#stackmary

A/N: at long last an update 😭😭 anyways we’re gonna learn a little more about Michelle and her friends here

Michelle woke up, her head hurting, unsure if that encounter had been real or a dream. But as her surroundings came into view, she realized she was still in that strange house, so it was definitely real. She was in a different bed this time, with soft white sheets with blue flowers on them. Her entire body was tingling, somehow, as if every one of her nerve endings had been exposed.

She looked around. This room was a bit smaller than the one she’d been in, with white walls. When she pulled back the thick curtain, she could see that it was still dark out.

“Well, look who finally up.” Stack. She turned to see him leaning against the door frame.

“Wh- How’d I end up in here?”

“We figured you’d wanna sleep on clean sheets.” He chuckled a little. “You made quite the mess.”

She groaned at the memory and put her head in her hands. “Oh, God.”

“Nah, baby, don’t be embarrassed. That’s a real good thing.” He walked over to her and sat on the bed. “How you feelin’?”

Hmmm…. she didn’t quite know the answer to that. “Nothin’ hurtin’ too bad?”

She shook her head. “What time is it?” She figured she’d probably overstayed her welcome here.

“‘Bout three in the mornin’.” He grinned. “You in a hurry?”

“Well….no, but I should probably….”

“Lemme get ya cleaned up. C’mon.”

She pulled back the covers and tried to stand, but her legs were weak and her head was spinning. He caught her before she fell. “Yeah, you gon’ feel a li’l lightheaded for a while.” He scooped her up as if she weighed nothing and carried her to the bathroom.

He ran her a warm bath, with soap that smelled of something sweet- vanilla, maybe? She wasn’t sure. She sank down into it, the warm water relaxing her almost immediately. “Mind if I get in here with ya?”

She looked up at him. He was already taking his shirt off. “No, not at all.”

He finished undressing, then slid in behind her. “You did so good for us, baby.” He wrapped his arms around her and held her to him. “You so pretty.”

His touch was soft and gentle, nothing like the way he’d been manhandling her earlier. He was half-tempted to reach down and play with her pussy, but he figured she was still too sensitive there.

It was then that she decided to ask it. “So…. y’all are vampires? Like, for real?”

“Mm-hm.”

She turned that over in her head a little. So the weed hadn’t been laced, and Mary had actually bitten her. And…. “So that means I’m one now.”

“Yeah.” Poor thing. She all confused and shit. “Now look. I know this is all new, and you don’t feel like yourself right now. But once this passes, you gon’ feel better than ever. In more ways than one, pretty girl.” He playfully nibbled her ear, making her shriek and laugh.

Was he overselling it a bit? Maybe. In reality, being a vampire could be pretty lousy. But she’d find that out sooner or later. With a washcloth, he wiped away her ruined makeup. “Here, lemme get that. You got a li’l…. raccoon-eyes thing goin’ on here.”

She giggled at that comment. “Thanks.”

Wearing her panties and one of Stack’s T-shirts, Michelle sat on their couch. Stack and Mary were down the hall, but she could hear them as clearly as if they were right next to her. “I knew this was a bad idea,” said Stack. “Last thing the world needs is more of…. us.”

“Oh, c’mon, now….”

“And I told you that much ‘fore we left.”

“And I told you that this could be a good thing. It’s been just us two for so long, and that’s nice and all, but we both know it can get real lonely.”

“Yeah, but-”

“And didn’t you miss havin’ a proper feed? I know I did.”

She was right. Michelle’s blood had sated him in a way he hadn’t felt in years. “It’d be nice to have her around,” Mary continued. “Don’t you think?”

“Yeah.”

“And besides, Elias….” She smiled and placed a hand on his chest. “She seemed to take a particular shine to you.”

“Elias, huh.” Michelle smirked. “That your government name?” She filed that away for… her own purposes.

At this, they both made their way into the living room. Seems we forgot how well she can hear now, thought Stack. “Hey, honey!” said Mary. “You good?”

They sat down next to her. She was still a little lightheaded, but at the same time, she felt… refreshed, somehow. “Better than good.”

After a bit, she asked, “Y’all do this often?”

“Do what?” asked Stack.

“Y’know, bring home a third…”

He shook his head. “Last time we did that was in ‘78.” The young woman sitting next to him was probably a little girl then- he found that hard to imagine.

“Hm. Okay. And Mary, what’s…. what’s your deal? I mean, do you like girls for real, or do you just do this for fun?”

Mary just smiled. “What do you think, babydoll?”

For some reason, the pet name gave her butterflies. Her face got hot, and she looked away and scratched the back of her neck. “Well… okay, then. What was so special about me?”

Stack smiled. “Well, you real cute, for one. And….” He put an arm around her waist. “When I was talkin’ to you, I could just tell you wasn’t happy. Turns out I was right.”

He remembered the images he’d seen from her more recent memories: drinking glass after glass of wine in her living room, some TV show on that she was barely paying attention to. Screaming into her pillow. Deciding to start her day at four a.m., after trying and failing to sleep all night. Staring down at the L tracks and toying with the idea of jumping- and then the train pulled in before she could think about it any further.

“What are you talking about? I was having fun.” Deep down, she knew what he really meant. But she didn’t want to talk about it. Not with them, at least.

“He means with your life in general.” Aaaaand there it was. “We can see your memories now. And you can see ours.”

“Oh, really?” Michelle shifted a little. “So, are y’all, like, a thousand years old or some shit?”

They both laughed. “Not by a long shot,” said Mary. “Stack was born in 1898, and I was born in 1901, so that makes us….”

Stack jumped in. “Ninety-seven and ninety-five. I’ll be ninety-eight, end of December.”

“Yeah.” She laughed a little. “See, as the years go by, you start to lose track.”

“And… how old were y’all when you got turned?”

“Thirty-three and thirty-one,” he said. “But we’ve known each other since we was littler.”

Michelle could see some images of them as children, running on dirt paths, play-fighting, Mary kissing him on the lips behind a weeping willow. “We grew up together, in Clarksdale.”

“Wait, how’d that work? Mary, aren’t you….”

“White?” She smiled. “Didn’t work that way back then. My mama’s daddy was half-Black.”

“And…. her mama nursed my twin brother and I, after our mama died.”

“You a twin?” asked Michelle.

“Mm-hm.” His voice was softer now. And she could see a grown-up Stack hugging a man who looked just like him. Somehow, she could guess which one was Stack. “His name was Elijah, but he was called Smoke.”

Suddenly, his nickname made a little more sense. “Oh. Smoke and Stack. Like a smokestack.”

