Chapter 11

After I returned home, I checked in with Gerta to see whether Mrs. Parsons had eaten anything or not. She hadn't. According to Gerta, her last bite of food, or drink of any liquid refreshment, had been the evening before. When I came back out from the kitchen, Bea was scurrying away from the door separating the dining room from the kitchen.

"Hi Bea, don't tell me you're still mad at me?" She continued moving away from me. "I guess you don't want to hear about what happened at the pool today then. That same black haired girl was there again. She made Brenda jealous by standing in the pool and smiling at me. I found out her name, and, after Brenda left, she wanted me to put sun tanning oil on her." Bea disappeared into the library. I knew she wanted me to follow her in there, to continue telling her my story. If she hadn't wanted that, she would have gone into her own room instead. I turned away from the library and climbed the stairs, heading to my own room.

I was in my bathroom, taking a shower, when Bea came into my bedroom looking for me. I heard her voice calling my name from just outside the bathroom door. I had locked the door when I came in the bathroom, not sure whether I wanted to relieve myself of the pressure that my pool experience with Brenda had caused. Hearing Bea whispering my name from just outside my bathroom door, added a whole new set of options for me. I opened the shower door, leaning over as far as I could manage, in an attempt to try to unlock it without getting out. I finally had to admit that I couldn't reach that far, getting all the way out of the shower, before opening the bathroom door. I knew I'd have to use my bath towel after I'd dried myself off, to wipe up all the wetness I was dripping on the bathroom floor.

Bea stared at me, as I just stood there, dripping wet, my cock unfurled, and at full attention. She tried not to let her eyes drift down from my face, but she wasn't successful in maintaining eye contact.

"Gerta wanted you to know that dinner is at seven tonight, but it will just be the two of us, so we don't have to get all dolled up."

"Thank you, Bea. I'll make sure to be there on time. It was nice of you to come up here just to tell me that."

"I'm still not over being mad at you from last night, Kenny. You're just lucky there isn't anyone else here for me to talk with."

"If I let you have your way with me, will we be all even again?" I smiled at her, watching as she looked at my dick which I was trying to make bob up and down by using my stomach muscles.

"Stop doing that, it distracts me. And, no, it wouldn't make us even. How could me doing you a favor make us even for what you did last night?" I could tell that she had already decided to forgive me. She had pretty much admitted that already, just by coming into my bedroom, calling out to me, but only after she knew I was in the shower already.

"Bea, I won't be controlled, not by you, and not by anybody else. If you keep trying to control me, using "the power", we're always going to have these difficulties. I'd like us to be friends, but friends who can agree to be equals. Don't try to take advantage."

"That's all I've tried to be with you. You're the one who wasn't being friendly."

"I need to finish showering, Bea. I'm sorry that you and I can't seem to agree on what is happening here." I shut the door and walked back into the shower stall. I half expected her to open the door back up to continue the argument. I had meant what I'd just said about her and I being friends. I already had enough people wanting to try to control me. I didn't need or want that from my friends. When I came out of the bathroom, Bea was gone. I got dressed, and then started reading on my bed. There was still over half an hour before dinner. At six fifty, I went to Mrs. Parsons door and knocked on it.

"Mrs. Parsons, please dress for dinner. Quite a lot is happening, and I need to ask your advice about a few things." I didn't wait to see if she would make an answer to my request. I didn't want to argue about whether she should come down to dinner, I wanted her to know that I wanted to consult with her about my problems. It was part of my theory concerning her depression, and the long periods of time when she would remain secluded from everyone.

It was about seven fifteen when Mrs. Parsons joined us for dinner. Bea and I were both wearing casual clothing. Mrs. Parsons wore a robe, her hair was unkempt, and she smelled, faintly, of alcohol. When she spoke, any doubts I might have entertained about her drinking were quickly vanquished.

"Forgive my appearance, Kenny. Tell me what you need from me." I noticed the redness of her eyes, and the uneven tone of her complexion. She looked older, unrested, and very vulnerable. I felt bad about forcing her to reveal this part of her condition to me. I could see that she was none too happy to be placed in this position by me either. I had, put simply, played on her sense of duty to me. I did it to advance the cause of my own curiosity, for purely selfish reasons. I had compelled her to put herself on display. I knew that none of what I had to tell her, or to ask her, would be of sufficient merit to justify what I was putting her through.

"Are you beginning to feel better? I don't think my golfing has been improving much while you've been ill. There is no substitute for competition, plus I miss having you to accompany me during my lesson. I think Dave is more thorough if you're there to watch and listen. I also need your advice on some personal matters, matters which I'd prefer to discuss privately with you. A situation has come up that I'm at a loss to know how to deal with. It involves two girls, and I'm not sure I'm understanding what I need to understand."

"Kenny, please excuse me again. I really need to go freshen up. I'll think about what you said about the golfing. I never cared to play alone either. Dave is an excellent golf teacher. I'm certain that he is doing exactly what needs doing. As to advising you on those personal matters, I'm afraid I'm ill equipped to offer any true advice. I've been somewhat sheltered in that sense. What I can do is listen while you tell me about what is happening to you. The key to a good solution often lies in seeing the problem clearly. My Daddy always said that. He meant that it usually helps to talk the problem out, then examine it from all angles. Please excuse me, I'll meet you in the library in one hour. Is that satisfactory?"

"Yes Ma'am. I really appreciate you taking an interest like this. I hated to disturb you when you weren't feeling well."

"Kenny, your well being is my first concern. I'm happy that you thought enough of my advice to come to me and ask for it. I'll do my best not to disappoint you."

When she got up, I stood up as well. I'd noticed Mr. Parsons always did this at the dinner table, whenever any lady stood up, even Bea. I thought it looked like a very polite thing to do. I hoped that Mrs. Parsons really meant what she said about not being mad at me for bothering her this way. The thing was, curious or not, selfish or not, I really did value Mrs. Parsons for many things. I had a strange kind of trust that I placed in her. I don't know how to describe it, because I'd never really trusted anyone other than myself before. I believed that, when it came to me, Mrs. Parsons placed my interests and well being above her own.

As soon as Mrs. Parsons had gone up the stairs and back into her room, Bea started in on me.

"You've done it now, kid. Now that she knows you've seen her drinking, she won't make any more effort to keep it covered up. You just made a whole lot more work for all the rest of us. Since you've come here, she's been trying to hide it. She's even been cutting back some. With the cat out of the bag, things will just go back to how they were before you got here." The whole time Bea was talking to me, Gerta was standing right beside her, nodding her head in agreement with everything Bea said.