Chapter 37: Tuesday, Sept. 18

I awoke slowly, just lying there in bed cuddled up to a warm, soft form. My right hand cupped a rather substantial breast and my dick was nestled between two very nice buttocks.

Kacie moaned and humped her butt against my morning wood. I instinctively humped back. It felt nice.

“Stop that,” my sister groaned sleepily. “We don’t have time and I’d probably get blood all over the bed. I think I started last night.”

“You started it,” I croaked, keeping my hand and cock right where they were.

“Sure, blame it on the girl,” she grumped as she rolled over and gave me a peck on the chin.

“Ever since Eve ate the apple,” I grinned, responding with a kiss on the tip of her nose.

“What time is it?” she moaned as she buried her head in my chest.

I had to shift my position to be able to raise up enough to see the alarm clock on the bedside table.

“A little before 6,” I said as I slumped back to the bed. “Might as well get up. The alarm will go off in a few minutes.”

Kacie just groaned and burrowed deeper into the mattress. I may have mentioned that she wasn’t a morning person.

“You can get up,” she moaned. “I’ll let you have the bathroom first. Just make sure I’m awake before you leave.”

“Will do,” I said, trying to extract myself.

Kacie rolled onto her back as I began to crawl over her. Her thighs parted just as I made it halfway, putting me in a rather interesting position. I couldn’t resist rubbing my groin against hers. If it hadn’t been for both of us wearing underwear, I might have tried to take things further.

“I told you to stop that,” she sighed, pushing on my shoulder to move me from my perch. “Go.”

Oh, well. I needed to pee, anyway.

I don’t know if Kacie made it back to sleep, but I heard a muffled curse when my alarm went off as I was washing my face. I finished up and went to get dressed for the day. She was still wrapped in the covers with her eyes closed as I pulled out a clean shirt.

“Bathroom’s free,” I said, giving her shoulder a shake. “You’d better get moving.”

There was a definite lack of enthusiasm as my sister forced herself out of bed and headed off to get ready. I finished dressing, made sure I had everything I’d need in my backpack and went to the kitchen to scrounge some breakfast.

Mom and Dad were there, dressed for business and nursing their coffee. I poured a bowl of cereal, added milk and joined them at the table.

“What do you have today?” Mom asked as I took my seat.

“Not much,” I said as I dug in. “No tests other than what we’ll do in Creative Writing. Everything else will just be reviewing for tests later in the week. Practice won’t be as long as normal, but Bethany hinted she wanted do something real quick after that.”

“I’d think she’d want you to take your time,” Dad snorted, quickly taking another sip of coffee at Mom’s glare.

“Well, let me know if you’ll be out,” she said to me. “Just don’t make it too late. Be home by 8.”

“Yes, ma’am,” I said, hurrying to finish my breakfast.

Kacie wandered in all dolled up as I was putting my dishes in the washer. I escaped back to my room as my parents turned their attention to her.

It was just after 7, so I had plenty of time to get to school, but there was something I needed to do that I should have taken care of last night. I pulled out my phone, called up the contacts and hit the entry Staci had made for me. It only took two rings before my call was answered.

“Hello?”

“Sherry? This is Gary Robinson,” I said. “I was told to call you last night, but got tied up with a few things. Every time I turned around, someone else wanted my attention. Sorry.”

“That’s all right,” my date for Sadie Hawkins said. “Thanks for calling. I wanted to go over things for Saturday, but I’ve got to get ready for school.”

“Tell ya what, you get ready and I’ll pick you up,” I offered. “We can talk on the way to school. Will 20 minutes be good for you?”

“Do you know where I live?” she asked.

“Staci included your address in the contact info,” I assured her. “I’ve already mapped it out on my phone. I should be able to find it.”

The line was silent as Sherry pondered for a bit.

“Let me check with my mom,” she finally said. “I’ll call you back if she says no.”

“That’ll be just fine,” I said. “Worst case, I’ll make sure I see you at school. Staci made sure I know where your locker is, too.”

“OK,” Sherry agreed. “I’ll see you soon. Bye.”

I disconnected and grabbed my backpack, then informed my parents of my plans.

“Squeezing in a date before school?” Dad snarked. “I never even thought of trying that.”

