Teen Dreams Book 1
Don Carter
Chapter 1
I suppose I should really start by introducing myself. So, my name is David James Barker, aged 14 and a member of form 4alpha at Castleford High School. I’m the second of three children of James Andrew Barker and his wife the former Miss Patricia Forbes-Walker. There’s also my brother Andrew, two years older than me and my sister Alison Louise, who is two years younger.
Oh and there’s my best friend Cal. Cal lives next door and had moved in two weeks before we started year 1 in school. In the ten years that we’d been friends, Cal had caused me to break my arm (twice), my ankle once, my nose twice and had caused me to need a total of 23 stitches. Add in two concussions and sometimes I wondered why I didn’t just avoid Cal like the plague.
It was Monday morning and after my usual Monday morning date with Rosy Palm and her 5 beautiful daughters, I was finally dragging myself out of my pit and heading for the bathroom. As usual, my darling sister was in there and I was doing a little jig, trying to avoid wetting myself.
“Alison,” I pleaded, banging on the door, “I need to pee.”
“Use mum and dad’s I’m in the shower.”
I walked down the hall to mum and dad’s bedroom and used theirs.
“Mum,” I shouted when I’d done what I needed to, “Alison’s hogging the bathroom again, can I use your shower?”
“OK,” mum replied, “breakfast in 10 minutes you lot.”
I had my shower, wrapped a towel round my waist and went back to my room to get dressed.
When I got there I pulled up short. Cal was sat on my bed.
“Cal,” I protested, “I need some privacy here. I have to get dressed.”
“Don’t be daft I’ve seen you naked before.”
“Yes, but if mum were to see.”
“She sent me up here. Oh, you are a wimp, all right, I’ll close my eyes and promise not to peep.”
Mum saved the day just then by shouting that breakfast was ready.
“Cal are you eating?” she added.
“No thanks Aunt Pat, I already ate?”
When I got downstairs, everybody but Cal was eating. I took my place and started to demolish the Full English breakfast that was waiting for me. Just as I was about to spear the last piece of bacon, Cal’s fingers popped across and lifted it from my plate.
“Thank you,” Cal smiled sweetly, as she popped it into her mouth.
Did I mention that Cal is a person of the female persuasion? Something which is fairly apparent at first glance, although that hadn’t been the case when we first met. Actually, she is beautiful, both inside and out. She’s a lovely person and a beautiful girl, no, she’s a beautiful young woman. Cal is short for Calista. Apparently when she was born her mother’s favourite TV show was Ally McBeal and she was named after the star of that, Callista Flockhart. Her name only has one l in it because her dad didn’t know how to spell the other one. She never knew her dad. He left when she was six months old and when she was five, her mum, Mary, who had gone to school with my dad and who we all called Aunt Mary, moved back to Castleford to be near her family. She is also a very focused person, at fourteen (she’s two weeks older than I am), she knows what she is going to be when she finishes her education, she’s going to be an opera singer and if Cal says she is, she will be. She loves to sing. She loved to drag me along when she goes to singing lessons once a week as well.
As for me, well I’m a lot easier going. I haven’t made my mind up what I want to be yet. I play rugby (league not union) pretty well and guitar pretty badly, but mostly I read. I also have a natural ear for languages. My mum says that’s because of being a musician, I get the rhythm of the thing. I’m more the geeky type, always messing about on the family PC or playing video games.
That’s going to have to change this year though, this year we start working towards GCSE and that means we have to choose what subjects we do and that means restricting our career choices.
Once I finished my breakfast (well, technically Cal finished it), I gathered my book bag and PE gear and the pair of us set off to school, accompanied by Alison, who was starting year 8 today. We walked along, Cal holding one hand and Alison the other, with the pair of them chatting away ten to the dozen as if they hadn’t seen each other for weeks, while I just bathed in the glory of being with two of the most stunningly beautiful girls in Castleford.
Life was good.
Now, I really do have to stress here, Cal is my best friend, she is not my girlfriend. But I would protect her with my life if I had to. We loved each other, but as friends, even though I privately think that our mothers are hoping we’ll end up together, so if she wants to have a boyfriend, that’s OK with me and if I get a girlfriend, she’s OK with that. We’ve talked about this more than once and that’s how it is with us. We go out and do things together, we even go out with other couples, but even in the back row of our local cinema, we sit holding hands watching the films, while our friends are making out beside us. That’s just us, although sometimes, I wonder what it would be like.
