Note: This story was dynamically reformatted for online reading convenience.
 
 Title: Silence Is...  Sexy
Summary: Siblings talk about physical attraction through text message.
Keywords: inc,fic
   "My life is over!" Carla exclaimed.
   "They're not that bad.  Lots of people have braces," her mother
commented.
   "Not when they're about ready to start college.  People are going to
think that I'm thirteen!" she cried.
   "How did that tree taste when you bit it so hard?" Daniel asked her.
   He was her brother and wouldn't ever let her live this down.  She had
gone on a ski trip in Switzerland with her boyfriend and his family and
ended up smacking into a European spruce.  In addition to loosening several
of her teeth, she had broken her leg and suffered some rather extensive
bruising on her face.  Although he teased her, in reality he was happy that
she was home and other than her attitude, she seemed to be OK.
   "Shut up, prick!" Carla retorted.
   "Carla, Daniel, you two had better try and get along.  Start working on
it now cause you know your father and I are leaving next week."
   "Oh Mom!  You can't leave me with him!  John will take care of me,"
Carla said.  John was her boyfriend.
   "You mean like 'snuff you out' take care of you?  Because it looks like
he came pretty close last time," Daniel commented.
   "It wasn't his fault!" Carla whined.
   "Your brother has a point.  John can come over if he wants, but you're
going to be staying here.  I just want to have you alive when we get back
from our trip," her mother said.
   "I'll take good care of you," Daniel said.  When his mother wasn't
looking, but his sister still was, he drew a finger across his throat to
suggest her impending doom.
   *****
   Daniel came home late in the afternoon from the golf course the next
day. Although not a star, he was on the university's golf team and wanted
to get some practice in before the season started up.  The first sight that
greeted him when he entered the house was his sister wiping away tears and
blowing her nose into a tissue.  It would seem that she had turned the
living room into her personal laboratory of self pity while he was out. 
Before he could even say a word, she waved him off.
   "Go away!" she shouted.  She appeared to be utterly miserable.
   He found his mother in the kitchen.
   "So, what's wrong with her this time?" he asked.
   "The wonderful John called and informed her that he thought that they
needed some time apart," his mother replied.
   "She probably drove him crazy after she hit that tree.  I can't blame
him for not wanting to be around her.  Still, what an asshole," Daniel
commented.
   "Yeah," his mother agreed.  "Look, Danny, do me a favor and try to be
nice to her.  I honestly don't know what to do with her.  I don't even know
if your father and I should go away now," she said.
   "Don't be silly, you guys have been waiting to go to the islands for
years.  I can handle her, I'll just switch tactics.  If that doesn't work,
I'll just lock her in the basement," he replied.
   "I hope it doesn't come to that, the poor girl," his mother said with a
sigh.
   Daniel decided to let Carla have her space for a while before he went
and talked to her.  It was after dark, she was laying on her bed in her
room.
   "What do you want?" she asked, seeing his approach.
   "I just wanted to say that I'm sorry about John.  It's no fun to see you
crying all of the time.  I was wondering if there was anything that I could
do for you," he replied.
   "Oh.  I thought you were just going to pick on me some more," she said.
   "Usually, but not this time.  Do you need anything?"
   "Well, I...do you promise that you won't pick on me?" she asked.
   "Promise," he replied.
   "I have to go to the bathroom," she said.
   "Do you want me to help you into your wheelchair or something?" he
asked.
   "Yeah.  I need help pulling my shorts down and getting onto the toilet.
Mom's been helping me, could you get her if you don't want to do it?" she
asked.
   "No, I'll do it.  She's going to be leaving in a couple of days anyway.
I might as well get used to it," he said.
   Carla had a heavy cast on her left leg the ran from the top of her foot
to about eight inches above her knee.  She had crutches, but was still sore
enough throughout her entire body that she couldn't use them properly yet.
She had to spend much of her time laying down with her leg elevated.
   With some help from her brother, she got into her wheelchair and they
headed to the bathroom.
   "All right.  How do you want to do this?" he asked.
   "I need you to help me balance while I pull down my shorts.  Then I'll
just kind of spin and sit down on the potty," she said.
   They accomplished the task easy enough, though Daniel did feel a bit
uncomfortable in seeing his sister's naked ass.  He got a pretty good
glimpse at her pussy, too, when she first sat down.  Daniel quickly turned
his back and headed for the door.  Carla was somewhat amused that she was
making her brother squirm.
   "What's wrong, Danny?  You don't like to watch ladies pee?  I didn't
think that you would mind, considering what I found in your DVD
collection," she called to him.
   "Well I...hey, you went through my stuff?" He couldn't really argue with
the fact that he had several x-rated videos in his room.  He thought that
they were in a place where no one else would find them.  Apparently that
was not the case.
   "Yeah, I went through your room a while ago.  I wanted to see if you had
anything interesting in there I might want.  I didn't find anything worth
stealing, though.  I'm done, by the way," she added.
   "And here I am trying to be nice.  I ought to just leave you there," he
said.  He went and helped her up anyway.  They went back to her room and
got her on her bed in a comfortable position.
   "Thanks Danny.  I couldn't help but pick on you when I saw your face
turn red.  I think it's just a natural instinct to rub it in, you know?"
she asked.
   "Yeah, I know." He supposed that he would rather have her be a smart ass
than be moping around all brokenhearted.  "Why don't you text me if you
need something?  I'll be in my room, I'm going to go make sure that
nothing's missing."
   *****
   Daniel drove his parents to the airport on the morning that their trip
began.  After the farewells and several promises to be nice to his sister,
he returned home.  Carla was laying on the couch, watching TV.  She still
wasn't in the best of moods, she was having a hard time getting over John.
Several of her friends had been over to visit, but they seemed to only
depress her more when she had to tell the story of everything that had
happened to her in the past weeks.
   "How you feeling there, my little angel?" Daniel asked.
   "Bored," she replied, ignoring the sarcasm.
   "Your face is looking a lot better.  You're almost back to being the
beautiful little sister that I know and love," he said.  She did look much
better than she had when she had first returned home from her disaster of a
ski trip.  The bruising and swelling on her face was almost gone.
   "Don't you ever get tired of picking on me?" she asked.
   "I'm not picking.  You're beautiful and I love you.  I kind of have to,
being your brother and all."
   "Thanks, I guess.  Love you too, but only because I have to," she said.
   "So, can I get you anything?  Want me to give you a sponge bath?" he
asked.
   "You're such a pervert.  I can wash myself, thanks," she replied.  She
tried to sound disgusted, but couldn't help but smile.
   "You didn't seem to have a problem peeing in front of me the other
night. Are you sure that makes me the pervert?" he asked.
   "That was different because it was hilarious.  Your face turned so red
that I thought your head might explode," she pointed out.
   "Yeah, I don't think I was meant to watch such things," he responded.
   "You must have seen it before, I went through your DVD's, remember?  You
liked it, just admit it," she said.
   "Well, we'll see how you like peeing in your pants for the next eight
days.  I don't think I'm going to help you again."
   "That's all right.  I think I can do it now with my crutches, anyway. 
You can still watch if you want," she chuckled.
   "Would you stop it with that?  I'm sure if I went through your room I'd
find something I could use against you.  If only I could find a time to do
it without you being able to stop me.  Hey, how about right now?" he
wondered aloud.  Daniel grabbed his sister's wheelchair and headed off in
the direction of her bedroom.
   "Danny!  Don't be an asshole, don't do that!  Danny!" she called after
him as he disappeared down the hallway.
   Daniel didn't actually go into Carla's room.  He was going to take a
shower.  It was fun to let her think he was going through her stuff. 
Served her right.  It didn't take him too long, and when he was done he
went back to the living room.  Carla was still on the couch, of course,
looking miserable again.
   "I don't know about you, sis.  And you called me a pervert!" he teased.
   "You shouldn't have gone through my stuff and you wouldn't have seen
anything.  Bring my chair over here and leave me alone!" she yelled.  She
was seething.  He pushed the wheelchair back over by the couch.
   "Relax, I didn't even go into your room, I just took a shower.  I just
wanted to make you sweat a little.  I'm not super nosy like you," he said.
   He was pretty curious as to what she had in her room that she was
getting so defensive about, though.  One look at her brother and Carla
could tell that he was probably telling the truth.  His hair was still wet
and he had on different clothes.  She relaxed visibly.
   "Oh, all right.  I'm sorry I yelled.  There's stuff in there I don't
want you to see, all right?  Promise me you won't go snooping OK?" she
asked.
   "I promise.  I still ought to though.  You looked through mine," he
stated.
   "I didn't really go through your stuff, either.  I went in your room to
get your copy of 'Thor' because Mom and I wanted to watch it when you were
out one night.  You left the case to your porno on top of your DVD player.
I couldn't help but see it.  I didn't tell Mom or anything.  I won't pick
on you about it anymore," she said, acting like she was about to cry.
   Daniel put a hand on her shoulder.
   "Hey, you can pick on me about whatever you want.  You're allowed.  I'll
try not to leave any filthy porn lying around for you to find, though.  Do
you want me to go, or do you want to hang out?" he asked.  Carla shrugged
her shoulders.
   "We can hang out if you want.  I don't have any plans except to lay here
and be miserable.  My leg's been bugging me the last couple of days," she
replied.
   "You've been miserable enough lately.  What can I do to cheer you up?"
he asked.
   "Well..."
   Daniel sat on the couch with his sister's feet on his lap.  He was just
finishing up painting her toenails a lime-green color.  It seemed to take
him forever.  He'd get one done only to have his sister say there was
something wrong with it.  Then he would have to clean it off and start
over.
   "How's that?" he asked, not sure whether he would like the answer or
not.
   "They look very pretty now.  Thank you, Danny," she smiled, revealing
her braces.  She was right, they did remind Daniel of when she was thirteen
and had braces on back then.  These were a slightly different style from
what she had.  She wouldn't have to wear them for nearly as long as she did
the first time, either.
