Kevin was coming home for the holidays, and yet the holidays had never been an especially happy time for him. As a child, his parents would frequently argue as Christmas came closer. For Kevin, Christmas meant screaming and yelling, fear and anxiety. Inevitably the arguments led to a full fledged fight a day or two before Christmas day. Most Christmas mornings his mother would feign a smile with her cracked lips and pretend nothing was wrong. But even heavy layers of makeup can't really hide a swollen black eye.

That was decades in the past though. His father had succumbed after a long drawn out fight to lung cancer seven years ago. He had been laid to his final rest on a cold snowy morning in early December. Three years later his mother had passed away from a stroke. She was laid beside her troubled husband of thirty seven years on a frigid January afternoon.

The taxi pulled off the Interstate and twisted and turned through back streets until it entered the old neighborhood. Kevin looked out the side window. Everything was coated in a thin veil of white. The sun would be setting soon and the light but steady snowfall would get heavier over night. The kids would have a white Christmas with a fresh powder to play in. The ideal holiday.

After the passing of their parents, Kevin's little brother, Chris, moved his family into the old house. Every year Chris invited Kevin to spend the holidays with family. For some reason Kevin accepted this time. It had been twenty five years since he'd had a Christmas in that house. A lot had changed in that time.

The neighborhood appeared much the same. But even that was an illusion. The Tully twins' house had always been one of the most decorated houses during the holidays. A single dim light somewhere deep inside was all there was now. Becky Harris' house always had the biggest and most beautifully decorated tree in the neighborhood, but now the curtains were drawn across the big window. The one fond holiday memory that remained was the annual neighborhood walk on Christmas Eve to admire the lights on the houses and decorations in the yards. There was no one out tonight.

The neighborhood was dark now.

Becky Harris had moved to California, married and had seven children. She was a grandmother now. Kevin couldn't imagine being a grandparent so young. Tommy Tully was having Christmas in prison and no one had seen nor heard from his brother in nearly twenty years.

Kevin closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. "What the hell am I doing," he muttered.

"What was that?" The taxi driver asked over his shoulder.

Kevin shook his head and smiled. "Nothing. Just thinking out loud I guess."

"Well, we're here then." The driver put the car in park and got out to get Kevin's canvas duffle bag from the trunk.

Kevin stepped out of the bright yellow sedan and pulled his wool coat tighter around him. He gave the driver some cash for the ride and tip and took the duffle bag. "Thanks for the ride. Happy holidays."

The driver just got back in the car and drove off without another word.

Kevin found himself standing in the driveway of the old family house, duffle bag thrown over the shoulder. He suddenly remembered a bright and hot summer afternoon twenty years ago when he returned home from the army. Twenty years was a long time.

The family house was lit up with several strings of flashing Christmas lights. Plastic reindeer pranced in the yard. At least Chris still remembered.

Kevin started walking up the driveway to the two-story house when something caught his attention in the house next door. There was a light on in Mary's old room. He knew Mrs. Wellers still lived there after all these long years. He stopped, dropped his duffle bag on the snow covered drive and stared at the light.

Mary's room had been directly across from his. The most beautiful girl he had ever known slept only twenty feet from his bed. It might as well have been a million miles.

The snowy evening seemed to fade away around Kevin and he found himself twenty seven years younger in his bedroom again. Still awkward and too fat and young, he was sitting on the edge of his bed. Mary had forgotten to draw her curtains closed again. He dared not move and barely breathed for fear she might know he was there. Then her bedroom door opened and Mary walked through.

She was wrapped in a pink towel, her long blonde hair was dark and wet, hanging down her back. She was two years younger than him, but still far more beautiful than any adult. He had once written a love poem praising Mary's fair beauty as one that even Helen, the face that had launched a thousand ships, would have coveted.

She turned to look his way. Her blue eyes sparkled in the lamp light and seemed to be searching his room. Her red lips were always curled into a smile so sweet the angels cried with envy. Then she opened the pale pink towel and suddenly it was as if the heavens had opened and all divinity was made manifest in the form of her young body.

Kevin had stopped breathing, his eyes fixated upon Mary's naked body only a few feet away. A young woman, her breasts swelled into small, firm and creamy orbs. Pale pink areola surrounded hardened nipples stretching out toward his shadow in the darkness. Her belly was flat and trim, curving down to young hips maturing into a woman's. At the crest of her legs a wide wedge of fair hair concealed her delicate sex from his sight.

Mary hummed silently as she methodically dried herself, her young breasts bouncing enticingly. Soon she turned, presenting Kevin with an extended view of her tight, heart-shaped ass. When she bent over to dry her legs her swollen pink nether lips were clearly visible to his hungry eyes.

