Putting It In

by Pamela Poundtown

  “So to what do I owe this pleasure?” Charlotte asked.

  “Sophie called me last night. Ha! You must hear about her story of the twins dressing up as Tweedledee and Tweeledum at their school concert. Poor Sophie! I’m not looking forward to Wesley growing up. She thinks she had it bad with her laid-back family; imagine how hard it’s going to be for me. Wesley is a little terror and he’s only four years old. Anyway, cancel ALL your plans for next weekend.”

  “What? I have like a million things coming up that I need to organize. What’s going on?”

  “Tough. Cancel them. Sophie’s orders. The three of us are going away!”

  “What do you mean? I didn’t know about this. Are you making this up?” But even Charlotte knew that if you heard the words ‘Sophie’s orders’ it meant business.

  “Yeah, Sophie had a bit of an epiphany on the phone last night. But she’s right, you know. The three of us have not done anything together without our husbands or kids for years. Sophie and I actually couldn’t remember the last time that the three of us have been alone. So she’s booking a holiday for this upcoming weekend. You know Sophie – if she has an idea in her mind that she’ll run with it immediately. I’m in. And so are you. I’m not phoning to ask you. I’m phoning to tell you.” Mia was normally such a timid person, but when it came to her friends she was as confident as the rest.

  Charlotte laughed, “Then I better start cancelling all my plans or delegating them to someone else. Peter is going to freak. You know, I should be mad. I like to plan my life, you know that. But I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t excited. I need this.”

  “We both do!” Mia said and then hung up. Finally! This was actually happening. She was a teacher so she was already off on the weekend. She’d already decided to take the Friday off and she’d just have to deal with all the marking when she came back. It’s not like the kids were rushing to get their marks back. She felt more excited than she had in a very long time. The three girls – together again!

  ***

  Charlotte

  “I need this,” she heard herself saying to Mia and then put the phone down to the sound of Mia shrieking in delight. Not that she was ever really going to say no, let’s be honest, but perhaps Mia had expected more of a fight from her.

  It had been awhile since Charlotte had done anything for herself. She’d always been the quiet one out of the three girls. The early riser – while Mia took great pride in going to bed late and waking up late. Sophie too, when she went to bed Charlotte had already been asleep for hours. Although Sophie had changed a lot over the years. She’d become a lot more controlled after marrying Michael and having the twins. But Sophie had always been the organizer of the group – despite her head always being all over the place. Nobody ever quite knew how she managed to pull it off, but if she came up with an idea then she’d always see it through to the end. That was always the thing we loved most about Sophie, or Sassy Sophie as we used to call her, but her feisty ways had definitely calmed down over the years. We used to say that she had an Italian disposition despite being American and she’d always answer “no wonder I love pasta so much. I blame Italy for my thighs.” Not that she had anything to worry about – she was always going on about how much weight she had put on after the twins but she still looked stunning. Come to think of it the three of them had very little to complain about when it came to their appearances. They might not look as youthful as they had a few years ago but they looked a lot better than other people with kids.

  Charlotte always assumed that it was because the three of them had each other. They’d urge each other when the one got lazy and they were always honest if they saw that someone was slacking off. It was a promise they’d made to each other when they were younger and one that they had managed to keep. It wasn’t always easy going up to your friend to tell them that they had put on weight – but a promise was a promise. I think it was Mia who actually came up with the idea. The three of them had been sitting at the park together, aware that it was starting to get dark and that their parents would worry. They were on the verge of womanhood and they were definitely starting to change. “I don’t want to get fat,” Mia suddenly said which made the three of them laugh. Her statement was so unexpected.

  “My cousin Marta got married and three years later she was fat and dowdy. How does that happen? I want to tell her to try a little harder because she used to be so beautiful. But I can’t tell her – we’re not that close. It’s important to have someone that can tell you the hard things when you need to hear them.” And just like that the promise between them had been made.

  Charlotte, tall and lean, had been dubbed ‘Miss Charlotte’ by her friends when they were all in their teen years. She was always too tall and too gawky when she was young but she had finally grown into her beauty when she was about fourteen years old. Getting the braces taken out also helped. It was as if suddenly overnight she became the popular girl. Luckily for Mia and Sophie they had been friends with her before she was beautiful and the bond had not broken. Whenever people called Sophie or Mia pretty they’d say that Charlottes beauty must’ve have simply rubbed off on them.

  She had never planned to fall pregnant. Her intention had always been to simply get married and maybe own a few dogs. When she met Peter he had begged her to reconsider which she told him she would – but in her head she had already decided. After years of asking she told him that she was willing to give it a try, but without telling him she continued to take her pill in secret. Therefore, it came as a huge surprise, that within a few months of telling him that she was keen to try, she actually did fall pregnant. Of course, she then had to pretend she was happy when deep down instead she wanted to cry.

