Chapter 48

"You're gonna be mad, I'm afraid..."

Harmon jerked as if he'd been electrocuted! Instinct told him that there could only be one reason he might get angry... "Noreen?"

Her sigh confirmed it for him before her voice did, "Yes."

Harmon was suddenly very tired. "Whose bright idea was this?"

"There seems to be a list -- it's a major conspiracy. I don't think I was invited to put my two cents' worth in until long after they put the thing in motion. Of course, I didn't stop it..."

"I'm sure there's a reason..." Harmon said dryly.

"Well, I figured that either it's meant to be or it isn't -- but running from each other just made us both miserable and didn't resolve anything. It's better that we just find out, one way or the other and move on." Noreen sighed, "At least, that's the way I rationalized it."

"Well, so, I've ALREADY stuck MY foot in it -- how was it for you?" Harmon asked.

"If it hadn't been for the rubber, I think it would have been better than last time."

"I'm surprised I remembered the thing," Harmon sighed.

"Well, you worked at it," Noreen replied. "It was the very first thing you did."

"Oh, I got it -- but I almost forgot to put it on."

"I started the pill," Noreen said softly.

"Well, that's a relief!" Harmon grunted.

"Is it?" Noreen asked softly. "Is it really?"

Harmon sighed. "There ARE lights in here somewhere, right?"

"Try the intercom. I think they can activate them from the outside."

Harmon lurched up and hit the button. "Okay, joke's over. Can you give us lights?" A lamp came on beside the bed. Returning his attention to Noreen, he said, "Talk to me."

Noreen looked away. "The first time, I was miserable -- and alone. I think I did a good job, but loneliness leached a lot of the joy from it. Besides, it's almost over, isn't it? Mac and Donna..."

"So you want to do it again."

Her eyes shifted to his. "I want to do it RIGHT! Tell me you don't, too! Tell me you haven't been looking for someone who would take that step WITH you..."

She had him. All those years, he asked the crucial questions and got, 'Not right now' or 'I've done that before' or 'I'm really too busy -- maybe later' or 'I'm building my career right now.' Lately, it had been, 'Do you really think that's a good idea at your age?' So Mac grew up alone, motherless -- that's how it had been. Maybe, if he'd been fishing in a different pond, he might have found a woman who met his needs -- and maybe not. Now, though, when it was theoretically too late, there was Noreen, telling him it was NOT too late -- merely too late to integrate the new arrivals with the current crop, which had somehow reached maturity despite his failings... "No woman has ever lasted past the sixth date," he replied.

Noreen gazed back at him steadily. "Harmon, you know that is NOT going to be a problem -- now don't you?"

Harmon nodded. "Yeah." Somehow, there was very little question on that score. "Still, I'd feel better if we didn't make any babies until, say, this time next week."

Noreen's eyelids drooped. "It's up to you."

"I can handle it," Harmon replied confidently. He punched the intercom button. "How long do we have?"

"All night, effectively, "Toby's voice came back. "I'll unlock the doors so you can go back and forth. What time do you need to get up?"

"Six-thirty, if I can have my shaving kit," Harmon replied.

"That's fine," Noreen agreed.

"I'll have Mac and Donna come up when they're done with what they're doing," Toby promised, "and they can pick up whatever you two need."

"That'll work," Harmon agreed. "How long, do you think?"

Toby assessed Donna and gestured for Amy, who linked in and checked Mac. The pair was fucking wildly, doing it doggy -- and Mac was on his second. "It's going to be a while, I think," Toby related.

Noreen reached up and put her hand on Harmon's neck, tugging him down. "We'll think of something to do while we wait."

Five minutes later, Harmon was deep in Noreen, pumping away, ironing the inside of her love tunnel -- without a rubber...

The couples missed each other by about an hour on Friday morning; Harmon and Noreen (and Mac and Donna) were leaving the clubhouse when Kelly and Julio rolled out of bed. Both women secured promises from their lovers that they would call for a return engagement on Saturday; both of them had been fucked bowlegged and neither was in any position to support sex on Friday night. Frankly, Julio and Harmon weren't in much better shape. Julio's surly anger of the evening before had dissipated; he had met the enemy and she was his. Basically, he'd seen it all and was already getting used to it. Kelly, knowing he loved to be fawned over, made sure he got plenty of attention before she let him go, leaving him well-pleased with himself and his situation. Oh, it was STILL wrong -- he would argue THAT until he was blue in the face -- but it was survivable. THAT he would admit to. What he knew but wouldn't admit to was that it was actually a lot better than that...