He was feeling dizzy and he finally remembered to breathe, inhaling deeply. He reached inside his white shorts and wrapped his hand around his hard cock and ever so slowly began to stroke it's length. Then Mary stood and turned back to the window, searching the darkness of his room for any sign of a possible hidden voyeur. Then with a satisfied grin she would stretch and bend before crawling, still nude, into bed. The sheets were around her waist and she stretched her arms, yawning before lying back into the bed. Then she turned the bedside lamp off and her room was plunged into darkness.

A long, dark sedan pulled into the Wellers' driveway, its bright headlights broke the spell Kevin had been under. He shivered and adjusted the collar of his black coat against the falling snow. A little old lady slowly climbed out of the sedan, eyeing him and his duffle bag suspiciously.

"Mrs. Wellers, is that you? It's me, Kevin." He took a slow, tentative step towards the woman.

She looked him up and down, studying his features closely. "Little Kevin? My Lord, boy, you're a man now."

Kevin laughed jovially. "Yes ma'am. Who would have imagined it?"

"Visiting the family for the holidays are you," she asked as she opened the back door of the car. Inside were several bags of groceries.

"Yes ma'am. Just here for a few days." He went to her side and offered to take the heavy grocery bag she gripped. "Please, let me carry these for you."

Mrs. Wellers smiled happily. "You always were a nice a boy. I always liked you. So did Mary."

Kevin's heart seemed to deflate and he reached inside the car to gather the rest of the bags. "I always liked her too."

When Kevin had returned from the army he found that Mary had gone to college, married an architect and moved away. He imagined her children were grown by now and had children of their own. He had been heart broken.

"She's here now. I'm sure she would love to see you again." Mrs. Wellers slowly led the way across the slippery drive to the front door. Each step felt as though he were approaching his doom. She unlocked the door and started to show Kevin the way to the kitchen.

"I still remember the way," he smiled at her. "I spent half my childhood in your kitchen."

The house was little changed in all these years. The furniture may have been newer, but it still reflected the crisp, clean style Mrs. Wellers liked. The rooms were tidier now that she didn't have children to clutter up the place. He heard Mrs. Wellers call Mary from the bottom of the stairs. "Come down girl. There's someone that wants to see you."

Kevin set the bags down on the small kitchen island and resigned himself to get this over with. One more heart ache for the holidays. Maybe he would head home sooner than planned.

A moment later she came down the stairs. It was as if the heavens had opened up and all of divinity was made manifest in her. She was taller than he remembered, and her blonde hair was shorter, falling just past her shoulders. The little girl he had longed for had become a woman.

Mary stopped at the bottom of the stairs and looked curiously at him. A few moments passed before she recognized him. "Oh my God! Kevin!" She jumped into his arms, wrapping her arms around his neck and squeezing him hard to her.

It was impossible for him to ignore the soft pressure of her full breasts crushed against him. Hesitantly he wrapped his arms around her and held her tight, pressing his face into her neck. The sweet scent of her golden hair filled him with memories of a summer long ago.

The summer sun felt wonderful on his chest as he chased Mary across the beach. He was still chubby but had been working hard to loose the excess weight so he could go into the army. Mary had filled out a lot over the last few years. She wore a little pink bikini that matched her eyes. When she ran, her full breasts bounced enthusiastically. It was unusual for them to have the beach to themselves, but it was still early and a weekday.

They giggled and laughed as he chased her. She squealed when he caught her, wrapping her up in his arms and pulling her to the sand beside him. They laid there a moment gasping for air. He brushed the hair from her eyes and for a moment their eyes locked and Kevin wondered if it could ever be possible that they could be more than friends.

"You are covered in sand," Mary said and brushed some grit from his face and then from his chest. "Have you ever gone skinny dipping," she asked casually, her hand stroking his chest.

"N- n- no," he stammered, his eyes wide with surprise.

"Mmm. Me either. We should go skinny dipping then." She stopped her hand low upon his abdomen and rolled over so she hovered over him. Her long golden hair was backlit by the sun and glowed about her like a halo.

The touch of Mary's hand upon him and the thought of her naked and alone on the beach with him was too much excitement. He felt his cock stir to life and harden, pressing at his trucks as it rose.

"Happy to see me are you?" She giggled and studied the rise in his black trunks.

"Oh my God. I'm so sorry." Kevin rolled over in the sand, hiding away the sign of his arousal.

"Don't be sorry. It's flattering, really." She giggled and sat up on her knees beside him. "Come on roll over. I wanna see." But when he refused to roll over she offered another suggestion. "You show me yours and I'll show you mine. Then we can skinny dip, okay."

Reluctantly he rolled over. He suspected some trick, but she had never been cruel to him before. So he stood up. "You promise," he asked with his hands upon the waistband.

