THIRTEEN
Brooke
I sat in the lecture hall near the front and kept peering at the double-doors. Where the hell was he? I thought as the professor looked at me and pointed to her watch.
At the last possible moment, Austin appeared. Many of my classmates pointed at him and whispered amongst themselves as he jogged down the steps.
“Sorry I’m late,” he said. “Practice ran over.”
“It’s fine,” Professor Carrington said. “Carry on, Brooke.”
“Thank you,” I said, standing and walking over to the podium at the front of the room.
Somehow, perhaps due to the marvelous blowjob I’d given him, he had agreed to lie and say he suffered grave injuries to his testicles. I would get extra credit for having him come to class and answer questions. I needed the extra points badly.
“As you all probably know, this is Austin, runningback of our football team. Back in high school, he took a hard hit to his testicles, and they were damaged. After two years of treatments, he’s all better and playing like a star. He’s here to answer any questions you might have.”
I looked out at the other students scattered throughout the room that held three-hundred people. Two of them raised their hands.
“You,” I said, pointing to a woman in front wearing an ugly green sweater.
She stood up, giggling before she even asked her question.
I glanced over at Austin, who shuffled nervously from one foot to the other.
“Does everything still work?” she asked then sat down.
Austin tilted his head back a bit and smiled as he glanced over at me.
“Let’s just say I have no complaints, and hope to have three children someday.”
I pointed to another student whose name I didn’t remember.
“What techniques did you find most helpful for healing?”
“Well, it was a dislocation,” Austin said exactly like I’d coached him. “It was so bad, I had to see a specialist, what I called the ball doctor at my young and tender age.”
The students laughed. I glanced over at the professor and saw her smiling as well.
“What mostly helped was rest, medicine for the pain, and antibiotics.”
Another woman raised her hand. I pointed at her. She stood up.
“Can you show them to us? For science?”
The class cracked up. I looked over and saw a grin on Austin’s face as if he were enjoying all the attention.
“I would, but I’m seeing someone special right now.”
He turned and looked at me for a few seconds before turning back to the other students.
“They’re normal, though. And I have two of them still.”
Everyone laughed again. Ms. Carrington stood up and clapped her hands.
“Okay, class. That’s enough. Let’s give a big thanks to Mr. King for showing up to discuss his sports injury with us.”
I smiled, filled with joy as he bowed. As he walked up the steps to the doors, I watched him, unable to believe he was still interested in me. The rest of the class flew by as I thought about the night before and how I wanted to do it again. All night long maybe.
After class, I stood in the hallway and called him. Quite a few people gave me a pat on the back as they passed, mostly the women who had participated.
“Hey,” he said. “How did I do?”
“You’re the best,” I said, walking toward the door of the building. “You coming over tonight?”
“I should be studying for mid-terms, but I’d rather spend the night with you.”
“Aww. You’re so sweet.”
“Don’t tell anyone.”
I smiled, falling for him even more.
“Come over about eight. Jocelyn will be gone.”
“How are things going with her?”
“Ugh. Don’t even ask. She’s become even more of a slob if that’s even possible.”
“I wouldn’t worry about her,” he said casually.
“Easy for you to say. You’re not living with her.”
“I am spending more time at your place.”
“Not nearly enough for my liking.”
“Who’s the romantic one now?” he asked.
“You caught me,” I said. “I’ll light the candles before you arrive.”
“Smart. It will give us more time. Bye, Brooke.”
“Bye, Austin.”
I slipped my phone into the back pocket of my jeans and headed home with a bounce in my step. A one-night stand didn’t often repeat. If we slept together again, we might have something real. Was I ready for that?
* * *
Back at the apartment, my mood soured as soon as I opened the door and walked inside. Jocelyn sat on the couch, her bare feet resting on the arm of my recliner.
“Hey,” she said, taking them down and standing up. “You’re home early.”
“Yeah, I need to get some homework done before tonight.”
“Oh? An extra work shift?”
“No,” I said simply, still upset with her.
“You want to hang out before I go to work?”
“I told you I need to do homework now.”
She frowned, her shoulders slumping.
“Okay. I understand.”
“Do you?” I asked, not ready for one of her self-pity parties. “If you applied yourself a little more, you might actually find life enjoyable.”
“You don’t know what it’s like to be me,” she snapped, defensively crossing her arms over her flat chest.
“No, and I’m glad I don’t.”
As I walked away, I instantly felt bad for saying the words, but she had to learn. My life, for whatever reason, was heading in a good direction. I didn’t want Jocelyn or anyone holding me down. Thoughts of Austin hit me as I entered my bedroom and shut the door.
I turned the lock then dumped my backpack on the floor. Besides, I told myself to alleviate my guilt, I did have homework to do if I was going to be up half the night with Austin. A smile slid on my face at the thought of his name as I sat down at my desk and opened the books I needed to study.
Human Anatomy 101. I giggled to myself. Everything reminded me of sex. After two years of working hard and not having a social life at all, it felt nice to relax and take a break with Austin.
I pushed all other thoughts aside and hit the books, studying hard for midterms which were quickly approaching. Every ten or fifteen minutes, I glanced over at the door to my bedroom, trying to hear if Jocelyn had left yet or not.
She eventually left about ten minutes before her shift started. I rushed through the apartment, cleaning up and striving to make it seem better than it was in reality. Most of the time, I spent in my bedroom, strategically placing candles.
One more night of fun then back to work.