Transformation

It was guilt that made her pull herself away from Alan rather hurriedly. The fact that the artist was a young and brash cherry made it all the more uncomfortable. She felt like she had been caught doing something she wasn't supposed to be doing and there was the nun from her Sunday school coming down to thrash her.

Alan noticed the urgency in her conduct. He understood through their personal mode of communication the reason and decided to help her out. "So, Elizabeth, what do you think?"

She was mum. She knew that she was with her son, but the cherry probably thought otherwise. She was his mother but she was acting like his...his...she couldn't even say it to herself. The cherry must have looked down upon her and apparently she deserved it, so she thought. At the very least, the cherry must have seen an older woman with a younger man, and that also didn't come across that well.

"Very nice," Alan answered the artist with a broad smile.

Elizabeth felt even worst. She was with a younger man who was busy doting over the young artist. It was probably a tinge of betrayal that saddened her heart. What if she really was an older woman with a younger man and he chose to flirt with a young, nubile body? Imagine the insult.

Alan took her hand again and moved away, still smiling broadly.

She looked at him and said, "Very nice, meaning the art or the artist?" Her voice betrayed the hurt, slight as it may have been.

"Both," he said smugly. "Although I didn't like the 'in your face' approach. It wasn't so much sexy as it was crude. There is no room for crudeness in an act that is supposed to be tender sharing of two individuals with each other."

She pulled herself away from him and looked at him intently. "I can't believe how grownup that comment is!" She exclaimed.

"Well, I am not a little boy any more, mom, in case you didn't know." He was turning red.

"So, now it's 'mom', is it?"

"Okay, 'Elizabeth', then." He said her name with heavy emphasis. "By the way, the artist was really nice. Nice body, I suppose, and a pretty face. But, I'd rather be with you, though."

"Me?"

"Yeah, you." He reached over and messed her hair a little. "You little insecure thing, you!"

She slapped his arm and protested "I am not insecure." Then she took a few quiet steps while trying to calm her nerves after being so caught by him. She felt embarrassed and excited at the same time. He was awfully thoughtful as well.

"Let's say that I am 'Elizabeth' and not 'Mom'. Why me then and not her?"

"Can't explain it. Maybe it's your strength. You're restrained, controlled. Her artwork is supposed to be, for lack of a better word, 'her'. So look at it: flourishes and curlicues. Undisciplined. Is that what you'd draw?"

"No, I guess not. Not that I'm any good but I'd be a minimalist -- showing just enough to entice ... and entrance ... and enrapture ... and encapsulate ... to get the idea across. I'd want a patron who saw that and didn't need to have everything explained in step-by-step terms before he understood exactly what I was trying to do. I'd want him to sense where I was going and fill in the blanks by himself, to take charge of his interpretation. To take ownership of it."

Alan looked at her with amazement. "See!"

He also took a few quiet steps and then looked at her rather naughtily. "That was also a very grownup comment. So you too know about tender sharing of two individuals?"

"Well, I am not a little girl anymore either, 'son'," she emphasized the word 'son', "in case you didn't know."

"Oh, I know," he extended his arms towards her while panting like a dog. "Boy, do I know!" He came towards her with his tongue hanging out and hands ready to grab her body. She slapped him jokingly while pretending to run away from him. He gave a mock chase and the two of them fell to the ground laughing.

Elizabeth asked, "You want me over that tender, succulent body?"

"Pity we're in public."

Elizabeth felt her heart suddenly pound in her chest. She didn't know if he was still joking or if he had said that seriously. The look on his face was sober while his eyes were focused in a distance somewhere beyond the trees in the park.

They stayed in that contemplative mood for a while. Then she got up, knocked the grass off of her clothes, came in front of him and offered him her hand. As he got up with her help, she stared into Alan's eyes and realized she was aroused. The erotic art? The discussion? She knew it was neither.

"Why don't we go out somewhere for dinner? I know a place." She parted her lips slightly and looked at Alan. As he looked back she unconsciously bit her lower lip.

"I'd like that." He agreed softly.

They resumed walking, hand in hand. It was early evening when they left the exhibits and went back to the car. "That was a good afternoon. I'm glad you mentioned it."

