Chapter 13

Wednesday morning I awoke with a smile on my face. It was Christmas. Bobby Helms was singing 'Jingle Bell Rock' on my clock radio, part of WLCY's annual 'all rock & roll holiday hits marathon' for 1968. The clock face said it was already 9:10AM.

After the events of the last few days, I was amazed that I felt as good as I did. I slipped on a T-shirt and a pair of shorts and trudged down the stairs to the living room. The place looked like a bomb had hit it. Sharon had already opened a half-dozen boxes, and wrapping paper and ribbons littered the living room floor. I could see she'd already pulled out several Barbie dolls and put together some kind of miniature cardboard beach house set, and seemed to be preparing some kind of elaborate dinner party.

"Merry Christmas, Sherrie," I said, smiling.

She turned and grinned back at me. "You got some neat stuff, too, Wil," she said. "Here, open this one first," she said, shyly. "It's from me."

I nodded and tore open the wrapping paper. "Wow," I said. "This is really cool. The Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea model kit! Thanks, Sherrie!" She laughed, and went back to her dolls.

This sub would look really good all painted up, I thought.

Shit. Ronnie and Rick.

"Merry Christmas, kids!" My mom and dad were coming down the stairs. I saw a weird little creature hanging on for dear life on Mom's arm.

"IS THAT FOR ME?" squealed Sharon at the top of her lungs.

"Shhhh!" said my mom, as she reached the bottom of the stairs. "Be very quiet, Sharon. Santa brought you a little kitty. We kept it upstairs last night so it wouldn't be alone. Don't make any loud noises or you'll scare it to death."

I stood next to my father as my little sister scampered over and scooped up the little fur-ball into her arms. Dad grinned at me and whispered, "The damned thing kept us up for the past three hours." I laughed.

Sharon looked ecstatic. "I'm going to name you Samantha," she said. "Like the witch on Bewitched."

I walked over and scratched the kitten on its head. It looked up at me like it was terrified, then its eyes softened and it began to purr.

"She likes you, Wil!" said my sister. The tiny animal nosed out and crawled across Sharon's arm and jumped over to my shoulder.

"Help!" I cried, partly for comedic effect. "What is this thing? A Siamese? Mom, am I allergic to Siamese cats?"

Mom laughed. "You're not allergic to anything, Wil. Look, it really does like you!"

The cat began nuzzling my neck and licking my face. Great. It looked like I'd made a new friend.

"Listen, folks," I said, wincing as I carefully extracted the little feline's claws from my shirt. "I kind of gotta run. Ronnie's moving to Texas in a few days, and I'd like to go over there for a couple of hours, if it's okay with you." I handed the cat back to Sharon.

My mother looked hurt. "Honey," she said, "we wanted you to open up your presents. Can't this wait?"

"Oh, alright," I said, reluctantly. There only seemed to be three or four presents with my name on it, but one of them was rather large.

"Open this one first, Wil!" cried Sharon, who pushed the biggest package out on the carpet, while almost dropping her cat, which seemed to be permanently fastened to her shoulder.

"Careful, Sharon!" called my mother.

My dad walked up to me and put his hand on my shoulder. "We both thought you deserved something special for finally making the Honor Roll, son," he said, smiling broadly.

"I hope it's a one-way ticket back to LaFontaine," I muttered to myself. I still missed being with my friends back at the gifted kids school across town. 'Brainiac school,' as Sky called it.

I tore open the package and was stunned. It was an all-in-one super-deluxe Lafayette stereo system, complete with an 8-track player, turntable, tuner, speakers... the works!

"WOW!" I exclaimed, completely bowled over. "Gosh! Mom... Dad... This is just too cool!"

The knobs gleamed, and it looked like there were hundreds of buttons, knobs, and jacks on the thing. It looked even better than the one back in Rick & Ronnie's room.

Shit -- there wasn't much time left. I had to get going.

"We knew you'd like it, son," said my father. "You've been listening to that little cheap radio of yours for years, and we thought it needed replacing. Your friend Sky told us you were really a music fan, and this was something you'd really appreciate."

