Stoking the Fires Within

Weeks can pass in an instant without you ever realizing they took place if one isn't careful. This is a tale about just that. In that one instant your life can take a drastic change for the better or worse and your hopes and dreams either crushed or realized.

As Chad headed home that fateful night repeatedly dialing home and his wife's cell phone number without answer he started to get a bit worried. He hadn't talked to her all day which was highly unusual but still happened on occasion. But there was something more bothering him, a welling deep in the pit of his stomach and he knew, just knew, that something was amiss. As he pulled into the parking lot he could feel the dread growing even more within himself.

Chad got out of the car and noticed the sheriff's car in the lot but without the lights twirling and flashing it drew no real reason for hesitance at the moment. He walked through the doors to his building and slowly climbed the steps to his third floor apartment. As he crossed the threshold of the hallway there stood an officer knocking on his door.

Now as everyone knows that momentary fear that he had done something rushed to him and he wanted to bolt. But Chad knew he had done no wrong, his days of doing silly things that could have even warranted an officer at his home were long, long, gone.

"Can I help you officer?" Chad asked with a inquisitive voice.

"Are you Mr. Chad Smith?" the officer queried?

Still hesitant but prepared, "Yes, sir I am, may I ask why you are here?"

"Son can we go inside and sit down I have some things that you need to hear and this hallway doesn't seem like the best place to do it?"

Chad nodded and slipped past the officer and unlocked the door, looking for any sign of his wife and children, although none were apparent he figured perhaps they had stopped for takeout and would be home any minute.

"Chad, I am afraid I have some bad news," the officer started, "Your wife and children were in an accident a few hours ago down on 95 North."

Chad's fears were suddenly a reality and those were the last words he would hear for a few days that would sink in. He had somehow managed to block out all the rest of what the officer had told him. He knew that it wasn't just an accident and injuries, or the hospital would have called him. The officer had come to inform him that he was now a childless widower.

The family had come from Ohio to rally around him and give support as well as some of his co-workers and friends. His job was going to be held for him indefinitely he was told and yet the worry was already setting in. He knew that Aimee's life insurance policy would set him up for quite a long time but, he had of course hoped that neither of them would ever be able to cash in on these policies. They had flown the bodies back home and had a closed casket funeral and then without a much time passing he was back in the apartment. Chad realized that there was no reason to stay here any longer but he couldn't bring himself to move out. This was the last home he had shared with his girls and he had to cling to that as long as he could. There was no way around that in his mind. This was still their home and he did find himself many times lying on his eldest child's bed clutching her favorite stuffed animals with tears in his eyes.

Two weeks after the officer had been knocking at his door another knock came. Chad didn't want to answer it and he sat on the couch watching the girl's favorite movie reminiscing about all the times they had watched it together. The pounding at the door persisted but he couldn't bring himself up off the couch to answer the door, he wished to be left in his solitude to wallow.

Just then his phone rang and he decided he had best answer it, hopefully it was someone he could just talk to, a salesperson who would not be able to hang up once he began to let it all out or anyone that might just be calling. He didn't want to see anyone but he was finally ready to let it all out.

Picking up the phone he looked down at the caller id log on the display window and saw that it was Chris. His boss from work and a friend who had always been there before. Slowly he waited till the final ring would come prior to the answering machine to pick it up and then he click the talk button.

"Hi Chris," he said in a voice he barely recognized himself.

"Open the fucking door, right now Chad," she ordered him.

Chad suddenly realized who was there and he got up and flipped the locks on the door. "Come on in," he whispered into the receiver.

Chris took one look around the house and could see the disarray that had happened to the house in the last few weeks. There were bottles, plates, dishes, and clothes strewn everywhere around the living room and a glance down the hallway showed more of the same. Taking a deep breath she began to speak to him.

"Chad, you need to talk to someone, as long as I 've known you, you've been strong and a leader and never been one to let yourself go. You haven't shaved obviously in two weeks and this house is a mess."

"Chris thanks for coming but I don't need any lectures right now, did you come to tell me my job is gone now?" he asked.

