College starts on Tuesday and I couldn’t be more excited. I’ve been looking forward to starting my classes for months. And it all starts today with move-in day.

I’ve already met my roommates through the college’s network, and they all seem like great guys. For safety reasons, all we have to go on are our names. Joey, Mel, and Riley. While we haven’t seen what each other looks like yet, we find we share a sarcastic sense of humour. And through our email exchanges, we find we have a lot in common. We all enjoy video games and anime.

And so, here I am. I slide my card into the card reader and enter the room. And I immediately take in my living quarters for the next few months. There’s a bed, a closet, and a desk. And upon noticing how quiet it is, I take that to mean my roommates are either not here yet or they’re out. I’m disappointed that I’m not able to meet my roommates right away, but I tell myself it’s still early. I’ll have plenty of time to hang out with them.

After shrugging my shoulders, I begin taking my stuff out of the boxes I brought. And a few minutes later, my laptop is hooked up to the wi-fi network. Once I’m satisfied, I take my toothbrush and toothpaste to the bathroom. But when I open the door to the shared bathroom and turn the lights on, I am caught off guard by something.

There, on the counter beside the sink, is a makeup bag with Hello Kitty on them. Huh?!

Hello Kitty isn’t surprising, as the guys did say they liked anime. And while Hello Kitty might be considered girly, there’s no strict “men shouldn’t like girly things” law. But since when do guys have a make-up bag? I’ll leave that alone for now; they have their own reasons.

Taking in the rest of the bathroom, something else catches my eye. Something is hanging over the rack in the shower. Goggles, maybe? No, it’s too big to be goggles. I can’t tell what it is, so I approach closer. And gasp out loud.

It’s a bra. A plain white cotton one, hanging there like it’s the most normal thing in the world. My pulse jumps. I’ve never been this close to one before.

I am dumbfounded. Why is there a bra in the bathroom?! Maybe one of the guys has his girlfriend over during frosh week. Even though my experience with women is limited, it’s not improbable to think of guys bringing their girlfriends over for a weekend. I mean, it’s not unheard of, right? And maybe she’s not attending college and doesn’t have her own Frosh week.

While I’ve never had a girlfriend, I do know what bras look like. I glance at the feminine garment in front of me. It’s nothing fancy, definitely an everyday bra. But the cups look big enough to support a medium-sized pair of boobs. I’d imagine the wearer looks adorably sexy when wearing this.

I reach out to touch it before I catch myself. And pull my hand back. Even though I want to touch it, I know I shouldn’t touch something that doesn’t belong to me.

Just then I hear a room’s door opening behind me, making me spin around. My blood runs cold. And I hear someone walk towards me. My heart races faster in my chest. I’m caught. By who, though? There are only so many reasons why a guy would be near a bra, and none of them makes me look honourable right now.

“Sorry I was on the phone, and didn’t greet you when you… oh hi.”

I can only stare at the person who just appeared in front of me. For the first time in a while, I am almost face-to-face with a girl. And she stops in front of me in a sweater and sweatpants with a blank look on her face. She’s also almost my height, which isn’t saying much.

Is she actually my roommate’s girlfriend? For all I know, she could be one of my roommates. But whoever she is, I can’t help but notice her sweet face and long brown hair. It goes with her sweet voice.

She stares at me. And I stare at her. The expression on her face is difficult to read. Is she pissed off at me? That’s it, isn’t it? She thinks I’m just some pervert here to steal her bra. I wouldn’t blame her for thinking that. Breaking the silence, I clear my throat and awkwardly wave my hand. “Uh… hi. I’m Alexis. Are you my roommate’s girlfriend? Do you know when he’ll be around?”

The girl continues giving a blank expression. At least if she was pissed off at me, she’d make it obvious and threaten to call someone for help. Instead, she just stares at me with her big brown eyes. A neutral expression isn’t a bad one, right?

But then she gets a surprised look on her face, as though she realizes something. “Oh my god! You’re Alexis?! I’m sorry… I just figured with a name like that, you’d have to be another girl.” Oh no! Is she actually disappointed that I’m not a girl? She then breaks into a smile. “Nice to meet you, I’m Riley.” She chirps sweetly.

Oh shit! One of my roommates is a girl named Riley?! And she also thought similarly to me. I’ve only ever gone to school with boys named Riley. “Nice to meet you as well, Riley.” I return Riley’s smile. “And don’t feel too bad; my parents are weird like that… giving their kid a unisex name.” I laugh nervously.

