Of Mothers and Milfs Pt. 01

Walt took her in his arms. It was the first time he had ever held her except for some quick hugs, and of course the game of chicken in the pool, and like during the game of chicken he was acutely aware of her nearness and contact." Oh God you idiot...don't get an erection!

Charlie had no such shyness with Emily. He walked straight to her, took her in his arms and began dancing with her.

Both couples were awkward at first, not knowing each other's movements and signals. After a while things smoothed out somewhat as they got used to each other.

Emily recognized immediately that Charlie's dancing had dramatically changed. He was more relaxed and more fluid, and danced with an emotional expressiveness that was previously absent.

"Charlie, you don't dance like you're made of concrete anymore."

Charlie chuckled. "Yeah, Alina taught me how to let go."

"It's very nice...and romantic. You're going to be a star at the recital."

Charlie slowed his movement and leaned toward her "Thank you, Emily. I'm glad we'll get to dance together at the recital," he said, and kissed her on the cheek.

Delighted to be dancing with Amy, a smile never left Walt's face and he made frequent eye contact with her. He had trouble concentrating on the dance steps, but they soon began to better coordinate their movements.

Ten minutes or so later, the ballroom dancing part of Walt's playlist came to an end and began playing a romantic ballad.

There's something in the way she moves...

Walt and Amy stopped moving...

...or looks my way or calls my name...

... and stood looking at each other. Then Walt smiled, and stepping closer, wrapped an arm around her and with the other brought her hand to his chest to hold it there, and drew her even closer.

...that seems to leave this troubled world behind...

Amy, though surprised, snuggled against him with her cheek against his, not objecting. She glanced over at Emily and Charlie and saw that they too were close together, moving to the rhythm of the song. She caught Emily's eye, raised her eyebrows and smiled. Emily smiled back.

Walt was elated to be holding Amy in his arms, warm and lovely Amy, held in his close embrace. He felt her body next to his, her cheek touching his, her breasts and hips brushing against him, her scent filling his senses. He had dreamed of this from the moment he had first seen her. Her nearness thrilled him and a profound affection for her—a loving best friend to his damaged mother, herself the damaged mother of his best friend—an affection he had always harbored rose in his heart and he suddenly felt how profoundly connected they all were—Amy, Charlie, his mother, and himself.

Without even being aware of it, he enveloped her in his emotions and drew her even closer. He moved her hand to his shoulder, slipped it around his neck and encircled her with both his arms. They swayed to the slow soft joy of the words.

...and I feel fine anytime she's around me now...she's around me now...

As the song whispered it's sweet joy through the moonlit air, Amy marveled at Walt's tentative shy embrace. When he put both his arms around her and drew her closer, she felt the emotion of his embrace and sensed its deeper meaning. He has such a big heart...and he's been so good to Emily, so wise...so devoted to her happiness...and good for Charlie...for all of us. She remembered Walt's endearing shyness in the pool and the innocent and intimate touch of their bodies and the confusion it caused in her.

But she was happy in his embrace, she felt affection for him...and the caring that connected them all. She glanced over at Emily and Charlie and saw that they were in the same warm embrace. What is happening to us? she wondered.

Charlie was thrilled to be holding Emily closely, dancing to slow love songs. He had long dreamed and even fantasized about a moment like this. He had always been attracted to her—the way her ash-blonde hair framed her pretty face, the sparkle of her blue eyes, her petite lissome body, and especially her sharp mind. He had always been attracted to smart girls in high school—intelligence somehow enhanced a girl's appeal, made them sexier to him, but he really didn't understand why. He held Emily's hand to his chest, and soon, barely aware of it, he began caressing the back of it with his thumb, just as he had caressed her thigh as she sat on his shoulders in the swimming pool.

As they danced, he realized that his boyish initial sexual attraction to her had been replaced by something more important. He cared deeply about her now, knowing the cruelties life had dealt her, and to Walt as well. He wanted to help Walt heal her, help restore the possibility of happiness in her life. I think I even love her, he suddenly realized.

