Chapter 62: Saturday, Oct. 13

I forgot to set the alarm on my phone before I hit the sack last night, but my mother still called a good 20 minutes before the time I would have set it for. As it was, it took Marie to answer it before the call went to voicemail as I groggily tried to figure out where the racket was coming from.

“Mornin,’ Mom,” I mumbled, hoping I was holding the phone where I was speaking into the microphone.

“Are you up yet?” my mother asked, making me wonder if it was really her. Of course I wasn’t.

“I’m gettin’ there,” I groaned as I tried to reach a foot over the edge of the mattress.

“You need to get moving,” Mom said. “Morgan will be there by 7:30. And be sure to wear something nice.”

I swear, the woman could come up with the flimsiest excuses to turn any occasion into a big production. I’d be wearing a coat and tie soon enough for dinner at Morton’s. No way I was going to dress like that for a four-hour test. And it wasn’t like I was going to wear shorts and flip-flops. It was too cold for that. Polo, khakis, loafers would be more than dressy enough this morning. I wish I had one of my windbreakers here.

“Yes, ma’am,” I sighed, finally sitting upright and getting my feet solidly on the floor. “I’d better let you go so I can get showered.”

Mom bade me farewell, reminding me to do a good job on the SAT. I placed my phone back on the nightstand and finally noticed the time on the clock-radio — 6:38. In the morning.

One of these days, I was going to convince my mother I didn’t need as much time to get ready as she did. I didn’t have to spend an hour or more on makeup and hair. I could have slept another 30 or 45 minutes and still had plenty of time to get ready. I just might have had to skip breakfast.

Which wasn’t going to happen with Marie taking care of me. I could hear bacon start to sizzle as I staggered to the bathroom.

A quick shower helped wake me up a little more. I decided to skip shaving until this evening when I’d get ready for my date with Morgan. It wasn’t like I had much stubble, anyway. Unlike some of the guys on the team. I swear, a couple of them were born with a 5 o’clock shadow.

I exited the bathroom and dressed quickly. Marie already had my plate and glass of pineapple juice on the table.

“Are you coming back here after your test?” she asked as she slipped into her chair with a cup of coffee.

“More than likely,” I said. “I already feel like I need a nap. I’m sure Morgan will want to take advantage of her curfew tonight. Probably wouldn’t be a good idea to fall asleep on her before I take her home. Do you have everything ready for your little get-together with the other girls?”

“I will by the time they get here,” the little waif grinned. “Kacie’s supposed to be bringing Morgan this morning and will stay to help me.”

I had a hard time believing my sister would willingly get up this early on a Saturday. There wasn’t even any shopping involved. Just housework.

The flaw in my thinking was exposed when there was a knock on the door and Kacie and Morgan came bouncing in, greeting Marie with hugs and me with deep kisses. It wasn’t even 7:15, but I was wide awake now.

I noticed neither was wearing makeup, though Morgan was clad in an outfit that would have been deemed a little dressy for school, her hair now almost chin-length. Kacie just wore jeans and a sweatshirt with her hair pulled back into a ponytail.

“Ready to go?” Morgan asked after extracting her tongue from my mouth.

“I thought we didn’t have to be there until 8,” I said.

“We need to check in and Kacie has something for you,” the little elf said.

“Mom said you didn’t have any jackets here,” my sister said, pulling out a black pullover fleece from Morgan’s bag. “Black will go with whatever you’re wearing.”

God forbid I wear clashing colors in public.

To be honest, I could have gotten by without it. The weather forecast called for temperatures in the 60s all day, maybe low 70s in the afternoon. I’d be in the library all morning, so it really wouldn’t matter. The bigger concern to me were the thunderstorms we’d have rolling through all day. I guess it was a good thing we’d gotten the game in last night, after all.

“And you’ll need these,” Morgan said, reaching into her bag and retrieving a package of No. 2 pencils and one of those little sharpeners we all had in elementary school.

“Thank you, ladies,” I said, remembering my manners as I accepted the items.

Since all three wore expectant expressions, I went ahead and pulled on the fleece. Then they had to make sure the shoulder seams and sleeves were straight.

