Chapter 7

Thursday

I woke up alone. It was early. I walked out on the deck and watched slop roll in from the west. There were a couple of guys out but I’m not sure why. It’s weird how you can have a great day and then nothing, then slop and maybe another good day. Surf is so unpredictable. I’d gotten some good waves that week but it was probably the least amount of time I’d spent in the water in years.

I showered and shaved, for the fifth time in a week, and put on some classy casual slacks and a polo and then returned to the deck. I watched the people on the beach for a while. There were some homely guys with gorgeous women and vice versa. There was no accounting for it. I’m sure they each had a story.

There was a knock on my door and I called out permission to enter. Lisa opened it a crack and stuck her head in.

“You know what you’re doing, stud?”

“Not exactly. I have a general direction but I’m mostly going to wing it.”

“I’m rooting for you.”

“Thanks. It’s almost time, isn’t it.”

“It’s eleven fifteen but everyone is ready if you want to leave early.”

“Is everyone hungry?” It seemed weird they would be ready early.

“No, silly. They are all curious.”

“Great. I can’t wait to hear what I’m going to say either. I hope it’s good.”

We all climbed into the car and Lisa was smart enough to ride shotgun. I started the car and looked at the ladies in the back and sighed.

“Just so you know, I’m feeling pretty good right now. I sure hope it stays that way.”

They all laughed and I took off for the restaurant. I asked if anyone knew of a good movie coming out soon that they wanted to see. Thankfully, it was a good enough question to carry us all the way to the restaurant. By the time we got to the restaurant, Fallon had convinced them that Lady Sings the Blues, about the life of Billy Holiday was going to be great and that they should go together. I didn’t know who Billy Holiday was but figured since Fallon could sing like someone I’d never heard of, Etta James, that she might know singers.

The waiter ushered us to a booth and we all slid in. We all ordered and then it got quiet. My turn.

“I wanted to say a couple of things to all of you. I really wrestled with today. When I asked each of you out, I had no idea how it would go and I definitely didn’t think this far ahead. My first date with anyone ever was with LuAnn and I mostly worried about doing something stupid. If I did, none of you mentioned it. I think I asked you not to talk about our dates with each other because I didn’t want to imagine you starting off with, ‘Michael’s such a bozo.’

“I want to tell you a couple things I learned. You know, just share some thoughts about it.” They were all listening and interested and Lisa nodded that I should keep going. “So, the first thing I learned is that Lisa is pretty good at picking friends. I think about some of the groups of girls at school and I’m really glad my sister’s one of the Musketeers and not a cheerleader or something. The next thing I learned is that each of you is pretty amazing and the weird part about it is that I’ve known you for eight years, and I didn’t even know it. Each night I was blown away.” They still looked interested. “You all know each other way better than I do so you already know how cool your friends are. I didn’t and I still don’t know how that happened. How could I have not known? But I do now, so that’s good.

“I guess this is the part where I bare my soul or something profound like that. So, here goes. I’m just going to tell you what I thought, and I feel safe doing it and I can’t imagine another group of girls that I would even dream of doing this with. So, LuAnn and I went out and I had a great time and Lu seemed to be having fun. It was the best night of my life. Just a really great night. So, when it was over, I thought about it. A lot.

“And what I thought really surprised me. I thought I really liked LuAnn a lot. And I found myself asking myself if I loved her. That’s how good our date went. And I didn’t even know if I would know. How am I supposed to know if I love someone? I’ve never loved someone before. My family, I guess, but that’s different. But that date went so well, at least in my mind, that I started thinking really long-range stuff. Don’t laugh when I tell you this, okay?” They all shook their heads. “So, I tried to imagine a future where I was married to LuAnn and it was easy to do. It was like a dream it was so cool. And I thought, ‘why did I ask Fallon and Tina out too?’ And I was hoping that LuAnn would be thinking the same thing. Part of me dreaded going out with Fallon. But I thought that I had made a commitment. Dad always says, your word is your bond. So, I decided I would go through with it and take Fallon out but I didn’t exactly have high hopes. Still, I thought, ‘I’ll do my best’ just like I did with Lu.

