What happened next, I couldn't say 100%. I'd been black-out drunk a couple times in college, and it was about like that. The time was just... lost. I woke up in my own bed. Naked. It was still dark out. (Dark out again? No, my phone confirmed it was the same night, but now it was going on three in the morning.) After pulling on some clothes, I first confirmed that the Stern sisters' car was gone. It was. There was no telling what, if anything they'd done with me. I wasn't sure if Abbie had made me take my clothes off, or if I'd done it myself. I did usually sleep that way, unless it was especially chilly out. The droplets in my shower and Old Spice scent on my body confirmed I'd showered at some point, which I also didn't remember, much less have any inkling as to why. If Abbie had taken advantage of me, it would only be poetic justice. Things had finally spiraled so far out of control that I might have actually gotten to live out one of my fantasies, and I didn't even remember it. O
Nice work, moron. Brainwashed by your own brainwashing victim. All the confidence I'd ever had in the supremacy of my intellect shrunk by half. Then half again when I considered the level of genius it had taken to outwit me. The goddamn Stern sisters.So I slept. Hard. What else was there to do? It was going on four in the morning. I couldn't exactly call up Taylor or Abbie even if I wanted to. For one, I didn't know how. I'd deleted Taylor's number after I downloaded the blackmail video to reduce the evidence trail, and I'd never had Abbie's. I could access their parents' contact via SchoolWays, but that would be one hell of a conversation.Yes, Mrs. Stern, I know it's the dark hours of a Saturday morning, but I need to talk to your daughters about our secret conspiracy. And maybe fuck them.For two, whatever else our new dynamic entailed, I was still pretty irate with the both of them. Abbie for feeding me Serenex, then cramming these new ideas in my head without any apparent thought
Something needed to be done. But what? I considered reaching out to Abbie, who more than anyone paralleled my passion for concealing our secret, and having an ally might if nothing else take some of the edge off. Only then I remembered her stuffing Taylor in a trunk, threatening to kill her. Drugging me when I didn't give her what she wanted. Rewiring my thoughts on a whim. No. I was going to figure this out, but Abbie was volatility personified. Besides, I was a grown man. I didn't need a teenage girl to fight my battles for me. I am not a pussy.Dammit, Abbie.I had no leads. I had no investigative tools or skills to use. All I had was a phone number. Well, whoever it was, if they'd meant to turn me in, they would have done it. Instead, they'd sent me a message. Let's see what they wanted.Who is this?I pressed Send. And I waited.What followed was one of the longest hours of my life. Abbie tried me again, this time with a less seductivewhere the fuck u at Mr C, we're bored and I'm
With a sigh, I took a moment to pull up my bank account balance only to realize my phone was too busted to screenshot, so I had to use my laptop instead. Any details I didn't want shared were covered over in Paint, and then the pic was sent.That's my balance. That's all I have. Revealing so much stung, but with less than two grand left in my savings account, I needed them to get realistic about this. My father would be rolling over in his grave to see his son openly sharing financial information like that. Though perhaps he'd be pretty impressed to see me about to nail those Stern girls. (My dad was a complicated guy.) As it turned out, they disagreed about the nature of realism.YOU BETTER GET CREATIVE THEN $25,000 YOU HAVE TIL MIDNIGHT I grit my teeth as I furiously hammered out a reply, not caring if I scratched my thumbs or not.Well it's 5:15 on a Saturday night, so even if I could come up with it, the bank's closed for the weekend. So if you'd rather get some $ instead of goin
I nearly leapt out of my socks from the proximity of the voice that addressed us. It was Candace Salata, newest addition to the social studies department, assistant volleyball coach... and Louisa's girlfriend. "Candace!" I squeaked. Oh shit, don't let her look over at Officer Barbour. "Hey, we-- I mean, I didn't expect you! Good to see you. Having a good weekend so far? End of the year is crazy, right? I know I've been just slammed. Assigned an essay in May like a complete idiot. Now I'll be grading to graduation day to get it done. This time of the year is always BLALALA, ya know? But hey, this weather... can't beat it right? Good time to sit out on the patio and get some work done in the fresh air. You ever do that? I love it. Do you? Um, do that?" Smooth. So smooth. It did have the desired effect, though, keeping her eyes on me and off of the glassy-eyed slack-jawed stare of her girlfriend. I estimated maybe two, three seconds of close examination before anyone looking at Louisa
I leaned in. "Louisa? Candace?" Candace looked up. Louisa needed me to say it a couple more times before her eyes focused. "When I stand up, I want you to follow me. Bring your things, and say anything. Understand?" It was hard, keeping my voice soft enough to discourage overhearing but loud enough for both to hear my words clearly. But when I stood, they stood. When I walked, wishing I could sprint, toward the door, they followed. Moments later, we'd made it back to my car. I'd done it! Done... something anyway. But I was handling things. I wasn't laying down and letting this blackmailer push me around like some weakling. I am not a pussy. This was still a high traffic area, both cars and pedestrians, so I drove a short ways off into the abandoned lot by the old Kmart. There, good and private. Even if somebody could see us from the road, they wouldn't recognize us. Not that I had reason to be paranoid about people watching me or anything. Fuck me. What did I do now? I'd been read