Riley returns my laugh. A sweet, good-natured laugh that makes me feel better about the awkward situation. “You know, with our other roommates being Joey and Mel, I expected that it would just be girls living here. I’ve only ever known Alexis to be a girl’s name.” She winks at me. “But now I don’t know what to think.”

It’s a relief to know we’re on the same page. Our mutual assumption makes me smile. “You and I both. Well, so far it’s 1-1. I had also figured my roommates would all be the same gender, but male.” I laugh as my mind turns to anime. “And who knows? We might even be the only humans here. We could have dullahans or elves as roommates.”

Riley bursts out laughing. “Yeah, you never know. My money’s on a succubus for one of them, at least.” She glances past my shoulder and gives me a sly grin. “But I bet you were shocked to see the make-up bag… not to mention the bra in the bathroom.”

My face reddens as I remember the bra hanging on the rack, its simple white design taunts me. And I grin sheepishly at Riley. “Y-you could say that. I actually wondered if it was one of my roommate’s girlfriend’s. Either that, or one of my roommates is secretly a crossdresser.” I shrug my shoulders. “I wasn’t going to judge.”

Riley shakes her head with a giggle. And then she walks past me to grab her bra. “Well, either way, sorry to disappoint. I’m just a regular girl who got her clothes soaked at Frosh.” She looks back and smiles at me. “After I hook it back on, maybe we could join in on some of the festivities together. We might even run into our two roommates there.”

I beam at Riley. “Sounds good to me.”

Riley playfully pats my shoulder and walks past me out of the bathroom. Not sure what to do, I awkwardly stand still. She then enters her bedroom. And as she closes the door, she looks back at me with a sly grin. “No peeking!”

I hear some clothes rustling from the other side of the door for a few seconds, followed by something snapping together. My heart races quickly with excitement. Riley has just clasped her bra in the back, meaning that her breasts are now resting inside the cups. I give my head a shake. Get a hold of yourself, man! You just met this girl, and you’re already thinking about her body.

Then suddenly, as though she can read my mind, I hear her speak. “So… I have to ask. Was that your first time seeing a bra?” Her sweet voice is now tinged with a hint of playfulness.

Shit! Am I that obvious? I feel my face redden, and I’m grateful she can’t see. “N-no. Well… in person, yes.” I feel the urge to defend myself. “But I didn’t touch your bra or anything! It was by accident that I even stumbled upon it at all.”

I hear nothing for a second, making me worry that she’s grossed out by my confession. But then I hear her giggle. Even through the door, it comes through clear as a bell. “Want to?”

Now it’s my turn to be silent. Am I hearing her right? “W-what did you say?” I try to hide my nervousness, but my voice comes out shaky. Just then the door opens, and I’m caught off guard by what I see.

Riley’s standing there with a sly grin on her face. And that’s not all. She’s only wearing her jeans and her bra. I feel myself gulp. Even though it’s the same white bra I saw just a few moments ago, she’s now wearing it. I can’t stop myself from staring at her breasts nestled in the cups. They’re perfect! Should I be looking at them? A sense of guilt comes over me. But I nod my head.

Riley’s giggle breaks me out of my trance. “I’ll take that to mean yes.” She walks toward me. “You understand this is a one-time thing, right? I’m only letting you because there’s an innocence about you that I like. It sets you apart from other guys.” She stops a few inches away from me and places her hands on her hips, inviting me to proceed.

My hands begin shaking. And I nervously stand there, unsure what to do. My roommate has given me the okay to touch her bra. Or has she? I could be misinterpreting sarcasm for an invitation, and get into trouble. But even though I don’t detect any sarcasm, I’m frozen in place.

Riley giggles and shakes her head at me. It’s difficult to tell whether it’s out of pity or affection.  But either way, I feel my face redden. “You really are different from other guys, aren’t you? Even after I gave you permission, you can’t bring yourself to do it.” She then smiles as she softly grasps my right hand. “Here, let me help.” And guides both of our hands to her right bra cup.

My heart is practically beating out of my chest. Here I am, feeling the cups of my roommate’s bra. The cups feel smooth on my fingers. I can only imagine how soft and comfortable this bra feels on the inside.

I look up to Riley’s face, and she’s giving me the sweetest smile I’ve ever seen. But then we hear the sound of the door to the dorm opening, making us jump. And she lets go of my hand.

A girl’s high-pitched lispy voice greets us. “... who knew you could twist the human body like that… oh sorry. Are we interrupting something?” Two girls enter the dorm in the middle of their conversation, with each of them carrying a box. One of them is tall with blonde hair tied in a ponytail, and the other is slightly shorter with long flaming red hair. Are these two our roommates?

