Margaret had been tossing and turning all night. She decided to brave it and look at the clock. It read 1:27 am. Shit. She still had the whole night to agonize about how she would apologize to Andrew without completely losing her shit in front of him. She rolled on her back, still as far away as possible from him without falling off the bed.

He initially appeared to be sleeping, but he uncomfortably rolled on his back, then switched to his side, until resorting to the same position he was in initially.

Yup, he's definitely awake, Margaret thought. She wanted so badly to snuggle into his arms, and let out all her fears and worries to him, but who knew if he would listen to her now? She clearly hurt him. How could she not have? She was yelling at him for doing practically nothing. I fucked up so bad.

Andrew could not fall asleep. He was worried sick about Margaret. She clearly wasn't okay and he wanted to help her, to be there for her, but he knew he needed to give her space. He had already pushed her too far today and he couldn't risk pushing her any more. He wanted so badly to hold her and tell her everything was going to be alright, and take all of her pain away from her. He didn't care anymore that she yelled at him. He knew something was wrong and he let himself get worked up when he should've asked her what's going on instead of being defensive. I fucked up so bad.

"Andrew?" Margaret said quietly, practically in a whisper. There was uncertainty in her voice; she was on faulty ground.

"Yeah, Margaret? I'm here."

That was all she needed to hear. He was there for her. He would listen. Of course he will. She thought. He always does.

In that moment, Margaret wanted to touch him, to reach out and grab his hand, but she couldn't. She stayed in her own space, letting the darkness swallow her. She tried to steady herself before speaking. She failed.

"Andrew, I'm so sorry that I yelled at you. It's just that everything felt like it was happening so fast and I wasn't expecting it and I just got scared. I promise I never meant to hurt you and I'm just so sorry."

By the end of her apology her voice broke in tears. Even in the pitch black, Andrew could tell she was crying. When he switched the lamp on he could see her tear-stained face and the deep sadness in her eyes. It pained him to see her so broken. He sat up against the headboard and pulled Margaret into his lap, cradling her with all the strength in his heart. Her crying escalated into loud sobs as she buried her face in his chest. Andrew wrapped his arms tightly around her tiny frame as he gently rocked her back and forth, back and forth.

"Shhh, baby. It's okay. You're okay. I've got you. It's okay to cry, sweetheart. We're gonna be okay. I promise I'm not mad at you. I love you. I've got you." Andrew said soothingly.

He kept reassuring her, rocking her, rubbing her back, cradling her head as years of pent up anguish came pouring out of her. Slowly, her sobs subsided. Her breathing was still hitched, and she let out an occasional whimper while Andrew's unwavering arms held her tight to his chest, never letting go.

"I didn't want you to see me like this." Margaret managed to say through her irregular breaths.

"Oh, honey. It's okay. It helps to cry. I remember my mom would hold me just like this when I cried, even when I got too big to sit on her lap. It always made me feel better. I hope I can do the same for you."

"You are helping me Andrew. Thank you. It's just… there are things I need to talk to you about… about… sex… and it's really embarrassing for me… and I just got overwhelmed." Margaret said.

Andrew kissed the top of her head thoughtfully before saying:

"Whenever you're ready, Margaret, I'm here to listen. Whatever it is, I promise I won't judge you. Communication is an important part of any relationship, and if you're having a problem, there's no way I can help unless we talk about it."

"I know, and I'm ready to talk about it." She said with a bit more confidence.

Where the hell do I start? She thought. There was so much to say, and it was all so overwhelming.

"Well I already told you that I haven't had sex in over a year and a half. But what I didn't tell you was…" She took a shaky breath, the tears threatening to return. "The last time… I got hurt pretty badly. The guy I was with was too rough with me and I ended up bleeding a lot. He didn't even care that he hurt me; he just left the same night. I let him do it because I was so lonely and desperate but I never thought it could hurt like that. "

She cried again at the memory. All alone, bleeding, wounded, she swore she would never have sex again, and now here was this kind, gorgeous man, but she couldn't seem to get past her fears. It was excruciating,

"Oh sweetheart." Andrew said sympathetically. The thought of Margaret, hurt and alone with nobody to turn to, broke his heart to no end.

