Chapter 10: Good and Bad Times At The Local Bowl

I thought about what to do as I finished the long walk into town. A Saturday afternoon in this town offered a variety of attractions. There was the usual, like the cinema, ten-pin bowling, pinball, or more accurately video game, parlours. Then there was that place with the full size billiard tables and video games that had the unfortunate name of 'Shoot 'Em Up' that my father and I frequented quite often and that I often visited alone simply because, at least up until the last couple of days, I'd had nothing better to do. And then there was that other, rather upmarket billiard saloon 'Pot Black' that had only been open a matter of three weeks that I'd thought of visiting.

Of course I could always visit the hotel. Oh I couldn't get a beer or play the poker machines, but I could at least sample the atmosphere that had changed from the once raucous and rowdy to the now, at least according to my parents, restrained, more controlled but decidedly more sexual atmosphere. And then there were a couple of coffee bars that had developed a reputation for taking advantage of the recent changes.

Naturally there was always the good old shopping mall, an idea which I immediately dismissed because of the bad memories of the food court and all that disgusting cheap and nasty take-away which had been my main source of nutrition, an expression that was very much a contradiction in terms).

The staff and teaching staff employed at the bowl had begged me to join any number of the senior leagues, my parents had been willing to pay my fees, take me and pick me up. But it had been around that time that I'd had my first confrontation with Julie Morris, that time when I'd decided to put all of my energy into dieting and exercise.

This was the first time since those days that I'd been this close to the centre and I wondered if any of the old staff were still there and whether they would recognise me. I walked through the open entrance - the doors were propped open to allow whatever breeze there was to waft through the centre to aid the ancient and faltering air-conditioning system - turned to the right where I knew the desk was and came face to breast - figuratively not literally - with Kim Carver, one of the staff who had been here during my bowling days.

"Well look at you," said Kim stepping back as she noticed where I was looking. "And yes all these new laws have resulted in some changes around here as I think you might have noticed."

Of course I had. When I had last bowled here the predominantly female staff wore blouses with light blue and white vertical stripes, navy-blue jackets and knee-length navy matching skirts. Now the still predominantly female staff, with of course the exception of the two mechanical guys, wore lacy light blue bras that veiled but didn't really conceal their nipples and the shortest and tightest of navy blue shorts that were pulled right up into their crotch in front and, when Kim turned to model the new style uniform for me, exposed most of the buttocks in back.

"Gee Justin, your mum said last week that you'd done really well, but she honestly didn't do you justice." She slid her tongue lecherously along her top lip as she looked me up and down. "I am impressed. Now," she indicated herself and a young girl I'd never seen before who was dressed in similar fashion, what do you think?"

What did I think? I thought that any hope of bowling taking my mind off sex and the opposite of had disappeared with the sight of the lovely Kim. I looked her up and down, sizing up a figure that looked slightly less statuesque than my own mother, I would guess that to the naked eye that if my mother was a 36C, then Kim was probably a 34B, and maybe 22 or 23 around the waist while her well-rounded hips were probably a perfect 36. "Wh-what d-do I th-think?" I took a deep breath in an endeavour to complete the sentence without stammering and stuttering. "I came here hoping to take my mind off half-naked women and girls and what do I see?" Having completed the relatively long sentence with barely a stammer I turned my palms out and indicated both girls, knowing my question was rhetorical and didn't require an answer.

Kim grinned. "Tits and arse. Now do you still take a size ten in shoes?"

When I nodded she bent over from the waist, giving me a wonderful view of her heart shaped arse half covered by the skin-tight navy blue shorts, picked out the shoes and straightened up. "You've got a choice these days, first," she indicated with her left hand to the side near the entrance, to the lanes where a bunch of normal looking bowlers were bowling either league or casual, "we have one lane available on that side. If you like that's the equivalent of a 'G'-rating at the cinema, or you can have one of two lanes on the adult side that's closed off. It has the equivalent of an 'MA'-rating, not to protect the modesty of the bowlers and their partners you understand, it's more so that we don't offend the customers and their families who don't feel they should be subjected to near nudity, we don't as yet allow full nudity or sex." She indicated herself. "This is as far as the females are allowed to go, though of course they can bowl in panties as well as the bra. Though," and she smiled, "we expect that to change in the next few days."

