Hope Lives Again                  by: Anne O’Nonymous

 

Part 2: Try-al and error.

"Come on, you’re joking! You aren’t, are you? Aww, come on, Nick," Carl sputtered out in disbelief. He just could not understand why a boy would do what Nick was doing. "Does your mother know? Does she let you? How about your sister. Do you go out with boys?"

It was the last question that hurt! "No, I don’t date boys!" Nick said vehemently. "Otherwise, yes. Julie helps me with hair and makeup. Look, Carl, when I dress up, they treat me the same as another female, I learn more about girls, and I get to know their likes and dislikes. Now, a question: would you rather be at a baseball game with boys, or a slumber party with girls? I’ve been to both, and the slumber party is a hell of a lot more fun, believe me! You know, if you tried, you might like it, too."

"I don’t know, Nick. I’d like to see what it feels like, but it just sounds so wrong to me. I really like you, but . . .," Carl trailed off, then stated what was really on his mind, "I don’t want to be thought of as being ‘Gay.’ "

"Hey, if you don’t want to, it’s OK. We’re still friends!" Nick said with a grin, "And I still won’t date you!"

By this time, they were in front of the Parker home, where Nick said to Carl, "You live as you wish. All I’m trying to do is show you a different possibility; a way to explore what you could be. In Hope, most of the kids try various ‘roles’ without being stuck in male or female. Girls play baseball, basketball; boys have tea parties, get their hair done and shop for pretty lingerie. I don’t know how true this is, but it does seem to round out our lives more. I know I feel closer to my sister, and when Julie and her friends shop, I go along--I’m accepted by them! Carl, I’m not betting, daring, or encouraging you--I’m merely asking you to ask your mom ‘if’ you could try it. Well, I’d better get in and start cooking--how about you?"

"Yeah, me too," said Carl, mulling over all that was said.

Inside, he put the casserole in the oven to heat, some peas and carrots on to cook, and set the table. Timing was perfect; everything was ready and on the table just as Susan entered the house.

"Hi kiddo, dinner about ready? What a lovely day," Susan said as she practically danced to the table.

"How was your day?" Carl asked, although the look in her eyes gave him the answer. She radiated happiness!

"OK. Worked with Sandy. God, she is nice. She told me all about the abusive husband she divorced, that he wants their son, and that she will never let the bastard see the boy! Two years ago, she dyed her hair, changed her name and moved to Hope. Oh, we rearranged a few files, cleaned up some accounting and put certain files on computers. So, what smells so good!" Susan replied.

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After dinner, dessert and dishes were finished, Carl tried to think of a way to bring up the afternoon discussion. There was no way he would directly say, "Mom, I want to wear a dress and panties!" She might throw him out on his ear, if one was left after her lecture!

"Mom, I was talking to Nick today, and we went to watch a ball game. Uhh, there was this kid see, . . . . well, when he was sliding into home, uhh, his pants fell down," Carl started, as an explanation.

"I’ll bet that was funny," Susan said with a snicker, "So everybody was laughing, go on."

"Mom, nobody laughed! He was wearing girl’s panties, and nobody laughed! Nick said a lot of the boys wear girl’s stuff, and it’s acceptable. It’s as . . ., well . . ., the kids are free to be different."

"Oh," Susan said, "you mean here they can cross boundaries to be what they want to be, not what is assigned to them by their gender. That a male can wear a dress if he wants, and there’s no problem." What she said sounded strange to her, but seemed to fit! "Why is he telling me this? I know he’s straight, so now what. Best thing I can do is just let him try different ideas, as long as they don’t do any harm," thought Susan, "I wonder?"

Susan’s mind drifted back to three years ago. There was a very nice, polite boy named Gary Scharf, and, because of his petite size and polite demeanor, all the kids thought he was gay. Three or four jocks got a hold of Gary, raped him, and then beat him, leaving him a lifelong cripple. His mother cried for days.

"Right, mom. Sorta like . . . if you can hit, run, and catch, you play baseball and nobody cares if you wear a dress or pants. Nick said when a boy wears pants, he’s a noisy boy, and when he wears a dress, he’s a quiet girl."

The doorbell ringing startled them for a few seconds. Susan opened the door to admit Julie, Cass and Nick. There were "Hi’s" all around, and soon they were settled in the living room.

