Study Abroad

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Kate and Anne stood looking at the poster and waiting for the stewardess to call their section. As art students taking a month to tour Europe the poster fascinated them. It was a collage of several of the countries they would visit, but it was such a tasteless collection of clichés that they couldn't help but disparage it.
"Who did you say this guy is?" Kate asked.
"I just told you. He's the TA for Robbinson's other art history class." Anne replied shaking her head.
Kate looked thoughtful a moment, then said, "I remember. Blond, short hair, nice bod, gay guy."
Anne had been nodding her head at Kate's description till the end. "I don't think he's gay."
"Com'on Anne! There are only two kinds of guys in art, players, and gays. He hasn't hit on me. Has he hit on you?"
"Noooo, but who knows. Maybe he's married."
"Face it. He's gay."
"Who's gay?"
Both women jumped at the male voice behind them.
Turning to find Erik standing two feet away they both stammered for a moment.
Kate recovered first. "Professor Robbinson. Didn't you know?"
Erik tilted his head to look at her over his glasses, "Are you kidding? I've had to work on his float for the Gay Pride Parade for three years."
Anne tried to cover, " I thought he was just being...tolerant."
Erik's over the glasses gaze focused on the young blond sophomore. "Innocent to the point of... Lord, the Euros are going to have their way with you." He shifted his gaze to Kate. "Are you going to watch out for her or should I call ahead and order a chastity belt? Or maybe a bassinette?"
Both girls blushed. Anne frowned while Kate smiled.
"Anne and I can take care of ourselves. We were both cheerleaders in high school. We're used to assholes hitting on us. How about you?"
Erik chuckled at her brash retort. "American assholes, maybe. We'll see how you stand up against some slick Euro. I'm not worried. After working through five years of college, I may not have seen it all but I've seen enough to anticipate the rest."
Before either of the girls could retort, the stewardess announced that their section was seating. Erik helped the girls carry their bags on and get them stowed overhead. The girls were seated in the window and isle seats, Erik in the center across the isle from them. They noticed that his carry on was stored beneath his seat. A quick glance at one another, dipped eyebrows in question, and shrugged shoulders in answer were the only comment.
After the flight was in the air the stewardesses began to circulate offering drinks and taking lunch orders. Erik ordered two bourbons and sipped them with an odd smile as the stewardess turned to the girls.
"They're both underage." He said as they prepared to order.
The stewardess glanced over her shoulder at him, then back at the girls. They sat with mouths agape, then ordered sodas.
After the stewardess had moved on down the isle, Kate leaned across the isle. "If this is the way you're going to act this whole trip, we'd better part ways quickly! One way or another I WILL make you miserable."
Erik tossed back the second of his bourbons, then reached under his seat for his backpack. "You think? Guess that'll teach you to spread rumors." He pulled a flask out of the backpack and poured himself another drink. "Would you care for a drop or do you want to continue playing One Up?"
Anne sat forward and hissed "We didn't spread any-" Kate hushed her with a slap on her arm.
"So, you're not gay?"
"Not even close." he whispered back. "If you like, I'll take a stew to the bathroom and join the Mile High Club. Would that satisfy you? I'm pretty sure it would me."
"And how do you propose to prove the act?"
Erik smiled, "Panties are the normal method aren't they?"
Anne flopped back in her seat, "I can't believe this."
Kate was enjoying the game, "And if you fail?"
"Let's see." Erik sat back a moment and thought. "I hand over my flask and you two drink free the rest of the trip?"
"Done!" Kate offered her hand across the isle and Erik took it. Anne rolled her eyes in disbelief.
"What? We risk nothing! If he wins, he gets laid. If he fails we drink free! Where's the down side?"
Erik glanced down the isle to see where the drink cart was. "Game time!"
He unbelted and headed up the isle. The girls looked at each other and Anne began to giggle.
"What are you laughing about?" Kate asked.
"We thought we were taking a tour of European art with some hot looking gay guy, and it turns out he's a hot looking straight guy who's old enough to get booze!"
