Trucker Ch. 03: Lake Point

Hal chose a nearby diner for breakfast the next morning. It was after an awkward sunrise dance in which he got up to shower and then kept his eyes averted from Cody, first while tiptoeing back from the shower with a towel around his ample self, and then while Cody got up, carefully guarding the hem of her night shirt. Hal knew if he stole any glances he was sure to see something and he neither wanted his penis hardening when he wasn't dressed, nor Cody catching him watching her.

He dressed while she showered. She dressed in the bathroom with the door closed. Hal imagined her slipping on the flimsy blouse, with no bra, and sliding her mini skirt up her bare thighs, with no panties underneath. He desperately wanted relieve the tension building in his penis but didn't dare with her so close. It didn't help when she stepped out, in bare feet, freshly showered and wearing her little mini skirt and blouse, which she again tied up under her breasts.

They stepped out into the parking lot as the sun was topping the horizon and headed off across the blacktop, past lines of rigs (many already idling) towards the diner. The fierce winds that buffeted Rawlins so often were serendipitously calm, and Cody was able to manage her mini skirt against the gentle breeze as the hem fluttered it around her bare thighs while they walked.

In the diner, Cody predictably ordered a breakfast bigger than most truckers. After the server had taken their orders, Cody slipped off her heels into her bare feet again.

"You must not like those heels," said Hal. Cody shrugged. She was quiet, which Hal realized had been bothering him since they'd left their room.

"Not much for shoes," she said, and stirred her coffee round and round while staring out the window.

"What's wrong?" asked Hal. And he hoped it wasn't him. He also hoped she hadn't somehow looked at the photos on the camera while he was showering -- and seen the one where you could see all the way up her mini skirt.

"Just thinking about home," she said. Hal nodded sympathetically.

"You want to go home?" he asked. He realized he was hoping she didn't.

"No," she said softly. "I don't think I'll be able to for a long time." She lifted a leg absent-mindedly under the table and pointed her bare toes. Her toes accidentally brushed Hal's leg. Neither said anything.

Hal looked out the window, looking at his rig across the blacktop. "Want to take some photos on the rig?" he asked, shyly.

Cody raised an eyebrow, smiled and shrugged. "Okay," she said.

Hal couldn't wait to get through breakfast, and hurried things under the pretense of hitting the road. Cody kept shrugging and smiling. Back at the rig, Hal had the camera out and ready. Cody looked at him, her chin down and eyes wide. Hal looked at her. She stood by the rig, the fingers of one hand gently holding the hem of her short mini skirt down against the breeze.

"Heels or bare feet?" she asked softly.

Hal's face reddened. "Bare feet?" he asked. Cody nodded shyly and slipped off her heels onto the pavement.

"Where do you want me?" she asked.

"How about you get up on the running board and hang onto the mirror?" he asked. Cody gingerly stepped up on the running board and took hold of the large side mirror. She stood up on her toes. Her bare soles stretched into an arch, and her calf muscles tautened.

"Like this?" she asked. Hal caught his breath and swallowed. Cody's mini skirt was made shorter by her elevation up on the running board. Hal nodded and raised the camera.

The breeze fluttered her hem as he clicked, and the back of her skirt teasingly jostled up and down. Cody vogued, lifting a knee, pouting, smiling, and flipping her hair. Glancing around him quickly, Hal kneeled low before looking at Cody again through the camera's viewfinder. As he expected, he could see twin slivers of bare cheeks become visible under Cody's miniskirt. He clicked.

Her smooth, soft, bare legs caught the morning sun, and the breeze caught her mini skirt. As it danced, Hal could see flashes of Cody's smooth, bare ass. His stomach did a flip flop as he tried to concentrate on making photos.

Cody pushed her butt out just as the breeze lifted her mini skirt's hem up particularly high. Hal could see Cody's puffy pussy glistening in the morning sun as he clicked. Hal's chest tightened again in excitement, and he paused and put the camera down.

"What?" asked Cody. "Is it my feet?" Hal coughed, trying to answer.

"My feet are too dirty, aren't they," she said.

Hal's hand went to his chest, and Cody realized it wasn't her feet.

"Oh, oh Hal!" she exclaimed jumping off the sideboard and skittering on her toes to his side. She knelt by Hal, who dimly watched the shape of her thighs change. He felt softness pressing against him. Instinctively his hand snaked out and pressed her soft cheek into his while he tried to catch his breath. Cody let him hold her cheek while he breathed.