Emily felt Charlie's caress and her thoughts returned to the chicken game in the pool, and the subtle thrill that had pulsed through her at his touch, and how she lay in bed that night reliving it, surprised and worried by her illicit enjoyment of it. She thought about the Charlie of that day, and realized how much he had changed since then...and Walt as well. Both boys...young men...she corrected herself, had devoted themselves completely to their mother's well-being and happiness. And they are succeeding she realized, they are succeeding!

She was certain that he and Walt had planned this together, and both were dedicated not only to their own mother, but to both Amy and her. She suddenly felt a deeper connection to Charlie...gratitude...and a growing affection. As they danced, she felt cared for and protected in his embrace. She slipped her hand from his and put her arm around his neck. Then she kissed his cheek and laid her head on his shoulder. Charlie kissed her hair and held her closer.

* * *

Sophie Lovinescu looked up and smiled. "Hi everyone." Amy, Emily, Walt and Charlie all smiled back at the young lady and returned her greeting.

"Here, take this," she said, handing Walt a piece of paper. "You have to vote on what additional dance you want to learn in your class next week. Put a checkmark next to your choice and Mom and Dad will announce the winner at the end of the class."

Walt looked at the ballot. "Rumba, cha cha, bolero," he read aloud. "Excellent, thank you." The four of them headed into the ballroom where they found the other couples already there."

"Hi, welcome back," Alina said smiling.

"Good, let's get started," said Emil. "You might find what I've planned for tonight a little challenging but don't worry about how you're doing. All of you will be on the floor at once. When the music starts, Alina or I will call out a short sequence of steps and you'll execute them. As you finish them we'll call out a new sequence. This will help you learn to think on your feet about what you're doing and what comes next. This will make you more confident in your abilities and allow you to become more creative in your dancing. Now, please take a position on the dance floor and we'll begin."

In a moment the music started.

"Box step...progressive step...left turning box step...rock step..." Emil called out.

Chaos reigned for a few moments before the dancers sorted themselves out and began doing the steps.

Forty minutes later, Emil called out "Promenade...underarm turn... hesitation... twinkle... and promenade to the pantry for a break."

Everyone uttered a sigh of relief and promenaded to the pantry or restroom. The four of them got coffee and sat down at a table.

"That was intense," Charlie observed.

"While we have a moment," Walt said, taking the dance ballot out of his pocket, "Let's vote. rumba, cha cha, bolero," he read. "Definitely bolero, it's perfect for what we're planning to do. Everyone okay with that?" They were and Walt marked the ballot and left to take it to Sophie.

In a few moments Felicity and Scott Armisted joined them at the table. Felicity sat down across from Amy. She looked at her, glanced at Charlie, then back at Amy with a grin on her face. Amy smiled back and gave her a mischievous wink. Felicity chuckled and winked back.

Soon Emil summoned them back to work.

"Good, everyone," Emil said an hour later. "You're doing great. I think you're ready to decide what you want to do for your recital and you can start practicing for it. I want you to be bold and have fun, okay?" But the response was not necessarily enthusiastic.

"Before you go, Alina is going to announce the results of your vote for the dance you want to learn. Alina..."

"And the winner is..." Alina said, pausing dramatically. "The bolero. Excellent choice, very romantic."

That evening, Walt cooked dinner as usual. After they had eaten, he cleaned up the kitchen and joined Emily in the living room.

"I have a surprise for you Mom," he said, producing a Netflix envelope. "Silver Linings Playbook. It's been called the most romantic movie involving dance. I thought we could watch it together."

Emily smiled. "Sure, honey, that sounds wonderful."

They watched the depressing story of Pat, a troubled young man with bipolar disorder, his family endangered by a father with obsessive compulsive disorder leading to reckless betting, and Tiffany, a young woman carrying crippling guilt over the accidental death of her husband, which she blamed herself for. Emily and Walt sat close together on the sofa and Walt took Emily's hand and entwined his fingers with hers as they watched the movie in silence.

After a rocky first encounter, Tiffany persuaded Pat, bribing him actually, to be her partner in a dance competition. But he knows nothing about dancing and they struggle to even get along as she tries to teach him.