"No, you dumbass I came to listen to whatever you say and get you back on your feet and out into the world again. We could care less how long you take from work, we know what you're going through..." Chad stood up a look of anger taking form in his expression, "How the fuck do you know what it's like to lose your wife and children all in one fell swoop Chris? How do you know what it's like to go to work after kissing the three of them goodbye in the morning and then coming home to find an officer waiting to tell you your family is dead? Hmmm? Just how the fuck do you suppose you know what this is like?"

And then it happened, the dam broke and the tears burst through. Chad began to sob and weep like never before the past two weeks, the sudden rush of emotion too much to bear alone anymore. Chris rushed to him and wrapped her arms around him, pushing him down onto the couch and holding him close. It broke her heart to see him like this, always the leader and the consoler he was, to now see him so weak and vulnerable was perhaps one of the most shocking things she had seen in her lifetime.

"It's ok, let it all out Chad, I let Sharon know that I was coming over to see you and that I was probably taking a day or two off to try and get you back on your feet again. She said that was fine and to do whatever I had to, we need you back whenever you're ready and not just to work for us but to bring life back into the schools you work in and the office. The big boss has already approved for you to be in the office as soon as you wish, so that if being in schools is to hard on you, you can stay with the company."

Chad wept now even harder, realizing that he had been such a prick to everyone these past two weeks, just shutting them all out and then closing up to them all. He felt Chris' hands caressing his back in a soothing manner and then for the first time in two weeks he just passed out. A deep sleep that was too long in coming, one that he hadn't let himself have thus far. But feeling anyone's arms around him right now was so comforting that his mind just shut down and ordered him to sleep.

Chris felt his sobs stop abruptly and then she concluded that he had passed out, sheer exhaustion must have overcome him. She had seen the bags under his eyes and knew he had put himself through so much grief lately without release that this was exactly what he needed. She waited there with his head on his lap for a few hours before sliding out from underneath him and getting a blanket and pillow. Then she set out to straighten the place up.

Late the next morning Chad awoke on the couch with a bit of relief as he looked around, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and seeing that the room had become clean as he slept. He searched for Chris with his eyes and then peered over the end of the couch, there she was eyes closed a blanket around her and sleeping peacefully beneath him on the floor. He got up and stepped over her and went into the bathroom, as he looked at himself in the mirror he realized how horrible he looked now. Two weeks of beard growth a full head of hear taking root and a pale complexion as a result of his constant indoor confinement.

Chad turned the shower on and stepped out of his boxer briefs. He felt the hot water spraying his body and it felt like it was washing away some of the hurt with it as he cleaned himself. He knew he would have to shave but couldn't find the energy to do that yet, the steaming water was making him tired again and as he rinsed off and stepped out of the shower there was a knock at the door.

"Hey, I gotta pee," Chris said as he peeked out the door.

"Ok give me just a second and I'll be out," Chad replied.

Quickly he grabbed his towel and dried off and then wrapped it around him as he opened the door. "All yours Chris."

Chris walked through the door rushing past him but she didn't fail to notice his wet body, muscular but not to muscular for her taste, and then she pushed the door closed to pee in peace. As she turned on the shower after using the bathroom she felt a tingle, a slow steady one building inside her body. She hadn't had sex in months and her fiancee' had called a week before and announced that he had decided to not return after his deployment, he was extending for another year overseas and he told her that she needn't wait on him any longer. Chris had been slightly relieved and extremely saddened by all of that information but in the way he had relayed it the impact wasn't as profound as she had expected. He had told her all this and then just hung up, it was so matter of fact, and done in such a chicken shit way that she had tossed all their pictures, cried and burned the rest out back behind the house that night, and that was all it took for her to be over it.

Normally she would have called Chad, and talked to him about everything, at least prior to all of this happening with his wife she would have. But now it wasn't the same, their dynamic had changed. Suddenly the two forces that had always seemed to spur the spark between them, the ability to flirt without fear of any intimacy or just harmless teasing were gone.

