Sarah's flirtations

[applebooty]

But he doesn't reach for the book as I though he might. (thought)
U take out a lube tube. (Should be "I". I think "tube of lube" would sound better and make more sense.)
He's exagerating, of course. (exaggerating)

I found this POV to be interesting and definitely unexpected. Are you planning on using his throughout the rest of the story? If not, it seems a little out of place, but otherwise it does work.

BTW, I have an unnatural fondness for this Jimmy character. I hope we'll be seeing more of him. Remember... Thomas owes him! (Though it would likely be irrelevent to the plot.)

[interesting]

It does seem out of place, doesn't it. It's intentional. Remember that, as much as I'm telling a story here, I'm also experimenting along the way with various ideas, wether they be of a narrative nature or as part of putting unexpected dares/challenges into the story, while trying to remain realistic. I do get my inspiration from other parts of the site.

Each narrative for the upcoming "weeks" will be in a different character's POV, to see if I can make it different enough from the others. Thomas was the first one I wanted to write, because his voice is very distinct in my head. I'll be doing Claire and Cassie, Bonnie and Barry, and Jennifer. I want to get to know (and present to you) each of these characters under their own voice, and see which ones make more sense, which ones work best, which ones fall short.

It's my own personal dare, if you will (winks).

As for Jimmy (not to be confused with Jim, or James), I definitely think he has some potential for further narration. I just haven't figured out what yet.

I'm fleshing out the universe around which these characters revolve as the story is progressing. Bits and pieces are coming together to form a nice little web of intrigue and relationships. That way, when I do get back to the main story between Sarah and Jim, I'll have all of these characters fleshed out. That's the theory anyways.

I appreciate the feedback very much, by the way.

[interesting]

[This post is highly experimental, as it will involve two different narrators. Hopefully, it won't get too confusing.]

So, Claire, how do we go about doing this?

I don't know. Why don't you tell the story, Cassie, and I'll interrupt you if I need to add anything?

Okay. Sounds good.

So it's the end of week nine in the semester long dare to get to know Jim better. I won't bore you with the details of the dare itself, I'm sure Sarah and Thomas have done a good job so far.

Bore them with the details? How could they be bored with this story?

I don't know. It's just an expression. Can I continue?

Sure. Sorry.

Thanks. So our task for Sarah is to find out more about Jim, about his limitations, how he reacts to all sorts of situations. I know Thomas did his part last week, I don't know how it went. Sarah keeps everything pretty wrapped up for now, hopefully she'll tell us more when we get to meet this Jim in person. Now, me and Claire, being lesbians and all, we thought we'd test his reaction to lesbian overtures.

My idea, actually.

Yes, Claire, your idea.

Buy you did help set it up.

The story?

Oh... right.

The idea was simple. We can't interact with Jim, but that doesn't mean he doesn't notice us. Our main problem is timing. Thomas already got the park, and we don't want to do anything there. Our boy doesn't get out much except for writing and doing the groceries, and school. Our best bet is the store, then. But how do we check his reactions to a display of lesbian affection?

I think we should explain why this is important to us, and to Sarah?

I think they already know about that.

You mean Jennifer and Sarah? I'm not talking about that.

Oh. What are you talking about then?

Well, the thing is, in our group, most of us are pretty open about our sexuality. I've done things with pretty much every girl in the group. You, Cassie, you've also gone farther than me with the boys. But the thing is, if he's going to integrate in our group, he has to be comfortable with girls... doing girls.

Well that seems obvious.

I thought it needed explaining, that's all.

Now there aren't that many things we can do in a grocery store that won't get us thrown out, so we'll have to be careful. Nowadays, they have mirrors and cameras everywhere. We'll have to be in your face about it without being indecent.

A shame, really.

We'll get to more juicy stuff later. Let's just finish with this story so we can get it to Sarah so she doesn't go out of her mind again.

Go on, then.

With Jennifer and Sarah's help, we manage to find out when he leaves for the grocery store. I'm at the ready, so I call Claire at her work and she joins me.

Always nice to take an afternoon off.

When she gets there, he's already inside. Our time is limited. We don't know how long he will remain in there. Our acolyte is there too.

You forgot to talk about him in the beginning!

I did?

You did. I'll tell about him.

Go ahead.

He's our next door neighbour, a few years younger than us. He lives with his father and goes to our former high school. I knew his sister from classes we had together. We hired him for the task because, well, we have some history with him.

You should tell them.

Maybe another time. His only job is to tag along discreetly around the store, and observe the target's reactions to our blatant exhibition of lesbian love. Brian - that's his name - is good at reading people most of the time.


So we enter, and Brian follows us in. First job : find Jim. He's in the soup alley. Buying chicken noodle. I recall Sarah's story about when she stole his underwear and he served her chicken noodle soup because she hadn't eaten.

So we find him and deduce which direction he's going. Now, we want to put on a show for him, so...

You're telling it or I am?

Sorry. The best part is coming. Go ahead.

We move into the next lane, lean into the alley. I back up against the stands, while Claire stands in front of me. She places her hand in my hair and starts kissing me passionately.

You should mention there's no one in the alley. It's the middle of the afternoon, the store is practically empty.

You just did that. Anyway, Brian positions himself so he'll get a good look at Jim's face. He's even prepared a few comments to peak his interest.

Now we didn't necessarily hear what they said, but Brian told us afterwards.

You're getting ahead of the story, honey. So we're getting hot and heavy, and Jim rounds the corner. Now, I'm focusing on Claire, but my eyes are also wandering in his direction. Claire's only concern appear to be my lips. I feel giddy all over, place my hands across her blouse. And Jim, well, he just walks by, barely looking at us. Now I don't have a good point of view, so I don't know what he's thinking.

