A/N: Thank you to my reviewers, especially on the last chapter- deator11, DarkFireAngel00 and Sun. Your thoughts mean so much to me. Hope you enjoy the chapter ahead.
So Jared followed behind her in his Nissan, and she kept checking herself as surreptitiously in the rearview mirror as humanly possible. Her hairline braid was starting to come undone, because her hair was so frickin' thin, and little baby hairs were starting to unravel all around her forehead. When she pulled into her driveway, she quickly yanked out the bobby-pins securing it, and raked her fingers through a few times. She smoothed some peach lip balm over her lips, to bring some color to them and hopefully draw attention away from her tiny eyes with smudged, faded eyeliner. There. She looked a bit perkier already.
Jared opened the door for her again as she approached his car, and as she passed, he seemed to sniff- and he said, "Peaches?"
"What?"
"Nothing. In you go."
She took a seat and mashed her lips together. Hopefully the smell wasn't too overpowering. Maybe she should wipe it off-
"You took out your braid?" Jared asked, as he slipped back into the driver's seat and began backing out of the driveway.
"Yeah- it was coming undone."
"Did you get enough pictures for Yearbook today?"
"Hoping so," she said. To deflect she said, "Are you bummed you have to work on Halloween?"
He shrugged. "Nah. Not exactly at the age to trick-or-treat or anything, so...not really missing out on anything."
"No parties?" She thought for sure he'd have something he was missing.
"Not this year."
"Oh. Are you dressing up for work?"
"Huh?"
"Like, a costume for- oh, wait, nevermind. You...you work outside. Nevermind. Stupid."
He burst into laughter. "That's hilarious, Kim. I totally should. Just show up and act like it's totally normal, don't even mention it...that's really funny!"
She grinned at that. "Show up in a clown outfit or something."
"Do you normally dress up for the Library?"
"Yeah, we have a little event on Saturday morning- reading scary stories to the kids. Well, as scary as, like, Clifford the Big Red Dog's Halloween can get."
"Are you gonna dress up?"
"I was thinking about something simple, like, a cat or something, or an angel. I was an angel last year, so I know the wings are nearby somewhere. I think I threw away the halo though."
"An angel," he repeated warmly.
"What?" She smirked at him, expecting him to tease her.
"No, I just think that's really appropriate for you."
Oh. Kim cleared her throat and fiddled with her sleeves. "Thanks. Um."
Sparing her the embarrassing prospect of replying, Jared continued, "Let me think. What was I last year? I think I was a…"
"Werewolf."
Jared slammed on the brakes, and Kim's hands shot out to grab the dashboard as her seatbelt tightened. She squealed. "What!"
"I- fuck, I'm so sorry, Kim," Jared touched her arm with his ever-warm hands, looking at her starkly. "I thought- I saw, a, uh, deer about to jump out."
Kim turned to study the trees. "Oh. It's definitely gone then." She drew in a shaky breath. "You okay?"
"Yeah, I'm- I'm so sorry. You're okay?"
"I'm fine, just surprised." She exhaled.
"I'm so so sorry." Jared withdrew his hand, briefly ran his palm over his eyes, and then checked the rearview. After a second, the vehicle resume its course.. "I- I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that. I won't do that again."
"I heard you should just hit a deer, if it jumps out," Kim supplied, trying to calm him down. He seemed so rattled. "But braking works."
He kept glancing at her, at the rearview.
She touched his arm. "Nothing happened, Jared, and we're okay. Do you want to pull over for a second?"
He took a deep breath. "I'll be okay. Sorry."
"It's okay." He seemed so embarrassed as his initial distress subsided.. She removed her hand.
"So- wh-what were you saying?"
"Oh, I thought I remembered you being a werewolf last year."
A muscle ticked in his otherwise neutral expression. "I think you're right. I barely remember."
She nodded, wondering why he was so upset. She decided not to dwell on it. Maybe he had bad memories of Halloween last year. To distract him she said, "So, what's your favorite candy? Thinking of the spirit of Halloween."
