The Unexpected Girlfriend Ch. 08

Chapter 7 is here.

I've removed chapter 6 from this series. As they say in Hollywood, "it didn't open."

This is a sequel to the story, Shelley's Revenge. The details of what Shelley did are in that story. This story starts immediately after Shelley had confronted Paul and his girlfriend Donna at his own City College graduation ceremony in upper Manhattan. It is in the Non-erotic category because sex is described in a conversation, but not depicted.

His first months with his girlfriend Nora are described in the series My Summer with Nora, Ch. 01. The story below takes place in June 1977. It starts on the South Campus field just after the graduation ceremony.

The series is called "The Unexpected Girlfriend" because Paul had expected that he'd meet somebody at college through a normal dating process. Instead, mostly out of desperation, he hired Nora to give him a blowjob in exchange for a term paper he would write for her.

But she was lonely and ready to leave hooking, so through a series of accidental events, she became his first lover for a few months.

Shepard Hall is on the North Campus which was the original uptown campus for the school. Wagner Hall was a building on the South Campus.

******

In the few minutes I had before leaving the campus to go downtown to have dinner with my family, I saw Nora Meara standing nearby. I went up to her and she smiled at me. She was alone, and I did not see her uncle or other relatives around.

"Well, Paul, this is the end of what certainly has been interesting college careers for both of us."

I was still trying to process my shock of the encounter with Shelley and Donna. The best I could come up with was, "Yeah, that's an understatement."

She said, "I never want to see this place again, especially that pile of stone over there." She was referring to the 19th Century-vintage Student Center building, which had been built for the now departed Manhattanville College of the Sacred Heart.

She went on, "And these mortarboard hats and gowns are ridiculous, but they're part of tradition I know." They had been lent to us and we'd have to give them back eventually. "Yes, Commencement, but the beginning of what? Unemployment?"

"I thought you still had that domination gig that Gilda got for you."

"Are you kidding? I'm thoroughly tired of any kind of sex work."

"But now you have this wonderful B. A. in history to give you opportunities." She laughed at that.

She wasn't truly gone from my life yet. For various reasons, she quit hooking in the summer of 1974 and that gave her time to join The Salient newspaper with me. So for the next three years, even though we had broken up, we were together on the staff.

It wasn't as bad as it may sound. She got to meet my later girlfriends, one of whom also joined the staff. I mostly didn't interact with her later boyfriends, partially because the two she had were older and not students, but rather Wall Street types working downtown.

Mostly we were cordial with each other, although she could get snippy if she was in a bad mood. As for me, Donna Azzato, who was about to become history for sure, was my fourth girlfriend during my undergraduate years. I had met her the previous fall, but she went to a different university.

"Nora, I have to talk to you about something, but not here, not now."

"All right, I can meet you downtown in a couple of days. What is this about?"

"It's about Donna. I'm in trouble with her."

"How big a trouble?"

"Oh, really big, that's for sure."

"This had better be a good story."

I tried to make light of it. "Oh, you'll like this one, I'm sure of it."

"Okay, sweetie. But that will truly be our goodbye conversation, as I think you know."

I knew that we would both go our own ways after our graduation. It was likely that we'd never see each other again after that meeting downtown. I almost wanted to say that I would miss her, but I didn't.

******

Two days later we were sitting in a diner. I wasn't very hungry, so I only ordered a coffee.

Nora looked like an ordinary young woman with her bob-cut hair, steel-rimmed glasses, white blouse, and jeans. However, I knew that she anything but ordinary.

For a short while, despite her checkered past as a part-time hooker, she seemed like an ideal girlfriend for me. Then it all ended abruptly when she started going with an older guy with a good job, an apartment, and a convertible sports car.

Despite her seeming pledge not to get into shady activities again, during her senior year, through some combination of greed and restlessness, she took a job as a part-time but basically professional dominatrix. With the money she earned whacking guy's asses, she bought a second car. Now she had a 1974 BMW to go along with her 1970 Mustang from her previous go-round in "the life."

That was the person then sitting opposite me. After we ordered, she said, "So, let's get into this."

"You know about Shelley Padilla, don't you?"

"Oh yes, she's cut quite a swath through the South Campus. Even more than I did, and that's saying something."

"Do you think she's really a nymphomaniac?"

"The term used now, it's almost a euphemism, is hypersexuality disorder. I don't know the psychology of these things, but I'd say she's more than promiscuous, she's insane. So she got her hooks into you too, I assume?" I found it ironic that she had, probably inadvertently, referred to her own time as a hooker.

"Yes, she sure did."

"I'd like to hear all about this."

"Well, I'm not sure I want to talk about her at great length."

Nora wagged a finger at me. "Ah-ah, if I'm going to listen to this, I want to hear all of the gory details."

I took a deep breath as I got my thoughts together. "So this was at the beginning of May. I was sitting in The Salient office by myself late one afternoon. Then Shelley comes in and sits on a desk opposite me."

"I get the picture. Then what?"

