The next morning, or at least Thomas's morning, which ended up being around eleven, Thomas took a quick shower before heading to the cafeteria for Lunch. As he walked, he noticed a few people giving him strange looks. He glanced at himself in a nearby window, to make sure he was wearing pants and all that, but he couldn't find anything out of place, so he just shrugged it off. However, the looks didn't stop, and even got worse as he entered the cafeteria, with people in little groups whispering to each other as they shot glances at him. He surreptitiously patted the back of his pants, but he didn't feel a giant hole back there, or anything. There wasn't even a sign on his back! *Weird.* Thomas thought to himself with a shrug, before focusing on getting his food and grabbing a table.
"Do you mind if we sit with you?" A girl asked nervously, biting her lip, with five others standing behind her, right as Thomas was about to bite into his burger.
Thomas frowned, lowering the burger, glancing at the girls, then down at the little four person table he'd commandeered, then out across the fairly empty cafeteria, and finally back to the girls. "I guess not? But-" They didn't let him finish as they quickly stuffed themselves around the table, making the space quite cramped. The two girls sitting on either side of him even seemed to lean closer, making it somewhat hard to eat his burger. Thankfully his high agility let him ignore the crowd of bodies around him, so he managed to eat just fine.
"You probably don't remember me, but I wanted to say thank you for last night." The girl pressing in on his right, the same one who had asked to sit down, thanked him, placing a hand on his thigh.
Thomas raised an eyebrow at her. "What'd I do last night?" He asked, genuinely confused.
"You don't remember?" The girl asked. "You saved the entire party and got everybody out of the pool!"
"Oh, that. No problem." Thomas responded, before turning back to his food.
"Well, we were wondering, if you're free, if you would like to join us back at the house so we could thank you properly." The girl continued breathily, leaning in so close Thomas could feel her breath on his ear as she pressed herself against him.
"I guess? I was planning on hitting the gym around four, so as long as it doesn't take too long, it should be fine." Thomas answered honestly, frowning slightly as he wondered why he'd need to go to their house to be thanked. "You really don't need to thank me though, I was at least partially responsible for it happening to begin with. Well… at least as responsible as a gun manufacturer is when one of their guns is used to hurt someone, which is debatable. Though, using that analogy, I'm distributing weapons randomly without background checks or anything, so… a bit worse than that. Of course, they are college students, so reasonably you'd expect they'd pass a background check or they'd probably currently be in jail, considering the amount of time they'd reasonably have to actually commit a crime, so maybe a bit better? I mean, with a college degree, they make you an officer in the military, so it has to count for something right? Man, ethics is a bitch."
All the girls stared at him looking confused. "So, does that mean you'll come over?" The girl asked.
"If you really want me to." Thomas answered with a shrug. "Though… What does going to your house have to do with thanking me?"
The girls shared a couple looks and giggled. "It's a surprise, but don't worry. We'll make sure you're completely satisfied."
Thomas thought that sounded weird, but he just shrugged and went back to eating. Even if it was weird, it wasn't like he couldn't just leave. At this point, he didn't think anyone could stop him from doing whatever he wanted to do. Well, except guns. Guns would still hurt… but he was pretty sure a few sorority girls wouldn't suddenly pull AK's out of their designer purses.
Thomas finished eating fairly quickly, seeing as the girls didn't really leave him enough room to place his phone on the table and read, despite the fact they barely seemed to touch their meals. Thankfully, they didn't seem to feel the need to force conversation either, just sitting around the table, shooting glances at him and occasionally whispering in each other's ears and giggling. Every now and then he'd make eye contact with one of them, and she'd look away, looking flustered. It was probably one of the strangest experiences Thomas had ever had.
"Are you ready?" The spokeswoman of the group asked as he pushed away his tray.
"Yeah, we can go." Thomas responded with a shrug. They all climbed to their feet and crowded around him as they left the cafeteria.
"Thomas?" A voice called as they were exiting.
Thomas turned and saw Jessica's friend Stacy. "Oh, hey, what's up?" Thomas waved at her.
"Not much… what's up with…?" Stacy gestured to the crowd of girls around him, with her finger.
