"Friends With Benefits"

A Kat & Alfie Story

By

Emflem01

"Friends With Benefits"

A Kat & Alfie Story

By

Emflem01

Chapter 2

"Kids staying at friends, bottle of wine in the fridge. Lets celebrate…again x"

Kat placed her phone back down and it vibrated almost instantly. In the privacy of her office, she let herself smile, knowing it was him.

"Celebrate me, again? I'm touched. x"

"Almost 5 months living together without killing each other. That's worth another celebration. IF your head fits through the door. X"

"I'm game. I'll wear my best shirt. x"

"Don't they all look the same? X"

"Careful, we won't have anything to celebrate if you take shots where it hurts. See you tonight xx"

Two kisses? Kat felt a sudden rise of panic from her stomach to her throat. What were they doing? She cursed Bianca internally for encouraging her madness. She put her phone on mute, hoping the silence would clear her mind and give her some clarity. The problem was there were buried feelings under the surface and if she wanted to protect herself she would have to ignore those feelings and think head over heart. Friends with benefits was all she wanted. A mere suggestion. For all she knew, Alfie might not even be interested… On second thought, the double 'x' was probably a typo. Or maybe he meant it in a nice way; a friendly gesture of sorts. STOP! It's just a letter in the alphabet. What is it Tommy would say- don't "deep it."

Kat cringed with embarrassment and was eternally relieved that no one was privy to her thoughts. One thing was certain. She'd need to pick up another bottle of wine (or five) on the way home. There was no way she was going to broach the subject of sex with her ex-husband without some old fashioned Dutch courage.

The air was thick with tension. Kat and Alfie stared across the room at each other, locked in an invisible hold. The eye contact was uncomfortably intimate, leaving both feeling exposed, yet unable to look away. The heat of the moment was broken when the microwave pinged as a comfortable laughter replaced the uncomfortable silence.

"We really are over dressed for a night in with a ready meal."

"Oi! I made that curry fresh. It just needs a little heat." Kat beamed as their signature banter resumed after that awkward charged moment. What was that?

"Try not to spill it down yourself. You'll ruin your best shirt."

"Try not to spill it down yourself, your eh-"

Kat followed Alfie's eyes down to her cleavage as the low cut dress she had chosen especially for tonight left little to the imagination. Kat's opinion was always if you had it, flaunt it and she knew how to accentuate her assets. She also knew, after 20 years, which assets where Alfie's favourite.

Alfie cleared his throat and forced his eyes away, telling himself to behave and focus on the wine. He opened the fridge and saw six bottles waiting to be opened.

"Are we going into lockdown, Darlin', or are you thirsty?" Alfie pulled out a bottle and looked at Kat who fired back her most innocent expression. He loved when she played. For the past few years she had appeared so serious, as if she had forgotten how to have fun.

Kat drew closer to Alfie and gladly accepted the wine glass he handed her. Their fingers brushed ever so slightly. Enough for Kat to notice but not obvious enough for Alfie to register. She knew she would have to spell things out for him, if their shared history was anything to go by.

"I got a deal on buy one get one free and at the rate we are celebrating these days we'll go through them in no time. Cheers!" As they both took a sip of their wine, their eyes locked for a beat. In the nostalgia of their old, familiar dance, it was Kat's turn to end the contact this time. Leading Alfie to the table which had been set earlier by Tommy, before he left for a sleepover at his friend's. Their teenage son could be sweet when he wanted to, on his terms, and when it came to reuniting mum and dad he made his feelings clear. However, Kat and Alfie had also made their feelings clear by sitting their three boys down and explaining in no uncertain terms that mum and dad were not getting back together, much to the disappointment of their children. At least not for the foreseeable future.

