by JP Summers
I dropped to my hands and knees, then quietly crawled toward snoring beauty. I carefully inched my way up the length of his body, stopping just shy of the exposed part of his chest that showed above the sleeping bag. Off to the side of Carson was his t-shirt and pants; leaving only one piece of clothing I would have to work on removing. My fingers reached the corner of the sleeping bag, cautiously unzipping it while he continued talking to himself.
He didn’t once stir as I snuck in next to him, admiring every indentation on his torso. I shifted to my left side, propping myself up with my elbow while the tips of my fingers gently trailed themselves to the elastic band on Carson’s cartoon-themed boxers.
His hand moved to the side of my face, gently massaging it while he slept. I closed my eyes, enjoying the contrast of his warmer body temperature against the coldness of my skin. Carson’s hand unexpectedly moved to the back of my neck as his fingers gripped securely onto my neck, pulling me toward his face.
My body steadied itself, warding off Carson’s unconscious advances. I thought I wanted this, but the fact remained that this was a HUGE step for us to take, and it made me slightly apprehensive. I assumed we both needed this in order to become connected in other ways our friendship wasn’t providing for us. Instead, reality cold-cocked my jaw, sobering me completely up.
Carson’s eyes shot wide open; his hand hurriedly fell away from me. He sat up while I turned onto my back, ashamed about sneaking into his tent. I knew I shouldn’t have crawled into the sleeping bag with him in the first place. I was lucky he didn’t jack me upside the head thinking I was some kind of critter that invaded his sleeping quarters.
My eyes focused on the plastic sunroof in the center of the tent. The clear night sky revealed a full moon and thousands of stars. Carson leaned over me, his head blocking my perfect view. I continued staring above me as his hand grazed my arm. “How long have you been here?”
“Not long. I came to check up on you to make sure everything was okay,” I lied to save myself the embarrassment of him knowing I tried getting into his pants.
With a half grin, Carson nodded while divulging, “It’s funny how you showed up during a dream I was having about you.”
“Really? What kind of dream was it?”
“I could tell you, but then I would have to shoot you, because it’s very top secret” he said.
“Well, if you won’t tell me, then I’ll have to find a way to torture it out of you,” I retorted.
“Shit! You’re going to start singing again?” he teased.
“Hahaha… I didn’t know I was in the presence of a comedian,” I joked back.
We laughed quietly since the camp area was in complete silence other than our voices. It appeared Carson and I were the only two people awake. In all the movies I had watched growing up, the last person awake always played pranks on the sleeping campers. I devised a plan that would leave our friends laughing their asses off so hard there’d be no way they could stay mad at me or Carson.
Acting like a bunch of little kids, Carson followed me to each tent as we poured ketchup, relish, and mustard at the opening of the tents. When they get up first thing in the morning, they’ll step right into it barefooted because we took everyone’s shoes and hid them in my car.
As soon as the two of us had successfully sabotaged the campsite, we went back into his tent, more than ready to go to sleep. I was about to go into the other sleeping bag when Carson stopped me by hinting, “You know, we’ll both stay warmer if we share a sleeping bag.”
I gave him a grave stare before inquiring, “How do you know we’ll keep warm that way?”
“Duh! Don’t you remember what we learned in Mr. Zamora’s class last year? He said the best way to immediately warm up in cold conditions was to place your body against someone else’s.”
“I remember that part, but it’s not that cold out.”
A devilish grin escaped Carson’s lips as he mischievously commented, “Believe me, it’s plenty cold out. I think you should start removing those clothes and get inside of this sleeping bag right now.”
With my hands on my hips, I cocked one eyebrow. “The only way I’ll remove my clothes and get into your sleeping bag is if you do all of the work for me.”
“I so accept that challenge.”