  The only two people who knew how she really felt were Mia and Sophie – and the two of them were the only pillars of strength that she had at the time. It would break her heart to see how happy her husband was and how deeply upset he would be if he knew just how much she didn’t want this. However, as it turned out – as it so often does – the moment she had Charlie she fell in love with him. His sweet little cherub face and big round eyes made her melt and every day her feelings only grew stronger. She was so overwhelmed by this feeling as it had taken her completely by surprise. She was so lucky – Charlie was the sweetest little boy ever, always wanting to help others and constantly telling her how much he loved her. She would never tell him that she didn’t want to have children. She would also never tell Peter. That would be her little secret – well hers, Mia’s and Sophie’s of course.

  Charlotte and Charlie were inseparable from the moment he was born – the two forming a kinship that was undeniably strong. Which meant that poor Peter had felt slightly left out. Peter was a great dad – it was the only thing he’d ever wanted – but for some reason Charlie always came running to her. It had put a bit of a strain on their relationship but neither of them liked to talk about it. That is why Charlotte knew that this weekend away was probably just what both she and Peter needed. As much as she hated the idea of not being around Charlie for a weekend she knew that it would do all of them the world of good. She knew Peter would be slightly worried at first – after all he had never spent much time with just Charlie. Charlotte was always around to make sure everything was okay. This was the perfect opportunity or the two of them to bond.

  Thinking about the weekend with the girls made her think that she probably needed a weekend away with Peter sometime too. Years had gone by and the only thing that Charlotte ever really thought about was Charlie. That probably wasn’t fair on Peter nor was it fair on herself. She phoned Peter at work to tell him. As she suspected his first words were, “Oooh I don’t know Charlotte. I’m not used to looking after him without you.” But then, after he’d given it some thought and she’d given him a bit of encouragement he changed his mind. Soon he was excited. “You need this Charlotte. You haven’t had a chance to spend time with the girls in a very long time. Plus it’s only for the weekend. I’ll be fine. I’m g
oing to take Friday off so that Charlie and I can spend even more time together. Okay I’m going to go make a list of things for the two of us to do.” Charlotte smiled as she put the phone down. This holiday was going to be good for everyone.

  ***

  Sophie

  And just like that they were on their way. Sophie had managed to find the cutest holiday resort a mere one hour’s drive away – giving them maximum holiday time. She’d tried to get everyone to leave on Friday morning but Charlotte couldn’t get away until midday. Nevertheless, they were on their merry way. They’d all laughed at how many bags she’d bought, but she’d replied, “I’ll be prepared for ALL occasions that come my way and you’ll be left wishing that you had brought more!” She’d always been a heavy packer and could never decide what to bring. So she’d always just bring it all. Luckily the car had a nice roomy trunk and Mia and Sophie’s one little bag each fit in perfectly. Mia jumped in the front leaving Charlotte at the back, who kept popping her head to the front to change the music. The three of them could not stop talking – it was as if they were a bottle of champagne that had just been uncorked and all the bubbles were coming out.

  When they got to the resort the girls all ‘oohed and aahed’ – the place was beautiful. Tranquil music was playing in the background and beautiful people lounged around the pool as if this were something they did every day. They looked as if they would just snap their fingers and a waiter would rush to their every beck and call. “Sophie! What is this place? It must’ve cost a fortune,” Mia asked. Mia, who obviously had way more money than the rest of the girls, felt bad that Sophie had refused money from them. “Please,” Sophie replied, “I haven’t maxed out my credit card in a very long time and this was totally worth it!” “SOPHIE!” Mia exclaimed, looking worried. “Mia, don’t worry, I’m just kidding. I had some money saved and I promised myself I’d spend it on something special. THIS is special.”

  They checked in and got taken to their room. Sophie had booked one big room with three beds. Each bed looked to be king size and the room came fully equipped with a stocked bar and a balcony that opened out onto the poolside. Sophie flopped onto the bed, “Can I live here forever?” Even she was surprised at how big this room was – even though she’d booked it herself. If she’d known how big these beds were she would’ve just booked in a room that had one and the three of them could’ve slept in in together. This was total luxury.

  “Let’s go to the pool!” Charlotte said excitedly and took out her bikini from her bag. “I need a Martini and I need it stat!”

  Sophie whistled as Charlotte came out of the dressing room. She hadn’t changed a bit – tall, tanned and incredibly lean. No wonder she was so eager to get into that costume.

  Mia glanced at Sophie, “I’m almost afraid to put on mine now,” she said as she touched her belly. Mia, although the complete opposite of Charlotte, was exquisite. She’d been pretty in school but her real looks only came through in her twenties. It was then that she had cut her hair as short as a boy which suddenly emphasized all of her features. She was tiny and the short hair gave her an elfin look that was adorable. She popped on her bikini and complained that her breasts were too small.

  “Please,” Sophie said while admiring her friend, “you’d look silly with big boobs. You’re perfect the way you are. And now comes the turn of the great big monster to put on her bikini – shade your eyes! Shade your eyes!” Sophie, the more curvy of the three girls popped on her bikini (and not a costume like she had said) and did a dramatic pose in front of the mirror. She wasn’t tall like Charlotte or petite like Mia, but she was curvaceous in all the right places. She’d put on a bit of weight over the years but luckily for her this had gone mostly to her breasts. Mia sighed, “I’d kill for your boobs.”

