Jamie

For someone who supposedly struggled with eye contact, Jordan had little trouble with me as he gazed into my eyes. His gaze was so intense, I felt like he could see into my soul. I wondered if he could see the frightened little boy that still lived inside me. He saw some of it last night. I saw through him, too, a combination of fear and uncertainty, and an emotion he had never experienced before. Like me, he wasn't expecting this. He was someone who thrived on regimented, even boring routine who spent most of his time alone in his own little world in this wilderness. He flipped out on me on when I tried to do my laundry on his laundry day, who thought it was the end of the world when his earphones broke. I disrupted his life and almost everything he'd ever known.

"I wanna show you a place," Jordan said as his feet slid down my back and over my ass. "Only me and my mom know about it. Tim doesn't even know."

"I'd love to see your secret place," I said, lying comfortably on top of him.

"Okay. Let's go now," he said.

"Right now?"

"Yes, right now," he said dead seriously. As I eased out of him, evidence of what we just did seeped out. At first I thought he was going to freak out as he just lay there, looking down and between his legs. And then he abruptly burst into a fit of giggles. "That feels so weird." His laughter could be so contagious at times. I'd only heard him laugh a few times, mostly when he splashed me in the water. While he continued to laugh, I got up and removed the sheets with him still lying there.

"It's not laundry day," I teased. "Is it okay if I do my laundry today?"

"Saturday's my laundry day, not yours," he said, his laughter subsiding. I threw his shirt at him, hitting him in the face with it. Before I said anything else, he ran out of the room, putting his shirt back on at the same time.

"Come on, get dressed," he shouted to me, running down the stairs. I really hoped he'd put on some bottoms before going outside. Not only that, I was starving so I hoped he'd give me the chance to eat breakfast first.

After throwing on a pair of shorts, I made my way downstairs. As I entered the kitchen, an unknown woman in the kitchen caught me by surprise. Around middle-aged, possibly Spanish-speaking only, she was dressed in a light blue and white uniform shirt and jeans. She held a bucket of cleaning supplies by her side, leading me to believe she was the maid.

Jordan was at the kitchen counter, pouring himself a glass of orange juice, still only wearing the t-shirt. He was right; it did cover everything.

"This is Yesenia," Jordan said matter-of-factly. "She cleans a couple of times a month. This is Jamie, the houseguest." Houseguest? I couldn't help but feel insulted. Jordan said it just to be a little shit.

"Hi," I said to her. I wasn't expecting to find anyone in the kitchen besides Jordan. She nodded at me and went about her business, looking over her shoulder once at me and Jordan. I had a feeling she didn't believe I was merely a houseguest.

"Houseguest?" I said, playfully shoving his shoulder.

"Did you want me to say my boyfriend?" He didn't wait for me to answer, which was a good thing because I wasn't quite sure how to describe us. "You probably want breakfast first, right?"

"Yes, I'm starving."

"I'll make it," he offered.

"No, thanks," I said, ruffling his hair. "Since the only thing you can make is Cocoa Puffs."

"Well, show me how to make something," he said. Jordan was really into learning new things lately.

"Like what?"

"Hmm...how about an omelet?"

"An omelet, huh?" I said. I really wasn't in the mood to make an omelet, but he looked so cute standing there and genuinely interested in learning so I really couldn't say no. "It's amazing how you can make these incredible special brownies, but you can't cook anything else." As he opened his mouth, I cut him off. "And pasta doesn't count."

Jordan collected a few eggs and milk from the fridge. "I don't use milk" I said. "Is there any cheese in there?" He obediently pulled out a bag of shredded cheddar cheese. "Here, mix the eggs," I said, handing him a bowl and fork. Following my order, his head bobbed back and forth like it so often did, which usually he meant he was listening to an unnamed tune in his head. He was too cute to interrupt. Standing behind him, I playfully lifted up the back of his shirt. Unable to help myself, my lips brushed against the side of his neck, my hands on his waist.

"Jordan..." Yesenia unexpectedly returned and I quickly pushed his t-shirt back down. Jordan didn't budge, continuing to stir.

"What do I do now?" he asked, referring to the omelet, as if we hadn't just been interrupted. I was sure my face was beet red. Yesenia said something to Jordan who only nodded back to her, then she disappeared again.

"I keep forgetting we're not alone in the house," I said.

"She just wanted to know if we were going to use the bathroom upstairs because she's going to clean it," he said.

"You speak Spanish?"

"No, not really," he said. "We've just known each other a long time." After I dropped a knob of butter in the frying pan, I instructed Jordan to pour the egg mixture in. In the end, I did most of the work and Jordan did most of the observing.

