Friends Reunited: Chez Steve

"What's the big cheeser about?" he asked with a laugh as he took his drink from her. She laughed. "Did you get ID'd?" he asked.

"Of course I did!" she said. "The funniest bit was when the girl serving me looked at my driving licence, saw how old I actually am and went '1983! That's when my mum was born!' and then looked at me like I was a pensioner!" she laughed.

Stephen bent over in a fit of laughter at the situation and Sadie's impression of the bar staff. Sadie wiped the tears from her eyes as she laughed watching him. "Well, you are old!" Stephen teased.

"You're 3 months older than me!" she laughed, shoving his upper arm. "So cheers to being old!" she said, holding up her bottle.

"Cheers!" he said, nudging it with his pint. "To finding each other again after 20 years!" he said.

"Indeed!" Sadie smiled. "And to Lizzie." she said fondly.

"To mum." Stephen said with a nod. They sipped their drinks and looked around the site at all the different types of people, their outfits, their tattoos on display, their states of inebriation and their palpable excitement. "Thank you." Stephen eventually said, leaning down to Sadie's ear as he slipped his right arm around her waist from behind. She nodded.

"Can we talk about your mum again? Another time, I mean." she asked, leaning her head back against his chest.

"Yeah, I'd like that. That would be really nice." he said, hugging her against him and kissing her head. Sadie nodded and rubbed her hand over his that was round her waist. "How much did you get stung for these drinks by the way?" he asked.

"Drink it slowly to savour the taste, Stephen. That's all I'm saying." she replied. They both chuckled.

The concert started and the atmosphere was electric. Stephen and Sadie sang and clapped along, danced and swayed together, kissing, cuddling and holding hands throughout the evening. "I hate people like us at concerts!" she said to Stephen with an embarrassed laugh towards the end of the concert.

"Me too but how many times have you been people like us at a concert?" he asked as they started dancing again.

She shook her head. "Never until now."

"Me too but life's too short, Sadie. We're not offending anyone!" he said. She nodded and smiled. "I don't know if I need to say it only you're such a literal person so - will you be my girlfriend?" he asked.

"Your girlfriend?" she repeated, stopping to look at him.

"Yeah, officially. My girlfriend. My other half, my better half, my missus, my partner - in crime and in life. My one and only." he said, spinning her round as they danced casually.

She smiled widely. "Yes. I'll be your girlfriend. Will you be my boyfriend?" she asked.

He laughed and his eyes danced with the reflection of the lights from the stage. "Yes, Sade. I'll be your boyfriend."

She wiggled excitedly. "Oooohhh I feel like we're 18 again!" she said.

"Sure you look 18, according to your daughter at the bar over there!" he teased. Sadie laughed.

It started to rain just before the end of the concert. Sadie fetched her Pac a Mac from her bag and Stephen held it over their heads to give them a bit of shelter as best he could. At the end they made a swift exit before the other audience members started to leave and walked back over the river by the footbridge in the pouring rain to Stephen's apartment. "We can watch the fireworks from the balcony, at least it's a bit more comfortable!" Stephen said, putting the heat on as they got in to his apartment, pushed off their shoes, put them under the radiator, and hung up their wet coats.

"Do you want a hoodie?" he called to her as he walked into his bedroom. He swiftly pulled off his sweater and jeans and pulled on a baggy yellow t-shirt and a pair of black tracksuit bottoms.

"You're grossly underestimating the size of my boobs!" she laughed. He walked down the hall towards her holding out a hoodie and she shook her head. "There's no way your clothes would fit me!" she said. He held it out in front of her and she still shook her head.

"Try it at least!" he said. "There's a pair of sliders, they'll be too big." he said, dropping a pair of black Adidas sliders on the floor. "I'll put your socks on the radiator." he said, holding out his hand for her socks as she took them off, rolled up her jeans and slid her feet into his sliders. He lay her socks across the radiator.

