The Afternoon the Neighbor Stopped Being Shy

Adrián was twenty-two and had the habit of looking a little too much. He was tall, thin, with the still-unfinished body of a boy who spent too many hours studying. He went to the university downtown and always came back at the same time, along the same street, past the same house.

That house belonged to Marina. A forty-one-year-old woman, petite but with curves that her loose clothes couldn’t quite hide. She lived alone and had that stillness of someone who no longer expects anything from anyone. People in the neighborhood barely greeted her.

Every afternoon, as he walked by, Adrián searched for her with his eyes. Sometimes she was in the garden, watering a few plants that seemed to be her only company. Other times she was on the porch, with a book she never finished reading. He would slow down without realizing it, pretend to check his phone, and watch her for a few seconds before moving on.

Marina had noticed for weeks. She said nothing. Deep down, she was amused by that clumsy attention from someone who still believed himself to be invisible. There were days when she lingered in the garden on purpose, just to see whether he would pass by at the same hour as always.

He’s just a boy, she thought when she saw him walking away. Curious as a cat.

And yet, that borrowed curiosity gave her back something she thought she’d lost. Since the divorce, years earlier, she had learned to live without anyone looking at her twice. Having a young man watch her with that shy persistence made her feel, once again, like a woman and not just another piece of street furniture.

One October afternoon Adrián arrived earlier than usual. Class had been canceled and the street was empty, gilded by the sun that was beginning to set. Without thinking too much about it, he stopped in front of Marina’s door. He raised his hand to ring the bell.

And then he regretted it.

His heart was pounding in his throat. He turned around, ready to go home and forget that ridiculous idea. He didn’t even make it three steps.

—Adrián? —the voice came from the garden—. What did you want? Why are you leaving?

She had seen everything from the side of the house, crouched beside the flowerpots. He froze, his back to her, feeling the sweat running down the nape of his neck.

He turned slowly. Marina was watching him, her hands smeared with dirt and a half-smile on her face that he couldn’t tell was mockery or curiosity.

—I just… I just wanted to say hello —he said, and his voice came out thinner than he would have liked—. But I thought it might make you uncomfortable. I’d better go. Sorry.

Marina straightened up, wiped her hands on her pants, and studied him from head to toe. Something about that awkwardness softened her. And something else, something she didn’t want to name right away, warmed her skin.

He’s just a boy, she repeated to herself. What can a boy do to you? Behave yourself, Marina.

—You don’t make me uncomfortable —she finally replied, surprising herself—. Do you want to come in for a while? It’s hot out there.

He hesitated for only a second. Then he nodded, like someone accepting a leap into the void.

***

The house inside was warm, neat, full of little details that spoke of years of well-managed solitude. Adrián looked around and, without measuring his words, blurted out:

—Wow. Your house is as beautiful as you are.

Marina laughed softly. He felt his face burn and silently cursed his own mouth.

—Thank you, darling —she said, still smiling—. Would you like water or lemonade?

—Water, please.

She went to the kitchen and came back with a glass. When she handed it to him, she looked at him again, this time more slowly. The long arms, the big hands, that Adam’s apple bobbing up and down each time he swallowed.

The boy isn’t bad at all, she thought, and immediately scolded herself. He’s underage, he’s the neighbor, don’t be silly.

Adrián, for his part, couldn’t stop looking at her. The curve of her hips beneath the fabric, the discreet neckline, the way a lock of hair fell over her cheek. Calm down, he told himself. She’s a woman, not one of your fantasies. Breathe. But his blood was boiling and the silence between them was starting to weigh.

—What are you thinking about? —she asked, setting the empty glass on the table.

He looked her in the eyes. For once, he didn’t calculate his words.

—That I’d like to get to know you for real —he said—. I like you too much, Marina. You’re attractive, you’re interesting, and I can’t stop thinking about you when I walk by here.

She stepped closer and put a finger over his lips, silencing him.

—I like you too —she murmured—. More than I should admit.

