Blind Date Awakening

The week dragged on for Charles. He still had his daily routine which continued to trap him – the alarm waking him from another sexy dream of he and Jessica, followed by getting ready for work, driving to and from, and his time in the office. Stan came to see him twice a day now that the blind date had been set up. He did everything in his power to encourage Charles to not back out of it. Now that he had agreed on the date, Stan was even more determined to make sure the date became a reality.

At the end of the day on Friday, Stan and Charles walked to their cars together in the parking garage. Stan kept reminding Charles that it was just a date, and to not put anymore expectations than that on the evening. There was no reason to be nervous, according to Stan. Just go and have a nice time with a nice lady, he said. When they got to their cars, Stan pulled Charles into an awkward hug, and said, "I'm glad that you're doing this, Charles. My old friend has been gone for two years, and I want to see if we can get him back again."

Charles drove home, pulling into his spot in the condo garage at about 5:30. He had decided that if he was going to go through with this, he would go all out – including shaving, taking a fresh shower and wearing a different suit. He looked at the instruction paper Stan had given him on Monday, and he chuckled to himself under his breath when he realized how good a job Stan and Lori had done setting this evening up. He and this mystery woman named Karen were meeting at a high-end bistro on the top floor of the new high rise office building that had opened within the past year. Charles knew they had selected this place on purpose – since it had just opened within the year, there would be no memories of he and Jessica dining there in the past, which might have made this night even more difficult than it already was.

The drive back downtown seemed to Charles like it was taking longer than normal. He felt moisture on his palms as he gripped the wheel of his SUV, another holdover from when Jessica was still alive. Finally arriving at the parking garage of the building where the restaurant was located, Charles got out and headed towards the door leading into the building. The monotonous tempo of his shoes hitting the concrete floor of the garage was not helping to soothe the tensions that were beginning to build inside his mind and his heart. Neither did the long ride in the elevator to the 30th floor. When it finally arrived at its destination, Charles took a deep breath as the doors opened and he stepped inside.

He had heard about the popularity of this restaurant, but had not had any desire to see for himself before tonight. He looked around and saw a busy dining area, and it looked as if there were no tables open. The hostess saw him and walked over to greet him with a big, wide smile that alerted him to her bubbly personality.

"Welcome! My name is Staci!" she said, reaching out to grasp Charles' hand. "Do you have a reservation?"

Remembering the instructions Stan had given him, he cleared his throat and replied, "Uh...I'm here for dinner with Karen."

"Ah yes, you must be Charles! Welcome – I think you're going to have a terrific time! Follow me, please!"

Staci swung around so hard that her pony tail struggled to keep up with her head turn. Too happy, Charles thought, as he watched her bouncy walk take him deep inside the crowded restaurant. Finally, Staci stopped at a table for two that had an empty chair. He could see the back of his date's head – this was it. He hadn't seriously entertained the idea of backing out of this arranged date, but it was always in the back of his mind. He stepped on up to the table, turned and looked at the woman who was waiting for him...

Their eyes met, and they each one gasped, and then the comedy of the situation took over, and they both had to suppress giggles that were trying to come out. "Karen, I'd like you to meet Charles," Staci said as she introduced them to each other. "Charles, meet Karen!"

Charles collected his thoughts, and reached out his hand to Karen. "It's a pleasure to meet you. I've been looking forward to this night."

Karen grabbed his hand and shook it, and returned Charles' greeting. "Hello, Charles. I have been looking forward to it as well. It seems our mutual friends Stan and Lori have done a good job of selecting a place for us to meet."

Staci the hostess guided Charles to his seat, then said, "You're waiter tonight is Marcus. He will be with you shortly." Then she leaned in a little closer, her smile even wider than before, and said, under her breath, "I think this is so neat! I hope you both have a wonderful time!" With that, she left, and Karen and Charles began their blind date together.

For what seemed longer than what it actually was, Charles and Karen looked at each other without talking, instead choosing just to sit there and smile. Finally Charles spoke. "I didn't know what I was going to find when I first met my date for tonight, but I certainly didn't think it would be my sister!"

