Isolation Temptations (Preview)

Isolation Temptations Ch. 01

Maria sat on a bench at the entrance of the airport in a bustling city in India. She was on the phone, eagerly waiting for her boyfriend to pick up her call. Her mind raced as she nervously tapped her heel on the ground. She had been a student abroad when Covid suddenly struck the country. Maria had a good sense of what was going to happen. She had even booked a flight back home to the States before things got too bad. Unfortunately for her, right before she was about to board the plane, the Indian government shut down all flights entering and leaving the country.

Maria was effectively stranded in a foreign country all alone. She did have an apartment where she was staying. But she and her roommate had already moved out as part of their attempt to get out of the country, even signing out of their lease. The worst part for Maria was that her roommate had just barely managed to get a flight back to her home despite booking a ticket a mere day before she’d left. Ideally, they would have bought tickets together, but the flights were already full, so they had to make do, booking separate flights. Maria had thought things would be fine but, boy, had she turned out to be wrong.

Having now missed her flight out of the country, and let go of her apartment, Maria simply didn’t know what to do. Her boyfriend finally picked up her call, so Maria quickly sat up. “Hello?? Jason? Are you there?” she urgently said through her Airpods.

“Maria?? Are you okay?? What’s going on over there? I just got your texts,” he replied.

“I’m stuck, Jason,” Maria stated. “They’ve locked down the country and I am stranded over here. Augh! I should have booked an earlier flight! Puta madre!”

“Hey, now. Calm down, Maria. We can figure this out together,” Jason said, trying to comfort her.

“Calm down?? Figure this out?! Jason, I barely speak the language, I don’t know anyone here, and I have nowhere to stay! It’s kind of hard to stay calm. I have no clue what I’m going to do!” Maria complained, utterly frustrated with her situation.

Her shouting was catching the attention of some of the people around her. Particularly a group of young Indian men loitering around in front of the airport. Maria noticed this out of the corner of her eye but remained outwardly calm as she lowered her voice. But the apparent interest of the young men only added to her current anxiety. She didn’t want to have to deal with a bunch of horny pervs while having an existential crisis on her hands.

“Alone? What happened to your roommate, Katie?” Jason queried. Maria snarled with envious annoyance.

“She got lucky and got a flight home before they locked down the country,” she explained, rubbing her forehead while keeping an eye on the men who were continuing to stare and point at her. “God, this is such a mess…”

“Dammit. Okay, let’s just take a step back and look at all your options. I’ll do what I can and do some research on my side,” Jason suggested. Maria sighed and nodded.

She always appreciated her boyfriend. They had met during college and immediately clicked. Jason was about 6’0” tall. He had dirty blonde hair, baby blue eyes, and was lanky. Maria was 5’6”. She was a Latina with long chocolate-brown hair and pretty brown eyes. Her body was eye candy of the tastiest kind. She had nicely shaped D-cup boobs, a fit body, and curves in all the right places. Maria was extremely attractive, and she knew it.

Maria’s beauty was what had caught Jason’s eye in the first place. When they’d first met, Jason had been certain that Maria wouldn’t find him attractive. Fortunately for him, however, she had quite quickly taken a liking to him. She was drawn to his kindness and sweetness; she also found it cute that he was a little nerdy as well. Before they knew it, they were happily dating each other. Jason considered himself extremely lucky to have been able to land a girl like Maria.

Maria appreciated how supportive Jason was. Things could have gotten difficult between them when she decided to study abroad; Jason had clearly wanted her to stay in the States, with him. But Maria wanted the broadening experience of studying overseas, so Jason respected her decision and gave her his full support. Being in a long-distance relationship had been a struggle, but they had managed to make it work despite the countless miles between them. Jason was thrilled to learn that Maria was finally returning home after a long four months. He couldn't wait to see her. Now, hearing that she had been trapped by this sudden lockdown, was like having a stake driven through his heart. It was frustrating for both of them that their reunification had now been prolonged indefinitely.

After a good twenty minutes of talking on the phone, Jason managed to calm Maria down. They spent time going through all of her options. Leaving the country by any means of travel, whether air, ship, or ground transport, was entirely off the books. So they turned to the next most important matter to address: where Maria could stay. The kind of apartment she had shared with her roommate was too expensive for her to rent on her own with the limited funds of a traveling student. Likewise for a single bedroom apartment: those were even more expensive than shared accommodations. Staying in a hotel for the foreseeable future was even more economically impractical; they might be shut down soon anyway due to the pandemic. And with Covid, she was sure that the regulations regarding housing were only going to get stricter; the sooner she could find a place she could afford, the better.

Maria was left with just one last option. She would have to stay with someone who rented out a room in their home. It was all that she could afford and, besides, she had no idea how long these restrictions were going to last. Maria groaned in annoyance. Ideally, she would have preferred to live on her own, but she knew that wasn’t a tenable option.

“I don’t even know where to start,” Maria spoke. “Do I even have time to do that? It’s almost evening here and night is going to be falling fast. There’s no way I can spend the night on the streets here by myself. I’m afraid I might get mugged or…” taking another glance at the group of young men, “...something worse.”

