Bad Connections

"Uh, sure, show me the system. I usually play a Mystic Knight, they have anything like that?

"I'm sure we can find something that will work."

"Great. About the room?"

"You'll have to go solo the rest of this semester, but I think you'll be okay with that considering what Ruben told me about you."

"Yeah, a few weeks solo will do me fine."

"Next semester, we'll have more people coming in. I'll show you the names, let you take your pick if you know anyone."

"That'd be great. Thanks!"

***

"We were friends from that day forward," Doug further recounted. "Boris bothered to connect with me and include me in his hobbies. I bothered to participate in them too. Keith turned out to be someone I knew from Beaumont also attending UT. Zeck was a good friend also, while he was around. Ruben forwarded my mail and bills, but hasn't talked to me since last summer. I haven't talked to Josh since I moved away from him. I guess he didn't care enough to try and contact me for apologies even though he had my number."

"Maybe he was afraid of you getting even more upset."

"Probably. He may have thought I had my keys or not bothered to check- I rationalized that later in the week. But I wasn't going to call him and explain myself."

"Not that it was necessary." Lisa shook her head.

"Yeah," Doug agreed. "Ruben said he'd just tell Josh I moved out but not where and deal with things if he got angry, he'd done stuff like that before. I told him I didn't care, which was pretty much true. My next roommate was nicer."

"You want to tell me about him? You had three before me, right?"

"Yeah. Summer classes are two semesters at UT, with longer more frequent academic sessions."

"I know," Lisa reminded him. "I'm going here too." She had her psychotherapy career planned out and Doug was one of her many practice patients. "Your second roommate was a better person?"

"Yes, but our meeting was still random. I didn't recognize any names Boris showed me, so I rolled the dice again. Got someone okay this time. Dan- that was his name, interestingly enough- was almost never around. He was a Business major like Boris, we didn't talk much. I did connect with his girlfriend, though, the few times I met her. Her name was Audrey Russell. She was a science major hoping to get into dental work eventually. She came by looking for Dan a lot and I told her what I could about his class schedule. They broke up eventually. I never made a move on her while they were dating- I hadn't told Dan about Josh and didn't want to create a problem."

"Was she cute?"

"Yeah, but I didn't want to be the kind of roommate who screws people over." Doug sighed. "I haven't seen Ashley or Kathleen since our mutual debacle. I asked Boris what happened to them and Josh once. Ruben and a female Jester RA they know told Boris Ashley transferred to another dorm but nothing further."

"She's part of Nicole's sorority now," Lisa said. "I think so, anyway. The name and description match a girl from the latest pledge group who's roommates with Nicole this semester. No pictures, and we've only met twice, so I can't be sure it's her. No hookups between us either, before you ask. Nicole's my only ex-girlfriend in Arete, and I don't keep track of all her relationships."

Doug shrugged. "If it is the Ashley I knew, hopefully she'll get better relationships. Josh and Kathleen each got their own rooms in Jester the rest of the semester, Boris lost track of them after that. They didn't get back together, though. Not sure if they'll ever find happiness elsewhere."

"Doesn't matter," Lisa shrugged. "They made mistakes, hopefully they'll do better in their next relationships. Nicole's told me the Ashley we know is pretty chummy with one of the frat officers Nicole knows. She's double dated with them a few times, hasn't given me further details. And as for you, well, a few months later you met me." Lisa grinned.

"You weren't my first college relationship, though."

Lisa nodded, not surprised. "You want to tell me about the others?"

"Sure," Doug said after a pause. "The first was my second most disturbing sexual experience. It happened during my second month at UT..."

***

"This club's usually a good place for picking up girls," Boris said, leading Doug into Antone's. "It's pretty high end, though. I'm surprised you got us on the VIP list."

"I know someone who's mutual friends with the founder." Doug smiled. "Thanks for being my wingman tonight. I've never used a wingman before. I got a pretty big strikeout record with picking up girls in places like this."

"Mine's not as great as I'd like either," Boris sighed, not elaborating. "When was your last success?"

"Uh, never," Doug sighed. "I've tried and struck out many times. One girl agreed to go to a hotel with me last week- I didn't want to bring her back to Jester because of Dan- but she got an emergency call from her girlfriend before we could finish checking in and had to bail. I offered to help her, she said no. We exchanged numbers. She hasn't called me back."