Something felt different about tonight and Alfie couldn't put his finger on it. As they sat down to eat, he couldn't help but notice Kat smiling more, engaging in his stories and giving him the look. It was in the way she seductively glanced up at him now and then throughout the meal and the way she bore into his soul when he was speaking. The unwavering eye contact of someone who wanted to really look at you and take all of you in. He wondered if she felt it or if he was so in love that it was clouding his judgement, as usual. He was awed by how beautiful she looked tonight. She wore the gorgeous dress she had on at Bianca's wedding. She looked incredible that day but he tried to scratch it from his mind as he was reminded of their chat in the café, where they mutually placed each other in the friend-zone. He tells himself it was mutual but deep down he knows it was Kat's call, he just went along with it. He had spent too long forcing her to see the magic they used to have and entertain a relationship with him. He had mistakenly thought their vast history and unbreakable bond was enough to write their future but he was wrong. It only served to push Kat away and deeper into the arms of Phil. He had spent a great deal of time wondering why Kat would settle for a man who almost got herself and their son killed before reaching the conclusion that Alfie might be a hopeless romantic with big feelings but he wasn't exactly a perfect husband and father and by comparison, there wasn't that much difference between himself and meathead at all. The fact was, Kat deserved better than all of them. Alfie allowed himself to close that chapter when he got news of his cancer diagnosis. The acceptance that his life would never be the same again was a harsh pill to take, along with the radiotherapy and hormone treatment. Since climbing the big C mountain and reaching the top, he had undoubtedly grown as a man and released a lot of pain he had built up inside, following years of poor decision making and insecurities. He was now entering a new phase in life; in remission, making his way back down the mountain, with Kat and his boys by his side. They may not be together in a way they used to be but he felt closer to Kat than he had in years and that felt like a blessing. The last thing he wanted to do was ruin it with romantic notions. He would let Kat lead the way. He was the supporting character now.

"Alfie leave the dishes until the morning. Come and get a soft seat." Kat called as Alfie cleared the table. She felt the warmth of the cosy blanket at her legs and the fuzziness of the alcohol in her brain, replacing her earlier nervous energy with a relaxed sense of peace. Alfie collapsed on the couch beside her, satiated from their meal. They sat in comfortable silence listening to the chilled playlist Alexa had gifted them in the background before Kat mumbled something inaudible. Alfie strained to hear her.

"What was that?"

"Sorry" Kat cleared her throat and took another sip of wine, "I was just saying I'm happy."

"Good, I'm glad. I'm happy too. I'm happy you're here…and the boys. I love having us all under the same roof."

There it was again, the eye contact. Alfie looked away for a moment and curiously looked back. She was still staring at him, with a slight glaze to her eyes, no doubt courtesy of the wine she had knocked back. He had to bite his tongue from asking why she was looking at him like that, but didn't want to embarrass her. Still, he was desperate to know what she was thinking.

"Kat, are you okay? You seem…I don't know..."

Kat was lost in his face for a moment, thinking about their past. The effects of wine and feelings! She snapped her eyes shut and shook her head as if waking from a daydream, locking her feelings back into Pandora's box, where they belonged. She took a deep breath, realising this was her moment. She teetered dangerously on the edge of too drunk for a conversation like this, but rather that than not drunk enough.

"I'm fine, sorry." Kat bit her lip. She was conscious that Alfie looked worried, so she continued, "In my life our boys come first, always. They are priority, agreed?"

"Yes…"

"Second is our friendship. That's how important it is to me that we are how we are because I need you in my life, Alfie. I can't have it any other way. What I'm trying to say is I don't want to ruin anything between us by changing anything. Does that make sense?"

"Yes and I agree but we've spoken about this, Kat. We agreed this –" Alfie gestured with his hands towards them "- is friendship only. No pressure."

Kat smiled and took Alfie's hand. "Good, I'm glad we're on the same page because I have a proposition for you and like you just said, there's no pressure…"

Alfie looked down at Kat's hand in his and back to her face. His brain was scrambled. Kat was right there, mere inches from him, saying she wanted them to remain friends, yet she was holding his hand and now, wait - He looked down again and confirmed that she was indeed, STROKING circles with her thumb. Alfie's main concern was for his ex-wife's mental state. However, he couldn't vocalise his worries because she had short circuited his brain and rendered him speechless.

"I'm not suggesting we forget about the past but I also don't want to get into it right now. There's too much water under the bridge. I feel like it's a conversation for another time, when we are both ready and willing."

Kat paused, her eyes deliberately settling on Alfie's lips.

"My suggestion is we put a pin in it for now, and explore our friendship." She waited a moment to see if he had anything to say but he remained silent, a picture of confusion. Kat broke her gaze and let go of Alfie's hand, turned to her wine and downed the entire glass before she could look at Alfie again.

"I'm interested in a friends with benefits situation. What do you say?"