Neither do I, but luckily, Brian does. Brian is playing the lecher, staring at us. He hails the stranger.

"That's some sight, he says. Gotta love it.
"It's all right.
"All right. Two hot babes are going at it and you say it's all right. It's heaven man!"

Brian tells us that Jim then turns around and stares at us.

"They are beautiful. And in love, it appears."

And Jim is smiling.

Now that's a good sign. Then, Jim just keeps on walking by. So what we do next is get a few items of groceries, and wait until he's heading for the checkout line before cutting him off. Claire is squeezing my hand, rubbing my shoulders, kissing my neck, and I'm acting giddy like a school girl. We smile at him and he smiles back at us. When we get to pay, we cuddle a little, take our time, seem distracted by one another...

We want to see how he reacts to being delayed. Does he stress out, does he try go around.

But he just stays there, smile on his face, finding us all cute and pretty.

Eventually, we exit. Brian is waiting outside. He tells us his appreciation. The guy does not mind, according to him. He also states that Jim is not gay, which we already knew.

Brian is one of those people who can tell with one look who is gay and who is not.

And I suppose it's good to have some confirmation.

More importantly, though, Brian says he thinks the guy is nice, sincere, not bogged down by conventions too much. He says his reaction to our lesbian overtures were standard and open-minded. His smile to us also says a lot.

Brian is very intuitive.

Which is good for him, because he wants to be a psychologist.

You're drifting, now.

So there you have it. I hope Sarah finds this helpful. We were sort of stuck on possibilities, we did the best we could.

I'm sure she'll find some us for our information.

It was fun, even though it was short. We'll have to try some store nudity some time, but we need to find some place where they don't have cameras. We don't want to get arrested.

That's enough story. Come on, I have another story I want to share with you.

What are you talking about?... ooh! Claire, you dirty little...

[jlstockton25]

Nope, not confusing at all..to me anyway.

I love this story..some stories get too bogged down sexually, but I like the pace this one goes at. A heavy sex scene followed by some light-hearted conversation, and a very strong story line with plenty of developed/developing characters.

Very good, keep it up!!

[applebooty]

Interesting. I can't say I've read a story here where two characters narrate in the same chapter. I liked it, and look forward to whose POV is next. Take comfort in knowing your 'personal dare' effects the story positively.

Brian is playing the leecher. (lecher)

On the subject of Jimmy, it would be interesting to see him with Thomas. Boy deserves some man-lovin'!

[interesting]

I think I'm in love. I hope Barry won't mind too much.

Okay, so I'm not really in love, but he is dreamy. I have just spent the last day gazing at Jim in the park, watching him write. I decided I'd do this one alone. At first, we argued that it would be Barry and me doing the observation this week, but then I talked to Barry and plans changed.

Now don't get me wrong. I love my boyfriend so much, I'd do almost anything for him, and in fact, I have done pretty much everything for him, or to him. We have such a loving and open relationship that I can share with him anything that comes into mind. Now it wasn't always like this, mind you. It's just that, with what we've both been through, we decided that it was better to be happy together and for one another than to impose a lot of restrictions and limitations and try to control each other's movements.

I've never been unfaithful, and I'm pretty sure he hasn't either. Even if he had, I'd still forgive him if he talked to me about it. We have needs, desires, and we've learned to act on them. I've never slept with another man, and whenever I do things with other girls, he's always present. And when he does things, I'm there too. That's the basis of our relationship : we share everything.

Sometimes, though, we need our time apart, and that's what I need to deal with this investigation. I like to fantasize about other men, sometimes, and it helps when Barry's not around. Now, this Jim character, I could get to like him. He's smart, intelligent and focused, good looking. Thomas and Barry are both really into sports and this Jim seems different somehow. I like a sturdy man, but Thomas is too much for me. Barry's physique is good, but what I like about him is how he makes me smile, and laugh. I think this Jim might be able to do the same. But he's Sarah's prey, so he's off limits, except in my fantasies. Those belong to no one but me.

After a day of watching a guy, you can't help but wonder at his daily life, at his routine, at the size of his penis, at how gentle or hard he is when he is making love to you. I follow him around after the park, mindful not to be seen. He seems as oblivious to my presence as he has been to the others who tailed him. It helps our endeavor.

He picks up supplies from the grocery store and heads back home. I wait until he enters, then go in after him, but I don't climb up the stairs. Instead, I look at the door and the handles there. I memorize the look and style of the handles. The information will come in handy later.

I should probably talk a little about me. I think the others do that. I'm Bonnie, of course. I've known the gang for six years or so, when I moved into the neighborhood. I'm originally from the Midwest, but my mom got a job at an important law firm here so we moved. My dad is the stay-at-home type, that is, when we lived in the mid-west, he'd go roaming all day in the woods. Since we moved here, he hasn't been as enthusiastic. He goes bowling with some guys he met twice a week. But that's about it.

I have two brothers, both younger, much younger in fact. One is 10 and the other is 8. I don't really get to see them, since I moved out of the house after high school to go live with Barry.

I've been doing dares since I was fifteen. It's Sarah who took me in. First night in, they had me strip and do all sorts of stunts in the buff. They were kind to me, I didn't have to do anything sexual on my first night. I got to get into this very progressively, which is what I needed. I only did sexual stuff on my fourth night. Sometimes, I still find it hard to believe that I've actually slept with all these girls in the past. I can't believe we're still friends. I guess things might have gone awry had it not been for Barry.

We introduced him to the game by making him our slave. And he enjoyed it. That was the part that actually turned me on to him, having control over him. I blew him that first night. I had been experimenting with girls, but I knew I was into boys. He was my first. In fact, I've never been with anyone else. Oh! I've blown Thomas a couple of times, a few other people along the way during our more daring times. But I've never had anyone but Barry inside me. Somehow... that's his privilege. That belongs only to him.