“Exactly. We were the Smokestack twins. And we made a real name for ourselves. We did it all: bootleggin’, pimpin’, robbin’ banks, trains…”

“Damn. And you never got in trouble with the law?”

“Nope. Not even once.” He sighed. “My brother saved my ass more than a few times. He was always lookin’ out for me.” He cleared his throat and stood up. “Lemme get the photo album.”

He took a large, leather-bound book off a shelf. “Here.” He opened it up. “The early years, we ain’t got a whole lotta photos of, but….”

He pointed to a black-and-white picture of him and his brother in military uniform, with a little boy clinging to Stack’s leg. “C’mon, now, Sammie, look at the camera,” coaxed Stack in the memory she saw.

“Cousin Sammie.” He chuckled to himself. “He was a li’l camera-shy back then. Funny, considerin’ how famous he got….”

Michelle began to piece it together. She didn’t know of too many famous Sammies from Clarksdale, Mississippi, especially not from their era. “Wait a minute…. you Sammie Moore’s cousin?”

Her father had played her some of his records growing up, and she’d sit on his lap as he told her the history and significance of the blues. “We made somethin’ outta nothin’,” he’d say. “That’s just what we do.”

“Mm-hm,” said Stack.

“That Sammie Moore?”

“The one and only.”

The memories were like a wound, having scabbed over over time, but they hurt all the same. He cleared his throat once again and pointed to the next picture, of a full-figured woman with dark skin standing next to Smoke. The caption: “Elijah and Annie wedding 12.1.1918.”

Michelle saw another memory, of Stack and his brother standing at a train platform as Annie walked by. Stack let out a low whistle. “Well, somebody been eatin’ her beans and cornbread.”

Smoke swatted the side of his head. “Boy, shut the fuck up.”

“My sister-in-law,” explained Stack now. “She was from Louisiana. And she knew hoodoo. You know what that is?”

“I’ve heard of it.”

“Yeah, well…. she knew a lot about a lot. The night Mary and I got turned, she figured out we were dealin’ with vampires, and she told Smoke to stake her if she got bit.”

She could see it now: Stack biting Annie, the pleading look she gave Smoke, his hands shaking as he staked her, her gaze going slack as she bled out. “Smoke was always a man of his word.”

“So…. who made you two, anyway?”

Well, that was a hell of a question. He sighed. “We- we’ll tell you that story later.”

“Well, okay.” She could see a few scattered memories- a humid night, the moon bright and full. Skin against skin, teeth sinking into flesh. And fire- lots and lots of it. She decided not to press the issue, though. “But did Smoke also die that night?”

“The next mornin’,” said Mary. “Klan came and shot up the place, and he killed ‘em all, but… he got hit, too.”

“I think deep down, he wanted to die, though,” said Stack. “Without Annie- and without me- he ain’t have nothin’ else to live for.”

“He must have really loved her.”

“Sure did.”

After a bit, she asked, “So, after that. What’d y’all do?”

“Got the hell outta Mississippi. Wandered all over. But, uh…. we been in Chicago the longest.”



He closed the book and set it down. “Not much else to say there.” Then he turned to her. “What about you?”

“Well, what do you wanna know?”

“You ain’t been in Chicago all that long, huh.”

She shook her head. “I moved here last year.”

“Where are you from, then?” asked Mary.

“Near San Francisco.” That was usually the easiest for people from outside California to understand.

“Oakland,” said Stack.

“Wait, you know where that is?”

An easy smile spread across his face. “Course we do. Been wanderin’ these United States since before you was born.”

“How old are you, anyway?” asked Mary.

“Twenty-three.”

Both their eyebrows went up. “A young thing,” said Stack. He smiled again. “And you got family down South, don’t you?”

She nodded. “My daddy’s people from Alabama.”

“Where?”

“Dadeville. It’s a real small town, you probably don’t…..”

“No, no, I know it. Been down that way myself. That lake is real pretty, even at night.”

After a bit, she scratched the back of her neck and said, “So…. I guess I got a few questions about the whole…. vampire thing.”

“Shoot.”

“Okay, first question. Do I need to stay away from garlic, and silver, and crosses and all that?”

“Garlic and silver, yes, crosses, no.”

“Okay. And…. can I still see my reflection?”

“Depends on the mirror. If it’s got silver in it, then no.”

She turned this over in her head. “Alright, then. Can I still eat actual food, or is it just blood from here on out?”

“Oh, you could. It just won’t taste like nothin’.”

“And it’ll come right back up,” added Mary.

Michelle groaned at this. “Goddamn it.”

“Oh, it ain’t all bad, baby girl.” He rubbed her shoulder. “We gon’ teach you everything.”

They sat in silence for a while. Then Stack yawned and said, “It’s pretty late. I’m thinkin’ we should get some shuteye.” He and Mary stood up. “Think you should, too. You gotta sleep durin’ the day, else you’ll get sick.”

“Okay, then.” She stood up, too.

“You’re welcome to join us in our bed,” said Mary.

“Think I’ll pass on that.” Sleeping in their bed felt like too much too fast.

“Alright, then, suit yourself,” said Stack. “But if you ever wanna join us, door’s always open.” He flashed his signature grin.

Michelle didn’t go to bed right away, though. Instead, she wandered around the place, looking at everything. There were stacks of records and CDs- mostly Sammie Moore, but others, too. Newer ones, like Biggie, 2Pac, LL Cool J, Keith Sweat. Prince’s Purple Rain. Some disco and soul records from the ‘70s. A couple Madonna albums: Like A Virgin and Like A Prayer. She assumed they were Mary’s.

Off to the left was a dining room, with a long wooden table and a glass chandelier- the candles in it appeared to be electric, though. A clean, white kitchen that smelled faintly of bleach. A bottle of Johnnie Walker scotch sat on the counter.

Finally, she made her way back to the guest room, thick, dark curtains over the windows. She got under the covers and, before she knew it, sank into a deep sleep.

When she woke up, it was dark once again. She pulled the covers back. Perhaps now would be a good time for her to head home.

“Well, hello, there.” Stack’s voice. Where is that coming from?

She turned around to see him and Mary standing in the doorway of their bedroom. “I think I should head home right about now.”

“Awww. Leavin’ already?” said Mary.

“Yeah.” She picked her dress up from off the floor and started to put it on. “You mind helping me zip up?”

“Sure thing.” She pulled the zipper up all the way.

She retrieved her purse and shoes from the living room, then left them her number on a slip of paper. “Call me.”

“Oh, we will,” said Stack, smiling. “Wanna see more o’ you.”

