Part 1: New Houseguest

“Hey, sis.”

“Cody,” the dark-haired girl shouted upon opening the front door. She grabbed the young man standing outside and pulled him to her. The embrace lasted a full minute before the two separated, the woman’s hands remaining on the boy’s shoulders. “God, let me look at you. It’s been so long.” She looked him up and down, taking in every inch of the brother she hadn’t seen in almost a year.

 “Too long,” he answered, brushing his longish, jet-black hair out of his eyes. “Sorry about that.”

“Hey, I understand. It’s not like I didn’t go off to college and conveniently forget that I had a family too.” She ruffled his hair, causing his black locks to again fall in front of his eyes. “Don’t just stand there, come on in.”

“Thanks. I didn’t think you were home.”

“Yeah, sorry it took so long to answer the doorbell. I was on-line doing some research for an upcoming event. I had to save some sites so that I can go back to them later. Enough about me, what are you doing here? I mean I know it’s mid-semester break, but you usually just stay at the dorm.”

“The college is renovating the floor I’m on,” he said as he put down his knapsack in the entryway, “so we all pretty much had to leave for a week.”

She looked at him, confusion apparent in her eyes.

“Didn’t mom call you?”

“My cell is set to go right to voicemail, I’ve been busy working.”

“She probably left you a whole bunch of frantic messages then,” he said matter-of-factly.

“You can’t go home.”

“Ah, my genius college grad sister has started to work it out,” he declared with a chuckle.

“Mom and dad rented out the house while they went to Vermont.”

“Bingo!”

“You want to stay here? With me?”

“I don’t have much of a choice.”

“Look, Cody, I don’t know if that’s such a good idea…”

“C’mon, Steph, you know I don’t have a problem with your lifestyle.  I’m not dad.”

Stephanie gestured for her younger brother to sit down on the sofa just inside the living room. She watched him as he complied; his black, skin-tight “skinny” jeans plastered to his every movement. “Long hair, tight jeans, I thought you left the emo look behind when you got out of high school.”

“Don’t change the subject. Besides, I packed light. These jeans take up less room in a backpack.”

“Fine,” she said, sitting down next to him. “It’s not my lifestyle, it’s the fact that I have two roommates. Did you think I could afford a place this big on my own?”

“Honestly, yes,” he replied. “My big sister is a human resources administrator for the largest hospital in the state. So yeah, I guess I did. Sorry.” Always the more emotional of the siblings, Cody looked away from his sister, embarrassed over his assumption.

“Hey, little brother, it’s okay. I’m not offended. And I’m certainly not going to let you sleep in the street. I’ll explain the situation to Jackie and Sarah. I’m sure they’ll understand.”

The boy looked back up at her, “Jackie and Sarah, huh? Are you guys…y’know…?”

“Perv!” She screamed, feigning anger as she slapped him in the back of his head.

“What? It’s a valid question. You decided to come out to the family about your bisexuality, don’t blame me for making assumptions based on that.”

“Cody, you’re pretty smart for a 19 year old college sophomore, but don’t go around making assumptions. To answer your question, the two of them have been an on again, off again couple for a while. I am blissfully single.”

“Thanks. I just need to know so I don’t make any improper comments while I’m here. I want to be as politically correct as possible.”

She couldn’t help but smile at the smirk he gave her while saying that. “You are such a smart ass.”

“Not gonna change any time soon, sis.”

“Okay, here’s what I need you to do. You have money?” Once he nodded, she continued. “Go to the movies, or the mall, or wherever you want until about six. My roomies get home at five and that should give me enough time to explain the situation.”

“Sounds good,” he said, standing up and heading back towards the door.

“And for God’s sake, pull your pants up. I can just about see your crack.”

“Sorry, no can do. That’s where these jeans sit.” He made a display of bending over in front of her as he reached the door, giving her a full view of his tightly encased rear end.

“I’ll be back later.” Opening the door, he turned around and faced her. “Seriously, Steph, thank you. I don’t know what I would have done if you had said “no”. All the motels in the area are booked with vacationers and kids home from school.”

Stephanie grabbed her younger brother and hugged him again. “Don’t worry about it Cody, I’ll always be there to take care of you.” She released her grip and, with a small wave, watched him bound down the stairs and walk off, up the street.

“Time to get started,” she thought to herself as she closed the door, leaned back against it and stared down at her brother’s backpack.

= 0 =

“So, you’re the brother.” The red head had answered the door and now stood, blocking Cody’s entrance to the house. “What are you, some Goth freak?”

