The Book of Masks (Vol. 1)

Crushing It as Cindy

Previously: "Your Two Faces" 

You've snapped your panties and bra into place, and are tugging the tight white t-shirt down over your head, when the bay door rattles and slides up. You shoot Eva and Jessica Garner a reproachful look. "You didn't have to come looking for me," you say. "I'm just about ready."

The girls—Carlos and Mike—smirk at you. "We wanted to make sure you weren't finger-banging yourself in here," Eva says.

"Don't be gross." You snatch up the navy-blue sweatpants.

"That's what I'd of done," Eva says, "if you guys'd given me time to."

"Wanna finger-bang me now?" You toss away the sweatpants and tug down the front of your panties. "Jump in. It's like a fucking jacuzzi or something down there!" You feel hot and sloshy.

They both freeze, startled.

"I'm serious. I didn't pick Cindy 'cos I didn't wanna have fun. Here, I'll make it easy for you." You pull the panties down to your ankles and kick them off, then drop onto Carlos's weight bench with your legs spread wide. "Come on in, both of you." You grab the bench with one hand, and with the fingers of the other you frame and pull apart your cunny's lips. "I got room."

Their eyes water as they stare, but neither one moves. "Dude," Jessica grunts.

You're saved—or betrayed; you're not sure if you really wanted them or not—by a ringtone, which you recognize as Cindy's. "Should'a taken me up while you had the chance," you smirk as you spring to your feet. "That'll be Seth, wondering what happened to me." You scoop up the phone from the floor where it lies. "Hello," you coo into it.

"Yeah," Seth growls. "So, are you coming out here soon or not?"

"Hang on." To Eva and Jessica, who are still swaying on their feet and staring at your gash, you say, "Is anyone else coming out here that we need to talk to? Jessica!" you snap when neither of them move.

"Huh?"

"I asked, Is anyone else coming here we need to talk to?"

Seth says, "'Cos Darren and Sophie are here, and they—"

"Hang on, Seth! Jessica! Are Philip or Josiah supposed to—? You know. For Chelsea or Maria," you mouth at her.

"Uh ... Yeah! We—"

"It's getting complicated out here, Seth, we've got some more people supposed to come out—"

"We're supposed to be on a double-date, Cindy, we said—"

"Well, you're just gonna have to get along without me."

"It's a double! Date!"

"Well, not anymore it isn't. Call me when you're done." You close the connection. "Well," you address the girls brightly, "I hope you know what I'm giving up to hang out with you."

"What's that?"

You answer by stepping up to Eva and lightly clasping the back of her neck. You run a quick, wet tongue up the side of her face. Something like an earthquake runs through her.

"That," you explain as her knees buckle, "is what I'm giving up. Except it's my boyfriend's tongue. And he's licking my cooter like it's an ice-cream cone."

* * * * *

Well, for good or ill you seem to have scared Mike and Carlos off from trying anything with you. Or, maybe it's because you've reminded them that some other guys are showing up. Twenty minutes later you're back in the studio, dressed, and studying your face in the cell phone as you carefully comb out your smooth and silky hair, when Philip Fairfax trudges in.

You start a little at his appearance, and pause in mid-stroke to stare at him. He stares back, blinks, then drops his eyes. "So, uh," he mumbles, and looks around to take in Eva and Jessica, who have been studying the texts on their phones. (Gotta figure what Eva and Jessica might've been doing tonight, Carlos had explained.) "I guess everything's under control?"

"Except Will just told us he can't get Chelsea or Maria out here." Eva shoots you a sour glance.

It takes you a moment to react to Philip's querying look, for you're momentarily distracted. His milky-smooth skin. His dirty-red hair. His black-framed glasses and the thoughtful, intelligent frown behind them. He's well-built: solid without being muscled, and soft without being flabby.

He's awfully good looking, you find yourself thinking. And he seems so smart. But shy. No, not shy. Just distracted, with all those deep, smart thoughts of his. I bet he gets totally lost in those worlds he's creating up there. It would be so nice to get him out of his head. To wake him and make him notice me, look at me, touch me. I'd kiss him, and he'd come out of that trance, and he'd kiss me back. Would he be any good in bed? Wouldn't it be great if he was a natural? Or I could teach him, pull him out of his shell—

"Will," Jessica calls, startling you out of a reverie you hadn't noticed yourself falling into.

"Huh? Oh yeah." You drop the comb and sit up straight. "You wanted me to get Chelsea or Maria out here?"

