It had been a typical English grad student party. About 8 of us had sat around and eaten snacks and drunkâsoft drinks, beer, wine, and harder liquor. We weren't picky. We trashed our teachers, trashed our courses, trashed culture in general and told some obscene jokes. Like I said, a typical party for English students in their mid-20's who thought they were going to be teachers.
I liked these get-togethers because that year, I was the only guy in the program who came to the parties. It wasn't really a sexual feeling, but I liked being surrounded by 6 or 7 women and they seemed to accept me as one of them. I was surprised at how filthy they talkedâtruck drivers got nothing on them.
There was one other guy there that eveningâMark somebody. He wasn't a student but he was the boyfriend of one of the girls. He was a little uncomfortableâhe didn't speak the language, didn't get the inside jokes, so he and Jennifer left about midway through the evening. Around midnight other people started to get ready to leave.
The party had been at Kelly's apartment and I offered to stay and help her clean up. She said she would give me a ride home. I didn't live that far awayâabout 10 minutes walk across campus, but it was a cold night, and I was glad of the offer. There was nothing going on between usâbut I hoped there might be. Of all the girls at the party that night, Kelly was the one that most attracted me. I liked them all, but it was all just friendly. But it seemed that Kelly liked me too. Several times during the evening she had found a way to touch me on the forearm and she had sat next to me the floor when we were playing Trivial Pursuit even though we weren't on the same team. A few times our eyes met in a moment of understanding. These are all good signâtouching on the forearm, eye contactâthat a girl is interested in you.
It was already past midnight by the time everyone had gone, and we cleared up the cans and bottles and glasses and other dishes and carried them to the kitchen. I washed the dishes while Kelly dried and stacked them. I washed out a big glass bowl that had held Chex mix and after she dried it, Kelly said, "I'm going to put this back up on top of the cupboard where it goes. Will you hold me so I don't fall?" Another excellent sign that a girl has something on her mindâ asking you to touch
her
.
She stood on the countertop and reached above her head to set the bowl up on top of the cupboard. I put my hands lightly on her hips. My line-of-vision was directly into the back of her knees and I noticed that she had on shiny Lycra pantyhose or stockings.
Kelly was wearing a blue skirt that came to just above her knees and I had nice glimpse of the back of her legs as well. She was plumpâbig around the waist and hips and that made her skirt hang like a bell with her legs as the clapper. When she stepped down from the counter on to the chair, I continued to hold her hips, then I took her hand and helped her step all the way down to the floor. When she stepped down she was toe to toe with me and had her hands on my arms.. If she had leaned forward two inches her boobs (big ones ) would have oppressed against my chest. She looked up at me and I could tell that she was getting ready to kiss me. She leaned forwardâand the doorbell rang. Damn!
Kelly put a finger to her lips indicating I should be quiet, and walked out of the kitchen to answer the door. I heard a woman's voice and I wondered who it was. I thought I recognized it as Delorah's, but I wasn't sure. Delorah was in the department and had been one of the last to leave Kelly's house. She was a nice enough person but not nearly as attractive as some of the other womenâshe was fairly tall, but thin as a pole. I heard Kelly laugh and then I heard the door close.
"Who was that?" I inquired when Kelly re-entered the kitchen.
"It was Delorah and she was looking for you."
"Me?" I was surprised. "Why?"
"Good question," Kelly smiled. " I think she wanted to jump your bones. She said she wondered if you had already left and said she would take you home if you were still here. I asked her whose home, hers or yours, and she turned red. I teased her by saying I'd call you and tell you to go over to her apartment. She whispered that she had a nice warm bed that you could sleep in it any time you wanted."
"She did not!"
"Oh yes she didâdidn't' you notice she had the hots for you at the party tonight?"
Come to think of it Delorah
had
been unusually attentive and had given me a couple of "accidental" glimpses up her skirt, but since it was medium length I hadn't really seen too much. I also remembered that she had squeezed in next to me on the couch when there were already three of us sitting there.
"Do you want me to run you over thereâI'm sure she'd let you inâand I mean
all