The boy looked her up and down, She was tall, and strikingly gorgeous, with a fantastic body that was oddly revealed yet hidden by her perfectly tailored business suit. Her feet were encased in obviously expensive designer shoes, whose four inch spiked heels seemed just slightly out of place with her suit. Her deep red hair was pulled back in a severe bun, and she had removed her eyeglasses as though that would improve her view of him. 

“Ah…” he stammered.

“Oh, and you’re retarded as well. Perfect! Answer my question or you can’t come in.”

“What question?” Cody had finally gathered his wits; he was only nineteen after all, and this woman, obviously the schoolteacher from every adolescent boy’s fantasies, stirred up all kinds of feelings in him.

“Are you some kind of Goth freak? I don’t like repeating myself.”

“No, I’m not. And I’m not retarded either.”

“Much better,” she said stepping aside. “Now that we’ve determined that you are neither a freak nor retarded, you can come in. “My word, I don’t think any of us own jeans that tight.”

Cody became instantly self-conscious as he walked in front of the red head. For some reason her comment cut deeper than when his sister made fun of his jeans. Choosing to ignore her, Cody entered the living room where he saw his sister and another woman, this one blonde with long, straight hair, seated on the couch. Cody heard the click of the red head’s heels behind him as his sister stood up and walked over to him, giving him a quick peck on his cheek.

“Cody,” Stephanie said, these are my roommates, and yours for the next two weeks.” She pointed to the blonde. “This is Sarah. She’s a nurse at the hospital where I work. I’m sure you picked that up from her clothes though.”

The boy nodded. He had noticed her blue scrubs the minute he entered the room. Smiling, he reached out and shook her offered hand. “Nice to meat you.”

“Nice to meet you too darlin’,” the blonde replied, her southern drawl as heavy and sweet as honey.

“Obviously not a gentleman,” the red head interjected from behind. “Down south, a gentleman would have kissed the ladies hand when she offered it. But perhaps those jeans have squeezed out all your manhood. I guess she can forgive you if that is the case.”

“And this would be Jackie…” Stephanie said, cut off.

“Jacqueline.”

“I’m sorry, Jacqueline,” Stephanie continued, emphasizing the woman’s preferred name.

“We’ve met,” Cody said, noticing no hand was offered.

“Jacqueline is a psychologist. She practices at the hospital as well.”

Cody smirked. “What, you still need practice? How long have you been doing it?”

Stephanie immediately stepped in-between the two as though to prevent a war.

“Insolent boy,” Jacqueline said with disdain.

“Hey, I’m sorry, but you’ve done nothing but take pot shots at me since you opened the door. I thought you would appreciate the humor.”

“You have not earned the right to humor, boy. While I have agreed to let you stay in my home. I have rights that you do not.”

“It’s our home Jacqueline,” Stephanie emphasized as she saw her brother’s eyes tear up. The change was not noticeable to anyone who had not grown up with him, but she knew the signs and knew she had to get him out of the situation quickly. “I expect all of us to act like adults.” She turned him away from the stern woman and took him over to a chair adjacent to the sofa. She pushed him down into the chair even as he was rubbing his eyes.

Jacqueline was watching him intently as he tried to make it look like there was something in his eyes.

Sarah went over and knelt down next to the boy. “It’s alright sugah, I think you look cute in your tight pants.” She laughed, but he didn’t feel as though she were laughing at him. He liked her immediately.

“Thanks,” he said, smiling at her.

The three women then moved to sit on the sofa, facing the now recovered boy. “So, Cody, tell us about yourself. If you’re going to be living with us for two full weeks, we should at least know something about you. Other than you’re not a Goth freak or retarded,” Sarah said, punctuating the comment with her laugh and ensuring the boy knew she was being funny.

Jacqueline, however, just watched.

The evening proceeded smoothly, with Cody doing most of the talking. The women, Jacqueline included, asked him all kinds of questions about school and his life away from home. While not truly making Cody uncomfortable, Jacqueline’s questions tended to be a bit more personal than the other’s. She seemed mostly interested in his private life and his feelings about things. He merely chalked it up to her being a psychologist and thought nothing of it. In fact, all of the earlier bad feelings had dissolved by the time they had eaten a quick, take-out meal and finished their getting to know each other conversation.

He learned a bit about each of his sister’s roommates, and decided that he really liked them. Of course, he liked the gorgeous blonde nurse more than the overbearing Jacqueline, but he had a hard time denying the odd attraction he felt for her. Something about her was, at the very least, distracting to the young man, and he did his best to conceal it through the evening. He did muster the courage to ask her about a meticulously detailed model of an old time sailing ship that sat on the mantle above the fireplace sealed inside a glass display box.

