Reading: "Daceion Ionadi" from Evenfall of the Helical (A.Glass 2022)

"Home!” Clara McGleish says, as she opens the door of her quintessential early 1900s New York City apartment on West End Avenue, which has been renovated of late with its Eighties-esque furnishings, yet retaining the charm of a bygone era. With a young Ionadi walking behind her, placing the groceries onto the kitchen bench top, she starts to unpack, sorting each of the items into the pantry.
“Turn the television on if you like, I think there's a cartoon channel on there somewhere.”
“I'll watch the news,” Ionadi replies, as he walks to the large lounge area, sitting down on the couch. Looking around the apartment, admiring the size of the room and furnishings, thinking about his one bedroom flat that he and his mother have in Chelsea.
“Handsome and intelligent,” Clara replies, as she closes the pantry door, taking out a can of soda from the fridge and opening a pack of potato crisps, dispersing some of the contents into a small bowl, she walks to where Ionadi is placing the bowl and soda down in front of him.
“Thank you Mrs McGleish,”
“Clara...Call me Clara, first names here,” she kisses him on the top of his head.
“Ok Clara...” Ionadi studies a news report, he looks up at Clara who is also watching the television. “...This is interesting...” He says before the news report begins, as the face of a young school girl is shown. Staring at the image “...Samantha Smith, she is against nuclear war.”
Clara nods, also watching the report.
“The American schoolgirl and peace advocate, Samantha Smith will visit the Soviet Union on July the 7th this year. Being invited by Soviet leader Yuri Andropov after writing him a letter about her concerns over a nuclear war with America. She received a reply in April of this year from the Russian leader himself, Samantha will be participate in a peace program by other Russian children in advocating that a nuclear war between the superpowers does not happen. In similar news, mass anti-nuclear missile protests have been planned throughout Western Europe aimed at U.S. military bases. In similarity to the Central Park protests last year in June when it was estimated that one million people attended to voice their concerns of a global nuclear war. In lighter news, the new technology of CD players which have been touted to replace vinyl records, with music that can be packed onto a single small disk, able to achieve better clarity of sound and more hardy that the traditional record...”
“John...” Referring to her husband. “...wants one of those, he's going to Japan soon for business, gonna pick one up duty free,” she says, walking back to the kitchen area as the phone rings. She lifts up the phone, sitting down at a stool.
“Hello?….Hey! How you been...” Clara, tucks the phone under her left shoulder, with right her hand, she lifts a pack of cigarettes, passing it to her open hand, picking out a single cigarette. Ionadi, turns around in discreet way, eyeing her actions. As she places the cigarette between her lips, pursing them tightly together, igniting the end of the cigarette with her lighter. Resuming her position on the stool, she folds her legs over, holding the phone to her left ear, she draws in the smoke, tilting her head back, allowing her blond hair to dangle, she blows it out. Ionadi watches the fume dissipate above her head.
“...Are you in the city?...Great. We should catch up...” Looking down at Ionadi, who turns his head quickly in the opposite direction, half listening to the conversation, Clara angles herself away, facing the kitchen area. Ionadi, turns the television down slightly with the remote control, focusing on the conversation.
“...Today? Um, well...” Clara begins to lower her voice, to which Ionadi can barely hear her, yet he picks up the wording. “...In twenty minutes...” She checks her wristwatch. “...Three PM?...Yeah, come over...Ok, see you soon. Bye.” She hangs up the call, pausing for a moment, looking towards the kitchen window, she continues smoking her cigarette. Butting it out into the ashtray, she stands, walking towards the hallway where the bathroom is situated at the end corridor. With Ionadi eyeing her movements as she opens the bathroom door. He turns, watching the television again, an ad appears of women performing aerobics, selling gym equipment, muting the volume, Ionadi begins eating the potato chips, lifting up the can of soda with his left hand. He thinks back to Clara's conversation and body language, knowing what is about to occur in this apartment. Hearing the toilet flush and door open, he hears Clara walking back towards the kitchen.
“Hope you don't mind. I'm half naked here,” she says, as Ionadi turns around seeing Clara only wearing her blouse, covering her lower waist, her skirt removed, revealing her naked legs. As she quickly walks back down the hallway, turning right into the McGleish's bedroom, Ionadi stands, switching off the television, he walks towards the bathroom, passing the bedroom door, he taps on it.
