After The Dust Had Settled

"Man, your folks are so cool, little brother," said Bryan when he saw what Mom and Dad had done.

"Yeah, they really are," I replied, looking over at my mom who gave me a loving smile.

Andie was trying to help Mom with getting all the places set at the table when Mom looked at her, and smiling, said, "You sit your pretty little self right down next to me in the other room and let's eat something and then we can have a little girl talk while these men are eating, okay baby-girl?"

"Yes ma'am," replied Andie smiling warmly.

We all sat down and ate with Dad sitting at the head of the table, enjoying being around all of "his guys" as he later came to call us.

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

Andie and Mom had retired to the den to eat and talk. The moment they sat down, Mom got right to the point and said, "You can tell me that this isn't any of my business, but....."

"Yes ma'am, Mark and I are sleeping together, and I love him with all my heart," Andie said, interrupting Mom.

Mom smiled and said, "Isn't it a beautiful thing to be loved by someone that you also love?"

"It sure is, but I hope you're not mad at us for not waiting till we knew each other a little longer," replied Andie.

"Why wait? Hell Mark's father and I met at a party, and then later that night we were all alone in his dorm room as well as all over each other," replied Mom with a smirk, and then she added, "Honey, sometimes you just know that you're with the right person and nothing else matters so, don't apologize to me for anything, baby-girl!"

"We gave each other our virginity, and it was the most beautiful thing I've ever known," said Andie dreamily.

"The fact that you waited this long to give it up lets me know that you're definitely the right girl for my son, and I want you to know that when he asks you to marry him, and he will because I know my son, you both have mine and his father's blessing," said Mom, caressing Andie's cheek.

"Thank you, Kerrie, I really mean that, too," said Andie as she got up and hugged Mom.

Mom smiled, and patting Andie on the butt as if she were her daughter, replied, "That's quite alright, baby-girl! Besides, us Kappa Deltas gotta stick together, huh?"

Andie kissed Mom on the cheek, and wiping the tears of happiness from her eyes, smiled and replied, "Hell yeah, we do!"

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

The next day, or should I say afternoon, Bryan, Danny, Tommy and Phil were gathered in my room, at my request. When the last person arrived, which was Danny, Bryan said, "Okay, Little Brother, you got us all here, now what is so important?"

I began to relay to them the information my father had given me the previous night. I explained that it was all up to us and that we needed to get a demo together of original songs as well as a group picture.

"And just where are we supposed to get the originals from? None of us are writers," Bryan explained.

"I'm willing to give it a shot," I said, much to the approval of the rest of the band. I knew I could write. Hell, I'd been doing it since I was ten. I'd just never shared it with anyone.

"Alright then, why don't we get out of here so you can get to work," Tommy said grinning.

After everyone was gone, Bryan remained behind and asked, "Does your Dad really think we're good enough?"

"Yeah, he does and so do I, now get the hell outta here and let me get to work," I replied laughing.

I spent the rest of the day working and on into the early evening until I heard a knock at my door. "Come on in," I replied.

It was my beautiful Andie, with a pizza and two soft drinks. She poked her head in the door and said, "I'm sorry for interrupting you, but I though you might feel like taking a break to eat, handsome!"

"You could never interrupt me, beautiful," I replied, getting up and holding the door for her. As she passed, Andie leaned up and kissed me on the lips on her way in and then set everything up at my desk. God how I loved this woman!

"Ya know, I absolutely love your Mom and Dad," said Andie, as we ate.

"Mom sure loves you, I can tell," I said, taking a bite of pizza, and then with my mouth full, I laughed as I added, "I heard her tell Dad that you and I are going to have beautiful babies one day!"

"Why do you think that's funny, Mark?" Andie asked, glaring at me.

I felt a lump rising in my throat and had difficulty swallowing what was already in my mouth, but I still managed to get it down and then said, "Look here Andie, I didn't mean to......"

"Gotcha!" said Andie, laughing uncontrollably, then regaining her composure and added, "You should've seen your face. Now that's funny!"

"Ha, Ha, yeah, very funny," I replied sarcastically.

"Aw baby, I was just kidding," soothed Andie, climbing into my lap and kissing my lips.

