Chapter 2

She moaned, parting her lips beneath the kiss, returning it with passion like he'd never, ever felt before.

Mark finally, reluctantly, broke the kiss. "I won't fuck you. But I'll make love to you. Are you on the pill?"

"Yes, for years now."

Mark stood up. "Not here. Upstairs, in my bedroom."

She stood with him, reaching back to take his hand as if she were afraid he wouldn't follow on his own.

Mark led her up the stairs, to the bed.

Kristen smiled, suddenly shy, and sat on the bed. "What do you want me to do?"

Mark placed a finger against her lips. "Shhh." He unhooked her bra, caressing her breasts gently. Her breasts were perfect, soft, round globes tipped by deep red nipples already crinkled with excitement. She gasped and closed her eyes, arching into his touch.

Mark pressed against her chest, urging her to lay down, and his hands moved down to her pants, unfastening them, pulling them down. She lifted her hips to help him, and he discovered she was wearing just a black lace thong underneath. He tugged the thong down, gently, placing little kisses at the crease of her thigh.

"What -- what are you doing?" She reached down, tugging on his arms. "You don't have to do that, really you don't."

He looked up at her, smiling. "But I want to, Kristen. I enjoy it." He seems puzzled. "Hasn't anyone ever done it to you before?" He shook his head at her denial. "Wow. Teenagers are idiots." Kissing her gently on the soft mound right above her clit, he asked her, "Please?"

Looking totally bewildered, she just nodded, and then gasped when she felt his tongue flick over her clit. The look of surprise on her face delighted him, and it took less than a minute for her to come. When she did, the expression on her face was one of total, utter, complete amazement, making him feel that doing this was worth the risk. Any risk was worth it to make her feel this good.

When she returned the favor, he realized just how good her experience had made her; he'd had lovers deep-throat him before, but never one who could take his full length down her throat and keep it there for almost a minute before having to breathe. He came almost immediately, as she swallowed with his cock down her throat, and thought he'd never be able to reproduce the pleasure.

When she got him hard again less than five minutes later, he discovered he was wrong.

She was totally insatiable, and every time he thought that there was no way he could get hard again, she proved him wrong. He lost count of his orgasms, much less hers, but several hours later she was finally laying curled up to his side, looking like a satisfied, sleepy, well-fed cat.

"Wow," Mark said, looking at her. "That was ... wow."

Kristen giggled and cuddled closer. "Yeah. I agree. Lots."

Mark said, again, "Wow." He had never felt anything like that before. It was orders of magnitude more intense than his previous experiences. "Is it always like that with you?"

Kristen shook her head quickly. "Oh, god no! I meant it when I said I agreed. That was amazing. And most guys give out after three times at most." She sighed happily.

Mark searched for some way to convey how he felt, finally settling on a totally inadequate, "Wow." Looking at her curiously, "Haven't you ever had anyone go down on you?"

She looked embarrassed. "Well, once, sort of, but not very well I guess. It didn't feel like that, anyway."

Mark tried to stretch, fighting weak muscles. "I liked it." He sighed.

Kristen grinned. "I noticed." At his sigh, she suddenly looked worried. "Um ... are you mad at me? For talking you into this?"

Mark shook his head. "No! I mean, I shouldn't have, and it's dangerous ... and I don't regret it in the slightest. But I was right."

"Right? Yeah, I guess so, we really shouldn't have. But I just ... I needed you."

He shook his head. "I meant I was right about once not being enough."

Kristen blinked. "Oh," she said, very quietly.

Mark said, "That was ... wow."

"You can ... I mean, anytime you want to ... however you want to do things is fine with me."

Mark looked at her worriedly. "I'm just ... I don't want to get caught. So we have to be real careful."

"Whatever it takes. No one would expect me to hide that I'm fucking someone," she said, her voice bitter, "and they don't particularly expect me to have the brains to do so. That will help."

Mark kissed her, gently. "Hey. None of that. No bitterness. Okay. How easily can you sneak out here without being seen?"

Kristen shrugged. "Pretty easy. You just go on outside and make sure there's no cars coming, and I can just head back down the road. There was no one out when I started this way, since it was so early, so no one knows what time I came here. And I take long walks all the time, all over the place."