“You had a longer drive in,” Mom countered before turning to me. “You behave yourself and don’t be late for school.”

“It’s not a date,” I said without too much exasperation. “I’m just giving her a ride so she can tell me what she wants to do when we do have our date.”

“Tell Sherry it’s not a date,” Kacie said just a touch less snarkily than Dad. “She’s probably picking a whole new outfit right now.”

“I’ve got to go,” I said. “I told her I’d be there by 7:30.”

I exited the house with my ears burning. Once I reached the carport, I stowed my bag in the trunk of the Beemer and headed out. With the temperature already in the 80s on the way to a high in the mid 90s, I put the top down and enjoyed the morning breeze.

Sherry’s house was on the other side of town, not too far from where Keri Pipkin lived, but in a different neighborhood. It took about 15 minutes to get there thanks to a couple of ill-timed red lights.

I pulled up in front of a bungalow that looked like it may have been one of the oldest structures in town, but it seemed to be in good condition and the yard was well-kept. The cheerleader sign in the front flowerbed indicated I had the right place.

With a deep breath, I headed up the walk to the front porch and rang the doorbell. I figured the worst that could happen is I’d get to school in five minutes.

Mrs. Parker, looking like a MILFy version of her daughter down to the thick red hair and freckles, answered the door with virtually no delay.

“You must be Gary,” she said with a smile. “I almost didn’t recognize you with hair. Come on in. Sherry is just about ready.”

Then with a glance around to make sure no one would overhear, she leaned in close.

“She had to pick a different outfit after you called,” she whispered with a conspiratorial grin. “Apparently, jeans and a T-shirt were too casual.”

“I’m sure whatever she wears will be fine,” I smiled as I stepped inside.

Mrs. Parker led me into the front room — living room? parlor? I never knew what they were called in these old houses — and went to check on her daughter. She returned still smiling and began the interrogation.

“So what do you have planned for Saturday?” she asked.

“That’s pretty much what I’m here to find out, ma’am,” I said. “I’ve been told what to expect, but I haven’t heard from Sherry what she wants. And I’m sure Mr. Parker will want to check me out before we go anywhere.”

“I don’t think he’ll be a problem,” Mrs. Parker said. “Sherry’s talked of little else since she asked you. Her father would be risking his life by disapproving now.”

“That’s kinda how I felt when she asked me,” I laughed. “All the other cheerleaders were within a couple of steps and Staci Patterson had hold of my arm. I don’t think they’d have let me live if I’d said no. I get the feeling they’re all emotionally invested in this.”

“Are you, though?” Mrs. Parker asked with a concerned expression.

“To the extent that I want Sherry to enjoy herself,” I said. “I don’t know what all she’s been through, but I can tell it’s been tough on all of you just from how her friends and teammates reacted. If an evening of dining and dancing with a pretty girl is what I have to suffer through, I guess I’ll just have to suffer through it.”

“I heard you were a smooth talker,” Mrs. Parker grinned. “Try to tone it down with my daughter, please.”

“I swear I have no intention of trying anything you would object to,” I said. “I already have a girlfriend and I don’t want to get in trouble with her.”

“More than one girlfriend the way I understand it,” she smirked. “And a few more who used you as a crash-test dummy over the summer.”

“I promise I’ll behave myself,” I said.

“You’re not the one I’m worried about.”

Our conversation was interrupted when Sherry made her appearance decked out in a silk blouse and a skirt that wasn’t quite a mini, but still showed plenty of leg. Said legs were encased in sheer hose with spike-heeled ankle boots. Her makeup, like the outfit, was tasteful, just right for a schoolday. Her head was covered by what looked like some kind of knitted beret that just happened to be the same color as the rest of her outfit.

If she’d thrown this ensemble together in just the few minutes since I called, I wondered what she’d come up with for Saturday when she had time to plan.

“You look nice,” I said, earning a shy smile and blush. “It’s almost too bad we have to go to school. I should take you out and show you off.”

“That’s not toning it down,” Mrs. Parker stage whispered with an eye roll as her daughter’s blush deepened.

“Ready to go?” Sherry asked, grabbing her bookbag with one hand and my arm with the other, pulling me toward the door. “Bye, Mom. See you this afternoon.”

