Playing Dirty

They met at the mud run. Even coated in sludge, Josh was gorgeous. He offered to scrub her down. To his surprise, Lauren accepted his crude advances. She told him she “never does this.” He swore the same. They showered together, slept together, and Lauren woke up alone. No goodbye, no note. Eighteen hours earlier, she had been covered head to toe in mud, but--at that moment--Lauren felt dirtier than ever.

Finding Josh was easy. Race results were posted on the mud run website within a week. In a matter of hours, Lauren had located his Facebook profile, Twitter account and a mention of him in an article about the magic camp he’d attended 17 years ago.

Josh was annoyed the mud run chick showed up at his job. The flowers she’d sent were weird enough. That night was fun, and the girl was smokin' hot. But psycho trumps hot any day. He grudgingly agreed to lunch. Probably just needs closure. She suggested her favorite Mexican restaurant and offered to drive. Let Crazytown burn her gas.

Josh excused himself from the table for a phone call. When he returned, Lori … no, Lauren … was sipping a margarita. He was glad she’d ordered him one, too. Something told him he'd need it.

When Josh awoke, he was bound to Lauren’s bed. He thrashed about, but Lauren had learned to tie impenetrable knots during her brief stint as a Girl Scout. (Apparently, an extended stay in the juvenile psychiatric unit is not a valid excuse for missing meetings.)

Lauren lay beside Josh, vacantly watching him. Her face was covered in mud. Josh guessed his was too; his cheeks and forehead felt rigid. Lauren caressed his bare chest. Her hand was sticky. As she reached up to smooth his hair, Josh saw the gash across her wrist. Between them, the sheet was soaked in blood.

Hers? Mine? “Please, Lori …” Josh implored.

“Lauren,” she chuckled. She closed her eyes and snuggled against him.

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trifecta weekly writing challenge: The entry must be 33-333 words and include the word "crude," as defined below:

CRUDE
marked by the primitive, gross, or elemental or by uncultivated simplicity or vulgarity <a crude stereotype>

Word count: 333