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I was a hippie, I was a burnout, I was a dropout, I was out of my head.
I was so wasted.
Black Flag.

Julianne tugged my sleeve. "Ray, can you show me where the bathroom is?"

I led her down the hall where three doors led to bedrooms and a shared bathroom. A couple emerged from one of them, the girl sporting disheveled hair and a mis-buttoned blouse, while her lipstick decorated the boy's face. The open door revealed a teenage girl's bedroom.

It belongs to Mark's older sister, who is away at college...

Julianne also looked into the room and saw the bunched up bedspread.

Hmm. Time for step six...

"Uhh, Julianne?"

She actually trembled while her lisp drew out a feeble, "Yes?"

The recent hit comedy movie "Animal House," featured a memorable part where faced with a nubile, passed-out girl on a bed, the character receives advice from an angel and a devil perched on his shoulders.

My imagination re-enacted the scene. A tiny, red-cloaked counselor poked me with his pitchfork. "Ray! Do it. Throw her on the bed. Make out with her. Grab those titties. Fuck her. Fuck her brains out."

Julianne's green eyes met mine. The smug, fluffy-winged angel on my other shoulder offered no rebuttal. He merely shrugged and adjusted his halo.

He knows what a pussy I am...

A thousand concerns ran through my mind.

If I take Julianne in there, how far do we go? What if she expects me to make her orgasm? How am I supposed to do that? Oh, God. What if she wants to fuck? Or, what if she doesn't, and I can't stop myself? How do I even put a condom on? Shit, shit, shit. I can't do this...

"Uhh, Julianne, the bathroom is the green door over there."

She let out a long, relieved breath. "Ok. Will you be here?"

"Of course."

A mere minute passed before Mark entered the hallway with his arm around Taylor and tossed me a beer. "Hey! There you are. I'm firing up the bong in the shed out back. C'mon, Ray!"

Edgy nerves made the decision to follow them a no-brainer. A delicate thread of conscience tugged me back, then unraveled and lost its hold.

Gonna get high...

**************

One beer turned into two as we passed the bong around. Mark's brother served as a forest Ranger in the nearby mountains, and regularly clipped samples of the marijuana plants grown by local farmers. I took a huge hit and Mark laughed, "Dude! This is really strong stuff, take it easy!"

He went back to making out with Taylor on the riding mower parked in the garden shed.

I'll be damned. After growing up next door to each other for years, they are finally together...

I declined a second hit, then walked aimlessly around the huge backyard, staring at twinkling stars in the clear winter sky. The horrible pollution in 1981 Southern California made us appreciate the fresh air after a rain, before the smog refreshed itself a day or two later. With eyes focused to the heavens, I waved my hands around in a salute to the wonders of creation, then Taylor's soft form cushioned the impact of blindly walking into her. She teased, "This must be my lucky night! First Mark, then you, groped me."

Realizing I had my hand on her lewdly curved and expansive ass, I recoiled. "Oh, sorry, I..."

A fit of THC-fueled giggling comprised the remainder of my apology.

She smirked, "I forgot how ridiculous you get when you're loaded."

"Whoohoo! Hey Taylor. You and Mark?"

She nodded twenty times. "Yep. It's your fault."

I pointed to myself, in an extremely feminine way, "Moi?"

"Ray, you're so fucking girly, even without the long curly hair. For some reason, Bunny loved that about you."

She really did...

Taylor pointed up, "While you were floating around in space, I talked to your... girlfriend. She told me how you asked her out so quickly after meeting her. It made me think about not letting opportunities slip away. So I told Mark to kiss me. We had been waiting for years, and it feels... right."

A bit of empathy bubbled up like acid reflux. "Well, I'm happy for you and Mark."

She curtsied in a graceful way that looked out of place on a girl her size.
"Thank you, Ray. Hey, let me tell you something. I don't appreciate how you treated Bunny, but you and Julianne look good together. She's really pretty, and she likes you."

"Taylor, I don't know if I'm going to date her again. You're right, she's pretty and nice, and everything, but it's like we don't have anything in common."

Like I did with Bunny. Ahhh well...

She turned in a full circle, finally waving to Julianne standing alone on the back patio. "Is that why you left her all by herself? Look at the poor girl. She's just shy and nervous. You need to give her a chance to get more comfortable with you. That's not easy for most people. You know how... unusual you can be, right?"

"I do, Taylor. Thanks. I think I'll take her home now."

She laid a thick fingered hand on my shoulder. "Good idea. Ray, one more thing. This is her first date, so make it special for her. Bunny told me some girl gave you a kissing lesson last year?"

My light brown skin doesn't blush easily, but Taylor's laughter let me know how bright red my cheeks had turned. "Yeah, Ellen was my sister's friend, and... yeah."

Taylor's lovely hazel eyes softened. "Kiss Julianne well. Sometimes that's what it takes to find a bond. Ok, best of luck to you both, no matter what happens."

She engulfed my thin body in an enormous hug, then shoved me towards Julianne, who waited patiently. I turned back to ask her more about Bunny, but Taylor was already skipping over to Mark.

Julianne met me halfway, by the side gate. "I'm sorry, Julianne. That was shitty of me to leave you alone. Are you ready to go?"

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