The Wrong Side of the Tracks

The wailing cries of the baby were slowly driving her insane. She had fed him no more than an hour ago so it couldn't possibly be that he was hungry again. He was just like her husband, she grudgingly thought, always wanting something more of her and yet, never giving back. She knew it was an awful thought but she was weary and the entire situation was getting to her. At least, she mused, her baby will grow up and become a better man someday, or so she hoped.

The new mother got up from the couch, moving slowly in the direction of the cradle. Gazing down, she cringed at the sight of the beet red, screaming babe. "Okay, okay, what is it now?" Sherri asked, without expecting an actual answer. That, she chuckled to herself, would have been a tad disconcerting. She was so tired that she could barely keep her eyes open. Little Jake had been crying for what seemed like hours, until she eventually just got used to the sound. She wasn't overly concerned since he did that most of the time, and most of the time, it was just attention that he wanted.

Giving in to the little one's demands, she picked him up into her arms and started rocking him from side to side, humming softly. Finally, Jake started to calm down, slowly going from crimson red to light pink, until he reached the color of a normal, healthy-looking baby. He became the very image of an angel; the transformation was astounding, even to the mother who was quite familiar with the act. Sherri released a deep sigh of relief as she carefully sat down on the couch, baby tucked safely in her arms.

Suddenly, the phone shrilled. Jumping off of the couch as though it were on fire, she nearly dropped little Jake on the floor. Hurriedly, she moved to pick it up before it would completely startle Jake awake. "What?! And it better be good!" She barked into the handset.

Luckily and surprisingly, Jake was fast asleep. "Figures," Sherri mumbled to herself.

"Hey Sher. Quick, turn the TV on to MTV," said Jackie, Sherri's best friend since high school.

"What the hell Jackie? I just managed to put little Jake to sleep. You're lucky he didn't wake up or I'd have throttled you through the phone," whispered Sherri harshly.

Sherri could almost see the stupid smirk that always appeared on her friend's face, especially when Sherri had threatened her with bodily harm. "Yeah, yeah. Just turn on the damn TV."

Sherri grunted but picked up the remote control. Quickly pressing the mute button and switching through the channels, she found the desired one. Little Jake was having a really bad day. His mother, for the second time in less than an hour, was about to drop him flat on the floor. Sherri stood looking at the TV screen, mouth agape, eyes so wide, they looked ready to pop out of her head.

"Sher? Sher!" Jackie screamed into the phone.

Sherri finally found her voice, though it was cracked with surprise, tension, and a long-hidden pain. "Yeah?I'm here."

"Are you watching? Isn't that that girl, from high school, the one you used to hang out with?"

Sherri swallowed thickly and nodded, completely forgetting the fact she was still on the phone.

"Sher! What the hell is wrong with you?"

"I?I'm sorry. I'm here. I was just shocked?"

Jackie snorted, "well hell, yeah, me too. I just turned on the TV and suddenly I see her gyrating in a freaking video clip. She's really good. And hot! Man, I don't remember her looking like that in high school."

Sherri clenched her teeth, images of the past flooding her mind.

Alejandra Gutierez was the new kid in school. She was tall, lanky, with long black hair and a pair of chocolate brown eyes that could melt your heart. She was extremely smart and had been given the opportunity to study at the Jenkins' private school for girls. Her parents were poor with barely enough money to pay for food, much less for their daughter's "insignificant" education. But once the scholarship was given, there was no doubt about her going. Alejandra kept to herself; embarrassed of her height, of her intelligence, and much as she was ashamed to admit it even to herself, she was a tad embarrassed by her background. The school was filled with intelligent, rich kids that lived in the posh surrounding area. None of them made an effort to get to know her, and no efforts to leave her safety zone were made on her part.

Sherri was the only one who tried to overstep the invisible boundary. She had been watching the gangly girl since her first day, and something about her had intrigued her. During lunchtime, when Alejandra was sitting at a table all by herself, as per usual, Sherri approached her and asked to have a seat. Alejandra raised a suspicious eyebrow but nodded.

Sherri smiled and sat down. "I'm Sherri," she introduced with a smile.

Alejandra gazed at her for a long moment but finally took her hand in a firm shake, saying in a smooth alto voice, "I'm Alejandra." She had the slightest bit of accent.

