Baumgartner Generations: Henry (10 page)

“Is that all
you ever think about?” Henry’s current concerns seemed huge and even the
thought of Libby seemed far away in light of them.

“Come on, Henry.”
Dean sounded pissed. He’d tried a few times this week to drag Henry out of bed,
but they’d been half-hearted attempts. This time he sounded serious. And mad.

“No.” Henry
rolled toward the wall.

“But we’re
supposed to meet the girls in, like, an hour!”

Henry’s
voice was muffled in his pillow. “You go.”

“Well I
can’t exactly date both of them, can I?” Dean snapped.

“Take Bel.”
He smiled at the thought. Bel could barely say his own name in front of a girl.

“Henry,
don’t be a dick.”

He rolled back
over, crossing his arms and glaring at his roommate. “What do you want from
me?”

“I want you
to take a shower.” Dean leaned over and thwapped him on the arm. Henry winced. “You
stink.”

“You just
want to get into Libby’s pants.”

Dean
grinned. “Can you blame me?”

“Just leave
me alone.” Henry rolled back toward the wall, sinking under the covers. He
couldn’t. There was no way.

“Well, I
guess I’ll have to call Libby and tell her you don’t want to go.” Dean had
changed tactics. “Maybe I should tell her you’ve been in bed all week. Val
must’ve really worn you out…”

Henry
stiffened, turning back toward his roommate, a sinking feeling in his belly. “You’re
not supposed to talk about that.”

“Right.” Dean
shrugged, reaching into his pocket, pulling out his cell phone and flipping it
open. He glanced up when Henry pushed by him. “Where are you going?”

“To take a
shower.”

*
* * *

“Now that
was everything a vampire movie is supposed to be,” Libby crowed happily as they
walked out of the theater. “Not even a hint of glitter.”

Henry stole
a glance over at her, walking next to Dean. He’d resented the fact that she
wasn’t sitting next to him during the scary parts. She’d practically climbed
into Dean’s lap a few times.

Instead,
he’d had Elaine screaming in his ear and hiding her face against his jacket.
Okay, so she was nice enough, and definitely a hottie—Dean hadn’t lied about
that—a pretty, petite blonde with an angelic face and big blue eyes. But she
wasn’t Libby. And she kept proving that every time she opened her mouth.

Elaine fell
into step next to Henry, taking his hand and swinging it. “Hey, now, no dissing
Twilight.”

Of course
she was a
Twilight
fan. He tried to be magnanimous. “Are you Team Edward
or Team Jacob?”

Libby
interrupted Elaine’s response, rolling her eyes and saying, “Real men don’t
sparkle.”

“Wait.
Twilight?
Isn’t that the movie about the girl who can’t choose between necrophilia and
bestiality?” Dean howled when Elaine punched him in the arm as he pushed the
unlock button on his keys. Freshmen weren’t supposed to have cars on campus,
but Dean had a black 2008 Mustang he parked at the frat house.

“Meanie.”
Elaine stuck her tongue out at Dean as Henry ushered her into the backseat. It
was close quarters and cramped back there, but it meant Libby was close, even
in the passenger seat, and she half-turned so she could talk to them as Dean
drove through campus back to the frat house. The whole way, Elaine’s hand kept
finding its way into Henry’s lap, squeezing and petting his thigh. She’d been
flirty all night and had made it pretty clear she liked him. By the time Dean
parked, Elaine’s hand was practically in his crotch.

“Hey, come
on in. I want to show you guys something.” Dean took Libby’s hand as they got
out of the car, leading her toward the frat house.

“No,” Libby
protested, looking for support from her roommate, but Elaine grabbed Henry’s
hand, following. “Dean, I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Oh come
on,” Dean said, literally pulling Libby up the stairs. “What do you have to be
afraid of?”

“I think
Elaine and I should go home.” Libby’s eyes flashed and she glared at Dean as he
opened the door.

“But the
night’s just starting,” Dean protested. “And I really want to show you guys
something.”

“Come on,
Libby,” Elaine said, nudging her friend into the doorway. “He wants to show us
something!”

Libby
relented as Elaine and Henry crowded in behind her.

The house
was big enough to hold thirty-five fraternity members, and they didn’t have an
empty room in the place. Dean kept trying to talk Henry into living in the frat
house with him the following year, but Henry wasn’t even sure he was going to
be in school next year at this rate.

