Gifted Ch 01 Olivia

Chapter 1: Olivia

Did you know, according to the US patent filed in 1908, a paper cup is comprised of ten separate features?

Wild right? Like it's such a simple invention, how could it possibly have ten different parts? But it does. It has a sealed peripheral lip, a semi-rigid rim structure, a curl. I'd looked it up on my phone earlier in the night. Simple things are super complicated. How often do we take the time to really look at our world, to listen, to see what's in front of -

"Robbie?"

"Huh, what?" I garbled, jolting back into the world. I looked up. An unenthusiastic party light was tossing circles of neon red and green around the room. A Jason Derulo song thudded in the background, its Spanglish lyrics completely obscured by the track's bass.. A few bodies twisted on the dancefloor, a few more were chatting in the kitchen. I was slumped in a beanbag and was seriously eyeballing the red Solo cup in my hand. Patent 7134566.

"Robbie? Dude, fucking look alive!" That was my best friend Napoleon. Pretentious douchebag name, Napoleon. His parents thought it would give him some esteem, some nobility. It didn't, and everyone just called him Nap.

"Right. Sorry man, just got a lot on my mind." I said, turning to him. He was dressed in a stupid striped brown and yellow shirt and was rocking a felt hat that he'd found last week at the campus thrift. He looked otherwise completely unremarkable: short brown hair, nice teeth, green eyes. "Do you ever think about the different parts of a cup? What their names are?"

"What? No, shut up for a second. Did you hear anything I just said?" He said seriously. He looked past me and flashed a smile. I turned to follow it and saw Debbie McMahon returning a smile of her own, before putting her drink down on the table and walking outside.

"Not a word," I said honestly. "Take two?"

"Hopeless you are. Okay, so here's what I was thinking. Tonight might finally be chance to get with Debbie! You saw her just now, she practically just gave me permission to come aboard!" He was talking fast. "I've been in her DMs for weeks now, I'm telling you dude, she's good to go". He was right, he'd been messaging Debbie for over a month. Debbie was his girl of the moment. Nap was always swooning over some girl or another, with varying degrees of success. And why not Debbie McMahon? She was hot. Debbie was a sophomore, nineteen, and had caused quite a stir when she started last year. She had long, blonde hair with that brown streak that was so popular in the mid two-thousands. Her body was petite and tight, except for her ass. Her ass was massive. I'd catch myself watching it bounce across the plaza while I was on break. Two round globes that pushed out against her denim jeans and made the threads hold together for dear life. Rumour was she didn't even squat, she was just blessed by the ass fairy. God I was jealous that she even gave Nap the time of day.

"Oh yeah? That's great" I said. Nap was looking at me expectantly. His eyes darted to one side and then back to centre.

"Okay so I need your help though," he said, launching into a pitch. Nap was studying politics and international relations, and he could be very convincing. I braced.

"What do you want me to do here Nap?" I started. "I've never so much as spoken ten words to her-"

"You've never spoken ten words to any girl here." He laughed. Ouch. He was right though, I hadn't seen much female attention since I started at Manning College, and Nap knew that better than anyone. He carried on as if he hadn't just run a bulldozer over my ego. "but that's going to change right now. Look". He put his arm over my shoulder and pivoted us so that we were staring across the party.

There were maybe thirty people here tonight, packed into this little house a few miles off campus. The house was pretty simply, sparsely decorated. There were some snacks on the kitchen bench, a cooler full of cheap no-brand beers in the corner, an impromptu dance floor between two leather couches. I knew pretty much everyone here. Tammy Winkler, Scott and Damien Thompson, Kyle; this was his house. Megan. Winona. Johan. It wasn't a big school. Typical customers in a pretty typical party house. I wasn't sure what I was meant to be looking at.

"What am I looking for here, Nap?" I quizzed. He narrowed his eyebrows and pointed. He was whispering in my ear at this point as my eyes followed his outstretched arm. It landed on a girl that I'll admit, I'd never seen before.

"That's Olivia. She's Debbie's friend from back in O'Neil, she's visiting for the week. She's a weird chick by all accounts."

I furrowed my brow as I took Olivia in, swaying softly on the dance floor and talking to Pete Gibson. What I noticed first was that she was wearing gloves. Like black leather driving gloves that went half way up her arm. She had a pretty face; full-lips and deep green eyes. Olivia was fairly short, a little um.. full figured? Is that the polite way to say chubby? She was wearing a dark T-shirt with some anime character on it, black jeans, weird rainbow converses. Not really my type. I looked at Nap. He must have read my concern.

