Read The Betrayal - Sex Stories for Women (Adult Short Stories for Women) Online
Authors: E.M. Flemming
“Water and Fulton, please” I said to the cabbie. He turned
on the meter then proceeded to check us out. I hated when cab drivers did that,
and it seemed to happen all the time. You couldn’t wear anything revealing in
the city without becoming the sexual fantasy of every man that you came across.
Now granted, here are two mid-twenties girls in scantily clad dresses that were
somewhat revealing, but it was summer. What were we supposed to wear, sweaters?
The cab driver looked at me through his rearview mirror, and
I could see him undressing me. I looked over at Hallie and rolled my eyes and
she laughed. She was able to laugh off things like that much better than I was.
“
Eww
,” I said, making a puking
gesture with my finger. She laughed again.
When I looked back, he was still staring at me, but pretending
like he wasn’t. It was
really annoying
actually. He
even went as far as moving his head up to get a better view down below. But,
aside from the annoying cab driver, I couldn’t seem to get Michael out of my
mind. Even though we had decided not to talk about him, as I leafed through my
phone looking at the messages from him, I couldn’t help but wonder. What if
he’s changed? What if his promises are real this time? And those what-ifs ran
through my mind at a mile-a-minute.
“Stop,” Hallie said.
“What?” I asked, trying to play coy.
“Stop reading his messages,” she said. She had caught me.
“I know, I know. Okay, okay. I promise.”
“At least let it
go
tonight. It’s
my birthday. Please,” she pleaded with me.
“Okay, okay. Okay, I promise. I won’t look at his messages
again tonight.”
“Good,” she said. “That’s a good start.”
I ran down the steps to the subway
entrance, quickly shuffling from left to right as I descended into the bowels
of New York City. The heat from the subway hit me like a blast from a furnace.
It was hot outside, but even hotter down there. Rushing through the turnstile,
I slinked in the door with not a second to lose as they collapsed in front of
me without a moment to spare. The cool air of the subway car felt good, but I
was sweating. I could see the small beads of perspiration on my exposed arms as
I went to grab the metal pole, in an attempt to support myself in the swaying
boxcar.
The typical evening rush coincided with the release of my
4pm Constitutional Law class, which got out at 6:30pm. Normally, I could have
walked the twelve blocks back to the dorm, but not in this heat. New York was
sizzling; you could cook an egg on the tarmacs of the roads. And, that was no
exaggeration. The worst part about the heat was the humidity. Everything clung
to you like a wet diaper. I couldn’t help but feel a sense of nausea as that
thought crossed my mind; or maybe it had something to do with the stench in the
subway car.
An appalling sea of people banged into one another as the
subway swayed left and right as it meandered at hyper-speed through the
intricate web of tunnels underground. I was nearly knocked off my feet several
times by a very large and sweaty man who was standing next to me. Everyone
tried to get as far away as possible from him, and rightfully so. I could see
the pit stains under his arm as he held on to the metal railing to support
himself
; the smell almost made me vomit. Why do I always
have to
get
stuck next to someone like that?
I tried not to think of it; I tried not to think of the
stench and the sweat of a subway car full of people who had just escaped the
terrestrial sauna that was backing Manhattan. My dress clung to me as if I had
just run through a sprinkler, but I had more on my mind; I had Michael on my
mind. He didn’t know it, but I was heading over to surprise him. I was heading
over to surprise him with some of the best news I had received in ages: I had
made the Dean’s list. It called for a celebration, and the thoughts were
running through my mind at a million-miles-a-minute.
When the subway finally came to a stop, I was relieved. I
slid my way through the mass of people, to emerge outside in the sauna. The
blast of hot air hit me as I ascended the steps back up to a noisy city.
I should have brought my headphones
, I
thought to myself. I briskly walked the half block fro the subway station to
the foot of the doorstep, and unlocked the door. Michael had only recently
given me a key to his apartment; something he had initially protested about. I
was glad he
had a change of heart
; it made me feel
closer to him.
As I called the elevator, I thought of his expression and how
excited he was going to be when he heard the news. I thought about how happy he
was going to be for me. He knew that school meant everything, but slowly, he
was beginning to mean everything to me. He was beginning to take a special place
in my heart. And, even though it had been a short seven months since we had
started dating, the whirlwind romance that ensued had my heart entangled. I
couldn’t imagine a life with anyone else in this world other than him.
