by Harley Fox
“Jake!” I shout, the wind making me almost deaf to my own ears. “Jake, we can’t leave!”
He turns his head, smiles at me, presses down harder on the gas. The car speeds up. But the edge of the city stays in the same place.
“Jake, we’re stuck here!” I shout. I’m starting to panic now. “Jake, we can’t leave!”
He presses down harder. I’m looking at him. He’s staring, determined, out of the windshield. His mouth opens and I see words form on his lips.
“Will Silver.”
I turn my head and my heart almost stops when I see PharmaChem right in front of us, its huge metal and glass face approaching at an alarming speed. And standing there in front of it is Will Silver. He doesn’t move. He smiles instead, daring us with his eyes.
“Jake, look out!”
But it’s too late. PharmaChem speeds towards us and we smash into Will, smash into the wall, the front of the car crumpling as Jake and the baby and I are thrown out of our seats, my head smashing through the windshield—
I sit up, gasping for air. My heart is pounding. My body is covered in sweat beneath the T-shirt and pajama pants I’m wearing. Even though I only have a single bed sheet covering me, I feel so hot and sticky. I kick it off, still catching my breath. I flop back down on the pillow and put a hand to my heart to steady it, feeling the rapid thump-thump-thump of it against my chest.
It was a dream. But it felt so real. Jake was there. He was right there.
It takes me a moment to realize that I can’t see the opposite wall clearly. I blink a few times, but it looks hazy. Pushing myself back up to sitting, I realize that the room is filled with fog again. Just like last night.
Is this another dream?
I look over and Trista’s window is open. There’s a dull glow from the streetlamps. And then I hear it: the unmistakable roar of a motorcycle engine.
Jake!
I swing my legs around and climb off the bed, moving quickly to the window where I stick my head out, peering down. There he is. Jake. Sitting on his motorcycle, both hands on the handlebars. He’s looking up at me, revving his engine, making it roar and roar.
“Jake,” I call out. My voice sounds muffled from the fog. He blinks. He looks sad.
“Merryn,” he says. He sounds far away, like I’m hearing his voice from across a wide chasm. “I’m sorry.”
I shake my head, the tears already coming. “No, don’t be sorry. We both made mistakes. We were both wrong.”
He blinks again and I see the shining trail of a tear rolling down his cheek. “No,” he says. “What I did was terrible. I acted in the worst possible way.”
I swallow, an idea coming to me. “Wait there,” I say, and pull my head back in the window. If this is my dream …
I skirt around the bed and go to Trista’s bedroom door. I pull it open, the sound of it quieted by the fog. It’s crept into the hallway too. I look down and see the door at the end of the hallway closed. Moving quietly, I pad down the stairs to the front door and unlock it, stepping through into the foyer, and then outside.
The fog is still here. Jake is still here. He’s still sitting on his motorcycle, watching me. I’m not wearing any shoes and the sidewalk feels harsh against my bare feet.
“Jake,” I say in a softer voice, now that we’re so close. “I’ve missed you so much.”
“I’ve missed you too,” he says. His expression is somber. When I reach him he slips a hand around my back. It feels so good to feel his touch again. If this is my dream …
I lean up, bringing my head towards his, and tilt my head to kiss him. He kisses me back. We hold together for a long while. I reach up and slide a hand under his leather jacket, feeling his hard body beneath the white T-shirt he’s wearing. Finally I drop down from the kiss.
“Come upstairs,” I say in a soft voice. His eyes are on mine. A smile reaches his lips.
He turns off the motorcycle, swinging a leg over and climbing off. I take his hand in mine and lead him back into Trista’s apartment, up the stairs, the two of us moving quietly, our footsteps muffled by the fog that fills the air.
We go into Trista’s bedroom and quietly shut the door. My heart hammers inside of my chest. I can feel our baby moving, as though it’s waken up, knowing that Daddy is near. I lead Jake over to Trista’s bed and we sit down on it, side by side, like we’re on a first date in grade school. Jake looks in my eyes. I look in his. And then I lean forward and kiss him again, putting my hand on his leg, feeling how close he is to me.