"You mean I... I... I'm going to be... ?" I was unable to finish my stilted response, as I looked down at a penis that was beginning lift its head in appreciation of what was on show and what was potentially available.

"Afraid so Justin, now do you want one of those two lanes? You're entitled, even if you don't have a partner. I mean you need to find out if you can deal with all of the distractions. Especially with recruiting for our 'special' league having just started..." She handed me a leaflet from beneath the counter. "Here read this later, everything about the 'special league' is explained inside. It's a league that will change forever the perception of how leagues are run on the adult side of this centre." She looked back towards the closed off side. "Now, which side Justin?"

I thought about it, thought about Vikki and the potential she may have for being my partner if... Oh if only she was the sort of girl I had dreamed about for so long. With that thought in mind I told her I'd take a lane on the 'MA'-rated side, listened as she told me lane twenty-seven, took my shoes and walked through as she buzzed the door open.

As I walked through I glanced at the pamphlet, found my attention grabbed and started reading the leaflet about the new 'Big Money Special League' on the adult side:

This league will be a special high Money League
The cost will be $90 per week per bowler over 36 weeks
There will be 28 teams of 4 bowlers
Total prize money will be $354,000 with
36 weekly prizes of $4,000 Divided as follows:

(1^st High Team Series Scratch) $160 (2nd) $140 (3rd) $110 (4th) $90
(1^st High Team Game Scratch) $160 (2nd) $140 (3rd) $110 (4th) $90
(1^st High Team Series + Hcp) $160 (2nd) $140 (3rd) $110 (4th) $90
(1^st High Team Game + Hcp) $160 (2nd) $140 (3rd) $110 (4th) $90
(1^st High Individual Series Scratch) $160 (2nd) $140 (3rd) $110 (4th) $90
(1^st High Individual Game Scratch) $160 (2nd) $140 (3rd) $110 (4th) $90
(1^st High Individual Series + Hcp) $160 (2nd) $140 (3rd) $110 (4th) $90
(1^st High Individual Game + Hcp) $160 (2nd) $140 (3rd) $110 (4th) $90
For a total of $144,000

The remaining $210,000 will be paid out at the end of the season as follows:

(1^st place) $20,000 (2^nd) $15,000 (3^rd) $12,000 (4^th) $10,000 (5^th) $8,000
(6^th) $7,000 (7^th) $6,000 (8^th) $5,000 (9^th) $4,000 (10^th) $3,000
For a total of $90,000
(Season High Team Series Scratch) $6,000 (2^nd) $4,000 (3^rd) $3,000 (4th) $2,000
(Season High Team Game Scratch) $6,000 (2^nd) $4,000 (3^rd) $3,000 (4th) $2,000
(Season High Team Series + Hcp) $6,000 (2^nd) $4,000 (3^rd) $3,000 (4th) $2,000
(Season High Team Game + Hcp) $6,000 (2^nd) $4,000 (3^rd) $3,000 (4th) $2,000
(Season High Individual Series Scratch) $6,000 (2^nd) $4,000 (3^rd) $3,000 (4th) $2,000
(Season High Individual Game Scratch) $6,000 (2^nd) $4,000 (3^rd) $3,000 (4th) $2,000
(Season High Individual Series Hcp) $6,000 (2^nd) $4,000 (3^rd) $3,000 (4th) $2,000
(Season High Individual Game Hcp) $6,000 (2^nd) $4,000 (3^rd) $3,000 (4th) $2,000
For a total of $120,000

All of that money sounded good to me and I reckoned I wanted a piece of that, if I could find the money and a partner. The first 'if', the money, was something I was fairly sure my parents would help out with, especially as they knew I was a pretty decent bowler. However it was the second 'if' that worried me. If I could find a partner.

But then I turned to the next page and discovered that bowling was only going to be a part of each week's activities. It seemed that some kind of stripping was going to be aligned with each game, that there would be some kind of sexual activity up to and even including full-penetration sex. Now the problem of finding a partner became complicated. Not only did she have to be a good bowler she also had to be an exhibitionist and sexually adventurous. Now while I had a feeling that Vikki was probably both of the latter two I didn't know whether she had any sort of ability as a bowler and therein, of course, lay the problem.

