Page 51 of Loyalty, Lust, Love
Neither of them had considered how hard their separation would be. The long-distance, demanding schedules and limited funds affected their ability to visit each other, forcing their love affair to simmer.
They naturally fell back into the best friend zone, doing their best to push the memories of their intimate moments to the back of their minds but keeping them at the center of their hearts until they could see each other again.
It was the summer after their first year of college, and it had been five months since they’d seen each other. After not qualifying for track and field nationals, Fateema’s season ended sooner than she’d wanted, and the only thing that kept her from wallowing in disappointment was knowing she was headed to see her best friend and secret lover.
With help from Mr. Keno, she’d been planning a surprise visit to Washington, DC, to visit Lynx since he’d told her he wouldn’t return to Chicago this summer because of his internship. He had no idea she was coming, and she couldn’t wait to see the look on his face when he saw her.
After her plane landed and she retrieved her luggage from baggage claim, she took an Uber to his apartment. It was a Thursday evening, and Mr. Keno had already confirmed that he was home alone.
The Uber driver retrieved her luggage from the trunk when they arrived at the address. As luck would have it, someone was exiting the building as she approached and held the door open.
“Thank you.”
“No problem,” the stranger replied.
She took the elevator to the fourth floor and slowly walked down until she reached his unit. After taking a deep breath, she knocked on the door, moved to the side, and leaned against the wall.
“Who is it?” Lynx asked, but Fateema didn’t respond. “Who is it?”
When Lynx didn’t open the door, she reached over and knocked on it again while keeping her back against the wall. This time, she heard the locks turn and the door open as he mumbled something about kids trying to sell something.
“Who—”
“Surprise!” she yelled, hopping in front of the door before he could finish his question.
“Bunny! What the fuck?” He wrapped her in his arms, lifted her from the floor, and spun her around. “Damn, you don’t know how good it feels to have you in my arms.”
“You missed me?”
“Hell yeah.” He put her on her feet and moved one of her locs behind her ear. “Let me look at you.”
“It hasn’t been that long, and we FaceTime every day. I look the same.”
“It’s been long enough, and FaceTime is nothing like seeing you in the flesh. Look at you, all fit and lean. Division one track and field does a body good, huh?”
“Track bodies are the best bodies.” She turned around slowly, giving him a full view.
“Girl, get in here before I do something nasty in this hallway.”
He stepped into the hallway to give her room to enter and grabbed her luggage to bring it inside.
“Two suitcases? How long you planning to stay?”
“I got a few weeks to kill before my internship starts, and I bought a one-way ticket. How long do you want me to stay?”
“Shit, forever if you can.”
His words gave her chills. Lynx, her best friend, was always a gentleman. Lynx, her lover, was next level.
“Unfortunately, I can’t stay forever, but you can have me for two weeks. I want to go home to see my dad for a few days before I head back to Houston.”
“I guess that will have to do. Are you hungry? I ordered some pasta earlier, and there was plenty left over.”
“I’m starving, and that sounds good.”
He took her luggage to his bedroom, and she followed him.
“I would give you a tour, but the only thing you haven’t seen is the bathroom.”
