Always Home

6. No need to rush. Experience required. Elsa and me.

The loud rattling of the bedroom door handle jarred me out of an uneasy sleep. Elsa was curled up behind me, her head resting on my shoulder and her hands held close in front of her, against my back. I blinked hazily, noting the brightness of the outside world through the closed curtains. What had—

"Elsie?" The door handle rattled again. "What the...? Hey, Elsie, are you gonna sleep all day?"

Oh, shit.

I rolled over in Elsa's embrace to peer at the alarm clock, which read 7:58. Marnie had to leave for school in a little over fifteen minutes.

"Just a sec!" I called, reaching over to shake Elsa's bare shoulder.

"Huhrrm?" she mumbled, tightening her arms around me and snuggling closer to my chest. "Whassit?"

"You forgot the alarm," I said, anxiously. "Marn wants you to get up."

"Oh..." She opened her eyes blearily, and tried to focus on me. "Ger. Marnie... already? But it can't be..." She rolled over, letting her right arm fall flat across the bed, and squinted at the clock. "Oh, shit," she murmured.

"My thoughts exactly," I said, as she sat bolt upright in the bed, sending the covers flying. She was, of course, still completely naked. And so was I.

"Sis?" Marnie's voice was definitely starting to sound impatient. "Are you up yet? What's the deal locking the door, anyway?"

"I'll be right there," Elsa said, looking around in a bit of a panic. "Have you had breakfast?"

"Yeah, I've eaten. I'll go pack my stuff; I want to go in a bit early today."

"Okay," Elsa said. "Won't be long."

She leaned over and gave me a hasty kiss before slipping out of her side of the bed and landing nimbly on the carpet. Her bare skin was lit warmly by the hazy morning light, and she was beautiful in motion, as always. But there was no time to think or act on it.

Or was there?

"Panties," she muttered, looking around frantically. She stooped and retrieved the condom wrapper, which I'd let fall there on the floor. "Panties... bra... Hide this, Ger. Hurry."

"Roger." I pushed the sheets back and reached for my boxers, tugging them on hastily. The knotted condom was there on the floor as well; as Elsa swept past me, pressing the empty wrapper into my hand, I shoved them both under the pillow. Grabbing her slip, which was lying close to hand, I threw it under the sheets, then stooped and started dragging the futon mattress out from under the bed.

Elsa was locked in the ungainly dance of someone trying to get dressed in an awful hurry. One leg was halfway into a pair of pink cotton panties while she tried desperately to balance on the other leg and pull on her bra at the same time.

I reached out a hand to steady her as she nearly tipped over against the wardrobe doors. "It's okay," I said, in an undertone. "No need to rush."

She looked at me a little frantically. "I forgot to set the alarm. How could I have forgotten that?"

"It's all right," I said, reassuringly, as she bent over to pull up her panties, her bra still hanging loosely from her arms. Then, stepping up behind her as she firmed her footing, I brought my arms up under hers and softly pinched her nipples.

She gasped, quietly. "Ger..." she said, in a tone that was probably supposed to sound warning but instead sounded helplessly aroused. "We don't... have time... ohhh..."

I kissed the back of her neck and felt her weight sink onto my arms as her knees buckled just slightly.

"You're naughty, Ger..." she whispered, as I teased her nipples some more, feeling the blood rush to them. Loving the sensation of her sleep-warm skin against me.

"I'll let you go... this time," I said, doing as I promised with my right hand, but slipping my left down to cup her panty-covered pussy.

"Uhh..." she moaned, closing her thighs around my hand. "Oh, fuck you, Ger, you bastard... Making me want you..."

"Then I won't do this," I said, drawing my hand back up, then sliding down again, my fingers slipping inside her panties this time. Tangling in the soft curls of her pubic hair. Delving further down to trace the lips of her pussy, and running teasingly along them. She may have just woken up, but I could have sworn I could smell her arousal already.

"Ger," she groaned, bringing her right hand up to clasp the back of my neck for leverage. "Oh, do me, you bastard..."

"But you'll be late," I said, matter-of-factly, starting to withdraw my hand. Her left hand came down to press hard on mine, keeping it between her legs.

"Play with me," she begged. "Make me come. Quickly."

The lips of her pussy were swollen and slick already. With my right hand, I tugged at the waistband of her panties, pulling them down just enough. She arched against me, thrusting her hips forward as my middle finger slid between her folds, dipping itself in her wetness.

