Chapter 16: A Guy’s Dream Weekend: Friday Night

Supper was delicious. The spaghetti and meatballs tasted even better than they did when Cheryl made them for the first time, a week and a half ago. (Really? Was that all the time that had passed since we’d last eaten this dish together? Wow.) I had a bottle of red wine, waiting for an occasion to drink it, and this seemed like the night. We each had a glass, and enjoyed a leisurely supper. I asked the girls to reflect on how their first 24 hours of slavery had gone. Megan went first.

“I have to be honest. I’m having a fantastic time. I didn’t know for sure what this was going to be like. But you’ve been amazing to me, John. I expected we’d be getting you off all the time. But you’ve also spent a lot of time making sure we’re getting off. I haven’t come this much in such a short period of time in forever. So no complaints from me!”

“Cheryl?”

“I’m with Megan. It’s been a blast so far. Even cleaning your apartment was fun. Especially since you were so obviously enjoying it.”

“You’ve had your first taste of another woman, Cheryl, and for the first time you two have done something sexual together. How is that working out?”

They looked at each other. Cheryl went first this time.

“I never thought being with another girl would be that fun. I’m still totally into men. But I’m having fun with Megan. And to tell you the truth, it’s going to be hard to just be roommates again when this weekend ends!”

Megan nodded her agreement. I knew how she felt. It was going to be hard to leave Megan unmolested when this was all over. But it was going to have to happen. Cheryl wasn’t going to share me permanently. And I wasn’t sure I’d want that, anyway. It was sure fun while it lasted, though!

“You’re likely wondering what is happening next.”

Megan smiled. “We trust you, Sir.”

“Good. Because we’re going out tonight. Don’t worry. I agreed to your conditions. I won’t make you do anything that will embarrass you. But I do want to have the chance to go out somewhere with two gorgeous women. I hear that there’s this place downtown where hot girls gather on Friday nights. It’s a great place to pick up chicks, apparently. And there’s a band playing there tonight. Never heard of them before, but they do Celtic and folk stuff, and they look like they might be fun to sit and listen to.”

Cheryl was staring at me. “You mean...”

“Yes, Cheryl. It’s our two week anniversary. And tonight, I am taking the two hottest girls I have ever known to the place where it all began. We’re going to the Thistle.”

Megan giggled. Cheryl turned a bit red.

“Are you trying to make me feel bad for getting drunk that night?”

“Of course not! I wouldn’t do that. And, think about it. If you hadn’t gotten drunk that night, you wouldn’t be my girlfriend now, and I wouldn’t be going there with you and Megan tonight. No, we’re not going there to make you feel bad. We’re going there to have some fun.”

They both nodded, and Cheryl seemed to relax. I was relieved. I hadn’t meant to make her feel bad. And I did think it would be fun to go back to the place where it all began.

“What would you like us to wear, Sir?” asked Megan.

“I like you the way you are, if that works for you. But maybe, since we’re going to be walking there and back, you could both wear boots instead of shoes.”

“The ones we had on last night?”

“Whatever you want. Pick out some boots that make you look hot. Or even hotter than you do now. Deal?”

“Ok.”

They quickly tidied up the supper dishes and put away the leftovers, refusing my offer to help. Then they both ran into the bathroom, touched up their makeup (which neither of them really needed to do, from my perspective), and pulled on boots and coats. The boots went up to just below their knees. I don’t get it. How can a girl’s legs look so much more exposed when she’s got kick-ass boots on than they do when she’s wearing high heels?

We walked to the Thistle. It’s not too far from my place, and I wanted us to be able to have a drink or two and not worry about it. There wasn’t enough room for us all to walk together, so I selflessly let the girls lead, and I followed. Ok, so who am I kidding. The view was way better from back there. When we were a few doors away from the pub, we ran into a friend of mine from the History department. Ian is a great guy. He’s incredibly smart, and very kind. But he’s totally inept around girls. He has a slight speech impediment at the best of times, but put him near a pretty girl and he stutters like you wouldn’t believe. He’s an only child, and went to an all boys’ residential school. He had a pile of books in his hand. I guessed that he’d been in the library all day, and had been kicked out at closing time.

“Ian!” I said, holding out my hand. The girls stopped when they heard my voice, and turned around to see who I was talking to.

“John! G-g-good to see you. Ha-ha-how’s Reading Week b-b-b-been?”

“Great. Got some good work done, and had a bit of time to relax as well. You?”

“N-not b-b-b-bad. D-did some research.”

The girls were beside me now.

“Ian, I’d like to you to meet my girlfriend, Cheryl, and her roommate, Megan. Cheryl, Megan, this is Ian. He’s a friend of mine from school.”

Ian blushed, but nodded at the girls, and they smiled back.

“Hey, buddy, where are you going? Home?” Ian nodded. “We’re just going into the Thistle for a drink or two. There’s a band tonight - Celtic. Why don’t you join us?”

Megan flashed me a look. Cheryl just smiled. Ian wasn’t easily convinced.

“I d-d-don’t know. I ha-ha-ha-haven’t eaten yet.”

“C’mon. You can get a burger or something. Please?”

Ian looked at the girls. Cheryl spoke up.

“Ian, please join us. It’ll be fun.” Ian couldn’t resist. He nodded, and Cheryl, bless her little heart, actually gave him a hug. Ian was blushing furiously when she released him. She turned to Megan, and continued leading the way. Ian looked at me. I shrugged, and we followed the girls. They found a circular booth near the back, and slid into middle. I slid in beside Cheryl, and Ian took the spot beside Megan. He was clearly trying not to look at her, or at Cheryl, for that matter.