As she walked to the train station, she could only imagine how she looked right then, wearing last night’s dress and having slept on her hair. But nobody appeared to be paying attention to her. She looked around. Everything was in saturated color, like an old Technicolor film. She could hear every sound- snatches of conversations from people on the street, horns honking a few streets away, the scuttling of rats in a nearby dumpster, and heartbeats. Lots and lots of heartbeats, blood swishing through arteries and veins. Her mouth watered at the sound.

She stood and waited for the train, and once again, she was greeted with an influx of sounds and smells. She wasn’t just smelling the most prominent smells of urine and cigarettes, but also the people: sweat, perfume, hair products. She could even smell the cinnamon gum one teenage girl was chewing. She could hear little bits of people’s conversations. A young man hugging his girlfriend from behind, murmuring, “Mmm, you so fine,” at which the girl blushed and giggled. He kissed her neck, and she turned to him and, through laughter, said, “Damon! We in public right now!”

A blonde girl who looked like she’d stepped right out of Full House was twisting a plastic Walgreens bag in her hand and whispering to her friend- “God, I hope it’s negative.”

“You haven’t even taken the test yet.”

“I know.” Her voice broke a little. “I’m just so scared.”

The girls didn’t look any older than sixteen. Michelle hoped for her sake that the test was negative. The train pulled in, rattling all the way. The headlights were so bright she had to shield her eyes.

One thing she always noticed taking the Red Line was how the demographics shifted the further south she went- after 63rd, the passengers were all Black. Her stop was the one after that.

She walked past the gas station where she got coffee most mornings. Next to it was a check-cashing place. She turned the corner. The liquor store she frequented most evenings was across the street. “Shook Ones Pt. II” emanated from a parked car, the lyrics barely audible over the bass and the song’s iconic piano sample. It being a warm Saturday night, there was a crowd of young people standing in the parking lot, bottles or red cups in hand.

It was a strange feeling, walking into her darkened apartment after more than twenty-four hours away. She turned the lights back on and took her shoes off. Once in her room, she unzipped her dress, took off her bra, and changed into a T-shirt and shorts. When she pressed the button on her answering machine, the robotic female voice said, “You have five new messages.”

She listened to the first message. “Hey, it’s Denise. I’m at home right now ‘cause…..” A heavy sigh. “The nigga had a girlfriend. Can you believe that?”

She proceeded to explain how she’d gone home with the man she’d been dancing with at the bar, and then, just as she was giving him head, the girlfriend walked in, saw what was happening, and screamed. “So now I’m sittin’ here, watching…. a rerun of Cheers, ‘cause ain’t nothin’ else on at this hour. Anyway…. you probably not listenin’ to this right now ‘cause you gettin’ ya guts rearranged as we speak!” She laughed. “Alright, I’m goin’ to bed. I’ll see you at Charlie’s. And I want details!”

She pressed the button again. “Hey, girl, it’s Tasha. I just got home. Wanted to see if you made it home safe. Call me back. And remember, Charlie’s at 11!”

The next message was Denise again. “Hey, Michelle. You weren’t at Charlie’s this morning, so I thought I’d call to see what was goin’ on. I mean, it’s cool, you probably slept in, but Tasha was a li’l worried ‘cause she ain’t heard from you either. Just… just give us a call when you can, okay?”

The fourth message was from Tasha. “Not gonna lie, you scarin’ me a little. It’s three. You okay? Call me when you get this.”

And the fifth and final message was from Denise. “Goddamn, you still ain’t home yet?” She exhaled. “Tasha’s losing her shit right now, and honestly, I’m gettin’ a li’l scared, too.”

As Michelle listened to the messages, she realized she hadn’t thought about how this might have looked to her friends. For all they knew, she could have been dead in a ditch somewhere. She pressed the button to call Denise back, and she picked up immediately. “Hey, it’s Michelle. Sorry it took me so long to get back to y’all, I just got home.”

“Girl, we thought you done dropped off the face of the Earth!” She chuckled a little. “Tasha thought the nigga was, like, a serial killer and you were chained up in his basement or some shit.”

Michelle laughed at this. “She really need to quit watching Dateline.”

“That’s what I said!”

“Sorry to hear it didn’t go well last night.”

“It’s cool. I’m just glad I found out when I did, ‘cause if it had gone any further….” They both laughed.

“Right.”

“Anyway, I wanna hear what you did last night! The dick must have been good if you was at his place all day.”

She chuckled to herself. “You have no idea.”

“Oh, shit! Hold on, lemme get Tasha on the line!”

She patched Tasha in, who answered quickly, “Wh- what’s goin’ on?”

“Michelle here got a story.”

At this, she seemed to wake up a little more. “Oh, Michelle! Thank God you’re okay, I was so worried!”

“Sorry, I ain’t mean to scare you.”

“It’s all good. Just glad you’re okay.” A pause. “Now let’s hear it!”

“Okay, so…. his name’s Elias, but he goes by Stack. And….” She paused for effect. “Turns out he was there with his girlfriend.”

“Oh, shit!” laughed Denise.

“Wait, that was the girl sittin’ next to y’all, wasn’t it?” said Tasha.

She saw us? “Yeah.”

At this, the other two women started giggling madly. “And what’s her name?”

“Mary.”

“So what’d y’all do?” asked Denise.

She chuckled to herself. “Well…. I can’t really go into the play-by-play, but….”

To the best of her ability, she recounted the events of the night, everything except the bite, of course. And her friends were giggling, occasionally asking a clarifying question or two- “How big was it?”, “You came how many times?”- or making little jokes. It felt like college again, almost.

“Damn, Michelle, I ain’t know you was freaky like that!” said Denise when she was finished.

“Yeah, I bet you wasn’t doin’ all that with Eric…”

Denise cut her off. “Tasha, that’s probably still a sore subject for her.”

“No, no, it’s fine.” She cleared her throat. “And, yeah, no, last night was…. the best sex of my life, I think.”

After a bit, Denise asked, “So, do you…. like girls, or were you just experimenting and shit?” Quickly, she added, “I mean, we’ll always be cool with you, I just wanna know.”

“Uh… well…” She scratched the back of her neck. “I like her. That’s all I know for sure.” She smiled at the memory. Then, changing the subject, she said, “Now Tasha, I wanna hear about your night!”

So Tasha proceeded to tell them about the man she’d gone home with. Marlon, a twenty-five-year-old paramedic. “Tall, dark, and handsome,” she said, elongating the last word for effect. She described the sensual evening they’d shared, how he took her apart slowly and methodically with Keith Sweat playing in the background. But, unfortunately, she’d had a little too much to drink, and she threw up in his bathroom afterwards. “He was real nice about it, though. He had me drink some water, and let me sleep it off at his place.”

