An Affair Of Different Kind

The phone rang and she took a deep breath, closing her eyes for an instant, momentarily weighing the decision not to answer. She clicked the ON button and said ‘Hello’. 

“What’s happening?” said a velvety voice on the other side, which by now she learned was a signature greeting of Guy’s. They chatted for a few minutes, awkward silences breaking her thoughts, making her forget a million questions that she had had for him. It was just a normal, uncomfortable first conversation that two people might have. 

The most important thing that she got out of the conversation was that it had oddly calmed her down. When she returned from walking her dogs she noticed that the nervous tremble, which had been present for most of the day seized. She felt cool and collected, satisfied and happy. When she went to bed that night, she fell into a dreamless and peaceful oblivion. 

The long blow of the car horn jerked her back into the present time. She looked around in confusion as if she had just woken up and realized that she was the first in line at the traffic light, which had turned green who knows how many seconds ago. 

She stepped on the gas and flipped the finger to the driver behind her. Sam has been warning her against it ever since she had learned how to drive. ‘One of these days,’ he said, ‘you will run into some idiot who will not put up with your birdie flipping, foul mouthing, ignorant ways’.

Of course she knew he was right, but she couldn’t help herself. Sometimes, she was worried that in her rage she might floor the accelerator and slam into the car that was jumping the line or help silly teenagers cross the street faster, after she had just kindly stopped for them and instead of appreciatively hurrying along, they’d be walking as if in a stoned haze, girls swaying their hips like on a catwalk. 

Another glance at the dashboard clock told her she would not make it in time. The traffic moved too slowly and the rain seemed to be coming down harder than ever. “Damn it!” she shook the wheel in frustration as if trying to rip it out of its place. “Come on, already! She yelled and squeezed the stirring wheel hard, accidentally blowing the horn. 

“Oops!” she giggled and noticed the driver of the car in front inspecting what was happening behind him in the mirror. He flipped her a finger and she flipped him one back. 

“asshole.” She said, well aware that it was not his fault they were stuck. 

She pulled onto her street, frantically looking for a parking space. There were many available but all were accompanied by parking meters, which would mean that she would have to come down every couple of hours and feed hers with quarters. If she was to have a bit of a naughty with Guy on the phone, she knew that afterwards she would take a catnap, with a good possibility of it turning into a dreamless sleep that might last for hours. 

Spotting an empty space in the alley she had just passed, she flicked the turn signal on and at the very last moment turned right, cutting off the approaching vehicle, making a half U-turn, tires screeching with the driver of the car slamming on breaks wildly, honking his horn and screaming something at her furiously, although she could not make it what it was. She had a pretty good idea of the content, though.

With trembling hands and pounding heart she managed to avoid the collision and pull into the alley. “You need to get off that sugar diet, buddy.” She said into the mirror, the comment directed towards the driver that she had so rudely cut off, putting in danger more than just herself. 

She didn’t have the time to park the car properly. The right back tire hit the sidewalk and she floored the gas pedal enough to make the car jump the curve and rest there like a casualty of a drunkard. The front of the car was hanging half way out of the neat line of parked cars that she had just joined, but she didn’t care. No time to straighten it up now. 

She turned the engine off, barely remembering to pull the key out of the ignition and bolted out of the car. She ran towards the front door of her building, clutching her purse close to her body. As she slid the key into the lock, she realized that she couldn’t tell for certain whether in her haste she had managed to lock the car door. Despite the fact that the neighborhood where they lived was a fairly safe one in Chicago, an unlocked car would be more than an invitation for thugs anywhere in the city. 

She ran back to the car, and on the verge of tears realized that she did lock it up after all. She sighed in disbelief. How could a man she had never met face to face turn her into such an idiot? Of course she knew how. The sexuality and passion that oozed out of his voice alone always made her mad with desire and forget about anything else. 

She checked her phone. It has taken her longer to reach the house than she had anticipated and the state she was in, every fiber of her body in nervous anticipation, coupled by a blasting Latino music, she could miss the call without noticing. She sighed in relief to see that there were no missed calls. 

She made her way into the house and as she was taking the stairs two at the time, she heard her dogs barking at the apartment door. They recognized the familiar jingle of the keys and were eager to hear her voice and feel her hand petting their beautiful heads in greeting. 

She unlocked the door and squeezed herself into the apartment, careful not to let the dogs escape out and create havoc in the hallway. 

“Hello, babies! Hello, pumpkins! Hello, munchkins!” she kept murmuring, absentmindedly stroking the dogs’ backs and at the same time unbuttoning her shirt. She knew she only had seconds to prepare before the inevitable and much anticipated phone call took place. 

