Aquarium
By Slothrop
Chapter 1: Welcome to Fantasy Island
We got off the plane and were greeted by a bright sunny
day. The island was lush but not tropical. A few of the
guys argued about where we were. My guess was the South
Atlantic, but I have been known to be wrong. A plane full
of strangers, fifty guys in their late twenties climbed
down the steps from the 757 and walked towards the two
women who were holding one of those greeting signs
emblazoned with "Group D".
Amazing, I thought, how people move like a herd of sheep.
Tell them a name, once, maybe twice and a year later, when
they are in a strange place and a little disoriented, show
them the name and they follow.
As we approached the women with the signs, a murmuring
started among the group. I could clearly see they were
older women, maybe late thirties, early forties but their
bodies were outstanding. They were wearing light blue
leotards or body stockings or whatever you call them, from
neck to ankle and every asset they had was on display.
Their ponytails were blonde and their faces were good too,
but most of us scanned those details way down on the
priority list. I doubt half of the group even got to their
faces. The usual mumbled, half under-the breath comments
and noises were made, enough guts were sucked in to create
a localized tropical depression and we all felt reinforced
in our group's acumen in spying appropriate prey. I'm sure
guys did the same thing on the plains of east Africa a long
time ago, before language, civilization or cable television
was readily available, and felt the same way.
After one of the women did a roll call, it was determined
we were indeed, all here, or more precisely that someone
had shouted "Yo" when each name was called. Group D's first
achievement as a team, the utterance of fifty "yo"s now
completed, the roll call gods were obviously pleased with
our offering and we were allowed to proceed. We also
accomplished our next difficult assigned task, boarding
three open air electric jitney busses without someone
telling us how to distribute the group and sit. Group D
Rules! We were on our way.
---
Greed is good, said Gordon Gekko in the movie "Wall
Street'. Well, we all bought into that one. Greed was why
we were there. It all started a year prior to our arrival
on the island, in a session where a hundred strangers, all
male, all roughly the same age and all good but not very
famous software development professionals had met Bob
Franzone, the front man for one of the richest billionaires
in the media business, Blaine Winston. We had all been
offered $10,000 dollars for a half day's consulting on a
Sunday afternoon, paid out the end of the session. Some of
us came just to see if a consulting client would actually
pay for work that fast, it being considered a sign of the
Apocalypse by our select group. No one knew each other
well, although we all had had some contact at trade shows
and various projects in the past.
We had all signed a non-disclosure form, which had become a
ritual in the industry. We knew clients that could not have
a family picnic without having their kids sign one of
these. Some of us had signed so many we assumed the only
way to stay fully in compliance was to become a Trappist
monk and take a vow of silence. It was rumored that
violating a nondisclosure agreement was punishable by being
taken and locked in a room with the lawyer who wrote it and
being forced to listen to him read it to you. Frightening.
We also signed a standard consulting agreement, which we
actually read and seemed fine. A flunky logged us all into
a database as contract workers for Winston Enterprises,
LLC, Chartered in the Republic of Branji, which we assumed
was a captive corporate haven consisting of a formerly poor
family, six palm trees and a fax machine, with a very
palatial office in some financial capital like Zurich or
New York.
The first thirty minutes was a format we all were used to.
Mill around, drink coffee, bottled water and those pastries
you can only get at hotel or convention catered large group
meetings which look good but after the first bite have no
taste whatsoever. I always assumed they were clever
recycling of packing material with just a drop of
artificial sweetener. Then we were called in to sit on
chairs, which are specifically designed for maximum back
distress after ten minutes, to see a guy in a suit on stage
with a big screen behind him. The walking in music was the
usual "This Corporation Is Cool, Groovy, Bad, Down, or
whatever clueless outdated word you want" which this time
was some watered down Hip Hop as done by white guys from a
Pennsylvania barbershop quartet.
Bob Franzone was slick but good. He held the stage and had
us laugh at his jokes. Thanks us for coming, blah blah
blah. Then he stood back and had us watch the big screen to
learn about Winston Enterprises. We saw the usual
incredibly well done video that held your attention for
five minutes despite the soundtrack of Booker T. and the
MG's "Green Onions" being sacrificed at the altar of a
mixer board driven by a deaf techno fan trying to go
commercial by using synthesized garbage can lids and
plastic toy bats.
The video met its objective, filling time while impressing
you with the fact that the organization you were talking to
had at least enough money to make it. Information content -
a perfect zero, except that someone at Winston could hire
some very fine looking women.
Bob told us there was a set of projects for which we were
being considered.
He also told us we were not to mention what happened here
today, knowing full and well that it would be in every blog
and chat we participated in within minutes. His secret was
safe for a while though. Nobody's wireless was working. It
seemed this particular auditorium was the world's deadest
dead spot. I could see some of the Blackberry junkies start
the shakes, not having email for nearly an hour.
Next we were all handed out a two page document, which was
individually serial numbered. We had to sign for it. We
were then told to answer the questions at the end and email
our responses to the address listed. Again, do not share
the document. They told us if they got any email at those
addresses (each of us got a different one) other than from
us (and we had to use their own net based email to send),
we would be disqualified from further work. Do not share,
do not disclose, do not pass Go and pray that some spammer
doesn't ask them if they want to enlarge their sexual
experience. We each got ten thousand dollars in cash along
with a 1099 IRS form, telling the feds we had received it.
I read the document back at my condo. To the handful of
women who had graced it with their presence it was obvious
that a single guy lived here. Alone. I travel a lot and I
am basically a good person, so I have not bonded with a dog
or cat or even a girlfriend for any length of time, not
wanting to inflict the pain of my long absences on a loved
one. At least that was my story. I did not date well, like
a lot of guys in my business, but I did date. I mean it
about the dog and cat, though. They do need you to be there
more than I am.
It seemed to be written by a marketing professional, which
mean it was what I call "post-literate". Words without
communication. Grunts and gestures were better. The project
was to build the finest office complex security system for
protection against any kind of attack, disaster or plague
of locusts. That much I got, but it went on to say the same
thing in as many creative ways as you could imagine,
complete with bullet lists and illustrations to give the
appearance of detail. The questions were straightforward,
mostly my recommendations in fifty words or less for each
on things like design process, quality choke points, and so
forth. I banged out a reply and sent it in.
Within twenty four hours I was contacted, offered $20,000
for a full day of interviews and a detailed medical exam.
Assuming I passed, I was on the short list. I got to keep
the $20,000 if I just showed up and acted in good faith.
