Tribal Unity

The other two women were good friends and seemed to share many thoughts just through eye contact, the way couples do sometimes. The way Rick and I do. They touched each other a great deal in an affectionate way that suggested to me there was a great deal of love between them. Watching them interact reminded me of my childhood friend, Jaimee. We were like sisters growing up. If there was a concept that correlated with sister in this culture, I would believe that was their relationship.

It wasn't long before I could recognize their voices without looking at them. I still didn't know any words outside of 'paw-pui' and 'Chaka' and the names of a couple of the people, but I was coming to listen for the tonal quality of their speech. I sensed that the group dynamic was about to change even before I heard the footsteps on the path.

Two women approached, one of them familiar. It was the young woman I'd seen conjugating with several men the day before. I instinctively looked behind her to see if she had another man in tow. The only person with her was an elderly woman. The young woman smiled as the elderly woman spoke to the group. I noticed the young one's cheeks were flushed pink. Mine would be too if I'd just had that many orgasms in one day. Lucky girl!

There was a break in the conversation and then a few comments from the group to the other two. Whatever information they just shared must've been good news because the ladies were all smiling and laughing. The elder woman looked across the circle at me as if she just noticed my presence. She ambled over to my side and placed her feeble hand on my wrist and smiled at me. She patted my arm and said a few words. I don't know what they were, but it sounded like they were meant to be reassuring.

I smiled back at her and reciprocated the touch by stroking her arm. Her skin was wrinkled and moved when you pet it, but it felt soft to the touch. There was something so grandmotherly about her, but other than just being old, I couldn't figure out what it might be. Just a random feeling, I guess.

The elderly woman motioned to the young woman to come stand by her, and when she did, the elder placed my hand on the young woman's abdomen. She spoke to me and then pressed on my hand as it remained on her belly. I got the feeling she was trying to tell me the young woman was with child but it didn't make sense. She wouldn't know if she just conceived yesterday. It's impossible to know. I thought it a thousand times, believe me. But then the test came up negative, or my period came, one or the other. Every. Time. No matter how much I believed. After awhile, you stop believing. Then you stop hoping, and finally you stop even trying.

I gingerly pulled my hand from her belly and tried not show any emotion. The thought of her being pregnant made me sad. I didn't want to be sad about it. These people need a pregnancy more than I do. But I couldn't help myself. I guess it just brought up bad memories for me. It was a little like pouring salt in an old wound. It just lifted the pain back to the surface again.

I tried not to let my mind wander, but as these women continued their chatting, I fell into a lonely stupor of sorts. Nothing has really changed between Rick and I. We may be talking again and even having sex again, but when we get back home, it will still just be the two of us. Maybe forever if we stay together that long. Rick deserves better. He does. I think I can live like this. I probably deserve it, but he doesn't.

I felt something land lightly on my arm and just as I lifted my hand to swat it away, I realized what it was. My little friend had joined the group and was standing close enough for her long hair to tickle my arm. She looked up at me with defiant eyes as I lowered my hand and I had to laugh. She was just so brave, this little girl. None of the other children came near us, but this little one was more curious than she was afraid.

I held my hand out, palm up to see what she would do. She looked down at it and then with bright eyes, reached into the basket and placed a nut into my palm.

"Thank you."

The women looked up from their tasks and quieted their conversations when I spoke. The little girl answered me with what was most likely the equivalent of 'You're welcome', judging by the tone. It was precious. I wanted to scoop her up into my lap and hug her, but was deathly afraid of scaring her; or more accurately, scaring one of the women. What I wouldn't give to spend a day playing with her. She looked up at me and smiled and then spun on her heel and trotted down the path. I bet she doesn't spend much time in one place.

We finished the hulling, or shelling, or whatever you call it. I remember a saying my dad used to use, many hands make light work. It was absolutely true. Proven over and over in a community like this one, where everyone pitches in and works together.

I wasn't certain where to go next, but I decided that if I could shell a nut I couldn't even name, there must be something else I can do. Besides, I didn't want to be idle. I was tired of doing almost nothing to help out. I know we paid for our vacation there, but it didn't feel like enough. It felt like the lazy way out. I mean, it doesn't take any effort to write a check.