“And then we went out. And it was crazy fun. I thought I knew you, Fallon, but I didn’t have any idea. We had a great time. Well, at least I did. And that night, I had to wrestle with the same thoughts. I tried to imagine a future with Fallon. I know I’m only sixteen and some people would think it’s stupid to try to think that way. I think most people our age just think dating is fun. I don’t know, maybe my parents just thought that. Maybe they had gone out with someone else and thought, ‘oh well, what could it hurt’ and here we are. Eventually, you end up marrying the person you dated just for fun, unless you think of dating differently. That’s what I want to do. That night, I tried to imagine a future with me married to Fallon. I couldn’t believe how easy it was. Actually, it was really fun to imagine it. And I thought, ‘this is crazy’. How could I think that one night after dating LuAnn and trying to figure out what love is? And I wondered again if I loved Fallon and what love is and how would I know. And the truth is, I kind of suspected I did but I didn’t want to admit that because it was too crazy. You’re all being really good listeners.”

“You’re talking a lot but you’re talking about us. What about, Tina,” Lu asked.

“Yeah. That’s what I was thinking. I have to be honest; I was kind of intimidated about going out with Tina. She’s the only one of us that had been on dates before and the boys were older so I thought I didn’t have a chance and she’s just being nice. But I tried to do my best, the way I had done with LuAnn and Fallon. And I got surprised again. I had a great time. A really great time, and it surprised me again. Maybe it shouldn’t have. That night, I tried it again. Could I imagine a future married to Tina? I really liked the future I imagined. And I had to ask that tough question again. Do I love Tina? And it seemed stupid to me to even be asking. How stupid was I? One date with each of you and I’m imagining the future and wondering if I loved you,” I said looking at Tina.

“Lisa and I talked yesterday while you were all out at the great ice cream pilgrimage. And she said some stuff that was right on the money. The truth is, I do love LuAnn. But I also love Fallon and I love Tina. My worst fear at the beginning of the week was that I would do something to mess up the Musketeers. I hated that thought. I did not want to mess up that way. But I found out that I love each of you. And that’s crazy. But Lisa said, there’s a difference between loving someone and being in love with someone, and I think she’s right. It’s probably just that our language is too screwed up to make a good distinction.” Somewhere in the middle of my little speech, our food had been served and I didn’t even notice. No one was eating.

“I talked to my parents. It was like the third time I talked to them about this. I’m really glad my parents are cool. Anyway, I shared a lot of this with them. And my dad made a bad analogy about test driving cars and mom busted him for it but I got what he meant. That was two nights ago. But last night, he said it might be easy to think you love someone when everything is rosy. But it matters a lot how you handle adversity together. He said it better than I did.

“Anyway, I started to wonder what would happen to the Musketeers if I started dating just one of you. That is, if any of you would want that. And I realized that it would be okay because Tina has dated before and Lu and Fallon would date someone too. I hope that whether it’s me or someone else that no guy could break up the Musketeers.”

“Never.”

“I don’t think so.”

“Not going to happen.”

And from Lu, “Keep going.”

“I’m glad you find this interesting. So, at this point, I’m kind of stuck. When I asked you out, I asked all three of you sort of one, two, three. And now, I realize that I still want to date and have had a lot of fun. But my dad’s car thing just doesn’t work. Because it would be like choosing between a Lamborghini, a Ferrari and McLaren. Who could pick? Plus, cars don’t have emotions and they don’t change over time and a bunch of other stuff that makes the analogy bad. And why would anyone let a sixteen-year-old drive a Ferrari, anyway. So, here we are.”

“I’m obviously the Ferrari,” LuAnn said, smiling.

“Your dad let you drive his Porsche Carrera,” Fallon said and they all agreed.

“You’re cute and that was sweet,” Tina said. “If you asked, I would go out with you again in a heartbeat.”

“I had a really good time, Michael. I would too,” LuAnn said.

“If you asked me, I would definitely go out with you again. If you wanted to,” Fallon added.

“You have no idea how that makes me feel. I just wanted to add that it’s okay with me if you want to share anything about our dates except that I’d prefer you didn’t talk about smoochin and stuff.”

