Chapter 3: Sorting things out

"Are we okay, now?" I asked Dory.

It was Friday noon and she had sat down at my table. This was a big move for her. She hadn't said a word to me all week and when I asked Pam how she made out, she just shrugged. I wasn't holding out a lot of hope, but there she was, sitting across from me with her rabbit food and diet Coke.

"I guess," she said, almost mumbling and not looking at me. "Maybe I overreacted."

I didn't have a clue what to say at that point, so I didn't say anything. That was a big breakthrough for me; being smart enough to know when to shut up.

"You okay for Sunday?" I tried after a long silence.

"Yeah. You've got some catching up to do, I suppose."

"True," I agreed. "I don't do very well when you're not around."

She hadn't been looking at me, sitting there staring at her uneaten salad. But that brought her head up right away. I thought I saw the faintest hint of a smile. Damn, maybe I might have said the right thing for once in my life. Better yet, it was the truth. I always did better when Dory and I worked together.

"So, what about tomorrow?" she asked.

"Tomorrow? Saturday?"

"Yeah ... all day," she said with a disgusted look.

"Uhhm, well, we could go out. A movie or something?" I tried.

"Okay. I pick, all right?"

"Yeah, sure," I agreed right away. I was just glad we were talking again.

Dory surprised me when she chose The Bodyguard, with me thinking it was an action type movie. It wasn't, really. But it was good, and Dory was the one who held my hand and let me put my arm around her. I didn't dare trying anything, especially after just getting back in with her. In fact, I was kind of distracted and not paying as much attention to the movie as I normally would. I knew what the trouble was and afterwards I told Dory.

We were sitting in our usual café and having our usual plain burger and Coke when I decided to say something.

"Dory ... I feel like I'm walking on thin ice right now. I'm almost afraid to say anything for fear you might take it the wrong way and get upset again. I don't want that to happen. Help me out here," I pleaded.

She looked at me kind of funny ... not funny-ha ha, but funny-strange. She didn't say anything right away, but she kept looking at me, which I guess was a good thing.

"You meant it, didn't you," she said, not asking a question but making a statement.

"Meant what?" I was trying to think back at what she was referring to.

"When you said you didn't do very well when I wasn't around."

"Oh ... that ... yeah. Yeah, I meant it. You and me ... well, I guess I ... aw hell, I don't know what I'm saying half the time. I just open my mouth and whatever comes out ... comes out."

Dory now had her elbow on the table, her chin in her hand and a look on her face that said this was all too funny.

"Relax, Stevie. That was a nice thing to say, especially since you meant it."

"Yeah ... well ... you and me, Dory ... we make a good team. You're the leader and I'm the follower. I'm trying not to be the jerk you think I am."

"I don't think you're a jerk. You're just a guy. You don't know any better."

"Thanks ... I think," I said, wondering if it was a backhanded compliment. Probably not.

For the next month, things went really well for Dory and me. It was coming up Christmas and I wanted to get Dory something nice, but I didn't know what. Maybe a charm bracelet or something like that? I figured I'd go to the resident expert, Pam.

"Yeah, I don't remember seeing her with a charm bracelet. Go for it," My sister said.

"It was more money than I expected for a good one, but Dory was worth it and I had a steady job over the holidays that would look after all my Christmas presents. I got Pam a nice sweater that Mom said was right for her and I got Mom a pair of leather gloves she said she wanted. Dad got a power tool that John and I went together on. I got John a subscription to his favorite magazine, Mechanics Illustrated.

So, with Christmas all sewn up, I looked forward to New Years.

"You want to go to a New Years party?" I asked Dory.

"I don't know. Where?"

"Rat said his parents are going to some party at a friend's house and won't be home until late New Years Day. We can have the party at his house as long as we don't break anything and clean up afterwards."

"I don't know, Stevie. My parents are going to be gone that night too. They go out once a month to some place and stay overnight. They might get worried if I wasn't home by midnight."

