Graduation

It was almost forty years ago that Thomas sat in the same auditorium in the same uncomfortable chairs in which he currently sat. The air conditioner could not keep up with the rising temperatures and it was becoming uncomfortably warm. The scratchy woolen gown he wore was certainly a factor. The cap was not making him warmer, but it was an annoyance because it would not stay put and kept falling askew over his line of vision. This time around, though, he was several rows closer to the stage due to the bump in his GPA after getting straight-As in the spring semester. Another change was that this time he had his sister, mom, and his mom’s boyfriend in the audience.

Thomas looked to his left. Sandy, his mom, saw him and smiled proudly. She gave him a small wave. Just months ago, she was working two jobs and struggling. With Thomas’s encouragement and instruction, she quit her two jobs, started attending night school, and got a job at the computer store Bits & Bytes. It was owned by Mr. Earnest. She very quickly made herself an indispensable resource, like when she helped him win a huge contract with the local school board to furnish all the schools with computers for the next school year. She was also the significant other of Mr. Earnest.

Tammy, Thomas’s sister, sat to Sandy’s right. She was two years younger than Thomas. In his first go-round through the 1980s they had a contentious relationship and did the best they could to avoid one another. This time they had grown closer and enjoyed a meaningful sibling relationship, even when they did not agree, such as with Tammy’s current kick of adding multiple curse words to every sentence when not in earshot of their mother.

Mr. Earnest, Eddie, sat to Sandy’s left. She tried to convince him he did not need come to graduation, but he insisted that he wanted to attend. It had only been in the past few weeks that his relationship with Sandy had gotten serious enough that she brought him home and introduced him to her children. He knew it was difficult to be introduced to adolescent teenagers. He also knew he would never be their father, nor would he ever try, but he hoped he could at least be their friend, or at worst, not their enemy.

Eddie put his arm around Sandy and gave her a light squeeze. She nodded in his direction in response. She was smiling happily. Her oldest was graduating from high school and she had a boyfriend she really liked, in contrast to the children’s father. That man was a piece of work. Sandy got pregnant right out of high school. Because he was older, and already working as a truck driver, he was never around. He minimally tried to be a dad to Thomas, but once he learned that Sandy was pregnant with a second child he left never to be heard of again, which at this point was running at sixteen years and counting.

The superintendent of the school wrapped up her comments and the handing out of diplomas began. There were just under two-hundred students in the class so the process went fairly quickly. When Thomas crossed the stage to get his diploma he heard enthusiastic applause from his family.

When the ceremony finally ended and the graduates threw their caps everyone was ready to get away from the school. Thomas turned to look for his mom and saw Denise approaching.

“Hey, graduate,” she called. She walked up to him and put her arms around him in a long hug.

“Hey, graduate, to you, too,” he replied.

Denise was his girlfriend even if neither of them yet acknowledged their relationship as boyfriend-girlfriend. It started after he tutored her in math, then co-starred with her in the spring musical, Grease. Their physical relationship started slowly, but once the floodgates were opened they were insatiable.

Thomas felt his member stir. He thought about the last performance of Grease. It was a Sunday matinee so it wrapped late-afternoon. The director, Mrs. Downey, invited all of the cast, crew, and faculty to her house for an after party. It was a low-key event as no one, neither faculty nor student, really wanted to cut loose with the others present. As the exodus started, Thomas gave Denise a ride home as they planned. Also as planned, they had Denise’s house to themselves because it was her parents’ anniversary and they were at a downtown hotel to celebrate.

After they got inside Denise’s empty house they started slowly, with kisses and light touches, but when Denise led Thomas to her bedroom they were instantly naked. She explored every inch of his body, then she laid still as he touched, rubbed, and licked her all over. He finally mounted her and took her virginity.

Thomas was snapped back to the present when Denise asked, “Do you know where you are going for dinner?”

“Not yet. All I’ve heard is that Mr. Earnest, Eddie, wants to take us out.”

“Yeah, my Dad said that he would like to go to The Big Steer, but my grandma usually vetoes going to a steakhouse. Not sure where we’ll end up. Call me later tonight? If it’s not too late maybe we can get together?”

“Absolutely!” replied Thomas.

He leaned in for a final hug, then they parted in search of their families. Thomas made it a few steps when he heard a different voice call his name. He turned to see the student teacher, Ms. Tutterbom, Lisa, approaching.

“Congratulations,” she said.

“And to you. I saw in the paper the college graduation was last weekend.”

“Thanks, it was, even if I didn’t walk through the line.”

