0 comments/ 25934 views/ 0 favorites Sometimes Dreams Come True By: bindmetotruth On an abandoned highway in the middle of no mans lands, her car broke down. And no matter how much cursing and kicking she managed to do, she could not get the damn thing started. No-one had even passed her in the hour she has been stranded on the side of the road. For all her luck she will be there all damn night. Damn Damn Damn.... She then gets a blanket out of the trunk throws it on top the hood and climbed up. If you can't beat them join them and she went to take a nap. She started to dream of being a far away place being pampered by several good looking men, moaning with delight as they feed her, rubbed her skin, spoiled her and kissed her. Then she felt their hands on her shoulders and legs. She heard them speak, however unlike her dream, they were no longer giving words of lust and love, they were screaming for her to wake up.... A little dazed she woke and with a start she found herself surrounded by eight very handsome young men all built and staring at her. She smiled. She sat up and looked around and noticed a bus behind her car. She wasn't dreaming. She flew herself into the closest one to her and laughed. Completely shocked he just held on to her. When he placed her on the ground, He said, "If I knew you were going to be this happy to see me I would have left the others on the bus and joined you in your dream." Completely embarrassed she let go of him and just smiled at him and said, "If I would have known you and your friends would be the ones to show up maybe you would have fulfilled my dream." And the story begins.... All eight of them moved closer to her and picked her up and carried her to the bus. No more words were spoken, none needed to be. She was now being carried by the one she threw herself into and he bent down and kissed her deep. She couldn't see the front of the line of men, where they all gathering their blankets and pillows from around the bus. They all walked to the back of the bus where several seats had been removed. They made a pallet for her and moved her to the front each holding her for a second and kissing her gently. Everyone smiled. When she was handed to the last one he knelt down and placed her on the pallet, kissed her hard and let his hands roam her body. You heard moans and groans from the others but he was the only one that was there by her. He stood removed his shirt and the others followed his lead. She watched as each one stood in front of her and removed his shirt and bent to kiss her. She had never seen so many extraordinary men in one place and they all wanted to please her. They all came to a place around her. Each one with a destined place to touch and touch they did, touching and removing her clothes until she lay with them completely naked. She felt their hands everywhere just barley rubbing, caressing and feeling. She leaned into the pillow and just let her self relax and let them do what they wanted to do. She started to feel kisses on her face, neck thighs and hands. She opened her eyes and found a very good looking brunette above her, he leaned down and gave her a long, loving, sexy, soul grabbing kiss. She moaned and when she did fingers found her wet mound and started rubbing her. Mouths on both her breast as this wonder kissed her again. There were hands and mouths everywhere and she had no idea who was where and well, really didn't care. Then they stopped all of them all at once. She opened her eyes and watched as the one that kissed her stared into her eyes as he removed his pants and stood before her rock hard and so much lust his eyes. A blast hit her all at once, trembling with excitement and a little fear, what was she going to do with ALL these men?? He must have read her mind because he came to her kissed her again and told her she was in control. She smiled at him and then he lay next to her as each man repeated the ritual with their pants as they did with their shirts, and each one kissed her. She traced their whole bodies with her eyes, each one of them completely wonderful in their own right. She reached between each one and rubbed down his shaft as they kissed her. They all felt so hot. How would she ever pick or handle all of them. What is she going to do? But as the words entered her mind, all doubts subsided as they took charged. Each one would caress or kiss some would lick and bite. She withered with complete lust and pleasure. Lost herself in so many orgasm she thought she'd died and gone to heaven. They took turns kissing her. Each one with a different scent, taste, and way. It was wonderful. When she felt a mouth heat her pussy her body rose and she whimpered...her legs spread and she felt more mouths on her legs. She caught a very sexy man next to her, he leaned down and kissed her and when He pulled away she begged to taste his cock. He just looked at her at first kissed her deep and the moved his manhood so close to her, he used his own hand to guide it into her mouth and she suck and licked and devoured him. He watched her as she was sure some of the others were, she loved the taste, his eyes coated with pure lust and he pushed to her, she looked at him and he knew...he released himself into her. Shook with every drop and when he removed his cock from her mouth he smiled at her leaned down and kissed her hard. His tongue entered her mouth and he kissed her long and deep. She felt her ass being raised and hands spreading her legs far apart. When he stopped kissing her and moved away she watched until she felt him pick up her head and lay it in his lap. Caressing her hair and they smiled at each other. Another straddled her chest as she watched one on each side of her push her breasts around his cock and they licked and sucked as he fucked her breasts. Then she felt as a head of a cock started to penetrate her pussy she couldn't see who it was but he was large and very good. She felt fingers spread her lips and a mouth found her and licked her clit. She screamed as an orgasm ripped through her. When she raised into him she felt cum drench her chin and neck, more was released on her stomach and then again another came. She felt the man inside her pussy explode and then she was out, asleep to the world. When she woke, she found herself surrounded by beautiful naked men and hands laying on her all asleep. She smiled to herself and knew sometimes dreams did come true and she went back to sleep. Sometimes Dreams Come True This is going to be the last that you'll hear from me for a while. I still have several commitments that I've got to fulfill. In the mean time, I wish nothing but the best for all of you. In the mean time, I'll see you when I get done...whenever that is...lol. MoogPlayer ~~~~~~ If wishes were horses, Then dreamers would ride... Jon Butcher ~~~~~~ Have you ever wished really hard...and then prayed that it would come true? Well, this is a story about answered prayers. ~~~~~~ Hi, my name is Marcus Richard Parker Jr., but all of my friends call me "Rick", which was the name my father chose to call me. I'm well past fifty years old now, but what you're about to read happened when I was in my second year of college, the same year that I turned twenty. I stand six feet, three and a half inches tall, with dark brown hair and eyes; and I weigh right in the neighborhood of two hundred and fifty pounds. However, I didn't begin to grow to the height and weight that I am now until I was twenty years old, and then I seemed to "Sprout-up overnight," my Mom affectionately told me. I take after my father, Markus "Mark" Richard Parker Sr., when it comes to my looks, but my personality comes from my mother, Jennifer Wagner-Parker. They're both great people who not only raised me well, but they are also two people whom I love very much, and always will. ~~~~~~ At the tender age of eight, and in order to save me from also being a clumsy teenager later on, my father placed me in a dojo under the instruction of an old Japanese friend of his; Mr. Shigeru Kazamatsu. I was allowed to address him only as "Sensei" while I was under his instruction in the dojo, and "Kazamatsusan, or Mister Kazamatsu" the rest of the time. He was a very nice, as well as a very wise man; and not only did his teachings help me with my school work, but his influence provided me with the self-esteem, which, almost every high school teenager has issues with during that period in their lives. During both my freshman and sophomore years in high school, I kept to myself mostly, making my junior and senior years even more desolate than the first two years. Still though, I did have a few friends that I hung out with, some of which I'm still in contact with today; and that was what made it all bearable. But because I still was terribly shy around girls back then, I went to college a virgin. ~~~~~~ All throughout my martial arts training, which is called "Togakure Ninjutsu"; Kazamatsusan was constantly telling me that what he was teaching me was to be used for defense only, and that no one was to know that he was teaching me the things he did. He said that there would always be someone who was willing to try to push me into fighting if they had an idea of the skills I possessed. When I would ask him about belt colors, the ranking awards that you would be given in almost all dojos; he simply smiled, and in his broken English, said, "Why worry about belt color, Ricksan? Belt hold up pants, no?" and then he would laugh and move on to something else. ~~~~~~ I'd worked out five afternoons a week from the time I was barely eight until I was well past my eighteenth birthday. At the end of the last summer before I went to college, Kazamatsusan called me into his office after class that day. "What can I do for you, Sensei?" I happily asked, as I took a seat. "Here," he smiled, throwing what I knew was a black belt into my lap, "Time you wear this. Put on, and then we meet in dojo." "For what?" I grinned. "Get on mat, now," he barked, quickly trying to hit my chin, which I blocked, "Time for you to prove you have skill to wear belt." "Oh," I cockily laughed, rising from my seat, and walking back into the dojo while traditionally tying the new colored belt securely around my waist, "It's going to be like that, huh?" "Just like that," he grinned, laughing as he made his way toward me across the mat, "Now we see how good you think you are." ~~~~~~ I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that I had totally absorbed everything he'd taught me; and while we were going to fight full contact, most all students are taught, from day one, to pull punches and kicks when sparring with their Sensei. We fought for a good twenty minutes, with each of us landing choice punches and kicks here and there. However, I sensed that Kazamatsusan was holding back; and with a grin plastered across my face, I laughed and said, "My grandmother hits harder than that," and no sooner had the words left my mouth, when, at lightning speed, he landed a hard kick, off of a fake punch; catching me off guard with the kick landing right between the eyes, which knocked me directly off of my feet and straight back onto my young and arrogant ass. "Stupid boy," he teased, "You talk when you should be listening and watching." "You're right," I smiled, as he helped me up, "I'm sorry, Sensei." "You have learned much, and can now wear black belt," he grinned, "But you also still have much to learn." "Yes, sir," I proudly smiled, then bowed in respect, proudly wearing my new black belt, "Thank you, Sensei. I promise to honor you...always." ~~~~~~ Kazamatsu was not only a positive influence in my younger years, but as I grew older, he was always there to impart his wisdom upon me for whatever difficult situation he always somehow seemed to know that I was in. He was an amazing guy, and it's safe to say that I love and respect him almost as much as my parents. ~~~~~~ The beginning of my freshman year in college opened a new way of life to me. It was during the seventies; and what a time it was. It was also the year I turned nineteen and everywhere I looked on campus, I saw things like peace symbols hanging around the necks of people wearing tie-dyed tee shirts, as well as other clothing that society dictated as abnormal back then. However, the girls were all very nice, very pretty, and very friendly. But then again, this was the "Love Generation" after all so; why wouldn't they be that way? And because my parents were, and had always been, very sweet people, my father never once said anything about the length of my hair, which was now well past my waist by this time; insuring that I fit in perfectly among my peers at college. ~~~~~~ I was in a four story, coed dorm with the girls on the first, second, and fourth floors, with the guys on the third floor. My room mate, a guy named Michael "Mike" Kelly, and I were on the third floor, room number, 314; and from what I could tell after my first week there, I was going to have a blast at college. It was nothing to see girls running around all floors of the building half dressed, and/or half undressed, at