Old Friends & New Possibilities Ch. 1

For Jenny it was the perfect end to a perfect day, finally she had him in her arms. Finally she could hold him close like she had yearned to do so for so long now. The object of her desire was in her arms and it felt like heaven to her. To her there was no more perfect a specimen of a man neither in physical beauty nor in quality of character. He was the one, the only one that she wanted for all time; she knew it deep in her bones. She fully planned on making that dream a reality, of making Tom her husband. She had waited patiently for him for nine long years, for her chance to win his heart. For nine long years she had dreamed of holding him intimately in her arms like she was doing now. The moment was dreamy, tender and she never wanted that perfect moment to end and her guard was down.

"I love you Tom." Slipped unchecked past Jenny's lips. Quietly she cursed herself for so brazenly blurting out her most intimate, hidden secret in such a crude way. She wanted to tell him in a better, more private and appropriate setting.

"I love you too sweetie." Tom replied quickly and instinctively not missing a beat as they swayed to the music.

Jenny got off lucky, he had simply thought she had expressed her platonic love for him as her Uncle Tom. She was safe; he did not know how she really felt it was still her most guarded secret that she could save for another day. As she counted her lucky starts Jenny realized that she didn't need to hide it from him anymore. She was an adult now, old enough to do something about it, old enough for him to finally know. Slowly Jenny lifted her head from his shoulder and looked him in the eye with a tear in her own.

"No Tom." Jenny paused, her hands shaking. "I love you." She repeated tenderly searching his eyes for a response, any kind of reaction, some hint as to what was going on in his mind.

Her heart swelled and almost burst with all the passion and love she had for him as she looked into his eyes. Before she knew what she was doing or could stop herself she kissed him on the lips in a tender, brief moment. For her though, that kiss lasted an exquisite eternity until their lips parted. As the kiss broke and she opened her eyes, the troubled and confused look on Tom's face was too much for her.

She was mortified, humiliated and embarrassed to the extreme. She had not intended for Tom to find out this way, she knew it was too much too soon. She had been swept up in the moment, lost her cool and blew her chances with him forever. In short she just wanted to die, and quickly left the dance floor not looking back. Not much was said after that and thankfully it was the last dance so the evening would be over soon. She could not even bear to look at him and just wanted to forget the whole painful experience, hoping to cry herself to sleep tonight.

It was too much for Tom to see Jenny in so much pain; he had no idea that she felt the way that she did. He wanted to say something to comfort her in some way but this one time, words failed him. To tell the truth he didn't know exactly what he felt either and that was more disturbing than anything she did ever was. He dared not admit that he loved to hold her in his arms or that the kiss was fantastic or worse still that he ached to have her near to him again. He was thoroughly disgusted with himself for having such feelings towards his 'sweetie'. He felt like a dirty old man and was ashamed to have enjoyed the kiss like he knew he had and he wanted to cry in shame.

As they approached the apartment door Tom pulled Jenny aside, allowing Theresa and Mathew to go inside. He still did not know exactly what he was going to say but knew he had to try to resolve the situation somehow. He wanted to let her down gently if that was possible; he wanted to restore her shattered self worth. He wanted to tell her how highly he still thought of her and that he would always be there for her, just not in that way.

"Jenny, I wanted to talk about what happened." Tom said as he stroked her shoulder.

"I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me. It must have been the drinks that made me talk silly." Jenny said with a tremble, her eyes darting around everywhere but in Tom's direction. "What I meant to say was that you are special to me, not that I loved you, silly." Jenny finished but now was shaking nervously. Tom put his arms around her and pulled her to him in an embrace meant to console her. She melted in his arms and held him as tight as she did on the dance floor, her shaking now stopped. They held each other in a quiet moment's embrace, each trying to calm their nerves before speaking again.

"You know you will always be my sweetie." Tom said as he stroked her soft hair soothingly. "Nothing or nobody can take me away from you I'll always be here for you." Tom paused and took a breath before continuing. "But you're gonna meet some lucky guy your own age that will knock your socks off." Tom said in as a reassuring tone as he could. "And you'll forget all about me, but we'll still be friends and your Uncle Tom will still be here for you." Tom finished and took a deep breath Jenny looked him square in the eye with the same look of determined seriousness.