"This? I stopped some guys from wrecking a party last night and they want to thank me." Thomas answered with a shrug.
"I see…" Stacy responded, giving him a strange look. "Well, have fun then." She said in a bland, somewhat dismissive tone which Thomas found weird, but well, he and Jessica had ditched her last night, so he didn't think it was all that unexpected. He waved goodbye to her as the girls dragged him out of the building. Stacy frowned as she stared after him, before pulling out her phone and making a call.
The girls dragged Thomas back towards the house from last night, which he learned was actually their sorority house, which he supposed made sense, seeing as they seemed to have gone out of their way to thank him. If those two had continued, they'd probably have more than just an empty pool and a muddy yard to worry about. Once they arrived, they brought him into their living room and sat him on the couch.
"Now, close your eyes while we prepare your surprise. No peeking!" The lead girl told him with a giggle. Thomas frowned but did as she asked. He heard some shuffling, a lot of giggling, and a few whispered arguments that he couldn't quite make out, before simultaneously, each of his hands were grabbed and placed on something soft and smooth, someone started playing with his zipper, and a mouth pressed against his own, tongue infiltrating itself between his lips.
Thomas opened his eyes in shock to find all of the girls completely naked! Two were pressing his hands against their breasts, while one knelt between his legs, reaching into his now unzipped pants, and another was straddled across him kissing him passionately. The final two were on either side of him, seemingly ready to jump in at any moment. "Whoa, hey, ahahah!" Thomas exclaimed as he smoothly extricated himself from the cluster of girls. Thankfully with his agility, it wasn't all that hard to do so without hurting the girl's. "What do you think you're doing?!?" Thomas asked incredulously, as he tucked his privates back into his pants and zipped them up.
"We were thanking you?" The lead girl answered. She was the one who had been kissing him and was quite surprised by how smoothly she'd ended up on the couch. "What were you expecting?"
"I thought you'd made me a cake or something! Why else would you eat so little?" Thomas retorted. "I didn't expect…" Thomas gestured towards them vaguely.
"Well, we didn't make cake, but there's still plenty to eat, we can make something rise, and we can top it all off with a little icing." She responded with a grin, spreading her legs for him while the other girls performed equally seductive actions.
Thomas's mind went blank for a second, before he shook his head. "Okay, sorry, but no. I appreciate the sentiment, I really do, but… no, I just can't, okay?" He objected, turning to leave.
The girls sat there, dumbfounded as Thomas walked out of the house, not even looking back. They exchanged confused looks with each other, before one of them turned to the lead girl. "So, should we make him a cake?"
*
The rest of the day passed fairly normally for Thomas, except for the fact that more and more people seemed to be looking at him strangely, plus the fact that if any girl approached him, which was strange in and of itself, he just ignored them and kept doing what he was doing. Once bit, twice shy as they say. It wasn't that Thomas exactly had a problem with casual sex, but… well, he didn't like the fact that their interest had nothing to do with him. It made the whole thing feel cheap. Plus… Well, while they weren't dating, and he wasn't entirely sure Jessica was interested, he did want to be with her, so it felt wrong to sleep with someone else.
After his workout, which took him a bit longer than expected due to various girls getting in his way, one of which even snuck into the damn locker room to get to him, he finally made it back to his dorm. He checked the time, and he still had about fifteen minutes until seven, so he pulled out his phone and pulled up some manga. However, half an hour later, Jessica still hadn't contacted him. Thomas frowned, but gave it another fifteen minutes, figuring she might just be late. However, he still didn't hear from her.
Feeling a little nervous, Thomas pulled out his phone, and shot her a text. *Hey, you said we were meeting up at seven, right? I wasn't supposed to go to your dorm, was I?* However, ten minutes later, she still hadn't gotten back to him. He tried giving her a call, but it just went to voicemail. Thomas was beginning to get worried now. He paced back and forth in his dorm, not sure what to do, wondering whether she might be in trouble, though… considering she had the system, that seemed unlikely. Thomas was at a loss, until he thought of using the system. "Show me Jessica's location." He commanded. Immediately a little minimap appeared, showing his location and a blinking dot off towards the southeast, not moving. Thomas wasn't sure what the measurement was, but he immediately set off, heading towards the other dot. As he got closer, he realized it was just Jessica's dorm. He wondered if maybe she'd just fallen asleep as he approached her door and knocked. "Jessica? It's me, Thomas."