all hours of the day and night...man, it was great. I was majoring in English with dreams of one day becoming a best selling novelist. You see, I had an affinity for writing, and because of my high SAT scores, I was in college on a full four-year academic scholarship. That didn't mean that I didn't have difficulty with some of my other subjects, I did. One of those was the public speaking class I had to take in high school. I was terrified to speak in front of one person, much less a whole group of people, which resulted in a barely passing grade at the end of the first grading period. However, through the help of my Dad, as well as Mr. Kazamatsu, I soon got over my nerves, and from then on, I made a solid "A" in that class. ~~~~~~ Chapter One My freshman year of college more or less helped me to get over my shyness, especially toward girls. It's not like I had a choice; hell, I lived in a coed dormitory that had four floors, three of which had girls, who, like I said before, ran around half dressed all the time, and at all hours of the night and day. They were very pretty, but most of all; these girls were sweethearts, every single one of them. And after only being there for a little over a month, it seemed like almost all of them knew my name. Granted, they came in all sizes, shapes and colors, but my Mom taught me from the time I was little that there is something beautiful about every woman, hence the reason that I got along quite well with all of them. Hey, don't get me wrong, there were several that I wouldn't have minded losing my virginity to, but I had only just begun to feel comfortable simply talking to women. I didn't know what I would've done had one of them had approached and/or propositioned me. Still though, as Mr. Kazamatsu used to tell me when I was younger, "You must crawl before you walk, Ricksan," it made me realize that I'd made some major progress that year, no matter how small. ~~~~~~ My second year at college is where I came into my own, and it's where this story really begins. It happened during the second week of the first semester. I was sitting in my dorm room studying one afternoon when my roommate, Mike, came into the room out of breath, and panting, said, "Rick...hurry...you gotta come and see this, man." I dropped what I was doing and quickly followed him down the stairs to discover some sort of fracas happening out in the courtyard downstairs outside of the dorm building. ~~~~~~ I couldn't hear what was being said, but I saw three guys who, I assumed correctly, were jocks, football players to be more precise. I also saw a very pretty girl standing between them with another guy that was smaller, and he looked scared; no, make that terrified. I suddenly got an awful feeling that something bad was about to happen so; I made my way closer toward them in order to hear what was being said. "What're you doing messing around with my girl?" the biggest of the three growled at the smaller guy, "I'll pinch your head off, you little shit." "I'm not your girl," the girl nastily replied, "And he was helping me with my homework so; leave him alone, you asshole." "Who're you calling an asshole, bitch?" he spat, raising his hand to her. I immediately stepped between the two of them, facing the jock, and firmly said, "It takes a real slime ball to hit a woman, don't you think?" "Fuck off," he snapped, "Who the hell are you?" "Your worst nightmare if you don't leave these people alone," I firmly replied, making sure that the girl and the smaller guy were now both behind me and a safe distance away from us. I was about in inch or so taller than him and I outweighed him by a good thirty pounds. Plus, I was broader across the chest by a couple of inches so; he backed away with fear written across hid face and said, "Look, dude, this doesn't concern you." "Oh, yes it does," I laughed, "You three jerks were about to gang up on someone smaller than you and you..." I paused for effect, "...were about to hit that pretty girl over there so; yes, it does concern me." "Oh, yeah?" he sneered, "Well, you can't take all three of us, badass." "I can always take you out first," I laughed, "Are you up for it?" "My ass," he growled, taking a swing at me. I was easily able to block his punch, and in doing so; I also gave him a quick, hard, and solid punch to the solar plexus. Of course it knocked him backwards making him stumble and eventually fall back and onto the ground, holding his stomach while trying to regain his breath. "Anyone else?" I growled, glaring at the other two. And then when I received no response, I simply looked at them like they were the stupid assholes that they initially appeared to be and said, "Why don't you take your idiot friend out of here before all three of you end up getting seriously hurt?" As the two guys picked up their friend and dragged him off, all of the people who'd been just standing by and watching began to cheer and clap. I didn't stick around though; I simply went back to my dorm room to avoid having to answer any questions regarding my fighting skills. To be honest though, I was still somewhat shy, and that was the real reason that I left so quickly. ~~~~~~ I studied for another couple of hours until my stomach began to growl. And because it was Friday, I decided that as soon as my room mate, as well as my best friend, Mike, could get his slow ass ready, we would go out and get something to eat and then go partying afterwards. ~~~~~~ "Hey, I know," Mike knowingly grinned, as soon as he was ready, "Let's go to that new barbecue place downtown." "That sounds good," I unsuspectingly replied smiling, "I haven't had any good barbecue in a long time, let's go." ~~~~~~ After riding in my truck to the downtown area, we located the barbecue restaurant, which was called "Evans Barbecue Pit," and then pulled into the parking lot, got out of the truck and went inside. ~~~~~~ We were immediately seated by a pretty girl, who apparently was the hostess, not too long after we walked in. However, you can only imagine my surprise as Mike and I were perusing our menus, when the server who appeared at our table to take our orders turned out to be the girl who'd been involved in the events of earlier that afternoon. "You're the guy that saved me from Eddie Ross this afternoon;" she smiled, looking at me, "Aren't you?" Let me take a moment to describe her. She stood about five feet, nine inches tall, and had long dark hair the same color and length as mine, with mesmerizing, beautifully hypnotic, deep, blue eyes; which, I felt were looking all the way into my soul. And to quote Homer, she had a face that could launch a thousand ships. But she was wearing a work uniform so; it was difficult to tell how she was built. Still though, I could tell that she probably weighed somewhere in the neighborhood of a hundred and twenty-five pounds, or so...and I definitely liked what I saw. "He sure is," Mike proudly smiled, before I had the chance to respond, "And his name is Rick Parker." "Hello, Rick Parker," she sweetly replied, as she gently placed her hand upon my shoulder while holding my soul a captive prisoner with those beautiful blue eyes, "My name is Kate Evans, and it's very nice to meet you." Because my previous year at college had basically taught me how to handle myself around pretty girls without looking like a total ass, I simply smiled and said, "Hello, it's nice to meet you, too." She held me in a tender gaze for a brief moment, and then looking between the both of us, she smiled and said, "What can I get for you guys?" We gave her our food and drink orders, and as she was walking away, Mike looked at me and excitedly said, "She likes you, pal." "Nah," I chuckled, "You're mistaken, my goofy room mate." "Not this time, buddy boy," he teased, "You wait and see." ~~~~~~ It hadn't been more than a couple of minutes since our order had been taken, when Kate, in the company of an older gentleman who was wearing a pair of jeans, cowboy boots, and a nice dress shirt, came to the table with our drinks. Kate put our beverages on the table in front of us, and then after gently placing her hand back on my shoulder, told the man, "Daddy, this is the boy I was telling you about." "Katie told me that your name is Rick Parker," he smiled, "Am I right?" "Yes sir," I respectfully replied, "That's correct." "My name is Roger Evans, Katie's father," he said smiling, extending his hand, "And I wanted to thank you for looking out for my daughter today." "It was no big deal, sir," I humbly replied, shaking his hand, "I just did what anyone else would've done." "No," he knowingly replied, "My daughter told me that there were more than several people just standing around watching; and you...well, you were the only one willing to stand up to those three guys." "Some idiot was going to slap her," I told him, nodding toward Kate, "And I was taught that only scum bags hit girls." "And that's why you and your friend, here, are going to eat and drink all your bellies can hold for free tonight," he heartily grinned, "And I'm not taking "No" for an answer," and then he turned and walked away chuckling before anyone could reply. "Mmm," Kate tenderly cooed, placing her soft, smooth palm to my cheek, "Pretty boy," and then she turned and playfully trotted away, sweetly smiling at me over her shoulder once more before she returned to her duties. "See," Mike laughed, "I told you she liked you, didn't I?" "Hmm," I happily smiled, "I think you might be right...this time anyway..." ~~~~~~ We ate until we could hold no more, with Kate making sure that our drinks stayed full at all times, and giving me either a wink, or a warm and gentle smile, giggling as she walked away. I made sure that I left a nice tip on the table before we left, hoping that Kate would appreciate it. ~~~~~~ Right as I was about to get into my truck, I heard a now familiar female voice calling my name. I turned around to find Kate quickly making her way toward me across the parking lot with a bright shining smile on her face. "You left before I could give you this," she giggled, handing me a piece of paper with her name and number on it, "Plus, I wanted to thank you, personally." "Come on, Kate," I grinned, "You don't have to do that, especially after all that food and everything." "Oh, yes, I do," she urgently replied, and then gave me the sweetest, most tender kiss I'd ever received. Then she gently pulled away and softly said, "Call me...okay?" "You can count on it," I smiled, "When?" "Tomorrow morning," she sweetly grinned, "I'm off the whole day." "Ok," I grinned, "I will, I promise." ~~~~~~ That night Mike and I went to a very cool nightclub called, "Sam's". They had a bad ass rock band playing the first night of a two night gig that weekend, reminding me that Mike had mentioned them earlier in the week. And as we were paying the cover charge at the door to get in, I heard them covering Jimi Hendrix's version of "Red House". "Hell yeah," I grinned, as we sat down at the bar, "I could get used to this." "I told you, didn't I?" he laughed, playfully shoving my arm, "Just like I was right about Kate, too." "Yeah," I smiled, at the thought of her. "You like her," he grinned, "Don't you?" "Come on, Mike," I knowingly grinned, "What's not to like?" ~~~~~~ I woke up around nine-thirty the next morning with a smile on my face. Sure, I'd had a good night at "Sam's", but the smile had nothing to do with the nightclub we'd gone to. I was thinking about Kate; and after digging the slip of paper, which bore her number, from out of my pants pocket, I picked up the phone and called her. "Good Morning," she happily chirped, "This is Kate." "Good morning to you, too," I smiled, "This is..." "Rick," she softly purred, gently interrupting me, "Good morning sweetie. How're you this morning," "I'm good," I chuckled, "And you?" "I was just thinking about you," she smiled, "And I was hoping you would call." "I promised you that I would." "I'm glad you did," she sweetly replied, "Would you like to get together and do something today? I can't wait to see you again." "That sounds great," I excitedly said, "What time?" "I'll meet you in the lobby in about twenty minutes," she giggled, "Is that okay with you?" "That's fine," I replied, "You must live real close to here." "I do," she knowingly chuckled, "As a matter of fact, you live in room three fourteen, and I live in two fourteen, directly beneath you...." ~~~~~~ I wanted to look my best so; I took a quick shower and shaved, and then put my wet hair in a ponytail before I got dressed. I wore a pair of Levi's 501 blue jeans, with my favorite tee shirt that I got at a Rick Wakeman concert...and a pair of tennis shoes, making sure to take one last look at myself before I left. ~~~~~~ Kate met me downstairs wearing a pair of tight white denim jeans, tennis shoes, with a dark blue tee shirt that fit her perfectly; and when I got a look at her figure, I silently thanked God for making a woman that beautiful who seemed to like me. Her hair flowed gently down her back, and I've already said how beautiful she was, but there seemed to be