"It's great, Dad," I said. "But l really gotta go see Ronnie. He's only going to be here a few more days, and then he and his brother are gone forever." I started for the door.

"Alright," called my mom, " but don't forget -- Christmas dinner is at 3PM at your grandmother's house! You must be back here not a minute later than 2:30, sharp!"

I rolled my eyes. "Jeez, do I have to go?" I whined.

"Yes, you have to go, William!" muttered my father, as he walked back towards the tree. "Come on, son. It's only once a year."

My mother smiled at me. "Wil, the whole family will be there. You'll get to see your cousins and your aunt and uncle."

Another stupid dinner with those idiots, I thought. "What time will we be home by?" I asked.

"Oh, the usual -- 7:30, 8:00," she said. "What's your hurry?" my mom asked, suspiciously.

"Oh, nothing," I said, grabbing two packages and opening the door. "I'll be back by 2:00, I promise!"

Jesus, I thought, as my bike bounced over the curb to Rick and Ronnie's house. There sure were a lot of expensive cars here in the driveway. I counted two Mercedes, a Cadillac, plus a big Rolls-Royce with a fancy canvas cover on it over on the left. I let my bike rest on the side of a tree, then ran up to the doorbell and rang it. The maid let me in, and I noticed the living room was filled with more than a dozen relatives. Most of the men were wearing cowboy hats. I could smell the faint aroma of a wonderful dinner in the air, but Rick and Ronnie were nowhere to be found.

"Pssst!"

I turned to my right and saw Rick through the doorway to the den.

"We're in here!" he said, waving me over.

I ran over and he closed the swinging door. Ron was sitting on the corner of their pool table, idly rolling a billiard ball and letting it bounce back off a side rail.

"Ronnie! I got here as quickly as I could, man," I said, apologetically. "Merry Christmas, guys." I laid the two small packages on the pool table.

Ron hopped off the table and hugged me, then began sobbing. "Mom says we're almost outta money," he cried. "We've gotta go live on Uncle Bob's ranch, just outside of Dallas."

Rick nodded. "He's a mil-mil-millionaire," he said. "Oil money."

"Black gold," I chuckled. "Texas tea!"

"Shut up, Wil!" wailed Ronnie. "This isn't funny."

Shit. I thought for sure he'd appreciate that one. "Is this for real, Ronnie?" I asked.

He nodded, sniffling. "We leave in four days, a week before school starts back up."

Rick sat in a chair next to us. "I hate T-T-Texas," he said angrily, turning away.

"Look guys," I said, trying to be as optimistic as I could. "Here's some stuff I got you for Christmas."

Rick and Ron trotted over and tore open the wrapping paper. "Wow!" said Rick, examining the flying saucer artwork on the model kit box. "This is one I honestly d-d-don't have yet! Thanks, Wil."

"Warning, warning!" said Ronnie, in a dead-on impersonation of the Lost in Space robot. He held it up to my shoulder. "Warning, Wil Larson! That does not compute."

I rolled my eyes and laughed. "Shaddup, you bubble-headed booby," I said, playfully poking him in the chest.

Ron looked at the robot, then back up at me. "I love you, Wil," he said in his own voice. He leaned forward and I let him kiss me, then I kissed him back.

Fuck, I thought. They may get me crying, if this keeps up much longer.

"Hey, kids!" drawled a voice from the other room.

Ronnie jumped away from me and stared as a man wearing a gray cowboy hat burst through the door.

"Oh -- howdy there, son!" he said, walking in and looking up at me. He stuck out his hand and we shook. "Ah'm Uncle Bob," he said with a drawl, squeezing my hand hard enough to make me wince. "Bob Lannigan. I'm the boys' uncle."

"This is Wil," said Ronnie. "He's a friend of mine from school."

"Oh, yeah," said Uncle Bob. "The boys talk about 'cha all the time! You look like a fine, upstandin' young man. Maybe y'all can come out to th' ranch and visit sometime." He looked down at the two brothers. "You boys best get washed up and ready for supper, ya hear?"

