Compensation

I was sitting in the living room, freshly showered when my mother came home. The sheets were in the wash and my bedroom windows were open for the fresh air.

She came through the door and stopped. "Two days in a row?" she asked.

I just smiled.

Mom sat in the armchair. "Do you really like this girl?" she asked.

"I do," I confessed. "I like her a lot."

"Could this become a serious relationship?" she asked.

"I can't speak for her," I said. "But I would like it to last for a long time."

"Maybe I should meet her," Mom stated.

I couldn't breathe. I tried to recover. "I don't know," I said.

"Is that a problem?" Mom asked.

"I don't know if she's ready for that," I said.

"Well, suggest it to her and let me know," Mom said.

I couldn't sleep that night. I wanted to pick up the phone and call Cheryl but didn't because I didn't want to put her in a situation of having to explain the call.

Thursday morning, Cheryl came through the door and I had her sit down. I explained what my mom suggested.

"It's not unexpected," commented Cheryl. "I know your mom well enough to have expected her curiosity."

"So, what do we do?" I asked.

"We're going to be all right," said Cheryl.

"How can you say that?" I asked. "Mom's certain to keep pushing to meet you."

"Not me," said Cheryl. "The nameless girl."

"That's not comforting," I said.

"I think a solution is easy," said Cheryl. "You have to break up with this girl and we need to find another place to meet."

I thought about that for a second. "I understand the first thing but where can we go?" I asked.

"You handle the first and let me handle the second. Meanwhile, come with me."

We went into my bedroom and began a third day of intimate activities. When she left that afternoon, she kissed me and said, "Don't forget to break up with me."

When mom came home that afternoon, I was sitting on the sofa with my best impression of an unhappy teen.

"Is everything okay?" mom asked.

"She broke up with me," I said.

"Oh, no," mom said and sat down. "What happened?"

"She said she wasn't ready to meet my parents or any of my friends," I said.

"She doesn't sound like she shared your feelings," mom said.

"I feel like an idiot," I said.

"Don't," said mom. "Everyone I know, including me, has had that same feeling of disappointment and loss that you're feeling. You'll learn and be better the next time."

"Thanks, mom," I said and gave her a hug.

"You're welcome," mom said and headed for the kitchen.

Cheryl texted me in the middle of the night. "Meet me early this morning at War Memorial Park. I'll drive."

"K," I responded.

A second message followed. "Remove these messages from your phone and don't put my number in your contacts."

Another, "K." I put her number in my contacts as a second number for Jason so I wouldn't forget it and deleted our short conversation.

The next morning, I lounged around until my mother left for work. "Did you remember your badge?" I asked in defense not wanting her to return after I left for the park.

Ten minutes later, I was showered, dressed and on my way to the park. Cheryl was waiting for me, her engine running. I parked and climbed into her passenger's seat. She was on her way almost before I managed to close the car door.

"Where're we going?" I asked.

"I think you'll like it," she said cryptically. "Remember the route so you can drive yourself next time.

She drove to the edge of town, turned into a development of garden apartments and parked behind the last building. She had a key to a door of a middle unit. She handed me a duplicate key. "You'll need this," she told me.

The unit was a two-story arrangement with a small rear foyer, washer, drier and utility sink. A short hallway led to a large living room, ample kitchen and a full bath. Upstairs was three bedrooms, one large with a king-sized bed and two more bathrooms.

"Wow, this is incredible," I commented. "Whose is it?"

"Ours until the end of August," Cheryl said. "The owner is a teacher who is on vacation until then. I told her I'd take care of it while she was gone. I hadn't planned to use it this way at the time but I'm glad I volunteered."

"So am I," I agreed.

"That means we have to leave it the same way we found it every day. We can't use any other rooms except one bedroom and we need to leave it neat and clean," Cheryl explained. "That reminds me. Give me a minute."

Cheryl went back out to her car and returned with a shopping bag. "Clean sheets," she said. "King sized."

"You're certainly prepared," I complemented her.

"Thanks," she said. "We replace the sheets on the bed with these and put it all back together when we're done. I'll take these with me and bring them back clean the next day."

"King sized?"

"I thought we could use the space," Cheryl said with a happy grin.

We did. We didn't even take a break for lunch. "Won't Jason be suspicious?" I asked.