something about her, which, while I couldn't quite put my finger on it, it made me find her even more attractive that day. However, I was just happy to see her again, and I would worry about the rest of "it" later. Sometimes Dreams Come True ~~~~~~ Taking my hand the moment she saw me, Kate stood on her toes, gave me a light kiss on the lips, and then smiled and said, "Would you care if I took you back to my room for a few minutes before we go out?" "No, not at all," I uncomfortably replied, "Is everything okay?" "Of course," she softly giggled, "It's just that I think you have beautiful hair, and it's too pretty to be in a ponytail so; I'm going to blow dry it for you, okay handsome?" ~~~~~~ "Your father is a nice guy," I told her, once we'd reached her room, "Tell him that I said hello the next time you see him." "You can tell him yourself," she giggled, making me sit on her bed while she pulled her blow dryer out of her closet, "We're going to my parent's house as soon as your hair is dry." "Uh...okay," I nervously replied, "Sounds good to me." "Relax," she giggled, "My parents are really cool people and you're going to be really surprised." I don't know why I did what I did next, but no longer being able to deny the impulse I felt, I suddenly grabbed her by the waist, making her delightfully squeal as I pulled her into my lap, and then looked deeply into her eyes and said, "Have I ever told you how beautiful I think you are." "No," she softly said, tenderly caressing my face, "But now is as good a time as any," and then she gently but firmly placed her lips upon mine and really...I mean really kissed me. She softly moaned as her tongue found mine, and thus began the start of something sweeter that anything I would ever in my life come to know. ~~~~~~ Chapter Two "Mom," Kate smiled, as she introduced me to her mother, "I'd like you to meet my new friend, Rick Parker." "It's nice to meet you, Missus Evans," I nervously replied, shaking her hand. "So, this is your knight in shining armor, huh?" she grinned at Kate, "He sure is a handsome thing, Katie; and you can call me Sandy, okay Rick?" "Yes, ma'am," I replied. "Hey, Rick," smiled Roger Evans, entering the room, "It's good to see you again. How are you, son?" "I'm doing well, sir," I grinned, as we shook hands, "And thank you again for last night." "Think nothing of it," he smiled, "So what brings you here this morning?" "I did," Kate giggled, "I wanted Mom to meet him." "Good," Roger laughed, "I finally have someone who can help me out in this sea of estrogen around here." "Oh, hush, Roger," Sandy chuckled, "Somebody needs to keep you in line, and that's why we're here, huh, Katie?" "That's right, Mom," Katie giggled, as she hugged her Dad, "But we need to take it easy on him until we get Rick broken in first." "Huh?" I stupidly asked. "Don't pay these two any mind, Rick," Roger laughed, "They get a little too full of theirselves from time to time." "And it's a good thing, too," Sandy replied, smacking him on the butt, "Or you'd eat up all of the profits from the restaurant." "Don't blame it on me," Roger laughed, as he rubbed the slight portliness of his stomach, "All of the recipes came from your side of the family, dear." "That's right." Sandy giggled, hugging Roger "I forgot for a moment, sweetie." As I watched the exchange between Kate's parents, I discovered the well from which her beauty and kindness had sweetly sprung. And in that precious moment, I also began to discover a side of my own self that I never even knew existed...for that was the day that I first fell for Kate. ~~~~~~ Later that afternoon Kate and I were sitting together out on the commons in front of our dorm when she leaned over and kissed my cheek. "What was that for?" I asked. "I never really thanked you for taking up for me," she sweetly smiled, "I was afraid...I mean really afraid. And then you came in and kicked Eddie Ross' ass...as well as chasing off him and his chicken-shit friends." "But he was about to slap you," I softly said, gently taking her hand, "And I couldn't just stand by and let that happen." "Then there's something you need to know," she warned, "I went to high school with him, and I know that he's going to come looking for you, because he's such a vindictive prick." "Don't worry," I confidently replied, "He's a coward...trust me." "That's what I'm worried about," she fretted, "He'll come after you when you least expect it so; please be careful." In a one-on-one situation I knew that I could easily defend myself, however, if he were to bring some friends with him...that would most certainly change the situation. In other words, I would be forced to use greater, almost deadly force when it came to defending myself. However, the laws in my home state are very specific when it comes to deadly use of the martial arts. It basically states that if more than one person is attacking someone, and that particular someone is skilled in martial arts, then the use of deadly force is called justifiable homicide if one or more of the attackers get killed. ~~~~~~ That night Kate and I went to meet Mike and a couple of our other friends at "Sam's" to listen to the band that Mike and I had gone and seen the night before. We couldn't have been there for more than an hour when Eddie Ross and four of his friends showed up at our table. "HEY ASSHOLE!" he shouted over the music. "What do you want?" I sneered, taking a defensive posture. "I'm here to kick your ass," he laughed, "And there's nothing that you can do about it." "You didn't learn the last time, did you?" I snarled, "If you're dead set on this, I'm going to warn you right now that I'm not going to play with you this time. Do you understand?" "Outside," he said, "NOW!" "Alright then," I smiled, "Lead the way." ~~~~~~ The moment we were in the parking lot outside the club, two of Eddie's friends tried to grab me. I sent the first one down with a spinning back kick straight into his jaw, and the second with a hard back-fist to bridge of his nose. Before I had time to recover, Kate screamed, "RICK, LOOK OUT," and then I felt something slicing into my right side. As I turned; I saw Eddie holding a knife with my blood on it. I punched him hard in the face, causing him to drop the knife, and then wince in pain as I took hold of his right arm and bent him forward to a ninety degree angle. "I'm going to snap his arm off if you don't back off," I warned his friends, "Get the fuck out of here, NOW," and needless to say, they quickly fled. I was now hurt and extremely pissed off by this time, and going totally against everything I'd been taught since I was little, I gave Eddie Ross four consecutive kicks in the face, delivering them as hard as I possibly could. And, also having lost my temper, something I almost never do, I twisted his arm over until I heard it snap, and then knocked Eddie out cold with one last extremely hard kick to the face. ~~~~~~ "This is going to need stitches," Kate fearfully said, taking off my bloody shirt and looking at the knife wound I'd received, "We'd better call my Dad." ~~~~~~ "You take it easy and let me take a look at this, Rick," smiled Roger Evans, as he took the makeshift bandage off the knife wound, once we arrived at Kate's parent's house, "Uh, oh, it looks like you've been cut pretty deep, kid. What've you been into?" "He got attacked by five people, Daddy," Kate quickly said, "And he kicked three of their asses so badly that the other two ran away." "Let me guess," Roger laughed, "It was Eddie Ross and his crew, wasn't it?" "How did you know?" I asked. "That dumb ass has been after Katie ever since they were kids," Roger smiled, "And now it looks like he's met his match." Then he took the bandage completely off and said, "Come with me into the kitchen and sit down. I'll stitch you up." "But you're not a doctor," I objected, "Maybe we should go to the Emergency Room." "I was a Navy Corpsman in the Korean War as well as the early years of the war in Vietnam, son," he smiled, "You're in good hands, kid, trust me." ~~~~~~ Kate held my hands while her father gave me fourteen stitches, and the only discomfort I felt was when he deadened the site by injecting the Lidocaine Hydrochloride on each side of the wound. Other than that, the whole procedure was virtually painless. However, while he worked on me, Roger asked me questions about the fracas that had just occurred, as well as how I reacted to it. I told him the truth as best as I could remember, omitting nothing. And while I spoke, I could've sworn I saw a proud smirk wash across his face more than just a couple of times. ~~~~~~ "Be sure to keep it clean," Roger smiled, as he finished bandaging my wound, "Come back here in ten days so that I can take those stitches out." Then he devilishly smiled and added, "On second thought, why don't you get Katie to do it? It isn't like I haven't taught her how to remove stitches, huh Katie girl?" "That's right, Daddy," she smiled, then helping me stand up, Kate said, "Come on, sweetie, let's get you home." ~~~~~~ "This makes twice that you've saved me," Kate softly said, as we lay beside one another in my dorm room, "I'm so sorry that you got hurt." "That's what I get for taking on that many people," I chuckled, "Man, my Sensei would sure be pissed off at me big time if he knew abut this?" "I won't tell him," Kate giggled. "You won't have to," I fearfully replied, "Somehow he always seems to know when I'm in trouble. I don't know how I know, but I expect he'll probably be here sometime tomorrow." "Mmm," she purred as she gently hugged me, "So will I, baby...so will I." ~~~~~~ I was awakened the next morning by the sound of someone loudly knocking at my door. I was also pleasantly surprised to find that Kate was still lying next to me, causing her to awaken when I rose to answer the door. I was not surprised to find none other than Mr. Kazamatsu standing there as I opened the door. "Good morning, sir," I meekly said, "What're you doing here?" "Why you fight?" he asked, in broken English, "And how many people?" "Well, Sensei..." I began. "How many?" he angrily barked, interrupting me. "There were five of them," Kate defensively growled at him, from across the room. And as she made her way toward us, she looked at Mr. Kazamatsu and contemptuously snorted, "He was defending me so; if you want to be pissed off at someone, then you can be pissed off at me...and not Rick." Kazamatsu suddenly got a lopsided grin on his face, and after looking back and forth a couple of times between me and Kate, he grinned at me. And then while looking at my knife wound, he laughed and said, "Five people and that is only wound you get?" making me nod my head, "Ha, you pretty good...not so stupid boy," and then he patted me on the shoulder and left, laughing wildly as he closed the door behind him. ~~~~~~ "I'll be damned," I chuckled. "Who in the hell was that?" Kate demanded, "He was awfully rude." "That was my Sensei, the man who taught me how to defend myself," I explained, "His name is Shigeru Kazamatsu, and I broke my word to him by fighting those assholes." "I don't understand," she replied, "You were defending the rest of us, not to mention yourself." Maybe so," I said, "But I still should've just walked away, then I wouldn't have gotten stabbed." "I really enjoyed sleeping next you last night, Rick," Katie smiled, changing the subject by placing her arms around my waist, making me hiss from her pressing against my wound. "Ooops," she giggled, backing away slightly, "I'm sorry, sweetie. I didn't mean to hurt you." "It's okay," I groaned, "It only hurts a little bit." "I wanted to tell you how brave I thought you were," she smiled, lightly kissing my lips, "You could've been hurt a lot worse than you were." "Uh huh," I chuckled; "Now you see why my Sensei was so pissed off at me, huh?" "He didn't look that way when he left though;" Kate pointedly replied, "Did he?" "No," I curiously smiled, "You're right, he didn't, did he?" "Well then," she sweetly purred, taking my hand and pulling me back down onto my bed, "Let's spend the day relaxing, sweetie. What do you say, hmm?" "That sounds pretty good to me," I smiled, slowly placing my arms around her waist and pulling Kate against me, "Besides, I can't think of anyone I'd rather be relaxing with right now than you, okay beautiful?" Kate answered me by placing her lips softly against mine; giving me the sweetest kiss, which was normal for her. Then our tongues deliciously began an age old dance, while at the same time; something within me, which was a sweet, tender...emotional feeling that I'd yet to experience in my life, began to awaken. "I've wanted to do that for the longest time now," Kate sensually breathed, the moment our lips parted, "Ever since you protected me from Eddie Ross that first time." "And I thought that you were so pretty, too," I smiled, gently tracing her lovely cheek and jaw line with the back of my hand, "The prettiest girl I've ever seen." "Thank you, Rick," she smiled, kissing my lips, "I think you're pretty hot, too." I slowly leaned down and softly kissed her lips, barely