Degrees of Affection

The sharp squeeze on her elbow was the only thing keeping Emily from eating the icy pavement. An arm snaked around her waist gently but firmly, further helping to keep her from falling.

"Easy there, vixen," a voice laughed by her ear. "It's not that I don't like having pretty girls fall for me, but to literally do so is just dangerous!"

"Oh, Beth, stop it!" another girl giggled. "Look, you're embarrassing her. Her face is turning red and I don't think it's because of the cold. Sweetie, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Emily mumbled.

The arm around her waist slowly slid out and her elbow was released. She slowly looked into the face of the girl who had saved her. Beth Miller was a senior at their liberal arts college. She had come in on a swimming scholarship four years earlier and had the lean and slim body of an athlete. Her dishwater blonde hair was cut in an ear length bob that made her look a little boyish, especially paired with the modest sized breasts that were easily concealed beneath a winter sweater or parka. Her blue-gray eyes seemed to be gently teasing her younger classmate.

"Thank you," Emily added belatedly.

"You're welcome," Beth said with a laugh. The sound ended with a sharp inhalation as her friend elbowed her.

"Stop," the other senior said a little more firmly. "Look, she's just a kid. She's probably mortified about needing your help."

"She's not a kid," Beth retorted. She had stopped laughing but her tone remained cheerful. "She's in my biology class."

"Really? She's a senior like us? But she's so tiny and she looks so young!"

"I'm five-feet-three," Emily said, feeling awkward about the way they were talking as if she wasn't there. She wasn't tiny, but she was small enough - both in height and frame - that she was frequently mistaken for much younger. Her brown eyes were very large and set in a face that could have been a model for a doll. No matter how many styles she tried, her dark hair - which currently fell loose and straight to just below her shoulder blades - only seemed to accentuate the almost childlike features of her 18-year-old face.

"And she is younger, but not by much," Beth added. To Emily, she said, "I did a little bit of research, since you're the top student in our class. I've always sucked at the sciences so I put off this requirement as long as I could. I made sure to know who you are in case I ever need help!" She laughed. "I hope that doesn't sound creepy."

"No, it's not creepy," the smaller girl mumbled. She wished that she could think of more to say so that she didn't seem like such an idiot. On the other hand, she felt like she was having trouble thinking at all. Her heart was like a small and scared rabbit in her chest and she was trying hard not to look at Beth because doing so only made her heart beat faster. She tried not to look at the older girl even though she knew it made her seem like an idiot or a snob.

"Good," Beth said, oblivious to all of this. "Now that we have that out of the way, how about if I help you get back to your dorm? The same patches ice over every year so I can help you to avoid those ones, too."

"No, I'll be okay," Emily muttered, even as her mind imagined walking back with her classmate. She shut it down before it went to other places that would only make her feel more awkward.

"I insist. Besides, it'll give us a chance to talk about something besides anemic acids," Beth said.

"Amino acids," Emily murmured as Beth turned her

attention to her friend.

"Hey, Gretch? Is that okay?"

"Yeah, yeah," her friend said, waving her hand.

"Judging by what you just said, you probably need more help in that class than you realize."

"What?"

It was Gretchen's turn to laugh. "I'll talk to

you later. Bye, lovebirds!"

Beth flinched. "I wish she wouldn't do that."

She had a smile on her face when she turned back to Emily. She extended her left arm, the elbow slightly bent. "Shall we?

"Sorry," she said almost immediately, lowering her arm. "I'm being too forward and you're probably thinking I'm a freak for - "

"I don't think you're a freak," the smaller girl blurted. She noticed her own arm slip through Beth's arm as she spoke. She hadn't meant to do that, even though it was what she wanted.

It was almost 11 p.m. and most of their peers were either home and hiding from the cold or drinking away the chill at a bar. The air was punctuated only by the soft crunch of their boots in the snow. Focusing on where she was walking had taken away Emily's self-consciousness and a part of her mind was able to enjoy how nice it was to walk this close to her classmate. She liked the pressure of the taller girl's arm as it helped to steady her, and just the general sense of knowing Beth was this close to her.

All too quickly, she felt the older girl stop.

"I told you I did some research," she laughed. She seemed to feel a little self-conscious. "This is your dorm, right?"