Toby and Amy had gone home and gotten some rest as soon as the couples were settled, leaving Abigail in charge. That wasn't a problem, since everyone was occupied. The week had turned out to be hectic -- and they had a game and a dance to get through, at least...

That Cindy Simpson's reign was over was clear even to Cindy. She didn't even try to shift what was left of her voting bloc in the elections of Homecoming King and Queen to another candidate for fear the effort would jinx the recipient. Dealing with her reduced social stature would have been galling, except for the fact that the team finally accepted her -- more as a charity case than anything else -- and Tyrone.

Tyrone was just there ... When things got hard -- and they did, sometimes, because old enemies tended to float by and gloat -- Tyrone wrapped his arms around her and let her tuck her face in his shoulder and cry and close out the world. Nothing made her earlier pride and stupidity more obvious than the parade of those who wanted to rub in her misfortune, but the up-side was ever before her in the form of her new boyfriend -- a REAL boyfriend, not a cardboard cutout to be used in photo shoots.

Of course THAT had been her fault, too -- she'd been looking for someone to play second fiddle so she could be the reigning queen of her social set, and she'd been so insufferable that no one had been interested. But she'd been hurting herself, primarily; the only person she loved was the one she saw in the mirror -- and THAT image lied...

Tyrone seemed to have changed overnight. The 'bad boy' image dropped away and the things it obscured -- like the fact that he was a straight 'A' student -- became apparent. Otis seemed to have done the same, but he was struggling with it more; Cindy told Beverly that she admired him for the effort, if nothing else. Beverly's response was, "Otis has his rough spots, but he's wonderful. I help him where I can." It was a different thing for both of them -- Cindy and Beverly had been more involved in using people than helping them in the bad old days before 'that night.' Every favor they dispensed had come with a price tag, and some of those prices had been steep.

As it turned out, Mary Vargas was elected Homecoming Queen. Tad was elected King, of course. Gina Blaisdale was a Princess -- and little Anita Shepherdson managed to make the court, too, along with Ben Ellis and Mark Torres. The guys hadn't even tried, as was more or less typical -- girls tended to nominate them and they looked on the election with amusement until the moment of surprise when the announcement that they'd been elected came out. Janice Fremd was horrified until Mark made it clear that just because he'd been elected to the court didn't mean he was changing his date. "You're my girl, Squirrel -- period!" he announced at lunch. Nobody really knew why he called her that...

Cindy and Beverly weren't even 'also rans' -- their names weren't on the ballot. It would have been another way to abuse them and otherwise pointless, so they sat out on something both had thoroughly expected to be more or less in charge of. Tyrone's answer was, "You don't need that stuff. Concentrate on what is real. That crap is like a birthday party -- when it's over, you're not famous anymore." Cindy's Momma, Elaine, overheard this advice and came back to her later, when they were alone, with a favorable opinion of it.

"Tyrone has both his feet on the ground -- he's going somewhere. You listen to him, Hon," Elaine advised. Daddy wasn't as thrilled and Cindy just KNEW he was up to something, but Momma said, "I can nail your father's feet to the floor -- never fear..." Momma tended to drool a little around Tyrone, anyway, but she was careful about it. "Your father wouldn't tolerate it if he caught me, DESPITE the things he does with Antoine..."

Antoine was Hobart Simpson's driver/mechanic -- and boy toy. Tyrone had wandered out to get the skinny from him on Wednesday after he and Cindy had done their homework -- and he'd done Cindy. Antoine was Haitian and slightly built, with long dreadlocks that looked odd under a chauffer's cap -- but then, he seldom drove. "I see you," Antoine had kicked things off. "You got both them women sniffing dick. That's fine -- it keeps them off me..." Antoine was a gay bottom and happy with his position. "This is easy shit. Old Hobart wants to play white massah and fuck little black boys. He ain't got much, but it's enough to be fun. I play, I change the oil on the cars, and I fuck off -- and when I need a REAL dick, I go out. I ain't fuckin' this up by gettin' into it with the women. Miz Elaine has the goods on old Hobart, anyway, you know? I know she does -- I found the camera. If I start some shit, I'm out of here and have to find a job where I work for a living. You ride the women and I'll keep old Hobart happy and we'll be one big, happy family. Some advice, though -- since the video came out, old Hobart has had the hots for the young one. You might want to cover your ass by letting him get a piece -- and getting some evidence. She might like to get herself covered that way, too. Old Hobart, he's looking for a way to ease you out, you know -- you want to be prepared..." Tyrone thanked Antoine for his sage advice and counted him as an ally.

