Note: This story was dynamically reformatted for online reading convenience.
 
 I always liked riding out of the plant with Cindy beside me.  Sure, there
was the excitement of having this little doll with me, that was one thing,
but another was that is was almost surreal, she was fourteen, my WIFE, and
she had impressed quite a few people who found her to be much more than a
cute ball of fluff (which she was!) or a curious schoolkid (that too!).

   In the truck, headed home, she was smiling.

   "You're happy, my little one?"

   "Yes I am, sweetie," she said.  "I was just kinda goin' over the last
six months." She rubbed her cheek on my shoulder.  "Last summer, if
somebody would've told me that I'd be the mascot of this project I would've
thought they were crazy.  Or that I'd be flyin' around visiting friends and
goin' to concerts." Her hands gripped my bicep.  "Or that I'd be MARRIED!"

   "It has been a surprising ride, little one," I said.  "I can't imagine
it being better up to now..."

   She rubbed her face into my shoulder.  "Me neither," she said.  "With
Mom..." her face clouded.  " Sometimes I wonder what's up with Mom.  I
mean, baby, it's been six months and I haven't even got a postcard..."

   "I know, sweetness.  I'm pretty much surprised myself.  I'd've expected
SOMETHING ...  I'm sorry..."

   "Not YOUR fault, babe," she sighed.

   "Yours neither, little one," I replied.

   "I'd just like to think things got better for her, Dan.  You know, she
thought I was an impediment."

   We pulled in next to our trailer and went inside.

   Cindy looked sad.

   "Baby," I asked, "is there anything I can do?"

   "Hold me."

   "C'mere," I said as I sat on the sofa.  I opened my arms and she slid
backward onto my lap, cuddling against my chest as I wrapped her in my
arms. "I love you, princess.  You've got a whole lot of people that love
you.  Friends, family..."

   "I know, guy," she said.  "But you'd think that my mom would care a
little bit..."

   "Sometimes people are just oblivious about how other people are affected
by their actions, baby.  Sometimes one person thinks that the other person
is as unfeeling as they themselves are."

   "You know about this," she observed.

   "We talked about Darcy, baby..." Darcy was the girl I thought I was
headed toward marrying a couple years after my wife and daughter had been
killed in the car crash.  "She didn't see her connection with me as being
that important, and derived that mine with her was as weak."

   "You're saying that some people think that how strongly THEY feel is how
strong others feel." She looked into my eyes.

   "Yes, and little one, it is sad to say that there are some people on
this planet that just don't feel strongly about others.  Sometimes they're
just selfish and they think everybody else is as selfish.  They lie to get
what they want and they figure that everybody else is lying, too."

   "I think that there are some people who KNOW that others aren't the
same, and they take advantage ...  Mom did that to more than one of her
men, an' I KNOW that some of them did that to her, too." She nestled into
my chest.  "'S why I watched YOU and talked to Mizz Helen about you.  I
didn't want one of THOSE."

   "I worried, too, little girl."

   "I know ...  that whole 'jailbait' thing..." she turned her face to
mine. The sad look started to show a little sunshine.  "You decided
different, though..."

   "I had difficulty rationalizing 'jailbait' with somebody understanding
the idea of imaginary numbers." I bent my head forward and kissed her head.

   She twisted and moved her face toward mine.  Green eyes.  Lips so soft
...  her hand went to the back of my head and lightly pulled me to her and
we kissed.

   "I'm sorry about that, baby ...  sometimes I think too much about
things."

   "It's okay, sweetness," I said.  "That's what I'm here for..."

   "I just wish that one day she'd show back up an' look at me, at US, and
at least think that in spite of everything, I turned out okay..."

   "Just okay?  Try 'spectacular' little one," I said.  "I'm looking at a
girl that last year was a 'C' student, just one of a thundering herd of
middle school average students, a face in the crowd." I met her lips again.
"And now ...  You're so far above the crowd that there's no category. 
You're getting ready to graduate from high school at fourteen, starting
college with a scholarship..."