“Good-bye, Mrs. Parker,” I threw over my shoulder as I was dragged out of the house. I’m not sure the woman had time to respond before Sherry had me out of there.

I held the passenger door and handed Sherry to her seat, then went around to the driver’s side, got in and cranked up. The trip to school was fairly quick — Sherry’s house was considerably closer to the campus than mine — but still long enough to go over plans for Saturday. Familia Benavidez was a go and my clothing choice was deemed acceptable, except for one part.

“A blue button-down shirt would work better,” she said. “All the cheerleaders will be wearing school colors, but not actually in uniform.”

“I’ve got plenty of those,” I said as I steered toward school. “One of them’s bound to be clean.”

“What time will you pick me up?” she asked.

“That depends,” I hedged. “I’ve got a photo shoot Saturday and I don’t know when I’ll get done, but I was hoping to get to your house by 6. That’d give us enough time to eat and still make the start of the dance. I’ll call you if it’s going to be later than that.”

Satisfied with my answer, Sherry moved on to the next topic.

“You know all the cheerleaders are going to want to dance with you,” she said.

“I’ll try to fit them in, but you get right of first refusal,” I answered. “It’s your date, not theirs.”

That drew a smile, but I doubted I could avoid at least one dance with each of the other girls. Maybe I could double up during a fast song. I’d try to save the slow dances for my date.

One thing we didn’t get around to discussing was what time she had to be home, but I was sure her father would make that point quite clear when we met. I just hoped she wasn’t expecting to visit the apartment. If Kelli Thornton knew about it, I’m sure all the cheerleaders did.

I made it to my parking spot with enough time to walk Sherry to her locker in the East Wing, carrying her book bag and my backpack as she held my arm for support. I was rewarded for my efforts with a very nice kiss that more than likely violated the PDA policy, but which teacher was going to be mean enough to bust Sherry Parker? I mean, she’s battling leukemia!

Not that a sweet girl like her would take advantage of the situation. I think.

I had to hustle to get what I needed for Economics from my locker and get back to Mr. Cochran’s room before the tardy bell. I was told by teachers to slow down twice. I guess they weren’t going to cut me any slack now that I wasn’t escorting Sherry.

Class was class during the morning. They pretty much all consisted of reviewing material for the upcoming tests.

We spent almost all of Economics working through the types of problems we’d see on the test with Mr. Cochran explaining each step in the process in his dry monotone. It damn near put me back to sleep. All I needed was to get busted for snoring in class.

Chuck had to get a dig in as we exited the room after the bell.

“Makin’ out with cheerleaders in the halls again,” he laughed. “No wonder you get detention every week.”

“It was one kiss, not making out,” I shot back. “And I’ve never been sent to detention for excessive PDA, at least not officially.”

“Maybe,” he grinned, “but Sherry was stakin’ her claim. You’d better get your rest this week. You’ll need it for Saturday night.”

Whatever, I thought as I headed for my locker.

Staying awake wasn’t an issue in Western Civ or English IV. Both consisted of in-depth discussions of the reading assignments and both Mrs. Edwards and Mrs. Albracht seemed to sense I hadn’t spent a lot of time on the material, constantly calling on me. It wasn’t my fault Kacie needed my attention.

I was able to fake my way through a couple of answers, but it was obvious I’d only glossed over the material. I think I did more of the reading during the classes than I had last night.

We whipped through our lower-body workout in athletics, then went inside for more film study. There was a knot of players gathered around the bulletin board in the hallway and an excited buzz in the air.

“What’s up?” I asked as I went by.

“We’re in the state poll!” Kevin Duncan, a backup linebacker, exclaimed. “No. 17!”

I looked over several shoulders to see the clipping from the Daily News. The name of our school was highlighted in a paragraph under the list of top 10 teams. I noticed the Eagles had held steady at No. 4 after avoiding our upset bid on Saturday.

“We’re not in the poll, we’re just receiving votes,” I said, drawing more than a few dissenting comments. “It doesn’t matter, anyway. The rankings don’t decide who goes to the playoffs. We’ve still got to win at least four district games to get in. All that’ll do is give other teams more incentive to try to beat us.”

“Not gonna happen,” somebody from the other side of the mob said. “We’re gonna win ‘em all.”

