Practicum

Dear Robbie, Please come see me in my apartment on Friday, April 1 at 7:00 PM. This visit is top secret and will affect your grade in my class, so please mark your schedule and do not tell anyone about this. You won't need to bring anything except an open mind and a willingness to explore. Sincerely, Beth

Robbie stood before the mailboxes in the senior student union and read the note four or five times. He was so bewildered it almost didn't surprise him when the employees' entrance opened up and Stephanie stepped outside. Students were never allowed in the mailroom, since grades and other sensitive information were handled back there.

"Hi, Robbie," Stephanie said in her usual smarmy drawl. "You look smitten. Got a love letter from some gorilla there?"

"Maybe so," Robbie said, stuffing the note in his pocket lest she get a peek at it, which he had no doubt she would try to do. "What were you doing back there anyway?"

"None of your business, but Mrs. Simpkins needed a hand with the prom invitations. I wouldn't expect you to think of that, Robbie, you're not the type who'd lend a hand."

"But students aren't allowed in there."

"Some of us are trustworthy enough for the staff to let us help back there. Doesn't surprise me that you wouldn't know that, either." She flashed him her nastiest smirk and sauntered off, leaving Robbie to once again pull out the note and try to find some proof that it was a fake.

It had to be a fake. He was sorely tempted to rip the note to shreds -- it couldn't be true! -- but if there were the slightest risk that practicum was real and skipping it would cause him to fail?

Friday night, the note said. Today was Wednesday. It did make sense that they would keep notice short.

Robbie stood, starry eyed and alone and feeling his dick get hard, before the wall of mailboxes and tried to think of any other explanation. This had Stephanie written all over it, but how could she have ever gotten a hold of Beth's stationery? He thought of Beth, nude and beckoning to him from her bed, and tried in vain not to get even more turned on. He thought of his GPA, right on the edge of graduating in the top ten, and if he got an A in sex-ed he probably would, but if he failed that or any class -- would he even graduate? Or get to Princeton if they even let him in? He thought of explaining to his mother that he'd have to stay back another year, probably with no scholarship this time, and not even being able to tell her why. And all because he refused to have sex with someone he desperately wanted to anyway?

He read the note yet again. He thought of the suitcase incident. Then he thought of how Beth would react: most likely with a gentle reassurance that it was nonsense and a promise that she would tell no one. What was there to lose but a moment's worth of dignity?

"Oh, all right, no one else needs to know," he muttered underneath his breath, and he folded the note into fourths and tucked it into his wallet.

Stephanie had been hearing the phrase "a little bird told me" from her mother for as long as she could remember. Friday evening, she was glad Kris and especially Cherie were out of the picture now, for they never would have believed just which little bird had told her Robbie had said he had an appointment at Beth's place. Now that she was on her own, it didn't matter. Just as it didn't matter how she had finagled the key to the supply closet across the hall from Beth's door which she now clutched in her hand as she raced up the stairs of North Dorm.

Quarter to seven and no sign of Robbie yet when she arrived at the top of the stairs. Perfect.

The coast was clear as Stephanie unlocked the closet door and let herself in. It was dark and stuffy, but leaving it just the tiniest bit ajar gave her the perfect lookout point in case the rumor was true and Robbie had gotten it in his thick head to come and ask about the practicum. If she really got lucky, the poor kid would ask about it out in the hallway and Beth would humiliate him in her clear view! Steph doubted she'd get quite that lucky, but anything was possible.

Robbie's heart was bouncing off every corner of his insides as he knocked on Beth's door. Better to look like a moron for an instant than to run any risk of flunking, he reminded himself yet again.

He waited at least half a minute past his knock, easily long enough for Beth to answer the door from anywhere in the little apartment if she were in (Robbie knew the layout because he'd been in Coach Stone's identical apartment a time or two for a dip in the boys' hot tub). When she didn't answer, he felt a flood of relief and a twinge of regret. No risk of making an ass of himself now, but that tiny spark of hope that it was all real was now snuffed out for good.

Robbie turned to go. But he was still unmistakably in front of Beth's door when the elevator down the hall opened and none other than Beth stepped out. She was looking elegant in a blue blazer and a paisley skirt, and her tired face lit up when she saw her visitor.

