Note: This story was dynamically reformatted for online reading convenience.
 
 Chapter 15

   The following two weeks put my housemates on edge, even Rachel, still in
a bad mood over my physical discussion with Melisa about manipulation,
understood that discretion was the better part of valor and avoided me.

   I volunteered to close the restaurant so one of the busboys could
preserve some part of his Saturday night.  I had finished resetting the
tables to the Sunday configuration and stood staring out the windows.

   "Hey, man.  You still here?" The sous-chef came up to stand beside me.

   I shook his outstretched hand before replying, "Just got done, Josh."

   "Long night, man?"

   I shrugged not about to invite conversation about how his night had been
worse than mine.

   "You work tomorrow?" he asked.

   "Nope," I replied with another shrug.  "Only Fridays and Saturdays."

   "Cause of school?"

   "Just planning to put in more hours at the computer lab." Jason had
taught me about the ready lie.

   "Wanna go for a beer at the go-go bar?  Some of the guys already headed
that way."

   "No thanks," I said looking at the city lights again.  "I'm gonna go
home and get to bed."

   "If you change your mind, the first beer is on me." He shook my hand and
worked his way around tables to the back door.  I walked to the bar and
waited with the other busboys for the tip out.

   "Hey, Dave.  Is that your Beamer?" There were two bartenders on
Saturday; I looked at the one asking the question.

   "It's my housemate's." Another ready lie.

   "Your housemate let's you drive her BMW?" I shrugged, even if it was my
car sometimes it felt like I had to ask Melisa to fit me into her schedule
so I could use it.  I had thought about buying another one and letting
Melisa decide which color she preferred on any given day.  For the most
part, I had accepted if there were two identical things, one labeled
Melisa's and the other David's, my First would always use David's so buying
her a car was pointless.

   The bartender stared at me trying to find a way to get more information.
I only associated with Marie so he knew better than to ask me directly.  I
smiled when the other bartender handed me a hundred dollars as my tip out.

   I could see a light in the management office as I walked into the locker
room but did not think anything of it.  I was on auto-pilot as I changed,
wondering which of the Siblings would be in my bed when I got home; my mood
had no effect on their sexual availability.  The restaurant manager walked
into the office; I heard a brief conversation before he came back out.

   "David's still here," he called into the office.  "Hey, David can you do
me a favor?"

   "What's up?"

   "Marie wants do another half-hour's work so she doesn't have to come in
tomorrow, but her car is in the shop.  Can you keep her company and wait
for a cab to pick her up when she's done?" He looked like he had plans for
the night and waiting for Marie was not among them.

   "No problem," I replied before closing my locker.

   "You sure, man?"

   "Tell her to forget the cab; I'll give her a ride."

   "Thanks a million!" He hurried inside as if afraid I would change my
mind.  He came out carrying a change of clothes, said thanks again, and
rushed out.

   Marie looked up from the computer screen when I walked in.  "Hey, baby."

   "Hey, sweetie," I replied, imitating her teasing tone.  For the entire
time I worked at the restaurant, Marie had been a good part of why it felt
like an escape.  She had an undergraduate degree in English literature so
even if we had not flirted to pass the time, our conversations would have
been interesting.  Marie being five-foot-seven with hair more strawberry
than blond, and having incredible blue-green eyes certainly made anything
she chose to do around me enjoyable to participate in.

   Quite a few of the guys tried their hands at getting into Marie's pants,
but none I knew of succeeded.  I saw the action and made sure to keep it
light with her.  As fantastic as her ass might have been, it had off-limits
clearly written across it.

   "Thanks for waiting," she said.

   "Forget the cab.  I'll give you a ride home too."

   "You don't have to, David."

   "It's halfway to my place anyway."

   "You sure?"

   I put my book bag down and sat at the chair next to the table.  Marie
earned extra money by doing most of the manager's paperwork.  She was
getting ready to quit, and the office work cut-down her hours without
completely cutting off the money flow.

   "How's your summer going?" she asked.

   "Taking a class.  Found a place to live finally," I replied.

