Beginning Anew

"Th-thanks..." Marcus stuttered. He looked down at the massive pile of juicy, fatty meat, and sausages whose skin had burst and crisped up around the edges, the various spices that were packed within them made visible in the little rifts along their slightly charred lengths. Needless to say, there were few sights as mouth-watering as that, especially on a warm summer evening like the one that they were enjoying right then and there. Well, perhaps "enjoying" was the wrong word, at least in Marcus' case...

Nevertheless, he could barely contain himself as he picked up a knife and fork, and immediately cut off a large chunk of sausage, spearing it on his fork along with a wedge of potato. He watched the marinade drip off it as he brought it to his mouth, and the moment it hit his tongue he almost forgot about the situation he was stuck in. The crispy skin, the smoky marinade, the spicy, meaty flavor... It was soperfectly cooked.

"Like it?" Natalie asked.

"Mhmm..." Slowly chewing the chunk of sausage, Marcus savored the flavor as best he could, while at the same time hurriedly cutting off another piece to stuff his mouth with.

"I'm glad. Just tell me if you want more when you're done."

"Okay," was all Marcus could muster in response, too busy taking in the view of the new, glistening piece of sausage on his fork to even look at her. He didn't even notice himself shutting his eyes in bliss as he began chewing the added piece. That is, until he could hear what sounded like a suppressed laughter from the other side of the table. He looked up to see Natalie sitting there, resting her chin in the palm of her hand, staring at him with a bright smirk on her face. The food on her plate remained untouched. "What...?" Marcus added.

Natalie let the held-back giggle escape her mouth like a little schoolgirl. "I'm just so glad to have you here!" she beamed. "It's like having a son to take care of!"

She received no answer from Marcus.Son... he thought to himself, trying his very hardest not to let his irritation show. Sure, she was a good six feet tall to his five, but only around ten years older than him, for God's sake. Why couldn't she just see him as an equal? Or at the very least as the adult that he per definition was? Oh, well... At least the food was good.

What followed afterwards was a dinner eaten during an almost completely one-sided conversation. Natalie talked about everything between heaven and earth, from her job, coworkers, and the fact that she was on paid leave for the weeks to come, to more embarrassing subjects, such as prodding Marcus about any information on his love interests. Virtually every reply that came out of his mouth was no longer than one word, and even so, Natalie was simply unable to take the hint that he preferred to eat in silence.

Hours passed, and finally, when bedtime came around, Marcus' ears were finally spared from further yapping. Natalie's house was thankfully outfitted with two bathrooms, which had allowed him to make himself ready for bed in peace. After a half-assed "goodnight" from him, and a rather bubbly, energetic one from her, he at last found himself with some much needed alone time in the guest room where he was to sleep. Whether it was later than he had realized, or if he was just more exhausted from his outgoing company, remained unclear, but one thing was for certain: He had never needed sleep as badly as in that moment.

Standing in the middle of the room, he practically ripped his clothes off himself, his body yearning for the soft embrace of the fancy guest room bed. He casually discarded the various pieces of clothing all over the room, perhaps taking the idiom "make yourself at home" a bit too literally, but when it came to Natalie, he didn't really give a damn. After pulling his shirt off he was at last ready to go to bed, now dressed in nothing but a pair of boxer briefs, but just as he threw his shirt away onto one of the walls he noticed a mirror hanging on it.

He froze in place where he stood, face to face with his own reflection, inspecting himself from head to toe. Like any other person, he was used to seeing his own face in the bathroom mirror every morning, but rarely had he ever seen his almost naked body in its entirety like this. And now he found himself unable to look away... but for the wrong reasons.

Letting out a deep sigh, he was hit with a sudden feeling of shame and disappointment. He was reminded about the fact that not only was he as tall as a twelve year-old, his overall physique was no better. Skinny limbs, no visible pecs or abs, and just really frail-looking as a whole. Not to mention his almost complete lack of body hair and beard. With that said, he liked to think that his face was at least decent looking, in a youthful, timid sort of way, with modest yet shapely facial features.

