Things were going well for Darrell. None of his classes were giving him much trouble, and he had a job three nights a week washing dishes for one of the nicer restaurants in town, and he did some on-call landscaping on Saturdays. The best part was that he and Katherine were now having sex four or five nights a week. Although, it wasn't always nights or at his place. They were experimenting with positions, different ways to perform oral sex, and inventive ways to get each other off. They spent some time exploring and experimenting with spiritual naturism, but for the most part, they were just enjoying being around each other. As spring turned into summer, Darrell was falling for her despite his promise, and he wondered how she was not feeling the same.
They planned another Thursday hike, just the two of them, to a nice, secluded place up near timberline. To Darrell's disappointment, Katherine showed up at his place with another girl. She introduced Crystal Baker as a lab partner in one of her biology classes. They had been talking, and Katherine felt the three of them had a lot in common.
Crystal had long golden hair with a couple of random thin braids, a dimpled chin, and large but firm braless breasts accentuated by her tight t-shirt. She was attractive and had a definite hippie vibe. She was a bit shorter than Katherine, maybe 5' 6". Her running shorts, hiking shoes, and day pack indicated that she indeed meant to join them. Darrell was a little disappointed that he would not have Katherine to himself but was okay with meeting another attractive girl. He suspected that they would still get naked. Katherine enjoyed that part of their hikes as much as he did.
His suspicion was confirmed on the ride to the trailhead. They got Crystal talking, and she explained that she had naturist parents and had grown up rarely wearing clothes. Naked was just normal, and clothes were things you only wore when it was cold out or you were going to town. She said she had been homeschooled in their small desert community with other naturist kids and their parents. Her family--meaning the community--lived off the land as much as possible. Her biological mother was a PhD botanist, her father an engineer, and they were specialists in remote living.
Schooling by her academically focused parents had been rigorous, making college easy, but her drive to learn still made college stimulating. However, because of her upbringing, she found college social life challenging and confessed that she had difficulty fitting in, even after almost two years at CRM. The people she thought she might connect with were always into lots of drugs and random sex. Not that she was totally opposed to either, but those people were unhealthy in their abuse of both. Having been raised to respect her body and live healthily, she just did not fit in. She was afraid that she was becoming a bit of a loner, which she was not.
When her conversation with Katherine during last week's lab about exploring the surrounding mountains drifted to Katherine's naturist endeavors with Darrell, it made her day. She said she thought that she may have finally found people she could relate to, and Katherine was kind enough to invite her on their outing.
Darrell could not help but like Crystal. She had a wonderfully open but quirky personality, not unlike Katherine. In just a few minutes, he had learned a lot of personal things about her, and he had certainly never met anyone like her--anyone with her background. She was truly a hippy child, and he understood why she might have a hard time finding her people. Most people with similar lifestyles in college picked it up as a form of rebellion. Crystal had lived it. If she were to rebel, she would need to become a conservative banker. The one thing he thought she lacked was the maturity of Katherine, but even in that, she was endearing.
As Crystal and Katherine chatted and he focused on driving up the rough mountain road, he began to suspect Katherine was inserting Crystal into their relationship as a defensive measure. Things were becoming a little tense around the long-term relationship issue. He was open to having Crystal join them but sensed that this would be more than a one-time event, and he was becoming conflicted. On the one hand, if this was a defensive maneuver by Katherine, it was a better tactic than breaking off their relationship. On the other hand, if it was not deliberate on her part, it was an intrusion she was okay with, meaning her feelings for him were indeed not as strong as his were for her. For now, he would just go with it and see how things developed.
They arrived at the trailhead with a couple of other cars parked in the lot. Crystal was in a hurry to shed her clothes, but Darrell said they had better wait until they could go off-trail, about a mile up the hill. She reluctantly agreed to wait, but once they were out of sight of the trail, all their clothes quickly went into their packs. Darrell had often kept his shorts handy in case he came across the textile-clad, but hiking with girls made that precaution seem unnecessary. He was not going to be labeled as some dangerous sexual deviant if he were hiking in a mixed-sex group.
Darrell was even less put out once Crystal's clothes were off. He felt he was looking at one of the models in his Penthouse magazines. No tan lines. She had to have almost near-perfect dimensions for a sex goddess. Although, her tits might be a little big for hiking--too much bounce. He noticed, however, that they were pretty firm and did not swing around much. She had a nice golden bush of pubic hair. If she had any flaw, it was that her thighs and butt were a bit pudgy. Katherine's body was beautiful but lean and kind of straight. Crystal was curvy, another type of perfect. There was no hiding her femininity. They started off down a goat path of a trail that Darrell said was probably the result of hunters who appeared in the fall. Katherine surprised Darrell by walking beside him and saying quietly, "What do you think? She's pretty damn hot--huh."
He replied, "Yeah, to say the least." He regretted his response a little, but she was the one who brought it up.
A minute later, Crystal said, "Thanks so much, guys; I really need this. With the warmer weather, my clothes were feeling so confining. I so needed to get out of them and into nature. Naked in the dorm shower just does not cut it. You wouldn't believe how good this feels."
"You're quite welcome," he replied.
"I need the exercise, too," she said. "It has been a battle keeping the weight off while eating campus food, and I have not been motivated to exercise as often as I should. Katherine tells me you are a bit of an exercise and nutrition freak."
"I'm pretty into it, but I don't know about a freak. I do these hikes, trail running, calisthenics-like exercises, yoga, and some martial arts. And I try to eat healthy food."
"That sounds like a lot of exercise."
"I mix it up, but it's a challenge some days to fit it in with school and part-time jobs, and keeping motivated is also an issue."
"I'm afraid I'm a distraction, too," Katherine said.
"Yeah, but I definitely don't mind," he replied. "I get plenty of extra nightly exercise when you're around, and it's my favorite form of exercise."
"It would be cool to work out with you," said Crystal, "Oh--I know what you were talking about. I didn't mean your nighttime activities, not that I would mind; that would be fun too, but I meant the yoga and stuff. It would help motivate me to get in shape again. Especially because Katherine tells me you can work out naked in your yard, and any naked time is good for my head. It would be a lifesaver, but only if you wanted to. I didn't mean to sound like I was inviting myself."
Other than sex and hikes, Katherine had never wanted to work out with him. She was just naturally fit and did not seem to need to or want to exercise. He did not know what to say to Crystal in front of Katherine but said, "That could be fun."
"You guys should do it. It's really not my thing. What do you think, Crystal?"
She didn't answer and seemed introspective. Finally, she said, "Guys, I'm sorry. It just occurred to me that I've completely intruded on your day. I was just so excited that I found people to be naked with and go for a hike. I didn't think that maybe the two of you wanted to have a private hike."
"It's okay, Crystal," said Katherine, "It's fun having you along. I was the one that asked you to come. Remember?"