“Smoochin and stuff,” Tina said, laughing. “No talking about and stuff, ladies,” she laughed again. “You’re cute. But I get it. No talking about and stuff.” She turned her attention away from me and to the girls. “We went horseback riding and a nice steak dinner and then dancing at a country western saloon ... and then smoochin and stuff.” They all laughed and I had to smile too.

“You are all really beautiful and desirable. Really.”

“We were together all day yesterday and I couldn’t talk about it. That’s the hardest thing ever. He likes to ice skate. How cool is that?” Fallon, who loved to talk, finally got the green light.

They each shared what we had done on our dates. It was fun to listen to and it was fun to watch Lisa’s reaction to what they shared. LuAnn set the standard when she finished describing our date. “And then we smooched and stuff,” and she really drew that out and the other girls laughed and finished their stories the same way. Apparently, they loved and accepted each other enough to admit they liked smoochin and stuff even if they had done it with the same guy. It was a bit of an ego boost that they had all had a good time and bragged on me.

“So, who are you going out with next, sport,” Tina asked.

“Well, I’m taking you all out now on borrowed money. I’m broke until payday.”

“Smoochin and stuff is free,” Fallon said. “And it turns out I’m free tonight,” and everyone laughed.

“How can I say ‘no’ to that,” I answered.

“I need practice smoochin and stuff,” LuAnn said.

“I’d like to teach you a little more about smoochin and stuff,” Tina finished and we all had a laugh at that.

We talked for another hour, making the most of my borrowed money date. We agreed that the Musketeers would be free to date other guys, since I was obviously dating three girls at once. They agreed that there couldn’t be any competition in it. Finally, we agreed that we need to share things we learned with each other. We were all learning and it seemed like we would do better if we talked about what seemed like good things to do on dates.

“It seems like a lot of kids at school are in a hurry to go steady,” I said.

“Insecurity,” Tina answered. “They want to latch onto someone because they’re insecure.”

“I can see that,” Fallon said.

I felt like Fallon would be the one most likely to feel insecure and the one least needing to feel that way. I wrestled with how to tell her that without singling her out.

“I can’t imagine any of you feeling insecure. If other guys at school knew you like I do, there would be a line of guys waiting.”

“If you really think that, then I would guess you don’t plan on dating anyone other than one of us,” LuAnn said. I nodded. That was true.

“I seem to be the one left out,” Lisa said, her first words of the afternoon.

“Well, if you want to practice smoochin and stuff with our boyfriend, I won’t be jealous,” LuAnn said and everyone laughed.

“He’s a pretty good kisser, Lisa,” Tina said. It took me a second but I recognized that as a gift. I did a double eyebrow raise at Lisa and she did one back. Everyone laughed and I figured our secret smoochin and stuff was safe forever. If anyone ever thought we’d done anything together, all we had to do was give the double eyebrow raise.

We finished lunch and I paid. We walked out to the car and I was about to open it when I noticed there was a miniature golf place almost directly across the street. I suggested it, they all agreed and we had a fun time playing a silly game. It was silly to everyone but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t competitive. To no one’s surprise, Fallon won. The main thing was that we all spent time together without any stress or friction.

When we got back to the beach house we piled out with no particular plans. It was only three and there was plenty of daylight left. I could see from the kitchen deck that there were perfect little three-foot waves rolling in.

“Have any of you ever tried surfing? Does anyone want to? The waves are perfect for learning,” I said.

It was outside everyone’s comfort range and I thought no one would take me up on the offer to teach. I was wrong.

“I’d like to try,” LuAnn said. “What’s the worst that could happen?”

“You could embarrass yourself and get water up your nose. These waves are small but they’re pretty easy to ride. I know you weigh less than me so my board will float you fine. Let’s go for it,” I said.

Twenty minutes later, we were on the beach. I laid my board in the sand and demonstrated how to pop up. LuAnn tried it a couple of times and I thought she was good enough to give it a try. Of course, the other Musketeers were gathered around watching. At one point, it looked like Fallon was going to ask to try. But Tina put her hand on Fallon’s arm and shook her head then nodded to LuAnn. The clue was obvious. This was LuAnn’s opportunity. I couldn’t get over that Tina seemed older than me. She picked up on stuff like that quickly. I smiled at her and nodded that I’d seen the gesture.

