The Summer of '67: The Rock

Not much dancing got done after that, but the girls they selected were incredible dancers under the sheets. Even so, the guys needed to work out the next morning and the girls needed to go back to the motel before their boyfriends arrived around noon, so they parted early. Numbers were exchanged, but everyone knew it was just a one-night stand, albeit a memorable one. Carla left wrecked, walking bowlegged, sporting a silly grin.

An hour in the shed on the weights, an extra mile to make up for the beer last night and the beer tonight, a half-hearted attempt at surfing with practically no waves, and then they went back to the shack for a sandwich and water. They fished at the jetty for an hour, but nothing was biting so they tried the pier. Same result, so they returned to the shack to prepare a seafood boil using ingredients they had purchased today at the seafood market.

Caelan built a fire in the pit and got the heavy-footed steel grill out of the shed while the other two got the shrimp, crab, and veges ready to cook. He heard the phone ring and several minutes of quiet conversation, but couldn't make out the words. No problem; he wasn't expecting a call from anyone.

The water, lemon halves, and the seasoning were in the big pot and the water was getting hot when they brought the ingredients down. He dumped everything in, got a beer, and began the wait.

Danny and Marc were restless, moving around and looking at each other. "Caelan, we have enough food for a dozen people, and I'm saying that while I'm really hungry. Shall we go pick up some beach bunnies in the Woody and bring them here for supper and sex?" Danny asked with a nervous grin.

"That's the best plan you've had! Marc agreed. "Caelan, are you coming?" "No, assholes, someone has to cook, remember? Be careful with my car, and do NOT bring any skags back here unless you intend to sleep with them - I have a reputation to uphold!

And for your information, the reason we have so much food is we need to figure out about how much we will have to cook when our teammates come down weekend after next. I'll see how much damage we do to this, and then try to apportion it for that Saturday."

After they left, Caelan sat down where he could watch the food on the grill, drank his Lone Star, and wondered why his friends were acting so squirrely and what they were up to.

They were gone for about half an hour; when they returned the boil was ready. Caelan had poured the water off and carried it upstairs in the big pot. His buddies entered the kitchen looking sheepish. When Paula and Judy followed them in and paused just inside the door, he understood why they had been acting squirrely.

Everyone was looking at him as if seeking approval; he smiled, held his arms out, and said "Welcome, ladies! Glad you came to the feast!" Their nervous expressions barely changed, which puzzled him...until a smaller girl emerged from behind them. "Hello, Caelan. Am I also welcome at the feast?" she asked tentatively.

His face became stoic while he processed her presence, and Danny said, "Sorry man, but we think you two need to talk. You are probably going to try to kick our asses instead, but remember that my hands are deadly weapons and I have Marc as backup, so we have a chance to hold you off." He said it with a deadpan face, but there was edginess to his voice.

Marc looked concerned too, but not nearly as concerned as Judy and Paula; and then there was the terrified little elf with a quivering lip.

He sighed, took a deep breath, and smiled. "Yes, Miss McLaughlin, you are welcome too; there is plenty for everyone. Get yourselves something to drink -- we have wine, beer, or liquor. I have no idea what wine you drink with a seafood boil, but if you know, have at it. I'm about to pour the food out on the butcher paper, so you guys get out some more napkins and utensils and let's eat while it's hot!"

Caelan neither ignored nor paid special attention to Barbara Ann; he treated her like everyone else at the table, and, two beers in, she began to relax. After they cleaned up, they sat on the deck in the evening breeze and caught each other up on the year past. Tendrils of orange and blue colored the sky over their head as the sun began to set, and Marc invited everyone to come to the back porch to watch the sunset.

"How do you know God is a Longhorn fan?" Danny asked as they stood there, hands on the railing, watching the spectacular sight. "Because he made the sunset Burnt Orange" Marc, Caelan, and Barbara Ann answered together. Paula and Judy countered; "Well, he must be a Mustang fan too, because he made the sky SMU Blue!"

That got hissed, but Caelan saw the other boys put arms around them and hug them. Barbara Ann stood in the far corner and looked miserable.

They returned to the front deck, got another beer, and talked some more. This time the other four were paired up, flanked by Caelan on one end and Barbara Ann on the other. She watched him discretely, with a wistful expression; he watched her every move and expression from his peripheral vision, while seeming to ignore her.

