Page 28 of Organized Chaos
Last night, Maya came out of her shell to play. She matched my hunger until dawn, even when she was sore. Something shifted between us, wiping away all traces of her previous unease.
And I... I was living/breathing every second of it. Maya giggled at my impatient hands on her tits and the lips on her pulse.
“Let’s do something memorable today,” she suggested.
I nuzzled my nose against her neck. “What did you have in mind?”
“We could go fishing since you never had the chance. I also wanted to check out that cave you mentioned. Oh, and we should definitely have steaks again for dinner.”
My stomach tightened. For a moment, I didn’t want to realize why she was suggesting thesespecialactivities, yet it was crystal clear.
“I know it’s a pain to work the grill,” she rambled on, “but it is our last night together.”
I felt as if I couldn’t breathe.
Indicating Maya to rise by patting her lower back, I stood to frame. “Last night?” I repeated sharper than intended.
She laughed nervously. “We are supposed to leave first thing tomorrow morning, remember?” Her hand moved up and down my forearm provocatively, suggesting more than just a dinner date. “I want today to be special in every way.”
My stomach dropped into an infinite void.
After catering to her this whole damn weekend, this girl was still adamant it would never work outside of these perimeters. For God’s sake, I took her on a picnic.
A MOTHERFUCKING PICNIC.
Why in the hell did I put myself through the torture of acting like her goddamn boyfriend?
“Got it. One last fuck to remember me by,” I could barely keep the bite out of my tone.
Maya blinked, dropping her hands to her sides. She didn’t speak for several minutes.
An excruciating agony chipped away at me from her refusal to deny my accusation. But the grueling thought was outweighed by an irrefutable realization.
I can’t let her go or pursue long-distance without guaranteeing a brighter future.
Not only did I want this woman, but the pain I’d experience without her constant presence would be insurmountable. Both of my parents were dead. I wasn’t on speaking terms with my stepmother or half-brother. My only living grandparent—grandfather—lived far away.
I preferred this solitary life of mine and an empty home most of the time. But then there were moments when I wondered—if today were my last day on earth, would it really affect anyone?
Would anyone even grieve my death?
Other than the hand-selected childhood friends, I was positive that Maya would be the only person to mourn my loss. Probably cry at my funeral too.
I barely knew her, yet suddenly she was all I had left on this earth. The lone entity to mean something to me. I’d rather we die together in this godforsaken cottage than part ways with her. Deadbolt it, burn it to the ground with both of us still locked inside.
“As much as I’d like to go home, we can’t leave tomorrow.” My voice was cutting without a trace of the tenderness I had shown her only moments ago.
Maya picked up on it. “What?”
“I checked on the car yesterday; it’s the battery.” Lies. “It only turns on occasionally, which is fine for a short drive but needs to be replaced before the long-ass one to Nice.”
A good lie rested on vague descriptions with some believable details sprinkled on top. Maya had shown no inclination of being car savvy; she didn’t even know how to drive one. There was no way to disprove the abstract possibility that a battery glitch during a long drive might leave us stranded.
At the same token, if we needed to leave the premises for groceries, it’d be suspicious if the battery miraculously recovered. Sporadic malfunction was the safest bet.
“Okay,” she said tentatively. “The auto shop should be open today, so we can take the car into town.”
“And I will.” I glanced at her, devoid of emotions. “But it takes days for auto parts to come in. Safer to just reschedule our flights altogether.”