They nodded meekly, and the Texan walked off. "Nice meetin' ya, Wil'!" he called, pushing through the door to the group just outside.

"He's a jerk," muttered Ronnie. "I hate him."

"C'mon, Ronnie," I said. "You've got to have a place to live. If the guy's a millionaire, I can't see how it's going to be all that bad."

"We don't have any friends there," he said, his eyes filling with tears. "And you're not there."

I felt a pang. Jesus, maybe I really did love the little guy after all. I hugged him. "You'll make new friends in Dallas," I said, trying to convince myself.

"Not like you," he said.

Rick put his hand on my shoulder. Shit, even he was crying! "We-we-we really liked you, Wil," he stammered.

I grinned. "You mean me, or 'little Wil?'" I laughed.

Rick grinned and nodded. "Both of you," he said.

"What's your last day here?" I asked.

Ronnie started blubbering again, but Rick told him to shut up. "We're pa-pa-packing right now," said the older brother. "We're leaving Sunday morning."

I nodded. "Well, that means we have about four days," I grinned. "Maybe we can make the most of it."

Ronnie stopped crying and looked up at me slyly. "Thanks, Wil," he sniffled. He reached forward and gently squeezed my crotch, then grinned. "Can you stay here with us today?" he asked.

I laughed, then thought of Cynthia. Shit. I had to go back home, have dinner at my Grandparents' place, then... well, give Cyn her 'present.' I winced.

"Ronnie, I'm sorry," I explained. "I gotta see my relatives for Christmas dinner."

"What about later?" he asked.

I sighed. Ron had apparently forgotten our phone conversation from last night.

"Cynthia..." I said, feeling embarrassed. "Cyn... she... she got me to agree to come over after that."

"Shit," he said, pulling his hand away and pouting. "I knew it. That bitch."

Rick grinned. "Does she know about your d-d-d-...."

I cut him off. "Yeah, she knows. She blew me last night at the country club."

"No shit! Wow, that's cool," said Rick, his stutter suddenly gone again. "Are you really gonna fuck her tonight?"

Ronnie scowled at me. "I bet she's got teeth down there," he warned.

"C'mon, Ronnie," I said. "Every guy needs to get laid sometime!"

Rick turned to his little brother. "Shut up, R-R-Ronnie!" He put his arm around my shoulders and whispered, "come with me."

We walked quickly down the hall to their bedroom, past two ladies coming out of the guest bathroom. Rick closed their door, then reached behind one of the larger robot toys on his shelf and pulled out a package of a dozen Trojan "X-Tra Comfort" prophylactics. A warning label on the package proclaimed "for the prevention of disease."

"You'll wanna use these," he whispered. "For protection."

I nodded, then had a panicked thought. "What if they don't fit?" I asked

"Let's try one on and see," he grinned. Rick led me into the bathroom, then shut the door and locked it.

I yanked down my pants and underwear, and quickly massaged my endowment until it was sufficiently stiff. "How do you get one of these things on?" I whispered.

"I d-d-dunno," he said, gazing down at my groin. "I've n-n-never really used one before."

I laughed. "Well, let's read the directions."

The box didn't give us a clue. I guess adults just knew about this stuff automatically. Rick tore open one of the little round coin-shaped foil packages and pulled it out, then let it unroll to its full length. He held the rubber next to my erection, which dwarfed the prophylactic.

"Is this the biggest size they make?" I asked.

"M-m-maybe it'll stretch," he said.

"It had better," I said.

We spent a minute or two trying to slide it on, but it was almost impossible. Shit, I thought, feeling the rubber. It was greasy, coated with some kind of weird powder. Definitely not like any balloon I'd ever seen.

"Let me try another one," I said.

Rick handed me a second foil package. I opened it up and carefully examined the rolled-up latex, then had an idea. I put it on my engorged head and then slowly rolled it down until it stopped, a little more than halfway. Well, at least it went on that time.

"Is that as far as it g-g-goes?" said Rick, watching me intently.

"Yeah," I nodded. "It's a little tight."

He giggled. "Maybe you n-need an extra large."

