After Classes Are Over [FICTION]

[interesting]

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My first attempt at a story. Hope you enjoy it. Feedback is appreciated.

PROLOGUE
As a teacher's assistant, I always found it normal and healthy to fantasize about my students, as long as everything remained in my mind. Some students simply made it easier than others to fantasize.

Take for example the case of one Sarah. The first day of class of that semester, as I was writing up the cursus on the blackboard, she came in. It is not what she was wearing that first drew my attention, but how she was wearing it. Her gait was perfectly balanced, her hips swayed to a silent but entrancing rhythm and the air around her seemed to pause as if to take its breath. From the first moment I saw her, I knew she would be flirting the entire session. She had on a short red camisole that highlighted her midriff and low-cut jeans. Her hair, auburn going on blonde (it could have been dyed, at the time I was not certain), danced lazily on her shoulders. Her smile was always a few steps in front of her, clearing the room for her entrance. I was not the only one paying attention, of course. She made heads turn, and the other students already gathered there had also felt her undeniable allure, both the men and the women.

Now, mind you, as a teacher's assistant, I had never envisionned anything other than a fantasy in my mind. Even as the weeks went on, as I gave my class, as she stared at my figure during the lectures. Hints of possible mutual attraction had not even crossed my mind. There were signs, mind you, but I was simply too absorbed in my tasks to do amything about them. And the impropriety of such a relationship was too obvious for anything to happen.

On the final day of classes, she handed in her final exam. I raised my eyes from my desk as she leant in front of me, granting me full view of her cleavage. I remember thinking that she was not wearing a bra. It took me a moment to keep my eyes going higher up to her own.

"It was fun, Jim."

She smiled.

Jim. James, actually. That's me, if you hadn't guessed. I'm 28 years old, average build and height, not much to look at really. I don't train as often as I should and I don't really watch my weight, although it hasn't caught up to me yet. I'm pretty good-looking, at least according to some of my female coworkers, and a few of the male too, but that hasn't helped me score any relationship with them.

"What are you teaching next semester?"

The question was sudden and out of context, so it took me a while to gather my thoughts. Sarah's gaze was fixated on mine, and I was intimidated.

"Well, I replied, I'm doing this class again."

I taught advanced english grammar - the course that no teacher wanted to give - to students starting at college and also to students who wanted it as a supplemental class, as if anyone was dumb enough to want to actually learn grammar.

"Anything else?"
"No."
"Too bad."

The comment surprised me.

"Any chance of you giving any other classes in the following semesters?"
"I don't think so, but that could change. It's hard to know. Why?"

She smiled at me.

"I enjoyed your class, you made grammar fun to watch."

The playfulness in her tone of voice made me tremble inside. My gaze wanted to return to her cleavage, but I forced my mind not to wander.

"Well, take care. Happy holidays!"

And with that, she strutted out of my class, and out of my life - at least, that's what I imagined at the time. Her hips swaying left and right in those tight pants were her final farewell to me.

Collecting the exams after class was over, I was appalled at my conduct. I was actually experiencing two different feelings. The first one was shame at my conduct towards her. The second was stupidity at not making a pass at her, despite the moral implications. Then it dawned on me that she was no longer my student and my stupidly expanded tenfold. I tucked my head between my legs and made my way to the T.A. office, where I filed everything neatly for correction the next day.

It was not before I was about to leave that I realized there was a small card under the documentation. It was a memo type card, with a phone number and Sarah's name. My heart froze for a second, then sped away at an increasing pace. On the back of the card, she had written a small note.

"Thanks for the english classes. I'd like to teach you a thing or two myself. If you'd like to learn more, please call me. Sarah."

Fate had just dealt me a new hand. My only question was what she had in mind for my "education"?

[applebooty]

You've effectively captured my attention. Off to a great start with an interesting storyline and plenty of detail. Do continue.

[interesting]

It took me a full week and a half to get in touch with Sarah. Not for lack of trying, but there were reasons which kept us separated during that time.

At first, I wanted to get rid of all the corrections I had to do for the exams before the Holidays. Primarily, I wanted to get them over with before going on vacation (our deadline for handing the grades to the faculty were actually the start of January) but somewhere inside of me, I wanted to put as much distance between my relationship with Sarah as a student before starting to entertain a relationship with her on another level. I had definetely felt a connection - or desperately wanted one, I could not make up my mind at the time.

I finished correcting the documents on the twenty-first. I took the next day off to recover some of my sanity. I called Sarah's number on the twenty-third, in the middle of the afternoon. I picked up the phone and dialed the number. I almost hung up, but hung around long enough to hear Sarah's voice.

"Hello, you've reached Sarah, I'm not home right..."

I hung up. Then, I felt bad. I hate it when people call and don't leave a message. It always leaves an empty slot in my machine. Yet I'd done the same to Sarah. Plus, she might have call display. I gathered my courage once more and dialed again. Same recording. I stayed on the line this time.

"...now. Maybe out or in the shower, anyway, leave a message, thanks!"

Then the awkward beep. What to say. Words poured from my mouth before I had a chance to prepare them.

"Hey, Sarah, it's James... your T.A. I think you left me a message with your exam, so I'm calling back to know what you wanted and, huh, also it was me who called previously but didn't leave a message and I, huh, my number is... call me back."

I hung up so fast I almost knocked the charger off its perch. I laughed. I felt like a six year old trying to ask the new kid on the block to go play with him in the sandbox. I wanted to call back to correct my first message, but decided I'd been weird enough as it is and didn't want to come on too strong, or too strange.

Christmas rolled around. I was a nervous wreck from the night of the twenty-third to the time I came back from my parents' house on the twenty-seventh. My mind kept wandering to that phone call, my awkwardness and the sheer incertitude of it all. It could all have been a joke, and she could be laughing her ass off with her friends as my heart was rending in two, while I was singing Christmas carols and opening my presents. My parents and my brothers had always been oblivious to my suffering while I was young, and this trip was no different.

When I got home on the twenty-seventh, I took a shower, then went on the computer for a while. Finally, I absently checked my messages. Despite my state, the festivities with my family had partly kept my mind and my heart away from thoughts of Sarah, but that was about to change.

"Hi, Jim, it's Sarah. How are you? Sorry I missed your call, I was out doing shopping, and then I had to go see my parents. I got back today, we're the twenty-sixth, why don't you give me a call, maybe we can meet? I'd like that. Take care."

There were other messages too but they faded into the background. For the next hour, I replayed the message several times. I wanted to make sure she was serious. My mind was still considering the possibility that all of this was a set-up, a sick joke played by vicious students on an unsuspecting T.A. But I could find no tell-tale signs.

Right before dinner, I managed to gather my strength. I recovered the memo card which I'd been carrying on my person since the first day I'd found it. I dialed her number, resolutly. Would she be there?

"Hello?"

Her voice. Not a machine. Hers.

"Hello... hi. It's Jim... James, Hi.
"Hi Jim!"

Her voice was playful. She sounded happy to hear from me.

"Hi.
"How are you? Happy holiday. How was your time with your family?"
"It was great... sort of. Yours?
"Well, it's family, you keep up appearances.
"Yes, I can understand that."

I was laughing now. Well, more like smiling, but I felt giddy, almost high.

"Anyway, I'm returning your call.
"So I see. It's good to hear from you. What are you doing tonight?
"Tonight. I was about to get ready for dinner.
"That sounds nice. You want to go out somewhere?
"Dinner?
"Yeah.
"On a date?
"Sure. If you think it's appropriate."