At the school we separated, I mean, come on, this is the 21st century and we still have separate boys’ and girls’ entrances. I headed towards the hall where the first assembly of the year would take place and waited. As a fourth-year student (that’s year 10, or what the Americans would call a freshman) I could take a seat anywhere at the rear of the hall, except for the very back row which was for teachers. I took a seat one in from the aisle, about four rows from the back and waited for my crew to arrive. My ‘crew’ were Mike, Geoff, Keith and their respective (and mainly rotating) girlfriends and Cal, of course.
The assembly started with the headmaster welcoming us all back to a new school year. The first years had come in the day before. He unveiled a number of staff changes, told us all about the boys’ Rugby trials and the girls’ hockey trials this Wednesday, then read out the list of form teachers and form rooms for the year. We had the head of English and drama, CH Tomlinson. Nobody knew what the CH stood for (I found out later but was sworn to secrecy, so sorry, I can’t tell you), but everybody just referred to him as Tom. After that, we all wandered off to our form rooms to take care of registration and discover our timetables for the year.
Our school day was divided into 11 periods. Each day would start with assembly, with one year having theirs in the Dining Hall and the others in the main hall. Then registration in our form rooms, two 40 minute lesson periods, a fifteen-minute break, then two more lesson periods. Then we had lunch, followed by afternoon registration, then another two lesson periods, a five-minute break and a final lesson period, before we were finally let out.
So we went off to room 1 which would be our home for the next 10 months, answered our names and were given our timetables. The advantage of having English, followed by English Lit without a break soon became apparent.
“Right you lot, listen carefully, I shall say this only once,” Tom started, “you lot will all be doing both English Language and Literature GCSE this year, instead of next, so we have three books to read, learn, inwardly digest and then dissect the results of.”
There were some retching noises, poorly done, from the back of the room.
“Thank you,” Tom said, “may I suggest that those of you who made that racket, don’t bother attending auditions for this year’s first play. The rest of you, however, will do so.”
“What is it?” Jenny Hague asked.
“As always, this year’s set Shakespeare, the Merchant of Venice.”
He passed around a pile of books, which were that play.
“Now I’ll say up front, that this is quite controversial. A lot of people believe that it’s anti-Semitic.”
Peter Hartley raised his hand.
“Yes, Peter?”
“Sir, what does anti-Semitic mean?”
“Anybody?”
“It means views that are derogatory to any of the Semitic peoples, especially Jews,” I offered.
“Very good David.”
We spent the whole double period reading through what we’d all come to call ‘Merchant’ by the end of the year when the second bell sounded Tom handed out copies of Pride and Prejudice and The Narrative Art in Verse and told us all to read through Merchant by next Monday. Oh goodie, our first homework.
The rest of the day was similar, basically a review of the syllabus, handing out textbooks and exercise books. Luckily, Tom was the only one who gave out homework and PE was warm-up and a game of basketball.
The girls and I met up for the walk home. Cal had been in most of the same lessons as me apart from that she had French when I had German and games when I had PE.
“I’m on the hockey team,” she announced.
“Well done,” I answered, “was there much competition? Ouch, what was that for?”
“You implied that I only got on because there wasn’t anyone else.”
“That’s not what I meant,” I rubbed my arm where she’d pinched me, “I’ll have a bruise there. When’s your practice?”
“Thursdays after school.”
“I’ll come and watch.”
“So he can perv at all the fit young girls in their short hockey skirts and bottle green gym knickers. All those teenage boobies bouncing around,” my sister announced.
“Pip!” I exclaimed, I called her pip, short for pipsqueak sometimes.
The rest of the week flashed by. We had a new boy in our class. John Sollberger. His dad was an Austrian chiropodist. He had to explain that to some of the class, who had just opened a practice in town tending to problems with peoples’ feet and he seemed a nice guy. We invited him to hang out with us. He invited us to call him Solly. Wednesday night Cal and I went off to dance lessons, where we were learning the Rumba. I confess, she was a lot better than I was, but then she was a lithe and beautiful young lady and I was a rugby player, then we all met up in our favourite meeting place, the Blue Cup Café. We all sat around with drinks, Solly had joined us and we threw stupid jokes and silly chat around for an hour before we started breaking up and going home. Solly was looking around the group of us all the time with a strange faraway expression on his face. I assume he must have felt like a spare part, being the only one there without a girl. Although, he and I were the only two that didn’t have a girlfriend.