Our mouths move together in synchronicity. It’s everything I remember and more. We lean back together on the bed and Jake lifts himself up on one elbow, hovering over me as we kiss. His hand finds my shoulder, moves around, down, circling around my large belly. He slides it back up again and I feel him grab my breast. He finds my nipple, already hard and pushing out from my shirt. I gasp when he touches it, causing trickles of hot electricity to sparkle down my spine to the place in between my legs.
I reach down and find the side of his body with my hand. It slips under his jacket and then his T-shirt. His body is hot and hard. My breath trembles against his lips as he touches me, as I touch him. I slide my hand down and reach the top of his jeans. Slide around to the front and the tent in his pants is stiff and strong.
I moan, rubbing it. His hips begin to buck, pushing towards me. The hand on my breast slides down, moving over my stomach and below, to the top of my pajama pants. He slips his fingers easily beneath the waistband and into my panties. I feel him push past my bush of pubic hair and then he reaches my pussy. I moan out loud as he slides a finger through my wetness, rubbing my hard and pulsing clit, slipping into me and making me want more.
I reach down with my other hand too and quickly fumble his jeans open. The clink of his belt, the zip of his zipper, and then I slip my hand inside and feel it. Him. His enormous cock, throbbing in my hand.
I start to stroke him as he fingers me, our hands moving at the same time, speeding up together. Our lips continue moving, our tongues pushing out, trying to reach as far into the other’s mouth as possible.
I can feel the pressure build up inside of me and my body writhes on the bed as Jake keeps thrusting himself against me, his cock fucking my hand. My heart is pounding. I feel lightheaded. And then the pleasure rises up and I climax, crying out against his mouth, my pussy thrusting up and meeting his hand, forcing more of him into me, pushing me further and further into this land of exquisite feeling.
When my orgasm subsides I feel Jake lift himself to sitting. He pulls his hand out of my pussy and grabs the waistband of my pajama pants with both hands. My head is still swimming, but I lift up enough to allow him to push them and my panties down. When he’s done with that he grabs his own pants and pushes them down, freeing his hard cock from its confines. His hands find my body and I allow myself to be moved, laid down on my side as he comes in from behind, my ass pushing out and my legs parting enough to allow him to slip inside of me.
I gasp. Jake feels incredible in my aching pussy. He shrugs off his leather jacket and lays down behind me, his body encircling, cradling my own, our upper halves separated by two thin T-shirts. My belly sits comfortably on the bed and Jake’s hand lays over top of it, slides up to under my breasts, pulling me closer so that all parts of us are touching.
I moan, trying my best to keep my voice down despite the fact that I’m dreaming. Jake’s cock slides in and out of my pussy. His hips thrust up into my ass, pushing a deeper sort of pleasure down through my loins. I find his hand with mine and our fingers entwine. His nose and lips nuzzle through my hair to the back of my neck, up to my ear. His breathing is hot, measured, trembling.
I feel so close to him. My eyes close and I revel in this feeling, in this exquisite love that exists between us. Jake fucks me like this for what feels like hours, our bodies moving together on the bed, his cradling mine, holding me close, safe. His hand finds my breast and I breathe in deep when he squeezes it, filling me with
more pleasure.
“Oh god, Merryn,” he moans in my ear and I clasp his hand tighter. “Merryn …”
His breathing is getting choppier. I feel his movements come on stronger. Knowing and sensing and experiencing his pleasure through him drives me wild, and in between my legs and all throughout my body I tighten, rise higher, higher.
“Fuck, Merryn … oh god … oh god!”
Suddenly Jake comes, his body stiffening and thrusting out hard. I gasp and tremble as my own orgasm rocks through me, carried on the back of his. We come at the same time, our bodies pulled so closely together, moving together, as one.
When it’s finally over I relax, and I feel Jake relax against me. We’re both breathing deeply. My skin is covered in a sheen of sweat, but that’s fine now.
“Jake,” I say in a sleepy voice. “I love you.”
He squeezes me. “I love you too,” comes his low voice, and then I slip off to sleep.
