Chapter Two
Cowboys and Injuns

Everyone else in the family walked back into the house after we had stared long enough at the car. There was nothing we could do about it – no amount of staring would bring back the tires or the stereo or the STUFF that was inside.

I was stunned. I just stood there in my nightgown looking at the vandalized car. I knew crime was always a possibility, but it had never happened to us before – this was suddenly personal. I felt violated and numb – it sickened me.

Our car was wrecked and all my brother’s things were gone. Then it dawned on me. MY CLOTHES! All my trendy outfits were gone!! All I had to my name was this pink and white long shirt, the underwear I was wearing and the clothes that Aunt Crystal took from the bathroom yesterday to wash!

My brother’s loss was his electronics. My parent’s loss was all their household goods that they had managed to salvage before we lost our home and old photographs. My clothes were my personality, my outward statement of who I was; albeit a somewhat awkward statement as I was still trying to figure out who I was as a person. I was no fashion plate in Hollister jeans and Pac Sun tops – but now it dawned on me I had nothing else to wear!

Oh sure, Savannah would probably lend me some of her things to make do; but the last thing I wanted was to be classified as a bona fide member of Fuckman Acres!

(Yes, I told you I did not cuss – at least not before I came here. I was livid and I was calling this place Fuckman Acres in my mind!)

As I stood there looking over the remnants of what used to be the family car, I became aware of a shirtless teenage boy gawking at me in my Strawberry Shortcake nightgown. He seemed like a nice guy who was being supportive of the awful thing that had just happened to us and I smiled at him, a look of thanks.

After I did, I saw the little creep making a circle with the fingers of his left hand and inserting the index finger of his right hand repeatedly into and out of the circle as he stuck out his tongue and licked the air.

“HOW OBSCENE!” I shouted angrily at him and started back into the house as he laughed hysterically. I felt like a piece of fresh meat that fell off the delivery truck into a pack of hungry dogs.

"Hard times at the Fuckman," I thought once more to myself. That name seemed to fit this dreadful place.

The family was scurrying around the kitchen grabbing things from the kitchen counter. Aunt Crystal was laying out some food and my kin were scarfing it up almost as fast as she put it out. She was still dressed in only her black sports bra and her lacy thong as if it was totally normal to walk about that way; but only my mom cast her the evil eye. I could tell my father was being respectful and just pretending he did not notice; but there was no way not to get a load of the rock hard breasts jutting out of her chest like airplane propellers. I don’t know what else to use as a descriptive – boys are better at thinking of words for them – knockers, titties, boobies, jugs – I would hear all those words and more in the coming days.

“This ain't no Waffle House, Sweetcakes. Ain’t nobody gonna wait on you. If you want breakfast, you had better dig in or you get left out," my aunt said to me, as she returned to the kitchen causing my mom to roll her eyes. Just like her daughter Savannah, my aunt's southern drawl came and went with her mood.

I had no appetite, but that didn’t stop Ted, Savannah, Lloyd, and Conner from chowing down.

“Grumbling and mumbling isn't going to put your stuff back in your car! Aren't you at least going to eat?" my Aunt asked, as she saw that my parents were just sitting in the living room sulking. They just looked up at her, in polite silence.

“She don’t normally cook, all we get is microwave Jimmy Dean,” Ted said, as he stuffed two sausages he just stole from Lloyd’s plate into his mouth, adding “Snooze you lose, Ex-lax!” to his step-son’s dismay.

"My food's not good enough for Patricia and her fancy family," my Aunt offered the barb somewhat playfully to Ted as a way of explaining. She abandoned any attempts at what she considered levity when no one returned her sassy jokes. My parents just sat there quietly while everyone else stuffed their faces.

Ted came bounding out of his chair at the table into the cluttered kitchenette scratching his ass, and cutting a fart at the same time; without the least bit of shame. 

"Beans, Beans, good for your heart, something, something, the more you shit," he was in a good mood as he made up a song to go with his previous rude toot. "You better let the bathroom air out for a while, if I were you!!" he added while fanning his hand in front of his nose. "Nothing like a good dump first thing in the morning to stimulate your appetite,” he said out loud to no one in particular.

He had been eating at the table – how long had it been since he had been in the bathroom?

GROSS! I thought to myself. This is all really a dream right? I mean any minute I am going to wake up and find myself back in my own comfortable bed at Cherry Lawn High and not dealing with any of this.

Then Lloyd pinched me on the butt causing me to shriek. "Move it, babe! You’re blocking the food," he grinned and hustled me out of the way so he could get the last bit of food before Ted claimed it all.

I wanted to slap him silly. The stern look my mom gave me was a warning to just let it go – this was their house and their ways.

All I said was "I am not your babe!" as I stepped aside from the food, and let my Aunt and her family go at it like starving barbarians.

When they were through, there was only one piece of toast left and as I was going to reach for it Uncle Ted snatched it up off the plate. "If you are not going to eat that, I'll get rid of it for you. No sense in wasting food." Then in one giant gulp it was gone!

“I was going to eat that,” I pouted.

“Oh were you? Well cry me a river, waaaaaa.” and if he hadn’t punctuated his mock cry with a loud fart – no one else would have laughed – but they did.

My parents and Conner didn’t, but everyone else had a good laugh. I could not believe they had the audacity to take the toast right out from under me – especially since it was the first thing I was going to eat all morning.

After they scarfed down breakfast, my brother and cousin's ran into our shared bedroom. Lloyd grabbing at Conner's DS stating excitedly, "Just let me show you something with it." and Conner trying desperately to hang on to his one remaining electronic device. Savannah looked bored and surly as the two boys squabbled over the handheld computer game.

My Aunt was talking to my mom when she thought we had left the room and I overheard a bit. "Look, you are a Danville, that's family. I won't kick y'all into the street. Lord knows, I've needed help through the years and always looked to my family when times got hard."

"Crystal, you know that we would have given you money if we had money!" I know my mom took offense to how my Aunt was implying we needed to contribute right away.

"Hey, you did the best you could. I don't hold it against it you. It's water under the bridge, I am your little sister, and I'll always be your little sister!" Crystal winked at my father that she was the younger of the two girls in a flirtatious way and my dad just ignored it.

He just sighed back at Crystal, as if to say "Please do not wink at me". My Dad is one of the guys who can say so much with a look or just how he exhales without words.

My mom seemed like she was going to correct my Aunt or say something defensive. I must have appeared to be obviously eaves-dropping, because my mom got quiet and told me to "Go in the other room with your cousins, honey. We haven’t forgotten about what we found in your pants, but we have bigger worries right now."

I was still hungry as I really didn't get anything to eat but I felt that it was best to be polite and mindful of my mom. I silently thought to myself I'd make it up at lunch time and try to be a little more assertive about snagging a bite to eat. I would have to get aggressive if I was going to fit in here and while the food wasn’t great – it would do if you get hungry.

I was obviously feeling weird still being in the Strawberry Shortcake night shirt, and my Uncle Ted was giving me the creeps looking at me. I asked my Aunt if I could have the clothes she washed for me, the night before.

Crystal wanted to continue the talk she was having with my mom and she dismissed my question without a second thought. “You think this is turn down service? Laundry day is Wednesdays, unless we run out of quarters on Wednesdays that is," she said laughing.

"No Aunt Crystal, I did not mean you had to wash them. I just wonder where they are. I’ll wear them dirty." If I had to wear them a few days that wasn’t the worst thing in the world and it beat what I had on – which at the moment was ALL I had to wear.

“Criminy Shitcakes, would you get a load of her calling me Aunt Crystal when she wants something. I told you before just call me Crystal. Let me guess, you want those old clothes so you can see if your Mary Jane is still in your pockets?" my Aunt teased.

"What. No." I said, and then changed the subject. Which probably made me seem guilty, but I had no idea how it got in my pants pocket and the whole topic made me uncomfortable.

I felt like bringing it up only made me seem guilty. I blanked and said the first thing that entered my mind. "Did you know you sound like Kim Carnes, the singer of Bette Davis Eyes?" I said of my Aunt's scratchy voice instead,.

"Well, drinking whiskey and smoking cigarettes will do that to you." she puffed on a smoke and adding a little hyperbole, "That song has to be one hundred years old, how would a pup like you even have heard of it?"

