By His Reputation

The continuation of Alexander and Kate has been difficult for me to write, with some personal things in my life tearing me from writing for too long. In truth, this chapter sat unfinished for a bit over a year until I was able to bring myself back here. It was a bit awkward to try to pick it up again and complete it without scrapping everything I had. I shall not be letting such a lapse happen again, and with no further ado, I continue the story of Mr. Alexander Page.

Alexander was already in another cab on the way home from his distasteful interaction with Denise, whom he was already thinking less frequently of, when his phone buzzed in his pocket, demanding his attention away from staring at the cab meter that was climbing. He pulled it out and saw a response. "

Alex?

" was all it said, evoking a smile from him and starting to lift his slightly sour mood. Practiced fingers responded back "

Yes Kate. Tell me your address and I'll come pick you up at 6:30.

"

The conversation continued, in an expected and usual manner, for several long minutes. He did not tell her where they were going, or what they were going to be doing other than "dinner" and "wear something nice." It had been quite a long time since he had felt the rush of being able to go out on a "date" without knowing exactly what would happen and planning every last thing. He wanted to get to know Kate a bit more now. They hadn't had much opportunity to talk, except for earlier that morning.

"This morning only," he muttered quietly to himself as the cab drove through the early afternoon traffic back towards the Sycamore. "I didn't even sleep in today," he chuckled to nobody in particular, before falling back into a more comfortable silence now in that back seat. He watched his city flit by in the window as the day started to grow quiet. Streets were calmer now, with midday passed, and the whole city had a more quiet air to it, broken only by the sounds of cars and trucks passing by. It was Alexander's second favorite time of day. He preferred the early morning hours, when the dark of the night faded towards light grey and he could have moments of peace in the cool air, looking over the lights of the city from his balcony while he had a cigarette. Habitually, he felt his shirt pocket and then chewed on his bottom lip for a moment.

The cab arrived at the Sycamore a few minutes later. It was about a 10 minute cab ride from his apartment building to the University -- far enough away that he did not have to deal with loud noises from kids celebrating weekends starting Thursday night. He smiled again.

Kids

, he thought.

It really wasn't that long ago for me.

He checked his phone one more time and responded to Kate "

It's a date

" before paying the driver and leaving. Nobody else messaged him. A bittersweet fact he was grateful and lonely for. At least it wasn't Denise messaging him.

"Mr. Page, welcome home." The afternoon doorman greeted him. He was always a bit more talkative than the morning man who stood watch.

"Hi, Harry," Alexander greeted him as a friend. "Listen, I'm going out for dinner tonight. Could you call me if anyone drops bye? I'm not expecting anyone this afternoon, but still. Just to be safe."

"When do you ever have guests anymore, Mr. Page?" Harry smiled and nodded when Alexander shot him a sarcastic look before leaning against the elevator frame.

Alexander smirked and, tongue in his cheek, turned back to Harry, hesitating as though he were trying to think of the perfect phrase. "I have friends," he said almost matter-of-factly in a tone that caused both men to chuckle like children for a moment. "I actually have a date. And, it's not like before. I saw her in daylight hours."

Harry laughed a deep, hearty laugh. "Well, by all means then sir. I hope you have a great night. I'll make sure to buzz you if anyone does visit." He nodded politely towards Alexander as the elevator door closed, separating them and the artist looked at the reflective wall, a sudden blurry reflection of himself.

"It's not like before," his voice trailed off, again heard only by the man alone.

*******************************************

Kate was beside herself with excitement and, much to the chagrin of her socially awkward roommate, Nikki, was a ball of chatty energy. Nikki was the type to attempt to focus on her homework but darn it, video games were just so much more interesting than chemistry. And she just

had

to level up just "one more time" before she got really serious about her homework.

Kate was not having this, and kept making her roommate take her headphones off to ask "What did you say?" in response to unheard questions, which were all about her excitement of going on a date for the first time in three years. Finally, Nikki realized there was no way she was going to be able to vanquish demons back to Hell with Kate asking her so many questions, so she finally gave her undivided attention to the subject that she cared so little about: fashion.