"In Europe we can get our own booze." Kate corrected her.
"Yeah, but what other talents does he have that we don't know about?"
Kate opened her mouth to reply then shut it and faced forward. She had been wrong about Eric, about everything so far, and knew when to stop digging.
Eric was gone almost twenty minutes before he returned to his seat. Without a word he sat down and pulled out his flask, pouring himself a stiff gaziantep rus escort (http://www.gazianteprusbayanescort.com) shot.
Kate smiled thinking Erik had failed and was trying to keep the bourbon to himself.
"I believe there was supposed to be some..."
She stopped as he reached into his back pocket and pulled out a folded airsickness bag. The chuckle as he handed it across the isle was a declaration of victory that bordered on smug self-satisfaction.
Kate took the bag between two fingers as if afraid to touch it. Anne looked over her shoulder and said "What?"
"His proof." Slowly she opened it. The scent of sex greeted her the instant the sides parted. She detected the salty scent of a man's contribution as well as the musky scent of a woman's excitement. She took the extra step and looked inside the bag. A wad of pink nylon lay wadded in the bottom.
She closed the bag and handed it across the isle.
"No, Amber said she would collect those herself."
Kate looked at him in disbelief then unceremoniously stuffed the bag between her butt and the seat. She glanced over at Erik. He had laid his head back against the seat with a very satisfied smile on his face.
"Are you ready to apologize?" he asked.
"For what?" Kate replied.
"Suit yourself." He adjusted his seat back several notches and prepared to nap.
Kate turned to Anne who was on the verge of laughing. "Don't look at me! I'm not the one who said he was gay!"
Kate clenched her jaw at her friend and faced forward. Slowly she looked over at Erik who was pretending to dose with a very self-satisfied smile on his face.
"Okay. I'm sorry if I mistook you for being gay. Satisfied?"
Erik turned to her slowly and opened his eyes. "Barely. Just remember there are more than two types of people no matter what the group. In Europe you're going to meet guys that will take you the rest of your life to classify. Now pass me your cups."
As Erik added a touch of his bourbon to each of their sodas the stewardess came down the isle and settled on the arm of Kate's seat. "I believe you have something of mine miss."
Kate watched in amazement as the stew passed the drinks across the isle from Erik to she and Anne. "You don't care that we're 20?"
"Hon, we're over international waters. That age stuff doesn't matter."
Kate and Anne both sat forward to glare at Erik who was smiling fit to burst.
"You knew!"
"Of course I did. Do I look like a cheerleader?"
"Hon, could I get that bag? I need to get back to work."
Kate handed her the bag silently and with a quick kiss on Erik's cheek she returned to the serving area.
Kate leaned over and hissed at Erik. "Is this the way the next month is going to be? A parade of sluts?"
Erik smiled wryly. "I doubt it. But one can always hope."
Kate sat back in her chair and reached for her drink, doctored by Erik. As she reached she noticed the wetness on the seat arm and the string of bio-matter stretching between her arm and the seat. Almost at the same instant she realized what is was Anne saw it.
"What... is that?...That's where she was sitting! She wasn't wearing any..."
"Hush!"
"But that's--"
"Leave it be!" Kate whispered. "Do you have a Kleenex?"
As Anne dug in her purse, Erik handed a tissue across the isle. Kate hesitated a moment before accepting it. She cleaned her arm and the armrest then sat looking at the soiled tissue. Shaking her head she tucked it into the pouch on the seatback. 'Let some poor airport nerd deal with it.' She thought.
"Someday you'll tell this story and it'll be funny." Erik commented from across the isle.
Kate looked over at him and frowned. It could be a long month.
~~~~
When they arrived at their hotel in Paris, the trio was in for another surprise.
"They screwed up the reservation." Erik explained. "We have a suite but only one bedroom with two beds."
"Oh no! We're not--"
"Relax, You two take the beds. I'll sleep on the couch. No harm, no foul, no touchy. Okay?" He interrupted.
"Can't we just go to a different hotel?" Anne asked.