"You ok?" she whispered.

Hal nodded faintly. "Mm hmm," he said, trying to calm his breathing. Cody turned slowly and pressed her nose into Hal's cheek. Hal's hand continued holding Cody's cheek. He felt her nose slide against his cheek as her lips brushed lightly and then more firmly. He realized she had softly kissed him on the cheek.

They crouched together by the truck for a few moments more.

"You gonna be ok, Hal?" she asked.

"Yeah... yeah. Let's hit the road. We have a long way to go."

They stood up together. He opened up the passenger door and couldn't help but watch Cody as she climbed up into her seat, still in her bare feet.

Cody seemed unaware of how much she had been showing under her mini skirt during the shoot, because she carefully guard her skirt's hem as she climbed in. Hal wasn't able to look up her skirt this time, and part of him felt relieved that he was spared any further angina. He became worried about what he would say if she asked to look at the photos, or what she'd do, especially because the road was long, and she'd inevitably want to amuse herself. He put the thought out of his head and surreptitiously tucked the camera down beside the driver's seat.

After they pulled out onto the highway and were westward bound again, Cody found the Black Elk book. As before, she fell asleep reading it. For Hal, it was a win-win: Cody got extra sleep and Hal could concentrate on making up for lost time on the road. He inched the rig over the speed limit as much as he dared. Like many drivers, Hal was monitored by the company through GPS tracking. The twin evils of being followed remotely were his speed limit and his arrival time. He could neither speed, nor tarry. That meant making up for lost time would put him in a pickle, so he did his best to avoid it.

Cody had reclined her seat again and at some point had rolled onto her stomach. Hal snuck glances at how high her mini skirt crept as she softly snored. About an hour later, they blew through Rock Springs. Cody kept drifting in and out of sleep, so Hal decided to keep driving. He glanced at his watch and decided that perhaps they might have a late lunch.

She woke in time to have lunch in Evanston, just before the Utah border. Cody, having slept on her tummy side, stretched her legs straight out behind her and then kicked them up in her special pose, toes pointed hard, as she arched her back in a big stretch.

"U-unh!" she went, mouth open.

At the diner, Cody picked at her food. This was in sharp contrast to her appetite of the previous day.

"What's on your mind, Princess?" asked Hal. "Are you tired of the truck stop food?"

Cody looked out the diner window for a moment. "Nope," she said. "Sorry for being quiet. I'm just feeling bad about everything."

"What do you mean?"

"Bad about leaving my mom without saying goodbye. Bad about taking advantage of you. Just, bad."

"Well, you're not supposed to feel bad about hitching a ride," he said. "I'm okay with that, and I guess we have an arrangement anyway about photography."

Cody shrugged. "I know but I'm still imposing, and I don't want to get you in trouble."

Hal shrugged back. "The company wouldn't know I have a hitchhiker. And I wouldn't tell anybody. And I get to take photos of you, so I'm not thinking you're an imposition."

Cody smiled and looked down bashfully. "Guess it works out," she said. Cody remained quiet for the rest of lunch and then back out again on the road for the next hour or so. Hal glanced over at her as she gazed out the window at the beautiful alpine scenery. They had crossed the Utah state line and were climbing up through the Wasatch Mountains. The rig laboured under the grade.

"Hey," he said, breaking the silence, "I thought everything was cool?"

Cody smiled apologetically. "I guess I need to ask a favour," she said, "which makes me an imposition after all cuz you're already helping me."

Hal guessed he knew what was coming: Cody had absolutely no money and she was about to ask him to give her some cash to buy panties, so she could wear something underneath her mini skirt. Maybe a bra too.

"I think I should phone my Mom. It's really bothering me. So, um, I was wondering if I could borrow your phone?"

Hal caught himself feeling relieved. Asking him for money to buy a bra and panties would probably be too awkward for her, but he had been anticipating it ever since he realized she was bare underneath.

As for his phone, the cost of using it wasn't an issue because he had free long distance. But it could, conceivably, link her to him and their location. Or so he thought. He wasn't sure how, but somehow it might.

"Tell you what," he ventured, "Using my phone would probably give away your location if your mom phoned the police. I can easily cover the calling card for you if we find an old fashioned phone booth in Salt Lake City. Or a burner phone like they do on TV. Then right after, we get out of the area."

Hal felt shady about his suggestion the moment he voiced it, but Cody seemed just fine with it.

