Kinda-Sorta-Maybe Nerd-Boy

I floated on Cloud 9 all the way to my house. And that night when I dreamed, my fantasies didn't seem so far away.

***

The next day I sought out my dream-girl, wanting to make sure that she was alright. Amanda said that she was fine, and thanked me again for rescuing her, giving me a solid, but chaste hug. She was very specific not to flirt with me, or otherwise lead me on into believing she wanted to progress our friendship into something more. The more we talked the farther and farther away my dreams seemed to get.

For the rest of the school year, Amanda and I started to lay down a solid friendship, sort of. I became her male confidant, the guy she could trust and talk to. She would ask me questions about what guys really wanted and I did my best to answer them truthfully. Every now and again she would join my group for lunch, flirting with Marcus and trying to soften Kendra's icy attitudes towards her and the other cheerleaders. I came to realize that this was probably the best I would ever get with her. I was the "safe" guy. I was the "friend." I was harmless, and she was utterly unconcerned with ever impressing me. Nothing drove this point home any further than when she would ask my advice about other guys she was thinking of dating.

Life passed on, and I enjoyed my social status as a "close friend" of Miss Popular. But apart from the occasional "friend dates" with Amanda, I retreated into spending my time with the close friends who mattered, Marcus and Kendra. High School would be over soon, and there was no point in trying to build friendships with socialites I wouldn't be seeing again after High School. Our trio picked up the latest video games, bought some Anime, and tinkered with our computer systems. In a way I felt comfortable retreating back towards nerd-dom. High School was over, even if finals hadn't come yet. I wouldn't have to worry about popularity again until college.

***

COLLEGE, FRESHMAN YEAR

I got a nice scholarship to attend the state-run University nearby. Marcus and Kendra would also be attending, so I knew I wouldn't be losing my best friends after High School. But the best news I received back in May had been that Amanda would be attending the same University as well.

In some ways, college was just High School "Plus." But in many other ways it was so much better. Intelligence was actually rewarded with a level of prestige. The students were a little more mature. Instead of Math Clubs, we joined the Robotics club and earned some campus-cred building real things.

Marcus and I managed to pair up as roommates, and Kendra's dorm wasn't too far away, and she had a cute roommate to boot. And Amanda called me every other week or so to catch up. But our college life really began to come together towards the end of the year, as Kendra had decided to join a Sorority.

Needless to say, this clashed with the image in our heads of our best buddy Kendra who had always spurned anything remotely girly. The thought of her living with a bunch of GIRLS and obsessing with her hair and clothes just seemed a little too... weird. But she had grown out of her tomboy phase, and was looking to make some closer female friends.

Purely out of coincidence, Amanda had been pledging to the same Sorority. The two of them had never been close friends in High School, but were rapidly developing a "sisterhood" of sorts with each other. As a result, Marcus and I couldn't hang out with Kendra as often, since she was tied up with Sorority business. But to compensate (in my mind) Amanda started to hang out with us as a group more and more. She was still as gorgeous as ever, and only getting prettier as she matured. Best of all, she started to take an interest in me as a man, not just a confidant. We'd flirt and tease each other, taking every opportunity we had for a chaste hug or peck on the cheek. She knew I adored her, and I longed for the day that she would return my affections.

***

Our second year at University came, and the girls moved into the Sorority House while Marcus and I got an apartment off-campus. This was also the year that everything in our lives turned upside-down.

It was a relatively-warm Saturday night for October. Marcus was going out for the evening, terribly excited and bragging that he had a hot date. After he left (putting on a little too much cologne in my opinion), Kendra called and said she needed to talk to us. I explained that Marcus was out, but she said she was coming over anyways.

When she arrived I was stunned by her appearance. The flat-chested tomboy with the no-nonsense ponytail I had known and been friends with for years was gone. In her place was a beautiful, sensual woman, dressed to impress. An off-the- shoulder dress flowed down her lithe body, low cut enough to show me more cleavage than I had ever seen in my friend. Her face was expertly highlighted, with just the right amount of makeup to make her almond eyes stand out and glow. Her strong cheekbones Kendra had inherited from her mother, while her father's genes gave her the exotic features that set her apart from everyone else I knew. She always had perfect hair: long, razor-straight locks that shimmered in the light and cascaded off her shoulders like a silk curtain. Diamond earrings sparkled in our porch light, dangling down to frame her face and drawing one's attention downwards to her bare shoulders.

