We Do Everything Together Ch. 03

Later that morning, when Amy came home from Scott's shop, Lauren was waiting with lunch.

"Hi, Mom," Amy said, dropping her pack by her bedroom door.

"Hi, sweetie." Lauren gave her daughter an affectionate hug and a kiss on the cheek -- then, impulsively, gave her another kiss on the lips. Amy returned it appreciatively and smiled, enjoying their newfound closeness.

"Hungry?" Lauren asked.

"Yeah," Amy said, and sat down to eat. Lauren poured herself some coffee and joined her at the table.

"So, I was thinking," Lauren said. "Do you want to do something tomorrow night?"

"What did you have in mind?"

Lauren picked apart her sandwich contemplatively. "Well, we could do a movie. We could do pizza and a movie. We could do pizza. We could invite Scott over and do him."

Amy stole a sip of her mother's coffee and grinned. "I'm a grown woman now, Mom, you can't control my sex life like this."

Lauren smiled -- but Amy's tone didn't sound entirely joking. "Do you want to talk about what happened?" she asked.

Amy seemed surprisingly nonplussed. "What do you mean?"

Lauren brushed her hair back behind her ears. "I mean... it's a little unusual, you have to admit."

"Yeah, but it's like you said, Mom, we do everything together. I didn't mind sharing that with you. And Scott was so sweet and gentle. Kind of like I knew he would be."

"Is that why you went to him behind my back that night, after your fight with Ian?" Lauren said, and instantly regretted it. The temperature in the room seemed to drop twenty degrees. Amy put her sandwich back on her plate.

"I was confused," Amy said. "I didn't know what to do. Ian and I had this huge fight and... I just wasn't thinking straight." She got up and walked to the coffee machine, retrieved a cup and began pouring hastily.

"You know you can always come to me, right, Amy?" Lauren asked. "I don't want you to feel like you can't trust me. And I don't want to feel like I can't trust you. I mean... Scott?"

Amy banged her coffee cup down on the table, harder than she'd intended. "What do you mean, Scott? You went along with the idea, Mom. In fact, you came up and said to me that it was okay."

"It was okay, but going behind my back wasn't okay," Lauren said, her voice rising. "I mean, think of the position you'd have put Scott in if you two had started... sleeping around behind my back. Never mind if the town found out about it. Oh, God, I don't even want to think about that."

Amy spooned sugar into her coffee. "Well, I don't know why you're making such a big deal out of this," she said. "It all worked out. Okay, so I made a mistake not telling you ahead of time, but I would have told you."

Silence fell for a few moments. Finally, Lauren nodded. "Well, okay," she said. "I'm sorry if I got short with you. I just want things to go smoothly for you, Amy. You go to college this fall, and that's a big deal."

"I know it's a big deal, Mom. And I appreciate that you're looking out for me. But I've got things handled. Okay?"

"Okay."

Amy stirred her coffee silently for a moment. Then: "I have a date tomorrow night."

Lauren looked up. "With who?"

"Ian."

Lauren grimaced. "Sweetie, I don't know if that's such a good idea."

"Why not?"

"I mean, with everything going on... you and Ian and Scott..."

"Mom, Scott and I just had sex, he's not my boyfriend now."

Lauren covered her face with her hands. "Oh, God, that sounds so weird for you to say."

"Mom--"

"Look... I just thought that maybe you getting together with Scott would, I don't know, get it out of your system, so you could concentrate on getting ready for college. Ian is just going to complicate things--"

"Get it out of my system?" Amy said. "What, like I'm going to have sex once and then never want to have it again? Is that what you thought would happen?"

"No!" Lauren spread her hands in a wait-stop motion. "Not ever again, maybe just until you graduate from college."

Amy rose from the table. "You can't be serious."

"I'm just trying to help--"

"I don't NEED your help!" Amy said, more forcefully than she'd meant to. Lauren blanched, mouth gaping, and Amy instantly felt sorry. She opened her mouth to apologize, but something else came out instead.

"Mom, I've been good for eighteen years. I've done everything you asked me to do. You wanted me to get good grades, I did it. You wanted me to go to prep school, I did it. I'm tired of being perfect and good all the time. And I am going out on a date with Ian. Not to fuck his brains out. Not to get pregnant and ruin my life. I am going on a date, just like we did before we both decided that I was going to fuck your boyfriend!"

"Amy, I didn't mean--"

"I have to go meet Sadie." Amy left her coffee cup full, picked up her pack, and stormed out. As the front door slammed shut with a bang, Lauren put her head in her hands.

"Goddammit," she whispered to the empty kitchen.