"Okay!" said she brightly. Hal liked the way she always answered when things were neatly resolved in her favour.

It was much later in the afternoon that they reached Salt Lake City after wending their way through the mountains. Hal's butt was sore from the long drive.

"Where can we stop for that phone call?" she asked. Hal started scanning either side of Interstate 80.

"I guess someplace where I can pull the rig off that has a phone booth or something," he said.

"Do you have a calling card, though?" she asked. Hal realized he didn't, and hadn't really thought it through. He allowed himself to acknowledge for a moment that Cody was actually being an imposition. Normally, when Hal trucked this route, he stuck to I-80 and went straight on through the city as quickly as he could, passing the airport on the way out.

"I don't," he said. "I guess we'll need to find a place with calling cards or cheap phones."

"Then let's go to that mall coming up," she said, pointing out an exit site off the interstate. Hal checked his mirrors and edged towards the exit lane.

"Just cross your fingers my rig will get in and out of this place easy," he said.

"Sorry," said Cody. "I'm sorry about this."

"It's... it's okay Princess," he said.

"More photos of me tonight?" she said.

Hal caught his breath.

"I'm okay with that!" he said. Cody giggled.

Hal had to keep to the outer edge of the lot and park lengthways along a curb. That meant a long walk across the parking lot into the mall. It also meant more opportunity for any breeze to flip up Cody's mini skirt as they quickly found out. Cody slipped her little heels on and held her hem down with vigor. Hal didn't say a word. He'd become used to the stares and learned to ignore the faces.

Inside the mall, Hal used a directory board to find a telecom popup stand and bought a $10 card for Cody. There were phone booths at the mall entrance. They looked antique. Cody turned to go and then hesitated.

"This might take a while, right," she said apologetically. "Unless Mom's not in."

"That's cool," said Hal, "how about I take a walk around for fifteen minutes and wander back here?"

Cody nodded, smiled and they parted. It was the first time since Hal met her that they were not sharing space, and he felt a bit anxious. What if she was gone when he came back? Maybe that's what this was about.

About the same time he was thinking the worst, he stopped short at an apparel shop obviously targeted for Cody's age group. The bubblegum pop music was blaring and the display windows had young looking mannequins wearing the sort of clothes that Hal never otherwise took note of.

The mannequin on the left caught his attention. The short, short, flared denim mini skirt with a popstar-white belt with flashy grommets. The tight little t-shirt with something stupid in French written across the chest, cropped short to bare the midriff. Cody would look so sexy and hot in that outfit, he thought. Especially with no panties underneath.

Hal acted on impulse as his hard penis took over his reasoning, and he entered the shop. He could feel his face turning hot red and perspiration at the back of his neck as he forced himself to venture inside a shop where he knew he looked very out of place. A cute, young, bouncy blonde girl intercepted him.

"Hiya," she said with a sideways bob of her head. "Can I help?" Her teeth were bleached and her makeup was as sharp as the mannequin's.

"Um... well..." Hal stumbled over his words as he pointed at the mannequin. "Wanted to get that for my... my niece?"

The clerk's head bobbed to the other side. She hesitated. Then resumed her smile. "Yah sure, what size is she?"

Hal froze. "Oh jeez. Uh. About your height and width."

"So five-four?" she asked, ignoring his use of the word 'width.'

Hal nodded. "Yup."

She turned to a large table behind them on which a stack of the miniskirts lay below a stack of the t-shirts. The t-shirts came in navy and red. She grabbed a red one as per the mannequin, and then thumbed briefly through the skirts before handing him one, along with the t-shirt.

"So this skirt size and length should work for her height, and it has a concealed, adjustable waist. But definitely ask the cashier for a gift receipt in case your, um, niece needs a different size, k? And the belts are just right there."

"An adjustable waistband?" he asked.

"Yeah, it's like, you can expand the waist or narrow it with this hidden elastic bit, here. So even if the skirt was maybe a bit too, you know, small, like, for her waist, you could expand it. But if she has the same dimensions as me, this size should be fine. It's a short mini skirt for sure, but not too short for five-four."

"Thanks," said Hal, "I'll take it from here." He had a look at the skirt. It had a flared, A-line cut, so the bottom of the hem was wider than the waist. He knew that meant it wouldn't hug the curve of Cody's rear if she leaned forward. It would stick out stiffly. He glanced over at the pile. Checking around to make sure he wasn't being studied, he cautiously thumbed through the skirts and found the next lower size. He compared it to the one he held. The next size down was definitely shorter, by at least an inch.

