Barford File 2 - The Betancourts - Chapters I And II free porn video

I. Dirty Deeds A heavily-weathered and worn Station Wagon settled into a parking space next to the Golden Homes Retirement Apartments complex in the city of Bullchester. The noisy, old-school engines of the seemingly ages-old vehicle then went silent. Arnold Betancourt was the first to emerge from the vehicle, his seemingly perfect brown hair nothing more than a wig that hid a thinning layer of his own natural mass of graying follicles. The well-groomed brown mustache beneath his nose was contrarily real, although the color had to be maintained through the use of grooming supplements. At the same time, Leslie Betancourt came out of the passenger side, always dressed in what she perceived to be "retro fashion", but which was actually an ugly throwback to what was considered trendy in the 1970s. Matching 70s-style curls gave her full head of chemically-treated blond hair the appearance of a Farrah Fawcett coif. Initially getting out of the car, they had somewhat impatient expressions, but when Arnold walked over to his wife to join her as she opened up the rear passenger door, their faces wore more pleasant visages. Slowly coming out of the car, clicking out a folding steel walker, was 92 year old Glenda Betancourt, Leslie's curly gray-haired mother. A pink dress with floral designs was on her own elderly frame, the arms of which were skinny, and the torso of which was slightly pear-shaped. Perpetually narrowed eyes gazed curiously at Leslie as she emerged, pushing herself to her feet with the grips of her four-footed walker. "Will you be very long, dear?" Glenda asked, her mouth hanging open as she slowly turned to face Leslie. "I told you, mom. Just a couple of days," Leslie replied, flashing a smile she hoped would be convincing as a second pair of legs slid out of the car once Glenda was upright, and slowly stepping away from the vehicle with the aid of her walker. It was then that Harvey Betancourt planted a steel walking cane upon the ground, and then used it in the attempt to lift his frail, skinny body out of the car. A sky blue jacket hung loosely upon his 88 year old frame, partially covering a plaid shirt, which he wore above a pair of peach-colored pants. On his head was a gray baseball cap with a fisherman's logo embroidered upon it. "You sure we can't come with you?" Harvey asked. "Doubt Glennie an' I'd be much trouble." "It wouldn't make sense, dad," Arnold rationalized as he helped his father to his feet. "We'll only be out for a couple of days. Then we'll come back, and pick you right up. I promise!" Leslie then looked to a third occupant of the rear passenger area, gesturing to this young person. "Come on out here and say goodbye to your grandma and grandpa." "Aww, come on," a young male voice whined. "Do I have to??" "TOBIAS! You come out here THIS INSTANT, young man!" Leslie suddenly scolded. With a loud sigh, a freckle-faced young man with a head of short, curly red hair, a brown and white T-shirt and a pair of khaki shorts came out of the opposite rear passenger door, and then slammed it behind him, clearly and visibly perturbed. He then stalked over to where his frowning mother and father stood. Leslie quickly grabbed his upper arms in a tight grip, and began speaking discreetly. "Hey...behave yourself!" she quietly remarked. "Just put on a nice face for a few minutes, will you?" Another loud sigh emerged from his mouth. "This is it, right?" he then irritably asked. "Shhhh!" was the reply he earned from Leslie as they both returned their attentions to Glenda and Harvey, who was already stepping over to Tobias. The fake smile Arnold's impatient son flashed earned him an affectionate cheek pinch from a smiling Harvey. "You have a good time out there, sluggo! Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" Although he completely hated when his grandfather did the cheek-pinch thing, he did his best to mask the irritation he felt. "I'll try, grampa." Glenda pulled out a $5 from her purse and handed it to Tobias, a gesture which obviously made it easier for him to look pleasant. "Just so you can buy something nice. Don't spend it on videogames!" "There aren't any arcades around anymore, grandma," Tobias responded. "Oh. Well...just as well for you." She gave him a shaky pat on his head, flashing a yellow-toothed smile. "Have a good time, dearie. Be nice to your mom and dad." The fake smile was starting to shake as he nodded. "I will." Arnold, who had been removing luggage from the back of the car, then walked back over to his father and gestured to the front doors of the "hotel". "Well? Go on and check in! I hear there's a good movie on tonight. I looked. It's one of your favorites!" Harvey looked a little more curious now. "Porn?" "Noooo, no," Arnold couldn't help but chuckle at this. "It's...it's that one with the jury. The 'Angry Men' movie." Harvey lit up hearing this. "Oh! Ohh...that's a good one! Ol' Hank Fonda. Can't go wrong with him!" Arnold discreetly signaled for his wife and his son to return to the car. "We have to go now, dad. They'll take good care of you here. You may not even want to leave!" As Harvey began to wave weakly, smiling as best he could despite his frailties, Glenda began walking over to the large sign that was beside the entrance doors to the building. No one noticed her begin to approach it. By the time she was in a position to read the sign, three car doors had slammed shut, and both Leslie and Tobias waved to them wearing fake smiles as the car came alive once again, roaring to life, after which it quickly cleared the parking lot and made its way out onto the streets beside the building. It was then that Glenda read the words that identified the building. Her eyes widened with shock as Harvey turned to his wife. "What's th' matter, Glennie?" Harvey cluelessly asked. As she approached her husband, she found it difficult to hold back the tears. Glenda had repeatedly told both Leslie and Arnold that she refused to spend her remaining years at any kind of a retirement home, and she even heard the both of them promise that they would do no such thing. "They...they're not...coming back..." Glenda weakly muttered through her sobs, as Harvey's hand settled on her shoulder in his concern. "...they're not coming back! They're leaving us here..." It took a moment for Harvey to comprehend this. On those occasions when his son and his wife assured Glenda that she would not abandon them to a retirement home, Harvey was in the room, overhearing the assurance. His response was a long, quiet moment of disbelief as Glenda continued to mumble the same words over and over again, in her own disbelief. "...they're not coming back..." She sobbed into his shoulder as he hugged her. "...they're not coming back..." "Shhh...don't worry, Glennie doll," Harvey quietly assured as he gently patted his wife's head with a shaking hand. "We...we'll get through this. Just like old times. You on the homefront, me out there doin' my part for ol' Uncle Sam." "It's not gonna be like that, though!" Fear was in Glenda's tear-filled eyes as she looked into those of her more optimistic husband. "They'll give us drugs. We'll be zombies, just like everyone else that they put in places like this!" Harvey tried rubbing his hand, gently, over his elderly wife's cheek. "We'll storm that bridge when we come to it. Just like the boys did at the Grave bridge in '44 when we first arrived in Holland. For now, all we can do is...well, check in." "I won't let them give me drugs!" Glenda warily vowed, wiping away her tears. "I'll fight them! I'll be a real pain in the keester!" Harvey nodded, smiling. "And I'll back you up, as I always do, soldier. Now come on. I'll get the bags. You go on in. I'll be right behind you." Although her heart sank at the thought of setting so much as a foot in a place she feared she would never leave, Glenda grasped the metal handle of the reinforced glass door and pulled it open. Looking around the lobby area, she expected to see people as old as she was sitting around and wandering listlessly, lost to their respective, drug-induced dementias, as she had always perceived retirement homes to be... ...although in truth, Glenda had confused the concept of a retirement home with the inner workings of a nursing home. She believed them both to be similar operations, hence her self-crafted illusions of nursing home workers arranging ridiculous recreational activities, bedtime curfews, and the dreaded medications she had already vowed to fight. But Glenda had been in apartment buildings before, and this one was no exception. A single, uniformed worker was at a desk in the lobby, however, and the young woman was engrossed in a novel when the building's newest resident walked in. When she finally spotted the elderly woman with the gray perm, she was mildly startled, but then smiled pleasantly, immediately dropping the book and rising to her feet from the four-wheeled chair she had been sitting on. "Good afternoon! Did you just get here?" Glenda gasped as she spun to face the smiling worker with the Asian eyes and the short, honey-colored hair. Calming herself, she slowly nodded. "Yes." The Asian girl nodded back. "Can you give me your last name, please?" "Oh, uh...Glenda Hemingforth," The nervous-looking woman answered, playing along with procedure for the moment. "I'm here with my husband Harvey, who's outside getting our bags." This surprised the uniformed girl. "Why didn't you say so? I could have helped you with your bags." She hurried out from behind the desk and dashed over to the entrance, seeing an old man in a worn baseball cap carry a piece of luggage, very slowly, to