Chapter 2: Too Good to Pass Up
The interviews were typical, more oriented to a security
clearance. A lot about my personal life history. I had done
similar things before and had had clearances on previous
projects. Nothing to hide here. The medicals gave new
meaning to the word thorough. I doubted there was a part of
me that was accessible that had not been touched, including
some parts I did not realize were accessible. MRI, PET,
every scanner there was recorded my body still and in
motion.
Two parts I considered weird, or maybe not so weird. The
psychiatric stuff. One tracked my eye movement as images
were projected on my retina by a freaky technology from
military aviation display research. A lot of the images
were provocative women and men and a few children. I did
not notice any barnyard animals and I hope I'm not hiding
anything from myself. The second weird thing was asking to
place myself on several gay-straight scales, and then
aggressively questioning my choices. I came across as
either straight or really, really in denial, I'm not sure
which. Apparently I passed because they handed me $20,000
in cash along with another 1099 and I was told to report
to an office suite downtown the next day.
So far, I thought this was some kind of weird joke, but I
had just made $30,000 for doing almost nothing, and I knew
the money was not counterfeit, the bank had welcomed the
bills with open arms like long lost children. The serial
numbers on the bills weren't even on any list of stolen
currency.
Now it started to get really weird.
We were down to sixty people as an anonymous corporate
official talked to us in a small lecture hall. The office
was newly rented and the name on the door was nothing any
of us had ever heard of before.
Here was the deal:
One year minimum commitment out of the country and
incommunicado, renewable at the consent of both parties for
another year and then one more. You could cancel at any
time and would be returned at their expense within seven
days, collecting only 50% of annual contract
If you returned early you were sworn to silence at $200,000
per year for the next ten years. If you talked you lost all
rights to the cash and agreed to pay the other party fifty
percent of your declared taxable income for the next ten
years. Oh, and by the way, subject to Federal prosecution
for revealing classified information
Required to follow all reasonable requests and regulations
by project and location personnel (if you don't like it,
leave)
You agreed to monitoring, all times, everywhere
Discussion of your work, other than through established
channels, could be grounds for immediate dismissal. Typical
government security.
No access to outside information sources, hacking of
systems was cause for dismissal. This one drew some gasps
and snorts.
Limited communication with pre-specified family members
through censored and monitored channels. Monthly email,
with someone reading and filtering both sides.
Those same pre-selected family members would be financially
and medically taken care of in the event of any problem
with their current health or financial condition.
No drugs, alcohol; or tobacco unless offered by project
personnel.
Willing participation in long term product and health
lifestyle testing. We all had questions about this one.
Agreement to one year preparing for starting work, during
which time we would study material, adhere to specific
health requirements and meet individual weight and other
body targets. If we met these, we were eligible to begin.
We would get $200,000 for doing this and keeping our mouths
shut for a year. We could even work on jobs for other
clients as long as we had no commitments at the end of the
year.
The company guaranteed that we would have access to
excellent medical care, all meals, clothing and living
quarters would be provided. All medical procedures would be
under our control except in case of life threatening
emergency. All meals and supplements would be of undoctored
healthy components (A long list of what was in and not was
detailed in an appendix. Basically an organic, hormone and
chemical free, free range, ecologically sound and so many
other health food store buzzwords I just wanted to see
"Greasy Cheeseburger" on the list as a glaring exception.
Was not there, but beef was, cheese was, bread was, just
very trendy and Birkenstock crowd acceptable. Nothing would
be introduced into us unless we agreed. Failure to do this
and the company agreed to pay us $100,000,000 amount on
deposit in such and such bank, account number so and so..
No contest. We were stunned.
We were required to do specific project work no more than 3
hours a day, 5 days a week, less if instructed. No more.
More crowd noise.
We were subject to immediate dismissal if we did not adhere
to the exercise regimen, the diet regimen, the health
programs and product testing. Oh yes, we had to keep our
appearance, living and work areas neat, clean and
presentable.
Now for the payoff.
First year contract. $1,000,000 on contract end.
Second year contract. $5,000,000.
Third year contract. $20,000,000
We were trading one, three or five years of our lives for
the ability to be financially comfortable, very well off or
independently wealthy, respectively. There were also
chances at increasing our payout with bonuses.
Believe it or not, we lost five guys.
Chapter 3: Beware of Geeks Baring Midriffs
Back to that jitney bus. Group D was down to fifty guys. I
guess five did not make their weight, body fat and other
goals. All of the rest of us were at our target weights and
looked pretty pudgy. I had been 175 and was now 203. My
weight range was to stay between 200 and 225. None of us
had had a haircut. I know from my research that some of the
vitamin supplements in our required plan would help hair
growth,(but there barely anything I wasn't already taking
in one form or another. No weird voodoo roots or odd
Chinese herbs, just basic B vitamins and a few minerals)
and I had added 12 inches in a year. Some of the guys had
had to lose quite a bit of weight just to look only
overweight instead of obese, and some had started with
shoulder length hair, now somewhat longer. Some of them
smelled better than used to. We had no facial hair and we
had been told not to bulk up. They wanted our muscles just
the way they were.
It was late summer and basically shirtsleeve weather. We
drove through the village, which looked quaint but
interesting. There were little shops and stores, open air
restaurants and lots of condos. No McDonalds, No Pep Boys,
No Sears, No Circuit City. Most incredibly no Starbucks or
7-11s. Unheard of. We truly had left civilization as we
knew it. Some guy leaned over to me and said "I hope they
don't call me Number Six." Almost everyone got the joke.
Through a security fence. We pulled up to a series of
buildings about three stories tall, connected by enclosed
corridors. There were a lot of them along with some bigger
special purpose structures. It looked like once inside, you
could stay inside and get to anywhere in the complex.
The women ushered us into a medical facility. The guys were
still in awe of the contents outlined by the pink body
stockings. One of the nice things was traveling with no
luggage. All of our needs were to be taken care of by the
company. That made me very nervous, but I had suspended
disbelief. $130,000 sitting in my account back home
suspends a lot of disbelief and the promised payout was
veritable anti-gravity.
We were again stripped measured, poked, prodded and
generally annoyed in that truly annoying medical profession
way. They also made sure we weren't smuggling in anything
in any possible orifice. The people that do that always
seem to really enjoy their job way too much. We had no
poison gas capsules in our teeth, no monofilament wire in
our hair and no secret radio transmitters hidden in our
large intestine. Just when I thought they were about to
perform a precautionary frontal lobotomy, we were sent
naked into the next room and did what all naked, powerless
individuals do at the mercy of an overbearing, crushing
bureaucracy. Resist!, Actually no, we stood in a line,
trying not to bump into the guy in front of us, hoping the
guy behind was being just as concerned about it as we were.