  The three of them laughed. This is how they had always been. Always complaining about themselves and always complimenting each other. They got their towels and headed straight to the pool – arm in arm. Well they actually headed straight to the bar, got themselves some cocktails and then headed to the pool. There was a smaller pool within the bigger pool that nobody was using. The perfect spot for the three of them to sit and catch up. The pool was surrounded by a section created specifically to keep your drinks on without spilling and if they wanted more they simply had to call someone over and they’d literally get into the pool to bring it to them. Sophie was laughing the entire time, “I just cannot get over this place. I swear I was in such a hurry to choose a place that I had barely looked at the photos. I just knew that it had a pool and a bar – that was really all I needed to know. What I didn’t know, however, was how hot the waiters would be.” And just like that she made everyone down their drinks and then quickly called the waiter over to ask for more. The poor guy had to wade in the pool to get to them, his shorts clinging to his thighs. “I wonder how many times I can do that before he gets annoyed with me.”

  The three girls sat together like this for the next few hours, calling the waiter several times who by now had already learnt all their names and knew which drink they would want. He also came back with snacks each time and stared with big eyes at Mia the entire time. It was probably because Mia looked so young – the waiter probably thought he actually had a shot with her. Sophie loved watching Mia blush every time he came past. Mia had no intention of making a move with him but it was always nice to get attention from someone – and Sophie knew that out of everyone Mia needed it the most. Derrick was a good husband but he didn’t always make Mia feel as beautiful as she should feel. This weekend I’m going to make sure that Mia walks away feeling beautiful and wanted.

  By the time they got out of the pool they couldn’t walk straight. They hadn’t realized just how many cocktails they’d actually had because they had been sitting down the whole time. As soon as they got up the world begun to spin and the three of them held hands all the way back to the room. As they were about to go to the room the waiter came rushing up to them. “Thanks for the fun afternoon girls. Did you know you have access to a private hot tub? I think the guy at the desk was meant to tell you but he’s new so I’m not sure if he did. The last thing I want is for you to spend the whole weekend here without knowing about the hot tub. We even got the place ready for you guys.”

  The waiter walked with them to their room and showed them where the door was. It was some secret door hidden behind the bookshelf and inside was a room dedicated solely to a hot tub. The water was adjustable as were the lights. Inside was a bottle of champagne in a bucket, a bowl of strawberries and a slab of chocolate. “Are you girls celebrating something?” He asked, still looking at Mia. “We most certainly are!” said Sophie and then looked at him until he quickly scampered out. “Shame Sophie – you scared the poor guy away!” “Well I had to, otherwise he would probably have tried to join us so that he could get Mia’s number.” They laughed and climbed inside the hot tub. The temperature was warm and felt so good after the cold pool. They poured themselves some champagne and shared around the strawberries and chocolate. This was the life!

  “You know girls,” Sophie began, “I love my husband, I really do. And I love my terrible twins. Just the same I know you love your family. We’re lucky. But the three of us have always been so strong together – we’ve seen each other through everything. And yet lately none of us have made the time for each other. Sure, we phone and email and see each other on special occasions – but it’s not enough. I miss you both so much. And let me tell you something – I have never in my life felt this free!” They cheered to that and all agreed.

  “Sassy Sophie is here again,” and just like that she pulled her bikini right off. Then she looked at Mia and Charlotte. “Go on – your turn.”

  On a normal occasion, they would’ve had protested (well on a normal occasion Sophie would never have done this) but they were all feeling happy and the alcohol was running through their veins. Mia stood up first, taking off her bikini top and then her bottom and doing a quick little naked dance before
getting back into the water. Then Charlotte stood up and did the same, this time mooning them before she sat down. The three of them had always been very open and honest with each other but this was a first – even for them.

  “I have something to admit,” Sophie said – spurred on by this sudden bravery. She took another sip of the champagne, “I have always wondered what it would be like to kiss a girl. Have you guys ever done it? Although if you have I’m going to kill you for not telling me.”

  They both admitted that they hadn’t and both said that they had been curious. “I feel like such a bore,” Charlotte said, “I’ve hardly been with anyone but Peter. And we don’t do any fun stuff.”

  “Ah, it’s the same for me. The sex is simply not that great between Derrick and me. He’s amazing – you know that – and he’ll never ever do anything to hurt me. But he’s just not a passionate type of guy. I can’t even be upset about that. It’s the reason I chose him.”

  “So would it be, uh, would it be –

  Sophie faltered, suddenly shy? “Would it be what? Spit it out Sassy Sophie!”

  “Well, would it be cheating if the three of us kissed each other? You know, for experimental purposes and all?” As the words came out her mouth she groaned – well this was embarrassing. It was a thought she’d had for a very long time but had never dared to actually say anything.