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| The Street |
Thus begins my second week of retirement. I could spend my retirement just writing about my retirement. But right now I want to write about what happened this past weekend.
Saturday morning I was out for a walk. It was a grey day with clouds promising a downpour within a few hours. Just the kind of day I like. I was walking through our neighborhood which is residential, tree-lined, filled with happy homes. Houses that practically smile back at you. It was somewhere between 8:30 and 9:00 so there was virtually no traffic and hardly a soul to be seen. A jogger or two passed by and there were a few people getting early starts on household chairs. I saw a young woman pushing a stroller and a tall man walking purposefully down an opposite street, I imagined him to have urgent business.
The temperature was in the upper 40s which is damn cold for Berkeley, especially in March. It felt good to me, as I was ensconced in warm clothes. My mind was be-bopping around dancing briefly with one topic then twirling around with the next before moving along to another. I remember contemplating my recent difficulties with writing, mulling over the current form of my favorite sports teams and imagining the many ways I would spend tens of millions of dollars if I ever came across such a sum. No topic was delved into too deeply, mentally this was a light and breezy walk that was more intended as light exercise.
Before the walk I had stretched, so I was feeling loose and limber and certainly up to a stroll of an hour or more should I desire it. And I well might have walked for that long had it not been for what happened. I had just turned up a block that I had never walked on, when a young woman wearing only a robe veritably crashed out of her front door and came running toward me. She shouted my last name, with Mr. before it, suggesting she must have been a former student. I was quite startled indeed and even more so when she threw her arms around me and gave me a long embrace. While wrapped within her arms I still did not know who this fair creature was. Finally upon ending the embrace, her hands, now resting on my shoulder, the young woman stood back and looked me squarely — and I must add, lovingly — in the eyes. “It’s me,” she said, “Nora, Nora Bowditch.”
Of course. Nora Bowditch had been a favorite student of mine some dozen or so years ago. Precocious, energetic, curious and fun and destined to be a beautiful woman, hard to forget. I’d not seen her since her 8th grade graduation when she was a mere lass of 14. But why, I wondered, the over indulgent embrace? I’m well used to former students giving me quick hug, but Nora had favored me with something warm and damn close to sexual.
“Of course, Nora! You were one of the best students I ever had. What are you up to these days?”
Nora continued to look at me with something approaching passion. I feared she was going to try to eat me alive.
“I’m kind of cold out here, I just have on this robe and no shoes. Can you come in for a second?”
I saw no harm in it and followed the young lady into her tiny house nestled on the corner of the block. It was a warm and cozy abode. A small living room was crammed with a large over stuffed chair, a sofa and long coffee table. I could see a kitchenette and one door to my left was half open, and clearly led to the bedroom. Another door to my right must have been to the bathroom.
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| The former student |
Nora indicated that I should sit on the sofa and asked if I’d like tea or coffee. “Black tea, if you’ve got it.”
“I do,” Nora replied cheerily. “I’ll have some too. Ya know it was amazing that I saw you. I’d just gotten up and gone to the bathroom and was thinking of laying down a bit more when I glanced out the window and saw you. A one in a million shot!”
“Do you live here alone?”
“I do now. My boyfriend and I broke up a couple of months ago. He moved out and moved to Detroit of all places.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. He turned out the a real asshole and I’ve been happier since he left than I was while we lived together, which was for almost two years.”
I looked carefully at Nora while she prepared tea. She was, as I had predicted years ago she would become, a strikingly beautiful woman. Her bathrobe barely reached her knees and thus revealed a perfect set of legs. Her hair was a bit tousled from having just gotten out bed but was long and blonde and her face was as perfectly structured as any magazine cover model you’ve ever seen. All this is not to say that I was aroused. After all she was nearly 40 years my junior and a former student to boot. But I had to admit the memory of the initial hug was something to savor.
“So what are you doing these days, Nora? Where did you end up going to school?
“I went to Dartmouth. I know, kind of weird, right? In fact after graduating I lived on the East Coast for a couple of years before moving back here with Rory — that’s the ex — two years ago.”
“And are you working? What did you get your degree in?”
“You inspired a love of history in me but I ended up majoring in astronomy. Now I’m a UFO researcher.”
I’ve come across scores of former students and some have gone on to be lawyers, doctors, engineers, architects, actors, businessmen, teachers and some are in prison for capital crimes. Nora was my first UFO researcher and thus this was the first time I was surprised to learn of a former student’s occupation. “That must be fascinating.”
Nora handed me my cup of tea and sat down inches away from me on the sofa. I couldn’t believe she was sitting so close to me particularly as her robe wasn’t cinched very tight and I could see, with little effort, most of her left breast. Surely Nora must have known it was on full display. Did she not care? Good god, was she trying to seduce me? I felt like I was watching a movie in which you couldn’t be sure what was going to happen next, except I was the star. It was at once exhilarating and frightening.
“You were the best teacher I had in either middle school or high school and better than most of my professors.” Nora was practically cooing.
“Thank you that’s — ”
“I mean you made history so fascinating and I loved the assignments you gave. Plus you were so funny and cute and took so much time to explain things.”
“You’re very kind to say that Nora. You were a great student.”
“You really remember me?” This she said — I swear it — flirtatiously.
“Of course. Most of my students I forgot the day after the school year ended. But there are some I’ll never forget. A few because they were such god awful trouble and many like you who were such a joy to teach.”
