Hey, no, I didn't drop off the face of the Earth. Here's a long overdue update.
"Will you hold still? Quit wiggling." Max was sitting across from Caroline on the floor, hunched over a sketchpad. The object of her artwork was Caroline herself, who was posed on the sofa, her hair pulled into a sleek braid.
"All the heiresses have portraits done," Caroline had said, a dreamy look on her face, and Max rolled her eyes. "Would you do mine, please?" Max complied, of course, unable to refuse when Caroline batted her eyelashes.
"My back itches," Caroline complained.
"Then scratch it. Just stop moving."
Caroline reached behind herself and scratched the spot just between her shoulder blades. She let out a sigh of relief and Max glared at her until she resumed her pose.
Max was sitting cross-legged on the floor in sweatpants and a T-shirt, and green and blue mismatched socks. It was no Sunday best, but Caroline thought Max looked divine. Caroline wondered if Max knew how beautiful she really was, with her cream skin and dusky rose lips (Caroline had seen the name of her lipstick).
She watched Max put so much effort into capturing the details of her face, transferring them to paper: the way her braid hung over her shoulder, and the curlicues of hair over her ears that never lay flat. Abruptly Max stopped, tossing her pencil aside and getting off of the floor. She dropped the sketchbook in Caroline's lap, trying to hide her pride when Caroline praised her.
"Oh my god, Max! This is so good!"
"You're so vain," Max teased, but she was smiling. She was so happy that Caroline liked it.
"You're really a wonderful artist, Max," Caroline said with such love in her voice it made Max's knees weaken. She sat beside Caroline, their shoulders touching.
"Thanks."
"I wish I could do something for you too," Caroline said wistfully, though she had already been planning a small favor. She had been putting aside a couple of dollars from each paycheck, trying to save for a set of new oil pastels for Max. The ones Max already had were worn down to almost nothing, with torn wrappers and smears of other colors running through them. The set Caroline was hoping to buy cost thirty dollars, and she already had twenty-five. With any luck, she would be able to get them the next day. She also wanted to buy Max a couple new sketchbooks, but those would have to wait a week or two. The only reason Max was running out of space to draw was because she had taken to drawing Caroline more often, usually at Caroline's request, but Max was happy to do it; she enjoyed spending the quiet time with her.
"Did you ever think about pursuing art as a career?" Caroline asked, tucking a piece of Max's hair behind her ear.
"Yeah. But then it would be work and I hate working. I just wanted it to be something that I like."
"Fair enough."
They sat in silence for a few moments.
"Although-"
"Oh come on, Caroline, can't it just be something I like doing and not something I have to make money off of?" Max angled herself to look Caroline in the eye.
"I'm just saying… You have real talent. Like, extraordinary talent. I wish you'd share it with the world." Caroline tucked the same piece of hair behind Max's ear again. It always curled in such a way that it stuck out.
Max shook her head.
"I already did."
"What? When?"
"Caroline… Ugh I hate when you corner me into saying this mushy shit… You are basically my whole world. And I shared it with you. So."
Caroline beamed as Max picked at an imaginary piece of fuzz on her pants.
"I'm your whole world?" Caroline asked, her voice thickening with emotion.
"Oh don't get too worked up, it was between you and the horse. Although he does smell better," Max deflected. But she smiled warmly and took Caroline's hand.
"Hm… Why don't you come clean up with me then? "
Max's stomach flip-flopped with excitement. It had been weeks since they had kissed for the first time, and they had kissed since then, but they hadn't talked about anything more than that, and Max was surprised that Caroline was the first one to mention it. They had spent the last few weeks getting to know each other in a different way; they were becoming more comfortable with each other, more intimate in a non-sexual way. Caroline unabashedly snuggled into Max while they fell asleep, and Max felt no need to make snide comments to fill silence. They were comfortable together and it made Max feel secure for the first time. But that's not to say she hadn't thought about what Caroline was like in bed. It's all she had thought about for ages, way before Caroline even knew she liked her.