"Ehh no!" Sadie said with an embarrassed giggle. He turned back round to see her with his hoodie very tightly restricting her across the chest. "It won't go over my boobs at all! In fact, I might have broken a rib or two!" she said, indicating she needed his help to take it off. Stephen laughed quietly and helped her pull it back up over her head.

He fixed her hair which had been fluffed up. She fixed the sleeves of his hoodie which had been pulled inside out. "Here," he said. She watched as he took off his t-shirt. She kept her gaze glued to his eyes as he stood topless in front of her. He maintained her gaze as he took his hoodie from her and put it on then shook out his t-shirt and held it up for her. "I promise I won't look." he said. She sighed a laugh and her face flushed. He turned to get a cosy blanket from the cupboard and she quickly took off her top and put on his t-shirt. "Are you decent?" he asked.

"Am I ever?" she asked before confirming that she was dressed.

He turned back and nodded his approval before wrapping her in the blanket just as the first firework lit up the sky. "Oooh here we go, I love firework displays!" he said, like an excited child. Sadie felt her heart melt as she watched his face light up with joy. He turned out the low lights in the kitchen so the apartment was in darkness and they stepped out onto the balcony. The rain had stopped and there was a breeze that only just hit them. Stephen wrapped his arms around Sadie who was wrapped up in the blanket and he clutched her against him. "Are you alright?" he asked her.

She nodded. "Mm hm. I feel very safe." she said softly with a smile.

He tipped his head and leaned his ear down closer to her. "Very?" he asked.

"Safe." she repeated, turning to watch his face.

"Safe." he said softly to himself. "Good." he said to her and hugged her tightly against his body.

They watched the firework display and then went back in to the living room. The apartment was nice and warm. Sadie took off the blanket, folded it and set it on the sofa. She scanned her arm with her phone and hummed as she looked at the number. "What's wrong?" Stephen asked, turning on the TV and a lamp.

Sadie sighed a laugh. "You know my incidental noises already!" she said.

Stephen pouted as he walked over to stand beside her."What's this then?" he asked, pointing to a white disk on the back of her arm.

"It's a sensor, it's called 'flash glucose monitoring' so it monitors my blood sugar 24/7 and I use my phone to scan it and see the readings." she explained. "See?!" she said, slowing him the graph on her phone.

"Wow! That's amazing!" Stephen said.

"Isn't it? It's changed my life!" she smiled.

"I'm sure! So why do you do have to prick your finger?" he asked.

"I don't. I only got my insulin pump a couple of months ago so it's still early days. Learning to use it and understand what's happening has been a lot of work, you know now that I'm old!" she joked. "The blood test is more accurate than the sensor and the blood sugar meter connects to my pump so it makes it a bit easier for me until I get more confident with the pump." she explained.

Stephen nodded. "I think you're pretty confident now, I wouldn't have thought the pump was new to you. You seem to know what you're doing with it." he said. She smiled shyly. "I've got a lot more homework to do!" he said.

"Thank you. To be honest, it's important to me that whoever I'm with learns about diabetes and how I manage mine. Living with it has felt more difficult as time has gone on and I feel very alone at times." she said timidly.

Stephen held out his fist to fist bump her. "Don't worry, I've got you. You're Mr Miyagi and I'm Daniel." he said with a defiant nod before bowing to her. Sadie giggled. "So this reading is bad according to your incidental noise when you took it?" he asked, nodding at her phone.

"It's a bit high." she said.

Stephen looked puzzled. "But the carb values were right, were they not?" he asked, panicked as he took out his phone.

She shook her head and pushed his phone away. "Calm it. They were right, don't worry. Everything makes your blood sugar change: we were in the crowd and it was hot, we were excited about the gig, it rained, you make me nervous..." she giggled. He looked at her. "Sexual attraction affects blood sugar." she said shyly.

