Jump Then Fall

by Sarah Sanders

  She brushed her fingers along Ree’s thighs and then her lower abdomen. As her hand moved slowly between Ree’s legs, she slid a little upwards, “Suck me,” she said softly, offering her breasts to Ree. Ree’s warm mouth encased her breast willingly, and Ika let her weight down a little more.

  Her fingers slid into Ree’s lush wetness and Ika gasped. “Ree, fuck me,” she moaned unable to control her writhing. Ree quickly entered her and started pumping as Ika mimicked the same action. Ree drew patterns and circles around Ika’s clit and Ika groaned. She was getting keyed up very fast. “Shit, Ree…I’m going to come,” she moaned. Ree’s fingers moved with greater purpose as they moved deeper with each thrust. Ika shuddered as she came…and felt Ree’s contractions around her fingers at the same time.

  “Oh God,” she gasped falling on Ree, gently extracting her fingers. She brought her hand up, licked her fingers and then raised her head to see her shy…very shy…lover. “Ree, you got to let me do this every once in a while before I get so self-absorbed, self-involved and self-serving that I don’t even think about you,” she bent down and kissed the hollow of Ree’s throat, feeling, more than hearing a hum of agreement. “Besides, I loved do that,” she added softly.

  ***************************************************************

  Day 8760

  “…and with these mergers, acquisitions and expansions, Translink has become the biggest organisation in the world in terms of value and in terms of the number of people who form the Translink family across the world.

  “I would like to thank every single person who is a part of Translink – whether they are here or not – for making this such a successful and beautiful place to be in. It thrills me that almost everyone with whom I had started my journey are still here. I am delighted to see each one of you who have become friends and family in the decades that you have spent in the organisation. You are the people who have so firmly established the culture of Translink – no politics and joining this organisation for life. Thank you.”

  The CEO and President of Translink paused and looked at her lover, her life, her partner, in every sense of the word, sitting in the first row, flanked by their two daughters – twenty-year old Maya and eighteen-year old Aria – both, to Ree’s immense delight, were spitting images of their mother, Ika.

  “But most of all, I would like to celebrate the founder of Translink, Reeth Sharma, who dreamt of this company and built this beautiful world for us from scratch. Though she is now making the whole world a much better place with her ceaseless work in renewable energy, water regeneration and environment protection, she remains our mentor and guide to this day.”

  If Ika had anything more to add, it was completely drowned out by the applause, the standing ovation, and the screams for Ree. She smiled as she walked off the stage and went towards her family. Their eyes met and the past twenty-four years unfurled in her mind…

  ***************************************************************

  …Ree moving to New York…

  “Wow! That’s a lot of luggage,” Ree eyed Ika’s four large suitcases plus a couple of cabin bags with surprise when Ika moved into her room after everyone had left the resort that long off day.

  “Sweetie, how many times have you seen me repeat clothes or footwear here?” Ika asked reasonably.

  “Never.”

  “Exactly. Plus there’s stuff for my holiday in India plus stuff for friends, family and extended family.”

  “A little high maintenance, eh?”

  “You have no idea,” Ika grinned. “…and you’ve already seen me having a meltdown and going to pieces…so emotionally also…pretty high maintenance.” A pause…uncertainty… “You may have second thoughts about me,” biting the nail on her forefinger.

  Ree enveloped her in a hug, “Baby, between us, I am the one who has been high maintenance emotionally. And to think that till I met you, I’d always thought I am the most low maintenance person in this world,” a smile. “You’re the best thing to ever happen to me in my life. No second thoughts ever…if you are high maintenance in any way, I would feel privileged if I am able to measure up.”

  Ika’s heart welled.

  “Have I ever told you how much I love the fact you’re so feminine?” Ree kissed her softly. “You’re everything I never dared to dream about, Ika…you just cannot be more perfect.”

  Thank you…thankyouthankyou to all the powers that be. “And I love how throw-away casual you are and yet, all woman,” Ika smiled.

  “But I am curious…how did you get all this stuff here?” Ree asked.

  “We were a group and some of the guys didn’t have a lot of luggage. So I got their luggage allowance and could check in all my stuff.”

  “And how did you plan to take it to India.”

  “Pay for extra baggage,” Ika said resignedly.

  ***

  They flew to India from Krabi and Ree’s private jet.

  After four days at home in Bombay, Ika couldn’t take it anymore. She made all sorts of work excuses, claimed to have been called back and moved in with Ree for a magical period.

  This was the first time Ika actually got to know Ree’s enjoyment of luxury. It wasn’t opulence, but understated, modernistic, minimalistic luxury that Ree surrounded herself with. She had a four bedroom sea-facing apartment with a terrace-lawn in South Bombay, one of the most expensive tracts of real estate in the world. She had a staff of five including a housekeeper, a cook, a driver and two cleaners. But despite her conspicuous consumption, Ree was almost ascetic in her living. She enjoyed having all the billions and enjoyed spending on expensive things for herself and for her people including family, siblings friends, servants and even mere acquaintances…yet there was nothing she particularly wanted or needed materially.

