Opportunity Knocks

Andy usually aimed to keep his Thursday afternoons quiet and uneventful, as the evenings were always so busy. His night would begin, once again, with Book Club, where he was by now surely the world's foremost expert on The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. That would be followed by the 'Hot Teacher and Pet' after party with Kara and Sara and, if it all went particularly well, he might even get to stop off in the Pet's room once he got back to Halls. Then it would be time for Elaine's little bedroom gathering, also featuring a certain Leah Caldwell.

He was going to need every ounce of energy he could preserve to get through it all, especially after being up late and drinking with Aurora the previous night. Therefore he had no intention of even leaving his room before dinner.

Andy was about to attempt a nap, not always easy with how noisy Halls could get, when he was interrupted by a knock on his door. That initially caught him off guard, as it hadn't happened at that time on any of the other runs, but he was soon pleasantly surprised to see who had come calling for him.

"Hello! I'm a total weirdo who likes to randomly knock on people's doors and invite them into town for the day. Would you care to indulge me?"

Andy could almost feel his heart skip a beat whenever he encountered Tamara. She was so classically beautiful and immaculately turned out every time he saw her, and he was almost hard wired to find that crisp. upper class accent of hers an instant turn on. There was something so pure and forbidden about it.

"Where are we going?" he asked, immediately abandoning his very sensible plan to get some rest.

"It's a surprise Andrew, that's the fun part" she teased, before adding with a slight smirk "Don't worry, it won't be bowling"

---

"Ice skating?" Andy panicked as it eventually became clear where they were headed.

"That's correct. It's one of my favourite things to do. In fact, I wouldn't have even come to this university if there wasn't a rink in town"

"I tried it once before and my entire experience was just repeatedly falling over" Andy recalled unhappily "My arse ached for days afterwards"

"That's because you didn't have me with you" Tamara assured him "I promise, I'm an excellent teacher,and I'll be by your side the whole time"

Okay, that made it sound a lot more tolerable.

"Fine, but now I get why you decided to make this a surprise. I hadn't realised you were so sneaky"

"I prefer to think of myself as cunning" she answered with a sly smile.

Tamara was already out on the ice while Andy was still struggling to get his skates on. From what he could see, she may as well have been a professional. Her movement was so perfectly elegant and graceful as she glided effortlessly around the rink that, coupled with her charming personality and exquisite good looks, it was going to take quite some effort for Andy not to fall hopelessly in love with her in between his own comical pratfalls.

When he eventually stumbled onto the ice, Tamara skated quickly to his side.

"Come on, this is easier than you'd think once you get the hang of it, and way more fun"

She took Andy by the arm, and guided him gently next to her, keeping him near the edge of the rink so he had a wall to lean on for support, as well as her, if he needed it.

"Okay, I promise I'll hold onto you for as long as you need me to. We're just going to move slowly around the side, like a nice, romantic walk together in the winter"

Andy was able to remain upright without any trouble as long as Tamara remained in close proximity. For the majority of the time she kept holding his arm, but occasionally she subtly let go, and by copying her movement and taking on board what she had taught him about posture and balance, Andy found he was quite capable of moving slowly and steadily without falling over. It felt good to be able to do it, but he couldn't imagine how boring the experience must have been for Tamara.

"I think I'd like to just watch you for a bit" he decided after a while.

"What?"

"Before I came onto the ice I was watching you skate, and you were amazing. Now you're having to slowly walk me around the edge here like a toddler. It can't be much fun for you. I've definitely made progress today, and I'm happy to come skating with you again if you'd like the company, but for now I think I'd prefer to just watch you doing it properly"

"Wow, that's actually rather sweet" Tamara smiled "Okay, you've done really well today, and probably earned yourself a rest"

She escorted Andy safely to the rink's exit before skating away. He took a seat, put his regular shoes back on, with a newfound appreciation for footwear that didn't seem to be constantly trying to topple him over, and gladly watched Tamara do her thing. It was almost inconceivable to him that he was effectively dating this girl. She was the type who should be on the arm of a movie star of foreign prince but, for some crazy reason, she seemed perfectly happy in Andy's company.

Tamara seemed more at home on the ice than anywhere else, and it quickly became abundantly clear it was her happy place.

Occasionally she would look over to Andy, smile and wave, but mostly she just seemed to lose herself in the experience. She couldn't have appeared more serene and content with life, until suddenly she looked very pissed off, and came skating quickly back towards Andy.

"What is it?" he asked, wondering what he could possibly have done wrong as she took off her blades.

"This has been nice, but I have to go now"

"Why?"

Tamara gestured over at a couple of men with cameras that were unashamedly trained on her.

"Those guys? There's only two of them. I'll tell them to fuck off"

"Please don't, it will only make the situation worse" Tamara responded with a shake of her head "Those fuckers won't just quit, and if you give them any kind of a reaction it will only encourage them. Trust me, I've told them to fuck off plenty of times before"

"But they're spoiling your day"

"Yes, well I asked for it, apparently. I was born, after all" she sighed "Sorry to drag you into my crap. We can still hang out together at Halls if you'd like? In fact, I'd really appreciate it"

---

"So does that happen a lot?" Andy asked as he stroked Tamara's hair.

The pair were cuddled up together on her bed, with the adverse experience they had just shared seemingly only having tightened her bond with him.

"Quite often, yes. In fact it even happens here, other students taking photos of me without even bothering to say hello. It's why I'm in my room so much. I'm hoping the novelty will wear off after a week or two"

"Shit, I'm so sorry Tamara, that's really not okay"

"I expect it isn't, but I'm used to it by now- it's been happening since I was sixteen. I'm just surprised you're putting up with the circus so graciously when you don't have to. Because I'm afraid that's what you get with me - no life, very limited privacy and a cage that isn't even gilded anymore"

"I don't mind having no life if I get to spend it with you"

"Goodness, I expect that sounded a lot better in your head" Tamara giggled.

"Sorry"

"Don't be. I appreciate the sentiment"

She leaned in and kissed Andy, and the pair made out more heavily than they had before, until Tamara brought it to a stop.

"Andrew, wait"

"What"

"I just want to warn you up front that I'm quite old fashioned. That doesn't mean I'm not interested in you, I'd just prefer we take things at a slower pace than might be considered typical for people of our age. Hopefully that's something you're okay with?"

Fuck. Not this again.

"Of course it's okay. If anything it makes me want you even more"

"Ooh, now that line came out perfectly!"

Tamara kissed Andy again, and he went back to gently stroking her hair as they lay together.

"I'm becoming more and more of a catch by the minute aren't I?" Tamara giggled as she rested her head on Andy's chest "I bet you wish you'd knocked on another door now"

But he didn't. Even if he needed to play the long game here, Andy couldn't have been happier with the decision he had made to pursue Tamara, or how it was working out for him.