Discontinued

I wait for several agonizing moments before I finally hear the phone pick up. "Nate, are you there?" I immediately recognize my Mom's voice.

"Yeah, I'm here, Mom. What's going on? Why is Lana so upset?"

I hear my Mom sigh on the other end. "Well, Nate, I guess I have some bad news. Great Grandma Preston passed away today." She pauses before continuing. "Your Grandpa is taking it pretty hard, especially since today is his birthday. Is that why you were calling?"

"Yeah, I didn't have his phone number. I'm sorry to hear about Great Grandma Preston. How's Dad taking it?" At least Mom seems to be taking it better than Lana is. I didn't know Lana liked Great Grandma Preston that much.

"He seems to be doing all right. You know your father. He'll be okay. Did you still want to call Grandpa Preston and talk to him?"

I ponder it for just a moment, but decide against it. "I really wouldn't know what to say, Mom. Somehow I don't think wishing him a Happy Birthday would seem right. I could get his phone number from you, though. At least I'll have it with me here, then."

Mom rattles off Grandpa Preston's phone number. I hastily scribble it on a notepad by the phone. I hope that I can make out my writing, later.

"I think Grandpa Preston feels that his mother is happier now, though. She had a hard time after your Great Grandpa died. Let's see..." Mom's voice trails off for a moment. "I guess it's been three years since he passed away. Three years is a long time to be without your spouse, especially married as long as they were."

"Yeah, I suppose that it would be. Maybe she's better off, now." I cringe to myself. Maybe that didn't come out right.

"She was 84, and her health wasn't the best. She lived a good life. I suppose it was just her time to go," replies Mom. "You know, I was just about to get around to calling you. I wasn't sure if you'd be in the dorm this early, so I called a few other relatives, first."

"That's okay, Mom. I just came back in the dorm for a few minutes to call Grandpa. I'm glad I called and found out. I'll let you get back to making calls."

"Okay, dear. I'll call you tomorrow when I know more about the funeral arrangements. You do want to go, don't you?"

"Yeah, I'll definitely go, Mom. I guess somebody will have to swing by here and pick me up."

"That won't be a problem, honey. Either we can come get you, or I'm sure that your Aunt Lori wouldn't mind. I'll find out when the funeral is and discuss it with her before I call you. Okay?"

"All right, Mom. Thanks. Can you make sure that Lana is all right? She seems to be taking this pretty hard," I say.

Mom pauses on the other end of the phone. "You are a good brother, Nate. I'm not sure why Lana is taking this so hard. She seems to be emotional this week. I'd almost think she's... Anyway, I'll call and let you know what's going on. I'd better go."

"Thanks, Mom. I'll talk to you tomorrow. Bye." I hang up the phone and grab the paper with Grandpa Preston's number on it. I'm soon in my room, and sit down at my desk.

I sit in my room thinking about Great Grandma Preston. She was a homemaker who seemed to love her husband, her children, her grandchildren, and even us great-grandchildren. I remember how she always remembered our names. Given that there were more than 50 descendents and other family to keep track of, I think that to be quite remarkable.

I glance up at the clock on the wall: 07:10. I panic. I was supposed to meet Hannah at the amphitheater at 07:00! I hurriedly exit my room and practically jog to the front doors of the dorm.

As I exit the dorm, I look over toward the amphitheater. I quickly slow my pace to appear less rushed. Hannah is standing in the middle of the amphitheater, looking directly at me. At least she's still waiting for me.

Hannah turns and says something to two gals who are sitting down; they both look my way as I approach. I begin to get nervous. These gals must be two of the friends that Hannah wanted me to meet. I hope that my nervousness isn't showing.

"Hi, Nate," says Hannah. "This is Leila and Juliana. They room together." Hannah points to a brunette and a black-haired beauty, in turn. "They'll both be freshmen, just like us."

Leila appears to be the same height as Hannah, average weight, auburn hair, and has blue eyes. Her breasts, while slightly smaller than Hannah's, are about the same size as my sister Shaunna's breasts. Juliana, on the other hand, appears to be an inch taller than the other two gals are; she's about my height. She has shoulder-length black hair, brown eyes, and dark-tanned skin. Her breasts are bigger than either Hannah's or Leila's, and are quite lovely on her slender body.

"Sorry I'm late," I respond. "I wasn't paying attention to the time, I guess. I was just sitting in my room thinking, when I realized what time it was. Sorry." I look away slightly. I don't want Hannah to see my disappointment in letting her down.