"Midnight on New Years Eve? Doesn't make sense being home by midnight. How about one o'clock?" I suggested.

"I'll ask them. We'll have to promise not to drink, though. Mom's scared to death of me getting in a car when the driver's been drinking."

"I don't blame her. Heck, we can walk from Rat's place to your house. I can crash at his place for that matter. I won't have to drive. That'll keep my mom and dad happy too."

"I guess so," Dory said warily. "Let me talk to my parents and see if it's okay with them."

College closed up that weekend and we had two full weeks off. However, I also had eleven days of work and only five days off for myself. We had finished up our exams and for the first time in a long time, I felt good about the likely results. Dory and I had studied hard and I had been as ready as I was ever going to be. I was anxious to see the results when we went back to class in January.

Dory and I hung out together when I wasn't working. She didn't have a job, but was looking around for one. I put in a good word for her at the grocery store, but so far, nothing had come up. She was hoping for a job as a gofer at the newspaper, but that hadn't happened yet either.

I got some nice presents at Christmas, mostly clothes. In the old days, that might have pissed me off, but now, being a college boy with a girlfriend, I was grateful. No more argyle socks and vests from my grandparents, either. Dory got something I never thought of: a mini cassette recorder that she had asked for. She could use it in class instead of taking detailed notes, then check back to make sure she didn't miss anything. That was a really nice gift and I checked it out at Radio Shack. If I saved some money, I could get one too.

Dory loved the charm bracelet and gave me a big kiss when we were in private as a thank you. We were getting a lot closer now, but I was still on my best behaviour, raging hormones or not. She was still sticking with her diet and exercise and each day she was getting better and better. Each day I told her so, too.

"I don't know, Dory. You're going to have to either shrink that sweater or get a new, smaller one," I said as we sat in our rec room watching TV.

I got a nice smile. "You're just complaining because it doesn't show off my boobs like it used to," she said, poking me in the ribs.

"Well, there's that all right, but you look so good that you should be showing off."

She rolled over to me on the sofa and gave me a nice big kiss. I could hear my parents upstairs and Pam was out with some of her friends. We weren't in any danger of being interrupted.

"Hmmmm, that was nice," I murmured. "Got any more of those?"

She was rubbing her breasts against my arm and that was something new. I was getting hard and wearing a tight pair of jeans made it impossible to hide.

"I see I have your attention," she said in a sultry voice.

"Oh yeah. Much more of that and I'll have an accident," I said without thinking.

"What kind of accident," she giggled.

"The kind guys have when a super-hot babe gives them a tit massage."

I didn't think for a second when I said it, but I immediately cringed when I did, expecting another arctic outbreak from Dory.

"So," she continued in her sexy voice, "I'm a super-hot babe, eh?"

Thank God! She didn't go off on me.

"Yeah, Dory, you are. You have been for a while now. I think I told you that before."

She plastered her lips on mine again, and this time there was tongue. Lots of tongue. I wrapped my arms around her and we were in serious lip-lock for some time. My head was spinning when we broke.

"Whoa ... that was something else, girl. So much for my self-control. I think it just flew out the window."

The next thing I knew, Dory had her hand on my erection, squeezing it through my jeans.

"Jeez, Dory. I'm going to make a mess if you do that."

"I've got you in my power," she rumbled in a sinister sounding tone. Her arms were now around my neck again.

"Oh, yeah. You do. So what are you going to do with me?" I asked, wondering where this was going.

"Give you something. An extra Christmas present," she said.

And with that, she pulled her sweater up and let me see her bra.

"You can touch them if you want," she said, looking at me.

If I want? Of course I want.

I was about to glom onto them when I realized I needed to go slow. Don't do anything that would spoil this. Be gentle. Try and act mature. I moved my hands to her two large satin covered breasts and closed them over the objects of my desire. I squeezed gently and felt their amazing softness.