He slowly nods. “Well, let this be the standard,” he says. “You should accept nothing less from here on out from the people you surround yourself with.”
“You’re right.” I stand from the chair. “Can I give you a hug?”
He nods and sets his food down too. He closes the space between us and wraps his arms around me in a tight, comforting hug.
“I’m sorry,” I say to him as I press my face to his chest.
“I’m sorry too, Pips.” His cheek leans on the top of my head as he holds me tight. “I didn’t mean to embarrass you.”
“I know,” I answer.
And then we stand there, holding each other for longer than I expected to be holding him. Yet it doesn’t feel strange. I don’t feel the need to pull away from him. I don’t feel awkward. I actually feel like…like this all seems right. And that realization seems stranger than him actually holding me.
When he pulls away, he tilts my chin up and asks, “You good?”
“Yeah, I’m good. Are you?”
He nods. “Better now.” He lets out a breath and asks, “Did you see if they had any sweets in the food bin?”
I let out a laugh. “I don’t know. Let me check.”
“God, it’s so quiet out here,” I say, looking around at the dark woods surrounding us. “Like, eerily quiet. Makes me feel uneasy.”
“Same,” he says as he leans against my legs while he sits on the ground in front of me. I offered him the chair, but he told me to keep it. He didn’t have a problem sitting on the ground; he just needed something to lean against. That turned into my legs, and oddly, I like it. “Look at us city folk surviving the outdoors.”
“Surely you’ve gone camping before though.”
“Yeah,” he answers. “Many times actually. I’ve done a few trips here and there on my own. Nothing too far from home, but this isn’t new to me.”
“Uh-huh, so then why was it so difficult to erect the tent?”
“Because that thing was made in the seventies and shouldn’t be around anymore. Tents are easier now. Some of them you just blow with air and it’s up.”
“Blow it with air and it’s up. You heard that, right?”
He turns to look at me. “I think sleeping in that cabin is making you perverted. Good thing you’re getting some fresh air tonight.”
“Good thing,” she says. “Who knows what I might have said if I stayed in there another night.”
“For real, you might start asking where the titty tassels are so you can perform.”
“Is that actually attractive? Like, do people really like that? Swinging tassels from a breast?”
“I mean, they have to be somewhat popular if they’re still something. For me personally, I’d prefer to just have nipples in my face. They don’t need to be covered up.”
“Just pierced…right?” I tease.
He chuckles. “Listen, I was with a girl once who had pierced nipples, and they were just as much of a treat for me as they were for her.”
“Really?”
He nods and stokes the fire in front of him with a stick. “She loved them, and she loved when I played with them. We’re talking feral behavior. And hell, they were nice. She had great tits too, so they worked well on her.”
I don’t know why I feel a little awkward with him talking about someone else’s boobs, but I do.
“Is that, uh, something you look for in a woman? Piercings?”
“Nah, that’s a superficial requirement. If she has piercings, that’s just a pleasant surprise. I wouldn’t fuck someone just because of that.”