He raised her hand to his lips and kissed the back of her fingers gently. "Yeah!"

As she pulled out of the parking spot she realized she was looking forward to the dinner.

For whatever reason, it was a quiet night at the restaurant. The diners were seated at scattered tables throughout the room. Elizabeth pointed to a table for four near a corner and next to a window that looked out on to a small park across the street and a waiter took them there. Initially they sat on opposite sides of the table. When Elizabeth indicated with her eyes that she wanted Alan sitting next to her, Alan changed seats.

They dined slowly, taking their time between courses. Sometimes they talked, sometimes they didn't. Sometimes they held hands, sometimes Alan would rest his hand on her thigh. Elizabeth paid the bill and they relaxed with their coffees.

"It's very dark outside," she said after about a year. "Time to get a move on back home."

Alan leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. "Thanks for the dinner."

When they stood, Elizabeth put her arm in Alan's and they walked slowly back to the car. Her head was leaning on his shoulder all the way to the car. Alan opened the door for her on the driver's side and then got in on his side. Inside the car, Alan leaned over and Elizabeth turned to him. They kissed, opening their mouths and letting the wetness mix a little. "Thanks for dinner."

"You already said that." Her face broke into a smile. "But it's always nice to hear someone say 'thank you'. And I think that kiss said 'thank you', too, so I guess that's three times you've said 'thanks' for the dinner. Don't have to go overboard, you know." She felt she was jabbering on. Why was she so nervous, she wondered? No, not nervous; excited!

He took her hand in his and they sat there for a while. It was her who ultimately pulled it away and started the car. The trip coming home was travelled in complete silence.

At home, she dropped her keys onto the front table and placed her purse next to them. As she started to walk away, she stopped, picked up her purse and carried it to the foot of the stairs where she set it down. She busied herself doing several inconsequential tasks in the kitchen and realized she was just delaying.

She walked into the living room. Alan had closed the curtains and was standing in the middle of the room. He walked over to her.

Her excitement betrayed her first. Her voice quivered slightly when she suggested they might play a game of cards or something.

Alan said nothing. He simply pulled her close to him and moved to kiss her. Gently, with a promise. Elizabeth's lips parted and Alan moved to kiss her upper lip. Using his lips he nibbled on her lip and then repeated the motion on her lower lip. Elizabeth felt herself responding and she kissed back, her tongue seeking his. Instead of rushing through the awakening and the sensual arousal, they enjoyed exciting each other and gradually increasing their levels of pleasure.

When he moved his hand to her breast and cupped it, she suddenly came out of the trance. She withdrew abruptly and stuttered, "No. Stop."

His hand froze on her breast. She pulled herself away from him and stood there for a short while, confused. Then she quickly grabbed her purse and keys and ran upstairs to her room, while he just stood there watching her go.

She dropped her duvet onto the drawer of memories to hide herself away from her prince and fell face down onto her bed, sobbing. She didn't realize she had so many tears bottled up as it poured all night long.

She woke up with a strong headache and slight fever. Her body was aching and her mind was numb. She stayed in bed. Alan came up to see her and knew what she was going through. He brought her breakfast and some aspirin. She ate quietly and went back to crying. He brought her lunch. She ate quietly and went back to her misery. The tears were starting to dry up but the pain was still there.

He brought her dinner and her suffering started to turn into anger. Anger at the situation that had brought her so close to her son, when under normal circumstances it would have been impossible for the two of them to get so close. She felt betrayed by her prince, hurt by his absence. She so longed for circumstances to be normal.

Around midnight, when she felt all cried out, she heard Alan's footsteps coming towards her room. He lifted the sheet covering her and snuggled next to her. He quietly held her in his arms and silently comforted her.

She finally fell asleep so shielded by him from the rest of the world.

It took a few days for her to get over things and finally she managed to be with Alan as before. The duvet stayed on the drawer of memories.

The following Saturday, Alan took her to dinner. He wanted to treat her. The build-up to dinner was nowhere near what it had been previously, but the evening was enjoyable nevertheless. He was much more caring but also quite careful with his movements. She noticed it and felt bad for her reaction the other night. It was the right reaction; she was just sorry she had let it go that far.