"I'm so sorry that happened to you." He squeezed her a little tighter.

"I won't ever hurt you. Whenever we do have sex, we'll take it really slow, okay? If you ever want to stop, at any point, just tell me, and we'll stop, no questions asked. We'll make sure that your body is ready so that it doesn't hurt. I promise."

Margaret breathed a deep sigh of relief. There was more to say, but she already felt better. She knew Andrew was telling the truth. Of course he would never hurt me. What was there to be scared about? He clearly knew what he was doing, and he would never push her too fast. It was going to be okay.

"The last guy I was with, he told me…" She tried to steady her breath. "He told me I was bad in bed, that I never did anything to please him, and I just don't want you to feel that way about me, because I don't think I could take it."

She was crying again at the thought of Andrew being dissatisfied with her. She knew that he would never criticize her even if he did think she was bad in bed, but she would be able to tell what he thought, and she didn't think she could bare it, knowing that he wasn't happy with her.

"Oh honey, I know for a fact I won't think you're bad in bed." He said lightly.

"Wait, what? How?" Margaret was genuinely confused. How could he tell already? They'd only gone as far as making out.

"Because… I've never felt this with anyone else. I know it sounds cheesy, but when we kiss, it's like magic. I feel like I'm on fire when I'm with you. I can hardly control it."

"Really? You do?" She was genuinely surprised. No one had ever said that to her. She didn't even think it was possible for her to make a man feel that way.

"I feel it too, Andrew… I've never felt this before." She said bashfully.

He kissed her forehead, rubbing her back, trying to ease away her pain.

"Is there anything else you want to tell me, baby?" He said.

"Actually, there is one more thing." Margaret paused.

"This one might be the most embarrassing thing." She chuckled ruefully.

Andrew laughed with her, commiserating in their journey to find their footing.

"The thing is… I've never had an orgasm." She said defeatedly. It was true, she never got any real pleasure from sex. The guys she had been with had never tried to please her, and the whole thing was usually over almost as soon as it began.

"What?" Andrew could hardly believe it. "You've never had an orgasm? Ever? In your whole life?"

"Well, at least I don't think I have…" Margaret was beginning to doubt her decision to tell him this. What kind of woman has never even had an orgasm? It was humiliating.

Andrew could sense the embarrassment in her voice. He didn't mean to fuel it; he was just in shock. He had so many questions.

"Hey, it's okay Margaret, it's nothing to be embarrassed about. It's something we can explore together. Is it okay if we talk about it more?"

"Yeah, okay." She tried to reassure herself that this talking thing was a good idea.

"You've never had an orgasm, ever? Do you masturbate? Have you gotten anywhere with that?"

Margaret couldn't help but laugh at his shameless questions. She was beginning to feel more at ease with this conversation, though. Andrew's confidence fueled her own.

"Well… I've tried, but I never get very far. I have no idea what I'm doing so then I just give up. I mean, what woman can't even touch herself? It's so embarrassing."

"No, Margaret, it's okay. Everyone's different. Maybe you can try it again and see how it goes. It's good to get to know your body." Andrew said matter-of-factly, as if this was the most normal conversation in the world.

"Is there anything you know need from me, once we do have sex? I'll do everything I can to make it enjoyable for you."

"I honestly have no idea… it's been so long. I think I forgot how it works." She said facetiously.

They both laughed at that.

Margaret sighed before saying "I've never told anyone before, but this time I just didn't want to fake it. That wouldn't be fair to you."

"I appreciate that, Margaret. It's good that you told me so we can figure it out together. If it doesn't happen on the first try, you don't need to fake it for me. Just be honest and we'll try again when you're ready, ok? I promise it will happen eventually."

Andrew held her more, drying her tears with his sleeve before turning out the lights. They spent the rest of the night in each other's arms, no anger, no secrets, all love.