Sing A Twist

by Brooke T. Mays

  He smiled back at her and puckered his lips in a ridiculous exaggeration as he leaned in for a kiss. Her hands automatically went to his shoulders, and she felt his hands on her waist. Time seemed to freeze for a second, and then they laughed at the same time. It was a companionable moment like many they had shared before. She felt relief that she hadn’t ruined anything. But now - it was time to step away. Neither did. They were still staring into each other’s eyes, and the laugh had faded. They both leaned in. This time the laugh from both of them sounded forced as they stopped just short of contact. She made herself step back and took off the matching bracelet placing it in her jewelry box. She was breathing just a little too fast. The necklace was on and he had wanted to kiss her. She kept her back to him, still fiddling with the jewelry box, but she risked a peak at him in the mirror as the moment of awkward silence started to stretch out. Phillip ran one hand through his hair. He gave a short laugh. “Yeah. What was I thinking?” she thought she heard him mumble. But he was still standing so close. Looking a little desperate, he changed the subject and asked her, “You’re not goan to wear the matching set?”

  “I think it would be an overkill of a fashion statement, don’t you? The necklace is newer, so I’ll wear it. I don’t wear the ring either, most of the time, though I keep it in here.” She could feel the necklace against her skin. It made contact with her skin all the way around her neck, but the attraction hadn’t lessened a bit. He wasn’t standing that close to her, but she swore she could feel the heat rolling off of him.

  She had procrastinated fiddling with the jewelry box as long as she could. Finally, she turned away from the jewelry box. And they crashed together. The only thing more frantic than their lips, were their hands grabbing on to each other. After some time, the kiss slowed down. Less desperate, but somehow deeper. When they finally parted, she wondered if she looked as shell-shocked as he did. Surely she had been more affected by a single kiss than this before, right? If so, the memory eluded her.

  “Hey, Phillip! You still want a ride to the bar? My shift starts soon,” they heard Jacob call from the living room. He tended bar some nights at one of the clubs that Phillip often had gigs. Phillip smiled a bit of a cocky smile as he walked backward a few steps, calling over his shoulder, “Yeah, podna,” he called to his friend. “I’m coming now.” Yep, she must have looked at least as shell-shocked as he did, judging by the confident smirk on his face.

  Walking back into the living room, she could hear a shower running upstairs. She guessed Monica was getting ready for bed. Completely opposite Jacob and Phillip, she worked early morning shifts before taking classes. As a result, she was almost always the first to bed. Elena gathered up the wrappings to take back to her room.

  “I’ll see you later, Elena,” Jacob called grabbing his keys. They were both headed towards the door as she heard Jacob tease him. “You’ve been home a lot of nights lately. Think you’ll end your dry spell tonight?”

  Phillip was looking at her as he said, “No, I woan. I’m coming home tonight.” He turned away and shut the door. She could barely hear him say to Jacob, “Wait for me. Doan leave me at the bar tonight.” She couldn’t hear the rest of their conversation as they got in the car and drove away.

  She thought about all she had been experiencing since she walked in the door tonight. Jacob and Monica. Now Phillip. She had some important questions to answer.

  Chapter 2

  Elena had finally fallen asleep late the night before. Although she had climbed in to bed not long after the guys had left, she had lain awake unable to sleep until they had come home a little after 2:00 am. She still didn’t have answers to any of her questions. At least not any she could rely on as truth. She had some ideas, but a lot of the answers could just be wishful thinking. Still, she fell in to a peaceful sleep, the first in a while, after she heard two - and only two - sets of footsteps. When she woke the next morning, she decided to bake muffins and leave some bacon for the guys when they finally woke. She glided around the kitchen as she prepared it all. Monica had left as Elena was getting up and starting the muffins. The two had shared a quick conversation about their plans for the day, when they would see each other next, and then Monica was out the door. She had an arrangement with a doctor’s office. She got to work at 6:00 am and worked on filing patient’s notes until the first patients were scheduled to come at 7:30. She manned the front desk and answered phones until she was relieved at noon. Then she was quickly on her way to afternoon classes on campus. Elena had left her a to-go package in the fridge. Monica’s favorite yogurt and an apple, with a note included as well. It read, ‘Thanks again for my birthday! I need to talk to you!!’ They kept the coffee set on a timer. Monica took a travel mug on her way out the door. She probably wouldn’t see the note until she got to work. Elena hoped it wouldn’t make Monica too distracted today. She finished getting ready while the muffins baked in the oven. She sat them out on the counter to cool and left a note on the fridge about the bacon. She had one lecture to attend today. The rest of the time was to be spent working on her thesis, meaning she had most of the day alone with her thoughts. Great. She hoped at least some of the thoughts would be on her work and not on her friends and one particularly sexy roommate.