My eyes fixated themselves on Carson’s enticing, honey-colored orbs as he slowly closed the distance between us. His body stopped in front of mine, causing our chests to be within mere inches of one another’s. I could feel the warmth rolling off his lips as our breathing amplified from the intensity of the neediness generating all around us. My hands trembled. My heart catapulted itself into the pit of my stomach. I was never more certain that this was exactly what I wanted. My body was ready to surrender every part of itself over to my best friend.
Tonight wasn’t going to be about sex. It was going to be about two souls reaching out to one another and connecting on a much deeper level. This was going to be me giving Carson a part of myself no other guy would be able to take away from me. I was handing him a sacred part of myself I held onto because I wanted to experience everything with all of my heart and not just my body.
Carson’s hands wrapped themselves around my waist, pulling my body tightly against his. His fingers toyed with the edges of my tank top before slowly lifting it over my head, leaving me emotionally and physically exposed. I placed my hands onto his shoulders while he unbuttoned my cargo shorts and slid them down my legs. I kicked them off to the side while my breathing unexpectedly hitched as his hands reached around my back to unfasten my bra. He moved his fingers onto my shoulders, sliding my straps down the sides of my arms.
My fingers touched the indents on Carson’s abs again as he released a low, muffled moan. I continued tracing my fingertips around his stomach, then trailed my hand down to the front of his boxers. I was about to dip my hand underneath his boxers when he stopped me, placing his hand on top of mine. We stood motionless as the sounds of crickets chirping continued getting louder by the second. I was unable to read the expression on his face as our eyes steadily stared into one another’s. Was he getting a glimpse into the future, where the catastrophic repercussions of our actions would put an end to our friendship? Or was he more scared of being perfectly happy and everything being effortless for the first time in his life?
All of my suspicions of what Carson was mulling over were placed aside as he timidly indicated, “I should find my wallet before…”
Nodding my head, I calmly agreed, “Yeah. That sounds like a good idea.”
While Carson left me standing in the middle of the tent, I never expected to be more tense than excited about what was going to happen in the next few minutes. My hands began trembling as I overheard Carson struggling with the condom wrapper. I needed to sit down and fast. The anticipation from how much pain would I actually be in after my first time made me a little queasy. I crawled right into the sleeping bag, hoping Carson would see the worry spread across my face and soothe away my fears.
My heart raced as Carson opened up the sleeping bag to sit next to me and snaked his muscular arms around my body while gripping my waist and pulling me on top of his lap. My hands held onto his neck as I straddled him, instantly feeling a firmness bulging underneath his boxers. An unbelievable heat thrived between the thin layers of satin which covered the only part of myself no other guy had obtained access to.
Carson’s hands never left my hips as he stirred beneath me, generating a staggering friction unlike anything I’d ever experienced. I dropped my head back as the muscles in my stomach and between my legs feverishly constricted. I impulsively rolled my hips, craving even more of this arousing satisfaction.
I took one hand off of Carson’s neck, placing it where I desired an all-consuming, intensified awakening. I’ve never explored how to bring myself to the brink of unequivocal elation. I wasn’t at all uncomfortable having my best friend watch as I discovered what drives every nerve ending inside of my body to ignite from
complete gratification.
I was on the verge of experiencing another turbulent wave of pure bliss when Carson unsuspectingly rolled me onto my back. Barely able to catch my breath, I watched as Carson trailed tiny kisses between my breasts and continued until he reached the top of my panties. My body quivered from the combination of the brisk night air and Carson’s stubble gently raking across my torso. His hands steadily peeled my panties away from my hips then rolled them past my knees while softly kissing each leg, easing away any nervousness I had left in my body.
Carson kissed his way back up the inner part of my thigh, then grazed his teeth while using the tip of his tongue to work the rest of the way up to my shoulder. I reminded myself to breathe as he pushed himself onto his elbows while placing himself between my legs. Carson gently positioned himself against me as I gazed into his eyes knowing that I wasn’t his first, but everything inside of me wanted to be his last.
His lips crashed into mine at the very moment he entered me. Extreme emotions cascaded throughout my body as I waited for the tiniest amount of discomfort to subside. Carson was very affectionate with his movements. When he thought his body was being too forceful with mine, he compensated by intensifying our kisses.
