Chapter 50

Once we slipped into her bed, it was largely a repeat of the night I slept over last year. We made out for about an hour, my hands never moving from where she had moved them earlier in the evening. And even though I had caressed her breasts last year, this time I was going to wait until she directed me to do so again.

So finally after about an hour, she cuddled up on my chest and we fell asleep. When we woke up the next morning I was curled up behind her, and my hand was resting on her belly. But I had to get up so I carefully slipped out of bed and into the bathroom. I looked at the clock when I got out and saw it was just after 7. So I slipped back into bed, and this time Becky woke up. We kissed for a few minutes after exchanging good mornings, and she slipped off to use the bathroom.

I went into the kitchen, and by the time she came out, I was making French Toast. “Wow, a guy that can cook. Don’t see that very often.”

“Well, it was just my dad and me for about three years, and I got to be pretty decent. Nothing fancy, but we never starved. If you can make the coffee, I should be done here in a few minutes.”

And she gave me a funny look when I asked where the peanut butter was, and she admitted that she did not have any. Hmm, if we were going to be a couple, that is something that I would have to change. I could live without a lot of things, but not my peanut butter.

Once breakfast was finished and I had washed the dishes over her protest, Becky took my hand and guided me back to bed. Our lips and bodies came together, and it was not much longer than she took my hand and guided it to her breast. We were laying on our sides, and I felt her filling my hand wonderfully. Firm, and not very big but with a very noticeable nipple poking through her shirt. I felt her tongue slide deep in my mouth, and I sucked on it as my fingers started to rub over her nipple. It was firm and felt perfect, and our bellies and groins pressed firmly together.

I moved my fingers away as I pushed my tongue along hers, and slid mine into her mouth. She started to suck on it in turn, as I let my hand cup and squeeze her breast. As I remembered, it was a perfect handful. We spent about 45 minutes making out like that, I never pushed further and she never moved me further. But it was very enjoyable, reminding me of earlier times making out back in Idaho.

Finally, we took a break, and Becky rolled me onto my back and we simply held each other, her head on my chest as my hand caressed her back and hip. We spent most of the morning that way, alternating between kissing and cuddling. And when my stomach rumbled, she said we should get something to eat. I asked her if she liked Japanese food, and she admitted that she had not had any before.

So a quick drive to Sepulveda, and we were at the Beef Bowl place. I ordered a large beef bowl, and Becky watched in wonder as I skillfully used chopsticks and she used a fork as we ate it together. “Wow, you really use those well. You learn that in Japan Pete?”

“Nope, we had a Chinese place in Idaho my family ate at all the time. But I did get a lot of practice there. I even have several sets at home, one is a travel set in a wood case I used to keep in my car. These disposable ones are OK, but I prefer to use my own. Kinda like using plastic forks as opposed to real ones.”

“Yeah, I can see that. And this is really good, there is one of these actually close to where I live but I had never been there before. But I will be eating there now, maybe try the chicken next time. Is this typical of food in Japan?

“Well, kinda. Rice bowls are common, as are skewers like a pork or chicken kabob, and meats on a kind of wheat noodle which is fried. Fried rice is also big, with things like chicken, pork, or shrimp.”

“No beef?”

I laughed. “Oh, you can get beef, but it’s really expensive. Okinawa is a small island, so most meat is pork, chicken, or fish. Let’s see, a steak out in town is around $15, and even a hamburger at McDonald’s is around $5. For beef we normally eat on base, they charge US prices. But out in town, hardly ever because it is so expensive.”

“OK, that makes sense. So you eat sushi?”

“Sure, it’s pretty good. But the rolls are not as big as they are here. It’s much more common to be given a wood slab, with just cuts of seafood like tuna or octopus on it than what is usually seen here. I will have to see if I can find a good place somewhere that has more authentic food. Is kinda hard to explain, but mostly what is served here is more higher end styles. More akin to a steakhouse than a corner diner. Or say comparing Taco Bell to La Fiesta.”

“OK, yeah, I get that. Makes sense, we all call Taco Bell ‘Fake Mex’. It is kinda, Mexican, but not really. OK, I am stuffed, you can finish the bowl.”

“Yep, same with most Asian foods here. Is more to get the idea of the food, not the reality of it. Where do we go next?”

“Hmm, how about Federated? Our software selection was kinda weak where I work now, I wanna see if there is anything new out that I might like.” She smiled at that, and as soon as I finished we were driving to her old store.