With as much dry-land training as would be helpful, I put LuAnn on the board and helped her paddle out. She was cute with her little paddle strokes and cute butt sticking up. This would be entertaining. We got out to the lineup and I found a spot that was pretty clear. I let the guys around us know we had a Wahini in the water and they graciously gave her an extra foot or two of space. In other words, they didn’t move much.

I got her turned around and I started looking for something ridable for her. The first two times, a half dozen other surfers took the waves so we waited. Finally, I sent her paddling but she couldn’t get up enough speed. We moved out a bit deeper and tried unsuccessfully two more times. The next time, I swam with her, helping propel the board forward. I saw it catch and hollered to her, “Pop, pop,” encouraging her to pop up. She did and immediately fell off and the board was gone.

I swam in and retrieved the board and we got ready to try again. I was trying to be encouraging. “Almost had it.” “Next time for sure.” We tried and she caught four more waves, tumbling off before getting righted each time. I coached her to try to pop up so that both feet landed on the board at the same time and that was the trick. The next wave she caught, popped up and stayed standing for two or three seconds. I swam in to greet her and congratulate her success. The rest of the Musketeers were cheering from the beach.

She wrapped her arms around my neck and hugged me.”

LuAnn had a very nice body with truly wonderful curves. When she hugged me and mashed her tits into my chest, I showed my appreciation. I grew a boner in a heartbeat.

“Is that...” She started to ask.

“It is a physical demonstration of my admiration for your success and your absolutely spectacular body,” I answered. She looked at me funny. “I cannot help but notice how incredibly desirable you are and my body responds appropriately.” It sounded a lot better than, “hugging you gave me a boner.”

“You like me and your body wants to smooch and stuff.”

“Most definitely.”

We kissed until a wave knocked us down. We worked our way back out and she caught three more waves successfully and was totally stoked. I’d made a convert. Surfing isn’t hard but if you’re not used to it, it can be exhausting. She was done. I told her I’d ride one wave and walk in with her. She walked in until she was waist deep and turned to watch. I caught a wave and did a couple of simple turns so she could see. I pointed to my feet as I moved and overexaggerated my arm movements. I managed to end up about three feet from her and dropped off the board to land beside her, letting my board drift in.

She gave me another hug to celebrate and I once again, demonstrated her desirability.

“That thing works on its own, doesn’t it?”

“It’s more like you’re working it, Lu. I can’t help it. Sorry.”

“It’s pretty cool, actually.”

“Yeah, until you want to go someplace without pointing the way.” I turned my back to the beach and moved around to face her at a comfortable distance. “Now we need to talk about something other than smoochin and stuff until I return to normal.”

“We could do that. Or we could just walk in together now. They already know you find me desirable. You told us.”

“Not going to happen. You’re dangerous. You have a rockin body, Lu. I’m having a hard time keeping my hands off you.”

“It’s obvious you’re having a hard time,” she replied and laughed. I sat down in the water to let it cool my jets. She sat next to me and we watched the shore break come at us.

“It’s nice, you know.”

“What is,” I asked.

“That you think I’m desirable.”

“LuAnn, that is such a gross understatement. You are way beyond that.”

“But you think Tina and Fallon are, too?”

“I do,” I said and turned to look at her. “But the fact that I think they’re desirable doesn’t diminish how beautiful I think you are. I really do. Obviously.”

“Well, it’s nice that you think they are too. Not as nice as that you think I am, though.” She paused a moment to think. “Do you think other boys think that I’m desirable and pretty?”

“Yeah. No doubt. You’ve got a rockin body, like an adult woman. Like a model or something. And you’ve a great smile and a pretty face. Any guy that wouldn’t think you’re to die for is some kind of fag. Do you know Olivia Nelson?”

“I’ve never met her but I know who she is.”

“She was homecoming queen. She’s beautiful. Not like you though.”

“So, she’s like the standard.”

“She was the standard.”

“And you think I’m dangerous. That’s probably how your dad nabbed your mom – telling her things like that.”

“Probably.”

“Your mom is pretty hot so it’s not like he had to lay it on.”

“Me neither. Just reporting the facts.” I reached down and adjusted. “I’m good to go if you want to go in. Just don’t hug me.”

