The Loft

The loft was dense with people. A man scanned the room for a place to situate himself before the ball drop a few hours away. He’d no intentions of moving once located somewhere. He spotted a black couch near the bank of floor to ceiling windows at the far end of the room. A woman sat hunched over the arm facing outward toward the night sky. 

   “You look about as awkward as I feel”.

She squinted up at the tall man, but said nothing.

   “I’m sorry, I meant no offense. I’m Matt”.

He rambled on a bit, which confirmed his introduction of awkwardness.

   “No worries. I’m Shy”.

   “Oh ok, I’ll leave you alone”.

   “No-no, I’m Shy, that’s my name. In fairness it does seem to fit some of the time”. She half smiled and a laugh escaped her. 

   Matt stood there a moment assessing if it might be a mistake to sit here. 

   “Are you gonna sit down or just stare at the couch”, she asked. 

He looked as though his limbs were attempting to move separately from his torso while working his way around the coffee table. To make it more uncomfortable he was knocked into by a waitress which sort of made him tumble right over Shy. 

   “Oh my g...I’m so sorry”, he muttered. 

   “Relax Matt”, she said. 

He sort of sat ridged. Hands on his knees, which shifted a bit while he adjusted his position. 

Shy turned away but catching his reflection in the glass, smiled to herself. She hadn’t noticed any particular features while he stood so tall above her. He had short dark hair, and a great smile. 

   “Ok I swear I’m not weird”, he stated. 

She laughed and faced him. 

   “You’re fine...wow”!

   “Did you just, wow”, He asked. 

   “Umm, I, ok so I sort of checked you out in the reflection” she motioned to the window. 

   “But your eyes are the deepest blue I’ve ever seen. Really just pull ya in there, don’t they”. 

Now blushing a bit, she buried her face in her hands. 

Matt now struggled to keep a straight face. And kind of squeaked a thank you. 

Her phone lit up for a moment, breaking their embarrassment. He noticed the background art on her lock screen. 

   “Great pic, I love that style of art. Have you seen the newer exhibit downtown”, he asked.

   “Ummm yes. It’s, it’s actually my exhibit”. She stammered and again hid her smile behind her hand. 

   “Wait really, I love your work”, he said excitedly and inched a bit closer to her. 

   “Why thank you kind sir, I appreciate that”, she said. 

   “What was your inspiration for, The Resonance”, he asked

   “Ah, that was musically inspired. Using trance and trap blends. Everything echoing in shades of black and white. Well more, the absence and acceptance of light. And well, that just resonated with me”, she said. 

 They spoke for the next two hours on art, music, life, death, and love. They were sitting facing each other as much as that couch allowed. Knees touching and hands close. The loft had grown more crowded and they eyed up quieter locations, but none were found. Shy stood up and extended her hand towards Matt. He took it eagerly and she lightly pulled him around the room until opening a small pocket door through the master bedroom. 

   “Bathroom is about as quiet as we’re gonna get”, she laughed. 

There was a decently sized walk in shower with a built-in bamboo bench big enough for them to sit together. It wasn’t the most ideal setting to continue their conversation, but with midnight approaching in less than half an hour, it was far too loud in the main room. 

   “So, how’d you end up at this party”, she asked. 

   “Oh, that’s kind of funny. I catered it and like to attend the events I have food at so I can get a real feel for how guests enjoy it”, he said. 

   “What about you, how’d that happen”, he asked.

   “The owner of the loft has been a long time supporter of my work. Aannnd is also my brother”, she laughed. 

   “I wondered how you knew where this bathroom was”, he said. Shy’s cheeks and lips began to flush a bright pink. Matts eyes were wide with a sensual gaze as he looked at her. 

Their fingers touched lightly, then interlaced. He leaned apprehensively a bit and licked his lips. She leaned to him and also licked his lips. It caught him off guard and they laughed until he fell from the bench.

   “Are you just going to sit there laughing or help me up” he asked.

   “Hang on, I’m deciding”, she said. 

   “Yeah, ok, here”

She gave him her arm to help him up and he pulled her down instead, hitting their heads together. They were bent over each other, laughing. It was ground to a halt by the loud sound of a unison count-down and they collided in heat-filled moments. 

5!  She was positioned slightly on top of him and bent her face to his. 

4! Their lips joined and passion grew intense quickly. Their hands prying each other free from clothing to make their body’s one. 

3! Her legs were over his thighs and she slid slowly over him. Pushing herself onto his ready shaft. 

2! He held her around her hips and pulled her to him. Holding her closely. 

1! HAPPY NEW YEAR!! 

Their lust grew stronger until their moans could no longer be held back. He was drained into her. They lied still there on the floor of the shower for a few minutes. They could hear the heard of people thinning out from the next room. Shy stretched a bit and gathered her clothes while he watched. Neither had the right words to say what they wanted. She lifted him to standing where their lips again touched. The flush of heat to begin again was immediately broken by a tap at the door. 

   “Shy, you in there”, a muffled voice asked. 

   “Yeah, I’m here. Out in a minute” she smiled and placed a finger over Matt’s lips. 

   “Ok, your husband called and said you hadn’t gotten home yet. Just making sure all is ok”. 

The color in Matt’s face instantly drained to a pale white. 

   “Yeah, ok thanks, I’ll call him”. She said while looking at Matt’s new shade of face. 

   “I can explain”, she began. But he wanted no part of listening to what she had to say and got dressed in seconds. When the voice behind the door moved on, Matt pulled it open and left wasted no time looking back at her. 

   “Matt, wait” She called after him. 

He was gone. Vanished in a flash through what was left of the party goers. Shy sat back on that black couch where her night began. Opened her phone to the art and tears pooled in her eyes.