tasting them, not wanting to let myself completely go; yet wondering how she would respond if I did. In order to test the waters, so to speak, I slowly began to rub her tummy. However, before I could go any further I heard another knock at my door. "I wonder who this could be." I asked, rising from not only the bed, but also the tender embrace within the sweetness of Kate's arms. ~~~~~~ When I opened the door I was surprised to find a girl who stood about five feet, five inches tall, with blonde hair and blue eyes. She was very pretty and built very nicely with her measurements proportionate to her height and weight. "Can I help you?" I politely asked. "Hi, I'm Kate's room mate, Sara Miles," she softly replied, "Is she here?" "Yes," I grinned, opening the door wider so that she and Kate could see each other, "She sure is, please, come in, Sara." "Girl, are you okay?" Sara asked Kate, "I was worried sick when I heard what happened." Then she turned to me, and giggling, said, "Where are my manners? You're Rick Parker, aren't you?" "Yes," I smiled, extending my hand, "It's nice to meet you." "A handshake," she grinned, "Oh, no," and then she placed her arms around my waist, and tightly hugging me, added, "Around here, nice guys always get hugs." "Thank you," I hissed, "I'm not trying to be impolite, but..." "He just got fourteen stitches last night, Sara," Kate almost jealousy interrupted, jumping off the bed to pull her away, "You're gonna pop them if you don't let go of him this instant." "Jeez, Kate," Sara knowingly smiled, "I was just trying to say hello, damn." "Yeah, well, you said hello," Kate possessively replied, "That's enough." "Ladies," I smiled, trying to diffuse a potentially awkward situation, "Why don't we go get some breakfast this morning?" Before anyone could reply, my room mate, Mike, burst through the door. "Rick," he said, almost out of breath, "I came as soon as I heard what happened. Are you alright?" "He got fourteen stitches from where Eddie Ross tried to stab him," Kate quickly replied. "Speaking of Eddie Ross, he's going to file charges against you," Mike said, "If he hasn't done it already." "What the hell for?" I said, "He had the knife, as well as four other people backing him up." "Let me take care of this," Kate smiled, as she picked up the telephone in my dorm room, "Don't worry, Rick, everything is going to be fine...I promise you, sweetheart." "Ooo, girl," Sara giggled, "I knew you had the hots for him, I was right." "Shut up, Sara," Kate grinned, as she winked at me, "You'll have to forgive her, Rick." Oh, yeah?" I smiled, pulling Kate into my arms, quickly kissing her lips, "There's nothing to forgive if she was telling the truth, now, is there?" "No," Kate purred, "I guess not," and then began to kiss me again. "I thought you were going to use the phone, Kate," Sara giggled, with Mike laughing alongside of her. "Oh, hush up, you two," Kate laughed at Mike and Sara as she picked up the phone. ~~~~~~ Twenty minutes later we were at Kate's parent's house again, only this time it was to see her mother, Sandy. "Now I want you to tell me everything, Rick," she said, after Kate had relayed to her the information Mike had given us earlier, "And don't leave out a single thing, no matter how small you think it is." "I almost forgot to tell you," Kate knowingly giggled, "Mom is an attorney, a defense attorney...and she's never lost a single case either." "Oh, hush up, Katie-girl," Sandy smiled, then turned to me, "Start from the beginning, Rick, sweetie." I told her everything I could remember, starting back to the very first time Eddie Ross tried to slap Kate, and when I was finished, Roger came out of the garage and into the house holding a plastic bag with a bloody knife inside of it. "I went back to that bar after I stitched you up last night," he devilishly grinned, "And look what I found. I had a friend of mine test the blood on the knife against the blood on your bandage and it's an exact match." "So, what does this mean?" I asked. "I'll tell you what it means, kiddo," Roger laughed, gently patting me on the shoulder, "It means that when Eddie Ross files assault charges against you, and he will, I know the little bastard all too well; we have indisputable proof that he attacked you with intent to do bodily harm; especially since I know that the fingerprints on the knife will be another exact match to his own." "Good work, honey," Sandy smiled. "I agree with Mom," Kate giggled, "Pretty cool, Dad." "I agree, sir," I smiled, "I think it took some doing to find the evidence you have, but I'll still get arrested." "I wouldn't worry too much about that if I were you, Rick. You see, I always wanted to be a policeman when I was a kid, but I'm slightly color blind," he laughed, "So, I married a beautiful lawyer instead. I went to law school, too...even passed the state bar exam. But when I tasted my father's barbecue for the first time, I knew in my heart that we could make a hell of a lot of money selling this stuff and I would be able to eat it any time I wanted." "Yeah, and it's starting to show, too, Dad," Kate teased, poking her father in the stomach with her finger, "You really ought to slow down." "Leave me alone girl," Roger grinned, and then turned he to me, changing the subject and said, "Let's have a look at those stitches, Rick." ~~~~~~ "Oh, my goodness, Katie," Sandy smiled, the moment I'd taken my shirt off, "He reminds me of your father when he was that age." "I know Mom," Kate proudly giggled, knowing that she was also making me blush, "Isn't he pretty?" "Alright, that's enough," Roger said, "Stop trying to embarrass Rick." "You'll have to forgive these two," Roger told me smiling, "They've been that way ever since Katie turned about sixteen, or so." "It's okay," I smiled, gently caressing Kate's tender cheek and staring into her beautiful blue eyes while trying to imagine her at sixteen, "Don't give it another thought." I suddenly heard a happy sniffle coming from Sandy's direction, but I wisely chose to maintain the eye contact that had been established between me and my beautiful Kate. However, right before I began to drown in her eyes, she gently pulled my hand around to her lips, tenderly kissing the back of it ~~~~~~ "I really like your parents," I smiled, as Kate and I lay together in my bed, "I think your Dad likes me." "What're you talking about?" she girlishly laughed, "Both of my parents think you're the greatest thing since sliced bread." "You father is a very nice guy," I replied, "And your Mom looks more like your sister than she does your mother." Sometimes Dreams Come True "Oh, my God," Kate giggled, "She's gonna love you forever when I tell her you said that." "What about you?" I sheepishly asked, "How do you feel about me?" "Oh, Rick," she tenderly sniffled, suddenly throwing her arms tightly around my neck, "I've been in love with you since the first moment I saw you." "That's good," I calmly replied, while inwardly I was excitedly jumping up and down yelling, "Because I fell in love with you that first day at your parent's house. "So," she coyly smiled, while gently rubbing her palm across my chest, "What do you suppose we do about this?" "I don't know," I replied, slightly embarrassed, "I've never really been with a girl before, Kate, and I'm not sure about what I'm supposed to do." "You sweet, precious boy," she tenderly replied, almost whispering, before softly kissing my lips, "I've never been with a guy so; why don't we learn together, baby?" "You're telling me that you're a virgin too?" I softly asked, as I looked into those beautiful blue eyes of hers. "Yes," she replied, nodding her head and grinning wildly. Then she put her palm to my cheek and told, "Seriously though, Rick; it's not like I'm waiting until I get married, or anything. I wanted to wait until I found the right boy...you." I went to lean in to kiss her until I heard a loud and very harsh knock on my door, followed by, "THIS IS THE POLICE...OPEN THE DOOR, NOW!" ~~~~~~ Chapter Three "Don't worry, baby," Kate told me, as the police were taking me to jail, "I'll go get Mom and we'll have you out in no time...I promise." "Okay," I smiled, "Be sure to tell your father, too," I reminded her, as they were putting me in the back seat of the squad car, "He knows what to do." ~~~~~~ "You've been charged with Aggravated Assault, Mister Parker," the local Magistrate said, at my arraignment, "Your bail is set at fifty-thousand dollars." "Jeez," I said to myself, knowing that neither I, nor my family had the amount of money it was going to take to bail me out of jail. Suddenly, from somewhere behind me, I heard a now familiar voice say, "I'm prepared to handle Mister Parker's bail right here, your honor. Where do I pay?" ~~~~~~ "Come on, Roger," I said, as he paid the bail-bondsman, "You don't have to do this." "Yeah, I do," he sadly smiled, "We'll talk about this when we get back to the house." The moment I walked out of the front door of the police station, Kate was there to take me to her car, and then she drove us to her parent's home. ~~~~~~ "Your father didn't have to bail me out, Kate" I said, as she drove us to her house, "I feel really bad, because it's going to take me a while to pay him back." "There's a reason that Daddy bailed you out of jail," she smiled, "And don't ask me to tell you what it is either, because you're going to find out as soon as we get home." ~~~~~~ "Come on in, kid," Roger smiled, patting me on the shoulder as I entered their home. Once I was seated, Roger looked at me and said, "I know that you're a little upset at me for paying your bail, Rick; but there's a good reason why." Okay," I simply replied, "I'm listening." Roger's eyes suddenly began to fill with tears, and taking a place next to me on the couch, he placed his hand on my shoulder and sadly told me, "Katie's older brother, Kyle, was killed in Vietnam almost four years ago..." "Jeez, Roger," I cringed, feeling badly for being upset with him for what now seemed not only trivial, but petty, "I'm sorry, I didn't know." "How could you have known?" he smiled, "The reason I told you that...is because I haven't seen Katie smiling like this since before Kyle died...and you're the reason for it. Paying your bail was my way of saying "Thank You", okay?" "And as your attorney, I'm going to make sure that the charges are dropped," Sandy grinned, sitting down next to me on the other side of the couch, "And that's my way of saying "Thank You", okay cutie?" "I don't know what to say," I honestly told Sandy and Roger, "All I know is that I've come to love Kate very much in the short time I've known her; and I would die before I would let anything happen to her, I swear it." "We know, sweetie, you've already shown us that more than once," Sandy softly replied, while gently placing her arm around my shoulder, "We also want you to understand that from this point on, you'll never have to ask for mine, or my husband's approval when it comes to anything where Katie is concerned. Do you understand what I'm saying to you?" "Yes ma'am," I knowingly chuckled, winking at Kate, "You're telling me that when I ask Kate to marry me, I'll already have your permission ...correct?" "Way to go, Rick," Sandy giggled, turning to look at to Roger, "I told you he was smart, didn't I?" "Oh yeah," Kate flippantly replied, pissed off at the assumption of someone other than her having control of when, or to whom she would marry, "And what if I say "no" when he asks me, Mom and Daddy?" "Kathryn Anne Evans," Sandy loudly laughed, then stood up to walk around the end of the couch to hug her daughter, "You can fool your father, but you've never once been able to put one past your old Mom, especially when it comes to boys." "You're right, Mom," Kate giggled, as she came back around the couch to sit in my lap. And then while throwing her arms loosely around my neck and kissing my cheek, she smiled at her mother and said, "He sure is a handsome thing..." immediately making my face turn bright red, "...don't you think?" "I think you ought to quit trying to embarrass Rick," Roger grinned, suddenly taking my hand and pulling me up, "Come on in the kitchen with me, kid. I'll fix you something to eat." "I'm not trying to embarrass him at all," Kate giggled, patting my butt as I walked past her, "He just needs to get used to me that's, all..." she began to giggle, "...especially if he's going to be my boyfriend." ~~~~~~ "So tell me, Rick," Roger smiled, as he made a couple of barbecue sandwiches, "Where did you learn how to fight like Katie says you can." It was then that I proceeded to tell him about Mr. Kazamatsu, and the use of his teachings, all of which are physically, emotionally, and spiritually cleansing, each stemming from an ancient wisdom born in a time long gone. I wanted him to understand, which he did, how I applied these teachings to my daily life, as well as the obvious physical aspects of the martial arts (fighting skills, the use of hand weapons, etc,). "It sounds to me like you've really got your shit together, kid," he grinned, "And that's rare