She

Note: This is fiction based very loosely on a true story.

The day of our girls' night out was a flurry of nervous emotions at least on my part it was and the night before wasn't much better. Even though we had left the coffee shop at a reasonable hour my mind did not stop upon arriving home. For several hours as I lay in bed, I replayed those precious few minutes with Anne. No matter what angle spun out, the conversation, the ending and meaning was always the same. Anne had asked me out on a date, on Valentine's Day. As I walked to my first class of the day I debated cancelling for that evening. With butterflies in my stomach I puffed out a breath into the chilly morning air and thought of what I might say to Anne just as Ryan came running up from behind.

Slinging an arm around my shoulders and giving a friendly squeeze, Ryan smiled at me and chirped away. "How's my most favourite buddy? My pal! My electronics partner."

Laughing, I gave Ryan an accusing poke in the side. "You didn't do you lab assignment did you?"

Ryan rubbed his side and gave me his best grin, an impish splash across his lips. "I missed a couple, Em. Can I borrow yours? Pleeeeeeassse!"

I kept my matching grin at bay at least until I could shake my head in mock disgust at him. "Okay, you can borrow mine but you owe me. Hey, have you seen Anne about?"

Even though none of our schedules matched completely we all pretty much knew what the other was doing most of the time. As a bonus Ryan and Anne was in the same dormitory. Today Anne wasn't in any of my classes so I was hoping Ryan might be able to tell me where I could catch up to her.

Ryan gave me another grateful squeeze. "Thanks Em! And I saw her this morning, she muttered something about working on her project all day with that lame group she got stuck with for Design."

I winced and simply nodded to Ryan. He probably thought it was sympathy for Anne and in part it was but mostly I knew I had been outmanoeuvred. She must have known what was coming and made herself scarce for the day. All I could do now was fight the nervous flutters within and smile my way through the rest of a day that suddenly seemed to move at the speed of light.

Rushing home after the final lecture of the day I was soon knee deep in my closet searching for something appropriate to wear for the evening. It had to be nice; the Octagon was fine dining at its best. I felt like a teen rummaging through her closet for clothes to wear on her very first date. I chose and discarded at least 6 different outfits all were perfectly acceptable but niggling at the back of my mind was whether Anne would like it. I decided upon a pair of dress slacks that I knew I looked good in and a blouse that brought out the blue in my eyes. I don't wear much makeup but rouge wasn't needed tonight, the excited rosy stain to my cheeks would more than suffice. The hour that Anne would arrive was drawing near; I hoped long before that time that my wildly thrumming pulse would calm. As that thought filtered through my mind the doorbell rang heralding her arrival. With a nervous start I quickly checked myself over one last time in the mirror before moving towards the door. I opened it wide to see a smiling Anne standing there. She looked great. I'm not a person for black clothing but she did wonders for that midnight suit.

Anne stepped inside as I held the door and greeted me warmly. "Hi, Em. You look wonderful! Ready for our night out?"

She waited till I was free of the door before wrapping me up in a friendly hug. Even with my earlier thoughts of running I basked in that moment, content to be held as my own arms instinctively slipped around her shoulders to return the hug. I smiled and held on tight only releasing her and backing away after a moment of hesitation.

"Hi! Yeah, I'm ready and you don't look so bad yourself." I hastily burbled out and before I could trip over my own tongue turned to the hall closet to retrieve my jacket. "I'll just get my coat and we can be on our way."

The drive to the restaurant didn't take very long and in that short time Anne had chased away most of my anxious thoughts. All the way there she asked me various questions. How my day went? What movie would I like to see? Within ten minutes we were back on our old footing of friends, joking and commiserating with one another. She drove her jeep up to the Octagon's entrance and handed the keys over to the valet. It took only a few seconds for her to join me on the other side and to enter the restaurant proper together. Shortly after arriving the maitre'd had us neatly ensconced in our own private little niche of the restaurant. The lights were dimmed, the soft sounds of sweet music filled the air and our table was beautifully arranged with flowers, champagne and candles. This was definitely a romantic setting I thought as my pulse quickened. I drew a deep calming breath and sought out Anne's attention. What I found were eyes of melted chocolate, a deep sea of reassuring warmth directed at me. I felt my lips turn up into a smile, a smile that had never touched these lips before. It was sad and joyful all in one. I sat there confounded as a barrage of emotions washed over me that I wasn't quite ready for. In a span of a few seconds my senses were assaulted and I was left confused and unsure. Anne simply continued to envelop me with that soft chocolate touch, she seemed to understand or at least know what I was feeling. Her hand crept across the table and felt for mine, slim reassuring fingers curling about my own in a gossamer caress. She held on, stroking gently until the main course was served and only then did she reluctantly let go.

I had thought perhaps with those first few quiet moments that the night would continue along a romantic line. Instead, Anne kept to her word on it being a girls' night out. The conversation throughout the meal was light with soft amusing anecdotes. I was torn. Part of me wanted that tender ambience to return while another was deeply touched that she was staying true to her word. We lingered over dinner longer than we should have and by the time we exited the restaurant it was too late to go to the movies. We stood close while waiting for the valet to bring Anne's jeep around.

