When I finally awoke late that afternoon, the sun was beating down on me amidst a beautiful, cloudless blue sky.
God, I hate shift work.
Earlier that day, after finishing a brutal 12 h night shift, I was finally relieved at 7 am. went home, took a shower, and passed out.
The heat and humidity served as my alarm clock that afternoon, as I had no air conditioner, and mid-August in NYC can be brutal. Uncomfortably hot, I had no choice but to peel the bed sheets off my skin and take yet another shower.
After I got dressed, I remembered that I didn’t have to work that night and so decided to call Sondra to see if she wanted to hang out.
I walked across the street to the university library to check my email, but more importantly languish in air-conditioned comfort. As I approached the library I noticed that there was a large gathering of people outside. It seemed the lights were off in the library, but it was bright outside so it could have just been an optical illusion. Then I noticed the traffic lights weren’t working. Strange but I didn’t think much of it.
I called Sondra.
She picked up before the phone even rang.
“How did you get through?!!” she asked excitedly.
“What are you talking about?”
“There’s a blackout. Nobody can get through!”
“Oh,” I said, “I just picked up the phone and called you to see if you wanted to have dinner tonight.”
“Where are you?” she asked.
“I’m at the corner of 69th and York.”
“Stay there, I’ll come over.”
I stayed on the street corner and just watched the scene around me. As usual, mid-afternoon traffic was congested on the upper east side, as it was probably elsewhere in Manhattan. Ten minutes later, I saw Sondra walking up York Ave. She explained to me that all the phone lines and internet were down, so her work had sent everyone home. I asked what she wanted to do and she said go home, so together we walked down to her apartment on 45th street.
A little background: I met Sondra a few months ago in Montreal, one of my favorite cities in the world. She was visiting her cousin, who just happened to be one of my best friends. From the moment we met, we totally hit it off. She’s an artsy type, Chinese, 5’2″, super-cute with a button nose, with medium short black hair. She has big inquisitive eyes and an attractively curvaceous body. She was in Montreal visiting, and when I told her I was moving down to NYC in a few days, she told me she lived 2 subway stops from where I would be living. Perfect.
When things were somewhat settling in with work, I called her up and we began to hang out. Slowly, I began to fall in love with her, which is really weird, because it was the first time in my life I had ever been in love with someone. I introduced her to my friends, shocking them as they had never actually met someone who was dating (I’ve had very short lived relationships). Once, during dinner, when Sondra left the table to use the restroom, without prompting, my friend blurted out, “She’s great! Don’t you dare let her get away!”
Later on, I asked Sondra if she wanted to make it official, but she said that she wasn’t ready for a relationship. I thought it was just an excuse but when I followed up with, “What happens when you are ready?” she replied, “I just hope you’re single then.” How can you not love someone who says that? My pride was hurt but I was smitten with her, so we continued to hang out and enjoy each other’s company. I was resigned to thinking that I was, and would forever be, in the friend zone.
But back to August 14…
When we arrived at her apartment building, we trudged up 14 flights of stairs in 90 degree heat, complete humidity, and in next to total darkness (we used our cellphones as flashlights). Occasionally, we would pass someone going down the stairs who would inevitably ask us, “how many more flights to go?” Answer: too many.
We finally made it to her appointment, burning thighs and all. Sondra changed out of her work clothes and into an off-the-shoulder T-shirt and short shorts. It was about dinner time and we were getting hungry. Thankfully, her apartment had a gas stove. We found some matches and lit the stove – we had fire! We defrosted a couple of steaks in the sink, opened up a can of foie gras, and cut up some pieces of bread. For light, we lit some candles — in truth — great ambiance, great company, and not a bad meal.
Antoinette, her roommate, came home midway during supper. She was with a male friend and told us that it was absolutely surreal in the city. “The only lights that you’ll see are from car headlights,” she said. Then she and her friend disappeared into her room. “Fuck buddies,” Sondra said, without me asking.
Sondra was interested in seeing Manhattan in near total darkness but I felt lazy and was not in the mood to walk down (and then back up) 14 flights of stairs. I was having a great time with her and didn’t want to spoil the mood. Sondra insisted and so I finally relented and we walked the streets of midtown Manhattan with a flashlight. It was still hot and humid and there were still people everywhere. Cars were driving slowly up Third Avenue, eerily illuminating the passersby. Sondra and I looked briefly for a bodega giving away free ice cream before it melted but we came away empty handed.
We decided to stop for a drink at some bar in 3rd Ave (of course, the bar we pick is the one of the few that is not giving away free drinks — it’s just another weekday night to them). Sondra and I talked, illuminated by the one candle votive on our table. A few drinks in, during a lapse in the conversation, Sondra announced that she has to use the bathroom. She got up, leaned over, and kissed me briefly on the lips. Without breaking stride, she turned and headed for the bathroom. I’m left speechless.
Did I just imagine that or am I already drunk?
When she came back and sat down, I asked, “Did you just kiss me?”
She smiled and said yes.
“How long have you liked me?”
“Since that day I saw you on the subway heading down to the village to meet your friends.”
“Oh.”
We talked a little bit more and when we left, I was slightly less confused. I guess it finally hit me when she held my hand as we walked back to her apartment and back up the fourteen flights of stairs…
It’s always a little concerning when you’re going to bed with someone you like for the first time. At first, we just lay down next to each other in the complete darkness. I was excited but didn’t want to push it. And then she rolled towards me and kissed me. I took her face in my hands and kissed her back hard.
She climbed on top of me and we continued kissing. My hands dropped down the sides of her face to her neck, then down her sides, slowly brushing past her breasts. Since it was pitch black, I couldn’t see the look on her face, and could only hear Sondra’s pleasurable sigh as my fingertips rested lightly on the sides of her breasts. She began rocking her hips slowly against mine, pushing herself against my hardening erection.
My hands found her waist, and moved underneath her shirt to expose her breasts. I cupped them in my hands, which made her breathe faster, then lightly brushed over the tops of her breast and gently rubbed circles on her areolas. Sondra breathed even faster, and I felt her reach down and pull her shirt off. I leaned forward at the waist and took her right breast in my mouth. I couldn’t see her face but could feel her body arch backwards in ecstasy. Seeing that her breasts were very sensitive, I concentrated on them, sucking and licking them until she couldn’t stand it any longer.
I flipped her onto her back and kissed her breasts one more time, then began slowly kissing my way down her belly, to her belly button, to the top of her panties… I pulled up the top of her panties to kiss the skin under it, and placed my hand on the inside of her thighs. I stuck my tongue out to kiss as low as possible, while I brought up my hand to cup her pussy. I felt wetness of my thumb, so I rubbed that wet spot of her panties until it grew larger. As I pushed my thumb into her pussy through her panties, I heard her moan softly, so I pushed harder, eliciting more moans. Sondra’s back was arched and her hands were pushing my head down, so I gently pulled off her panties and exposed her fully. I then bent over and began eating her…
When I woke up the next morning, the power was still out. I wasn’t sure if I had just dreamt last night’s events, but when I looked over and saw that Sondra was still topless, I smiled. Sometimes wishes do come true.