Opposite Ends of Dementia
By Misty
Sleepyside, March 2000
Peter stopped the car in the driveway and breathed a sigh of relief. Over twenty years at the bank and he couldn't remember a time when he was so happy to have the workday behind him. He vaguely wondered if the customers were getting crankier or if he was just getting short-tempered in his old age.
Old age.
He flexed his hands in front of him, resisting the urge to pull them closer to his face where he could see them better. But he didn't need his vision to feel the ache in his knuckles. He shook his head, trying to dislodge the thoughts of aging and got out of the car. He trudged up the path to the back door, wanting nothing more than to sit in a dark room surrounded by peace and quiet for 2 or 3 weeks. Hell, he'd settle for 15 minutes at this point. He opened the door, trying to decide if taking a bath would be beneath his dignity and found himself in the center of a flurry of activity and giggling teenage girls.
"Di, don't forget the popcorn!" Trixie shouted above the music blaring in the cozy kitchen.
"Got it, Trix! Also have the cookies. Did someone get the pop?" Di yelled over her shoulder where Honey was holding several larges bags of chips and Trixie had a tub of ice cream and three spoons.
"POP!" Trixie slapped her forehead with her hand and moved to the refrigerator to grab several bottles. When she stood up and closed the door, she noticed her father standing in the kitchen, looking confused. "Hi, Dad. Honey and Di are staying the night with me tonight. Moms said it was okay since it's almost the end of Spring Break."
Still trying to recover, he could do nothing but nod. He moved towards the living room, but stopped just short of the door when he saw the three girls were heading in the same direction.
"We're going upstairs now. Sorry about the noise." Trixie leaned up and kissed him on the cheek before going through the door.
Following suit, Di leaned up and kissed him on the cheek as well. "Night Mr. Belden."
Giggling, Honey also kissed him on the cheek. "Goodnight, Mr. Belden. We'll try and stay quiet."
He smiled at her last comment and when they'd left the room, he dropped into a chair at the kitchen table. Peace and quiet, he thought, smiling.
Upstairs in Trixie's room, the girls spread the food out on the floor between the three of them and proceeded to devour it like they hadn't seen food in weeks.
"You know, your dad is pretty hot," Di said, between spoonfuls of ice cream.
Trixie choked on the popcorn she'd just put in her mouth.
Honey looked at Di, shocked. "Di!" she exclaimed, while quickly handing a bottle of pop to her choking friend.
Trixie took the bottle with a look of gratitude for Honey before turning to glare at Di while she took a long drink.
Di looked from Honey to Trixie and back again. "What?" she demanded. "Like you've never noticed?" she asked Honey defensively.
"Well, yeah," Honey responded slowly. "But I wouldn't have said so," she hurried to add.
Trixie looked from one friend to the other with disgust. "You guys! That's my DAD you're talking about!" She glared at Di and continued, "It's not gross enough you're dating my brother, but now you have to bring my FATHER into it, too? You guys are supposed to be here to cheer me up!" She looked from one to the other in exasperation.
"I can't change the facts. Your dad is hot. There's nothing I can do about it. All I can do is appreciate it and admire him, which is what I'm doing." Di continued eating, mentally calculating how much time she was going to have to spend running to work off her friend's latest crisis.
"Please, let's not talk about my dad being admired or where he ranks on the hotness scale," Trixie moaned.
The three girls looked at each other before bursting into laughter.
Honey delicately wiped tears from the corners of her eyes. "Oh, Trixie. That was priceless. Hotness scale? Is this like a bar graph or something?"
Trixie took another drink of her pop and threw a handful of popcorn into her mouth while nodding her head. "Definitely. A bar graph."
Di scrambled to her feet and moved quickly to Trixie's desk, grabbing paper and several pens. "Ok, tell me how to draw this graph so that I can see what it looks like." She sat back down on the floor, her back against the bed and her legs bent to support the notebook she was drawing on.
Trixie moved to sit next to Di. "Well, it's a scale of 1 to 10," she started, growing excited at the new project.