"Hm? Yeah," Emily murmured. She stared at the door to the lobby with mixed feelings. Suddenly, she blurted, "Do you want to come in? I have some hot cocoa packets and a plug-in kettle. We're not supposed to have them, but I brought one anyways."

"Oh, my god. Why am I talking so much?" she thought.

She didn't have too much time to beat herself up because she heard Beth reply, "That'd be great. I'd love to.

"Holy crap," she breathed a few minutes later after they ascended the stairs to the third floor and entered Emily's icy room. "I'd forgotten how cheap the college is when it comes to heating these places!"

"Yeah," Emily said, making her way to a small space heater in one corner of the room. She flipped it on and said, "We're not supposed to have these either, but obviously it's a necessity. It should warm up in a couple of minutes. I'll put on the water for the cocoa - oh, my god."

"What?"

"The water." Emily lifted up a one gallon water bottle. The contents did not move even a centimeter. "It's frozen."

Beth clapped her hands over her mouth but not before a small snort slipped out. Emily stared at her for a second and then her own giggle escaped. In a moment they were both laughing very hard. The dark haired girl had tears running down her face and Beth gasped out, "Oh, my god. Are you actually crying?"

Emily only laughed harder as Beth closed the distance between them. "You are! I've never really seen anyone laugh this hard before! This is hilarious!"

"Sorry," Emily said, pitching forward and resting her head against the other girl's chest. "I can't seem to stop. Sorry!"

She didn't know how long she stood there, giggling like a maniac. She only knew that as her laughter started to die down, she had been the only one laughing. She would have backed away, embarrassed, but Beth's arms were wrapped around her.

"Sorry," Emily said again, this time in a serious voice. "You probably think I'm an idiot."

"Shh," Beth said quietly and Emily felt frozen in place. "I don't think you're an idiot, but I - I should probably go."

In spite of her words, her arms didn't move from Emily's body. It was almost as if she was hoping that the younger girl would contradict her.

Emily did. "You don't have to."

"But I should." Her arms moved reluctantly. Stepping back, she took a deep breath but wouldn't look at the other girl. "You've probably heard things because I don't keep it a secret, but in case you haven't: I like girls and you...you are very cute.

"I'm sorry about this," she added, turning away.

"Please don't go," Emily said softly.

Beth stopped. Emily's heart was racing in her chest and her hands were shaking almost to the same rhythm.

"I don't want you to go," she added in an even quieter voice.

"Why?" Beth asked, not turning around. There was hope in her voice but also uncertainty.

Emily's mouth had suddenly gone dry and her breathing had become shallow. She didn't think she could get her words out and yet they came, so softly that she was afraid that she was only imagining that she said them, "Because I like you."

Apparently, she had said them loudly enough. Beth turned around. "How do you like me?"

This time, Emily couldn't meet her eyes. She stared down at the space of flooring that was just in front of her feet. She could hear the sound of the other girl's footsteps drawing closer and saw when Beth's toes were only inches from hers.

"How do you like me?" she repeated. She coiled an index finger beneath Emily's chin and lifted it so that they could look into each other's eyes.

"Do you like me like this?"

Emily felt the heat from the other girl's breath for a split second before Beth's lips gently covered her own. She let out a tiny moan of pleasure, feeling the heat even in that very light touch. She was disappointed when Beth pulled away.

"Or do you like me like this?" the older girl breathed. This time, the tip of her tongue gently pushed past Emily's lips, tracing the area just behind her upper lip and then her bottom lip before reaching further and finding the smaller girl's tongue.

Emily melted against her. Shyly, her arms stretched up and behind Beth's neck, pulling her in for a deeper kiss. She felt her classmate murmur her appreciation as her tongue became more aggressive: twining around Emily's tongue and pulling on it until Beth was gently sucking.

Breaking the kiss once again, Beth turned her focus to undressing the younger girl. She unzipped the puffy pink outerwear jacket and let it drop to the floor. With one motion, she lifted off the sweater and long sleeved t-shirt that were beneath. Beth gasped at the smooth, fair skin that was exposed, and her eyes slowly roamed over to the gently slopes of Emily's C-cup breasts.

"Or maybe," she breathed as she reached back to undo the bra with one hand while sliding down the straps with the other, "you like me like this?"

