The Stranger in the Dark Room Chose Me

Noa knew from a very young age that she liked women. She had never been interested in a man, not even out of curiosity. What kept her awake was the curve of a back, a husky laugh, long fingers closing around a glass. That was why, every weekend, she ended up in the same place.

El Faro Rojo was a small club, dimly lit and with music you felt in your chest. A girls’ spot, where Noa moved around like she was at home. She went looking for the usual thing: a glance that stayed on her a little longer than it should. Just one.

The problem was that Noa didn’t stand out. In her own mind, she had nothing that drew the eye. She was petite, almost curveless, skinny, with a small mouth and well-shaped lips that seemed to be smiling even when she was serious. Small brown eyes, a fine nose. What she had in abundance was friendliness. She had a ton of friends and not a single girlfriend.

It wasn’t that she lacked desire. At night she touched herself imagining soft hands roaming over her entire body, a tongue moving up her neck, lips pressed hard against hers. But what she really wanted wasn’t one night. She wanted someone to look at her and stay. That was why she almost never slept with anyone: for Noa, love weighed more than any late-night orgasm.

That night, on the dance floor, Vera hugged her from behind with a mischievous look on her face. Vera was the oldest in the group, the one who always had a plan.

—I’ve got a surprise tonight —she said, opening her hand.

In her palm were tiny pills. She handed them out one by one, giving each friend a kiss on the mouth as she put one on her tongue.

—And what is this? —Noa asked, innocently.

—Heaven, sweetheart. Wait and see.

Half an hour passed and Noa didn’t feel anything. People talked about it so much, and it didn’t even ruffle a hair on her. She told Vera so, almost disappointed.

—Don’t be impatient —Vera laughed—. Give it time.

They kept dancing. As always, Noa looked left and right, searching for those eyes that never appeared. And then, without warning, it hit.

First it was her skin. Every brush of air ignited something in her. The music stopped coming from the speakers and started coming from inside her, as if the rhythm had been born in her ribs. The colors turned brighter, the lights moved slowly, thickly. She closed her eyes and let herself go. This is something else, she thought.

—Vera! —she shouted in her ear—. This is incredible.

—Told you, baby.

Noa started dancing like never before. She didn’t have to try: the music was moving her. She lifted her arms, let her head fall back, swayed her hips with a sensuality she had never allowed herself. And for the first time she stopped looking left and right. Stopped searching. She surrendered to what she was feeling, and that made her someone else.

—Noa, you look delicious —Lúa, another one of the friends, said with a laugh—. If I didn’t know you, I’d make a move.

—Just hug me instead —she answered, floating.

They hugged for a long time. Noa felt her friend’s warm skin pressed against hers, damp with dancing, and it seemed endless and delicious. She didn’t notice that, a few feet away, there were eyes fixed on her that never looked away.

***

The girl watching her couldn’t understand how no one else could see her. That tiny thing moving her hips as if the night belonged to her, with that face of pure pleasure, seemed like the most desirable thing in the place. She had been waiting a while for the right moment to talk to her, but Noa was never alone: her friends surrounded her, said things to her, hugged her. The redhead feared one of them might be her girlfriend.

She had to wait until Noa slipped away to the bathroom. And then, finally, she went after her.

Her name was Renata. She had red, curly hair, a face full of freckles, gray eyes, a pointed nose, and full lips. Small breasts, wide hips. She was beautiful, though she would never have said that about herself. All night she had been imagining that petite body against her own, and the alcohol had stripped away the last trace of shame.

Noa came out of the bathroom unsuspecting, still lost in her own pleasure. Barely had she passed by Renata when a hand caught her wrist and pulled her. She didn’t have time to see who it was. She only understood, all at once, where they were taking her.

The dark room at El Faro Rojo was a room with not a single light, with black curtains stuck to the walls. Inside, absolutely nothing could be seen. It was the corner for those who could no longer stand the urge, the place where only breathing and scattered moans could be heard in the darkness.

Noa ended up against the wall, her heart pounding in her throat. Who is it? she thought. She had to decide quickly: run or stay. What she had always wanted was love, not one night. But that night, with her skin burning and her head full of music, her body wanted only one thing.

—Who are you? —she asked, sure it would be one of her friends answering.

—Someone dying for you —answered an unfamiliar voice—. Let yourself go.

—No. I want to know who you are.

Fingers brushed her lips, silencing her gently.

—Be satisfied knowing I’m a stranger who wants you.