   "Married," she picked up the thought.  "Hopelessly, totally in love,
devoted to a guy who worships me as much as I do him.  Happy.  Healthy."
She paused, looking thoughtful, for a second.  "We're kinda counting
blessings, huh?"

   "Yes we are.  And I have my biggest one sitting in my lap."

   She sighed, face darkening for a brief moment.  "I just wish I could
show her ...  Maybe she'd see that there IS a different way..."

   "Maybe so, Cindy," I said, "But most people in those sorts of situations
KNOW there are other paths, but they don't see themselves taking them.  For
lots of reasons.  Back to that 'people are messy' thing..."

   Her lips met mine again.  "Just love me, okay?"

   "Only forever, little one."

   "You get that back at ya..."

   "Gosh, I hope so," I said.  "You've ruint me for other women..."

   "That's good," she giggled.  "You got ME!"

   "Yeah," I laughed, happy to hear the edge of a giggle in her voice. 
"And in bit, I'm gonna have a hungry YOU.  Let's go find something to eat."

   "Are you too tired of grilled cheese sandwiches?" she asked.

   "No.  But we had 'em yesterday."

   "I LOVE your grilled cheese sandwiches."

   Prior to finding Cindy in my life, I ate quite simply when left to my
own devices.  Eating the same thing a couple of days in a row wasn't a
shock to my sensibilities.  I'd had more than one week of making a batch of
beans and eating leftovers for several days.  If a stupid sandwich two days
in a row made her happy, I was happy.

   "What kind of soup" I asked.

   "Lemme look!" She got up and rifled through the cabinet and took a can
out.  I started the griddle to heating and she dumped the soup from the can
into a pot and put it on the back burner.  A short while later we were
eating, talking happily.

   "Mister Jim says my ACT scores are due any day now," she said.

   "That leaves you with one more hurdle for graduation," I noted.

   "Uh-huh.  And that'll be the first week of May.  Mister Jim says he's
gonna get me all the stuff from high school so I can order my cap an' gown
an' graduation invitations and stuff."

   I laughed.  "Fourteen..."

   She giggled.  "It IS kinda funny when I think about it," she said.

   "We need to get the date nailed down."

   "Uh-huh.  You know what me an' Tina an' Susan wanna do, don't you"

   "I can just imagine."

   "We talked.  If theirs and mine aren't on the same night, we wanna go to
each other's."

   "But, baby ...  Tennessee..."

   "Two hour flight," she said.  "We go up there, stay in a hotel, go to
theirs.  They come here, stay in a hotel, come to mine!"

   "Has Tina talked to Alan?"

   "Hee-hee," she giggled.  "Tina said when she told 'im, he just threw his
hands up an' said, 'Naturally!'."

   "The high school should already know the date, baby.  Check with Jim. 
We can start planning this one, too."

   "You think it's a good idea, don't you?" she had that way of looking all
shy and sweet and innocent and I was one manipulated son-of-a-gun.

   "Naturally!  What else would you want to do?  Miss your own sister's
graduation?"

   "Both my sisters," she giggled.

   I remembered the picture that scrolled on the frame on my desk: the
three of them from the weekend, some kind of cute, stair-stepped
kaleidoscope, Cindy, the shortest, and her copper hair, middle height was
Susan, plump and blonde, and Alan's Tina, the tallest, her hair chestnut,
pushing red.  What a set!

   "It'll be interesting," I said.

   She smiled as she stood up, taking my soup bowl.  I got up and wiped the
stove down as she washed the two bowls and spoons and dried them.  That was
our standard: clean up immediately.  Tiny trailers clutter up fast if you
do otherwise.  After she finished the dishes, we took a thirty-minute
interlude to watch TV and check email, and then it was shower time.

   I assumed that we'd be back in the sofa end of the trailer after
showers, but when I got out, that end of the trailer was dark, and there
was the light on above the bed.  That was something much more entertaining
than TV.

