Chapter 13

While Teri and Rick were celebrating their reunited marriage in bed, Tessa was spreading the joyous news at the Banner house. She seemed almost as excited as her mother, except when she came down to Cal's photo lab and told him. Then, she was surprisingly reserved, almost sad.

"Hey, Tessa, that's great news! How come you're not smiling?"

"Oh, well I'm... I mean..." Tessa stalled out completely for several long seconds and just looked at Cal. "Do you really think it's great? You and Mom were so... I thought you'd be upset."

Cal moved to her and put his arm around her, leading her to a sofa in the rec room area. "This is very personal information, but knowing how close you and your Mom are, I'm going to tell you."

"All summer long, every time we were together, Teri ended up crying," Cal told her.

"She did? What went wrong?"

"Oh, I don't think anything went wrong. She kept thinking about when it would have to end between us. In fact, she worried about that from the first time." Cal paused as he debated how much more to tell her.

"I think the real problem began when I, uh, started behaving differently," Cal said carefully.

"You mean you took charge?"

"Well... yeah. She started remembering how things had been with your Dad and decided she had done things wrong in bed. So, no matter how much she enjoyed what we did, it reminded her that Rick was gone and she thought she caused it."

"Wow!"

"Tessa, your Mom is a wonderful lover, and she showed me in lots of ways. But you know what? No one would ever be able to replace Rick. I don't think we can understand how much she loves him."

"Yeah, I think I know. Remember, I've been there for all of her bad times. So, you're really just happy that she's got Dad back, huh?"

"Yes, I really am. Teri's my friend. She was my lover for a while, but now she has what she really wants. But she doesn't have Rick back."

"Huh?" Tessa's face showed her bewilderment.

"They have each other back. That's the real way to look at it."

"Hmmmm. I see what you mean." Tessa still looked surprisingly sober and Cal could tell there was something else weighing on her.

"OK, what else is keeping the smile away?"

She leaned her head on his shoulder and he again put his arm around her. "I... I just don't think I'm ready to, um, you know... take Mom's place."

Over the last year, Cal thought he had learned a lot about the women around him. After his original three rules, he had added Rule Four after a comment from Ken: 'Don't assume anything'. Now it appeared he needed Rule Five: 'They can always surprise you'.

His surprise made him stammer a little. "Did... did Teri ask you to... to do that?"

"Mom? Of course not!" Tessa said indignantly. Then in a subdued tone "I just thought you... you know... might expect..."

Cal had a flashback to the time he had to fight laughter in Rebecca's room when she thought he was expecting to take glamour shots of her. This was, of course, a more serious matter, but he still had to fight the laughter. Why would she think he would expect that? Of course it was a very appealing prospect, but he had no right to expect it.

As he struggled to hold his composure, it occurred to him that her expectation was not really that strange. Ever since THE DAY Tessa's attitude toward him and her demeanor around him had been different. Rather than the usual combativeness, there was a bit of subservience that actually saddened him. Not only was it contrary to her delightfully strong personality, but it was proof of what Ken had warned him about. Cal did not want anyone to change their view of him because of what had happened. Especially, he did not want that from Tessa, but apparently it had happened.

There ensued a long, emotional discussion between the two life-long friends. It wasn't that Tessa no longer loved Cal. She just was not ready for that step with anyone. She was also smart enough to understand the kind of friction that could still disrupt their relationship. As much as she loved him and enjoyed being with him, she could not see them as husband and wife. Contrary to much of the culture around her, she wanted her husband to be the only complete sexual relationship of her life.

For his part, Cal had not even thought about Tessa taking Teri's place. They were two different people with different roles in his life. In fact, he had spent very little time worrying about finding another sexual partner. He knew how fortunate he had been for a fifteen-year-old and he knew that he had no right to expect to always have a lover.

All during the three-week pre-season football practices, Greg Overland had kept up a drumbeat of inflammatory comments at Cal. He had a following of five or six other players who joined in, at least when they were with Greg. Chad, now the starting quarterback, and Greg had always been inseparable and Chad was the one other player with the guts to take verbal shots at Cal even when Greg was not around.

Overall, Cal found the comments childish and either did not react at all or came back with some sort of cheerful response. That tactic seemed to just crank up his tormentors even more. Despite appearances, though, Cal was very fed up with the abuse. All of the control instilled by his years of training was being strained to the limit.

During the second week, the coach conducted an increasingly realistic series of scrimmages. On the second Friday, it was a full-game drill with the first-team offense and second team defense against the second-team offense and first-team defense. Unlike some coaches, he did not impose any restrictions on the intensity of play.

