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  © 1995 Brett Barney Literary Page 43

  Laura’s hands wandered freely down Todd’s chest. She thought she felt a quiver as they

  moved over his navel, and down towards the zipper on his jeans. She didn’t realize how nervous

  she had become until she fumbled for some time with the simple device. Her hands shook

  violently, and Todd realized that she could not complete the task. He lifted her up, and laid her

  softly down upon the grass a few feet away. She dropped effortlessly on her back, with the

  blanket behind her to insulate her skin from the cold grass, and Todd came to rest over her. Then

  he rolled over, not wishing to crush her with the weight of his body.

  Laura pushed away from Todd momentarily and stood up. He looked up at her deep blue

  eyes, which looked oddly wild in the moonlight. She stood for a moment staring into his eyes.

  The stare made him nervous, and a feeling of guilt quickly followed. Anger, rage, and something

  else, all looked down upon him.

  “I’m sorry, Laura,” Todd whispered softly. A look of embarrassment came over his face.

  “I didn’t mean for it to go this far.”

  Laura didn’t mutter a word. She just brought her finger to her lips to silence him. She

  stood for a moment and he feared what would happen next. Todd stared in disbelief as she

  disrobed and stood over him. For a moment, she wished all the guys she went to school with

  could catch a glimpse of her, revealing herself to a boy this way, then wondered at the absurdity

  of the thought. Laura walked back over to lie beside him. She closed her eyes and placed her

  mouth over his own, tenderly nibbling at his lips.

  Things moved quickly and uncontrollably as she pressed forward. She still had the fire in

  her eyes, but moments later he noticed something else, a look of astonishment. She gasped in

  pain and he realized her innocence. He slowed her down slightly, allowing some of the pain to

  subside. The anger in her eyes returned, but she soon closed them to relax. Todd returned his

  hands to her skin as he leaned back and glanced nervously around.

  Laura pulled the blanket around them as she continued in the cool night air. Todd could

  feel the sharp blades of grass digging into the skin on the back of his neck, but it was far from the

  most noticeable sensation he now felt. Todd raised his hands to aid her, trying to slow her pace,

  and she grabbed at the same instant, leaving more of an impression in his skin. Todd fought to

  hold back the tension, but his excitement soon overpowered him.

  Laura never slowed her pace as she moved above him. Todd found himself completely

  bare of all his clothing as he stared up at the naked body before him. Laura’s eyes remained

  closed and her breathing quickened as she ignored the pain. Her moans slowly rose above the

  sounds of the night and Todd feared she might alert her parents. He rose up and kissed her as he

  traded places with her.

  Todd studied her face, trying to decipher the rapidly changing expressions. He didn’t

  know if she wished to continue, but she answered the question before it could fully cross his

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  mind. Moments later he saw a new expression, which lasted for several seconds as she quivered

  in his arms. Her hand reached up and grabbed the back of his head tightly, the kiss was long and

  warm. They remained locked in one another’s embrace for some time, continuing to enjoy the

  long, feverish kiss, before the pleasures subsided, unmasking the incredible pain.

  “That was the most incredible experience I’ve ever had,” spoke Todd softly into her ear.

  “Better than I could ever have imagined,” she agreed, but she hadn’t anticipated the

  outcome. In the moments that followed, the pain grew in intensity, and she found herself

  cringing.

  Todd adjusted the blanket to hold in their own warmth, but Laura stopped him, using the

  slight chill of the night air to cool off. She felt uncomfortable enough without baking in her own

  sweat. He looked behind him at the house to make sure the commotion had not stirred anyone.

  There appeared no threat or surprise.

  Laura rolled onto her back and closed her eyes. Todd fumbled through his thoughts for

  something to say, but couldn’t find words to express his feelings. Their action would remain with

  her for several days, and it wouldn’t come only in the form of memories. He wished there were

  something he could do, but only time would relinquish the discomfort. He felt uneasy by the

  awkwardness of the situation and wondered if he had made a mistake.

  “Laura, please don’t regret this. You deserved much more for your first time. I didn’t

  know.”

  “I don’t regret anything, Todd. I can’t think of a more romantic way to have enjoyed my

  first time. It was perfect.”

  “So what do we do now?” Todd asked.

  “What are you gonna do?”

  “I don’t know, Laura.”

  “Are you going back to Heather?”

  “That depends on whether you want to go out sometime or not. I think I would really like

  to get to know you better.”

  “I thought you just got to know me?” Laura kidded.

  “I don’t mean like that. I’ve never gone out with anybody who I wanted to know like I

  want to know you right now. You’re an intriguing girl, and you have a future planned already.

  You could get into any college you wanted, and you’re practically guaranteed to graduate the

  head of our class. I want to talk with somebody who can offer stimulating conversation. I would

  really like to find out what goes on in your head.”