I couldn't believe my luck.

"Where do you want to go?
"Nothing fancy. Don't want to dress up too much."

I calmed down the images popping in my mind. We agreed on a sushi place, not far from the beach and decided we would meet there in one hour. She had to take a shower, she said, to make herself pretty for me.

"As if you needed it."

My own comment surprised me. I heard her giggle.

"That's sweet. See you later. Bye."
"Bye."

She hung up, and I followed suite a moment later. Then it dawned on me. I had a date with Sarah. I'd already taken a shower but I changed clothes anyway, because the ones I had on did not feel appropriate. I took out a clean pair of jeans, a light blue short sleeved shirt. I did my hair, something I did not normally do when I do not have to teach. I even thought of masturbating - you don't go on a date with a loaded gun, my former roommate in college used to tell me - but I decided against it. I did not really know why, it just oddly did not feel appropriate at the time.

I arrived first at the sushi place, but I did not have long to wait. She was also early. The sight of her left me stunned. I had not seen her for over a week and my mind had, though not deliberately, forgotten how beautiful she could be. She was wearing a long multi-colored skirt, with a matching belt. She wore a white see-through blouse, underneath which she had a tight black camisole which hugged her shapes exquisitely. Her auburn hair was lifted up to show her neck, and she wore a necklace with an asian symbol on it which I did not recognize.

She stopped a few metres in front of me, twirled on herself, then walked over to me and smiled.

"Shall we?"

We entered the restaurant.

Now, if I may digress for just a moment, let me tell you a bit more about me and my life. So far, my existence had been pretty tame, at least for the most part. I'd grown up in California, not far from where I was teaching now, but my parents had moved out of the city when I was twelve, into a rural community. My adolescence had been pretty ordinary, no gang affiliation, no real group thing. I bided my time in solitary existence or with one or two occasional friends. My love for the english language was not something easily shared with anyone.

I'd had three girlfriends so far in my life. The first one, I'd met at church, when I still went. We'd had a dance chaperoned by the Church and we'd danced all night, eventually ended up kissing and fondling each other a little. It had lasted about a week. I did not even get to see her naked. The second one was in my first year of college. She was a strange girl, full of quirks and odd commentaries, very sweet in her own way but ultimately trying to change me. She would not go with me until I performed some sort of ritual bonding. The whole experience freaked me out so we broke up after two months. I still got to feel her up pretty good, and we went skinny dipping once. Finally, in my last year of college, I'd spent six months with one of my fellow students, someone who actively shared my passion for books and literature. We'd met several times before at a party, and eventually she'd ended up sleeping at my place, and in the morning we sort of worked our way from reading each other's favorite passages in books to having sex in the middle of the room. Luckily, my roommates had been out at the time. We stayed together until the end of the semester, then she found a job working in Seattle and I had already secured my job in California. We decided we'd had our fun but we'd now go our separate ways.

In between our parting and my encounter with Sarah, I had not entertained any relationship, even casual or one-night stands. I had carried my relationship alone, so to speak. The prospect of taking Sarah into my confidence was there both new and invigorating. I suppose some part of me wanted to score on the first date.

I was reliving those past experiences when Sarah brought me back to reality. She had a knack for staring at me and making me feel desirable, something I had not experienced in a very long time.

"Are you okay?"
"Yeah... I was just thinking how long it's been since I've been on a date.
"I'll be honest, I haven't had a date in a year.
"Really?
"Yeah, you'd think I could get any guy I want, but I'm not like that."

I felt the awkwardness return, but she preempted with a question.

"Do you like games?
"Sure. I've got a lot of them on my computer.
"No. I mean table-top games, or social games?
"I don't know, yeah. I do."

She smiled. We finished eating, and then we went for a walk. We talked. During that conversation, I realized I knew very little about Sarah. I knew her name, her face, and her figure was ingrained in my mind. But she talked about her parents' upcoming divorce, about her friend who had been hospitalized after a car accident, about the first boy she'd ever kissed (and also the first girl!). She told me she wanted to become a teacher too, but she would prefer teaching kindergarten. I told her I thought she had promise, and she did. We talked for hours, and I forget most of the details. I do recall that as we talked, her hand slid into mine, and I felt the connection deepen. I told her about my past loves, about my fear of drowning and why I did not go into the water after an accident when I was seven; she answered by sharing with me the story of how she beat her fear of heights by scaling the highest peaks where her grandfather used to live. We eventually sat down in the park, the light dimmed, night overtook us and we kept on talking.

I saw a chill go up her spine and I passed my arm around her to keep her warm. Her hand lay against my hip, sometimes sliding up and down. I felt an erection coming but said nothing. I regretted my decision not to relieve myself before going out, but it was too late now.

The mood was right, the tension was lifted and the stars were aligned. I leaned over to kiss her. And that's when she stopped me. I froze. She had moved her head away. I spoke first.

"I'm sorry."

She smiled.

"Don't be. I do want to kiss you. But not yet, not now."

I was baffled. I noticed her eyes were staring at my groin. My erection was almost visible through the pants. I blushed.

"Don't be shy. It's normal. I'm a little... turned on myself.
"What do you want to do about it?
"For now, nothing. I think we should call it a night."

I wanted to protest, but during my education, I had been told that no means no. And I had lived with that principle all my life. I wasn't about to abandon it, just because I was as horny as I'd ever been.

"But, I do want to leave you something to remember me, and to keep your dreams... interesting."

She stood up from the bench and stepped several feet away. At first, she looked around, to make sure no one was there. She turned her back towards me, and I saw her hands reach for the bottom of her shirt. Then she swiftly spun around, and lifted her see-through blouse and the camisole, and as she twirled upon herself, I saw the flesh of her breasts and stomach as she flashed me. She giggled as she lowered it back in place.

"Do you like games?" she gigled as she asked.
"Yes!"

How could I say no after such a display. I had not seen much, but I'd been enticed just enough to answer anything she wanted.

"I want to see you again, not tomorrow night, but the next day. I want to go over to your place, and we can play a game together. If you want."

I nodded in agreement.

"Great."

She retrieved her purse, took out a marker and handed it to me. Then she lifted her blouse and camisole again, exposing only her stomach this time.

"Write down your adress here. But write it backwards so I can read it in the mirror."

I'd never been asked to do anything so utterly ludicrous, so naturally I complied and wrote the adress in reverse, as best as I could.

"Great. I'll drop by your place right after lunch, two days from now. That is, if you wrote the address correctly."

I doublechecked just to make sure.

"I had fun, Jim. And I hope to have fun again soon."

And with that, she left. I remained in the park for a few additional minutes, then I hurried home. I had only one idea in mind, and I was not about to perform in public. Sarah had sparked desire in me, and I couldn't wait until the twenty-ninth.

[Redneckgirl88]

Oh my this story is getting really good. They way you describe things... it puts you right in the story.. like you are a character. Please keep writing..

[applebooty]

Ooh I like games! I wonder what she has in mind...

[interesting]

"Truth or dare?"

Sarah's suggestion had caught me by surprise. When she'd spoken of games a few days earlier, I had imagined Monopoly or Scrabble, the Game of Life. At first, I did not know what to answer.

