Chapter 6: Caution - Pedestrian Zone

Perhaps I’m making too much of it, but I think my difference in age between me and my classmates during my school years and my resultant shyness had set me slightly apart from others, so I saw people differently than most do. For instance, that afternoon as I sat on the front porch with my family and close friends, I was observing what was going on around me. For some reason I was paying attention the groupings of people and for a short time I watched the way the others mingled and how they interacted.

My brother Wil and the Coulter twins were standing in one group, slightly away from anyone else, which wasn’t really surprising if you thought about ages. Wil was almost two and a half years older than I was, while Carissa and Corinna were almost a year younger than he was. Since the twins had seen me with Sandy and had heard their Uncle call her my girlfriend, they had backed off. Now however, they seemed to be giving Wil the eye and I had to grin to myself; Wil wasn’t shy like I was, so the twins might be in for a surprise.

I was still thinking about the way the twins were acting when I noticed George and Beth talking and I did a double take. Beth was acting almost the same way toward George as the twins were acting toward Wil. Actually when I thought about it, it made sense since I knew they liked each other, even though they never made a big deal about it. For some reason or other though, that afternoon they were showing their feelings more than usual.

Sandy had been sitting beside me and Tom had wandered over to join us. I suppose since I was acting a little withdrawn, they had struck up a conversation which neither included nor excluded me. It was as if they acknowledged that I was there, but didn’t expect me to react. Somehow the interaction between the two of them was unlike the others though. In some ways it was as if they were fencing with each other and yet it was also as if they wanted to be closer, almost as if they were trying to develop a friendship. At the same time, Sandy seemed to be paying attention to the way Wil and the Coulter girls were acting, while Tom was keeping an eye on Beth and George.

The overall situation had left me quite thoughtful and I suppose it showed on my face, because when Sandy and Tom stood and moved over to chat with Beth and George, Mom came over and sat down at my side.

“That’s a rather intense look on your face,” Mom smiled. “Thinking deep thoughts?”

“Yes and no,” I had to grin at her perception of my mood. “I was just people watching.”

“You do that a lot, don’t you?”

“Oh, to some extent I suppose? I like to try to understand the people around me.”

She studied my face for a moment as if she wanted to say something deep, but seemed to think better of it, then she just smiled softly and patted my arm gently.

“Actually, it’s four o’clock so chores are in another half hour, that will give you some time alone with Sandy. Then it’ll be time for supper, but what did you want to do after that?”

“Well, I have to have Sandy at work by a quarter to seven, then I sort of promised her dad to pick her up from work at eleven and give her a ride home. In between those times I’m not sure what I’m going to do.”

“Then I think that we’d best feed you and Sandy earlier,” she smiled.

“Oh Mom, I can buy Sandy something to eat in town and...”

“No, I’d like you two to eat here,” she smiled at me, but her smile had that ‘no nonsense’ edge to it that I’d long ago learned not to argue with. “Besides, I’m trying to think of a way to have everyone sit down to a meal at once. Let me talk to your father for a moment.”

For some reason when she walked away, I dropped into a very thoughtful mood and it wasn’t until Sandy bent over in front of me and then kissed me on the tip of my nose that I jerked back to reality.

“Sorry,” she giggled. “I didn’t mean to scare you, but I was wondering if you’d mind if I went with everyone else to do chores while you sat here thinking?”

“Oh yeah, fine,” I answered, trying to pull myself back into the present.

“Great, we won’t be that long and I promise not to let her get all mucked up,” Beth said from the porch steps. “Come on Sandy, I’ll show you our horses.”

I glanced around and realised that everyone else was gone, then wondered how long I’d been concentrating and inattentive, but just as I frowned over that Mom stepped out onto the porch from inside.

“That was very thoughtful of you. Besides, it gives me a moment to speak to you alone,” she said quietly.

“Oh, was there something wrong?”

“Not really, but I was wondering a bit about you and Sandy, I noticed...” she paused, looking at me strangely as I shook my head and grinned sardonically at her.

“Sorry Mom, maybe I’m being pessimistic, but I think we might be done before we start,” I sighed. “Actually, that’s what I was just sitting here thinking about.”

Just the look on her face told me I’d have to explain, so I took a deep breath and shifted my leg slightly just to give myself time to think of how to tell her what I felt.

“Look. Sandy has been kept on a tight string by her dad. I don’t think she’s ever really gone out with a guy before. Suddenly she’s here, with all these people around and on top of that there are guys here. Not just me, but three other guys too and it almost looked to me like she was ... well, sort of competing for attention with the twins and Beth.”

“For a young fellow who has never had much to do with girls, you seem quite certain of yourself,” Mom said very quietly.