With our omelets, we went outside and sat down at the porch table. It was another hot and humid July day in Massachusetts. As he ate, he brought one knee to his chest. While he often sat like this, I knew he was doing it on purpose this morning to be provocative.

"Have you no shame?" I teased him. He only stared back at me. "The maid's around here somewhere." Ignoring me, he took a bite of his omelet. "She could show up any minute again."

"It's good," he said, ignoring my warnings.

"Thanks," I said. Blushing, he brought his leg down. I couldn't help but laugh because I knew what was happening under his shirt. He was so easy...so nineteen.

"What?" he said.

"Nothing," I said with a smile.

"I can't help it," he muttered. "It's annoying."

"Oh yeah, real annoying." In an irritating way, his knee bounced up and down as he took a sip of his orange juice. To stop his knee from bouncing, I reached over and placed a hand on it. I also just wanted to touch his knee. I couldn't help myself and rubbed his knee with the side of my thumb.

"Stop," he said. "I don't want to...well...I don't want to make a mess on the deck."

"You don't have to do it on the deck," I said, sliding my hand up his thigh. "What? You don't think I will?"

"What about Yesenia?"

"She's inside," I said, bending over. He really didn't put up much of a fight, only looking over his shoulder once to make sure no one was watching us. Sighing happily, he lifted his shirt up to his chest, watching me carefully. Pressing his hand against the back of my neck, he pushed me harder on him, encouraging me to take him all the way in my mouth. As I looked up at him, I knew that was it.

"Oh shit," he gasped, his ass lifting off the chair as he filled my mouth. I held him there until he finished.

"I want to show you my place now," he said, stroking the back of my head.

"Can I finish my breakfast first?" I said, sitting back up. He folded his arms across his chest, staring me down while I shoved the rest of my omelet in my mouth.  "You really are cute," I said with a mouthful of omelet. "And you taste good."

Jordan shot me the middle finger and ran off. Oh no. It was just a joke. As usual, I ran after him. He went in a different direction this time, running in his bare feet, leading me deep into the woods, deeper than he ever took me. He ran so fast I had a hard time keeping up with him.

"I feel like I'm in The Blair Witch Project," I said.

"What's The Blair Witch Project?" he asked.

"This creepy movie set in the middle of the woods where three college kids disappear. Lots of weird shit happens." The woods started to thin and I almost thought we were about to enter civilization again when a meadow of growing sunflowers stopped us. The sunflowers were actually overwhelming; there were so many of them. "Tim doesn't know about this place?"

"No, he never goes out this far," he said. "The New Hampshire border is right over there." He gestured past the sunflowers, through another set of woods. "My mom showed me this place a long time ago. When I was little, I'd run through this field, pretending the sunflowers were poppies instead of sunflowers so I'd fall asleep."

"Like Dorothy and the Cowardly Lion in The Wizard of Oz?"

"Yes," he said. "It was just pretend sleep, though. Sometimes I wished I'd really fall asleep and never wake up."

"Why would you think that?" I asked.

"Haven't you ever felt that way?"

"Truthfully?"

"Yes, truthfully," he said.

"Yes, I suppose I have," I said.

"It's different than wanting to die, though, isn't it? Because if you're asleep, that means you're still alive. It means you're still a little hopeful."

"Yes," I said. "I suppose that's true."

"I never wanted to die," he said, sitting down in a patch of grass. "I was just tired...really tired." While sitting, he pulled his shirt over his knees, stretching it out even more. He wrapped his arms around his legs, rocking himself subtly like he was remembering a bad, traumatic memory. As he rested his head on his knees, I sat down in front of him.

"Do you like baseball?" I asked, attempting to lighten the mood.

"Yes," he said. "I tried playing it when I was little, but I didn't play well with the other kids so my parents pulled me from the team."

"Have you ever seen a game at Fenway?"

"No."

"Maybe I could take you," I said. He shrugged indifferently. "I think it'd be fun."

"Maybe," he said. Reaching over, I pulled his legs loose. Holding his feet in my lap, I brushed the dirt off both feet, proceeding to rub my hand against his calloused heels. His body relaxed as I massaged his feet.

"What's the date today?" he asked.

"Hmm...July 14th. Why?"

"When are you leaving?" he asked. A pit in the middle of my stomach formed.

"August 30th," I said. "My birthday." Even though it was over a month away, my heart ached thinking about it. I put it out of my mind, wanting to enjoy as much time with him as I could. It was hard to believe I had only been there three weeks. "Let's not think about that right now," I said as he avoided my eyes, turning his head away. "Hey." Still, he looked away, not saying anything. "Hey," I said again, shaking his legs. When he chose to ignore me again, I pulled him by his legs toward me, causing his shirt to lift, dragging his bare ass over the dirt and grass. He didn't say anything, though, merely wincing until I pulled him into my lap, his shirt scrunched up to his waist. "Try not to think about that right now," I said as he hugged me, resting his head on my shoulder. He nodded. "I can honestly say I've never met anyone like you." He hooked his legs around my back, holding me tight. "It's going to be alright," I said as he clung to me.

