Chapter 16
We were the second pair there: Ty and his partner whom I recognized as "Donita Holnight" had arrived first. Ty motioned for us to take off our Walkmans, which we deposited on a table nearby. Ty's face registered mild panic as he realized that I wasn't with Cary.
He made a show of congratulating both of us effusively and gave me a high five, then took me aside. "Dude, what happened?" he whispered. "You and Jane were both supposed to go to 6."
I shrugged. "No idea. That's where I ended up. Maybe she grabbed the wrong one." I took a deep breath, working to banish my doubts. "It's okay. I'm okay. And I bet she is, too. You've got nothing to worry about."
Ty gave me a dubious look, but grinned uncertainly. Next to us, Carla languidly pulled her dress back on while chatting with "Donita" who had been fully clothed--if a little rumpled--when we arrived. A staff member in a red vest had already started tabulating our score.
"Hey, how did you know how many words we said?" I asked.
Ty rolled his eyes. "Half of the rooms here are already wired for security purposes. I just had a few folks in the security room downstairs making marks and crossing them back off against a master list of things you could do to earn them back."
I gave him a slap on the back. "Man, this rocked. You put so much work into this. It was totally sweet--the coolest graduation party I could imagine."
Ty relaxed a bit. "Let's hope Jane thinks so too. Seven minutes--man, you two must have just
raced
through that room like greased lightning."
I chuckled. "I thought we were about to run out of time."
"The only thing you two took your time on according to the referees was fooling around," Ty smirked. "But hey, you should get cracking on those secret codes."
"I'm too turned on to think right now," I chuckled. "Will it ruin the game if I take a walk up and down the hall a few times to cool down?"
Ty shook his head. "Nah, just don't knock or go into people's rooms. And get out of their way if they're running down the hall."
Carla sauntered over to me and took my arm. "I think I'll join you."
I opened my mouth to protest, but thought better of it. After tit-sucking, a poor man's lap dance, and a 1-minute handjob, what was I worried about? It wasn't like we were going to lose all control and start fucking in the hallway like animals. I nodded and started strolling down the hall again.
"Are you going to stay?" Carla asked abruptly once we exited room 3.
I shook my head. "I don't think so."
"Why not?" she seemed genuinely upset. "Don't you like us? I mean, there's no pressure, of course. But Miles and I really like your vibes--you and Jane. We really hoped you'd both stay for... afterwards."
I smiled. It was the most flattering thing I'd heard in a while. We had stopped in front of our room, and I squeezed her arm. "Jane and I just started dating today. This evening. Hours ago, at
my
graduation party. We're not even totally sure what we have yet, and having sex with other people... it's just not in the cards."
Carla looked dumbfounded. "You're not in an open relationship?"
I grinned. "This is the closest I've ever gotten to it. Probably the closest I'll
ever
get to it. And I think the same is true for--for Jane. We're just barely
in
a relationship at all." I was tired and tipsy, and had almost said her real name. "You guys are all awesome, and I'm flattered."
Carla sighed and leaned into me. "Dang. I thought we'd made some new friends tonight. Do you have any idea how hard it is to find people with the right attitude--who aren't super jealous or pushy or think it's just free sex no matter what?"
"For people our age?" I asked. "Real hard, I bet."
"Most people who do this are in their thirties or forties." She pouted, but then smiled. "Well, no reason we can't still be friends. Just not free-for-all sex. Yet." She brushed a fingertip across my barely-subsided erection. "Once you two have settled in, don't rule anything out."
I took a few more steps, and the door to room 8 burst open, disgorging a very disheveled "Agent Hardrock" and "Wanda French" even less dressed than Carla had been. They gave us a wink as they ran down the hall to get their time recorded. I was almost backed against the door to room 9 as I tried to get out of the way.
"Hurry," I heard somebody say from behind the door. I froze. It was unmistakably Cary's voice.
Room 9. Between Ty and Nancy, one of them had accidentally flipped a slip of paper upside-down. There was the sound of movement, and then some grunting. It went for a bit, and then I suddenly heard Cary gasp and sputter, "What the hell?"
"Sorry, sorry. I'm sorry," a male voice babbled.
Carla giggled next to me. "Oh my God," she said. "It sounds like
somebody