The Intern I Dared to Kiss That Night

Renata had always liked young girls, and by forty-seven it had become more of a problem than a pleasure. It wasn’t something she had chosen; it simply came with her, like the reddish color of her hair or the freckles that ran across her nose from side to side. She had tried with women her own age, but something inside her went out: a listlessness, a laziness that took over before she even began.

Her body still responded. She’d never had children, and that had left her with a slender figure that seemed frozen in time. Very pale skin, speckled with freckles that ran down her neck to the top of her breasts, and huge blue eyes that inspired more tenderness than desire. That was the trap: young women looked at her like a nice aunt, never like a possible lover.

—Alone again on a Saturday? —her only friend from youth, now married and far away, used to ask her.

—Again —she would answer, without going into details.

The truth was harsher. Renata had spent too many years in a loneliness that masturbation barely soothed. She would turn on the screen, search for those videos of mature women introducing inexperienced girls, and imagine herself in the veteran’s place. If only life were as simple as in those films. Then she would switch everything off and stare at the ceiling.

***

Renata was an editorial designer, one of the best in her studio. When love was absent, she poured everything into work, and awards and praise came as consolation prizes. Every so often the studio received interns fresh out of university, and she would watch them from afar without much hope.

Until Lucía arrived.

She was small, with skin just lightly tanned, and straight brown hair falling to mid-back. Her eyes were an unexpected green, her nose rounded at the tip, and a thick lower lip she bit when she hesitated. Her breasts were tiny; her hips, on the other hand, generous. Renata felt her heart lurch, that butterfly flutter that only young girls provoked in her.

She offered to mentor her. She took her under her wing with the perfect excuse: to teach her the trade firsthand from the best in the studio. Lucía admired her, and that admiration was the ground where Renata sowed, with a gardener’s patience, something more.

Every morning Lucía stopped by her desk to greet her with a kiss on the cheek. She told her the small things in her life: the fight with a roommate, the guy who never called, the recipe she had burned. Renata became her confidante, and that was exactly what she wanted. There was no corner of Lucía she didn’t know.

One afternoon, while they were reviewing some print proofs together, Renata absentmindedly ran her fingers through the girl’s hair.

—You’re very special to me —she told her—. That’s why I want to invite you to spend a weekend at my place. No work, no screens.

Lucía looked up, surprised and flattered.

—Really? I’d love that. You’re special to me too, Renata. You have no idea how much I care about you.

It was the first time she had said it to her. Renata knew, from the way her pulse quickened, that she had chosen the moment well.

***

On Saturday Lucía arrived in a light dress and her hair down.

—You have no idea how gorgeous you look —Renata told her as soon as she opened the door.

It was a comment she always repeated, one more seed. Lucía’s face lit up every time she heard it.

They had a light dinner and Renata opened a bottle of red wine. Her only goal that night was to make sure Lucía’s glass never got empty. The girl was talkative; she jumped from one topic to another without pause, and there was no way to shut her up. Renata let her talk, nodded, smiled, and poured again.

—I’m the one who should be thanking you —Renata said during a lull—. You have no idea how lonely I feel sometimes.

—Well, from now on you’ve got me —Lucía replied, her tongue already a little thick—. I can’t stand the thought of my best friend feeling lonely.

It was almost one in the morning when Renata took the reins of the conversation.

—Have you ever kissed another woman?

—Once, at a party —Lucía answered, laughing.

—And how did it feel?

—Soft. The gentlest kiss I remember.

Renata leaned a little farther over the sofa.

—And have you ever thought about being with a woman? For real, I mean.

Lucía bit her lip.

—I’ll confess something. Once I watched a video of two girls and got really curious. I… I masturbated while watching it.

—You have no idea how relieved I am to hear that —Renata said, lowering her voice—. The same thing happens to me. I watch videos of women when I’m alone. I like the way they treat each other, how delicate they are.

The air between them had grown thick. Renata felt this was the exact instant, the turning point she had been waiting for for weeks.

—I dare you to kiss me —she blurted out.

—You’re daring me to kiss you? —Lucía asked, half incredulous, half amused.

—I want to know what it feels like to kiss a woman, and I’d like it to be with you. You’re the only person I trust that much. It’s not with a stranger. It’s just a kiss.

Lucía looked at her for a long moment. Then she smiled.

—Only because I’m a little drunk, I’m going to do it.

—But make it a real kiss, not a peck.

—Challenge accepted.

***

Renata slid across the sofa until she was beside her. She brought her mouth closer slowly, giving her time to pull away, but Lucía didn’t move. When their lips touched, Renata put a hand on the back of her neck so she wouldn’t pull away too soon. The kiss stretched on; she slipped in her tongue and felt the girl receive her and respond with sweet awkwardness.