"That's a beautiful name."

Alejandra smiled shyly and thanked the cute blonde. When lunch was over, Alejandra noticed that she towered over Sherri by a good 5 inches. Sherri seemed like her exact opposite. Her hair was light blonde, long and curly, her eyes, a beautiful shade of blue that lit her entire face. On that day, Alejandra decided that she liked Sherri. Unbeknownst to her, Sherri decided the very same thing.

However, the rest of the school seemed to completely disagree. As long as Alejandra sat quietly by herself and minded her own business, no one had any trouble with her. The moment Sherri started hanging around her, derogatory comments started flying her way. At first, Alejandra let them express themselves, she kept her cool and ignored everybody. But when the comments directed her way started to affect her friend as well, her temper got the better of her. At one point, the other girls decided that comments about Alejandra's background weren't enough, and assumptions about hers and Sherri's relationship started gathering momentum. Sherri hated herself for doing so, but when Jackie and her other friends started taunting her about her "obvious crush" on Alejandra, she abruptly stopped seeing her. She knew she had hurt her friend, no longer answering her calls, or hanging around with her, without any explanation. But, she feared such comments would reach her parents' ears and that, she surmised, would have been much harder to handle.

Alejandra was hurt in the beginning, but when she realized she had no reason to feel that way, she pushed her feelings aside and simply kept going to school as though nothing had changed. She kept herself busy with school work and her music, constantly day dreaming about what her future might hold. Deep down, she knew that she was destined to make it big. She was destined to perform in front of thousands of screaming fans. Her guitar burned under her fingers when she played and the microphone melted when her silky voice rang through it. Every Saturday night she would sing her heart out at one of the local bars. Even though she was underage, the owner fell in love with her voice and talent, probably more so with her stunning looks, and let her play there. By the time she was through with high school, she had gained quite a fan base.

She hadn't exchanged another word with Sherri till they graduated, and after graduation both girls went their separate ways.

"She was beautiful in high school as well," Sherri whispered into the phone. The image on her screen was seared into her head. Alejandra had become one of the most gorgeous women she had ever seen. She never did get over her guilt from that period in her life. To this day, she regretted treating her friend that way, leaving her in solitude because of some big-mouthed idiots that couldn't keep to their own problems. She was speaking with one such idiot at that moment.

"Whatever. What do you say we go to one of her concerts? I just read that she's coming to town." Jackie was never the brightest in the bunch, but she was mostly harmless, so Sherri stuck with her.

"What?! Are you crazy? I'm not going to see her in concert," replied an incredulous Sherri.

"Why the hell not? Take a day off, you deserve it. Get a babysitter or get that husband of yours to stay with Jake for once in his life, and let's go out. Like old times."

"Jackie, I can't. You know how Adam is about me going out alone, especially to some concert, and if you forgot, we didn't really leave off on the best of terms with Alejandra."

"First of all, tell that prick he can bite you, and second, if I recall correctly, you stopped seeing her, I was never friends with her to begin with."

Sherri gritted her teeth in anger, "You're going senile in your old age, I see. Apparently, you've conveniently forgotten the little reason why I stopped being friends with her."

Jackie scratched her head in thought. "Apparently."

"Ugh! You jerk. You and those stupid other girls started talking about us, that we were more than friends, that Al was a dyke. Remember? I was so scared my folks would hear those comments that I ran so fast I'm surprised I didn't leave a dust trail in my wake."

"Oh, right! Now I remember. Hey, guess what, she has a girlfriend now. A famous one to boot." Jackie chuckled, as though finding the entire conversation extremely hilarious.

Sherri flopped tiredly on the couch. Her heart, for some reason, constricted in her chest. Jake sensed his mother's agitation and started squirming in her arms. Shushing him softly, he went back to sleep. "She has a girlfriend? How do you know?"

"While we've been reminiscing, I've looked her up on the internet. She has A LOT of fans. This info is on one of her websites. So I guess we weren't all that far off back then. You should thank us, as I see it."

Sherri snorted in disbelief, "Yeah, thanks a lot. She was a good friend and a sweet person, and you guys were such shits. I can't believe I did that to her and yet I'm still friends with you."

Jackie frowned, "Hey! I think that was an insult."

