Autumn had arrived to New York. This September was picture perfect the leaves were all bright red yellow and orange. They were falling all around us; Austin and I were walking to the MET for the afternoon.

I had something to tell him but I felt weird about it; at least right now he is jabering on about his sex dream.

"Had my dream again where I'm making love, and the Olympic judges are watching. I'd nailed the compulsories, so this is it, the finals. I got a 9.8 from the Canadians, a perfect 10 from the Americans, and my mother, disguised as an East German judge, gave me a 5.6. Must have been the dismount."

What? I'm not even sure what to say to that. "interesting" is what I could come up with.

We walk in silence for a while until he asks me what my sex dream is. "oh no I can't its too embarressing."

"if you can't tell me who can you tell?" Austin smirked his infamous smirk at me. I smile back, "well it is the same one I've been having since I was 12."

"ok; so what is it?" he asked.

I felt so ridiculous telling him but when I am with him I have this urge to tell him everything. "alright so there is this guy…"

"what does he look like?" Austin interupted me.

"I don't know he is just faceless" I try to continue.

"a faceless guy ok continue" he waived me to continue. I paused to make sure he was done asking questions "well he rips off my clothes."

Austin stared at me "and?".

"that's it" I shrug.

Again Austin stared at me "that's it? Some faceless guy rips off your clothes and that's the sex fantasy you've been having since you were 12?"

"well… you know I vary it a little" I tried to explain.

"really what part?" he looked at me quizical. "what I am wearing." Austin took on more look at me before walking ahead of me. "what?" I called after him.

I catch up with him "is it really that bad?"

"it's beyond bad, you can't call it a sex fantasy if nothing happens. But with you being the one who is having the dream I am not to surprised at it." He chuckled.

A small laugh escapes my lips unintentionally. "oh" I say after it does. This only makes Austin laugh even harder. We get to the musuem and it is fairly empty, we walk into the Egypt exhibit; always loved seeing the temple and Austin decides to start talking in a Russian accent.

"I can't do that" I tried to tell him.

"repeat after me…pepper"

"pepper" I try unsuccessfully.

"waiter, there is too much pepper on my paprikash" he smiles. I laugh "oh no!" Austin stands there with the biggest grin on his face until I say it back. "waiter there is too much pepper on my paprikash."

He laughs at my effort in the same voice he asks "would you like to go to the movies with me tonight?"

The moment I had been dreading "I'm sorry I can't."

"what do you have a hot date?" he smiles.

I shrug "yes I was a little nervous telling you." He switches back to his normal voice "why on earth would you be nervous? I think it is great that you have a date."

"really? I'm so glad, you know we have been spending so much time together; didn't know how to tell you. You know you should really get back out there."

He switches to the Russian accent again " oh I'm not ready. I won't be good for anyone."

I look sternly at him "Austin it is time." He shrugs and looks me over "are you going to wear that?" I had on my coral pantsuit from work "um maybe I don't know why?"

He looked me up and down "you should wear a skirt, you look really good in skirts." He turned back to the exhibit.

I look good in skirts hmm should wear those more often.

A week later I had Ally come over to help with a new rug I just bought. I didn't want it but my mother came and told me I needed to make my apartment more homie. So here we are laying out the rug. She was wearing a skirt why would she wear that to do this women.

I took her advice and went on a date with a woman I met at the coffee shop. It was awful.

"it was so awkward" I tell her.

She points out that we need to twist the rug "well the first date back is always the hardest."

"how do you know you only had one date."

She glares at me "how much worse could a date go, he finished dinner, pulled a hair out of my head and started flossing with it at the table."

Now that is pretty gross but mine was worse "that's a dream date. I take her to dinner and she wants to go to a Ethiopian restaurant. I was making jokes " hey I didn't know that they had food in Ethiopia, we will order two empty plates and leave it will be a quick meal." Ally begins to chuckle "thank you, ya got nothing from her, not even a smile. So since jokes weren't working I start in with the small talk ask her where she went to school, she says Michagan. This immediately reminds me of Teddy, I start to have a panic attack and sweating like a pig."

"Teddy went to Michagan?" Ally asked.

"No she went to UCONN but they are both big tennis schools."

"it might be a long time until we feel comfortable being with someone else, and maybe longer until we are ready to go to bed with them" Ally tried to be comforting.

"oh I went to bed with her" I respond.

Ally looked shocked "you went to bed with her?"

"mmhmm."

On a surprisingly warm November day Dez and I went to the batting cages. I hadn't seen him in a while, since I spent most of my time with Ally.

"I don't understand this friendship you have with her" he said.

"what do you mean?" I took a swing.

"do you like her?" he asked as he swung.

"yes" that one would have been a home run.

"you find her attractive?"

"yes."

"and you're not sleeping with her?"

"no" oh that swing sucked.

"you're afraid to be happy" Dez said.

"that has nothing to do with it. can't you just be happy for me. For the first time in my life I am in a relationship with a woman without any sex you see I'm growing." I push the button again.

"so what makes this realtionship so wonderful?" he asks.

"I can talk to her about stuff."

Are you saying you can talk to her about things you can't talk to me about?" it sounded to me Dez was getting jealous.

"it's just different. I can tell her about the woman I see and she tells me about the men she dates" which isn't a lot.

"you tell her about other woman?" Dez sounded shocked.

"yes I get the womans perspective on things. Like last night I made love to this woman I took her to a place that wasn't human; she actually meowed." I smirked at the thought.

"you made a woman meow?" I heard the ball hit the back mat which meant he was facing me.

"you see that's the kind of thing I can say to her. I like how I can be me since I am not trying to get her into bed." I swung; ooo nice one.

"you made a woman meow?" Dez repeated.

I turn to him and laugh "come on I'll buy you lunch."

"so tell me what you do with these woman?" Ally asked me. We were having lunch at Katz deli.

"whats to tell? I tell them that I have to go somewhere in the morning early and I leave." I take a bite of my sandwich.

She looked at me in disgust as she put together her sandwich since she ordered everything on the side. "I am so glad I never got involved with you. I would just be another woman you had to leave to go clean your andirons, and you don't have a fireplace. Not that I would know this." She was getting so frustrated.

"Ally calm down. Why are you getting so upset?" I asked.

"why am I getting upset? You are a front to all woman and I a woman" she took a bite out of her sandwich after taking 5 minutes to make it.

"I'm sorry you feel that way, but I think these woman have a good time" I smiled.

She countered my smile with her own little smirk "how do you know they have a good time?"

"you know, I just know."

"what because they…" she waved her hand to finish.

"yes" I shrug as I took another bite of my sandwich.

"how do you know they really…" she did the hand wave again. This woman sometimes can be so weird. "what are you saying that they fake orgasim?"

"its possible you know."

"get out of here. I know they say every woman has faked it at least once but they haven't faked it with me I can tell the difference." I look down at the plate the conversation was done. Ally began to moan.

"ooo, oh,mmm, ooo" she ran her hand through her hair.

I raise my eyebrow at her " are you ok?"

"oh god, oh ya, right there, uh uh." I knew what she was doing, everyone in the deli began to look at us but she didn't stop.

"oh yes, yes, yes, yes" she banged on the table. "oh, oh" she carassed her body from her belly button up to her face with one finaly "mmm" she was done. She smiled and took a big helping of her coleslaw.

We just stared at each other then we heard a woman a couple of tables down from us tell the waiter "I'll have what shes having." We both burst out laughing.

"OH my god I can't believe I did that" she whispered to me.

"well it was entertaining, they might ask you not to come back here ever again but it was worth it." I liked this side of Ally the fun out going side, not when she was so wound up that she always had to think before she did things.