His jaw relaxed a bit, and a small smile started at his lip which gladdened her. "I mean, I'll eat anything. I know you've noticed my appetite."
"I have," she assured him gravely. "But ability to consume is not what I'm asking. What's your ultimate favorite? Like the one you'd be psyched to get a whole bag of? If we were still at an acceptable trick-or-treat age, I mean."
"Alright, twist my arm to choose." He turned out, and the ocean was visible now along the roadside. "I'd go for...Jolly Ranchers."
"Ooh! That's a sleeper hit candy!"
"What's yours?"
"Reeses' of course."
Jared groaned demonstratively, but was grinning. "How standard! Seriously? I expected more creativity out of you, Kim!"
"I'm not here to impress; you say standard, I say timeless." She made a hand gesture like the Godfather, which made Jared laugh harder.
"Is that what you'll be handing out to the little kids on Saturday during Story Time?"
"No, it's been banned due to peanut allergies," she said sadly. "But, that means more for me."
"Oh, so do you intend to go trick-or-treating now?" His tone was teasing.
She sat up very straight, indicating serious business. "I have sticky-fingers and will inspect the bowl my mom puts out."
"I expect you'll share with Sarah though, right?"
"We'll see." She cast him a haughty grin, which he returned, before they were quiet. Sister Hazel's All for You flowed from the speakers, and Kim found herself caught between the lyrics and the ocean.
When they reached a turn-out overlooking the beach, Jared stopped the car. He slowly turned the volume dial down, until it was a dull hum. "Can I ask you something?"
"Yes."
"What kind of a guy would you be interested in?"
His mouth was pinched at the corner where his dimple usually appeared. He was studying her. Kim fought the urge to touch his mouth, to press a finger against the frowning full lips. Part of her- the traitorous part- wanted to say, "You're the only guy I've ever been interested in." The other part of her...well, kind of wanted to cry. She held Jared's penetrating gaze, searching his eyes for some answer she didn't know.
"What are we doing?" she whispered, after an eternity passed.
His eyes dropped to her lips, for just a second, and Kim's heartbeat accelerated. His eyes shot back to hers, smoldering with a hot intensity she'd never seen before- not even in all her years of watching him flirt from afar, not in the past week of their interactions. When he spoke, his voice was a low rasp that left her stomach fluttering. "I'm trying to find out what I have to do to get a chance with you, Kim."
Kim's whole body flooded with warmth at his words. She resisted the urge to squirm as heat pooled in her belly, radiating low and tangible in a way that made her hyper-aware of her body in a way that was both unfamiliar and intimate.
Jared's eyes sharpened. His nostrils flared.
"Tell me what I've got to do," he said, voice thick.
Kim whispered, "Jared."
And then, in a flash, he was leaning across the console. His hand hovered beside her jaw, fingertips soft in her hair, and she was breathing in his cologne. She marveled at his eyes; from this close, she perceived flecks of dark green in the caramel that she'd never seen before, not in all her years. Her hand wrapped around his, pressing his palm to her jaw.
Something electric and cosmic was dragging her into Jared's orbit, and she wasn't just willing- she was ravenous for it.
When Jared kissed her, she was stunned by the reverence of it all. His mouth was hot, coaxing her lips to open. They did, and his tongue stroked against hers in a manner that turned her insides molten-slick. Her hand tightened around his. She wanted more. His lips slanted against hers, hungrier.
Minutes passed before she had to force herself to separate for air. When she pulled back, she found him staring at her with glittering caramel eyes- it almost felt loving. Of course, she wasn't so naive as to think that Jared was in love with her, but...well, when he looked at her like that, she sure could imagine it.
And there was the reality of him asking to have a shot with her. Plus the last week of connection. He obviously did like her, and seemed genuine in that…
She caught his lips again before she could allow her brain to continue, before she arrived at any decision that could possibly stop her from getting just a few more minutes of his taste, of his soft lips and insistent tongue and fingertips pressed into her hair. He was intoxicating.
