Suzanne had one last thing to say.
“I’m really sorry. There are just two things you and I need to clear up. Cindy, do you mind giving us a moment?”
Cindy got up and went into the living room, closing the door behind her.
“Sorry, what I have to ask you is personal and just between us. The first is would it be all right if I continue being your tutor?”
“If you had asked me that question fifteen minutes ago, the answer would have been ‘no.’ I think our friendship is going to last, so I don’t have a problem with us working together.”
“This one is a little more personal. I have certain needs and I really don’t want to have them taken care of with someone I either don’t like or trust. The only other guy I could ask this of is your brother, but he’s in a serious relationship.”
“Is what you’re proposing a two-way deal? Can I come to you if I have needs?”
“Of course.”
“This is the exact discussion I was going to have with you after Christmas break. I just decided this is what I was going to talk to you about. Are you going to talk to Cindy about this?”
“No, I think our friendship has been damaged more than yours and mine has been. It was her idea to try to reconnect with a weekend getaway. I knew it was a terrible idea, but I went along with it. She and I said some very hurtful things to each other. We didn’t even drive over together tonight.”
“Let me get rid of Cindy.”
I went out into the living room. Cindy had already left. I went down and locked the door.
I came back into the bedroom, and after getting on the bed, I leaned back against the headboard, and she laid her head on my chest.
“I want to be up front with you: I see us being friends with benefits. I don’t see us dating unless it’s just to go out as friends. Well, hell, if we went on a date you might get lucky.”
“David, that works for me. I’m still getting over what my brother refers to as ‘that ass-hat.’ He can be pretty funny and not even realize it.”
“He’s a great guy. Anyway, here’s one of those things that only communication will help. I agreed today to allow Tami to manage my love life. I know it sounds strange, but she’s my best friend and knows me better than I do. She’s going to set me up on a series of dates. I suspect I’ll have one-night stands. Just for full disclosure, Tami and I have been intimate.
“We plan on getting together over Thanksgiving. She’s also bringing a couple of her classmates for dates over that weekend. I’ll also be going over to Wesleyan for their Christmas Dance. I’m going to see if Luke will take me if I set him up on a date.
“I’m not telling you all this to rub salt in your wounds. I’m telling you this so if you’re uncomfortable in any way, I can either alter my plans or you can back out,” I said.
“Actually, your honesty is refreshing. I knew you wouldn’t be pining away without us in your life. Cindy thought you didn’t know you had options. She would shit if she knew Tami had girls lined up for you.
“Now it’s time for me to be honest with you: I didn’t even kiss my ex-boyfriend this weekend. That’s one of the things Cindy was the maddest about. I’m not going to run her down, so don’t ask. I don’t plan on dating anyone other than friends,” Suzanne told me.
“What I would really like is for us to not use condoms. But I think you would agree that if we do this, we need to get tested. Not that I don’t trust you, but you’re a little slut. We would also need to use condoms if either of us is with someone else,” she proposed.
I would only do this with someone I trusted. So, did I trust Suzanne? The fifteen-year-old boy said hell yes, no condoms. Greg had told me that I needed to be responsible. He was the walking poster boy for the use of birth control. In the end, the fifteen-year-old boy won out.
“I’d agree to that as long as I know you’re taking care of birth control and the same deal applies if you’re with anyone else.”
“David, I do care for you, and I promise not to hurt you if I can help it. That includes using a condom with someone else.”
“I like you, too. Probably more than I should, but that’s my issue. You’ll never have to worry about me being a problem when it’s time for you to either start a relationship or leave for school. If or when you come back for breaks, and we’re both free, I’d love to get together with you.”
She kissed me. It looked like we might just work our way past this.
I THINK WE WERE BOTH exhausted, because Suzanne fell asleep and I joined her in a power nap. I woke up and heard my brother chuckle. My eyes snapped open and I saw him leaning against my bedroom door. Suzanne was softly snoring, and I found a wet spot on my chest where she had drooled.
“So, after Christmas break was the plan,” he mocked.
“Yeah, I know. It didn’t quite work out that way. Can you blame me?”
“Oh hell, no. I guessed you’d last a month, Dad gave you a week and Mom had you making it.”
“At least Mom has faith in me.”
“That she did. Speaking of which, she had me break in to drag you to Sunday dinner. Wake our Princess up and come down to eat. I’ll tell Mom you’ll be down in 15 minutes.”
I woke Suzanne up and we went to the house. Greg, Dad, and I all were on edge as we waited for Mom to make some comment. She mystified us, as she was very pleasant with Suzanne. They actually seemed to hit it off. After dinner, Greg just shook his head in amazement. I hugged Mom and kissed her on the forehead as thanks. Who knew we could safely bring a girl to dinner?
Tuesday October 22
TODAY I BECAME AN UNCLE. Kyle Dawson weighed in at 8 pounds, 6 ounces and was healthy. Greg made the trek to see Angie in time for the birth. He sent us a ton of pictures. Now that the baby was here, Angie and Greg’s lives were forever changed. Being in high school with a child was nothing new, but I knew I was much too young for that kind of responsibility.
Friday October 25
THE COACHES DECIDED not to let me even dress for the game. From the opening gun it was a defensive battle. Right before half, Luke broke a long run for a touchdown to put us up 7–0. Our lead held until late in the fourth quarter when they got lucky and blocked our punt. Their coach didn’t want to go into overtime and decided to go for two. They punched it in and we ended up losing 8–7.
The loss dropped us into a three-way tie with Eastside and Mount Vernon with a 5–3 record. We needed to win our last two games to get into the playoffs, because it didn’t look like any of us would have a chance at an at-large bid.
Chapter 27 – Stranded
Saturday October 26
Tonight was my first date set up by Tami. I dressed in my Dockers, dark blue sports coat, and one of my fitted shirts with boat shoes. Of course, Tami picked the whole wardrobe, down to the silk boxers. I played fashion show, trying on several outfits, until I heard a giggle that wasn’t Tami’s. It turned out that she had half the dorm watching me on a big-screen TV in their lounge. I didn’t let on that I knew what was going on. It was payback time.
“That one doesn’t work. It doesn’t bring the color of your eyes out. Show me the other one I picked out,” Tami commented on my current shirt.
“How many more shirts do I need to try on?”
“Quit your whining. You want to look good for your date, don’t you?”
“I really do. I’ve been looking forward to this. I had to beat off like five times so far today just to keep this guy down.” I cupped my package. “God, I’m getting hard again.”