Nick opened the discussion: "Ms. Parker, Carl and I were talking this afternoon about some things, and he may have said something about a ball game. I don’t want you to get the wrong impression, as I’m not trying to push him into something he shouldn’t do. You see, girls get to play ball, run businesses, do everything a man can do, and nobody thinks it’s wrong! They even encourage it! But if a boy puts on a dress and panties, everybody gets up in arms with ‘sissy,’ ‘fairy,’ and worse. It’s as if he had his, em, balls cut off. Girls see their potential with an active male and passive female partnership. Boys, on the other hand, must be an in-control male at all times, and lose a part of themselves."

It was Cass’s turn next. "Susan, we want to keep you as a friend. Nick was trying to explain something, and it may have been misinterpreted. See, it’s as if you find a soda you like, and you want all your friends to try it thinking they, too, will like it. Nick thought Carl might like to try the ‘soda.’ "

"Ma’am," Julie started, "I mean Susan, I have a brother, and a sister. I dearly love them both! Nick is a good brother, but there were things I couldn’t do with him. I felt like I was shutting him out of part of my life. As Nikki, she goes with me and my friends everywhere. They adore her, and she’s really fun to have around. When Nikki appeared, I thought, ‘God, I didn’t know my brother was ‘Gay,’ and I lost a brother. I didn’t! I gained a sister, a girlfriend, a companion and I have an even better brother. I guess I better add my apologies for what my brother said. He was only trying to help."

"Well, thank you one and all! It’s nice of you to come to Nick’s defense. But the fact remains, Carl is the one to decide. Carl, would you be interested in trying this as an experiment?" Susan replied, "I promise I will not be judgmental, you will always be mine, no matter how you decide to dress."

Carl sat there, four pairs of eyes focused on him, his next words, and what he wanted to do. Should he make a fool of himself? It didn’t seem so bad, Nick was a good kid; wearing pretty clothes seemed to improve him. Oh, how the hell did he know. Try? Don’t try? Try? Don’t try? It went round and round!

"I don’t know! I can’t make up my mind," Carl said, then took a penny from his pocket, "I think I’ll leave it up to fate. Heads, I’ll try; Tails, I won’t. Two out of three!" The first flip was a tail. The next, a head. The third flip was up, hit the coffee table edge on the way down and landed on the floor--Lincoln gazing up at him. His fate was decided.

"Carl, I think I have some things that will fit you," Julie said.

"Yeah, come over to our house tomorrow after breakfast and we can start you on the road to becoming . . . let’s see, how about Darla!" Nick said.

"Can’t I keep Carla or Carol?"

"Your choice, I kinda like Darla though," said Julie wistfully.

Carl smiled at Julie. "OK, for you! Darla it is!"

Julie gave him a big smile, then said, "In the morning, take a bubble bath, and get rid of all the body hair, before coming over!"

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Much later, Carl lay in bed, wondering what it would be like to wear "pretty" things. "Lacey panties" sounded like a punishment for a boy. "You have been tried and convicted of being a boy and, therefore, are sentenced to a life of wearing ‘lace panties.’ " How would others treat him! He thought of other schools, and how kids who appeared to be even the slightest bit feminine were treated! Name-calling was the least of their problems. Beatings were common. But, at the ball game, that kid was treated so much differently--he wasn’t insulted, attacked, or anything like that. The whole incident seemed to have a dreamlike quality to it. "Wear Dorabelle’s Dainties, and hit a home run at parties and on the ball field!"

Carl was awakened that Saturday morning by a kiss from Susan. "Good morning, sweetie. You want pancakes, cereal, or ham and eggs this morning?"

Carl sat up and stretched, startled to see his mother standing there. "Oh, morning mom! Ham and eggs sounds great. I was having this dream, where I was walking down a crowded street dressed only in a pair of girl’s panties. Everybody would just smile and say hello, how are you, and continue on their way. I mean, nobody thought it was strange!" Carl replied.

Susan smiled at that picture.

After a breakfast of ham, scrambled eggs, home fries, OJ and whole wheat toast, Carl cleared the table, washed the dishes, put them away, and went to take a bath. "Let me run the water for you," Susan said, "I’ll put in some bath salts and beads to make you smell nice."

When Carl entered the fragrant-smelling bathroom, he saw a tub filled with lots of bubbles. This would be his first-ever bubble bath. Removing his robe, he got into the bathtub with its wonderful aroma and just let himself go.

