Your Own Human

by Arizona Tape

  My lips got lost on the endlessness of her smooth skin and I basked in the sound of her moans that grew louder with each one.

  “Please,” Heather begged, and with one word, I knew exactly what she needed.

  With a sigh, we surrendered to each other.

  I let out a content sigh, one that came from the pits of my stomach and travelled all the way through my lungs and up to my lips, where I released it into the world.

  Or heaven. I wasn’t sure.

  With the soft grass under my back and Heather’s head resting on my collarbone, this felt so surreal, I couldn’t think of another name then heaven. Maybe paradise. Or fantasy island. But with an angel like her laying next to me, heaven was more appropriate.

  A light chuckle ran through my body, but it wasn’t mine. With one eye opened, I gave my beautiful girlfriend a lazy look and hummed questioningly.

  “Nothing,” she sighed, a content smile playing on her lips. She looked gorgeous. The light was much more natural than above ground, even though nothing here was touched by the sun. But she looked all the more beautiful right here in my arms.

  Gods, she had looked so imperfect, I’d never seen something that stunningly gorgeous.

  “What?” Heather smiled, pressing a soft kiss on my shoulder.

  “Nothing,” I mimicked, answering her with a kiss on the top of her head. I could smell her, and only now that I’d been down here, I could recognise it all. The very vague smell of my world, still lingering from months ago on her. A more, earthy scent, from down here. The smell of the horsie she liked, the perfume of various flowers with unimaginable colours and shapes. The rooted scent of collected dust on artefacts and the distinct smell of paper books. The scent of fresh water and of young grass.

  And overpowering all of those, her own scent. Fresh, but hot at the same time. A bit like the beginning of summer. And somehow, mysterious. Like a wondrous night with thousands, millions of stars. Incredibly vast, frightening, yet not frightening at the same time. A mix between bright, warm orange and dark, purplish blue. It sounded like a horrible colour together, but somehow, she made it work.

  “You’re sniffing me,” Heather stated, not untrue.

  I blushed red. “Noooo,” I lied, but the twinkles in her eyes made it perfectly clear she saw through my lie.

  “So, how do I smell, super sniffer?” she teased, rolling onto her stomach and looking at me expectantly.

  “Errr… Well... Exquisite,” I stuttered, tripping over my own tongue. All the poems in my head, and this was what came out of my mouth?

  Exquisite?

  “Exquisite?” she giggled, her mouth curling up as little laugh lines formed around her eyes.

  “Hmmhmm... Like a field of delicate flowers, but not that. You’re the warm, strong wind that rustles through them all. Like a falling star in the night sky, on the darkest night of the year,” I added, feeling a bit better of using normal words instead of pretending to be a pompous twat.

  “That is really sweet,” Heather smiled, rolling onto her back again and letting out a satisfied sigh.

  I caught a sneaky glimpse of her rising breasts during that sigh and I bit my lip. What a sight.

  I pulled her closer as I listened to the universe, breathing her in. This place spoke to me. Maybe because I was closer to the core than ever before, or maybe because I felt more at peace here than in my crowded world.

  With every breath, I felt myself sink into the earth. As if the grass was growing around me, the wind was blowing through me. I felt myself fuse, with all the living souls around me, including Heather’s.

  I could stay here forever.

  But Heather couldn’t. It was getting colder. I could feel the goosebumps come to life on her body. I grabbed her shirt from under my head and offered it to her. She threw it on, not before I took a last longing look at her breasts.

  I pushed myself up and found my pants. I looked around the valley and wondered. Where did Heather live? Did she have a home? What about a family? I wondered about that all before, but coming here, the animals and museums struck those thoughts out of my mind.

  “Heather?”

  “Hmhmm?”

  “Ehmm.. Not to sound—” I started, racking my brain for the right word. Curious. Invasive. Condescending. Stupid. “Ignorant?”

  Yes, ignorant was the right word. Sure.

  “Where do you live? Do you have a home?” I didn’t dare ask about family yet, that might be a bit too close to... Ha ha. Home.