Checking that the clerk wasn't looking in his direction, Hal switched the skirts and took the shorter one, along with a belt. He looked again at the t-shirts, imagining Cody's ample breasts filling them. He selected another t-shirt of the same style, but different color, and one size smaller, adding it to the pile. He avoided looking at anyone at the cash counter and left the store quickly, carrying the bag.

Hal found Cody back at the mall entrance. Twenty minutes had passed. She sat on a bench by the phones, looking glum. "Sorry I'm late. How'd it go?" he asked.

"Meh," she said. "I'll tell you about in the truck. Let's get out of here."

"Okies," he said. "We've had a long day on the road so let's head for the Flying J near Lake Point and stay there the night. It's cheaper west of the city."

"Okies," she replied. She didn't seem to notice Hal's flashy shopping bag.

Back at the rig, Hal decided not to try looking up her skirt as she climbed up into the rig, for the sake of his comfort on the road. They set off again, getting back out onto the interstate. They were passing the south end of the airport when she broke the silence.

"Yeah Mom freaked out of course. She's really pissed off that I just did this. She called the cops but they can't do anything because I'm 18. She kept asking me where I am but I just kept telling her I was ok."

"Did you tell her where you're going?"

"No. I said I would soon but I don't want her calling my aunt, who lives in San Diego. My aunt would just come to LA and hunt me down. She kept saying 'Why are you doing this to me?'"

"Well, I guess normally people leave home and tell their folks when and why and stuff. But you know, LA is huge. Easy to avoid your aunt there."

Cody was silent. "Meh," she said after a minute. She glanced to the side and noticed Hal's bag. "Hey what's that?"

Hal smiled. "I got you something to cheer you up."

"What?!" she said. "This is for me?!"

"Yup!"

"The hell?" She grabbed the bag and reached inside where she found the t-shirts, belt and tiny miniskirt.

Hal kept his eyes on the road. "I, uh, was thinking about how you had to, uh, wear these used clothes you found in the lost-and-found bin and thought, uh, maybe you could use some new clothes."

Cody held up the miniskirt. There was an awkward moment where Hal realized maybe a pair of jeans might have made more sense. Or panties. But of course, he was pretending not to know about her lack of panties.

"I... I don't know what to say," she said. "You didn't have to..."

"I know," said Hal. "I guess we could've gone shopping together. But I figured you'd say no."

"Well, yeah that's right, cuz it's your money Hal."

He glanced nervously at her. "Not to your liking?" he asked nervously.

"I've never worn short skirts until now. Especially as short as this one looks. It's a flared skirt too so it'll be even shorter."

"Too short?" he asked, feeling very foolish. "I guessed your size wrong."

"No... no... it's... it's... um, really kind of you, and you didn't have to do this!" she said.

"So... you'll wear that?" asked Hal.

Cody didn't answer right away.

"Um... yeah... yeah... I... can wear this," she said.

"Okay," croaked Hal, fighting an adrenaline rush.

After an awkward pause, she tried switching topics.

"What's this Flying J?" she asked.

"It's my oasis on this route. Gas, food, showers, relaxing. Normally I don't stay in motels so this is my big pit stop. There's a couple of motels nearby and Denny's."

"Oh good. Cuz I'm hungry."

Hal laughed. "You're always hungry!"

Cody reached over and punched him in the shoulder. "Shut up!" she said and giggled.

They reached Lake Point a short time later. The Flying J was a sprawling field of rigs of all kinds mixed with RVs and oversize trailers.

"This place is full of truckers I guess," she said, as they pulled into an empty spot.

"Yeah, it's a trucker place alright."

"Hmm. My new outfit's going to attract some attention then I think."

"You're... you're going to change into it?"

Cody shrugged. "I guess it's either your little flared mini skirt and t-shirt... or these smelly, wrinkled rags I've been wearing that haven't been properly washed in days."

Hal nodded slowly and decided not to mention the Flying J's laundry facilities.

Cody continued. "And we're at Salt Lake City. You were going to drop me off here."

Hal had forgotten that part. His mouth opened but Cody spoke again before he could say anything.

"Teaching you how to take photos got me to Salt Lake City. So if I wear this tiny mini skirt for you, will that get me to Reno...?" Her voice trailed off.