The Hathaway

The Congregation

I don't really know if anyone would classify my responses to his lovemaking as screaming, but I was certainly loud. I gave him something to make noise about as well, and he made even more noise than I did. After a few hours of passion I reminded him that I needed to get a little sleep before work in the morning, so he finally gathered me up in his arms and held me quietly as he drifted off, although his boner did not seem to get the message and refused to go away.

As he held me I though about how intense our love life had become since we moved into the Hathaway. I had been thinking it was due to the absolute privacy it gave us and our newfound freedom to make as much noise as we waned. We had not exactly been quiet at the boarding house, but we had always been aware of the others and made at least a little effort to be thoughtful. But when we arrived here we let go of those limitations. Not only had we become louder, but our sexual activity had increased in frequency. At this point we were fucking whenever we had the chance. A quickie before work, long passionate sex into the wee hours, leaving us little or no time to sleep, a fun frolic in whatever space we hadn't tried before. Any time of the day or night, any excuse, even just the sight of a banana while passing through the kitchen. Anything could inspire us, and we just didn't seem to be able to resist once the idea was in our heads. I smiled as I began to fade. I suppose we should enjoy it while we could, after all, time would eventually rob us of these pleasures.

I woke with Ben's eternal boner grinding against my ass, clearly wanting entrance. It felt so good, but I had to get ready for work. I couldn't think of a better way to start the day, and he was ready to go. It took everything I had to get out of bed, and he looked up at me so in need of assistance it was painful. I gave in and decided to give him a bit of morning head. He always came quicker in my mouth than in my ass, and time was an issue. He laid back and enjoyed the compromise more than I had expected. Within a minute his hands were on the back of my head and he was fucking my face for all he was worth. His load was so copious that I couldn't manage to contain it, and great streams of cum leaked out of the corners of my mouth and down onto my chest. I climbed up and kissed him deeply, giving him a taste of his own seed, then slowly walked to the shower, making sure he had a good view of my ass as I went.

When I arrived at work I decided to keep my distance form Evelyn and any of the others who were acting weird, and do my best to stay positive. A couple of my co-workers mentioned that they had noticed the chill in the air, and were mortified that seemingly intelligent people could be so petty. I appreciated their support, but I didn't want to become focused on the conflict. By late morning I had sort of barricaded myself in my office and was avoiding everyone. At noon Ben showed up with a basket. “I thought we could have a picnic on the common.” he said, and dragged me into the sunshine and fresh air.

“I'm glad you came,” I said as we found a shady spot under a beautiful maple tree. It had just begun to show signs of the season, with a few red leaves peeking through at the very top of its lush green canopy, but the rest of nature seemed to be relishing the fullness of summer. “Everyone has been great this morning, but still, it's hard to stay focused knowing that some of them don't want me there anymore.”

“I bet,” he smiled and squeezed my hand. “But I want you here. I brought you your favorite.” We sat and talked, and he had indeed made my favorite, but it was the simple act of showing up that mattered the most.

“So has Helmut been over yet?” I asked as we finished off our sandwiches.

“Not yet,” he replied. Sylvia came in to do some paperwork and told me that he would be in this afternoon about one. She also told me that Andi Is going to wait until you get out of work so we can both accompany her as she smudges the lower floor and the rest of the main floor.”

“Sounds good. I think I'd rather be looking at old fences and falling down barns than sitting in my office planning the next exhibit, but the bills need paying, and with your income ending for a while, we can't afford for me to be taking extra time off.”

He looked down and seemed discouraged. “I know I made the right decision, but I still feel like...I don't know, like I failed somehow.”

“You did make the right decision,” I assured him. “I am not berating you for your lost income. I'm just facing the reality of the situation so we can move forward.” I picked up his chin and kissed him lightly on the lips. “And on the plus side, we get to have picnics in the park now. I'd say that is a definite bonus.”

He smiled and nodded. “It is.” He looked at his watch and jumped. “Shit! I've got to get back.” I helped him pack the basket with the remnants of our lunch and kissed him goodbye before he scurried off toward home.

