Beyond the Fence

Ring the Bells

"Hi, love," I said after I closed the door, "Are you okay?"

"I felt you scream," she said, "Are you okay?"

I slid my hand into hers, lacing our fingers together, and looked down into the water. The moment was like a dream and I began to wonder if I had awakened myself, thinking I was back into reality when in truth, I was still dreaming. Why was Chrissy standing next to my pool at 2:30 am at the precise time I decided to cleanse myself from a nightmare?

"You felt me scream," I asked, still thinking I was still in a dream, "You heard me scream?"

"I felt you scream, Lee," she said, then sniffled, "I felt you scream in my heart. You had another bad dream, didn't you?"

"I did," I admitted, "Am I still dreaming? Are we really here, standing next to the pool? How did you know? Am I still dreaming? Is the nightmare over and I am having a good dream now?"

She turned to me, raised her free hand, and rested it on my cheek.

"Kiss me, Lee," she said, "Kiss me and tell me that you love me."

I leaned down and kissed her and told her I loved her more than my own life. As soon as we pulled apart, I began sobbing. She pulled on me, indicating she wanted me to sit down. I obeyed and we sat on the pool's edge as I tried to stop crying. She reached over, put her arm around me, and lowered my head so it would rest in her lap.

"I'm sorry," I said over and over again, "I'll stop crying, I'm sorry."

"Don't you dare apologize," she said as she caressed my cheek, "Don't stop crying until you are finished, my love. When you finish crying, we are going to get into the pool so you can wash that bad dream away. Do you hear me, Lee? We're going to wash it away from you tonight. I'm here, my love. This is not a dream, it is real life and we are going to do life, together."

I didn't feel like I was weak because I was crying in front of Chrissy.

I didn't feel like a little baby because I had my head rested on her lap.

I didn't feel less of a man because I was expressing emotion in front of her.

She made me feel strong, loved, and under control for the first time, in a long time.

"You know," I said through my sniffles.

"I do," she replied.

——————

We were a week away from the wedding and everything was working out perfectly. I went with her to pick out flower arrangements, the wedding cake, and the tuxes for the guys that would stand up with me. My best man was my former Captain and I had two of my shift-mates stand with me too.

Chrissy surprised Lisa by asking if she would be one of the bridesmaids and not the flower girl. Her best friend from college was her maid of honor and her best friend from high school stood up as a bride's maid with her too.

Sarah had to have a talk with Lisa in order to help her express her excitement by changing the way she was announcing her involvement in her sister's wedding.

"My sister and brother are getting married," she would tell anyone that passed by, "I made an honor at my brother and sister's wedding. They are marrying each other!"

The day of the wedding arrived and I gave a sigh of relief when the doors opened and Chrissy stood at the end of the sanctuary, ready to walk down the aisle. A little thought that she would change her mind had crossed my mind as I stood waiting. She walked down the aisle with a picture of her dad in her arm, strong, stoic, and beautiful.

"Daddy will still walk down the aisle with me," she had said, "I won't be walking alone."

We enthusiastically proclaimed the, "I do's", kissed, and was introduced to the attendees. A thunderous round of applause overpowered the exit music being played by the organist. Lisa, thinking it was so cool that she got to walk down the aisle with a firefighter, waved at everyone as she exited the sanctuary.

The reception was held at the reception hall on the premises and it began while we finished having pictures taken of us together. We held to tradition and I made sure I didn't see her in her wedding dress before the wedding. One of the only traditions we did not keep was smashing cake in one another's faces. We had agreed to not do that and had proven our trust to one another by holding pieces of cake with arms entwine and allowing the other to take a bite without a mess.

While we sat at the head table, Chrissy would stealthily slide her hand to my thigh, begin to rub me until I hardened, squeeze me, wink, then pull her hand away. She had leaned to me at one point and whispered, "I can't wait to let you enter my fence."

We had a discussion the night I proposed to her and we both agreed to wait to have playtime until our wedding night. I knew she decided she was going to remain a virgin until then and I supported her and told her I was proud of her decision. There were a few times our hands and mouths had minds of their own and tasted one another or suckled on intimate parts, but, we, for the most part, controlled our hormones.

After the reception, we walked outside to get into the limo only to be serenaded with the bells of the church and the bells and sires of fire apparatus ringing and wailing. The crews from the closest firehouse had positioned themselves in the parking lot with their lights flashing in celebration. We waved at everyone, climbed into the limo, and were transported to the hotel.

After I opened the hotel room door, I picked her up and carried her across the threshold. I walked to the bed, gently laid her down, then leaned over and kissed her deeply.

"I've waited for you, Lee," Chrissy said as she stood up and undress me, "I want to give you my virginity. I have saved it for you. I want to feel you enter me, stretch me, make me know that I am yours."

She had removed my shirt, unbuckled my pants, and reached in and started stroking me. I, in turn, had unfastened the back of her dress and began to pull it off of her shoulders. She stopped stroking me, removed her bra and panties, and slipped out of her shoes.

"It's time, my love," she said as she lay on the bed and spread her legs while wearing her white thigh highs with garters, "I know it's going to hurt, but I want to feel the pain and the pleasure that will come after. Take me, stretch me, own me, my love."

She lifted and spread her legs as she spoke. The bedding was wet from the trails of excitement running down her. I had finished removing all of my clothes, pulled off my socks, and positioned myself between her legs.