in someone so young. But you're still a good guy, Rick, and I can tell that you love Katie." "Uh...what...uh..." I stammered, "I don't...me and Kate...uh..." "It's alright, buddy," he laughed, then seriously told me, "There's no shame in a man admitting that he loves a woman." "I do," I suddenly admitted, "I love her so much that my heart hurts when she's not around, Roger." "I'm glad to hear that," Roger grinned, wiping away happy tears with one hand, while patting me on the back with the other, "And just so you know, I think Kate is a pretty lucky girl to have man like you in her life." "Thanks, Roger," I smiled, shaking his hand, "I really appreciate it." "You're welcome, kid," Roger smiled, handing me a nice, thick barbecue sandwich, "Here, eat this; it'll make you forget about everything for a while." "Oh, man, you're right," I chuckled, as I ate, "This is good, damn good..." ~~~~~~ Later that evening Kate and I lay together on my bed in my dorm room watching television. My room mate was out for the night so, Kate leaned in and kissed me on the lips and said, "There's something I want you to know if you're going to be my boyfriend." "Really," I smiled, "And just what would that be?" "I love you, Rick," she sweetly replied, tears forming in her eyes, "I have since the very first moment I saw you." "Then I guess I better tell you something," I grinned, "I love you, too, Kate." "You already told me that when you were explaining how you felt about me to my parents," she giggled." "Maybe so," I smiled, remembering what I'd said earlier, "But I can't seem to tell you enough how very much I love you, and I do...very, very much." "God, I love you," she softly replied, squeezing me tightly, making me hiss because of the pressure she was putting on the place where I'd been stitched up. "Ooops," she sweetly giggled, gently removing her arms from around my waist, "I'm sorry, baby, I keep forgetting about the stitches." "It's okay," I replied, "I'd forgotten about them myself until you squeezed me." "Here," she said, grabbing the bottom of my shirt, "Let me pull your shirt off so that I can have a look at them." Once my shirt was off, Kate lightly rubbed her hands over my bare chest, and with what I would call a lustful stare, she leaned over and kissed my nipple and said, "I love you very much, Rick Parker, and as soon as these stitches come out, we're going to take our clothes off and then I'm going to show you exactly how much...okay baby?" "That sounds good to me," I worriedly told her, "But there's something you need to know before we do it." "What is it, baby," she softly asked, "It can't be that bad, now, can it?" "No, not really," I nervously replied, "It's just that...well...I, uh...I'm still a virgin, Kate, and I don't know exactly what to do." "I know...you already told me, my love," she softly smiled, "We'll figure it out together...okay, baby?" ~~~~~~ Because of the fact that the following day was a Monday, it meant that Kate and I would barely get to spend any substantial/significant amount of time together; because of the way that not only both of our class schedules ran, but also the way Kate's work schedule ran, as well. Still though, Roger made me promise to come and eat dinner at the restaurant, his treat, and that way I could see Kate for more than just a few minutes every day. ~~~~~~ "Hey Rick," Roger smiled that evening, "How're you feeling kiddo?" "I'm still a little bit sore," I grinned, "But it's nothing I can't handle, sir." "You're a good kid, Rick," he smiled, "And there's no doubt in my mind that you'll grow into a good man as well." "Thank you, Roger," I respectfully replied, "I really appreciate the compliment, especially coming from you." Suddenly, and with a slight touch of fear in his eyes which was only noticeable to me, he quietly said, "I want you to know that I sleep better at night knowing that Kate has you in her life now." "I'm nobody special," I humbly chuckled, "I think she's a nice person who doesn't deserve the shit that has been thrown at her by that idiot." "Eddie Ross is exactly that," Roger warned, "An idiot...and that makes him as dangerous as he is stupid...you be careful." "I wouldn't worry too much," I confidently replied, "I can handle him, as you've already seen." "Yes, you can," he laughed, and then his face turned grim as he pointed to the place where I'd been sliced open by Eddie Ross and said, "But you also paid with your blood the last time, Rick so; I'm asking you for not only Katie's sake, but her mother's and mine that you please be careful, son." "Yes, sir," I smiled, patting him on the shoulder, "I promise you that I'll be very careful." About that time Kate took my hand, and addressing her parents, smiled and said, "I want Rick to meet Allison so; I'm taking off early tonight, Daddy." "Okay, Katie-girl," Roger teased, "But you'd better make sure that your cousin doesn't try to steal him away from you, sweetie." "Hmph, I don't think so," Kate snorted, "I'll kick her ass." ~~~~~~ "Oh, my God, Katie," Allison smiled, upon our first meeting, "He's gorgeous, girl. Where did you two meet? And I want to hear everything." Allison Evans stood five feet, ten inches tall, had blonde hair and blue eyes. Her body measurements were proportionate to her height; and I would say that she probably weighed somewhere in the neighborhood of one hundred thirty pounds. Her father was Roger's younger brother, and Allison was two years younger than Katie. Kate proceeded to tell her cousin, in detail, about the "run-ins" I'd had with Eddie Ross, as well as the results of each, making Allison's eyes seem to bug out of her head. And when she was finished, I could've sworn that Kate had a look of female pride etched across her extremely beautiful face. "So, are you like a black belt?" Allison asked me. "Yes," I proudly smiled, "My Sensei awarded it to me just this year." "Wow," she grinned, "How long did you have to study to earn it?" "A long time," I replied, "I started taking lessons when I was very young." "I'm so proud of him," Katie warmly said, taking my arm and snuggling next to me where we sat. "You should be, Katie-girl," Allison giggled, "Especially with an ass that looks as good as his does." "Dammit, Allison," Kate sharply replied, "Will you please stop trying to embarrass my boyfriend?" "So, you two haven't done it yet?" Allison teased, "You're losing your touch, Katie-girl." "I told you," Kate replied standing, her face blushing bright red, "We've just met. Besides, I don't give it away to just anyone, like those who shan't be named, Allison, dear." "Now you wait a minute, Missy," Allison began, also standing up with her voice raised. "Ladies, Please," I smiled, politely interrupting them, while simultaneously trying to diffuse the potential argument by raising my shirt to expose my stitches, "It's not that Kate has lost her touch, because she hasn't, trust me; I'm out of commission right now, but as soon as these stitches come out, she'd better hang on to her hat," then I playfully smacked Kate on the butt, making her smile as brightly as she squealed. It was Allison's turn to blush as she looked at Kate and said, "I'm sorry, Katie-girl, but you'll tell me all the juicy details, won't you?" "Every single one," Kate smiled, "I promise." ~~~~~~ "You'll have to forgive my cousin," Kate laughed, as she drove us back to the dorm that night, "She never thinks about what she says before she says it." "Don't worry about it," I smiled, "It still doesn't affect the way I feel about you." "Oh really," she grinned, "And exactly what way would that be, the way you feel about me, I mean?" "I love you, Kate," I replied, in no uncertain terms, "Actually, I think I have since the very first time I saw you that very first day, and I always will." "I love you, too," she smiled, "But why didn't you stick around that day? That's something that I've been meaning to ask you." "I was ashamed of having to fight," I sheepishly replied, "I know that it was the right thing to do, but it doesn't mask the fact that I still felt bad about it." "You didn't seem to feel so bad about whipping Eddie Ross's ass this last time though." "Yeah, right," I snapped, not really meaning to, "It was either that, or let him cut me to ribbons, not to mention what he might've done to you." "I know," she barked right back, "But you don't have to be such an asshole about it, dammit." "I'm sorry," I softly said, gently placing my hand on her knee, "I was wrong to snap at you like that. It just makes me mad when I think about Eddie Ross putting his slimy hands on you." "Don't worry, baby," Kate sweetly smiled, "I love you, and I know that you love me, too; and you'll never have to worry about any man ever getting anywhere with me...well, any man except you." "Is that right?" I teased, "What happens when I get old and fat, will you still love me then?" "You bet your old fat ass I will," she giggled. "Wait until I get these stitches out," I lecherously grinned, "I'll show you old and fat." "No, it's more like, long and fat," Kate lasciviously giggled, "I've been sleeping next to you for two nights in a row now, and don't think for a second that I don't know what that thing is that keeps poking me in the butt in your sleep...Mmm!" "Jeez, Kate," I said, knowing that my face must've been turning ten shades of red, "I'm really sorry about that. You have to understand that when I'm asleep, I can't..." "Did you hear me complaining about it, baby?" "No," I said, "But I still don't..." "I love you; Rick," Kate softly interrupted me smiling, "And I can't begin to tell you how excited it makes me to know that I turn you on like that." "I love you, too, Kate." ~~~~~~ I know it might sound crazy, but in the short time we'd known one another, we'd come to love each other very deeply, that much was certain. However, Kate slept in her own room that night when we got back to the dorm. I didn't question her about it either, because I somehow knew that she needed some time to herself to sort out all of the emotional issues we'd both dealt with that day. Still though, I missed not having her next to me when I opened my eyes that next morning. But then again I somehow knew that this time away from her was drawing to an end, resulting in Kate never leaving my side ever again; the only question that I had was, when? ~~~~~~ When I got back to my dorm that night my roommate, Mike, was sitting at his desk studying. "Hey, Rick," he grinned, taking a break from his work to talk to me, "How's it going bro?" "Not bad," I chuckled, "I just finished walking Kate to her room." "Don't get me wrong, Rick," Mike laughed, rising from his chair and walking to his bed, then taking a seat, "Kate is hot, but I think her roommate, Sara, is smoking hot, and I had a dinner date with her tonight." "Man, that's great," I happily replied, "Good for you, so; how did it go?" "Are you kidding me?" Mike proudly gushed, "She's not just a pretty face, Rick. She's smart, funny, and I've never met such an amazing girl like her before. And the really cool part is; she likes me...I mean, she really likes me." "I'm glad to hear it, buddy," I smiled, patting him on the back, "It sounds to me like you two really dig each other." "Aw, man," he breathed, grinning as he lay back on his bed, "If you only knew." ~~~~~~ I was awakened by a phone call at seven-thirty that next morning, and picking up the receiver, I groggily said, "Hello?" "Good morning, baby," Kate's sweet voice replied, on the other end, "How did you sleep?" "Not worth a damn," I chuckled, "You weren't here when I woke up." "Aw, poor baby," she teased, "You sound like you're getting a little spoiled." "I don't think that spoiled is the right word," I smiled, "I never felt the way I do about anything or anyone until I met you, and it's kind of overwhelming." "So what're you trying to say?" she asked, her voice filled with apprehension. "Don't worry, Kate," I soothed her, "I didn't say that I didn't like it, did I?" "Well, no," she replied, "But..." "But nothing," I chuckled, "I love you with all my heart, and your not being here next to me last night showed me that." "I know that you don't, but does Mike have class this morning?" she mischievously asked, giggling. "Yeah," I replied, "As a matter of fact he just left right before you called, why?" "I'll be there in a minute then...." ~~~~~~ "What're you doing here?" I asked, after answering my door to find Kate standing there in her pajamas, "Don't you have an eight o'clock Biology class?" "Aren't you glad to see me?" she pouted. "Of course," I smiled, pulling her into my room and closing the door behind us, "But you still haven't answered my question." "Oh, that," she giggled, "All I have to do is ask Doctor Hunter to let me make up anything I've missed. He's really nice about that." "Oh, okay," I grinned, "So, what did you want to do?" "I want to spend the morning with you," she sweetly replied, pulling me to my bed, "I love you, Rick, and I want you to hold me." Sometimes Dreams Come True "I love you, too," I softly replied, climbing in behind her, "And I don't care if the