“I may not have gone out much Mom, but I’ve been one of the biggest girl watchers around the school,” I snorted. “I don’t understand girls at all, so I watch them to see if anything makes sense.”

“Does it?” she smiled.

“Not often, but sometimes,” I had to grin. “In Sandy’s case, she reminds me of someone who has just gotten a new toy, or in this case, a new freedom. In a way, she scares me.”

“Why should she scare you?”

“Well...” I paused, not sure how much I could say to my own mother. I sighed deeply, then continued. “Okay, maybe I’m just being pessimistic about her actions, but I think she’s an awful lot like a bomb that was dropped, but didn’t explode, so it could go off at the slightest tremor. She’s been mollycoddled and protected so closely by her dad, that I think she’ll change drastically, now that she has the opportunity to be free of his control. On top of that I think she believes that I’m the chance she’s been looking for.”

“I take it you mean that you think she wants to ... have sex?”

“Yeah,” I sighed. “Exactly!”

“Then I take it since you’re talking to me about it that you don’t feel the same way about her?”

“No, Mom, I really do like her and while I wouldn’t push her, if she led me that direction I’m not sure I could stop myself,” I shook my head vigorously. “The thing is, I think ... well, I think she’s going to want someone older and more experienced than me, and probably really soon.”

“Now, that is pessimistic,” Mom laughed, then she paused and looked at me strangely. “How did you do that?”

“How did I do what?” I frowned, not understanding.

“How did you get me to nearly root for you to have sex with a girl?” she chuckled. “I should be warning you of the dangers, not be...”

She let the words hang and I think she blushed a bit, then she changed the subject slightly. “You’re acting very grown up for someone your age, young man. I almost felt like I was talking with a contemporary, not with my son. Sometimes I’m sure that you think altogether too much.”

“I don’t think that’s possible, Mom,” I grinned. “Most of the time when I’m thinking I have a lot of questions and not many answers.”

“So, now you’ve left me with the questions, is that it?”

“Not really, I have to live my own life. You and Dad taught me that,” I sighed. “I guess I was just letting my thoughts run, and you happened to tap into the right questions to get me to express them aloud. I really don’t know what I’m going to do. I know your advice is going to be for me not to get involved, but I don’t see how I can do that now, and not cause a problem for either her or me.”

“Actually, I was wondering if you realised just how involved you were getting yourself,” she smiled. “I’m not sure that your assessment of Sandy is right either. Unlike you, I feel that she has really been enjoying herself while she’s been here today. I did notice that her reaction to others changed as she watched Beth and the Coulter twins, but I think that was more of a learning experience than anything else. I agree that she’s been sheltered, and I really do think she’s just learning how to tease a man. I got the idea that she was practising what Beth and the twins were doing at a time and place she felt was safe.”

“Oh Mom, you’ve got to be kidding me.”

“No, I think she’s even more innocent than you thought she was. I’m starting to think that the two of you are perfect for each other right now. Both of you are undereducated about the opposite sex, both of you are quite shy, and while you’re a young gentleman, she’s equally as much a young lady. I am going to suggest one thing though.”

I waited for a moment and then asked. “Okay, just what are you going to suggest?”

She reached her hand into her apron pocket and held her closed hand out to me.

“Just in case, carry these in your wallet and if you need one, for gosh sakes use it,” she dropped a pair of small foil packages into my hand.

I stared down at them and then up at her face, not knowing what to say or to do.

“I’ll make it plain. I’m not trying to encourage you. But, I know accidents will happen, and at your age your hormones can take over from your thinking brain. I just want you to be safe and I don’t want you to feel that you have to marry someone, not quite yet,” And with that, she turned and went back into the house.

I must have stared at those two foil packages for five minutes, then almost guiltily slipped them both into my wallet and resolved to remember that I had them. I was still in a bit of a blue funk when Beth and Sandy came running around the corner and up onto the porch.

“That horse that broke your leg is beautiful,” Sandy grinned, plopping down at my side. “He doesn’t look mean at all though. He looks like a pussy cat.”

“Oh my,” Beth giggled. “Right now he is, but he can be a real so ‘n’ so when he wants to be.”

“Why would he change?” Sandy asked guilelessly.

“Because he’s a male horse,” Beth chortled. “When a mare lets him know that she’s ready to breed, he turns from a family pet into a typical male, then he has only one thing on his mind.”

“Beth!” I growled.

“Well, it’s true,” she snapped.

“Not all guys are animals,” I argued.

“Damn near,” she retorted. “Just because you can wake up in bed with two nude women and not do anything doesn’t mean a damn thing, because you’re not typical. Most guys would have thought that they’d died and gone to heaven, then they’d have taken advantage of the situation.”

