As soon as they were gone, his mother kicked him out of the house so she could indulge in her own affairs, although as far as Barnaby worked out, they...mostly involved the a wine bottle and the radio. So he roamed the fields and played in the outhouses on his own, permanently filthy with dirt and mud. When he went to Pumpkel Elementary, the other kids teased him for being black as coal, and after a few weeks, the effort of getting him there was too much, and his brothers were embarrassed, so. He couldn't get over the surprise of how good it felt to bewearing this dress, how it fit him like a second skin around his breastsand waist while fluttering sensually from his hips to his shins. He feltsafe in it, secure... and he was definitely enjoying it, despite the utterfemininity of the outfit. He told himself that the only reason he likedthe feel of it so much was because it was so much more modest that hisother outfits... but the smile on his face was definitely betraying thethoughts. After a few moments on the step, Laura rose to her feet, ran her hands through her hair, steadied herself as she wavered with wine, and asked if I wanted to go back inside. Sure, I replied, my head seeming to be in the clouds and in some realm beyond my control. In the twilight, orange streetlight glow, distant clamor of Friday night comings and goings, the clash of a train car somewhere: it was surreal to me. Like a dream. The door closed behind me and Laura grabbed my hands and I pushed her. Until your father died in that car wreck, and you started using the Power. Then, I knew I had to tell you, to teach you how to use the Ways and how to control them.’ ‘I thought…’ Mike began. ‘That you were some sort of freak?’ she asked. ‘No. I was going to say: I thought I was alone.’ Jennifer smiled. ‘No, you’re not alone, Michael. Not while I’m with you.’ She hugged him, tightening her arms around his back and pressing her breasts to his chest. He closed his eyes and felt the warmth of her.