"Damn it! I was going to ask if you fancied eating a slice of banoffee pie off my bare chest!" he joked. She giggled and scrunched up her face. "Do you want a cup of tea?" he asked. She nodded. "Banoffee?" he asked. She shook her head. "Promise I'll keep my clothes on, wouldn't want to make you vomit!" he teased.

"Stop it, I wouldn't vomit!" she giggled, putting her hand on his chest. "No thank you, just a cup of tea please. I'll correct my blood sugar now." she said.

"Let me know if you need anything. Make yourself comfy." he said as he walked into the kitchen.

"Put the "Sadie eating food off your naked body" on the back-burner for tonight." she teased.

"I've gone from shirtless to naked?! That escalated quickly!" he said as he set out cups and boiled the kettle. "Alright Elland, don't hold back now!" he teased. Sadie giggled as she pressed buttons on her pump.

They settled on the sofa, drank their tea and chatted with the TV on in the background. "Give me your feet up." Stephen said, patting his lap.

"Eugh no, they're probably stinking!" Sadie said.

"Don't be silly, put them up here!" he said. "You did want to know about me touching people for a living! You can tell a lot from feet so it's a good place to start." He nodded encouragement, tilted his head and patted his lap. Sadie reluctantly turned round on the sofa and sat lengthways with her feet in Stephen's lap. Stephen bent her right knee and leaned his elbow over it as he started to massage her left foot. She watched his hands. "Any damage?" he asked, looking at her.

"To my feet?" she asked. He nodded as he studied her face. "Yeah, some neuropathy." she said, embarrassed, squinting as his fingers worked over the underside of her toes.

"There." he said, tapping his thumb on her little toe. She nodded. He hummed. "What about there?" he asked, working his thumb down the outer side of her foot. She flinched and instinctively tried to pull her foot back. "Is that painful?" he asked. She shook her head. "That's not what that reaction or your face says!" he teased. He held her foot in his hands and looked at her.

"I'm not really used to anyone touching me there." She said quietly.

"You been missing out on foot massages?" he asked, playfully. She shook her head quickly. "Does it just feel a bit strange? Most people love it." he said, stroking the top of her feet. "You've got lovely feet - small like your hands!" he smiled.

"I'm not really comfortable with my feet being touched. My left one in particular." she said softly.

"OK, I'll not." Stephen said, letting go of her foot. "I don't want to make you uncomfortable." he said with a sincere look as he patted her legs.

"I'd like to get an assessment, I'm plucking up the courage to book in with you!" she smiled shyly.

"Absolutely! You don't have to book in and see me at work, just ask and I'll do it here." he said with a genuine nod.

"Ok. Hmmm...I just don't have a straight answer to the question 'which area of your body is causing most of the problem?'. I'm a literal potato!" she said, signaling from head to toe. Stephen tutted and shook his head. "I am!" she said.

"Good thing I'm a chef then, isn't it!" he remarked with a smirk. Sadie laughed.

"Right now, is there something you're more comfortable with?" he asked, patting her legs.

She looked at him as she decided what to answer. "Would it be OK if I asked for a cuddle?" she asked, looking at him cautiously.

His face broke into a wide grin. "Of course!" he said, stretching his arm out.

She smiled with relief. "Don't you want to wash your hands first?" she asked.

"Right enough 'cos that's a nasty case of tench foot you've got there, Sade!" he chuckled as she turned her body, pulled her feet up under her and leaned into his embrace. "No, some of the trotters I've seen have got nothing on you! You should see mine after a race, they're in bits for days!" he said. She rested her head on his chest and clutched the front of his hoodie in her hand. "Don't you have to see a podiatrist to get your feet checked every year?" he asked. She nodded. "What do you do then?!" he chuckled.

"I don't like it, I just tell them my feet are sensitive and I have to try not to jump when they're touching them." she said. "Maybe it's something we could work on?" she asked timidly.

"Me touching your feet?!" he chuckled. "Can't say I've had that request before but yeah, ehhh if you like!" he said as he rubbed her left hip with his left hand.

