Simple Song Pt. 01

He looked up. "What was that?"

"Nevermind. It was a dumb question."

"We both know that I'm the one with a Masters in dumb questions, so I'm guessing it wasn't actually dumb." He smiled encouragingly. "What was it?"

Her voice was even quieter now. "I asked if you thought I was pretty."

"Well, there's got to be a reason that I'm always staring at you, so it's either that or the really big, hairy wart on your forehead. It's a toss up."

She wasn't looking at him.

"Crap, can we add dumb jokes to dumb questions for my repertoire?" John tried to lift her face back to him with his hand. "Yes, you are pretty. Astoundingly pretty, in fact. It would take someone much more eloquent than me to describe it."

She was still silent. He couldn't read her expression.

"Ok... here goes..." (deep breath) "I don't have adequate words to describe how pretty you are. Umm... I spend way too much of my time thinking about you... When I'm around you, it is physically impossible for me not to glance at you every few seconds... When you smile at me, I literally go weak at the knees...

"OK, I'm not sure how else to describe it in gentlemanly terms."

Now she looked straight at him. He still couldn't read her expression.

"So what is it in ungentlemanly terms?"

"Really?"

"Yeah."

John rolled his eyes. "I don't think that this is a good idea, but... I would rather stare at your face than stare at your ass... and... God, you've got, like, a fantastic ass... I'm sure that you have no idea just how bodacious...

"I'm getting sidetracked. OK, so there has been more than one occasion when... well, when you smiled at me and your smile actually made me hard."

He continued, "OK, now that I've ruined the relationship..."

"It's not ruined, Jack. You may be nuts, but it's not ruined." Then to his surprise, she gave him another smile.

"Oops, did I just make it hard again?" She asked as she was laughing behind her hands.

"You are not going to let me forget this, are you, Jessica Rabbit?"

Her voice was back to being shy. She probably only had the confidence to say this because she was about to leave and she knew they weren't going to be able to see each other over the weekend. "Maybe some day soon you can spend some time telling me a few more ungentlemanly things."

She fled the coffee shop in as dignified a manner as she could, blushing deeply.

Chapter 11 - Terrible Love

Over the next few weeks, they spent time together at his house on a regular basis. She never invited him to hers. When John thought about it, he realized that Wippy spoke very little about her family or home. He knew that she was the only child of a single mother (who had named her World Peace). That was all.

He didn't press her on it. In fact, John was having far too good a time to take any stupid risks with the relationship. They were dating, and he had fallen for her, but John was the most pleased by their friendship. He had never had a close friend before.

The two continued to date, although in a relaxed fashion. Grades were going up for both of them. Wippy's had little room for improvement, but she was visibly less stressed. For his part, John still dressed strangely but it started to appear that he was at least picking his clothes with the lights on.

They eventually started to make out at the end of dates. It was a first for both of them.

After one of their sessions, while both were regaining their breath, Wippy spoke up. There was no context to the statement she made.

"Do you want to meet my mom?"

His mind was elsewhere, so it took him a moment to catch up.

"Sure!"

"OK. It's just that sometimes I think... she's just..."

Wippy didn't try to finish the statement. John didn't push her.

They agreed on a day, and split up for the night.

*****

Wippy's stomach was tied in knots. She didn't know why, but the idea of her boyfriend meeting her mom was upsetting.

John showed up right on time, looking as dapper as he ever had. He could see Wippy's nervousness immediately. It hurt him to see her like that.

He was introduced to her mother, Mrs. Black. Wippy's mother was taller than her, although nearly as skinny. Where Wippy had soft features and brown hair, her mother's looks were stern and she had black hair.

John quickly realized that his jokes would probably not be welcome that evening.

The meal consisted of salads.

Thinking about it, John had gathered the notion that Wippy was relentlessly self-critical, although it seemed like she might be getting a little better. Now he understood where her self-abuse came from.

It started with the discussion on school. Whereas John's parents were only vaguely aware of his grades, Wippy's mother apparently knew her daughter's down to the homework and quiz scores.

