Stay Sweet Ch. 02

She was technically single and still playing the field, but she talked about getting serious with—"Try not to shit yourself"—Brian, a shy but protective transgendered male who she thought was the coolest dude on the planet. In return, I told her about my "kinda girlfriend but not really because she kinda shouldn't be because she was my babysitter but she's not really that much older anyway but also she's still getting over an abusive husband." As you can see, we were both pretty loaded and committed to cabbing home at that point; it was only a matter of time before we got into details, starting with how we met our partners, all their complications, and eventually even bedroom habits. (I'll just say this: Brian sounds so adorable in the bedroom that I'd probably have sex with him.)

There's another reason I'm telling you this, but the immediate takeaway was, we missed each other's close friendship and not much else. Now, Bernadette was gorgeous; in high school she had a kind of lanky turbo-nerd girl thing going where she was a set of headgear and a lisp away from the stereotype, but she made it work for her in a way that warped all the way back to "cute." Now, her skin had cleared up, she put on weight in all the right places, and her light brown hair had more of a healthy shine to it. But I wasn't really attracted; I don't think I would've been attracted if she hadn't changed at all. The way we left that night, we seemed to be more like bros than exes. I used to think I was going to marry her. Now I thought she'd be my Best Woman at my wedding.

I guess it's not that hard to explain, just hard to get my head around sometimes.

So I'm playing Destiny with Bernadette, nothing particular, just a little team deathmatch to keep sharp since we were hearing rumblings about a big new expansion coming up. We'd been playing for a half hour, and just as the current match is about to end with our team on top, there's a knock on the door.

"Pete?" Ji-yeong asked through the door.

"Hang on one second, Bernie," I whispered into my mic before shutting it off. "What's up, Ji-yeong?"

Ji-yeong opened the door, still damp from the shower, clad only in a towel. Mom and Dad weren't home; I quickly started brainstorming excuses to leave the game. "Can you do me a favor?"

"Sure."

She shut the door behind her and faced me, nervous, letting my eyes drink in the precious golden body whose modesty was barely protected by the soft cotton of her towel. "Could you, uh..." Something suddenly snapped behind her eyes; she pulled the knot at the top of the towel and let it fall to the floor, and asked her question the way one would rip off a bandage. "Could you eat my pussy?"

I think I stared at her for a good ten seconds before I slowly raised the mic to my mouth and switched it back on. "Uh, Bernie?" I told my friend, my voice flattened with shock. "I gotta go. Ji-yeong wants me to eat her pussy." Ji-yeong jumped and covered herself in shame.

"The things we do for love," said Bernadette. "Text me later." I left the party and closed down the game.

"Why would you do that?" cried Ji-yeong while I moved toward her. "That's so mean!"

"I'm sorry, but you don't just barge into someone's room and ask him to eat your pussy!" I argued, scooping her up in my arms and carrying her to my bed. "I mean, he will, because you're you, but that just never happens!" I dropped Ji-yeong onto the mattress with a squeak and quickly rolled myself above her, kissing her on the lips.

"Yeah, I see what you mean," she said after I started kissing down her neck and chest. "But that doesn't mean you have to tell your friend Bernie that you're about to go down on me! I don't need people thinking of me like that!"

"Don't worry," I said, pulling myself up from her stomach, "Bernadette's cool. She cares enough to keep a secret, not much beyond that.

Ji-yeong cocked an eyebrow. "Wait, you were talking to Bernadette? Ex-girlfriend Bernadette?"

"We're not getting back together," I said. "But she liked my letter and we ended up being friends again."

"Oh, that's good!" I dipped my head down below, and she repeated: "Omigod, Pete, that's so good!"

* * * * *

That was the start of our routine. Whenever she wanted sex and the parents weren't home, she'd shower and walk into my room—or wherever I was in the house—with nothing but the towel wrapped around her. And that was my cue to pull it off, bring her to bed or the nearest surface, and fool around with her. That first time, she just wanted my tongue; after I made her come, she returned the favor by jerking me off to completion. A couple of days after that, however, we just fucked; that's what happened more often than not.

Still, we were more than willing to change things up. Once we decided to try mutual masturbation, which was actually a lot of fun; it was far from the last time we did it. But naturally it made us curious about our own masturbation habits, so the next time out we decided to show each other...which was also really fucking hot.

My favorite day was when Ji-yeong walked into my room wearing her towel and asked me "What's a pearl necklace?"

"That's what happens when a girl lets a guy fuck her tits until he comes, spurting on her chest and neck. It's all white liquid hanging off the girl, so...pearl necklace."

"...I want one."