* * *

"Oh my God," Sadie said. "How did things get so complicated?"

"I don't know," Amy said. The two of them sat cross-legged on Sadie's bed, yellow sunshine streaming in through the window. Sadie was still in her pajamas, dark blond hair falling loose around her shoulders. Amy had just finished telling Sadie everything, from the evening with Ian up through her fight with her mother.

"That's just unbelievable. I'd say that it sounds like something that would happen in the movies, but I don't think I've seen that in any movies. Or on TV. Or even heard of it."

"I know," Amy said. "It seemed like such a good idea at the time."

"Are things weird now? Between you and Scott?"

"Not really. Scott has always been kind of like a father..." Amy paused, then snapped her mouth shut. They both giggled.

"Okay," Amy admitted. "That doesn't sound right."

"No," said Sadie, and blushed a little.

"But it wasn't weird. I know it should have been, but it wasn't. I like Scott, and I know he cares about me, and I trust him. But I don't feel that way about him. And I know he doesn't feel that way about me, so I know he'll never get jealous."

"Unlike Ian, who'd get jealous of a parakeet if it looked at you the wrong way," Sadie said. "Speaking of which, are you going to tell him?"

"God no," Amy said. "He would lose his mind. I'm swearing you to secrecy."

"Oh, my lips are sealed," Sadie said, drawing her fingers across her full lips. "Who would I tell anyway? Mum's the word, I promise."

"Good."

Sadie bit her lip, thinking. "So... what was it like?"

"What?" Amy asked.

"Having sex with Scott. Did it hurt?"

"No. Well, maybe a little bit at first, but not in a bad way. He went very slow and gentle."

"So did you do anything else?"

Amy looked at her. "Like what?"

"I don't know, Amy. I'm the one who's still a virgin, remember? You tell me what. Did you kiss him?"

"Yes."

"With tongue?"

Amy laughed. "Yes. It was nice."

"With your mom there watching? That must have been so David Lynch."

Amy shrugged.

Sadie scooted forward on the bed, closer to Amy. "So did you do anything else?"

"Well..." Amy blushed a bit. "I did go down on him."

Sadie looked puzzled. "You mean called him names?"

Amy facepalmed. Sadie was sweet, but so clueless sometimes. "No, I mean I... um..."

"What?"

"Well... I put his penis in my mouth. Jesus, Sadie. Have you heard of this thing called the Internet?"

Sadie gasped, putting both hands over her mouth and making a muffled sound.

"What?" Amy asked.

"You didn't!"

"I did. Twice."

Sadie was aghast. "In the same night?"

"No, once the other night and once this morning." Amy blushed some more.

"Oh my God! What was it like?"

Amy shrugged. "I don't know. It's just... nice. He liked it a lot. You have to be careful not to choke... because he's really big."

"How big?" Sadie asked. Amy made a circle with her thumb and forefinger, the two fingers not quite touching, and Sadie gasped again.

"And about this long," Amy said, holding her hands apart.

"And that went inside you?" Sadie asked.

"Yup."

"So what happens when he, um..." Sadie made a vague exploding gesture with her hands, grimacing.

Amy grinned. "Oh yeah, that. Umm... it's very warm. And sticky. And it goes all over. And... wait a minute, how do you know about that part?"

"My cousin snuck a peek at a sex-ed book once in the library. She got as far as the word 'orgasm' and had a panic attack."

"Well, you've come away a much more worldly woman," Amy said.

Silence fell between them. Amy, who had been staring at the wall, turned to Sadie to find Sadie staring back at her.

"What?"

"What's it like to kiss a guy?" Sadie asked.

"What? Didn't you and Eric ever... you never kissed?" Eric was Sadie's recent ex, ejected from the relationship for terminal cluelessness.

"Eric never really seemed into it. He would start complaining about his allergies, or he'd rant about the Transformers movies until even I'd get bored and leave. "

"Well..." Amy shrugged. "I don't really know what to tell you."

"Will you show me?"

Amy raised her eyebrows. "You want me to kiss you."

"Sort of," Sadie said miserably. "I didn't realize how tired I was of waiting until we started talking about this."

"You're sure."

Sadie nodded.

"Well," Amy said. "Okay." Smoothing her hair back over her shoulders, she leaned forward, her face close to Sadie's. She put her hand on Sadie's cheek, the lightest brush of her fingertips. Their lips touched, and Amy gently parted Sadie's lips with her tongue, deepening the kiss. Sadie murmured and responded, clumsily but eagerly, and their tongues twined for a moment. Finally, they parted.

"There," Amy said. "Now you've been kissed."