I'd just spent the last two days playing with a new first-person shooter game on my computer, eagerly awaiting the twenty-ninth. I had cleaned up my apartment, as best as I could, and had removed any indiscreet elements which I was not comfortable with Sarah seeing, at least on a first visit. There was not that much, really. I'd cleaned the dishes, did the laundry. When I noticed myself cleaning around the toilet bowl with a toothbrush, I knew I was overdoing it, but I did it anyway. I felt enamored with Sarah and did not want to disappoint her in any way.

That morning, I had tried to sleep in until late, but my eyes were wide open at 8AM. So I'd taken a shower, then eaten some light cereal, and paced frantically around my apartment while trying to find something to occupy my time.

I don't live in a very large apartment. There are three rooms, not counting the bathroom. When you enter the front door, you enter into the living room. There's a coat rack to your left and a wardrobe to your right. I have a large loveseat, and a smaller one set at an angle. In the other corner, there's a lamp right besides the television. The living room opens into the kitchen/dinner table area. It's the largest room in the house and one of the reasons why I'd selected this apartment four years earlier. I love kitchens. I love cooking. I don't have any particular training, but the notion of putting together a delicious combination of foods to make them even better has always enticed me. But since I lived alone, I hardly ever used the kitchen to its maximum potential. A patio door leads outside to a balcony overlooking the street. I kept the blinds closed most of the time, because the surrounding buildings are taller than my own. Turning away from the kitchen, you find a door to your right, that leads into a small bathroom. The bath/shower is acceptable, but the rest is a little too confined. And there's the bedroom straight ahead, where I lay my head to rest. It also hides my computer. Several years ago, we'd had a rash of break-ins before the police caught the guy, but most the stuff was never recovered. He hadn't touched my computer, though, because I kept it locked to my table, out of reach.

I barely ate as lunch rolled around. My mind kept reliving those precious moments from two nights ago, Sarah's smile and wit, our exchange, and the gift she had offered me at the end.

I was starting to hope I'd written my address correctly when there was a tap on the door. I rushed to it, then recovered my cool and opened it. Sarah was standing there, as gorgeous as ever. She wore a white camisole, and I could see the straps of her white bra underneath. She also wore red tight pants. Her hair was undone, in its natural state, a little frizzy maybe.

"Hi Jim!
"Hi. Come in."

Sarah entered my apartment and immediately got the lay of the land.

"Nice place. Cozy.
"It is a bit cramped.
"With the price of everything, I'm surprised you can afford it on a T.A.'s salary. Live alone?
"Have to.
"Really? Why?"

There was a pause. She had hit a nerve.

"I'd rather not talk about it right now."

She did not insist, but I could tell she was taking a mental note. I'd seen her do it so many times in class it seemed second nature to her to write something on an invisible memo card and pop it out later. I'd get around to it eventually too.

I noticed she was carrying a bag of groceries, so I took it from her. We went into the kitchen and I opened it. Fruits. A pineapple, an orange, an apple, a pear, raisins and a kiwi. I looked at her and she simply smiled.

"Show me around?"

I did. Not that there was much to show. She was impressed by my cleanliness, and I confessed to overdoing it a little. She did not mind. We sat down at the kitchen table. We spoke of our previous date, we rehashed the conversation somewhat and brought new elements of conversation into it. Politics, mostly. I was pleased that she agreed with most of my views, but still seemed to had an opinion on most things. One thing that I'd hated from my third girlfriend is that she never seemed to have an opinion on anything. She liked everything. When she moved to Seattle, it was sort of a relief that she'd actually made a decision on her own.

Eventually, topics of conversation subsided and silence started seeping into the room. Before it could take a hold, Sarah brought us back into the subject at hand.

"Remember what I said about us, playing a game?
"Yeah, I do.
"Wanna play?
"Play what?"

So there I was, offered by a gorgeous girl to play truth or dare. I'd never played before, well, that wasn't entirely true. I'd played dare back in college, with my two roommates, but that had been a very different type of game than what I was anticipating with Sarah. Every week, we'd set up a dare to do as a group, something stupid and silly that would not get us expelled. Moon someone or a group. Mix shots and drink them. Infiltrate a sorority during a party. It was just something to keep us interested in life, because classes were so boring. I'd grown out of those types of pranks. But I'd never actually played the original game.

Sarah sensed my hesitation, but she must have misinterpreted it, for she said:

"We can start with only truths, if you like."

What I was actually thinking was that the truths were much more inconvenient to me than the dares, and there were things which I was not ready to share with this girl, despite my attraction for her. And then, a small voice rose up inside of me, and told me to take a chance. Where it came from, I'll probably never know.

"That sounds good", I said.
"Great. Why don't we go sit in the living room, I think we'll be more at ease."

So we moved from the kitchen to the living room. She sat on the loveseat, I moved the leaning chair to face her and sat there.

"Since I'm proposing the game, it's only fair that I play first."

I could not argue with her logic, nor did I want to. I was glad she did not mind going first.

"So we'll start with only truths, and when you feel confident, we can get to dares. Okay?"
"Sure... so... truth or truth?"

My question sounded silly both to my ears and to my mind. She laughed a little, seemed to hesitate, then spoke.

"Truth, I guess."

Suddenly, it occured to me that I had to come up with a good ice-breaker. And there was one question that had been burning in my mind for some time. I cursed my rigid upbringing, but at the same time, I could not avoid the question.

"How old are you, Sarah?"

I expected her to blush, but she did not.

"I'm going to be nineteen on January 12th."

My heart calmed itself down. She was eighteen. I'd been pondering the legal implications of my relationship with her from the first day, without really wanting to acknowledge it.

"Your turn. Truth?"
"Go ahead."

She pondered what she could ask me in her mind. I saw the wheels turning as she came up with an idea.

"Why do you live alone?"

I dreaded she might start with this one, but since I'd already made up my mind that I would tell her eventually, I decided now was as good a time as any.

"Four years ago, before I moved in here, I lived with another guy. We were roommates. One day, I discovered he was stealing stuff from me. Small stuff, small bills, pocket change. I confronted him, he denied, it got to court, but I lost my case. Well, needless to say, I moved out as quickly as possible. Found this place, came here. It's hard for me to be trusting now, about my stuff, anyway.
"Wow... that's bad.
"It was four years ago, and I haven't seen him since. Good riddance."

I could feel she was sympathetic to my plight. This girl was absolutely everything I wanted in a relationship. I stared at her for a few moments.

"Your turn to ask?"
"When did you first know you had a crush on me?"

The question was so spontaneous it shocked even me. She had been taken aback by the bluntness of my question, but we were locked into the coils of the game and could not escape it without losing some of our dignity.

"First day of class, actually. Not right away, but as you made your presentation, I watched your lips move. And I thought... those are kissable. And the package wasn't too bad either."

She paused to get a glass of water. She offered me one but I declined. When she sat back down, her own question for me popped into the room.

"Have you ever fantasized about me, and if so, what was it about?"

Busted! I had fantasized about her more than once. I had to answer truthfully or I felt the connection would break.

"Yes, I have... two nights ago, in fact. But even before that. It's hard to say what it was about, because there was more than one fantasy.
"What about your favorite one?
"Okay... huh, let's see... we were snowed in somewhere, and waiting to be rescued, and we didn't know if they would ever find us. We lay huddled against the fire, kissing and flirting, wrapped in a bear blanket.
"Are you pulling my leg?
"No. It's my favorite one... not the most... intensely erotic, but it felt right, somehow, just to hold you in my arms and be keeping you warm."