Laughing at first, "I am a fan of 80's music, my mom had some old songs on cassette in the car." I realized that my attempt to change the subject only brought up the memory of the recent loss of everything in our car, so my laughter quickly faded.

“Are you trying to stall so you can stand out here in that nightgown, to let my Ted get a good look at how nice your tits are coming in, deary-may?” Aunt Crystal asked bluntly as she took another drag on her cigarette.

“What? Gosh no!” I felt the need to put my hands over my chest. But as soon as I cupped my breast I could feel how impossibly hard and chafed my nipples were from sleeping in the frozen bra. “I have a bra on!” I reminded her.

“Oh you could have fooled me, well that changes everything,” she laughed a husky laugh.

"Okay, then...So the clothes? They are where?" I was losing patience and quickly getting uncomfortable. I was surprised my father and mother said nothing but they just let her tease me.

I was directed to some sort of universal laundry pile. Ted explained what was the "definitely dirty pile”. He started to point out several other seemingly random piles of clothes that were sorted according to "How possibly clean they may be." starting with "not that bad" and ending in the “definitely dirty pile”.

My stuff was on the top, right next to some greasy overalls that were covered in axle grease and who knows what else.

My clothes were ruined. They were so gross I could not even pick them up off the floor. My first impulse was someone had put them in the grease on purpose!

They couldn't have gotten that disgusting just lying on the floor like that. I was so angry I wanted to scream! Whoever did this was going to pay! First of all, my trendy outfits were stolen from our car and now the only good set of clothes I had were totally trashed.

I stomped out into the living room and looking directly at my Aunt yelled, "WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY CLOTHES? THEY'RE RUINED!”

Before I could say anything more my dad interrupted me, "Watch your tone, young lady. That is no way to talk to your elders.” He was right and at home I would never have even considered saying that – a day here had already started to change me.

I lowered my head and replied, "Sorry, Daddy.”

Aunt Crystal wasn't surprised at all by my outburst. She seemed to actually be amused. She just said "Man, it sucks to be someone's 'elders', doesn't it?"

My mom asked me to explain what I was so upset about and I told her what I had found in the utility room. My aunt just shrugged it off. “Don't fret Sweetcakes, Savannah will surely lend you some of her things. In the meantime, what you've got on is practical for the summer time.”

“Practical? You said you could see right through it!”

“It’s breezy, hell I kept Savannah and Lloyd in diapers till they was what eight or nine? I can’t remember, maybe four or five.” She was (hopefully) joking, even though no one was laughing.

I stomped down the hall and when I entered the bedroom I found the boys still struggling over the Nintendo while Savannah looked on bored.

“Listen Savannah, somebody trashed my only remaining set of clothes. Could I borrow one of your outfits until I can get more of my own to wear?” I probably should not have asked so bluntly and impolitely but I was wound up from her mom’s blasé’ lack of concern for our troubles.

Savannah looked up grinning “Maybe . . . what is it worth to you?”

“What?! Whaddya mean what? Worth to me? Your mom said you would let me borrow something to wear. Besides, you know I don't have anything to give you.” In retrospect I was being rude and I might have gotten further if I had controlled my temper.

“Oh really? Will she ground me if I don’t?” my demand only made Savannah’s stubbornly refuse to help. “Okay, just wear that silly Strawberry Shortcake shirt for, like, forever. No skin off my ass. You could always go buy yourself some clothes. Oh wait, you can't! You are fucking poor like us now!” she giggled sadistically.

I stood there for a moment stunned and stared at her.

Savannah would not return my gaze. She made herself look busy in the room. There was not much in here besides our mattresses and the Guns and Roses and Metallica posters and those 8X10 mirrors you can win at the County Fair.

“Can I please borrow something else to wear . . . just for a little while?” I had calmed down and was genuinely being polite. “I am sorry about before,” I added.

Savannah puckered her lips mockingly and said "Aren't you gonna say pretty please with sugar on top?" then she added “I suppose if you were willing to play the game of Life again, I guess I could lend you something for a little while.”

Just then my mom came into the room and told Conner and I that Ted was taking her and my dad down to the county hall. She was going to file a police report, apply for benefits and look into getting a job. She said Aunt Crystal was going to stay home to keep an eye on us and that we shouldn't give her any trouble. Conner and I promised and with that she left.

“I promise to be good mommy!” Savannah quipped teasingly as soon as my mom shut the door. “What are you? Like 8 years old or something?”

“Let’s just get on with it.” I was frustrated and hungry and agreed to play her game.

“Okay by me. Boys, stop playing with the thing in your hand." she said with a hint of double entendre'. "We're going to play the game of Life.”

“ALL RIGHT!” Lloyd exclaimed. "Is she going to play by the rules or is she going to wuss out again?”

“Here is the deal, Ellen. I will do you a solid and put up one of my favorite outfits for you. I’ll let you wear it for the rest of the day, IF you play the entire game according to the rules until we have a winner - Deal?”

I reluctantly agreed. I remembered how haphazard the rules were and how impossible some of it was – but I was really in no position to negotiate. She hadn’t asked me to give up anything if I lost. I just assumed she was really bored and wanted me to play her game.

We all sat down at the board and picked out our game pieces. We played for several minutes advancing around the board until Conner landed on a Community Chest space. He read the card, "Give the person across from you a wedgie."

My brother got a weird look, scrunching his nose and knotting his brow. "Wedgie!? Do I have too?”

The person across from him was Savannah. I squinted my eyes, secretly thrilled that she was going to get it. "Yes, you HAVE to! " There was no way I wanted him to weasel out of it. I wanted to see this!

A day ago I would never have imagined I’d be playing a game like this, but now I really wanted to see Savannah taken down a peg.

Conner stood up and walked over to Savannah. He just looked at her not doing anything. "All she has on is a long shirt like you - what do I wedgie?" he asked confused.

“Oh for piss-sakes. I've got panties on you dipweed." Savannah said as she stood up. I was so not used to the casual use of vulgarities and found myself impulsively wanting to complain or tell on them. I knew it was common practice in their household though and so I bit my tongue.

Savannah bounced off the floor to a standing position as if she could care less what my brother was about to do to her. "Go on, we haven't got all day, ya know.”

Conner carefully reached under Savannah's night shirt and then suddenly pulled his hand back away from her bottom. "I don't know if we should be doing this. I mean Aunt Crystal might not like it.” I could sense how nervous he was and I was instantly aware of how uncomfortable he was.

“Fuck her," Lloyd said of his mom. "MA, IS IT OKAY IF CONNER GIVES SAVANNAH A WEDGIE. WE'RE PLAYING A GAME.” He yelled into the living room.

“Whatever . . " came the disinterested reply from the living room.

“See . . . go ahead dude. Now you've got permission.”

Savannah was pulling her panties out of the crack of her ass under the shirt and said “It’s not going to grow teeth and bite you, just fucking do it and stop being a little wussy,” she teased him while rolling her eyes.

How could she turn getting a wedgie administered to her into an ordeal for the person doing it? I was now feeling sorry for my brother instead of thrilled to see Savannah have a taste of her own medicine.

Conner took a deep breath and once again reached out to slide his hand under her Motley Crue shirt, when Savannah just hiked it up exposing her white panties to the room.

The look on my brother's face was amazing. His eyes were bugging out and his mouth was wide open. "What is the matter kid? Never seen a girl's panties before?”

“Yeah, sure I have,” he said trying to sound bold. “It's just that these are so pretty, they have tiny flowers on them.”

Rolling her eyes again Savannah sighed. “You are going to forfeit your turn if you don’t fucking do it, and then the person to your right gets to wedgie you.”

“I am going to, just don’t rush me,” Conner was a good boy, but he was totally intimidated and out of his league standing next to my cousin. She was a head taller than him and a good 20lbs heavier than he was. He studied her like he might a puzzle in a game of Scribblenauts.

"These are ordinary panties, they cover more than most bikinis do, surely you’ve seen your sister’s panties before. Do I have to hike them up for you too?"

I don’t know what shocked me more – the fact that she was willing to hike up her panties for him to get this over with or that in truth I had no idea if Conner had ever seen my panties before. I don’t think he had any reason to, as my mom always handled the laundry.

Conner gasped a final breath of air and grabbed a fist full of material on the back of her panties. He yanked the panties high up between her legs with the kind of strength born more from fear than from anything else.