I sat down at lane twenty-seven still reading the leaflet as I determinedly avoided looking around at the other lanes, and was about to change into my bowling shoes when I heard a familiar voice, a voice that seemed determined to ruin my afternoon.

"Well fuck look who's here! God you think I'd be able to keep away from this fat fuck over the weekend. So what are you doing here fat boy?"

"Julie is that really necessary, it's one thing to look and behave like the likeable slut you are. But is that sort of language really necessary in public."

"When it comes to this prick bro, yes it is," responded Julie Morris who, I noted, was dressed in a lacy black bra and panty set that took the clothing regulation to its absolute limit.

She reached over and allowed her near-naked breasts to brush my arm as she snatched the leaflet off the seat next to where I was sitting.

"Come on Jules," said the one she'd called bro as he slapped her bottom on the half of her buttocks that her lacy panties failed to cover, "it's your bowl and I wanna see how you shake things up," he said pointedly pinching her right nipple through the cup that just covered her areola as she sat back down on the seat at lane twenty-six.

"Yeah, yeah Allan, you'll see." Julie Morris turned back to me. "Better have a good perv fatso, because that's all you'll ever be able to do. There is no fucking way you're getting your hands or anything else on this merchandise."

Well she certainly didn't appear to have any idea about hers and my mother's plans for next Saturday so I decided to act the way she expected. Not that that was real hard considering the way she and the other two girls on her lane were dressed and considering the force of her attack. The stuttering and stammering were certainly genuine. "And wh-what m-makes y-y-you th-th-think that I'd w-w-w-want t-t-to..."

"OH I D-D-D-D-D-DON'T KNOW J-J-J-J-J-JUSTIN..." came the, derisive and abusive reply as she mocked my helpless stammering "... M-M-M-M-M-MAYBE THE W-W-W-W-WAY Y-YOU K-K-K-KEEP F-F-F-F-F-FUCKING..."

"YOUNG LADY!!!"

Both Julie and I, her brother Allan, another guy who seemed to be another brother and both of the other scantily clad young ladies who were obviously the brother's girlfriends turned to see Kim Carver standing behind our lane hands on hips.

"Young lady if you continue making that sort of noise and using that sort of language you and your friends will be barred permanently from this bowl. Now I don't know what problem there exists between you and Justin, but Justin was a regular bowler here until six months ago and I can assure you that staff and management will side with a man of impeccable character like Justin." She moved forward and gave me a gentle hug and a light peck on the cheek. "Now don't you let this cow get to you sweetie, we have cameras, fully sound capable focused on every lane. Just you do what you do best." And with that she was gone.

"Fucking bitch, did you hear... ?"

The other young fellow, there was enough of a likeness, for me to be sure now that he was a brother as well, gripped Julie Morris by the shoulders and said in a stage-whisper that carried not only all of the passion and inferred violence he could muster but carried all the way down to lane fifteen at the other end as well, "Just shut it Julie, if we get banned from here because of you I promise I will tan your naked backside with a table tennis bat, and I will do it so hard you won't be able to sit down for a month let alone a week."

Suddenly there was instant cheering and applause from almost every one of the other bowlers on our side.

Suitably chastened, and now thoroughly upset by the whole incident, Julie more mindful of her near-nudity than at any other time, moved up to the lane, picked up her ball from the rack and proceeded to bowl it into the gutter about halfway down the lane.

Having watched Julie bowl that ball, I was strangely, less concerned about her state of undress than I was delighted with her gutter ball, I quickly put on my bowling shoes and went in search of a suitable 16lb house ball.

Distractions were all over the place. A lot of women and girls, some as young as 12 and 13 I estimated, were wearing as little as Julie was while others wore skirts with bras. Some girls, including the other two girls on twenty-six, were wearing panties with a crop top that fitted like a second skin and made it perfectly plain they weren't wearing a bra.

Unusually, at least I thought it was unusual, I found the girls in the panties and crop tops more distracting and in some ways more visually stimulating than I thought naked girls would be. It gave me pause for thought.

