Resurgence

He hadn't felt like himself in over a year and try as he might, Christopher Collins didn't know quite what to do about it. He felt as if his life was being lived in a fog and like he was swimming through quicksand. He had no ambition, no zeal for life, no appetite and the most noticeable change, no libido. It was gone and didn't seem to be coming back. Nothing whatsoever got his attention and made him sit up and take notice. All that he did was sleep, get up, eat (if he felt like it) and go back to bed. He watched a bit of television and he interacted with the few friends that had been loyal and that was about the extent of it all. Christopher knew full well that this was not living, it was existing and he was tired of it all.

Christopher was aware of what was causing the discord in his day to day life. Things for the past 18 months had been Wham! Bam! and he had taken one hit after another. He was sure that the kind of tragedies that had befallen him would slow down a normal person and his friends had often chided him for being overly sensitive.

At 40, Chris had finally gotten to a place in his life where he was content. Far from overjoyed, he wasn't sure that was possible. He was content, things were tranquil and he knew what his daily life was going to be like. It had been several years since that kind of routine was a part of his world and he felt as if he could now make plans and they might actually happen.

He had a decent apartment after years of living in less-than acceptable crap shacks. The rent was reasonable and the building was new. His income was now stable, he had settled the lawsuit with his former employers and the regular annuity would insure that his rent and utilities and groceries would all be paid for. He couldn't dine out and eat filet mignon every night, but he wasn't going to be eating Kraft Dinner every night either. Once he had settled in to his new place, he rediscovered his passion for the arts and began to draw and write again. It gave him a sense of purpose and he even found himself smiling every so often. His friends took notice and wondered if perhaps he had met someone, although those that knew him best figured he would have said something. Victor, his oldest friend and proprietor of his favorite book store, said as much to their mutual friends. Chris and Victor had been friends since Chris' early teen years and he looked upon Victor as an older brother. Everyone knew that if Chris was involved with someone, Victor would know all about it. Chris didn't like to keep secrets.

Chris had found someone, although he was playing it close to the vest. Melinda Warner was an attractive, spritely,

much

younger woman he had met at his favorite restaurant. Because she was taking a break from school, she worked as many shifts as she possibly could and she and Chris became friendly. In the course of a year, he saw her go out with the endless parade of losers and all of them treated her abominably. Finally, he spoke up to the 20-year old brunette and tried to make her see that she deserved better than the idiot brigade that seemed to court her.

He didn't expect Melinda's reaction. She spun around on her heels and stared him down with her luminescent green eyes. "Okay hot shot," she said in a haughty tone. "If you think I deserve better, put your money where your mouth is. I turn 21 next week; you take me to dinner and show me how I should be treated."

Chris was simply agog at her boldness. He had no idea that she saw him as someone she could date and it surprised him that the normally-quiet and self-effacing Melinda had been assertive enough to ask him to take her out. Still, she was cute and he wasn't seeing anyone, what would be the harm. The more he thought about it for what seemed like hours, the more enjoyable the prospect seemed. As he looked at her face, he knew that she really wasn't cute, she was pretty. The uniforms of the restaurant were not figure-flattering and he wondered what she looked like in her nicer clothes. Could she possibly dress up enough to look more like a girl?

Despite their age difference and his (mostly failed) experiences with women, Chris found himself looking forward to their "date". It would be nice to sit behind a dinner table and across from a woman for a change. He let Melinda know that he would spoil her a little for her "special" night and that he planned to dress for the occasion. That elicited a tiny, delighted squeal for Melinda, who promised him that she would dress to dazzle. Chris didn't let himself get too hopeful, as he had no idea what a 21-year old might consider "dazzling". It was going to be a nice break from his routine, that was all.

Chris discovered that it would have been okay to get his hopes up. He agreed to meet Melinda at the restaurant and he got there early. He had enough time for a cup of coffee, so he sat with the owners and chatted while he waited for Melinda. When she walked through the door, they all gasped.