“The Cougars might beg to differ,” I pointed out. “They’re ranked ahead of us.”

That drew more derisive comments, but it was true. The team seen as our biggest competition for the district title was listed fourth among “others receiving votes,” so I guess that made them No. 14.

Our district was shaping up as a four-team race with us and the Cougars at the top, followed by the Cardinals and Hawks. All three of those teams were 3-0, but the prevailing opinion was none had faced the level of competition we had.

The Lions, Tigers, Bears and Badgers, on the other hand, were positively dreadful. All were 0-3, having been routed each week by opponents from lower classifications. The Bearcats, who we’d beaten handily in the opener, had put up more than 60 points on both the Tigers and Badgers the last two weeks. The Bears had come the closest to winning out of all of them, if you could call a 17-point loss in which they’d scored two garbage-time touchdowns close.

The fact that those four teams were all in the same school district served to reinforce our community’s unwillingness to open a second four-year high school. It diluted the talent pool too much. Two of those schools actually had enrollments that would have put them in a lower classification, but their district administration forced them to play up a level so all the schools could participate, if not necessarily compete, in the same district.

“The only thing that matters is who’s playing on Dec. 22,” I said. “If we are, then we’re at least No. 2 in the state.”

“That’s a good attitude to have, Robinson,” Coach Tucker said from behind me, causing me and several others to almost jump out of our skin. “You fellows better get in the team room. We’re burnin’ daylight.”

The film session today was mostly a review of things from the start of workouts through Saturday’s game. Coach Wilson noted which receivers were doing better at things like running routes, catching, blocking, making hot reads and things like that. With the few snaps I’d played so far, there wasn’t much for me to brag about. Not that I expected to see more playing time. I was basically a short-yardage specialist. Any mop-up time from here on out would be better used to get younger guys experience for next year.

Coach Tucker went over the afternoon’s practice script, but turned us loose in time to rinse off in the shower and dress before the bell rang. Morgan was waiting outside the locker room when I exited and hooked my arm as we turned toward the cafeteria.

“I hear you’re getting an early start on your date,” she teased as we moved along. “Making out in the hallways even. So, do we need to adjust the schedule to accommodate Sherry?”

“Not if I have anything to say about it,” I groused.

“I’m pretty sure you don’t,” she said with a wicked grin.

“If I wasn’t already dating several someones, she’d certainly be a possibility,” I admitted. “She’s a very sweet girl and I enjoyed having a little time with her this morning, but there are too many issues going on here.”

“Such as?” Morgan asked with an arched eyebrow.

“You, Staci, Bethany, the four that are supposed to be in the background, school, football, modeling assignments and the fact that I barely have time for all that,” I ticked off. “It already feels like I have to choose between eating and sleeping. Then there’s all the other girls who apparently want a turn and however many more who are circling like vultures waiting to pounce.”

“You’ve been able to handle it so far,” my first girlfriend smirked.

“Lord knows how,” I said. “I seem to remember you saying once upon a time that you wanted to be exclusive by the time school started. It’s more like you’re recruiting more girls for me. No wonder Kelli Thornton thinks I have a harem.”

“I’m definitely not recruiting,” Morgan said. “More like screening and filtering it down to acceptable candidates.”

“Like Elise Stirling and Stephanie Tucker?”

“Don’t forget Ny’Quesha Taylor,” she interjected, still smirking. “And a few others.”

“I don’t even want to know,” I said.

“Well, it won’t hurt you to take Sherry out a few more times this fall,” Morgan said. “Staci said her spirits have been higher today than since she learned her diagnosis.”

“That’s another thing,” I said. “I don’t want people looking at this as a pity date. Sherry doesn’t deserve that. I don’t want anyone accusing me of being nice to ‘the sick girl’ just to make myself look good.”

“Which is why you need to take her out again after Saturday,” Morgan said.

I didn’t respond since we were coming up on the lunch line. I didn’t need the whole school gossiping about me having yet another girlfriend and it let Morgan have the satisfaction of having the last word. For now.

The gods were obviously conspiring against me today. The burger line was backed up out the door as students waited for the kitchen staff to cook up another batch and the wait was going to be at least 10 minutes. There was one selection that I felt I could stomach today that was available right now — meatloaf.

