Folk Music Coda

Dottie had just finished putting fresh clothes on. She entered the living room and saw Kyle folding the couch back after they'd slept on the fold-out bed. He had put the previous night's clothes back on. As he pushed the seat cushions back into place, she stood behind him, put her arms around him and kissed him. He turned around and returned the kiss. "I don't want to leave now," he said.

"I have things to do today," Dottie said wistfully.

"When can we get together?" Kyle asked.

Dottie thought for a moment. "I'll see you in a week."

Kyle looked at her for a moment and said, "Julie!" He paused for a moment and asked, "Is this her 20th or 21st?"

"21st," Dottie said.

"Is it at her parents' place or Grandma's?"

"Her parents'. Six o'clock."

"Oh, good," Kyle said. He managed not to crack a smile when he added, "Their bed's bigger."

Kyle spent Monday evening digging through his own record collection for songs that he remembered singing with Dottie. On Tuesday, he got even more ambitious and scoured the internet for recordings and lyric sites. Dottie didn't have any free time until Wednesday. She spotted

Secret Message

on her DVR and started to watch it, but then decided to save it until she could watch it with Kyle. It gave her an idea. She looked in her closet to see what games she had. She realized she'd only played Scrabble at other people's homes since she moved out of her parents' house. The next night while she was shopping for a birthday present for her cousin, she stopped at a toy store and bought her own game.

Among Julie's presents was a special-edition Blu-Ray of her favorite romantic comedy. When the last present was unwrapped and everyone had cake, she put it in her parents' player. Kyle was nowhere to be found when it started.

Dottie left the room to find him. She got to the den and heard someone opening a refrigerator door. She walked a couple stairs down and saw Kyle by himself opening a can of beer. She closed the sliding door behind her and told him, "Thank God I found you."

"What's wrong?" Kyle asked.

During this exchange, Dottie had walked down the stairs and was face to face with Kyle. "That movie that Margie got her? It's the one where there's a mix-up and they think they're related."

"That old plot? It's tired, but I heard the movie did it pretty well."

"We can't be in the room when one of the scenes comes up!" Dottie exclaimed. She continued, "I'm afraid when they mention incest, we'll give each other a look that gives it away. Okay, it's me. I'm afraid I'll give you that kind of look."

"Nice of you to try to take the blame," Kyle chuckled. "But since you said it, I'm just as afraid that my reaction to your look would give it away. So we have to stay away from the movie. What's the running time?"

"An hour and a half, if they don't watch the special features," Dottie said.

Kyle put his arms under Dottie's skirt and leaned down to kiss her. "I think we can find something to keep us busy till they're done."

Dottie returned his kiss but said, "Not here! And not for an hour and a half. They'll figure it out for sure if we stay away too long."

Kyle moved his hands below Dottie's butt, and she helped him lift her into the air. "How 'bout a few minutes, then?"

Dottie wrapped her legs around his waist and he moved toward a wall to keep her secure. They kissed again, opening their mouths and not stopping until they heard the sliding door open again. Kyle let Dottie down, and she headed toward the refrigerator. Kyle followed her.

A man spoke. "I wondered where you were."

Dottie answered. "Hi, Dad. Kyle and I just came down for a game of pool."

Kyle said, "Hi, Uncle Hank."

Hank laughed. "You don't have to lie. I know what you're up to."

Dottie was still nervous. "Really? You don't mind?"

"You're both over 21, and you're both smart enough not to take foolish risks," Hank said. Kyle and Dottie both acted relieved, but Hank wasn't sure they really were. "Once I got a taste for beer, I hated drinking punch at everyone's parties too. Just make sure someone else does the driving."

Kyle had to keep himself from laughing now. "Thanks, Uncle Hank. So you won't tell anyone?"

"What's to tell?" Hank said, and he left.

As soon as they heard the sliding door close again, Dottie said, "That was too close."

Kyle agreed. "Here, gimme your cup," he said.

Dottie handed him an empty cup, and he poured a little bit of his beer into it. "What's this for?" she asked.

"In a half-hour or so, make an excuse to ask your dad to throw this away. If he thinks you had a beer, he won't think anything else happened down here."

"Nothing else will happen down here," Dottie said.

"Really?" Kyle replied. He moved her until her back was against the pool table.

"Don't think I wouldn't like to," she assured him, and she stopped to sniff the air near the collar of his T-shirt. "Especially with that cologne."

