The Technician Who Came to the School That Afternoon

Lots of people asked me whether I sold myself, and I always gave the same answer: no. I never charged for anything. What happened was that I liked sex, I’d liked it since I was very young, and I enjoyed it without asking permission or giving explanations. I liked feeling eyes on me, a man’s gaze traveling over me before he said a word. I liked provoking with my clothes, with the way I walked, with that attitude that gave me away from three meters off. I learned it from my cousin Estefanía and, why deny it, also from my mother.

Wherever I went, men followed me with their eyes. Some wanted me in their bed, and many got their way. The women who hated me said I was a man-chaser, and they were half right: I didn’t chase, I chose. Gifts came my way, fine lingerie, lace, things a girl my age supposedly shouldn’t have. I kept them in a locked drawer and wore them when I knew something was going to happen.

At school, my reputation spread through every hallway. It was on the lips of the girls, the boys, and even a teacher or two. The girls talked crap about me because their boyfriends went after me; poor things, they had no idea what it was like to be on my level. Around that time I was also seeing the English teacher, Esteban, but that’s another story. The one I want to tell you happened inside that same school, one ordinary afternoon that got burned into my memory forever.

***

They had decided to replace all the computers because the old ones were no good anymore. Several technicians came to install them. One of them was Damián: dark-skinned, tall, with a way of moving that hadn’t caught my attention until my friend Camila pointed him out during a break.

—They’re already setting up the new machines —Tatiana said, looking toward the computer lab.

—See that dark guy over there? —Camila couldn’t take her eyes off him—. Too bad he’s a construction worker.

—What construction worker? —Lorena laughed—. The computer teacher said he’s a systems engineer.

The four of us turned to look at him at the same time, and yes, he was definitely worth taking a proper look at. Camila was a couple of years older than the rest of us and the boldest one in the group. Tall, dark-eyed, with black hair and a body that made heads turn. She bit her lip and let out a long “mmm” that said everything.

—Let’s go over and see if they talk to us —she suggested.

—No way, you go —Lorena replied.

—Exactly, we have boyfriends —Tatiana added, laughing.

—You’re all idiots. Come on, Carolina, you’re the one who’s free.

I got up from my chair, tugged my uniform skirt so it sat a couple of fingers higher, adjusted my blouse, and ran my fingers through my hair. I knew perfectly well what I was doing.

When we walked into the room, all the technicians looked up. Camila greeted them with that shameless ease that was so characteristically hers, and they answered right away. Their eyes ran over us from head to toe, and with the fitted uniforms and long socks there wasn’t much left to imagine. We talked for quite a while. They asked us about our boyfriends, our grade, everything, and we flirted without trying to hide it.

Damián couldn’t take his eyes off my legs. I’d sat on the edge of a desk, and the skirt left a good part of my thighs on display. I looked at him out of the corner of my eye, played with my hair, smiled at him, and he smiled back. It was crystal clear who he’d set his sights on. Camila, meanwhile, was already tangled up in her own conversation with another technician, a guy named Sebastián.

We were doing that when Professor Mercedes showed up to kick us out of the room. That woman had hated me for ages, for reasons that don’t matter now.

—Young ladies, what are you doing here? Go to your classroom —she ordered.

Camila and I looked at each other and let out a little laugh.

—We’re not doing anything bad, ma’am —I said.

—Pull that skirt down. You can practically see everything. Don’t come looking for what isn’t yours to look for.

We left without arguing, laughing under our breath. Damián watched me all the way to the door.

***

On the way out, already in the town park, Camila caught up with me looking like she had a secret.

—Damián told me to come back this afternoon. He wants you to come too.

—I don’t believe you.

—Seriously. We’ll make up that we have an assignment in the library and stay until dark.

—I can imagine why they want us to go —I said, though the idea had already lit me up inside.

—So are we going or not?

—Fine. I’ll eat lunch, change, and meet you there.

I got home, ate something quick, showered slowly, and got myself ready thinking about what might happen. I put on a black lace set and a short dress made of stretchy fabric, one of those that clings to every curve and shows even what you don’t want to show. Sandals, hair down, a little makeup. My mother saw me leaving and narrowed her eyes.

—Where are you going all dressed up like that? You got a date?

—I’m going to school to do an assignment with Camila —I lied halfway.

—Mmm. The way you’re dressed, it looks more like a date than an assignment. But you know, take care of yourself.

—Yes, Mom, I know.

I looked at myself one last time in the hallway mirror. The dress left nothing to the imagination and I knew it. When I met Camila at the corner, she was just as dressed up, in a low-cut blouse and a miniskirt that barely covered her.

—Don’t let it show that you’re after Damián —she teased me, laughing.