I walked over to the dining area and approached the fire stove. Danon and another woman were standing there. Danon spoke up when she saw me.

"Paw-pui?"

I shook my head, "No."

She repeated, "No," and shook her head in acknowledgement. I was surprised to hear the word coming from her but then thought about it. Of course, they've probably heard a few English words over the years. 'No' is pretty common.

I couldn't think how to ask if I could help them. I was trying to work out how to use gestures to explain, but was drawing a blank. Danon watched my facial expression carefully for a few seconds and then laughed out loud. She patted me on the hand and walked to the storage hut. I wasn't sure if that was her way of saying 'bye' or she was coming back. I waited a few minutes and she returned with a large bowl. She placed it on the table and patted a stool for me to sit.

A few short minutes later, I was kneading some kind of dough. When that was done, I began sifting some sort of meal, and after that, pulling the leaves off of a plant. I'm still not sure which part of the plant was the edible part. Danon kept disappearing in the storage room for another chore and I wondered how on earth these women got all this done every day. There's only two of them cooking for an entire population. Impressive.

Finally, all the pre-preparation was complete and they dismissed me. All the busy work had managed to wear me out.

"Wake up, sleepy head."

I rolled onto my back and squinted my eyes open. "Hey."

"Hey, yourself."

"What time is it?"

Rick chuckled, "I don't know. When you figure out how to tell time in this place, let me know, will ya."

"Did I miss dinner?"

"No, that's why I'm waking you."

"Oh."

"And there's going to be a party tonight."

"A party?"

"Yeah. That busy girl we saw yesterday is pregnant."

"I thought that's what she was trying to tell me."

"Who?"

"An elderly woman."

"Yeah, so, Christopher tells me that she is really old and has this way of seeing, or sensing some things, way before other people can. I guess she can tell when women have conceived."

"No way."

"No, I swear. Christopher said she hasn't been wrong in over 50 years, or something like that."

"No kidding."

"You don't seem happy; what's wrong?"

I shook my head, "Nothing. I'm happy for them. It's good news. It's just that, well, she patted my arm and was trying to tell me something. It sounded like she was trying to console me, that's all."

"Maybe she can just tell what you've been through."

"Or maybe she knows I can't have children. Ever."

"Honey...Please..."

"No, I know."

"Listen, let's just try to take things one day at a time, okay? Like the Hiki do. No sense in worrying over things we can't control."

I nodded, "Okay. I'll try."

"Anyway, I've been thinking...I know you said you didn't want to adopt, but I think we should talk about it. I saw you with that girl yesterday..."

"I saw her again today."

"You did?"

"Yeah. She came right up to me and we interacted. She was so amazing, Rick. So darned brave."

"Just like someone I know." He kissed me on the forehead and smiled, "You ready for dinner?"

"Yeah. I'm ready."

He'd planted a seed I couldn't stop thinking about. Adoption. We'd known couples who'd adopted children from other countries. The idea of doing it ourselves scared the hell out of us. Hard enough raising your own child, but someone else's... And if that child isn't the same race as you, what kind of challenges will that present? I closed my eyes for a moment and pictured her face, her big brown eyes, black hair and deep brown skin. I knew my answer right there. It wouldn't matter what kind of challenge it presented. It'd be worth every uncomfortable second just to see her smile every day.

The 'party' was nothing more than a council meeting with less purpose. It gave me the chance to group faces together by living arrangement. I noticed that the two women that sat across from me earlier were sitting together again. I pointed them out to Rick and he told me that there was actually two lesbians living in the village. It fit. How close they seemed to be, how affectionate they were. I smiled to myself. I like them. They're a cute couple.

Christopher huddled with a woman on the edge of the circle. His fingers traced circles up and down her arms as he whispered in her ear. It was readily apparent that he was very much in love with her, and all of a sudden, his situation started to make perfect sense to me. That's why he stays here. Not for the money. For love. Of course.

I noticed our neighbors, the ones I had heard having sex in the morning. It was a good thing I didn't know what they looked like before I heard them. My reaction would have been completely different.

