"Great Expectations or Boogie Nights?" Zac asked, holding up two video tape cartridges.
"Have you seen them before?" I asked.
"Only one." "Which one?" "Ah, Boogie Nights." "You're sick. That's full of porno." "I closed my eyes." "Yeah, right." "Okay, fine, Miss I'm-against-porno-because-my-boyfriend-watched-it, what do you want to see?" he asked in his smart-ass tone.
"That's Miss-I-love-Zac-even-though-he-watched-porno-because-I-know-he-loves-me." I said matter-of-factly.
"Is his dick really a foot long? Kayla told me that Mark, or Dirk Diggler, goes, "I'm a shining star, a bright shining star," and then he shows it." I added.
"That's where I closed my eyes." "I'll believe you on that part."
"I assume that you'd rather watch "Great Expectations" then." he suggested.
"Yeah; I'm not in the mood for hard-core crap."
"Okay." He put the video tape into the VCR and pushed the play button.
"Wait!" I called out, "I have a craving for popcorn. Let me go make some."
"Kim...." Zac whined. "Zac, it only takes four minutes." I said, putting a bag in the microwave.
Eventually, the popcorn was popped, I was happy, and Zac was satisfied as the movie started rolling.
Near half-way through the movie, all the kernels in the bag of the popcorn were left, and my eyes were slowly getting heavy and droopy as Ethan was sketching a nude picture of Gwyneth. I knew Zac's eyes were glued to her body. What else? Soon, my vision blurred and my eyes shut, relieving the struggle I had labored them to stay awake.
I looked around the rink and spotted crowds and crowds, chanting and cheering on the performer on the ice, who just completed a triple axle perfectly.
The pressure rose as I brought myself to the center of the rink as soon as it was clear.
My coach gave me my signal to begin, and the music started to play on the overhead system.
I started to skate in figure eights, something that wasn't a part of my routine. Then I stood on one tiptoe, my other leg crossed over my single thigh, and spun in circles. Over and over, and over and over; faster, faster, faster. The audience blurred into a colorful mesh, and then I collapsed and everything blacked out.
I could hear a commotion full of gasps and fears. I felt myself being propped up on a thin cot, and I was being carried out to a noisy ambulance.
"No! No!" I cried, but no sound came out of my throat. I desperately tried to open my eyes, but they wouldn't budge. My arms were like steel; they were no hope to motion that I was alright.
A loud machine started to non-stop beep a solid note.
"She's gone." said a doctor by my side.
"No! No! No! No........."
"Oh my God!" I gasped and shot up out of Zac's lap.
"Huh, what?" Zac muttered, waking up.
"Zac, you can hear me? My body! I can move! I can see!" I rejoiced, rubbing my eyes.
"Did you have a bad dream or something?" he asked, weirded out by my observation.
I kissed him. "Zac, did I already perform in the ice skating marathon?" I asked greedily.
He looked at me with his mouth hanging open, then he squinted his eyes at me. "Sweetie, that's in three weeks. Did you have a nightmare about it?" he asked, ruffling my hair.
"Oh, Zac, it was horrible. I did all the wrong stunts. I blacked out, and they took me into an ambulance, and......oh, Zac, I hated it." I confessed.
"Hey, it's okay. You're here, and it didn't happen. Shhhhh....." he cooed and took me into his arms.
I came out. "It was just too real. I mean, this marathon is so important to me. The better I do, the more calls come in. The more calls come in, the more money is donated to the children's hospital in time for Christmas."
"Kim." "What." "Kiss me already." "Oh Zac, it's not that easy." "What kissing me? All you do is lean forward, open your mouth slightly, and press it against mine." "But Zac-" "No Buts. Here, I'll demonstrate." he finished, and kissed me.
My tension vanished slowly as Zac generously got up from under me and placed himself on top of me. Relaxation increased everytime we kissed.
He brought his hands down to my stomach and carressed it. Eventually, he pushed his hands up my shirt until they reached my face, holding it.
"Zac, not now. Parental units are here." I stated, pushing his hands out of my shirt.
"One more kiss, please?" he begged.
"Who can resist?" I replied, pulling him back on me.
