"So what's the big date?" My esthetician looked to be maybe in her early 40s.
"No big date, I just like the sting of it." I was referring to the waxing. I also liked where she placed her fingers to brace me before pulling the wax off. "Though a lot of people have been seeing me naked lately..." For some reason I didn't feel bothered saying that out loud. I wondered if men actually preferred me hairless or not, or if I'd just gotten that impression from pornography.
She quirked an eyebrow. "That's a new one. Glad to hear it though, I was debating having a talk with you about the bruises..." She meant the bruises on my wrists, ankle, and all over my ass, of course.
"Thanks for looking out, but I'm fine." I had learned to enjoy the dull pain that I was perpetually in. I didn't think I was seriously hurt, so I could override my body yelling at me. I wasn't sure if the limp I still had was because of my bruised ankle or because of what Cody had done to me the night prior.
She gave me a knowing smirk and finished her job, rapidly peeling another wax strip off, leaving me panting and white-knuckled.
When we were done, I paid and was about to leave when I felt the tug of my promise. I had to be honest. I turned around and met her gaze. My hands were sweaty. "Would you like to come have dinner at my place? It's a dorm but I can make it nice." There was a pause. "Or your place - or any place, actually?" I continued.
"Sorry, I don't date clients, I also don't swing that way." She gave me a sympathetic smile. I was partially grateful, since I hadn't even begun to figure out what to tell Olivia if I brought another woman home.
"I--Hm, suppose I should find another beautician huh?" An unfortunate chuckle broke its way out of me.
"You can try but you won't find anyone better than me, darling."
I marveled. What a perfect response. She'd let me know I was still welcome there without opening the door to my advance even slightly. Completely professional. "Okay... see you next time then!" I admire women like her so much.
---
I met Liam the next afternoon, and luckily my limp had mostly subsided by then. We met in the park and got ice cream cones and walked, and I held his hand and watched him blush. I was glad that it was another pleasant sunny day. I tried not to be aggressively sexual about licking the ice-cream, since I knew he would notice.
He was noticing other things, too - I caught him looking at the gap between my skirt and my knee-high socks, at my thighs. A dandelion fluff caught up by the warm breeze hit me in the eye and made my face scrunch up funny. He laughed at me. I laughed with him.
We played frisbee, or rather, he played frisbee and tried to teach me how to throw. I mostly just ran around after it. I was moving pretty slowly because every step still hurt a little bit, but I think he had fun. He walked me back to the dorms. I interlocked my fingers with his and guided him over to the brick wall of the building in the shade of a big oak and leaned back against the wall, pulling his hand to my thigh, right into the gap that I'd caught him looking at. His fingertips explored my skin, then his palm dove in and he gripped my thigh and lifted my leg higher, while letting his body sink against mine to pin me against the wall. He kissed me. It was soft, joyful, my heart swelled and I didn't know what to do. When he broke the kiss his cute face was inches from mine and I just said "I like you."
"I like you too." He smiled with his eyes. "But I need to get to class..." He leaned in to kiss me again, his hand coming up to my neck. I felt him fighting himself about pulling away, so I pushed him slightly with a hand on his clavicle.
"We'll do this again soon?" He asked, studying my lips.
"Yes please." I giggled and kicked off the wall, waving at him like a dork while I turned to go up the concrete stairs into the dorm.
My phone dinged on the way up to my room. "Tomorrow? Or Saturday?" It was Liam. "Sorry I don't want to be the kind of guy who pressures you, but I also don't want to play games, I like you and really want to see you again soon."
I fell down in my bed and held my phone to my chest and beamed a smile at the ceiling. "Saturday. I promised tomorrow to Olivia. My roommate. Gotta make time for study too, I'm not that bright." Then I remembered I had to go to Cody's on Saturday night to obey his previous order. "Oh crap, can't do Saturday either - might have to be next week?" I felt a little dirty typing that. "I'm not dodging you I promise I really like you too and want to see you again. Tuesday night?"
"Sure thing! Do you want to go roller blading? I'm not afraid to fall down in front of you."
I laughed out loud at that, but then pondered whether it was an innuendo, deciding ultimately that it must not have been, and silently scolded myself for letting my brain get so corrupted.
"Okay but you should know I'm really good on skates, I won't let you fall."
"Whew, glad to hear it - I am actually pretty afraid to fall down in front of you. I was just even more afraid to say so."
I really liked him.
I got up and got back to my life.
---
The next day after class my phone dinged, almost the second that I got home.
"Come meet me at Jellybean tonight at 9. No panties, no bras, wear the coral lipstick from my drawer in the bathroom (Vivid Cotton Ink Shade 18 if you're a dummy), do your eyelashes, mascara, the whole works. But don't put your hair up - you're cuter with it down. Wear that black skirt you have with the crescent moons on the hem, the white shirt I put on your pillow, and those cute lace-up combat boots under your bed that you never break out."
Olivia's text made my heart race. Such explicit directions made me burn with curiosity about her plan for the night. I took a shower, spending quite a few minutes zoning out with the hot water pouring down my backside. The steady flow of heat soothed my skin. I had started to feel pretty normal again at that point, no pain.