As her discreet glance in their direction revealed, the men whom Maria had spotted earlier were still lurking nearby. Some of them had even tried to get her attention by snapping their fingers and whistling at her, but she just kept ignoring them, pretending she was unable to hear them with her Airpods on. She had grown used to Indian men catcalling her during her tenure in the country. Sometimes Maria felt cursed by her own attractiveness. No matter where she went, masculine eyes were drawn towards her. It was annoying and creepy, but she had been forced to learn to cope with it.

“We can look online. No worries. And I’m sure you can find quick lodging before it gets dark. You’ll be fine. Trust me,” Jason assured her. Maria could hear him typing on his keyboard.

Maria also searched for rooms available for rent in the city. Of course, anything she found also needed to be affordable. She had some money saved up, but she didn’t want to be drained dry. Especially when she had no idea how long she’d be stuck here, whether for the short term or for some unknown longer period. There was simply no way to know how long she might be stuck in India or how far her money would need to stretch.

But while she was intently browsing her phone, trying to locate a place to stay, Maria’s efforts were interrupted by a loud shout in an Indian accent coming right at her. “Hey, sexy lady!” Maria’s eyes went dead as she ignored the speaker. “Look at the legs on that one!” another man catcalled. “I want to get a taste of the kitty!” The men proceeded to make V’s with their fingers and stick their tongues between them.

Maria squinted angrily ahead of her as she tried to shut out the noise. These men were pigs! “Uh, Maria, what was that I just heard? Are you okay?” Jason asked, sounding very concerned.

“Ugh, it’s these Indian men nearby. They are just being pervs, as usual. Ignore them, Jason, and keep searching for a place.”

“Are you sure? Can’t you just move away from them?”

“If I did, I’m pretty sure they would just follow me. Don’t worry about me, they won’t do anything. These men are all just talk, I’ve learned how to deal with it.”

“Does this happen often?” Jason questioned urgently. Maria pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. “Do you need to call the police?” His prodding was getting on her nerves. She didn’t want to be constantly reminded about the men trying to hit on her, she was handling it on her own.

“Ugh, yes, Jason, this kind of mild harassment is incessant. But, like I told you, I’ve learned how to deal with it, okay?? Now hurry up and help me with this or else I will be stranded in the streets with more of these kinds of men. You don’t want that, do you??” Maria said sternly.

“Okay, okay. I was just making sure you’re okay, jeez,” Jason muttered. Hearing his aggrieved tone, Maria immediately felt bad.

“Jason, sorry… I didn’t mean anything, mi amor. I’m just so stressed right now with everything. I know you’re worrying about me, and I appreciate that. But I will be fine. Don’t worry about those men. I can handle it on my own. Please understand,” Maria assured him, doing her best to maintain a calm voice.

Jason sighed. “Yes, Maria, I understand. I’m just worried, that’s all. But enough of that now. Let me hurry up and help you out so you can get off of those streets.”

“Aw, my hero,” Maria chuckled.

Scrolling through one page and website after another, Jason and Maria kept assiduously searching for whatever lodging might be available. Some listings were too expensive, while the cheaper ones were sketchy as hell. But even as they continued to investigate her options, more distant catcalls came blaring at her.

“Come on, hot stuff! Look over here! I know you can hear us! Just blow us a kiss! Or show us your breasts!” One of the men pulled his shirt up and showed off his hairy chest in an effort to get her to do the same. Maria clenched her fist as she continued to ignore them. Experience had taught her that ignoring pervy catcallers was the best method of avoiding a confrontation. Responding to them only tended to rile them up.

However, Jason could still overhear the kinds of things those men were saying to his lovely girlfriend. It was frustrating, not being able to do anything from where he was. He had no choice but to trust Maria’s conviction that she could fend for herself.

Quickening his efforts, Jason eventually found a listing that fell within Maria’s budget. But he might have rushed his selection due to his desire to get Maria away from those men as soon as possible.

“Hey, Maria! I think I found you a good place to stay,” Jason urgently informed her.

“It better not be some rundown building in some sketchy part of town.” Maria sighed heavily. This whole ordeal was wearing on her nerves. She just wanted to be up and out of there already.

“Well, yes and no,” Jason replied. Maria’s facial expression went dead. “For what you can afford, it isn’t luxury, but it’s certainly better than any other place we’ve found so far. It says here that the room is pretty spacious. There’s electricity, of course, and even a shower!”

“So, the bare minimum is what you’re saying,” Maria rolled her eyes.

“Hey, from what I’m seeing, this is light years ahead, in terms of what you want to pay. And, guess what, it even says that there’s wifi! So, whoop whoop!” Jason happily cheered. Marai chuckled. “God, he’s such a geek.”

“Here, let me send you the link.”

Maria received the link and opened it. She saw several pictures of the apartment. She cautiously raised her brow as she saw that the place looked somewhat old and a little dilapidated. But at least it had a roof and walls, unlike most of the other “rooms” that were listed, which too often were just mattresses crammed into a room with some other function and no privacy. The apartment looked a little cramped, but there was enough room for a kitchen, living room, a single bathroom, and two bedrooms. By comparison with some of the other bedrooms for rent that they had seen, Maria was pleased that the room looked a bit more spacious than the others. There was a comfortable-looking bed and a desk where she could do some work. It was also certainly more private since the room had an actual door. Some of the places were basically all one room, with no walls between the kitchen, living area, and ‘bedroom.’

