Girls. They stared and giggled and when they saw my eyes, they’d gawk. At first I didn’t get it. In fact, I still didn’t totally understand it. I just went with it because the ones who did it so obviously were normally open to my brand of conversation, which didn’t include a lot of talking. And damn if I didn’t need that kind of distraction.
So when I glanced up and saw a trio of them, I almost smiled but stopped myself. I had to admit the school wouldn’t be all that bad if the three were a sample of the rest of the girl population.
First up was a blonde with serious curves who wore a been there done that smile. I moved on to the brunette next to her. The girl was clearly a virgin, but she stared me down like she wanted me to be her first. I’d done several virgins, so I wasn’t scared off.
Then the last. I sucked in a quiet breath. She was fucking gorgeous, the full package, from her perfect face framed by dark hair, to her body that created an instant reaction in my own to the way her cheeks colored in a blush when our eyes met. That was her virgin calling card. And damn if that didn’t mean she wasn’t ready for the likes of me. As much as I craved her, I settled for option number two.
I couldn’t have been more right. When I challenged the first brunette with my stare, she skipped her way over to me with her hand extended.
“Hi, I’m Debbie. Welcome to our school.”
I lifted my chin and ignored her hand. She dropped it to her hip, trying to play it off.
“So, do you talk?”
I said nothing, still considering whether banging this girl was worth the virgin blues that came after. Because no matter how many times I’d made my intentions clear, there were always some who thought they’d be the one to change my mind.
“Are you going to tell me your name?”
I needed to say something if I planned to get any. Admittedly, I’d been watching the other brunette over her shoulder. She’d turned around when Debbie came bouncing over. Still, I tracked the other girl’s movements as she strode away before I said, “Yeah, sorry. I’m Kelley.”
Coolly, I watched her reaction. If she snickered over my name, we were done. Lucky for her, she grew a smile worthy of the size of Texas. Bingo, I was in.
“Why don’t you let me give you a tour of the school?”
I snickered. “Sure thing.”
During said tour, she linked her arm in mine. She prattled on about stuff I didn’t remember. I kept envisioning the other girl on my arm. So when eventually asked if I wanted to hang out during halftime at the football game that Friday, she had to repeat her question. Hearing her the second time, I gave her a non-committal response, which she’d taken as a yes. Time would tell. I’d have to see how clingy she was before I made up my mind.
After school, I met with the football coach only to find out I was a summer late and dollars short. Playing on the team required money for certain equipment the school didn’t provide. And it cost more than I had, which was nothing. I’d given all the money I’d earned over the summer to Mom. I didn’t want us to be a total charity case to my aunt and uncle.
Coach said, “Sorry, son, I would offer you help, but I’ve already given out all the donated money to returning students who needed it as well. And even if you could come up with the funds needed, I most likely couldn’t start you.”
Spots on the team had been earned over summer practice and according to him it wouldn’t be fair to start me even if my reputation preceded me. So I’d be riding the bench with money paid for equipment I wouldn’t use. And money didn’t grow on trees. I wouldn’t dare ask Mom for the cash I’d given her because she needed it more.
Football was my ticket away from my life and making a better one for my mom. If I couldn’t play this year, I would still have one more year to make my mark and get into a college, anywhere far from my dad. Meantime, I’d used my brain. Most people thought I was dumb, but I’d cruised through many exams, passing easily without studying. It was one of the reasons my former principal would give me a pass when I got into trouble.
I have to say when I saw her, I was pissed about something that had nothing to do with her. It was the fact that my dad was a jobless useless drunk who couldn’t take care of his family, forcing us to move, and me being unable to play ball, I narrowed my eyes and spit venom from my tongue.
So when she’d called me an ass, I hadn’t been expecting it. She seemed sweet like apple pie. Taken off guard, I’d said the first thing that came to my mind while doing nothing to help her pick up the cupcakes that tumbled to the floor. When she’d bent down, it sent my dick rising up like a football during the kickoff. Fuck, but I wanted her way more than that Debbie or the blonde.
