Author's note: Stars still aren't working. Let's see if 'x's will.
Standard disclaimer: I don't own them; I'm just borrowing them for our entertainment.
Scylla and Charybdis
Part 4 - Sophomore Year: The Siren's Song
Back at Manhattanville, the second year began much as the first. And with only a handful of dorms, Scott was hopeful Maggie and Nancy would be in the same building. Sure enough, they located each other within a day. Same building, different floors.
It was definitely different being a sophomore, Scott decided. There was certainty now -- he knew where everything was and he knew the ropes. And he knew other students as well so he had more of a feeling of connectivity to the place.
x x x
After a few weeks, Nancy came to Scott with a proposal.
"I want to take dancing lessons," she announced.
"And?" Scott prompted.
"The Ballroom Dance Club is offering beginners lessons. But I need a partner," she explained.
"Why me?" he asked.
Nancy stared at him. "I can't exactly go with Maggie; that's like putting a sign around both of us. Not to mention the fact she's not really interested. You're the only guy I know who might say yes. I promise, if you really hate it, we don't have to go again."
Scott found it impossible to say no and agreed to accompany her to the first session that Thursday evening.
x x x x x
There were about a dozen couples in the old ballroom. The instructor, Mr. Harcourt, taught drama at the college; his assistant was a Manhattanville student. Scott vaguely remembered the pretty blond from one of his classes. Her name was Emma Frost.
The lessons began with a simple foxtrot. The Mr. Harcourt and Emma demonstrated the steps and then worked with all the couples.
"No, dear, you have to let him lead; it's one of the rules." Emma Frost smiled as she neatly stepped into Nancy's place. "It's like this," she began.
Scott found Emma was very easy to partner. That she liked demonstrating steps with him was obvious. By the end of the class, Scott was working mostly with Emma and Nancy was partnered with Mr. Harcourt.
They walked back to the dorm. Scott could tell that Nancy was developing a fit of the giggles, but couldn't figure out why.
"How was the class?" Maggie asked as they entered the dorm room.
"It was great," Nancy said. "I loved it. And the best part -- do you remember that really uppity girl from chemistry last year? Emma Frost?"
"Barely. Why?"
"Well, she the was instructor's assistant. And I think Emma "Miss Ice Queen" Frost took a liking to our Scott."
This was news to him. "What are you talking about?"
Nancy chuckled. "You are so oblivious -- it's so sweet. But trust me; she likes you."
"Watch yourself with her, Scott," Maggie advised. "I don't think she's the warm and fuzzy type."
"I think your both reading way more into this than there is," Scott said as he went back to his room.
But they weren't.
x x x x x
Next Thursday's lesson was exactly the same. Emma found a reason to partner Scott almost exclusively, leaving Nancy to Mr. Harcourt.
"Don't you mind?" Scott asked Nancy after the lesson. He was starting to realize there might be something to what the girls said last week.
"Not in the least," Nancy assured him. "I'm getting to partner with the instructor. If I can't learn with him, I can't learn. The question is, do you mind?"
Scott had to think about that for a minute. "I don't know," he finally said. "It's a little weird. But it's not like she can really do much in a dance class."
It didn't dawn on Scott at the time, that in a small private college, they were bound to meet outside of class eventually.
x x x x x
Scott stood outside on the patio and stretched, trying to work a kink out of his shoulder muscles from a bad fall in karate class. It was Saturday night and there was a party on full blast. Ordinarily, Scott didn't attend them, but since his breakup with Jean, he was doing a lot of things he didn't normally do. And he was finding from experience that either his initial view was the correct one or he didn't hate it so much after all. Like the party tonight.
He heard a rustle behind him and turned. He really didn't like being in the dark; his vision was much more restricted. "Who's that?" he called out.
"It's just me," a female voice replied and she stepped into the light. It was Emma Frost.
"Oh, hi," Scott stammered.
"Hi," she returned easily.
"Don't you like the party?" Small talk had never been Scott's forte.
"It's a bit warm in there," Emma returned.
"Oh." There was silence between them for a while, then Scott tried again. "You're a really good dance teacher. Have you been doing ballroom dancing for a long time?"
"I was junior champion for three years running," she told him. "You move well and you have the body of a dancer. You could be at competition level soon if you worked at it."
That made Scott laugh. "I don't think I'm into competition ballroom dancing."