As I slid the key into the
lock
my
heart started beating faster. I don’t know what it was, I just felt nervous all
of a sudden. I had
never come over unannounced
and I
suddenly wasn’t sure of what kind of a response I would get.
But that was why he gave me a key, right?
So that I could come over unannounced?
As I turned the
key to the door, I could hear my pulse thumping inside my head; my senses were
heightened. Something inside of me was screaming for
a
attention. What was I supposed to pay attention to? I wasn’t sure what it was,
but when I opened the door and heard moans coming from the bedroom, my heart
dropped.
I looked down at the black designer high heels on the floor as
I quietly slid the door closed, trying not to make any noise. Did they hear me?
I placed my backpack down at the doorway, and quietly slid down the hallway. I
tried my best not to make any noise, and even if I had, they probably wouldn’t
have heard me. I could hear the moans louder as I grew closer to the door.
That son of a bitch.
I knew there was a reason for that
sinking feeling in my chest. My heart was in my stomach as I now stood outside
the door listening to the moans.
I turned the doorknob as quietly as I could, but the moaning
didn’t stop. They didn’t care or were unaware that they were about to
get
caught. He was completely unaware that I was about to
catch him red-handed in the act.
That son of a bitch.
That was the thought that ran through
my mind, over, and over again. It was like a broken record playing on repeat in
my head. I slowly opened the door to the creaking, and as I stood there, they
were still completely unaware of my presence. My boyfriend, the man who I
thought was
my everything
, was suspended missionary
style over Cindy, my supposedly best friend.
“You fucking bitch!” I yelled.
They were stunned. They were like two deer in headlights.
Michael clamored to untangle himself from that trashy whore who would no longer
be called my friend.
“Sydney? What? What are you…
”
Michael was at a loss for words as he tried to pull himself together, searching
the side of the bed for his clothes.
“Can it. I don’t even want to hear the fucking excuses you
piece of shit. You’re a lowly piece of no good…”
“Please, Sydney, let me…” Cindy’s voice trailed off as she
tried to pull herself together as well. Her blonde hair fell over her head as
she tried to put on the skimpy little outfit she was wearing.
“Don’t you even dare talk to me,” I said. “I don’t want to
hear it. Especially not from you.”
I couldn’t believe it. It all felt like a dream to me. I was
standing there looking at them, but it didn’t feel real. But, it was real. It
was so very real and it hurt. It stung in fact. If it weren’t for the
adrenaline running through my body, I would have collapsed right
there
on the floor.
Michael looked at me. He could see the pain enveloping in my
eyes. He could see the tears clinging to the sides of my pupils as I contorted
my face while suffering through a mixture of the emotions.
“Here, take your fucking key,” I yelled. I threw the key
across the room and it slammed into the window, dropping onto the hardwood
floor of the bedroom with a light clang.
“Please, don’t. Sydney, please. Let me explain,” Michael
said, but I was already down the hallway when he began calling out to me. I
grabbed Cindy’s heels on my way out and tossed them down the stairs.
Fucking bitch, go get your shoes.
My blood was boiling as I descended the steps. I had to take
the steps. I couldn’t wait for the elevator. I had to work off the enormous
amount of stress and anger that was built up in my body. Everything that I
wanted, everything that I ever knew, came crashing down around me. My whole
world was about to change, and it was starting to hit home.
I should have never
moved to this city. I should have never left Oklahoma.
The tears were
streaming down my face by the time I hit the street to the sweltering heat.
Fuck this.
I was furious. I couldn’t
believe it. I couldn’t fucking believe it.
The summer night air was cool as we
left the apartment shortly before 8 o’clock. It was Hallie’s birthday
celebration, and it was our night to have fun. We were going to let our hair
down, and go where the night took us. I promised her I wouldn’t make any
mention about Michael, my on-again off-again ex, and I didn’t plan on it. I
didn’t plan to allow myself to go down that negative path of thought. I had to
get over it. As hard as it was, I had to do it. And, with a little bit of
alcohol in me, I was sure it was going to happen. I was sure that, at least for
the night, I would be able to forget about him.
