Little Climb (Ch 6)

Running from one threat puts me in the path of another, putting me closer than before.

The sounds of a gentle voice calling my name stirred me from my slumber, making me smile when I opened my eyes to see Natalia’s face looking at me with all her beauty. Stretching my arms and legs, I said to her, “Good morning.” She returned a smile to me and replied, “Good morning. How did you sleep?” “Like I haven’t slept in weeks. Never woke up once.” “That’s good. I’m glad. I’m going to go get ready, you okay to wait here?” I nodded, “Yeah, just need to use the bathroom first.” Sitting up, Natalia did some of her own stretching before saying, “Sure. I can help you with that.” Pulling back the covers, she reached over to pick me up and then got out of bed.

While she was walking into the bathroom, I was placed down on her other hand, “Take your shorts off and I’ll hold you over the toilet.” I had them off by the time Natalia got to the bathroom, allowing her to lift me up between her fingers and hover me just over the large bowl of water. I imagined for a single heartbeat what it would be like if I had fallen into it. Would I be noticed in time to be rescued or be sent to my watery grave? Shaking my head, I cleared that thought and focused on releasing my building discomfort. It took me a few seconds before I was able to let it out, but once I did, I felt immediate relief from my full bladder. Looking up, I said to her, “All good. Thanks.” Bringing me back to her opposite hand that held my shorts, I put them on so that she could place me back onto my pillow.

Setting me down, Natalia walked away so she could get ready for work. Without a single word, I watched as she dropped her pajama pants and took off her shirt. My jaw dropped at the reveal of the most perfect body I have ever seen. Her skin had zero imperfections, smooth with no blemishes. Seeing her body itself being so well toned and those nice sized breasts that would be mountains to me, I instantly craved touching it. I wanted to put my hands on everything so badly. I’m pretty sure I was beginning to drool before I finally hit the stop sign in my head.

That halt made my consciousness reminded me of the respect I had for Natalia, making me look away fast. I knew I was staring at a body that I shouldn’t even think about touching. That was no better than if I physically crossed the boundaries of her personal space. I’m not that kind of person. As I was looking around at the backboard, noting the detailed grains in the wood, Natalia’s voice suddenly sounded right behind me and made me jump, “You doing okay?” Turning around, I saw that she had her work clothes on and was standing at the foot of the bed looking at me. She had on a white shirt, yellow overshirt and grey slacks.

Rotating my body around so that I could face her, I nodded, “I’m sorry I stared at you getting dressed. That wasn’t very respectful of me.” Walking around the bed until she stood next to me, Natalia lowered her hand so that I could climb onto it, “It’s fine. If I wasn’t comfortable with it, I would have gone into the bathroom to change. Didn’t think about how it would make you feel.” Lifting me up, I was carried toward her dresser where her purse and keys sat while I answered her, “I just don’t want to show you any kind of disrespect.” “You’re not. But if it would make you feel any better, I can start changing in the bathroom.” Shaking my head, I said, “You don’t have to. I can turn my head away.” Giving me a half smile before she said, “I don’t care if you look.” My heart skipped a beat. Natalia basically just gave me permission to stare at her while she didn’t have clothes on. I’m definitely going to take advantage of that.

Standing up, she headed to the door after grabbing her keys and purse in her empty hand, Natalia said, “Let’s put this on hold and pick it back up next time you come back. We need to get going.” “Sounds like a great idea.” My ride in her jeep was with me sitting on her leg just outside the front pocket so I could use it as a handhold. When we got there, I climbed in so that Natalia could get out and not worry about me falling onto the ground.

Calleigh was the first one to greet us when we got to the locker room. I was really happy to see her, poking my head out of the pocket so I could wave at her. She seemed happy as well, seeing that I’m still alive and well, “Good morning y’all. It’s great to see you.” Looking down at me, she asked, “How was your night at Natalia’s?” “It was awesome. I can definitely tell you that I will never be able to pick a favorite between the two of you.” She laughed as well as Natalia, “I guess that’s a good thing.”

We left the locker room with me securely in Natalia’s pocket, enduring each bounce of her step that jarred the pocket in up and down motions. Over time, I was able to get used to it and eventually take a nap. I was checked on at least once an hour to make sure I was okay and see if I needed anything. Usually, I just wanted a drink of water or to use the bathroom.

It wasn’t until after several hours of Natalia collecting evidence and then taking it all back to the lab to get it processed when she took me out and sat me on the large table in front of her. Spread out all around were a number of items she had to get prints or DNA from. Looking up at her, she said to me, “I figured you would like to stretch your legs and get some fresh air while I work. I’m going to be here a little while, so it seemed like a good time for it.” I nodded, “I really appreciate it.”