His lips left hers, only for his palm to cup the back of her head as he kissed her jawline, her neck, the skin just below her earlobe. It was so soft, and heated, and Kim's eyelids felt heavy with desire. Tentatively, she dragged her own hand up his chest, to cup his face as he so tenderly kissed her. Jared responded with a growling-sort of low sound in his throat.
"Kim," he murmured at her ear.
She hummed her reaction, mostly far-off in a reverie come to life.
Another hot kiss at her jawline. "Kim, please-"
Focus. "Yes?" She settled back a few inches.
His full lips were swollen slightly. "Kim, please be my girlfriend."
She brushed hair away from her face, squinting. "Pardon?"
He seized her hands, and began kissing her fingertips, her palms- all while staring at her with a desperation that made her heart squeeze and her thighs tremble. "You're the best person I've ever met. I don't know why you're giving me the time of day, but I'll spend the rest of my life making you glad you did. I swear on our Ancestors, Kim, that I'll always strive to be worthy of you."
Kim was coming back to Earth after a quick float-around-the-Moon, and what Jared was saying was simply not computing with logic. This was- so serious sounding.
"Is this- uh, normally how it goes?" If this was how he did it, she could see why he had so many conquests, and why Amanda and Mallory kept coming back for more, and why Autumn was so devastated to let him go. He was giving her a look like she was the only girl in the world.
Vehemently, Jared said, "Never. This is...way better than anything I've ever known before."
"It just feels really…" She stopped herself.
"What?" he asked, voice barely a whisper. He squeezed her hands.
She answered before she could over-analyze. "...significant."
That slow smile. "That's because it is. You are."
"But it's unreal," she said, a bit dazed.
"Realest thing I've ever felt." He was resolute. He began brushing his lips over her knuckles in the barest of kisses, giving her that smoky caramel look that knocked logic out of the park.
"I mean, just...out of nowhere, and you're saying all this, and so certain? What changed?"
Some untold emotion drifted over his gaze. "That's the question of the century."
"I just don't get it." She wondered if she should tell him about her crush. The last bit of her that was a hold-out from all this wild romanticism- the skeptical part of her- locked its claws even tighter around that admission though. "You never noticed me before."
"My biggest regret." His tone was heavy. "I can't- there's just no good reason why I had my head up my ass. Seriously. I keep thinking, 'Why didn't you notice her sooner?' I wish we'd been together so much longer, Kim. I couldn't sleep the other night because I kept thinking about that time at Cafe Angel with our moms and how I think you tried to talk to me and I didn't take the chance. I was too big of an idiot chasing some random girl and impressing my friends and shit. I went back through our Yearbook from last year and saw a picture from Senora Lopez's class, and there you are, pictured right next to me, and it just makes me sick that I didn't even fucking realize it. And you said something last week about it, too, and I realized: God, I almost failed that class, and I think I almost took you down with me. All because I was too busy thinking about myself all the time. God! The whole time, this incredible girl was sitting next to me, and I could've fallen for her even sooner if I just opened my eyes."
"Wow, you- you've really been giving this some thought," she said, flabbergasted.
Earnest and wide-eyed, Jared answered, "I can't stop thinking about you, Kim. I literally wake up every day wondering how long it's going to be until I can see you."
She laughed nervously, face turning blistered-tomato, and said, "I'm sure you're exaggerating just a bit-"
"I can assure you, I am not."
"Well, I guess...I still don't understand why there's a sudden change, but- but I do believe that you're being sincere, so it's not that at all," she told him, honestly. She squirmed, mashing her lips in thought. "I just have to wonder, is this a good idea? You may be disappointed, if we were to date...I mean, I know I can be a good friend, but I've never been anyone's girlfriend before. A-and even then, what if it goes okay, but then I have to leave in spring…." She made a snapping motion to indicate her meaning.