"Daughter," (That was what she called her, never Wippy.) "I saw the calculus quiz. Congratulations on the 95%..."

She continued, "Although, I think that you should be very capable of a 100%. Maybe John can help make sure you are more prepared next time." Mrs. Black gave him a tight smile.

The discussion continued like this. (For example: "I am proud of you that you are sticking with volleyball, even if you are going to stay on the bench all season.")

When it came time to discuss John, he felt like he had just stepped into a courtroom. She quizzed him extensively on his performance at school. John answered honestly, flatly refusing to give any explanations of failure or success.

After dinner, Wippy and John took care of the dishes. Her mother told them not to go to her room, so they sat out on the porch.

Neither said anything for a long time. Eventually, John asked the question that had been bugging him.

"I thought you said she's a hippy?"

Wippy sighed.

"I said that she was a hippy. That ended just after I was born and my dad left."

She shivered.

"We should go inside, if you're cold." He looked concerned.

"Yeah, I guess. You should probably leave soon."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

They went inside, where Mrs. Black was watching TV. The news was showing a story about a school teacher who was fired because of a brief history working in porn. Wippy's mother was very emphatically agreeing with the decision.

"After what's she done to herself, she shouldn't be able to teach... or have kids. It's disgusting."

John left soon after with a bad feeling in his stomach. At least he understood Wippy a little better now.

Chapter 12 - Killing the Blues

After that evening, John could see a difference in Wippy. She was more affectionate with him, if a little slower to smile. It seemed to him like she started trying to find reasons to touch him. Sometimes it was just his arm, or his hand. At other times, she would run her fingers through his hair, almost absent-mindedly.

Their dates became more serious. After a few of them, they even found isolated spots so that they could make out.

On one particular evening, John found Wippy outside of her house sitting on the curb when he pulled up to get her. Her eyes were red.

Neither discussed what had happened to upset her like that, but John had no doubt that her mother was the primary cause. There was nothing he could say

He had planned a unique date for them, and hoped it would take her mind off of it.

John had her follow him to the trunk of his car. When they reached it, he pulled out two pairs of roller-blades.

"We're going to roller-blade down to this awesome food truck I know."

Wippy was a little concerned. She had never tried roller-blades before.

Fortunately, she was a natural and picked it immediately.

John had used roller-blades before. He was not a natural.

By the time they reached the food truck, John was wondering where he could go to clean the blood off of his scrapes. It was a little embarrassing just how much better at it than him Wippy already was. The embarrassment was worth it, though, to watch the smile she had on her face as she whizzed around.

*****

After dinner, they ended up in the park. Wippy selected a bench that she thought would be private and sat down. She had to grab John as he careened past and pulled him onto her lap.

As soon as he landed there, John gave a goofy sigh of contentment and snuggled up against her.

"This just feels right, Dorothy." He cooed. (She wasn't sure which Dorothy he was connecting her to.)

Wippy played along for about thirty seconds before telling him to get up.

"Let's switch. You are way too heavy."

A moment later, Wippy was on his lap cuddling against him, while he held her. They sat like that for a few minutes before she looked at him with a smile.

"So, how did you know that I would be good at roller-blades?"

"Uh... I sort of didn't..."

"What? Then why did you..." She was confused.

"I'll be honest, I saw them earlier today and bought them on an impulse. It didn't occur to me that you might not have ridden them before."

"So you just got lucky?" Wippy asked.

"Yes."

"Well, good for you. And the food truck was good."

"I know, sweetums. I love food trucks!"

"Of course you do. You're such a hipster!"

"I... I am no such thing!" His tone was indignant.

Wippy traced a finger along his t-shirt that proudly stated '4th Grade Spelling Bee Champ'.

"Oh really?"

"Yeah... and yes, I was the fourth grade spelling champ!"

"You were this size when you were in fourth grade?"

He shrugged. "I didn't say the shirt wasn't new." John grinned at her.

He continued, "Is dating a hipster... which I still deny... so bad?"