the front door. The girl grabbed what looked like a black walkie-talkie from behind her, which was clipped to the waistline of her pants. Pressing a button, a couple of beeps sounded. "Barry, new tenants are here. Come out and get the bags." The girl was quick to intercept and grab the bags, behaving very pleasantly and very professionally as they went into the lobby. Glenda found it refreshing to deal with someone that young who was so visibly helpful to the point where she managed to get a smile out of Harvey. Unlike the plastic smiles she got from Leslie, the Asian girl's pleasant expressions looked genuine. Once they were both in the lobby, a well- built young man quickly stepped over to get the bags, while the Asian girl led the elderly couple over to the front desk, smiling the entire way. "Okay...now let?s see where you are in the book. My name is Geri, by the way. Welcome to Golden Homes!" Geri chirped as she stepped in front of the thick book behind the counter. "Hemingforth, right? Let?s see...Hemingforth, Hemingforth, Hemingforth...ahh, there it is. Called in last night. Glenda and Harvey Hemingforth. Called in by a...Leslie Betancourt?" Glenda nodded. "My daughter." Harvey turned his head to Glenda cluelessly. "They arranged this??" Geri shrugged. "It?s not outside of our policies, Mr. Hemingforth. The contingency is in place for the sake of people who are of retirement age who might be suffering from dementia of some kind. The next-of-kin can make the arrangements on behalf of the prospective tenants." Harvey shook his head, his anger rising. "But we?re not...we?re not demented!" Glenda gently placed a hand on her husband?s shoulder. "I?m sure Arnold and Leslie knew that, dear. They probably told these people that to get them to admit us." "It was a call-in," Geri reminded. Her tone then became a little more discreet. "But...there really isn?t a need for either of you to get very upset over this. Give this place a week. See what it?s done to some of the other tenants here. I have a feeling this place is...gonna grow on you." Glenda, however, was still adamant on her preconceived illusions. "I don?t plan on staying here that long, Geri...and I won?t let you poison me with your zombie drugs!" The Asian girl frowned in her confusion. "Zombie drugs?" "Yes, that?s right. Keep up your act," Glenda huffed. "I won?t be fooled!" "Well...we have to see to your health, Mrs. Hemingforth..." "I?d sooner rot here!" Glenda angrily interjected. "Keep your drugs! I?ll take no pills and I won?t let you stick me with any needles!" Geri, knowing the crafty secrets about this particular retirement home, had to try and suppress her amusement over these suspicions from the new tenant, but it was visibly difficult for her to do so. She decided, for the moment, to play along. She feigned defeat. "Okay, Mrs. Hemingforth. You win. We won?t give you any drugs. If there?s one thing our business is known for, it?s to honor the interests of our tenants," Geri made it look like she was making notes in the book, when she was actually, discreetly, scribbling nonsensically on a blank green post-it sheet. Frowning, Glenda turned to Harvey. "They?re gonna force it on us. I?m not fooled!" "So...where are our rooms?" Harvey asked. "Barry should be on his way down," Geri answered. "He?ll take you up and give you your room keys. He should be finished storing your things in your dresser by now." "He packed away our things?" Harvey looked surprised. "That was awfully nice of him. They really work for their tips, here, eh, Glennie?" A few minutes later, the well-built man who had acquired their luggage from the lobby returned, stepping out of the elevator. Once his eyes spotted the elderly couple, a pleasant smile was on his face. "Ready to see your new home?" Harvey nodded, while Glenda turned her head towards Geri with a defiant sneer. "My husband?s a war veteran and I was a USO hostess. I hope you?re all ready for a fight!" "Don?t worry, Mrs. Hemingforth." Geri smiled amusedly. "You?ll win." The couple then followed Barry into the empty elevator when the doors slid open to accept them. He pressed the number 5, after which the doors quietly slid shut. Once the elevator began traveling, to the tune of After The Lovin? by Engelbert Humperdinck, Barry broke the silence. "Sir, I couldn?t help but overhear what your wife said. You?re an army veteran?" Harvey nodded. "82nd Airborne division under General James Gavin. I was with the boys when we dropped in Holland to capture a bridge called Grave in Nijmegen. We took it completely intact, but...well, there?s a reason I walk with a cane. Got a Purple Heart and a Silver Star for it." "Oh, wow...you?re a Market Garden veteran?? That?s amazing!" Barry looked genuinely surprised. "My granddad fought in the Battle of Remagen." "Oh, really?" It was now Harvey?s turn to look surprised. "If he?s still around, I?m sure he and I could swap a few war stories sometime. If he came by, that is." "Well...he actually chose to move out to Germany in his own retirement. His home out there is a hop, skip, and a jump away from the bridge, too," Barry explained. "Still...he comes to visit every now and then. No promises, but I?ll see if I can hook you both up." Glenda smiled as the two men spoke. As a former USO hostess, it was nice to know that there would be someone in this place who could make her husband happy. Given her own experiences with the USO, she knew she could contribute every now and then to their war memories, too. Even if her experiences during the Second World War were restricted largely to army-related recreational activities on the homefront. When the elevator doors once again slid open on the 5th floor, an unexpected sight widened the eyes of both of the new tenants considerably. Standing before them was a large woman with long, curly snow white hair, a sheer white blouse, and a tight-fitting, short black skirt. Sitting upon the bridge of her nose were a pair of black-rimmed glasses. Her full, cherry red-painted lips formed a smile when she saw the occupants of the elevator. "Hi, Barry," the woman purred, in an alluringly husky voice. "New tenants?" "Good afternoon, Rosa. Yes. I?d like you to meet Glenda and Harvey Hemingforth," Barry gestured to the mystified couple as they continued to stare at her. "Behave yourself around them. This man?s a war hero, and his wife was with the USO." "Don?t worry, Barry dear," Rosa responded. "We?re always happy to show our respect to the boys, no matter what their backgrounds are," As the trio stepped out of the elevator, Rosa rubbed a hand, fetchingly, over Harvey?s shoulder. "Enjoy your stay, sweetie," She purred. This earned her hand a light slap from the more feisty-looking Glenda. "Keep your hands to yourself, hussy!" She snapped. Rosa giggled at this. "Don?t knock it ?till you tried it, sister," She then winked, fetchingly, at Glenda, who smirked in response before the visually sexual creature disappeared behind the closing doors of the elevator. Glenda then turned to Barry. "What in the name of Dwight D. Eisenhower was that?? A nurse, or something? What street corner did you pull her off of?" "Gotta admit, that was quite a dish, Glennie!" Harvey chimed, obviously stimulated by what he had seen. "Oh, go back to your barracks," Glenda irritably countered. Barry chuckled amusedly. "That was one of our tenants, Mrs. Hemingforth. I should apologize. Rosa?s become a real cougar since her arrival." "Bu...how is she a tenant??" Glenda asked, in disbelief. "I thought this was a retirement home! That means people of retirement age, yes?" "Oh, wait...did I say ?tenant?? I meant visitor." Barry had to correct himself, reminding himself that there was an illusion to maintain. "So many people here, I get confused...but everyone does tend to get a little frisky around here. Hard to keep track of who?s who." "Well, this did look like a big place from the outside," Harvey responded as the trio made their way down the hall. "I?m sure your wife was just as hot back in your day, wasn?t she, Harvey?" Barry quickly added in his effort to suppress Glenda?s suspicions. "Oh, yeah. She had guys all over her when we were young," Harvey truthfully replied, remembering the good moments of his courting misadventures. "Glennie had real nice gams, too." As much as Glenda initially wanted to scold her husband for getting a little frisky with his words, she instead smiled, practically blushing over the flattery. She was always a sucker for being considered sexy in her younger years. A part of her even envied ladies like Rosa, despite her initially snippy reactions to her appearance and her behavior, for being able to look so...provocative. Societal norms in her time only went so far in this regard. "Well, what can I say?" Glenda amusedly observed in response to her husband?s flattery. "We were always happy to show our respect to the boys in uniform, no matter what their backgrounds," She added, trying to make herself sound flirtatious. The trio shared a merry laugh as Barry opened the door of the room they were assigned. He then handed each of them their keycards. "Door?s easy enough to open and close. Just slide the card in, then pull it out. Go ahead in and relax a while. Take a nice, warm bath. If you need anything, the front desk number is right on the back of the door here," Barry indicated the location of the phone number as he explained. "Barry, if I had money in my pocket, I really would give ya a big tip," Harvey remarked as he shook the younger man?s hand. "Will ya take an IOU?" Barry laughed pleasantly. "You don?t owe me anything, Mr. Hemingforth. After all..." He then gave the elderly man a salute. "...you?re a war hero." Smiling, Harvey