As the tension built, Walt felt Emily lean closer against him. In the competition, Tiffany and Pat began their dance before the judges, having no illusions about winning against the professionals. They just wanted to do well and achieve a score of at least five out of ten, in part so that Pat's father would win a disastrous parlay bet he had made involving the Philadelphia Eagles beating the Dallas Cowboys, and Tiffany and Pat scoring at least five, and avoid financial ruin for the family. But after seeing Pat's ex-wife in the audience, Tiffany had gulped down two vodka's on the rocks just before their turn on the dance floor. She fumbled the difficult final lift of their routine, and would have fallen from Pat's shoulders to the floor if he had not saved her.

The tension reached its peak as Tiffany, Pat and the whole family waited for the score. Finally, one by one the four judges held up their scores—4.9...4.8...4.9...and everyone's hopes died. Then, miraculously...5.4!

Everyone erupted in joy...except Tiffany. She fled the dance floor, the ballroom and the building. Pat's father, sensing why, grabbed Pat by the shoulders.

"That girl loves you...go after her!"

A shocked Pat ran after her and outside saw her fleeing down the street. He caught up to her and gave her a letter he had written. She read it, then looked at him.

"You love me?"

"Yeah."

"Okay..." and she kissed him.

Walt glanced at Emily and saw moisture in her eyes. On the screen were scenes of Pat and Tiffany and the joyous family celebrating Christmas. Pat's voice floated over the heartening scenes.

The world will break your heart ten ways to Sunday, that's guaranteed.

And I can't begin to explain that.

Or the craziness inside myself and everybody else, but guess what?

Sunday is my favorite day again.

I think of everything everyone did for me, and I feel like a very lucky guy.

Walt saw tears in Emily's eyes as the ending resonated in her heart—two badly damaged people who rescued themselves through a dance competition, each other, and family. As Pat's words came to an end, Emily's tears trickled down her cheeks. Walt put an arm around her and with his other hand gently turned her face to his, and kissed the tears away. He looked into her eyes for a moment, then briefly, gently, chastely, kissed her on the lips.

* * *

"Hello everyone," Emil said, in his deep voice, bringing the class to attention. "Tonight, is our last class and Alina and I are going to teach you the dance you chose to learn, the bolero." He paused and smiled. "Are you ready?" The class responded with a chorus of affirmation.

"Good. We'll start with the most basic step. Alina and I will demonstrate it, breaking it down for you. "First, we'll go over the man's...um, leader's steps, then the woman's."

He held his hand out to Alina and they joined together with Emil's back to the class. They stepped to the left, then forward, then right, and then back.

Emil turned to the class. "The sequence is simply a left side step, forward rock step, right side step, and back rock step to return to the starting position. It's the foundation of the bolero," he said. "Does everybody understand?"

Everyone nodded unenthusiastically.

"Don't worry, this is easier than it looks," Alina said to the confused looking class. "Now we'll demonstrate the steps from the lady's point of view."

Following that, Emil continued "There are two more things to learn about the basic step. The first is that the speed of the four steps varies. The first side step is slow, the rock step is quick, the second side step is quick, and the finishing side step is slow...so, slow, quick, quick, slow." He and Alina demonstrated and then had the group practice the varying speed.

"Good," Emil said, "the second thing is that your hips fall and rise during the side steps. We'll demonstrate the basic step with both of these elements added."

As the group watched Emil and Aline dance, moving slowly then quickly then slowly again, their bodies rising and falling in unison, they realized how much these elements increased the romantic intensity of the dance.

The class practiced the new elements until the break. After twenty minutes or so, Emil recalled them to the dance floor.

"During the remainder of our time," he said, "you're going to learn two advanced bolero steps—an underarm turn that will allow you to change direction and maneuver around the dance floor, and the step I consider the most romantic and beautiful bolero step—the back bend."

Sophie started music for a demonstration as Emil held out his hand to Alina,

"Of course, Ravel's Bolero," said Walt.

Emil took Alina in his arms. They did a couple of basic steps and then half-way through the third one performed an underarm turn. They repeated this several times and then paused. Emil looked over at the class. "Now, the back bend."

He and Alina did a rock step, then a side step and stopped. Emil drew Alina closer to him. Their bodies came together and she nuzzled her cheek against his, her head almost resting on his shoulders. He encircled her with his arms and took a long step forward, Alina stepping back as he did so, arching her body and head backward, her arms falling wide to the side, hair hanging toward the floor. Emil held her up for two or three beats, then pulled Alina back up and she again rested her head on his shoulder.

