Jeffrey's Murderer

"Just come for the company," she said, sealing the deal.

It wasn't until I was sitting in philosophy, listening to the professor drone on and on about something I wasn't even following, that I realized that I had just agreed to sleep over at Emily's house, and that Emily was a lesbian.

My first thought was, "Oh, shit. Where the hell will I sleep? I hope it's not in her bed. It was a big bed, but I don't think I'm comfortable with that."

I wasn't even sure what the professor was talking about. He spoke in a dull monotone, stopping only for an occasional smoker's coughing fit. My mind started to wander.

I thought about Emily as I doodled on my tablet. I couldn't wrap my mind around the idea that she was a lesbian. I'd never known a lesbian before. I didn't even know what lesbians did when they had sex. I guessed they probably went down on each other, but beyond that, I had no idea.

My own experience was pretty limited. I had dated Chad, but he only asked me out because he wanted a job at my father's hardware store. He thought he was too good for a job at McDonald's, and my father only hired one or two summer workers. He got the job, so I'm not sure why we stayed together so long. I had tried to give him a blow job a couple of times, but he ended up jacking off to finish both times. He certainly wasn't sticking around for my amazing oral skills. He had never returned the favor either.

I did like kissing him though. I remember how my privates would tingle when I felt his tongue touch mine. I'd feel that heat radiating through my pelvis, and I'd start to squirm against him. He would put his hand down my pants and slide his fingers into my slit. It seemed to me that it should feel so good, but inevitably, he was so rough, he'd put my fire right out. One time he pressed my clit so hard, I thought he'd popped it.

My mind went back to Emily. I imagined that she would have a softer touch. Her fingers were long and slender, like a piano player's. She'd at least know that you can't just poke around and hope for the best. She'd know where the most sensitive parts would be. She wouldn't hurt me.

What the fuck was I thinking? I'm not a lesbian!

That startled me back to reality, and I realized that it was almost time to go. I was grateful that I had French right after philosophy. I wasn't sure I could face her right away.

~~~~~

That night I dreamt about Emily's house.

In the dream I was in Emily's room, sitting in her armchair. The room was lit only by the soft light of the fish tank, which was as large as the entire wall. Emily was swimming in it. She was completely nude, and apparently she didn't need to breathe air either.

I looked again, and realized that she had a tail like a dolphin's, starting just below her mid-thigh. She swam slowly, her body long and graceful. Her breasts were full, and they moved gently with the water. She stopped herself in the middle of the tank, and looked at me. Her long, red hair fanned out behind her, the goldfish swimming in and out of her flowing tresses.

She placed her hands where her knees should have been, and ran them up to where tail turned into legs. Her fingertips continued toward the cleft between her thighs, and I watched as her fingers touched the naked flesh there.

I looked down at my own body and realized that I was also naked. My hand slid down my stomach into my pussy, and I began to run my finger through my wet slit. I felt warmth building there as my finger located my clit. I swirled in gentle circles with my middle finger.

The part of me that knew it was a dream wondered how I knew what to do with my finger. I had attempted to masturbate before, but I hadn't been much more successful than Chad had been. I hadn't yet discovered how much pleasure the clitoris could bring, and I had never had an orgasm.

Emily's tail began moving back and forth, propelling her slowly through the water as she rubbed herself. I started at her tits, wondering how they'd feel against the skin of my palms. I licked my lips at the thought of my tongue touching her long, hard nipples.

Suddenly I jumped, realizing that there were hands on my shoulders, sliding down my breasts. I panicked a little bit when I realized that it was Emily's cousin touching me. He was so tall, that he had to bend deeply at the waist to stroke my tits. He cupped them gently, and I could see his black nail polish in the dim light from the fish tank.

Emily smiled as he took my nipples between his fingers and pinched gently. I rubbed my pussy faster, feeling a sensation rising in my clit that I had never felt before. The heat spread through the rest of my pussy, rising like a bike climbing a long hill. Little by little I felt my flesh swell against my hand, and for the first time ever, I realized that I was going to cum. I rubbed faster, imagining that bike nearing the top of the hill.

The mermaid in front of me turned, and I could see her perfect ass, smooth and white over the top of her tail. The hands on my tits alternated between firm pinches on the nipples and soft caresses on the fleshy part of my breasts. Emily turned to me, watching my hand rubbing my clit.

I felt the stubble on his chin as his mouth dipped to kiss my neck, and I jumped again when I felt his teeth gently bite right below my ear. That jolt drove me to the top of the hill, where I imagined the bicycle teetering, ready to plunge down the other side. My toes curled, and my head thrashed from side to side as I felt an orgasm rushing through my pussy for the first time in my life.

I felt the bicycle rushing headlong toward the bottom of the hill as I cried out in my sleep, "Omigod. Omigod. Omigod."

I woke with a start to find myself in my own room at my aunt's house, still muttering out loud with my hand in my panties. I was glad that my aunt's room was downstairs.

I was soaked and confused. My heart was pounding and I was breathing so hard I thought maybe I had actually been riding a bicycle.

I thought about the dream, about Emily and her nakedness, and about my reaction to her body. I was terrified, and at first I thought it was because I was afraid of my attraction to Emily. My first orgasm ever had been for another woman.

After a moment, I realized the truth about my terror. In my dream I was certain that Hunter's bite on my neck meant that he was a vampire.