Oh mmmmyyyy, Melinda did indeed know how to dress like a girl and a very

sexy

one at that. A form-fitting black and gold dress hugged her every curve. Her hair hung loose and her eyes sparkled with a playful vitality. She was wearing a very sexy pair of black high heels and she knew how to walk in them - boy,

did

she! Not too many young girls could walk in heels these days, Melinda proved to be the exception to the rule. "Did I dazzle?" She asked as she linked her arm through his and went outside to hail a cab.

"Lord no, you

stunned!

" Chris complimented her as she slid into the cab. She had great legs, how had he not noticed that before? The ugly uniform, of course. He complimented her a few more times before they reached Luigi's, the restaurant he had chosen for her birthday. He knew that she would like it, the food was wonderful and the ambience matched. Melinda did like it and they liked each other a great deal. He complimented her beauty a few more times, she, in turn, told him how fascinating he was. As it was a lovely night, they walked after dinner and she surprised him with a very gentle kiss. It held a slight promise of more and Chris played it calm. He was almost 20 years her senior, there was no sense in thinking something might come of this. Still, when he asked her to be his date for

his

birthday the following month, he got the same happy squeal and a hug as she accepted. He insisted on seeing her to her apartment and he got another kiss and hug. Chris felt as if he were on Cloud 9.

They went out on a few more "dates" before his birthday, nothing as fancy, just coffee and dessert. There was such an ease between them that Chris found himself falling for her. He knew it wasn't logical, but since when is love ever logical? For his birthday, they went to another expensive restaurant and that date was equally wonderful. He knew that there was likely some talk among her co-workers, but he didn't care and he believed she wouldn't either. They weren't lovers, just two people in the early stages of - some kind of relationship. With the holidays coming up, Chris thought it would be nice to have someone special to buy a present for. He wasn't going to buy her lingerie, although if he'd had enough, a nice pair of heels would have been appropriate - Melinda liked heels as much as he liked them on her. Whenever he saw her, things seemed okay, although she did seem tense at times. He did his holiday shopping, bought a few knick-knacks for her and gifts for his other friends. A week before Christmas, he went to the restaurant to find that Melinda had quit. No notice, just an angry outburst and she was gone. He called her - she didn't return the calls, it went straight to voice mail. She didn't answer his E-Mails either and after a few weeks, he realized that whatever relationship he had with her had ended. Just like that, without a word of warning. The holidays were bad enough without this happening. He didn't have anything to look forward to now, his family and he lived a distance apart, so he would be spending Christmas entirely alone once again.

Despite trying to keep a level head about it, Chris' heart was broken. Once again, he would be back in the "dating" world, a world which had never treated him well. He was a nice guy, fairly good looking and he dressed well. He treated the women in his life with respect, he had done so with Melinda. For her just to vanish as she had - it hurt. New Years Eve and Valentine's Day were both on the horizon. As they were in past years, they were going to be horrible.

Chris should have known things were going too well in his life. Before the new year was barely a whisper, he was confronted by awful, life-shattering news. Victor was gone. A sudden respiratory infection had ended his life, far before his time. His oldest friend, his buddy, his brother - was gone. The world made a lot less sense now and although Chris knew he had to get through it, it wasn't going to be easy. Victor's other friends all rallied around Chris and they gave Victor an appropriate, heart-felt send off. Every day went by and it still didn't feel real. Victor's family sold the business and it wasn't the same. One of the centers of Chris' universe was gone and he felt adrift. In the past, when something awful like this happened to him, he had someone to talk to - Victor. Now he had lost two people close to him and there wasn't anyone to talk with. Chris was isolated and unhappy. He still went to the restaurant and tried to maintain a semblance of his previous life, yet Melinda's disappearance remained a mystery that gnawed at him. He didn't even know if she was still in the city. He didn't know her friends and he hadn't run into her, not even once.

Chris knew that hanging around at the restaurant, waiting for his old life to come back was a fool's errand. Victor was gone, Melinda was gone and he was just biding time. He thought that he would use some of his spare time to get in better shape, so he walked almost everywhere. He made a point of it and walked for almost an hour every day. At first, it felt great and he lost weight, over 50 pounds. When it started to hurt, he walked to the hospital and got another whammy - he needed an angioplasty and to his shock, he'd had a heart attack and not even known it! At 41, despite the ease of the procedure and the doctors' assurances that he would be fine, Chris felt like an old man. He no longer had any zeal for - anything. He was just going through the motions and barely, at that. Only when he was out with other people did he seem to display any of his old personality. His home life was dull and he actually wondered why he was left alive if this was the peak of his existence. He had his cat to look after, so he didn't fall further into despair, but he didn't shout joy from the rooftops either. As far as Chris was concerned, life was a casserole of crap.