"Carl, honey, remember to pat yourself dry, and use the body powder I left for you!" Susan said at the bathroom door. Carl followed instructions, and soon emerged from the bathroom, towel around waist, and headed for his room.

"Whoa, young lady, pull that towel up!" said Susan, "If you’re going to try this, you’re going to do it right. Now, pull that towel up under your arms, and cover that chest. Oh, Julie brought some things over for you. They’re on your bed."

"Yes ma’am," Carl replied, as he continued to his room. Upon entering his room, he saw the items laid out on his bed: a pink training bra, pink nylon panties with lots of lace and rosebuds, white anklets with a turned down lacey top and a red rose on the side of each, and white shoes with an instep strap.

"Need help, honey," Susan asked from the doorway, "Julie said to wear slacks and pullover."

"OK. Now if you’ll let a boy . . . errr, girl dress in peace, sheesh," Carl said, thinking, "I’ll try this, they’ll see how dumb I look, and that will be the end of it! Nick’s a nice guy, but I don’t think this is right for me."

After closing the door and dropping the towel, Carl selected the first item: the nylon panties. "These are just like jockey shorts, but no opening in the front," mused Carl, "I guess these rosebuds go in the front." Sitting down, he slipped the soft panties over his feet, then stood and pulled them up. The reaction he got from his penis was an immediately noticeable erection. The feel of the soft nylon against his skin was very different. The training bra was another story! "Oh, well. Mom can help there," Carl thought as he pulled on the anklets, a pair of blue slacks and the white shoes, finally fastening the instep strap.

"Hey, mom! I need some help with my bra!" Carl yelled.

Susan entered the room and, with a giggle, said, "I don’t believe this! Here I am, helping my son with his first bra!" She soon had the bra on, adjusted, and clasps in the rear fastened. "After you put your shirt on, I’ll fix your hair in the bathroom."

"Thanks, mom. This may be my first and last bra," Carl said, "remember, this is only an experiment, and they do have a way of going wrong!" That really didn’t come out the way he wanted it to, but she understood what he was implying.

After putting on the pullover, Carl followed his mother into the bathroom. Susan brushed and combed Carl’s hair, gathering it in the back into a ponytail which she secured with a hair ribbon tied in a bow.

"Well, I . . . em, . . . I guess I’d better go. I’m anxious to get this over with," Carl stated. He felt like he had re-created nitroglycerin, and now he was carrying it from one lab to another.

As he walked out of the house, he had the feeling that hundreds of eyes were watching, and all those watchers were saying, "That boy has on girl’s underwear. He is such a big sissy." What was only fifty steps felt like miles. Why did he ever agree to this. What the hell was he thinking of?

Arriving at the Franklin’s porch, Carl hesitated for a bit, swallowed hard, then walked up and rang the bell. The door opened, and a smiling Julie greeted him with, "I saw you stopping out there. Are you having second thoughts? Want to talk about it?"

"Hi Julie. Can I come in," Carl asked. Inside, they sat on a sofa, and Julie turned to him and said, "Are you having a problem with this? You know, YOU can call this off any time you want."

"Julie, I’m scared! I just don’t know about this," Carl said.

"OK, I can understand that. You think that if you put on a dress, people will think less of you, that it emasculates you and you aren’t a man! So what! When people show an intolerance for something that has absolutely nothing to do with them, they just show their ignorance. Let me say this: you seem to be a clean, kind, sober, gentle person, who’s good to women and children, works hard every day, and has good manners, Hope welcomes THAT kind of person!"

As Carl started to speak, Nick entered the room, and said, "Carl, relax. You can walk out of here, and we will still be friends."

"No, I’ve got to give this a fair trial. I mean, I’m wearing panties and a bra now, and I don’t feel a bit different. So, let’s shoot the works!"

Julie grabbed him in a hug, saying, "Let’s go upstairs and get you fixed up a little more."

In an upstairs bedroom, Carl removed shoes, anklets, slacks and pullover. He was standing there, in bra and panties, as Julie walked in, carrying a few more things. "Don’t be shy! I’ve seen Nikki in her panties, and she has seen me in mine. OK, let’s see--the breasts could be filled out a little more."

Julie went through the pile and soon produced two round, somewhat pink, mound-like objects. She walked over and placed them in the bra cups, saying, "these will do temporarily. They’ll give you that young, perky breast look! Later, if you like, there’s a store downtown that specializes in breast forms."