"I think it's 'one size fits all'," I sighed. "It better be enough for me to have sex with Cynthia and not get her pregnant."

Over the past six months, I'd read enough sex manuals at the public library to almost be an expert on the subject -- or at least, as much as you could from reading books.

Rick looked up at me, then stood up and smiled. "Ronnie really likes you," he whispered. "I never t-t-told you," he said, trying desperately not to stammer, "but I r-r-really like you, too, Wil."

He reached down and stroked me, gently, and I saw his shorts tent out.

"Jesus, Rick!" I moaned. "Let's do that tomorrow, okay?"

He laughed and let me go. "Okay," he said, "but I want first d-d-dibs at you."

I laughed, then felt a pang. Shit, I was really gonna miss both of The Geek Brothers, I thought.

Suddenly, somebody pounded on the bathroom door. "What're you guys doin' in there?" yelled Ronnie.

Quickly, I stuffed the pack of condoms in my back pocket, shoved my erection back in my underwear, and pulled up my pants. Rick opened the door, and Ronnie eyed us both suspiciously.

I held my hands up in the air. "I swear, we didn't do anything, Ronnie," I started. "He was just giving me some rubbers."

"Can you come back tonight after you see Cynthia?" he asked, in a small voice. "Even for a few minutes?"

I laughed. "If I'm still alive. I'll try to, Ronnie."

He nodded, and another tear slid down his face.

"If it makes you feel any better, Ronnie," I said, smiling, "you're definitely much better at taking care of me than Cyn is, for sure."

He looked up and grinned. Rick giggled.

"You, too, Rick," I said, playfully poking his bulging crotch. Both brothers laughed.

"We got a present for you, Wil," said Ronnie shyly.

"You mean in addition to the rubbers?" I asked.

Each of them handed me a small package. Ron's was the hardback edition of Arthur C. Clarke's novelization of 2001, which had just come out, and Rick had a paperback book on the making of the film. I hadn't had the time to see the movie, which had been sold out for weeks at just one theater downtown, but I remembered I'd told them about it.

"Wow, guys," I said. "This is really neat! I can't wait to read them."

"We knew you l-liked to read b-b-books," said Rick.

I nodded, already scanning the flyleaf of the first volume.

"But I'll always appreciate how you taught me the stuff you couldn't learn from books," I said, smiling.

Ron leaned over and kissed me again, and Rick put his arm around my shoulder.

I glanced down at my watch. "Shit," I said. "I'm sorry, guys -- I've got to get back home for Christmas dinner."

"Okay, we'll let ya go," said Ron. "But tomorrow night, you're all ours." He grinned.

"And we wa-wa-want all the details on Cynthia!" said Rick, wiggling his eyebrows.

To avoid having to go through the crowd at the front of the house, the three of us slipped out a side door to the backyard and ran over to the outside gate.

"Be careful with the slut!" yelled Ronnie, as I jumped on my bike and began pedaling away. I looked back just as Rick punched his brother and yelled at him to shut up.

I arrived back at home to find Sharon totally preoccupied with her new cat. They were playing hide and seek on the couch, but I think the cat was winning. The rest of my presents were pretty much what I expected. They got me the telescope I asked for, which was pretty neat, but I was a little disappointed that it didn't look quite as big as it did in the Edmund Scientific catalog. The other three packages were all clothes, which I had to admit, I needed pretty badly.

Sky's family had gone on vacation earlier that morning with some kind of boat trip to the Bahamas. I cursed myself that I hadn't even called them before they left, but I knew I'd see Sky when they came back, after New Year's. Sky and his folks had gotten me a cool tripod for my new telescope. I'd hoped my little gift to him of a framed photograph wouldn't look too tacky by comparison.

I gave my dad a new fancy silver Gillette Razor kit, and got my mom a new wallet. I guess my family was into 'useful' gifts most of the time. My dad thanked me, then asked me to come with him upstairs.

"Sure, Dad," I said, following him into his bathroom.

"I want you to have my old one," he said, handing me the chrome-handled safety razor.