“Huh… This isn’t all that bad,” Maria muttered quietly while she scrolled through some additional information. Based on what she could tell, nothing looked too sketchy. No extra payments were required for power and water. Everything was combined into a single monthly payment. There was an up-front payment for the first month’s rent, which was standard, and everything else seemed in order, with no suspicious strings attached.

Taking another scan of the pictures, her only gripes with the apartment were its appearance and space. It looked old and a little cramped for her liking. But that was by comparison to the nice modern place she had been used to for the past several months. Nonetheless, this place at least appeared to be livable.

“Okay, I think this is the one, Jason,” Maria declared. “So how do I go forward with this?”

“Well, it says here you have to call the number on the page.”

“Do I have to pay in cash, or…”

“Well, it says that cash is preferred. But you can wire the money if needed.”

“Hm, okay. I guess that’s not too bad. Okay, I’m gonna hurry up and call the number now. I need to leave this place as soon as possible. These men are really getting on my nerves. Wish me luck,” Maria informed.

“Okay! Just text me with any updates and make sure to call me back if anything happens. Be safe. I Love you, bye,” Jason said happily.

“Alright, te amo. Kisses,” Maria said into the phone, before hanging up. “Thank god for Jason. I don’t know what I would do without him,” she thought.

The name of the apartment’s owner was ‘Raj Vatel’. Maria cautiously tilted her head to the side. Ideally, she would have wanted to rent a room from a woman. But Maria was fresh out of choices. Cheap and off the streets were the main objectives here, so she couldn’t be picky.

Dialing the number into her phone, she anxiously waited for her call to be picked up. As the phone rang, Maria scanned her surroundings. She stuck out like a sore thumb. Yes, she had tanned skin like the native people here, but she was completely different from them. From the way she dressed and presented herself, there could be no doubt that Maria was a foreigner. She was growing increasingly paranoid about all the stares that she was attracting. Especially from the group of vulgar men nearby.

As the phone finally picked up, Maria sprang to her feet. “Hello?” a male voice said in a thick Indian accent. Maria froze for a second, not knowing what to say. “Hello??” he said again.

“Hi, uh-, hello!” Maria uttered.

“Ah, who is this? Why are you calling this number?” he responded, sounding a bit annoyed.

“Oh! Sorry for intruding on you, but I was interested in renting out the room you have posted online,” Maria quickly explained. There was a brief silence from the man on the other end of the call.

“Ah! So you are interested in the room, yes? That’s great! How soon can you come by here to see for yourself??” the man asked eagerly, his voice sounding coarse. Maria noted his sudden change in tone.

“Well, preferably as soon as possible. Like today, before it gets dark,” Maria answered.

“Hmm, sure, sure! Today can work. I’m just returning from the bazaar. I should be there soon! So I would say make your way here right away,” he instructed. Maria was taken aback by how fast things were moving.

“What- Do we have to discuss payment or anything?” she asked.

“Ah, it will be fine. We will just talk about it when we see each other, yes?” Maria sighed and nodded to herself.

“Okay… I’ll meet you there, then.”

“Just follow the directions I’ve put on the page. I will see you then, goodbye!” Before Maria could say anything further, the call ended. The man’s gruff-sounding voice and heavy accent had made it a little hard to understand what he was saying, but at least he spoke English.

Checking the address on the page, she stood up and called for a taxi. But even as she did so, her catcallers began to shout more things at her. “Awww, where are you going, sexy lady? Just stay here a little longer. We want to keep seeing your sexy body, hehe!”

Shaking her head, Maria waited eagerly for a taxi to come and swoop her out of this place. She’d had enough of these men already. After what felt like ages, a taxi finally pulled up to her. Gathering her belongings, she stuffed them into the trunk and climbed into the car.

“Show us your boobs before you leave, hot stuff!” one of the men said, trying to get in one last word. “Hey! Don’t go! I want to see you naked!” Maria’s eyes widened, they were just unbelievably obscene, so vulgar. She wanted to castrate each and every single one of them.

“Hasta luego, cabrones,” Maria muttered in Spanish as she glanced at her perverted assailants one last time before slamming the taxi door shut.

“Hello, ma’am, where would you like to go?” the taxi driver inquired with an Indian accent.

“Uh, take me here,” Maria sighed, showing him the address to the apartment. He nodded and drove off from the airport and its intrusive groups of rude men.

Crossing her legs, Maria brought up her phone, texting Jason that she was safe in a taxi and otherwise updating her progress. Putting her phone down, Maria exhaled heavily and gazed out the window. She was relieved that it was finally over. She didn’t know how much more she could have taken before she broke down or otherwise lost her cool. But now, all that was water under the bridge. Maria wouldn’t gain anything by dwelling on it.

She watched the bustling city go past as the car proceeded toward her destination. She was always amazed at how densely populated this place was. There were children playing on the streets, rows of small food stands, and shops around almost every corner. She even saw some cows wandering around. However, the police were already taking to the streets to enforce the lockdown. “Things are only going to get worse from here…” Maria concluded.

