Plotting a Course

Chapter 9: T-shirt and a Teddy Bear

The wind was bitter across my face as I walked across campus back to my dorm. I pulled the drawstring tighter, trying to further protect my wind burned face. The sidewalks had been shoveled, but were slick with the compacted snow, turning them into a slick ice trail. I kept my head down, shielded from the wind. My phone was vibrating against my right thigh, but I dared not stop to answer it. I knew it was Rob, but he could wait another few minutes until I reached the shelter of my room.

I took care to knock the snow off of my boots before stepping onto the floor that was slick from all of the other students coming and going. Our dorm's cleaning lady, Mrs. White, was mopping up the puddles that had formed on the linoleum.

"It's bitter out there." I said giving her a small smile as I headed toward the door to my hall.

"At least it stopped snowing." She answered giving me a smile before I headed to my room. I pulled my gloves off before shedding my coat. I pulled out my phone to call Rob and enjoyed the heat as feeling returned to my fingers. A smile crossed my face when I saw the missed call was indeed from Rob.

"Guess what babe?" Rob excitedly spoke into the phone.

"What Robbie?" I questioned.

"I did it!" He answered, practically screaming.

"Did what?"

"I got in. Even got a scholarship to play football."

"You did it!" I was giddy with excitement.

"There's one catch though Bobby."

"What's that?" I asked, knowing it wouldn't matter.

"Since I'm transferring, I have to stay in the dorms next year. With the other transfers and new freshman scholarship guys on the team." The disappointment was heavy in his voice and I knew why. That meant we wouldn't be able to live together next year.

"That's nothing Robbie. We can still see each other every day. You can sneak to my room anytime you want. This is so much better than you being in Williamsburg." I didn't care if Rob had to stay in the bell tower, much less another dorm. We were going to be together, for the next three years, for the rest of our lives. "I'm so happy. I love you Rob."

"I love you Bobby. I can't wait to sneak into your room. Are you going to live with Billy next year?"

"I think he's moving off campus. I hadn't really made plans, hoping we could be together." I answered.

"What about Matt?" Rob asked.

"He's trying to transfer to W&M. Maybe he can room with Clint."

"Wouldn't that be something." Rob chuckled and I couldn't help but grin.

***

Matt wasn't in any of my classes this semester, but we managed to meet for lunch a couple of times a week to catch up. Matt had quickly become a good friend to me and I enjoyed our visits.

"Over here Bobby." I heard as I scanned the dining hall. Matt's exaggerated waving caught my attention and I smiled when I saw his grinning face. He already had a tray of food and I quickly filled my own before joining him at the table.

"What's got you grinning Matt?" I questioned as I took my seat across from him.

"Clint is coming to visit." Matt's face was practically glowing as he spoke.

"Really?" I tried to hide the shock in my voice. I knew that Matt had spoken with Clint a few times since their frantic hookup, but I had tempered my expectations of a relationship forming between them.

"Yup. He's coming in two weekends." Matt was smirking and I wasn't quite sure why.

"Clint has a car at school?" I questioned, knowing freshman weren't supposed to have cars at either of our schools.

"I think he's borrowing a friend's car." The words were barely out of his mouth when it hit me.

"Isn't that Valentine's Day?" Matt's smile was the only answer I needed. "That's kind of a big deal Matt." I added.

"I know." Matt took a sip of his drink before he continued. "We talked every night last week. He's great. I couldn't believe it when he asked if he could visit. I figured he didn't know it was Valentine's day, but he said that he did."

I gulped down a bite of a chicken patty before speaking. "Wow." I was suddenly jealous that Clint was coming to see Matt for Valentine's day, while I would be alone. If Rob knew that Clint was coming I'm sure he would catch a ride with him.

"Did Clint say anything about Rob?" Matt's face wrinkled at my question.

"Nope, not a peep." He answered, a little too quickly. "We usually don't talk about you two.' Matt added with a chuckle.

"Maybe Rob can come with him." Matt nodded and finished chewing a bite of his grilled cheese sandwich.

"Maybe." He replied with a grin.

"You still meeting me later at the pool?" I asked, changing the subject.

"Yup, I'll meet you after class." Matt answered as we stood to return our trays and head out of the dining hall.

The pool was packed when we arrived and we were forced to share a lane. I let Matt reach the other end of the pool before I started swimming. After several minutes of swimming I realized that I was faster than Matt and needed to slow my pace so I didn't get kicked in the face. Realizing I was catching up he stopped at the wall and let me pass before he swam after me. We swam for around 45 minutes before we headed to the locker room to shower and change. I followed Matt to a quiet corner of the showers and took the nozzle adjacent to his.