“Or stuff.”

“Or even talk about stuff.”

We walked in holding hands and she was greeted with congratulations on becoming a surfer. I retrieved my board and gave them room. They asked her all kinds of questions about surfing they had never asked me before. It was fun to watch. Tina backed out of their conversation and walked over to me.

“What was that about?”

“What was what about?”

“You two looked like you were sitting in the kiddie pool.”

“Rather not say,” I said but it didn’t take her long.

“She hugged you and you popped a boner, didn’t you,” she asked quietly. “That’s sweet. Give me a hug,” she said and started to approach with her arms out.

I knew she was messing with me. I put my hands up. “Not unless you want to go sit in the kiddie pool. Don’t make this harder than it has to be,” I said before I realized the double entendre.

She bit her lip and grinned. “I have to be able to tease you a little. I’ll try not to make it any harder than it has to be,” she said and started to walk away. Then, over her shoulder, “Sometimes it has to be hard though.”

She looked so good walking away. I grabbed my board and started to walk back to the house. I shifted my board so that I was carrying it angled up at forty-five degrees. If I’d had a five-foot erection, my board would have just covered it. No one noticed until Fallon looked up and saw me with my five-foot erection camouflage and started laughing. First Tina, then Lu and Lisa joined her laughing. I looked over at them and did a double eyebrow raise and kept walking.

I saw that my dad was on the deck and had been watching. For how long, I had no idea. I also had no idea if he suspected what the strange activity was all about.

He hollered down from the deck as I approached. “I saw LuAnn take a couple of sweet little waves. Nice job.”

“Thanks, dad.” Let’s hope that’s all he saw.

I rinsed off my board and stacked it, then stepped under the cold outdoor shower. Cold outdoor shower. I had to remember that. Might come in handy. I dried off and went in.

“Hi, mom. Smells good. What’s cooking?”

“Ribs. I hope you’re hungry. Your dad bought enough for ten people and Fallon and Lisa must be on bird food. They hardly eat so it’s up to the rest of us. Girls still out?”

“Probably up soon.” I heard dad tromping down the stairs.

“I smell meat. Hey, buddy. Looks like we have a Wahini in the house.”

“It took her a while but I think she likes it. She needs a smaller, wider board, though.”

“You might be surprised. You were behind her. I got to see her face. Total concentration. How’d your lunch go?”

“Couldn’t have gone better.” I gave them a short recap and they both seemed pleased for all of us. “I’ve got sixty dollars left over. I can give you that now or wait for the weekend.”

“I was going to say keep it but we’re going to the movies tonight and it will come in handy.”

“What’s at the theater?”

“Frenzy. Hitchcock. Right up your alley. I think the girls are going. Want to go? We’d have to take two cars.”

“I saw it opening night two weeks ago. You should go on vacation more, dad.”

“You’re probably right. I think the girls are going though. Up to you.”

“John Ford’s cavalry trilogy is on tonight. Yellow Ribbon, Apache and Rio Grande. I can’t pass that up. Thanks, though. I’m going to wash up and change for dinner.”

Ribs, mashed potatoes, corn and a salad. We always had a salad. There was a lot of food and I did my best. True to form, Fallon and Lisa had a little meat, no potatoes or corn and a lot of salad. Neither one had any reason to starve themselves, least of all Fallon. Tina and Lu were carnivores and they ate meat. Tina was across from me and we were at the end of the table. My dad finished and left, and when he did, Tina was out of direct eyesight of everyone but me because of the strange shape of the kitchen table. With me as the only audience, she finished off a rib and then sucked on the bone and licked it with her tongue. She made love to a rib while watching me. I couldn’t believe I was actually getting turned on by watching Tina eat.

She saw my face and knew that I could barely hide it. So, of course she upped the ante. She reached under the table with her bare foot and started rubbing my crotch with her foot while she was sucking on a rib. It was maddening and she was loving it.

“Dinner is great, Mrs. D. I especially like the ribs and stuff.”

It was never going to go away. It was sort of like our code. But when she said it, the rest of the Musketeers leaned so they could see Tina. Now, with a full audience, she really went at it. I don’t think I was the only one embarrassed but Tina was having fun. I had my face in my hand to hide my laughter. A bone. She was making love to a bone. Next time I took her out to dinner it would definitely be for ribs.

