Animate Me

“Like it’s meant to be,” she says with a dreamy look. My mom is such a hopeless romantic. I found a bunch of those erotic romance stories in the back of her closet once, leading me to believe that she can be well versed in suspending disbelief. That could explain her complete faith that Brooke will end up mine.

Brooke seems deep in thought on the drive back to my place. I try to relax and go with it, but finally I can’t take it anymore.

“You’re so quiet. What are you thinking?” I ask nervously.

“Just now I was thinking how much I miss having a family. I’m an only child, but before my parents got divorced we hung out a lot like your family does. And your parents are so cute together; they genuinely adore each other, don’t they?”

“Oh yeah, they make a good pair. I’m sorry that your family is split up but you can be a member of my family. My parents both liked you a lot.”

“Thanks.” She smiles warmly. “Your Dad’s pretty amazing Nathan. I’m knocked out by all the stuff he’s invented.”

“I’m impressed you got him to talk and open up so much, but I guess I shouldn’t be. Look how much you’ve gotten me to talk.”

She grins. “You’re both really similar you know? Both of you have super creative minds.”

“Well, we’re both geeky and awkward. That’s for sure.”

As I pull up to the house Brooke looks out the window.

“So your Mom talked a bit about Rachel when we were making lunch.”

“Really?” I’m not sure I want to hear this.

“So she told me that Rachel is living with a woman up North. You never mentioned that.”

I pull into the driveway. “It didn’t occur to me to mention it. I’ve only met her roommate once. Why?”

Brooke looks at me curiously. “Just wondering.”

I open the trunk to my car and pull out our stuff.

“Do you want to come in and hang out?” I cringe at how stupid that sounds but I’m desperate. I’m so addicted to her that it pains me to think about her driving away and going back to Arnold.

She steps closer and runs her hands along my shoulder. “No, I’ve got stuff I need to do—girl stuff.”

“Girl stuff? Anything I can help with?”

“Not unless you’re good at mani-pedis.”

“I could try,” I offer. I’m an artist…so how hard could it be?

She wraps her arms around me and holds on tight. “No, I think we will leave that to the little woman with the sharp scissors. But thanks for offering.”

I pause and look down at her lips with longing. “I suppose I used up all my practice kisses this morning, huh?”

“Yeah, mister, that was about a week’s worth, but who’s counting.”

She surprises me by reaching up and pressing her lips against mine. It’s a sweet slow kiss, her tongue barely grazing mine. When we part I pause for a moment with my eyes closed not wanting it to be over.

I feel her pulling her bags out of my hands. “That was so much fun. Thanks, Nathan.”

“Will you come with me again?” I ask, hopeful.

“How about next month? It’s the second Sunday every month.”

“Yup, it’s a date then.” I grin widely.

“So, see you tomorrow?”

I nod and watch her get in her car.

Inspired, I spend the rest of the afternoon drawing without restraint. Pose after pose, naked and clothed, stretched out and curled up. Laughing, pensive, smiling…every kind of beautiful.

Brooke.

Animate Me / Chapter Eleven / Man With a Tux

“We’ve been framed, Gumby. Never trust animated people.” ~Pokeyx

At four in the morning I wake up suddenly and lay there stu

I walk right past Morgan and into Brooke’s office. Brooke is working at her computer, so I go straight up to her desk and sit down in the one of the visitor chairs. She looks up when I set down her coffee.

“Well, hello.” She laughs but then stops when she notices the look on my face.

“Are you all right?”

I lean forward on my elbows. I gaze at the grain in the wood of her desk and finally ask the question that has tormented me for the last twelve hours.

“So that’s it, isn’t it…Rachel’s gay?” I exhale long and slow, finally letting the air out of my chest. “It hit me in the middle of the night, and I’ve thought of nothing else since then.”

She gets up and closes her office door, then returns to her chair. She pulls up close to her desk and leans in towards me.

“Well, that would explain a lot, wouldn’t it?”

“I’ve wondered if that were the case from time to time. I even asked her once but she insisted that she wasn’t.”

Brooke has a sympathetic look on her face. I’m shaken even though I’ve agonized over the idea since four a.m., complete with visions of Rachel with other women dancing in my head.

“She must not have felt ready to admit it to you.”

“Is that what my mom thinks too?” I ask anxiously.

“Shouldn’t you ask her directly?” she gently suggests.

“I need to know right now. Come on, Brooke…”

She slowly nods, and I sigh.

“But please talk to her about it. I feel bad telling you.”

“Why didn’t I trust my instincts? Do you think Rachel was always gay, or did I make her that way?”

“Oh God, how could you think that? Of course she was born that way, but she must have cared about you enough to want to try men anyway.”

“Oh, lucky me!” I say sarcastically. “So remember how I told you that she loved me, you know…giving her oral sex? I was thinking about that all day and how she would always have her eyes closed. Do you think she was imagining I was someone else…a woman?”

“Maybe,” Brooke says sadly.

“Yeah, and her current roommate is kind of a tomboy. I swear, I’m so damn slow!” I press my fingers over my forehead in frustration.

“You just didn’t want to see it. Didn’t you say she was the first girl that you had a strong co

“You’re just trying to make me feel better,” I say quietly.

“No, I’m not. Give yourself a break; you aren’t only attracted to gay women. Like what about Dani? I know she isn’t gay. And you seem to enjoy me, and I’m not gay.”

“But you’re just helping me. That doesn’t count.”

“Sure it does, I’m not just helping selflessly. I always get really turned on with you,” she says matter of fact, like she’s talking about the weather.

“You do?” Suddenly it’s like the clouds have parted. Rachel, and all her gayness, fades out of my mind.

“What? You can’t tell? I thought it was rather obvious at your place yesterday morning. I’ve been very tempted to accelerate the education into advanced studies.”

I blush and immediately feel my pants tightening. “Wow, I’d really love to sign up for that.”

Oh, you’re such an idiot! I shift in my chair, embarrassed that I opened my big trap.

“Damn…sorry, I’m just so clueless. I wasn’t completely sure you really felt like that…”

She laughs. “Well then, you’ll just have to take my word for it.” She looks down at her coffee and lifts it to examine it more closely. “Now, what do we have here?”

“Brooke Berry Shortcake,” I respond, smiling.

The drawing is of her perched like a sexy pin-up on top of a huge strawberry with a strawberry hat on her head. She’s wearing yoga pants and a fitted T-shirt.

“Oh, this is awesome. I love it!”

I smile at her and then look down at the pile of projects strewn over her desk. “Well, we should get back to work.” I slowly push away from her desk.