Balance & Equilibrium

Her hands struggled to find a purchase on his sweaty back, likewise for her weakening legs that were scissored around his midriff. Every time he impaled her the soles of her feet would dig into his ass cheeks, and the tell-tale sign that he was about to get her off arrived when her toes curled inward.

All of her senses, with exception to touch, diminished into the background – gone was Jake's laboured breathing, the rich smell of sex wafting around their writhing bodies, the gentle pitter-patter of the rain, and the monotonous, overly obvious we-are-fucking creak of the bed – leaving Penny to focus on little else other than the scorching white heat pulsing between her thighs.

Still pressed cheek-to-cheek, Penny's primitive moans flowed directly into Jake's ear, seeming to spur him on in the same manner as a jockey whipping a tiring racehorse; he was so close to finishing her off that all he had to do was endure one last canter and he would be free to cum at his own leisure.

"I can't last much longer," he whimpered, although his voice was somewhat distant and barely registered.

The jagged, fuzzy image of Jake, the embodiment of virility, emptying a big load of warm sperm into her unprotected pussy tilted the scales with cataclysmic proportions and sent her flying over the edge. Thoughts pertaining to anything cohesive were fleeting, so it was beyond her comprehension as to why the notion of letting Jake fertilise her womb excited her to the extent it did.

Convulsions suddenly afflicted her lower body, jarring her hips against Jakes' with every upward thrust. A low, guttural mewling clawed its way up her throat and fell from her sensuous lips, which became stifled when she pressed her mouth to Jake's neck and proceeded to nip at his flesh, giving him a couple of well-aimed love bites.

"Yes, oh god, yes!" she hissed, gleefully losing control of every basic human function and letting her lust for release reign supreme.

Nothing but the pleasure shooting through her groin registered.

Nothing but getting her slick pussy crammed full of her beautiful friend-turned-lover's cock mattered.

With her eyes screwed tightly shut and a squeal of ecstasy filling the room, Penny's body went into spasms much like those experienced by an epileptic. She jerked and writhed against Jake's slippery torso, until finally, having spent almost every joule of energy available in her sex-addled body; she eked out a final gasp and then unceremoniously collapsed to the sweat-soaked mattress.

By some small miracle Jake hadn't been bucked from her body. But then, eventually coasting down from what was a deeply satisfying orgasm – possibly the best she'd received without the assistance of her coveted bright pink, vibrating dildo – Penny realised he'd had the foresight to manoeuvre his hands underneath her perfectly sculptured rump and hang on for dear life. Thus he was still inside her, as large as life and harder than ever, pounding away like a worn-out machine that was about to overload its circuitry and subsequently explode.

Still trembling slightly – the minor aftershocks of her powerful climax – Penny eased open her eyes and gazed limpidly at Jake's face. "Hi there, Yogi Bear," she greeted with a sickly sweet smile, ruffling his messy hair with one hand while affectionately stroking his cheek with the other.

"Hi yourself," he moaned. His brow was etched in deep concentration and covered in a light sheen of sweat. His gorgeous green eyes, most commonly filled with empathy and a degree of intelligence which always left her panties damp, now shined with raw passion.

Although sated by her mind-numbing orgasm, her pussy was content to allow Jake's cock unlimited access. Yes, it was undoubtedly true that he had earned the privilege to maintain his residency within her body, but more importantly; the empty void within both her heart and soul was temporarily sidelined while Jake assisted with her physical completion.

She snatched up a handful of his damp locks and pulled his mouth down to hers. At first his lips were notably hard, but after a full minute of wet, soulful smooching, Penny managed to soften them up.

The movement of his hips suddenly became erratic, haphazardly grinding his cock into her with a clumsy urgency that saw his thrusts fall out of rhythm.

She giggled with surprise when he pushed his tongue between her lips and wrestled with hers, lavishing upon it a degree of suction that left her spellbound.

Now that her stream of consciousness wasn't muddled by thousands of years of sexual instinct – a biological failsafe system designed to maintain the continuation of our species – it shocked her to discover that, at the high risk of impregnation, she still intended to let him climax inside her vagina.