Emma moved closer. "What are you into?"
Scott shrugged. Oh, God, he thought, Maggie and Nancy were right.
She kept coming towards him and Scott nervously began to back up. He hit the wall and she continued to come closer. Finally, she was on him.
Emma leaned him into the wall. Okay, if he was going to be dense, she could spell it out for him.
Behind his glasses, Scott closed his eyes. He was starting to feel trapped, and he didn't like that. He opened his eyes to see her moving in to kiss him. He turned his head and she got his jaw instead.
"What's wrong, you don't like being pursued?" Emma asked.
"I don't like having my back against the wall," Scott stated honestly.
Oh, well, if that were the only problem, she could be flexible. Still holding on to Scott, she twisted around so that she wound up with her back to the wall and he was in front of her.
"Better?" she asked.
"Yeah," he replied.
"Good," she said, right before she grabbed the back of his neck, pulling him towards her for a kiss.
Scott was initially startled, but decided after a few minutes it was nice. The kiss was long and lascivious.
"Not bad," Emma commented when they came up for air.
"I can do better when I'm not ambushed," Scott said wickedly.
Emma smiled broadly. "I'll hold you to that," she said as she returned to the party. "Good night, Summers."
x x x x x
Scott and Emma developed a pattern in their relationship. They never actually went out together, but for the rest of the semester, they danced together every Thursday (with Nancy happily working with the instructor) and occasionally met at parties and other social functions and paired off for a while.
Emma made her interest and desires well understood by Scott. But an imp of mischief made him play dumb for as long as possible. It was a game, and she understood it was a game. But Emma also knew Scott would eventually fold.
They all had before.
x x x x x
Scott stifled a moan and then wondered why he bothered. That was, after all, what Emma was after. And one should never disappoint a lady.
They were in his bedroom. He was seated in the chair and Emma was on his lap. Well, straddling his lap. And since she was in a skirt, physical contact was rather -- intimate. Which was the point he knew. Scott was never as naive as many people thought he was.
Scott idly allowed his hands to wander. This wasn't the kind of thing he and Jean had ever indulged in. He was pretty sure he enjoyed it. He wondered if Jean would. Probably. She hadn't exactly been hesitant with him.
Where they would have gone with this, he never knew. They were interrupted by a pounding on his door.
"Scott, Scott, are you there," Nancy called.
Emma sighed melodramatically as Scott easily moved her off his lap so he could answer the door. He only opened the door part-way, using it to block Nancy's view of Emma, who was now lounging in the chair.
"Nance, this isn't a good -- ," he began and stopped when he saw her face. "What is it? What's wrong?"
"It's Maggie," she said. "I need your help. There's been an accident."
x x x x x
Scott followed Nancy back to her room, and more out of curiosity than true concern, Emma trailed along behind them.
Maggie was sitting in the chair with a wet cloth held to the top of her head. The cloth was covered in blood.
Scott checked the wound carefully. "What happened?" he asked.
"Some jerk threw a bottle at us from one of the houses on the way back to campus," Maggie replied through clenched teeth.
"Why?"
"Why do you think?" Maggie snapped disgustedly.
That was unanswerable. Scott took Maggie's face in his hands and looked carefully at her eyes. "What's eight times four?" he asked.
"Thirty-two, you damned math geek," was her reply.
"I don't think she's got a concussion," he told Nancy. "But that gash in her head could probably use some stitches. The Health Center is closed already; we'll need to find someone with a car so we can get to the hospital. I guess we need to call Campus Safety or find an RA."
"And tell them what?" Maggie said waspishly. "Two dykes got a bottle tossed at them?"
"Not necessarily," Emma said by the door. They turned at regarded her; they had forgotten she was there. "I have a car; we can go to the emergency room together. After all, there we all were, the four of us, walking down the street, minding our own business, when this idiot throws a bottle out of a window and hits Maggie in the head." She looked at them all with a smile. "What else do we need to say?"
"Nothing," Scott said firmly as he helped Maggie on with her coat over her protests.
x x x x x
Scott was surprised to find that not only was Emma the soul of discretion regarding the bottle throwing incident, she didn't mention it again to him either. Maybe he had misjudged her. In any case, he was grateful to get back to the mansion for the winter break. Things at school were just getting too weird.
x x x x x