Chapter 7

It seemed like the end of the school year flew by. Prom was fun, and I ended up dancing with a dozen senior girls, who all thought it was a lark to have a dance with the boy genius. Char had a blast dancing with their dates, and I happily buried my face in a dozen, more developed, cleavages.

There were several senior events in the last couple of weeks of school but I gladly skipped them all. Senior’s night was a big dinner and Senior Sunset was the school band and some fireworks, but Char wouldn’t have been able to come with me so I just didn’t go.

Graduation was June 10th, and the day dawned clear and already 85 degrees by the time we left the house at eight in the morning. I would have skipped this too, and had them mail me my diploma, but my family, my new family, all wanted to see me walk the stage.

Grandma and Grandpa, Dad and Liesl, Aunt Lucy, John, Bev and Lisa were all there, of course, and so were Char, Anna and Todd, the three I had been closest to.

It was funny, I didn’t hear from my family in Texas, though I know Aunt Lucy sent them an invitation. I still hadn’t opened the card that came in on my Birthday. It sat in a box back at the house. It would go, with my other belongings, when I moved my stuff to Dad’s in August.

Graduation was at the Santa Barbara Bowl. Parking was at the bottom of the hill and shuttle busses brought people up to the top. I had to be there by nine, but the actual ceremony wouldn’t start until half past ten, so John drove me over and dropped me off with my cap and gown.

There were seven hundred graduating seniors, and I knew maybe a dozen by name. It was an odd feeling, standing there. I hadn’t graduated my first time around, quitting school to join the military and getting a GED later, so this was all new to me. I also felt like a fraud, but I had long ago resigned myself to this new life, and this was just one more step.

The PA system crackled and came to life, asking us to line up as we practiced, in alphabetical order. Then they called for the Valedictorian and Salutatorian to come to the stage. Last, surprising everyone, especially me, they called my name to come to the stage.

Everyone was turning and looking around, most not having a clue who I was. I started making my way towards the stage to find out what was going on, and soon there was a clear aisle through the would-be graduates, every eye on me.

Mounting the stage, I moved over to the Dean, praying that there hadn’t been some last-minute fuck up that would prevent me from graduating or, at worst, something that would just delay it.

“Ah, Mr. Moore. The School District would like to make a special announcement in your case so they asked that you sit on the stage with the Valedictorian and Salutatorian.”

“What is this all about, Dean Menniger? No one told me anything about a special announcement and, frankly, I am not sure I am comfortable with this.” I told him, turning to see several hundred eyes on me.

“Yes, well. I have my orders. It is a bit, er, out of the norm, shall we say? If you have questions, I suggest you find Mr. Doyle, he should be back stage. He represents the school district today.” The Dean said and waved me toward the rear of the stage.

I followed his vague directions and found a clump of teachers, advisors, coaches and other notables standing around chatting.

“Mr. Doyle?” I called out, and saw a suited man turn and look my way. I raised a finger and walked over.

“Yes, young man? Can I help you with something?”

“I am Wayne Moore, Mr. Doyle. What is this about a special announcement?”

“Ah, the boy genius. The School district decided that your peculiar case was worthy of some publicity, so we wanted to announce our youngest ever graduate. There is a certificate from the School and the School District.” he said, looking pleased with himself.

“And no one thought to tell me about this? Ask if I wanted to be recognized, pointed out in front of the student body and all the visitors, parents and so on?” I asked, my temperature rising. What the hell was wrong with these people. First UCSB and now the school district. What made them think they could do this without at least asking?

“Come now, son, it’s just a certificate and think how your family will be able to tell all their friends that you were recognized at graduation? Don’t worry about it, it won’t take you long.” Mr. Doyle said dismissively, turning back to his conversation.

“No.”

He stopped, turning back with a confused expression on his face. “Excuse me?”

“That’s right, I said No. You didn’t clear it with me, I never agreed to provide the school district with any publicity and I object to be used. Last, but not least, I don’t like your condescending attitude and I am not, thank the lord, your son.” I said through clenched teeth.

