PULSE

PART V - ENERGY

Elle agreeing to this double date was a terrible decision and she knew it from the moment she'd asked for a sprite only to lectured on the destructive effects of soda. Then when she reviewed the menu only to see various forms of plant based options. No one had even bothered to consider what she liked or could eat. Then came their sage advice and wisdom that was actually mysogynoir. Contrary to Elle's feelings Kizzy seemed to be eating the bullshit right up.

"What do you think empress?" Elles date snapped her out of her thoughts to get out of this arrangement.

"Think about that?" She asked.

"About your role as a woman and mother within the home?" His words gave Elle a headache.

"Kizzy I'm going to get going" Elle smiled instead. "We won't work, my moms married to politician my biological father is in prison for destroying communities and I wear revealing clothing and don't subscribe to your belief system" she said quickly paying for her drink and getting up. They were all talk and no action - the opposite of her type of man.

Frustration knots into Elles stomach at the sounds of knocking and moaning coming from Tre's apartment. It'd been three months since she had any action and it felt like forever. It was Friday night and she was on her couch sipping wine and watching TV like a shrew. Tre usually kept the girls relatively quiet but not tonight he was clearly outdoing himself. She'd gone on celibate stints before but there'd always been a good reason or something to satisfy the urges. A project, a goal, life. Kizzy had been trying but Kizzy could never understand Elle's ranking system or the fun of seeing what a guy was working with relationships were not a requirement for sex. The way Elle saw it was great sex and other criteria were the requirement for relationships. Not to mention none of them were her type - they repulsed her. Always bragging about what they had but there was no spotlight on who they were. She'd been around men like that all her life and they didn't impress her.

Smiling to herself she heads downstairs with a load putting it right into Black's washer machine. Maybe pettiness could be a substitute for action. Black's routine proved what she'd suspected about him all along. He was regimented, his body, his uniform and his washing his sheets after every rendezvous confirmed it. She was occupied by a magazine when he entered sighing and shaking his head at the sight of her.

"Yo" he groans.

"Huh?"

"Every washer is empty so you're purposely being a pain in my ass" Black snaps. His tone is different; harsher than usual and so are his eyes.

Whoa

"Sounded like you we're having too much fun didn't think it'd be over so soon" Elle quips folding her arms and returning the same energy. Deciding not to argue with a woman he tosses his sheets in the vacant washer slamming the door.

"Don't touch my shit either" he warns leaving just like that and puzzling Elle. What the hell had she done? It couldn't have been the laundry. Now that she racked through her brain it had been like that the entire week. Elle had chopped it up to him being busy or him needing space after he'd helped her but this seemed a little deeper.

A knock at the front door gets her attention and she leaves the laundry room to check it out only to see Tre at the door speaking to her date from tonight.

"Hey, I think we got off on the wrong foot" he reasons seeing Elle.

"How did you get my address?" Was the better question she asked aloud.

"Kizzy"

Kizzy

Elle swallowed as Black left heading up to his room and not having her back.