whole world knows it." We spent the rest of the morning simply talking and holding one another, with the occasional kiss and caress thrown in for good measure. ~~~~~~ Katie had an eleven o'clock class that was pertinent to her major, and not wanting to, but knowing she had to; she eventually got up and headed back to her room to get ready. That left me alone for another forty-five minutes until Mike returned from his morning classes. I took that time to call my parents and let them know what was going on. It was apparent that Kazamatsu hadn't said anything to them where my receiving stitches was concerned so, I chose not to say anything either...at least for the time being. I most certainly didn't want to worry them. I did, however, tell them about meeting Kate. I didn't reveal the true depth of my feelings for her over the phone; it was something that I wanted to tell them face-to-face, as well as wanting to have Kate there with me when I did tell them. My mother was very excited when she heard the news that I'd met a girl, taking the phone from my father and telling me, "Ricky, honey, you need to bring that girl home with you as soon as possible so that your father and I can meet her." "I will, Mom," I replied, smiling at the sound of her voice, "It's just that time is a little tight right now, but I'll bring her home soon, I promise." "Is she pretty, sweetie?" Mom asked. "Oh wow, Mom," I gently replied, "She's so pretty that she'll make you cry." "Really," Mom giggled, "In that case, I can't wait to meet her." "Me either," I proudly said, "You'll love her as much as I do." I spent the next twenty, or so, minutes convincing my parents that I was getting plenty to eat and that I was doing well in all of my classes. I also reminded them that I survived my freshman year and that this year was going to be the same, with the exception of having Kate in my life. With that said they wished me well and hung up the phone right as Mike was walking in the door from his morning classes. ~~~~~~ For the next four days, I studied and went to class. The highlight at the end of every day was getting to see Kate in the evenings when I went to the restaurant to eat dinner. Then we would spend the rest of the evening studying together until it was time for us to go to sleep. When Thursday came, I told Kate that there was something I wanted to talk to her about, and of course she wanted to know right straight away what it was. "I was thinking about going home this weekend, and I wanted to take you with me," I told her, "Do you think your Dad would let you have the time off? I want you to meet my folks." "I don't have to ask Daddy," she impishly replied, "Mom is the real boss, and she absolutely adores you and will let me have the time off, and yes, I would love to meet your family." "I want to go tomorrow after my last class ends at two o'clock," I said, "Is that okay for you?" "My last class ends at one," she smiled, lightly kissing my lips, "That will be perfect, my love." "Am I really," I asked, "Your love, I mean?" "Oh baby, yes," she softly replied, pulling me into her arms, "Yes, until the day I die, and then for an eternity afterwards." ~~~~~~ Chapter Four "Mom, Dad," I replied, as I introduced Kate to my parents, "I'd like you to meet the love of my life, Miss Kate Evans," then I turned to Kate, and taking her hand, I smiled and said, "Kate, sweetie, these are my parents, Mark and Jennifer Parker." "Oh, Ricky," Mom gushed, pulling Kate into her arms, "Isn't she just the prettiest thing?" "Thank you, Missus Parker," Kate sweetly replied, "It's nice to meet you both." "Oh no, honey girl," Mom smiled, gently placing her palm to Kate's cheek, "My name is Jennifer and my husband's name is Mark. You're an adult now so; feel free to call us by our first names." "Damn, Rick," Dad teased, "She's gorgeous. What the hell is she doing with the likes of your ass?" "I don't know," I laughed, "But I'm about a lucky bastard, ain't I?" "You watch your language in this house, young man," Mom openly scolded me, making Kate quietly giggle, "You're still not too old for me to spank your ass ya know." And then before I could turn away, Mom playfully swatted at me, unintentionally smacking me right where I'd been stitched up, making me hiss loudly. "Rick," Dad asked, alarmed, "What is it son?" "Well," I laughed, raising my shirt, "I guess now is as good a time to tell you as any." Before Mom and Dad had the chance to comment on seeing my stitches, Kate, God love her, quickly intervened and told them, "It's not as bad as it looks so, please don't be alarmed." "Would somebody like to tell me what happened?" Dad asked, crossing his arms. "He got attacked by five guys," Kate said, "One of them had a knife, but he beat three of them so badly that the other two turned and ran away?" "Why did they attack you, Rick," Dad asked, looking directly into my eyes, "And I want the truth." "I saw one of them about to slap..." "He was defending me," Kate said, tears beginning to fill her eyes, "So; if you want to be mad at somebody, then you can be mad at me." "Nobody's mad at anyone, sweetheart," Mom soothed, taking Kate back into her arms again, "I can see why Rick defended you. You two are in love, aren't you?" "Yes, ma'am," Kate sniffled, "I love him more than anything in the whole world and I will take good care of him and I will never ever hurt him...I promise." "Damn, son," Dad laughed, "You did get lucky, didn't you?" "Oh shut up," I chuckled, "And help me get these bags in the house before I sick Mom on you." "Smart ass kid," Dad laughed, "You little shit." ~~~~~~ "So when are those stitches supposed to come out?" Mom asked, lifting my shirt back up once were inside the house. I looked at Kate, and as I was shrugging my shoulders, I stupidly said, "I don't know, ask her." Kate smiled and said, "They look like they're about ready to come out. I've got a pair of suture scissors in my make up bag, would you like me to take them out for you?" "Oh, hell yes," I grinned, winking at her, "More than you know, sweetie." "Maybe I do," she knowingly giggled, trotting back to the spare bedroom. "Damn," I smiled, watching her walk away, "What a beautiful girl." "She sure is, son," Dad replied, patting me on the shoulder, "You don't know how happy your mother and I are that you two have found one another." "Speaking of happy, I can sure tell that you're happy, baby," Mom giggled, poking me in the stomach, "I believe you're getting a little bit fat." "Come on, Mom...." ~~~~~~ "Okay, Rick honey," Kate smiled, as she began to remove the sutures that her father had given me, "Hold still...this shouldn't hurt at all, but if it does, I'm sorry in advance, okay baby?" "Go ahead," I grinned, "I can handle it, well...so long as it doesn't hurt too bad." ~~~~~~ Of course Mom and Dad, especially Mom, were absolutely thrilled that I'd brought Kate home for the weekend. To me Kate was like a brilliant light, brighter than the sun, which led me through the darkness that I'd never even realized I was in until I met her. There was no doubt in both my heart and soul that I loved her, and I knew that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her, that much was certain. However, I also knew that eventually things were going to come to head where Eddie Ross was concerned; and I was absolutely certain that I was going to be forced to deal with him, one way or another. Still though, I secretly hoped that he wasn't so stupid that he was going to force my hand. I didn't want to, but if push came to shove, and if Eddie Ross, in any way, so much as attempted to endanger Kate's life, there would be, for me, no problem whatsoever in taking his life. But, like I've already said, I didn't want to if I didn't have to. Hell, just the thought of having to actually kill someone for any reason terrified me to no end. ~~~~~~ I didn't realize that Mom had put Kate in the spare bedroom next to my old room with the adjoining bathroom, until it was time to go to sleep. Therefore, I wasn't surprised when Kate woke me up about an hour after everyone had retired to bed. "Hi baby," she whispered, climbing into my bed, snuggling up against me, "I got lonely in the other room." "We're going to have to be quiet," I softly chuckled, "My Mom will go bat-shit if she wakes up and finds you in here." "Oh, I don't think so," she quietly giggled, "I told your Mom that we were sleeping together." "You did what?" I loudly asked, "Are you crazy?" "Shh," she softly giggled, "Be quiet, or we will get busted." As I lay next to Kate, I was given the realization that I could no longer live without her, because if I had to...I would surely whither away and die." "I love you, Kate," I softly breathed, as I put my arms around her, "I love you so very much." "I love you; too, Rick," she purred, "And I can't wait until we get back to school so that I can show you how much." We slept together the whole night through, only awakening when the sunlight began to pour through my bedroom window. Kate, however, was still asleep when I opened my eyes, and as I lay there next to her, watching her as she slumbered; I silently thanked God for the angel he'd blessed me with. ~~~~~~ "Good Morning, sweetie," Mom chirped, as I walked into the kitchen to find her drinking a cup of coffee, "How did you sleep?" "I slept real well, Mom," I smiled, "Thanks for asking." "Is Kate still asleep?" "The last time I looked in on her she was," I replied, pouring myself some morning java, "It's still a little early, but she should be awake before too much longer." "What do you mean by the last time you looked in on her?" Mom knowingly smiled, "Don't think for a second that I don't know that the two of you slept together in your room last night, Ricky boy. Why do you think I put her in the room next to yours?" "I love you, Mom," I laughed, leaning down and hugging her, "You're the best." "You better never forget that either," she giggled, playfully smacking me on the butt, "She sure is a pretty thing, though." "Are you kidding me?" I chuckled, smiling over the rim of my coffee cup, "She's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen...she really is." "I'm glad you think so, baby," said a familiar female voice behind me, as Kate snaked her arms around my neck from the back, leaning her head around me as she bent down and kissed my cheek, "Because I think you're pretty hot, too." "I wish that you two could see what I see when I watch the two of you together," Mom said to Kate, her eyes brimming with not only happy, but proud tears, "I'm so glad you found each other." "I've been praying for Rick ever since I was a little girl, Jennifer," Kate happily smiled, "Even before I knew who he was." "That's really sweet," Mom replied, holding Kate's hand as she sat in my lap, "I hope you two are being responsible about sleeping together." "We haven't had sex yet," Kate grinned, "We want to wait until we get back to school, now that Rick's stitches are out." "But I thought you said you were sleeping together," Mom giggled. "We are," Kate grinned, "But that's it...your son is the only boy that got into my heart the minute I saw him. He's been very sweet and gentle with me, and I love him very much." Mom placed her palm against my cheek, proudly smiling as Kate continued, "We're both virgins, and I only plan to give myself to the man that I intend to spend the rest of my life with...and that man is your son." "That's a pretty bold statement considering the fact that you two haven't known each other that long," Mom replied smiling. "Tell me that you didn't know that you were going to be with Mark forever the minute you saw him, Jennifer," Kate impartially smiled. "You've got me there, sweetie," Mom laughed, "Okay, you win, but please promise me that you guys will be careful, okay?" "The doctor put me on the pill three years ago to help regulate my period," Kate sweetly replied, "So; when the time comes, we won't have to worry about an unplanned pregnancy." "You're a very wise young woman," Mom smiled, "And I don't see any reason why you should wait until you go back to school, when you can feel comfortable enough to give yourselves to one another right here." "Whoa, wait a minute, you two," I said, remaining silent until then, "I can't do that with you and Dad in the house." "Don't mess with me, boy," Mom playfully scolded, "I'm going to get your father to take me out to dinner and dancing tonight so that you two can be alone." "You'd do that for us, Mom?" I asked "You're a man now, Ricky sweetie," Mom gently told me, happy tears now raining down her beautiful face, "And it's time that you experienced the feeling of being as close as you can possibly get to the one you love." "Jeez," I teased, "I can't believe that my own mother is giving me not only the permission, but the opportunity to get laid...and in her house, too." "Oh, Rick," Kate scolded, "That was so wrong." "Oh yeah?" I asked, "Then why are you and Mom wearing shit eating grins on both of your faces?" "Because we, as women, have that right," Mom laughed, slapping me sharply across the knee, "And don't you