Miranda - One Shot

In the story of Miranda, I am taking a different stance on erotic/taboo stories. I am trying to give a realistic spin to it all with more angst and background story to the main character than the usual quick and dirty. I realize that this may not score as highly as some of the other offerings, but I am trying to tell a tale about two people. Give it a shot and let me know in the comments. Thanks to all for reading and taking the time to give objective criticism.

*****

The buzzer sounded. The game was over. I looked around the paintball field and watched as the referees signaled 'all-clear'. I pulled my goggles off as some of my teammates ran around in celebration. We had secured our place for next month's final tourney. They hooted and hollered. I let out an exhausted breath and walked over to our pit section. The pit crew was celebrating while clearing the pits. I looked over to the grandstands to search for a familiar face. But, I only found my cousin Miranda as she stood at the top of the grandstands cheering her heart out. I gave her a wave and she waved back.

"Come on old man; let's go shake hands with the other team."

I looked over as my teammate Niko pulled me along the line to shake hands with our opponents. Through obligatory 'good game' said to the other team I saw that their hearts were crushed and no amount of good sportsmanship was going to right the wrong for them. It was a close game and we knocked them out of the running. Every point was fought with blood, sweat and tears. My team was considered the under-dogs when we signed up. We had young players with very little experience peppered with old guys like myself and a few of my friends, After we shook hands with the other team and thanked the referees for their thankless work on the field I was pulled off by a young woman that had a camera man with her. She was the league's reporter that did interviews with teams to add content to their website.

"I have team captain and coach Evan Lee here from New York Blaze." She said sweetly. "What an amazing victory over Boston Crush and

in

your home town. That over-time point had everyone on the edge of their seats! What were your thoughts about the game and your time in the sectionals?"

I cleared my throat. For almost an entire season, I stood in front of the camera giving interviews about the matches we played. Some were good, while some were bad. I rubbed some of the dirt, grime and paint that had collected on my face where my mask did not cover. "It was tough coming into this league and division with very inexperienced players. We drilled. We practiced the layouts. We studied. We came out and gave it all we could. We always had a never say die attitude, and if we were going to die, we were going to drag people down with us. The Crush players gave it their best, but we just simply had a slightly better game plan and got to execute it first."

The reporter gave me a very pleasant giggled as she pressed a hand on my shoulder, "What were the key plays you had your team execute to be so dominant on this layout?"

"Like I said, since we had very inexperienced younger players, I told them that we can't 'gun-fight' anyone. We came up with a very defensive plan. We would hang back at our primaries and secondaries and force our opponents to make the first mistake. No one was allowed to move until we were at least up on bodies by two. Then we would just roll down the field with our guns blazing."

The reporter giggled again, "Like the team name!"

I nodded, "Yes, Vanessa."

"What are your plans for the next event?"

"We are going to practice our fundamentals and then head back to layout studies whenever the next layout gets released. No one expected us to get this far, but we have our eye on the prize. We want to move up to the semi-pro division. We are hungering for it!"

The reporter turned to the camera, "Well, there you have it, Evan Lee from New York Blaze. I'm Vanessa reporting from Central Park, New York City in the first event held in Central Park for paintball and the Global Paintball League."

The camera man signaled that they were done recording. Vanessa patted me on the shoulder again and thanked me before she walked off to interview the captain of the other team. I let out a big sigh and walked off the field. I pushed my way through the safety netting, walked through the almost cleared pits and then to a staging area where my team was taking off their gear. I pulled off my pod pack, set it down next to the pit crew and set my paintball marker down next to my team.

"Evan!"

I looked up and saw Miranda as she pushed through the bodies of other paintball players making their way to the field. She ran up to me and jumped into my arms. "Hey!"

"That was totally awesome!" Miranda cried out in joy.

I set her down, "Yeah, it was a lot of fun. You should strap up next time."

Miranda rolled her eyes, "As if."

I looked back at the grandstands and saw no one else I knew. "No one else came?"

Miranda frowned, "Sorry. It is just me. When I asked your folks if they wanted come but they didn't answer me."

"Not even Lisa?"

"No." she said sadly, "I guess she was busy with work."

Lisa was my girlfriend. We had been in a five year relationship. She knew my love for the sport and always tolerated it. She would come to a match every once in a while, but she never attended religiously like Miranda had. Saddened by that thought, I nodded.