   "Don't even put your shirt on," she said.  She emphasized her desire by
kneeling on the bed and stripping her nightshirt off over her head.  "Now,
it's YOUR responsibility to keep me warm!" her grin was precious, melting
my heart, and firming up another part of me quite handily.

   I crawled over the end of the bed to meet her.  "How absolutely
beautiful you are, Cindy," I said.  And I meant it.  I looked at her and
saw absolute perfection, perfection that extended its arms and wrapped
around my neck, drawing me to her face for kisses.  I loved kissing her
giggly mouth, little kisses, flirtations with her tongue, punctuated with
soft endearing words that told me that we were a single entity.

   We both knew each other's special spots and favorite things and
love-making tonight was slow and tender, interspersed with sighs and
giggles.  Cindy was a joy to all my senses and from the way she treated me,
she felt the same way about me.  After her third orgasm, I held her
tenderly in my arms, stroking her red head like she was a favorite kitten.
As she was.

   Tuesday was a nominal day.  No issues, no turmoil, little stress.  I
worked with my counterpart, the electrical engineer who would inherit the
new plant from us.  Actually, the client already had possession and
responsibility.  I was hanging on to give them a new set of documentation
above and beyond the construction package, and part of that was being an
educator for a young engineer who, while quite knowledgeable, lacked
experience.  He had a good attitude, though, and we worked together well.

   I got off work and drove home.  I called Cindy when I got on the
highway. "Hey, cutie!  I'm on the way!"

   "Good, honey!" she chirped.  "I'll be at the office with Mizz Helen an'
Mister Charlie." Then a little squeal.  "I got my ACT scores!"

   "How'd you do?"

   "Thirty-three on English, thirty-two on reading, eleven on writing,
thirty on math and thirty-one on science!  Composite is thirty-one point
something!"

   "Ouch!" I said.  "You beat me so bad it's scary, baby!"

   "It ain't about beating you, honey!  I'm gonna GRADUATE!"

   "Uh-huh!  Okay, I'll be there in a minute!"

   "We're goin' to the Hardesty's, remember?"

   "I remember," I answered.

   I walked into the park office and greeted my friends.

   Charlie was sitting in his chair, smiling.  "Dan, I'm impressed by our
Cindy."

   "Yessir,"I replied, "Pretty much EVERYBODY is impressed by our Cindy!"

   She slid up beside me.  "Hi, baby!"

   Helen agreed.  "She sure is a different person than she was last year in
school."

   "Happier," Cindy said.  "I can come home every day an' not worry about
who or what I find when I get there.  I got somebody who CARES if I do
good. And I know that it makes a difference."

   "We were talking about this last night," I told Helen and Charlie.

   "Ya'll are goin' to the Hardesty's tonight, Cindy says," Helen said.

   "Yeah.  Wanna think about another concert?"

   "If you folks are up to it," Charlie said, surprising me.

   "We'll see if they want to," Cindy said.  She grabbed my hand.  "Let's
go, guy!"

   "Bye, folks!" I said, letting Cindy lead me out the door.

   We stopped at the trailer to offload her bookbag and for me to change
shoes.  I offered to bring her bag inside while she sat in the truck, but
she wouldn't have that.  She followed me inside.  As soon as I set the bag
down, she was in my arms.  Or I was in hers.  Anyway, you get the picture.

   "Excited?"

   She giggled.  "Uh-huh!  I mean, I KNEW I was gonna do okay on that test,
but seeing it on paper, that's ...  SOMETHING!"

   "Yes it is, cutie!  Have you talked to Tina?  Maybe she got hers, too!"

   "I wanna be careful with that, Dan," she said.  "I don't wanna sound
like I'm gloating."

   "I understand, baby," I answered.  "But she and Susan are both pretty
smart, too, and they have the advantage of more years in school.  There's a
pretty good chance you three are all in the same range."

   She grinned.  "It COULD happen," she admitted.  "My sisters ARE smart.
We talked about it.  We all finished ahead of time an' went back checking
our work."

   "Scary," I admitted.

   "How?" she asked.

