Getting Ready For The Party

Laurel

After Ty had been put into bed at 8 PM, Lauren took me into her bedroom, grinning widely at me as she nodded her head toward the bathroom.

“Go shower! Shave your coochie in case you decide to go home with someone,” she ordered, which made me stare at her like she had grown another head and horns.

“Shave my what now?” I asked, not sure if I was understanding her correctly.

“Your coochie, Laurie! Keep up! You know, your vagina. Your pussy. Your kitty cat,” she said, rolling her eyes, while I continued to stare at her.

“Why?”

“No one wants to eat a hairy roast beef taco, sis!”

My eyes widened as what she meant finally registered in my head. “I’m not ready for that.”

“I know you say that, but just because you prepare for ‘fun’ doesn’t mean that you have to have ‘fun.’ At least this way, if you do decide to go home with someone, you will be prepared.”

I shook my head as I began to debate if I really wanted to go. “Lauren—”

“Laurel, you promised to let me find you a man however I wanted. This is what I want to do. Come on. Trust me. You’ll have a lot of fun. Pleaaaaasseee.”

“Oh my God, Lauren! Fine! I’ll go, but you better not pressure me into going home with a strange weirdo.”

“I won’t! I swear! Now, go shave your coochie, girl, while I get your outfit choices together,” she told me excitedly as she ushered me toward the bathroom, where I started the shower before leaning against the counter to look at my reflection in the mirror.

What was I getting myself into? I was feeling anxious about the whole thing. I wasn’t sure if I could handle it, but I was going to try. She was right. Not only had I promised, but this was probably the safest way to get back out there. There were so many safety precautions in place to protect all the people who attended the parties. And, add to that, Lauren would be there, so I knew I would be safe. I had no doubt that she would keep an eye on me and not let anyone mess with me. After showering thoroughly and shaving my ‘coochie,’ I got out, drying off quickly before wrapping the towel around my body. After I took a deep breath, I walked back out into the main part of her room, throwing myself down on her bed as I groaned when I saw that she was already dressed in a sexy chick costume complete with a little yellow feathered tail.

“Are you as hairless as a newborn baby?” she asked, making me groan again.

“Yes, Mom. I’m hairless.”

“Good. Now do you want to be a bunny, a chick, or a sexy Easter egg?”

“How do you make an Easter egg sexy?” I questioned, paling as the words conjured up a multitude of weird images in my head.

“You’re right. Scratch the Easter egg. Do you want to be the bunny or the chick? I’m going as a chick. Maybe you should go as one too. We are twins, after all,” she giggled.

“You’re impossible, Lauren,” I mumbled.

“Just like you. We’re two peas in a pod,” she retorted.

When Lauren threw a skimpy lingerie set at me, I held up the yellow see-through material in front of my face before glaring at her.

“You can’t be serious!”

She grinned as she held up a mask covered in yellow feathers. “I am so serious! That piece of shit cheated on you! Your divorce has been finalized for over a year, Laurel. I go to these themed parties all of the time and always take home the hottest guys! It’s time to start living again. Put your legs in the air and shake your tail feathers!” She shook the tail attachment, making the feathers move. “Sexy, right?”

“Nope!” I told her, refusing to acknowledge what she said about my husband, because she was right.

Carl had been a man-whore for the entirety of our short-lived 6-month marriage. I needed to stop holding out the hope that he would come back to beg me for another chance, even though I hated the thought of really letting go of the only man I knew in my adult life. I deserved better. I know I did, but it was still hard to wrap my mind around it. And that was why I was determined to find someone that I could potentially be with long term. I wanted to love someone, but even more than that, I wanted to be loved by someone who didn’t hurt or control me. Having had my determination renewed, I got up off the bed to snatch the sequined black bodysuit out of her hands.

“I’ll go, but I’m not going as a chick. I want to be the bunny!”

She laughed as I marched to the bathroom to get ready. “DON’T FORGET THE TAIL, MASK, AND EARS!”

It took me so long to figure out where all the stupid strings went on my body that I almost called Lauren in to help me. I didn’t know how she wore things like this all the time. It was like putting a 1,000-piece puzzle together while being blind. That’s how impossible the stringy outfit was. I would give her one party, and then I was never going to go to another one. I was already ready to go home, and we hadn’t even left Lauren’s house. My sister opened the door before leaning against the wall, giggling as she offered no help in my war against the lingerie.

“Do you need some help?” she asked, chuckling merrily.

“I could have used you like twenty minutes ago,” I snapped.

“Oh, hush, Laurie! You’ve only been in here for five minutes,” she laughed as she reached out to adjust a few strings along my shoulders. “It looks good on you! You’re going to attract every man that looks at you! Just send me one or two of the ones you don’t want.”

