Chapter Fifteen
Natalie
“Have you thought about what you’re going to wear?” Missy asked, looking through my clothes with mild distaste.
“Um… I was thinking something similar to what I wore on my twenty-first?” I suggested.
“I agree.” She nodded. “That was what caught his attention in the first place. You don’t want to wear the same dress, though, do you?”
“Well, I was thinking about it,” I admitted. “But it seems a little too much for a dinner at home.”
“At home?” she repeated suddenly, looking at me with wide eyes. “Did you just say dinner at home?”
“Uh… Yeah. Why?”
“He’s cooking dinner for you at his place?”
“Well, I don’t know if he’s the one cooking,” I said, with a shrug. “He might just be ordering in.”
“But it’s going to be at his place?”
I frowned. “Why are you being weird?”
“Oh, it’s definitely on tonight,” Missy said, clapping her hands together with glee.
“Excuse me?”
“Sex!” Missy nearly yelled. “Sex is so on the table tonight.”
I bit my lip and sighed. “I was kind of thinking the same.”
“It’s a good thing I made you get on the pill, huh?” she said, wagging her eyebrows at me.
“I still think it’s unnecessary,” I said. “What if we don’t end up having sex?”
“Better to be safe than sorry,” Missy pointed out. “And in any case, Chance is having you over to his place for a meal. You know what’s also at his place?”
“What?”
“A bed,” she smirked. “Not that there is not a plethora of other ways to have sex.”
I felt a nervous shiver run down my spine. “Stop it,” I said. “You’re making me nervous.”
“Get over it,” she said without any sympathy. “It’s time to face your fears. Starting with what you’re going to be wearing over there tonight.”
“I was thinking a strapless dress and a jacket over it,” I said. “I was hoping to borrow your black mini.”
“But it’s so plain.”
“I’ll dress it up with a jacket,” I said.
“Hmm…ah, I’ve got it!”
“You’ve got what?”
She ignored me and proceeded to rifle through her own closet. After a minute, she pulled out a silver studded jacket with buttons and buckles all down the front.
“Whoa…”
“Right?” she said, throwing it towards me. “That should dress up the mini perfectly. Have you thought about shoes?”
“Black wedges,” I said.
“What about this pair?” Missy said, pointing to a strappy, four-inch heels.
“Urgh… I think I’ll stick to the wedges,” I said. “I would like to be able to walk straight.”
“You might not be walking straight tomorrow,” she laughed, winking at me.
I groaned and turned away from her towards the mirror. I had applied a little eyeliner and eyeshadow, contoured with foundation, and added just a touch of nude lipstick. I was actually quite proud of my handiwork, considering I had never worn much makeup before.
I stripped off my clothes and reached for the black mini, but Missy’s incredulous tone stopped me. “Hold on a second.”
“What?”
“Is that what you’re wearing?” she said, looking me up and down in shock.
I looked down at my matching white bra and panties. “What’s wrong with this?”
“It’s so…un-sexy.”
“It’s Victoria Secret.”
“Yeah, the twelve-year-old girl’s collection.”
“Hey—”
“Come on, Nat,” Missy said. “That’s fine for the everyday, but you’re going on a hot date with a hot guy. And if this date moves to the bedroom you’re going to wish you had worn something different.”
“What do you suggest?” I asked. “I don’t think I own anything too sexy.”
Missy moved to my underwear drawer and started rifling through it. After a moment, she pulled out a strapless bra, but it was plain, beige, and completely practical.
“Oh boy,” she sighed.
“I told you.”
Missy looked at the bra and then she looked towards me. “I have the perfect solution.”
“What?”
“Don’t wear underwear.”
“You’re kidding, right?”
“No, I’m not,” she said. “You don’t really need it. The girls stay up all by themselves.”
“I’ll be cold.”
“You’ll be in his apartment,” Missy pointed out.
“Fine,” I said, at last. “I’ll forgo the bra, but I’m wearing underwear, and that’s final.”
Missy sighed, but she pulled out some black panties with a little lace around the waist. “Not exactly super sexy, but it should do.”
“Excellent,” I said, grabbing them from Missy’s hands.
I wrapped a towel around my waist, slipped off the white undies and slipped on the fresh black ones. I had just slipped on the dress and Missy was zipping me up when she cleared her throat.
“What now?”
She laughed. “Are you…all good down there?” she wanted to know.
“Missy,” I said, in embarrassment.
“What?” she asked. “I’m your best friend. I’m allowed to ask.”
I rolled my eyes. “I’m good down there.”
“Ah…did some grooming, did you?”
“Well…”
“Ah-ha! So, you are preparing for some sex?”
“No,” I said quickly. “I just thought…it’s best to be prepared.”
“Atta girl,” she laughed. “It’s about time, too.”
“I’m still not sure,” I admitted. “I mean, this is a big deal. Sex is a big deal.”
“It’s a big deal if you choose to make it one,” she pointed out. “Just relax and enjoy yourself. Let him take the lead.”
I sat down and took a deep breath. “It’s not just the sex, though…”
“You’re just making excuses to be nervous now.”
“No, I’m not,” I said forcefully. “There’s a rule, Missy.”
“Huh?”
I laughed. “You’ve obviously forgotten, or else you just don’t care. Remember, the university has a policy against student-teacher relationships.”