  He seemed like so much more than a fantasy as he spoke, and right now the only thought

  in Laura’s head was a wish that she had gotten to know him sooner. He seemed as if he knew her

  already, and appreciated her keen mind. Most people made her feel inferior, because she excelled

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  in her schoolwork. He acknowledged something she rarely received compliments about. He

  couldn’t say anything more to make her happy, yet an air of guilt still hung over them.

  “What will you do about Heather?”

  “She just decided what I’m gonna do about her,” Todd answered as he retrieved his

  clothes. “Let’s get dressed and take a walk.”

  “Maybe you should talk things over with her before we start walking around town

  together.”

  “It’s midnight and our team lost the homecoming game,” explained Todd. “And there

  isn’t any chance of us running into Heather. Nobody’s out on the town right now. Most people

  are probably in bed. Come on, let’s go for a walk.”

  Laura climbed up slowly and searched for her clothes scattered around the lawn. It took

  her more time than usual getting dressed, even with the bitter chill nipping at her bare skin. A

  few minutes later, the two had dressed and quietly walked around to the front of the house,

  making sure not to wake anyone inside.

  Laura could feel the tension rolling in her stomach as she waited to face her friend. The

  time passed slowly for someone who had waited in anguish for the time to pass. Laura still felt

  that Heather would read the signs right off her face when they met. She feared this moment, but

  at the s
ame time, just wanted to get beyond it.

  Heather entered the classroom and ran over to where Laura sat in the back of the room.

  There were several minutes this Monday morning before the bell would ring and Laura could tell

  by the excited look on her face that Heather had some juicy news. She sat down in the seat

  behind Laura and threw her book bag to the floor.

  “I had the most incredible experience this weekend,” Heather blurted out before Laura

  could say anything. Only a few other students occupied the room this morning and the two girls

  sat in a back corner all alone. Still, Heather spoke with a low whisper.

  “Didn’t we all?” asked Laura sarcastically, trying to relieve herself of some of the tension

  she felt. The remark didn’t even daunt her friend.

  “Nothing can compare to the wild things I did with old number 87,” stated Heather in a

  rather serious and demeaning tone.

  “Did you ever find out his name?” Laura asked with surprise.

  “We didn’t have time to worry about such unnecessary information as names,” remarked

  Heather as she pulled out a container of deep red lipstick and fixed her make-up with a small

  mirror. “I’ve never felt so free and unrestrained as I did on Friday night. I’m telling you, Laura,

  I’m a changed woman. I’m not even going to waste my time on Todd anymore. Todd could

  never perform as well as the guy I had this weekend.”

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  “So you’re breaking it off with Todd then?” questioned Laura, watching her friend

  maneuver the glossy covering across her lips. She could smell Heather’s perfume, similar to the

  strong odor of wild flowers. Heather took much pride in her appearance, and always looked as if

  she just stepped out of a beautician’s parlor.

  “Who needs him. He’s so wrapped up in himself. From now on I’m living my life for me,

  and me alone. I can’t worry about trying to make him feel better every time he drops a ball.”

  Laura tried desperately to hide the smile emerging on her face. She quickly turned

  towards the front of the classroom as Heather dug through her book bag for a note pad. The

  small number of other students in the quiet room paid little attention to the chatter coming from

  the back.

  “Have you even seen Todd since the game?” asked Laura, her back still turned towards

  Heather.

  “No, he hasn’t bothered me all weekend long. I’m sure I’ll bump into him today, but even

  if he’s begging on his knees for me, I won’t take him back.”

  Laura closed her eyes and relished the moment, feeling relieved that she wouldn’t need to

  compete against her best friend for Todd. She had known Heather practically her entire life, and

  though she wanted to go out with Todd desperately, she didn’t want to ruin their friendship.

  “Are you going to see number 87 again?”

  “No,” answered Heather. “It was just a weekend fling. Neither of us want anything more

  than we got out of the weekend. He’s over an hour away from here. I don’t want the hassle of a

  long distance relationship. We have a mutual understanding between one another. If we run into

  each other again, we’ll probably do it all over, but there isn’t anything more to our relationship

  than that.”

  Laura shook her head and smiled at Heather as she turned around to face her. “Are you

  going to confront Todd and tell him it’s over then?”

  “I’ll wait for him to come to me,” explained Heather as she placed her cosmetics back

  inside her bag. “Then I’ll break the news, or maybe I’ll just ignore him. There isn’t any reason to

  make people think he and I are still going out. I need to put the word out that I’m fair game

  again. Besides, I don’t owe him anything, not after the way he treated me the other night. How

  he sees our relationship doesn’t matter to me now. I know it’s over between us, and that’s all that

  counts.”