"GO AWAY!!!" A shout immediately came from the other side of the door.
"Wha- are you mad at me?" Thomas asked through the door, confused. He couldn't even think of anything he might have done wrong. The last time he saw her she seemed to be fine. It wasn't like he had social media she could have seen and gotten pissed about.
"No! I-I just don't want to talk tonight." Jessica responded grumpily, still sounding very, very angry.
"Jessica, please at least tell me what I did wrong!" Thomas pleaded, desperately trying to figure out what he could have done.
The door suddenly flew open, showing an angry Jessica who had obviously been crying. "Really? You have no idea why I might be angry?!?" Thomas shrugged helplessly. "Stacy saw you Thomas! With six girls!"
"Wait, that's what you're mad about? Jessica, I didn't even do anything with those girls! Oh, well, one did kiss me, and two of them placed my hands on their breasts… oh, and one got her hand on my… you know… plus I saw all of them naked." Thomas explained as Jessica's eyes widened further and further in anger. "But I didn't mean for any of that to happen!" Thomas quickly added in a panic. "They were the owners of that house we saved yesterday! It was apparently a sorority, and they just said they wanted to thank me! I thought they'd baked me a cake!" Thomas continued.
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Jessica gave him a withering glare. "Do you really expect me to believe you'd be that oblivious?" She hissed.
"Well… yeah?" Thomas responded helplessly. "I mean, they didn't even eat at the cafeteria. Cake just made sense! Or maybe brownies… I don't know, some kind of baked good. Plus, that would explain why they needed me to go to their house, cause they couldn't exactly carry a huge cake around just hoping to run into me…"
Jessica's eyes widened. "Oh, God, you are that oblivious!" She exclaimed, rushing into his arms. "I'm so sorry! Stacy just called me and told me what she saw and, and I just got so angry but we aren't even officially together or anything so I didn't have any right to be angry, which made me sad, but we had a date tonight which made me angry again, and we had such a good time yesterday which made me sad again… Ugh! I should have just talked to you in the first place!" She mumbled in a rush, tears flowing down her face. "Wait… how did one get into your pants?" She asked, pulling back slightly.
"They had me sit on the couch and close my eyes." Thomas explained with a frown. "They said it was a surprise, which I never really got the point of, but people seem to like them, so I just went with it."
Jessica frowned at him. "You really didn't see any of that coming?"
"People surprise people with cake!" Thomas exclaimed. "It was completely consistent with the evidence!"
Jessica snorted. "You dork." She shook her head, hugging him again. "I'm sorry for ruining things tonight." She muttered softly.
"I mean, it's still eight and tomorrow is a Saturday. It isn't like we can't still do things." Thomas replied.
"It's only eight?" Jessica exclaimed in surprise. "Hold on, let me get changed real quick and we can head over to your place." She explained, quickly shooting into her room and shutting the door, leaving Thomas standing there slightly dumbfounded.
*What was wrong with what she was wearing?* He thought to himself, confused. With a sigh, he leaned against the railing outside the room, and pulled out his phone.
"Waiting for someone?"
Thomas looked up to see an attractive woman approach and lean against the railing next to him. "Yeah, she's just getting changed." Thomas answered shortly, before returning to his phone, hoping she would just go away. He didn't need another misunderstanding going down.
"Ah, yes, the eternal occupation of today's modern male, waiting on a woman." The woman nodded knowingly. "Are you two heading to a party together?"
"Nah, just hanging out at my dorm, watching stupid tv and playing games." Thomas answered with a sigh, cursing the entire female gender, except for Jessica.
"Oh, you're getting a girl to get changed for that? Prepare to get lucky, man." The woman replied with a knowing laugh.