When I arrived at school the following morning with the girls, we parted company and I headed for the boys’ entrance. Solly was waiting for me on the steps.
“David, can I ask you something personal?”
“So long as I can refuse to answer if it’s too personal.”
“What’s the story with you and Cal.”
“That’s too personal.”
“Oh, OK. Sorry I asked.”
“No problem.”
“So, is it OK if I ask her out?”
“John, she and I are best friends, it’s not up to me who she goes out with.”
“I just didn’t want to step on your toes.”
“Go ahead.”
I walked into the school and off to room one. Tom was in there when I arrived.
“David,” he greeted me, “just the man I wanted to see. School play. Merchant. You’re playing Shylock.”
“Pardon?”
“You’re playing Shylock.”
“But...”
“But me no buts. I heard you reading on Monday and you’ve got the part.”
I could see I wasn’t getting away with it, so I just sagged my shoulders.
“Don’t be downcast, it comes with benefits.”
“It does?”
“Yes, the rehearsals will clash with your Woodwork lessons.”
I hated woodwork, so I brightened up considerably.
“OK, sir.”
“Now get out of my sight until registration.”
I scooted off to Assembly.
As I walked into the first lesson my phone chirped and I looked at the screen. It was a text from Cal.
WHAT R U PLAYING @
WHAT U MEAN, I texted back.
SOLLY SAID THAT YOU SAID HE COULD GO ON A D8 WIT ME.
L8R TCHR LOOKING FUNNY
She cornered me at the end of English later in the morning.
“So,” she demanded, did you tell Solly foto ask me out on adate?”
“No.”
“Well, he says you did.”
I laughed, actually laughed, probably not the best tactic.
“He met me on the way in. Asked if we were a couple and when I told him we were just friends he asked if that meant it was all right to ask you out, so I told him he could go for it. If you want to go out with him, that’s OK with me.”
“Oh, well,” I retorted, “so long as it’s OK with you then, I just might.”
“Cal,” I protested, “I merely let him know that if you and he wanted to go out, I had no prior claim.”
“Don’t you?”
“We’re best friends, I would never do anything to jeopardise that.”
With hindsight I concluded that girls are just weird sometimes.
I watched Cal’s retreating back, wondering what had got into her, she wasn’t usually as snappy at me. I shrugged and went off to join the gang who were kicking a ball about. At the end of the break, I went off to play rehearsals.
When I arrived I got three surprises. Mike had been appointed stage manager and both Cal and Solly were in the cast, Solly as Lorenzo and Cal as Jessica.
“Hi Dave,” said Solly, “what are you doing here?”
“I’m playing Shylock and please, it’s David, not Dave.”
“Sorry.”
“How come you weren’t at auditions?”
“I was told during the week that I was playing the part. Told mind you, not asked.”
“Well, it should be fun,” Cal put in, before dragging me off to the side.
“Are you sure you’d be OK with Solly taking me out?”
“Of course, I’m your best friend, not your boyfriend.”
There was a strange faraway look in her eyes.
“So where’s he taking you?”
“He wanted to go out just me and him, but I told him it was either our group visit to the cinema tonight or nothing.”
“That’s great, have a nice time, what are you going to see?”
“You’re coming with us right?”
“No, I think I’ll stay in tonight.
“David.”
“What?”
“You’re coming.”
“I don’t think I will, there isn’t anything on I’m really bothered about.”
“DAVID!”
“Cal, if I come everybody will wonder why you’re sat with Solly and not me.”
“So the two of you could sit one on either side of me.”
“Somehow I don’t think that would work. Just go and have a nice time. I’m fine, honestly.”
I walked away as I heard her pull her phone out and make a call. Then I stopped dead as I heard the two most dreaded words in the English language.
“Aunt Pat,” she said, then there was a two-second silence while my mother answered, “David’s being mean.”
There was another silence as I turned round.
“Okay here,” she added as she held her phone out to me.
“What are you doing to Cal?” mum asked as I put the phone to my ear.
“She’s arranged to go on a date with a new lad in school tonight. They’re going on our usual gang visit to the pictures and she’s whining because I said I wouldn’t go.”