Turning her attention away from the side window, she looked ahead to the front of the taxi. The driver hadn’t made any effort to make small talk with her, but she noticed that he was constantly glancing at her through the rearview mirror. As she caught his eyes, he quickly focused on the bustling road ahead. Maria cocked her brow. “Oh, brother… Is this guy checking me out too??” she wondered. A shiver went down her spine at being gawked at by yet another foreign man. But she had to just let it go, she lacked the energy to care anymore.

They arrived at her destination: Maria paid the taxi driver and exited the car onto a somewhat busy street lined with gloomy-looking buildings. Reclaiming her belongings from the trunk, Maria deposited them on the sidewalk. As she stood there, she surveyed the urban apartment complex before her. She hadn’t expected anything lavish from her temporary new home, but it reminded her of the projects back in the States. However uncomfortable she might feel staying in a place like this, she was out of other choices.

As she approached the entrance to the building, Maria noticed the other residents sizing her up and staring at her with curiosity. Not knowing what to do, she just awkwardly smiled and entered the building. “Fourth floor…” Maria muttered, reminding herself about where her apartment was located. Approaching the nearby elevator, she groaned at the sign she saw plastered on it. She had no idea what it said, but she surmised that it meant the elevator was out of service.

“Stairs it is, then,” Maria sighed in annoyance. Lugging her heavy suitcases, she struggled to get up the dimly lit stairs. As she climbed the narrow, creaking steps, she couldn't help but notice the overwhelming smell of mustiness and decay wafting around her. The odor increased her sense of uneasiness. But after some hard climbing, she finally labored her way to the fourth floor.

Wiping the sweat off her brow, Maria leaned over with her hands on her knees as she stood, gasping for breath. Grabbing the collar of her shirt, she fanned herself. “God, it’s so hot out here,” she uttered in a breathy voice. Maria’s body was hot and sticky from this country’s searing atmosphere. Thank god this place had a shower, she was really going to need one once she got settled in.

Finally catching her breath, Maria checked the room number on her phone. “Okay, room 437.” She also checked if Jason had texted her back, but still saw nothing new from him. Putting her phone away, Maria again grabbed her luggage and trudged along. As she walked along the balcony walkway, she carefully checked each room number until she finally found room 437.

Putting her things down, she just stared at the front door for a few moments. She took a deep breath and composed herself. She felt uncertain knowing that this would be her temporary home for god knows how long. With her boyfriend halfway across the world and her new landlord an unknown quantity, Maria couldn’t help but wonder what this man would even look like. Well, she thought, “He’s not exactly the landlord, he doesn’t own the whole apartment complex. But he’s still kind of like my landlord because he’s the guy I’ll be paying for my room. Plus, he’s also going to be like my roommate, because I have to live in the same apartment as him. Okay, maybe not roommate, exactly, because they would each have their own bedroom: housemate?”

Enough delay, Maria, she chided herself: the terminology doesn’t matter, what matters is what kind of guy he is. Raising her balled-up hand to the door, she carefully knocked on it. Immediately, she heard rustling from within, then footsteps approaching the door. The insulation couldn’t be all that great, since she could easily hear his feet dragging across the floor. The locks clicked and the door swung open. Maria’s fetching brown eyes widened as she took in the sight of her new landlord and roommate. Housemate, whatever…!

He was an older man. He looked like he was in his mid-fifties, maybe early sixties. His hair was thick and had strands of white sprinkled throughout. His cheeks were pudgy and there was a rough stubble of beard on his face. As Maria looked down at his body, his form was unappealing and gave off very creepy vibes. He had a dad bod with a beer belly that formed a bulge in his stained white tank top. Maria was also taken aback by how hairy he was. She could see some curly chest hair puffing out from the neck of his shirt, and his arms were veiled with dark hair as well.

Maria felt her stomach sink. “This is the guy that I will be staying with?! He looks like a pig!” she screamed to herself. Her luck with men today had gone from bad to worse! But at least his older appearance made him look jolly.

Her scrutiny of him was interrupted by a boisterous greeting. “Ah! You must be the one who wants to rent my spare room! Is that right?” he said loudly. His accent was more apparent than ever.

“Uh- yeah… You must be Mr. Vatel. Nice to meet you,” Maria greeted him cautiously.

“Ah, yes. You are correct! But you can just call me Raj.” Then his dark eyes took their turn at scanning up and down the attractive woman before him. He liked what he saw. Maria's mind was racing too fast for her to notice his leering eyes. She was more focused on the fact that she was going to have to live with this guy. He at least seemed okay so far. However unattractive she found him, he at least seemed friendly and welcoming.

“I uh- think I’m just gonna stick with Mr. Vatel for now, thanks. Since we just met and all,” she insisted firmly while trying to lighten her tone to avoid sounding rude.

Raj gave an understanding nod. “Of course, of course! No worries! Whatever you feel more comfortable with. But may I ask the name of a pretty lady such as yourself?” he grinned. Maria's eyes widened in surprise. She wasn’t sure if he was trying to flirt with her, or just being nice. But, being honest with herself, most people had been very hospitable to her during her stay in this country. Apart from the rude groups of shiftless young men, like those she had run into earlier outside the airport. So for now she would just assume that he was being nice.

“My name? Uh, Maria. Maria Torres. Nice to meet you,” she answered tensely. Raj gave a welcoming smile and held his hairy hand out for a friendly shake.

