Parents of children who play travel sports make tremendous sacrifices for their child's love of the game, but they also reap immense rewards. The most obvious sacrifice is the amount of time and money that is spent traveling; you could go months at a time without an unscheduled weekend day, and many of your weekends are spent in hotels. But with all the time away from home, you are usually in the company of your children's teammates and families, which leads to the formation of close relationships that can last a lifetime. There's a certain element of bonding that comes from the kinship of waking up at 5am on a Saturday to drive several hours away, not returning home until 10pm on Sunday night. Of course, copious amounts of alcohol are also involved in soothing the stress of travel, which can lead to an entirely different kind of relationship...
As yet another season came to a close, the year-end team picnic was a mixture of joy, relief, and sadness. They had so much to celebrate - their children's athletic growth throughout the season, winning the state championship, and a coaching award bestowed upon their head coach for his leadership. Everyone was looking forward to a break from the travel and the seasonal change in which sports their children participated. But the families had all grown so close that with the end of the season came the inevitable collapse of the families' social circle.
"I think we should just have Gary book us a hotel 3 hours away and we'll all pretend we're going there for a game so we can just party in the hotel," Sam joked. "Who says we need to actually have the kids play a game for us to have a good time?"
Beers in hand, everyone laughed and one of the parents quipped, "Do we even need to invite the kids?"
As the laughter subsided, Craig thought for a moment, then said, "You know, I have a cabin that's pretty big - there's an upstairs area for sleeping and a downstairs living area. It's pretty basic and would be pretty rugged camping, but we could have a party out there some day this summer. The kids could run around, ride their four-wheelers and dirt bikes, we could grill some meat, and camp out overnight."
"Oh the boys would LOVE that!" Brenda commented, as several other heads nodded up and down in agreement, with utterances of "yeah!", "definitely!", "cool!" coming from the various Moms and Dads.
"Alright, I'll set something up and send out an email," Craig said.
***
"Oh, honey, I'm not feeling good," John groaned as he walked slowly into the living room.
"Why, what's wrong?" asked his wife, Deena, looking over the top of her magazine.
"I think I have that stomach bug that was going around the office," he frowned, looking like he was in tremendous discomfort.
"Oh no! Are you still going to be able to take Liam to the camp-out this afternoon at Craig's place?"
"I don't think so...," he moaned as he flung himself onto the couch dramatically, looking like a helpless invalid.
"Ugh," Deena sighed, "Liam is going to be so upset that he can't go - he was really looking forward to seeing his teammates again and fishing in Craig's pond. Are you sure you can't go? Can you take some Immodium or something?"
John glared at her with annoyance, "I'm running a fever, I can't stay out of the bathroom, and I feel like crap - I am NOT going to the party. Can't you just drop him off and pick him up tomorrow?"
Deena thought about it for a moment. "I don't know," she hesitated, "he's never been camping before - what if he doesn't like it and wants to leave? Or what if he gets nervous about staying with other people? That seems like such a burden to impose on the guys, expecting them to watch him."
"Liam will be fine, and I'm sure the guys won't mind. He gets along well with all the kids who are going, he doesn't need me there."
"I'm just not comfortable with that," she protested. "You stay here and rest, I'll just take him myself."
"It's a "Guys' Weekend" - the party is for boys and their DADS, no Moms or sisters - you can't go."
"Oh give me a break! I've spent all season with these guys, we're all good friends. They've never been inhibited around me when it comes to their discussion, it'll be fine. I won't be in the way - I'm just like "one of the guys" to them, anyway."
In many ways, Deena was, indeed, "one of the guys". Gender lines were often blurred when the parents were up late in the hotel drinking in the hallways - everyone was friends with everyone, and they were comfortable discussing any topic. In fact, late-night discussions could run the gamut, anything from plumbing repairs, to vacation plans, to remodeling homes, to the latest pop culture from music and movies. But as the beer and rum continued to flow, most of those conversations ended up going in an X-rated direction. Moms would talk about their bikini waxes and Brazilians, the guys would talk about a hot Mom with big tits that they spotted at the rink from an opposing team, Moms might talk about the latest trashy they'd read, while Dads might talk about recent jaunts to the strip club. From there, dirty jokes just abounded.
