For the most part, it was a quiet evening in the boy’s dormitory. Most students were out and about at Aphrodite’s Landing, and only for the past hour they had been returning – bringing with them the sounds of closing doors and the occasional moans or screams of pleasure. Vic though, despite his wondering mind and therefore the near-constant erection, was honestly trying to get through the assigned book before he met with Liz and Evelyn the next day to work on their English project.

Marek had thankfully also been out this whole time, so didn’t force Vic to endure his fornicating while he was studying or else chase Vic out to the library, which probably currently had its own share of fornicating going on.

He was only about twenty pages from the end, which would later make him wonder how his evening would have went if he had just finished quicker and would have already have been in bed, when there was a cursory knock and the door to their room opened, and it was Devi that had peered inside.

“Marek isn’t here,” Vic said.

“Oh, do you know when he’d be back?” she said, still leaning through a partially-opened doorway.

“No, sorry, he doesn’t tell me things and I don’t ask them and that’s the way I prefer it,” Vic smiled then, and Devi returned it, seeming before to be unsure about talking to him – they hadn’t really interacted much since she invited him to dance at the Thousand Soaks a week earlier.

“He can be a handful, can’t he?”

“Sure can.”

There was a pause after that, Vic wanting to return to his books but thinking it would be rude to Devi since she hadn’t left yet. Instead, she fully opened the door and stepped into the room.

“Hey, sorry about a few nights ago. I hadn’t realized you even came in.”

“That’s alright. You were … preoccupied.” Vic swallowed as the memories of that evening returned – the absolutely grotesque view of Marek’s bare ass and back, but then also the sensuous curves of Devi’s legs wrapped around Vic’s roommate. Now Devi was wearing a pair of jeans and a narrow tube top, again revealing her flat but soft tummy, sexy navel, and nearly the bottom of her breasts, which in this shirt did appear as large as Marek had said they were.

“You know, actually,” she said, taking a step forward and shutting the door behind her, “I was hoping to have come back with you that night.”

“I sort of figured,” Vic said, trying to hide his embarrassment.

“Then how come you didn’t take me up on it?” Devi titled her head slightly to the side and put her hands behind her back

“You know, I wish I could tell you,” Vic said, now turning fully away from his desk to face Devi.

“Is it Marcia?” Devi asked and Vic’s first thought was to wonder just how transparent he might have been.

“It’s complicated,” he answered, scratching behind his head. It was only about 90% of the answer, or was that 70%? Or perhaps – and he realized that ‘it’s complicated’ was probably the most truthful answer that he could give Devi, but by the expression on her face he knew that she wasn’t buying it. “It’s not you,” he said assuredly, standing up because now having her standing by herself seemed rude. “You’re … you’re very pretty.” She was, but she seemed to carry herself in a way that made it seem like she didn’t know that.

“You think so?” Devi asked, surprisingly shyly for someone currently showing off so much skin.

“Yeah, no, for sure. I mean, Marek’s a pretty lucky guy.”

“It’s okay, you know,” Devi said.

“What’s okay?”

“That you like Marcia. It makes sense – she’s pretty and she’s smart.”

“Yeah,” Vic said, vicariously happy for Marcia and the compliment, but wondering where Devi was going with that.

“But you don’t have to tie yourself to a single girl, you know? That’s not really how things work at Dampgate.”

“I know, I get that.” He was letting his eyes wander. It was easier than it had been before – the curve of Devi’s neck, her gentle collar bone, the roundness of her hips and the softness of her belly, with a navel which he had suddenly wanted to lick. Vic caught himself, and brought his eyes back to Devi’s face, who gave him a forced closed mouth smile as she shrugged.

“Yeah, you say you get it, but do you really get it?” Devi asked. “There’s no tying yourself down to one person here. One moment they’re here and the next second they’re gone – either into someone else’s bed or transferred out to who knows where.” She sounded almost annoyed at his stubbornness when she said this but then her expression softened. “Why don’t you focus on someone who’s actually here?” she asked, and before he could react, pulled her tube top over her head and dropped it to the floor.