“Excuse me Clara, could I please use the toilet.”
The door opens, with Clara standing wearing her new outfit of a denim miniskirt and a purple deep plunge blouse. Her hair tied back into a ponytail.
“You don't have to ask. But, you are so polite. You know where it is.”
Ionadi nods and continues walking to the bathroom, entering the area, he closes the door behind him. Looking around, he sees the woven cane laundry basket, with its lid slightly open, reaching down, with his left hand he slides the top to one side, peering into the laundry basket he eyes the crumbled white underwear atop of other clothing. Lifting them up, aware that were recently worn by Clara, he holds the undergarment, studying the lace details, more so the gusset, raising the material to his nostrils. Inhaling the scent, noting that it has a sweet musky scent, indistinct to anything he is familiar with in its aroma. Placing the underwear back into the basket, with his right hand he slides the cane lid across. Flushing the toilet, he washes his hands, drying them on the hanging towel behind the door, Ionadi leaves the bathroom area.
Stepping out of her bedroom Clara checks her wristwatch, she points to the room opposite.
“You can watch some more television? Otherwise you can hang out in Jamison's room.”
“Yeah, he's got some cool toys and comics.”
“Absolutely, he has that new toy, the baddie, can't remember his name. From that space movie that you all love...” Suddenly the intercom chimes, she quickly walk’s pass Ionadi, towards the front door, leaning her right index finger onto the intercom button.
“Hello?”
“Hey, it's Conrad”
“Ok,” Clara replies, tapping the door release on the intercom. She faces Ionadi who is standing in front of her, watching her movements.
“I have a friend coming up...haven't seen in awhile. So...” Clara pauses, as there is a knock at the door, to which she opens. As a man, late thirties, dark curly hair, wear a long sleeve shirt and denim pants enters the apartment.
“Hello!” He says, as both of them tightly embrace. Ionadi studies them both as Clara, on her tiptoes, pushes her pelvis up against the man holding her, as they both hold each other tightly.
“Good to see you Conrad,” she says, as they walk towards where Ionadi is standing.
“He doesn't look like one of yours.” Referring to the thirteen year old Ionadi.
“I'm minding him today, friend of mine started a new job and...” Pausing briefly, her temperament slightly changing, to which Ionadi notices. “...John and Jamison are both are out of town...” She points at Ionadi. “...Jamison's friend Daceion.”
“Nice to meet you,” the man says in a dismissive way towards Ionadi, preferring to keep his attention on Clara, who opens her son's bedroom door as Ionadi enters the room.
“I'll drop you off to your mother work's in one hour,” she says, her look is of a flustered demeanor.
“That's fine Clara,” Ionadi replies, and in a hurried manner she closes the door behind him.
Looking around at the toys, model cars, jet airplanes. Ionadi sits on the edge of Clara's son's bed, eyeing the posters of luxury cars, he views the skateboard leaning against the far wall.
