Mike & Karen Ch. 06

He was facing away from her, but his body language gave her a sharp chill. His glistening, sweating skin was tautly wrapped over his rippled muscles, which looked like a relief map of Swiss mountain valleys. Every single muscle was like a coiled spring, moving with a life of its own.

She hadn't taken more than a single step into the room before he sensed someone and whirled around. Karen stopped dead, her blood frozen in her veins. He looked at her, his massive chest heaving, ice-blue eyes flashing with an inhuman fury. His massive hands were clenched into fists, and those fists were bloody, as were his elbows, knees and feet. Splinters protruded from his skin, but he seemed not to notice them. His wild mane of blond hair lashed around his shoulders, and his teeth were clenched.

My God ... he could tear me to ribbons without trying ...

They stared one another down, the only sound to be heard his breathing, like the bellows working in a forge.

And possibly Karen's heartbeat.

Now I might actually die ... she allowed as she slowly walked forward, denying the fear she felt. She couldn't understand exactly why she was so frightened; he was just a man, even if he was a big one. He wasn't a rabid dog, prone to attacking anything within reach. It wasn't as if he'd lash out and hit her, turning her skeleton to powder with one punch from his titan fists.

So why was she so frightened?

She came closer, resisting the urge to clutch her arms to her chest, instead locking them behind the small of her back, nervously massaging her now-unseen thumbs. She hoped it gave her an impassive air. Because that was just about all she had going for her right now, looking impassive.

Before she knew it, she was standing in front of him, looking up at his blazing eyes, like the fusion reactors in distant blue stars, captivating yet capable of utter annihilation. Beautiful and terrible in equal measure, they took her breath away.

And then she knew what to say.

"Who was taken from you?" she asked quietly, her voice seeking honesty.

***

"Do I have any right to feel hurt?" Heather asked in a small voice. "To feel outraged?"

"Yes," Alexa admitted, nodding. They were still holding one another, because Heather needed to be held right now, and Alexa was all she had. "I wouldn't blame you, Heather."

"I ... don't know what to think ..." the brunette murmured, her eyes glassy. "I'm a stupid slut who jumped into bed with a hot girl, so that has me questioning how devoted to Alex I could be. But then you tell me that you planned this all out?"

"I did, but I didn't want to," Alexa said, wondering why explaining herself was so hard, since she'd rehearsed this a thousand times in her head. "And I promise you, it was my idea, not Alex's."

"Yeah, I ... I don't think he'd be capable of something like this," Heather sighed. "And I don't mean that to sound, like, insidious or treacherous or anything, but I think Alex is just too upfront to come up with something like this. He's a straight shooter; it's one of the reasons I have a thing for him."

"Me too," Alexa agreed. "Heather, I genuinely like you, I have since I first met you. And if I'd been convinced that there was any other way to tackle this with no risk to my relationship with Alex, I'd have taken it, trust me."

"I just feel like a chump," Heather said somewhat bitterly, although she did nothing to leave the embrace. "You guys used me to cover your little affair, to make sure nobody suspected anything."

Alexa nodded, denying none of it. "We talked over every single possibility we could think of, Heather. Just coming out and telling you, letting you catch us somehow. But each time, we saw an aspect of risk to it that terrified us, in case you got angry and vengeful."

"Does Alex think I'm like that?" Heather asked. "I mean, I'd get it if you thought I might be, we don't really know each other, and girls see other girls differently, but ... I think I'd be really hurt if Alex thought that of me."

"He was pretty damned convinced that you weren't," Alexa said, shaking her head. "But you need to understand that everything around us was being seen through a lens of total dread, that the tiniest thing going wrong would end our world ... would end us. We were on edge for months, and yes, it probably coloured our perceptions quite a bit," she admitted, sighing and stroking Heather's cheek.

Heather sighed and closed her eyes. "Guess I can't blame you for being paranoid," she admitted. "I'd probably be too."

"And it wasn't about you, per se," Alexa explained. "It sounds awful to say, but everyone knew Alex had dated you before, and that just made for a convenient cover. Alex didn't want to even pretend to date other people at first; he didn't like the idea, because it was dishonest with you and it felt like cheating on me."

"Well, at least he knew he was being dishonest," Heather allowed. "He must be totally gone on you to do something this crazy. I mean, yeah, if I did get mad, I could really make life hell for you guys."

