My name is Lauren, I am a 34-year old art teacher with a true passion for the modern arts. Although I can -- to some degree -- appreciate all 19th and 20th century artists, I am an especially big fan of the impressionism and post-impressionism movements. Monet, Renoir, Rousseau, Gauguin, van Gogh...
Therefore, it should come as no surprise that I have a golden access pass to the Center of Modern and Contemporary Arts, one of the biggest art museums in the country. I try to visit at least twice a week and can spend anywhere from ten minutes to several hours at a time, depending on how busy my schedule is. Sauntering through the vast museum and looking at all that wonderful art, calms, humbles and inspires me, all at the same time.
My current boyfriend Dwayne thinks art is just for the elite and cannot be interesting because it has no practical use. I therefore usually visit the museum -- which is ten minutes away from the university where I teach and fifteen minutes away from my apartment -- alone.
As a loyal visitor for more than a decade, I've seen the museum go through quite some changes; one of the most noticeable one being the security. Where there used to be more than ten security guards roaming the museum, there is now only one left.
My story begins as Gaston, the 62-year old security guard introduced me to his replacement, the 23-year old Eddy. It was a Tuesday evening, around 5.30pm. I had popped in for a quick visit after work and had strolled through a few of my favorite galleries, when I came across Gaston and Eddy.
"Here she is," Gaston said, "Our most loyal and frequent visitor."
"Hi Gaston," I smiled.
"Hi sweetie, this here is Eddy, he'll be taking over from me starting next week," he said.
"Eddy, this is Lauren, one of the few visitors who still likes art because it's art, and not because it's sophisticated or fashionable... I usually let her stay as long as she wants, normal opening hours don't apply to her!"
"Nice to meet you Eddy," I smiled.
"Wow, you're more beautiful than all of the stuff in here put together," Eddy blurted out. Gaston slapped him on the back of the head, indicating he had overstepped a professional boundary.
"Why, thank you Eddy, that's so nice of you to say," I whispered, staring at the floor, embarrassed.
"I am sorry Lauren, he doesn't know his place yet," Gaston said apologetic.
"Don't worry about it, it's always nice to get a compliment," I replied.
"So, are you having a retirement party?" I asked Gaston, quickly changing the subject.
"No," Gaston smiled, "Retirement parties are for old people. Thursday is my last day. Saturday, my wife and I are leaving on a cruise for two months!"
"Wow, that's something to look forward to," I replied, as I caught Eddy staring at my legs.
"Yeah, no boredom and self-pity for me," Gaston smiled.
I noticed Eddy thoroughly looking me up and down, studying every curve and contour of my body. 'Men will be men', I thought as I continued chatting with Gaston for a few minutes. All the while, Eddy kept undressing me with his eyes, although he pretended to be interested in our conversation. After I gave Gaston a big hug and a peck on the cheek, and thanked him for all the extra time he'd given me in the museum, we parted ways. As I looked back, I noticed Eddy gawking at my ass as he and Gaston moved away. Amused by his blatant and obvious interest, I smiled for a moment, but quickly turned my attention back to the artworks I was there to admire. I left about twenty minutes later, without seeing either of them again.
The following week, on Tuesday, I came in around 5.20pm. I was dressed in a red, short dress, stockings, high heels and a black, leather coat. Being a natural blonde, with a big rack, I was used to some male attention, and especially in this outfit, in which I looked pretty damn fine -- even if I do say so myself. After wandering through the main hall, I moved into one of the other halls, where I ran into Eddy, who hadn't noticed me, until we nearly bumped into one another.
"Oops sorry," I smiled, "Hi Eddy."
"Holy shit," Eddy said as he gawked at me. He didn't know what to say for several seconds, which I thought was cute and kind of flattering. Although I was only 34, it had been a while since anyone had looked at me that way.
A little embarrassed, I smiled and asked, trying to avoid an awkward silence, "So, how are you adjusting?"
"Oh fine, yeah... I am good," he said, his eyes still wandering over my chest and my hips.
And here it was, the awkward silence I had tried to avoid. After about four or five seconds, I said, "So, I'd better let you get back to work."
"Yeah, I have to... you know," he said, pretending he had somewhere pressing to be.
We each headed off in a different direction, and aside from a smile on my face for about twenty more seconds, I forgot about the incident pretty quickly. Around 6pm, I was walking towards the exit, when I passed by Eddy again.
"See you next time," I smiled.
"Wait," he whispered, "You don't have to go."
"Excuse me?" I asked.
"Gaston told me you like to stay after hours, and he asked me to take care of you, so..."
"Oh, but I wouldn't want you to get you into any sort of trouble," I whispered, as a couple of visitors passed me by on their way out.
"Don't be silly," Eddy said, "Nobody cares about this stupid place anyw..."
The look on his face changed, from thinking he was making a joke to realizing he was probably saying something stupid.
"Oh shit," he said, disgusted with himself.