The Nerd Conquest Read online

  The silence was driving Mark crazy. His hands shook violently, and he felt lightheaded; sweat poured out of his body as though he was running a marathon. He worried that he would pass out right there in the study room and would wake up at the campus police station. Mark continued to pace and panic. After thirty minutes, Mark started to suspect that Janice might not be coming back at all. Would she just leave him there?

  After forty-five minutes, Mark promised himself that he would exit the study room at the hour mark. As the deadline passed, Mark moved the target to ninety minutes. In actuality, Mark waited alone in the empty room almost three hours before finally giving up on Janice’s return. He ventured briefly down the sixth-floor hallway and asked a couple of girls if they knew who Janice was and where she went to. The girls claimed ignorance.

  Not knowing what else to do, Mark headed back to his dorm room. He figured he would grab a quick snack then go to his afternoon classes. Mark hoped getting back to his routine would help him forget about his rendezvous with Janice.

  The long walk to his room felt like that of a prisoner to sentencing. Mark didn’t know when or where Janice was going to show her face; he did know she wasn’t going to leave him be. There was no way Janice would let leverage as influential as that video go unused. She would certainly have the last word in this debacle.

  For better or worse, Mark didn’t have to wait for Janice’s response. Upon opening his dorm room door, Mark saw a pink envelope on his floor. Without a doubt, Mark knew the note was from Janice. He remembered the same bright envelopes from his time dating Lucy. Janice always had a stack of the gaudy stationery on her desk.

  Nervously, Mark picked up the envelope and ripped it open. His stomach dropped as he pulled out a single piece of paper with a vague note: “Sorry I missed you. I’ll call you later.” The message was punctuated with a red lipstick kiss.

  Forgetting his snack, Mark stuffed the envelope into his backpack and headed off to class. Mark knew he wouldn’t be able to concentrate, but he had to force himself through the motions. Mark would have to fight through his afternoon lectures and try the best he could to put Janice’s video out of his mind.

  Mark took the stairs back down to the sixth-floor elevator. Part of Mark hoped to run into Janice or Lucy on his way out. The sixth-floor hallway and foyer were empty, however, allowing Mark a clear path out of the dormitory. The senior computer science major chose to walk across campus rather than taking the bus; the walk did little to clear his head.

  As bad as he expected it to be, Mark’s afternoon was much worse. He couldn’t focus on his classes; instead, he played through various humiliating and even devastating scenarios in his head. Mark almost wished Janice just called the campus police right away. At least then, Mark would know what he was facing even if it was the worst case scenario.

  After class, Mark made his way back to the dorm. He couldn’t muster the courage to stop by Janice and Lucy’s room, but he still hoped to run into them. He didn’t. In fact, Mark made it through supper and the rest of his evening without any sign of either girl. Mark spent the rest of the evening pacing his dorm. He ventured out of his room twice, each time planning to pay Lucy and Janice a visit; he lost courage both times.

  After forcing himself through a programming assignment, Mark took a couple of sleeping pills and went to bed. Even with the medicinal influence, however, Mark couldn’t get any rest. He spent the night tossing and turning trying to figure out what Janice might be planning.

  Just as Mark started to doze off, he heard a knock on his door. Looking at his cell phone, he saw that it was four o’clock. Could it be Janice? Would she show up at his doorstep this early in the morning?

  Mark stumbled through the dark toward his door. While the sleeping pills didn’t do much to help him rest, they certainly impaired his ability to navigate the dark dorm room. After struggling with his lock, Mark finally managed to open the door. Surprisingly, however, no one was there. Mark figured it was some drunk freshman making an ass of himself. As Mark started to close the door, however, he noticed another pink envelope on the floor. It was a second message from Janice.

  Mark’s eyes burned as he ignited the harsh fluorescent lights. Without letting his vision adjust, Mark ripped the pink envelope open and tried to decipher the message. “Study room. 5:00 a.m.,” the card read with another lipstick signature.