When I met Barry, I had experimented enough that I knew what I was looking for, in terms of relationship. It was a hunch, but it panned out. That's why I think Sarah's quest is a legitimate one. I do believe in love at first sight. I know Jennifer disagrees. It's her right. It happened to me, I hope it happens to her someday.

I don't have to work. There are several reasons. I guess you could call me lucky. Not only is my mother very well paid, she gives me money every month, basically paying for all my expenses. I think she's compensating for the fact she has missed so much of my growing up. I don't mind. I had my dad almost all to myself. The other thing is that Barry's family is also loaded, an added bonus. He works with his father and uncle. They own many government owned supply outlets on the West Coast. He was working there while in school, and now he's a full-time member of the clan. He's barely nineteen and already into a lot of money, which has just allowed us to buy our first home. It's not big, but it's cozy. It's great for having friends over. I always found doing our games in our apartments was, well, less than stimulating. Especially since we had to share them with other roommates who were outsiders.

Now, just because I don't have to work, doesn't mean I waste my time at home. I sell stuff door-to-door, but I make my own hours. You name it, I have it or I can get it. It's only as a supplemental income.

Our friends might be jealous of our good fortune if we hoarded. But we share it with them as best we can. I hope they appreciate and don't find us too shallow or greedy. No, I know they don't.

That monday, I go visit my friend Lupo. He's forty years old and a friend of my dad's. I have a special relationship with Lupo. He's a veteran from the first Gulf war, and he's been through a rough patch. One night my dad was out, before I was going out with Barry, he had come over to see my dad and instead we talked about the war, how his wife had left him when he came back, taking his five year old son with her. He had no choice but to recycle his life. He became a locksmith. I hope you see where I'm getting with this. Anyway, I cheered him up by telling him of my school life. I also did something which, thinking back, was my first ever dare. Now, don't get any ideas here, he was thirty-five, I was fourteen, so nothing much happened. I just posed for him in several bikinis, and he gave me ratings. I still have the original ratings chart somewhere in my stuff back home, probably still in a box.

Lupo is of course happy to see me. I don't drop by as often as I could, but life just keeps us busy. We have a system for transactions, and he can tell I'm in need of assistance.

"Hello, Bonnie. Lovely day.
"Lovely indeed, Lupo."

There is no one else in the store. I pull out a picture from my handbag and hand it to him. It's me in a bikini. I'm not wearing any bottom, though, and I'm showing my behind, covering it partly with my hands. He smiles. I always manage to make his day.

"What can I do you for?
"I need... a service.
"You have it."

I don't go into detail, but I explain that I have this door model, with this handle model, and I wonder if he can help me. He understands. We both know this is highly illegal and we keep everything as blurry as possible. He knows I'm not a thief, and I know he's reliable.

"I think this one might fit."

He pulls out a master key set from under the counter, and pulls out one specific key, placing it on the table.

"Or maybe I got something back there."

He turns around, looking at his shelves. I pocket the key discreetly. All the while, I'm positioned so my body is covering the angle of the camera aimed at the counter.

"No... not here. Sorry, don't have anything else.
"Well, it's all right. Thanks Lupo.
"Don't be a stranger, now."

I blow him a kiss and leave. That was the easy part. Now for the hard part.

I don't get to it until that Wednesday. This time, I've asked Barry to come along. With what I've got planned, I'm going to need him. He's carrying a heavy back pack and since this is my operation, he has no idea what's inside it.

"Ton of bricks, right? I'm carrying a ton of bricks.
"Will you stop it? This will be fun.
"You have the key?
"Stop panicking."

Barry doesn't like it when I rely on Lupo's services. I've done it four times in five years. This will be my fifth.

We enter the apartment building and climb up the stairs. I open the way, Barry remains hidden in the stairwell. We want to make sure we're not seen. We've been warned by Sarah about the nosy neighbour. We're very mindful of the sound we make. I get to Jim's door and use the master key. It's harder to operate than it looks. Eventually, I unlock the door and walk in. I secure the place, then come back for Barry. We know Jim has classes all afternoon, so we have a window of about four hours to do whatever we need to do. Ample time. I lock the door and go about the room, pulling the blinds down. We'll need to remember to bring them back up.

Barry puts the bag down in the living room, but I tell him to bring it to the bedroom. Everything seems nice and tidy. Jim doesn't have a lot of stuff, it appears.

Once Barry has set the bag down, he goes to the computer. He has his own assignment while I set up the room. I open the bag and take out a large blanket, which I set over the bed. There's no place to tie the handcuffs so I leave them in the bag. I pull out the camera and the tripod, and set it up towards the bed. I smile at the prospect of what's going to happen here. We have a full hour of video. It should be ample time. I go to Barry's side. He's into the computer now and it's not password protected.

"What do we have here, then?
"Well, I'm looking at recently opened files. Text documents mostly, a few pictures.
"Show the pictures."

Barry opens the pictures up one by one, mindful to close them. I'm disappointed. No nudity, no porn. Just some drawings of characters. His? I don't think so. Probably found on the internet. Barry opens up a text file titled The True Face of Rebecca. We skim through the text. It's an erotic story about some girl, Rebecca, whose description feels awfully like Sarah. She's learning about her sexuality in contact with an older man in some kind of make believe setting. This is more like it.

"I think our boy has fantasies about Sarah.
"Maybe", Barry replies.

He closes it and then logs onto the internet, checking the cache for recently viewed pages. Most of it is literature oriented, a few pages are from the college, yet more are about museum research. We finally locate the good stuff. Nude Samples. Barry clicks on it.