Compared to Natalie though? In his eyes, he didn't even come close. Everything about her was so... striking. Her pale skin and contrasting dark brown hair, her beautiful green eyes, and of course her tall, curvaceous body were all impossible to not awaken some type of emotion in whoever was lucky enough to behold her, whether it be envy or lust. Marcus on the other hand was the definition of bland, at least according to himself. Brown, medium length hair, similarly brown eyes and a tan skin tone to boot... all bundled up in a tiny, weak frame. There was nothing about him that stood out, at least not in a positive way.

He shook his head and finally went to turn off the lights. There was no point in thinking about it any further, he knew that, but how could he not, with Natalie around to remind him of how pathetic he was? Not to mention that stupid mirror on the wall... Oh well. Another day passed meant another day closer to getting the hell away from that place, so in that sense, getting some sleep in was something to look forward to.

-----

"Marcus!"

Hearing his name called out along with the heavy knocks on the door almost sent Marcus jumping out of the bed. In a sweaty panic, he sat up and looked around as the foreign, yet irritatingly familiar surroundings of the guest room hit his retina. It was bright. Morning had finally come, bringing about another day of enduring his dreadful company.

The door suddenly swung open, and in popped Natalie's face, her gorgeous, dark locks hanging down the side of her head. "Marcus? You awake?"

Marcus, still panting, looked at her for a few seconds of silence. "Uh... yeah," he mumbled, wiping a few strands of brown hair out of his forehead. "What... uh, what time is it?"

"About eight thirty," Natalie said. "In other words, breakfast time! Get your butt out of bed!"

"O-okay... I'll be right there."

"You better!" she replied, flashing her teeth in a breathtaking smile and heading back the way she came.

Marcus barely registered her words. His mind was preoccupied with something else. Not only the lingering, vivid images that had crept into his mind while he had been sleeping, but also something that could only have been caused by said images. Something... wet. And sticky. Something that he prayed wasn't what he deep down knew that it was.

With a trembling hand, he slowly pulled the cover to the side, dreading to witness the mess that he had caused. But sure enough, it was there. A wet stain at the front of his underwear, one that had spread to the bed cover, like a large, gray spot on the otherwise perfectly white color. Had he really had a wet dream on his first night there? He couldn't even remember if he had ever had one before...

For the time being, he chose to just leave it there. He rose from the bed and promptly threw his underwear in his bag designated for dirty clothing, before putting on some fresh ones. A shower right about now would have been optimal, but that might have seemed suspicious, especially considering the fact that he had just told Natalie that he wouldn't take long. It would simply have to wait. Right now, he had to force himself to eat breakfast with her.

Natalie sat by the kitchen window with a cup of tea in her hand when Marcus arrived. "Good morning!" she chirped, smiling from ear to ear.

"Morning..." Marcus mumbled in response, his eyes blinded by the sunlight that enveloped the entire room, not to mention Natalie's beauty. She looked positively radiant where she sat, with lips painted a bright red, and her striking eyes enveloped by the same sparkling, pink eyeshadow from the day before. What was different this time around was her hair. Instead of wearing it loose, she had it tied up into loose pigtails just below her ears, giving her a youthful, almost innocent look... and of course, an undeniably attractive one.

She ushered him closer with a wave of her hand. "Don't just stand there! Come have some breakfast!"

"Oh... Sure." He nervously made his way over to the breakfast table and sat down on the opposite side of Natalie, who seemed to trace his every step.

"So... did you sleep well?" she asked him as he reached for some cereal and began pouring it into the bowl that she had placed before him. "How was the bed?"

He was instantly reminded of the mess that he had woken up to. "It was... good. Nice and soft."

"That's good," Natalie said. "Thought I couldn't help but notice that you looked a bit... distressed when I walked in. Or maybe I was just imagining things?"

Marcus felt a bead of sweat run down his temple. "Oh, I was just... having a nightmare," he lied... only to immediately regret it.

"Aww, you poor baby!" Natalie exclaimed, doing her trademark, condescending head-tilt.

I fucking knew it... Marcus thought to himself. He stared at the milk that he was slowly filling his bowl with, but even so, just seeing Natalie in the corner of his eyes was enough to piss him off.

