David and Catherine Ch. 02

(This is one of a series of 5 chapters that recounts the experiences of David and Catherine and their interaction with acquaintances, Joshua and Sukhi.)

The Accident:

The last Wednesday of January began in a thoroughly depressing way for Sukhi Kanji. Even as she awoke late in the morning, she recalled the unsatisfactory conversation that she had had with Joshua the night before. He continued to beg her to believe that he still loved her, that he had not, nor intended to have, any relationship with the Chinese girl at work. Perhaps it was because she was dog-tired after an all-day shift on the Wellington to Auckland route, coping with a seemingly cranky lot of airline travellers, that she had been unable to give the emotional and intellectual energy to their problem.

Even as the day progressed, she could not rationalise why she felt so angry, restless, and extremely frustrated by Joshua. He was so wonderfully kind and patient; and that irritated her! She almost wished he would yell, or swear or even come round and pull her hair as he sometimes did when he was mildly displeased with her. Why did she want to hurt him? Did she really not want him back and was she just using this incident as an excuse? He was the nicest guy, and a wonderfully considerate, albeit unimaginative, lover – unlike some Indian men who were quite dreadful, if some of her girlfriends were to be believed, and perhaps it was this mythology that both restrained her and made her very cautious with Joshua.

By tea time, she still had not resolved what she did want. Excitement? Passion? Dream on, she thought. I'm so tired some evenings I wonder if I would know what to do with Valentino himself. But what I do want - no, need - right now, is Joshua - in bed. There was a time when she would not have believed that she needed sex, but in the light of how she was feeling at that moment, she was seriously revising that opinion.

Since she had effectively blown that option, she decided that she would put on her tracksuit and run off some of the accumulated tension. On the way back, she would pick up a can of creamed corn from the supermarket down the road and make a nice omelette for tea. For the first time all day, she felt positive about something.

Sukhi tied her hair back in a pony-tail and applied some lipstick. There, that looks better and she even smiled at herself. She stripped down to her panties replacing her soft filmy bra with a much firmer athletic model. Her breasts were unusually firm for their size and ordinarily needed little support, but she was likely to greatly entertain most male pedestrians if she went jogging with a less supportive bra! Drat all men! She slipped into her tracksuit, donned a pair of sneakers, grabbed her credit card purse and headed out the door. A wave of hot humid air hit her as she reached the footpath and she sensed that heavy rain was imminent. Go to Plan B. Get the groceries first and stay really close to the apartment block! She sprinted towards the supermarket until the pedestrians made her slow down to a jog, by which time she was hot and puffed out anyway.

She strolled around the supermarket until she found the corn, checked out and exited onto the footpath. That was all she remembered of events for the next few minutes after the first shaft of pain in her side.

Dr. David Carr had been summoned back to the real world by the insistent ringing of his phone in the flat he was temporarily sharing in the house surgeons' quarters. He had been woken at least an hour earlier than his shift required, by a staff sister worried about an unexplained drop in old Mrs Brown's blood pressure. One thing David had learned was that senior staff sisters had extremely good instincts, therefore his day had started on the run, fifteen minutes later.

By six o'clock that evening he had managed to shower and get to the supermarket for something tasty for tea. A sausage roll and a cup of tea on the run at midday, had left him famished. He had selected a frozen pack of smoked fish in white sauce that would almost do two people and was wondering if there was any point in phoning Catherine to see what she was doing. Her irrational behaviour over that damned nurse still made him mad when he thought about it. Was there something in his behaviour lately that had made Catherine suddenly feel so insecure and threatened in their relationship? A half-drunk nurse makes a pass at him at a party and she sees that as the beginning of a new relationship! Bloody hell. Perhaps he had been too casual with her, but surely that is one of the benefits and pleasures of a steady relationship, so that when you are tired, you don't have to make a fuss?