Chris shut that part of her mind down though, she knew that Chad wouldn't want to bed another woman for a long time and no matter how much he had teased her in the past, and sworn if her fiancee' left her he'd get her in bed didn't hold any truth. Nor was she about to tell him that this inhibitor had been removed from their relationship. In time perhaps she would share that with him but for now she was thinking of what she could do to cheer him up and get him back out into the world.

As Chris stepped out of the shower she heard a knock on the door, "Are you about done water hog," he asked teasingly, "I'd like to shave soon and all my stuff is in this bathroom."

Chris giggled and wrapped the towel around her, it was then that she realized that she hadn't brought a change of clothes with her and she wasn't about to put the others back on right now. She was faced with either asking him for something to wear or going out naked at the moment. She pondered and then decided that asking him for some of his clothes would be easier than asking for something of Aimee's.

"Hey, this is going to sound stupid Chad but, do you think you could let me borrow some of your clothes so that I can wash my others? I didn't think I'd be staying overnight here."

Chad thought for a minute, and then went to get her some running pants, and a t-shirt. He grabbed a pair of silk boxers from his drawer just in case and tossed them by the door. "I'll go watch some tv so you can reach out and get these," he replied.

Chris waited just a moment and then peered out the door and grabbed the clothes. As she slipped into the silk boxers her body shivered. She had been close with Chad but this was another step completely, wearing his clothes, his silk boxers gliding over her ass and teasing her bare pussy had her nearly too exited to think. It wasn't just his clothes doing this too her it was seeing him earlier with that spark in his eye, a bit of his old self returning and she knew he'd have a comment for her when she came out wearing his stuff.

Sure enough as she emerged he chimed up from the living room, "Hey I decided to wear that outfit today so take it off right now," he grinned at her as he came down the hallway.

"Now there's the old Chad I know and love," she giggled again, "boy you do need to shave, would you like some help?"

Chad knew this was innocent and as much as he wanted to still just sit down and mourn the loss he had just been dealt he thought it would be nice to be touched, innocently and by a friend who cared.

"Yes, as a matter of fact that would be nice Chris."

Chad sat down on the edge of the tub as she lathered up his head and face with shaving cream, he was a bit nervous never having let anyone do this before but he couldn't imagine anything nicer at the moment he could actually feel.

Chris took her time, slowly shaving him as she would her own legs and body, rinsing the blade often as she removed the hair from his body. She was proud of herself, only having given him one minor nick as she finished up. "Smooth enough for you?" she asked.

Chad ran a hand over his face, feeling the goatee still there and his cheeks smooth and head to match. "I think so but you feel it and tell me."

Chris put her face up against his cheek to cheek and wrapped her arms around him, "Yes, feels just right mister," she teased.

Chad hugged her tight, and whispered a thank you between a few tears. "Sorry, it's just I haven't had much contact with anyone outside my mind in almost two weeks so this is a bit of sensory overload."

"Let's go out and go shopping or catch a movie Chad."

"Alright, I think I could do that, but if I start to get tense can we come home?" he asked.

"Sure, I just want to get you out of her for a little while. Besides I should maybe buy some clothes that fit. Just something for a few days while I am here with you, that is if you'd like me to stay."

"Of course I would," he hesitated, "I didn't realize how much I needed someone around, but thank you for forcing me to do so."

After shopping for a few hours they stopped and grabbed some fast food and headed home with a few purchases and movies they had rented. Chad hadn't felt like staying out in public much longer. As they ate and watched the first movie Chris just leaned against him, letting him know that she was there and cared about him.

"I'm getting tired Chris but I'm afraid to sleep, I know that may sound stupid but the last few weeks up until last night I hadn't slept much at all. I know we have always teased in the past but do you think we could watch a movie in the bedroom. I changed the sheets last week, I couldn't stand even being in the room with the last sheets Aimee and I had slept on so there isn't much telltale signs of her being there anymore. I don't mean that as a come on but I didn't think you'd feel comfortable if you fell asleep where she used to lay."

