The Bully

The Wilson's residence was a little ahead; a large, lime-green, cape Cod house. Jimmy's dad, Stan was mowing the lawn as was his usual at this time.

"Hey, Jimmy give your old man a hand here will ya and grab those spray nozzles from the shed."

After going round the house to pick up the sprinklers for dad, Jimmy found his sister Jennifer applying lipstick in front of the hallway mirror.

"Can't talk now mom, I'm already late. Love you!" She called back, brushing past Jimmy.

"Heya Jim. How was your day?" She asked. "Actually, know what.. don't answer that. We'll talk during dinner."

"What's all the hurry?"

" It's my audition!" She said breathlessly, and continued without waiting for an answer, "I know right, I'm so excited!"

She flung out the front door slamming it behind her.

Jimmy peered into the kitchen, to see his mom frying something that tingled his olfactory receptors immensely.

"Barbecue ribs, today!" She said delightedly, walking towards Jimmy to give him a hug. "How was school sweetie?"

"Ah, you know, the usual." He said.

His mouth was watering already. Come to think of it, he was hungry. Positively starving in fact, considering that his lunch money was taken by that motherfucker, Donovan. Donovan was one of Kyle's lot.

"Well, why don't you freshen up Jimmy and I'll lay the table. You look tired." Mrs. Wilson said sweetly.

Janet Wilson was in every way, the quintessential American mom.

A headstrong, loveable woman who seemed to effortlessly assuage the concept of 'beauty with brains' ; Janet was immersed heavily within the 'family first, work next' ideology.

And for that, she closely fitted along the lines of the model wife. With a Bachelorette in math and IT, and a Master's in data computing, Janet had worked her way up the ladder in the lucrative field of data analysts at a reputed firm. Which also meant that she was a busy woman. However, she always managed to take out time for her kids and husband, whom she cherished dearly.

That being said, Janet was a fine woman... a very fine woman indeed. Despite being a little over 5' 4" (and a little too sonsy for her own good), she was certainly a looker.

At 43 and with two grown children, Janet was blessed with quite an appealing proportion. Almost a 'Rubenesque' body, as her gynaecologist had expressed.

With a graceful (and rather excessively) curved physique, wide waist and thick thighs, alternating with a comparatively slimmer torso, Janet would pass successfully against a working definition of the term "neighborhood MILF" in a Pictionary (if ever Pictionary's had that sort of stuff, anyway).

In fact, had Mrs. Wilson ever bothered to open her now defunct Facebook account, she'd find at least 40 friend requests from teenage boys to even 20 - something year olds within the locale -- boys who'd ditched the likes of Ella Knox and Darla Crane for a taste of jerking off over Mrs. Wilson's uploads from her Costa Rican family vacation. Not that anyone would blame them.

Her voluptuous body wasn't the only source of well-hidden jealousy amongst other mother's of their social circle anyway. Janet had grown chubby over the years. But then again, chubby in the right places, garnering herself a luxuriant, well- bosomed figure. Besides, she had a rather sweet, motherly face which concealed an odd sort of attractiveness in itself.

"Twenty years on, and her ass is exactly in the place it was back in Uni!" Her friends would dote.

It wasn't entirely true however, considering that her ass had actually increased a lot in size.

So much that her body oozed of fertility every time she walked. In fact, Mrs. Wilson's body was so curvaceous it seemed as though she'd get pregnant by just laying eyes on Stan's penis. (And that's saying a lot, considering Stan's..... well... Stan's a good father anyway).

Her gorgeously sweet facial features were further enhanced by her prim and well-kempt hair, the colour of rich, dark chocolate with plenty of volume and shine; the archetype 'Washington anchor-woman' hairstyle. Curled elegantly just over the shoulders. It was long enough to be sexy, but short enough to exemplify that she was probably smarter than you.

****

"Why sweetie, what's the matter?" Cooed Janet, as she surveyed Jimmy closely. He was sitting awfully quiet today, (as he did most other days, she thought). But today, he seemed a little different.

"Sweetie, is something bothering you?" She repeated when he gave no answer. " 'cause if something is, you tell me about it. Okay?"

Jimmy gave no hint of responding, munching away the delicious meal his mom had cooked him in silence.

Mrs. Wilson walked towards the dining table, slowly taking off her apron and tenderly placed a hand on her son's shoulder.

"Jimmy... ," She said softly. "I'm your mother. And there's nothing that a son should keep away from their mom, isn't that right?" She pulled him close into a warm hug, stroking his hair.