  “So this is it?” Mark said to himself. “At least I’ll know what’s going on.” As odd as it was to be summoned so early in the morning, Mark was thankful for an end to his wait.

  Mark thought about trying to get thirty minutes sleep before heading to the study room, but he realized the chances of getting any rest were slim. Instead, he figured to take a shower. The warm water would at the very least help him shake off the lingering effects from his sleeping pills.

  Mark spent his extra time letting the warm water rush over his head and down his back. Distracted by the meeting ahead of him, a task as simple as washing his hair became an extraordinary challenge. Mark acted out his upcoming meeting in his head. He considered how he would greet Janice and how he would apologize to Lucy if given the opportunity. Most of all, Mark planned to beg his ex-girlfriend and her roommate for mercy. He knew there was no room for pride or attitude. He had no ground to stand on, no case to make.

  After his shower, Mark slipped into his Khakis and a polo shirt. With about fifteen minutes to spare, Mark decided to make his way to the study room. Mark was scared, more scared than at any point in his life.

  Chapter Two

  As was to be expected at five o’clock on a Friday morning, the study room was empty. Mark noticed a laptop beside the doorway on a small table. The computer was open and on, but the user was logged out. Mark figured that someone was probably pulling an all-nighter and locked her screen before taking a break or catching some sleep. With the way things disappeared in college dormitories, leaving an unattended computer behind was hardly a spectacular idea.

  Mark paced the study room floor checking his watch every couple of minutes. It was an outdated calculator watch. Even though Mark never used the calculator, he always thought it was cool, nostalgic even. Every second seemed like a minute. Every minute felt like an hour.

  At five o’clock sharp, Mark heard a knock on the door.

  “Come in,” Mark said nervously.

  Slowly, the door opened, but the entrant wasn’t Janice or Lucy. It was a young looking blonde girl with a bob haircut, pink plastic glasses, and braces. The girl’s hair was messed up, and she was wearing an almost form-fitting Hello Kitty nightshirt. She obviously just got out of bed; her hair was mussy and she wasn’t wearing any makeup or a bra. Considering his situation, Mark found it ironic how quick he was to notice the girl’s lack of undergarments.

  The blonde stepped timidly into the study room leaving the door open behind herself. “Are you Mark?”

  “Yes.” Mark figured the girl was a friend of Janice’s, but he wasn’t about to inquire.

  “Okay,” the girl responded fighting to keep her eyes open. “I’m supposed to get your clothes.”

  “What?” Mark asked. “I don’t even know you.”

  “Oh well,” the girl responded impatiently. “I wanna get s’more sleep before class. I was told to come get your clothes. You gonna give ‘em over or what?”

  “I don’t know. Are you sure…”

  “Oh well. Fine then.” The blonde turned around and stumbled back toward the door, slippers sliding along the tile floor.

  “Wait,” Mark proclaimed. “I’ll do it. Just give me a minute.”

  The girl turned around slowly. If she was at all interested in seeing Mark strip naked, she wasn’t letting on. Instead, she acted as though having to wait for a look at Mark’s naked body was an inconvenience.

  “Could we close the door?” Mark queried pointing at the still ajar door facing the sixth-floor elevators. “Anyone could walk by and see me.”

  “No,” the girl insisted.

  �
��But…”

  “You have 30 seconds to get undressed, or you can deal with Janice. Okay?”

  “Fine.” Mark pulled his Polo shirt over his head. He was embarrassed by his modest belly and love handles especially in the presence of such a young athletic female. Mark held the shirt toward the girl who shrugged and motioned her head toward an empty table. Mark paused before folding his shirt and setting it on the surface.

  Mark knelt down to untie and remove his brown leather shoes and socks then put them on the table beside his shirt. Realizing his pants were next to come off, Mark again paused nervously.

  “Really,” the blonde said cocking her head. “You stalling me?”

  “Sorry,” Mark replied as he started removing his belt. Mark thought about asking the blonde to turn around, but he knew what her answer would be.

