It had been more than three weeks since she had withdrawn from the world and cocooned herself in her apartment. The bedroom looked like a disaster zone with pieces of tissues strewn across the floor, along with a tub of chocolate ice-cream that had long ago melted into a hot tub of brown liquid which also acted as a makeshift ashtray for several tobacco and weed cigarette butts.
It was a small studio apartment and the smell of booze, weed and tobacco was thick enough to cut with a knife. On the stove was kept a kettle containing hot water for the insane amount of coffee she had consumed in the past few days. The kitchen floor was lined with pizza boxes as they were her only source of sustenance.
Natalie lay on her bed which no longer looked like a bed, but more like the bottom of a mayonnaise jar and contemplated her predicament. She was dressed in three-day old black panties and a white sleeveless top that covered her lean torso and soft round breasts. She threw her blanket aside and let the little rays of sunshine illuminate her pale skin and the small Kanji tattoos on both sides of her pelvic bone. Sliding out of the bed, she sat on the edge and once again looked at the upturned picture frame on the bedside table and flipped it upright. She saw her own smile; carefree and genuinely happy standing alongside the man who was responsible for it.
Bobby had been everything that she was not. He was kind, gentle, sorted out in life and she met him at a time when her life was at the peak of decadence. She remembered how he had brought her back home after a particularly nasty evening of partying, and he didn't even know her at the time. A rare smile spread across her face at the memory as it was to be the beginning of a long and painful journey back towards sobriety. Natalie's mood darkened, and she reached for a pack of open cigarettes and slid one between her teeth and lit it. Taking a deep drag, she exhaled a plume of smoke and watched the tendrils dance in the dim light of her apartment.
'Just like this smoke', she thought, 'it was all just like this smoke.'
She stood up and sat down again as her head began to pound mercilessly from the hangover. She stood up slowly and made her way to the kitchen sink and slid her head under a column of cold water, numbing the pain to the best of her abilities. Between the throbbing of her brain and the nauseating smell of the apartment, she remembered the day when she discovered his infidelity. After all the effort she put into the relationship, she was still "too unpredictable" for him and he decided to pursue other more "decent" forms of companionship.
'Bastard never complained when I was indecent in bed.'
She withdrew her head from the sink and let the throbbing in her head subside as she took deep breaths and opened the fridge for a gallon jug of water. She forced herself to drink it. She staggered back to her bed and lay there looking at the ceiling, feeling the throbbing in her head subside somewhat. She checked her phone and found a flood of voice mails and texts from her girlfriends asking where she was and if she was alright; there was no message from Bobby, not even a missed call. She decides to treat herself to her usual comfort meal of Cheese Pizza
Forty minutes later a loud noise awakened her from her slumber and she realized that her hangover is at a point where loud sounds immediately set her brain on fire. After taking a few seconds to orient herself, she recognizes the banging at the door.
"LEAVE IT AT THE DOOR!" Regretting this action immediately as her head throbbed in protest. The knocking, however, grew only louder, much to her chagrin. "Fucking morons," she said under her breath and made for the door.
"I said leave it at the door you asshole."
She opened the door as she finished the statement and was ready to give the delivery boy a piece of her mind. However, she merely stood there in shock as she saw the person who had done the knocking. Standing in front of her was a tall man dressed in a pair of faded jeans and a black T-shirt with a dusty bag hanging off the side of his shoulder, his beard was unkempt and hair also the same yet he carried an arrogant/confident smirk on his lips which quickly turned into a grin upon seeing Natalie. His name was Adrian, and Natalie knew him well. It was to be expected of course since he was her ex.
Adrian looked at her like a predator looks at prey, and the grin on his lips revealed only too well what was going on in his mind, "My-my-my.....is it me or have these three years only made you more attractive?"
Natalie was slightly dazed due to the assault of the light on her hungover and sensitive eyes and also taken aback as if she witnessed the ghost from her past standing before her, "Wha... what are you doing here?"
Adrian feigned being hurt, "Now is that any way to speak to an old friend?"
"You're just old, not a friend."
"Ouch..." he smirked and eyed her body with undisguised lust, "Yeah I forgot you got a real mean tongue on you." Without hesitation, he stepped inside the apartment and closed the door behind him. Natalie contemplated hitting him square on his jaw but decided against it, he was quick to anger and in her current state she was in no condition to get into a fight.