The waitress came and took our orders. The girls wanted cocktails. I wanted a beer. Ian ordered a Guinness. When the waitress left, Ian excused himself to go to the bathroom. As soon as he was gone, I leaned over so both girls could hear me.

“Listen. The game is paused until we leave here. I wasn’t going to give you any orders, anyway. I just wanted to be here with the two of you, where people could see us. But that’s all off now. I’m not ‘Sir’. I’m just John. I’m Cheryl’s boyfriend. Ian’s a good guy, ok? But he’s fragile.”

“Fragile in what way?” Megan wondered.

“He’s not good with girls. He’s never been around them, and he tries to avoid it because it makes him nervous, and then he stutters more.”

“So what should we do?”

“Just be yourselves. Nice, sweet, kind girls, who just happen to be drop-dead gorgeous. That’s it. Just let him have a nice night sitting here and hanging out with us. Ok?”

They both nodded, and Cheryl kissed my cheek. Ian came back just as the waitress arrived, and he ordered a burger and fries. The rest of us said we were fine just with the drinks. The band started up about then, with a catchy little tune about a bandit who is betrayed by his darling, and then they began to play some instrumental tunes. The first few were pretty fast, but then they played a slower number. Cheryl nudged me.

“When are you going to ask me to dance?”

I actually wasn’t going to ask her. Dancing really isn’t my thing. But that didn’t seem like an appropriate answer, under the circumstances.

“How about now?”

She grinned and we stood, and danced together for the first time. It felt divine. She melted into my arms like she belonged there. I could see a couple of guys on the sidelines watching her as we moved around the tiny dancefloor. Yep. They were checking out my girlfriend. I was used to guys checking out my sisters when I was with them, but this was a new sensation.

As the song wound down and a new one began, I saw Megan turn to Ian and hold out her hand. He hesitated. She said something to him, and nudged him with her elbow. They both stood up, and she took him by the hand, and they came and joined us on the dancefloor.

I was so caught up in watching Ian and Megan that I nearly forgot that I was still supposed to be dancing with Cheryl. Ian was totally out of his element. It was clear that Megan was in charge. She took his arms and wrapped them around her waist, then put her own arms around his shoulders, and began helping him to move with the music. By the end of the song, he seemed to almost be getting the hang of it.

The band took a break after that, and we all sat down. Ian was flushed. But he looked happy. We sat and chatted for a while, and Ian joined in the conversation. He was still stuttering, but not as much as he had been. When the band started up again, with another slower number, I took Cheryl’s hand and Megan pulled Ian out behind us. We stayed on the floor for the next song, which was much faster. Ian began to panic, but Megan kept holding his hand and Cheryl swept in on the other side of him, and together they taught him some basic moves. On the next slow song, Cheryl asked Ian to dance, and Megan snuggled into my arms. It felt good to hold Megan, though she didn’t seem to fit there quite as naturally as Cheryl did.

After that set we ordered another round, and sat and talked some more. Megan was drawing Ian out, getting him to talk about the courses he was taking and the research he was doing. He was much more relaxed now, especially while he was talking about things that were in his comfort zone. After a while, Ian glanced at his watch, and said he thought he needed to be going. I wasn’t surprised. If anything, I was amazed he’d lasted this long. But what he did next did surprise me. He turned to Megan, and asked her if she would dance with him once more before he went home.

Of course Megan agreed, and the two of them moved off to the dancefloor together. Ian was still not what you’d call a natural on the dancefloor, but he was miles ahead of where he’d been an hour or so before. Cheryl and I sat and watched them, and when the song ended, Megan led Ian by the hand back to our table. He put his coat on and left us some money towards his share of the bill. And then he turned to Megan.

“Th-th-thanks for a g-g-g-g-great night.”

“Thank you,” Megan responded. And she wrapped her arms around him and kissed his cheek. I thought he was going to fall over. And to make it worse, Cheryl stood and did the same thing. I held out my hand.

“See you Monday, Ian.”

“You b-b-bet. Th-th-thanks.”

And he was gone. As he went out the door, he raised his hand and touched his cheek where the girls had kissed him. I think he was wondering if it would feel different. And maybe it did.

We sat down, with me in the middle and a girl on each side.

“Thanks, girls. That meant a lot to me. You were so gentle with him.”

“He’s a nice guy,” Megan said. “What’s his story?”

“He’s just a nerd. A nice nerd. But a nerd. He’s an only child. His parents have a lot of money, and they sent him to a boarding school for boys. He freezes when he is around girls. You two really did him a world of good tonight.”

“What do you mean?” Cheryl wondered.

“Guys like that need practice. Being around girls gets easier the more you do it. I was sort of like Ian in high school. I would freeze up when I was around a girl I liked. I was never quite as bad as Ian, though, likely because I had Jamie and Julie around. I knew how to behave around girls, just not how to behave around a girl I wanted to get close to. If you’re never around girls, it can be really hard to know how to talk and what to do. So a night sitting talking and even dancing with two hot girls like you is amazing for someone like him. He made great progress tonight. You could see him relaxing. I can’t believe he agreed to dance with both of you. That’s because Megan was so persistent the first time - and I mean that in a good way. You looked like you were being polite, but not letting him get away with brushing you off. And I especially can’t believe he actually asked Megan to dance with him one more time before he left. I wouldn’t have thought Ian had that in him.”

Megan smiled. “He’s a sweet guy.”

Cheryl nodded. “Yes, he is. And you know what? He’s exactly the kind of guy that you and I would have been killing ourselves laughing at, not very long ago. But tonight, we were with John, and so we couldn’t do that. And underneath that geeky, awkward guy who you and I would not normally have been caught dead talking to, let alone dancing with, there’s a really great guy.”