Each of them did a hundred more repetitions when they finished, in case this was less effective than writing it down. Abbie had been done in by mere off-handed comments, so it was likely overkill anyway. I wasn't about to keep trying this on people until I had actionable data. If I had my way, I'd never use it on anyone again.Meanwhile, I sat there stewing in guilt. I wasn't stupid. I knew those commands would do more than simply cover my ass, help me with my blackmailer. But I had to preserve the secret. I will not let anyone find out about my relationship with the Stern sisters. Overkill was an unfortunate necessity. I'd probably have to tell Louisa about it all, sure, but I owned her loyalty now. She could no more spread the word than if I wrote it down on a piece of paper and stuck it in my pocket.They went back to their vacant staring, waiting, taunting me to do more to them. But no. Jesus, I already had two gorgeous young women ready to do anything I might want to do with thes
My hostess retreated to her bedroom. I tried not to think, as I had been for most of those seemingly interminable hours when I'd been waiting for them to come to, of what I could get away with. Spending this much time in close quarters with the two of them had only made me more keenly aware of what their respective work uniforms had allowed me not to ignore. Candace's athletic build might not command the same attention as classic bombshells like the Stern girls, but as I watched those spandex shorts glide down her hallway, it seemed unjust. There had been a good reason I'd been attracted to Candace back then. There was a brief pause, then I heard water turn on. The shower. I grit my teeth. Nudity. Prolonged nudity. Wetness. Soap. Hot warm water. Hot warm teacher. No. That was the slipperiest slope I'd ever stood on. One inch downward, and I'd be coasting until... oh god, yes, until... I sat up. There it was. Abbie. I needed to contact Abbie. What was I being blackmailed for, after
"What party? You mean Cassie Brown?" She shook her head. "Nah. That party sucked anyway. I got pretty drunk, though. Anyway, no, it was... Thursday? Or Wednesday. What day did you come back last week?" "Friday." "OK, so Thursday, then. I remember because I was really stoked we had a sub for most of the week until I showed up Thursday and suddenly I was like, what was I even thinking, Mr. Canon is an excellent teacher, and then you were back the next day and I was really glad." Then she frowned, which since it was Katie Medina meant the lower lip automatically thrust out in an adorable pout. "Where were you all week anyway, Mr. C? You never said. Three days is a long time to be out. Did one of your grandparents die or something?" Even the casual mention of dead grandparents wasn't enough to dull the heat throbbing out of me into Tabitha's mouth. How could she breathe like this? Abbie was kneading Tabitha's ass, and as I watched, she took a page out of Katie's ex-boyfriend's playbook
She remained bent over. "Ugh. Yeah. Man, that was nasty. Thanks, Mr. C." She kept at it with the water bottle, swishing the water around to get the dregs and spitting into the trash. I pivoted to the others. "Both of you. Talk. Now." Tabitha defended herself first. "I didn't know anything about whatever that was," she insisted. Abbie shot her a swift glare. "Don't hate on me. I told Taylor this was a horrible idea from the beginning, C-dawg." "Well you obviously know something! If you don't know the why, you can at least start with the goddamn how! I just watched her graduate! Did you chloroform her in the bathroom or something?" "This school, man, people getting drugged all over the place. Somebody needs to crack down," quipped Abbie. I didn't laugh. Screw it. I turned back to Katie, who seemed to have more or less recovered. "Katie, what did they do to you? Are you OK?" She nodded. "Yeah, I think so, Mr. C. Those paper towels were frickin' gross. You know what it... Did you e
Fourth? She'd made Abbie take a dump on my desk. I opened the door. "All right Taylor, let's--" Taylor was not in my room. Two other people were. One was straight from my short list of suspects. Abbie sat on the corner of my desk in a loose-fitting t-shirt and denim shorts that went down nearly to her knees. That she wasn't dressed to titillate was actually much more surprising than her being here. As I walked in, she looked up from her phone with a sly grin. "Sup, C-dawg. Long time no see." The other occupant, however, was not on the short list. Nor the long list, nor any list at all aside from my second period class roster. "Katie...?" Katie Medina's reply was muffled by her gag, what turned out to be a wadded up ball of paper towels from the dispenser I kept in my desk. Which, it turned out, was now sitting beside Abbie, who turned out to be offering to me the key to a pair of handcuffs which, it turned out, were the reason Katie wasn't moving from her desk at the front of t
