Pipestone Bible Camp Ch. 03 - Growing Pains

"No, I want my money - Pad Mee Now," I said, rolling my eyes at him.

"I, somehow, have trouble believing that. If you really wanted the money, I would think you would have submitted an itemized invoice by now," he said with an imperious raised eyebrow. Then, he turned and walked into the living room, leading me to his study sofa where he had half a dozen documents spread out on the coffee table that looked like they would probably annoy me. I was right. "This," he said, picking up one of the documents and handing it to me "is an itemized invoice. Note, how it lists individually the costs and amounts of the items being charged for therein?"

"What?" I said, scanning the anal-retentive document, "You want me to tell you how many cans of tomatoes, how many cloves of garlic and—"

"Yes... at first. Once I am confident you are maintaining an appropriate knowledge of your inventory and costs, I will rely on your representations of the food costs in one item. Also, your submission to me included neither your non-food costs such as your omnipresent Ziplock containers, nor your travel and labor fees. You cannot expect to run a business without paying yourself."

I groaned and buried my face in my hands. "I... I am not running a business! I'm just feeding some guys, Tim! Why do I have to do all this stuff?" I asked through my fingers.

"Because, your customer has requested that you provide him with an itemized invoice prior to payment," he said, smiling proudly at the documents spread in front of him like they were his children. "Here is a table that shows how you should decide on how much to pay yourself... and here is a primer on the amortization of your business capital investments... and ah... let's see... taxes..." he murmured, looking up at me and then his eyes widened at my apparently murderous expression. "Perhaps, we'll do taxes later..." he said, actually grinning now.

"Tim..." I moaned, slumping back into the sofa.

Tim spoke loftily to the documents as he tidied them before placing them into a crisp manila folder labeled with my name, "Whether you realize it or not, you are running a business. These are things you will need to learn, in order to run it successfully," he said, handing me the folder.

I took it, wondering what in the hell I had gotten myself into. "Why are you doing this?" I asked him, dumbfounded. Most of the things he was telling me about would only raise the price on the meals I provided to the house. Money-wise, it made no sense.

He paused for a moment, then spoke softly to the notes he was arranging on the coffee table as he put them away, "It is what I can do... and it is the right thing to do," he said, then turned his head to look at me, "and at any rate, the last time you were not properly taken care of, I was surprised to find myself briefly airborne before hitting a wall. I thought this option would better preserve the fraternity's historically significant building." He looked at me for a few seconds, nodded once, then turned back to the table and opened his textbook, "Please get your revised invoice to me within the week," he said.

Feeling dismissed, I shrugged, shook my head, took my manila folder and left. Tim was an odd duck, no doubt, and he had just given me a hell of a lot of crappy paperwork to do. Still, as I walked back to the Co-Op, I couldn't really put a finger on how I was feeling... but I liked it.

***

"I need you to help me with my homework," Kurt appeared behind me from out of nowhere as I was hovering over a pot of minestrone. His hand rubbed the knotted muscles in the center of my back, and I found myself pressing back against him, melting.

"Which class?" I asked suspiciously, having fallen for this particular trick of Kurt's before.

"It's like you don't even trust me at all," he said, a smile in his voice. "Drawing, of course."

"Okay... but I get to see it when you're done... I don't want anything recognizable of mine to show up on display in the student union."

"Oh, ye of little faith..." he said, pulling me away from the stove after I turned the heat down and put a lid on the pot. "I thought we'd go for a change of scenery, this time," he said, pulling me away from the stairs where I was going up towards my room where I had modeled for him before. He led me to a door to a room I'd never seen anyone use. Opening it, a dusty dark space filled with large industrial-looking equipment was revealed with a familiar air mattress laid out on the floor. "I wanted something a little more moody this time. Your room is so... well... you," he said, smiling as he bent down to nuzzle my neck.

I sneezed. Then I looked up at him to see if he was joking. Yeah, no, he wasn't. I sighed and began taking off my clothes. At least, the room was warm, I thought, as I padded naked to the air mattress. "How do you want me?" I whispered, wondering if we could be overheard from the hall outside.