“We need to finish up if we want to make it to the seven-twenty showing,” my mom said. “Michael...”

“I’ll clean up. I’ve seen it.”

“Was it good?”

“It was good. A little different and not Hitchcock’s best but you’ll scream. Definitely worth seeing.”

They left and I cleared the table. The salad was gone but there was enough of everything else for another meal. I was done with dishes before they were out the door and I went upstairs to watch Tie a Yellow Ribbon. I heard my dad on the first floor, calling for everyone. I turned on the TV and caught the end of Mr. Roberts.

I heard footsteps behind me and assumed someone forgot something.

“What did you forget,” I hollered without looking.

LuAnn walked between me and Jack Lemmon. “I forgot some stuff,” she said. “They left and I’m looking for some. Know where I can get some stuff?”

“Nice. What did you tell them?”

“I told your parents my stomach was off but the Musketeers know I came looking for stuff.”

“So, you have some teamwork to wear me out?”

“Pretty much,” she said and came closer. “Were you watching that,” she asked, indicating the movie.

“I know it by heart. I’d love to help you find some stuff though.”

She came forward and climbed onto my lap, straddling my legs. I slid toward the middle to give her room. She settled down and put her hands on my shoulders. I looked down at the bikini top she had changed back into.

“You are magnificent. Did you know that?”

“It’s nice that you think so. And it’s really nice to hear you say it. Did you really think about our future together?”

“Yeah. It was weird that my mind would even go there. I’ve been smoochin a lot this week but I might have been thinking even more, which is just wrong when school starts next week.”

“Tell me about our future together.”

“There were a lot of holes in it.”

“What do you mean,” she asked skootching closer.

“Dogs or cats?”

“What?”

“Which do you prefer, dogs or cats?”

“Dogs.”

“City or country.”

“Country, I think. How country? Can we see our neighbors?”

“That’s the kind of thing that was missing.”

“Gotcha. What about you, Michael? Dogs or cats?”

“Definitely dogs.”

We played the game for thirty minutes or more and it was fun. Then, LuAnn got antsy and started moving around on my lap and it got hard to concentrate. Somehow, she got the lead on questions.

“Empty beach house or crowded beach house,” she asked.

“Empty beach house.”

“Looking or touching?”

“Touching.”

“Touching or being touched?”

“I’m not exactly sure how these relate to our hypothetical future,” I said.

“Touching or being touched?”

“Touching and being touched.”

“You have to choose,” she said.

I reached up and put my hands on her tits. “Touching,” I said.

She smiled. “You said touching over seeing. Otherwise, I’d take my top off but now I can’t.”

“Oh, that makes these questions a lot harder.”

“Just the questions?” she asked, sliding forward against me.

I wrapped her in my arms and brought her to me. I held her close and she snuggled up against me. “This is a fun game,” she said, and the game was over.

We just held each other for a long time, just enjoying holding each other. Every now and then, she’d lean back to look at me and ask another question.

“Do you really love me?”

“Yes. I’d do anything for you.”

“Anything?”

“I think so.” And she’d collapse back against me for five minutes.

Then, she’d sit up again, “But you love Fallon and Tina, too?”

“Yes.”

“That must be weird.”

“Why? Do you love them?”

“Yeah, but not like you do. That would be weird.”

Collapsed against me and thinking, I stroked her hair. I was at peace with the world and didn’t even hear the movie.

“What and stuff did you do with Fallon and Tina?”

“Not going to talk about them and stuff. We’re on our own schedule.”

“Huh.” She slid back and forth and could definitely feel me, hard beneath her. My shorts and her bikini didn’t provide a lot of insulation against something like that. “I can feel you.”

“Not surprising.”

“Do you do something to make that happen or does it just do it?”

“Are your nipples stiff?”

She pulled her arms in tight, covering her chest, covered her mouth with her hand and turned her face down, away from me. I reached up and put my hand on her chin and gently lifted.

“I showed you the other night and I can’t believe I did that. I wanted to but it was embarrassing. I think I did because it was so dark, I didn’t think you could really see.”