My brother, being smaller than Savannah and several years younger, didn't really cause her any pain; but she did look ridiculous with them pulled up her crack and into her slit. The boys laughed but I just looked away.

I noticed a distinct bulge in Conner’s pajama bottoms when he returned to where he had been sitting. My own brother was aroused!

"Hard Times at the Fuckman," Savannah said while re-adjusting the panties under her long black shirt with a little discomfort.

"I bet that didn’t even hurt because you got no wiener?" Conner asked her with an awkward concern in his voice - like he knew he probably shouldn’t even be asking her how her vagina felt.

"You slid them up the crack of my ass, Einstein, I've got an asshole," rolling her eyes in response as if he should know that.

I did not like this game at all. It was a means to an end that I wasn’t even sure I had to endure. I thought about waltzing into the living room and telling Aunt Crystal Savannah wouldn’t let me borrow any clothes but then I’d be branded a tattle tale. I had been called that when I told on several kids after the teacher stepped into the hallway in 2^nd grade and I never lived that down.

I did take some solace in Savannah having to endure the discomfort and shame of a wedgie - It served her right for making me play this stupid game.

We continued the game moving our mismatched pieces around the board when Savannah landed on a Community Chest space. As she looked at her card she smiled from ear to ear. "Paybacks are hell, dude,” she smirked.

Conner gulped, adjusting his own pajama trousers instinctively "What does it say?" I tried not to think about why he had to adjust himself.

Savannah stood up and handed my brother her card and for him to read out loud while standing him up by reaching down and pulling him up effortlessly.

"Depants the person across from you." My brother was a good reader – but I could hear the fear in his voice.

The words may not have fully sunk in when Savannah suddenly grabbed his pajama bottoms and underwear. She yanked in a single smooth motion to the floor stunning my poor brother leaving him standing there naked, almost fully erect and frozen.

“DOING-OING-OING!” Lloyd made a boner sound with his mouth as he laughed.

HOLY CRAP! I was seeing my brother's penis. I couldn't help but look.

I had seen him naked when he was 9 but I had never imagined him hard and… and erect – much less seen him. Truth be told I had never seen an erect penis before this. I’ve seen boys with tented shorts in gym class but seeing one in the flesh was something else.

“God Damn little Cuz, you got nothing to be ashamed of! That thing is about nine inches! Don’t let my momma know you are carrying around that kind of hardware,” she teased him.

I could even see he had started to get a tuft of pubic hair and I grew increasingly uncomfortable.

“Why are you so hard you little horn dog? Excited to see your sister looking at your nuts?" Savannah teased, pointing at his boner as she sat down again at her place at the board.

All the color had left Conner's face he just stood there with his cock bobbing up and down and fully erect now in front of him like a flagpole in the wind.

“You can pull your fucking pants back up genius,” Savannah had already sat down and was done tormenting him.

Conner was stunned as he bent at the waist and wriggled his bottoms back up until he was covered once again. He gave himself a quick tuck and sat down – we didn’t make eye contact after that.

“Good on ya, dude!" Lloyd said slapping him on the back. "Way to play the game!"

Conner began laughing too now and seemed to get into the spirit of things.

"I LIKE this game!" Conner said laughing as he asked whose turn it was. I was really surprised, after watching all the blood rush from his face just moments earlier as I thought he experienced the most intensely humiliating exposure of his life. I would have had so much adrenalin running through my veins –I felt embarrassed FOR him.

"Ellen's turn," Savannah announced.

Nervously I took my turn and landed on a Chance square. "Now what?" I asked. "There are no chance cards,” I said while looking for them.

Lloyd smiled and explained that in a chance square, I'd have to spin a wheel and then look it up by number. "We used to have Chance cards, but they got all sticky, someone prolly spooged on them." he said unapologetically.

At the time, I wasn't sure what "spooge" was, but had I known I probably would have made an even more disgusted face.

Savannah grabbed the board out of the game box and held it up to her chest. I just looked at her. "Go on, spin the wheel like they do on Showcase Showdown on Price is Right, or are you a PUSSY?”

“I don’t watch that show,” I admitted not knowing the reference she made.

“You wouldn’t,” she snickered, as if that was a fault of mine.

Defiantly I spun the wheel she was holding and it landed on number 3. Then I had to spin the wheel another time to determine who I am paired with.

“DAMN THIS IS GOING TO BE GOOD!" Lloyd shouted out as if he already knew the answer. It was pretty obvious he didn’t know. He would make an excellent male cheerleader – his enthusiasm was infectious because Conner smiled as if he thought it was going to be epic as well.

Savannah studied the chart as if it were very complicated, but I think that was just to add some dramatic pause to the game. I think she only read it aloud for my benefit as she was smiling from ear to ear again. "Hmmm, number three, french kiss for 5 minutes,” she quickly added, “You are paired with me, girly girl."

"Oh, Hell No!" I refused.

"Who did you want it to be? Your Brother or Lloyd?"

"No one, this game is perverted!" I crossed my arms in front of my chest in the universal “I am done with this” body language.

I'd hardly ever kissed a boy before and I had never French-kissed anyone EVER.

It was always just sort of playful flirty kisses and not more than a peck.

The idea of putting my tongue in some cute boy’s mouth had crossed my mind, but that boy had been a member of One Direction or Justin Bieber - a fantasy that lived 1,000 miles away in Fantasy land.

Everyone was looking at me to see what I was going to do. "Go on, I did mine!" Conner reminded me before adding "It doesn't mean you are lesbian."

His remark made me feel guilty. He had been a good sport and endured being exposed to the room. He could even laugh about it.

I'd lose his respect if I weaseled out of this now; and in fairness getting fully exposed in front of everyone else was far worse than a kiss.

I looked at Savannah. I think she was eager for me to chicken out because she thought I would NOT do it.

I knew that if I chickened out now and refused, I would be picked on mercilessly by all of them for the rest of my stay here. I wanted to show I wasn't a push over - no matter how disgusting this was – at the same time I was disgusted. It’s not that Savannah isn’t pretty – it is just that I never had even a passing thought about kissing another girl; and now I would have to do it in front of my cousin and brother for a game? It was all too much and too fast!

I swallowed hard. I wanted to have more time to think, but there was no time – this was all happening and I had to act. Trying to act confident I caved and leaned over and put my lips against Savannah's admittedly very soft and puffy lips.

I began to awkwardly slip a little of my tongue into her open mouth when she took over and nearly choked me with her own tongue. She wiggled it around, practically raping me with that thing of hers!

She was well experienced at kissing because she moved it like a serpent darting it playfully in and out and pushing my own tongue back into my mouth, as if wrestling it into submission. She even sucked the breath right out of my mouth before blowing it back in – I have to admit it was all I could do not to be swept up in in the kiss.

My heart was racing and I was a confused pile of emotions. I hated it and yet I enjoyed it.

It was disgusting.

It's not so bad.

It feels kind of nice actually.

WHAT AM I THINKING?! This is revolting!

I was keenly aware of how soaked my pussy was getting. I know this makes me sound like a slut but my body was working overtime and there was not a lot I could do about it but let it happen. She embraced me and pushed my body into hers and my nipples once again poked through my shirt as goose bumps spread up and down my skin.

I was so confused! I felt her hand squeezing my left boob! I did not move to stop her but I wanted to – and yet I made no motion to stop her. This felt very wrong and taboo; and yet I justified just going with it because I was caught up in the moment.

I could hear my brother singing "I kissed a girl, and I Li-iked it, Cherry Chapstick.." a song he was butchering by Katy Perry. Lloyd had joined him and together they managed to mangle the lyrics and tune, until I started to giggle at the awkwardness of all of this.

Savannah did not let me giggle for long – she looked down with her blue eyes and then flicked her eyelids back up into mine – that caused me to look away out of shyness. She took my chin with two fingers and pushed her tongue past my closed lips to continue the kiss. She made it erotic and yet at the same time like a chore she was doing to complete the dare –if you can picture that.

I could taste eggs and root beer on Savannah's breath. I tried not to think about that as I backed away just enough so my lips were clear to ask, "How do we know when time is up?"

"Shit, so precise, so many rules, Senorita Buzzkill" Savannah said pushing me by the chest on to my mattress. "It's not supposed to be exactly five minutes." Then she asked Conner and Lloyd if they were satisfied it had been long enough; and they both grinned and nodded yes.