"On your stomach, calves bent up at the knees, ankles crossed, up on your elbows and looking over your shoulder at me," he said, his eyes greedily taking me in. Choosing a place to sketch from, he paused to move some of my long blonde hair to my back, trailing his hand down to caress my bottom. "Perfect," he whispered, beginning to sketch quickly.

I loved it when he sketched me. His eyes moved over me, full of warmth and ideas fueled by the enjoyment of what he saw. "So... are you making bread for them, too? These other men of yours?" he asked in mock jealously, his eyes twinkling.

"Well yeah, I have to. Minestrone isn't filling enough without it, and bread is cheap. Besides, there's trouble when I try to make it heartier with extra beans..." I said, shaking my head remembering Tim's raised eyebrow when we heard an "ungentlemanly" contest erupt in the TV room upstairs, as he helped me dry the dishes for the baked beans and sausages that I'd brought.

"Don't move," he said, putting my hair back where he had placed it before. "That's not all they talk about, you know," he said, tilting his head and letting his eyes roam down my back, settling on my bottom. A flush of warmth went through me. "They seem to think you deserve better..." he said.

"Better than Paul?" I asked, squeezing my thighs together surreptitiously, trying to relieve the need I felt building inside me. "Well, fortunately, I agree with them," I said, giggling.

With a growl, Kurt closed his sketchpad and lay down beside me on his back, "You belong on a chaise lounge in the Palace of Versailles and without a word of complaint, you pose for me in a boiler room... you're beyond worth. You deserve a king," he said, smiling up at me.

"And fortunately, my king... I agree with you, too " I whispered, leaning down to kiss him, running my fingers through his soft hair. I shivered, feeling his hands run lightly up my sides, coming to rest on my breasts. I felt his mouth begin sucking on my hard nipple and I moaned, my head dropping back onto my shoulders. Before long, I was panting, squirming for relief from the throbbing heat building inside me. "Kurt... did you get the... the non-latex, you know... condoms?" I breathed, deciding that our mutual punishment had gone on long enough.

Kurt released my nipple with a pop and groaned, "No, fuck... I forgot. I've been too busy thinking about making love to you again. The student union only has the latex kind. I've got an idea, though. Lie on your back," he said, bounding up, eyes alight with inspiration again. Obeying, I turned onto my back, but instead of taking off his clothes or going down between my knees, he stood there looking at me. "Okay... left hand by your head, loosely near your eyes... just like that," he said positioning my arm.

I whimpered, getting myself ready for another torture session of seeing his eyes devouring me without actually making me come. Much to my relief and chagrin, I was wrong. "Now the other..." he said, as he separated my knees, and then placed my other hand between my legs. Then, he picked up his sketchpad again and looked up at me expectantly.

"You want me to..." I squeaked, turning bright red.

"Well, I know that you know how... I taught you," he said, eyes eager, grinning wickedly.

"Yeah, but... it was dark... and you were behind me... you weren't watching... and—"

"Oh, I was watching," he assured me, "I had it on a loop replay in my head all night. I could draw how you looked that night perfectly from memory, right now..."

I squeezed my eyes shut and groaned. Peeking out of one eye and seeing him still watching me like a dog waiting for a treat, I closed it again and began to move my fingers around my clit. Though I was aroused, painfully so, I just couldn't get my head into what I was doing enough to bring myself anywhere close to a peak. "Kurt, it's just not wor—" I said, opening my eyes to see him staring at me transfixed with his mouth slightly open, "—king..." I whispered, feeling a hook catch somewhere inside me, sending me speeding toward my peak. It was him. I needed to see him, how I affected him, how much he wanted me. It was what drove me, what pulled me. I could have been across a crowded auditorium and seeing his unabashed look of pure lust for me would have dragged me fully clothed toward an impossible orgasm.

"Kurt!" I gasped, my back arching against my will and I began panting, frantically driving myself towards release.

"Stop!" he said, standing suddenly. I obeyed without thinking, without wanting to, squeezing my thighs together and keening in desperate disappointment. He walked over and his long legs straddled mine, still standing. Opening his pants and taking his erection out, he began stroking it over me. "Start again... slowly," he said, running his hand back and forth, caressing himself.