“That is the ‘Lady Peregrine,’ it has been in my family for over one hundred and fifty years,” she said proudly. “It seems my family has rather a sordid history of involvement with pirates.”

Cody was fascinated by this new and exciting detail, but further inquiries were cut off abruptly.

“So, we’re off to bed,” Jacqueline said as she and Sarah stood up. “I take it that you can show your brother to his sleeping accommodations on your own Stephanie?”

“I think I can manage. Goodnight ladies.”

“Yeah, goodnight,” the boy waved after them as he watched them climb the staircase, a huge grin on his face. He was still waving when Sarah looked back down at him and winked.

He suddenly doubled over as his sister’s elbow connected with his stomach. “You are a pervert,” she said mockingly. “You better not let Jackie see that kind of behavior.”

“You mean Jacqueline,” he said, emphasizing the formalness of her proper name.

“No, I mean Jackie. Jacqueline is only what you need to call her. The shortened name, like humor, is something you’ll have to earn.”

“That’s just weird.”

“Not once you get to know her. I’m sure she already knows you pretty well.”

“How do you mean,” Cody asked as she led him to a door at the back of the kitchen.

“She’s very good at what she does, and what she does is understand people. She’s also very good at manipulating them. She’s used to getting her way and what she wants at all times.”

“Is that what’s happening upstairs right now?” This time the smirk was accompanied by him protecting his stomach from yet another anticipated blow, but it never came.

“Maybe,” Stephanie said as she slid back the latch and opened the heavy door. She flipped a light switch situated on the outside of the door, illuminating the staircase that led downstairs.  “Sorry, but the only free room we have is down here. We thought about the couch, but Jackie insisted that a guy your age needs privacy, especially for such a long stay. So, after they got home, we cleared out this room. It was designed as a maid’s quarters, but was renovated to be a sort of pantry by the second owner. We brought down a cot for you. Sorry if it’s not very comfortable.”

She started down the stairs, beckoning for her brother to follow her. The staircase was narrow and much steeper than he had anticipated. “Watch your step. The light switch upstairs is the only one, and it lights up both the staircase and the room.”

The stairs creaked under their feet as they made their way to the bottom. At the bottom of the stairs was a second door, even heavier than the first. Stephanie slid back another latch, this one spring loaded so that it had to be held open as the door moved out of its jam, and pulled the door open, forcing her brother to take two steps back up the stairs so there was room to open the door. Once open, she waved him down and in, holding the door by the latch as he walked by. Once he was in, she released the latch, which snapped back into its closed position and used a hooked bungee cord attached to the wall to prop open the door.

“Wow, cozy, in a cave like kind of way,” the boy said once he entered the room. He looked around, noticing that it was only dimly lit and fairly dusty. It was about half the size of his tiny dorm room back at college, and the cot took up most of the free space. In one corner was an exposed toilet and sink, their fixtures dirty and rusted from disuse. On the floor surrounding them was a row of damaged concrete cinderblocks that were obviously the remains of the wall that had separated the bathroom from the main room.

“Sorry about this. Apparently the second owner had plans to remove the bathroom and make this all one room. I guess they never got around to finishing. Everything works though, we checked.”

“Hey, sis, no need to be sorry. I’m a college guy. I’ve slept in worse rooms than this.”

“So you’ll be okay?”

“Sure. It’s a little hot, and there’s no TV, but it’s just for sleeping, so I’ll be fine.”

“Okay,” Stephanie said sounding a bit relieved. “We’ll work on entertainment for you tomorrow. As for the heat, this is just one small part of the basement. On the other side of that wall is the heating system for the house. The concrete over there tends to heat up and radiate through here. On the other side of that is the main basement, which we use for parties, entertaining and the like.”

“Really? Is it all tricked out?”

“Oh yes,” she said, displaying her own smirk now, “it’s fully equipped.”

“Why not move the cot in there? Not that I’m complaining.”

“There are no restroom facilities you’d be able to use. You would have to keep coming upstairs.”

“Oh. Makes sense.”

She just smiled at him and gave him yet another hug. “It’s great having you here little brother. I missed you so much.”

“Why don’t you get comfortable. Give me the clothes you want washed and I’ll take them upstairs. You do still sleep in just your underwear right? That should help with the heat.”

Cody blushed and looked down at the floor.

“Oh come on,” Stephanie said, “like I haven’t seen you sound asleep sprawled out in your underwear before. Man up so I can go to sleep too.”

