Norman the Cat

"Don't be," Janice answered. "I wasn't laughing at you, Jim. I was smiling because I was happy. Please don't ruin that for me. You seem to like me, and I know how I feel about you."

I stopped at the door and stared at the peephole that led to the hallway. At my ankles, Norman began weaving his way around and between my legs, telling me in his own inimitable way to either stay or leave. I still had yet to learn how to speak cat.

"I think it's so nice that you treat me with such respect, and I'm not used to that," Janice continued. "We can take this at any speed you want to, but just remember that you aren't taking advantage of me, and you aren't cheating on anybody either."

"You know, for somebody so young you have a way of figuring things out pretty well," I said in tribute to her psychoanalytical appraisal of me, which was painfully dead on.

"I guess that means you aren't mad."

"Will you need help with the leftovers?" I asked.

"I get out of work at 7," Janice replied.

"Then I'll see you at eight."

We kissed at the door, and although I tried to keep my messy front away from her, Janice didn't seem to share my concern. The press of her full breasts against me took my breath away, and I staggered down the hall to my own place with my head spinning and my heart pounding, trying to sort this all out.

Chapter 5. Leftovers.

I showed up on time the next evening to help Janice make a dent in the leftovers. We ended up on the couch again, and by the end of the evening we were necking up a storm.

My erection was less evident this time, thanks to some strategic alingnment I had made during one of Janice's trips to the bathroom. Janice's hand did not stray to find it this night either, although her hand did end up on my thigh. That was quite exciting as well, as the anticipation of wondering whether it would inch forward kept my interest piqued.

My roving hands were in action themselves. Janice was wearing a short-sleeved blouse with stripes that accentuated her generous bosom, and while my eyes strayed in that direction frequently, I was content to gently stroke the soft dark hair on Janice's forearms as we made out.

When I left Janice's place around midnight, I went home and took a long cool shower which I needed badly. While the shower was refreshing, it did nothing to relieve the pressure I was feeling from my cock, which continued to sway in front of me in a very stimulated state despite my regulating the water temperture downward.

My hand found the way down there with the soap, and then without the soap. I slowly began pumping myself with my fist for the first time in quite a while. What was definitely the first time was that while I worked myself up to orgasm, I wasn't thinking of Madeline and the way she looked.

This time I was thinking of Janice. Thinking of the way she kissed me so passionately and of the way she looked. My knees buckled as a result of the force of my orgasm, forcing me to lean against the shower wall for support, and as I orgasmed my mind was thinking of far less innocent things than kissing her.

As the spray of the shower washed away the evidence of what I had done I felt ashamed, but strangely enough not as ashamed as I felt I should. I didn't know what that meant exactly, but after I turned in for the night and I drifted off to sleep, my thoughts were filled with Janice, and sleep came easy and deep.

Chapter 6. Janice at work.

I had to get a screwdriver, or at least that was my excuse to go visit Janice's store the next day. I waited at her register even though I could have gone to the express lane, and it was worth it when her face lit up after seeing me in line.

"Morning beautiful," I said as she scanned my purchase.

"Planning on doing a little screwing around Jim?" she said with a wink, and cackled when she got the expected embarrassed reaction from me.

"You're cute when you blush," Janice said as she handed me the bag. "Too bad you didn't show up a little later so we could go get a cup of coffee on my break."

"I'll wait," I said as I headed for the food court.

"It won't be for a half hour," Janice said.

"See you in a half hour."

I dawdled around the food court until I saw Janice begin to close up her register, and got us both coffee. My timing was impeccable as I had only just sat down when Janice came walking quickly toward me.

"I only get 15 minutes," Janice said as I rose to greet her.

"Slave drivers," I muttered as I pulled her chair out for her.

"You're so sweet," Janice said as she pulled herself toward the table. "I love the way you do these little things for me, like pulling out chairs and opening doors for me."

"That sort of thing out of style these days?" I asked as I sat across from Janice, who looked radiant even wearing her faded blue smock.

"Pretty much," Janice replied. "You don't have to do it, you know."

"You're worth it."

"Oh wait... Melanie!" Janice called out to a woman passing through the cafe area.