"Katie, it all looks good, really. Just...wear the green one. It matches your eyes." Nikki said to her roommate who was running between the bathroom and her bedroom. Their apartment door opened to the living room straight ahead, the kitchen to the left leading to a short hallway. On the right was a small bathroom and further beyond, on the left side was Nikki's bedroom and on the right was Kate's bedroom. It was not a huge apartment, but spacious enough for two students.

"My eyes are hazel, not green!" Kate's voice called from the bathroom, eliciting an eye roll from Nikki. She didn't really date; she had enough social interaction from going to work at a pizza place and coming home to spend time with her online friends. And she was happy enough with that.

Kate, on the other hand, was so focused on her schooling and on her career, taking care of herself and her home that she simply didn't have time to date. But she was still thrilled about the opportunity. Sure, it was a little bit strange to go on a date after having sex with the guy, she thought at least, but still -- she had an opportunity to be pretty next to a guy she was attracted to.

"I just want to look good tonight, ok?!" Kate hollered from the hallway as she vanished back into the bedroom to put clothes away after seeing them in the mirror. The only thing she had settled on was wearing a black bra and panties, neither of which was particularly sexual by themselves. But every time she thought of her date, a little spark ran up her spine and her mind lit up.

"Why? He's already seen you naked! " Nikki rolled her eyes, withholding judgment not out of respect but because she didn't care. As far as Nikki was concerned, Kate had more than enough time still and spending the next three hours obsessing was almost literally insane.

Kate stuck her head out of the bedroom door. "YOU! Shush!" the young lady exclaimed before diving back into her room. Ah. There it was. Right next to the sundress she was wearing this morning. She blushed and touched the sundress for a moment before pulling it to the side and pulling out what she wanted to wear. She had a black and white patterned all-over lace body hugging dress that came down almost to her knees. It might have been shorter, but she was affectionately called "fun size" by her best friends.

Nikki had finally decided to turn back to her computer before Kate came out, dressed and barefoot. "What do you think" she heard Kate's voice call from behind her, forcing her to turn around one more time.

"You look good Kate. You really do," the roommate said after a brief look and, while honest, was also dismissive. "I still don't really understand what's up with this guy. You haven't gone on a date in 3 years almost."

"Well...." Kate searched for the right words while bobbing her head back and forth. "I'm graduating soon and...now is as good of a time as any to date, right?"

"Usually the date happens before the hookup." Nikki said. The two told each other just about everything, although Kate was beginning to regret the conversation she had when she came home this afternoon.

"Nik, you don't understand. Yea, it's weird. But this guy...he just gets me in some way I can't explain," she came to sit, closing the distance and lowering her voice. "I feel alive. I feel..." she searched for the right words again before coming up short to explain "I feel like I don't have to feel bad about my body. Or like I don't have to try. I feel safe. It's weird. But I feel

something

for sure. And right now. I feel...excited."

Nikki smiled. "Then go. Get ready. Have a good time. And for the love of Mewtwo, please don't bring your new boytoy up when he's here." She turned around and put her headphones back on. "I'm not putting on pants."

Kate threw a balled up sock at Nikki's back as she left the room, singing loudly "Da da da DAH! You captured a wild Nikki!"

"That's Zelda, you slut!" Nikki said as she returned to slaughtering legions of demons and Kate went to "do her hair." Whatever in blazes that meant.

*******************************************

That evening, Alexander got in his car and began to make his way to the address that Kate had given him. The sun, falling lower into the sky, washed the streets with an amber light, accented by the streetlights of man's design as they shone on the damp pavement. The artist in him would normally appreciate such a delightful moment of color and light, but his mind was distracted again, however pleasant this distraction was. His involvement with Kate was unusual, and now it had led him towards uncharted waters. It was terrifying. Exciting, of course, but terrifying nonetheless. Only one thought occupied his mind and made all the beautiful colors of the day turn shades of grey for a moment -- what happens next when a relationship begins how it had just this morning?