Honey also moved closer to Di. "And each of the numbered measurements is represented by a person. Like, Trixie's dad would be at LEAST a 9." The words had barely left her lips when she felt a pillow hit the side of her face.
"Of course, Honey's dad would also be a 9. Easily," Trixie stated, deciding to fight fire with fire.
Honey paled. "Daddy?" she whispered.
Trixie nodded smugly and stuck her tongue out at Honey.
"Hey," Diana perked up, "Where would my dad be?"
Trixie and Honey looked at each other. "Um, a 5? Maybe a 6?" Trixie replied with a glance at Di, hoping she wouldn't be offended.
Di stopped drawing but didn't look at either of them. She nodded her head slowly. "Good. He's my dad. He shouldn't be hot." She looked up from her drawing with a mischievous grin just in time to see Trixie's pillow swing her way.
"Ok, ok. Back to the scale. So, we've determined that Mr. Belden and Mr. Wheeler are both 9's and that my dad is a 5, we need to find people to represent the other numbers."
"Well, 1 is easy. That's Mr. Lytell, no doubt about it," Trixie said dryly.
"And I'd give Regan and Tom top honors. They're both 10s, in my opinion," Honey said, blushing at the admission.
"OK, then we need 2, 3, 4, 6, 7 and 8. Who else do we know?" Di looked at Honey and Trixie, ready to record their observations.
For the next four hours, the three girls giggled and argued over their hotness scale, often going off on tangents, but always finding their way back to the original subject.
Taking the last sip from her third pop, Di set the bottle down and shook her head. "How on earth did we get Mr. Stratten on here? And I don't think it's right that he's above Molinson. Molinson is MUCH hotter than Stratten."
Honey snorted from where she lay on her back across Trixie's bed, her head hanging upside down off the side. She was squinting into Trixie's old view master, looking at 3D pictures of Cinderella. "Trixie vetoed that one. She said there was NO WAY Molinson was going to be anything other than number two." Honey flipped over to her stomach and gave Di a wry look. "Somehow, I don't think she was talking about the scale when she said Molinson was number two."
Di laughed. "Molinson, the shit," she mumbled as she wrote that in under his name.
Trixie walked back into the room just in time to hear Di's mumbled comment. "That's right. Molinson, the shit." She crossed the room to her bed and flopped down across Honey's back.
Honey's breath came out at once and she made a strangled sound. "Get off me, you cow!" she gasped.
Di giggled and stood up quickly. "I'm gonna brush my teeth while you two fight."
Di picked up her traveling case and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind her. She was about to walk into the bathroom when she saw Mart duck out of his room.
He grinned at her and walked stealthily down the hall, avoiding the part of the floor he knew creaked. "Hi," he whispered.
She smiled back and replied, "Hi."
He wrapped his arms around her neck and pulled her towards him. He kissed her gently at first, eventually deepening it. When they finally broke apart, both were breathless. He leaned his forehead against hers and whispered, "Will I see you tonight?"
She smiled back at him, her heart fluttering, her lips still swollen from the kiss. "I'll try," she promised.
He kissed her again, this time quickly. "Try hard," he replied before returning to his room.
Di took a deep breath and continued into the bathroom, mentally thanking the creator of birth control pills.
Trixie rolled sideways so that she was lying next to Honey rather than on top of her. "Are you sure it's okay that I'm going to the Prom now?" Trixie asked anxiously.
"Of course it's okay! I hope you guys have fun!" Honey exclaimed.
Trixie reached for the bag of chips closest to her, "But I feel really guilty. I mean, you're not going because I wasn't going to go. Now, I'm going, but you're still not. I can't help but feel like I robbed you of your Prom," she stated in a rush.
Honey threw her arm over her friend's shoulders. "Don't worry about me. If I want to go, I'm sure I still can. You worry about yourself. Are you sure going with Christian was such a good idea?" she asked worriedly.
