Kelly Exposed

by Viktor Redreich

  I went up to the front desk. My pause had allowed my exhausted fugue to fade, making me more aware than ever of the way my clothes stuck to my body. My hair was damp with sweat, clinging wetly to the nape of my neck and forehead. I pushed them back impatiently while I waited for someone to notice me, annoyed at the feeling, like fingertips caressing my skin.

  A man emerged from the back room. He paused and smiled at me. “Hello.”

  I was in no mood to entertain conversations, flirtatious or otherwise. “Hi. I’m here to check-in. The name should be under Alora . . . uh . . . I don’t know her last name.”

  “Oh, you’re one of Alora’s.” He smiled brightly. He pulled a book of some sort out from under the counter and flipped it open. “Yes, here it is.”

  I started to ask him what he meant and then changed my mind. She was a tour guide. She probably used this hotel a lot.

  “Kelly?”

  “That’s me,” I confirmed.

  He reached under his counter again and retrieved an actual key, not a key card. “This is your copy. There will be a fee if you lose it. Your room is seven-B. It will be on the left there, down the hall.”

  “Thanks.”

  I grabbed the key and walked away. My stomach made itself known then, rumbling so loudly the constant splashing of the fountain did little to cover it. I grimaced. It occurred to me that, without Alora, I wasn’t very well-off. I’d forgotten my luggage somewhere, at some point, probably when I ran through the airport. That meant I had no fresh clothes, no toiletries, and none of my research materials. All I had was what my purse contained. My wallet, a bit of spending money, some pens, and maybe a piece of gum or two.

  I’d need to do some shopping in the near future to replace what I’d lost. Or hire a taxi to go back to the airport and see if my things were in the lost-and-found.

  All that could wait, though. I wanted to check out my room, take a shower, and recoup.

  I counted the door plaques while I went down the hall, searching for 7B. Even so far away, the sound of the fountain was still audible. I hoped the place was more soundproof than it seemed to be so far.

  I finally came to my door. I pulled out the key I’d been given and stuck it in the lock. Nothing happened, as the door was already unlocked. I rolled my eyes and pushed into the room.

  The carpeting in the room was a vivid green, patterned like exotic leaves, matching the pillows on the beds. There were two, twin-sized, each one with red and yellow skirts. The walls were a gentle green-blue, and the drawer set was yet another shade of green, like avocado. No television. A single fan, the same kind as the one in the lobby, made slow rotations back and forth in an attempt to combat the stifling air.

  I sighed and headed over to one of the beds, wanting nothing more than to sit down. I noticed something in the corner of the room, huddled in a rare patch of shadow where the sunlight coming through the huge window didn’t reach.

  “My bags!”

  I rushed over to my luggage with renewed energy. Having my things soothed something in my soul. The current state of affairs left much to be desired, but now I had one less thing to worry over.

  The sound of running water stopped.

  I lifted my head, startled. I’d thought the sound I heard was the fountain in the lobby but instead, it had been the shower in the connecting bathroom. Someone else was in the room with her.

  It has to be Alora, I thought. She used this room often and so must have a key herself. I started to wonder how she had gotten to the hotel ahead of me and then laughed at myself. I’d been walking for three hours. It wouldn’t take her that long to stop her amorous activities with that guy at the airport and drive here.

  The bathroom door opened, allowing a glimpse of the surprisingly-modern bathroom. The marbled floor tiles were pale green, the walls smooth, dark, emerald. Canvas paintings of tropical trees rimmed the vanity mirror.

  I had only a moment to take in the finery of the room before I noticed the woman stepping into view.

  Alora, completely naked.

  I gasped, my hand leaping to my chest. My heart raced in the confines of my ribcage. I had known she was a beautiful woman. I’d pictured her topless in my dream and saw her with that man in the middle of the airport. This was a different experience entirely. She looked like a tanned Venus, emerging on her seashell from the froth of the ocean. Droplets of water clung to her body, beaded on her hair. Her breasts sat high, trickles of water running down their swells to drip from her nipples. Her waist curved in, then flared out into generous hips.