The sushi restaurant wasn’t far from the apartment. We
walked the six blocks or so, and even in our high heels, it wasn’t too bad.
Granted, walking around in the city at night can be dicey at times, but you get
used to it after a while. And it’s certainly a lot safer now than it’s been in
years. As I looked at Hallie, I realized how fashionable she was. She was really
decked out for the night; she had on her favorite shiny black stiletto boots
with black mesh stockings, and black booty shorts to top it all off. And even
though she was borderline stripper in that outfit, she was by far a knockout.
“God, you look so good in that outfit,” I said.
“Thanks, babe,” she said. “You look pretty damn incredible
yourself,” she added.
“Thanks.”
We got multiple stares as we walked the several blocks to
the restaurant. It was cooler out now than it was during the day, so it wasn’t
too bad aside from the very elongated glares of men walking the sidewalks. I
could sense them eyeing us. I never wanted to make eye contact, because it
always attracted them even more. They were like parasites, and both Hallie and
I certainly have had some bad experience with
street stalkers,
as we liked to call them. They were the kind of
guys
that liked to eye you up and down as you walked by
them, then when they saw you look back without disgust on your face, that was a
signal to them. It was a signal to them that you had somehow liked them back,
as delusional as that may have seemed.
“Let’s pray we don’t have any street stalkers tonight,” I
said, as the thoughts were running through my mind.
“Yeah, let’s pray. All I want tonight are hot stalkers. I
wouldn’t mind it if some gorgeous
guy
was stalking me
on the streets. But we usually get stuck with the fat, old ones,” she said.
I laughed. It was true. I wouldn’t have minded a hot
stalker, too. But that was never our luck. Never.
“It looks busy,” she said, as we rounded the corner and saw
the long line out front. It was just the two of us for the night, and we had decided
to fly solo for dinner. It was going to be my treat.
“Yeah,” I said. We walked into the sushi restaurant, which
was slammed with people. It was the Friday night dinner rush. Even though it
was just after 8, the place was just getting going. It was probably one of the
hippest places in town, and even though we didn’t splurge that often, it was
her birthday after all, and she was my best friend.
We were seated at one of the tables that sat 10 guests, surrounding
a cooktop. The chef was there, preparing everything for the meal. A server came
around and took our drink orders, and we splurged for the most exotic drink concoction
we could find on the menu, which was served in a small porcelain glass the
shape of a little Buddha.
As we were chatting, the other guests were seated at the
table around us. Each table had its own personal chef. It was a fun experience
to get to watch the chef cook the food right in front of your eyes. It was a
meal and a show all wrapped into one. They would create volcanic flaming rings
from pieces of onions, flip eggs into their tall white hats, and toss knives
around like they were batons.
The drinks landed in front of us, and we both looked at them
with wide eyes. The pink icy concoctions signified the beginning of what we
hoped to be a very long and fun night.
“To your birthday,” I said. “Cheers to my best friend in the
whole wide world.” I was laying it on pretty thick, but it was her birthday
after all.
“Thanks, cheers. Thank you so much for this.”
The table filled with guests quickly,
and
the
chef overheard me say happy birthday to Hallie, and they immediately
wished her a happy birthday as well. I mean, why not. Here we were, two
gorgeous girls who had been nose-deep in books for the past month, finally
breaking out for a little bit of fun.
Some of the
guys
seated at the
table were checking us out, and we caught on pretty quickly. They struck up a
conversation and asked us where we were heading. It was typical of our nights
out. We never went too long without having some stalkers. But, these
guys
weren’t really worthy of our time, so we tried our best
to ignore them as we watched the show and ate our food.
“Can I get you
guys
another drink?”
asked the server.
“Yes, two more of these please. Oh, and we would like a
large cold Saki, please. This one here,” I said, pointing to the menu.
“Okay, sure thing,” she said. She disappeared,
then
reemerged quickly with the drinks, and the small carafe
of Saki. We both looked at the drinks in front of us, and smiled. We were in
for a good night.
After several shots and some food, we were ready to go. The
meal was light, but good, and we were game for just about anything. “So what
are the rules tonight?” she asked.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, are we going in for the
kill?
What’s the plan?”
