Also

There are places in this story where the same person is referred to as Missy, Mrs. Smith or Also. Please understand the names are to give the perspective of the person viewing her.

There is no overt sex. If you are looking for a cheap thrill you will not find it in my stories.

Hank Williams Jr stated once that he writes songs about subjects he knows. I write stories about what I understand the best; loving families, good neighbors and their pets.

Be kind with your remarks, I reserve the right to remove those that are offensive.

Me, Myself and I are totally responsible for any and all content in the stories I put out, be it good or bad.

If you are an author on this site PLEASE enter your pen name into a search engine; look to see if your works are posted on any other sites. I have recently found my work on another site without my permission. I recognized many of your names on the same site.

I have notified those who run this site about my findings. Please let them know if you find anything too. To give you a clue what to watch for look for sites that start with the word "SLUT....."

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Her name was Marty, but everyone called her Missy. I can't remember a time when I did not know her. We were born about a month apart, I was older. Her family and mine attended the same church so we saw each other every week in Sunday School. Mom and Dad sang in the choir, I was always among the first to arrive. Missy was almost always the last to arrive. Each time she would look around the room and smile when she saw me.

My name Is Timothy S McDougall, I answer to Tim.

The first I remember her, other than Sundays, was when we were 3 years old. We started in a preschool program that year. There were about 40 of us in that school; there were so many new faces and I was nervous. Each day I arrived in the middle of the group; as usual Missy was the last to get there. On the first day, when she walked into the room and saw me she smiled and walked right over. The world got better then.

After the first week of school we had made friends with most of those in our class; I tended to spend most of my time with the other boys and she did the same with the girls. Still when we first arrived we looked for each other. The day was just not right until we knew the other was there.

In the early spring we were outside for recess and I heard a girl talking loudly "NO! I don't want you to kiss me! Leave me alone! Stop that!"

I looked up and saw one of the 4 year old boys had backed Missy into a corner and would not let her out without a kiss. The other girls were holding back; afraid to try to intervene. I recognized the boy; he was referred to as Mighty Mike. He thought he ruled the playground. In reality he was a bully who did what he wanted, when he wanted. He was the largest child in the school.

I walked over and told him to leave her alone.

He responded "Make me."

I took Missy's hand and gently tried to pull her away; he swung at me, hitting the side of my face. The punch did not hurt all that much and I swung back a few times. He fell down and started to cry. Of course, the teachers only saw my actions and carted me away to the office. I was held out of the group for the rest of the day. Missy and the other girls tried to tell the teacher what happened, they didn't listen.

When my Dad came to pick me up that afternoon he was told I had beat up another boy on the playground. As we drove home he asked me for my side of the story.

I told him "Mighty Mike would not leave Missy alone; he cornered her and demanded a kiss from her. I stood up for her and he swung at me. I only hit him 3 times to protect Missy and myself."

He did not say anything; I felt as if he did not believe me. When we got home I ran to Mom and held her and cried. Why was she in the middle of making my favorite cookies, cocoanut and chocolate chip? She sat me at the table and gave me a warm one with a glass of milk. She then setup another place beside me and left to answer the front door. The next thing I knew Missy was there hugging me and calling me wonderful and crying.

Then her mother and father came into the room. I got a hug from her mother and her father shook my hand. He spoke "Thank you for standing up for Missy today, you are a good young man and should be proud of yourself."

Missy and I both got 2 cookies that day, before dinner! We all went out for pizza afterward.

As we were finishing eating 2 sisters I recognized from school ran over to Missy and me and told her how she was lucky to have a hero as a friend.

"So this is our young hero?" I heard from behind me. I turned to see their mother.

She continued, "Since I picked them up, all my girls have talked about is how you protected their friend Missy today."

"I only did what I had to do..."

I was cut off by a big hug from the oldest sister, Sally. She said "Mighty Mike has been picking on everyone there as long as I have been there. He is not so mighty any more."

I had trouble sleeping that night. Too many thoughts were pouring through my head.