I checked with my sister on the availability of the Rover. I had to promise — against my better judgement — to grant her use of the Beemer for her date with Danny tonight. They were just having dinner at the club and she swore she’d have the gas tank topped off when she brought it back. I just hoped she’d remember to put the top back up. It was supposed to rain off and on all day.

We agreed to swap vehicles this afternoon since she expected to still be here. I could reclaim mine after I delivered Morgan home tonight.

By now, it really was getting close to time to go.

“We’ll probably grab lunch as soon as we get out,” Morgan informed the rest of us, handing me her bag as I stuffed the pencils and sharpener into a pocket on the fleece. “Gary can bring me back here so y’all can catch me up on what happens at lunch. I’ll need to get home by 4 so I can start getting ready to go out tonight.”

With another round of hugs and kisses, my first official girlfriend grabbed my arm and dragged me toward the door. It was time to prove I was smart enough to be admitted to a college.

When we reached the Beemer, I popped the trunk lid to stow Morgan’s bag and found my backpack still there. I delayed our departure long enough to take my bag to the apartment, where Kacie and Marie were surprised to see me return so soon. From their sheepish expressions, I was pretty sure they were cooking up more mischief for me.

I didn’t have time to mess with it right now. I just dropped the overloaded backpack on the easy chair, waved and headed back out.

The drive to school was quick enough. I did notice one of the shopkeepers who had our football schedule painted on their storefront window adding the score from last night’s game. There sure were a lot of big numbers on our side.

I pulled into my spot in the senior lot by 7:40, plenty of time to get checked in. There weren’t that many vehicles in the lot at the moment, but several pulled in as I walked Morgan toward the southeast entrance of the main building.

“Are the coaches going to be able to get by without you this morning?” I asked as we headed inside.

“Benny and Wil can handle things,” Morgan smirked. “Really, all I do is check for mistakes while they enter the data. I probably should stick my head in after we finish, though.”

We cut through the South Wing, the threat of seeing freshmen girls wearing chokers not being a factor today, on our way to the library. This was maybe the third or fourth time I’d been in the place since school started. The other times had been to do some reading for classes like Economics, Western Civ and English IV.

I reminded myself I needed to check out a book for my second book report in English. I’d done one for the first six weeks during the bye week. I should have made time to get one to read over fall break. Maybe I could find a copy of something on the approved list at home. Mom had a pretty good selection in her bookcase.

We got checked in, proving we were who we claimed to be, and found seats far enough apart that we wouldn’t waste time staring at each other. One thing I noticed were none of the people administering the test seemed to be faculty members or even district employees. They all had nametags from something called the Educational Testing Service.

I also noticed a good chunk of the test takers were not from our school, based on the various letter jackets and team hoodies being worn.

The test itself actually wasn’t that bad considering I had no idea what I was getting myself into. As Morgan had claimed, carefully reading each question was the key. I caught a couple of double negatives during the English portion. The problem was I always had a few questions to go on each section when time was called. It didn’t help that I stopped several times to sharpen my pencil.

Hell, it wasn’t like I expected to make a perfect score, anyway.

The first part of the Math portion was almost like being in Mr. Henderson’s class. I think I spent as much time looking for the correct answer among the multiple choices as I did working through the equations.

Even with Marie’s breakfast, my stomach was starting to growl as I worked on the final section. It was maybe 10 ‘til noon when we were ordered to turn things in. The gentleman who’d given us instructions before we started explained that results would be sent out in two or three weeks and informed us of the process for contacting the College Board if we had any questions or complaints.

By that point, I was incapable of absorbing any more information. I’d either take what I got or retake the test in March. I was just glad the ordeal was over with and wanted nothing more than to get out of there while I still had enough brain function to drive back to Arlene’s.

Morgan said she had to go potty before we left. I figured I’d better follow her example and made my own pitstop. It was no surprise that I was in and out faster than she was, so I found a blank space on the wall across and down the hall a little from the girls restroom entrance. Didn’t want anybody thinking I was a pervert trying to sneak a peek.

I should have moved farther down.

“Ohmygod! It is him!” I heard a girl gasp.

I looked up from my phone to see a couple of girls in Cougars sweatshirts racing toward me.

“You’re him!” the girl enthused. “I knew it! I was sitting two tables behind you during the test!”