“You’re right, I don’t care,” Missy said, waving away my worries. “Come on; you’re not seriously worried, are you?”
“I am, actually,” I admitted. “What if someone finds out?”
“Who would find out?”
“I don’t know…sometimes people notice things,” I said. “Do you even know what the consequences are for being caught sleeping with a teacher?”
“Um, no.”
“Neither do I,” I said. “Maybe I should find out first.”
I was just about to reach for my laptop when Missy cut me off. “Uh-uh,” she said, shaking her head at me. “No way. You’re not looking anything up now.”
“But—”
“No buts,” Missy said firmly. “You’re going on this date, no matter what the consequences.”
“But—”
“Listen to me, you’re just chickening out, and you’re blaming this stupid rule because it’s easier than admitting that you’re scared. You’re scared to get close to Chance because you might actually like him, and you’re scared to get intimate with a man because you have exactly zero experience with them.”
“Is this supposed to be making me feel better?” I asked, with narrowed eyes. “Because it doesn’t.”
“Forget the stupid rule, okay?” Missy said. “This is just paternalism working at its best. Not every university has this rule, in any case, which means it’s something the faculty dredged up out of the stone ages to assert their own authority. Don’t conform, Nat.”
I laughed. “You would have made a rousing troop leader.”
She ignored me. “And, you and I both know that Chance is way too hot to pass up. Don’t you want your first time to be with a real man, someone who knows his way around a woman’s body? Or would you rather be groped and poked by some inexperienced freshman who’ll cum in five seconds and leave you feeling annoyed and dissatisfied?”
“You certainly know how to paint a picture.”
“Choose.”
I laughed. “Okay, okay, fine,” I conceded. “I would rather lose my virginity to someone like Chance than someone like… Well, you know.”
“Good,” she nodded, with satisfaction. “That’s all I wanted to hear. Now, finish dressing and go get some.”
Laughing nervously, I slipped the black wedges on and turned to the mirror. I decided to wear my hair up in the usual ponytail, just because it was comforting to me and I wanted to feel like myself tonight. I saw Missy’s raised eyebrows, and I knew she would have preferred me to keep my hair down.
“I like it this way,” I said. “It’s comforting to me.”
“I wasn’t going to say anything.”
“Sure,” I said sarcastically.
I stood up and slipped on the jacket, then I turned to Missy for her appraisal. “Be honest,” I said, twirling around for her benefit.
“I have to say, you look hot.”
“Really?”
“I kid you not,” she said, putting a hand up to her heart. “And the ponytail works, too. It’s kinda of edgy and sexy. You look like a rebel rock chick.”
“And, that’s a good thing?”
“He’d definitely gonna wanna fuck you.”
I bit my lip. “Should I tell him?”
“Tell him what?”
“You know, that I’m…a virgin?”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” she said in alarm. “Don’t breathe a word to him.”
“But—”
“No,” she said, interrupting me. “He doesn’t need to know that. In any case, it might just scare him. And you don’t want him to back out at the last minute, do you?”
“Of course not.”
“Don’t tell him.”
“He might figure it out, though,” I pointed out.
“How?”
“Well… What if I…make a mistake?”
Missy laughed as she put her hands on my shoulders and gave me a little shake. “You’re over thinking now.”
“Very possibly.”
“As I said before, just relax and enjoy yourself, okay?”
I sighed. “I’ll try,” I nodded. “But can I ask you one favor?”
“What?” she asked suspiciously.
“Just try and find out what the consequences are if you’re caught having a relationship with a teacher.”
“Nat—”
“I’m still going on the date,” I pointed out. “But since I’m doing this, I just want to know what I’m risking. That’s fair, right?”
“Fine,” she huffed. “I’ll do a little research.”
“Thank you.”
I gave Missy a hug, and when I let go, I was feeling a little more confident. “Okay,” I said. “I think it’s time for me to leave.”
She looked at me and shook her head in disbelief. “It’s like I’m watching my child go off to college or something… I just feel so proud.”
I laughed. “Oops, forgot my phone.”
“Here you go,” Missy said, passing it over to me.
“And my purse,” I said, spying it on my desktop.
She shook her head and threw it over to me. “You are nervous, huh?”
“Can you blame me?” I asked. “This is the first time I’ve going over to a guy’s house.”
“A lot of firsts for you tonight, huh?”
“We don’t know that sex is definitely going to happen tonight,” I pointed out.
She rolled her eyes. “Oh, it’s happening… Unless of course, you chicken out at the last moment.”
“I’ll try not to,” I said. “Believe it or not, I actually want to jump this hurdle.”
“Maybe you shouldn’t be thinking of it as a hurdle.”
I smiled. “You know what I mean… I want to have experiences, and I don’t want to join the real world having never had sex.”
“Then tonight’s the night to make things happen,” she said. “Go get him, girl.”
I smiled and waved goodbye to Missy as I headed out. I checked the address that Chance had texted me earlier in the day. It was about a fifteen-minute drive from campus, and Missy had loaned me her Ford for the night. I found the car in the student parking lot that we shared between four different buildings and slipped inside, thankful for the warmth that engulfed me.
I pulled down the mirror and stared at my reflection. I looked flushed and nervous, but I thought I looked quite pretty, too. Most importantly, I looked like myself. I took courage from that thought and started the drive to Chance’s apartment.