I cracked my eyes open and sighed. I had just woken up from yet another dream about Chris McCray. The entire night I had been in and out of sleep, my dreams dominated by a certain male celebrity. The sun shone in through the window and I looked over at my bedside clock, seeing that it was just before 8. I yawned, still feeling like I could sleep a few more hours. I contemplated this before deciding that sleeping wouldn't have been much use anyway, seeing that I was pretty sure I would just fall into another dream involving Chris.
I threw my legs over the edge of the bed, my feet coming into contact with the hardwood floor, which was warm from the sunlight hitting it. I stretched myself, feeling my muscles pull and relax, trying to rid themselves of their ache. I looked out the window and yawned. Thinking a swim would help reenergize me, I got up and walked over to my drawer, pulling out a pair of board shorts. I stripped down and donned the swimwear, grabbing a spare towel from my connected bathroom. I opened my door and looked down the hallway, noticing the guest bedroom door closed.
I treaded lightly, not wanting to make any noise that might wake Chris. I made my way downstairs and to the kitchen, where the glass sliding doors led to my backyard. I stood at the glass door and looked out to the pool. The light reflecting on the surface of the pool was blinding. On reflex, my eyelids squinted to reduce the glare, as my eyes slowly adjusted to the light. My eyes finally adjusted enough for me to see somebody sitting by the pool. Upon closer inspection I realized that it was Chris.
He was sitting in one of the lounge chairs, wearing nothing but a pair of white shorts. His eyes were closed as he soaked in the rays, tanning in the sun. My eyes travelled from his face, down his neck, past his Adam's apple. I took in his muscled pecs, which complimented his washboard abs oh so nicely. His biceps were hard and I could see the veins running down his arms to his hands. I looked down at my own body and in comparison I was scrawny. Now I would say that I was extremely proud of my body. I did work out on a regular basis and definitely had some muscle definition, but next to Chris and his statue of a body, I was no competition.
I found myself imagining running my fingers across his sun kissed skin, feeling every ridge on his body. My fantasies made me grow hard, slightly tenting my board shorts. I shook my head and tried to hide my erection, in the off chance that Chris opened his eyes and saw me. I turned away from the door, looking at my kitchen. I contemplated forgetting about the swim and preparing breakfast, anything to get my mind off of Chris.
I took a step away from the door before stopping. I knew that if I ran from this, it was just going to get stronger and more difficult to control. I took a deep breath, composed myself and turned back to the door, this time sliding it open. I mean it was just a swim. I knew I could control my lust. The hard on I was sporting had deflated, good thing too seeing that Chris had opened his eyes at the sound of the sliding door.
He smiled when he saw me, marking the return of the butterflies in my stomach. I was perplexed by my reaction, having not had that feeling since high school, where I had my first real crush. I ignored the feeling and walked over to the lounge chair beside Chris, throwing my towel onto it, acting as nonchalant as I could.
"You're up early." I said.
"I could say the same for you." He replied.
"Couldn't sleep anymore." I lied. He chuckled and closed his eyes again, returning to his tanning. Close up he looked even more divine, my hormones kicking into overdrive. I shook my head, diving head first into the pool, the cool water engulfing me. The cold assaulted my senses, knocking some sense into me. I stayed underwater for as long as I could, holding my breath till I was blue. I surfaced, the need for oxygen overcoming the pleasure of cold water on my skin, feeling refreshed. I looked over at Chris and he was in his same position. The sun danced across his skin in such a way that made my groin tingle.
Then I remembered the bet. I needed to get my mind off the actor that was sitting a few feet away. I swam to the deepest end of the pool; the area furthest away from Chris, hoping the added distance would somehow keep my lust at bay. I started doing some laps, avoiding looking in his direction and as I swam back and forth that area of the pool. It didn't work though; I couldn't get my mind off Chris.
It was frustrating, very frustrating. In one way or another, Chris McCray was making living in my own house difficult. It was funny how I went from loathing the guy's guts to fawning over him in less than a day. I could almost hear Ryan laughing in my head, telling me he told me so and reminding me that I was going to crack by the end of the day. To a certain extent he was right. I was going out of my mind trying to retain what little self-control I had left, but that was the thing, I still had that little self-control and it was straining to keep me from doing something stupid.
I did the only thing I could do. I took a deep breath and sank to the bottom of the pool, closing my eyes as I went down. The water rushed into my ears, muffling the sounds outside the pool. It was something I usually did whenever I needed to shut the world out and just clear my thoughts. I sank to the bottom and crossed my legs, sitting there trying to empty my mind. The sound of water in my ear had a sort of calming effect on me, always being able to get me to relax. After around a minute underwater, I could honestly say that, for the first time that day, I felt I could handle Chris McCray.
I could feel my lungs start to burn, screaming for oxygen. I was about to surface when a sound distracted me. A muffled splash mingled with the hum of water in my ear. Before I could open my eyes, I felt myself being pulled upwards by strong arms. In my shock, I had opened my mouth. Water filled my orifice, the taste of chlorine slightly nauseating. In those few short milliseconds, instinct took over and my body involuntarily tried to take a breath, making me swallow a small amount of water.
I felt my face transition from the cool water to warm air. I started coughing, my body trying to remove the water in my windpipe. After heaving till my throat hurt, I finally opened my teary eyes, finding Chris in front of me, a worried look on his face. His coiffed hair was matted down by the water and fell flat on his forehead. I felt his hands like vices on my upper arms, holding me afloat.
"What was that for?!" I shouted, my voice hoarse from coughing my lungs out.
"You were drowning." He said, not letting go of my arms.
"What?! I wasn't drowning." I said.
"But you were at the bottom of the pool. I thought..." he trailed off. I could still feel his hands clamped tight on my arms. It was then that I realized that my hands were trapped between our bodies, my right hand resting just where his heart should be. His skin was warm underneath my fingers, a contrast to the cold water. I felt the stirring in my pants and quickly pulled my hand away, pushing at his arms, to which he finally released his grip on me.
"Last I checked drowning people don't sit on the bottom of the pool without any signs of struggling." I said. He cheeks flushed crimson and he sank lower into the water until only his nose and eyes were above the water. I rubbed my arm where his hand used to be, trying to process everything that had happened in those few short seconds. He had jumped into the pool, and pulled me out because he thought I was drowning. It was definitely sweet and I couldn't help feeling a little flattered. "But thanks. It was very heroic. Stupid, but heroic."
He looked up at me, his brown eyes locking with my green ones. His eyes travelled to my hand, which was still subconsciously rubbing the area where his hands used to be on my arm. He emerged from the water just enough so his mouth was out. "Sorry if I hurt you. Didn't mean to grab so hard." He must have misunderstood my actions and I quickly put my hand down.
"No it didn't hurt." I quickly said. It was really awkward. I mean what do you do when someone just tried to save your life? We both stayed in our positions, looking at anything but each other. I could still feel the sensation of his skin under my fingers and I longed to feel it again, but I knew I couldn't. I finally decided to move, swimming over to the edge of the pool and hoisting myself onto the edge. I sat there, my feet dangling into the clear water.
