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 Dare Me by neverdoubted

   Dare Me - Chapter 11 - Severance Package (Part 1)

   About a month later, when the time came to expect another dare request
from Lucy, I didn't have anything lined up.  Nothing like the spectacular
history club dare I had given her last month.  I was still anticipating it
though, hoping to prove my theory that her urges followed some sort of
biorhythmic pattern.  I already deduced that something within her shut down
in the winter and heated back up in the spring.  It followed the seasons.
With the calendar turning to May, I expected her to come to me any day now.
But she confounded me with silence.

   Maybe I had gone too far with her last dare?  Had the humiliation been
too much?  Was it scaring her off?  The rumors had been swirling at her
school ever since her performance.  Every boy in the history club had
spread his own account of Lucy's mostly naked slave girl show.  I'm sure
she had to field many embarrassing and teasing questions from her
classmates after that.  But the stories got jumbled and twisted until they
sounded more like speculation and rumor.  And, as rumors tend to do, each
retelling tended to come with exaggerated embellishments until it was so
fantastical that no one really believed it had happened.

   Lucy's humiliating performance faded into a schoolyard legend, only
truly known by the seven boys who had been there.  And since I had stolen
the video tape, the only other evidence was the pictures Mr.  Clark had
taken.  And at that time, I didn't know what had happened to them.  I did
have one guess.  Every year, on the history department's page of the
yearbook, there was a section about the contest along with a picture of the
winner's costume as well as a history club group photo.  I thought it would
be hilarious if a naked picture of Lucy somehow made it into her
sixth-grade yearbook.  But I wouldn't know anything until the they were
released on the last day of school.

   There was one other factor that I strongly suspected of keeping her from
asking for another dare.  Last month, I had added a major new requirement.
Once she uttered those two fateful words to me, she was not allowed to
pleasure herself for the duration of the dare.  After last time, perhaps
she was reluctant to hand over so much power without knowing when she would
get it back.  I knew for a fact that type of uncertainty drove her crazy.

   I reckoned she would come to me around the one-month anniversary of her
previous dare.  But she did nothing of the sort and avoided me all that
evening.  But from that point on, I paid close attention to her and started
to detect signs of her itch returning.  She started to act kind of strange.
She stopped eating and was antsy all the time.  I caught her eyeing me up
more than once.  I think she was trying to hold out and resist the
temptation to ask me for a dare even as the withdrawal took its toll on her
system.  As hard as she tried not to give in, I doubted it would work.

   I also strongly suspected she was blowing off steam every night in an
attempt to stave off the urge.  But from experience, I knew that strategy
was doomed.  She would get no real quality diamonds that way.  It was only
a matter of time before, perhaps in a moment of weakness, she would come to
me asking for help.

   Life was far from paused while I waited, though.  I had made the
basketball team.  As a seventh grader, I never got any playing time.  But
the practices were fun.  I had also turned 14 and made an utter fool of
myself in front of a girl I liked.  That was a first for me, but by no
means my last time.

   Her name was Rebecca Foster and she was my first real girl crush.  She
was popular and beautiful, and I figured I had no chance with her.  I had
no game and no confidence when it came to girls.  But when she found out I
was on the basketball team, I guess she decided to give me a chance and
agreed when I nervously asked if she wanted to be my girlfriend.  We
weren't really old enough for dating or anything, but we did hold hands in
the school hallways all that week.

   Then, that Friday, we stood outside the school to say our goodbyes for
the weekend.  That's when disaster struck.  She said she would miss me, and
I somehow picked up her strong hints that she wanted a goodbye kiss!  But
stupid me, when I went in to kiss her, for some reason, my hands
automatically reached up and grabbed her boobs!  I swear, I have no idea
where that came from!  But she immediately broke off the kiss and slapped
me hard across the face.  That was the end of my girlfriend adventures for
the rest of the school year.

   I suppose there is one other thing worth mentioning.  Somehow, I got
roped into being our family's clothing police.  Lucy really hated being
cold.  But as the weather got warmer, she started wearing less and less. 
She was like a snake shedding the layers she had depended on to stay warm
through the winter and spring.  And now with summer fast approaching, she
just wanted to let her skin breathe and soak up the sunshine.

