More Than A Friend Request

by Julie Prestsater

  “You okay? Did I hear something break?” Hannah screeched into the phone.

  He had to get a hold of himself. He was acting like a girl. “Yeah, I’m fine. My book just fell of my bed.”

  “Oh. Listen, I’ve gotta get up early for work so I’m going to cut this short.”

  He couldn’t help being disappointed that she was getting off the phone with him so soon. She was right though. He needed his sleep. Neither of them had ever been morning people. He thought it was ironic that they both picked careers with early morning wake up calls.

  “No problem, you know how irritable I get if I don’t sleep.”

  “Still hate to wake up in the morning?”

  “Yup, it’s gotten worse in my old age. I’ve even thought about opening the office at eleven, but then I’d have to stay open until seven or eight and that’s out of the question.”

  “Ha, I wish school started at eleven. The kids probably do too.”

  “I’ll send you a message with details about dinner, okay?” Adam threw it out there.

  He could hear her yawn through the receiver. “Okay, sounds good. I’ll look forward to it.”

  “Good night, Hannah.”

  “Good night, Adam.”

  Hannah went to sleep with a goofy smile spread across her face. She was feeling so many ups and downs since she had reconnected with Adam in the last few days but overall, she was happy to speak with him again.

  As she headed into work, she prepared herself for Leila to kill any kind of happiness that was brewing in her life. She only talked to her best friend once the day before and she cut the conversation short, blaming it on her football rituals. Leila never called on Sunday or Monday nights during football season, there was no reason for her to start now.

  Once the first bell rang and students scattered toward their classes, the assistant principal sauntered into her office and shut the door.

  “Spill it,” Leila demanded. There were times when Hannah regretted choosing to work at the same school as her friend, and it just happened to be one of those days. “Come on. Tell me. Have you seen the bastard yet? Did you sleep with him already?”

  “Lei, you need to relax. We’re at work and …”

  The other woman, dressed in a light gray blazer and pencil skirt, sat down across from her and interrupted. “Don’t start that crap with me, Hannah. I can’t believe you’re seeing him. Just like that. Have you forgotten how many months you spent crying over that self-absorbed ass?”

  She raised her hand to stop Leila, but her friend didn’t waiver. “Let me remind you. He left you. He was too much of a coward to go to medical school and love you at the same time. He chose his career over your happiness and he always will. How can you forget?”

  Hannah took a deep breath and gathered her thoughts. Leila had finally stopped badgering her and she wanted to make sure she said what she needed to before she started in again.

  “I didn’t forget. How could I? You’ve taken every opportunity for the last fifteen years to remind me of how broken I was when he left. Since you screwed up everything with Aaron because, let me remind you, you weren’t ready for a husband and kids, you haven’t let me have any peace. It’s like since you’re miserable because Aaron would have given it all to you and you passed it up, you want me to be just as miserable as you.”

  “Now wait a minute,” Leila tried to get a word in.

  “No, I let you talk. Now you listen to me. When Adam left, I was broken. He hurt me. And now he wants to talk to me again. I don’t know what he wants but I’m willing to find out. I’ve never loved another man the way I loved him. And despite his choice to move on without me, I’ve still never found another man who has loved me like he did. I’m sorry if me talking to him again brings back bad memories for you, but maybe now you’ll try and talk to Aaron too. We both know you two need to talk as much as me and Adam.”

  Leila didn’t say another word. She stood, opened the door, and walked out, tossing her long straight black hair over her shoulder in a big “eff you” to her friend.

  “Well, I’m glad we were able to have that conversation,” Hannah murmured to herself.

  Hannah scanned her desk for anything she might have forgotten to toss in her tote. She’d already packed her lunch bag, an educational journal that featured an article about improving graduation rates, and a book a student had recommended to her. Just as she was about to grab her keys, she felt her phone vibrate in her bag. She stopped, set everything down again, and searched for her phone.

  A new FaceSpace message from Adam.

  Meet me at Giovanni’s for pizza and the game. Plz! :-)

  Cute. Hannah giggled at the little emoticon and sent him a message back telling him she’d be there before kickoff.

  It seemed like a better time than any to go ahead and meet this man again. Who knew? Maybe they’d meet, take one look at each other, and feel nothing. That wasn’t something she’d ever considered until now, but it was very possible. Expecting all the emotions and longing to still be there after so much time, was starting to sound more and more ridiculous the closer she got to the pizza joint.

  When she finally arrived at Giovanni’s at close to five o’clock, Adam was already there. She wondered if he was a regular. She’d been there a million times and had never run into him. But now, they were both in the same place at the same time. Finally.

  She saw him almost immediately. He was seated at a table facing a big screen TV, with a basket of garlic bread and two beers in front of him.

  As she approached, Hannah got a little lightheaded just looking at him. When he stood to greet her, she almost fainted. He was wearing a black striped dress shirt which he cuffed so she could see his strong forearms. His black pants and shiny black shoes made him look so professional. This look was so different from his FaceSpace profile photo where he was dressed so casual. But even in his big boy clothes, she still saw his easy going demeanor in his beautiful eyes as he smiled at her.