Mark nodded. "Still ... we need a reason for you to be coming out here, if anyone finds out." He looked thoughtful. "Have you ever done starscapes?"

"Starscapes?"

Mark nodded. "Yeah. C'mere." He rolled over, staggering to his feet.

Kristen stretched, groaning a bit. "Okay."

Mark walked over to his computer, pulling up some of the better shots from his telescope, including one really spectacular shot of Saturn.

"Oh! How pretty. Just like Star Trek!"

He grinned. "Like that? Just a second." He opened a web-browser and pulled up shots from the Hubble.

She stared. "Oh, wow, are those real?"

"Yup. The Hubble telescope. How would you feel about sketching some of these, maybe painting them when you've got some experience?"

"Um ... I'd love to, but we haven't started oils yet or even acrylics, and I've been scared to experiment with them. I don't even know where to start."

Mark nodded. "So start out by sketching them. Some of these..." He pulled up several moon shots, "Would work fine in charcoal."

She nodded, "Yeah. I'm not sure how that would give me a reason to be here, though. I have a computer and internet access at home. Well, Dad does, anyway, and he doesn't mind me using it when he's not."

"But you don't have my telescope, or these shots. Not all of these are from the Hubble."

"Oh! I see." Her face fell. "But wouldn't people still talk if I came out here alone, no matter what for?"

Mark nodded. "That's our excuse for keeping the visits secret. We just say that you didn't want people to talk about me when I was just trying to help you, so we kept it quiet. We only reveal this if someone finds out. Of course, you will need to do some sketching every time you come out."

She grinned wickedly. "I suppose it'd be bad if I sketched you, huh?" She ran a hand down his bare hip. "Like this?""

"Probably. Well, for -- how old are you exactly, anyway?"

"Um. I'll be fifteen in January. We'd be okay if we were in Mississippi."

Mark chuckled. "But we aren't. So two and a half years, then."

Kristen said, her voice small and soft, "You really think you'll still want me for that long?"

Mark looked at her, swallowing. "Yes." The words came out hoarse. "I ... you ... affect me like no one ever has."

She smiled shyly. "Even though I've been so ... you don't mind how ... um ... experienced I am? I mean, when you have time to think about it?"

Mark said, "No, I don't mind. I'm not a virgin either, you know."

Kristen giggled. "I wasn't ever a virgin, technically."

"What do you mean?"

"I've been on the pill since I was 11, before I started having sex, cause of some female problems. One of the things the doctor found when he examined me was that I didn't have a hymen. He said it was no big deal, and a lot of girls didn't have one, especially if they do a lot of horseback riding or gymnastics and things. So I never was a virgin."

Mark grinned. "I see. So ... was this enough?"

"Um ... well, I wouldn't object to more. But it's not overwhelming right now. I can still think straight." She smiled.

"Better than when you usually have sex? Could you actually tell someone no now, if you wanted?"

She nodded rapidly, "Way better. I ... think so. I wouldn't tell you no, but anyone else, knowing what a difference there is, I think I could."

He smiled in real pleasure. "Good! Kristen, I don't have a problem with you sleeping with whoever you want to, but it should be because you want to, not because you can't control yourself." He hesitated. "Um ... do you usually use protection?"

She blushed, looking at the ground. "I usually ... it just doesn't occur to me. It's so urgent, and ... well, I'm on the pill. But I get an exam every six months because of my problems. And a lot of the guys do use condoms now because they know ... you know."

Mark said, softly, "I'm sorry. Could you ... for me ... make sure you do from now on? I'd hate to see you catch something that, well..."

"I will. You don't want me to stop?"

He took her hands in his own. "I want you to do what makes you happy. If you want to sleep with someone, do. But if you don't really want to sleep with them, promise me you'll at least try to say no. Have sex with people because you want to, not because you have to."

She looked at him, open and vulnerable. "I ... I'll try. But it's so hard sometimes. And they'll be really mad if I start saying no now."

Mark's lips tightened. "If they try to force you..." He hesitated for a moment, thinking, then grinned. "Tell them you think that you might be pregnant, and if they force you you'll swear it's theirs." The grin widened. "In court. Suing for child support."

