Chapter 2: A Close Bond

I didn’t get much sleep and was awake most of the night stewing over what happened. One thing Alex said that played over in my head was No wonder you wanted me to meet someone so bad. It makes me angry that he thinks I was only trying to help him find another girl because it was all part of some covert plan, a dark scheme I concocted to steal Abby (Gail) away from him.

I had no idea that Abby and Gail was the same person until last night. I was just trying to help him and be his friend by being there. You know what they say, no good deed goes unpunished.

Rachel, Chad, and I are out for a run this morning. They want to know why I’m so quiet. Rachel asks if I had a fight with Abby, I tell her, “No, just a complicated mess with my roommate. If it’s all the same, I don’t feel like going into details.”

When I come back to take my shower before class, I see Zach and Connor in the Common Room with Alex. They all give me dirty looks as I walk past. Great! Now Zach and Connor think I’m a shit who screwed my roommate over by fucking his girl. This is going from bad to worse.

Things are quiet for the next few days; Alex is still diligently avoiding me and sleeping on the couch in the Common Room. The only times he comes into our room is to change his clothes or grab something needed for class. If I happen to be in the room, he brushes past and ignores me like I’m not there.

It’s aggravating that he’s this mad at me without having all the facts. Even though I can feel empathy for his hurt, it doesn’t make it right. I’m not going to corner him and make him talk it out with me; he needs to come to terms and deal with this in his own way.

Each day Abby and I have lunch together and then go to her house in the afternoons. She’s my ray of sunshine through the proverbial rain clouds surrounding the dorm for me this week. She feels bad about this situation with Alex, and we talk about it often, but after mentally flipping it over and examining it from every angle, we conclude that neither of us did anything wrong. It’s just a shitty circumstance that needs to play itself out.

Belinda is around the house every afternoon, so Abby and I keep our clothes on. Even though we’re free to do whatever we want in Abby’s room, we both knew if Belinda catches wind of us having sex in there, she’ll go out of her way to create an uber embarrassing situation for us. That’s how Belinda is. I don’t know what’s worse, sneaking sex around parents, or working around obnoxious roommates?

At lunchtime on Thursday Abby is excited about something. “Guess what?”

“What?”

“I overheard Belinda on the phone this morning. She and Patrick are going out of town to some wrestling meet this weekend ... all weekend!”

“Oh, really?”

“Uh-huh! I was thinking that maybe you should come and stay with me?” she asks, with a cute twinkle in her eye.

“Yeah, I will!” No hemming and hawing over it needed.

“We can do whatever we want, even run around in our underwear,” she giggles.

I lean towards her and whisper, “Better yet, naked!”

“Yeahhh,” she whispers back, “and maybe you can do that thing I like?”

I already know what she’s referring to but have fun asking anyway, “Which thing?”

She smirks, bites her lower lip, and puts her hand under the table between her legs. “You know ... that thing you do ... down here ... with your tongue?”

“This conversation is making me hard, you know.” Continuing to smirk, she nods, she knows. “We better change the subject or it’s going to be an embarrassing walk for me to my next class.”

“Why?” she tilts her head and asks. When it hits her, she understands and laughs, “Oh, it’s because people might see your pants poking out!”

“Shhhh ... and, yeah, exactly ... my pants poking out.”

This is great! Staying with Abby gets me away from the depressing dorm and all the dirty looks for the weekend. Alex will be happy that he can sleep in his bed again.

After work and back at the dorm I pass Connor in the hallway and wave, “Hey.”

He gives me a blank stare in return. Figuring he’s not going to acknowledge me, he finally mutters, “What’s up, Kyle?”

I stop, turn, and ask, “Got a minute, Connor?”

“Yeah, I guess.”

I motion for him to follow me into our room. Shutting the door, I launch in, “Look, I don’t know what Alex told you and Zach, but there’s more to it.”

“He told us you horned-in on his girl and then had the balls to bang her right here ... in this very room ... even left your used condom proudly sitting out as proof.”

“Can I tell you my side of it?”

“Go for it...” he shrugs. I tell Connor the whole story from my perspective, including how I never intended for Alex to see that condom or any of my used condoms for that matter.

“Well, it does make sense when you put it this way,” Connor sighs. “To be honest, what Alex said just didn’t sound like something you would do to him.”

