Reluctant Diva 17
Inspired by Lipstick Discipline
Chapter 17 – Consequences
The next couple of hours passed in an unreal blur. I remember phoning Mom from the lobby of the theatre and asking her to collect me; also the drive home which seemed to take no time at all. She didn’t seem altogether pleased that my evening out had been cut short and was unimpressed that my date had left me to fend for myself. She didn’t speak until we got back. Predictably she then wanted to know every detail of what had happened but I wasn’t up to providing it. Eventually, when she was satisfied that Marty had been duly humiliated and that the virtue of her ‘daughter’ had remained unsullied, she recognised that I was emotionally drained from my experiences, although the fact that I had shared in the humiliation just about as much as our intended target didn’t seem to cross her mind.

“Bed, young lady!” she ordered firmly, but then relented enough to give me a hug before I stumbled gratefully up the stairs.

It was a huge relief to kick off my heels, take off the wig and get out of my constricting outfit. In a daze I somehow found myself in the bathroom automatically removing my makeup. Once done I fell into bed. I was exhausted by the day and the previous night’s wakefulness and fell asleep immediately. I didn’t wake till after 9am as Mom had mercifully let me lie later than was usual. I rose and mechanically drew myself a bath and laid out one of my tea dresses, it being Sunday. It was heaven to bathe in the warm scented water and I took full advantage of the opportunity to let the stress from yesterday’s events wash away.
I finished dressing and put on my on makeup. While waiting for my nails to dry, I became aware that there was something that didn’t seem right. It was niggling away at the back of my mind and to begin with I couldn’t put my finger on what it was. It wasn’t until I had finished getting myself ready that I finally understood what was bothering me. Marty! Remembering his hurt parting look last night, and the dignity with which he had borne himself, made me feel uncomfortable. I couldn’t quite reconcile taking revenge on behalf of my best friend with the hand which had been dealt to that young man.

My good opinion of Rachel was somehow lessened too. I couldn’t help feeling that she might have done better to have risen above her injuries, whatever they might be. That she had been hurt I didn’t doubt. Else why would she have contemplated putting me through an ordeal of my own. It seemed so out of character for her to be insensitive to my feelings.

I also started to wonder how being on the receiving end of a humiliating experience would help my date grow into a more considerate and caring person. To my mind it didn’t seem very likely. I was confused and vaguely unhappy. In the end I resolved to put the whole business out of my mind. After all, it wasn’t as if I would ever encounter Marty again, especially after what had happened the previous night.
How wrong can you be? The very next day something unexpected occurred which undid my resolution to forget all about it. My mother had yet to return from work, Tom was watching TV, and I was just finishing putting on my maid’s uniform before heading off for my job at Mrs Martin’s, when the telephone rang.

“Answer that please, Tom”, I called, but there was no response from him so I trudged across the hallway to pick it up myself, silently cursing my lazy brother. I guessed it might be my mom saying she would be late in from work so I fixed a smile on my face and made an effort to be bright and cheery when I answered. But it wasn’t Mom!

“Hey, er… Jennifer?” said the party on the other end of the line.

I was stunned into silence.

“Er, hello. Hello, who am I talking to?” continued the voice.

“Marty?!” I stammered.
Omigosh! What does he want?!

“Hey it’s you, Jennifer. Boy, am I glad it’s you.” His lack of composure gave me a small measure of confidence.

“Marty! Why are you calling me? How did you get my number?” I tried to sound starchy. The door from the hallway to the lounge was closed and I felt hopeful that the noise from the TV would cover my words so Tom wouldn’t hear.

“I looked in my mom’s purse. Listen! Jennifer! I have to see you. When can you meet me?” His voice sounded urgent.

“I don’t know.” I temporised. “I have to work, to help out Mrs M... a friend of my mother’s. Mom will be home when I’m done. I don’t know that I want to meet you.”

“That was low what you did on Saturday night, real low. You owe me! Listen, I have to see you” he urged. “Tell me where you will be and what time you finish and I’ll give you a ride home.”