Unbeknownst to him, Beth felt the same burst of guilty joy that he felt. Unbeknownst to either of them, Stephanie felt a similar burst when she heard Beth's voice down the hall. "Robbie!" she exclaimed. "What a nice surprise! What can I do for you?"

"Oh...hi, Beth," Robbie stammered. "It's nothing, really, if you're just getting home."

"Nonsense, Robbie! Come join me for some hot chocolate, at least. I was just at an alumni fundraiser in town, that's why I'm all dressed up, and it was boring and pretentious. I'm dying for some company I'd actually enjoy, honestly!" As she approached her door and Robbie, she was torn as usual. It was all wrong, but...he was eighteen, and he could always say no.

Stephanie's back was getting sore as she gazed through the crack in the doorway, but she didn't dare tear her gaze away. Any second now he would pull out his ID to prove his age, and Beth would ask why, and he'd spill the beans. If she were really in luck, Stephanie thought, Beth might even slap the little brat. Probably not, but at least she'd laugh in his face. If only she had some way of letting him know she'd seen the whole thing, too!

Robbie did consider taking out his ID. But just as he was about to, it occurred to him that Beth had said his visit was a surprise. "So...you weren't expecting me?" he asked as he watched her unlock her door.

"Well, no," Beth said. "Did you make an appointment? I'm sorry, I don't always check my e-mail on Fridays. Good for you for studying so hard, Robbie, but I do hope you're still enjoying your weekends too."

"Oh, of course, Beth," he said. "But, no, I didn't make an appointment. I got this note, and I had a feeling it was a fake, but I figured just in case..." As Beth held the door open for him, he handed the note to her.

Stephanie was nonplussed. What note?

Of course Beth didn't know Stephanie was watching, but she had no doubt as to who had written the. "Robbie, have a seat," she said as he stepped inside. "Kick your shoes off and let's enjoy that hot chocolate." She also slipped her own shoes off and set her purse down by the kitchen door, feeling just a bit more intimate with the adorable young man in her stocking feet.

"Then the note wasn't really from you?" Robbie asked. He did sit down and take his shoes off, but he didn't look comfortable. "I figured it probably wasn't, but better safe than sorry, you know. If I don't pass this class..."

"Don't be silly, Robbie, you're a wonderful student," Beth called out from the kitchen, where she was pouring milk into a pan to heat up. "I'd give you an A-plus-plus-plus if Spinard allowed that." Once the stove was fired up, she stood in the doorway and regarded him with shameless adoration. "And that will still be true if you decide to leave tonight. You're welcome to go any time, okay? But I'd like to invite you to stay."

"Thanks," Robbie said. "But if you didn't write that note...oh my God. I think I know who did."

"So do I," Beth said. "I guess this ought to be a lesson before you go out into the cruel world: sometimes the bad guys win. But she doesn't need to know you came here, and you are more than welcome, okay? Really."

"And there's no practicum." Robbie allowed a laugh as he said it.

"Not that you're going to be graded on, anyway," Beth quipped. Fortunately, the milk was hissing on the stove, so she had an excuse to turn her attention away before she'd have to see if she'd made him uncomfortable, or before he could see her blush over the line she had just crossed. It was easy enough to treat it like a joke and send him on his way after the hot chocolate, after all.

As she poured the hot milk into the waiting mugs, Beth swished her legs the way she always did when she wanted to determine if she was wet without touching herself. She wasn't at all surprised to learn that she was. Reasoning that she had already let him know he was free to leave anytime, Beth shed the last of her inhibitions as she picked up the mugs and brought them into the little living room.

"Here you are, Robbie," she said, handing him one. After setting hers on the end table, she smoothed out her skirt and sat down next to him on the sofa. "How are you feeling?" she asked.

"Embarrassed," Robbie said.

"Embarrassed?"

"That I believed there was any chance at all that note was real."

"Robbie! You've got nothing to be embarrassed about! It's you-know-who who ought to be embarrassed, for pulling a dirty trick like that. She's obviously a very unhappy young woman, and she can't stand knowing you want nothing to do with her."

"You think she has a crush on me, really?"

"I'm quite sure of it, Robbie. I see the way she looks at you in class, and we do discuss some awfully intimate things in my class. The way she reacts to some of your comments, well, anyone can see she wishes your answers were more in line with her view." She paused for a gulp of her cocoa. "And that view is outdated and selfish and sexist against both genders."