"I don't think so," said Cheryl. "I told him where I was going and that I planned to use the time to catch up on my reading in a quiet place."

Mid afternoon, Cheryl drove me back to my car and I went home. Jason called me in the evening. "Hey, guy," he queried. "Where you been? I called you and you didn't answer. I went to your place and you weren't home. What's up?"

"I was out of town," I told him.

"Something I should know about?" he asked.

"Nah," I said. "I can handle it."

"Are there girls involved?" he asked.

"No," I told him with my fingers crossed. It didn't involve "girls" since only one was involved and she was a woman, not a girl."

"Tomorrow, then?" Jason proposed.

"I'm busy tomorrow," I informed him. "Maybe over the weekend."

I could hear the disappointment in his voice. "Okay then, I'll see you Saturday."

Friday was a repeat of Thursday except that I drove myself and Cheryl and I went overboard since we didn't think we could see each other over the weekend.

Jason came over on Saturday. He seemed distracted. Something was on his mind. "Hey, pal," I asked. "Are you all right?"

"Mark," he opened. "I'm going to ask you a direct question and I expect a direct, honest answer."

"Ask away," I invited the question.

"Are you fucking my mother?"

I was stunned. Not the question I expected. Not even close. "What makes you think that?" I asked.

"I followed you yesterday. You went to an apartment outside of town. My mother's car was already there. You were there until mid afternoon. You left first and my mother left about ten minutes later. So, I ask you again. Are you fucking my mother?"

"It's not what you think," I deflected.

"What else is there to think?" asked Jason. "Last night my mother was washing sheets, not from any bed in our house."

"It's complex," I tried again.

"God damn it, Mark," half shouted Jason. "Just say it."

"Yes," I shouted back. "Your mother has been sharing sexual favors with me but it's because of you."

"What the fuck are you talking about? I didn't know anything about it," yelled Jason.

"You're alive," I stated.

"What the fuck?" blurted Jason. "Why does that matter?"

I tried to calm the conversation. "After your accident," I started. "Your mother was convinced that I saved your life and she wanted to reward me for my efforts in making that happen. We discussed it. She wanted to give me something as valuable to her as your life was to her. When she found out I was a virgin, her decision was made. I couldn't talk her out of it."

"You bullshittin' me?" asked Jason.

"God's honest truth," I responded.

"How did she find out you were a virgin?"

"I told her."

"Just like that?"

"Just like that," I agreed.

"And you went along with her?" Jason wanted to know.

"Not at first, but, after a while, other factors took over," I said.

"I can understand that," Jason conceded.

He stood up, preparing to leave. "I'm not happy about it," he stated.

"Talk to your mom," I suggested.

"Oh, I will," he said as he went out the door. He left me wondering what he was going to do and if Cheryl and I were done.

Cheryl called me in the middle of the night. I wasn't asleep. I answered the phone, turned down the volume and crawled under the covers to mute the sound.

"Mark, are you all right?" Cheryl asked.

"I was going to ask you the same question," I said. "Jason was here yesterday. He knows everything. He's unhappy and he's going to talk to you."

"We talked already," said Cheryl. "You told him quite a lot. Why?"

"I was afraid he was going to do something stupid, like say something to your husband or my mother. I felt that the truth, without details, would give him something to think about and dampen his reaction."

"You made a good decision," agreed Cheryl. "He and I had an adult conversation."

"Are we okay?" I asked.

"I think so," confirmed Cheryl. "Although Jason has some requests."

"Requests?" I asked.

"Yeah. He feels left out. You're no longer a virgin and he is," Cheryl explained.

"He wants to have sex with you too?" I asked.

"Not quite," said Cheryl.

"Then who?"

"Your mother."

"Fuck," I said. "How in hell is he going to manage that?"

"He expects us, you and I, will help make it happen," Cheryl explained.

"How in hell are we going to do that without telling my mother about us?" I asked.

"That's the rub, isn't it?" stated Cheryl.

"I can't just walk up to my mother and tell her she has to have sex with my best friend because I'm having sex with his mother," I insisted.

"I'll talk to her," said Cheryl.

"Can you keep us out of it?" I asked.

"Probably not, but I'll certainly try," committed Cheryl.

"Damn," I commented. "This has become something of a mess."