“Ah, it’s a pleasure to meet you, Maria. You don’t mind if I call you that, do you?” Maria hesitated but, again, not wanting to appear rude, she reached out and shook his hand.

“Um, no. That’s okay,” she apprehensively replied

As their hands conjoined, she couldn’t help but shudder at how rough and sweaty it felt. Their handshake seemed to linger for longer than she might like but, soon enough, he released her delicate hand from his tight grip.

“Let me get your luggage for you. Come on inside!” he insisted, as he stepped out of the apartment to help gather up her belongings. Maria cautiously nodded and she entered her new residence. But as she went past Raj, the older man couldn’t help but sneak a glance at Maria’s curvaceous ass, wearing a nicely fitting pair of cargo shorts. He licked his lips before following her inside and closing the door behind them.

The air in the somewhat cramped apartment felt thick and smelled musty. But not as bad as the air in the stairwell had. Maria observed the main room. As expected, it looked pretty much the same as in the pictures, but with a slight tinge of decay, as if some time had passed since the photos had been taken.

Feeling a bump on her shoulder, Maria jerked her head to see Raj moving past her with her luggage. “Oh, my apologies,” he said. “Please take a seat over on the couch while I get your things into your room. Then I’ll get some Chai for you and we can get better acquainted with each other.”

Maria just nodded and plopped her tense and tired self down on the dusty-looking brown couch. As she sank back against the cushions, Maria exhaled heavily. Her mind was still trying to catch up with the situation she found herself in. Here she was, far from home and living with an unpleasant-looking old man. She debated whether to just back out now before she got herself even deeper into this. But it was almost sundown, Maria had absolutely nowhere else to go, and she certainly didn’t want to spend the night in the streets of a foreign city. Especially with the likes of those feral packs of young men out there, just waiting to harass an attractive and single foreign woman. Everything was already pretty sketchy as it was; she simply couldn’t afford to make things worse for herself.

Maria took out her phone so that she could check in with Jason. But her screen stayed black, even after she had clicked the power button multiple times: her battery was flat-out dead. “Great, just great. I need to get this thing charged as soon as possible. Jason must be worried,” Maria muttered to herself.

As Raj returned from her room, which she still hadn’t seen, Maria was able to unobtrusively examine his unappealing form. He didn’t look any better from this perspective: he was wearing some baggy sports shorts along with that stained tank top; he had a pair of cheap flip-flops on his dusty-looking feet.

Picking up a metal teapot from the stove, Raj grabbed two ceramic cups and brought them over to Maria. Placing the cups on the small wooden coffee table in front of her, he carefully poured the Chai into them. “Well, at least he seems to have nice manners…” Maria thought with some measure of relief.

Taking one of the cups, he politely handed it to Maria. “Uh, thank you very much,” she said kindly.

“Of course,” Raj replied, picking up his cup and sitting down on the couch next to her. Maria's eyes widened as the couch cushions sank down next to her and her body tilted over against his. She shuddered as his hairy arm brushed against hers.

Quickly scooting away from him, she skittishly sipped her tea. “So! You are an American, yes?” Raj declared. Maria cocked her brow.

“Yes, I am. Why? Is it really that obvious?” Maria replied. Raj chuckled.

“Hah! I apologize, but yes. Everything about you, how you dress and how you look, makes it obvious,” Raj roared with good humor as he took a gulp from his cup. Maria just rolled her eyes. “And the way you talk is a big giveaway, too.”

“Ugh, I knew it…” she mumbled, sipping more tea.

Setting his cup down, Raj laid his arm along the top of the backrest of the sofa. Maria felt goosebumps as his arm came into minimal contact with her shoulders. “A bit too comfortable, are we??” she thought to herself.

“So, what brings a pretty American woman such as yourself to rent a room from me?” Raj asked. Maria gave him a small side glance. He was complimenting her looks again. But at least he’d had the decency to call her something respectable rather than something vulgar. That, she could tolerate.

“I’m a student abroad. I was supposed to be heading back home, but I got caught out during the sudden lockdown here. So, not wanting to be stranded in the streets, I found your post about a room for rent.”

“Ah, yes. The lockdown is unfortunate. I’m sorry for you. But at least you chose the right place to live! I thank you. This really helps, and if I have to spend my days in quarantine here in this apartment, it’s certainly better to do so with a fetching woman such as yourself, hah!”

Maria gave Raj a stern look. Now he was becoming too blatant with his compliments. She was sure that he was hitting on her now. “Great, I’ll be living with a perv, too,” she thought.

“Ah, don’t look at me like that. I’m only joking!” Raj humorously said, fully placing his hairy arm around her shoulders and playfully shaking her around. Maria didn’t know what to think. She’d caught him openly flirting with her, and now he had his arm around her shoulder! Who did he think he was? With that hospital attitude that he projected, she just couldn’t tell if he was seriously joking around or not. So she just let it go for now.

They continued to get to know each other better. Maria learned that Raj owned a market nearby and a few food stands, while Maria awkwardly told him about her stay in India. But his arm remained around her shoulder as they continued talking and she was convinced that he was pulling her closer to him, even if ever so slightly and subtly. Maria just sat there tensely, increasingly bothered at how touchy this man was. She had a boyfriend for Christ’s sake! She had had it up to here with men today.

