“You’re gonna be on your own till she gets here. Do you want me to take the morning off till she arrives? I could…”
“No, don’t do that, Dad. I’ll be fine. We’d only end up arguing…”
“We don’t always…”
Shouting at each other from different rooms made the conversation difficult. Carly followed her Dad to the kitchen and began helping him cook breakfast. It would probably be best, his fry ups weren’t great.
“What about your boss. Won’t he give you a hard time? You’re always saying…”
Carl continued interrupting as he collected eggs and marge from the fridge. “Thanks to your Mum, and me a bit, it looks like we got rid of him…”
“Mum? What’s she got to do with it? She…”
“You don’t know yet do you? Your Mum was working at my place until yesterday. It’s a long story but she was the auditor, my boss messed up, and her report got him fired.” Carl began frying the bacon and eggs.
“Good old Mum, always screwing up someone’s life.” Carly popped two slices in the toaster as she replied to her Dad.
“That’s a bit harsh, Carly. Martin Miller deserved it. She’s done me a big favour.”
“Who’s gonna be your new boss?”
“Too early to worry about that. You never know, maybe they’ll promote me.”
“Not if you don’t turn up they won’t.”
“OK, I’m going. Anyone would think you wanted me out.” He took out two plates and placed the fry ups on each. “I’ll eat this culinary masterpiece and then I’ll go.”
Carly wrinkled her nose. He had put too much marge in and burnt the egg. Less of a birthday treat and more of a greasy spoon imitation. But Carl was proud of his efforts.
“Gordon Ramsey’s got nothing on me.” They both sat in the living room polishing off the food. Carl quickly ate and then got up to leave. “This is great. Me and you getting on, cooking together and enjoying a birthday breakfast. With Martin getting fired and my love life …” He broke off, noticing her smile disappearing, and quit while he was ahead. “Anyway, good things come in threes. Life’s good, for a change.”
Carly chuckled. “OK, Dad, maybe you should go, before you and me fall out again.”
“I’ll see you this evening, earlier if I can get away. Enjoy your birthday anyway.”
“Thanks, Dad. Leaving me with the washing up on my birthday.”
Carl grinned “You can leave it till I get home tonight. I’ll do it as an extra birthday treat.”
He kissed his daughter on the cheek and left, leaving Carly wondering what he would say if he knew Nathan was coming round. She wished she could see Jacquie and Beth and tell them all about Nathan and talk about what he was planning. They would have been interested, but a bit jealous. But why should they be jealous? She was excited about Nathan coming round – he was a fit boyfriend – but the thought of having sex with him was moist. They hadn’t even been out together. Would it hurt her? Would she bleed? It was well scary.
Carly took her mind off her impending loss of virginity by spending time on her Dad’s laptop. She went on the Internet and found famous people sharing her birthday. The geeky bloke from ‘Friends’, a Roumanian gymnast and mass murderer, Charles Manson. Nobody good. Every so often, she looked at her mobile to see if she had any texts. She thought her Mum would send one but nothing came. From around eleven she gave up waiting for her mum and was instead focusing on Nathan’s arrival. In preparation, she washed and straightened her hair, put her best push up bra on, applied foundation and mascara and placed the box of sanitary towels next to her bed. She liked Nathan, but she looked at the pads and couldn’t feel good…perhaps if her Mum had been around to talk to…
* * *
Marie O’Brien woke up in Louis’ bed.
“Christ Louis, it’s 11.30. I’m supposed to be seeing Carly today. It’s her birthday.”
She leapt out of bed and began getting dressed.
“How old is she?”
Marie whispered “13.”
Louis wasn’t sure he had heard correctly. “Did you say 13?”
“Yes, you heard,” she threw over her shoulder.
He was shocked. “Christ she’s nearer my age than…”
“Yes, alright, Louis.” Marie responded frostily. “Don’t spell…”
“It doesn’t matter, honestly.” Louis interrupted to reassure her. “Do you want me to come with you?”