There had been one other thing: "If you know some REAL white dick -- hot stuff, young -- let me know," Antoine had muttered. "I'm about due for a dose of the good shit -- and the bar scene around here sucks. If you were to turn something up, I might be able to help set old Hobart up for you, as long as it don't upset the gravy train..." Tyrone had nothing, of course -- but he'd promised to ask around...

And THAT led to an interview with Little Nicky on Friday morning. "Hey, uh, Nick -- got a minute?"

Now, Nicky had no reason in the world to ever be seen in the same room with Tyrone, so he was cautious -- fearful, even. "Yes?"

"Look, uh," Tyrone looked around. "This is kinda delicate. Can we, like, step off somewhere?"

Nicky decided that he was probably not in any physical danger, so he agreed, "Okay." Tyrone led them to a quiet corner near a stairwell.

"You, uh, put out certain vibes," Tyrone began. "I know a guy who, uh, puts out those same vibes, you know? Not me -- I'm into girls -- but I'm looking to do a guy a favor."

That pretty much clarified things for Nicky, but it didn't mean he wasn't required to be cautious -- especially since he and Eddie Ray were going to be out with Lucy that very evening! "Well, I uh, think I know where you're headed, but you know I can't really get into admitting anything like that."

"Yeah, cool, I know it's delicate. Look, this guy -- he's black -- but he likes white guys. Big ones, you know? He's looking for a white guy who would, um, be on top, I guess -- and maybe be a little nasty about it."

A name popped into Nicky's head immediately, but it wasn't like he could blurt it out. "I'll ask around. Is there a rush?"

"No, no rush. It's a favor. The guy probably doesn't expect me to come through for him, but I want something and he wants something and I'm trying to do a deal."

"Okay, let me see what I can do." Nicky, much more confident, ended the conversation -- and made a beeline for Toby.

"Hey, has Vince been around, looking for anything?" he asked.

Toby frowned. "Why?"

"Tyrone Baker came to me and asked some real strange questions. He said he owed a guy a favor -- a black guy. He was real careful about it, but he came to me because he's pretty sure I'm gay. This black guy is, too -- but he's looking to hook up with a white guy -- a hunk. And he's a bottom, so he's looking to be topped."

Toby sighed. "This is WAY more than I want to know. Why come to me?"

"I don't want Vince to get any ideas," Nicky replied. "I'm with Eddie Ray -- and Lucy. I'm not sure how Vince feels about things since he and Eddie Ray broke up. Besides, I figure he would come to you."

"Well, he hasn't," Toby replied. "Tyrone, huh? We owe Tyrone a favor, maybe. Thanks." He sent Nicky on his way.

Martin wanted the team to win Homecoming, so he held a thirty minute strategy session with the team just before the last period pep rally. "Against Waynesboro, defense is key," he emphasized. "They're known for their blitz and their aggressive ground game. If we go to the air, we HAVE to be effective -- and we have to mix things up, particularly on the ground, to keep them from picking targets and beating them into the ground the way they did Ben last year. In fact, I don't plan to go to Ben at all during the first possession; Ben, your job will be mere survival out there until they realize that they're wasting their time. Clint, you and Ray will run the ground game. Watch out, everybody -- the Marauders are not above unsportsmanlike conduct. If they think taking you out will bag them the game, they'll come for you. Sure, it's dirty, and maybe they'll get called for it, but meanwhile, you'll be busted up! It seems to happen about once a game, so expect it. Of course, while we're playing it safe, they'll take advantage of us, but it's a price you end up paying, one way or the other." Martin looked around. "We've been concentrating on our weaknesses, and hopefully the word has gotten out -- which will allow us to go to our strengths tonight against the Marauders. Tad, you'll run your ground game and keep the passes short; Damian, we'll be looking for breakouts. Vince, the line MUST stop the Marauder offense or it will be a high-scoring game and we'll have to work hard to keep up. Questions?" There were none. "Okay, let's make sure we have something to celebrate, after!"

Vince tapped Terence on the way out. "I've been watching videos and there is a hole on the center's left. They open it up and stand there and it's a favorite place for their linebackers to punch through. I can't get to it -- but you and Eddie Ray can."