Chapter 16: A Visit to Chicago

June 1981, Chicago, Illinois

I pulled up in front of the InterContinental Hotel on North Michigan Avenue in Chicago, and reluctantly handed the keys to my Trans Am to the valet. Stephanie and I grabbed our bags, and I went to check in. I handed over my new BankAmericard, which I’d received in the mail the previous week, and after they took an imprint, they handed it back along with two-room keys. I declined the assistance of the bellman and my sister and I took the elevator up to the 12th floor of the North Tower. We walked down the hall to our room and went inside.

The room was on the small side, with two full-size beds, a dresser with a large mirror, a table with a TV set on it, a couple of easy chairs, and a desk and chair. The bathroom had a slightly oversized tub and shower combination. I picked up the phone, looked at the dialing instructions and called my house to let my dad know that we’d arrived safely. I gave him the hotel phone number and our room number, and made sure he had Håkan’s full name, if for some reason, he needed to get in touch with him.

After the call, Stephanie and I unpacked our things, then I called down to the desk to ask for Håkan’s room because I wasn’t sure if Katt and Mikael were sharing a room and if they were, whose name was listed. The operator connected me and Håkan gave me Katt and Mikael’s room number but asked that I come down to see them before I spoke to Katt.

As we walked into the hall, Stephanie asked about the beds.

“You’re my sister. It wouldn’t make sense to have only one bed in the room! Nobody says we have to use both of them, but we have the keep the fiction, Squirt.”

“That does make sense. I didn’t think about it. It’s so cool being here with my Big Brother!”

We took the elevator to the 9th floor and walked down the hall to the Sundströms’ room. Inger let us in and hugged me, I shook hands with Håkan, and they both greeted Stephanie in English. Håkan asked if it was OK to speak to me in Swedish, and I said that I didn’t think Stephanie wouldn’t mind, and that I’d explain to her later if need be.

“We wanted to thank you, Steve,” Håkan said in Swedish. “What you did for Katt was selfless and really has helped her. She’s much happier now than she’s ever been except for those few months in Sweden when you basically lived with her on the weekends. If there is anything at all, we can do for you, please let us know. I’ve already arranged with the hotel to send me the bill for your room.”

“Thank you! That’s not necessary, but I really appreciate it. I couldn’t give Katt the kind of attention she needed and Mikael can. I’m glad they didn’t get together sooner, though, because I would never have had the chance to meet such an amazing young woman. I hope she’ll be my friend for the rest of our lives.”

“Oh, you can count on that! Inger and I will always welcome you into our home, whether it’s here in the US or in Sweden. Now, you and your beautiful little sister should go find Katt and Mikael.”

We left the room and walked a short way down the hall to Katt’s room. I told Stephanie that Håkan was thanking me for pushing Katt and Mikael together. I knocked on the door and Mikael opened it. He greeted me in Swedish, then greeted Stephanie in English. We went into the room and Katt just about knocked me over when she leapt into my arms and squealed my name.

“«Hej älskling!»” Katt said. (“Hi, honey!”)

“«Hej Katt!»” I answered, then switched to English. “We should speak English given my sister is here.”

“Of course!” Katt replied. “Hi, Stephanie. I’m glad you could come!”

I saw the twinkle in my sister’s eye. She was going to cum alright! Repeatedly!

“Hi, Katt! Yeah, my «jävla idiot» of a brother was nice enough to bring me.”

Katt and Mikael laughed hard.

“Very good!” Katt exclaimed. “Did Steve teach you that?”

“He told me that you called him that and I remembered how he pronounced it. It’s a good name for him. It fits!”

“Careful Squirt,” I teased. “I have some choice words I could use for you! Katt, how did things go so far?”

“We skated our Compulsory Dance this morning and tied for second. We don’t skate tomorrow, so we pretty much have a free night and day, though we do have a 2:00pm practice. Tomorrow evening, we’ll have to take it easy because of skating on Saturday. Did you two have any specific plans?”

“Not really,” I said. “On Monday we’ll look for an apartment for me for when I’m in college, but otherwise, we don’t have any plans. I want to do some shopping for some friends, but we can all do that together. There are a lot of great stores on Michigan Avenue.”

“Steve, can I take you up on that offer to cuddle?” Katt asked. “I think Mikael would be happy to entertain your little sister for a bit.”

I chuckled, “I bet!”

“Not that way, Steve Adams!” Katt giggled, “Though if you want, we might be able to arrange something for you and me!”

“You’re with Mikael! That puts you off limits in my book. You know my rule. Mikael, are you OK with taking my sister shopping while Katt gets her cuddles?”

“Sure!” he agreed.

I handed Stephanie some cash and told her to have fun. She and Mikael left the room, and I sat in one of the easy chairs. Katt climbed into my lap and curled up, just as she had so many times before. She put her head on my chest and sighed deeply. I held her tight with one arm and stroked her hair with the other. I knew Katt got a lot of comfort out of this and I enjoyed comforting her.