   "I was doing good to get a twenty-five, and you and your sisters are in
the thirty range."

   "Your fault," she smiled.  "Without you nudging me along, I'd be makin'
'C's' in eighth grade math..." she hugged me.  "You gave me a new world, my
guy..." And a kiss and we were back out the door, headed for the Hardesty
house.

   I drove.  Cindy had her cell phone out, ordering pizza as we went.  We
finished the trip to the strains of Vivaldi.

   Cindy smiled.  "I love his 'Autumn'!"

   "Me too.  It's hard to not get a lift on the opening, isn't it!"

   She smiled, leaned against me and closed her eyes, absorbing the music,
until we pulled into Jim's driveway.  I opened my door and she slid out of
my side of the truck, into my arms and we walked to the front door holding
hands.

   Jim had the door open as we stepped onto the porch.  "There she is!" he
grinned at me.  "And her husband!"

   "Be nice to my husband, Mister Jim!" Cindy chirped.

   "Oh, I'm plenty nice to 'im.  But YOU..."

   "What'd she do now?  Cold fusion in the science lab?" I laughed.

   "No, but that little redheaded girl of yours is the possessor of the
highest ACT score in the county this year."

   "No joke?"

   "Nope.  Folks at the school board office said so."

   Ann walked into the den to see us.  "Congratulations, Cindy!  You've set
a high bar, and then jumped over it!"

   "I'm amazed, Mizz Ann.  Glad, too, but amazed." Cindy was trying to
determine how to express her glee without seeming cocky.

   "You're very blessed, Cindy, ' Ann said.  "You have natural ability."

   Cindy turned to me, smiling.  "I had it last year, too, but last year I
didn't have Dan." Her fingers touched my face.  "He made the difference."

   Jim smiled, shaking his head.  "That's just how WRONG I can be," he
said. "When I found out you two were married, I thought so many things, you
know..."

   "I understand, Mister Jim.  They're all true.  It's just that Dan is
soooo bad at exploitation..." She giggled.

   The conversation was interrupted by Cindy's cell phone ringing. 
"Sorry..." she said.  She pulled it out.  "It's my sister!" she flipped it
to her ear.  "Hi, Sis!" Pause.  "Uh-huh!  Got mine too!  We're at our
friends right now.  He's my guidance counselor.  What'd YOU get?" Pause. 
"Seriously Thirty-two?!?!  Squeal!  You beat me.  I got thirty-one." Pause.
"I know.  That's what Dan said.  What about Susan?" Pause.  "Hee-hee! 
Great!  We're tied!" Pause.  "Okay!  If I don't call before nine, I'll talk
to ya'll tomorrow." Pause.  "Love you too!"

   She closed her phone and looked at us smiling.  "Didja hear THAT?"

   Jim asked, "Those were THEIR scores?"

   "Yessir," Cindy giggled.  "Tina got a thirty-two and Susan got a
thirty-one."

   "Have you seen the picture of this crew, Jim?"

   He shook his head.

   "Show him and Ann the ones on your cell phone, baby."

   Cindy played with her cell phone and then showed the display to Jim and
Ann.

   Ann said, "That's a cute crew!"

   Jim shook his head.  "Trouble!  I know what it's like marryin' a smart
woman..."

   Ann punched him in the arm playfully.  "We're quite complementary, you
know..."

   "No doubt," I said.  "You bring enough class to the marriage for both of
you..."

   She looked at Cindy's phone again.  "The blonde one in the middle..."

   "That's Susan," Cindy said.  "Tina's best friend up there.  She's a good
one, too."

   "Alan an' Tina are friends with Susan's parents, too.  He assures me
that they are quite normal, and they think this idea about the crew showing
up together at Auburn is the best possible outcome they could hope for. 
They were worried about sending their only child off to college by
herself..."

   Ann smiled, "So she goes to college with TWO friends of equal intellect
who happen to come with their own support networks in the form of a couple
of husbands."