I rolled my eyes. "Gee, Dad, I'm only 13. I'm not exactly shaving yet," I mumbled.

He grinned. "You look at yourself in the mirror lately, son?"

Yeah, I thought -- just checking to see how I looked after I got raped the other night. I shook my head.

"Take a good look in the light," he said.

I leaned forward. Well, I'll be damned, I thought. There was a visible line of peach-fuzz on my upper lip. Not quite as much as Sky's, but at least I was on the way there.

"Wow, Dad!" I said. "Maybe I do need to shave -- once in awhile, anyway." He nodded and we both laughed.

He gave me a few pointers, along with a can of shaving cream. "This is a rite of passage, son," he explained. "You know, this is a big deal, when a father gets to show his son how to shave his face."

I nodded, then thought about the other rite of passage that awaited me tonight. I glanced over at my father, who was beaming with pride. I smiled back, and thought, thank God you can't read my mind, Dad.

Christmas Dinner with the wacky relatives was as stupid as ever. I didn't get to see my out-of-town cousins very often. My cousin David was almost exactly my age, but we didn't have a lot in common, plus he was only in 7th grade. His 11 year-old brother Bruce was a lot more precocious. When I was washing my hands in my grandmother's bathroom, my younger cousin walked in and smiled at me.

"Looks like you have something in your pants," he said.

I looked down and rolled my eyes, then rearranged my organ to make it a little less visible.

Bruce giggled. "My brother says the guys in your family have real big dicks."

I blanched. "He said that?" I guessed that he'd snuck a glance at me when we visited them for vacation over the summer.

My cousin nodded. "You wanna see mine?" He began unzipping his pants.

"Maybe later, Bruce," I said, hanging up the towel. "Let's eat first."

I managed to successfully avoid both cousins for the rest of the afternoon. Well, I guess I now know which side of the family I got my horniness from, I mused.

Finally, around 8:30PM, we got back home. "I'm feeling real tired, Mom," I said, faking a yawn as I walked upstairs. "I want to listen to my new stereo."

"I'm tired, too," said Sharon, yawning for real. My sister had been up since 7AM playing with her dolls, so I wasn't surprised. Her cat was still in her arms, but the tiny feline looked like she was still feisty and ready to play.

We said our goodnights, and I headed upstairs. I closed and locked my door, then took off my suit and hung it up in my closet. I found a Sgt. Pepper 8-track tape and jammed it in the front of my new stereo. Hmmm -- it sounded pretty good. I turned down the volume just enough to make it sound legit, and hit the 'auto-repeat' button. That ought to do it.

I quickly slipped on my jeans, a turtleneck sweater and some sneakers, then noiselessly slid open my bedroom window and looked outside. The coast was clear. I tentatively stuck my foot out on the metal drainpipe outside. I didn't do this very often, but this emergency exit came in handy once in awhile. The drainpipe creaked a little bit, but it still seemed to hold my weight okay. I stepped out and grabbed on to the TV antenna pole attached to the side of the house.

Just as I gathered my courage to slide down, I caught myself. Shit -- the rubbers! I crawled back inside and grabbed the package of Trojans that Rick had given me earlier, and took one out. I looked at it and thought for a minute.

"Better play it safe," I muttered to myself, and grabbed three more. I shoved the little round foil packages into my back pocket, then hid the box and crawled back out the window. I silently slid it shut, then slid down the aluminum pole, grabbed my bike and tore off into the night.

It was beginning to drizzle. I silently cursed, desperately wishing that I'd brought my raincoat. I quickly pedaled down the rain-slicked side streets, cutting through a nearby park as a shortcut, and made it over to Cyn's house in under ten minutes. All of the lights on her house were out, except for one in the very back. That had to be her room, I thought. I stashed my bike in the trees, then tip-toed over to the side of her house. Should I try to climb the wooden fence? Just as I started to reach for the latch, a loud barking started up on the other side of the gate. I jumped back. From the sound of it, it sounded like a German Shepherd, and a big one, too.

The front porch light suddenly turned on, and the screen door opened. "Wil!" said a voice. "Is that you?"