“Does Mikael not cuddle you like this?” I asked, speaking Swedish again.

“He does, but honestly, it’s not the same. With you, I feel safe and secure, like you’ll protect me from everything. I just don’t feel that with Mikael. He loves me very much, but I guess it’s just his personality isn’t the same as yours.”

“It could be that I’m a few years older, too. But it’s also the case that you don’t live with me full time and see all the problems I have! You’ve been lucky and you’ve missed all my drama and bullshit. Ask my sister if you doubt it!”

“Oh, I’m sure! But when you’re with me, you have it all together. I do miss being as close to you as I was in Sweden. Life sucks sometimes!” she sighed.

“But things are good with Mikael?”

“Yes, absolutely,” she said firmly. “You were right about everything. He’s there for me all the time. He drops everything when I need him. It’s what I wish you could have done, but then I realize that’s not you and not what I like about you. Now, if I could merge you two, that would be perfect!”

“I’m glad you two are getting along so well. Your parents are very happy about the situation. They thanked me for pushing you two together.”

“Yes, they think it’s been good for me. So do I. I hope you don’t take that the wrong way. I wouldn’t trade the good times that you and I had for anything.”

“Me neither,” I said. “I hope we’ll be lifelong friends, too.”

She snuggled even closer, “You could stay with me tonight, if you wanted. Mikael won’t mind.”

“I don’t know that it’s a good idea, Katt. You two are a couple, right?”

“Yes, of course. But he told me it was OK without me even asking.”

“As much as I want to, no. Let’s be friends.”

“I knew you would say that, but I had to ask. I wish you would, but I understand. How are things with your girlfriend in Ohio?”

“A mess. A total and complete mess.”

I explained as best I could about the situation with Kara.

“Well, that’s just stupid!” Katt declared. “I told my dad that you curled my toes! They let us screw ourselves silly in my room! They got us hotel rooms together. And this girl’s dad lost his mind because she’s not a virgin at seventeen? Oh my God! I had sex when I was twelve, for God’s sake! This country is so fucked up!”

“I know,” I agreed. “The thing is, she had planned to move in with me next year when she comes to college here in Chicago. Her dad doesn’t know that and he wouldn’t have until next Summer. Now there’s a chance I can’t see her for a whole year! I hate it.”

“Her parents would really keep you two apart?”

“Yes,” I sighed. “I suppose I could give her an engagement ring and that might smooth things over.”

“Don’t do that, you fucking idiot! Not at this point.”

“Still holding out hope for us after college, Katt?” I chuckled.

“I dream of that, but I know it’s probably not going to happen. You’re way too young to get engaged and married!”

“She’s the one, I’m sure of it.”

“What’s she got that I don’t have?” Katt smirked.

The answer to that question was simple. My heart. But that answer would kill Katt, even though she knew it. A joke was the best response.

“Well, what she doesn’t have are your muscles!”

Katt laughed, and I knew I’d dodged the question. She wiggled her butt against me.

“You could feel them again!”

“I promised cuddles. That’s what we need to stick to, please. It’s SO tempting, it really is. But we’re just very, very good friends now.”

She sighed and was quiet. I held her for close to two hours before Mikael and Stephanie came back.

“Wow, the bed isn’t even messed up!” Mikael teased.

“My brother doesn’t have sex with girls who are taken!” Stephanie said smugly, coming to my defense.

“I know that Steve is no threat now, so if she wants to fuck his brains out, it’s OK with me,” Mikael said.

“Thanks, but no,” I said. “It would break my rule and it’s a bad idea for other reasons. She got what she really wanted, anyway. We didn’t move from this chair from the time you left!”

“What did you guys find?” Katt asked.

“All kinds of cool stores,” my sister answered. “But I didn’t buy anything yet. Well, that’s not true, I bought Mikael a cookie because he behaved!” she giggled.

“You’re sister is crazy!” Mikael exclaimed. “A lot of fun, but crazy!”

“Tell me about it! I have to live with her!” I said, to chuckles all around.

“My parents are taking all of us to the 95th floor of the Hancock Building for dinner,” Katt said. “There’s apparently a cool restaurant up there. And tomorrow, we need to go to the Sears Tower. I want to be at the top of the tallest building in the world!”

“Sounds good. What time should we meet your parents?”

“They said 6:30pm in the lobby. It’s 3:15pm now. Let’s check out the city.”

The four of us walked along Michigan Avenue past the Wrigley Building and the Chicago Tribune tower to the Chicago River. We walked along Wacker Drive, then down State Street to Marshall Field & Co, where we bought a box of Frango mints and shared them. We looked around the store a bit, then had to head back to get ready for dinner. Stephanie and I each took a quick shower and dressed. She put on a simple blue dress and I put on black slacks and a black polo.

“Every time you wear that, I want to throw you onto the bed and fuck you to death, Big Brother!” my sister giggled.