"Hello Jan," Melanie said. Melanie was an young woman who was apparently a co-worker of Janice's.

"I'd like you to meet my boyfriend Jim, Melanie," Janice said as I rose to greet her.

"Oh, you're the one Janice can't stop talking about," Melanie said. "Nice to meet you."

Boyfriend. The word resonated in my ears long after the woman went on her way. I was Janice's boyfriend?

"You called me your boyfriend," I said as I swirled the stick around my coffee cup.

"I know I did, and you blushed when I said it," Janice said. "You are, aren't you?"

"Uh... I don't know. I guess I must be," I finally said. "It just seems funny to hear it."

"Funny or embarrassing?" Janice asked.

"Funny. It's just weird to hear an old fart like me being a boy anything."

"This age thing really bothers you Jim, doesn't it?" Janice asked.

"I guess it must," I admitted. "I feel like I'm doing something wrong."

"Look Jim, I'm not a child. I'm a woman," Janice said as she leaned down to keep her voice from carrying. "It's not like I'm a virgin or anything."

I must have recoiled at that revelation, because Janice seemed to notice a change in me. It shouldn't have surprised me, but it did.

"No, of course not. I mean that doesn't matter to me," I offered weakly.

"Well then what does it matter how old you are?" Janice said. "Besides, you don't look your age and you don't act your age. What ever happened to you're only as old as you feel, or whatever that saying is?"

"I guess you're right."

"I know I'm right," Janice said as she checked her watch. "You coming over tonight?"

"Um... yes. I guess I was planning on that."

"Then you must be my boyfriend, because now we just assume we're going to see each other," Janice said while she rose from her chair to head back to work.

I rose along with her and walked her to the store entrance.

"See ya at 7 then, boyfriend!" Janice chirped as she went back into the store.

I watched Janice's plump butt wiggle away before heading out to my car. I found myself whistling and gingling my keys as I walked through the parking lot with a bounce to my step. Once again a few minutes with Janice had made me feel happy as could be. Boyfriend, I thought to myself while shaking my head.

We had a great deal in common, despite our age difference. Janice loved to play Scrabble, which was a favorite of mine as well. When we first began playing I took it easy on her, figuring that a girl that had dropped out of high school would have a limited vocabulary.

By the end of the game, I had long since dropped that strategy, and had to pull out a victory with my last tiles. After that, she won her fair share of games, much to my dismay.

"Were you really trying?" I remember Janice asking after the first game she won, which she celebrated with a victory dance. "Oh-oh... guess so," she added after I snarled good naturedly at her. Janice needed no charity, and I respected her too much to give her any.

We both loved movies, and while Janice was mostly familiar with more recent films she was very willing to sample the older ones in my collection. When I saw her eyes water like Ingrid Bergmann's while we watched Casablanca, I was hooked.

Chapter 7. Everybody has a story.

Once night I invited Janice over for dinner at my place, and I made us a lasagna dinner that impressed Janice greatly. I could cook a little, and it had been so long since I made something that didn't go from the freezer into the microwave that I enjoyed doing it a great deal. Added to the fun was the fact that I was making it for Janice.

Afterward we ended up on my couch for our cuddling session, and after the televsion had become a night light our cuddling became more intense.

"Maybe now that we're on your home field you'll get a little more comfortable, and more rambunctious too," Janice whispered in my ear as we necked, and her hand slid over onto my thigh, squeezing it tightly before rubbing down toward my knee before sliding up.

My heart started skipping beats and my head spun as her pudgy little fingers found the bulge in my pants with her eyes closed. I let out a little cry and when Janice's eyes opened she saw me staring bug-eyed at her.

"Do you like me doing this?" Janice asked, and all I could do was nod.

"Would you rather I didn't?" Janice said.

"No, I mean yes, I like it."

"I'm sorry if you think I'm aggressive, it's just that I'm really crazy about you and I'm looking for ways to show you," Janice said.

"That's one way I guess," I croaked, and Janice stopped her fondling of me and pulled her hand away.

"You think I'm a real pig, don't you?" Janice said.

"No! Of course I don't," I said sharply.

