Chris hesitates but eventually answers: “Sure, go ahead” I see her face curious, yet slightly nervous. I, also a bit nervous, ask: “I don’t understand how your personal boundaries work. I mean, we’ve hung out a few times, talk frequently but because of our everyday lives, seldom see each other. I feel yesterday our friendship became as intimate as it can get, let me explain. You chose me to share your tears with me, and I have to say, I feel extremely honored to be the chosen one. After your first round of tears you asked me to go to bed with you, I took care of you as I would have any of my close friends (at least the 3 or 4 closest to me), you intertwined your legs on mine, I appreciate the trust you have in me, believe me, I’ll never betray it.”

I lean my face towards her, placing my elbow on the table, resting my face on my hand and I am about to, instinctively, drop my other hand on her thigh, stopping mid air, and continue talking: “Now, help me understand how last night you were comfortable to be with me, skin to skin (in a non sexual way), even enjoying my comforting caresses. Now, the same contact makes you feel uncomfortable? I’m not mad or anything, I just want to know your boundaries so I don’t trespass them. Next time you cry, am I allowed to wipe or kiss your tears? If I hold you in my arms, can I caress your arms, maybe hug you by your waist, are your thighs or calves off limits? Just to know, honestly for me it’s natural, at home it’s normal to give affection touching or patting.”

I begin retracting my hand to the table as I wait for her answer.

I see her thinking for a min how to delicately answer my questions/concerns. "I understand where you're coming from. It's just that last night I was vulnerable and you were in comforting mode. I understood your touches came from a place of pure comfort. When I'm vulnerable like that I really do like my tears being wiped and kissed, hugging me by my waist (or any type of hug really), caressing my calves and thighs is pretty comforting too. You didn't do anything wrong. Its just today when I didn't feel I was in such a vulnerable place, and you were talking about how attractive my thighs looked earlier in the morning, although happy you felt that way, I felt your touch came from more of a place of pure desire/attractiveness if that makes sense." She finishes.

I look at her and hesitate before answering: “I’ll explain in detail later, but for now I want you to know that since last night, when you decided to open up completely with me, even allowing me to see what most girls consider ugly crying without embarrassment, I felt our relationship take a leap from close friend to best friend, almost siblings. I see you as the little sister I never had.” I feel tears stinging the back of my eyes. “Does this make sense, does it change the way you feel?”

She opens up and confesses I’m the only person who has seen her ugly cry besides her husband and she didn’t feel embarrassed at all. She even adds that if she ever needs to cry again could she call me.

I blush, then answer: “of course, you know I‘ll always be there for you.” I smile at her and firmly drop my hand on her thigh, consciously and with all the love a best friend/brother could give a smaller sister, feeling her cool skin and her soft, relaxed muscles jiggle in my hand.

I can’t hide my surprise, when I see through my peripheral vision a girl with a surprise face looking at us. I blush once more and smile at Chris.

We continue talking for a couple of minutes. I avoid the sister question by telling Christina a joke. I instinctively pat her thigh as we laugh about the joke, not noticing the waiter next to us with the menus. When I turn to see him, he is staring at Chris’s jiggling thigh. I turn my eyes back at Chris.

I smile at my best friend as she talks more than she intends to in order to not feel self conscious. I reaffirm her that she has very beautiful legs by giving her thigh another soft pat, feeling her outer thigh jiggle in my hand for a couple of seconds, seeing the girl in the table next to ours giving her boyfriend a slap for staring.

"It's understandable that you are not comfortable yet, but you have to admit you are doing a wonderful job, it's a big first step, and you just confirmed more than a dozen persons admired your legs, both male and female alike". The waiter comes with our food and drinks and we have a pleasant meal. We rest our food for a few minutes before getting up, a question comes to my mind: "May I ask what you meant last night when you said how could he? How could he what, is there anything you want to get out of your heart?"

"Well you've been such a good friend to me these past two days I guess its the least go can do to indulge you, seeing as you should know why you were comforting me in the first place." She opens up, her eyes starting to sparkle with tears. "Last week as my husband was returning home from work, he pulled out his wallet from his pocket. A piece of paper fell out. I picked it up after he went into the other room. I was curious so I looked at it."  She takes a shaky breath. "It was a child support payment, which wouldn't be so weird if he had a child before we got together but the statement only shows payments from the past 2 yrs. Meaning he had an affair almost 3 yrs ago and had a child, while we we're married." Her tears fill her eyes, its a matter of time before they fall. "Almost 2 yrs ago he says he got a new position at his company and it requires him to travel 1 week every month. I know he never got a new position at his company as his title nor pay have changed at all. I put two and two together and realize he's spending that week every month with his child." Her tears finally win the battle, a single, thick tear falls from her eye, quickly reaching the middle of her cheek.

I am in shock, even though I have seen her cry before (honestly yesterday was the first time she cried in front of me, even looking for me to comfort her), she has never cried in public before. I wait to see if she wipes her tear, she doesn't. It seems as if she is expecting me to wipe it for her, I see a guy coming with tissues. Before he arrives I lean and wipe her tear with my thumb, drying her tear streak with the back of my fingers. I smile at her, seems my gesture encourages the rest of her tears to fall. I move my chair next to her, seeing in the surroundings, the girl gives her boyfriend (or ex by now) a strong slap and stands up to leave as he is staring at Chris' tears. I kiss a couple of tears from each cheek and swipe my hands across her cheeks, clearing her first round of tears. I give her thigh a soft pat (I'm getting used to feeling it jiggle in my hand by now) and take her hand, walking her to the restroom to give her privacy.