Thomas and Abby

Part 2: Back Home

Chapter V.

I sat on the small couch in my living room waiting for Eddie to pick me up to head out to the bar.

It had been a few weeks since his party at the cabin. A few weeks since I'd hooked up with Abby. The rest of that weekend was unfortunately uneventful. After we'd hooked up, Abby returned to the cabin to check on Eddie, and I didn't see her for the rest of that night. At first I thought that maybe our hookup had upset her. I spent that night feeling all of the emotions. Giddy. Guilty. Turned on. Tired. Awake. Worried. So many thoughts flashed through my mind as I laid awake in bed that night. What would the next day look like? How were we going to behave around Eddie? What if she tells Eddie? Why hadn't she come back tonight?

The answer came the next morning. Eddie had been extremely hungover and sick throughout that night. Abby never came back because she was taking care of him. He'd definitely gone too hard with booze and was paying dearly for it. He spent most of that next day between the bed and bathroom. Abby had stayed in the bedroom with him, and everyone else had started to head home that afternoon when it was clear that Eddie would not be up for another party night. Abby and I barely saw each other except for when I poked my head into their room to wish them goodbye following the others leaving the cabin weekend earlier than planned.

"Alright, I'm out of here, man" I said standing in the doorway of their room, giving both Abby and Eddie a small wave of my hand, "I'll see you guys back in town."

Eddie was laying on his back with an ice pack resting on his forehead and eyes. He barely moved at my words.

"Alright, Tommy, sorry I'm a piece of shit man!"

"It's okay, bro...maybe we'll grab a beer or something back in town in a few days?"

"I never want to see beer ever again." Eddie said.

A few weeks later, here we are. The weeks had been long. I hadn't seen Eddie since the cabin. His new work schedule was so different from mine. He was also no longer working specifically in my section. He had texted me a few times over the week with memes and random tidbits of info about sports stuff and video games. He seemed normal enough though, so I didn't think he knew anything about what had happened between Abby and me.

I also hadn't heard anything from Abby. Granted, we definitely did not have each other's phone numbers. Before the cabin, we didn't really talk to one another outside of the context of jointly hanging out with Eddie. Over the weeks I had considered adding her on social media and messaging her there, but my guilty conscience was paranoid that it would be too suspicious if Eddie found out. I was also hoping she would be the one to reach out first. She hadn't reached out at all, so I figured that maybe the cabin was a one-time thing. Maybe it was her way of hooking up with someone on a whim just like Eddie had done so many times.

Then randomly yesterday Eddie texted and asked if I wanted to go to the bar with him. He was off of work, saw the master schedule at work and knew that I was off as well. I accepted his offer. I was actually excited to see him and hang out, but I was also wanting to feel out his vibes. Would he be weird or normal? Would I be able to tell if he knew or not?

My phone buzzed and I looked down at it to see a text from Eddie.

"Here" was all it said.

That was a little odd. Eddie was much more boisterous even in simple texts. My heart started pounding.

Was this a set up? Did he know?

I took a deep breath to steady myself. I was getting ahead of myself. If he had known, surely I would know this by now. There's no way Eddie would sit on this for weeks without saying anything. Eddie was just not a subtle person at all. I grabbed my jacket, wallet and keys. Took a look around my living room and headed out.

Eddie was parked out front of my apartment building in his black pick up truck. He loved that damn truck even though it was old and falling apart. I opened the passenger door and hopped inside.

"Tommy! My man, let's go get slammed!" He exclaimed excitedly upon seeing me.

I felt immediate relief. He definitely didn't know. I smiled,

"Yes, bro!" I said, "Let's fucking go!"

At the bar Eddie and I sat in our usual spot at a corner table where you could see all of the tvs. Eddie was really into sports and loved being able to drink and see everything that was going on with various games and matches. I wasn't really a sports guy, but after a few beers I was usually able to ride Eddie's vibes and get caught up in the hype of things. We had already ordered a pitcher and were most of the way through it. Eddie downed his glass and slammed it on the table.

"Man, I really needed this today." He said, pouring the last of the pitcher into his empty glass, "This new job has been working my ass, Tommy."

"Yeah? How are you liking it?" I asked.

"I mean it's cool being manager and all," Eddie said, signaling over to the server for a refill, "Just long hours. I'm there 12, sometimes 14 hours each shift."