And it was fucking cute when she stomped off after I told her I liked her ass. Her mouth had been perfect, and I was ready to give up my no kissing policy, which wasn’t as strict as it sounded. I was selective in who I kissed.
“Dude, don’t bother. She belongs to a guy named Ox, and he didn’t get the name for no reason.”
The guy materialized out of nowhere. He was a few inches shorter than me and had the look of the perfect wingman.
“Yeah, belongs to, huh?”
“Exactly. Lenny is like Ox’s future wife. He put a ring on it, dude. You didn’t see it? You don’t stand a chance.”
I eyed him. His words didn’t sound like he was jealous. “Lenny?” I questioned because I’d yet to find out her name.
“Lenora, but everyone calls her Lenny. And Ox claimed her freshman year to make sure no one else could talk to her. So forget it. Trust me. Not only is the guy built like a Mack truck, he’s richer than anyone here. I’m Joel, by the way.”
He gave me more than enough reasons to leave the girl alone. I slapped him on his back and turned us toward the door. “So, Joel, what can you tell me about Debbie?”
“Her best friend?”
I nodded, even though I hadn’t been sure of that until he said it. He grinned. “Do you need a ride home?”
“I sure do.”
“I’ll tell you all about Debbie on the ride there.”
And he did. The girl had quite the reputation for a virgin. From what he heard, even though she didn’t put out, she had other talents. Interesting.
“Holy shit, you live here,” he said when he pulled up into my aunt’s driveway. Joel’s shit car had coughed and sputtered all the way to my place, and was ancient and far older than my dad’s truck.
Figuring by his car and his stunned eyes at my aunt’s house, I assumed he wasn’t well-off, like me.
“I stay here. I don’t live here.” I pointed for him to pull next to the garage. “This is my aunt’s house. We’re staying here for a while because my mom’s sick.”
“Shit, man, sorry.”
I shrugged, not knowing him well enough to say more. “It beats back home. Besides, I get the apartment over the garage.”
My uncle didn’t like kids. And though I was taller and bigger than he was, he didn’t want future guests to have to deal with teenage bullshit, whatever that meant.
Even though I’d made my room over the garage sound sweeter than it was, there had been more words I’d said to him than most people since Sandy died. Joel didn’t judge. He only nodded.
“I’d kill for my own place. My sisters drive me insane.”
“Sisters?” I waggled my eyebrows.
“No fucking way. They’re too young anyway.”
We laughed, which was another thing I hadn’t done in a long time. After he left, I walked toward the house. And not to the front door, since we were forbidden to enter that way. Mom’s room was the first door on the left after entering the designated side entrance. It was private at least.
“Kelley,” Mom said, reaching an arm in my direction from where she sat propped up on pillows. “How was your day?”
I sat next to her on her bed. “It was all right. How about you?”
Since moving here, Mom’s condition changed rapidly. It was as if she’d given up to the disease. She t
ired easily and couldn’t stay on her feet long. Which was the excuse my aunt used as to why Mom had been given the maid’s quarters. Aunt Joy had claimed it was for the best. She wouldn’t have to walk upstairs and would be close to an exit in case of an emergency like for an ambulance, not because of a fire, or so she said.
“I’m fine,” Mom answered.
Aunt Joy, who’d been sitting in a chair in the corner, said, “You need to tell the boy the truth, Jackie.”
I glanced up and managed to hold back the glare I wanted to level at her. Aunt Joy may have kept a pleasant smile on her face when she discussed our family like we were a charity case, but she’d given enough clues that she really didn’t want us there. Her rich husband was reminded of her humble beginnings with the likes of us in their house, which was the real reason we’d been tucked out of sight.
Family or not, I didn’t like her, and disliked my uncle even more. He barely said two words to us and it was clear he was counting the days for us to be gone. As far as my aunt, I’d only seen her once before and briefly when they’d been in Galveston. They’d managed to slum it long enough to come say hi to our dinky home. She hadn’t even sat down when she’d stepped inside, making excuses about not being able to stay for the dinner Mom had agonized over.
