Chloe
I wheezed, trying my hardest to breathe. I did not think this hike would be that hard.

It was the second day of being at the vacation house, and Irene and I got up early today to go on a long hike. I’d prepared food for a picnic, sandwiches and assorted sliced fruit, with a small batch of cookies for dessert. We had been walking for a couple hours, and despite the fact that we weren’t even to our destination yet, after which we’d have to turn around and walk back, I was absolutely winded.

That wasn’t even considering I was only carrying a water bottle while Irene was carrying all of our picnic supplies in her backpack. I felt guilty about her having to slow down for me, and I refused to give up and stop early.

She eyed me with concern, not for the first time, “Are you sure you’re okay?” She almost seemed to be pleading with me to give up.

I shook my head. Wait no that’s wrong. I nodded my head, feeling like my brain was sloshing around as I did so. What was I saying? “Irene,” I looked at her, trying to remember, “I…” I fell forwards, landing in her arms. They felt so strong around me. I sighed, ‘What a nice place to take a nap’, I thought.

Her panicking voice pulled me from my drowsiness. That’s right, we’re hiking. “I’m doing fine,” I looked up at her, realizing my voice wasn’t very reassuring.

“Absolutely not, we’re going straight back,” she glared at me, not allowing for any argument.

I finally accepted, feeling both guilt and relief, both of which intensified when she picked me up and I quickly realized she would be faster on the way back carrying me bridal style than I was on the way here.

I leaned into her chest, loosely throwing my arms around her neck, and I drifted in and out of awareness, never really falling asleep. I felt her stopping periodically, and I heard her call her mom when she finally got cell service.

Eventually, I felt myself being sat in her mom’s car, Irene buckling me in, and I finally fell asleep on the drive back to the house.

I opened my eyes, waking up and taking in the room around me. I was in mine and Irene’s bed back at the vacation house, and I felt absolutely terrible. My whole body was burning up, I was absolutely parched, and my head was full of fog.

I looked around, not seeing anyone, “Irene,” I called. I needed her.

She rushed into the room, staring at me with concern, “Oh my god, you’re awake. My mom told me it was just a fever, but I was so worried. How do you feel?” She walked up to the edge of the bed and placed a hand on my forehead.

The touch felt cool to my skin, “Water,” I croaked.

She quickly went off to the kitchen, coming back with a big glass of water. She helped me sit up and drink, one hand on my back the whole time.

I felt reassured by her presence and I didn’t want her to leave. “Irene, please stay. Get into bed and hold me,” I looked up at her with pleading eyes.

She hesitated a moment before laying me back down and climbing in next to me. We faced each other in bed and she wrapped her arms around me. She kissed my forehead, and I relaxed at her gentle touch.

I was feeling greedy and I couldn’t help but want more. I looked at her lips and then into her eyes, “Kiss me again,” deliberately leaving where to kiss me up to her, but tilting my mouth up towards hers in suggestion.

She hesitated.

I pouted before sighing and looking down, away from her face. She didn’t want to be close to me as much as I wanted to be close to her. I had always been the one to initiate physical intimacy, and she always seemed uncomfortable when I pushed too far.

She cleared her throat, “Sweet pea, are you gay?”

What? I tried to focus through the fever-induced haze. Where did that come from? “I’m not gay,” I told her, telling the truth. I clarified, “I don’t get crushes on women.” Hopefully that satisfies her, I felt like this was not the best time to have a conversation about my sexuality. I wasn’t even sure about my sexuality clear-minded, let alone now.

“Oh.” She pulled my face into her chest so I couldn’t see her expression.

I wanted to see it, to figure out what was going on, but I couldn’t right now. I drifted off, thinking about Irene’s strong embrace.

Irene
I was holding the love of my life in bed, right after she told me she wasn’t gay. Even expecting it, it had hurt, it still hurt. I hadn’t had much hope, but when she looked at my lips and told me to kiss her, I couldn’t help but ask the question that had been building in my mind for the past few days.

I felt like there had been so many signs she was giving me, her acting possessive when I was hit on, her being increasingly flirty, and lastly she told me to kiss her. What was I supposed to think? I was starting to lose track of why I’d dismissed all of this as ‘just the way Chloe was’ but then she told me she wasn’t into women.