“And why wouldn’t you go?”
“Because I wouldn’t want to go and make them uncomfortable.”
“But you’re just best friends so why would you make them uncomfortable?”
“Mum,” I protested.
“No, I’m interested, why?”
“Mum, it just would: look the teacher’s here, I’ve got to go.”
I handed the phone back to Cal as Tom walked in and we all sat down.
Tom clapped his hands and got our attention.
“OK gang, we did our first run-through of Act 1 on Monday in class. Now I want to do it again, but this time, I want you to read the parts you’re going to play.
While the rest were reading Scene 1, some of us sat down quietly reading along with them. Cal passed me a note.
YOUR MUM SAYS RING HER AT LUNCH TIME.
Ten minutes later scene 1 was finished and we started on scene 2.
By the time the lunch bell rang, we had read through the first two acts.
“Right, next time we’ll continue from the beginning of act 3. Do please try and at least have read the rest of the play by then. And maybe even have learned some of it. Now get out of my sight.”
We all left willingly. I took a detour back into the classroom and rang mum.
“Well?” was mum’s one-word greeting.
“Well, what?”
“I take it you’re now on your own.”
“Yes.”
“So where’s the problem?”
“I don’t want them to feel uncomfortable.”
“Are you certain of that?”
“What do you mean?”
“Are you sure that it’s THEM that you don’t want to feel uncomfortable.”
“Who else would?”
“Who else would be there?”
“The usual gang and me.”
“Who would be?”
“Geoff and Ruth.”
“A couple.”
“Mike and Chris.”
“A couple.”
“Keith and Maggie.”
“A couple.”
“Me.”
“Not a couple.”
“Yes.”
“So four couples and a singleton.”
“Yes.”
“Tell me something, how do you feel about Cal?”
“She’s my best friend and...” I trailed off.
“And what?”
“And I love her.”
“And have you told her that?”
“Yes, every day.”
“No, I mean have you told her that you LOVE her?”
“You mean like boyfriend /girlfriend?”
“Yes.”
“No, I haven’t she’s my best friend, I wouldn’t risk that. What if that happened and we broke up?”
“That’s a risk.”
“But not one I want to take.”
“Tell me something. Let’s say that after this date, they fall in love and that love survives teenage years and training for careers and they get married. Who would be her best friend then?”
“I would.”
“Are you sure? Who’s my best friend?”
“Dad.”
“And who was my best friend when I was a teenager?”
“I don’t know, but I’m guessing not dad.”
“Let me give you another example. In 1492 who discovered the Americas?”
“Christopher Columbus.”
“And do you think that setting out on that voyage didn’t involve risks?”
“Of course not.”
“And did Columbus stay at home because of those risks?”
“No.”
“Life’s full of risks son, you can’t not do something just because there are risks. But there are some things that are too risky. Putting a loaded gun in your mouth is a risk you shouldn’t take.”
“So what should I do?”
“I can’t answer that for you. Look at your options, look at the risks involved and see what offers the best outcome. But it has to be the best outcome for you. Not for me, or for Cal, or for anyone else. Now think about it and do what’s best for you.”
“Thanks, mum. I love you.”
“I know you do and I love you, well most of the time. Now make your decision and do what you think best.”
“OK bye mum.”
“Bye son.”
We both hung up and I went in for lunch.
Our school dining tables only seated eight and Solly had taken my place with Cal, so I found a seat with my sister and some of our friends, my brother having left last year and gone on to the local 6th form college.
“Hey big bro, why are you slumming it with us little kids?”
“I wouldn’t call sitting with my favourite sister slumming.”
“I’m your only sister.”
“You’d still be my favourite if I had twenty.”
“You wouldn’t be mum’s though for wishing that on her.”
Everybody laughed.
“No seriously why aren’t you sitting with your gang?”
“No room.”
“Yes, I noticed someone seems to have taken your place with Cal. What gives?”
“That’s John Sollberger, the new boy in town. He’s asked her out tonight.”
“And she said yes?”
“Apparently.”
“So,” my 12-year-old sister said, “she finally got tired of you constantly telling her you were just friends?”
“What?”
“Sometimes, big brother, you’re a bloody idiot.”
“Alison Barker,” the voice of Mr Cawthorne, geography teacher bellowed, “see me after lunch.”
