Halloween Hitchhikers

Copyright Oggbashan September 2019

The author asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

This is a work of fiction. The events described here are imaginary; the settings and characters are fictitious and are not intended to represent specific places or living persons.

*************************************************

I was cursing my own impatience and stupidity. I was cold, wet and faced many more hours before I could be warm and dry. I was driving in the dark through pouring rain that sometimes became sleet. The headlights on my car were pathetic and I was peering through the windscreen to see an almost invisible road. The wipers struggled to keep the screen clear of rain, and were almost useless in the sleet. I couldn't go faster than 30 mph or I would be driving blind.

The weather protection on this open tourer would have been inadequate when it was new. Now, twenty-five years after the car had been made it was worse. The side screens didn't fit, flapped in the breeze and let water around them. The hood was mainly sound but let water in where it fitted at the top of the windscreen. That water dripped on my soaked woollen gloves and my hands that felt like blocks of ice.

It had all seemed so logical and sensible when Peter rang me at work. He was working on a project in Plymouth and staying in the company's flat. If he worked next Saturday he would finish with a week to spare and could take a holiday for the next week and still use the flat. The flat had room for several guests and the two of us could use it as a base while touring Devon and Cornwall. At worst, we could use public transport, but Peter knew I had recently passed my driving test. If I bought a cheap car, that would probably be less than the cost of a return train ticket to Plymouth and we could use it while there. OK, the insurance would mean the total was more, but I would have the car when in Plymouth and for the whole following year.

Near my office was a bomb-site car trader that specialised in very cheap but usable cars. About four of them were in my price range and any one I could drive would be suitable. That lunch time I went to look at the possibles. I ignored the large pre-war Vauxhall. The insurance would cost too much and the petrol consumption would be too high. It was a shame because it looked like a sound and very comfortable car. I liked the look of the two Morris 8 saloons of the mid 1930s but there was a severe snag with both. I and my feet were just too big. I couldn't use the clutch pedal without depressing the brake pedal too, or the accelerator without the brake. That left just one car, a Morris 8 Series E tourer of 1939. The pedals were slightly further apart than on the earlier Morris 8s and just enough for my large feet.

I arranged to buy it and insure it. At the time I was very pleased with it. In the early 1960s it was just fast enough to keep up with the traffic except on the new stretches of motorway which I would probably never use. I was only the third person in my group of early twenties friends who had their own cars. The other two owned 1930s Austin Seven saloons. I could never have driven one and even as a passenger I had to fold myself into a very uncomfortable position. My Morris 8 E was much roomier and spares and servicing were easy. I would have preferred a saloon but couldn't afford one.

As I accustomed myself to driving the Morris I was very pleased with it except that it might overheat in a queue of traffic. I knew that the A38 around Exeter could become very congested but I thought if I left London after midnight I should pass Exeter before the traffic.

+++

All might have been well but my younger sister Angela needed me. She was having a Halloween party on the Saturday night for invited friends but several recent parties had been wrecked by aggressive gate crashers. Could I be a doorman to keep everybody out except her friends, please? Of course I agreed. I liked Angela's friends and they seemed to like me. As I stood outside Angela's flat almost all the women, even if with their male escorts, kissed me. They were all in costume and some of the women were displaying more breast than they would normally. That was pleasant when pressed against me in a hug.

Angela or her flatmate, Maggie, kept me supplied with nibbles or soft drinks.

About eleven o'clock a group of drunk males approached the flat. I shut the door behind me and stood there.

One of them asked 'Is this a party?'

"Yes," I replied. "A private party for invited people all of whom have arrived."

One of the others seemed to think he would challenge my statement. The man who had spoken took a look at my size and stance and they decided to try a less well-protected event.

Just after midnight the party ended. As the guests left I was kissed and hugged again, sometimes very enthusiastically by slightly drunk young women. I felt slightly jealous of the men with them. However I felt ancient despite being only a couple of years older than the oldest. I had a responsible job as an office supervisor. Angela and her friends were either still at university or office juniors.

Angela and Maggie invited me in for a coffee which Maggie made.

"You look slightly sad, Mike," Maggie said as she put the coffee in front of me. It was an implied question.