"No Tom, you're wrong." Jenny said shaking her head. "I have loved you for years now, I've dated other guys but they all pale in comparison to you. You are the perfect man for me. We're good friends, you are nothing but kind and supportive of me, you genuinely care about me and I know you love me for me."

"Jenny wait." Tom interrupted but Jenny cut him off before he could protest.

"No you wait!" Jenny instructed. "I have thought a lot about this and I know what I want, I'm not a little girl anymore. I know that we would be perfect together why can't you see that?" She paused and sighed looking away briefly before she looked back into his with as alluring a look as she could manage. "I've been your sweetie for the past eighteen years . . . now I want to be your sweetheart."

"Jenny it's not as simple as all that." Tom tried to explain but his head was spinning with yet more uncomfortable revelations. Not the least of which was that he wanted to tell her yes, yes a thousand times yes. Part of him agreed with her but there were too many variables to consider, others would be hurt and that would be too high a cost for their happiness.

"Yes it is Tom!" Jenny hissed. "We're not related and we're both adults, either you want me or you don't, which is it?" Jenny looked into his eyes with a pleading look that melted his heart. Her heart was held up before him and he could see it beating in her hand as he considered his response. Would he drop kick the heart of his sweetie across the hall or not? He could not say yes, he knew he just couldn't nor could he hurt her any more than he already had. Tears welled up in his eyes as he wrestled with her question and the right way to answer it.

"It's not as simple as all that for me. It could be great I'll give you that but what if it didn't work out, what then? What about your parents, I've been their friend's since before you were born, how would they feel? On the one hand, if you were anyone else's child, yes I would like to date you, but on the other hand it would get too complicated right now sweetie." Tom said as the pain and aggravation became clearly apparent in his manner and voice. "I just can't." He said as he left her standing there without looking back, the tears welling up in his eyes. Somehow he maintained his composure until he was again inside his apartment.

So what does a guy do when he has passed up the greatest thing in his life because of reasons beyond his control? You guessed it, grab the bottle of rum from the freezer and the coke the fridge and drink himself into a stupor. Somehow as he was wallowing in his world of self-pity he managed to make his way back to his bed before crashing. Thankfully he did not have to work the next day or he would be in serious trouble.

For the next week Tom and Jenny tiptoed around each other, speaking seldom and when they did it was simply polite small talk. Theresa and Mathew noticed the change and while they were concerned they did not want to interfere when nothing seemed outwardly wrong. They wrote it off to just their imagination and left it to that. Neither Tom nor Jenny knew a solution or how to turn the clock back. That week was hell on both of them, gnawing away at their sanity and grinding on their nerves. They never truly realized just how intertwined their lives were until that week they stopped seeing each other. Both of them were utterly miserable and missed the other terribly, simply wanting an end to this nightmare. Eventually it might have blown over and they would have gotten over it and moved on with their lives somehow without the other. Yes, it might have happened like that, if one of them hadn't broken.

It was late at night Friday night when Tom was woken from a dream. As he opened his eyes he saw Jenny standing in front of him in a sheer nightgown in all her beauty and he knew he must have still been dreaming. He looked her over and it was clear that she had been tossing and turning but found no rest in her bed. She was a mess, as much of a mess as he must have looked like he guessed. Neither of them had slept much since her birthday and she had interrupted what little sleep he got.

Then again she wasn't really there because he was still asleep and she was only a figment of his lonely imagination. She was only an oasis of calm in the stormy desert that had been his mind this past week. She was a welcome delusion and a bright respite from the nightmares he had been having the past few nights.

"I've missed you." The imaginary Jenny said.

"I've missed you too Sweetheart." Tom said. He knew the significance of the change of her pet name but since this was all a dream, he could say what he truly felt. He could allow himself to love her because now hard would be done. When Jenny heard this, she smiled and wiped the tears from her eyes.