She gave him a kiss. "Of course not. One of the things that I love about you is that you dance to your own tune."

After that, they didn't do much talking while they kissed. After a little while, Wippy stopped them.

"We need to quit. We're in public." She was breathing heavily.

"It's alright. No one was ever hurt by a little innocent groping."

She stood up on her skates and tried to pull him up.

"Come on, let's go home."

He stayed sitting. "OK, but you need to give me a minute."

"Why?" Immediately after that, she glanced at his crotch and saw the reason. "Ohhhh...."

Wippy had a cheeky smile on her face. Thanks to that, it ended up being several minutes before John could get up.

He only fell twice on the way back. At least it was progress.

Chapter 13 - I Love You, but Goodbye

Later that week, John gave Wippy the exciting news. His parents were visiting his sister that weekend and he would have the house to himself.

They were both nervous despite their anticipation.

In the end, the two arranged that Wippy would come by Friday evening. John would make sure that there was food waiting for them.

She was shocked when John opened the door. He was wearing a vest and tie. The colors all matched and the clothes even looked like they had been ironed. He looked good.

After a hello kiss and a 'bonus round kiss' (something John had insisted was needed), she came in. When they reached the kitchen, Wippy saw a gigantic mess. She also saw the dinner that John had made.

They had salmon with pecans, a salad with pecans, and a pecan pie. Evidently John had remembered that pecans were her favorite food.

It all tasted terrible.

The process of recovering from the taste of John's food took some time.

"Holy crap on a stick! I am not cooking... anything... ever again." John was very emphatic as they tried to recover.

"I... wouldn't... disagree." Wippy was speaking in bursts because she was trying to wash her mouth out underneath the kitchen tap.

*****

Once their appetites recovered, the couple ate peanut butter sandwiches in companionable silence.

Eventually, Wippy asked the question that had been bothering her. "Is your cooking always that bad? I mean... I love that you tried but..."

She didn't even need to finish that statement.

"I will be honest, I only ever cook one thing... breakfast foods. If you want bacon or breakfast potatoes, even hashbrowns, I'm your guy. Apparently, the skills do not carry over to other types of food."

That set them off laughing. They couldn't help but see the humor in John's botched attempt at a romantic dinner.

After resolving their hunger on simpler foods, John and Wippy retired to the family room where things began to get more intense.

*****

She was straddling his lap, her hands gently pressed to his face as they kissed. John groaned into her mouth. It felt like the only thing preventing him from floating off was her weight on him.

He was tentative, frightened of making the wrong move or appearing presumptuous by going too far. John lightly rested his hands on her hips, lightly stroking her.

When they came up for breath, she grabbed his hands and pulled them up to her chest. Her small, but firm, tits felt heavenly in his hands.

John pulled his head back and looked in her eyes. He seemed to stutter, starting to speak and stopping several times. The words he wanted to say seemed to be stuck in his mouth, unwilling to leap off his tongue. After several attempts, he settled for two simple words.

"You're perfect."

The air left the room.

John found himself suddenly alone as Wippy stumbled off his lap and sprinted out of the room. After a moment of shock, he stood up and ran after her. She was already out the door and at her car, leaving her jacket on the rack inside the door. As he got near the car, John could hear her sobbing.

"Wippy, what's happening?!! Did I do something wrong?" He couldn't hide the desperation in his voice as she seemed to struggle with her purse trying to find her keys.

"Wippy, come back inside. Please."

She didn't look up at him. She was she desperately digging through the bag, scattering contents onto the street around her. As he got closer, John realized that she was speaking softly through the sobs. Suddenly, she opened the door step into the car and turned the key in the ignition. A moment later, she was gone.

John stood in the street, still as a statue. He had caught one phrase.

"...I just can't..."

It would be nearly six months before he heard her voice again.

I hope you enjoyed it! As I said, this is the first of multiple parts (at least four). The next one has all the sex, so...

This is one story that I intend to continue to work on, both in writing new sections and in improving the ones already written. Recommendations or comments are good.

Be Kind, Please Rewind.