OtherWorld

They reached the coffee shop around eleven o'clock. Although it was open until one in the morning, customers were fairly scarce as it got later, and the place looked mostly empty. As they stepped onto the sidewalk outside the shop, Lauren stopped and sniffed the air.

"Mmm, smells wonderful," she said, "have you been here before?"

"On occasion," Jeff said, "come on, I can recommend something--"

Jeff was interrupted as the front door swung open, and the single worst possible feeling shot through his stomach like a shotgun blast. Tracy stepped out of the shop onto the sidewalk directly in front of him. There would be no escape for him this time, and he was forced to face the one person in the world he didn't want to see.

Tracy seemed surprised to see him, but her face softened immediately as if she had been looking for him.

"Jeff..."

"No, Tracy, I don't think now is a good time to talk." He glanced over at Lauren, who had stepped away and was trying to fade inconspicuously into the shadows. Tracy threw a disinterested glance in her direction as well.

"Please, I need to talk to you."

"We don't have anything to talk about."

"Jeff, I love you."

The words hit him like a ton of bricks. Had she said that to him before? Had he said it to her? Did it even mean anything anymore?

"You love me enough to cheat on me," Jeff said quietly, hoping Lauren wouldn't have to listen to any of their conversation.

Tracy's face registered frustration, and Jeff knew, ironically, she was tired of him bringing up the subject. "I didn't--it was a mistake, I know that. You said it yourself, you were being a pain in the ass yesterday. You told me you still loved what's-her-name--"

"Oh yeah, okay," Jeff said, not masking his irritation, "yeah, I did say I still loved 'what's-her-name', as you so kindly put it. You knew exactly what I meant when I said that."

"How am I supposed to be in a relationship knowing you still love another woman?"

"I can't believe how goddamn irrational you are, Tracy."

"What?"

"Do you stop loving your grandparents when they die? Your parents? Your best friend? So me still loving my dead girlfriend is a little different than you going off and fucking whatever jackass loser you find."

Jeff could see the rage taking over Tracy's face. He knew he was in it up to the neck now, but he didn't care.

"Okay, fine," Tracy said, trying to keep her voice calm, "I gave you a chance, Jeff, but you blew it. I gave you a chance to come back to me, but you know what? There's about a million guys in this town who are much better fucks than you are, and I could have any one of them."

"Well, Tracy," Jeff said, finally seeing his chance, "I'm sure you'll have all of them."

Tracy absolutely glared at him, and if she were a violent person, she no doubt would have decked him as hard as she could by now. Instead, she flung back her long blonde hair and took another look at Lauren, a spiteful look that lingered far longer than seemed comfortable. She turned back to Jeff and jabbed an accusatory finger in his direction.

"Not even a day has gone by and you're already out with the first fucking loser freak you can find, just like the last one. Have fun worshipping Satan with the little witch, okay?"

One last vindictive glare, and Tracy walked away. Jeff's heart was thundering in his chest. What would hopefully be their final confrontation was much more unpleasant than he had ever imagined. At least now he wouldn't have to wait for it to come, he could only hope that he would be able to stay out of Tracy's way from now on.

Hardly able to speak, Jeff looked over at Lauren, who was half hiding in the shadows out of the street light. Being lambasted by Tracy was alright for him, he had been expecting it, but she had no right to attack Lauren.

"My God," he said softly, "I'm so sorry about that."

Lauren crept into the light, and he could see hurt on her face.

"Let me guess," she said, "would that be the thing with your girlfriend you spoke of?"

"That would be it."

"She's a lovely girl," she said with no small amount of sarcasm.

"She certainly is. Still feel like coffee?"

Lauren nodded slowly. "We came all this way, didn't we? If I'm going to be accused of being a Satan worshipper, I'm going to get coffee out of it."

Jeff nodded in embarrassment. "Good point."

They entered the shop, and as Lauren stepped up to the counter, Jeff stepped behind it and threw on an apron. She watched him in confusion as he patted the cashier on the back.

"Hey John, why don't you take a break," Jeff told the young kid.

Lauren frowned at Jeff. "You work here?"

The kid took off his apron. "Works here? He owns this place." Jeff smiled at Lauren sheepishly as she gave him an impressed look. The kid left for his break, leaving Lauren and Jeff alone in the shop. Her look turned to mock irritation.