I extracted myself from Chloe, getting up. I needed to, and not only because it was dinner time.

I ate dinner with our moms, reassuring them Chloe was resting well and agreeing when they said we might have to miss our dinner reservations for tomorrow, but not engaging much beyond that.

I was concerned, but also my feelings were all over the place. I didn’t know what I was supposed to do, aren’t the expected routes either get over her or confess? I’d tried to do both, and look where it got me. I laughed at my situation, picking up my toothbrush as I was getting ready to go to bed early. I was exhausted after carrying Chloe so far earlier, and spending the rest of the day stressed had not helped.

Once I was ready I hesitated, staring at our bed. What would happen if I wasn’t so scared, so guilty about being myself? What would have happened if I’d kissed her when she asked?

I sighed, climbing into bed and taking the initiative to wrap myself around Chloe. I didn’t know what would happen, but maybe I could do it anyway.

—

I woke to an empty bed. My mind quickly cleared, focusing on making sure Chloe was ok, and she wasn’t off in the bathroom puking with no one to help her. I rushed out of bed, looking in the bathroom for her, but she wasn’t there. Where was she? Someone that sick couldn’t have gone far, I went out into the living room and—

Chloe was dancing in the kitchen, cheerily cooking pancakes. What?

I stared at her, “What?”

She spun around, incorporating it into her fluid improvisation, “You’re up just in time, come sit at the table there’s pancakes,” her face was a ray of sunshine, no sign of yesterday’s sickness.

I slowly walked to the table, sitting down, all while my eyes were fixed on her. I couldn’t believe it, but that was just how she was I guess.

She served me two pancakes, and I ate them, watching as she continued her dance, every flip and sizzle beats to her music.

Our moms came down and Chloe greeted them enthusiastically, but I stayed silent, everything still feeling surreal. By the time I had gained some focus, I had just finished washing our dishes, and Chloe grabbed my hand and walked me into our bedroom, immediately shutting the door, a mischievous grin on her face.

“Hey there cutie,” she teased. Her face shifted to something more tender. She walked over to where I stood aimlessly in the middle of the room and she pulled me into a tight hug, “Thank you for everything yesterday.”

I hugged her back, feelings I didn’t want to name welling up in my chest, “No problem,” I mumbled.

She pulled back from me and wagged one finger back and forth in front of my face, chastising, “Nuh uh, you are not allowed to downplay your heroics. I will grant your every wish in return whether you want me to or not,” her voice dropped low and she rose up on her toes to place her lips near the tip of my ear, “So just make this easy on me and tell me what you want.” She moved back, watching me intently.

My mind immediately went to the kiss we’d almost shared, a poorly timed opportunity for sure, but still one I had missed. My eyes went to her lips without thinking, and I couldn’t bring myself to stop staring, even as they opened briefly in surprise before smirking and approaching me. I watched their seductive sway as they neared in closer, and I closed my eyes and tilted my head instinctually as she kissed me softly on the lips.

It was over quickly, so soft the touch barely registered, and like everything else Chloe did, it just made me insatiable for more. I hesitated though, feeling like I was taking advantage of her. Was she doing this for my sake?

We stood staring at each other, and her face contorted to annoyance as she must have seen the conflict on my face.

“Irene, I’m begging you. No holding back.” She looked at me in the eyes, much more certain in meeting my gaze than I was hers. “Tell me what you want.”

“I want you,” I heard myself say. I clapped my hand over my mouth as if I could keep it in retroactively.

I did want her, I realized. It should've been obvious, I’d been pining over her for years, and to an extent it was obvious. But the feeling, the actual in-the-moment feelings I’d never let myself notice, the swirling warmth in my stomach, the warm air on my exposed sensitive skin, whatever my pounding heart was doing, it was all intoxicating, exhilarating in a way that made me let out a soft involuntary groan as soon as I removed my hand from my mouth.