—Look who’s talking —I shot back, and we headed down the street amid catcalls that didn’t even bother hiding what people thought of us.

***

When we got to the school, the technicians saw us coming in and their eyes went right after us. We only smiled slightly and kept going straight to the library, swaying on purpose all the way down the hall. We stayed there pretending to study until evening started to fall and the place emptied out. We wanted no one to see us with them.

We left when it was already getting dark and went straight to the computer room. Damián and Sebastián were still there, and when they saw us come in, their faces lit up. We greeted each other with a kiss on the cheek. When I got close to Damián, he took the chance to slide his hand along my back and down, slowly, to my hip. I felt the heat of his palm through the fabric.

We started talking, but he kept looking at me and smiling to himself.

—What are you smiling at? —I asked, toying with a lock of hair.

—How pretty you are.

I held his gaze, with a smile that was already an invitation.

—Don’t say.

—Turn around —he asked.

I did as he said, and as I turned I felt his firm hand on one butt cheek. Camila and Sebastián laughed from the other side of the room. I blushed, more from surprise than embarrassment.

—Not like that, Damián —I protested, though I didn’t move.

He kept looking at me like a hungry man. He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear and leaned in to smell my neck.

—You smell incredible —he murmured.

When he put both hands on my waist, my whole body tensed up. I knew that feeling, that tingling that started low and climbed higher. He tried to kiss me and I played hard to get a couple of times, just to stretch out the moment. Camila and Sebastián were already in their own world, making out in a corner.

Damián got bolder and bolder. He squeezed my hips, pulled my dress down when it rode up, and every brush of his hands left me less and less defended. When I finally let him kiss me, I was suddenly afraid that some teacher might still be around.

—Not here —I said against his mouth—. Let’s go to the back.

I took his hand and led him to the back of the school, where the light didn’t reach and no one could see us. It was already completely dark.

***

He pressed me against the wall and kissed me hard. I gave it right back. His hands ran over my thighs, slid up under my dress, stroked me over my underwear. I could barely bring myself to touch him; I just let him do what he wanted, let myself feel how everything between us was heating up. He noticed right away what he was doing to me.

—You’re shaking —he said against my ear.

Every time he touched me, I pushed my pelvis forward, searching for him without wanting to admit it. The stretchy dress gave with every movement; he pulled one shoulder strap down and bared one breast, and when he lowered his mouth there, my legs almost gave out.

—Not here, Damián, they can see us —I said, though not a single part of me wanted him to stop.

—You like it —he said, and I couldn’t argue with him.

He kissed my neck, pressed me against him, and I could feel his arousal hard against my belly. I brought down a hand, stroked him over his pants, and then found skin directly. He was hard, urgent. I moved the lace aside and guided his hand to where I needed it, and at the first touch in exactly the right place a moan slipped out of me that I had to swallow so it wouldn’t be heard.

Braced against the cold wall, I lifted one leg and hooked it around his hip. He held me up with one hand. At first it hurt a little, because of the position and the haste, but my mind had gone blank and I didn’t want him to stop for anything in the world. He started slowly, with a gentle rocking that soon gathered pace, and with every thrust I saw blotches of light behind my eyelids.

I didn’t care about anything anymore: not the cold, not the wall scraping my back, not the possibility that someone might turn the corner and find us like that. I bit my lips so I wouldn’t scream. Pleasure rose in waves, more and more intense, until I felt his body tense and the heat spill over inside me. I stayed there for a second, wrapped around him, breathless, sweaty, with my heart pounding like it wanted to burst out of my chest.

I barely had time to catch my breath before Camila shouted from the room that we had to go. I hurriedly pulled my clothes back into place, adjusted my dress, and we walked out as if nothing had happened. I said goodbye to Damián with a kiss, and when I turned around he gave my ass a pat and laughed.

—Why are you so red? —Camila asked me as soon as we were alone.

—For nothing —I said.

—Sure. At least fix your dress properly; everything shows.

I couldn’t help laughing, and that was enough for her to know what she needed to know.

—And you and Sebastián, what about you? —I shot back.

She laughed too, and nothing more needed to be said.

***

We went home down the dark street. My body was still buzzing, my clothes stuck to me, the fresh memory of every movement still there. The next day at school, half the place already knew what had happened. The security guard had made sure to spread the gossip with every detail he invented, and I never saw Damián again. They laughed at me in the hallways, said they’d used me and left me lying there.

And maybe they did. But the truth is that that afternoon I walked into that school knowing exactly what I was going to do, and I walked out with not a single regret. I earned my reputation all by myself, and for a long time I carried it without it weighing on me too much. As for the security guard and what came after, I’ll tell you about that another time.