Three weeks passed without him seeing or hearing from her. The far corner of the classroom where she normally sat remained empty every week and he honored his side of the deal by never charting her absence. When the paper was due, he gave her an A. He had toyed with the idea of giving her an F just to get her attention and, hopefully, back in his office. But he had decided against it, knowing the midterm exam was coming up anyway.
A week before the midterm, she finally messaged.
"Midterm. what do you want?"
Happily, he thought their contract needed some renegotiation. They had agreed to certain favors for attendance and boosted grades, but when she sprung the idea of sex on him, it had been worth attendance and a paper. Their contract no longer made sense and their arrangement needed redefining. He perked up at the thought of seeing her again.
"Let's talk at 6."
It was only a Monday, so there was potential for him to see her a few times before the midterm. Maybe everyday.
He sped through class and let everyone out early so he could get to his office. He had planned to lock the door and jerk off so he wasn't so eager when she arrived. Safe in his office, he sat at his desk and found the picture she had first sent of herself. He felt lucky he had finally seen what was beneath her bra and made a mental note to insist on more pictures when they bartered again.
He leaned back in his chair, unzipped, and let himself fantasize about their last encounter. He came quickly, grateful that he had decided to take the edge off before she could show up. He thought the chances were low that she would sleep with him again so soon, but not being so aroused would help him get through the bartering.
As he cleaned up and threw his used tissues in the trash, he heard a knock on the door. Panic shot down his spine and his eyes darted toward his phone on the desk, still glowing with her picture. "Just a second!" he nearly shouted. He scrambled to zip his pants up and snatched his phone to check the time and hide the picture. It was only 3pm. As he walked across the room, he figured it would be another professor or some student come to bother him. But he opened the door and she was standing there.
"Can I come in?" she asked.
He struggled to hide how out of breath he was. He also didn't want to argue with her in earshot of the crowded hallway. Confused, he backed away and held the door open, gesturing her inside. She found her usual spot at the chair in front of his desk and placed her bag on the floor. He shut the door and, hedging his bets, locked it.
"I wasn't expecting you for another few hours," he said, a little disappointed. Since it wasn't after 6 it would be too risky for them to do anything. The hallway outside the door was bustling with students getting to and from classes and his colleagues were still certainly around.
"Well, I had some time and thought you might be here," she said carelessly. She watched him sit back at his desk and let him get comfortable before continuing. "I think you should give me a 90 on the midterm, so my grades don't look too perfect."
Amusing.
"Should I?"
"Yes. I want to be valedictorian of the school, not this particular class. So long as my final grade is above a 95, I'll be set."
Maybe she had been right about who was using who, after all. He wondered how many other professors she had made this kind of arrangement with and suddenly felt foolish. There were plenty of male professors at the University... it really might be naive to think he was the only person to agree to this arrangement.
"Okay then," he said. "Then let's rethink our little agreement."
"What?"
"You meet with me, 3 times a week before any paper or exam is due. At the end of the semester, I'll make sure your average is what you want."
"3 times a week? Well...," she narrowed her eyes. "I don't know what it is I'm agreeing to do those 3 times a week."
He decided to be bold. "I'd like to do what I want. Just whatever I feel like that day." He shrugged. "Sometimes that might be a blowjob, sometimes that could be sex."
Her face went pink again and he saw her swallow. "Just three times a week?"
"Yupp. I'd also like to see more images of you. No clothes this time."
"How many?"
He smiled. "Let's say you'll give me at least six before the semester is over. At whatever pace works for you."
She leaned back in her chair and nodded. "That's fine then."