Surprised, I said, “No, of course not; I had fun at the bar. Why would you ask that?”
“Well, because you came over and started kissing me, and 15 minutes later you were walking out my door. Correct me if I'm wrong, but that's a little unusual, don't you think?” He laughed nervously.
It was exactly what Julie and I had discussed that day, and I was embarrassed that it was so blatantly obvious to Jet as well. I was a mess, and even he was noticing it.
I chuckled, unsure how to explain myself. Well, my mother always taught me that honesty was the best policy. “Look, Jet, every time we get into these situations that involve alcohol, I end up naked in your bed. I'm not entirely sure that would ever happen if I wasn't drunk. So it makes me wonder how I actually feel about you in the light of day. That's why I always bail on you the next day, because I don't know what else to do. I regret the impulses that get me into those situations, and because I can't deal with them, I just bail. But it happens all the time with us, so I think it's just making things worse between us.”
I sighed, feeling better that I had unleashed all that confusion onto Jet, for better or worse.
“Wow, that's heavy.”
I laughed. “Well, you asked for it.”
He ran his hands through his hair. “Yeah, man, I guess I did.”
I smiled and took a sip of my coffee. This was one of those times when a guy could run screaming into the night if he really wanted to.
“I understand some of what you're saying, Natalie, and I understand that there are some things you need to figure out.” I nodded while he talked. “But I can assure you that I'm on the same page as you are with regard to the drunken sex; I think it has gotten out of hand. I promise I won't put you in that position again. If we are ever intimate again in the future, we won't be drunk when it happens.”
Surprise came across my face, and I smiled. I didn't expect him to come out with that, but I was glad that we seemed to be relatively on the same page.
“Shall we get started?”
“Yeah, of course. So what am I taking off this time? My pants, because you did miss out on seeing that action last night?”
I giggled. “It's not like I haven't seen it before, Jet.” I winked at him as his eyes went wide.
“Fair enough, so what am I taking off?”
“Socks.”
“Socks?” he repeated, incredulously. “Are you serious? You really don't want me to drop my drawers?”
“No, not yet, anyway. It's too obvious, you know? That's where the audience would expect me to go next, so I'm surprising them by doing what they don't expect.”
“I see. Brilliant, and yet, not very sexy.”
“Well, Jet, this isn't all about you, ya know?”
“Clearly.”
I laughed. “Okay, get over there and remove your socks.” I walked over to the dining room table and grabbed one of the chairs. I positioned it where he normally stood.
“This time we are going to use the chair. I want you to sit in it cross-legged.”
“It doesn't matter that I'm not in the same position?”
“No, of course not. The drawings aren't about the position, it's about the consecutive changes you make.” He nodded, understanding my viewpoint.
“Gotcha.” He pulled off his socks, and I giggled as he threw them at me. He took off his shirt as well, to match what we had done the last time.
“Yuck, those had better be clean.”
“Of course not, they are the ones that I wore to the gym today.”
I stuck my tongue out at him, and started setting up my easel for the drawing. I sharpened my pencils, sat myself down, and got ready to draw. I looked up at him, and he looked very much at ease in the position I put him in.
Once again, I started with an outline. This picture would be a little more difficult because of all the extra angles. He wasn't in a standing position this time, which is easier to draw. With him sitting with his legs crossed, there were so many different angles. The fabric of his pants would be scrunched, as well as I would have to depict his crossed legs without losing it completely for the audience.