Kyle thought for a moment. "Don't your folks have a pool table too?"

Dottie pushed him back. "If I'm not gonna do it here, I sure won't do it in my parents' house!"

"They take a lot of vacations, though, don't they?"

Now she ran her fingers up and down his back. "You're so bad!" she said.

Kyle and the other men ended up in the dining room while the ladies finished watching the movie. The youngest person in attendance was Kyle's sister Peri, who was nineteen, so the only awkward moment was Peri sitting next to Lucy, her mother, when a silhouette implied a sex scene at the end.

The movie ended with "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word". Lucy happened to see Dottie and asked her, "Didn't you do that song at a talent show once?"

Dottie was surprised to hear her aunt mention it. "I came in second. You remembered that?"

"I remember Kyle accompanying you on piano," Lucy explained. She looked around. "Where is he?"

Dottie didn't want to admit that she had any idea of his whereabouts, but she didn't have confidence in her ability to lie believably. "I think I saw him getting a drink."

Lucy headed for the kitchen. "Kyle, are you in here?" Dottie couldn't hear him answer, but Lucy had obviously found him. "Why don't you and Dottie do a song for us like you used to?"

Kyle thought for a second. Could they keep the secret while they sang? Did he want to keep it? "Ask Dottie. If she's game, so am I."

Dottie had followed Lucy into the kitchen. "I'll do it," she said.

A few cousins decided to leave, but the parents stayed around. Hank saw Julie and asked, "Aren't you going out drinking with your friends or cousins?"

"Later," Julie said. "I wouldn't miss this for the world."

Dottie didn't play piano; she just sat on the bench next to Kyle while he did, hoping that no one could see her expression. She told him, "Your mom remembered when I did 'Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word' at the talent show. Do you still remember it?"

"It's the reason I learned to play," Kyle told her.

"How do you know this song?" someone asked. Dottie wasn't sure whether it was her oldest cousin or another aunt, but she didn't want to turn around.

"It was in one of the Bridget Jones movies," she explained.

The voice asked Hank, "You let her watch those?" Now Dottie knew it was her Aunt Rose. She and her late husband didn't have any kids, so they treated their nieces and nephews like their own. For the most part, that was a good thing.

"She's an adult and doesn't live with us," he said defensively. Then he realized what she meant. "Oh, you mean when she was younger. Laura watched with her, so she didn't get any bad ideas." Laura was sitting next to Hank and nodded in agreement. Hank looked at his empty cup and headed for the kitchen.

As he passed the piano, Dottie held her cup up. "Would you throw this away for me, Dad?" she asked. He nodded and took the cup from her. Dottie sang by herself, just as she had at the talent show. At the end, Kyle said, "You sound even better now than you did then."

Rose pointed out, "Her voice matured. Now how 'bout something together?"

Laura suggested "Mockingbird". Kyle and Dottie made it through four songs without incident, because none of them had any history for them or suggested any strong feelings between them.

Julie wanted to hear something that called for more emotion. "Do you know 'Angel of the Morning'?"

She caught Dottie off-guard. "I love that song," she answered. She didn't even look at Kyle. He started playing, but when they got to the last "Ba-a-a-by," they looked at each other and struggled to stop at just singing.

Kyle realized what had happened and said, "We haven't done 'All Cried Out' in a while."

Dottie understood what he was doing and went along with it. The feelings in the song were so negative that neither of them could think of it personally.

Rose asked, "Do you know 'Everything for You'?" Neither of them responded. "Bobby Vega, late sixties."

Kyle said, "I think I heard it at a wedding a couple times, but I don't remember all of it."

Laura said, "I think I have sheet music for it," and she walked toward the piano bench. Dottie and Kyle got up. They knew this was a very powerful love song, and they could each see the trepidation in the other's eyes. Laura opened the lid to the bench. After a couple minutes, she found a song book and opened it.

Kyle looked at the words and said, "Oh, I remember this now." He put the sheet music on the rack on the piano, and he and Dottie sat down. When she sang, "I'd give it all to have you near," he felt like they had to get away before their family knew what was happening. When he sang, "No sin would be too great to have you here," she couldn't keep her eyes on the words because her desire drove her to keep looking back at him.

When they were done, Dottie exclaimed, "This is a great song. Let's do it again!"

Kyle was worried that she was about to lose control and let their secret out, but all the older relatives seemed so happy at her idea that he added, "Everyone sing along!" With the whole family joining in, they were able to look at each other longingly, and anyone who noticed thought it was just a really great performance.