Against my better judgement, I got it. I really didn’t want to rush through a burger like I had two weeks ago, but my track record with meatloaf hadn’t been very good so far.

At first, it looked like I might actually have an uneventful Tuesday lunch for once. The regular group gathered at the regular table as the inhabitants from C lunch cleared out to return to class. I even ate a couple of bites in between the continuation of our discussion regarding the validity and worth of state rankings. I still didn’t think it was that big a deal until we were actually in the top 10.

Then it all turned to shit. At least this time it wasn’t Mrs. Montero threatening to throw me out of school.

It really all started when Kelli Thornton joined us, setting her tray on the table before wrapping me up in a big hug.

“Driving Sherry to school this morning was pure genius!” she squealed at a level that was just shy of ear-splitting. “Keep it up! She’s already got an outfit picked out for when you pick her up tomorrow.”

This was getting so far out of hand I was already thinking of telling Armand to keep me as long as I was needed Saturday night. The looks from my teammates didn’t help.

“I wasn’t able to call her last night, so I did it this morning,” I explained. “All I did was find out what she wants to do Saturday and meet her mother.”

“And score beau coup brownie points by walking her to her locker!” Kelli almost shrieked, drawing even more attention from surrounding tables. “She’s been walking on air all day, you old romantic!”

I seriously doubted my actions could be considered romantic. It wasn’t like I’d bought the girl flowers or anything. The guys at the table were giving me some more strange looks, like I’d done something totally alien.

Before Kelli could gush any further or my teammates could accuse me of forfeiting my man card, Miss Wilkes, the cheer coach, intervened.

“May I have a word with you, Gary?” Miss Wilkes asked in a tone that made it a command, not a request.

“Yes, ma’am,” I said before turning to Morgan. “Keep these Neanderthals away from my lunch, please. I’ll be back to finish it.”

I should have known it wouldn’t do any good. The snickers started before I was even out of my seat and I swear I heard the sound of forks hitting my tray as soon as I stepped away.

Miss Wilkes led me over to the spirit shop, which she manned during the lunch periods. With no game this week, she didn’t appear to be getting much business.

“I heard you were rather affectionate with Sherry this morning,” she said in an accusatory tone. “You might want to tone it down. At least on campus.”

Good God! I have had about enough of this shit. The girl kissed me, for cryin’ out loud. How many times was I going to catch grief for someone else’s behavior?

“Yes, ma’am,” I managed to get out without too much heat.

“I understand she’s the one who asked you to the dance,” the cheer coach said, “but I don’t want you trying to take advantage of a girl in a vulnerable situation.”

All right, that did it. How I kept from having a screaming fit then and there I don’t know, but I wasn’t putting up with any more of this shit.

“That’s enough,” I growled, leaning in close so Miss Wilkes was the only one who could hear. “I have never taken advantage of a girl and I damn sure don’t need anyone thinking I’d try to with Sherry. She and her family are dealing with enough right now and I’m not going to pile on with something like that!”

Miss Wilkes stepped back and looked like she was about to tear me a new one. I was going to tear her a new one first if I had to.

“Don’t even think about it,” I snapped, cutting off whatever she was about to say. “I doubt you’d want the administration to find out about your little fling with Arlene Jenson.”

Miss Wilkes paled and her eyes got big, like she couldn’t believe I would do such a thing. It was almost like I threatened to hit her. It was probably my imagination, but I swear I saw a nostril flare.

“You’ve been on my ass ever since I kept Morgan from putting a leash on me,” I continued. “It ends now.

“All I’m going to do with Sherry is take her to dinner and the dance. I’ll dance with her as much as she wants and let her rest as much as she needs. I may not even be the one who takes her home. Her parents will be at the dance and I’m not stupid enough to try anything in front of them. And I wouldn’t try anything even if they weren’t. She’s too nice a girl to do that to.”

“But I heard Kelli say you were going to get lucky after the dance,” she hissed, trying to regain the upper hand.

“I think Kelli’s the one hoping to get lucky,” I replied. “That’s not gonna happen unless she roofies me or something, and I don’t think I’d be much use to her if she did. I’ve got an idea on how to handle things with Kelli if it comes to that.”