Paula was the first to acknowledge the 800-pound gorilla when she asked Marc to join her inside, saying she wanted to talk about 'what happened last year.' Judy then turned to Danny and said, "I'd like to explain to you too; can we go somewhere and talk?"

Barbara Ann looked hopefully at him, but averted her eyes when she saw his blank expression. "Maybe you and I should go for a walk and let them have some privacy," he said, unexpectedly standing in front of her. She was startled by his sudden proximity, but replied "Of course," and stood. He followed her down the stairs and onto the beach. Judy and Danny watched as they strolled and talked until they were out of sight in the gathering darkness, and then addressed their own issues.

Explanations had been exchanged, forgiveness given, and the girls were sitting in laps. "It's been more than two hours," Paula stated; "Do you think he drowned her and buried her body in the sand, or what?"

Judy pointed south and answered, "Or what," as two figures emerged from the gathering darkness holding hands. Kisses were gleefully exchanged in the chairs, and Danny predicted, "The band is back together! I've missed you guys so much! This is going to be great!"

"Let's just make sure it doesn't end like last summer," Marc cautioned.

Barbara Ann was holding Caelan's hand, but there was a distance between them that hadn't existed before. They sat in adjacent chairs rather than her in his lap, and no further displays of affection were evidenced; they acted as if they were friends rather than lovers.

After another hour passed and the party atmosphere died, Barbara Ann said, "I'm going to the condo and get some sleep; are you going with me or staying here?" Her friends climbed reluctantly out of the comfortable, cuddly laps and joined her. Each guy got a quick kiss from each girl, and they trooped down the stairs. "Barbara Ann brought her car, just in case, Caelan, so we don't need to take them back," Danny explained.

"How did it go with you two?" Marc asked Caelan after the taillights faded. "We had a good talk. In a nutshell, she said I was right when I questioned whether our relationship was based on love, as she insisted, or on the thrill of good sex, which she had never experienced before. I don't know what was said among them, but she spent a lot of time with Aunt Peggy and her mom after I went back to Austin, and they helped her understand herself better. I'm not sure what that means, or what she means when she said she 'kissed a lot of frogs this past year'. I didn't push her for an explanation.

Bottom line, boys, she would like to 'date' again this summer. Keep it casual, she says, but 'without sexual limits', whatever that means. I did not agree nor refuse; I said we would sleep on it and talk again. We all have a 'beach date' tomorrow; they will come over mid-morning and we will just 'enjoy the day', as she put it.

I'm sure I sound like a dumbass, but I'm honestly not sure I'm willing to begin even a 'causal relationship', with or without sex, with her, so I didn't pursue explanations."

"So she didn't tell you what happened and offer an explanation?" Marc asked with a wrinkled brow. "She was obviously head-over-heels in love with you, she leaves your bed and suddenly fucks Theo! What was her excuse?"

"She apologized, which was a start. She didn't try to excuse it, she said, because it was inexcusable. She claimed she discussed it with her family, with her shrink, and with a few chosen sorority sisters, but there was no excuse for such a blatant betrayal so she wouldn't try to justify her actions."

"So where does that leave you, Buddy?" "I'm fine, Danny. I've gotten over her."

"Sure you have; that's why you fucked every dark-haired cheerleader, and then the brunette featured twirler, and then the Kappa president who looks like her twin. Did you think we weren't keeping score?"

Marc laughed, and told him, "By the way, the Kappa told everyone you were the greatest fuck of her life, but it seemed like you used sex to punish her, and the twirler said you made her cum like a machine, but there was more anger than affection in it. The cheerleaders all tried you on to see if anyone could break the façade, but they decided you really hated women and only used sex to destroy them."

Both laughed, and Danny said "Your first cheerleader, Wendy, said you were a relentless orgasm machine, but she was afraid you would permanently cripple her if she continued to screw you. That, of course, piqued the interest of the others, so it wasn't so much your charm as curiosity that won the other prizes. But why turn down the blondes if you were over Barbara Ann?"

"To be honest, I didn't realize I had converted from blondes to brunettes. They kept throwing themselves at me, so I partook. But, looking back, I guess some blondes offered too. Oh, well, this year I'll work on them...or redheads."