"Next time that happens, come tell me, alright? I'll console you anytime."

"I'll remember that," he mumbled back with a half-assed smile on his lips.

Natalie smiled back, only with ten times the intensity. "Hey, listen..." she began, checking the time on her phone. "I'm gonna go buy some food for the next few days. You wanna come with me? I figured you could pick out something that you like."

Marcus swallowed a mouthful of cereal. "Umm... How long will it take?"

"Only an hour or so. I still wanna make sure we have enough time to have some fun today... You know?"

"Right..." he said. He wasn't too excited over what her idea of "fun" was, but there was a silver lining to what she had planned: An hour of solitude. And he was damn well going to take advantage of that. "I'm... actually still a bit tired. Is it okay if I stay here?"

"Of course!" Natalie beamed without any hesitation.

"Thanks."

Natalie checked the time again. "... Okay, so, I'd hate to seem stressful, but would you mind if I took off now?"

Marcus' face practically lit up. "No, that's fine with me," he said, his tone as friendly as he could manage.

"Great! I'll be on my way then." She rose from her seat, bringing her used plate with her as she sauntered over to the sink, every step she took emphasizing her gorgeous body. This time, she was once again wearing a summer dress similar to the one from the day before, only this one was even shorter. So short in fact that it only concealed her thick ass, leaving her long, smooth thighs perfectly visible.

Marcus sat in silence, blushing like a little kid getting his first glimpse of a woman's curves, all while Natalie whistled cheerily in obliviousness as she continued out into the hallway. After a short time of her presumably putting on a coat or whatnot, the sound of the front door opening could finally be heard.

... But the moment it slammed shut, Marcus immediately started panting deliriously. The past ten minutes or so during which they had sat together at the breakfast table had been nothing short of torture, all because he couldn't shake the thought of what had taken place in his sleep moments before. He realized that claiming to have had a nightmare made him appear even more childish than he already did, but it was the best excuse that he could have come up with.

And really, how could he possibly have told her the true nature of what he had dreamt of? How could he have told her that the reason that he had woken up with such alarm was that his sleeping self had ejaculated to the vivid mental images of the two of them having hot, passionate sex? Especially considering the one detail that stood out about it. The fact that, in his dream, Natalie wasn't the one getting fucked by him... It was Marcus who was the one taking what the beautiful woman for some reason was carrying between her legs... A long, thick cock that dwarfed his own unimpressive one...

What the fuck is wrong with you, Marcus?! he thought to himself, using both hands to slap himself in the face.Get your shit together! Shaking his head as if to rid himself of the images that lingered in his mind, he rose from his seat, took his bowl with him to the sink, before making his way back to his room. He was still damn well going to put the one hour of alone time to good use, and thankfully, he knew the perfect distraction from the thoughts that tormented him.

There it stood, leaning against the wall. His guitar, the only form of entertainment he had during the long weeks in front of him. With a content yet somehow melancholic sigh, he grabbed it and was about to sit down on the bed, but stopped in his tracks. The thought hit him that it might be for the best to stay out of his room for the time being, lest he be reminded of what he so desperately tried not to think about.

He settled on taking his guitar with him to the porch. It was still rather early, but it was a nice summer day, and what better way to relax on one's own than to play some tunes in the sun? And those fancy, padded loungers that awaited outside looked inviting to say the least...

Once sitting, Marcus wasted no time in tuning his guitar, after which he gave it a few test strums. This was quickly followed by him transitioning to playing a few chords and various short melodies, until it all seemed to seamlessly merge together. It didn't take long for him to be lost in the music, like always when he played his guitar. That was one of the reasons he loved it so much; it was a way of forgetting all of life's worries for a moment, and Marcus was a person who spent a lot of time worrying.

Minutes passed like seconds as he kept on playing, eventually moving on to a song that he had spent an especially long time practicing at home. It was a ballad dating several decades back, one that he felt spoke to him on an emotional level, and one that definitely took a respectable amount of skill. Themes like the feeling of inadequacy and self-hatred were what the song was mainly about, although the message it ultimately portrayed was one of hope.