"Shit, man...that's a lot." I said.

The server came over and replaced our pitcher with a full one.

"Pay is good though!" Eddie said, sipping on his beer, "Man, my first check was fucking bananas! I went out and got a new VR set for the game and everything. You gotta come over and try it out."

"Sweet, I'm definitely interested." I said, filling up my glass.

Eddie nodded, drinking more of his beer. I chuckled.

"Man, I can't believe you're even able to drink beer after your party." I said.

"Bro, right?!!" Eddie laughed, "I got so fucked up. I couldn't believe it. It was definitely all those shots. I can normally drink a ton of beer and be fine."

"It was definitely the shots. I knew you were sauced as soon as I got there," I said laughing, "Shit everyone knew you were done for!"

Eddie laughed more and then drank some more of his beer.

"Yeah, Abby said I was a mess that night. I was too fucked up the next day to even propose to her like I wanted."

I immediately felt burning in my cheeks with the mention of Abby. I don't think Eddie noticed though. I drank more of my beer to buy a few seconds, and then as casually as possible, I prodded.

"How's she doing?" I asked, "I know she had her hands full taking care of you that night."

Eddie looked down into his glass.

"We uh...we broke up." He admitted.

My heart started racing.

I needed to play it cool. They broke up all the time.

"Shit, sorry about that man." I said, trying to sound as sympathetic as I could.

"It's all good. She's been on my ass a lot these last couple of weeks because I wasn't making time for her," He said, taking a gulp of beer, "And I was workin' my ass off. It was all too much so I told her the other day I needed some space for a while."

I was trying really hard to contain the glee I was starting to feel. I knew my window of opportunity for talking to Abby had opened again. I still didn't know how I was going to contact her, but the possibility was there.

"Anyway..." Eddie said, interrupting my train of thought, "There's plenty of other ladies out here."

He gestured to the rest of the bar patrons. It was a Thursday evening. There were a few full tables of people here, but it definitely wasn't bustling enough for his optimism.

"Yeah...plenty!" I said, trying to match his energy.

Chapter VI.

Over the next couple hours we sipped on more beer while watching sports on the tvs. Eddie showed me some specs about the VR set on his phone while excitedly rambling on about all the different features. We were on our third pitcher of beer, and we both were definitely feeling it. We joked and laughed about work and video games. Eddie tried his hand at hitting on our server. She was new, but was not at all swayed by Eddie's charm. She shut him down pretty swiftly, but he was drunk and jolly and took it in stride.

"Guess she won't get to ride this guy tonight!" He said, gesturing to himself while laughing.

I chuckled along, sipping my beer. Then he stood up suddenly.

"I guess I'll go and finally break the seal." He said, "When I get back you wanna close the tab and get outta here? I'm gettin tired and gotta get up early for work."

"Yeah, I'm good with that." I said.

Eddie disappeared to the bathroom and I started chugging my beer to drink. And then I noticed it. Eddie had left his phone on the table. I sat my beer down and stared at it for a moment. Could I be fast enough? What do I say if he comes back and catches me?

I grabbed his phone impulsively. As soon as I touched the screen, it prompted me to type in a passcode. Shit!

I thought for a second. Eddie was a simple guy. Surely the passcode was just as simple. Eddie liked sports, video games, beer and women. I pondered about sports and thought about the jersey numbers for his favorite basketball players. I typed in 3 of those numbers. The phone buzzed back letting me know it wasn't the right passcode.

"Can I get you refills?"

Startled, I dropped Eddie's phone on the table with a loud clamour. I felt relief upon seeing the server looking at me.

"Uh, actually..we'd like to close the tab" I said to her.

"Ok, no problem. I'll get the check for you."

She grabbed the pitcher and our glasses and headed back to the bar. I slid Eddie's phone back over to where it was. About 30 seconds later Eddie returned. I watched him pick up his phone and effortlessly punch in the unknown passcode and scroll a bit on his phone.

I felt defeated. That was probably my only chance at getting Abby's number without being weird. Now I would spend the next few days trying to figure out how to contact her. I knew any social media would be weird, especially now that I knew Eddie had broken up with her. Since their breakups tended to be temporary, they still followed each other on stuff and he'd probably be able to see if she and I suddenly became social media friends. I could DM her, but that'd leave a trail he'd be able to see if they got back together. He'd know it was me without a question. How had I failed at my one chance to get Abby's number?