Because of an injury to the starter, Cal found himself playing safety on the first team defense. That meant that he would be going against Chad and Greg. He had a little talk with himself, promising not to go out of his way to tangle with either of them. However, he vowed that he would use all of the tackling skill he had developed if the opportunity arose.

The first chance came up very early in the game. On an option play, Chad kept and cut up off tackle. The linebacker had gone for the fake pitch and Chad had faked out the cornerback. That left Cal as the last defender, since the other two DBs were well away from the play. Trying to take control of the confrontation, Cal charged forward directly at Chad.

As Cal closed to within a step or two, Chad planted his foot to change direction. In doing so, he swung the ball out in his outside hand, seemingly unconcerned about losing it. Good defensive doctrine dictated that Cal complete the tackle, taking no chance on giving up a long gainer. He had anticipated Chad's move and was sliding sideways in perfect position to either tackle the runner or hold him up until help arrived.

The problem was, the ball was just hanging out there waiting to be plucked. Cal could sense Chad smirking as he anticipated faking Cal out of his jock-strap and sprinting for the touchdown. Cal knew that his arms and hands were far stronger than Chad's and the suppressed irritation of all those insults was just too much.

Many of the players did not even see the take-away, it was that quick. Cal did not have to numb Chad's arm with a blow or do anything but grab the ball and yank it away. Carrying the ball was not something he had any experience with, and there was a crowd of offensive players pounding after Chad, so Cal's runback was short. That hardly mattered to Cal. He had counted some coup on his number two tormentor and it felt good.

The coach did have a few words with Cal about taking a chance on the snatch rather than the tackle. However, there was almost a twinkle in the coach's eyes as he talked. Cal wondered if he was aware of the constant hazing that had been going on.

In the second quarter, Greg broke loose along the sideline. Cal was again the last defender and dashed over to intercept the big guy. In a move that surprised everyone, Greg veered toward the center of the field, setting a collision course with the oncoming Cal. He obviously intended to trample the much smaller Cal - it was a challenge.

Cal had watched Greg run enough to know that he liked to leap over low tackles. Knowing that, Cal waited until the right moment and started his dive. He knew there was no chance that Greg would sidestep - he was determined to smash Cal. Just as he was about to make contact, Cal pushed himself straight up. Greg had, as expected, gone airborne, and Cal was able to push upward on Greg's legs, causing him to flip completely over.

The impact with which Greg hit the ground was loud enough to silence the whole team. With unaccustomed dramatic flair, Cal turned and walked several yards downfield into position for the next play. He scrupulously did not look back at Greg.

Greg was undamaged, except for his ego and some short-term disorientation. The coach had Greg sit out for the rest of the series and he spent the whole time glaring at Cal.

During 'half time' the coach took the time to talk for a while with each of the four units. He told the first defensive unit that he wanted to practice blitzes heavily in the second half. Cal tried to hide a smile, thinking that he might have another chance at Chad.

As it turned out, Cal never got a good shot at Chad, but he did cause Chad to hurry three passes and Cal tipped one. The capper for the day, though, came late in the fourth quarter. Cal was on a blitz over tackle and the offense called a pitch out to Greg. Because of a mix-up in blocking assignments, Cal got through untouched and was in position as the ball was pitched. He had a fleeting thought of trying to intercept the pitch, but opted for the tackle for a loss.

It was not just a tackle, either. Greg was reaching for the ball so he was barely moving. Cal, on the other hand, had been able to set himself and put everything into his charge. Greg had the ball in hand and had just turned upfield when Cal hit him. Once more, the big guy landed very hard on his back and once again, Cal just walked away. This time, Greg was done for the game and could not even work up a good glare as he sat befuddled on the sideline.

The fall season was going to be extremely hectic for the entire Banner family. Pete, though only a freshman, was number five on the linebacker depth chart. That meant that he would get quite a bit of playing time, and he was a regular on both kicking and receiving teams. Martin and Elaine had long ago made a firm commitment to attend all events when their children were performing, and they had done a remarkable job of keeping that pledge.

The real problem was that Cal played Friday nights and Pete's games were on Saturday. Many of the college towns where Pete would play did not have non-stop connections from home. That meant either a late night flight to a major hub and a hotel there, or an early morning departure.

The situation impacted Cal, too. He wanted to see as many of Pete's games as possible. Martin and Elaine wanted to stay over Saturday nights for most of the home games so they could spend more time with Pete. Cal, however, would have a shoot scheduled any Sunday that he was home, and sometimes there would be two.