returned the salute. "As you were, soldier," he amusedly added. "What was your rank, by the way?" Barry curiously asked. "They called him ?Sarge? for a reason," Glenda replied. "Sergeant, eh? Hope you don?t mind if I start calling you that, sir," Barry mused. Harvey just shrugged, still smiling. "Whatever floats your boat." Barry saluted him again as he headed for the door. "Gotta head back downstairs. Enjoy your stay, though! I know how you might feel, Mrs. Hemingforth, but...give it a week! You may never want to leave," After giving her a mysterious wink, Barry disappeared behind the door, which gently closed behind him. "Well!" Harvey observed, after a moment of silence. "Better than I expected so far." Glenda slowly nodded as she took a look around the living space. "And the room is certainly nice enough. Bigger than I thought it would be." "Yeah...you?d think Arn an? Les were doin? us a favor!" Harvey amusedly observed, chuckling a bit. "They probably gave instructions to have us drugged up," Glenda noted. "It?s strange, though. The place doesn?t feel...or even smell...like a retirement home. No one in the lobby, no one wandering through the halls ranting and raving, no nurses wandering through..." "Are you still on that little hiccup, Glennie doll?" Harvey shook his head. "I told you so many times. You won?t see any nurses at a place like this. That?s a nursing home. They don?t drug you up in places like this one here." "I saw that Twilight Zone episode!" Glenda snapped back. "All those old folks cooped up in one place. You won?t see me playing ?Kick The Can? with a bunch of raving ol? fools!" "Says the woman raving over a silly TV show!" Harvey returned as he headed towards the apartment?s bathroom door. "I?m gonna take that young man?s advice. You should, too, when I?m done." "What, about getting frisky with that blond sexpot from the elevator?" Glenda mused. "No, silly!" Harvey shot back. "About taking a bath!" * * * Relief washed over the lightly-tanned body of Leslie Betancourt as she luxuriated in the warm water of the bathtub, about an hour after they had gotten back home to their residence in the Barford suburb of the city of Bullchester. But this was no attempt to wash away any visible soil on her body. This was meant to more symbolically wash away stress. Leslie shared the sentiments of both her father and her only son in that caring for Glenda Hemingforth...which was Leslie?s original family name...and Harvey Betancourt was a burden than had worn out their tolerance levels over time, and in this a matter of mere months since they had moved in. The initial reason for the ?temporary? boarding was to have them vacate the apartment house they had been living in because Glenda was a bit of a packrat by nature. She stubbornly refused to give up on a lot of the things she had kept since her youth, including her clothes. It had gotten to the point where the apartment became relatively unliveable due to the horrible smell that it had developed from having so many relics gathering dust over time. Arnold came up with the idea that the Betancourts...being naturally younger, and thus more capable...would come down one weekend and clean the apartment as much as they possibly could. Even Tobias would assist despite his vehement disgust over the idea. But the Betancourts kept putting it off, to the point where the landlord of that apartment was forced to declare the entire apartment a contaminated area, thus removing the necessity to clean it. The only handicap of this decision was that a hefty fine was involved, which financially set the Betancourts back a bit. But just about everything Glenda and Harvey had gathered up into the apartment space would be forever gone past the necessary fumigation procedure. As Glenda and Harvey were so old now, Leslie figured that they would not, ironically, remember having left anything of importance, past the clothes they packed with them in the move to the Betancourt house, behind. During the months in which they occupied the house?s basement, tending to their needs was something the Betancourts considered both time- consuming and inconvenient, especially with the occasional calls for emergency situations that turned out to be simple, but mostly menial favors. But that was over now. Glenda and Harvey were finally gone, and it didn?t bother Leslie in the least that deception was necessary to permanently banish them. Exhaling a long breath, as her psychiatrist recommended, was a necessary step in easing her personal stress. That, and the Yoga she kept up with on a weekly basis. The serenity of the moment was suddenly interrupted by the bathroom door opening up without so much as a knock, which forced a gasp out of the partially submerged woman?s mouth as her attention rudely diverted to her husband, who had a habit of barging into the bathroom without first knocking, or even saying anything. "Honey...you know I love you," Leslie began, irritably, "but I don?t suppose you could fucking knock before you..." "We need to talk about what we?re gonna do about that car," Arnold interjected. "I don?t know if we can trade a vehicle that old in for a new one." Leslie shrugged, not at all embarrassed over the fact that her nude body was sitting in clear water, with her husband standing right over her. "Well...it was your daddy?s car. I don?t like it very much either, but at least it runs." "But it smells," Arnold shot back. "I?d be happy to get rid of it in favor of something...a little more present-day. I swear, every time I?m in that thing, I feel like...some kind of Amish freak or something." "Well? Do you have enough money saved in your piggy bank for a new one?" Leslie asked. Arnold shook his head. "I?d have to take out a bank loan or something, and I don?t like having to pay back a loan over time." Great. Leslie griped to herself. Another ?penny-pinch? excuse. "Well, I certainly can?t spare any funds for such a thing," Leslie reminded. "and I?m not about to become a straphanger. That would be...demeaning. Especially with all the freaks that are on those buses these days." "Yeah, I know what you mean," Her husband noted. "Seems there?s more fairies on the streets these days than there are real men." Leslie now flashed a lascivious smile. "Good thing I have a real man with me." This compelled Arnold to bring his head down to meet the puckered lips of his wife, and he lowered to a knee to linger the kiss. One of his hands plunged into the water to grope at a bare, submerged breast, and he heard Leslie moan at the firm squeeze of her mammary. When he finally pulled away, they shared a mutual smile over their shared affection. "Did Toby vacuum the rug?" She then asked. Arnold shook his head. "I don?t think so. I think he went to Alex?s house to play that...card game thing." "Well..." Leslie angled her head to look out the nearby window, looking through to the clear skies above. "...he?d better be back by six so he can get started, or he can kiss his allowance goodbye." * * * "See you next week, Tobes!" Tobias just waved back before heading towards the bus stop near Alex Lattimer?s house. Alex...a straight-A student who was the same age as Tobias...was his gaming buddy in their weekly rounds of a Loris International-licensed collectible card game called Behemongers. The game was based around a battle between two ?beast-wranglers?(the players) for control over not only the skyscraper-high beasts they use in battle, but the humans in the earth-like world they live in. Magic elements allowed players to transform innocent bystanders into beasts to replace ones that are killed in combat. Today, Tobias walked away the victor, and the prize was South Dakota, which would be subject to a ?meta-mind ray? placing all the humans in the captured state under his complete control. The game, unbeknownst to Toby, went longer than usual, and Alex?s father...Burt Lattimer, an auto mechanic who worked at a downtown Bullchester auto shop...had to step in to remind the two how late it was. By contrast, Alex?s mother Helen didn?t seem to mind them going late with anything that kept ?hear dear little Alex? happy. It wasn?t until Toby saw the bus begin to pull into the stop that he suddenly realized the fact that he just lost out on his allowance, as he was supposed to do vacuuming at home by Sunday, before 6, during the weekend. It was something he always hated having to do. But it was because Alex had won two weeks in a row that Toby had to keep the game going past the time he needed to get back home and do his weekly chore before what was effectively his curfew. Stepping onto the bus, he took a mid-car window seat, and began figuring out what to say to mitigate the imminent blow he was going to receive from his parents over coming home late. Two stops into his journey, Toby?s eyes couldn?t help but lock onto a black-haired woman that practically bounced up the steps to pay her fare, and then stepped over to take an empty aisle seat in the opposite row, which gave Toby a good view of her from where he was sitting. He had never seen someone so vividly shapely this close, and in real time. And in something other than a nudie magazine. The woman?s figure was a perfect hourglass, with large breasts and a huge butt to match. The hair went through a ring at the top of her head, spilling the rest of her raven black hair down behind her. The silver, one-piece dress hugged her curves like a glove, the rib of the dress covering the bottom half of her large breasts, and created a miniskirt effect at her posterior. She definitely looked like a porn star. Not that this bothered Toby in any way. His eyes remained on the woman for the first few minutes of the bus?s