In the Dark
When I came too it was to the sound of happy yet distant sounding crickets and other nocturnal creatures. Also a soft crackle that was coming with every short breath I painfully took. In my mind I could still see the menacing woman towering over my father staring deeply into my soul. I struggled to open my working eye so I could look around. Seeing nothing but darkness: I hoped that it was just darker than I've ever seen. It was truly disappointing.
I knew I was hoping to see the woman. A cherished vision of such rare beauty. Althewhile thinking that I had made her up completely after I had passed out. To confuse me even more I was surprised to find that I was no longer in the middle of the dusty street. As gross as it sounds, the musky odor of my father was no longer present and even my own distinct smell was drastically changed. Add all of that to the fact that I was currently being embraced by the softest bed I had ever been in. It was a far cry from the straw filled monster that I had grown up sleeping in.
I was in near perfect darkness. It was so dark that I couldn't even see my hand held out in front of my face. A part of me was filled with panic at not only how dark it was but not knowing where I was.
I quietly groan at the pain. Even though it was thankfully much less acute from what I was experiencing even before the last beating I had undergone. Although I quickly noted that every time I took in even the tiniest breaths I could still hear the persistent crackle coming from my seemingly drowning lungs. It felt as though my lungs were being stabbed. At the same time I felt completely constricted by a tight wrap around my aching ribcage.
Trying to turn my thoughts from the seemingly never ending pain filled body I inhabited. I wondered what kind of magic had landed me in the bed I now laid in. I mindlessly ran my hands across the softest bedding I had ever felt. Suddenly as my right hand explored further I felt the warm soft skin of another body in the bed with me freezing me in terror. 'Did dad sell me like my dream said he would?' For a moment I envisioned the woman with piercing blue eyes laying there beside me. Thinking that I must be dreaming again I sat up on my elbows causing my ribs to jar even more as they poked into my lungs.
I cried out softly and fell back into the bed clutching my tightly wrapped ribs. Fumbling with the wrap until I finally felt it loosening from around me only to whimper when the relief quickly turned into abject horror as the pain rapidly increased. Realizing too late that the wraps were filling a purpose and that someone had tended to my numerous injuries.
Suddenly a soft hand was gently touching my lower arm. To my complete shock the body in the bed next to me was moving and whoever it was was now leaning over me. Assumedily blindly checking my aching body over with the softest touches I have ever felt. Everything inside of me was imagining and wishing that it was the blue eyed beauty from the street.
Still a small part of me was trapped in a cold fear induced dread that had a death grip on my wild heart. The thought that it was actually someone else was terrifying. I trembled under a somewhat sensual caress before I tried to brush the strong hand away. I was terrified by the facts. On one hand I had no idea who the person was or what their intention was while on the other my body was actively relishing in the gentle attention. So much so that I unconsciously readjusted my hips in the soft bed.
Just before I could attempt to leap out of my own oddly aroused skin the person comfortably starts to order me around, "Stay still."
'It is her!' I gasped while my body trembled even as I tried my best to freeze under the influence of her strong feminine voice and warm breath upon my face. Making me feel even more unsure of my own reality that I still failed to see.
"Your ribs are badly bruised. Here, drink this."
I felt a leather waterskin pressing to my lips. Well whoever she was she did sound an awful lot like the woman but of course I had only heard her shouting to look out. Slowly I took a careful sip from it only to nearly die gagging on the acidic taste filling my mouth although I admit that it was mild due to the amount of sweet tasting honey in the still terrible concoction.
"Come on now. You can do better than that." she coaxed.
After I got as close to used to it as a human being could possibly muster I took another pull from the leather skin. This time taking a healthy drink of the bitter drink. Still I didn't hesitate to end it all with my obvious disdain and well taken ick.
The woman chuckled at my dismay before softly explaining, "It will help you take bigger breaths and starve off your lung sickness." a few seconds passed where I regrettably could not feel her body for a second. When she came back she ordered me to, "Eat."
Without hesitation I opened my mouth and after a moment I was ambushed by the sweet taste of glazed sugar. With an em I took a bite of the round doughnut. I had never tasted anything like it before. Even the bread itself tasted sweet.
After I finished chewing on the delicious morsel I couldn't help but to lick my lips tasting the sweet glaze on my lips. In the back of my mind I would swear that the woman was suddenly breathing just a little harder.
"Better?" the woman doesn't say very much.
"That tasted delicious. Thank you." my every other word was broken up by a shallow pain filled breath.
"Last bite?" her voice almost sounded husky.
I nodded, not trusting my own voice, 'It's just as dark for her as it is for me.' I let out a frustrated breath and with an equally husky voice I asked, "Don't you want some?"
