Smoke and Moonlight

   Moonlight blanketed the naked lovers that laid tangled, almost lifeless on the empty bed, casting their shadows on the wall.  The light filled the room through a panoramic window that took the place of an entire wall; it filled the room more than anything else, as the room stayed true to its minimalist design.  No pictures hung on the walls.  No bureau or mirror to look into.  Not even paint adorned the cold cement walls.  Only an overly priced bed made of recycled pallets set against the wall and to the right a handmade side table constructed out of recycled bicycle rims, bought also at an exaggerated price.  The moonlight struck both lovers only to be consumed by the dark skin of the young man while the young female glowed like a celestial being.
   The young man arises and heads towards the bathroom.  After a moment, the young female is awaked by the sound of the toilet seat being set down carelessly by the young man.  A flush, and the young man appears as a shadow at the bathroom door.  He pauses and the young female calls out to him smiling, "hey."

"Hey," the young man replies.  "Did I wake you?"

Before she could reply, "go back to sleep."  And he walked towards the side table.

"No, it's fine.  I don't want to sleep," she said.

 The young man sat on the bed and proceeded to make himself a joint.  Hunched over on the side table and diligently separating the fruit from the unwanted on an architectural magazine, and all he needed was the moonlight to see his hands at work.  When he was done, an almost perfect dutch lay on the glass of the side table while he dumped the residues from the magazine into the ashtray.  He lit the dutch, swallowing the first lung filling drags, holding them in for as long as he could and then releasing the smoke that formed dark clouds which would smother the moonlight coming through the window.  The aroma attracted her and even though she did not smoke she loved the smell of it. 

"Come make love to me," she said.

He looked to her as he set the dutch on the ashtray, "now?"

"Yes, now.  I need it."

He laughed, "you need it?"

"Yes!” She giggled, “Come!"

   He got on top of her, kissed her, and stared into her bright blue eyes.  There was a crazed look in those eyes, untamed youthfulness, and yet, there was also wisdom.  She stared back and, although she tried to resist, was hypnotized by those brown eyes that glared in the dark pools of shadows then brows, then brown skin.  Eyes that watched her intently.  Eyes that studied her face.  She was expecting him to take her.  He played with her like a cat plays with a mouse, but she loved his carnal taunts. 

   Once again, the moonlight blanketed the naked lovers.  Except this time there where no shadows cast upon the wall, but only black.

"We're perfect for each other," she said.

The young man laughed, "why do you say that?"

She thought for a moment, "because."

"Because..." he replied.

"Because..." she paused, "no one else has made me feel what you make me feel."

"Don't tell me you're falling in love with me," he exclaimed.  

"I'm not talking about love," she replied.  "I meant, I've never had an orgasm with anyone else but you."

"Are you serious?" he asked surprised.

"Yes.  I mean, I've had them before but usually it's because I know how to please myself," she said.  “No one else knows how to please me.  No one else but you.”

"So you're telling me that in the two years you and him have been together he has never gave you... one?" he asked in disbelief.

"Yes," she said.

His only reply, "oh."

   The young man lay on his back, grinning, full of pride, and resting his head on his hands while the young female rested her head on his hairless chest.  She lay there hearing his lungs fill with air, his heart beat, then his lung expire, and all the while thinking about what she had just realized. 

"What if it is love?" she said.

"Don't start," he said.  "We had an agreement."

"Yes, but you can't tell me you don't feel anything for me at this point," she said.  "We've been at it for months.  You're the only person I want to be with, night and day.  What else is it?"

"The moon's gone," was his only reply.

"Don't change the subject!" she exclaimed.

"Did you see it earlier?  It was so round and a bright white," he said looking for the reflection of the moon on the window.

"Well it's gone now," she said.  "I'm still here."

"Yes." He turned his gaze from the window to the dark pools where her eyes should have been, "You're still here.  Why are you still here?  Now that I know what you want from me, I wonder why you still call me if you know I can't give you what you really want."

She thought for a moment, "I don't know what I want.  He gives me stability.  You give me everything else."

"Well not everything," he replied.

She laughed on the outside, although she felt hurt by the fact, "So you don't love me?"

"We're not using that word," his more serious than before.  "It doesn't even mean anything."

"I don't mean anything is what your trying to say," she mumbled.

"Stop twisting my words!"  He grabbed her chin, "You know that what we have is not going to last forever.  Don't make me end it here and now.  You chose him and you did the right thing.  He'll give you stability and he'll take care of you."

"How can you say that?" Her voice cracked, "he's never around."

   The young female started to cry.  The young man pulled her into his chest and let her cry herself to sleep. 

   The moon was already gone and the sun still wouldn't come up for another hour or so.  The lovers lay on the bed facing each other.  The young lover, having never slept, admired her peaceful image for so long that he had forever instilled that face in his mind.  Finally she opened her eyes.

"Good morning."  The young man smiled, and she smiled     back.

"Hi."  She blinked and yawned, "you stayed."

"Well I figured he wont be back until tomorrow; I overheard dad talking to him on the phone.  Some kind of negotiation problems with the local engineers," he said. 

"Yeah, he's never in a hurry to come home to me," she sighed.

"Don't start, it's too early to talk about that," he spoke with a smile.  "Besides, you know that he does it all for you.  So you can live in this mansion and drive expensive cars.  You like cars, don't you?  Fancy restaurants.  The clothes.  My furniture!" 

He laughed, and she laughed with him. 

"I like your food better!" She replied.  "I'm sorry about last night."  She stared at him,         "Sometimes I feel trapped in this mansion of his."

"Listen," he spoke after they stared at each other for a while.  "I know that you feel lonely sometimes, and that this all started as something innocent, but it just might be that you think you love me because you feel lonely from time to time.  Either way, even if I did admit that I love you there's not much we can do about it."

"We can leave!"  She said enthusiastically, "let's go to Mexico City!  You've always wanted to go live there!"

"And do what?  Starve?"  He said sarcastically but liking the idea.  "We both need him.  You need him to buy you everything you want, and I need him to sell my projects.  We would parish without him."

"I don't need anything from him!"  She said with a naive tone as she sat up.

   Tears started to stream out from the corners of her eye, the tears diluted the makeup, and black streams rolled down her cheeks.  She smothered her face in the pillow as she used the pillow to dry the tears of her face.  Then she rolled over.

"I can't give you much.  I can't give you what he can give you.  There's no stability with me.  I certainly can't give you 'everything else.'  I can't even say that I love you."

"But I know you do," she said.

"Why?"  He tried to hide the harshness in his voice, "Because I spend more time with you than he does?  Because I can please you like he can't?"

   She stayed quiet until her lip started to quiver, then she turned around and closed her eyes to keep the tears from rolling out.  He moved close to her and hesitated to touch her.  He held her close to him.

"I just can't see it happening."  He whispered in her ear, "you belong to him.

She turned around and stared at him, "then let's make the best of what we have."

Downstairs the front door opened.  The lovers never heard it open.