Every Thing She Does is Magic

"Actually, Julie, it was my mother. She died from pancreatic cancer over a year ago in July. She was 44. Far too young ..." Tears began to well in his eyes again. Without thinking, she reached out a hand, clasped him by the back of his neck, and pulled his head down to her shoulder. Her shirt quickly soaked up his tears and she gently scratched the back of his head with her fingernails, trying to offer solace and comfort.

Something caused him to stiffen and to sit up, removing his face from her shoulder. He pressed his lips together tightly and sniffed back some unshed tears. Twisting his face into a sad smile, he composed himself.

"Thank you, Julie, literally, for the shoulder to cry on."

"Tom, I can only try to offer you my sympathetic ear and shoulder if necessary. I have never lost anyone so close to me, not even when my father divorced my mother and abandoned us."

"He WHAT??!"

"Not long after my sister was born, he decided he couldn't handle all the responsibilities that came with a family. He up and left us. Mom may know where he is, but I have no idea, nor do I care."

"Oh, Julie, I am so sorry for your pain," he tried to empathize with her.

"It's okay, Tom. I don't think of him as my father; merely as the sperm donor."

He looked at the clock and it was a minute before 9:00 PM and the end of his scheduled shift. He put his things away in his backpack, logged his hours, and got the room ready for the next day.

"Come on, Julie. I'll walk you to your dorm. It'll be safer that way."

Her heart gave a little zing at his words, and she quickly readied herself to depart.

They walked side by side, occasionally bumping hands, as she guided him to her residence hall. He was deep in thought from the moment they left the lab. He was starting to like this girl, but he wasn't sure how far to push things. His parents had raised him to be respectful and deferential, especially to women. He had never had a proper girlfriend before, so he did not know how to proceed. He did keep an alert eye out when they were in the less well-lit parts of their walk, but nothing happened.

Finally, they got to the dormitory door. she opened it with her key and turned to him and asked him to walk her to her room. When they passed the Campus Life Date Nite Movie Nite poster, he gathered up his courage.

"Julie, would you like to go to the movie night on Friday with me?"

"Hmmm. Let me think on it." She paused for a few heartbeats. "YES! I'd like to go to this with you, Tom. Can you bring a snack so we don't have to spend any money? I'll bring some drinks."

Her words filled his heart with joy and put a spring in his step. They walked up a flight of stairs and down the hall to her room. They did not realize it, but their hands were touching almost the entire way. Not holding hands, per se, but simply touching. She unlocked her door, turned, gave him a light brush of her lips on his cheek, and softly said, "Thank you for keeping me safe." As his face began to blush, she ducked inside and closed the door, leaning against the door and fanning her face. Suddenly, she stood up straight and opened her door in a panic.

"Tom ‽" she called. He was about to turn into the stairwell to head down, and his head spun quickly. With a quizzical expression on his face, he started to walk back to her door. Making sure she still had her key, she ran to meet him halfway.

"I don't have your number and you don't have mine," she explained, gulping down some air.

A smile came to his face, and he admitted it would probably be a good idea to have each other's contact information. She put her number in his phone and texted herself being sure to save the numbers on each phone. She gave him another quick kiss, but this time she caught some of his lips. Blushing slightly, she bolted for her door and fumbled getting the key in the lock. He stood there, watching her, his hand on his face where she kissed him the second time. An erection began to stir in his jeans. She got the key to work, and she stepped inside with a flutter of her fingertips at him. Inside, with the door closed, she did a fist pump of success. The hook was set. Now to land him.

He dreamed of his mother that night. At least he thought it was his mother. It could have been Julie. He was simply lost in her green eyes and the feel of her lips on his cheek and tantalizing his lips. Yeah, no, that wasn't his mother he was dreaming about. He woke early, before his alarm, and his cock was as hard as a rock. He quickly and quietly made his way into the bathroom where he eased his backlog while thinking of Julie. She was beginning to grow on him.

Thursday, September 3

At breakfast, Tom got out his phone and sent Julie a quick message.

"Looking forward to our date on Friday."

Her reply came quickly. "Me, too. I like butter-flavored popcorn, FYI."