  My mouth was even drier than it had been already.

  “Oh, Kelly, I did not hear you come in.” Alora smiled at me and tilted her head. Her hair curled against one shoulder.

  My lips were glued together, melted into one by the sun. I couldn’t speak.

  Alora paced past me to grab a towel off one of the beds. She didn’t seem to care about dripping on the carpet, just as she seemed not to care about walking around in the nude.

  Alora rubbed her body down with the soft towel. She lifted one leg onto the mattress and patted dry the smooth brown limb. I caught a glimpse of the secret flower between her thighs and swallowed hard enough to nearly swallow my tongue.

  I turned, forcing myself to avert my gaze. It was the polite thing to do, but that wasn’t the reason I had to look away. I just had to. I couldn’t help but feel as though Alora was showing off, trying to tempt me.

  I wasn’t a lesbian. I hadn’t even fooled around with another girl before, though I knew plenty from college who had. I didn’t have the time to devote to a man because of my studies and my refusal to go out and party, much less the time to explore a different sexuality.

  Alora was making it very clear that she’d very much like to explore me. That’s how it was on this island. Interest equaled action. No one held back.

  “It’s okay, you know.”

  I put my back to her. I wanted to close my eyes to keep from even being tempted to look at her. I knew I was being disrespectful to her culture by refusing her but I wasn’t here to partake. I was here to learn.

  I managed, somehow, to find my voice. “What is?” I croaked, knowing full well I shouldn’t prompt her but too afraid to do otherwise, lest I be even more offensive.

  “What you are feeling is natural.”

  “I’m not feeling anything.”

  Alora abandoned her position and approached me, still nude. I sat back on the bed behind me and she leaned over me, leaving me no option to escape the power of her eyes and the beauty of her body. “You think I can’t read your mind? You try so hard, but I’m too good. I’ve played this game longer than you’ve played yours. You want to be touched and to touch. There is an aching void between your thighs.”

  “No,” I said.

  “No?” Alora repeated, gently mocking. “I know much about American society. I’ll tell you that story sometime soon. Rest assured until then that I know how oppressive life there can be, despite how free you all pretend to be. Needs are made to feel wrong. What you feel is to be buried and ignored. But consider the possibility that it does not have to be that way. You are not on American soil. You are here in this room . . . with me.”

  Alora grabbed my cardigan and pushed it back off my shoulders, exposing my sweaty, sensitive flesh. She pressed close and her warm, soft breast touched my arm. I let out a hiss and tried to pull away. She held me by my shirt and prevented my escape. Her teeth pressed on my shoulder. Her tongue flicked, hot and wet, in the same area. I wriggled. She took advantage, moving her teeth and tongue to my neck.

  “You are gorgeous, Kelly. You would be even more gorgeous without all these layers of ridiculous clothing.”

  I knew I looked good. I was what people called fair, dainty. My hair was strawberry blonde, that deep golden-red shade rarely found outside of dye bottles, cut into an easy-to-maintain bob. In contrast, my eyes were pale blue, almost icy. But no one had ever called me gorgeous before; Tyler settled for more contemporary t
erms, like hot and sexy, though sometimes I felt he only complimented me to get what he wanted from me.

  “I would be willing to bet no one has ever told you as such,” Alora murmured, reading my mind. “No one in your country would ever be such a good lover as to completely dedicate themselves to making you feel like you’ve touched heaven.”

  Her voice caressed my skin. Goosebumps rippled over my arms. I wouldn’t answer. I refused to answer aloud, though I couldn’t stop myself from doing so internally.

  No one had ever made me feel like that.

