By: Lisa Anne Hetu
Disclaimer: Every character in this story, with the exception of Dawn, is a real person. However, the way in which they are depicted does not necessarily match their actual personalities. I do not take responsibility for any similarities that may occur with regards to their personalities or personal information. Also, please note that the following contains mature subject matter. If you are younger than 18 years of age or may become offended by sexual content, do not read any further.
Have you ever been forced to sacrifice something in your life for something equally as good? Have you ever had to make that same sacrifice over and over again, wondering each time if it really was the best choice? Well, let me tell you a story about a young woman who helped a friend through one such situation ... a woman who, in a way, had to make the same sacrifice herself.
Dawn was an average woman, early twenties, average-looking and sort of shapely. She had a good job, was an independant woman and had lots of friends. Like most people, Dawn had a favorite color, a favorite food, and a favorite type of music ... more specifically, she liked Great Big Sea. Sound familiar?
Dawn went to every concert that she could, often traveling short distances to see them. She had met Alan and Darrell on multiple occations and always made a point to see them after the show whenever she could. Then, one day, Dawn's luck changed...
"Hi Alan," Dawn said, grabbing his attention, "Great show tonight."
"Hugz." Alan stated leaning into her, then continued, "I thought it was you I saw in the crowd. How've you been?"
"Pretty good," Dawn nodded, "I was pretty happy to be able to take a few days off to come and see you guys. It's been a few months, and I sure needed it. Great Big Sea is like a drug ... you need a fix every now and then."
It was about then that Sean walked over. "Alan, Tony's looking for the van keys. He said you had them earlier."
"Oh yeah, I forgot." Alan said, "I left them on the ... no, wait, I better get them myself. Dawn, you don't mind waiting here for a minute or two, do you?"
"No, that's fine. You go ahead."
"Sean can stick around and chat until I get back, right buddy?" Alan slapped Sean on the back, then went running off.
"I don't think we've ever met formally." Dawn said to Sean, "My name's Dawn."
"Hello Dawn," Sean said, shaking her hand, "You a friend of Alan's?"
"Sort of," Dawn said, "I'm really just a Great Big Sea fan, but I seem to run into Alan a lot after concerts, so he knows me pretty well."
"You live here, or are you traveling?" Sean asked.
"Traveling." Dawn smiled, "I had a few days off work, so I thought I'd spoil myself and rent a room at this fancy hotel. What about you, what are you up to later?"
"Well, I'm not sure." Sean said, "The guys usually go out for a pint, but I don't think I'm in the mood tonight."
"Really?" Dawn said, wondering at the comment, "How come?"
"I guess I'm just not up for a crowded bar. I'll probablly just go back to the hotel and read or something."
"You sound kinda down." Dawn commented, "I don't mean to pry or anything, but I have a good listening skills if you want to vent."
"I appreciate that Dawn," Sean said, sorta smiling, "but I don't want to burden you with my troubles."
"I understand." Dawn said.
Just then, Alan came back, relieving Sean from having to entertain Dawn ... not that it had been the most difficult of tasks. "Well, I'll let you two chat," Sean said, excusing himself, "It was nice talking to you, Dawn ... and I mean that sincerely."
"I hope you feel better soon." Dawn said.
"What, are you sick?" Alan wondered, turning to Sean.
"No, it's just ... nevermind." Sean said, and walked away.
A short while later, Dawn made her way back to the hotel. She noticed the ajoining café was still open, so she decided to have a coffee. She wasen't really tired anyway. It just so happened that Sean was at the very same café, having had the very same idea. "Mind if I join you?" Dawn asked, walking over to his table in the corner.
"No, please do." Sean said.
"You wouldn't be staying at this hotel, would you?" Dawn asked, after having sat down in the relatively deserted café.
"Actually, I am." Sean said.
"Good. Cause if you would've said no, I might've thought you were following me or something." Dawn said.
"Except that I got here before you did, so I can't possiblly have have been following you," Sean pointed out, "though the thought did cross my mind."
"Honesty. I like that." Dawn smiled, then paused, "You know, my offer still stands ... if you want to vent, I'm all ears."
Sean and Dawn talked for hours. Their coffees got cold, but they didn't notice. They weren't really drinking them anyway. Sean told Dawn that his mind had been on his ex-girlfriend ever since he left Newfoundland. They had broken up only days before, and Sean didn't really like the way things had been left. He didn't want to patch things up per say, he just wanted to calm the water a little after the tempest that had struck their relationship.