Trixie shrugged, trying not to notice the lead ball that had taken up residence in the pit of her stomach earlier in the day. "What choice did I have, Honey? As appealing as the idea of Jim and Brian spending time together in jail may be, I really don't want that to happen."
Honey sighed over her friend's predicament, mentally cursing their older brother's for putting her in this position. "I just worry about this obsession Christian seems to have with you. You've heard all the rumors at school, about how he's always talking about you and stuff . . ." Her voice trailed off, not wanting to dwell on the high school gossip, particularly when it involved her best friend.
Trixie smiled what she hoped was a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, Honey. I'm not afraid of Christian. If he tries anything funny, I can handle him."
"I'm not worried about that. I'm worried that he'll manipulate you so much that you don't WANT to stop him." Honey bit her lip and looked away, trying to keep the worry from showing in her features.
Trixie was quiet for a moment before she spoke again. "I'm not stupid, Honey. Don't worry."
Wrapping her arms around her friend, she gave her a quick hug. "Just be careful, ok?"
"Always," Trixie replied. She propped herself up on her elbows before continuing. "Besides, I'm not having sex again until I'm married."
"Really?" Di asked from the door incredulously.
Trixie laughed at Di's astonished expression. "Yes, really. Some people can survive without sex, Di."
Di took time to mull that over as she resumed her place on the floor. She finally shrugged her shoulders and replied, "Well, now I know what to get you for your next birthday. A vibrator." She gave Trixie a wicked grin from her place on the floor.
Trixie's mouth dropped open in astonishment. "Oh my God. You've GOT to be kidding!" When Di merely smiled, Trixie looked towards Honey, giggling. "At least I can rely on Honey to get me something practical!"
Honey nodded, a serious expression on her face. "Of course. Someone has to get the batteries, right?" she asked innocently, just before the pillow once again struck her.
Di slowly closed the door to Trixie's room behind her and crept down the hall. She sidestepped the part of the floor she knew creaked and slowly turned the knob on Mart's door, cringing inwardly at the grating sound it made. Her heart beat wildly, partly because of fear and partly because of excitement. She was sure that sound would wake the entire family and they'd all rush out, wanting to know what she was doing. The door opened and she slipped inside, shutting it quietly after her. She crept across the room and stood by the bed. She pulled her shorts off and left them lying at the side of Mart's bed. Clad in nothing but a tank-top and her bikini panties, she pulled back the covers to Mart's bed and slid in next to his naked body.
He turned towards her, wrapping his arms around her, making sleeping noises.
She brushed a lock of blonde hair off his forehead and whispered, "Mart?" She blew on his forehead, making the hair shift. Leaning forward, she kissed him gently on the lips. "Mart?" she whispered again.
His eyes opened slightly and he smiled slowly. "You're here," he said sleepily, hugging her tightly.
She leaned a little closer to him and kissed him again, softly. "I told you I'd be here," she replied quietly.
He reached his hand down to the hem of her top and pulled it up gently, mindful of the noise the bedsprings made. "I'd given up hope," he whispered as he pulled it over her head.
She stretched her arms over her head, allowing the garment to slide easily over her head. She reached out and touched his chest, running her hand over his nipple, smiling as it hardened under her touch. "I had to wait for everyone to be asleep," she explained softly.
He nodded, mindful of the need to stay quiet and cupped her breast, running his thumb over her nipple. "I'm glad you're here," he said quietly. He leaned over and ran his tongue over her nipple, following the same path his thumb had previously taken. He pulled back and gently blew across it, making Di gasp. Reaching down, he ran his hands around her waist, pushing her panties down past her hips. She kicked them off and left them rolled up at the end of the bed.
He positioned himself over her, pushing his thighs between hers. He kissed her slowly, sweetly as he slipped into her. They kept a slow rhythm at first, gradually trying to move more quickly.
When they tried to pick up the pace, however, the bed springs creaked, and they found themselves forced into reverting to their slower movements.
