When I woke up the next morning I found both myself and the bed pleasantly dry. Nevertheless, I wasn't taking any chances. I headed straight for the bathroom, then straight for the shower, then straight for the drain hole. Draining myself of excess semen took less than twenty seconds and after than, pissing was a breeze.

When I left the bathroom, I found Mom standing naked in the hallway. "Adam, there you are," she said. "We have crepes and blintzes in the kitchen. Get 'em before they disappear!"

Despite the events of the last week, I really would've preferred to put something on. My mom, however, my naked mom was standing between me and my room and seemed ready to give me a pat on the butt. In the other direction, nothing but the stairs separated me from the kitchen, the crepes, and the blintzes. I chose the stairs.

My dad was already in the kitchen, reading the newspaper and rapidly downing pastries. I took the last two crepes and one blintz, and Dad handed me the sports section. He was as naked as I, which is to say, totally.

"So how'd it go yesterday?" he asked after finishing the article he was reading.

"Oh, pretty well. We did some shooting over rough country, then at the beach where we were stranded, then at a fake campsite that was actually in a resort."

"Did they deliver that Jeep like they promised?"

"Yeah, it's great, all tricked out, runs perfectly. Vivian can just about make it tap dance."

"You never drove a Jeep, did you?"

"No, I'm learning. It's fun, though."

"I always wanted a dune buggy," said Dad, a faraway look in his eyes. "When am I going to meet this girlfriend of yours?"

"You mean Vivian? Like I told Mom, she's more of a project than a girlfriend."

"I see," remarked Dad, even though I suspected that he didn't.

"Are you going to help Ben clean up after his party?" Dad asked.

"I suppose I should," I replied.

Dad returned to his paper. I finished eating, then ran upstairs, put on my PDA, and told it to call Ben.

"Dude, what's up?" he answered within a few seconds.

"I wondered if you needed any help cleaning up."

"There's a lot left to do," Ben admitted. "If you want to come over, that'd be great."

"It doesn't look like anyone's getting dressed," I observed. The screen showed Ben naked from at least the waist up, and I could see both Dan and Teah naked in the background.

"OK, I'll be there in about twenty minutes," I told Ben, and then we disconnected.

Once again I would have preferred to put some clothes on. But I decided if everyone else was going to be naked, I'd probably look foolish. So instead I just grabbed a t-shirt and shorts, threw them in the back seat, and headed over to Ben's.

Actually, the place didn't look that bad. Most of the food packages, napkins, and paper towels were already raked. Ben was wearing one of his skirts, I mean kilts, and was sorting leftover clothes into separate piles for boys and girls. Dan and Teah were still naked, and they were folding up blankets and sleeping bags.

"You, too, eh?" Dan greeted me.

"Oh, you mean naked? Well, I called Ben a little while ago and saw you two in the background. I thought Ben was naked too, not just from the waist up."

"Well, Teah kind of talked me into this. She thought we shouldn't go cold turkey into The Program tomorrow. Kinda get used to it today, you know?"

"I take it the same argument didn't work for Ben," I remarked.

"Yeah, he's got a tough problem, there," Dan explained. "I guess one of the nanobot companies is trying to perfect that mod, but only one in a thousand guys are candidates. And even then it only works one percent of the time. So they keep trying it and studying it."

"Why would Ben agree to such a thing?"

"I guess when they found he was a candidate, they offered him a couple of new computers, some gift certificates, and a few thousand bucks to try it. And he figured what the hell, there was a 99% chance of nothing happening. Be careful, though; he's still touchy about the whole deal."

"Those four girls from Outer Midlands sure seem to like it."

"Yeah, I guess that's the consolation. So, Adam, are you just gonna stand around or are you actually gonna do some work?"

Of course, I did some work. First I netted all the junk out of the pool, then I helped bag up all the rakings. Dan and Teah finished folding up the blankets, then we all cleared the food tables, folded them, and put them away. The place actually looked pretty sharp; ready for another party, in fact.

A little past one o'clock I called my mom's number and got voicemail. That was a good sign, but even so I called the receptionist.

"Bogswamp Realty," she answered.

"Hi, this is Adam Jonson," I explained. "I'm looking for my mom, Cynthia."

"Oh, hi, Adam. Well you know, a few minutes ago a girl came in and asked for your mom, and the two of them went into Mr. Bogswamp's office. I believe they're still there."

"Was this girl naked?"

"Ah, you know, I think she was, now that you mention it."

"OK, I'll call back later," I told the receptionist, then we disconnected.

Ben, Dan, and I shook hands and made plans to meet outside the gym at ten after eight the next morning. Then, of course, I said goodbye to Teah and headed over to Bogswamp's. My mom was at her desk, looking through some paperwork.

"How's it going?" I asked.

"Mr. Bogswamp's talking to Vivian now," Mom explained. "It seemed to be going pretty well while I was in there. Mr. Bogswamp showed Vivian a typical package of forms, and started explaining how a side tab shows each place the client has to sign."

"Well, Vivian can do that."

"Oh, you don't know the half of it. Your girl Vivian started speed reading the forms, then started asking questions about the real estate business. They were good questions, too; even Mr. Bogswamp had trouble answering some of them. She also spotted two mathematical errors, and believe me, we've been using that software a long time. I never saw anyone do interest and depreciation in their head like that. And just like yesterday, her speech was very professional. Oh look, here they come."