  She was moved to tears when Ika did normal loving and caring actions for her including something as small as straightening Ree’s stuff and keeping everything that she would want at arm’s length. She was rendered speechless with emotion when Ika put Ree’s wants and needs first. When Ika was interested in everything about her. When Ika bothered to find out her likes and dislikes and ensure that she had things that she liked, the way she liked them. Ika understood just how deprived Ree had always felt emotionally…and that all she really wanted was for someone to care about her. Someone to take care of her non-materially.

  Living together, albeit for only about ten days, was incredible. The sheer excitement of it made them hypersexual, only surfacing when they had to go to the loo or eat to keep up their energy. Finally, the sheer exhaustion slowed them and they learnt to be less frenetic about jumping each other. They went out for plays, movies, concerts, lunches, dinners, sightseeing in the city they both had grown up in, for long walks by the Arabian Sea. They learnt to hold long conversations and long silences. They explored each other and learnt how they fit together…and their souls merged.

  They discovered that Ika preferred to use Ree as furniture – whether sitting or sprawling or sleeping, Ika preferred to be on Ree – and Ree didn’t want it any other way. They discovered that Ree loved giving Ika massages – foot massages, back massages and head massages. They discovered that Ika loved playing with Ree’s hair and nibbling her while they talked.

  Ree found that Ika cooking for her was irresistible and did all sorts of crazy things to her libido; she called it “helping” Ika to cook.

  The first time it happened, Ika was making an elaborate Indian meal for Ree. At Ika’s behest, they had sent away all the servants for the evening and were entirely by themselves. Ree helped Ika chopping the vegetables and was then shooed away from the kitchen. Soon she wandered back inside feeling all at sea without Ika. She hugged Ika from behind.

  “Hi,” Ika said, surprised.

  “I was missing you,” Ree said nuzzling Ika’s neck.

  Ika turned her head for a quick kiss. Ree’s hands slipped under her tank top, caressing her breasts. “Ree!” Ika exclaimed feeling her nipples
immediately tightening in response to Ree’s touch. Ree tweaked and rolled Ika’s nipples and Ika could feel herself getting wet. “Ree, your dinner will be ruined if you keep that up,” she chided lovingly.

  Ree stopped playing with Ika’s nipples and just cupped her breasts caressing them. “Smells wonderful,” she said in Ika’s ear. The sound of her voice and the little puff of air as she spoke rushed down Ika’s body making her wetter than she already was.

  “Ree,” she mumbled, voice shaky and legs wobbly.

  Ree nibbled Ika’s ear and then nibbled and licked up the side of her throat. “Fuck,” Ika swore, gamely trying to continue cooking even as she tilted her neck to give Ree better access.

  “I want to,” Ree whispered, lifting the hem of the teddy Ika was wearing and sliding her hand down the front Ika’s thong.

  Stop…don’t stop…she didn’t know what to say to Ree torn between abandoning what she was making and asking Ree to wait while she was getting cooked with unbridled heat. Compromise. “Uh,” she gulped as Ree cupped her. “Okay…you can squeeze me and maybe knead me a bit till I finish making this gravy. As soon as I put the paneer in, I’m yours to do what you please.”

  It was a wonder that the food had been edible…actually, it was beyond good.

  ***

  They found shared spaces, created emotional overlaps, worked through their individual needs and wants of “me time” and found more “our time”. They started knowing more about each other’s emotional triggers and red flags. They stripped themselves more and more to each other, finding greater strength in giving up their vulnerabilities into the other’s keeping.

  They became more playful with each other. Ika loved that Ree could be completely silly with her. They found how much they enjoyed just being with each other. They discovered how wonderful it was to just be touching each other in some way. They found endless conversations. They learnt about and became a part of the other’s life before they met each other. They found themselves falling more in love with each other every day…every moment.

  They’d flown to New York together going to Ree’s new apartment. A triplex with eight bedrooms, a swimming pool and a terrace garden. Eight servants. If Ika hadn’t already been so madly, hopelessly and helplessly in love with Ree, she’d have run away, completely freaked out by a lifestyle almost beyond her comprehension. But Ika had stayed over and they’d called it housewarming.