More than a few employees waved at Becky, or came over and talked with her as I looked through the software. I selected a few, including one called Pirates!, which looked really good. Becky nodded at my selections, saying she had heard that was a good one but not played it yet.

We went back to her place, and of course she wanted to see what the game was like. We both played it for a bit, and she really liked it, and said she would have to look into getting her own copy since we could not just copy it. We had a lot of fun wandering around and attacking other ships, and then as she made some pasta for dinner I went to my truck and grabbed my backpack.

Once we finished eating, I helped her clean the table then sat down to give her an introduction to how D&D was played. And I was right, she already knew almost all of the mechanics, and only had to be taught how to do it with dice instead of on the computer.

I helped her roll up six characters, and then select races and classes, explaining how each of them worked. Finally, she had a decent set of characters, and I said that the next night Mike would finish equipping them and assigning levels in fitting with the rest of the group. “I am not sure how many will be there, but Mandy will be one, you met her last year.”

“Yeah, the cute girl with the big boobies.”

I chuckled. “Oh, they are not that big Becky!”

“Well, compared to mine they are! You obviously are not a boob guy, because I’m not the right gal if you were.” I had a sense of deja vu as she said that, having heard similar statements before.

“Well, I’m not. If there is one thing that attracts me more than anything else, it’s a smart mind. Mind, sense of humor, that is far more important to me than the body. Oh, do not get me wrong. I can really appreciate a hot body, but it’s the mind that gets and keeps my interest. No matter how hot a girl looks, if we can’t communicate with each other what is the point?”

She nodded. “I feel the same way with guys. Dated a few ‘pretty boys’, most tended to be vain, dumb, or both. And most guys tended to see me as some nerd girl, even in school.”

“Yeah, but a hot nerd girl I think, who has probably already left them far behind in many ways. I like you plenty, and that very thing that caused many to not look at you is what got a lot of my attention.”

Of course, this soon had us sitting on the couch and making out again. It started to get late, so we retired to her bed and continued for another half hour or so before we cuddled up together. As I drifted off to sleep, I was wondering if she was feeling as frustrated sexually as I was. But I had told her I would take things at her speed, and I meant it.

The next morning Becky grabbed a shower as I cooked us breakfast. I tossed everything in my backpack then we shared a long kiss before we headed to our cars. I reminded her I would be by at 5:30, and we would grab something to eat on the way.

I walked into the house, and Georgie gave me a hug, then went back to his Sesame Street. Dee smiled, and asked me how things had gone. I grabbed a cup of coffee and smiled. “Well, things went pretty good, we are meeting Mandy and the rest at Mike and Peggy’s tonight so she can play D&D with us. I will take her home, but be back here tonight because I am leaving for Idaho tomorrow morning.”

“Uh-huh. Two nights this time, you are wasting no time back I see.”

I took a sip of my coffee, and smiled. “Dee, if you are fishing for information, I can honestly say that we did nothing more than kissing and cuddling. I have given her full control of how fast things move, and I think we are both taking it slow. Honestly, I think I would be surprised if things went much farther before I leave for Arizona. I think she likes that I am not trying to push her at all, and I think that good things are worth waiting for.”

Dee came over and kissed my cheek. “You know, I believe you. And that’s good. I will not say more than your dad is the same way. I was the one that had to make all of the first moves with him, and it was nice. You two really are a lot alike, and it gives me a lot of hope that George will grow up the same way.”

“Hmm, maybe, mostly. Unless you guys leave LA, he might or might not. Most of my patterns were set in Idaho before I even moved here. Here, things and people move a lot faster. But I bet he will be closer to us than most kids his age. And who knows what things will be like in, hmm, around 2005 when he is about the age to start experimenting.”

“Goodness, it will be that long. The 21st Century! It seems so far away, but that will be when he is about that age. And you will be heading right into middle age by that time. Hopefully, his world will not be as crazy as ours is.”

“Well, so long as the Soviets do not get crazy, I imagine things will be about the same. And I do find that kind of sad. My dad grew up with the Cold War over his head, I have, George will, as will our kids. But so long as it remains cold, I am happy to just let things be. But here, let me show you what I got.”