   "Is it nice?" she asked as she typed in the night's numbers.

   "I'm lucky to have found it."

   "How're the housemates?" she asked with a smile, knowing what my
previous experiences with roommates had been like.  Freshman and sophomore
years saddled me with shitheads.  At least freshman year, it was only the
rudeness of the omnipresent smell of hash.  Even with my sensitive sense of
smell, I would have chosen it over the fratboy.

   "Actually, I like my housemates.  Three females and a guy."

   "I bet you like living with three women!  Let me guess...  the little
blonde and the smokin' redhead."

   I nodded.

   "From the kisses I've seen when they drop you off I'd guess they're a
little more than housemates."

   "I do the dishes." She laughed before returning to her work.

   "I heard you wouldn't be working here after next semester," she said a
few minutes later.

   "How could I possibly work here without my Marie?"

   She laughed again.

   "I've already cut my Sundays," I told her.

   "I thought you needed the job?" she asked curiously.

   "I never needed the money." Jason and I spent very little money during
our time in the military.  Between the GI Bill and six years of our
savings, I had been set for my time in college even before the Brotherhood
came knocking with their rings.

   "This was blow-off money and time away from school."

   "You don't need either anymore?"

   "The house is time away from school," I replied honestly.  "What about
you?  You graduated, and you're still here."

   She glared at me comically, "I have a few offers on the table, but I'm
waiting for the agent to get back to me before I consider any others
seriously."

   She applied for a position with a literary agent in the city.  According
to her, she kicked ass in the interview and expected a callback.

   "How much longer are you going to wait?" I asked.

   "I called him yesterday.  He has one more interview on Monday, but
unless they're perfect he said I would be getting a job offer.  So with any
luck, I'll be handing in my two weeks on Monday night."

   She reached over to poke my shoulder when I clapped.  I watched as she
continued to enter data into the computer.  Marie was attractive in the
girl next door fashion: light skin, a dusting of freckles on her nose,
nicely shaped lips, healthy, not much in the breast department but great
breasts with her ass would have been dangerous.  The blue-green eyes put
her over the top in my opinion; they changed color with clothing, lighting,
and her mood.

   I wondered what color they would be during orgasm, maybe a dark green or
a light blue.  I smiled and shook my head.  Marie was very serious about
her boyfriend and had even asked me about guy-thinking in relationships.  I
put her off; my only experience with relationships had been those around in
me in the military, which left a lot to be desired from my observations.

   ?You?re different,?  Marie said suddenly.

   ?Excuse me,?  I replied smiling.

   ?You were always kind of dark,?  she said.  ?Ever since I saw your
little blonde and that redhead, you?ve been??

   She shook her head and patted my hand before going back to her typing. I
stared at her not sure what to make of her words.

   I sat quietly, staring at the ceiling and thinking about Dr.  Lawren. 
Her attempt to score cleared my thinking.  Having her no longer mattered,
which annoyed her as much as it amused Professor Ryan.

   Marie stopped typing for a second to lean her head forward and rub the
back of her neck.

   "I could take care of that for you," I offered.  She looked at me for a
second before nodding.  I moved behind her chair and put my hands two
inches below her neck.  I understood her hesitation; most of the guys at
the restaurant had tried to score, their word, her.  Though our flirting
had the edge of 'Let us not forget, Female/Male', I made sure it was not
intimidating.

   As my hands worked on Marie, I thought about what had happened over the
last few weeks.  By most measures, I had made a monumental error with Dr.
Susan Lawren; it was not my only mistake with Siblings.

   A smaller one was giving Melisa too much slack.  The confession of her
maneuverings helped me understand my First much better though.  I never
truly understood how different Melisa was from me.  My assumption had been
one of opposites; instead I discovered a Sibling was truly the
science-fiction Other, an alien with needs and motivations so different it
was impossible to understand their perspective.  So much so, there was no
reason to block her manipulations.  All were interesting, even the ones I
thought doomed, like Rachel.