After finding a suitable ball and making my way back to the lane I saw that Julie had recovered enough to spare out her gutter ball.

I had just put my ball on the rack and was just about to pick it up and stand in position when the mouth started again, this time just loud enough that only our two lanes would be able to hear her. She had my leaflet in her hand. "This should be totally hilarious, I mean come on Robertson for you to think that you're good enough to bowl in a competition like this must be the biggest joke of all time." She laughed cruelly and for a good ten seconds. "And then of course you'd need a girlfriend wouldn't you?"

I wanted to mention Vikki, wanted to talk about my ability with a bowling ball but I knew it would be a total waste of time so I decided to let my ball do the talking for me. That is if I could manage some really good scores with a house ball and house shoes.

Just before I bowled I looked up and checked the scores on lane twenty-six, they had all just completed their 8^th frame. The first bowler, the first of two presumed brothers called Evan, was 118 after a 9-miss. The second bowler, one of the girls by the name of Karen who by her body language seemed to be Evan's girlfriend, was on 78. Bowler three, the other brother Allan, was 134 after an open 7^th frame with a strike in the 8^th. The forth bowler, a girl called Anna who was obviously Allan's girlfriend was 104 having failed to convert a 5-7-10 split while the fifth bowler, Julie Morris of course, had followed up her embarrassing gutter spare which had been after a strike with a 7-1 to leave her on 92.

Now I felt better. I knew now, thanks to Kim, that this was the first of four games for them. Armed with that information I intended to play them frame for frame once I'd caught them up and hopefully put Julie Morris in her place, at least for this afternoon.

I picked up my ball, took up my regular position, and with my eyes on the arrow at the front left of the lane began my approach. Taking my regular four steps I threw the ball out over the first arrow and watched unhappily as the ball hooked past the headpin and hit the Brooklyn pocket, meaning it went left to right past the one pin and in-between the one-three pins and therefore 'crossed over the Brooklyn Bridge' from the 'New York side' or what would be called a regular pocket hit - I'm a left hander and Brooklyn would be the one-two for a right hander while the New York or regular would be the one-three.

Fortunately even though it was a light hit it had enough work on it to take nine of the ten pins and leave a relatively simple six, which I disposed of comfortably.

After three more frames, two of which were regular pocket hits and one a Brooklyn giving me a seven, I was 55 in the third with all four frames being spares. Then I bowled the fifth frame and knew immediately I was in trouble. It hit the one pin head on ploughed straight through them leaving the 'big four', the two corner pins on each side, the worst split you can get.

"Oh what a shame," came the Julie Morris stage whisper.

I looked back towards Julie Morris but remained steadfastly silent not, of course, wanting to give her the satisfaction of a response. Instead I checked the five scores. Evan had taken his 118 to a respectable 156. Karen had turned her embarrassing 78 into a less embarrassing 121 thanks to a strike in the 9^th and a strike followed by a 6-1 in the 10^th. Allan, the only one of the five who looked anything like a bowler, had opened the ninth but had bagged out with three strikes in the 10^th for a highly respectable 192 game while Anna had struck in the 9^th, followed it up with a double in the 10^th plus a nine count for a satisfactory 163. Which only left Julie who seemed keen to bowl before I attempted the impossible.

I stepped back and watched the Julie Morris lace covered bottom wiggle down the approach before she let the ball go somewhere near the centre. Then I watched as the ball rolled straight, hit the one-three-pocket and sent all ten pins to the deck.

Julie Morris turned and looked straight in my direction. "Sure beats what you've got don't it shithead?"

Putting what Julie said out of my mind, easier said than done of course, and knowing she was watching I aimed for the seven-pin, hit it and as I'd hoped faintly clipped the four and sent it across the lane in the direction of the six-ten. It seemed for a second that maybe there was going to be miracle, but I watched in frustration as the four slid agonisingly close to the six before taking out the ten.

"Great try Justin," said the brother Allan, "you obviously know your way around a bowling lane."

"Thanks... er... Allan. This was a last minute decision so I haven't got my own ball and shoes. If I did I reckon I'd probably be doing a lot better."

