Pebble

All participants are 18+. No person, living or dead is actually portrayed. One person of historical interest is mentioned: Jack Lucas who received the Medal of Honor for throwing himself on two grenades during the Battle of Iwo Jima in WW II. No big dicks but some brass balls. It seems there's good and bad incest.

They say that a single pebble can start an avalanche. That was certainly true as far as my marriage went.

Eric (me) and Linda were married shortly after we graduated from college. That was six years ago. We had dated all through high school and college. Through all four years of high school we were more or less exclusive. We lived together for all four years of college. So, for 14 years we had loved each other and had unlimited trust in the other. We had a very active sex and social life. I was a CPA who had finally passed all the exams and taken all actions necessary to break away from the mid-sized firm I had been working for and start my own firm with a couple of former classmates. Linda was an English major and since there weren't many positions for that specialty, she ended being a school teacher at the local high school. We felt settled enough to try to start a family.

Now came the pebble.

One Saturday, Linda went with two of her cousins, Jared and Norm, who were a couple of years older than us, to help them pick out birthday presents for their fiancés. Didn't know why they couldn't do it themselves but they said they needed some female input. She went over to their house to meet them before going to the mall. I did a bunch of chores like mow the lawn and rake up the cut grass. Since it was quite warm, I decided to get some ice cream after cleaning up and taking a shower. There was a gourmet ice cream place near our rental house.

Since I couldn't find a parking place in the front, I ended up parked in the overflow lot behind the store. Came in the back way and took a table at the rear. As I was holding the menu up to see what kind of ice cream I wanted, Linda, all 5'7" and D-cup of her, and her cousins came in. Before I could get up to greet them, I saw something funny. With her back to me, I could see the shirt label. Linda's shirt was on inside out. Something made me just hide behind the menu and take out my phone. They got cones from the counter and sat down near the front. None of them bothered to look around. Soon, Jacob, the elder cousin, had his hand on Linda's muscular thigh. Norm, the other cousin then put his hand on her other leg, just inches below her shorts. Both kept them there until they were finished. They stood up and Linda said "Let me taste your ice cream flavors."

They exchanged deep kisses. I heard Linda say that she had to stop at the drug store on the way home and would see them later.

I was sick to my stomach. Lost all appetite for ice cream. Left out the back way and drove home.

Linda arrived about 20 minutes later. "Hi, babe."

"Did you get your cousins squared away?"

"Think so. We went to the mall and then back to their place to get my car. Came back."

"You didn't stop for ice cream on the way home?"

"No. Why do you ask?"

"There's a drip of chocolate ice cream on your shirt."

"Oh, had a bite at Jacob's house. Must have spilled some."

"OK. Why is your shirt inside out?"

She was starting to sweat and her face began to turn red. "I tried on a new bra at the mall and must have gotten it reversed then. Bra was ugly and I didn't buy it."

Guess she thought that she was on a roll.

"What flavor was Jacob's and Norms' ice creams?"

"Huh? How would I know that?"

"Well, when you were swapping spit with then at the ice cream store, I figured you'd find out."

Her red cheeks suddenly turned bone-white.

"Want to bet that what you stopped off for at the drug store was Plan B? Take it already or is it still in your purse?"

She just stared at me for a couple of minutes trying to catch her breath. "How...How, did you know?"

"Well, I was in the ice cream store although you were too busy to notice me. So, if you haven't taken your Plan B, I suggest that you do so. Wouldn't want you pregnant with your cousin's child, would we?"

She grabbed her purse and ran to the bathroom. I sat, apparently calmly, in the living room. I heard her throw up for a while before she got into the shower. It took her about 30 minutes before she reappeared, red-eyed and pale.

"I hope you took your Plan B after you barfed, otherwise you'll need another dose."

"Can I say I'm so, so, so sorry?"

"Well, you can say it but that doesn't establish that you mean it or that I believe you mean it.

Why? After 14 years of being together...Why?"

"I don't know."

"You don't know? After spreading a carpet of lies, you don't know? I'd also guess this wasn't the first time, either."

"It was the first time!"

"What, the first time with both at the same time? You're way too casual and confidant for it to have been the first time you were unfaithful with one of your cousins. Or maybe just with some other guys?"

