I gasped, a standard and genuine reaction when I see a guy finish—and hesitated—not sure what the desired response would be. I finally smiled, a smirk that spread over my whole face. “Wow,” I gushed. “That was impressive.” I tried to maintain my snobby, condescending exterior, but added some grudging approval, and he seemed to enjoy the reaction, rubbing his dick with a white towel and leaning forward, giving me a brief glimpse of tan, muscular chest before his cam went dark.
threeinchpenis: thx bb. that was great.
I opened my mouth to respond, but he was gone.
———PRIVATE CHAT ENDED BY threeinchpenis. 11min56sec
———RETURN TO FREE CHAT?
I clicked on the yes button, pasted a smile on my face, and waved enthusiastically to the cam in front of me, greeting the waiting clients who filled the free chat room.
Eleven minutes. Amount charged to his credit card: $76.89. My cut from the bastards that own the camsite: $21.53.
CHAPTER 14: Annie
At 5:30 p.m. relatives started arriving. Uncle Frank was the first, taking off his worn baseball cap in the front doorway, smiling shyly at Annie, and holding out a small, yellow-wrapped present, which looked like it had been wrapped with half a roll of tape. She squealed excitedly, wrapping her small arms around his waist, smelling the cigarette and earth smell that always followed him. She beamed up at him, grabbing the present and shook it excitedly. “Thank you Uncle Frank.” He squeezed the back of her neck and grinned down at her.
“You’re welcome sweetie.” He crouched down, so they were eye to eye. “You want to open it now?”
Her eyes widened. “Can I?” she whispered.
“Sure. Let’s sit on the back step, and get out of everyone’s way.” He straightened, holding his hand out, and she slid her tiny one into his, and tugged, pulling him through the small living room and to the worn-out back door.
They sat close, heads together, legs touching, on the small concrete step of the back stoop.
CHAPTER 15
When I went to my grandparents’ house that weekend—the weekend—when Mom went mad and killed everyone, they were surprised to see me. That should have been my first sign that something was wrong.
“Deanna?” My grandmother peered at me through the screen door, squinting like she was having trouble seeing me. She pushed the screen door out, looking at me, then my suitcase, her expression confused. “Is everything okay?” I stepped forward, hugging her tightly, and planted a quick kiss on her soft, fragile cheek.
“Hey Nana.” I reached down, grabbing my suitcase handle and dragged it forward, toward the front door. “Mom said I was spending the weekend with you guys.”
Her face showed surprise, but she quickly recovered. “Oh! Well, come in, dear. Don’t worry about that suitcase. I’ll have your grandfather grab it.” She ushered me inside, pulling the farmhouse door shut behind us, the smell of mothballs and old books hitting my senses as I stood in the foyer, and she scurried around me, turning on lights and adjusting the thermostat.
My family lay dead in our home for almost an entire day before a next-door neighbor who, while on a walk, saw blood splatter on the kitchen window. The neighbor looked in the window and saw my sister, Summer, slumped over the kitchen table, a congealed pool of blood around her head. My grandparents and I were at church when the police came to notify us. They waited at the house, and when we returned from church they sat, two uniformed officers on the porch, a black and white car parked near the mailbox. Nana clutched her chest as soon as we pulled in.
The men stood as our car came to a stop, and Papa put it in park. We opened the doors slowly, none of us wanting to know why they were here. As soon as I saw their faces, I knew they brought bad news. We all knew.
Nana held onto my grandfather’s arm, and they approached the two uniforms. I could see the weight of uncertainty and fear on my grandparents’ shoulders. I moved past them, up the steps, opening the unlocked front door, and headed up the wide stairs to change out of my church clothes. I wanted to put as much distance as possible in between them and me. As I climbed the stairs, a trickle of blood dripped from my right ear.
My grandparents delivered the news to me after the policemen left, sitting me down in their formal living room, their voices shaking and eyes weeping. I had no reaction; I said nothing when they told me. My grandfather repeated the news, looking into my eyes to be sure I understood. I sat there in silence for a full minute, then a wail bubbled up in me, and once I started sobbing, I couldn’t get myself to stop.
I stayed at my grandparents until I graduated from high school, before I moved out. That was when I enrolled in community college, using the small amount that remained from my parents’ life insurance. There wasn’t much left after paying for four burials.
CHAPTER 16: RalphMA35
AGEPLAY: A form of roleplaying in which an individual acts or treats another as if they were a different age. Ageplay is between adults and involves consent from all parties. Typically, ageplay involves someone pretending to be younger than they actually are.4 Pedophilia is not the same as ageplay, but ageplay can be an indicator of pedophilic tendencies.5
10:49 p.m. I smile brightly at the webcam on my pink bed because he hasn’t yet asked me to move. He did ask me to take off my shorts, which I tossed onto the floor.
RalphMA35: do u have something else 2 wear?
I smile. “Sure. What kind of thing do you like?”
RalphMA35: maybe a tshirt. something pink, with ruffles