"No dude, it's totally alright. Deb says she's kind of spacey. Like they were good friends in high school, for sure, but they've drifted a bit. Can't imagine why." He winked. Olivia did an awkward sashay and left the dancefloor. "So here's my proposal, hear it out. I need to make sure that Olivia has somewhere to be tonight, or else Deb can't go home with anyone-Can't go home with me! Gotta get the weird friend out of the picture so I can go in for the kill."

I watched Olivia reaching for a bag of chips, knocking it over in the process. A hundred tiny potato thins cascaded onto the kitchen floor. She looked up sheepishly. I turned away.

"No-"

Nap had anticipated by objection already. "Hey, hey, hey. Think about it man. When was the last time you had sex?" I thought on it. There was a girl in my last year of high school who I'd spent one awkward evening with before filing the encounter away and never speaking about it. "See, that's what I thought! And it kills me to see you like this Robbie, it really does. I haven't heard you talk about a single woman in this place, except for Caroline Woods and everyone knows that's not happening".

Caroline was easily the best looking girl in the whole university. I wondered how she had even ended up stuck here with us unremarkables. She was an absolute goddess. A face like a supermodel, with pouty lips, innocent baby-blue eyes and freckles that made me melt. Tan, smooth skin, long legs. I'd seen her a few times at the campus gym and I was gobsmacked. A tight, flat stomach and enormous breasts. The campus rumour mill told me she had to wear three sports bras to keep them in place, and even that seldom did the trick. Each one was as big as her head. Every inch of fat on this girl had accumulated on her chest. Caroline and her perfect face, her ridiculous boobs, she'd haunted my dreams for the last two years. Of course I hadn't actually had an interaction with her. Not yet. Anyway.

"Okay now I know Olivia is no Caroline Woods. Hell, she's not even Caroline Kennedy. But everyone has to start somewhere and I'm compelling you dude, start with her." Olivia was cleaning up the mess she'd made, awkwardly scooping chips into her hands. I looked at her ass - big and shapeless. Nap tightened his grip on my neck. "More importantly Robbie, if you won't put the moves on her for yourself, you've gotta try for me!"

"You? Fuck off Nap, why should I do anything for you?"

"Because I'm your boy Robbie. We're in this together. My success equals your success. Never forget that". He turned so that we were eye to eye. I'm a foot taller than Robbie, so he really had to work to make eye contact. "We came out here together, man. We live together. When we graduate, we're moving to the city and starting an empire together, yeah? We'll be rich. And I'll have Debbie McMahon on my arm, and you'll be fucking whatever movie starlet or Instagram influencer you want! Hell, you might even land Caroline Woods! Anything could happen." He was full of shit. Everyone knew it. I knew it. We'd graduate by the skin of our teeth, he'd go and be some low-level diplomat for relationships with Whereverthefuckistan. I'd fix computers at a High school or something equally boring. But just for a second, I believed him and I wanted to hitch myself to his wagon. I thought about Caroline Woods in a low-cut golden dress, huge tits bulging out as I took her hand to dance. I looked down at Napoleon. I looked back at Olivia rush out the back door to meet back up with Debbie somewhere outside. I finished the whisky in my cup in one big mouthful.

"Fuck it, okay!" I said.

Nap punched the air and whooped. "Yes! Robbie, you are the best friend I've ever had!"

I rolled my eyes and steered him at the door to the back patio. "Yeah, yeah," I said. "Let's go,".

**

Outside was a little quieter, which was nice. There was a nice breeze sweeping through the backyard. A couple people were smoking cigarettes by the bins, laughing intermittently. Debbie and Olivia were chatting against the back fence. Nap walked right up to them, dragging me behind him. I'll admit, I was nervous. Sure, Olivia wasn't really that attractive, and she hadn't impressed me from what I'd seen of her physical prowess. But she was still a woman. A woman I was going to try and seduce. I gulped.

"Ladies, ladies, ladies!" Nap shouted as he arrived. "How are you Debbie?"

Debbie turned and smiled at him. "Oh hey Napoleon!" She said, voice landen with genuine enthusiasm. "Hey Robbie." That one was a little less enthusiastic. Ouch. I gave her a nod and gave Olivia my friendliest face.

"Oh hello, I'm Napoleon Isaacs". Nap cut in front of me and offered a hand to Olivia, who took it. "like Waterloo. But I usually go by Nap. This is my roommate Robbie Dodd."