trip...but then, the woman?s peripheral vision caught sight of Toby staring, forcing Toby to bashfully look away. Glancing back at this woman a couple of seconds later, she had drawn out a compact and was seeing to apparent flaws in the makeup on her face. Toby?s eyes returned to her, staring once again at her from his problematic angle. He debated moving to a recently-vacated seat at the front, which was reserved...when needed...for the handicapped or the elderly. Once again, the woman?s eyes turned to Toby, whose own eyes turned away in his pathetic attempt to look like he was minding his own business. Through Toby?s peripheral vision, he saw the woman rise up and step towards the seats in the rear of the bus. Fortunately, Toby knew that the back was mostly empty. So as not to betray suspicion, Toby stayed where he was. The bus was still a few stops away from where he needed to get off, so there was time to get another eyeful of the shapely creature that had effectively become his dream woman. He rose up, and stepped towards the back... ...but the woman, who was now smirking, had her eyes on him when Toby?s scanning gaze found her once again. He blushed deeply. The woman?s response was to lift an index finger, and then point at him. She then crooked the finger and gestured for him to come closer. Hesitantly, Toby approached, blushing even deeper. His heart raced as he closed the distance between them. Once he was close enough, she grabbed his arm and roughly placed him in the empty seat next to her. She then leaned her curves against him and brought her painted lips to his ear. "Don?t scream," she intoned, rubbing at his chest. "Or you?ll never see me again." Her fingers then found a nipple on Toby?s chest. Her thumb and her index finger rubbed around the shirt fabric covering the nipple. The woman kept speaking, gently, but alluringly, into his ear. "It?s rude to stare." At that, the woman?s fingers squeezed painfully at the nipple, causing Tobias to sharply suck in an inward breath, his eyes boggling. "I expect you to show a little more respect to me the next time you see me, boy...and you will see me again," The shapely woman purred. "Next time you?re interested in a woman like me, you sit next to that woman, and act a little less like an ape." "Oww...okay...okay...!" Tobias winced at the stinging pain being transmitted from his pinched nipple. "Say ?yes, Miss Olivia?," the woman whispered into his ear, keeping her grip on his nipple tight. "Yyy-yesss, Miss Olivia," Tobias managed to repeat. "Good boy." She finally let go, and right on time, as the bus was pulling into his stop. He rose up as she grinned lasciviously at him, and hurried out of the back door of the bus, taking one last look at the ?dream woman? as she began to giggle with wicked amusement. Once he was out of the bus, Tobias winced at the soreness coming from his chest. Although it was clear to the young man that he had seen an impossibly beautiful woman, she was older, and thus more or less out of his league. At the same time, however, he also dwelled on how impossibly beautiful ?Miss Olivia? looked. He couldn?t help that. Tobias hoped that his mother would be napping in front of the flatscreen TV as he went through the adjoining Dining Room to reach the staircase leading up to the second floor, where his room was located. On the off- chance that she was awake, Tobias hurried through the Dining Room, and past the opening to the living room. The bad news was that his mother was there, watching the news. The worse news was that she was not napping at all. This last bit was evidenced by Leslie yelling her son?s name, which effectively stopped the young man in his tracks. He didn?t turn around. He just waited as Leslie?s footsteps came up behind him. "Do you know what time it is?" His mother asked. "Yes, Mom," Tobias answered, after heaving out an irritated sigh. "Haven?t you forgotten to do something you were supposed to do?" Leslie next inquired. "C?moooon, maaaa." Tobias closed his eyes in frustration. "Can?t you cut me a..." "TURN AROUND AND LOOK AT ME WHEN I?M TALKING TO YOU!!" Leslie yelled. Another loud, irritated sigh preceded a frowning Tobias complying with his mother?s command. "Ma, look...I don?t understand why it has to be 6pm. Not even the end of the day. And that...that damn vacuum cleaner keeps getting clogged up! Dad even told me it needs to be fixed!" "We did get it fixed," Leslie countered. "It works just fine, I used it just yesterday." "Well...you never told me!" Tobias whined. "Enough excuses!" Leslie angrily barked. "As for my wanting you to do it by 6, that?s the time I watch the news! I want to be able to watch my news hour in a clean living room." "But...the carpet looks fine!" Tobias gestured to the soft, burgundy- covered floor. "YOUR FATHER AND I EXPECT YOU TO DO YOUR CHORES, YOUNG MAN!" Leslie hollered back. "Don?t go begging me for any allowance this week. You won?t get it!" Tobias chose this moment to give her mother...the face. It was a mournful face. A pitiable face. A face that always seemed to get results every time he used it in his effort to mitigate punishments related to his weekly allowance. The face looked like he was on the verge of crying. It looked very convincing. "Don?t...don?t give me that face," Leslie softly remarked, after a long moment. "C?mon, I said...I said don?t give me...!" As it had with the past couple of confrontations, this was the moment that broke his mother?s resolve. "OKAY, okay...half your allowance. No more than that!" Leslie asserted. Tobias flashed a grin. "Thanks, Mom." He then stepped in to give her a hug. "You?re the best." Then there was phase two of his plan. After school the next day, he would come home and vacuum the rug about an hour before Leslie got home from work, and Leslie would feel compelled to give him the other half of his allowance. The plan always worked, too. II: Out of the Bathtub... A cheesy romance novel was in Glenda?s hands around the time her husband finally emerged from the bathroom. She was clad only in her flowery bathrobe, as she just wanted to get into the bathroom after Harvey was done and get the tub ready for her own bit of luxuriating. Harvey, however, came out completely naked, and dripping wet. Practically soaked, from head to toe. It was as if he had completely forgotten how to use a towel. "Wha...Haaaarveeeey!" She pointed to the rug under him, which was now wet from the excess water running down from his body. "Don?t you know how to use a towel anymore??" Harvey, however, didn?t seem to want to acknowledge anything. Not even his own wife?s voice. Was something wrong, she thought? "No...no...just...I?m...s-sleep...yes...I need...mmmmh..." was all that emerged from Harvey?s mouth before he slid his soaking wet body onto his bed and rolled into a position where he quickly fell asleep. A look of fear was now on Glenda?s face. Was her husband beginning to lose his mind to senility so soon? And how could something as benign as a bath set such a condition off? No. She thought to herself. It has to be something else. Glenda first went to get a closer look at her sleeping husband. He didn?t look any different than he always had at his age. She tried shaking him back awake so she could question him, but he seemed to be too deeply lost in slumber. He was, however, breathing steadily, so there was no concern about his health. Now, her suspicions regarding the retirement home itself were officially raised, and they could be confirmed if Harvey woke up at some point, feeling conditions that were part of the onset of senility, or some other condition that would have had him acting in a manner similar to a zombie. Time for me to show these sneaky bastards that it?s a mistake to try and fool THIS ornery ol? USO babe! She silently resolved as she stepped towards the bathroom. She gasped a bit, feeling the wet carpet beneath her where Harvey came out, and then she went inside. The bathroom climate felt very humid as Glenda entered the lavatory, the floor of which was a veritable puddle. Slowly bending down, she was able to get the tub?s faucet running warm water with careful manipulation of the tub?s water knobs. She made a mental note to call the front desk about Harvey as she settled herself carefully down into the tub as the comfortably warm water level rose. The concern on the old woman?s face melted to one of quiet satisfaction as the water level eventually submerged everything save for what was above the neck. Once this level was reached, Glenda reached over and turned the water knobs in the opposite direction until the water stream stopped. Taking a deep, relaxing breath, Glenda gently rested her head back against the ceramic edge of the tub. She could practically feel the water work its soothing magic on her. She figured it had been awhile since she last bathed, and her body was getting adjusted to the feel of comfortably warm water all around her. Through slitted eyes, she glanced down at the somewhat foamy, pinkish water... Foamy? Pinkish? Glenda was fairly certain that it was clear water coming out of the faucet as it filled the tub...but she didn?t recall pouring anything into the water to make it as weirdly foamy as it was! Her eyes opened as wide as they could go, a look of terror once again forming on her shocked face. The tingling was intensifying, too, and she could feel her consciousness weakening! Holding to her consciousness as best she could, she let out a very loud scream. She continued to scream repeatedly, in long bursts of noise, until she heard a knocking at the door, and she heard Barry?s voice speaking words she could not hear. Glenda was now fighting the apparent drowsiness that was setting in. The screaming was definitely helping to keep her awake. Between her screams, she heard not only Barry?s voice, but the voice of another person, this one female. She then heard the front door open up. Shortly after, Barry burst into the bathroom, with a blond, and large- chested young woman right next to him. Barry stumbled to a knee, having slipped upon the wet floor beneath him. The woman more carefully stepped in, quickly dropping to a knee beside the screaming woman. "YOU?RE POISONING ME!! YOU?RE POISONING MEEEE!!" Glenda screamed right in the short-haired platinum blonde?s face as she tried to shush her. "Mrs. Hemingforth...please try to calm down!" the blond woman exclaimed. "You?re gonna be fine! Just relax!" "LIARS!! DRUGGERS!! I WAS NEVER FOOLED, YOU SNEAKY MORONS!!" Glenda screamed. "YOU?VE POISONED MEEEE!! I CAN FEEL IT! YOU?VE POISO...