"Sorry." Boris looked around the club. "I've succeeded here twice. Don't see anyone I know here tonight."

"I'm surprised you don't have a steady girlfriend."

"Yeah, well, college isn't always the best place for lasting relationships." Boris sighed. "Listen, I'm more of a solo artist. Why don't we try stealth wingman?"

"What's that?"

"I'll stay near you but not be obvious. You take the lead on solo girls you like. I'll hover nearby so you can call me in if you need me. You see a girl in a group you like, buzz me over and I'll help you break the ice, see if her friends like me."

"And if I strike out with a solo girl," Doug guessed, "and I think you might like her, I let you know."

"Right. I'll do all the same things for you."

"Sounds great, thanks."

Boris vanished into the crowd. Doug looked around the club for interesting faces. Some were pretty, but none looked welcoming. Then he saw someone familiar sitting at the bar. A student from his American History 101 class he'd talked to twice about scholastic matters. A slim girl with dirty blonde hair, an hourglass figure, and calm blue eyes. She looked different tonight- her hair was full of bright fresh multicolored streaks. She was alone at the bar, sipping what looked like a martini with a forlorn expression. Doug wandered over to her.

"Excuse me," he said in greeting. "I know you from one of my classes. Alice, right?"

She turned to face him and smiled at once. "Yes, Alice Walton," she said in a friendly lilt. "Your name's Doug, right?"

"Doug Ramsay," Doug reminded her. "That's a new hairstyle."

"It's rinse out dye. I only put it on for my night life." She smiled wider. "That's a VIP wristband. You come here often?"

"First time, but I have a friend who got me this. Can I freshen your drink?"

"Sure." She waved at the bartender. "Virgin martini, straight up. Shaken, not stirred."

"Same," Doug said when the bartender glanced at him. "My tab. You here alone tonight, Alice?"

"Yeah," she confessed. "Still getting to know Austin after coming up from Corpus. You?"

"My wingman is somewhere." Doug looked around but didn't see Boris. "We're traveling seperately. He's been here before. I haven't. This club really reflects its reputation. The music's nice." He bobbed a bit to the blues tunes coming from the stage.

Alice sipped her drink and smiled as she observed him. "You dance?"

"Trained in ballroom, swing, and a few other styles." Doug's mother had insisted he learn dancing to connect with women. It's worked for you before, he reminded himself, and she did ask. "You want me to show you?"

"Sure."

They danced to the next song and a few more that night. Alice was impressed with his moves as much as most of his previous partners. They exchanged advice on classes and tales of past relationships between songs for the next two hours. Alice was first year at UT, but a year in age Doug's senior. She had taken previous classes on the Corpus Christi Texas A&M Campus and was majoring in Elementary Education. She told him she was between relationships and lived alone, having struck out more often than not and honestly afraid of some men. Doug said he was single also and had a roommate but nothing more than that. He didn't like to try to mold a relationship before it got started, though he did prefer long term to short. He nodded at her tales of woe, acknowledged them without bothering to apologize, let alone justify what had happened to her. I don't know these jerks, but I'm not like them, he assured her, and left it at that.

Let her drive this, he reminded himself of his usual tactics. You can prompt her but not push her. Be ready and willing to disengage without trouble at any time. This is a weekend night, and you don't have work till tomorrow evening, so it can go somewhere, but let her decide that, not you. It goes bad, remember your imagination and your porn collection and leave it at that.

"What have you been disappointed by here?" she asked at one point.

"Lack of appropriate attention more than anything else," he said. "I want to be brought into unfamiliar situations on comfortable terms with honest friendship and dedication, because that's what I'm bringing to the table."

She smiled at this, seeming to accept his sincerity. They kept dancing and chatting over drinks when they needed to rest their muscles.

Boris checked in with Doug after another half hour, when Alice was in the restroom. "Looks like you got someone."

"Maybe," Doug answered. "Where have you been?"

"Around. I'm sneakier than you might think. Comes from working as a bouncer in places like this. You can text me if you don't see me. I might have scored too. You okay if I leave in a bit?"

"Sure, just text me when you do, okay?" Doug exchanged fist bumps with Boris, who then melted back into the crowd.