Naked women fill the screen. I imagine Jim masturbating to these images. All of these girls are posing, none are involved in sexual situations.

Next, we do a search on his hard drive for video files. We find a few, nothing pertinent to our research. But we don't give up. Barry goes back several days in the internet log's history, until finally we find something. Erotic Heroes. Intriguing. We click on it. It's a website about popular superheroines involved in sexual situations. There are small samples of videos. We'll have to keep this in mind for later reference. We play a few of the samples. They're enticing but they're only tease.

"This is the best we'll find.
"I wish we'd brought costumes.
"We couldn't know. Come on."

Barry gets up and pushes me towards the bed. I fall back on our blanket. He pulls his top off.

"Wait! Start the video!"

He does. I start opening buttons on my blouse. The camera is on me, now, he's out of sight. I open up completely : I'm not wearing any bra. Barry pulls into frame, starts kissing my chest. I look at the camera; I've set the screen facing us, so we can see what we're doing as we're doing it. He crawls up to my mouth and we kiss. I fondle at his zipper and start unbuckling his pants. The sample on the computer ends, so he stands up and starts another one.

"Bring the keyboard here, and the mouse."

Both are wireless so we drag them onto the bed. He returns and I start removing his pants. He's only wearing a g-string. I rub my hand against it. He's already rock hard, and it sticks out. I glide my tongue against it, then kiss it gently before putting it in my mouth. Barry pushes me back because we're slightly out of frame. We should have brought someone along to hold the camera. Next time, maybe. I work on him for some time. He resets a new sample and is looking at the computer screen. I pull away eventually. I completely take off my blouse.

He reaches under my skirt and pulls off my panties. I lie down on the bed so my crotch is facing the camera. I also have a good view of the screen. There are two girls in hero costumes kissing and fondling each other. I don't know their names. Barry buries his head under my skirt and starts playing with me with his mouth. I keep staring at the screen on the computer, then at the tiny screen of the camera, where I see my blushing face. This turns me on even more.

"Make me come... make me come..."

I feel the rush coming on. I can't scream. I don't know how thick the walls are. I bite my lip as the orgasm overpowers me. I close my eyes and let the pleasure ride me. When I finally relax, Barry has pulled away and started a new sample. This one is about this male villain exacting a revenge over a female hero. There's some blood in my mouth. I must have bit my lip harder than I imagined.

Barry pulls up to me. He has removed his thong. I look down and see he still has his socks on.

"For God's sake, Barry, take off your socks!"

He looks down, notices, and starts laughing.

"I can't fuck you with your socks on!
"You can't? But why?
"Because... socks!"

He laughs again and takes them off. I remove my skirt. I keep my high socks on. I don't know why but it turns him on. Jennifer says it's because it accentuates the rest of the legs. I start licking him again, but he pulls away.

"No. I want to take you.
"Okay."

I was into pleasuring him, but if he'd rather take me I'm not one to complain. I lay on my back, lift my legs. He enters me from above. We move about a little, so the camera has a good pan on both of our bodies. Only our heads and lower legs are out of frame. He's pumping me good and enjoying every minute of it. We stop for a moment and he exits, allowing us both to catch our breath. He sets up a new sample while I move about. I face the camera on all fours and let him enter me from behind. Now I can actually see both our faces, even if he's behind me. He returns to his previous pumping action. Seeing his face is intoxicating. He's really into it, and I'm slowly edging back into full orgasm mode. The sample ends, but this time, he's not stopping to start a new one.

I feel him inside me, releasing himself into me. I want him to keep pumping and he does for a moment, but then he stops, tired and exhausted. I'm content but that first orgasm was better. He came too fast. But I don't hold it against him. I've already had my fun.

I stop the camera and lie down beside him.

"I love you.
"Love you too."

He's exhausted. Normally, I'd let him sleep. Unless there are other people present, Barry always falls asleep after sex. This time, we're in a stranger's home. We don't have that luxury.

"Come on, lover. Don't fall asleep.
"Sorry."

He makes an effort to sit in bed. I hug him tight.

"That was great! I say. Unbelievable.
"Yeah... awesome."

I kiss him. Before getting out of bed, I reach into the bag and get tissues so we can wipe ourselves. We must not leave any evidence of our presence here (well nothing obvious, I'm not talking police here, just the resident himself), hence the blanket over his bed. We retrieve every piece of clothing on the bed, return the keyboard and mouse to the desk after wiping both with tissues. We take our time getting dressed. Barry folds the blanket and returns it to the bag, while I dismantle the camera and tripod. I shut down the computer after shutting down the opened applications, while Barry packs everything of ours remaining into the backpack.

I kiss Barry. I head towards the wardrobe and open it. Pants, shirts, jeans. Nothing out of the ordinary. I look in the back. Boxes. I'm curious and ask Barry to pull one out. It's heavy. We look inside. Comic books.

"No surprise here, considering what we found on the computer."

I smile. We carefully put the box back where we found it. We search the rest of the apartment for signs of sexual conduct. Nothing. No toys, no tools.

"I guess he's only seeing mr. Righty, says Barry."

I laugh heartily. Mr. Righty. What will my boyfriend think of next? Barry gets serious.

"I don't think there's anything more here. I mean, he's not into bondage, cross-dressing, no sign he shaves down there... probably has a pretty boring life.
"I wouldn't say boring. I'd say... focused. We'll just have to find a way to alter his focus. I think we can bring him along. I hope so, for Sarah's sake.
"She's really putting a lot of hope in this guy.
"She is. And that's why we need to help her. We want our Sarah happy."