“No, that’s insane. It’s far too early for Carly to meet my toy boy lover. She’s had enough to contend with lately.”
“OK, I just thought…”
“Look I intended to be at Carly’s by eight in the morning but thanks to sex and cheap plonk, the best that I can hope for is mid-afternoon.” Marie scrambled around for her shoes, which had disappeared under the bed. “I’ve got to pick up Carly’s present so I’ll be driving around like a maniac.”
“OK, I get the….”
Marie was beginning to panic. She had let Carly down so many times. And now, on her daughter’s birthday, she was going to be so much later than she’d promised. This time, she couldn’t even use work as an excuse. By putting pressure on, Louis was irritating her. She cut across him.
“Anyway, I’d have to tell Carly about us first, rather than turn up with you. You aren’t missing anything – she’ll probably give you hell. She’s not been too nice to Janice.”
Marie was dressed now but Louis was still in bed, in his boxers, looking slightly hurt by the rejection. Marie kissed him on the forehead and went to leave.
“Don’t sulk, babe. It’s been great,” she said, flatly.
Louis followed her to the door and she turned around for a final snog. Marie extricated herself. She was in a rush.
“I promise you Louis, next time you can meet my girls.”
She was out the door and in to the street. Louis flung open his bedroom window and shouted down.
“Marie. We both left our cars at Crouts office on Wednesday.”
“Oh shit. No wonder I couldn’t find it. Can you call me a cab?”
“You’re a cab,” he shouted back.
Marie came back to the flat. There was no cab available for 30 minutes. Marie had time to undress again, have passionate sex with Louis (twice) and be dressed ready for the cab, when it finally arrived at 12.15.
* * *
Nathan was awoken at 7.45 by his mum and was soon dressed for school. He walked down the road and hung around the local shops, from where he could see his Mum walk off to work. He then went back home to bed and crawled out of his pit at just after twelve.
Once up and dressed, he made his way to Carly’s place. He arrived at five past one and knocked on the door, hearing her run down the hall to meet him.
She was dressed in a micro skirt and crop top and although she looked cute she looked young, younger than 15. Nathan hesitated. She had better not be lying about her age. He followed her inside.
Carly saw his indecision
“Are you alright?” she asked.
“Yeah, yeah, course I am, sorry. How are you?” He followed her to the living room. Carly sat on the settee. Nathan followed suit but maintained a space between them. He was uneasy about this girl.
“I’m like, OK, but have you forgotten what day it is?”
Nathan frowned. “It’s the 12th of Nov...”
“Not the date – it’s like, my birthday. Have you forgotten?”
“No course not, I…How old are you again?”
“I’m f…fifteen today. Fifteen. Born in 1993. Why? Does it matter?”
Nathan stood up. “No…no. I’ve got to go out. See you in a minute.”
With that he was back out the front door. He should have bought Carly at least a card. At the local sweet shop, he chose a card, ‘For my special girlfriend’ and a box of chocolates. Then he decided that the card was way over the top and anyway she could hardly show it on the mantelpiece. Instead
, he picked one for a teenage girl and ran back to her house.
This time, when Carly answered the door, Nathan wished her Happy Birthday, put his arms around her and gave her the chocolates.
“Choccies, and a card. Sweet. We can open these later.”
Carly led Nathan to the living room, where they sat on the settee again and Carly opened Nathan’s card.
“The card isn’t too personal, but you can hardly put it up.”
“Why not?”
“A bit early to go public with our parents. A bit weird as well, with them at it.”
Carly grimaced. “Don’t, please. It’s disgusting.” She looked at the card. “Wait a sec. You haven’t written in it yet.”
“Oh yeah, sorry. Give us a pen. I’ll just write ‘To Carly, From Nathan.’ Can’t be too obvious.”
She placed his card on the window ledge.
“Fancy a lager?”
She gave Nathan a can of lager from her Dad’s fridge and took one herself.
Now they sat next to each other on the settee, sipping from the cans.
“What did you get for your birthday?” Nathan asked.
