Chapter 33

I stood at Val’s door, waiting for her to open it. I was pretty wet, having decided not to open my umbrella or put up my hood for the run from Crystal’s car to the building’s door. When the unit’s large industrial door opened, I was greeted by Val’s parents.

“Jane come on it, we’re happy to see you,” Val’s mom said as I stepped inside.

“Hello, Mr. And Mrs. Kypreos, thank you for having me.”

“Of course, you’re always welcome here,” replied Val’s Dad. His eyes followed me when I pulled off my coat and hung it up on a hook to dry. Despite wearing my coat, rain had seeped in and gotten the top half of my shirt wet. It clung to my chest and made my bra somewhat visible underneath, but only near the straps and above my chest.

“Val, honey, Jane’s here!” her Mom called out towards Val’s room.

“Hey, Jane!” Val said, stepping out from her room. She took a good look at me and grinned. “You look really good!”

“Yes-um, very different attire for you, Jane,” Mrs. Kypreos said as she glanced at my clothes. Her husband hadn’t stopped looking at me, his eyes roaming up and down my body.

“Oh ... yeah, I just finished work.” I was suddenly feeling self-conscious. I hadn’t really thought about how I looked with the stockings and the rather short skirt I was wearing.

“W-where do you work dressed like that?” Mr. Kypreos asked.

“Oh ... I ... it’s just a sales job.” I tried to downplay it. I wasn’t sure of the vibe I was getting from both her parents, but Val jumped in.

“Oh, she’s so lucky. She works at Hidden Miss!”

“The lingerie store? Really?” her mother said questioningly.

I don’t know why, but it was the first time I felt embarrassed admitting I worked there. Maybe it was the way she looked at me. Maybe it was the stockings I had on, or just maybe it was the way her Dad kept hungrily staring at me. I don’t think I’ve ever noticed him doing that before. He was always so nice to me, or maybe I’m only now just noticing it. All I knew was that I was in enough trouble already, without throwing more gasoline onto my dumpster fire of a life.

It was strange. Next to my own parents, I always felt close to the Kypreos’. Maybe it was because I spent so much time over here growing up. It was like my second home. As we got older, they moved more into the background or away entirely, letting us do what we wanted, but that closeness never went away. It was almost as hard to hear the disapproval in Mrs. Kypreos’ voice as it was to hear it from my own mother.

“Y-eah, I was in there with a friend from out of town and was suggested I should apply,” I tried to explain. “Crystal, the owner, is really nice, and they pay very well.”

“Sorry, I’m just surprised, is all...” Val’s Mom said. “You’ve always been so...”

“Shy? Anxious?” I admitted.

“ ... and modest...” Mr. Kypreos said before his wife shot him a dirty look.

“Jane’s done some growing this summer,” Val answered for me, giving me a little grin.

“Yup, I’ve tried breaking out of my shell.” I tried to sound confident, but at that moment, I felt anything but.

“Jane’s cool now!” Val exclaimed proudly, like I was a prize won at a carnival; but I still felt I must protest.

“Wasn’t I cool before? After all, I was one of your best friends. Wouldn’t that make you uncool, too?”

“Well I...” Val stumbled over her words.

“She got you there, hun...” Mrs. Kypreos said with a chuckle. “Dinner will be here shortly. Why don’t you drop your stuff off and get comfortable, Jane.”

Val dragged me to her room while I still felt her Dad’s eyes follow me as I went. The door closed behind us, which gave me a break from him, but not from his offspring. At that point, though, I’d rather deal with Val.

I threw my wet backpack on the floor and dug through it to find my jeans. They were mostly dry, just a little damp here and there. I slipped off each stocking, then pulled off my skirt.

I knew Val could see my panties, and I was trying not to think about it much. She’d seen me in fewer clothes before. I could have just put my jeans on, then undid my skirt, but that would have looked suspicious; like I didn’t trust her. She was already doing me a big favor, I didn’t want to spoil that.

“What are we having for dinner?” I asked Val, trying to distract myself as I buttoned up my jeans.

“We were going to have lamb, but there wouldn’t have been enough with you here, so my parents just ordered souvlaki from Minos.”

“Oh, awesome!” Minos was a local Greek place that had fantastic food. Unfortunately, my parents lived outside their delivery zone, so it was always a treat to get it.

