by Abbi Hemp
Our eyes met for a moment. I looked away first then stood up.
“I’m going to bed,” I said while yawning. “I have classes tomorrow and work too.”
“All work and no play makes Haley a dull woman.”
“Yeah, but I’ll be able to afford my school loan debts if I graduate and get a good job. I’m too far down the path to turn back now.”
I stepped around her and walked toward the hallway.
“How’s your classes going, by the way?” she asked.
“Oh, they’re fine, I think.”
“You think?”
I turned around and saw her sitting in my recliner.
“Yeah, I think. Do you want to get lunch tomorrow? We can talk more then.”
“Sure.”
“I should have called you to pick me up from the lab.”
“You can call me anytime.”
“I know, Tabby. Thanks. You have a good night.”
“You too, babe. Talk to you in the morning.”
I waved then resumed the journey to my bedroom. Inside my domain, I closed the door behind me and locked it. As I got undressed and ready for bed, the events from the night played themselves out in my head over and over again.
The danger had etched James and all his features into my mind. I drifted off to sleep with images of his hot, naked body trying to seduce me in my dreams. Between classes and my job at the Med-Center, I hadn’t been with a man in a long time. Too long for my liking.
Would James even be interested in someone like me?
THREE
James
On my way to the house I shared with Curtis and two guys who weren’t on the football team, I ran the events from earlier through my mind. Had I done something wrong in saving her or wanting a little thanks and consideration?
Haley had overreacted. Big time. I had no need for women like her, but thoughts of her lingered in my mind unlike most of the women I met. She’s just stuck-up. Don’t let it get to you, I told myself as I neared our two-story house a few streets over from where Haley lived.
If I had left earlier or later, I would have never crossed paths with her. As I walked up to the porch, I heard the sounds of guns and explosions coming out of the screen door.
Brian and Teddy were hardcore gamers, but I enjoyed having them as roommates. Neither of them looked up from their spots on the couch as I walked in our shared living room.
The stench of sweat, Mountain Dew and junk food hit my nose as I walked over and looked at the carnage happening on the television screen.
“What’s up, fellas. You won the war yet?”
Teddy looked up and grinned, a mess of curly red hair on the top of his head.
“Oh, hey, James. Curtis said you guys almost beat down some frat-fucks tonight.”
“Almost,” I said nonchalantly, as if it had been an every-day occurrence.
“We didn’t think you would make it back.”
“Watch out! Your flank!” Brian yelled.
Teddy turned back to the television. I made my way upstairs where Curtis and I had bedrooms across the hall from each other. Seeing light streaming across the hardwood floor from under his door, I knocked. No tie on the doorknob meant he wasn’t busy.
“You up, bro?”
“Yeah, come in,” he said.
I opened the door. He looked up from his desk with a textbook open in front of him.
“You made it back early,” he said. “Did you fuck Haley?”
“Nah,” I said, playing it off. “She’s not my type.”
“Respect,” he said. “I was going to give you her phone number. She gave it to me this summer when I was in the Med-Center.”
“You want her?”
He shook his head.
“Hell no, but you never know, right? I thought she might be a freak, but it didn’t turn out that way.”
“You’re a dog, bro,” I said, causing him to smile proudly. “I bet she is a freak in the sheets. The quiet ones are always kinky as hell.”
“Do you want her number?”
“Yeah, sure. Like you said, maybe I’ll be desperate enough one night to hit that ass.”
“I’ll send it to your phone.”
“Alright man, see you tomorrow.”
“For sure, bro.”
We nodded at each other before I closed the door and walked across the hall to my room. Inside, I turned on the light then headed over to my bed. My phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out and saw Curtis had sent me a text with her number.
Curious about her and why she had gotten angry with me, I tapped the screen then put the phone to my ear as I laid down on my King Size bed.
Ring. She’s not going to pick up. Ring. No big deal. Ring. Well…
“Hello?”
The sound of her voice captivated me as I laid back with one hand behind my head and the other holding the phone.
“Hey, it’s me. I wanted to check and make sure you’re okay?”
“Who is this?”
“Me. James. I saved you tonight.”
“Oh my God! I said thank you. Are you stalking me now?”
“This is hardly stalking.”
“How did you get my number?”
“Does it matter?” I asked. “You doing okay? Those fucks better not try anything else.”
“I’m fine. Just trying to study for a pop quiz tomorrow.”
“How is it a pop quiz if you know about it?”
“Well, it wasn’t officially announced, but I’m smart enough to have noticed the pattern of the professor in giving them.”
“Ah, a smart woman.”
“You have a problem with smart women?” she asked.
“Not at all. In fact…”
I stopped talking.
“What?”
“You don’t want to hear it,” I said.
“Come on, James. Don’t play games. It’s late.”