Sherri chuckled and changed the subject, "Just forget it, okay? I'm glad she's done well for herself and now, I just want to go on with my own fab life in peace and quiet, k?"

Jackie sighed, "Fine, I'll leave you alone. For now. When is that asshole husband of yours coming home?"

Sherri knew she should have said something to her friend about the way she spoke of her husband, but then she knew Jackie was right, and couldn't possibly bring herself to correct her. "Adam will be here Thursday. He's on another business trip."

Jackie snorted, "Yeah, business trip. Into whose panties this time?"

"Jackie, come on, please. I'm going to put Jake down, I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Alright, Sher. Bye sweetie."

Sherri hung up the phone and went to put Jake in his cradle. She was tired, her stomach was churning and she felt worse than she had felt in a very long time. Somehow, seeing Alejandra's face again, even though it was through a TV screen, made all of her bad memories and old feelings resurface. She had truly cared for the girl back in high school. They had spent a lot of time together, talking, watching movies, listening to music; just hanging out. Sherri remembered how much fun they used to have. They were good times. But most fondly, she remembered the times when Alejandra would bring out her guitar and sing to her. Her voice always held the slightest tinge of melancholy. It was so beautiful, so smooth, so soothing. She closed her eyes tightly for a moment and she could almost hear the straining notes of a song that probably came to be a huge hit.

They usually hung around the lake, right on the outskirts of town. Alejandra never offered to bring Sherri to her home and after taking Alejandra to her own house once, she swore to never repeat that mistake again. Her parents were very upset with her afterwards, telling her if she wanted to take on a charity case, she should do it at the children's hospital, and not in their home. Sherri resented her parents for many years, but her snobbish upbringing was deeply instilled within her and even she couldn't completely shake those thoughts away.

Sherri was snapped from her musings by the sound of the phone ringing. Again, jumping from the couch, she snapped the phone from its charger and answered sharply, "What?"

"Sherri?" Adam's voice boomed through the line.

Sherri snapped herself from her daze and involuntarily tensed. "Oh hi Adam, sorry, I thought you were someone else."

"Who could possibly be calling my house while I'm gone?" He asked, irritation clearly marking his tone.

Sherri ground her teeth in anger, "No one, it's not as though I have friends."

Adam snorted, "Oh stop. You have too many as it is. Anyhow, my point in calling was to let you know that I would be gone until next Sunday instead of this Thursday. Something came up at work."

Sherri pursed her lips in a mixture of both irritation and relief. "Alright. I guess I'll see you then."

"Yes, good. Don't do anything stupid," and with those seemingly distracted words, he hung up.

"You are a prick," Sherri said, looking at the phone in her hand.

Getting an idea, she picked up the phone again and called her friend's familiar number. Jackie picked up on the second ring.

"Jack, what did you say about tickets?"

Jackie was delighted to hear the change in Sherri's tone and got right to business. She logged onto the internet and bought two tickets for Alejandra's upcoming weekend concert. The weekend couldn't get there fast enough.

The women kept busy with their own lives; each had her own obligation, which they took care of, either in the name of their own families, or in the name of their absent husbands. But finally, the weekend arrived.

The doorbell rang loudly through the large house. Sherri was just trying to decide on which shoes to wear when she heard it. Hopping on one shoed foot, she managed to get the door without falling flat on her face.

"Hey. Good, you can help pick out my shoes and accessories."

Jackie chuckled and followed her friend into the bedroom. "I think that one you have on looks good."

Sherri bit her lip and asked skeptically, "Yeah? How about those black ones?" pointing towards a shiny, black pair of pumps.

"Why do you even ask? I know you'll eventually just go with whatever you want."

Sherri shrugged and went on to put the other pair of shoes. "How's my hair?"

Jackie sighed, "You look gorgeous. Now can you stop fussing so we could go?"

"Ugh, you're no help. Besides, the babysitter isn't here yet."

Jackie flopped down on the bed. "Fine. Why are you fussing, by the way?" A curious eyebrow made itself up her brow.

Sherri stopped for a moment and gazed at her, "Well, it's been a while since I've been out and I'd like to dress up for the occasion. Is that alright with you, Ms. Callahan?"

Jackie smiled and nodded, "Yep."