Jared looked scandalized. "First of all, I won't be disappointed. And neither will you. Second of all, if you leave in the spring…"
Kim felt a prick of irritation. "When I leave in the spring…"
His mouth thinned, but he conceded, "When you leave in the spring...we'll still be together. You said you want to come back to La Push someday, right? Then...come back to me. Because I'll always be here, waiting and wanting you back."
"This morning I woke up thinking about my AP tests," she said slowly, staring at the ocean stretching out to the horizon and splintering light across dancing grey-blue. Not entirely aware of her thoughts being voiced aloud, and feeling like surely this time she must be dreaming, she mumbled, "Now...I have my dream guy not only asking me out, but basically saying he's in it for the long haul. Am I hearing this right?"
"Yup." He rubbed his thumb over her palm, and then, with a twinkle in his eye inquired, "You think I'm your dream guy?"
She squeezed her eyes shut. "What am I even doing?!"
"You're about to tell me you'll give it a shot," he coaxed, voice low and hot. "And then you'll let me kiss you again. Or at least...that's what I'm hoping."
Withdrawing and fisting her hands, she decided it simply had to be said: "If I do...give this a shot, I need to remind you...that I'm a virgin. And I hope- I mean, I don't w-want to lose my virginity meaninglessly. So if you're...expecting that, then you should probably find someone else."
His caramel eyes were molten. "I'm happy to go as slow- or, uh, as fast- as you want to go."
She almost laughed at that. "Your version of 'fast' isn't really sexual, is it? I mean, you're...basically saying you want to do long-distance when I go to college. That's- I mean, are you hearing yourself, Jared?"
"I was just being honest, but I can scale it back," he said confidently.
"I really do think we might be better off starting as friends, though. Seeing where it leads."
Jared looked bewildered. "B-but you like me, right?"
"Yes," she quietly admitted, embarrassed. She hoped to God this wasn't a prank to get her to admit it, then make fun of her.
"Then...is it because of my past?"
"No!"
But really...well, actually…
Jared seemed to read her mind. "It is."
"I mean, you just got out of a relationship, Jared. You might be rushing headlong into something."
"Something? You and I talk- and it's like, it's like I'm talking to my best friend. You feel that way too, right?"
"Yes, I do." Her throat ached at the indisputable truth of that statement. It was so natural. Like elements locking into place around them, the world fitting itself to them at its center.
"And you like me. I know you do. The way you talk to me, your smell-"
What? "My smell?" she asked, offended and confused.
"Smile," he enunciated, blinking. He swallowed, and repeated, "Your smile."
"Oh." She was going crazy.
He kept on though. "Just now, the way you kissed me- I know you feel it too."
It was an amazing first kiss. And her first kiss….ever.
"I'm not denying that there's something there-"
"A once-in-a-lifetime connection? Undeniable chemistry?"
"So much for being open to taking it slow," she pointed out. "I guess that's what makes me nervous. You're so intent on this, and I just got my first kiss like three minutes ago, and-"
"And what?"
"And I've been trying to get over you for the last two years so this seems like weird timing!" she burst out.
There it was.
Kim stared at Jared. Jared stared at Kim.
"Get over me?" His voice was brittle.
Fuuuuuuuck.
Her best-kept secret of ten years was just thrown onto the table like a piece of rotten meat at a State Dinner. She swallowed, staring at him with no idea what to say, and wishing the earth would just swallow her.
"How long- did you like me?"
She wasn't sure what to say, how to salvage this. She also wasn't sure what the hell she was doing; was she self-sabotaging? Or was she finally admitting the reality that she'd refused to admit to Archie earlier in the day, or even to Sarah, or to her own mom? That Jared was trying to entice her, and she was going with it because some girlish fixation of a decade had her on a string of sexual curiosity and emotional fantasy? And now it was coming to a head, where the unspoken fantasy was trying to take life into something she was struggling to comprehend?
"I've liked you since we were kids."
Jared rapped his knuckles on the steering wheel once, twice, three times. Then said, "Wow."