“I’m not using myself as an example,” I growled again, annoyed with her for even bringing that incident to mind again.

“Okay, so I guess what I should have said is that a girl had best watch what signals she gives a guy. Okay?” Beth sighed in exasperation. “If a girl goes too far with the wrong guy, she can get into really big trouble, real quick.”

Sandy was simply staring at us, her mouth open the slightest bit as if she was in shock that we could talk this freely with each other.

“And you’re the ultimate of experience I guess?”

“No, but at least I’ve necked with a guy and had to fight off his wandering hands. How far have you gone, Mr. know-it-all?” Beth snapped.

“Far enough that I know it’s not always the girl who says enough,” I grinned at her.

“Yeah, and how far is that?”

“Well, I suppose being in bed with two nude girls at once,” I grinned even wider. “You saw a photo of that as the evidence.”

“I thought we weren’t bringing that into this?” Beth snapped again.

Sandy suddenly realised I was teasing Beth and she broke into a giggle.

“Well, if you can throw it at me, I can throw it back at you, besides we started out talking about horses, not people. They’re a bit different.”

“Yeah, how does a mare tease a stallion?” Sandy asked, trying to help change the subject back.

“Chemicals,” I laughed.

“Chemicals?”

“He means pheromones,” Beth snorted. “When a mare comes into season she gives off a special smell. At least she doesn’t tease like a teenage girl does.”

“Girls give off a special smell too,” I laughed.

“Oh come on,” Beth snapped. “You’re kidding, right.”

“Okay, maybe all girls don’t,” I shrugged my shoulders. “Maybe it’s just you.”

“Me?!?”

“Sure, I can be talking to you and I can tell when George walks into the room, even if I don’t happen to see or hear him. I decided last year that it was just the way you act, but it had to be something else too. Then I thought about the animals and read in a book about pheromones. That’s when I first noticed the smell.”

Beth stared at me in astonishment and then she blushed bright red.

“Don’t worry. I’ve never told him ... or anyone else, until now,” I smiled. “But, it might be an idea if you let him known that you like him.”

Suddenly Beth leaped to her feet and ran inside.

“Oh shit,” I sighed and rolled my eyes. “I did it, didn’t I?”

“Oh I don’t know,” Sandy smiled at me. “I think she’ll survive. But, can you really smell when a girl likes a guy?”

“Sometimes. It depends on the girl and the guy.”

“So, do I like you?”

“Enough to scare me,” I laughed uneasily.

“Oh, I hope not,” she giggled. “I sure don’t want to scare you away.”

“The problem is that I’m scared of me,” I sighed, deciding to be honest. “I do like you, but I know that you’ve never been on a date before and I...”

She held up a hand and stopped me. “Shh. Don’t say anything more. We’ll talk later. Okay?”

I nodded and was going to answer when suddenly Beth came running back out the door and stood right in front of me with her hands on her hips.

“Why should I say something?” she demanded.

“Because he’s a nice guy and every time you hear that he’s going out on a date with someone else you get upset,” I said as quietly and as evenly as I could.

“I can’t just come out and tell him,” she argued.

“So, do you want me to clue him in? Really gently, so I don’t scare him off.”

“Maybe? Unh, no, don’t. But, well ... I don’t know,” Beth sighed softly.

“Well, when you make up your mind, let me know would you?”

To my surprise, she bent forward and hugged me, then went back inside.

“You really are a nice guy, aren’t you?” Sandy whispered. “And you’re so full of surprises.”

I didn’t know what to say, so I just shrugged my shoulders and she giggled, which astounded me. I was going to ask her what was so funny, but just then Dad, Wil, and the two Coulter twins came around the corner.

“There, the chores are all done, but for the milking, little brother. Do you think Mom has supper almost ready?” Will grinned at me.

“More than likely, big brother. Are you starving already?”

“For Mom’s cooking? Of course!” he laughed.

Dad had gone right into the house and he stepped back out. “Come on everyone, time for the farm help to wash up so we can eat.”

I waved everyone ahead of me, I was actually worried about hitting someone accidentally with those bloody crutches. To my surprise, Sandy insisted that she stay back, then held the screen door from springing against me. We were the last ones inside, but Mom just waved us straight to the table while everyone else was washing up.

Mom and Beth must have added an extra leaf to the table so everyone would have room to sit down. Beth was helping put dishes on the table and she looked at me as I came in, then smiled and pulled back a chair for me.

“I’ve decided I’ll say something,” she whispered.

“Good,” I grinned. “Then I don’t have to worry about saying the wrong thing.”

She surprised me by blushing again as she hurried past me to get something else.

“What was that about?” Mom asked.

