Start of Season - 11

Start of Season - 111

We stood in the doorway of the Kerbey Lane Café, among the others crowded at the front waiting for a table, and I tried not to stare at Mark as he continued to, like, grope himself at me.2

~Mark’s not groping himself; he just has his hand lying in a very. . .awkward. . .spot. . .and is. . .moving it. . .arou-- Is he groping himself?~3

“Hey, guys, what’s happenin’?”  Mark popped out of his chair at the cluttered table where he and a few other jock-types were sitting, and clamped an arm around my shoulder, steering us in.  “Didn’t know if ya’ll would make it,” he grinned, snagging chairs and cramming us in next to him at the table.  “Was kinda a late night.”4

Mark continued to smile broadly at me and kinda grope himself, and after my skin had crawled off to the bathroom for a quick wash, my nerves attempted to follow.5

But that was all that happened.  It was just Mark’s obsession with himself, fueled by my addled memory of the night before, that was obviously making me paranoid.  With that aside, I sat around the table with these football players, listening to their locker-room talk, their put-downs, and their laughter, and felt completely and utterly out of place.6

Todd and I were like some warped Beauty and the Beast, with a total role-reversal:7

Tale as old as time,8

Wrong as it can be;9

Barely just alike:10

One who hollers “hike”11

One, a science freak.12

Both a little horned13

(Just to say the least!)14

Neither one could care15

If the world’s prepared:16

Beauty and the Geek!17

(Come to think of it, I think that was a reality television show, so my lawyers advise you to completely ignore that last bit.)18

I actually felt as though I should have had a notebook and tape-recorder with me.19

As the Hominidae Jockitus gather to feed, I carefully approach in as subordinate a manner as possible, and sit nearby to observe.   And although I am obviously an outsider, the group tolerates my existence among them because of their leader, to whom they automatically defer.20

“Alright, that’s it,” groaned Todd, dropping his toast onto his plate, “I don’t wanna hear any more about the last practice.”  The other guys had been heatedly arguing some play or other, but immediately settled down at Todd’s outburst.21

Oddly, that was kind of a hot.  I totally wanted to turn to the next table and tell the woman eavesdropping there “And I’m sleeping with him!”22

“You’re what?!?”  The woman was staring at me with an appalled look on her face.23

“Hu-whu?”  Fuckity!  Had I said that out loud?  I lurched to my feet.  “Excuse me: bathroom!”  And I slunk under the nearest rock.24

My head pounding, I splashed water on my face in the bathroom and then stepped into a stall to calm down.  The bathroom door opened and closed a few times while I was slumped there against the side wall, people coming and going, and when it was finally quiet, I took a deep breath and Mark was standing right outside the stall!25

I think I might have screamed a little.  But not in a girly way.26

(Shut up!)27

“Hey, guy,” he sneered at me.  Well, it wasn’t actually a sneer, because there was sort of a laugh in it as well, or maybe a little lust or something.  So it was more of a . . .lusty sneer. . .or a . . .28

. . .leer.29

Oh. . .just don’t even.30

“Mark,” I managed, and he pressed into the stall, backing me against the side wall.31

“I’ll tell ya what we’re gonna do, man,” he grinned, towering over me (he was really only, maybe, an inch taller, but I think I’d started cowering by that point), “You’re gonna suck my cock, wherever, whenever I want ya to, and I’m not gonna tell Toddy about what happened last night.  Alright?”32

~I knew it!  I KNEW SOMETHING HAPPENED!~33

~Well, if you’re gonna be blackmailed, you could have worse terms!~34

Shut it!  Both of you!35

“Deal?” Mark sneered.  And this one was totally a sneer.36

I gave a choking nod.  (Which isn’t easy.  Go ahead: try it.)37

Mark pressed closer.  “’Cause, I mean, I’ve asked Todd what the deal was, and he’s tried to explain, but I never knew a guy could suck cock like you did,” he whispered in my ear, breathing heavily.  “Shit, guy, that was the fuckin’ best I’ve ever had, and I’ve had some.”  He pressed even closer, and then finished, barely audible: “Makes me wonder what bein’ in your ass is like.”38

He gave a quick intake of breath, quickly pulled away, and left the bathroom.39

What.  The.  Hell?!?!?40

And the worst of it?  I was totally, fucking, hard.41

It took me another couple of minutes to, like, compose myself, check my makeup, shit like that, and then I hesitantly returned to the table.  Nothing had changed; everyone looked the same (except for that stupid woman at the next table who was now eye-fucking me.  Move along, nothing to see here).  I sat down next to Mark (!@&%$^Y!  Why am I hard again!?!?) and Todd asked, “You okay?”42

The woman was still glaring at me.  I think everyone was staring at that point.43

“Yeah, a little. . .queasy.  From last night,” I mumbled, glancing at the woman, who just wouldn’t stop.  I mean, damn, some people. . .it’s like. . .there’s always. . .why is it that--what the hell is she looking at!?!?!?44

And I whirled about and went all Mount Vesuvius on her: “Fuck off, you stupid twat!  Get a grip, grow a life, and drag your pointy-ass nose out of mine!”45

“Whoa!”46

“Dude!”47

~Ballsy. . .I like it!  You officially develop multiple personalities?~48

The woman’s face flashed a festive pink color, her eyes bugging out like they were on stalks, and she slowly turned around and buried herself in her purse before leaving some money on the table and scuttling out the door.49

All of the football players were slack jawed: a few with grins, Mark with some inscrutable expression, and Todd with a look of absolute amazement.  Which may or may not have been a good thing.50

“Damn, dude!” one of the guys blurted, and the entire table burst into laughter, including Todd, who slung his arm over my shoulder in a kind of hug.  But Mark was a little more subdued, watching me warily, and I returned his look with what I hoped was a “yeah, it’s like that” squint of my eyes.51

It was all very Bette Davis/Joan Crawford, bumpy night/don’t fuck with me fellas.52

(Yeah, I’ve been watching American Movie Classics lately.  What of it?)53

In no time we had finished brunch, thrown money in for the check, and were all headed in different directions.  And Todd finally asked me the question that I had been dreading for awhile now, but knew would inevitably come: 54

“So. . .should I get you back to your car?”55

“Yeah.”56

~Back to life, back to reality. . .~57

And back to my own dorm room.58

Standing in front of me in the mall parking lot where I’d left my car, Todd took my entire face in his big, warm hands, and planting a kiss on me.  Late-afternoon shoppers walked past without a second look at us, and I thought I heard the strains of violin music.59

“Ok, so the next time we spend the night together,” Todd smiled, my face still in his hands, “I want us to both remember it, so no parties, no beer, and no falling asleep before the end of the night.”60

“I think I can handle that,” I managed, flushed from the kiss.61

“Good.”  Just before Todd dropped back into his car and sped away, he flashed me the biggest, most gorgeous smile that I’d ever seen in my entire life.  “See you in class tomorrow.”62

And I’ll be damned if I didn’t get any reading done for that stupid Ancient History test!63

And I’ll be damned if I really care.64

~Ending Of First Season65