"Hey what are you being so nice to the prick for, whose fucking side... ?"

"Shut it sis'."

"Yeah why don't you give you mouth a rest and bowl, you've still got to finish the last frame," added Anna, Allan's girlfriend, whose brief crop-top pressed against her erect nipples making them almost visible through the tightly stretched material.

I thought she couldn't have been more than 15, though she, like her friend Karen, who looked about the same age, seemed to be fairly well developed for her age.

We all watched as Julie rolled a 9 and then missed the relatively simple 5 pin leaving her with the lowest score of the five, a mere 120.

By the time I had finished my game, four spares from six to nine and an open 10^th frame left me with a disappointing 164, lane twenty-six had completed three frames of their second game. Then by the time I'd bowled three frames of my second game Julie Morris and company had completed their forth, effectively meaning I'd caught up.

I happily bowled my forth before they bowled their fifth and then matched them frame for frame. And by the time they had all completed their 8^th frames, and even though I was unhappy with my own game, I noted that I had the potential best score, 113 in the 7^th with a strike in the 8^th. A position that compared more than favourably with Evan's 104 and a strike, Karen's 90 and a spare, Allan's 91 with a strike, Anna's highly respectable 105 also with a strike and Julie's disappointing 98 with an open frame.

By the end of that second game it was a no-contest thanks to my finding the range and striking out for a 203 game. Indeed the only two that went even close to matching me were Allan who all but struck out managing three strikes and a nine for a 180, a good follow-up to his first game192 and Anna who managed a pair of strikes and an eight spare which gave her a more than useful 183 to follow on from her handy 163.

Evan managed a reasonable 161, but Karen and Julie couldn't break out of the one-twenties, Karen with a 127 and a, for once, quiet Julie again bringing up the rear with a 124.

I found some even better form in the third game. After opening with two strikes I then went 8-spare, strike, 8-spare, two more strikes, an open 8^th frame in which I missed both pins of a relatively simple 5-9, before striking out for a very satisfying 222 game.

It was as I bowled the third of my last frame strikes that I realised that Julie was about to bowl. So I stood back and pointedly watched her bowl a first ball 8 and pick just one of the two remaining with her second ball to finish with a strike-less 111, a score, I noted happily, that was exactly half of my score.

I looked her in the eye as she walked back using every bit of willpower I possessed, and concentrating very hard, managed to say without a single stammer, "Guess bowling is easier for some people than for others."

Julie was about to let loose a response when one of her brother's, Allan, put his hand over her mouth. "That's enough Julie, take your medicine, you've still got one more game to bowl. Who knows maybe if you put as much energy into bowling as you do in mouthing off you might be able to bowl a half-decent score."

"Yeah," came a voice from lane twenty-five, a guy who was seated with his scantily dressed big-breasted girlfriend sitting on his knee, "so might we all."

I held out my hand to Allan who took it. As we shook hands I said, "Thanks mate." Then I noted his score of 202 and added, "Great game. And I unless I've miscalculated that's 574 against your sister's--" I looked pointedly at Julie "--rather miserable 355." I looked to the other scores and saw that Evan had managed a 167, Karen a second 121 and Anna a very nice 196 that was made even better because she'd closed every frame before turning back to Allan. "And I have to say--" by this time I was thoroughly enjoying myself, and was feeling totally relaxed without the slightest hint of a stammer. I reached out for the leaflet. "--I have to say that you and your delightful girlfriend here," I turned to Anna immediately worried that I might have offended her, "oh I hope I'm not being too..."

Anna, knelt on the seat, reached across totally unconcerned about her near-nudity, gave me a hug and a light peck on the lips and said, "you're a sweet young man Justin Robertson, and I don't think you could offend anyone." She thumbed back towards Julie Morris. "And don't you worry about this slut, she might be my friend and the sister of my boyfriend but she can be a real pain in the arse sometimes."

"Thanks... er... Anna," I said delighted at the unexpected hug and kiss. And I meant what I said. "You and your friend Karen are both sweet, and, if I may say without embarrassing you, very nice looking girls."

"Oh you can say that all you like Justin," said Karen as she stood and posed hands on hips. "After all why do you think we bowl on this side?"

