Get it together, man, I think to myself. My hands tremble as I open the note. Worst case scenario, it says something about hating my guts. Best case…? Well, I don’t know if it’s even worth considering a best-case at this point.

I unfold the piece of paper and find a short note written in Caroline’s neat handwriting.

Meet me in the bathroom in 5.

My heart pounds in my chest and my mind races. Meet her in the bathroom? What the hell does she want with me in the bathroom? Is this some weird hazing ritual? Or does she want me alone? And which bathroom? The girls’ bathroom? Boys’ bathroom?

I swallow. Could it be the bathroom where she thought I was a maintenance man?

The only way to find out is to follow her instructions.

I bide my time impatiently. The second the clock on the wall indicates it’s been five minutes, I practically sprint out of the lecture hall. Not very inconspicuous, but how can I worry about that at a time like this?

I tear down the hallway, passing the men’s and women’s bathrooms before walking up to the door to the single-occupancy bathroom.

I freeze.

Come on… open the door…

I can’t. I simply can’t. Something is holding me back. Not an angel or a devil on my shoulder, just an anxious accountant who has tallied up the cost-benefit analysis and doesn’t think that anything good might await me beyond the door.

But I have to.

I finally bring myself to touch the doorknob. I press down on the long handle. It’s unlocked.

Suddenly, the handle is torn from my hand, the door flying open. Caroline appears in the doorway, her hand reaching outfor the collar of my shirt. She pulls me into the bathroom, right up against her chest, and traps my mouth in a kiss.

I let out a surprise gasp into her mouth, her tongue sliding against mine immediately. I hesitate to touch her even though she’s kissing me. I can’t quite believe that’s the purpose of our meeting here. It’s too much like a fantasy. Surely she couldn’t have sent me a note to meet her in the bathroom for –

I lose my train of thought when Caroline’s hands slide down my torso and begin to play with my belt buckle.

Holy fuck.

I tear my mouth off of hers, lingering only an inch away. “Wait a second, just…”

Our eyes meet and the rest of the world drifts away.

“Wait,” I say because there’s nothing else to say. I want to wait in this moment with her warm brown eyes in mine, full of an indescribable amount of need.

Caroline’s hands remain on my belt buckle. She glances at my lips.

“What are you doing?”

She smiles like a little girl, full of unbounded excitement. “I’m giving you your Christmas present.”

My face goes slack with shock. So much so that I can’t stop her from continuing to work on my belt buckle. I hear the leather and metal clatter on the floor and still, I do nothing. I let her undo the closure on my jeans and hear the zipper unzip. Then her hand slides up against my briefs and…

“Holy fuck,” I whisper, nearly inaudible.

Caroline palms me through my underwear. My legs go weak, sending me fumbling backward until I land against the bathroom door, Caroline pinned up against me. “Is this okay?” she whispers.

I swallow. “Yes, oh my God, yes.”

As she massages my hardening member, Caroline presses a kiss to my jaw and then to the corner of my mouth. “I couldn’t stop thinking about you all break.”

Relief rumbles through my body. I lean my head back and smile. “I couldn’t stop thinking about you either.”

Caroline releases her grip on me, and runs her hands up my chest until they’re resting against my cheeks. We gaze into each other’s eyes for a long moment before I can’t take it anymore. I press a kiss to her lips, long and winding. I don’t rush it. I’ve been thinking about kissing her for an entire month, I’d at least like to delay my gratification a little bit.