**Cleo**
She sipped her cappuccino with great pleasure, licked the foam off her lips, and as so often, was unaware of the subtle eroticism of her actions. She relaxed and watched through the large window of the street cafΓ© the people passing by as they hurried to some appointment or strolled, chatting with each other. Several times her thoughts returned to the scene on the street. The confused and horrified face of her neighbor somehow gave her immense pleasure. Grinning inwardly, she thought:
*"I'm not so bad after all "*,
and leaned back with a satisfied grin.
She had married her first boyfriend when she got pregnant with her daughter Lena, whom she had at only 19. That had thrown all of her former grand plans. Instead of studying, she cared for the little one, and barely a year and a half later, Sue was born. She had always wanted two kids, albeit not necessarily so early in life- But she had not given up her intention of becoming a medical doctor.
Against all odds, she had started her studies at the age of 23, and had sometimes, okay maybe many times, envied the other students for their freedom to do whatever they wanted. When her fellow students went out for a drink or to a party after class, she would hurry home to put the little ones to bed. Then she would get out her books and study late into the night. There was just no time for leisure or even pleasure.
She was one of the best in her year and was quite proud of that achievement. What fell by the wayside, however, was her relationship. The romance faded as soon as Sue was born, but it didn't get awful until after she had started university. She was either too tired for sex, or the kids needed attention. Nevertheless, she felt she had everything under control and her studies were going well. At least until her husband told her he wanted to separate and had accepted a job in the USA. A week later, he was already on a plane, and she was alone with two small children in a dreary two-room apartment.
Nevertheless, she had somehow managed to finish her studies, then got a job at the hospital and raised the girls. Both were as beautiful as their mother, and Lena had recently passed her final exams. Cleo was justifiably proud of herself, both for her accomplishments as a mother and as a doctor.
After her husband had left, she had no time and didn't feel any desire to date. When she wasn't working or studying, she cared for her daughters. Only jogging and a mix of aerobics and yoga kept her going, and that was effectively her only pastime for a long time.
She always went to work without makeup (the daily mascara did not count as makeup for her), but that did not detract from her beauty. She completely ignored the advances of men and thus enjoyed the reputation of an aloof, even frigid beauty. After all, her professional competence was undisputed by all.
A few years ago, when the children were still teens, she had a short phase in which she made a few male acquaintances. But none of the men could handle the fact that she hardly had any free time. So they remained short but still quite intense affairs since Cleo had no interest in a purely sexual relationship. She enjoyed the sex but didn't really miss the men when they were gone again.
Then about half a year ago, many things had changed at the same time. Sue had decided to do an exchange year at a college in the U.S. and had flown to her father, with whom she would now live for a year. Cleo had been less than enthusiastic, but at almost 18, she had let Sue decide for herself.
Lena had been in a study rush and had no time for anything, certainly not for her mother.
Shortly after Sue had left, she had also taken a new job at a very prestigious private clinic. Instead of the typical 60, 70, or even more hours per week, she suddenly had relatively regular working hours, with rare exceptions. If that wasn't enough change, she had also moved into a bigger, more luxurious apartment.
So for the first time in a very long time, she was now able to think, read, relax, even occasionally watch TV or do whatever else she wanted.
A few weeks ago, that somewhat disturbing episode with the neighbor, the Peeping Tom, had happened. She hadn't seen him watch her, but she was still quite sure of it. In her old apartment, this couldn't have occurred since it was on the sixth floor. She was also aware that in the past, she wouldn't have given it much thought at all - simply because of a lack of time to reflect on it.
But everything was different now, and she attributed her unusual fantasies to all the newfound free time. She had suppressed her sexuality for a long time, and now it seemed to want to burst out of her. This game with putting her bra on the bed was somewhat absurd but, at the same time, exciting and strangely amusing.
So, he had seen her naked for the second time now, albeit from behind. And it had been entirely intentional to show herself to him this way; there was no denying that fact. On the other hand, he had hardly seen anything, she mused. Besides, the whole act had also lost much of the drama since their encounter on the street. Likely because it had been her own decision and only hers.
Nevertheless, the fantasy had lost none of its appeals, despite or maybe because of that brief encounter on the street. She realized the "reality" aspect enhanced or even complemented the fantasy. For a moment, she wondered how it would all go on from now.
She decided not to tell anyone about it for the time being and have some fun. She took the last sip of her cappuccino and thought:
*"It's just a fantasy, and it's nobody's business anyway."*