"I'm so embarrassed right now." Her voice was clear, clinical, but her eyes began to moisten.
"Please don't cry, Kim." He wasn't looking at her, but it was like he sensed her tears. Or smelled them. She wanted to laugh, but it didn't feel funny.
"Can you take me home?"
"You shouldn't be embarrassed." Jared was still staring straight ahead, but he reached for her hand without missing a beat. His hot, comforting palm slotted against hers as if they'd been holding hands for years. It just happened. No awkwardness, no second-thoughts. Her own fingers tightened, pure reflex, to clutch his.
"I can't help it," she whispered, glad he wasn't looking at her.
"If you've liked me so long, why- why is this so hard to decide?" he asked, honestly, imploringly. He wasn't being snide, or demanding. Kim studied his hand in hers. Jared's fingers were so long, so masculine and calloused. Completely opposite of hers; yet she couldn't shake the feeling that his hand was meant to hold hers.
"Because it feels like regressing," she said, feeling both embittered and exhausted. Her fixation on his hand- this automatic romanticizing of 'meant-to-be hand-holding" felt like the nonsense she'd successfully coached herself out of in 10th grade, that she'd steadily moved away from. But here she was again.
"How?"
"I wanted to get over you and go to college and just…"
"Get away?" he supplied.
"Kind of. But now I know you, instead of just crushing on you, and you are amazing. You really could've been my best friend in another life. But I think we'd ruin it if we tried to force a relationship at this point. Realistically speaking."
"I don't understand," he said in a hollow tone. "Can you explain?"
"I feel like...what if we try this, and it just sucks, and then we ruin whatever it was that made this- this-" she gestured vaguely between them using their locked hands- "great?"
"Why would it be ruined? If both of us are into this-" he said this with a smile and mimicked her same gesture, using their shared hands, and making her laugh in spite of it all, "then what could ruin that?"
"Distance."
"So we're going to live in misery and denial for the next eight months, wanting to be together, but not, because you're going to school?"
"...I guess."
"Kim." Jared sighed quietly, then reached over with his other hand to begin softly massaging her fingers. His skin was so hot and comforting. Like a heating blanket or a warm cup of latte. "I will miss you when you leave. But it'll be bearable knowing that we're together and have spent every fucking second up until you get in that car, making our time together count. So that we can count down to the next time. The minute your exams finish at Christmas, I'll be waiting outside the classroom to bring you home. And last I heard, these cell phone things aren't going anywhere." He smirked.
Silence settled over them. They didn't speak, but Jared kept his ministrations on her fingers. Her eyes drifted closed. She knew she couldn't do this, and had a pocketful of sensibility left to her, but wanted to relish his physical adoration for another minute. This was probably the nicest, most surreal moment of her life up until this point. A dreamscape where Jared was basically confessing his fascination with her- plain brainy Kim Connweller- and pledging his loyalty and giving her a hand massage in his Nissan. There were a million real-life obstacles and rationales waiting for them outside those car doors; Kim didn't want to shatter all of this so quickly.
"What else is there?" Jared asked.
Damnit. Jared wasn't satisfied without an answer.
She couldn't possibly humiliate herself or expose her battered little heart more than she'd already risked. And he had been so patient and communicative already. He deserved the same, but she didn't want to hurt his feelings. "Are we being totally honest?"
"Always."
"I'm not saying this to be mean or critical."
His eyebrows raised, urging her to continue.
She took a shaky breath. "You have a terrible dating track record. I have no dating track record. Seems like a recipe for heartbreak, to be totally honest." She couldn't even imagine what she'd do if she was in Amanda Harjo's shoes, like that day in the diner. Or the other girls she didn't know about. "But we know we could handle friendship, right?"
"I can't explain fully, Kim, but...if you decide you want me like I want you...I will never, ever be disloyal to you. I swear it on our Ancestors. Not only do you deserve my loyalty, but I want to be loyal." His voice went husky and quiet, and he slotted a glance at her through his eyelashes. It was not his trademark smolder- but it was just as bewitching, and somehow more...intimate, genuine. "I want to be everything for you, Kim."
