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“I’m going to hit the gym hard.” I said. “I’ve wimped out so many times after classes because of being exhausted. It’s time to get my fitness back up to its prior levels. Other than that, not a lot. I intend to visit my family for as short a time as I can get away with and hit the beach to get a golden glow.”
He leaned over and kissed my cheek.
“No. We can’t leave it like that.” I told him and I placed my hands at the back of his head and brought his lips to mine. We had never kissed on the mouth. Intimate kisses of private areas but never our mouths. The kiss was long, tender and a proper goodbye.
He left. I watched him go and then I sat back on the sofa for a while, so that we didn’t leave together. It was something Marcus had always insisted on. I didn’t give a damn if the janitor saw us walk out together. They could
assume what they liked, there was no proof. We kept that staff room door locked and our couch was at the very far end of the room so no one would ever hear anything. It had great soundproofing anyhow as no Professor wanted a student to overhear a private conversation. It had been the perfect place to let go and seek pleasure. But next semester wouldn’t be the same.
Try as I might though, I couldn’t conjure up any real feelings for Marcus. He really had been a means to an end. Like a real-life dildo. I felt guilty about my feelings but it was for the best that while I had enjoyed our make-outs, I had developed nothing in the way of a crush and had never wanted to take it further. He was now gone and my sex life had left with him, but if I missed anything, it would be our friendship.
The break passed, and I had indeed got myself back to the gym. My body had toned enough that I felt happy wearing my tiniest gym shorts and a crop top. My arms and thighs were well defined now and my abs had a six pack I was immensely proud of. I made a promise to myself that no matter how stressful school got when I returned, I would maintain a fitness regime to keep myself toned. Maybe I wouldn’t be able to maintain the athletic figure I had right now, but I felt so much better in myself when I was fitter and so the gym and the pool needed to become part of my own curriculum. I was so busy daydreaming, I stumbled on the treadmill and felt myself falling, only to be caught by a well-toned pair of arms.
“Fuck. Thanks so much.” I told the owner of them as I rubbed the back of my neck. “I let my concentration go. Stupid of me. I think that’s a sign I need to stop and get some water.”
“Stand there. I’ll get you a drink.” The guy said, and I watched as he walked away.
He was of medium build, around six feet tall and had almost jet black hair that was a little grown out. I guessed you’d call it shaggy. His eyes had been the most piercing blue and chiseled cheekbones and a full pout made him look like some kind of model. I guessed that’s exactly what he was, plenty of models frequented my gym. They sold photos to independent authors to use as their cover pictures on books, and our gym owner, Macy, an obsessive reader, liked to frame the covers and put them up on walls around the gym. Hell, I had no objections! It was better than staring at my own sweaty body while I exercised. I’d chatted to a few of the models, some were lovely and down to earth while others thought they were God’s gift to men and women, but I’d never seen this guy before so I presumed he was a new one.
He walked back over and held out the drink to me. I stared at him a little more while trying not to be too obvious about it.
“Thanks.” I said as I reached for the paper cup of water. I drank it down greedily.
“Nice tat,” He said to me when I’d finished and could speak again. He nodded towards my upper hip. Visible above my gym shorts was a tattoo of an egg timer, the sand was part pouring out. The timer was black and the sand purple and aqua blue. It was only small, but I’d had it done at the beginning of the summer break to remind me that life carried on whether I was being present in my life or not. I had done a lot of thinking and looking inward during vacation time and had vowed to open myself up to new opportunities. I had been scared to get into another relationship, having found the heartbreak of before so soul destroying, but Marcus had helped me see that I wanted more. Maybe not a relationship still; I remained cautious after my break-up with Chad, but I wanted my heart to thump faster and I liked things on the dirtier side of the spectrum. I had wanted Marcus to pound me hard on our onetime fuck. As a full-on lover, he wouldn’t have been enough. I also liked the danger that we could have been caught. I wondered how people found lovers who could give them what they wanted and whether it just came from a relationship developing over time. My big break up relationship had contained perfectly adequate sex, but we were both new to relationships, we had met at high school and neither of us had been confident to ask for what we wanted. Still, I had loved Chad, and it had killed me inside when we’d broken up after six years together.
