This story is set in 1980 Birmingham. There is no social media, no mobile phones and the range of acceptable moral behaviour was different. This is the same Joanna as appears in some other stories of mine, but this is set about eight months before the first of those stories so there is no need to have read those other stories.
For this set of stories, the idea is that a self-confessed voyeur is going out with an exhibitionist who is in denial about this aspect of her character. Her ex-boyfriend is meant to be a jerk who deserved to be dumped. They both know that the relationship will last at most six to nine months and so are more focused on enjoying themselves. Nowadays this pair would probably be friends with benefits, so I will not be using cuckold language or humiliating my main protagonists. Every one described being involved in sexual activity is over 18.
There is a sub plot about group sex in these stories but it is a secondary aspect.
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David arrived back on the evening of Tuesday 18th September 1980 to the house he shared with Dom and Pete (or Team DP as they liked to call themselves). His father had lent him the money to buy the house in July 1979 as a long-term investment as well as somewhere for David and his friends to live in during their last two years at Birmingham University. While the house belonged to David and his father equally, his father had funded the entire acquisition and would expect to paid back teh loan if it was sols. Still dad wasn't charging interest and allowed David to keep the rent his friends paid.
The house had been furnished with the second-hand pieces which the three friends' parents would otherwise have thrown away. The only good bits of furniture were the TV, the sound system, and the armchair and double bed in the "guest" room.
He went through the post and threw away the circulars, checked which bills needed paying and looked at the postcards. There was also a cassette from Dom with a note saying "Here's our new mixtape. Listen to it on your headphones." He smiled. Dom and Pete produced the best mix tapes ever.
To his surprise there were three letters from Joanna, who had been his girlfriend since March. Their holidays had coincided badly over the summer, and they hadn't seen each other since July 27. He'd expected that as she was going to university this month the relationship had come to a natural end and that he would have a single Dear John letter saying in effect it had been fun while it lasted but so long and thanks for all the fish. In the first letter he read that she'd mucked up one of her A levels badly and underperformed on German. Well perhaps not a surprise considering that she had gone to a night club the night before her second history paper, but he expected that she'd have got in somewhere else through clearing.
The second letter said that Darling Daddy had agreed that he would pay for her to going to a crammer to retake History and German because UCL had offered to let her in next year provided she got at least a C in history this year.
The third letter invited him to her brother's eighteenth birthday party on Saturday and to bring Dom and Pete with him. She also said that Darling Daddy had insisted that she got a Saturday job and that it was très amusante.
So, she was going to be in Birmingham this year and was happy for the relationship to continue at least for the time being. That was fine with him. His relationship with Joanna had already been his longest lasting one, partly because neither of them were pretending that they were going to be together forever, and mainly because the freedom she wanted in the relationship suited him.
They had met at a meeting of the French Literature Society in Birmingham in mid March. Although he was doing English at Birmingham, he had done French A level and still read novels in French for fun. The lecture had been about the Madame Bovary, and he had gone there hoping he could pick up a woman who found Emma Bovary's carriage ride more exciting than immoral. His own take was that if you wanted to challenge social mores, don't get into debt.
He scouted out the talent before the lecture. Most of those present looked too proper for his tastes. However, there was a five-foot eight blonde with long legs and good-sized breasts. She was wearing tight blue jeans and a white blouse which she had knotted so that everyone could see her navel, and which accentuated her bosom. She had a rather jealous boyfriend in tow who was telling her off for dressing so provocatively and to remember that she was his girlfriend. The woman had looked annoyed rather than embarrassed. The impression was confirmed when she went to the toilet and came back having converted the blouse so that there was no longer a navel display, but instead a display of cleavage. The boy snapped saying in aloud whisper, "Joanna, everyone's staring at you. Cover yourself up." She said, "Don't be silly Lionel."
He took a seat on the row behind them but making certain that he had an aisle seat. His impressions were confirmed. It was clear that even though the boyfriend must be at least eighteen he was behaving like a grumpy little boy. He kept looking at the woman and trying to grab her hand despite the fact that she wanted to listen to the lecture. Her body language bristled with irritation. She eventually slapped his hand away. David nodded. He would play the percentages here that the woman would want rescuing.
The lecture ended and the customary applause was given, and the announcement made that the attendees were invited to stay and have a glass of wine. There was no one blocking his exit and he made certain that he was first in the queue for the wine. He took two glasses and saw to his delight that the woman was by herself while her companion was at the back of a long line.
He came up to her and said, "I see a damsel in distress. Have a glass on me while you're waiting. I'm David by the way."
She took it and smiled at him. "That's kind of you, David. Lionel promised to get me one, but he spent so much time telling me off that he's at the back of the queue. I'm Joanna. Do you help damsels in distress?"
Pretty good hint that she'd had enough of Lionel. He decided to go for broke. "Do you want me to help you get rid of Lionel? He seems to think that he owns you. If I was him I would be proud that everyone wanted to look at you"
She laughed and said, "Yes please. He really won't take the hint and he's so possessive." Already Lionel was staring at them from the queue with a panicked look on his face. David chinked her glass and moved closer to her. She laughed and moved towards him and kissed him on the cheek.