"It has," agreed Cheryl. "But I don't regret my original decision. I have a feeling everything's going to work out fine."

Early Sunday afternoon, Cheryl stopped by to talk to my mother. I let her in. "Hi, Mrs. Thompson," I greeted her. "What brings you by?"

"I came over to talk to your mother," she answered. "You may want to leave us alone," she whispered to me. "Meet me in the park in a couple of hours."

The women greeted each other while I gathered my things to leave. "Penny," I heard Cheryl say before I left. "The boys are heading off to school in a couple of weeks. The university is a hot bed of hot girls and horny boys all looking for the same thing. Jason is a virgin and I'm concerned about sending him into that environment without experience."

I was asleep in my car at the park with the windows open when Cheryl tapped me on my shoulder. "You scared me half to death," I told her.

She got in my car. "Take a ride with me," she suggested.

"Where to?" I asked.

"The apartment," she said.

I started the car. "Does that mean everything's okay?" I asked.

"I think everything's going to be okay," she said. "We should know in a day or two."

Cheryl and I celebrated at the apartment in the best way we knew. Afterward, we lay in bed and Cheryl brought me up to speed about her conversation with my mother.

"Penny is an incredible individual," she started. "I explained my concern about Jason heading off to university as a virgin. She admitted to having a similar concern about you."

"She thinks I'm still a virgin?" I asked.

"No. You admitted that you weren't days ago. She's concerned that university social life will overwhelm you without more experience." said Cheryl.

"Then she doesn't suspect us?" I asked.

"Not a clue," smiled Cheryl. "Anyway," she continued. "We agreed we had to do something about it. It was an interesting discussion. We covered everything from some of the local girls to prostitutes. None seemed appropriate or possible. Then she said she was prepared to take care of it herself."

"My mom said that?" I asked. "She is willing to have sex with me?"

"Almost," Cheryl confirmed. "She proposed that she would initiate Jason if I would do the same with you."

"I can't believe it was that easy," I stated.

"Neither can I," agreed Cheryl. "At first. Then she admitted to having thoughts of extracurricular sex already. She said that having sex with Jason would solve two problems at once and have a positive outcome for everybody."

"Shit," I said.

"Anyway, she was on the way to talk to Jason when I left her," finished Cheryl.

"Am I supposed to know about the arrangement?" I asked.

"Not explicitly but we agreed you both would probably figure it out," Cheryl revealed.

I dropped Cheryl and the sheets at her car in the park a couple of hours later and headed home. My father got home from the golf course about fifteen minutes later. "Where's your mother?" he asked.

"I don't know. Just got here from the park myself," I answered.

Ten minutes later, mom came through the back door with two bags of groceries in her arms. "Mark," she asked, "There are more bags in the car. Will you please get them for me?"

We put the groceries away and mom started preparing dinner. Dad headed for the shower and the television while mom worked. I started for the television when mom suggested I hang around so we could talk.

When she was sure we were alone, she looked at me and said, "Mrs. Thompson and I had a very interesting conversation this morning."

I sat at the kitchen table and looked interested. "Tell me," asked mom, "have you had any thoughts about heading off to school this fall? Not about the academics," she added. "I know you have that under control. I'm more concerned with the social life you might encounter."

"I've wondered about that myself," I admitted.

"You know that going to college is a huge change for most of the students. There's a sense of freedom, without parents nearby, and many students go overboard in how they handle it," mom continued.

"You mean beer, drugs and sex?" I asked.

"I'm not concerned about the beer and drugs," she said. "I know you're a sensible person and wouldn't be tempted. However, sex is another matter."

"I know a lot about sex," I said.

"Knowledge and experience are as different as night and day," mom insisted. "Am I right in assuming you have limited experience?"

"I bowed my head and didn't respond. "I thought so," said mom. "Mrs. Thompson has the same concern about Jason. We agreed that each of you need to have enough experience to at least avoid embarrassment when you get to school."

"You mean actual sex?" I asked.

"I mean actual sex," confirmed mom.

"How do you propose to do that?" I asked.

Mrs. Thompson and I discussed that very subject. We rejected most of the simpler options like prostitutes and parties to increase your opportunities. The first was cold and didn't present the environment you would actually encounter and the second left too much to chance to be effective."

"So, what did you decide?" I asked.

"We decided that Mrs. Thompson and I would take the necessary action ourselves," said mom.