"Nerd-boy, are you going to let me in or not?"

Her sharp tongue sliced down through the fog that had been penetrating my brain. I shook my head, startled, then stepped back and let her in. "Wow!" was all I managed to get out.

She just rolled her eyes at me and flopped onto a couch.

I turned and followed her, dropping down onto the seat next to her. I felt wildly underdressed in a T-shirt and jeans. "Got a cute date tonight?"

"Had a date. And he wasn't that cute."

I checked my watch; it wasn't even 8pm yet. "Am I allowed to ask what happened?"

She just sighed... staring out the window. I let her take a few moments to organize her thoughts, then she turned back to me and started off into her narrative at a fast pace. "Danielle wanted to go out with this guy tonight, but her date had a friend of his without a girl to go with. So she asked me to go out with her so we could double date because this guy was really, really cute and she wanted to make him happy by providing a date for him. I told her 'no' because I wouldn't know what to do and besides I had never been on a date before. So she of course had to go and tell everyone that I had never been on a date before. The next thing I knew I had five girls fussing over me and putting this gunk on my face and in my eyes and sprinkling glitter all over the place. I don't know WHERE this dress came from but the earrings are kind of nice and these shoes hurt SO MUCH."

With that she paused to catch her breath and kick off the three-inch stiletto heels. I was fighting to hold back a grin when she glared at me, asking "WHAT?"

It was really hard not to laugh, but the picture in my head just clashed way too much. I imagined Kendra sitting in a chair in front of a giant vanity mirror with five Sorority bimbos dancing around her while she scowled as if threatening to execute every last one of them. "Just that it's hard to picture YOU on a date that's all."

"Ha. Ha. I'm so pleased you enjoy my awkwardness."

"But you didn't go?" It was really early after all.

"No, I went. And I was having a good time. My date was really nice, and he was very patient with talking to me."

"And yet you're in my living room right now."

"Well, we went to dinner, and we were snuggled into these booths. Danielle was already squeezing and kissing her man, oblivious to us on the other side of the table. My date kept talking with me, and his voice was so soothing, so friendly. He slid a little closer, and put his arm around me."

"Oh, so you punched him in the jaw and came home."

"No." She just glared at me. "I'm not a tomboy anymore. I just... kind of let him. I didn't feel like stopping him. I'd never really felt that way before. I think I even leaned into him."

Her voice trailed off, as if she was lost in remembering the feeling.

"Well anyways, the guys were going to take us on this romantic carriage ride through Old Town. All of a sudden I was in the back of this horse-drawn buggy with a strange guy holding me. I could feel him looking me over, and I felt giddy that he was attracted to me. So he leaned into me and that's when it happened."

"You kissed him?" Why was this such a big deal?

"No, I kind of stopped him at the last second. Then I stopped the carriage and got a cab ride here. I called you on the way."

"Why did you stop him? You seemed to be having a good time."

"Jason, I've never kissed a guy before. I got nervous!"

I sat back against the cushion. This had never really occurred to me before.

She just looked at me, the nervous fear she'd felt coming back to her as she thought about the incident. "I wanted to kiss him. I wanted to kiss somebody. I just couldn't get comfortable enough. I didn't want to disappoint him. I just don't really know how."

"Well, it's really not that difficult. You just kinda pucker your lips and press a little bit."

She screwed up her face, giving me a funny look. "It can't be that easy."

"Well... I mean that's basically what you do. But then there's giving the right amount of pressure, and moving your tongue around, and trying not to drool all over them."

"I know THAT. But... it just seems like it takes practice before you get it right. I mean, no one really gets it just right the first time, and that's what I was afraid of."

"Yeah, come to think of it. I was pretty sloppy for a while until I got the hang of it. Practice is the best way, I guess."

Kendra reached out and took my hand into hers. "Show me."

"What?"