~~~~~

On Friday we met in the lounge after classes, and I followed Emily home. It was light out when we arrived, so I was able to see just how depressing the inside of the house was.

"Wow. I can see this time."

"Here it is, in all its splendor. Gran likes to say that it hasn't been redecorated since the Truman Administration. Gramp was not fond of change."

That seemed to be an accurate assessment. In the living room the furniture was worn, and didn't look comfortable, even when it was new. Dark paneling covered some of the walls. The others were covered with peeling, yellowed wallpaper.

I thought that perhaps it had been just as long since it had been dusted. Emily sat down on the couch along the back wall, releasing a cloud of dust into the ray of late-afternoon sunshine coming through the dirty window pane.

The odor of cigarette smoke was deeply embedded into every fiber of the house. Any surface that was white in the 1950's was now dark yellow or brown, giving the house a sad demeanor. I could see why Gran hosted the Halloween party instead of New Year's. One could easily imagine ghosts living within these dingy walls.

Over dinner Gran and Emily told me what they had done in the past at their parties. They talked about the decorations they had in the attic, and what their costumes were in the past few years. Gran left us to clean up while she went to play Bingo with her friends.

Once the last dish was dried and put away, we headed to the attic to take a look at the decorations.

The attic was dark and dusty and loaded with old stuff. The only light was a single bulb, hanging overhead, covered in cobwebs. We found Halloween lights, fake spiders, rubber bats to hang from the ceilings, and all kinds of decorations. I took a flashlight and looked deeper into the piles.

I saw the shadow of what looked like wings in the far corner.

"Emily, is that a stuffed owl?"

"Oh, my. I forgot about that. My grandfather was an amateur taxidermist, so there are a couple of treasures hiding up here. Bring it down with us though. It is super creepy."

I dug deeper into the dusty junk and found a big, black bird. "Raven? Crow?"

"I don't know, but it will go on the porch," Emily said.

I looked behind a pile of boxes, and saw something amazing. It was a dress form. "Look at this!" I shouted. "We could dress this thing up and hide it in a corner!"

"Ooh. I'm seeing creepy vampire! Let's look through the clothes and see what we can find," she said.

An hour later we felt satisfied that we had found everything spooky that had been hiding in the attic. We stood, surveying our treasure.

Suddenly, I felt something tickle my hair, right near the top of my head. I reached up and ran my hand over my hair to smooth it. I felt something there, so I scooped it into my hand and threw it to the floor.

It was a small, brown spider.

I was yelling and practically screaming. I was dancing around like an idiot, brushing off my hair and clothes with my hands as though it was still on me. "Get it off. Get it off. Is there a spider on me?"

Emily was trying hard not to laugh while she inspected my hair and clothes for spiders.

"What's that, your spider dance?"

"Omigod. I hate spiders. I can handle snakes and rats and bats, but not freaking spiders."

"Honey, you're fine. Here, I'll kill it."

SMACK! SMACK! She killed it with her shoe.