“No, I would NEVER do anything like that; especially to a friend and roommate.”

“And, if you didn’t know Abby was Gail, then Alex is blowing this way out of proportion without all the facts.”

“Exactly!”

“Why didn’t you explain it to him?” Connor asks.

“I tried, believe me, I tried. He doesn’t want to hear anything from me, he won’t even look me in the eye.”

“Do you want me to say something?”

“Nah, I don’t think it will do any good. He’s going to have to figure this out on his own. I’ll be gone this weekend anyway; I’m staying with Abby.”

“I don’t blame you.”

“Does Zach hate me too?” I ask.

“Pretty much, but he only knows what Alex told him. I’ll talk to Zach later.”

“Thanks, Connor.”

“No problem,” he fist-bumps me, “I gotta run, catch you later.”

I’m glad at least one of the guys was willing to listen and understand.

I keep myself busy on Friday morning finishing all my homework so I can enjoy the weekend with Abby. She’s coming here to drive me to work and then pick me up when my shift is over. At 1:00, she texts that she will be here in twenty-minutes. I dig out my duffle bag and pack a couple of days’ change of clothes.

Alex comes into the room carrying a box and sets it on the bed. It looks like his breathing machine has arrived. He ignores me as he unpacks and sets it up. “Is that your breathing machine?” I ask.

“Yup,” he curtly answers without turning around.

“Well, that’s good that it’s finally here, I’m happy for you,” I say, attempting to be friendly.

“Not that I can use it sleeping on the couch,” he dismisses me.

So much for the friendly approach, I shake my head and mumble, “Look, I’m outta here, the room is all yours.” Alex finally turns to face me, it appears he wants to say something, but I can see he’s internally fighting with himself not to. Whatever, I don’t have time for these stupid games right now. “See ya,” I coldly brush past him and out the door.

Abby is waiting in her car just outside the dorm building; I hop in and we kiss. On the way, she gently asks, “Any improvement with Alex?”

“No, but I’m sure he’ll be happy to sleep in his bed this weekend.”

“Just give it time, it’ll work out, Kyle.”

“Thanks, Abby.”

She drops me off at the store and we kiss again. “See you at 8:00.”

At work, I’m still stewing on this Alex shit, but I must keep telling myself to let it go. The weekend will be here soon, I’m spending it with Abby, and I want to have fun.

I see Mr. Curtis and wave, “Hi, Mr. Curtis, how are you today?”

He stops, “I’m good Kyle, how are you?”

“Doing good.”

“Can you come in the back with me for a minute?”

I follow him to his cluttered office. “Close the door and have a seat.”

“Am I in trouble, sir?”

“No, quite the opposite. Every once in a great while we get an employee that understands the commitment and hard work. You have shown that, and I want to commend you on being an outstanding employee here.”

“Wow, thank you, I really appreciate—”

He holds his hand up, “Let me continue.” Even when he’s happy, he still likes to interrupt me, but that’s okay. “The other night, I was talking with my wife about how well you’ve been doing. She asked if I discussed this with you and I said, no, I hadn’t. She looked at me and said, Harold, you need to tell that boy he’s doing a good job, telling me does no good for his sake. She’s right, of course, Mrs. Curtis is always right.” He laughs and continues, “I was thinking about moving you up to look after a department like produce, or maybe the baked goods and bread aisle. I wouldn’t be able to offer much of a raise, but it would be a step-up around here.”

“That sounds great!”

“Okay, let me think on it and get back to you. I’ll let you get back to your duties now.” I get up to leave. “And, Kyle?”

“Yes?”

“Do you like steak and have a grill available to use at your dorm?”

“I love steak and I’m staying with my girlfriend this weekend. She has a grill.”

“Was that the young lady I saw you with in Aisle 5 the other week?”

“Yes,” I smirk.

“When your shift is over, pick out a couple of nice porterhouses for you and your girl. Tell Meredith I said you can have them on Code 7, that means on-the-house.”

“Thank you, Mr. Curtis.”

“Keep up the fine work, young man,” he smiles.

Wow, I don’t know what to say, I’m blown away. I think I can dance that jitterbug now. Dad was right about keeping my nose out of trouble and doing my best, it really does pay off. I had a smile on my face for the rest of my shift - even the pukey stink of the bottle return machines couldn’t wipe it off.