Sadie's eyes had a dreamy, faraway look in them. "I can see why you like it so much," she said. "God, I want to have sex."

"Uh, Sadie..."

Sadie giggled. "Not with you, Amy. I mean, we're friends and all, but no."

"Okay," Amy laughed.

Sadie paused, tilting her head as if deep in thought. "Do you think Scott would be willing to have sex with me?"

Amy gasped, laughing. "Sadie!" she said.

"I'm being serious. I work the front desk there three nights a week, I could wait until he closes. I could ask him."

"I don't really think that's a good idea," Amy said. "For one thing, Scott might get suspicious that I told you what happened."

"Oh yeah," Sadie said. "Well, I could make it really clear that it was my idea."

"Surely he'll never see through that brilliant ruse."

"But I'm so sick of waiting," Sadie said, frowning.

Amy sighed. "Well, maybe I'll try to mention it to him. Subtly. Almost invisibly. See what he says."

Sadie smiled broadly. "Oh, I love you, Amy," she said, and threw her arms around Amy in a hug. When they parted, Sadie looked as if she was about to lean in for another kiss, but hesitated.

"So... show me something else?" Sadie said.

Amy looked at her quizzically. "What do you mean?"

"Show me something else from your night with Scott. I'm curious."

Amy furrowed her brow, confused. "Like what?"

"I don't know. Something... sexy."

"Are you serious?"

Sadie nodded.

"Oh my god, you're a freak," Amy said. "Okay, lean back."

Sadie leaned back into her pillows dutifully. Tightening her ponytail, Amy crawled over Sadie, parting Sadie's thighs with her body, until they were in something much like the missionary position.

"So this is how we did it," Amy said. "He was on top of me like this, and..." she bucked her hips gently downward, her pelvis brushing against Sadie's. Sadie bit her lip, looking down at their clothed bodies, her hands up by her head like a surrendering prisoner.

"So what did you do with your hands?" Sadie asked.

"First of all, I didn't look like I was being mugged."

Sadie glared. "Be nice."

"Well..." Amy took Sadie's hands in hers. "I pushed them against his chest, like this." She placed Sadie's hands on her breasts through her shirt, holding them there. Sadie looked up at her, wide-eyed, breathing a bit heavily.

Amy grinned, enjoying watching Sadie's arousal.

"And then he would sometimes lean down to kiss me," Amy said, and leaned down to kiss Sadie again, with more tongue this time. Sadie murmured and responded, wrapping her legs around Amy's waist. Amy began to nudge Sadie rhythmically, gently. It felt silly, but at the same time Sadie seemed to be enjoying it.

"What else?" Sadie asked breathlessly. She bit her lip, an unconsciously seductive gesture. "Show me something else..."

Amy bit her lip, looking down at her best friend. "There's one other thing..."

"Show me," Sadie gasped.

Smiling, Amy reached down and put her hands under Sadie's pajama shirt, lifting and hiking it over her breasts, revealing a flat expanse of tummy. Sadie wore no bra underneath, and her breasts were firm and round, just slightly smaller than Amy's. Slowly, Amy lowered her mouth to Sadie's breast and kissed it gently, holding Sadie by the shoulders. She flicked her tongue around the nipple, and it became instantly hard. Amy felt Sadie tremble and heard her tiny moan as Sadie's back arched, her hips pushing hard into Amy's.

"Oh Amy," Sadie whispered. "Amy, please..." Sadie gave a shuddering gasp as Amy sucked on her breast gently, drawing the nipple up between her teeth, nibbling softly. Sadie began to twist and writhe on the bed, moaning softly, her whole body trembling.

"Sadie?!" Mrs. Morrow's voice called out from downstairs. Sadie gasped and turned white, yanking her pajama top down so fast she nearly clocked Amy in the head. They separated, Sadie returning to a cross-legged position faster than Amy would have thought possible. She fanned herself, flushed.

"Yes, Mother?" she said, her voice perfectly composed.

"Come down for lunch!" Mrs. Morrow commanded.

"Oh my God," Sadie said, putting a hand to her chest. "I think I just had several heart attacks in a row."

Amy giggled. "It's okay. You're not wearing lipstick, so no chance of incriminating smearage."

Sadie grinned, then looked down at her knees, as if embarrassed. "I liked that."

"Well, trust me, it'll be even better when you do it with Scott. I mean, if you do. He can do things that I definitely can't, trust me."

"I'd better get dressed," Sadie said, and hopped off the bed.

"And I'm going to go, before Mrs. Morrow makes me eat something profoundly disgusting, no offense."

"None taken," Sadie said. She opened her drawers to look for clothes to wear, then turned back to Amy inquisitively. "Do you think you could talk to him tonight?"