I hesitated some more then gave in. I felt I did owe him something. I gave him directions and said I had to go or I would be late for my job.

When I got to Mrs Martin’s, I was dismayed to find a longer list of chores than usual awaiting me. I tried to hurry through them as quickly as I could, but by the time I was halfway down the list I could see that I would be late leaving and there was no way I could catch up.

Then the doorbell rang. I answered it to find a cab driver on the porch doorstep. Mrs Martin appeared in the hallway behind me with coat and gloves on and holding her purse.

“Quickly now, girl” she ordered. “Have you forgotten that I have a bridge evening. You will have to finish that list next time you come. Get your things so I can lock up after you have gone.”

This was an unexpected turn of events. I would be finished twenty minutes earlier than expected. Perhaps I would have time to see Marty after all.
I obeyed my employer with alacrity and trotted down the driveway. I wondered whether I should try to find somewhere out of sight in case I had to wait for him to put in an appearance, but Mrs Martin’s cab passed me before I reached the roadway. I would be able to remain concealed just inside the gates if necessary. As it happened, I found that there was no need to wait. I could see a car parked up opposite the entrance, with… and my heart missed a beat as I recognised Marty at the wheel. He hadn’t seen me yet and I paused to gather up some courage.

Against all my expectations I couldn’t help feeling a little glad to see him. All right! Quite glad. Okay then, have it your way, I was excited! I couldn’t understand myself. Well he was a very good looking boy; that’s all I could put it down to. I wrapped my coat tightly round me so as not to reveal the nature of the uniform I wore underneath it and crossed the road.

Marty saw me, and got out to open the door for me. He handed me in with, “Er, I wasn’t sure I’d be seeing Jennifer, or is it ‘Robert’?” and got in the driver’s side.
“It’s always Jennifer, even at school, these days.” I sighed.

“I don’t get it. What are you, girl or boy?” His bluntness made things easier somehow and I could be open in replying.

“It’s a long story and we only have about fifteen minutes. I don’t know how my mother will feel about my meeting you, so I can’t be late.”

I sighed again and continued “It started when I was small. When I misbehaved, Mom would dress me as a girl as a way of controlling me. Dad had left us and she was on her own. I hated it but every time I kicked against it she would make the punishment more and more complete. In the end I found it easier to give in and after a time I started to like, well, some of it. Just recently I’ve begun to agree with her that I make a better girl than I do a boy. That’s about it.”

“Okay… I get it, I think. So why take it out on me? Who put you up to it?” Thankfully he didn’t sound that mad, more… curious.

“Oh, well, I feel bad about that” I said. “I’ve known Rachel for ever and she’s kinda special to me, like she really can’t do any wrong in my eyes. I was told you had been mean to her and it was partly to get back at you, for her. Your mom was in on it, too. I think she’s concerned that you haven’t always been… the perfect gentleman… with your dates. That’s what I heard. Mothers!! “

He gave a rueful smile in agreement.

I felt so much relief when I saw how well he was taking my explanation, I positively gushed to reassure him. “You’re right though, it was a low trick and I’m sorry for it. I wasn’t faking how I felt all of the time though. I enjoyed myself, mostly.”

He sat there thinking for a while, then “I must be crazy but I liked being with you too. I liked it a lot. Listen. Can we go out again? Please?”

My heart did that skip-a-beat thing again, but I knew that I was supposed to try and keep myself under strict control. “I don’t know. Maybe. Perhaps sometime. I’ll have to talk to Mom.” This was scary. I was way out of my depth. “Look, I have to get home.”

Marty stared at me for a full minute then started the engine and I told him to drive me to within two blocks of my house. We drove in silence until we were there. He stopped the car and turned to face me, but I was prepared.

“Thanks for the ride. You can call me next week, perhaps. Unless you hear otherwise in the meantime.” I said, as I reached to pick up my purse.