"What were you thinking about," questions a smiling Hannah.

"Oh, I was just thinking about my great-grandma." All three gals look questioningly at me. "It's my grandfather's birthday today. I called my Mom to get his phone number so I could wish him a happy birthday. That's when I found out that my great-grandma, my grandpa's mother, passed away today." The smiles displayed by all three gals, quickly fade.

Hannah moves to my side and puts her left arm around my waist. "I'm so sorry, Nate. Are you okay?" Hannah looks deeply into my eyes, and lightly caresses my face with her soft hand.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I'm sorry I was late, though." I love the feeling of Hannah's warm body next to mine. Her arm around my waist, and hand on my cheek, make me smile as I look into her lovely eyes.

"Don't be silly," admonishes Hannah. "Of course we understand why you were a little late." Both Leila and Juliana nod their heads in agreement. "Let's go sit down," she suggests.

Hannah positions me between Juliana and herself, as we sit down. Leila is sitting to Juliana's left. I smile to myself, as I think how fortunate I am to be sitting between two lovely ladies.

"What's that smile for," asks Hannah. 'Oops', I think to myself.

I chuckle. "I was just thinking how lucky I am to be surrounded by such lovely ladies," I truthfully answer. "Especially you," I quickly add.

Hannah playfully punches me on the shoulder. "Yeah, I'm sure that's what you were thinking. You'd probably like to have all three of us ladies as girlfriends, instead of just me: wouldn't you." Hannah grins at me.

I can feel my eyes getting big. Did she just refer to herself as my girlfriend? I'm not sure how I should respond to that. I quickly think it over. "No, one girlfriend is plenty for me," I smugly reply. Whew, that was close. I silently congratulate myself on my quick thinking.

Hannah laughs. "Good save. Yeah, I think you'll be okay." She smiles at me, and then turns a little more serious. "When's the funeral going to be?"

"I'm not sure, yet. My Mom is going to call me tomorrow when she knows more." I smile at Hannah. "I'll be okay, though. I don't want to ruin this evening for everyone."

Hannah rolls her eyes. "Okay, so Leila, Juliana, and I all work together at the laundry. I suppose that you figured that out, though." She smiles at me.

I'm grateful for the change of subject. "Yeah, I figured that much out." I turn to Leila and Juliana. "So, who's mom took you gals out to eat, earlier," I inquire.

"Oh, that was my mother," answers Leila. "She likes to dine out a lot. I guess it's because my father and she are co-owners of a restaurant, along with my father's best friend." She smiles.

"Wow, that's amazing! My parents own a restaurant, as well: actually, a chain of them." The three ladies are all looking at me now. I quickly explain my family's business to them: that gets the conversation flowing.

As we talk, I find out that Leila is from Pasadena, California. Her parents' restaurant is located in Pasadena, as well. I discover that her last name is Basinger. Juliana's last name is Pilcher, and she is from Jefferson City, Missouri.

From the conversation, I get the impression that Hannah has been talking about me to her friends. I decide to test this revelation. "So, what exactly has Hannah been saying about me," I ask. I look over to Hannah and see her grinning.

Leila laughs. "She just told us that you were handsome." She pauses. "She may have also said something about your walk on the beach together." Leila laughs; I blush. "She also said that she thought you two were an item, but she wasn't sure. I guess that's been answered," finishes Leila.

I chuckle, trying to hide my embarrassment. "I guess so," I agree. "I was a little unclear on that myself, until tonight." I chuckle again, and look over at Hannah. I smile at my beautiful Princess. The smile that she returns to me melts my heart.

Suddenly, Hannah leans over and gives me a soft kiss on the lips. At first, I am completely surprised. Surprise, however, quickly turns into embarrassment. I feel my face heat up, again. I quickly look over at Juliana and Leila. They, of course, are both grinning from ear-to-ear.

"Should we leave you two alone," asks Leila, grinning.

Hannah laughs. "That won't be necessary."

I turn to Juliana. "So, tell us about your parents. What do they do?"

The rest of the evening's conversation stays clear of the subject of Hannah and me. I'm quite thankful for this respite. The conversation is pleasant. I can't help but notice that Juliana seems to be a bit shy: she's letting the rest of us carry the conversation.

All too quickly, the evening winds down. I say goodnight to Leila and Juliana, before receiving a special goodnight from Hannah. When we finally break our kiss, it takes me a moment to come back to reality. I glance over at Hannah's grinning friends.