Barry agrees. We leave as discreetly as we came. Hopefully, we left no clues to our presence here.

[applebooty]

It helps our endeavour. (endeavor)
Midwest (Should be capitalized, just a gripe!)
Since we moved here, he hasn't been as enthousiastic. (enthusiastic)
"What can I you for? ("What can I do you for?")
"Maybe, Barry replies." (The quotes should only be around maybe,)
"That was great, I say! Unbelievable. (The quotes should be around that was great, and unbelievable. The exclamation mark behind 'say' doesn't make sense there.)

Wow. Every update is unpredictable but believable.

[interesting]

Thanks again for the corrections, applebooty.

I hope everyone else is enjoying this as much as I'm enjoying writing it. There is a balance in trying to make a story interesting while trying on stylistic ideas. Maybe I'm trying too hard, sometimes, going too deep in the theory and overanalyzing. I can't really help it. It's part of how I write. I just hope my rantings on theory of writing are making sense and possibly helping a few people out there.

Next post will be Barry's. Should be up at the very latest tomorrow.

[Lucifer87]

I've read the first story and now this one, i must say your work is AMAZING!!!

you seriously should think about writing something semi professionally.

as for the two narrators part, i really couldnt get to grips with it. too much choppping and changing not enough story in there. if you think about it that section had a very weak storyline compared to teh strength of the rest of your story. I think you need to put this style on hold or maybe the answer is to play with it more. do you plan then write or write from a general idea. i think if it was planned more, you could build a strong storyline first then split it between the two of them, i'd also have slightly less interuptions, maybe work the story so both narrators know a slightly different bit of teh story and have that tie together, not sure.

[interesting]

Hello.

I'm Barry. Bonnie's boyfriend.

I live in Southern California, not far from the sea, in the house I purchased only a few months ago. I live there with my girlfriend.

I'm supposed to relate to you my own personal investigation of Jim, Sarah's love interest. So, here goes.

We already know a lot about the man. We know he's a teacher, a writer, he likes comic books, he doesn't watch much porn but likes naked girls, he's nice and helpful, caring, clean, eccentric, not easily intimidated or vexed... that's about what I know.

What else can we learn? And how much fun can we have learning it?

I'll admit it. I'm not as imaginative as my friends. I'm not usually the one to come up with new ideas for our games.

Last week was great. Bonnie got us into Jim's apartment and we had sex on his bed. That's when we found out about his love for comics. Now, I want to do something along those lines. See how passionate he can get about something. But I don't know the first thing about comic books.

What I do then is get to a comic book store that Monday and browse around a little. I look at titles. I don't understand it. It's for children. What's a grown man doing collecting these?

I open up one. Violent story. Another. Lots of sex. I begin to wonder. I ask the clerk.

"Sure, he says, there's comic books for every age now. It's just not for kids anymore."

I forgot to check the titles in Jim's collection and I don't want to go back there. It scares me how Bonnie can get into places sometimes, even if I benefit from it. She has her ways. I don't ask.

I ask the clerk if Jim shops there, I say he's my friend and I want to buy him a present - but it's a secret. Now, since I have his name, the clerk doesn't think twice and checks his file. Jim does purchase his comics here, at the store nearest to his house. He hasn't dropped by in a while, though, but his file is still open. The clerk mentions the titles in the folder and they mean nothing to me.

I inquire about related collections, something Jim might not have, a special limited edition of something. The clerk recommends a paperback of collected stories. I have to trust his insight, but just to be safe, I purchase a few others he recommends. Money is no issue, as I'm sure Bonnie told you.

Once I get back home, I print up a list of the comics I have just bought and make several copies.

The next day, I'm at work. I get Steven, one of our student part-timers, and ask him for a favor. I'll pay him out of my pocket, of course. All he has to do is put the list up on campus everywhere and be the intermediate between me and whoever calls. He agrees. I give him a picture of Jim, tell him he's the guy I'm looking for, but we have to wait to see if he calls. I've asked other stuff of Steven in the past, so he's used to my strange requests. I know he'll do the job as I want it.

The following days are just waiting. Steven gets a few phone calls, but refuses all offers. That Friday, he tells me he got a call from someone named Jim. They will meet that night, at a local coffee shop. I plan to go there in disguise. I give my final instructions to Steven.

I get there before the meeting, sit on the second floor, looking down on the first floor. I tell Steven to get there early as well. He sits at an angle so I can have a good look at the scene. I know Steven has taken the time to read the comics, whereas I just looked at the images. Eventually, Jim comes in. They meet. I drink my coffee and watch the scene unfold.

They talk. The music in the background prevents me from hearing what they are saying. Jim is waving his hands around a lot, doing most of the talking. He does seem passionate, whatever he is saying. Steven just nods. Steven pulls out the comic book Jim is interested in.

Just then, my cellphone rings. It's Bonnie. I answer.

"Barry... Brad's in the hospital.
"What?
"He got into an accident. Sarah's with him..."

I put my game on pause. I'm stunned. Jim, Steven, comics, passion, they all fade away. My friend Brad.

"Was she with him when the accident happened?
"I don't think so. Should we meet at the hospital?
"No. I'll pick you up. We'll go together."

I'll get Steven to fill me in later. His conversation is clearly not over, but I can't stay. Steven sees me leave, probably wondering where I'm running off to. Maybe Jim notices me too. I don't really care at this point.

==============================================

I'm not dying. Not yet. Maybe I wanted to. Maybe I ran my car off the road on purpose. Probably not.

I'm in a cast now. My leg. I'm sore everywhere, despite the pain killers. This is not the first time my driving has landed me in a hospital. It might be my last, though. After this one, they might revoke my license. Luckily, no one else was hurt.

