--- Chapter 5---

Ryan had another restless night's sleep. He tossed and turned as he ran over in his mind everything that happened between them.

He had thought that his interest was reciprocated but he'd obviously gotten that wrong.

And yet he could swear that there was definitely some spark there. There must have been or she wouldn't have taken a rain check.

And she had gone to the trouble to find out his name.

He smiled as he thought about it. He wondered if she'd had as much trouble finding out his name as he'd had finding out hers.

Hopefully someday he would find out.

But why hadn't she wanted to go out with him? It had only been for coffee after all.

Maybe she didn't drink coffee?

Another thought came into his mind. One that had been lurking there but he had been pushing it away because he found it so distasteful.

Did she have a boyfriend that she didn't want to cheat on?

He was surprised by the jolt of jealousy that speared through his body at the thought.

Not that he'd asked her to cheat. He'd only asked her for a coffee he reasoned.

But he knew already that he wanted more than coffee. He wanted her to cheat. This girl was completely under his skin.

He couldn't believe how much the thought of her having a boyfriend upset him. It wasn't that he didn't want the competition. More that he was concerned that she wasn't the type to even be prepared to enter in to a competition.

He didn't believe that she was the type of girl that would cheat.

And if she did already have a boyfriend then that would leave Ryan on the outer.

Maybe that was what was so different about her from the rest of the girls that he usually associated with.

He sighed. The fog in his brain from a few consecutive nights of poor sleep was catching up on him. But it didn't look like that was going to improve in the near future.

And when she'd said "some other time" – why hadn't he asked when?

Maybe he was blowing this whole thing up out of proportion.

Maybe she just had an assignment to finish and she wanted to get home as soon as she could to work on it?

He glanced at his bedside clock realising that it was almost morning and time to get up.

Maybe he could have made plans with her for this evening when she wasn't working but he'd been too dumbfounded by her rejection to even ask.

And he hadn't even gotten a contact number from her. What an idiot.

Maybe he did need his social secretary's help to even get past GO with any girl and this was the dating god's way of getting even with him for lying (or at least not exactly being truthful) to Luke.

He dragged his body from his bed and headed to the showers.

Somehow, he needed to find out just when "Some other time" was?

---

Ryan couldn't believe that he was doing this.

He'd made up some pathetic excuse to Luke about why he couldn't have lunch with him and here he was wandering the unfamiliar parts of the campus looking for her. He reasoned that if she was a student (which he still wasn't even sure of) then she didn't hang around any of the places that he normally did or she wouldn't have gone undetected for so long. So here he was outside the Psychology building watching the students as they filed out of class on their way to lunch and he realised just how stalkerish his behaviour was becoming.

He needed to do something about it … about her … and fast. Before his 'interest' became an obsession.

He wondered as he looked at the passing students if any of them would care to use him as a case study?

If he continued on in this way then he was sure that he'd make a prize subject.

As the flow of students lessened to a small few, he realised that she wasn't to be found here and moved off to wander other parts of the grounds hoping that he would be lucky enough to find her.

But in the thousands of students he knew that his chances were virtually nil.

But it didn't stop him from wasting the next two hours in trying.

---

On Friday, after another fruitless day spent wandering the buildings and grounds of the campus in his spare time, Ryan returned home to prepare for the evening ahead. He sure hoped that things worked out this evening because he knew that he couldn't keep this up for too much longer.

She was like an addiction that he needed to find the cure for.

He was surprised by Luke's eagerness for his date with Sarah. They had plans to meet some of their friends at a club which featured live music and Luke expected Ryan to join them but Ryan had other plans; plans that Ryan still wasn't ready to share with Luke.

He cried off the club outing, telling Luke that he had a bit of a headache and that the noise in the club would only make it worse.

"Why don't you just take something for it and come along?" Luke asked. "I'm sure there's some Tylenol or something in the bathroom cupboard. One of our female visitors left it there a while ago when it was 'that time of the month'." Luke informed him.

Ryan screwed up his nose. "Too much information. But you know that I don't like taking anything. I'm sure that it will go away of its own accord if I just give it some time and a bit of water. I'm probably just a little dehydrated or something." He suggested, thinking that it probably wasn't too far from the truth. After all the territory that he'd covered in the last 2 days searching for her, it wouldn't be surprising if he was dehydrated.

"You sure?" Luke asked again. "Maybe I should stay home? You might be coming down with something? You have been acting a little strange this week." Luke informed him.

"Well thanks Mom." Ryan replied raising his eyebrows at Luke. "I'll be fine. But you on the other hand should get going. You wouldn't want to keep Sarah waiting on your first date. It's taken you so long to get her to agree to go out with you that you wouldn't want to give her a chance to change her mind." Ryan suggested.

"What are you going to do?" Luke asked still not exactly happy about this change of plans. It seemed that Ryan had been changing plans a lot lately.

"I'll just take it easy." Ryan replied. "Maybe I'll go to bed early." he suggested.