The next morning I did not want to go to school. Dad explained that both he and Mom had to go to work and everything would be OK.

Mom took me in as usual. As we walked up the sidewalk I heard a girl squeal "That's him, he is here!" Things started to happen so fast that I had no idea what was going on.

I heard a deep booming voice saying "Are you the little bastard who beat my son up?" I turned to look at the mountain that had spoken. The mountain reached for me.

Mom pulled me away from his grasp. The 2 sisters from the night before came around the corner of the building with what looked like a General. The general turned out to be the Chief of Police in our town.

The children inside started chanting "Sissy Mikey, Sissy Mikey!" over and over again. Mom tried to push the man away as he reached for me again. She tore skin off of his face with her nails and sunk them into his arm. The Chief blew his whistle and everything got deathly still. No one moved, we all looked at him.

Finally he spoke "If you touch that boy or anyone else I will arrest you."

"He beat up my son yesterday, I want HIM arrested."

"The story I hear is your son deserved it by hitting him first."

The mountain looked at his son and roared "Is this true?"

Mikey pissed his pants right there.

At once 16 children started to talk about how Mighty Mike was a bully and how he was mean to all the others, and how I was the only one who dared to stand up to him, and how I was a hero, and they all hated Mikey.... I doubt anyone took a breath.

The chief blew his whistle again. Again there was silence and no movement.

The mountain looked at his son and asked "Is this true?" Then he turned and pointed to the first child and said "I want to hear what all of you have to say, one at a time."

As the mountain listened to all the children he got sadder and sadder and seemed to shrink. Finally he turned and spoke to his son "You owe all these children an apology. I have never been so disappointed in anyone in all my life."

Slowly Mike, not so mighty anymore, approached me and through his tears he said "I am sorry for hitting you and picking on Missy, I was wrong to have done that."

I held out my hand and slowly he reached out and shook it. I said "I accept your apology, please apologize to Missy too."

All the children spoke with him and they all shook his hand. He left crying, never to be seen in town again.

In our town there are 2 elementary schools, I went to one and Missy went to the other. We still saw each other in Sunday School. She smiled when she saw me for the first time each Sunday.

I had a reputation all through school of not putting up with bullies. I only had to make an appearance and the bullies backed off.

In Middle School Missy and I were reunited; we had many classes together. We walked together when we could. We ate lunch together every day. On Fridays, during lunch, the student council held a dance. Missy only danced a few times and only with me. By high school we were officially a couple.

The night of the senior prom we gave each other our virginity. Throughout the summer we continued to make love, we agreed to be married after we completed college.

I stayed at a local college and she went to State. We got together as often as we could on holidays and breaks.

My junior year I was offered a good job for the summer; they kept me on part-time when school started in the fall. If my grades stayed up they would refund the tuition I had spent for the semester. That next spring I had enough for a down payment on the house we dreamed about, with the promise of full time work when I graduated I bought it.

My senior year in college was tough; I figured Missy's was too. We called and spoke but she did not get back into town as often. When she did she was just tired. After settlement on the house I called and told her I had a surprise. I met her at her parents to pick her up and take her to see our house.

She came to the door and was crying. There was a man behind her I had never seen before. She was clearly pregnant. I asked if it was mine, she burst into tears and shook her head "No."

I said nothing. My world went dark; I did not hear her calling to me as I just turned around and left. I awoke the next morning down by the lake.

I heard they were married the next week, I sent a card wishing her well.

.I barely made it through school, the last 2 months I did next to nothing. I sold the house at a loss and left town after graduation.

I settled into a different life about 200 miles to the east. My degree was in Mathematics, with a minor in accounting. I found work building houses as I had done my first 2 summers in college. I liked the physical labor and did a good job; within 5 years I had my own crew. The work took my mind off of my loss, eventually I thought about it less and less.

One Friday the boss called me into his office "I have an employee who I think has the smarts to do the job, he just won't apply himself. I am going to give him one more chance working with you. If he can't or won't come around I will have to let him go."