Kristen nodded. "That'll work for a little while."

"I'd suggest talking to the counselor. I assume she knows you were promiscuous, right? Tell her you are trying to change that, but you're afraid that the guys won't take no for an answer."

"Um. Mark ... that wouldn't work." She looked seriously embarrassed.

"Why?"

"I can't talk to her. I just can't."

"Why not?" he asked.

"She ... I said that girls don't ask often. But not never. And I did try to talk to her once, and ... anyway, afterward she called me a demon and said that I should go to the church and beg to be cleansed and that I was never to come in her office again." She hugged her arms around her ribs miserably.

Mark frowned. "Okay. Who could you talk -- wait a moment. Did she ask?"

Kristen nodded. "That's what I said."

Mark's voice rose with each word. "And then she dared to call you a demon? Why, that ... that..." Kristen flinched, and he visibly calmed himself. "I'm not mad at you, Kristen. I'm mad at her. What we've done wasn't abuse. What she did was."

"It wasn't that bad, Mark. It really wasn't. I think she just panicked, really, and was looking for a way to justify herself. Like, 'she must be a demon, else she couldn't have tempted me to sin like this.'"

He shook his head. "Kristen, I want you to do something for me. Compare how you felt about yourself before we made love to the way you feel now. Do you feel better, or worse?"

"Better, I guess."

"How did you feel about yourself when you walked out of her office, compared to when you went in?"

She looked down. "Worse, but it wasn't because of the sex. It was because she was so ashamed of it afterward."

"Exactly. Now, you need to take control of your life, Kristen. What do you want to do about it? Keep in mind that she's supposed to help the people who come to her. Do you want to leave her in that position?"

"I don't think she'd ever do it again, Mark, I really don't. And everyone else I talked to ... I asked about her before I went to her, so that I could find out if she'd freak out ... just loved her. K ... someone told me that talking to Ms. Angie kept her from killing herself once."

Mark frowned. "Hmm. How long ago did this happen?"

"Last year, right before the end of school."

"So it wouldn't be too unlikely for me to have, say, 'overheard' you discussing this with someone, which would give me a perfect excuse to lay into her and make sure she doesn't do it again, wouldn't it?"

Kristen shook her head quickly. "Oh, Mark, no. That might make her suspicious." She swallowed. "I can tell her no, I know I can."

Mark sighed. "But I don't want her to get away with it. She hurt you -- I know. I'll wait outside, in the hall, doing ... something. I'll think of something. If she pressures you, or if she just starts calling you a demon, you rush out -- saying something about not wanting to sleep with her again loud enough for me to hear. Then there's no reason for her to be suspicious, is there?"

"But I don't want to talk to her again! She won't bother me if I don't come to her office."

Mark sighed again. "I know. But you need to talk to someone about this, someone who's not me. If she apologized, and meant it, would you have a problem talking to her? Since the others seem to like her so much?"

"Why? I'm okay, I'm not suicidal or anything. What could she do, anyway?"

"Give you advice on handling the guys who don't want to say no."

"Oh. I forgot about that," she said. "I ... don't know. Let's see if it is a problem first, okay? I really don't want to talk to her again."

Mark nodded, slowly. "Okay. I'm not going to make your decisions for you."

She smiled, relieved. "Thanks. I know it's cowardly, but ... I just wasn't expecting that."

Mark squeezed her hands. "It's not cowardly, Kristen. I have to admit I'm not happy with her getting away with hurting you, but you were the one hurt, and you are the one who needs to decide what you want to do about it. Not me."

"I think it really was just ... an aberration. Not the way she really is. Maybe she's been fighting being gay all her life and has a thing for redheads and having one come into her office and confess to being a nympho was just too much for her and she just snapped when she realized what she'd done." She stopped to take a breath.

Mark smiled a little. "Maybe."

Kristen smiled happily. "Anyway, so, I can come back again? Really?"

Mark nodded. "I'd love you to."

Kristen hopped up and kissed him enthusiastically, and he returned the kiss, with predictable results.

An hour or so later, Kristen was tying her shoes. "I'll tell them the party tonight is on." She hesitated, then asked, "Will I see you tonight?"