  It seemed to take a lifetime to walk the short distance from the door to his table. While the place was packed with the Monday Night Football crowd, it was like no one else existed.

  Hannah finally stood before Adam and she had no idea what to say. He reached for her, brushing a strand of hair away from her face and tucking it behind her ear. A gentle smile spread across his lips as she looked up into his hazel eyes. There was a still silence until he cupped her face in the palms of his hands and lowered his lips to hers.

  She didn’t turn away. She didn’t push him back. She stood on her tip toes and allowed him to press his mouth to hers in a kiss that she had longed to have for what seemed like an eternity. His lips were gentle on hers at first. Then, he opened his mouth to her and she did the same. She was the first to brush her tongue against his. He responded by deepening the kiss allowing their tongues to dance together with such passion that it would have never ended had it not been for the whistles and cat calls from the other patrons of Giovanni’s.

  Hannah had forgotten where they were at. She lowered her feet flat to the ground, and rested her hands on Adam’s hips. He tore his lips from hers and scooped her up in a tight embrace. He bent down to nuzzle his face in her hair and planted a few pecks against her neck. She relaxed in his arms and wished to god that they were somewhere else a lot less public.

  “Hi, Hannah,” he whispered in her ear. He pulled back, his hands still wrapped in her hair, and said, “I’m sorry. I didn’t plan on doing that.” He really hadn’t. But she took his breath away. She waltzed in with her usual glow. Her silky, wavy hair was down passed her shoulders. She wore an innocent smile that seemed so effortless to her. He loved her casual, yet sexy style. Her tight jeans with heels and a shimmery sweater thing made him ache for her. So when she got within his reach, he couldn’t resist taking her in his arms and kissing her like he’d imagined every night for the past fifteen years. He couldn’t remember a night that he’d gone to sleep without thinking of this very moment. Of kissing his Han
nah again.

  She giggled in his arms. “Don’t apologize. I was kind of hoping you would. You wanna get out of here?”

  “Excuse me?” Did he hear her correctly?

  “Umm. Why don’t we watch the game somewhere a little more private?”

  Yes, he heard her loud and clear. “Let’s go.”

  He grabbed her by the hand and led her out of the restaurant. She quickly rattled off to him to follow her in his own car. He sure as hell didn’t argue. He wasn’t sure about how this would turn out but he wasn’t about to stop to think about it.

  It was a short ride to her house in a neighborhood known for its old lush trees and historic homes. He tried to pay attention to all the turns and street names so he could retrace his steps in the future but one thing kept weighing on his mind. He needed to tell Hannah about Danny. But when? He figured sooner rather than later would be best.

  He couldn’t believe that she didn’t know he had a son, but then again, why would she? The only contact she would have had with him would have been through Aaron, but he had completely been cut off by Leila when they parted ways. Sure they’d had friends in common but all of those relationships had fizzled by the end of his first year of medical school. He hadn’t met Danny’s mom until his second year of school and he wasn’t born until after Aaron and Lei’s split. When he found out that he was having a baby, he made sure Aaron wouldn’t breathe a word of it to Leila or Hannah. It was something he had always wanted to tell her himself. She deserved that much from him.

  She pulled her car into the garage and left it open. She got out and waited for him to park on the street. As he walked up the drive way, he had to remember to breathe. He couldn’t believe he was just a few steps away from kissing the woman he loved.

  Adam strutted toward her and enveloped her in his arms. He lifted her off her feet and spun her around. She squealed and he laughed. They had always been very playful, and he was happy to be able to still have that with her.

  He set her back on her feet and left a kiss to her forehead. She then took his hand and he followed her inside. He scanned the small house quickly and felt at home. It was decorated very simply. It didn’t scream that a woman lived there with frilly pink things and lots of cats. He chuckled inside at the thought.

  It was comfortable enough that he could walk around in his socks and throw his feet on a table. He thought of how easily they could sit in front of the tube and eat in the family room, and not have to eat at a formal dining room table. He loved the hard wood floors and the white Wainscoting. She’d done well for herself and he was proud of her.

  “Nice place, Hannah. It’s very you.”

  “Thanks, I think.”

  He grinned. “It was a compliment. I really like it.” He walked toward her where she was leaning against a sofa. He stopped in front of her and threaded his fingers through the tips of her hair. “This seems unreal. I can’t begin to tell you how happy I am to finally see you.”

  “I’m pretty sure I know how you feel,” she said, tugging on the pockets of his pants. He lurched forward till their bodies brushed against each other.

  It was these little things that made him confident that this just might work. The way she still looked at him. The giggles she let out while he held her. The tugging of his pockets. Those were the things that were so characteristically Hannah. She’d always hooked her index fingers on his pockets and pulled him close to her. She’d hold on and yank him closer till their bodies smashed together. For the most part, it had been her way to let him know she was in the mood for a little loving. He wondered if that was what she was trying to say to him. Well, he was in her house and if that wasn’t a clue, what was?