“How was work today, busy?” asked Val, looking at herself in the mirror.

“Kind of busy, but that means more money for me. Speaking of work, how’d the date go yesterday? Did we pick a winner?”

“Yeah, it went well.”

I knew Val’s body language well enough to know she wasn’t being truthful. She sort of fidgeted with her hair as she looked at me in the reflection of the mirror. I wasn’t sure if I should press with more questions or not, but she seemed to read my thoughts.

“ ... we’ll talk about it later, ok?”

I nodded. She had another topic in mind that she wanted to ask about.

“So, what happened with your folks? You’ve never called me like that before. Your family’s usually so ... perfect.”

I dropped my head, “We’ll talk about that later, too.”

“ ... did they find out about...”

A knock on her bedroom door stopped her mid-sentence.

“Girls, food’s here.” Her Mom’s voice came from the other side.

“K, Mom,” Val barked at the door before turning back to me. “ ... later.”

We stepped out of Val’s room. Her parents were pulling the food from the delivery bag and setting it down on the dining table. It smelled delicious; herb potatoes and rice, large salad, and numerous sticks of different types of meat. I happily sat down in one of the chairs while Val grabbed a couple of drinks from the fridge. It didn’t take long for us to dig in, with the happy, quiet sound of chewing and the clink of cutlery on plates. Eventually, though, conversations were bound to happen.

“How do you like working at Hidden Miss?” Mrs. Kypreos asked, collecting some rice onto her fork.

“It’s good. As I said, it pays well and the owner is really nice. It’s also helping me get over my shyness by making me talk to customers,” I replied, hoping the topic would switch elsewhere.

“ ... and your parents are ok with you working there?” she continued. There was a hint of judgment in her voice.

“Mom!” Val protested, defending me.

“What? I’m just curious, that’s all.”

I swallowed a bite of pork before answering, considering the best way to respond beforehand. “Yeah, they were both pretty happy about it, actually. To tell you the truth, when I first told them I’d been asked to apply, I assumed they’d say no. They’ve been really supportive about it. They are happy I’m doing something besides sitting at home every day doing nothing.”

“Huh, I guess that’s true. I hadn’t really thought of it that way,” her Mom said, scooping up more food.

Val’s Dad jumped in, looking at his daughter, “Maybe you should get a job, too,” he suggested to Val.

“Nah, it isn’t like I need the money. Besides, that would give me less time with Dale,” Val replied. I couldn’t help but notice her father’s eyes rolling when she said Dale’s name. I never noticed what they felt about that relationship before. Clearly, not much.

“What about you, Jane? Do you have a boyfriend who you spend all your time with?” her Dad asked me. I felt a little put on the spot, and I knew the answer was far too complicated to be honest about, so I skirted the truth.

“Dad!” Val squealed with embarrassment. I answered anyway.

“Boyfriend? No. I’ve been on a few dates this summer, but nothing steady, like Val. I just can’t find the right one.” I thought that was the safest answer I could give.

Mrs. Kypreos nodded, “You’re still young. Don’t tie yourself down to just anyone who asks.”

At first, I thought that was a barb at me, but realized it was aimed at Val. It was becoming clear that something had made them sour on Dale and Val’s relationship. I just didn’t know what that was. I didn’t think he was a bad guy, just kind of an idiot, although the recent conversations about his sexual abilities did make me lose some respect for him. I mean, even Brian, on his first time ever with a girl, made sure I got off.

“I’m just happy if I don’t freak out talking to people anymore. Maybe one day I’ll be tied down.”

Val looked at me with a smile, and I realized what I’d said. I felt my cheeks flush with embarrassment. I think her Dad noticed but didn’t say anything while her Mom continued to eat without reaction. My brain got lost in the thought of Brad or someone else tying me up and doing whatever they wanted to me. I’ve had my hands bound before, but the thought of my legs tied to bedposts, or something else, gave me a little tingle down below. I wondered what my limits were, and I hoped I’d get to explore them in a couple of days with Brad.

The rest of dinner was a little less awkward as the conversation moved on to easier topics. Val’s parents were planning a trip to Europe in a couple of weeks, and Val had decided to stay home. I told them about my doppelganger Riley, and they didn’t believe me till Val backed me up. I showed them a picture of us together from her visit here, and they couldn’t believe the resemblance.

