4. Bernice
Three years later
“Hmph!” I grunted as I tossed the box onto the floor. I collapsed onto the couch, still covered in plastic, and stared up at the ceiling fan—brand new and free of dust.
“Don’t get too comfortable. We still got a lot more to go!” Krash announced as he set a box on the floor and leaned against the door frame.
“We should have gotten movers,” I complained.
“ We don’t need movers, Krash. We don’t even have that much stuff! ” He mimicked my words from a few weeks ago.
With a roll of my eyes, I lifted my hands and flipped him off. “I know what I said, but now I wish we would have gotten movers!”
“Don’t yell at me,” he warned with a smirk.
“Sorry.” I pouted my bottom lip and crossed my arms.
He walked over to me and kissed my forehead before he headed back out the front door to bring in another load from the U-Haul we’d rented. The two of us moved into our new apartment today. Daddy was against me moving in with a twenty-one-year-old man, but I wasn’t a dummy. I trusted Krash with my life, and he’d never hurt me or put my life in danger.
I was excited to move into my own apartment after living in a dorm my freshman and sophomore years of college. However, I was excited to embark on the new journey with my boyfriend… Krash.
From the first day I’d met Krash during my first day of high school, he’d tucked me under his wing and protected me from all dangers. A year into our friendship, there was a shift in our dynamic. I’d began to see him in a different light. It wasn’t until I was sixteen that I’d started to understand what my feelings meant.
It was the night of Krash’s championship boxing match. The crowd was huge because over the last two years, he’d garnered quite the reputation in the ring. The match started, and he held his own, dodging every jab from his opponent.
The guy had gotten a window to Krash’s face and punched him in the mouth. Krash spit out blood and eyed the man with a look that could kill. Keyshawn moved around the ring on feet as light as a feather. He danced around his opponent and jabbed him several times in the face and ribs. The man had stumbled into the corner of the ring, and Krash took the opportunity to rain punch after punch into his body. The referee pulled Krash away, and Krash’s gaze met mine. He winked at me, and something stirred deep in my core.
The feeling scared me because I felt it in every inch of my body. From the hair follicles in my scalp to the tips of my toes. I couldn’t get him out of my mind. The sight of him drenched in sweat, mouth bloodied, and the confidence oozing from his aura had me hypnotized.
Why did the moment create the shift? Why did seeing him in his element affect me so viciously?
After the match, we went out to eat, just the two of us. He’d taken me to Chili’s, and we ate until we were full. When we went back to the house, we sat on the back porch and stared out at the night sky.
“You’re my good luck charm, Bern,” he’d said softly.
“I don’t do much, Keyshawn.”
“You do more than enough, Bern. You’re special to me. You’ve been special since the day you walked into Mrs. Donaldson’s class.”
Keyshawn placed his hand on my cheek and caressed the skin with gentle strokes of his thumb. The action sent a pleasant shiver down my spine. I tried to look away, but his brown orbs had me locked in place. Despite the cool breeze, my body was hotter than the sun. My palms sweat, and my fingers trembled. Something had shifted. We’d gone from best friends to something more… something much more.
“Krash…” I whispered timidly.
“I like you, Bern. I think I’ve always liked you.”
“I… I don’t know what I feel, Krash.”
He nodded. His tongue slid across his bottom lip. My eyes darted down to ogle at the moisture sitting atop his lip. I gulped as I felt the air leave my body.
“Can I kiss you, Bern?” he asked.
My eyes locked with his. I nodded my head without saying a word. A beat later, his lips met mine for the first time. The kiss was powerful, emotional, and hot as hell. Krash placed his hands on my cheeks and slid his tongue into my mouth.
A moan fell from our lip lock. I placed my hands on his chest and took a step back. What had we done? Why did he kiss me? What did this mean for our friendship? What did this mean for our living arrangements? Krash had been with us for a few months because he had no other family. My parents took him in because he was my friend, and we promised them there was nothing sexual between us… Now? Now I couldn’t confidently say we wouldn’t cross the line one day.
Two weeks after we had our first kiss, Krash asked me to be his girlfriend. Now, we were a couple years in and moving into our first apartment together. As I placed my books on the shelves, I shook my head at the way we’d gotten together. I should have known it would have been only a matter of time before we caught feelings. Krash had been by my side since the day we met. In that span, we’d become each other’s crutch. He was my spine, and I was his ribs. We were too delicately intertwined to not have caught feelings along the way.
After I organized my books, I hooked up my laptop, desktop, and monitors. My music was blaring through the Bluetooth speaker while I sang and put things where they needed to be. I’d just turned on my custom build PC when Krash walked in. His scent greeted me before he had. I looked up from the setup to see him with a fresh pair of basketball shorts on and some Nike slides on his feet.
“You almost done?” he asked.
I nodded. “I’m just making sure everything is set up how I like it, then I’ll go shower and get ready for dinner.”
“We didn’t get a chance to go grocery shopping, so we can order something. What do you have a taste for? I’ll order it while you’re in the shower.” He walked over to me and helped me stand up from my gaming chair. Gaming chairs were more comfortable than office chairs. Plus, the recline was perfect for when I wanted to take a break and rest my eyes between projects and assignments.
“We can do Chinese or burgers. I’m cool with whatever. You know my orders for most places.” I wrapped my arms around his torso and rubbed his back with the tips of my acrylic nails.
He leaned down to press a kiss to my lips. Kissing Krash was my favorite hobby. His lips were the perfect amount of round and plump. The tickle of his beard and mustache on my face always made me feel butterflies in my tummy.
“It’s crazy as hell we moved in together,” he stated as we walked out of the office and down the hall to the main bedroom.