Somehow everything was better now, brighter and more alive. Let the haters throw what they could at me, I thought as I walked back to the Patterson, they couldn't touch what we had. When I reached the front of the building I paused and stood up straight. “Bring it on,” I muttered to myself as I squared my shoulders and opened the door. “Bring it on.”

After work I arrived home to find Ben and Helmut on the front steps with their heads together like a couple of conspirators. Helmut noticed me first and motioned towards me to Ben. He brightened up and ran to give me a hug. “You're not going to believe it,” he chattered excitedly. “I can hardly believe it myself.”

“Believe what?” I asked, enjoying his excitement.

“The ruins,” he continued. “They were really hard to see, but Helmut noticed that here was this little hill that just looked wrong. So we decided to look closer.”

By now Helmut had joined us. “I think it's the remains of a burned out building. We were able to uncover enough to identify the remains of a collapsed chimney, but it looks like there is a lot more there.”

“It looks really old, like, older than the house.” Ben's excitement was infectious but I didn't quite understand why finding such a thing would be so exciting. After all, I was he historian, not him.

“So what makes it so special?” I asked as he took my hand and started leading me around to the back of the property.

“You'll see,” he laughed as he led the way. “At least, I hope you will.”

We passed a number of derelict structures before making our way through a stand of trees that surrounded a small clearing. I had never bothered to explore this part of the property very well and was surprised that there was a clearing here at all. There was plenty of low growth, enough to camouflage the ruins and I immediately saw the pile of rubble that they had cleared of its cover. It lay in the center of the clearing, which seemed roughly rectangular. At a quick glance, now that it was clearly identified as a building, it looked as if the entire clearing might be the building, and after it burned the forest grew up around it but couldn't penetrate the foundation. I guessed there was probably a stone floor to be found if we took the trouble and wondered what else might remain. I poked around for a few moments, as a grinning Ben watched, and I managed to identify a couple of details that suggested the eighteenth century. “I think you're right,” I said. “looks like it's from the 1700's, probably a classic two room layout with a central staircase next to the chimney leading to sleeping rooms on the second floor. Very exciting indeed if you're a historian. But why would it make you so happy?”

He giggled and motioned for me to join him and Helmut. They were both sitting on the ground on one edge of he clearing. “Let's see if you can hear it. Listen.” We sat in silence for a moment and when I looked at him to question what I was listening for, he just shushed me and closed his eyes. “Listen.”

We were far enough from the road that there was no traffic noise, and I knew there were no neighbors anywhere near this part of the property, only uncultivated woods that connected to the deep and endless forests that surrounded the town. I heard birds, the occasional scurrying of a chipmunk or squirrel, and the soft rustle of leaves as they shivered in the gentle breeze, but nothing else.

I began to drift, allowing myself to relax from the cares of the day, and as I let those things leave my mind and settled into the peace of the moment I thought I caught a whiff of distant music. I listened closer. It wasn't a radio or someone wandering in the nearby woods, singing to themselves. It had an enclosed quality to it. I could hear a slight echo as it reverberated within a space, within this space. It was the sound of unaccompanied group singing, a hymn of some sort, sung in unison. As the sound became clearer, I could tell these were untrained voices, and many of them were singing off key. It made no difference to them, however, it seemed, they all sang with gusto. The sound made me happy, they clearly found great joy in this activity, and I could feel their enthusiasm.

I opened my eyes and looked a Helmut and Ben. They were both watching me closely with grins on their faces. “Helmut, you can hear this too?” He just smiled and nodded. This was unusual. First, because his interactions with ghosts was usually based on the sense of touch and was very physical. And second, because bliss was not a normal response for him, and that's what I saw on his face, bliss. I guessed he was under the influence of whoever was making this noise, but since it seemed to be harmless I wasn't too worried. Still, I'd be happier if we had our regular old sarcastic and horny Helmut back. “I think we need to show this to Andi when she gets here, don't you?” They both nodded happily and I realized that Ben was also under their influence. I needed to get them out of here and I needed to leave before I lost myself as well. “How about we head back to the house and wait for her?” I didn't wait for a response, but grabbed them both by the hand and led them through the woods and toward the house.