"I have to get out of here. I feel like it's still on me." I collected as much as I could carry, and flew down the stairs. "I'm borrowing your shower," I called out behind me.

~~~~~

The decorations were staged for the morning. I was clean and spider-free. We sat on the porch swing, sipping hot cider. The air was cool, and dried leaves skittered down the pavement.

"What do you think you'll be for Halloween?" she asked.

"I don't know. I haven't even thought about it. I'm usually just a witch. What about you?"

"I didn't have a clue until I woke up in the middle of the night last night. I'm going to be a mermaid," Emily said.

"A mermaid?" I knew I looked shocked, frightened even.

"Sure. Why not? I had a dream last night that I was a mermaid. I have the red hair and everything. The funniest part was that I was swimming in my fish tank."

I wasn't sure what face I was making, but Emily laughed out loud.

"What's wrong? The look on your face is priceless."

"I dreamt that too," I whispered. Her jaw dropped, and my stomach flipped. She moved closer to me. I didn't move away.

Her face was very close to mine, and my heart was racing. I knew she wanted to kiss me. I was almost panting I was breathing so hard, and I closed my eyes. I felt her soft lips touch mine so carefully, so gently. I heard a small sound escape my mouth, and I kissed her back.

We sat on the porch for a long time, kissing each other. My head was swimming, but my pussy was on fire and my nipples were hard. A voice in the back of my head told me that I was becoming a lesbian, and I wasn't sure I cared.

Headlights swept through the yard, and I pulled back sharply, not wanting to be seen. I could feel Emily's disappointment as Gran parked her car and made her way up the sidewalk.

~~~~~

I sat on the edge of Emily's bed trying to convince myself that I could sleep there without becoming a lesbian. She came back from the bathroom and could tell that I was uncomfortable.

"Are you OK, Corey?"

"I'm fine. No problems."

She paused before going on. "What happened on the porch...I'm so sorry. I don't want you to be uncomfortable. I'll sleep in Gran's room tonight."

"No. It's OK. I just didn't expect that. I'm not a lesbian. I don't know why I was kissing you."

"I know you're not. It's my fault. I just felt so close to you, and we both had that same dream..."

I looked at her and smiled. "It's fine. I'm fine. This doesn't have to be awkward. Just don't take advantage of me in my sleep," I joked, trying to relieve the tension.

"Definitely not. You're my only friend. We can't wreck that."

Despite our best efforts, it was a little awkward. We rolled with our backs to each other with a pile of pillows between us. The pillows were Emily's idea. She thought I'd sleep better with a feather barrier there.

Eventually I settled in and fell asleep, still wondering why I had kissed a girl and why I was so aroused.

~~~~~

Emily and I spent the next weekend decorating the outside of the house. After collecting our ideas on the Internet, we purchased some chicken wire and glow in the dark paint. At the end of the day, we had four ghostly figures to dance in the overgrown lawn. It was getting dark, so we went in to clean up and wait for the pizza we had ordered.

The new lamp in the living room was on, but I was still startled when I passed the room. Once again I had no idea that anyone else was home, but when I walked by, I saw Emily's cousin with his friend, huddled in the far corner of the room.

"Hey, Emily," Hunter called with a sneering tone in his voice. "Come meet Jeffrey."

I was in no hurry to join them, but from the entryway, I saw his friend. He must have been at least six-five. He wasn't heavy, but he was ridiculously tall. Like Hunter, he was dressed all in black. With his dark skin and hair, he would have blended into darkness of the living room if the light went out.

His long legs were what struck me as his oddest feature at first. It was as if his torso was too small for his legs. I couldn't see his eyes behind the tinted glasses he wore. He smiled at me briefly before returning his gaze to the box they held between them. In that flash I saw his gleaming white teeth against his dark skin. I was sure he had fangs.

I gasped and stepped back, out of the living room.

"That is disgusting," I heard Emily yell as I retreated to the kitchen. "Get that thing out of here!"

"Think of him as a Halloween decoration. Jeffrey'll fit right in with your ghosts out there," Hunter sneered on his way out the door.

Apparently Emily met the pizza guy at the door, because she walked into the kitchen a minute later shaking her head and carrying a pizza.

~~~~~

After dinner I went to the living room to grab my things to take them upstairs. The light was off again, but with the light from the hallway, it was not completely dark. I entered cautiously, hoping not to break any more of the furniture. I grabbed my bag, just as I heard a rustling noise from the corner. I jumped and turned to look over my shoulder. I saw nothing in the dark corner at first, so I took a step toward the sound and peered into the darkness.