"Jared…" Fuck it. She kissed him then. His mouth was hungry against hers, and she found herself wanting to take control. She dragged the pad of her thumb along his marble-cut jawline as she kissed him, marveling at the slightly coarse texture of shaved skin. His tongue tangled with hers, and with every stroke, left her body feeling heavy and sensual. She knew her panties would be wet.
FOCUS, KIM.
She pulled away, groaning. "This is so fast."
"It's right." His voice was confident.
"Can I have a couple days to think about it?"
He looked a little disappointed, but his reply was an immediate "yes."
"Thank you." She dragged her hands through her hair. The car felt so hot. Charged. That was only from kissing? God knows...what if they'd had sex? She'd be afraid they'd somehow combust the vehicle.
No, she had to stop thinking about sex. Her body was already soft and liquid in a way that she only recognized when she was alone- touching herself in the shower, or late at night under her blankets. She'd never felt this physical change elsewhere, and certainly not with someone else nearby, letalone the subject of her darkest, most sensual fantasies.
And what was worse- he kept looking at her, studying her with a close attention that made her feel even more exposed. His jaw was clenched tight, and he seemed to be staring at her thighs. She squirmed, and his attention shot back to her face.
She couldn't shake the feeling that he knew. Her own eyes drifted down his front- his shirt which clung to an impressively defined chest which was swelling and deflating with each breath, as if concentrated from exertion, to his stomach, to his hips- and fuck, that was an erection.
She'd never seen one before- naked or covered. She'd run into porn accidentally on the internet, but was so afraid her parents would find anything amiss in her search history, that she'd quickly back out and run a virus test and shut down quickly. In the brief instances she had seen from those spam pop-ups, the man's dick was always obscenely engorged and had some worshipping, big-lipped bimbo staring at it in awe. Kim had always grimaced in disgust and clicked out of the browser immediately.
There was nothing disgusting about Jared's erection though; it was a distinct bulge, straining against denim, and big. She could see the outline of it, and for once, sympathized with those porn-bimbos who seemed so agog. She was in awe of it, too. Kim actually felt a fresh rush of desire, hot and wet at her center. As if her body was reacting to his obvious display.
She must've stared for a full minute before she managed to drag her gaze back to his.
"Sorry," he said, guttural and low.
"It's okay," she whispered back.
"I'm normally in better control," he confided. His voice was so deep and sexy. The tips of his ears were- yup, of course- pink.
"This happens a lot?" she tried to joke, but her voice was breathy.
"Around you? Yes."
Possessed by a boldness that zipped up her spine like electricity, she asked, "Really?"
His eyes widened slightly, then he said, hesitantly, "Almost happened during gym today."
She ran her tongue along her bottom lip; his eyes tracked the movement. "Oh yeah?"
"Luckily, Archie Burnside is a pretty effective bucket of cold water." He swallowed, his attention drifting lower. "You just are really sexy in your jeans, with your camera, looking all-business-like….fuck, sorry."
The tingling in her spine intensified. "Y-you looked really sexy, too. Your arms are really nice."
A smile lit his face. "Thanks, Kim...the better to hold you with?" he added, as an after-thought.
"Oh, very smooth." She laughed, and that ease slipped back into place. It alleviated some of that hot electricity that was buzzing under her skin. Not entirely...but some.
Jared relaxed a bit too. "I know you don't seem to like compliments, but-"
"I like compliments," she said, quietly. A blush rose. "I just don't know what to do with them, sometimes."
Jared swallowed. He reached out, gently, and took her hand. "I want you to know that- I think you're the most wonderful woman I've ever met. You're brilliant, and gentle, but strong all at the same time. You're sexy. I sometimes feel like you're looking right through me, and it just knocks me to the floor. And you wanting to watch a movie with me has been the only thing I can think about for like an hour."
That was more of a compliment than she'd ever received. Ever. Kim was speechless.