"You're going to have sex with me?" I asked.

"Not me. Mrs. Thompson," clarified mom. "I'll be helping Jason. That avoids the sticky issue about incest."

"I can't believe this," I opined. "What about Mr. Thompson and dad? Don't they have something to say about it?"

"It's only once and we don't plan to tell them," said mom.

"Just once?" I asked.

"That's the plan," confirmed mom. "There is an option for more if necessary. Either way, it's only until you leave for school."

"So, what do I do?" I asked.

"You wait until Mrs. Thompson contacts you," explained mom.

Mrs. Thompson called early in the evening. Mom answered the phone and called me. "It's for you she said.

I took the phone in my bedroom for privacy. "This is bizarre," I said.

"You can say that again," said Cheryl. "I can call you openly and even if your mom answers she hasn't the slightest hint of suspicion. I assume she talked to you about the arrangement we agreed on."

"We had what anyone would describe as a weird conversation," I told her. "How's Jason handling it?"

"Your mom met with him earlier today. I think they just talked. He's been in a daze since I got home even though he's the reason all this started. I think he's somewhere between ecstatic and fearful. Meet me at the apartment early tomorrow morning."

"I'll be there as soon as mom leaves for work," I committed.

"That may not be necessary. Jason asked me if I would make myself scarce all day tomorrow. I think he's planning to host your mom at our house."

"Mom's not going to work?" I asked.

"It seems so," agreed Cheryl. "See you in the morning."

That was the pattern for the next three weeks. Mom's assertion about only once was quickly abandoned. Cheryl and I met every day at the apartment. Cheryl picked up mom two or three evenings a week to "go shopping" or work on some fictional project for the Ladies Auxiliary. On the weekends, dad played golf and mom and Jason met and Cheryl and I did the same.

It took several weeks before Jason and I could talk openly with each other about the arrangement without personal feelings about our mothers interfered. The middle of August, Jason and I headed for State University, about four hours away. Our mothers had done a good job and we were over prepared. The first party we attended, our confidence was apparent and we became popular among the coeds.

I saw Cheryl twice before the fall break for Thanksgiving when she visited Jason at school.

Jason and I went home for the long Thanksgiving weekend. Our families planned a joint feast and we both sensed something different in how our parents related to each other. I asked mom about it.

"There've been some changes since you left for college," she said. "Both Mrs. Thompson and I discovered that we enjoyed our respective liaisons with you and Jason more than we expected. In short, we missed you and the intense pleasure you both provided.

"We decided we needed another source in your absence. We turned to the most available options, our husbands."

I was listening intently imagining what more she was willing to tell me.

"Do I need to explain further?" mom asked.

"How does that work?" I asked.

Mom smiled at me. "You know how that works. You just want me to say it."

I smiled.

"We're fucking each other's husbands," she said. "There. I said it. Satisfied?"

"I am and I'm happy for you," I told her.

"Thank you," she responded. She hugged and kissed me. There was something different about that kiss.

I decided to float an idea I'd been considering since Cheryl and mom worked out the original plan. "Mom," I said hesitantly. "Have you and Mrs. Thompson considered a further expansion of your opportunities."

"What are you suggesting?" she asked.

"You're having satisfying relationships with Jason and Mr. Thompson," I explained. "Have you considered a similar relationship with me?"

"You are a thinker," she said. "Cheryl and I have considered it but I don't think we're ready for that step yet. Give us until Christmas and ask again," she hinted.

The time between Thanksgiving and Christmas dragged interrupted only by the benefits of parties packed with coeds. About a week after Thanksgiving, Jason and I were invited to a sorority party off campus. Sorority parties were rare. Most parties were given by fraternities and designed to attract female party goers. Sororities were different. They avoided having strangers, especially men, in their houses. That made the invitation unusual and, therefore, we decided to go.

We arrived at the sorority house on time and were invited inside. There were four other male students already present. We were asked to sit in a semicircle on the floor and wait. None of us had a clue what was happening.

Eventually, one of the sorority sisters entered the room and sat on the floor facing us. "You're probably wondering why we invited you here and where's the party. Let me explain. We're currently rushing a number of women who want to become members of our sorority. During the process, we discovered six of the candidates have a common condition that could result in their failing to become members. They're virgins.