And she kissed her. Slowly, unhurriedly, fingers intertwining with hers. Noa’s breath caught. From being the invisible one as always, she had become another woman’s desire, and the kiss was so soft, so wet, that she didn’t want to know anything else. She kissed back with everything she had. The stranger took her by the neck and pressed her against her, and then Noa understood that this was going to go far.

Renata’s mouth moved downward. She barely bit her chin, kissed her neck, ran her tongue over it, and came back up, slowly, to find her lips again. Hands stroked her arms, her back. Noa slipped her own hands under the other woman’s T-shirt and felt her damp skin, and amid all that touching her sex started throbbing.

Renata found her way under Noa’s blouse and discovered she wasn’t wearing a bra. She lowered her mouth to her small breasts and kissed them through the fabric, while her fingers kept tracing her back. Noa felt every touch multiplied, as if the darkness made everything more intense. She couldn’t stop moaning, and the moans were tiny, restrained, just like she was.

—Do you like it? —Renata whispered in her ear, giving her a soft bite—. You have no idea how much I fantasized about you all night, watching you dance like that.

—What did you like about me? —Noa asked, her voice breaking.

—Everything. How small you are, that look of pleasure on your face, how you moved your hips. Every second I watched you, I wanted you more.

—You can’t imagine how good you’ve got me. And I can’t even see you.

—Discover me with your hands —Renata said—. I’m yours.

Noa lifted her T-shirt and searched for her breasts. They were bigger than hers. She ran her tongue from one nipple to the other, pressed them between her lips, sucked them slowly, with that delicacy that defined her. Hearing Renata moan only turned her on more. The stranger, surrendered, leaned into her and let the small mouth do whatever it wanted.

Renata turned her to face the wall. She kissed the nape of her neck, traced her back with her tongue, tasting the sweat, while one hand moved up to her breasts and the other slid down to her sex, over her pants. Noa let out a deep sigh. She took that hand and shoved it herself inside her jeans, impatiently.

—Are you coming for me? —Renata asked.

—Yes. As many times as you want.

Renata’s fingers pushed the thong aside and found her soaked. She started stroking her clit in slow circles, and Noa couldn’t hold out long: she came in short gasps, trembling against the wall. Renata brought her fingers to her mouth, tasted her, and wanted her even more.

She unbuttoned her pants, pulled down her thong, and turned her around to have her facing her. She kissed her mouth, her neck, her breasts, slowly moving down her stomach, unhurried, until she knelt. When she finally placed her tongue between her legs, Noa let out a muffled cry. Renata licked slowly and firmly, covered everything, paused on the clit, and started again. Noa couldn’t stop moaning.

—I’m coming —she panted, arching her back.

Renata didn’t stop. She kept going, with the same hunger, as if she had the whole night for her. Noa came a second time, and when she thought she couldn’t take any more, she felt a third wave rising up her legs.

—Stop —she finally begged—. I’m too sensitive.

Renata straightened up, touched her sex barely, with the tip of her fingers, and spoke into her ear:

—Too bad. I was dying to make you come over and over in my mouth.

But Noa didn’t want it to end without giving something back. She kissed her, felt the taste of her own pleasure on her lips, and, with the same calm the other woman had shown her, she began to go down. From her neck to her breasts, from her breasts to her stomach, until she was kneeling in the darkness. She unbuttoned her pants, pulled them down along with her underwear, and stroked her with her fingers before tasting her. She was wet, hot. Noa ran her tongue slowly, collecting every drop, and it seemed to her the most delicious thing she had ever tasted.

—Like that, just like that —Renata moaned—. You’re going to make me come.

Noa slid two fingers in carefully while sucking her clit. Renata writhed, gulped air in greedy mouthfuls, trembled. It didn’t take long for her to come in Noa’s mouth, pushing with her hips. Then she let herself fall to the floor beside her, and the two of them touched themselves at the same time, kissing, until they finished together again, lost in one long kiss.

***

They stayed wrapped around each other on the floor, catching their breath.

—Can I see you now? —Noa asked—. I’m dying to know what you look like.

—Really? Wasn’t it enough to know me with your hands?

—No. Now I want to see you.

—And if you see me and don’t like me? Won’t the magic break?

—I promise nothing’s going to break. Besides, that’s not fair: you watched me all night and I have no idea what you look like.

—Fine. But don’t say I didn’t warn you afterward. I’m no beauty.

They walked out hand in hand. The club lights blinded them all at once after so long in the dark. When Noa’s eyes adjusted, she finally saw the freckled redhead who had dragged her into the darkness, and felt her heart trying to leap out of her chest. Not because of desire. Because of something else.

—You’re perfect —she said, and for once she wasn’t thinking about just one night.