I didn't bother to hide that I was reading over her shoulder. He says he'll take it. The recipient, according to the contact name at the top of the page, was Bitch, Stupid. "Taylor, huh. Does she know you have her saved like that?" She shook her head and pulled up another contact. "No, that's not Taylor, and no, she doesn't know. This is Taylor." Bitch, Boss. "If I enter them like that with the commas, they stay side by side. Convenient." "Dare I ask what you have me saved as?" She smiled, scrolling down through her contacts and finally tapping on one and holding it up to me. Free Tutoring Service. "In case anyone snoops, I didn't want them to find an entry for 'Guy Who Spanks Me Until I Come.'" Thank goodness everyone else was wrapped up in the moment and not paying attention to us. "I approve." The phone buzzed with the reply from Stupid Bitch. (Inwardly, I felt a bit guilty that I didn't know whether that referred to Abbie or Cassie. Tabitha was not someone whose estimations
Taylor and I walked inside together. If anyone thought it strange, a young, single teacher walking side by side with a dropout in a sopping wet bikini top, I didn't care. Hell, thanks to her, my colleagues would think nothing of it, and all of her classmates were about to leave for good, and had bigger things on their minds, besides. Inside, there was a buzz of excitement, jubilant noise streaming from the fieldhouse doors ahead. As we reached them, however, Taylor stopped me with a hand on my wrist. I paused."You know, it's a damn shame we hated each other before we liked each other. We might've done good, ya know.""Maybe so.""Guess you can't reboot shit in the middle of it, though.""No, you sure can't."Her head tilted to the side. "You sure you don't want your present?""You mean the present isn't a work place where none of my coworkers or superiors can find any fault with anything I do?" Not exactly what I'd had on my wish list. Honestly, I'd thought it would be that, or else
The young woman merely glared sullenly. It was as much confirmation as I'd gotten when I pressed Isa on it, but that too had been sufficient. "Makes sense. With a trained chemist on your side -- one who works in a drug analysis lab, with access to all the contaminants she'd need to replicate my mutated Serenex, one whom you thought I'd never encounter or question, so you could keep marching to your twisted Emersonian drummer. Even if the woman found a way around your control -- which I doubt you'd give her -- she'd think to go after Isa, and no way that submissive little bitch was going to rat you out. Hell, you probably even had Abbie handle that, scapegoat for life." "Almost out of the good stuff, so you move heaven and earth to get your hands on more. You make all these big plans for a grandiose gesture to impress your new boyfriend, mind-fucking the entire faculty and staff just so you and I can hook up in the classroom without anyone getting nosy." I shook my head. "Or something
Her hands balled into fists, and a primal growl issued from deep in her throat. A few hundred feet away at the other end of the parking lot, the procession of graduates began exiting the field wearing their caps and gowns, empty diploma cases in hand. "I swear to god, you are the most selfish asshole I've ever met!" Taylor roared. "If you even knew half the shit I did for your ungrateful fuckin' ass, you'd--" "You mean like drugging Randi?" I interjected calmly. Taylor froze, head snapping back warily. "Um, what do you... I mean, I never..." "You did. And if you're going to lie to me, then we have nothing to talk about. I know all of it now, so don't embarrass yourself by being coy." She planted her hands on her hips. "OK, fine! So what? So I dosed a janitor. Big fucking deal. Not like anybody got hurt by it." "That depends on one's perspective on the merits of free will." "Overrated. You of all people should know that." She shook her head irritably. "So how'd you find out?" "
I enjoyed a few more seconds of fondling, then released her. With my back to the auditoriums' occupants, it was naught but a hug as far as they were concerned. Her face was suddenly flushed, and I knew well that the intense look on her face was not the righteous indignation that once would have been there at being publicly felt up by a teacher. It was arousal. Savage, urgent arousal. "Congratulations, Ms. Hutchings. See you on stage." I walked by, and left her in my wake. A few rendezvous with fond students later, I finally bumped into the fondest of them all. She disentangled herself from a cluster of friends to dash over to me and unabashedly wrap her arms around me in a truly fierce embrace, practically a tackle. "Mr. Canon. Hi." "Hiya, Cassie." I hugged back, skipping the grope this time. She'd already arranged a sleepover tonight; I'd have plenty of opportunity to enjoy her ass then. "Can you believe we're here? I mean, gosh, this is probably the last time we'll ever be toget
She somehow followed my incoherent stutters. "You asking about that stuff? Oh, that was so long ago, I can't..." She took a drink, mulling it over. "No, you know what? I think it was that same day, with that whole essay kerfuffle. Funny, right? Yeah, the little fox waited until I was doing one of the bathrooms, snuck up behind me and..." She mimed spraying her face. "Don't you worry, though. Nothing's more important to me than making sure you and your girls can have your fun." My god, when I was poised to listen for it, hearing the way Serenex twisted speech with its rote repetition was just detectable enough to be utterly chilling. "So you knew, this whole time, that we...?" "Sure, sure. You aren't nearly as subtle as you think you are. Classroom doors feature that big gap at the bottom, ya know, and there's a little sliver between those papers you placed over your windows that you can see right in. Don't you lose any sleep over it though. If I saw you were up to anything, I kept o