He parked the car in front of an apartment building. It was not particularly nice or poor, but it was clean and the exterior looked to be relatively rust and breakage free. It made sense, Kate was still a student. He hit the buzzer Kate had indicated and looked more closely. The buttons were labeled by number and last name. 216 was labeled Meadows and Whitney. And it displeased Alexander that he did not know the story behind these two names.

"Hello?" came the tinny voice from the speaker.

"It's Alexander. I'm here for a date with Kate?" He said clearly, while looking at the buttons.

"Oh! Wait there. She's coming down," responded the voice over some faint talking in the background.

A few short minutes passed and Kate emerged from the front door wearing a knee-length red dress that flared out a bit at the bottom, matching shoes, and straight hair. He smiled as he saw her and she reciprocated naturally, happily, before looking down and blushing a bit.

"I feel a little silly. I even considered doing some makeup but..." she trailed off from her apology and looked back up. Alexander simply smiled and took her hand.

"Come on, beautiful. Reservations are waiting for us."

*******************************************

Nikki listened as the door closed and stood to cross the room and lock the door behind Kate. Finally, some time alone. Kate had been home for hours now, obsessing about this morning, about this guy she met. Normally, weekends were all hers as her roommate went to the University library to study or to local galleries to look around. And while this morning she was alone, it had mostly been to sleep -- she only rose once the sun had full well already lifted high into the sky.

It wasn't too long after Kate had left that Nikki put her game aside and leaned back, her keyboard in her lap, her pale legs moving to recline her chair and feet resting on the stool against the wall of the living room. While their bedrooms were spacious enough, they didn't have enough room for a full PC desktop gaming setup. As such, her computer lived in the main room, and certain things, like how she was slowly spreading her legs and putting one hand on her mouse and one down the front of her shorts, had to be done in the relative secrecy of an empty apartment.

It was just a few moments until Nikki, practiced at this, had a hentai video she had bookmarked up. She had a thing for hentai -- they were just so much more exiting to her. While her roommate was a bit reserved, Nikki embraced her inner pervert, and watched as a small breasted young girl dropped to her knees in the middle of a living room all full of men with rock hard cocks of varying shapes, sizes, and colors. Her fingers started rubbing her pussy inside her shorts as she watched, one leg on the floor and one pulled under the desk with the stool following.

Her fingers slipped over her hairless pussy as a thick cock pushed into the animated girl's mouth and she sucked it, crying softly but doing as she was told. It wasn't too long until Nikki's fingers grew a bit slick and she spent a few seconds imagining her roommate doing this with her date tonight, taking it as deep as she could. Maybe some night she would bring him here and Nikki would overhear the moans through the walls. Her leg twitched slightly as a finger flicked over her slowly increasingly wet clit as the anime girl gagged, gasping for breath when the man finally pulled out of her mouth, a string of drool from his shining tip to her gaping mouth. Finally, the other men stepped forward and another demanded a turn from her mouth. They were rubbing against her skin as the girl made grunts of protestation and Nikki started finally rubbing faster, her pussy slick and properly wet now.

The girl was soon spit-roasted, thrust forward to deep throat a perfect cock as one sunk deep into her ass, making her scream and her mouth open wider. Nikki's middle finger danced lower, teasing her ass and slipping in slightly as she pressed her palm hard against her clit. She knew it wouldn't be long now until she saw what she wanted, and she wanted to wait for that moment. The nameless men sunk into the woman harder and she started to get thrusted into from both ends, what little clothing she had on was hanging open from her body useless. Nikki wiggled to pull her shorts down, finally exposing herself to the open air and allowing her fingers more space. She imagined her roommate taking a cock like that up her ass tonight, wondering for a brief moment if she would. Her fingers dug deeper into her own ass, making her body shudder and quiver.

Nikki abandoned her death grip on the desk with her right hand and it shot to her clit, rubbing fast suddenly as the man in her mouth pulled out and two men came closer. Here it was, she was so close. Her middle finger dug deeper into her own ass, her other fingers pinching and rolling circles around her clit. Her eyes were glued to the screen, her chest was heaving, and finally she saw it. Cocks were spurting around her, the one in her ass pumping a load the size that can only be seen in hentai deep into the poor girl's ass, flooding it until it spurted out from the pressure even around his cock as her face was covered with the white thick fluid, more than could ever be hoped for. She sat up and stared hard at the screen, breathing fast and heavy as she heard the wet moans, her own body twitching as her orgasm sapped her body of strength and control.

