Chapter 13

"I saw you and Dad talking. What was that all about?" Carol and I were out for our evening walk after her dad left.

"Oh, the usual father-of-the-girl and boyfriend talk. He was just making sure my intentions were honourable."

I basically brushed it off. I was afraid if I told her what really happened, that I had challenged him, and he'd accepted I would alienate her. In retrospect, I should have told her. Things would have probably worked out differently. Actually, knowing what I know now, they most certainly would have, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

"Well, if that's all it was, why the long face?"

"Having that talk always makes a guy nervous, especially when it's his first and hopefully only one."

"Oh. Well maybe this will cheer you up."

She grabbed me by the ears, and pulled me into a mind-numbing kiss, making sure her whole wonderful body rubbed against me. She was right, she cheered me right up.

The next week rolled by without incident. We laughed. We played. The four of us did almost everything together. There was a level of comfort, camaraderie, among us that hadn't been there before. When we went down to the beach, it was usually all four. The girls enjoyed snorkeling as much as us. We had great games of King of the Hill on the raft.

Carol and I spent as much time alone as circumstances would allow. Whenever we got truly alone, we'd get as intimate as time allowed. She'd developed a real taste for semen, and gave me a blow job every chance she got. I got really good at giving her major orgasms just playing with her nipples. A couple times we had enough time to get her pants open enough to give her a good hand job. She even learned how to give me one, but she didn't really like to do it, saying it was just for quick relief and a waste of 'his Precious Stuff' as she called it.

Carol and I also spent a good deal of time studying together for our upcoming 'Three-Sixty-Five' Driver's test. This was the written part of our Beginner's Drivers License Exam. Nowadays, they call the 365 a "Learner's Permit". Back then, your "Beginners" was good for 365 days, hence the common name. Once you had it, you could drive under supervision. It was expected that you get your full license before the 365 expired, otherwise, you wrote the test all over again, and started from scratch. I would turn 16 in the middle of August. The 365 was like a rite of passage for most teenagers, especially boys, and most people took it on their birthday. Carol hadn't bothered with it much, but after Riekie's success at getting her full driver's license, and it was a big deal for me, she decided to go for it. We were really excited to be doing it together.

That Friday night, Bob Sr. rolled in as usual. We spoke and were polite, even civil with each other, but everyone picked up on the latent tension. Carol mentioned it to me. I just laughed and said I didn't think he believed me when I said my intentions were honourable, and besides, I was taking away his little girl, making a bit of a joke out of it, something she wasn't to take too seriously. If only I'd said something then! As the weekend went on, the tension between us lessened enough for the others to ignore, and we all had a good time.

Bob Sr. had something planned for Dolly and the little boys for the following weekend. The Toronto Zoo had some special thing on for youngsters he was taking them to. Dolly and the boys would be away all weekend. Bob Sr. was leaving his car for Dolly to drive down, so the wagon was available for the rest of us. Dolly wouldn't be back until sometime on Monday, the day Carol and I were taking our test, so we needed the wagon for Riekie so she could drive us in. My actual birthday fell on the weekend, making the Monday the closest business day to it. Dolly had originally planned some kind of birthday party for me, but Bob Sr. insisted she take the boys to Toronto. They didn't get to see their father very often, much less do family stuff with him, so Dolly had little choice.

So, on Sunday night, Dolly and the whole crew jumped into the wagon and we took Bob Sr. to catch a train to the city. After we dropped him off at the station, and made sure he caught his train, we went out for ice cream. It was a pleasant end to a pleasant weekend despite the tension between Bob Sr. and me. It was also the last time I saw him all summer. His company got really busy and he was away on business trips every weekend until well into September.

The rest of the week went as usual. We swam; we walked; we played and laughed. Bob and I did more exploring. We played with the boys and I got to know the grandparents and the aunts better. Because they were Dutch, Dolly and her family usually spoke it among themselves. The kids didn't speak Dutch very well, but they understood it. It was odd to hear one of the adults speak to one of the kids, and the kid would reply in English. As the summer went on, I learned to do it, too. Even after all these years, I can still understand many words of Dutch.

They had a phone at the cottage. I was not only allowed to call home once in a while, I was expected to do so at least once a week. The only caveat was that I do so after 8PM, when the rates were cheapest. So, I kept in touch with home. There wasn't really all that much going on. Val got a similar invitation as I, and had gone off to my uncle's cottage with my cousin Cathy. Apparently she was having a good time too. Heather, who is 9 years younger than me, wanted to know everything I did. She missed her big brother, and I was touched. Mom and Dad said they missed me too, but were glad I was enjoying myself. They always asked after Bob and Carol, especially Carol. They were delighted when I told them our relationship was stronger than ever. At least somebody thought we had a good thing going.

As I said, it was a normal busy, happy week at the cottage. The girls seemed to spend a lot of time with Dolly, the aunts and Oma. Often when Bob and I entered the house, they would be sitting at the kitchen table, laughing and carrying on. As soon as we came in, though, they would all clam up in some conspiratorial silence.

Friday afternoon, right after lunch, Dolly loaded the boys in Bob Sr.'s car, and drove down to meet him in Toronto. They wouldn't be back until Monday. Dolly told us they were coming back by train, and would call us to let us know which one, and the time. She wished Carol and me good luck on our 365 test and then they were gone.

It was quiet without the boys around. We made our own supper, or rather Riekie and Carol made our supper. They were just as good cooks as Dolly and the food was great. They simply beamed when I told them how good it was. Carol and I went for our usual walk, fooled around a little bit, and then we played board games until bed time.

