An Unforgettable Melody Ch. 07

"And you don't?" she shot back playfully.

As they basked in their mutual afterglow, Mike's phone beeped from within his shorts, now strewn on the floor. Melody whimpered pitifully as he slipped his flaccid cock out of her to retrieve it, resulting in an amused laugh from Mike. Reading his phone, Stuart, Seth, and Darcy had responded to his invite for the next night.

"Stuart and Darcy are in for tomorrow, but Seth's got plans with his girlfriend. I told him no problem, I'll buy him lunch this week," Mike said.

With a wicked smile, Melody replied, "That works perfectly, gives us a prime opportunity to nudge them toward each other."

Dressing themselves once again, the couple drove to a nearby Wendy's for lunch. After consuming a couple of cheeseburgers, they headed to the grocery store for a much-needed resupply of food. Beginning to wander the isles, Melody was darting every which way, examining everything she could. Exceedingly amused, Mike hadn't seen her this excitable since she first set foot outside their apartment. Checking coupons on his phone, Mike picked up several TV dinners, frozen lasagnas, and a bag of chicken patties from the freezer isle before heading to the deli counter.

Waiting for their number to be called, Melody wandered around the counter, looking at each of the different kinds of meat offered. She pointed to two that sounded particularly good: baked turkey and honey roasted ham; they ordered a half-pound of each. Moving to the bakery area right next to the deli, Mike felt a treat was in order for winning his audition, and grabbed some sugar cookies as well as a box of mini doughnuts for breakfast that week. After picking up milk, bread, and, at Melody's excited request, a box of Lucky Charms, they made their way to the front to check out. While Mike loaded their food onto the conveyer belt in the check out line, Melody flipped through a few magazines on the rack, landing on People and Entertainment Weekly.

"You know those are complete trash, right?" Mike warned her.

"What, you mean reading about the lives of people famous just for being beautiful and promiscuous?" she shot back.

"Yep, there it is. Do you hear it?" Mike asked, placing his hand to his ear. "It's the sound your brain cells, screaming in agony as they're killed off!"

Giggling, she retorted, "True, but it does pose the question. What other kinds of magazines do they sell here?" A naughty smile spread across her face.

"If that's what you want, better ask Stuart tomorrow," Mike replied, recalling his distraction efforts from earlier in the week. "I bet he's an expert in where to find Playboy and Penthouse magazines."

After finishing their check out, the pair headed home and immediately began sorting their groceries into the fridge, freezer, and cabinets. While Melody handed items to Mike from the bags, he placed them in their proper locations for storage. Once they finished, the couple spent the next couple of hours online in Call of Duty.

As the time neared 5:30, they powered off Mike's PlayStation to get ready for dinner with his parents. Clearly nervous and wanting to make a good impression, Melody decided to forgo her usual look of natural beauty, opting for some light mascara and lip gloss. Deciding on her attire, however, was a much more difficult decision for her. She rapidly flipped through several different outfit combinations before finally deciding on a black T-shirt blouse with a pair of blue jean Bermuda shorts. Her black headband and red sneakers completed the ensemble. As she finished, she turned to Mike for his approval, and he quickly nodded. He could tell that she wanted to dress a bit more conservatively for meeting his parents for the first time, with the length of her shorts and slightly higher collar on her shirt, though she was still stunningly beautiful. After Mike donned a pair of khaki shorts and an orange Auburn polo shirt, they were off.

Driving to the restaurant, Melody fidgeted with her hands, clearly bit of a nervous wreck. Mike gently rubbed her knee reassuringly. "Just relax. I'm wild about you, so they'll love you too. One tip: just be your normal, confident self. They like girls that are strong and self-assured."

"Ok. I can do that," she replied, mostly to herself.

As they walked up to the entrance of the Cheesecake Factory, Mike's parents waved to them from inside the waiting area. Both in their mid-fifties, his mom, Jane, was quite short, standing only about 5'2" with light brown hair ending just below her jawline. Brad, his dad, was right about Mike's height, or perhaps a half-inch shorter. Melody could instantly tell their facial features were almost identical; Mike was definitely his father's son. His hair, however, was medium-to-dark brown, with slightly longer sideburns than Mike had. Both of his parents wore thin, wire-rimmed glasses, similar to what Mike had worn before his improved eyesight. As Mike and Melody entered, his folks waved them over to their bench seat where they waited.