She grabbed my hand, eyes intently focused on mine and she pulled me to our bed, laying me on my back and straddling my waist. “Is this what you want? You want me to satisfy your unspoken desires?” She leaned in as if to kiss me, but her cheeks brushed past mine instead, teasing. Her hands ran up and down my arms gently, my skin breaking out in stiff goosebumps. Without her arms to support her weight, her full weight pressed into me, and each movement she did ground her hips into mine.

All of this and she still waited to continue, watching me let my mind catch up.

I stared at her, the surreal feeling from earlier growing stronger. “Yes.” I didn’t even remember what she had asked me, but that was all that was going through my mind: ‘Yes’, as in ‘Yes Chloe, do whatever you want to me.’

Her movements quickly changed, the teasing she was going to do now was of a completely different order of magnitude. Her hands moved to my stomach, sliding under my shirt and stroking the length of my front, from the bottom of my abs, around to the sides of my chest, and up to the base of my neck. Her lips met mine, this kiss as passionate as the previous one was gentle. Her tongue quickly found its way into my mouth, swirling around in a hypnotic dance with mine.

My eyes shut as soon as her hands had touched my bare skin, and my hands remained above my head, completely aimless in the face of the overwhelmingly unbelievable events happening. Was this real?

She pulled my back off the bed for just long enough to throw my shirt off, taking my bra off immediately afterwards, save for the smallest pause for me to nod at her. She pushed me down again, and repeated the move from earlier, running her hands all the way up my now naked front. Her hands stopped at my breasts, and her palms brushed my sensitive and pointed nipples as she softly kneaded my cool skin with her warm hands, eliciting a soft gasp from me.

Chloe paused for a moment, giving me a chastising look, “I don’t think this is what they meant about us being loud, but if you can’t keep quiet, I’m going to have to silence you.”

Embarrassingly, I squeaked. I shook my head, not sure how that answered what she’d just said.

She resumed working me up, showing no impatience at taking her time.

Was it possible to die from getting too worked up? I wasn’t sure, but I was sure the panties I was wearing were absolutely ruined, and if I was going to get my release any time soon, I’d need to say something. Preferably something cool, something that communicated both how much I was enjoying myself and how I felt about her.

“Please,” my voice came out in a whine, low in volume but full of desperation. There went my pride.

She sighed disappointedly, “Fine I’ll let you off the hook this time,” she wagged her finger in my face, “but next time I get to take my time.”

Holy shit, next time?!

She quickly busied her hands with removing my shorts, while her mouth kissed and bit its way down my front. She had no consistent pattern telling me if a soft kiss or a sharp bite would be coming next, and as a result, I made soft gasps at both.

She threw my shorts across the room to join the rest of my clothes, and my panties soon followed.

I took a moment to consider that I was having sex with the love of my life and best friend in one, but that moment was quickly interrupted by Chloe.

Her hand brushed between my folds and she gently ran her fingers around them, not touching anywhere I wanted her to yet. Her head came back up to my chest and she resumed her kissing and biting routine, this time on my nipples. In between those, her voice softly cooed at me, explaining how much my folds resembled that of a flower, and all about how flowers reproduce. In any other context the scientific names would’ve bored me, but with her it somehow felt romantic.

“Please just end me,” I pleaded.

She gave me a smirk and a shake of her head in response. “So impatient, but fine, you asked for it.”

She got up off me and I felt a rush of disappointment before she settled further down the bed, her head right above my hips. She looked to me and I nodded as fast as I could, hoping it would speed her up.

Her tongue dug deep into my entrance and slowly, with strong pressure, stroked all the way up to my clit.

I bucked my hips, arching my back well off the bed and throwing my hand over my mouth to stifle a scream. I had never felt like this with anyone else, and there was no way I would last much longer.

Her second lick had just as much pressure behind it, but was significantly faster. As her licks got increasingly faster and shorter, her tongue started to focus on my clit. At the same time, two of her fingers entered me slowly and, finding no resistance, she quickly added a third as her hand left and re-entered me.

I grabbed a pillow and used that to stifle my screams instead, losing all will to even try to keep them bottled up.

I came, body shaking as she slowly worked me down from my high. All I could do was focus on breathing, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale.

What just happened?