He didn't have to wait long for Alice to return. "That big guy was your wingman?" she asked.

Doug nodded. "Boris is my RA and a workout buddy. He said he's leaving soon. How much later you staying out?"

"Not long. You mind giving me an escort back to Dobie?"

Doug recalled that Dobie was a private dorm his brother Aldo had stayed in while attending UT. Unlike Jester, it was integrated to allow opposite sex roommates. He'd patronized the shopping mall on the lower floors but had not yet been to the apartments on the upper ones. "Sure, but I'm on foot." Downtown was not far from the UT campus. "You mind splitting a cab fare?"

Alice didn't, and they headed back together after another half hour. "Doug, you seem nice," she said after inviting him into her apartment for further conversation. "What's your opinion on one night stands?"

"I'm not a big fan of them," he made a prepared speech. "I like my relationships to last as long as possible. But of course, things can happen."

"You seem young for as much as you know about relationships."

"I read a lot about them. I watch a lot of drama shows too." He sighed, then decided to accept her apparent invitation. "If you want a one-night stand tonight, I'm okay with one. But I'd prefer to see you again afterwards as much as we can manage."

"Likewise," she said, then stepped closer and kissed him on the lips.

He returned her kiss and its accompanying caresses. They soon moved into her bedroom, their clothing loosened on the way.

"Doug," Alice said once they were in the bedroom, "there's something you should know."

"What's that?"

"I like to videotape my sexual encounters. Not all of my relationships have lasted long- I've had one night stands here and in Corpus. Lasting relationships too, but not as many. I watch my tapes to remind myself of good times. You mind if I record what we're about to do tonight?"

Doug thought about the matter for a moment- he had never before met a girl with such interests- then shrugged. It was a good motivation to perform well, he thought. "Sure, long as I get a copy if I want one. And we do nothing we both don't want to do."

"No problem." Alice kissed him again, then stepped away and moved towards her bed. She disrobed as she moved, throwing aside her blouse and bra before pushing her jeans off. Doug watched her, admiring the small tan nipples on her medium size breasts and the muscles of her coltish legs and toned stomach. Down to red cotton panties, she then lay down and beckoned him with a gesture.

Doug took off his jacket, shirt, and shoes, then removed his glasses and pocketed them. "I have condoms in my wallet," he said, reaching into his pants. "You okay with me using one?"

"I prefer that," Alice answered. "And if you're wondering, I'm disease free and on the pill."

"Good to know," Doug replied. He then took a condom out of his jeans and placed it on the bedside table. "You may have to help me put this on."

"No problem."

"Where's the camera?"

"On the ceiling. I have another in my living room. You've been on tape since we walked in. Full audio, too. We can watch later."

It was clear what she wanted now. Doug sighed and told himself to forget his nerves. He finished undressing except for his underwear, then joined Alice on the bed. She stroked his cock through his underwear until he was hard while he roamed his hands over her body in response. He tweaked her breasts, traced circles on her back and stomach. He squeezed her thighs while she rubbed his shaft. Their mouths met constantly, exchanging breaths and tongue swipes. By the time he was hard and ready, Doug could feel her visibly wet through her knickers.

"Finger me," she urged him. Doug guessed that she was speaking loudly for the camera.

He complied, pushing her panties down and slipping two fingers into her sheath. He moved purposefully within the tight tunnel of her loins, stroking Alice's labia and clit. Shaved, he noted. Rough and moist. I like the way she feels.

"Stay hard for me," she commanded him. "I want to come first."

"Okay," he said. It was a nice honest request and she'd paid him enough compliments that evening while accepting his that he believed her. He didn't mind fulfilling it either- he was well-rested and very attracted to her. Besides, there was no better way he knew to keep a good woman in his life than to satisfy her unconditionally, then hope she'd do the same for him.

Watching her pleasure would turn him on too.

So he brought it forth, pumping her pussy with two of his fingers. He moved his other hand and his mouth around her body as he lay on the bed beside her. Doug stroked Alice's breasts and legs. He also alternated kisses between her lips, throat, and nipples. When he found sensitive areas, he lingered on them. He tried to keep his touch soft, knowing, and appreciative. He let her respond at her own pace, and watched her throughout with his eyes.