“See, now you got me in trouble for swearing.”
“What did you mean?”
“She’s been waiting for two years for you to ask her to be your girlfriend, but no, you had to do the ‘we’re better as best friends’ routine. So now she’s found somebody else.”
“But we’ll still be best friends.”
“Yes, until he decides she can’t be your friend any more, because that threatens his position.”
“She wouldn’t do that.”
Alison looked at all her friends.
“See what I have to put up with? Okay, bro, let’s have a quick poll. Each of you girls has a best friend who’s a boy and a boyfriend. You and the boyfriend have been going out for a while and you decide to get serious. What does your boyfriend say about your best friend?”
Apart from one, each of the girls said that the boyfriend would insist on them not being best friends any more, but would probably still let them be friends. The odd one out said that she’d dump him and date me instead.
“How do you know she’s been waiting for me to ask?”
Alison sighed and pointed at her boobs.
“See these?”
“Yes,” I replied puzzled.
“They’re part of what makes me a girl, Cal has a pair like them and she’s a girl too. I know you and your mates have a do not tell policy, but girls talk. She told me. Repeatedly.”
“So why didn’t you tell me?”
“She asked me not to.”
“But I’m your brother.”
“And she’s my friend and friends are more important.”
I finished my food in silence, cleared away my plate and went off to think on my own.
I had games after lunch, which was effectively Rugby practice, so I decided to work off some of my desire to hit something in that. Unfortunately, when we were divided into teams, Solly was selected on the opposite side to me. Also, unfortunately, he played opposite my position. Left-Wing Three Quarter back. So he would be the recipient of my temper. I threw myself into playing, even drawing a few complaints from players I tackled, that they were on my side in the school team, eventually Mr Dawson, the teacher drew me aside.
“What the hell are you playing at?”
“Rugby sir,” I replied.
That hilarious witticism got me four laps of the field, while the lesson went on.
When I started playing again, the opposition had the ball and it was passed out to Solly who took off down the wing, with me in hot pursuit. I was faster than him, bigger than him and stronger than him, but at the time I caught him he was just another player, I wasn’t aware it was him. He leapt for the try line, just as I dived into a tackle on him. We both ended up on the ground, out of touch, but he landed first and I came down on top of him, knocking all the breath out of him.
Mr Dawson sent me in to get changed and told me to wait in the changing rooms at the end of the lesson.
After everybody had gone to break and he’d finished giving me an earful, I just stood up.
“You know something, sir? Sod it. I’m not playing rugby for the school this year,” and walked out to German.
Fortunately neither Cal nor Solly did German, she because she did Spanish instead and he because as an Austrian, he was more fluent than Mrs Smith, the teacher.
Ten minutes into the lesson Mrs Cook the school secretary came in and announced that I was wanted right away in Mr James’ office. Mr James was the deputy head in charge of upper school.
I knocked on his door and he shouted “Enter.” I opened it and walked in.
He looked up at me and pointed at the chair in front of his desk. I sat and he looked at me over the rim of his glasses.
After a long silence, he finally spoke.
“Well?”
“Well what sir?”
“What’s this nonsense about you not playing for the school?”
“Not nonsense, I’ve decided I don’t want to play rugby this year.”
“The school’s star winger, top scorer for the last three years and a virtually perfect goal kicker, just doesn’t want to play?”
“That’s right.”
“Why?”
“I just don’t. Actually, sir, I’m thinking of asking my parents if I can transfer to Airedale.”
At that, he picked up the phone on his desk, looked at the file in front of him and dialled.
When the other end answered he spoke.
“Mrs Barker?” he asked.
He obviously got a positive response.
“I have your son in my office, he’s been thrown out of this afternoon’s games lesson because he was being violent on the pitch. He’s informed us that he will not play Rugby for the school this year and that he intends to ask you to transfer him to Airedale High. Do you have any idea why that might be?”
He listened for a while then pressed the speaker switch.
“David, we’re on speaker so that you, your mother and I can discuss this.”
I nodded.
“David,” my mother’s voice asked, “is this all to do with what we spoke about earlier?”
I remained silent.
“David,” my mother said, menacingly.
“Yes,” I snapped.
“Mr James, I know that this is unusual, but do you have a room where my son and his friend Cal can have a little privacy? I promise you nothing untoward will happen. There are some things they need to get sorted out.”