"I know," Alexa said quietly. "And if you had found out about us any other way, would you have ultimately felt any differently?"

The brunette considered for some moments and then shrugged. "I ... might have competed for him with you, but I doubt I would have done anything mean, like out you to ruin things. He'd hate me then, and where would that get me?"

"I wish we lived in a society that didn't frown on the relationship Alex and I have," Alexa sighed. "Because I had no chance in hell of resisting it, Heather. Only way I could have would've been to turn around in that airport terminal without a word the moment I laid eyes on him and head back to London. That's what would've needed to happen."

"That bad, hm?" Heather mused dolefully. Alexa nodded. "Well, I know I like Alex, but I never got around to admitting I was in love with him. Yeah, I sorta had a thing for him, but how many times did I tell him we were 'just friends' or 'friends with benefits,' right? I told him we couldn't be an item because he was too smart for me."

"I remember," Alexa said, squeezing Heather's shoulder gently. "He told me."

"And then I guess I decided I had a thing for him again, because he seemed different." Heather looked down: "I guess it's because he was fucking you and in love with you. I sensed it and it made him desirable all over again. Maybe more so than ever. I was pretty gone on him at the wedding."

"I'm so sorry, Heather," Alexa said quietly, gently brushing a tear from the corner of her lover's eye with her thumb. "Please believe me when I say that."

"The problem is, I do," Heather sighed. "And a part of me doesn't want to. A big part of me wants to be incredibly pissed off, another part wants to run away and hide and cry. But ... oh, Alexa ..."

Heather burst into tears, burying her face in Alexa's shoulder again. Alexa hugged her heaving body, stroking her hair, fighting down the warm wave of shame that flooded through her. No, she'd done this for her love of Alex. And there was nothing she wouldn't do for him. She'd leave her new family behind tomorrow and run away with him to Borneo if that's what he'd wanted. She loved her sister, her brother-in-law, Freja and Jeanie, and she loved her new life.

But there was only Alex. The rest was nothing without him; she knew that about herself now. They were the world to one another. There was no other way.

But that didn't mean she couldn't retain her humanity and feel bad about this.

Alexa winced and squeezed her eyes shut, trembling as Heather bit her shoulder. It wasn't terribly hard, but it hurt. She could feel Heather shaking in frustration, but she didn't let go. A good ten seconds went by before Heather gasped and released the grip with her teeth, continuing to cry on Alexa's shoulder. Alexa hugged her tighter, soothing her. She'd give her all the time she needed.

"God damn you ..." Heather sobbed. "I want to hate you so much, and I can't ..."

Alexa said nothing, letting Heather speak. She had nothing to add yet anyway. Heather wept for several more minutes, and when she finally looked up, Alexa's eyes misted, because all she saw was a girl in pain, feeling used and played.

Lost.

"Alexa, I ..." Heather faltered, trying to control herself. She'd stopped crying, but clearly she was not done with the throbbing hurt in her chest. "I need to be able to forgive you, so that I can get past all this. I ... yeah, I'm still angry, I guess, but that's not what I want. I don't want to wreck everything, because it won't make me feel any better, y'know?"

Alexa nodded slowly. "It sounds dumb to ask, Heather, but ... what can I do?"

"Will you tell me everything?" asked the brown-haired girl. "How it all came to be? Maybe I'll ... maybe I won't feel so bad if I know that the forces of destiny were working against me all along."

Alexa smiled: "So, just hold you here like this and recount the events of an entire summer and beyond in full, sordid detail?"

"That's the first price to pay, I think," Heather said, wiping at her eye. "Probably not the last, but it's the one I need most. I might ... I might get a little bitey if I have another angry moment."

"Well, as long as you don't bit my nipples or clit off, I'm sure I'll survive that," Alexa sighed gently, looking down at her shoulder to see the reddish-purple set of teeth marks marring her flawless, creamy skin. "What then?"

"If I get through all this craziness..." Heather ventured, "... d'you think we can still be friends?"

"I'd like that, Heather. I told you, I genuinely like you."

"Just not in love with me," Heather nervously quipped, pursing her lips.

"No," Alexa giggled, shaking her head gently. "Not in love with you. And I'm pretty certain Alex would be happy to remain friends too. He's a good guy that way."

"One of the best, so I'm told ..." muttered Heather.