“He's got a bigger room than mine,” Ionadi says to himself, as he thinks about Clara's underwear and her scent, placing his right hand onto where his heart is, he feels it begin to beat rapidly. Closing his eyes, he exhales, hearing the laughter of Clara and the man talking sitting in the lounge area of the McGleish's apartment. He begins to close off the anxious thoughts, feeling his heart rate return to normal, Ionadi opens his eyes, staring around at the bedroom again, a far cry from his, which is austere, with only a small collection of books, magazines and objects that have interested him as an early teenager. To which toys have not been in a fixture of his childhood disposition, Ionadi maturing into an adulthood, which started earlier in his life, yet he had felt burdened by it, with an almost cursed like sentiment, he is being taught, by its social interactions how to control his emotions. He stands, walking to the door, placing his right ear against it, listening to their banter, which rises from loud speaking to whispering. Then a silence, as Ionadi hears footsteps towards the McGleish's bedroom, as the door closes. With his ear still pressed to Clara's son's bedroom door, moments later he hears her bedroom door open and the heavy footsteps of a man walking towards the end of the hallway, where the toilet is located. Ionadi gently and quietly opens the door, so that it is only slightly ajar, as the man quickly walks back to the room opposite, opening the door, he closes it, yet doesn't push it firmly against its frame, with only a small gap revealed. Ionadi moves in a very slow movement across the wooden hallway, staring at the ornamented door in front of him. Studying its symmetrical shapes in a meditative way, listening for movement behind the doorway in front of him, ensuring that each step is carefully placed as he nears the door. For a moment he hears a moan from Clara, a breath, quite, yet distinct in its sexual allure of the feminine. Some movement of bodies shifting positions, the bed frame slightly creaking. He hears something fall to the ground, like one of Clara's high heels. Ionadi, now at the McGleish's bedroom door, stares at the sliver of the door not completely closed, he hears further moans from Clara, slightly louder, yet trying to restrain the passion. Ionadi opens the door very agilely viewing a reflection from the dresser mirror, viewing Clara lying back on the bed, with both her exposed legs open, with the man's head between them, he sees a glimpse of her face, eyes shut, mouth slightly open, enthralled with pleasure. Ionadi studies the man, whose shirt is off, half naked, yet Ionadi can only see the back of his head, with its dark curly hair, moving it around between Clara's legs. Ionadi looks at Clara's face again, her breathing, slow and labored, as Ionadi calmingly steps back from the gap, unable to see the reflection from the mirror, he hears movement on the bed. Moving towards where he could view the reflection once again, he sees the naked behind of the man moving up and down, with Clara's legs wrapped around his lover back. Ionadi watches Clara's pelvis arch upward to meet every thrust by the man on top, he can hear her moans, deliberately muffled in an effort to restrain her pleasure, yet his is more of a vocalized grunt. The man pauses, as they both grind their pelvises together while Clara, leaning on her elbows, unclips her bra, throwing it aside, leaning back onto the bed with a deeper need to be fucked, as the man also fully naked, begins to pump in hard thrusts while her moaning becomes more prolific. Ionadi continues to watch, viewing two naked bodies gripping each other, the man, that is not her husband locked into an urgency of a sexual release. Ionadi views a glimpse of Clara's face, as it moves rhythmically with each movement of the man on top of her, arms wrapped around his shoulders, flushed with excitement and yearning to be pleasured, as her orgasm nears.
“Oh!” She whimpers, the pitch low and without any effort in restraining her want and need to reach that pinnacle of desire, Ionadi is only interested in her arousal and bliss, yet he sees the man lift himself up with both arms. As Clara pushes her hips tightly against his, as he grunts out loud, pumping into her several more times, his orgasm complete, with one final movement, he holds himself inside her. As Clara, continues, in a circular motion grinding around his lower pelvis. Breathing heavily, she taps him on his behind with her left hand, indicating for him to withdraw. Ionadi watches her turn and face the direction of the side table clock, her look is vivid and aware, as the man dismounts. Viewing a semi erect penis dangle, as the man stands looking around for his clothes, Clara quickly swivels herself around so that she is sitting on the edge of the bed, to which Ionadi loses his view from the mirrored reflection and in a quiet manner, he makes his way back to Clara's son's room. Gently closing the door behind him, he sits on the bed, closing his eyes, Ionadi begins to slow down his breathing, leveling out his own arousal of what he had just witnessed. Yet, in his meditation, he hears the footsteps of the man, walking in a hurried way down the apartment hallway. Seconds later he hears Clara, walking in the same direction, as the toilet door opens and then shuts, Ionadi continues to look at the wall in front of him, hearing the faint sound of the toilet flushing, the door toilet door opens and footsteps towards the room he is sitting in. Reaching across to a small table in front of him, Ionadi lifts up a comic with his right hand, opening at a random page. He pretends to read the dialog, there is a tap on the door as it opens, with Clara standing.
“Hello, time to drop you off to your mother,” she says, as Ionadi, in an innocent way, places the comic book back on the table, standing he eyes very briefly the outfit that she is wearing before she fucked the man. Clara, opening the door fully, Ionadi looks in the direction of the toilet.
“Have you got everything?” She asks, walking towards the lounge and galley kitchen reaching over taking her handbag, seeing her reflection in the kitchen window, with her left hand she checks over her hair, which is now tired back into a ponytail.

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Reading:  "Daceion Ionadi" from Evenfall of the Helical (A.Glass 2022)