School for Sissies 2, Chapter Two

Day Two

Martin’s mouth tasted foul when he woke the next day. That same grit covered his bare arms and left a taste like cherry-flavored cough syrup in his mouth. A thin film of the stuff coated his book on the nightstand and the surface of his desk.

Beside his bed, Kevin was already stirring, his feet on the floor, head in his hands while he struggled to gain full consciousness.

“I feel hung over,” he grumbled.

Martin didn’t answer. He rose with the same grogginess and collected his deck shoes and plastic baggy containing his soap and shampoo for the shower. If he was moving, he could shake off the dopey feeling, just like the day before. He wondered if he and Kevin were coming down with something, a shared cold that was easily traded in such tight quarters.

A few of the others on the floor were already in the communal bathroom, standing under the showers separated by the shoulder-high dividers. Martin took a place in one of these open stalls and tested the water until it was warm to the touch. While he bathed himself, he noticed how smooth his face was. Usually he’d need a shave after a couple of days, but there was almost no growth. What hair there was felt finer and softer. All of him felt that way when he scrubbed his bare skin, he discovered. It was as though he’d been using lotion or something to make his flesh look healthier and almost tender.

Glancing over at the others, he saw the same luminosity in their skin. Perhaps something in the water, Martin thought. Still, he hurried when he left the showers, chased by a sort of shame that his skin was less brushy than normal.

Kevin was still gathering himself, so Martin changed and made his way down the steps of the dorm to the lobby alone. He had time for breakfast, which was good. His stomach was roiling. Probably because he had been eating only fruits and grains since his arrival at Waverly. Kevin’s promise of greasy convenience store hot dogs had yet to materialize. The very notion of it made his mouth water and belly rumble more.

“Hello, stranger!”

Martin turned to find Elaine chasing him and settling into stride beside him. Today’s outfit was a more traditional jeans and sweater, though the sweater was small enough to show off Elaine’s impressive chest. Her dark hair was down, but the tips were frosted pink to match the color of her sweater.

“Morning.”

“I don’t know if you’re mad at me about something, but there are some things you have to do for orientation. If you want, I can get you another mentor.”

Martin sighed and stopped and Elaine stopped with him.

“It’s not that. You seem really nice. I don’t know what it is, honestly. I didn’t want to come here in the first place, and all this pressure to jump through the bureaucratic hoops… I don’t mean to take it out on you.”

“I get it,” she said, taking Martin’s hand. “I was in the same place you were, but it will get easier. I promise. But you’d be doing me a big favor if you’d meet me halfway. Just sit down with me tonight and do the orientation stuff and then you can go back to your room. Give me an hour, hour-and-a-half tops. Please?”

He sighed and craned his head up. The sky was gloomy and threatened rain, which made the cool of the breeze cut through him. “Yeah. Sure. I’ll try to do better and not cause you any trouble.”

Until I can get out of this weird school this winter, he thought, but did not say aloud.

“Great! See you tonight!”

Elaine hopped off. Her enthusiasm was a nice contrast to the gray of the morning, and Martin even allowed himself a moment to appreciate her shapely ass when she left, squeezed into a tight pair of distressed jeans.

After breakfast, Martin made his way to his Sociology class. While his anti-social behavior might indicate otherwise, martin considered a career in social work as a real possibility for him. He might be anti-establishment in his heart of hearts, but he liked the idea of helping people. Volunteer work always proved satisfying to him, and he hoped he could lose himself in some community service over the coming semester. That would show his parents his sincerity to straighten up and fly right and also might offer some personal growth, maybe help him narrow down how he wanted to channel that spirit of giving.

Unfortunately, the course offered at the Freshman level at Waverly College was hardly a sociology class as he had imagined. The professor was female, as they all seemed to be, with a small mouth set in a prim pout. She was older than the other women he’d seen teaching at the college, with iron hair and thick glasses. Her name was Pembrook, and she liked to look every student in the eye when she spoke.

“I’m sure a lot of you expect that the world revolves around you,” she said as she leaned against her heavy desk, eyes boring deep into one student and then the next. “In this class, you will learn the importance of the social contract, and your role in fulfilling it. You will learn that there is more to life than in pursuing your own agendas. That there is something called service. And serving is something I expect all of you to do.”