"Wow," Charlie said "That's so...so..."

"Romantic?" Walt offered.

"Yeah, that too..."

"Sexy?"

Oh, yeah...that...wow...I can't wait to try that at home."

"Excuse me," Walt said to Alina and Emil as the rest of the class gathered their things and left. "We'd like to talk to you about our plans for the recital, if you have a minute."

"Sure," Emil said, "what's on your mind?"

"We'd like your permission for the four of us to perform as a group."

Alina and Emil gave him a surprised and curious look. "What do you have in mind?" Emil asked.

"I can't tell you too much because we haven't worked out the choreography yet. The basic idea is that two couples are mismatched. Everyone wants to be with the partner they don't have. The tension this causes grows during the dance and eventually pulls the couples apart and everyone ends up with the partner they desire."

Alina and Emil looked at him with wonder.

"Walt, my dear," Alina said "that's...uh...brilliant. I can't wait to see it."

Emil cleared his throat. "It's very ambitions, Walt. You've only had one bolero lesson. Do you think you can create this routine and rehearse it enough in the time you have before the recital?"

Walt shrugged his shoulders and smiled. "We want to try. You've taught us all the steps we need. Even if it's bad, we'll be happy we tried. And what do we have to lose?"

Emil looked at Amy, Emily, and Charlie smiling behind Walt.

"All right," he said, also smiling. "You're on and we wish you good luck with it."

Alina stepped forward and gave Walt a hug. "That's amazing Walt, I'm proud of you."

* * *

Walt spent most of the next day planning the choreography and sketching it out on large sheets of drawing paper. Late in the afternoon he and Emily drove to Amy's house for dinner and rehearsal. After dinner they went to the patio and sat down at the picnic table.

"Here's what I came up with today." Walt said. "It's just a start so feel free to make suggestions for changes."

"We'll start with Charlie dancing with Mom and Amy dancing with me. I want us to begin with just the basic step moving around the dance floor. There won't be any coordination between the couples yet—we just do what we want. After a while, we all start to show signs of interest in the other couple, only a little at first, but becoming more frequent and the looks we exchange more intense and lasting longer. Don't worry about timing, we'll use specific lyrics in the music as cues for changes in what we're doing."

"Let's get started," Charlie immediately replied and Amy and Emily nodded their assent.

"Okay. Tonight we shouldn't worry so much about the choreography and just practice the steps and work on communications with our partners. Charlie, you start with Emily and we'll switch after a while."

They danced for an hour or so, practicing the steps Emil and Alina had taught them. They found the back bend to be the most difficult, but also the most enjoyable. When Amy arched backward, held up only by his arms, Walt looked down into her soft eyes and felt the burden of protecting her, and the joy of doing so...and the sweetness of lifting her back up where she nestled even closer against him than before.

Nearby, Charlie felt much the same emotions as he gazed down at the delicate features of Emily's face, and saw in it her trust that he would never let her fall.

* * *

The following evening, after a dinner of pizza and Caesar salads, Walt pulled out a manila folder labeled Dance of the Forlorn Lovers, Lovinescu Dance Recital.

"Let's get started," he said handing out notes he had put together for their routine.

"Last time, we just practiced the basic steps and worked on communicating with our partners. Tonight we'll start learning the choreography. The notes I gave you describe all aspects of the performance—the steps, interactions with our partners, and the story we're telling. The first few pages are written descriptions of these things. The last page is a spreadsheet that relates the timing, song lyrics, and story events—

"A spreadsheet," Charlie laughed, "So Walt Maye."

"I could do it with a crayon on construction paper," Walt quipped. "If it would be more comprehensible to you. Now, the song is about four-and-a-half minutes long, which fits in the five minute limit we have...everybody good so far?"

"Let's get started," Charlie quickly replied, while Amy and Emily nodded.

"In a minute. Don't worry about the timing this rehearsal. I'll let you know what to do as we go along. But work on memorizing the script and timing for next time. To start, we'll just do the part up to the split—Charlie with Mom and me with Amy."