She took his face in her hands and encouraged him to tear his trembling lips away from hers. "Baby," she said, offering him a peculiar smile, "I want you to go right ahead and fuck me until you blow your load in me." The use of that four-lettered swear word had been conjured with all the sexy deliberation she could muster, knowing full well that, because it was a rare addition to her typically angelic vocabulary, when uttered from her sweet lips it would do some major damage to the tenuous grip Jake had on controlling his orgasm.

An anguished moan preceded the simultaneous tension of every muscle in his body; including the one between his legs. Moments later, after slamming his stiff rod balls-deep into her pussy and cancelling the heretofore ritual of retreating until only the tip remained embedded, Jake shuddered violently in her arms as her vaginal muscles clenched in anticipation.

"That's it, go right ahead and cum," she sighed, planting a delicate kiss on his mouth. "Fill my pussy with your cum."

Proving to be the epitome of obedience, seconds later two gooey streams of baby juice erupted from him and flooded the far-reaching depths of her body. He squirmed against her steely embrace, emitting a contented cry of pleasure as the rest of his sperm dribbled out of his cock and quenched her pussy's thirst.

Watching the vast array of expressions grace Jacob McCloud's face as he emptied the contents of his balls into her was almost as sexy and exhilarating as willingly risking motherhood to do so.

"You just faked your orgasm, didn't you," Penny accused, grinning devilishly.

Hoarse laughter spilled from his lips, and that merry sound was music to Penny's ears. "Oh, yeah, totally," he croaked. "When a guy cums inside you, it means he's faking it for sure."

Protection had always been a non-issue with boyfriends in the past, having had the opportunity to purchase contraceptives – either in the form of the pill or a packet of condoms – before admitting a man access to her sexual nerve centre. But for the past year her vagina hadn't befriended anything resembling a real, live penis, remaining faithful solely to her fingers and her bright pink dildo. With money being so tight, the expense incurred by keeping contraceptives in supply hadn't been justified.

Silence descended on them like a swooping bat, and once he'd softened he opened his eyes and gazed adoringly at her. Those beautiful green orbs started to glisten, eventually spilling tears from the corners which tracked wet pathways down his cheeks.

It was only when droplets of moisture dripped into both of her ears did she realise that she too was crying.

All they could do was hold each other. For however long their sexual antics had lasted, thoughts revolving around the previous two days' events had been stricken from their collective consciousness. Despite its lack of longevity, the relief they had shared offered up a little sunlight on the cloudiest day of their lives.

They listened to the rain splatter against the window. Occasionally they would kiss or touch one another, but mostly they lay there in a contemplative hush gazing into the other's eyes. Verbally describing what had taken place would only serve to demean the emotion behind it. Mere words were inadequate, for even the most gifted poet would be impeded by the restraints of a structured language; the truth could only be expressed in a look, touch or kiss.

When the golden silence was eventually broken, of all things, Jake said, "I have to go to the bathroom."

Penny kissed him tenderly. "Hurry back, okay."

"Okay," he said, slipping from between her thighs and kneeling in front of her.

Her sleek legs, splayed apart and baring her glistening, well-fucked pussy, trembled as he hesitated to admire the view.

Now lacking the self-confidence to openly display her wares to Jake's devouring eyes – having previously been able to shed her insecurities via her intense desire to give herself to him - Penny struggled with the temptation to cover up her body.

"You cold, are you?" he asked with a frown.

"No, I'm just a teensy weensy bit embarrassed, that's all."

"Embarrassed? Embarrassed about what?"

A heated blush ignited in her cheeks, and for the first time since she'd disrobed she had to avert her gaze. "My body," she whispered, nervously tucking some loose strands of hair behind her ears.

Jake padded along the mattress on all fours until he was within kissing range, laying a gentle peck on her lips. "And what's wrong with your body?"

"It's not as trim as I'd like."

"You're gorgeous, Pen. I wouldn't change a thing about you."

"It's just that–"

"You're gorgeous," he insisted.

Painted with the warmest of smiles, her lips curled into a playful smirk and she pressed a palm to the side of his face. "And you are so in my good books," she said. "Great sex, great compliments…you're just a regular Don Juan, aren't you."

They were pressed nose to nose, kissing like gnomes again. "Just call me Mr. de Marco," he whispered, brushing his lips against hers. His tongue slipped inside her mouth and they fought a languid battle, savouring the kiss instead of rushing it.