He asked his secretary to send Lance in. I turned around and saw a mountain behind me. He was a big, fluffy, soft mountain; but he was still a mountain. I was still standing when he sat down; seated in the chair he was still as tall as me.

"Tim, this is Michael Smith. He goes by his middle name; Lance. Lance you are on your last chance with this company, if you can't cut it working on Tim's crew I will have to let you go.

Lance nodded with a frown on his face, "Please, I need the job to pay for care for my father; he was injured in a traffic accident a few years back and can not work. I will do the best I can."

He kept looking at me with a funny look on his face. As we left the meeting he asked how I got the little scar near my ear.

"I got it in the only fight I have ever been in; it was way back in pre-school. I stood up to a bully for a friend, he took the first swing then I finished the fight."

Lance started to cry "I thought it was you. I am truly sorry you got marked, I was stupid back then. I thought because I was bigger than most people I could do what I wanted. My father taught me that because I was big I had to be gentler than everyone else or I would be a pariah all my life."

I thought back to when I got the scar, "Your father was the mountain I saw the next morning, you're Mighty Mike."

He nodded. "I got marked too." He pulled his hair back off of his forehead and I saw the mark.

"I guess we are even then." I said. "For the record, I forgave you for your actions when I shook your hand."

"The rules on my crew are; everybody pulls their own weight, you do as you are told. If you are done with your work you help someone else, just as they will help you. If you come in stinking of alcohol, or filth, you will be sent home, 3 times you are gone. You will be a gentleman and treat everybody with respect. Follow the rules and there will be no problems"

"Yes sir, Tim. Thank you for the shot. I promise I will not let you down."

"You will be the low man on the crew; as you prove yourself you can move up. The first month or so you will work beside me; I want to see what you know and are capable of doing."

"Thank you Tim. May I leave now? I need to pick up Dad at his daycare."

"See you Monday."

Monday evening I spoke with the boss "Lance wants to be called Mike again. I knew him in preschool, he went by Mike then. He is next to worthless on the site and a danger to himself and others. He was never trained to do the job."

Shall I fire him?

No! He has a brain; I will take the time to train him correctly. Our work might be a little slow for a few months but I believe he has the capability to do the job. I think he can be one of our best if he applies himself."

"You are my best foreman; I will leave him in your hands. Keep me appraised."

The work was only slow for a week or so. I had picked the right horse.

The next Friday I drove home to see Mom and Dad. I told them all about Mike. The last thing I said was "He is a very smart fellow; people tend to talk down to him because he is so large. I may be the only person who can bring him around; since I am the first one who brought him down."

Saturday morning I ran across Sally at the hardware store. She was the older of the 2 sisters in the pizza place so long ago. You remember; she was the daughter of the police chief. I asked how it was going with her fiancé, Bob. She told me they had been broken up for about 6 months and he moved away from town.

I asked her if we could see each other and she smiled and nodded yes. I took her to dinner that evening; afterward we walked around the lake in the center of town. We talked about old friends. Finally she got around to Missy and asked what happened between us. I told her about the baby and her marriage.

She was shocked to hear that. She told me that Missy was single and living just outside town, she had no children. Missy was a very popular teacher in her old elementary school. She was never seen around town on dates. The only time she was seen was in church or at work.

Sally and I dated for a year, I proposed to her at midnight on New Years Eve; we were married the following spring. We had never discussed it but I found out she was a virgin on our honeymoon. We moved into the house I owned in my new hometown. Just after our second anniversary we had our first child; a girl we named Maria. 22 months later we had our second; a boy we named him Patrick.

Mike proved to be a good worker and a steady learner; he now has a crew of his own. He and his Dad are frequent visitors in our home. They have proven themselves to be true gentlemen.

Life was good for the next 3 years. Then my world fell apart for the second time.

Shortly after New Years Sally came to me and said that Bob had recently bought a house in town and they ran into each other at the store. They got to talking and they still had feelings for each other. They had met a number of times and were certain they were still in love. As much as she loved me, she loved him more. I asked her to wait and see; but she filed for divorce, Bob filed for divorce from his wife and they were soon married. He owned a house on the next street over..