"I've never been unfaithful with any other guys. Just my cousins. Family isn't unfaithful."

"That's a pretty strange take. How long has it been going on?"

"Since I was 18 or 19."

"Does the phrase *forsaking all others* ring a bell?"

"Jacob was my first. You knew that I wasn't a virgin when we first had sex after the prom."

"OK. I could accept that. It was before we were married. Why have you kept it up and added Norm, if he already wasn't a part?"

"I don't know. I don't know. I couldn't stop. I still love you and want to stay married to you."

"So you say. How long before you fuck them again?"

"I won't ever again. I promise."

"You already promised that before, the forsaking thing. Why should I believe you now? Why would you believe it yourself?

Trust. A marriage is built on trust. You've lost every bit of trust I've ever had in you. How can you change that?"

"I don't know. Is there anything I could do to regain your trust?"

"Sure, but you won't do it. You have to throw yourself on your sword."

"What? I'll do anything."

"In this state incest is defined as sex between blood relatives. That includes first cousins. What you have to do is go the police and file incest charges against your cousins."

"WHAT!!! How can I do that? It was consensual."

"That's right. You'll also be confessing to a crime. I'm pretty sure that given the circumstances and they will give all of you suspended sentences, although you'll likely have to register as sex offenders. That would likely bar you from ever being a teacher. I don't think your family would be jumping for joy, either."

"You bastard. You know I can't do that. I'd lose all my family, friends, my job..."

"Very likely but you'd have me. Maybe that's what the full vow means. If you went through all that, I'd know you meant your promises and could trust you again."

I really did love her with all my heart and still wanted her. I knew that if she agreed and made a start on the task, I'd stop her before it got out of hand.

She instantly turned from a meek, downtrodden wife to an aggrieved one. Fury and more fury. "You miserable cock sucker. You want to ruin my life, turn my whole family against me."

"Quote: "I'll do anything" unquote. Not one minute ago."

"If you had told me to kill one of them, would I be expected to do so?"

"I didn't, so that's a moot point."

"I won't."

"Was sure you wouldn't. So, here's what's going to happen: I will be filing for divorce on Monday. The grounds will be your adultery. Jacob and Norm will be named as corespondents."

"You have no proof. Our word against yours."

"You know what a cell phone is? Would you like a playback of our conversation here and at the ice cream store? Besides, just having them named in the proceeding will be enough to make them very unhappy, you very unpopular and all of you social outcasts."

The fury drained from her. "Can we talk about this without the threats?"

"We can talk all you want but only actions will change things. It's really one choice: Them or me. The sticking point is making me believe you."

"How can I do that?"

"Told you already. Look, there aren't any sets of words that will rebuild trust. Only actions. You can take a movie of cooking an egg then run it backwards to show how you un-cook an egg. It's an illusion.

What words could you say to me that were stronger than our wedding vows? If they meant nothing to you, why would anything else have more meaning?

I do love you but I can never trust you."

"Suppose we move away or I make them move away?"

"You're never going to a family reunion or visit you uncle and aunt? Are you going to put a tracker on them to be sure they never reappear here? You've been fucking them for, what, 10 years? What makes you think that anything you can say would make me believe you wouldn't do them again as long as you thought you could get away with it?"

She just hung her head and cried. "What about kids?"

"Whose? Mine or theirs? Why did you need Plan B? Obviously, they came in you without a condom. Do you know their sexual histories? Are you sure they don't have STDs that you now have and can/have given to me? When was the last time you had sex with one of them? Maybe you're already pregnant."

"I'm not pregnant. I just finished my period. Any kids, you could get DNA to tell you who the father was. It would be you. I swear."

"Wouldn't that be useful for you? If you're pregnant then you don't need Plan B or condoms to fuck them...We're back to this: How can I trust you to not go behind my back again and fuck them? Give me an action that will regain my trust?"

She just sat there, tears dripping off her chin.

"I'll move into the guest room till you find a place to move to."

She looked like I'd slapped her. It finally got through to her that our marriage was finished. "Why am I moving and not you?"

Shrug. "I can move but you don't make enough to pay the rent here. I've frozen our checking and savings accounts. I'll have the lawyer set up an escrow account for you so you'll have money."