  Surprisingly, Elena came home with her thoughts full of ideas for her thesis. She had not chosen where her main area of focus would be, yet. She had too many ideas and interests. She was a bit delayed because of her enthusiasm for psychology as a whole. At least, that is how she chose to view her reluctance to commit to one idea to research. Okay, she was beyond behind. She was running out of classes to take. She needed to make a decision and produce a thesis if she wanted to continue in the field of psychology. Tonight, though, she pushed that to the back of her mind. All that mattered was that today had gone well. She had gone to the library and was able to read and concentrate on her own thoughts about psychology. So what if they ranged from biopsychology to child psychology to engineering psychology and back around to developmental psychology? She was just as interested in the way animal species adapt, survive, and evolve as she was in the way people interact with their equipment and systems in their work environment. It was all fascinating. And, don’t even get her started on the psychology of the individual’s growth and development. She pulled into the garage. That overwhelming thought was back. She wanted to do her thesis on, well, everything to do with psychology. She refused to dwell on how impossible and impractical that goal was. Instead, she took the time to just enjoy the moment. She had chosen this field to study. She loved it. She held on to one of life’s truth that she had learned from her parents. Life was in the small moments. She was living, right now, doing what she had chosen for herself. Soon enough she would have to deal with details and make decisions. For now, she would just enjoy the moment. She entered the house through the garage door that connects with the kitchen. And found all her roommates there again. Well, it wasn’t her birth date today.

  A quick look at the table told her that they had eaten the lasagna. That made her smile on the inside. She liked to cook for everyone. In her opinion, food is always needed and appreciated. Plus, this one was low fat made with ground turkey and she hadn’t told the guys that little fact. She had just enough crazy in her to check the pan to see how many helpings they had inadvertently ate. “So is this an intervention?” she asked the three of them. They were sitting at the table in the breakfast nook. Monica and Jacob were across the table from each other with Phillip between them. Elena took a seat across from Phillip and joined them. It looked like they were waiting for her.

  “Finally, you’re home. I was afraid the library swallowed you whole. The world of psychology can’t have you right now ‘cause I need you. I have an announcement to make.” Monica actually stood up. “Well, we have some news to tell you at least.” She looked expectantly at Jacob.

  He had remained sitting back in his chair with one ankle crossed over the opposite knee. “She’s hot,” he said nodding his head
at Monica. “A blind fool could see that. I’m not blind and only a fool for a pretty face. With large breasts.” He smiled, probably hoping that the joke he played on himself would exonerate him from the boob comment. Elena noticed that Phillip had relaxed as Monica and Jacob had started to speak. So he hadn’t known what this was all about, either.

  “Yes. I’m pretty and have big boobs. Thank you, Jacob. He’s pretty, and I’ll let you know how he measures up later.” She winked at Elena. Open and out-going. Gotta love her. “We are all roommates here. I have lived in enough places to know that we have a good thing going. We’re practically family. Jacob and I are attracted to each other and we are going to explore that. Tonight. Despite how bad that sounds after the family comment. You know what I meant. Jacob, help me out,” although she plowed on without pause. “We would appreciate any privacy you could give us. We know this may be frightening to you both,” at this point she was looking solely at Elena. Phillip was sitting back in his chair. The two guys looked like they were mentally fist bumping each other across the table. “But we are adults. We know that whatever may come of this physical exploration, we will always respect the roommate agreement.” Monica sat down. She looked around the table. A bit agitated, she shifted her legs under the table, bumping it and causing a beer bottle that Jacob had been drinking to slide off. Elena caught it without looking or spilling a drop and replaced it on the table. She waited in the short silence that ensued. When no one spoke, Monica began to fidget again.

