Love Like a Tidal Wave

“When was the last time you two had sex?"

Both Carolina and Tony stayed awkwardly quiet in front of me. Tony turned to his wife and Carolina turned to him. It’s a very personal question but I just wanted to see if that needed to be fixed or not. But seeing that they were both quiet told me they haven’t been active for a long time.

“Is this necessary?” The tattooed man asked very softly. He was playing with his fingers and his leg kept moving around. He looked guilty. I nodded my head at him and waited for an answer.

“A few months ago,” Carolina stated.

“She’s always on her period or she’s too tired from work or isn't interested.” Tony explained to me.

"Same goes to him. He's either out with his friends, comes home too late, wants to have sex when the kids are home or at the wrong time." Carolina added.

I wrote it down on my notepad and jot down a few other notes along with it. A minute passed by and I looked back at them. "Is there any chance the kids can have a trip to their grandmother's house for the weekend? Or pay a visit to a zoo with their uncle or aunt?"

"We can arrange that." Tony looked at Carolina. "Right?"

“Yeah.”

"Good. Once the kids are out of the house, you guys can have some....alone time." I removed my glasses and observed them once more.

"So you want us to have sex?" The man questioned me as if he was in high school.

I smiled, "Yes. Sex does save relationships. It's what brought you two together in high school and at Mike's party. It also made you move back to California, return back to Tony AND it made you reconsider on marrying him." I fixed my eyes on Carolina.

Mrs. Hernandez stayed silent because she knew I was right. I know these couples more than they know each other. That was my job. And since our next session is our last session, I'm positive that I would be saving them from making the biggest mistake of their lives.

"She got youuuu." Tony laughed. His wife smiled and shook her head. Her face flushed pink and she tried to hide it.

"Have as much sex as you want. It should make a difference. I guarantee that."

"Because it's our number one strength?" Carolina asked.

"Yes and because I'll be doing you two a favor." I smiled at them. They haven't been intimate in so long. Once they have sex, they'll realize how much they love each other. It'll save them from getting divorced. All of my suggestions had worked. Tony didn’t argue back—that I know of, but they seem fine now. A bit quiet but they’ll start to go back to their normal lives and be a happy couple again.

I closed my folder and stood up.

"Wait, that wasn't even an hour." Tony said to me.

"We're done for today. We'll meet back here next week for our last session. Run along now. You have homework to do." I shooed them out. Tony opened the door and let his wife exit my office first before he left. I smiled and headed to my desk to finish writing a few notes about them and this session.


Tony

It was an awkward session today. I didn't know how Carolina felt about it. That was very personal but then again she knows all over our personal shit—well not everything. But sex. We're supposed to make love for our homework. It has been months since we've done that. We just started talking again two weeks ago. We didn't even held hands yet or kissed. Sex is a whole different level of baby steps. It's skipping a few steps. It’s an adult step! I don't mind having sex with her but...I just didn't know if that was such a great idea right now.

Perhaps it is? It had helped out a lot and what Dr. Smith said was true. Sex is what brought us together and made us last this long.

“So,” my wife began, not looking at me. I felt like we were teenagers again back in high school: The awkward silence, the walk to my car, the short conversations—it’s all too familiar. It felt like I was reliving the day when I was going to lose my virginity to her at my house.

“We don’t have to...you know...if you don’t want to.” I assured her. It’s sex! We haven’t even gone on a date since we began talking again. Now we have to jump all the way to the intimate step. I didn’t want her to feel uncomfortable.

“You can say it.” She assured me with a smile. “It’s our thing...or was our thing.” Her smile went away. I opened the door from the main building and let her walk out first.

“How do you feel about this?” I wanted her opinion on it. I think it might be a good idea.

“It’ll work out. I mean look where we're at right now. Seven weeks ago we couldn’t stand each other and now we’re talking again and there isn’t any tension. All her methods have worked. All this talking and meeting has helped us. So why wouldn’t sex help us?”

She’s right.

We arrived at my car and looked at each other for a moment. It was not too awkward but it was a bit weird. She was smiling nervously like it would be her first time, which technically she considers me as her first time.