"I could get used to this." he commented, placing his hand in between my thighs.
"Oh, mhwy Gowhd!" I muffled, pushing him off of me.
"Woah, I'm sorry, sensitive spot there, eh?"
"Zac, you're not doing anything for the next couple of hours, are you?"
"I have to be at home for dinner at seven. Why?"
"Come on, let's go," I said, getting up and grabbing his hand and my car keys, "Bye Mom! Dad!" I yelled.
"Where are we going?" Zac asked when we got in my Maita Chevrolet.
"The mall." I said, and sped down the road.
"Wait! Wait! Stop, please!" I yelled to a man locking the doors that led to the ice-skating rink, running to him with Zac trailing not far behind me.
"Mr. Crisp, hang on a minute." Zac ordered when he caught up with me and stood in fron of the man.
"Oh, hey Zachary, long time no see." the man said to Zac.
"You two know each other?" I asked.
"Yeah, Mr. Crisp is Tony's father."
"Zachary, I told you to call me Hugh, not Mr. Crisp."
"And I told you to call me Zac, not Zachary." he replied.
"Zac, that was rude!" I exclaimed.
"Oh, don't worry about it. I let it pass. My boys do it all the time!" he said, and laughed.
"Well, enough chit-chat. Mr. Crisp-" "Hugh; call me Hugh." "Ah, Hugh, are you closing the rink for today?" "Yes, I am. My wife's making pot roast, and I gotta get going." he said, and started to walk away.
"No, wait!" I called out, and tugged his arm back, "Could you let me go in and skate?" I asked.
"I can't, it's closing time." he said.
"Uh, Hugh, come here," Zac said, and pulled Hugh aside, "Hugh, she's one of the major performers in the marathon this month; and she's very paranoid she'll fail her routine because of a recent nightmare that occured. So if you could let her practice for no more than an hour, will you? Please?" Zac explained and pleaded.
""Well, why didn't you say so? Of course! Come on in." Hugh said, and unlocked the door to the rink, and I ran inside to go put on my outfit in the locker room.
"Hugh, if you could, will you play this song on the soundsystem? It's the song for my routine." I said, handing him my CD and grabbing my skates.
"Sure. I'll give you the signal when I play the song."
"Thanks." I said, and sat down to lace up my skates.
"Hey babe." Zac came over and sat down next to me on the bench.
I finished tying up my skates, hugged Zac, and kissed him. "Watch me." I whispered, and went out to the middle of the ice.
Hugh gave me his signal for the music, and the beginning chords of the song opened up and I skated to the music.
As the tricks got more complicating, my adrenaline rose, and I tried my perfection against a double axle. I succeeded.
I sighed a deep breath, and a load of my tension was relieved. But soon, I had to face my enemy challenge: a triple axle.
Okay, it's time. Now or never. I thought. I skated around the edge of the ice, my heart pounding. Then I jumped, turned around three times in the air, and landed perfectly on my right foot, saling backwards, as the last notes in the song dissipated.
The biggest smile ever rose upon my face, and I skated to the railing, where Zac jumped over it onto the ice. I crashed into him, hugging him tight, meshing us together.
"That was great!" he cried, kissing me.
"Great!? Are you kidding me!? Zac, that was the only time I did it perfectly! I mastered the double and triple axles for the first time! Oh my God!" I cried.
I started to get hysterical from being so happy and excited.
"Sweetie, let me get you a coffee. That'll calm you down."
"'Kay," I said, "I've got to do this again."
Hugh watched me go out to the ice again, and he started up the song. This time I was discouraged, for I messed up my final axles.
I left the ice with a frown. By then, Zac came back with my coffee and I told him I screwed up. "Do it again." he encouraged. I did, and for the second time ever, it was perfect.
"Zac, I did it! I did it!" I rejoiced.
He answered me with a kiss. "Do it again while I go to the bathroom." he said.
I did, and I failed my ending axles once again. He came back and then it was perfect. I was sensing a pattern, so I told him to go away, and I messed up. He came back and it was spotless. We did this four more times, and I discovered it.