  As Mark pulled his pants down over his black underwear, his dick bulged beneath his briefs. Mark wondered who the young the girl demanding his clothes was. She had to be a freshman, Mark figured. She couldn’t be much older than eighteen. In a way, the girl reminded Mark of his own younger sister.

  Still wearing his briefs, Mark folded his pants then placed them on his growing pile of clothes. “There you go,” Mark said extending his arms to display his body. He knew such modesty was probably a lost cause but had to try.

  “You kidding?” the girl asked rhetorically. “I told you I want to get back to bed.”

  “These too?” Mark asked feigning surprise. He tugged on his underwear’s waistband circling his hips.

  “What do you think?” The girl put a hand on her side and tapped her foot against the floor in disgust.

  “Sorry,” Mark replied. He took another look at the open door ensuring the coast was clear. He quickly slid the black briefs down his legs while trying to cover his crotch. He put the underwear inside his folded pants and extended the completed pile of clothes to the girl.

  “That too,” the girl said pointing at his watch.

  Mark removed the calculator watch while keeping his now fully erect penis covered as best he could. The girl motioned for Mark to add his cell phone to the pile of clothes. Mark complied and again offered up the stack. Considering Mark had nothing left to remove or add to the collection, the young blonde accepted his offering.

  “What now?” Mark asked moving both hands over his crotch.

  “I don’t know,” the girl responded. She took a second to examine Mark, pathetic as he was and moved slowly out of the study room, her feet scraping the floor along the way.

  As soon as the girl was gone, Mark pressed himself against the wall behind the still open door. He started toward the entryway but gave up on closing it when he heard a group of girls making their way to breakfast or whatever they had going on so early in the day.

  Mark shimmied to the back corner of the study room and slid an orange leather chair in front of his naked body. He crouched down on the floor where he planned to wait for further instructions. If anyone wandered into the room, his small chair would never give Mark full cover, but it was all he had.

  Where the fuck was Janice? More than ever, Mark just wanted to get past whatever juvenile game she was playing and move on with his life. Since Janice left Mark alone in the room for most of the previous morning, Mark worried that she might leave him stranded there naked. Maybe this was Janice’s plan, to abandon him there until someone called the police.

  Finally, Mark heard a voice, Janice’s voice. “Mark...Hello. Mark?”

  “Hello,” Mark responded peering over the orange chair and looking for the voice.

  “Over here, dumbass. The computer.”

  Mark realized that Janice was probably video chatting with him over the laptop by the door. Since the computer only displayed a screensaver, Mark couldn’t see who was on the other end of his conversation. Janice could likely see Mark, but Mark couldn’t see her. Of course, Janice was probably once again recording his every move.

  “Hello,” Mark answered.

  “Come over here, Mark. Don’t be shy.”

  Mark carefully stepped out from behind the chair clutching his dick with both hands. He didn’t know how many people Janice was sharing the other end of their conversation with. Mark assumed the worst.

  Moving closer to the computer, Mark realized that he would also be completely exposed to anyone walking past the study room. As he again started toward the door to close it, the computer ordered him to “leave it open.”

  Mark stepped up to the laptop. Since there was no chair, he knelt down on one knee and looked into the camera.

  “Stand up, Mark,” Janice ordered. “No need to be lazy.”

  “What...What do you want from me?” Mark asked timidly.

  “What do I want? I just want what’s best for you, Mark. Right now, that’s teaching you a lesson.”

  “I understand,” Mark lied. “What’s it you want me to do?”

  “I want you to do whatever I say. Is there a problem with that?”

  “No problem. Not…Not at all.”

  “Good,” Janice replied. “Yesterday, you gawked through the peephole at Lucy while she was in the shower. This morning, I need you to go to that same shower stall so we can watch you.”

  “You want me to go into the showers?” Mark questioned nervously. “The girls’ showers?”

  “That’s right,” Janice said through the computer. “Make sure you get in the same shower stall Lucy was in yesterday.”

