Mal knew he was in for it even before his unsteady foot hit the first step. The lights were on in the kitchen and that meant that his ma was still awake. He put a booted foot gingerly the step and tried to put his weight on it. The wooden step groaned under the weight of an almost but not quite grown 16 year old, drunk for the first time.

The party had been held at the Carter's, to celebrate the engagement of their daughter Susan, to the Jones boy. Tommy Jones was just 19 and the oldest member of the group that had been friends since childhood. He was also the first of the group to get engaged.

Mal's Ma had left the party early as she had to get up early in the morning to bake some of her amazing pies for the church picnic the next day. Mal had been given permission to stay late, with the promise that he wouldn't get into any trouble.

Trouble came. Tommy spent quite a while behind the barn late in the evening receiving the congratulations and ribald advice of his friends. Several small bottles of home brew appeared and were passed around generously to everyone, despite most of them being under age.

The talk got more and more bawdy as time as the level of the liquid in the bottles went down. Actually, not much was drunk, but the effects hit the inexperienced boys fast and hard. Within an hour all were inebriated to some extent. To top it off, a friendly shoving match had erupted fueled by the alcohol. Mal had gotten about half a bottle poured on his shirt front by Tommy when he tripped over the feet of another of his friends.

Soon after the party ended and Mal was able to hide the fact that he was drunk on the wagon ride home. The bouncing though, over the rutted road between the ranches had made his stomach start to turn flips. He was able to contain things until he got to his own front porch steps.

His head spinning and his stomach rebelling. Mal quickly decided that stocking feet were the way to go. That way he may just be able to sneak by the door of the kitchen without his mothe