It was on a nice Wednesday afternoon. I was on day-one of a two-day break between the weekend day shift and the dreaded midnight shift that started Friday Morning (actually I had to be there by Midnight Thursday night) I was reading a book out on my apartment balcony and enjoying the early afternoon sun of a nice spring day.
There were very few people out and about and all that caught my attention was the occasional bird that chirped in the nearby trees. I was beginning to sense the possibility of an oncoming nap attacking me when I heard a voice from the next-door balcony. It was a young lady that I had met on a few occasions who lived in the next-door apartment. Her name is Sue and she is a nurse at the nearby hospital.
I was a little startled by her: "Hey, how you doing?" and looked around for a few seconds until I saw her head looking around the wall that separated our balconies.
"Hello there, yourself, how are you today?"
Sue watched as I got up out of my chair and walked the short distance to be as close to her as the dividing wall would allow. I leaned over the railing so that I could see her better and she was looking really good. Sue is a good looking twenty-seven-year-old lady with dark hair and an athletic looking body. And a cast on her right leg. Wait! "Where did that cast come from?"
"I managed to fall off a horse." She replied. "Actually, I hadn't really gotten all the way onto him when I fell over the other side of the saddle and broke my leg just below the knee. It was really kinda dumb."
"Wow, that must have really hurt. Will you need surgery?"
Sue thought for a few seconds before: "Yes it did hurt and no, I probably won't need any surgery. I just need to have this cast on for six or seven more weeks. Meanwhile, I'm on short-term disability from the hospital. So, I'll be OK; just a little bored."
She really did look a little bored so I asked: "Is there anything that I can do for you?"
Sue appeared to have been waiting for just that sort of a question: "Well, I really could use a 'store run'. It's not easy for me to go up and down those stairs and driving my car with this cast would be really tough. Is there any chance that you could 'please' make a run to the market if I give you a list and my debit card?"
I agreed to making the run but doubted that the cashier would believe that my name is 'Sue' so I declined using her card and told her that we could figure out something on the costs. She offered to send me an electronic check. I suggested that we wait to see how much it cost at the market before she got all involved with the finance.
I asked: "Do you already have a list?"
Sue reached into the back pocket of the cutoff jeans that were hugging her fine-looking ass and came out with a folded sheet of notebook paper. She unfolded it and passed it to me.
I scanned the list and noted that it was mostly food items and a few other 'essentials' that I knew that I could probably find at the local market. "I'm on my way!"
Sue thanked me and handed me a key for her front door: "Please come right in; that way I won't have to make another awkward trip down and up those stairs." I accepted the key and told her that I should be back within the hour. I asked her for her phone number: "In case I have any questions." She gave it to me and I entered it into my cell phone.
I was soon 'off on a mission' and pushing a shopping cart around the local grocery. I went systematically from aisle to aisle picking up the things that were on her list. One item caught my attention; a tube of soothing medicated cream that she specified by brand name. There were two sizes available and her list did not indicate which one. So, I called: "Which size of the cream did you want?"
Sue replied: "Get the biggest one that they have; I really need it."
I asked if there was anything else? She said that she couldn't think of anything that wasn't already on the list. Since it was getting toward late afternoon I asked: "Is it too early for supper?"
She told me that she hadn't thought that far ahead yet; so, I offered to bring 'fried chicken' when I returned. Sue thought that was a good idea and told me that she really appreciated my running the errands for her. I told her that I should be back within the half-hour and we rang-off.
I checked out, stowed the groceries in my car and headed for the chicken place drive-thru. I was soon on my way back to the apartments and started trundling the bags up to Sue's place. It took three trips to get it all in. I brought the chicken on the first trip so by the time that I was done Sue had set the table and had all the perishables put away. We sat at the table and pushed chicken down our necks.
I offered to clear up and Sue looked happy to accept. We had eaten on paper plates so there were only a couple of glasses and some silverware to worry about. Sue, meanwhile, retreated to the living room and put herself down on the couch. I heard the TV come on; she had the early evening news program playing. I went in and sat on the opposite end of the couch with her feet next to my hip.
We watched the news for a few minutes before I picked up her foot (The one not on the casted leg) and began rubbing her instep and ankle area. Sue, at first, looked a little startled but quickly changed expression to a happy face: "Oh wow, that feels really good."
I smiled and applied myself to rubbing and smoothing her foot for another few minutes before asking: "Would it hurt you if I did the other one?"
Sue seemed very happy to have me paying attention to her feet. She smiled and moved herself down on the couch so that her feet were, more or less, on my lap. I started on the other foot and this time she actually moaned a little: "Damn, that feel good."
I didn't say anything; I just kept up rubbing. With her new position, I could reach as far as mid-calf and she seemed to appreciate that. After a few minutes of rubbing I asked: "Your skin seems a little dry. Do you have any hand cream or lotion that I could put on?"
This question seemed to get a very happy reaction from Sue: "Yes I do. But I would really like to not get anything on this couch. Would you mind doing that on my bed sheets?"
On the bed with Sue? Are you kidding me? I tried to keep my voice calm: "That would be ok by me. Lead the way. "