   "What are you smiling at?" she asked.
   "I was just thinking about how cute you look with your braces.  It
reminds me when you had them the first time," he replied.  Carla sighed.
   "I was afraid of that.  People are going to think I'm a little kid."
   "Well, if these people take a look at your body, I'm pretty sure they
won't think you're a little kid," he said.
   "What do you mean?" she asked.
   "I mean you're a grown woman, and you have the body of one," he replied,
his eyes moving to the firm mounds of her breasts.
   "Oh.  You're talking about my boobs then.  How clever."
   "Can't you just take a compliment when I give you one?" Daniel asked,
exasperated.
   "I'm sorry Danny.  I just get bitchy sometimes," she said.
   "Yeah, I know.  Move your legs, I'm getting up." Daniel had had enough
of his sister for the time being.  He had been trying to cheer her up but
was starting to think that he might not be able to.  Maybe she was just
destined to be a miserable bitch for the rest of her life.  He avoided her
for the next few hours.  He figured if she really needed something, he
would hear her screaming.
   *****
   Carla lay on the couch, thinking about her situation.  She missed John.
Even though she knew he was kind of an arrogant, rich-kid jerk, she had
thought that he would stick by her side while she recovered from her
injuries.  As soon as their plane touched down state-side, he split.  It
would seem that she wasn't worth his time now that he wasn't able to fuck
her at his convenience.  He had said that he loved her countless times over
the past year.  He was such a fake.
   Carla was also hoping that she didn't irritate her brother too much. 
They had always been fairly mean to each other, but she had to admit that
he was being pretty great to her lately.  She was sure that he had gone to
look through her room earlier, and that would have been supremely
embarrassing.  He probably would have found her vibrator, but what she was
mostly worried about were the pictures.  She had a small collection of
photos that she and John had taken.  They were mostly of her, some
involving him and her.  They were all very explicit.  Carla realized that
she should have probably gotten rid of them, but she couldn't bring herself
to.  There was something that she found amazingly hot about getting her
picture taken, and just looking at them was enough to excite her.  It was
the best masturbation that she ever had.  Pretty soon she found herself
heading to her room for a little alone time.
   Daniel was in the kitchen, carving himself off a piece of watermelon. 
He heard his sister go into her room and shut the door.  It was a good
thing that she was getting around on her own better than what she had been.
It probably wasn't all that easy.  He was just getting ready to dig into
his slice when the doorbell rang.
   Sadly, he abandoned his fruit and went to open the door.  It was Carla's
friend, Karen.
   Karen was much different from his sister, which was one of the reasons
that he always had liked her.  She was a tall girl, close to six feet. 
Slender, but also seemed to fill out whatever outfit she was wearing
nicely. Karen wore glasses that led Daniel to refer to her as 'the sexy
librarian' whenever she wasn't around.  She was soft spoken and friendly,
she and Daniel had always gotten along.
   "Hi, come in," Daniel said.
   "Hi.  I came to see how your sister is doing," she said with a smile. 
Daniel smiled back.
   "Sure.  She's pretty bummed out about John, but I think that she's
healing up nicely.  Do you think you could try and cheer her up a little?
I've been trying, but I think that I get on her nerves more than anything
else," he said.
   "I'm sure that she appreciates it, Danny.  I'll see what I can do,
though," she replied.
   "OK then.  She just went into her room."
   Karen went down the hall while Daniel went back to his watermelon.  She
knocked on the door to Carla's room and announced her presence.
   "Carla, it's Karen.  Are you up for a visit?" she asked.  She had her
hand on the door knob, but it was locked.
   "I'm, I'm just changing my clothes.  I'll be out in a minute," replied
Carla, her voice sounding strained.
   "All right," Karen responded.  She didn't think much of it, oblivious to
the fact that Carla was actually in her room masturbating to naked pictures
of herself.  She went to find Daniel to chat with him for a bit.
   "What, did she kick you out already?" he asked.
   "No.  She's locked in her room changing her clothes," Karen said.
   "Locked in her room, huh?  Must be she thought I was going to spy on
her," he said in between bites of his watermelon.
   "Do you do that a lot?" she asked, cocking an eyebrow.
   "Spy on her?  Naw, I wouldn't dare.  Have you ever made her mad before?
Terrifying.  Want some watermelon?" he offered.
   "Sure," Karen smiled.
   After a few minutes, Carla came rolling into the kitchen to join them.
   "Well, if it isn't my brother and the sexy librarian.  You two look
chummy," she stated.
   "What?" Karen giggled.
   "The sexy librarian, that's what he calls you when you're not around,"
Carla informed her.  Karen smiled.  Daniel turned crimson red.
   "I swear to God, Carla!  Karen, do you think you could teach her to be
nice?" Daniel whined, clearly embarrassed.
   The three of them ate watermelon and made small talk for a while.  When
he found that Karen was going to stick around for a bit, Daniel decided
that he would slip away to hit some golf balls over at the range.  The
girls ended up back in the living room so that Carla could lie down and put
her leg up.
   "So, is your brother seeing anyone?" Karen asked.
   "Not right now, I don't think.  Why?  You gonna try to make a man out of
him?" Carla wondered.
   "I don't know about that, but I wouldn't mind going out with him
sometime," Karen replied.
   "Why?" Carla had to ask.  She found it hard to believe that her friend
was actually attracted to him.
   "Oh come on!  He's sweet, he's funny, and he's pretty good looking,"
Karen explained.
   "He's certainly funny, I give you that.  I don't know about the other
two, though.  He did paint my toenails this morning, I guess that was kind
of sweet," Carla said.
   "You're just too busy ripping on him all the time to see him the way
that I do.  Your nails look nice, by the way."
   *****
   Daniel was driving back from the range, trying to think of things he
could do that would irritate his sister.  He wouldn't have to do them
immediately, he could stash them away in his brain for the right moment. 
For some reason, he was coming up blank.  He'd hate to think that he was
getting soft in his old age.  Maybe he could check the internet later for
some inspiration.  He thought that he might be better off being nice to her
for a little while so that he could ply her for information about Karen,
anyway.  He wouldn't mind taking the sexy librarian out sometime.
   The girls were still in the living room when he made it back to the
house.  They seemed to be captivated by teenage pregnancy on MTV.
   "Hello ladies.  How's my little sis-monster doing?  Were you OK without
me?" he asked.
   "Yeah Danny, I survived the whole hour and a half without you.  It
wasn't hard, really," Carla replied.
   "I was thinking about dinner in a little while.  Karen, will you be
joining us?" Daniel asked.
   "Not tonight, thanks.  I'm going to have be leaving here in a little
bit. I might take you up on your offer some other time, though, if you
wanted," Karen suggested.
   "Sure, whenever you like.  I'll look forward to it.  What do you want to
have, Carla?"
   "I think I've lost my appetite," Carla replied, rolling her eyes.
   Eventually, they decided to order in and got some Chinese.  While they
were in the kitchen eating, Carla was studying her brother, trying to
figure out just what it was that Karen saw in him.  He had his head tilted
forward, sucking in a large clump of noodles.
   "I just don't see it," she mumbled to herself.
   "See what?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
   "Oh, Karen seems to be attracted to you for some reason," she explained.
   "Do you think that I'd be able to take her out?" he asked.
   "I don't know, could you?  She seems to be willing enough."
   "Is it going to make you mad?  Cause I won't if you're not comfortable
with it," he said, slurping some more noodles.
   "What difference does it make what I feel about it?" she asked.
   "Look, why do you have to be so difficult?  All I want to know is if it
would be too weird for you if I dated one of your friends," he said.
   "So you're saying you won't date her if I say 'no'?" she asked.
   "Right."
   "Even though you think that she's sexy and she obviously likes you?" she
asked.
   "Right."
   "Interesting.  My first thought is 'no', I don't want your creepy hands
touching my friend.  However, I could possibly be persuaded to change my
opinion," she stated.
   "OK, I get it.  You're going to blackmail me to get your permission,
which I don't really need, by the way.  I was just asking out of sibling
courtesy.  I'll bite, what do you want?" he asked.
   *****
   After they were done eating, Daniel found himself at the kitchen sink
with his sister, washing her hair.  She was sitting on a bar stool with her
back to the sink, her leg propped up on a kitchen chair.  She had her head
tilted back and he was rinsing shampoo out of her hair with the sprayer. 
It wasn't all that bad of a request really, as far as blackmail goes.  He
wanted to totally soak her with the sprayer, but managed to control his
urges.
   Following her instructions, he worked in the conditioner and was letting
it sit and take effect.  Her hair was a bit more than shoulder length,
sandy blonde in color.  It was nice hair, he supposed.  You couldn't blame
the hair just because it was attached to a little brat.  A thought popped
into his head as he noticed what shirt she was wearing.
   "Isn't that the same shirt that you were wearing this morning?" he asked
her.
   "Yeah, so what?"
   "You told Karen that you were in your room changing your clothes when
you had her locked out of your room.  Those are the same shorts, too," he
said.
   "Sometimes I lie.  You can rinse my hair now," she stated.
   "What were you up to?" he asked as he began rinsing.
   "None of your business."
   "Fine," he said, handing her a towel.  "Do you want me to brush it,
too?" he asked.
   "Are you serious?  Can you even do it without making me scream?" she
asked.
   "I used to do it for Linda all of the time, and she had gnarly hair
compared to yours."
   Linda was Daniel's ex.  They had separated earlier in the summer, right
around when classes ended.  They had liked each other all right, but she
had graduated from the university while he still had another year to go. 
She went back out west to her family, Daniel stayed with his.
   "I forgot about Linda, whatever happened to her?  Why did you guys break
up?" Carla asked.  Daniel helped her into the wheelchair and they headed to
her room to finish her hair.
   "We had fun together, but I guess we never got real serious.  She
graduated and went home.  I couldn't expect her to stay out here and hang
with me," Daniel said.  He sat on the edge of her bed to brush out his
sister's hair while she stayed in her wheelchair.