“As long as we understand each other,” the cheer coach said shakily as she tried to get her breath under control. Her pallor had turned into a flush that reached below the neckline of her top. It must have been quite chilly in the spirit shop based on the two points pushing out the fabric of the front of the garment.

“Then I’ll see you Saturday night,” I said with a grin that may have been a touch evil, but not as much as my encounter last week with Mrs. Montero.

I returned to the table to find an empty tray and several snickering teammates. I cast a glance at Morgan, who blushed and wouldn’t meet my eyes.

“Lemme guess,” I said, “they overpowered you and were done before you could do anything.”

“I wasn’t going to risk getting stabbed with a fork,” she muttered as the rest of the table cracked up.

I just gave my teammates a stern look. They didn’t cower like Miss Wilkes had.

“We had too,” Chuck said, almost keeping a straight face. “We didn’t last week and look what happened.”

“I seriously doubt we lost a football game because y’all didn’t get to steal my lunch,” I said.

“But we won the weeks we did,” Jed cut in. “Can’t mess with success. The precedent’s been set. It’s like Crash Davis said.”

“The line was a player on a streak has to respect the streak,” I said. “We aren’t on a streak. We’re on our bye week.”

“It’s not like we expect you to wear garters under your uniform,” Chuck cracked, bringing another round of laughs from the rest of the table.

Kelli Thornton walked up with a burger at that point, handing it to me and giving Chuck his student ID back.

“Here,” she said. “You shouldn’t have to buy two lunches. I made Chuckie put it on his card.”

The use of the left guard’s childhood nickname drew some more laughs from the table. At least they weren’t at my expense this time.

“Thanks,” I said as I unwrapped the food and took a bite. “Much appreciated, Chuckie.”

“What did Coach Wilkes want with you?” the head cheerleader asked.

“She had to make sure I wasn’t going to ‘take advantage of a girl in vulnerable situation,’” I said. “She seemed to think I was planning to ‘get lucky’ after the dance. I doubt I’ll have the energy after working all day.”

“Why would she think that?” Kelli asked all innocent.

I just shrugged and wolfed the burger down in about five bites. That should be enough to hold me until after practice.

A glance at my phone showed it was still a few minutes until the bell. I needed to hit my locker and load up for the afternoon classes. I gathered my backpack, gave Morgan a hug and headed out. I’d let Chuckie dispose of my tray. I figured he’d eaten more of my lunch than I had.

Algebra II consisted of grading and turning in the assignment before going over more of the chapter we’d started Monday. Mr. Henderson reminded us there’d be another assignment Wednesday for Thursday and that we should review earlier chapters to make sure we had a grasp on things that would be on Friday’s test.

Chemistry was, as promised, a review for Wednesday’s test. Mr. Debussy said a good chunk of the test would relate to identifying chemical compounds formed by mixing elements along with their chemical properties, but we could also expect questions pertaining to our lab experiments.

Elise seemed rather put out that we would be unable to study together tonight. The volleyball match was supposed to start at 6 p.m. (it seemed like they were always at least 20 minutes behind) and the team wouldn’t get back until well after 8 p.m. even if the match was a sweep.

“I guess you’ll be with Sherry Parker, anyway,” she pouted.

“Actually, I doubt I’ll have time,” I said. “We have study hall after practice and I’ve been told to be home early so I can study. I’ll be lucky to squeeze in supper.”

“But you’ve taken up with her pretty fast,” my lab partner continued, sounding just a bit perturbed. “The whole school’s talking about what you did this morning.”

I tried to suppress a sigh of exasperation without much success.

“Look, I gave her a ride to school so we could talk about what she wants to do Saturday night for Sadie Hawkins,” I said. “Walking her to her locker was just convenient. I had to go that way for my first class, anyway.”

“With a cheerleader hanging all over you,” Elise huffed. “I thought you weren’t looking for another girlfriend.”

“She’s not my girlfriend,” I said.

“Tell Sherry that,” the Amazon snorted.

“All I did was agree to be her date for Sadie Hawkins,” I said. “If you’d been there when she asked me, you’d understand that I didn’t have much choice.”

“Oh?”

“It was right after the pep rally before our second game,” I said. “All the other cheerleaders — freshmen, JV and varsity — were just staring at me waiting for me to answer. I probably wouldn’t be here right now if I’d said no.”