Don't want any new best friends right now! Fifty naked fat
guys all in a row.
Our anxiety was not helped by the fact that everybody, the
med techs, the doctors, the orderlies, the orifice
examiners were all women. Good looking women. Some great
looking women. All in those really great body stockings.
With ponytails in every natural shade.
When it was my turn, I went into the room where all of the
others ahead of me in line had vanished from sight. No one
had come out. Waiting for me was a pleasant woman, about
forty to forty five who had kept in very good shape. She
was in a light purple body stocking.
"Greetings Robert. " (Actually my name) "I see you have met
your contract requirements. I will answer what I can but
let's get you into your clothes and into your room. One
thing I need you to do which constitutes a 'reasonable
request' under your contract. I need for you to use a
tested and safe commercially available cream to remove your
body hair, except on your scalp. The sensors on your suit
require it. I hope this won't be a problem." She was so
nice I did not want to disappoint her. She was also clever.
If you want a guy to do something unnatural, surround it in
technobabble and he will likely go "Of course, everybody
knows that!".
Into a shower stall, the cream took it all off, from the
top of my sideburns to the top of my feet. She handed me
some shampoo and I washed my hair, which took a lot more
work than had a year ago, and then my newly smooth body was
installed into a black, full body stocking. It was
unbelievably comfortable, sheer for the arms and legs and
solid from crotch to neck. I strapped on a thick soled pair
of sandals and the woman ran a finger over the side seam.
It sealed like a fully healed wound, not a trace. The woman
wrapped my wet hair in a towel, grabbed my hand and led me
down several corridors to a room.
Chapter 4: Meet The New Mom, Same As The Old Mom
The room was actually a large two level condo. Dining room,
kitchen, two bedrooms, one with huge bed, two bathrooms,
one of which was immense with shower, hot tub and bath,
table with mirror, chairs, sofa and every fixture I had
ever seen except a urinal. Sinks, bidets, shampoo station.
A closet of small appliances - dryers, foot saunas,
magnifying mirrors, as if the whole men's and women's
personal care section of the Sharper Image catalogue were
there, and more.
A similar closet of lotions, potions and stuff, a whole
health and beauty care segment, with only slightly less
selection than your average chain drugstore. A large and
empty walk in closet with about thirty body stockings on
hangars, sealed in plastic. All black, in about three
variations I could detect. No other clothes. A large
kitchen. A living room with a view of the Ocean. Large
screen TV and smaller ones in the other rooms.
The woman spoke to me. "I have a half an hour to get you
ready for the first briefing. Please sit and let me dry
your hair. Then we head over to the ballroom."
"That's ok, I think I can do that. You know my name. What's
yours?" I asked.
"I'll do it now, if you don't mind. I want you to look just
right for your first day. And call me Mom, or Mother.
That's what we call our jobs."
According to her, each of the Group D boys was assigned a
"Mom" to get us oriented, help us with getting set up to
work and in general telling us the rules, and basically
keeping us from getting fired over trivial stuff. She was
compensated by how well I did, especially in the bonus
system which had not yet been revealed.
I actually liked her and wanted her to do well. She would
get no grief from me. Plus, I had not seen my real Mom for
a while.
A half and hour later, we are all sitting in the ballroom,
drinking coffee and eating those damn pastries. Our new
Moms are all in the back, watching us. We are all there, in
the same body stockings, which are not flattering to guys
with spare tires. The hair was much improved; clean, combed
and blown dry with a fuller look.
Chapter 5: More Is Revealed
A woman in a blue body stocking and a kind of cross between
a lab coat and a cheerleader dress is up front. She showed
us the reason we were served coffee. A PowerPoint
presentation.
My God is there no escape? The Horror!
Surprisingly, information is actually transferred. Despite
the presentation on the screen, the woman, Dr. Michaels, is
very warm and knows how to talk to an audience.
Highlights:
-Our work starts in a week, and will be done from our rooms
between 10 am and 1pm, local time over the secured network.
All project direction will come over the net, no one here
knows anything about it except Security who will be
monitoring for us breaking secrecy rules. Don't ask her
anymore, that's all she knows about that.
-The island is a pharmaceutical/biometric subsidiary of
Winston Enterprises and is unrelated to our project other
than providing living quarters for us. They are our hosts,
somewhat reluctantly.
-Blaine Winston never misses a trick and part of our
project is getting funding by taking advantage of our
isolation. Because we are cut off from the world and have
nothing else to do, we are going to participate in three
long term studies, which are related to Dr. Michaels work.
-First one is easy. A straight product test. A new blend of
shampoos and conditioners, all of which have been in use
separately. We are to follow the regimen and appear in the
local lab/salon about twice a week for examination and more
treatment. The target is to study the effect on hair
growth, body, shine, luster and all of the typical
marketing words you see in a hair care ad.
-Second. An exercise/ diet regimen. We are one of several
groups testing weight loss/gain or maintenance based on a
specific balance of protein, carbs and fats, combined with
a regular and specific exercise program. We are not to
perform or freelance on any other workout routine or engage
in strenuous activity outside the morning sessions (7am. I
hate early mornings. But again, the payout overwhelms any
issues I can generate). The sessions were beginning in a
week.
-Third. The body stockings. We are now told that they are
laced with OREDs, organic radio emitting diodes, coupled
with wafer thin nanosensors. They read everything going on
in our bodies and we are to wear them at all times except
to get clean. Our personal greatest hits, recorded for
science. Every burp, grunt and stomach rumble, heartbeat
and sweat droplet. They also allow us access to our rooms
and parts of the facility; allowing us to operate stuff as
we are cleared for it. They are unique to us. We cannot
swap as they will not function for anyone else. Our Moms
will help us.
Dr. Michaels grinned and said. "A small apology is in
order. The suits you are wearing now are our calibration
units, which you must wear almost constantly for the first
week, so we can get a baseline on all of your readings. In
order to control the process, you cannot get the suits off
without help. So ask your Mom. After a week, we hope you
will be able to get dressed and undressed by yourselves.
See you around, boys." Every eye among Group D watched as
she walked away from us. Our Moms came up and hustled us
back to our rooms.
The coffee I had was asking to leave. I realized I had an
issue.
"Mom, this is embarrassing, but I have to go. Can you show
me how to open this suit?" I said, bordering on pleading.