  Alora lifted her head. The tips of our noses touched. Her dark eyes bore into mine. I felt like a cobra, hypnotized by her gaze. I felt her breath on my lips as she spoke again. “Throw aside those inhibitions I know you have. They’re written on your face. I know them all. Give me a chance to show you that I understand and I will give you feelings you never imagined. I will suck on those magnificent tits of yours.”

  My chest trembled.

  “I will go lower still and kiss you everywhere I can reach. No part of you, not even your toes, will escape my mouth. And you will spread your legs for me,” Alora’s voice trailed off and my breath caught as I waited for her to move. I could picture in my mind what she offered and knew I was in no state of mind to make a decision either way nor was I in the right mindset to politely turn her down.

  I settled for the safest route. Funnily enough, it was a route I avoided like the plague in my day-to-day life.

  I procrastinated.

  “I’m not up for this right now.”

  Alora chuckled. I must not have sounded very convincing. “What else do you have to do at this moment?”

  I reached out and grabbed her shoulders.

  Alora started to lean in, her lips pursing to find mine.

  I pushed her back, off of me. “I’m sorry,” I said, shivering at how close of a call that had been. “I know what’s expected on the island, but I’ve had a long day. I’m stressed. I need a shower.”

  Alora raised her eyebrows. “Sex is very relaxing.”

  “Alora, please,” I begged.

  She softened and dropped back onto the other bed. “Very well. We’ll discuss it later. Go take your shower, Kelly.”

  I got up and headed to the bathroom, aware of her eyes following me the whole way. I shut the door behind me. No lock. I leaned against it with my head in my hands, trying to find it in me to breathe normally again.

  “Do you need help figuring out the shower?” Alora called.

  I jerked away from the door and shucked off my clothes. Being naked was such a relief. I stepped into the shower and turned the faucet on. After a moment of exploration, I discovered a little latch that redirected the water to the showerhead. A warm rain pelted me, instantly making me feel ten times cleaner. I lifted my face to the stream of water and scrubbed to get rid of all the sweat and oils. I emerged again, gasping for air.

  I found the soap and the little bottles of hair product, which Alora had already opened. I used them on my hair, trying all the while not to visualize the other woman who had been standing in here only minutes ago.

  I wondered what made me so against taking Alora up on her offer. I never would, but was it that she was a woman, or was it my background telling me I shouldn’t be with someone I had only just met. I couldn’t deny that her body had felt intriguing on mine, softer than a man’s. But that only made sense. It only felt intriguing because it was a new experience, not because I had liked it.

  If nothing else, I could reassure myself with knowing these were valuable experiences I was having. Perhaps Alora would let me quote her, with what she had said about the society of America. That would be an interesting point to make in the paper I wanted to write.

  Just have to keep my eye on the goal, the reason I’m here.

  Chapter 6

  Island delights

  I took longer than I normally would have in the shower, delaying my eventual emergence. I couldn’t stay in there forever though.

  I twisted the shower knob around to turn the water cold. I stood there shivering while the icy needles blasted me, making my blood race to warm myself. Feeling a little more energized than when I began, I finally turned the water off and stepped out.

  There was a little window on the wall adjacent to the shower, overlooking a bit of the town and the forest behind the hotel. The sky was bluer and closer than it had ever seemed before. I could have reached up and touched it. Instead, I wrapped my arm around my breasts. The last thing I wanted was for someone on a jungle trail or walking by on the street to look over and see me; on this island, they were likely to see it as an invitation.

  I shook my head at the ludicrousness of it.

  Droplets of water tickled their way down my legs. The feeling brought me back to the present, and my current predicament.

  I’d forgotten to grab a towel from the little stack on the bed in the main room. Not only that, but I’d also been so eager to hide away that I hadn’t brought my bags in with me. I had nothing with which to dry off, nothing to wear.

  There were only two choices. Go out into the room like this or ask for help. Neither was appealing. I settled for the lesser of the evils.

  I cleared my throat. “Alora?”

  “Yes? Need some help scrubbing your back?”

  I shuddered. “No. No, thank you. Could you pass me my bag and a towel?”