Sure enough, Vivian and Mr. Bogswamp were walking together toward Mom's desk. Mr. Bogswamp was smiling from ear to ear, but Vivian looked like she'd seen a ghost.

"Cynthia, I think this is going to work out fabulously," said Mr. Bogswamp. "Vivian, here, obviously knows her way around town, and she's going to be a whiz at organizing all this paperwork and explaining it to the clients. I bet she cuts way down on errors, too. Her demeanor is courteous and correct. She's got the job.

"Now, Vivian, today you need to talk to the receptionist and fill out the standard employment forms. Then Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, you'll need to report at four o'clock for training with the day courier. You'll also need to study the Notary Public and Bonded Courier manuals and then go downtown for a couple of tests. But I'm sure none of that will be a problem. The pay will be as we discussed, including medical, plus you'll get mileage for driving your own vehicle. Do we have a deal?"

"Yes, sir," said Vivian, in about as faint as voice as I've ever heard her use. Then, she found her way to the receptionist and began filling out forms.

"I don't know what you're up to, Adam, but I think this girl Vivian is going to do very well here," said Mom.

"Mom, that girl is so capable at so many things, it's just scary. But she's never found the right way to apply herself. Plus, she keeps bouncing from one home to another, all over the country. In some ways I don't like her that much, but in her own way she seems to like me, and she probably did save my life last week. I'd hate to see her just heading nowhere."

"Well, you're a kind person to help her like this, Adam."

"Thanks for helping me out, Mom," I said, and then I gave her a hug and kissed her, naked and all. For a second, anyway.

A few minutes later, Vivian finished her paperwork and called me outside. Without speaking she led me to the Jeep, but she didn't get in. Instead, she just stared at me.

"What's up?" I asked.

"That's what I should be askin' you, Yonson. Why'd you do all this?"

"All what?"

"The injections. The commercials. The Jeep. And now this job."

"I just, well, I just made a few phone calls. That's all. Don't make a big deal out of it."

"Well, you're buttin' into my life, Yonson. What's that about? You tryin' to control me? You tryin' to set me up so you can knock me down?"

"Look, Vivian, if anybody butted into someone else's life, it was you. Last week I couldn't get away from you. Before that you kept popping up at all the worst times. You couldn't leave me alone, could you? What was that all about?"

"You just seemed like a guy who had everything, Yonson. I wanted to see how you did it. I been dealin' with some personal issues lately, you know?"

"Look, Vivian, I'm not even close to having everything. I have my faults and my limitations like anyone else. I know you had some issues. I thought maybe if I helped you out, you'd go a little easier on me. So I made some calls, I looked up some information, and I talked to some people. Don't make such a big deal out of it."

"Don't make such a big deal? Yonson, my life would be shit right now if it weren't for you! Now, what's this all about?"

"Vivian, you have a brilliant mind. You're way ahead of me at school. You found your way through a terrible childhood. Along the way you've probably seen more of the world than anybody else in our school, maybe anybody else in town. But you just don't know how to ask for help, do you? How'd you get all those aunts and uncles, or whoever they were, to take you in?"

"I did my little-lost-girl number, and I pestered 'em, and they felt sorry for me. But that's not workin' anymore. I'm too close to grown up."

"Did you ever have a friend, Vivian? Someone you could ask for help, and they'd help you? Someone you could really trust?"

"No. I tried, but they always screwed me over."

Vivian turned around and rested her forehead on the roll bar. A few cars drove by and honked. We both waved. Some home buyers parked next to us and went inside. I saw my mom checking on us from the office window, but only for a second.

"So, you got your way, Jonson. I owe you," said Vivian. "What's your price? Might as well get it over with."

"Vivian, you have nothing to pay off. A week ago you risked your life to save mine. If anything, I'm the one who owes you."

Vivian spun around to face me. "That's bullshit, Yonson, and you know it! I nearly got you killed; that's what happened! How am I going to pay for that? And now I got all this other stuff to pay off, too! I owe you, Yonson! I owe you! And how can I get along now without you? I go to your doctor, we do the commercials together, you got me the Jeep, your mom put in the good word for me, and now she and I work at the same office! How can I walk away from all that? I fuckin' need you!"

"Vivian, that's not really true."

"Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. You got me good, Yonson. Walked me right into this. And I swallowed it whole. The whole banana. Oh yeah, I see it all now. Tie me down, huh? Well, I tell you what..."

"It's all right, Vivian. I know this is hard for you, but you can trust me."

"You don't know what you're askin', Yonson. I never trust anybody. I've seen way too many people get screwed. Sooner or later, you're gonna dump me and I'll be worse off than before. That's the way it always happens."

"Relationships don't last forever, Vivian, at least not most of them. But even when they end, they don't have to end badly. We can both walk away richer. You can trust me on that."

Vivian just stared at me for a long time.

"Look, you should know by now that I don't break promises," I finally said.

Vivian looked deeply into my eyes, her face showing an inexplicable mix of emotions. A tear ran down her cheek. "So, you promise? You really promise?" she finally said.

"Yes, Vivian, I promise. Want a hug? We'll seal it with a hug."

"Oh, Adam!" she cried, somehow enfolding me tightly and tenderly all at once. Then we headed out of town and hours later, when things calmed down, Vivian gave me the off-road ride of the century.

I love it when a plan comes together.

Many thanks to Bill Morgan for proofreading this story.

Watch for the next installment in this series:

Adam and Vivian Naked In School – Week Two: The Program

by caultron