“You’re nervous,” I smiled at her. The wind picked up and blew itself our way.

She smiled. “Well, yeah.” She twisted her waist side to side like a little kid. “I mean, aren’t you?”

My smile faded. “Yeah, a bit.” She walked towards me and snaked her hands around my waist and looked up to me.

“Well, we can take care of that, right?” She smirked and I smiled instantly. I nodded my head and leaned down to kiss her but once our faces got closer, I moved my head and kiss her forehead instead.

We climbed inside the car and headed back home.

“Where should the kids stay this weekend?” I pulled out of the parking lot and headed to the streets of San Diego County. I looked out for interstate 5 to head over to Hime’s house. Feena wasn’t available to babysit so I had asked Jaime and he agreed right away. He actually loved hanging out with the kids. Especially with Leia since they were both alike in a way.

“Your mom is leaving to TJ this weekend so she can’t. My dad is in Japan and won’t be home until next week. I could ask my friend.” She pulled out her blackberry and sent her friend a message.

I entered the freeway and stared straight ahead. My fingers started tapping on the steering wheel in no particular rhythm just a little habit I did when I was nervous.

It’s just sex Tony. Pretend nothing ever happened—the court, the marriage counseling and the fighting. Just sex. You always had sex with Carolina...since high school—besides that three year gap. Everything should be fine.

We haven’t even kissed! I argue with myself. I couldn’t even kiss her before we got inside the car.

I heaved a quiet sigh and tried not to think of it.

“Stace can’t this weekend. She and Mike are going out of town.”

“We’ll find someone. I’ll ask Hi-me. He likes taking care of them. Maybe he will.”

“But they’ll be sleeping over and you know Leia likes to stay up late with her uncles.”

“We’ll set down some rules. He’ll follow them, or at least will get them to bed sooner.” I told her. She didn’t say anything for the next twenty minutes. I saw a Yogurtland sign and it made my mouth watery. “I’m craving some Yogurtland.” I pulled out of the freeway and went to the mall parking lot.

I parked and got off the car. Carolina got out slowly and started to head to the mall doors. I followed behind her and caught up to her in the side. I saw a pair of couple holding hands and Lina staring. I felt sad so I slowly got ahold of her hand. I didn’t look her; I just continue walking to the sliding doors pretending it was normal.

I started a conversation with her so it didn’t felt awkward. Within a few seconds of walking with her, it started to feel normal like back then when everything was perfect. She was giggling, she was smiling, and she was talking. Perfect. We found the yogurt place and we got in line. There were many people in line so I stood behind her and circled her neck with my arms. I kissed the top of her head every now and then just to let her know that I still love her. She probably thought I didn’t like her as much as before since I didn’t kiss her, but I don’t want her feeling that way.

We grabbed a little bowl and made our way to the yogurt machines.

“Mango Pina Colada?” I creased my eyebrows at her. She smiled and let go of the handle before letting the yogurt fall to her cup.

“It’s tropical and I like tropical fruits. You’ve never tried it?”

“I always get strawberry or berries. Never tried anything new.”

“Well, you should try it.” She grabbed the handle and pushed it down a little and wiped out a small amount of the yogurt on her finger. She walked up to me and held out her finger. I slowly lower my head to her finger and lick the yogurt off her finger. I kept her finger in my mouth and teased her a bit while she started giggling.

“Mmm,”

“Told you.” She served herself some.

“I meant you,” I smirked at her and she laughed again.

We took the yogurt to go and ate it on our way to the car. We stayed inside the car for a bit and then I started to drive out of the parking lot. She fed me on the way to Jaime’s and sometimes teased me.

Once we arrived at Hime’s house, we got out of my car and walked to the front porch. I held on to her hand and opened the door with my free hand. We walked down the hallway and to the living room.

We saw Bekah in the kitchen cooking and Jaime in the living room trying to teach Leia how to play the guitar. I smiled. I’ve been teaching Leia and Luke how to play but Luke doesn’t really understand what too do. He also forgets what I taught him the next day. Leia sometimes forgets but she remembered some easy tunes I taught her a few months ago.

