Wrestling Against Myself (60 page)

Tony smiled. “Your mom is right. You're my girlfriend because I like you, a lot. When I met you, I didn't plan on developing feelings for you.”

“Because of my condition,” Courtney interrupted as she looked toward the area in question.

“Not at all,” Tony couldn't stress his answer strongly enough. “My main concern was that you're a lowly freshman and I'm a senior. Almost like robbing the cradle.”

“You're not expecting me to suck my thumb are you?”

Tony let out a bellowing laugh. “Good one.”

“I bet you never thought you'd date a transsexual.”

“That's certainly a big word for a little girl.”

Courtney scrunched up her face at him in that certain way that Tony found cute. “Honestly, though, I bet you didn't.”

“To be honest, if you asked me before the year began, I would have doubted I was dating anyone. But I don't see you as a transsexual or whatever label you put on yourself. I see you as Courtney, a girl that has captured an important part of my heart.”

Courtney turned red as she kept her eyes glued to Tony. She didn't even notice he had pulled into her driveway. “You certainly have a way with words.”

“I try my best. We better not keep your mom
waiting; I already see her peeking through the blinds.”

Courtney snapped her head forward and noticed she was looking at her own garage door. “Oh,” she blushed. “We wouldn't want that.”

Tony got out of the car, walked around and opened the door for her. Courtney was getting use to being treated like a young lady and enjoyed the small gestures of chivalry from her boyfriend.

“I know my mom's been dying to talk to you ever since all this happened.”

“Ut-oh,” Tony said. “I smell a lecture coming on.”

“My mom isn't like that,” Courtney said as she paused in front of the door.

“All parents are like that. I'm the big bad wolf looking to swipe their precious baby away.”

“Back to me being a baby again? Do you have issues I need to know about?”

“I don't think so.”

The two teens were laughing as they entered the house.

“What's so funny?” Mrs. Barnes asked as soon as she saw them.

“Just joking around,” Tony answered and tried to get serious.

“Tiny thinks I'm a toddler,” Courtney announced.

“I do not. I said I was robbing the cradle.”

Mrs. Barnes raised an eyebrow at the two. “Robbing the cradle or not, I think me and Mr. Tiny need to have a talk, without little snoops eavesdropping this time.”

“Oh.” Courtney pouted. “But your talk has to do about me,” she added in a whine.

“None of that,” she scolded. “There are some things that need to be straightened out between a boy and his girlfriend's mother that she doesn't need to know about.”

Tony took a hard gulp. He wanted to tell Courtney he was right, he was about to be lectured, but he figured it wouldn't be appreciated if he said it in front of her mom. He did make a mental note to point it out to her later. Sometimes he found it a pain to be right about certain things.

“Let's go to the den, Mr. Tiny. It's harder for Courtney to sneak a listen there, even though she is going to be in her room getting out of her school clothes.”

Courtney picked up on the hint. “Yes ma'am.”

Tony watched as his girlfriend shuffled her feet towards her bedroom before following her mother into the den. The smell from vanilla candles was still powerful, but not as bad as the first time when he came over; he could only assume the house was aired out prior to his arrival.

“Have a seat,” Mrs. Barnes instructed as she closed the door behind her and locked the door to keep her daughter from accidentally walking in on them.

Antonio looked at the woman suspiciously and then at the door.

“Courtney has a habit of cracking the door open so she can listen in on private conversations and I never know until it’s too late.”

“Okay.” There was an uneasiness about Tony's voice.

“You're not in trouble or anything,” Mrs. Barnes reassured. “I just wanted to have a serious talk with you about recent events.”

“I assumed that much,” Tony said, hoping he didn't come off as flippant.

“Mr. Tiny, when you were here a few weeks ago, do you remember me asking what your intentions were with my daughter?”

“I remember something like that, yeah.”

“And what did you say?”

“Probably that I wanted to be her friend.”

“That sounds about right. Were you lying when you told me your interest in my daughter was simply Platonic?”

Tony shook his head. “No.”

“Are you still only friends with my daughter?”

Tony wondered if the woman was trained in interrogation by the sheriff's office. “Not exactly.”

“From what I hear, you went from being friends to going steady awfully fast.”

“I didn't plan on it that way.” Tony squirmed in seat. “It just kind of happened.”

“And kissing her? Did that just kind of happened too?”

Tony nodded. “Yes ma'am.”

“And how many times have you kissed my daughter?”

“Just once, honest.”

A smug grin appeared on Mrs. Barnes face, she was enjoying herself. “And during this just once kiss, where were your hands.”