"Thank you," she finally whispered. Her heart felt so full. And she was pretty sure she was going to go light-headed if she kept up all this blushing.
"I just...wanted you to know how I feel about you, before I take you home. It has nothing to do with sex. Though- obviously, I do think you're sexy- more than anything, I lo-like you as a person."
Kim nodded, but her breath caught at his near-slip. Was he seriously about to say he loved her?
When he dropped her off back at her house, he took her hand one last time. His eyes were beseeching. "Please think about it. If you need to talk anything through, or whatever you need...you can call me. I can be here in a flash."
"Thank you, Jared." She briefly patted the hand holding her left hand, before reaching for the door handle.
When she went through the photos from gym class later that evening, 80s music softly playing through her boombox, she was mortified anew- so many photos of Jared. Oh God. Was she this desperate around him? Was it so obvious that she was a drooling slave for his attention?
Then she reached the final dozen photos- the bunch where Jared was looking back at her. Her fingers scrolled, a rapid, stop-motion succession of pictures.
Even in the photographs, the ferocity of Jared's gaze was searing. Staring right at her, right into the lens. She knew it was crazy, but it was almost like was looking at her now, in the privacy of her bedroom. A fine sheen of sweat coated his forehead, his muscles tense in-action, and she…
The lines of his muscles during class were distracting enough.
To put it plainly, she couldn't stop thinking about his hard-on in the car.
Add it to the list of distracting Jared qualities.
His voice replayed in her head: "Almost happened during gym today."
What if she'd been more experienced? Less afraid of consequences?
What if she'd grabbed his hand in the car, and put it on her chest? What if she'd risen to her knees, and moved to Jared's lap? What if she'd reached between them, to massage the flat of her hand against the hard ridge of his jeans?
She clicked through the photos again; her heart pounded in her throat. The wetness between her legs returned again. With trembling fingers wandering toward her waistband, she clicked on one particularly intriguing photo of Jared...where he was facing her head on, shoulders broad and sweeping, ball in mid-air from his outstretched palm...his long tan fingers flexed...staring at her like she was the only person in the Universe. Her fingers slipped against her clit, beginning a slow circle…
She wondered what Jared looked like when he pleasured himself. What did he like?
If they began dating...would he teach her? Would he rush her? Or let her take things at her own pace?
Kim's breathing came in little puffs, her circles more hurried as she stared at his intense gaze. The thought of Jared leading her, of those large hands holding her body...of one of those big fingers fitting itself into her…
She bit her lip as her body shook, her sex clenching for that faraway pressure and width...and her gaze didn't shift from Jared's face on her screen.
When her orgasm was finished, all-too-quickly, and her body felt lethargic, she slowly slumped back in her chair. Duran Duran played from the boombox. Kim blinked at the photo in front of her- one she'd masturbated to.
Burning the ground, I break from the crowd
I'm on the hunt, I'm after you
Scent and a sound, I'm lost and I'm found
And I'm hungry like the wolf
A giddy, incredulous feeling overwhelmed her. She'd actually masturbated to a photo of Jared fucking Cameron while Duran Duran played in the background. Could she be any more of a virgin? She made a sound of horror, quickly highlighting the photos and moving them to the trash bin. She yanked the flash drive out.
….but then again.
Because she was a creepy stalker, she decided to pull the photos from the trash bin and put them in her photos- under an innocuous folder titled 'School - Yearbook Pics'- on her personal drive.
Just in case.
And for some reason, she felt compelled to push "repeat" on the 80s CD; "Hungry Like a Wolf" started all over again.
After slipping the flash drive into her backpack, Kim laid on her bed. She lost herself in her latest Library book, singing along to Duran Duran until the moon was high in the sky.
A/N: What did you think? I want to get some more smut in here and don't want to dilly-dally in the angst overmuch but I also want it to feel like a natural progression...hope you like it. Let me know what you think? Or any ideas/requests? You're very appreciated. Everyone have a good weekend and please stay safe.