"Whaddya want?" she managed in a slurred voice, "Well for the moment I want some of that Pizza lying next to the door... am ravenous." saying so he dumped his on the kitchen counter and gave another lecherous grin, "and after that... who knows?"
Natalie eyed him with caution and opened the door once more. Leaning down and to the side she picked up the Pizza box and could feel Adrian's gaze transfixed upon her ass cheeks as she bent down.
'I bet he's enjoying the view.'
She brought the box back to the open kitchen and took out a couple of plastic plates. True to form his eyes never left her high and tight ass cheeks encased in the black panties and began stroking his palms gently as he fantasized about cupping those cheeks from behind and feeling their weight in his palms. His obvious lust did not go unnoticed,
"So you dropped in after three years to look at my butt?"
"Well, it's certainly a worthy cause. I mean you know what they say 'A behind is a terrible thing to waste.'" He entered the kitchen and took two Corona from the fridge.
"Only you can replace 'mind' with 'behind' Adrian." She shook her head in disgust and regretted doing it as a shot of pain paralyzed her brain for a few seconds. His presence always had a peculiar effect on her; she would find him repulsive yet would be aroused and drawn by his otherwise lack of social graces and pretense. If there was one good thing about Adrian, it was that he never lied about what he wanted in life.
She placed a slice of the pizza onto a plate and slid it unceremoniously towards him. She picked up her plate and padded out of the kitchen and towards her bed. His gaze was transfixed on her milky white cheeks as they curved and straightened with every step she took. With a swig of the Corona, he stepped out of the kitchen and watched her sit on the edge of the bed and chew slowly on her slice.
"The fuck happened to you babe?" He asked with a mixture of mockery and concern.
"I forgot the part of this conversation when I said 'Please ask me about my life because I so desperately wanna talk to you about it.'" She shot him a nasty stare, "Finish your slice and fuck off."
"Ahhh!!! you remembered my favorite word," he exclaimed and chewed on his slice, "fuck."
"Now THAT wouldn't be such a bad idea would it?" Natalie gave him a nervous yet furious glare once more as he advanced towards her with the half eaten slice in one hand and the Corona in the other.
"You look like you haven't had it in ages. Now the Nat I remember needed her coochie greased at least three to four times a day."
Natalie was already shaking her head and standing up slowly, "It's over Adrian. Take a fucking hint for once in your life." she walked past him towards the kitchen counter to refill her plate.
"You saying you don't want it?" he asked to her back and threw his gaze back at her hanging ass cheeks, the crotch panel riding comfortably between the folds of the cheeks and leaving very little to the imagination.
"I am saying that IT IS OVER between us and has been for the past three years. So pick up your filthy bag and get the fuck out of my house." Natalie replied without bothering to turn around as she began cutting another slice of the Pizza pie over the kitchen counter.
She heard the rustling of his jeans and then the sound of a lighter flickering to life accompanied by the unmistakable smell of a blunt. She turned around and glared at him once more, but to no avail. He made himself comfortable on the only chair in the room and took a deep drag and let the smoke fill the already stuffy bedroom.
"You didn't really answer the question, though," he said with a smirk, "prevarication has always been your thing." Natalie raised an eyebrow in shock at the use of the word 'prevaricate.'
"A few puffs of weed and you become real eloquent don't you?" She couldn't help but give out a light laugh.
Adrian shrugged nonchalantly and took another drag, "I hooked up with a few English literature majors in my time." His eyes then took on a glazed and lustful look. He looked Natalie up and down slowly and undressed her with his eyes and gently trailed his tongue across his lower lip. Natalie tore her gaze away from his eyes and tried to focus on eating her pizza slice. She could feel the arousal growing inside her belly and felt a knot forming.
"It seems I've finally gotten the attention I wanted," Adrian said eyeing the slight tightening of her nipples. He stood up and took another long drag of the blunt and stepped in closer to her and exhaled the smoke on her face.
Natalie's hung over eyes went out of focus for a few seconds as the smoke from the blunt hit her nostrils, "That's some heavy shit," she mumbled.
"You know me, babe, only the Primo stuff." He took the plate of pizza slices out of her hands and took a few steps closer.
"Adrian..." she whispered and kept her hands on his chest and tried to push him back, "I can't do this right now.