“I think I can do that; the school nurse is still on holiday; they can use the sickbay.”
“Then can you make that happen, please? I think we can solve this problem.”
“Mum,” I complained.
“David, sort it, one way or the other or I will.”
“OK.”
Mr James wrapped up the call hung up and then told me to wait.
He popped his head out of the door and asked Mrs Cook to get Cal. When she arrived she looked shocked to see me sat there.
“Cal,” he said to her, “there seems to be something that you and David need to sort out. I was going to let you use the sick room, but I need to get myself a cup of coffee, so I’m going down to the staff room to do that. I should be 10 or 15 minutes, please, sort out whatever is wrong between you. The Rugby team needs you David and I don’t want to lose you to Airedale.”
He left, closing the door behind him.
We stood there and looked at each other for what seemed like forever.
“David, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
“Well that’s sorted then, shall we sit down and wait for Mr James to come back, so we can tell him that and that everything in the garden is rosy?”
“No,” I conceded.
“Then tell me what’s wrong so we can fix it. Come on David, we’re best friends, forever, remember?”
I stood there, silent, until Cal, took both my hands in hers.
“David, I love you, tell me what’s hurting you. Please?”
“I don’t want to be your best friend anymore.”
“What?” she screamed, dropping my hands, “Why? Is this because I’m going out with Solly tonight?”
I nodded.
“Then I won’t go. I’m not losing you for a date.”
“No, that came out wrong. I want to change the way I think about you and I hope the way you think about me.”
“What do you mean?”
“Cal, I love you.”
“And I love you.”
“But not just as my best friend. I LOVE you.”
“You mean...” She began.
I nodded again.
“David, stop nodding and start talking.”
“I spoke to mum again at lunchtime.”
“I noticed you came in late. What did she say?”
“She spoke about how I wouldn’t take me and you any further because I was afraid to risk doing that because if we did and then broke up, I’d lose my best friend as well as my girlfriend. She persuaded me that if I never took risks, I’d never do anything worthwhile in my life.”
“So why didn’t you tell me all this. Why did you sit with Pip and her friends?”
“Because our table was full. Solly was sat where I normally sat.”
“And what did your sister have to say?”
“Why do you think she said anything?”
“She’s Alison, she always has something to say.”
“She said that you’d been waiting for two years for me to ask you.”
“She was wrong.”
“What?”
“I’ve been waiting since we were seven.”
“What?”
She just smiled, that cute little inner smile of hers and nodded.
“Tell me something. How many girls have you kissed? Not on the cheek, on the lips?”
“Six or Seven, I don’t know exactly.”
“And I’ve kissed about the same number of boys. How many times have you and I kissed?”
“Hundreds.”
“On the lips?”
“Never, because...”
“We were best friends.”
She nodded.
“How many people can you look at and know what they’re thinking, what they’re about to say?”
“One and you’re going to tell me you too. And I think I know who yours is.”
“Ok, so now let’s try an experiment,” she suggested.
“Kiss?”
She nodded.
“Now you’re nodding instead of talking.”
She punched my shoulder.
“Ow, that hurt.”
“Come here.”
We each took a step forward, then our lips met for the first time. The kiss seemed to go on forever, in fact, we were interrupted by someone clearing their throat behind us. It was Mr James.
“You seem to have solved your little problem.”
We both smiled sheepishly.
“All right the pair of you get out of here. I take it, David, that we won’t be losing you to Airedale?”
“Not for the foreseeable future sir.”
“And Rugby?”
“Just try and stop me.”
“Have a good weekend.”
We closed the door after us on the way out.
“So what are we going to do about Solly?” Cal asked.
“You promised to go out with him tonight, so I think you should keep your word. Just let him now that it’s a one-off thing and give him a chance to call it off if he wants. In fact, I think you should insist on going Dutch.”
“And am I going to have to go Dutch when I go out with you?”
“No, you’ll probably need to pay for me as well.”
I gave her a quick peck on the lips as we parted company. Just as I turned to walk away she grabbed my hand and spun me round.
“You never told me how the kiss felt,” she said.
“It just felt so right.”
“Me too. Love you.”
“You too.”
Before I went into the classroom I texted my mum.
“FIXED.”
She replied.
“GOOD.”