   "Do you miss her?" she asked.
   "Sure I do.  I think it was a lot harder right after I took her to the
airport and watched her plane take off.  That's when I realized that she
was really gone, you know?  We've talked on the phone a couple of times
since, but it's been a while," he said.
   "I'm sorry.  I've been so busy seeing John, then missing John that I
didn't even think about you and Linda.  I still miss John even though he
dumped me, isn't that silly?  If I'd have never hit that stupid tree then
we'd probably still be together," she reasoned.
   "Naw, it's not silly.  You were pretty connected to the guy for a while.
In more ways than one, I imagine.  I'm not trying to pick on you, it's hard
to give that up.  How's that?" he asked, referring to her hair and handing
her the brush.
   "That feels pretty good, Danny.  I'll just let it air out for a bit and
I'll finish it.  Did uh, did you and Linda do it a lot?" she asked.  Daniel
was a little surprised at the question.  They teased each other about sex
all of the time, but he couldn't ever remember being serious about it.
   "Yeah, quite a bit.  Just about every day," he replied.
   "John and I were like that, too.  I think that's why he wanted time
apart after I got this damn cast on my leg and my face was all messed up. I
wouldn't be able to screw him like he was used to," she said sadly.
   "If that's all that he wanted then you're better off without the guy
anyway.  If he cared about you at all it seems like he would at least be
interested as to how you're doing.  You need someone who will take care of
you, not just fuck you.  Even though that's fun, too," Daniel said.
   "Yeah, he won't return my calls or my texts or anything.  He's just a
selfish prick, and I mean that in more ways than one!" she giggled.  Daniel
chuckled a little, himself.
   "That's a good thing when you can laugh about it."
   The two still had plenty of time to kill before it was bedtime.  They
decided to do something that they hadn't done in years, that was play
chess. Their father had taught them how to play when they were fairly
young. Although they used to play against each other once in a while,
usually when they played it was against their Dad.  Daniel got the board
and set it up on a rolling table, similar to the ones that they have in
hospitals.  The table top was over the bed so that Carla could play while
still laying down.
   Daniel took a white pawn and a black pawn, jumbled them around in his
hands behind his back, then held his hands out in front of him for Carla to
choose.  She seemed to consider for a moment, then reached out and pointed
to his left.  He opened it to reveal the white pawn.
   "White, you go first," Daniel said.
   "I remember when we used to play and Dad used to just murder me.  When I
played you, you would let me win, and then act all mad about it.  It was
cute," reflected Carla.
   "I don't remember ever actually letting you win.  It was obvious that I
was way smarter than you, I thought maybe I had some sort of a chess
disability," he said as they arranged their pieces to start.
   "Are you afraid that you're about to get your butt kicked, then?"
   "No.  I've been studying the game for years now.  I just finished
advanced master's techniques my last semester," he replied.
   "Really?" she asked, suddenly not so sure if she wanted to play.
   "No, not really.  I'm afraid," he admitted with a smile.  Carla laughed
her little girl laugh and they began to play.
   Carla dispatched her brother handily the first game, so they decided to
go the best two out of three.  She had him on the ropes for much of the
second, but Daniel managed some sneaky moves with his one remaining knight
to claim the victory.  After a short break for some refreshments, and a
call from their parents to check up on them, they were ready for the third
and deciding game.
   "Well, this is it, my dear.  For all the marbles.  You ready?" he asked.
   Carla shifted around on her bed, trying to get comfortable.
   "The question is, are you ready?  You look nervous, Danny," she replied,
with her game face on.  Daniel frowned.
   "Your leg bugging you?" he asked.
   "It's all itchy, and kind of hurts.  I'll be all right, it comes and
goes.  Let's play," she said.
   Things were looking good for Daniel.  That was until the tragic loss of
his queen, followed by both bishops.  After that, it only took a few moves
for his mighty king to fall.
   "Checkmate!" Carla all but howled with delight.
   "Son of a bitch.  That wasn't any fun at all," Daniel said.
   "Well I had tons of fun."
   Daniel grimaced.  He stretched his arms and yawned.
   "I'll have my revenge some day.  For now I think I'm just going to hit
the sack.  Feels like I just fought a real battle.  How about you?" he
asked.
   "Yeah, I'm pretty beat.  Probably just see you in the morning," she
replied.
   Daniel picked up the chess set and moved the table away from his
sister's bed.  He was surprised at how late it had gotten.  The thrashing
that he had just endured had killed a lot of time.
   "Let's leave our doors open so that I'll be able to hear you if you need
anything in the night, OK?" he suggested.
   "Um, OK, I guess."
   "I won't barge in on you or anything, I promise.  Sleep tight," he said,
heading to his room.
   "Goodnight Danny," Carla replied.
   As Carla lay there, waiting for sleep to come, she thought that she
could understand what Karen saw in her brother.  He was funny and sweet. 
If it came right down to it and she was forced to admit it, she would
probably say that he was handsome.
   *****
   A throbbing ache in her broken limb caused Carla to wake in the early
morning hours.  She was sweating like she was trapped in a sauna and felt
sick to her stomach.
   "Danny!" she called.  He appeared in her doorway in a matter of seconds
and flipped on the light.
   "What do you need?" he asked, wiping the sleep from his eyes.
   "My leg really hurts Danny.  I feel sick," she grumbled.
   When he approached her and got a good look, Daniel could tell that there
was something seriously wrong.  He put a hand to her forehead.  It felt
like she had just been taken out of the oven.
   "Carla, babe, you're burning up.  We're going to the hospital."
   Looking back on things, Carla couldn't remember exactly all that
happened on that early morning.  She had the vague recollection of her
brother scooping her out of bed and some strange memories of laying in the
back seat of his car.  The next thing that she knew she woke up in the
hospital.  It was dark and there was a lot of beeping going on.
   "Danny?" she croaked.  Suddenly, he appeared at the side of her bed and
took her hand.
   "I'm right here," he said softly.
   "What happened?" she asked.
   "One of the pins that was put in your leg got infected.  It made you
real sick.  The doctors have you on antibiotics now and you're going to be
fine.  They had to cut your cast off and take the pin out.  After the
swelling goes back down, they'll put a new one in," he explained.
   "I'm scared Danny," she said, her voice raspy.
   "Well, it's scary waking up in a place like this.  But there's nothing
to be scared of, you're going to be just fine.  I promise.  Here, have a
sip of water," he said, holding a straw to her lips.
   She sucked down some water, grateful that she was able to ease the
dryness of her throat.
   "Are you going to stay with me?" she asked.
   "I sure am.  They gave me a nice recliner over here, and they said that
I could stay as long as I want.  I won't leave you alone," he replied.  He
set down the water and slowly stroked her hair, trying to give her some
reassurance.
   "I love you, Danny.  I'm sleepy now."
   "Well, go back to sleep.  I'll be here when you wake up," he assured
her.
   Daniel stood next to her bed and held his sister's hand until she fell
back asleep.  It broke his heart to see her like this, but the doctors had
assured him that the worst was over.  She would have to stay in the
hospital for a couple of days until she got the new pin put in, but other
than that she would be fine.  Still, he was a nervous wreck.  He hadn't
slept since his sister had called for him early that morning and it was now
early the next morning.  His nerves were on end, strung out from strong,
bitter coffee and worry.
   He had made the call to his parents soon after Carla entered surgery to
remove the infected pin.  Try as they might to cut their vacation short and
come home, it would be another three days before they could catch a flight.
He said that he would keep them posted and told them not to worry, though
knowing them, that would be all that they would be doing.
   Daniel sat back in the provided reclining chair and tried to get some
rest.  It was slightly better than nothing, but he suspected that it was a
ploy by the hospital to get him to have back surgery before he left.  The
damn thing felt like it was some kind of torture device.
   *****
   Carla next woke up when a nurse was bringing her breakfast.  She was an
older, pleasant lady, who seemed to have a permanent smile on her face.
   Blinking the sleep from her eyes, Carla surveyed the situation.  Her leg
was suspended in traction and she was basically immobilized.  Daniel was
sprawled out in the corner on his chair, looking like a sleeping pretzel.
   "How are you feeling this morning, dear?  Are you hungry?" the nurse
asked.
   "I don't feel too bad, really.  I could eat," she replied.  She didn't
know how long she was out for exactly, but she was ravenous.
   "That's good news.  I'm Heidi, by the way.  That's your brother, over
there?" she asked, setting the bedside tray in place so that Carla could
reach her breakfast.
   "That's him," Carla confirmed.
   "He's been very worried about you, he hasn't left the room since you
were brought in.  Have you spoken to him, yet?" Heidi asked.
   "A little bit, earlier," Carla replied.
   "It was very nice of him to stay, we told him to go home and we'd call
him if anything changed, but he insisted.  Now don't be afraid to push that
button if you need anything," Heidi said.
   "Yeah, he's the best."
   The nurse left, leaving Carla to her breakfast.  It wasn't too bad,
scrambled eggs, bacon, wheat toast, orange juice, and milk.  She was just
finishing up when her brother began to stir.  He stood and stretched,
trying to get the kinks out.
   "Looks like I missed breakfast.  How ya doing?" he asked.
   "Not bad.  I ate everything, my stomach feels good.  My leg doesn't
hurt," she informed him.  Daniel walked over and took her hand like he had
before.
   "That's great," he said.  He looked genuinely happy.
   "Danny, I..." just then, the phone in the room rang, cutting her off. 
Daniel answered it.
   "Hello?"
   "Danny, it's your mom," came the response on the other line, as if he
couldn't tell.
   "Hi Mom," he said.
   "How's my baby doing?  Is she awake?" she asked.
   "Well, I tried to get them to pull the plug, but they said it wouldn't
make a difference because she wasn't on life support," he said, smiling
over at his sister.  She giggled.
   "Danny!" his mother screamed, "that's not funny.  You..." Daniel
interrupted her.
