'Where do all my socks keep disappearing to?' Katie yelled from her bedroom. 'I swear the washing machine eats them or something.'
In his own room Nick glanced over to his bed, as Katie continued to yell and throw things around searching for her missing socks. She'd never find them hidden under his mattress, of that he was certain. For months he'd been taking them from her laundry while she was at college and secreting them away for his own personal use. He briefly considered fetching one out for some pre-work relief, but changed his mind as Katie stormed past his open door.
'I bet your stuff doesn't go missing,' she pouted, before yelling downstairs again. 'Found any, mum?'
'None down here,' their mum shouted back. 'Anyway, I haven't got time to look. I'm off to work. Bye both!'
Nick heard the front door slam, and Katie made a drawn-out groan. She stomped up to his room and stood in his doorway pouting.
'What am I gonna do? I can't go out like this, can I?' She indicated with her hands, and Nick's gaze slowly moved downward. Under her skirt, she was wearing one knee-high sock in vibrant green and black stripes, while her other foot was bare. Nick's eyes widened as he noticed her black-painted nails. He swallowed, before tearing his gaze away.
'You could... wear flip-flops?' he suggested a little hopefully. The idea of seeing his sister in summer footwear gave him a little thrill.
'In this weather? Yeah, sure,' she sighed. Outside the sky was a dull grey and rain was lashing down, as it had done all week.
'I dunno, then. Plastic bags?' he laughed. Katie gave him a look, and headed back to her room. Moments later he could hear her trashing her room again and grumbling. Nick sat back in his chair, and let out a long relieved sigh. She hadn't noticed his erection, despite the fact that he was only wearing his boxers. It was a close one, and no mistake. In future, he'd have to make sure his door was closed.
Noticing the time, he hurriedly dressed and headed to work, calling 'Bye, Katie,' over his shoulder as he rushed out.
Time in work passed slowly, and while Nick considered texting Katie to ask whether she'd found any socks, he was sure it was better not to let his mind wander back onto her legs and feet. By three, though, Nick was feeling a familiar urge and decided to clock out of work early. A half hour later, with the rain still pouring down, he let himself back through the front door and stood in the hallway dripping water onto the carpet.
'Anyone home?' he called, knowing full well that Katie and his mum would be still at work and college respectively. Silence was the only reply, and Nick smiled. He could already feel a thrill of excitement running through his body, and shedding his coat on the floor he practically ran up the stairs to his room. He could practically already feel the fabric of Katie's socks on his skin; smell her sweet foot scent. His mind raced as he burst into his room, and suddenly he stopped.
Katie was in his room. On his bed. Dressed the same as she had been that morning, one bare foot and all. Her mascara, however, was smeared around her eyes. And around her, scattered on his bed and on the floor, were more than a dozen socks.
She looked up at him and appeared to be struggling with something for a moment, before her eyes filled with tears. 'You fucking sicko,' she muttered quietly, before stifling a sob and repeating herself louder. 'You. Fucking. Sicko.' Her lip trembled, and Nick could feel his legs begin to shake. All he could do was stare at her, his mind racing as to what to say. He opened his mouth, but before he could form any words she spoke again.
'Sit down, Nick. Sit down,' she sniffed. 'I think we need to talk.'
Nick nodded, and with trembling limbs he headed to his desk and slumped on the chair.
'What is... this?' Katie asked him, waving her hand around to indicate the socks he'd stolen. She looked up at him, staring with tear-filled eyes directly into his.
'Katie... I...'
'No. No. You listen to me, Nick,' she said, her voice low and calm as she continued to stare. 'I came in here to see if you'd accidentally put any of my socks in with yours, and as I was looking I noticed one hanging out from under your mattress. So I lifted it up, and found all of these.'
Nick's heart raced, not even willing to speak.
'Oh, and look what else,' she snarled, lifting some magazines from the bed and throwing them on the floor. He stared blankly at them as they fell at his feet. Leg Show. Foot Parade. Toes n' Soles. Nick bit his lip.
'Tell me what all of this is, Nick. The truth,' she pursed her lips.
Nick looked down at the magazines again, and took a deep breath. His pulse raced and he could feel his whole body trembling, unsure of what to expect. He'd never told anyone about any of this side of him.
He licked his dry lips with an equally dry tongue, and looked at her.
'Katie, I have... well, it's called a foot fetish,' he paused, but she said nothing. 'I get turned on by feet. I got these magazines and, well, y'know. And then one day I found one of your socks in my clean washing, and I just thought... well, you can guess.'
'Tell me, Nick,' she said quietly.
'Well, I wanked into it, Kate,' he said, his face burning red. 'I wanked into your sock.'
She stood up and looked down at him, and then smacked him across the face. He gasped with shock, but Kate had already started to shout.
'You wanked into my sock? That's disgusting! That's... Jesus, that's so perverted!'
'I know, Katie. I know,' he said, his voice wavering with shock and his throat tight as he held back tears himself. The words began to pour out of him. 'I'm so sorry but once I'd started I couldn't stop it and then I started taking more socks and I just... I couldn't help myself, Katie.'
She sat back down on the bed, hugging her arms around herself. 'Freak,' she muttered. Nick looked down, and Katie drew her legs up. 'Don't you dare look at my feet, Nick,' she said.
Nick couldn't speak. He didn't know what was going to happen next. Would she tell their mum? Would she tell the police? They sat in silence together for what seemed like an age, before she got up in silence and walked out, slamming the door behind her.
* * * * * *
Days passed, and other than being civil with each other, Katie and Nick didn't communicate at all. Nick's collection of her socks had been discarded by him that day, and she'd bought new ones that she kept a close eye on. Their mother, if she had noticed the awkwardness, didn't mention it to either of them. Then a week later, as Nick was getting dressed for work and their mum left the house, he heard a tentative knock on his bedroom door.
'Nick, can I come in?' It was practically a whisper.
'Sure.'
She came in already dressed for college in her typically 'alternative' style - knee-high striped socks, hefty boots, t-shirt and skirt. He smiled weakly at her and sat in his chair as she stood awkwardly in the doorway.
'We need to talk again, Nick,' she said quietly.
Nick immediately started. 'I haven't taken any of your things, Katie. Not since...'
'I know,' she interrupted. 'I keep a count of them all now. My socks, I mean.' She let out a small nervous laugh.
Nick grimaced. 'So what did you want to talk about?'
She hovered in the doorway, as if deciding whether to stay or go. Then she stepped in and sat down on the bed opposite Nick.
'What you did was really disgusting, you know,' she said.
'Yeah yeah, I know. Look, you can go if you've just come in here to call me names.'
'No, no. It's not that.' She fidgeted a little. 'It is disgusting, yeah, but the thing is I keep thinking about it.'
'I'm sorry, Kate. I didn't want to like, scar you for life or anything. Really I didn't.'