"Chad, that's fine, we can watch a movie and if you need to feel a body next to you to lull you to sleep I understand. We all do, everyone at work and all your friends know that you are suffering. I am here to help."

They made their way back to the bedroom and popped in a movie, Chad put his head down and reached out, just wanted some physical contact with another person. As he put his hand in Chris' he gave it a squeeze, "Thank you Chris, I needed this more than I knew."

Chris kissed his forehead and sat back up, "You're welcome Chad, I was always just a phone call away."

In the middle of the night Chris woke up to Chad shaking and trembling and sitting up next to her. "What's wrong Chad," she asked as she pulled him into a hug.

"I just had the strangest dream, I...I saw....h...her, " he stuttered, "Aimee told me that it was ok to miss her but I had to move on."

Chad curled against Chris who couldn't find any words and soon he was asleep again. She could feel his warm face on her stomach, inches from the silk boxers of his that she had on when she woke up a few hours later. Chris couldn't deny the arousal she felt, just being in bed with Chad, under any other circumstances she would have reached over and touched him and initiated sex right then. It wasn't like her to do such a thing but she secretly desired it. She wanted to know what he felt like, how long and thick he was, how he kissed and so many more things. But it was too soon. For them both it was too early to even imagine being with another person. But on the primal level the both yearned for that consoling.

Chris went back to sleep after staring at the ceiling for a while and she drifted off wishing that their situation was different that they were just both single, without the tragedy behind him or having in effect just been dumped by her fiancee'. In the morning she slid out of bed, Chad still sound asleep having rolled away from her sometime since she had last awoken and went to empty her bladder. She could hear Chad shifting around in his room, apparently having awoken with the same need and gone into the master bathroom while she used the one in the hallway. She could hear him as he settled back into bed. And then he called out to her.

"Chris, come back to bed, we can finish watching the movie or just lay her a while longer. I don't think either of us has to be anywhere today."

Chris grinned, "Alright be right there," she said as she grabbed her toothbrush purchased yesterday and freshened her breath.

Sliding into bed she was less hesitant to flip onto her side and spoon with him. Chad wrapped an arm around her and sighed before falling asleep nuzzled close. She should have known better she thought as she stirred in that listless area between half awake and half asleep. She felt Chad's deep breaths behind her and tingles ran all through her body. Her pussy was on fire and then she felt it. Chad's cock pressed against her ass.

Chad awoke with his cock brushing against Chris' ass. He felt guilty for betraying his wife like this, and yet, he knew that he had mourned and if Aimee was alive she would have told him to move on. That is how she had always been. She had told him a long time ago that if she died she didn't wanted him pining away for her. She wanted him to be happy.

Well at the moment that was quite exactly what he was doing, he was happy that Chris was in bed just cuddling with him, letting him know she was there and there only to help him through this but he wished she didn't have a fiancee' because his remorse would be easy to lose if he could find an intimacy with another person. Although he knew well the only person he would ever be able to lose himself with would be Chris, for she was the only other person in the world he felt strongly towards as a friend and even more so now.

Tempted to just touch her and see what her reaction would be was becoming too strong for him. He slowly slipped his hand up and brushed her hips with it and then realizing what he was doing he rolled over away from her. Damn, I am stupid he thought, this is the only person that has come to get me out and help and here I am contemplating touching her and trying something with her.

He forced himself back to sleep and faintly realized a few minutes later that he could feel Chris' arm curled over his own and draped down over his stomach. So dangerously close that if he got hard it might hit her hand. He fell asleep knowing the danger anyway though.

Chris had decided when Chad touched her hip that if he moved in anyway to touch her or gain intimacy with her she wasn't going to hold back she was going to open herself up to him completely. Her breath caught in her throat as she rolled over and dropped her arm over him now, she knew they were playing a game of cat and mouse and she was prepared to become the hunter this time. Chris softly let her hand glide over his stomach and then she reached the top of his boxers. She just left her hand there and curled as close as possible making him feel the heat of her body against him.