He grabbed my hand and grinned. “Okay, Jennifer. Can’t wait.” Next he leaned over and planted a kiss on my lips.

But instinctively I knew how to handle these attentions. Frowning, I pushed him back gently but firmly. He looked a little crestfallen to be rebuffed.

Then I warmed up and gave him my best smile accompanied by the coy look I’d been rehearsing. “Bye, Marty!”

I got out of the car and walked quickly away. I guess he must have sat and watched me, as I heard the car start and drive off only when I turned the block. I could almost feel his eyes glued to my rear end, concealed beneath my coat though it was. I found myself dwelling on what a good kisser he was and wishing I’d kissed him back, before mentally recoiling from the image that thought conjured.
Kissing a boy! What am I thinking of?
Mom looked at me curiously when I entered the kitchen where she was busy. I was tempted to say nothing but I detected a look in her eye that made the red warning lights flash in my head. I had learned from bitter experience that any attempt at secrecy was likely to be unsuccessful, leading to another argument which I would lose, inevitably. Besides, I needed my mom’s advice.
Having resolved to come clean, my opening remark aimed to defuse the tension manifest in the air. “Guess what happened to me.”

“Well I know you had a phone call.” came my mother’s response and I thanked the stars that I had decided to be open with her.

She listened in frosty silence as I began to tell her the details of the call. Her glare intensified as I went on, rapidly blurting out in my alarm a description of what happened on my way home. I had been planning to make her aware of how mixed-up my feelings were, especially towards Marty, but there was no chance of that.

“What do you mean by seeing a boy without asking me first?” was her opening salvo.

Panicking, I scrabbled around mentally for means to divert her anger. Adopting an air of helplessness seemed my only possible escape.
“Oh Mom!” I wailed. “Don’t be mad! I didn’t know what to do!”

She stalked across the room and took me by the shoulders and shook me vigorously. “Then you should have done nothing.” she ground out through gritted teeth. “I despair of you sometimes!”

She was genuinely angry. My tears had started to flow and they weren’t feigned either. I was really scared. Not only that, I could see all my plans to keep in her good books unravelling. After a little my unaffected distress seemed to be having some softening effect. I made the most of it. “Oh Mom. It was so difficult. I wanted you to be here. Really I did.”

She dropped her hands and turned away from me. My heartfelt pleas seemed to be working. Her silence was hard to interpret, but I hoped she was calming down.

“I’ve been feeling so bad about Marty, ever since Saturday night.” I sniffed. “What I did seemed so mean and then when he phoned me, I didn’t know what to do. I was sorry for him, I guess”.

“That old trick! Men are always pulling that one, and you fell for it. Oh, you’ve got so much to learn, my girl.” The direction her anger was now taking seemed a little less dangerous. Whew!

“Do you see now, why you need me to be in the know before you go rushing in like that?”

“Yes, yes, I do, Mom. Really I do. Please help me. I’ll do anything you say.”

Her arms folded, she stood frowning at me. “You’d better. Anything? I’ll be holding you to that, Jennifer and don’t you forget it.”
Her words sent a shiver down my spine, but there was no taking back what I’d committed myself to.
“Well then. What do you need my help with?” she continued.

“What do you think I should do? Should I see him again?” I asked her, relieved to have her on side again and not feeling competent to make this decision all by myself in any case.

She looked at me intently “He’s a handful, a real handful”, she reflected. “Have you stopped to wonder why he wants to see you?”

“I… I dunno….”

“Really? He knows now that you’re not the same as anyone else he’s dated.” She considered for a moment.
“That must be quite a novelty. Hmm…. Think about it, Jennifer. He’s either just curious about you, or he might want to get his own back on you for tricking him. Or he might… just might… be genuine, but that’s the least likely. Do you really want to see him?”

“Yes.” The spontaneity of my response came as a surprise to me “Er… I guess so.”

Mom frowned at this and I knew I’d better open up to her some more. “Part of me really wants to, but I feel bad about that too.”