"Very cute," she said.

"I know, I should have said something. I just love hearing people talk about my shop like that."

"Yeah, you should have said something, but I guess you'll have to make it up to me now."

"I guess so," Jeff said, "I can make you the best damn mocha you've ever had, how about that?"

"It'll have to do," she said, smiling at him sweetly.

"Why don't you go have a seat and I'll bring it over."

Lauren wandered off to one of the tables by the window, and Jeff couldn't help but watch her. She had let Tracy's comments roll off her so easily, it amazed him. Jeff had seen many people have their self-esteem destroyed by Queen Tracy, but Lauren took it like she had an iron will. Either that or she was used to it.

It took him a couple of minutes to fix up two mochas. By the time he finished, Lauren had her French notes spread out on the table. Jeff handed her a drink and she gratefully took a sip.

"Mmm, that's great," she said, "I can't believe you actually own this place."

Jeff took a seat. "Yeah, well, I had to do something to put myself through school. If anyone had any idea how many hours I've worked in this place, they'd understand why I own it now."

There was silence as they both took a sip of their drinks, then Lauren put hers down and regarded her endless French notes.

"So," she said, "I was thinking we could start with--"

"I'm sorry. I really am, Lauren."

"It's okay," she said, glancing at him nervously once again. "I had no idea your girlfriend died."

"Yeah. Long time ago."

"Can I ask what happened? You don't have to talk about it if you don't want."

Jeff sighed. He never liked talking about it, but people always asked, and he felt they deserved to know why he sometimes slipped inexplicably into deep depressions.

"Well," he said, "it happened eight years ago when I was still in high school. We were in the car over in the mountains and a drunk driver crossed the center line...and that was it. My last Halloween."

"I was wondering why there weren't any decorations up."

"Yeah, I don't do Halloween, it's a silly holiday for kids. The employees can do what they want, but they don't. For my sake, I guess."

"I'm sorry," Lauren said sadly.

"It's okay. Can I ask you something now?"

"Sure."

"What exactly did Tracy mean by worshipping Satan? Does she know something I don't?"

Lauren sighed and looked at him resolutely. "Tracy and I have known each other since high school."

"What? But how--"

"We're not exactly friends, so don't be confused, it's why we've never seen each other at the same dinner parties. Tracy's never been all that friendly with me because she knows I'm a Wiccan."

"A Wiccan? You're a witch?"

Lauren blushed visibly and nodded her head. "Yeah."

"Wow, so you do worship Satan," Jeff said bluntly.

"What?"

"Well, you know, daughters of Satan, dancing with the devil at midnight and all that, right?"

Lauren threw her hands up, genuinely irritated. "You know, if every soul in this culture didn't watch too many fucking movies, maybe someone would know that we do not worship Satan and--"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Jeff said, laughing, "it's okay, I was just kidding."

"It's just ignorance, that's all, I'm tired of--"

"Lauren, I promise, I was kidding. Lilah was a witch, too."

Lauren paused and looked at him with wonder. "Lilah? She's the one that died?"

"Yeah."

"She practiced Wicca?"

"That she did. Very quietly."

"So explain something to me," Lauren said, "your high school girlfriend was a practicing witch, and you still believe that Halloween is a silly children's holiday?"

"Yeah. So?"

"So, she never explained to you the true meaning of Halloween?"

Jeff laughed quietly. The true meaning of Halloween? All of a sudden he felt like Scrooge awaiting the arrival of the three Christmas ghosts. "Bah humbug," he said gruffly, "I don't really care to know the true meaning of Halloween. The Ghost of Halloween Past is a nasty son of a bitch. What's the big deal, anyway? Noisy kids run around dressed up as Harry Potter for free candy. What a swell holiday."

Lauren shook her head sadly. "Most people never understand. Most people really do think it's about candy and masks, and that's all. But there's so much more, Jeff, there really is. I'm surprised Lilah never told you."

"Yeah, well, that Halloween she was going to show me something, but I never found out what it was. Sometimes shit happens, I guess."

"I guess."

Jeff watched Lauren as she sat quietly, looking out into the night, suddenly transfixed by something. She gazed into the darkness for a long while, her eyes taking on an empty look.

"Lauren?"

