Once again, I included what are essentially footnotes or "pop ups" which provide extra information. They are clearly marked and feel free to skip them. They are not required to enjoy the story. This time all but one of them is after the end of the story.
This is a work of fiction and all characters are eighteen or older.
1
It had been a week since Theodore agreed to as ask his girlfriend to come to his parents' house for dinner. He was at a restaurant with Mary Ellen trying to think of a way to phase it that didn't sound like, "I want you to meet my parents." He ran through different versions in his mind but they all turned out the same.
"Are you alright?" she inquired.
"Why do you ask?"
"You seem distracted." she answered.
With a resigned sigh, he finally decided to just tell her the truth.
"It's my mom."
"Is she alright?" Mary Ellen asked with genuine look of concern on her face.
Surprised by her reaction, Theodore quickly said, "She's fine."
Mary Ellen visibly relaxed and asked, "What is it then?"
"It's just that sometimes she gets a bee in her bonnet." Theodore took a deep breath and continued, "Your name has come up a few times in conversations with my parents and they want you to come to their house for dinner."
Mary Ellen was pleased, but also a little nervous. She liked Theodore more than he knew. He was different from the other men she dated. When she set limits on what he could do, he would take it in stride. He wouldn't get mad or become overly aggressive. Best of all, he would remain in a good mood and they would still have fun.
She was aware of several women that were after him. She'd overheard two of them and knew they were very willing to go much further than she was. Mary Ellen was dying to know why he still asked her out, but was afraid to jinx things by asking.
Mary Ellen was taking so long to answer that Theodore thought he'd screwed the pooch. When she finally smiled and asked, "Will you be there?" he couldn't help but laugh.
2
When the fateful evening arrived, everyone seemed to be a bit uneasy with the exception of Ward. He had helped June all that he could to get things ready, and then did his best to stay out of her way. His only duties now were to keep his wife calm and to make Mary Ellen feel as comfortable as possible.
True to her word, June prepared a low-keyed family dinner. The good china and silverware were nowhere to be found. Everyone hit it off great as the meal progressed, particularly the women. June thought Mary Ellen looked familiar when she walked through the door. It turned out that they had both put on pink t-shirts and participated in a breast cancer awareness walk back in October.
"You know, Theodore went on one of those walks with me back when he was in high school." June smiled at him sweetly and added, "He's always been such a good boy."
Theodore was embarrassed, but did his best to smile.
When June discovered that Mary Ellen was a nurse at a different hospital, she playfully scolded her son for not telling her. Later on in the conversation, Mary Ellen revealed that she had a special reason for attending the marches. Her mother had passed away from breast cancer when she was in nursing school.
June clutched Mary Ellen's hand and said, "Oh you poor dear," then looked over at her son and gave him a look that would curdle milk.
Theodore looked back helplessly until Mary Ellen said, "He didn't know. It's a subject I tend to avoid, especially on dates. All of you made me feel so welcomed that when the subject came up I found myself telling you."
Ward jumped in and suggested, "I don't want to be forward, but I think the four of us should check our calendars to see if we can make a day of it this October."
June gave her husband an approving look and the conservation continued on to less serious subjects.
"You have a lovely home," Mary Ellen observed. "I couldn't help but notice you have a lap pool."
"It's a bit extravagant, but we get a lot of use out of it," Ward explained. "It's enclosed and heated so we can use it year-around."
June smiled at Marry Ellen and added, "Its great exercise, especially for women built like us."
His mother's words prompted Theodore's eyes to seemingly move of their own accord to focus on her twin mounds, then over to Mary Ellen's. They both certainly knew how to fill out a dress. He was pondering how they would expand a tight sweater when he looked up to find both women staring at him. Not only had he been caught checking out their tits, but everyone had seen his gaze flit back and forth between the two women before he realized that he was being watched.
No one said anything or even moved until Theodore could feel heat rising to his face. Ward didn't make a sound, but it took so much effort to keep from laughing that his eyes began to water.
You could have heard a pin drop when June asked, "Isn't he cute when he blushes?"
Mary Ellen smiled bashfully which caused Theodore to blush even more.
An extended groan sprang from his lips, "Mommm."
"It's alright honey. I'm sure Mary Ellen knows exactly what I'm talking about. Jogging isn't the best exercise for girls like us."
Looking back at Mary Ellen, June asked, "Do you swim?"
"Yes, as much as I can. My fitness center has a pool, but nothing like yours. I was surprised to see it in a private home."
"Then you must use ours," June insisted.
As Theodore watched the two women talking, he became self-conscious. They had similar speech patterns and at times they even made the same gestures.
He hadn't set out to find someone like his mom, but he obviously had. Seeing them side by side, they looked as if they could be mother and daughter, maybe even sisters. When Theodore looked over at his dad, Ward had a knowing grin on his face and gave him a wink, obviously noticing the same thing.
After dinner Mary Ellen offered to help clean up. The women were having a wonderful time talking at the sink and were totally oblivious to what the guys were doing. The men did their best to help but soon ran out of things to do. Feeling useless, they retired to the family room.
Once they were seated, Ward said, "That's quite a girl you have there."
"You really think so?" Theodore asked.
"I do and your mother's quite taken with her too," Ward added.
Theodore looked embarrassed and explained," I had no idea how much she was like mom until I saw them together." After a slight hesitation, he asked, "Do you think I'm weird?"
Ward saw the look of concern on his son's face and thought he knew what was troubling him. Just to make sure, he clarified Theodore's question. "Because out of all the girls you dated, the one you like most is very similar to your mother?"
"Exactly," Theodore replied.
"That's not weird at all. It's common to be attracted by a place or person that reminds you of home. You're comfortable with Mary Ellen because you find her familiar. You find her familiar because she shares many qualities with your mother."
"You really think that's it dad?"
"Yes" Ward replied. "I liked her right away, probably for the same reason."
3
The house seemed empty. The kids were gone and Ward had already gone to bed. Her only company was their old dog Buddy who was on the couch with her in the family room. As she scratched him under his gray snout, June found herself reminiscing about that march with Theodore all those years ago. He agreed to go with her even before she told him that he would be earning points. She was proud of him for that.