"Thanks," she said softly. "So what can you tell about someone from their feet then?" she asked curiously.

"Well... you can tell if they're intelligent... and kind...and funny...and beautiful..." He said softly as moved his left hand up her body and round her waist, clutching her body against his. She lifted her head from his chest to see him looking down at her with a fond look in his eyes.

"Real smooth, Willis." she smirked as he continued.

"and honest...and TICKLISH!" he said, suddenly sitting up and tickling her all over her torso. She squealed and they laughed together until they ended up lying along the sofa with Stephen on top of Sadie and their legs tangled.

"I SUBMIT!" she squealed. They gazed at each other for a split second before Sadie kissed him. They kissed in long, lingering waves, their tongues slowly caressing. Sadie ran her hands through his hair and Stephen's hands roamed over her breasts, down to her thighs and back again as they made out.

Sadie stopped to catch her breath and they gazed at each other. "Is my pump digging in to you?" she asked, trying to adjust its position on her waistband.

Stephen shook his head. "Nope but I'm pretty sure my dick is digging into you." he chuckled.

Sadie giggled. "That's OK by me." she said just as Stephen started kissing her again. They breathed heavily together and the heat between them intensified. "I'm not staying." Sadie said in a muffled sigh as they kissed. "Not tonight."

Stephen hummed as he kissed her and she traced his scalp gently with her nails. She felt him sigh and he started gently nibbling and sucking on her bottom lip as they kissed. Suddenly Bruce appeared and leapt onto the sofa by their feet. "BRUCE!" Stephen shouted, turning to look at the cat. Bruce sat defiant and glared at him.

Sadie giggled. "You're being cock blocked by your pussy, Steve." He turned to look at her blankly and she giggled at his face. "Time for me to go anyway, now you've started kissing me like that it's game over for my willpower."

Stephen's eyes narrowed as his brow furrowed in thought and he leaned down and kissed her in a long, lingering kiss that ended in him gently sucking her bottom lip. "Don't tease me right now, Willis!" Sadie groaned, scratching his scalp gently as she bit her lip.

Stephen tilted his head back and his eyes rolled back into his head briefly. "Says you with your hands in my hair like that." he drawled. He looked down at her and she smirked and let her arms flop down beside her. Stephen moved to sit back on his knees while he grasped her hands and pulled her to sit up. He got up to gather her socks, shoes and clothes while she fixed her hair and shook out her limbs.

"I'll walk you down to the car." he said once she was ready.

"Thank you." she said. "Bye Bruce, see you again. Make sure Stephen gets some sleep tonight!" she said as she stroked the cat who had curled up in the warm space they'd vacated on the sofa.

They walked hand-in-hand to the lift. "Any nice plans for tomorrow?" she asked.

"Sunday's my day off, well one of them. I take mid-week too depending what's booked in. So I'll get up early, go for a run, do some chores, just take it easy really." he said.

Sadie laughed. "Your idea of taking it easy is very different from mine!"

"I need to blow off some steam!" he exclaimed. "A long run will do nicely - for now!" he smirked at her while they looked at their reflection in the lift mirror. She nodded and tried to hide a smirk. "Did you have a good night?" he asked.

"Yes thank you. I had a brilliant time." she smiled as he clutched her hand and she hugged him round the waist while they walked to her car. "Thank you for dinner." she pursed her lips to hide a smirk as they reached her car.

He slid his arms around her waist as they faced each other and shook his head. "Yours next time?" he asked.

"Next time?" she asked in mock suspicion. She sighed a laugh. "Yes, mine." They kissed quickly in sloppy kisses and he smacked her playfully on the ass.

"Text me to let me know you're home safe." he said as she got into the car, started the engine and wound down the window. "I'm away to have a posh wank - I MEAN A COLD SHOWER!" he said, sticking his tongue out playfully.

She laughed and screwed up her face. "Bye Willis, you charmer!" she said, blowing him a kiss through the window before driving off.