While watching as she swabbed, cut the cotton from the Q-Tip’s, put it in some liquid, and all that other scientist stuff I was trying to learn, I leaned up against a stand that held a bunch of tall, thin test tubes. I enjoyed watching her move around, so large and graceful in everything she did. My heart was already falling for her, so being practically in her shadow is pushing my thoughts further into seeing her as a goddess. With my focus so hard on Natalia, I still was able to hear someone enter the room at the same time she turned around to place some of the little canisters into the spinning machine. She didn’t notice but my hearing was way better at this size.

Turning my head back, I saw Ryan walking in, stopping at the entrance to get a pair of gloves so he could possibly help Natalia with anything. My heart raced with fear of him finding me, which got me up and moving toward the edge of the table where Natalia was standing. I walked fast trying to get there, glancing back every so often to see if he noticed me yet. It was until my third time looking back when my heart dropped. Ryan’s eyes were right on me. That’s when I started running. I was too scared to call out to her, worried he would hear me.

Natalia was just turning back around when I heard Ryan say, “Hey Natalia.” My fear overrode my safety right at that second and I threw myself over the edge of the table. My aim was for her lab coat pocket but unfortunately, she was just out of reach. I ended up seeing the floor rush up at me for the second time in two days. I was still falling at an angle, which thankfully slammed me into the side of her pants leg only to slide down until I landed on the cold, hard tile below.

The impact winded me causing me to cough and choke with slightly blurred vision. About a minute went by before my vision went back to normal to see where I ended up. I had landed right next to Natalia’s left heel. The tan pump’s toes were completely flat, there was no raise at the toes and the space between the sole and heel was covered by her pants that almost touched the floor. I tried to think of how I could get back onto her, but my priority was to get out of the way. I don’t know if she’s noticed I’m missing yet.

Wasting no more time, I got to my feet, still trying to catch my breath from the fall, I ran towards under the table just as I saw Ryan’s loafers approaching. “What is it?” “I thought I saw a bug running on the table.” “I’ve been here for at least an hour and haven’t seen one. Trust me, Ryan. If I see a bug, I’ll kill it.” I knew she wasn’t talking about me, but what she said still rocked my nerves. Waiting nervously to make sure he wasn’t looking for me anymore, I slowly made my way back towards the open floor until I was able to peek up to see where his focus was.

Looking back down, I remembered how I saw Natalia’s pants leg, and how the hem was close to the floor. That could be my escape, but timing would have to be just right. Walking sideways, keeping in the shadow of the table, I stopped right in front of Natalia’s left foot. I tried to steady my racing heart so I could gather up the courage to make a run for it. I had to be sure that she wouldn’t move at that time, or it may be the last thing I will ever try to do. I waited until she shifted her weight to the foot I was looking at, which was when I made my sprint.

Her heel got closer and closer until I was almost touching it, but that’s when the unthinkable happened…I tripped. Falling just out of reach to my goal. That was when I really thought I was going to die. Natalia chose that precise moment to adjust her posture and move the foot next to me in my direction. Fortunately, I was in the exact spot of the arch so when her foot landed, my life was spared by being in between her sole and heel spike. My legs became like Jello, nearly giving out under me and almost caused me to drop down to my knees.

It took everything I had to get myself moving and make another attempt at grabbing the hem of her pants. This time I succeeded and managed to start my climb. This reminded me of my first day when I climbed Calleigh’s pants leg, only this time I opted to take a different route. Since Ryan was standing right there, I decided the best way for me to climb unnoticed by him was to do it from inside the pants. I figured at some point Natalia would feel something moving against her leg and know it was me.

The climb was easy at first until I got to where it was against her skin more tightly than the bottom half of the leg. With that being as it was, pulling myself up while being pressed against her leg made my ascent take a bit longer. My mind began to wander as I climbed, nearly making me lose my grip when I got excited. I was touching Natalia’s leg, feeling how smooth it was with all that heat that made me want to melt into her. Mentally shaking myself off to rid those thoughts, not being the right time for them, I continued up.

Keeping to the outside of the leg seemed to be the best idea. I didn’t want to accidentally end up somewhere that was extremely private and be put in a situation I really wanted to avoid. I was beginning to wonder if she had felt me or not until a gentle pressure brushed slowly down the pants leg from the outside a couple times. It felt similar to how Calleigh did it to me, except the difference is that she wasn’t aware of me at the time and was super rough, nearly crushing me in the process. Natalia knows about me, so her movements were light and careful.

When the pressure let up, I proceeded to go toward the top of her pants, where I finally was able to get my hands of the thick seam. Pulling myself out and over was difficult at first due to the extreme pressure of the pants against the waste, but I managed. Looking down, I saw that I was inches from her pocket, and I was eager to get there. Just before I attempted to climb down, the shirt that hung over me lifted enough so that I could look up at a set of brown eyes watching me. That somehow made me feel much safer as I descended down into the pocket, finally safe from any danger that could possibly happen. It was when I secured myself deep in the pocket, leaning against the inner corner of it and her beginning to walk that something occurred to me. Natalia had been still during my climb so that she could make sure I wouldn’t get hurt by either falling or being crushed between her leg and something from the outside. That was extremely thoughtful of her, an extension of how she cared for me.