  I seemed to be amusing myself a lot today.

  “Errr…” Heather hesitated, scratching the back of her head. “Well… Not exactly a home. But I got a place to sleep? It isn’t really… Nice. It’s just.. Well… Like I said before.. Everything is communal here.” She checked her watch and beckoned me closer. “Remember what I told you about the shifts? Well, One is almost going to wake up, so that means the beds for Three are coming up.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “Coming up?”

  “Yes. We have a big building that spins like a wheel. According to what shift sleeps, their beds come up and the others disappear into the ground. As a way to save space.”

  “So, if you’re tired during the day, you can’t go into your house?”

  “Room. And nope, you just go relax in a communal lounge.”

  “You don’t have a house? Just that one room with a bed that turns every 8 hours?”

  “Yes, basically. It is a lot different than up there, isn’t it,”

  “Yes. We have everything communal directed, but everybody still has their own private house and stuff.”

  “We have our own private rooms as well and we have some personal stuff. Just not as much as you luxury people up there.”

  Was that a snide comment? Either way, I let it slide and just shrugged.

  “So, what about me..? They won’t recognise me and then what?”

  “I’ll just usher you through with my badge, it’s no big deal. In our current system, it’s impossible to be unregistered, so the system doesn’t look for unregistered people. Does that make sense?”

  I frowned and hummed. “It… Kind of does?”

  “There you go, you’ll just stay with me.” She blushed fiercely red. “If that’s okay, of course.”

  I grinned. Not even an hour ago she straddled me half naked and now she was worried if I’d share a bed with her. She was too cute.

  “That’s more than okay,” I reassured her as I kissed the tip of her nose.

  “Alright, let’s go.”

  We gathered our stuff, including the books we stole, hmm, borrowed and hand in hand, we strolled out of the hidden valley. It was a pretty narrow passage and again, I wondered how she got behind me when we walked in. But that thought disappeared quickly out of my head when she kissed my cheek.

  Leisurely, we strolled back to the communal grounds. The big building had round edges and did resemble a giant water wheel.

  I looked around me, keeping my head down towards the ground. Only one person needed to wonder why they hadn’t ever seen me before to get my cover blown.

  But funnily enough, nobody noticed anything. Everybody passed around us, casually chatting with each other. No one even paid any attention to me or Heather, for that matter, and I sighed if relief when we reached the sleeping grounds.

  Too soon.

  “Heather,” an unknown voice called, making my girlfriend’s head snap up and my eyes widen in panic.

  “Mum!”

  Chapter 10: Sleep

  I turned my head to the sound and was faced with an older woman, who looked unmistakably like a more mature version of Heather. She had long, blonde hair with grey strands and crows feet framing her face, but no one could deny she aged gracefully. The corners of her mouth wore permanent curls around them, a testament to a happy life and her eyes sparkled with the excitement of a young girl.

  My eyes darted at Heather’s young face and judging from how much she looked like her predecessor, she would age like wine.
Get better with the years to come.

  I gave myself a mental pat on the back. Not bad. Not bad at all. I chose a good one this time. I congratulated myself, trying to hide a smirk and then the panic as her mother waved enthusiastically. She locked eyes with me, questions clearly laying on the tip of her tongue.

  “What are you doing here?” Heather asked quickly, looking bewildered at her mother, while stepping unconsciously in front of me, as a way to shield me from her mum’s curious eyes. So I wasn’t the only one who did that, huh?

  “It’s bedtime, pumpkin. Why else would I be here? Where is your head?” her mum chirped, leaning to the side so she could take a better look at me.

  “What? Oh right. Of course. Well—” Heather stuttered before squinting her eyes and yawning demonstratively. “I’m tired. Very tired. I need to find my bed, I think. Goodnight, Mum,” she said hastily, rubbing her eyes in pretence.

  Her mum chuckled, going along with her daughter’s obvious fake sleepy act. Heather pushed me toward the building whilst muttering. “Go, go.”

  “Goodnight, pumpkin,” her mom chirped, amusement clear in her eyes as she skipped away.

