A Long Hard Road Out of Hell

I picked up my phone to call her, praying she still had the same number. It wouldn't have surprised me if she'd gotten a new phone, though. We hadn't talked in over ten years.

I had gotten a new phone, but hadn't sent her my new number. Stupid of me, I know. But then, maybe it was stupid of me to put her number on my new phone too. But then again, before our falling out, we'd been Best Friends for 25 years. We'd known each other for pretty much all our lives.

As I was getting my courage up for a probable hang up when Lena heard my voice, there was a knock at my door. I breathed a sigh of temporary relief from what I would have most likely faced, and gratefully answered my door.

I must have stood there for a good minute with my mouth hanging open as I looked at the slightly older, but still beautiful face of my Best Friend. She was smirking with a twinkle in her eye as she regarded me. I was a bit thinner than I had been, since I wasn't working out near as much as I used to.

"Lena?! What the fuck are you doing here?" I asked incredulously.

"Some greeting for your best buddy, white boy. Aren't you going to invite me in?" she said, her smirk never fading.

To say that I was stunned would be the understatement of the millennium. I wordlessly stepped back and let her in. She came forward and hugged me tight as she kicked the door closed behind her.

Reflexively, I hugged her back tightly. I felt myself reacting to her body, too, even as I felt profound relief to even see her again. She had kept in shape, unlike me. Her petite 5'5" frame was still in great shape, while being soft in all the right places.

"Well, somebody's happy to see me," she said with a giggle as she felt my hard-on pressing into her belly.

"We both are, Lena," I replied with a laugh of relief. "I thought..."

"Shush, hon," she said and pulled back from the hug a little. She stood on her tip toes to kiss me with her full lips.

"How?" I asked when she pulled back from the kiss with a smile on her lips. She saw the look of confusion on my face. I had a million questions for her, but right then I couldn't ask any of them. How had she found me? I wasn't listed. Why was she here? She had made it clear 10 years before that she didn't want to ever talk to me again if I went through with going back in to fight. Where was she now? Had she moved here?

"I need to ask you why, first," she said, her face turning serious as she backed up and slapped me hard. "Why the fuck didn't you call me once in 10 years to let me know you were alive?!"

I was stunned again. Not just by the slap, which stung like a motherfucker, but by her tone. There was more relief and fear in her voice than anger.

"I... I thought you never wanted to talk to me again," I replied. It was the only thing I could think of to say.

"I didn't mean NEVER, Mitch! I mean COME ON! We're BEST FRIENDS YOU IDIOT!" she screamed at me, then burst into tears as she hugged me tight again. "You shoulda called me!"

"I'm sorry, Lena. God, I'm so sorry," I said as tears streamed down my own face to match the ones on hers. I looked into her dark brown eyes and saw the pain there.

Her face softened, and she smiled again as she pulled me close and held onto me for dear life. I held onto her the same way. I'd been lost without her in my life. Just talking to her and listening to her advice on whatever the situation was. I missed it all.

I pulled her into the living room, and we sat on the couch together. Once seated, I was finally able to ask some questions.

"Lena, how did you find me?" I asked. "I mean, you didn't know my address here after I moved."

"Thank your mom for that, hon," she replied with a smile. "She called me last week and told me your situation, and how you were barely taking care of yourself."

NOW it made sense! Mom knew that I still barely trusted her after the shit she'd withheld from me about Emily and Jim. I had to chuckle.

"That makes sense now," I said. "She's still trying to get back on my good side for not letting me know about Emily and Jim when she found out a year before I did."

To my surprise, Lena just nodded. "Yeah, she told me that too. I know why she did it, though. You would have died over there if she'd told you! Dammit, boo! If you had died over there, I would never have been able to tell you how sorry I was for not supporting you more."

"What?" I asked, even more shocked now.

"About a year after you went back in, I talked to Daddy about it. He said that you had to do what you had to do, and I shoulda been there more for you. I shouldn't have cut you out of my life like that," she said. "I would have called you if I had your new number, but you never called me. I was blaming myself for the way we ended our last convo. Dammit, Mitch, I'm so sorry."

The tears were running down her face again, and mine were barely being kept in check. Instead of saying anything, I pulled her to me and just held her close.