And she kissed him. She kissed him slowly at first and then with a hunger that left him breathless. Adrián stood still, arms hanging at his sides, not knowing what to do with his hands or his body.

Marina noticed that stiffness and smiled against his mouth. She took him by the hand.

—Come —she said softly—. Come with me.

***

She led him down the hallway to the bedroom. Afternoon light filtered in through a sheer curtain and tinted everything orange. Adrián remained paralyzed, at her mercy.

Marina came closer and began to undress him with the calm of someone who had time. She took the backpack from his shoulder, then the sweater, then the shirt, button by button. He was trembling.

—Easy —she told him, laughing softly—. Relax. I don’t bite… yet.

And then something changed in him. It was a heat rising from his stomach, a surge that erased his shame all at once. Suddenly he remembered all the images he had kept in his head, all the things he had imagined doing to a woman like that. He lifted his gaze and looked at her differently.

He grabbed her by the wrists. With a firmness he hadn’t known he possessed, he forced her to kneel in front of him. He unfastened his pants and let them drop. He was hard, ready, and Marina, who in her youth had thought herself an expert at these things, knew at once what was expected of her. But when she leaned in, he stopped her.

—No —he said, and his voice came out low, different—. You’ll do it when I say, not when you want. First take off your clothes. Slowly. I want to see you.

Marina looked at him, surprised. This was not the shy boy who had come into her house with a glass of water trembling in his hand. And that difference, far from frightening her, lit her up in a way she hadn’t felt in years. She obeyed.

She stood up and began removing her clothes one piece at a time, unhurried, letting him watch. The blouse, the pants, the lingerie she unfastened without breaking eye contact. When she was naked, he stepped forward.

—Kneel again —he ordered—. And do it properly.

She knelt. She took him between her lips and began to please him slowly, looking up at him exactly as he wanted. She felt mischievous, shameless, exposed in a way that surprised her.

—Look at me —Adrián demanded, holding her chin—. I want you to look at me while you do it. Like that. Very good.

Marina closed her eyes for a moment, carried away by the pleasure of obeying, and he gently tugged her hair to remind her who was in charge. When he thought enough was enough, he lifted her and pushed her onto the bed.

***

He climbed over her without stopping looking at her, with that new, almost feral expression. He took her hands and tied them above her head with his own belt. Then he covered her eyes with his shirt.

—I’m going to make you feel like never before —he whispered in her ear.

She let out a long breath. Without sight, everything was skin and breathing. She felt his tongue tracing her neck, sliding down her chest, lingering on every inch of her abdomen, descending farther and farther until it stopped between her legs. Adrián stayed there, patient, attentive to every shiver, until he made her come with a moan she herself didn’t recognize as her own.

—Do you like it? —he asked, parting her knees—. Did you think I was just a kid?

—Don’t stop —was all she could say.

He entered her slowly, watching how she arched, how she pulled at her tied wrists searching for a grip she couldn’t find. Each thrust made her bite her lip, and he quickly learned to read her body: when to go deeper, when to stop at the edge and leave her waiting. Marina’s sighs turned to panting, and her panting to cries.

—Like that, like that —she begged through clenched teeth—. Don’t stop.

Adrián let himself be carried by that rhythm, by the way her body answered each movement. He felt her tighten around him again and again until he could take no more. He finished buried inside her, his forehead resting on her shoulder, exhausted and satisfied in a way he hadn’t thought possible.

Afterward he removed the blindfold carefully. Marina blinked, still flushed, and looked at him as if seeing him for the first time. No one had ever touched her like that. No one had ever known how to awaken her that way.

They both laughed without words, still tangled in the sheets. He untied her wrists and kissed the red marks left by the belt.

—You surprise me —she said at last, catching her breath.

—You surprise me too —Adrián replied, and for a second he was the shy boy from the garden again.

Marina got up, put on a robe, and went to the bedroom door. Before leaving, she turned with a smile that no longer had anything innocent about it.

—Are you staying for coffee? —she asked.

He nodded. That afternoon he didn’t go home early.