She simply nodded, her eyes fastened upon the bulge against his pants. He was shaking as he pulled his pants down. His cock was fully erect, the head flushed bright red. The touch of the sun's rays were not nearly as hot as Mary's eyes upon him right before her face. Her eyes were wide with excitement, her lips forming a loose O. For a moment he considered pressing his cock into the cave of her mouth, but thought better of it.

"Your turn." He resisted the urge to drop his hands and cover himself.

Mary stood up and reached behind her back. In a moment her top went slack as she unhooked the back. Then she hesitated and seemed to reconsider the deal. "A deal's a deal," he said. She nodded and shrugged off the top, baring her bronzed breasts to him. A small wedge of pale skin surrounded her nipples, rosy pink and erect. She pushed down the bottoms and they fell around her ankles. A narrow strip of blonde hair stretched down her mound, directing his eyes to her puffy vulva.

"I have missed you so much," Mary whispered in his ear. She squeezed him for a moment and Kevin recovered from his daydream. Finally she released him and stepped back, taking hold of his hands.

She was still smiling. After all these years she was still smiling. He felt his heart go weightless and it seemed to be throbbing in excitement. His lips were suddenly dry and he had to lick them before he could speak. "So where is the husband and kids," he managed to croak.

She shrugged. "Divorced three years and no kids. Just me. Single and all alone."

"Well, that's good. I mean, not good. No I mean. Damn." By then Kevin was red faced and already too deep to dig himself out. Both Mary and her mother were laughing.

"It's good to see you too," Mary giggled and kissed him on the cheek.

"I need to go see my brother. I haven't actually officially arrived there yet. But I was wondering if you both would like to come over for a while and visit." The best way out of an awkward situation was to change the subject.

And so Kevin arrived at his brother's house with two women. Chris welcomed everyone in and soon everyone settled in to fun casual conversations and watching the kids run around and play. Kevin explained to Mary that after he returned from the army he became a photographer and married a couple of years later. He divorced his first wife after four years. He married again four years later but was divorced in three years this time, just after his father had died.

"I was away all the time taking pictures all over the world. I never cheated on them, but I wasn't there for them either. They found someone else to fill the void I'd left." The adults laughed awkwardly at the unintended innuendo. The children just looked confused.

Mary explained that she had married an architect graduate student while she was still in college. They had grown distant soon after the marriage. It wasn't until years later that she had learned he had multiple affairs with women from his firm.

Then it was dinner time.

Chris' wife, Sherry, served a wonderful meal and soon the conversation swung around to the old days. Mrs. Wellers commented that she had always liked Kevin. She and Kevin's mother had hoped the he and Mary would get together some day. Regretfully it had never happened. "Mary used to cry herself to sleep over you, Kevin."

"MOTHER!" It was Mary's turn to be red faced.

"Oh, it's okay, Mary," Chris interjected. "Kevin used to cry himself to bed over you too. At least that's what he said. I think he wet his bed though." Even the children laughed.

"So why didn't we ever get together," Mary asked.

The table suddenly became very quiet and everyone turned to Kevin with expectations. He cleared his throat awkwardly, sweat beaded on his forehead. "Well, I just wasn't good enough for you then. How can you love someone else when you don't even know who you are. When I came home from the army, you were gone."

A few moments later, Kevin realized that he was holding Mary's hand under the table. After dinner, Mrs. Wellers returned home to go to bed. Everyone retired to the living room and gathered around the Christmas tree for more conversation. The kids poked and prodded presents impatiently. Kevin and Mary wound up sitting in the love seat. He found it perfectly natural and comfortable for Mary to lean against him with his arm around her.

Eventually Mary asked where Kevin was staying for the holidays. "I'm staying in my old room. The boys are sharing the girls' room while I'm here. Just for a few days."

"You could stay at our place. Sleep in my brother's old room. Trust me, mom won't mind a all." She laid her hand on his knee a squeezed.

"I don't know," Kevin replied, feeling a familiar stirring in his pants. To be so close to her again. "I'm not sure it'd be a good idea."

"Oh, come on. The boys will have their room back so they'll be happy. Besides, what could be wrong? We're both grown adults in our early forties now, not rampaging teenagers."

Kevin noticed Chris and Sherry exchanged glances and smiles. "I suppose so."

Before Kevin had a chance to change his mind Chris stood and went to the base of the stairs and grabbed Kevin's bag. "Better get settled in then. We'll see the two of you again in the morning."

Before he knew what had happened, Kevin and Mary were unpacking his things from the duffle bag and putting them away in Barry's old room. "Well, there is one problem with you staying in Barry's room instead of your old room," Mary said while hanging up his shirts.

Kevin stopped unpacking and stood with a sense of dread. "What is that?"