I had managed to avoid that one, and it was my favorite... among all the other favorites. But Sarah did not insist. And it was my turn to ask. I decided to get a little intimate and follow her head.

"Do you shave, down there?"

With all my mastery of the english language, I could not manage myself to say anything else. Some romeo!

"Yes. Well, not completely, but I keep it trimmed."

The frankness of her answer intrigued me. I thought I might make her uncomfortable, but she was definetely not the least bit taken aback. She retaliated.

"Did you masturbate after our last date, and how did it feel?"

Her candor was both unsettling and appreciated.

"I did. And if felt... awesome. It had been a while since I'd... been so aroused."

She smiled. She seemed content with my answer - and possibly the image it had conjured up in her mind.

"How many boyfriends have you had?
"Five. But I was only really serious with one of them.
"Can you tell me more?
"Sure... His name was Pat, the friend in the hospital I told you about.
"Oh!
"Yeah, at the end of high school, he actually proposed, and I said I'd consider it, but he was not right for me, and I was so not ready to be tied down. He was my second.
"So you had three boyfriends after that.
"Yeah... all in the same first semester at college. I cooled my nerves after the third one."
"And the first one?
"That's a lot of questions, Jim. I gotta keep some answers for later.
"Okay, sorry.
"Don't worry about it... so, your truth is : would you like to see me naked?"

Again, I was pleasantly appaled at her directness. I noticed I was often staring unconsciously at her breasts through her shirt, but she did not seem to mind.

"Yes. I do."

My answer was short and to the point out of respect to her own attitude.

"Okay, so it's my turn to choose... Dare."

Time froze for a millisecond, as the word jumped out of her mouth and into the air to reach my ears. Things were now going in a different direction.

[applebooty]

Rapidly becoming the best story here. I keep posting here, but I love it. A lot of people suck at 'good' cliffhangers but yours are excellent. They set themselves up rather than looking like the author ran out of ideas.

[interesting]

As my mind raced with the notion that Sarah had just told me to give her a dare, it occured to me that I had no idea what I wanted her to do. I don't know exactly how long I stood there, thinking, pondering, trying to come up with something original, something witty, something smart. I only know that as my mind wandered through the myriad of possibilities, I progressively regressed to an earlier age, and to a time several years before.

Back at my parent's place, my neighbour's wife was a hotty. Her name was Pam and I remember vividly some of the fantasies that a teenage boy had conjured up in his quest to become a man. She was a stay-at-home wife, and had not yet had any children. From my upstairs bedroom window, I could stare into her backyard. They had a pool where we were sometimes invited. On that fateful day, I was reading a book in my room. The morning had been cloudy and the sun had just come up after lunch. Eventually, I put my book away and moved towards the window, to see if I should go out or no. It was summer vacation. I gazed about my neighbourhood and my eyes had wandered into her yard.

Lo and behold, she was there, taking in the sun, resting on her back, topless. The teenager in me had already seen breasts in pictures, videos and movies, but never live action. I must have been fourteen. I stared, as if I could project my gaze to get me nearer to her. I quickly unbuttoned my pants and went down to business. I remember staring at her the whole time, expecting her to look up and see me, and scream. If she did see me she said nothing. Besides, I could not see her eyes. She was wearing sunglasses.

That image from my teenage years crystallized in my mind as Sarah waited for my answer.

"Go topless."

Stupid! Why had I said that? The memory of my neighbour's breasts had guided my thoughts and now I felt silly, like that awkward teenage boy looking for a cheap thrill. I looked down, almost ashamed of what I had said.

"You want me to take off my top and bra? Okay."

Sarah rose, reached into her camisole and undid her clasp and pulled out her bra in the way only women can. She dropped it to the floor and my eyes wandered towards it. She snapped me back to attention as she sat back down.

"Jim. I think we need to set some ground rules.
"Okay...
"I don't mind stripping, but there are some things which I won't do. As I'm sure there are things that you won't do. We need to agree on these rules before we go any further. All right."

The argument made sense, and appealed to a better portion of me. I focused my attention on the conversation at hand. She continued.

"Now, I know my limits, but I don't know yours. So I'll tell you mine, and you tell me if they're right for you, okay?
"Sure. Sounds good."

I said that, but at the same time, I started to wonder what my limits were. It had never crossed my mind that there might be limits to what I could ask, but only because I had not taken the time to consider the implications of the game.

"First of all, whatever happens here stays here. We don't talk about it outside of the two of us.
"Makes sense.
"And that also applies to what we can ask. We can only dare something in respect to each of us, and cannot involve anyone outside of you or I."

So far, so good. This actually made pretty good sense to me.

"Now, I recommend we start with dares that only involve the darer. Nothing disgusting, dangerous, or sexual, for starters."

I wondered if she could tell my disappointment. Yet, at the same time, I valued the frankness of her attitude. She knew what she was getting into and I did not. I could not understand all the consequences of the game. She was, at least she seemed to be, the veteran player. I wondered how often she had played the game, but decided I did not want to know the answer, at least not yet.

"Do you agree to these rules?"

I did. I told her so. I felt relieved that we had set up parameters. It guided my reflection on future dares to know what she was willing to do, and how far I could push the envelope.

"Now, I believe I owe you a dare."

She rose again and turned away from me. She removed her camisole in one swoop, exposing her naked back to me. Her pants were low-cut, which really gave the impression her nudity arched to her buttocks. She cupped her breasts before turning around, and she stared at me, as if asking me if she should continue. I whimpered as I nodded yes.

She dropped her hands. I stared. I'd seen naked breasts before, several times, but I still stared in awe. There's just something about the shape, the roundness, that turns me on.

She sat back down, not bothering to cover herself up.

Then I got scared. I did not want her to think I was afraid, but at the same time, I expected her to strike me down with an impossible task, even though the limits had been set. I knew I had to get it out of my system.

"Dare."

At first, she simply stared at me, then her gaze went to the bulge in my trousers.

"Go bottomless."

I knew it. Somehow, I knew it. It was retaliation. Even though my mind had been preparing me for the eventuality, I still froze up. Yet, it seemed only fair. So I rose up, and without much pomp and circumstance, began to remove my pants. She could tell I was excited. Then, I turned around, exposed my buttocks to her, then quickly slid out of my boxers. I covered myself as best as I could, given my current state of excitation. I spun around, and gave her the same look she had given me. She nodded in anticipation. I moved my hands.

"Oh my..."

Her words prompted me to become even more aroused. I quickly sat back down and attempted to hide my nudity by crossing my legs. No such luck. She simply smiled at me.

"My turn to choose. Dare... but before you call it, try to be creative. It's easy to let yourself be distracted by a... pleasant sight."

I decided she was right. My first dare had been childish and immature. I had enjoyed it, of course, and she had retaliated in kind. I wondered what I could ask her to do. I thought about vacuuming the house topless, but I had already cleaned everything. Looking about the room, slowly forgetting that I was naked from the top down, I saw an opportunity.

"I have a lot of pillows in the apartment, including the cushions from the sofas. I'll move the sofa, but I dare you to gather all the pillows in the apartment, and set them up around yourself, like a fort."

She was intrigued at my suggestion but said nothing. She simply got up and went into my bedroom. I got up too and started to shift the sofa towards the door. Then, I realized I had forgotten to lock it, an omission I immediately corrected. She came back, her breasts bouncing around as she gathered the cushions and set them up as a low defense wall, behind which she partially hid from sight. I laughed at the silliness of my suggestion, but she seemed to enjoy it.