"I'm right there with you! You were certainly the last person I expected to see as well. Although...." She stopped talking, looked down at the table, and then continued. "I'm kind of glad that it happened this way."

Charles studied her face, trying to gauge her emotions as they continued with this awkward encounter. "Why is that?"

"Well...I was extremely nervous about this, because the dating scene is all new to me, and I've never in my life gone on a blind date. With the news flashes you sometimes see about women getting hurt meeting dates they've found on those dating web sites, I felt as though I should be worried about this. Meeting in a busy restaurant is probably a good thing. But knowing your "blind" date like I do removes that worry."

A thought suddenly came across Charles' mind as he listened to Karen talk to him. "That brings up a good point! Why are you out in the dating world? Where is Roger?"

Roger was Karen's husband...or apparently, now her ex-husband. Charles was never a fan of Roger. He felt that he didn't really treat Karen like she was someone special. You could tell with Roger that is was always his way, looking out for himself first before he considered Karen's needs.

Karen dropped her eyes down to the table again as she updated Charles with the details of her decision to kick Roger out six months ago. She had realized that she was tired of putting up with Roger's treatment of her. He had never struck her, but the mental abuse finally became too much.

"I should have listened to you all along about Roger," Karen said. "I know you never liked him from the beginning."

"Karen, why didn't you call me and tell me? You shouldn't have had to go through this all alone!"

That question brought Karen's eyes back up to look directly at Charles. "I tried! I tried for weeks! You've pretty much shut yourself off to the rest of the world after Jessica died. You apparently don't use the cell phone number I had for you anymore. I left messages at your office, but that didn't work either. I finally decided that I just had to move on by myself."

Charles cringed with guilt. He could not deny that nobody but a trusted few knew what his cell phone number was. And he vaguely remembered seeing phone messages at his office from Karen sometime before, but didn't realize it had been six months. He remembered thinking that it was probably just another attempt by someone to bring him out of his despair, so he had ignored them.

Karen continued. "In fact, that's the main reason why I'm glad that it was you that walked in a few minutes ago. I really wasn't sure I would ever see you again. I've missed my big brother!"

Their waiter came and asked them if they were ready to order, but they asked him for a few more minutes. The pause in their conversation gave Charles a little time to collect his thoughts.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there for you when you kicked Roger out. I'm sorry you had to go through that. But the reason I wasn't there was because I was being selfish with my own problem. And I can't really tell you why. I know that what you say, and what so many other people have said to me about continuing with my life is the right answer, but I just haven't been able to do that. I guess I've been afraid to move on, because I know that no matter how I end up, I know that it's not going to be as good as when Jessica was alive."

Karen reached her hand across the table and put it on the back of Charles' hand. She spoke in a soft tone as she looked Charles in the eyes. "I know the pain you feel, big brother. That's one of the jobs of being a sister – to comfort you when things don't go your way, just like a big brother comforts and protects his little sister when she needs help. We haven't been there for each other, but I hope from this point on, you will let me be a part of your life and help you to see that even without Jessica, there is still much that life can give you."

Charles saw that as she spoke, a tear formed in the corner of her eye, and then started making its way down her cheek. He grabbed his napkin, reached over and dabbed it off her cheek. As he was doing this, he realized that something had been missing – in his grief over the death of his beloved Jessica, he had blocked out everyone, including those who loved him, those who wanted him to feel their love in return. He realized that that lack of love was a big part of the emptiness in his life. It wasn't just Jessica's love that was missing, but the love of others as well – family and friends especially.

He turned his hand over so that now he and Karen were grasping each other. At this moment, he felt closer to his sister than he had in many, many years. He searched his mind for the right words to say, but realizing that his thought processes were now scrambled, he spoke from the heart instead.

"I love you, sis." He realized he hadn't called her that since they were both in school. "I'm afraid it's going to take a long time, but I think I'm ready for you to help me. I know I can't keep going on like this forever."