Savannah kept looking at me grinning for a moment, then she winked at me!

This led me to wonder if she was secretly enjoying it and putting on an act for them or if she was just messing with me. Was she a lesbian? Was this just a game to shock the boys and set them up to kiss later? “After all, we did it, you guys have to.” – a dozen scenarios ran through my mind on what that wink had meant, or if it meant anything at all.

This whole family is just weird I thought to myself.

The game continued with us rolling dice or spinning spinners. There were a few mini-games and once we had to get up and dance around like idiots, but nothing was as spicy or over the top as that kiss or my brother’s dare.

It was hot and stuffy in the bedroom and I have to admit – the odor reeked of boy farts and sweat. I could tell no one was feeling this game anymore, possibly because we had peaked with those two earlier dares.

“This is boring! Let’s play dodge ball!" Lloyd pleaded. 

Savannah denied his first choice of activity, then his second and then, his third.

He started making up things just for fun. "Doucheformers -Assholes in disguise?"

My brother laughed at that reference, but she just rolled her eyes and told him he wasn’t even funny anymore.

"Okay..how about hide the bologna?" Lloyd sneered "I can go get Ted."

I got the impression this was some inside joke they shared. Savannah smacked her brother hard and said "Don't even go there, Lloyd. ‘sides Ted is in town with their parents."

"Don't you have to call him Step Dad or something?" Conner asked of their mom's boyfriend. A question I had asked earlier myself.

"He is lucky I don't just call him asshole like I did the last guy. I think his name was Calvin or something." Savannah replied casually. "Ted's been here 4 months, which is pretty long for my Mom's relationships, we stopped calling them daddy long time ago."

Conner seemed to get the hint that he should just let that go.

Lloyd smiled “She’ll call them Daddy for a carton of cigarettes.” He goosed his sister with a ticklish grin on his face and she smacked his hand and told him to fuck off.

These two smoked? I guess I should not have been surprised.

"Dick, Dick Goose?" Lloyd offered up another game idea and cracking up with laughter at the sound of it.

"Fine, you want to get the fuck out of here, I am tired of sniffing you two silent farters ass cheese.” She looked at them accusingly as if to dare them to deny they hadn’t. “How about Cowboy's and Injuns?" Savannah offered as a game idea.

"Oh yeah, that sounds like fun!" Lloyd said while Conner and I looked on confused.

"Isn't that a game for like three year olds?" Conner asked mockingly while eyeing his Gameboy DS – the state of the art in handheld electronics. How would anyone know that? Don’t worry, Conner will tell you.

"Not the way we play - you'll see," Lloyd chuckled. He was already digging through his meager pile of game pieces for a fake Indian feathered headband and a few other things for the game. “We play it down by the Quarry." then he added a stipulation "Guys will be cowboys and girls are Injuns."

"I guess so, cuz these two don't know how to play. It makes sense if we split it up that way - cool with you guys?" Savannah's question was more of a statement that it would be, as she did not wait for our response before collecting herself and standing up.

"We need a break from here, blow the stink off ya," Lloyd said, slapping Conner hard on the back. "I'll run ahead and see if I can get a few of my friends to play too."

Lloyd had on a pair of jeans, and he slipped on a football jersey before running out the door. He was built like an athlete and it was obvious to me he liked to play games involving sports and running by the way he lit up at the idea of this game.

Savannah sauntered over to the closet. She put her finger to her lips to look for some clothes and began to suck on it playfully. "Hmmm, this looks kinda like an Indian thing".

It was a Tim McGraw shirt, and a pair of skin tight jeans. She slipped off her shirt revealing a lacy bra and the panties we had seen earlier.

Conner's face lit up with an expression that read “I should not be seeing this but I am and I am going to silently wait until I am told to look away!” It seemed to me as if Savannah was testing him playfully to see if she could shock him. Then again she might not have cared what he thought; but be trying to shock me-that she would not care what he saw.

"It's Victoria secret," she said turning to me and indicating her flimsy bra "You like it? Crystal got it for me."

I just smiled back at her because I was unsure what to say. I didn’t know anything about real lingerie and I did not want to say “it’s sexy” after we had just kissed and give her the wrong impression. I suppose that is what it was though – a sexy bra.

"We've got the whole summer, and sharing one hot room. I know you've got to have done some sleep overs or showered in the gym and see peckers, tits and butts or something, jeez. I thought you guys have internet in the city – ain’t it got porn on it?" She asked rhetorically of the two of us.

In our old house we each had our own room and plenty of privacy. In addition, it had constantly been reinforced to us at school and by parents not to show our "privates" to anyone. “Stranger danger” was a campaign that had been with me since Pre-K and I was just not accustomed to anyone being so casual about things like this.

This was all system shock to me and I think to Conner as well – however he seemed to be adjusting to it better than I was. His face had turned a shade of pink, as if he were holding his breath, while his ears had become a solid red.

"Conner? Are you going to change into YOUR clothes or were you just going to stare at me while I change into mine?” Savannah chided him.

Conner nodded quickly, “Oh no, I was not staring! Sorry!” he averted his eyes after being caught staring and didn’t say another word about it.

Unlike me, Conner still had one other outfit besides his pajamas from the previous day. He sheepishly changed without removing his underwear from the pajamas he had on.

"Oh, no one is gonna look at your peach-fuzz and pink pudgy little boy-boobs," Savannah teased without looking directly at him. She knew he was shy and must have just assumed he was nervous.

"What about me? What can I wear?" I asked politely.

"Well, we didn't finish the game of Life, so why would I loan you something?" Savannah stopped, with the Tim McGraw shirt pulled half way over her head, to stare directly back at me.

"That’s BS! Savannah,” I pouted “I played the game until we all stopped." I couldn’t understand why she was suddenly being cruel after the wink and kiss.

"Derp,” she made a goofy face and asked me “Did you finish it?" she mockingly asked me. "Look, it is hot and I am bored. You look fine for the Fuckman. Half the black families don't put a diaper on a kid ‘til they are about your age," she joked dismissively.

"Won't your Mom stop me from leaving like this?" I asked waiting for parental supervision to help give me an excuse not to wear this Strawberry Shortcake Nightshirt out of the house again. I made a mental note to get rid of it as soon as I could. I was too old to wear something this corny.

Savannah did not even respond to my protest. She took us both by the hands and led us out of the room "Ma, going to play. Tell Ellen she looks lovely."

"Whatever,” Aunt Crystal, said disinterested and engrossed in her TV show “Yes, lovely, lovely." She did not look up from her episode of Maury Povich. They were about to reveal who the father was of some woman’s child on the show and apparently that was the suspenseful moment. I felt sorry there were women who did not know who the father was of their children, as it implied they must have a lot of sex with different men. I wondered what would drive anyone to seek that kind of fame, for being a person who doesn’t know who the father of their baby is, that they would go on TV and admit it.

I just shook my head in disbelief; I was going to walk out of the trailer in the nightgown.

Their big dog’s Zeus and Ares playfully jumped up on me with their big paws. I did not know how to get them down from me because they would not listen to me. Savannah told them “Get the fuck down.” sternly and they listened to her. She shook her head at me like I was weak for not taking control of the dogs and ushered us out the screen door of the trailer.

We ran past row after row of single-wide trailers. They reminded me of big metal boxes not houses. Their yards had piles of junk and garbage cans that no one had bothered to bring in. They had derelict cars parked helter-skelter in any place that they would fit and often very untidy yards.

In Cherry Lawn everyone was required to keep their yards neat and tidy and the smallest yard in the community was three times the size of these tiny lots.

We ran down winding little streets until I was not sure how to get back to where we started. This trailer park was much larger than I thought when we first pulled into it.

"I've got no shoes on!!" I shouted hoping that Savannah would slow down. The pavement was hot and it burned the bottom of my bare feet.

"I don’t neither," she laughed derisively that I was complaining.

"Yeah, but you must be used to it." I stopped running and used my hand to shield my eyes from the sun.

"Stop being such a girly girl. It will toughen you up,” she laughed and raced ahead. “Come on and get those fat little butt cheeks bouncing. Run fast enough and your feet won’t have time to burn on the pavement.”

I had to admit, by standing there it only hurt worse and she was right – running did make it so the pavement did not burn. I said nothing about her suggesting I get my ‘fat little butt cheeks bouncing.