He made it to where her accounting class met before it started. He was leaning against the outside of the door when she came around the corner. She saw him and her face lit up with joy. She rushed to give him a hug and a kiss on the cheek before trying to step back. She noticed that he held onto her hands, keeping her close to him.

"What are you doing here, Tom?"

"I wanted to see you again. I dreamed about you last night. I can't remember much, but I was lost in your eyes and your scent. I have a long shift in the lab tonight, so I probably won't be able to see you until tomorrow. I wanted to let you know that I cannot get you off my mind. Please share the tips and tricks about your project with others in your class. I've got to go, Julie, and you've got your class. Bye."

"Bye." He dropped her hands, reluctantly.

She was nearly set upon when she entered the classroom a few minutes early.

"Who was THAT you were talking to?" one girl asked.

She smirked a little before answering. "He's the lead tutor in the accounting lab. He gave me some tips on avoiding traps with the project that Dr. Casper mentioned on Tuesday, and he's my date for Friday!" She wanted to rub it in a little. Dr. Casper had come in behind her. Hearing her words, he decided she could be useful to the class.

"Miss Lawson, would you please come here and stand beside me for a bit?" he asked. Her eyes grew wide as he called on her. Dr. Casper closed the door and began the class.

"Class, I believe Miss Lawson here has some useful information to share with us all. Miss Lawson?"

She was not afraid to get up in front of a class. She didn't care a whole lot for being singled out, though. Still, she sucked it up and explained what Tom had shared with her.

"Do you recall that Dr. Casper recommended visiting the accounting lab at least once before mid-terms? Well, on Tuesday, I met with Mr. Harrison, who happens to be the lead tutor in the lab. He provided the following advice regarding the course project, which generally is not announced until the fourth or fifth week. So, thank you, Dr. Casper, for giving us a head start on this."

She proceeded to reference her notes and, with Dr. Casper's permission, wrote all the tips and tricks on the whiteboard for the class to note for themselves. When she completed this, Dr. Casper thanked her for doing that legwork and sharing it with the class. He also commented, "I do love having Education majors in my courses."

She accepted the praise from Dr. Casper for acting on his recommendation so quickly. Once the room had cleared, he thanked her for getting the list of tips and tricks for the project out of Tom. Never before had any list he had seen been so complete. He also complimented her on her 'catch'. He'd witnessed the pre-class interaction between her and Tom. "Now, don't let him wiggle off your hook," he advised, being an avid fisherman. With a smile of thanks, she bounded off to get lunch before her afternoon course.

She did not drop by the lab on Thursday to see how he would react to not seeing her after they had parted that morning. She was a bit disappointed at first when he neither called nor texted her by 7:00 PM. It occurred to her that there may have been a mini-flood of people, girls, especially, from her class coming to verify the information she had shared that morning. The idea that other girls may have been poaching on what she regarded now as her territory began to fill her with possessive anger. Until she recalled that they had not discussed exclusivity; it was far too early for that, wasn't it? She filed this away for discussion on Friday after the movie. She turned her focus to her studies and to a paper that was due next Wednesday.

He worked out a trade with the other tutors so he could now have his Friday nights free. He now had a reason not to work on Fridays; a reason he had never had before.

He was a bit bummed when she did not show at the lab that Thursday evening. He did hear from John that a couple of people had shown up in the late afternoon asking about the Accounting 100 term project. John had confirmed every one of the notes the visitors had brought in, to John's surprise and Julie's credit. However, nobody showed up for the evening lab hours, so he had uninterrupted time to focus on his homework. He was pleased with himself for having secured the movie date on Wednesday and not leaving the asking until today. On his way back to his room, he texted her.

"I missed seeing your beautiful face tonight in the lab."

"Not to mention the rest of me? 😊"

"I missed all of you. Are we still good for tomorrow night?"

"YES! When do you want to meet? The movie starts at 7:00."

"Meet me at your outer door at 6:45 tomorrow?"