My face flushes, again. "Bye," I manage to say to Hannah. She gives me a little wave before the three gals head back to their own dorm. I can't seem to stop smiling. I casually stroll back to my own dorm, grinning like an idiot.

Thursday morning flies by quickly. Seth and I make quick work of the tasks that Mr. Parnell gives us. Sooner than I expect, we head down the hill to clock out for lunch.

Leila and Juliana both join Tyler and Hannah, today. I introduce Leila and Juliana to Phil, Carter, and Seth. As the eight of us trek up the hill for lunch, I can't help but notice how radiant Hannah looks this morning.

In the cafeteria, all eight of us decide to sit together at one table. I end up with Hannah to my right, Leila to my left, and Juliana sitting directly across from me. I try to involve myself in the conversation, but something keeps distracting me.

Alternatively, I should say that 'someone' keeps distracting me. Hannah, in an effort to embarrass me, I'm sure, has her left hand on my leg. She is slowly inching her way up my thigh. At least she'll have to stop soon, as she'll have nowhere else to go.

I nearly choke on my fruit punch. I begin sputtering and coughing, trying to force the liquid up, that I've just inhaled. As I begin to compose myself, both Hannah and Leila ask, at the same time, if I'm all right.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I manage to sputter. "The punch just went down the wrong way, that's all." My face feels like it's on fire. I look around the table to see if anyone is noticing. I glance at Leila just as she looks down at my lap.

Leila gasps and quickly covers her mouth with her hands. She then looks up at the rest of the group and begins giggling.

"What's so funny," Hannah innocently asks. This just sets Leila into another giggle-fit.

"I don't think it's funny at all." I glare at Leila to emphasize my point.

Leila calms down some. "I'm sorry, Nate. I'll stop laughing, for now." She smiles sweetly at me. Leila then leans forward and looks at Hannah. I look back and forth from Hannah to Leila. They seem to be having a quick conversation with their eyes.

I glance around the table. Everyone, except for Juliana, seems to brush it off and jump back into the conversations. Juliana keeps looking questioningly at me, and at the two gals on either side of me.

As I'm about to jump back into the conversation myself, my eyes go wide, and I quickly look over at Leila. She smiles sweetly at me as she rests her right hand on my other thigh. 'What the hell is going on, ' I think to myself.

I have a hard time concentrating during the rest of lunch. Leila never moves her hand further up my thigh, but doesn't remove it, either. I'm sure that my face will be permanently red, from here on out. Tyler, amazingly, doesn't seem to notice my predicament.

After lunch, I begin to relax in my newfound freedom. I feel my face begin to return to normal. As we slowly walk down the hill to work, Hannah, Leila, and Juliana begin to hang back from the rest of the group. I stay back as well, although I'm not sure why. You'd think I would've learned my lesson.

Once we are safely away from the others, Juliana looks directly at Leila and asks, "So, what was so damned funny earlier? I think that I was missing out on something." Both Hannah and Leila begin giggling. I feel my face heat up, again.

Leila calms down enough to reply, "When Nate had his coughing fit, I looked down and saw that Hannah had her hand on his crotch. She was actually rubbing her hand up and down on him. It was just so funny, that I couldn't help but laugh."

All three girls begin giggling, now. Tyler looks back at us briefly, but then looses interest. It's a wonder that my hair isn't on fire, as hot as my face feels right now.

After Leila calms down again, she continues. "So, then I basically asked Hannah for permission to join in the fun. I put my hand on his other leg, and we teased him the entire time he was trying to eat." That's what their little eye-conversation was about, it finally dawns on me.

I look over at Juliana, expecting her to laugh or giggle some more. Instead, she looks thoughtful for a moment, and then completely shocks me.

"Too bad I couldn't have joined in on the fun," she says. "Maybe I could've taken my shoe off and ran my foot up his leg." She smiles a charming smile at me. 'This, from the shy Juliana, ' I incredulously think to myself.

Luckily, our arrival at the Maintenance building saves me. I tell Hannah that I'll see her later, roll my eyes at the giggling other two gals, and head up the stairs.

"What was that all about," asks a smirking Tyler.

"Don't ask," I reply. I really don't need Tyler to find out about this!

After work, Seth, Tyler, Hannah, Leila, Juliana, and I walk up the hill together. Tyler tells Seth and me, that Phil and Carter left without us. I shrug, as I'm sure we'll meet up with them at the cafeteria.