***

Karen's heart felt like a jackhammer in her chest as she stared up at him. She kept her hands behind her back, denying the overwhelming urge to fold them across her chest. It was confrontational, even if it felt protective to her. She didn't need to protect herself here.

He glowered down at her, not because he was angry with her, but because whatever rage burned inside had yet to be quenched. She had interrupted his fury, before he either destroyed the entire gym, or injured himself badly. And she couldn't let that happen. Every single muscle in his body stood out, bulging and almost pulsing beneath his skin as his blood raced through his body.

Dear God, he was utterly terrifying.

Beauty can calm the beast. Offer him serenity. Something. Anything.

"Who was taken from you?" she asked gently.

Somehow, imperceptibly, his body language softened, and he turned his head away from her gaze to look at the wall.

"Her name was ... Kee. Keegsquaw," he said finally.

"Did you love her?" she asked.

"Well, n-no, not like that," he faltered. "I wasn't in love with her. But she was very dear to me. We had a bond."

"She didn't just die; obviously, something terrible and unfair happened," Karen observed. His head snapped around to look down at her again, his expression sharp, and she almost quailed inwardly, thinking she'd gone too far or been too glib.

It's too late to pull that back. Keep going, but be gentle.

"I'm sorry," she said softly. "No one should ever lose anyone like that."

He raised his massive fist, looking down at the shredded knuckles that were oozing blood onto the floor. He frowned for a moment, as if noticing the mess for the first time and then back at her. "You the duly elected representative, here to tell me to stop frightening the villagers?"

"Oh, to hell with the villagers, DeBourne," she said plainly, her hands now on her hips. "I wanted to make sure you didn't hurt yourself. A Kung-Fu dummy can be replaced. A sprung wooden floor can have blood marks cleaned out of it. A destroyed gym can be replaced with endowments."

She looked at him evenly. "But I'm not so sure you can."

"What am I, your pet project?"

"No," she said, shaking her head. "But it's hard for the people out there to help people like us. No one else would have brought me that death concoction to make me feel better after I poisoned myself, just you. Nobody else knows what to do now, so, here I am."

"They too scared to get close to me?" he asked.

"I don't blame them; you're scaring the shit out of me, and I'm pretty much afraid of nothing." Karen pointed out.

Mike exhaled heavily and seemed to almost deflate, the unreal, bristling tension disappearing from his body. His eyes were still dangerous, but seemed somehow distant. He looked at his elbows and even his knees now, seemingly not concerned by the blood, torn skin, or splinters of wood wedged in them.

"Kee was murdered, pretty brutally, it seems," he said finally. "Shouldn't happen to anyone, much less a good soul like her."

"And you blame yourself," Karen said quietly, not reacting when his eyes hardened, almost glaring at her. "I'm not psychoanalyzing you, DeBourne, but I can see it. And you're enough like me that I know you in some ways. You feel responsible for everyone around you somehow, and nothing hurts worse than when you think you've failed them."

She stepped closer, wanting to be nearer to him, for reasons she would not admit to herself for some time to come. "Unless she lived with you, then you can't be held responsible for what happened to her. And even then, but you know that."

"You took it on your shoulders to protect the women on campus by doing one of the stupidest things anyone's ever heard of, or die trying," he stated, nodding slightly. "Yeah, you do understand, don't you?"

"In this particular case, I think I'm all you've got," Karen replied, shrugging. "You didn't fail her, DeBourne. Our entire society did. Even you can't prop all that up, although I wouldn't blink if you did."

Mike sighed again and looked around. "Is all this a tantrum on my part?"

"That's how most people will perceive it, if word gets out about your friend," Karen admitted. "But I know better, so who cares what they think? If I'm right, you were going to burn off all this rage, and then head to the chapel, weren't you?"

He nodded.

"You should probably clean up first, you're a mess," she observed, looking at his hulking body, shining with sweat and smeared with his own blood. "I have Bactine, gauze and tweezers in my purse. Let's go find a bench to sit on and I'll pull the lumber out of you before we go to Trinity."

Mike hung his head and took several deep breaths, his eyes closed. She could tell he was still full of towering rage inside. When his eyes flicked open, he was glaring at the wall beside them. She smiled lightly.

"It's only a wall," Karen pointed out.

