A story set in rural upstate New York State in the early 1970's...
***
Mac Green chuckled to himself when he saw the neighbor girl from the other end of Neversink Road on her bike coming down the gentle hill in his direction on her way towards town, which was yet another 3/4 of a mile further on past Mac's modest farmhouse.
"Neither rain nor sleet..." Mac said to himself as he tried to remember a day that summer that Mary Miller hadn't pedaled the dusty road on her way to town and then pedaled back home, doggedly climbing that hill that might not have been steep but was plenty long.
"More energy than I got," Mac concluded, since after just retiring last winter after 42 years of butt breaking work at the mill, his main activity was growing a variety of things on the modest sized patch of land and dutifully tending the vegetable stand his late wife used to love to take care of to supplement his income.
Mary's rides had recently started to include stops at the stand to visit with Mac, and since she had asked about his grandson every day he had decided to give the boy a call. Now a senior in college, Dwight used to spend a week or so in his younger days visiting his grandparents at the farm and Mac recalled Mary and Dwight hanging around together despite their color and age differences.
That was pretty unusual in these parts, a black guy and a white girl being seen together, and while Mac had been curious about whether the two were more than friends he had never seen anything out of the ordinary to make him suspicious.
"Remember Mary Miller?" Dwight's grandfather had asked offhandedly after chatting a bit the night before.
"Little Mary?" Dwight chortled. "Well, not so little maybe but sure I remember her. Why?"
"She rides her bike past the house every day," Mac explained. "She's still not little but she has lost a lot of weight over the last year. Just a little chubby. Anyway she keeps asking about you. Asking like you and her were more than just friends back then."
"Gramps..."
"Not butting into your business but I was just curious," the old man said, choosing not to mention the fact that he was suspecting the girl was now flirting with him because Dwight might think he was going crazy living out here by himself and fantasizing about some white girl wanting him.
"That was a while back Gramps," Dwight said. "We messed around a little but nothing really serious."
"Like I said, I was just curious. That was dangerous - you messing with her - and in more ways than one if you know what I mean."
"I know Gramps, but she was lonely and sometimes it got boring out there - no offense mind you."
"None taken," Mac responded, having learned that life alone was not always great, which might have explained why he enjoyed Mary's visits so much.
"Never did anything that would get me in trouble - her either," Dwight added. "She lost weight huh?"
"Yeah, I'd say she might have 20 or 25 more pounds
left to lose but even those extras are in the right places if you get my drift," Mac cackled, recalling that back when his grandson knew Mary she was probably over 200 pounds, which had to have been at least 50 pounds more than she was carrying now.
"Still has the big booty I guess," Dwight sighed. "Maybe I'll come visit you again."
"You're always welcome and if you pay a visit I have a hunch you wouldn't be bored or lonely," Mac said. "Although I don't know if your fiancee would approve."
"You're probably right about that Gramps. Say uh - Mary, she buy any cucumbers from you?" Dwight asked.
"Cucumbers? No she doesn't buy anything. Her folks have a farm so why should she?"
"No reason," Dwight replied while trying and failing to contain a chuckle.
"Boy if you were here I might have to take you to the woodshed," Mac declared while laughing himself. "You're never too old."
"Well you tell her Dwight says hi," his grandson had said before they ended the conversation, and after Mac hung up he chuckled while thinking about the pudgy girl and became even more eager to see her the next day.
***
"Guess who I spoke to last night," Mac said to Mary, who had coasted down the hill and was now putting the kickstand down and was standing across the counter from the older man.
"Dwight?" Mary asked excitedly.
"The one and only."
"Is he coming to visit?" Mary gushed as she looked up at the tall black man with the smooth skull with fire in her eyes.
"No, he's going to be starting his senior year in college soon," Mac reminded her. "Something tells me you're still sweet on him. That right?"
"No, I mean - he was a nice kid," Mary said. "He always treated me kindly."
"He's engaged you know," Mac said, and as he spoke he saw the way Mary's expression changed when he told her that sobering news.
"Is he?" Mary asked, and after Dwight's grandfather nodded she continued. "Oh well. Those days were a while ago. He probably doesn't even remember me now."
"Oh he remembers you very well," Mac said with a twinkle in his eye. "Quite well indeed, and when I told him you were asking about about him he told me to send you his best. I told him about how much weight you lost and how good you were looking and he said he was tempted to come out and see for himself what a fine looking woman you had become."
"Really?" Mary said as a grin returned to her cherubic face. "Still got a way to go though. Mama said that if I ever want to find a man I should get in shape, and I have lost almost 70 pounds."
"You're doing well but don't get carried away. Remember that a lot of guys don't like their women too scrawny," Mac said. "Guys like me? Heck Mary, you're looking fine right now. If I was about 40 years younger - heck girl - you look really good to a man like me no matter what my age."
"I'm all sweaty," Mary shrugged as she pulled her curly brunette hair away from her face and straightened her glasses on her nose, trying to hide the fact that she loved the praise but not doing it very well.
Mary's blue sleeveless blouse was soaked with sweat down the middle of the back and around the armholes, and when Mary's hand went up Mac caught a glimpse of her armpit, which unlike yesterday was now creamy smooth and glistening with perspiration.
Yesterday Mac had noticed that Mary's underarms were coated with a dense stubble, which along with the teen's bushy eyebrows had led Mac to wonder whether she had a big bush between her legs. Mac knew Mary had caught him looking there during her visit and had obviously shaved before visiting today, another one of the little signs the girl was sending as their relationship had evolved over the last few weeks.
"Nothing wrong with a little sweat," Mac mused as he looked at Mary's breasts hidden under the blouse and a bra.
Mary was a bit pear shaped, with her waist still a little thick and her butt larger than her boobs, but to a man like Mac who hadn't had the pleasure of a female for quite a while she did look very fine. Was she flirting with him?
"Dwight say anything else Mr. Green?" Mary said, blushing and batting her eyes rather amateurishly.
"Let's see," Mac said as he looked over at the produce in the bins before reaching in and pulling out something. "Dwight said something about you liking cucumbers. Don't know what he meant about that."
Mary's chubby cheeks turned a dark crimson as she backed up a step, causing her bike to fall over and almost taking the teen down with it.
"Careful honey," Mac chuckled as Mary almost did a header before catching herself at the last second, and after she righted the bicycle back onto the kickstand she was still red-faced when she turned back to the older man. "Didn't mean to upset you. Heck, I like cucumbers too."
"What else did he say Mr. Green?" Mary asked hesitantly as she cast a wary eye at the long bumpy green tube in the big black hand.
"Nothing else. Wouldn't tell me what he meant by that, although I suspect that by the way you just reacted you just told me a lot just now," Mac said with a raised eyebrow. "I was just wondering - you like black fellas Mary?"