Mark hesitated. "I ... shit. I'd love to say yes, but is there any way to do it safely?"

She though for a moment. "They'll expect me to be with Kevin, since it's his birthday, but ... well, Kevin drinks like a fish and usually passes out. Everyone else will leave me alone. I'll just ... go home with Kevin and then sneak back. He won't remember anything, and the others will just think I spent the whole night with him."

Mark nodded. "Then yeah. I'd love to see you tonight."

Kristen smiled beautifully, then shook her head. "I guess I can't keep stalling. I better go. I don't want to, though."

Mark kissed her, very gently, on the lips, and she sighed. He smiled at her. "I'll be here. Go."

"If I must..." She slipped out the door.

The party was loud, starting up around 9, but it wasn't that loud. Kristen slipped in his front door around 12:30.

"The party's still going, isn't it?" Mark asked.

"Kevin's getting a really high alcohol tolerance. It took forever for him to soak up enough to be safe." She stretched. "Yes, but it'll be winding down soon."

"Kevin's at home now?"

Kristen nodded. "Tucked safely in bed with a bottle of Gatorade sitting on the bedside table." She glided into his arms and kissed him. "And I didn't."

"Didn't want to?" he asked.

She shook her head. "Not with a half-drunk, clumsy boy. And I didn't want to come to you with ... I wanted to wait."

Mark smiled, kissing her, running his hands over her body.

This time she seemed even hungrier, as if waiting was almost more than she could do. Luckily, he had taken a nap, because when she finally passed out, the darkness outside the window was tinted with a faint pink.

He woke up alone around noon to the sound of water running. Following it into the master bathroom, he found Kristen in the shower. "Kristen?"

"Yipe! You startled me. Who did you expect?"

Mark grinned. "Just checking. Want some company?"

She smiled, "Mmmm ... what a nice idea."

He climbed into the shower with you. Running his soapy hands over her body resulted in a predictable response, which she was more than happy to take advantage of. Only that once, though, because she did need to get home and do her homework. She kissed him gently before slipping out the door and heading across the fields in the direction of her house.

The next day at school things were ... odd. There were a lot of little squabbles in the hall, as if everyone were on edge. Around 11, he had to separate a couple of the senior boys who were outright brawling in the hall.

"What's going on here?" he asked, as he physically separated the two fighters.

Sullenly, one of them answered. "Nothin'."

Mark marched them towards the principal's office. "What started it?"

"Nothin'."

Mark stopped. "Yes, something did start it. Now talk."

"He's a prick."

"Yeah, well, you couldn't find your ass with both hands." The second boy glared at the first angrily. "Oh, yeah? It's your fault."

Mark asked, "What's his fault?"

"Nothin'."

"Tell me." Neither of the two were in any of his classes, and he didn't really recognize them.

"'s nothin'. We're just messing around. Sorry we got carried away."

Mark shook his head, unmoved. "You were fighting in the hall. I don't have a lot of leeway here. But if you'll tell me -- honestly -- what you were fighting about, maybe I'll talk to the principal first."

Unaccountably, the boys both blushed. "'s a girl," the first mumbled.

"And? What was his fault?" Mark asked.

"She's mad or somethin', and it's his fault." The first boy pointed at the second.

"It fuckin' is not!"

"What do you mean, she's mad? And why would it be his fault?" Mark raised an eyebrow at the first boy.

"He was the last one who--"

"Shut up! You're gonna get her in trouble."

Mark eyed the two. "Spill."

"Yeah, I'll spill. Kevin's an asshole, that's the problem."

The second boy turned to face the first, angrily. "Fuck you, David! I said I didn't do anything!"

"Yeah, well, maybe that's the problem." The first boy clenched his fists, seeming ready to resume the physical level fighting.

Mark put a hand on each shoulder. "What. Is. The. Problem? Is she not talking to you or something?"

"Uh. Yeah. Not to anyone. She's mad or something."

"She just stopped talking to everyone?"

"Uh. Sorta. She's stopped ... uh, she's just not being as ... social ... as she usually is. Kevin obviously hurt her feelings or something." David glared at Kevin.

Mark raised an eyebrow. "You aren't being honest here. What aren't you telling me?"