He snarled and slammed his fist against the wall, denting the poured concrete. She winced slightly, while he held still for several seconds. She walked over to his hand and pried it gently away from the ugly, bloody impression and looked at his knuckles.

"And it's only a broken hand," she sighed, shaking her head. "Okay, change of plans: infirmary first, then Trinity. Just try not to destroy the campus on the way through, promise?"

She led him out of the gym and towards the infirmary.

***

However long it had taken to relate the events of the summer in the fullest detail she could manage, that was how long Alexa had been sitting in this embrace with Heather, still body to body. In many ways, mostly mental, it had been exhausting, although she was sure her body would be sore as well, once they finally moved.

The telling of the tale had brought forward many emotions in her, and seemingly had in Heather as well, who listened intently, without a trace of skepticism. She genuinely wanted to understand. They'd held one another close, sometimes with their foreheads pressed and eyes closed as Alexa related events, and with Heather occasionally asking small questions.

Alexa didn't bother with many acute sexual details, unless they explained something significant. A few times she found herself speaking quietly, her lips gently grazing Heather's, and their eyes closed. Perhaps not surprisingly, it was while describing her romantic moments with Alex that she found this occurring. Heather didn't seem to mind at all, often whispering back the same way.

Heather in turn talked about her dates with Alex, both those before Alexa's arrival and those after, when they'd been trying to cover their tracks. She rarely spared any graphic details, and both girls got warm in the re-telling of them.

"I love hearing about your sex," Alexa breathed as they kissed and nibbled at one another's lips while she caressed Heather's jaw. "I admit, it makes me wet, thinking about Alex fucking you."

"Will you tell me details of some of your really hot times with him?" Heather asked, biting gently on Alexa's lip while her fingers flexed on her sides. She was getting very turned on, and her pussy was very moist.

"Is that the right thing to do?" Alexa queried, pinching one of Heather's nipples gently, making her sigh. "Do you really think it'll help?"

"It might," murmured the brunette, her head tilted back, thrilling to the sensations. "But more than that, you kinda owe me ..."

Alexa nodded and leaned down slightly to kiss one of Heather's breasts and swirling her tongue around the nipple, sucking on it. They nestled closer, sticky pussies kissing, their slippery lips mingling and clits throbbing against one another.

"Alexa," Heather gasped, cradling her blonde lover's head. "If ... when this is all said and done ... if I'm feeling better about all this ... do - gnnnnnnn! - d'you think you and I can still be casual lovers?"

"That's totally up to you, Heather," purred Alexa, sliding her tongue up Heather's chest and arriving at her mouth to kiss her. "But I'm perfectly fine with it, if you are. Alex wouldn't care one bit, he'd probably be relieved."

"I dunno ... I dunno if I'll want to do things with Alex," Heather murmured, reaching down and grabbing Alexa's ass, squeezing it. "Maybe, I dunno. But that's up to him, isn't it? Uhnnnnn, God, Alexa, I wanna fuck!"

"Me too," panted the blonde goddess, her skin flush now with her desire as she leaned back a little, exposing her body to Heather. "You sure? This is what you want?"

"Yes," rasped Heather, nodding and looking at Alexa's body greedily. "Do that girl-fucking thing to me. God, please ..."

Alexa leaned back on her hands, making Heather do the same, but keeping their legs scissored. Both girls moaned as their pussies pressed tightly.

"Now just ... squirm your hips around," Alexa breathed, her sapphire eyes glazed with lust. "The rhythm'll find itself."

Heather complied, beginning to move her hips in circles, shivering as she felt her netherlips slithering against Alexa's, electrified by the thrill of their clits brushing. Warm, gooey, wet and wholly enthralling.

"Jesus," sighed the brunette, churning her hips. "Why does this feel so good?"

"Why wouldn't it?" Alexa pointed out breathily. "Hundreds of thousands of nerve endings on either side, rubbing on one another. But it's also like a secret lesbian kiss, something only girls can share. Guys can't do it, they can't even pretend to do it. It's all ours."

"Gnnnnnn, love it," groaned Heather lustily. "God, I hope we can be fuck-buddies ..."

They ground their pussies together, moaning and panting, locked at the hips. The heady aroma of women in heat enthralled them, the wet, slick sounds of fucking music in their ears. Their hearts pounded as they pressed against one another, harder and harder, hips almost lifting off Heather's bed.