Once our group has made it through the buffet line, I notice that our usual table is in use. I see Phil and Carter seated at one of the smaller four-person tables. I glance at Tyler and Seth. Before I can say anything, however, Hannah grabs my arm.

"Come on, handsome," she says. I glance back at Tyler and Seth, to see them heading over to join Phil and Carter. Oh well, I guess that our entire group won't be eating together for this meal. I shrug it off, until I realize that I'm about to dine alone with the three gals.

Leila picks out a small table in the corner, and sits down by the window. Juliana sits to Leila's left side, leaving the chairs across the table for Hannah and me. Hannah grabs the chair by the aisle, so I sit down in the remaining chair, across from Leila.

The first few minutes seem normal enough, with the conversation flowing freely, between bites. The women are monopolizing the conversation, but I don't really mind. Even Juliana is a lot more animated than usual. I'm actually enjoying this meal.

Then it happens: Hannah puts her left hand directly on my crotch. I try not to flinch, and mostly succeed. Hannah lets out a little cough, and grabs for her juice. I notice Hannah smirking to the other two gals, just as I feel feet begin slowly working their way up both of my legs.

My face instantly flushes. I quickly peek under the table to make sure it is Leila doing it, before I blame her. To my surprise, I see that both Leila and Juliana are in on this: one on each leg. The shock must be evident on my face, as all three gals begin laughing.

I loudly clear my throat. "Uh, ladies," I begin. "I'm sure you find this funny, but what have I done to be tortured like this?" I try to glare at each of them, but have a hard time not smiling as I do.

"What, you don't like the attention," asks a grinning Hannah. "Don't think you could handle the three of us?" I feel my face flush even more. I'm beginning to think that Hannah likes playing games. Hannah smirks at me.

I think a moment before I respond, "Oh, I'm sure I can handle all three of you." I pause for effect. "I just didn't know that you approve of open relationships, like that." I smile smugly. 'Damn, that was a pretty good one, ' I think to myself.

My statements have the desired effect; all three gals freeze in-place. Leila and Juliana stop rubbing my legs, and Hannah stops teasing my dick. I can't help myself, and begin to laugh when I see the expressions on their faces. Obviously, they didn't expect me to react like that.

Hannah finally gets over the initial shock, and begins to laugh along with me. Leila and Juliana are soon laughing, as well. Hannah removes her hand from my lap, and places it on the table. "Well, ladies, I guess that we should stop teasing poor Nate. He might get the idea that we want a four-way relationship, or something." Hannah laughs, and I chuckle.

"What would be so wrong with that?" All three of us turn and look at Juliana. Juliana looks back at us with a neutral expression. I can't tell if she's serious, or just kidding. "I have a cousin Linette, in Georgia, whose family is very open like that. It seems to work for them." Juliana still has a neutral look on her face.

"Well, so anyway, what are we planning on doing this evening," asks Hannah. I'm grateful for the change of subject. Leila appears relieved, as well.

"I need to go back to the dorm and see if my Mom has called. I'm not sure how long that will take, though," I reply.

"Okay. We'll probably be hanging out in the dorm, so give us a call when you are done." Hannah smiles at me.

I excuse myself, and head back to the men's dorm. As I walk past the front desk, I notice a message posted in the window, addressed to me. I ask the guy at the desk for the message, and he hands it to me. Inside, it says that my Mom has called, and to please call her back. I head for the phones.

"Hi, Mom," I say when my Mom answers the phone. "I got your message. Did you find out when the funeral is going to be?"

"Yes, dear, it'll be Saturday afternoon at 2:00. I've called your Aunt Lori. While she's not directly related, she's always liked your great-grandmother. She wants to attend the funeral with us. She'll pick you up on Friday evening, if that's all right with you."

"Sure, Mom, that's fine," I reply. Aunt Lori has always been nice to me, so I really don't mind.

"Okay. What time would you like for her to pick you up," Mom asks.

I think for a moment. Aunt Lori is a great cook: she'll probably fix us dinner. "Around 5:30 would be fine," I finally reply. I can't wait to have some real food, again.

"All right, I'll call her and let her know when to pick you up. I'll see you Saturday, honey. Now go enjoy the rest of your evening." I hear my Mom chuckle on the other end of the phone.