“I was thinking of asking you to dinner, but you made it obvious you don’t want anything to do with me.”
“What are you talking about? I’d just been attacked, and you were trying to get into my panties.”
“Hey, I never said anything about getting into your panties.”
“No, but it was assumed. You’re a jerk.”
“That’s better than a full-on jerk, I guess. I’ll take it.”
She laughed.
“You’re something else, James King.”
“Come on, let’s have dinner tomorrow night. What’s the worst that could happen?”
“I don’t know.”
“My treat as a reward for doing so well on your pop-quiz.”
“I haven’t done well yet.”
“You will,” I said confidently.
“If I say yes, will you hang up so I can get back to my homework?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Fine. Then yes, I’ll go to dinner with you tomorrow. You can pick me up at six sharp.”
I ended the call without another word. After setting the phone on my nightstand, I rolled out of bed to get a few exercises in before I hit the sack. I always slept better after exercising.
As I completed my first set of reps, I smiled at the thought of Haley. She had a hot body. I figured I would fuck her once to see if I liked it. After that, who knew what would happen.
FOUR
James
I arrived at her apartment early. Her roommate answered the door with a mean expression on her face, not even opening it all the way.
“Can I help you?”
“I’m here to pick up Haley.”
“Hold on,” she said then slammed the door in my face.
What the fuck is her problem?
The door opened again, and Haley stepped out wearing a grey Buffalo State sweatshirt and jeans. She matched my outfit almost exactly.
“Were you spying on me?”
“I didn’t want to dress up,” she said.
“Not taking me seriously, are you?”
“Look, I agreed to have dinne
r with you because I’ve been studying so hard on top of work and everything else. That doesn’t mean I actually like you or anything.”
“Damn,” I said, raising my hands. “You’re not playing.”
“No, I’m not.”
She nodded at my black and yellow Camaro parked on the side of the street.
“That your ride?”
“Yeah. You like?”
“As long as it gets us to our destination, I don’t care.” She walked down the stairs and toward the car with me close behind. “Where are we going, anyway?”
“This place called Mama Joe’s.”
“Never heard of it.”
“It’s a few miles from here.”
“Oh?” She stopped at the passenger door. “You embarrassed to be going out with me or something?”
“Damn, you’ve got some trust issues, don’t you?” I asked, shaking my head while smiling.
“I’m just familiar with guys like you.”
As she opened the door and got in the passenger seat, I walked around the front of the muscle car. When I got settled behind the steering wheel, I fired up the engine. Heavy Metal blared from the speakers. I quickly turned the stereo off.
“You listen to that shit?”
“It helps get me pumped.”
“I see,” she said while buckling in.
Why is she dissing everything tonight and not treating me like all the other women? The question went unanswered as I got onto the interstate to head to Harrison, a small town to the east of Buffalo. She glanced over at the dash.
“Watch your speed.”
“I’m going to impress you with something by the end of the night,” I said then chuckled.
“Good luck. I’m not easily impressed. Although…” She glanced over at me. “You know how to play some football.”
I smiled.
“See, that wasn’t so hard, was it?”
“I’m just busy and tired,” she said. “Don’t take it personally.”
“I know what you mean. All I do is practice, play and go to classes. By the way, how did you do on the pop-quiz?”
“Well, apparently my calculations were off. She didn’t have one today.”
“At least you’re ready now.”
“Yeah, unless all the information seeps out of my brain.”
We both got quiet as I pulled off the highway, slowing down on the exit ramp. About a mile down the road, a red and orange neon sign for Mama Joe’s popped into view.
“I’ve never even heard of this place,” she said.
“Those of us who know about it tend to keep quiet, so it doesn’t become overrun, you know.”
“Keep the frat-boys away. I like it.”
“Exactly.”
I turned my head briefly and flashed her another smile, my charm finally penetrating her social defenses. By the end of the night, I’d have her sucking my cock. After I came, I’d be able to get her out of my mind and get back to the most important thing – football.
* * *
Our food arrived at the table, but I was hungry for something else. I had seen a woman place a napkin on her lap a thousand times before, but never with such grace or beauty. She made even the mundane better in so many ways.
“You’re quieter than I thought you would be,” she said then took a drink of water.
“Stunned by your beauty.”
I flashed her a grin.
“You sure do pour it on thick, don’t you?”
“Hmm?”
“Your charm.”
“Did you just call me charming?”
She rolled her eyes.
“You know what I mean.”
“I do, but it’s true. You’ve got a beauty they don’t show in magazines.”
“Oh, great. Thanks.”
“No, no, I mean it. Your face is so perfect and uniquely you, it wouldn’t work well for mass media.”
“There you go again.”
“You really want me to stop?”
“Of course not.”