"Mommy'll sort it out, sweetie. You just tell me what's bothering you,"

Jimmy hugged her back. He'd promised himself he wouldn't make such a huge deal of his bullying problem.

He wouldn't want his folks to worry unnecessarily over something as petty as not getting along well as school.

Janet continued to stroke her son's hair,

"How did you find the ribs, Jim? Thought I'd try making something new today!" She smiled, but not before something struck her, and her eyes widened.

"Jimmy, is it that Kyle again?" She said, suddenly looking at Jimmy intently. "Is it that Denver boy who's bullying you?"

'Uh oh,' thought Jimmy. But he couldn't hide it.

She gasped. "It is, isn't it!"

"Mom, honestly.. . it's fine, I don't - "

"No, it sure as hell is not!" Mrs. Wilson said, getting up - no, literally springing out of the chair, to grab her cellphone.

"Mom, what are you doing!" Jimmy said, vexed now. "Mom, don't.. please."

"Uh uh, sweetie. No one bullies my kid and gets away with it." Janet said firmly, scrolling through her contacts.

There was definitely Mrs. Denver's number on the list; the last time Jimmy had been bullied was when he'd come home, crying for the first time ever in 9th grade.

Kyle Denver had been the culprit then too, and there'd been certain heated exchanges between Janet and the school teacher on how they ought to curb this kind of behaviour.

However, little did she know that the problem was far from over and Kyle continued to torment poor Jim through the years. The only difference being, Jimmy just grew better at hiding it from his parents. He didn't want to be called a wuss either..

****

"At least let me call up the school, Jim!" Mrs. Wilson pleaded her son for the umpteenth time that evening.

"Surely nothing would come of that."

"No, mom. You wouldn't get it," Jimmy sighed. "I can manage this by myself, really. And besides, if word got out that I complained, I'd be called a wuss!"

"That's nonsense," Janet said.

"Tell her, dad," Jimmy said turning to him.

Stanley Wilson sipped his broccoli soup slowly and looked up, surprised.

"Uh, well.. . Yes of course, there's that aspect of it to be looked at too, honey," he said.

Janet gave him a stern look.

"Buuuuuut your mom's right, Jim." He added hastily. "The only way this can be put an end to is by letting them know!"

Jennifer was smirking throughout the whole of the ordeal at dinner.

Whilst she strongly disliked the fact that her younger brother was being bullied, at least she'd have had the brains to keep silent, especially considering her mom's over- protective nature.

Why couldn't Jimmy just handle it like a man? Jesus, the guy's 18. How many 18 year olds even get bullied? Wasn't that like a middle school sorta thing?

"Jimmy, if a kid's bothering you why can't you just shove it back in their face?" She suggested.

"Jenny, this isn't the way to handle things." Her mother said, sternly. "If Jimmy's having problems it's obvious that he's having a tough time handling it,"

Jimmy groaned.

'Great, 'he thought. 'Now everyone's gonna be concerned about me.'

If only he'd lied to his mom and told her everything was alright.

"It's that Denver kid, again." Janet said, looking at her husband. "I'll have a word with his -"

"Mom, no! I told you.. . for the last time, just don't call up anyone! Not the school, and not his mom! Okay?" Jimmy said, incensed.

Janet sat with her mouth open. Her husband came to the rescue.

"Alright kiddo, we won't say a word. But you've gotta promise us one thing. That whatever happens, you tell us about it, alright? No more hiding things. We'll let this one slide, and I'm sure you're old enough to handle it on your own."

Jimmy nodded.

"Denver?" Jennifer spoke after a while. "You don't mean Kyle Denver do ya?"

Jimmy looked up.

"Yeah, sweetie, him. Why, do you know him?" Her mother asked.

Jennifer's pretty face broke into a sheepish grin.

"Well, he was my junior back in high school," She said. "That tall, good-looking one,"

"Well," continued Janet, "Good looking or not, bullying is bullying. And in our household, we are martyrs of a civilized American upbringing, are we not?" She smiled.

"Hear, hear!" said Stan, raising his glass.

****

(The next day)

It wasn't everyday a woman like Janet Wilson would feel drained of energy, and especially not after work.

It came to her as a surprise then, when she found herself exhausted on a damp Wednesday afternoon on coming home from work.

She barely registered Jennifer's message written onto a baby pink sticky-note, pasted right behind the front door. Something about her going to check out her boyfriend's new car. She heaved a small laugh.

'Not unlike you dragging me to check out every new boyfriend you bring home,' She thought, amused.

She unslung her handbag onto the coffee table with a plonk and poured herself a mug of Ristretto. The mere smell of the strong coffee seemed to clear her mind.