Speed kills. That's what they say. It doesn't. It just hurts like hell.

In the hall, I hear voices. The nurse came earlier, said I had a visitor, a girl. From the description, I know it's Sarah. I'm not sure I want to see her. No. I want to see her. But I don't want her pity, or her accusations. I just want her.

I look down at my leg. Broken in two places. I have bruising on my entire body. I was wearing my seat belt and the doctors said it saved my life. Lucky me.

More voices. The door creaks open. Maybe I should pretend I'm sleeping.

I see Sarah's face peak in. I lower my head. What is she doing here? Why is her number still the one to call in case of an emergency? I should really change that. And what does she care, anyway?

"Brad?"
"I'm up."

No point pretending.

"What happened?
"Stupid car ran off the stupid road.
"Were you speeding?
"Shut up!"

I regret raising my voice and look down. I was. I'm angry at myself, angry at her, angry at the world. She's so damn beautiful and I'm such a dork. No wonder she wouldn't marry me.

"Sorry. Didn't mean to...
"It's okay, Brad."

The tone in her voice does not hide the disappointment very well. Why do I keep putting myself through this? Is this the only way I can get her attention? What kind of relationship is that supposed to be?

Great! I'm crying now. She'll think I'm a sissy.

"It hurts? I should get the nurse.
"No."

I manage the strength to look at her.

"Dammit, Sarah, what are you doing here?
"They called me, told you'd been in an accident.
"No, I mean, why are you here? Why bother coming?
"Because I care about you.
"Yeah right.
"I do."

Sarah tries so hard to be nice to me, and I just shut her off. Why do I do that?

"Look, Brad, you're still my friend, despite everything. I hate to see you like this.
"Like what? Crippled?
"Beating yourself up. You've been doing it for years now, ever since...
"Ever since, yeah."

That's it. Shift the blame to her. Make this all her fault. Make her feel guilty. That will help your chances! What stupid moron I am!

She doesn't reply. I'm already pushing her away and she's barely been here a minute. I can't handle this anymore. My nerves are shot, the pain is killing me, and the woman of my dreams is just out of reach.

"Why don't you love me?"

I start sobbing. I can't control it anymore. I've been carrying the weight of her rejection for too long. Something's gotta give.

"I love you, Brad, but, just not... the way you want me to.
"Well, why not?
"Well, for one, you're too bleak. I mean, you already were when we were going out, always beating yourself and everyone down. I can't live with that. And, we were in high school. That's not the time to get married, or have kids, or raise a family.
"I've been trying so hard...
"Have you? Really? Look at you, Brad."

I look away. She's probably right on everything.

"Why are you so reckless?
"Maybe because I don't have anything to lose.
"But you're so wrong. You're smart, talented...
"Just not enough for you.
"And you have friends who care for you. I don't know why I still do, sometimes, you certainly don't make it easy!"

The tears have stopped. I'm calmer now.

"It's just... we had a life together and...
"And it's over. But that doesn't mean your life ends. What about that Brigitte you met last summer?
"Didn't last.
"Did you even give it a try?"

Brigitte. We hung out a couple of times, but she felt hollow. She did not complete me. She wasn't Sarah. Dammit.

"Or were you too busy comparing her to me?"

That girl knows me too much. Then again, we were together for about six months, and friends long before that.

"You know I wanted to marry ever since elementary school?
"I know. You proposed to me in second grade. I remember. Remember what I answered?
"No.
"We'll see when we get there."

She's right. Now I remember. Her exact words. She remembered. She always does.

"You and me, Brad, it was nice, but you took it too far, too fast. You've always been too fast.
"Always?
"Well, there were times when it was okay."

She smiles. God! I love that smile. It's what made me go for her in the first place.

"Brad, you need to find a way to get me out of your system. We're not going to get back together. I have someone new in my life... someone I hope can bring me the happiness I wish upon you.
"That Jim guy?
"Yes."

I try to smile.

"I could probably kick his ass.
"Yes. Probably."

I suppose I've been holding on to Sarah because she's the only girl who ever gave a damn about me. Well, there was Brigitte, but i cut her off rather abruptly. I'm so crazy sometimes. I act too fast, Sarah's right.

"I don't want our talks to be when I visit you in the hospital, Brad. That's not something I want to live over and over again.
"It's only the third time.
"Well, it's three times too many. You're done. Next time, I won't drop by. Not because I don't care, but because I do. You need to move on.
"I do, don't I?"

I remember when we first made love. It was after one of her games. She had made out with a lot of girls that night. I've always been a voyeur. I watched her get it on. We were all pretty drunk. We got sent into the closet together. I was so turned on I started kissing her there, and she kissed me back. Next thing I knew, I was doing her in the tight space of the closet. Next morning, we'd decided to give our relationship a try. Six beautiful months. Then I pop the question. What was I thinking? Was I high?

"I'll do better, Sarah. I promise.
"Don't promise me. Promise yourself."

We hear a commotion in the hall. Barry, Bonnie and Thomas arrive. I'm glad Sarah was the first. I needed to let things out, I needed to talk to her alone. We've had our time together. She's right, I need to let her go. Let her be happy. I still love her.

Once I get out of there, I think I'll give Brigitte a call. Maybe try my hand again, if she'll forgive my sorry ass.

[rpUral]

Both stories are / have been amazing. I can't wait for each next installment. I hope you carry the story on after the first one... How could we do without a Sarah and Jim fix each day? :-D

One of the things I really like is the level of the writing. The grammar and usage are all generally good. That said, here's some suggestions for the latest segment:

Originally Posted by interesting

I'm Barry. Bonnie's boyfriend.

I live in Southern California, not far from the sea, in the house I purchased only a few months ago. I live there with my boyfriend.

