This is a short romance I'm working on. Read & enjoy.
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Bobbys Tent
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There are always unintended consequences.
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Bobby Smith had two sisters, and a brother; one sister and the brother came with dads new wife, and his cousin always showed up at the end of school, a younger version of himself, so he was almost as good as a bro. So it was a large, mostly happy blended family. Not that he minded much - dad was happy again, after the divorce he almost never smiled or laughed, and Thelma - the new Mrs. made sure that Eddy and Em at least showed some respect to their new dad, hard though that was; her old one was in a prison somewhere. It was a long sad story, with tons of twists. They mostly kept out of each others ways. Mostly and usually were the key words. One thing that the "silly heads" that is – girls- did that drove him crazy was what they called a 'sleep over'; not that there was much sleeping going on, anywhere upstairs. And that was the problem - he had summer jobs lined up that needed sleep and rest to get done, but with 2 females in the house it became impossible - they gathered like flies it seemed, and never shut up!
Bea his real sis had her own best friend Caitlin over often enough but then Em had not had that much times like that in her hard life, drink had destroyed her own dads life and his family before taking his freedom it had taken his family via divorce. Jail was the penalty for b&e and dui - but alcohol & later dope the cause. Thelma could hardly believe her answer to prayers in John, or that any woman in her right mind could leave a gem like that - no drinks no drugs lots of work, for a career?
A combined sleepover was a madhouse, and so he pitched the old tent in the back yard to get a little peace & quiet. The first time it was just him and the kittens, sounding like elephants on the canvas roof and somehow finding a way into the tent. He woke up with the 3 kittens sharing his bed with him- one on each side one between his feet. Sometimes it was stereo purring- it was always stereo meowing when the milk was poured. His lap was rarely his own.
A cup of coffee and a sausage & egg sandwich made good ballast, and he learned fast to ignore the jibes of other guys, the joke was that some girls slept in his bed!
“Hey Smith, who was it in your bed this time?” “Well, it was Spot, Fluffy and Tiger, just like always. They are females, except that I think that Tiger’s a tomcat, he always likes to pounce on my feet!”
What was inferred was one thing; the reality of a male only campout in the yard drew envy from unlikely quarters. One of the cruder males suddenly became a student of camping out - he had 4 sisters! In a heartbeat he’d asked if he could come over; his oldest sister was having some kind of shower. Eventually any male with a sister who had 'sleepovers' understood and imitated his action. Sometimes there would be several tents on the grounds, his and a couple of pup tents, and a sleeping bag or tow. Boys liked a different kind of sleep – over than girls. Theirs centered around the ‘fireplace’ – a grill on the ground, and the table, the old picnic table, where they played innumerable games of cards and drank many many bottles of sodas, laughed and talked and joked, all in male fun. Sometimes if the weather was clear out one of their number would bring his telescope and they would take turns looking at the moon and stars. What a sight! This happened later in the year, but for the first night it was very peaceful.
Hi step bro and cousin came the 2nd day. Lunch was a busy time - girls still chatting and boys mocking. "He's cute!" in high tones, mock squeals over 'bugs' and much laughter, at each others expense in fun, This went on most of that summer with variations, a summer thunderstorm was a show for (mostly) fearless guys but scary thrills to well sheltered gals.
This was not always the case; everyone has something that frightens them. Bobby was afraid of nothing that he could catch, squash, (like bugs) or out talk or out run (other males, bullies, adults etc.) weather was slightly different. Wind especially. It had been a blowy week, and he was nervous; although no one else was; but the tent was sitting empty in the rain, and the wind … The wind blew harder and the trees bent, and with a strained look on his face he went to the damp smelling basement with a magazine and a bottle of water. Caitlin found him there an hour later, with his head between his knees, sitting miserably on the floor, near tears and plainly frightened. The story came out slowly, wind was the reason why the family had moved in the first place. Everyone knew what facts but no one had put them together. A severe wind storm, some had claimed it was a tornado; had lifted the roof off the Smith home and put it down again, on the walls but not perfectly. The family had had to move from their rent – to – own home and find another house. There had been no warning and little shelter, and the family had come through unscathed, except that now Bobby was terrified of strong wind, the sounds bringing out familiar waking nightmares. Thus, a windstorm was one of his own worst fears, bringing back the same feelings of helplessness, and hopelessness, and impending homelessness. This would be stressful enough for any adult, for a teenager, it was devastating. No one knew of it, till then, it had hid in the subconscious. His father and Thelma came down to talk him through it, as did the rest of the family. Eventually the storms were over, the obvious one in the atmosphere, and the hidden one in his mind. He didn’t notice it, but it made him especially endearing to a certain young lady with the initial of C. there was something just so vulnerable about a big, strong, manly young man, with a hidden, - “krypton”.
