True Purpose

Boring, boring, boring, boring... Riley thought, skimming through the words on the brochure stapled to the bulletin board. It was bad enough that the school had some lame, mandatory club system implemented, but to top it off, the clubs covered the same mind-numbing subjects that were already covered by the general education. History, literature, math... Did the establishment want students to drop dead from boredom before graduating?

Riley's expectations of the school had been low to begin with, but to think he had already found so many things that bothered him about it. The club activities were only scratching the surface. Then there were the hidden security cameras that riddled the entire place, if the rumors were anything to go by. It gave the whole place a dystopian undertone, despite the otherwise clean and fancy appearance; an appearance which was likely in part to blame for why Riley's parents were adamant that this was the college for him. They were the ones paying for everything, and the high cost had not bothered them. You'd think they'd be wiser than to choose a private college that was for-profit, but then again, they weren't the ones who had to deal with the establishment running things differently from most normal schools and all the shady things going on behind the scenes.

The worst part of the school was definitely all the bratty students who seemed to think that having rich parents was their own achievement. Riley's background and upbringing was probably not too different to theirs, but at least he wasn't an insufferable snob about it. On the contrary he was often reminded by his relatives of his rough, "indecent" behavior. Whatever that meant.

The 18 year old boy closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Some part of him wanted to start cussing out the entire school staff, but another part -- the one that was trying to pull him towards the path of maturity -- convinced him to calm his nerves. He knew that he would never last until the end of college if he let these kinds of things get to him.

He turned away from the bulletin board and headed down the school corridor, a childish frown on his freckled, effeminate face. The dean's office was nearby, and that's where he was headed with determined steps. Perhaps he could find out which club required the least amount of effort. If not, he would at least make sure to voice his concerns about everything he took issue with in regards to how things were handled by the establishment.

A small corridor branched off from the main hallway, lined with doors marked with the respective names of various professors and other staff members. At the very end was the dean's office, its door a pompous craftsmanship of carved wood, and the title and name upon the nameplate written in cursive, unlike the others.Sickening, Riley thought. Nevertheless he gave it a knock that quite clearly indicated his irritation, but no sign of anyone being in there could be heard, and thus the door remained shut.

"She's not in right now," a man's voice said.

Riley turned to the source of the sound, coming from one of the offices along the length of the corridor. Its door was wide open, and inside sat an out-of-shape man in his forties or fifties, the computer screen in front of him almost hiding his unkempt beard. Though Riley was trying to stop judging people based on appearance, the man looked like the last person one would want to discuss an urgent matter with.

Riley stepped up to the man's door. "When will she return?"

"No clue. Was there something you wanted?"

"Yeah," Riley said, leaning against the doorframe and crossing his arms. "I was wondering what the point is to have mandatory club activities that cover the same subjects we're already studying?"

"Uh... Well, the point is to replicate the sort of tasks you might have to perform at a future job. You can't learn everything from reading textbooks."

"Then why can't I study anything I want to? You're letting us choose a subject, but if the subject doesn't even matter, why not let me pick, like... I don't know, cooking?"

"Because cooking isn't taught here," the man explained. "You get assigned a professor based on your club's subject, and they have to be able to grade you properly."

Riley's protesting stopped in his throat, leaving him silently standing there. "Well, okay," he said after a while. "But why even call them clubs? As far as I know, college clubs are supposed to be optional. This just feels like glorified group assignments. Also, why a group format at all? Why can't I do the work on my own?"

"Okay, you're asking way too many questions. Bottom line is, you will most likely be working with others in the future, so you gotta learn how to work as a team."

"That's bullshit," Riley said without any hesitation. "I know what sort of students attend this place. They would just get in my way."

The man shook his head and sighed. "Alright, this discussion is over. You'll have to speak to the dean. For now, please leave."

"Gladly." With that, Riley spun around and went to exit the staff area. Though he tried to feign a calm attitude, the way he stormed back out to the main corridor betrayed his true emotions. He could feel the glances of the students that passed him, but he didn't care. They were all a bunch of stuck-up posers anyway, too busy pretending that they had everything figured out.