"No! It's Santa Claus!" I whispered loudly. "I've brought you a present!"

Cyn stepped out wearing just a thin nightgown and grinned. "I was afraid you wouldn't come," she said. "I think we've got at least two hours before my folks get back. Come on upstairs."

I ran up the porch to her front door. She grabbed me by the hand and took me inside, then hungrily pulled me to her and kissed me, deeply. I inhaled her scent. She was wonderful --a great clean smell, mixed in with some kind of sharp, seductive fragrance. After a moment, I pulled back and smiled at her.

"I've thought of you all day, Wil," she said, smiling back.

"Me, too," I nodded, almost truthfully.

She took me by the hand and pulled me up the stairs, laughing. We went into her room, which was the last door on the right. A Monkees poster with a large photo of Davy Jones was on the wall next to her bed, which had four brass posts and a frilly white bedspread. She turned the light on and started unbuttoning my pants.

"Can't we, uh, keep the lights off," I stammered. Christ, I thought. I didn't want to have to explain the bruises to her.

She frowned. "You don't have to be shy with me, Wil," she said. "I want to see all of you tonight."

"Please Cynthia," I said, reaching for her breast. God, she was soft -- bigger than I expected, too. "I'm... a little shy. Can we just have the night-light on?"

"If that's what you want," she whispered, reaching for the light. She let her nightgown slip to the floor, then pulled off my sweater and kissed my chest. I stiffened almost immediately when she began swirling her tongue around my left nipple.

"Oh, god, Cyn," I moaned, pulling her to the bed. I kicked off my shoes, then pulled off my pants and underwear with one yank. We kissed passionately for several minutes, and I kissed her breasts.

"Please, Wil," she moaned. "Please fuck me."

I blanched at the sound of the word. It sounded so... so forbidden.

"W-w-wait a minute," I stammered. "I've brought... uh, 'protection'."

She giggled. "Let me help you," she whispered. She took the foil package out of my hands, tore it open with her teeth, then slipped it over my stiff erection. I think she'd had some practice with this before.

"There," she said. "Are you ready?"

I winced. Damn, these things are tight, I thought. If they're this tight now, I hope they make bigger ones by the time I turn 18.

She pulled me on top of her and reached down below, and I felt myself entering something warm and tantalizingly tight.

"God, Wil," she said. "Y-y-you're even bigger than I remembered," she said, gritting her teeth.

I began to push a little harder. Suddenly, I felt some resistance, and she pulled back from me. "Wait a minute," she panted. "Go a little slower."

I just wanted to get this thing over with. I began to fondle her breasts, which were amazingly soft and warm. She pulled me back to her mouth, and kissed me passionately. Her face was much softer than a guy's, I thought, then I felt a pang at remembering how Ronnie had kissed me earlier that afternoon.

Ronnie. Was I finally beginning to fall in love with him? Now, when he was about to be wrenched away from me, forever?

My arousal began to wilt. I concentrated on getting it back, just as Cyn's kisses became more fevered, more passionate.

"I'm ready now, Wil," she moaned. "Please. Give it all to me. I need you so badly." She put her hands on my buttocks and pulled me closer to her.

I instantly surged back to life, and felt a warm throbbing between my legs. I felt like I was on fire. I leaned forward and shoved half of me inside her.

"OH, GOD! " she screamed. "You're too big, you're too big! Please, take it out!"

This isn't fun at all, I thought. My erection began to deflate again as I pulled out and sat up. "Oh, god, Cyn, I'm really sorry!" I said, panting.

She sobbed quietly. "Oh, I wanted you so much, Wil!" she cried. "Please, can you try again?"

I looked down. The Trojan was loosening up on my deflating member, but I was surprised to see that it actually fit a little better when I was soft.

"Shit, Cyn, I'm sorry," I said, kneeling forward on the bed and letting her see my groin. "I think you kinda scared 'Little Wil.'"

She nodded and sobbed quietly. I leaned forward and lay next to her, then kissed her neck and her cheek. "Do you... do you wanna do anything else?" I said, stroking her hair.