While the slower motion was out of necessity, they both found it prolonged their own pleasure and it wasn't long before Mart tensed and Di felt a shudder run through his body. He collapsed on top of her and rolled to the side as silently as possible.
Di smiled bewitchingly and grabbed his hand. She ran his hand down her body until his fingers were resting on her clit. She began moving his fingers in a circular motion until a slow smile of understanding spread across his face and he continued the motion on his own. He leaned forward and began planting kisses on her neck, working his way down her collarbone to her breast. He took her nipple into his mouth and gently suckled it before gently biting on the hard, rosy peak.
Di's breath was shallow and each one was becoming more and more strangled, which made the encounter even more exciting for both of them. Mart was well aware of the fact that Di was generally a very vocal lover, particularly when she climaxed, and he hoped she'd be able to restrain herself this one time. He wasn't sure he'd be able to explain this to his parents if they were to hear her shouts and come running in.
Di's body tensed. She raised her arms above her head and grabbed the pillow, needing something to which she could anchor herself. She clamped her eyes closed tightly as the first wave of her orgasm crashed over her body. She parted her lips as if she wanted to say something, but she fought the urge. Barely. Mart leaned forward quickly and whispered in her ear, "Bite my lip if you need to."
He planted his mouth over hers in a searing kiss and Di immediately clamped down on his upper lip, kissing, sucking and biting it until her body came back down from its sexual high.
They lay together, their energy spent, trying to catch their collective breaths. Mart ran his tongue across his lip, faintly noting the warm, metallic taste of blood.
"Wow," was all Di could manage to whisper.
"Uh huh," Mart replied hoarsely, his body spent.
Di wiggled out from under Mart as quietly as possible. "I better go back to Trixie's room," she said softly. She reached under the covers of the bed and felt around at the bottom, searching for her panties. She finally found them and managed to unroll them and put them right side out before standing up and slipping them back on. She bent over to pick up her top and Mart watched as the moonlight glinted off her dark hair and her smooth back. She pulled the top over her head and slid her hands underneath her long, flowing tresses, pulling them out from under her shirt. She stooped to pick up her shorts and pulled them back up and over her hips.
Mart watched all this with fascination. He loved watching her move about, gracefully, and couldn't help the feelings of pride and love he had when he realized she was his girlfriend. She'd chosen him, over all the guys she could have dated. He was the one she wanted.
He reached out his hand to her before she could leave. "Di."
She smiled at him and leaned toward him to hear better. "What is it?" she asked.
He leaned forward and kissed her. "I love you," he said when their lips had parted.
She leaned forward and kissed him as well. "I love you, too," she said before turning and walking towards the door. She turned before she left the room and blew him a kiss. He smiled and made a motion to catch it and tuck it safely in his heart. With the smile still firmly on her face, she slowly turned the knob on the door and peered out into the hallway.
Making sure the coast was clear, she closed Mart's door after her and walked quietly down the hall to Trixie's room. Opening her door, she let herself in and breathed a sigh of relief. Quietly, she crept over to the bed she'd been sharing with Trixie and lay down as slowly as possible.
"Di?" Trixie mumbled.
Di froze where she was and answered quietly, trying to make her voice sound sleepy, "Yeah Trixie?"
"You smell like sex and knowing it's my brother's is making me feel really icky, especially since you're in bed with me," Trixie answered, with a strangled laugh.
In the dark, Di could hear Honey giggling. She sighed loudly, not bothering to pretend any longer. "What do you want me to do, Trixie?" she asked, irritated that she wasn't as sneaky as she'd hoped.
"Here, Di. Trade places with me. I don't smell like anything that would offend her highness." Honey grabbed her pillow and passed Di in the darkened room as they switched places.
Trixie snorted but pulled back the covers for Honey. "Honestly, I don't know what you see in that boy. I always thought you had GOOD taste, Di."
Honey settled into the bed, snuggling into her pillow. "Just be grateful it wasn't your dad, Trix, and go to sleep."
The three erupted into a fit of giggles that lasted until they'd all fallen asleep.