   I rubbed the left side of Marie's neck.  She leaned her head in the
opposite direction to give me better access.  Fingertips, fingers, and palm
coaxed her neck to release tension.  I moved to her shoulders when she
started typing again.  I worked on her shoulders, triceps, and the upper
part of her biceps.

   Allowing Dr.  Lawren to dictate the action had been at the crux of my
failure.  Her failed knife-thrust shifted the power away from her but in
too violent a fashion.  I failed with Janet somehow and was close to the
same with Dr.  Lawren.  Melisa said it was Janet's failure but would not
tell me what she expected me to gain from my experiences with Dr.  Lawren.
I had not pressured my First for an answer at the time of our discussion.

   I moved my fingers to the base of Marie's neck and walked them up behind
her earlobes.  I traced her ears before pressing on her temples gently. 
Moving in slow backwards circles, I alternated fingers rubbing the tension
away.  I ran a finger across her forehead.  The chair bumped me as she
flexed her shoulders a few minutes later.  She stood up suddenly and
without looking at me turned the chair around so it was no longer in the
way.

   Marie was having problems with her boyfriend.  He had been applying
pressure on the issue of a larger commitment to each other; from most of
our conversations I thought that was what she wanted, but she backed away
from him.

   Every now and then keyboard went silent, signaling my hands were making
it tough for Marie to concentrate.  My massage technique got better with
willing partners to be on the receiving end when I asked them to lie down
and take it like good little Siblings.

   Starting at the base of her neck, I worked towards Marie's shoulder
blades waiting for her to say something.  The keys went silent again.  I
massaged her shoulders and back for five minutes before she moved.  She
reached down and pulled the summer sweater over her head.  I took a deep
breath while looking down; Marie wore light brown string pants.

   I put my thumbs on opposite sides high on her back.  Applying pressure,
I brought them inward to her spine and moved down the line bisecting her.
She leaned forward with her ass over the edge of chair, rested her forearms
on the back of the chair, and put her head down.  I moved my hands to the
top of her spine and rubbed down her back.  I stared at the way her ass
looked over the edge of the chair.

   I did not know where Marie wanted to go, but I was certainly enjoying
the view.  The position forced her t-shirt to ride up several inches.  I
touched the small of her back with my fingertips just above her pants. 
Marie changed positions slightly, leaning forward somehow and exposing a
line of skin the pants had previously covered.  I turned my thumbs toward
each other and moved them down to the waist of her pants.  I turned them so
they pointed towards the floor.  On the turn, my thumbs touched the skin
beneath the waist of her pants.  I pushed towards her hips and back towards
her spine until my thumbs touched.

   I inched my fingers towards her hips again.

   My hands moved up above her pants and around to her hips.  I kept going
until my fingers warmed her stomach.  I held them there for a few seconds
before lifting up until I was barely touching her and made the trip around
behind her again.

   My touches were gentle, flirtatious almost, on her skin until she moved
restlessly.  I drifted back to her stomach intent on crossing the line; I
untied her pants.  Marie answered by taking her t-shirt off.  Her shoulders
were tense, but most of it dropped away as cotton pooled on the floor.  She
put her head back down and took a deep breath.

   I explored newly bare skin.  Her pants were riding lower, halfway
between her waist and the chair, exposing tan panties.  I traced lines in a
random fashion along her back, inching south.  I ran my fingers along the
line of Marie's panties, around her hips, until they met above her
bellybutton.

   Toying with her bra clasp, I waited for her to stop me.  The clasp was a
point of no return.  She tensed tensed up but made no other movement.  I
ran my fingers along the bra, almost to the front.  Her body moved to avoid
my fingers touching the sides of her breasts, but I was on either side.

   I stopped and held the contact.  I truly believed she would take the
opportunity to make a break for it.  She relaxed instead, still tense but
expecting instead of fearing.  I put my palms on her and traveled down her
sides.  I kept going when I reached her pants, pushing them further down. I
turned my hands so my nails touched her ass and traced it along the line of
the chair.  Marie pushed her ass out more.