“I am not!”

She spanked my ass before getting unopened makeup out of the cabinet while I continued to adjust and readjust the outfit. When I was finally done, she came over to fix my tail.

“Perfect. Do your face, and let’s go.”

I rolled my eyes but obediently began to open the packages and applied the makeup to my face. When I was done, she gripped my chin, tilting it every which way before nodding her approval.

“You look great. Grab your mask, and let’s go. The party starts in about half an hour.”

We both wrapped long trench coats around us before walking out into the hallway. After checking to make sure that Ty was asleep, I followed her to the living room where her babysitter, Bianca, sat on the couch, working on a college essay. She smiled up at us.

“Are you guys heading out?”

“Yeah. Do you need anything before we leave?” Lauren asked her.

“No. Thank you for asking. I am just going to finish up this assignment, and then I’ll be going to bed,” Bianca answered.

“Perfect. I’ll wake you when I get home, okay?” Lauren told her.

“Will do. Have fun. Be safe.”

“We will. Bye, Bianca.”

When we arrived at the party a half an hour later, I was stunned to only see about a dozen people present, milling around as they chatted with others. Lauren barely managed to get us drinks before a male took her off to the dance floor, leaving me shyly standing beside the buffet table, avoiding everyone’s gazes as I wondered how long I had to stay before Lauren would think I gave it my best shot and not lecture me when I left. Alone. As I finally raised my eyes back up to scan the room, I briefly met a man’s eyes before looking away from him as a blush started to color my face. The man, dressed as a large, colorful Easter egg, approached me a few minutes later, asking me if I wanted to dance with him. I hesitated before nodding. If I didn’t at least make it appear like I was trying to make a connection, I knew that Lauren would never let me live it down. When I went to follow him onto the dance floor, I was yanked back by my little cottonball of a tail by someone who I hadn’t realized was standing behind me.

“Sorry, this little bunny is all mine tonight," a deep voice said almost possessively, sending shivers down my back. "Get lost."

I watched the Easter egg man hurry away as if he were expecting to be assaulted by the man behind me. I spun around to glare at the man who still held me hostage by the tiny little ball sitting on my ass. He didn’t let go and was pulled forward into me when I turned so suddenly. I immediately tried to back away, but his arms went around me, caging me against his body. I tilted my head back to look up at him. God, why was he so tall? His dark brown eyes glinted down at me.

“Hey, Little Bunny. Careful before we end up on the floor. Not that I’d mind.”

I swallowed hard in an attempt to keep from trembling as his husky voice sent my mind in a dozen different ways. Everything from lust for this man’s hard, muscular body to fear of what could happen if I gave myself to someone again, even if it was only for the night, filled me simultaneously. I pulled back, hoping that he would let me go without a fight, which thankfully he did.

“I’m not interested,” I said before hurrying away from him.

I knew before I had agreed to come what kind of party this was, but that didn’t keep my anxiety at bay like I hoped it would. I stopped beside my sister, who was chatting up a slightly chubby man dressed as a giant chick. I cleared my throat.

“I’m sorry to interrupt, but can we talk?”

Lauren put her hand on the man’s arm, smiling flirtatiously up at him. “Excuse me for a moment, please. I’ll be right back to play with your eggs some more.” She led me a small distance away before narrowing her eyes on me. “What, Laurel? I’ve been trying to seduce him for months, and you pulled me away the first chance I was actually getting somewhere.”

I stared at her like she had grown two more heads. We were so different. She would have a different man every night if she could, while I had always just wanted one. I crossed my arms over my chest.

“I just wanted you to know that I was leaving! I thought as my sister you would care,” I snapped.

“Why? What happened? Are you not having fun?”

“This man just tried to lay claim to me. I’m not ready, so I’m going home.”

She shook her head. “Please, don’t leave. Give the party a chance. I really do think that if you had a one-night stand, it would help you get over this avoidance of men.”

I shook my head. “I just want to go home.”

She grabbed my hands, holding them between us. “Laurel, please. If you still want to leave in half an hour, I’ll take you myself.”

I groaned. I hated when she used our bond against me. “Fine! Thirty minutes, and then I want to leave.”

She beamed at me. “Thanks, sis. Love you.”

“Love you, too,” I mumbled as she rushed away, leaving me scanning the floor anxiously for the man in the white suit, Easter egg tie, and plastic bunny mask. Oh, let’s not forget about his dominant personality. “Fuck,” I muttered as our eyes met from across the floor, and he started heading in my direction.

I turned around, determined to find a bathroom to hide in until it was time to go. This was going to be the longest thirty minutes of my life.