"Half the college kids in Europe come to Paris during the summer. They bounce back and forth between here and the beaches. We're lucky to get this."
"Fine, c'mon Anne. He's the one on the couch." Kate grabbed her bags and stalked to the elevator. As Anne and Erik caught up he handed them each a key. "Why do we all need one?" Anne asked.
"In case we get separated." Erik replied calmly.
"We do everything together. We have for years." Anne replied stepping onto the elevator.
"I'm sure that made for some interesting dates but I'd keep it with you just in case."
As they rode up to the room Erik ran down the itinerary. "We're here for 5 days before we head to Italy. The Louvre alone can take that long. I'm going to hit the Orsay this afternoon. You're welcome to come along or to go your own way."
Erik opened the door to the room and stood aside for the girls to enter. Their jaws dropped as they saw the elegance of the room.
"How can we afford this for what we paid for the trip?" Kate asked.
"I got us some grant money. Unfortunately, this is about as far as it goes. In Italy we're back to youth hostels."
The girls let themselves into the bedroom and began to get settled. Erik made a quiet phone call. He was hanging up when they came into the sitting room.
"Dinner reservations? How sweet." Anne teased.
"Yeah. Something like that. Did you decide on the Orsay? I'm headed out pretty quickly but if you didn't want to do the museum the Eiffel Tower is about 3 blocks away. We could share the cab."
"How 'bout we do the museum then go to the tower for dinner? There are restaurants on top." Anne suggested.
"That would work, but I'm afraid you ladies will be dining alone tonight. I have a previous engagement." Erik answered.
"Would that be with someone who works at thirty thousand feet?" Kate asked coyly.
Erik chuckled. "No. This was set up before I left the states. Nice try though. About now Amber is somewhere over Africa on her way to Johannesburg. Unless she just said that so I didn't try to see her tonight."
"She fucked you on the plane..." Kate blurted
"And ... and... contaminated the armrest" Anne interrupted.
"Why wouldn't she want to see you tonight?" Kate continued.
"Who understands the ways of women?" he answered. Gathering up a sketchpad and a satchel of markers, he looked at both of them. "Coming or staying?"
They scrambled to gather pens, pads, and cameras while he waited patiently.
"And off we go like a herd of turtles!"
~~~~
The trio spent the afternoon and early evening sketching, photographing, and taking notes of the great works art housed in the museum. While Erik had the broader knowledge and more refined eye, it was soon obvious that both girls were better with pencil and charcoal at copying the masters.
"How do you get a degree in art and become a TA if you can't draw?" Anne asked in amazement. Kate swatted her on the arm.
Erik chuckled at their discomfort. "I don't mind the question. I'm a sculptor. I draw only to get my ideas flowing. The actual work comes from my hands." He smiled at Anne. "Do you remember the bronze piece in the quad outside the arts building that faces 'The Sentinel'?"
Anne thought a moment, "Yeah, the one of the two dolphins intertwined."
Kate laughed at her. "Those aren't dolphins, their women! That piece is so sexy-OhMyGod! Are you saying that's yours?" Erik's smile broadened, "That was my senior thesis."
"But if you're a sculptor why are we here? You should have wanted to go to the Rodin museum." Anne said.
"Been there, done that. My junior year I spent two weeks over here in the Rodin. Didn't even get to the Louvre. This trip is to 'broaden my horizons,' in the words of our esteemed professor."
"Uh oh, I would have thought you were friends or something being his TA."
"We were friendly when I was an undergrad. As his TA... Let's just say that a slave is a convenient thing to have."
Chiming bells and announcements in several languages that the museum was closing brought the discussion to a halt. As they stood on the steps outside the museum, Erik turned to them.
"Would you like me to walk you over to the Eiffel Tower before I take off?"
Anne's jaw dropped, "I thought you were joking? Where are you going at this time of night?"
"I told you. I have a prearranged engagement. You have your room keys? The hotel name is on them. You remember our room number?"
"Yes Dad." Kate sassed.

Erik gave her the over the glasses look again. "Careful. You know all us gays are into that bondage and M