"I've had plenty." She said it so sweetly that I could even hear the smile in her voice, while placing the sweet treat in my already surrendering mouth.
I could hear the woman patiently sucking the sticky glaze from her own fingertips and a surprisingly large part of me regretted not being able to do the task myself. I reasoned with myself that I had simply wanted more of the treat but even I knew I was full of it.
"Your wrap must have loosened while you slept. I need to rewrap you." The woman's voice was softer than ever yet somehow deeper.
Even still as she spoke I couldn't help myself from noting that whoever this woman was she exhumed a strong aura of power. So much so that even in the complete darkness I found myself in I could still feel it radiating out in her very words and tone few as they may be. Oddly it made my body desperate for more air and out from under me it stole a deep breath forcing my lungs into my sensitive ribs jarring them yet again and making me whimper in agonized pain.
Like magic, that warm hand of hers was back on my body this time softly holding my ribs. It only took a few seconds for me to realize that her hot hand actually made me feel better. I tried to keep the image of the raven haired goddess caressing me from my imagination but it was a hopeless endeavor as they ran along the surface of my wrap.
At times her soft fingers grazed barren reactive skin which alerted me to the state of my undress under the soft and very warm covers. I could feel my breathing quicken and just like that my body was trembling again. Her soft hand gliding around the side that was closer to her, thoroughly inspecting my side with her long probing fingers.
As the hand continued to explore I couldn't help but to think, 'By all the Gods on Mount Olympus I could get used to this.'
I was mortified when her innocent hand softly grazed my underarm. Instead of laughing like a normal woman I gave a soft moan. So soft that I had hoped that the woman may not have heard the traitorous sound. Although the pause in exploration of her hot hand and notable breeze from her head spinning towards mine told me a different story altogether. I could feel my face growing hotter than the flames of a blacksmith's furnace as a powerful blush took control swiftly spreading down my neck and traveled the length of my entire body.
She must have dismissed my lustful moaning, rapid breathing and intense raise of my body temperature as a reaction to the pain because even though I could swear I felt her eyes still focused on my face. Her hand began moving again though this time her hand made slow progress and the tips of her soft fingers maintained contact with a small surface of my overreacting skin. I suddenly became aware that I was indeed breathing heavier than I was when I first woke up.
I felt like I was on fire as the hand made its slow journey back across my chest and almost lovingly slid around my further side bringing the woman all the more closer. Until finally my side and her front were firmly pressed together. The feel of her hot breath on my neck made it burn from longing. Wishing her lips to finally claim me there. Wherever her hot breath touched tingled in desperation and anticipation.
I struggled to remind myself that she was just looking for the end of the wrap. That I was just building things up in my head because I was nervous. However the more time I spent with this intriguing stranger the more obsessed I became. I craved to know more about her and I would willingly sacrifice any prior knowledge just to make room for more information on the woman.
As mere seconds with her ticked by the more my body longed to feel every inch of her. My body urgently needs to feel the woman's hands touching every part of me and creating new paths inside of me in which to claim me completely. I already wanted her to have all of me at any cost.
Her lips were so close to my ear when she whispered, "I found it." that my entire body shivered, my back arched filling the woman's arm with my heaving chest, my mouth groaned and my tongue licked suddenly dry lips. It made me certain that there was no way the other woman would have missed all those signs of my body becoming highly aroused. Maybe that's why I wasn't surprised with what she did next.
Suddenly her hand retreated and so did the rest of her body making me instantly miss the feel of her touches, warm breath and body against my skin. Of course she would want to get away from the clearly aroused lesbian as fast as possible. Broken hearted my ears followed her hard to spot progress by listening to every sound in the room. The small squeak of the bed when relieved of her weight as she got carefully out of the bed. The creak in a few loose floorboards as she otherwise silently moved around on top of it until finally she had made it to my side.
When her hand softly touched my abdomen I felt my still trembling body twitch. I was at a loss as to how my body was reacting to her. My heart was acting as if I was running for my very life. My skin was tingling even more than that night when my best friend and I had shared that sensual kiss. The thought of the woman's lips from the street gently brushing my own was my complete undoing. My body was ablaze more than ever before and now I was absolutely nervous. Suddenly feeling inadequate in every way possible.
As she tugged on the strip of cloth to get it out from under me my hands instinctively reached out to her elbows, on her shocked intake of air at such a bold act on my part I partly explained my actions, "It hurts." In reality I didn't really hurt all that much anymore.
After a few moments of hesitation filled with a nervous and audible gulp she replied breathily, "I know. I've been where you are. It will help to have them wrapped up properly." her hands began moving. Once again searching this time for the other end of the missing wrap. I couldn't get over how gentle her soft hands were as she finally found the missing cloth. Before she started pulling the ends back into position, she placed her free hand on my hip holding me in place for a second.