Cyn nodded, then leaned forward to kiss me, hungrily, her tongue slipping past my lips. She sucked on my lower lip and tenderly bit it. Ah, I thought, looking down. "I think 'Little Wil' has returned," I whispered, and she giggled.

"Wil, you know I've been with... a few guys in school already," she said.

So have I, I thought.

"I don't care, Cyn," I said, kissing her again. "I think you're kinda neat."

She hesitated. "I've... I've only really been with two boys before," she confessed. "I mean... going all the way."

I nodded. "Maybe we should, uh, take this a little slower," I began.

She smiled shyly at me. "Do you think you could do for me what I did for you... last night at the dance?" she whispered.

I looked down and saw an indistinct area between her legs, with just a few silky curls visible. I gulped. I wasn't ready for this, I thought.

"God, Cyn, I'm... I'm sorry," I said. "I've never done that before."

"I haven't been able to get any of my other boyfriends to do that, either," she said, softly.

I shuddered. How many guys have been down there already, I thought.

"Look, uh, Cyn," I said, sitting up. "Can we, you know... still see each other? You tell me when you're ready, and maybe we can try it again someday."

She nodded. "You're different from the others, Wil," she sighed. "You're real smart, and real sensitive. Sky thinks you're... you know... a homo-sexual."

She pronounced it just like that, with a hyphen. I felt my face redden with anger, but I knew she wouldn't be able to see it in the darkness. That son of a bitch, I thought. How could he tell her that?

Cyn leaned forward and stroked my chest, then put her head on my shoulder. "I know different, Wil," she murmured, kissing my cheek. "You're more of a man than anyone I've ever met."

I nodded. Yeah, by a good three or four inches at least, I thought. Not bad for a 13 year-old.

Suddenly, we heard a door slam from downstairs and a voice called out. "Cynthia! Your mother and I are home!"

"Oh, shit!" she whispered, jumping up from the bed.

"Is that your parents?" I said, my heart stopping momentarily.

"I'M UP HERE, DADDY!" she yelled, then turned back to me. "Wil, you'll have to go out this way," she whispered, then ran to the window and quickly opened it.

This is becoming a habit, I thought, as I quickly pulled my sweater back over my head and yanked my pants up. She pushed me towards the windowsill, and I looked out as I slipped my shoes on my feet. This was an older house, so at least I had a little more room to stand on. The ledge had a row of bricks, which led all the way to the front porch. I glanced down, and a huge dog looked up at me and barked loudly.

"Shut up, Boomer!" she yelled, then turned to me. "He won't hurt you. Just hang on to the wall, and then jump over to the porch roof. I do it all the time."

I nodded and made my way outside. "I'm really sorry for all this, Wil," she whispered. "Thanks for coming by." She pulled me close to her and kissed me for a moment. As much as I liked Ronnie and Sky, I thought, I had to admit, girls weren't half-bad sometimes.

"Cynthia!" yelled a voice, knocking on her door.

"Run, Wil!" she said, shoving me outside. The window slammed shut behind me, and the curtain quickly closed.

The light inside her room went on, illuminating the side of her house and the yard below. Shit, I thought. I was a lot higher up than I had thought. I looked over at the narrow ledge of bricks, and swallowed, hard. I heard several voices arguing behind the glass, but I tried to ignore them as I inched my way on down the path. The dog below growled and barked noisily.

"Shut up, Boomer!" I whispered loudly. The dog immediately stopped barking and looked up at me, curiously. Hmmm -- smart dog, I thought. I continued tip-toeing down the narrow ledge, trying to avoid looking down, and holding onto the side of the house as tightly as I could.

The dim voices inside the house continued yelling in the background, and I heard a door slam. My foot slipped on a wet spot on the bricks, but I caught myself just in time. At last, I made it over to the porch roof, which looked very sturdy. I got on my stomach and slowly slid myself up over the edge. Suddenly, a clay shingle broke off in my hand, and I almost fell. I silently cursed as it went over the side and smashed on the concrete driveway below.