The rest of the day was spent mostly in Natalia’s pocket. The next time she let me out was in the break room where I got to chat with Calleigh as well while they ate their food. Of course I was given pieces of each meal, which was Calleigh’s burger and Natalia’s loaded ham sandwich. With so much to do still with finding criminating evidence to put the killer behind bars, lunch was semi quick today. Soon enough I was back in Natalia’s pocket for the rest of the day at work except for my essential needs. After that scare I had, we didn’t want to chance that again right away. With all that food I had, all I wanted to do was take a nap anyway. The warmth of the pocket that came from Natalia’s body heat was all I needed to drift off to sleep.

My dreams were interrupted a couple hours after I had fallen asleep by being pulled out of my fabric den and placed into a hand. Looking up sleepily, I saw that it was Calleigh’s. Smiling, she said, “Hey there sleepy head. Our shift is over so we can head home now.” Stretching, I nodded at her before turning toward Natalia, “Thanks for last night and everything today.” “I’m always happy to help. See you tomorrow.” “See ya.” After parting ways, Calleigh closed her hand while she walked to her car to drive us out of here.

Once there, I was able to take my usual bath while she changed into her night clothes, coming back to me just as I was finishing. As Calleigh was picking me up from the small washcloth I used to dry myself with, she asked me, “So what happened today?” “Ryan almost saw me. I mean, he kind of did at a distance but I got away before he got a decent look, which was the good part. The bad part was that for me to disappear from his view, I jumped from the table and tried to land in Natalia’s coat pocket.” “What do you mean tried?” I could sense the worry in her voice.

The beating of my heart increased at that sound. I hated hearing when she has a hint of fear in her voice, especially if it’s because of her concern for me. Breathing in deep, I exhaled slowly before responding to her question, “I missed her pocket and ended up sliding down the side of her pants to the floor. I was only winded for a minute, then I grabbed onto the bottom of her pants leg and climbed up to her pocket.” Shaking her head, she told me in a motherly tone, “You need to be more careful. You could have been hurt really bad, or worse.”

Nodding, I agreed with her, “I know. Just the thought of getting away from Ryan was the only thing I could think about then, not the how. I did at least go through in my head on how to climb without him noticing me.” “How’s that?” “I climbed her pants leg from the inside. That helped her feel me before I even got close to the pocket.” Thinking for a few seconds, she said, “That was pretty smart. Do I need to ask which side of her leg you climbed?” Shaking my head, I told her, “You already know. I can’t disrespect either of you like that.” “That’s good to hear.”

Carrying me over to her bed, she allowed me to slide off her hand onto the pillow next to her so she could settle in the bed herself better. Looking at me, I could sense another question coming, which she did in fact ask, “Do you mind if I ask what you did at Natalia’s last night?” The beating in my chest increased before I responded with shaky nerves, “After you told her what you did with me in the yogurt, she wanted to try it too, but with a sucker.” Calleigh’s head slightly tilted, “How does that work?”

Taking a few breaths to calm myself down, I explained it to her, “I held onto the sucker while she licked it.” The expression Calleigh had on her face was a mixture of confusion, surprise, and a little bit of concern, “And I’m assuming you liked it?” “I actually did. Probably enjoyed myself more than I should have. Honestly, I think she did too.” “I worry about you sometimes. I know you want to do things for the experience, I just hope that you don’t go too far and put yourself in danger.”

Looking down at the pillowcase material so I didn’t see the worry that hadn’t left her eyes since we started this conversation. Feeling a nudge on my left side made me look, finding that expression finally changed to that caring stare I loved so much, “But knowing Natalia like I do, I have no reason to think that she would do anything that would put your life at risk. Just promise me that whatever you do, be very careful. I’d hate to hear that something happened because someone got careless.” Placing my hand on her finger, I smiled at her, “I promise. Though there is one thing I can’t make a promise to.” “Tell me.” “I can’t promise that I won’t ever fall for you. I know you aren’t that way so I will remain respectful, but I can’t help who my heart loves.”

Calleigh’s eyes softened. Pulling her finger back, she pressed it against her lips before lowering it down onto the top of my head, “I can live with that.” With a half smile that melted my insides, she relaxed further into her covers and turned out the light, “Good night, Melissa. I’ll see you in the morning.” “Good night, Calleigh.” My heart was dancing all over the place. She now knew that I was either in love with her or going to be and pretty much said she was okay with that. It took a while for me to fall asleep underneath the washcloth she had laid across the pillow for me for warmth, but eventually the drowsiness overtook me. My life is becoming the best that it’s ever been.