Since she had chosen dare, I decided to do the same and keep up with her. From the security of her tiny fort, she concocted her next idea.

"Do a headstand."

The idea first appealed to me, then I remembered I was no good at gymnastics, and I was gonna fall and possibly hurt myself. Plus, I was naked.

"I can't. I don't know how."

She became suddenly dead serious.

"Are you refusing?
"No, it's just, I can't. I'll fall, I know it.
"I'm going have to teach you about punishments then.
"Punishments?
"Whenever someone is dared something, and they fail to perform it, a punishment must be exacted.
"I wasn't aware of that.
"Ignorance of the law is no excuse. But don't worry. Punishments are always handed out within the limitations of the game. They are decided on the spot, as alternate dares, ones you can't refuse.
"Okay...
"So are you refusing the headstand?
"Yeah. I guess I am."

She got up and headed for her purse.

"Kneel down on all fours."

I obeyed. I felt I had failed in her trust, and I did not want to fail again. I felt something being rubbed against my buttcheeks, the tip of a marker maybe?

"There!"

She smiled and laughed.

"What did you write there?
"Failure. You failed the dare so I wrote you're a failure."

There was some anxiety at first, until I saw her laugh again. It was all part of the game. Her attitude towards me had returned to normal, she had exacted her punishment and she was now content. I told myself I did not want to fail her again, so I would really try next time.

It was her turn to pick so she asked for truth. I decided since she'd always been straight and direct with me, I would act the same with her.

"Do you want to have sex with me?"

She gave me a look that said that she was expecting the question. I also read that she had anticipated it because I was a man, and because, well, men have one-track minds! Her eyes wandered towards my crotch for a moment. I could not hide my desire. She bit her lip, placed her hands above her breasts for a moment before she spoke, looking straight into my eyes.

"Yes, I want to. But we can't. Not yet. Not today. Don't ask me why."

My deception must have been obvious because she continued.

"But I promise you, Jim, before the day is over, we will both be... satisfied."

The promise made me shiver, and my stimulation, which had doused over the past few minutes, returned again.

[interesting]

Originally Posted by interesting

Back at my parent's place, my neighbour's wife was a hotty.

Do you find the term appropriate to the level of dialogue and character. It sort of feels out of place when I say it loud. What do you think?

[applebooty]

Hm. I would say given the context of the rest of the paragraph, 'hottie' isn't particularly right. 'Beauty' would probably be the better fit. Another great installment from you, thank you.

[interesting]

The game had suddenly taken on a whole new aspect. Sarah's promise of mutual satisfaction had enticed my desire even more. She had been adamant that there would be no sex between us that day, and I was fully prepared to live with that. In fact, I would have been quite content for the game to end there and resume at another time. Clearly, she was not. Which made the entire prospect that much more scintillating.

We were both sitting on the ground now. I had lost my pants and boxers, exposing my bottom half to her, much to her delight, while she had removed at my request her top and bra, granting me full view of her wonderful upper torso. Around her were the pillows and cushions she had gathered from a previous dare. Our dropped clothes now intermingled in the middle of the room, perhaps a promise of things to come.

So far, I had followed her lead every time. We had started out with truths, more generic than more intimate, and we'd done a few dares to lighten the mood. I really felt comfortable around her, and I hoped she felt the same about me. Still, it was now my turn to go, and since she had answered my previous question truthfully, it was my turn to plunge.

"Truth."

Of course, she expected it. I thought I might spice things up at a later turn by breaking the established routine, but for now, I was at ease with our little unspoken arrangement.

"If you had to be naked in public, anywhere, where would it be, and why?"

I had not anticipated that question. In all fairness, who could, really. Still, a valid question deserves an appropriate answer. I had never envisionned being naked in public, nor did I plan to anytime soon. The question was speculative, but it also implied the necessity of being naked in public, leaving me the choice of the where and why.

"Maybe... the beach.
"Why?
"Because the people are scantily clad, it's easy to lose or drop an item of clothing, and you can always hide in the water."

She smiled again. She never actually stopped smiling, but she played with the emphasis on her lips, punctuating her mood with them. The effect was downright erotic at this point. Again, I felt her taking a mental note, but my mind was focused on other matters. It was now her turn to call.

"How about a dare, Jim?"

I hoped for a dare. My mind had been wandering to the rest of her body and I desperately wanted to appease my satisfaction. I knew this was a step down from a previous dare, but I decided to go with it anyway. As I started talking, the dare transformed itself in my mind, and I went with the new direction.

"I want you to strip naked... but I want you to dance for me while doing it, and you can use the pillows as clothing to cover yourself."

She giggled. Apparently, she enjoyed the idea. She immediately rose and picked up one pillow, which she placed on her bare chest. She started dancing seductively, eyes closed, as if oblivious to the world around her. As she moved across the carpet, she unhooked the buttons on her pants. I saw she was wearing matching white panties through the opening. Careful not to drop the pillow she was holding against her body, she slid gracefully out of her pants as they dropped to the floor. She then went down on all fours, her behind towards me, as she continued to wriggle around, and placed the pillow to block my view. I saw a hand reach behind the pillow, then the white panties slid down to her knees. With impressive ease, she moved them to her feet without using her hands and kicked them into me. They fell between my lap. She spun around, carefully to always keep the pillow between herself and my line of sight. Then, she returned to her sitting position and smiled. I could see her naked figure but all of her attributes were hidden from view, thanks to the pillow.

Instinctively, I removed my sweater. We were both naked in my apartment. I had never before experienced such a thrill. I wanted to take her there but I remembered her words and replayed them in my mind, to remain in control. I wanted her badly, but not enough to jeopardize a possible future relationship or risk aggravating the situation.

"Well, I was going to ask you to strip completely, but since you already did it, I'll have to find something else for you to do."

I laughed. I did not know why. It did not matter. She continued.

"So... dare?"
"Dare me!"
"Okay! I want you to go in the kitchen and start cutting up the fruits. Small cubes, or strips. Actually, strips are better."

I darted into the kitchen before my mind actually realized what was happening.

"Careful with that knife!"

Her words of caution reminded me that I was naked and wielding heavy cutlery. I recovered a normal and started chopping. She got up and sat at the counter and watched me.

"Once you're done, I want you to go lie down on the carpet and put a pillow over your face."

I would have complied with almost anything she had asked me at this point. It took me about five minutes to cut up all the fruits in strips and cubes. I was intrigued by the rest of the proposition but was too caught up in the heat of the moment to wonder. I moved to the living room, got down on the carpet and placed a pillow over my face, effectively obscuring my sight. I heard the sound of shuffling feet, the clang of the plate on which I'd put the fruits.

Suddenly, there was a cold sensation on my stomach. Something moist and sticky. I forced myself not to peek. Suddenly, I felt her lips against my skin, as she ate up the piece of fruit.

"Don't look."

She placed several more pieces of fruit on my body. The acids were reacting with my skin, making it a little dry despite the moistness. She laid over twenty different strips almost all over my body. Legs, thighs, stomach, chest, arms and hands. Then, with her mouth, she carefully and gently picked each fruit from my body, licking my skin at the same time. I imagined everything, of course, because I could not see what she was doing but it was pretty obvious.

"Okay, that one might be a little colder than the others."