"Sorry, Robert, but your suit is keyed to my touch. I have
to open the seams and then secure the sensors in place
while part of you is out of the suit. So let Mom help."
My bladder told me I did not have time to get into a
lengthy discussion, so Mom and I went into the bathroom,
where she ran her pink polished finger down my crotch, from
top to bottom. A seam opened up. She said to wait just one
minute and placed a small patch on my penis. Then I could
relieve myself. When all of the coffee was freed from the
oppression of my urinary tract, she removed the patch,
adjusted me and closed the seam. I felt like I was about
three years old. Mom smiled sweetly. I wondered about the
other process. Later I found out it was even less
dignified.
That night Mom stayed in the spare bedroom. For the first
week, all of us were accompanied everywhere by the Moms and
actually adjusted to asking for permission to use the
bathroom. It had ceased being embarrassing. Calibration,
Sensors. Data Integrity. Of course, it has to be like this!
Food was delivered to my place, and Mom and I ate together.
The meals were fine, but not all that interesting. One rule
variation we were taught. We cannot have our hair loose
from when we go to sleep until mid to late afternoon. At
nights we were given a sleep cap, a satiny thing which
actually kept your hair looking decent in the morning. In
the morning, Mom instructed us on how to either make a
decent ponytail which kept it off our neck or to pin it up
on our heads. By the end of the week, we had that down. For
science. Sensors, Signal Interference. Of Course, It Has To
Be That Way!
Mom somehow cleaned my suit when I took it off to shower
(in my shower cap) every other day. I could not access the
computer yet but Mom was slowly clearing me for the other
condo appliances, making sure I knew how to use them. With
no internet, Group D wandered the place, talked, making
sure we discussed nothing we had read or done on the
project with each other. We played cards at one table while
the Moms were at another, in case a bathroom emergency
arose. We watched TV, which was weird. More on that later.
We all were beginning to repeat our favorite stories. We
made lots of jokes about how we looked. We were a bit
embarrassed to talk about the great looking women with each
other as our Moms were right there.
We were all going crazy by the end of the week. Fifty fat
guys in body stockings and ponytails, with their Moms. All
bored as hell. We were all ready for any change in the
routine.
Chapter 6: Farmer's Daughter Joke Number 115, Mother
Variation.
The last day of the week, I was having breakfast with Mom.
She was in the same outfit as she was every morning,
nightgown, rollers and bunny slippers. I was in the sleep
cap and body stocking, as usual. She loved to gossip and
shared some with me she got from the other Moms. I knew
more about the living habits of Group D than I ever wanted
to know. One tidbit was that two of us were gone. They just
could not deal with the bathroom stuff and had been pretty
obnoxious with their Mom and other company personnel. So
their Moms had pulled the trigger.
After some banter back and forth, she said. "Robert, you
have done very well. I didn't doubt for a minute that you
would have it all figured out, but it hasn't been easy for
you. You put up with some embarrassment and took it like a
trouper. So I want you to have some fun. Every one of us
Moms has a Daughter, and she will be here to spend some
time with you. Please wash up and I'll have your new suit
keyed to you. And look nice. Fix your hair like I showed
you. Wait. Better idea. Wash it and let me help you. I'll
be in my room while she's here, catching up on some
paperwork.
Later, when the suit was off, and I was showered, shampooed
and conditioned, I was sitting naked at the table in the
master bathroom. Mom is there, fussing with a blow dryer
and then saying to hold still.
"Robert, I want to give it a little more body, so I'm going
to put just a few rollers in it, Do you mind?" Mom asked.
"I'm not crazy about it. How long will it take? I thought
you wanted me to impress your "Daughter", not look like a
drag queen." I said.
"Oh Robert! I know her and she will like it. Go with me on
this one, please?"
Damn, I really liked her and she had put up with the
bathroom routine. I had no secrets from this woman, or much
resistance.
"Oh, go ahead. Why no?. It's not like the rest of the look
is normal, anyway." I said.
So, before I knew it, a couple of rollers, more like ten or
so, filled my head and I was under a large dryer, still
naked. I was assured they were very large rollers and it
would just look full. I think I understood what my old
girlfriends used to say about the sinking feeling they got
when their hairdresser said something like that.
Why, you may wonder, did I take this assault on my manhood
without at least a complaint? Because I was bored. Because
she was very nice about how she asked. Because it was no
big deal. And mostly, because two guys from Group D could
not deal with the situation here and their Moms had had
them discharged. No chance at really big bucks. Over some
minor and temporary bathroom indignities. Stupid and
Obviously Not With The Program.
Mom didn't lie to me. It did look full. And wavy. But she
kept it subdued. I still felt silly, but I got used to it.
My new body stocking was keyed to my touch. I could open
the seams once Mom showed me where they were. I still had
to wear the thing as often as possible. My other option was
to lounge around naked and get chills. I also had a new
body stocking for sleeping. Same fabric, no arms or legs
and looser fitting instead of skin tight. No high neck,
just a regular tee shirt type opening. And a full suit for
workouts. Heavier material, reinforcements on all joints,
and it came with sneakers and leggings. We would be outside
for the workouts and it was getting too cold for the
regular suits.
Here I was, in a black body stocking from neck to toe, hair
fluffed out, teeth brushed, and my new love handles ready
for grabbing. I felt distinctly exposed. We all had
mentioned feeling exposed, especially when the women walked
by us. It was not a comfortable feeling. Then Daughter
shows up and I go from exposed to worried she'll look down
and see how happy I am to see her. Mom introduced her as
Daughter, but I could call her Sis. Mom was going into her
room to work, so why don't we get to know each other.
Sis should have been named Bambi, or something like that.
She was right out of a centerfold. I know she had on a
mini-dress but my mind filled in the missing data.
Before we get back to the action with Bambi, or rather Sis,
a few words about erections. The body stocking actually
made them look worse, if that was possible. And a lot of us
had embarrassing incidents when one of the staff walked by.
None of the women mentioned them, but you just knew we were
the source of some amusement. And there is no way to look
cool when you are frantically trying to cover your crotch.
The staff was very polite, which actually made it worse,
especially since they were so good looking. The combination
of body self consciousness and concern about controlling
our lower selves coming to attention at a passing pink or
blue body stocking made us keep to ourselves the first
week. That and having to ask Mom to go to the bathroom.
Now back to the action. Sis was just pleased to meet me.
Pleased. She mentioned it had been so long since there were
any real men on the island. Did I tell you she was pleased?
