We stayed in the restaurant quite late. Late for me, anyway. It had been a very full day and I was ready for bed by 9PM. When we got home, Bud and Jim went downstairs to watch a video and I went upstairs to bathe and get into bed. The nightgown I had brought with me was way too small, so Bambi loaned me one of hers, a sheer babydoll with a cute ruffled panty. It tied in front with a ribbon at the neck, so my bust size was not a problem. Bambi thought it looked so darling on me that she insisted I keep it. "It's worth it just to see you in it, honey," she told me.
"I have another over at Mom's," I said. It was so easy to start calling my new house Home and the old house, Mom's. "I'd like to clear my stuff out of there as soon as possible. Please, can we go over first thing in the morning and pick it up?" I hopped into bed and crawled under the covers.
"Of course. Whatever you'd like."
"I really want to cut the cord as soon as possible," I said. "I want to get it over with so it isn't hanging over me. You understand how I feel?"
"Yes. I do. When you make a hard decision, you want to act on it immediately. I feel the same way. We'll go right after breakfast. Sleep well. Goodnight." She bent over me and kissed me goodnight. I felt so tired and so warm and good that I fell asleep before she turned out the light and closed the door.
The next morning I felt super. I hadn't slept at all well the previous night and I needed the rest. I ran a brush through my hair and I padded down to the kitchen in my bare feet and the babydoll nightie to see about some breakfast. Mrs. Reynolds was already there, taking a batch of bacon out of the microwave. It smelled heavenly.
"Good morning!" she said cheerfully. "You were so tired last night that I thought you might sleep in, but here you are, up with the bluebirds."
"I slept almost nine hours straight," I said, snitching a piece of bacon from the plate. "That's plenty. I feel wonderful!"
"Well, sit down and I will fix you some eggs and toast to go with the bacon that will burn your mouth if you aren't careful."
"Where are Jim and Bud? Are they up yet?"
"No, they stayed up late watching those porn videos they think I don't know about. They usually sleep in on Saturday morning. They will probably crawl down here about ten and have a bowl of CocoaSugarWhatevers. I should be glad they ate well last night at least." She shook her head over her sons' idea of a decent diet.
After breakfast we both went back upstairs to shower and dress. I put on my walking shoes, a pair of cutoff denim shorts, and one of my more modest knit tops. The top wasn't quite as modest as it had been. Now it was skin-tight and much shorter than it used to be.
When I met Mrs. Reynolds at the side door, she was wearing almost the same thing. Her shorts were a couple of inches shorter, but it was almost the same outfit. It was uncanny how much like each other we were, and I was happy to see the 'sister' part of our relationship blossoming.
On the way to Mom's, she asked me if I wanted her to go in with me to talk to Yvette.
"No thanks. This is something I have to do alone."
"Good girl. Oh, before I forget." She reached into her purse on the seat beside her and pulled out a keychain with two keys on it. "Here are your keys to the house. The big one is for the front and side doors and the little one opens the French doors in the family room."
She did not give me a lecture about not losing the keys, nor did she warn me to act responsibly about locking the doors; just "Here are your keys." I put the keys in my pocket. I kept my hand on them, holding them tightly all the way to Mom's. These were my anchor to my new life, just as I was about to cut loose of my old one.
We pulled up in front of the house behind a car I did not recognize. I had no clue who could be visiting at this time of the morning. Mom almost never had visitors.
I let myself into the house through the front door and listened, expecting to hear voices. There was only silence. I walked down the hall toward my room. The door was open and everything was just as I had left it. I started gathering up the things I wanted to take back with me and; putting them on the bed. There wasn't too much in the closet that I wanted except for a few pairs of shoes and some skirts that I could still wear now that my blouses were all history. I went through my dresser drawers and my vanity. When I had everything piled on the bed, I stuffed it all into a couple of big shopping bags.
I decided to check the bathroom to see if I had left anything in there that I might want. As I passed my mother's room on the way to the bathroom at the end of the hall I saw that the door was halfway open. I peeked in and saw my mother lying on the rumpled bed, still asleep. From the state of the covers, she must have spent a rough night, tossing and turning. I hated to wake her, so I quietly pulled the door closed and tiptoed to the bathroom door. As I reached for the doorknob, I noticed the light coming from under the door. At that exact moment, the light went out and the door opened. Before I had a chance to react, someone came out of the dark room and walked straight into me. To keep from being knocked down, I wrapped my arms around them. I noticed two things immediately: the stranger was female and naked.