Nothing. She continued staring off until Jeff reached out and touched her hand gently. She jumped as if he'd just awoken her from a trance and looked at him with surprise.

"Lauren, you okay?"

"Yeah, fine," she said. She brushed away a few strands of long auburn hair away from her face, and for the first time Jeff noticed a small silver pendant hanging around her neck. From what little Lilah had taught him about Wicca long ago, he recognized the circular shape as a protection symbol. He wanted to ask if there was something specific she needed protection from, but decided against it.

"You kind of zoned out on me there for a second."

"Sorry," she said with a smile.

He gestured to the French notes. "I guess we really ought to get to work."

"Of course."

They studied through the night, leaving so many questions between them unanswered.

Closing time rolled around, and Jeff took a break from studying to close up the shop. He turned off all the lights except one over the table, and made a fresh pot of coffee. Glancing over at Lauren, who was still studying at the table, he noticed the way the light played off her auburn hair, he watched her light blue eyes as she pored over her notes. A slight tingle crept through him, though he couldn't figure out why. She was certainly attractive, but...what exactly was he thinking?

He walked over to the table and poured her another cup of coffee. She smiled at him, and he realized it was her smile that held his attention. Even more than Tracy's thousand dollar smile, Lauren's smile was sweet and genuine, without a speck of pretense whatsoever.

"Thanks," she said, "break time?"

"Yeah," Jeff said, taking a seat and stretching, "I don't know how much more I can take. I'm not entirely positive I want to speak this language that bad."

He sat back in his seat and looked out into the night. It was getting cooler, and he could imagine what it would feel like Halloween night when he would be out in his sleeping bag under the stars. It seemed he would be getting his yearly escape after all.

Lauren, who was watching him carefully, took a sip of her coffee. "So, can I ask you a deeply personal and entirely inappropriate question?"

"Oh my," Jeff said, "and here I thought you were this shy and resigned young lady, but now you're going for the hard hitting questions."

"I'm not as shy as I seem, I just like to keep things to myself."

"Good point. Please, go on."

"Well," Lauren said, "I was just wondering what you were doing with a girl like Tracy. She seems so..."

"Coarse? Cold? Stuck-up? Bitchy?"

"Right," Lauren said with a laugh, "all of the above."

"She was a rebound relationship. Well, okay, so I was rebounding from something that happened seven years earlier, but it was still a rebound. She just made me feel alive, I guess. Good or bad, I was alive."

"It took you a long time to get over Lilah."

Jeff nodded enthusiastically. "A long, long time. You have no idea. Like I tried to explain to Tracy, I'll never be completely over her. It's not exactly like we broke up, and it's not exactly like we had what you girls like to refer to as 'closure'."

"You don't feel...at peace with the whole thing?"

"At peace? No." Jeff paused and diverted his gaze out into the night once again. "I never got to say goodbye to her."

There was a long silence as Jeff, for what could have been the millionth time, replayed that night in his head. He and Lilah had made love for the first time that night, and unlike the first time for most people, it had been slow, sensual, passionate, everything that sex between true lovers was meant to be. Even as kids barely eighteen years old, they had known exactly how to touch each other, exactly how to caress and kiss.

Later that night, Lilah had awoken in a panic, mumbling almost incoherently about Halloween and fixing clothes. Jeff tried to calm her as much as possible, but she dragged him out of bed and into the car. She had directed him to take the route along the Blue Ridge Parkway, one of their favorite drives. They hadn't gotten more than twenty miles before the accident happened.

"What was she panicking about," Lauren asked quietly.

"I don't know," Jeff said, a distant tone in his voice, "she never--"

Jeff froze. His eyes traveled to Lauren, who was watching him intently. He suddenly realized his head was spinning, almost as if he had been drinking. It wasn't entirely unpleasant, but a strange sensation nonetheless.

"I never told you about what happened that night," Jeff said, "how did you know she panicked?"

Lauren didn't seem shaken by his question in the least, she only watched him with her powerful hazel eyes. The drunken feeling worsened, and Jeff himself was on the verge of panic, not sure of what was wrong with him.

"I didn't know she panicked," Lauren said, "you told me."

"I never told you anything," Jeff said, rubbing his eyes with an unsteady hand, "how did you know about that?"

"I heard you. She woke up in a panic."