I reached up to clutch the sides of his face with my palms holding it firmly so he could watch me let go of my inhibitions while he moved inside of me. I saw sweat beading above his eyebrows as I helped our bodies get closer by holding onto his hips, showing how much I needed this. Needed him.
Carson’s eyes gazed affectionately into mine as our release harmonized, overwhelming the most sensitive parts of my body. I fought to catch my breath as he leaned down to leave a subtle kiss on my quivering lips. My hands clutched tightly onto his back, not wanting to let go of him or this moment. Our bodies remained entwined for what seemed like hours. I held his head on my chest while we laid there, neither one of us saying a word while we tried to catch our breath after having experienced something so intense.
The moon began fading behind the tall trees, leaving us with only a few hours to get some sleep. It wasn’t long after that Carson decided to get dressed and put his boxers back on. I waited a few minutes to get dressed in only my tank top and panties because the temperature inside the tent was stifling. I didn’t know if I should leave Carson in peace by lying in the other sleeping bag.
I began crawling away from Carson only to find him grabbing at my feet. He pulled me toward him, requesting that I get into his sleeping bag. I rolled to my side, allowing my back to be pressed against the front of his body just like the way we always snuggled on my couch. The security of his arms wrapped around me made it very easy to fall asleep. The loud snoring in my left ear didn’t even bother me as I smiled about how perfect my first time turned out to be.
Sure, I had envisioned being romantically involved with the guy I chose to sleep with. But this wasn’t an ideal world where everything goes according to what we had planned for ourselves. In all honesty, Carson already meant so much to me that the only thing separating us from having our friendship be something more was saying those three little words.
His actions spoke volumes. He wanted me as much as I wanted him. I may not have heard those words professed to me that day or even a few months from then, but I knew one day I would have them verbally and emotionally expressed to me by Carson.
And I knew that when that day came, I’d be ready with open arms to reciprocate all of my love right back.
*****
My chattering teeth became unbearable as my efforts to stay warm failed. I made an attempt to blow on my hands, thinking I had enough warmth in my breath to aid in some relief. If I wrapped the blanket as far as it would go around my frozen frame, I might cut off whatever circulation I had left in me. I couldn’t get my body temperature to increase enough, so other parts of me suddenly became numb.
My ex-best friend no longer posed as a threat to me. Instead, it was the bitter cold causing my body grief by making me exceedingly fatigued. Carson quickly took notice of my recent struggle to stay warm. He walked toward me, then pulled me into a gentle embrace. He had the blankets wrapped around us, leaving me to feel his cold breath on my neck. It served as a scary reminder of how fast our body temperatures were dropping, and we hadn’t even been all the way through day two of this dreadful, wintery nightmare.
“Please, Carson, I have to sit down and rest,” I begged.
He sat on the floor, pulling my body onto his lap. I sat sideways across his legs, wrapped securely in his arms. My head grew heavy and my chin fell to my chest. My body was being pulled into a cold abyss, leaving me too weak to fight my way back out. If I could just get the rest I needed. All I had to do was close my eyes and allow the serene slumber do the rest of the work. It could envelop me just as long as I continued to be this relaxed.
“Tia, don’t fall asleep!” Carson yelled, shaking my half-frozen body.
My eyelids were anchors keeping me from opening them as I rebutted, “But I’m really tired.”
“You have to stay awake, Tia. You’re showing symptoms of hypothermia. We need to find a way to get you warm, and fast.”
“I’m fine. Just let me take a fifteen-minute nap to re-energize.”
“I can’t let you do that. Not when your body is freezing and your lips are practically blue.”
“If I promise to rest my eyes for just five minutes, will you back off?”
“Damn it, Tia!” Carson spat at me. “I need you to let me help you out. Now, in order to do that, I have to get our clothes off.”
“Wha… what?” I chattered, my lips so numb it was difficult to speak.