“Listen here, boy, you will do it or you will not graduate!” Doyle yelled, getting red in the face and stepping into my personal space, trying to intimidate me.

“Let me just go and call Judge Jessen and Judge Farmer, see what my legal options are. I will be sure to include your attempt at intimidation of a student at an official school function, Mr. Doyle.” I spat back, not backing down.

“Now see here, you little...”

“DOYLE!” a voice cut through the babble backstage and silenced all of the adults standing there.

A distinguished looking man stalked over, an open aisle magically created through the teachers and staff. He was tall, aristocratic looking and impeccably dressed. His face was set in a mask of strictly controlled anger and his eyes blazed.

“What is going on here and why are you yelling at a student?” He asked, his eyes moving between me and Doyle.

“This mouthy little bastard...”

“ENOUGH!” The roar cut off Doyle and anyone who wasn’t already eavesdropping on the argument, was now aware of it and watching.

“Monday morning, 8 AM, in my office.” the tall man said, his voice whipping with the tone of command.

Doyle turned and stomped off, a litany of curses trailing him.

“I am Superintendent Chambers, and who are you, sir?” the man asked politely, after taking a calming breath and moderating his tone.

“Wayne Moore, Superintendent.”

“Ah, the young genius Dean Menniger told us about. I am pleased to meet you.” he said with what looked like a genuine smile. He shook my hand. “So, if I might inquire, what were you and Mr. Doyle disagreeing about?”

I took a deep breath as well. “I was called out by Dean Menniger and told I was to stand on the stage with the other notables. When I asked why, I was told to see Mr. Doyle. Evidently Mr. Doyle, or someone from your office, arranged to have me singled out and presented with some silly certificate naming me the School District’s youngest graduate. Not only was I not informed about this ahead of time, no one bothered to ask if this was either desired or even appropriate. Mr. Doyle was dismissive about my concerns, condescending in his approach and outright threatening when I expressed my desire not to be made a spectacle of.” I said, keeping my tone calm and respectful, but giving no ground.

“I see. And you obviously object to the presentation. Can you tell me why?” Chambers asked calmly.

“I don’t have a major issue with the certificate, though I think it is silly for the School District to claim credit for this when I transferred in just a couple of months before graduation. Second, though it is not secondary, bringing me up on the stage with the students who have worked so hard to be first and second in the class, diluting their achievement just to give some superfluous publicity to the school district, would be insulting to them. This is their day, something they have worked four years for.”

I took a breath, pausing to see how he was taking this. He looked calm and thoughtful, as if he was taking me seriously, so I continued.

“Last ... well, frankly sir, I don’t want to be called out in front of thousands of strangers and be singled out as someone different. I have a hard-enough time as it is.”

He was silent for a moment, then nodded slowly.

“Cogent arguments, all of them, and I can see your point of view. The certificate was suggested at our last meeting and I agreed, seeing no harm in it. I wasn’t aware that you were not contacted and that you had not agreed to the ceremony. Now, however, I have a problem. While we could cut it completely, it is already on the programs that have been printed and are, even now, being distributed to the families and guests that are filling the seats out there.” He paused, rubbing his chin.

“If I might offer a compromise? We will announce, as part of the opening remarks, that we are honored to have the School District’s youngest graduate ever, but we will not bring you to the stage. You can walk with your fellow seniors and we will skip the certificate. There are, however, reporters here who may wish to talk to you.” He looked at me, waiting to see my response.

At least he wasn’t being a condescending ass about it, and it wouldn’t kill me.

“I can live with that, sir. Thank you for understanding. I hope you will continue to be understanding when I do my best to duck the reporters after the ceremony? I would hate for Mr. Doyle’s threat to prevent my graduation to mar the event for my family.” I said, nodding my agreement.

His face tightened for a moment but smoothed out again.

“I will discuss that issue with Mr. Doyle, but you have no need to be concerned about not graduating. This ceremony is a formality for the families of the graduates, your graduation is already fait accompli and duly registered with the State of California.” He reached out and shook my hand again, sealing the bargain.

