Forever...

Michael invites Katherine to go to his sister’s vacation home in Vermont for Presidents’ Day so that he can teach her how to ski. When Katherine tells her parents, they initially are hesitant to allow her to go, which upsets Katherine. Her father is especially unsure, and even after Michael’s sister Sharon calls to explain the details, he tells Katherine that they will need a night to discuss.

Katherine waits impatiently for her parents’ decision, and Erica tells her that it makes sense why her dad is so hesitant to let her go: “Fathers have complexes about their little girls [...] having sex” (56). Erica states that she would love to have a weekend away with Artie, even though they still have not been physical with one another. Erica shares that Artie is unsure of his sexuality and that he and Erica have decided to try and have sex so that Artie can figure out whether he is attracted to women.

After school, Katherine visits her mother at the library and learns that her parents are letting her go to Vermont. Katherine’s mother takes her to get new ski clothes for the trip, which she models that night for Jamie and her father.

Katherine’s father visits her room before she goes to sleep that night and shares his lingering concerns about how serious Katherine and Michael seem to be: “I just don’t want to see you get hurt” (59). Katherine assures him that everything will be fine and that Michael is not “a sex fiend” (60). Katherine hugs her father, and he admits that he cannot help but worry anyway. 

Michael, Katherine, Sharon, and her husband, Ike, arrive at the house in Vermont and begin unpacking. Michael shows Katherine around the house, including their rooms and the bathroom they will share, and Katherine is relieved that she was honest with Michael and told him that she just began her period. Michael insists that he is not disappointed and is just happy that Katherine is still able to come on the trip.

That evening, they all sit around the fire, and Sharon tells Katherine about her job as an anthropologist for the Museum of Natural History. Katherine invites her to speak at her high school’s career day in April, and Sharon agrees. When Sharon and Ike go to bed, Michael tells Katherine that she can use the bathroom first and that he will wake her up early tomorrow so that they can get to the ski mountain.

After getting ready for bed, Michael visits Katherine in her room, and they begin to kiss. Michael undoes the buttons on Katherine’s nightgown and takes off his pajama shirt. They lay together, and Katherine warns him to not get too “worked up” (65), but Michael tells her it is too late for that. Michael then touches her face and tells her that he loves her for the first time. Katherine wants to say it back to him but wonders, “Can you really say you love someone you’ve seen just nineteen times in your life?” (66). Katherine admits that she has never told anyone she loves them in a romantic way, and they fall asleep, Michael holding her in his arms.

The next morning, Michael takes Katherine to a rental shop to rent skis and boots, and they head to the mountain. Sharon suggests she and Katherine use the restroom before going to the chair lift. Inside, Sharon assures Katherine that Michael is a qualified ski instructor, and she is in good hands. She then states, casually, “My brother’s a very nice boy, isn’t he?” (68), and shares her concerns that Michael is vulnerable and that she does not want him to get hurt. Katherine worries that Sharon assumes she may hurt Michael, or use him, but Sharon then apologizes for being a “mother hen” (69), stating that she needs to stop worrying so much about Michael now that he is older.

Michael spends the morning teaching Katherine how to ski. Katherine falls frequently, but by noon, she successfully makes it down the beginner’s slope three times. They ski until four and when they make their way back to the car Katherine realizes how sore she is. Michael commends her efforts and Sharon tells her to take a bath and a nap before dinner.

After dinner, Michael and Katherine take a walk. As soon as they are outside, Michael takes her hand and says that he could not wait to be alone with her. When they return to the house, Sharon and Ike are smoking marijuana and offer the joint to Michael, who declines. Michael and Katherine go to her room and he lays down on the bed; Katherine is grateful neither of them smoked because she is anxiously wondering whether Michael will stay in her room again.

They get ready for bed, and Michael returns to Katherine’s room. They each take off their tops and lay together in only their underwear. They kiss until Katherine is so excited that she orgasms. She asks Michael to show her what to do to make him orgasm and he pulls down his pajama bottoms, stating, “I’d like you to meet Ralph” (77), referring to his penis. Katherine is nervous at first to touch him but soon begins experimenting, asking Michael if it feels good. Michael shows Katherine how to hold his penis, and he soon orgasms. Michael cleans them both with a tissue, and Katherine asks if she did okay, “considering [her] lack of experience?” (78). He states that “Ralph liked it a lot” (79). He also states that he meant it when he said he loved her the night before and that his feelings for her are deeper than sex. Katherine tells Michael she loves him, and they promise to love each other forever.

Jamie asks if Katherine and Michael still like each other when Katherine returns home from Vermont because “Daddy said sometimes spending a lot of time together can end a romance” (80). Katherine gets upset with her father, stating that being together for the weekend only made their relationship stronger.

Katherine’s father visits her room again that evening, stating that he does not disapprove of Michael but that he worries “you’ll get too involved [...] tied down” (81) and that Katherine is too young to be making lifelong choices. Katherine insists that she is not making lifelong decisions.

The next morning, Katherine is alone with her mother and asks if her father wants her to stop seeing Michael. Katherine’s mother says no but that he wants Katherine to continue spending time with a variety of people, not just Michael. On the way to school, Katherine asks her mother if she was a virgin when she was married. Her mother is momentarily uncomfortable and then admits she was a virgin until she was engaged. Katherine asks the same about her father, and her mother admits that standards were different for boys who were “supposed to get plenty of experience” (83) before marrying. Katherine asks if she would change anything about her sexual experiences, and her mother says that times are changing, and she would not have been married so young in the first place.

Her mother tells Katherine that sex is a commitment and that “once you’re there you can’t go back to holding hands” (84). She insists that she is not forbidding Katherine from having sex but tells her that she is responsible for making good decisions and weighing the consequences of her choices. Katherine hugs her mother before exiting the car.

Erica says that she can tell Katherine is still a virgin when she sees her at school, although Katherine refuses to say anything one way or the other. Erica shares that she and Artie played strip poker over the weekend and that they did not do anything but touch. Erica says that they have determined that Artie is “not gay. [...] He’s just impotent” (86) and that Erica is sure she can help him.