He toys with her innocence

Sam was holding a spoon up, indicating what she'd dropped. She gave it a quick rinse and sat down to eat her breakfast.

Curtis takes a seat near her. Probably a little too close, but she doesn't say anything. "So, Sam, I wanted to talk to you," he began. The girl visibly tensed up. "No, it's not bad, don't worry. You haven't done anything wrong. I just thought we should get to know each other a little better." He had ideas about how to help her and thought he should start right away.

"Okay," said the cute girl, cautiously.

"It's just that we don't very well right now," he prodded. "Would you mind telling me about yourself?" he asked.

"Uh, no, but there isn't much to tell. I'm not very interesting."

"Well I'm taking an interest."

"Oh, okay. Well, stop me when you get bored. Um, I'm an only child, and my parents are good. I'm not in school, but I want to do college. I don't know what I want to do with my life..." she looks embarrassed.

"There's no shame in that. No one expects you to have your whole life figured out at this point," said Curtis.

"My councilor in high school did."

"What do they know? It's not their life. You have the potential to do whatever you want, and that includes the potential to explore your options." He sighed. "Trust me, I've been through it, and so has just about everyone else. Don't let the pressure get to you."

"Thanks Mr. Bellingham," she said. She wouldn't meet his eyes.

"Of course. But there's more to you than that. I'm sure you have hobbies," he prompted.

The girl looked down at her hands. "Don't make fun of me, but I'm really into role playing games."

"I don't think I know what that is."

"Like Dungeons and Dragons."

"Oh! Yeah, I've heard of that. They had it on that one TV show." Curtis put a hand on her shoulder. She seemed a little uncomfortable, but that would end soon. "Yeah, that's very interesting. I always thought of role playing as something else." He watched her face for recognition, and was absolutely delighted when she looked at him like she had no idea what he meant. "Sorry, maybe that's not workplace appropriate. I have a bad habit of not watching my mouth. Do you mind if I'm a little crass?"

She shook her head "no."

"Okay, well I was asking about the other kind of role playing. You know, like in bed. I figure, since you're into one, you're probably into the other. Have you ever experimented with that kind of thing?"

"No, I've never, uh..."

"That's okay. But you seem a little uncomfortable. Do you feel uncomfortable talking about stuff like sex with me?" he asked. He rubbed her shoulder gently with his thumb.

"Well, it's just that there's not much to tell. I've never done... it, before, with a guy."

"Wow, a cute girl like you? I figured you'd have loads of guys lined up." She started playing with her hands. "Is it that you don't want to? Nah, I think you do. I can tell you're just shy, and lost, and you feel small and directionless. Anyway, that game has a reputation for being mostly men. Are there any other women in your group?"

"Not anymore. My friend Mackenzie used to be but she dropped out."

He smiled knowingly. "Ah, well that's perfect. If you're the only lady, that means all the men will be interested and you can have your pick." He raised his hand to cut her off before she spoke. "No, I promise that everyone there is interested in you, whether you know it or not. Now, you should have zero issues with just a little confidence. Or do you dislike being the center of attention? I'd bet you secretly enjoy people being attracted to you, and you're just ashamed of it. Really, though, you love the attention, and the idea that all of your male friends want to sleep with you. Am I wrong?"