There were
rules about bringing girls in—but no one said anything to Dean as he led them
down a hallway, past the laundry room and through the common area. There were
two pool tables at one end and a huge wall-mounted television, but no one was in
there tonight.

“Check it
out.” Dean opened a set of double French doors and Elaine squealed.

“A hot tub!”

Henry had
been on the frat house tour, but somehow had missed this room. “I didn’t know
this was here.”

“They just
built it over the summer.” Dean flipped a switch on the wall and the hot tub
hummed to life, the bubbling water glowing, lit from underneath. “It’s not even
officially open. They have to have it inspected or something.”

“So we can’t
go in it?” Elaine pouted. “What a tease!”

“Oh hell.” Dean
shrugged, then winked at her. “Want to do it anyway?”

“Elaine!”
Libby protested as her friend shed her jacket and then her sweater. Henry gaped
as she unzipped her jeans and wiggled them down her slim hips. She was in her
underwear so fast—a very sweet, white bra and panties with pink polka dots—that
no one had a chance to say a word before she was getting into the hot tub.
Henry did have just a moment to wonder if she wore a matching set in
anticipation of their date.

“Come on,
Libby!” Elaine called, and Henry admired the way her panties hugged her behind,
the water frothing around her thighs as she waded in.

“If you
can’t beat ’em…” Dean stripped down to his boxers and followed Elaine into the
hot tub.

Libby stood
there, undecided, until Henry started peeling off his coat.

“Really?”
She kept her voice low. Dean and Elaine were splashing, laughing, and couldn’t
hear them anyway over the noise of the water, he was sure.

“You only
live once, right?” He took off his shirt and saw her blink at the sight of him
without one. “What are you—chicken?”

She smiled
at him. “Is that a challenge?”

His breath
caught as she pulled her hoodie over her head. She was wearing a t-shirt
underneath. He raised his eyebrows as she pulled her t-shirt off. Her bra was black,
and he had a moment to lament the fact that the material wouldn’t be
see-through in the water before he felt the first stirrings of arousal when she
reached down to unsnap her jeans, wondering if her panties matched.

“Come on
in!” Dean called and Henry saw him watching Libby undress. “Water’s great!”

“You
coming?” Libby peeled her jeans off, leaving them in the pile of her clothes on
the floor. Her panties were black, too, with lace trim and had a red bow in the
front. He’d dreamed about seeing this much of her, the long limbs, the peaches
and cream skin, and he was inflamed at the sight.

“Now who’s
chicken?” She stuck out her tongue, turning and walking toward the water.

He’d never
gotten out of his clothes so fast.

The water
was warm, steam rising around them, and although Henry wanted to sit next to
Libby, it was Elaine who reached a hand out to him, patting the surface of the
water beside her, and he felt obliged to slide in next to her instead.

“This feels
sooooo good.” Elaine rolled her neck from side to side and then dipped her head
back, wetting her normally white-blonde hair and making it the color of wet
cornstalks. It also made her eyes seem even rounder and bluer.

“It gets
better.” Dean reached back and flipped open one of the benches next to the hot
tub, pulling out a brand new fifth of Jack Daniels. Henry wondered if it was
the one they’d found for the fraternity’s scavenger hunt.

“Cheers,
man.” Dean unscrewed the top and took a long swig, passing the bottle to Henry.
He took a sip, the alcohol burning his throat, and handed it to Elaine, who was
clamoring for it beside him.

“Oooo that’s
strong!” she exclaimed, her eyes watering. She handed the bottle over to Libby,
who passed it on to Dean without drinking.

Dean studied
Libby for a moment and then asked, “Who wants to play a game?”

“What game?”
Elaine inquired. Henry felt her hand on his thigh again, her fingernails tickling
him.

Dean held
the bottle up to the light, considering the amber-colored fluid. “How about
Drink or Dare?”

“How do you
play?” Henry asked. He was familiar with a few drinking games, but had never
played that one.

“Just like
Truth or Dare.” Dean took a long pull from the bottle. “But if you pick Truth,
you drink twice. If you pick Dare, you only drink once.”

“I don’t
know.” Libby was sitting in the corner of the tub, her arms crossed over her
chest as if she was cold, although the water had to be eighty degrees.