“Joy, stop,” Mom said with more defiance than I’d heard from her in a while. She turned to me. “Now tell me, how was school? Were there any cute girls? I know there were.”
I never intentionally lied to my mother. She asked a question, I’d answer it truthfully or say nothing about it at all.
“There might have been a few. Anyway,” I said, changing the topic. “I can’t play ball. The season has already started. Coach said I’d be riding the bench and not to waste my time.”
Her hand pushed my hair back. “I’m so sorry.”
I shrugged. “It’s cool. Gives me more time to study.”
She laughed. “When was the last time you’ve had to study for anything?”
“Well, we know where he gets his brains from and it sure isn’t his daddy.”
“Joy, please,” Mom begged.
“If he isn’t stupid, he sure knows what I’m saying is true. He was cursed with his father’s looks, though. Just remember, Kelley, no girls allowed in my house.”
I nodded, wanting to argue. But Mom got a word in before I did.
“Can you please stop talking about my husband?”
“Why? Mom and Dad warned you not to marry that good for nothing boy. He wasn’t any good then and he’s not any good now. And maybe if you hadn’t gotten knocked up, you wouldn’t be living in my house with a man who can’t take care of you.”
Part of me wanted to fist bump my aunt, but I still didn’t like her. The other part wanted to defend my dad because even if he was a shit, he was my shit. And I didn’t like her looking down her nose at him. Because, really, she thought we were all worthless and just wouldn’t say it.
“I love him, Joy. And I never say anything bad about your stuck in the mud husband.”
That got my aunt to her feet and pointed her nose high in the air. “If it weren’t for my husband, you wouldn’t have a roof over your head. Don’t ever forget that.”
Before my aunt made it out the door, Mom asked in a small voice, “How are Mom and Dad?”
My aunt stopped and cradled the doorframe with her hand.
“Mom’s starting to show signs of dementia. No surprise there, considering her age. And Dad’s got a cold. But otherwise they are good.”
“Have they asked about me?” Mom asked.
“Mom barely remembers me half the time, and Dad pretends not to remember you. Nothing’s changed, Jackie, since the day you left choosing to marry that boy.”
She left the room, and I saw the disappointment on Mom’s face. She’d never hidden that she had a strained relationship with her folks. They’d never come to see us. They were a great deal older, as was her sister. Mom was their oops baby, and they’d been too old to pay attention to her growing up, but too religious to give her up when they found themselves in their mid-forties about to have another kid.
I wrapped Mom in a hug, feeling my heart break for her as my strong and proud mother tried to look tough for me.
“They don’t deserve you, Mom. Anyone who can forget their kid so easily should lose their memory and their mind.”
“Kelley, they aren’t bad people.”
But that was exactly what Mom would say. She wanted to see the best in people, even when they didn’t deserve it. Her body shook, and I didn’t know if was the disease or silent tears that caused it. I didn’t ask either. She’d felt bad enough. No reason to remind her how fucked up the world was.
For the longest time, I just held on. I glanced around the room that had no personality. We hadn’t had much, but our walls in Galveston hadn’t been white like these were, along with the only small dresser and chair in the room. It felt more like a hospital than a guest room. Mom glanced up and caught me looking at what we’d been reduced to. Our house hadn’t been much, but it felt like home even when Dad was there. The only thing good here was she had a private bath attached. I had to use the bathroom in the pool house, which was across the other side of the backyard from the garage. Still, I didn’t complain because I had my own space and didn’t have to share with Dad.
Speaking of, “Where’s Dad?” I finally asked, not wanting to bump into him.
Her smile looked brittle. “Out finding a job. He’s been better to you, right?”
It was true he hadn’t hit either one of us since Mom’s news to me, but he hadn’t been around much either. What she hadn’t said was my aunt probably required Dad to find a job if he wanted to stay there. Good thing my room wasn’t near. No doubt he would take his frustrations out on me if he didn’t find anything soon. So far, he hadn’t visited my room. Too many stairs, I guessed, for his drunk ass to handle.
