was a daring move, one I might regret. One that goes against everything I stand for. It’s up to him now.
The lights to the empty laundry room flicker on. This isn’t going to take nearly as long as I thought. I have the place all to myself. Having the luxury to separate, I load up three machines, darks, lights and delicates. Once the machines are all swishing my clothes clean to a rhythmic hum, I vault onto the counter, cross my legs and open up the first magazine.
Dressed up celebrities holding hands, kissing in public, sex implying headlines in bold print displayed above their images stare back at me. Are they in love or is it a fling? Do people just hook up and have sex hoping it turns into love? Doesn’t anyone fall in love first and build their way up to the other stuff? The answer is no. Look where I am right now. The only person who hasn’t hooked up is alone, reading magazines in an empty laundry room on a Saturday night. Everyone else has it right. I’m the one who has it all wrong. It’s why I had no choice but to write what I wrote to Tucker this morning.
I move the clothes from the washers to the dryers, squash a spider with my sneaker and return to my magazine. I can’t believe how comfortable I’m already getting with bug squishing. I’m doing so much better with the whole nature thing.
Instead of focusing on what I’m reading I think about the diner earlier. There’s something not right about Cassie and Mark. The way Mark seems to flaunt his relationship in front of Cassie, who’s obviously bothered by it, is just off. Cassie has this odd jealousy thing with him. Starting right on the first night with the kiss she encouraged Mark to give me then got mad about. Next time I see something weird I’m calling them out. Maybe even reporting it.
The first dryer sounds. I fold my delicates and place them neatly in my bag. Ten minutes left on one dryer and twenty on the other. I check on the machine with my towels, still pretty damp. I toss in another dryer sheet and reset the timer to thirty. I take a deep sniff of the warm air. Nothing smells better than the smell from the dryer. Almost nothing, coconut-smelling jerk, I sigh wondering why he never came looking for me today and if he’s out partying with everyone down at the lake right now.
I don’t have to wonder long. I look up and there he is.
“I got your note. Want to explain it to me?” He’s wearing the glasses again, making it hard to concentrate.
“Explain what?” I ask after taking a few seconds to soak him in. Wasn’t it self-explanatory? It was two sentences.
Tucker unfolds the piece of paper. “Forget serious. If you want we can just hook-up,” he reads my note and frowns.
“Well, you said you don’t do relationships and I’m getting tired of sitting around waiting for something that’s never going to happen. Everyone else can hook-up without feelings getting all involved. Everyone here is having fun. So, I thought about it last night, and I can do it too.”
He reaches up and rubs the stubble on his chin. His face always has this subtle sexy blonde shadow. When exactly does he shave?
“No you can’t,” he makes a flat out statement.
“I can.” My hands start to shake. I hide them behind my back and keep talking. “No feelings allowed, like everyone else does.”
Tucker shakes his head and steps forward. “Okay, I’m gonna do something, then you can tell me how you feel or don’t feel.” In one swift motion he slides his hand around my waist and pulls me in close. I lift my head, my mouth ready to meet his. There goes my heart, immediately bouncing away wildly in my chest.
“You ready for this?” His voice is a throaty whisper.
The answer is more than anything in my entire life. Hopefully I can survive long enough before my heart explodes. Our lips touch and I’m lost. This is the kiss I’ve been waiting for. The kind of kiss I knew existed. Soft, tender and as I sink into his arms he parts my lips
The lights to the empty laundry room flicker on. This isn’t going to take nearly as long as I thought. I have the place all to myself. Having the luxury to separate, I load up three machines, darks, lights and delicates. Once the machines are all swishing my clothes clean to a rhythmic hum, I vault onto the counter, cross my legs and open up the first magazine.
Dressed up celebrities holding hands, kissing in public, sex implying headlines in bold print displayed above their images stare back at me. Are they in love or is it a fling? Do people just hook up and have sex hoping it turns into love? Doesn’t anyone fall in love first and build their way up to the other stuff? The answer is no. Look where I am right now. The only person who hasn’t hooked up is alone, reading magazines in an empty laundry room on a Saturday night. Everyone else has it right. I’m the one who has it all wrong. It’s why I had no choice but to write what I wrote to Tucker this morning.
I move the clothes from the washers to the dryers, squash a spider with my sneaker and return to my magazine. I can’t believe how comfortable I’m already getting with bug squishing. I’m doing so much better with the whole nature thing.
Instead of focusing on what I’m reading I think about the diner earlier. There’s something not right about Cassie and Mark. The way Mark seems to flaunt his relationship in front of Cassie, who’s obviously bothered by it, is just off. Cassie has this odd jealousy thing with him. Starting right on the first night with the kiss she encouraged Mark to give me then got mad about. Next time I see something weird I’m calling them out. Maybe even reporting it.
The first dryer sounds. I fold my delicates and place them neatly in my bag. Ten minutes left on one dryer and twenty on the other. I check on the machine with my towels, still pretty damp. I toss in another dryer sheet and reset the timer to thirty. I take a deep sniff of the warm air. Nothing smells better than the smell from the dryer. Almost nothing, coconut-smelling jerk, I sigh wondering why he never came looking for me today and if he’s out partying with everyone down at the lake right now.
I don’t have to wonder long. I look up and there he is.
“I got your note. Want to explain it to me?” He’s wearing the glasses again, making it hard to concentrate.
“Explain what?” I ask after taking a few seconds to soak him in. Wasn’t it self-explanatory? It was two sentences.
Tucker unfolds the piece of paper. “Forget serious. If you want we can just hook-up,” he reads my note and frowns.
“Well, you said you don’t do relationships and I’m getting tired of sitting around waiting for something that’s never going to happen. Everyone else can hook-up without feelings getting all involved. Everyone here is having fun. So, I thought about it last night, and I can do it too.”
He reaches up and rubs the stubble on his chin. His face always has this subtle sexy blonde shadow. When exactly does he shave?
“No you can’t,” he makes a flat out statement.
“I can.” My hands start to shake. I hide them behind my back and keep talking. “No feelings allowed, like everyone else does.”
Tucker shakes his head and steps forward. “Okay, I’m gonna do something, then you can tell me how you feel or don’t feel.” In one swift motion he slides his hand around my waist and pulls me in close. I lift my head, my mouth ready to meet his. There goes my heart, immediately bouncing away wildly in my chest.
“You ready for this?” His voice is a throaty whisper.
The answer is more than anything in my entire life. Hopefully I can survive long enough before my heart explodes. Our lips touch and I’m lost. This is the kiss I’ve been waiting for. The kind of kiss I knew existed. Soft, tender and as I sink into his arms he parts my lips
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