Into the Darkness

“Fuck you for bringing this shit up again! You are so happy to tell everyone your husband is studying to become a doctor yet behind closed doors it’s not good enough because I’m not paying for your expensive lifestyle!”

I closed my textbook and grabbed my cell and keys off the kitchen bench. I needed to cool down. I was so tired of the constant bickering, the way she made me feel uncertain about decisions I made. I needed to relax and stop focusing on this negativity. This was why I wanted to move back to Carmel.

“I’m going to my parents’ house,” I said.

I shut the door and walked to the car. She quickly opened the door, her face angry that I was leaving mid-conversation.

“We’ll discuss this again when you decide where your home is, Alex.” Then she slammed the door behind me.

…

“Adriana!” I yelled, my voice echoing through the empty rooms.

“In here!” she yelled back as I was already standing in the doorway.

I didn’t expect to see her again—Charlotte that is. She was lying on the sofa on her back wearing a black tank top, jeans and converse. I could see her hair was loose again as it fell down the side of the sofa. She looked beautiful, I couldn’t help but notice. I mean, come on, I was only human and 23! The most bizarre thing was that she was surrounded by M&Ms. Hmmm, one to store for the bank…

“Oh, hi Alex! Come hang out with us. We were just playing who could catch the most M&Ms not using our hands.” Adriana giggled, continuing with her game. She threw them into Charlotte’s mouth and surprisingly she missed.

My eyes met with Charlotte’s. I don’t know what it was. Something felt different about her. She wasn’t like any other girl I’d met and definitely nothing like my sister. Thinking back to the other night when I ran into her in the kitchen, there was this feeling I wasn’t accustomed to, a lot like a jolt of electricity as I accidently touched her. I mean, fuck, I was a guy so accidently grazing her tits had me pitching my tent, but I had to remember I was married.

It had been five years since I last saw her and boy had she changed. She was beautiful, and I mean stunningly beautiful. It didn’t help that she wasn’t wearing a bra that night either. What made it even worse was that she caught me staring at her. We laughed and joked about Adriana, something that felt comfortable and oddly familiar. When she said goodnight and congratulated me on my wedding, it reminded me again of the boundary that lay between us. It didn’t mean I couldn’t help her out, hence why I took Adriana’s car.

“Hi, Alex.” Charlotte giggled as she got whacked in the eye with an M&M.

“Please don’t let my sister assault you with the M&Ms. Geez Adriana, you throw like a girl,” I scolded.

“I am a girl, duh.”

She threw another one at Charlotte, this time landing right in her cleavage. I couldn’t help but look; it sat there in the middle of her perfectly shaped tits…lucky M&M. The M&M jiggled as she struggled to control her laughter.

“Seriously Adriana, are you looking to switch teams now? That’s the third time you’ve gotten it in there!” Charlotte laughed. My sister was on the ground rolling around, her body shaking with laughter, screaming she needed to pee.

“Okay girls, let me show you how it’s done.”

I grabbed the packet off my sister. “Charlotte, please stop laughing and just open your mouth.”

I waited for her as she attempted to keep a straight face, something I was struggling to do as well. I focused on her mouth, her perfectly pink lips wide open. My mind wandered elsewhere… No, Edwards, focus—as my coach would say. I threw the M&M, landing it in her mouth. I laughed as it went in, Adriana pouting as usual. She was so fucking competitive.

“No fair, Alex! You throw like a boy!” Adriana whined.

“Thanks Alex! It’s about time I get to eat one of them,” Charlotte cheered and high-fived me.

“Next time come to me if you actually want to eat them since clearly Adriana here has no aim. I think she secretly just wanted to find them later when you were gone,” I joked. I was enjoying the company and finally managed to put the earlier argument and Sam’s bullshit behind me. It’s strange that it took my sister and her best friend’s juvenile game for me to relax and have fun.

The house phone started ringing. Adriana jumped up like her life depended on it or more like the opening of Macys’ doors on Black Friday. I wasn’t surprised when she announced who it was. “Oh, it’s Elijah! Back soon.” She ran out, taking the cordless phone up to her room.

“When she says soon, I can pretty much watch Titanic from start to finish and she still would not be done.” Charlotte chuckled, picking up the remote to surf through the channels.

“The joys of having a boyfriend I s’pose. So do you um, have one?”

“Me? Please, have you seen the guys at our school? Apparently wearing baggy pants and flashing your no-name underwear passes for style these days. Besides, I’m saving myself for Justin Timberlake.”

“I think Britney thought the same thing and look where that got her,” I pointed out.

“Think can she catch M&Ms in her mouth like I can?”

“Hey, it has everything to do with the pitcher not the catcher.” I laughed, defending my perfect throw.