Conner had sneakers on but he was panting to keep up with us. "Where are we going?"

“Just up the street. There is an old rock quarry not far from here that we sometimes play at. It beats getting run over by traffic around here.” Savannah yelled back, “C’mon slowpokes!”

"ROCK QUARRY?" I shouted. I had ran track in high school and I was pulling up behind Savannah, but she had a good head start on me.

"Yeah, it used to employ a lot of people. It closed down a long time ago. Almost no one goes there anymore," Savannah gave a smirk like there was something she wasn’t telling me while she made long strides – if she smoked cigarettes, it did not affect her ability to run.

When we finally reached the overgrown fence leading into the abandoned quarry I wasn't surprised to see they had defaced the sign like so many others in the area. "Cock Quarry?" I asked skeptically.

"Yeah, funny right?" Savannah asked with the tone of someone who had the joke many times. She started looking for her brother as we pressed further into what seemed to me like the perfect abandoned quarry set in those slasher movies.

"Funny is not the word I'd call it. I am already calling this place the Fuckman. If my mom hears me cussing..." I replied as I climbed the fence gingerly.

"She'll what?" Savannah sneered cutting me off before I could finish.

"I don't know, but she'll probably be mad. Ground me?" I suggested while helping my brother over the fence.

"Ground you from going where? The nearest mall is way back where you come from. Ted and Crystal dominate the TV. What is grounding going to do?" Savannah had made her point that there was not much I need be afraid of.

I wanted to say the truth. I wanted to say that I was uncomfortable breaking the rules, simply because I was not the kind of person to break the rules. I wanted to say that I did not like the idea of mom and dad being disappointed in me. It was eating me up inside that they thought it might be possible that I smoked marijuana and didn’t just assume I was not the type of person to do that.

Then again maybe the reason they had not said anything was that they thought I was innocent. It could be that they just had too much on their mind to deal with me though.

I shivered.

It was hot outside but every now and then a strong breeze cut through the quarry rocks. You can add the fact that I felt vulnerable in just a night shirt and bare feet walking along a dirt path in the middle of a quarry we probably had no right to be in.

"STICK EM UP, SKY HIGH!!" Lloyd jumped out from behind a tree with a cowboy hat on two sizes too small and holding a plastic cap gun.

"Uh, what?" I asked in confusion. It should have been obvious to me he started the game but I was genuinely shocked and scared when he leapt out.

"Get em, Pardner!" Lloyd called out to Conner. Conner was standing behind us both. I turned and saw he had a confused look on his face. I could see a smile spread across his face when it dawned on him that he was on the same team as Lloyd. He said “Aye, Aye, Sheriff” and reached for Savannah’s hands.

I could hear Lloyd correcting Conner that was pirate talk and he needed Cowboy talk as Savannah kicked her leg backwards hard. She connected with Conner right in the groin and sent my brother sprawling to the ground. Then she bolted while chanting "Wha-Wha-Wha-Wha!" in a mock Indian war cry as she ran off.

I wasn't sure what to do. I turned around and bent over Conner to check on him. He was my little brother after all! "Time out guys, I think Conner is hurt."

Lloyd came up behind me and poked me in the back with something. I thought it was the plastic gun and told him to knock it off because I had called time out. It wasn’t the gun – he had a pocket knife and he put it up to my throat adding “There are no time outs in Cowboys and Injuns!”

"Lloyd, what the heck? No!!" I cried out. I was profoundly nervous and I couldn’t believe Lloyd thought this was okay to do to me. I didn’t think he’d slash my throat, but I also didn’t dare move and accidentally get cut.

"Good distraction, little buddy,” Lloyd called out to Conner tossing him the plastic gun adding “Way to play possum!"

Conner sat up smiling, took the gun from Lloyd calling him “Deadeye” and thanking him. He had been faking the entire time.

"Was there instructions to this game before hand? I don't know my part in this Lloyd. That feels like a real knife!!" I said worried.

"Ain’t no instructions for Indians, your name is Poke-a-hawtass, the Indian Princess, and this knife is for scalpin' Inyuns, who dunn took my jobs!" Lloyd was clearly role playing a cowboy but I couldn’t tell if he was trying to make me laugh or just scare me, – maybe both.

"Durk-A-Durr!!" Conner blurted out with a goofy grin on his face. He pointed the plastic gun in front of me as if I should stick my hands up and mocked my misfortunate capture.

"Guys, someone could get hurt!" I reluctantly held my hands up when he prompted me to raise them.

"Sack-a-Ya Bull-shit!! Indian Warrior Queen HI-YA!!" Savannah screamed her warcry and calling out her indian pretend name. It was obviously a dirty version of Sacajawea that they must have come up with in an earlier version of this game. Savannah fired off a stick she had been carrying at her brother and hit him square in the back.

"Run, Pocahawtass!! Run to our base!" she urged and then turned and fled deeper into the quarry.

"What, where is our base? I don't want to play this!" I called out to her, as she fled like a fox down a hole. I was ready to stop this and I wasn’t going to feed into this game by participating. These kids played way too rough for me. I hadn’t played an outside game of pretend in years and never anything quite as reckless as this.

My brother reluctantly went for my wrists to grab me while I stood there. I looked at him with pleading eyes but he seemed to think this was all in fun. I could see that Lloyd was starting to get back up and he didn’t look like he was going to quit playing anytime soon.

Instinctively you get the primal signal from your brain “Fight or Flight?” I think it is a survival instinct that is intrinsic in every human from the first generations of people. I wasn’t going to fight – so I turned on my heel and ran the way I had seen Savannah run earlier.

It wasn’t only a minute later that I came upon two boys about my age riding bikes. They caught up quickly to where I was.

"Whoa. Hey there Injun, where ya goin?" said one of the boys blocking me from running further with his bike. He treated his bike like it was a horse that he had just galloped up on.

"I am not an Injun, it's Indian anyway." I corrected "I don't want to play this game," I said without a trace of hesitation or fear. I didn’t know these boys, but it was obvious they thought I was fair-game to play with.

“Well that is too bad. You see its wild west times now," the other boy next to him replied.

"I don't really give a shit,” I instantly regretted cussing and sounding like sailor-mouth Savannah but I was furious. “I am just looking for my friend," I started to walk again around the bikes in the direction I had been headed.

"Oh, really? This here squaw got a dirty mouth!" declared the first boy.

"Yeah, she got a PURTY mouth too. What say we string her up, and bring her back for justice?" the second boy threw a corded rope around me from behind.

"Please fuck off.” I had not intended to cuss and my first thought was how wrong that sounded when I heard myself say it. I snarled and added, “You are gross and that rope is dirty! I have no idea where it's been," I struggled, even though I knew I had no chance of pulling my arms out of the rope.

I have replayed this moment in my head a dozen times and wish I had spun on my heel and kicked them in the balls like Savannah might have but I just stood there waiting for them to show the sense to stop escalating this game.

They started pulling me towards what they called "The Cowboy Base".

The cowboy base was just an old torn down tool shed inside the quarry. It was dirty, rusty, and smelled like dog piss. I was struggling and kicking but I was no Savannah. All the gyration and struggling I did only made the boys laugh and giggle at my attempts. I could not overpower one of them – much less both boys guiding me with my hands at my sides.

"Let's get her in her jail, before the outlaws ride up," said the first boy. He answered to the name “Sheriff Marshall”. I wondered why my name had to be “Poke-a-hawt-ass’ and Savannah was ‘Sack-a-Ya-Bullshit’ and this guy got to have a name like “Sheriff Marshall”.

“We don’t want her knowing how to get to the cowboy base. She might escape and tell them other Injuns! You know what to do Deputy Fester!” Marshall said to the other boy.

"Aye Aye! Captain," Fester said. He did not seem very bright and I got the distinct impression he may have been confused between pirates and cowboys. The two of them grabbed my shoulders and began to spin me in circles. I had no choice but to spin round and round for them until I was dizzy and fell on the ground to the sounds of their amused laughter.

Fester’s breath smelled like a combination of mayo, onions, and dog poop. Each time he opened his mouth to speak I could smell every one of his words.

I wanted to tell them that just making someone dizzy 15 feet away from the place you don't want them to see, won't make your base secret. It seems by the imaginary rules of games like this, that as long as they say that I won’t know where I am – then I won’t know.