That day I sat at the edge of the bed while Ji-yeong stuck her chest out like a proud heron and took me in between her just-big-enough tits, sliding them up and down my rod. To help her along I threw down a pillow, told her to fold it up and grind herself against it. It drove her wild, and when she threw her head back to celebrate her orgasm, my cock commemorated her with some elegant jewelry indeed.

But if the activities were different enough, the routine was always the same. She'd shower, come find me in her towel, and wouldn't leave me alone until both of us had our way. The days and frequency varied depending on mood, but it was always at least once a week, and it was always right after her therapy session.

You see the problem here, right? Because I did, and so did Ji-yeong.

"Therapy is rough, Pete," she told me after I called her on the pattern. We'd just finished a nice, vigorous fuck; she was cleaning herself up with a tissue while I was getting dressed. "I like it, don't get me wrong. But I'm confronting a lot of heavy stuff—not just about Chad, about my family. I'm exploring the roots of what got me here, and after every session I just need to clear my head."

"I get that," I said. "But isn't there a point where you need to live in that pain for a while before you can understand it and move on?"

"Yeah," she admitted. She'd finished cleaning and was now getting dressed. "And I also need to learn to be on my own before I enter a relationship, because anything I jump into right now would almost certainly be toxic and doomed to fail." Surprisingly, that hurt. I wanted to respond, but Ji-yeong had already moved on: "But I'm not worried about that stuff right now."

"Why's that?"

"Because this—" She motioned between me and herself. "—already has a clock on it. You go back to school in a month, Pete; I'm not following you to California."

She was totally, almost diabolically right.

For some reason I had to sit with that information. Something about her words struck me as disconcertingly casual, as if I was nothing more than a human sex toy to use to run away from her problems, and a familiar urge to scream at her started to boil up.

"Pete," she started to say, voice considerably softer, before I held up a hand to stop her.

I took a deep breath, counted to ten, and let the fog of emotion clear away. Idiot, of course this wasn't going to last. And of course she cares about you. But she needs this, and you know it.

"Sorry," I said. "I just...I should've realized."

"I'm sorry too," said Ji-yeong. "I should've been more clear about that."

"I mean, would that have even been possible? It's not like I thought we were moving in together. I just...didn't think it would end so suddenly, I guess."

"Pete..." We were both dressed now. Ji-yeong sat on the bed next to me and took my hand. "You need to know that I really do care about you—"

"I do," I assured her with a slightly forced smile. "Really. But I think I just...need a minute."

Ji-yeong nodded, moved to kiss me on the lips, only to stop and pivot to the forehead. Then she left.

* * * * *

That was the last time we had sex that summer. Which was just as well, for reasons I'll get into.

Things were a little awkward between us immediately after that day, but not in the way that usually comes to mind when you think "awkward." We were still friendly with each other; playful, even. There was just a thin yet persistent sheet of ice between us. I needed to come to terms with wanting more from Ji-yeong than she could reasonably be expected to give, while she just kept asking herself if she could've handled our situation better than she did.

There was no dramatic moment that shattered that ice and made everything magically okay. We just gradually warmed back up to each other as we made peace with ourselves and the situation. And it ended up being great, because that meant our last days together were defined by something other than sex. The night before I left for school, we sat in the den, snuggled up with cookie dough Blizzards in hand, watching the Rifftrax of Fun in Balloonland that I suggested after I accidentally triggered the meltdown that started all of this.

She was okay. We were okay. The last notes of this phase of our relationship were about how much we just enjoyed being around each other, as opposed to how hard or how often we made each other cum. And once I left, I was confident she'd do even better. That's all I could've asked for on behalf of someone I adored so much.

I left behind a letter for her. It was a note of encouragement, telling her that she was the bravest, strongest person I'd ever known, that I was honored to be her friend, and as long as she would let me, I would be there to help her with whatever she needed. Sex didn't come up at all.

A week after I moved back to my dorm, I got a letter in my mailbox. This one was impossible not to commit to memory:

Dear Pete,

Thanks for being the best friend I could've ever asked for when I needed one the most.

You really did stay sweet.

Love always,

Ji-yeong

You'd think that'd be the end.

= = = = =

So how DOES it end for Pete and Ji-yeong? The finale's already submitted and shouldn't be far behind! While you're waiting, take a few seconds and rate the story below. Any feedback is good feedback, and this is the easiest way to give it. Of course, if you REALLY want to make my day, leave a comment. Doesn't matter if it's complimentary or critical; as long as it doesn't have any death threats, personal attacks, or otherwise encourages noxious or illegal behavior, it's the kind of comment that I thrive off of. Also, I try to respond to anything that brings up a good talking point, so if you do leave a comment, check back in a day or so. And hey, if you really like this story, check out my others!

Thanks again for your time! See you soon for the conclusion of Stay Sweet!