"Well, she asks me to come over to her. She had a denim skirt which she lifted up, and I saw that she was not wearing any panties. Then she grabbed me, unbuckled my pants, and took my cock out."

"And you, being the fine gentleman that you are, fucked her, didn't you?"

"Nora, I couldn't help myself. Almost any guy would have done that."

"Except for a monk. Take it easy, I'm not judging you. So how did this splendid little act go?"

"It was all like a big nothing. She didn't have an orgasm; in fact, she didn't seem to get any pleasure at all. She said nothing, not even one moan."

"That's in line with what I've heard about her too."

"Have you ever even seen her?"

"Yes, I have, a couple of times. Nothing really that special about her except she's got a very strange look in her eyes."

"That's what I've noticed too. So, anyway, she gets right up and heads for the door. I offered to have sex with her again, to make her come, in other words."

"How thoughtful of you."

"Nora, you can be such a sweetie-pie at times."

"As sweet as honey, as you know. Anyway, you must know I'm kidding you."

"I suppose I was kidding too. Anyway, I did also offer to take her out for drinks, but she turned that down too. The last thing she said on the way out was, 'Just because I fucked you doesn't mean that I'm your girlfriend.' "

"That was certainly cold. It's also strange because the only reason we gals deal with you guys is for the free drinks and movies." She laughed at her own joke.

"I did have one more encounter with her."

"Just one? You are a model of restraint."

"There you go again. So this was the afternoon of the next Tuesday, and I ran into her outside of Wagner. She was wearing blue knee socks that time."

"That's interesting, the Catholic schoolgirl look."

"I didn't immediately get what she was saying, and she called me an 'idiot.' "

"But you went anyway. So where did this fine romance occur?"

"In the second-floor men's room of Wagner. That was my idea."

"People wouldn't believe how much sexual action takes place in college restrooms, at least at commuter schools like this one."

"So, I took this Shelley into a stall and she bent over. As before, she was wearing a skirt but no panties again."

"So it was rear-entry that time."

"But it was the same thing as before, physics plus biology as I would put it. Then when I was finished, she got up and tried to push past me. I asked her where she was going, and she said something like, 'You've blown your load, what more do you want?' " I explained further. "She had caught on that I was interested in her as a side girl."

"Jesus, you must have seen that she was totally uninterested."

"I think my feelings were hurt."

"I don't know if you are a hopeless romantic or, like many guys, you were just thinking with your dick. Maybe both. Also, there was wounded pride on your part, perhaps."

"But she was completely non-erotic again, I'd say."

"It was too late, you had already done it. I hope you learned your lesson from that."

"But she was still on the paper with us, so I knew I'd run into her again. And man, that was quite an encounter. I walked into The Salient office a few days later to find Peter and Jeff resting up during a session with her."

"Wow, Jeff! So that poor guy finally got some trim."

"I tried to warn him, but of course, he was way too happy with everything to listen to me. So Shelley and Peter are sitting on the couch, both bottomless, sharing a cigarette."

"That's sort of our couch. I have fond memories of it." It was on that dilapidated old sofa that Nora and I had our first sexual encounter three years earlier.

"The weird thing was that I was feeling jealous about her being with these two other guys. Why is that?"

"And she was with a lot of other guys besides them, as you know. So, that's just the way you are. You got your emotions mixed up with completely no-strings-attached sex."

I was strangely pleased that Nora had such an opinion about me, although she had said it before. She went on, "Of course, she could have completely no-strings sex with anybody, including you."

I continued my story, "So then I said something really stupid. I got sarcastic and compared her to Judy Garland in Meet Me in St. Louis. Don't ask how I made that connection. But she caught my intentions immediately, and man did she get pissed. I think she called me an asshole and a phony, and she ordered me out of the room."

"So, that's not so bad. It was just words. You're not that thin-skinned."

"But some instinct told me that she would have a long memory and then act upon it. And that's just what she did."

Nora pondered that for a moment. "I did tell you she is crazy, certifiably insane."

"I had a talk with Michelle, and that's what she said too."

"What, do you have a need to confess to all of your ex-girlfriends?"

I didn't want to say that I secretly thought rather highly of them anyway even though both had dumped me for other guys. I guess you never forget your second girl, either.

"In any case, I thought I was safe in the Shepard cafeteria, but no, here comes Shelley on the warpath. One of the things she did was moon me, no panties again."

"Someone should buy that girl some underwear."

I remembered some of what Shelley had said, but I didn't tell Nora about it. You want to be some kind of smooth lover-boy, but you're just a male slut like every other guy. You'd all mate with a piece of liver if that was the only thing available. I think I smiled at her reference to Portnoy's Complaint.

"She must be stalking me if she knew exactly where to find me. And then she threatens me, with what I'm not sure, but she also mentions Donna by name. Thus I know the general outlines of what it was going to be."

"And that's what happened at the graduation ceremony, I presume. She certainly has a flair for dramatic gestures."

"Yep, I was standing there with Donna and Shelley comes strolling up, looking all happy and shit. And she dropped a dime on me, and she was able to prove it, with, you know..."

"I know, your famous two-toned dick."