She looked a little mollified by my frankness. “Here’s what you’ll do. Let’s leave it that he can phone you, for now. After a couple more weeks perhaps another meeting – not alone this time. That way if it’s only curiosity, he’ll have lost interest, and the question will have gone away.”

“What will I say to him if he phones and asks me to see him?” I really did want to know how to handle this.

“I’ll be seeing his Mom and I can let her know. I’ll tell her that you’re too far behind with your schoolwork right now to be dating. It’s true enough! Also he’s a good few years your senior so it will sound quite natural for me to be wary of your dating an older boy. However, she’ll be pleased if you do start seeing him. She’s already told me that you might just be the steadying influence he needs. I’m not so sure.”

“Oh and I hope you’re not forgetting Chris!” was her next disturbing remark. That opened up a whole new line of confused thoughts and feelings. Gee, was this complicated?!

“Okay, Mom. What you said” denoted my total acquiescence.

I didn’t hear anything more of Marty until the following Monday. Although I had forgotten about her bridge parties, I arrived at Mrs Martin’s to find that once again she had an engagement that evening. The prospect of a shorter cleaning session was very welcome after a long day at school, although trying to condense all my tasks into a smaller space of time would be demanding.

“Be sharp about those chores, now!” my employer urged. “I don’t pay you good money for nothing.”

So I bustled about and actually I was able to complete more jobs than either she or I expected. Pleased to get praise instead of censure, I waved her off and tripped happily down the driveway. This was great. I wouldn’t normally leave for home for another half-hour. After making my way a little distance along the sidewalk I passed a quiet street that led to the park. A car was parked up there and you can imagine my shock when I saw what vehicle it was and the identity of the all too familiar figure standing beside it. Marty!!

He raised his hand in a nonchalant greeting. How did he know I would leave early from work this evening? I guessed that in fact he didn’t but had assumed I always finished around this time. I instinctively wrapped my coat tightly around me as he opened the car door and held it for me. “Like a ride home, doll!”

Struggling to take some kind of control of the situation, “Doll?” I queried.

He held up his hands in mock surrender. “Sorry! Jennifer. Okay?” he laughed.

Disarmed, I found myself smiling back at him and plumped myself down on the passenger seat.

He got in the driver’s side and turned to face me. “Let’s talk.”

It felt so nice to be receiving the attentions of such a good looking young man. I tried not to show how much I was liking this. There were some alarm bells ringing in the back of my head, like what would my scary mother make of this unauthorised meeting? I knew I had better get some ground rules established at the outset. “Thanks for the ride, but I have to be home by ten to the hour at the latest.”

He glanced at his watch and seemed unperturbed by the time limit. He evidently didn’t want to waste the opportunity as, next thing I knew, I was enveloped in a clinch and being subjected to a make-out session which continued from where the one in the movie theatre left off. Eww! This can’t be happening. Nooooo!

Actually once I got past the idea of being kissed by him, it wasn’t all that bad. As we kissed… well, yes, it seemed only polite to kiss him back… it struck me again what a good kisser he was and I found myself really getting into it. When he tried to unbutton my coat though I knew I had to take control. If he found I was wearing just my skimpy maid’s uniform, the situation might not be retrievable! For some reason, both my current panty-girdles had been in the laundry basket and I was wearing just a flimsy pair of panties under my little black dress. These would offer zero protection against any exploration by my amorous companion. I had to take charge, if his hands were not to be free to roam pretty much everywhere.

I placed a restraining palm on his chest and pushed firmly. I couldn’t think what I should say. The only protest that came into my mind was along the lines of “There isn’t time for this!” That might have given away far too much about the conflict of emotions within me as I really didn’t want him to stop what he was doing. Instead I pursed my lips and tried as hard as I could to give the kind of reproving glance my mother was so practised at. To my amazement it actually worked.

“Gee, Jennifer, I’m sorry” he muttered shame-facedly.

The follow-up was easy, as long as I controlled the lurking desire to be held, kissed and caressed for as long as I could. “We were supposed to be having a talk!”