Tony tilted his head and looked at the woman in confusion.

“Your hands, Mr. Tiny. Where were they?”

Tony thought back on the kiss he and Courtney shared. Usually when he thought back to that day it brought a smile to his face, but now he was scrutinizing the situation. Just where exactly where his hands anyway? “I kind of had my arms wrapped around her in a hug, so I guess my hands were touching my own arms.”

“So they didn't venture anywhere they weren't suppose to.”

Tony shook his head vehemently. “No ma'am.”

“You didn't try to, oh, how do you kids put it these days, cop a feel?”

“Oh, no ma'am. I would never.”

“But the thought crossed your mind, didn't it?”

“No. That's not the way I go about things.”

“Good. I wanted to hear it for myself. You have a reputation for being a good guy, but sometimes those reputations are a ruse for a guy who takes certain liberties and I don't think Courtney is prepared for that sort of thing. She wouldn't have the faintest idea how to ward off any advances. But I do.”

“Okay.” Tony could sense an implied threat but didn't know exactly what that threat was.

“I like you Tiny. You're a good guy, very popular, but I wouldn't be a good mother if I didn't make one thing perfectly clear. If you ever take liberties with my daughter, you can expect a visit from two of my closest friends.”

“Two of your friends.”

“You would know them as Smith and Wesson.”

“I think I catch your meaning,” Tony said with a gulp. He wasn't use to parents taking this approach with him.

Mrs. Barnes smiled warmly as she paced around the room. “You realize I am obligated to give that speech right?” 

“I've had similar. None with the threat of being shot though.”

“Just a momma bear protecting her cub. So Mr. Tiny,” Mrs. Barnes sat down in a chair opposite the teenager. “How did you decide to start going steady with my daughter?”

“I didn't decide. It just happened. I wasn't planning on it, but I developed feelings for her and it was the right thing to do.”

“The relationship confuses the heck out of my husband and I.”

“I can't say that I understand it myself. Sometimes things happen and you go with the flow.”

“You're telling me, with no previous plan, you found yourself in the position to kiss my daughter.”

Tony grinned. “Exactly. Until that moment I didn't even consider Courtney in that way.”

“Because she is a,” Mrs. Barnes let the final word go unspoken.

“Not at all,” Tony said as he filled in the blank. “If it was anything it was the fact that she is a freshman and I'm a senior. Before hand, I thought of her as a kid sister, I didn't know the other feelings were there as well. Probably a good thing if I don't see her in a swimsuit while we're alone together though, I don't need that kind of temptation in my life.”

“Took you by surprise, did it?”

The tone of the conversation changed, and Tony relaxed. He was no longer being interrogated, and Mrs. Barnes was trying to be a confidant. “I know what she has said about herself, about her anatomy,” Antonio measured his words carefully. “I prepared myself for seeing some evidence that what she told me was true, but even in the tight swimsuit, she looked nothing but the girl that she is. That might have taken me off guard a bit. It's like when on Christmas, you open up a box and expect to find a pair of shoes, but find that gift you've been begging for all year.”

“So Courtney is a gift.”

“Don't you agree?”

“Of course I do, but I'm her mother, I'm supposed to. By the way, with that kiss you totally validated her existence as a girl.”

Tony sat back and thought on Mrs. Barnes last sentence. “I would hope it wasn't just that.”

“She knows who she is, and she's working on coming to terms with everything. You can understand she has a fear of not being accepted by society. I think she had a notion in her mind that considering her situation, she would never have the kind of relationship she finds herself in. If it were with another boy, I might be wary, but your reputation precedes you.”

“Good thing for that, it would be my loss if I didn't get to know Courtney better.”

“I do have one favor to ask though,” Mrs. Barnes turned serious again.

“Sure.”

“This is new to Courtney, more than any other girl who is just getting into her first serious relationship. A lot of girls have some experience, even if it’s only a little, to build upon to learn how to go about things. Courtney is learning everything on the fly and you wouldn't believe the amount of questions she has about how to continue. Please, take things slow with her and don't be frustrated if it takes her a little while to catch on how to do things.”

“Has she mentioned something?”

“No. You've been great so far in that respect. I only wanted to bring it to your attention.”

“I'll do my best. Besides, it might be fun teaching her.”

Mrs. Barnes raised an eyebrow at the teenager.

“That probably didn't come out the right way.”

“Luckily I figured out what you meant before getting my two close friends.”

Tony grinned sheepishly.

“Let's not keep the princess waiting, we've tortured her enough.”

“Have you started shopping for a homecoming dress?” Tony asked as he sat on the couch with his arm around Courtney.