I wouldn’t have actually known how to get there, even if they hadn’t spun me around until I almost threw up. I remained flat on my butt on the ground while I tried to regain my balance and composure.

"Take her sacred Indian garb!" shouted the Marshall.

It was that split-second sobering moment that I regained my composure long enough to shout “Wait, what?” as I realized I didn’t have any sacred Indian garb and they must mean my NIGHTSHIRT!

I did not have a chance to put up any fight by the time I realized what they were doing. They pulled my arms up and in a fluid motion yanked the nightshirt over my head and me up with it. I had only the bra and panties from earlier now and I was stunned they had even dared. I wondered how they could do this to me? They didn’t even know me, but their mirthful looks told me they thought I was okay with what they were doing.

"Oh no way!! You give that back!!" I pouted hopelessly. I was angry but even as I shouted at them it dawned on me they were not going to do what I told them. I knew threats wouldn’t work and flight hadn’t worked – there was only one option and that option was fight!

The boys saw me coming before my second foot ever gained traction in the dirt as I ran at them. They brushed me aside like a paper doll. They had wadded up my nightshirt and began throwing it like a ball over my head. "Keep away from the Injun!" they teased.

I had no choice but to jump for it – but I should have realized they were playing monkey in the middle with me and I never was going to catch it.

I must have looked like an idiot out there flopping around in panties and bra.

They teased me and I completely played right into their hand by running between the two of them to get my nightshirt back. I was getting worried that they would never give it back – how would I explain myself to my mom? I literally had no other clothes in the world right now.

I did not have long to panic because Deputy Fester grabbed me from behind when I ran at his friend and pulled me over to some trees and a rusted swing-set by the tool shed.

They used the rope to lash me to the tree. He pushed me up against the tree face first and wrapped the rope all the way around me and the tree – I couldn’t move my arms or pull away. The roughness of the tree bark against my bare tummy and thighs punctuated how thoroughly vulnerable I was in just the white panties and bra. I felt like crying but I wouldn't give them the satisfaction.

One of them grabbed my head and used part of my balled up nightshirt to gag me. He forced the pink cloth into my open mouth while I pleaded for him to stop. This game was no game at all!

I heard the ‘shhhhhhhh-sshhht’ of someone pulling a reel of duct tape and pulling off a piece behind me. They used duct tape to secure my wrists together and then to seal the nightgown in my mouth. The took care not to duct tape my hair, but they wrapped it all around my head and neck so that I could not spit it back out.

I was quietly thankful they didn’t think to duct tape my eyes. They weren’t being mean but they were certainly not being nice either.

I probably should have realized that I wasn’t doing myself any favors by staring daggers at them – they held all the cards and I was making them hoot and grin instead of intimidating them. They laughed at my fury while I struggled to free myself. My legs were still free so I tried a few back kicks. I just wasn't as limber as Savannah and my kicks were more like awkward flailing that caused giggles at how ineffective they were.

I stopped kicking after the fourth wildly inaccurate back kick. I felt fingers touching my back and pulling up my bra-strap and running under it. "Oh shit, this is one of those new-fangled 20^th century bras, Deputy Fester. How do I unhook these straps".

Sheriff Marshall fumbled with my bra-strap, trying to first pull it apart and then pushing it close together – it was clear he had no idea how to unsnap it. If I wasn’t completely gagged and bound I would have had a smug look of satisfaction on my face at how inept he was.

"We could cut it off?" the Deputy suggestion. The very thought of them cutting it off sent shivers down my spine. I did not even think about what that meant in front of these boys. My mind instantly jumped to explaining how I had no bra when I went home and whether I’d even show my face.

"Nah, that would be obscene." I breathed a sigh of relief. I felt the boys were just trying to scare me and there were clearly limits to this game. There was nothing stopping them from cutting it off me, but I smiled when I heard how he said it would be obscene and rejected the idea. I got the impression that they didn’t want me to know they drew the line where they had.

That is until I heard Sheriff Marshall add “Besides, I think I can get the hook" and with that he pushed in the hook and pulled it apart, releasing the tension on the bra and pulled it right off of me. I was instantly aware of the gritty tree-bark on my bare nipples. I had been aware the cold air could stiffen them in minutes but I was genuinely surprised the sudden exposure to the bark of the tree would do the same thing.

"Panties too?" the Deputy asked while I murmured and mewled into the gag for them not to do that.

I wanted very much for there to be nice and fair limits to this game. I had been wrong about the bra and lulled into a false sense of security that I was just being teased before.

I wanted to be lulled for a moment longer about the panties and cling to any remaining dignity I could. Instead, I heard the words I did not want to hear "Yeah,” from the Sheriff.

The word struck me like a ton of bricks and I felt my body shiver and butterflies began trying desperately to start an earthquake in my tummy. I hate to admit that I thought a tiny amount of pee escaped my bladder.

I want to point out it wasn’t a long stream, it was just a tiny peep-squirt from shock.

I was mortified.

“Squaws have been known to smuggle spears in there." The Sheriff explained as if that were even remotely plausible. He put his thumbs on either side of my panties and yanked down while I squirmed and screamed harder into the gag.

They paid no attention at all to my pleading – I could have stopped and told them I wanted this and it would have changed nothing about the experience; because telling them ‘no’ certainly had no effect.

I pressed myself tighter against the tree – hugging it like a mighty giant grandfather who was going to protect me from the mean old boys who had just removed the last scrap of clothes I had.

I took a tiny amount of solace that they could only see my bare butt and they had chosen to tie me facing the tree.

"Smells pretty good," one of them was sniffing my panties. “I think she might have peed in them,” it was Fester laughing at me. I was literally mortified that they had any business smelling my intimates.

"Do it now!" Lloyd shouted from a distance and my captors went silent.

"Got the jump on you, Marshall,” Lloyd declared like a dashing hero coming to my rescue. “It is your old nemah..nemorsize.. nemo-sis.." Lloyd was clearly trying to say the word nemesis but he finally chose ‘enemy’ and stepped out of the tree line.

The boys started to make gunshot sounds with their mouths. I heard what sounded like actual fighting as well, as the boys put up a resistance against Lloyd and what I can only assume is my brother. I wanted to see what was going on but facing the tree as I was I could only use my peripheral vision.

That is if I hadn’t squeezed my eyes tightly shut wishing this was all just a bad dream.

I could only imagine the look on Conner’s face as he saw my bare bottom sticking out as it was. I was consciously aware that while I don’t have big boobs, I do have a well-rounded bubble butt.

The fight was over very quickly, but there was quiet and I wondered who had won.

I could feel Lloyd’s beefy hands comfort my shoulders and I relaxed a bit. My cousin had an honest face and he was family. I knew when he put the knife to my throat it was to scare me and part of his game and I felt safe with his touch.

He spun me around gently with the rope still wrapped around me; so that instead of pinning me by my back, it pinned me across my belly.

I still had my eyes shut tightly – I didn’t want to open them. I think in my panic I was hoping that as long as I could not see them – they could not see me. I know that sounds silly now, but when your adrenalin is pumping, your mind can work in funny ways.

I felt a knife reach behind me and cut the duct tape off my wrists. I sighed a breath of relief, even though I knew both he and Conner had a full view of me from the front.

I was brave enough now to open my eyes slightly, now that all that remained to be removed was my gag.

The look on their face was triumph; but there was a malicious grin on both of their faces as they pressed in close to stare at me. I was now acutely aware they hadn’t rescued me. They were not trying to free me. They were simply adjusting me so I could face away from the tree.

Conner pulled my hands in front of me and reapplied the duct tape. Lloyd was now answering only to Deadeye Dick.

Conner did not look me in the eye but he kept his wicked grin on his face and managed a ridiculous country accent to say "Dammit, the first time I get to see an actual girl’s bare boobs and they are my sister’s."

Lloyd laughed and said “I think first set of jugs I saw belonged to my sister too,” he gave him a slap on the back.

Lloyd took a long inventory of my body. He stared me up and down and he saw that I was furiously murmuring, but it only filled my nightshirt with saliva as it muted my screams and pleas.

He grinned at me and I thought he might have winked. “You know Deadeye, Injuns run fastest when necked.” I thought they were about to make me run to prove it.