“Perhaps I would have been better grabbing you an espresso?” the guy stated, and I realized I had completely zoned out on him.
“Jeez, I’m so sorry. I really don’t feel quite myself today.” I looked down at my tat. “It’s there to remind me that life is short and to enjoy myself,” I told him.
“I wholeheartedly agree.” He replied. “But today I think you should call it a day and head home and grab some sleep. Start the whole making most of life mantra tomorrow.”
I laughed. “Yes, you’re right. I’m going to get showered under very cold water, grab a coffee - though I’ll make it a latte rather than espresso - and then I’m gonna head on home to sunbathe on the deck in the shade, where I may just fall asleep. Thank you once again for coming to my rescue.” I held up my empty paper cup, “and for the water.”
“No problem,” He said. Those blue eyes twinkled when he smiled and revealed perfect, white teeth. He held out a hand, “Garrett.”
“I’m Meredith.” I told him. Then I decided to brazen it out.
“Are you one of the cover models?” I asked him.
He shook his head and laughed. “No. I’m nothing special. Just here to make the most of what God gave me and keep it healthy, you know?”
“Totally. My summer has been devoted to it. Well, that and catching up on trash TV, but I don’t usually admit to that. Anyway, enough of my chatting. I ramble on when I first meet someone, I think it’s nerves. See you around.” I told him and then I left, moving as quickly as I could. I felt rather stupid that I had asked if he was a model now. He probably thought I was some kind of groupie, jeez. That would not do. I would have to work on potential topics of conversation that didn’t make me out to be some complete brainless airhead. What was it I had said? That I wanted to catch up on reality TV. Dear God. The guy had looked a little younger than me and yet he had seemed so much more mature in the confidence that had oozed from him and how he had handled himself. I seriously could do with some pointers. Maybe for now though I would just change the time I went to the gym slightly, so I could avoid embarrassing myself again for the last week of the break.
Chapter 2
Meredith
I returned to my small studio apartment in Brooklyn. I had taken over the tenancy from a High School teacher called Parker just after school was out for the summer. He had been giving up teaching he’d told me, instead he would work for his father’s publishing company. He was also getting married. I had to admit I had experienced feelings of jealousy that he and his fiancée were buying a large new home while I was taking over their old, small apartment, but it was within my budget from my professor’s salary and I was thankful I had seen the rental ad almost the minute it had appeared on a teaching forum I belonged to on the internet for all teachers and professors in the New York vicinity.
There was room in the corner for a queen-sized bed; in another corner, there was a small kitchenette, and nearby further room for a small dining table and chairs. That was the set-up Parker had had. There was a separate bathroom off to the rear. I had brought my queen-sized bed from the old apartment I had shared with Tana, a fellow professor at school. She had fallen in love and gotten married, so I had needed to find myself somewhere else to live. I had decided I had had enough of sharing my space and that even if it was smaller; I wanted a place of my own, one where I did not have to hear an engaged couple having noisy sex almost every night. Where Parker had had his table and chairs, I put a desk. I could eat with my plate balanced on my lap, but also there was a small piece of counter top in the kitchen area that I could buy a stool for. I wanted somewhere to put all my academia, so the desk won.
At the opposite side of the room to my bed I had a small black couch and a large floor standing lamp. I had a television mounted on the wall that could be swiveled to face either the couch or the bed. Nine times out of ten I chose to lay on the bed. It was much comfier. I wondered if I would ever have a visitor to come sit on the couch, or whether I should have forgone it and bought some exercise equipment to use at home instead. Maybe it would have been a better use of that space.
I organized everything I needed for the start of the new semester and placed the clothes I planned to wear over the back of the bathroom door. After eating and then reading for a while, I settled down under the comforter to get a good night’s sleep.
My new students had seemed okay. This year I was teaching about tax, not the most interesting of subjects for the majority of people, but I loved math and accounting. It had been strange not seeing Marcus’ face when I had arrived but I discovered he had left me an envelope in my staff room locker which had said ‘open at the end of the first day’. I sat in the staff room intrigued about what I would find. I tore open the envelope and extracted the typed letter.
Mer,