It was no more than an hour before they finally made it out the door. Little Jake had been kissed goodnight, the babysitter was given her instructions, and they were rolling toward their destination. The crowd outside the stadium was huge. The lights were bright and blinding, making it difficult to see. Jackie grabbed Sherri by the hand and pulled her to the entrance. Stamped tickets in hand, they made their way inside. The stadium was already half full, and by the looks of the gathering crowd outside, it wouldn't be long till the stadium burst with the ruckus of fans. As quickly as their shoes would allow, they made their way to their seats. Sherri was surprised to see that Jackie had managed to get front seats in such a short notice.

"How did you get these seats?" Sherri tried her best not to scream, but the noise was already deafening.

"Money talks, babe," Jackie grinned and winked at her. "Oh, and I have a surprise for you."

Sherri narrowed her eyes in suspicion, "What?"

"You'll see. Just sit back, relax, and enjoy the concert."

Sherri wanted to repeat her question, but the lights suddenly dimmed and the crowd went nuts. The first few notes were played by a distant guitar and they made Sherri shiver. It sounded so familiar and yet, so different. A single spotlight suddenly flared on the stage, dead center, and a dark figure stepped from behind a curtain, slowly making its way onto the front of the stage. Her head was lowered over the microphone, her long black hair covering her face. Then suddenly, her voice rang through the stadium. It was that same smooth, silky voice Sherri remembered singing to her. So long ago. And then the hair was thrown back and her facial features were revealed. They seemed to be chiseled in stone, such perfect angles, proportion. Her body, to die for.

Sherri gaped at her quietly, not noticing that her friend was studying her intently. When the song came to a slow, dramatic end, the audience went wild yet again. The songs continued, flowing one into the other, creating a perfect harmony. By the end of the show, even Sherri was drenched in sweat. The air was scorching, thousands of bodies undulating to the music, breathing in and out, going wild alongside the singer on stage. Sherri was in a daze, the foggy atmosphere clouding her brain. Jackie had to shake her arm for her to snap out of it.

"Come on, time for your surprise." Jackie took her hand and guided her around the people still crowding the floor, to somewhere behind the stage.

"Where are we going?"

Jackie simply smiled and kept quiet, until they got backstage.

A large bodyguard with his arms crossed over his bulky chest stopped them at the entrance. "Passes?"

Jackie flashed two cards at the bodyguard and he magically moved out of the way. Sherri frowned but allowed herself to be pulled along. "How did you??" Her sentence was left hanging when a sweaty Alejandra intercepted them.

Both Jackie and Sherri stood looking at her, mute as fish. Alejandra's eyebrow rose sharply, her lips curling in a small, almost satisfied smirk. "May I help you ladies?" She licked her lips. Suddenly, she was grabbed from behind, turned around and kissed straight on the lips by a very amorous blonde woman. Alejandra turned around and pulled her girlfriend closer. "Hey baby. Did you like the show?"

"You were scorching hot, stud! God, you made me so wet?" She pretended to whisper in her ear, but her words rang loud and clear in the ears of the two watching women.

Alejandra chuckled and reverted her attention to the women, "Hello? Anybody there?" She asked jokingly, waving a hand in front of their faces.

Jackie snapped out of her shock first and said, "Yeah, sorry. Hi. Umm, you were awesome. You know, we knew each other back in high school," she blurted rapidly.

Alejandra's smiled twisted crookedly, her eyes growing somewhat colder. "Oh? Interesting. Should I remember you then?"

Jackie turned pink with embarrassment and slight anger. "No, no, I don't see why you should."

Alejandra continued to smirk as her gaze shifted to Sherri. "And you? Do I know you from high school as well?" Her eyes slowly raked over the blonde's body.

Sherri swallowed and simply answered, "No." Her eyes remained glued to Alejandra's dark ones. At her answer, she saw something change in the singer's eyes, but before she had the chance to analyze it further, Alejandra turned on her heel and started toward her dressing room.

"You two are welcome to come to the after party if you wish. Ask my bodyguard for directions," she threw over her shoulder.

Sherri was ready to leave, a fist curling in the pit of her stomach. Jackie placed a warm hand on her forearm, preventing her from leaving. "Are you okay?"

Sherri shrugged, "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

"Then come on, let's go to the party."

Sherri chuckled humorlessly, "No way. You can go, if you want," she said and started leaving.