“I’ll be with Bek.” I let go of Carol’s hand and she left to the kitchen with Jaime’s fiancée. She opened the fridge and handed me a beer like she used to back then. I grinned and walked to the sofa and sat down next to the bassist of my band.

“How was it?” Hime looked at me. He put the guitar to the side. Leia continued to play the guitar.

“She wants us to...” I stopped since Leia was right there next to him on the coffee table. I couldn’t say wrestle either because she already knew what that was.

“Ski,” Jaime helped me out and made a poker face.

I chuckled. “Yeah, she asked us to get the weekend off from the kids so we could ski. We’re trying to figure out who can take care of the kids.” I rubbed the back of my neck, hoping he got the hint.

“We’ll take care of them. Bekah’s three months pregnant so it’ll give us some practice before she pops.”

I could never take Jaime seriously. He was always goofing around and making jokes. The day he said his fiancée was pregnant, none of us believed him until we saw their ultrasound. I knew he’d be a great father since he was always playing with his nieces and nephews. Then there’s Mason, Leia and Luke. Mike’s the only one who didn’t want kids or wanted to settle down. There was a girl he has been having his eye on but he didn’t want to go for it. That was typical Mikey.

I agreed to let Jaime watch the kids for the weekend. He seemed excited about it like always. He finished teaching Leia the chords while I finished my beer. I then took the kids home since it would be the last time I have them for the night.


“Give daddy a kiss.”

“Muah! Bye daddy!” She ran inside Jaime’s house with her tiara on her hand and sunglasses on the other. I waved bye then went back inside my car and drove back home. The ride home was silent. I didn’t put on the radio nor did I put the window down. I was nervous. That, I will admit. Carolina should be home when I get there and I didn’t know how all this was going to turn out. I should trust her and believe that it would work out because it was. It was just making love to the woman I love. Simplicity. All I gotta do is act like a teenager. That’s all.

I was gonna do it. I would pull up to the drive way, go inside the house and make love to my amazing wife because that’s what husbands do and I’m her husband and that was just how it works.

I smiled in determination while I drove. It should give us both the satisfaction. I didn’t know if I should start out slow or aggressive. She loved it aggressive. Her screams, moans and groans show it. But we haven’t done it in a while so maybe I should start out slow and then start picking up the pace. Either way, I’m getting laid. Tonight. No kids. No interruptions. We can be as loud as we want without worrying that kids will hear us. Endless sex. By the end of the weekend, she won’t be able to walk or sit down properly

Man, I was already excited. This would be fun. I could already tell.

I parked my car on the driveway next to her Toyota and got out of the car quickly. I put the alarm on my car and walked to the front door excitedly. Once I opened the door, I rushed in and looked for her. I hoped she was ready because I was ready for this.

“Babe.” I called out her name. I took off my hoodie and threw it on the couch. I was too happy to put it inside the coat closet. I wanted to save my energy for bed.

“I’m in the room cleaning!” She shouted from afar.

“Why are you cleaning?” I said under my breath knowing she couldn’t hear me. I walked to the room and saw her on a small latter cleaning the top part of the closet. I ran to her, wrapped my arm around her torso and took her to the bed. I let her fall gently then climbed on top of her and smiled down at her. Both my hands were on either side of her head holding myself up.

“Someone’s happy.” She looked up at me with her beautiful green eyes.

“Oh you bet,” I leaned forward to kiss her but I stop before my lips could touch hers. I then lost my motivation but she moved her head up and kissed me softly. I didn’t even try kissing her back like the way I did. I just froze on top of her.

She pulled away, pursed her lips and looked down in disappointment.

“That was awful I’m sorry,” I lowered my head down in shame. She lifted up my chin so her eyes can meet mine. Her thumb traced my bottom lip. “I feel like a fucking virgin again.”

Her lips quirked up into a smile. “Maybe it’s too soon and tonight isn’t a good night?”

“No, I want to do this. Let me try again.” I smacked my lips on to hers and kissed her passionately. This time I kissed better. I started out slow and see where this goes.