Luke laughed. "I've never known you to go to bed early on a Friday night, unless you've had a hot woman to keep you company. Would you like me to make a few calls and see what I can come up with? I should be able to manage something even if it is at the last minute." He laughed. "You do have quite a few fans out there."

"Thanks for the offer. But I think that I can look after finding my own bed mates." Ryan replied, the vision of Marissa coming instantly to mind.

Luke looked at Ryan and tried to read his mind. There was no doubt that something had been up with him the last few days. "Have you got a hot date coming over that you want to get jiggy with and you think that I'll be in the way?"

Ryan could feel himself start to warm up. Luke was a bit too close to the truth. Much as he would like to think that could be a possibility, he knew that he was still quite a way from anything like that happening. "No. I haven't. Now get going. And say hi to everyone from me. Tell them I'll catch up with them next week."

---

Marissa was filing her nails as she contemplated the empty list in front of her.

How could it be that she was 20 years old (nearly 21) and she couldn't even think of a single person that could help her with her problem?

She wasn't over weight. Her skin was clear. She didn't wear glasses or even contacts. Her teeth were straight. Her hair was probably her best feature.

And yet nothing. No one.

Except the one that she refused to even consider … her mind kept reminding her. But then maybe he was the problem. Ever since she'd laid eyes on him, he was the only one that she could imagine seeing it through with. And that wouldn't do at all. She could just imagine it turning out even worse than the incident with Spencer. And yet would it?

She sighed. Maybe a male hooker was her only answer she reasoned? She cringed at the idea.

She wished that Molly was back so that she could give out some of her worldly wise advice.

It was so quiet at the gym that night. No doubt most people were out enjoying themselves ... With their friends and partners.

And at the end of the night they could retire to bed …. together. She felt forlorn ... like she was missing out on something.

She shook her head and tried to get those thoughts out of her mind. She should be happy. Compared to her normal Friday nights, this could be considered eventful. At least she was doing something. It wasn't much, but she wasn't sitting at home reading or watching TV as she usually did.

She sighed deeply looking towards the door. She wished that is was busier so that she wouldn't have as much time to sit and contemplate her situation.

She had spent so much time in the last two days regretting saying no to Ryan's invitation. And yet she knew that she had no other option. He was a player. His sexual expertise would no doubt be up there with the best of them. Until she could gain some much needed sexual experience, she didn't want to start anything with him that she couldn't see through to the logical end. She wanted to be able to match it with him. Well maybe not match it but at least have some idea of what she was doing. The thought of embarrassing herself with her fumbling attempts at anything to do with it were just too intimidating to contemplate.

And if she was honest with herself, she had to admit that seeing things through with him had filled up more than a few of her dreams since she had met him.

But then the thought of something horrible happening like her last attempt with Spencer just made her resolve even stronger. She needed to find someone else and lose it. And as soon as possible.

Then she might have a chance with someone like Ryan. She shook her head. Realising that she didn't want someone LIKE Ryan … she wanted Ryan.

---

Ryan walked up to the door of the gym but before he opened it he looked inside to make sure that Marissa was there.

Sure enough, just as he'd hoped, Marissa was sitting behind the counter and it seemed that she was having some sort of debate with herself. She had the end of a pencil in her mouth and it looked like she was trying to make a decision.

Since there was no one else in sight, Ryan quickly entered, hoping to make the most of their time alone.

She glanced up at him and he could she the surprise written all over her face.

"Hey." He said softly.

The surprised face was replaced by an impish grin. "Hey. You don't usually come in on a Friday."

"How do you know when I usually come in?" Ryan asked.

The grin was replaced by a large smile. "I asked around." She teased, remembering their words from Wednesday night.

Ryan laughed. "You know you could have just asked me?"

"Where would be the fun in that?" she chuckled and he was instantly entranced. The sound of her laughter something that he knew he would never tire of.

"I can be fun." He teased giving her a little half smile that made her go weak at the knees. She was glad that she was sitting down or she thought that she would have fallen down.

Marissa looked into his eyes and gulped. Somehow or other their light banter had taken a turn. She knew that he could be fun. Fun and dangerous at the same time.

She gulped again as she tried to answer but somehow her voice came out in a husky tone. "I'm sure you can."

Their eyes held and words were not needed for several moments. Marissa could feel herself blush as visions raced thought her mind of what she could have fun doing with Ryan.

Ryan watched her with interest … wondering what she was thinking about, as he watched the play of emotions on her face until he finally said. "How about that coffee tonight?"

Marissa knew that she should say no. It was still too soon. She needed to sort out her little problem and once that was over and done with then she could think of nothing better than spending time with Ryan.

But if she said no again – what's to say that he would even bother asking her a third time? He could have anyone, so why would he bother to continue with her? He'd give her up as a lost cause.

She heard the words come out of her mouth. "I don't finish until ten." She explained, leaving her answer ambiguous because honestly, she didn't know what to say. She wanted to go out with him but she was scared. Not so much scared of him, at least not in the physical sense. But more she was scared of her own reaction to him. She'd never felt for a guy the way that she felt about him. And that was bad … and good.