*KOFF!* *KOFF!*" She tried to make her coughing sound convincing, even though she came off sounding like the Lucy Ricardo character pathetically trying to act in an episode of I Love Lucy. "Mrs. Hemingforth...Mrs. Hemingforth..." She tried to match eyes with her, being forced to grab her head so that her terrified, boggling eyes would meet her own. "...Mrs. Hemingforth, look at me. You?re not dying, OK? It?s just your body reacting to the bubble bath formula we have in the bathwater. Trust me when I say you?re going to feel much better once you?ve taken a little nap." "I...I feel...t-tingly...all over..." Glenda?s shaking voice fearfully remarked. "...I won?t let you get away with this! I?m USO, dammit!" The woman maintained her pleasant smile as she continued to counter Glenda?s resistance. "Trust me when I say that after a week, you?re gonna look back on this moment and laugh your big, new ass off. You can?t get this excited, though. Give it a couple of days and you?ll be able to get more excited than you ever thought you could get at your age." "What...what are you..." Glenda was beginning to lose consciousness now. There wasn?t a spot on her body that didn?t tingle in a manner that made her feel lethargic. "...talking...aboooouuuu..." The blond woman?s smile widened as she watched Glenda?s eyes finally flutter shut. She heard the familiar beep of the small, black walkie- talkie as Barry began speaking. "Geri...we need a domestic at the 5th floor. Hemingforth residence. Bath water overflow," Barry then stowed away the communicator before turning back to the blonde, who rose back up from her kneeling position next to the tub, still looking down at the slumbering, bath-bound tenant. "You think she knows anything, Maude?" Barry asked the blonde. The busty woman shook her head. "Wouldn?t matter if she did. A place like this, after all, easily makes converts out of people like me and her..." she then gestured to Harvey?s still slumbering form. "...and him." Once the cleaner arrived, Barry and Maude gave instructions, and then made their way back out of the room. * * * "Ah-nald Schvaaat-za!" the fat, Slavic auto mechanic called out. "Car out front! Eez Jag!" As much as Arnold Betancourt hated being called this, Pavel Silvetsky was his boss, greasy and slovenly as he was on any given day at the Bullchester Rip-N-Ride Auto Repair business, which was practically a pit stop along the side of one of the city?s freeway entrances and exits. Still...he told Pavel about the station wagon that he wanted to get rid of, and he explained that he might know a couple of people that might be interested in such a car, if not just for scrap. Pavel had explained that he would get back to him if there were interested parties. A jag? Arnold thought to himself. We don?t get many of those! Being washed and ready for a new customer, Arnold stepped outside of the Garage, and towards the Jaguar XJ-class vehicle waiting outside. Stepping over to the driver side, the woman at the wheel turned out to be someone he knew. Or at least, vaguely knew, if she were a bit older! Arnold knew Vera Lattimer...the mother of Alex, his son?s best friend...to be a bit older in her appearance. On the cusp of a more elderly appearance. The smiling image of Vera Lattimer that was at the wheel of this Jaguar, however, looked visibly younger. Almost as if she had dipped herself into a fountain of youth and was now reaping the benefits. A low-cut blouse showed the cleavage of breasts that were a little larger than he remembered seeing on Vera?s chest. "Hi, Arn," Vera began, flashing a grin. "I?m here for a tune-up." Arnold just nodded, and got right to work as he spoke. "Is this a new car, Vee?" The smartly-dressed woman, whose hair was arranged in soft ginger curls, shrugged. "Had it for a couple of weeks. Gotta flaunt my status." "That being...?" "A promotion to Executive status at Loris International," Vera practically sang the words as she spoke them. "I was in the Top 5 in Employee Motivations for two straight months." Arnold nodded as he continued the tune-up procedures. "Congratulations." "Thanks!" Her cell phone suddenly started chiming. "Hang on, gotta take this..." She put the smartphone to her ear. "Hey there, Hay-Hay! I owe you for your suggestion. Been going to that Salon on your advice. I should listen to you more often! I feel fucking awesome. Like I can start my life over again. My husband seems to be on the fence about it, but...maybe I can win him over somehow. My son keeps staring at me these days. It?s...kinda flattering. Mmm...I haven?t given that idea any thought, but...if I feel it?s necessary, I just might. Not like I need to weigh myself down with unnecessary attachments, right? Yeah, I hear ya. So are we on for brunch tomorrow? Sounds good, Miss McKinky. Talk to you then. Bye, Hayley!" Arnold was halfway through the procedure when Vera broke the silence again. "What do you think of that...card game thing? ?Bee-mong?, or something?" "Behemongers?" Arnold looked over the sparkplugs as he spoke. "Well, my boy seems to like it. Isn?t your son into it, too?" "Yeah, but...he?s always talking about ?decks? and how expensive they are," Vera replied. "Something about...?rare conquest? cards or something. I think it?s starting to become too much of a distraction for my Alex. They went pretty late last night playing one game. Has your son?s grades suffered for it?" "No, they?re...pretty good," Arnold answered, stepping back over to the driver side of the car to take Vera?s credit card. "He?s passing his classes. That?s all that matters to me. Doesn?t matter whether he?s got rocket science on his mind or not." "My Alex is doing fine, too...but, he could be doing better," Vera remarked as Arnold ran the transaction on a nearby computer terminal. "You think I should talk with him about it?" Arnold shook his head as he returned the credit card. "Boys will be boys, Vee. Ya gotta let ?em be boys." The expression on Vera?s face when Arnold said this looked a bit distasteful, but she flashed another smile when her eyes returned to the auto mechanic that was the father of her son?s best friend. "Thanks. I like your work ethic. You just do it. No excuse bullshit. Should be more guys like you out there." Arnold just gave a cordial smile and a wave. "Have a nice day, Vee." "Ciao!" Vera merrily returned, and the Jaguar rolled away. Arnold watched it quietly coast back onto the road before it hurried away. Employee Motivations... Arnold mused to himself as he went back into the Garage to clean up. * * * "Did you fall asleep when you were watching the training video, Miss Pankin?" Leslie asked, in a sarcastically sweet voice, as she continued to grill the young server, Ruth, who worked at one of the fast food restaurants in Rubie?s Mall that Leslie worked in as a Floor Manager. "Y-yes, I did," the very nervous, uniformed server replied. "Then why are you consistently serving raw meat?" Leslie asked next, her tone a little sharper. "Well...I-I can?t touch the beef on the grill with my fingers," Ruth quietly, fearfully responded. "I?ll burn myself!" "We do have clear gloves, don?t we?" Leslie then asked. "We ran out last week," Ruth answered. "You haven?t gotten any new ones, have you?" Leslie tried to hide the fact that she had forgotten to put the order in. It was the second week in a row that she had neglected to do so. "Don?t tell me how to do my job, young lady," Leslie snapped. "You?re on thin ice as it is with your serving deficiencies. If I don?t see improvements in your performance within the next two days, I?m firing your skinny ass. Now get out of the office. You?re on cleaning duty for the rest of the day." The look on Ruth?s face indicated that this was a job she liked the least. It was time consuming, and embarrassing. She hoped that her mom, who ate at the restaurant every now and then, would not spot her brooming around the serving area. Once Ruth was out of the room, Leslie heaved out a loud sigh and started work on the necessary paperwork to replenish the boxes of disposable clear gloves. About 15 minutes later, another server...the much more tolerable Angelo Mullins...stuck his head in. "Sorry to disturb you, Les, but...there?s a customer out front that insists on speaking with a Manager." Leslie sighed irritably as she rose from her seat. Third manager complaint this week. Wonderful. She initially figured it was going to be another nutritional lecture. That whoever was complaining would go on about how there should be calorie notices on the overhead menu. Or it was a sanitary issue. Leslie had yet to call in about the flies and vermin that had been spotted on occasion within the dining area. The complainant turned out to be an older woman, and a fairly tall and attractive platinum blonde at that. The authoritative look on this woman?s face