I felt the same feeling, but this time on my private area. I shivered uncontrollably, not because of the cold but because of the stress. I felt her lips against it, and felt I was about to erupt. I decided against it and controlled my hormones. She licked the piece of fruit off, then lapped once more. I was in heaven.

She removed the pillow and I opened my eyes. She was holding a piece of orange up to the mouth. I bit into it, and almost into her fingers.

"Hey!
"Sorry."

I mumbled through the food.

"Was that nice?"
"Unbelievable!"

I rose from my laying down position. I wanted to kiss her, but she was already moving out of the way and back to the safety of her pillows.

"Change of rules."

I stared at her, wondering what she meant.

"I'm not ready to go all the way with you, but I think we can include some... stimulation. If you're up to it... you do seem up."

We both laughed. I had never imagined I could experience such feelings from anyone, let alone someone eating fruit off of my body. I felt sticky.

"So do we agree, new rules?
"Absolutely. Yes. Yes."

She giggled again.

"Why are you so nervous? You want me, right?
"You know I do. It's just... I've never done most of the things we're doing today.
"What building a fort? Getting naked?
"I mean, in the context of... but being eaten off of, yes, that's a first.
"Dare."

I paused. She repeated.

"Dare."

She wanted to keep playing. So did I, I realized. I felt sticky from the sugar from the fruits. An idea popped in my head.

"I want us to take a shower together, and you will wash me. It's only fair since you're the one who got me dirty in the first place.
"Okay. Let's go."

She got up and took my hand. We both dragged each other to the bathroom. If we weren't going to have sex, our demeanor did not support the decision. But we stepped into the shower and she turned on the water. The first drops of water were cold, and they snapped us partially back to reality.

Although the bathroom itself is fairly compact, the shower is large enough for two people to sit in, albeit cramped. To facilitate her task, I remained standing, while she alternated between standing and kneeling. She picked up the soap and the sponge, and started washing my body, first from the top, going to the bottom. She asked if I wanted her to wash my hair, but I said no, so she did not insist.

As the water got warmer, the sexual tension began to return. I could feel not only her hands on my skin, but also her breath. When she knelt, it arrived at just the right height. I closed my eyes and let her work her magic.

A sudden jolt brought me out of my reverie. I felt her hand tighten around me, and suddenly I disappeared into her mouth. None of my previous girlfriends had ever done such a thing. I knew what was going on, I just could not believe it. I looked down. She had closed her eyes. Her movement was slow, rythmic and I felt on edge, ready to explode.

Then, as quickly as it had started, it stopped. I breathed heavily. She turned me around and started to wash my back, leaning her chest against me. She reached around me and put her hand on me, teasing me again.

"Sarah..."
"Sshhh.... let yourself go."

And then something happened. Try as I might, I was not able to release. Something blocked inside me. I wanted to, desperately, but somehow it did not work. She worked on me for a moment longer, then pulled away.

"Come on. I have an idea. Choose dare."

She stepped out of the shower and helped me out. There was no blood in my legs. I felt drugged. She covered me with a towel, grabbed one for herself and dragged me back into the living room. She sat me against the sofa, my towel under me to absorb the water.

"I'm sorry.
"Why should you be sorry? Come on, dare yourself.
"Dare. Okay. Dare."

She pulled the sheet off one pillow and placed it over my eyes, like a blindfold.

"Here is your dare. I'm going to masturbate and you're going to do the same. Only we won't be touching each other and you can't see me. You can only hear me.
"Okay.
"Jim, this is important. You can't look. Not until I tell you to.
"Okay."

I wondered what she wanted to hide. I had already seen her naked. It was not like I would see anything more. But the mystery, her voice, the sensations, they all added to the excitement. Before I knew it, I was masturbating in front of her. Then I heard the sound of her voice. A moaning. So subtle, so discreet. Then another one, a bit louder. I imagined her rubbing herself. The third moan did the trick. Immediately, my tension level dropped and I fell limp all over.

For a moment, I imagined she had been faking to provide me with the stimulation so I could be satisfied. But I heard the moans go on, and the rustling of movement on the carpet. She was actually doing it. And I couldn't watch. I musn't watch.

It took all my compulsion not to remove the blindfold as I heard her moan louder and louder, then the muffled sound as if she was biting into something. One of my pillows? Eventually, I felt her release despite of the blindfold, despite of the lack of sound.

"You can look now."

I immediately removed the pillow case. She was lying in front of me, back arched against the other sofa, her legs wide open, a hand still over it, covering it. Beads of water and sweat dribbled all over her body.

"I've been dying to do that since I walked into the room."

Her comment made me blush. I tried to stand up, but she pressed her foot against me to prevent me from rising.

"Jim, I like you, a lot. But I have needs. I need to know you'll be able to address them before we can go on. You're smart, and good-looking. You may be the man I'm looking for. But I can't decide today.
"What needs?
"I can't explain. Not yet. Please don't ask.
"Are we still... playing?"

I could not believe I actually asked the question.

"Yes. You get to ask me one more time. And I choose truth. I know there's a question on your mind. I want you to ask it. I'll answer truthfully.
"Okay... why won't you sleep with me tonight?
"I can't answer that one.
"But you said...
"I can't answer it today. In two days, it will be New Year's Eve. I want us to do something together. I want us... to go to the beach.
"In December?
"This is California. The water won't be that cold. Bring swimming trunks.
"Sarah, I gotta be honest, I like you too. I think I love you, but you're not making it easy... or much sense."

She looked away for a moment.

"Did you have fun?
"Yes.
"What else matters, then? Right now, we're having fun. Where it goes from here, we'll see."

Her nonchalance was disconcerting. I could tell she wanted me to take her, right then and there. She would enjoy it, and so would I. Or was I projecting? And why would she not let me close? Why would she not kiss me?

"I think the game is on hold until New Year's Eve. I'll call you in the morning, and we can meet on the beach."

And with that, she dried herself, got dressed and left. I stayed naked around the house the rest of the day, not wanting to go out, wondering if she was worth all the questions.

[japanese moron]

fantastic story, very interesting! Only observation is the paragraph of description about things (like his apartment) though i get the need for the description it looks out of place as you slap a huge wall of text description that bears little on the storyline.

But so far so good, really looking forward to the next part!

[interesting]

Thanks for the input. It's always nice to get feedback.

I suppose the description could have been handled differently. I could actually write the interaction between the characters and the environment instead of placing an exposition block. I'll consider it for the following parts.

This story sort of writes itself. If most of you haven't guessed, I'm also trying to write the story while leaving out the more "profane" words. I'm not entirely sure of the effect, upon writing and rereading, it does seem to stand on its own.

[interesting]

It was now New Year's Eve and I was not sure I felt like celebrating. On the one hand, I had entered into a very erotic and rewarding relationship with Sarah, one of my former students from last semester. On the other end, I felt somewhat manipulated, despite the fact that my needs were also being addressed to some extent by the relationship.

We'd first met on the twenty-seventh, after I had just come back from seeing my parents for the Holidays. We'd hung out, gone to dinner and shared life experiences. She had even flashed me and that date had felt playful.

To some extent, our second date had started as playful, and had turned downright erotic. I'd never felt such impatience after a woman, nor had I been denied so adamantly while being satisfied. We had played truth or dare, and it had gotten very risqué. I still couldn't believe what had happened. I had enjoyed the experience, for the most part. But in the time between that date and the one Sarah had planned for the thirty-first, I'd had time to reflect on my situation.