He was working on some ideas for some new stories when Marie walked by his table with an offer to freshen his coffee. He still went to the restaurant, as it was one of the few parts of his routine left. He nodded yes and she poured him a new cup. "Can I ask you something?" Marie said to him.

He looked up at the redheaded server and nodded. "Are you ever going to ask me out?" She spoke up, stunning him. "I must have left my number 5 or 6 times on your bill and you've never called." Chris looked down and to his astonishment, there was a phone number scribbled at the bottom. Not once had he noticed it before.

Trying to wheedle his way out of an embarrassing situation, Chris turned around and smiled at the young redhead. She was cute, so why would she want to date him? "I honestly never noticed until now, but why would you want to go out with

me?

I'm a lot older than you are, at least ten years."

"I'm 25 and I like older men, my roommate was always telling me older guys treat you better and she's right," Marie smiled. She had an expressive face, a lovely smile and pretty emerald eyes. "So, what do you say, buy a girl dinner?"

Chris looked at the smiling redhead in the ugly uniform. It wasn't a put-on, he could tell that she was serious. He wasn't sure. Did he want to risk going through all of that again, dating a younger woman and having her reject him if it didn't work out?

He thought for what seemed like a while and realized that any dating situation ran risks. He had enjoyed happiness when he had been seeing Melinda. If he only got a few nice evenings out of it, why not enjoy those. "Friday, 7 PM," he smiled at Marie. "We'll go somewhere nice, so don't be afraid to dress up."

"I love to wear nice clothes and heels," Marie grinned at him. "I hope that you can handle it, I sometimes dress to kill."

With his recent health issues, Chris was afraid of that, but he kept that piece of data to himself. He'd had enough money in the bank to get his best suit tailored, because with his weight loss, it didn't fit. It was too good a suit to give away and on Friday, when he put it on, he was glad he'd spent the money. He looked like a gentleman and he hoped he would make a good impression on Marie. He wanted their date to be a nice memory for her.

Marie walked into the restaurant wearing a long coat, as it was a cool April night. Her hair was longer than expected, down to her shoulders and slightly tossled. She wore sexy hoop earrings and black stiletto heels. She was normally a petite girl, but now she was more of a medium height. The sway in her walk was very sexy and she had a confident air about her. Chris had never noticed before, but this gorgeous redhead was a knockout little sex kitten. When they got into the taxi, her coat opened and he saw her gorgeous legs and noticed the hint of a stocking top. Marie was dressing for the occasion and that made him smile. It alluded to the fact that their date was going to be a fun one.

He took her to a nice French restaurant and when the Maitre D' took her coat, Chris had to stifle his reaction. His lovely young date wore a green dress that was so tight, it appeared as if it had been painted on. Cut low in front and in back, it revealed a lot of skin, skin that looked as if it were buttermilk. She caught him looking and smiled. "Enjoy the view," Marie said to him. "That's why I wore this dress, it's nice to be looked at and admired."

"You won't have problems in that dress," Chris complimented her. "Wow."

"Oh, so you

noticed

," Marie said as they sat at their table. "I was beginning to think I was invisible. I thought I might have to flash you to get your attention."

"That would have worked," Chris laughed. "Seriously, I owe you an apology. It's been a rough few months and ... well, I don't need to unload on you. I'm just going to say it's nice to be here with such a lovely woman and we'll have a great time."

"Count on it," Marie smiled as she perused the menu. She had an air of playfulness that Chris found refreshing. It was nice to have a lighter evening and to feel - something - again. He was stirred by her impish side and that was a nice feeling.

"I still am not sure, why me?" Chris wanted to know. "You're gorgeous and the restaurant is a busy place. Lots of men must ask for your number."