I thought Berry had a GIRLfriend... :-)

I'm in a caste now.

Shouldn't this be "cast"?

That girls knows me too much.

Come on... She's amazing, but she's just one girl.

--
rpUral

[interesting]

Thank you. Duh! "Boyfriend"!

How do I mess these? I guess I'm so caught up in the writing these slip-ups creep up on me.

Slip-up creep up... has a nice ring to it...

[applebooty]

The Brad thing took me by surprise. Good for him! (About the moving on part, at least.)

[interesting]

Happy to surprise (and also trying to).

Remember, everything's connected...

What the heck does that mean anyway?

[interesting]

It's time for me to step up to the plate. Not that I haven't done so previously, just that this time, I'm on my own. Well, that's not exactly true either. But I'll get to that in a moment.

My name is Jennifer and I'm a former lover of Sarah. Well, the former part is sometimes not as clear as Sarah makes it out, since we do spent a lot of time together, every so often we masturbate in front of the other and once in a while we actually have sex. We're just not in a committed or exclusive relationship. Which is fine by me, but I must tell you I'm afraid. Jim. He frightens me. I'm afraid once he's definitely into the picture, I'll lose part of the special relationship that I have with Sarah. I'm not sure she'll do me anymore.

You must think I'm so shallow, only thinking about sex. Well, I admit, sex is the first thing on my mind when I wake up and the last thing when I go to bed. Statistically, I'm not far away from being a nymphomaniac. The story of my life. I'm always so close to being exactly where or what or who I want to be. I'm almost Sarah's lover. I'm almost a nymphomaniac. I'm almost happy.

Second best is overrated.

I was born in Sacramento, but I moved a little further north when I started elementary school. I have known Sarah for as long as I can remember. We met in kindergarten. She has always been my best friend. Even today, she remains the best thing in my life. I'm an orphan you see. My parents died in a car accident with my younger brother when I was four. I got adopted by a loving couple who had a girl my age and a boy one year younger. My stepsister and brother, Janice and Daniel. I don't talk much about them for many reasons. In fact, most of my friends don't even know they exist, since they went to a different school than me. Only Sarah and Thomas know, I think. They'd have to, given what we've all been through together.

When I finished high school, I was in a relationship with Sarah. I could tell she was holding back. Our lovemaking, so unbelievable at the start, quickly became boring and repetitive. We tried to integrate games around it, but Sarah never got into them. We lasted a little under six months. I was the one who broke it off, because I could tell Sarah was slowly losing interest. She loves having sex with girls, but she needs a man for a relationship. I would have been content to live on love and sex alone, but without either, once we broke up, I had to do something with my life.

I met Anny in a bar. We hit it off, got to her place, had sex, then talked. She works with the homeless at a soup kitchen. Pay is cheap but the work is rewarding. I followed her there the next morning and found my calling. The disenfranchised. I guess... I can relate to them. There's a whole section of the old town where they hang out, far from the tourist traps. Unfortunately, and this is the story of my life, Anny, whom I was growing fond of, met a guy, moved to New York and I've never seen her since.

So, right now, I'm biding my time, working minimum wage to help the homeless. I also do odd jobs here and there... I may delve further into this eventually.

This long-winded introduction is only there so I can introduce my partner in crime for this dare, the next to last in our long series of 'getting to know Jim' dares. Sarah will be back at play next week. Meanwhile, I'm teaming up with Walter. Some of you may remember him from a previous week.

I can be mean sometimes. I never told her that the homeless man we met in the park is actually a very good friend of mine. I'd never risk her integrity with a stranger. I was aware of her aversion to the homeless, though not the reasons. Now that I understand it better, I may play on it at a later time. But enough about Sarah.

Walter is in his late thirties, a former mill worker, and an all-around good guy. He's also the only homeless man I ever allowed to get intimate with me. Walter is not like most homeless men. He doesn't drink, doesn't smoke, he's still got his wits about him. He's simply had a run of unbelievable bad luck, worst than mine actually. I'll spare you the details, but he can't go back. He's almost better on the street than anywhere else. First time we met, we talked for six hours. He told me his life story, then cracked up and told me his real story. We got to hanging out, once per week at the soup kitchen. Eventually, after about one year, I brought him along to do some dares, asking him to hold the camera while I posed for my dares. Some of them were pretty racy. On our second outing, he dared me to integrate him into my dares somehow. By that time, I was eighteen, so I actually ended up giving him a blow job, and he fucked my tits. Now, whenever I do a dare in the less reputable part of town, he's the lookout, usually jerking off to my stunts. We laugh about it a lot. I know he's not falling in love with me, and I also know he keeps our secret. If he didn't, then everything would stop, and neither of us wants that.

That day we met him so many weeks ago, I had pre-arranged the whole thing. Poor Sarah. Walter had chosen his suit accordingly, for the look, the scent of smoke and the smell of alcohol. His performance had been priceless. I'd rewarded him with a private show later.

Today, I still need Walter's help. Everything has already been set up. All that's left is to snare our victim. It's Sunday, so Jim is at the park, writing. I've been briefed on everyone else's effort. With Barry's help (actually, his money), I've had Walter, dressed as a presentable gentleman, get Jim's comics from his store. They're all sealed in plastic bags so we know they'll be all right, even if it should rain, which it never does during the day.

So we have three different books to play with. The plan might not work, but if it doesn't, it will have told us a lot about Jim. It might actually reveal more if he fails to participate. If he does, well, that will reveal something else entirely.

I'm at the end of the road, so I don't exactly know how things will proceed. I won't even know if Jim took the bait until I get a call from Walter.

The phone finally rings on that fateful Sunday. It's Walter.