"... Riley?"

Hardly even 20 feet down the corridor, Riley's stomping feet abruptly came to a stop. That voice. That was not a voice one forgot quickly. It came from behind him, and that fact was all it took for him to realize which one of the supposed posers had spoken to him.

He turned around to confirm it. Sure enough, the blonde girl that he had thought nothing of as he passed, sitting on a bench outside the staff area with a folder in her hands, was staring right at him through her thick glasses. And now that he had suddenly been brought out of his anger, he recognized her immediately. Even disregarding her face, the combination of her glasses, red flannel shirt and jeans was practically a dead giveaway.

"Molly?" Riley said in disbelief. "I-I didn't see you sitting there..." Though he normally wasn't easily embarrassed, he nevertheless found himself regretting his childish tantrum.

"W-well, I'm used to it I guess..." the blonde replied with a strained smirk. "What are you doing here? I haven't seen you around before."

As if nothing had happened moments before, Riley put on a smile and walked over to the girl on the bench."Oh, I usually just stay holed up in my dorm room. Haven't really gotten to know anyone yet." Standing in front of Molly, he eyed her up and down. "Been a while, huh?"

"Yeah, it has," she said. "About four years... right?" She struggled to match the tone with which Riley spoke, but nevertheless appreciated his easy-going nature. Just as she remembered him, he seemed to shine wherever he went, both in terms of personality and appearance. Especially now, in the brightly lit corridor that gave his ginger hair a glimmering, coppery hue. Since she last saw him he had grown it out into long waves that clung to his head on the sides, swept behind his ears. On the top of his head it was even longer, all of it swept to the side in a voluminous, soft fluff that would probably feel amazing to run one's hand through.

"Wow. Can't believe it's been four years since middle school." Merely hearing the number in his head made Riley embarrassed. He had hardly become more manly since he last saw Molly, and meeting her again was more than enough to remind him of that. She was a nice girl, but some part of him still hated the fact that he had run into an old acquaintance. "So, what are you up to? And what's with the folder?"

Molly held it up in front of herself. "Oh, this? It's just... a little something that I was going to bring up with the dean. I was just about to go see her."

"Nah, don't bother. She's not in. Just some grumpy old idiot with a stick up his ass."

"O-oh, I see..." Molly remembered his sharp tongue, but still found herself taken aback. Though that's not to say she disliked such behavior. In fact, it was a trait she envied to some extent.

Riley noted the girl's fidgety demeanor as her eyes drifted away. "Hey, you wanna go have a chat somewhere?" he said before the slight awkwardness that hung in the air had the chance to take over. "I haven't made any friends yet, and I figured we could catch up a little."

"A-a chat?"

"Yeah...? Would that be weird?"

"No, I just... wasn't expecting it. Sure, I'd love to catch up a bit!"

Riley's pale face lit up even more. "Great!" he said. "Where do you wanna go?"

"Umm, how about the cafeteria?"

"Hmm, I'd rather go somewhere less crowded," Riley replied without much thought. "Why don't we just go to your room?"

Molly's breath was caught in her throat at the suggestion. Had she not known any better she would have thought that she was being asked on a date. But regardless of what Riley meant, her dorm room was absolutely off limits. A boy like him could never handle what awaited there.

She fidgeted where she stood. "Err, I've kinda been meaning to clean it up a bit... But maybe the library?"

"Sure, that works," said Riley with a little shrug.

"Alright, let's go." Clutching her folder to her chest, Molly stood up on her slim legs and followed in Riley's steps as he gleefully took the lead down the corridor. She hesitated to catch up to him completely, and thus remained lagging behind him by a pace or two.

Riley looked back at her, giving her a quick scan while she stared at the floor. "Guess you're still taller than me, huh?" he said with a smile, albeit one that hid his true emotions. It did sting a bit to see a virtually identical height difference between them as the last time they saw each other all those years ago. She wasn't even particularly tall, maybe around five and a half feet or so, so those few inches she had on him felt even more significant.

Tearing her gaze off the floor, Molly cast a glance his way. "Umm, yeah, I guess... I didn't even think about it."