  Heather sighed in relief, but she relaxed too soon. Her mother turned around and trumpeted loudly in our direction. “Next time, introduce your new friend!” she yelled, waving enthusiastically at us once more.

  Heather groaned softly and waved back, albeit not as enthusiastic as her mom and turned to me with an apologetic look on her face. “Sorry… She tries to respect my privacy, but she is just very… Very curious.”

  I smiled at my girlfriend, not minding in the slightest and nudged her with my shoulder. “Don’t worry about it. Let’s get you to bed.”

  Heather nodded as she nudged me back playfully. With a big smile on her face, we walked in the building. Steel walls engulfed us and the buzzing of the people surrounding us filled my ears

  “Won’t you be bored, holding me all night?” Heather asked, concern clear in her voice.

  “No, I got some reading material and it has been a couple of weeks since I slept anyway, so I might even catch a couple of hours.”

  She nodded her pretty little head and scanned her card with a beep, opening up a small room that was surprisingly cosy.

  There was a neatly-made bed against the wall, a cute night light illuminating some drawings of leaves, and one tree that looked oddly familiar. Heather quickly scanned the hallway, before pulling me inside with her and hastily locking us in her room.

  “Ehmmm… I know it’s small, but make yourself at home,” she said, while scratching the side of her head, looking slightly embarrassed.

  I nodded appreciatively, took off my shoes and let myself fall down on her bed. I shoved the pillow a little and with my arm casually under my head, I let out a content sigh.

  “Aaahh. Comfy,” I grinned, hoping my nonchalance would show I was comfortable and she didn’t need to worry about a thing. It must have put her at ease a little, because one corner of her mouth tugged up and with a half grin, she sat down next to me on the bed. She bent down to unlace her shoes and I studied her back, my eyes trailing down her spine. Before I could help myself, I stretched out my arm and my fingers started walking up her back

  “That tickles,” she giggled, squirming under my touch and my eyes lit up.

  “Oh, are you ticklish?” I teased, pushing myself up and placing both hands on her sides.

  “Yes, stop,” Heather chirped, trying to worm herself out of my hands, but I wouldn’t let her. Her laughter was music to my ears and the feel of her soft skin under my fingers wasn’t bad either.

  She fell onto my legs, hoping it would make me stop and I did indeed. Instead of teasing her, I wrapped my arms around her and softly kissed the back of her neck.

  “Hmmm… That tickles too,” she sighed, but her tone of voice had changed unmistakably.

  I chuckled and placed another kiss on the exact same spot, before falling back down again. I patted the empty spot next to me on the bed and waggled my eyebrows invitingly.

  My blonde girlfriend eagerly accepted my invitation and laid down next to me, her head resting on my shoulder.

  “I never expected today to turn out this way. I had a really good time with you,” she admitted sweetly.

  “So did I. I can’t believe it’s only been one day. We did so much,” I answered, bowing my head so I could kiss her forehead.

  She sighed contentedly. “Yes, we did. I’m actually exhausted,” she said, yawning for real this time. The moment her body hit the bed, sleep set in. Her eyes fluttered closed and I could hear her breathing slowing down.

  “Go to sleep,” I whispered, grabbing the sheets with my free hand so I could pull them over us both.

  “Hmmmm…” she hummed, snuggling deeper into my embrace, sleep overtaking her. Gently, I brushed a stray lock of hair away and kissed her on her eyelids. “Nighty night, Heather. Have good dreams,” I wished, closing my own eyes as well as to relax.

  I blocked out all the other noises and concentrated on Heather’s soft breathing. The air leaving her lungs with soft sighs, followed by a whimper as she drew it back in. Her chest almost subtly heaving up and down while she slowly fell into a deep slumber.

  Her hot skin warmed me up at least a couple of degrees, making me feel flushed, but oh so relaxed. Being wrapped up by Heather was like being snuggled by the warmest of blankets. And I loved it. I matched my breathing to hers, our bodies melting together in a way I never imagined we could.

  My eyes fell shut and I stopped moving my limbs, focusing on my breathing. It was an exercise for lucid dreaming.