"Sher, wait. Why not? You said it yourself earlier; you never go out. You've finally got out of the house to have some fun and instead of doing just that, you'll what? Run back home with your tail between your legs? So what if she was rude? Who cares? Do you know how many hot guys are at these kinds of parties?" Her smile was about to split her face in two.

Sherri couldn't help it. She laughed. "Need I remind you that you're married? And so am I, for that matter."

"Shyeah, and I bet that's exactly what both my no good husband and yours say to all the women they meet on their 'business trips'."

Sherri licked her lips and sighed. "I should really be getting home."

Jackie knew she was wearing her friend down. "You can see Jake in a few hours, after some drinks, and hopefully, some good lovin'," she gestured lewdly.

Sherri shook her head, "You're incorrigible. Fine, we'll go, but don't bother me if some ugly guy is trying to get all over you."

"Honey, the way my life looks right now, I'll take anything I can get." They laughed and went to get directions for the party.

The party was held in Alejandra's hotel suite. When they reached the hotel, the place was already filled to the brim. With not much of a problem, they entered the suite and went straight to the bar. Equipped with colorful drinks, they moved to a secluded corner. "This is so cool. I can't believe we're actually at a music star's after party," said Jackie.

"I think you've paid enough for those tickets to have your own party thrown for you," offered the ever cynical Sherri.

"Ooh?look at what just walked in," Jackie exclaimed in an excited whisper, pointing to the door.

Sherri looked and saw a fairly good looking guy looking in her friend's direction. "He's alright."

Jackie stared at Sherri in shock, "Alright?! Adam must have blinded you or something. Oh look, he's looking over here. What should I do, what should I do?"

Sherri used a slightly mocking tone, "Umm, I don't know?maybe you should go over there and say?hi?"

"Alright then, I think I will, and leave you and your mocking cynicism to dwell here in peace. Alone!"

Sherri was left alone in her corner, slowly sipping from her drink. She was about ready to leave when a deep voice whispered against her ear, "I'm glad you came. You looked good enough to eat back at the stadium."

Sherri turned shocked eye to stare into intense brown ones. "How dare you speak to me like that? You think that just because you're a famous singer anyone you want will just jump into your bed? You disgust me!" Sherri was ready to turn and leave when she was softly restrained by her arm.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry, okay? I guess my routine line didn't work on you. My mistake. Forgive me?" Her eyes softened, suddenly looking so warm and inviting, so reminiscent of the Alejandra Sherri once knew and?

Sherri took a deep breath and said, "Okay."

Alejandra smiled. "Would you like to get out of this smoke, breathe some fresh air?"

Sherri merely nodded, allowing herself to be gently tugged in the direction of the bedroom.

When the door opened, Sherri froze. "Wait, I said?"

"I know what you said, and I said I was sorry. I have a balcony in there, where we could breathe in some clean air. I hate smoke." This time, when the singer pulled her into the bedroom, Sherri followed willingly. The room was beautiful, large and tastefully decorated. The balcony was off to the left of the room, a large glass door separating the two spheres. The balcony was softly lit by an overhead lamp. The air was a bit chilly, but the quiet and cleanliness of it were worth it. Alejandra noticed Sherri shiver slightly and quickly took off her thin leather jacket, placing it gently on the small shoulders. She chuckled slightly when the shorter woman was practically engulfed by it.

Alejandra walked over to the banister and propped her arms on it, lacing her fingers together as she watched the night's sky. Sherri inched her way closer and mimicked the singer's position. "You really were amazing up there, on stage."

Alejandra smiled but didn't turn her gaze. "Thank you," she whispered softly.

"I'm sorry?" Sherri started saying, only to be stopped by two warm fingers covering her lips.

"You are so incredibly beautiful. I saw you during the concert. I couldn't stop looking at you."

Sherri blushed and lowered her gaze. The fingers moved down to her chin to raise it. "I'm just telling you the truth, no need to be shy."

Sherri swallowed when a pair of rosy lips slowly began to descend in the direction of her own. The slight pressure of the warm lips made her heart flutter in her chest. She knew she should have been outraged, angry, incredulous, indignant, but she couldn't get herself to be anything other than excited, giddy, warm all over. The lips were so soft against her own. She felt as though she'd never been kissed before. Without her realizing, she was slowly led backwards, onto one of the lounge chairs on the balcony. Gently, she was pushed into a seating position. Alejandra's lips left hers for a brief moment, her hands moving down her body to pull her black skirt up around her hips. She gasped when the chilly air hit her overly heated center.