Couples peeled away from the gathering a few at a time. We stayed long enough to be polite by our standards. I saw children mingling about the group but didn't see our little girl.

Rick pulled me into his arms as soon as we climbed into bed, nestling behind me into a spooning position. He was exhausted from his hard day's work. I had napped earlier and wasn't nearly as exhausted. And I was aroused, for some reason.

I shifted in Rick's arms, trying to invoke a response by wiggling my ass at him.

"What are you doing, baby?"

"Nothing." I pushed my ass against him harder.

"That's not 'nothing'. Are you uncomfortable?"

"No."

"Are you...horny, baby?"

"Maybe."

"Maybe? Or, yes?"

"Okay. Yes."

"Ah, that's a word I like to hear."

Rick's hand cupped my breast, his fingers played with my nipples. I could feel him stiffening against my backside.

"Just the thought of having sex gets you hard?"

"Pretty much. I think most guys are like that."

"Oh, yeah."

"Yeah. How 'bout you; what got you all worked up today?"

"I don't know. Just...working things out, you know. With us. And I've been thinking about your idea. Of adopting. I like it. I mean, it's an option, you know."

Rick nodded, "You're an amazing person, honey. I love you; you know that?"

"Thanks, baby. I love you, too."

The talk was tender, and communicating the sentiment was way overdue. It wasn't, however, in line with the kind of sex I was hoping for. But Rick was tired and I had to respect that. I didn't, however, have to sit back and do nothing about it.

I rolled over in his arms so I was facing him. He kissed me tenderly on the lips, hardly more than a PG-13 rated kiss. I ran my hand down his side and slipped it between us to grip his stiff cock. He released a surprised groan.

"I think tonight it's my turn to take charge."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Just lay back."

I pressed on his shoulder until he was lying flat on his back. Then I pushed the sheet down so he was fully exposed to me. My fingers caressed the silky skin of his hard cock, tracing circles down around his balls every few seconds. Rick moaned in appreciation; his cock engorged.

I slid my torso down the sheets and took him into my mouth in one swift motion. I was hungry for him, for the feel of him filling my wet mouth. It had been a long time. Rick's fingers snaked around my neck where he gripped me possessively to him. Yes.

I loved that even when I took the lead, he made sure I understood who was really in charge. It was the way it worked between us. The more he commanded, the more I obeyed; like two partners perfectly suited for one another on the dance floor. At times like these when it was my agenda, I still needed him to take charge in order to get off. He knew that. He understands me.

"I'll let you have your fun for another minute, but then you're going to climb on top and fuck me."

His words might as well have been tiny fingers directly on my sex, increasing my arousal tenfold. Oh, yes. My body responded to everything about this man. His touch, his voice, his dominance.

I stroked him harder to draw out some pre-cum before I switched positions. Running my tongue along his slit, I savored the salty deposit. Because Rick rarely came in my mouth, I had started to look on it as something of a special treat. Not something I share with my girlfriends. They'd hardly understand since all they talk about is ways to get out of ever having to do this. But I like pleasing him that way because it's so selfless. I can't get off doing it.

I lifted my head when I'd sucked every drop I could off him and swung my leg over his hips. Rick locked his fingers behind his neck to accentuate the fact that it would be all my doing. He smiled seductively at me as I held his cock stiffly in the air and lowered myself onto him. I was so very wet, allowing me to skewer myself onto him with no difficulty.

"Good girl."

It was another phrase he sometimes used to drive me wild. And this time was no exception. My inner walls contracted in delight. We weren't ordinarily heavy talkers during sex. When Rick did speak, however, it was usually to exert his dominance; to play his part in this bedroom fantasy of ours. It drove me insane with lust every time.

I supported my weight on my arms so I could ride him more freely for a bit. Rick occasionally assisted by tilting his hips to meet mine with more force but for the most part, he just watched me work my hips to keep a rhythm going.

"Sit back and pull your feet up by my sides, so you're squatting."

I obeyed. I always obeyed whatever he asked in the bedroom. Our pelvic bones were touching now, he was deep inside me.

"I want to watch you masturbate while you fuck me."

