Chapter 14: Neil
Waking up with a woman in my arms was something I hadn’t done in a long, long time. It was honestly something I had tried very hard to avoid doing. It didn’t take long, or much experience with the opposite sex, for me to realize that women were a whole different kind of animal when you let them stay the night. It was better if you just ushered them quickly and painlessly out of your residence, so as to avoid the whole mess altogether.
It was always in the morning that they wanted to talk about what things meant. It was in the mornings that their “cool girl” exterior would fade away, and they would reveal to you that they one hundred percent expected you to explain to them what everything meant and where it was going. It was a good rule and an excellent way to avoid all of that crap to just get rid of them when it was still dark outside, every time, no exceptions. That way, when you woke up, the worst thing you had to do was field calls, and that was no big task for a guy who knew what he was doing.
“Morning,” Fay said with a sigh.
“Morning, babe. You all right?”
“Oh man,” Fay laughed sleepily, her eyes still closed against the early morning sun. “You’re still asking me that, huh?”
“I guess so,” I answered, trying to sound as light and casual as she did. I suspected I wasn’t doing a very good job. “I guess I am.”
“Well, I hate to break this to you, Neil, but I’m not as breakable as you might think. And I’m just fine. I’m lovely, actually. Best morning ever. The only thing that would make it better would be not needing to get up and get ready for work.”
As I watched, Fay opened her eyes and groaned as she forced herself to sit up. My insides screamed at me. I had a rule. I had a hard, fast, never to be broken rule that women didn’t stay the night, and yet, here she was, waking up beside me. That was bad, but the worst part about it was that I didn’t mind it.
More than not minding it, I was glad to have her there. I liked feeling the way her small amount of weight shifted the mattress. I liked watching the way her skin shone softly as the light spilled over her perfect tits. When she looked down at me, a shy grin spreading across her face, I liked that, too. With something a lot like real alarm, I realized that waking up with her next to me was the best I had felt in a long, long time.
I didn’t want her to go, and without thinking about it, I reached out for her. I pulled her back beside me again and wrapped my arms around her tightly. It was an uncharacteristic move for me, like I was trying to claim her or something. I couldn’t help it. I just didn’t want her to leave.
“Hey!” She laughed, making a show of fighting me without putting much of an effort into the gesture. “What did I just say?”
“I wasn’t listening. How do you feel about bacon?”
“I love bacon, and you know it, but I can’t. I need to get home, Neil. I need to get myself cleaned up and ready.”
“No, you don’t.”
“Oh, but I do. I have a job to go to, Neil. They kind of expect you to go to those.”
She wriggled out of my arms again as she spoke. I propped myself up on one elbow. She stood, stretched again, and started to get dressed. Even with her hair and makeup all messed up, she looked fucking gorgeous. My stomach did its weird new flip flop thing as I looked at her. Although she didn’t look in my direction, I could see her smiling a little to herself. It was like she could read my thoughts or something, which only made me want her to stay even more.
“Why do you keep doing it, babe?” I asked.
“What do you mean? Why do I keep working?”
“Well, yeah,” I said. “Nobody ever comes into that diner, right?”
“That’s not completely true. People come in. Sometimes.”
“But not really. Not a lot.”
“No, not a whole lot. That’s true.”
“So then why do you keep doing it? Why don’t you just quit? That way you wouldn’t have to leave.”
“Neil,” she answered in a chastising voice, one hand on her now fully dressed hip. “Come on. I’m not quitting. I work there because I like it there. That place means something to me, and it’s not just about the number of customers we get. Besides, just because I’m leaving now, doesn’t mean we aren’t seeing each other again, right?”
“Sure, that’s right.”
“So, when?” she asked. “When do you think I’ll see you?”
“I could come up and see you at the diner,” I answered thoughtfully, trying to answer her, and figure out why I was so bummed at the prospect of her leaving at the same time. “Or else you could come over again.”
“I work late today. I don’t think coming over would be an option.”
“You could come over tomorrow, then. Or like I said, I’ll come see you.”