The gasp quickly turned into a deep moan when those strong hands moved over her breasts, slowly, sensually massaging both globes until the hardened peaks were clearly visible through the thin material, the jacket long pushed aside.

Sherri's body was screaming for something, she wasn't even sure what it was, but she knew that only Alejandra could give it to her. The singer's kisses slowly migrated from her lips to her throat, then down to the slightly exposed skin of her upper chest and collarbones. Her lips trailed over her clothed breasts, leaving a wet spot over her nipples, then finally she reached her thighs. Taking a leg in each of her hands, she gingerly placed them on her broad shoulders. It didn't take long to remove the last obstacle, and as the panties slowly made their way to the floor of the balcony, Alejandra burrowed beneath the dangling skirt. Sherri nearly screamed at the sensation, her hand clutching the dark hair in a vice-like grip.

It didn't take long for Sherri to reach her limit. She cried softly into her shoulder, trying her best to muffle the sounds. The intensity of their encounter left her trembling, a tear of both pleasure and pain slowly marking its way down her scarlet cheek.

Alejandra pulled away when the tremors stopped, looking at Sherri intently. Neither spoke, the only sound was the sound of their intermingling breaths.

Alejandra spoke first, "Thank you. That was beautiful. If you need a ride home, I'll give my driver the orders." When she finished the sentence she got up, wiped her mouth with the sleeve of her silky shirt and stepped back into the room.

Sherri was shocked for a second, then red hot anger spurred her into movement. She rearranged her clothing quickly and barged into the room, almost sick to her stomach to find Alejandra kissing and fondling her blonde girlfriend on the bed. Fighting the urge to cry and lash out, Sherri threw Alejandra's leather jacket on the bed, hitting the lovers in the process, and stormed out of the room.

"What was that all about?" asked the bleached blonde.

Alejandra didn't look as happy as she supposed she should have been. "Nothing, forget it and come here."

Jackie saw Sherri storm through the apartment and quickly left the guy she had been talking to. "Sher? Sherri, wait." She finally managed to stop her at the door. Seeing the red-rimmed eyes, Jackie immediately grew scared, "What happened? Sher, sweetie, what's the matter?"

"Nothing, I just want to go, okay?" Sherri sniffed.

Jackie swallowed with difficulty. She had a bad feeling. "Yeah, sure. Let's go."

Two weeks passed since the day of the concert and Sherri refused to mention what happened, even though Jackie had repeatedly asked. Sherri's husband had come back from his business trip, tired and irritable as usual. Nothing Sherri ever did seemed good enough for him.

"The company is having a party next week. I want you to take care of some things for me, buy yourself a new dress, get me a new suit?" he went on and on but Sherri had stopped listening. It was always the same thing. He had a party, she would have plenty to do. She knew the drill and she hated the entire process, but she complied, as usual.

The day of the party she felt like a robot, following orders mechanically. That day with Alejandra, she refused to admit even to herself, affected her deeply. She was hurt and angry, yet she knew she had no right to be. Alejandra hadn't forced her, nor did she make any promises. She knew the singer had a girlfriend and she knew it would probably be a one night stand if something indeed would take place. She had enjoyed their little tryst and that is what scared her the most.

Shaking her head of these thoughts, she went back to arranging the flowers on the tables arranged for the banquet. Her husband's co-workers and subordinates would be arriving soon.

The party was a grand success. Everybody was talking about the wonderful food, the flower arrangements, the tasteful ambiance. Adam was ecstatic and Sherri was simply happy it would soon be over. Suddenly, Adam got up on the small stage, ready to give an announcement. "Ahem. Hello everyone. I'm happy you could all make it and I'm even happier that you all seem to be enjoying yourselves so much. I have a small surprise, which I hope you like. Please welcome, Alejandra!"

The applause was deafening. Sherri's ears, however, rang for an entirely different reason. She felt like she was slowly drowning, her ears clogging, her breath panting, and before she knew what was happening, she swooned. After what seemed like several hours, but was in fact, no more than a few minutes, she opened her eyes to look into the intense brown ones she tried to eliminate from her soul.