"You and your friends make me seem old and staid," I said.

"You're not!" Maggie retorted. She jumped on my lap and kissed me passionately.

"Maggie!" Angela remonstrated. "You're engaged!"

"But Alan isn't here. Mike is, and he needs our thanks," Maggie answered.

"Thanking him is acceptable. Raping my brother isn't."

"I wouldn't and you know Mike wouldn't let me if I tried. He is my friend, and Alan's. Mike would stop me if I went too far. You would, wouldn't you, Mike?"

"Yes, Maggie," I said, lifting her off my lap and standing her up. Angela threw her arms around me and kissed me on the cheek.

"I love my big brother," Angela said, looking at Maggie.

"So do I, Angela. He is a good friend," Maggie said.

"But no more than that?" Angela said.

"True. No more than a friend we can rely on, Angela. But they are rare and need appreciation."

Maggie's hand ruffled my hair as Angela was still holding me.

"But could I drink my coffee?" I said plaintively. "I've got a long drive tonight."

A quarter of an hour later I was hugged by Angela, kissed by Maggie and I could start my journey.

+++

The first twenty miles on well-lit suburban streets were OK. As I left them behind to move on to unlit major roads it started to rain becoming heavier and heavier. About thirty miles beyond Guildford I thought I saw two white shapes beside the road in the darkness. If I had been driving faster, and if the rain hadn't temporarily eased I doubt I would have seen them. One seemed to be holding a thumb out. I stopped the car about twenty yards beyond them.

Whoever they were, at worst I could take them to the next town with street lighting where they might be seen. Where they were, they were miles from anywhere and unlikely to get a lift and the rain might start again soon. I opened the passenger door. A young female head leant in.

"Can you give us a lift?" She asked.

"Yes," I said. "This car isn't much but it goes. Get in the back, it's drier there."

She climbed in followed by another young woman. They were both wearing lightweight summer short coats that were soaked through.

I waved a torch to show the back seat.

"Stand that suitcase on the right. The side screen leaks there. If you open the suitcase you will find two dry towels. I suggest you dry your hair and wrap the towels around your heads. When you have done that, shed your wet coats, put them on the front passenger seat, and take out the double sleeping bag from the case. If you both get into that you should eventually get warm."

I kept the car stationary while they did all that. Underneath their coats they were wearing a skimpy costume of Mummy bandages that barely covered them. I saw their bras and panties showing through the damp bandages. They were shivering. Once inside the sleeping bag they snuggled down as far as they could and with their heads wrapped in towels only some of their faces were visible.

"I'm Mike," I said.

"I think I'm Jane," the one who had approached the car door first.

"And I'm Mary," the other one said. "Thank you for stopping for us, Mike. We don't know how long we had been there but it was a long time."

"Why?" I asked.

"We had gone to a Halloween engagement party in Pimlico." Jane said. "A colleague, Malcolm, had taken us there in his car and was taking us back. But a few miles back there was a violent noise from the engine and his car stopped. Malcolm thinks it is wrecked beyond repair. He went looking for a phone box to call his father who lives in Manchester. Even if he gets through to his father, his father couldn't be with Malcolm before dawn. At the time it was dry so Mary and I decided to try hitching. We had walked several miles and then it started to rain and sleet and no one could see us -- until you."

"Where are you heading, Jane?" I asked.

"Newton Abbot. We are nurses at the hospital there."

"And Malcolm?"

"He is a nurse in Exeter at the mental hospital. We all studied at Barts in London, which is why we were going to the party for the engagement of two nurses who had been on the course with the three of us."

"Is Malcolm a boyfriend?" I asked.

"No," Mary replied. "He is engaged to Anne. She was at the party but staying there until tomorrow planning the engaged couple's wedding at which she will be the chief bridesmaid. She's catching a train to Exeter on Monday."

"Are you two warm and dry back there?" I asked.

"Dry?" Yes," Jane said. "Warm? Getting there as we dry off. How about you, Mike?"

"Cold and damp but I think I'll survive," I said. "I just wish this car was waterproof. It isn't."

"How far are you going, Mike?"

"To Plymouth. If you are OK back there I could take you all the way to Newton Abbot,"

"That would be great. If you do, we'll take you in and warm you up."

