Arnold left Janet's and Pam's room at midnight, because he had to get up early to play the game with Kelly for half an hour and then he needed to get to work. He entered his dorm room and saw that Kelly was in the second bed. He didn't look closely to see if she was asleep and he took off his t-shirt and shorts. He adjusted his alarm to half an hour earlier than normal, then climbed into bed wearing just his underwear.
After ten minutes, Kelly couldn't resist asking what she wanted to know. “Arnold, did... did you have sex with Janet?”
“Yes.” Arnold said.
Kelly took in a sharp breath and then let it out in a sigh. “Did you plan to have sex with her when you went over there?”
“No.” Arnold responded. “She said she couldn't help herself.”
“I know what she means.” Kelly whispered and turned onto her side to look at him. Since it was fairly quiet in the room, Arnold easily heard her. “Arnold, I...”
“No.” Arnold said without looking at her.
“But...”
“I won't have sex with you.” Arnold said and turned onto his side to look at her. “You need to find a smaller penis, so it doesn't hurt you like mine did.”
“Arnold, what... what if I do... and... and it fixes the problem?” Kelly asked, her voice full of hope. “Would you have sex with me then?”
“Are you moving in at the start of the year?” Arnold asked instead of answering.
Kelly couldn't help show sadness on her face. “I don't know.” She said. “I have a partial scholarship that covers my tuition and the main course books; but, I have to buy any additional books and materials that any of the classes need.” She closed her eyes. “If I can't live here for free like we planned, then that's going to be a huge expense for my parents.”
“Pam works two part time jobs to afford to live here.” Arnold said.
Kelly sighed again. “I know there are some people that are much worse off than me.” She said and opened her eyes to look at him. “I'm assuming she falls behind in her homework a lot?”
Arnold nodded. “Janet helps her a lot and they stay up late practically every night.”
Kelly opened her mouth for a moment, then she closed it.
“Yes, she finally had a night off and she wanted to spend it with her best friends.” Arnold said.
“Her... best friends.” Kelly whispered and fell quiet. She didn't let her tears escape, even though she felt like crying. Even Pam has a closer relationship to him than I do. She thought, then she made a decision. “Can you cuddle me, please?” She asked. “This might be the last time I get to spend the night here and I... I want to do it in your arms.”
Arnold slid out of his bed and walked over to hers, then climbed under the blanket with her. Kelly rolled over and faced away from him, so he moved in close and put an arm around her waist and spooned her. Kelly put a tentative hand on his arm, then she hugged his arm tightly and fought the urge to put his hand up under her t-shirt. Despite her attempt to forget them, Janet's impassioned words echoed in her mind.
She's right. I can't keep him to just petting and playing. Kelly thought. It's not fair to him. Or to me. Her grip tightened for a moment, then she sighed. Fair or not, I really want to.
Kelly closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep, with the hope that she could wake up before Arnold did in the morning. It was a faint hope, even with her phone set to vibrate an hour before the normal time.
Arnold fell asleep, not knowing that he was unintentionally contributing to Kelly's underhanded plan.
*
“Do you think they're doing anything?” Pam asked into the darkness.
“No.” Janet responded for the tenth time. “Go. To. Sleep.”
“Aren't you worried?” Pam asked. “His ex-girlfriend, that you've tried so hard to tell to move on, is probably half-naked in his bed and...”
“Ha. You just nerfed yourself.” Janet said. “Only half-naked? Really?”
Pam had to smile. “Okay, okay. Fully naked.”
“Nope. He wouldn't like that.” Janet said. “Not after trying so hard to make her understand.”
“But...”
“If you're so nervous about it, I can set the alarm for extra early and you can try to sneak over in the morning.” Janet said.
“Really?” Pam asked, a little surprised. “Do you want to...”
“I can't handle his morning wood like you can.” Janet said, sadly. “You know I tried to. A lot.”
“You're a real trooper for trying so many times, knowing that you were going to fail.” Pam said, admiration in her voice. “I don't think I could have.”