The next item, a pink garter belt. "What the heck is this?" Carl asked, holding it by the garters.

"That’s called a ‘garter belt.’ Put it around your waist, hook it up, and let the garters fall down through the leg openings in the panties," Nick said.

"You mean these things are called ‘garters,’" Carl said, as held one aloft.

"Yep!" Nick replied, as he left the room to do his own wardrobe change.

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Within the hour, Carl had on a cream blouse, turquoise jumper with a pale blue half-slip, black nylons and a pair of black 1" heeled shoes with a strap across the instep. He thought the nylons would be hard to put on, but they were easy--he kept his toenails clipped and filed. Nick contributed two bracelets, clip-on drop pearl earrings and a pearl necklace. Julie put on a light coat of foundation, blusher and lipstick on him.

"That’s funny!" Carl said, "I don’t feel different. I know I look different, but I’m the same person!"

"What did you expect--an instant transformation into some bimbo, or baywatch babe?" Julie said as she entered the room, "You’re not done yet; we have an appointment at ‘Pauline’s Pretty Palace’ for hair and nails. And before you say anything, it’s in Hope. So once you learn the ‘How’s’ to being a girl, we’ll take you on a trip to another city."

"You didn’t tell me about going to a beauty parlor!" Carl fumed. Had they tricked him? Was he going to be the butt of some elaborate joke?

"I can cancel if you want, Carl," Julie said, "just say the word!"

Carl sat there, giving the idea a lot of thought. This was, after all, his own fault. The clothes did feel nice on him, and he didn’t feel any less "manly" in them. He walked up and down for a bit, then turned to Julie and said, "It’s funny! I should be hating this--the panties, bra, the whole bit--but it really feels too nice to hate!"

"We about ready?" a voice from a doorway said.

Carl turned to where the voice was coming from, and saw her. "Nick! Is that you!" was the first words out of his mouth.

"It’s Nikki now," Nick replied, as he gave a little spin, twirling the dress, "Well, how do I look?"

Nikki was wearing a yellow sundress with a light blue sleeveless jacket, white anklets with a floral design, white moccasins, and a string of multicolored beads around her neck. The light brown hair had brushed back, fitted with a barrette, and pulled down over the left shoulder. The applied cosmetics enhanced a natural beauty in Nick’s face.

"I think I missed something, not asking you for a date. God, you are damn beautiful!" was the only comment Carl could make as he stood there, staring at his friend.

"Alright, out to the car, before you drool all over each other," Julie said, "and Darla, you sit up front with me. I don’t want any ‘accidents,’ or to have to stop to pull the two of you apart!"

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"Pauline’s Pretty Palace" was situated in a two-story mall of about fifty stores, a post office, bank branch, and three restaurants. At this time of day, it was crowded with shoppers, and Carl was again having a bit of a struggle walking through the crowd.

Julie took Carl’s hand and gave it a friendly squeeze. Nikki did the same on the other side. Carl didn’t know which one to appreciate more!

As they entered the shop, they were greeted with "Hi Julie! Hi Nikki! Who’s your pretty friend?" from an attractive middle-aged woman (Carl wondered, "Hope doesn’t seem to have any fat or unattractive females!") who appeared to be the owner, or at least the manager, of the establishment.

"Hi Pauline. How’s business? This is Darla, our new neighbor. The one I mentioned this morning?" Julie replied, followed by "Hi Pauline!" from Nikki.

Pauline gave Carl a big smile, then said, "OK, Carl. For our records, you’ll be Darla Parker, and when you make an appointment, it will be as Darla, OK?"

"I don’t know if I’ll be doing this for long as this is just an experiment," replied Carl.

"That’s OK, at least you’re trying it. Well, I’ll get you going," said Pauline, as she left to get somebody.

"Darla, you just remember, I’ll be right beside you," Nikki said as he gave Darla a big hug, and Julie replied, "Me too! Although Nikki is getting her hair done too!"

Soon Pauline returned with four ladies and introduced each: Gina will do wash and set, Pat will do manicures, Chris will take care of facials and makeup, and Nancy will handle pedicures. She then said, "Ladies, this is Carl Parker. He’s a new resident of Hope, and, I hope, a future customer of ours. He wishes to be referred to as ‘Darla.’ "

Carl, now Darla, was inundated with a hug and kiss from each of the ladies, then the three were escorted back to a work area.

