In the past month, my grandmother peacefully passed away in her sleep. Although she was only 68 years old at the time of her passing, it was not a sudden event. The doctors had provided an estimate of two months when they discovered the cancer that was gradually taking its toll on her body, and unfortunately, that timeline came close to reality. Thankfully, she did not endure significant suffering during this difficult time.
After the funeral and the period of grieving, there remained the task of moving all of Nan's possessions out of her house and get it ready for sale. Gathering, sorting and storing a lifetime's worth of possessions is a lot of work, and I decided to take a few days off from college to be with my family and help them as much as I could. My assistance was gladly accepted, and mom had kept me occupied pretty much all of the time for the last two days.
Today was a Saturday, which meant that dad didn't have to go to work and was helping mom instead. I was relieved of my duties for the day and stayed at home to catch up on my assignments.
I had been sweating over an essay all morning and my eyes were hurting from staring at the computer display. Thankfully, I had already made good progress and could spare a little time for a well-deserved break. I was feeling quite thirsty, so I decided to head to the kitchen and raid the fridge for some soda or juice and maybe something to eat as well.
I found some leftover tuna salad in the fridge, and I made a couple of nice sandwiches. Then I poured myself a big glass of juice to go with it. As I was taking the spoils back to my room, I heard someone whisper my name. I looked around and finally spotted my younger sister, peeking in from a crack in the door. She lay her finger on her lips and beckoned me closer.
"Are they still gone?" Audrey whispered.
I nodded "Mom and dad went to Aunt Shelley for the afternoon."
Audrey swung the door open and quickly traversed the room, carrying something bulky and rectangular under her sweater. Intrigued by my sister's secretive behavior, I followed her.
"What have you got under there, books?" I asked as I stopped her.
"I can't tell you. It's a secret" she said
"Come on, I'll let you have one of my sandwiches"
She looked hungrily at the food. "Is that mom's tuna salad?"
"Yes, the last of it. Just show me what you've got and you can have one" She considered my offer for a moment. "Okay, but don't tell mom or dad" I promised her I'd keep mum and led her into my room.
"So, what are you hiding? Dirty magazines?" I asked as I sat down at my desk.
"No, something much better: Nan's old diaries!" she said and retrieved a bundle of aged books from under her sweater, unintentionally flashing me her tight stomach and baby-blue bra.
"Diaries? There were no diaries!" I said, a little distracted.
One of the tasks I had been charged with was to gather all of Nan's books, put them in sturdy cardboard boxes and carry them to the car. Every book, magazine or other piece of writing in the house had been in my hands at least two times. If there were any diaries, I would have known it.
"I know!" Audrey said as she stacked the books on my desk. "Mom hid them. I saw her when I was bringing a bag of clothes to the garage. She was behaving rather suspiciously, like she was hiding something from me. I pretended not to notice it and leave, but I kept an eye on her. When mom thought she was alone again, I saw her tuck this small bundle away in one of the boxes with junk. As soon as she turned her back for a minute, I dug the bundle out and that's how I found these books. She had them wrapped in an old tablecloth so I swapped them with a couple of phone books and put the books in the bag of clothes instead."
"And they're Nan's diaries, huh?"
"Yeah, I was going to read them. You know, I really don't know much about Nan. I wonder why mom wanted to throw these away."
"Perhaps she didn't know they were diaries?" I asked while munching on a
sandwich.
"You think so?" she asked sarcastically, holding up a dog-eared booklet with big golden letters embossed on a faded pink front, clearly spelling the words 'My Diary'.
"Well I don't know, Audrey. Ask mom"
"And let mom know I've got the diaries? I thought you were supposed to be the smart one? If she wanted to throw the diaries away secretly, she'll take them as soon as she hears I've got them."
"Maybe the answer's inside"
"That's what I thought. Do you mind if I read it here?" "Just be quiet, I've got a lot of work to do"
Audrey dropped her fine ass on my bed, opened the first of the five books and started reading while I sat down at my desk to finish my essay. She kept reading all afternoon, chuckling sometimes and making sympathetic noises at other times. By the time our parents returned and mom called us for dinner, she was already halfway the first volume.
"And, have you learned anything yet?" I asked. I wasn't really that interested, more like making small talk, but a little feigned interest always seemed to make my sister happy. This time was no exception.
"Have you discovered why mom wanted to get rid of those books?" I added.
"Maybe. Did you know Nan was a very... you know... naughty girl when she was our age?"
"Naughty? Like in a sexual way? What did she do, fuck the entire football team or something? Do you suppose mom's ashamed of Nan?"
"No, you dog! Nothing like that!" Audrey hissed angry. "Listen, why don't you come to my room after dinner, and I'll tell you what I've learned so far."
It was already late when our parents came home, so dinner was take-away in front of the TV. I didn't mind; I've always liked Chinese food and there would be no plates to clean afterward. Less than half an hour later, I followed Audrey to her room.
"So, tell me about the little nympho" I said as Audrey closed the door behind us.
She just looked at me disapprovingly, not even dignifying herself with a reply. I tried to laugh it off, successfully, so it seemed.
"Well, she writes that she's... masturbating, all the time. Sometimes five or six times."
So much there wasn't much shocking news. There were days even I had managed to top that.
"That's all?" I said, a little disappointed.
"Let me finish, I don't mean at home, but at school!" "What, you mean in the girls' room, like Anne?"
"Err... Yes, but even in the classroom, with everyone around" "No way!"
"Yes, here, listen to this bit: She's at school and has been fantasizing about one of the boys all morning..."
She picked up the book, went back a couple of pages and started reading
"...when I went to pee during recess my panties were all damp, so I thought it would be better to take them off and stuff them in my bag. I didn't have a fresh pair with me, so I had to go without. The bell hadn't rung yet, so I stayed there and tickled my kitty a little longer. It was such a relief to finally touch myself and I was just about to feel good when the bell rang. It was quite a bummer because I was so close, but I couldn't risk getting caught, so I cleaned up as well as I could and joined the others in class."