"Really? Am I really your sweetheart?" The dream Jenny said with the wonder of a little child.

"I've been miserable without you, I can't stand not being a part of your life." Tom admitted with a tear in his eye and a sigh in his heart. It felt good to admit this to her even if it was only a dream image of her.

"Hold me sweetheart, I can't bear not to touch you." This entity said with a pleading look of love.

"Certainly, come to me sweetheart." Tom replied fully expecting the apparition to vanish leaving him alone in his bed yet again for another night.

When he felt the rush of air as the covers were pulled back and the weight of another person entering the bed he knew too late that it was no dream. His eyes shot open just in time to see the real Jenny snuggle up to him and tuck herself in. The instant her skin touched his, all of his pain and anguish left him and for the first time in a while he felt complete. Jenny held him tightly and was content simply to have him near. She was home, complete, at peace with the world and she knew it. For the first time in more than a week Jenny fell soundly asleep almost instantly.

As Tom lay there with Jenny sleeping soundly cuddled up to him he watched the rhythmic movement of her breathing. Electricity coursed through him as her soft tender skin and silky pajamas touched him. As he watched her sleep he was filled with a euphoric joy simply to have her near him. To know that she loved him as much as she did, and he could not deny that he loved her back as much.

How could he not love her? All her life she had enriched his life so much just by spending time with him. Now this beautiful creature, his sweetie loved him completely and without reservation, asking only to be loved in return. She already had his heart and she knew that, but to what degree he was willing to give it was still to be decided. He knew that he could not live without her, that much was painfully obvious. Could he bear the cost of being with her? Only time would tell, for tonight though, he would enjoy having her near. Tom also fell into a deep contented sleep soon after enjoying a few precious moments of holding her.

When morning broke and Tom woke up he found that he was again alone. This caused him to wonder if last night was the most vivid dream he had ever experienced but the noise and smells from the kitchen told him otherwise. He got up, still groggy walked into the kitchen and paused to examine the further proof that last night was no dream before entering.

There stood Jenny by the stove dressed in one of his dark shorts and white t-shirt scrambling some eggs for breakfast. Her blonde hair fell about in an early morning mess that she seemed content with. Her legs were long, shapely, silky looking and in a word, incredible! The sight of her spectacular pear shaped ass made him hard instantly, even first thing in the morning Jenny looked hot.

"Morning sweetie." Jenny said with a glint as she now let on that she had noticed Tom's presence. "Or should I say Sweetheart!" Jenny said with pride and winked seductively in Tom's direction, his heart skipped a beat.

"Morning Sweetheart." Tom replied with a smile as he approached her.

They moved towards each other and licked their lips in preparation for a much anticipated good morning kiss. Before they could embrace there was a key in the door and then the sound of it opening. Not to be deprived of her kiss Jenny quickly kissed Tom square on the lips and held that kiss as long as she dared. She was back, innocently scrambling her eggs before her mother came into view. Tom was left trying to hide his throbbing hardon and flushed look and quick before Theresa noticed either.

"There you are sweetie, I was wondering what happened to you?" Theresa said sounding perturbed but added a sigh of relief. "You had me worried when I couldn't find you this morning." By now Tom was pouring himself a coffee and offered Theresa a cup that she graciously accepted.

"Oh mom, you must have known I was over here, where else would I go?" Jenny replied like her mother was just being silly. "I couldn't sleep so I came over and talked to Uncle Tom for a while and before I knew it I was out like a light."

"You should have left me a note or something." Theresa said as she sipped her coffee.

"Mom, I'm not a little girl anymore, I can take care of myself." Jenny insisted with a perturbed tone.

"True but I'm still your mother and I care about you. As long as you live under my roof, I want to know where you are." Theresa responded in the same perturbed tone as her daughter had used. Jenny was about to say something else and escalate matters, when Tom interrupted her before she spoke.

"She's right sweetie, she just wants to know you're safe." Tom said in calming tone, Jenny shot him a deadly glare but it melted instantly when her eyes met his.