The "work area" was a very large cubicle, with two chairs looking similar to barber’s chairs. Nikki took a seat on a chair near a sink, and indicated to Carl to do the same. Gina wrapped a tissue around Carl’s neck, then draped a plastic covering to keep his clothes from getting wet. Carl could see another one of the girls doing the same to Nikki.

"Darla, it’s alright to talk if you want. Girls in beauty parlors swap more gossip than a newspaper could print!" Gina said as she pulled Carl’s hair back, and started working in the shampoo.

"What are you going to do?" Darla asked.

"Well, I’ll start by shampooing your hair, to get it absolutely clean. Then a thorough rinse, after which I’ll working in a conditioner. While I wait for the conditioner to work, Chris will put a masque on your face. The masque is a kind of skin conditioner, pore cleaner and skin moisturizer all in one. After awhile, I’ll rinse out the conditioner, put your hair in large and small curlers, and remove the masque. Then we can do your fingers and toes, so you’ll need to take off your stockings later."

"I didn’t know it would be so much work," said Darla.

"Relax, let us do the work," Nancy added.

"Nikki, where’s your girlfriend?" inquired Pat.

"One is visiting her aunt, the other is traveling to Jersey," Nikki said.

"Darla, do you have a girl yet?" asked Gina.

"No, not yet!"

"He was making goo-goo eyes at Nikki in the car," Julie said, "I thought it best to keep them separated."

"Julie, don’t scare the poor girl!" came from Chris, "when we’re done, he’ll be busy fighting us off!"

"Darla, honey, you make me wish I was five years younger," said Nancy.

Their easy-going banter made Carl feel at ease, and soon he relaxed. There were questions about his hometown, which he fibbed about; schools he went to, and the bullies there; and, how did he like living in Hope so far.

While answering the last question, he was required to move to another chair, where he felt his hair being rolled up tightly in various size curlers. There were odors of the various chemicals needed for processing of his hair and nails. As Gina worked on his hair, Chris started removing the masque, with "I’ll do the make-up, as your fingernails are drying."

"Darla, put your hands out, so Pat can work," said Gina, as she put the necessary gels on his hair.

Carl complied with the request, and watched as Pat worked.

Finally, he managed a reply to the question: "At first, I didn’t think this town was any different from hundreds of others. But I saw a boy wearing panties, and I thought he was, well, strange. It seemed others didn’t care about the boy and what he did."

"Carl, sweetie, you couldn’t be so wrong!" Gina said, emphasizing his male name. "Chris is a battered wife. Her husband threw her down a flight of stairs. Nancy’s boyfriend got her preggie, then walked out on her. She lost her job over it. Pat had a child as the result of being raped. The women of this town don’t want to raise another bunch of so-called men, and if it takes making women out of them, we’re going to do it! When we find a nice, gentle soul, who’s down on his luck, or himself, we will take him in and teach him: there is no shame in being a woman, simulated or otherwise."

Carl took in all that was said, and felt his eyes start to water over the treatment these loving women had received at the hands of males.

"Darla, please don’t cry. You will mess up the makeup," Chris said, "and I’ll have to start over!"

Darla said, "Gee, Chris. I’m sorry! It’s just that it hurts me to hear what happened to you."

"None of that happens here," Julie said.

Soon, Darla and Nikki were finished. Darla had soft waves of golden brown hair falling to her shoulders, bright red toe nails and fingernails with 3/8" extentions, and a lightly done makeup of foundation, blusher, eyeshadow and lipstick.

Julie quickly grabbed hold of his hand and pulled him to the front to show him off to Pauline. Her reaction was: "I thought he might be fairly good-looking, but this is incredible!" She took Darla over to a full-length mirror, and turned him to face his new self.

Carl stood there for a minute, then reached out to finger the glass, trying to feel the young lady before him. It took him several tries before he realized it was no use; that he was looking at himself, at the Darla that was created from him.

"Wow! Darla, you look beautiful. You are going to be a real catch," Nikki said.

Darla turned towards Nikki, walked over, and gave him a big kiss and hug. "Nick. If I was a man now, I couldn’t do that. Men just do not show affection to each other. If they did, they would be labeled as ‘Gay,’ but now, as girls, we can do this and nobody thinks anything of it. I remember wanting to be close to my father, to hug him. But it was always a handshake. I could kiss my mother, but never my father. He said it wasn’t proper for men to kiss, as some people might get the wrong idea."