No matter how much she had tried to hide it, Andie could not contain the excitement in her eyes at the mention of our having babies in the future. So, I patted her beautiful bottom and said, "Still though, Mom was right when she said that you and I will have beautiful babies one day."

"Oh Mark," said Andie, and then she laid her head into my chest and began to weep softly.

"Here, here, what's wrong sweetheart?" I asked, alarmed because she was upset.

She cried for a few moments longer, then she lifted her head, and with tears soaking her face, replied, "I never thought that I would find the man that I would be spending the rest of my life with so soon. But because you just said what you did, about us having babies together one day I mean, then that lets me know that you really do love me!"

I wiped her eyes and face and said, "I fell in love with you the minute I laid eyes on you, baby, and there's no way that I'm ever gonna let you get away now that you're mine!"

"That's right, I'm yours and you're mine, forever," she replied, kissing me. After the kiss ended, Andie smiled and said, "So, have you got anything written yet?"

"I've got this one thing I've been working on all afternoon, but it isn't finished yet."

"Do you think I could hear it?" asked Andie.

To this day, I've never been able to refuse Andie anything so, I smiled and said, "Sure, why not?"

I got up from where I was seated and moved to my keyboards. All day long I had thought about my beautiful Andie, therefore; everything I'd written up to this point had been done with her in mind. As I began to play, I sang the lyrics that went with it. I knew I could sing because I was also in choir, beginning from the fifth grade through high school, but I never thought my voice was anything special! However, when I was finished, Andie looked at me in astonishment and said, "Has Bryan heard you sing yet?"

"I don't think so, no, definitely not," I replied, not thinking anything about what she was asking.

"Wait right here. I'll be right back," she said, then got up and kissed me before she dashed out of my room. I continued working until she returned a few moments later almost out of breath, and said, "Bryan will be here in about forty-five minutes, but could you play it again for me, baby?"

I played it again and when I was done, I turned around to find Andie, naked and grinning. "What're you doin?" I asked, looking at the most beautiful sight there is.

She smiled lewdly and replied, "That was beautiful, baby, but Becky was right when she said that your music made her hot," and then she proceeded to undress me so, you can only imagine what happened next.

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

"Damn, L. B., why didn't you tell me that you could sing like that?" asked Bryan, after I'd finished playing what I'd written so far.

"I guess I never really thought about it before," I replied non chalantly.

Bryan laughed and said, "Damn, you're just full of surprises, aren't you?"

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

The next morning, I awoke at 6:00 am to find my beautiful Andie laying with her back to my front, spooning with me again and both of us as naked as the day we were born. I chose not to her because the class we both attended wasn't until much later that morning. After I was awake, I reset the alarm to a time that would give her enough time to get herself ready and prepared.

When I got to my creative writing class, Miss Johannsen was there to greet me with her hand extended, saying, "Good Morning, Mark! I just wanted to tell you what a great job you guys did at Nick's last weekend!"

I smiled and shook her hand and replied, "You were at Nick's this last weekend?"

After releasing me from the handshake, she laughed and said, "My fiancée and I wanted to catch the show, but you probably didn't see us among all the people that were there!"

"There were a bunch of people there, but thank you. I'm glad you guys liked our music," I humbly replied.

"Liked it, we loved it. My fiancé's name is Mark, too, and he wants to know where he can get your guy's album!" she said excitedly.

I leaned in slightly closer to her and said, "Tell him that we're working on that one!"

"Okay, I will," she replied smiling, then followed me into the class room. As expected, Miss Johannsen's class went smoothly. I was considered one of her best students, and the funny thing is I never really had to try that hard. I was just lucky, I guess.

However, I dreaded going to Professor Von Rohmer's class and with good reason too. Still though, I was not about to let that evil woman get the best of me. As I walked into her class room, I immediately took my seat next Andie, and after kissing her, said, "Good morning, sweetheart. Did you sleep well?"

Before Andie could respond, Professor Von Rohmer came out of her office in a rage, the moment she laid eyes on me. After screeching my name at the top of her lungs, she walked right up to where I was seated and grabbed me by the collar of my shirt, ripping it slightly, and hissed, "I told you not to come back here again, you little bastard!"