Dawn knew exactly how Sean felt. She thought it was very important to not stay angry and bitter with someone because of a break-up. She thought bad break-ups clouded otherwise great memories, and life would be so much easier if there were less bad memories to deal with. Dawn explained that her last boyfriend, though she had not been with him for years, was still a close friend of hers. There was no animosity left between them, and Dawn figured that was much healthier.
Sean and Dawn sat together chatting in the little café until the wee hours of the morning. Neither one of them noticed the time until Dawn haphazardly glanced at her watch. "Oh my God!" she said, "It's a quarter to three in the morning."
"Really?" Sean said, equally as shocked as she had been.
"Maybe it's time we both went to bed, huh?" Dawn suggested reluctantly.
"I'm surprised no one has come to drag me away by the ears yet" said Sean, "But, you're right. Would you mind if I walked you to your room?"
Dawn was thrown for a loop. Not even twelve hours she was just another Great Big Sea fan going to see a concert. Now, suddenly, she was practically on intimate terms with Sean McCann, who, she had discovered that night, was back on the market. He had admitted it himself. Dawn made a mental note to thank Alan for losing Tony's keys, otherwise Sean wouldn't have been offering to walk her to her room right now. "I ... I'd like that" Dawn stammered, rising with him as the waitress came over to take payment.
"Just bill the whole thing to room 417, my treat." Dawn said, looking at Sean when she said the last part. Sean didn't object.
The elevator ride was eerily silent. Dawn wasn't sure if she wanted to even look at Sean anymore, for fear that she would lose control and do somthing really embarassing. However, she could feel Sean's presence following dangerously close to her as she led the way down the hall to her room. Upon reaching the door, Dawn quickly occupied herself with rumaging through her purse for the key. Anything to keep her from looking up ... maybe Sean would just go away on his own and she wouldn't have to worry about it. But, Sean was nerve-wrackingly patient, even when he knew she was stalling purposely. Dawn could tell that Sean knew she was nervous; he could probably hear her heart beating inside her throat.
Then, Sean got tired of waiting. He gently lifted Dawn's head by the chin with two fingers, forcing her to look him in the eye. There was a very strong look in his eyes, and Dawn felt her own eyes glaze over. "I hope you don't mind if I kiss you." Sean barely whispered, rubbing her cheek with his thumb and staring rather obviously at her lips.
Dawn wanted to speek her approval, but no words came out. She took a breath and tried again, but still no words came out. Finally, feeling weak in the knees, Dawn leaned into him just enough to make him reach. As their lips met, Sean pulled Dawn into his body and raised her arms up around his neck. There was a gentle hunger in him, and Dawn was glad for his arms around her, otherwise she might have fainted. She let herslef get sucked into his lips as she became conscious of every curve in his body, even from under his warm clothes.
Finally, Dawn pulled away a little to look into his dreamy eyes again, but didn't back out of his embrace. "I must be crazy," Dawn whispered, "but will you come in for a bit?"
"I'd like to," Sean said, teasing her by brushing his lips across her face, "but the door's still locked."
There was absolute silence and stillness for a moment, then they both started to giggle quietly. Dawn managed to pry herself from Sean's grasp against her will, and quickly dealt with the locked door. She and Sean practically spilled into the room and let their weight fall against the door to close it. Anything either of them may have been holding was immediately handed over into the hands of gravity, leaving behind a pile of shoes and small bags directly behind the door.
Dawn didn't remember walking to the bed, only that she had been standing with Sean's back against the door mere moments ago and now she seemed to be voluntarily on her back. Sean's mouth played over Dawn's lips. His arms cradled her close to his body as he lifted her tank top just enough to unclip her bra at the back. A sudden burst of conscience made Dawn push Sean gently off her. He gave her a questioning look as he attempted to catch his breath. "Just a minute, maybe we should think about this," Dawn said, then watched Sean remove his own shirt and toss it to the floor, "okay, I've thought about it enough. You?"
"Uh huh," Sean nodded, leaning in to kiss her again.
Sean quickly removed the rest of his clothes and the rest of Dawn's clothes with very litlle help from Dawn, all while their lips were locked. Sean was obviously very multi-talented, and expertly so. Dawn slid herself up the bed, so her head rested on a pillow and Sean followed her easily and gracefully. She wrapped one leg around his waist and ran her fingers gently down his back. Sean pushed her hair out of the way and nested his face into her neck, slowly working his way down to her breasts.