"Mom, Dad, I want you to meet Melody, my girlfriend," Mike said as they approached.

"Hi, Melody Roberts. Great to meet you," she greeted them, shaking both of their hands firmly.

"Glad to meet you, too. I'm Jane, and this is my husband, Brad," his mom replied.

As the greetings were exchanged, the hostess called their name, indicating their table was ready. Following the friendly girl, the group was lead to a booth in the back of the restaurant, which was much quieter than the entrance area. Mike and Melody sat together on one side with Melody on the outer edge of the seat, across from Brad. After placing their orders, Mike went into their now-familiar story of how they met. Though his parents did not show any sign of disbelief in Melody being an orphan, or her Texan roots, they both got skeptical looks on their faces when Mike mentioned that they had met through online dating.

"Mike, I thought I've always told you to stay away from meeting people online. It's just not safe," his mom began.

As Melody tried to suppress a panicked look on her face, Mike gently ran his finger on her thigh to calm her nerves, and responded, "Mom, seriously, you're stuck in the past. Online dating is a completely normal, mainstream way to meet people nowadays, and it's completely safe just as long as you're not stupid, which you know I'm not."

Seeing the firm look in his eye told Jane all she needed to know: he had done his due diligence. "Well, as long as you're very careful..."

"Melody and I have been seeing each other for, what is it? A month and a half? Two months now?" said, turning to Melody.

"Yeah two months is about right," she replied.

Mike continued, "And clearly she hasn't stolen my wallet, chloroformed me, or gone all Annie Wilkes yet, so I think I'm in the clear."

The Misery reference elicited a jovial laugh from the entire table, helping the conversation flow much easier from that moment on. Melody talked about her background, her success in school that helped her get a scholarship to the University of Houston, and her move to Atlanta to start her photography business, as well as a new life. This caused Jane's ears to perk up; though her degree was in math, Jane had a long-standing love affair with photography. Melody showed her some samples from her website on her phone, which Jane flipped through intently. Each time she asked Melody where a picture was taken, she was able to answer brilliantly and confidently. Mike and Brad exchanged knowing looks; they could tell Melody had impressed his mom.

Their food soon arrived, and the conversations became much more intermittent, taking place between chewing and comments on how good the food was. Soon, the talk turned to Mike's audition and new job. He first told them of the audition itself and which pieces he had worked up. Both of his parents were singers, and Jane also played the flute in church, so they were quite familiar with most of the excerpts. They were also stunned when they learned that Philip Smith had been one of the panelists, and that he had been exceedingly impressed.

"Like I told Mike while he was preparing, he's just a man. Like any other, he can be impressed," Melody chimed in.

"She was right. Truth be told, the fire drill I got from Darcy, Stuart, and Seth helped immensely as well," Mike agreed.

"Seemed to work well for Darcy last year, too," Jane mused. "So, what are you two doing tomorrow? Any plans?"

Mike replied, "Well, we're probably going to church together tomorrow morning, then we'll have Stuart and Darcy over as a thank you for their help in preparing me for yesterday. I figure the least I can do is feed them."

"Awesome! Melody, did you grow up in church?" Mike's mom asked.

"Sadly, no. The orphanage I lived in was state-run, and faith was in very short supply in general, so it was never at the forefront of my mind. Honestly, though, that's one of the biggest things in Mike that I'm attracted to. Clearly he's grown into a good, honest, decent person, and his faith was a big part of that, so I figured I should check it out and see for myself. So far, it's done wonders for me, particularly in the self worth department."

Nodding approvingly, Jane replied, "That's wonderful. Has Mike told you about my Daddy? He was a preacher himself."

"He has talked about him on several occasions," she said, looking at Mike with a big smile on her face. "Mike says he was a great man, better than most. The perfect combination of cut-up and wizened sage, as he describes it."

"That pretty much sums him up..." Jane replied quietly, clearly remembering him.

As they finished their food, Melody excused herself to use the restroom and freshen up a bit. After she had left, Jane turned to her son.

"She's very impressive, Mike; very confident. I like her a lot."