Fifteen minutes more and I can punch out. As I’m doing one last sweep of the aisles, from behind me, I hear someone making a voice, trying to sound like an elderly lady. “Excuse me, young mister, I was wondering if you can show me where your sausage is?”

I smile and try not to laugh, too loud anyway. “Hey, Abby.”

She’s grinning at me with a devious look. “I thought I’d come a few minutes early and pick up a few things for dinner. How does spaghetti sound?”

“How does steak sound?”

“Oh, I like that even better!”

Abby follows me while I finish my aisle sweeping. We pick out a few items to have with our steak. I grab a jar of coconut oil and drop it in her basket.

“What’s that for?” she asks.

In her ear, I whisper, “I’ll show you later.”

At Abby’s house, I change out of my work clothes and join her in the kitchen to help make dinner. I don’t know how to cook too many things other than pizza and microwavable simple meals, but Abby said she’ll teach me. She has me cut up lettuce for a salad while she cuts up the potatoes to make real mashed potatoes, no instant kind tonight.

We each grab a beer from the fridge and go out to the patio to grill the steak. “I’m going to have to replace Bitch-Face’s beer at some point, do you know someone who can buy?”

“Yeah, I can text Connor’s brother, Dan. He’ll help us.”

“Are the guys still not speaking to you?”

“Pretty much, I did get a chance to tell Connor my side of things; he seems to understand it now.”

“That’s good.”

“Oh, and get this, Mr. Curtis commended me on doing a good job, he said he’s thinking about moving me up to look after a department like produce or the bread aisle. He even said I could have these steaks we’re grilling. Sounds like his wife nudged him to start recognizing his good employees.”

“That’s great news! I’m so happy for you.”

“Yeah, it made my day.”

“I have news too, but it has good and bad.”

“Oh, what’s that?”

“I called my doctor and she forwarded me a prescription to the pharmacy in town for the pill. I picked it up on my way to get you.”

“That is great news. What’s the bad part?”

“We’ll still have to use a condom for about three weeks. That’s how long it takes for the pill to become fully effective.”

“Oh, that’s no biggie, we can do that.”

“I know, but I really don’t want you to have to use one. I want it to be the best it can be for you too.”

“Abby, it’s not that bad. Like I’ve said, sometimes it helps me last longer,” I grin.

Abby gets up to flip the steaks, they’re smelling fantastic. She looks at me and says, “I remember that shirt.” I look down and see I have my Ramones shirt on. Half the time I don’t know what shirt I’m wearing; I just grab one and throw it on if it’s clean.

“You do?” I ask.

“Yeah, it’s the one you were wearing the night we met.”

“Oh, yeah, it is. You have a good memory.”

“I remember everything, especially things with you.”

I remember something too and have fun putting her to the test, “What shirt was I wearing that day we ... you know ... our first time?”

“Oh, that’s easy, your white, sleeveless AC/DC shirt!”

Damn, this girl is good!

Now she tests me. “What was I wearing that same day?”

I think a minute and then remember how sexy she looked to me when I jogged up the sidewalk. “You had on a light purple tank top and those cute blue jean shorts.”

“You’re right, I did.”

Then I add, “And, you had light blue panties with white lace.”

“Wow, Kyle! Very good, I’m impressed! What bra did I have on?”

“Now, that I don’t remember ... I was more interested in what’s inside.”

“Fair enough,” she laughs, “good answer!”

We eat dinner and these steaks are superb, Abby grilled them to perfection. Pink in the middle, not bloody, just the way I like it. The real mashed potatoes came out awesome, with just the perfect amount of garlic and butter. She has a talent with food and complimented me on my dicing of the lettuce for the salad; hey, it’s not much, but I’ll take what I can get.

After our wonderful dinner, I help Abby clean up. She takes my hand and leads me toward her room. “Would you like to relax on the bed?” Knowing full well where this is going, I nod yes, and grab the coconut oil we bought letting her lead the way.

We lay down and she asks, “Do you have to work this weekend?”

“Only on Sunday, noon to 4:00.”

“That gives us the whole day tomorrow.”

“Yeah, it does. What would you like to do?”