After dinner, they took a nice stroll in the parking lot. The restaurant was right next to a mall with a movie theatre inside. On impulse, Alan started to move towards the mall and soon they found themselves at the tickets window. All the movies had already started playing. Alan picked the one that had started most recently and in they went.

She didn't even know what movie it was or what it was about. She just followed his lead as he dragged her in by pulling her hand, which had been in his ever since they came out of the restaurant.

They let their eyes adjust to the darkness and when they were able to make out silhouettes in the theatre, they realized there weren't that many people watching it. Alan led her to the right back corner and positioned himself on a seat. She slumped in next to him. Once they settled in, he turned towards her and pulled her from her shoulder to make her move towards him.

Instinctively she kissed him softly on the lips and let the kiss linger. "Thank you, darling."

"You're welcome." He kissed her back, letting his lips open and holding the kiss a little longer. "And thank you. For the kiss."

Alan pulled her close, reached and tilted her chin back. Her eyes were closed. He kissed her on the tip of her nose and then on her lips. She responded slightly and he kissed her again.

Then once more. Her emotions stirred and she parted her lips. Alan did the same and kissed her again. Longer, still gently. Less tentatively. His tongue reached out and tasted his mother's lips.

She felt the ache and the want rise within her. God he was handsome.

They kissed then paused and held each other and then kissed again. She felt so aroused, so alive, so wanted. Waves of pleasure and emotions washed over her. Her breasts were so sensitive that she thought she could feel every individual nerve impulse they were sending. But his hands weren't there. It seemed he was deliberately staying where she was comfortable. She relaxed and revelled in the sensations. Another kiss.

When they broke it she said "Mothers and sons don't usually do this." Her voice was neutral.

"I know. But they should, it is a lot of fun."

She laughed hard. Some silhouettes turned and someone whispered, "Shhh!"

"Sorry," she replied and then made herself comfortable in the seat. His joke had broken the mood, so to speak, so they started to watch the movie.

They walked back to the car, hand in hand, but with no spoken words, each thinking his or her own thoughts. Alan opened the door for her on the driver's side and then got into his seat. She put the key into the ignition turned it to auxiliary. Once the music started, she tilted the seat back until she was lying comfortably and just relaxed. He tilted his seat back enough to be able to see her face and then they both sat their quietly listening to the music. She was watching the light through the windshield and he was watching her.

She waited.

She didn't have to wait too long before he leaned over her and placed his lips on hers. He was just touching them softly and moving them around in a slow and gentle caress. His hand moved to her belly and started doing the same thing to her stomach. She closed her eyes and just took in the sensations emanating from all over her body. His warm breath was tingling her nerves around her face.

From her lips, he moved to her right cheek, which was closer to him. Same caressing with an occasional rub with the tip of his tongue. He continued this all over her face and then moved back to her lips. She opened them to invite a deeper kiss, but he moved away. He was teasing her and she was starting to get really warm.

Another round around her face and back to her lips. This time she was determined to get that kiss. She placed her hand behind his neck and held him in position while her lips melded with his. At first he tried to resist but then they both settled into one long, heavy, passionate kiss. They kissed hard, they kissed soft, they kissed with their tongues fully involved, and they kissed with only their lips pecking. It turned out to be a long make-out session with occasional breaks to catch their breaths and to rest their jaws. His hand stayed on her stomach all the while.

She was feeling good. She had never realized how good just kissing can be. She was aroused and she was wet, but there was no touching of the breasts or privates. She liked it. Pure and simple kissing without the burden of having the mind wander to other things.

He was quite collected. He showed no urgency for a young man and his hormones didn't try to spill over into her, as she knew it to be the case with men of his age. It was she who finally took his hand and placed it on her breast, letting him know that it was okay, that she was ready. That's when she became aware of his clumsiness.

He didn't really know what to do with them. As they settled into another long and passionate kiss, she guided his hand with her own and showed him how to play with his breasts, occasionally whispering into his ear to squeeze her nipple or to cup and press her breast in a certain way, using her hand on top of his to show how much pressure he needed to apply and how much area to cover in one continuous motion.

He was a fast learner. Soon his hand was delivering as much pleasure as his mouth was. Twice the pleasure, in stereo, she smiled with the thought. She was more in a position to receive than give and she was okay with it, as it seemed was he.