And even though Deena thought she was just "one of the guys" in those conversations, the guys never stopped looking at her as a woman. That didn't mean they were inhibited in their conversation, just that they couldn't stop mentally undressing her and lusting about what it would be like to hook up with her or some of the other Moms on the team.
Deena was in her mid-thirties and very accomplished professionally. The people that she worked with only saw the side of her that was smart, strong, and sassy. She was polite and respectful, but also unafraid to speak her mind. She took her career very seriously and rarely let her colleagues see her more playful nature, for fear that it could jeopardize everything she had worked so hard to achieve.
Physically, Deena was about average height and weight, with long, wavy brunette locks, and deep brown eyes set against light olive-toned skin, a reflection of her Mediterranean heritage. Her teeth were perfectly aligned and a natural bright white color. She was very well-endowed in the chest, with big, voluptuous breasts that were often emphasized by the v-neck style shirts that she preferred to wear on the weekends. No matter how tired or hungover she was, Deena always put forth the effort to make herself look her best - with well-styled hair, carefully applied make-up, jewelry that was simple yet pretty, and sensual perfumes and body sprays. She was definitely "all woman" to the Dads on the team!
John was too tired and weak to argue with Deena's suggestion that she go on the camp-out, and truth be told, he'd rather be home alone to deal with his illness in quiet solitude than have his family around the house nagging him, asking him to do things, telling him to eat this / drink that / nap now and quizzing him frequently on how his bathroom visits were going. If Deena and Liam left for the weekend, he could be lazy, rest, and have full control over the television remote; hell, if he was feeling better by tonight, maybe he could even indulge in some Internet porn! "Fine, whatever," he sighed in feigned disappointment.
"Guess I'd better get started on packing," Deena said, as she set her magazine down and padded down the hall to the bedroom to pack up her things.
***
"Hi guys!" Deena called out as she and Liam hopped out of her SUV, popping the back open to unload their bags.
"Hey Deena," Sam responded, looking slightly puzzled. "Are you dropping Liam off?"
"No, unfortunately John couldn't make it - he isn't feeling well. I figured I'd come in his place!" she smiling cheerfully, too busy hauling a suitcase out of the back to notice Sam's less-than-enthusiastic expression.
Sam's dick woke up and twitched in his pants at the thought of her spending the night. But that wasn't the point of this weekend. This weekend was supposed to be about letting your guard down with the guys and getting dirty with "guy stuff" like dirt bikes, fishing, hunting small game, and camp fires. It was about drinking as much beer as you wanted to drink, pissing against the base of the oak tree behind the cabin, smoking a cigarette or chewing tobacco without any nagging wives getting on your case about how bad that is for your health, releasing belches and farts at will without apologizing, and sharing dirty jokes. Not hanging out with the Hot Mom on the team, fantasizing about taking HER behind the oak tree for a romp in the woods! Damn, there went his dick again. Damn damn damn - this was going to be a long weekend!
"Great," he said through a fake smile, pretending to be happy, before downing the rest of his beer and throwing the empty can on the ground, retreating back into the cabin to share the "good news" with the rest of the guys, who were all inside unpacking and setting things up, while Deena continued to unload her vehicle.
Between summer vacations and other sports conflicts, fewer guys had shown up than Craig was expecting. There was just Craig, Sam, Gary, and Rob, and their four sons. Deena and her son, Liam, made it ten - a reasonable number of guests. The five boys were all very close friends, so Craig was excited about the chemistry there and that none of the more troublesome kids from the team had shown up. It should be an easy weekend, he figured, where the twelve-year-old boys could pretty much be trusted to do most things on their own while the Dads (and, errr, Mom) hung out at the cabin drinking.