We spent three hours catching up. I gave her the whole story of what had happened to me over in Afghanistan and Iraq, and then the shit I'd been through when I got home.

Lena's tale was interesting. After a few years as a SBPD patrol officer, she transferred to the LAPD and made Detective. She'd been forced to resign from the LAPD a few years later for excessive force in subduing a suspect in a child molestation case, and had put her Criminal Science degree to good use at a Law Firm in Santa Barbara where she worked as a paralegal. She was also looking to go to Law School soon. She wanted to work in Family Law, with a specialization in Child Advocacy. Working at that Law Firm had given her a good understanding of the law, so she figured that Law School would be a snap.

Now, I will never speak Legalese. I find the double talk in there to be extremely mind-numbing and just plain stupid. Just say what you fuckin' mean! I also normally hate lawyers, but I couldn't fault Lena for her choice of legal specialization. It's a noble calling for a lawyer.

,

Then I pulled out my pack of Marlboros. I'd become addicted quickly in the 2 years since I'd started smoking. My workouts had suffered, but with my fast metabolism, I just got skinny instead of fat. I wasn't nearly as buff as I'd been the last time Lena had seen me.

"Holy shit, when did you start smoking?!" she demanded.

"A couple years ago, why? I know that we promised each other that we wouldn't, but 2 years ago we weren't even talking. I was stressed out, and a guy I knew gave me a smoke," I shrugged.

In answer to that, she plucked the pack out of my hand and tossed it into the trashcan. "No more!" she said with finality. "First thing we need to do is get you off that shit."

Now, at that time, I was out of a job. The Computer Shop I'd worked at had closed its doors, so I was SOL for work at the moment. I was getting Unemployment after being laid off, but that was about it. I was barely scraping by and the job market wasn't too great for finding work.

"Oh? And how? I can't afford the Patch," I snorted. "Lena, I'm not the same guy I was before Emily betrayed me. I used to trust people. Then the woman I loved went and ripped my heart out!"

Lena just looked at me. "Are you really that dense, Mitch?" she asked.

"Well, DUH! I'm a guy, so yes I'm dense," I replied with my eyes crossed and my tongue out the side of my mouth.

She laughed in spite of herself. "Mitch, listen up. I'm single now. You're single now. Get the picture? I think we should give us another try. The whole FWB thing was good when we were younger, but now..."

The look that Lena was giving me said it all as I gazed into her eyes. It had been over a year since I'd been laid, not counting my hand and internet porn. Ok, I know, that doesn't count. There was only one problem.

"I get what you mean, sweety," I said with a sigh. "But the thing is, I'm not looking for a relationship. I mean, I love you, and you know that. The thing is, I don't need to get into a situation again where I give someone my heart, and she stomps all over it."

I saw the shock on her face, followed by the anger. "I can't believe you! You think I'm going to do you like that ho did?! You really think that I would do that to you, Mitchell?! I LOVE YOU, YOU MORON!"

Her ferocity made me stop and look at my Best Friend for what seemed to be the first time. I'd seen different sides of her before, but never like this. I'd seen the loving and caring side. I'd seen the tough as nails side. I'd even seen the hurt and angry side. But this... this side seemed to be all of them put together, if that makes any sense. She was hurt, angry, tough, but still caring and loving. Even as she yelled at me, getting the message through my thick skull.

"You're right, Lena," I said as I realized that this beautiful woman had been right in front of me all along. Not just beautiful physically, but beautiful on the inside, too.

I had literally never thought that we could be together as more than Best Friends, in spite of that summer we'd spent together after Prom, and in spite of the FWB relationship we'd had while stationed together and in college whenever we weren't dating someone else. Man, had I been fuckin' stupid!

She reached out and stroked my cheek, and just like that, the years fell away as I took her in my arms and kissed her sweet full lips. I was hungry for her again. Hell, maybe I always was! I'd been in love with Emily, but now I was again, and maybe always had been In Love with Lena. The capital letters make a difference, trust me on this.

She returned my kiss, and her lips parted for mine as our tongues danced slowly in each other's mouth. It had been too long since I'd held her. It had been too long since I'd kissed her. It had been too damn long since I'd felt her body pressed to mine. I was overcome by her presence as we kissed. Her sensuality and sexuality permeated the room, and I was losing myself in her touch.