forget it, boy," Kate laughing right along with her. ~~~~~~ Kate and I chose to go out for a late lunch, and as we dined, I caught Kate looking at me with a cute little smirk on her face. "What is it?" I asked smiling, "You're sitting across the table from me with a sly smile on your face." "I was just thinking that you better eat everything on your plate," she softly giggled, "Because God knows that you're going to need every ounce of strength that you can muster tonight, baby." "Has anyone ever told you how silly you are?" I teased, "But that's okay, too, because I love you, silly girl." "I love you, too," Kate giggled, "And yes, Daddy's been calling me silly ever since I was a little girl." ~~~~~~ Once we arrived back home, I found a note on my pillow from Mom telling us that she loved us, and for us to take our time and enjoy one another, because she and Dad weren't going to be back until the next morning. "Gosh," Kate smiled, "I absolutely adore your Mom." "She's a sweetie," I grinned, "She's always been that way, ever since I was a little guy." ~~~~~~ Kate insisted that she be the one to take my clothes off, and vice versa. The moment I got her shirt off, I began to kiss my way across her shoulders and onto the back of her neck, slowly unsnapping her bra in the process. She turned around, nude from the waist up, and sensually breathed, "I love you, Rick..." which was all she had the chance to say before we were both as naked as the day we were born, in bed, and exploring each other's bodies. My first look at Kate's nude body made me want to drop onto my knees to thank God Almighty for not only creating, but giving me the beautiful creature, which, at the time, was lying in my arms. Her breasts, which were a perfect pair of 36C's, were creamy white with dark raspberry colored areole that were roughly three inches in diameter, and nipples that stood straight and tall, a quarter inch long, and about the size of the tip of my little finger in thickness. Her stomach was smooth and flat, leading down to her womanly treasures, covered by a thatch of dark brown, almost black, soft pubic hair. "I want you inside me...now," Kate urgently breathed, climbing on top of me and positioning herself directly above me, with my cock aimed at the opening of her beautiful pussy. And before I had the chance to react, she placed the head of my cock just inside her vaginal opening; then slid down my hard pole all at once. "Oh, fuck," she hissed, "That hurts like hell." "I'm sorry, baby," I soothed, "I wouldn't hurt you for anything, I hope you know that." "Shh, it's okay, baby" she softly replied, with a knowing smile on her face as she held her finger to my lips, "It's not your fault that you've got such a huge cock." "You're silly," I chuckled, "It's not that big," but before I could say anything further my beautiful Kate began to rise up and down on my cock, all thoughts of anything else now abandoning my mind to be replaced by the sensations I was now feeling. "Oh yeah, baby," she moaned, "I love having your cock inside of me...Ungh, yeah, fuck me, Rick, oh my God, don't ever stop fucking me." Kate kept a steady pace, rising and falling on my cock, and then she maneuvered us until I was in between her legs and on top of her. And with a wanton growl, she looked into my eyes and said, "I want you to really fuck me now, Rick," and I proceeded to do exactly that. "Yes, yes," she moaned, my cock slowly moving in and out of her at a steady pace, "That's it, baby, faster, deeper, harder....Ungh, oh, yes, YES...FUCK ME NOW...OH GOD, RICK, YOU'RE MAKING ME CUM SO HARD, OOOOOHHH GOD; YES, YES, I'M CUMMING NOW," she loudly wailed, "OH YES, I LOVE YOU RICKEEEEEE." As she started to have her orgasm, the inner walls of her hot little pussy began to contract and flutter, pushing me over the edge as well. "OH GOD, KATE, I'M CUMMING TOO, BABEEEEEEE, I LOVE YOOOOUU," I loudly groaned, as my seed drenched the inner walls of her womb. ~~~~~~ "Did you call me Ricky just now," I chuckled, slightly out of breath as we lay together basking in our new love. "Sorry about that, baby," she giggled, "I hope I didn't make you mad." "Nah," I grinned, "It's just that my Mom used to call me that when I was little." "Really," Kate impishly smiled, "I guess I'm going to have to ask her permission to do it, too; because I think it's adorable." "Aw, man," I playfully complained, "Am I ever going to get a break?" "You'd better get used to it," she teased, "Especially since you told my parents that you wanted to marry me." "Yeah, and I really meant what I said, too," I replied, after quickly kissing her lips, "But I want us both to finish college first." "I have no problem with that," she smiled, "Does that mean you're going to give me an engagement ring?" "Of course," I smiled, "But I haven't officially asked you to marry me yet." "I guess I'll have to wait then," she playfully pouted, "I just hope it's not too long." "You won't have to wait for too long, baby," I tenderly replied, taking her into my arms, "I promise..." ~~~~~~ That night as I lay next to my beautiful Kate while she slept, I took the time to really look at her close up. She was so perfect in every way; and the warmth that I felt radiating from deep within the most secret reaches of my heart let me know that I now belonged to her, heart, mind, soul, and body; and there would never be another woman for me. Kate was not only the first woman I made love to; but she was also the last. ~~~~~~ The next morning I woke up with my hard cock buried deeply inside of my Kate, and she was slowly grinding her hot little ass against me. I hadn't been awake for more than a minute or two before Kate started cumming. However, as opposed to the volume at which she wailed the night before, she merely whimpered softly as she held onto my hips, making me cum not two seconds behind her. "Wow," I smiled, gently holding Kate's naked body against mine, "What a nice way to wake up...I love you, Kate." "Mmm," she purred, "I love you, too, baby. Good morning, Rick," and then she began to girlishly giggle. "Good morning to you," I smiled, "But I think we'd better hit the shower before Mom and Dad come home." "It's a little late for that, boy," Mom giggled, from outside of the bedroom door, "I want you two to get dressed and meet me in the living room." Sometimes Dreams Come True ~~~~~~ "Oh, honey," Mom gushed, as she looked at Kate, "You look radiant, sweetie." "Thank you," Kate smiled, taking my hand as we sat down on the couch together, "Your son is a good man." "That's why I'm giving him this," Mom grinned, handing me a small velvet box, "These are your great-grandmother's wedding and engagement rings, Ricky, and I want you to have them." "Oh, that reminds me, Jennifer," Kate giggled, "I wanted to know if it was alright with you if I called him Ricky, as opposed to just plain old Rick." "You sweet girl," Mom giggled, placing her palm against Kate beautiful cheek, "You don't need my permission, sweetheart, But I can see why my son loves you so much." "And if he doesn't, then he's crazy," Dad laughed, as he came into the house through the back door. "You shut up, Dad," I laughed, "This doesn't concern you." "Oh, but it does," Dad triumphantly argued, "Because if you don't marry her...I'm gonna tell Mister Kazamatsu." "Okay, okay," I conceded smiling, "I guess you win this time...Pops." "Yeah, yeah," Dad laughed, "You call me Pops again, and I'm' going to give you some pops across the head, boy." "You two hush that arguing this instant," Mom said, "Or I'll skin the both of you." "Way to go, Jennifer," Kate cheered, teasing us, "Don't take any shit." "You be quiet," I teased smiling, "She doesn't need your help, girlie-girl." "And you leave her alone, Mister Smart Ass," Mom said, protectively pulling Kate into her arms, "You seem to forget whose house you're in." "Yes, ma'am," I smiled, enjoying how Mom and Dad had now taken Kate in as one of their own. It was also then that I knew that my beautiful Kate had now become, and would forever be, a permanent part of my life. ~~~~~~ The next day found Kate and me at the beach. We'd found a secluded cove, which surprisingly, no one must've known about, because it was as desolate as could be. And when I brought it to Kate's attention, she simply gave me a lustful smile, and said, "Good, because now you can fuck me out in the open." "Uh, oh," I chuckled, "It looks like I've created a monster." "Only for you, baby," Kate purred, rubbing up against me as we lay in the sun, "Only for you." "I love you, Kate," I whispered into her ear, "I love you with all my heart." "Mmm," she cooed, "Make love to me, Ricky...and I want it nice and slow this time." So, I proceeded to fulfill her sweet request, going as slowly and as gently as was humanly possible. We laid together in the shade of three small palm trees there within the solitude and protection of the cove we'd stumbled upon; and made slow and tender love. ~~~~~~ "Did you two have a nice time at the beach?" Mom knowingly smiled, upon our return home, "It sure was a pretty day, today." "Yes, it was," Kate smiled, placing her palm against my cheek, "And we had a wonderful time together." ~~~~~~ Later that night, after everyone had gone to bed, I awoke to the sensation of Kate's gentle breath as it blew tenderly across my skin. I tried to go back to sleep, but something wasn't letting me so; as opposed to waking my beautiful Kate from her slumber, I gently eased myself out of bed and made my way down the hall. I ended up in the kitchen where I poured myself something to drink, as well as helped myself to a second piece of the coconut crème pie Mom had made earlier that evening. ~~~~~~ Chapter Five I sat out on the back patio eating my piece of pie and sipping some apple juice that Mom had in the refrigerator, when out of nowhere, I heard Mom's voice say, "You should be asleep, son, you guys have to drive back to school tomorrow." "Hi, Mom," I replied, as she came to sit beside me at the patio table, "What're you doing awake at this hour?" "I heard you stirring in the kitchen, sweetie," she smiled, "And I just wanted to make sure that you were alright." "I'm okay," I grinned, "I've got something on my mind is all." "It wouldn't, by any chance, have something to do with that pretty girl asleep in your room," she knowingly asked, "Now, would it?" "Yeah," I admitted, "How is it that you always know what's bothering me? You've been that way my whole life." "Because I know my own son," she tenderly replied, gently rubbing my cheek, "And I know when something's bothering you, baby. So, do you wanna tell me what's got you awake at this hour of the morning?" "You're right," I told her, "It's Kate." "What about her?" Mom soothed, "You can tell me anything, son, I hope you know that?" "I know, Mom," I gently replied, "It's just that...she's so beautiful and could have any guy she wanted...I guess what I'm wondering is why she chose me." Before Mom could reply, we heard Kate's voice behind us say, "Because I love you, silly boy," and then she came around to my side of the table and sat in my lap. "What're you doing awake at this hour, sweetie?" I asked, gently kissing her face. "Because there's an empty spot in the bed where my boyfriend is supposed to be," she sweetly replied, "So, I got up to come find you, baby." "Would you like a cup of hot cocoa, pretty girl?" Mom asked smiling, "I was going to make some for me any way so; it's no trouble." "That would be nice," Kate grinned, climbing from my lap to sit in the chair next to mine, "Thank you, Jennifer." ~~~~~~ "What time are you two planning on heading back?" Mom asked, while we drank our cocoa. "I figured we could leave here around three o'clock in the afternoon and still make it back before it gets dark," I said, turning to Kate, "What do you think, sweetheart?" "That sounds good to me, baby," Kate yawned, "But can we go back to bed? I'm still sleepy." ~~~~~~ "It was so nice to meet you, baby girl," Mom said, hugging Kate as we were getting ready to head back to college the following afternoon, "You make Ricky bring you back here more often, okay?" "Yes ma'am, I will," Kate smiled, returning Mom's hug, "I have a feeling that you'll be seeing a lot more of me in the future..." ~~~~~~ "I love your parents so much," Kate said, as I drove us back to college, "I can tell that they really love you." "They're great people," I proudly replied, "And I love them almost as much as I love you." "Aw Ricky," she sniffled, tears now raining down her face, "I love you so much. I love you with all of my heart, and I can't imagine ever being with anyone but you." "This is supposed to a happy time," I said, alarmed by her tears, "Why are you crying, baby?" And it was at that moment in time that Kate began the process of finally trusting me enough to truly pour her heart out to me. My beautiful Kate, with tears brimming on the edge of her beautiful eye lids, sadly began telling me of her brother, Kyle, "When I was a little girl my big brother, Kyle, was always there to look after me," by this time the tears began rolling down