I realized I missed kissing her tender lips. They fit perfectly with mine and of course they belonged to me. I knew she missed the kissing because she grabbed on to my shirt and pulled me down then deepened the kiss.

I started to lower my weight onto her but she ended up laughing out of nowhere.

“What?”

“I’m sorry. I just...” she sighed and placed her wrists on my shoulders. Her hands hanged down and she got serious. “I miss this. I miss you. I miss us.”

My lips curled up and I kissed her softly. “I missed you too. And this.” She smiled back and I kissed her once more. “How should we do this?” I mumbled in her lips. “Missionary?” I kissed her jawline. “You want to ride me?” I kissed her neck. She bursted into giggles. I kept my lips on her neck until she gave me an answer.

She pushed me to the side and I frowned but when she climbed on top of me I got happy again and turned on. I stared at her and smiled. She had a smirk on. “I’ll have it my way tonight.” She declared and that turned me on even more.

I sat up then started kissing her while I held myself up with my hands. She started to kiss me more passionately while her hands gripped chunks of my hair. She began grinding on me. Damn how much I missed this.

I sat up more and held on to her thighs. With my thumbs, I rubbed her thigh in a circular motion. She grabbed the hem of my shirt and rolled it up. I put my arms up so she can take it off me. I placed my hands back on her thigh where they later move up to her waist then under her blouse.

Images began to flash inside my mind and I stopped kissing her immediately.

"What's wrong?"

Shaking my head, I went back to kissing her. I began to lower myself in bed.

I then got a disturbing flashback and I stopped what I was doing.

"It's too soon. I just..." I couldn’t do this with her. I wasn’t ready and it wasn’t a good idea. I thought I could but I just couldn't.

"It's okay," she got off me and laid down in the mattress. It got quiet and awkward. I rubbed my eyes and apologized again. "No, you're right. It's too soon."

I didn't reply. I kept quiet and stared at the ceiling.

"I'm gonna go get a drink." I got up after a few minutes and put my shirt back on.

"I'm gonna finish cleaning." She got up from bed and walked to the other side of the room. I kissed her before I left but it turned out to be a weird and awkward kiss.

FUCK.


Carolina

Tony left for the evening. I've been cleaning the house and trying to forget what had happened but an image kept appearing and reminding me that our sex life wasn’t going to be the same anymore. I rubbed my eyes constantly and wondered what I did wrong. It sort of made me self-conscious but I know I shouldn't be thinking like that.

I took a hot shower and let the water stream down my face. In a way I felt like crying but I told myself it wasn’t me. It was normal for couples to not want to have sex because it was too soon after they've been in a complicated situation. Or maybe he didn't want to have sex with me because of Mike.

Dammit.

I got out of the shower and changed into something comfortable: one of Tony's old shirt and basketball shorts. I grabbed my phone from the bed and called Jaime. I wanted to talk to my kids. They brightened up my day when I’m having a horrible day.

“Yo! Put Leia on the line, please.”

“Yes ma’am. Princess! Someone wants to talk to you.” I waited a few seconds and then I heard the phone being passed around.

“This is princess Leia speaking,”

“Hi baby,” I smiled and sat indian style on my bed. I talked to her for a few minutes. She went on and on about her day. It brightened up mine. Hearing her converse with me just made me feel better. It was that little effects kids had on us. She passed the phone to Nick and he didn’t really talk much.

I hung up when I was done talking to them and left to the kitchen to make some food. I took out the pans then the ingredients from the fridge and made one of Tony’s favorite dishes. I didn’t want to text him and ask what time was he coming home because I thought right now we both needed some space.

I served myself and left to the dining table. I served myself some wine and sat there eating alone. I wanted to wait for Tony’s arrival but it didn’t seem like he was coming home anytime soon. So I ate slowly and sat back on the chair with my knee brought up to the seat.

When it hit 11:49pm, I gave up. I walked to the kitchen then washed my plates. I put his plate of food in the microwave after wrapping it up with plastic wrap. I washed the pans and utensils I used then left to my room. I laid down and tried not to think of anything. He was most likely out with the guys and that was what he needed. I should be out with Feena, Bekah, Cara or other people. They got my mind off of my problems.