“It makes ‘em harder to track when they aint got nothing on to catch on trees and branches. They can move like the wild animal ya’ see.” He pantomimed a bear or a panther or some combination. “You reckon we ought to let this one have her clothes back, but only so we can follow her to the Indian base without losing her in them woods?"

Conner grinned at Lloyd and answered "Whatever you say, Dread-eye". Conner was only half-playing along, that much was obvious because Lloyd reminded him it was Deadeye.

“Oh yes, Deadeye, sorry,” Conner accepted the correction.

Deadeye Lloyd pulled the duct tape from my face, making me screech "YE-OW" as I spit my nightshirt onto the ground.

"Indian War Cry," he explained to my brother about my yelp. He had a swagger in his voice as if he had expected that sound to come from my lips and he was explaining to this ‘tenderfoot’ how the west works.

"Game’s over! Come on! Give me my clothes back!!" I pleaded and pined with true anger.

"Outlaws don't GIVE anything. We TAKE," Lloyd replied. I finally figured out what Lloyd reminded me of. He reminded of the actor Matthew McConaughey in every role he has ever played. He was aloof, seemed stupid, and laid back, but with an edge of danger about him.

He was also incredibly handsome and shirtless.

Lloyd cut the rope around my belly that bound me to this tree. The scratchy bark no longer pushed into my butt cheeks. He scooped up my bra and panties with a fluid motion and then he and my brother ran into the tree line, leaving me standing there naked and alone.

I thought briefly about just moving into this old toolshed. I imagined a kindly yet solitary workman in a blacksmith apron who must have maintained this shed when the quarry was operational. I imagined he had a mustache and a bald head and took great pride in whatever it is he did in there.

I thought “I’ll just live the rest of my life inside this shed and hunt or something for food because I’ll be gosh-darned if I am going to run into these woods naked after Lloyd and Conner.”

Ten-seconds later I rushed into the brambles and bushes after Lloyd and Conner.

I was absolutely livid with the two of them!

The sane move might have been to turn and run for help. My logic was that the four of these boy had already seen me naked so it wasn’t going to kill me if they saw me again. My logic also dictated that the next time they saw me it would be with me bringing down the sweet hammer of vengeance on them to demand they give back all of my clothes AND apologize for putting me through this.

I fantasized about that while I ran and almost forgot the little nicks and cuts on my feet and thighs from the different branches that lashed out. I stopped a few times when I stepped on something icky or sharp; and would get jarred back to reality that I was running naked through the woods of some abandoned quarry.

I was not only running naked but I was bouncing as I ran. I may wear an A-cup, but without a bra they bounced up and down as I jogged after them like a huntress. I was keenly aware that my butt was also bouncing and clapping open and shut with each running step I took.

I was not thinking straight and clearly I had no time to be a modest little teenage girl who should be terrified and running for her life.

I was determined to get my bra and panties back. It might have been the way they had been taken from me. It may have been the feeling of betrayal that caused my heart to sink when my brother even helped in my humiliation.

It may have been the realization I just couldn’t get through the entire trailer park and back to our trailer and face my parents without a stitch on.

I think it was mostly the fact this was the very last thing I owned in the world and I just wasn’t letting the Buckman take that from me as well.

Unfortunately for me I just couldn't catch Lloyd and Conner. I soon lost the two of them in the thickets and briars that surrounded the outskirts of the quarry.

I found out the hard way, with a thorn in the butt, that you just can’t go crashing through those things even in clothes. I lost very valuable time stopping and trying to twist around and pinch and squeeze that thorn from my very pink behind.

I realized they had won this round of whatever game we were playing once I plucked it out. I just walked back to the old shed.

I was beaten and demoralized. I had cuts and knicks and tiny little holes from thorns and I was breathing heavy. I flicked my own nipple when I looked down playfully and realized I was completely alone and naked in the woods. “How ridiculous is this?” I thought to myself of the absurd situation I found myself in.

A few weeks before I had been in school and living in a big house in the suburbs and my biggest problem was what after-school activity I wanted to focus on, track or 4-H club.

Now I was looking at my semi-hard pink nipples as I looked at the ground and walked around this secluded woods without a clue what I was doing or how to get home.

It was at that moment I heard Savannah call out “"Pocahawtass, stop playing with your tits and come on!” She was standing by a tree just five feet away from me and laughing. She made a sound like an owl, as if I might not have realized it was her and needed confirmation.

The quarry winds along down in a circular pattern along dirt trails that end up in a big pit and Savannah’s tree was on the level just above mine.

"What are you supposed to be, Woodsy Owl?" I asked her in anger. I put my hands on my hips and stopped walking as I looked up at her in the tree.

Savannah laughed as if she approved of my response. "Don't go that way," she spoke in the sing song way a television Indian speaks English. "Many pale faces there," she pointed in the direction of the cowboy base.

I looked up at her with a shrug because I wasn’t sure what way we should go and I was expecting she might know.

She threw down a dirty rope from the tree. I looked at it and asked "Climb that? Naked?"

"You got better idea?" she said, which sounded kind of funny in the Indian voice. (I guess you had to be there). The best way I can describe it is imagine Tonto from the Lone Ranger if he was a 16 year old teenage girl from the south.

She jerked the rope with her hand to signal I should hurry up.

I curled my lip, took a deep breath, shut my eyes and leaped onto the rope. I hugged it with my legs and began to shimmy up. I left a mark of dirt and grime between my boobs and began to pull myself up with the expertise of an Olympic climber.

At least I thought I was pulling myself up. I finally opened my eyes and realized I was just inches off the ground.

"She wagon-wheels," Savannah offered in her comically-ridiculous American Indian accent. Savannah turned and fled once again as she looked off in the distance and made haste from branch to branch away from me – leaving me on the rope.

She had obviously saw Conner and Lloyd running up on us because they doubled back and had just emerged from the bushes.

"Conner! You better give me my clothes back!" I scolded angrily pointing my finger at him.

My brother smiled sweetly without an ounce of remorse. "Sure!" he offered my stuff to me to me – sans the nightshirt.

I did not expect it to be that easy. The fact that he just offered my bra and panties to me without hesitation took all of the wind out of my sails.

Taking my undergarments I decided to be a good sport and say "Thank you - very much white man," in Savannah's pedantic Indian accent. It seemed the least I could do since he was being nice.

"Yah, game is over, the other guys had to go." Lloyd answered calmly without his cowboy accent.

Savannah re-emerged from a tree branch. She had been hiding almost in plain sight and no one had seen her overhead. "Oh shit, well you didn't catch me!!" she was holding a water balloon and launched it at her brother. It struck him in the shoulder. "I had one boulder left!" she announced as if it was fair she throw it now.

"Look, no one told me the rules. Why are there boulders? And REAL knives?" I said as I bent at the knee to put on my panties and get my bra on as quickly as I could manage.

I did not get a response. I looked up when I pulled my panties all the way up and Conner and Lloyd were already gone. Savannah was standing in front of me with my bra in her hand.

I just cocked my head and looked at her and she handed it to me to put on.

"They went back home. Come on and let's go!" she wanted me to run with her to the entrance but she wasn’t giving me time to even snap my bra back on.

"Hang on, I need my nightshirt." I called after her. I didn’t want to get lost in the quarry but I was surely not leaving this place as I was.

"Leave it. It's gay," she said and clearly meaning she thought it looked stupid. I knew some gay kids at school and I had trained myself never to call something stupid ‘gay’. I just shook my head but at the same time the Strawberry Shortcake nightshirt probably was ‘gay’.

It was all I had though.

"You'll lend me something of yours?" I pleaded trying to snap the bra and run after her.

"Have you won the game of Life yet?" she replied patiently without looking back.

"Savannah, I need it to walk home!" I insisted and stopped following her. I was going to walk back to the tool shed and try to find it.

"Why?" her question drawn out in a slinky, almost sultry southern drawl; so that it was spoken "Whuh-Eye". She had turned around it was her turn to put her hands on her hips and challenge me.

"Well,” I sighed as if this should have been obvious. “For one - because I am in bra and panties, sweaty dirty ones at that and for two - who knows if those boys will catch me and try to rape me!”

"Oh my god, they did not rape you," Savannah said dismissively as if such a fear was completely unfounded. I have to admit I never thought they would rape me, but I was afraid they might have done something to me! I was actually strangely surprised I got away without being groped.

"Were you there? They tied me up like they would do it!" I insisted.

