8. Chapter 8 #2
“It’s how you stay sober forever, Led. And I plan to stay that.
It’s also how you pay it forward. I’m also a sponsor.
Leaning on each other is important when you’re a recovered alcoholic.
Sometimes the first instinct is to go to the bottle when the going gets tough.
It’s our job as alcoholics to hold each other up and try to avoid that. ”
“No, I get it. I just didn’t know...I just didn’t know.”
She grins. “It’s okay. It’s not like I wear a t-shirt.”
I snort a laugh. “Do you have one?”
“No.” She chuckles. “Come on. Let’s go swimming. I’m dying to dive in.”
“Sure. But isn’t there a rule? Aren’t you supposed to, like, wait an hour or something?”
She takes my plate and places it in the sink with hers. “That’s a myth. I’ve always gone for a swim after meals and I’m still here.”
“Alright. Is there somewhere where I can change?”
“There’s a pool house out back. Come on, I'll show you.”
When she says ‘pool house’ she means it.
The thing is complete with a gazebo, sauna, changerooms, showers, even a pullout bed and a wet bar.
We both go into our respective changerooms and get into our bathing suits.
“So, that thing you said about you not owning a bathing suit, that was clearly a joke, right?”
“I have neighbors.” She says as she walks out of the changeroom after me.
I’m in a normal pair of blue swimming shorts, and she’s dressed in something that looks like it came out of a magazine.
Her suit is white with openings in all the right places, slit high on her thigh, and low between her breasts.
I’m grateful that my shorts are loose fitting. “Fuuuuck.”
Her mouth quirks up into a teasing smile. “You like?”
“You look like goddamn Marilyn Monroe in that.”
“I save this for guests. Normally, I just wear a Speedo.”
I’m in awe. I’m sure that I’m looking at her like she’s in a ball gown dressed for prom. “You should have warned me.”
She waves. “Come on, it’s not that hot.”
I look her up and down. “It’s hot enough.”
Her tone is teasing. “Then let’s cool off in the pool.”
I watch her walk away, feeling my hard-on poking up in my shorts. She walks up to the diving board and dives in, completely free. When her head bobs up from the water, she says. “God, that’s beautiful. Perfect temperature. Come on in. Do you dive?”
“I can try.”
“You can just walk in if you want to. No need to show off for me.”
Truthfully, I haven’t dived in water since I was a teenager, but I’ve never forgotten how.
I’m feeling brave, even with a hard-on clearly obvious in my shorts.
Jinny knows the effect that she has on me, and I’m not embarrassed.
She put that bathing suit on to impress me and it worked.
As I climb up the diving board, I get a sudden liberating feeling, bringing me back to high school.
“Do you remember that we used to swim together in gym class?”
“Of course I do. You were one of the hottest guys in that class. Why do you think I got an A?”
“I got a C.”
She lifts a brow at me. “I can see why.” Her eyes are on my cock area.
I snuffle a laugh. “It’s your fault, you know.”
A shrug. “I know.”
Lifting my arms in the air to a point, I go into my wayback machine and remember exactly how I used to dive, and I do it just like that.
Fortunately, it goes off without a hitch, and I dive in like a pro.
The water is perfect. Not too hot or too cold, and it’s so invigorating I don’t know how I haven’t installed my own pool.
When my head bobs back up out of the water, Jinny is doing laps, so I join her.
We continue doing laps in her pool, and I lose myself in it, remembering how cleansing this was when I was a kid.
The water seems to wash away things that thinking never could.
And finally, my mind seems clear, uncomplicated.
I can feel that she’s taken a break and I lift my head out of the water to find her up on the diving board again.
She’s stunning. Perfect figure, gorgeous hair, no makeup, and so focused I don’t want to disturb her.
Her body cuts into the water and then glides effortlessly.
When she emerges, she lifts up onto the lip of the pool, water dripping down her back. “Amazing, isn’t it?”
“Agreed. I’m actually thinking about putting a pool in at my place now.”
She waves. “Don’t bother. It’s a ton of work and you’ll have to have somebody constantly maintaining it for you. Come and use mine whenever you want. I’ll give you the code to get in. Bowie has it, too, and some of my friends.”
“You sure like having company.”
She frowns. “I don’t mind it. I like people and people like me. Plus, a pool is a great social venue, too. I do parties all the time.”
“I suppose you would.”
She gestures with her chin towards the sauna. “You want to go inside for a while? I love to go in there, get all hot, and then come back into the pool.”
“Sure.”
Inside the wooden sauna hut is an attached bench that spans the perimeter of the hut.
In the center is the pit, and off to the side is the waterspout.
She pours water on the stones in the pit, and it hisses, giving off the necessary steam.
It only takes a couple of minutes to get a good haze going.
She’s sitting next to me, and she leans back against the wall. “God, I love this.”
“I can see why. No wonder you’re always so mellow.”
“Agreed. I hardly watch television. I’m always outside or playing games in the house. It’s such a beautiful night I figured it was perfect for this.”
“You’re right. This is great. I could do this every night, too.”
Her eyes are closed but she smiles. “Feel free.”
My voice is warm, meaningful. “You’re too kind.”
“I’m just kind enough. And if you had a pool that you enjoyed so much, you’d want to share it, too. That’s all I’m doing.”
“You’re doing a lot more than that, Jinny.”
She opens an eye. “How’s that?”
“God, compared to me, you’re like a fucking saint.”
Jinny turns to face me. “What do you mean?”
“Well, you’re sweet and fun and funny, you donate your time for the greater good, you open your door to people, and you’re honest. Fuck, I don’t do any of those things.”
A ‘v’ forms between her brows. “You’re not honest?”
“Well, not to certain people, no. You are a much bigger person than me.”
Her index finger lifts. “Never compare yourself to others. That’s rule number one, Led.
You start doing that you’re on an uphill battle.
Everyone is different and everyone has lived their lives differently.
My path is different from yours and you have a lot of great qualities, too.
I know that’s true, because if you didn’t, then you and I wouldn’t mix well. ”
I’m suddenly feeling very exposed, vulnerable, like I owe her something for her gracious analysis of me. And that’s why what she does next makes me feel even more vulnerable and like I owe her something...