Her name had been Deni. We had gone out for about two months before I called it off. It was my first semester at college and we were in love, or at least our hormones told us we were. I was satisfied with that, but she was not. And so I entered into a relationship with a very complex woman.

Deni had mountains of qualities. But for all her niceties, she was strange, at least, to the person I was back then. First off, the first time we kissed, she immediately spoke an 'incantation'. She said it was for good luck. I should have known it would get weirder from there, but there was the chance of sex, so naturally, I ignored the warning signs. One time, she started giving me a hand job, which was fine by me, until she took out her incense and perfumes, and started reciting 'prayers' to her 'ancestors' while she was doing it. I tried to ignore the superstitious aspects of her personality. Eventually, she told me that before we could sleep together, she would have to cleanse my karma. I asked her what was involved. I needed to bathe in oils for half a day, while she called upon the spirits to bless my 'manhood' so I would be fertile to give her 'powerful' children. It was all too much for this seventeen year old.

On some level, Sarah had brought me back into that relationship with weirdness. Granted, she did not invoke spirits in the middle of orgasm (at least I hoped those moans were of pleasure) , but she did have her rituals and her ways, and somehow I needed to fit into them. I was not sure I was a willing participant.

Yet, on New Year's Eve, around nine AM, the phone rang and I answered. It was her, and she told me to meet her on the beach at ten. So I put on my trunks, then got dressed, picked up a towel and headed for the beach.

I got there not longer after she'd been there. There was no changing room on the beach but I could change on the sand and no one would mind. That's why I'd worn my trunks under my clothes. As I reached the beach, I noticed there were not that many people, which made sense. The air was not that warm (although it was announced to get warmer in the afternoon) and the water must have been almost ice cold. It was the end of December, even in CAlifornia. There was no snow, but that was it.

I apprehended the beach for several different reasons. I was not that confident in my body. I was okay, but some people were just too much to watch. There was also that incident when I almost drowned when I was seven. I was living on the coast at the time, and I'd ventured off too far into the water. A wave had hit me and pulled me out into the open sea. At seven years old, I barely had the strength to stay above water. A lifeguard had finally noticed my predicament and raced to save me, but not before I'd treaded water for a ridiculous amount of time for a young boy. I had not been able to go into the water for several years after that. Even now, the feeling haunted me. I was able to manage it, but I never went deeper than my waist, and I always turned back as soon as the water became troublesome, which was about all the time.

My eyes searched the beach and found my quarry. Sarah was there, already lounging on the sand in a white bikini. I made my way towards her position, my mind fixated on her like a moth to a flame.

I stopped a good distance from her and watched her curves. She was leaning back, her back a little arched, one knee higher than the other. The image of her from our previous encounter popped into my mind. I saw her on the beach, naked, legs spread apart, inviting. I realized I was getting aroused so I forced myself to stay in touch with reality.

"Hi Sarah."
"Hey, Jim! You're here."

She opened her eyes, raised her shoulders and leaned on her elbows. I saw the full figure of her chest in her bikini and shuddered.

"Why don't you lie down, it's nice. I'm getting some rays before it gets too warm."

She motioned me over to her. I complied, unrolled the towel and placed it in on the ground, then removed my clothing so I remained in my trunks. I could feel her gaze on me as I was undressing. I knelt on my stomach because I was feeling a bit turned on and I did not want it to show. She moved to her side, and the curves of her body swayed with the movement.

"We should apply sunscreen. Want me to rub it on you?"

How could she play it so cool? My mind was on fire from her near nakedness. She reached for her bottle of suntan lotion and mounted me, her behind resting on mine. She poured some lotion on her hand and started rubbing it against my shoulders, neck and back. Her touch was delightful and firm. She finished my upper body, then turned around to do my legs. Again, the slow massage of her hands was great. I could feel some of the tension slipping.

Eventually, she stood on her feet, knees still bent.

"Turn around.
"Why?
"So I can apply it on your front."

I complied without thinking about it too much. She sat back down, and suddenly, I felt myself rub against her. She was doing my legs, facing away from me, and as she moved back and forth I could tell her hips were discreetly swaying. From her position, she could not ignore my own. But she acted as if it did not stimulate her in return. She turned back around to face me, and started rubbing her hands on my chest, while other parts of us rubbed discreetly. This was too much and I let out a small moan. She stopped what she was doing and grabbed my attention.

"Sshh...."

There were barely any people around, and a parasol blocked the view from the lifeguard, but her hush had reminded me we were in a public place. I nodded in agreement, then she resumed. I kept every sound bottled up inside. What I had misunderstood as an accident was actually what she had planned all along. Eventually, she also began to show signs of pleasure. My hands, which had lain at the side of my body, were now on her hips. With one hand, she removed the cloth from one of her breasts and placed my hand on it. This was too much for me. As it let out a final moan, one I could not hold back, she placed her hand on my mouth and I bit into it. I saw her wriggle a few moments more, her eyes glazed over, exacting her own satisfaction from me through the cloth.

Within seconds, she was off me, her breast was covered and she was lying on her stomach, panting. No one had been the wiser.

I felt great. Only I also now felt uncomfortable in my trunks.

"Why don't we go in the water?"

Her suggestion seemed appropriate at this time, so we got up and hurried into the water. Once the water was below my waist, I proceed to clean myself up and she did the same. After the warmth of the exercise, the cold water was actually very nice.

"I missed you."

She swam slowly towards me.

"I can see that.
"Did you enjoy that?
"Yeah. I'd never done it in public, though.
"It's part of the fun. But you have to be careful, because it's illegal. New Year's, no one comes to the beach."

She rose out of the water. Her suit clung to her body like a second skin. I could almost see through the fabric. She wrapped her arms around me, as if to kiss me. By this point, I knew better than to try. She would kiss me when she wanted to.

"Notice anything.
"What?
"You're in the water."

I had noticed. I just had not been paying attention. The waves hit me and I suddenly realized my predicament. I pulled myself away and reached for the shore.

"Jim? Jim!"

I did not acknowledge her until my feet lay on the dry sand. She was catching up to me.

"That was a dirty trick. You know I'm scared.
"I know. But you weren't scared a minute ago. Were you?"

I had nothing to answer. She was right.

"It's still a dirty trick."

She tried to smile it off, but I rushed towards my towel and laid down on it, stomach first.

"Jim. I'm sorry, okay."
"Okay. Sorry for back there. It's just...
"You don't have to explain."

She laid down beside me, on her stomach as well.

"Let's just enjoy the day."

I looked at her, examined her, from the shapely arch of her shoulder to the roundness of her behind. She looked so good, I wondered what she saw in me. Was I simply a boy toy, someone to play with? Was she interested in something more? I could not tell. And I did not want to know, for fear of shattering the illusion.

[interesting]

I was coming back from the hot dog stand when I noticed a commotion around Sarah. It was noon and she had gotten hungry. I knew a hot dog vendor parked his cart just outside of the beach, so I'd offered to buy her some. I'd remained in trunks, but had put on my shoes and a t-shirt. I was coming back with two hot dogs, one for her, relish, mustard, ketchup and onions, and one for me, just plain ketchup and onions. I also had a soft drink in my other hand. I was walking across the sand when I saw three individuals gathered near the parasol which had shielded us from the lifeguard.