Jeffrey moved again, and I screamed. There he was with his freakishly long legs, looking at me with his black, beady eyes and his mouth wide open. He moved awkwardly on those long legs. The way he picked them up so deliberately, one at a time, made him look even more like a monster.

Hunter bolted up from the couch when I screamed. I hadn't even noticed him there, sleeping in the darkness. "What the fuck?"

"Omigod, Hunter. You're such an asshole!" Emily rushed into the room, and led me upstairs where she locked us into her bedroom. I was shaking uncontrollably, every hair on my body standing on end.

She put her arms around me and tried to calm me.

"I saw his fangs," was all I could say as I continued to sob.

"Shh. It's ok. He won't get you in here," she repeated over and over, like a mother soothing a baby. "Hunter knows enough to keep him downstairs." She rubbed my hair and my back, and I started to relax in her arms. She led us to the edge of her bed.

I lifted my face to look at her, and she wiped my tears with her thumb.

"Why is it that every time I'm here, something scares the crap out of me?"

"I don't know, but it's OK now. You're safe with me," she whispered.

I paused for a moment, realizing that Jeffrey wasn't the only thing that I was afraid of. I was beginning to feel the heat rising between my legs again, and I knew that it was because of Emily.

Before I could stop myself, I leaned into her and kissed her on the lips. She kissed me back for a moment before she pulled away and said, "Are you sure this is OK?"

I put my hand on the back of her head and pulled her to me. We kissed long and hard, eventually lying down together on her bed. She propped herself up on her elbow over me. "I'm afraid you'll regret this in the morning," she whispered. She kissed me again and again.

"Emily, how did you know that you're a lesbian? I mean, weren't you afraid?"

"Sure. Of course I was. I only knew for sure last year. I hung out with some girls that dated each other, and they helped me accept the truth."

"But when did you first know?"

"I'm not really sure. I was never that interested in boys. I saw Hunter jerking off in his room once. The whole idea of having a boy's 'thing' inside of me makes me feel a little queasy."

"How did those girls get you to realize that you like women? Did you have sex with them?"

"No. No way," she said, shaking her head. "I was hanging out with them here one afternoon, right after I turned eighteen, and they started to kiss. It was weird because Gran wouldn't let a boy come over, but she never suspected that these girls would be the ones to corrupt me.

"They asked me if I liked any boys. I finally had to admit to them that I thought I preferred girls. They responded by taking turns kissing me and putting their hands up my shirt."

"I've never thought about kissing a girl before you," I said. "I'm so afraid of what this means though. My parents would freak if they found out."

"It doesn't have to mean anything. We can just keep kissing. It doesn't have to go any further."

I hid my face, feeling embarrassed. "I think I might want to go a little further."

Emily didn't hesitate. With her lips on mine, her hand reached up under my sweatshirt and began exploring. Feeling her soft hands on my skin gave me goose bumps. I could feel my nipples puckering tightly. Her fingertips traced the outline of my bra, finally grazing the hard nubs underneath. I shuddered, and she responded by pinching them gently through the fabric.

She sat up and removed her sweater. She reached behind and unfastened her bra, and I inhaled sharply as it fell down her arms, revealing her full breasts. She took my hands with hers and placed them on her tits. Her skin was soft, and her nipples were as hard as mine. I held them firmly, comparing the feel to my own, much smaller breasts.

She asked again, "Is this OK?"

I nodded, and sat up to remove my own top. She reached around my back and unsnapped my bra, kissing my neck as she did. She pushed it off, then ran her hands around to the front of my shoulders and slid them down to cover my tits once again.

"Lie down," she said.

We wrapped our arms around each other, feeling our soft skin rubbing together gently, and began to kiss again. Her fingernails traced patterns on my back as her tongue explored my mouth. I could smell a hint of lavender in her hair, and I breathed that scent as if it were a drug.

It was getting late, and we were beginning to doze off, when Emily reminded me that we hadn't even brushed our teeth.

"Good thing the bathroom is upstairs," I said. "I am NOT going down there in the dark. Not with Hunter and Jeffrey down there."

"C'mon. We'll go together. Then I'll hold you all night, and you'll be safe."

~~~~~

"Aren't you ever going to come home for a weekend?" my mother whined through my cell phone.