Ms. Tutterbom was the student teacher for Mrs. Downey, and also helped with the school plays and the spring musical. After Thomas’s surprisingly cogent essay on found poetry drew the attention of the Mrs. Downey and Ms. Tutterbom teachers, Thomas and Ms. Tutterbom quickly grew close as they satisfied each other’s sexual dry spell. It was a one-time encounter until Lisa’s boyfriend dumped her the weekend before the rehearsals for Grease started. Thomas and Lisa once again exchanged a few intimate encounters on the first day of rehearsals.

“I guess with a larger class, taking part in the ceremony becomes less important?” Thomas asked.

“Partly,” Lisa responded. “And my parents are not in town so there was really no one for me to walk for, so I just skipped the ceremony.”

They were about to part when Lisa suddenly said, “I know you and Denise are essentially dating, but if you ever want ... here is my number.” She pulled a small slip of paper from a pocket with her phone number. “Give me a call sometime.”

Ms. Tutterbom turned to see another one of her students and began to talk to her about her upcoming freshman year in college.

Thomas saw his sister milling through the graduates and waved.

“There you are. What a cluster-fuck,” she said as she reached Thomas.

“Still following Billie’s ‘cursing is cool’ philosophy?” asked Thomas with rolled eyes.

“No. I just thought cluster-fuck was the most appropriate. I kind of like the phrase. C’mon, mom and Eddie headed to the car, let’s get out of this...”

Tammy grinned mischievously as she looked at Thomas, then they said in unison, “Cluster-fuck!”

The two pushed their way through the crowd, finally arriving at a side door. They burst through and into the fresh air as Thomas laughed.

“For the grief I give you about your language, I think you hit this one on the head by calling the crowd a cluster-fuck.”

They were still laughing when they got to the car and piled into the backseat.

“What’s so funny?” asked Sandy as Thomas put on his seat belt.

“Nothing, really,” Thomas replied. “Tammy was just making a joke at how crowded it was in the gym while trying to get to the door.”

Eddie nodded. “It was a bit of a cluster.” Thomas and Tammy burst into uncontrollable laughter. They didn’t know if he did not know the full phrase, or chose to sanitize it for the current company, but either way, they could not stop laughing.

After twenty minutes they pulled into The Big Steer. Eddie said, “I hope everyone is hungry. And for the record, this is my treat. Get whatever you want.”

Dinner at The Big Steer was fantastic. The restaurant’s appearance was rustic, and the clothing of the waitstaff western, but the food was five-star. Sandy and her children had only been to the restaurant once before. It was for Thomas’s sixteenth birthday. Sandy won a contest on the radio and got a gift card. Even with the gift card the bill was more than they would have normally paid for a night out.

As they finished dessert Eddie raised his glass and looked to Thomas. “Congratulations, young man. I would offer best of luck in the future, but from what your mom says, you’ve got your act together and are well on your way to becoming a successful adult.”

“Thanks, Eddie,” replied Thomas. “I think I have an idea for the future, but there is a lot to consider. Right now, I’m just going to concentrate on having a little fun this summer.”

“Of course,” he said, “and if I can ever help you with advice, don’t be a stranger.”

Eddie was given the bill by the waiter. He pulled a huge wad of cash out of a pocket and left a stack of bills on the table. He then searched out one particular waitress that had been very attentive during the meal and slipped her a bill of her own.

Thomas held the door for the others to exit. As they left a family started to enter so Thomas continued to hold the door.

“Thomas!” exclaimed a voice from the middle of the pack. It was Denise.

“Denise! I didn’t think you were coming here?”

“We weren’t, until dad convinced grandma that they had a vegetarian option.”

At that, Denise’s dad said, “Why you’d want to come here and order vegetarian is beyond me.”

He was quickly shuffled into the door by Denise’s mom. “Don’t start again. We’re here, after all.”

“You going home now?” asked Denise.

“Yeah, I think so.”

“Give us a couple hours, then come over, OK?”

“Sure, sounds great.”

Thomas let the door close then jogged to catch up with his family.

“How’s Denise?” asked Sandy.

“Good. Sounds like they had a debate on where to go, so it took them a bit longer to get to the restaurant. Denise asked me over to her house after they finish.”

“It’s fine with me. Eddie and I were thinking about going to a movie.”

Tammy added, “And Billie wants me to come over.”

With the evening plans set Eddie drove them home. Everyone retreated to their rooms to refresh before heading out with their individual agendas. Thomas waited over two hours before grabbing his keys and heading to Denise’s house.