  Elena had to stretch to know Monica was worried. So Elena responded to her. “Thank you for letting us know,” she said inclining her head toward Phillip to include him in the “us” part. “We will respect your privacy.” She smiled at Monica and felt the warmth of Monica’s relief. Her friend had been truly worried about how she would take this news. Monica stood up and moved around the table to take Jacob’s hand. “Thank you. We need the upstairs tonight.” They walked away from the table and went upstairs. Elena could not recall a time when someone told her, “Hey. We’re going to have sex now. Don’t interrupt.” First time for everything, right?

  Phillip and Elena looked at each other for a moment. Then they laughed. It felt good and natural. She was also feeling relieved. After spending a whole day at the library and able to concentrate for hours on her research, Elena knew that whatever was going on with Monica and Jacob right now was their own choice. She could not be influencing them right now. Or anyone but herself. Secure in that, she took pity on Phillip. Kicked out of his room as he was. “So, we can watch On Demand together. I haven’t seen Dancing with the Stars all season,” she teased him. She knew he couldn’t tolerate the show.

  “Naw. We can watch Swamp People. I haven’t caught up with my family.” Elena often wondered how much he was kidding when he made comments like that. Phillip had great teeth, though. And none were missing.

  As they flipped through the channels, they found a repeat of one of the early Harry Potter movies on HBO. Just as Harry and Ron were discovering the ginormous hidden chamber with the ginormous hidden snake, Marvin Gaye drifted down the stairs. Seriously, ‘Let’s Get It On?’ Phillip and Elena burst out laughing again, but tried to quiet it as they heard footsteps walking around upstairs. They looked at each other as they both came to the same conclusion. “They’re coming downstairs?!” Elena asked as the footsteps became louder. They raced to Elena’s room with Phillip tight on her heels as he quietly pulled the door shut. “We can watch tv in here,” she whispered as they both stood by the door shamelessly listening to someone moving downstairs and opening the refrigerator. Neither moved away from the door. Marvin Gaye sang on. Elena giggled again. It was like a bad cliché. “Maybe they’re thirsty,” she suggested.

  “Maybe they’re goan after the whipped cream you bought last grocery store trip.” They were still standing by the door, listening to what sounded like Jacob moving around the kitchen. He was taking a while. “Come on. We gotta turn the tv on or something before I go see for myself.” Phillip moved further into her room but stopped just short of the bed. Elena fluffed up a couple of pillows, grabbed the remote, and patted the bed beside her as she hopped on. Phillip climbed in beside her. It felt like the most natural thing in the world when he slipped his arm behind Elena for her to rest her head. They turned the television on to the Harry Potter movie.

  “You know I doan keep secrets. I already told Jacob I kissed you on your birthday.” Phillip spoke disturbingly close to her.

  “You do know that was only last night, right?” Marvin Gaye played on in the background. She thought they might have the song on repeat.

  “Well, he gave me a ride to my gig. Kissing you was on my mind. Like it has been every moment since last night.” She was a bit jealous of everyone in the bar that had heard him sing while thinking about kissing her. Phillip had begun playing with the material on the front of her shirt with his free hand and drawing slow patterns on her stomach. He untied the strings on her top that opened in the front, revealing her tank top underneath. The music was soft but the beat could be felt through the walls. Elena could hear footsteps walking down the hall upstairs. “Are you ticklish?” he asked her close to her ear.

  “No, I’m laughing at Marvin Gaye.”

  “That’s not Jacob’s move. That has to be all Monica.”

  “Maybe you’re right. It is one of her favorite songs. She has it on her playlist for when she goes for walks. Which makes no sense. You don’t exercise to Marvin Gaye.” Elena was beginning to get distracted by his slowly moving hand on her stomach.

  “They’re exercising right now.”

  Well, he did have a point. “I’m not as open to casual as Monica or Jacob.” Elena was finding it hard to follow her own train of thought, but she knew she needed to be honest and up-front with Phillip.

  “I know. I know you, cher. And we have time.” Cher. He had only called her that once before. Phillip had moved his hand under her tank and continued drawing lazy patterns softly on her skin. He grinned at her adding, “At least a whole week, no, if what Monica said last night is true?”

