Chapter 13: A Heart Bared
#13 of All In the Family
Chapter 13: A Heart Bared
Breakfast the following morning at the Harris house was an awkward affair. The family of four sat at the table, and in the cool shadows of the dining hall, no one seemed able to look at anyone else. John sat at the head of the table, slumped over a plate of scrambled eggs and pancakes with a very obvious hangover. His dark mane was a mess and he even had bags under his eyes. He didn't look at anyone but managed to pass David and Debra a few furtive looks that were apologetic and guilty. Debra sat on John's right, and after glancing between her husband and daughter, what had happened between them slowly dawned on her. She looked at John with blazing eyes, and shocking everyone at the table, she suddenly gave him a sharp slap.
"You son of a bitch," Debra whispered in the pregnant pause that followed. Tears filled her eyes and her fangs flashed in a sudden sneer.
John dragged a miserable paw over his eyes, his cheek blaring red beneath the fur where Debra had slapped him. "Deb, honey . . . I . . . was half-drunk . . . and she . . ."
"Let me guess," Debra hissed, her head wagging within her thick mane, her paw tight on her fork, "Tammy came on to you? Typical arrogant lies! Males!"
David sat opposite his stepmother, his blue eyes fixed in rigid trepidation on the fork in her paw. He wished Debra would put that fork down: the last thing he wanted was to have to call the police because Debra stabbed John.
Sitting next to David, Tammy looked just as worried. But she also looked so miserable and guilty that Debra stared at her daughter in amazement.
". . . you fucked my husband?" Debra whispered, her light green eyes going wide. "You fucking - you slut!"
Tammy winced as Debra said loudly, "Has everyone in this family lost their mind!" She pointed her fork across the table at Tammy and added, "Well, that's the last straw, young lady! I'm sending your nasty behind to your father and he can deal with your trifling shit! That's it! I've had it with all of this --!"
"Debbie, calm down," John said wearily to his plate.
Glancing at his father, David felt the rage melt from his heart: John was as much a victim of his complete lack of self-control as his son. He sat at the head of the table, his face bleeding with the tiny scratches Debra's long pink nails had left when she'd slapped him. And he looked so tired and depressed. In that moment, David couldn't be mad at his father.
But Debra could. She looked at John as if he'd lost his mind, and with flashing fangs, snarled, "You're telling me to calm down? John! You fucked my daughter! No - by the looks of it - my daughter fucked you! How the hell am I supposed to react? Am I supposed to smile and shrug it off and keep living under this roof with you --?!"
"Why not?" John cut across her. He lifted his head, and for the first time since the night before, he was angry. "I went on living with you after you fucked my son!"
Debra tasted blood when her fangs nipped her tongue: John had roared the last words at her, and she had flinched. She put a shaking paw to her eyes and did not look at anyone.
Tammy glared at David, her eyes suddenly watery with tears. "You lied to me," she whispered, then loudly, "You lied to me!"
Before David could get a word in, Tammy threw her orange juice in his face. Then she shot from the table and from the room.
David shuffled from the room as well, but not to go after Tammy. He was sick of all of it suddenly. He went to the kitchen instead and wiped his face and shirt with the dish towel. He could hear John and Debra bickering in the dining hall until they were suddenly roaring at each other. Glass started shattering, followed immediately by a stream of curses, and David knew that Debra had thrown her glass at John. They roared even louder now, the sound of chairs scraping across the floor, Debra's jewelry jingling, and then a choked cry. He didn't! David flew back into the dining hall, intent on protecting Debra from John, but he skidded to a halt to realize that John was only shaking Debra by the arm.
"Shut the fuck up!" he was roaring, shaking her by the upper arm until her jewelry and mane tossed against her. "I said shut the fuck up or I swear to god --"
"Gay, gay, gay, gay, gay, gay, gay!" Debra shrieked triumphantly. "That's why you always take me in the ass, John! That's why I still haven't gotten pregnant --"
In a sudden rage, John shoved Debra from him. Food and broken glass shards littered the floor now, and she slid in her glossy high heels until she fell hard on her tail. Her skirt flapped, and standing on the edge of the room, David caught a glimpse of her white panties between her thighs. Her bosom bounced hard when she fell and there were tears pouring down her face. Sitting on the floor in smashed eggs and spilled coffee, she put her face in her paws and started to cry.
