Just for a Drink

Just For a Drink
She invited him over that Thursday evening for a drink.
It had been 6 months since she’d last seen him and she wanted to see for herself that he was alright; for she still considered him a friend, even if they were no longer buddies.
He knocked on the door a little while later and b4 she opened it, she just looked at him.
He seemed well enuff. Those eyes of his always threw her off just a little bit b/c his personality was so different from what those eyes said. Whoever said the eyes were the windows to the soul probably never got a chance to look into eyes as soulful as his and match it with a personality as rough as his.
She realized she was just staring at him as he knocked again. It was raining out; she opened the door and greeted him with a warm smile. No hugs, no kisses, none of that. He was here for a drink. Nothing more; nothing less.
She offered him a seat while she went to fix the drinks, but he told her sit to down instead. He fixed the drinks himself and then brought them to the couch she was sitting on. He opted for the armchair across the room.
5 or 6 minutes of silence drew out almost gleefully for her. She stared openly and without shame at him. She didn’t smile or anything, but just stared and drank in his appearance.
Tonight, he wore a plain blue tee shirt and some plain blue jeans with worn blue and white Nike running shoes. He looked bigger than the last time she’d seen him. More muscular, thicker in the neck and chest area. His thighs in those jeans screamed at her to touch them...just once. She looked at his face. His chocolate skin was still damp from the rain and his bald head was glistening. He wiped his brow with the tip of his index finger and she had a sudden rush of heat between her thighs at the memory of what those fingers could do to her.
Then, she did smile. A big cheesy grin, as a matter of fact; and she felt guilty for even thinking such thoughts since she had invited him over only for a drink.
He looked at her in wonderment and then asked her how she’d been doing all this time.
Fine was all that he heard and he heard a squeak in that one syllable.
He started talking a little bit. Not about anything much. He told her he’d bought a new house, but this time around the bill paying was a struggle. He told her he’d gotten a new job, but this time around he made more money, but was thinking of going to school to make even more, so he could catch up with his bills and all that. He mentioned his birthday and apologized for missing hers. He talked about the rain and how, like her, he was tired of it all. He talked about how much he didn’t go out on the town anymore. Just too many crazy people out there. He droned on for about 20 minutes, and then he just stopped. “Are you even listening to me?” he asked.
She lowered her eyes, figuring that he must have noticed the dreamy look she can imagine she had in her eyes. She had always loved to hear him talk. Though, when they were buddies, he didn’t do much of that. “Yes, I’m listening to you. Every word.” And she smiled again. She offered to refill his drink, but he declined.
“If you’ve got something else to do,” he said sounding a little uneasy, “I can gone and go.”
“If you’ve got someplace to be, you can gone and go,” she replied. “I’m not rushing you out the door. I did invite you over, yeah.”
It was his turn to smile and she thought she was going to pass right out, sitting there on the couch. That smile was what had attracted her to him in the first place. If they hadn’t have started this relationship thing off in the bed, she was sure that smile would win many an argument with her.
He coaxed a bit more conversation out of her until suddenly, his cell phone rang and he said it was work calling him. He took the call sitting there on the couch and she heard that he was on call at the plant he worked at and someone just got hurt. He said he’d be there as soon as he could get there.
She stood up. “I guess it’s time for you to go. You look good, dude. It was good seeing you again. Don’t be a stranger. You can still stop by for a drink or a meal every now and again.”
He stood as well, clearly looking like he wasn’t ready to go.
He asked for a hug; knowing full well that she didn’t like hugs very much. But, also knowing that, for him, she’d shuck that dislike just this one time.
He wrapped his arms around her and she tried hard not to melt into him. She tried hard to just return the hug and let it go at that, but whatever the cologne was he was wearing was teasing her senses and she inhaled deeply, sighing with content as he hugged her tighter.
She knew she’d be in trouble in a moment if she didn’t get out of his embrace, but for just a moment longer she allowed herself to be immersed in him; in his essence; in his arms—even if not in his life.
She thought about how she could kick herself for jumping straight for the feel good of the moment when they first met those yrs ago. Back then she was all about getting hers and that was enuff for her.
As she was still thinking, he gently pulled away and lightly kissed her on the lips. “Stay outta trouble, girl. And maybe I will back sooner than you think.”
He kissed her again and this time, she kissed him back. It wasn’t a greedy kiss. It was more like a ‘glad to see you’ kiss. And this time, she pulled away. She knew that this situation could quickly go oh so wrong for them if she didn’t put a stop to it quickly.
He looked at her with those long black eyelashes covering his light brown eyes and she didn’t think she’d be able to resist if he asked to stay. He kissed her again; this time more passionately, with more feeling, with more unspoken words than any they had said out loud this evening. She kissed him back. She wrapped her arms around his thick bull neck and held onto him like he was saving her from a sinking ship. She kissed him b/c she missed him. She kissed him b/c she was lonely and she wanted the feel of a man next to her. She kissed him b/c…b/c she was horny, dammit!!
That last thought, and the feeling of air on her back, brought her back to reality and she gently pushed out of his arms.
“Sorry, babe, it’s time for you to go.” She pulled her bottom lip with her teeth as she walked him to the door. She REALLY hated to see him go, but she knew for her own peace of mind, he did have to leave. She gave him one last hug at the door. She kissed his cheek and told him it was really good seeing him again. She wished him luck in life…wondering if this would be the last time she’d ever see him again.
As he got into his car and backed out of the driveway, she wondered if she’d just been dumb to let him go like that; or was that the right decision after all.
She wasn’t sure.
A week later, she got roses delivered to her doorstep with a card that said, “I’ll be back!”
©La-Shanta Holloway 7/2007