  Heather looked up from her bag and directly at Laura. For a moment, Laura felt as if

  Heather could see right through her. A strange feeling crossed Laura as the look on Heather’s

  face changed to a seductive smile and her eye’s glanced over Laura’s shoulder.

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  Laura turned around to see the large form of Chris Garfield, another one of Harrison’s

  more prominent football players. He had just entered the dingy, colorless classroom, and

  immediately noticed Heather sitting back in the corner.

  The bright blue and white letterman’s jacket he wore appeared to flaunt his dark hair.

  Laura knew he would wear the jacket throughout the entire class, and probably school day. He

  took much pride in his role on the field, and wouldn’t let the warmth of the classroom force him

  into removing his prize.

  He smiled back at the two girls who stared over at him, and walked over to his seat near

  the front of the classroom. Laura never wondered why guys were so quick to notice her friend.

  Not only did Heather have good looks, but she dressed in a fashion which made her distinctively

  stand out. Her classy wardrobe, which accented her shapely figure, kept her at the center of

  attention.

  “I don’t know about you, Heather,” Laura spoke with a large grin across her face as she

  turned around to look at her friend again. “It doesn’t take you any time at all.”

  “You seem like you’re in a good mood today,” uttered Heather, noticing the unusual

  cheerfulness in her friend. “The only time you smile like that is if you’ve taken a test and thought

  you did pretty well.”

  “I’d say I scored a pretty good grade,” Laura assured her. She turned around and looked

  through her textbook. All the nervousness, which had stemmed from the anticipation of this

  moment, passed as she realized that one thing had worked out in her favor.

  Laura and Heather walked up the hallway towards their second class. Like many close

  friends, they had matched their schedules as close together as possible, with only two classes

  allowing for separation. These two classes were a necessity, since Heather didn’t want to take

  advanced calculus or honors English.

  Students crowded the small hallway and made movement through the corridor quite slow.

  Laura caught sight of Todd at the end of the hall just seconds before Heather did. Todd noticed

  the two girls walking towards him from a distance. A deathly white tint flowed across his face at

  the sight of them together. Before the girls could reach him, he turned and headed back in the

  direction he had come from.

  “I guess he isn’t big enough to face me yet,” uttered Heather, enjoying her feelings of

  confidence.

  “You must just be to much for him to handle,” spoke Laura, fighting back the laughter.

  “You must be some woman to scare him like that.”

  “Are you teasing me, Laura?” asked Heather.

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  “I’m sorry, Heather,” apologized Laura. “I just find this who situation quite humorous. I

  mean, you going off and having sex with another guy this weekend and then Todd won’t even

  speak to you. It almost makes you wonder who he spent the weekend with.”


  Heather laughed with Laura. “It does seem rather funny, Laura, except that Todd isn’t

  man enough to cheat on me. He probably sat home drowning in his own pity the entire weekend.

  I bet he still feels guilty for what he said to me after the game. This will teach him to never treat

  another girl that way. Maybe the next girl he dates will benefit from his mistake with me. I just

  don’t understand why he’s so afraid to face me and apologize now. I never knew how big of a

  coward he was.”

  “Why don’t you head to class without me, Heather. I need to stop at the restroom before

  class begins. I think I have something in my eye.”

  “All right, I’ll save you a seat then.”

  Laura turned down a separate hall from the one Heather walked. As she walked away

  from her friend, tears flowed down her cheeks from her own laughter. She turned the corner and

  busted down, loosing her composure as she laughed aloud. After several days of tension, the

  release felt good. She felt bad for Todd, but he had nothing to lose anymore. Laura didn’t want to

  lose her friendship with Heather.

  “What’s so funny, Laura?”

  Laura looked up in surprise towards the deep voice which caught her off guard. “Oh

  Todd, it’s only you. I thought maybe Heather had followed me. I figured I was caught for sure.”

  Todd stood before her in the deserted walkway. Only the sounds of chaotic noise emitted

  from the main hallway, interrupted their solitude. He looked extremely confused standing there.

  Laura could tell from his face that he didn’t feel well. The empty corridor gave them a moment

  to speak with some privacy.

  “What did you tell her about us?” asked Todd. He looked much smaller than she

  remembered. The scorn of his classmates and the look of terror on his face hid his usual

  commanding image. Laura had forgotten all about the game, and suddenly felt guilty for not

  paying him the attention he deserved.

  Todd failed to wear his letterman’s jacket today. He knew it would add fuel to an already

  raging fire of emotional despair and didn’t want to constantly remind people of his role. Laura

  felt sorry for him and wished she could make it all go away. She couldn’t do anything about the

  pressure of his peers, but could relieve the anxiety about Heather.

  “Nothing,” answered Laura. “Don’t worry though, she’s planning to break things off with