"Just don't start with my blonde this summer, asshole!" Marc warned. "Or my ginger!" Danny agreed. Stick to your dark meat until school starts!"

"Can't do that; the beach is loaded with blonde beauties that need some loving, and who am I to deny them?

Seriously, I'm over her. Yes, it still stings, but the wound is healed. I might even take her up on the casual sex offer. If I'm really punishing women for her mistakes, I could punish the actual miscreant and get it out of my system!"

"Good luck with that!" Danny said. "I'm pretty sure she can take whatever you give and beg for more, even if she has to come out of a dead faint to do it! You guys were insatiable last summer!"

Marc cocked his head, squinted, and recounted, "This was an interesting year, what with you fucking Barbara Ann look-alikes until they begged for mercy, and her being seen everywhere with big, muscular blonde-haired guys. I guess those were merely coincidences."

"Hey, that piss ant Chris is hardly a big guy" Caelan interjected. "He's a skinny wide receiver. Plus, she went through the Sigs, Lambdas, and Delts, and there isn't a BIG blonde among them! She likes them rich and pretty, which is not an appellation anyone every applied to me, so your theory sucks!

Same with me: I wasn't looking for her replacement, or even looking to punish her; I just needed a change in my diet after so many leggy blondes with big chests and asses the past few years."

"Tell us, Caelan, how is it that you know so much about who she was dating? I mean, if you are so 'over her', shouldn't she just be another of the 10,000 pretty girls on campus?" Danny asked with a smirk mimicked by Marc.

"Fuck the both of you! I'm going to bed; we have miles to run, weights to lift, and beach bunnies to tag tomorrow! Stay up as late as you want, but your asses are on the beach at 7 for our morning jog."

***Wild Thing***

As soon as Barbara Ann pulled away from the beach house, Judy asked, "So, what did you tell him?" "We walked and talked. I admitted my conduct with Theo that night was inexcusable and apologized. Not much more was said about that because he told me he wanted to catch up, not rehash the past. He asked how I like going to Texas, and we talked about that until we turned around and started back.

He said he knew I dated Chris, the Longhorns wide receiver, and some other guys, and asked if I was going with anyone right now. I told him no, and that I hadn't 'gone with' anyone all year, but I had a lot of dates. He seemed to doubt me, so I stopped him and admitted, 'I kissed a lot of frogs, but I didn't find a prince among them'. He didn't press me for more information, so we left it at that.

The rest of the way back we talked about my family, and he explained that he didn't accept the Texaco scholarship because he wanted to try to play football again, and because he felt Aunt Peggy got it for him when she believed we were together. Since we weren't, he thought it was wrong to accept it, regardless of whether he played again.

Honestly, that's about it. We didn't get too deep into anything. I was afraid to, and he didn't seem to want to."

"Damn, honey, 'kissed a lot of frogs' is a pretty big obfuscation, based on what you told us when we talked on the phone during the year. Aren't you concerned how he will feel when he learns you actually 'fucked a lot of frogs'?"

"I did not! I fucked a few, yes. I blew two to keep them from raping me, and I let a couple go down on me, so I guess that IS a lot, in a way. What I learned from that is, what matters; to me at least. I learned the difference between sex, good sex, and having sex with someone you love, and I learned those are huge differences. I learned that some men are beautiful to look at, but empty or ugly inside. I learned that some men just want pussy, a blowjob, a hand job, or anything else so they can get off and then go brag about it; and I learned that there are probably only a few men who can set you on fire and then put it out with great lovemaking. Most unfortunately, I learned that the rarest is finding someone you want to wake up beside in the morning.

I told him the truth when I said, 'but I didn't find a prince among them.' Cute, built, and blonde doesn't mean you are Adonis. There is still only one person I've loved, and we all know who that is!"

Paula eyed her with a frown: "We do all know that, Barbara Ann, but when we went to the Delt party with you and they played Wild Thing when you walked in, it certainly seemed you did more than a few fucks and blow jobs. Are you leaving something out?"

"There was a party there during Mardi Gras. I got high on Zombies and then smoked a little weed, they told me they all wanted to see me dance, and set me on this big table. Wild Thing was playing; I danced, they looked up my short dress, talked dirty about my legs, ass, and pussy, and screamed for me to take it off. I was so high and so horny from all the guys hitting on me all night, and then looking at my panties while I danced, and yelling that they wanted to fuck me that... I took my damn dress off!