I waited by the girls' entrance until both Cal and Pip came out. Pip was the first to reach me.
“So you finally came to your senses eh, Bro?”
“Finally,” I agreed before I looked down at my sister and smiled at her, “Thanks, sis.”
Cal followed less than a minute later and the pair of them linked arms with me.
“Did you speak to Solly?” I asked.
“Yes,” she answered, “I’ve called the date off.”
“Why?”
“I don’t trust him. He’s a little upset with you after this afternoon’s rugby and I’m worried that he might try something to get back at you through me.”
“Probably best then. So does this mean that tonight is our first date?”
“Looks like it. Have you told any of the gang?”
“No, did you?”
“No?”
“They’re in for a surprise tonight?”
“Can I come, I want to see this,” Pip asked.
“No,” we chorused.
“Meanies,” she pouted.
My phone rang and I answered it. It was Geoff.
“The Avengers opens tonight, how about it?”
“Ok, we’re in.”
“We?”
“Yes, I got a new girlfriend.”
“Tell me more. Hey, does Cal know?”
“Later mate, later.”
“Ok, Seeya.”
We hung up.
“Sister dear, would you like to come with us tonight?”
“Seriously?”
“Yes.”
I told her what we were seeing and she squealed.
“You’re paying,” she informed me.
On the way home, Cal got a text from her mum telling her to come to our house and I got one from mine telling me to bring her.
The mums were in the kitchen when we arrived and for some reason, my sister decided that there was something urgent she needed to do in her room.
“Sit down,” my mum said to the both of us, with that sweet smile of hers that added a silent ‘or else’ to the end of a sentence.
We sat. We joined hands. We listened.
“Have you two sorted yourselves out?” My mum asked.
“Properly?” Added hers.
Yes, we think so,” I offered.
“Think so?”
“Yes mum, I think it was just me that needed sorting out really. I was afraid to take a risk that might put our friendship in jeopardy.”
“And what do you think could do that?” Aunt Mary asked.
“If one of us cheated?” Cal offered.
“That would be a betrayal of trust, so yes, anything else?”
“Being dishonest with each other?” I added.
The mums nodded.
“Committing a crime?”
Another pair of nods.
When we had run out of ideas mum looked at both of us.
“And of those things,” she said, “which would also tear you apart as best friends?”
“Cheating,” we both said, together.
“So don’t cheat and everything will be fine.”
My mother got us all drinks and sat back down.
“So,” she said, nursing her coffee mug in her two hands, “where are you taking your girlfriend on your first date?”
“We’re going to see the new Avengers film with the gang,” I replied.
“No you’re not,” mum insisted.
“You’re going to take her out for a nice meal, just the two of you, then you can go to the cinema with your friends.”
“But I don’t know anywhere to take her.”
“The Greyhound in Whitwood does very nice food and they open at five for diners. I’ll take you down, then come back for you at six-thirty, that should get you to the cinema in plenty of time.”
“Thanks, mum, but bring Pip will you, we promised she could come to this one with us?”
“Ok, now you two go and get yourselves ready and remember, this is a date, not just an evening with your friends.”
We both took that as meaning get dressed up.
Once I had showered and changed, mum gave me some tips.
“When you get Cal from the house, make sure you open the car door for her, close it, then go round to your side, the same when you get out. You get out first and open her door for her. Do that at every door you come to. Pull her seat out for her at the restaurant, help her get seated. Be the gentleman I know you are. Make her feel special.”
“She is very special, mum.”
“I know, but make sure she knows you feel that.”
I knocked on the door of Cal’s house and her mother opened it.
“David, you know you don’t have to knock, just come on in.”
“I know that Aunt Mary, but tonight’s special. Is Cal ready?”
My question was answered silently when Cal came walking down the stairs.
Somehow, in half an hour my tomboy, jeans and t-shirt girl best friend and classmate had been transformed into a beautiful young woman.
I just stared open-mouthed, until her mother put a finger under my chin and closed it.
“Cal, you’re gorgeous,” I managed to stammer.
“She always has been,” her mother whispered, “you just only ever saw your best friend before. Now off you two go and enjoy yourselves.”
We did, the meal was excellent and when I paid the bill, Mum and Pip were waiting outside in the car for us. We got to the cinema with 15 minutes to spare before the showing started. The gang were all in the foyer as we walked in.