   Unfortunately, school wasn't out for summer just yet.  And some of her
chosen outfits certainly did not meet the school's dress code.  More than
once I caught her walking out the door in a too short skirt and made her go
back and put on tights or leggings.  And she particularly seemed to enjoy
the fact that she was growing an actual cleavage.  She loved to wear loose
neck tops which would flash her entire bra and more whenever she bent over.
Several times, I had to make her put a light sweater or extra shirt on.

   But it wasn't just Lucy with wardrobe problems.  One day, I was camped
out by the front door waiting to see what outrageous outfit she had picked
out when mom came out to leave for work.  At first, I thought I was
imagining things.  But it was not my imagination.  Mom was wearing a dark
colored silk top with no bra or slip underneath.  She was usually so
self-conscious about her oversized breasts and typically wore clothes to
de-emphasize their mass.

   The sight didn't bother me.  I mean, I had seen breasts before.  I had
even sucked on her breasts when I was a baby.  More concerning to me, it
was completely inappropriate for a business setting and out of character
for her.

   "Uh, Mom?" I asked, "You sure you want to wear that to work?  I mean, I
can kinda see your boobs.  Shouldn't you at least put on a bra?"

   "Benny told me to wear it like this today.  He said it looks better
without a bra." was her strange robotic response.

   Benny?  Since when did she start calling her boss by his first name? 
And when do bosses get to decide what you wear?  And what boss tells his
female employee not to wear a bra to work?!  But she was such a pushover.
People were always taking advantage of that fact.  I had to stick up for
her.

   "I don't think so," I replied, "At least go put a bra on."

   About then Lucy came down about to head to school in a crop top and I
had to intercept her.  The next day was even more outrageous.  Mom came out
in a blazer top with nothing underneath.  Not even a blouse!  Only two
buttons separated her massive boobs from total exposure.  Lucy came down in
a white tee shirt with no bra on.  What is it with these girls?  Are the
allergic to underwear?  Anyway, that's how I spent my mornings.  Guarding
the front door to make sure one or both of my female family members didn't
leave the house in something that would get them into trouble.

   Whenever I questioned mom about it, she always said it was Benny's idea.
I was agreeing with my Aunt Julie more and more every day that Benny really
was a first-class scumbag pig.  When mom came home that Friday evening, I
knew something had to change.

   Instead of looking forward to a stress-free weekend like most employees,
mom said Benny was planning a luau for some clients the next day and she
was required to attend.  She went to her room and came out in the costume
he had provided for her.  It was ridiculous!

   The entire outfit was nothing more than a coconut bra and grass skirt
along with a flower lei.  Only they didn't make coconuts big enough to hold
mom's massive mammaries.  her breasts bulged out obscenely in every
direction around the coconut halves.  The grass skirt was even worse.  It
was super short, more like a grass tutu.  And of course, he had told her
not to wear anything underneath.

   For someone in their mid-thirties, mom was objectively a gorgeous woman.
She attracted more than her share of men and could have had her pick of
them.  But she had no confidence.  I think dad might have had something to
do with that.  He had shattered her self-esteem and made it so she didn't
trust men enough to form a meaningful relationship.

   Even with her butt hanging out the back and her breasts threatening to
escape their confines, she was not ashamed for me to see her.  I think she
saw me as an ally, one of the few people in her life who had her back and
wouldn't hurt her.  And she was right.  I had to put my foot down. 
Authority was the only thing she would listen to.

   This was a long time coming and it was time somebody stood up to Benny.
It went beyond just making her work overtime on occasion.  He had
manipulated and twisted her mind into pretzels.  He could probably announce
some ridiculous new policy like "Topless Thursdays" and mom would comply
without question.

   The supposed "business trips" really brought out the worst in him.  I
had overheard some of her phone conversations with Aunt Julie complaining
about those trips.  Under the auspices of having to save money, he always
got only one hotel room, with one bed.  I didn't want to think about what
all he had made her do on those trips.