“Him who?” I asked, more than a little befuddled.

“Lela’s mystery man,” the other girl said. “The one with the posters.”

“Nearly all the girls at our school have at least one of your posters,” the first girl said. “I just love the one of you squinting into the sunset!”

“Squinting?” I asked, inadvertently squinting as I did so.

“That’s it!” the first girl shrieked. “God, that’s so sexy!”

I was afraid the girl was going to attack me then and there. They had me bracketed, cutting off any avenue of escape. Fortunately, her companion seemed to be a little calmer.

“Our boyfriends warned us about you,” she smirked. “Are you really poaching girls from other schools? We heard about you kissing that Lions cheerleader. They said you almost caused a riot.”

“I swear I’m not poaching girls from other schools,” I said, wondering who “they” were. “In fact, I’m just waiting for my own girlfriend.”

“There you are,” I heard from two voices coming from two directions.

I looked left to see Morgan with a curious expression on her face and right to see a rather large guy in a Cougars letter jacket with a confused look on his.

“Who’s this?” they both asked nearly simultaneously as they arrived.

It took a second to get things straight as the first two girls both started talking over each other. We eventually calmed things down enough to make sense of the situation.

“I’m Lesley,” the first girl said, practically peeing her pants in excitement.

“I’m Kelsey,” the second girl said.

“Brett Donley,” the guy said, holding out his right hand.

“Gary Robinson,” I said, giving him a shake. “And this is my girlfriend, Morgan.”

“Nice to meet y’all,” Morgan said with a little wave.

“Are any of your other girlfriends here?” Lesley asked.

“Other girlfriends?” I stuttered.

“The ones you took to your Homecoming dance last week,” Kelsey said. “This one wasn’t in the picture I saw. I know one is a cheerleader here and another looked like that tall girl on your volleyball team. How many dates did you have that night?”

“It’s complicated,” Morgan answered for me.

“Wait, you’re No. 98,” Brett said as realization dawned. “Our defense is supposed to have somethin’ special cooked up for y’all. Ya might want to call in sick this week.”

“As long as it’s within the rules,” I said.

“They don’t want y’all makin’ us look like suckers like y’all did the Lions and Tigers,” he smirked. “Don’t worry about me unless ya play defense. I’m a tight end. But don’t count on makin’ any big plays Friday night.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” I said. “About all I do is hold for extra points, anyway.”

“We’d better get moving,” Morgan said, grabbing my arm and dragging me away. “I’ve got to check on something. Maybe we’ll see y’all Friday.”

“See ya Friday,” Brett smirked. “Maybe.”

“What was that all about?” Morgan asked as she hustled me out into the courtyard.

“The two girls recognized me from my poster,” I said. “I guess the dude wanted to make sure I didn’t try anything with them. Or he might have just been trying to play mind games with me. I’m afraid I don’t have much to play with right now.”

We stepped into the parking lot to see a scene that could have been a Friday afternoon around here. Cars were trying to force their way into line to reach the exit, but about half were going the wrong way. It was easy to tell who the out-of-towners were.

“So, how’d it go?” Morgan chirped perkily as we made our way toward the fieldhouse.

Where I was all brain-fogged, Morgan appeared absolutely energized by the experience. It made me want to put her over my knee, but I probably should wait until we had some privacy.

“Well enough, I guess,” I said. “I walked out of there under my own power.”

Morgan did carry through with checking on the stat nerds, which had unintended consequences for me.

“Got a minute, Robinson?” Coach Tucker called out as I waited in the little lobby. “Come on in and have a seat.”

“Yes, sir,” I said, following the head coach into his office.

“I want to talk to you about last night,” he said. “I understand why you did what you did, but it’s not a good idea to show up an opponent like that. I’ve told you before there will be payback sooner or later.”

“Yes, sir,” I said, feeling too numb after taking that damned test to really care too much.

“If I feel the need to send a message like that, I’ll let the offense do it,” he said. “We could have gotten the twos another series. We need to get those guys all the game reps we can when we have the chance.”

“Yes, sir.”

“And whatever you did for Marshawn at halftime, keep it up,” he said, catching me totally by surprise.

“Sir?”