“Well, he sounds like a real keeper,” said Michelle.

“Yeah.” She sighed. “Now if I play my cards right, I might have a man….”

“Well, I’m happy for you,” said Denise. “Hope it works out.”

Nobody said anything for a while. Then Denise said, “Well, I should go to bed. I gotta work tomorrow.”

“Aw, man,” said Tasha.

“We can’t all get summers off like you do,” quipped Michelle.

“Hey, y’all can teach, too, if y’all want to. You just won’t get paid jack shit.”

They all laughed at this. “Okay, I think I’mma go to bed, too.”

“Alright, good night,” said Michelle.

“Good night!”

Her friends each hung up with a click, and she lay back on her bed, staring up at the ceiling. She could hear her heartbeat in her ears. And she was feeling an intense desire for two things: blood and sex. She figured she could satisfy the latter more easily. So she took off her shorts, put her hand down her panties, and shut her eyes.

She rubbed her clit in short, fast circles, remembering the previous night, and the way Stack and Mary had touched her. She removed her panties for easier access, then eased two fingers into her slick entrance.

Meanwhile, Stack and Mary had gone out dancing, at a different place downtown. This time, they weren’t really looking to feed, just celebrate. Her back pressed to him, they moved together in time with the music. She spun around, threw her arms around his neck, and kissed him. A wave of arousal washed over the both of them. As they undulated against each other, it got stronger and stronger until neither of them could ignore it any longer. She could feel his erection through his pants. Finally, he tugged her hand and whisked her to the bathroom.

He turned her around, lifted her skirt, and pulled down her panties. He rubbed himself against her slit, feeling just how wet she was. Ooh, shit, baby, you drippin’. As he entered her, she bit back a moan.

It was fast and filthy, the way she liked it, him holding her leg up so he could fuck her at just the right depth. He held a hand over her mouth, because he knew she could make a great deal of noise when he fucked her. It felt like when they were younger and had to be quiet, lest someone catch them.

They could each see Michelle sprawled out on her bed, half-naked, fingers buried deep in her pussy. She was wearing a baggy T-shirt, which her nipples poked through. Her lips were parted, letting out the softest little moans. She was so wet her fingers made a squelching sound. Then she pulled her fingers out and sucked them clean, a visual that turned them both on even more.

She pulled a white wand vibrator out of her bedside table drawer and plugged it in. Ooh, shit, she got one of those? thought Stack. Opening her legs again, she held the buzzing tip to her clit, which was still puffy from the previous night.

Mary could feel the vibrations on her own clit, and it was getting hard to stay quiet. She moaned into Stack’s hand.

Hey, pretty girl, thought Stack. You hearin’ me right now?

“Uh-huh,” she said weakly.

You see us?

“Mm-hm.”

He chuckled a little. Good. Now open them legs a li’l wider. Lemme see that pretty pussy.

She obeyed, giving them a better view of her glistening pussy. Her thighs were starting to shake a little. This felt more intense than usual. And she could feel Stack’s dick stretching her as if he was inside her, that fullness that she could feel all the way in her throat. “Oh, God….”

Mary’s voice. Lift your shirt up. I wanna see those titties.

She lifted the shirt, pulling the hem up above her chest. The sight of her breasts made their mouths water.

The pleasure was almost too intense, and she lifted the vibrator off. Uh-uh, keep that there. Stack. There was that edge in his voice that she didn’t know could turn her on so much. She whimpered, her legs shaking even harder now.

Awww, you gettin’ close, sugar? Mary’s voice, dripping with mock sweetness now.

She was feeling that familiar drop in her stomach. “Uh-huh.”

Let’s cum together, thought Stack. The three of us. You ready?

“Mm-hm.”

And with that, the three of them came together, him spilling inside Mary as she squeezed around him, her legs shaking. Michelle let out a scream as her body shook. Her vision began to blur a little.

Gasping, she came down from her high and turned off the vibrator. Stack pulled his pants up, and Mary bent down and pulled up her panties. He’d always liked the idea of her walking around with his cum dripping out of her. She looked back and winked at him as she pulled down her skirt and walked out of the stall first.

Michelle caught her breath, still feeling like her head was spinning. She stood up and got dressed, putting on a halter top and jean shorts. She already had someone in mind who she could bite. Putting on a pair of high tops, she picked up her keys and left her apartment once again.

Almost every time she went to the liquor store, without fail, there was a man that sat outside. His name was Ray, and he was about her father’s age, give or take a few years. His scraggly beard had some grays in it. He was clearly homeless, wearing the same stained brown jacket no matter the weather. He was friendly, always telling her, “God bless you” or “Have a blessed day”, and it would lift her spirits no matter how shitty her day had been. Sometimes, she’d buy him a 40, but if it was especially hot out, she’d buy him some water, too.

Tonight, like any other night, he was seated outside, watching the party in the parking lot. Like always, he was on the sidelines, seemingly invisible to everyone. Except Michelle, that is. She weaved her way through the crowd toward him. “Hey.”

A smile spread across his face. “You again. How you been?”

“Pretty good. How ‘bout yourself?”

He shrugged. “Same as always.”

She squatted down to meet his eyes. They were a deep dark brown, a little bloodshot around the whites. “Listen, I know you’re in a lot of pain,” she said. “And I can make it all go away.”

He raised an eyebrow. “And how you gon’ do that?”

She extended her hand. “Come with me.”

He took it and stood up. And she took him out of the parking lot, further and further from the crowd until the noise had reduced to a low buzz. She led him down a darkened alley that reeked of piss, beer, and garbage. “What the hell we doin’ here?”

“You’ll see.” She smiled and held onto the back of his neck, leaning in close. She could smell the sweat and cigarettes and booze seeping from his pores.

“Uh…..” He tried to pull away from her, clearly embarrassed. “N- now you real pretty, but I think you a li’l too young for me.”

“It’ll all be over soon,” she whispered. And with that, she unhinged her jaw and sunk her teeth into his neck.

His blood tasted bitter, like a mouthful of cigarette ash, but there was a little sweetness, too. She saw his memories play out like a film- his childhood on the South Side, as the youngest of four. He had a good singing voice, and he dreamed of being on the radio, like Jackie Wilson. Receiving a draft card in the mail. He was almost unrecognizable as a young man, clean-shaven and smiling. Before today, she’d never seen him smile. The thick heat of a jungle, machine gunfire, helicopter blades buzzing. Loud explosions, rotting, mutilated corpses. A wife, two kids. He still smiled, but there was no longer a light to his eyes. He barely slept- every time he closed his eyes, he was back in Vietnam, hearing the screams, the smells of napalm and burning flesh filling his lungs. But it went away every time he drank. His nightly glass of bourbon became two became three.