The bulldog, mad with happiness upon her early return kept jumping up and down like a yoyo, while the small pit bull whined softly over too vague of an attention he had received. 

“Go to your bed, now.” she commanded and both dogs stopped and stared for a moment as if weighing her words. She had just come home and is already sending them to bed?

She felt a pang of guilt, but at this time there was no space for regrets. She will make it up to them later, Guy won’t take too much of her time. 

“What did I just say?” she asked and stared hard at two pairs of big brown eyes until they submitted and slowly, with their tails between the legs trotted to their doggie beds. 

She kicked off her shoes, letting the shirt and jeans fall over them in a disarray that she had hated more than anything. Yet again, there was no time for neatness. Still in her bra and panties, she crawled into bed. Guy always liked her wearing the thong, but having to sit still in front of the computer for over eight hours a day, this would be the least appropriate of choices.

She stacked up four pillows as a makeshift back support, leaning against it with a sigh. The realization that she had forgotten the most important of things made her bolt from under the covers and reach for the bag, which was laying discarded on the floor, next to the pile of her clothes. She rummaged through the small brown pouch in the front and pulled out a cell phone, shaking her head over the forgetfulness. 

Returning to bed she closed her eyes, trying not to doze off. She hadn’t realized how exhausted she felt until the very moment she laid her head onto the soft heap of pillows. She called out to her dogs in an attempt to kill the time while waiting and to make up for her distant behavior upon entering the apartment. 

Not surprisingly, they didn’t come immediately. Whether they were cautious or simply insulted, she didn’t mind their reluctance. She opened her eyes and sat up, leaning against the pillows. 

She thought of Guy. What an odd relationship this was, if it could be called relationship at all. Was she in love? Of course not. Sam was her love now. He was not exactly the love of her life, that place belonged to someone else. Someone from long time ago and far away, so distant that she hasn’t thought about him in a long time. Still, feelings for Sam were so intense that if they were to break up, she would never feel so strongly towards anyone else again. She would not let herself get that involved anymore. Were there feelings involved with Guy? Well, she might call it a schoolgirl crush. It was probably due to a simple fact that she lacked friends in Chicago and Guy’s attention for her was a replacement for it. 

Pit bull was the first one to give in and jump on the bed, slowly, with almost catlike movements approaching her. 

“Hello, baby,” she said softly, enjoying his tail’s wild wag in greeting. “Come here, then.” She said and pulled him closer to her, making him lay next to her, pressing his head against her side. 

“Tell mama, how’s life?” she voiced the same question that she had asked him almost every day in the times of quiet bonding. “What’s the news of the day?” she went on and the beautiful dog licked his lips in satisfaction over her undivided attention. 

“Was your sister good?” she asked and as if knowing that the word applied to her, the bulldog jumped on the bed, too, carelessly making her way towards the cuddling couple, stepping on their legs and stomachs as if they weren’t there. “Did she bark a lot?” she whispered in the pit’s ear, making him lift his head and give her a quick licking kiss on the cheek. 

The bulldog plopped on the bed next to the pillows and carefully smelled her hair. “Don’t do that!” she pushed the big head away from her. “Were you a good girl today?” she asked the bulldog and the big white tail wagged heavily, hitting the mirrored headboard and threatening to send the empty soda can flying off the nightstand on the other side of the bed. 

The theme of a movie from long ago rang out through the quiet room and she jumped up. 

“Get off, get off!” she said hurriedly, pushing the dogs off the bed, trying hard to ignore their accusatory looks. “Come on, get off!” she yelled, reaching for the phone. 

She waited for another second or two, making sure to catch the call before it went into voicemail. She smiled and opened it up. 

“Hello, darling.” She said and half slid down the pillows into a more comfortable position. Her legs slowly spread themselves open, without her even realizing that Guy’s voice would always manage to turn her into a bundle of lust.

“Hello, darling.” Was the response. “Home yet?” 

She nodded and quickly added: “Yes, made it finally.”

“Good!” he chuckled. “Are you in bed?” 

“Yes.” She breathed heartily. 

“In your thong?” 

“Of course!” she lied. 

“The pink one?”

“Aha.” She closed her eyes and thought of the hot pink thong she had told him she was wearing. 

“Are you ready, baby girl? Are you ready for your daddy to fuck you?” he asked sweetly.

“Yes,” she whispered and reached with her hand down the belly and pressed her fingers over her crotch. “I’m ready!”