   "Mom, you're not going to that luau." I said with as much authority as I
could muster.  She nodded then stood there like a lost puppy, waiting for
me to tell her what to do next.  She looked so tired, more than usual.  The
stress of working for Benny was wringing the life out of her.  Something
had to give.

   I remember hearing Aunt Julie advising her to start collecting evidence
of his wrongdoings after a particularly horrendous experience last
Halloween.  I asked mom to tell me if she had anything like that.  I know
that sounds a lot like blackmail, but I didn't know what else to do.

   She said "no", but she did know where he kept the key to the files in
his desk at work.  There had to be a ton of evidence there.  That sounded
like a good place to start, but mom didn't want to do it.  It meant risking
her job and she was worried about money.  We were already so deep in debt.
Lucy, in particular, had expensive tastes and was constantly wringing money
out of mom for new clothes and stuff.  And mom was such a pushover, she
always gave in even if it meant not paying a bill that month.

   If she lost her job, she feared we might have to sell the house, our
only remaining thing of real value.  I told her it was foolish to cling to
a job that she hated and was not rewarding, emotionally or financially.  It
just wasn't worth it.  I assured her we would find a way to make things
work.  We could cut back our expenses and I could control Lucy's egregious
spending habits.  I could even get a part-time job to help out.  It was
high time for me to step up and pull my own weight anyway.

   My speech and offers to help carry the burden of our family's finances
emboldened her greatly.  She agreed to snoop around his files and make
copies of anything she found that looked suspicious.  She admitted today
was a good time to do it since Benny would be busy at the luau.  She walked
confidently out the door, ready to head straight to the office and ruin her
corrupt boss.  There was only one problem.  She was still dressed in
nothing but her ridiculously skimpy luau costume!  I had to catch her at
the car and make her go back in and change first.  Man, that woman's brain
was really fried!  perhaps a break from work would do her some good.  What
she really needed was a vacation...

   She returned a few hours later and laid out what she had found.  I
didn't really understand it, but she said it was clear evidence of
something called "embezzlement".  He was skimming money off every deal he
and mom closed, cheating both his clients and his employer in the process.
It sounded like the files she had copied were perfect!  There was only one
problem.  Her name and signature were all over those pages, just as many
times as Benny.  That was his insurance plan.  Mom couldn't blow the
whistle because she would be in just as much trouble as him, even though
she had never received a penny of the stolen funds.

   Benny had devised a clever deterrent.  He had turned a beautiful and
pliant woman into his personal plaything.  He exploited her in every way
knowing she would never confront him on her own.  He would have been
content to keep wringing everything from her until there was nothing left.
But he had not accounted for me!  I was strong-willed and motivated to
protect my mom and free her from his clutches.

   He couldn't intimidate me.  And I suspected he wasn't really willing to
go to jail.  He would fold if she confronted him and showed how desperate
she really was; that she had nothing to lose, and he better cut a deal with
her or face the consequences.  I only hoped mom was up to the task.



   Dare Me - Chapter 11 - Severance Package (Part 2)

   I kept the phone unplugged all weekend so Benny couldn't get to her, and
made mom practice her delivery of the evidence.  I played the role of
Benny. I knew it would be hard for her since she was not good at
confrontation; thus, the practice.  I had no idea how he would react, but I
tried to verbally manipulate her in every way I could imagine.  By Sunday
evening she had accepted that fact that, by doing this, she was burning
bridges.  Her job was already a lost cause.  That freed her to be more
ruthless and parry every attempt at intimidation.

   I couldn't concentrate and didn't learn anything at school the following
Monday.  Mom was supposed to confront Benny that afternoon.  I started to
get scared.  What if the plan backfired?  What if I got home and discovered
that mom had been arrested and was going to prison?  Lucy and I would be
sent to live with Aunt Julie and my cousin whom I had only met a couple
times.

   I was so worked up, I pedaled hard the whole way home expecting the
house to be surrounded by cop cars and police tape like in the movies.  But
there was nothing out of place when I arrived.  Finally, around 6:30, mom's
car pulled into the driveway, only a little later than usual.