Martin didn’t entirely disagree, but the phrasing was less than ideal. The older woman appeared to have a concrete view of how everyone should behave and tolerated little variation.

“In my class, you will learn manners. And proper behavior. And how you may best be of service to those around you.”

Martin scanned the other classmates. Unlike his Literature class, at least there were some girls in this one. When the class ended, he found himself walking down the hall of the science building with one of these female students and dared to introduce himself.

“I’m Katie,” she said. She was small, almost frail-looking, and dressed like she was going to an ice cream social in the mid-twentieth century. Her skirt was long and billowy, the top just tight enough to show off a cute shape, but not too snug to be suggestive. She had a flat chest, but otherwise looked very pretty in Martin’s estimation.

“Nice to meet you. Is it just me, or was that kind of weird?”

Katie developed an adorable furrow in her brow. “Was what weird?”

“Mrs. Pembrook and her class. She didn’t come right out and say it, but wasn’t she suggesting that some people should basically serve others? That sounds a little… I don’t know. Old-fashioned?”

Katie giggled. “I guess I’m old-fashioned then. I love the idea of making a good wife for someone one day. Until then, I guess I just have to make a good girlfriend.” More giggles accompanied that. And the way she looked at Martin, like he was a candidate for just the kind of thing she was talking about, was disconcerting. She had the happy, upturned face of a normal girl, but there was something desperate and needy behind her eyes.

“I gotta get to my next class,” he told her and offered her an apologetic smile. “See you in class.”

“See you!” she beamed back at him.

Kevin texted between classes about meeting for lunch, and Martin was eager to talk to his roommate. The notion that something strange was happening at Waverly hardened in his mind, but he needed someone to argue back at him when he started proposing his outlandish theories. His desire to explore his suspicions was waylaid when he saw his roommate.

Kevin looked pale, despite how his skin had the softness Martin discovered in his own flesh. He didn’t look sick, not precisely, but there was a fogginess in his demeanor that worried martin, as if his roommate was present, but also listening to some faraway voice.

“Are you okay? Did you get enough sleep last night?”

“What? Yeah, sure. I’m a little light-headed, that’s all. I had a meeting with the guidance counsellor a little while ago. I guess I’ve been a little out of it ever since. She was so hot. I think maybe all the blood drained from my brain.”

“Who was she?”

“Who?”

“The guidance counsellor.”

“Oh! Doctor Miller. She was a little older, but incredibly hot. A real cougar, you know?”

“What did you two talk about?”

Kevin squinted, trying to find the memory. “I’m not really sure. General stuff, I guess. I was too busy checking out her legs. She had amazing legs.”

The vague worry was now a full-fledged klaxon in Martin’s mind. He probed more while they ate, but there was no more information to be gleaned from Kevin in his current state. Instead, Martin resolved that he would try to find out more from his meeting with Elaine that night.

She waited for him in the library after classes were done in a private room. At least it kept their voices trapped inside. One full wall was made of glass, facing the interior of the library, so it wasn’t as if they were too isolated. And that was just how Martin wanted it. The thought of being alone with Elaine, or with any of the girls at Waverly, made him anxious.

Elaine was dressed in an alluring manner, as always. Most of her legs were bare thanks to her short black mini and ankle boots, the coat she wore trimmed with faux fox fur over a green top that clung to her delicious curves. When she saw Martin enter, her face lit up and flashed him a pearlescent grin.

“I thought you might stand me up,” she teased. She scooted a chair toward Martin, her tan leg extended and showing off a generous portion of her thigh.

“Of course not. Sorry that I’ve been playing hard-to-get. You know, school-wise I mean. Just getting my bearings.”

“It’s totally natural.” When Martin sat at the table in the study room, Elaine moved her chair close to his. He could feel the heat coming off of her, and the sweet scent of her perfume flooded his nostrils. It was hard to remain focused when a gorgeous girl like Elaine was so close, never mind the way she rested her finger son his forearm when she spoke. “I was completely lotst almost the whole first semester. And then I realized that all the other people in my class were going through the same thing. From then on, I just relaxed and went with the flow. It made life so much easier, I promise.”