"N-Never gave me a pup!" Debra wailed when John knelt to embrace her. "Never - I just wanted . . . just a pup! But you always wanted me there - never in my v-vagina - always there!"
"I know, baby, I know," John whispered miserably and rocked his wife.
Standing on the edge of such a wretched scene, David felt dismal. He slowly backed away and wandered through the kitchen to the living room. He wanted to go find Tammy, to do the impossible and find some way to apologize, but feeling as if it was pointless, he flopped on the couch instead and reached for the phone. It was Sunday morning, and if he was lucky, Brian hadn't gone for his morning jog yet. He punched in Brian's digits and waited as the phone rang. Brian's mother answered. David smiled to himself: Mrs. Pennerman had always been hot. Even her cheerful voice chirruping through the phone was sexy.
"Yeah, hey, Mrs. P. It's David. Yeah, I'll hold."
David stretched out on the couch and waited a beat. He smiled to himself when Brian's sleepy voice came into the phone, "Hey, dude. What's up? Um . . . kinda early, isn't it?" He yawned.
Reclining on the couch, David could hear the soft rustle of cereal sliding into a bowl, the chink of it as it filled the bowl's glass bottom, then milk being poured, and last but not least, Brian's munching.
"Things are . . . pretty bad," David admitted, trying not to sound miserable.
"Yeah? You and Tammy, right? Mindy and I kinda thought something bad would happen. Mindy had the 411 before I did, though. You know how girls are."
"Yeah, they notice everything," David agreed with a hollow laugh. "So you guys figured it out, huh?"
"That Tammy loves you? Wasn't too hard."
"No, not that Tammy loves me . . . that I love her."
There was a long pause after David spoke the words. He waited, knowing that Brian was digesting what he'd just heard.
"But . . ." Brian munched on his cereal a moment before continuing wearily, "Dave, she's your stepsister, dude. And what about Amanda? You didn't even break it off with her yet. She's gonna kill you."
"She already did," David said bitterly.
"What?"
"I broke up with Mandy last night. Tammy walked in on us --"
"Oh, shit."
"-- and she was so mean to her. She made her cry and everything. And I finally realized what you'd been trying to tell me all along. But you know what? I think I always knew Mandy was a bitch. I just didn't care because . . . I was a bitch too. Her bitch." David laughed hollowly again.
"So . . . what? I mean, what's gonna happen? You broke it off with Amanda for real?"
"Really really."
"And she didn't scratch your eyes out?"
David smiled. "Nope. I got ta keep my balls and everything. I think . . . I think she almost cried."
"Wow," said Brian in amazement: neither of them had ever seen Amanda cry. "But, Dave, are you listening to yourself? You're in love with your stepsister. Do you really think this is gonna sit well with your parents? Shit, it doesn't sit well with me. It creeps me the hell out."
"Well, don't worry about it anymore. I don't have a chance with Tammy now. She found out I was with Debra too --"
"What the fuck?!"
"--and now she hates my guts, and there's no chance of her ever forgiving me. Shit, I don't blame her."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Brian cried into the phone, and David could tell by his muffled voice that the spoon was probably hanging from his mouth, "back up a minute here! Did you say that you fucked . . . your stepmom?"
David sat in guilty silence for a long pause, and Brian cried in amazement, "What the hell is goin' on over there, Dave! Does your dad know?"
"Yeah . . ."
"Dude! I don't know why you're still in one piece!"
David laughed weakly. "Me neither. Must be because he fucked Tammy. So now we're even Steven."
"Dave . . . please tell me you're makin' this shit up. I know you said you'd get back at me for lyin' about scorin' with Becky --"
"I'm not lying, Brian. God, I wish I was."