This was the first time we had been naked in front of each other and I couldn't help but sneak a peek at Matt's toned body. He really did look like a lean version of Rob. He was very handsome. His skin was naturally tanned. A thick patch of fur rested between his pectoral muscles. I braved a glance at his crotch and his penis jumped a little, seemingly liking the attention. Matt cleared his throat and I felt heat rush up my neck as I averted my gaze.

"You know what they say about curiosity and the cat?" Matt teased as I averted my eyes. "Shit Bobby, I'm just kidding." He whispered. "I sneaked a peak too."

"Sorry." I mumbled as I quickly worked the lather onto my skin, washing the chlorine off.

"Bobby." Matt stated, demanding my attention. I glanced at his face and he was grinning. "Don't worry Bobby, I have a new fascination now, but you are sexy as hell."

"You're not so bad yourself." I was trying to hide my grin from his compliment, but was unsuccessful. Matt and I chatted until we split, heading to our own dorms. The sun was just starting to set casting pink and purple hues as it tucked behind the snow-capped mountains. My wet hair was starting to stiffen at the tips from the cold, causing me to quicken my pace.

Billy wasn't back from class yet, so I took the opportunity to call Rob and try to talk him into coming to visit with Clint.

"Hello my dear Bobby." Rob's voice was rich and warm as he answered the phone.

"Hey Robbie." I grinned. "Guess what Matt told me?"

"What's that babe?"

"Clint is coming to visit him in two weekends. " I shared.

"Is he now?" Rob mocked.

"Yeah."

"I know Bobby." Rob answered flatly.

"Well..." I pushed.

"Well what?" Rob posed.

"Are you coming with him?" I silently wished he was.

"I wish I could babe. You know I want to see you more than anything." I sighed as Rob continued. "I have a huge group project due the following Monday. The four of us have agreed to meet on that Saturday to put the final touches on it. I'm sorry Bobby."

"Oh." I tried to hide the disappointment in my voice. "Well if you can't come, you can't come."

"Bobby."

"It's okay Rob. I get it." I answered, trying not to sound annoyed.

"Bobby." Rob stated again.

"Robbie." I replied in a mocking tone.

"I'll make it up to you babe. I promise."

"There's nothing to make up Rob. I just wish I could see you." I had accepted the fact that I would not be spending Valentine's day with Rob.

"I know babe. I want to see you too. I'll be with you all the time next year, you'll probably get sick of me." I heard Rob chuckle through the phone. I couldn't help but laugh.

"Not a chance Robbie."

"Gotta go babe. I love you."

"Bye Robbie. I love you."

***

February was filled with fog and frost. If the days were slowly getting longer, I couldn't tell. It was barely five in the evening, but the last sliver of sun had faded behind the mountains. Billy was packed and ready to go when I returned to the room.

"I thought you weren't leaving until tomorrow." I said causing Billy to look up at me.

"My class tomorrow was cancelled. I'm catching a ride with someone I found on the ride share board. I'm leaving in about ten minutes." Billy answered. Billy was going to spend the weekend with Katie in Williamsburg.

"Well that's lucky . Tell Katie I said hi."

"Will do. Sorry I can't eat with you tonight buddy."

"It's alright, have fun."

"Hold down the fort Bobby." Billy said, he must have noticed the detached look on my face. " Oh cheer up Bobby, you live with Rob, you can handle being away from him." I shrugged my shoulders, he was right. I just really missed Rob. Billy's phone rang and he quickly picked it up and grabbed his bag.

"Don't be sad Bobby, it won't be as bad as you think." Billy flashed me a wink before he headed out the door. He was happy because he was going to see Katie. I was going to spend the weekend alone. I was honestly happy for him, but jealous. I usually ate dinner with Billy. I didn't want to eat alone so I gave Matt a call.

"Hey, Bobby."

"Hey, wanna grab some dinner? Billy left early for Williamsburg, and I don't want to eat alone."

"Yeah, meet you at Dukes in ten?"

"Sounds good." I answered. "Thanks Matt."

"No prob Bob, see ya soon." Matt cheerfully replied. I was happy that Matt had forced his way into my life and was now one of my best friends. I bundled up in my warmest clothes before braving the cold and heading off to eat.