“So, what do I need to know?”

“My part in this is to make sure that you have everything you need. If you have any questions about your classes or how things are done, what’s expected of you. All of the above and more. Basically, I’m the person you come to if you have a question about just about anything.”

“I do have one question.”

“Anything.”

“How well do you know Justine?”

Elaine paused only for a breath, but it was enough for Martin to take notice. “I’d say I know her reasonably well, but we’re not super close. Why?”

“She’s been spending a lot of time with Kevin. And I didn’t know if it was common for guys to hook up with their mentors.”

“Are they hooking up?”

Martin chuckled and shrugged. “I haven’t seen them or anything, but I’m pretty sure. I just met Kevin, but I don’t think he was always walking around all dopey and lovesick.”

Elaine shared his laughter. He felt the weight of her hand on his arm. Her hair was down today. It was long and so black you could lose yourself in the depth of that darkness. He was sure it would feel like silk running between his fingers if he dared to brush them through her hair.

“It happens. Not always, but it does happen. Obviously not with us. I keep wondering if I did something that made you angry with me.”

“Of course not,” he said quickly. “I tend to keep to myself, that’s all. You’re beautiful. I mean it. Maybe the prettiest girl on campus.”

The smile on Elaine’s face broadened. “I’m glad you think so. I think it’s important to be pretty. And I like it a lot when a handsome boy thinks I’m pretty.”

Her fingers were moving back and forth across Martin’s arm. Between the sweet smell of her and the way she seemed to be closer every time he looked at her, Martin was sure he was going to kiss her. He wondered what her tongue would taste like, and how her heavy breasts might feel in his hands. He could see her nipples were erect. His cock was hardening in his jeans. It would be so easy to lean in and kiss those inviting lips. He was sure she wanted him to, and he wanted that.

The image of Kevin at lunch, moony-eyed and dim-witted, came back to Martin and he sat up straight, his hand moving away from Elaine and sending his backpack laid upon the table to the floor with a muffled crash of books within.

“I have to go.”

“What? Why?”

“Sorry, I’m not feeling good all of a sudden. But I appreciate what you said. I’ll come to you with any questions. I promise.”

Before she could protest, he had his pack over a shoulder and was opening the door of the study room, hurrying away from Elaine. He saw a pretty librarian watching him from behind black-framed glasses, her look stern and curious. When the cool air hit him outside, he took great big breaths. It was almost as good as a splash of cold water. He was himself again, though he was still rock-hard. Was it plain arousal he felt, or something more? Was it the same thing Kevin had fallen prey to?

The questions dogged him on his way back to the dorm. He was glad to mount the last riser and spill onto the floor where he felt a measure of safety and solitude. He was fishing his security card out when he saw the boy wandering aimlessly down the hall, his fingers tracing the contours of the cinderblock walls.

“You okay?” Martin planned to head straight into his room and bury himself under the blankets, even if Kevin was there. The words were out before he knew, and his classmate stopped in his tracks.

He turned slow, wearing only a tee and some loose shorts as if he was readying for bed and was distracted. Martin vaguely remembered meeting him in the halls or maybe in the showers. Charles or something. No, now he remembered!

“Chris?”

“I’m not Chris,” the boy replied. He giggled. His voice was high and soft, and his head tilted slightly like he was trying to hear something faint in the distance.

“Oh, sorry. I’m bad with names. I thought-“

“My name’s Christy now. Isn’t that pretty?”

He was high on something. Had to be. That vague look in his eyes, the soft laughter that accompanied every sentence.

“Sure. You can get back to your room, right?”

“Or I could come to your room,” he tittered.

“No thanks. Take care of yourself, okay?”

The door clicked open at the swipe of his card and Martin entered fast. There was no sign that the poor kid was going to give chase, but the encounter scared him. He saw that Kevin was gone. Good. He needed to parse his way through the events of the day. Only once he was in bed, he grew sleepy again. In minutes, he was unconscious and happily oblivious.