“He was about one word away from storming their sideline and wiping out the entire operation,” Coach said. “I need him doing that kind of stuff between the lines and before the whistle. Kind of like your hit last week. Do it within the rules.”

“Yes, sir,” I mumbled, figuring the head coach didn’t need to know what I’d told Marshawn was part of what got me chastised. “I did meet one of the Cougars’ tight ends just now after the SAT. He said their defense has something special cooked up for us.”

“And I have a pretty fair idea what it’s going to be,” Coach said with a hint of a smirk. “Fortunately, we’re cooking up a few things, ourselves. We’ll determine your role after Doc checks you out this week. Be sure to study your game plan. Remember, practices are all at 8 a.m. this week. Don’t be late.”

“Yes, sir,” I said, wondering what I could possibly provide that our starters, or even backups, couldn’t.

Coach dismissed me without assessing any punishment, like 100 gassers, and Morgan rejoined me a few minutes later.

“Sorry to make you wait,” she said, hooking an arm and pulling me toward the door. “I had to watch the video of your punt return a couple of times. Coach Ramirez said you should be nominated for an Oscar. We were just lucky the offense didn’t try to take the field before you started running.”

Morgan allowed me to carry her bag and stow it in the trunk. The parking lot was almost deserted after all the SAT takers departed without too much carnage. She decided we should hit Rosa’s, which would be faster than Jason’s, for a bite to eat. If we hurried, she could join Marie and the other girls for the latest attempt to cause my ears to burst into flames.

I was hungry enough to go for four of the beef fajita tacos. Morgan settled for one with chicken. She said she’d have a chance for more beef tonight at Morton’s.

I was working on my third taco when Morgan finished and went to refill our drinks.

“Let’s go,” she said, handing me my tea as I swallowed the last of taco No. 3. “You can eat that on the way. It’s just now 12:30, so all the girls should still be there.”

We arrived about 10 minutes later, taco No. 4 having not survived the first stoplight. There were several vehicles parked around Arlene’s house. Elise’s Camry was out front behind Staci’s pickup and Kacie’s Rover was in Jed’s spot. At least none of them parked in the driveway, allowing me to use my normal spot. Morgan gave me a smooch and asked me to take her bag to the apartment, then scampered off to join her coconspirators.

I had just enough brain function to remember to get her bag out of the trunk and staggered down the walk to the apartment. My ears were already getting warm as I let myself in.

Dropping Morgan’s bag atop mine in the easy chair, I proceeded straight to the bed and did a faceplant in a pillow. I needed a nap.

I slept for a couple of hours and probably could have gone for at least one more, but my phone started ringing. It was Arlene.

“Hey, beautiful,” I mumbled sleepily once I figured out how to answer the call.

“Am I interrupting something?” the redheaded goddess asked, her smirk coming through loud and clear.

“Just a nap,” I yawned. “Morgan decided I should take the SAT this morning, but didn’t let me know until Tuesday night. I was pretty brain-fried once it was over. Still am.”

“Yes, I heard the story,” Arlene chuckled. “She also told me you changed her plans for tonight.”

“I just invited one of my teammates along,” I said. “He found his own date.”

“Which is why I’m going to make you this special one-time, take-it-or-leave-it offer,” she said. “You should take the Jag instead of your Rover. It’ll be easier for the valets at Morton’s to park.”

“Are you sure?” I asked, coming wide awake.

“It’s just been sitting in the garage all week,” Arlene said. “It at least needs to be started up. And if you’re going to do that, you may as well take it for a spin.”

“I don’t have a key, though,” I said.

“There’s a spare in the house,” my benefactor said. “Marie said she’d get it to you.”

“What about insurance?” I asked. “Surely the cops around here will want to know why I’m driving such a vehicle.”

“I added you to my policy after we got back from California,” she said. “And don’t call me Shirley. Figured it would be a good idea after I had you drive us home from the airport. The card’s in the glove box. Chauffeur can be one of your duties as a kept man, especially when I get too big to fit behind the wheel.”

“You added a teenage boy to a policy for a Jaguar?” I asked disbelievingly. “How much do I owe you?”