By the time dinner was done and the plates were put away in the dishwasher, I felt like I was going to explode. We all collapsed on the couch to watch a movie, passing on the idea of popcorn and just relaxing to a romantic comedy. I could hear Mr. Kypreos groaning at the cheesy dialogue and lame characters, but that was the best part about it. They were safe and comforting, like a warm blanket. By the end of the movie, it was after ten, and we decided to head to bed.

I was a little nervous at first but had to remind myself over and over that she was my friend, and I could always say no if something were to happen. We used the washroom and brushed our teeth, changing into some sleepwear. Val gave me an old T-shirt to wear, which felt weird. I’d gotten so used to sleeping naked recently that a top felt restrictive. I’d changed in the washroom while doing my business, but Val just stripped down in front of me. I guess it wasn’t like I hadn’t seen it all a few days ago.

“What actually happened with you and your parents today?” Val asked after we’d climbed into her large bed together.

I sighed, curling up under the sheets. “It’s too long of a story. The short answer, though, is that my parents are fighting constantly now, and I’m tired of it. I just want to save enough money to get my own place, and then Riley and I can live together.”

“If your parents are fighting, what does that have to do with you?” She looked at me like she was trying to read my mind. I hoped there was nothing there for her to find.

“They’re just ... They don’t like the new me, I guess. I don’t know. Everything’s going so crazy lately, like life is spinning out of control. You know?”

Val’s eyes squinted, like she was focusing really hard at something. I thought maybe I had something on my face, the way she was looking. I was starting to get worried I had ‘wanted to fuck her own father’ tattooed on my head somewhere, branded like a scarlet letter.

“Do they know ... I mean, did they find out about ... you know?” Her question was exceedingly vague but astutely accurate, I didn’t know how to respond.

“Kind of ... depending on what you mean.”

“You know, you and the whole Riley and other people thing ... the pictures ... all that stuff.”

She’d figured out a portion of the problem but thankfully not the biggest one. Maybe, unlike Riley’s original theory, most girls didn’t think about having sex with their own father. It was an idea so wrong and morally twisted that Val couldn’t even comprehend the possibility. Then again, I wasn’t about to ask. Maybe I was just thinking about all this to stall from actually answering her question, but that could only last so long.

“A bit, yeah,” I replied before explaining further. “My Mom knows, at least about Riley, and that I’ve become sexually active. She doesn’t know all the who-what-where-whens-and-whys though, just that things have happened. Only you and Becca know about most of the stuff ... and Riley, of course.”

“That must have been an awkward conversation...”

“You have no idea!”

I described to her what happened when Riley and I were confronted by my Mom at breakfast and the conversation afterwards. I obviously didn’t tell her all of it sprung up from getting caught watching Riley screw my Dad on the couch, or my parents’ sexual past ... the amount I knew about. That was for my ears only, and despite my current feelings towards my Mom, I wasn’t about to break her trust by sharing that information with anyone else.

I also explained that Dad had been told about the breakfast conversation, but refused to join. He fled the apartment before we woke up. Val thought it was pretty funny, at first, until I explained that things had changed between us ever since then. I didn’t know if he loved me anymore.

“Of course he does,” Val said, putting her arms around me. “Dads just don’t like learning that their little girls are growing up.”

“I’ve been told that a few times, but I don’t know if that’s it.”

“It probably is. My Dad wouldn’t look at me for a week after he found out what I’d been doing. Of course, Mom knew when I asked her to put me on the pill.” Val sounded pretty confident, so that made me feel better. Granted, there was a big piece of the puzzle she didn’t know about.

“What’s going on with your parents and Dale, they don’t seem to like him all of a sudden?” I asked, seeing an opportunity to move the conversation away from myself.

“That’s not such a long story,” she said. “It kind of goes with the question you asked earlier about how things went yesterday on my date.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah ... He liked the lingerie, and said I looked ‘hot’. Well, he seemed to like it, but it didn’t stay on me very long, so I’m not too sure what the point was. Anyway, we’re messing around on my bed...”

“Messing around? Like what?” I asked, wondering if she’d used any of my earlier advice.

“Oh, like hand stuff. I thought it might be fun to make him wait before jumping me. Maybe he’d get me closer before putting it in.”

“Did you do anything else, like Becca and I suggested?”