When I wake up I’m lying on my side on the bed. I’m on top of the sheets, and my pajama pants and panties are off. Morning light streams in through the window. I blink, rolling onto my back. I’m alone.
Jesus … did I masturbate in my sleep? What a vivid dream.
But when I sit up, something warm and wet seeps out of me, from between my legs. I freeze, feeling it pool against my thighs. Then I reach down and feel it, feel the wetness against my fingertips. I bring my hand back up and look at it. The soft smell of it reaches my nostrils.
It smells like Jake.
Flynn
The first thing I’m aware of as my eyes blink against the morning sunlight is Trista’s arm draped across my stomach. The second thing is how much pain my body is in.
I wince, cringing against the sore muscles, the bruises, and the cuts that those fucking cops gave me last night. I’m trying not to move. Trying not to wake Trista up. Instead I lie still, coming to terms with my pain. When it’s settled down I realize I can hear the soft sounds of Trista breathing next to me. I smile, ignoring the pain it causes me.
Part of me still can’t believe that last night happened. I might have actually been beaten to death and this is just my own version of heaven. But even if it is, I don’t mind. I’m happy again. Trista took me back. I’m with her now. How she found out I was at the hospital I have no idea. But there will be plenty of time for explaining later. Right now, I’m just happy where I am.
I lay in bed, staring at the ceiling. My hand finds Trista’s arm and I hold it. Her naked body is pressed up next to mine. I quietly turn my head and look at her. That red, wavy hair. That beautiful face. I crane my head down and kiss the top of her head, causing her to stir. Oops. She moves against my body, sliding her arm from my grasp, rolling onto her back and slowly blinking her eyes open. Her lips smack dry a few times. And then she looks over at me.
She smiles.
“Mm, good morning,” she says. I can’t stop from smiling back at her.
“Morning.” I lean down and press my lips to hers, kissing her. She kisses me back, her hand finding my chest, grabbing onto me. When our kiss is done she brings her head down to rest it on my chest. I watch the top of it rise and fall with each breath.
“How’re you feeling?” she asks.
“Still sore,” I tell her, and she immediately lifts her head up off of me. “Oh no, that’s fine,” I say, and she relaxes back down, tentatively. “I got beaten up by some cops last night. That’s why I was in the hospital.”
“Yeah,” I hear her say. “I know.”
My brow furrows.
“What? How did you know that?”
“Um, Merryn and I hotwired this guy’s car and went joyriding. On our way back we saw the fire, but when we showed up you’d already been caught and were being beaten up by the police.”
“Oh,” I say. My head is swimming with questions, and Trista answers one of them.
“We were hidden in the shadows,” she says. “That way we didn’t get caught. Then I dropped Merryn off and dropped off the car, and then came and broke you out of the hospital.”
I remember that part. “You said you were with Merryn. Do you mean, like, Jake Hawksley’s girlfriend Merryn?”
“Oh, yeah,” she says. “She and Jake got into a fight and he kicked her out of their apartment. She’s staying with me in the meantime.”
“Yeah, I heard about that,” I tell her, and now it’s my turn to inform her of something. “Lance told me when he came for Katie, his girlfriend. He told me about the shootout, and Will Silver, and what happened after.”
“What happened to you after?” Trista asks me. I take a moment before answering.
“I don’t know,” I say. “I walked a lot. And thought, a lot. I went back to the warehouse to get my bike. Nobody was there. Then I rode around and I … decided that I wanted to do something … for you.”
Trista pushes herself up, looking in my eyes.
“For me?”
I nod. “The drug facilities. I decided to destroy them all. I burned one down that first night and it felt … well, not amazing, but it felt like I was free of something. I got sloppy last night, though, and got caught.”
Trista shakes her head. “No, you weren’t sloppy. Will Silver was onto you. He increased security. Ugh, I should have told you.”
“How do you know that?”
“Merryn’s friend, who still works at PharmaChem, found out. Then Merryn told me.”
Will knew. No wonder it was like they were waiting for me. I didn’t even hear any sirens when the first cop hit me.
“Flynn, I’m so sorry,” Trista says. Her eyes are shiny with tears.