She loved my hair! Did I do it myself? I gave Mom some of
the credit. She tickled my pudgy belly. Then she noticed
the part that was not soft (not since she had entered the
room) and giggled. By this time she had maneuvered me onto
the sofa and had her dress off. She asked for help with her
bra and said her titties needed a man's touch. I obliged.
Somehow, she opened the crotch seam on my body stocking and
the next thing I knew I was in the presence of greatness.
Olympic Gold Medal Blowjob Greatness. Cue the Sports Film
Music, alert the Replay Crew. Let's see that again. John
Madden, map it out on the telestrator.
After that, I was drained, but she assumed that I had had
my fun, now it was her turn. So, panties dispatched across
the room, I began to use my tongue where it seemed to get
the best reaction. She clearly was a fan of flavored
douches. What came next was a bit different for me. As I
had just gotten worked up again, and she seemed to be ready
to receive me, she hands me a large vibrator. Use this,
Bobby, it's the way I like it. How could I say no?
So some time later, I had passed my apprentice test in
vibrator operation. Sis was pleased. So pleased she lay me
down, put a condom on me and brought me to climax using her
hands.
From the way she moved then, I got the clue we were done. I
could hear Mom call out from her room upstairs.
"Sissy, come up here for a minute when you are done talking
to Bobby." Mom said from inside her room. There was no way
she could not have known something was going on. Schools of
plankton in the Antarctic knew what we were doing.
Sissy went upstairs after retrieving her panties from the
lamp. As she walked upstairs, carrying her dress and shoes
(yes, high heels) she was busily attaching her bra, which
was a major civil engineering project. Things of that
stature needed to be supported just right or God knows what
will happen. After conferring with Mom, she came back a few
minutes later, dressed, kissed me on the cheek and said I
was a great Brother and left. I was stunned.
Mom came down next.
Chapter 7: All News Is Gossip
"Robert dear, please zip that seam. It's not considered
polite in mixed company. And you might want to fix your
hair, too. Are you going to play cards tonight with the
other boys?" Mom was either a great actress or she really
radiated unconditional love, just like a real Mom.
Of course I was going to play cards. Did I mention I was
bored? Aside from Sis, clearly the highlight of my week, I
had eaten bland food, played every kind of card game,
chess, checkers with the guys, and heard their stories
until they were tired of telling them. And snacked. And
watched TV. And snacked. We played videogames but they
seemed to have nothing but Sims. Sim City, Sim Family, Sim
Convenience Store. All about building and keeping things
running smoothly. Nights with the boys were all I had. We
could go outside as long as we stayed on the complex
grounds, but nobody lasted that long. The body stockings
were just not enough for the fifty Fahrenheit weather. So I
told Mom I was going to the game room after dinner. New
freedom. I could go out all by myself without a bathroom
helper. No sensors needed while removing bodily waste after
the first four days.
So Mom beamed at her charge going out on his own. She had a
surprise for dinner and wanted me to get cleaned up. Then
she would cover next week's activities. She also
recommended since I was just going down to see the boys
that I should change out of the body stocking (which was
very sticky inside) and use the clean one set up for
tonight. So I went upstairs to my bathroom, took off the
suit myself (that felt really empowering), remembered to
put on a shower cap and showered again. Mom had laid out
the clean body stocking which was the evening or sleep
model. I put on the sleeveless, legless shiny black garment
and noticed it was comfortable yet loose, and for the first
time my extra flab was not completely noticeable. I didn't
look slim like I used to but it did not display every roll
and jiggle. Some of the guys were starting to get little
breasts from the weight gain, which the regular suits
emphasized, like the pink, lavender and blue ones did for
the women. Apparently they would serve as a brassiere if
you needed it . Mom had also laid out a pair of black
woolen knee socks with a note- "So your legs and feet stay
warm in that drafty game room" . I had not realized how
used I had gotten to having my legs covered by hosiery.
They felt strange, and I felt chilly. Knee socks were
great, Thanks Mom.
My eyes went wide when Mom covered the coming weeks
activities, and the mysterious bonus plan. We were going to
work! But the news was somewhat submerged by the meal Mom
had prepared in my kitchen, which had not been used other
than to make coffee or to put snacks in bowls. Saut?ed
shrimp, roasted squash, rice pilaf. My taste buds had
reacted to the delivered food I had been eating by going on
strike. They returned to work with renewed enthusiasm.
At the poker game the conversation was lively. We had new
stuff to build wild theories about. You have never seen a
more satisfied and smug group of guys. All of us, sitting
in our sleep stockings as we called them. I had on a large
sleep cap to cover the style Mom had created (and Sis just
loved). At first I started to object, but I remembered the
"reasonable request" clause and decided arguing with Mom
and losing ten million dollars had better be over something
a bit more important, so she handed me the cap, labeled
"Bouffant Curl Keeper" with a Classic 1950's red lipped
Woman on the label. I put it on. I was not the only one
wearing one. Some of the guys wore the usual ponytails and
a few were in rollers covered with a net. Apparently the
Moms all worked to the same script, as did everyone's
"Sister". We had all had roughly the same experience and
decided Group D was a bunch of studs! Lots of high fives.
Studs! I tell you. Plus, we had all had the same Mom
briefing. We had sex, sort of, and then there was money.
Let me recount the news. PowerPoint, please!
Basic stuff-Monday to Friday
-Exercise every day at 7am- in the courtyard-
exercise body stocking, leggings, sneakers and
hair securely up. Over by 8am. No independent
programs
-8-10am -Personal- remove exercise body stocking,
eat in room, any caf? in the complex or at a
friends place. Shower, follow hair routine. Put
hair up again if necessary. Body stocking must
be worn, style your choice except exercise suits.
-10am-1pm log onto room computer, follow
instructions. Work.
-1pm-3pm Personal- lunch.
-3pm -rest of day- Personal time except requested
appointments. Must visit Personal Products lab once
or twice a week on their schedule, perform all
reasonable requests, Medical and body stocking
biometrics once a week, you will be notified,
again, perform all reasonable requests. Body
Image Consultant, you will be notified, again,
perform all reasonable requests. Other meetings
as necessary. Hair option- open.
-Saturday/Sunday- Personal time. Nothing required
except body hair removal must be done once during
this time.
-Iron rule- we cannot leave the grounds of the
complex.
-Iron rule - Stay in our weight parameters
-Unspoken rule-do whatever Mom says or you
are gone
-Good news. If we did well, our 'Sister' or one of
her good friends would drop by at least once a
week.