"When I told you that I wasn't a virgin, that really upset you, didn't it?"

"No, I mean it's your business and everything, and I have no right to pass judgment on you," I said honestly. "It's just that things are much different today than they were in my day."

"These are your days, Jim" Janice said. "You keep making yourself out to be a fossil, and you aren't. You're a healthy and lively guy with as much energy as I have. Plus, you happen to be an attractive man with what seems to be a nice body under all your clothes, and I'm curious."

"I'm afraid you would be greatly disappointed."

"Look, if it makes you feel any better, I'm definitely not a virgin, but I've never made love to a man either," Janice said.

"Oh," I answered while trying to decipher what she was talking about. Janice was a lesbian?

"I wasn't going to say anything about this, but I figure that I might as well," Janice added. "After I get done, you probably won't want to be near me again anyway."

"That's crazy," I told her.

"We'll see," Janice replied. "I have a family, of sorts."

"I know, you mentioned that, but as I recall you didn't seem to want to talk about it."

"Right," Janice said. "My Mom died when I was eight, and my Dad was stuck trying to raise me and my kid sister Dawn. She's a year younger than me."

"That's so sad," I said. "That must have been very tough on you all."

"It was, and my Dad did the best he could," Janice continued. "He got a promotion at work which meant more money for us, but he had to start traveling on some overnight business calls. I told him that I could take care of Dawn and myself while he was gone, and I could have."

Janice's hands were shaking and I took them into my own and held them tight.

"His brother had just gotten thrown out of the house by his wife, who was divorcing him. My father got an idea that he could live with us until he found a place to stay, and that would allow him to take care of us on those nights he would be away. He said that he thought I could take care of the house and Dawn okay, but if there was ever a fire or something when he was away he would never forgive himself."

"Makes sense," I said.

"I would have preferred a fire, Janice said. "I was almost 13 and Dawn had just turned 11, and we had just gotten our own separate rooms since we were getting older. The first night my Dad was out of town my Uncle Paul came into my room to visit.

"Oh God," I croaked.

"There is no God," Janice said. "If there was..."

"Look, you don't have to tell me any of this Janice," I said.

"Yes I do," Janice choked. "Too far to stop now. Uncle Paul came in to tuck me in, which was kinda weird because I was a little old for that, but whatever. Anyway, he's all complimentary and everything. He tells me what a beautiful young lady I'm becoming, and how well dev..., shit! I'm sorry."

Janice was crying and there was nothing I could do to help but hold her as she let it allout.

"It's alright Janice, it's alright honey," I kept saying to her, but the helpless feeling I had experienced once before in my life was back in full force.

After a few minutes, Janice regained a degree of control of herself, gathering the used tissues up in a ball and squeezing them tight.

"Where was I?" Janice sniffed. "Okay. Uncle Paul spent that first night in my room for a half hour or so before he left. I felt disgusted and ashamed of myself for letting him touch me like he did."

"It wasn't your fault honey."

"I know that now," Janice said. "The next time my father was away, I went to my room right after dinner and tried to jam a chair against my door knob to keep him out. Didn't work. After he forced the door open and came in, I told him that if he touched me again I was going to tell my father."

"Good for you!"

"He laughed at me," Janice said. "He said that his brother would never believe me, and that even if he did the police would probably throw me and my sister in reform school because my father let it happen. Maybe they would just throw me in the reformatory for being such an liar. Then it would be just Dawn here in the house when my father was away."

"Son of a bitch!" I said, and I couldn't decide whether I wanted to put my fist through a wall or throw up.

"I couldn't let him touch Dawn," Janice cried. "She was only about a year younger than me but she was such a baby compared to me. the thought of that guy touching her... , well I couldn't let it come to that."

"So you kept quiet," I said softly as tears rolled down my face and Janice nodded.

"The touching was only the beginning. It got worse. Much worse. Every week and sometimes twice a week. Within a year he had done everything in the world to me that you could ever imagine."

"How... how long did this go on?" I asked.