“Fine,” the boy shouted in a playfully defiant way as he kicked of his shoes and pulled off his socks. “ I see how it is…” He suddenly broke into a hummed rendition of the cheesiest stripper music he could think of as he pulled off his shirt.

Stephanie laughed, “You are just proving my point that you are a disgusting pervert.”

He looked up at her, standing there in just his skin-tight jeans. “That’s what brothers are for,” he said with a triumphant smirk. He then quickly unbuttoned his pants and literally peeled them down his legs.

“Need some help? You appear to be struggling.”

“Nope,” he said as he flopped onto the cot and pulled his jeans all the way off, leaving himself completely exposed except for a skimpy pair of white briefs.

‘Now that’s different,” his sister said with interest. “What happened to the baggy boxers?”

“Have you seen my pants,” he asked sarcastically. “Like I could fit boxers in there with me.”

“Hmmm, I guess not,” she said as she bent down, stuffed his socks into his shoes and picked up the rest of his discarded clothing. “I’m going to take it all upstairs. Your shoes will be outside the door, and I’ll throw your other stuff in the wash.” She turned and looked at him sternly, “and you better be nice to me or I may accidentally shrink your jeans a bit in the dryer.”

“Funny,” he said as he bounced up and down on the thin mattress, feeling the springs underneath. “Comfortable.”

“More than you deserve, jackass. I’ll be right back.”

After a quick trip upstairs, Stephanie returned and sat down on the cot next to her brother. “Listen, Cody, there’s something else, and I don’t want you to freak.”

“Let me guess, now that I’m tucked away, you three are going to have an orgy, right?”

“Stop being such a jerk and listen.”

“Sorry, okay.” He immediately changed his demeanor, realizing that his sister was being serious.

“The second owner of the house was planning on turning this into a fully stocked pantry, but the renovation was never finished.” Her brother looked at her, his bright blue eyes showing nothing but confusion. “The door to this room has no handle on the inside and locks automatically when it shuts.”

“So we can just leave it propped open like it is now, right?”

“That wasn’t part of the deal,” his sister said with a deep sigh.

“What deal?”

“Sorry Cody, but Jackie thinks all guys your age are nothing but horny perverts and, to be honest, you haven’t done anything to prove otherwise. Seriously, did you think it’s was a good idea to antagonize a lesbian with juvenile male behavior?”

That tone always did him in. his eyes immediately began getting misty as his sister scolded him. “I didn’t mean anything,” he said, holding back a sniffle.

“I know you didn’t, but I’m your sister and Jackie’s not. Plus, look at you, falling apart just because you’re being criticized. Pull yourself together.”

“I can’t help it.”

“I know, Cody, but you need to try to be less sensitive about things.”

“Okay, fine,” he said straightening up and wiping his eyes. “So explain the deal.”

“The door gets closed behind me every night when you’re ready for bed.”

“And I can’t get out?”

“Not on your own.”

“So what you are saying is that this is a cell and I’m a prisoner?”

“Only at night when we are sleeping.”

“What if something happens, a fire or whatever?”

She looked at him reassuringly. “You would be safer than us. The concrete down here won’t burn. This room would survive the destruction of the rest of the house.”

They stared at each other for a few moments, no words said. Finally, Cody stood up and walked over to the door, his bare feet disturbing the fine layer of dust on the hard floor.

“You’d better get some sleep, sis” he said facing her and pointing towards the staircase.

She walked over and stepped outside the tiny room. Untying the door from the wall, she held it open as she looked at her younger brother. “It’ll be okay, I promise.”

“I know. I trust you Steph.” He gave her a halfhearted smile as she closed the door. He heard the click and felt his stomach drop as he realized he was trapped in nothing more than a concrete cell. His heart sank further as he heard the spring loaded latch slide into place on the other side. He looked over the door, but as promised there was no sign of a handle or even an indentation to grab hold of. “Steph wait,” he shouted as he banged on the door, “I need my backpack.”

He didn’t know if she heard him before there was the faintest sound of the upstairs door closing. Then there was silence as the boy stared at the door. He jumped, when the light went out, plunging him into the most total darkness he had ever experienced. He realized that his sister must have shut down the light prior to heading off to bed. He turned and tried to feel his way through the tiny room and back to the cot. Stubbing his toe on the metal leg of the bed, he fell onto the cot, cursing his way through the pain. It only took a few moments for the pain in his foot to calm down, but once it did, he was left with the maddening realization that he had to use the bathroom. He continued to lie there, contemplating how he would get past the cinderblocks and to the toilet without further injuring his feet.

27.01.09