Before Pete's first game, a harried travel agent had worked out a schedule all the way up until Thanksgiving. If Pete's team made it to a bowl, that would have to been handled separately. There were two of Cal's games that his parents would miss because there just weren't any other flight options. Cal would not fly to those games. Cal consoled his parents by pointing out that they would have lots of his basketball games to watch, so he was already way ahead of Pete.

In all, Cal would see Pete play seven times, a very busy travel schedule for a high schooler. Rebecca would fly to those same seven games, and for two of them, the whole family would stay over until Sunday night.

If Cal had thought the events of the intra-squad scrimmage would shut Greg up, he was sadly mistaken. In fact, it got worse because Greg and his lackeys turned their full attention to Rebecca, Bobby, and Tessa. That was almost enough for Cal to declare war on his teammates, but instead, he got his friends all together one night when Bobby was over working out.

"The question is, do I need to hurt Greg. I don't like that he's taking it out on you guys."

In somewhat of a surprise, Rebecca answered first. "Oh, Cal, he's been doing that to me for years. I hardly notice it any more. I think Bobby's getting used to it, too."

"Well, you shouldn't have to get used to anything like that."

"I'll bet you don't think I just smile and take it, do you?" asked Tessa with a chuckle. "It isn't bad enough for you to get in trouble."

"OK, I'll let you handle it, but I don't like it. Listen, if any of those assholes touch any one of you, promise you'll let me know. That I won't stand for. Whoever does it will be very, very sorry." Cal's voice had a sharpness that none of them had ever heard before.

In the second week of school, Cal received a surprise that equaled anything that had happened with Teri. He had just opened his books to be sure he could finish everything in his morning time when he was called to the phone. It was Cheryl asking if she could see him for a few minutes. She wanted to pick him up in fifteen minutes.

Cal wanted to ask what the quick visit was about, but Cheryl was not saying anything, so he saw no option but to wait her out. After driving for a few minutes, she pulled into the parking lot of an industrial park, shut off the engine, and sat back silently. She looked out the windshield rather than at Cal, and he continued to wait her out.

Finally, with a huge sigh, she said "Cal, will you take my cherry?"

It was an eery sensation for Cal as he flashed back to Ismi asking him the same thing not that long ago. He had talked Ismi out of it, and the rational part of his brain thought that he should do the same with Cheryl.

"Cheryl, you have just offered me a fantasy. But you don't sound enthusiastic about it at all." When she didn't respond, and didn't even look at him, he went on. "I have to admit: I'm surprised you held out this long, going with Greg."

She chose to only respond to his second comment. "I'm surprised, too. He was gone at football camp most of the summer, so that helped. But he has been bugging me to death and I made him a deal. If he gets 150 yards in a game with no fumbles, I'll do it with him. Cal, I can't stand the thought of him being my first."

"I don't get it," Cal complained. "If you're that against giving it up to him, why don't you just break up with him?"

"It's... complicated. There is a very good reason that I can't. I sure wish you had asked me out before I started going with him."

"You know," he answered, "Breakaway was my first date ever. Until last Christmas I never thought much about dating."

"Yeah, bad timing," she muttered, once again looking out the window.

"Um, why me?" he asked.

"You've shown me more respect than any guy I know. Ever since the night of the pictures I've wished we were a couple."

"Then break up with Greg and I'll go out with you. You won't have to lose your cherry until you're ready. I just don't understand, Cheryl!"

"OK, I'll tell you the story."

"No, wait. I want to hear it, but I think Tessa and Rebecca should hear it, too."

"Why?" she demanded.

"Well, I think it is a real shame that you three are no longer close. And if it should come to that, I won't have sex with you unless both of them OK it."

"Whaaaat?" Cheryl did not try to hide her astonishment.

"Think about it. They are the two people closest to me. If I slept with you and it ruined things with either of them, I would never forgive myself."

"Well, I guess I might as well look for someone else," Cheryl said sadly. "I mean, you and Tessa...

"We are not really a couple," Cal explained. "Like you said, it's complicated."

There was another long silence as Cheryl once again examined the surrounding buildings with apparent great interest. "I don't know, Cal. I'm afraid they would really hate me afterwards."

"I can't imagine what you have gotten yourself into, Cheryl, but whatever it is, you need friends. Don't underestimate the girls. What have you got to lose. You know they will keep your secrets."

When the three girls and Cal were gathered in the Walts' basement rec room, Cheryl looked around nervously and started the conversation.

"I told Cal at Breakaway that there was a reason I was going out with Greg. I asked him not to write me off and to try to get you guys to at least keep talking to me. Thank you for being nice to me in school. I can't tell you how bad I feel that we are not close any more." She paused a moment as her voice caught.