Carson let go of me just as I pried my eyes open to see him pull off every top and bottom layer of clothing he had on. I felt his hands tugging at the bottom of one of the sweaters I had on.
Remembering the survival skills we learned in high school, I nodded in approval, allowing Carson to remove whatever he needed to. His hands peeled away each layer of clothing on my body, only leaving my undergarments.
He grabbed me again, pressing me tightly against his chest. Miraculously, my shivering subsided within a few minutes. Carson rubbed his hands against my back, igniting a heated passion that coursed through my body, one I hadn’t experienced in years. I felt one of his hands drop to the small of my back, softly tracing his fingertips against my skin, and careful not to go near the edge of my panties. I subconsciously turned my face to nestle it securely in the crook of Carson’s neck. I waited for him to push me away from getting too intimately familiar with him, but he didn’t. Instead, he welcomed it by pressing his chin against the top of my head while firmly tightening his arms around me.
My hands moved effortlessly across his stomach and torso, trying to reciprocate some of the same warmth Carson was imparting onto me. His heart pounded against my palm as I rested it against his smooth chest. I lifted my head just enough to catch him staring attentively at me. Carson’s eyes never lost focus from mine as he confessed, “Tia If I don’t have you right now it won’t be the storm that kills me it’ll be me not being able to make love to you one last time.”
I was shocked and at a loss for words as Carson leaned in, keeping me hypnotized by his engaging eyes. The massive snowstorm was now taunting us from the inside of this house and had the capability to end our lives in a moment’s notice. If these were truly our last hours alive, they should be spent making up for all of the time I’d lost with my best friend.
Without any reservations, I forced my lips against Carson’s. They melded perfectly in place as we fell onto the small pile of clothes. His body forced mine back as he quickly shifted to hover over mine while I took it upon myself to remove my own panties, not wanting to wait another second for our bodies to touch. My hands guided Carson’s boxers past his hips. Anchoring one of my legs around his back, I pulled away the only piece of fabric separating ourselves from one another. The heat between us wasn’t just from our bodies connecting for the first time in almost five years. I
t was also from the passion we still felt toward one another.
With little effort, he entered me. The numbness that plagued parts of my limbs diminished from Carson feverishly rediscovering every inch of my body. Even after all this time, he remembered every little movement that got my heart racing.
His mouth slid from mine. He dipped his head and ran his lips across my shoulder, then trailed them up to my neck, sending a shudder of pleasure that generated a welcoming warmth between us. Carson’s body collided with mine perfectly. He drew his lips from my skin as he moaned. I gripped him tighter, pressing my heels into his lower back. His lips crashed passionately against mine while he rhythmically slid in and out of me with slow withdrawals and fierce thrusts, building momentum as my body reached a state of total bliss more times in the past few minutes than it had in years.
I cupped my hands around Carson’s face as his breathing grew heavy. I reveled in the gentle touch of his warm hands moving across my cool skin, his kisses fierce one moment then engaging and tantalizing the next. I absorbed the pleased smirk on his lips every time a wave of bliss engulfed my body. The moment was so beautiful. The way we moved in perfect sync was still so very beautiful.
And just like that, we both let go of our inhibitions. It was the sweetest release I’d ever experienced. Unsure if my heart would ever stop hammering away at my chest, I decided I was okay with that. It felt great to be wanted, even if it was out of desperation.
I was still out of breath when Carson moved off of me. He immediately put his boxers back on leaving a daunting silence between us. I stared up at the kitchen ceiling for a few more minutes before I followed suit by putting on my panties, knowing that at least when our bodies were found, I wouldn’t be naked.
After a few moments of aggravating silence, I knew someone had to eventually say something just to shift the tension surrounding us. I turned onto my side, facing Carson and knowing I had to look at him when I spoke. I inhaled deeply, then exhaled out, “I didn’t mean to take advantage of the situation like that; especially after you were kind enough to help warm up my body.”