“My Uncle Larry and Aunt Maureen live about seven or eight miles outside of town on a farm; they’re the ones I rent this house from. If it’s nice, would you want to ride our bikes out to visit? I haven’t been to see them since moving up here.”

“Sure, we can do that.”

“We don’t have to stay long or anything. Maybe later we can walk around Main Street or something?”

“Sounds good to me.”

She scoots in close, hugs me, and lets her hand travel up under my shirt to rub my chest.

“Kyle?”

“Yeah?”

“I hope this doesn’t sound too corny, but I feel so good when I’m with you. It’s like a feeling of being safe and I can totally be myself.”

“Not corny at all, Abby,” I assure her, “I want you to be nobody but yourself.”

“I think I’m ... and I don’t know if these are the right words, but I feel such a strong bond with you. I love you so much.”

“I love you too, Abby,” I kiss the top of her head on my chest, “and, yeah, I feel the same when I’m with you, I really do.”

“I’m glad,” she says, drawing circles with her finger around my nipple.

She climbs on top of me as my hands slip up under her shirt, caressing her smooth skin and fondling her bra, feeling her nipples underneath grow firm. Soon, our clothes have a way of coming off one item at a time until we’re both naked. Kissing and touching turn into rolling around as we let our fingers freely traverse each other’s body-scape. Once again time is standing still and we have no outward cares as to what’s going on beyond the edges of this very bed - it’s just Abby and me now.

“Are you going to show me what that coconut oil is for?” she asks.

Taking the jar off the nightstand, I tell her, “This is the best lubricant.”

“It is?”

“Yup,” I open it and show her.

“It looks thick.”

“Right now, yes, but it quickly melts with our body heat becoming nice and smooth. Plus, it’s all-natural and really good for our skin.”

“That’s awesome!”

“Yeah, and it’s not greasy or anything.”

“Wow, I never thought I would be getting skin-care advice from a guy,” she laughs.

“Well, I’ve learned a few things along the way.”

“Kyle?”

“Yeah?”

“Before we see how that works, there’s something I wanna do first.”

“What’s that?”

Abby has me lie back on her pillows, parts my legs and scoots up in between. With a grin, she tells me, “I want to put you in my mouth and try sucking on it.”

“Okay.”

“I’ve never done this before ... so here goes.” Holding my cock to her lips, she turns her head one way, then another, trying to figure out the best approach if there is one. Soon seeing that any angle will work, she opens up and slips my glans inside. Sliding her lips over the smooth skin of the surface, she makes it nice and wet with slippery saliva. Taking a little more, I feel her tongue begin touching, licking, and roaming over the bulbous shape followed by twirling around and in the indented rim just below. “Mmmm, I really like feeling you this way,” she mumbles.

“Umm hmm ... I’m liking it too.”

She pops me out for a second to tell me, “It actually feels bigger in my mouth than I was expecting.”

“It does?”

“Yeah, I have to open my jaw wider than I thought I would. This is gonna sound crazy, but the other day I sort of, ah ... pretended a pealed banana was your ... you know ... so I could get a little practice.”

“I hope it being bigger than the banana is not a bad thing.”

“Not at all. It just means I get more of you to fill up my mouth ... and,” she giggle-snorts, “I like that!”

As she’s exploring me and tasting me, a random flick of her tongue hits right on my sensitive spot causing my cock to react with a twitch. The twitch is its way of saying more licks right there, please. She looks up and asks, “Am I doing this alright?”

“Mmmm ... yeah, it feels great! Rub your tongue on my spot some more.”

To clarify, she puts her fingertip in the little divot on the bottom side and asks. “You mean right here?”

“Yes!”

In the sultry space of her mouth, she lets her tongue loose to dance a wild mambo on my magical spot – whoa - does that ever feel fantastic! Keeping her lips sealed around, she’s not only working her tongue but moving her whole mouth all over me, her soft inner cheeks and everything are in full contact with my erection.

Sharing more observations, she tells me, “I know I’ve said this before, but I love how super warm your thingy is. I mean, I know it’s supposed to be warm and all, it’s part of your body, and I can feel how warm it is when you put it in my special place, but I really like feeling its warmth with my mouth too. I know I’m probably babbling more of my silliness, but I’m loving doing all these kinds of things with you so much.”