"Look, Linda, I don't hate you or want to punish you. Let's try to make this easy on both of us. OK? Sleep on it and we can talk tomorrow."

Now, for the first time since we started living together in college, I don't kiss her good night and tell her that I loved her. Maybe that's when it hit me, too. Our life together was finished.

I know I didn't sleep much. Didn't know about Linda.

Neither of us felt like breakfast, so we sat across the breakfast table, with a cup of coffee in hand.

Linda started "I'm very sorry for what I've done for the last ten years. I still do love you but truly understand how you can never be convinced of that. Barring you taking me back, could we please not make this too unpleasant?"

"That's fine with me. I don't hate you, just feel so betrayed...How about this: We simply just have an uncontested divorce. We split our checking and savings down the middle, keep our cars, and go our separate ways? We don't really have anything else."

"Alright. We'll go together to see the lawyer on Monday."

That's how we ended 14 years together, like a damp firecracker.

We went to the lawyer and he drafted up what we needed and got us a court date. Linda returned home after the meeting, packed and moved to a hotel until her apartment became available at the end of the week. I also asked her "Why don't you move to a state where first cousins can marry?"

"I don't love either of them that way."

"Just enough to fuck them for ten years..."

I came home. If you want to call it that. It wasn't. It was only a place to keep the rain off.

My family consisted of mom, dad, and my two sisters: Janice (Jan) - two years older than my 28 and Josephine (Josey} - two years younger than I. Jan had been married for seven years, had one child and lived with her husband (and husband's relatives) in Anchorage, Alaska.

Josey lived near Atlanta in an apartment with her cat, Jerry. With a degree in biology, she was a technician in the Cherokee County Crime Lab. She was always a very serious person, not given to jokes, and always thought before she opened her mouth. Assertive and self-confidant. She also always went from point A to point B in a direct manner: She looked like she never took a casual stroll.

Physically, she was 5'4", 110 pounds, brown hair and eyes. Her female form wasn't enough that she would stand out in a crowd or at the beach. Average B-sized boobs and a compact ass. Not that she tried to show them off. She dressed for comfort or, when necessary, in strict business attire. Always thought she'd be very pretty if she ever relaxed the tension in her face that never seemed to ease.

All of were raised to always be trustworthy. Never agree to something you didn't intend to do. If you agreed to something, you gave it everything you had. If you committed to somebody, it was 100%. You didn't cheat, either on an exam or on a spouse.

So, a Saturday a short time later, at about noon, Josey's doorbell rang. When she opened the door she found a 28 year old guy with a couple of day's stubble on his face. A tall guy (5'11"), firm (190 pounds) in rumpled clothing with barely a smile on his face. "Hi, Josey, remember your brother, Eric?"

"Eric! What are you doing here? Haven't seen you in a couple of years, have I?" Her face had a smile but her eyes didn't. "Come on in."

I gave her a hug that she returned, like a good sister would. "Where's Linda? You batching it?"

"That's the 64 thousand question."

"Huh?"

Linda and I aren't anymore."

"What does that mean?"

"Getting a divorce."

"Oh, Eric, I'm so sorry. I though you two deeply loved each other and would be together forever."

"Got the first part right but not the last."

"What happened or is happening, then?"

"I found out she has been cheating on me for the last 10 years with her cousin or cousins."

"Ouch! Ten years? How did she hide it?"

"Very easy. They're cousins, so who would suspect anything? Who fucks their cousins?"

"Guess there's no chance you'll reconcile?"

"Don't see how. How could I ever trust her again? What assurances could she give me that it wouldn't continue or re-start after some cooling off period? If our wedding vows didn't do it, what would?"

"Eric, I really am sorry for both of you. I liked Linda and never suspected her unfaithfulness, either...Why are you here, then?"

"Josey, I had to get away from everything that reminds me of her. I hope you don't mind me imposing on you for a couple of days? If it's a problem, I can find a motel."

"Never a problem having my only brother staying with me. Got a guest room that just takes putting sheets on the bed to be ready. You can stay as long as you need."

She was obviously pretty perceptive *need*, not want.