looked a bit intimidating. She surmised that this was not going to be an easy deflection. Nevertheless, she put on her best customer service face...which she had rehearsed a billion times before...and stepped over to the tall and conservatively-dressed woman. "May I help you?" Leslie cordially asked. "Where is your safety inspection grade?" the blond woman inquired, her arms crossed in front of her. "It is a requirement that all restaurants in Bullchester display their grade." Leslie smirked. Yet another little detail she needed to address as a restaurant manager, except this one she deliberately held off on. The last thing she wanted was to see sales plummet due to a poor grade. She didn?t want to take that risk. "Is there something wrong with the food, Miss...?" Leslie asked, hoping to deflect the subject. "Burlington. Mabel Burlington," the tall blonde answered. "I have been meaning to come to this...place..." She looked around, distastefully, as she spoke these words. "...since it opened a few months ago. Just before Mayoress Stroud took office. From the smell alone, I can tell this place wouldn?t be looked upon very kindly by a health inspector." "And yet, we get loads of business," Leslie challenged. "Even from high fashion types like yourself. Can?t expect them all to look like rails for too long, can we?" She giggled at her own mirth. Unfortunately, Mabel found no humor at all in the Floor Manager?s words. She turned to her and stared down at the slightly smaller, unnaturally blond woman. "The only way I would ever consider eating here is if you began selling fresh, professionally-made salads, and not some assembly- line shit like the rest of your so-called ?food offerings?." Leslie tried to keep her cool. "And I ask again. Is there something wrong with the food? Because unless I see people leaving piles of vomit all over the dining area, I don?t see how you have any real issue about our business, which maintains a high influx of patrons, many of whom come here every single day." "You can?t say that there hasn?t been a recent incident of a certain child getting sick from the food you serve, though...can you?" Leslie?s attempt at a counter was cut short by the moment of surprise that gave her hesitation. How the fuck did she know about that damn kid?? She thought to herself, struggling to keep her professional face as she stared back at Mabel. She send a spy in here or something that day?? "He had...an upset stomach...when he came in here," Leslie attempted, knowing full well that the wild-haired child was fine when he walked in alongside his mother, prior to leaving ugly remnants of the boneless chicken he had eaten nearly everywhere in the dining area, reducing the number of customers considerably before the small mounds of vomit were finally cleaned up. Mabel was right in her face now, not believing a word of her excuse. "If you don?t arrange to get a health inspection visit...and a posted grade...at this so-called restaurant," The woman sharply asserted. "I will. Don?t you dare test me..." Mabel turned and began walking away. "...Leslie." The Floor Manager?s eyes widened. And how the HELL did she know my name?? This last bit worried her the most. Unless it was a wild guess, which for some reason Leslie believed was highly unlikely. She felt like throwing up herself as she returned to her office, ignoring everyone who asked about her as she went. Only Ruth Pankin, who was still busy sweeping up the floors, had a satisfied smile on her face as she continued her work. * * * Still submerged up to her neck in the foamy pink bathwater, Glenda Hemingforth?s eyes winced slightly. The eyelids then fluttered. And then, they opened wide. She scanned around her general area curiously. She then remembered what had happened. She remembered seeing the busty blond woman standing over her, and Barry right behind her. Glenda also remembered feeling tingly all over, a precursor to whatever withered state the Retirement Home might force upon its tenants, or so she believed. She was not feeling weak at all, however. When she rose up, she expected to feel the minor aches and pains that come from the onset of advanced age. The mere act of rising up from a sitting position would always be slow going. Here, however, she rose up from the pink tub water without feeling any pain at all. She could feel a dull ache at her mouth, and looking down at her bare chest, she saw that her saggy, flat breasts looked like they had regained a bit of curvature. Glenda looked a bit less skinny, as well. After toweling herself off, and then stepping in front of the room?s large mirror, she examined her reflection with a little more scrutiny. A bit of definition had apparently been restored to her gray hair, and she even saw evidence of golden blond strands within it! As her confused gaze lingered, it also occurred to her that some of the wrinkles in her skin were also missing. What in the name of Chester Arthur is happening to me? She thought to herself. Looking down at the bed where her husband was sleeping, she saw that he, too, looked visibly different from the old man that she knew her husband to be. He was also less skinny, and had brown highlights to his gray head of hair. The bald spots showed evidence of fresh new hair growing in. It was like Mother Nature had suddenly decided to revitalize them both. Or was it... ...the water? The foamy pink liquid that she initially believed was...poison? Glenda wandered back into the bathroom to gaze down at the idle pink water, trying to put together the logistics of what had happened... ...and, quite frankly, she couldn?t come up with any logic at all. Other than that she was, apparently, very wrong about the Retirement Home making zombies of its tenants. Was Barry right about that Rosa woman being a tenant? She began to wonder. Is there some kind of cover-up going on? And why? Such was another unexpected benefit. Her mind was a little sharper now. It was great, as well, to be able to stand straight up again. Another crazy thought entered Glenda?s mind as she frowned with grim curiosity. Is what happened to Rosa...going to happen to us? Are we going to become sluts like her? She heard a familiar moan from behind her, and Glenda turned around, making her way back to the side of the bed where her husband was sleeping. He was beginning to move. His own eyes began to flutter open...and when they did, they opened wide. When she spoke, she felt that her voice had regained a bit of definition that it used to have. "How are you feeling, honey?" Harvey turned his head towards Glenda, looking a bit awestruck. "Glennie? Glennie Doll? Wha...what happened to you?" Glenda shook her head. "I wish I knew, Harv...but, I think it?s got something to do with that..." she gestured over to the bathroom. "...that bath." "Yeah, I...I noticed that too. Was all pink, and...and foamy. Thought it was Agent Orange all over again. I had to get out of there..." He began to look himself over. "...?cept I don?t feel bad at all.? Glenda nodded. "Neither do I. We need to talk to someone...and I know just who to see, too." His upper body rose up from the bed. "You...you need me t? come with you?" "No. Let me handle this," Glenda began to get dressed. "You just stay here." As she continued dressing, they heard a knock at the front door of the apartment. When Glenda stepped over to pull the door open, she saw the busty woman who was kneeling beside the tub...prior to her impromptu nap...standing there with a strange smile on her lips. "How are you and your husband feeling, Glenda?" The woman asked. "You certainly look a little better than you did before, don?t you think?" Glenda blinked in her confusion. "You...the woman from before...? When I was in the tub?" "My name is Maude," The busty woman stepped into the room, walking past a still-mystified Glenda. "It?s nice to meet you, Glenda. Welcome to the Golden Sunshine Retirement Home." Thinking of Rosa, Glenda frowned. "Are you trying to turn us into...into hussies like that Rosa woman?" Maude giggled merrily at this. "You do with your renewal what you wish, Glenda. In Rosa?s case, she felt compelled to, uh...sow her wild oats a little. I confess to doing the same. Heh...well, as far as my time with my sweet lil? sissy boy Nigel is any indication." "Nigel?" Glenda tilted her head to the side. "Who?s that?" "Oh, just a friend," Maude replied. "Someone I met after this place worked its amazing little magic on me." Harvey frowned, looking skeptical. "You make this place sound like a Fountain of Youth." "It technically is, Harvey," Maude answered. "When I first came here, I was just as old and as decrepit as you were yesterday. No offense. After about a week..." She presented herself. "...well, you can plainly see the results." "So...if we keep taking baths here..." The logic now seemed academic to Glenda by now. "...we?ll be...as young as you look now?" "I can?t wait to see how different you look by the time the week is out," Maude mused. "I wouldn?t be surprised if you looked like you did in the 1940s. Your husband should look as G.I. Joe as he did back then, and you? You should be looking forward to how hot you looked as a USO Hostess, Glenda. Happy days, indeed." "Are...you and Rosa...the only ones who had this happen to you?" Glenda asked. Maude shook her head. "There are definitely others. Blanche, Dolores, Rosalind...they?ve all been positively affected by repeated exposure to the bath and shower water here. Of course, if you wanted to fine-tune your appearances, there?s the Butterfly Salon in Rubie?s Mall. They?re always prepared to cater to whatever kind of appearance you wish." Glenda?s head lowered thoughtfully as Maude spoke. There?s got to be some kind of a catch to all of this... "Judging by the look on your face, I?d say you?re thinking about it," Maude added, with a sly grin. "There really isn?t any catch to this, either..." Her tone turned discreet. "...and, uh, confidentially, I?m still kind of going on auto-pilot about all this myself." "How expensive is this...Salon?" Glenda asked. "Prohibitively, I would imagine." Maude giggled. "Well...you wouldn?t have to mortgage your house, but...there are other ways to get compensation, which is another reason why I came here." Again, Glenda tilted her head to the side curiously. "Oh?" The busty blonde closed the door behind her and led her over to a table in the apartment. "I?d like to talk to you for a bit about the people who tricked you into coming here, and then abandoned you." * * * - Alex4TW ?