   "Calm down, she's awake and she's right here," he handed the phone to
his sister.
   "Hi Mom," Carla said.
   "Baby, your father and I are so worried about you!  We'll be there just
as soon as we can.  We can't get a flight until Tuesday night, or we'd be
there with you right now!" her mother spewed.
   "Relax, Mom, I'm feeling pretty good.  I'll probably be back home by
then.  Don't cut your trip short.  Besides, Danny's with me.  He won't let
anything happen to me," Carla said.
   "I know that he won't.  Your brother loves you, but you two aren't
always on the best of terms."
   "Mom, there's nothing you can do here.  I love you, but remember, I'm
not a little kid, I'll be fine.  Let me talk to Daddy," she said.
   "I love you too, honey.  I still think that we ought to come home," her
mother said.  There was some static on the other line while the phone was
passed to her father.  Carla's father was like putty in her hands.  It was
virtually impossible for him to say 'no' to her.
   "Good morning, sweat-pea.  You doing OK?" he asked.
   "I'm fine, Daddy.  Really, I am.  Danny has been wonderful and he can
take care of me.  You guys don't have to come home.  Don't you dare let Mom
spoil your vacation by worrying about me," she ordered.
   "I tell you what.  We'll wait until tomorrow and then make our decision.
If you still think you'll be all right without us, then we'll stay.  I'll
feel kind of like a jack-ass sitting on the beach while you're in a
hospital bed, though," her father said.
   "I'll be OK, Daddy.  You work on your tan."
   "OK, then.  I love you and I'll talk to you soon," her father said,
hanging up the phone.  Carla handed the receiver back to Daniel to hang up.
   "You really think that I'm wonderful?" he asked with a grin.
   "You have your moments, Danny.  Now you ought to go home and get a
shower and whatever.  You're probably starving, too," she surmised.
   Daniel agreed that it would be nice to go home and freshen up a little.
He realized that he was still holding Carla's hand.  He kissed the back of
it and placed it gently on her lap.
   "Do you want anything from home?" he asked her.
   "How about my phone and my slippers?  My toes are cold."
   "Sure, I'll be back in a bit," he said.
   *****
   Daniel got back home and devoured two huge bowls of cereal.  Then he
took Carla's advice and got into the shower.  He felt unusually happy,
giddy almost.  He supposed it was a combination of his sister being OK, and
the praise that she had given him during her conversation with their
parents.
   Wanting to get back to his sister as soon as possible, Daniel dried and
dressed quickly, then headed to her room to grab her things.  He found her
phone and one slipper immediately, the other was hiding someplace.  He was
crawling around on his hands and knees when he found it underneath her bed
next to a small wooden box with a delicate lock on the front.  He couldn't
help but wonder if the box contained whatever it was that Carla had so
desperately wanted him not to see.
   He sat on the floor for a moment while weighing his conscience against
his curiosity.  Grabbing the box from under the bed, he studied the lock.
He'd be a real snooping bastard for looking in there, that was for sure. 
Maybe there would be love letters to John in there, or something goofy like
that.  He gave the box a quick shake.  Something thumped around inside. 
More than just letters, it sounded.  Suppressing his guilt, he began to
search around for the key.  Twenty minutes later, he found it taped to the
bottom of her nightstand.  He felt a bit queasy as he inserted the key and
turned it.  The lock released and the box flipped open.
   "Holy shit," he muttered.
   There was a small vibrator, which was no big deal, he'd expected
something like that.  What was shocking, right in front of his eyes, were a
dozen or so pictures of his sister.  They weren't just nude pictures, they
were hardcore pictures.  One showed her smiling, penis in hand, sperm
dripping from her lips and chin.  One showed her spreadeagled on a bed,
freshly cream-pied.  Yet another had her on her knees with a spectacular
cum shot across her tits.  There was even one of her squatting over a
toilet, a golden stream of urine trickling from her nether regions.  She
looked fucking fantastic naked, sister or not.
   Daniel experienced a sudden, intense erection.  He was entranced by the
sight of his beautiful sister doing such incredibly nasty things.  Without
thinking about it, Daniel had his cock in hand and was pumping it
furiously. Within seconds, he came in an explosive burst, blasting his
ejaculate halfway across the room, followed by a couple of smaller
eruptions that coated his hand.  Daniel experienced a fleeting moment of
incredible gratification followed by a crushing sensation of guilt.
   Scrambling to get a wet cloth to clean up the mess that he made, he
wondered how he would ever be able to face his sister again after seeing
those pictures.  He should have been disgusted, angry even by the site of
them.  But he wasn't, he was just turned on to the extreme.  It was what he
did with them that disgusted him.  He put both the box and the key back
where he had found them.  His heart was beating hard enough that he feared
that it may burst from his chest by the time he had the room put back
together.
   Daniel almost left the house without what he went in his sister's room
to get in the first place; the slippers and the phone.  He drove back to
the hospital with a throbbing erection, having to sit in the parking lot
for quite some time before it subsided.  What the hell was wrong with him?
   *****
   Carla had a private room, which was nice.  Once back in it, Daniel put
her slippers on her feet and handed the phone to her.  He couldn't quite
look her in the eyes.
   "That was fast, you must have found them all right," Carla said.
   "Yeah," Daniel agreed with a false smile.
   "Is everything OK, Danny?" she asked.  When he looked down at her on her
bed, all he could think of was what she looked like naked.
   "I just don't think I slept very well, kind of tired."
   "Aww.  You should have stayed home for a while and got some sleep.  It's
not like I'm going anywhere," she said.
   "I promised Mom that I would look after you.  I'd rather be here with
you," he replied.
   "You're sweet, Danny," she said, smiling up at him once again.  If she
had known what he had just done in her bedroom, she could have very well
formed a different opinion.
   Daniel didn't know why Carla was so damn cheerful, maybe it was the pain
medicine.  Whatever was causing it, it was contagious.  Soon he was much
more relaxed and was chatting away without the crushing weight of guilt
threatening to suffocate him.  Doctors and nurses came and went, apparently
the leg was doing well.  The day actually passed quite quickly, which was
surprising considering hospital-time normally seemed to drag for Daniel.
   Carla started to dose off just after dark, so Daniel decided it would be
a good time to get up and walk down to the cafeteria before it closed. 
While he sat and ate, his thoughts once again returned to the pictures of
his sister.  He couldn't possibly tell her that he saw them, especially now
that she was in such good spirits.  He certainly didn't want to ruin what
they had going.  When he returned to the room, Carla looked as though she
was still sleeping peacefully.  He decided to try and get some himself,
taking his place in the chair of spinal death.
   It seemed as though Daniel had just closed his eyes when he was awakened
by a vibration in his pocket.  He was getting a text.  He pulled out his
phone to see who it was from.  Carla?  He glanced over to see his sister's
face illuminated by the glow of her phone, her lips curled in a devilish
grin.
   "Whatcha doin?" it read.  He decided to play along.
   "Just hangin," he replied.
   "I think I know why Karen likes you," she sent.
   "Oh?  Why?  Do you just want to talk?"
   "No talk.  It's easier to say things like this," Carla replied.
   "Whatever weirdo.  Why does she like me?" he asked.
   "Because you're sexy," she replied.
   Once again, Daniel felt dangerously close to a heart attack.  He wanted
to look over, wanted to think of something funny to send back, but he was
frozen.
   "Are you going to ask her out?" came the next text.
   "I don't think so," he sent.
   "Y not?"
   "I already have a girl to take care of," he replied.
   There was a pause for a couple of moments before her next text came. 
Daniel still refused to look over at her.
   "Is she pretty?"
   "She is VERY pretty," he sent back.  He heard Carla giggle.
   "Do you LUV her?" was the next question.
   "Absolutely," he replied.
   "She loves you, too.  Gnite Danny."
   "Goodnight, Carla."
   That was certainly interesting.  Good luck trying to get any sleep now.
She probably didn't mean anything by it.  But what if she did?  Turmoil
ensued inside of Daniel.  He tossed and twisted in the impossibly
uncomfortable chair, unable to keep his thoughts away from doing naughty
things to his own sister.  It was ages before he drifted off into an uneasy
sleep.
   *****
   The next morning began much like the previous one.  Heidi brought
breakfast, Daniel worked on getting the knots out of his spinal column.  A
doctor came in that they hadn't seen before and informed them that
everything was looking good.  Carla was scheduled to have the pin put in
her leg the next morning and a cast put on a little later in the day.  If
everything went well, then she would be home that night.  After the doctor
left, Daniel decided that he would make another trip home.
   "Is there anything you want me to bring back?" he asked Carla.
   "Maybe my charger.  I'm expecting a text tonight, and I don't want my
phone to die," she replied.  Daniel smiled down at her.
   "That it?" he asked.  She nodded in the affirmative.  Feeling bold, he
bent down and kissed her lips.  Gently, and not for very long.
   "I'll be back," he said, and headed out the door.
   Carla watched him go with her pulse rate skyrocketing.  What in God's
name was she doing flirting with her brother like that?  Why did it feel so
damn good when he just kissed her?  Was she going to burn in hell when she
kissed him for real?  She was pretty sure that she was going to.  She
wanted to feel him hold her, maybe do some tongue wrestling.  As far as
Carla knew, there wasn't anyone that could answer these questions.  Just
her and Daniel.  The phone call from her parents snapped her out of her
love-struck trance.  She did her best to convince them to stay a thousand
miles away.
   As terrible as it was, Daniel found himself opening the small wooden box
from under Carla's bed.  Instead of impulsively spraying his seed all over
the bedroom floor, he had more of a plan this time.  He took one of the
pictures with him into his bedroom where he would be more prepared to
handle the mess that he was about to make.  He chose one where Carla was in
bed with her back against the headboard.  She had her right breast cupped
in her hands, her tongue snaking out, just touching the pink of her nipple.