"So - shit - your dad slept with Tammy? Why?!"
"He didn't sleep with Tammy, Brian: Tammy slept with him. She was gettin' back at me for Mandy . . ."
"Seems ah little extreme," Brian said incredulously as he scooped more cereal into his mouth. "I mean . . . did she have to sleep with your dad? Most girls would - I dunno - go fuck your best friend or something."
"Tammy wouldn't do that, Brian. She wouldn't want to mess up her friendship with Mindy by making a pass at you. And besides, it was all too easy: my dad has wanted to fuck Tammy as long as I have. He never would have done it if he was sober, but he was drinking last night . . . all night. And all afternoon before that. He would've fucked a frog if it hopped in the door."
Brian laughed. "Yeah, alright. So . . . what're you gonna do then? Just fly it solo for a while?"
"If you did it, I can too."
"Shut up, Dave," Brian said darkly, and David laughed: before Mindy, Brian had never slept with a girl. He had been with other girls, had kissed them and felt them up, but he had lied for years about sleeping with them. He had even lied about the aforementioned Becky, telling David an elaborate but completely false story about what they did in the back of his car. But David, who knew Brian very well, had seen right through his friend: Brian would be a virgin until he got up the nerve to approach Mindy. And now that Brian had finally been with a girl, now that he had the chance to brag and tell nasty stories, he seemed anything but eager to do so and was, in fact, squeamish about sharing his private moments with Mindy. Knowing this and wanting to tease Brian, David asked,
"So how was it with Mindy last night? You two go all the way again?"
"Home run," Brian said lightly, but David could tell he was uncomfortable talking about it.
Brian said no more, and after a quiet pause, David said in amusement, "Brian, after all the times I told you about me and Mandy, you can't tell me one thing about you and Mindy? I bet you could describe Mandy's pussy to me in detail after the shit I've told you."
"Dave . . ." Brian said in a low voice, and David's ears pricked forward: Brian sounded scared. "Dave . . . last night . . . we were - you know - in my car . . ." He paused and swallowed hard.
David went very still, listening to Brian's frightened voice anxiously. "Yeah? What happened? Is Mindy alright?"
"The condom broke . . ."
David laughed before he could stop himself.
"It's not funny!" Brian cried, though he was laughing a little too. His voice was frightened again when he added, "We broke two of them. And we were so - we just didn't care - we fucked without one."
"Yeah, but you pulled out before . . .?"
"No," Brian said in a low voice. He started to whisper, and David knew it was because his mother was probably passing by. "No, I didn't get ah chance. I was really excited. I mean, shit, she was lookin' good! There she is all half-naked and everything. I came quick and I came inside and we didn't use a condom because the first two broke . . ."
"Oh . . ." David nodded as it dawned on him, and he knew better than to laugh this time when Brian sounded so scared. "I see what you're sayin', but I think you might be worryin' over nothing. You came inside her, like, once?"
"It only takes one time, Dave," Brian said miserably.
"Brian . . . don't you think you're getting ahead of yourself? When Mindy misses a period, that's the time to worry, dude. For all you know, she's not even . . ." David's voice trailed away as if he couldn't even bring himself to say the word. "And things will go on like they did before. We'll graduate and you'll go on to college on your jockstrap scholarship, and you and Mindy will live happily ever after."
"And if she is pregnant?" Brian moaned, wretchedly crunching on his cereal.
"Then you're not alone, dude. We'll figure it out together: you, me, and Mindy."
Brian laughed, and David was glad to hear the sound. "Yeah, alright," he said, sounding a little better. "So, uh . . . gotta go on my jog soon. Talk to ya later - and, hey!"
David had been about to hang up, but he paused.
"Don't kill yourself over Tammy, kay? There are other babes in the sea."
"That's fish, dingus."
Brian laughed lightly into the phone. "It was a joke! Whatever. Later, Dave."
David laughed too. "Later." He hung up, then sat up, and pushed his mane back from his eyes. When he looked up, it was to find Tammy standing there.
And she was smiling.