Then, feeling his hand drift down from her shoulder and begin inching towards her waist, Maria jolted up from the couch. “Is it okay if I check out my room for myself??” she urgently asked, trying to create space between this old man and herself. Raj tilted his head, unable to disguise his slight disappointment.

“Sure, sure! Go right ahead, Maria. I’ll prep some dinner for the two of us. You must be exhausted from the day you’ve had. Oh, and why don’t you go ahead and use the shower as well? The bathroom is down at the end of the hall,” Raj happily urged her as he picked up the cups and teapot.

Maria’s stomach grumbled as if in response to his words, and a shower did sound pretty good right now. Her body was moist and sticky from climbing all those stairs. Let alone the omnipresent heat, simmering away outside.

As Maria headed into her room, she closed the door behind her. But when she tried to lock it, she was annoyed to find that there wasn’t one. Shaking her head, she scanned the room. It looked pretty much the same as it had in the pictures online: the foot of the bed was directly in front of her against the wall, a small desk was to her right, and there was a closet adjacent to that. Next to the head of the bed, there was even a window that provided a view of the apartment’s walkway. Maria wasn’t sure how she felt about that; she was concerned that someone could watch her as she slept. Luckily there was a curtain. And, to her delight, she saw that there was even an AC unit fastened to the ceiling.

Maria quickly scurried around the room looking for the remote. She found it lying on the desk and immediately turned the AC on to full blast. “Ahhhhh,” she sighed in relief as a stream of cool air filled the room.

Retrieving her charger from her luggage, Maria located an outlet near her desk and plugged her phone in. She laid the phone on the desktop to allow it to charge. She was eager to inform Jason that things were looking up over here in India. Plopping herself onto the bed, she wiggled her butt into the mattress to see how it felt. The thin and lumpy mattress wasn’t all that comfortable, but it wasn’t horrible either. She hadn’t been expecting much anyway.

Falling onto her back, Maria gazed up at the ceiling. She thought about the way Raj had complimented and touched her. Her mind went in circles. She felt sure that he was flirting with her but, at the same time, he also seemed really polite. Was it just a cultural thing: were even nice Indian men of a certain age just naturally a little more touchy-feely? Questions and concerns came pouring into her mind. Should she be alarmed by his actions? Would he try anything else once she got settled? Perhaps she was just super uptight from her previous encounter with the young layabouts earlier today. Unlike them, Raj was neither young nor rude. The best solution Maria could come up with for now was to try to keep some distance between them. At least until she could get a better measure of Raj. But she was initially inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt that he was just a very hospitable person.

“Ugh…” Maria groaned, running her hands down her face.

Feeling her clothes sticking to her body, Maria decided to go ahead and take Raj up on his offer of a shower. Stripping off her clothes and leaving them on top of the bed, Maria went to her suitcase and retrieved some towels and slippers. She also got her toiletry bag. Wrapping the towel tightly around her body, Maria went to the door and cautiously opened it. Peeking out, she could hear Raj rattling around in the kitchen. She didn’t want him to see her current state but, luckily, the kitchen was just out of view from the small hallway that led to the bathroom.

Closing the door behind her, she dashed left to the end of the short hall. As she entered the bathroom, she saw that it was lit up by a flickering lightbulb overhead. She was a little creeped out, but Maria was thankful that at least there was a lock on this door. She slowly turned in place, taking in her surroundings. The bathroom wasn’t too big, but it was suitable. There was a toilet, sink, and mirror. The shower enclosure was made of blue ceramic mosaic tiles and gave off an aged kind of look, like a bathroom that might be found in an older American home that had never been updated.

Placing her toiletry bag down, Maria examined the old-looking sliding shower door with blurred glass. The door shrieked as she slid it to the side, causing her to shudder. Looking up, she saw that there was a showerhead. But what drew her attention was this sizable bucket almost as tall as her waist filled to the brim with water with a handled dipper to scoop the water floating in it.

Maria curiously cocked her brow but shrugged. Removing her towel and slipping off her slippers, she placed her towel on a nearby rack and stepped into the shower. Reaching to the lever, she turned it. To her dismay, no water flowed through the shower head.

“What the hell?” Maria muttered. She tried to turn the lever in different ways until she concluded that the showerhead didn't work. Sighing, she quickly deduced what the large bucket filled with water was for.

“Is this what you call a shower??” Maria exclaimed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Ugh, whatever…” Grabbing her toiletries she slid the sliding door shut and made do.

Meanwhile, as Raj prepped supper, he couldn’t help but feel giddy that his new roommate was a very attractive woman and an American to top things off. The second that he heard her voice, he knew that she was going to be a looker. And now that he’d seen her in the flesh, he felt like the luckiest man on earth! When Raj had first heard about the lockdown, he’d dreaded having to be cooped up in his apartment alone. But now he had a fetching American woman to keep him company. Her perfect tanned skin, her long wavy brown hair, and her inviting curves: everything about her made his cock swell under his shorts. He had to find a way to get some of that for himself.