Sometimes Caitlin would come out to the tent, her younger sister Lindsey trailing along, to ‘just talk’ and she’d walk into the tent and Lindy would say “EW! Smells like boys!” Caitlin was nice mostly, although she could be a pest a lot of the times too. They had more or less grown up together, and he could remember the way her face was all puffy and red when they had moved from town to the farm, such as it was. She thought she’d never see her best friend again! What a joy it had been to find out that they weren’t really gone, just out top the country, where there were lots of trees and fields, and rabbits and the occasional deer. Not that it was all that rustic, but the town was not creeping much closer this year or the next. The big old house was fixed up, and a garden of sort was put in. The family tent, which had not seen much use the last two years, was something that was just always there. His real mom had never enjoyed the camping life like his dad and sister had.
School and more importantly cool weather brought the campout to an end, maturity gradually brought peace to the bickering group. A prospective school dance was a corner turned; unsure of his own dancing ability Bobby asked Caitlin - his sisters’ best friend, for some help.
The weather had turned cool and damp for the time of year, so the boys didn’t go back out to the tent after breakfast. Suddenly he was surrounded by what seemed all the girls in the neighborhood - in his own living room! It was only a sleepover again, but the 2 males were well outnumbered by the feminine gender. It was an impromptu dance party. Every girl had to have at least 1 dance with each boy - but he did notice that Caitlin had every other one with him! Even Lindsey, Caitlin’s sister, had to have a dance!
He noticed that whenever Randy came over with his little tent and sleeping bag, to get away from his sister’s showers, as the only boy in a family of 4 girls he had to have some get – away time, that Em, his adopted sister, could hardly keep her eyes off him! She was older than Bea, his real sister by a year, and even Lindsey could tell there was something going on there. He for one didn’t pay a lot of attention to it, the trials and tribulations they had gone through in their former lives made the few pleasures of this ‘new’ one grand by comparison. Besides, that was their business. The boys had their camp – outs, with numberless games of cards, plenty of pop & chips, (and the occasional bottles of smuggled beer) lots of talk and laughing, and the fire in the little grill for company. It was great male bonding fun altogether and the ones that seemed to have been the worst had somehow become his good friends. And all because there was room in the grove for a few tents, or even sleeping bags if the weather was nice. There was a pair of apple trees that never quit having lots of apples every other year, so sometimes there would be munchies for free!
He noticed something else too, no matter what he said, or didn’t say, it seemed that Caitlin somehow took it ‘wrong’, so he went to his dads new wife for advice. “Can we talk?” it was an innocent question, and she turned to him with a smile, her ears out and tentacles quivering. “Yes, Bobby, we certainly can! What’s on your mind?” The girls came in and he switched to his half – forgotten high school French. “I do not understand them, why do they act that way?” «Je ne comprends pas eux, pourquoi ils agissent de la sorte? » Knowing that she spoke French, which the girls did not, was like having a secret language. “Caitlin always takes things the wrong way, when I’m rude she gets mad, when I’m nice she blushes, and when I ignore her, it’s impossible! What’s wrong, or is that just the way they are? You used to be one, not so long ago, and you weren’t that bad looking either! Clue me in to the way the female thinks. I already know about making babies, my best friends girlfriend lost a baby, now they’re married and living in a trailer park way out of town.” At a small attack on his ankle he said reflexively, “I think I’ll take Tiger out to them, their little girl wants a kitty – kitty. She’s cute!”
«Caitlin prend toujours choses pas la bonne manière, lorsque je suis rude qu'elle obtient folie, lorsque je suis nice elle blushes, et lorsque j'ignore son, il est impossible ! Qu'est-ce qui ne va pas, ou qui est simplement la manière dont ils sont ? Vous avez utilisé pour être un, il n'y a pas si longtemps, et vous n'avez pas cette mauvaise la recherche soit ! Indices me la façon dont la femelle pense. Je sais déjà à faire des bébés, mon meilleur amie amis perdu un bébé, maintenant qu'ils sont mariés et vivant dans un moyen de remorque parc de ville.» À une petite attaque sur sa cheville il dit reflexively, «je pense que je vais prendre Tiger hors à eux, leurs désirs de petite fille un kitty – kitty. Elle est mignonne !