Now for the money part. Given we needed a diversion when we
were off our project work, we were all entered in a
competition. In partnership with our Mom, we had to meet
and successfully date the women on the island. There were
restrictions. No one from the complex would count towards
our 'score'. (lots of jokes on that phrase). The women
would come here to meet us since we weren't allowed to go
to them.
There were three achievement levels.
Level One- receive oral genital stimulation sufficient to
climax. First to achieve this- $1,000,000 to the lucky
Group D guy and the same amount to his Mom. Second gets
$975,000. Third $950,000. And so on to the last, You can do
the math.
Level Two- $5,000,000 for the first to have actual coitus,
no artificial devices except a condom. Same award to the
Mom. And then reduce it by $100,000 for each successive
winner.
Level Three- $20,000,000 for the first to be invited to
live off complex with her, and do so for thirty days.
$10,000,000 for the Mom. She also had to publicly ask you
to stay for at least another thirty days. There were no
descending prizes, it was winner take all.
Last catch. The woman had to stay on the island for a year
after you left for a payout at any level.
The clever ones among us noticed that nowhere did it say
you had to achieve Levels 1 or 2 to win Level 3. There was
also no payout until you returned, so it would be hard to
bribe any of the women unless they really trusted you.
A minor incentive, you would get Complex credits each week
just for playing, from a minimum guaranteed amount to
triple that. Amount determined by a committee of Moms, and
usable at most Complex shops, including the grocery. We
could make our own food! (as long at we stayed on the food
plan we were given).
Now, can you imagine the conversation over poker? Forty
eight fat guys in body stockings who had already shown they
would do something extreme for money?
Chapter 8: Half-Vast Wasteland
Lets talk about TV. You know, the box with the moving
pictures selling things with an occasional break for some
lame attempt at entertainment as filler? Well we had it, at
least thirty channels, which wasn't bad for an isolated
small private island.
After several days of occasional watching the tube, some of
the more perceptive among us had noticed something. All
women. All the time. 24x7.
Also, this was a company town, or fiefdom or island refuge
or whatever you want. Everybody worked for Winston
Enterprises. All of the channels were devoted to company
news, or news on research areas interesting to the folks in
the lab. All of the announcers were women. All were good
looking in that TV reporter or host kind of way. If a
research paper was discussed and a man wrote it, they used
his name but never showed his picture. Men existed but not
here. All other news was about Department X or Task Force
Z. A lot was social, after work activities. There were
extensive intramural sports coverage- volleyball, softball,
basketball and also a lot of gymnastics, skating, ballroom
dancing. A rare boxing match or martial arts exhibition.
All women.
There did not seem to be any children, except for some
daughters over the age of twelve or thereabouts. There were
talk shows. Like Oprah but a little more woman focused,
which I did not think possible. Soap operas, with women
talking to other women, about other women, and once in a
while talking about some man in the past, but no men in the
present or in the future. There were game shows.
There were the education channels. Sports (one for each
sport listed above), Cooking. Sewing, Decorating. Hair.
Makeup. Nails, Skin Care, Medical Advice, Entertaining.
Relationship advice (all girl on girl- those were great.)
There were work related channels, like biomed, genetics,
and so forth, but they required clearance we didn't have.
The fiction shows were all done with women, with some
clever rewrites on some classics, like Casablanca, some
original material.
There was one porn channel. We found the men on TV. I was
corrected by one of the guys who seemed to be a porn
expert, it was soft porn or erotica. Whatever. What it was
was guys, naked except their crotch was only glimpsed and
artfully made obscure by good camera work. They weren't
slim, except compared to us. Slightly chubby, smooth
hairless skin and long hair, very expertly done. They spent
their entire time on screen stimulating one or sometimes
two or three women, who were usually beautiful, wearing
expensive lingerie and clearly enjoying his work. They were
all masters with the vibrator.
The local intranet was the same, with sites covering
interest areas. We were not given access to the online chat
rooms or message boards. We found we had our own site, and
it became popular with Group D. Those of us who wanted to
send emails to their families did, which were screened.
They got replies, with all of the outside news filtered
out.
One note: After two weeks, we were on the TV. A documentary
had been put together explaining our presence, and actually
showing us walking around, from a distance. The product
testing was explained with no mention of our real work.
None of us was interviewed. It was innocuous but we took
exception to two points. One, was a cheap shot at our
weight, commenting on how we were cute and pudgy, not
explaining that we were required to be fat, by contract.
The second zoomed in on one of us with an erection, really
close up, and commented on how we obviously appreciated our
hostesses, and then tried to calm everybody that we would
be confined to the Complex.
Chapter 9: When They Begin The Routine
Group D settled in. Exercise was very light, a combination
of yoga and tai chi, with basic stretching exercises. A
month later we jogged or power walked over increasing
distances, but at first we focused on flexibility. Our
leader was one of the Moms, and she was the opposite of a
drill sergeant. We were coaxed, hugged and kissed into
submission. She was such a sweetheart, no one could bear to
disappoint her.
The hair stuff became second nature. Hell, ponytails are
not that challenging. Your average guy can figure them out
in fifty, maybe sixty tries. Your average five year old
girl does it from genetic imprint.
Several of us became breakfast regulars in a nearby caf?.
Work was work. Get sent a spec, review and improve. Send
back with questions. Review overall documents, integrate
changes. I know my work was good but there was no feedback,
just more specs.
Mom had moved out after the first week. She told me she was
proud and we were going to win the competition. She
expected the place neat and clean and me to be presentable.
Also, she would stop by after my work each day for coffee,
gossip and strategy to win the bonuses. She kissed me full
on the lips and gave my tongue a workout. She smiled,
squeezed my butt and left.
Sister showed up at random intervals but averaged once a
week. She must have known my appointments because she never
interfered. Each time was a repeat of the first. Two guys
were gone because they tried to demonstrate sex without
batteries to their Sisters, a little too enthusiastically.
I hope their bones heal correctly. We all had tried, but No
means I'll Really Hurt You If You Try That. We could ask,
just don't try force.
My Body Image Consultant, Debbie, was cute, a real girl
next door type, if you lived next to a Vegas casino. She
explained that they were establishing a baseline over the
next four weeks. We were all supposed to gain to the top of
our allowed ranges. At that point, they would take a
control point and we would begin to slim down. How fast?
She smiled and said we'll see. The diet was controlled
protein and carb intake with snacks as the variable. If we
cooked our own food, which she encouraged me to do, we had
to record the ingredients. Our kitchen counters would do
that from the id tags on the food. Our suits measured what
we took in. If we got too far off the guidelines, we would
hear from Mom, or them. Our exercise suits were mostly
sensors with some occasional suit material holding them
together and she already had terabytes of data on me trying
to raise my leg up straight in the air while I was sitting
on the ground. She looked at that, giggled and proceeded to
demonstrate just how limber she was and I wasn't. With her
blue body stockinged leg going straight up, effortlessly, I
found something very arousing. She took pity on me and sent
me on my way.