   "That's the plan," Cindy chirped.  "We're all pursuing engineering, all
going to try for the same schedules, but if we don't, I have two drivers
working with me to get me to class, and if husbands are out of town, we
have each other to lean on."

   "I wish I'd had as much support.  I had a loving set of parents, but on
campus I was on my own until I got some friendships going," Ann said. 
"Guys're different..."

   "Yeah," Jim laughed.  "We just wander aroun' campus draggin' our
knuckles an' gruntin'..."

   "You didn't tell me that's how ya'll did it," Cindy laughed.

   "It was almost like that for some guys.  Us engineering majors traveled
in packs."

   We talked about college experiences until the pizza arrived, then we all
sat around the table.  Teresa quizzed Cindy about the tests and what all of
it meant to her.

   Teresa looked at her parents.  "I'm just a little bit jealous, you
know..." she turned to Cindy.  "Not YOUR fault.  I'm very glad for you. 
It's great!"

   Jim looked at his thirteen year old daughter.  "Teresa," he said, "Your
chance will come soon enough."

   "Teresa," Cindy said, "They have some books in the library with sample
tests if you want to give it a try..."

   "But don't be discouraged if you don't understand a lot of the
questions, baby," Ann said softly.

   After dinner, the paper plates disappeared into pizza boxes that
disappeared into the garbage can, Cindy and Teresa helped Ann straighten up
the kitchen and by the time they got to the living room, Jim and I were
picking tunes out together, he on his banjo and me on a guitar.

   "Not doin' the bass?" Cindy noted.

   "Thought it'd be fun to see how bad I am at this," I said.  "Rusty. 
Really rusty."

   Ann tuned her violin and jumped in with us.  Teresa, of course, sat
beside Cindy so they could sing together, and to my surprise, Bill picked
up the bass.

   "Remember, son," Jim instructed, "You don't start off perfect, you start
off tryin'."

   "Got it, Dad," Bill said.  "I'll try."

   "Good, son," Jim said.  "Okay, let's try one!" And we did.  No, Bill
wasn't perfect, but then neither were we.  Well, Ann was.  And Jim was
almost.  And Cindy and Teresa.

   After our session, Ann asked, "Are we up for another show at the park?"

   I looked at Jim.  "If you guys are..."

   "Yeah, why not ...  Tell your friends..."

   "Don't know how many of 'em will come.  Project's basically over.  I'm
stayin' busy at the request of the new owners, for at least a few weeks."

   "Hangin' around for Cindy's graduation, of course, ' Jim said.

   "Oh, yeah, we ARE," Cindy said, getting excited.  "Can I tell you what
we have planned?" She amused Ann and Jim with her excited explanation of
sharing high school graduation with her extended family.

   "I think my sister and her husband may drive in for it, too," I said.  I
hadn't told Cindy this tidbit.

   Squeal!  "Tootie?  Really?" Cindy squealed.

   "She sent me an email.  Wants to know when..."

   "My fault, Dan," Jim said.  "I'll email you the schedule tomorrow. 
Between Ann and me, we'll get Cindy back and forth to the high school if
she needs to go there to order cap and gown and stuff."

   "I may be able to do some of that," I said.  "Or Mizz Helen..."

   "I WANT to, Dan," Jim laughed.  "The principal of the high school's an
old buddy of mine.  I wanna rub 'is nose in it a little bit, MY middle
school student is graduating and has better ACT scores than his whole
graduating class." He grinned.  "Can you imagine what goes through people's
minds when they see Cindy walking down the halls, knowing she's graduating
and she's only fourteen?"

   "Surreal, I'd imagine, ' I said.  I noticed Cindy had a self-satisfied
look on her face.  She leaned against me.

   "What if I walked in with my HUSBAND?" she said.

   "That's a whole different thing, Cindy," Ann said.

   "Yeah ...  I know," Cindy replied.  "But that's the part I'm happiest
about, you know..."

   "Thank you, little one," I said, twisting to kiss the top of her head.
To our friends I said, "I guess we need to go home now.  Got a day job an'
all that..."