“I am glad to have met you, Mr. Moore. You are an astonishing young man and I look forward to seeing you take the University of California by storm, much as you have the Santa Barbara Unified School District.” he said, humor evident in his voice.

“I will do my best, sir.” I said with a smile.

The rest of the ceremony was long, hot and boring, but it was nice to see my family gathered in the audience, cheering for me as I crossed the stage.

When it was finally over, and the graduates were milling around with the families, a thousand flashbulbs popping and thousands of people smiling, laughing and joking, my family and friends made their way to the exit, catching one of the many shuttles down the mountain to the parking area.

We managed to dodge one of the two local reporters. The second one was more persistent but, when he realized that the man giving him the cold shoulder and the clear ‘No Comment’ was a local celebrity and retired judge, he decided discretion was the great part of valor and left to find a more interesting story.

Summer was finally here, but other than not going to school, not a lot changed for me. I still got up early, did my sit-ups, pushups, pull-ups and run. I had added swimming every day as soon as it was warm enough, and I could see some real gains over the last several months. I was up to seventy-five pushups and a hundred and fifty sit-ups every morning, and my run had increased to five miles, with about a six-minute pace.

I was feeling great, physically, and swore to avoid falling into the trap represented by cigarettes this time around. Smoking hadn’t seemed to bother me much when I was young, but it had turned into a real issue by the time I was fifty.

The girls seemed to like the changes in me too! Char seemed to love running her hands over my chest and my finally starting to show clearly abs. The scars on my back, after enough exposure to the sun, were starting to tan and were not as clear as before. All in all, I was pretty damn happy with my new life.

We got together a lot over the summer, Bev, Char and me. I was seeing definite signs that the two girls, with Anne thrown into the mix, were becoming much closer. I was having a hard time keeping my feelings in check and, because I was trying so hard, I think the girls felt it. We still got together and had fun, spending many an afternoon at her house when her parents were at work, but it was more and more just sex, with little romance involved.

I knew it had to be that way, but it still hurt a little.

Anne finally broke down and told us about her past. Her uncle had lived with her family for a while when he lost his job. He would drink way too much and then, when her parents were sleeping, would come into her room.

At first it was touching and kissing, introducing her to oral sex, but one night, when she refused to go further, he raped her. She managed to get his hand off her mouth in the middle and her parents heard her scream. Her father beat his brother so badly that the man was hospitalized for months before his trial.

Anne, traumatized, went through therapy but remained afraid of men, transferring her affections and sexual feelings to women.

Things were tense for a while after that, and I left the three alone, not wanting to intrude. It wasn’t until Anne herself confronted me, telling me that she felt rejected by the only man she had come to trust, that I came back. I never made love to her, but we could cuddle and we even made out a little, but never went further than a friendly grope.

I moved in with Dad for the last two weeks of July, and I got to spend the three weeks before high school started again with Liesl. Registration for me at UCSB wouldn’t even start until the third week of August, so I would have a bit more than a week to just hang out by myself while my dad worked and Liesl was back in San Diego with her mother.

We had fun, Liesl and I. She had made a few friends in the neighborhood in the years she had been coming up, and we spent a lot of time in the pool, either at the house or over at one of their houses. It seemed like my growth spurt had finally arrived and I shot up four inches over the summer. I think my exercise program was really helping me to overcome the soreness and the lack of coordination.

Liesl is the one who really pointed out the changes happening. I guess, since I saw myself in the mirror each day, I wasn’t as aware of them.

“Jesus, Wayne. You advertising or what?” she said with a laugh when I came down for breakfast one morning. It was late July and we only had another week together before she had to return to San Diego.

We were planning on going to the mall to see a movie, and when I dressed that morning, none of the jeans I had bought in spring fit me anymore. Figuring I would wear some shorts, it was summer after all, I grabbed a pair from the drawer and threw them on, carrying my shoes and socks downstairs. I knew I would have to clothes shop, but I thought I would wait until after Liesl went home and I had a week or two to kill.