Janet chuckled. “Says the girl that cock-blocked me with an actual cock.”
Pam snorted and then laughed. “Okay, that was a good comeback.”
“Thank you.” Janet said, a little smugly. “Now go to sleep.”
After a few moments, Pam spoke. “Janet?”
“Yeah?”
“Can you change the alarm?”
“Don't be stupid.” Janet said. “I did that before we went to bed.”
Pam resisted the urge to jump out of bed to hug her friend. “You're the best!”
“You know it.” Janet responded.
*
The next morning, two people had designs on seeing Arnold first thing in the morning, just to make sure that he was okay. Pam snuck out of her room and went to his door. She reached for the door handle and slowly tried to turn it, just as the elevator door opened. The handle clicked, because it was locked, and Pam let it go to look and see who was there this early.
Doris was halfway up the hallway and whispered. “What do you think you're doing, young lady?”
Pam's face flushed red. “I... well...”
“Sneaking into a boy's room this early in the morning? Have you no shame?”
Pam was going to respond, then she frowned. “What are you doing here, then?”
“I'm sneaking into his room to check on him.” Doris whispered. “I lost my shame years ago.”
Pam opened her mouth, then she smiled and shook her head. She waved at the locked door and Doris used her master key to open it. The door was slowly opened and both of them peered in to see that Arnold and Kelly were in the same bed.
“Oh, damn.” Doris whispered and locked the door again as she shut it. “I've got this.” She said and took out her cell phone. “A quick text to Annie should...”
“No.” Pam whispered. “I'm pretty sure Annie wants them to try to get back together.”
Janet had told her everything that Annie had said and Pam was sure that was her plan.
“What? Why would...” Doris stopped talking as she thought about it. “Ah, I see. She wants Kelly as a built in buffer.”
“Kelly would be the filter for Arnold to experience the world. Everyone would have to go through her to get to him and she would tell him how to handle everything.” Doris explained. “Including potential girlfriends.”
“Oh, damn.” Pam whispered. “Then... go right to the source.” She tapped Doris' cell phone. “Text Arnold and wake him up.”
“You're assuming the phone is close enough to get his attention... but... it's all we can do to save him... and Kelly... from something that could embarrass her.” Doris said and sent a text. “We should scram.”
Pam nodded and went back to her room and Doris went back to the elevator.
*
Arnold's cell phone beeped at him and he woke up almost instantly. He knew a text would have to be important to be sent this early, so he carefully eased his hold on Kelly and rolled over onto his back to check the phone on the nightstand.
' Kelly is going to try something. I don't know what. Please, be careful. ' Doris typed.
Arnold checked the time and put the phone down. He stayed there on his back and waited to see if what Doris said was right. He didn't have to wait long for Kelly to almost jerk awake. She pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and turned it off. He closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep, then he felt the bed shift as Kelly moved closer. He felt a hand touch his underwear and slowly rub him to see that he was already hard. The blanket moved and he opened his eyes to see Kelly duck under it.
“Good morning.” Arnold said and Kelly froze in mid-motion.
“G-good m-morning.” Kelly said.
Arnold rolled the blanket back off of her and she had surprise on her face. “What are you doing?”
“Um... I was just...” Kelly's face flushed red. “We're friends and I... I want to try it.”
“Kelly.”
“Janet's not your girlfriend and I'm sure she's sucked it.” Kelly said. “She has, hasn't she?”
“Yes. A few times.” Arnold said.
“Then I want to try it, too.” Kelly said and her hand started to rub him through the cloth. “I won't bug you about being my boyfriend or anything.”
Arnold put a hand on hers to stop her.
“Just... just the tip.” Kelly said. “I won't go further than the tip.”
Arnold remembered the black girl with dreadlocks and what Maxine had said when she said the same thing. “You won't stop at the tip. You'll try to gobble it all up.”
Kelly opened her mouth to deny it, then she blushed. “Well, once I get the tip in, I would have to try a bit more, right? It's only logical.” She said and her blush eased away. “I'm sure I can fit a lot more of you in my mouth than I can in... my other place.”