“I know. I’m sorry” he repeated. “It’s crazy, but you really get to me, you know.”

His words left me feeling surprisingly content. Aware as I was that my new ‘friend’ had always been the object of interest and even competition among teenage girls, it was gratifying to know that I had secured the attentions of the most desirable boy around. It was evident that my ‘charms’ had been sufficient to arouse his carnal desires and that was strangely satisfying too. How could I even think that? Well, he was just a boy I liked, right? Except that I was experiencing the kind of impulses which were more to be expected of a horny teenage girl. Why were they occupying my confused brain? How could I have feelings for Marty? What about Chris?!

I had more pressing matters in hand. The solution to handling my current situation was based on guesswork but what I had hit on seemed to be effective so far. I followed my instinct. “You’ll live!” I coolly remarked.

He looked crestfallen, so I softened my words by leaning forward and planting a kiss on his lips again, then pulling away before he could respond.

“No thanks to you, you little tease!”

I laughed back at him, secretly delighted. Then, “Marty, I have to go!” It was really hard to say the words against my present inclinations, which I was ashamed to admit to myself.

Although he did his best to look hurt and disappointed, I steeled myself and took out my compact to check my make-up. It gave me an air of decision. When I had repaired my face and tidied my hair, he started the car. We drove to the block near home where I had alighted the week before.

A final kiss on my cheek then “Next week? Same time, same place.” His parting words filled me with elation and other feelings that I didn’t want to analyse.

What to tell my parent? The question gave me pause but I still trod on air the rest of the way home. Perhaps nothing might be noticed. As I entered, my mom was in her favourite chair, reading. She looked up and straightaway her curiosity showed in her face. It told me I hadn’t been successful in my half-hearted attempt to appear as if nothing had happened. There was nothing for it but to take the bull by the horns. “Er… Mom. I had a ride home tonight.”

That got her full attention. “Oh, really!”

“Yes. I was just on my way back from Mrs Martin’s when I saw Marty was waiting for me in his mom’s car. Imagine! I didn’t know he would be there. He must have guessed where I’d be. Anyway, I thought it ought to be okay just to get a ride home. Was that all right?”

My mother was staring at me intently. I couldn’t read her expression, so waited on tenterhooks until eventually she came out with, “That depends. What did I tell you about dating, Jennifer?” This was intimidating. I could see that the warning furrows had appeared over her eyes.

“Oh Mom. It wasn’t a date. I had to make a decision on the spot and it would have seemed so rude to refuse.”

Her face still bore an impenetrable demeanour. By now, my carefree mood had evaporated completely.
After a long silence “I’m waiting to hear what happened. Did you come straight home?”

“Well… No… He wanted to talk.”

“And…”

“We talked some…”

“And…” She was becoming impatient with my stalling, so I knew I had better come clean.

“We kissed some…”

“I knew it!” Though she had just been proved right so could be allowed some satisfaction, Mom’s tone was more triumphant than I would have expected. “I can’t let you out of my sight without you going and making up to boys.”

I got a strong sense that she was trying hard to avoid looking pleased. Why couldn’t she be straight with me? This was a poor return for my openness and I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes.

“Oh well! No need to cry about it. It looks like you survived.” She definitely looked pleased!

“Yes, ma’am.” I kept my voice low. Why did she have to be so mean? I could never hope to escape revealing to her everything that I’d prefer to keep hidden, and when I did there was no sympathy.

She turned back to her reading.

“Er… Mom.”

“Well?”

“What if it happens again? What should I do?”

“Well what do you want to do? Did you like being kissed?”

I stared at her “It was okay… I guess.”

She smiled mysteriously and shrugged her shoulders, before resuming her magazine.

Thus dismissed I ran upstairs to change and tackle my homework. As I did so my buoyant mood returned in full sway despite my inward protest. I was into girls; women; right? But… I had myself a boyfriend! A real boyfriend!
Why did that thought thrill me?!