Sean's hands worked like magic, touching Dawn in all the right places. Dawn's breath was heavy and she began to feel hot and moist. Her fingers now dug gently into Sean's shoulders and her back arched slightly to meet Sean's body. Finally, Dawn couldn't take anymore. As she felt almost ready to burst, she whispered "Make love to me." between gasps. Sean immediately moved his body back up and started kissing her again this time holding her wrists gently down on the bed.
Sean lifted himself up slightly and looked into Dawn's eyes. He didn't say anything but his expression that he would be gentle and proceed only if she was sure this was what she wanted. Dawn shifted towards him ever so slightly, telling Sean it was okay. He accepted her response with a tiny smile, revealing his gorgeous dimples for only a second. Dawn felt him enter her then, inching his way in slowly at first and then pushing a little harder. The faster he pumped, the harder he pushed and every ounze of his energy gave her infinate amounts of pleasure. Dawn held onto him as tightly as she could, feeling every muscle in his body tense against her and inside her. Beads of sweat rolled across his soft skin. The low rumble of his groans excited her. She could feel his heart beating against her body, their chests pressed together. She could feel his hard body all around her and all over her. Dawn had never felt so good.
A few minutes later, Sean lay on his back on the bed, staring at the ceiling. Dawn rested her head on his shoulder and ran her fingers through his chest hair, rubbing between his pecks. Sean had his arm wrapped around her shoulders, making Dawn feel safe and warm. They just lay there momentarily, holding each other and caressing each other with their finger tips. Finally Dawn said "So, that's what it's like to be consequence free, huh?"
"Like a swim in the sea of no cares." Sean said, "And infinately more."
"Better than 90 minutes of fame?"
"Quite possibly." Sean said, vaguely.
"I wish we didn't have to go our separate ways tommorow." Dawn said.
"You mean today," Sean corrected, "Which reminds me, I have a flight to catch in less than two hours."
Sean got up slowly and rumaged around for his clothes. Dawn sat up in bed to watch him. "I know you have to go," Dawn said, "but I wish you didn't. I hate saying good-bye."
Sean looked at her then, as he zipped up his pants. "How many times have I heard this conversation before?" Sean siad, alluding to his ex-girlfriend, "I know it's hard to say good-bye. Trust me, I've gone through it many times. You don't think it hurts me just as much?"
"Sean, I didn't mean to upset you. I..." Dawn blurted out.
Sean caught himself and took a step backwards. He seemed almost frightened and somewhat embarassed. Dawn grabbed the robe she always kept by the bed and put in on. "Sean, I understand what you're feeling. At least I hope I do," she said walking over to him, "Yes, I'll miss you terribly, but I know it's going to be difficult for us to meet up again. I know you're devoted to your work, where ever it takes you, and that you miss your home and your family and friends every step of the way. I didn't mean to make it worse; I'm sorry."
"No, I'm sorry" Sean said, "I shouldn't have ... it's just that it got to me, you know? That whole argument jusy tried to repeat itself, and ... sometimes it feels like it's too much ... it's so hard, I mean ..."
Dawn sat Sean on the edge of the bed and held his head against her breast. Instinctively, Sean wrapped his arms around her waist and closed his eyes to calm himself. "Don't worry about me, alright?" Dawn said, petting him, "I'll get over it. I'm a strong woman. You just worry about yourself and the band. Don't let this traveling thing become a burden. Just think of all the joy you are giving to so many people. Remember that you are sharing your gift of music with the world, and that your family and friends will support you no matter what. Everyone needs to make sacrifices in their life; you just have to be strong."
"You don't know how much it means to me to know that you are willing to accept me leaving." Sean said, lifting his head to look up at Dawn, "It's so much wieght off my shoulders to know that I can leave freely with no guilt of leaving you to be alone when you don't want to be."
"I don't know what happened between you and your lady back home," Dawn said, "but if she was giving you grief about having to travel and couldn't put her feelings and needs aside for you, than you don't need her. You need someone understanding and supportive to share your life with, someone who is willing to sacrifice as much as you have."
Sean stood up, feeling much better about himself. He smiled and thanked Dawn with a kiss. He hugged her and said good-bye, gathered his things and left. Dawn let him go, knowing that she would suffer so much emotional pain, and wondering if she would ever get to be that close to him ever again. It was hard enough just getting to see him perform, as the band was hardly ever around more than two or three times a year. However, Dawn felt good that she had helped Sean through a tough time. Perhaps that was enough.
THE END