“Awwww,” she replied blushing.
“The tea is good,” I added nervously.
“Are you still teaching?”
“Just retired.”
“Cool, you deserved it. How many years did you teach?
“34.”
“Wow!” And she gazed at me with her big beautiful blue eyes like I was her favorite rock star. I was having trouble not being aroused.
“Tell me about your UFO research.”
“I follow up on claimed sightings, 90% of which are just fantasy bullshit but those 10% that are credible make it all worthwhile. So I interview people, investigate their claims, file reports, I end consulting a lot with Air Force people, pilots, astronomers and sometimes with the FBI and police departments. We’re pretty thorough. We have a data base of credible claims.”
As she talking Nora shifted her sitting position completely exposing her breast and revealing more of her legs. Was this intentional? Was a gorgeous 26 year old woman really seducing me? It seemed so obvious yet so implausible.
“So do you think we’ve been visited?”
“Oh I know we have. Some claims point to no other possible conclusion.”
“I believe you. What got you interested in all this?”
“I had a close encounter of the third kind,” she said matter of factly.
“You did?”
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| The extra terrestrial |
“Yup. Sophomore year of college. I was out for a walk alone in the forest and came upon a clearing and there was a space ship. I stood there frozen for a few minutes before a door opened and this creature emerged. It walked right toward me. It stopped a few feet away and then I got the sense it was scanning me with its big bulging eyes. The thing was like four feet tall and silvery. Anyway, it turned back around got back in the ship and like a second later the ship just headed straight up and was gone like in a blink of the eye. Ever since then I’ve wanted to learn more.”
“Wow that's amazing.” I believed Nora completely and her story was so compelling that I was at last distracted from her body and seeming flirtatious behavior. But then she said this: “Ya know I had a big crush on you when I was in the 8th grade, several other girls did too.”
“Well that’s flattering but that was also a long time ago.”
“Not so very long, besides, you’re still handsome, only now in a more distinguished way.”
That was it. I had to go. There was no longer any doubt about it, Nora was seducing me.
“I really need to get going. My wife is expecting me and we have plans to go shopping.” I made a special point to emphasize the word “wife.” I stood up.
“Oh don’t go just yet. We’ve barely caught up,” Nora said pleadingly.
“Yeah I know, but I was towards the end of my walk when you spotted me and I’m expected. It was really nice — ”
Nora rose and untied her bathrobe. It fell to the floor. She stood before naked.
Of course my jaw did not literally drop but it did dangle. Nora was stunning and I was stunned. at her brazen act. I couldn’t form any words and I couldn’t move.
Nora smiled broadly then stepped toward me, as she got close I stepped back but tripped and fell, landing on my back. Nora immediately took advantage of my fall and straddled me. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. But Nora, why are you doing this?”
“Doing what?” She asked coquettishly.
“For the love of god you’re seducing me. Why?”
“Why does one ever seduce another person. So that they can fuck.”
“But I’m old. I’m married, I’m — ”
I couldn’t continue my protestations as Nora started to kiss me, driving her tongue in my mouth. I didn’t know what to do. I couldn’t very well push her off and I couldn’t let her continue kissing me, there would likely be a point at which I would succumb to her and that was unthinkable.
After two minutes of kissing me, Nora stood. “Come on,” she said, “let’s go to bed.”
I felt defeated. I felt elated. And I felt terrible. I was about to cheat on my wife with a woman nearly four decades my junior who had once been a student. At the same time I was filled with lust and couldn’t wait to make love to this gorgeous woman.
We entered her bedroom and she started pulling my clothes off. Soon we stood facing each other naked. Nora smiled victoriously. Then my former student got into bed and beckoned me to follow. Dutifully, gladly, regretfully, excitedly, I did. We began by kissing passionately, then I slid down the bed to begin performing oral sex. I had just put my tongue against her delicious nether regions when there was a loud noise that seemed to come from another part of the house. Nora and I both sat up.
“Oh no,” she said, sounding genuinely upset.
“What is it?”
Then there at the bedroom door stood a four foot tall creature of silver with huge bulging eyes.
“That little son of bitch has been following me for six years. I never know when or how he’s going to show up.”
“Does that mean there’s a space ship that’s landed here?”
“No. He usually just appears. I don’t know how but he’ll pop up from time to time. This is the first time he’s done it when someone else has been around.”
“Get the fuck out of here, you goddamned midget!” Nora yelled at the creature. But it stood stock still staring at us.
“How long does he stay?”
“Varies, anywhere from a few seconds to two or three minutes.”
Of course I was fascinating to be looking at an extra terrestrial. I’d long assumed there was life on other planets but here was living proof. I didn’t know how I could tell anyone about it, especially given the circumstances of this close encounter. I also noted that I’d gone flaccid and thoughts of sex where as many miles away as this creature’s home planet. I took the opportunity to get dressed.
“Oh no, you can’t leave.”
“I really have to and this would have been — ”
“I know a ‘mistake’ but I disagree. It would have been fun for both of us.”
“It was great seeing you again Nora. Are you sure you’re all right with that, ah, creature here?”
“Yeah, he just looks and does that scanning thing I’ve mentioned then disappears.”
“Well, goodbye.”
“Now that you know where I live, come visit me sometime. Soon. Tomorrow, maybe.”
“Maybe so, Nora.” And with that I was out the door.
I continued my walk but now I had a helluva lot more things to think about. Later I went grocery shopping with the wife.
