Page 8 of Stolen Moments
The woman was direct; her words were blunt, but gently given. The kindness shamed Melia and she flushed and mumbled a thank you. She became acutely aware of her dirty overalls, the bandana that held her hair back and out of her face while she had been moving. The words seemed so genuine and Melia wondered if this woman could be for real. “Not even all the dust and grime in the world could dull your shine.”
The words startled her, and Susan gently laughed at Melia’s surprise. “Luka says I’m a mind reader.” Susan arched an eyebrow and smiled devilishly. “MaybeI ama witch.”
Melia smiled, the woman’s charm putting her a little more at ease. “Thank you…for…opening your home and being so kind and welcoming.”
Susan made a vague hand gesture to dismiss the comment. “Weare so thankful foryou. Your presence will be so helpful and take some of the strain off of Luka and me. You’ve already breathed so much life into the stagnant air of this house!”
Melia opened her suitcase and felt a bit overwhelmed. So often, when faced with so many things in front of her that needed to be put in their place, she ended up sitting among her belongings for hours without touching a single object.
“So, Melia, where are you from?”
Melia smiled a sad smile. “I’m from… a little bit here, a little bit there. I’m not reallyfromanywhere, if you know what I mean.”
Susan smiled solemnly. “Yeah, I was a bit lost before I met Luka, too. His infinite patience while I worked out the tangled mess in my head was so important to my finding myself.” Susan longingly trailed her fingers over Melia’s clothes. “You don’t have to wear a uniform here, you know. We’re really not that formal.”
Melia nodded. “Are you ever afraid?” Melia knew the question was bold, but something Susan had said put her at ease.
Susan looked up at Melia and searched her face. She seemed tired, sad. However, there was still a peaceful strength to her. “Afraid? Of dying…not anymore. I’ve made my peace with God or the universe, or whatever is out there orchestrating or watching this mess.” Susan fell silent for a moment. “I was angry, at first. Of course, I didn’t think it was fair. I ate right. I didn’t smoke. Did everything I was supposed to do, and I’m going to die anyway. Now, I kind of wish Ihadsmoked the cigarette, eaten the foods. Fuck it, I’m going down anyway, right?” Susan’s laugh had a hint of bitterness in it. “No, I’m not afraid of dying. It’s the pain, the lingering death. It was my worst nightmare. I’ve never really been afraid of dying; I’ve lived a relatively blessed life. But I didn’t want to linger and I didn’t want it to hurt, and that’s exactly what it is. A lingering, bone crushing tiredness and pain all of the time. The pain. That’s a fear. I worry also, about Luka. What he’s going to do after I’m gone. He obsesses. I’m worried that he will waste away mourning me for the rest of time, and it doesn’t have to be that way. There were so many things I left undone, I will leave undone. Things I wanted to do and won’t be able to do anymore. Somehow, I think he feels that if I can’t do it, he won’t be able to do it either.That’swhat I’m afraid of.I’mdying. My struggle will be over soon, but those of the ones I love, their struggle is only getting harder for the time being.” Susan’s breath came a bit unevenly for a moment. Then she lifted her head and smiled impishly. “I’m worried Luka won’t be able to find himself a submissive.”
Melia placed a stack of clothes in the drawer next to her bed. “What is a submissive?”
“Well, Luka is into a special kind of sexual relationship.” Susan laughed as Melia dropped a bag of her toiletries on the floor.
Melia picked it up with trembling hands and swallowed loudly. “Special?”
“Yeah, you know, bondage? Domination.” Susan was obviously relishing the slow trickle of information she was giving Melia. She was going to make her ask every uncomfortable question. Melia could tell she was enjoying herself, but could also see that Susan was not toying with her maliciously. Her interest was piqued and she decided to play along.
“Really? Luka seems so vanilla in real life.”
“Oh yeah, but in bed it’s a completely different story. He is shy in his day-to-day life, a bit closed up and reserved. It won’t be easy for him to meet a new person, let alone a new person who’s into BDSM.”
“Did you like it before you met him?”
“Oh yeah, we both were. But we did a bit of research to really understand better what our options were. Together, we kind of crafted a perfect collection of toys and things we both enjoy.”
“Does it hurt?”
“Only as much as I want it to.”
Melia felt her heart pounding as she listened fascinated by what Susan was saying.
Susan shrugged. “Yeah, it’s not the same since I got sick. I bruise easy, I can’t handle as much as I used to. Surprisingly though, it helps with the pain. The pleasurable pain kind of blocks the awful in-my-bones-and-joints pain that I feel most of the time. It’s not really as bad as what most people imagine it is. There are extremes to everything, of course. But BDSM and accepting that that’s what I’m into, was an integral part of getting to know myself.”
Melia nodded and struggled to imagine Luka binding or hurting anyone. Despite his constant frown and gloomy attitude, Luka had a gentle air about him. He didn’t look like he could hurt a fly, let alone inflict pain on a woman he loved.
“You know, you’d make a brilliant submissive,” Susan murmured.
“Me?” Melia shook her head. “I mean, I don’t know anything about it, but I think maybe I’m too independent for that.”
“Yeah, but that’s not what BDSM is about! Plenty of independent and strong women like it! Some are subs, some are Dommes, but really anyone can like it.”
“Hmm.”
Susan began to cough violently, her entire body shaking, a light layer of sweat developing on her forehead. She waved away any help from Melia and slowly got to her feet. “I’m tired. I’m going to take a nap before dinner. I’m fine. I just don’t get much of an opportunity to talk to anyone new very often. So, I think I may have overextended myself. Get settled in, you’re not on the clock yet.” Susan gave Melia a hug and shuffled out of the room.
Melia wondered at the little woman who had just left her. She was so wiry, so strong, so lively! Somehow, despite the fact that she was the one who was dying, she had more of the spark of life in her than Luka did — even though he would be the one to bury her.
Melia smiled to herself as she finished putting the last of her clothes away. Luka: a sex maniac? She imagined his slightly sharper than normal teeth grazing her skin, him dominating her. Whatever that meant. She felt herself grow aroused and she resolved to look more into the matter — even if Luka wasn’t for her.