(by Peter McKenna, copyright 2001, all rights reserved)

You were amazed when my folks invited you over for our annual barbecue on the 4th and to spend the night. Of course, you are at our house all the time, helping me with my school work or just spending time together. Well, you live in the next town and I don’t have a car. I don’t even have a driver’s license. So I can hardly be expected to get myself over to your house.

They think that you are a good influence on me. And they certainly know that we care for each other, though no where near how much. You get along well with them, but then my parents' ages are not so different from yours. Although, you hardly ever have a conversation with them and leave me out of it. Most older people do that all the time, just as if I wasn’t there.

I remember when you first came to the house. You were so shy, afraid they would figure it out I suppose. You are still kind of on your best behavior around them. So I wasn’t surprised when you sort of reverted that weekend, quiet enough to almost disappear. They wouldn’t let you help out with anything, because you were a guest. So you got treated pretty much like one of the other kids. Except that you got your usual cups of coffee and none of us drink that stuff.

Before dinner we played badminton, my brother and I against you and my older sister. What a dubber! Not really, but it was funny when you missed and nearly fell over. You said that you had played a lot when you were a kid, but that you are out of practice now. It was pretty even though, because Rick is such a spaz and Dawn is such a girl. She really likes you, you know.

Sometimes I think that you will marry her because she looks so much like me. And you do like each other. I know that will never happen, but I think she imagines it too, now and then.

After eating outside and getting plenty of mosquito bites, we all watched TV in the living room. I got kind of wound up and was annoying everyone by flipping through stations and getting into arguments with my bother and sisters. You tried to calm me down, and it worked a little. They talked me out of the remote and everyone settled down pretty much, except that I kept complaining about what they put on.

You were floored to find out that Rick was going to sleep on the beat up, fake leather sofa so you could have his bed in our room. It’s a long narrow room and the twin beds are against one wall, foot to foot. I have the one with the head at the door and he has the one with the head at the only window. The other wall is lined with a bureau and desk for each of us. So you were going to sleep in his bed. We would be facing each other then, and in the morning when we woke up.

We went upstairs. But after you thought everyone else was probably asleep, you crept over to my bed and reached under the covers and under my T-shirt to rub my chest and stomach. Then your hand went down as far as it could to do the same to my legs, then into my briefs. What a great way to be woken up. You got into my bed and we did stuff, but not everything because we wanted to be very quiet.

At dawn my brother came into the room. I was on my back and awake, but I pretended not to be. You were on your stomach, one arm thrown over me. Rick pretended not to see us and went over to his bureau to get out clean under ware. Then he left, never having glanced at his empty bed or my overfull one. I was never so glad that he was my brother and that you didn’t wake up.