Her legs were spread, showing all of her flawless, professionally waxed
pussy.  Her lips were swollen and puffy with a drizzle of cum leaking out
onto the sheet.
   It took Daniel less than two minutes to reach his climax.  Uttering a
noise somewhere between a primeval growl and a grunt, he exploded, thinking
of burying his cock deep into his sister.  The depravity of it all seemed
to be functioning as an aphrodisiac.  He had to relieve himself one more
time before returning the picture to its hiding place and heading to the
shower.
   Feeling somewhat refreshed in a clean set of clothes, Daniel collected
his sister's charger and the chess set before getting back to the hospital.
Once there, Carla informed him that their parents seemed to be pacified
with her claims that she was going to survive, and decided to finish their
vacation.
   "Well that's good.  They deserve to be able to get away.  You must be
confident that I can handle you until they get back," Daniel said.
   "I think so.  What did you bring me?" she asked.  He put her phone on
charge and showed her the chess set.
   "I thought maybe you'd want to play.  Let me know ahead of time, though.
I want to bribe one of the nurses to slip something in your IV so that
maybe I'd have a chance this time," he said.
   "You're gonna resort to playing dirty, huh?"
   "Sometimes it's more fun to play dirty," he replied.  Carla laughed.
   They started playing a few hours after Carla had her lunch, and battled
each other for a good three hours after that.  Although he wasn't a
pushover, Daniel found beating his sister at this game to be next to
impossible.  He suspected the one game that he did win back at the house
was a bone thrown to him by Carla just to keep him from packing up and
leaving.  He finally had to put an end to it to save himself from further
embarrassment.
   "OK.  I give up.  There's just no way that I can beat you," he spat,
sweeping the pieces back into the box.  Making the game all the more
difficult was the fact that he couldn't look at Carla without picturing her
naked.
   "I think that you're just trying to be nice and make me feel good," she
said.
   "Well, there's only so nice that a guy can try to be, and I've had
enough of it.  Besides, they'll be bringing your dinner in soon, and I'm
going to head down to the cafeteria.  Getting whooped like that makes a man
hungry," he said.
   Just then a nurse came in to check vitals and whatnot, so Daniel decided
to head down for dinner.  He had spent most of the day with his sister with
butterflies in his stomach, and he wasn't exactly sure that he could eat.
He didn't know what to do about the situation, there might not be anything
to be done.  Getting away from her for a bit might help him clear his head
a little, at least.
   He managed to stuff down a couple of toasted cheese sandwiches, then
went for a walk around the outside of the building for some air.  On his
way back in, he stopped by the gift shop.  Looking around for something
that she might like, he settled on a pink stuffed elephant.  He vaguely
remembered her having something similar that she used to sleep with when
she was a little kid.  He almost couldn't bring himself to go back to
Carla's room, his nerves were just about killing him.  He loitered on the
ground floor for a while before eventually pulling himself together and
heading toward the elevators, pink elephant in hand.
   Carla was a bundle of nerves herself, almost none of it having to do
with the surgery that she was scheduled for in the morning.  She had to
know how Daniel felt for sure.  More importantly, she had to find out what
he was prepared to do about how he felt.  Why was she even allowing this to
happen?  Why was he?  Was anything actually happening at all?
   As she lay there, questioning the complexities of her emotions, Daniel
came walking through the door with something behind his back.  She couldn't
help but smile with anticipation.  She knew that he had brought her
something.  He revealed it to her and she was delighted, holding it to her
chest.
   "It's just like the one that I had when I was little.  I called it
'Ellie'," she said.
   "I thought that you used to have something like that, but I couldn't
remember if it was an elephant or a giraffe.  Anyway, I thought of you when
I saw it," Daniel explained.
   "Thanks Danny, come here," she said, holding her arms up in front of
her. Daniel bent down for her embrace, taking care not to disturb her
tractioned leg.  Their lips met and pressed together for several mind
blowing seconds.  Daniel could just feel the gentle wisp of her tongue
across his lips as he pulled away.
   "Your welcome," he sputtered.  He wanted to lick every inch of her body.
   "That was nice of you," she whispered.  She wanted to be back in his
arms.
   Somehow, the two of them managed to keep their more primal urges at bay
while they settled in for the night.  Carla played some time-wasting games
on her phone, Daniel pretended to read from a battered paperback that he
picked off the courtesy cart.
   "I think that I'm about ready to try and get some sleep.  Big day
tomorrow.  Do you think you could turn out the lights, Danny?" asked Carla.
   "Sure," replied Daniel.  He put his book down and flipped off all of the
lights that he was able to.  There was still a row of soft LED's that
remained on all of the time that kind of reminded him of moonlight.  Before
returning to his chair, he gave Carla a quick peck on the forehead and
whispered in her ear.
   "Don't worry about anything, this will turn out fine."
   Her eyes, her brilliant emerald eyes seemed to be begging him for
something more.  Momentarily losing the ability to speak, she finally
mouthed 'OK'.
   *****
   After waiting for her to text him for as long as he could stand it,
Daniel could take it no longer and sent Carla a message.  He turned on his
side in the reclining chair so that his back was to his sister.
   "So, are you seeing anyone?" he asked.
   "There is this guy at the hospital," came the immediate response.
   "Tell me about him."
   "He's a little bit older," she sent.
   "Do you think he's taking advantage of you?" he asked.
   "No, we kissed a couple of times."
   "Did you like it?" he asked.
   "Very much," she replied.
   "Would you kiss him again?"
   "I would kiss him all night," she sent.
   "I bet he would like that, but not at the hospital," he replied.
   "Yeah."
   "Is it weird, him being a little older?" he asked.
   "A little.  We have to be careful," she replied, getting his hint.
   "It might be a good idea not to let people know about him," he agreed.
   "Yeah.  Hard to explain to people."
   "You better get your rest.  Love you," Daniel signed off.
   "Love you, too, Danny."
   There.  They both had a pretty good idea of where they stood.  How they
got there was kind of a head-scratcher, but somehow they had stepped into a
land of debauchery where brothers and sisters lusted for one another and
everyone had to go to sleep with balls of lava where their bellies used to
be.
   *****
   There would be no breakfast served for Carla in the morning.  Straight
to surgery for her.  They learned that the whole process would take a few
hours.  Most of that time would be spent in recovery.  The procedure itself
sounded like it would be relatively quick.  Daniel could only accompany her
so far, then was asked to take a seat in the waiting room.  There wasn't a
whole lot for him to do but think about what the future had in store for
him and his sister.
   Daniel was trying to make certain in his mind that he was in love with
Carla.  He didn't want to think that he was just under the influence of
lewd photography.  The last thing that he wanted to do was become another
John, just using her for a cum dumpster.  He wondered how in the world they
would ever have any semblance of a real relationship.  Speaking of
relationships, as far as he knew, Carla had only ever had one serious one.
What if she was only following his lead out of naivety, and had no clue
about what they were getting themselves into?  There was still time to put
and end to it before it got out of control.  The thing was, he didn't think
that he could trust himself to put an end to it.  He wanted her so badly
that he was tying himself in knots.  With her being basically thrust into
his arms, it would take a super-human effort on his part to resist the
temptation.  How did he ever allow himself to wind up in such a
predicament? He almost wished that he would have called up Karen the moment
that he found out that she was interested in him.  Almost.
   Daniel was certain that he was back on hospital-time now.  The minutes
ticked by at an excruciatingly slow pace while the acid in his stomach was
burning away at the lining.  By the time a nurse appeared and informed him
that Carla was being moved back to her room, Daniel was pretty sure that he
had developed an ulcer.
   Carla looked a little worn out to her brother, but was otherwise happy
to see him.  Everything had gone well.  The 'cast' that they had put on her
leg was actually a brace that could be removed.  It would have to come off
in a week for further examination.  If everything still looked OK, they
would put something more permanent on it.
   The only thing Daniel and Carla had to do now was wait for her discharge
papers.  Daniel rounded up their stuff, then stood by his sister.
   "I am so ready to go home, Danny."
   "I am too, babe.  We both could use some decent rest.  Hard to get any
here," he replied.
   *****
   The thrill of getting out of the hospital was not enough to make up for
the fatigue of spending three days there.  Daniel felt a bit like a zombie,
Carla was just plain exhausted.  They had to stop at a pharmacy on the way
home to pick up a couple of prescriptions.  In the time that it took for
her brother to collect her medicine, Carla was passed out in the front seat
of his car.  It took Daniel the last bit of his energy to rouse his sister
and help her into her bed for a proper nap.
   "My bed feels heavenly, Danny.  Come lay beside me and we can take a
cuddle nap," Carla suggested.
   Daniel thought that was a great idea.  His sister's bed was in the
corner of her room, so there were walls on two sides of it.  He had to
crawl in starting around where Carla's feet were to arrange himself between
her and the wall.  He completed the task as carefully as possible as not to
disturb her injured limb.  Her bed was only a twin so there wasn't an
abundance of free space for him to work with.  Once he actually got into
place, though, it wasn't that bad.
   "I almost forgot what a bed feels like," Daniel sighed.  He held Carla's
hand and kissed the back of it, as he had the habit of doing lately.  She
had already closed her eyes and was most of the way to dreamland.  It
didn't take him long to do the same.
   The persistent ringing of the house phone drew Daniel out of a much
needed sleep.  It took him a moment to realize where he was, then took him
even longer to get out of bed without disturbing Carla.  He made it to the
phone just as the answering machine was picking up.
   "Hello?"
   "Danny!  How come you didn't call to tell me that you were home?  You
two didn't answer your cell phones, I was worried!" harped his mother.
   "I'm sorry Mom, we got home and decided to take a nap," Daniel said.  He
glanced at the clock and noticed that it was eight at night.  They had been
sleeping almost six hours.  "I didn't mean to sleep so long.  I thought I'd
call when I woke up," he explained.
   "Carla said that you were staying with her.  Did you stay there the
whole time?" she asked.
   "Yeah."