"Sadie!"

"Sorry, just kidding, just kidding..."

* * *

Lauren didn't see much of Amy for the rest of that week. Work kept her busy during the day, and Amy scheduled study dates for the evenings after school. On the few occasions they did see each other, it was mostly passing one another in the hallway. A coldness had fallen between them that Lauren didn't like one bit, but she held her tongue and said nothing to alienate her daughter further. After all, she knew what that was like.

"I'm going to go hang out with Sadie all day on Friday," Amy said one night over a dinner of pizza that neither of them really seemed to want.

"Great," Lauren said, and nothing more was said about the matter. Lauren kept waiting for an opportunity to tell her daughter she was sorry, to make everything all right again. But she couldn't seem to find the words.

Lauren didn't call Scott. She found she didn't have the words for him, either. Not yet.

* * *

Thursday morning came. Lauren slept in, covers pulled over her head, only to be awakened by the sound of a lawnmower. From her own back yard. Frowning, she got out of bed and padded to the window in her blue silk slip. She lifted the curtains a bit and looked out. Someone was down there, mowing her grass.

"Who the hell is that?" Lauren said, and let the curtain fall. Yawning, she looked for some clothes, didn't find any readily available, and decided not to bother. It was her back yard. If they didn't like her showing up in her underwear, let them deal with it.

* * *

Lauren padded downstairs, through the kitchen and out the back door. It was late morning already and the sun was out. Shielding her eyes against the light, she squinted out into her back yard to see who it was who was mowing.

It was her son, Rob. Dressed in a tee shirt and jeans, he pushed her mower around dutifully. Lauren stepped out into the grass in her bare feet, feeling the coolness of the morning dew on them.

Excited, she waved him down, calling to him over the sound of the mower. Spying her, he turned the machine off and walked over. She grabbed him and hugged him hard.

"Rob!" she said. "What are you doing here?" Lauren suddenly didn't feel quite as flippant about being dishabille as she had been a moment earlier. She crossed her arms over her breasts.

He gestured toward the lawnmower. "Repairing your television," he said. "Although this mower is a terrible repair tool, all it does is cut grass."

Lauren smirked. "Okay... I guess I had that one coming. Let's try again. When did you get in?"

"This morning. I let myself in. You were sleeping, so I decided not to wake you up. I figured with me gone, you'd have a tendency to neglect your yard work. Which, from the look of things, is pretty on the money. It's like Apocalypse Now out here."

"And running the lawnmower was part of your master plan not to wake me up?"

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Okay, point. But that seems a little ungrateful, Mom."

"Sorry," she said. "Do you want to take a break and come in?"

"Sure."

* * *

They came inside to the kitchen, and Lauren poured coffee for the two of them. She considered going upstairs to put on a robe, but the summer morning was already warm and she decided against it. The damage, by this time, had been done, and she found her modesty around her children had dropped sharply in the last few days.

"So why didn't you tell me you were coming home for summer break?" she asked. "I thought you were going to Orlando or something."

"Yeah, I changed my mind at the last minute," he said with a grimace. "I decided I'd rather chill out at home, where there's not a lot of excitement."

Lauren almost snorted her coffee. "I think you might have picked the wrong week to show up."

He tilted his head. "Why?"

Lauren smiled. "Never mind. Later. So, college clearly agrees with you. You're looking good." It wasn't an empty compliment. He had lost fat and built muscle since she'd seen him last, his biceps and shoulders well-defined underneath his shirt. She let her gaze linger for a little longer than she should have before she looked down at her coffee cup.

Unfortunately, like her, Rob was not easily deterred. "No, wait a minute. What's going on? Is Amy in trouble?"

"Oh, Amy's fine," Lauren said, swirling her coffee in her cup. "There's just been a little drama."

"What kind of drama?" He leaned forward on his elbows, looking at her steadily.

She grimaced. "I'm not sure you really want to know. It's a little... strange." A little strange was certainly not the word for it, but it was all she could think of at the moment. But what had happened was bound to come out. From the moment they'd sat down at the table, Lauren knew she couldn't keep what was going on from her son. The three of them had always been open and honest with each other, and trying to hide things now would only make a complicated situation worse.

She hung her head, rubbing her temple. Why had Rob picked this week, of all times, to come back?

When she looked up again, she found him looking back at her expectantly.

"Okay. So it's a little strange. Go on."

"It's a lot strange."

"Okay, a lot strange. I'm properly braced for strange. Let her rip."

Lauren bit her lip. "Are you sure you don't want to talk about something easy, like the Middle East or stem cell research or something?"