It took me a moment to recognize them, at least one of them. He had been in my class. His name was Jake, but that was as far as it went. He sat in the back and paid little attention. He'd passed the semester, barely. There were two other guys, from their attire and attitude I guessed jocks. This was not something I was looking forward to. Despite the propriety of my relationship with Sarah, now that she was no longer my student, I wondered how they would react. I also wondered what they were doing there. I made my approach and finally heard voices and got the gist of the conversation. Jake was talking.

"All I'm saying, babe, is you could come hang out with us, you know.
"For the last time, J., no.
"Why not?"

Cue my entrance. One of the jocks had spotted me.

"Hey, bro, check this guy out."

Jake turned towards me and immediately recognized me.

"Hey teach... I get it. You're nailing the teach.
"No, I'm not."

Sarah's comment hurt me. She refused to acknowledge we were dating, sort of? How could she? But again, I had jumped to conclusions.

"He's not my teacher anymore."

She got up and came towards me, avoiding the hands of the men in her way. She retrieved her hot dog and the soft drink and thanked me.

"This the best you can do, Sar?
"He's much better than you, I can tell you that much.
"How can you know when you haven't sampled the merchandise?
"I've seen all I need to see."

Jake was getting nowhere with Sarah so he turned towards me. I could sense some intimidation coming up. Luckily for me, this was not the first time I'd dealt with a troublemaker.

"So, she any good?
"None of your business. Why don't you boys leave us alone?
"Sat' so? This is a free country, man.
"It is. And I'm free to tell you you're bothering Sarah. Please leave.
"Please leave..."

He played with my answer. Jake was acting tough to impress his posse. I was not about to let him hone in on my turf - had I really just thought that?

"Sarah, last chance. Ditch this loser and go with a real man!

She turned to me.

"What do you think, honey?"

I was pleasantly surprised by the surname. It empowered me to act on her behalf, something which I'd wanted to do but dared not because I did not want to be her knight in shining armor. The surname created a connection between us, even in the mind of Jake.

"I think Jake should leave. How about you, dear?
"I think so too."

Jake was not about to look for trouble in a public place. He darted away, his posse in tow. But before he left, he tried to give me a warning.

"Telling you, man, that girl's crazy... she'll eat out you alive like a man-eating pirahna!"

And with that last piece of advice, he and his gang strode off the beach, acting like they owned the place. I sat down besides Sarah and smiled at her. She, of course, smiled back.

"You handled yourself pretty well.
"It's not the first time I've been bullied. I have ten years on him anyway."

It was then I actually realized that I also had ten years on her. My comment trailed off into silence.

"Don't worry about it.
"Is he an ex-boyfriend?
"Hardly. He's had a crush on me forever. Always trying to get into my pants. But that's a privilege I reserve to one special man."

Suddenly, my mind wandered. Was she a virgin? Had she not been with another man? She'd had several boyfriends, sure, but it could all have been mostly foreplay, or like we'd done in the past few days. Maybe that was the reason she was not ready to go all the way. The question burned in my mind, but I decided I'd leave it alone for now.

We remained on the beach for a time, taking in the sun, taking about the weather, laughing at Jake's troubles. Eventually, we both fell quiet. There was no unease, just peace.

She rose from her towel.

"I'm going in the water. Would you accompany me?"

I was not sure I wanted to. After the stunt she'd pulled in the morning, I was pretty nervous.

"You don't have to go far. Just stay on the edge of the water, with your feet in it. Can you do that for me?"

I decided it was all right. As long as the water remained below my waist, I could handle the panic. She took my hand and dragged me towards the shore. The water was a little warner but still cold. She dove right in. I sat down on the beach, my toes in the water and I watched her play there. She dove under the waterline, then rose, shook her head, looked at me, smiled and then dove again.

Eventually, she remained under the blue for longer than usual. I started to panic but I saw her rise, her top half out of the water. I noticed something odd hanging from her neck. It took me a moment to realize it was her bikini bottom. She smiled, and plunged in the water, so I would see her buttocks as she dived in. She rose out immediately, a wry smile on her face.

I moved a little into the water so I did not have to scream to talk to her.

"What are you doing?
"Having fun?
"Put it back on.
"Why?
"Because... we're in a public place. Someone could see.
"The lifeguard is too far to notice anything, and no one else is in this section of the water.
"But....
"Exactly."

I wondered what her game was this time. I noticed she was slowly walking towards me, out of the water.

"No... stay in the water.
"No, I won't.
"Why? What are you doing?
"Tell you what. You want me to stay in the water and not expose myself to the beach crowd, you meet me halfway.
"You're insane!
"Yes. Will you do it?"

Mixed feelings poured up inside me. She was playing with my emotions again. On the one hand, the prospect of seeing her naked again was enticing. On the other, if she was seen, and I was seen with her, there would be complications. But I could not run away. Resolutly, I advanced into the water, if only to appease my sense of modesty. I reached her before she could expose herself any further. I felt tense, no longer in control.

"Hold on to me."

Her tone was serious, for once. I flung my arms around her shoulder.

"I'm here. I'm a trained lifeguard. Did I tell you that?"

No she had not. And it just made the situation more infuriating.

"If you stay calm, nothing will happen. I am here."

She hugged me close. Her bikini bottom, hanging from her neck, pressed against my chest. I was trembling, and not only because of the cold.

"Breathe slowly. Try to breathe at the same rhythm as me."

I tried. It didn't work.

"Try again. James, look at me."

She had never called me James before.

"You can do this. I know you can. I want to help you overcome your fear. I know it's hard. Believe me, I know.
"Fear... of... heights...
"Yes. Others too. I wasn't always so frivolous and open. I worked on it. I learned and I changed, but only because I wanted to. I know you want to change, at least, no longer be afraid."

As she was talking, she slowly knelt in the water, dragging me down with her, making the water rise. I closed my eyes, safe in her arms, unsafe in the water, unsure how to feel. I felt her lips against my neck, and then her hand reached down on my trunks. Slowly, delicately, she pulled them off, lifting one leg, then the other, until they were no longer on me. She hung on to them with her foot.

"There. Now you're naked in the water. You can't go out. You have to learn to trust me."

I was paralyzed with fear. She held onto me more tightly, and suddenly, I felt her rub herself against me.

"Relax."

At first, I did not want to relax. I wanted to run. I hated her for what she was putting me through. But she had the power right now, and I did realize she was, in her own twisted way, actually trying to help me. I felt her hand tease me under the water.

"If you want to take me, now, you can. I don't mind."

I'd been waiting for this moment for days. I felt her presence against me stimulating me, with her hand and her rubbing, but try as I might, there was no reaction. Maybe it was the fear. Maybe it was the cold. Probably both. She kept at it for a few minutes, and my tension did decrease, there, water just under neck level, in her arms. I felt calm, serene. She tried to push me into her but to no avail. There was no reaction on my part. She seemed upset. Things were probably not going as well as she had planned them.

"We should get out of here."

She handed me my trunks. I was saddened by her attitude, yet I could not focus on it right now. I put my suit back on just as she returned her bikini bottom to its rightful place, and she helped me back to shore. I was spent. I had rarely felt such conflicting emotions. My nerves were breaking. I looked back at the water as I exited, cursed silently at it, and realized it had not taken me away. Sarah had protected me, as she said she would. As I watched her return to our spot, I felt sorry for her. She had tried to help me and I'd failed. Again. Not only that, I had lost my opportunity to be with her.

Things were not looking so good anymore.