“Kelly, you shouldn't do this.” Arnold said. “You won't find someone else if I let you do this.”
“I don't want anyone else, Arnold.” Kelly said and pulled his underwear down. “I love you.”
“I love you, too.” Arnold said and caught her hand before she grabbed his penis. “I didn't wash it yet.”
“I... I don't care.” Kelly said and couldn't move her hand to grab him. She sat up and tried to use her other hand and he caught that one, too. “Arnold...”
“Do you really want to suck it, knowing it was inside another girl, Kelly?” Arnold asked.
Kelly fought the tears that came to her eyes. “I want to try, dammit!”
“Do you want to taste another girl's vagina, just to suck on my penis?” Arnold asked.
“I... Arnold, you... I love you!” Kelly said and let the tears flow. “Go wash and...”
“No.” Arnold said and let her hands go. “She came all over my penis, Kelly.” He said and she winced a little. “If you want to try sucking it, do it now or you will never do it.”
Kelly sat there and thought about it. She tried to reach for it and her hand hovered over it. She was close to grabbing it, so very close, then she made a fist.
“You can't touch it now that you know it's been inside another girl.” Arnold said and pulled his underwear up. “I hope this makes it clear what the distance is between us.”
Kelly opened and closed her mouth several times as each rebuttal tried to escape and then died before it could. She looked at his underwear and the still hard member hidden inside, then she sighed.
“I think so.” Kelly said.
“Then let me tell you to make sure you understand.” Arnold said and got up out of the bed to make breakfast. “If you had sex with another guy and told me the same thing, that he had come all over you and you wanted me to lick you, I wouldn't have hesitated or stopped to think. I would still lick you.”
Kelly took in a sharp breath. “Arnold!”
“Whatever happened before, it wouldn't have mattered to me.” Arnold said and put toast in the toaster and grabbed a box of cereal and a couple of bowls. “If you wanted me to lick you, I would do it.”
“Then lick me!” Kelly exclaimed.
“I just told you when you tried to suck it, it was then or never.” Arnold said and poured out the cereal. The toast popped up and he buttered them and sprinkled brown sugar on the cereal. “You chose never.”
“That wasn't a fair choice.” Kelly said, sadly.
“For who?” Arnold asked and sat down.
Kelly climbed out of bed and walked over to him wearing just tiny panties and a t-shirt. She couldn't argue it wasn't fair for her, because he claimed that he would have licked her if she had sex with another guy. She sat down at the table with a sigh and started eating. She cast him furtive glances to see if he was bothered by her refusal, and he didn't let anything show.
They ate breakfast in silence and Arnold washed the bowls in the sink. He walked over to his bed and put on the shorts and t-shirt he had worn yesterday and started his computer.
“What are you doing?” Kelly asked as he checked his email. “Aren't you going to shower?”
“No.” Arnold said and he saw that there was no response to his inquiry from the game developers.
“Arnold.” Kelly looked at him sternly. “You can't walk around with that stuff on you. It will dry out and...”
“I took a shower last night before coming back.” Arnold closed the email program.
Kelly caught her breath at his words. “But... you said...”
“You could see that it was clean, even though I said it wasn't.” Arnold said. “You just had to touch it to find out for yourself.”
Kelly's stern expression faded and she sighed. “You were testing me...” ...and I failed. She finished in her mind, disappointed in herself.
“We're a little early to pick up those enchanted items.” Arnold said and motioned to her computer. “I'm sure he will have them done.”
Kelly gave him a sorrowful look, then walked over to her computer. She woke it up and the two of them loaded the game as they put on their VR equipment.
“I have work today, too.” Arnold said.
“I know.” Kelly said and managed to keep the sadness out of her voice. “We can finish the quest long before you have to get ready for work.”
“Okay.” Arnold said and they both loaded the game.
Kelly didn't have the courage to tell him that she didn't feel like playing anymore.