By the time they decided to get a move on, her seat was wet from all the juices dripping down through her panty and skirt. His balls were aching because of all the build up and his legs felt very weak. She couldn't keep her foot on the gas pedal as it was shivering with the cold excitement of the night.

Once back in the house, they rushed through the freshening up and met back in the living room. He held her in his arms and continued the kiss from the car. She responded and kissed back tasting him. Her mouth relaxed and she kissed him enjoying the stimulation. She broke the kiss, took the initiative and kissed him moving around his mouth so that this kiss was not like the last and would differ again in a moment. Alan understood and returned the kisses.

She relaxed and revelled in the sensations. Another kiss. She shifted again and held his face in her hands. Suddenly she kissed his lips several times in quick secession then kissed him hard. Her tongue moved against him. Hard. She broke the kiss and kissed him quickly on the forehead.

Elizabeth withdrew for a moment and Alan led her to the sofa. He settled into it and she straddled him. Alan had never seen something as sensuous as his mother spreading her legs around his and positioning her buttocks on his thighs. She whispered in his ear. "Ohhh, I love the way you kiss me. I can feel it all over me."

It was much more comfortable to talk in the security of her own home.

Alan moved and kissed her on the ear lobe. "Here?" He heard a sigh. On her neck. "Here?" A deeper sigh. On her lips. "Here?" She kissed him back hard.

He moved his hand to her breast and cupped it before moving his hand against it and then taking the nipple and giving it a slight tweak.

"Harder."

He again squeezed her breast and played with the nipple.

"Yes. Like that!" A pause. "Oh, god, yes. Like that. Oh, again! Ohhhh. Mmmmm." She kissed him back harder and moved her hand under his shirt and played with his chest. She found a nipple and squeezed it forcefully. Alan squeezed back the same way. "Ohhhh, yesssss."

Alan moved his hand so he could undo her bra. He fumbled briefly; she pulled away, quickly undid it and returned to kissing him. Alan moved his hand under her blouse to the bare breast. He caressed it gently at first and then, with a sureness and confidence he did not know he had, began to unbutton and remove Elizabeth's blouse. She discarded her bra. Alan put one hand on each of Elizabeth's shoulders and looked at Elizabeth's breasts. He moved his hands simultaneously toward them, held them both, caressed them both, played with both their nipples. He looked up and realized Elizabeth had been watching his face throughout. There was an expression on her face and Alan tried to fathom it. Want? Love? Challenge?

He bent over and tentatively kissed one breast. A second kiss. Another. He kissed the other breast while playing with a nipple. He placed the erect nipple between his lips and gently sucked while his tongue played with it."

A shiver ran through Elizabeth. She reached and started to pull Alan's t-shirt up over his chest. Alan moved so that she could pull it off over his head.

"I never thought. I never realized. God, you're gorgeous. You're fucking beautiful. How could I not have known? I didn't realize." He pulled her close and whispered his thoughts into Elizabeth's ear.

Elizabeth leaned back. She laughed quietly, "I'm glad you've realized now."

"Damn, all this time. I should have been paying much closer attention."

"Yes, you should have." She smiled gently, making it clear that any mocking tone in her voice was intended to be playful. "Perhaps you will from now on."

"Well, part of me is definitely at full attention!" They laughed. "I have to do this." He reached down into his pants and adjusted his erection. Elizabeth watched. Alan resumed kissing her and feeling her respond. His hands moved on her body and it responded. He drew his fingernails down her back and she arched back and looked up toward the ceiling. Alan kissed and fondled the breasts that were now available, then leaned back.

Elizabeth moved her fingers to his chest. She traced the outline of muscles and then bent to gently kiss his chest. Once. Twice. Three times. She moved and placed her lips around a nipple and then used her tongue to play with it. Alan let out a slight moan. Elizabeth moved in closer so that her groin pushed against Alan's and kissed him deeply. Alan kissed back and tried pushing his erection against her. Elizabeth felt the movement and changed position slightly so that the bulge moved against her. Alan pushed again and Elizabeth let out a slight gasp and whispered "Oh, yes. That's so right."