Alice was soon quaking under his attention. She rubbed him faster in response. Doug disconnected a bit from the situation- he wanted to prolong it, not the opposite, and he had no pressing concerns other than continuing the bliss. He kept up his motions, accepting the clenching of her thighs and the rhythm of her moans. When she cried out, he smiled. When she had calmed, he kissed her flesh.

He then pulled his fingers from her with a pop and sucked her juices. Sweet, with a spice he could not easily identify.

Alice raised an eyebrow at this. He extended his fingers her way. "You taste good," he said, another honest compliment. "Want to try?"

She looked bothered for a brief instant, then shrugged. "Sure."

Alice sucked on his wet fingers for a moment, making appreciative noises. Doug frowned- something was off about her. Oh well, he told himself, never mind. She is with you, and that is enough. You crave a connection, however long it lasts. She is giving you one.

He checked his length- he was ready- and he wanted her thighs around him. "I can lick you later," he offered, withdrawing his fingers from her mouth. "But right now I want to fuck you."

Alice paused for a second, then nodded. "Okay, one sec."

She moved his underwear down his legs and pushed the condom onto him after unwrapping it. Doug kicked off his last garment, then straddled her and got between her thighs. He leaned close, lined up their loins, and pushed in. He was hard, while she was wide open and welcoming on a level he had never before experienced. Crying out, seeking pleasure and willing to experience it. Appreciative of every thrust he made, and every counterpoint caress. He kept moving in and out of her, letting her arms and legs entwine about him and hold him in.

Act nice, Doug told himself as they fucked. You're on the camera of her memory along with the actual camera. You want to see this girl again, spend as much time with her as you can. You like her, and you have no reason to leave. It was a true and easy mantra.

He let her body express passion around his, and she seemed equally patient. Kind also, with her clenching muscles and soft cries of need. Doug kept rubbing her centers of pleasure and directed her hands to his. Her clit needle rubbed against his cock. Her moist vulva squeezed and shivered around his member. Sometimes he slipped out, but she quickly guided him back in. He squeezed her back muscles and rear end as he held her close.

"Come for me," she said loudly. "Come, baby, come!"

"I will," he promised. "Soon."

They kept thrusting at each other and rolling around on the bed until he did. It happened with Alice riding atop him, shaking her body and running her fingers over his chest. He massaged her buttocks and enjoyed the closeness of her legs. Both were drenched in sweat. She had experienced climax several times while he was within her, per his judgement. The volume and chaos of her cries and gyrations illustrated her feelings well.

"That took a while," she said after he deflated, separating from him.

He took a few breaths to relax, then nodded. "Was it worth it?"

"Definitely," she said, looking right at him with an earnest grin. "Can you stay here tonight?"

"If you'll let me, sure. Just tell me when I need to leave."

"In the morning," she answered. "I'll make you breakfast then."

"Sounds great." He returned her smile with his own. "But first, I promised to eat something tonight."

She raised an eyebrow. He looked at her open cunt and pointed at it. Alice nodded, remembering what he'd offered to do earlier.

"Go ahead," she said, lying back on the bed. She then opened her legs.

He kissed her mouth first, then traced his lips down her torso. He buffed her throat, breasts, stomach, and thighs. Finally he put his mouth against her loins, breathing and lapping at her. He started with her clit, but did not concentrate there alone. He moved two fingers in and out of her to accompany his jabbing tongue. His other hand roamed about her torso, hefting each breast and pushing on the nipple. Alice kept her hands on his shoulders and head- she could touch no other areas. Doug was alright with this- he was deflated anyway and making her climax again was the best way to spend time while he revived. Watching her do that, building up the confidence that he could make it happen, would arouse his passion again.

He ignored the acrid taste of her sweat, concentrated on the sweet taste of her pure female fluids. Doug had tasted them before, liked them, and wanted to consume more of them. So he kept tapping the well with his tongue, tickling Alice's clit. He found her cunt's most sensitive spots and kept hitting them again and again. Alice vibrated under his attention. She kept moaning and crying out, over and over. Doug continued licking and caressing her until she relaxed, then pushed him away. He went with the flow, accepting that she was now overly sensitive.

"Ready again?" she asked when she had relaxed.

He nodded. The condom had slipped off him when he deflated, however.