"I like the ones who aren't obvious," Marie told him. "I flirted with you a few times and you were oblivious to it. That made you a challenge. When I saw how creative you were, that heightened the attraction. Plus, like I said, there's the older man thing."

"That does include some baggage," Chris cautioned her.

"I might not be tall, but I'm a big girl," Marie said as she looked at him pointedly. "I can handle a few bags."

They dined and they wined and to Chris' surprise, Marie picked out their dinner wine. "I'm training to be a sommelier," she told him. He was glad that they had taken a taxi because the wine was wonderful and they both got a bit tipsy. It seemed to loosen them both up and the sexy redhead was even more flirty. "I'm going to seduce you, you know," Marie teased him before adding "Eventually".

Their date ended before midnight, only because the restaurant was closing. They walked, much as he had done with Melinda and as Melinda had done, Marie kissed him. Her kiss was far less chaste. She laid one on him and left the older man reeling.

"We're going out next Friday," Marie insisted. "You're too good not to see again. Don't make plans for Saturday, either." Two dates in a row? When he got home, Chris thought that he had hit the jackpot!

For their second date, Chris pulled out all the stops. He got her flowers and he made reservations at his favorite steak house. He would have to dip into his savings, but he was sure it would be worth it. When he saw Marie, his beliefs were confirmed. This dress was shorter and tighter than the previous one, black and slinky, with heels to match. They were even stiletto, she looked amazing. Her kiss was just as seductive as the previous week and she smelled wonderful. She held his hand as they got in the cab and all the way there.

At dinner, she flirted, she cajoled and she stayed as close as she could. It was going to be a shame to end the date, but he consoled himself with the fact he would be seeing her tomorrow as well. "We should get you home," Chris said to her. "It's nearing midnight and ..."

"My roommate isn't home," Marie said to him. "I told Alana to stay with a friend, so take me home and I'll show you what's

under

this dress. Here's a hint - not much!"

Chris was surprised and now, he knew what she had meant by not making plans for tomorrow. "This is only our second date," he said, trying to act the gentleman.

"Oh Chris, I don't play by silly rules," Marie countered. "If I'd been sure we would have worked out on our first date, I would have told Alana to take a hike. I want us both to go back to my place and fuck like rabbits. I'm a wonderful, wild fuck, wouldn't you like to see for yourself?"

For the first time in a

long

time, Chris found his libido was back - full speed ahead! He nodded and hailed a taxi. There was a mischievous smile on Marie's lovely face that promised delights unexpected. Perhaps, Chris rationalized, this was some Karmic debt for all the misery he had endured the past several months.

Marie's apartment wasn't huge, but efficient. They were kissing with the passion of teenagers as she shucked his coat, tie, shirt and pants. He half-stumbled into her bedroom and she turned on the lights and smiled. She did a small pirouette as she removed her tight black dress. Her lingerie was almost as skimpy as a postage stamp, a sheer black bra and thong, stockings and nothing else. She shucked the bra and thong, leaving on the stockings and heels. "I like to fuck in those," Marie told him. "It makes it seem more naughty."

Chris wasn't about to argue. She almost leapt into bed and was straddling his good-sized form. "I don't like skinny, wimpy guys," Marie purred. "You've got mass, so when we fuck, I'll know that I'm being fucked."

Chris wanted to tell her that it had been a while, but he couldn't find the words. The vixenish redhead was now yanking down his briefs and fumbling with his cock. "Yummy, an after-dinner treat," she said as she slid her mouth down and around. It had been years since anyone had given Chris a blowjob with this much skill or enthusiasm. He tried not to cum, but couldn't hold out. He was going to apologize, but Marie scooted around on the bed and spread her legs. "Make me cum, lover," she said in a husky tone. "I love oral, I could do it all night. Come and eat my pussy and show me what you've got."

Chris also loved oral, giving more than getting. He set about tasting the younger girl's fiery pussy, it had only a tiny patch at the top. She was sweet and she was wet and it was so sexy hearing her yell obscenities as he ate her out. Her hands were gripping his head and she was squealing loudly. To his credit, Chris didn't let up until she pulled him up and kissed his pussy-stained lips.