"I guess you all know that I want to be a doctor. I AM going to be a doctor. What you may not know is the problem I have at home. I love my parents and they're good to me, BUT... Girls can be teachers and nurses, but not doctors or executives. It also is not ladylike to play sweaty games like volleyball and basketball and softball."

"What that means is that I will get no help from home for med school. They'll do what they can for undergrad, except if I go for pre-med."

"That's not fair," Tessa exclaimed, breaking into Cheryl's monologue.

"Yeah, well..." Cheryl said with a shrug. "Don't they say 'play it where it lies' or something like that in golf, Cal? That's the way things are, but it won't stop me from being a doctor." The determination in her voice was palpable.

"So you're what... gonna marry Greg so he'll put you through med school?" Tessa asked, a bit belligerently.

Cheryl gave a big sigh, then continued. "Let me tell you just what has happened. I hope you won't hate me afterwards."

"When Greg first asked me out, I was flattered. I mean, jock girls don't usually get into the inner circle, and it was my ticket. For some stupid reason it seemed important to me at the time. That was March, I think, and it took me until Memorial Day to realize what an absolute jerk he was and decide that the 'A' list wasn't worth it."

"Well, the Overland family always has a big Memorial Day bash at his parents' estate, and he asked me to go with him. I almost broke up with him at that point, but I guess I was curious about, you know, how the other half lives. Here's what happened."

Cheryl had been told that it was a pool party and to dress informally. It took about fifteen seconds to realize that everyone else's pool wear cost a lot more than the best thing in her closet.

Cheryl had two things in abundance - no, three, actually. She had brains enough to be a valedictorian candidate. Only the time she spent on sports kept her a little behind Rebecca and Tessa. She had beauty. Her body was that of an athlete, but she had all the right feminine curves and a movie star's face. And she had more self-confidence and poise than any sixteen-year-old was entitled to.

Realizing that she was out of her element, Cheryl determined not to be beaten down or cowed by it, but to show the whole mob, and Greg in particular, that money couldn't buy class. From the outset it was a battle. Greg's cousins in particular were the most vicious and there seemed to be an endless stream of them. Each of the girls seemed more vain and bloodthirsty than the next.

Little by little she deduced that Greg was himself an outcast because he had chosen public school. Along with his parents, he had decided that his chances for football exposure were much better than at any of the area's private high schools.

The favorite family game was cutting up and tearing down each other, and the cousins went after anything negative about Greg's school like vultures after a carcass. A lower class girlfriend was a choice target, and an athlete besides was too good to be true.

To her credit, Cheryl could hardly keep from laughing after the first few minutes. Then, she found the perfect way to fight back: she took off her outer clothing and spent the rest of the afternoon in her swimsuit. It was a two-piece that marginally qualified as a bikini. She quickly ascertained that none of the bitches' bodies came close to hers.

It was a bit of exhibitionism that was not typical of Cheryl, but she was so angry that it became easy. When Greg introduced her to his parents, she was able to smile brightly despite his mother's withering glare. Her smile did nothing to hide the contempt she felt, and the woman must certainly have noticed it. It was not something she was used to.

Greg was thrilled by the way Cheryl reacted to his extended family. Predictably, he was constantly battling his parents, and had no time for the vapid gaggle of cousins. Arrogant and self-centered though he was, Cheryl got to him. Almost from the first time he met her, she had fascinated him. It was an attraction not easily explained, and one he had never felt for another girl. Seeing her stick it to his relatives made him fall for her even more.

Cheryl had seen a regal-looking, unbelievably well-preserved older woman watching her and Greg from the time they arrived. After a few minutes the woman was introduced as Greg's paternal grandmother, Genevieve Overland. For once, Cheryl felt what she considered a little common courtesy in the brief exchange brought on by the introduction.

Cheryl noticed that even as the other girls bared their swimsuits, none ventured near the water, probably because of fear for their hairdos. Therefore, she dove into the pool and swam and frolicked with the boys and the pre-teen kids. There was an excellent diving board, and when there was safe space in the pool, she displayed her skill. She thoroughly enjoyed sitting down to eat in just her wet suit with her hair still wet. She was in such a light-hearted mood that she even joked and flirted a bit with Greg. They were almost co-conspirators at that gathering.

After the excellent meal of grilled steaks, most people were just sitting around and chatting. On her way back from using the bathroom in the pool house, a woman in a maid's uniform stopped her. "Miss Carson, the senior Mrs. Overland would like to speak with you."