"Come on, you two. Say your good-byes to everyone. Still more shopping to do," Julie said from the doorway of the shop.

Nikki and Darla kissed and hugged each of the girls, then finally Pauline herself.

"The two of you: take care of each other. Good friends are hard to find!" Pauline said as they left.

Minutes after leaving the beauty shop, they entered a store specializing in ladies’ wear, mainly lingerie. Another one of those forbidden domains, off-limits to the so-called superior male who cringes at the mere mention of the name.

Carl hesitated at the door for a second, then asked, "Julie, are we breaking any laws? I mean, am I allowed in here?"

"Come on, we’ll ask," Julie said, taking him by one hand and, again, pulling him over to a salesclerk where she asked, "This cute little lady wants to know if we are allowed in here. She is really a boy! Her name is Darla."

The salesperson, a woman in her early forties, smiled at him and said, "Do you have any communicable diseases? Are you a shoplifter? Are you allergic to any man-made fibers?"

All Carl could do was answer ‘No’ to each of the questions.

"Well, Darla, my name is Ms. Beverly Slate. Call me if you need any kind of help!"

And that was it! Julie found an empty dressing room, Nikki found enough stuff to fill an hour of modeling, and they were off. Nikki in a sundress, Darla in a nightie. Nikki in a slip, Darla in a bra and panty set. Both in blouse and skirt. With Julie and Nikki out to look for more "stuff," it happened!

Darla was down to just the panties, no bra! The door opened and in walked a girl, just a year older. He couldn’t cover up, there was nothing to cover with! GREAT! "Yikes! I’m sorry. I thought this room was empty," she said, "the other rooms are in use. Say, would you mind sharing?"

Carl stood there, wanting to answer, but having no way to answer. What could he say? It seemed obvious to him that he was a male, so it should be the same to her! He started to answer, stopped, started again. "I . . . em, . . . er, that is, I . . .," he tried to get out.

"Darla, oh, hi Kelly," Julie said entering the room, "you meet Darla yet?"

The girl looked straight at him and said, ‘Hi Darla. I’m very pleased to meet you. My name is Kelly Roberts, and I’m a friend of Nick."

He didn’t want to, the way he was dressed, but he did manage to look her straight in the eyes. She was a dream. Her hair was a shade lighter than his own, eyes were an emerald green, and a grin. "Hi Kelly. I’m pleased to make your acquaintance," was all he managed to get out before she grabbed him in a hug and kiss.

"Does mean you’re willing to share," Kelly said with a lopsided grin.

Before twenty minutes had elapsed, there were three semi-clad bodies comparing the merits of various skirts, blouses, panties, bras and other underwear that, until today, Carl had no idea even existed.

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It was much later, as the three headed for home, the back seat and trunk filled, that Carl realized what had happened. "Oh my God. Oh my God. I was sharing a dressing room in a ladies’ store, half-dressed in panties, with a real girl."

"Are you OK? Do you want me to stop?" Julie asked from the front seat.

"Need something to drink? Shall we pull over?" came from Nick.

"No. I just realized what happened, and it all seemed so natural. I mean, we were there, both trying on girl things. She must have known I was a boy, but it didn’t bother her. Nick, . . . er, Nikki, I don’t understand!" Carl said in confusion.

"You acted civilized didn’t you? You didn’t say, ‘man, you have great tits,’ or ‘I’d like to get into your . . .,’ you get the idea," Nikki said.

"I think so. I really was having a good time. She was so easy to talk to, and, well, I just forgot where I was and what I was doing. I think we were enjoying ourselves. Oh, great! I wanted to get her phone number. How stupid, I meet a nice girl and . . .," Carl said, berating himself.

"Darla, do you trust me?" Nikki said.

"Truthfully, this morning I really had my doubts. But now, I’m sitting here with painted nails, hair that looks so lovely--there, I never used that word before--I could cry, and strappy sandals to show off my painted toes. Well, right now, I guess I had better," Carl said.

"OK, let’s go," Julie said as she started to speed up the car. She wasn’t driving back to the Franklin house, but to another town. It took almost an hour to get to the place she was headed for, a seafood restaurant. To the right of the place was a self-park lot where Julie pulled in and parked near a familiar-looking van.

