Dorsai - Full Circle

With our thirsts slaked and something in our bellies, the next thing on the agenda was for the girls to do something more normal for a sleep over: Experimenting with Makeup. It took me all of a zillionth of a second to decide that I didn't want to be around for that.

"I can see by the clock on the wall" – they all laughed; it was on top of the TV – "that its getting a bit late for an old fart like me, so I'm going to bed", I told them.

"What are the, uh, sleeping arrangements?" Sheri asked – and getting a Significant Look from her sister.

"I'm sleeping in my bed. Whatever the rest of you decide is up to you", I answered, with a look at Kelly. She understood that I didn't want any extra company, and told them "Dan and I will be in our bed, of course. I don't think any of the five of you will mind sharing a bed, will you?" – followed by a round of giggles from all of them but Sheri. Apparently, they'd all gotten pretty "familiar" with each other while Sheri and I were missing.

Jan spoke up then, saying "There are only three other beds, so rather than three of you being crowded in one of them, one of you can sleep with me, if you want."

Claire quickly volunteered for that position; Bonita and Evelyn took it as a foregone conclusion that the twins would be one pair. It might have just been my imagination, but the look Bonita and Evelyn gave each other made me think that they weren't all that upset at spending a night together in the same bed.

When I got up to leave, Crissy asked Kelly if she was going to bed, too – and all of them looked pleased when Kelly said she hadn't planned on it, just yet. That out of the way, Kelly, then Jan came over to kiss me good night; a moment after Jan stepped away from me, Sheri got up to do the same. The others took that as their signal that it was okay for them to kiss me good night, as well – though their kisses were appreciably different than the one I'd gotten from Sheri.

When I got back to the bedroom, I closed the door most of the way but didn't let it latch, so Kelly could come and go if she needed without having to worry about waking me up. Once in bed, it didn't take me long to fall asleep – it really was late, and it had been an active evening for me.

The next morning, I woke up with Kelly spooning against my back. The beer that I'd ended the previous night with was making its presence felt, and I carefully went about getting out of bed – I didn't know what time Kelly had gotten to sleep, and didn't want to wake her.

With the hydraulic pressure relieved and my teeth brushed, the next goal was to get some coffee, followed by reading the paper. In the kitchen, I found that someone had prepped the coffeemaker the night before, so my home automation system had been able to start it brewing when I said it was okay on my way to the bathroom. I got myself a cup poured, emptied the rest of the pot into a carafe, and started another pot brewing. I figured that anyone that was ABLE to get up would need it as much as I had.

I was in the den, having finished the paper and all the coffee when a naked Crissy came in. Rubbing her eyes, she looked at me and said "That coffee smells good. Is there any more?"

I told her there was some in the kitchen, and started to get up; she just shooed me back down and said "Stay there; I'll get it" before picking up the carafe and heading for the kitchen. She was back in a couple of minutes, cup in one hand and carafe in the other. She sat down at the end of the couch next to where my chair was, and told me that she'd gone ahead and started more coffee. I nodded, and asked her what all they'd done after I went to bed. She gave a soft laugh and said that after the makeup, they had a pillow fight, followed by watching some sappy movie on TV before going to bed around 3:00. It was just then getting close to 8:00, making me glad that I hadn't woken Kelly – even though she was younger than I was, she still wasn't as young as the girls, and likely needed the rest she was getting.

As Crissy was taking a sip of her coffee, I saw that she was giving me an appraising look over the rim of the cup. When she realized that I was watching her, she blushed slightly and set the cup down before asking "Dan, can we talk?"

"Sure", I answered.

"When you came in here last night, after you and Sheri had been together, I thought she was… different, somehow. I mean, she didn't really act different that I could point to and say 'that changed'; but there was something that just told me she wasn't the same sister I had before she went with you."

I nodded my understanding, and she went on "After we all went to bed last night, I finally got to talk to her about it, and she told me that you made love with her. But the way she said it, it was like the way Kelly and Jan say they make love with you – like she was using the word 'love' in a different way. I started talking to her about it, and asking her questions and everything, but she wouldn't tell me what you and her actually did; the only thing she'd do was tell me about the things that you said to each other."

"If Sheri wanted you to know what happened between us, its up to her to tell you; I'm not going to say anything about it", I told her.

She just shook her head and said "No, I wouldn't want you to – if you won't talk to ME, her sister, then I know you won't talk to anyone else, either; and that's fine. What I want to talk to you about is what you talked to her about – and the things that she said to me last night. I mean, some of the things she said, it got me kind of thinking, you know? And now it's like there's something at the back of my mind that I can't get ahold of – like when you know there's something you're forgetting, but you can't remember what. So I'm hoping that if you'll talk to me like you did her, whatever that is, it'll come out. Am I making any sense?"

I smiled at her and answered "Yes, you're making plenty of sense. You're going through something that I did, so I understand you perfectly. The problem is that it isn't anything that I can say or do that will positively clear it up for you. Remember when Kelly told all of you that if you stuck around, there would come a point where everything we've been talking to you about would just kind of come together? And that you had to learn the complicated way of doing things before the simple way would really make sense?"

She told me she did, and I replied "Well, I'm sorry to tell you this, but you're at the point just before it comes together, and the easy way makes sense. Because what's happening in your mind is different than what happened in my mind is different than what happened in Kelly's is different than what happened in Jan's, and so on, there isn't anything that any of us can knowingly do to change what's happening with you. What I learned – the hard way, I'm sorry to say – is that the how and when of it has to happen inside you, in a way that's only right for you and nobody else. The only thing I can suggest is that you pay real close attention to everything that happens around you: what you hear people say, what they do, what happens even when there isn't anybody around – because it could be anything that finally makes that connection for you, so that you understand all of what we've been telling and teaching you."

She made a face, then asked "Well, if you can't help me get my mind straight with your words, can you at least help me by letting me sit on your lap, and holding me?"

I smiled at her and answered "that I can do – and be glad for the chance."

She got up and came over to where I was sitting, then turned and sat down so that she was facing away from me. Tucking her legs in next to her, she scooted back until she was resting against my chest. I put my arms around her and held her close as she let her head tilt over to rest against my shoulder. As cute and sexy as she was, I was glad to have her on my lap and in my arms; but she'd said she just wanted me to hold her, so that was all I did. I regretted that she was troubled the way she was, but there really wasn't anything I could do that would clear things up for her – it simply had to come from her if it was going to work.