   "Did everything go all right?" she asked.
   "Yeah, she got her new pin and a funky looking brace thing.  She has a
doctor's appointment in a week, they're going to take it off and have a
look at her leg.  If it's healing properly then they'll put a cast on kind
of like what she had before.  She's got to stay on antibiotics until the
doctor's appointment," he said.
   "Is she sleeping now?  How was she at the hospital?"
   "Yeah, she's still sleeping.  She was kind of scared when she first got
there, but after that she seemed pretty happy," he replied.
   "I was worried because she can get...well you know how she can get.  She
seemed pleasant when she talked to your father and I, too.  Your Dad
thought that they must have been feeding her happy pills at the hospital to
keep her attitude in check," she chuckled.
   "She's been great, Mom, considering her condition."
   "I think she likes having her big brother take care of her," his mother
said, with a note of pride in her voice.
   "It's no big deal, not like I had any plans," he said.
   "Well, I'm going to let you go.  I'm sorry to wake you up, but when you
say you're going to call your mother, make sure you call your mother!," she
advised.
   *****
   When Carla finally woke up, Daniel was gone and darkness had fallen. 
She was happy to be home and out of that damn traction.  One reason was
that she could go use her own bathroom and not have to face the humiliation
of using a bedpan.  She had let John take pictures of her when she was
peeing before, but that was different.  Being naughty was fun and sexy. 
Being stuck in a hospital bed was not.  Daniel met her in the hall when she
came out of the bathroom with a crutch across her lap.
   "Let me get that for you," he said, grabbing her crutch.
   "What time is it?" she asked.
   "A little after midnight.  You must be hungry.  I cooked up some meat
for tacos, you want one?" he asked.
   "That sounds great." Her teeth had finally gotten to a point where she
could chew a taco shell.
   Carla didn't realize how hungry that she actually was until she bit into
the first taco.  She ended up having three.  She leaned back in her chair
and let out a long belch.
   "Excuse me.  That was at least as good as hospital food," she said.
   "Hey, as far as my cooking goes, that's a compliment.  You want
something else?  Some ice cream?" he asked.
   "You're spoiling me, Danny.  I'm going to get fat!"
   "Oh, you're just little yet.  It'll take a lot more than a bowl of ice
cream to get you fat.  Girls worry about that too much," he said.
   "Do you like the plumpers, Danny?  You want me to get some meat on my
bones?" she teased.
   "I like curvy girls, sure.  Big, sloppy ones I tend to shy away from. 
Depending on my blood alcohol level, of course," he responded.  Carla
laughed.
   "I guess I'll have some ice cream, then.  If you ever get to where you
can't stand to look at me, all you need is a couple of beers," she
reasoned.
   "I don't think it will ever come to that," Daniel said, rising to get
her some Neapolitan.  He gave her a couple of scoops and sat back down.
   "Thank you," she said.
   Daniel was amazed in the change of Carla's attitude toward him.  It made
him feel kind of guilty that he relentlessly teased her while she was
growing up.  He was also feeling the guilt of masturbating to what was
probably her closest kept secret, the pictures in the box.  Every time that
she smiled at him now, even when she had bits of taco stuck in her braces,
he remembered that same smile in the pictures.  Every time she said
something nice to him, he had that gnawing on his mind.  He was such an
asshole.
   "Well, babe, I'm going to have to go to bed.  I'm beat.  Maybe tomorrow
I'll have a little more energy," he said.
   "Can I come?  It's nice not to have to sleep alone," she said.
   "Sure." Nothing wrong with two grown siblings sharing a bed.
   They both went off to get ready for sleep.  Carla grabbed her phone and
made sure that Daniel had his.  She wanted to have their goodnight 'chat'.
They decided to go to Carla's room again, but this time Daniel made her
sleep on the inside.
   "I think I passed out before we did any cuddling in our cuddle nap," she
said with a giggle.
   "I probably only lasted about a minute longer than you did.  I might
still be sleeping if it wasn't for Mom calling and waking me up," he said,
crawling in bed beside Carla.  She waited for him to get settled before
sending the first text.
   "How's your new girl?" she sent.
   "She's great.  I'm laying in bed with her right now," he replied.
   "O?  What are you going to do to her?"
   "I'm thinking about kissing her," Daniel sent.
   "Mmm.  Then what?" Carla asked.
   "Then we go to sleep."
   "Why not more?" she sent.
   "Worried that I am taking advantage of the situation," he replied.
   "How?"
   "She is young and not used to being treated well," he sent.
   "You think she doesn't know what she is doing?" she asked.
   "I'm not sure.  Her last boyfriend just used her."
   "Deep down, she probably knew what was going on," she sent.
   "Why wouldn't she have just left him?" Daniel asked.
   "Probably thought there was a small chance that he was telling the truth
when he said he loved her," she replied.
   "Girls like sex, too," she added.
   "I don't want to ruin her life," he sent.
   "Things are complicated, no doubt.  But she loves you."
   "I love her very much.  I don't want to rush and mess things up," he
said.
   "Don't go too slow.  She needs to feel how it is to be touched by
someone who loves her," she replied
   "OK, thanks Carla.  Goodnight."
   "Goodnight Danny."
   Carla handed Daniel her phone and he set both of them on the nightstand.
She stared at her brother, waiting to see what he would do.  When he began
to slide closer she turned her head to meet his lips and they began to
kiss. It was difficult to get in a comfortable position since Carla had to
lay flat on her back and her brother didn't want to lay on top of her, but
they made do.  Daniel nearly lost his mind after hearing his sister moan
softly when their tongues came together for the first time.  He used one
hand on the back of her head to keep her lips tight to his.  The other
snaked up and underneath her night shirt to cup and caress her teenage
breasts.  While his kisses were gaining in intensity, his touch was light.
Using his finger tips he circled her hardened nipples, switching between
one then the other.
   Pulling her head away from her brother's, Carla raised herself to a
sitting position.  Daniel began to say something, but she put a finger to
his lips before the first word was spoken.  She didn't know why, but there
was something sexy about remaining silent and keep any sex related talk to
their cell phone sessions.  It was a new game and it turned her on.
   At first, Daniel thought that his sister was putting an end to what they
were doing, perhaps she was having second thoughts.  He wasn't sure why she
didn't want him to speak, but he would play along.  He had a better idea of
what she was up to when she pulled her night shirt off and tossed it to the
floor.  She lay back, now half-naked.  She smiled and raised a finger to
her own lips, indicating that she wanted him to remain silent.  Using the
same finger, she motioned for him to come back down closer to her.
   Before making a move, Daniel sucked in a deep breath and admired the
beautiful creation that was his sister and her solid C cups.  She put a
hand underneath each and shook them suggestively, while raising an eyebrow.
Daniel put one hand on his heart, with the other he formed a circle between
his index finger and thumb.  Perfect.  He repositioned so that he was on
his knees at her side.  Bending toward her, he nibbled on the soft skin
below her chin.  She had to clamp a hand across her lips to stifle her
squeal.  Must be he found a ticklish spot.
   Snickering a bit, Daniel nibbled his way down to the base of Carla's
neck, over her shoulder, and finally stopping in the center of her chest.
He could feel silky flesh sliding against both sides of his face as his
sister pressed and ground her tits against him.  Lifting his head, he
flicked his tongue across her left nipple before taking as much of her
breast into his mouth as possible.  Carla stroked his hair as she enjoyed
what her brother was up to with his mouth.
   Daniel rose up for air.  Before switching his attention to her other
breast, he guided Carla's hand under the waistband of the shorts she had on
for bed.  She took the hint and began to satisfy the growing need of her
cunt with her fingers.  He smiled his approval and went back to his work of
tit-nibbling.
   Before long, he could feel his sister's free hand squeezing the bulge he
was making in his pajama pants.  When she went from squeezing his package
to tugging his pants down, he helped her out with that and slid both his
pajamas and his boxers down to his knees.
   A combination of what she was doing to herself and the sight of her
brother's naked erection caused another one of those soft, sensual moans
that drove Daniel crazy.  When she began to stroke him, he let out a moan
of his own.  He kissed his way back up to her lips, contorting his body in
such a way that it didn't interfere with the magnificent hand job he was
getting from Carla.
   When Daniel felt his orgasm approaching, he broke off the kiss and
straightened himself to a kneeling, upright position at his sister's side.
He closed his eyes for a moment while biting down on his lower lip.  Carla
could tell that he was about ready to cum so she increased the velocity
that she was jerking him off at.  He groaned into his hand as the first jet
of cum left his cock and streamed over his sister's tits and belly.  It was
followed by another, then a few dribbles across her knuckles.  Carla's lips
curled in a lustful sneer while she was being covered with her brother's
man-juice.
   She brought her cum-covered knuckles up to her face to lick them clean,
all the while sliding two fingers in and out of her steaming pussy with her
other hand.  Her face and upper chest were becoming flush.  Daniel could
sense an increase in the pace of her breathing.  After his secret
examination of her hidden pictures, it was really no secret at all to
Daniel that his sister liked to be cummed on.  From what he had just seen,
she seemed to enjoy the taste of it as well.  He gathered some of his seed
from his sister's heaving chest with a couple of fingers and held them to
her lips.  She licked them clean in an instant and held her mouth open like
a baby bird waiting to be fed.  Not wanting to disappoint, he continued
feed her until there was nothing left.
   Once he was done transferring the last bits of semen from his sister's
naked stomach to her mouth, Daniel went back to kissing her.  While their
tongues intertwined he ran his hands over her breasts, once again teasing
her nipples.  He could tell that her orgasm was imminent when she began to
whimper into his mouth and dig the nails of her free hand into his back. 
He pulled away from her slightly so that he could watch the expression on
her face as she climaxed.  Carla hissed through clenched teeth as her
pelvis began gyrate to meet the thrusts of her fingers.  Her body went
rigid as her eyes closed and her orgasm hit her.  She stopped thrusting
with her fingers to enthusiastically rub her clit, doing her best to extend
the pleasure of her climax.