Matt was waiting just inside the door for me and we headed to get our food. I didn't feel like waiting in line so I just grabbed some chicken nuggets and French fries. Matt was waiting in line for a cheeseburger so I headed off to find a table.

"How'd Billy manage to leave tonight?" Matt asked as he took his seat across from me.

"His class tomorrow was cancelled." I answered dunking a nugget into some ketchup.

"Lucky duck." Matt replied before he took a bite of his steaming hot burger.

"What time is Clint getting in town?"I asked.

"He said he's going to try to be in tomorrow around six." Matt answered, before he shoveled three French fries into his mouth.

"That'll be fun, what are y'all going to do?"

"Either eating at the Artful Dodger, or Capital Ale House. " Matt replied.

"That'll be fun, I can't wait 'til we're twenty-one and can go out and grab a beer."

"Yeah." Changing the subject Matt continued. "So what are you going to do tomorrow?"

" I have class until five. I'll probably just go swimming or something afterward. There are a couple Valentine's day parties I've heard about, but I don't want to go alone." I shrugged before popping the final chicken nugget into my mouth.

"How long are you going to swim?" Matt asked.

"I dunno, maybe an hour or so." I answered, thinking that was a strange thing for him to ask.

"Well don't stay too long, you should get back home before it gets too late."

"Why's that? I don't have anything better to do." Matt had an indiscernible look on his face and shrugged his shoulders.

"I dunno, just don't want you to sulk I guess." Matt answered.

"If you say so." I tried not to roll my eyes at his remark.

After dinner with Matt I trudged back to my empty dorm room.

I worked on some assignments before crawling into bed and reading until I could no longer keep my eyes open.

Friday, Valentine's Day, I went through the motions. After my morning class I met Matt for lunch. I could tell he was trying to contain his excitement at Clint's impending visit. I tried to remain positive while I listened to him.

After lunch I decided to check my mail and see if Rob had sent me anything. I had mailed him a card and hoped that he had at least done something similar. I grinned when I retrieved a small slip of paper and a card from my parents. I quickly exchanged the slip of paper at the window for a package. I didn't have another class until the afternoon so I took my time and slowly walked back to my dorm, imagining what could be inside the box.

I tossed my backpack on the floor. The springs in my mattress squeaked as I jumped onto it with my mail. I quickly opened the card from my parents and set it on my desk. After grabbing my scissors, I cut the tape on the box. There was a large basket wrapped in cellophane. Carefully I grabbed the handle of the basket and removed it from the box. Smiling I ripped the plastic off of the basket and examined my stash. There were chocolate chip cookies, a heart-shaped box of chocolates, chalky conversation hearts, and cinnamon red hot candies. I bit into one of the soft chocolate chip cookies before I saw a red envelope. I quickly removed the card from the envelope and began to read.

'Happy Valentine's Day Bobby. I'm sorry you're alone right now. Don't open the other box until you hear from me. All of my love - Rob.'

I looked in the cardboard box again, this time I noticed a small wooden box. My fingers wrapped around the rectangular box as I withdrew it from the cardboard. There was a yellow Post-It note which bore another message from Rob.

'I'm serious Bobby, don't open this until you hear from me. I love you - Rob.'

Curiosity overwhelmed me, but I fought the urge and would let Rob fill me in on his plan later. I let the box twirl in my fingers a few times before I carefully placed it on my desk next to his card and the one from my parents. The heart shaped box of chocolates caught my attention and I opened the lid. Hesitantly, I took cautious bites, revealing several pastel colors of questionable filling before I found an edible piece. Not wanting to play chocolate fear factor any longer, I placed the lid back on the candy and returned it to the basket.

Rob's present had put me in a much better mood and I set the alarm on my phone before curling up contently in bed for a nap.

*

I had trouble focusing in my last class before the weekend. I was ready to relax in the pool with a swim. After class I quickly dropped off my backpack and packed my new swimsuit and a towel before heading to the recreation center for a swim. Like most Friday evenings, the recreation center was practically deserted. The locker room was eerily quiet as I changed into my new trunks. They were a deep emerald green, matching Rob's eyes. They had a square-cut, similar in style to the ones Daniel Craig wore in the 007 Casino Royale movie.