"Nice to meet you," said Olivia. Her voice was kinda high-pitched, like she'd walked past a helium factory. I flinched a little. "And nice to meet you!"

We suddenly made eye contact and I felt an electric jolt shoot through my body, lighting up my entire nervous system for just a second. My eyes shot open wide. Olivia seemed to smirk a little, then just as quickly turned back to Nap and Debbie. I tried not to look too alarmed.

"So, are you enjoying the party Deb?" Napoleon asked, moving in closer to Deb. She looked at him curiously.

"Sure, it's okay. That's an interesting hat," she smirked at Nap. Nap looked flustered for a minute and took it off of his head. "No, I like it! Where did you get it?"

I was still looking at Olivia. My heart was racing a little bit. My nerve endings still felt a little fuzzy, like they were radios tuned to dead air.

Napoleon put the hat back on. He studied Deb quite intensely for a moment. "At Doherty's. I thought it made me look like a distinguished gentleman". He stood up proudly.

Deb snorted and threw herself back in a hearty laugh.

"It makes you look like something, that's for sure!"

**

It became quickly obvious to me that Napoleon and Debbie McMahon would not be sleeping together tonight, or indeed any night. There was a comfortableness to their banter, completely empty of any sexual undercurrents. It was kind of painful to be around, like I was seeing my best friend in a slightly compromising situation, like I was watching him wash his underwear. We talked around in circles for a bit. Olivia didn't say much, but she seemed to hold her own. It was fun, until we hit an awkward silence.

"Have you ever thought about what the different parts of a cup are called?" offered Napoleon, holding up his vessel. Okay, I'd heard enough.

"You wanna get a drink?" I asked Olivia. She looked a little surprised and then smiled.

"Sure!"

Napoleon waved me off before launching the full force of his charm against Debbie's walls. Good luck to him, I thought.

Olivia and I walked back inside. I nodded hello at Pete Gibson as we passed each other in the doorway. He made a quick gesture, spinning a circle around the side of his head; 'crazy'. He pointed to Olivia, who didn't seem to have noticed. Great.

"So you're up here for the week?" I smiled, digging around for my Jack Daniels bottle and offering it to Olivia. She accepted and poured herself a generous amount of the honey brown liquid.

"Yeah, Deb and I haven't seen each other since Spring Break. She's so great Robbie! She's my best friend. We used to do everything together-hang out on the lake, get in the car and just drive. It's been so nice to catch up with her and see what she's making of herself. Mind you, things are a little different now, you know? Like of course they are. We're growing up. Part of growing up is growing apart." I listened to her monologue while sipping my whiskey. "I haven't gone away to college yet. It's a little tricky. My mom isn't well; I kind of take care of her all the time. But she convinced me to go away for the week, meet some people, open up my world, yadda yadda".

"Sorry about your mom," I offered. "It must be hard."

"Thank you Robbie!" she said, looking me in the eye again. Another electric shock. I exhaled sharply. Olivia didn't seem to notice. "It's not too bad but I do sometimes feel like I'm missing out. And when I see how much Deb has come out of her shell here-I guess it does upset me a little bit." She raised her cup up into the air. "But I'm here now, not there! So let's party!" I cheersed her and we both finished our drinks. She grimaced and stuck out her tongue. I laughed.

Olivia was actually pretty awesome. We talked about growing up in small towns, about how isolating they can feel. She told me that she never seemed to fit in in O'Neill and always seemed to be targeted by those who did. I myself never seemed to attract any attention, good or bad. Perfectly average, I skated through high school without leaving much of a mark. It didn't seem that was true for Olivia. She'd been bullied by her female peers and ignored by her male ones. I found myself feeling sorry for her but also admired her resilient spirit. Without really thinking about it, I was suddenly sliding an arm over her shoulder. We kept talking and drinking, moving from the kitchen to the living room.

We talked about the anime she was repping on her shirt. I'd never heard of it, something about teenagers fighting aliens with swords in space. She got super passionate talking about it and I mentally committed to watching it. We had another drink. We talked about how Debbie had always looked after her in school, and how lonely she'd been in the year after she left. I found myself swaying slowly to the beat. I'm a horrible dancer but I was feeling very comfortable in the moment. Probably something to do with all the whiskey. I held out a hand for Olivia and when she took it, twirled her slowly on the spot. I studied her, closely this time. She did have a pretty face. Her body was nothing special, but hell, so was mine. Maybe I'd judged this girl too harshly. I smiled at her, and she smiled back. I felt the hair on my arms begin to stand up. Intense. I shook my head.