As he wandered between the shelves, an ugly thought struck him. Maybe she had met someone else and was itching to get rid of him. Calm returned as he realised that they had promised to tell one another immediately, if their relationship was threatened by another. But maybe she thought he had broken his side of the bargain. What a mess, and the tension of the day merely added to his misery and loneliness and his feeling of helplessness. What should he do? Here he was at thirty-one, buying a meal for one at a supermarket! Why hadn't he pursued the idea of marriage – it did not necessarily stop other predators, either female or male, but it did at least signal that there was an intention for the relationship to be permanent. David wondered if people judged a partner as simply "on appro" and therefore there might still be a chance, if you played your cards properly. His decision to give marriage more serious thought and consideration was interrupted by a sudden commotion at the exit where a small crowd had gathered around a young woman lying on the footpath.

"Bloody skateboarders, I know where I'd like to shove their skateboards!" announced an elderly bystander. David edged his way to a view of the victim and surveyed the scene. He had never been one to elbow his way into such circumstances with a pompous ' Stand back please, I'm a doctor'. The young Indian woman in a track suit was sitting up gathering her groceries around her and wincing a little as she began to move to stand up. Then the penny dropped. I know her, he thought. She's the partner of Joshua, that nice Fijian guy who works with Catherine. He had only met her twice but he remembered her because she was a stunning looker. What on earth was her name?

He knelt down beside her. "Hi," he announced, "I'm David Carr – you may recall that I'm Catherine's partner, or rather was, and she works with Joshua. Can I do anything for you?" He helped her to her feet and noticed that she was reluctant to put any weight onto her left leg. "We might have to get that leg X-rayed if you are in a lot of pain. My car is just over there. I'll bring it across to you." She smiled gratefully at him but indicated that she was able to move her leg but that it hurt a bit when she did. However, she would really appreciate a lift home, because she had been out jogging and it was going to pour down any minute.

A few minutes later, David had finally got her into the car after pushing the front seat right back and letting her fall into it. He thought the likelihood of a break was fairly slim as she was able to move a good deal more easily than she would if it had a fracture, so he agreed to drive her home. "I'm sorry to take you out of your way, I really do appreciate it. By the way, my name is Sukhi and just for the record, Joshua used to be my partner."

Home was only a block away, but it was time enough in which to renew their acquaintance and to establish that they had both recently become 'partnerless' and that it was not much fun. They arrived at a large old house that had been converted into an apartment block, but, at the top of a flight of at least twenty steps! His heart sank. Those steps will be her undoing, he thought. I'll have to make sure she gets up there OK.

"Just drop me off here and I'll grapple with those steps." David went round to open the car door and watched dubiously as she struggled to exit the car. He caught her arm as she lurched when she stood upright. "Look, I'll see you to your flat. I was only going back to mine to cook tea so I'm in no particular rush." So with her left arm over his shoulder they began the ascent. The rain, which had been threatening, finally arrived. First, with a few big spots, then in typical Wellington fashion, followed by an absolute deluge. To give Sukhi credit, she did move up those steps pretty quickly even if the pain was driving her crazy. By the time they reached the top and the sanctuary of the veranda, they were both soaked to the skin. She unlocked the door to her self-contained entrance and invited him to come upstairs to wait for the rain to ease a bit before he went back to his car.

When they reached the top, she realised just how wet they both were. She limped across the passage to what he assumed was the bathroom and returned with a couple of towels. She tossed one to him so that he could wipe his hair and face and dry his glasses and she used the other to tie round her hair like a turban. The look of pain on her face as she raised her arms to wrap the towel persuaded him to offer to have a look at her injuries if she liked or, preferably, take her to the hospital where he was going anyway.

"I don't want to be a nuisance since you're off duty, but frankly I really could not face going down those steps again – even to Outpatients." "Right, that settles it. Where do you want to go? It's just that it would be easier if you were lying down," he suggested. She led the way to the bedroom and stood indecisively beside the bed, dripping water onto the wooden floor. Seeing her dilemma, he bent down and unlaced each shoe and removed them from her feet. He noticed that she wore a very attractive, iridescent pink nail polish on her toes. "Are you decent if I help you off with that wet tracksuit?" Sukhi nodded assent and winced as he got her arms out of one of the sleeves and the sodden garment over her head. Then he pulled her track pants down so that she could step out of them. David used the towel that was still draped around his neck to dry off the wet patches on her back and thighs. She eased herself onto the bed, looking quite a sight with the white turban still on her head and with her white bra and panties contrasting with her dark skin. David though it quite a fetching picture.

