Another of the adventures of Denae and Bill...
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It was Spring Semester of their senior year and Bill and Denae had been dating since the previous September. Some evenings Bill would sleep over at Denae's and sometimes she would sleep over at Bill's. They tended to stay at Bill's a little more frequently since he lived alone while Denae had a roommate, her good friend, Suzy.
But as the current semester was progressing, Denea had had to spend more and more time on her big project for one of her last major courses, Women in Culture and Society. She was majoring in Womens' Studies, which Bill did not completely understand but he dared not disparage it to her. This big project was a secret. Denae did not share much information with Bill about it. He knew only that it was a presentation of some type. It required her to spend a great deal of time with the nine other classmates who had banded together for the assignment. It would count for 50% of their final grade.
Because Denae and her classmates would be putting on a presentation for their group project, the girls had to meet frequently to prepare materials, develop promotional posters and handle lots of other matters, all of which took a lot of her time.. Additionally, she and her classmates had to meet with the professor outside of class a few times. And somehow it became Denae's responsibility to handle ticket distribution.
Bill would ask her about the presentation from time-to-time, but she would not divulge any information. The only thing he could surmise was that there were some poster boards involved. He supposed this because she stopped by his apartment after picking them up at the printer and could tell there were several in the stack, but they were wrapped in brown paper to protect them, so he could not see any of them.
A couple of weeks before the presentation, Denae made it a point to set aside time for dinner with Bill. She dropped by his apartment and they went for pizza. They had exchanged keys some time back, so she was able to let herself in when she arrived. He met her at the door. She hugged him and kissed him and said, "I've really been feeling guilty about neglecting you lately. I'm looking forward to spending a little time together."
Over dinner, they chatted and caught up with one another. He was still refereeing basketball games a few times a week to make money and he was trying to keep up with his classes. He was also hanging out with his friends more since his girlfriend was so busy. She was trying to balance her part-time job and the time demands of the big project. But the worst was over now that the presentation was only a little over a week away.
"Hey, Bill. The girls and I were talking and wanted to get together for a few drinks Friday night to blow off a little steam since we've been going full speed for weeks. And those of us with significant others or who are dating someone want them to come too. So, will you go with me?"
"If it gives me a chance to be with you, you bet. But I would really prefer just being alone with you since I've had to share you with them so much lately. Besides, I don't know any of them except Suzy."
"It will give you a chance to meet the rest of the crowd. Besides, we can be alone together at the end of the night." she said with a wink.
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Friday evening Denae and Bill arrived at the bar together and held hands as they walked in. Denae's roommate, Suzy, was already there, as were a couple of their other classmates.
Suzy made the introductions. "Lori and Bev, this is Bill or B.C. He's Denae's boyfriend. He's a little bashful, he's very polite and he's totally smitten with Denae, even though I've got bigger boobs."
As Suzy spoke, Denae squeezed his hand and looked up at him. Bill felt his face turn suddenly warm and hoped it was the temperature in the bar and not him blushing. He was used to Suzy giving him a hard time. It was good natured fun. He would normally give it back to her, but here among people he did not know, he let it lie.
Bill had known Suzy for almost as long as he had known Denae. He saw her almost every time he was over at their apartment to see his girlfriend. She was a really good looking girl and had big brown eyes and a very expressive face. And it was not possible to ignore her large breasts, which were natural, according to Denae. She was glad her friend had found Bill and was happy about their relationship. In spite of that, or perhaps because of it, she would playfully tease Bill whenever he was around by accentuating or mentioning her chest to try to make him blush.
Suzy continued, "Bill, this is Lori and this is Beverly. We all call her Bev. Lori says her guy is on the way but he isn't here yet. Bev isn't dating anybody at the moment."
They all decided to find a table while they waited on the rest of the group. A waitress took their orders and when the drinks arrived, Suzy held up her glass of wine and said, "Here's to us amazing women and our Power of Women Through Time project getting an A." They all clinked glasses and took sips of their drinks.
Both Lori and Beverly were both attractive. Lori was particularly good looking. She did not rival Denae, but she was close. With her wavy blonde hair and blue eyes, she could be a model. Bill would learn through the course of the evening that Lori was very social and had a good sense of humor. She was one of the few classmates who made sure to include him in the conversation. And since they were seated across the table from each other, Lori and Bill had a few side conversations.
Bev was pretty in her own way, but somewhat quiet. She was very thin, but had really delicate features.
Every few minutes another person or persons would show up at the table until they were all there. Lori's guy - not boyfriend, just guy; she was very clear about that - showed up. He sat next to her and she introduced him around. She did not seem particularly excited to see him. The word among the classmates was Lori had only gone out with Robert only a few times and was not overly impressed. Bill could see why. Robert was a little obnoxious and talked over Lori several times. Also, he would frequently say things that were meant to be funny, but were funny only to him, leaving him laughing by himself.
The rest of the classmates were all pleasant to be around, except for Debra. Debra was the only one too young to drink. Bill was not sure if that is why she was out of sorts. She did not smile much and seemed perturbed by nearly everything that was said at the table. She took particular offense at Bill when he asked a question about the big project and used the word ladies. Debra pointed out that they were women and that calling someone a lady represented a judgment of character made by the speaker.
To his credit, Bill attempted to soothe Debra's feelings but did not back down.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset anyone." he said, turning to Debra. "I used the term ladies because all of you have been really nice to me even though I have just met most of you and you've all been very gracious."
That reply was met with a couple of "aw"s from some in the group and some approving nods, but only silence from Debra. Lori tipped her wine glass to Bill.
At this point, Suzy took it upon herself to change the subject by organizing a discussion of how the four couples at the table had met. She went around to each of the roommates who had a guy with them and asked how they had met, starting with Lori. Lori and Robert had met through a mutual friend. Chelsea and Dan had met online. Julie and Jacob met in a biology class.
When it was time for the story of Bill and Denae, Suzy turned to Bill and asked him to tell the rest of the group how they met. Of course, she knew the story, but she wanted the others to hear it straight from the horse's mouth.
Bill reached down under the table and took Denae's hand and glanced at her before turning to Suzy and then the others.