   I took the time to enjoy the reality versus the fantasy of playing with
Marie?s ass.  The skin at her hips tightened as she squeezed her ass,
reacting to my touch.  Deciding to tease, I returned to massaging her back
until she moved restlessly beneath my hands.

   A quick snap undid her bra.  She took a sharp breath but released it
immediately.  I touched her from hairline down to the top of her panties
before sitting on my heels.  I concentrated on the small of her back and
ass: light touches, rubs, and tracings anywhere I could study the contact
of my skin and Marie's.  I leaned forward and warmed the small of her back
with my breath.  She arched, wanting and not just with her body.
It hit hard--I was beyond her!  Marie was mine for the moment, and the

moment was not enough.

   She gasped as my lips touched the small of her back.  I extended my
tongue to taste and wet her skin along the line of her panties.

   Marie was offering her body, and I wanted more.

   I kissed a line from the base of her spine to her neck.  I put my hands
on her hips and sat back on my heels.  I spread my knees and guided her
between them.  I put my hands on her stomach, drifting up to cup her
breasts.  I pulled her against me and kissed the hollow between neck and
shoulder.

   I kissed her neck as I traced her nipples.  She raised her arms when I
lifted her bra.  It came off her hands and fell between her legs.  I put my
teeth on the back of her neck as I ran my thumb in tight circles around
tighter nipples.  Marie's breathing turned harsh as her excitement grew.

   Even if it only lasted for the time we were naked, I wanted everything.

   My hands trailed down her stomach until they rested on the inside of her
thighs.  I pulled Marie open, knelt up, and guided her head back to my
chest.  My hands touched her face.

   I had wanted Marie when I did not know what I wanted, so I accepted the
offering.

   I sat on my heels and leaned back while keeping her in contact with my
body.  I ran my hands along her torso, breasts, arms, and face.  I reached
out and touched her palms, massaging small circles in them with my thumbs.

   That Marie did not even know how to ask what I really wanted was
absorbed and pushed aside.

   I straightened our bodies.  I created enough space between our lower
bodies so her pants would fall.  I kissed her neck and brought my hands
down her side.  At her hips, my hands move behind to play with her ass.  I
touched, cupped, and rubbed.  I enjoyed the touch of my hands on the parts
of her ass the panties did not cover.  I traced the cleft between buttocks
with a finger, then two.

   I brought my hands back to her breasts and was more forceful with my
play at her neck and shoulders.  My hands explored down her stomach to her
panties.  Her thighs were spread, waiting for my touch.  I traced the upper
line of her panties one last time before I turned my fingers so my nails
touched her skin.  I separated cloth from skin and inserted my fingers
inside her panties.  I kept going until I touched pubic hair.

   Her breathing was getting ragged.  I held her with her head leaning
forward as I gave attention to the back of her neck.  I wove circles and
lines through her pubic hair.  I pressed on her pubic bone and danced above
her clit.

   She gasped and moved her hips.  I pushed my other hand inside her
panties.  I placed my fingers carefully above her pubic line and massaged
the skin on the inside of her hips.  She moved her lower body back and
traced my dick with her ass.  My hands moved further down to final turn
towards an earthly heaven.  I placed a finger on either side of her labia
and let the panties pull my hands inward.  I rubbed the space between thigh
and the center of her pleasure.

   She moaned, not loudly but enough to declare approval and a desire for
more.  She straightened and spread her knees a couple of inches further
apart.  Suddenly, she moved her hips in an attempt to get my fingers on her
sexual being.

   I took my hands out of her panties, only to put my thumbs inside the
straps at the side.  Bringing my hands down, I pushed them off her hips,
ass, and pussy.  I placed my hand on the middle of her back and pushed her
upper body forward.  I ran a hand down the front of her right thigh while
placing teeth on her hip.  I pushed her panties and pants against her knee.
She lifted it to help remove them.  Once past, I kissed my way across her
ass cheeks to the other side.  I touched my teeth on that hip while I ran
my hand down her thigh.  As she lifted her knee, I pushed her panties and
pants past the last barrier.

