Never Far
Chapter 15- AffectionKari grabbed T.K.'s hands and pulled him off the couch and down the hallway to his bedroom. She let herself inside while he followed cautiously. The room was as dark as the rest of the apartment, but his windows were open, letting in enough moonlight so that they could see each other through the darkness.
T.K. shut the door gently and then hesitated, somewhat unsure about what he should do next. He turned to face Kari, but only watched as she pulled off her T-shirt and stepped out of her shorts.
She moved towards him, now wearing only her pink bra and matching lacy underwear. He wrapped his arms around her waist and brought her closer to him as he kissed her. He had to let go of her, however, when she tugged his shirt over his head and tossed it to the floor.
Kari was a little nervous that she was moving too fast for him. The apprehensive look on his face only encouraged her worry. Thinking that she should lighten the mood, she moved over to T.K.'s bed where she intended to strike some silly, yet still sexy pose for him.
That didn't work out as she had planned, as she took one step toward the bed and tripped on her own clothes, falling flat on her face.
T.K. was at her side a second later, scooping her into his arms. "Are you okay?" he asked, more than a little concerned.
"I'm fine," she told him, as he laid her down on his bed. "I might need you to kiss me and make it better though."
He eagerly complied, kissing her fiercely as he laid her down onto the mattress. She ran her hands along his chest, letting his do the same to hers. His lips strayed from her mouth down to her neck where he sucked on her skin, no doubt leaving a mark.
Kari didn't stop him as his hands reached her bra strap and he easily unclasped it. Sitting up slightly he soon tossed her bra into the pile their clothes had made on the floor. She wrapped her arms around him, pulling him down to her. He kissed her once again, pressing their now naked upper bodies together, enjoying the sensations of their skin touching.
She relaxed her grip on him slightly as his hands moved to fondle her exposed breasts. He cupped and squeezed her, but then quickly replaced his hands with his mouth. He moved his mouth over her skin, using his lips and tongue to make her moan in pleasure. Moving his mouth lower, his lips brushed her stomach and the area below that. He stopped when he reached the top of her underwear.
Raising himself slightly above her, he hesitated a moment, staring at her beautiful almost naked body in the moonlight. She looked like a goddess with her hair spread out around her face and her perfect milky breasts almost glowing in the darkness. Her eyes were half closed, watching him in a sexy way that told him she didn't want him to stop. He slid his hands along her hips and underneath the sides of her panties before he pulled them down over her slender legs.
After tossing her panties on the floor as well, he ran his hands along the smooth skin of her calves and thighs. He touched the insides of her thighs and she opened her legs to him. She was breathing heavily as he touched her, but she gasped when he slid a finger inside her.
He fingered her until she was panting, but when he pulled out of her, she sat up, ready to return the favor. Noticing that his shorts were now far too tight on him, she unbuttoned them slowly, pulling them off his body along with his boxers. When he was as unclothed as she was, she grasped his already tremendous erection in her hands. He moaned in ecstasy as she stroked and fondled him, heightening his arousal.
She would have done more but he stopped her. "Kari, wait," he murmured though he was breathing just as heavy as she was.
"What is it?" she asked, alarmed that he had wanted to stop and worried that she might have done something wrong.
"What happened to that condom?"
She laughed in relief then climbed out of his bed, to look for it. She found it quickly under the pile of their clothes and ripped open the wrapper. Coming back over to the bed, she helped him slip it on and then lowered herself back onto the bed beneath him.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked her. "We don't have to if you don't want to."
He was so adorable at that moment. The fact that he was so concerned about her made her love him even more. He was about to say something else when she cut him off with a kiss. "Don't make me wait any longer," she told him, lying back down and spreading her legs wider.
He positioned himself on top of her, shifting his weight so he wouldn't hurt her. He looked into her eyes for one last confirmation, and she gave it to him, nodding in response to his unvoiced question. Then, in one swift movement, he pushed himself inside her.
She moaned, somewhere between pain and pleasure. She arched her back underneath him, pushing him further inside of her. There wasn't as much pain as she had expected and it lessened as he thrust into her. Moving their hips together, it wasn't long before they climaxed in unison. When that time came they both cried out in satisfaction before collapsing against each other.
T.K. lay next to her for a few minutes, catching his breath before got up to dispose of the condom. When he returned to Kari, however, she was fast asleep. Without bothering to put any of his clothes back on, he stepped over the pile and climbed into bed beside her. She didn't stir as he wrapped his arms around her and fell asleep holding her.
Kari awoke several hours later. The sun was shining through the open window, though she knew that it was still early morning. Her first thoughts were trying to figure out where she was, but that only lasted several milliseconds before the memories of the night before came back to her.
She didn't regret anything that they had done, though that might be surprising to some. Sure, the night hadn't gone as perfectly as she had intended, but she still had no regrets. It was the only future that she was worried about.