I went out to my car to retrieve my suitcase and backpack. When I returned, she gave me another hug. This time no uneasiness in her eyes. What I do see is sorrow and affection. Jerry had no problem with my presence. He rubbed against my leg, purring loudly.

Josey and I hadn't been particularly close growing up once I hit high school. A thought intruded. We WERE close till then. She was the smart little sister that took as good care of me as I did her. The age difference wasn't so great that we should have been distant in high school. It was mainly my fault. I started dating Linda in high school, so neglected my little sister. Especially during her critical early high school years. I was ashamed to admit that when I moved out to go to college, I didn't take the time to talk with her and let her know she was still important to me. That, of course, wasn't the end of my neglect. My world was Linda and I cut Josey out of most of it. Now, she's about the only one I have left. My older sister was so far away, both in distance and lives. Our parents were killed in an airplane crash in Alaska three years ago. They were visiting my older sister and undertook a glacier tour that ended in an airplane crash.

"You look beat, Eric? Why don't you take a shower and we'll talk?"

"Thanks, Josey. Bathroom that away?"

I took a very hot shower and shaved. Felt a lot better. Well, only on a relative scale. I was still shit warmed over.

When I came out, Josey had lunch and a beer waiting. Both tasted great. "Thanks, Josey. Guess I needed both food and alcohol."

"Well, don't get too attached to the alcohol."

"Won't. Promise."

"What are you going to do now? Any ideas?"

"We've filed for an uncontested divorce. Split everything down the middle - not that there was much to begin with. After I first confronted her, I was so mad that I threatened to file for divorce for adultery and name her cousins as the cause. Then I thought a while. I really didn't hate her. I still loved her, and she loved me, so didn't want to put everybody through a very messy divorce. So, we just sort of called it quits."

"I guess there's no way she could convince you that's she loves you and wants you back?"

"Well, I told her one way: She would have to throw herself on her sword. Told her she would have to file an incest complaint against her cousins, which would mean she was confessing to incest, too, since it was consensual. She declined, of course."

"Well, that was pretty extreme."

"As I said, sacrificing herself for me."

"I guess that's final, then."

"Unfortunately, yes. I still love her. Don't know how to fall out of love."

A slight pause "I can relate."

I thought a bit. I'm pretty sure I knew what she meant. We had been close enough that if she was serious about a guy, I'd have known it. I haltingly said "Pretty sure that's my fault. Now I'm the one saying sorry."

"Kind of conceited, aren't you? How do you know it's you?"

"Josey, how long have we known each other? Neither of us can lie to the other worth a shit. Not sure I can ever make it right but hope I can. Or at least have you forgive me."

She stood up, took the dishes and went to the kitchen. She threw them into the sink and walked out the door.

"Shit!" rather loudly. Can't seem to do anything right these days. About that time, Jerry jumped into my lap and demanded to be petted. I complied for a while. "OK, boy, at least you're not mad at me. Guess this was the shortest visit on record.

I removed him and went to the bedroom to stick my dirty clothes in my suitcase. Closed it, picked up the backpack as well and headed towards the door. Moments before I reached it, Josey walked back in. "Where the fuck do you think you're going?"

"Don't know. Just figured I'd worn out my welcome here."

"There's no reason to go. Please stay. I'm not mad at you. Really."

I put my suitcase down and picked up Jerry who was rubbing against my leg. "Jerry, can I thank you for distracting me enough so your mommy got back before I left?" Puuuuuuuur

"I apologize for bringing up the past and for assuming things. Can we start again?"

"How do we do that? How far back do we reset? Right now, I want nothing to do with you till you're not consumed by Linda. Let me know and I'll consider starting again."

"You're right. I'm just imposing my misery on you. So, I'll say good bye. Thanks for lunch and the beer."

"No, please. I didn't mean for you to walk out on my life again."

"I know I made you miserable before and don't want to do it again. Are you sure you still want me to stay here, knowing it's going to be a long road getting over Linda?"

"Yes."

She pushed me onto the sofa and sat next to me.

"If I knew how to forget, I'd do it in an instant. I don't, though. I do love you as a sister and don't want you hurt."

"Well, as your sister, I don't abandon my brother when he needs me. Understand?"

"OK."

"One question, Eric, have you cried yet?"