"Huh. That's rare. I feel like girls judge my height all the time."

"That's silly... Why would anyone care about something like that?"

"Well, maybe not only my height," Riley said with a sigh, looking down his backside. "I mean, it's no secret that puberty was a bitch to me."

Molly's eyes followed Riley's, and it surprised her that she hadn't already noticed what he was referring to. The redhead seemed to have grown almost exclusively in width since she last saw him, though not much in the shoulders or waist, which was clear despite his thick, gray hoodie. It was as if he was the combined halves of two different people; a slender, androgynous torso attached to a pair of hips and legs whose shape few types of garment could conceal. Even now, in the pair of black sweatpants he was wearing, his ass and thighs looked so thick and round that it wasn't hard to picture the ripples a mere pat would send through them.

"D-don't say that!" Molly exclaimed, stopping her mind from wandering further. "We're all beautiful in our own way!"

Taken aback, Riley stared at her for a moment, before cracking a smirk. Such a corny line was to be expected from her, after all. It seemed she was still the same stuttering girl that Riley remembered her as after all these years. Furthermore, it was more of a compliment than most people would offer a girly boy like him. Perhaps bumping into Molly had been a good thing after all; especially considering that most other freshmen had probably already formed their friend groups now that the first semester had passed.

The pair continued through the hallways, as Molly did her best to process everything that came out of Riley's mouth. Even as they entered the library he didn't quiet down in the slightest, but thankfully there were hardly any students among the bookshelves and reading tables despite it being afternoon on a rather busy school day. As Riley went on about the lack of good fast food places near the school, Molly's could only offer him partial attention, focusing mostly on scanning the various literary sections the library had to offer.

"Hey, hold on," she said, stopping in her tracks. "There's a book that I want to borrow."

Riley followed her into one of the aisles in the section labeledSocial Science. "For class?" he asked.

"No, for the club that I'm in, actually."

Riley immediately felt a hint of irritation at the mention of clubs. "Ah, I see. Almost forgot about that stuff."

"What club are you in?" Molly asked as she searched a row of thick books.

"None. I kinda ignored that stuff. Never applied for one last semester."

"What? But... club activities have already started."

Riley shrugged, looking as carefree as ever. "Yeah, well. Guess I'll just flunk the course."

"Why didn't you apply for one?"

"Because the activities are just the same boring garbage we're already taught," Riley explained. "They should give us more freedom to choose what to do."

"I think it's fine... I mean, you still get to choose the subject and create your own project."

Riley went quiet for a moment. "Wait... You create your own project?"

"Well, yeah?" the blonde said, eyeing the boy through her thick glasses. "What did you think?"

"Uh, I dunno. I thought you had to do something that the school had prepared..."

"Oh, no, no. That would be kinda lame."

Riley watched as Molly continued to search the bookshelf. "So what about you? What's your club about?"

"This!" she said, beaming. She flashed the tall, heavy book that she had just pulled out of the shelf, allowing Riley to read the title before she opened it and immediately began reading the table of contents.

Riley rolled his eyes in response. Given the freedom to choose, he should have expected that there would be students jumping on the bandwagon of subjects that were nothing but trendy fads. Judging from the book title"Gender and Sex in the Modern World", it seemed that Molly was part of that bandwagon. And as far as he knew, such a subject wasn't part of the general education. At least he hoped not...

"Gender studies?" he said, sneering. "Seriously?"

"W-what's wrong with that?"

The redhead shrugged. "Sounds about as boring as the other subjects, and it's useless knowledge as well."

"It's useful for some of us!" said Molly in defiance.

"Hmm, maybe you're right. I guess you could have benefited from it when you went through puberty."

"... Huh?" Molly blurted. Suddenly she had goosebumps all over. She wanted to play dumb, but that smug look on the ginger boy's face looked all too knowing. "W-why would that be?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe it would have taught you that being a girl isn't necessarily about what's between your legs. Then you could have received sex education better suited to you." Riley stepped closer, putting them shoulder to shoulder, then leaned in for a whisper. "That way you might have been more prepared for random boners at school, right?"

