Jules 03 - the Aftermath

Author's Note: This is a chapter in a multi-part story and is not intended to stand alone. There's not much action in this one, but more is coming. This is my first attempt at writing erotica, so feedback is highly encouraged.

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I awaken with a start and sit up in a sense of panic. I'm back at home, in my own bed, dressed in my normal sleep shirt and very confused. I look over to find Kim laying next to me, still fully dressed from the pub and looking at me with a mix of concern and amused relief. "Hey there, how are you feeling?" She asks.

"Ugh!" It's all I can muster. My throat is like sandpaper and my head is pounding. A quick glance at the clock tells me it's a little after midnight. I drop my head into my hands in an attempt to silence the throbbing. I spend a moment taking stock of everything and memories of the previous day come crashing home. "Oh, god..." I force myself to look at Kim through my fingers.

"So... uh... you gave us quite a scare earlier. Are you okay?"

"I think so. I feel like I got hit by a truck." My head is slowly clearing. "Um... what happened?" I'm not sure I want to know the answer.

"I found you in the ladies room... acting strangely." I blush deeply at the connotation. "Your clothes were scattered around the bathroom and you were... I think you... uh... came and then passed out." Uncharacteristically, Kim is having to search for her words. She seems conflicted between wanting to poke fun at me and wanting to wrap me protectively in her arms. "I helped you get dressed and then Rick drove us all back to your place. You were pretty out of it. We didn't want to leave you, so I helped you to bed. Rick is asleep out on your couch." I don't bother asking how I got undressed for bed. I figure by this point it doesn't really matter.

"What did you tell Rick?" My humiliation is building. There's no way he would understand any of this.

"I just told him you were sick. He was pretty freaked."

"Was there anyone else in there?"

"No, I don't think anyone else saw you. I'm pretty sure we were the only women in the place." That's reassuring, but not exactly what I asked. What had happened to J? How does she keep disappearing?

Kim looks at me for a long moment, trying to avoid the elephant in the room. "So... why were you..." she leaves the question unfinished.

"I..."

What can I tell her? That my doppelganger snuck into the bathroom and seduced me? That she stripped me in a public restroom and had me masturbate with a hairbrush? That I came so hard I passed out? That I'm powerless in her presence? I feel my arousal flare up at that last thought. Am I really that weak? Or am I that depraved?

"I don't know. It's like I couldn't help myself. I feel like I'm going crazy!"

"Maybe someone slipped something in your drink?" she offers.

"Maybe. That's as likely as anything."

"Do you want to call the police? Or go to a hospital?"

I pause to consider my options. I don't think I'm hurt. No physically, at least. I don't know what good a hospital would do. I don't think I could face the embarrassment of going to the police. What would I even tell them?

"No, I think I just need to rest and put this whole thing behind me." We chat for a while longer as I try to convince her that I'm okay. Eventually we head out to the front room and wake up Rick. I apologize and thank them both profusely for taking care of me and then send them on their way. Moments later, I'm back in bed.

My sleep is fitful, broken by fragments of visions. I can't tell dreams from reality or memory from fantasy. I see me pleasuring myself in the bathroom. I see myself walking between Kim and Rick from the pub with my arms around them for support. I hear them laughing and feel their groping hands play over my body. I hear myself moan as Kim holds me down on my bed with her tongue at my sex. I hear Rick grunt as his hard length slides into me.

Consciousness returns slowly as the light of morning pours in my window. I lie in bed trying to make some kind of sense out of the last 24 hours. Failing to do so, I crawl out of bed for coffee and a shower. I spot my phone and purse on the kitchen counter where Kim had left it. The handle of the brush pokes out tauntingly, where it had been hastily shoved into the purse. Christ, was that really me yesterday?

I decide I need some answers. I pick up the phone and text the number J had given me. "Can we meet?"

The reply is immediate. "Good morning, Little Butterfly. I trust you got some rest."

I'm really not in the mood for this. "I need to talk to you."

"Sure thing, love. Just tell me where and when."

I don't want her to know where I live, and I don't trust going back to the sandwich shop from yesterday. We settle on a coffee shop next to a nearby shopping mall.

She's already waiting at a table when I arrive, so I get a cup of coffee and join her. The contrast in our appearances couldn't be more pronounced. She is dressed in a casually trendy skirt and top, hair and makeup understated but perfectly executed. I, on the other hand, am a mess. I'm wearing sweatpants and a formless t-shirt, no makeup and my hair looks like I just rolled out of bed.

"Oh dear," she laughs as I take my seat. "Looks like someone had a rough night." She gives me a wink and a knowing grin.

"Very funny. What the hell was that?"

"What was what?"

"Whatever you did to me yesterday."

"As I recall, I didn't do anything to you except fix your makeup. Which, incidentally, you could use another hand with. " I look at her impatiently.

"Everything else, you did to yourself. And you didn't do anything that you didn't desperately need. How long has it been since you left ol' what's-his-name?"

"Paul, and that's none of your business. Look, I don't go around doing THAT in public restrooms. Or anywhere else..."

"Well, maybe that's the problem." There's that damn smirk again. Then she straightens. "After everything you've been through, you deserve to let loose a little. You can't tell me you didn't enjoy it." Memories come flooding back, and I flush with my arousal. "That's what I thought." She added, watching me squirm a little, before I'm able to compose myself.

"Okay J, cut the crap. You waltz into my life yesterday and all of a sudden I'm parading around half naked and getting myself off in public restrooms." She gives a little grin as I catch the fact that I'm practically shouting this in public. I continue more softly "You're acting like nothing's out of the ordinary, but I need to know what's going on!"

She looks me in the eye, appraising my resolve. A moment later, her face softens. The cheeky arrogance is replaced by compassion. "Okay look. You're wound up tighter than a piano wire. Between your moping around over this Paul character, your sexual frustration and your complete inability to relax, something had to give. I just gave you a little push. I'll admit, you took it a little farther than I thought you would. But you NEEDED that."

I looked at her expectantly. There has to be more to it.

"I can't tell you everything that's going on in that pretty little head of yours. Only you can. I can tell you that sitting in that restroom, you looked truly alive for the first time since I met you." I don't say anything as I consider what she's said.

"What do you say we get out of here? You look like shit, to put it bluntly. If we're going to be friends, I can't have you cramping my style. Let's get you sorted out." She takes my hand and stands up. Against my better judgment, I let her lead me out into the street. "I promise you this, Little Butterfly. If you stick with me, all of your questions will be answered in time."