"But what if it's not?"

"What do you mean?"

Abruptly he got off me, annoyed I didn't understand what he meant. He looked at me for a second, quickly wiping his cheeks before running off again. I hadn't realized he was crying. Running through the field of sunflowers, I heard him sing loudly,

"A boy tries hard to be a man
His mother takes him by his hand
If he stops to think he starts to cry
Oh why
If you walk away, walk away
I walk away, walk away, I will follow
If you walk away, walk away
I walk away, walk away, I will follow, I will follow..."

As he sung through his tears, I realized how much he missed his mother and his childhood and that I changed everything for him. He would miss me as I would miss him.

A few minutes later, I found him in the pond, which grossed me out more than ever. "Get out of there," I said. "Jordan, get out of there now. You're not wearing any underwear..." He looked at me once, then dunked himself under the dirty water. "That's fucking disgusting, Jordan. Get out. Get out now." Sticking his tongue out at me, he splashed me. As he went to splash me again, I grabbed his arm and literally yanked him out of the water. Before he could do anything else, I picked him up, throwing him over my shoulder.

"Put me down!" he yelled, flailing his legs and arms.

"No," I said, trudging out of the woods. "You're not so tough."

"You're an ass hole," he said, which only made me laugh.

"If you walk away, walk away, I will follow..." I sang.
"I was on the inside
When they pulled the four walls down
I was looking through the window
I was lost, I am found... You didn't think I heard you, huh? I think the whole state of New Hampshire heard you. Maybe Massachusetts, too."

As he hung there, he punched my thigh. I retaliated with a light smack on his bare ass a few times, making him laugh no matter how hard he tried not to. Fortunately Yesenia was gone. I carried him all the way up the stairs and into the freshly cleaned bathroom that we dirtied all over again. I sat him down on the toilet. He immediately folded his arms over his chest, sulking, pretending to be annoyed, but I doubt he really was. There was a hint of amusement in his eyes.

"I always wanted a bathtub like this," I said, referring to the deep cast iron bathtub that was as old as the rest of the house. "You must have loved it as a kid."

"I don't need a bath," he said as I turned on the water.

"How many times have you told me you're not a kid?" I said. "You're acting like a spoiled brat." He gave me the middle finger again and I gave it right back to him.

"What are you doing?" he asked as I undid my shorts.

"Taking a bath, too," I said. "What, you think I'd let you take one without me? The tub's definitely big enough for the both of us." With his eyes on. me, I undressed and got in the tub, letting water fill almost to the brim.

"I used to take these marathon baths," he said, standing up. "That's what Tim used to call it."

"Because you love water," I said as he took off his shirt. I couldn't wait for him to get in with me. He dipped his toe in and hesitated.

"It's hot," he said.

"Stop whining and get in," I said. He stuck out his tongue at me for the second time that day and eased into the tub.

"Happy now?" he said, letting his legs lay on either side of me. He slouched in the tub, letting the water clip his chin. Holding his foot, I scrubbed his toes with the loofa. Maybe I scrubbed the bottom of his foot a little too hard, but it needed it. I didn't mind the kick in the head he gave me. He abruptly went all the way under the water, quickly bobbing back up, causing water to spill out of the tub. For a few seconds, it was almost like I wasn't even there. He squirted shampoo in his hair and lathered it up, getting his hair good and sudsy. He slid back under the water, then back up again, suds trickling down the sides of his face. I just couldn't resist and scooted to him.

"Let me help you," I said, bringing my legs around him. I squeezed a wet wash cloth over the top of his head. He smiled as our bodies touched. "What?"

"You're hard," he said.

"I can't help it," I said. "It's annoying." Smiling again, he pressed his lips on mine.

"What do you want to do today?" he asked.

"I don't know," I said. "What do you want to do today?" Bringing his arms around me, he kissed me again.  "We can't do that all day," I said. He only kissed me harder. Or maybe we could...

"I want to try," he said. "When we get out, I want to try."

"Try what?" I asked. Kissing me, his hands slid down my back, all the way down until they reached my ass. Pushing his hand underneath me, propping me up, his fingers trailed between my cheeks. "Whatever you want," I said. With no hesitation, he pushed a finger inside me. Oh boy, this is going to be interesting...

A/N
I hope you're enjoying the story so far! Pease don't forget to vote.