  Oh, yeah. Monica’s own special grocery store run. How could she forget that announcement? She had less than a week left, but she wasn’t going to discuss that with him. Embarrassed, Elena had to force herself to look Phillip in the eyes. Then forgot what she was going to say as he moved with slow intent toward her. He kissed her long and deep, taking his time. Every so often his fingers would flex against the skin of her stomach as if he wasn’t quite aware he was doing so. He rolled on top of her but broke their kiss placing his forehead on hers. They both groaned, caught up in the way his weight settled on to her. He kissed her again as somewhere above the song started over again.Never had she so completely understood lyrics before. Trying to hold back this feeling, indeed.

  “Phillip,” she breathed against his mouth. Stealing another soft kiss she said, “I hope they took the whipped cream. I’m not sure why I bought it. I’ve been feeling guilty all week for spending our money like that.” He laughed and she soon joined him. When they heard Jacob actually cheer like his favorite football team had just scored, they laughed again. Elena lost track of the kisses they shared that night. Although they had talked long after the music had finally stopped, the time seemed to fly by. He had watched with his eyes burning as she changed in to her jammie top for him. Elena excused herself into the bathroom to finish getting ready for bed. She was nervous as she came out wearing only her necklace, thin tank top, and short jammie shorts. He was still lying there completely dressed when she came out. She was not sure where she found the courage to help him out of his clothes for bed, but she did. She remembered how it felt as she slid in to bed with him. He lay there, reclined in her bed in his boxer briefs, bulging obviously, but undeniably unselfconscious. Elena and Phillip spent the night together talking about his music and her psychology whenever they found they needed a moment to stop before their kisses and touches took things too far. At one point, he actually asked her to expla
in in detail what engineering psychology was, as he slipped her hand out from underneath his boxers’ waistband. Her answer was almost coherent. She had tried to ask him about a melody she had heard him playing but that didn’t seem to be finished. His tongue tracing the skin under her necklace had chased the thought away before she could voice it. It didn’t escape her notice that Phillip never questioned her about wearing the necklace to bed.

  Elena couldn’t recall when she fell asleep for the night, but when she woke the next morning Phillip was still in her bed. He looked his usual combination of cute and sexy as he slept. As she remembered how his abs would contract as she traced her hand down his body, she decided once again he landed on the sexy side. Quietly, she got up early, but not as early as usual. Today was Thursday. Monica didn’t work at the doctor’s office on Thursdays. Elena gathered ingredients for blueberry pancakes. She glided around the kitchen cleaning up as she mixed the batter. They would all have breakfast together. The night had been wonderful, but had definitely left her wanting. Maybe the sugar from the pancakes would help. Still, a large part of her was relieved, even if she did feel like a coward admitting it to herself. No lines had been crossed. Her friendship with Phillip really shouldn’t be damaged by last night. This would be an interesting breakfast. She hoped she could keep a straight face. Marvin Gaye?

  Monica and Jacob came down the stairs together. They were talking about Jacob wanting to get a new pair of shoes. Jacob was clomping down the steps, as per usual for him. Monica was coming down behind him laughing at him like he was a fool. It was completely normal. She had seen that sight plenty of times before. Surely Elena hadn’t imagined Marvin Gaye? They came in to the kitchen gathering coffee mugs and glasses for milk while exchanging good mornings with Elena. As the pancakes began to stack up, Elena moved the platter to the table. Phillip walked out of her room dressed in his clothes from the night before and joined them at the table. Monica raised her eyes, looking between Elena and Phillip. “Sorry we kicked you out of the upstairs, Phillip. It won’t happen again.” The conclusion she had drawn had obviously landed on the side of innocent and platonic. Elena placed the syrup on the table and went to the refrigerator to get the butter. She pulled the tub out and placed it on the table after opening the lid. She sat down still holding on to the tub. “Butter?” Her voice sounded a bit squeaky. “And you used your fingers in the tub?” The long track marks were obvious. What would they even do with butter? Monica looked like she was about to explain. Jacob just looked pleased with himself. Phillip only grunted looking mildly interested. He was not a morning person. Elena quickly focused internally saying, “Seriously, I don’t even want to know.” She didn’t want to pick up on that even by accident. “I’m sticking with just syrup today.”