Acknowledgements: Tabico, as always, plus the departed and sorely missed Parker, as well as Jasmine, Jord, The Collector, Haywaine, and lots of other visual artists over at The Collective.
N.B.: I must be watching WAY too much "Lost" recently, since I decided to try something a little ambitious with the timeline in this final chapter, and may or may not have pulled it off. It sure took forever to finish writing and editing. You be the judge as to whether it worked. All manner of comments, criticism, insults or adulation are welcome.
* * *
"Hiya Becka!"
"Hey Maggie," Becka said, extending a hand to shake over the net. "Good to see you again. You warmed up yet, or should we hit for a while first?"
"Actually, I just got here - I haven't even stretched yet. Would you mind helping me loosen up a bit?" Maggie asked, as she set down her bag and unzipped her jacket.
"Mmmmm, damn, you've got a nice body!" Becka thought lewdly. "Not at all," she said politely. Becka had given her student a very thorough ogle as she walked over to the court, just like she had done every week since Maggie had started taking lessons from her. And just like every week, she really liked what she saw.
It had been a rough two months for Becka, and she had come to anticipate her weekly lesson with Maggie with a strange mixture of excitement and dread. It should have been impossibly awkward to give tennis lessons to someone this close to the woman who stole her lover, but for one thing, Becka had stolen enough lovers from other women to know that she had no reason to blame Maggie for any complaint she may have had with Alex. Second, there was something about Maggie that made it hard to hate her. She smelled really nice, or something. It was hard to pin down, but for whatever inarticulable reasons people have for being drawn to one another, Becka could tell she was drawn to Maggie.
It certainly didn't hurt that as usual, Maggie's workout clothes looked like a fetish catalogue version of a tennis outfit. It was a two-piece ensemble, featuring a skin-tight top that was thin enough to let her delectable nipples poke through just so and a scandalous skirt that was short enough to reward anyone who paid attention with tantalizing glimpses of ass cheek anytime Maggie exerted herself. Between them, the two pieces framed a dramatic gap that highlighted Maggie's creamy smooth midriff, complete with bellybutton ring. On a lot of people, bellybutton jewelry just looks ridiculous. On Maggie, it looked hot enough to make Anita Bryant reconsider.
"Thanks, how about we sit down and do some hamstring stretches," suggested Maggie. Becka let her eyes linger as she sat across from the young Asian woman's widely spread legs, propped her feet against Maggie's and reached out so they could hold hands. Although neither showed it, both women enjoyed a nice rush from the all-but-overt sexuality of this position.
Becka spoke up to try and focus on their lessons. "Ok now, remember, to get a good stretch you need to roll your back in and out of each--"
"I know how to do partner stretches, Becka," Maggie said with a grin, as she let Becka pull her upper body forward. "Let's talk about something else."
"Like what?"
"Like you. You seen the light at the end of the tunnel yet?"
"Maggie, don't ask me about this again, you know I don't like to talk about it."
"Yes, I do know you don't like to talk about it Becka. But I also know you need to talk about it. You'll never move on if you don't let yourself get over her, and you could get over her a lot easier if you'd just open up about it a little."
Silence. Awkward eye contact, and them more silence.
"Ok, suit yoursel--" said Maggie.
"Are they happy?"
"Sorry?"
"I know you see them together every day, Maggie," Becka said quietly, "and I want to know if Alex makes Debbie happy."
"Well, yes. I believe Alex has made Debbie very happy. I hope this makes it easier for you, Becka, and not harder, but yes, I really believe they make each other happy."
Yet more silence.
"You could be happy again too, you know," added Maggie with a meaningful glance into Becka's eyes. "There are other fish in the sea..."
Becka had been hit on by tennis students often enough to know exactly what Maggie meant, and although she greatly enjoyed the attention - and the view, as she and Maggie finished their stretches - she sidestepped the suggestion by abruptly turning their conversation back to the lessons. "Well, I thought we'd get started this time with some more backhand drills, then work on some passing shots, and finish up with a couple practice games to see how you're progressing. Sounds good?"
"Sounds good, boss lady!" replied Maggie, taking the hint as they stood up to grab their rackets. "Do your worst!"
* * *
"Debbie!" Alex called cheerfully, as Debbie stepped into the doorway of her office. "Hey there, sexygirl, get in here!" Alex grinned at Debbie conspiratorially as she stepped quickly around her desk. She walked across the room to take Debbie by the hands and give her a quick kiss. Alex was aiming for the mouth, but Debbie awkwardly turned her cheek just as Alex's lips arrived. "Right, wait a sec," said Alex, in light of Debbie's lukewarm response, "better get the door."
Just in the instant Alex touched her, Debbie felt a now-familiar rush as her pulse quickened and her nipples went all nipply. These sensations of arousal held no real surprise for Debbie anymore - and physically they were still very pleasant - but instead of reveling in this surge of sexheat like she had just hours earlier in Alex's living room, right now Debbie was redoubling her resolve to get some answers.
She bit her lip to try to silence her private turmoil, and as she turned back to go close off Alex's office she scolded herself. "STOP it, dammit, this is weird!" she thought. "Get a hold of yourself - a year ago back at State, you would never gone all gooey like this." Lots of things were different a year ago. Lots of things were different twenty-four hours ago.
Alex, meanwhile, had perched herself on the front edge of her desk, and smiled as Debbie returned to have a seat on the far side of the adjacent couch. "So, young lady," Alex asked wryly, "care to explain why you're so late this morning?"
Debbie turned up the corner of her mouth in the vaguest possible smile in response, but her apprehension was practically written across her face.
"OK, fair enough, lame joke," said Alex. "It's just that you really look a little freaked out - I figured it couldn't hurt to try and lighten you up a little."
Debbie's continued silence spoke for itself.
Unfazed, Alex continued. "Look, I know this is all a little weird, but c'mon. So what? Ok, fine, you're not supposed to screw around at the office - but really, so what? Don't you ever drive 66 miles an hour? Honestly, Debbie, I really didn't expect you to be so shaken up by this. I know you're not going to try to tell me you didn't enjoy yourself last night, so think about it: as long as we really communicate with each other, there's no reason we can't have a hell of a good time together, right? And everything will be fine!"
"Fine?!? FINE???" Debbie finally broke her silence, standing up to confront Alex eye-to-eye. That turned out to be a mistake, though, as the smouldering eye contact she got from Alex seemed to fire sexsparks right back into Debbie's nipples and clit. She quickly looked away and began pacing beside the coffee table instead, and although she stopped herself from shouting, she failed utterly to keep the emotion out of her voice. "How the FUCK is everything going to be 'fine,' Alex?"
Alex paused for a moment, and said "Oh, Debbie, come on. You think I've never been through this? What, you think you're the first girl who ever had a crush on the boss?"