   She looked like she had gone ten rounds in a heavyweight boxing match -
an emotional one, not a physical one.  But she was smiling and had a look
of relief on her face.  I think she was glad to finally be freed from that
miserable job.

   She sat down at the kitchen table and told an abbreviated account of
what happened.  Benny was furious and had rained down all manner of insults
and accusations upon her.  But she held her ground.  Eventually, when he
saw he wasn't going to cow her into submission, he made her an offer.

   He called it a severance package.  She would resign from her job
immediately and return all the files she had copied.  Their working
relationship would be terminated, and she must never tell a soul what she
knew of his wrongdoings.  Then he pulled out an envelope of cash from a
safe in his wall and offered it to her, in exchange for her silence.

   Mom pulled it out of her purse to show us that she had accepted the
deal. Inside was a big stack of money!  I had never seen so much in one
place before.  I felt like a millionaire!  Lucy also squealed with delight
when she saw it.  I'm sure she immediately started dreaming up all the
things she could buy with it.  We helped her count it up, a mix of twenties
and hundreds, and found it came to just over $12,000!

   We listened in as Mom called Aunt Julie to tell her the exciting news.
She was overjoyed to hear how mom had finally made that "scumbag pig"
squeal.  She also had some good advice to offer.  Mom was worried about
finding another job, but she told her to stop and enjoy the break.  There
were always sales jobs available for smart, attractive women, she told her.
I had to agree.  Mom needed to rest and recharge.  The bills could wait.

   Aunt Julie wasn't exactly a financial guru, but she did have some strong
opinions on what to do with the severance package.  She suggested lottery
tickets, or a casino could really turn it into a jackpot.  But that didn't
sound very fun to me.  I was more intrigued by her suggestion of a family
vacation.  She said mom should pull Lucy and I out of school for a couple
weeks and get away.

   That's how our first ever Jenkins Family Vacation was born.  I liked the
sound of a couple weeks off school and Lucy squealed at the prospect. 
Everyone around the table heartily agreed with Aunt Julie's suggestion.  We
excitedly talked over each other through dinner as we brainstormed possible
destinations.  Lucy and I had never even been on a family vacation before.
We were always too poor and couldn't even imagine going anywhere.  But
spoiled by the unexpected windfall of the severance package, we were freed
to dream and began spending it in our minds in earnest.

   Mom said we could visit a travel agent after school the next evening to
gather information.  There was no such thing as a travel website back then.
And getting ideas usually meant flipping pages in a tour book or magazine.
She said they had traveled some when she and dad were first married before
I was born, on their honeymoon, in fact.  Then she got real cagey and
changed the subject.

   My interest was piqued, though, because she rarely talked about dad or
their relationship.  Later, in private, I got her to tell me what had
happened on that trip.  Dad had taken her to the French Riviera for their
honeymoon, a popular vacation destination for the rich and famous.  They
stayed at a fancy, all-inclusive place.  It was incredible, she said, until
they got down to the beachfront and she realized they were at a nude beach
resort.

   He swore to her that it had been a booking mix-up, but wanted to stay
and stick it out; insisting the French have a much more laissez-faire
attitude about public nudity.  When she balked, he put his foot down,
insisting her only options were to spend the rest of the trip in the room
or stop being such a prude and take off her suit so they could continue
down to the nude beach.  She reluctantly agreed, then watched in dismay
while he threw her brand-new swimsuit in the trash right there on the
boardwalk. She spent every day of their honeymoon nude on the beach being
ogled by amorous naked Frenchmen.  There were some women, too, but none so
self-conscious as the big-breasted, newlywed American girl who had never
been naked in public before.

   After hearing her tale, I could understand why she wouldn't want to go
back to the French Riviera anytime soon.  But she was not opposed to
someplace warm and sunny.  Judging by Lucy's squeals anytime it was
mentioned, I knew she would cast her vote for a beach trip, too.  What
young lady wouldn't like two weeks in a tropical paradise?

   She was disappointed that I made her stay home the next evening while
mom and I, the two decision makers, went to visit the travel agent.  I
didn't want immature Lucy with her expensive tastes to take us in a
direction we shouldn't.  And I needed to focus so I could keep mom from
being taken advantage of.  I was there to provide budget discipline. 
Besides, I knew where my sister stood on the matter of destination
opinions. I could cast a vote on her behalf.