The Next Morning
The Wheelers Game Preserve
Jim glanced at his watch again. The little twerp was 20 minutes late and Jim was growing more and more impatient with each passing minute. How did I get myself into this mess? he wondered.
It wasn't that he didn't like Bobby Belden. Well, no, he didn't really like Bobby Belden. But he'd learned to accept him, even use him if the opportunity arose where he might be helpful.
Opportunities like this.
He continued to pace and looked at his watch again, his shoulders stiffening when he heard that unmistakable laugh of a boy whose voice was trying to change, but hadn't quite mastered the deeper tones yet.
"You should learn a little patience, Jim. It's a good virtue to have, I'm told." Bobby tried to chuckle, but it came out sounding like the giggle of a little girl.
Turning around, he smiled grimly, getting a deep satisfaction out of the high-pitched laugh that came from the boy.
Clearing his throat, Bobby tried to make his voice deeper. "What do you want, Jim?" he asked, his voice rising slightly over Jim's name.
Jim smirked, enjoying the blush that rose up Bobby's neck. "I need some information," he said, not being able to resist accenting his own husky voice. "I need to know what Trixie did to get us out yesterday."
"And why are you asking me?" Bobby asked, the picture of innocence.
Jim wasn't fooled. He'd seen the slight smirk mark the little brat's face before he took on an air of feigned innocence. "Because nobody else will tell me anything and I don't want to wait for it to make it's way down the rumor mill to me," he stated flatly, crossing his arms over his chest, leaning against the trunk of a neighboring tree.
"What makes you think I know anything about it?" Bobby wheedled.
Jim snorted. "Because you're a nosy little bastard. You wouldn't let something like that get past you," he said.
A huge grin broke out over Bobby's face. He was actually rather proud of his reputation. "Well, you got me there. What makes you think I'm gonna tell you? I mean, if Trixie wants you to know, she'll tell you. I don't feel right talking about it. Family loyalty and all, you know how it is." The grin stayed in place, making it obvious how much family loyalty meant to the youngest Belden.
Jim stayed where he was, not buying Bobby's charade. "Uh huh. You'd sell your family for a new game boy if you thought you'd get a way with it. I'll give you 10 dollars for the information." He reached into his wallet and pulled out a 10 dollar bill and tried to hand it to Bobby.
Bobby raised his hands in the air. "Whoa. Wait a minute Jim. You want me to turn against my only sister for a measly ten dollars?" He paced back and forth, looking as if he was trying to make a decision. Jim wasn't buying it.
"Make it two-hundred," he countered.
The redhead looked at Bobby as if he'd lost his mind. "What? No way. This little bit of information is not worth two-hundred. No way, no how." Shoving the money back in his pocket, Jim turned and started walking out of the preserve.
Bobby, seeing easy money walking away, panicked and shouted. "Wait! Maybe we can make a deal," he yelled.
Jim simply shook his head and kept walking, not even bothering to turn back around. "No way, Bobby," he yelled over his shoulder. "If you want to really be a mercenary or whatever game you're trying to play, you need to learn about limits and how to stretch them without breaking them."
Bobby panicked. He'd always thought of Jim as an easy target. Why, he was able to name just about any price last time he'd dealt with him. What happened? "It was a joke, Jim! Two-hundred dollars for a little bit of information? I was kidding! I meant twenty."
Jim stopped but didn't turn around. "Fifteen," he countered.
Bobby licked his lips, trying to regain his composure. "Come on, Jim. You can't get anything with fifteen dollars these days. Eighteen," he wheedled.
Jim turned back around. Finally, someone had made Bobby Belden lose his cool. He tried to keep the glee from that fact alone from showing. It wasn't difficult. He'd always had a good poker face. "Fifteen dollars, Bobby. You keep arguing with me I'm going back to ten and you can take that and walk away or you can walk away with nothing."