Mom patted my hand. “Don’t be late for dinner.”
That statement was a gentle reminder that meals were served at six am, noon, and six pm. If I missed them, I wasn’t allowed to scour for food in the kitchen. I would be out of luck. Good thing I qualified for free breakfast and lunch at school. When Mom finally fell asleep, I left for my room.
Friday, I found myself in a shed behind the bleacher during the football game. I’d walked straight into the gate while a line waited to buy a ticket. No one was watching, and I didn’t have any cash anyway.
Debbie panted as my hand worked the short distance under her cheerleading skirt. Before I could snake a finger under the material between me and getting off, she jumped back.
“Wait, I can’t. I’m a virgin.”
The news wasn’t a surprise. I guessed right, and Joel had warned me too. But the chick had practically been begging for it. Her hand had stroked my dick through my jeans. If I were another guy, I might have taken what I wanted. No one liked teases, but I wasn’t down with taking it. There were always other girls.
“Yeah, okay,” I said, backing off.
“Wait,” she called out when I headed for the door.
Turning, unsure why I did, I left a good distance between us. And I made no move to touch her again.
“I can give you a blow job.”
Joel’s information had been good, and who would say no to that? I stood there with my hands lifted, palms up. She got on her knees, and I braced my hands against the walls. It might have been an unspoken dare. It might have been I hadn’t gotten any in so long. What it was, was all on her. I hadn’t asked, and I didn’t expect anything.
Only when she got down to it, she was all teeth. So much for her reputed skills. My half hard dick went completely limp, so I carefully guided her off me.
“Sorry, this isn’t working.” I wasn’t one to lie.
While I began to put my dick into my pants, she pleaded with me for reasons I halfway understood.
“Please, I can do better.”
Can’t say I’m a total asshole. She didn’t want
to be a failure. I got that. Girls were complicated, and I’d been around enough to know when they did it, they wanted to please. So I took control and let her mouth cover the head. Then I basically jacked off using her wet tongue as motivation. Only it took more than that to get me off. Somehow my mind drifted to Lenny. Imagining her on her knees in front of me sent me coming unexpectedly into Debbie’s mouth. She jerked back and ribbons of it covered her face.
“What the hell? You’re supposed to warn me, you jerk!”
I sighed. “Sorry, I guess I forgot.” I didn’t think telling her the truth that I’d been thinking of her best friend would win me any prizes.
She found a questionable towel lying on a table and wiped her face clean. I’d tucked myself away, and we stood there staring at each other.
“So what now?”
Shit. We hadn’t actually talked before she dragged me out there. Once we were alone, she’d placed my hand on her tits and it was a moaning fest until my release, except that bit in the middle.
“You’re a virgin, and I’m not. It’s never going to work between us.”
“So what you’re saying is, because I won’t have sex with you, you’re dumping me?”
The whole dumping thing stumped me because I barely knew the girl. But there was no reason to throw eggs on her ego.
“I like sex, you don’t have sex.”
“What?” she snarled and things were going nowhere good fast.
Her eyes narrowed on me. Before she could fuss me out, I added, “A little advice. If you don’t want the wrong guy to get pissed, maybe you should be more like your friend Lenny.”
Her next words came out of nowhere when all I’d tried to do was warn her there were assholes in the world who wouldn’t take kindly to her I want it, but I’m not giving it up game.
“You want her. Of course you do. Just like everyone else. You’re a total asshole.”
She stomped out of the shed, and I groaned loudly, watching her march away. I hadn’t meant that I wanted Lenny even though most of me did. I’d meant it because Lenny didn’t pretend to not want to be a virgin the way Debbie did. Debbie should keep her legs closed and mouth shut before she ran into trouble. Instead, a girl like her had a mouth with a lot to say. I could imagine the uphill battle I would have with the female population by the time Monday rolled around.
Chasing Butterflies Page 5