Since I was the sole owner of the house we lived in it remained mine. She took nothing and gave me primary custody of the children with the understanding that they could visit whenever they wanted. She only wanted to be with her true love.

Sally and Bob seemed to be doing well. I had my children. Other than that my life was hell. I went to work, came home, took care of the children and just existed. In fact I only lived for my children.

Shortly before Labor Day we were shopping for new school clothes when I heard a voice behind me. "Tim! Is that you?"

I turned to see who was speaking and saw Missy. I introduced her, to Maria and Patrick, as an old friend.

Missy said she was teaching in our town; she had moved here with her husband, but was recently divorced. She did not have any children, and was renting an apartment nearby.

As we parted Maria and Patrick were whispering to each other. I asked what they were talking about, Maria just smiled. Patrick giggled and almost shouted "She likes you Daddy."

I said nothing as we headed to the car and home.

Finally after supper and bedtime stories as I tucked them into bed Maria asked "Why don't you like the lady today?"

I told Maria that she was a special friend a long time ago, but that time was long over.

Maria gave me a hug and said she loved me, and then lay down to sleep.

The Wednesday after Labor Day I put Maria on her bus for the first day of school. She hugged me and went off to fight all the new dragons in kindergarten. That evening I picked up both children at preschool and we went out to McDonalds to celebrate the day. There was an after school program there too.

As I was driving I asked who her teacher was.

She responded "Mrs. Smith. She is a really nice lady. I had a good time today."

"I am glad you like your school."

The children in the back seat were whispering and pointing at me and giggling.

"Do I have a frog on my head or something?"

"No, we were talking about school." Maria responded.

"OK, let me know when the frog gets here."

They giggled.

The second Tuesday in October was the first PTA meeting of the year. I left both children with their mother and went to see how Maria was progressing. There was a business meeting first and then there were appointments to see the teachers. I found out I was last to see Mrs. Smith so I looked around the school to see the rest of it. I had been the construction foreman a few years before. I liked what I saw.

I was 3 minutes late to see her teacher. I walked in ready to apologize and stopped dead in my tracks, at a loss for words.

Mrs. Smith pointed to the chair in front of her desk and asked me to sit.

I did.

"Maria is a bright child, her behavior is exemplary, and she is a leader in her class. The children all look up to her just like the children looked up to her daddy years ago."

I nodded.

"Tim, I need to talk to you and explain what happened years ago. I put you last tonight because you deserve an explanation about what happened. Can we go elsewhere and talk privately?"

I nodded.

"It is 8:05 now; may we meet at the coffee shop across from the school in about 20 minutes?"

I nodded, then got up and left.

I felt like my world was imploding. My ears were ringing, my hands were shaking and sweating, my throat was as dry as a desert.

I took a booth in the farthest corner that I could find, ordered a coke and waited for all the old wounds to be reopened.

As usual Missy was just barely on time. She sat across from me and took a sip of her coffee. We looked at each other, not a word was said. Finally I cleared my throat and opened my mouth to speak.

Just before the words came out she squeaked "No! I have practiced what I wanted to say since we parted so many years ago. It just does not want to come out."

We sat in silence for another 5 minutes.

Slowly and quietly she began "It was all a bad dream back then. I went to a Christmas party on campus and had too much to drink. My roommate asked someone to get me home. John, that's the man you saw at Mom and Dad's that evening, was the one. The next morning I woke in his bed, we were naked. I just sat up and sobbed. He woke up and asked me who Tim was. Later, when I missed my period I knew I was in real trouble."

She paused and took another sip of her coffee. I said nothing, just waited for her to continue.

I could barely hear her as she continued. "I couldn't saddle you with my mistake. I insisted he marry me and make the child legitimate. We argued for months about that. Finally he gave in. A few weeks after I told you, the baby miscarried; now I did not have you or the child. He had the marriage annulled and disappeared. I never saw him again."