I explained about buying the car and going to Plymouth to meet Peter. Soon after I had finished I was aware of gentle snoring from the back seat as the two women, snuggled in a sleeping bag, went to sleep. I envied them as I drove on and on through the night. The rain became less heavy and had stopped completely as I went past Exeter on the A38. I was still cold but beginning to dry out as no more water was dripping on me.

By seven am I stopped in the town centre of Newton Abbot. I reached back to shake the sleeping beauties and ask directions to their home.

It was only about 100 yards from where I had stopped. They climbed out, retrieved their still soaked coats and went inside. Jane was back in less than a minute.

"Mary has put the kettle on, Mike. Come in."

I couldn't. I was too stiff and cold to get out of the car. Jane hauled me out and propped me up as I staggered into their house. She helped me on to a settee in front of an open fire that had just been lit. I was shivering violently as she took off my wet coat and gloves.

"Have you got any coins for the gas meter, Mary?" Jane shouted.

"No," Mary replied from the kitchen.

"Shit!" Jane said. "Neither have I and you need a hot bath, Mike."

"I have," I said. "In my right trouser pocket."

I couldn't put my hand in to get them. It was shaking too much. Jane retrieved them for me. She covered me with a blanket before dashing off somewhere to feed the meter. I thought I ought to have reacted to Jane pulling me around, still skimpily dressed in what I now recognised as a slip with a few bandages sewn to it. But I was just too cold to appreciate her.

When she returned she was dressed in a skirt and sweater, as was Mary who held the mug while I drank some sweetened tea.

"Have you got any dry clothes, Mike?" Jane asked.

"In a suitcase in the boot," I replied.

"I'll get them," Mary said.

They had to haul me around to extract the car keys from my pocket. When Mary returned the two of them supported me into the bathroom where they lowered me into a warm bath. That was bliss. I was warm again and almost felt human. Even so, I couldn't resist as they dried me with warm towels, dressed me, and took me back to the settee where the fire was now burning brightly.

They wrapped the blanket tightly around me and Mary pulled me down to rest my head on Jane's lap.

"You have hypothermia," Jane announced, "as did we when you stopped for us. You sorted us out, and now we are doing the same for you. Just relax and get warm again."

She was drying my hair with a towel. When she had finished she wrapped it around my head and lifted it to rest against her sweater-covered breasts.

"Just relax and enjoy," she said. "Sleep if you can. We are not letting you go until you are warm again."

I protested that Peter was expecting to see me in Plymouth at ten o'clock.

"You're in no state to drive. You, or one of us, can ring Peter and tell him you'll be late."

She pressed her breast across my face to stop any objection. I went to sleep well aware that I was held by a very attractive woman.

About a quarter to ten Jane woke me up to drink another cup of sweetened tea made by Mary. Even so it was several minutes before I was aware who I was, where I was and who I was with.

I rang Peter at the company flat. I was surprised that the answerphone message was that he was at work and gave the work number. I rang that.

"Mike? Sorry. The job overran. I should be back at the flat about four. OK?"

I explained that I was in Newton Abbot being looked after by two nurses. Peter was jealous. Jane took the phone from me.

"Peter, this is Jane. We don't think Mike should be driving alone yet. How about if the two of us come with him to Plymouth about four, collect you, and all of us come back here for an evening meal. Then, if he's OK, Mike can drive you back to Plymouth tonight. OK?"

I wasn't surprised that Peter agreed. Jane went out to the local shops to top up for tonight's meal. While she was gone Mary rested my head on her lap. She asked me a lot of questions about Peter which I answered as best I could. Eventually I asked why she wanted to know.

"Mike, I think Jane wants you. She likes larger men and that you are. There are very few who make her seem small. She is five feet ten tall but you are...?"

"Six feet six to Peter's five feet nine," I replied. "But size isn't everything."

"No. But you have a responsible job, as does Peter. So do we and we have found that not many men appreciate that unless they are also beyond a basic level."

"You don't know Peter," I retorted.

"But he sounds reasonable. He hasn't got a girlfriend. He isn't as enormous as you. I'm only five foot four and would look tiny beside you. I'd like to see whether Peter is a possibility."

