Friends With Benefits

PART ONE

When it comes to matters of the heart, I was the unluckiest person you could ever meet. As a little girl, I never believed in the fairy tale of a happily ever after ending. My dad was the first person to break my heart. He left when I was 4 years old. He left because he always wanted a boy, and after I was born, my mom was told she couldn't have anymore children. My dad ran off to try to have the boy of his dreams, so growing up it was just my mom and I. My mom worked two jobs just to make sure that I had everything I needed to succeed in school. Tanya Thomas did not believe in failure. If I brought home anything less than a B, I was failing. She told me time and time again: "Kimberly you can not rely on anyone but yourself, so you have to rise above everyone". My mom was also the only person who called me Kimberly. Mom was too poor growing up to go to college, so she wanted me to go to college for the both of us. I had a dream of becoming an architect so that one day I could design the house of my Mom's dreams, to make up for all that she had sacrificed for me. That day never came, because during my freshman year at the college my Mom and I had dreamed me attending Cornell University, I lost her. She died suddenly in her sleep. I told you I was unlucky when it came to love.

I thought that my luck had finally changed during my junior year at Cornell, when I met James. We were both trying to sit in the same seat in our morning lecture on modern architecture. I won of course! It was love at first sight, or so I thought. During my freshman and sophomore years, I was so focused on trying to live up to the standards my mom had set for me, I didn't have time to date. It also didn't help that I don't a standard body shape. I have always been curvy, from the moment puberty hit. I have a 36G chest, with a sexy hourglass figure that all comes together with my 5ft 6in height. While I am not obese, it has taken some time to feel comfortable with my curves thanks to my beautiful mother. My mom could have been a model, and was very quick to remind me of that fact. She was a size 2 her whole life, and like me, she always had long black hair that naturally was a mess of curls. However, you would never know it since my mom always wore her hair straight, and I followed suit, so I could be like her. So when I met James, and he told me how much he loved my curves, I just knew I had a winner!

All of my friends were jealous. They wanted to be the next Kim and James. Our relationship was super strong, for the next two year, with toe curling, mind blowing sex. On the day we graduated, while celebrating our achievements with all of our friends and his family, James got down on one knee and proposed! I was on cloud nine. I was going to be Mrs. Kim Thomas-Dalton. Once the dust settled, and we began trying to live our real lives, we kept putting off setting a date. The first excuse was that we were both vying for internships at the top architectural firms in New York. Since there were only so many spots, and even less for African Americans, James and I were often vying for the same spots. Once our internships were secured, the next excuse was time. Neither of us had the time to plan a wedding. Next thing you know, I had been wearing this ring for 5 years with no end in sight.

James and I shared a small Manhattan 1 bedroom walk up, that didn't have the best of views, but it was home. One day, I came home after a long 12-hour day, which was shorter than my usual 14-hour days. After climbing up the 4 flights of stairs, the only thing I wanted was a tall glass of merlot and my pajamas. As I turned the key, I could hear voices. I was in no mood for company, but it looked like I was going to have to deal with company anyway. One of the voices I heard was James' and the other voice was Shannon, James' best friend. James and Shannon had been friends since elementary school so it wasn't unusual to hear her voice. What was unusual was the hushed, almost breathless quality to their voices. As the door opened I heard a loud crash and lots of cursing. "SHIT! You said she wasn't going to be home for at least another hour!!!!" Shannon exclaimed. There on my plush beige couch was a naked James. An equally naked Shannon was on the floor, and my favorite vase broken next to her.