My Personal Product Technician had one of those jobs which
required a hard to find blend of skills, like a quantum
physicist who is also a prize fighter.
She had two doctorates and her duties ran from lab analysis
to hairdresser to shampoo girl. Nancy was good at all of
them. It was explained to me that I was part of the first
thorough testing on known ingredients in a new mix to test
their effect on hair growth rate and health. It was
targeted to cancer patients and others but the commercial
potential was enormous. So far they had managed to double
the average growth rate and in some cases triple it. The
test was how it stood up to everyday conditions both on men
and women. Somewhere there was a group of women who were
doing their normal everyday hair stuff and we were the
group to determine difference in response and effect. So we
would have to duplicate everyday usage. Normally, a group
of men would be hard to find who would even do it, and
those who wanted to would probably skew the results. So we
were custom made for this study. Alone, isolated, well
compensated outside the study and surrounded by women. No
men other than ourselves to worry about. Also, monitored in
a way which was hard to duplicate. I had to hand it to
whoever thought this one up, every part of our total effort
synergized with every other part.
All this while she did my hair which by now hung about
fourteen inches to the middle of my back. Just washing and
drying it was a significant undertaking. When one of the
guys excused himself from a card game saying he had to wash
his hair, no one laughed, we just all nodded in sympathy.
After samples, measurement and so forth, she washed my
hair, did some minor trimming and showed me a stylebook. I
had to pick one of about thirty styles which she would then
inflict on my hair.. She gave me a weblink which had
instructions if I wanted to do it myself. I laughed at this
one. Debbie laughed with me and said I might learn to enjoy
it. Rollers, dryer, comb out later and my hair matched the
style picture, combed back from the face and wavy, with a
flip on the ends. It was the least complicated choice. A
lot of advice on conditioning and general care. Nancy then
closed the door and kissed me. I was invited to her condo
in the complex for some 'special help and practice with
keeping the style".
Practice was good.
Chapter 10: Team Robert in the Pre Season
Mom loved my hair. I got some kidding from the rest of the
guys, the ones that had not had their salon appointment
yet. The ones that had commented that for the money at
stake they would have tested breast implants. We agreed.
Somebody said to shut up, they don't need any more ideas.
So Mom and I are at my kitchen table, and I am trying to
make weight so I can get this over and start losing it.
Typical project conundrum. At 215 I feel really fat but Mom
tells me I look fine, slow down on the snacking.
Mom, as usual, has all the info. She gives me the
background on the island, which turns out to be critical
and then informs me our first opportunity to perform will
be in three days, Friday night. There will be a mixer. Us
and the Townies.
Mom wants the big prize, the others are fine but we're
going for the twenty mil, ten for her. It turns out she is
not only smart, but really devious and calculating, like
all real mothers. We got along fine and came up with a
strategy.
First, let's recap the background. A group of brilliant
women biotech scientists meet up with some very smart women
MBAs and lawyers. They form a company called EstroTech,
small, with all women. They get out some products and just
as they are about to get fabulously rich by an IPO, they
get stopped by a patent infringement case. Blaine Winston
rides in, sees them as a gold mine and is smart enough to
leave them alone. He sets them up with some highly
classified contract work, helps them find potential
commercial product lines which utilize similar facilities
and they have a cash flow tsunami.
However they have to be so secure for the classified stuff
that they need to move to an island Winston owns. He sets
them up and lets them run it. They decide they will keep
their all women staffing policy and define a utopia,
probably over way too many cosmopolitans, where they could
have men when they wanted them but they would not distract
from day to day life. They liked men, but men could be
annoying. Plus, they were still pissed by the infringement
suit which a rival had brought just to hose them, as it had
little basis. So, men would be imported for sex when needed
and not to be allowed to muck up the operation.
When a island participant gets really craving the whole
masculine experience, she goes off island and gets it,
usually returning with a smile and vowing to never do it
again. Until the next time. Very few don't return. If she
just wants sex at home and another girl won't do, she can
hire one from the male escort service, a company regulated
monopoly, whose men are trained just for her pleasure, at
reasonable rates, payroll deduction available.
Group D presented a real challenge to the EstroTech
society. They were men, they weren't hookers and they were
on the island. They fit into no known social niche. The
EstroTech Project Scientists, seeing the rare and low cost
opportunity to do long term testing on several products had
jammed the decision through the Island Community Board,
which was chartered by EstroTech to be the local
government. Like most company towns, the decision was easy
to foresee. Acceptance, however, was not easily decided by
a committee. As if anything was ever decided by committee.
I was once told the only thing a committee every made was
another committee. I have never seen it refuted.
Contrary to popular belief among most guys, estrogen is not
a necessary ingredient to cooking. Living alone, I'd had my
fill of eating out, which is easy to do if you travel a
lot. So I already knew how to cook for myself. I turned out
to like it and I found I preferred knowing what I was
eating. So I had gone to the Complex grocery, stocked up
and was serving a dinner to Mom in my place. Chicken Cordon
Bleu. She was there to give me some last minute pointers
for the Friday mixer, but had shifted her priority when she
tasted the food. She loved it when someone else cooked
really good food and I passed her test.
"Bobby, if you can do this every time, we have a real edge.
We just need to use it properly. Many of the women are just
lousy cooks, but they all love to eat." Mom said, slowly
chewing, savoring the taste. A chef always likes to see
people enjoy the food.
As Mom left, she said. "Just remember, meet me here just
before you leave on Friday."
Chapter 11: Lions 46, Group D 0
They came, we mixed and we all struck out. Some guys tried
too hard, and Mom had warned me this was a cattle buyers
walk through, just to check the merchandise. It would be
unlikely any of the women from town was going to get horny
and go out of control. I was treating this as
reconnaissance and target identification.
There they were, about sixty or so really fine looking
women, dressed for a cocktail party. They were elegant,
sophisticated and worldly.
We were wearing skintight body stockings which showed off
just how overweight we were. Some of us had relied on the
salon for the hairstyles, thinking an effeminate hairstyle
done well was better than an effeminate hairstyle done by
an amateur. Nancy and her friends had put in extra hours to
pull it off.
