Tyler knew this was going to get ugly. As a matter of fact he knew it was going to be about the coldest conversation his girlfriend was ever going to have. It wasn't that the woman sitting across from them was an unpleasant person; in fact it was quite the opposite. She was a fantastic person to talk to, and no matter the subject, she seemed able to not only hold her own but contribute to the conversation in meaningful ways. No matter how bad Tyler had felt she had been able to either cheer him up, or support him in some way; and so he knew that wasn't the reason.
No, it had everything to do with how the woman looked. And Tyler knew it. He had remembered telling her about his girlfriend; had remembered it very vividly actually, expecting quite the awkward conversation in fact. But then the woman had stayed true to her personality and jovially laughed it off.
His girlfriend hadn't felt the same way. In fact, it was Tyler's girlfriend who had suggested they meet up. He now realized that his enthusiasm at their meeting was most likely not the best display of emotion at the moment. He also realized as he stared at the two women that there was absolutely no "right" response to her inquiry. He was learning quicker that many of the "conversations" he had with his girlfriend were little more than just Catch 22's, designed to question his motives. It wasn't that Tyler wondered if his girlfriend really loved him, he was just positive that she didn't trust him to love her as much as she loved him.
And so he sat next to his girlfriend, her blue eyes icy in their glare across the table at the woman who was Tyler's friend. His friend who stood at least half a foot taller than his girlfriend sat with her hands clasped around a coffee. Her delicate fingers were slender, feminine; hiding callouses on her palms from their continued use. Her arms showed more of the definition and quiet musculature she'd gained from her years as a field hockey player. The shoulders broadened slightly, but not so much that they would have been mistaken as masculine. Red streaks of hair interlaced within her natural brunette locks hanging about her shoulders in their wavy embrace of her neck. Bright green eyes flicked from coffee to girlfriend as she sat a smile across her full lips. Tyler knew her legs were smooth as well, despite his inability to see them underneath the table. Lithe and coursing with the power she needed to play her sport, and yet hardly looking out of place on a woman as slight of frame as she was.
Slight of frame though she was, it was the parts of her that weren't slight that Tyler knew his girlfriend despised more than her height. The blouse the woman had chosen was fashionable enough, but where most women would have completely buttoned up the ensemble, she sat with the top four buttons undone. And not by choice, in truth they would have been impossible to close over the woman's enormous bosom since today she decided not to wear one of her athletic bras. From where she sat, her hands clasped around her coffee, her breasts took up the remaining space between her body and the table. It was these that held the gaze of nearly every man on campus, but to Tyler they were just another part of her. Tyler had always believed in taking a person in their entirety, after all that's who they were. You couldn't just take parts of someone and mix them with another person, that wasn't how it worked.
"So my roommate has told me all about you." The woman opposite Tyler on the table intoned, "He never has anything bad to say about you."
"Around you I find that hard to believe." Tyler's girlfriend stated flatly.
"You really ought to give him more credit." The woman chuckled playfully, "many other men in his position would have had much more debauchery in mind once they found out what had happened." Turning to Tyler she pointed, "You know what your boyfriend did?"
"I'm sure you're going to tell me."
"He went down to the housing office and offered to live off campus instead of sharing a room with me. He told them that if they weren't going to fix their mistake then he would just need his reimbursement to pay for something off campus so as to not burden me." She chuckled again. "It was rather cute and I can see why you're fond of him."
"I'm not fond of him." Tyler's girlfriend said coldly. "I love him. Simple as that, so," she began before exhaling and gathering her thoughts again, "so you can imagine my horror when I learned that the amazing roommate Sam Topper, whom I had heard so much about, was a girl."
"You never asked!" Tyler blurted out. He quickly realized this was one of those times when he should have just stayed silent because his girlfriend affixed him with an icy stare.
"When you said there was a mix up with housing and your roommate didn't get placed properly I just assumed you meant didn't get placed in the proper athlete's dorm."
"But field hockey should have been-"
"We're not having this argument again." Tyler's girlfriend said with finality.
"It's alright Ty; Megan is just having a hard time with this." Sam stated disarmingly. "I don't know if I'd be okay with my boyfriend sharing a room with another girl either."
"But you're-"
"Thank you for understanding." Megan interjected, cutting Tyler off midsentence. "At least you have the decency to understand that."
"And you're implying that in other ways I am indecent?" Sam asked questioningly.
"Other than the obvious," Megan gestured to Sam's cleavage on display, "why didn't you ask to move?"
"You assume I stayed because I wanted to?" Sam shrugged, "I suppose you could say that, but not for the reason you're thinking, Megan."
"Oh? Enlighten me."
Here we go, Tyler thought staring at the two women who were dominating the conversation. It wasn't that he didn't know what Sam was going to say, it was just that he had only found out a couple days ago. Sam had already asked to meet Megan, and Megan had obviously wanted to meet Sam to comfort her own ego. After all, Megan couldn't believe a woman like Sam existed.
"Maybe some other time," Sam sighed, taking a sip of her coffee in the momentary silence. "I'm not sure you're ready for that just yet. But what I can tell you is that I have no feelings Ty as he is with you."
Tyler shivered slightly. He knew full well what Sam meant, but had yet to reveal that to Megan. He wasn't even sure he wanted to. It was only a couple days ago, and yet his mind still hadn't fully come to terms with it. Despite what had happened, the physical aspect of it was certainly real enough.
"As much as I'm sure you get your fair share of action," Megan said gesturing again to Sam's chest, "I trust that you understand Tyler is mine."
"He's not your property you know." Sam frowned. "He's a wonderful person, both sides of him."
Tyler felt the shiver along his spine again, and rubbed his legs together. He wanted to blurt out what was going on. Wanted to tell Megan, wanted to tell someone other than Sam just to make it real, he needed to tell someone. Unfortunately, he knew that wouldn't help anyone, or anything and so he simply sat in the chair as the two women measured each other some more.
"Well, you've got your things to do I'm sure Megan." Sam waved her hand around at the coffee shop before gesturing back to Sam's barista attire. "The coffee is delicious by the way."
"Thank you, I pride myself on being perfect." Megan stated coldly before getting up. She leaned over slightly to peck Tyler on the cheek. She stood back up to face a now standing Sam who offered her hand in friendship a smile on her face.
"It was nice to meet you Megan and I hope you forgive Ty. He really wasn't trying to hide anything from you, honest."
"I hope you're right," Megan said as she extended her hand to clasp Sam's. "I want to trust the two of you; hopefully, you don't prove me wrong." Then turning to Tyler she smiled, "See you tonight then?"
"Of course honey, I'll be back at close so we can head out to dinner."