Karen's face lit up with a huge smile as she jumped up out of her seat and crossed over to wrap her arms around her big brother. They held each other for several moments, before sitting back down. Both of them felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off of their shoulders as they looked at each other still smiling.

Finally Charles broke the silence. "Shall we continue on with this date? It kind of seems awkward now that our "blind" date turns out to be someone we've known all our lives."

Karen responded quickly, "Why not? It's paid for, after all. Stan and Lori wanted to make sure nothing stood in the way of our having a good time. I say that we are going to do better than just a good time – I think it's going to be great!"

Marcus the waiter came back and took their order. For the rest of the evening, they enjoyed the great food (it was apparent why the restaurant was so popular!) and caught up on each other's lives. They also talked about the awkwardness of being hooked up together by two people whom they both knew, but obviously didn't realize Charles and Karen were brother and sister. Charles thought about it for a moment, the realized why Stan and Lori hadn't put that together. He remembered that the week of Jessica's funeral, Stan and Lori were scheduled to go on a second honeymoon cruise, and although they were willing to cancel it so that they could attend the funeral, Charles wouldn't allow it, and they didn't get a chance to meet Karen.

When their meal was finished, they stood up to leave. Walking together, Karen reached out and gently clutched Charles' hand, and in return, he squeezed hers, letting her know how much he appreciated it. They passed by Staci on their way out, and seeing that they held hands as they left, she called out in her bubbly voice, "Thanks for coming – I hope you had a great time!" Karen looked back over her shoulder and called back, "Thanks – it was amazing!"

They continued to hold hands down the long elevator ride to the parking garage. They both laughed as they approached their cars – they had unknowingly parked next to each other! They stepped in between the two vehicles, each leaning against their own, and held both hands together as they looked at each other, their smiles still continuing to shine.

It was Karen who broke the silence. "Charles, this is the best time I've had in years, and I'm not ready for it to end. I know I'm breaking the safe blind date protocol here, but I think you won't be too much of a risk. Would you mind coming out to my apartment for a while? I'm hoping that since it's Friday night, you won't have to get up early to go to work tomorrow, so maybe we could just relax together and find out more about each other."

"I would love too – but are you sure you can trust me? After all," he smirked, "this is the first date. How do you know I'm not a psycho...wait, don't answer that," he interjected, knowing that in his state of mind the last two years, it might not be too much of a stretch.

"I know you're not a psycho," responded Karen quickly. "I just know that you were madly, passionately in love with your perfect soul mate, so I understand why you feel like you do. But it's time to start living again," and she pulled Charles into another hug.

They decided that they would leave Charles' SUV in the garage, and he took off his suit jacket and tie and left them in his vehicle before locking it. Karen would drive him to her apartment in her car. Another cringe of guilt came over Charles when he realized that he and his sister lived in the same city, and he had no clue she was there. As they were driving, he asked her about her move.

"When I left Roger, I didn't have any reason to stay where we were. I knew I needed to get a new job, and I felt there was a better possibility of finding employment in the bigger city. So I cleaned out our joint savings before Roger could get to it, found an apartment on the north side, brought just a very few pieces of furniture, and started my life over again."

Karen pulled her car into the apartment complex. Charles saw that it wasn't fancy. It looked to be about six or eight buildings, each building holding about 10 apartments. Karen led him into the inside of the complex, up a flight of steps, and into her second floor apartment. She opened the door and turned on the light, leading Charles in by holding his hand. As he looked around, he could see that she wasn't kidding. A single couch and an old wooden rocking chair faced a small TV on a stand in the front room. Charles could see that it was a one bedroom apartment with a small kitchenette to the side.

Karen set her purse down on the kitchen counter, then hurriedly walked back over to Charles and pulled him into a hug once again. Charles responded, running his hands over her back as they embraced. For the first time in a long time, he realized how much he missed the softness of a woman's embrace, and he began to think about his sister as something more.