"See you Saturday," I say, before hanging up the phone. I guess everything is set; Aunt Lori will pick me up Friday evening, I'll stay the night at her house, and Saturday she'll drive us to the funeral in Modesto. The only thing I don't know is if I'll come back to C.B. Prep on Saturday night, or Sunday. I shrug: it hardly matters.

As I get up to go to my room, Seth walks into the lobby. "Hey, where are you headed," I ask him.

Seth looks over at me. "Oh, hey there, I was just going back to my room to hang out. Do you want to come over? We can play Monopoly or something."

"Okay, I'm pretty good at Monopoly, though," I warn him. Seth just grins then leads the way to his room on One South. Seth's room is set up pretty much the same way that my own room is. Seth has the bottom bunk, though. There aren't many posters on the wall: mainly sports posters.

"This is my computer," says Seth. He points to a monitor and keyboard on his desk. "It's a Tandy Co-Co 3... sorry, a Color Computer Three. Do you know much about computers?"

"Yeah, some," I reply. "I've used a Timex Sinclair 1000, TI-99/4A, Vic-20, C-128, Atari 800-XLE, Apple II-e, Macintosh, and 8086/8088 computers. I've also done some programming in BASIC, Machine Language / Assembly, PASCAL, Turbo PASCAL, C, and C++." I smile at the shocked expression on Seth's face.

"Well, all right, I guess you do know a little bit about computers." Seth chuckles. "I guess I never pictured you as the geek type," he adds.

Now it's my turn to chuckle. "Don't let the word get out," I respond. "I have a reputation to uphold." I laugh, as does Seth.

After talking about computers for a good 30 minutes, we finally decide to play a game of Monopoly. I take the lead early on, but Seth has a series of lucky die rolls and buys everything he can. When he starts stacking houses, and then hotels, on his properties, I know that I'm in trouble. I finally concede the game after mortgaging all my properties.

"Good game," I tell Seth. "You kicked my ass!" I chuckle. "I look forward to a rematch."

"Anytime you want, bring it on," exclaims Seth. "I don't have any problems taking your money." He laughs.

I roll my eyes. "Yeah, okay, just you remember that you said that!" I grin evilly at him. I glance at my watch: 10:15. "I better get going. Tyler will wonder what happened to me. See you tomorrow," I tell Seth.

"Later, man," replies Seth. I head back to my room and find Tyler there, as I expected. I explain about playing Monopoly with Seth, and about getting my ass kicked.

Tyler laughs. "I'll have to play sometime. It sounds like it might actually be challenging to play against you two."

"Sure, anytime," I reply. "Anyway, I'm going to bed." I climb into bed and get comfortable. I close my eyes. I feel exhausted, for some reason. I don't think I'll have any trouble going to sleep tonight. As tired as I am, I'll probably drift right off...

As Tyler and I walk past the front desk in the morning, Tyler points at a message posted in the window. I look closer, and see my name on the message. After asking the guy at the desk for the message, I open it up and read it. 'Oh, shit, ' I think to myself.

"What's wrong," asks Tyler. I guess that it must be evident on my face. I pause, then hand him the message. He might as well see it for himself.

Tyler looks up from reading the message. He chuckles. "Dude, are you in trouble!"

I cringe. "I don't think it's funny," I tell him. We start heading for the front doors. Just outside, Seth catches up to us. Tyler and Seth talk some, as we head down the hill; I don't feel much like talking, however.

As we near the Maintenance building, I pull Tyler aside. "Hey, will you do a favor for me, and tell Hannah that I'm sorry? I completely forgot to call her last night, and didn't bother checking for any messages."

Tyler laughs. "Sure, Nate, I'll tell her. I wouldn't worry about it, though. I doubt she'll get pissed over something like this."

"I hope not," I optimistically reply. "I don't know what I was thinking. I should have called her."

"Don't worry, man," Tyler says. He chuckles. "I'll catch you later, at lunch." With that, he heads off toward the laundry.

After clocking out for lunch, I nervously head outside. Sure enough, Hannah, Leila, Juliana, Tyler, and Seth are waiting for me. Well, at least Phil and Carter aren't here.

"Hi, Hannah," I say as I near the bottom of the steps. "Can I talk to you for a second?" Tyler, Leila, and Juliana begin laughing; Seth just looks confused.

"Come on, Seth. Let's escort these lovely ladies to lunch," says Tyler. He puts an arm around both gals, and begins walking. Seth shrugs and then follows.

