A December Tale

AFTER DARK ARTICLES | A DECEMBER TALE

An anonymised personal account. Names, locations and identifying details have been changed to protect the privacy of those involved.

A Cold December Evening

My story begins one cold December evening, several years ago.

At the time, I was living alone in a large house surrounded by countryside. During the day, it was a lovely place, with beautiful views and an abundance of wildlife that I could happily sit and watch for hours.

But winter evenings were another matter entirely.

Once darkness fell, every creak, knock and gust of wind seemed to take on a life of its own. My imagination would conjure up all sorts of ridiculous scenarios, especially when the wind was howling through the trees.

My dog was wonderful company, although I can’t say he was particularly useful when it came to investigating suspicious noises!

I’d been living alone for some time, and although I enjoyed my independence, there were evenings when the silence felt rather overwhelming.

That particular evening, I’d arranged a massage appointment with a gentleman I’ll call Stuart.

He was a new client, and we’d spoken beforehand. He seemed pleasant and genuine, so I’d agreed to see him at seven o’clock, a little later than I would normally have arranged an appointment.

It was a cold, miserable night.

I noticed headlights outside and watched as a tall figure approached the entrance.

When I opened the door, I was greeted by a rather handsome man.

Stuart was tall, with dark hair and a rugged appearance. He had a lovely manner about him, and after the usual introductions and formalities, we began the massage.

A Conversation Neither of Us Expected

Stuart admitted that he’d never experienced a massage before.

He began teasing me, joking that I shouldn’t hurt him while I was massaging his back.

We both laughed.

The conversation flowed easily, with plenty of teasing and laughter as we gradually got to know one another.

He was easy to talk to, and I found myself enjoying his company.

As the massage continued, our conversation became more personal.

Before long, Stuart began telling me about his life and the loss of someone he had loved deeply.

I could hear the sadness in his voice as he spoke about the difficulties he’d faced and how much his life had changed.

My heart went out to him.

There was something particularly moving about hearing a man speak so openly about his grief. He wasn’t looking for sympathy or trying to impress me. He was simply sharing something that had clearly affected him enormously.

And perhaps because I understood loneliness myself, his words touched me more than he could have realised.

When the Tears Finally Came

I hadn’t been in a particularly good place emotionally either.

A relationship I’d cared deeply about had ended some months earlier, and although I’d tried to carry on as normal, I was still struggling with the disappointment.

Living alone hadn’t helped.

I could keep myself busy during the day, but evenings were different. Sometimes, all I really wanted was someone to talk to, someone to share a laugh with or simply someone to sit beside me.

As Stuart spoke, I found myself telling him about my own experiences.

I hadn’t intended to say quite so much.

Yet there was something about his kindness and the gentle tone of his voice that made it easy to open up.

He listened sympathetically, and before long I could feel my eyes beginning to fill with tears.

I tried desperately to hold them back.

The last thing I wanted was to start crying in front of someone I’d only just met.

But the harder I tried, the worse it became.

Eventually, the tears began rolling down my cheeks.

So much for keeping my emotions under control!

Stuart immediately noticed.

He sat up, reached towards me and gently gathered me into his arms.

I didn’t resist.

In fact, I think that was exactly what I’d needed.

The Comfort of Being Held

Stuart cradled me in his arms, and we stayed like that for a long time.

We talked, cuddled and shared things that neither of us had expected to discuss that evening.

It felt wonderful simply to be held.

I hadn’t realised until that moment just how much I’d missed the warmth of another person.

Not necessarily anything romantic. Just the comfort of someone’s arms around me and the feeling that, for a little while, I didn’t have to face everything alone.

There was no awkwardness between us.

We’d somehow found ourselves sharing a very personal moment, despite having met only a short time earlier.

As we continued talking, the sadness gradually gave way to smiles.

I looked up at Stuart, and he looked down at me.

Then we kissed.

It was gentle at first.

We drew apart, looked at one another and kissed again.

And then again.

The atmosphere had changed completely.

What had begun as an ordinary appointment had become something neither of us had anticipated.

When Tenderness Becomes Attraction

There was something lovely about the way Stuart held me.

He was gentle and affectionate, and I found myself enjoying every moment of our closeness.

Our kisses became more lingering, and the attraction between us was impossible to ignore.

I could feel myself relaxing against him, no longer thinking about the cold weather outside or the loneliness I’d felt earlier that evening.

For once, I was simply enjoying being close to someone.

Stuart kissed my neck, and I ran my fingers through his hair.

There was no sense of hurry.

He seemed happy to take his time, and I was more than happy to let him.

I remember feeling rather overwhelmed by how naturally everything was happening.

Only a short while earlier, we’d been two strangers exchanging polite conversation.

Now we were holding one another, sharing kisses and discovering an attraction that had taken us both by surprise.

The tenderness of it all made the experience particularly memorable.

It wasn’t simply about physical attraction.

It was about feeling wanted again.

And after everything I’d been through, that meant rather a lot.

An Evening to Remember

As the evening continued, our affection developed into a private, intimate encounter.

What I remember most clearly is Stuart’s gentleness.

He was attentive, affectionate and unhurried, and there was a warmth between us that made everything feel surprisingly natural.

The closeness we’d discovered while talking seemed to carry through into those more personal moments.

There were kisses, embraces and a growing sense of trust.

For a while, the rest of the world simply disappeared.

I wasn’t thinking about the past or worrying about what might happen tomorrow.

I was enjoying the company of a man who had made me laugh, listened when I needed someone to talk to and reminded me how lovely it could feel to be wanted.

Neither of us had planned for the evening to unfold this way.

But sometimes the most unexpected moments are the ones that stay with us.

And this was certainly one of them.

The Words That Took Me by Surprise

Afterwards, we lay together cuddling and talking about what had happened.

I felt happy, although rather amazed by the turn the evening had taken.

Stuart turned towards me.

“I like you,” he said. “I want this to be the start of an us.”

I remember how pleased I felt hearing those words.

An us.

It was such a simple little phrase, yet it meant so much.

I was attracted to him, we’d got along wonderfully and we were both single.

Why shouldn’t we see where things might lead?

I happily agreed.

Of course, neither of us could know what the future would hold, but for that moment, the possibility of something new felt rather exciting.

The Beginning of Something New

Stuart explained that his work involved travelling and that there might be times when seeing one another would be difficult.

There could even be periods when we wouldn’t be able to speak as often as we’d like.

I understood.

I had my own responsibilities, and I certainly wasn’t expecting him to abandon his life simply because we’d discovered an attraction to one another.

What mattered to me was honesty.

I told him that I could accept the demands of his work and the time we might spend apart, provided we were always truthful with one another.

He was happy with my response.

We’d both experienced difficult times, and perhaps that made us a little more appreciative of the possibility of finding happiness again.

I hadn’t expected to meet someone that evening.

I certainly hadn’t expected to find myself opening up emotionally, being comforted in someone’s arms and discovering such a lovely connection.

Yet somehow, that was exactly what had happened.

And so, on a cold December evening that had begun like any other, a new chapter of my life began.

— Anonymous