"This is going to hurt more for a second then you will feel a little relief. Are you ready?"
I nodded before I again remembered that it was dark for the woman as well as it was for me, and just as my lips formed to make a yes she had already pulled it tight and tied it. She quickly tucked the ends of the wrap back inside of itself. Before it was finished I felt a sharp pain as my ribs were forced back into their original position making me scream out in agony.
It wasn't long after that I realized that the hands I had wrapped around the woman's elbows had gripped down hard on her but even still the muscle under my fingers didn't budge a bit. I quickly released my grip on her. Another moment passed and suddenly the pain had ebbed back to the original pain I had awoken to.
"Better?" she questioned, as though she could see my expressions going closer to being at least halfway normal.
"Much. Thank you." I gave her a grimace paired with a grin trying my best to believe it. I was now confident in the fact that the woman could indeed see me even in the pure darkness we were in.
The thought of her being able to see while I could not made me panic. Everything inside of me became all but certain that I was going to be blind for the rest of my life. The sudden and very real fear that the beating had stolen my ability to see was steadily gaining strength and power over me. Hopefully thinking that maybe the eye that had swollen shut was somehow still working and maybe all I needed to do was wait until I could open the damn thing and I would at least be able to see out of that one. It was my only chance to hold onto what little sanity I had left in the moment.
I listened as the woman effortlessly made her way back to her side of the bed and felt it wiggle a bit as she climbed into it with me. A part of me could feel her eyes on me as she leaned on her elbow next to me again. I could feel the warmth of her body easing my own aching muscles. Oddly with her eyes upon me I could feel the panic subside ever so slightly.
After a few more moments of silence she softly questions, "How are you?"
The open ended question left so much for me to say. Do I tell her about my wealth of raw emotions? Or do I complain about everything that seems to be hurting on the physical level? Instead I went after my biggest worry of all, I nervously admitted, "I can't see anything."
Her voice was so soft as she said, "It's dark in here. You have extensive injuries to your head so light is the enemy for now. Trust me when the sun comes up you'll wish it would just go away."
"I really got my ass kicked huh?" I snorted in laughter at my own ire, causing me to grasp my side in pain.
The woman didn't share in my laughter and I'm confident in saying that she probably thought I was crazy or something worse. As her silence continued my nervous chatter became nearly impossible to contain.
Before I could start the woman quietly vowed, "He will never touch you like that again."
I swallowed at the promise, wondering how she was so sure but I was too stunned to say anything. I ran a hand through my hair, surprised to find that the matted mess it had been now felt down right silky. I smelled my clean hand and finally figured out that I had not only been nursed but I had also been cleaned. Most likely by the mysterious woman next to me. Who I noted smelled just as I did in the moment.
To my chagrin the woman finally gave a snort of her own laughter, "Did you just sniff me?"
I blushed so hard that my injured face hurt just a little more. In a meek voice that held all my ire I retorted, "I was just realizing that I smell really good, just like you do in fact." Maybe I shouldn't have added that bit of accusation in my tone but I wasn't going to suffer alone.
"I gave you a bath with some oils that help with the pain. I needed to clean your injuries before I could stitch you up." I could almost hear the indignation in her soft voice as she tried to defend her actions. It filled my body with a craving like I've never experienced. It was as though my body was remembering her soft touches cleaning every inch of my body. The thought of her hands on me made me tremble the most yet.
After a calming breath and a mental clearing of sharp imagery I rushed to ease the tension I had created by saying, "Thank you for taking such good care of me. I feel better than I did before that last beating I took."
It was as though she wasn't prepared for my appreciation, the woman took a moment of stunned silence. I felt the bed shift as she laid down on her back before sternly advising me, "Get some rest. It'll help you heal."
"I am really tired." I uttered on the back of a fierce yawn.
The idea of sleeping next to the woman when I didn't even really know who the stranger was is different and yet surprisingly my body was far too sore and downright exhausted to argue. Even stranger still I had the urge to not only sleep but to cuddle with the woman that I believe saved my life. The urge made my heart absolutely race. Instead I swallowed hoping that it would take away from the powerful want filling me from head to toe.
Another yawn and I turned my head to the side facing the enigma beside me. My eye fluttering closed and my body quickly shut down unessential systems. Finally allowing myself to not only fall asleep but to fall into one of the most refreshing and healing dream states I had ever been in. Dreams filled with the warm protective presence of the woman from the market. Oddly the woman was for the most part very quiet in my dream as well.
To be continued…