Molly felt her body turning to ice. "You... you knew about that...?"

"Of course I did. I was as surprised as everyone else to learn that you have a dick. That shit spread like wildfire."

Molly buried her face between the pages of the open book. "Oh my god... I don't wanna remember it..."

"Eh, it's no big deal," Riley said. "I mean, it's just a dick. And we all masturbate. You just forgot to lock the restroom door."

"I-I wasn't... masturb--"

"Y'know, it really makes sense now that I think about it," Riley went on, drowning out Molly's mumbling. "The other girls did say that you always waited for them to leave before showering after gym class. And I do remember you carrying stuff in front of your crotch a lot."

"Stop..." Molly said. "Please..."

Riley's moment of playful glee came to an abrupt end as he heard the quiver in Molly's voice. "Alright, I'm sorry. I was just teasing you a bit. I'll stop."

The blonde lowered the book from her reddened face and sighed. "I-it's fine..." she said. "Come on, let's go sit somewhere." She turned her back to Riley and headed for the nearby corner in the far end of the library and the entire building. There was no place quieter nor cozier in the entire school, especially on a cold winter day like this one. A large, round table stood in the corner, surrounded on two sides by bookshelves and two sides by windows, the garden outside buried under an ever-growing sheet of snow. The perfect setting for long study sessions, as concluded by Molly early in the first semester. All that was missing now was some Starbucks coffee.

"Well, isn't this a nice little place," Riley said and took a seat by the table.

Molly sat down on the opposite side. "Yeah. I go here almost every day."

"I wish I was that dedicated."

"I mean... It's not like I have anything better to do."

Riley chuckled. "Yeah, I guess you have a point. It does get pretty boring around here. Can't compare to junior high, that's for damn sure."

"Right..."

Seeing Molly slump down and once again bury her face between the pages of her book, Riley realized what he had just said, and a spark of guilt hit him for the second time. What an idiot he was. As if Molly -- one of the most lonely girls he had ever met -- would ever prefer the way things were back then. College students were at least mature enough to not gossip and spread nasty rumors behind one's back, unlike 14 year old kids.

Riley decided to simply lean back in his chair and enjoy a moment of silence that he suspected that Molly was in need of, despite their original plan of having a chat. He sighed deeply, letting his eyes drift as he drank in his surroundings in hope that the awkward mood would slowly dissipate. It was a calming experience for someone like him. He had spent most of the first semester being annoyed with the establishment and fellow students, but all that felt like a distant memory in the quiet library with Molly.

Before long he decided to take the moment to inspect the timid girl as she sat there, fully immersed in the book she had brought. Though her aura had remained unchanged through the years, her appearance had certainly matured to some extent. Most of her facial features were narrow and indistinct, but her lips had plumped up nicely, albeit awkwardly mismatched with the rest of her face. Overall she was actually quite cute, but very forgettable at first glance. Her style of choice didn't exactly help in that regard. The thick glasses and short pigtails hanging down just behind her ears gave her a rather goofy look that was almost a parody of a stereotypical nerdy girl, as did her flannel shirt. But at least that shirt was quite nicely filled in by now.

To think that those innocent, feminine looks of hers hid something so obscene further down...

"W-what is it...?"

Riley jolted back to reality and sat up straight in his chair, only now realizing that Molly had torn her attention away from the book. "Oh, sorry," he said. "Just got a bit lost in thought."

"From looking at me?"

"No, no, I was... err, looking at your book," Riley managed to come up with on the spot. "And it got me thinking about your club. You said it was about gender studies or whatever, but that's not part of general education."

"Oh. Yeah, we got special permission from the dean."

"How did that happen?"

"Long story..."

Riley shrugged. "We have time."

"Well, okay. So... I've actually gotten to know the dean a bit. She started talking to me one day when I was just walking down the hallway. She asked me some questions, like what I thought about the school and stuff. Before leaving, she said that I was welcome in her office any time if I wanted to chat. And, well... I didn't really talk to anyone else at school, so I took her up on that."