Jumping at the first contact of my fingers, I began rubbing around my clit again, almost crying in relief. "Slide two of them inside yourself, now. Show me how wet you are," he ordered, his voice now commanding in his need. Dipping deeply with a breathy moan, I pulled out and wiggled my slippery fingers at him. I loved having him tell me what to do. I loved waiting for his directions, watching his organ grow larger and more turgid.

"Now, put them inside yourself again—no, not there..." he said, his voice curling with excitement as I began to slide them back inside my dripping pussy. I blinked. "You know where I want them... show me, just go slowly and relax. You'll be okay," he said, rubbing himself faster, breathing harder.

I closed my eyes and reached lower, pressing my slippery fingers against my anus. When Kurt had done this to me before, I'd been frightened and tense. It hurt worse than anything I'd ever known I could feel... until I relaxed and pushed against him. Making myself relax, I pushed my fingers inside a little. My eyes opened at the flash of pain, making me bite my lips to stay silent. Tears welled in my eyes, but I kept the fingers inside. "Use your other hand on your clit... keep going... God, you're so beautiful..." he panted.

Pushing against my fingers, I felt myself open wider and I pushed deeper crying out in surprise at the sensation. Kurt moaned, his eyes fixed on what I was doing. Remembering my clit, I was surprised to find how close I was and felt the sensations I was giving myself mix together and become an overwhelming force. I began stroking my fingers in and out of my ass and the raw feeling drove me over the edge and I arched under him, crying out. As my body clenched and trembled, I felt warm spurts of Kurt's semen fall first on my tummy, then my neck and breasts, finally in a burst onto my upper thighs and pubic hair.

Kurt stood over me shaking, still holding himself, and leaning against the wall with the other hand. His eyes roamed over me in abject adoration. "Now, don't move..." he breathed, tucking himself back in and sitting down again with his sketchbook.

I lay there spent on the boiler room floor, languishing in the swirling delight of my orgasm, my face surely the picture of satisfaction and contentment as his pencil flew over page after page of his sketchbook until I protested that I had to put the bread in to bake for that night's fraternity dinner. He sighed reluctantly and threw my clothes to me, still watching and sketching as I dressed.

When I finished dressing, he put his arms around me and kissed me, smiling as he did. As I looked into his face, wondering about his smile, I felt him begin silently laughing. On a hunch, I grabbed his sketchbook to make sure I would be able to show my face at the student union in the future, paging through what he had been working on. As always, his sketches were beautiful, practically alive. They virtually leapt off the page, making you forget that they were only pencil drawings. I was, again, amazed at his talent. Kurt was softly laughing out loud, now, watching my reaction with immense enjoyment.

I sighed, shaking my head, still staring at his artwork. "Kurt. You fucker. These are all landscapes," I said, my lips pressed tightly together in the vain hope that I could keep myself from laughing.

"Well, yes... but you really helped!" he insisted, wiping the tears of hilarity onto his sleeve.

***

"Yes?"

"I didn't say anything..." I said, quickly. In truth, I had been practicing how to get through the coming conversation with Tim, but no actual words had come out of my mouth.

"You were hovering. You typically do not hover unless you want to ask for something you think I will decline," he said, turning a page in his textbook.

"Oh, well, I took care of that problem. I just do it anyway and then charge it as something healthy on my invoice," I said, flumping down into a nearby sofa.

Tim looked over and raised an eyebrow at me as I smirked. "Thank you for admitting to your petty fraud. Is that why I am paying for so many "lentils" on your invoices?"

"What? No! Those are legit. I should actually charge more than I do for lentils, since they get cooked twice," I said. "I boil them and then spread out the meat in things with ground beef and stuff like that. You cook it right and they just disappear into the other flavors. Makes it seem like they're eating more meat than they are, plus it's just more... wholesome," I said, stressing the last word to tease him for introducing it into my world.

"Hmm... Scandinavians... despite appearances, you are sneaky," he said, smiling at his textbook.

"Not sneaky, just poor. You grow up without a lot of money, you learn stuff like that," I said, shrugging. "So, I actually did have something I wanted to ask you for," I said, feeling like I'd softened Tim up as much as he was able to be softened.

"'I actually have something for which I wanted to ask you,'" Tim corrected, "One does not end a sentence in a preposition."

Yeah, maybe Tim just didn't get softened up. "Right... cuz people talk like that," I said, hiding my sarcasm in an innocent Scandinavian tone.