"Perfect! XXOO"

She wasn't sure about pushing the "hugs and kisses". He seemed to enjoy it when she caught his lips "by accident" the previous evening. She had also promised herself to allow things to progress at a pace comfortable for him. Just because she knew what she wanted, it didn't necessarily mean he knew what he wanted. So, she would continue to give him some line to play with, setting the hook so firmly that he could not imagine his life without her. Because THAT was where she was at.

Friday, September 4

Tom arose with the sun, much to his roommate's grumbling dismay. He had always been a "morning person", but Fate had dealt him yet another night owl roommate. He got out of bed and quietly stepped into the bathroom, and he stripped and stepped into the shower. He flashed back to meeting Julie on Tuesday and finally the encounter made sense to him. She had returned from the restroom having removed her bra. Her nipples had been stiff, so it was evident that she was excited. For him. She had expected to take things a lot further, but he had effectively shut her down. Now he envisioned taking things further with her. Hugging, embracing, kissing. His hands cupping her breasts through the shirt. His thumbs stroking her nipples through the soft cotton garment. Her pressing against his rock-hard cock while moaning into his mouth. Suddenly, he was coming, two, three, four blasts of his seed on the wall of the shower.

God, how he wanted her! It seemed like she wanted him as well. That was all counter to the way he was raised, to his morals. Not that he was particularly saint-like, especially given the splatter of semen on the shower wall. The release was wonderful! It got the day off to an even better start. A small feeling of shame encroached on his happiness. To have treated her like an object and not like the beautiful human being she was. Still, hadn't she practically been throwing herself at him? Nobody wants to be treated like a piece of meat. Back and forth his shoulder angel and devil carried on.

"All right! It's over and done with!" he said aloud. "Not again," he vowed

For Julie, her 9:00 AM class was simply too early that Friday morning. Normally she didn't have a problem as long as she was sufficiently caffeinated. She also didn't normally spend the entire night imagining how good his fingers and lips would feel all over her body. Finally getting with things, she applied a layer of lip gloss, pulled her hair back in a ponytail, and she set off for class.

She was giddy all day long anticipating her date with him. It was only a free movie shown by Campus Life, but it was consuming all of her spare brain cycles. It was going to be time spent with him, in public even.

For both of them, the day dragged. It was as if they had been transported to a dimension where time had no meaning. Even the food they ate at supper in separate cafeterias seemed tasteless and bland. Fortunately, she had a supply of drinks in her room, so she made sure that four of the cans were well chilled. He had the presence of mind to pop two bags of Extra Butter flavored popcorn and empty them into a paper grocery bag.

He left his room at 6:30 and was outside her dorm within five minutes. Not that he was in any great hurry, but it normally would take ten minutes for the journey. He perched atop a picnic table under an old maple tree and texted that he was outside and awaiting her to join him.

She planned her campaign. She brushed out her hair and put it back into a ponytail. She passed on putting on any other makeup, but she did apply a drop of her favorite perfume in some strategic locations. She was going for The Girl Next Door look, believing that would have the least chance of scaring him off. Her phone pinged with the text from him. Crap! He was early! It probably should not have surprised her, but it did. She almost forgot to take the drinks from the refrigerator.

His right leg bounced with nervous anticipation. She came out the door, skipping down the steps, and his heart somersaulted with joy. A huge smile spread across his face, and she answered it with a shy smile of her own. He quickly stood and approached her. She met him with a brief hug and an even quicker kiss on the cheek. The contact was long enough, however, for him to get a good whiff of the perfume she had dabbed behind her ears. Emotionally, that scent slapped him left, right, and left again. Memories flooded his consciousness and he had to take a staggering step backward.

"What's the matter, Tom?" she inquired.

He shook his head, took a deep breath of fresh air, and let it out.

"That was my mother's favorite perfume." A single tear began to well in an eye. It was a strange, sad coincidence, but she was almost ready for it and she quickly wiped the tear from his eye.

"Would it be okay with you if I continue to wear it? It's my favorite, too."

Her words cut through all the bullshit, and his head rocked back as if he'd been bitchslapped. It WAS his mother's favorite perfume, and it IS her favorite. What was there to consider? Morgan Freeman's narrated words bounced from ear-to-ear inside his head. 'Get busy living or get busy dying.'