"Sherri, why do you have to embarrass me this way?" stressed an irritated Adam through clenched teeth.

The brown gaze moved away from Sherri and unto her towering husband. "With all due respect sir, she fainted. I don't see how that would be a source of embarrassment to you."

Adam turned his angry gaze toward the singer, "Excuse me? I didn't pay you to SEE anything. I paid you to sing, which you didn't end up doing. So, if you're quite done here, MISS, you are free to go," he said and dismissed her.

Alejandra turned to leave but then seemed to change her mind and turned back around. Taking a wad of bills out of her jacket pocket, she threw them at Adam, watching as they hit his chest with a silent thud, then plopped to the floor at his feet. "Here's your money, asshole." She continued to watch in amusement as he stared at her widely, too angry to do anything else, then pushed two of his co-workers aside and stormed out of the hall.

"Nice catch you got there," she whispered softly into Sherri's ear before helping her up.

Since Sherri was still quite wobbly on her feet when she got up, Alejandra placed an arm around her waist to help steady her. Some of the men offered their help, but Alejandra told them they'd be fine. "I'll get her home safely. Don't worry." However, instead of driving her home, she walked Sherri back to her own suite at the hotel in which the banquet had taken place.

"Where are we? Alejandra, I want to go home." Sherri was getting agitated, but Alejandra quickly soothed her.

"It's okay. I'm not going to hurt you." Seating Sherri on the bed, she went to get her a cold glass of water.

Kneeling in front of the visibly worried blonde, the brunette handed over the glass, helping her sip slowly.

Alejandra closed her eyes for a second, gathering her thoughts before she spoke. "I'm sorry for what happened. I had some time to think about it and though somewhere deep down I feel like you deserved it and so much more, at the same time I realize that it was childish, vengeful and simply mean. I hope you can forgive me."

"I wanted to apologize but you didn't let me, why should I let you?" said a still shaken Sherri.

"You're right, of course. You may never forgive me, but at least I've asked for it." She got up and turned her back on the sitting woman.

"I never meant to hurt you, but circumstance got the better of me. My parents were against us being friends, my friends were against us being friends?I had no other choice."

"Oh? Of course you couldn't act like a grown up and stick to our friendship just because you cared about me. Silly me."

"Al, I wasn't a grown up, I was a kid?a stupid kid. To this day, it pains me to think how I hurt you, but there was really nothing I could have done differently."

Alejandra snorted, "Yeah right. You just keep telling yourself that, maybe it'll help keep your conscience clear. But it doesn't matter, I'm quite alright now. I don't need to beg anybody for their friendship. People are throwing themselves at me now."

"Oh Al?"

"Don't fucking call me that! You've lost that privilege a long fucking time ago!" The brunette changed before her eyes. A rage that Sherri had never been exposed to suddenly came off of Alejandra in waves, directed at her.

Sherri gasped. "I'm sorry?I-I-I don't know what to say."

Alejandra grabbed Sherri's shirt in her hand, twisting the fabric in her fist, and pulled her up to her feet. "You hurt me. I want to hurt you back! I want to hurt you?" a tear slipped from her closed eyes, but then her eyes reopened, blazing with a fire that pulled Sherri to her with its intensity. The kiss was so hot that she felt like she would burst into flames.

Their rendezvous on the balcony was nothing compared to their wild coupling in the hotel's bed. By the time they were finished, the sun was high in the sky, the sheets were practically torn to pieces and their bodies bore the marks of an animalistic fight for dominance. They lay curled against each other on the disheveled bed, still breathing hard from the exertion.

"You recognized me at the concert, didn't you?" asked Sherri.

"Yeah, I recognized you. Like I told you then, I couldn't stop looking at you. I was so hurt by your behavior back then because I cared for you, deeply. Looking back, I think you may have done us both a favor."

Sherri sighed. "What about your girlfriend?" she suddenly remembered.

"What about your husband?" was the cheeky reply.

Sherri chuckled dryly and burrowed deeper into the warm flesh. They had a lot to discuss and many things would have to change, she knew. But, one thing she was sure of, for once, she had done something for herself and it felt damn good.

"You think your parents would like me now that I'm rich and famous?" Alejandra asked rakishly.

After a second's thought, Sherri answered decisively, "Nope," making the singer laugh.

The End