“An MP4 player and my mum is coming over with a laptop.”
“Safe. How did you get your folks to be so generous?”
Carly shrugged. “I wasn’t like, begging it from them. They feel guilty coz they’re crap parents.” Nathan nodded in approval.
“Nice one. If my Mum stays with your Dad I know what to ask for on my birthday.”
“You could be the son he wanted instead of me.”
“Nah, Dad’s love their little girls. You haven’t any brothers or sisters, so you’re his little princess.” Nathan’s mind wondered to his own Dad. If he’d been a girl, might his Dad have stayed with Janice?
“Well, I wish I wasn’t. Anyway I have got a sister. My Mum has me and my sister Gemma.”
“Half sister then.” Nathan corrected her. Again he thought about his own father and whether he had any half brothers or sisters. Could have loads – his Dad had him when he was about 21.
Carly didn’t notice that Nathan was distracted. “Yeah – a better half. She’s really sweet. She’s only six.”
“Well so is her sister.” It was difficult for Nathan to spout a romantic compliment and as he said it he wasn’t sure if it made sense.
“I’m not six.”
“No, I didn’t mean that. You’re ehm… sweet, that’s what I meant.”
Carly laughed. “I know what you meant. Just playing with you.”
Nathan had been sat on one end of the settee with Carly on the other, but he went over to her to tickle or play fight with her (he had not yet decided).
“Playing with me, are you?” and he opted for tickling her.
As she giggled, the tickling became kissing. After a while, Nathan asked her the question that she had been anticipating and slightly dreading.
“Do you want to go upstairs?”
“Yeah, OK.”
Nathan took her by the hand and led her out of the living room. He paused in the kitchen and took a couple more cans of lager from the fridge. Carly watched him opening the cans.
“You’re not shook, are you?” she asked, hoping that he was.
“No. It’s to get us in the mood. Why, are you nervous?”
“No, ‘course not. Are you?”
“No. Don’t worry, Carly. It’ll be good.”
Nathan led Carly upstairs to her bedroom. She was nervous, almost shaking. They sat on the bed and he stroked her hair. It was good that she had a double bed, but it was such a little girl’s bedroom. The pink walls, the soft toys; it wouldn’t be like it was with Kelly. Kel was a woman; this was a touch of the Gary Glitters. It was obvious she was nervous. She was not up for sex. He asked if she wanted music on. She asked him for Avril Lavigne but he ignored her and put on Eminem’s “Encore”.
Then they started kissing. Carly was comfortable with lipsin. Maybe he would take things slowly. He put his hand up her top. Again that was OK and even when he put his hand down her skirt she was relatively calm. He was moving through the gears smoothly and was well placed in third.
After a few minutes lipsin, they needed a breath break so they stopped and began drinking the second can of lager. When they restarted, Nathan was ready to do some serious motorway driving. After Kelly, he couldn’t be satisfied with a bit of kissing.
“Carly, are you ready?”
“For what?”
“You know,” and pointed to the condom packet he had taken from his trousers.
“Can we wait a bit longer, Nath?” Carly asked in a tiny voice.
Nathan drew back and looked at her. “You’ve not done it before, have you?”
“What do you think? I am only…OK, I’m 14 today. Not 15. Alright?”
“That’s OK. Lots of 14…” but seeing the look on her face “…not with me. I’ve just heard…”
“Look, I’m…”
“OK, what about a blow job then?”
“In my mouth. God, no. Sorry but…”
“At least a hand job then.” He was sounding annoyed. He wouldn’t have bought such a big box of chocolates, just for a bit of lipsin.
“Yeah, OK then,” Carly agreed plaintively. She was keen to please.
Nathan unzipped his jeans and Carly masturbated her boyfriend. There was no pleasure for her and he did not put on a condom, so semen was soon covering her duvet.
“Oh, God, that’s horrible.”
Nathan laughed. It had felt good. He needed that. Carly wiped up the semen with tissue and threw it in the bin. Nathan drank some more lager.
“Why don’t we get into bed?”