After paying the tab, Eddie and I climbed into his truck. He drove me back to my apartment, both of us silent the whole way.

"What you got up for the rest of the night?" He asked, pulling into the parking lot of my building.

"Nothing really. Probably just chilling out. I'm off work tomorrow too and have a few things to get done tomorrow."

"Oh, cool." He said, "I texted Abby right before we left the bar. I'm gonna try and see if she'll let me come over and smash before I head home."

He grinned smugly. Of course. He always did shit like this. He broke up with her and then when none of the women at the bar would have him, he's going to go crawling back to her tonight to get laid.

I tried to conceal my annoyance as he pulled up to my building's entrance.

"Well, hopefully she gets back to you, man." I said, trying to convince him and myself that I wanted that.

He pulled his phone out of his pocket.

"She texted back!" He exclaimed excitedly, "Hell yeah!"

He tapped in his passcode and stared at the screen. His excitement died immediately as his face turned from glee to annoyance to anger.

"Man, what the fuck is she on?!" He said, "You see this shit, man?"

He handed his phone to me to look at the text exchange. I couldn't fucking believe it. I was getting another chance.

Looking at his phone, I glanced at the text exchange. It was long. The gist of it was Abby telling Eddie that he had some nerve after his behavior the other day and now texting her when he's drunk and horny. There were some expletives and more feelings. I didn't read the rest because I jumped at my opportunity. I moved my finger slightly across the screen as though I was scrolling to read the rest of the message when really I tapped on Abby's name. Her contact page popped up and there it was.

I was never one for having a photographic memory, but I stared at her number determined to burn it into my brain. I rapidly recited it in my head several times before hitting the back button to return to the text exchange. I handed Eddie his phone back.

"Damn, bro...that was harsh." I said.

Eddie just pocketed his phone.

"I can't believe she called me a piece of shit." Eddie said.

He rambled on for a couple minutes more, pissed that Abby wasn't welcoming him over with open arms. I barely listened as I recited her number in my head repeatedly. I couldn't let myself forget the number, but I needed to stay cool. I let Eddie rant on for another minute or so.

"Yeah man, I'm sorry she's being this way." I said, "Maybe try it another day or so once she's cooled off?"

He looked annoyed, but nodded.

"You're right, Tommy...I think she just needs a couple days to chill out."

I recited the number again in my head.

"Alright bro, I'm heading inside. I'll catch you later."

"Yeah, we'll hang again next time we're both off!" Eddie said.

I opened the passenger door and hopped out. I recited the number again in my head. I walked into my building. I recited it once more. I watched Eddie pull away and I excitedly grabbed my phone out of my pocket and typed the number frantically.

There it was. I had Abby's number. I let out a sigh of relief now that I didn't have to recite it any longer. I saved the contact under "A" and headed up to my apartment.

Chapter VII.

The next morning all I could think about was the number saved in my phone. Last night it was clear in that text to Eddie that Abby was not in a good mood, so I figured it was not the best time to text. Now that it was the next day I couldn't stop thinking about texting her. I got out of bed and made myself coffee. I sat on my sofa and flipped on the tv. I tried to be casual. I didn't know if I should wait until the afternoon or evening. The morning seemed a little desperate. After a few cups of coffee and unbearable anticipation, I frantically pulled my phone out around 11:30am. Before I could talk myself out of it, I typed out a text.

"Hey Abby...it's me." I hit send.

I waited for what seemed like an hour. No text bubbles. I checked my phone every couple minutes or so. Maybe I had been too vague. I really didn't want to type my name. I really hoped she would just know that it was me. Who else would text her like this? It was almost 12:05 before I felt my phone buzz in my lap. I fumbled in my hurry to grab it.

"Hey! How are you? I've been waiting to hear from you."

She knew! She knew it was me!

"I'm good. Better now that we can talk." I typed out. I hit send.

I saw the familiar text bubbles right away. My heart leaped. It felt so good to be talking to her. My phone buzzed again as her message popped up on the screen.

"I've been wondering when I'd hear from you." It read.

"Yeah, I um...didn't have your number." I hit send.