My mouth is too dry to speak, so Riley speaks for us both. “Yes… sorta. But never mind that.” She smiles at the two girls. “I’m Riley, and this is Alexis [I smile awkwardly]. I suppose you two are our roommates.”

The blonde girl gives us both an odd look for a second. She’s probably confused as to why one of us is half-naked and the other is fully-clothed. Can’t say I blame her. But she returns Riley’s smile. “Right on! Yes I’m Mel, and she’s Joey [Joey gives us a toothy grin]. It’s nice to meet you.” Melanie has a deeper and more sultry voice than I expected, which throws me off a bit.

Joey pipes up in a high-pitched lispy voice. “So you’re Riley and Alexis. Well, this is unexpected… I never thought I’d ever meet a male Alexis.” She glances at Riley and flashes us a sly grin. “By the way, that’s an… interesting choice of attire. I wonder what you two were up to when Mel and I walked in.”

I feel my face burning up again. “Uh… well, you see…” I trail off as I glance over at Riley, hoping for another assist. How do I explain this one?

Riley continues. “Oh that? I was just letting Alexis feel my bra. He was curious about the fabric.” She must see the looks of utter confusion on our two roommates faces because she adds. “Don’t worry, he’s safe.”

Joey gives me a skeptical look. “Safe or not, that’s awfully quick to just let some guy you barely know feel you up.” I feel my face redden. She has a point. Joey then looks back at Riley. “Did he actually say he was curious about the fabric?”

Riley nods reassuringly. “Yes, he did. He found my bra in the bathroom, and he was just checking to make sure it was dry and fit right before we went down to Frosh together.” She then smiles at me. “Thanks again for checking for me, Alexis.” I grin sheepishly.

Mel looks at me as she pieces together what Riley is saying. My eyes darted around nervously. She then nods her head. “Oh… ok. I guess that explains it. I wonder if the housing people knew you were a guy… or that, when they put you in a dorm with us girls.” She then nods at Joey and says. “Well never-mind that now, we’ll be right back with the rest of our shit.”

And with that, Mel and Joey set the boxes on the counter and close the door behind them as they leave the dorm. I breathe a sigh of relief. “Damn! They couldn’t have picked a more awkward time to walk in.” I turn to Riley. “But why did you tell them I’m safe? They’re going to think I’m gay or something.”

Riley shrugs her shoulders at me, making her breasts jiggle slightly in the cups. “Would you rather I told them the truth? That you’ve never seen a bra in person before, and I was letting you feel mine?” She then gives me a shit-eating grin and winks at me. “And besides, they’re not going to try to steal you away from me if they think you’re my gay bff.”

I don’t even know how to respond to that. Riley’s gay bff?! I guess there is some twisted logic in there somewhere. But why say that last part? Wait a minute! Is she also implying that she wants me?

I sigh out loud. “Okay, but the minute they start to suspect… that I’m clearly not gay, I’m telling them the truth. Okay?”

Riley nods her head. I’m satisfied for now, but Riley is more devious than I expected. How long can both of us keep up this charade?

It’s a quiet Sunday evening. I’d imagine that everyone else is out partying, so it’s the perfect time to avoid running into anyone. And so even though I don’t want to, I realize that I should be doing my laundry before classes start on Tuesday.

It’s so quiet when I carry my laundry basket with me to my floor’s laundry room. And just before I enter, I hear a high-pitched lispy voice coming from behind me. “Wait! Hold the door!” I turn around and see Joey racing towards me, carrying her own basket. With her red hair bouncing behind her, she gives the impression of a fireball coming towards me.

Joey giggles. “Thanks! I guess we both had the same idea tonight, huh?”

I feel myself blush, but I return her giggle. “Y-yeah, I guess we did.” Neither of us says anything else as we walk towards the washing machines. I set my basket down and turn to her, nervously. “So… uh… how’s it going, Joey?” I groan inside my head. This is why I don’t often engage in small talk.

She puts on a mock serious face. “Oh, you know… excited about the start of classes… but annoyed that I have to clean my battle-ready armour in preparation for it.” She looks at me with a smirk. “And you?”

I feel my heart racing in my chest. Even though this is a casual atmosphere, hearing Joey make a cheeky joke like that makes me nervous. “Yes… I-I’m excited as well.” I think for a second. “I just hope we don’t have too many tests… I’m terrible at memorizing.”

We stand in silence for a few seconds as we transfer our clothes into the washing machines. Joey speaks first. “I forget… Did you tell us in the group chat what program you were taking? Don’t tell me… it’s Fashion Design, right? And that’s why you were touching Riley’s bra before?”