When he was finished making supper, Raj plated up the food and placed it on the kitchen table. Before heading to Maria’s room, he checked to see if she was still in the bathroom. She wasn’t. Just as he reached her door and was about to knock, the door swung open to reveal the pretty Latina. Raj’s eyes widened at the sight of her. Even dressed informally in some cotton shorts and a tank top, she looked simply stunning.

“Oh! Uh, what’s up, Mr. Vatel?” Maria asked, drying her hair with a towel. Raj tried to avert his eyes from the slight cleavage revealed by the motions of her arms.

Raj shifted in his shorts as he tried to conceal his growing erection. “Dinner is ready. Hungry?” Nodding, Maria moved past him toward the kitchen. Raj couldn’t help but angle his hungry eyes down to her ass. Her hind cheeks looked so supple and round. He couldn’t wait to get his hands on those.

He followed her to the kitchen and they both sat down. “Wow, Mr. Vatel. This looks really good,” Maria said in awe as she stared at the food. Raj smirked with pride. The ability to Impress a woman with your cooking was just one step along a man’s journey.

“Ah, you flatter me, Maria. This is just something that my family has been making for years. Now go ahead, eat! You must be famished.”

Maria glanced up at him, rewarding him with a thankful smile. Raj was transfixed at how pretty she was. As she was about to dig in, she paused. “Wait, don’t you think we need to discuss payment and house rules?”

Raj shook his head. “We can discuss that boring stuff later. For now, let's just enjoy this meal. And in the meantime, maybe I can learn a little more about you. How does that sound?” Maria skeptically squinted her alluring eyes at him. Showing a small smirk, she just nodded.

As they ate, they discussed where Maria was from, her life goals, and other things about her. While they talked, Raj was hypnotized by her alluring smile and lovely personality. At first, Maria seemed really tense around him. But as they talked he could tell that she was getting more and more comfortable with him. Raj pulled all the stops to try and impress this woman. He even fetched some good laughs from her, which further boosted his confidence.

Maria’s skepticism about Raj was quickly fading away. Raj was turning out to be quite charismatic and funny. She knew that it was a cliche, but looks could be deceiving. The more she conversed with him, the more he reminded Maria of her late grandpa: whom she was very close with. The more Raj reminded her of her gramps, the more comfortable she felt about sharing her new apartment with him.

“Woah, that’s a very interesting story, Mr. Vatel. Things like that don’t happen back in the States,” Maria said, taking a sip of water. But just as she was going to say something further, her phone rumbled in her pocket. Raj cocked his brow in curious annoyance at having their delightful conversation seemingly interrupted by the alert from her phone.

“What is it?” Raj question. Maria checked her screen and stood up.

“Oh, sorry, Mr. Vatel. I have to take this real quick. It’s my boyfriend. I need to tell him that I’m okay,” the pretty Latina replied. Raj squinted his eyes. He knew that it had been too good to be true for her to be totally unattached. He should have known that a woman as pretty as Maria would already be taken. As deflated as he felt, though, Raj wasn’t about to give up so easily.

Stepping back into her room, Maria answered the phone. “Hello? Jason? Are you there?”

“Hello? Yeah, I’m here. How is everything going so far? Did things go through?” Jason questioned.

“Yeah, things did go through. I’ve gotten settled into my room and just had a great dinner. Mr. Vatel really knows how to cook.” There was a slight pause from Jason.

“Mr. Vatel?” he asked.

“Oh, sorry. That’s my new roommate, I guess. Did you not see his name on the page?”

“Huh, I think I may have glossed over that detail. Are you sure that you’re okay rooming with a guy for that long? It may be a while, nobody really knows how long this quarantine will last,” Jason said, cautiously expressing his concerns.

Maria paused for a moment. She was skeptical about the older man. But he’d given off hospitable grandpa vibes during their nice dinner together. Which had made her lower her guard. “Mr. Vatel? Jason, he’s fine. He’s an older Indian guy. He’s like in his mid-fifties or early sixties. Somewhere around there. He kinda reminds me of my grandpa. You remember my grandpa Flores, right? I should be fine for the long run.”

“Hm, well, if you say so, Maria. I’m just glad that you managed to avoid staying on the streets tonight.” Maria smiled happily.

“So, Jason, do you miss me?” Maria asked in a low seductive voice.

“Miss you? Of course, I do! I haven’t seen you in months!”

“Yeah? And how does that make you feel?” Maria prodded, all too aware that she hadn't had any form of sexual contact for months. Now that she’d had some time to relax, she was really feeling in the mood.

“Well, you know… It’s hard being alone like this, with just my hand and all.” As much as Maria adored Jason, romantic charm was not exactly his most well-practiced skill.

“Your hand? Jason, you have to be a bit more subtle,” Maria chuckled, giving him a little break, since she had just been thinking in terms of taking care of her own needs.

“Augh, sorry. It’s just been frustrating. I miss you, Maria.”

“Aww, pobrecito. Well, I miss you too. I’m sorry that I couldn’t come home. This whole pandemic shit is a total mess. Ugh… But when all this is over, I promise to make it up to you,” Maria said in a reassuring voice to which she added a tone that was also alluring.

“That sounds nice…” Jason replied. “Ah, crap. Something just came up. I need to go now. Dammit! I’ll text or call you later, okay?” he suddenly said in a hurry.

“Yeah, that sounds good,” Maria answered, sounding a bit concerned. She was a little disappointed that their call was being cut short.