"Sis, you have no idea how good that feels," he blurted out. Karen released the hug, and looked up lovingly into his eyes. As he looked back down at her, he saw that for the first time in the evening, he recognized that she was a beautiful woman. The last time he had seen her at the funeral, she had been a little overweight, which he had just chalked up to the fact that she wasn't young as he remembered her while they were in high school.

He kept the conversation going. "You look great, sis – you're a beautiful woman. Why aren't the guys flocking to try to win your attention?

Karen laughed. "Thanks for the compliment, but guys your age usually aren't looking for women my age. They're still trying to make it with women 10 or 20 years or more younger than themselves. Plus I'm a little like you – I'm not exactly out in the market yet. This date tonight is my first official date since I've moved here. And don't let anybody tell you that regular visits to the gym don't work. With a great workout partner like Lori, I have been able to get back into shape, although that didn't seem to impress my ass of a husband any."

Charles chuckled to himself as he thought about the improbability of being hooked up on a blind date with his sister in a town of a million people. He drew Karen back to him and gave her a hug again, this time putting his hand on the back of her head and gently massaged her scalp. A slight moan escaped from Karen's lips. "Charles," she whispered, "that feels so good, that you are either going to have to stop right now, or continue it for about 30 more minutes."

He didn't stop, but instead applied just a bit more pressure as he stroked through her dark brunette hair. As he did that, he bent down and kissed her lightly on the forehead. "I just wanted to say thanks for what you have done for me tonight," he said as he continued his massage. "I was hesitant before the date started, but now I know that it's the best thing to happen to me in a long time."

He bent down to kiss her forehead again, but as he did, Karen tipped her head up, and the kiss landed softly on her lips. The charge that went through Charles was intense. As they broke the quick kiss, he felt a stirring in his groin, something that hadn't happened in quite some time. Karen initiated the next kiss – a little more firm this time, and yet neither was in a hurry to break it. When they finally did, Charles groaned and pulled Karen closer to him, feeling her breasts push into his chest from beneath her blouse and bra.

"Charles......big brother...." whispered Karen. She shifted her weight so that her legs fig snuggly between his as they stood there in her front room. Charles' penis continued to spring into action, and he was sure she could feel the pressure it was creating against her leg.

Between kisses, Charles pulled back a little bit and looked directly at his sister. "Karen, what are we doing? I can't believe I'm being this forward with you."

"Charles, do you love me?" Karen asked

"Of course I do. You're my sister, but I'm afraid we are going beyond brother and sister here."

"Listen, big brother – I love you as well, and I would do anything to help you out of your darkness – anything," she said, before kissing him softly again. "And don't forget, I'm not just helping you. You don't know how much better I feel about myself after this wonderful date with you. If we love each other as much as I think we do, and this is what we can do to help each other out, then I think it's the most natural thing in the world."

Charles thought about her words. He knew how intense his feelings were right now, holding his sister tightly, becoming even more aroused at the feel of her breasts still pressed tightly against his chest. He was afraid of the "morning-after" guilt feelings that might be waiting to haunt him if they carried this on any further. He had just discovered his sister again, and he really wanted to continue making her a part of his life. He just didn't expect the possibility of REALLY making her a part of his life existed.

Still, he could not deny the arousal he continued to feel. He was about three-quarters erect now, and he knew that she could feel what was happening. One more time, he bent over to kiss her, finding her lips slightly open this time, and then feeling her tongue slip first between her lips and then his. When he felt this, his guard dropped, and as his erection grew to full mast, he moaned deeply around her tongue and pulled her even tighter than before.

The kiss seemed to last forever. Finally they broke it, and Karen grabbed Charles' hand and led him down the short hall to her bedroom. They didn't bother turning on the light. Instead, they embraced again and locked into another kiss, only this time, he reached out to run his hands over her left breast, while she reached to caress his hard cock through his pants. They broke their kiss once again, and Charles didn't wait for permission as he began unbuttoning her blouse from the top down. As he got closer to her waist, Karen reached down and pulled the tail of her blouse out from her skirt, just in time for him to find the last button. He took his hands back up to her shoulder area and slowly pushed the blouse backwards and off her arms.