I grabbed my book and stayed up reading for just an hour in a half, hoping Tony would come home. My eyelids became heavy so I called it a night. I’ll see him tomorrow morning. No big deal.

The next morning I woke up with a loud thunder and hard raining hitting the pavement. I yawned loudly and scratched my head. I sat up while I rubbed my eyes. I then turn to my right, suddenly remembering that I was waiting for Tony to come home.

He wasn’t there.

I threw the sheets off me then checked outside of my window in search for his car. All I saw was my car in the driveway looking lonely—like me. I brushed my hair back with my hand.

I examined his side of the room for any evidence that would tell me he had come home last night but left early. No socks, shirts or jeans on the floor. Neither his shoes. I looked at the hamper, but no fresh clothes from last night.

The microwave!

I walked to the kitchen and opened the microwave door. Sitting there was his plate…untouched. I frowned. He didn’t come home last night. Was it that bad that made him not want to see me at all?

The word ‘cheating’ came to my mind. There was no way he’d cheat on me. I knew that. He loved me and wouldn’t hurt me like that. I’m not even going to make that an option because it was not true and won’t ever come true. He hasn’t kissed or slept with any other woman since we’ve been together. He will be home anytime today and everything will be okay. We’ll try having sex another time. No problem.

A nice hot cup of coffee sounded delicious right now. It was something that will calm my nerves down.

Grabbing the coffee pot, my phone went off and I rushed to the bedroom to answer it. It was Feena. She wanted to hang out and grab breakfast. Why not? Tony was out with his friends, why can’t I.

I agreed to her request and left to my room to get ready.



Seeing Tony’s car in the driveway put a huge smile on my face when I got back from hanging out with Feena. I tried not to show my emotion so I focused on other things when I walked inside the house. I removed my boots and carried them to my closet. I heard the shower running and the smell of his shampoo lingering in the air.

I dropped my bag of clothes on the bed and begin sorting them out. One pile was for Leia, another pile for Nick and then a pile for me. Tony liked to do his own clothes shopping. All of his were from Dead View, Love Before Glory, Key Street, Rebel 8s and other brands.

I grabbed some hangers then hung up the clothes on their proper closet. I heard the water facet squeaked so that meant he was done taking a shower. I walked back to the room and folded the shopping bags I received from the stores. Tony entered the room with just a towel wrapped around his waist. I refrained from saying anything to him because when I did that back then, it lead to an argument.

“Sorry for not coming home last night. I was drinking with the guys and knocked out on Vic’s couch.”

“No need to apologize.” I said briefly, sitting down on the edge of the bed. I looked through my emails on my smartphone since I had nothing else to do. I heard Tone’s footsteps walking near me and stopping in front of me. I kept my eyes on his feet. He took my phone away and tossed it in the bed. I turned my head up and he leaned down and kissed me.

Okay, let’s finally have some sex today.

He dropped his towel and moved me further up on the bed with one arm. He kept himself up with the other. The touch of his cold wet skin sent goosebumps all over my body. He smelled really good and plus he shaved so his face was smooth.

He immediately unbuttoned my flannel and took it off. He was kissing me hard so I stepped up my game. I had no item to remove from him since he was already naked so I helped him remove my clothes—except for my undies. He liked to remove them himself. It’s a thing of his that I never questioned.

Feeling his dick on my thighs already had me going on. Since it was rubbing me under my undies, it was getting me wet faster.

He took his time letting his mouth explore my chest.

See Carolina, he still loves you. You guys will be making love today. There was no need to assume he was cheating on you because it’s not true at all. He was gonna be home with you tonight.

“I love you Carolina.” He whispered into my skin.

Smiling stupidly, I stared at the ceiling. Everything was falling into place like it should be. We weren’t getting divorced anymore, we were living in the same house, and Tony and I will be back to normal after tonight. It was now my happily ever after

“I love you too Tony.”

He stopped kissing my chest. His dark eyes met mine again while he caught his breath.

“But I can’t show you tonight.”