The Outsider Ch. 10

"It was sort of weird how things were between me and Todd. I'd sleep naked, and I seriously don't think he ever noticed. He never said anything, so I 'spose he didn't care one way or the other...he was too wrapped up with his monsters. I didn't flaunt it, though. I'd get my clothes off or take off my towel and pull the sheet over me and that was it."

"And now you've got the room to yourself. You are so fucking lucky."

Mike thought about the fact he now was the sole occupant of the room and that Ruthie was so unhappy in her situation with Shannon. He decided to make her an offer:

"Ruthie, if you'd like a private place to study in the afternoons, you know, to replace the trees over at Econ-A, I could let you borrow my room while I'm out ticketing. Obviously if you're in there you can wear or not wear whatever you want. It'd be more of a chance for you to get away from Shannon."

Ruthie nodded and hugged him. She trusted him considerably more after having spent an uneventful night with him in his room, so she accepted. Now she had a safe private place to study in the afternoons. She badly wanted to reward him for his kindness. She still was not ready to have sex, but she was ready to take the relationship with him a bit further than just friendship. She was well-aware that was what he badly wanted. She suggested going over to the Econ building, which she knew would be totally deserted.

When they got to the sidewalk leading to the lot, she stopped. She was extremely nervous, but put out her hand. He took it and they embraced. She continued:

"I...uh...you know...like...I mean...do you wanna kiss me?"

"You're OK with it?"

She nodded. She tilted her head up and Mike kissed her. He was elated, but he could tell that the passion with which Lisa had kissed him was lacking with Ruthie. He figured that she must not have much experience kissing, perhaps none at all.

Ruthie did have some experience, but she was extremely uneasy about what she was doing. Mike would be only the third guy she had ever kissed. There had been a friend of Gerardo that she kissed just before her mother changed her work schedule...and that was when she was 13. The second time was at her Junior Prom...which was one of the most disastrous nights of her life. She had not kissed anyone since then. The Prom was a year and a half ago.

The more important reason Ruthie was extremely nervous was her motive for allowing Mike to kiss her. She did not really want it for herself, but felt that she owed it to him as a reward him for treating her so kindly. She knew at that moment she was committing herself to being Mike's girlfriend. She could only hope that the passion would come later, because she was not feeling it at the moment. She was kissing him out of her feelings for love for him, but that love was gratitude, not sexual desire.

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Precisely because she was so nervous, Ruthie was not thinking straight and a very strange idea entered her head, the urge to streak. She looked around to make sure that no one was in sight:

"You've gone running naked on campus and I haven't. Want me to even that up for you?"

"What?"

She said nothing more, but pulled her dress over her head and handed it to him. He stood with wide eyes and a gaping expression as she danced in circles on the sidewalk, wearing nothing but her shoes.

"Stay here. Warn me if anyone comes around."

She rushed off, as he watched her naked backside jiggle while she moved away. His heart was pounding. He was totally shocked, and wasn't sure that he wasn't having a weird erotic dream. The girl's attractive figure disappeared in the darkness. He dumbly looked at the dress he was holding to assure himself that he wasn't imagining things.

Ruthie jogged around the side of the Econ Building. Running around the front would be much more dangerous because the area overlooked a main street and was well lit. There was no one in sight, so she decided to risk it. With her heart pounding she ran down the sidewalk, totally terrified at what she was doing. It seemed that the more she ran, the more the far corner of the building receded into the distance. By the time she passed the main entrance she was totally panicked. She heard a whistle...and realized that someone was watching her. The terror mounted until...finally she made it to the end of the building and turned the corner. She ran across the grass towards the sidewalk, towards the back side of the building, towards Mike, and towards safety.

Mike heard her footsteps and panicked breathing as she came tearing down the sidewalk towards him. She became visible under the lights. She was sweaty and had a terrified expression on her face. A couple of seconds later she was back in his arms...gasping heavily and trembling.

Mike passionately kissed her. Ruthie was so emotionally worked up from her brief run that she was passionate about kissing him as well, much more so than that first nervous kiss just a few minutes before.

Ruthie put her dress on. Suddenly she was mortified at what she had just done. She had no clue why that urge had hit her with such force. She blushed furiously in the darkness as she hugged Mike again.

"OK...now I know that you're not bullshitting me when you tell me you like to run around in the nude."

She nodded. Mike sensed that she was terrified by what she had just done and wondering what his reaction would be. He thought of suggesting something to set her at ease. It was also something that he had wanted to do, but he would have felt strange if he had to go by himself. Now he had someone to go with.

"The day after tomorrow's Halloween. Most years...it's kinda a tradition...there's always a group of students that streak the fountain at the Student Center at midnight. Wanna go?"

Ruthie nodded.

A few minutes later they were outside her dorm. To Mike's huge disappointment the lights in Ruthie's room were off. Shannon was either gone or asleep, which meant that Ruthie could sleep in peace in her own room. She kissed him goodnight and vanished through the front door.

Mike wandered off to his own dorm, trying to absorb the night's strange events. Tomorrow he would see her in the coffee shop and later they would have lunch and sit together in class. Then hopefully...she'd be safely in his room...studying...in the nude...