   Carla opened her eyes to the smiling face of her brother.  She briefly
smiled back before turning serious again.  She pulled the hand out of her
shorts that she had just used to masturbate herself with and held her
finger in front of Daniel's face.  He took an exaggerated deep breath to
sample her scent, then licked the moisture from her fingers.  She repeated
the process a couple of times, similar to what he had done with her. 
Satisfied that she had given him enough, she wrapped her arms around her
brother in a vice-like embrace.
   Eventually, she let him go before breaking any of his ribs.  Daniel took
the opportunity of his release to run to the bathroom.  He returned with a
wet wash cloth and a towel.  He cleaned any wayward fluids from himself and
his sister before throwing the towel and cloth into her hamper.  Retrieving
her night shirt, he helped her put it back on.  It was only then that they
spoke.
   "Goodnight, Danny.  I love you."
   "Goodnight, Carla, love you too."
   *****
   Morning brought with it Daniel's realization that he had one of the
kinkiest sexual experiences of his life the previous night with his own
sister.  She was still beside him, breathing softly, looking spectacular in
her slumber.  He was expecting that he would be feeling some sort of guilt
or shame, but there was none of that.  He just felt good.  Satisfied, even.
He was concerned about their future, he'd have to find out how far his
sister wanted to go with this, then figure out what to do about it.  Daniel
slipped away to shower without waking Carla.
   Once dressed and refreshed, Daniel went to the kitchen to scrounge up
some breakfast.  Carla was there, sipping some juice.  She must have woken
up shortly after he did.
   "Hey there, handsome."
   "Good morning, beautiful.  How are you feeling?" he asked.
   "Better than I have in a long time," she replied with a mischievous
smile.
   "Have you taken your pills?"
   "Not yet.  Want to grab them for me?" she asked.
   "Sure.  You better eat something, too," he said.
   Daniel brought his sister her medicine and fried them up some eggs and
hash browns.  They sat and ate together, exchanging smiles but few words.
   "What do you keep smiling at?" he asked.
   "I just feel happy," she replied.
   "That's good.  I think I want to keep you happy," he said.
   "It feels good to be happy, don't you think?" she asked.
   "It does," he agreed, clearing the table.
   "I feel a little sticky for some reason.  I think I'm going to grab some
clean clothes and then wash up," Carla announced.  She pushed herself from
the table and left the room.  She was gone for a minute or two before she
called he heard her call out.
   "Danny!"
   He followed the sound of her voice into his sister's room.
   "Here, you left your phone.  You ought to keep better track of it. 
Someone might want to get a hold of you," she said, handing it to him.
   "I'll make sure I keep it on me, thanks," he replied.  Wondering what
she might be up to, he retreated to his own room and flopped on the bed.
   Before long, he received the first text.
   "Hi :)"
   "Hi.  What's up?" he asked.
   "Getting ready to wash up," she replied.
   "Must be a pain, not being able to get your leg wet," he sent.
   "Yeah.  Have to sponge bath."
   "Did you see your man last night?" he asked.
   "He spent the night, it was great," she answered.
   "I saw my girl, too."
   "Did she do anything that you liked?" Carla asked.
   Daniel paused for a moment, trying to figure out how to word his
thoughts in context with the game that they were playing.  There was no
other way to phrase it but graphically.
   "She jerked me off and I came all over her.  It was awesome."
   "I bet she thought that was really hot," Carla replied.
   "I think that she's a pretty kinky girl," he sent.
   "She probably is.  I bet getting cummed on gets her pussy so wet!"
   "It was.  She let me taste it off her fingers.  I loved it," he replied.
   "I'm hoping my man comes over to help wash my back."
   "Is that all you want him for?" he asked.
   There was another pause.  This time it was Carla who was trying to come
up with the right words.  She decided to be blunt.
   "I want to suck his cock and have him blow his load on my face."
   "I bet he would think that's super hot," he replied.
   "Gotta go, I think he'll be coming in the bathroom any second."
   "OK."
   Daniel plugged his phone into his charger.  Taking a deep breath, he
reflected on his good fortune.  He hopped off his bed and just short of
running made his way to the bathroom.  He opened the door with his erection
straining the threads of his shorts.
   Carla had a change of clothes neatly folded and waiting for her on the
counter next to the sink.  She sat in her wheelchair near the bathtub, nude
except for the brace on her leg.  Daniel devoured her with his eyes while
she licked her lips in anticipation.  He peeled his clothing in seconds and
kicked them into a pile by the door.  He crossed the short distance to his
sister and bent to attack her with a ravenous tongue-kiss.
   They both enjoyed the kiss briefly before Carla pushed her brother's
head away and grabbed his cock.  She pulled him closer until she could get
her mouth around him.  With her in the chair and him standing, the height
was perfect for a blowjob.  Wasting no time, she took in his entire length,
then began to feverishly work her mouth back and forth.
   Daniel stroked the top of her head and sighed with pleasure.  His sister
was sucking him with the zest and skill that he had never before
experienced.  A couple of weeks ago, he would have never imagined a
scenario anything like what he was in.  His little sister had gone from an
obnoxious pest to his personal sex goddess.  And he was in love with her.
Maybe he was the one that smashed his head against a tree in a freak
accident.  This surely couldn't be happening.
   But it was happening, and it was happening fast.  When she smiled around
his rigid cock and looked up at him with those emerald beauties of hers, he
was certain that he was about to cum.  A few seconds later, he was pushing
her head back off of him.  He finished himself off with a couple of pumps
of his hand as Carla readied herself to receive his load.  The first stream
struck her just below the nose, the second splashed across her right cheek.
She leaned forward to catch the last few drops in her mouth.
   Daniel caught his breath as he looked down at his dirty little sister.
She was masturbating with his semen dripping down her face.  Her tongue ran
across her upper lip, collecting some of it.  When she brought it back to
her mouth, she closed her eyes in silent ecstasy.  Carla reached up to wipe
some more off her cheek, but Daniel grabbed her wrist to stop her.  Then he
did something that he had never remotely considered before.  He leaned in
and licked his own cum off of his sandy-haired sister's face.  Without
swallowing any of it, he brought it to her mouth with his, kissing her
deeply.  She moaned into his mouth with depraved pleasure.  Moments later,
she was having her own orgasm.
   Kneeling on the hard tile next to his sister, Daniel leaned his head on
arm of his sister's chair.  Breathing in the scent of her arousal, he
stared at her expectantly while she stroked herself a few more times. 
Looking down at him, she smiled, knowing what he wanted.  She lifted her
hand to his face so that he could lick her juices.  With a final kiss, he
stood to fill the sink with warm, soapy water.
   Daniel really slowed things down compared to the frantic pace of the sex
act that he and Carla had just committed.  He wanted to take his time and
enjoy his sister's body as he washed her.  He did all that he possibly
could while she remained seated, planting kisses here and there on all of
the parts that looked as though they needed to be kissed.  He did the same
to her back, her ass, and her pussy when she stood up on her crutches.  He
even took the time to clean the wet spot in the wheelchair.  Sadly, she
could only stand there so long before she began to tire, otherwise he
probably would have rubbed her back and massaged her gorgeous butt for the
rest of the day.
   After being thoroughly washed and dried, Carla found herself being
dressed by her brother.  He started with her panties and shorts, managing
to get them over the bulky brace on her leg well enough.  She stood briefly
again so that he could pull them the rest of the way up.  He held up her
bra, looked at it thoughtfully, then tossed it aside.  Instead, he went
directly with the tee shirt.  When he was finished with his sister, he
dressed himself and took the dirty laundry out to the laundry room.
   On his way back from dropping off the dirty towels and the unnecessary
bra, Daniel ran into his sister in the hall.
   "Hey Danny," she beamed.
   "Hey Carla."
   "If you feel like it, do you think you could help me wash my hair?" she
asked.
   "Sure babe," he replied, taking her crutches and heading to the kitchen.
   *****
   The evening following their little rendezvous in the bathroom found the
two siblings watching TV together in the living room.  Daniel had a pillow
on his lap upon which Carla was resting her head.  Dinner was over, so was
the obligatory call to the parents.  They were relaxing comfortably. 
Daniel was holding his sister's hand and occasionally stroking her hair.
   "Have I ever mentioned that I think you're beautiful?" he asked.
   "I may have heard you say that before, I can't remember," she replied.
   "Well, you're beautiful.  Try not to forget.  I won't," he said.
   "I know that you love me, and I love you.  I won't forget that," she
said, squeezing his hand.
   "A couple of more days until Mom and Dad get back," Daniel said.
   "Yeah," Carla sighed.  She loved her parents and would be happy to see
them when they did return.  She loved her new relationship with her
brother, too.  The return of their parents was definitely going to cramp
what they had going on.  Telling her mother and father that she had fallen
in love with Daniel was out of the question, at least for now.  Their were
so many more things to experience with him, sexually and otherwise, she was
too young to be murdered by her mother.
   "I'm glad they're coming back, but then again I'm not at the same time.
Know what I mean?" Daniel asked.
   "Yeah.  I don't think they can handle what I want us to be," Carla
replied peering up at her brother.
   "I want to be with you, I love taking care of you.  I don't want to hurt
Mom and Dad, or you, most of all you.  I prefer you to be happy," Daniel
said.
   "You make me happy, Danny."
   "I was thinking that maybe we could get an apartment closer to the
university before school starts.  I know that they want us to stay home
until we both graduate, but maybe we can change their minds," Danny
suggested.  It was over a thirty mile drive one way to get to school.
   "Do you think they'd go for it, Danny?  That would make me the happiest
girl in the world!  Besides, there's no way that our schedules would be the
same and with you and golf and everything, we would need another car
anyway. Think of the money we could save!," Carla spewed.  Her mind was
suddenly running a mile a minute trying to think of good reasons why they
should share an apartment.  Daniel chuckled.
