PART II
“Why?” asked Shawn.
“I want to clean up Shawn and
I have an essay to write for an early supervision tomorrow.”
“Is that really why Peter? Or
is this another attack of you silly conscious for doing what we did?”
“No Shawn – but you know how
I feel about it. I am not comfortable –
I like you in fact I guess I love you but perhaps not like that. I look up to
you and always want to please you – you know that. But I think we need to
change this.”
“Oh Peter is it because you
saw that silly bitch and are lusting after her ass?”
“No and you know it isn’t. We
have argued about this so many times Shawn.
I want our relationship – I want your close friendship but I don’t want
to be sexual with you now.”
“I want you. I love you -.will
never stop - will never stop wanting to be sexual with you. I will want to be
with you just not today. Oh god Peter - perhaps you’re right maybe I have asked
too much – been hurtful in a way, I'm sorry.” We can still be close – but I
will always want you this way Peter – that I can’t change.”
“OK we will talk but I do
need to go and get out of these pants they are way damp! You do have a lot of
cum it seems.”
“Well a good half of it is
yours! – OK go clean-up do your essay and then meet me in the late night bar
about 10.”
“I’ll see you there around 10
– but remember I am skint you will have to buy again.”
II
Peter made his way into
Gonville Court walking through the passageway between the door of the master’s
lodge and the chapel. As he passed the
door of the lodge he chuckled to himself recalling the time he and Shawn had
put a mouse they caught into the letter slot in the door. He reached his staircase on the far side if
the court above the Junior Parlour. He saw that he was the only one in on the
staircase. He quickly bounded up the stairs to his set on the first floor. Once
in he stripped off. It felt good to get out of his clammy underpants. He put on
a pair of sweet pants, grabbed his kit bag and headed for the showers. He felt
the need to wash off the encounter with Shawn.
Peter was back in his room
within the half hour. It was already
getting dark and he felt a slight chill after his shower so he lit the gas fire
and the lamp on his table. He spotted his essay in progress and on top of it
two letters which someone had delivered. He had not stopped by the JCR to check
his post. The letters must have been left by Charles, who was number 4 seat in
his boat and lived in the set above him.
He noticed without picking it up that one letter was from his father in
Boston. The second envelope had been sent through the University messenger
service as it was not postmarked. He did not recognize the handwriting on the
envelop but noticed it was rather juvenile.
He decided he needed tea
before tackling his father’s letter. A quick search of the cupboard revealed
that he had just about enough keemun for a pot. He thought to himself –
“clearly a trip to the tea and coffee shop on King St. was in order. I could go
after rowing practice.”
Once settled with his tea he
opened his father’s letter. He noted with some surprise that it was brief
unlike his father’s typical epistles. It was very brief indeed – giving him
marching orders to take someone in to tea. Apparently his father had met
someone at a conference who had a daughter who was up at Cambridge also and in
his typical fashion offered Peter’s escort services! “So bloody annoying..” he
muttered to himself. This creature he was supposed to invite to tea was in her
second year reading English at Newnham. She was likely a total dud – a real
looser if his experience of overly intellectual Newnham girls was any guide to
go by.
When he turned over the note
he saw with not a little shock that the girl’s name was Claire!
He thought to himself “no it
couldn’t be her!”
He quickly reached for the
other envelope that Charles had left on his table and ripped it open. “Shit!”
he exclaimed out loud as he read the name - Claire Strachey.
“Christ!” he uttered out
load. He thought – “is it her? The one I saw at the pub? The one Shawn
told me about - Now what? “He read her short note which repeated the
information about his and her father and asked where and when thy might meet.
He mulled over his feelings about her note for a time and sorted out nothing so
he decided it was getting late and he needed to finish the essay for the
morning supervision before meeting Shawn at the late night bar. Hauling
himself off the sofa he went to the gyp room to heat some water to add to the
pot of tea he had made earlier before settling down to his essay.
He sat at the table turned on the light and took out his pen and set to work.
Two hours later he lifted his head, stretched and stood up. He looked down at
the pages on the table and was pleased with what he had written. All that
remained was to write out a fair copy for his supervisor. He decided to
do this before quitting for the day. He went to his cupboard and pulled
out some manuscript paper he had bought at Heffer’s Stationary shop off the
market earlier in the week. An hour saw him finished and satisfied. His
thoughts now turned to Claire, Shawn and the late night bar. He thought to
himself – “I suppose I will have to or should tell Shawn about the Claire
development.” He shuddered to think what Shawn would say. “Oh well – he thought
– nothing for it.”
He went to his bedroom to change. He pulled out a pair of his new skinny “7 for
all mankind” jeans he had bought in London before term began – pulled on a new
pair of clean pants and put on the jeans with a shirt and jumper. He gave
a quick look at himself in the mirror and pronounced himself satisfied. Even
that ass Alistair would find him attractive especially his ass in these jeans.
*********
Taking his empty wallet off the table he headed out to the court and to the late
night bar.