The pool was calmer than I had ever seen it. There were just two other people swimming laps. I took a lane furthest away from the others and let my mind empty as I lowered myself into the cool water. The new suit had a fantastic fit. There was little to no resistance as I swam freestyle at a moderate pace. My new swimsuit was great. The resistance I felt when wearing board shorts was gone. I swam for almost an hour before I started thinking of Rob. I wished he could come visit, but I understood why he couldn't. There was only one swimmer in the pool when I vacated it. He was toned and looked to be one of the professors. I couldn't help but notice the tight Speedo he was wearing as his lean frame drifted effortlessly through the water before I made my way around the pool to the locker room.

The warm water of the shower felt good and I lingered longer in the empty showers than usual. I had no reason to hurry home. It was 6:24 when I finished changing. When I pulled my phone out of my bag I noticed five missed calls from Rob. Hoping nothing had happened I quickly returned his calls.

"Hey babe where are you?" Rob asked through the phone.

"Are you okay Robbie?" I questioned, the concern was thick on my voice.

"Yeah Bobby, I'm fine. Where are you?" Rob asked again.

"Heading back to my room, just finished swimming."

"Oh cool. Did you get your package?"

"I did, thanks so much Robbie."

"No problem babe. You didn't open the box did you?"

"No Robbie, I was waiting for you to tell me when."

"Good." I heard the happiness in Rob's voice. "Hurry home and I'll tell you more about it."

"Okay, I'll call you when I get home. I love you."

"I love you too Bobby." Rob said before the call ended. Eager to know what was in the box I quickened my pace and headed towards my dorm.

When I reached my destination I noticed an enormous teddy bear sitting alone on the bench outside off my dorm. I snickered at whoever's Valentine's present that was. As I got closer I noticed that the bear was wearing a familiar T-shirt, causing me to do a double take. Unless my eyes were deceiving me, the bear was wearing a dark blue T-shirt with Crabbers written in orange and bore a crab logo. I stopped in my tracks and stared wide-eyed at the bear wearing a T-shirt from my high school. Cautiously I approached the bear and picked it up. The back of the T-shirt read 'Johnson' and had the number 47 on it. I turned around just in time to see a flash of my handsome boyfriend before he pulled me into an embrace. His smell short-circuited my brain as I struggled to understand what was going on.

I don't know how long we held each other before I finally spoke. "You ass! You tricked me! You Jerk!" I was smacking his strong chest with my hands as I spoke. "Thank you." I finally whispered before burying my face in his chest.

"Let's get inside babe. I'm freezing." Rob suggested and I noticed him shiver a little.

"How long have you been waiting?" I asked as I scooped up the bear with one hand while Rob grasped my other.

"It doesn't matter Bobby. I would have waited all night." Rob grinned at me and I handed him the bear so I could get my access card out of my pocket.

"Billy's gone this weekend." I started telling Rob. "Wait, you knew didn't you?" Rob's grin gave him away. "And Matt? He knew?"

"Yeah, Matt knew." Rob chuckled at the expression on my face.

"Come on." I grumbled as I pulled him down the hall into my suite. The suite was empty and Rob followed me into my room. I heard the lock click on the door after he closed it behind us. Rob hurriedly placed the gigantic teddy bear in my desk chair before turning to face me.

"Damn I missed you." Rob grabbed me and spun me around, pinning me to the door. His steaming hot lips seared my own as our tongues reunited in an impassioned embrace. Rob picked me up and I wrapped my legs around his waist as he turned and walked us to my bed. I sighed when he let me fall onto the bed and I felt his weight pressing me into the mattress.

"Robbie." I gasped, pulling him tightly against me while he reclaimed my mouth. Rob paused just long enough to move the gift basket onto my desk. Instantly I felt his lips brushing against my neck. He nibbled and sucked, pulling blood to the surface.

"Where's the box Bobby?" Rob asked, his eyes were intense and I was overcome with desire. I pointed to the box and Rob picked it up and held it in his hands. "Get naked and lie face down on the bed." Rob ordered and I quickly obeyed, tossing my clothes around the room before burying my face in the pillow. My dick was hard and trapped against my stomach.

"That was quick." Rob chuckled and I heard him removing his own clothes.

"What's in the box?" My voice was muffled by the pillow.

"Only one way to find out." Rob chuckled and I heard him open the box. Whatever was inside made a clicking sound after he opened it. "Massage oil." Rob answered before I felt an oddly warm, oily liquid dripping onto my spine. I was instantly overcome by the smell of cinnamon and sighed as Rob's slick fingers worked into my shoulders. Rob worked his strong hands over every muscle in my back. He gave me a deep, but gentle massage. Desire was beginning to overwhelm me as he worked down my arms. His strong fingers worked into the flesh of my palms, revealing new sensations.