I swear this is complete fiction...almost...
"I promise, you will be completely transformed by the experience, I know I was when I went last year." Lisa assured me.
I had just turned 21 and I may have been the oldest one to go through the ritual and defiantly the only guy in the group of eleven girls in the van. It was almost dark by the time we left. The cheer squad bought me a women's cheerleader jumper to wear tonight and helped with my hair and makeup
"It will be bright out tonight with the Super Moon." Lisa said.
"I was born under a blue...moon." Two others and I said at the same moment.
"Well it's not a blue moon until next year, which only happens like every three years." Cindy corrected us.
We pulled off the paved road making a left onto Miller Road that was barely wide enough for two cars to pass and it was still a gravel road with only two houses on either side of its ten-mile length where the road dead ended at Cindy and Laura's Uncle's property we all called the Miller Property.
The Miller property was composed of a brick house, a large red barn, and a slaughterhouse with a small market in front. Behind all of this were several acres of woods with a circular pond. The slaughterhouse is still in business but the normal customers are deer hunters and private cattle owners wanting to fill their own freezers.
Cindy maneuvered the van across the little bridge that crossed the impressive ditch in front of the house, parking between the slaughterhouse and the tree line. There were eight cars parked here and you could hear music and laughter from the otherwise dark woods. Laura opened the back of the van and we all took an armload of party supplies as we followed Cindy down the dirt path into the woods.
"With all of us in cheer jumpers and matching royal blue mini back packs we look like a row of ducks or something walking into the woods." I mused aloud.
"That's not even funny." Sandy shot back.
Sandy's family owned the duck farm south of town and they literally walk the ducks down a path like this to the boxing area where the ducks are loaded into trucks to be butchered for the restaurants.
As we walked, I wondered why my skirt did not swish back and forth as distinctly as everyone else's, I watched their pace and hips trying to imitate their stride, but it was hard to carry a case of beer and re-learn how to walk.
This is when I realized I finally belonged to a group, but I also realized it was fleeting, it would all end by morning.
We had to walk single file because of the overgrowth on either side of the path. After about an eighth of a mile, the woods opened into a clearing with a circular pond and a gravel area that turned into a beach like edge at the pond. In front of an old woodshed, there was a beer pong table, corn hole, music, and a couple fire rings burning brightly with sparks rising into the early evening sky, all of it illuminated by the moon rising of the tree line.
My arms were burning; I was happy to set the case of little kings down by the coolers and snack table set up near the woodshed.
"There is a bathroom in the house, pick up after yourself, and nobody leaves the clearing alone, understood?" Cindy said.
John Holten put his arm around Cindy kissing her deeply on the lips and those two wandered off towards one of the fire rings. Cindy had everything, she was always the most popular, and she had the eldest Holten brother as a boyfriend.
Looking around I was just overwhelmed for a moment; there were eleven girls and about twenty-five guys from the football and baseball teams. This was the first night I have to wear a regular jumper and the last night all of us will ware our uniforms together. I looked around for a place to go, there were three guys playing catch with a baseball, a couple guys tossing a football and the corn hole was full of people cheering each toss.
Lisa touched my arm and suggested we make our way over to the group near the fire ring. We each took a white claw from the cooler and made our way to the fire ring closest to the pond. I tugged Lisa's arm pointed to the two guys tossing the football. We were at a distance but the sculpted arms, threaded jeans that hung loosely off their hips could make any one envious of them.
"I'll taste some of that tonight." Lisa said mock licking her lips like the cartoon wolf. I had to agree they were both good looking. "The one on the left is Tinker and on the right is Clyde." Lisa said.
I suddenly remembered I was wearing a skirt when I sat on the bench at the fire, I smoothed out my skirt and sat paying attention to my posture and crossed my legs.
"Are we the only girls here?" I asked Lisa. I was still watching the game of catch.
"Yep, and we are outnumbered two to one it seems so not only did we bring beer and snacks but we brought all the dam pussy as well it seems." Lisa laughed.
It was over whelming but I guess the guys are busy one upping each other or getting high to notice there is a small group of girls at the party now. That was until brown eyes sat across the fire from us. Lisa and I were sitting properly but I caught Lisa sticking her chest out just a little more in response to the arrival of our guest. He introduced himself as Clyde, as he ran his fingers through his thick chestnut hair, he was shirtless, and the sweat glistened off his perfectly sculpted chest. He patted his brow with his balled up shirt.
"Nice place." Lisa remarked.
"Thanks." Clyde said without breaking his gaze from me.
"Is this your sister you told the group about last year?" Clyde asked Lisa.
"She's, I mean I'm her Half-sister." I said trying not to sound nervous.
"It's great to finally meet you, hey the girls are welcome to use the restroom in the house, there is powder room just off the kitchen, you can use the back door, its unlocked." Clyde offered as he excused himself to continue throwing the football.
His playful smile and roguish eyes pulled on something inside of me.
"Wow." I said to Lisa.
"Wow indeed," Lisa agreed.
"Listen, if anyone asks you what you really want in life what would you say?" Lisa asked me.
"Seriously, I think you know the answer to that." I said.
"Look stop joking, do you really want to be a girl?" Lisa asked.
"I want that more than anything." I said.
"Take this coin, tinker gave it to me last year for you to use this day." Lisa said.
Lisa handed me a gold coin about the size of a silver dollar, it seemed old the engravings on the coin looked Greek and was very worn. I assumed it was fake.
"Seriously, when you get asked what you want in life tell them you want to be a girl and this coin will make it happen. I'll try to be there for you when the time comes but just in case I can't." Lisa said.