Slowly, as if oblivious to Emily's pleading mewls, Beth trailed the tip of her tongue in a circle around one nipple. She repeated the motion, gaining speed and adding pressure with each turn. Suddenly, she sucked the nipple into her mouth, biting gently as she flicked the tip with her tongue.

"Oh, Beth," Emily breathed, combing her fingers through the girl's short blonde hair. "I really like - oh!"

Beth interrupted her by quickly sucking on her other nipple while using one hand to pinch the one she had just left. Emily's head fell back and she was only slightly aware that she was being pushed backward to her bed.

As her back connected with the mattress, she opened her eyes to see Beth shrugging out of her clothes. Her blue-gray eyes were out of focus as she stood to pull off her sweater and pants. She wasn't wearing a bra and Emily shyly reached up to cup the not-quite-B-cups as the other girl removed her panties. Beth gasped but her smile was mischievous.

"You only like me like that?" she asked teasingly.

"Mm," Emily said softly. "Maybe like this?" and she sat up and tried to take Beth's right breast into her mouth.

"And like this?" Emily added shyly, slipping a hand between the other girl's legs. She was completely soaked. She could feel Beth tremble as she moved her hand back and forth.

"Is...is that...all?" Beth gasped. Her hands had been working on the button of Emily's pants and had finally undone them. Emily had to release her breasts and take back her hand as Beth slipped the denim down and onto the floor. Breathing roughly, she reached for the waist of Emily's panties and slowly slid them off. "Because...I like you this much."

"Ungh," Emily groaned as she felt Beth's tongue rest at the bottom of her lower lips.

Beth teasingly traced from the bottom of these to the top, and then lazily traced a circle around Emily's clitoris. She smiled when she felt the younger girl's small hands weave into her hair and pull her face closer. Slowly, she sucked on Emily's clitoris, pulling it as far into her mouth as she could, and then flicking it with the tip of her tongue.

"Oh, god," Emily gasped. "Oh, god, oh, god, oh, god. Beth, I really...really like you. This much. I like you this much! Oh... I wish... I want to taste you, too, Beth!"

Beth groaned and came close to cumming just from hearing those words. She slipped onto the bed, keeping contact with Emily for as long as she could. At the last moment, she lay on her back and said, "Straddle my face so that you're looking the wall."

Emily was lost to her desires and obeyed, forgetting any previous shyness. She placed a knee on either side of Beth's head and felt the older girl's arms push down gently on her shoulders. Emily collapsed easily and willingly, her tongue searching out Beth's moistness and licking it.

"Oh," Beth groaned, drawing up her knees to give the smaller girl more access. At the same time, she pulled down on Emily's hips so that she could lick her slit once more. Stiffening her tongue, she penetrated the folds and slowly moved her head back and forth. She loved the sharp yet sweet taste of Emily's juices and did her best to lick out every drop. It didn't seem like enough, so she renewed her attack on the girl's clitoris, sucking almost roughly on it while inserting two fingers in the space where her tongue had been.

Emily lifted her head and gasped.

"Oh, Beth," she groaned. "So good... So good! Don't stop!"

Emily duplicated the motion, sucking Beth's clitoris deep into her own mouth and running her tongue back and forth over it. Her fingers worked their way into Beth's wetness and pumped roughly back and forth. She noticed that Beth's hips were gyrating beneath her and then rising to meet each thrust of her hand.

Her own hips were doing the same but also pressing down against her older classmate's face. She felt herself getting warmer down there, and something almost like an electrical current running everywhere that Beth was touching. She didn't have time to think about it because her body suddenly exploded. The walls of her pussy were pulsating so roughly that a very distant part of her worried that she was going to break Beth's fingers, which were still sliding in and out of her. Her mind went completely blank and just before she passed out, she was aware of Beth crying out and her face being drenched with a deliciously warm and sticky fluid.

She wasn't sure how long she was passed out, but when she woke up, Beth was slowly kissing and licking her face clean. She smiled when Emily looked into her eyes.

"Hi," Beth said.

"Hi," Emily said shyly.

"Do you still like me?"

Emily nodded and then felt her head involuntarily fall back as Beth's fingers pinched one of her nipples.

"How much?" Beth teased. Not waiting for an answer, she rolled Emily onto her side and lovingly spooned her. "Think about it. You can show me later."