"If you dressed as you did last night, Mary. I think he would find you irresistible," I said.

"It was a bit revealing," Mary admitted.

"And more so when soaking wet," I said.

Mary laughed.

"But you acted like a perfect gentleman, Mike."

"Of course. You were cold, wet and in real need, Mary. You were in no state for anything except to get warm and dry."

"OK. My costume should be dry by this evening. I will wear it briefly just to show Peter and you what we looked like last night."

"I will like that, Mary," I said.

She kissed me just as Jane returned to kiss me too.

+++

At four o'clock when we collected Peter he was surprised to be kissed by both women before Mary dragged him into the back seat where she sat on his lap. Jane sat beside me. I looked in the rear view mirror sometimes to see Mary hugging and kissing Peter who looked as if all his dreams had come true. Jane's head rested in my shoulder and her arm was around my neck. Both women behaved as if they had claimed a man. I heard Mary and Peter talking quietly to each other when Mary wasn't kissing him again.

At the nurses' house Mary dragged Peter off to the kitchen to make coffee while Jane made up for her restraint during the car journey by squirming all over me as she kissed. I was very aware that there was a woman on my lap who wanted me.

After we had drunk he coffee and the evening meal had been prepared and put in the oven both women announced that they would show Peter the Halloween costumes they had been wearing when I collected them from the side of the road. They weren't soaking wet but even so their bras and panties were visible through the slips and between the bandages. I was very aware that I had a nearly naked woman in my arms and rubbing herself over my clothed erection. After about a quarter of an hour the women left and changed back to the skirts and sweaters they had been wearing.

While they were out of the room I asked Peter what he thought of Mary,

"Wow!" He said. "not only is she incredibly sexy but she has brains and intelligence as well. I've never met anyone like her. I'd like more, much more."

"I think she would as well, Peter."

"And you would like more of Jane, Mike."

It was a statement, not a question.

+++

Over the meal we talked about everything and anything. The more we talked the more attracted to each other the couples became. By the end of the meal it was obvious that Peter and I weren't going back to Plymouth tonight. Jane wanted me in bed with her, Mary wanted Peter.

Both women had the rest of the week off before returning to the hospital next Monday. Even before the end of the evening Peter and I had agreed to tour Devon and Cornwall with the two of them, with them showing us places they knew better than we did.

+++

I don't know how Peter and Mary got in together in bed but by the way they were wrapped around each other at breakfast it must have been mutually satisfactory.

Jane and I in bed was more of a play fight than anything. She was startled when I flipped her over and rode her mercilessly as she squealed underneath me. Later on, when I was tired by our fighting, she pinned me down and rode me too. Eventually we were both exhausted and asleep with our arms and legs wrapped around the other. When we woke up in the morning I pinned her to the bed and rode her again which she seemed to enjoy despite her futile struggles and squeals of protest. I think she intends revenge tonight. Like Mary and Peter we were wrapped around each other over breakfast.

The women suggested a walk around Newton Abbot in the morning with a drive to Teignmouth in the afternoon. While in Newton Abbot we came to a garage run by one of Jane's older cousins. She suggested we should ask him for advice about making my car more waterproof. He wanted to see it so I walked back about three hundred yards to fetch it.

He had a complete set of a new hood and side screens for the Morris 8 E tourer but it was more than I could afford and more than I had paid for the car. But he had a suggestion. He had a customer who wanted a tourer and would probably pay the amount needed for my car with the new hood etc. He had, as a trade-in, another Morris 8 E, but a 2 door saloon. If his customer was interested in my car with a new hood, he would swap the saloon for my tourer. Five minutes later he had the customer's agreement and the swap could proceed. I had to ring my insurance broker to change the cover which would cost me two pounds to be paid when I was back home.

Jane protested slightly that her cousin was making a loss. He replied that in fact he would make a considerable profit on the deal, satisfy a customer and get an old car he didn't really want out of his garage. I was happy because the saloon didn't leak. I was warned not to attempt to open the windscreen or sun roof which had been sealed with mastic. But the saloon had modified headlights that were much more effective and even had a water pump and heater. It looked a bit more battered but was otherwise in good running order, recently serviced.