Shit, I thought. I let myself drop to the wet grass, and made a last-ditch run for my bike, which was off to the left. The dog began barking again wildly behind the fence, and the porch light went back on. I jumped on my bike, shoved off, and pedaled as fast as I could down the street in the darkness.

Minutes later, I pulled up at a phone booth near a 7-11. Still panting for breath, I jumped inside, closed the door, and dialed Ronnie's number. He picked up on the first ring.

"Hello?" he answered.

"Ronnie! It's me."

"Wil!" he said excitedly. "Did you... did you and Cynthia do it?"

"Almost," I said, chuckling. "As it turned out, I was... ah... a little more than she could handle."

Ronnie went into hysterics. "What kinda slut is SHE?" he yelled, laughing uncontrollably. I heard another voice in the background, and Ronnie yelled, "Wil almost killed her with his big dick!" Somebody else yelled back "I knew it!"

I rolled my eyes. "I hope that's your brother," I muttered.

"No, it's my MOTHER, you asshole," he giggled. I heard Rick laugh beside him.

I grinned. "Listen, Ronnie. My parents don't know I'm out. I really can't come by tonight. I swear, I'll be over first thing in the morning."

Ron giggled again. "We want ya to meet somebody. Trust me, you'll like 'em."

I furrowed my brow. "I already met Uncle Bob," I said.

Ron giggled again. "You're getting warm."

I didn't see any kids there... unless...

Suddenly, a new voice came on the line. "My daddy says ever-thang's bigger in Texas," he drawled, "but Rick and Ronnie here tell me that ain't always true."

"Who are you?" I asked.

"I'm Robbie Junior, but folks call me 'RJ'. You met m' dad earlier."

Hmmm, probably a chip off the old block. "Look, whoever you are, I've got to go," I said, impatiently.

"That's fine," he drawled. "I heard all about y'all, Wil. You jes' come by tomorrow, ya hear? Look forward to meetin' ya." He handed the phone back to Ronnie.

"Come over tomorrow, Wil," he said. "We've only got three more days."

"I'll be there, Ron. I swear. Goodnight, babe."

"Goodnight, Wil," he said. Then in a low voice, he whispered, "I love you, Wil."

"I... love you, too, Ronnie," I said. I hung the phone up, feeling uneasy. Who was this Texas kid, I thought?

I made it back to my house in minutes, locked up my bike on the side porch, then shimmied back up the TV antenna mast to my room. My new stereo was softly playing 'With a Little Help from My Friends.' The alarm clock read 10:15. Better make this look good, I thought. I ripped off my clothes, then threw on a T-shirt and shorts, unlocked my door, and casually walked down the hall, pretending to yawn.

"Wil!" called my mother from down the hall. "Is that you?"

"Yeah, Mom," I said, as sleepily as I could. "I gotta pee."

She stuck her head out her bedroom door. "We tried to wake you half an hour ago, but you wouldn't answer," she said, suspiciously.

I feigned a look of utter innocence. Moi? "I was there the whole time, Mom," I said, yawning again. "I'm still really tired from the dance last night. It really took a lot out of me."

And then some, I thought.

She laughed. "I guess it did. Well, your little friend Ronnie called an hour ago. I told him you'd call him back."

That idiot, I said, silently cursing him. "I'll call him in the morning. It's too late now, Mom. G'night!"

"Goodnight, honey. Merry Christmas," she said, leaning forward and kissing me on the cheek.

"Oh, Mom!" I whined, rubbing my face. She laughed and shook her head, then closed their bedroom door.

Shit, I thought. That was close. I took care of 'walking the dog', then returned to my room, tore off my clothes, and fell in bed, exhausted with the night's activities. I hoped that Cynthia wouldn't be too pissed-off at me. Shit. She could really spread some bad rumors about me at school, I thought.

And I wondered who this "RJ" kid was, over at Rick and Ronnie's house. I yawned, for real this time, then lay back and listened to my stereo play "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds." In a few moments, I began to float down a river with tangerine trees and marmalade skies, and drifted off to sleep.
 
 
 

© 2001, John Francis