We lived in a two-bedroom near campus. We got a two-bedroom because Daddy said he wasn’t comfortable with me sleeping in a bed with a grown man. To appease him, I had my own room, but it was used as an office space with a pull-out couch in case Daddy wanted to visit and inspect the living situation.
“We’ve never played about our relationship or our friendship. I think moving in together made perfect sense. We’re locked in forever, right?” I asked with anxiety in my heart.
“Fa shit sho. You’re my little baby for life,” he replied.
He gripped my ass, and I playfully swatted him away. “I’m all sweating, Keyshawn. Please don’t start something with me.”
“You know I finish everything I start, so what’s up?” His voice dropped to a sexy tone as my clit throbbed with promise of some attention. She and he would be shit out of luck because we weren’t going to do anything tonight.
“Nope. We won’t be starting anything. I’m going to wash my ass, you’re going to order the food, and then we’re going to eat and go to bed. I’m tired as hell.”
“I’ll let you rest today, but tomorrow’s a different story.”
“Okay, baby.”
He smirked as he slapped my ass with all his force. The sting spread across my ass like a wildfire. I rubbed the affected area and pushed him out of the bathroom. Living with Krash with no supervision would be an interesting time.
“Keyshawn!”
Needless to say, Krash had made a liar out of me. After we’d eaten, we’d lay down to welcome sleep, but the feel of his body against mine had my pussy begging to be touched.
“Say my name, baby. Scream that shit to the top of them lungs.”
I gripped the sheets as I threw my ass back to meet each of his thrusts. He drove me crazy with the way he pounded into me. Krash took my virginity during my sophomore year of college. He said he wanted to wait until I had turned eighteen because it would have been weird if he did it any sooner. I told him my age didn’t define my maturity, and we were only two years apart, but he swore those two years made a huge difference. For the last year, I’d made sure to religiously take my birth control, although we had a pregnancy scare a few months ago and vowed never to let me forget to take my pill again.
“ Krash ! I’m cumming!”
“Rain on me, baby. Rain all over this dick.”
I quaked as the pleasure overflowed from my body. I fell onto my stomach, but Krash didn’t stop fucking me until he’d filled me with his seed. He knew how much I hated the feel of his nut sliding out of me, but he continued to do the shit anyway.
I glared at him as he lay beside me.
“What?” he asked.
“I have told your hardheaded ass too many times about nutting in me. Stop that shit, Keyshawn.”
He frowned. “Man, you got the wettest, warmest, tightest pussy a nigga ever had. That grip makes me lose my mind. I don’t know how to pull out.”
“We ain’t gon’ fuck ever again if you don’t listen to me. I love you, I really do, but you throw my pH balance off when you nut in me.”
He chuckled. “I make yo’ pH balance better. Fuck you talkin’ about?”
“Keep playing, you’ll never even see this coochie again.”
He laughed and pulled me against his side. “All right, crybaby. No need to throw threats at me. I’m gon’ chill.”
“You better. I have to get ready for classes. I don’t know how my schedule is going to look once these projects start popping up,” I explained. I sat up and felt the pool of his nut slide from inside of me.
It was never as pleasant a feeling as it was when it was being inserted. The frown was unwavering.
“The best part about living together is that no matter how busy your schedule gets, we’re going to always go to bed in each other’s arms,” Krash stated. His voice was reassuring, which softened my features.
“You’re right, baby. Our goal should always be to at least share dinner together. Personally, I don’t think I can get a good night’s rest without sleeping in your arms.”
He smirked. “I know. I’m the best cuddle buddy.”
“You’re also a headache, but I love you.”
“I love you, Bern. You’re the only family I have. I don’t ever want to lose you.”
I didn’t want to lose him either. I’d never want to ruin the bond we worked so hard to build. If we ever broke up, I prayed we’d remain friends because I wasn’t sure how life would treat him on his own.
“What time is your first class? Do you want me to drop you off on campus on my way to the gym?” he offered as we stood from the bed together.
“You can. I wanted to stop by the coffee shop and get a caramel Frappuccino, though.”
“Just coffee? You don’t want to eat a meal?”
“I can survive off a large Frappuccino until lunch,” I explained.
He shook his head and smacked his lips, an obvious sign of his dislike for my plan. “Man, we gon’ get you at least a McMuffin or something.”
“Fine, but I don’t want to be late, so we better get up early.”
“I don’t know why you chose such early ass classes anyway. A nigga like me be on campus from ten to two, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays only. You supposed to finesse the system.”
“I didn’t have much of a choice. The best professors don’t have many openings in their schedule. Unfortunately, I’m on campus Monday through Thursday from eight o’clock in the morning until three. Then, I do my extracurriculars with the computer nerds.”
“It’s crazy to me how I fell in love with a geek,” Krash commented. “You really nerd out on me all the time, but for some reason, the shit be sexy as hell.”
I rolled my eyes. “On everything I love, I’ll beat your ass. I don’t care how powerful of a punch you pack, you finna catch these hands.”
“I love it when you get violent, baby.” He picked me up as if I were weightless.
“Put me down, Keyshawn.”
“Bernice, I’m not trying to argue with your grumpy ass. We’re finna get in the shower and enjoy our first night in our apartment together.”
I didn’t object because he’d already walked with me in his arms to the bathroom. He placed me on my feet and turned on the shower while I grabbed fresh towels.
Life with Krash had always been about support, love, and patience. We were each other’s safe spaces. He brought me solace and comfort when I put too much on my plate. He was my breath of fun air, and I kept him in line as best as I could. It was a beautiful partnership that I felt would lead to a happily ever after.
We’d seen each other at our worst. When we were both flourishing in our careers, we’d be able to start a family, pop out some babies, and live happily ever after.