“Just kissing and stuff?”
“Yeah, yeah. Just holding each other under the sheet.”
He took off his t shirt, and she took off her top and skirt. Chung but young he thought, and got into her bed. She climbed in beside him.
There were three in the bed. Nathan picked up the teddy bear and threw it to the end of the bed. It fell on the floor. He finished the second can of lager and started drinking Carly’s can that she had hardly touched.
They cuddled. He could feel a boner coming on.
“Can we stay like this, Nath? I’d like to stay like this forever,” Carly simpered.
“Course we can, but we’ve got to use these and it is your birthday.”
“They could wait another day.”
Now that they were in bed together and they had the condoms there, it seemed stupid not to be using them. He was up for it now. She was 14, he was only just 16, so not too much of the Gary’s.
“Don’t you want this to be special? I did think that you really liked me. Like I care about you.”
“I do care about you…lots. It’s just…”
“Come on, Carly,” he wheedled. “It’ll be safe. And when we’re old and grey together we’ll look back at this and laugh.”
Carly looked into his eyes, desperate to believe him.“You think we’ll be, like, old and grey together?”
“Yeah, why not?”
“With loads of kids and grandkids and a big house in the country?”
“Yeah, a massive ‘ouse and I’ll be a professional footballer and we’ll have millions and you’ll be a wag.”
“I love you, Nathan Richardson.” Nathan had the green light, he was in fifth and unstoppable.
“I do too, babe. Shall we…?” and he was already tearing the condom wrapper off.
“Nathan, there is one thing.”
Carly took off her knickers and showed him the bloodied sanitary towel that came off with them.
“Oh, shit. You’re on the blob.”
“Sorry. Does this mean…”
“Nah, fuck it. I’ve got a condom. It’ll be jokes.”
As he pulled out the sheath and placed it over his penis, a look of fear was etched on Carly’s face. Nathan was happy to ignore it.
&nbs
p; He placed his rubberized penis near Carly’s vagina and then like a battering ram at the door of a medieval castle, he began to force open her virginal entrance.
“Christ, Carly, I should have bought some of that K-Y Jelly.”
The epithet was the last words Carly heard as a virgin. A moment later, she screamed as Nathan forced his way inside her. She suffered a few more moments of writhing pain before it was finally over.
* * *
Marie O’Brien took a cab to Crouts Furnishers, asked to see Carl at reception and borrowed his house keys in order to surprise Carly at home with the brand new laptop and a birthday cake. She then drove to Tescos to buy the gifts, and phoned her Mum’s to speak to Gemma.
“Hello. Gemma here.” Good. Gemma answered, no difficult conversations with her mother, explaining where she had been all morning.
Marie told her younger daughter she would pick her up later after dropping off Carly’s present. Initially upset about missing a chance to give her older sister the card she had made for her, Marie was able to pacify her and Gemma was happy enough, when they finished chatting.
At least one daughter didn’t hate her.
Marie went home, changed into jeans and t shirt, and left a note for her soon to be second ex-husband that she might not be back that night, before driving the twenty miles to her first ex-husband’s house.
After the sleepless night thanks to Louis, she was exhausted by the time she arrived. She used Carl’s keys to open the front door and called out to her daughter. All she could hear was what sounded like a scream muffled by the sound of music blasting out.
Running up the stairs, she heard what she was certain was another scream. Without hesitating, she flung open Carly’s bedroom door. Her innocent teenage daughter appeared to be being defiled by a much older boy. Even worse, Marie could clearly see blood pools on the sheets.
“Mum, what are you doing here?”
Carly gasped wide-eyed at her mother, sounding scared and distressed. The boy barely acknowledged Marie’s presence. Striding across the room, Marie pulled him off by his shoulders and Carly clambered out of bed covering herself with her duvet. Nathan lay on his back, covering his genitals, looking up at Marie. He had just ejaculated and although his erection quickly subsided, he couldn’t keep the satisfied smirk off his face.
It Always Rains in November Page 21
