While I slept, I had the same dream as before, about the car accident. I remember seeing the car coming towards us, and before I turned to shield Kasidy's body, I remember seeing more details than I had before.
First, the car that hit us had clearly turned left-of-center. Not drifted, like someone not paying attention. It turned, intentionally, towards our car. Like they wanted to hit us.
Also, I noted it was a black sedan, like a Lincoln. I couldn't make out the driver's face, it was blurry for me. But I could make out the California license plate, starting with BB.
I woke up, slightly startled from the dream's crash. Kimmy was gone. So were any trace of her clothes. She must have awoken early to avoid getting caught in my room by her sisters. I was doubly thankful for that. I didn't want us to get busted, and I didn't want to startle her awake from my bad dream.
But something about the dream shook me. Was that car trying to hurt us? Kill us? We were probably lucky to have survived the crash.
But I remembered two strong emotional states from the dream: first, the immense excitement and love I felt for Kasidy, especially knowing she was carrying our first child; then second, the over-powering need to protect my then-pregnant wife from danger. The fact that I recalled those emotions felt like progress to me.
--
After a brief shower, I headed down to breakfast. The girls were already congregated around the table, chatting over cereal. When I entered, Kennedi was the first to greet me. "Hi Dad." She was dressed in casual clothes, a comfortable sweater and slightly-worn blue jeans.
Katie chimed in, "Good morning sleepy-head." She was already dressed for work, wearing black slacks and a nice green sweater.
Kimmy just smiled, and I smiled back. She was still in sleeping clothes, but not the ones she'd been wearing the previous night. I guessed we might have made a small mess on them, and she had to change.
Kennedi got up and went back towards the upstairs. "I have a little work to do this morning, Dad, but I'll be ready for our date later, I promise." I watched her nice rear as she headed for her room, then silently scolded myself.
I was still feeling guilty about my night with Kim. She seemed to have a permanent smile on her face, so I guessed she didn't feel the same. I ate quickly and quietly, ready to get out of there and back to my room.
As Katie left for work, she kissed me on the cheek. "I'll be back later to babysit Kimmy while you go out." She shot a smirk across the table to her little sister, who gave her some mean eyes and stuck out her tongue.
After I ate, I eyed the pool outside. It was a sunny day, and already warm. "I'm going for a swim," I announced.
Kim eyed me. "Really? You hardly ever swim."
"That was me in my late 40's," I said, swaggering a bit as I headed for my room to change. "As of a few days ago, I'm feeling 23 again."
--
It didn't take me long to find my swim trunks, surprisingly. I had no memory of what clothes I had, but apparently my organizational system was similar to how I thought in my 20's.
When I got out to the pool, no one was around. I dipped my toe in, and judged the water to be just barely on the chilly side. Good for exercise. I jumped in and started doing laps.
After I did a few, I took a pause on the edge, catching my breath a bit. I came to the realization, like I had said to Kim before, that I did feel 23 again. Maybe age really is just a number, I thought. I didn't remember the last 25 years, so I didn't feel like a 48 year old man. I wasn't in the same shape I was in, but I did feel like I had the same stamina.
I resumed my laps, doing a few more. When I paused again, I looked towards the house and saw I wasn't alone. Kim's small teen body was laying on a deck chair, laying out in a flattering pink bikini and dark sunglasses. She heard me stop, and lifted her head just enough to smile at me, then laid back down.
I drifted over to her, quietly and slowly. Her chair was just a few feet from the pool's edge. I was able to reach my arm out of the pool, and tickle her tiny foot, getting an immediate reaction. "Ah! Daddy, stop!" she squealed, pulling her feet back towards her body.
I looked around, making sure it was still just the two of us. "You didn't say that last night."
She sat up and looked around too, before answering, "Cuz I wanted that last night."
I looked her in the eye. "I did too. But that doesn't make it right."
"It doesn't make it wrong. We're both consenting adults."
"But you're my daughter."
"I don't want you to feel bad or guilty about it. I don't want to hurt our relationship."
"Neither do I. Which is why I don't think we should do that anymore."
She took off her sunglasses, and looked sad. "You don't want to sleep with me anymore?"
"Sleeping would be one thing. We crossed a line last night."
"I know." She moved closer and took my hand. "Please don't be mad. But I had a great time." She shook her head. "You probably don't know this, with your memory block, but I've never been with a guy. You're the first guy to make me feel that good."
This wasn't news. I figured out that Kim hadn't had any serious boyfriends. Katie had told me last night that Kimmy was a flirt at school, and went on dates, but never had brought a boy home. "You don't think it was wrong that your father made you feel that way?"
"You're my favorite man, Daddy. I love you and I feel comfortable with you. Why is that a bad thing?"
I relaxed a little. I'm glad she thought that way. It still bothered me a little, but I guess I was getting to be okay with it. It helped that with my large gap in memory, I couldn't remember being her father until two days ago.
We heard the door open, and Kennedi walked out. She looked stunning in a teal blue bikini. "Hey Dad, you're swimming."
I laughed. "Why is this such a surprise to everyone? I used to swim all the time."
Kennedi laughed too. "I guess you kinda stopped when you got busy at work. Then us girls took over the pool."
"I assume you both actually can swim, not just lay out on the deck?" I teased them.
"Are you challenging us?"
I hadn't intended it as a challenge, but her tone made me accept it. "Race you down and back, loser gives the winner a massage."