I jump up out of my seat, making her lose, not only her grip on my shirt, but her balance as well, causing her to fall flat on her ass. Then I leaned down and replied, "And I told you to keep your fucking hands off of me, you evil fucking bitch!" Then I grabbed my stuff, and after kissing Andie, I left the classroom and headed straight to the nearest phone and called my Dad.

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

I skipped my Psychology class that afternoon. Instead, I spent it in my room working on music for the band. Around 2:30 in the afternoon, I heard a knock on my door. "Come on in!" I said.

When I opened the door, I was pleasantly surprised to see my mother standing there grinning and saying, "Hi baby!"

Hi, Mom! What're you doing back here?" I asked, hugging her and ushering her into my room.

She gave me a serious look, then replied, "After the telephone conversation I had with your father this morning about certain exploits that have been happening to you because of Professor Von Rohmer, I figured that you were going to need a good attorney so, here I am!"

"I'm not in any kind of trouble, am I?" I asked sheepishly.

Mom smiled, reached into her briefcase and withdrew a handful of paperwork, then showed it to me and began, "On the contrary, Mark. Ever since the last run in you had with her, your father had an extensive background check done on her. It turns out that Ilia Von Rohmer is not her name. Her real name is Greta Rommel, the daughter of the late Field Marshall, Erwin Rommel. She is a devout Semitist as well as an active member of the Nazi party here in the U.S. We got a hit from INTERPOL that says she's also a fugitive from the German government with a bounty of One Million American Dollars on her head. It seems that she was responsible for the bombing of a government building in Stuttgart that killed three hundred innocent people. I've called the police as well as the F.B.I. and they should be here any minute!" No sooner had she finished speaking than there was a loud knock at my door.

The moment I opened the door, two men dressed in suits, one older, one younger, as well as two uniformed police officers, one male, one female, stood out in the hall. The older of the two men showed me his credentials and then said, "Are you Mark Thompson?"

"I sure am," I said.

"May we come in?" he asked.

"Please do!" I replied, escorting them into my room.

The two uniformed officer remained outside my door while the two men wearing suits came into my room and closed the door behind them. The older man looked at me and said, "I'm Special Agent, David Peterson and this is my partner, Special Agent Charles Ross. We'd like to ask you a few questions, if that's alright!"

"Am I in some kind of trouble?" I asked nervously.

"No, not at all, we'd just like to ask you some questions, that's all," replied Peterson.

I had an idea as to why they were here, but still, I wanted my father to be present if I was going to be questioned by anyone, and I knew my mother would back me up so, I replied, "If I'm not in any trouble, then I don't have to answer any questions now, do I?"

My reply had apparently pissed Agent Ross off, because he suddenly, and with much bravado in his tone of voice, viciously said, "Look you little punk. If you wanna play hard-ass, we can always take your little ass downtown and question you there!"

"Oh, I don't think so, Asshole," Mom politely interjected.

"And just who are you?" spat Ross.

Reaching into her purse and withdrawing a booklet of her legal credentials, she replied, "My name is Mrs. Kerrie Thompson, and not only am I this kid's mother, but I'm also his attorney, as well as being the wife of His Honor, Federal Judge, Michael L. Thompson, the boy's father. Now if you two gentlemen want to question my son any further, you will do so in front of me and his father. Do either of you two have a problem with that?"

"No ma'am, we will be in touch with you," replied Peterson, and then they left.

"What the hell was that all about?" I asked.

"I would imagine that they were here to ask you about Greta Rommel. After all, she is a fugitive from justice," Mom replied.

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

"So what did they want?" Andie asked, when I told her about the F.B.I. paying me a visit. Mom proceeded to disclose to Andie, the information Dad had dug up on the now infamous Greta Rommel. Little did any of us realize that the F.B.I. had already picked her up and were waiting on me to identify her? Mom did tell us that the Feds were definitely going to be contacting Dad, and that we would most likely be seeing him sometime tomorrow. As a passing thought, she looked at Andie and said, "I want you to get an overnight bag packed because I would like you and Mark to come and stay at the hotel suite with me tonight, if that's alright with you, baby-girl!"