Stubborn silence from both the boys.

Mark said, "Kevin?"

"Whut?"

"Tell me."

"No can do, teach. D'rather be expelled." He looked as if he meant it.

Mark pursed his lips. "Nothing will be done to the girl involved. I promise."

"No, Sir."

Mark suddenly raised an eyebrow, as something came to him. "Wait a minute. Yesterday was your birthday, wasn't it, Kevin? You're 18 now, aren't you?"

"Uh, yeah. You gonna let me off with a warning since it was my birthday?" Kevin looked hopeful.

Mark shook his head. "I've heard all the rumors, you know. This is about Kristen, isn't it?"

Total silence.

"What, did she start telling you all no or something?" Mark asked.

Their mouths dropped open. "How the fuck did you know that?"

David slapped his hand over his mouth. "Shit."

Mark said, "You told me. You aren't as good at dodging questions as you think you are."

"Fuck. We're screwed." Kevin looked ready to pass out.

Mark glared at them. "And, quite frankly, maybe I should tell the principal to go harder on you. I don't care what her reputation is, she is not some sort of community property, and you two ought to know better. I don't care if she's slept with you a thousand times before, if she tells you no, that's it. You don't go beating someone else up. Maybe she's tired of having people talk about her the way I've heard them talking, did you ever think of that?"

The boys flinched. "Dude. You don't understand."

"Make me. You've got a couple of minutes before I have to have you in the office. Talk fast."

"Look, no one would force her. S'okay if she wants to say 'no', and anyone who doesn't get that is in big trouble. But she never has and she's saying no to everyone. And she looks like she's sick. So something's wrong. And maybe Kev didn't do anything, but he was the last one with her before she went all weird, and we all fucking want to know what happened!"

"Man, I didn't do anything, I swear. She was fine last night. Happy and everything." Kevin tossed his hands in the air.

Mark escorted the two into the teachers lounge, motioning for them to sit down on the couch, and sat down on a chair across from them. "Okay. That makes more sense. Look, I don't know if her reputation is accurate or not, but from the way you are reacting, I suspect it is. Okay, fine, I can think of two possibilities off the top of my head that would make her start saying no. So can you, if you think about it."

"Yeah. Someone hurt her or she's sick." David replied, a worried look on his face.

"Almost. Either she slept with someone who was ... contagious, or she's worried about one of the consequences of sex." Mark waited to see if they'd get it.

"Uhh ... oh fuck." David turned pale, matching Kevin's face.

Mark shook his head. "No, that comes about nine months earlier."

"But she's on the pill!" Kevin protested.

Mark sighed. "It's not perfect, you know. Sometimes it fails. I know of one case where a woman cut her husband off after having her fourth kid. He'd had a vasectomy, she'd had her tubes tied and was on the pill, and they used spermicide and condoms."

"Fuck. That would explain why she's so pale and shit, too, wouldn't it?" Kevin asked.

Mark nodded. "Now. You need to think about something. We could be wrong. We could be right. We could be right, but it's a false alarm. But something has happened to make her rethink things. What are you going to do if she decides she wants to be celibate, or wants to go steady with someone, or something? What are you going to do if some of the other guys don't want to take no for an answer?"

"Uh ... man, we'd kick their asses, that's what! She's a good girl, Teach. It's not like people think. She just likes sex a lot. But if she doesn't want to, then she doesn't want to. Yeah ... she'd be hard to give up. I mean, it's like magic or something, but we're not monsters you know." David said angrily.

Mark closed his eyes and sighed in relief, then opened them. "Boys, you don't know how glad I am to hear that. In the school I went to, there was a girl who was known for being, well, easy. She got pregnant, and had a miscarriage. But she decided she didn't want to have sex any more. Some of the guys didn't take no for an answer. I'd hate to see that happen to Kristen. You might keep your eyes and ears open, and if you hear anyone who doesn't get it ... drop a word in their ear. Let them know that Kristen has people willing to stand up for her right to choose." He looked intently at Kevin. "You swear you haven't slept with her since you turned 18?"

"Uh ... probably not." He seemed very embarrassed. "I don't really remember the last part of last night, but it doesn't seem real likely, y'know. But man ... if she asks me to, I swear to god, I don't think I could tell her no."

