Taking back control of your children
Things change in a big way for these two friends that I do not own...
Penny scrunched up her nose as she heard... more than listened to... her mother. "Just WHAT do you mean... MARRIED!"
Out on the porch... Leonard looked at Penny's father and the questioning look on his face. "Ummm... sir?... There's something you should probably know about?"
Just as Leonard was about to inform Wyatt of the day's goings on... his wife and daughter came out onto the porch. Penny took a seat next to Leonard as Penny's mother stood with both arms crossed and deathly stared at her husband. "Go ahead... Penny... tell your father just what it was that you were doing today!"
Penny and Leonard proceeded to fill in the details of their daughter's wedding that afternoon.
Wyatt looked sternly at his daughter and her friend. "Penelope Ann... did it even occur to give us a call while all this was going on?"
Penny shook at the sheer volume of his voice. "Daddy... she didn't want you there..."
Wyatt was no calmer with this information. "Why the HELL NOT?!"
Henrietta broke in. "What kind of a question is that? You know full well why she wouldn't want us there... You acted the perfect ASS last night and she is as stubborn as a Mule when the two of you get going!"
Wyatt turned to Leonard... "And you... I thought that you had a good head on your shoulders... Standing up for them?... being part and parcel to it?"
Leonard almost completely stopped breathing... then cleared his throat and spoke. "If I may... sir... Denise and Frank are both over twenty and there's not much.. as I understand it... that we could have done to stop the wedding... and this way... at least there was some family there for Denise..." Leonard immediately put his hands up in a defensive posture as Wyatt raised his hands... only to run them through his hair and then jam them deep into his pockets.
Wyatt sighed... "I guess... just part of you taking care of my little girl... like I asked... but just as clarification... I meant Penny..."
Penny put a hand to Leonard's thigh. "I did ask her if we should wait... but she didn't want to..."
Leonard offered one more thing. "Sir... Ma'am... I really only met Frank today? But I think that if you give him a chance... you might have a different opinion of him".
Penny smiled at her parents. "Denise says that he told her he loves her... and I think she loves him too".
The next few weeks were a little tense for Penny and her friends. Timmy, Leonard and Penny were as usual pretty much a standard group that would occasionally be bolstered by some of Penny's girlfriends. Tammy and Anna seemed to be all goo-goo eyed around Timmy… something that would usually get Penny's attention and in turn cause Penny to hang closer or even "on" Timmy. This was something that Timmy was especially fond of. Leonard usually just went along with the crowd and didn't make a fuss… Penny was his best friend, and Timmy was his friend too… so as long as Penny was happy… Leonard was "happy". This development turned out to be, in the very least, interesting for the two boys... as well as placating Penny's parents somewhat. The instances of Penny being alone with either of her male friends were greatly decreased after the event of Denise's wedding.
After learning of Denise's nuptials, Penny's parents were, as predicted, somewhat heartbroken for not being present. Wyatt had basically taken a double barreled shot for causing such a rift and in turn making Denise believe that they had not accepted Denise's new husband Frank into their family. Wyatt was tasked almost immediately to "FIX IT!" by his somewhat distraught wife, a person that had imparted to their daughters ALL the propensities for "flying off the handle" at the slightest of stimuli. The three females in Wyatt's life also had the abilities to wreak HAVOK upon all that was calm and serene in Wyatt's daily life. To that end, Wyatt had basically gone to Denise's place of employment and pretty much begged for forgiveness and invited her and her husband for dinner. During that first meal things were decidedly uncomfortable, but it seemed that Frank and Wyatt had at least begun to build some sort of tentative friendship considering that Frank was also a Dairy farmer.
As for their younger daughter, the realization that... as parents, Wyatt and Henrietta had played loose with rearing Denise… probably assisting in the girl's carefree ways. It was decided that they would take a more "hands on" approach to their younger daughter.
To say the least, Penny was not exactly pleased with the decision to reel in the rather loose reins her parents had given her over the years. It seemed that one or the other parent would accompany Penny and whichever boy she was with when Penny was alone with either of them.