“After dinner, Squirt. And I would ask that you please don’t kill me.” I pleaded theatrically, then added with a smirk, “Though what a way to go! Speaking of which, you’re being very patient given this was supposed to be a five-day fuck-a-thon, according to Bethany!”

“If the only thing I get to do is sleep in your arms each night, that would be enough. But don’t worry. You aren’t going to get much sleep for the next five days!” she giggled.

I pulled her into a tight hug and we kissed briefly, then headed for the elevator. We met Katt, Mikael, and their parents and walked over to the Hancock Building. We rode an express elevator to the 95th floor and were quickly seated at a table with a wonderful view of Lake Michigan. The food was awesome, and the conversation was mostly in English in deference to Stephanie. I really would have preferred to speak Swedish, but that would have been rude.

After dinner, the adults went to a club, but none of us could get in because you had to be twenty-one. We decided to see Superman II, which was playing at a theater on Michigan Avenue. We all thought it was pretty good and when the movie was finished walked back down Michigan Avenue to the hotel. We all said goodnight and headed to our rooms.

“Finally!” Stephanie sighed as I pulled her into my arms.

“What can I do for you, Squirt?”

“Just love me,” Stephanie sighed. “Nothing fancy. I’ll warn you that on Sunday night, I want what you did to me that day in the clearing and then in the shower. And I don’t want you to stop unless I pass out. But tonight, just love me, please.”

We undressed and got into bed together and made love twice, falling asleep in each other’s arms. In the morning, we showered together and met Katt and Mikael in the lobby. We took a taxi to Lou Mitchell’s on Jackson, close to Chicago Union Station. Their breakfast was awesome, and it was cool to be near the start of the famous US Route 66.

When we finished eating, we walked across the bridge over the Chicago River to Wacker Drive and found the entrance to the Sears Tower. We paid our entrance fee and after a short wait rode a high-speed elevator to the 103 floor Skydeck. The view was nothing short of breathtaking. The sky was clear, and it was possible to see Indiana and Michigan to the east and northeast, and Wisconsin to the north. We spent an hour on the Skydeck, leaving around 10:30am after scattered clouds began obscuring the view somewhat.

We walked from the Sears Tower at Jackson and Wacker to Marshall Fields on State Street and looked over our options for gifts for Kara and Karin. I wasn’t sure exactly what I wanted to get them, so we left and walked to Michigan Avenue and into Grant Park. We bought lunch from a small stand and ate in the park, then headed back to the hotel in a taxi. Katt and Mikael grabbed their gear, and the four of us went to find Johanna. We headed to the rink and Stephanie and I sat in the stands while Katt and Mikael practiced.

Laura found us about halfway through the practice session and sat down beside me.

“Hi!” Laura gushed. “I figured I could find you here when Katt and Mikael practiced. They’re looking really good. I think they’ll win either the gold or silver in this competition.”

“Hi!” I replied. “How about you?”

“I should medal. It’s a bit tougher for me, given who I have to skate against. But I think I’ll do it. Can I see you later?”

Stephanie elbowed me softly and out of the corner of my eye, I saw her nod. She was giving me permission if I wanted it. I wasn’t sure that I did.

“I’m not sure it’s a good idea. I have a bunch of things going on that have my love life pretty much of a mess at the moment.”

She giggled, “Love? I’m just talking about sex! I’m in room 608. Come by around 9:00pm if you want. I don’t skate until late tomorrow, so it’s OK if I’m awake until midnight or so. I’d really appreciate the company.”

“I’ll think about it,” I said. “I’ll either come by around 9:00pm or I’ll call you before then.”

She smiled and kissed my cheek and then got up and walked back down to the ice where her coach was waiting.

“You should,” Stephanie said. “I think you need it.”

“I have you, Squirt!” I said.

“This is different. I think it’ll be good for you. Kara didn’t ask you to be exclusive with her, and even if she did, you can’t. I think you need to blow off a bit of steam. Help that poor girl out. Just come back to bed with me afterwards.”

“I’ll think about it.”

“Don’t think,” Stephanie said. “Not in this case. Just do it. Remember, you’re supposed to check with me. I think you need it.”

“I’ll think about it,” I said firmly.

Katt and Mikael finished their practice, and we headed back to the hotel so they could shower and dress. Dinner was at a place called Pizzeria Uno. They served something called ‘Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza’ that I’d never heard of until Inger told me where we were going. It was like nothing I’d ever had before and I was hooked. The thin, flat pizza that I’d always had before just didn’t stand up to this! After dinner we went to a Häagen-Dazs shop for ice cream. It wasn’t quite as good as Graeter’s, but it was close.

We got back to the hotel just before 9:00pm and I had a decision to make. I’d been thinking all evening about Laura and her request. We said good night to Katt and Mikael and Stephanie and I headed back to our room.

“Go see Laura,” Stephanie said. “She’s totally safe, you’ve been with her before, she’s not attached, and honestly, if you pine for Kara for the next year, you’ll end up driving yourself nuts. Just go have fun and come back and sleep with me.”