"I didn't want to worry you mom, but I'm an adult and it's my life. What I do and where I go is my decision, not yours. You have to let me grow up Mom." Jenny said in frustration, stirring the eggs more forcefully now and not looking at her mother. Tom watched her breasts jiggle quite nicely under the t-shirt and felt a stirring in his loins.

Theresa could see what her daughter was getting at. She remembered what it was like to be young, to want to stretch your wings and assert your independence. Of course at this age Theresa was married and straddled with a two-year-old daughter so this particular argument never came up. Theresa was not unmindful of what Jenny was going through, her daughter wanted to live her own life now. As hard as it was to accept, she had to give her baby some space and allow her to grow up. Theresa always considered herself a flexible person and quickly thought up a compromise.

"I understand that you're an adult now and that your life is yours to live. However I am still your mother and as long as you live under my roof I am responsible for your safety. All I ask is that you call me to let me know your safe and when you're not going to be home." Theresa said with a sigh and finished with a sip of her coffee. "You don't need my permission anymore, you're your own woman now. I still think that I should know when to expect you home and when not to."

The very thought of Jenny running all over town doing who knows what with who knows who scared Theresa silly. Still, Theresa had to face facts that her little girl was an adult and responsible for her own actions. All Theresa could do was rely on her belief that she had raised Jenny right and given her a strong moral compass to guide her.

Jenny was silent for a moment as she pondered what her mother had said. While she didn't like the idea of having to check in with mommy every night, she could live with those terms for now. Jenny wanted to come and go as she pleased since she was an adult now and responsible only to herself for what she did. However her mother still was her mother and perhaps needed a little weaning of her own. Perhaps in a few months she could talk to her mother again on the subject and alter the arrangement.

"Okay Mom, that sounds fair, thanks for understanding." Jenny said as she rushed over and gave her mother a hug. As she returned to her breakfast she turned to her mother and said, "Do you want to join us for breakfast? I made enough for everyone." She said with an innocent smile just as pretty as you please.

"How did you? . . . oh never mind, yes I would like some breakfast, as you can see I just got up myself." Theresa said as she opened up her coat to reveal that she was still in her nightgown. Tom pointed to his boxer shorts and told her she wasn't alone and everyone chuckled. After breakfast both women left but not before Jenny slyly passed Tom a hastily written note: "Keep tonight open" was all it said. Tom threw it in the trash and turned to tackle the morning dishes not wanting to think what she had planned.

Later that day Jenny burst through the door of Tom's apartment carrying a large sports bag and a grocery bag. She closed the door quickly and took a moment to catch her breath before saying anything. Tom looked up from the computer and smiled when he saw her. Even though he was a bit puzzled by her behavior it was always good to see her. Tom was about open his mouth when Jenny raised her index finger while she took a final deep breath.

"You . . . out." Jenny puffed as she pointed to Tom and then at the door still trying to catch her breath.

"Excuse me?" Tom replied now quite confused and a little pissed after being told to vacate his own apartment without so much as a hello.

"Hi sweetheart, mother thinks that I'm spending tonight at a friends place. I have a special evening planned for us but I need time to prepare it. So, go to the multiplex; see a movie then come home in a couple of hours but don't eat anything. I don't want you to spoil your appetite." Jenny instructed as she dropped her bags in the kitchen and folded her hands as if in prayer. "Trust me, it'll be perfect." She added with the most pleading smile she could manage.

"Okay, sweetheart." Tom said with a nervous smile as he shut down the computer and walked to the door.

He was still not sure of anything but didn't want to burst her bubble. It was clear that she had something up her sleeve and it was important to her. He wasn't sure if he liked where the evening probably would lead to but perhaps sex was not what she had in mind. It would at least give them a chance to see each other in a romantic setting, perhaps it would just be too awkward and nothing would come of it. Perhaps they would both see that a romantic involvement with each other would just not work and they both could get on with their lives as before. It was to this hope that Tom clung to as he prepared to play along with her little game.