  “But, I can’t,” Mark protested. “That’s the girls’ shower. I can’t go in there, not like this.”

  “Oh, you can’t go in there? You didn’t have any problem spying on Lucy when she was in the shower yesterday. It didn’t bother you that she was naked? Did it?”

  “But, Janice…”

  “Go now,” Janice demanded.

  “How long do I have to stay in there?” Mark asked.

  “Go fucking now,” Janice said. “I’m not going to tell you again.”

  “Can you just tell me how long I have to stay there?” Mark pleaded.

  The computer didn’t respond.

  “Janice, please,” Mark begged.

  Again, there was no response from the computer.

  Chapter Three

  Mark looked around the empty study room assessing his situation. He could try to make his way back to his dorm room. Of course, he was completely naked and didn’t have his wallet, keys, or even his phone. More so, if Mark bailed on Janice, he knew Janice would upload that video of him masturbating while spying on his ex-girlfriend. In addition to being publicly humiliated, Mark would likely be kicked out of school and possibly even arrested.

  Through the study room wall, Mark could hear the showers running. There was no chatter, but Mark realized at least one girl was probably in there. Mark also understood that the stalls would fill up quickly after six o’clock. If he was going to have a chance to get in and hopefully back out of the showers before the rest of the sixth-floor girls woke up, he had no time to waste.

  Mark understood what he had to do. He would have to streak out of the study room into the foyer. Assuming that no one saw him there, he would then have to make his way down the sixth-floor hallway about twenty feet, to the girls’ showers. From there, he would sneak in and find the shower Lucy had occupied the day before. The odds of doing all this without being caught seemed slim to none. Still, Mark realized he didn’t have a choice, at least not a good one.

  Covering himself to the best of his ability, Mark approached the study room door. He looked into the foyer which was at least momentarily empty. The room around him spun as he stepped through the doorway. The air was cooler than in the study room. The foyer seemed vast with no place to hide. It was like he was on display in one of those department store windows just waiting for someone to walk by.

  Knowing he couldn’t spend too much time by the elevators, Mark jogged through the foyer holding his manhood as best he could. Mark cracked open the door and looked down the sixth-floor hallway jus
t in time to see someone stepping into the showers. Fortunately, the girl, who didn’t appear entirely awake yet, failed to see Mark spying on her.

  Mark’s only hope was to give the showers’ newest occupant time to find a stall herself before following her into the restroom. Of course, every second Mark waited on her was more time standing completely naked in the sixth-floor foyer.

  Mark had counted off about thirty seconds and was just about to jump into the shower room when he heard the elevator open behind him. A couple of girls were talking to each other. There was another hallway on the other side of the elevators, but Mark had to assume the voices were headed his way. He had no choice but to make his move.

  As Mark started walking toward the shower room door, his stomach dropped. The gravity of what he was about to do hit him like a brick. He thought about turning back, but the people from the elevator were moments behind him. Mark’s only chance to avoid explaining himself was to duck into the showers and hope for the best.

  Mark peeked inside the shower room door. He saw a line of sinks, and, fortunately, there were no girls in sight. Just as he stepped into the facility, he heard the girls from the elevator walking past the door behind him.

  Now that Mark was in the shower room, he knew he had to make it to an open stall quickly. He couldn’t be standing out in the open when someone else walked in or when any of the girls currently showering stepped outside their stalls. Once in a shower cube himself, Mark would at least have somewhere to hide.

  Mark turned the corner and made his way between two rows of showers. Judging where the study room was relative to where he was standing, Mark figured Lucy’s shower from the day before had to be one of the two units against the back wall, most likely the stall to his right.

  As Mark stepped past the first shower, he saw a naked girl’s silhouette through the white plastic curtain. As beautiful as the foggy brown figure looked to Mark, he wished the stalls had doors; the curtains only increased his chances of getting caught. His shadow, after all, would be every bit as visible to the unsuspecting female in the shower.