After making out like a couple of experimental high school kids for an unknown period of time, Jake rolled away from her and launched himself off the bed. She admired his body as he made his way to the adjoining bathroom, envying his nonchalance regarding his naked state.

"Oh, Jakey," she sang out when he reached the door. He turned and raised his left eyebrow. "Could you grab a tampon for me while you're in there doing your business?"

"A tampon?"

"Yeah, you know, a small white object that women shove up their you-know-what's whenever it's 'that time of the month.' Tissues, when they're soggy, can tear really easily and they leave behind all this yucky fluff that takes forever to clean out. I find that tampons soak up cum just as well. They're in the cupboard underneath the sink, you can't miss them."

"Okay," he said, turning away from her with a peculiar look pasted to his face.

Whenever you mention – or even allude to – your period around most men, no matter how gifted they are in the sack or how comfortable they are with all things sexual, they inexplicably revert to being a prepubescent teenager. They hate discussing it, and will without fail change the subject as fast as humanly possible.

A minute later he flushed the toilet.

After hearing him rummage around in what she assumed to be the cupboard beneath the sink, he emerged from the bathroom with a white cylindrical object pinched between his thumb and forefinger, holding it away from his body as if it had the diseased bite of a rabid dog.

Penny giggled when he offered it to her with a wrinkled nose.

"What?" he asked, clearly perplexed.

"Nothing," she grinned. "Absolutely nothing."

They spent the rest of the day lounging in bed, snuggled up to one another with their heads sharing the same fluffy pillow. Talk often centred on Brian, he of the Aryan blonde-hair, blue-eyed looks. Bellyfuls of laughter filled the room as frequently as their anguished sobs, stemming from swapping stories of Brian's mischievous antics that usually landed all three of them in trouble. Mr. Jackson, Brian's father, had habitually referred to their trio of friendship as The Bermuda Triangle, an apt moniker considering the devastation often left in their wake.

Day melted into night, and still the rain descended from the heavens as it attempted to cleanse Green Hills of its misery. The foul stench of death still lingered over the town, likewise did the charcoal wisps of clouds that wished to purge the Green Hills community of that scythe-wielding figure.

"Will you stay the night?" she asked Jake at one point.

"Of course."

"And tomorrow night."

"Yes."

"And the night after that?"

He caressed the back of her neck with his rough tradesman hands and showered her face with kisses, the majority of which landed on her lips and cheeks. The love he felt for her was as transparent as a glass pitcher, and it poured from his heart with such unbridled passion that it reduced her to mush. "I will stay with you for as long as you desire," he informed her.

"Forever," she murmured. "I want you to stay with me forever."

For the second time that day they made love, their bodies sliding together in a perfect fit. The soft amber glow from her bedside lamp illuminated everything she needed to see: Jacob McCloud, loving her with every fibre of his being, moving in and out of her with such a restrained rhythm that he probably wouldn't climax for hours.

Two orgasms later and with a third hovering just beyond the horizon, Penny Baker came to the realisation that her estimate had been correct; and be damned if she hadn't adored every second of it.

It was a day that would remain etched into their memories for the rest of their lives. In their hour of need they had sought each other out, discovering a reciprocated love in the midst of grave tragedy and heartache. If nothing else, they had learnt the harsh lesson that life must be experienced to its absolute limits, for you never know when your number might be called.

^ ^ ^ ^ ^

The steam from Penny's scalding shower had filled the entire bathroom. Depending on how you perceived it, the mist swirling around her dripping body took on the appearance of either a cheesy B-Grade horror flick or that of the interior of a sauna down at the local gym.

She towelled herself dry and slipped into her night attire: a pair of mauve satin pyjamas, which accentuated her shapely form and were as comfortable as sleeping in the nude. Jake, who seldom slept in anything but boxer shorts, frequently cuddled up to her in bed because he loved to feel the smooth, silky fabric caressing against his skin.

Something had been weighing heavily on her mind for the past week. At first it had been merely an off-handed suspicion, but as the days wore on she became convinced that her theory was in fact a reality when more snippets of evidence began piling up to support it.