One fateful night in 1980, he crashed the car into a pole. He didn’t mean to, really. He’d thought he was good to drive. But no matter- his wife left him and took the kids. What followed was a string of lost jobs, failed relationships. One of his girlfriends introduced him to crack. The first time he smoked it, he felt like he was on top of the world. Soon, he didn’t care about anything else- just feeling that wonderful feeling again, even for a few fleeting moments. It was a matter of time before he was on the streets. And there he spent his days, in the neighborhood he’d grown up in, begging strangers for cash, or, if they wouldn’t give him that, then a bottle of something. That took the edge off, too, even for just a little bit.

A/N: So this is a revamp (no pun intended) of this story from months ago. I wanted to turn it into something bigger.

It was six-thirty on a Friday, and Michelle Clark lay on her bed, the window unit AC rattling and groaning. She hated her job, as a receptionist in the bursar’s office at the University of Chicago. Her boss, an older white man named Mr. Sanders- “please, call me Ron,” he’d told her that first day- was a creep, and she was one of three Black women in her department, which came with the expected baggage. But it was consistent, it paid the bills, and maybe, just maybe, if she kept at it, she’d move up the ranks to something less…. demeaning.

Whatever. She was sick of thinking about work. She rolled over, picked up her phone, and dialed the number of one of her best friends, Tasha. The other woman picked up almost immediately. “Hello?”

“Hey, Tasha, it’s Michelle.”

“Oh, hey, girl! What’s up?”

“Oh, nothin’.” She ran her hands through her hair. She’d gotten a new sew-in the previous weekend, a sleek, shiny black. “You free tonight?”

Maybe this was a shot in the dark, but tonight, she wanted to drink, dance, forget about the work week.

“Yeah! Why, what you wanna do?”

“I was thinking…. we could go out tonight.”

“I’d love that!”

She smiled to herself. “Alright. Lemme call Denise and see if she’s down.”

Tasha chuckled a little. “Oh, she needs this. All she do these days is work and study.”

They both laughed. Denise was a medical student and, it seemed, busier than ever. “Why don’t we meet at my place first? I might just have some Chardonnay lying around.”

Michelle chuckled to herself. Chardonnay was her Achilles heel. “Alright, bet. I’ll be there in an hour.”

“See you then.”

Denise had also agreed to come, so now she had to find something suitable to wear. The first thing she could think of was the short black dress she’d bought at Marshall Fields not too long ago. So she grabbed it from her closet and changed out of the blouse and skirt she’d worn to work. She zipped the dress up, smoothing the material over her body. She stopped to look in the mirror. The neckline showed off just enough cleavage, but when she turned to the side, the tightness of the dress seemed to accentuate the softer, rounder parts of her body she’d always hated. Hmm… Well, this is what I got.

She put on a pair of sparkly silver heels with straps, then did her makeup in front of her bathroom mirror. She decided to go for a different lip color than her day-to-day nude lipstick, picking a purple, shimmery one. She lined her eyes with kohl, put on a light purple eyeshadow, and penciled in her brows.

Tasha didn’t live very far, just one L stop away. Purse in hand, she walked up the subway station steps out into the night. The sun was just starting to set. The streetlamps glowed orange. She made it to Tasha’s building, a gray-brown brick. Tasha lived on the fourth floor. The elevator was clearly an older one, with glass doors and gold plating. The wires made a clicking noise as the car made its way up each floor.

Tasha answered the door in a dark purple dress. She wore big gold hoop earrings, and her hair was in a pixie cut. Her skin was a medium brown, and she was a good head shorter than Michelle, standing at around five feet. “Ooh, girl, you look good!”

The two hugged. “So do you.”

“Denise is already here. C’mon in.”

Denise was seated at the kitchen table, sipping wine. She was slender and long-limbed, the tallest of the three. Her complexion was light, with a yellowish undertone. She wore her hair long and straight, and her dress was pink with thin straps. “Hey, Denise! How you been?”

The other woman shrugged. “Busy. Least I have tomorrow off.” In addition to her studies, she worked part-time as a medical scribe. She smiled. “What about you?”

Michelle exhaled, thinking about the last week. “I’m so goddamn tired.” She grabbed a glass. “Pass me that wine, will you?”

Denise passed her the bottle and chuckled a little. “You and your Chardonnay.” Then, as Michelle was pouring herself a glass, “You eat yet?”

“Yeah.”

Now this was a bold-faced lie. She hadn’t eaten since that banana at her desk at three p.m. She didn’t typically like to eat before a night out- she felt it made her look bloated. She knew this wasn’t healthy, but…..

“Lemme put on some music,” said Tasha, full glass in hand. Something about the way she was floating through the kitchen let her know this wasn’t her first glass. She picked out a CD- SWV’s It’s About Time. Michelle smiled. That album was a staple of their college years, playing in the background as they sat on the floor in their sorority house.

As soon as the intro to “Anything” played, she was immediately taken back to the Howard campus, to the Delta house. Walking to a party in the cool night air, passing a bottle of peach Cisco among themselves. Doing their makeup together and exchanging gossip. Practicing strolls with their sorority sisters. And then there were the memories of her now ex-boyfriend Eric…. bittersweet, now.

“So,” said Tasha, “there’s this place I wanna check out. It’s called Roses.”

“Where is it?” asked Denise.

“South Loop. We’ll take the train.” She scratched the back of her neck. “It might be a little pricey, but…. we can afford to splurge a little. Right?”

Michelle liked the idea of a new place. “I’m down,” she said. “And if it sucks, we can just go to our usual place.” She turned to her friend, who was still sitting at the table. “Denise?”

“Sounds like a plan.”

It was around nine when the three arrived at Roses, after following Tasha’s unsure directions and missing a few turns here and there. It was lit in purple, and the bass was thumping as Aaliyah’s “Back and Forth” played. Couples were dancing together, their bodies moving in time with the music.

The first order of business was drinks. “I’m getting shots, what do y’all want?” asked Denise.

“Vodka,” said Michelle.

“Me, too.”

“Alright. Vodka it is.” She got the bartender’s attention and ordered a round of vodka shots. Denise raised her glass, so the other two women raised theirs. “To us.”

