Steve came home a few days later to discover May at home talking with her cousins, Susan and Claire, over coffee. Susan was a curvacious brunette with curly hair down to her shoulders. Claire was a little more tomboyish, with short dirty-blonde hair and a slightly smaller chest, but had always been the more cheerful and fun-loving of the two; Susan was always a bit more reserved and cautious. They had been friends since childhood, and had lived together for many years.
"Hi, I'm home," Steve said. "Hello Claire, hello Susan. What brings you here?"
May smiled softly at Steve, and stood up from her chair. Claire and Susan looked up at Steve, smiling slightly, but looking somewhat concerned.
"Hi Steve," May said. "Can I speak to you for a moment?"
Steve wondered what was happening. "Sure," he said.
"I'll be back in a moment girls," May told Susan and Claire, as she took Steve to the kitchen: they started whispering just before Steve was out of earshot.
* * *
"What's up?" Steve asked.
May smiled slyly, breaking her more solemn expression. "I did what you told me to do: I slipped them the pills, and I set up a nice little game for us to play."
Steve brightened. "Oh, really?" he asked. "Do tell."
"Susan and Claire were just coming over for coffee, originally," she said. "They let out that they were planning on moving in to town and living together to share costs. But now, they think that they came here to live with us, and that they're asking for our help."
"Help with what?" Steve said, sensing a thickening of the plot.
"Apparently," said May with a mischevous smile, "that Claire is suddenly unable to tell what sorts of personal space or physical contact is inappropriate. She sometimes forgets to get dressed all the way, and has to do a checklist before she leaves home. She forgets to close the doors and windows to her room when she dresses or goes to the bathroom, and often forgets to give other people their own personal space."
"Interesting," said Steve, with growing enthusiasm.
"She isn't sexually attracted to women," May continued, "so she hasn't actively done anything to Susan, and isn't likely to. But I told them that Susan caught Claire playing with herself a little more than once when they watch romantic movies with handsome leads. I also told them that Susan once caught a man fondling Claire's breasts in the subway: it was an experience that Claire thoroughly enjoyed --- or so they've been told." She winked.
"I like it," said Steve. "What do they want from us?"
"Well," May said, "they think they have to go to an expensive clinic to get Claire diagnosed. Susan's helping, but they need to save all the money they can. They need more roommates, but obviously this is a tricky situation for roommates. So they've asked if they can live with us. Susan wants to stay with Claire, because they're friends, but also because Susan wants to make sure that you don't take advantage of Claire."
Steve furrowed his brow. "Won't that make for a tense situation?"
May grinned. "I made it so that Susan will work hard to rationalize anything she sees you doing with Claire: she doesn't want to ruin our marriage, especially when we're helping them save money. And I added a couple of other surprises for later," she smiled slyly.
"You're the best wife," Steve said, kissing May.
"I know," she said. "You can thank me later." |