"What are you doing to me?" Jeff didn't know how or why, but whatever was happening to him was because of Lauren. He pushed his seat back from the table and stood on unsteady feet, keeping one hand on the table for balance. By now, the entire room seemed to be spinning around him, and he could feel his brow breaking out in a sweat.

"Jeffrey, I can help you."

He wiped the back of his hand across his forehead, then again rubbed his eyes. "No one calls me Jeffrey," he said absently, "just Lilah. She called me Jeffrey."

"I know."

"What are you doing to me?"

"It won't last long, I promise," Lauren said calmly, "why don't you sit down?"

"I don't want to sit, I want to know what you're doing to me, god damn it." He realized his voice had little or no strength left in it, and even if he wanted to scream at her, he couldn't. Lauren only sat there quietly and stared at him, trying to see right through him, and he could feel it working. At that moment, her eyes were cold and lifeless as if she were off in another world.

Just as he thought he couldn't take any more and his feet were about to go out from under him, Lauren stood up, pressed herself close to him, and pressed her palms to his temples. Her touch was cool and soft, and soothed the feverish sensation that had come over him. He had no desire to move, he could only stand there and stare down at her.

"Lauren, what was that?"

"It was nothing, Jeff. I can help you."

"You can help me...help me what, I don't understand."

She gently ran her hands down his face and stroked his cheek. "I can help you understand...everything."

"Who are you?"

"A friend. Don't worry."

"What do we do..." His voice trailed off as he stared into her eyes, savoring the feel of her hands skillfully stroking his cheek. Without understanding what was happening to him, or what she had done to him, he leaned down to her and kissed her softly on the lips. The feel of her lips pressed to his sent a wave of pleasure through his entire body, something he hadn't felt in years.

He pulled back from her, and she looked up at him, her eyes full of wonder, a glint that slowly changed to lust. Her hands slipped down his face, her arms snaking around his neck, pulling him close to her.

"Kiss me again," she said, and he complied quickly, this time letting his tongue slip past her open lips, feeling her tongue slide against his own. He could feel her breath becoming heavier, her touch turning frantic. Her arms were locked around his neck, her lips locked onto his, and he could feel his own heart pounding in his chest.

What you we doing?

Jeff's hands slid down her body to the back of her long black skirt, stopping at the curve of her buttocks, issuing a gentle squeeze that made her moan. He could feel her grinding her hips against him, and was suddenly aware of his own body urging him to continue. His cock was aching, pulsing against his jeans mercilessly. At the same time, Jeff realized that the nearly seven inch height difference between the two of them was going to cause a problem in this position.

You can't do this...

Lauren pulled away from him, gazing at him seductively, then glancing back at the table behind her. Without hesitation, Jeff reached behind her and recklessly shoved everything off the table, sending papers and coffee flying to the floor. He put his hands on her hips and helped her hop up onto the edge of the table, her legs dangling over the edge. His heart fluttered as she cast a sexy smile at him.

"I'm too short," she said playfully.

"Maybe I'm too tall."

He leaned forward and kissed her, slowly this time, savoring every moment he was touching her. It had never been like this with Tracy, who loved rough, kinky sex. The sensations Lauren was giving him were making him feel more like he did when he was with Lilah...

...can't...

He stepped up close to the table, his hands dropping to her thighs, and he could feel her willingly spreading them to him. She pulled him close once again, and his hands moved to the bottom of her skirt, sliding the soft material up her slim legs, higher and higher until he could feel her silk panties against his fingers. She moaned loudly as he brushed his fingers against her.

"Mmm, touch me, Jeffrey," she whispered between kisses.

No, not her...

"Please..."

Please...

Her scent was filling his head, making him swoon. He couldn't stop touching her if he wanted. Whatever was happening between them was something he had no control over, and he didn't think Lauren did either.

He pressed the tips of his fingers against her panties, feeling the contour of her body through the thin material, eliciting another hoarse groan of pleasure from her. He continued to rub gently up and down, her panties quickly growing wet. She began kissing him more frantically again, her motions full of pure lust and need. Through their kisses, he could hear her sighing in ecstasy as he rubbed her harder, and she began gyrating her hips against his touch, raising them slightly off the table to meet the motion of his hand.

Finally, as he felt her shudder, she broke their kiss and looked at him, breathing heavily.