“What?” I asked, looking down. Ah ... shit. The shorts I had tossed on fit in the waist, but I never considered where they might not fit as well. Shorts in the 80s were pretty short, the style being somewhat revealing on purpose, but the head of my cock was hanging out the leg hole of my shorts and that was not okay.

“Oh shit! Sorry, um ... be right back!” I sputtered, covering myself and dashing back up the stairs, chased all the way by her laughter.

I tore through my drawers and found that only the board shorts I wore at the beach were long enough and loose enough now. I put them on and slunk back downstairs, my face red.

“I’m sorry, Sis. I need to go clothes shopping but I had planned on waiting until after you left. I have been having a lot of fun hanging out with you.”

She just giggled and made a show of checking me out. “I have had a blast too, Wayne. Hell, I have had more fun here than any summer in the past. The girls in the neighborhood are inviting us to all the parties, to hang out, to movies. You know most of it is because of you.” she said, shaking her head but smiling.

“What? No way! There are other guys there, and besides, they are your friends.” I protested.

“More like acquaintances, really. I only see them during the summer, and we would hang out every now and then, but these last two weeks, since you came to live here? We get ten times the invites. Heck, I spend half my time answering questions about you! Half the girls in the neighborhood would have paid good money to see what I saw this morning. They want your bod, not my friendship.”

“Aw hell.” I said, shaking my head. “I’m sorry, Liesl. I didn’t mean to get between you and your friends. I’ll just hang out here, you go and have fun.” I told her, feeling guilty even though it wasn’t really my fault.

“Duh! No way, brother of mine. This is the most fun I have had up here. I like being the gateway to your body.” she said with a giggle. “Seriously, it’s cool, Wayne. Heck, if you weren’t my brother, I might be panting after you too. You have turned into a real hotty.” she said, blushing a bit.

“Huh, now you know how I feel being around you!” I teased, scoping her out and leering.

She blushed again, and posed for me, then sat back down to her cereal.

“I wanted you to get along, but I think that is taking it too far.” Dad said, coming into the room from the back of the house.

We both blushed and Liesl sputtered, “We were just, I mean, we weren’t. Daddy, we were joking around. Wayne doesn’t have any clothes that fit him, he outgrew them all. I think we need to go shopping.” she said, changing the subject.

“Ah... “ he said, slapping his hand to his forehead. “And you want to take him, right? I can hear my credit card screaming already!”

“Daddy!”

“Fine, fine. I noticed the jeans you were wearing the other day, Wayne, and wanted to say something. I would appreciate it if you kept the cost under a million though. I know how your sister is so you have to be the responsible one.” he joked, glaring at me.

“Whatever!” Liesl grumped, sticking out her bottom lip and pouting.

Dennis crossed behind her, winked at me, then bent down to kiss her on the cheek.

“Okay, I can drop you off. Anyone else or just you two?”

Liesl got an evil look in her eye. “Well...”

It was a good thing that the sale of the Corvette went through back in April, otherwise Dennis would not have purchased the 4-wheel drive Suburban. He said he bought it from a customer on a lark because he didn’t own anything with four doors, but it came in handy today.

Liesl got on the phone and before dad and I knew it, we had what seemed like a houseful of excited girls. “SHOPPING!” was the battle cry of the day.

Brenda and Diane Travers lived three houses down. They were twin, sixteen-year-old redheads who definitely had the tempers to match. Alison Dale lived a block away and was a fifteen-year-old blonde tennis sensation. Linda Waters was another blonde, a like-aged friend of the twins who hung out in our neighborhood most of the summer. She was quiet, but smart as a whip.

When dad dropped us all at the mall, he handed me his credit card and told me to make sure I kept it in my wallet, not in Liesl’s. Then he drove off laughing. What a guy.

The first store I got dragged into was a Sears. Track suits were in fashion, as were pullovers with bright colored stripes. Tight slacks and loud rayon shirts were the rage for clubbing, but I put my foot down early, absolutely refusing to try on most of that.