"Sounds good."

Immediately ceasing the movement of his fingers, a shiver went through Marcus' spine as he heard the voice behind him. He turned around, being hit with a mix of surprise and annoyance at seeing Natalie standing there, leaning against the doorframe, smiling. While he had not kept track of time, it had definitely not been an hour yet. More like 30 minutes.

"I-I thought you said you would be gone for an hour..." he blurted, his face red as a tomato.

Natalie shrugged as she walked out on the porch towards the lounger next to Marcus'. "Guess I'm a bit of a time pessimist," she said, sitting down. "But don't mind me, keep playing!"

Marcus glared at her in silence. Was she really expecting him to just keep playing with her awkwardly sitting next to him, quietly staring at him? She really had no respect for personal space, that much was certain.

"... I don't really like playing in front of people..." he mumbled.

"Aww, come on! Just a little bit? Pleeease?"

One look at her face was all it took for Marcus to know that she wasn't going to give up. "Fine..." he said after a drawn-out silence. "Just a little bit."

Natalie's face lit up. "Yay!" she bubbled, almost bouncing up and down in her seat. "Play the same one from before!"

Without another word, Marcus started over from the beginning, giving the guitar a few light, nervous strums to begin with. Feeling a bead of sweat run down his forehead, he tried his best to relax into the same passion with which he had played moments ago, but found it understandably difficult. He glanced at the dark-haired beauty, and to his surprise, the look on her face wasn't the typical smug, annoying one that he was used to. Instead, she looked... enthralled. Her eyes seemed locked onto the movements of Marcus' fingers as they continued to move across the strings of the guitar in a manner that was still rather quiet and awkward. But even so, she didn't seem to mind it at all.

A sudden surge of confidence hit him, prompting him to strike harder, bolder, louder, in tandem with the song reaching its peak in intensity. Soon enough his skillful fingers worked the guitar like a pro, showing off the result of the countless times he had played the song at home. For a moment he even forgot about his stage fright, almost as if it had converted into determination, in a chance to finally show off something that he was actually talented at.

Then, something unexpected happened. With impeccable timing of the harmony of Marcus' guitar, Natalie suddenly began singing, with the correct lyrics and in the perfect tune... but most importantly, with the voice of anangel. Marcus couldn't believe his ears. He couldn't stop himself from full-on staring at her as the soothing melody escaped her pretty lips, while she just sat there with her eyes closed, her body in a slight swaying from side to side along with the music.

Without a single missed note, the pair continued to play and sing for another minute or so, when the song eventually came to an end. A silence followed the final strum of Marcus' guitar, during which Natalie opened her eyes and immediately met Marcus' ones, that were still showing a clear feeling of amazement. For a moment, nobody said a word. They merely sat there, staring at each other, savoring the moment, yet hoping for the other to say something.

And that person turned out to be Natalie. "I love that song," she cooed softly, putting on the most genuine, warm smile she was capable of.

"... Me too," Marcus mumbled in response. For the first time ever with Natalie, the emotions that he went through from seeing her face were exclusively positive. In that moment he could barely even remember his usual hatred for her, and every second that passed by with their eyes locked only served to reinforce what an absolutely beautiful woman she was.

Looking down at the ground, a somber expression suddenly took over her pretty smile. "When I was your age, I used to listen to it all the time..." she continued. "It helped me get over my insecurities... and to accept myself for who I was."

Marcus gulped. "I feel the same way..." He couldn't fathom what a woman like her could possibly have been insecure about, but then again he hadn't known her for that long yet. Perhaps she wasn't always this attractive, or this outgoing... Although Marcus certainly wouldn't mind if she was a bit more reserved.

Natalie looked at him again, this time without a smile, nor frown. There was nothing but blankness on her face. She slid her feet off the lounger so that they were directed towards Marcus, before slowly leaning forward. He remained in place, completely stunned as to what she was doing, but she nevertheless pressed on. She reached out to him, grabbing him by the shoulder with one hand, pausing for a second to observe the young boy's reaction, but he just continued to sit there, his mouth gaping open in surprise. Then, she finally went for it.