"Hey, your cousin being here isn't enough?" Miranda asked with a fake pout and her hands on her hips.

I smiled with some failed effort in convincing her, "Sure it is. Thanks for coming."

"You know I will be there for you. You have been to every one of my events." Miranda smiled and threw out fake gang signs with her hands. "I got you son."

I shook my head and signaled for my team to pack up and head out of the staging area. Miranda was my cousin. She was almost eighteen years my junior. I had watched her grow up from an awkward child being forced into all the prerequisite Chinese activities and into a confident young woman. I was the black-sheep of the family and did whatever I pleased. I never cared to follow the rules and protocol that my family blindly followed. But, to show her there was always support for her whenever her parents couldn't; I was there for all of her recitals and concerts. Miranda stood five foot even with a slender but curvy figure. Her hair had just been recently dyed purple and green, the colors of the team, and tied into a messy bun. She wore one of my spare jerseys that was tied tightly at the end around her waist showing off her legs that were barely contained by her short-shorts. I saw some of the younger players on the team glance over at her and ogle in silence. Miranda was fetching no matter what she wore or whatever situation she was in.

Miranda hooked an arm around mine while she carried my pod pack for me as we walked. "So, what's next?"

"Probably book a private session at a field somewhere and do some drills with the guys next weekend."

"No silly! I mean what is next for today?"

"I guess go home and shower?"

Miranda scrunched her noise up at me, "Oh yeah, you stink!"

"You don't smell that great yourself there, Missy!" I said telling an obvious lie, she smelled amazing.

Miranda punched me playfully. We stopped in a clearing where the team assembled. Some of them still wore their gear as they waited for the after-match speech. I cleared my throat.

"Good game everyone. It was a long fought day. Five matches today with zero losses secured us for finals. I want everyone to take a few days off. Get some rest, clean your gear and get ready for practice Friday night and Saturday. We drill until we puke or die, then drill some more." I stripped off my jersey and tossed it to a pit crew member for cleaning. "We meet at my place after Saturday practice for team meal and talks."

The team nodded and got up. Some gave each other hugs and high-fives before we all went our own ways.

"Do you mind if I come with you?" Miranda asked as she followed me to my SUV.

I shook my head, "Not at all."

"Do you have plans with Lisa tonight?"

I shook my head, "If she didn't come to an important event like this today, she would most likely not make an appearance at the house. I figured some dinner and an ice pack on the knees is the plan for tonight."

"And a shower."

I nodded, "And a shower."

Miranda looked up at me, "Evan?"

"Yeah?"

"Happy Birthday."

I stopped walking. "How did you know?"

"I remembered." She said smiling as she handed me a card.

I took it and opened it. It was a card that she had made. Miranda drew small cartoon characters of us sitting around a table eating dinner with some candles on the table. "What's this?"

"I'm making you dinner tonight while you ice your knees as a birthday gift."

I smiled, "Aww, you don't have to."

"You can't refuse a gift, Evan. That's rude."

"Ok, dinner sounds great."

"How old are you now?" Miranda asked playfully.

I rolled my eyes, "Thirty-eight."

Miranda's eyes widened in mock disbelief, "Wow, you really

are

an old man!"

I gave her a playful shove, "Get your ass to the ride."

*

I sat in the living room of my modest one family house in Brooklyn. It wasn't much, but it was new and by the bay. I loved waking up every morning and seeing the rising sunlight bounce off the water. I shifted the ice packs on my knees. I hoped the hot shower would have done the trick, but it didn't. I took my phone out and while taking a deep drag from my vape mod, I texted Lisa.

LISA, WE WON OUR MATCHES. WE ARE HEADING TO THE FINAL EVENT.

NICE.

I DIDN'T SEE YOU IN THE STANDS.

BUSY.

WORK?

SURE.

ARE YOU GOING TO COME BY TONIGHT?

NO. HAVE TO STAY WITH STAFF. TTYL. BUSY.

Frustrated by the exchange I had with Lisa, I tossed my phone onto the coffee table and winced as my knee was starting to give me a lot of trouble. I looked over to my kitchen. Miranda had been cooking up a storm. She had every one of the burners going on the stove.