“To us.” The three knocked theirs back. The vodka burned delightfully as it went down, and it made a fire in Michelle’s belly.

Just then, the beat switched, and 2Pac’s “How Do U Want It” started playing. Tasha practically dragged Michelle and Denise to the dance floor, squealing, “This is my song!”

The girls were already pretty tipsy. Michelle rolled her body to the beat and raised her arms above her head. All the stress of the past week seemed to roll right off her. She knew she looked good, and she felt sexy as hell.

Back at the bar, Stack was sipping his whiskey when he saw a group of young women dancing together. There were plenty of pretty girls to choose from here, but his attention lingered on the darker girl in the black dress. The way the dress hugged her curves didn’t leave much to the imagination: the perfect C-shape of her ass, the swell of her breasts. And the way she moved was just so smooth, so mesmerizing. Her exposed skin seemed to catch the light.

Mary was looking at her, too. She wanted to press her body against hers, explore her with her hands and mouth. There were so many places on her to kiss, and she’d take her time. The woman tilted her head a little, exposing her neck, and Mary felt her mouth water.

Finally, she turned to Stack and smirked. “You seein’ what I’m seein’?”

“Yup.”

“Like what you see?”

“I sure do.” He leaned back a little and kept watching her dance.

Denise tapped Michelle on the shoulder and brought her attention to a man sitting at the bar. "He's been watching you this whole time."

She looked over at the man in question. He had a fresh fade and wore a multicolored sweater, and he was sitting at the bar with a shit-eater grin on his face. She felt her cheeks growing warm. “You sure it’s me he’s looking at?”

“Bitch. He’s basically eye-fucking you.” She gave her shoulder a little squeeze. “Go and see what he’s about.”

“Alright, then.” Her stomach was doing flips. She’d had a few flings since breaking up with Eric, but all of them had ended in disappointment. Now this man was fine. She didn’t want to fuck this up.

She took the seat next to him, crossing her legs. “Hey.”

“Hey, baby.” God, he had a sexy voice…. Moving his sunglasses down to the bridge of his nose, he looked her up and down. “That li’l dress look real good on you.”

He spoke with a slow Southern drawl, like her relatives in Alabama. “Th- thanks.”

“Lemme buy you a drink. What you like?”

“Mmmm…. could you get me a gin and tonic?”

“Sure thing.” He ordered her drink, then turned back to her. “What’s your name, baby?”

“Michelle.” She smiled. “What’s yours?”

“Stack.” He splayed his fingers out on the counter, and she saw a brass knuckle with block letters: STACK.

He clearly had money and wasn’t afraid to throw it around. The bartender came around with her drink, and she took the lime off the rim and squeezed it in. The drink was perfect: not too sweet, but not too bitter, either. She looked out at the dance floor, where she just knew Tasha and Denise would be cutting up. And sure enough, each of them had found a man to grind against.

“Where are you from? You sound real Southern.”

“Mississippi.”

“Hm.” She took another sip of her drink. “And what brings you up here?”

“Just passin’ through.” He tilted his head and smiled, revealing a gold grill. “Why don’t you tell me some about you?”

“Well….” She twirled a strand of hair around her finger. She never knew how to answer this question. “I’m a receptionist, I work at the University of Chicago. I live in Grand Crossing, and… I’m here with my girls tonight.” She gestured to the dance floor.

Stack could tell she was holding something back, though. Already, he could see she wanted more out of life. Well, I can give you that, baby. Finished with her drink, she set the glass down. “That went down easy,” he laughed.

She shrugged. “I can handle my liquor.”

He just chuckled to himself. Just then, a song she liked came on. Come on, ride the train, and ride it….

She tugged on his hand. “C’mon, let’s go dance!”

They danced together for a bit, her pumping her arms and jumping in time to the music. Then, feeling bold from the drinks, she threw her arms around Stack’s neck and rolled her hips against him.

This drove Stack crazy, and he knew she knew it. He grabbed her by the waist, his grip firm and deliberate. Michelle felt a fluttery feeling in her stomach. He lifted her head up to him and kissed her. His beard tickled her chin, and she could smell the sharp scent of his cologne. He slipped his tongue into her mouth, still cold from the ice in his drink.

Her smell- like cinnamon, almost- was intoxicating. He had to have her now. I could just eat you up.

The beat switched, to something slower, sexier. LL Cool J’s “Doin’ It”. Alone in her room, she had imagined many a scenario to this song, but now here was the real thing. Smirking, she mouthed Leshaun’s parts- “I’mma call you Big Daddy and scream your name, matter fact, I can’t wait for your candy rain."

She turned around and pressed her body against his, and with one hand, she held onto the back of his neck. His hands trailed the length of her body, going dangerously low. She felt a chill run down her spine. His hand resting on her hip, he whispered, “You like that?”

That gravelly voice almost made her weak in the knees. “Mm-hm.”

The song ended, and she was pretty turned on now. I’m definitely going home with this man. “I think I wanna get another drink.”

“Lemme buy it for you.”

Stack got her another gin and tonic. And it was then that she noticed the woman seated next to him. She was white, with brown hair in a ponytail. She wore bright red lipstick, and she looked up from her drink and gave Michelle a sly little smile and wave. “Oh, this is my girl, Mary,” said Stack. He leaned back a little so she could see her better. “Hope you don’t mind if she joins us.”

Michelle thought for a bit. Maybe this was a little more than she’d bargained for. She’d never had a threesome before, nor had she done anything with a woman. But she’d heard things about what sex with another woman was like- that perhaps it felt even better than with a man- and she’d always been curious to try it. Besides, Mary was sexy- lithe body, perky breasts. The other woman’s gaze went further down, and she could feel her face getting hot.

This’ll be a night of firsts, she thought. Perhaps she’d have a salacious story to tell Tasha and Denise tomorrow. “No, no, I don’t mind.”

The three left together. And as the humid night air hit her, Michelle realized just how drunk she was. And her shoes were starting to pinch. “How far are y’all from here?”

“Just down the road,” said Stack.

“How far down the road?”

“‘Bout five blocks. Why? You tired?”

“Nah, it’s just the heels. I don’t know if I can walk too far in these.”

The walk wasn’t all that long, but she was starting to sway a little. She had to remind herself to put one foot in front of the other and walk in a straight line. Their street was decidedly quieter than the buzzing downtown, with a few glowing streetlamps. They stopped at a brick walk-up, and slowly, she followed them up the stairs.