"Umm, I'm sorry about last night," I tell Hannah when the others are far enough ahead. "I totally forgot to call you. I was..." Hannah cuts me off with a wave of her hand.

"Nate, it's okay. Tyler explained everything. I'm not mad at you." She pauses. "Just don't let it happen again!" She pauses again, before quickly following it with a laugh. "Lighten up, Nate!" She puts her arm around my waist, and smiles at me.

'Wow, ' I think to myself. 'I must have the perfect girlfriend.' I smile back at Hannah. To her I say, "Thanks for understanding. I thought you would be mad. I guess I underestimated you." I smile again.

Hannah laughs. "Never underestimate a woman, Nate. It might get you into trouble some day." She laughs, and I laugh along with her.

"I'll try to remember that," I finally say. I laugh again, and put my arm around her. We catch up to the others just as they reach the cafeteria.

During lunch, the gals refrain from teasing me, thankfully. Phil and Carter are sitting with some other guys that they have met, so it is just the six of us at one of the big tables. Lunchtime passes quickly, as usual, and we begin making our way back toward work.

As we near the Maintenance building, I stop and pull Hannah toward me. I look into her eyes and smile. "I'll miss you this weekend," I say as I admire her beauty. "Hopefully I'll be back early on Sunday, so that we can spend some time together."

"I'll miss you too, Nate," Hannah says softly. She leans in and gives me a soft, lingering kiss. When she finally breaks the kiss, she says, "I'll look for you Sunday evening. Give me a call when you get back." She smiles, before continuing, "Don't forget!"

I laugh. "I promise to call you just as soon as I am back." I give her one more kiss, for good measure. I hear a few catcalls coming from Tyler and Seth, but I just ignore them. "Have a good weekend," I tell Hannah. "Bye." I smile.

Hannah smiles, gives a little wave, and then joins the other three to head for the laundry. I sigh, and follow the grinning Seth up the stairs.

"Oh, shut up," I say to Seth. He just laughs. I sigh again. I hope that this afternoon flies by, so that I can get the weekend started.

The afternoon indeed does fly by. After clocking out, Seth and I head outside. I look down the road to see if Hannah is coming, but she isn't anywhere in sight. I sigh. I didn't really expect to see her, since this is one of their busier days. Seth and I head up the hill toward the cafeteria. As we near the cafeteria, I see a car that looks like Aunt Lori's car, parked in front of the men's dorm.

"I'll see you later, Seth," I say. "I think my Aunt Lori is all ready here. Have a great weekend."

"Sure, you have a great one, as well." Seth heads into the cafeteria, and I turn toward the men's dorm.

I enter the dorm, and immediately spot Aunt Lori sitting on a couch. I've noticed her beauty before, but she looks especially radiant, today. Her young, 29-year-old slender body, blonde hair, blue eyes, and extremely gifted chest, fit well into the sundress that she's wearing today. While her breasts aren't as large as Mom's are, they are definitely close.

Aunt Lori notices me walking toward her and, smiling, stands up to her full 5'5" height to greet me. She hugs me to her body, and I can feel the softness of her buxom breasts pushed against me. I try not to think about it, but when she gives me a soft kiss on the cheek, I feel my face flush.

"It's good to see you, Nate. It's been a few weeks since I've last seen you. Did you grow some since then?" She laughs. She always has the nicest laugh.

"I don't think I have," I respond. I shrug my shoulders. "But I know I've grown over the last year. You used to be taller than I am, Aunt Lori. Not anymore, though." I grin.

She laughs. "Yeah, my little nephew isn't so little anymore. Come on, let's go." With that, Aunt Lori puts her arm through mine and pulls me toward the front doors.

Inside the car, Aunt Lori turns to me. "Buckle up, Nate. You know how I drive. Your father won't even ride with me, anymore." She laughs.

I fasten my seat belt and laugh. "Yeah, I remember the last time you scared Dad. I didn't think that you did anything wrong; you had to get around that car, somehow!"

Aunt Lori laughs again, as she pulls away from the curb. "So where do you want to go for dinner, my handsome young nephew?" She glances at me just in time to see me blush. She grins at me.

I ignore my embarrassment. "Actually, I was hoping that you might fix dinner at home for us. I've been stuck eating cafeteria food all week. I was looking forward to your awesome cooking!"

Aunt Lori looks over at me quizzically. She smiles. "Well, all right. What would you like to eat, then?"