"Kiss me. C'mon, Jase. We're just friends. And I'm comfortable around you. And I've got to practice with someone."

My whole body locked up, and my throat stuttered in trying to get a word out. "Uh... uh... wait a minute."

Kendra just sighed, annoyed. Then she leaned over, grabbed my head in her hands, and planted her lips on mine. The contact was electric, a lightning-bolt shooting through my head and crackling with energy. Her eyes flew wide open when she felt it, but then her eyes were closing and she was kissing me with an intensity I had never expected. And I was kissing her right back.

Her body just melted against me and I felt the soft probe of her tongue entering into my mouth. She turned her head the other way and then her lips were softly massaging the lower pad of my mouth. My mind blanked from everything around us, all my nerves connected to my mouth and the electric pleasure focused there.

I found my strength and then I was pushing myself back at her, turning her over until we fell onto the floor and our lips lost contact. I stared down at her sweet face in amazement, wondering where the hell this passion was coming from. She just giggled and pulled me down to her once again.

We kissed and we kissed and we kissed, her arms holding me tightly to her while mine roamed of their own accord down her body. She shivered in excitement as my palms glided down her sides, and I felt the momentary firm bump as they passed along her tits crushed against my chest. They kept going south until I reached her waistline, and my hands automatically pulled her hips into me, instinctively grinding my hard-on into her pelvis even as my tongue dipped down into her throat.

She felt me bumping against her, and ground herself down against me. But then Kendra's eyes flew open, and she pushed me away from her with a startled shriek. Rolling me off of her, she half-crawled, half-jumped up to the couch next to us, her eyes bugged-out and her hand covering her gaping mouth as she stared at me in pure shock. "Omigod."

I sat up, rubbing my head where it had hit the floor. "Well, I'd say you don't really need much practice."

Once we'd managed to collect ourselves, and I reassured Kendra that she hadn't just ruined our friendship, we sat back and laughed nervously over the incident. I was now sitting on a recliner a good five feet away from her, while Kendra's thoughts were turned inwards, meditative over her first real kiss.

She finally broke the silence. "Well, maybe now I won't be so afraid to kiss another boy."

A thought came unbidden to my head. I didn't really want her to kiss another boy. I stamped that thought out as quickly as it surfaced. It wasn't my decision to make. And how could I possibly be jealous of a best friend's happiness. I just smiled and nodded with her. "Come on. I'll walk you home."

We left, and I took the time now to compliment her on how good she looked. Kendra blushed. She had never been one to "doll up" before. She shuffled along in my sandals, carrying the god-awful heels, and I felt grateful in a way that she shrunk 3 inches and was no longer as tall as me. A guy has his ego after all.

We were coming within sight of her Sorority House when Kendra saw a familiar face. "Hey, that's Marcus."

Indeed it was, he was slowly walking up the last steps to the front door, his arm around a slender brunette in a pretty dress. Then she turned around to bid him goodbye, and I got a good look at her face.

"Amanda..." I breathed out. And to my abject horror, Marcus leaned down to give her a kiss goodnight. She went inside, and Kendra had to tug me out of my stupor to get me to start walking again towards the House. Marcus was whistling as he turned and walked towards our apartment, running into us on the way.

Marcus was all smiles, "Hey! Funny running into you guys here. Kendra, you look fantastic!" Then his eyes caught mine, and his smile vanished.

Kendra just looked back and forth between us, then excused herself to go inside, handing me my sandals back. "You two look like you'll have a lot to talk about."

When she was gone, I just turned around and headed for home, Marcus jogging to catch up to me. I didn't really have any right to be upset. It's not like Amanda was cheating on me or anything.

"Hey, dude. I'm-"

"Don't say you're sorry, because I know you're not," I interrupted.

"No, I'm not sorry." He looked over, giving me a frank and honest glance. "I know you've had a crush on her since Day 1 of High School. But let's be real, Jase. We all knew you were never going to do a thing about it."

I didn't have an answer. My eyes were locked onto the sidewalk in front of me, my concentration now focused onto each and every step I took.

Marcus continued his explanation. "So, we've all been hanging out together, and she seemed friendly and nice. So I just asked her out. And she said 'yes'. We had a good time."