“I’ll go
first.” Dean ignored her. “Henry. Truth or Dare?”

“Truth.” Henry
took the bottle, considering it. “Two?” Dean nodded and Henry took two sips,
feeling the alcohol burn again as it went down. He nearly choked, though, when
he heard Dean’s question.

“Who was the
last girl you had sex with?”

“Oh come
on.” Henry blinked, eyes watering.

Dean
shrugged. “You want a dare instead?”

“Yeah.”
Henry set the bottle aside.

“I dare you
to kiss Elaine.”

Elaine’s
eyes widened, but she turned her face eagerly up toward Henry in anticipation.
Okay,
get it over with,
he told himself.
Don’t look at Libby. Don’t think
about her. Better this than her hearing about that night with Val…

Elaine moved
into the circle of his arms, clearly expecting a real kiss and not just a peck
on the cheek. Henry relented, holding her lean, wet body against his. She was
so tiny, he felt like he could break her with one snap. When her lips met his,
they parted instantly, her tongue seeking entry, and he tasted her, salty popcorn
and M&M’s, her breasts mashed against his chest, her leg rubbing between
his under the water. She was sweet and light and delicious, and he couldn’t
help his response. He just wished she hadn’t felt it against her thigh when she
pressed against him, her tongue probing deeper.

“Okay,”
Henry breathed, breaking it off. Elaine smiled up at him, eyes half closed, and
he knew then that Dean had been right. This girl wanted something—on the
rebound, she probably wanted someone to make her feel whole and loveable and
attractive again. He saw it in her eyes, felt it in the weight and press of her
body against his. She wanted what she wanted and if Henry was willing to offer
it, well, that was clearly okay with her.

“Okay,” he
said again, clearing his throat, turning back to the other two people in the
room. Libby was quiet, watchful. Dean just grinned. Elaine’s hand crept back up
Henry’s thigh under the water and he tried to ignore it, but she made that
impossible when her hand moved under his boxers. Henry froze, glancing at her.
She just gently squeezed and tugged at him. It wasn’t an obvious motion,
nothing that would draw attention, but it was clear and intentional. And it
felt really fucking good.

 “My turn?” A
rhetorical question. He tried to keep his reaction to Elaine’s softly stroking
hand out of his voice. “Dean. Truth or Dare?”

“I got
nothing to hide.” Dean shrugged, accepting the bottle and taking two sips. “Truth.”

But that
wasn’t true. Henry found himself suddenly fuming. His roommate had dragged him out
of bed and forced him into this situation. Henry was now dating a girl he
didn’t know, all the while watching the girl he already knew he liked paired up
with his friend all night. And just two nights ago, Dean had brought some girl
back to the dorm and had sex with her in their room. Henry had refused to
leave, so Dean had told her, “Just ignore him,” and had fucked her anyway.

Henry
leveled his gaze at his roommate. “When was the last time you had sex?” He
crossed his arms, waiting smugly for the answer.

Dean’s face
spread into a slow smile as he held up his hand, waggling his fingers.”Just
this morning.”

Henry rolled
his eyes. “With a girl!”

“You didn’t
ask me that.” Dean winked, ignoring Henry’s reddening face and turned toward
Libby, handing her the bottle. “Libby. Truth or Dare?”

She
hesitated. Finally, she opened the bottle, taking a drink, and said, gasping
through the alcohol, “Dare.”

“Okay…” Dean
looked around, speculative. His eyes settled on Elaine. “I dare you to kiss
Elaine.”

Elaine
laughed and Libby rolled her eyes, but the two girls acquiesced, moving toward
each other, meeting in the middle of the hot tub. Henry’s cock immediately
missed the girl who had been paying attention to it, but he couldn’t help how
much it throbbed in anticipation of seeing the two girls together.

Libby frowned
as her roommate wrapped her arms around her neck, glancing back at Dean.
“Really?”

He didn’t
answer her, just winked and tipped the bottle in her direction before taking a
swig. Elaine giggled, leaning in and softly pressing her mouth to Libby’s.
Henry watched the two of them together, standing in the middle of the tub, water
swirling around their bare thighs. He noticed he could see the outline of
Elaine’s nipples through her polka-dotted bra. His cock grew even harder when
he saw a flash of pink tongues entwined.