Leonard was much more at ease with this arrangement because he had known that Penny's parents had approved of his friendship with their daughter and they had known Leonard and his family for a good while both recently and when the children were small, even inviting Leonard's father and Uncle Floyd over for an afternoon picnic when Lyndon would breeze through town when not being sent here and there by the University. To that end, it was Penny's Mom that was lingering in the near vicinity when Penny and Leonard were alone.
Timmy, on the other hand, seemed to draw the short straw as it was Wyatt that most often accompanied Penny when Timmy was alone with her. While the specter of having Wyatt following a young pair of teenagers may have looked out of place to the casual observer in the relatively small town they lived in... with the now well known maternal condition of their oldest daughter, there was a communal "understanding" as to why the Pettersson's would be more concerned with the out and about activities of their youngest daughter.
Leonard and Timmy seemed to build on their friendship and each of them seemed to tolerate the other when Penny was with them. It was interesting that when either of the parents were unavailable for chaperone duty, they enlisted the assistance of their youngest child Kenny to for lack of a better term "pester" Penny and her companion when she was alone with one of them. Leonard took more easily to this arrangement finding it interesting that Kenny would ask sciency questions about Chemistry and stuff. Penny on the other hand usually just threw up her hands in disgust and in turn threatened her brother with all sorts of bodily harm that would certainly impair his ability to carry on the family name if he got out of line or too clingy while Penny was with her friends.
Penny seemed to take great pleasure in the relationship she had with her "Two MEN". This arrangement had a rather interesting side effect of bolstering Penny's reputation as the new school year approached. Penny seemed to have a growing entourage of female friends… some were the stalwarts such as Tammy Denicious and Anna Mae Fletcher… others were new to the group of girls such as Lisa Peterson (only one "t" and one "s"). Penny often pointed that out to anyone that inquired if they were related.
As for boys… They seemed to follow the girls… as you would expect. People like Kurt and Jimmy would sometimes come around… uninvited of course, but tolerated in order to keep up the air of superiority with the other cliques that were or had already formed… other's like Curtis and Donnie would be hovering on the periphery of the new social group waiting to be brought in… often accompanied by Valerie and less often even Brad. Leonard never actually considered himself as part of this new social paradigm… preferring to keep to himself or be in close proximity to either Timmy or Penny when there was a larger group gathering.
Denise had made a habit of coming over to the farm whenever she was not occupied with work and Frank was off doing his "farmer" thing. This helped in mending any rift there was in the family. Even though Wyatt didn't necessarily spend that much time with Denise, he had found that his wife was much more at ease now that she could dote over Denise and her "grandchild to be". As far as Wyatt was concerned, this arrangement was as good as it could get… the "female waters" of Lake Pettersson were calm and that was always a good thing. Denise just thought that being around and watching Penny deal with her "boy issues" was too funny and took great pleasure in watching Penny play each of "her men" for all she could get. Denise often thought to herself, "Atta girl Penny… you go girl". Being fawned over by her mother was just a perk that came along with being at the farm… one that Denise planned to bask in for as long as she could. It also made her feel better when Frank and her father seemed to strike up an honest friendship. Denise was having a very nice ending to her summer.
When Penny and Leonard were alone, things seemed to be getting back to normal. The uncomfortable or anxious moments that followed Denise's wedding seemed to be getting less as the time went by. Although, Leonard could never really forget the picture in his mind of Penny walking slowly toward him… in that unbelievable dress… that hugged her perfect figure… with a small bouquet of roses… her hair done in a perfect ponytail… with the most perfect amount of makeup… on the most beautiful face… on any girl he had ever known. Not that he wanted to forget how Penny looked that morning… He wished he had a real picture… it would have been one of his prized possessions… right up there with his comic book collection. He was getting more comfortable around both Penny and Timmy… being that Timmy was the rare male friend… Leonard was willing to put up with just about anything in order not to lose his new friend.