"Over three years," Janice said. "I went on eating binges to try and make myself so fat and disgusting that he wouldn't want me. I wouldn't bathe. Anything that I could think of to keep him away. In the end, I thought I had won. He stopped coming into my room. Then one night I went to the bathroom and heard noises coming from my sister's bedroom. Bad noises."

"Oh no."

"I went berserk," Janice said. "I charged into the room and punched him and kicked him as hard as I could. He threw me aside like a rag doll and dragged me into my room. He accused me of being jealous of my sister because he didn't want me anymore. He told me to tell my father when he got home and I would see what happened."

"Did you?"

"Yes, I did," Janice said. "My father went into Dawn's room and asked him what happened. She said nothing happened. She told my father she thought I was on drugs or something because I had been acting weird. He got into my Uncle Paul's face and asked him what happened and he went into a crying jag, telling him how much he loved us kids and would never do anything to us. By the end my father was practically apologizing to him."

I couldn't find a word to say so just stood there with my poor Janice in my arms.

"I ran away from home and have been living on my own ever since," Janice added. "It was never easy and it was scary a lot of the time, but I survived. What little I have and what little I've accomplished, I've done on my own. So when I say that I have no family, now you know why I say that. And when I say that I'm not a virgin but have never made love to a man before, maybe you understand."

"Yes,"

"Maybe after you hear that, you'll think that I'm looking for a father figure in you," Janice said. "Maybe you'd be right. I don't know. What I do know is that I've been watching you every since I moved in here. Watching the little things you do for others, even when they don't know you do it. You're a good man, and I've asked around about you. People around here think a great deal of you."

"You even rescue runaway cats," Janice said with a giggle, breaking the tension a little. "Most of all, when I looked into your eyes, I saw someone just like me. Someone who might have ended up with the short end of the stick, but kept on going no matter how much it hurt inside. Someone who had so much sadness in them that it showed in their face. Someone that had a lot of love in their heart and no one to give it to."

"How in the world could you believe that I would think any less of you for telling me all that?" I asked. "I think you have so much courage that words can't describe it."

"If you were the man that I thought you were, I knew what you would think," Janice said. "And I was right."

We sat on the couch just holding each other tightly and listening to each other breathing, before Janice finally broke the silence.

"I'm sorry I ruined the evening."

"You didn't ruin it, Janice."

"Can I ask you two favors then?" Janice asked.

"Of course."

"One is that if you have any questions to ask about anything I've told you, please ask them now because I never want to speak about this ever again. Forget I ever said anything about it."

"Forget about what?" I asked. "What's number two?"

"Could I stay here with you tonight?" Janice said. "I don't mean anything by that. I just don't want to be alone."

"I know what you mean, and I have a nice pair of pajamas for you to wear."

I dug out an old pair of PJ's that Madeline had gotten for me as a joke just before she had gotten sick. Bright red in color with characters from The Simpsons all over them, I had stopped wearing them after Madeline had passed on, but at least Janice might get a kick out of them.

"Omigod!" Janice chirped when she saw them. "You like The Simpsons?"

"D'oh! Are you kidding?" I answered. "It's just about the only network show I watch these days."

"Incredible!" Janice said as she took the PJ's from me and went into the bathroom.

When she came out, she looked so cute my heart melted. We got into bed and after I turned out the light we embraced. Even though I felt the warm and wonderful curves, and delicious scent of a woman in my bed for the first time in so many years, this was not a night for thinking of that. It was a night of comforting and reassurance, and it was the most restful night of sleep I had enjoyed in a long, long time.

Chapter 8. Christmas Eve.

On the day before Christmas I was excited, and it had been many years since I felt the warmth and emotion that went with the holiday, and although I am not a religious man I was always fond of the season as it seemed to bring out the better side of people.

I had gotten Janice a diamond heart necklace after debating between that and a ring. I thought a ring might scare Janice off, and that was the last thing I wanted to happen, because the last month was so special for me. I actually was happy to be alive and looked forward to each day, especially when I would spend them with Janice.

I was also in the middle of trying to get Janice another present, one that would be very special and personal, but could also turn out to be disastrous as well. I was torn between just forgetting about it or going through with it, and it wasn't until the day before Christmas Eve that I talked to the people that would make it possible.