Several of Suzanne’s clubmates were in the group as were several strangers, all hoping to run faster than the 2 hours and 45 minutes OT qualifying time, and this group stayed together for the first sixteen miles or so as the truly elite women ran far ahead. Suzanne’s group started to fray as it entered Manhattan just past mile 16. Now Suzanne was a half-mile from the finish and her time was 2:39:24. She’d seen Kerry and the rest of her New York family several times during the race. After she passed, they hurried to the subway to see and cheer her at the next rendezvous point.
Pushed by the crowd, she made it through Central Park South and again into the Park itself. She was desperate, telling herself it would soon be over. That was all that kept her moving. Past the “26 Miles” sign so 385 yards to go. Then she saw the finish line with 200 yards to go. The clock read “2:42:18.” She had the whole road to herself for the final, slightly-uphill stretch and thousands cheering for her and her alone as she struggled through the finish, collapsing two steps after she crossed the line. “2:43:10.” Two volunteers rushed to wrap her in a high-tech blanket before helping her to her feet. The woman who finished ahead of her hugged her and she waited to do the same to the teammate who followed about twenty seconds after she did.
After being led to her bag and given some recovery drinks and food, she went to meet her family in the elite family-reunion area. She trained so hard for this. Suddenly she was nearly bowled over as Kerry ran up to her a bit harder than she realized. The others were there too.
After a small get together at her Mother’s apartment, Suzanne faded, and Kerry drove her home. Suzanne was too tired to shower, but Kerry made her. When dry, she collapsed onto the bed and was asleep within minutes. It was just after three, and Kerry gave her a kiss as she covered her with a blanket.
Kerry came in a little later. She gazed at her woman. Suzanne was never more gorgeous than when she lay exhausted, completely spent. So vulnerable. Kerry went for a cup of tea and some biscuits, and returned with a romance novel of the type that allowed her mind to drift away. She had a novel’s worth of complications with Suzanne but now that they were settled, she used romances to live vicariously in others’ worlds of missed opportunities and never-forgotten chances. Of separations and reunions.
She sat in the armchair in the room watching the up-and-down of Suzanne’s breathing. As dusk hit, she turned a small table-lamp on as she read her book and drank her tea and ate her biscuits. And regularly gazed at Suze. It was one of the moments when she told herself, “I am happy.” Her beautiful, exhausted Suzanne, having worked so hard over months and months so that she could do something largely arbitrary. An arbitrary time for a race of an arbitrary distance about which no one cared. Except, in the end, Suzanne and thus Kerry and the rest of her family.
It was dark when Suzanne roused herself. She was not expecting Kerry to be staring at her. “Hello, sleepyhead.”
After being told the time, she was able to get to the bathroom. Kerry heard the water starting to run in the tub. She ran to get a sports drink from the fridge and brought it to the bathroom. Suzanne was sitting on the toilet seat, trying to muster the energy to get her body in the tub, its water now steaming. Kerry handed her the drink, and adjusted the faucet’s temperature. She ran to the hall closet and brought back a box of Epsom salts, which she sprinkled in.
She had to help Suzanne get into the tub. The two women were quiet. Suzanne was the first to speak.
“I know I’ve been selfish with all the running I’ve been doing and couldn’t have done it without you.” Kerry told her to shut about it. “It was important to you so it was important to me.”
Suze told Kerry to shut up. She continued, “Now that I’ve done a marathon, I’ve done it. I will go to the Olympic Trials in Atlanta in February, but I am not training hard for them. I just wanted to see if I could make them. Just shorter stuff from now on.”
They were again quiet until Kerry helped Suzanne stand to let the shower rinse off the salted water. Suzanne made it out of the tub. They went to bed after a small dinner.
Suzanne was tired, but thanks to her nap not too tired. Kerry pushed up Suzanne’s shirt and knelt between Suzanne’s legs and lovingly ate her wife out. They did this often when Suzanne was spent from training. Now that the exhaustion was the result of the race itself, it felt even better. It was simple enough. Kerry simply let her tongue explore the labia, almost lackadaisically, neither of them in a hurry. Just her tongue at first, and careful to avoid the clit. She liked to do the alphabet and by about P or Q Suzanne’s hips began to rock slightly.
It was always like this, Suzanne trying to control her body. It was a challenge Kerry enjoyed, doing her best to take control—if anyone had control—over her lover’s body. Suzanne had so much going on in her body and her head after the morning’s race that it did not take long for her to surrender.
“In. In.” Kerry was not sure whether she wanted a finger or a tongue to enter. But since her arms were wrapped around Suzanne’s thighs for leverage, she hoped her tongue would be enough. It was. She made it into a tube and began stabbing into the vagina. Her nose ran across the lips, inhaling Suzanne’s odor, which triggered Kerry’s own faucet.