   "Slow down, babe.  I'm not the one that you have to convince.  Don't be
springing this on them as soon as they walk in the door, either.  Let's
just let them come home, get comfortable again.  Maybe if they see us
getting along they'll see that we would actually be able to live together
without killing each other," Daniel said.  He thought that it might
actually work.
   "I'm just excited, that's all.  You're right, it might be a tough sell.
I'll work on Daddy when the time is right.  I'll leave Mom to you."
   Their family was pretty solid financially.  Not rich, but pretty close.
Their father was an investment banker, a very successful one.  One of the
reasons that their parents hadn't been able to go on vacation in so long
was because he was so important to the business that he couldn't justify
getting away for any length of time.  That and it pained him to actually
spend any of the money that he made.
   Their parents had made it clear to them that they would pay for their
college no problem.  They only had to go to the same school that their
mother and father went to (where they met, by the way), and that they had
to live at home until they graduated.  If they did that they wouldn't have
to get jobs or worry about paying bills or anything.  Just focus on
graduation, then get a job and move out.
   Neither Daniel nor Carla had ever been in much trouble with either of
their parents.  Nor had they ever had any problems with the rules that they
set.  They didn't know if they would be able to change their minds on this
matter or not, but it would be worth a try.
   "The worst they can say is no.  We'll still be together, either way. 
When you said 'how you want us to be', what did you mean by that?  How do
you want us to be?" Daniel asked.
   "I...I want us to be able to sleep together and cuddle together,
and...do other things whenever we want.  I don't want to feel like we're
doing something wrong.  No one will ever understand us, will they?"
   "I don't know.  I think that we have to be very, very careful.  We're
just getting started.  By the time the fall gets here you might not even
like me anymore.  There's going to be a lot of guys that are going to want
to get their hands on you.  You'd be able to take your pick," Daniel said.
   "I don't want any other guys.  If someone asks me out, I'll just tell
them my lady parts don't work anymore after my accident," Carla said. 
Daniel erupted with laughter, soon Carla was giggling as well.  After he
calmed down, Daniel spoke.
   "You know, those other things that we do...they're amazing.  It's
just..."
   "What Danny?" his sister asked.  She was clearly concerned.
   "I don't want you to think that's the only reason that I want to be with
you.  I really love you.  I have something else to tell you, too.  You're
probably going to be really mad," he said softly.
   "What is it, Danny?" she asked.  This time she sounded scared.
   "When you were in the hospital I was looking for one of your slippers. I
found the box under your bed.  I saw your pictures," Daniel admitted. 
There was a long pause in the conversation before his sister replied.
   "I know you did, thank you for telling me, though."
   "You know?  How do you know?" he asked, dumbfounded.
   "They were out of order.  You taped the key back backwards," she
explained.
   "You weren't mad?  I mean how come you didn't kick my ass?" he wondered.
   "I was mad, but I practically told you they were there.  I thought maybe
it wouldn't hurt if you saw what I was like.  I hoped maybe since you
didn't say anything about them that they turned you on and they would help
make you want me.  I only kept them because they turned me on, and it was
stupid.  They're gone now.  I didn't want to get in a fight with you,
because I need you.  I need you to like me.  Does that make any sense?" she
asked.
   "Oh Carla babe, I'm sorry.  I felt so guilty that I couldn't hardly look
at you.  Do you forgive me?" Daniel asked.
   "I forgive you," Carla said, kissing his hand.
   "John doesn't have any copies of those, does he?"
   "No way.  I'd never trust him with something like that.  Besides, I told
him I erased them from my camera right after we took them.  He wasn't smart
enough to notice that I kept them," she replied.
   "Well, I can see why I can't beat you at chess.  I won't be able to get
away with anything, will I?" Daniel asked.  Carla smirked.
   "Don't even try, boy."
   *****
   They slept in Carla's bed again that night.  This time there were no
cell phones, no monkey business.  This time they just slept, satisfied to
lay beside each other.
   When Daniel woke up, he had his head leaning against Carla's right
breast.  His hand was under her nightshirt, resting on her bare stomach. 
Not being able to resist, he slid his hand lower until he was in her
panties.  He began to run his middle and ring fingers in slow, gentle
circles along the outside of her silky flesh of her pussy.
   Daniel sensed a change in his sister's breathing and felt her hand cup
the back of his head.  He didn't stop what he was doing, nor did he look
back at Carla's face.  He did have to move his head slightly when she
pulled her shirt up until her tits were exposed, she didn't take it all the
way off.  Daniel put his head back where it was and suckled her nipple. 
While he continued his lazy fondling, he could feel her juices start to
flow as Carla became more and more aroused.  When it felt as though she was
seriously wet, he inserted the two fingers that he had been rubbing her
with.  With no real sense of urgency, he began to fuck her with them. 
Carla wiggled a little, but of course, said nothing.
   After a several minutes of her brother's sucking and his probing
fingers, Carla could stand no more.  She reached down with her left hand
and began to simultaneously rub her clit while Daniel plunged his fingers
in and out of her.  Seeing what she was doing, he picked up the pace of
what he was doing.  He kept it up until his sister stopped rubbing herself
and the grip that she had on the back of his neck lessened.  He withdrew
his fingers, gave Carla a kiss, then got up and headed to the bathroom.
   Daniel was finishing up a bowl of cereal in the kitchen when his sister
came in.
   "Morning.  Did you sleep OK?" he asked.
   "Yeah I slept all right.  Waking up was great, though," she replied.
   "Good to hear," he said.  It was hard not to smile.
   Before he could even ask her what she wanted for breakfast, the phone
rang.  He answered, and did a lot of listening.  He agreed to a few things
and ended the conversation with "I'll be there."
   "What's up, Danny?" she asked.
   "That was Dad.  Their flight got changed, they got to leave like right
now.  They're going to have a layover in Florida, they'll be back here
tonight.  I have to pick them up at seven."
   Carla looked upset.
   "That's not fair!  I thought that I was going to have another night with
you.  How is it even possible that their flight's leaving early?" she
asked.
   "Well, their original schedule got messed up when you went to the
hospital.  They switched that flight to get back earlier, then they ended
up rescheduling it, then the last flight that they had scheduled got
canceled.  So if they want to get home they have to leave right now. 
Sounded to me like they were really scrambling," he explained.  He wasn't
sure if he got it all right or not, his father was talking so quickly that
he had a hard time following what he was saying.
   "It's still not fair.  I like waking up with you and I thought we would
have one more chance," she sulked.
   "We have the rest of our lives, it'll be OK.  I was looking forward to
it, too.  Sometimes those are the breaks," he said.
   "Yeah."
   Carla still figured that she had a lot of time to play with her new toy,
which was Daniel, but even those plans got spoiled.  During the course of
the day it seemed like every single one of her friends stopped by to check
on her.  Daniel even had a couple of his friends stop by and got dragged
into a basketball game that afternoon.  By the time he was done with that
and got back home, Karen was there.  He found the two girls in the kitchen,
where he went for a drink before he hit the shower.
   "Hi kids.  Whatcha up to?" he asked.
   "Not much.  Just talking about school in the fall.  Karen offered to
stay with me until you come back from the airport," Carla replied.
   "Hi Danny," she said, giving him a little wave.
   "Hi Karen," Daniel acknowledged.  "I'm going to go take a shower and get
some of this stink off me," he said, leaving the room.
   "So, you happy your parents are coming back?  You didn't even get a
chance to throw any wild parties while they were gone," Karen said.
   "Sure, it'll be nice to have them back.  I kind of like it with just me
and Danny, though," Carla replied.
   "You've been getting along better, I take it," Karen said.
   "Yeah.  Way better," Carla said with a smile.
   *****
   By the time Daniel pulled back into the driveway after picking his
parents up, he felt like his ears needed medical attention.  He never
remembered his mother talking so much.  He heard about every minute detail
of the vacation, and had to answer several hundred questions about his
sister.  Obviously, all of the travel didn't do much to tire her out.  His
parents went inside while Daniel was stuck bringing in all of their
luggage.
   When he got back inside with the last suitcase, they were huddled around
the couch to spread their love on Carla.  Karen quietly excused herself and
said that she would be back in a couple of days.
   "Mom, I'm fine!  Danny has been taking care of me.  He's made me eat so
much I'm getting fat," responded Carla to her mother's onslaught of
questions.
   "Well son, the house is still standing.  Your sister seems fine.  Is
there anything you can do to calm your mother down?" Daniel's father asked.
   "That's your job, Dad.  I'll take care of Carla, you take care of mom,"
Daniel said.
   "Jerry, I am calm, I am just concerned for my baby."
   "Sharon, you're a wonderful woman but you have to relax.  Our kids are
grown up, that's all there is to it.  Do I feel guilty that we were gone
while Carla was hurt?  Yes.  If I didn't think that Danny was more than man
enough to handle it, then we would have been back here in a second. 
Honestly woman, don't have a stroke."
   Carla started to laugh, then Danny, then both their parents.
   *****
   After everyone had gone to bed, Daniel tossed and turned in his.  He
couldn't sleep a lick.  He thought about sending his sister a text to see
if she was still awake, but decided against it.  He hopped up from his bed,
took a pillow and his covers with him and went to Carla's room.
   *****
   Jerry was reading the paper and sipping a cup of coffee when his wife
came into the kitchen.
   "Jerry, come with me for a second.  You have to see this," she said.
   With a grunt, Jerry followed his wife down the hall.  She stopped in
front of Carla's room.
   "Look in there," Sharon said.
   Jerry peered into his daughter's room.  Carla was asleep on her bed. 
Her broken leg was elevated on a couple of pillows, she looked peaceful. 
Her right arm was dangling off the bed with her right hand being held by
Daniel against his chest.  He was sleeping on the floor right next to
Carla's bed.
   "That's odd," Jerry said.
   "You mean, 'that's cute', Jerry," Sharon said.
   to be continued......
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SilenceIsSexy