Penny felt that things between her and Leonard were also getting back to "normal" even though she also couldn't quite shake the picture of him standing up by the Justice of the Peace. Waiting for her to arrive at his side for the wedding… DENISE's WEDDING!" Penny had to shake her head almost every time she thought about that morning at the courthouse.
Fortunately for Penny, she was much more easily distracted by Timmy being around more and the new group surroundings and if the truth be known, she enjoyed the attention. It made her feel special in some small way… all the girls wanting to be HER friend… and having the boys following after them also… She almost felt like a movie star.
As the summer came to a close, there was talk among the teens of an end of summer party. Catching wind of the rumor from his wife that heard it from one of the other Mothers while shopping that heard it from another mother while she was at the hair salon… Wyatt was determined that things like this… if absolutely necessary… would have to be controlled somehow. He didn't want all the effort he and his wife were putting into Penny's relationships to get ruined in one foolish night.
While at dinner one evening… one that included Denise and Frank… Wyatt let out his decree. "Penny… if you are set on the idea that you are going off to some party someplace with your friends… both girls AND boys…"
Denise both squirmed and smiled in Penny's direction, giggling just under her breath so only Penny could here. "Here it comes Sweetie".
Penny sat up in defiance... "But DAD?!"
Wyatt held up one of his brawny Nebraskan Man Hands… "I'll have none of it…"
Penny's jaw hung open, her eyes went wide, and Denise did a small fist pump so only Penny could see. Wyatt concluded his declaration. "What I WILL allow… is that you have your friends here at the farm for an end of summer Bar-B-Que… complete with the open spit and you can all have your fun in the pond. We can even set up a horse race for any of your friends that want to bring-em and set up some barrels. Then… we can have a bonfire to close out the summer."
Penny jumped up and gave her father the biggest hug… with the biggest grin, while poking her tongue out at her sister. "Thanks DADDY… this ids gonna be the BEST!"
Penny had absolutely no trouble convincing any of her friends to come… they convinced THEIR friends… who convinced THEIR friends… and soon the whole town was abuzz with the rumors of a big shindig at the Pettersson place.
Henrietta had to then convince her reluctant husband to let her invite any of the parents of any of the children that would feel better if they were at the party to chaperone their children. It was a small enough town that most everyone knew someone who knew someone … so things escalated into a full blown party. There was going to be a pie eating contest… a cake bake-off… one of the old timers was set to do some "fiddling"… which didn't go over with Penny too well until Denise got Frank to ask his cousin to come over and DJ for the younger crowd. Being the nature of people they were… no one was about to let the Petterssons be on the hook for the entire party, so there were donations and offers to help from most all the families. One of the side benefits for the Pettersson women was watching their husband/father try to get his head around all that was going to be happening. Penny was in an especially happy position… knowing full well that her father found himself in this predicament solely because he didn't want Penny to be out of his watchful eye… She smiled to herself. "That'll teach-im"!
Tents were set up and the open spit and smoker were loaded with a proper amount of Beef Pork and Chicken. Everyone brought side dishes to pass and there was a mountain of corn on the cob with watermelons galore just waiting to be carved.
The afternoon started off with the barrel racing… There were a few of the boys that brought their horses… sure that they would win the event. Penny however knew they were just bragging and Buttercup held up her end by making the turns around the barrels tighter than the larger horses. Penny let out a loud "HOOT" when Wyatt announced that she had won the event.
There was an egg toss… a three legged race… and horse shoes… Each time he was asked by Penny, Leonard declined and said he would watch from the sidelines. And… each time… Timmy volunteered to be Penny's Partner.
During the egg toss they were down to the last three couples when Timmy threw Penny their egg a little too hard and a little too shallow. The result was a raw egg that skipped through Penny's hands and broke when it came in contact with her chest. Timmy ran over to his surprised partner and proceeded to try to wipe off the offending egg from her shirt. Being that it was summer… Penny had… as usual… declined to wear a bra that afternoon and gasped then slapped Timmy when he was more than happy to wipe the egg of her chest. Everyone broke into a raucous laugh… except of course… Leonard.
