Adam enthusiastically glad-handed his fellow teens like a politician running for office. Megan Russell was responsible for it all. The day that she gave Adam his first and only hand-job after study hall two weeks earlier gave Adam the confidence to command a room. His first real sexual encounter had gone smoothly. For a rookie, Adam was pleased with his performance. He had joined an elite club of guys whose penises had actually been touched by a female. That beat a letter jacket any day.
He hadn’t been in the reception hall for more than five minutes before he met Zoë Rosenberg, a bubbly redhead with mischievous emerald eyes, peach-colored skin, and an enchanting Canadian accent. Through the crowd, Zoë and Adam simultaneously caught each other’s elongated stares. They clicked instantly. They went from hello to lightly interlocking their hands in less than an hour. Adam had never felt so drawn to anyone before. Although he couldn’t explain it, he wasn’t about to complain. All he knew was that he was determined to spend every minute of the weekend with Zoë.
What made the conclave the ultimate situation for attendees like Adam and Zoë was that the out-of-towners stayed in the homes of those who lived in Minneapolis. With a little maneuvering on the final night, Adam was able to get Zoë transferred to his house. Although Adam never had the opportunity to use it for anything other than watching television, his basement was a potential lair for intimate exploration. A large L-shaped couch sat across the back wall of the windowless wood-paneled basement. A big-screen TV provided just enough light. Although Adam’s parents objected to three teenage boys and three teenage girls all sleeping together in one room, there was really no other choice; his sister wasn’t about to give up her room. Besides, his parents couldn’t put up much of a fight. After all, it was their idea for Adam to attend in the first place.
Then the intercom crackled. “Adam, can you come up here a minute?” At least his father didn’t embarrass him in front of every one. “We don’t want any heavy petting going on downstairs,” Burt Winter warned.
Everyone played their parts — a parent parenting and a kid lying his ass off: “No one’s into that kind of stuff,” Adam said assuredly. “Some of these kids even keep Kosher.”
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