He noticed something else also; the scent she was wearing was the same as what he’d found on his pillow and his pajama shirt, the same exact one. “Fee fie foe fum! I smell something good on someone!” he mock growled. You’ve been sleeping on my bed and wearing my shirt!” She smiled and nodded with a tiny giggle. “What are you going to do about it?” She asked and he said “I don’t wear your clothes, why do you have to wear mine?” The looks she gave him was as daring a one as she’d ever given anyone. In mock gruffness he growled “that’s a tickling offense!” and the chase was on, round and round till he ‘caught’ her, and gave her a nice tickle party, ribs, feet, armpits, anywhere he could get a few squeals. The rest of the group was watching and cheering the both of them. It was a very nice time, all told, and no furniture got broken in the process. It was the end of the first dance class; the school dance was a month away.
The trip to visit Caitlin’s brother and sister – in – law was planned, somehow he doubted that she would turn down a chance to visit family, and Thelma went along as the adult, his driving license was still just a learners permit, but Caitlin sat beside him all the way, smiling broadly all the way. The kitten was a huge success, and he earned some big sloppy little girl kisses for the birthday gift, who it seemed liked ‘his’ girl very much! The joy that a simple cat made gave them joy, and he got down on his belly and looked up at the little ones, which drove them berserk, they could look down at a grown – up, instead of up! This was almost a standard thing for them, and he enjoyed the company of the kids almost as much as his old best friend. They went back to sand - box days together. The car was quiet on the evening trip back, Bobby and Caitlin sharing the back seat, talking quietly together, with Lindsey, Caitlin’s younger sister, in the front with Thelma. Lindsey had her fun, teasing them about snoring in the back seat, making snoring sounds for the both of them, and slobbering sounds, “farting noises” too. She didn’t mention the discrete smooching in the dark back seat, as they were both very quiet about that, although Thelma had well grounded suspicions.
The school dance was as successful as such things were, no one got really hurt in the parking – lot fights, the usual breakups and make-ups happened, and everyone took notice without saying much about it that Bobby and his “Cat” were now an item. He called her “Cat” because, as he said, she was soft & cuddly; with soft hair, and drank milk, and had started to monopolize his lap! She also had ‘fangs & claws’ – there had been times when they were sharing a sandbox that he still remembered. “And besides, I’m still afraid of Bea hitting me with that doll!” he exclaimed.
“That was a long time ago and you hid my doll for that!” was the standard rebuttal, to which he replied that “Your Barbie and my G I Joe went off on a date. You’ll have to ask them for the details.” This was a well worn path for them, and even the steps had heard it a time or two. His reasoning was always the same; if 1 year is 7 for a dog and 9 for a cat, then a week – end could be two weeks for dolls! They were plastic after all, and still looked like they did when first brought home, with some wear and tear. This infuriated his sister – “They’re DOLLS! They can’t talk!” “Well, you certainly made believe they could back then” he’d smugly reply. The truth was that he’d simply hid them at a friends house in a box, and almost forgot about them, it had been softball season after all.
The second season in the tent drew to a lingering close; the weather was getting worse, and cooler. It made for leaf raking and such things, but the young men had come in for the weekend, it had rained most of that week, making yard work impossible, and the wind was picking up briskly. The old tent which had given so much service was showing signs of wear and tear, as well as loving repair. It sat alone in the yard, and they took it down in the rain, putting it in the garage to dry off, and then went back inside to watch the storm gather intensity. Thunder roared, lightning flashed, wind shook the trees, and a branch (they found later) came down right where the tent had been. Watching the storm go over them was more fun when they were warm & dry, with tea and lemonade at hand. Somehow Caitlin and her younger sister had made their way onto his lap and between his feet, with his sisters one on each side for support, and brother Ed comfortably perched on another chair, looking like he was asleep. With each crash and flash, flash and crash the girls squealed and even the boys sometimes shuddered. It was a wild storm out there and everyone was glad they were inside! Caitlin had reconciled to her new nickname ‘Cat’ – but only from him! His lap was one of her favorite places to be any more it seemed. Still, she wished they could have camped together, one way or another.
Time passed, and when they said their “I do’s one of the things she’d made up her mind about was that the honeymoon would involve camping, (which resulted in their 1st son having the middle name of Coleman from the tent, and the 1st daughter with the lovely middle name of Lake); and she could share Bobby’s Tent.
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