"Thanks, Mom."

"Still, please be careful. I don't want what happened with Amanda to happen again."

"I know Mom. Darcy said the same thing," Mike replied. "Honestly, I really don't think you have anything to worry about. This is serious."

"I believe him," Brad said to Jane, his tone quite serious. Jane simply nodded in agreement.

Mike breathed a slight sigh of relief in gaining his parents' approval. He never had any real doubt, but it would certainly ease Melody's mind. After she returned from the restroom, Melody and Mike split a piece of original cheesecake at Jane's insistence, while his parents had a piece of Oreo crunch cheesecake for themselves. As the time neared 8:00, the couple decided to head home for the evening, and left Mike's parents with several exchanges of thank you and goodbye.

Beginning the drive home, Melody seemed much more at ease. "Do you think it went well?" she asked.

"Definitely," Mike replied. "They like you a lot. Mom's description was confident."

"I'm glad."

"Well you got her talking on photography! No way she won't love you if that's your profession," Mike said with a wink.

After arriving home, Melody washed her face and changed into her favorite robe, helping her feel very refreshed. Relaxing with Mike on the sofa, they watched a few CSI: Miami reruns, accompanied by plentiful making out. This eventually deteriorated into fondling and jerking, followed by a long, fun session of missionary sex. Fully spent for the evening, they went to bed around 11:30.

Mike awoke first on Sunday, treating a sleeping Melody to some oral sex in waking her up. She, in turn, showed her appreciation by giving him a long, soapy handjob in the shower, finishing him off with him cumming on her tits, much to Mike's delight. As they got dressed for church, Mike wore a white button up shirt with tan khakis, while Melody opted for a black pencil skirt and a white button up blouse. After grabbing breakfast at Dunkin' Doughnuts, they headed for Mike's church.

This week Melody heard the senior pastor, Dan Black, preach the sermon. She liked his polished delivery, but definitely still felt a connection to Ashley's practical, real-world style. After chatting with Ashley and Trey after the service, the pair headed back to Mike's car. On the way, Melody expressed an interest in owning a Bible of her own and wanting to do more reading and research on her own time, rather than just on Sundays. Smiling at this prospect, Mike stopped at a local bookstore on the way home. After comparing the wording of several sections in the different versions offered, Melody decided on a Common English edition, to which Mike gave his personal seal of approval. After a quick lunch at Arby's, they made their way back to their apartment.

As Mike played on his handheld game system, Melody began skimming through her new acquisition. She was quite familiar with many of the stories in the Old Testament, such as Noah, Moses, and the battle of Jericho. Mike was extremely impressed with her quick grasp of the historical events described in it, before remembering that her vessel was likely created somewhere in the Middle East centuries ago, where such things were an important part of historical lore, regardless of religious affiliation. Sensing that she wanted to delve further into what made Mike's faith unique from other world religions, he suggested that she start with several passages in the New Testament, as they actually describe the events leading up to the formation of the first formal Christian churches.

With Melody now engrossed in her research, Mike's curiosity was suddenly peaked, and he felt a strange urge to examine the locket that he had first released Melody from. Walking back to his bedroom, he pulled the locket out from the drawer of his nightstand, slowly running his finger over it. It made no movements, and the stone did not glow at all. Strangely, though, he noticed that the markings on the back, which had previously been illuminated when he touched the stone on the front, now appeared as engravings instead. Before he could ponder what this could mean, he heard Melody's voice behind him.

"Master? Is everything alright?"

Taking a sharp breath in at her use of the title of Master, he replied, "Yeah... yeah everything's fine. It's strange, but I just got this urge to check this thing over again. I haven't really touched it since the day you were born."

"Ok," she said, appearing to sigh in relief. "I'm sorry, I was momentarily worried that you were considering..."

"No way," he interrupted, standing to move towards her. "You are the most wonderful thing to ever happen to me. I would never wish to get rid of you, nor to imprison you back in this thing for any length of time."

Kissing him sweetly, she replied, "I'm glad."

Looking intently at the locket, Mike asked, "There isn't any way that just keeping this around would result in you accidentally returning to your vessel, is there?"