“Sugar, you’ve already paid for it,” she said, the smirk sounding even bigger. “Claudia said we almost sold out of chokers and pendants this week. It seems all the little teenyboppers around the area want to at least look like one of Gary’s Girls even if they can’t be one. And they usually decide to purchase something else when they come in for the chokers. Then they become repeat customers. The boutique has already met its sales goal for the month just off that.”

Well, at least someone was profiting off of this foolishness, I thought.

“So, how are things going out there?” I asked. “How’s Jan?”

“Busy-busy and horny as hell,” Arlene laughed. “You’d better make sure the rest of those tests come back clean because in about eight days a certain blonde bimbo is going to force you to perform unnatural acts upon her.”

The protesting squawk in the background seemed to indicate the blonde goddess was in close proximity to her BFF.

“And you? Have you had any problems?” I asked.

“Still a little queasy at times,” the mother to be admitted, “but it seems to be getting better. I haven’t felt like I need to carry a bucket to throw up in the last couple of days, but I don’t need to get very far away from a bathroom. At least I haven’t spewed on anyone I’m negotiating with.”

“Just our waiter a couple of nights ago!” came from the background as Jan got in a shot of her own.

“He shouldn’t have described the special in such detail,” Arlene snapped. “That might’ve done it even if I wasn’t preggers.”

God help me, but I just couldn’t stop myself.

“What was the special?” I asked, once again speaking before I thought things through.

“Excuse me,” Arlene burped before apparently dropping her phone on a hard surface like a table or counter.

Jan’s peals of laughter grew louder as she retrieved the phone.

“I should behave myself,” she gasped. “You know she’ll be a right bitch if I catch and wind up going through the same thing. I just wanted to die a few times when I was expecting Beth. What did you say to set her off?”

“I asked her what the special was that caused her problems,” I admitted sheepishly, eliciting more laughter from the blonde MILF.

“Menudo,” she giggled. “We were at a little Mexican place in East LA. The waiter was a bit graphic when he described how they prepared it. I think the part about cleaning out the contents of animal intestines was what got her.”

“Yeah, that probably would make me a little queasy, too,” I said, “and I don’t have to worry about morning sickness.”

“I’d better go check on her,” Jan said. “You have fun tonight. Love you!”

“Love you, too, babe,” I said. “And tell Arlene thank you for allowing me the use of her car. I miss you both.”

I guess it was a little sappy, but we managed to disconnect without making kissy sounds.

A look at the clock showed it was almost 3 p.m. Since I was going to have to do it sooner or later, I went about putting together clothes for the evening — khakis, a blue Oxford cloth and socks that wouldn’t clash with the shirt, tie or blazer. It was, of course, a wasted effort.

Marie came breezing in carrying a pair of charcoal slacks and a shirt of a slightly different shade of blue. I couldn’t tell how much starch had been used, but I’m sure there was some involved.

As Marie was hanging the clothes on the bar, Ny’Quesha came in carrying a laundry basket filled with boxers, socks and T-shirts. She was followed by Morgan with a stack of polos and Kacie with a stack of khakis, which were placed on the wire rack. Everything was neatly pressed and folded.

“Thank you, ladies,” I said as they placed the items in the appropriate locations. “Did y’all get everything done?”

“Yes, Daddy,” Marie said, surprisingly drawing no reaction from Ny’Quesha. “The house is all clean and the girls seem to all be on the same page. Elise, Riley, Staci and Sherry stayed until we got all the housework done. They were all disappointed you didn’t join us.

“You need to make sure your blazer still fits. Kacie told us about you popping the seams on your sport coat. We have just enough time to hit the mall for a replacement if we have to.”

“Hurry,” Morgan commanded. “I have to get home and start getting ready. When are we supposed to pick Marshawn up?”

“Good question,” I said. “He said we were supposed to get his date at 7, but I don’t know where she lives. Maybe 6:30-ish?”

“I’d better call that boy and tell him to start getting ready,” Ny’Quesha muttered. “He can take more time than me and Momma combined without having to do makeup. And he doesn’t even have to worry about his hair since he started shaving his head.”

Marie handed my blazer to Morgan, who handed it to me. I took care as I slipped my arms into the sleeves, making sure I didn’t repeat my actions from the last time I tried on the sport coat. My first girlfriend, my sister and my first pet all gathered around to examine how the garment fit as my second pet continued putting away my laundry.