   Having never traveled before, I was overwhelmed by the exotic posters on
the wall of the agency.  Even the majestic pictures of airplanes in flight
put butterflies in my stomach.  Our agent was initially uninterested in
helping us.  She had a few brochures lazily spread out on her desk when we
arrived for our appointment.  But when she learned about our surprisingly
robust travel budget, thanks to the severance package, she perked up.

   She insisted we call her "Kiki" after that and swept the brochures off
her desk as if they had settled there by accidentally like a layer of dust.
She pulled out some binders from a nearby cabinet, and excitedly took
charge as if she was part of the family and not just about to make a fat
commission.

   When we mentioned our desire for someplace warm, she showed us images of
impossibly clear blue waters with glittering beaches.  The accommodations
were no less stunning; gilded monstrosities packed with every luxury
imaginable.  She took advantage of our naivete on the matter and kept
recommending upgrades and perks that would make our family vacation
perfect. With our budget, she assured us we would be treated like royalty.

   Perhaps it would have been wise for me to pipe up and suggest a more
modest proposal.  We could have paid quite a few bills, saved some for a
rainy day, and still had enough left over for a shorter, but still fun
trip. But I admit I got caught up in all the excitement.  The royal
treatment sounded like a once in a lifetime opportunity, and "King Mikey"
did have a nice ring to it!

   By the time Kiki was through with us, every penny had been allocated. 
She sold us on this new foreign travel partner company which was trying to
break into the lucrative American market (and was likely offering her a
hefty finder's fee).  We were booked for a first-class flight to Fiji, a
place I had never even heard of before, where we would spend two glorious
weeks being pampered on what looked like a most luxurious remote island. 
Fiji was definitely a stretch for a lower middle-class single-parent
family. But we had just enough money and I couldn't resist the
once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.  The pictures looked out of this world!

   One picture showed our private bungalow.  It sat in the water on stilts
and you could literally step outside onto a deck and dive right into the
ocean!  Or you could turn the other way and access your own private white
sand beach which curved around to make a perfect little lagoon.

   Every meal would be catered and delivered, and fresh fruit and snacks
were refilled daily.  Unlimited drinks were included and delivered from the
bar right to you on the beach if you wished.  The bungalow had an entire
spa's worth of equipment and a personal masseuse would visit every day if
you wanted to give massages and other treatments.  Mom particularly liked
the sound of that.

   We were planning to spend most of the time relaxing in paradise.  But
Kiki convinced us to add a few excursions as well; horseback riding along
the beach, a boat tour around the island, a trip to see a waterfall, and
reservations at a world class restaurant on a nearby island.  But my real
moment of weakness came from a flyer of a well-reviewed show put on by
locals.

   In the flyer, there was a picture of several topless performers wearing
grass skirts.  It was hard to tell the girls' exact age but judging by the
size and perkiness of their naked breasts, I guessed they were in their
late teens or early twenties.  It sure looked like paradise to me, so I
insisted Kiki add it to our agenda!

   We made a 20% down payment of $2,440, from which Kiki surely extracted
her fees, then returned home, drunken with visions of grandeur and heavy
laden with binders of info.  Lucy met us at the front door.  She was
buzzing with excitement and screamed when she heard the news.  She had been
on the phone all afternoon with Alexandra, her rich friend who traveled a
lot, asking for travel tips and advice.

   Before mom went to make dinner, Lucy gave her the biggest hug of thanks.
Then she started to go and call Alexandra with the news.  But before she
left, she got overjoyed once more and stopped to do a little happy dance.
Her feet tapped out a patter of sheer elation.  I guess just then her
excitement level, which had been growing all day, overwhelmed her.  Turning
to me with a huge smile on her face, she finally said it.

   "Hey Mikey, dare me!"

   I don't think she had meant to let those words slip out.  Because she
immediately snapped her hand over her mouth and stared at me with big eyes.
But it was too late.  A blush started forming on her cheeks as she realized
the implications of what she had just uttered.