"Need any help?" I asked.

"Nope, I'm fine. I am almost done actually."

"Are you sure?"

Miranda's head popped out of the kitchen and smiled, "I got this. You just ice your knees. I will take care of everything."

I nodded. I looked out the bay windows of the living room and watched as a container ship lumbered into the bay. With the time being left to myself, my thoughts began to wander. I began to reflect on my relationship with Lisa. She was my age and mentally driven by work. With my being an artist and subjected to work that came in whenever I wanted it to, she had declared the way I lived a ruthless existence before. Unlike my family, I lacked the desire for formal structure in life. The only thing I was truly anal-retentive about was paintball. I took another deep drag from my mod and exhaled. I remembered the good times I had with Lisa. The times we laughed. The times we made love. The times we truly were happy together. But, those had grown into fleeting moments of physical interactions. Perhaps the end was near and we were both just clinging on to the fact that we were both long in the tooth the find someone else.

"Dinner is on!" Miranda announced as she walked over with plates of food in her hands.

I snapped out of my trance and set my mod down. I tried standing up, but my knee instantly locked me into place sending a shock of pain through me. I grimaced and sat back down.

"Easy, Evan, I got this." Miranda assured me.

I nodded.

Miranda set down a plate in front of me and herself and then a bowl between us. "Ta-da!"

"What's for dinner?" I asked.

Miranda pulled her hair of out of the messy bun. Her locks of dyed hair flowed past her shoulders. She fluffed her hair quickly and sat down next to me. "I made seared tuna steaks with black bean and garlic sauce, couscous with feta cheese and a bowl of roasted veggies to share."

"Looks great!" I said as I felt how truly hungry I was. I paused and peered back to the kitchen. "But...why does it look like a bomb went off in my kitchen?"

Miranda rolled her eyes, "I can cook, but I never said I was a neat cook."

"Great."

"Hey!" Miranda cried out in mock anger and pinched my arm. "I'm doing this to be nice to you! Don't be a jerk!"

I laughed, "Ok, ok. I was only kidding."

I took a bite of the tuna steak and smiled, "This is amazing!"

Miranda smiled in thanks as she watched me devour the food she made. We ate in silence. We only communicated together with sounds of munching and expressions of how good the food was. As I ran my finger on my plate to lick up the last of the black bean and garlic sauce she made, I looked over to her, "What's for dessert?"

"Me." Miranda said sheepishly.

My gut seeming collapsed on itself. "What?"

Miranda collected herself, "I mean me as in my time with you."

"Oh."

"I figured if Lisa wasn't going to enjoy your company, you can enjoy me as a companion tonight, some kettle corn and perhaps a movie on Netflix?"

I felt slightly better by what she had said thought with a lingering feeling of curiosity. Miranda collected the plates and went off to clean up the disaster she had created in my kitchen. A sense of relief slowly came back over me as I took a few more drags from my vape mod. I watched as she dutifully cleaned up. As she began to put away the pots and the pans I saw Miranda bending down. I watched with a confused attraction as her legs became more and more bare. The little shorts she wore kept riding up on her legs, exposing more of her to me. It got to a point where the bottom of her butt was began to peak out. I found myself staring. I couldn't tear my eyes away from her. I hadn't ever looked at her this way, but it only just dawned on me that she wasn't that awkward bookworm that I remembered. She was a lovely young woman.

"Popcorn?" She asked. Miranda cocked her head as she had caught me in a trance.

I shook out of it, "Sure. The big bowl I use for popcorn is..."

"Upper left cupboard. I got it." Miranda said as she started making popcorn. "When you are done leering at me, could you start up Netflix?"

I was red with embarrassment. I should be. She was my cousin. I was old enough to be her father. I snapped out of it and powered on my Xbox One and got to the Netflix app. I thumbed through the movies, "Uhh, what kind of movie do you want to watch?"

"Horror."

"Scary stuff, eh?"

Miranda walked over with a big bowl of popcorn and a couple of beers in her hands. She popped the cap off a beer and handed it to me. She sat down gently next to me on the couch. She scooted over, leaned up against me and took the controller out of my hands. The warmth of her body felt comforting. She searched a few titles in the horror category and selected a movie. "I've heard some good things about this one. A lot of jump scares and a great plot."