"He's on the move.
"How did it go?
"Like a charm. I walked up to him, showed him the comic book. He seemed puzzled. I told him he had a secret admirer, and if he wanted to know more, he just had to follow the clues.
"And?
"Well at first, he was skeptical. He asked who I was, how I knew him. He asked if he had seen me before. I said, maybe, I get around.
"He recognized you?
"No. He was fishing.
"Then what?
"He opened the comic book, saw the crude map I drew, and asked why he should follow this map. I told him there was treasure of the greatest kind at the end. It took him a while, but he said he'd do it, on one condition.
"Which one is that?
"I had to tell him my name.
"And did you?
"I told him my name is Kennedy."

I smile.

"Are you sure he's following the map?
"No. But I have someone keeping an eye on him and he went in the right direction.
"Someone? Who?
"Some guy from the district.
"Walter, be careful. I trust you but...
"Don't worry, Chad's cool. Besides, Chad's stalking the guy, but I'll be stalking Chad.
"Okay. Keep me informed."

We say goodbye and hangup. From my perch, I can see the beach, the end point for this treasure hunt. I feel a slight breeze against my naked skin. This wouldn't be a dare if there was not some nudity involved, at least, that's my opinion. An hour or so passes by before I get another call from Walter.

"Hi, got some news from Chad.
"Great! Let's hear it. Good or bad?
"Good, actually. He got to the location, and he did the stunt, and he retrieved his comic book, and the next set of instructions.
"And?
"Well, Chad wasn't very specific.
"I need details, Walter.
"Okay... I'll get them at the next check-in."

I hang up. I'm a bit vexed. I've been perched naked for three hours, hidden on the roof of a building overlooking the beach, with my binoculars. I should have brought something else to pass the time. Maybe a dildo or something. I need to keep those sexual instincts in check for now.

About thirty minutes later (I still have a watch - the only thing I'm actually wearing), the phone rings.

"News?
"I got Chad to tell me about the first stunt. He's also completed the second.
"Which means he should be headed my way, if he follows through with the last set of instructions. Tell me about the first stunt.
"Well, Chad said he got to the abandoned construction site, then started to climb onto the railing, got up to the box and knocked it down. He opened it, got his comic out and saw the set of instructions to follow. Chad said he hesitated but seemed to go in the right direction.
"So he skipped a few beats.
"Yeah.
"Well, can't say it's unexpected."

The instructions were for Jim to climb onto the railing completely, and open the box from there. A difficult and slightly dangerous task; it was much easier to push it down. He's not into taking risks that might injure him.

"Okay, and the next event?
"Chad followed him to the pond. Chad says he took off his pants and entered the pond. When it was obvious he had to get fully underwater to retrieve his item, he pondered for a moment. He finally looked around and found the towel. He stripped down to his underwear and dove in, retrieving the final comic and the final instructions.
"Did you get a good picture?
"I did.
"Send it to me."

Within moments, I get a picture of Jim in his underwear. Nice.

"He dried himself with the towel, even removing his underwear but covering himself.
"Makes sense."

I imagine Jim naked for a moment. I may not have to imagine much longer, if all goes right.

"And?
"Well, I sent Chad away after that.
"Good. And is he heading in my direction?
"Near as I can tell.
"Okay. Follow but don't let him see you."

We hang up after goodbyes. I look towards the beach and wait for him to come into view. It feels like an eternity, even if my watch says thirty minutes.

I spot him, walking along the beach, heading to the designated spot. He pauses and looks around. From his angle, he can't see me, which is the point. I wish I was closer but Sarah was adamant, and I respect her decision. Jim has already retrieved all of his borrowed comics (which he did not have to pay for). The last instructions tell of a greater treasure, tied to a post in the sea. I personally placed it there. He is told to strip naked to retrieve it for an additional reward.

I eagerly await. I have chosen this spot because it is secluded, there are rocks so no one comes here. The day is getting late, which provides much shadow over the cove. Only from my vantage point do I have a clear line of sight.

He hesitates. One hand is already on my crotch. I can't believe I'm doing this. It turns me on so much.

He hurriedly pulls his top off, then his bottom, socks and underwear. I use the binoculars to their best effect. I see him dash into the water, splashing around, looking for the pole. He finds it, pulls it out and turns towards the beach. He sees the picture on one side of the plastic bag, and reads the instructions on the other. Will he do it?

He's facing me now, but his bottom half is still in the water. Does he suspect someone is watching him? He must. I would. I'm playing hard with myself now, trying to keep my focus on him. I see his hand reach into the water and stay there, in front of him. His arm flails back and forth. I can't see a thing because of the water but I don't care. He's doing it. I climax then and there with a loud scream.

When I finally look back with the binoculars, I focus on his face. He's in the throes of pleasure. He's masturbating to the edited image of my breasts and pussy (my face is removed, as well as any distinguishing marks). It drives me wild and I start on me again. Before I can finish, he runs out of the water, dries himself off with the towel (which he had carried along) and slips back into his clothes. I stop playing with myself. The moment is gone.

I'll have to give an account of this to Sarah, of course. I'll choose what I include and what I leave out. I have my secrets, things I don't want my friends to know yet. When you play truth or dare on a regular basis, it's important not to tell everything all at once.

For now, I'm content that Jim has passed all my tests. He's curious but careful, not willing to endanger himself, not afraid to get dirty or get wet, and able to follow instructions without actual knowledge of their origin. He's aware of his public surroundings but is able to bend his reserve.

Now, I need to find some way to thank Walter for his help. I'm pretty sure I'll come up with something he'll appreciate. I always do.

And I need to remember that I still owe a final gift to Jim. After all, he did follow through on the final instructions. That one, I keep for myself.