"Not at all. As the one who released me, you are in complete control of me, as well as my powers and my vessel. If it is not your wish for me to return to my vessel, I will not, even if I were to hold it in my hand. As I mentioned previously, all of its magical qualities seem to have dissipated from it since my release."

"Good to know," he replied, sitting back on the bed. "Still, it's strange. Look on the back. The inscription here wasn't an inscription before I released you; it previously only appeared when I touched the stone on the front. What do you think that means?"

Examining the locket, Melody responded, "I'm not sure. I really can't speak to the specific nature of the vessel, unfortunately."

"So, what did you experience while you were inside of it?"

"Well, truthfully, I was not exactly inside the locket," she explained. "The locket is merely the doorway to my actual vessel. Think of it as a lock, and the puzzle you solved was the key. My vessel itself is more of a separate dimension. While in it, I did not perceive anything in the outside world, not even the passage of time. I just... existed."

"That's awful!"

"While it was not an unpleasant experience, I definitely have no desire to go back, if given the choice, of course."

"Hmm... So I assume you were created by a jinn or genie more powerful than yourself, correct?" Mike inquired.

"Yes, although my knowledge of who that being was seems to be unknown to me."

"Really? You have no idea who created you?"

"No. It may fall under the restriction of being unable to detect other magical beings, though I am again unsure," Melody speculated.

"Well, did you exist before being placed inside the vessel, or were you simply created inside of it?"

She closed her eyes, searching her mind for any sort of answer. Finally, she said, "I can tell that I was created before being placed in the vessel, yet it seems I am completely unable to access any memories of my existence before being placed in my vessel. I can't say for sure the reason for my lack of knowledge of my past, but it does strike me as odd."

"Wow. So you have no idea where you originally came from... I wonder if the inscription on the locket might hold any clues?" Mike wondered.

Turning to the verse in her new Bible indicated by the inscription, Melody read it a few times, but was unable to find any significance hidden within it. "Hmm... I'll file it away for future reference," she said. "Still, I don't think we should dwell on this too much. I'm focused on the here and now, and I couldn't be happier with my life and everything the future holds."

"No arguments there," Mike agreed, pulling her in for a kiss.

Putting the locket away for the time being, Mike and Melody spent the next couple of hours playing video games. Mike introduced her to one of his favorite games, the Uncharted series. Melody quite liked the fun, yet realistic tone of the stories, and was particularly charmed by the excellent characters. She definitely saw much of Mike's sarcastic yet lovable personality in Nathan Drake's character. Around 5:30, they changed out of their lounging clothes and began to prepare some food for Stuart and Darcy's arrival. Mike worked on some easy finger food, making some frozen chicken nuggets and mozzarella sticks, while Melody cooked some meatballs in spaghetti sauce on the stovetop. Almost as soon as the food was done, there was a knock at their door.

Stuart and Darcy had arrived practically at the same time; he was walking up the sidewalk right after the door had opened. Stuart wore his ASO Low Brass T-shirt, complete with the section's nickname of "Heavy Metal." Darcy wore a navy blue tank top, lower cut than she usually wore, and tan capris. As Stuart entered, Mike introduced him to Melody, eliciting an inquisitive look from him. As Stuart extended his hand to shake hers, he surprisingly flipped his double-jointed fingers back and forth, causing Melody to squeal and laugh in amusement. A few more exchanged pleasantries, and the group headed to the kitchen to fill their plates with food.

Enjoying their munchies in the living room, Stuart listened to Mike and Melody's story of how they met. He turned to Darcy, questioning how she's not more intrigued by all of this, who responded that she met Melody on Friday when she came to pick Mike up. As the conversation turned to Melody's photography business, Darcy asked to see her full website, rather than just the samples she had previously seen on her phone. The girls grabbed Mike's laptop and adjourned to the small table near the kitchen, laughing and giggling all the while.

I'm gonna try to plant the seeds of interest for Stuart in Darcy, try to gauge her receptiveness, she thought to Mike.

Sounds good, I'll work on Stuart's confidence myself.

As the girls conversed at the table, Mike and Stuart fired up Mario Kart Wii, having played each other before. They were pretty evenly matched, though Mike's recent races with Melody ensured that he was in great practice. As they played, Stuart and Mike chatted quietly.