Jake had to be told. Keeping secrets from him so early in their relationship's conception – or at all, for that matter – instilled her with a guilty conscience that she desperately wanted to wipe clean. Not only that, when it came time for her to use the item she'd purchased from the pharmacy that morning, she wanted Jake to be present for moral support.

Copious amounts of steam wafted out into the bedroom when she eased the bathroom door open.

Jake was already underneath the covers, keeping himself entertained by casually thumbing through the world's most renowned dirty literature, Penthouse magazine. It didn't particularly faze Penny that he enjoyed ogling other naked women – just so long as they were restricted to their two-dimensional form, of course. Some of her girlfriends would deny their significant others access to pornographic material, citing that their beaus should have eyes only for them, and if necessary they would resort to blackmailing them by using sex as an ultimatum. Penny couldn't understand this mentality. At times, even she found a small degree of perverse pleasure in playing the voyeur, becoming aroused by the sight of two strangers getting paid to star in a filthy movie with one another.

"Let me guess, you only buy it for the articles," she teased, planting her rump on the mattress.

"Of course," he shot back.

The magazine was upside down, but even from that odd angle she could make out the glossy images taking up ninety percent of both pages. A very pretty blonde with big boobs, a flat tummy, and great legs graced each of the photographs, managing to produce the warmest of smiles while using her fingers to spread apart the cleanly shaven lips of her pussy. A silver key dangled around her neck on a matching chain, signifying that she was this month's centrefold.

The Penthouse Pet was the embodiment of every male's fantasy, and probably quite a few females' as well, but Jake's eyes were busy roaming the length of Penny's pyjama-clad body.

"We need to talk," she said.

Surely Jake could hear her pounding heart. He loved her, this she knew, without question or fault, but they had only been together as lovers for five or so weeks, making it impossible to intuit how he would react to the information she possessed.

"Uh oh, this sounds kind of ominous. If this is about the articles thing, I was just reading one about George Bush before you–"

"I think I'm pregnant," she interjected. She closed the magazine and delivered it to the bedside dresser, then scooted closer to him. "I brought one of those home pregnancy tests but I haven't had the guts to go through with it on my own."

He blinked at her. "Pregnant?" he asked, appearing to have great difficulty processing the meaning of the word.

"Yes, pregnant. I was supposed to have my period about a week ago, but it kind of hasn't surfaced."

Jake rubbed at his face and sat up, taking both of her hands in his own. "But that can happen without it being a…a baby, can't it? Er…can it?"

"It can happen, but it's pretty unlikely in my case. I'm a healthy girl and my menstrual cycles are like clockwork, but this is all just guesswork until I take the test."

"You're pretty sure about it, though, aren't you?"

Penny nodded. If the test turned out negative, she would be inclined to purchase another one. "I know this sounds silly to say, but I actually feel like I'm pregnant. Not that I know exactly how it feels when you're pregnant, I just know that my body is experiencing something it's never felt before."

On the one hand she was terrified of how her parents would react to the news, but on the other hand she was elated by the warm and fuzzy notion that Jake's baby was growing inside her.

The paradox of emotion whirling in her heart and mind must've migrated to her facial features, because Jake slipped out from underneath the covers and wrapped his arms around her waist. His lips found hers, and seconds later their tongues were dancing languidly to a soundless tune.

Their kiss was deep and soft and long-lasting, melting away any of the tension that had previously afflicted her.

Leaving Penny breathless and slightly horny, Jake eventually broke the kiss and combed his fingers through her damp hair. He gazed at her affectionately as he caressed her face with his fingertips. He loved to touch her as much she loved letting him. Even after engaging in a lengthy session of passionate lovemaking, it wasn't uncommon for him to continue stroking every inch of her nude form, lovingly running his palms over her smooth, warm skin, paying no special attention to any one particular area of her body – it was all fair game as far as he was concerned.

"I guess we better find out for sure if there's a bun growing in my oven," she said.

Jake grinned in spite of himself. "Where's the test?"

Penny rose to her feet and cocked her head towards the bathroom door. "I put it in the bathroom." Jake started to follow in her stead, but she placed a manicured hand on his chest and pushed him back onto the mattress. "You stay here, cowboy. I'm nervous enough without having you watch me pee."