"Marcus..."

"Yeah?"

"Just shut up."

***

It was two days later when the phone to our apartment rang. Marcus picked up the phone, and my heart stopped when he said, "Amanda?"

He nodded, then screwed his face into a grimace and reached over to hand me the phone. I muted the TV, grabbing the receiver. Amanda sounded pretty upset. She had met some friends for dinner, but then her car wouldn't start in the parking lot, and she was freaking out. I told her to calm down, and promised I would get to her as soon as I could. I got her location and then ran to grab my car keys. I turned around to see Marcus watching the TV again. "Want to come?" I asked him.

Without turning around he replied, "Nah. She wants you."

Luckily, she was only ten minutes away. I was mildly surprised to find that she wasn't alone, but in fact was stranded along with three of her Sorority sisters. It turned out to be nothing more insidious than a dead battery. But after helping her into a jump-start and promising to go get a new battery with her, I was the hero of the hour. All four of the girls were thanking me profusely, and for a moment I felt overwhelmed by their attentions.

It was then that one leggy blonde senior sister, Karina, mentioned that the Sorority was having a small party that coming weekend. It was supposed to only be between their House and their "Brother Fraternity," but she could pull a few strings to get myself and Marcus invited, if we wanted to go.

Amanda's eyes immediately lit up at this and she nodded her head agreeably. Once I saw the look on her face, I knew there was no way I could say 'no.'

***

At first, Marcus didn't want to come. But after a minimal amount of prodding, and a reminder that I was only friends with Amanda, he agreed to attend. Besides, we were going to have to look out for Kendra, and be ready to protect her if needed from drunken frat boys.

Less than ten seconds into entering the party we realized just how little we had come in "shedding our nerd-dom." The chaos of a Greek party was above and beyond that of any High School party we had ever attended. Those had been filled with teenagers drinking a little beer from a keg or two, doing their best to cover up insecurities with false bravado and confidence.

The music was so loud as to drown out all other noises and conversations. The alcohol was MUCH stronger, and much more readily available. One guy stood unsteadily in the center of the foyer pouring a thick bottle of cheap vodka over his head like a shower. A hallway off to the side was filled with a fog of green smoke that I knew didn't come from cigarettes. One Sorority girl was already topless and running screaming around the house, hotly pursued by two drunken guys who could never quite catch her.

Perhaps there was something positive to be said for being a quiet nerd.

Karina swooped in just then, looking stunning in a tight top and thin-skirt. She thanked us for coming and held up two cups of something fizzing. Oh well, might as well dive in. We took up the drinks offered to us and flirted with her for a few minutes. She was fairly tall, almost Marcus's height and maybe an inch taller than even me. Her body was nicely tanned and showed an athletic toning to her muscles. But what really set her apart and kept Marcus's eyes glued at a downwards angle were her D-cup tits trying to spill out of her top. After a while of ogling each other back and forth she excused herself to go mingle with other friends. She walked right between us but before she was gone we both felt her giving us a playful squeeze to our asses.

Turning around I watched her hips sway back and forth as she left. I was going to have to run into her again sometime. Smiling, I grabbed Marcus and we headed off to find the girls.

Kendra was doing her best to avoid getting toasted, while sipping on a wine cooler to be sociable. We stopped to chit-chat while flirting with her friends. The lounge area she was in was a bit farther away from the main room, and so the craziness levels were a bit lower while the music was a bit quieter.

I had just drained my drink when Kendra set down her bottle, standing up and grabbing me by the waist, steering me out towards the dance floor. "You're dancing with me, buddy."

I put up a token resistance, and then we were amidst the blaring music and screaming co-eds. I turned around when we found an open spot and started moving to the music. One song turned into five, and then ten, and I found myself grinning happily as I bounced around with the buzz of alcohol and a solid bass- beat. As the party progressed more and more people arrived, meaning less space on the dance floor. We were working up quite a sweat, and after a few more songs I found myself dancing in quite closely to Kendra as the room got even more packed. Kendra had obviously picked up a few more dance moves to go along with her natural coordination and when she was grinding her hips against me I could almost picture her as just another hot Sorority babe instead of a childhood friend.