   Sitting back, I reached down and pulled the clothing from her body. 
Marie was bent over with her hands on the chair.  She was exposed, and I
sat back to take in the sight of her wonderful behind.  I reached forward
and touched her.  I fondled Marie's ass, enjoying every second of attention
I could give her.  I ran my right hand almost to her pussy, circled her,
and moved to the other cheek.  I could see wetness as she clenched and
released.  I reached back and took off a shoe and sock.  I switched hand on
Marie's body and removed the other set of shoe and sock.

   I got on my knees and walked forward until I touched the back of her
thighs and ass.  I took my t-shirt off and pulled her upper body into
contact with my skin.  My hands played along her breasts and stomach.

   Marie's hands came around to run through my hair.  She rubbed her ass
aggressively against me.  I brought a hand down to her pubic hair again. 
She shifted the location of her hands and tried to work my belt open.  I
dodged a butt as her head snapped forward and back when I ran a finger
between her pussylips.

   I undid my belt and jeans, pushing them and my underwear down.  Marie
recovered from the brief contact to her pussy and inadvertently made my job
difficult by pushing back with her hips.  Finally, my dick escaped
confinement and touched her.  She reacted to the sudden heat with a jump
forward; but realizing what touched her, she pressed back to bring us
together again.

   She swayed--a torturous move of her beautiful ass against my dick.

   I pushed my clothes off, sat back on my heels, reached up, and pulled
Marie to me.  She rubbed her ass on my dick trying to get me to take her. I
touched Marie's back, arms, shoulders, neck, and everywhere else I could
reach before my hands came down to separate her ass from my body.  I pulled
her up and pushed forward.  She put her hands on the chair, hanging her
head down.

   Her torso was above her waist so her ass was beautifully curved.  I
touched, caressed, pulled my knees back so I could reach forward to kiss,
lick, and bite.  Marie reacted to every touch with little sounds which
encouraged more.  The scent of her arousal was almost overpowering.  I
straightened and moved forward until my dick rested on the cleft of her
ass. She wriggled around, moving her ass left, right, up, down, trying to
position me to enter her body.  I pulled back until she stopped and placed
myself back on her cleft.  I touched the sides of her body with my hands
and pulled her back so my dick rode the valley of her ass.  I pulled back
fully and pushed forward, bumping her clit with the head of my dick.

   I reached down, grabbed my dick, and ran the head up and down her lips.
I put a hand on her upper back and pushed down.  She moved the chair out of
the way to get on all fours.  I took my hand away from my dick and touched
Marie's pussy.  She held perfectly still as I inserted a finger.

   She was wet, hot, and ready.  I moved the finger in a slow circle just
inside her lips.  I pulled out and moved down to her clit.  It was fully
distended and needing the attention I gave it; holding two fingers on
either side, I gave Marie pleasure.  She clenched her butt tightly, pulled
forward, relaxed, and pushed back against my hand.

   I continued working on Marie with one hand as the other explored her ass
again.  I stopped my movements on her clit and just held two fingers
against her.  She moved; the motions became more intense as she drove
towards an orgasm.  I moved my fingers in the opposite direction of her
hips.  My other hand trailed fingernails along her spine.  Her motion
against my fingers became more insistent.

   I reached to my book bag and opened the outer pouch to get the condom
pack, a remnant of the days before Siblings, out.  I opened it and pulled
out one of the packages.  I centered my body behind Marie and placed the
package between my teeth to rip it open.

   After putting on the latex, I grabbed my dick and moved forward.  I
replaced my fingers on Marie's pussy with the head of my dick.  Her
movement became more controlled, trying to stave off the orgasm while
letting it keep coming.  I rubbed her clit with my dick.

   I felt the moment arrive; Marie moaned low and long as she came.  I
grabbed her hip with my left hand to prevent her from sliding away.  I
waited another second for her descent from sensation to begin.  I adjusted
my dick to place it at the entrance of her pussy.  She breathed in a deep
breath of recovery and at its natural apex I fucked into her.

   Marie pushed up on her hands, arched, and surged backwards to drive me
in deeper.  A short scream of desire escaped her.  I took a firm grip on
her hips, pulled back, and drove forward to sink my dick completely inside
Marie.