He quickly closed his mind to the picture, recalling the very sound words of advice an old practitioner had once given him. Never indulge in fantasies with or about your patients. Discipline yourself to knock any vague appreciation of the human body on the head the second it occurs to you. Just look around at the lives that have been wrecked because the doctor thought he could have his cake and eat it. He had gone on to point out another practitioner in the room and tell him about his misfortunes. David had been particularly impressed by the logic of this piece of wisdom and had subsequently rigorously modelled his own behaviour on it.

He could see the swelling and the small but vivid bruise mark on the side of her left thigh. No wonder it was sore. She must have landed on something. As he leant forward, his still sodden shirt brushed against her. "Oh David, I'm sorry. I should have given your shirt a spin in the washer. I don't have a dryer, but the spin is exceptionally good and we can finish it off in front of the fan heater. Take it off and put it with my things." David couldn't stand the distraction of wet gear clinging to him, so he was happy enough to be rid of it and dropped it onto her tracksuit. He quickly rubbed his hair and turned back to the patient.

Intrigued by the mark, he asked what she had been carrying when she was knocked over. She told him that it was only a can of creamed corn in the plastic bag in the hall. He went out and came back with a bent can. "I can see what happened now. You landed on the lip of the tin so heavily that you crushed it a little. If it had been a taller can, you just might have broken your leg. As it was, you sort of wrapped around it and the main weight of your body hit the pavement." He moved her leg and twisted her knee. She winced but would have yelled if it had been broken. "I don't think there is any permanent damage. Is there any ice in the fridge?" "Should be," she replied. He wandered off to the kitchen and soon returned with an old bread bag half filled with chunks of ice which he then pressed against the bruise. "This should reduce the swelling quite quickly and relieve some of the discomfort. Just hold it in place while I fix the wet clothes." "The laundry is the first door on the left towards the back. There is no logic to the layout around here. Things are where they fit!" She slumped back on the pillow semi aware of the stirring of excitement in her stomach, especially as his fingers moved across her thigh and later as they grasped her ankle and foot to twist her leg. She felt delightfully relaxed in the knowledge that it was only a bruise and that the pain was subsiding as her leg cooled under the ice pack.

David followed the directions and soon had the clothes whizzing noisily, set to stop in ten minutes. This diversion had given him time to reflect on how attractive he found her and how intrusive the old practitioner's warning was becoming. She is not my patient and I am not treating her, he told himself fiercely, anybody would know that an ice pack will reduce swelling! I am simply helping a friend. With the background noise of the spin dryer, she did not hear his return and was lying on the pillow with her eyes closed. He stood in the doorway for a few moments, spellbound by the picture she made. A white turban atop a dark pixie face. A splash of medium red lipstick above a long neck leading to beautifully moulded shoulders and arms. Even the sports bra could not suppress the two grapefruit-like breasts which were bursting behind their restraint. These tapered down to an amazingly small waist connected to generous hips. Long, slim legs lead to nicely developed ankles and the cutest feet with their pink nail polish. Phew!! David could feel his heart pounding and he knew that he needed to leave – immediately.

Sukhi must have sensed his presence, because she suddenly opened her eyes and sat up. The towel around her hair had moved off skew and she winced as she raised her arms to take it off. David immediately became fully professional again. "What's wrong with your arm?" "It's not my arm. It's my right side. It seems very sore when I stretch my arms up." David moved the ice pack away. "You might have a bruised rib. Roll over to face me so that I can see better." Sukhi turned on her side and put her arm up under the pillow so that he could see better. She closed her eyes and was enveloped with pleasure as his knowing fingers explored her rib cage. How nice it would be to have those strong hands caressing her back! The excitement flooded her stomach again as she imagined him fondling her breasts. She was brought back to reality as she felt him lift the edge of her very tight bra to see how far a large bruise extended. "He must have put his elbow up just as he was going to bang into you. I'm sure that it's only bruised," David concluded as he struggled to see under the side of the bra strap. Sensing his difficulty she asked, "Do you want me to take it off?"

