn't scare you too much."
"It was very good I think, yes?" Fantine took her hand and spoke confidingly, "Maybe you show me some time, yes? I would like to have this feeling... with you."
"Oh yes! Of course, we... umm," Liz started. She was caught up in a girlish excitement that tickled her in a way she had not felt in years. Her own frankness and unbridled interest shocked her. 'But why should it?' she thought. If there was any one on earth she could finally trust and open up to it was Fantine. "Yes, I would love to show you." The two silently smiled at each other for a moment before breaking out in a nervous giggle. Liz flushed and took an instant to tuck away the fresh feeling for later reflection.
They talked for hours more about basically the physiology they shared and their feelings about it. They exchanged anecdotes on the major historical events, especially of the past one hundred forty years; where they were and what impression they had of epic events like wars, natural catastrophes, and cultural phenomena they could both recall. They talked about famous people they had known.
While Liz' encounters were mostly in science, art and academia like Louis Pasteur, Victor Hugo, and Albert Einstein; Fantine's were mostly royalty, politicians and entrepreneurs like Prince Edward of England, Benito Mussolini, and Gottlieb Daimler. They did discover that, apart from their mutual Venetian friend, they had both met Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Woodrow Wilson, and Henri Rousseau. They were both amused by how small the world could be if one's life is big enough.
They traded their impressions of the human race as abject observers; non-playing characters; spectators freed from the oppression of mortality. They shared their feelings about their unique perspective, outside of mankind and still part of it. Liz had been enthralled with Fantine's tale the night before, now she was hanging on her adventurous friend's every word; trying hard to know every facet of the new personality in her life.
As noon approached, they decided upon collecting Fantine's things from her hotel and stopping somewhere for lunch. Liz took a quick shower, something she usually did immediately after a trip to an arcade, and dressed in slacks and a sweater to join Fantine, dressed and ready, in the living room. They took Fantine's car and continued their engrossing conversation on the way to the hotel.
Once in her room, Fantine casually stripped herself nude before Liz. They chatted lightly as they had all morning about their likes and dislikes, also simple things and casual observations. It was part of a familiarization process that all new friends go through, however, this one had promise of something deeper. Liz admired her openness and trusting nature. She also admired her form, her toned body and smooth clear skin. She found her eyes drawn to Fantine's thick, triangular pubic nest and all the wonder that lie within it. Fantine laid out her clothes and then immersed herself in the shower.