Thomas frowned at her. "Okay, look, I don't know what your deal is, but I literally just got out of a misunderstanding involving my association with other girls, and while I don't believe she's going to think anything happened in the short time it takes her to get changed, it's a rather fresh wound, and I'd rather not rub salt in it, so could you just… go?"
"Oh, I'm so sorry, I'll go right away!" The woman apologized, standing up and backing away. "I'm still not quite used to this… I just wanted to thank you."
Thomas's frown deepened as he backed away slightly. "Please tell me you made me cake. The other way women try and thank me gets me in trouble."
"Huh? I-I didn't… cake?" The woman looked severely confused, before shaking her head. "Look, I'm a system user! You made it right?"
"Yeah? Who told you that?" Thomas asked, raising an eyebrow.
"What do you mean? It's practically common knowledge by now. Everyone's been talking about it. Someone caught your little take down last night on video and it's been going viral." She explained.
"Wait, shit, really?" Thomas replied. "Man, no wonder people have been looking at me weird all day!"
"Anyways, that isn't the point. I- well, let's just say my name used to be Stephan… so, thank you." The woman explained awkwardly, before leaving.
Thomas stared off blankly after her. "Man, this day just keeps throwing curveballs at me." He muttered to himself, shaking his head.
"What was that?" Jessica asked, as she opened her door, having barely heard him.
"It's been a weird day." Thomas explained. "I just got thanked by a woman who used to be named Stephan… I wonder if she goes by Stephanie now? Also, does she have a roommate, and how is that working? Wait, my roommate's name is Stephan… oh she better not be, I swear to god!" Thomas quickly pulled up the minimap and had the system find his roommate Stephan, which showed a small dot quite close, slowly getting farther away. "Motherfucker! Where are you sleeping!?!" He shouted into the distance. The dot paused for a second, before moving away again, faster. Thomas turned to Jessica, who was looking extremely startled and confused. "I think I just lost my roommate. Though… this does explain why he's been gone even more than usual the last few days. Or she, I guess."
"That… I wasn't even away for ten minutes!" Jessica exclaimed.
"Right? It's a weird fucking day!" Thomas replied. "Oh, and apparently everyone knows I created the system now, which does explain about half of it."
Jessica's eyes widened in surprise. "Really?"
"Yeah, apparently someone caught me on video last night, and… well, looking back at what I said, it does sort of become obvious that it's my system." Thomas explained with a sigh. "Anyways, ready? Oh, and what kind of pizza do you want?" The two began heading over to Thomas's dorm, while Thomas ordered the pizza on his phone. Their dorms weren't too far apart, so the trip was over pretty quickly.
"So, this is your dorm…" Jessica commented as she walked in, doing a little twirl in the middle of the room to take it all in.
"Indeed it is, but mostly it's about that big screen right there. Best buy I've ever made." Thomas responded, gesturing to the large TV sitting on his dresser.
"So… I'm guessing this is your side of the room then?" Jessica asked, gesturing towards what was indeed his side.
"Yup. So, anything in particular you want to watch?" Thomas asked as he turned on the TV and the gaming console he used as a media player.
"It doesn't really matter to me." Jessica said with a shrug, taking a seat on his bed and moving in towards the wall, leaving him a spot beside her.
Thomas shrugged and sat next to her, navigating to a TV show he'd been meaning to check out, but hadn't actually started yet. The moment he sat down, Jessica grabbed a hold of his arm and rested her head on his shoulder. About halfway through the episode, which turned out to be better than he expected, his phone began to buzz. "That should be the pizza." Thomas said, answering it and confirming, before getting up. "I'll be right back." He went out and grabbed the pizza, before returning quickly and sitting down beside her again.
"Is it okay to eat on your bed?" Jessica asked, slightly concerned.
"Yeah, I do it all the time. Once you raise your agility a bit it's no problem." Thomas explained.
Jessica laughed at that, shaking her head. "You have the weirdest uses for the system." She scoffed, but she still added a few more points to agility. With the increased coordination, it was fairly easy to keep anything from getting on the bed, even when she was resting her head on his shoulder.