"So if I wait around until ten, then it's a yes?" Ryan asked.

Marissa hesitated for a moment. It was only coffee so why did it feel like she was about to jump off a cliff into the unknown?

Maybe because the things that she wanted to do with him were unknown to her she thought. But she couldn't help but nod her head in assent.

Ryan smiled and picked up a towel. "If I end up straining something because of over training then you owe me a massage since it's all your fault." He teased as he moved towards the door of the weights room. "I'll see you at ten."

Marissa calmly watched him disappear from sight and then she let the excitement take over. She quickly grabbed her bag to check what she had in it. She wanted to try to look her best for him. Or at least as good as she could, given that she hadn't even expected to see him tonight.

She found eyeliner, mascara and lip gloss all in the bottom of her bag along with some cologne. Shaking her bag again she unearthed a bottle of nail varnish and so she filled in some time by putting a coat on her nails.

It was already nine o'clock so she only had another hour. She needed a mirror to try to work some magic and that meant leaving the front desk and going to the bathroom. Leaving the desk wouldn't be a problem for a few minutes. She had to do that if she wanted to get coffee or go to the bathroom anyhow and if anyone came in then they could help themselves to a towel. She switched the answering machine on to take calls while she was away from the desk and moved to make her way to the bathroom. But as she walked by the doors of the weight's room she couldn't help but glance inside to see if he was actually working out or just waiting for her.

And the sight before her did nothing to calm her nerves.

Ryan had stripped down to a pair of baggy shorts worn low on his hips and an old t shirt with the sleeves ripped out. He had his back to her and was doing chin ups and she stood transfixed watching the muscles in his arms flex as they lifted his body above the bar and then lowered it. He had a light patina of sweat on his skin that made it shine in the reflection from the overhead lights and she found it impossible to take her eyes off him.

He was every woman's fantasy.

Or certainly HER fantasy.

---

Steve left the bathroom and headed back to the weight's room but as he entered the hallway he saw Marissa standing transfixed looking through the glass panels in the doors of the weights room.

She hadn't moved and he couldn't help but wonder what was holding her attention so strongly that she hadn't even heard him enter the corridor. He had his suspicions about what she may have been looking at or more precisely WHO. Shannon had told him about the enquiries that Ryan had made the other night with regards to Marissa and it looked like the interest may very well be reciprocated. He decided to try to sneak up on her and find out for himself if his suspicions were correct.

Little did he know that Marissa's heart was pounding so loudly inside her chest that it's unlikely that she would have heard him even if he had been calling out to her.

When Steve got up behind her, he looked over her shoulder and just as he had suspected, Ryan was the only person working out that you could see from this angle. He couldn't help but take the opportunity to tease her.

"See anything you like?" he asked.

Marissa jumped as if she'd been shot. "What?" she asked completely flustered as she turned around to look at him. She'd had no idea that anyone else was around. How was she ever going to explain herself?

"He's not bad." Steve suggested indicating Ryan with the tilt of his head. "I mean, not that I'm in to guys, but even I have to admit that I can see that he would hold some attraction for the opposite sex."

Marissa had no idea what to reply. She could feel the flush of embarrassment start at the tip of her toes and flood upwards.

Steve laughed. "You don't have to worry about it. He has quite a fan club. It just shows that you're human."

Marissa tried to think of something flippant to say but nothing came to mind. "I'm just on my way to the bathroom." She explained feeling mortified at being caught ogling Ryan.

"Sure." Steve said, and then smiled. "But you look a bit lost. Do you need me to show you the way?" he teased, knowing full well that she already knew.

Marissa hung her head. She knew that she was blushing a bright red and nothing but a good dose of icy cold water was likely to have any success in getting rid of it. "No. I'm fine."

Steve felt bad now for teasing her because he could see the state that she was in. He had no idea why but she really was a shy little mouse. Which was odd given that she was a complete knock out? But he sensed that she didn't realise just how hot she was.

Marissa had started to make her escape down the hall when Steve stopped her. "Are you coming to my party tomorrow night?"

Marissa turned to look back at him. "I didn't know that you were having one."

"Well I am. Our place. Anytime after 8." He explained.

Marissa knew where he and Shannon lived because she had been there before with Molly. But she also knew that she wasn't game enough to go to a party on her own. "I don't think …" she started and then changed tack. "Molly's still away." She said, assuming that would explain all. Surely he wouldn't expect her to come along without her friend.

Steve just shrugged. "So?"

"Well … I just …" Marissa stammered. The idea of going to a party on her own was much too risky for her.

"You could always bring someone." Steve suggested, turning his eyes to the weight's room and following Ryan's progress, making it obvious just who he thought could be an ideal partner.

Marissa gulped. The thought of asking Ryan to a party was something that she knew she wasn't ready for yet.

Was she?

---