Realizing this was a battle he was going to lose, Bobby gave in. "Ok, ok. Fifteen dollars. Geez. You weren't this much of a hard ass when you bought those pictures of you and Trixie from me."
Jim pulled out his wallet and reached for a five dollar bill to accompany the ten that was in his pocket. "Here's a free lesson for you, Bobby. Learn what people's weaknesses are. Those pictures were important to me because they could hurt Trixie. I'd have done anything to get those back from you to keep her from getting hurt." He reached into his pocket and pulled out the ten, handing both bills to the blonde kid in front of him. "So tell me what I want to know. What did Trixie do yesterday to get us out of trouble?"
"You know that guy Christian? The one you beat the shit out of yesterday?" Bobby asked.
Jim winced at the memory, but nodded. "Watch your language, kid, I find it offensive. Yes, I know him. Obviously," he added dryly.
Now that he had his money, Bobby wasn't paying any attention to Jim or his mannerisms. "She had to promise him she'd go to the prom with him. That's it." He shrugged, wishing he had more information to give Jim. He was right; fifteen bucks did seem like a lot for that. Oh well, it's his money, if he wants to blow it on stupid shit like this, far be it from me to argue. Bobby folded his money and put it in his pocket. He hesitated for a moment, debating whether to say anything else. "So, you're saying Trixie is your weakness?" he asked tentatively.
Jim sighed, mulling over his newly purchased information. "It would appear so," he mumbled.
Bobby nodded. "Ok, this one is free, then. Watch out for Christian. I don't trust him."
Jim looked up sharply. "What have you heard?" he demanded.
Bobby shrugged, wishing he knew more. "Nothing. I just don't trust him, that's all. Just keep an eye on Trixie when she's with him. I get bad vibes from that guy, even if he drives a cool car." Bobby turned and started walking away. If he hurried, there may even be some breakfast left for him.
Jim stayed where he was for a moment. Then, he too walked out of the preserve, taking a different path. "Yeah. I'll do that. Thanks!" he yelled over his shoulder.
Bobby turned around. "No problem. Let me know if I can be of further assistance," he yelled back, the impish grin back in full force.
The Belden's Kitchen
Breakfast was pandemonium that morning. Moms was making pancakes at lightning speed while Trixie scrambled eggs. Mr. Belden tried to bury himself behind the newspaper and pretend he was on a secluded beach. Di, Honey and Mart did what they could to help. They set the table, filled tall glasses with milk, set out jam, butter and syrup. In the midst of it all, Brian came in the back door, letting Reddy in the house with him. Reddy ran circles in the kitchen trying to greet everyone at once but just generally getting in the way. Someone even managed to ask after Bobby's whereabouts. Trixie looked at the empty chair her younger brother usually sat in and waved towards the stairs. "He's probably still asleep," she said vaguely before returning to her cooking.
A few minutes later, Moms carried the hot food to the kitchen table while everyone sat down. She took her normal seat next to her husband and had just started eating when the phone rang.
Sighing, she got up to answer it. "Belden residence."
The group around the table continued eating and chatting. They heard a gasp from Moms and had just refocused their attention in time to hear her ask, "Pregnant?" and see her glance at the group around the table.
Everyone's attention immediately shifted to the table and the young woman with the blonde curls sitting there. There was a brief moment of silence and then all hell broke loose.
"What?" Mart yelled in disbelief.
"You're pregnant?" Honey and Di both gasped together.
"What the hell is going on!" Peter bellowed.
"You told me you used protection," Brian accused.
"Protection from what?" her father demanded, looking from Brian to Trixie and back.
"Will you all just shut up," Moms yelled, covering the phone with her hand. "Not Trixie. Me!" she hissed before going back to her conversation.
Quiet stole over the kitchen once again. Peter looked at his wife, hoping for a sign she was joking. But her pale face and her trembling hands were all the proof he needed. He looked back at the faces around the table.
Mart's face broke into a huge smile and he ran around the table to where his father sat. "Way to go, old man!" he exclaimed as he clapped him strongly on the back.
The End