  He leaned forward and she met him the rest of the way for a kiss that rocked his world. He was instantly hard as their lips pressed together. He squeezed her hips and brought her body smashing up against his. He opened his mouth slightly and teased her with a little nibble on her bottom lip. He felt her smile against his kiss and he couldn’t help but chuckle.

  “Come with me,” she told him.

  He followed her to what he assumed was her bedroom.

  Hannah was wide-eyed and gazing at him. Her mouth was puffy from their kisses and he wanted nothing more than to finish what they started but he couldn’t. Not yet. Not until he told her about Danny.

  There was no way he could make love to her if she wasn’t willing to accept his son. What if she wanted nothing to do with him after she found out? It would be so much more difficult to walk away once they’d slept together.

  While his body was telling him to strip Hannah naked and have his way with her, his heart wouldn’t allow it.

  “Are you sure this is what you want?”

  She smiled at him. “I think that’s obvious. Don’t you?”

  Adam laced his fingers through Hannah’s. “I do. Believe me, I do.” He paused. “But first, I think we should talk. A lot has happened since we last spoke.” He really didn’t want to relive that last conversation yet he was determined to tell her about his life.

  “You’re probably right,” she said, releasing his hands. “Get undressed.”

  He put his hands on his hips. “You gotta be kidding, right?”

  Adam watched as she kicked off her shoes and began unbuttoning her jeans.

  “No. I’m not. We should have done this last time and maybe we wouldn’t have wasted almost half our lives not speaking to each other.” She had a point. One night they’d gotten into a fight and they were both tempted to walk out the door before they were finished. Adam couldn’t even remember what the stupid argument was about, but he remembered the pact they’d made. They had decided that before they had any serious talks, they’d get undressed and talk in bed. Walking out would be a lot less likely if they were in their underwear. But their last night together, Adam had done little to prepare her for the conversation so they had kept their clothes on, and when he was finished breaking up with her, he just left. He didn’t stick around to talk about his decision. He knew that if he did, he would’ve never been able to follow through with it.

  She was absolutely serious. She was down to her undies and a camisole and he hoped she didn’t notice the swell in his pants. He couldn’t help it. She had the most perfect legs and her pink lace panties were making it hard for him to think.

  “Well, Adam, you better take it off, mister, or we’re gonna be here all night doing nothing but staring at each other. And that thing isn’t gonna go down with me just looking at it.” She gestured below his waist.

  He ran his fingers though his hair with a chuckle. “Fine.” Adam, reluctantly, pulled his shirt from his waistband and unbuttoned it. He kicked off his shoes and slid his socks off. He unbuckled his belt and allowed his pants to fall to the floor. There he stood in his black boxer briefs. He looked down at himself and laughed. “I can’t believe we’re doing this.”

  Hannah chuckled too. “Neither can I.”

  Adam reached out to touch her shoulder and she took his hand and kissed his palm. He then watched as she flipped back her comforter and slid onto her bed moving to the far side. She patted the space next to her, and he followed her.

  “So shoot. What’s on your mind?”

  He couldn’t believe how easy she was making this. How could she not be mad at him? How could she be letting him off the hook this easy? So he told her what he was thinking.

  “Hannah, this doesn’t seem right. How can you be so nonchalant about seeing me again? You’re acting like not a day has passed since the last time we saw each other. You don’t have anything to say to me?”

  He gazed into her beautiful eyes that seemed to study him. “What do you want me to say? For a long time, I practiced how I’d cuss you out and tell you I hated you. But then, I’d feel like shit for even thinking that. Then, I thought about how I wanted to find you and tell you that we could work it out. I wouldn’t be the needy girlfriend while you were in med school and I’d give you all the space you needed. But then I t
hought about what you’d said and how even though we’d say we were going to be cool with not spending so much time together, we really wouldn’t and then your grades would really suffer. You were right. There’s no way we would’ve been able to stay away from each other.” As they both stretched out side by side in Hannah’s bed, facing each other, Adam didn’t know what to make of Hannah’s words. She continued, “So I followed that old saying. I loved you so much, I let you go. Without a fight. If it was meant to be, I knew you’d come back to me someday. I just didn’t think it would take this long.”

  “Aha,” Adam grunted. He was touched by her confession and a frog was lodged in his throat. After a pause, he said, “You are a very wise woman.”

  She placed her hand on his side. “So what took you so long?”

  Adam stared into her big brown eyes and tried to send her signals to remain calm and understanding after what he was about to tell her. Her eyes seemed to plead with him to just tell her what was on his mind and get it over with.

  And so he did.

  “Hannah, I have a son.”

  Chapter 5

  Hannah yanked her hand back like she’d just been stung by something. He had a son. She didn’t know what to make of that. She sat up in her bed, pulled the sheet up over her, gathering it in her fists at her breasts. Adam sat up slowly but didn’t say anything.

  She looked into his eyes and saw the worry. She didn’t mean to make him so nervous but she was at a loss for words. He reached out for her hands and took one in his. She felt his warmth and started to feel a wave of calm come over her.