When you are trying to talk to a woman who is comfortably
dressed for the hunt and you are dressed like we were, you
feel like a clay pigeon. You can see her load and just wait
for her to say "Pull!" The conversation is effectively
over. She has made her point and you are shattered remains.
Mom had helped me immensely. She wanted me calm, and
projecting a 'don't need to be here but glad to meet you
attitude.' When she came to my place just as I was ready to
go, she told me to go upstairs. Once there, I stood still,
she opened my crotch seam and showed me where "Daughter"
had learned her skills. After my initial shock I let it go.
We had money on the line. Plus she was very, very good.
Afterwards, she put me together, patted my hair and kissed
me on the cheek. "Just go and stay in character. See you
tomorrow, you're making dinner." Mom pushed me out the
door.
After Mom's ministry, it was easy to be relaxed and easier
to control my natural exuberance of the erectile
persuasion. In this case, not standing out was what you
wanted to be.
I met most of the women from EstroTech. They were curious
mostly, and they weren't stupid. The question in their
minds was what were we? Most of them knew we could not talk
about our work and being in a business based on
intellectual property and respected that. I decided to be
funny and self deprecating and get them to talk about
themselves, which used to always work. It still did.
The art of sales is knowing when to close the deal. Some of
the guys had my foolproof formula of making the
conversation about the girls, by the girls, but went for
the close. Machine gun fire, mayday,mayday, sound of plane
auguring into the ground. Crash and burn.
Mom's instincts were right. I made some friends and did not
appear needy. They did not need that, they were on this
island in part because they found that behavior annoying in
males. Women act needy too, but the islanders had cut their
having to deal with it by 50%.
Chapter 12: Be Careful What You Ask For
Another two weeks and most of us were maxed on our weight.
I was grateful when Debbie told me I could start thinning
down. Just stop all snacks. Make sure I tell the exercise
leader. I looked down and saw the suit pushing up the flab
on my chest into something that was disturbing. I could not
see my feet except for my toes. The funny thing was, in
regular casual male clothes I would not look that bad,
overweight but most of my major flaws would be disguised.
Like this, I felt really conscious of how I looked. I was
not used to showing this much of me off to everyone.
Another revelation on why women were the way they were.
After the disastrous mixer I got asked to be part of a
delegation to see Dr. Michaels. Group D would respectfully
like to see if there was some flexibility in our program.
Somehow I got elected spokesman.
"Dr. Michaels, we appreciate you seeing us and taking the
time out of your busy schedule. " I opened. Nancy had
talked me into a new hairstyle and I had just come from the
salon. Many more curls, a little teasing.
"I'm happy to, Robert. I was wondering when you would be
coming to see me. Love your hair." She was good. I couldn't
tell if she was bluffing or really had us figured out. Then
it hit me. We were under constant surveillance and I would
bet she had been briefed on exactly what we had discussed.
So I would pretend she did not know what I was going to
say, and she would pretend I didn't know she knew.
Dr, Michaels listened to our request for additional
clothing. We wanted something more than body stockings. We
understood we were in the middle of a test, but
respectfully wondered if there was something that could be
done. Plus we wanted to go outside, even if it was cold. It
had been chilly in the corridors and the suits were not
keeping us warm enough.
She told us she thought that might be our concern and
brought in Debbie and two others who were introduced as a
volunteer group. They were trying to solve the problem for
us, on their own time. Could we meet with them in two days?
Of course. End of meeting. Thank you so much.
Chapter 13: Why Thank You Madam, May I Have Another
Based on my meeting with Dr. Michaels I had the distinct
impression that asking for something to wear was part of
their plan. They had been waiting for us to ask. I decided
to keep my suspicions to myself and play it straight.
Besides I was freezing my ass off in the corridors.
Debbie and her team were assembled in a conference room. No
PowerPoint. An excellent start. Debbie went on, as earnest
as all get out. They needed to come up with something for
us that:
* Kept the experiment of the body stockings intact -
That is, adding no untested variables
* Used what they already had here. Running up new costs
was a corporate crime unless you had a budget to put
them in, or divine intervention. Which meant a
Corporate Officer Who Wanted To Take A Risk For Which
She Had No Personal Gain. Basically, you were wishing
for a unicorn, because they were more common.
* Find a valid business reason for the change in plan so
an auditor would have a check box. Auditors got very
angry without check boxes.
They told us they found a solution, all off the books on
their own time. We were being set up. How could you say no?
They told us they had surplus standard uniforms which had
already been tested with the body stockings, had been
proven to generate no interference, and contained their own
sensor and security circuits which had an established
interface with the suits. Plus to justify the change, we
would agree to test an additional new product line, which
would allow us to use the surplus uniforms.
It felt OK, the women were eager and trying to please us,
so we all fell for it. We told them it sounded great. Then
they brought it out. They showed us a uniform tunic, long
sleeve and about knee length. With pleats. The neckline was
low cut.
"These are the largest we had, and we have taken out the
waist in this one with all available material. " Debbie
told us, beaming. They were in lavender, blue and pink.
"Even with that you would need our new product to get into
them." She showed us a line of bodyshapers, one she called
an 'All-In-One' which ran from the upper thighs to the top
of the chest with shoulder straps, the other a pair of toe
to waist tights. It was made from a variation on the
material used in the body stockings. "They go on and can
variably tighten and reduce their shape under the control
of the tunic system. And they were developed and tested
with the body stocking themselves so they are already
approved. With these, you can easily fit into the tunics. "
She smiled at me and continued "When you get to your new
target weights, you will probably not need them very much."
What could we say? We seemed to have limited options. We
questioned Debbie. Were there any male clothes which were
available? Debbie looked like she was going to cry, we felt
awful. She told us that Estrotech had only gotten funded
for research that was oriented towards women and some other
firm was working on pants and things like that, she
guessed. But due to security, she really did not know. This
was the best her team could come up with. We all did our
best to tell them how much we appreciated their work, it
was fine, we were just asking.
Next, Debbie explained the bottom line. Corporations do
things which benefit corporations. They could fund shipping
additional tunics if we became part of the BodyShape
project. A two phase process. Totally voluntary if we
signed up, but we were committed to finish if we did. Dr.
Michaels was willing to go to bat and determine a male test
group was needed to help us out.
One of the guys looked at me and laughed. He said "Bobby,
you're gonna have some 'splaining to do."
'I'll just have to tell them it was the best choice which
matched our hair, Ethel." I said in my near flawless Lucy
Ricardo imitation. At least I think it's near flawless.
This would be interesting.
We went and explained it to the group, armed with the
contract riders which covered testing of the bodyshapers.
Debbie a