"Zac, you're my lucky charm! Never ever have I had this perfected until you've came here and watched me. It's only obvious-"
"Kim, I know. I know everything. You don't need to say anymore." he interrupted.
I embraced him aggresively. He grabbed my rear tight as I filled his mouth with my lips and tongue.
"You'll come and watch." I gasped.
"No, really." he gasped back.
That night, I couldn't sleep. I was so excited that my routine was mastered. I couldn't wait to bring Zac with me and show Mrs. Sherman, my teacher.
I got up to go to the bathroom. I noticed a light peeking into the window that led to the Hanson backyard. From my distance, I saw Zac in the treehouse.
Maybe I should pay him a little visit, I thought, and put on thick socks, my robe, and my snow boots.
"Zac?" I whispered.
"Oh my God, don't scare me like that." he gasped, putting down his book.
"What are you doing up at two o'clock in the morning? And especially outside in a treehouse when it's twenty degrees?" I asked, ignoring his fright.
"I couldn't sleep." "But you came outside in freezing cold weather? You're going to get a cold." I scolded.
"Oh goodie. Another mommy." he sarcastically said.
"Yeah, I guess I sound like one. I'm only concerned for you."
"Well, I'm glad you're concerned." he said with a kiss.
"You look cold. Come into my sleeping bag. It's like an oven in here." he offered when he saw me shivering.
I climbed in with him greedily, robe and all. I snuggled in next to him. "Oooh, you're right. It does feel nice and cozy." I commented. "It just got better." he murmured.
I wrapped my arms around him and laid my head on his chest, and listened to the rythmic beating of his heart and his breathing. He picked up his book and started reading it again while softly brushing his fingertips up and down my spine.
After awhile, we simultaneously said, "ZaKicm."
"You first." I said. "No, your first." he replied.
"Well, I was just going to....." I started to say, and finished it by taking his lips onto my mouth for a kiss.
"Okay. Your turn." I said.
He dropped his book and rolled on top of me, greedily stealing my kisses. I was enjoying every one of them as they got deeper and hungrier. All of a sudden, the urge was taken away from me when he stopped.
"I can't do this." he said. "Why? I want you to." I replied. "Kim, this was going to lead to my question." he gasped out. I gave him a worried, blank stare.
"I want to make love to you tonight." he announced, taking my hands into his. His breathing rate started to increase, and it looked as if he was on the verge of tears.
"Oh Zac...." "Kim, I want you so bad right now. You're much too beautiful to make me let go, but I have to. I want this so much, I just can't have it."
"But you can Zac," I said, sitting up, "You can love me tonight."
"Oh Kim....." he moaned, and put his head into my chest.
"Zac, calm down.....shhhh.....it's okay. Alright." I cooed, rubbing his head softly.
"You know what? I have no idea why all of this emotionally channeled crap did this to me. I want to make love to you tonight. But first, how about some candles and music?" he said.
"Sounds repressingly romantic and sexy." I replied.
He lit about twelve candles and placed them around the treehouse. Then he flipped on the portable CD player, which played some Natalie Imbruglia.
He got back into the sleeping bag with me, and we started a round of "Let's See Who Kisses Better."
Soon, that round led to "The Strip" round, where soon enough, only the boxers of Zac were left.
"I'm not going to start now, so let me get a condom." he said, getting up and reaching into a bag, pulling out one.
"Why do you have a condom up here?" I asked.
"We have lots. See, when Ike was moving out, we told him to go out to the treehouse for a "surprise." Me and Tony and Luca were up here with these watermelon-size water balloons, and the water was in the condoms. Then we dumped them on Ike." he said, chuckling.
"Oh, okay." I said, smiling.
"Now," he said, getting back on top of me, "I need to get you into the mood." "Okay." I replied.
"Okay now. Close your eyes, be silent, and think of this."
You are outside," he kissed my forehead, "There's fresh-fallen snow," he kissed my eye, "You're up here with me," he kissed my other eye, "In this very cozy sleeping bag," he kissed my nose, "And we are about to make love." he finished, kissing my lips.
Making love for the second time was even better. As the last notes for, "One More Addiction," ended, Zac was fully inside of me, we reached climax, and new snow began fall as we drifted off into a wonderful slumber.