< : Hi Tobes. Have you got a minute? - AwesomeSauce4E4 ?< : Yeah whazup? - Alex4TW ?< : I just wanna talk to someone. Things are getting kinda freaky in the house today. - AwesomeSauce4E4 ?< : How so? - Alex4TW ?< : Well...it?s mom. She doesn?t look the same as she used to. Ever since she got that job promotion. She?s always been cool with me, but then she got this ?self- motivational hypnosis? thing, and now she?s... well...different. - AwesomeSauce4E4 ?< : So...more bossy? - Alex4TW ?< : Yeah! She had a big fight with dad a couple of minutes ago. I was right there, Tobes. I just kept eating my meal while their conversation got louder and louder. When it got to the point where I thought they?d start throwing stuff, I finished up my food quickly and went back into my room as fast as I could. - AwesomeSauce4E4 ?< : Good idea. - Alex4TW ?< : I?m WORRIED now, Tobes. My mom and dad have been married for twelve years. They?ve never fought like this! What if it ends in a divorce? - AwesomeSauce4E4 ?< : I dunno, Alex. Maybe you can talk to them about seeing one of those, like, marriage shrinks or something? - Alex4TW ?< : I dunno. Maybe. - Alex4TW ?< : She was acting a little freaky with me, too. She was rubbing my hair and telling me how nice it looked. Told me not to cut it. Then she told me I should stop playing our card game. - Alex4TW ?< : Wait a minute. - Alex4TW ?< : The door was wide open when I went in. - Alex4TW ?< : Oh fuck - Alex4TW ?< : No. - Alex4TW ?< : She couldn?t have. All that fucking money... - Alex4TW ?< : Hang on a sec. - AwesomeSauce4E4 ?< : Hanging. :) - Alex4TW ?< : FUCK - Alex4TW ?< : FUCK FUCK FUCKITY FUCK FUCK FUCK AND A FUCKING HALF - AwesomeSauce4E4 ?< : What? What happened? - Alex4TW ?< : THEY?RE GONE! ALL MY CARDS! I put them in the same place every time and now they?re gone! - Alex4TW ?< : DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH MONEY I PAID FOR SOME OF THOSE RARE CARDS?? - AwesomeSauce4E4 ?< : Oh shit! Yeah! You had a good deck! - Alex4TW ?< : OMG - Alex4TW ?< : I am in tears right now. No joke. - Alex4TW ?< : WHY DID SHE DO THAT?? IT?S JUST A GAME! - AwesomeSauce4E4 ?< : Dude, calm down. Have you tried checking the trash? Maybe she tossed them in there. Just sneak out to the garbage cans and get them back. Hide them from your mom this time. - AwesomeSauce4E4 ?< : Alex? - AwesomeSauce4E4 ?< : Calm down. It?s not the end of the world, man. - Alex4TW ?< : If she got rid of them this morning that way, they?re totally gone. Garbage pickup was this morning. - Alex4TW ?< : But you?re probably right. - Alex4TW ?< : I?ll go and check. - Alex4TW ?< : Wait for me? - AwesomeSauce4E4 ?< : Sure. Just be careful. - Alex4TW ?< : Cans empty - Alex4TW ?< : Gone - Alex4TW ?< : Gone - Alex4TW ?< : GONE - Alex4TW ?< : oiweu[r09ijn?;woeia- [9834urqnaw387u]8374yoqiujndoc8i7aqw3oi4nu - AwesomeSauce4E4 ?< : Dude relax. Maybe those cards are on eBay? - Alex4TW ?< : Gotta go - Alex4TW ?< : Bye - AwesomeSauce4E4 ?< : Alex, wait! ----===*CHAT TERMINATED*===---- * * * "A ?C???" Leslie was aghast at the grade the restaurant had received. "A FUCKING ?C??? We had this place completely mopped and washed before the Inspector came!!" Angelo Mullins shrugged as he stood among the gathered staff of the fast food restaurant, which was called Great Big Cal?s. "That?s not the only thing these Inspectors check out, Les. They go over everything. They check for evidence of vermin, the condition of the equipment, they check against the HACCP lists..." Leslie frowned. "Huh? HACCP?? What the fuck is that?" Angelo blinked, trying to hide his disbelief. "You...don?t...know...what HACCP is? No offense, Les, but...you?re the Manager. You?re supposed to know what that is." "I?ve been managing this place for years, Angelo," Leslie angrily shot back. "I?ve never had to deal with this shit." Angelo, who was a portly, well-liked young latino server in a mustache, just shrugged. "Times change, Les. These ratings are all over restaurants up in New York. Quality standards. They don?t want people who dine out to come down with food poisoning. Oh...and HACCP stands for Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points." "I knew that," one of the orange-uniformed staff members, Lucy Brent, subtly whispered to her friend, Gina Brooks. It was a whisper that thankfully went unnoticed by Leslie as she paced back and forth in her huff, still staring angrily down at the page with the glaring C grade. After loudly sighing, again, and making the mental leap to the incident with the sick little boy, Leslie irritably looked to Angelo. "So what the fuck happens now?" "The Inspector gives us a month?s grace period," Angelo answered. "But we have to improve the place in that time. A ?C? grade means we got over twenty-eight violations, so...you?d better call for an exterminator, for starters. Like, now." Most of the other staff members openly nodded their heads in agreement. "Okay, OKAY, okay, okay, I get the hint." She couldn?t even look at her own staff in that moment. "I?ll call for one while you?re all working. Now I was given a copy of the violations, and a couple of them had something to do with some of the things I asked you all to do when I had you all cleaning up around here. You?ll be using your break time to address one of these things, since you couldn?t do it the first time." The young faces of the staff members were visibly irritated and upset over this management call. "Leslie...it?s called ?break time? for a reason," Gina protested. "Uh-huh...and it?s called the ?unemployment line? for a reason, too," Leslie countered, smirking. She then glanced at the time. "OK, troops...we?re done for now. Get out there and get to your stations. I?ll be in my office, and I?ll expect you to come to me when it?s time for your break period. I will have work for you. Go and open the gates now, Lucy. Everyone else...get those Great Big Breakfast meals ready." As the meeting proceeded, one of the staff members...Ruth Pankin...practically had a look similar to the ?thousand yard stare? on her face. She looked entirely miserable. Especially upon hearing that they were being forced to clean up a mess effectively engineered by the Manager?s obvious incompetence. The working day turned out to be hellish for the entire staff, many of whom began mulling over thoughts of quitting. Some of the things Leslie had asked them to do were demeaning, and even ugly. Making the toilets sanitary, scrubbing the walls, the floors, and even the ceiling, Leslie had even risked hurting one of the staff members by having him check an oven-related violation. Ruth was the first to be sent to maintenance the toilets, which were considerably disgusting. It didn?t help that there was little to no air conditioning anywhere in the place. Protests to Leslie in the past were always deflected by some manner of excuse amounting to ?putting a call in?. Leslie knew that most of these staff members were kids and adolescents in need of income even as they continued their school semesters. Mentions of the unemployment line, and even paper routes(which were non- existent, given the developments of e-mail and the internet), were used to keep her long-suffering staff members in line. Leslie even used the recently-raised minimum wage as incentive for them to keep working at Great Big Cal?s. Ruth was disturbingly quiet for her entire shift. At one point, following the end of her toilet duty during her break time, Leslie asked her a question which the woman knew would upset the young student. "Can you work overtime tonight, Ruth?" Although she had a feeling it would mean her job, Ruth shook her head anyway. She wanted to work her normal hours, and just go home. She despised the very concept of overtime work. She didn?t care if it meant extra pay. "Uh-huh," Leslie replied, nodding slowly. "So you don?t want a bonus in your paycheck. Fine. Go back to your station. I?ll get Angelo to do the extra work." Angelo was hardly pleased, obviously, over the thought of added work in the hours following the end of his shift, but he saw it as a challenge of his natural tenacity. Ruth just wanted to get back home. She wanted to put this horrible day at work behind her. A bad day at school was preferable to the torment she was forced to endure working at that awful restaurant. Her need for a source of monetary income practically chained her to that place. Walking through the Parking Lot towards the bus stop, a very nice- looking vehicle pulled up in front of her. A familiar-looking platinum blond woman was at the wheel. Ruth recognized her as the woman who initially complained to Leslie about the restaurant?s bad conditions. "Good afternoon, dear," the woman began, flashing a polite smile to the curious young student. "You look like you?ve had a really bad day." "I don?t wanna talk about it." Ruth began to step away from the car. "Leave