They continued watching the show as they ate, just enjoying each other's company. They finish eating fairly quickly, without even realizing it, so Thomas placed the empty box on the floor, and Jessica used the opportunity to cuddle into him even more. This was how they passed most of the evening, occasionally making an idle comment or two directed at the TV.
A couple hours in, at the end of the episode, Jessica grabbed the controller and turned it off. Thomas looked at her, raising an eyebrow. "What's up? Do you want to watch something else? Or do you need to get back?"
"No, it isn't that." Jessica shook her head, taking a shaky breath. "I just… Thomas, you like me, right?" She asked, sounding nervous.
Thomas frowned. "Yeah? Why?"
"No, not like! I mean like like. Like… romantically." She continued, starting out frustrated, then ending quietly, looking at him nervously.
"Jessica, I-" Thomas stopped, struggling to find the words that would adequately describe his feelings. "Yes, I do like you. A lot. More than I've ever liked anyone, ever."
"Then why don't you say anything?!?" Jessica demanded, giving him a slightly hurt look. "I've been cuddling with you this entire time and you haven't done anything! You just sit there, watching TV!"
Thomas blinked at her a few times, slowly beginning to frown. "I- but- I was supposed to be doing something?" He asked nervously.
"Yes!" Jessica exclaimed in exasperation. "Don't you want to hug me? Kiss me?"
"Well… I mean, yes, but-" Thomas stammered, before stopping with a frown. "Okay, so- ugh, how do I put this… I do want to do all that stuff with you, and more, but… I want to do that stuff with everyone. That side of me is very indiscriminate. As long as someone has a decent body shape, I'm down. But with you… I'm more focused on the part of me that literally just enjoys your presence in my life. I- I love just having you around. The reason I haven't been doing anything is because… well, this bit of time with you sitting next to me with your head on my shoulder is the happiest I think I've ever been in my life."
Jessica froze, her eyes widening. "Oh."
"Also…" Thomas continued, coughing awkwardly. "I'm… not entirely sure what I'm allowed to do… if that makes any sense. I mean, I know there are different stages of relationships, where different things are acceptable, but… I have no idea what those are or how to tell which one we're at. I know there's a stage where you hug and kiss, and I know there's a stage where you have sex, but that's about it. I'm fairly certain we aren't at the sex stage, but… I'm also only fairly certain we're actually in a relationship. Enough that I'd be surprised if you told me we weren't, but not enough to find it completely unbelievable."
Jessica stared at him incredulously for a moment, before she suddenly began to laugh, the type that just blew air through her nose, covering her face as her body shook. "Thomas- you-" She groaned through her fingers, before looking up at him with a bemused expression. "Okay, first, we are in a relationship! This is a date! I like you, and I would like to go on more dates."
Thomas nodded. "Ah, good. I was hoping that was the case." He then paused. "Would you say we're boyfriend and girlfriend?"
Jessica flushed. "W-well… it might be a little early, seeing as this is just our first official date, but… I wouldn't say no if you did."
Thomas paused, frowning slightly. "Is that just a roundabout way of saying yes?"
Jessica's expression twisted with a mix of amusement and annoyance. "It- yes, but I was trying to be coy about it!"
"Oh… sorry." Thomas apologized, scratching the back of his head with a chagrined expression.
Jessica shook her head, trying and failing to stop herself from smiling. "Ugh, why are you so cute when you do stuff like that?!? You're like a muddy puppy who just ran into the house. You're making a mess of everything, but it's just so damn adorable!"
"Thank you?" Thomas replied uncertainly. He wasn't entirely sure that was a good thing, but she had called him cute and adorable, so he was chalking it up as a win.
Jessica snorted again, looking at him with an amused, caring look, before shaking herself lightly. "Okay, then, as your girlfriend, I have a request. I- I love that you enjoy just spending time with me, and I like spending time with you too, but- could you be just a little more proactive about getting physical?"
"I can but- how- how far should I go?" Thomas asked hesitantly.
Jessica flushed. "Just- I can't tell you that, because then it wouldn't feel real, but… take things slow, and when you start to go too far, I'll stop you, alright?"
Thomas nodded slowly. "I can do that."