Their place was air-conditioned- properly, and not just with a rickety window unit like Michelle’s apartment. All the lights were off, save for a yellow lamp in the living room. This made her a little nervous, but she brushed it off. Maybe it’s to set the mood. She followed them into their living room, and they all sat on a dark red sofa. She reached down to undo the straps on her heels. The tension was palpable.

Mary reached into her purse, pulled out a little baggie of weed, and handed it to Stack. Michelle watched as he ground it up and rolled it into joints. His fingers were quick and skillful. She’d never seen anything like it.

“You smoke?” asked Mary.

She nodded. “From time to time.”

“You want some?”

“Sure.”

The joint between her lips, Stack leaned forward and lit it for her. She took a long drag, exhaling a big plume of smoke. As she smoked, she could feel her body beginning to relax. This had to be stronger than anything she’d ever tried. She leaned back into the couch, and every muscle in her body seemed to slacken.

Stack placed her in his lap, facing Mary. The hem of her dress shifted a little, exposing a pair of pink panties with a bow at the front. She seemed to melt into him, almost. “You feel that, baby?” he whispered.

Under her, she could feel his dick jump a little. And she just knew it was big. Her clit was throbbing now. “Yeah.”

He chuckled. “You real quiet all of a sudden. You nervous?”

“Maybe a little.” She shifted a little. “I- I’ve never done this with…. two people, I mean….”

Mary closed the gap between the two of them and held her chin in her hand, forcing her to look her in the eye. Her eyes seemed to be glowing, almost- she wasn’t sure if it was a trick of the light, or what. “That’s just fine, sweet thing. You ain’t gotta do much. We’ll take real good care o’ you.”

She also had a Southern accent- maybe she was from Mississippi, too? “Don’t think,” said Stack. His dick jumped again- how many stages of growth did it have?! “Just feel.”

And that she did. Mary kissed her, wet and sloppy, with lots of tongue. Michelle shut her eyes. Their hands were all over her- she almost couldn’t tell who was touching her where. The feeling was almost electric. Then Stack’s hand went between her legs and played with the fabric of her panties. “Shit already wet as fuck, and we ain’t even touch it yet.”

“Why don’t we take this to the bedroom?” whispered Mary.

They brought her to her feet and led her down a dark hallway. Their bed was huge- big enough to fit the three of them. The three lay together on it, and before Michelle even knew it, all their clothes were in a pile on the floor. Feeling exposed, she shivered a little.

The two studied her. Her hair was fanned out on the pillow behind her. Her eyes were large, looking up at them in nervous anticipation. Her breasts were full, the nipples round and dark. They’d be real good to suck on, thought both. There was a little softness to her stomach- probably a source of insecurity for her, but to them, it was just perfect. It made her look more… human. Between her thick thighs was a puff of dark hair, and both Stack and Mary could hardly wait to bury their faces in it.

Mary was on top of her now, knees on either side of her, caging her in. Her hair was loose, and as she went in to kiss her, the strands tickled her face. Michelle could smell her perfume- a fresh scent, with a hint of flowers. The other woman kissed her neck, then started to suck harshly. She was sure she’d leave a mark.

Mary kissed and licked each of her nipples, eliciting a gasp. Slowly, she kissed her way down her body. She gave her a slow, deliberate kiss right above her mound, and Michelle involuntarily squirmed a little. “Just relax. I got you,” she murmured.

She hooked her legs over her shoulders and licked a long, slow stripe up her pussy. Michelle moaned and threw her head back. Mary started flicking her clit with her tongue, starting with light, teasing flicks, but building up pressure as she went. “Oh, God…” moaned Michelle, running her hands through her hair.

Stack lay at her side, stroking her hair. “She makin’ you feel good, baby girl?”

“Mm-hm,” was all she could say.

He slipped two fingers into her mouth, and she sucked on them as Mary ate her out. So obedient. “Good girl.”

“You ready to suck on somethin’ else?”

She nodded. He withdrew his fingers and moved up a little. She could see his dick resting against his stomach- big and thick, just as she’d thought it would be. If she had to guess, it was probably eight? Nine inches? Either way, she knew it was gonna ruin her.

“Open that mouth up….that’s a good girl.” He eased himself into her wet, open mouth, inch by inch.

She only had half of his length in her mouth, and yet it was already so full. Slowly, he started thrusting, and she tried to take slow breaths through her nose. Just then, she could feel Mary putting two fingers inside her, and she moaned around his dick. “Shit,” he groaned. He hit the back of her throat, and her eyes watered.

She could feel the pleasure building, and her legs started to shake a little. And Mary’s lips and tongue were still working on her clit, fingers still rubbing that sweet spot inside her… “You ‘bout to cum?”

She just moaned. She could feel herself starting to unravel. He pulled his dick from her mouth with a wet pop. A string of saliva dangled from her mouth, and she gasped. “Let it go, baby. Let me hear you.”

Her orgasm hit her hard, her back arching off the bed, her toes curling. Her thighs squeezed around Mary’s head, and her grip on her hair tightened. She was damn near out of breath when Mary finally pulled away from her. She lifted her fingers to her mouth. “You taste how sweet you are?”

Michelle sucked her own juices off her fingers, looking right into her brown eyes as she did it. That’s so fuckin’ hot, thought Mary. Don’t you agree?

Mm-hm, thought Stack. Then, out loud, he said, “Alright. My turn.”

Before Michelle could respond, he was already between her thighs. He looked up at her. “Just gon’ have me a li’l taste, is all.”

But the way he ate her was straight-up nasty, spreading her open with his thumbs, lips locked around her clit. Still sensitive from cumming, she whimpered and tried to pull his head off of her, but Mary was quick to grab her wrists and pin them above her head. Michelle squirmed, but her grip was frighteningly strong. “Stay still and let him taste it now.” Her voice had a bit of an edge to it.

He showed no mercy, harshly sucking her clit, devouring her like it was his last meal. Part of why he loved doing this to women was seeing how quickly they came apart, and watching Michelle unravel right before his eyes was incredibly satisfying.

Tears pooled in her eyes. Already, she could feel her stomach tightening, and her hips started to buck into his face. “Oh, fuck!”

When she came this time, she swore she saw stars. Her whole body shook. And he didn’t stop or even slow down, just kept licking her through it. He straightened up, smirking, his beard glistening. And she was limp, her eyes watery, still shaking. Her inner thighs were sticky. “I think we broke her,” said Mary.

Stack laughed a little. “Damn, already? We ain’t even halfway done.”

“Well, there’s no need to rush.” She looked down at her and smiled. “We got all night.”

Michelle tried to catch her breath. She could hardly think straight. Mary was straddling her now, slowly running her hands up her body. “You ever licked a pussy before?” she whispered.