   In a few minutes we were on the road, Cindy leaned in against me.  I
could feel the vibrations as she hummed along with the stereo.

   "Happy, kitten?" I asked.

   "Mmmm-hmmm ...  so happy." She twined her fingers in mine, drew my hand
to her lips, and kissed it.

   We took our showers and then worked together taking care of our laundry
while we watched a documentary on TV for a bit before going to bed.  Bed
didn't mean 'sleep' for forty-five minutes.  Sleep came to me with the
soft, warm form of Cindy against me in the chill of winter.  Her arm was
flopped over my chest as she lay with my arm around her.

   We made it through Saturday night with no problem, just fine, thank you!

   We slid through Sunday and into another week.  Work was well past the
adventure stages of startup.  I spent most of my day in my temporary
office. I got called once to visit the control room with the new plant
engineer to talk about some possible changes to some data and control
displays.  After the conversation, I offered to work with him to make some
changes.  One of the miracles of modern technology was the huge amount of
data we collected, and a lot of it was just being used invisibly in the
huge control programs for the new facility.

   Putting it on a display was just a matter of going into edit mode and
building a neat little box somewhere on one of the many screens the
operators and engineers could pull up.

   That was as exciting as it got.  I'd worked myself into boredom.  At
work.  Home was another story.  February was drawing to a close.  Cindy and
I did our daily walks and bike rides if the weather permitted.  When I got
home Monday, she was waiting for me at the office.  We had a short chat
with Helen and Charlie and one of the elderly snowbird couples who were
working their own path around the park.  We dropped off Cindy's backpack in
the trailer and started our own circuits, stopping to chat with various of
the park's occupants who recognized us (Cindy, really.  I was just another
guy.  Cindy was memorable) from the Saturday concert.

   After thirty minutes of walking, we loaded into the truck to go to
dinner.  Monday was our night to go visit the Sommers sisters for the salad
and whatever surprises they might have on the menu.  As soon as we were in
the truck, Cindy's phone rang and she chatted with Tina for five minutes,
giggling.  She'd no sooner said good-bye to Tina than Susan called. 
Another five minutes of conversation.  And then it was my turn.

   She wanted details of my day.  I explained about the drudge work of
engineering.  "Pays the bills," I said.

   She smiled wanly.  "You'd be off on another adventure if it wasn't for
me, huh?"

   "I'd be single, and where would my Cindy be?"

   "I dunno ...  probably not nearly where I am today.  But you..."

   "I, sweetie, am working.  Might not be in the spotlight.  Might not be
glamorous.  But it pays well.  And I can certainly take it." I gave her a
squeeze.

   "Are you sure it's okay, baby?" she asked.  "I remember one of the
things I liked about you when we first met was that you seemed to enjoy
your work."

   "I still enjoy my work, baby.  And I would put up with horrible things
to make things good for you.  'S what a man does for his wife..."

   She perked up a little, seeing an opening for a little verbal jousting.
"That's rather sexist, don't you think?  I'm s'posed ta stay home all
barefoot an' pregnant?"

   "Where on earth did you hear that?" I blurted.

   "Mizz Ann," she giggled.  "She goes on about her an' Mister Jim. 
Laughing the whole time, you know..."

   "They're good together," I said.

   "I know," Cindy replied.  "You can see the way they look at each other.
But you..."

   "I adore YOU," I said.

   "'S not what I mean.  Work."

   "Little one," I said, "Every day can't be rainbows and giggles.  What
I'm doing is just fine.  And you know, I'm writing these procedures and the
client gets the finished documents, but I keep the drafts, and next time
one comes along, I have a lot of the grunt work done."

   "You showed me some of that before," she said.  "You sure this is okay?"

   "Of course it is, sweetness," I said.  "And in two months we're going to
get you graduated and then you and I are going to fly out west into the
Rockies for a little vacation, then we're coming back here and putting you
in college.  If that's what you wanna do."

   "I guess I have to," she giggled.  "High school grad or not, I'm too
young to work at Wal-Mart."