  If I laid completely still, I could trick my brain and body that I was in fact asleep. Even if my mind stayed agile and awake. In time, I would stop feeling my limbs as my body fell asleep. It was one of my favourite things to try.

  But next to Heather, I wasn’t interested in lucid dreaming. But it felt similar to it. My body was melting into hers, and just like when I tried lucid dreaming, I wasn’t exactly sure where her body started and mine ended.

  I didn’t know if it was my chest heaving or hers, where our bodies met and where they didn’t. Everything and the only thing I could sense, was her. And that was so rare.

  My body and my brain were made to hear, see, smell, taste, and touch almost anything in a way that would cause such a sensory overload to a regular human, it would drive them straight into insanity.

  If I wanted, I could hear the tiniest whisper in a five mile radius. I could sense the vibrations of a leaf falling on the ground. If I focused my eyes, I could make out the tiniest details and my muscles allowed me inhuman speeds across the lands. At any given point of time, my mind was flooded with stimuli from the outside world and a big part of my brain activity was filtering everything out.

  Even if it had become an automatic, I was always aware of the buzzing in our heads. But laying here with Heather, engulfed in her scent and her presence, filtering everything else out was the easiest task.

  Every fiber of my being wanted her closer. Wanted only her.

  With my eyes falling shut and Heather in my arms, my heart skipped my one beat and I followed her into dream land, allowing myself sleep for the first time in weeks, not afraid of what I would find in my subconscious.

  My sleep was deep, my dreams sweet. Heather.

  I awoke groggily, my lids sticking from sleep to my eyes and my throat dry and itchy. The uncomfortable feelings were quickly washed away by the realisation that Heather was still sleeping gingerly in my arms. I was hugging her from behind and she curled up into me like a ball of twine. Her blonde hairs messy, our legs had entangled like vines in the night.

  Softly, I stroked her shoulder and planted a kiss on the back of her neck, making sure not to wake her up. Her breathing was heavy, indicating a deep sleep and I sure as hell wasn’t going to deprive her from that.

  It was still dark, but that didn’t matter to me. I peered over her resting body to where we had left our books. In a f
utile attempt, I waved my arm but the book was just out of my reach.

  A sigh left my body and even though I wanted to read, I didn’t want Heather to wake up without me. So I closed my eyes and snuggled back into my human, enjoying the warmth and heat she was radiating. She was so cosy and comfortable, I caught myself almost purring in satisfaction.

  Don’t be weird, Adrianna. I scolded myself and went back to gently stroking her arm, waiting for her to wake up. And judging from her fidgeting legs, that would be any minute.

  Surely, after a couple of minutes, a soft yawn escaped her pink lips and she turned around in my arms. A big smile appeared on her face when she saw me and a panic disappeared I didn’t even know I held. She was happy I was here and not freaked out or anything. Good. Pheeww. Relief washed over me as I pulled her towards me.

  “Mmmmmmorning,” she yawned, creases of the bed sheet imprinted on her cheek.

  I smiled and kissed her lips. “Morning, sleepyhead,” I breathed. I loved watching her asleep, but having her awake was even better.

  We missed out on so much time together, I couldn’t wait to catch up on everything. Her, her family, her friends, her world.

  Yikes. That was quite a clingy thought.

  Ehh well.

  Quickly, I pushed that to the back of my mind and watched my girlfriend wake up, like I had so many times before. Yet this time, it was somehow different. This time, I awoke in her bed.

  “You sleep well?” she mumbled, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes and cracking her neck.

  “Yes, I did. Did you?”

  “Hmhmmm…” Heather muttered, pushing herself up and checking the clock. “Woah, it’s late. We should get up before the next shift starts.”

  I nodded slowly. That meant we wouldn’t be able to ever really sleep in or spend a whole day rolling around in bed. What a shame. That certainly was a perk of my house.

  “I could really do with a shower. What about you?” my sleepy girlfriend muttered, looking utterly confused in her little room. What she was confused about, I had no clue, but it was terribly cute anyway.