"Welllll?"
"What… What?" Max had zoned out, imagining Caroline naked, her skin glistening and steam swirling all around.
"I need a shower… Join me?"
Max's breath was shallow, and she was suddenly aware of every point of contact between the two of them. Her cheeks were on fire and all she wanted to do was pull Caroline close and kiss her for hours.
"Okay."
They stood, and Caroline led Max by the hand into the bathroom. She turned the dial and water came pouring out of the shower head. Max pulled Caroline close to her and stood on her toes to kiss her. Max moaned into Caroline's mouth while tugging at the hem of Caroline's shirt. She pulled it up over her head and tossed it aside, exposing Caroline's firm, tanned stomach.
Caroline made light work of tearing off Max's shirt while she kicked off the heeled shoes she was wearing, coming down closer to Max's level. She trailed kisses along Max's jawline and neck, touching her lips to every exposed bit of skin she could. She reached behind Max's back to undo her bra as steam finally began clouding the air.
"Oh god I want you so bad," Caroline muttered as she pulled away from Max. She stripped down until she was completely naked and climbed into the shower, gesturing for Max to follow her. Max shed her clothes and joined her girlfriend, loving how Caroline was taking charge.
Caroline pulled Max close and ran her hands over her stomach, her hips, finally resting on her ass, giving it a light squeeze with both hands. Her lips trailed kisses over Max's chest, finally stopping at her breasts. She traced circles over the silky flesh with her tongue, and pulled one nipple into her mouth, suckling gently. Her hand reached for the other nipple, rolling it between her fingers.
"Wait," Max gasped.
"What?" Caroline asked, stopping everything. She wanted to make sure Max was okay.
"This isn't going to work," Max said, and Caroline's face faltered before Max realized what she had said.
"Okay, we can stop."
"No no, I mean, wait." Max straightened up and moved out from under the water. "I want to feel you. Not the gross shower curtain, or the moldy bath mat, you know? I want you. I want you."
"Max…" Caroline trailed off, giving her that look. "Okay. Your bed. Now."
They turned off the water and padded across the apartment into Max's room. Max sat on the edge of her bed and waited for instruction.
"Lie back," Caroline said, her voice husky, something Max found incredibly sexy. She leaned back onto her elbows while Caroline got on her knees in front of her. and nudged her knees apart. She kissed Max's thighs, up and up until she reached her center, dripping wet and warm, her swollen clit poking out between the slick folds.
"What do you want?"
"You."
That was all Caroline needed to hear. She lowered her mouth to Max's center, licking her fully a few times before circling her clit with her tongue, making max quiver with pleasure. With one hand she reached up and pushed Max all the down onto the bed, and with the other she entered Max with one finger, relishing the feeling of her walls around her.
Max's breath quickened and she clutched the sheets tightly in one hand, the other hand at her breasts toying with her nipples.
Caroline sucked Max's clit into her mouth and teased it with her tongue, making Max gasp and arch her back.
"Oh my god… How did you… get so good at this?" Max asked between breaths.
Caroline added another finger, thrusting harder and hitting just the right spot. Max's wetness pooled in Caroline's hand telling her that whatever she was doing was right. She pulled her mouth away from Max and thrust harder in and out, her other hand rubbing Max's clit in circles. Max's thighs shook, her back arched and she came hard, squirting over Caroline's chest.
"Oh my god, Caroline!" Max caught her breath while aftershocks rippled through her. "I've never done that before," she sighed, sitting up. Her eyes were heavy and she was dopy from pleasure. The sight of Caroline covered in her wetness was hotter than anything she could have imagined. She reached out and took Caroline's hand, and took one of her soaked fingers into her mouth.
"Come here," Max said, and Caroline straddled her, her dripping center rubbing against Max's.
They kissed hard, and Max flipped Caroline over so she was on her back.
"Your turn."