The videos quickly were closed, as porn is always closed suddenly when it is no longer needed, and she adjusted her clothing, with a paranoid glance towards the door to ensure it was locked again. Nikki sighed, relaxed now. She needed that. Kate might be out there doing who knows what, but Nikki was home alone and didn't shy away from what she liked to watch. Heading directly to the bathroom, she stripped down to step into the shower, and closed her eyes to revel in her afterglow in the warm water.

*******************************************

Both Kate and Alexander assumed that the car ride to the restaurant would be awkward and silent. It could not have been more the opposite. They liked the same music on the radio, they laughed and make jokes back and forth, and they both rolled their eyes at the silver Prius who pulled in front of Alexander's Hyundai. It has a license plate that read "HALFGAS."

When they arrived at the restaurant, the White Grass, Alexander moved quickly to open Kate's door -- only to find that she was already on her way out. She smiled up at him and took his hand, not used to being taken care of like this yet. They were shown to their table, a small round one near the back of the restaurant up against a wall. The whole place was relatively quiet, only a few other couples were dining there this evening. Alexander was determined to make his favorite restaurant a happy place again.

"I'm glad you agreed to come out tonight, Kate." He said, running his hands over his white shirt a bit nervously. "I haven't been on a date for a while."

"Me either," she said and smiled at him looking over her dinner rolls. "Truth be told, I have been thinking about this pretty much all day. After this morning, I wasn't exactly sure where to go from here. If it should go anywhere, if I would see you again...I still can't quite believe what happened."

He took her hand in his and pulled it closer to him, planting soft kisses on the back of her hand and closing his eyes for a moment. "I couldn't have thought of a more perfect morning. It was wonderful. And I'm," he paused a moment, hesitant to speak foolishly, "looking forward to many more." He smiled up at her, those icy blue eyes still piercing hers.

A soft smile crept across her lips as well and she slowly pulled her hand back to her lap. "I don't know much about you yet, but I want to learn everything. Maybe not tonight, but definitely, and in time. If that's ok with you, of course. But I do have one thing I want to know. I want to know why my professor gave me your card. She couldn't have known things would happen as they did." At her question, Alexander frowned for a moment. He paused for a long time, and she wasn't sure he would answer.

"I'll give you the short version. Let's talk more about it another day though. Short version? Denise and I used to date. We actually came here once upon a time. It's still one of my favorite restaurants, so at least that didn't get spoiled." He drank deeply from his water glass to prepare for the rest. "I saw her today. And...well, she wants me back in her life. I have no interest in that -- but she thought by sending you to me that she could hurt me somehow. I think..." he trailed off for a moment and thought. "I think she thought you might throw yourself at me and then I would be too hung up on her in order to accept you, and I'd come crawling back to her." He took another deep drink and swallowed, making a face as he considered his words. "Not a great plan."

Kate stared for a few minutes, playing with her fork while Alexander spoke and she grew silent. "I had no idea about any of that. I swear to you. She just said you were an interesting man, an artist, and I should meet you. She implied that I'd like your work!" She looked up at him, genuine confusion on her face for a moment until Alexander leaned forward to kiss her softly on the lips. And in that moment she melted and everything changed. Her eyes closed and the world stopped again. It was alright now.

Days passed while he kissed her until he finally broke it and she blinked back to reality. "It doesn't matter how we met, really. What matters now is that we've met." He took a breath and a pause and looked her in the eyes, the dominant look, the control, the power -- all coming back to him now. "And now that we've met, what do we do with the time we have?"

*******************************************

Neither one of them could have told you exactly how it happened if you asked later, but they were both lost completely in the moment and the heat between them as Alexander slammed Kate against the closed restroom door of the White Grass, lips pressed tightly together. Her back was to the wall in a way that almost felt familiar to her now. He pressed himself tightly against her body, hard cock throbbing through his slacks against her warm soft body as their tongues wrestled and fought lustfully.