We both quieted down, sampling the giant tenderloin sandwiches. The meat pushed well past the bun. Every once in a while, I liked to splurge on my diet. It made me work even harder to make up for it.
“Did you play sports growing up?” I asked.
“Actually, no, but I loved watching sports. That’s why I got into sports medicine. I’m not athletic enough to play.”
“You look athletic enough to me.”
“Thanks. It’s the coordination, I guess. Or my lack of it.” She smiled. “I do, however, play a mean game of Madden on the PS3.”
“Get out of here. My roommates are big gamer nerds.”
“You don’t play video games?”
“Oh, sometimes, but I like the real thing. It’s like porn. Why watch it virtually when you can sleep with a living, breathing human being, you know?”
She bit her bottom lip. What I wouldn’t give to know the thoughts going through her mind. Unlike other women, she made it difficult to plan my next move. The end goal was the same – sexual contact – but without clear signals from her, my game became weak.
“I like sex,” she said suddenly, her face turning red. “I mean, just because I’m not having it right now with anyone doesn’t mean I’m a prude or anything.”
“Uh-huh,” I said, nodding my head.
“I’m not sure why I just said that.”
“It’s fine.”
I waved a hand through the air to emphasize the point.
“What about you?”
“I love sex too,” I said then winked at her.
She laughed.
“No, I meant…To be honest, I’m not sure what I meant. And I’m not even drinking tonight.”
“You’re fine,” I said as if nothing in the world mattered. “You dig the tenderloin?”
“It’s big.”
“Bigger is better.”
“Not all the time,” she countered.
Damn. I want her even more.
“A lot of women are intimidated by me.”
“That big brain of yours?”
She winked at me.
“Funny.”
“I thought so.”
We both ate quietly a few more minutes as if we had been friends for years. Why did I find it so comfortable to talk with her? The question bugged me.
“The food is good,” she said. “Not healthy, but tasty.”
“Yeah, I don’t eat here often. I’ll make up for it tomorrow in the gym or on the field.”
“So, you’re friends with Curtis?” she asked.
Oh, shit.
“Yeah, he’s another roommate actually. You like him?”
She laughed.
“No. He’s definitely not my type.”
“No? What’s your type?”
“Not a big guy from the defensive line. I enjoy men with big brains as well as a fit body.”
She looked down at her plate, avoiding my eyes.
I’m in the zone. Keep it up.
“Anyway,” she continued. “He came in a couple weeks ago about his knee injury. I probably shouldn’t tell you this…”
“You have to tell me now.”
“I don’t know.”
“I’ll ask him about it.”
“No! He’ll know I told you something.”
“You worry a lot about what other people think, don’t you?”
“You don’t?”
“Well, people usually love me.”
She looked back down at her nearly empty plate.
“I need to get back. Thanks for dinner.”
“Me too,” I said, not wanting to let her know I wanted to stay at least another five hours. “I’ve got this formula figured out, and I think I have a pop-quiz in one of my classes tomorrow.”
She looked up with a smile and made eye contact.
“Sounds like a smart system.”
“Let’s get out of here.”
I left a nice tip and took her back out to my car.
* * *
After parking in her driveway, I expected her to invite me in, but she didn’t. Before she left, I decided to try one last trick – show her the curved dick.
“Hold on,” I said as she opened the passenger side door.
As she did, I got my Johnson out of my pants.
“What?” she asked.
“Look at this…”
I pointed to my penis. Women never failed to look. My great big cock always got them wet.
“Eww,” I said. “Put that thing away.”
“Eww? Do you not like dick?
“I like it fine, but this is not the place or time.”
She glanced down at it again then quickly looked away. I put it back into my pants.
“It’s cool. I know plenty of women who love to suck it.”
“Good for you,” she said, opening the door.
“I’ll walk you to your door.”
“That’s not necessary, James. Call me.”
“I will,” I said.
She slammed the door. I watched her ass shake back and forth as she walked to her porch.
I’m going to tap that before the semester is over, I told myself as I backed out of her driveway.
FIVE
Haley
When I got inside the apartment, I slammed the door and slid back up against it. Tabby, wearing her well-worn brown robe, looked up from the couch.
“What?” she asked.
I spread my two hands about a foot apart, palms facing each other.
“He’s that big of an asshole? I don’t get it.”
“No,” I said, walking over to my recliner. “His dick!”
“He showed you his dick? On a first date?”
“Yes, and it looked so good.”
I pouted like a teenager who hadn’t gotten her way.
“Whatever.”
She turned back to the television, flipping the channel.
“He was an asshole, but there’s something about him.”
“You know he’s just trying to bang you, right?”
“Why do you always have to be so crude? You’re chilling my mood.”
“I’m trying to look out for you. He’s fucked almost every girl on campus. Sure, he uses protection, but what about the emotional damage he’s doing.”
