Adam - A Novella

11

The sound of anguished pleasure filled the hotel room. I looked down at the squirming girl beneath me and the way her eyes lit up in the dark room. Hazelnut with streaks of chestnut around the pupil, I noted. I rolled to her side awkwardly, calculating what exactly to say or do. It's hard to math out a situation I've never been in before. She ran her fingers through her long hair, and I couldn't help but think about how much better it would look short. And if her torso had less curve, and her shoulders were broader, she'd be my perfect type. I know it's just a personal preference, and that she was the epitome of beauty to everyone else, but hey, my mind wouldn't leave me alone about it.

"Good night baby." She whispered to me, and I froze. We never called each other that, and I guess she assumed it was because we hadn't been close. I never did because I called my sister that since the day she was born, and the idea of calling any other girl "Baby" seems gross in comparison.

"Good night love." I said back, and she settled into my stomach. I fixed her hair, and she smiled thinking it was for enjoyment, but realistically, her hair goes almost all the way to her spine. It was in my face big time. I clicked off the tap lamp to the side of us, but I knew I couldn't sleep. I contributed it to my heart beating out of my chest from the "Physically Strenuous" activity, but a weird off feeling was lurking, telling me something here was wrong. I ignored it (what's wrong with having sex with my girlfriend?), but the way her chest pressed into my pecs making me feel uncomfortable was undeniable: it was not due to my increased heart rate.

The Blanchettes were very friendly people. They weren't opposed to Avalin having a boyfriend in freshman year, which was my main worry. My other worry was that they'd be as stuck-up and bitchy as Ava. The first interaction, however, proved quite different. I remember tromping up the concrete steps onto a high-class family house. The kind of house you'd expect in a gated community, but it's completely (paid to be) maintained by them. It was bigger than a cul-de-sac house too, which I later learned had six full-sized bedrooms and four bathrooms. If anyone in my trailer park heard how big this place was, you'd never hear from any of her family again. A Canadian flag flew out front, and I wondered if they've ever been harassed for it like my father does to others. They had a fancy welcome sign and Ring doorbell, with the camera and everything. She grabbed my hand when we approached the steps, which only made me feel more nervous. No idea why.

"Well, hi! You must be the boy Avalin mentioned." A sweet middle-aged lady opened the door, revealing a grandeur living room. The first things I spotted were a robot vacuum zooming around the hardwood flooring, carpet stairs, and plenty of black, white, and brown furniture. In fact, the only real color was the khaki carpet, a clear glass vase of gorgeous red roses on the fireplace, and a small toy Barbie wearing a pink dress that was sitting on the sleek black coffee table. "Welcome to our home. Sorry for the mess." She said, bending over to put the Barbie in her pocket and straighten the coffee table, which I genuinely hadn't noticed was crooked.

"Ava!" Yelled a voice upstairs that quickly got substantially louder. Jesus, how big is this place? A small girl with long, thin blonde hair only slightly darker than Avalin's darted to my girlfriend, who giggled and bent over to give her toddler sister a hug. When her brother with strikingly light brown hair, which barely looked natural, did the same however, she pushed him with very little playful demeanor. I bent and gave him a hug for her.

"Sorry, those are my younger siblings." She said, as if it wasn't their house as much as hers. I suddenly felt a little nauseous and would rather play dolls or trucks with the kids instead of spending another second with her.

"I thought you had five siblings?" I was proud to remember that, because I also remember thinking that if I had five siblings, I would never get an inch to myself in my house. She groaned, as if the memory of her family disgusted her. My fists clenched at the thought of her undermining such a welcoming living space.