"Oh, fuck," she whispered, hoarsely. "It's too early in... the morning... for games like... like this... Ah—!"

I curled my finger upwards slightly and brushed against her clit, lightly. She sucked in her breath, her body tensing. Her grip at the back of my neck was starting to hurt. My right hand slid back up to cup her breast, kneading it roughly. She groaned again.

"El

sie

!" Marn knocked at the door again. "Come

on

!"

"I'm

coming

!" Elsa snapped, sounding frustrated. "Hold on!"

"Sheesh," Marnie muttered, her voice fading into the distance again. "Talk about your slow risers..."

"If you're going to do me, Ger," Elsa said tightly, "then do me n— ahh... ohhhhhh!"

I nibbled at her ear, her tousled hair tickling at my forehead. I squeezed her breast harder, rubbing the palm of my hand across the erect nipple. And I slipped two fingers inside her pussy, slickly driving them back and forth. Her body rocked against me. Her breathing was ragged and harsh. Letting go of her breast, I lowered my right hand and slipped a bent finger between her legs to nudge her clitoris.

"Uhh... Uhhh... Uuhhhhhhh!" Her grunts came in sharp syncopation as my fingers thrust in and out of her, as she did her best to keep her moans quiet. Her entire body started trembling against me, her bare skin against mine as I held her and worked her and played her towards climax.

"

Aaaaaahhhh!

" And with that, with one last half-suppressed moan of sheer erotic joy, she came against me, shuddering uncontrollably, her pussy contracting around my fingers. She gasped for breath, falling back on me, her body going limp. "Fuck you, Gerald Flinders," she mumbled, weakly. "Fuck you for making me want you so much."

"Is that a promise?" I asked, reaching down to tug her panties up primly. She turned around in my arms, shooting me a wicked grin.

"Just you wait, darling," she said, and kissed me hard. "Just you wait."

* * *

I had breakfast ready by the time Elsa got back from dropping Marnie off at school: bacon, cooked

right

this time; hot buttered toast; Elsa's mandatory cup of morning coffee; and fried eggs. Granted, I hadn't done a very good job with the eggs, never having had to cook them before, but Elsa didn't seem to mind.

We sat at the dining table in the morning light, eating wordlessly to the sound of the radio, which I'd turned on while I'd been cooking. The nine o'clock news bulletin came on just as we were both finishing up. I mopped up my plate with the last bit of toast and popped it in my mouth. Elsa frowned, looking preoccupied.

"What's up?" I asked, as she laid down her knife and fork.

"I have calls to make," she said, a touch reluctantly.

"Ah, yes," I said, grimacing. Real life intruding on our happy little fantasy world. "Will you be long?"

She looked down at her hands. "I don't know. I... How do I

do

this, Ger?"

"With a smile on your face," I insisted, getting up and grabbing the neat list of jobs she'd typed up over the weekend. Moving over behind her chair, I whisked her plate out of the way and set the printout in front of her. I rubbed her shoulders encouragingly. "The sooner you start, the sooner you're done."

"To borrow a Marnie-ism," she said, bleakly, "

grrrrr

."

"I know," I said, quietly, bending down and planting a soft kiss on her cheek. "And I'm just glad it's you and not me, for the moment. But putting it off isn't going to help."

"I know," she said, letting her head slip back and rubbing her temple against mine. "Could you give me the phone, please?"

"Not a problem." Straightening up, I retrieved the handset for her and dropped it in her waiting palm. "Go for it."

"Here goes nothing," she said, wanly, and keyed the phone on.

* * *

"Good morning. My name is Elsa Flinders. I'm calling about the secretarial job you—"

"Hi. My name is Elsa Flinders. I'm calling about the position you adverti—"

"—and could I speak to the human resources manager, plea—"

"—that's right. If you could email me the job descrip—"

"—so the job would only be part-time until a decision is made? I see. And wh—"

"—name is Elsa Flinders. Could I speak—"

Quietly, trying not to make too much of a racket, I washed up the breakfast dishes while Elsa valiantly forged her way through the list of jobs. There was a worried look on her face, though you couldn't have told it from her smooth, agreeable tone of voice. One by one, she marked off each item on her list in green ink -- some with ticks, some with question marks, others completely scratched out. And when she finished, perhaps twenty minutes later, she looked like she'd just run a marathon.