"I thought you didn't like scary movies." I asked as I sipped the beer she had given me.

Miranda looked up at me. In fact, she didn't just look into my eyes; she seemingly was searching for something in me. She offered a warm and loving smile, "We all change. Our tastes differ. I've changed, Evan. I'm not that little bookworm that you knew."

"I know."

"Good." Miranda said as she started the movie. "Just remember that."

I pulled my arm from under her and wrapped it around her shoulders. She used to cuddle up next to me when we watched movies before. It felt innocent then, but I was a bit hesitant. Miranda felt my hesitation. She reached up and pulled my arm down firmly on her. She nestled more into me and munched on some popcorn.

*

Miranda was right. The movie was good. We had our share of yelps from the jump scares. The movie was dark and brooding with a lot of deep-rooted evil in the plot. I looked out of the bay windows of my home and found that it was pitch black outside, only the lights of the bridge could be seen. The ice pack on my knees had melted away to a bag of water. Miranda took it off my knee and set it inside of the bowl we had used for popcorn. She leaned back into the couch and stretched.

"It's late." I said as I struggled to sit up. My body began to ache. I tried not to show any signs of pain as I stood from the couch and began to look around for my car keys. "I'm gonna take you home."

Miranda looked up, "Really?"

"Yeah, I don't want you taking the subway home."

Miranda looked around my house, "Can't I just crash here?"

"You want to?"

"Sure, if you don't mind, it wouldn't be the first time."

I shook my head. "Nope, I can go grab some things to make the couch up and you can take my bed."

Miranda shot to her feet and hurried to my linens closet. She waved me off, "I know where everything is in this house. I've been here enough Evan. And, I will take the couch. I bet you are sore."

I grimaced from the aches in my body, "Yes."

"Do you mind if I take a shower?"

I shook my head, "You brought a change of clothes?"

Miranda blushed, "No. I was hoping to bum some of your clothes to sleep in, if that is ok?"

I was no towering giant. I stood six inches taller than her. I wore a triple XL jersey when playing paintball and most of my clothes were XXL. By no means was I a fat slob, I just worked out a lot to keep in physical form for the sport. Nothing I owned was going to fit her. "You are going to be swimming in all my clothes, but help yourself to whatever you need."

"K!" she said happily as she ran off into my room to get some things and then dashed off to the bathroom.

Exhausted, I limped to my bedroom and collapsed on my bed after brushing my teeth at the kitchen sink. I moaned and groaned as I found a position to lie where my knee wasn't going to bother me. I grabbed a couple of pain killers I kept at my nightstand and dry-swallowed them. I closed my eyes hoping that perhaps with the advancement of modern medicine that the pain killers would work instantly. But, with the throbbing pain I felt, I guess medicine hadn't advanced that quickly. My eyes popped open when I felt movement on the bed. Miranda climbed onto the bed with me. She was wearing one of my paintball t-shirts. She fluffed out her still wet hair and rested next to me with her legs extended out to the side.

"Hey." She said softly.

"Good shower?"

She nodded.

"I thought I was taking the bed." I said confused.

"You are."

"Then..."

"Why am I in here?"

I nodded.

"I just wanted to talk."

"Talk?"

She nodded.

I tried my best to keep my emotions in order. One thing that I had gathered through life as a coach to a bunch of younger players and an adult that has gone through some hard knocks, that keeping my composure was second to none. I cocked my head a little and spread my hands, "Let's talk."

Miranda scooted over in bed and nestled against me. She looked around my bedroom. There were various jerseys that I wore in important tournaments hung up on the walls. Pictures of former teams and players scattered about on my dressers and walls. She reached over me and picked up a picture of the team I was currently on. "I've been to your place many times now. Can you agree that I have seen almost everything?"

"I guess."

"Why aren't there any pictures of Lisa?"

I sat aback. She was right. "Well, I hadn't really thought of that."

"Don't you love her?"

I looked over to Miranda. She tucked a few locks of hair behind her ear and waited patiently for my answer. I shrugged, "I did."

"Did?" She asked.

I nodded, "We have drifted apart for sure. It was great at first. We hung out and did what every couple would do. Lately, she has been like a ghost. Her presence was always felt, but she was never seen. I don't know. But, you know my love for the sport."