What’s going on. Is there some secret that they aren’t telling me? Carl didn’t know what to think. He had to just follow along and trust in them, even though it was a blind trust. He went with Nikki and Julie around to the front and into the fairly crowded establishment.

Inside, they were met by a hostess, who asked, "Do you have a reservation?"

"We’re with the Franklin party, are they here yet?" Julie said.

"They arrived a few minutes ago. I’ll take you back to them. Follow me, please," the fairly attractive hostess said.

As they followed behind, Carl couldn’t help but notice all the eyes on them. Men smiled as the party passed. Nikki accidently(?) dropped her purse. Three men almost fought for the privilege of picking it up. Soon they were directed to a rather large booth. A very good-looking man stood to allow them to slide in.

Cass was the first to say anything. "Is this Carl? I don’t believe how nice you turned out! Much better than I first expected. Susan, meet the other part of Carl, Darla."

Susan’s eyes danced over her son. Her smile showed her approval. "You are sooooo pretty! I never thought I would have a daughter this beautiful. Oh, Cass, Julie, Thank you so much for bringing me a very lovely girl!"

Darla saw the tears in his mother’s eyes. He leaned over and, as best as he could, gave her a hug and a kiss. Dressed as he was, he felt so much closer to her now.

"Well, here they come. I guess we can order now. Oh, and everybody, this is on me!" the man said.

Two young ladies approached the table. Darla immediately recognized one of them.

"Kelly," he almost shouted. "I thought I lost you," he said a little more quietly.

The man got up to allow Kelly to sit beside Darla. After the two girls sat down the man resumed his seat, and smiled at Susan, giving her a nod.

"Carl, Darla. I’d like you to meet my new boss, Mr. William Roberts, and his daughters, Kelly and Kendra. Mr. Roberts took me on full-time as a partner!"

Mr. Roberts spoke next: "We will be handling all the taxes, accounting and related activities at the mall you were in this afternoon. Everything is already settled, and your mother is a full partner."

Cass was next: "Wilma has already put the whole deal through. The real need wasn’t for her, but for Mr. Roberts. The position he was filling was a little too much, and he needs time to be with his children. So, your mother seemed to be a suitable candidate for the position."

"Darla. I do know all about you. My daughter, Kelly, phoned me with all the details, about seeing you in the mall, and the fun she had. Carl--Darla. I don’t care. You and your mother are welcome at our house anytime!"

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Much later, Carl, wearing a sleep bonnet and a lilac Baby Doll, thought about the day. What did the future hold? Darla was a fun experience, and nobody was hurt by it. He shared a dressing room with a girl, and, later, went with her and Nikki to a ladies’ room. That was the first!

The tapping came first, then, "Are you in bed, sweetie?" followed. The door opened, Susan entered and closed the door behind her. Carl caught a brief glimpse of her white negligee. There was the weight of a person on his bed, the sound of shoes dropped on the floor, the feel of the sheet being lifted to admit another to the confines under it.

Carl had never experienced the closeness of his mother at night. They always slept apart, and he wondered at this sudden change as he felt her arm around him, pulling him into a more intimate embrace. "Mom," he said, "I had a great day today. So many new things--I even think Kelly will be a good friend!"

Susan pulled Carl closer and kissed him hard on the lips, and said, "I’m so happy for, son." She stopped, wondering if she should reveal her secret to him. "Carl, I’m glad you decided to do this today. Son, I have a big confession to make to you. I’m in love with you!"

Carl interrupted with, "And I love you too, mom. I will always love you for letting me find myself and whatever I turn out to be!"

"No! Carl, you don’t understand! I wanted you, to sleep with you. You were better than most of the men I went with! I wanted . . . . oh God, how DO I say this, . . . I wanted you inside me, to fill me. I had to sleep away from you because I couldn’t trust myself," Susan said, confessing her forbidden needs, "now, as Darla, I can come in and safely spend a night. When you’re Darla, I can love you as a daughter."

Carl lay there in his mother’s arms feeling so loved, not really understanding the difference. All he’s sure of now is the fact that he’s so much closer to his mother!

 

That’s all folks--Annie O

 

 

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© 2001 by Ann O'Nonymous. All Rights Reserved. These documents (including, without limitation, all articles, text, images, logos, compilation design) may printed for personal use only. No portion of these documents may be stored electronically, distributed electronically, or otherwise made available without express written consent of the copyright holder.