“Oh, no, shh,” I say, pulling her towards me and giving her a kiss. “Don’t be sorry. These last few days … well, this whole last month … has been strange. I mean, not bad,” I give her a squeeze, “but strange.”
She sniffs, nods. Gives me a watery smile.
“So, Merryn is at your apartment?” I ask her. Trista nods again.
“Yeah. I told her I’d be back last night. We should probably head over so I don’t scare her.”
“Okay,” I say, and Trista and I kiss one last time before getting out of bed.
My body is killing me. I grab the bottle of aspirin Doctor Hartridge gave me and pop a couple in my mouth, drinking from the glass of water Trista brought last night. We both get dressed, me in new clothes, Trista in her old ones. I keep sneaking glances at her as she covers up her incredible body. When we’re both ready I pocket the aspirin and we leave the apartment, locking the door behind us.
My bike got left at the facility and is probably a twisted hunk of metal right now. I climb onto Trista’s bike behind her, holding onto her stomach for stability. We ride through the streets, past people going to work, opening up shops for the day. Finally we get to Trista’s neighborhood and reach her apartment, parking the bike and getting off. Trista goes to unlock the door but frowns when she turns the key.
“That’s weird,” she says.
“What?”
“The door is already unlocked.”
We hesitate for a second. “You said you dropped Merryn off last night, right? Maybe she just forgot to lock the door.”
Trista chews her lip. “Maybe.” She reaches into her jacket and pulls her gun out. I do the same.
We go into the foyer and Trista tries the door to her apartment. It’s unlocked too. She opens it quietly and we move up the stairs, not making a sound. A crunching sound reaches my ears as we near the top, and soon I realize it’s coming from the kitchen. Trista moves forward and I follow, both of our guns out. We peer into her bedroom and the bathroom, but they seem clear. Then we get to the kitchen, moving in. A very pregnant Merryn is sitting at the table, eating a bowl of cereal. She freezes when she sees us.
“What …”
“Merryn, did you forget to lock the door last night?” Trista asks.
Merryn looks at her strangely for a moment, and then blinks. “The door was unlocked?”
“Yea
h.”
She blinks again, a few times. “Um … yeah. Yeah, that was me. Sorry.”
Trista exhales and flicks the safety back on on her gun, holstering it.
“Jesus, I thought maybe Will came back to try poisoning my mom,” she says, and she heads into her mom’s room, leaving Merryn and I alone in the same room.
I can’t remember the last time I saw her. Certainly not in any official capacity. I wasn’t there for the gun fight that killed Trista’s brother Sal. But I’d heard Jake Hawksley had a girlfriend who he knocked up. Indeed, she’s staring up at me like she has no idea who I am.
“Hi,” I say. I realize I’m still holding my gun and I hurriedly put it away. “Um, I’m Flynn.”
A wash of recognition comes over her. Trista must have mentioned me.
“Right,” she says. “Flynn. I’m Merryn.”
I lean over and we shake hands. Trista comes back in the room.
“Oh, right, Merryn. You’ve met Flynn before, haven’t you?”
“Actually, no,” Merryn says. “I joined the Chains right when the truce started up. And then … I guess we never got a chance to be introduced.”
“But we just met now,” I tell Trista. She nods.
“Okay, great. Well, I’m going to give mom her breakfast. Flynn, help yourself to some breakfast. I’ll join you guys in a bit.”
Both Merryn and I watch as she grabs some yogurt from the fridge, followed by a bowl and spoon. She dollops some of the yogurt into the bowl and puts the container back, heading into her mom’s room. When she’s gone Merryn looks up at me.
“There’s some cereal,” she says. “And milk in the fridge.”
“Thanks,” I tell her, and go to fix myself a bowl.
The atmosphere in the kitchen is quiet as I put my breakfast together. I don’t really know what to say to Merryn. I mean, what do you say to someone who’s technically your enemy?
“So,” she finally breaks the silence. “You and Trista are back together?”
“Uh, yeah,” I respond. My breakfast put together, I join her at the table. “It seems like it.”
Merryn nods. “We saw you, when you were getting beaten up.”