"It's ok. You have it now :)"

My heart started racing. She seemed to be in good spirits and happy to hear from me. I typed out a response.

"Well, this is my number. Save it. You can text me anytime."

"Saved :)" She replied.

"Great! :)" I hit send.

I saw more text bubbles pop up and then immediately disappear. I waited for a few more minutes and then nothing. I didn't know if I should say anything else. I left the ball in her court to text me anytime. What else could I say after this. Then suddenly another message came through.

"I want to see you again."

I felt the smile spread across my face.

"I'd like that. You free today?" I replied.

"I get off work in a couple hours. Does 4pm work?"

"Yeah, I'm free all day today."

"Awesome, you wanna come over to my place?" She replied.

"Ok, yeah! Whats your address?"

Abby sent over her address. She lived a lot closer than I thought. She actually lived closer to me than Eddie did. I could probably walk to her place if I wanted to.

"Alright, I'll see you at 4." I hit send.

"Sweet! I'm excited to see you :)"

I felt butterflies in my entire body. I was going to see her in just a few short hours. I jumped up from the sofa and headed to the bathroom. I needed to shower and get myself together. After a good hour of showering, shaving, trimming and primping, I felt acceptable for whatever the evening had in store.

I still had a few hours before 4pm, so I did my best to distract myself. I played video games, ate some food and even spent a good half hour just laying on the sofa daydreaming about Abby. I thought about her smile. Her body. Her lips. How soft she was to kiss. How nice she smelled. Pretty soon my T dick was at full attention. I reached down and started stroking myself. I couldn't wait to lose myself in her again. Her wetness. Touching her perfect tits. Hearing her hurried breathing and moans in my ear. I stroked myself getting closer and closer to release. I was just at the point of no return when I stopped suddenly, my breath ragged from getting so close to orgasm. I took a couple deep breaths. I didn't want to come just yet. I wanted to save it for later.

I arrived at Abby's at 4pm sharp. As I pulled into the small apartment complex, I felt a sense of familiarity. I had driven by this place many times and had no idea this is where she lived. It was odd that Eddie had never mentioned how close she and I lived to one another. It did, however, explain why Eddie was trying to butter her up last night. It wouldn't have been much for him to drop me off at my place and then hop on down to hers to get some before heading home for the night.

Unlike my own apartment complex, Abby's apartment had its own private entrance. I walked right up to the door and took a deep breath before knocking. My fist struck the door maybe twice before it opened immediately.

There she was.

She stood there facing me looking as radiant as ever, her olive skin managing to look sunkissed during the dead of winter. She was in a light pink, cropped tank top showing off her flat tummy that curved to her slight but muscular hips and thighs fitting snugly in the black leggings she was wearing. She smiled brightly at me.

"Hey you!" She said, "Come on in!"

She stepped aside, allowing me to walk into her apartment. The entrance was a small cubby area with hooks along the wall where she kept her jackets, shoes and hats. I could see that this space opened into a small, galley kitchen. From what little I had seen, her apartment was really nice. Much more tidy and more polished finishes than mine.

I heard the door close behind me.

"Nice pla-" I said, barely finishing my sentence when I felt her hand touch the back of my shirt.

I turned around to face her as she stood against the back of the door. We looked at each other for a second or two, no doubt amazed that we were both here at this moment. The sparks were flying like they were those weeks ago at the cabin. Without much hesitation I leaned over and kissed her lips softly. She melted into me and put her arms around my waist, pulling me closer to her. We kissed each other softly, tenderly even. She smelled so damn good. She smelled like chai again, but with warmer notes of vanilla balancing out the spice.

She broke our kiss first.

"Oh Thomas, I'm so happy you reached out to me."

"Yeah, of course!" I said, "I'm sorry that it took so long. I uh, didn't know how to get your number without things being weird, yknow?"

"Oh, that's not what I meant. You don't have to apologize at all."

"I know," I said, "But I want to. I felt bad and didn't want you to think..."

"Think what?" She asked, "You think I forgot? Forgot about the cabin?"

I pondered for a second. I didn't think she'd forgotten. It was more that I didn't want her to think I had crossed the line. I was worried that she had been offended or regretted it.

"Well, I didn't forget," she said, "Honestly, it's pretty much all I've been able to think about over the last few weeks."