"It is the GAME! It is imaginary! They won't kill you or rape you. We have all skinny dipped out here and been Injuns before and Cops and Robbers. We are just playing you dumb butt." Savannah didn’t understand why I was making a big deal out of what had happened but I felt perfectly justified and didn’t see why she was not.

"I see,” I answered as I continued to walk in the other direction away from the quarry entrance. “Coppers and Robbers is the same game as Cowboys and Indians, but the Robbers get naked?” I guessed.

"Fuck no! At the Fuckman, the Robbers are the good guys! The pigs get naked!" she corrected while laughing and oinking.

"Well, I don't care. I need my shirt, my mom will have a cow if I come home like this." I put my nose up and pouted – I probably looked like a spoiled city kid but at that point that is probably what I was.

"What are you supposed to be? Bart Simpson?" Savannah called after me to wait. "Look, the boys have gone and it is lunch time. You didn't eat our delicious breakfast," she said sarcastically. "You have ta’ be hungry - hold up. Stand ‘look-out’ for a second?" she asked.

I stopped and turned around to face Savannah looking around conspiratorially from left to right before backing up and squatting in the bushes. "I've got to pee, real fast."

It only took her thirty seconds and she had apparently finished and pulled her pants back up.

"Aren't you going to wipe?" I asked. I could hardly believe it had to be said out loud.

"Did you have some Charmin 2-ply with you?" her answer was laced with annoyance. She shrugged "Air dry. You gotta do what you gotta do. I'll take off the jeans when I get home." She started to head uphill along the path out of the quarry and asked me if I was coming.

"No! I'll look for my nightshirt," I replied stubbornly.

“God-damn,” Savannah slapped a mosquito on her arm. “I know I am fucking sweet and delicious, but come the fuck on, mosquitoes.” She seemed as annoyed with me as she did with the mosquito on her arm.

"Suit yourself, Thumbelina," she said with a wink as she turned around to walk the other direction. "You can find your own way out!" and she began to jog away from me.

I wondered if I had made the right decision to stay and look for the nightgown. Then I realized ‘Of course I have! I am in bra and panties for crying out loud. What other choice do I have?’

The quarry is a maze of winding trails that all spiral to the bottom. You would think it is difficult to get lost because they all have a common terminus at their end. However, I twice got lost but eventually I found the ‘cowboy base’, which was in reality a rusty old shed.

I found the "lasso" the boys had used, laying on the ground. There were several rolls of duct tape, some old wooden spoons and a few things shaped like objects I didn't even want to think about, but the nightshirt was nowhere to be seen.

I spent at least 20 more minutes walking around out the hot and humid quarry with only my bra and cotton panties on. I was sweaty and I had no deodorant – I was also well aware of the very feminine musky smell from my panties. I felt like this was a dream I couldn't wake up from.

I became frustrated enough to give up my search. I concluded one of those boys must have taken the nightgown or it may have fallen into the briars and thorn bushes that grew around the quarry.

I was not sure how I was getting back to the trailer but I could not stay here. It was probably close to well afternoon. I could only hope my parents weren’t home yet. Aunt Crystal is fairly permissive – perhaps she really will say nothing about what I had on. Even if Savannah wanted to be a meanie about her clothes I could appeal to her mother not to make me parade around in bra and panty forever.

I had a funny thought that even if I had found the night shirt – it was my only outfit. I pictured myself growing old wearing the thing because I never got any new clothes. I had a silent chuckle as I walked uphill back to the top of the quarry.

I realized I had gone down much further than I thought I had. The perspective from the top is that it is not very deep, until you realize how narrow and winding the paths are that lead to the bottom. My legs were getting sore and tired as I tried to keep myself amused and my mind off of the many problems I faced getting back to the trailer – if I could even remember where it was.

The paths were a soft brown clay and they didn't feel so bad on my sore feet. "Oh my feet!" I wish I hadn’t thought about the clay because I was suddenly aware of the pain of running around with no shoes all day long in the woods and hot pavement.

My cousins had callouses on the bottom of their feet from a life here in the Buckman. I was stuck with having my tender feet pulverized and burned and feeling each tiny rock, pebble and scratch as I padded along.

I was also aware that one of the thorns had caught me squarely in the butt cheek, another in the leg and I had a few tiny scratches as well.

It would take another 20 minutes to find my way out of the quarry pit. It was made that much harder by walking UP the sloping roads as opposed to running down them.

Climbing past the "Cock Quarry" sign and into the trailer park I was suddenly aware that I was lost and had no idea what street was what. There was a shimmering sea of trailer park homes all looking fairly identical – faded white rectangle metal boxes with zero lot lawns. The street names were confusing - there was cherry lane, cherry street, cherry avenue and once they merged and the names became something else entirely. It reminded me of my home in Cherry Lawn Estates and how I might never see it again and that made me feel melancholy most of all.

There had not been time on the way to the quarry for me to get my head around any landmarks to find my way back. I had never thought I would be trying to find my way back alone after just one day living here.

I was in cotton panties and a bra and I just stood at the fence of the quarry for a good ten minutes thinking what my plan was going to be.

In Cherry Lawn Estates I couldn’t imagine anyone getting away with going around like I was. There were joggers and people walking their dogs or mowing their lawns at this time of day and someone would most likely call the law if they saw me hustling along as I was.

I tried to rationalize that a bikini had about as much material as what I had on. However, most people had the good sense to wear a cover up on the way to the community pool; and the bra and panties I had on were obviously a bra and panty set.

Ultimately, I decided that I would never get home if I just stood there and waited. I would have two options, because trying to hide in the bushes was not going to work; since there simply wasn’t enough lawn or bushes to make an attempt.

The choices boiled down to either I could run like the dickens at random, in the hopes I was heading in the right general direction, or walk purposefully as if I meant to dress this way.

I knew that despite my track background I could not maintain the pace of running and I was probably only going to draw more attention to myself. A strange girl running in bra and panties was probably running away from someone chasing her.

As unlikely a choice as it might have been, there seemed to be one clear option. I would have to walk as if I meant to leave the house this way and find my way ‘home’ to my Aunt’s house. She had gone out in her thong this morning, which was far less than I had on, and that made me think that I might be able to do it without being noticed too much.

Naturally, I was very wrong about that.

A lot of the people who live at the Buckman must not work a 9 to 5 job. I don’t want to say unemployed and living off government assistance, because that makes me sound like a snob; but I will go ahead and say that is what a lot of them do.

Unlike the joggers, dog-walkers and lawn-tenders of the suburban community I grew up in, most of the denizens of this trailer park spend their days sitting on chairs outside on their patio.

I received my first cat-call and whistle having only progressed three trailers from the Quarry pit. I did not look at them or even acknowledge them which only strengthened their resolve for me to hear “Oh sweety, come and tricker-treat at muh’ place! Are you dressed as Brittany Spears?”

How behind the times was this place that they were still talking about Brittany Spears? I would have expected in this day and age to ask if I was Miley Cyrus – I must have OCD to wonder things like that.

Where I come from, boys wear trucker hats that say ‘John Deere’ across them because they are what is known as ‘Hipsters’. The ones who wear those hats here aren’t doing it ironically.

I saw my first one bent over an old Chevy muscle car coated in only grey primer. He looked up at me as I walked by and made a ‘shick-shick’ sound with his mouth and nodded “Looking Good, senorita.”

I didn’t answer him. Instead, I thanked my lucky stars he didn’t start chasing me down the street or call the police. I found it interesting that he didn’t find it that shocking at all to see me barefoot walking down his street in just a bra and panties, as if that were totally normal.

I made it two more streets with just the occasional humiliating acknowledgment from someone on their patio. An old man followed me from his trailer after I failed to respond to “Hey there girl, you want a banana split?”

I thought to myself ‘How foul? I think I know what banana he wants to show me.’

He made no attempt to hide his leering and laughter and followed me another five trailers before I started to jog just a little. I think the secret kryptonite weapon here in the Buckman might be if they actually have to put any effort in, beyond the minimum, most will give up.

I did not look back, but eventually when I turned on to another street I saw that he had long since turned around and headed back to his trailer.

I silently whispered to myself "Hard times at the Buckman." as I looked at how I was dressed and wondered how was I going to explain this when I got back?

I quietly prayed that my parents were not home yet and quickened my steps.