"I need to go to the toilet real quick," Olivia said and she disappeared. Good. That gave me a minute to clear my head, get some air.

I was definitely a little drunk as I trotted back outside. Nap and Debbie were exactly where I'd left them. Nap was making exaggerated rowing motions, as if paddling an invisible canoe.

"Really Napoleon?!" I laughed as I interrupted. "The fucking Camp Rondaway story again?"

He looked sheepish. "Come on man, its a good fucking story!"

"Pffft. Debbie, tell the truth. Is this entertaining for you?"

Debbie laughed and placed her hand gently on Napoleon's shoulder. "Yes, and I can't wait to hear the rest of it. But first I need a drink. Will you be here when I get back, Captain?"

"You betcha!" Napoleon saluted. Debbie disappeared. I watched her massive ass wobble as she left. Fucking hell.

"Eyes of my lady!" Nap said, only mostly joking. "God damn she is hot!"

"She's not your lady! And unless you up your game, she's probably not going to be anytime soon,"

He poked his tongue out at me.

"Whatever dude, how are you going with the grenade?"

"Grenade?"

"You know. Olivia! The ugly friend; you need to dive on her so I can nail Debbie."

"You're an asshole!" I laughed. "Actually she's not too bad. Real nice girl."

"Deb says there's something odd about her. She's been talking to some of the girls back home and there's some weird rumours going around."

I was intrigued. And a little apprehensive. Maybe I didn't want to know about this. But I asked anyway. "What do you mean?"

"Apparently one of the boys from their high school took her out on a date last year and was never the same after. They reckon she cut his dick off or something."

"WHAT THE FUCK?!" I laughed hard. "What are you talking about Nap?"

"I'm serious!" He was laughing too. "The dude, Tony Tillman I think, spent one evening with her and then he's a zombie. Weirdest thing ever. Deb says no one's really heard from him since."

"I'm sure there's an explanation before "she cut his dick off"". I was crying a little laughing. So was Nap.

"Yeah sure, Occam's Razor and shit. I know. I'm just telling you what I heard."

"Well, I'll take my chances I think. She seems to be pretty into me. I might try and take her home."

Napoleon looked shocked. He studied me up and down with a quizzical look on his face. "You're serious. You're actually serious. Fuck it, whatever man, I'm onboard. This is wild!" He embraced me in a big cuddle. "Robbie's having sex! With the weird girl from nowheresville Nebraska who cut someone's dick off. But still, he's having sex! I don't believe it".

"Dude get the fuck off me," I laughed. I could see Debbie coming back outside with two red cups in hand. "I'm heading back inside. Good luck!"

I grinned at Debbie as I passed her. When I looked back, Nap had already returned to paddling an invisible raft.

Idiot.

**

I met Olivia who was talking excitedly at a group of girls in the kitchen. They seemed pretty relieved that I was taking her off their hands. She almost threw herself into my arms and I caught her. "Robbie!" she shouted, "Where did you go?"

I held her for a minute. She felt warm and soft in my arms. I felt my body hair stand up again, a light current dancing across my skin. I could feel my dick harden up and press into her. Luckily, she didn't seem to notice. She took my hands and led me to the dancefloor where we just swayed for a little while. There weren't many people on the dance floor anymore, which was fortunate because Olivia seemed to have some trouble staying in the one spot. She led me clumsily across the floor, stumbling and laughing. I laughed too. Fuck it, I thought, this girl is really sweet. I could do a lot worse.

Olivia pulled her head up and beamed at me. We stared into each others eyes for a moment, goofy drunk expressions on our face. She leaned in. I pursed my lips for a kiss. Instead she whispered in my ear.

"I'm different Robbie".

I looked at her quizzically. Her face gave nothing away. Just a content smile. Her eyelids flickered open and shut. This girl was drunk. I smiled.

"You're different huh?" I humoured her.

"Oh yeah I'm different." She was slurring her words. "I can do things that other girls can't".

She pulled me back into a waltz position. I put my head on her shoulder and looked into the distance. What the fuck did that mean? I could feel her pushing into me. She could do things other girls couldn't? Like what. Sex things? Fuck, I didn't have enough experience to know what other girls could and couldn't do. I felt my dick harden even further. I thought of Caroline Woods and her athlete's body, her enormous round tits. Could Olivia do things Caroline Woods couldn't do? My dick lurched. Oh fuck. I put my mouth against her ear and with as much bravado as I could muster, I whispered "Why don't we get out of here and you can show me what you can do?".