me alone." "Hey, hey, hey, heeeey." The blonde quickly got out of the car and hurried over to Ruth. "You shouldn?t keep feeling this way, dear. It isn?t healthy," She stopped in front of Ruth, whose head remained angled down. She now looked to be on the verge of tears. "Is this about that really shitty restaurant in the mall? I recognize the uniform." Ruth squeezed her eyes shut as tears flowed forth. Her teeth gritted as she tried, unsuccessfully, to prevent a crying fit. "Yes...!" She miserably squeaked out. The blond woman wrapped her arms around Ruth in a consoling embrace as the young woman began to openly sob into her shoulder. She stroked at Ruth?s short, greasy black hair as the tormented staff member continued to cry. "My name is Mabel Burlington, dear," the blond woman remarked, speaking gently. "What?s yours?" "Ruth," the young woman answered, recovering from her sobbing fit as she pulled away from Rosa?s shoulder. "Ruth Pankin." Rosa nodded. "Are you hungry, Ruth?" "Starving," the black-haired woman responded. "Well...I will promise you two things, Ruth," Rosa explained. "One, you?re going to be just fine. I know I?m a total stranger, but...I think it?s necessary for you to know a little more about your boss. Two, that I?m going to get you home safe and sound once we?ve had our meal." Ruth tried to recover, but her voice was still weak. "As...as long as...it?s not fast food." Mabel giggled at this. "Ever been to Upscale?" "No...b-but I?ve heard about it," Ruth replied, wiping tears from her face, as she settled into the passenger seat of Mabel?s car. "It?s...it?s for rich people, isn?t it?" Again, Mabel giggled as she got her car moving again, heading for the Parking Lot?s exit. "I don?t want you thinking about money, Ruth. I want you to think about ordering whatever you want from the menu, no matter how expensive it may look. You just let me worry about the bill, OK?" Ruth nodded, although she also looked a bit wary as the car moved into the busy city lanes. Mabel wasn?t a complete stranger, but why was this woman interested in a mere server...one of Leslie?s peons...all of a sudden? As a part of her was also very curious to know what kind of a place Upscale was like, she ultimately threw caution to the four winds and settled into her seat as Mabel made more simple inquiries about the young woman whose life she wanted...and was instructed...to change for the better. Step one, however, was clear to Mabel. Ruth needed a radical makeover. * * * As much as Glenda was as fearful as she was to bathe any further in the rejuvenating waters of the bathtub in her apartment room, the visible effects upon her husband following his second occasion in the bathtub seemed to wear away at the old woman?s concerns. Harvey, after all, needed a cane to get around prior to their abandonment at the retirement home. After his second bathtub visit, he no longer needed it. Some fuzz was showing up on the bald spots of the old man?s hair, as well. Light brown fuzz, too, and evidence of color was showing up amid the grayness of the old soldier?s hair. As they both knew that the retirement home had a gym, Harvey had stepped out to pay the place a curious visit, leaving Glenda to bathe by herself. Once again, she felt the tingling of the foaming pink water, and she once again felt compelled to relax, closing her eyes as her body continued to absorb whatever this strange liquid was. When she carefully lowered herself into the water, her joints shook, as they always did. When she finally rose out of the water...without using the sturdy steel hand grips, this time...her body no longer shook. A thought occurred to her, after she more capably toweled herself dry, as she hurried over to one of the drawers in her room. When the Betancourts demanded that she and her husband pack the things she treasured the most into her bags before the drive to the retirement home, one thing she had to take with her was a very old picture of a much younger Glenda and her husband posing for a picture at a USO dance event. A much more handsome Harvey stood proudly in his military fatigues alongside a visibly attractive and busty Glenda, who was in a white-spotted red dress, and whose full brown hair sported a 40s-era hairdo. On a hunch, Glenda pulled this large, framed picture out of her bottom drawer, and reminisced on the day her grandson, Tobias, actually did her a favor using present-day technology... * * * Slowly heading over to where her grandson was busying himself in front of another ultraviolent videogame in the Betancourt house?s living room, Glenda held a very old and wrinkled picture in one of her shaky hands. She knew that he would be upset over the interruption, as he had been twice in the past, but this matter was extra important to her. She had to risk the rebuke. She smiled as she closed in on him. "Saving the free world again, eh?" As she expected, she heard an irritated sigh coming from her grandson as the image of the onscreen carnage stopped. "Yes, grandma," he answered. "I...I?m sorry to interrupt what you?re doing, dear, but...I really need your help," Glenda slowly stepped over to the right of where Tobias was sitting. "I have a...a picture here. It?s one of my favorites, but...it?s gotten really old. Wrinkly. Does...does your computer have a way of fixing it up? I heard that you have a program that can do that kind of thing. Your mom told me." Tobias seemed to consider this as his brow furrowed. "Lemme see it." Glenda?s quivering hands brought up the picture, and Tobias gave it a look. "Hmmm...this isn?t that bad. Maybe I can do something with it. Okay...leave it with me, I?ll take it up to my room and put it through the scanner. Then I?ll see what I can do about the wrinkle lines." Glenda smiled. She expected a full refusal, but she now felt blessed. "Really? This won?t get in the way of your homework?" This prompted another irritated sigh from the young man. "Grandma...there?s more to my life than homework in my room. Don?t worry. I?ll do what I can and get back to you. Maybe tomorrow, OK?" Elated over her grandson?s consent, Glenda gave her son a salute. "Yes, sir, soldier! I?ll let you get back to blowing away those nasty bad guys," She then stepped up close and placed a kiss on her grandson?s forehead despite his reaction to Glenda?s unpleasant body odor. "Thank you so much for this!" "Okay, okay, grandma, just...come and see me tomorrow," Tobias huffed, pressing the start button on his console?s controller to un-pause his game, which he got back into as Glenda slowly made her way out of the living room. * * * But you had me waiting a week longer for this, didn?t you? Glenda was feeling uncharacteristically spiteful, in the privacy of her thoughts, as she stared down at the picture that had been restored through her grandson?s software, and his knowledge of it. The spite was, in fact, fueled by everything Maude had told Glenda and her husband about the intentional subterfuge that led to them being stranded here, and forgotten, by the Betancourts. After what she was told, Glenda wondered if they would ever even visit on occasion. Maude didn?t think they would, and Glenda now felt inclined to agree. Nevertheless, it was not out of the memory of her grandson?s work, but more as a reference to her previous looks, as Glenda surmised that if these rejuvenating pink waters allowed for tenants to regress to younger physical conditions, she could use the renovated photograph as a reference in possibly restoring the way she used to look. Or, if the other veritable cougars of the retirement home were any indication, make herself look even better. One big difference from her previous visit to the bathtub was that it was no longer necessary for Glenda to walk around on six legs. Her own two legs, and the four legs of her wheeled metal walker. She was now back to moving around on her own two legs, seeing as how her weak bones now had renewed strength. More of the wrinkles on not only her face, but her body, were now gone as well, and many of the liver spots on her skin continued to shrink. The very thought of no longer needing a walker put a big smile on the woman?s face as she stared at her own reflection. Also fueling her satisfied grin was what Maude had told her regarding how the Sisterhood of the Divine Feminine...to whom she was now indebted...was going to deal with the Betancourts for not only abandoning them, but for scheming to sell antiques they had kept with them all their lives off for handsome sums of money, and to leech off of a considerably fat bank account possessed by her husband, which was the result of mounting war veteran?s benefits. Maude already assured them that the Sisterhood was able to block the impending efforts of Tobias Betancourt to gain access to the account courtesy of Harvey?s username and password, which the Betancourts apparently needed to secure for "hotel fees". They knew Tobias would be the one to try and acquire the funds(since he was more computer-literate compared to his mom and dad), and perhaps transfer thousands of dollars, digitally, into the accounts of the Betancourts as if they were literally shoveling mounds of gold coins out of a buried treasure chest. Glenda had to accept that the antiques they could not take with them was going to be a loss, but in taking the unexpectedly radical good with this misfortune, she didn?t feel too bad. She was also happy that even though the lives of the Betancourts was about to radically change, they would at least be alive. Glenda had always believed that the end result of any revenge was death and/or destruction. This kind of vengeance, however...non-fatal as it was...would be particularly delicious.