As we broke the kiss finally, I stood up wordlessly and helped her to her feet. She smiled as I led her to my bedroom. Once there, I undressed her slowly, kissing each new part of exposed skin. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and I enjoyed kissing her neck and chest. It had been far too long for both of us. I realized this as I felt her tremble under my lips, letting out gasps and moans as I kissed her beautiful chocolate skin.

Lena has always been a health nut, since diabetes runs in her family. She always exercises and has always made sure she eats right. The combination has contributed to a woman who looks at least 10 years younger than she really is.

I lowered my mouth to her nipples as her hands entangled themselves in my hair. She's always loved it when I suck her nipples, nibbling gently until they swell and harden in my mouth. I reached down to her pussy, slipping my finger inside. God, she was wet! But then, she always gets very wet when we would fuck or make love over the years.

"Make me yours again, boo," she moaned softly. "Make me yours forever this time, please."

Her words pushed me onward. I laid her on my bed, then disrobed quickly as I gazed upon her dark perfection. My dark angel of sin, my dark angel of love.

Lena smiled up at me as I smiled down at her, then climbed on the bed on top of her. I leaned down and kissed her lovingly, and her arms came up around my shoulders.

"I need to taste you, baby," I whispered as we broke the kiss again.

She shuddered at my promise, then grinned and said, "You'd better, boo. It's too damn hard to find a man who knows how to eat pussy. It's been quite a while."

I grinned and moved down her beautiful body, kissing and licking as I went. She spread her thighs open for me as I inhaled the sweet scent of her aroused pussy.

My lips and tongue traveled slowly as I savored every inch of her skin. When I finally reached her shaved pussy mound, I inhaled deeply through my nose as my tongue touched her already exposed clit.

Once again, her taste exploded in my mouth, and I tongued her pussy like a man possessed. I ate her like a mad man, flicking my tongue across her little nub, then delving deep inside her hot wet tight pussy.

"Oh FUCK, baby!" she exclaimed. "Eat my pussy, boo! Eat this pussy until I COME!" she demanded.

I gave her what she wished for, licking deeply inside her, swirling my tongue around inside her beautiful pussy. I reached her g-spot, and she gasped again as I heard her start to scream out. Then her cum flooded out of her and into my mouth as I locked my lips around her pussy, drinking down her sweet nectar in gulps.

She arched her back off the bed as I continued to lick her, and her orgasm transitioned into a second one. Lena has always been multi-orgasmic, and this time was no exception!

Finally, she pushed my face away, and then pulled me up and threw my on my back.

"I love eating you, baby," I confessed. "But then, you knew that already."

"I know, and I need to taste you too," she said with a wicked gleam in her eye.

"Oh God, yes," I moaned as she took me into her mouth. The sight of her full lips that put Angelina Jolie to shame, around my cock was almost too much to bear, and as she deep throated me, I could feel my cock swelling even larger in her mouth. It had been some time for me, like I said earlier. I wasn't sure how long I would last when my Best Friend was doing to me exactly what she knew I liked!

Sensing that I was too close, too quickly, she backed off a bit. "Nuh uh, baby boy," she said as she grinned wickedly. "Not til you get into my pussy again."

"Oh shit," I groaned as she shut me down so close to coming.

"Nuh uh, boo. No complaining. We need to make love properly. Besides, I know you. I know you can get it up again quick after coming, but I want every load of your cum inside my pussy. You know how much I love that, and I'm sick of feeling condoms inside me. I've never used a condom with you, and I never will. I need you raw."

That was the way I heard what she said, anyway. It took a moment for everything she said to sink into my lust-addled brain, though. It was one of our things. Lena stayed on birth control, but would never allow a guy she was dating or in a relationship with to come inside her... except for me.

So knowing my Best Friend, I allowed her this, and pushed her onto her back. "Then I'm going to make love to you, then fuck you, then make love to you again," I said in a whisper as my cock parted her pussy lips.

"Yes, baby," she moaned as I thrust into her. God, she was almost as tight as when we'd first made love on the Bluffs overlooking the Pacific after Prom. It didn't take me long to find our familiar rhythm, so I guess what they say is true. It's like riding a bike. You never really forget how to do it.