Andie's face lit up as smiled and said, "Of course it's alright," then after standing up from where she was seated next to me on my bed, she leaned down and kissed me, then added, "I'll be back in a few minutes," then dashed off across the hall to her room.

As I watched my beautiful Andie disappear from the room, I could see Mom smiling at me from out of the corner of my eyes making me look at her and ask, "What is it, Mom, and why are you grinning at me like that?"

"You really love her, don't you, son?" she replied smiling.

"I can't begin to tell you how much I lover her, Mom. She gives me feelings like none I've ever known before," I replied dreamily.

"I know I don't have to tell you this, but you two be responsible when it comes to certain things, okay?" said Mom.

I smiled and said, "You can relax, Mom. Andie is on the pill, alright?"

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

When we arrived at the hotel suite, Mom told Andie and me to put our clothes in the additional rooms. However, aside of the master bedroom, there was only one other room. I brought this to Mom's attention and she simply smiled and said, "I know!"

"Are you sure it's alright if we sleep together in the same room, not to mention the same bed?" I asked shocked.

Mom grinned and said, "Wipe that look off of your face, Mark. I was young and beautiful once and was insanely in love with a dashingly handsome boy, who just happens to be your father."

"You're still young and beautiful, Mom, and I love you," I said, as I threw my arms around her and hugged her tight.

"Aw, I love you too, baby!" Mom said, as she patted my back and hugged me just as tight.

After we got our things put away, I got on the phone and called Dr. Breeden to apprise him of the situation, also relaying the information Dad had discovered. I let him know that both me, and because she directly witnessed what happened, Andie would not be in class that day, as we were going to speak with my father.

Of course, he just laughed and replied, "A Nazi, huh? Yeah, well, I always knew that there was something about that woman that just wasn't right so, that doesn't surprise me," and then with a small hint of sadness in his voice, he added, "Thanks, Mark, thank you very much!"

"For what?" I asked.

Then he laughed and said, "I'll tell you when you get back. You and Andie take care of your business and we'll see you whenever you get back!"

Right before I hung up the telephone, I smiled and said, "Thanks Doc!"

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

Mom had dinner brought to the suite and as we sat and ate, I noticed that Andie would look at Mom and me with a sad smile. I took immediate notice, and gently taking her hand, said, "Andie, what's wrong sweetie?"

"Oh, nothing really," she answered, trying, but failing to smile as tears began to silently roll down her beautiful face.

I immediately rose from my chair and went around to her side of the table, knelt down and threw my arms around her and said, "Oh, hey, what's wrong, baby?" She simply threw her arms around my neck and began to weep bitterly into my chest. Not knowing what was wrong, but knowing that, to quote my mother, I loved her insanely; I held her, letting her get it all out.

By the time she had regained her composure, both Mom and I had our arms around her. Andie smiled at us as she pulled back slightly, and then wiped her eyes and said, "I'm really sorry about that, you guys!"

"You wanna talk about it?" I gently asked.

She hesitantly replied, "Well...."

"You're safe and you're among people who love you, baby-girl," Mom softly said, trying to ease Andie's mind. The taking us both by the hand, she led Andie and I into the living room area of the suite and sat us down on the couch. She took the chair that was next to us, and then to Andie, said, "Talk to us baby-girl, we won't let anyone hurt you nor will say a word about it to anyone!"

I had been holding her hand the whole time, and as soon as Mom spoke, I felt Andie relax her posture. She leaned back on the couch and began, "After my mother found out that she was pregnant with me, my father took off and we never heard from him again. As I was growing up, Mom did the best she could and it was more than enough. But then she got real sick and died right before I went into high school and I was sent to live with my aunt who was very strict. Ya know, she never hugged me or showed me any kind of affection whatsoever. Then, when I was fifteen, I went on a band trip and there was this guy, he was a senior and I always thought he was real sweet until we were alone. He tried to...he tried to..." and then she began to cry again. I went to comfort her, but she suddenly held her head up high and added, "...he never got to finish high school, because now he's in prison for the attempted rape of a minor, but I guess I just miss my Mom, and seeing the two of you together reminds me of her."

"It took a lot of guts to tell us that, and I love you even more for it, Andie," I told her after softly kissing her lips. Suddenly there was a knock at the door.