When he arrived he only saw one car in her driveway and was afraid they were not yet back from dinner. As he rolled to a stop on the street he saw the door open and Denise’s arm wave him inside. He exited the Corvette and headed to the front door.

When he entered he stopped cold! Denise was standing just inside the front door. Naked. A pile of clothes was scattered around her feet.

Thomas offered her a huge grin and stepped toward her to give her a sensual kiss.

“Whoa, what’s wrong here? You seem to be a bit overdressed,” she said as his tongue began to explore her mouth.

Thomas took a step back and discarded his clothes in rapid succession. He then stepped back to kiss Denise with his dick poking her in the stomach as he neared. She laughed and reached for him as they kissed. He returned her touch by cupping a breast.

Denise turned and led him to her bedroom by his member. She fell onto the bed and held her knees up and spread wide. Thomas was only a second behind her as climbed onto the bed, taking aim with his dick. He hit his target and slid into her in one smooth motion.

“Oh, fuck, yes!” yelled Denise.

Thomas held himself deeply within Denise as her pussy quivered at the sudden intrusion. He started to slide in and out of her well-lubricated tunnel, slowly at first, then gaining moment until he finally offered a couple hard thrusts and emptied his load. Denise’s orgasm quickly followed. She wrapped her legs around his waist and clamped onto him as she spasmed in her own release.

Thomas collapsed against Denise and then rolled them onto their sides.

“That was an unexpected greeting,” he said.

“Mom and dad just left to take grandma and grandpa home. They’ll be gone almost two hours. I went to the door to see them off and as I was closing it I saw you coming down the street. I thought you could use a special graduation greeting.”

Thomas played with Denise’s nipple and gently kissed the erect nub as she tried to talk. Not surprisingly, he was again hard. Denise rolled him over and took control by sliding on top.

They completed two more couplings when Denise finally said, “It’s been an hour and a half. We better get cleaned up.”

“Or at least get our clothes out of the living room,” laughed Thomas.

Before they got out of bed, Denise paused and looked intently at Thomas.

He crooked an eyebrow, silently asking her if all was alright.

“Thomas,” she stated quietly, “I love you so much.”

She dropped her head to his chest and held him tight.

He stroked her hair. A smile crossed his lips as he said with an equally soft voice, “And, I love you, too, Denise.”

They held each other for a few moments, then realized that the time was slipping away. They walked nakedly to the bathroom to clean themselves, then through the house to the front room to collect their clothes. Just as they finished dressing they saw a car pull into the driveway. They scampered into the kitchen to retrieve sodas, then to living room. They had just gotten the television turned on when Denise’s mom poked her head around the corner.

“Hi, Thomas. We were wondering if you would be here yet, then saw your car.”

“Yes, ma’am, I got here a little bit ago.”

Denise added, “We were just watching TV until you got home. I didn’t know how late you would be, and we weren’t sure what we’d do after you got home.”

“Of course, dear,” said her mom. “It’s been a long day, but if you two want to go out that’s OK. Your dad and I are going to call it a night soon.”

“OK, mom, we may do just that.”

Her mom turned and headed back to the kitchen where they could hear her dad rummaging through the refrigerator.

“You know that was code for us to get lost so they can have sex, right?”

“Thomas,” shrieked Denise.

“What? Your parents have sex, too. And if you take after your mom, they want us long gone so we don’t hear her from the other side of the house when she has an orgasm.”

Denise slapped Thomas’s arm, not necessarily in a fully playful manner, but said, “Yeah, you’re probably right.”

He took her by the hand and helped her stand. “Let’s go get an ice cream and get out of the house for a while.”

They found her parents and told them their plans before exiting the side door en route to the Corvette. They lingered at the ice cream shop before Thomas returned Denise to her house and they said good night on the front porch.

As Thomas turned to leave Denise said, “Oh, by the way, my cousins are coming to town, well to grandma’s, to visit for a few weeks. I’m going to go stay with them since I haven’t seen either of them in over a year.”

Thomas said, “No problem. If you are only an hour or so away, maybe we could meet for dinner? I’d love to meet your cousins.”

“Sure, I can call you after I meet up with them and I learn if they have any plans already set.”

Thomas and Denise kissed a final time before he turned and headed to his car.

On Monday Thomas did not go for a run and slept in until almost 9:30. When he descended into the kitchen he found two notes. The first was from his mom saying that she was going with Eddie to tour the school buildings where the new computers were to be installed. They would get dinner while out and probably would not be home until late. She also wrote that two of the guys Eddie planned to hire for the actual installation were not available and that she volunteered Thomas to help for a few weeks getting the new computers installed.