Tim smiled as if I'd thanked him and nodded once. Keeping myself from laughing, I plowed ahead, "So, I agree that to run a successful business, it's a very good idea to keep an eye personally on things when you're catering for an event," I started out, repeating his advice to me. Tim grunted thoughtfully at this good advice and highlighted a passage in his textbook. "And this Christmas banquet you want is certainly something that would need my monitoring. You were definitely right about that." Tim nodded sagely, agreeing with himself again. "It's just that, um... I was hoping that I could have someone in the kitchen with me, since it's the only time we can really spend an evening together before Christmas..."

Tim's eyes flickered up to me from his textbook, "Yes?" he asked.

"And... well, it's someone you banned from the house. Kurt Soenson. Would it be okay if he helped me in the kitchen that night? I swear, he will be on his best behavior," I promised.

Tim sighed, folded his hands, resting his face against them as he spoke. "Do you know why I banned him from the house?" he asked. Not waiting for an answer, he continued, "That he, upon discovering that his actions had caused someone to be admitted to the hospital, left them there and set about becoming intoxicated on a variety of illegal substances here. Am I to assume that the person in the hospital was you?"

Uncomfortable, I nodded. "It... it wasn't really his fault. I had an allergic reaction to... something. He had no way of knowing," I said, feeling strangely ashamed of myself as I defended Kurt to him. I knew I wasn't addressing the real problem of what had happened, and what probably bothered Tim most -- that Kurt chose to get high instead of making sure I was okay. That he felt no sense of responsibility or duty toward me, even after what we had shared.

"It is not my place to convince you of your value or others of their privilege. Bring him, if that is all you think of yourself," he said, getting up quickly and leaving the room.

That Friday, I watched the guys enjoying the Christmas feast that I'd made for them through a crack in the door of their dining room. I sent out more drinks when glasses were half full, more bread as the baskets were emptied. After Tim gave a Chapter President speech and various year-end announcements, he sat down at the head of the table and filled his plate, frowning occasionally at a small bowl I'd left beside his place.

Kurt said he would be at the house before dinner, but he still hadn't shown up. I figured he must have needed to work late at the bistro, but it would be nice to know for sure. I checked my phone again, but there were no messages from him.

I had spare dishes of all the food warming in the oven and ready to go, in case they were needed. I was covering all of them with aluminum foil to make sure they stayed moist when I heard Tim clear his throat behind me.

"What is this?" he asked.

"Your gravy," I answered without looking, tenting the foil over the dishes, smirking. I knew he couldn't just eat some sauce labeled "Tim's Gravy" without coming to ask me questions. I'd actually looked forward to the conversation a bit.

"Obviously. You've already supplied the table with a tureen of gravy. Why is this particular one mine?"

"You, unlike most of the table, don't eat mushrooms. I checked with the guys. They love mushrooms. So, I made you that gravy without mushrooms," I said, turning and taking off my oven mitts.

Tim took a spoon from a drawer nearby and tasted it, a confused look on his face. "You made this gravy specially for me?" I shrugged, feeling the answer was obvious. "Thank you," he said, carrying the bowl out of the kitchen, frowning. I watched through the crack in the door as Tim poured gravy on his potatoes and tasted them carefully. His eyebrows raised, then he added gravy to most of the other items on his plate. Then, he leaned over to Paul's empty seat and took the bowl full of mushroomless gravy sitting there and switched it for his own empty one.

I smiled to myself, watching the guys slowly lean back in their seats, satisfied and relaxed. It felt like I'd given them a great theater show without having the excruciating experience of being seen or heard. Still, I got to see the glow that my food had given them. With a smile, I began washing the dishes. Kurt still hadn't come. I told myself he'd forgotten the time or gotten delayed at work. I felt forgotten and forgettable again. I was grateful Tim hadn't said anything about Kurt not showing up, especially since he had already scolded me a little about how I let people treat me.

Lost in thought, I jumped when a throat cleared behind me. "Whoa! Sorry, Melanie. Didn't mean to scare you," stammered Jake. He glanced back to the dining room and seemed nervous about something. "Um... there's something wrong with the um... dessert? Tim wanted to see you about it in the dining room."