   Her pussy gripped and released me.  She pressed her forehead against the
carpet, reached behind, and grabbed her ass.  Marie gasped as another
orgasm visited her body.

   I held still, waiting as her body pulsed with the waves of pleasure. 
Finally, she took another deep breath and pushed back on me.  Her ass moved
in a circle to entice me to finish the ride.  I pulled back and drove
forward hard.

   I wanted Marie but what had been found missing in our joining kept me
controlled.  My long, deep strokes soon forced her to lose control of the
motion of her ass.  I looked down, pulling her hips back until her ass was
tight against me.

   A germ of a thought invaded my mind; I would not take what Marie
offered, instead I would take everything she could offer.

   My hand traveled down her stomach into her pubic hair and onto her clit.
I rubbed her clit fast and hard.  Marie reacted to it by wriggling her ass
and whispered for me to fuck her hard.

   I pulled out of her and swapped the hands working on her clit.  I
penetrated her with a finger while keeping pressure on her clit.  I pulled
her hips back and down a bit before moving forward at a different angle.

   I put the tip of my dick on her anal opening.  Marie's head snapped up;
she tried to raise the angle of her ass.  Leaving my dick at her anus, I
used one hand to hold her hips still and the other to press on her clit. 
She tried to move me from her asshole, but the orgasm peeking around the
corner was a strong counterweight.

   Her body crossed the line of denying me when as her third orgasm began I
took my fingers away.  Marie moved back, spreading her anal rose with the
tip of my dick.  I gave her the pleasure of my fingers on her clit as a
reward, and she sighed in relief.

   Marie's body fought itself, discomfort against pleasure, as I grabbed my
dick to hold it steady and pushed against her ass.  I ignored the battle
being waged and continued with even pressure until the head of my dick was
in Marie's ass.

   The rest would be easier, but I let her adjust to me.  The pleasure had
leveled off so I waited until her orgasm peeked around the corner again to
check if it was safe to come out.

   I penetrated deeper into Marie's ass.  It was tortuous, but the intense
pressure made it worthehilr.  Seemingly a long, long time later, my pubic
hair touched Marie.  I pulled back slowly and repeated the same insane
crawl forward.  On the third slow stroke into Marie's ass, her fingers
pushed mine aside on her clit.

   Within seconds, Marie flowered with my dick in her ass.  Her body nearly
collapsed as her legs gave out.  I put my hand on the floor and moved down
with her.

   Once she achieved a final resting position, I put my hands on either
side and pumped into her ass.  The last orgasm had relaxed Marie past any
discomfort, but I kept to slow thrusts in and out of her ass.

   I was trying not to thrust hard, but the need to cum took control of my
actions.  Marie must have felt the change in size because she moaned and
worked her hips up to give my strokes more force.  I drove completely
inside her with a hard thrust.  Marie moved her ass up and down my length
as much as she could with my weight on top of her.  It was only an inch,
but her desire for my pleasure put me over the top.  I rested my weight on
her and bit her neck as an intense orgasm took over my body.  Marie
squeezed me and released as my dick jerked inside her.

   I lay on her back for a minute, enjoying the sensation of my dick
softening inside her.  I pulled out and reached down to remove the condom.
I put in the garbage can next to our heads before lying on my side and
pulling her against me.

   I was happy for the owner being spoiled enough to equip his office with
the full amenity of a large shower when Marie suggested cleaning up
together.  As she walked naked in front of me, I realized Marie's inability
to give me everything did not preclude me treating her like she had.  From
her perspective, she might, fairly, believe she had.

   After a much heated beginning to the shower, I expressed concern about
the problems with condoms and water.  She looked at me having just knelt at
my feet and taken me into her mouth.

   "Can I trust you, David?"

   The Siblings were safe and before them regular testing had covered my
tendencies to temporary affairs with sorority sisters.  I knew about Marie
and Derik so I was as comfortable with it as I could be.