Mark nodded. "Okay. So you haven't slept with her since you turned 18, that means you are in the clear, legally. And I'm not asking what you would do if she asks. I don't want to know, got me? Just like I'm glad I never saw any underage drinking the other night." He stood. "Since y'all were honest, I'll talk to the principal while y'all wait outside. I can't promise anything, but I'll do what I can."

"Thanks man." Kevin looked relieved.

Mark left the two sitting outside the principal's office, closing the door behind him. "I think we've got a problem."

"Oh? You mean our two young boxers? Sometimes I wish we had a football team so these fellows could work out some of that aggression more acceptably. Talk to me." The principal, David Ward, sighed.

Mark sat down, looking vaguely embarrassed. "I'm going to assume that any rumors I've picked up on in two weeks you are familiar with."

"Probably. It's not really appropriate for a teacher to be indulging in gossip, however, Mark." Dr. Ward looked at him sternly.

Mark shook his head. "That's not what I meant. I assume you know Kristen's reputation? Apparently, she started telling guys 'no' this morning, out of the blue. That's why the two were fighting -- apparently David thought that Kevin had done something to hurt her. If her reputation is accurate, things could get fairly ugly."

The principal raised an eyebrow. "Are you seriously proposing that one fourteen year old girl, no matter how promiscuous, could seriously disrupt the entire school just by withholding sexual favors?"

Mark nodded, levelly, meeting the principal's eyes. "Yes, I am. If all of the guys blame each other for causing it -- we could have a lot of fights. I haven't been gossiping, but from what I overheard, it sounds like she was sleeping with pretty much the entire school. If just a quarter of the guys blame someone for this, and go after them..."

"Shit. Well what do you propose we do about it?"

Mark sighed. "I don't know. I really don't. But I thought you should be aware." He hesitated. "As far as David and Kevin go, I'd like to ask you to go easy on them. David didn't go after Kevin because he was mad that Kristen told him no, he went after him because he thought Kevin had hurt her. I can't condone fighting, but ... at least it was motivated by concern for someone else."

Dr. Ward sighed deeply. "Yes. Perhaps ... perhaps we can come up with something to get their attention, direct their ... energy ... elsewhere. I've had something in mind for a while ... Ah well, in any event, thank you for letting me know."

Mark nodded. "In their favor, they are going to try to make sure no one ... refuses to take no for an answer."

Dr. Ward sighed again. "We so did not need this right now."

"I know. I know."

The two boys didn't get in a lot of trouble; they merely had to stay after school the rest of the week to clean up.

He didn't see Kristen until fourth period freshman chem. The boys were right. She did look unwell. Pale and tired. Mark frowned a bit, wondering if there's any way he could get away with speaking to her privately.

There were lots of curious looks at her from the rest of the students, as well. Some friendly and concerned, some belligerent, some, particularly from a couple of girls, smugly superior.

Mark decided to bite the bullet, and when class was over, asked Kristen to stay behind for a minute.

Kristen stood in front of his desk, plainly visible through the open door but blocking any view of him. "Yes, sir?"

Mark asked, quietly, "Are you okay? You look ... sick."

She smiled. "Yeah. I'm just tired. I guess it was a ... long weekend."

"Are you sure? Do you need to see the nurse, and maybe go home early? You really do look bad." He looked at her, concern evident on his face.

She said quietly, almost a whisper, "Mark, I'm okay. I really am just tired and maybe I have a bit of a stomach bug or something. Don't worry."

Mark nodded. "Okay. By the way, David and Kevin were fighting this morning. David thought Kevin had hurt you last night."

"Oh, dear. Poor Kev. He's so harmless. I'll have to make sure they know better.""

"Yeah. I hear you've been telling all the guys no."

Kristen looked at her feet. "Yeah."

"Are you okay with that?" he asked.

"Um ... I'm the one doing it. It's not easy, but ... it feels good to be able to."

Mark smiled. "Good. I'm glad you are happy." He hesitated. "By the way, when I talked to David and Kevin, I brought up the question of 'What if someone doesn't want to take no for an answer?' Their answer was 'We'll kick their ass.'"