Dottie had given her all the second time. While she was catching her breath, she realized how close she had come. Someone got a text notification, and Dottie looked at her own phone. Margie had gotten a message, but she said, "I'm glad I looked. I got a call a half-hour ago. One of my friends is stranded and needs a ride home." She went to the master bedroom to look for her coat.

Kyle announced, "After that song, I need a drink," and he headed for the kitchen. He got a can of ginger ale and headed where he'd seen Dottie go. As soon as he was behind the door, he closed it.

Dottie turned around and he kissed her. She rubbed his butt for a few seconds and let go. "Give me a half-hour head start and then meet me at my place. Okay?"

"You got it, Sweetie."

Dottie got her coat and said her good-byes. A few minutes later, Kyle retraced his steps and came back through the kitchen. He found Julie, kissed her on the cheek and said, "Thanks for inviting me." Julie shrugged it off, since the whole family usually came to these parties anyway.

Kyle stopped to get gas, even though his tank was well over half-full. While he held the pump handle, he noticed a liquor store next door. He went inside and chose a mid-priced bottle of wine. On impulse, he picked up a box of chocolates and a rose in the check-out line. He wanted to have his wallet ready before his turn came up, and as he got it out of his pocket, he imagined himself trying to ring Dottie's doorbell with all three items. He put the chocolates back. When he got back to his car, he figured he had given her the full half-hour that she asked for, so he headed to her apartment.

A bottle of wine and a single red rose were manageable. Kyle rang the doorbell and waited for Dottie to answer. She opened it a little bit and let him in. She was wearing a sheer negligée and nothing underneath. He handed her the two items, saying, "I got these for you, Dottie."

"That's so sweet, honey!" she exclaimed. Kyle was treated to the sight of the same butt he'd grabbed by the pool table when she turned around. She found a vase to put the flower in, and she put the wine in the refrigerator. "And I have a surprise for you too."

"I don't know how you're hiding anything in that nightgown," Kyle joked.

"I'm not hiding it in my nightgown," Dottie said. She knelt in front of her coffee table, giving him an even better view, and pulled the Scrabble game from the lower shelf.

"You really know what I like doing," Kyle said. Dottie scowled. "No, seriously, I liked playing regular games with you just like I liked watching shows with you."

Dottie smile and brought the game to her dining room table. "One game or two?" she asked.

"Let's see how long the first game takes," Kyle replied.

The game proceeded the way it always had when they played. Kyle asked, "Did you know that the name Helvetica means it's from Switzerland? I'm just a ..." He played his tiles. "FONT of useless information. Seven points."

For her part, Dottie played "ethereal," and added, "It's what fruit loopth are."

They both waited to see what sexual word play the other would use. The only time it happened was when Kyle played TIP, and Dottie said, "I can't wait to feel yours."

The game ended when Dottie played TEN. She counted the value of her word and Kyle's remaining tiles and announced, "You have 203, and that brings me to 198. You win."

"Loser goes first in the second game?" Kyle asked.

"That's how we've always played it before, no reason to change," Dottie said. They drew their tiles. Dottie's first word was SALIVA with the "S" in the center, which she tabulated as 20 points.

Kyle looked at his tiles and the board for almost a minute before he placed his tiles under the "S." He said, "SQUATTER. 17 points, triple the value makes it 51, and 50 points for using all my tiles makes it 101."

"Shit," Dottie said.

"Do you wanna concede?" Kyle offered. He ran his foot up Dottie's thigh.

"I can't believe we made it this long," she laughed. She poured her tiles into the bag, and Kyle followed suit. He started to put the racks away, but Dottie stopped him. "Maybe we'll play some more in the morning."

"You must be as eager as I am," Kyle observed.

Dottie headed for her bedroom, and Kyle followed her. He was disappointed when she turned the TV on, until she said, "My DVR missed a show this week, and I found another concert when I was going through the on-demand listings."

"Yeah, who is it?"

"Marvin Gaye."

"That's going way back," Kyle observed. Then he laughed and asked, "You've abandoned subtlety, haven't you?"

"There's a time and place for subtlety," Dottie replied. "This isn't it. For now, just get comfortable." She pulled the covers back and lay on the bed. During the opening credits, she had no reason to do anything but watch Kyle strip down to his T-shirt and shorts. He joined her under the sheets and pulled the covers back.