I showed her my new games, and after doing some work on an article about the game design group I had started I hopped in the truck and drove to Reseda. I went for a walk as they put on the tires and detailed the inside, I then asked if they had something I needed. And Peggy’s Uncle smiled, and said he would have it here next week. I then went ahead and drove around for the afternoon. I stopped at the game store, and Skip was happy to see me. We talked for a bit as he showed me some of the new things that had come out in the last year. I then laughed as he pulled out six of my adventures, and noticed the “Origins Award Winner” on some of them as I signed. But when he pulled out the XX-XY ones, I shook my head.

“Sorry buddy, no can do. If somebody realized the only signed games you sold were those, it would only take a retard to not realize that Jenny is me. I will sign any that are under my name, but not those.”

“OK, fair enough. Oh, and I like that revised one of the other game, that one that Holly Wood had originally done. It is a lot better than the original one. Did she really die?”

I chuckled. “Well, as an author she did. Let’s just say that they only published that one adventure, and it was the lowest received of any they ever sold. She submitted a bunch of others, but they all got rejected. We were going to let it go out of print, and I suggested making her an offer to buy it out. She accepted, and I rewrote it to come closer to the other ones, more fun and less nasty. It sold more copies this year alone than the older one did in two years.”

“Oh, I know. I ran the old one only two times, it was far too rough I thought. The others were more tongue in cheek, that was just nasty. I still have two copies of the old one, maybe I should hold onto them in case they become collectibles.”

“Well, you never know. I already see some of the early Deities and Demigods books going for big bucks. But you may have to wait a few years until that happens.”

I saw he had a used Player’s Handbook, so I got that and a set of dice in cloth pouch for Becky. Even if she did not continue playing, I could always put those to good use. And at just after 5 I pulled up in front of her house just as she was opening the door. We shared a kiss, and then she went to change as I sat on the couch. She came back in jeans and a T, and after kissing for a few more minutes we headed out.

Mike and Peggy both gave me hugs when I got to their apartment, and a few minutes later Mandy arrived and gave me one also. They all were happy to meet Becky, and I pulled out my books, handing Becky the book and dice with a smile. “Here, can’t be borrowing mine all the time.” That earned me a hug, and a kiss on the cheek.

Soon the others arrived, and they were all but two was new to me. I was kind of surprised when Peggy answered the door saying that the last two had arrived. She opened the door, and there was Keith. I stood up as he came in, and was kinda surprised to see him holding hands with Jan. Wow, going on 4 years and still together. He looked a bit apprehensive as I walked over, then laughed as I grabbed him in a huge bear hug, saying I was glad to see him.

“Keith, I honestly was going to call you next week. I just got home a few days ago, and am leaving for a week in Idaho tomorrow. But I was going to call you and set something up when I got back. And nice seeing you again Jan, I guess you are keeping this guy out of trouble?”

She grinned, and kissed my cheek. “Well, I am doing my best, and so is Crystal.”

“Crystal?” I asked, trying to think if I knew a Crystal, and what she would have to do with anything.

I saw Keith reach into his pocket and pull out his wallet, and pull something out and hand it to me. And I noticed the ring on his left hand as he handed me a picture of a cute girl, about six months old. “This is Crystal, she is nine months now. Jan and I got married about two years ago now.”

I congratulated them both again, and after introducing them to Becky we all sat at the table. Mike said the party was weak on thieves, and he helped Becky set up a fifth level thief from one of the characters we had made. I said I would not be a regular, so he nodded and handed me a Ranger NPC he had been running. That was one thing he had learned from me, always run at least two or three NPCs, so somebody could just join a game in progress, and leave again without a problem.

Becky was kind of shy at first, but thankfully Mandy and Peggy soon pulled her out of her shell, and she was really getting into it. We had a few decent battles, and Becky was stoked when she managed to pick the lock on a chest, and they gave her first choice of the treasure inside. A nice +2 short sword.

At around 10 we wrapped it up for the evening, and I handed the sheet back to Mike. “I will not be here next week, but I should be the week after that. But I am going to be in Arizona, so if I can I will just grab an NPC so I don’t cause any problems.”

Mike grabbed us each a beer, and because there was a shortage of chairs Becky sat in my lap as we all chatted. This got a raised eyebrow from Keith, and not wanting to talk about it I asked Mandy where her boyfriend was.

“Oh, he don’t like D&D. I brought him once, and he left about an hour later. He knows better than to stop me from playing, especially since I make good money doing illustrations.”