My palms immediately become sweaty, and I almost drop the shirt I’m touching. Shit! I almost forgot about that. Do I add another lie to this, or tell her the truth? “Uh… no… I’m in the Graphic Design program.”

Joey smiles at me. “Good. So you still appreciate something aesthetically pleasing, then.” She finishes transferring the rest of her clothes into the washing machine. And inside my head I sigh with relief. I’m in the clear! But then she casually drops. “Such as Riley’s bra.”

I glance over at her and see she now has a shit-eating grin on her face. A wave of panic hit me. Does she know? Nonetheless, I answer back. “Yeah, well… she asked for my help. And I couldn’t not look at her bra for that.” I try to steer the conversation away. “Anyways, w-what are you taking?”

Joey gives me a knowing smile. “Psychology. People fascinate me, and I want to understand what makes them tick. Like you, for instance.” She winks at me, making me blush. “You remind me of the kind of protagonist we often see in anime.” And with that, we remain silent as we wait for our laundry to finish.

I wake up early the next morning, still replaying in my head the conversation with Joey in the laundry room. It makes perfect sense that she’s taking Psychology. Between the looks she gave me and the specific mention of Riley’s bra, she’s probably not buying the story that Riley and I told her. And I can’t say I blame her, either.

Sighing, I leave my room. And upon opening my door to the general dorm area, I see a blonde-haired girl sitting on the couch watching tv. It’s Mel! I walk towards her, but Mel is too engrossed in what she’s watching to notice me. And that’s not all.

As I approach her, I see her hand in her lap moving in a circular motion. And because the couch is blocking my view, I can’t see exactly what she’s doing. But I have a hunch about what she’s doing. I feel my pants get tighter. She’s making short, breathy gasps, which get louder the closer I get to her. And I’m finally close enough to see.

Mel’s just sitting there in her grey tank top and purple panties, and she’s rubbing herself off over her underwear. They have a cute rainbow design in the middle, and a clear wet spot in the crotch. My heart pounds with both excitement and nervousness as I notice Mel’s fingers glide sensually across the gusset of her panties. I’ve never seen a girl masturbating before!

Finally, Mel realizes I’m there and gasps. She quickly turns the TV off. And her hands frantically fall to her panties, in a vain attempt to shield herself. “Oh shit! How long have you been standing there, Alexis?!” Her face has turned bright red.

It’s all I can do to avoid looking at her directly. I feel bad for catching her in an intimate moment, and I just know that my face looks as red as Mel’s. “I’m s-sorry, Mel! I just woke up, and I saw you on the couch, so I came over to greet you… But I had no idea you were doing this, though…” I scramble as I try to justify my being there.

Mel’s face warms into a smile. “Hey, it’s okay. I’m not mad… just surprised, is all. I know you didn’t mean to.” She glances down at her panties and lets out a giggle. Before she looks up to smile at me. “And I bet you didn’t expect to find your roommate here masturbating in her undies, either.”

I return her smile. “No… it’s safe to say that I didn’t. What you were watching must have been… something, though.” And I glance at the now-blank TV screen. “What were you watching?” I return to Mel.

Mel’s face goes a bright shade of red. “Horny Devil Academy.” She says barely above a whisper, almost as though she’s embarrassed to admit it. “Don’t get me wrong, I love the men on the show. But damn, beautiful women embracing their… ahem, feminine assets.” She looks at me with a dreamy look in her eyes. “I just can’t get enough.”

I grin sheepishly. Horny Devil Academy has been one of my favourite anime for years. And like Mel, I also enjoy looking at the beautiful women at the academy. Not in a creepy way, but one can’t deny how perfectly round and perky their boobs are! But if she thinks I’m gay, I can’t reveal to Mel that I even think about women's breasts, much less like them. It’ll be suspicious if I do.

I clear my throat. “Y-yeah… they’re quite something, aren’t they? But for me, I enjoy admiring how detailed the bras and underwear are.” I think for a second. “Lisa’s especially. It’s like the animators rotoscoped actual lingerie.” I groan to myself. It figures that I would pick the most innocent lingerie! My face heats up. Hopefully Mel doesn’t make the connection.

Mel just sits there for a moment with a blank face. “Lisa’s lingerie?” Her face warms into a smile as she remembers what they look like. “That’s surprising! I would’ve figured, if any of them, you’d gravitate towards something with more lace.” She then gives me a sweet look. “Is that why Riley’s caught your interest the other day?”