She groaned softly as she thumbed the phone off for the last time. Setting the handset aside, she let her head thump forward onto the tabletop.

"Ger?" she mumbled.

"Yeah?"

"Can you turn on the PC for me? I need to get online."

"What for?" I asked.

"Most of the job descriptions are on the net. I got the addresses; I just need to download them and print them out."

"How efficient the Internet makes this soul-destroying business of selling yourself," I said, admiringly. She lifted her head slowly and gave me a thankful glance.

"C'mere," she said.

I walked over to stand by her chair again. She looked up at me, still resting her cheek on the table, and lifted her right hand, beckoning me with her index finger. Obligingly, I bent down, bringing my face closer to hers, and kissed her. Her hand fluttered down to cradle my cheek.

"Reality is ugly," she said, with a heavy sigh. "Of all the things we've had to do -- all the changes we've had to make -- I think this is going to be the hardest."

"It's a necessary evil," I said.

She kissed me again, lightly. "Yes," she said, pushing herself up from the table. "And if I'm going to damn myself, I'd better go about it more quickly."

"Just glad it's not me," I repeated, with an apologetic smile. She reached up and tousled my hair affectionately on her way past me.

"Shush up. It'll be your turn soon enough."

"And I can hardly wait!" I retorted to her back, as she headed into Marnie's room. And then I sighed, letting my head slump forward. I'd never liked Monday mornings, and this one certainly didn't seem to be any exception to the rule.

* * *

My printer ran overtime for the next half hour, as Elsa downloaded the job descriptions and printed out hard copies of them. She put on some classical music and we put our heads together at the dining table, figuring out a plan of attack.

"'Experience required'," she moaned, marking a big green star next to that line, and moving on to the next job. "'Experience a must'. 'Spreadsheet software expertise'. 'Filing and admin experience'. 'Forward resume, including three references'. 'Certificate holders only'. Ger, I can't do

any

of these things!"

"Sure you can," I said, glibly, pointing to one of the earlier descriptions. "Experience a must? You can do that. We just have to find one... A must, that is," I continued, at her blank expression. "They want you to experience a 'must'. Don't they?"

Eyes closed, she shook her head, smiling. "Idiot. This is no time to pick on their grammar."

"I certainly can't think of any

better

time to do it," I said. She opened her eyes, looking at me with rueful amusement, and kissed me.

"What would I do without you?" she asked, her lips lingering near my cheek. Her hand tightened at the back of my neck.

"Learn the true meaning of the word 'efficiency'?" I suggested.

She laughed. "Not likely. Anyway, I've had enough of this for now. And," she added, looking up at the clock, "I have a date with our local GP."

"Lucky bastard," I grumbled.

She kissed me again, her hand slipping down to caress my thigh, then teasingly drifting higher. "Now now, darling," she chided me. "No need to get jealous. Our relationship is purely professional."

"Yeah, he gets to look at any part of you he wants, and you pay him for the privilege," I said, dryly.

"I'd gladly pay you to do the same, if I had any cash to spare." She grinned, giving me a brief squeeze. "As it is, you'll just have to work gratis for the moment."

"Don't know why I put up with you, Elsie, honestly..."

She blinked at me playfully, her beautiful brown eyes so close to mine. "Neither do I, darling. Neither do I."

* * *

Elsa brought back fresh bread, corned silverside and a little packet of contraceptive pills. We celebrated by making love on the living room floor, behind the couch. Our clothes were strewn everywhere: her bra hanging off the back of the couch, my jeans tossed carelessly onto the dining room table; her cotton blouse lying in a crumpled pile in front of the TV. As we lay there on the carpet afterwards, wrapped around each other, idly kissing and caressing, I'd never felt quite so at peace before. Things were somehow starting to make sense. This place was beginning to feel like home -- not our childhood home; not the place where the Flinders siblings lived, but where Elsa and Gerald lived. Where we curled up against each other, bare skin touching, and murmured softly, and simply

loved

.

I hoped this feeling would last. It seemed like one of those things that was almost too good to be true. But it was real. Elsa was here. We loved each other. Marnie understood, to an extent. We were going to get jobs and earn our way in life. Me and Elsa. Elsa and me. Together.

I crushed her to me as sheer joy suffused my entire being. She clung to me tightly. Whispered, "I love you." And closed her eyes. We closed our eyes together.