Am I a slave?
Rodge had been going down on Jamie and Francine on her man. They were pets. Is that what we were here for?
“She’s wearing her necklace,” the trashy girl said. “So she’s all in!”
More cheers. They sure didn’t look like slaves of any kind. Everyone and I mean EVERY ONE seemed happy. The trashy girl took the bald man by the head and whispered to him. Then he dragged her over closer to the wall, put her hands onto the side so she had something to grip, and moved in behind her.
“Like that?” he asked.
“Fuck yeah,” she said.
He was fucking her from behind and she was the pet. She’d asked him to fuck her and he’d done it as if their roles were reversed.
“It’s not what you think,” said a voice from behind.
I whipped my head around to see an older black woman with short hair cropped closely to her head. She wore a tight tan colored suit and if I had to guess her profession I’d say real estate agent. She looked so professional but also looked like sales was her business.
“I’m sorry?” I asked.
“You’re nervous,” she said. “I have a second sense when it comes to these things. That and I’ve been doing this long enough that I can tell when a newbie is freaking out a little.”
“I’m not freaking out,” I said.
“Come with me,” she said.
I followed her and passed the others a wave as I entered the building.
“Come back and join us later,” the man Francine was blowing yelled out.
I’d swear the woman had a snorkel as I don’t remember ever seeing her come up for air. Aquawoman would have to be her new nickname.
The community center was empty. Two cubicles sat unattended on the far wall and in the middle of the opened floor sat various stress-relief tools, like a yoga mat and one of those large inflatable balls people roll their backs around on. I don’t know what they’re called. A couch, loveseat, and a recliner encircled that stress-relief area.
I knew from the party that there were several rooms in the place, and a whole other floor, all of which had been occupied by drunken partygoers the night before. The place seemed totally different in its vacant state. All the warmth and glow, all the bells and whistles, all the sexual tension I’d experienced that night at the party was now gone.
“Sunshine, right?” the woman asked.
“Yes,” I said, “And you are…”
“Vivi,” she replied. “Just call me Vivi.”
Vivi led me to her office at the back of the room, a glass encased one that reminded me of the loan officer stations at my local bank. It was clear she had an open-door policy and didn’t mind people peeking in.
“Have a seat,” she said.
I did. She sat calmly on her side of the desk while I fidgeted with my hair on my side.
“So I’m totally freaking out,” I blurted out. “You were right. Look, I read the manual, I have on the necklace, and I’m seeing all these wonderful people doing…wow…”
I had to stop to catch my breath as my panties were still soaked from what I’d witnessed outside. My body was overheating. Where had that nice, crisp breath of fresh air from earlier gone?
“They’re doing things that look like they feel so good and all but…wow,” I added.
“It’s a bit overwhelming,” Vivi said. “I remember when I first moved to E. Mayberry. Seems like ages ago, but I remember how nervous I was. Had I made the right choice? Was this the place for me? Should I just call it quits and go back to my normal life in my normal neighborhood and watch my boring ol’ weeknight TV programs? But let’s face it, Sunshine, what we had wasn’t so great, was it?”
I looked down into my lap and remembered the night I tried to take my own life. I was someone who made a living off of NEVER being alone. Yet I ALWAYS felt alone.
“No, it wasn’t,” I agreed.