Archive-name: SpecMome/hope.txt

Archive-author: 

Archive-title: Hope





(This story has no sex in it, and therefore may not meet the stricter

requirements for this group -- if graphic is what you want, rent

"Debbie does Dallas" and hit 'n' now. *grin*)



	"Hope."

	At the sound of his voice, I visibly relaxed.  He was the only one

I could trust this much -- and even this, this was almost too much.

	"Hope.  Just relax.  I won't do anything to hurt you."

	Inside, I chuckled at the cliche', and decided to just once relax

and not worry so damned much.  He couldn't hurt me -- he cares about me

-- he would never hurt me, right?

	"Ready?"

	Trembling with indecision, I nodded and released a breath I hadn't

thought I had been holding.  He was my friend, it was okay, he promised...



- - -



	I stood there, just looking at Hope, just taking in all of her.  She

was one of the most attractive women I had ever met, and not just physically.

It was friendship on first sight -- not as bad as it seems, for I was the

only one she trusted this much right now.  I reveled in it.

	My hand reached up almost of its own accord and gently drew my

fingers down across her eyelids, causing her to shut her beautiful blue 

eyes.  A slight tremor went through her lithe body as she stood before me,

her feet shoulder-width apart and adorned in cute socks, a pair of tight

jeans, a loose-fitting blouse, and that gorgeous hair.  I sighed to myself

as I recalled that she felt that she was unattractive to men.  Well, here's

to friendship...



- - -



	The touch of his fingers on my face made me jump inside, but I 

closed my eyes willingly, and with not a little trepidation.  I trust him,

and if I want him to stop, all I have to do is open my eyes -- that's what

we agreed on, and I trust him... don't I?

	He touched me again, and it was like fire and ice.  His hand

traced my jawline from ear to ear, and gently caressed my forehead before

brushing my cheek and my lips.  So that's what it's like....



- - -



	Was I dreaming, or was that a hint of a smile on her face?  I

touched her dimples and sure enough, she began to giggle.  I smiled,

and walked around her, talking as I did to let her know where I was.

Since I wasn't able to see her eyes, I asked her to tell me if she did.

She nodded in response, and I started to rub her shoulders, hoping that

the familiarity of the contact would be reassuring.

 

- - -



	His backrubs always made me think of the day we first met.  What

an odd way to meet someone -- but we became fast friends, and _nobody_

gives a better backrub.  I didn't realize how much tension I was under

until I felt it just flow out of me.  It felt so good, so relaxing.  His

hands moved down from my shoulders to my back, working on my lower back 

and taking out all those little knots.  His voice reassured me as he 

walked around in front of me again, and apparently sat on the floor.



- - -



	She thought of her feet as big and smelly, but I liked them.  Then

again, I have a thing for feet.  However, seeing as she was standing on

them I couldn't do much with them right now.  I firmly massaged her calves,

keeping in mind that the idea was to make her feel relaxed and comfortable.

Then, moving up slowly, I reminded her to tell me when I should stop.  A

relaxed "Okay" was my only response, so I forged on.  When I got to a

handspan above her knee, I switched to the other leg.  Worried about 

pushing her too far, I stood up and began to massage first one hand, then

the other.  Again, the reminder, and again, an okay.  I worked up to her

shoulder, carefully avoiding any contact that could be misconstrued.  

Finally, to wrap it up, I worked on her neck and scalp, slowly and 

carefully.  My fingers crept across her face again, and that little smile

came back.

 

- - -

 

	He was about as good at legs as he was at backs, but never before

had I let him rub above the knee.  I felt so relaxed and trusting that I let

him pick the right place to stop, and he did well.  What a feeling... to

totally let go and let someone else take care of you.  I felt I might melt

through the floor if he kept it up, but then it stopped, and I was a little

saddened, and a bit amused at the strength of that feeling.  However, I was

a little surprised by the next thing he did.  Not scared, just surprised.



- - -

 

	Feeling brave, I told her to hold on, and swiftly 'swept her off

her feet'.  Standing there, holding her in my arms like a fireman, I carried

a very giggling Hope to her bed (thoughtfully unmade) and lay her down 

gracefully on her side.  I stretched her out, and looked at her perfectly

peaceful form.  What a wonderful woman, I thought, and how glad I was to have

made her my friend.  I crawled around behind her like spoons, drew the covers

up over us, and placed my hand on top of hers, which was resting on her hip.

She grasped it, held it close to her chest like a talisman, and began to

fall asleep.  The position was so comfortable, so wondeful, and so warm I

began to drift off myself, feeling better than I had in a long, long time.

 

- - -



	I knew I wasn't as light as a feather, but I felt quite safe in

his arms.  Something started to tell me that 'just friends' don't do things

like this, but it didn't seem wrong, so I didn't stop him yet.  When he put

me in bed, I started to get tense and almost made him stop, but I calmed

down.  Again, when he crawled in bed, I got really really scared for a second,

but I could trust him, so I let him crawl in with me.  It was warm under

the covers with him, and I felt safe and secure with him.  So, I held

his hand close to my heart and started to drift off to sleep.  My last 

thought was '...so this is love.'



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