When the three legged race started, Timmy and Penny pulled into an early lead… only to lose their balance when Timmy stepped into what was probably an old gopher hole. He twisted and fell to the ground with Penny landing directly on top of him. Timmy made absolutely no effort to move from below Penny. Penny… for her part… was laughing so hard, she put her face into the side of Timmy's neck until she could gain some control. Leonard immediately went to pour himself a fresh lemonade.
When the horse Shoe competition came down to the final pairing… it was Denise and Frank against Penny and Timmy. Frank had thrown a shoe to lead by one with only one shoe left to be thrown. Penny took the shoe… spit on it and handed it to Timmy. Timmy smiled and took the shoe and threw a perfect ringer to take the match. Penny jumped straight into the air and then turned and wrapped her arms around Timmy's neck as he grabbed her waist and twirled her around. Leonard again watched… this time from the porch.
Wyatt came up from the side and put his hand on Leonard's shoulder. "She's just happy and caught up in the moment son… don't let it get to ya". Wyatt then patted Leonard on the back and went to join his wife. They had some food to serve up.
During the meal, … Penny made sure that she sat between Timmy and Leonard. The conversation centered on how much fun the day was and all the things that were happening… Leonard laughed along with Penny and Timmy… noticing how close they were sitting and how Penny would grab Timmy's arm when she would get really excited.
After everyone had their fill, the adults sat around and discussed the things that they normally would do on a sunny weekend afternoon. The kids all went to get into their swimming suits and all went down to the pond. Leonard even put on his when he was poked by Penny and convinced by Timmy. Timmy and Leonard were sitting on the edge of the small dock when Penny came down from the house dressed in the Yellow bikini that she had bought when she took Leonard shopping at the mall.
Both Leonard and Timmy immediately stopped talking when Penny came into view. She was stunning. Her body fit perfectly into the tight suit, She knew it and she loved it… the panty and bra were small but not too small… they covered what they needed to and let all the rest show just right. Penny's hips swayed slightly as she walked and the parts above her waist moved in perfect synchronization as she swung her arms. Most of the girls that were down at the pond watched as Penny walked to the dock. Valeri took particular notice of the reaction of the other girls when Penny arrived. She was not particularly impressed and slapped Curtis when he seemed to be leering at Penny a bit longer than she liked.
Both Timmy and Leonard lost all the moisture in their mouth's letting their jaws hang. Penny smiled as she got closer and sat between them both, giving them both a hug… one with each arm and pulled them both close to her. "So… are ya havin fun?"
Leonard and Timmy just nodded and watched as Penny stood up and walked to the end of the dock showing them both just how good her backside looked in that suit. When she got to the end, Penny did a perfect dive and then surfaced, smiling at them both. When some of the other kids saw Penny dive into the pond, they all decided to do the same. Suddenly there was jumping and splashing everywhere. Timmy stood up with a shot and jumped in doing a cannon ball as close to Penny as he could. She squealed and splashed his face with water as he surfaced. When he choked on the water, Penny swam to him and put her hands around his neck.
Leonard smiled and laughed as Timmy jumped and splashed Penny, then frowned just a bit when Penny wrapped her arms around Timmy's neck. She then pulled back just a bit and wiped his face and gave him a small peck on the cheek… smiling widely as Timmy spun them around in the water, leaning back in his hold and laughing.
Leonard turned away and looked toward the house to notice a red haired girl sitting in a white and pink bikini next to him. She seemed a little out of place as she wasn't tanned like the other girls, and she looked a bit nervous. Leonard thought that she was as pale as he was. Leonard could see the discomfort on her face. Knowing all too well how she must be feeling… especially among all these other people… he turned and smiled slightly. "Hi… I'm… Leonard…"
AN: Just wondering who you think the new girl is?