“Alright, bye, love you!”

“Bye, kisses,” Maria said, before hanging up the phone.

Putting her phone down, Maria took a deep breath to compose herself. She had to mentally prepare herself for the perilous future ahead. Still, things could easily have worked out worse. Rather than sulk about her situation, she was determined to make the most out of the circumstances she found herself in.

Maria returned from her room to the kitchen to find that Raj was cleaning up. “Mr. Vatel, let me help you with that,” Maria said, quickly collecting the remaining dirty dishes from the table.

“No worries, Maria. I can handle this on my own,” Raj insisted. “You just get settled in your room.” Maria shook her head and took the dishes to the sink.

“If I am to be your guest, it is required for me to help around the apartment. It’s only fair,” she explained as she washed the dishes. Raj cocked his bushy brow at her but, enjoying the sight of her nice ass while she was bent over the sink, he just grinned. Plus, he wouldn’t mind the help. It would be a good change of pace around here.

“If you insist. Thank you, Maria,” Raj accepted, shrugging his shoulders.

“You’re welcome, Mr. Vatel,” Maria replied happily.

As they cleaned up, Raj couldn’t keep his eyes off her but tried not to let Maria see how thoroughly he was checking her out. The way her shorts perfectly enveloped her curvy butt cheeks was a veritable godsend. He quickly averted his gaze every time she turned to glance his way. But as soon as she looked away again, his eyes snapped right back to her sexy form, his vision eating her up. Raj adjusted his shorts as his cock stiffened up once again: he had to be careful about that; if he reached his full size, his arousal would become impossible to hide from Maria.

But he had to pause his watchful gaze once more as Maria brought up the subject of her payment. They discussed how the transaction would go. Raj ensured that things proceeded as easily as possible, which in turn helped soothe Maria’s remaining worries. For her part, Maria agreed that she would help Raj out around the apartment as best she could. Although he told her that the extra help wasn’t really necessary, she insisted emphatically. Of course, Raj then graciously accepted. Having an attractive girl cleaning around his little home was quite appealing and tantalizing.

Maria was humming to herself as she finished up the last of the dishes when suddenly she felt someone pressing up against her back. “What the- Mr. Vatel?!” she gasped, gripping onto the edge of the sink.

“Oh, so sorry, I’m just trying to get these dishes into the cabinet, it will only take me a second,” he smoothly replied. Maria writhed against the sink as Raj reached into the cabinet over her head. His crotch pressed against her. As he took his time stacking and positioning the dishes in the cabinet, he wiggled his crotch deeper into her ass.

“Hey! Be careful, augh…” Maria groaned.

“Almost done! So sorry! Almost…”

Feeling something hard and long between her cheeks, Maria gasped. But before she could fully realize what was happening, Raj pulled away. “Ah, jeez… Mr. Vatel… Warn me that you are going to put the dishes away next time. I would have happily moved out of your way,” Maria complained, squinting her eyes at Raj.

“My apologies. I didn’t want to interrupt what you were doing. I will tell you next time. I’m sorry.” Again, Maria wasn’t sure how suspicious she should be of his actions. But the way he calmly played things off like nothing serious had taken place left her unsure of what to think. Was he really just a perv? Or had their interplay just been an innocent tussle, wholly harmless in intent?

But Raj didn’t give her any time to process her doubtful thoughts as he quickly turned the discussion to the topic of her boyfriend. Her concerns naturally shifted to her supportive lover. As they conversed about Jason, her most recent disturbing interaction with Raj quickly dropped out of the forefront of her consciousness. She was very willing to talk about how supportive and caring her boyfriend was.

“So, where is your boyfriend right now?” Raj probed. Maria looked visibly frustrated and distressed as she formulated her response.

“He’s, uh… back in the States,” Maria replied. Raj paused for a moment, indulging himself in a small smirk.

“Is that right?” he said, as nonchalantly as he could.

“Yeah. I was supposed to be back home with him after being here for four months. But instead, I’m still here and he’s still there…” Maria continued.

“Ah, don’t be so down on yourself. This pandemic is just a mere hiccup in everyone’s lives. Things will go back to normal in no time!” Raj assured her. But now that Maria would be sharing the lockdown with him, he never wanted it to end. He wanted Maria to stay here with him as long as possible.

Maria lifted a smile. “Hm, thanks, Mr. Vatel. Let’s hope you’re right,” she uttered.

“Hah! I know I’m right!” he bellowed, hiding his true intentions.

By the time they’d finished cleaning up the kitchen, it had grown dark out and Maria was pooped from the long day she had. She bid a goodnight to Raj and proceeded into the bathroom to brush her teeth. Once back in her room, Maria shut the lights off and hopped into bed.

As she lay there, she felt her body melting from exhaustion. Today had been a lot to deal with. She had never been in a situation like this in her life. Maria had no idea what was in store for her. What would she do to pass the time? Would she even be allowed out of the apartment? How long would this lockdown last? She had so many questions circling her mind. Hopefully, this would prove just as temporary as Raj had suggested and she would be on a flight back home to her boyfriend in no time. As Maria clung hopefully to this optimistic thought, slumber engulfed her and she fell soundly into sleep’s embrace…

(End of Preview)