"I want to live," he declared aloud, startling her. He offered her his left arm and elbow which she took, and they started on their date walking across the campus.

On their way, he explained about the perfume. He asked if she'd ever seen the movie 'The Shawshank Redemption', which she had not. He explained the line, 'Get busy living, or get busy dying.' She was internally cheering and shouting and dancing for joy when he explained his 'I want to live' statement. Now she had a frame of reference.

They arrived at the auditorium, and he gave a $10 donation to Campus Life while she scurried off to the little girl's room. She returned quickly and soon was nestled into his left side, his arm around her shoulder. The movie 'Fools Rush In' began with an instrumental version of 'Joy to the World,' and she clutched at his arm. Christmas songs were her mother's favorites, and they often brought a smile to Julie's face.

She sat there, drinking in the feel of him and occasionally catching a whiff of a fresh scent from him. She was getting into Salma Hayek's character when a line from Matthew Perry smacked her right between the eyes. "You are the one. You are everything I never knew I always wanted." That was her, completely, about him. Now she had a handle to grab onto to explain how she was feeling and why. She clasped onto his forearm and drew comfort from his strength as they walked back outdoors.

"Would you like to go somewhere to sit and talk?" she inquired.

"You know something, I would love to do that. Any suggestions where?"

"It's still pleasant out. How about the picnic table where you were waiting for me?"

They started back to her dorm. She expected him to offer her his arm again, but to her dismay, he did not. He did walk closely by her side as he had on Wednesday. Their hands would touch occasionally. She tried to capture his fingers with hers a couple of times, but it never seemed to work. She had a lot of work to do with him to get him to pull the rope.

He sat at the picnic table so he could look at her. He reached his hand across the table. She quickly placed her hand in his and once again thrilled at his touch.

He shared that his time in the Boy Scouts had precluded playing team sports or having a girlfriend. He enjoyed individual activities, like swimming, or camping where he could simply be quiet and observe the world around him. He used that as an explanation for why he had missed all of the cues she had tried to send on Tuesday and Wednesday.

"I don't know how to be a boyfriend, good or bad. I truly want to be YOUR friend, though, and I'd like to see where this can go."

She admitted to having played her hand rather early on Tuesday. She confessed to receiving systemic shocks when they first touched, and now, right at that moment, it was extremely comforting for her.

"I noted a line from the movie that makes a lot of sense to me. 'You are everything I never knew I always wanted.' That is what you are for me, Tom."

He exhaled by blowing out of his mouth and sitting back, clutching tightly to her hand as if holding on for dear life.

"Julie, do you have any idea how earth-shattering it is to hear that you are what another person wants and thinks they need? Well, it is mind-blowing, humbling, and a bit scary. You see, I know many of the things that make me a grossly imperfect person. I could try to list them for you, but we'd be here until well after the sun rises in the morning. I meant it: I want to be your friend; your best friend. It's going to require time in each other's presence. It requires tolerance of differences both expected and unexpected. It takes acceptance of the other as they are because you can't or won't change them. If you did, they would no longer be the original person.

"Yes, your touch helped me a lot on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings. Your physical appearance reminds me of my mother who was taken from me, and I needed that bit of comfort you provided. Yes, that perfume IS your favorite, like it WAS her favorite. You are not her. You are Julie, and I want to get to know YOU."

She gasped at his words.

"Now it's my turn to be stunned. Where did this insight come from? You say you've never been in a boyfriend/girlfriend relationship. I can believe that. How did you come by this wisdom? Surely not from the school of hard knocks."

"My name is Thomas Richard Harrison, and don't call me Shirley," he said with a perfectly straight face. A moment later he grinned widely to take away any sting his words may have caused. "So, Julie Lawson, will you please be my friend and be open to growing that friendship?"

"Yes, Tom Harrison, I will. On one condition."

"Which is?"

"Come over here and kiss me, now!"

He got to his feet and purposefully stepped to her side of the table. His heart was beating so loudly he was certain she could hear it. Except that she could not. Not over the thudding of her own heart. Reaching down, he gently lifted her to her feet. He gently cradled her head in his hand, and he dropped his mouth to hers.