Maybe his uncle could explain this. That second summer, while working on the ‘67 Vette, they got to talking. This uncle was beyond cool. Straight facts, straight advice. Real talk. He was transitioning from being a boy to being a man. The feelings were just the start of finding women appealing instead of repulsive.

During the talk, they touched the unspoken experience of the year before. Mark had questions. His uncle had answers. The man was not afraid to talk openly. They had a gentleman’s understanding that this was never to surface outside of the cabin trip. Of course, his parents would know that they had a talk, but the details of the talk would be up to him to share with his folks.

Mark had no interest in sharing anything back home. He knew enough about his folks to know hat this kind of talk was not going to happen. The mindset was simple. Get your pickup game tight and get a woman to be a date. Once you got the girl, you just let nature take its course. The mechanics of it was never ever discussed, because… to speak on it was equivalent to the admission of having no game or skills regarding sex.

Thanks to the advice from his uncle, Mark learned how to handle his feelings around Melissa. She was an amazing friend. All of the concepts he wanted to try, he learned were not going to work with Melissa. The catcall technique the street guys had was actually considered rude and disrespectful.

His uncle had recommended approaching Melissa with the perspective of being not only a great friend, but a source of peace, safety, answers, and protection. There was an art to the approach. By being of service to Melissa, he would earn her trust and respect. This would pave the way for an easier yes whenever he was ready to ask her on a date.

The single most crucial piece of advice was to be patient. At his age, guys were not ready to step up to gals of the same age. It was in his best interest to pace himself and think his moves out in advance, that way he didn’t come across like a bag of raging testosterone.

As too advance as this information was, it proved to be the right information to help him navigate the changes in feelings he was having. Many guys tried and flamed out in the pursuit of Melissa. Worse, many guys showed their play book when they tried to discretely “practice” on teacher Amy. Mark trusted his uncle and did not follow the herd.

As he grew and moved through the process of early adolescence, his willingness to bid his time paid dividends. When he made his move to talk to Melissa, she was already trusting him as a reliable friend. He was keen on keeping that trust. In short time, he was the talk of the school for having the prettiest non-cheerleader girlfriend anyone could dream of having.

All the tips and tricks his uncle shared with him allowed him to no only understand all various waves of attraction he felt, but allowed him to learn how to communicate that with Melissa. They grew and were pretty much a steady item for much longer than anyone would have imagined.

Mark made sure to renew his interest in the visit to the cabin every summer. It was getting harder each year however. Family dynamics worsened and soured. Jealously spiked. Money woes grew. Folks started believing all manners of stories. His dad was not at all pleased that his son was talking to anyone about how to get a woman. It was not something to talk about. It was something to be done. You had to have your word smith game on tight so you could hollar at a woman and get her digits.

It would be a few more summer visits before his folks put an end to this bonding with his uncle. The drama between the family tree grew and made it impossible. However, by the time the issue put an end to their trips, Mark had learned the secrets of the secret room. He had learned enough to know that he had to protect the existence of such a room. His aunt, as nervous as she was about this, felt that Mark was going to keep his word, as she didn’t want any more grief from the family.

The family also put an end to his relationship with Melissa. She was not from their hood. She was not into what they felt Mark should be into. If anything, they worried their boy was losing sight of his own identity and was not representing their values. They feared that Mark was growing soft.

As Mark moved into high school, his connection to his uncle and Melissa was now pushed underground to the outer corner of the internet. By then, it was very clear to all educators that Mark was gifted academically. The community had rallied to support this young man’s quest to use school as his escape route from the hood he lived in.

Mark didn’t mind, the teasing and bullying he endured from being a bookworm. He knew how to stand his ground and no one was going to seriously hurt him. His uncle had seen to it that Mark had learned how to defend himself like a pro and a man. His father tried to fill in and teach him the ways of the street, but Mark always managed to duck into a library instead to study.

As reality woke Mark back out of his reverie of the past, the flames of the fire place had dimmed considerably. There were many other childhood lessons that had come to maturity. He would have time to share these memories, at a later date, with his lady.

Stacy would be coming to visit him later today. If she arrived early enough, he’d have the chance to show her the room in it’s modern iteration. His uncle had very much approved and appreciated the upgrades. Mark had pleasantly surprised him with the gift of an upgrade. His aunt was all the more grateful as she hated how low the ceiling was. Now she could properly stand without bashing her head or getting her hair caught.

Time to freshen up. He didn’t have much time. His flight was set for later today. His schedule was tough, but the detour to meet Stacy was well worth it. You just made these kinds of sacrifices when you had a veritable queen on your arms.

the mini series that will be affectionately called V8 of Eights will resume soon. Do subscribe/follow the blog to keep up to date about any new postings of this story… as there are no guarantees it will be precisely weekly

Never Drink And Drive

All the chapters of the series will appear below as they go live. You can use them as reference anytime you’d like. Enjoy the reading. Please… click like and/or comment below to let me know what you think.

V8 of Eights

V8 of Eights – Chapter 7 - Chapter 7 Freedom. Exhilaration. Passion. Bonding. Relationships grown through struggle. Who knew that a screaming V8 could boost a relationship to new heights
V8 of Eights – Chapter 6 - Driven to prove a point, Stacy pleads with Mark to have another chance. The fun intensifies and Mark shows his tenderness in caring for Stacy. Will this be the chapter where they make the cabin? The before last chapter in this long series...
V8 of Eights – Chapter 5 - It was time to attempt to go forward. Instructing Stacy to gently rock forward, he got into position to push. … More
V8 of Eights – Chapter 4 - The ideal situation would be for Mark to have the “bug” as well. This would have him fake pushing the … More
V8 of Eights – Chapter 3 - After a few cranks, the motor came to life with a gleeful burble only a V8 could produce. As things … More
V8 of Eights – Chapter 2 - V8 Chapter 2 - The cabin held lots of secrets. One young man, Mark, learns of paddles, belts, and straps have more than one purpose. A kink is uncovered.
V8 of Eights – Chapter 1 - V8 Chapter 1 - Mark as the hots for Stacy. Meg is the ideal wing woman. College years may have been a bit boring... but... patience is a virtue when you're playing outside your league
V8 of Eights – Introductions - V8 intro - who knew that a revved V8 struggling for traction could be the start of a new romance Trying out a different genre of romance and damsel in distress
Before We Shift Story Telling Gears - A little letter to readers.... housekeeping... before the next story line gets launched A new take on the "Damsel in Distress" genre is coming... for the summer