"Yeah, that clinched it. And I have to give Donna credit for being so cool about it. I mean, she didn't yell or cry or anything. But I have to meet her in a couple of days, and I know I'm dead."

"That's right Paul, you're dead with her, that's for sure." She thought for a moment. "So what have we learned? I don't think you went off course by merely fucking her twice. I think it was you trying to get emotionally involved with her and then getting pissed when she blew you off."

"How did she pick up on that so well?"

"You should know by now, women always pick up on these things."

I blurted out, "I admit I have a grudge against this Shelley person." I had to top myself. "I've been having violent fantasies about her..." Then I lost my nerve and I couldn't continue.

Nora winced. "This is one thing I don't need to hear."

"Yeah, Michelle warned me to stay away from her."

"Good advice. Don't try to contact her, don't say anything to her. Shelley is a loose cannon. Be glad that she seems placated now."

"But she wrecked a perfectly good relationship. Donna was special to me."

"So you lost a girlfriend. You don't want to lose your freedom too. Imagine Shelley down at the 20th Precinct telling lies about you or simply exaggerating things."

"I thought that the police don't take rape claims seriously."

"So that's what you fantasized about. You really don't know what the cops would do. Shelley can prove that she joined the newspaper. Thus she's in a sort of middle zone of knowing you where anything she says seems plausible. And her anger seems quite convincing."

I could visualize that all too vividly. "That is only one of the fantasies I had about her."

"Look, you graduated, you won't be here when she's back as a sophomore. Just don't do anything really stupid like coming back here next fall to look for her."

"I think I'm done with this place like you are."

"Good; just let it go." Nora continued, "You have to take ownership for your own actions. A good part of this is your own doing. I know how difficult it would have been, but just because some chick shows her pussy to you doesn't mean you are obligated to stick your cock into her."

Nora must have seen a sour look on my face because she tried to placate me. "Knowing you, you'll have another juicy main squeeze before the summer is over."

I protested. "Nora, I don't really want to have to do it all over again."

"Well, look at me. I haven't had anybody in nearly a year now."

"I seem to meet a lot of women, but I can't hold on to them."

"What can I say? That is the age we are living in now."

A few minutes later she said, "As you must know, this is going to be the last time we see each other, likely forever."

I tried a joke, "We're at least going to exchange Christmas cards, aren't we?"

She found that amusing. "I have an oil painting of that!"

"What does that mean?"

"It's an expression that means, basically, that it's highly unlikely." She had to explain it in more detail. "Like Winslow Homer doing a picture of me writing a card to you. He'd have a Christmas tree in the background, perhaps."

I didn't think about Homer's style, I thought about Nora. You were my first girl ever, I'll never forget you. I'm going to miss you. We said once that we loved each other. Maybe I still do love you a bit.

She may have guessed what I was thinking because she nudged me along. "It's best not to prolong these things, I mean partings. You know that."

"So how are we supposed to do it?"

"It's simple. After we pay, you get up and leave first."

"Can't I at least say goodbye?"

"Of course, you can say goodbye."

Then the moment came for me to get up and leave. I knew that our lunch was a kind of extension of our time together. We hadn't planned it as a parting gesture per se, but that's what it had turned into.

As simply as I could I said, "Goodbye Nora." I added one additional sentence. "Best of luck." That seemed a bit lame, but I think I meant it.

"Goodbye, Paul." Her final words were a bit more elaborate. "Take it easy, you'll do fine."

I took one last look at her face, but I couldn't decipher her expression. Maybe she had deliberately put on a blank appearance so that we could manage our emotions.

I turned around and walked out the door. I wouldn't see Nora for another ten years.

*****

Nora was right about something. In August, I met my next girlfriend. I wasn't even looking for one then. For a few weeks, for the lack of anything else to do, I had a job as an usher at a Bronx movie theater.

One afternoon, during a showing of Kentucky Fried Movie, (within a few days I knew every line in whatever movie was playing) I heard a woman singing in the back row. She was doing the Joni Mitchell/Joan Collins song "Both Sides Now."

I went back to tell her to keep quiet, and there was Miranda (Mandy) Grossman. She was high on cocaine, which explained her behavior. As I also found out, a bit later, that she was my age and had just graduated from another CUNY unit, Lehman College. Despite her initial refusal to stop singing, I knew she was flirting with me.

I liked her short dark blonde hair, her orange blouse, her black skirt, her sturdy legs, and her white ankle socks. Within twenty minutes, I was coupling with her in a small room behind the auditorium.

It could have just been a casual hook-up, but it wasn't. She asked me to meet her outside when my shift was over. I didn't expect that she'd show up, but when I walked out she was standing there on the sidewalk.

Doing things backwards as I sometimes did, I took her hand and we crossed the street to have our first date at a luncheonette. She said, "You must know by now that I'm a sure thing." That was rather funny, but she had a knack for quips like that.

Thus began the next phase of my life.

#####

This ends the series.

Miranda Grossman appears in Mandy Inside Paradise and Mandy Outside Paradise as well as several other stories.