Daphne was about to ring the doorbell when her phone rang. It was Cherie.
"Sorry, Daph," Cherie explained "I won't be home for another hour or so. If you want to wait, you know where the key is. Go ahead and make yourself a sandwich or something because we won't have time to eat later."
Daphne acknowledged this and hung up the phone. She left the doorbell silent and made her way off the side of the front porch and into the side yard. She walked beyond the garbage bins to the little gate and released the latch. In the back, the detached garage door was open, but no cars were present except for Cherie's brother's old car. Cherie's brother was off at college, and didn't need it. Looked like nobody was home.
Daphne located the secret rock in Cherie's dad's vegetable garden where the spare key was hidden. Once she had acquired the key, she let herself in the house through the basement door in the back. She returned the key to its rock and went back inside, into the smelly darkness of the Anderson's basement. She closed the door behind her and locked it again.
Daphne loved the Anderson's house. There was just something about it that was safe and familiar yet different and always secretly exciting to Daphne. The Anderson's cat, Arnie, walked in through his flap and mewed at Daphne in the darkness. Daphne answered him. She was about to mount the stairs to enter the house above when the sound of rushing water caused her to stop in her tracks. Someone was home upstairs.
Daphne stood holding the rail at the bottom of the stairs, peering up at the illuminated frame of the basement door above her. She realized then that she had forgotten to ring the doorbell. Oh well, thought Daphne; it was probably Cherie's dad, and Cherie's parents were used to Daphne coming and going somewhat regularly. Cherie and Daphne were best friends, both planning on going to the same college that year.
Daphne was fairly short, with long black hair and a face that was as cute as it was pretty. She had been quite popular with the boys in high school, but hadn't kept in touch with any of them. She was ready for college. Daphne and Cherie had been keeping in shape, and that night they were planning on hitting the gym together. Daphne's body made the boys at the gym ache with yearning. Even though she didn't wear tights, Daphne could not hide the delectable curves of her youth all the time. She was not too skinny, and her body challenged any boy who thought he knew what the word 'sexy' meant. Daphne was a dish.
Daphne hoisted her gym bag up onto her shoulder and walked up the steps carefully. She opened the door at the top and announced herself, just in case anyone was present. She heard no reply. The sound of running water continued from up above.
Daphne did the only sensible thing left to do: she raided the fridge. Finding some sandwich stuff, Daphne pulled it all out and began to whip one up. She loved the Anderson's fridge. It was always full of interesting stuff that Daphne's parents would never think to buy. Daphne helped herself to anything that looked good. Daphne knew she was a sneak, but took pride in the fact that she was an honest sneak. She ate her sandwich and drank a soda, making sure to return everything to its proper place. She knew the Andersons didn't mind if she had a snack, but she covered her tracks all the same.
Daphne jogged up the staircase. She decided to wait it out in Cherie's bedroom, where she could wait in peace if anyone came home. Walking past the open door to Cherie's parent's room, Daphne could see that the door through to the master bathroom was open. It was then that she discovered that someone was in there, showering. She could hear the splatter of water, and, now that she was close enough, the boom of Cherie's dad's voice as he sang softly to himself.
Daphne giggled quietly. She and Bernard (Cherie's dad) had always gotten along very well. It amused her to hear him in this private moment, when he thought nobody could hear him sing. He had an almost comically deep voice. Daphne could not tell what he sang, but she knew it was off-key. It was in this moment of stolen privacy that Daphne found peace. She produced a tube of lip gloss from her pocket and slid the tip across her lips until they were sticky with the sweet taste of strawberry and wax. Lip gloss was Daphne's other addiction.
A great warmth washed over Daphne then. She wished then that she had the ability to come and go in whatever house she chose. There was just so much pleasure for her in sneaking around, staying out of sight, observing things that were not for her. Even as a child Daphne had been this way; always sneaking, always spying. She had hardly ever been caught at it, which is why she had the confidence to do what she did next.
Daphne walked silently through the bedroom door, towards the sound of running water and Bernard's gentle singing. She made it all the way to the door and paused before peering around it. There she saw Bernard through the fogged glass of the shower stall. He was standing with his back to her, lathering up his hair. He was a big man, built like a linebacker, but probably more than a little overweight. Daphne could make out his shape, and see the dark tan of his skin. Then Bernard turned around and changed Daphne's life forever.
From her hiding place just behind the open door to the bathroom, Daphne stared through the haze of steam and wet glass. Below Bernard's waste Daphne could see the dark mass of his genitals, covered in a great mound of soapy foam. Daphne watched as the soap was rinsed away, and there, to her total astonishment, was Bernard's penis. Daphne raised a quivering hand to her gaping pink lips as she watched in awe. Bernard's penis hung thick and slack from him, yet it was still the longest Daphne had ever seen in her young life.
Daphne's cheeks blushed, almost reaching the same shade of pink as her glossy lips. She looked on with eyes full of wanting. Her insides twisted into knots as she realized she was standing for so long and still could not pry her gaze away from this vision of masculinity. Somehow she managed, and stole out of the master bedroom as quietly as she had come.
Once she was in Cherie's bedroom, Daphne flopped herself down on the bed. Her face felt hot and her heart was fluttering wildly. She lay on her back and tried to breathe deeply in order to calm herself down. The mere sight of Cherie's dad naked had set a fire in Daphne's loins. She felt a need so great that it made her dizzy. She pulled herself up and sat on the edge of the bed. Her chest heaved with each hot breath and her hands clenched into fists. She closed her eyes and continued to try and breathe, but was sure she would faint. In her overwhelmed state, Daphne could not see Bernard standing in the doorway of Cherie's room.