Neither of them recognized the first song. Kyle said, "Judging by what the audience is wearing, this must have been in the last couple years of his life."

Marvin did a couple of songs from the early 60's, and they both sang along. Dottie said, "I hate it when artists think they can get away with not doing their big hits."

"Looks like he knew just how to tease us," Kyle said, and he started tapping a beat on Dottie's thigh. They both knew he was leading into "I Heard It Through the Grapevine."

"Now I wish we were watching CCR," Dottie said. She used her fingers to pound out the beat from that version.

"They're good, too. Why them?" Kyle asked.

"'Cause we'd be getting eleven minutes of pure guitar rhythm," Dottie answered.

"I'll remember that next time we get together," Kyle said.

Marvin's next few songs were from his social relevance era. Kyle didn't feel like hearing about the ecology, so he turned to his side and ran his fingers up and down Dottie's thigh. Distracted from the music, she turned to face him. She put her hand over his underwear and rubbed his dick a little. She could feel it get hard the moment she touched it. He put his hand under her negligée and rubbed her butt. She moved in closer to see what he'd do next. He ran his hand up her spine and started rubbing her shoulders. "I like that," she cooed.

"Yeah? Then roll over," Kyle said, and she did. He got out from the covers and lifted the blanket of her feet. He proceeded to rub her heels, then her calves, uncovering only what he needed to. He moved up until he got to her butt. Dottie hoped he'd reach underneath and play with her pussy, but all he did was linger on her butt a little while.

Without looking at him, Dottie said, "Use both hands." The only way he could do that was to get between her legs, which he did gladly. He used the palms of his hands to rub circles up her back to her shoulders, making her nightgown even less useful than it had already been. He pulled the blanket the rest of the way off. When he reached down to kiss her neck, she could feel his hard cock over her butt and she wanted him even more.

Kyle could tell from the way she responded that she liked what he was doing. "Why don't you sit in front of me so we can both watch the show?"

That wasn't really what either of them wanted, but she played along. Dottie sat between his legs. "Can you see the TV?" she asked.

"I can see it fine," Kyle asked, though he didn't really care about the view at this point. "That's one good thing about a height difference."

"You can call me your shorty," Dottie laughed.

Kyle leaned in and spoke directly into her ear. "Nothing would make me happier." Since he was already up that far, he ran his fingers up and down the sides of her thighs.

"That tickles," Dottie said. She took his right hand and moved it to the top of her thigh. He ran his fingers up and down a few more times in this spot. He noticed that she separated her legs the second time, so he moved further in. Now he moved up and down the inner thigh, but he made a concerted effort not to touch her pussy until she asked him to.

Dottie moved up so she was sitting on his lap. Kyle raised his hands and started rubbing her breasts from below. She responded by rubbing his inner thighs, just as she'd done to him. She wasn't trying, but she touched the tip of his dick through his underwear and was glad to see that it was hard. She identified the head, put her thumb and forefinger on it and gave it two quick strokes.

Kyle's response was to move his hands up higher. Now he was rubbing her nipples. Dottie spread her legs a little so she could reach further down on his shaft. "Let me help you with that," he said. He pulled his dick out through the fly in his underwear. She found the base and ran her fingertip over the top side.

In the background, Marvin sang, "I've been really tryin', Baby."

"It's about time," Dottie said. "'What's Going On' just doesn't have it going on for me."

"My thoughts exactly," Kyle agreed. He kissed the sides of her neck while she reached deeper and played with his balls.

"I've been thinking about this all week," Dottie told him.

Kyle eased her off his lap. "Funny, I've been thinking about this," he said, and he put his hand on her pussy.

"Not just this," Dottie exclaimed. She waved her hands around and said, "This! Playing more games, enjoying more music." Then she put her hand back on his dick and added quietly, "Leading up to this."

Kyle looked down at his dick and said, "Well, you've been led."

Dottie tried to fish his dick out of his underwear again, but it was difficult with him still sitting. Kyle got up on his knees, and Dottie pulled his underwear down. She knew pushing him onto his back wasn't an option, so she moved him onto his side. While he rolled from that position onto his back, she took his underwear the rest of the way off. She leaned over him and stroked his cock. Kyle's leg twitched, and she remembered the week before when they pretended that she was giving him a blow job under water. "Hey, I just got an idea. Next Friday, let's go out to the lake."