I looked down at the juncture where we connected and then back at him.

"Yeah. Move your fingers over your clit until you come."

I released a ragged breath. What he commanded was so lewd, but I couldn't deny that it also turned me on, beyond belief.

My hand moved over my hip and rested on my abdomen a second. I extended my fingers and reached subtly downward until I felt the edge of my sparse pubic hair, and then the moist evidence of my arousal. My clitoral hood was stretched and the tiny bulbous head of my clit dangled just centimeters over his hard shaft. I stroked the base of his shaft for a few seconds and then traced my own flesh which was stretched tightly around him.

Rick watched my fingers intently. He allowed me the time to casually explore the area, feel our bodies melding together. I tried to imagine how it looked from his angle.

My fingers found their way back to my stretched and distended clitoris. There was plenty of lubrication to work into the area, which was a good thing, because being stretched open like I was, there was nothing to protect my sensitive bud. And it was sensitive.

Applying pressure from above, mostly, I was able work beyond the initial sensitivity. My aroused clit swelled even more until it became possible for me to touch it directly. Using two fingers, I massaged from side to side rapidly. It only took a minute before I fell forward, supporting my weight with my free hand on his chest as my body collapsed in climax.

Rick released his hands from his neck to hold my waist and lift me up and down while he thrust his hips hard into me. He came abruptly. The very sight of me touching myself must've had him teetering on the edge.

When the spasms subsided, Rick pulled me onto his chest and held me. He was asleep before I'd even fully settled there.

****

Chapter Nine: Farewell

I'd truly lost track of the days. Partly because it felt like I was floating blissfully through a fairy tale land where time had no meaning. And partly because I dreaded leaving.

They were right. Our neighbors, their friends, Christopher...everyone who told us this place would fix our problems. We were happier than the day we got married. We were fixed. Mostly.

I was still worried that once we left this place, reality would come crashing down on us and ruin everything again. As much as we liked it in Temehiki, we couldn't live there. So time became my only enemy on that island. Not sharks, or eels, or spiders, or any other insignificant creature. Time. And there was nothing I could do about it.

We had come to perform regular tasks on the island. They really needed Rick's size and strength and I got the feeling they were coming up with things to build while they had his help. Things they probably wouldn't have taken on without him. That was perfectly okay with Rick. I learned something real important about him: The more he is needed, the happier he is.

I can look back and point to a dozen times where I screwed things up between us simply by making him think I didn't need him anymore. I'll never make that mistake again. It's fine to be strong and brave; entirely something different to take things on yourself. I'd even managed to absolve him of any blame or responsibility over our failed attempts at conceiving and our failing marriage, just so I could carry the weight alone. I thought it was a noble thing to do, but there was nothing noble about it.

I didn't want to ask. I knew we only had a handful of days left. Christopher was making regular trips to the beach with Rafin to check the boat and his cell phone messages. As it turns out, that side of Temehiki is the only place he gets a cell signal, off of a transmitter on a neighboring island. He was going there to check our flights, secure our arrangements. During one of his longer absences, I think he may have even checked on our abandoned luggage.

I didn't care whether or not it was still in that shelter. Take it. There's nothing important in there. Just clothes. I repeated the phrase in my mind several times and chuckled, just clothes. I remembered Christopher informing us that we would have to take them off and I nearly puked at the idea. Now...now, I can't picture putting them back on. Funny.

I started to bid my farewell to the island in my own silent way. But not the way I'd done it every other time in my life. Not in a sad, withdrawn sort of fashion. Instead, I reached out more, desperate to make the most of every minute. I spent every waking moment with the people.

Rihann was the name of the little girl I'd grown to love so much. She came to spend much of the midday time with me while I hauled water up from the lagoon. If we finished early, before I had to be in the kitchen, we'd take a nap together in the hut. She'd let me stroke her hair as she babbled herself to sleep. I wanted to say so many things to her. Tell her how much she meant to me. How being around her had made me strong enough to consider adoption. I wanted to talk to her about being a woman; about everything I'd learned about fear, and vulnerability, and love. But then it dawned on me that I learned most of that from this place. And she would to. When the time was right.