—What did you think? —Lucía asked when they broke apart, breathing differently.

—Wonderful. I’d never felt a kiss like that. I want to do it again, but longer.

She didn’t wait for an answer. She kissed her again, this time reaching for the tongue first, and Lucía imitated her. Renata ran her hands down the girl’s back until she reached her wide hips and squeezed them. She came back up, stroking her neck with her fingertips, and when Lucía broke the kiss, Renata brought her mouth to her neck and traced it with her tongue.

Lucía shivered. That tongue on her neck ran through her like a current, and for a moment reason weighed more than desire.

—I think we should stop —she murmured.

—Doesn’t it feel good? —Renata asked, without fully pulling away.

—Yes… it feels very good. But I’m embarrassed.

—Don’t think so much. Relax and let your body enjoy it.

She went back up from her neck to her mouth and kissed her again. Meanwhile, her fingers slipped under the dress and began to explore her. Lucía stopped resisting; she put her arms around her and drew her toward her. Renata knew she had her now: she ran her hands up to her small breasts and squeezed them gently, drawing a moan from her.

She took one of Lucía’s hands and guided it to her own breasts. Lucía imitated her, pressing slowly, while Renata unfastened her bra beneath the fabric. She pulled the dress off over her head, Lucía did the same with her blouse, and the two of them were naked from the waist up, facing each other.

—I like your freckles —Lucía said, running a finger over Renata’s chest—. They go all the way down here.

—And I like all of you —she answered.

***

Renata lowered her mouth to the girl’s tiny breasts and lingered there, licking them, nibbling them until her nipples hardened. Lucía no longer held back her moans. Renata slid one hand down her belly to the hem of the dress still covering her hips and pressed over the fabric.

—Do you like the way I touch you? —she asked.

—Yes —Lucía panted—. Too much.

The answer was another kiss. Renata finished taking off her clothes, pulled the garment down to her ankles, and slid her fingers beneath the last layer of fabric until she found the clitoris. She began to stroke it in slow circles, and Lucía moaned louder, arching her back against the sofa.

—Come —Renata said, standing up and holding out her hand—. Not here.

She led her to the bedroom. Before touching her, she looked at her for a moment as she lay on the bed, and thought that after so many years she finally had before her what she had wanted. She wasn’t going to rush. She was going to guide her calmly through that new world.

She lay down over her and kissed her slowly, letting anticipation do its work. She moved down her neck, her breasts, until she reached between her legs. Lucía was wet there, and Renata traced everything with her tongue until she focused on the clitoris, sucking carefully, reading every moan as a sign. She knew exactly how to bring her there; she had imagined it so many times that her body moved on its own.

Lucía’s moans rose in volume until they cracked. She came with her whole body trembling, her hips lifting against Renata’s mouth, and Renata enjoyed every second of watching her fall apart.

—I’ve never felt anything like that —Lucía said, still breathless.

—Now I want to feel you —Renata replied—. Do you want to try?

Lucía nodded, unsure but surrendered. She moved down the woman’s body with the same curiosity as someone peering over the edge of something unknown. She kissed her, licked her breasts, and when she reached between her legs, Renata guided her with soft words.

—Run your tongue all over, slowly… there, right there.

Lucía learned fast. What began as shyness became rhythm, and Renata, who had spent far too long pleasuring herself alone, felt the orgasm catch her with a force that almost hurt. She pressed herself against that inexperienced mouth and came with a long moan.

Afterward she let herself fall beside her. She took Lucía’s face in her hands and kissed her so she could share the taste.

—Did you like it? —Lucía asked.

—More than you can imagine. And you?

—I don’t want it to be the last time.

Renata smiled. It was the sentence she had been waiting to hear for years.

***

They didn’t fall asleep early. Renata sat Lucía between her legs, caressed her breasts and neck until she heard her moan again, and then lowered her hand to finger her, slowly at first, stopping to stroke her clitoris whenever she felt her about to tip over. Lucía writhed, begged her not to stop, and Renata held her on that edge for as long as she could before letting her fall into a long orgasm that left her speechless.

Later they tangled around each other, crossing their legs until their sex rubbed together, sliding slowly as they kissed. They both moaned at once, and between laughter and gasps they came almost together at the end.

When they had no strength left, Renata rested Lucía’s head on her chest and stroked her face until both their breathing calmed.

—Tomorrow is Sunday —Lucía murmured, eyes closed—. We don’t have to go anywhere.

—No —Renata answered, smiling in the dark—. Nowhere at all.

And for the first time in a long while, she fell asleep without feeling the weight of loneliness.