She repositioned herself, careful not to wake him, but enough to give her a clear view of his face. He looked so peaceful and innocent while he was sleeping. Almost like an angel with his golden hair falling into his closed eyes and sculpting his perfect face. Kari had found the rest of his body to be just as magnificent. She had a clear view of that as well, since they seemed to have pushed all of his blankets onto the floor during the night and were now only partially covered by a thin sheet entwined around their legs.
Things were going to be different now, Kari thought. How could they not be? They had were now as close as any two people can ever be and in only a few short days she would have to leave for California again. Just the idea of having to say goodbye to him was killing her already.
She would have spent the entire morning sulking if T.K. had not woken up just then, flashing her one of his brilliant smiles. The same of smile that tended to make her feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
"Good morning," he yawned, stretching his arms above his head and giving Kari an opportunity she could not pass. He wasn't even suspecting as she rolled on top of him, straddling his waist and tickling his stomach unrelentingly.
He screamed and writhed beneath her but she didn't stop until they ended up on the floor beside the bed. T.K. hit the floor on his back and Kari sprawled on top of him.
"Ow, that hurt," he whined.
"I suddenly just got an extreme case of déjà vu…except with less clothes," Kari said, remembering their make out session on her grandmother's couch in California the morning before he had left.
"Then that's why this time was better," he teased, and she rolled off him, laughing at his disappointment.
He leaned in to kiss her lips when his phone started to ring.
"Why does this always happen to us?" he groaned, pulling on his boxers before running down the hallway to answer it.
Kari laughed at him while she pulled on her own clothes. She then followed him into the kitchen where she found him leaning against the counter, rolling his eyes at the phone.
"It's Matt," he mouthed to her when he saw her approaching him.
"I should go," Kari told him softly as she pulled on her tennis shoes.
"No, wait," he called after her, hanging up on his brother. "Well, I guess you probably should. Matt called to say that Tara's looking for you and Tai's freaking out."
"Yeah, I'm not surprised. My dad told Tara that I would help her out today. So I'll see you later?"
"If you're not too busy with wedding preparations."
She smiled and rolled her eyes. "God, I hope not."
He kissed her cheek and told her that he'd definitely see her later.
Kari knew that he was watching her as she walked down the hallway, but she restrained herself from turning back around. As soon as the elevator doors shut and she was out of his view, she collapsed on the floor. Holding her head in her hands, she let her tears fall freely.
Why did he have to be so perfect? It would be so much easier if she hated him, if she could hate what they had done together.
The elevator stopped at another floor so she pulled herself up off the floor before a middle aged couple entered with their two little kids. She wiped her eyes and avoided eye contact. There was still time before she had to leave for America. There was still time for her to be with T.K. before they had to go through all of that pain again.
After Kari called Tai to reassure him that she was safe, the first thing she wanted to do was shower and change into fresh clothes. Of course, her bad luck interfered once again and Tara immediately dragged her into the bathroom that had once belonged to her parents. Kari stared at all of the hair products spread over the entire bathroom counter and surrounding the sink. She hadn't even known that so many products existed.
"Kari, I'm having a major crisis!" she cried, sitting down on the toilet, looking like she was actually going to cry. "The woman at my hairdresser's salon called this morning to tell me that he's eloping this weekend in Hawaii! How could he! What was he thinking? It's too late for me to schedule an appointment anywhere else, and I'm getting married tomorrow! I can't just let anybody do my hair!"
Kari couldn't believe that she was obsessing over her hair. She had always known girls who did that, but she had never really understood them. Trying to be understanding, Kari rubbed her back and did her best to calm her down.
"Well, what if you do something else with your hair?" Kari asked, trying to come up with a rational solution. "I'll bet your hair would look fabulous down. And you could curl the ends. I could help you if you want."
She looked up at Kari with her eyes puffy from crying. Then she unexpectedly threw her arms around Kari and hugged her tightly. "Oh Kari, you are so cool. I can already tell we're going to be best friends!"
"Well," Kari added somewhat sarcastically, "we're close enough in age to be sisters."
Tara laughed. "That's so sweet of you. But I really don't think so. I'm twenty-five. That's more than ten years older than you."
Kari didn't laugh. "Actually, I'm seventeen. So you're only eight years older than me, and five years older than Tai."
Tara thought for a moment. "Hmm. I guess you're right. I thought you were younger."
Just then, the doorbell rang and Tara jumped out of the bathroom to answer it, her hair depression forgotten. Kari followed slowly, as she heard squealing and screaming at the front door. A second later, Tara entered the living room with another woman who was just as young and just as blonde as her future stepmother.
"Kari, this is my best friend Miya. She's here to help set up for my bachelorette party," Tara explained.
"Your what party?" Kari asked.
"My bachelorette party. It's an American tradition for the bride to have one last night of fun and partying with her friends before she gets married."