"Yes please!" And as he said it, he realised that it slipped out from his subconscious with much more assertiveness than a medical examination required. On a reflex she began painfully to reach for the clasp but knew in the same instant from the tone of his voice, that it was the man speaking, expressing a so far, non-verbalised desire.

Aghast at what he had said, David quickly withdrew his hand and hastened to explain. "When I said 'yes', it just slipped out, and I'm sorry! There are not any justifiable medical grounds for asking you to remove your bra."

Fired with his passion and inflamed by her own repressed desire, Sukhi paused to wriggle into a sitting position, so that she could more easily reach the catch without aggravating the bruise. She heard his sudden intake of breath. "Could I do that for you?" he croaked from a dry throat. Sukhi moved her legs further onto the bed so that she presented more of her back to him. For a doctor practising surgery most days, his fumbling attempts at undoing the catch were unbelievable. However, feverish determination prevailed and he finally succeeded with the catch, gently easing the straps off her shoulders and down her arms. She cast it to the end of the bed and turned towards him. There was only one part of his anatomy that wasn't transfixed and it was as hard as a board. "You are absolutely gorgeous," he breathed, still not moving. She tilted her oval face towards him and surveyed his with black luminous eyes. "Touch me," she whispered.

It was the very thing he most wanted to do, but suddenly, his hands seemed dysfunctional. Instead, he leaned forward and gently kissed the upturned lips. The ends of the towel, which were still draped around his neck like a prize-fighter, fell forward and Sukhi pulled at one end impatiently until it was able to be cast aside. David felt a soft velvety hand slide around the back of his neck and pull his head down as she sank back onto the pillow. He put his hands forward onto the bed to stop overbalancing and felt the firmness of those wonderful breasts pressing into his bare chest. The sensation stoked the fire in his loins to white heat and he feared that he might climax with the pressure on his dick which was tangled in his briefs. In the meantime, after weeks of hunger, their kiss in had developed from a gentle brushing of lips to a fierce duelling of tongues as they parried and probed and explored and exchanged tastes. Sukhi felt incredibly excited and was concerned that her wetness would soon be showing through her panties.

Suddenly she released him. "Help me up," she asked as she sat up and began to swing her legs to the floor, "I've been jogging and need a shower." David moved to her left side to support her as she stood up, just in case her thigh was more painful than she anticipated. She tested her leg by putting her weight on it very gingerly at first, then confidently as she realised that the discomfort was bearable. She smiled her relief at David who immediately wrapped his arms around her. "Yuk, your trousers are wet." she yelped, stepping back from him. "They feel awful on my legs. For goodness sake take them off and hang them in the airing cupboard. Here, let me help you!"

Sukhi busied herself with his belt and zip as he ran his hands over her back. At the same time, he levered each shoe off against the other and kicked them to one side so that he could take off the trousers, which he realised were really quite wet and which were sticking to his legs as they slid down. "That's better," she sighed as she pressed herself against him again, "but your legs are quite cold. You need a shower to warm up. " She held his hand and lead him to the bathroom.

He fully appreciated what she meant when she had said that things were where they best fitted or, as he mentally noted, were made to fit where there was a space. The shower in this case, was installed in a long narrow space, with a large old fashioned shower head at the far end pointing straight down, removing the need for a shower curtain. Dumping a couple of towels at the entrance, she wriggled out of her briefs and walked into the cabinet. David was fascinated by the symmetry of her retreating hour-glass figure with its neat bottom and felt his excitement rising along with his dick. He whipped off his own briefs and followed her in to the now steaming space.