Saturday, we did our usual swimming and exploring. After supper, Carol begged off our walk, but told me I should go anyway.

"You're getting fat from all the good food we're feeding you. Go walk it off. Take Bob with you." She teased.

So Bob and I went for a walk that evening. We spent some quality time together, and headed back to the house. We were gone about an hour and it was almost dark by the time we got back. Oddly, the house was in darkness. I walked in, and just as I reached for the light switch, the lights all came on.

"SURPRISE!"

I didn't recognize the place. There were streamers and balloons with 'Happy Birthday' on them all over the place. The guests included the four of us, the aunts, and the grandparents. Carol threw her arms around my neck, and gave me a sloppy kiss.

"Happy Birthday, Darling! Mom was disappointed she couldn't have a party for you because she was leaving, so we did it for her. She helped with the planning and got all the decorations for us."

Aha! Now I understood all those conspiratorial silences. I'd known Dolly wanted to have a party for me, but figured when she had to leave, it was all off. They had noisemakers and silly hats — the whole nine yards. We had a grand time. Tante Pie, who was usually very stiff and formal, got right into the spirit of things. We got the music going, and everyone was dancing, having a good time.

I was dancing with Tante Pie. "We know your birthday isn't actually until tomorrow. We wanted to have the party then, but we will not be here."

"Oh? Why not?"

"Didn't Carol or Riekie tell you?"

"No, they were probably too wrapped up in their preparations and trying to keep me from finding out. Where are you going?"

"Yes, of course. We have to take Oma and Opa home tomorrow. They both have doctor's appointments. One on Monday and one on Wednesday. We won't be back until Thursday."

"I'll miss you all." And I meant it. They had been wonderful to me all summer, treating me like a member of the family.

"We will be leaving early in the morning. Opa says if he must go home, he wants to get there early enough to work in his garden."

We both laughed and had a good time with our dancing.

I was dancing with Carol. Well, we were standing in the centre of the floor swaying to the music, glued to each other.

"You didn't tell me the aunts and your grandparents were leaving tomorrow."

"Must've slipped my mind. It's no big deal is it?"

"No, it's a surprise, is all. I'm going to miss them, even if it's only for a few days. I like being around them. They don't treat me like some damn-fool teenager. They actually listen to what I say, and respect my opinions."

"They like you, too — a lot."

Carol ended that conversation with a kiss that almost took me off my feet. I was a little embarrassed in front of the old folks, but when I could see, I saw Opa give me the Big OK sign. He was smiling very broadly and nodding. Oma had a knowing smile. The aunts looked busy, like they hadn't seen a thing.

I was dancing with Tante Jo when someone turned the lights off. Then I saw a glow coming through the doorway from the grandparents half. They all started singing "Happy Birthday" as Carol carried in a big birthday cake topped with 16 candles and placed it on the table. They wouldn't turn the light back on, until I blew them all out. I swear one was a trick candle. I almost ran out of breath blowing them out, but I got them on one pass and got a round of applause for it.

I did the honours and cut the cake. It turned out Carol had baked the cake herself from scratch. I don't know when she got the time. It was delicious. I made a little speech thanking everyone for the party. Carol and Riekie served up the cake with some ice cream and Tante Jo surprised us all by breaking out a bottle of wine. The four of us each got one glass. Opa proposed two toasts.

"To Dave on his sixteenth birthday... may there be many more, and as happy." They all raised their glasses and drank to my health. I was immensely pleased.

Then, to my never ending astonishment and a little embarrassment.

"To Carol and Dave... May their love stay pure and true forever."

I almost fell through the floor. Carol blushed prettily. It was a good time to kiss her, which I did, and just to make sure I got it right, I did it again. She was practically swooning when I finished. Everyone, I mean everyone, applauded. You would have thought it was a wedding instead of a birthday party.

Riekie disappeared somewhere, came back and called Bob out to help her with something. A few minutes later, they came back in, each carrying a pile of gift wrapped packages — all for me! I was overwhelmed. They made a 'Chair of Honour' and had me sit in it while I opened my gifts. There was one from each of them. There were even gifts from my parents and Val and Heather. How they snuck them into the Scotts' and got them to the cottage without me seeing them beforehand remains a mystery to this day. After all these years I don't remember who gave me what, except for two.

Riekie got me some small gift. I don't now recall what it was -- some little keepsake or some such thing. She came up to me and said.

"I got you a small gift, but I have one other for you. Carol said I could give it to you tonight."

She looked over at Carol, who just nodded and smiled. She looked a little strained.

Riekie put her arms around my neck, and pulled me into a cock-throbbing senses-blowing French kiss that went on forever, it seemed. I just about passed out from the intensity of it. That girl put her whole soul into that kiss and she made my birthday very happy indeed. As we slowly broke off the birthday kiss, she relaxed in my arms and cooed. Her eyes had a dreamy far away look.

"If you ever want a change from Carol, I'm right here. That was fantastic. She said you were a great kisser. Now you have two fans."

"Uh... thank you. I don't think Carol is going to lose me any time soon."

Now I understood why Carol had looked a little strained: she had let her sister lay that big kiss on me, knowing full well the effect of one. She trusted both of us to keep our heads on straight, but it was still hard on her to watch it. The rest of the crowd thought it was great, and again Opa gave me the big thumbs-up and a huge smile.