“Well, you’re the one infatuated with the bartender,” I
said. “What’s your plan?” I smiled.
“I guess I’m just going to go with the flow. Whatever
happens,
happens.” She smiled. It was her devilish smile,
and I could see the onlookers at the table paying close attention to our
conversation. We had turned a few heads apparently, and we were being carefully
eyed up and down.
“Going with the flow?” I asked. “Yeah, I’ll bet.”
“More shots?” she asked.
“Yes, definitely more shots. Definitely more shots.”
We left the restaurant
pretty drunk
as it was. At that point, we needed to walk it off. I lit a cigarette and
pulled out my phone as we left the restaurant. Leafing through the messages
with my thumb in one hand, while I smoked with the other, I saw more messages
from him. Michael had been sending me texts throughout the night.
“Hey, what did we say?”
“Oh, I’m not talking about him. I’m just looking at
my messages, that’s
all. Don’t worry about it,” I said,
smiling. But I was worried about it. Every time he would message me, it sent my
heart into a tailspin. But, we were catastrophic together. We were oil and
water, you simply couldn’t combine us, but it didn’t stop me from having that
attraction. It didn’t stop me from wanting something that I knew was entirely
bad for me. What was it about that? Why
do we get
sucked into things that are toxic? It’s been the story of my life, and I can’t
seem to shake it. It seems as if I want the pain and the punishment. I just
can’t understand my mind, which defies all reason and logic from time to time.
I
read through
the messages on the
phone:
9:49pm:
What are you
doing?
9:43pm:
Hello?
9:57pm:
Are you going
out tonight? Why aren’t you answering me back?
10:22pm:
Where are
you?
10:30pm:
WTF is wrong
with you? Answer me.
It was toxic. It was clearly toxic, but we played this song
and dance many times over.
“Give me that,” she said, snatching my phone away from me.
“Hey! Give it back!”
“No, you promised. I don’t even want you reading this stuff.
I know you far too well. No dice. It’s my birthday.”
“Okay, okay. I won’t look at it. I promise. Here give it
back to me,” I said. She handed the phone back, which I tucked away into my
purse. She was always the voice of reason inside my head. I was glad she was
talking some sense into me.
I knew I was drunk because I felt myself being drawn back to
Michael. I felt my ex sucking me back in again, a pattern that I repeated over,
and over again in my life. I couldn’t help it. Something was wrong with me. I
was so afraid that no one else would love me or treat me the way that he did,
that it frightened the hell out of me. I was so scared that I wasn’t good
enough to be loved again in that way. All of these thoughts would run through
my mind on a constant basis.
I never used to be that way. I never used to doubt things in
life like that. It all started when the relationship went south, and I couldn’t
seem to get things back together in my personal life. I had to dive into school
and focus all my energies on that. If I hadn’t, I would have gone mad. I would
have absolutely lost it, because I felt so alone. I felt so alone after having
felt like I had found my soul mate. But, it was all a lie. I let him screw
around on me, and he had his way with me. He lied and cheated for who knows how
long through our relationship. What would have happened if I hadn’t caught him
with her?
“You have to stop torturing yourself,” Hallie said.
She could see the distress on my
face. She could tell that I was unhappy. She knew that I had been unhappy for
so long.
“I know, but how? How do I do it? What’s wrong with me?”
“There’s nothing wrong with you,” she said. “Have you looked
in the mirror lately? You’re drop-dead gorgeous. You’re amazing, incredible,
and a stunner. Please. Please don’t go there.”
We were both drunk and neither one of us was holding
anything back. We were both saying it like it was, letting our feelings unleash
out into the world. And there sure were some feelings. We both felt like we
were in a never-ending struggle to accomplish our goals, overcome our
obstacles, and make something of ourselves. But deep down inside, we were just
simple women who wanted a man to take care of us. We both wanted to be pampered
and spoiled, but we knew that it wasn’t something we could rely on. We knew
that we had to prepare for the worst, and we had to be empowered.
The cool air of the night felt good on my face as we made
our way to the bar. We could hear the music from down the street, and we knew
it was going to be
jam-packed
.
“Are you ready for this?” I asked.
“Oh, I’m ready,” she said, smiling. “I’m definitely ready.”