"Touché," I said. I turned to the brothers, speaking to Evan. "How come you two are so different from your sister?"

"You mean how come we're so friendly and she's such a bitch?"

"Well yeah, I guess if you want to put it like that."

"I guess you'd have to say that she's a throwback from her Grandmother who apparently, we haven't seen her in more than ten years, makes Julie look like Mother Teresa. That's not to say that there isn't hope for her, all she needs is the right man with the right cock to keep her under control."

I looked at Julie Morris then, looked at the way she was slumped in her seat, head on her chest, looking down between her feet. I'd never seen anyone look so dejected and for whatever strange reason I felt sorry for her. I reached across and put my hand on her shoulder in a friendly gesture and began to say, "Julie maybe we could just forget the past, maybe we could start..."

She turned around and stared at me a single tear in her eye. "Start again. You must be joking. And if you think this tear is because of you you're wrong, it's because of my brothers, because I thought... Oh who the fuck cares. Anyway we've got another game to bowl haven't we?"

"Hey Julie," said Evan grinning, "If you can drag your eyes off of Justin for long enough it's your bowl."

Julie had nothing to say, so instead she stepped up looked at the pins, bowled, missed the head pin and got a six-count.

In this fourth game after five frames I was beginning to wonder if two good games was the best I could manage. I was a decidedly miserable 63 in the 4^th after an open frame with a 7-spare in the 5^th while Evan was 85 in the 5^th having opened and Karen an incredible 108 in the 4^th after opening with four straight strikes with an 8-spare in the 5^th. Allan, who was 27 after opening his first three frames, which included two poor single-pin misses, had managed to double up with strikes in frames four and five. His partner Anna had opened the 1^st, 4^th and 5^th while striking in the 2^nd and 3^rd for a five frame total of 75. Even Julie, on a good four frame run after opening the 1^st, was beating me, totalling 65 in the forth.

By the end of the game though all was well and all of my previous doubts had disappeared. Seven straight strikes had taken me to an impressive 233.

Evan finished at 133 having failed to closed any of his last five frames while Karen couldn't keep up her fine start and managing just one more strike finished with 181. Allan, clearly the groups best bowler, turned his double into a three-bagger with another strike in the 6^th, opened the 7^th, spared the 8^th and finished with four strikes for a very creditable 194.

As for Anna and Julie, well Anna proved that she would be a more than able partner for Allan by matching his finishing four strikes with four of her own for a 179 while Julie managed an improved 146.

I put away my ball feeling more than a little pleased with myself. Then I changed my shoes and picked up the leaflet while I waited for Julie and the two girls to put their skirts and tops back on and change their shoes, partly because I found it enjoyable watching them but mainly because Allan had asked me to wait so that we could examine each others printout.

"822 that's very impressive Justin. Let's see, divided by four that's..."

"205! So what's the big fucking deal Allan?"

"Oh I don't know Julie let's have a look at your series. Let's see, 120, 124, 111 and 146. What's that, a total of 501 for an average of 125?"

"Oh yeah whatever! So, maybe bowling isn't my game."

"Guess nobody'll be looking to you for a partner will they?" Allan was looking at me as he said that.

"Oh don't be too hard on the poor girl Allan. Anyway what about your scores, I mean a 768 series for a 192 isn't too shabby," I said before looking in Anna's direction. "You'd be good partner for Allan. Now what did you bowl? Let's see, 163, 183, 196 and 179, that's 721 for a 180 average. I reckon if you combine that with Allan's 192 you'd be real chance of a spot in that 'Special Leagues' final line-up."

Anna grinned. "Well thank you, that sounds a fair idea." She turned to her boyfriend. "What do you think lover? Can you afford $180, 'specially with all that money up for grabs?"

"Oh I think I can scrape it..."

"Come on!" came the interruption from a miserable, angry and very depressed Julie Morris. "Are we going or what?" she turned to Justin. "And I don't need you to stick up for me fat boy."

Allan and Evan both shook my hand before Karen and Anna each gave me a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "It's been a pleasure Justin," said Allan for the four of them as he ignored his sister. "I hope we meet again, maybe Anna and I will even in meet you in that competition huh?"