“It’s definitely time to upgrade,” Marie said as she ran her hands along the top of my shoulders. “You should be able to get through the evening, but no sudden movements.”

“That includes raising your hand for the waiter,” Morgan ordered as she made sure the cuffs came down far enough. “We can let Marshawn handle that. Let him show off for his date.”

“That won’t be a problem,” Ny’Quesha snorted. “He’ll be showing off just walking to her door and won’t stop until she’s back inside. Momma says he must be part peacock the way he struts around.”

The examination complete, I was ordered to remove the jacket so it wouldn’t suffer any damage before I got dressed.

“You should go ahead and get your shower,” Morgan said, grabbing my chin. “And shave. Marie said she’d do what she can for your hair. It looks like you’re about ready for a trim.”

“The folks at the agency can handle that this week,” I said. “I also wanted to get updated measurements before we start buying new clothes.”

“Here,” Kacie said, opening the top dresser drawer and searching for something, “we got you some new socks to go with the shirt. What shoes are you wearing?”

“I guess my loafers,” I said.

“We really need to get you some dress shoes,” Marie said, grabbing the shoes I’d discarded before my nap. “Where are those boots you wore when you took Staci dancing?”

“In my closet at home the last time I saw them,” I said, wondering where she was going with this.

“What do you think, Morgan?” the little waif asked the little elf. “Loafers or ropers?”

“Those chocolate brown ropers?” Kacie cut in. “Loafers. They’re still going to clash, but not as bad. You really do need a new wardrobe, Bro. We can get started on that tomorrow.”

“I should probably go with him at least one day this week to make sure we get all the measurements,” Marie said. “Bethany said he’s supposed to get a tux for some events he’ll be taking her to this winter. I doubt we can get it all done in one week. Looks like we’ll need to schedule some shopping trips over the next couple of months so they can make alterations in time.”

I was beginning to wonder just how drastic a makeover they had planned for me. I just hoped I could continue wearing khakis and polos on a regular basis. No way I was going to wear coats and ties to school.

“We’d better get moving,” Morgan said. “Pick me up at 6, Gary. It won’t hurt if we’re a few minutes early for Marshawn or Shavon. You ready, Kace?”

All four girls had to get a kiss before departing, of course. And rub boobs against me. It was like they were all intent on making me get off the shelf before the last test results were in.

“You’d better go ahead and shower, Daddy,” Marie said after getting her kiss. “I’ll get these shoes cleaned up. You should wear your running shoes on days it rains. Keep these leather shoes from getting so wet.”

“Yes, ma’am,” I mumbled.

Left to my own devices, I went ahead and bathed. It was almost 4 o’clock, so it wasn’t like I’d have time to get dirty again before Morgan expected me at 6. The big issue was whether or not to rub one out before my date. I hadn’t gotten off since Tuesday and was getting rather antsy.

Maybe I could convince Morgan to help me out after we got back from having dinner.

Marie was waiting for me when I exited the bathroom. She had to check my shaving job by running her hands over my cheeks, chin and neck. It wouldn’t do to have a scratchy face when it came time to kiss Morgan goodnight.

The little waif also insisted on doing my hair before I got dressed. She didn’t want to get any goop on that nice shirt. The process went quickly enough and I was commanded to don the clothes she’d laid out on the bed for me.

The first problem was when I tried to fasten the collar button, expecting to wear a tie. I couldn’t even get the button to reach the buttonhole. I let Marie have a go at it and was afraid she’d strangle me before she finally gave up.

“I thought your neck looked a little bigger,” she sighed as she accepted defeat. “Tell Morgan we tried. This pretty much demands that I go with you Monday. The agency staff will need to know your measurements are out of date.”

I’m pretty sure I could have delivered that message myself, but didn’t see any sense in telling my submissive bitch her presence wasn’t necessary. I could always set her loose on Zander if he misbehaved again.

The second problem was the pants were a bit tight in the butt and thighs. While I was able to fasten them around my waist, Marie thought they didn’t hang low enough. Instead of coming down to the top of my feet, they barely covered the knot of my ankle bones.