"I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one who thinks so," Robbie said.

"You're definitely not. A number of the other girls came to me after that day last week when she said it was wrong for women to let their pubic hair grow out, and they were absolutely panicked that everyone thinks the way she did."

"That's how I ended up here," Robbie admitted.

"What do you mean?"

"It was that day, after class, she came up and told me there was a practicum. I heard Jane really believed her?"

"She did, but what's that got to do with..."

"Oh, right, well, she said -- I'm sorry, Beth, if I cross a line here, let me know..."

"You haven't yet, Robbie, go ahead."

"She did it because I said in class I liked hairy pussies. She said I was only kissing up because I thought you probably had one -- not that I gave her any reason to think I thought that, of course!" Somehow he was sure Beth knew that he had in fact given that matter a great deal of thought, and that he hoped she did, and his nervous laughter didn't help the situation one bit. But he couldn't help it.

Beth joined in the laughter, and reached over to touch his hand and reassure him that it was all right. "Well, Robbie," she said, "She's a nasty and manipulative young woman, but she was right about one thing." With a flirtatious grin, Beth patted the bulge of cloth in her skirt where her abdomen met her legs.

Robbie's laughing stopped, but he looked delighted. "That's...good! I mean, there's so much pressure to shave today, it's nice to know not all women do."

"I couldn't agree more," Beth said. "You know, every time I teach that lesson, I seriously consider including a picture of my bush in the collage. I've never quite been brave enough to, though.

Robbie looked down at his nearly-finished drink and smiled. "I have to admit, I'd love to see a picture of that, Beth."

Beth took a deep breath and plowed ahead before she could lose her nerve. "If you feel comfortable with it, you'd be welcome to see the real thing."

Robbie gave a gasp she couldn't read at all. "Are you...sure? I mean, I want to, but we shouldn't."

"I know," Beth said. "But you're eighteen, aren't you?"

"Over a month ago," Robbie confirmed. "And I'd love to."

Beth stood up. "I was thinking of taking a dip in the hot tub tonight anyway," she said. "Wait here, and I'll go get the water running." It was a short walk to her bedroom door, but she did have time to look back and see Robbie looking absolutely catatonic as he admired her retreating form.

Minutes later, the empty cocoa cups were soaking in the sink and Beth was guiding Robbie by the hand into her bedroom. The door into the hot tub room was ajar and he could hear the water running. "Let's undress in here," Beth said. Before her last lingering inhibitions could have any effect, she lost no time in shrugging off her blazer and unbuttoning her blouse. Robbie followed suit with his shirt, and couldn't help gazing in hungry appreciation.

Beth felt her heart leap in the most delicious way as she pulled her blouse off and stood before Robbie in her bra, a view he clearly found irresistibly beautiful. Her eyes still locked on his, she reached back and unbuttoned her skirt while he slid his pants off. He had to look down to pull his pants off around his ankles, and when he looked back up, Beth was down to her underwear.

She was flicking playfully at the wisps of dark curls that were peeking out from above the waistband of her panties, which bulged enticingly with much more hair within. "I've had this problem since I was twelve," she said, knowing full well that Robbie considered it anything but a problem.

"It doesn't look like a problem to me," Robbie said, and to prove his point he pushed down his underwear to reveal a rock-hard cock protruding from a rather smaller bush than Beth's.

"I guessed as much," Beth said, following suit with her panties and giving him his first uninhibited look at her robust triangle. "Honestly, Robbie, I just needed to hear you say that!"

Beth always saved her bra for last, knowing that was what most guys looked forward to the most, so it was with an especially flirtatious flair that she swung it off now. She did have lovely breasts with big, perky nipples, and they did not go unnoticed in Robbie's loving gaze, but of course it was her bush that had him truly captivated. This was perfectly acceptable to Beth as she pulled the hot tub room door wider open and beckoned him into the steamy chamber.

The water was steamy, but Robbie had little doubt an igloo would have felt just as cozy as long as he had Beth's body to admire. As he admired Beth easing herself into the hot water and then followed suit, his skin absolutely prickled with anticipation. It still all seemed too good to be true, and after all Beth had only said he could see, not touch. So he settled himself across the way from Beth, with her safely out of reach of his itchy hands.