"You told us you couldn't," Eva says.

"Yeah, I can't. Well, not Chelsea. On account of her and Cindy hate each other's guts."

"And you didn't tell us this before?" Jessica says as Philip's frown deepens.

"Well, I kind of knew it from the gossip I'd heard around, but I didn't know for sure. But now—" You shake your head. "Now I know how much they hate each other."

Philip's brow furrows. "Now you know?" he echoes.

"Well, yeah. On account of—" You touch your temple.

Glances are exchanged: skeptical glances from Eva and Jessica, a puzzled one from Philip. "You're saying you know what Cindy knows?" Philip asks.

"Yeah!"

"Already?" He chews on a lip. "That's ... curious. Like what?"

"Like, what do you wanna know? Her birthday, her sister's birthday, her class schedule? The time she fell and knocked out a tooth when she was seven?"

"He told us these things," Jessica says, "but I think he's making them up."

"Tch. Why would I?"

Philip pulls at his lower lip. "This is most peculiar. A property of the mask?" he muses. "If one of us put it on—"

"We already put the stuff in it," Eva interjects. "So we can't."

"Hmm." Philip continues to regard you thoughtfully. "Well, this is interesting, but for now I suppose we should only regard it as a data point. I mean—" He looks between Eva and Jessica. "Did either of you—?"

"No."

"Well, it's something to keep in mind." He turns back to you. "But you were telling us about Cindy and Chelsea."

"Yeah, they hate each other, and there's no way I could get her to come out here."

"What about Maria Vasquez?"

"Well ..." You don't want to disappoint Philip completely, so you temporize. "The thing is, Maria is one of Chelsea's friends, so it would be really weird if I texted her and asked her to come out. But I might be able to."

"You told us you couldn't," Jessica says.

"Because you were being a bitch about it. But I can try." You reach for your phone, but pause. "Want me to try?" You raise a querying eyebrow at Philip.

"Please." There's the trace of a stammer in his voice. Strangely, it gives you a thrill to hear it.

* * * * *

"You got her?" Eva asks, as she, you, and Jessica try ineffectually to support the unconscious Maria Vasquez. She is hanging in Philip's arms, and his face is turning very red as he struggles to support her dead weight.

"Uh huh," he grunts. "Oof. Where do we—? In here?"

"We were putting them in my workout bay," Jessica says. Philip grits his teeth, and it looks for a moment like he's about to cuss or at least say something very cutting. But with a grimace he hefts Maria up, tightens his grip around her bust, and hauls her, with dragging feet, out of the studio and into the corridor.

It turns out it wasn't that hard to get Maria. You texted her to say that you were talking to some "YouTube guys" about using their services to make promo videos for the cheerleading squad, and could she maybe come out to look at the set up. Her reply was twenty minutes in coming, but in it she said she'd come if you just told her where.

Then it was just a matter of going out to meet her, leading her to the studio, and standing aside as Philip, with a glowing blue mask in his hand, stepped up behind her and reached around to clap it over her face.

Philip lets her down now onto the floor of the workout bay, and looks around with a red and perspiring face. "Someone explain to me again," he says in a waspish tone, "why you sent the betas away instead of keeping them here to help." Embarrassed looks are exchanged all around. The fact is, no one wanted leering teenage boys around as you all enjoyed your new bodies.

"Want some privacy?" Eva asks. Philip answers with a look, and you all turn to go. But—

"Will," he calls, and you stop in the doorway to the bay. "Can you text Keith, ask him if he's decided anything yet?" Philip had texted Tilley while you were waiting for Maria to show up, prodding him to picking a new identity.

You nod. "But can I use your phone?" you ask, "Since you're the one who texted him." It's easier than explaining that you don't want anything of Keith's showing up on Cindy's phone, in case Seth accidentally spots it. Philip pulls out his phone and tosses it to you. Out in the corridor, after pulling the bay door down, you text Keith, telling him it's you and that Philip wants a decision.

Dude help me pick, he texts back. Cant pick from yumi or kendra or kelsey b or andrea.

Yumi and Kendra are cheerleaders, one a friend of Cindy's and the other an enemy. Kelsey is a rich, AP-level snob, and Andrea is the sexy captain of the school swim team.

But you've got a fifth candidate to pitch to Keith: Stephanie Wyatt. She's just the kind of girl who can kick Javits around in the nuts.

Next: "A Yumi Trap" 

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"Table of Contents (Vol. 1)" 
"The Book of Masks (Vol. 1)"