“You’ll have to ask Beth. It’s her business to say anything, not mine,” I shrugged my shoulders.

Sandy grinned, along with a wink and a squeeze on my arm.

I just smiled at her, but didn’t get a chance to respond because everyone started to come in and sit around the table. By the time everyone got seated, it was quite a crew. Beth had put me in the middle seat on one side and she directed Wil to sit opposite me. He had Carissa on his left and Corinna on his right while I ended up with Sandy on my right and Beth on my left. Of course Dad sat at the head of the table and Mom sat opposite him.

After bowing his head for a few seconds as a concession to our guest’s possible beliefs, Dad looked up at me.

“Chris, you’re going to have to stop this practice of bringing back more and more beautiful young women or we won’t have a large enough table to all eat together,” he teased.

“Don’t you dare stop him, Dad?” Will grinned. “If I’d known he was this good at bringing home pretty gals for company, I’d have taken him along to Ag. school. The idea of sitting down to eat at a table with someone I don’t mind looking at is wonderful.”

“Don’t mind?” Beth shot back immediately. “Girls, I think we’ve been insulted.”

“Perhaps not insulted...”

“but certainly not complimented.”

“Wil needs to take lessons...”

“from his little brother...”

“who always seems to be a gentleman...”

“except that he brings home...”

“prettier girls than we are.”

I laughed and turned to Sandy. “Poor Wil, he seems to have inherited the stereo sisters.”

“You’re right,” she giggled. “I always have to threaten my sisters with the suggestion that I’ll stuff a sock in one of their mouths if they don’t stop that silliness.”

That tickled me and I turned to Wil and winked. “Since I’m wearing a cast on one foot, I have a spare sock if you need one.”

“We take back the suggestion...”

“that he’s a gentleman...”

“no gentleman would threaten...”

“young ladies like that.”

“Young, I can believe, but I have a problem with the other part,” Will grinned. “Now what was it you said about a spare sock, Chris?”

“Alright, I think that’s enough threats of socks and things,” Mom interrupted with a grin. “Chris, just how is your foot feeling now?”

“Oh, it’s a lot better Mom,” I smiled at her. “I think having it lifted up on a stool did the most good.”

“So, what are you going to do while Sandra is working for four hours. Are you planning on coming home for a rest?”

“That seems like a waste of gas,” I sighed. “The trouble is what do I do in town for four hours on a Friday night?”

“You could always go watch my sisters play baseball for a couple of hours,” Sandy suggested.

“Oh sure, and sit beside your Dad and Mom, huh?” I grinned.

“Actually, that’s not a bad idea,” Mom offered with a smile. “In fact, it’s the sort of thing you would normally do.”

“Or you could phone Tom and George and invite them along,” Wil offered. “I could help Dad with the milking, and that would free up all the girls to go along.”

“We’ve got a better idea,” Carissa spoke up. “Why don’t we help Wil with the milking and perhaps after we’re done, he could borrow the pickup truck and we could meet you at the game?”

“Sure, then Beth could go with the rest of you and it would give everyone a break, even if it’s just a little one,” Corinna added.

“What do you think Sandy?” I asked. “It’s your date.”

“I think it sounds okay, I mean as a date it’s kind of screwed up anyway. I just wish I didn’t have to work. I’d love to go out with all of you guys.”

“So should I phone Tom and George?” I suggested.

“Let me,” Beth jumped to her feet and ran off.

“Well, I guess that’s settled,” Dad winked at Mom, grinning like a Cheshire cat. “We get a night off, Mrs. Wife. No milking, no kids, whatever will we do?”

“Oh, I’m sure we can think of something,” Mom laughed.

We kidded a bit more, then Beth came back from her phone calls.

“So, are they coming along?” I asked.

“Tom can’t come, but George said he’d be over in just a few minutes,” she smiled, actually she glowed.

I winked at her and she broke into a blush, then excused herself, leaving her meal unfinished. I knew it was because she wanted to get changed and gussied up for George’s benefit.

“Well, what’s up with her?” Dad asked quietly.

“Ask me later, Willard,” Mom said shortly, cutting him off and getting a surprised look from Dad in return.

Wil glanced at me and raised an eyebrow, I just shrugged my shoulders and asked him something about Ag. school, just to change the subject and we chatted about that for a few minutes. Mom excused herself and I heard her go upstairs. I assumed she was going to talk to Beth.

I’d been keeping an eye on the clock because I didn’t want Sandy to be late for work, but I didn’t want to have to drive faster than I felt was safe either. George appeared in plenty of time, which was a relief, and Beth came downstairs not long after he got there. I suggested that we leave then, just to be certain we had Sandy at the hospital in time.