I probably would taken off my bra and panties too, and have gotten gang banged after that damn song ended, except I was so drunk I got sick and started vomiting on them, so they scattered. Two of my sorority sisters took me to the rest room and let me puke until I had dry heaves. They dressed me, escorted me outside to my car, and drove me back to the apartment. I got in a lot of trouble with the sorority over doing that, and I learned a lesson I'll never forget."

"Do you think Caelan already knows about that?" Judy asked. Barbara Ann snorted: "I think everybody on campus does, so I'm sure he does! I walked the walk of shame for a couple of weeks, but then a couple of cheerleaders topped me at a Lambda party, and my moment of infamy passed."

"So what are your plans? When we came tonight, you just wanted to talk to him and apologize and not have him kill you. We're beyond that, so what are your intentions for the honorable gentleman now?"

"Do you mean in my fantasies, or in the real world? If I could, I'd un-fuck Theo and the three other guys, not blow or be blown by however many guys that was, and find myself back in his bed as an unsullied girlfriend trying to talk him into a ring. Now? Shoot, I'd be happy to be invited on a date and get to kiss him!"

"You have a date tomorrow, if getting together to swim, surf, sunbathe, and eat counts," Paula reminded her. "You're right! It's my first chance, and I need to make the most of it!"

"Okay, Wild Thing, we're in your corner!" Judy stated. "But let me tell you this; if you hurt him again, I will personally hold you under water until the bubbles stop!" "I would never do that to Caelan, and you would never do that to me!" Barbara Ann argued. "No, I probably wouldn't. But I'd call Kathy and tell her; SHE will feed your body to the sharks after the bubbles stop!" "Oh, Shit!" Barbara Ann exclaimed, knowing it was true.

***Like a Red Rubber Ball***

The Sunday sun came up looking like the hit by the Cyrkle. Caelan knew because he had been sitting in the dark drinking coffee and thinking for an hour when it did. He hated to believe that everyone knew him better than he knew himself, but there was some truth to the observations offered last night. Particularly hard to accept was the consensus among the girls he dated and bedded that he was punishing them. Looking back, there were times when he was almost cruel in his 'love making'; in fact, he could specifically remember trying to make them scream and beg for mercy; not for their satisfaction, but for his. That was a scary thought because the conclusion was obvious, but that was not a conclusion he was willing to face.

The three young men were sweaty messes when the young ladies arrived. The run was shorter but faster, the sprints were up and down a huge sand dune, and the weights focused on upper body, so they were 'all swole up' and soaked in sweat. The girls took one look and kept their distance, pronouncing, "You look and smell gross -- don't come near us!" They laughed and approached the girls with open arms, as if to hug them; the girls screamed and scrambled away to the beach.

The guys changed into swim shorts, grabbed the camp gear, and headed for the beach. The girls kept their distance while they set up, and then ordered them into the water. They boys repeated their attempts to hug, which sent the girls shrieking down the beach a ways before the boys ran laughing into the water.

"I KNOW you bitches have noticed how HOT they are now!" Paula exclaimed when they were out of hearing. "All three are even more built and muscular than they were last year; I think they could pick us up with one arm and throw us! Caelan, however, has gotten sooo much bigger and stronger it's almost frightening, and he has a bad boy demeanor now that screams 'Don't you dare fuck with me'!" She crooked her head a bit and looked at her friend. "I have an idea how that came about, and all I can say is, if you mess with him again, little girl, you are going to find out just how much of a bad boy you made him."

Barbara Ann nodded, pulled her sunglasses down, looked toward the water, and sighed, "He's just so damn gorgeous..."

They sunbathed and chatted for a while, and reminisced about their chance first meeting. Paula reminded them that her acute eyesight was responsible for that fateful meeting. She watched the boys for a moment, and then quietly told the others, "I'm glad you made me keep Marc. I remember wanting to trade for Caelan, but he is... well, he's a big, smart, personable hunk, but he can also be scary." She turned to Barbara Ann again, and sighed, "I hope we don't find out just how scary!"

They lay in silent contemplation, until, "Y'all look way too prim and made up for the beach. You should have wet hair and no makeup to properly enjoy the beach," Danny informed them. The boys had returned to camp from the north, and were standing over them with nasty grins.