Anne nudged closer in the cool night air, saying quietly. "The night is still young, it seems a shame to end it now."

Tilting my head up to her, smiling complacently I agreed. "It is too early to end the night. Do you have anything in mind?"

Anne rubbed her hands together warming them as she shrugged. "Well, since we missed our movie how about we rent one?"

I grinned, perfectly happy to spend the evening watching a movie with Anne. "Sounds wonderful. No horrors though! I'll pull out the pillows and hide behind them if you do that!"

Anne laughed as we climbed into her jeep and headed for the nearest video shop. Once inside the store Anne went straight for the horror videos. I kept trying to urge her into the comedy or action adventure sections but she wouldn't budge. Anne was in her glory as she happily went on about how I could use her shoulder to hide behind, stating that it was much better than a pillow, I secretly agreed. She finally settled on a particularly gruesome looking flick when some friends happened along. We ended up talking with them longer than expected which also cancelled the plans of a movie. Leaving the horror section behind Anne drove me home. As we pulled into my driveway, Rufus, my pet Labrador came trotting up from around the side of the house. Anne started to turn off the engine, ready to walk me to the front door.

I quickly laid a hand on her forearm, forestalling her from going any further. "Stay here, I'll be fine. The Rufster will protect me besides he'll slobber all over your clothing and you look lovely tonight."

Anne smiled at me. "You sure?" She paused briefly to consider the dog then added. "I'm sorry about the movie, Em. Maybe another time?"

I gave a little nod and smiled back. "I'd like that and I'm positive. Don't get out, you stay here and I'll flicker the lights inside so you'll know all is well."

Rufus by now was circling outside my door and was ready to prove my point on his less than savoury muzzle tactics. As soon as I stepped out of the jeep the old monster went straight for my slacks and left behind a little gift. I grimaced. Anne of course saw all this and was grinning safely from inside the jeep. I walked around to her window with my pet in tow.

Anne rolled down her window all the while grinning from ear to ear. "Thank you for saving me."

Not eager to see the end of a fine evening I laughed and leant an elbow against the frame of the window to playfully purr in gallant tones. "It was my pleasure to be of service, milady."

We talked a little longer and just as I was preparing to say my goodnights to Anne something strange took place. I don't know what happened, I've never been the bold one but as soon as our eyes met something clicked inside of me. One second I was speaking to her the next I was inching closer to Anne, narrowing that tiny yet endless gap left between us. It wasn't long before our lips joined in a tender kiss. As our mouths greeted one another and melded together I could feel the soft texture of her lips. Craving a taste my tongue swept out in a gliding touch of those velvety petals and was met by a slight mint flavour. Our mouths gradually parted and the kiss deepened, my tongue sketched over her lips, memorising every feature as it swept on in search of new ground. My mind shouted bliss even as I extended the exploration, dipping into the sleek well of heat, tracing over the delicious curves within and in turn relishing the thrilling touch of Anne. My breath quickened, her hands cradled my cheeks. This was heaven I wanted it to go on forever.

And then I came to with a snap back to reality. It took Rufus pushing his wet nose into my palm and Anne wiggling her fingers in front of my face to bring me around. I blinked in shock. With my mind running wild I stared dumbfounded at Anne and couldn't speak. What was I thinking? I had never done that, not even in my teen years.

Anne gave me a curious look then smiled. "Glad you came back. Have a nice trip?"

Instantly a blush rose to my cheeks, I quickly ducked my head to hide the guilty flush and rushed to answer. "Ugh.. Sorry, just something that came to mind. Anyway, I should let you go before it gets any later."

With my head down I was surprised to feel the soft touch of Anne's fingers to my chin. She gently guided my head upwards until our eyes met and held for a second but genuine time. Silently I thought to myself that this woman calls to me on so many levels.

"I'm up here, Em" Anne said softly.

Giving a bare nod, I swallowed deeply and quietly spoke. "I know its just..."

I never finished that sentence, a soft kiss, a tender stroke of Anne's lips over mine assured that. It wasn't the kiss I had just dreamed of but it was that much better for it. It was the sweetest kiss I'd ever felt. It was a kiss of promises, promises of things to come. Before I could regain my senses I felt the warm wispy caress of Anne's breath as she whispered quietly in my ear. "Get inside, Em, you'll catch cold. I'll give you a call this weekend."

Safely inside the house with Anne on her way home I fixed myself a coffee and planted myself in front of the television. I had a lot of serious thinking to do tonight. If that lapse into daydreaming wasn't a hint then the almost innocent bone tingling kiss to follow was. It was time to decide on the path that I would follow.

(This is the the second try, I'm not as please with it as the first and since you're at the bottom of the page you probably realise that it's still stuck in the PG rating. Honestly, I'm getting there. Thank you to everyone who sent comments I greatly appreciated them. As with before please send comments or inquiries to de_keegan@hotmail.com)