  I sensed disappointment in Alora’s pause. “Sure thing, honey. Anything for you.”

  I don’t like the subtext.

  I cracked the door a little and peeked through. Alora stood there with the bigger of my two bags and a towel, exactly as requested. She was still naked, only now she smelled faintly of vanilla and coconut lotion.

  I had miscalculated, somewhat. Not only had I expected her to have gotten dressed already, I thought that I could throw my hand through the door crack and grab my stuff with no need to reveal myself. The size of my luggage prevented that. The bathroom wasn’t very big, so there was no way for me to hide behind the door while opening it wider at the same time.

  I didn’t let myself think about it. I flung the door open wide.

  “Oh, yeah, honey,” Alora said in a moan. “You just proved me right. Look at you!”

  Panic jangled in my mind. I snatched my bag and shut the door fast. Alora laughed from the other side.

  I dropped to my knees and found my clothes. I dressed faster than ever in my life. My fine hair was already drying so I combed it with my fingers while looking in the mirror over the sink.

  I looked better than I had all day, more or less like my normal self. I resolved to keep things that way.

  I stepped out of the bathroom and looked around for Alora.

  The tour guide had, thankfully, dressed by then.

  The crop top she wore proudly proclaimed Always Down for a Good Time. The top showed off the bottom curve of her breasts, it was so small. Her short-shorts showed off most of her ass in turn and revealed without a doubt that she wasn’t wearing panties.

  I, on the other hand, had donned jeans and a t-shirt and another cardigan, plus a bra, and fresh panties.

  I was normally happy with how I dressed. I didn’t need men going around staring at my body. Seeing how comfortable Alora was with her body and how effortlessly she pulled off such a daring outfit, however, made me feel frumpy.

  Why, why did everything on this trip make me feel so unbalanced?

  Alora turned to look at me and it was as if she saw none of my clothing at all. She stepped over to me. My heart started pounding.

  “You’ve had your shower,” she purred. “Are you ready for me now?”

  My stomach decided right then to answer for me, grumbling loud and long. I put my hand to my middle, recalling once again that I hadn’t eaten all day and it was now early evening.

  Alora stuttered to a halt in front of me. “Oh, I’m so sorry! I’m such a terrible host. You poor thing. You must be starving. Let me get you something to eat.”


  Relief flowed through me. “That would be fantastic.”

  She clasped her hands together. “I have an even better idea. How about we go out for dinner? I’ll treat you to a wonderful meal. There’s a café across the street that serves brilliant food. Then you can come back and rest up. We’ll go exploring through the city tomorrow. How does that sound?”

  My ears metaphorically pricked up. Now, this was more what I’d been thinking would happen. We were figuring things out, the two of us. Really, if Alora would stop looking at me like she wanted to eat me every few seconds, we could get along great. She was sweet and kind and clearly intelligent.

  “Anything sounds good right now,” I admitted.

  “You aren’t allergic to anything, are you?”

  “Not that I know of.”

  “Good! Come, then.” Alora barged out of the room and into the hallway without a second thought. I hurried to catch up with her, lest I be left behind and spend another three hours wandering.

  The receptionist wasn’t anywhere to be seen in the lobby.

  As we stepped out, I expected to see people getting it on. And there were some, though not as many as before. Everyone seemed to have mellowed out a little, though no one was any more dressed than before. Perhaps they tired each other out as the day went on. Perhaps a temporary reprieve came when the rhythms of life got in the way. They would all starve if they didn’t eat eventually, after all.

  Alora pointed out the café across the street. I’d been too intent on getting inside the hotel to notice before. It was a small, almost petite building, square in shape. Most of the seating was outside, shaded by tall palms.

  Alora walked right up to a table and sat down. I hesitated. “Shouldn’t we get someone to seat us?”

  “We will be noticed, have no fear,” Alora said calmly. “Do sit. It’s very nice in the shade.”