Running a hand through her immaculate, chocolate brown hair, she sunk onto the cabriole sofa heaving a weary sigh. Crossing her legs, she tilted her head back and closed her eyes. It had been another long, tiring day at work.

She thought about how amazingly considerate her boss (Miranda) had been to accept her request for the rest of the day off. After all, she had a lot of tasks to accomplish and Janet, being the stalwart American mom, would always place family first. Her day had been going pretty well considering how successful their last assignment had been, albeit a highly tedious one.

Though a fruitful outcome, she found solace in small comfort in knowing that the kids hadn't come home yet and she could enjoy a slice of apple pie and her favorite coffee in peace.

Stan had taken the kids to their usual weekend getaway; a lake-side holiday cabin they'd bought cheap during the recession. Jim and Jenny loved Osoyoos Lake, especially during the cool, rainy months.

Janet smiled at the thought of them together, having fun.. doing fun things that families should be doing. She'd have gone of course, as she did every fall outing, but her mother's ailing health prompted her to stay home during the weekend.

Unbuttoning her cocktail dress, she slowly made her way upstairs to get changed. She couldn't help but suppress a smile as she looked in her wardrobe mirror - her velvety, magenta dress looked alluringly wondrous on her.

Coupled with her sybaritically tempting curves and glam hairdo, Janet really found no surprise in her being hit on at times by some of the single men at her workplace. And what was more cajoling was that most of them were younger than her.

Whilst being flattered however, she was a headstrong woman who couldn't tolerate that sort of nonsense at workplaces. She'd give a bland smile while simply shrugging off those cunningly subtle compliments her male co-workers sometimes dropped around her. Besides, she adored her husband, Stanley.

"Hmmm.., " She thought, rummaging through her closet for a comfortable attire. Through her mind she ran through her schedule for the day - 'gotta drop mom to the clinic for her next appointment, get Jenny's dress back from the tailors, Jimmy's clothes need to be hung out to dry... Hmm.. Jimmy!'

She suddenly remembered what she'd promised herself (and only herself). Jimmy's bully problem. Contrary to her son's persistent remarks in indignation about her calling up his bully's mom and letting her know the situation, Mrs. Wilson's motherly love was just - overbearing, to say the least.

Her fiercely maternal instincts had triggered her to call up Mrs. Denver the previous day and let her know of her son's doings. She recalled her conversation with the boy's mother the previous night....

"And every day Jimmy comes home, trailing mud and twigs, telling me that your boy had pushed him around, or - or teased him, or stolen his lunch money. I'm really sorry, Mrs. Denver, but if this behaviour of your son continues, you wouldn't put it past me to march up there and have a word with him!"

Sure enough, Mrs. Denver's response had been swift and re-assuring.

She thanked Janet for having let her know the severity of the problem, and was adamant that her boy be sent straight to the Wilson's to apologize for his actions.

"Oh no, Mrs. Denver, it's awfully grateful of you. But a simple nudge from your side oughtta push your son in the right direction. " Janet had said.

"Trust me, Janet. Nothing would please me more than to see Kyle apologizing first hand to your son! Please do have a word with him, if you may. I'll speak to him from my side of course. But rest assured, I'll make sure Kyle doesn't repeat his actions from today."

"Oh thank you, it truly makes a difference," Janet said, smiling.

Janet looked at the time. It was 4 already? My days, do monsson days pass fast, she thought.

Mrs. Denver had said she'd be sending Kyle around half past four.

Besides, Jimmy wouldn't be returning from his fishing trip with dad till 6 at the least.

Hmm.. That way I can have a quick word with Kyle without Jimmy knowing! She thought.

"Tsk.. honestly, I don't know what all the fuss is about not letting them know. Teenagers find everything to be embarrassed about these days," she sighed, shimmying her curvy body out her dress.

She almost laughed. Janet was surprised she could still fit in clothes most women her age couldn't even dream of eyeing.

Not that she was as slim and gorgeous as she was when she first met Stan, but.. . some women were always blessed with the elixir of graceful ageing-- her wrinkles could be masked easily enough with minimal cosmetics, and her hair was still that thick, luscious chocolatey mane it had been, although shorter.

Janet had barely wriggled herself into a comfortable, airy slip (of her favorite color, mind you), when the doorbell rang.

(Ding- Dong)

"Tsk, who could it be now..." she said attempting to peer out of the bedroom window.

A boy was standing in the driveway. It definitely wasn't Jimmy nor any of his friends who she recognized.

"Must be that Denver kid," she said, zipping her turquoise slip up from behind.

****