So I thrust into my Best Friend over and over, slowly at first, then faster as I felt her and heard her building up to another one of her Earthshattering climaxes. That was a good thing, because I knew I wasn't going to last much longer!

Our thrusts and moans intensified as she bucked her hips up to meet mine, and her fingernails dragged down my back as she screamed my name and came.

Her climax set me off, and I literally roared as I thrust deep into her and unleashed a torrent of cum deep into her womb. It was the first time in over 10 years that I'd come inside a woman without a condom on, and it felt just as good as it always had with her.

"Yes, baby! Fuck yes!" she shouted as she felt me swell inside her and release. Her orgasm rolled into a second as she came with me again.

"You are so amazing, baby," I whispered in her ear as I lay on top of her. Both of us were coated in a sheen of sweat, and her arms and legs were still wrapped around me as she stroked my hair and held me close.

"So are you, honey. I love you," she replied in a muffled whisper.

"I love you too, Lena," I said with a smile as I rolled off of her and pulled her into my arms.

We just laid there together as our bodies cooled down a bit and our breathing returned to normal.

"So," she said, "what am I gonna do with you?"

"Well, I need to find a job and get my ass back to work," I said with a chuckle. "But first, I need some more of your loving. That's what you can do with me."

* * * * *

Well, I did indeed get some more of Lena's loving, and by the time we finished that night, we were both completely wiped. We fell asleep in each other's arms for the first time in over 12 years. The difference this time was that we were more than just Best Friends With Benefits.

The next morning, we talked a lot about where we were going. She wanted to be with me, and I wanted to be with her. There were some logistics issues to sort through, of course. Would she move here? Would I move there?

In all honesty, I was sick to death of the Phoenix area and the scorching summers. Granted, the winters were awesome there, but the summer is just too fuckin' hot. So I asked her about IT jobs in Santa Barbara.

She had me bring out my laptop and we looked it up on Bing. Sure enough, Santa Barbara and Ventura had quite a few IT jobs available in the area, so I filled out some applications while we were sitting there. A few hours later, though, and I was dying for a cigarette!

Lena noticed me fidgeting and when I told her that I was going through nicotine withdrawals, she grabbed me and took me back to bed.

"Ok, Mitch. Whenever you want to suck on a cigarette, suck on these instead," she said as she pulled off her tank top and shoved one of her beautiful breasts into my mouth.

And that was how it went for the next few days. Every time I got a case of the shakes or started gritting my teeth as my brain slowly purged the nicotine, I would find a hard nipple or a sweet clit to suck on. Hell, it took my mind off of smoking!

I think the term for that method of quitting is called "Supermodel Sex", or something like that. I found that "Black Girl Sex" worked even better!

By the end of the week, I had an email response for a job at a data entry firm in Santa Barbara, and called them up to see if I could schedule an interview for the following week.

Lena went with me to see Emily, since Mom and Dad STILL wanted me to find "closure" with her. She had been dating guys off and on, not that I cared. But for some odd reason, she refused to really move on until she had a chance to talk to me. Since I didn't hate her anymore, I finally shrugged and said "Ok."

Anyhow, when Lena and I showed up, Lena just stood beside me as I listened... Ok, I didn't really listen... All I heard from Emily's mouth was "blah blah blah blah blah blah blah" etc., etc. But I nodded politely where it seemed appropriate.

When she finally stopped talking like the teacher in the Peanuts cartoons, I said "Ok, Emily, You can move on now. Find a guy you can love and be faithful to, and I wish you luck." I even allowed her to hug me.

When we got outside, I looked at Lena and asked her, "Did you catch any of what she said?"

Lena just laughed and rolled her eyes at that one. "Unfortunately. You must have been tuning her out."

"Yeah, guilty. I was listening to Metallica in my head while she was talking. Was it anything important?" I asked.

"Nah, just shit that made me want to smack the blonde outta her hair," she shrugged.

"She's a natural blonde."

"And?"

We both laughed our asses off as we made our way to my car.

Oh, and Jim? I haven't seen him since that day that I threw his sorry ass out of my apartment butt naked. He never tried to contact me. He never even threatened me after I told his wife about his affair with my ex-fiancé. The last I heard about him, he had moved back east somewhere. I don't care what he does with his life now.

Jim isn't important anyway. He always had an overinflated ego, and it cost him one of his best friends and a great wife.