   Marie was amazed by my strength as I held her up against the shower
wall. My hands were on the wall with her body resting in the cradle of my
arms.  I fucked into her slowly and taught Marie a new standard of
endurance.  She marked my shoulder with her teeth as I thrust a pair of
orgasms into her.

   "DO IT!" she exclaimed as my lips touched her neck.  She screamed in
orgasm as I darkened her skin.

   ---

   "This isn't going to happen again, is it?" she asked looking up at her
window after I pulled into a parking space in front of her apartment
building.

   "No."

   "Why not?"

   I rested my head back.  The answer was there, but I did not know how to
vocalize it.

   "You were/are a woman I want, Marie," I said finally.  "But you're not
what I want."

   "Can I be?"

   I turned to look at her before replying, "I don't know how people become
it.  I don't even know how to ask you to be with me in that way."

   "Why did you do it, Marie?" I asked staring into her eyes.

   ?I don?t want you to think I used you, David,?  she said.

   ?You didn?t??

   She shook her head slowly, ?I?m glad?  no, that?s not really the word.
I?m relieved it was with you.?

   ?That doesn?t sound good Marie.?

   "Did you ever know someone didn't love you?" she asked with tears
shining in her eyes.

   "There are six billion people who don't love me, Marie.  I only know one
that did." I looked out the window.  "I know another who might."

   "The cute little blonde?"

   I nodded.

   "She does, David," Marie said quietly.  "Maybe it's not mature yet, but
she does love you."

   Something in her voice made me study her.

   She looked up at her apartment window, "I love Derik, but he loves what
he thinks the rest of his life should be."

   Turning back to me, she continued, ?Something was going to happen,
David, and it would have killed me if Derik had been the one to do it.  So
I?m glad, relieved, and a lot of other emotions that it was you tonight.  I
don?t believe I could have done anything if it wasn?t with you.?

   ?Wouldn?t it have been easier to break up with him??

   ?I can?t say those words, David, not to him,?  she replied.  ?And he
couldn?t look into my eyes, knowing how much I love him, and said them
either.  Not without this.?

   I tried not to look at Marie like she was an utterly alien lifeform.

   "How's your girlfriend going to react to you and me?" she asked.

   "If she finds out, she's going to come looking for you." Marie's
eyebrows shot up.  I smiled before continuing, "I get the feeling she wants
me to share everything.  She's not going to be satisfied with the taste of
you she can get from my lips."

   Marie laughed freely before putting her hand on her neck and touching
the spot where I had marked her.

   "Thank you, David," she whispered.  "This is going to give Derik the way
out he's been looking for."

   Her tears flowed freely.

   "You know, we never kissed," she said suddenly to which I nodded.  "We
did all of that, but we never kissed."

   I reached across to touch her hair.  She came willingly when I pulled
her towards me.

   ----

   I got out of the car and walked into woods.  After I left the military,
I chose a university close to where Jason and I grew up.

   The woods were dark but the smell of the place brought back memories:
Jason and I climbing trees as high as we could and hiding from the world.
It felt like the trees remembered me.  I climbed our favorite and sat on
the thickest branch.

   I summoned the storm.

   Torturing my high school tormentor, we did it in the dark, looking like
pagans around a sacrificial fire; little Billy, whose daddy thought
bringing in two older boys would turn his son into a man; Brittany and
Jason sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G--Brittany kissing me at Jason's
encouragement.

   Melisa probably understood better than anyone else could; she was not
really my First.  Long before I ever saw a white faced ring; Jason had
trained me.

   I asked him about Siblings.

   ----

   She looked surprised when she opened the door.  Dr.  Lawren had let me
create a space between us.  There had been no more late appointments, no
teasing, and no attempts to make her mine.

   "I'm surprised to see you here, Mr.  Feather," she said.  "How can I..."

   Her arm released the door as I brushed past her.  I walked into the
center of the living room and looked around.

   "David, you shouldn't be here," she said after locking the door.  She
was wearing a red oriental robe and looked like she had been awake for a
while but had not started her day yet.

   I turned to study the Sibling named Susan Lawren before speaking the key
Jason had given me.
   "The answer is yes."