"Oh, so are you having it here tonight?"
"Yep," Tara beamed. "The rest of my friends will be here in a few hours. So the three of us are going to decorate, make some yummy snacks, and prepare the drinks!"
She was so excited that Kari wanted to throw up. Tara reminded her a lot of Mimi. At first, she appeared to be a complete bimbo, but then she turned out to be one of those girls who were actually somewhat sensible, but just in the cosmetics, fashion, and hair care products sort of way.
Still, Kari rolled her eyes and tried to help her, thinking the entire time that her father was an idiot.
Just as Tara had predicted, her friends arrived only a few hours later. When guests started making themselves at home, Kari approached Tara and told her that it was all right if she wanted Kari to leave.
"Of course not Kari," was her unfortunate reply. "You're family now, and we're friends, remember?"
So Kari nodded, and sat down on the couch next to some other bimbos and tried to forget that she could be having fun with her own friends.
Needless to say, Kari learned a lot about bachelorette parties. It seems that one of the traditions is for all of the women to bring gifts for the future bride. Kari thought at first that this was a pretty nice tradition, and willingly sat beside Tara as she opened these gifts.
Then Kari became extremely uncomfortable when she realized that all of the gifts were some form of sex toy or lingerie. Trying desperately not to think of Tara and her father in that way, Kari was extremely relieved when the phone rang.
She jumped out of her chair, shouting almost joyfully, "I'll get it!"
The women in the living might have been giving her funny looks, but she ran to the kitchen and caught it on the second ring.
When T.K. greeted her, she almost cried.
"Thank God you called!" she whispered into the phone, though it wasn't as if anyone in the next room could hear her over their exclamations about each gift. "This is a nightmare!"
"What is?" he asked.
"Tara! She's like Mimi on steroids. And guess what. She's having her 'bachelorette party' tonight."
"Well, that doesn't sound too bad," he said, trying to calm her down.
"No, it's bad. I figured out how bad when all of her gifts turned out to be stuff like crotchless panties and flavored lubricant."
She expected him to keep trying to calm her down, but he just laughed hysterically at her misfortune.
"This isn't funny, T.K.," she was about to lecture him when the doorbell rang. Ticked off that he wouldn't take this situation seriously, she answered the door.
Kari could only stare at the man in her doorway. He was wearing very tight leather pants and a shirt that was see-through.
He smiled at her and winked. "I'm looking for Tara, is she here?" he asked in a very deep voice.
Before Kari could say anything, Miya pushed Kari aside and escorted the man into the living room. Kari's eyes widened as she heard Miya call out, "The stripper's here!"
"T.K.," she said slowly into the phone, trying to remain calm. "There is a male stripper in my living room."
He laughed again. "Is that good thing or a bad thing?"
"T.K., I'm being serious! This is beyond bad! I don't know what to do, she's not even part of my family yet and I've already had enough of her."
"Just relax, stay out of your living room for a while, at least until you hear the stripper leave. Then all you can do is go back and do a lot of smiling and nodding until her friends leave."
Kari sighed. "I guess you're right. I just have a hard time being reasonable right now."
"Do you want me to come over?"
"T.K., I'm pretty sure this is a 'no men allowed' party, well, except for the stripper."
"Yeah, I know. I meant do you want me to come over later, as in after all Tara's guests leave…"
She laughed at him. "How about I see you tomorrow at the wedding?"
"Okay. Call me, it doesn't matter what time. I'm still at Tai and Matt's. Do you have the number there?"
He gave it to her, and then they said a short goodbye and Kari placed the cordless phone back onto its charger. She decided to take T.K.'s advice and wait for the stripper to leave, so she helped herself to a piece of cake, ignoring the very disturbing inscription in the red frosting.
Sitting on the countertop with her plate of cake, she could hear the "stripper music" still playing in the living room. For this reason, she was very surprised when Tara entered the kitchen.
Kari's first instinct was to jump off the counter, probably because she had been scolded so many times in her childhood for sitting on that very countertop. Taking a seat at the table, Tara sat down across from her.
"I'm sorry about the stripper. I really didn't know he was coming."
Kari nodded before she kept going. "I think it would be a good idea if we didn't tell your father about this. You can come back out there if you want, I think you're old enough."
"No thank you," Kari said gently. "That's not my kind of thing."
"Okay, but I just wanted to let you know that your dad won't be coming back tonight, and since it'll probably be early tomorrow morning when my girlfriends leave, it's okay if you'd rather spend the night somewhere else."
"Thanks, Tara," Kari stated, truly appreciative. "I promise I'll be back early tomorrow."
"Yeah, don't forget our hair appointment!"
Then Tara headed back into the living room, and Kari fled the apartment almost as quickly as she had left the night before. Though Kari had intended to go find T.K., she instinctively headed towards Yolei's house instead.