her cheeks by the bucketfuls as she continued, "He was always there for me for as far back as I can remember. I was old enough to understand what was going on when he got drafted; and I thought my heart was going to explode..." "...You see, my big brother and I were as close as could be, even when I was a little girl and was being a brat around him and his friends, he was still very kind and gentle to me as opposed to scolding me as I'd seen most of my friend's older siblings treat them. Then when we got the news that he'd been killed at Khe Sahn; my whole world stopped. I couldn't eat; and I couldn't sleep. Then one day I met this beautifully shy boy who took up for me, even though he didn't know me at all. It was then that I realized that God was giving me a second chance to live again. I guess what I'm trying to say, is that you brought me back from the edge of the abyss, Rick, and I love you so much," she couldn't continue speaking for crying so; I simply put my arm around her and held her tightly against me. "Shh," I gently soothed, holding one arm around her as I drove with the other, "I love you, too, and I promise to always be there for you and never ever leave you." "Do you mean that?" she asked, looking up at me with those beautiful, but sad blue eyes. "With all my heart, sweetie," I tenderly replied, "With all my heart." "I love you, Rick..." ~~~~~~ That night found us sleeping together in my bed not only because Kate's room mate, Sara, sweetly informed us that she wanted my room mate, Mike, to spend the night with her, but more so because of the fact that I had, only moments before, told her that I would never leave her, and God provided me with the opportunity that night to show my beautiful Kate just how much I meant what I'd promised her. ~~~~~~ That next afternoon found me walking across campus to my history class, when all of a sudden; I heard someone call my name. I looked up just in time to see Eddie Ross grinning at me right before a football hit me square between the eyes, knocking me back onto my ass. Because my vision had immediately blurred, and also from the way my nose was stinging and sharply burning, I was certain that it had been broken. I tried to get to my feet, but the hard kicks and punches that began raining down upon me from several different directions, had me slightly hindered, but only momentarily. Kazamatsu had trained me to trust my ears by fighting blindfolded, an exercise which I had become not only very familiar with by that time, but very good at as well...damn good, even if I say so myself. Once I was on my feet and regained control of the rest of my other senses, I spoke up and said, "Okay asshole, now that I can't see you, do your best, but be forewarned; I'm tired of fucking around with you dickheads, and somebody's gonna get seriously hurt this time, you can make book on it" That was the day to be forever thankful for Kazamatsu and his teachings...and also the day that I became a man, pure and honorable. I was later told that, even though I'd been temporarily blinded, and before five male teachers could break it up, I still managed to break three arms, as well as shattering four knees, Eddie Ross' knee being one of them, while also at the same time, forever ruining the athletic careers of all who were involved. Make no mistake in understanding that I took no pleasure in what I'd done to those guys, but six people against one stacks the deck a little, wouldn't you say? Besides, what took place in Kazamatsu's presence later, more than justified the reasons why I'd used the harsh methods I'd been forced to employ in order to defend myself. ~~~~~~ "What're you trying to do," Kate scolded, as she cleaned the blood off of my face, "Get yourself killed?" "No," I firmly replied, very gently rubbing my eyes with a hot, wet washcloth as my vision began to clear, "But I'm not going to put up with anymore of their shit, and, this makes the second time those assholes have drawn my blood. Furthermore, I most certainly will not allow these idiots the opportunity to attempt a third time, I promise you." "I know that you didn't start this, Rick," Kate fearfully replied, her eyes beginning to fill with tears "But I'm begging you to please let the police handle this." "You should listen to what girlfriend say, Ricksan," Mr. Kazamatsu replied, suddenly, and out of nowhere, appearing in the door of my dorm room, surprising Kate and I both, "You already make stupid boys pay for what they do, now come with me, both of you." "Where are we going?" I asked, genuinely curious. "You be safe at my house and..." "Be safe from what?" Kate asked, the fear evident in not only her eyes, but also in the tears which, at that particular point in time, began to well up once again in those beautiful blue eyes. "You no worry, Katesan," Mr. Kazamatsu gently smiled, while playfully cuffing me on the back of my head with a rolled up newspaper, "Ricksan take good care of you, no problem." "I know that Rick will take great care of me and I'm not worried about anything," Kate sweetly told him, "However, I need to tell you...now that Eddie's career is finished, him and those other jerks are gonna come looking for vengeance......and it means that they will most definitely be coming after Rick in full force." "It sounds like this guy can't take no for an answer," I said, "Either that, or he's gone mental and has more issues than Reader's Digest." "Oh Rick," she began to giggle, "That is so wrong." "What did you do to him?" I teased, "I mean I understand the effect you have on men, as in...every time you walk into a room, bar none, every male head turns to watch you walk by them on your way to your table." "Stop it, Ricky," Kate blushed, in front of Mr. Kazamatsu, making him smile at her discomfort, "You're embarrassing me, baby." "Don't worry, sweetie," I smiled, taking her hand, "You're going to be alright, Kate, I promise." ~~~~~~ TWO DAYS LATER It was around five in the afternoon and I'd just arrived back from class when Police Detective Virgil Andrews knocked on my door. And after ushering him in, I extended him an invitation to have a seat, which he took, at my desk. "What can I do for you, Detective?" I asked, once we were settled, "I'm sure you're here about the fracas that occurred here on campus a couple of days ago." "You like to get right to the point," Detective Andrews replied, "I like that in a person...okay then, here it is. Where were you last night at nine o'clock?" "I was right here in my dorm room the whole night," I told him, "My girlfriend can back me up because she was right here with me...why?" "Eddie Ross' body was found floating face down in the river around nine-thirty last night," he grimly replied, "He'd been shot twice in the back of the head with a small caliber weapon, more than likely a twenty-two pistol, and his hands had been tied behind him, execution style, which makes me think it was a professional hit." "Oh, my God," Kate suddenly gasped from the doorway, "Who would do such a horrible thing?" "Well, all my life, my first impressions of people has never been wrong," Detective Andrews said, "And my instincts are telling me that you're innocent, Mister Parker." "So; what happens next?" I curiously inquired, "I mean...are you going to arrest me, and then book and fingerprint me?" "Why would I do that," he laughed, "You haven't done anything illegal, have you?" "No, sir, not at all," I replied, "I just figured that because of the ass whipping that I gave Eddie a few days ago, I would more than likely be your primary suspect." "He's been with me the whole time," Kate adamantly replied, "And I know of at least four people that can back me up, too." "Calm down, little lady," Detective Andrews smiled, "I'm only here to get statements from the both of you, especially since you've had recent altercations with the departed." "What do you want to know?" Kate asked. "Let's start with the deceased," he began, "What kind of person was he?" "I'm not trying to speak ill of the dead, but the truth is the truth; and he was an asshole," I emotionlessly replied, "Furthermore, he was also a bully who enjoyed picking on smaller, weaker people." "That's right," Kate added, "And if you ask me, he got what he damn well deserved." "Unfortunately, that's not for any of us to say," Detective Andrews said, as he stood up, "But I will find out who did this, rest assured." "Is there anything else that you need from us?" I asked. "No," he smiled, "I think that'll do for now, but I ask that you don't leave town for any reason...at least until we get this mess cleaned up, alright?" "I'll be right here," I told him, "Or in class if you need me." "Good enough," he smiled, shaking my hand, "I guess that's it...you two take care and stay safe." "Yes, sir, we sure will" I replied, "You do the same." ~~~~~~ "Wow," Kate said, after the detective left, "That's wild what happened to Eddie Ross." "Yeah," I uneasily said, "But that also means that whoever killed him might come after me, too." "Now, why would they do that?" Kate asked, "You haven't done anything to anyone." "Maybe not," I told her, "But that doesn't mean shit if Eddie Ross was involved in something illegal or, God forbid, he had mob connections, and that's what it looks like to me because of the way he was killed." "That's bullshit; he was too stupid for something like that," Kate spat, "Besides, the mob disbanded when Joseph "Joey Boy" Palone got put in prison where he later died so; that doesn't make any sense." "Don't kid yourself one bit where the mob is concerned," I warned her, "Even though Joey Palone is gone, that doesn't mean the Palone Family died with him, trust me, sweetie. They're still out there." "I'm afraid, Rick," Kate began to cry, "I'd die if something happened to you." "Hey now," I soothed her, pulling her into my arms, "Nothing's going to happen to me...okay?" "If you say so, then I believe you," she sniffled, "But I'm still afraid." "Don't be," I smiled, my arms still around her, "There's nothing for you to worry about, I promise." ~~~~~~ Kate had to work at her family's restaurant that night, and as usual; I was there to eat dinner. Her parents, Roger and Sandy, had come to mean as much to me as my own mother and father; and in doing so; every time I went to the restaurant to eat, I was allowed into the kitchen to fix my own plate of whatever I wanted. That night as I sat eating dinner, I was talking to Roger when, out of nowhere, a lady of about fifty, or so, walked up to my table and said, "You're name is Rick Parker isn't it?" "Yes, ma'am," I kindly replied, "Can I help you?" "Her name is Glenda Ross, Rick, as in; she's Eddie's mother," Roger suddenly, as well as defensively replied, "What can I do for you, Glenda?" Her facial features, which at first looked tired and sad, suddenly turned to an evil rage as she swiftly advanced toward me, and tried placing her hands around my throat, and then while standing in front of everyone in the restaurant, she loudly screeched, "YOU'RE THE REASON THAT MY BABY IS DEAD, YOU SONOFABITCH!!!!!" "Whoa, wait a minute," I replied standing, as Roger held her off of me, "I had nothing to do with it, Missus Ross." But as opposed to saying anything in reply, she simply began to cry, causing Roger to let go of her while she turned and walked away, her shoulders shaking violently as she sobbed. "Poor thing," Roger quietly said, tears beginning to fill his eyes, "I know how she feels, Rick, and..." "It's alright now," I gently interrupted, placing my hand on his shoulder, making him look at me, "It's going to be just fine, I promise." ~~~~~~ The next day after my political science class, I discovered the beginnings of a turning point in my life. Because I had that class every day at the same time and because it was also my last class of the day, I always liked to work out in the gym afterward. ~~~~~~ I was working the speed bag when this guy who I'd seen in my Physics class approached me, also in sweats, and said, "Hey man, isn't your name Rick Parker?" "Yeah," I smiled, "You're in my Physics class, aren't you?" "Yes, I'm Tom Johnson," he grinned, "I also know your room mate, Mike Kelly. He and I went to high school together." "Cool, "I'll bet you know a lot more about that crazy bastard than I do," I laughed, "All bullshit aside though, Mike's a great guy." "He sure is," Tom smiled, "He saved my life when we were little." And when I asked him about it, Tom went on to tell me that Mike had saved him from drowning when he fell into a river. He said that Mike jumped in and pulled him to safety, risking his own life in the process. Needless to say, I looked at my room mate differently from that day forward. ~~~~~~ That night, which was Friday, found me at the restaurant waiting for Kate to get off work. Roger had promised her that she would be allowed to leave early. It was around eight o'clock in the evening and the "dinner rush" had thinned out to all but a few tables. I was standing besides the cash register talking to Sandy when two men dressed in ski-masks and brandishing hand-guns rushed through the front door.