Jeans were still cool though, and Sears sold Wranglers, so I was okay there. Bermuda shorts were starting to be accepted, so I was able to safely refuse the short, rayon shorts that people wore to be seen.

The girls seem to think that I was a dress-up doll and kept trying to get me to try on progressively more outlandish outfits. I would give in every now and then, just to keep them happy, but I slowly chose more conservative clothes, much to their disgust.

They seemed to have a blast ‘accidently’ barging into the changing room with a new article of clothes. “Ooops!” was the most common phrase heard. Linda Waters, I noticed, seemed to always take a seat that would provide the best view into the dressing area. She didn’t say much, but she was always watching and smiling. She was quiet, but something about her tripped my trigger.

My growth spurt had one side effect that I really liked. Well, two, but the first was that my baby fat had mostly melted away. The abs that I had been trying so hard to develop were there after all, they had just been hidden under a layer of baby fat. Now, with the growth spurt, they were front and center and I was a happy guy.

The second side effect was that I had grown at least another three quarters of an inch, maybe an inch, where it mattered most, and I was now about where I was the last time around. Maybe even a bit bigger, though it could be that less was hidden by padding. I wondered if the (maybe) increase was better living, more exercise, less stress? I didn’t really care, I was just happy it happened.

After a couple of hours, the girls were spending more time shopping for themselves than bugging me, but that is when quiet Linda Waters made her move.

I was in the dressing room, down to my boxers and stepping into a pair of khaki pants when Linda slipped in. I was surprised and spun around, almost tripping myself on the pants I was trying to put on.

“Hi Wayne.” she said quietly, smiling at me. I watched her eyes start at my smile and work their way south, her smile growing wider. When she reached my boxers, she actually licked her lips.

“You look scrumptious.” she purred, stepping closer. Linda reached up and ran her fingers lightly across my chest, then down my abs, pausing only briefly at the waistband of my boxers, before moving down to cup my rapidly growing erection.

“Yumm ... I had a feeling this would be nice too.” she said, dropping to her knees. She smiled up at me as she pulled my boxers down, freeing my hard cock.

“I’ve been wanting to do this for a week, Wayne.”

“Why didn’t you tell me you were interested in me, Linda?” I asked, reaching down to stroke her cheek.

“With the slut pack out there flashing their tits at you? I can’t really compete.” she said, frowning. Her hand was slowly stroking my shaft, her thumb gently rubbing the head as she watched me.

“I am not a breast man, Linda, so big boobs are not how to get my attention.” I said with a smile, shaking my head.

“Oh, then what is?” she asked, pausing her hand and cocking her head, her eyes on mine.

“Well, if I am brutally honest, I am a butt guy and yours is spectacular, but that is just the outside. I like a smart, confident woman who doesn’t play games. I can be happy with most body types if the woman has that inside.”

“You really like my butt?” she asked, surprised.

Linda was a swimmer, competing in school, and she had a hard, muscular ass and long, thick and muscular legs. Her boobs were small, A cups probably, but her stomach was impressive and her shoulders and arms were strong as well. She was very, very fit.

“I adore your butt, your legs, your shoulders, that strong, flat tummy. And you are the smartest of the group, I would say, and that is sexy too.” I told her.

Her smile seemed to light up the room. She bent my cock down and shocked the hell out of me by swallowing the whole thing. Her nose was nestled in my pubic hair and I could feel her throat massaging the head as she swallowed several times before pulling off to catch a breath.

“I have almost no gag reflex and I can hold my breath for a long time, Wayne. Swimmers have great breath control.” she said with a giggle, then swallowed my cock again.

I could only lean back against the wall and groan. I laid my hand on her head, just letting her know I appreciated her, but she grabbed my hand in her own, holding it tight. She pulled off and pushed my hand, which pushed her head, until I was buried again. When she grabbed my other hand, I knew what she wanted. I had never had a woman who liked this sort of thing, but I was majorly turned on.