Beth was having none of that. "Robbie." She curled out one arm. "Come here."

Robbie settled in alongside Beth and thrilled to the sensation of her arm around him and her body brushing up against his. Though utterly safe and comfortable, he felt more jittery than ever in her half-embrace. Beth, of course, could tell. "Robbie, what's on your mind?" she asked with a gentle rub of his shoulder. "There's no need to feel embarrassed, you know, you look beautiful here."

"Thanks, Beth," he said, stealing another glance down at her body. Then he forced himself to look back up into her eyes as quickly as he could. "I just...I'm so tempted to gawk at you, I guess, and I don't mean to."

Beth laughed and kissed him on the cheek. "Robbie, I invited you in here, didn't I? You're welcome to look all you want. Believe me, I'm used to guys staring at my bush, and it's usually not in admiration the way it is with you. So I welcome your gaze!"

"Oh...good." Robbie allowed himself to let his eyes drift downward again. "So you've had some bad reactions to...to this? What a shame those guys couldn't see how beautiful it is! I'm glad you were able to come to see it for yourself, though."

"Thanks," Beth said. "Honestly, I think that's how I ended up in this job. I had my share of teenage angst, some of it the result of how different I looked in the shower after basketball practice, and it made me want to help other people come to terms with their own bodies and their own sexuality. Being different taught me to be open-minded, you know?"

"And it's okay to be different, too!" Robbie let out a nervous laugh and pulled Beth tight against him with the arm around her back.

Beth answered not with words but with a flattered grin, and then with a kiss on his cheek. He responded in kind and gently, mutually, they turned their heads and their lips met. Robbie closed his eyes and the world around them vanished but for the hot water lapping around them, as his tongue wrestled with Beth's and he felt her free hand grazing his chest. His own hand felt electrified as he reached over and began rubbing her thighs, one at a time, first on the outsides only and then, as she spread her legs, tracing playful circles on the insides as well.

Beth wiggled her legs in pleasure at his tentative but loving touch, and her pussy felt absolutely ravenous for his caress. But it wasn't forthcoming yet, and so she enjoyed the pleasant frustration as he continued playing only with her legs. She slipped her arm out from behind him and shifted to they were nearly facing each other, and with her newly freed hand she reached down and wrapped his hard cock in a tender grip.

"Oh, Beth. Oh Beth!"

"You like that, do you?" She teased his tip with her thumb, drawing even more intense responses.

"God! Yes!"

She leaned over and whispered in his ear, "I'd like that, too, you know." With her free hand, she took his hand from her thigh and drew it upwards. "Go ahead, touch it!"

He resisted just a bit. "I don't know how!"

"I am your teacher, aren't I?" she teased. "Besides, there's no right and wrong with foreplay." On that note, she placed his hand squarely in her bush, and was rewarded with five wonderfully uncertain fingers exploring her vulva. It tickled in the loveliest way and she couldn't help laughing a bit. "Oh, Robbie, that's wonderful!" she reassured him with a sigh, gazing into his eyes.

"Feels wonderful for me, too," he admitted, and his touch grew just a bit firmer and more confident. He drew his other arm around her back for balance, and while still playing in her bush, he bowed his head down and took her breath away yet again with a soft kiss on her left breast.

"Ooohhhhhh, Robbie!" Beth caught her breath. "You've done this before, haven't you?"

"Never," he confessed. "You're not the only tall and shy one here. Just a lot of imagining how I would do it!"

"You have a fantastic imagination, then!"

Beth was just about ready to guide his hand to the next step when he finally remembered to look for her clit. Once again he proved to be a good student, and Beth graded him with a joyful yelp and a squeeze on his shoulder as he stroked it with his middle finger. "Perfect! Don't stop!"

And he didn't. Remembering what she had told them in class about taking a gentle approach, he rubbed around it more often than on it, only once in a while indulging her with a stroke straight across, each of which gave her an intense jolt. As Beth held on for dear life, her talented student rubbed her into a slow, intense edge-of-orgasm state that had her eyes bulging in pleasure as she gazed over his head, which was still bowed as he continued kissing both her breasts in turn. Her only regret was that he couldn't see the palpable joy on her face as he brought her over the edge; but then she knew he'd be seeing that soon enough.