Mike was the first to speak. Hi, David, Cal, Alison, where’s Solly?”
“Solly’s not coming,” Cal told him, “I’ve come with my boyfriend instead.”
“Where is he then?”
“David and I are now officially boyfriend and girlfriend, as of today.”
And to prove it she kissed me.
“Well, about fucking time,” Keith said, “you’ve been pussyfooting about for years.”
And so say all of us,” Jenny added before punching Keith on the shoulder, “and mind your language you.”
We bought our tickets and went in to see the film, which was good, but not as good as the others in the series. For the first time though, Cal and I didn’t actually watch the whole film, just like our friends.
We walked home with our arms wrapped around each other and at the door had our first ever goodnight kiss.
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Chapter 2
On Saturday morning I woke up early and went out for a run, I did a steady three miles, then showered and changed into my normal clothes. I then decided to go next door and see what my girlfriend had planned. I knew she had a voice class this morning, but I wanted to see if we could do something in the afternoon. When I walked in she and her Mum were sat at the kitchen table talking.
“Good morning beautiful,” I announced my arrival.
“Morning sweetie,” Cal replied.
“Actually I meant your Mum.”
Aunt Mary smiled broadly.
“You don’t think I’m beautiful?” asked Cal, pouting.
“No.”
“What?” she glared at me.
“I consider you to be the most gob-smackingly gorgeous female, ever to grace the face of the earth.”
“Nice save,” Aunt Mary murmured. I kissed them both on the cheek.
“Ahem,” Cal coughed as I removed my lips from her cheek, so I bent down and gave her a proper one.
“Get a room you two,” her Mum said.
“OK,” I stood up and took her daughter’s hand and started leading her towards the stairs.
“Down boy. Are you aware of the eight rules?”
We both sat down.
“Actually,” her mother said, “we were just discussing that. I am assuming that so far this new relationship has been limited to kissing?”
“Of course,” I confirmed.
“And that if it had progressed to more than that, you’d deny it?”
We looked at each other, then Cal turned to her mother.
“Actually Mum, no I wouldn’t and I don’t think David would either. I ‘d certainly come to you for advice before we took it very much further at any rate.”
“What do you feel David?”
“Well, I’d probably go to my dad, but yes, I agree with that.”
“Good. Look, you’re both good kids and both frighteningly bright. You’re fourteen, technically anything other than kissing is illegal. You’re both legally underage. However, you’re also both human and somewhere in the not too distant future things you can do together will come up.”
Cal giggled.
“Get your mind out of the gutter madam,” her mother warned her, “the only thing I’m going to say to the two of you is, please, when the time comes, be safe, be sensible.”
“I don’t think either of us wants to be a parent for a long time to come,” I said.
“That’s good. However and this is not permission for anything, I think next week, Cal and I will be paying a visit to Doctor Palmer.”
“Why?” I asked.
They both looked at me like I was the village idiot.
“I think Mum’s going to put me on the pill.”
“That or an IUD, or I believe there’s now an injection that will protect you in the longer term.”
It was time for Cal to go to her class so I went home.
“Where have you been?” Mum asked when I walked into our kitchen.
“Next door.”
“Ah, can’t get enough of her kisses eh?” she teased.
“No, we were just talking.”
“What about?” she asked, “and has it fizzled out already? No kisses anymore.”
“No Mum, we kissed and we talked about sex.”
“What?” she exclaimed, doing a double-take.
“She pointed out that our new relationship would develop and we’d eventually be doing more than just kissing. She pointed out the legal obstacles and warned us to make sure that whatever we did, we did it safely. And she’s taking Cal to the doctor’s next week.”
“Then maybe it’s time for your dad to have the talk with you.”
“When the time comes I’d like some advice from you too, please Mum.”
“From me?”
“Yes, Dad can tell me how to do it, but you’re better placed to tell me how to do it right.”
“Ask me when the time comes son.”
That afternoon, I went with her mother to pick Cal up and we got her to drop us off in town so that we could spend the afternoon with our friends, mainly answering questions about what had happened to change our relationship. Most of that consisting of me explaining how I’d finally got my head out of my backside and realised that I didn’t just love my best friend but I was actually in love with her. Cal and I walked home that evening, as far as her house and were greeted by both our mothers. They had obviously been talking and judging by their reaction when we walked in, it had been mainly about us.