  Tell me again why am I not with you right now? Ika had messaged the next night, a trifle petulantly. They had decided to take some time just being in their individual ‘normal’. Ika didn’t remember whether that was her harebrained idea or Ree’s. There was something thrown around about negotiating their relationship in ‘real’ life which meant that they stayed in their own apartments and played the normal dating game…

  …finding, stealing time together in the everyday world…

  …staying over weekends…

  …starting to work together on Ika’s concept that she’d spoken about in Krabi, People Positive – which meant that Ika’s work profile changed enormously…

  …realising that it was futile to try and keep their involvement quiet – their interactions, body language and the way they looked at each other were dead giveaways…

  …short holidays over weekends…

  …starting to spend more time together…

  ***************************************************************

  …moving in with Ree…

  “Ree, I have more stuff here than I have over at my apartment,” Ika looked thoughtfully around the packed walk-in closet, which frankly, was huge and filled with her stuff. Ree loved spoiling Ika…emotionally, physically and materially. She loved taking Ika shopping and Ika had to as much as look at something for Ree to buy it. So in addition to most of the things she already owned, the closet was stuffed with uncountable new things. I can probably open my own boutique with all this stuff, Ika mused. “In fact, I don’t see any of your things here,” she continued.

  “My stuff is in the other closet,” Ree said distractedly, attending to some mails using her phone. The other closet was about half the size of this one.

  Why are we even pretending that we live in separate apartments? Ika wondered but didn’t say anything as she walked back to the luxurious oversized bed that Ree was nestled in. As Ika climbed onto the bed and made her way towards her, Ree kept her phone away, immediately focussing on Ika. “Hi gorgeous,” she smiled wrapping her arm around Ika as she pressed herself to Ree’s side.

  Ika snuggled into Ree. “Ree, when was the last time I went to my apartment?” she asked.

  “Ummm…last week? When I was travelling?”

  Ika shook her head. “No, I was here.”

  “Week before that?”

  “Nuh-uh.”

  “Last month?”

  Ika shook her head, eyes gleaming with mirth. “You really seem to think I go back more often than I actually do.”

  They looked at each other slow smiles taking over their faces.

  “So, will you? Ree asked.

  “Will I what, Ree?”

  “Ummm…you know…” awkward.

  “I can’t believe you’re feeling shy about asking me this,” Ika chuckled with amused affection. Since she’d been working with Ree directly, she had seen her interact with multiple people. Public Persona Ree was confident and decisive. It warmed her to know that Ree showed her shy vulnerability only to Ika. “Sweetie, I’m already living here. You anyway ask me to stay over almost every day so you have enough practise,” she ran her finger across the side of Ree’s face before brushing the backs of her fingers along the path. “C’mon, you can do it,” she teased.

  Ree looked at Ika and bit her lip colouring a bit. She cleared her throat and struggled for words. “It makes sense, right?”

  “Words, Ree…I need the words,” Ika kissed her softly. “You know there is no possibility of me saying no, but I need you to ask me…I need the words,” she nipped along Ree’s throat.

  “Do you like this apartment or would you like us to get a new place?”

  “Not the right words yet, honey,” Ika smiled.

  Ree cupped Ika’s face between her hands and ran her thumbs across the planes of the beloved face. Looking into the glorious amber eyes gazing into hers with love spilling out of them, Ree’s eyes grew moist. “Will you move in with me, Ika? Live with me? Make a life with me?” she said in a soft, wet voice.

  Ika’s smile became radiant and grew in wattage, blinding Ree.

  Ika kissed Ree euphorically. How is she ever going to ask me to marry her? one small part of Ika wondered.

  ***

  The day Ika moved in, Ree gave her the papers to the apartment which she had transferred in Ika’s name. Ika didn’t know how to react.

  “I don’t need this, Ree.”

  “I need it.”

  “Sweetie, I love you…you don’t need to give me so many things…I don’t want your money.”

  “I know. I’ve known that from the first moment. But taking this will be something you’ll be doing for me. Take it, baby.” Ika couldn’t argue much because she already knew that one of Ree’s expressions of love was showering gifts. With Ika, Ree also showered countless intangibles, but this was also important to her. She hugged Ree, “So does this mean that you have moved in with me?” she grinned.

  “Yep…will you let me stay?”

  “I like you…I think I’ll keep you,” Ika crinkled her nose at Ree, who kissed the tip.

  ***************************************************************

  …becoming Ree’s Executive Assistant…

  Being in love with and living with the owner of a widespread conglomerate was proving to be much more difficult than Ika imagined. Ree travelled almost twenty days in a month and it was driving Ika crazy. She tried to be understanding and patient but when Ree was away, Ika’s world was a mess. She was a mess. She didn’t want to nag but she couldn’t keep her unhappiness cont
ained. She became grouchy, grumpy, cranky, snarky and snipy when they were together.

  As Ika grew from unhappy to angry, Ree retreated more and more behind her walls. Loud voices, tears and accusations about things that had nothing to do with the actual reason became symptoms. While the driving reason was only love and want to be together, the expression that it took began to take its toll on both of them…and their relationship. Quiet replaced conversation. Touches reduced. Cuddling ended. Sex became non-existent.