“No.”

“Thought as much. Well, don’t you worry, sweet girl. I’ll take the lead.”

She positioned herself on her face, and her tongue found her clit and started licking. She wasn’t quite sure what she was doing, but Mary seemed to be enjoying herself. She started to roll her hips. Michelle could see her above her, the slight bounce of her tits, her mouth in a perfect little “o”. And quite frankly, she was enjoying the view. Her moans seemed to go straight to her clit.

Now the other woman was riding her face in earnest, and she dutifully lapped her up as she got wetter and wetter. “Doin’ so good, sweet thing.” Her voice was breathy.

She threw her head back. “Fuck, she’s good!” Then she looked down at Michelle and said, “I’m gettin’ close.”

Her jaw was tired now, but she kept going. Mary’s hips started to stutter, and her movements got sloppier. Then she let out a high-pitched moan, and her thighs clamped around Michelle’s head. It wasn’t an unpleasant feeling- in fact, she kind of liked it.

Mary moved off her, her face flushed. “Not bad for your first time.”

Meanwhile, Stack reached into a drawer and pulled out a condom. He peeled open the wrapper, put it on, and spread Michelle’s legs open. He rubbed himself against her slit, glistening and wet. “Still so fuckin’ wet.” He pushed in, and she let out a sharp gasp.

“It’s so big,” was all she could say.

“You’re real tight.”

Slowly, he pushed in all the way to the base. She’d never felt so full in her life- she could almost feel him in her stomach. He threw her legs over his shoulders and thrust into her, deep and hard.

She was still a little tight, so he figured he’d start slow. Bet she ain’t never had a dick this big before. Her moans were shrill and dirty- music to his ears.

Her whole body felt like it was on fire. Mary was at her side playing with her nipples, and it was almost too much. Stack placed a hand on her lower belly, and the sensation made her twitch a little.

All of a sudden, she felt a pressure building. “Oh, God…” This time felt different, though. “I…. I feel like I’m gonna pee….”

“You not. Don’t worry.” She felt like she was about to burst. And when he started rubbing her clit…. yeah, she was done for.

It hit her in a big wave this time, and she screamed. And Stack just had this smug-ass grin on his face. She would have thrown a pillow at him if she’d had the presence of mind to do so.

“Shit,” he laughed. “You squirted, baby.” He gestured to his moist abdomen.

She was so fucked out she couldn’t say anything back. But, clearly not done, he flipped her onto her stomach. “Arch that shit, baby girl.”

“Wha-” Her voice cracked a little.

“Did I stutter?” He pushed her up onto her hands and knees and slammed into her. The force of it nearly knocked the air out of her. She reached behind her in an attempt to get him to slow down or at least ease up a little, but he swatted her hand away. “Uh-uh, move that fuckin’ hand.”

He fucked her fast and rough, as tears streamed down her cheeks. The sound of skin hitting skin filled the room. She tried to bury her face in the mattress, but he pulled her up by her hair. And in front of her was Mary, rubbing her swollen clit and grinning like the Devil. “You doin’ so good. Just give it to him, baby.”

“The way you showed out on that dance floor, you thought I wasn’t gon’ wear yo’ ass out?” grunted Stack. “Yeah, you gon’ take all of this.”

The sensation was so overwhelming, but almost on instinct, she pushed back onto him. He chuckled. “Look at you, throwin’ that fat ass on me.” He gave her ass a harsh smack, enough to make her jolt. “You like this dick, don’t you, baby girl?”

Cocky motherfucker. She could only moan in response. Just then, she felt him spit on her asshole, then slip his thumb inside. It burned a little, but it wasn’t unpleasant. In fact, that fullness she felt added to her pleasure.

Her knees and elbows were getting weak, and she could hardly keep herself up. Noticing this, he brought her up so that she was on her knees now, his arms wrapping around her midsection. He angled his hips just right, hitting her sweet spot. “Oh my God… oh my God….” was all she could say as she felt that pressure building again.

Mary rose onto her knees and kissed her, another wet, sloppy kiss. And she shattered once again, shaking and moaning into her mouth. She felt herself squirt again- just a little. Enough to make Stack growl into her ear. “Good fuckin’ girl.”

Mary broke the kiss, and her eyes were glowing like they had earlier that night. She grinned and laughed to herself. This time, Michelle swore she saw fangs. Now she had to be seeing things. She shook her head. The fuck was in that joint?!

She couldn’t really think about it, though. Stack was still fucking into her like nothing had happened.

Now, thought Stack.

Mary went for her neck, and she felt a sharp, white-hot pain. She heard Stack let out a loud groan, and felt his hips stuttering and him sinking his teeth into her neck, as well. And then she felt her consciousness slip from her, little by little.

Her blood tasted like gin and tonic, with a zippy hint of something else. Adrenaline, perhaps. As they drank, images of the young woman’s life flashed before their eyes. She had been raised in a loving home. Most of her early childhood memories were happy: running through a backyard sprinkler with her brother. Sitting cross-legged in front of the TV watching Brady Bunch reruns, her mother straightening her hair with a hot comb. Summers spent somewhere Southern, swimming in a lake, catching fireflies, rollerskating through the streets of a small town. The white ribbons of a cheerleading uniform.

But as she got older, the memories became darker. A young man stalking towards her, his eyes full of lust. “C’mon now, just let me touch it…” The pinching feeling of an empty stomach from self-imposed starvation. Sticking her fingers down her throat, semi-digested food pouring out in torrents of Diet Coke. The yellow walls of a hospital’s psych ward.

Young adulthood came to Michelle with its ups and downs, and her two friends- the same ones she’d come to the bar with- were her lifeline through it all. She’d had a lengthy, turbulent relationship with a young man named Eric, which she’d been the one to end, but it still gutted her.

She clearly hadn’t lived in Chicago for long- relatively few of her memories took place here. She spent her days working a job she hated, and most of her evenings drinking wine in front of her TV, lamenting the state of her life. Every day, she swallowed her anger and sadness and shame, and put on a strained smile and raised the pitch of her voice just so. She was frustrated and dangerously close to breaking, each day pushing her closer and closer to the edge.

The blood stopped flowing, and with a wet cloth, Mary wiped the area around the bite. Then Stack lifted the girl and carried her to the guest room. He placed her in the bed and pulled the covers up over her. For some reason, she just looked so goddamn cute with her eyes closed…..

Stack and Mary showered together, taking turns scrubbing each others’ backs. After a bit, Mary said, “I like her.”

“Me, too.”