It was my second night at the spa resort at Dongbei in Northern China. This was my first visit to the land of my mother's birth since I was a small child. My parents had taken a family room at the hotel for a week. I'm not quite sure what my parents were expecting but the 'family room' was somewhat different to that which one would find back in England. Essentially it was one large room with a screen dividing the space into two, with a large futon on either side. I believe that my parents had envisaged something a little more discrete for themselves and their daughter but as we were only spending a few days before moving on my father decided we would 'rough it'.
The resort was famous for its hot springs famed for their healing properties, which made for a delightfully warm bathe even when the air was chilly. During the day the springs were very busy with many local families as well as holidaymakers enjoying the waters. I was a little taken aback by the lack of modesty afforded by the traditional spa clothing. Instead of the swimsuit I had packed in expectation I was expected to wear a papery thin robe, which fastened (somewhat like a hospital robe) at the side with a loose string. I realised immediately that any bending or turning beyond the barest minimum was likely to leave myself exposed and I spent the first hour either hiding behind a rock or impersonating a statue. However as everyone else appeared to find the situation quite natural I was able to relax and soon found it easier to ignore the occasional flash of flesh that inevitably came into view as the customers splashed their way around me.
However, in the evenings the resort closed to the public and it was left to the hotel guests to enjoy. I soon discovered that a late night dip was the best time to get some privacy and I was quite able to have the whole pool to myself if I timed it right. The following night I made my way down to the changing rooms. Fortunately I didn't have to try out my faltering Mandarin as the attendant understood my difficulty immediately and from my hand gestures and perplexed expression knew just what I was after. She showed me where the changing lockers were and, perhaps due to me being a wai guo ren, she went somewhat overboard in explaining in hand signals how to put on the robe. I thanked her in English and Chinese and she smiled and nodded, satisfied that even a westerner would be capable of managing the rest of the operation. I quickly slipped out of my clothes, for a moment I hesitated whether to remove my underwear. I had realised quickly from yesterday's dip that it was usual to wear nothing under your robe yet still a certain English reserve made me stop to consider. Before I could think too much I made my decision to follow their example in the hope that I would be less likely to attract attention.
I gingerly stepped out into the cool night air, barely a hint of a breeze. I still kept tight hold of my robe ties just to be on the safe side but I need not have feared. I appeared to be the only guest exercising that evening. I waded my way out, gasping slightly as the warm water brought a flush to my face immediately. I swam a few strokes in the shallow water before settling back against a large rock so that I was completely obscured from the hotel, in complete isolation. Quite a difference from our hotel room where privacy came at a premium.
I cast my mind back to our arrival at the resort the previous day. Despite the relaxing massage we had all partaken of before retiring for the night I had found it difficult to nod off. I wasn't sure whether this was down to knowing that my parents were lying 10 feet away from me, or merely the lingering results of jet lag. Either way I found myself switching sleeping position every few minutes in an attempt to find an elusive small piece of comfort. What made it worse was that my mind, as it is wont to do on such occasions, turned to the kind of thoughts that inevitably stirred certain desires in an adolescent girl. I'm not sure if this was the residual result of seeing so much nakedness that afternoon, or the soothing effect of the masseuse's hands yet I allowed my mind to wander, despite knowing that the presence of my parents precluded any further acts.
It seems my parents may have felt a similar sense of over-stimulation. Just as I was falling into a semi-slumber I heard hushed whispers, my mother's voice. 'Quiet...she's asleep.' Her tone was loving but insistent.
'I can be quiet.' My father's reply. I heard the sound of bodies sliding under the bed sheets, followed by a gentle slap of reprimand.
'No. I don't want to wake her.' Another movement of bodies and a loud regretful sigh from my father. I tightly closed my eyes and tried to think of something else...anything else.
It was as partly as a consequence of that experience that I decided a late night dip the next day would be a good idea for all concerned. And so just as my parents were getting ready for bed I casually announced my intention, perhaps being a little too obvious in letting them know that I would be 'at least' an hour. From my mother's ever so slightly panic-stricken expression I wondered whether the thought crossed her mind that I might have heard her the previous night but I deliberately avoided eye contact and made my way from the room without further fuss.
Now as I sat in the moonlit shadow I allowed my body to relax truly and properly for the first time in days. Pleasant though it was to holiday with my parents in such a location I couldn't help but feel a little tense at spending such a length of time in such close proximity with them. Inevitably I had started to feel inhibited by the lack of freedom I was used to enjoying back home. I was very much attached to having my own personal space and found it a little stressful to have to consider others more than I was accustomed to. The water felt deliciously hot against my skin and I sunk in up to my chin to luxuriate in the feeling. The robe billowed out in the water giving me the sensation that I was completely nude. I started to get those adolescent thoughts once more, stimulated by a growing feeling of recklessness. Knowing I was out of view from prying eyes I placed my hands inside the robe. My skin felt so smooth and soft in the water and I imagined what it would feel like to have another's hands caressing my body. Inexperience counts for little when possessed of a fervent imagination and I closed my eyes and leaned backwards allowing my mind to wander where it will. Vividly remembered soft kisses and stolen secretive caresses came back to me with embellishments from my own imaginings. My hand inched its way slowly down my tummy, intent on its destination.
Suddenly my reverie was broken. A delicate splash from somewhere behind brought me to the present in an instant. I opened my eyes and adjusted the robe hurriedly. I dared not look around the rock that obscured me from view, hoping that the attendant was merely making a routine check and would depart soon. Instead I heard more soft splashes as a body made its way deeper into the pool. Presently a lithe form gracefully slipped through the water with slow steady strokes. A girl's head bobbed above the surface. Instinctively I retreated deeper into the shadows. The girl reached the far end of the pool a few meters from where I sat. She athletically lifted herself from the water to sit upon one of the rocks nearby. She was western, perhaps in her early thirties at most, tall and slim, her dark hair tied into a ponytail. The robe clung to the curves of her body, which was womanly and fully formed in a way that I wished my own could be. Without caution she quickly loosened the ties of her robe and allowed it to fall away from her shoulders. She stretched languorously; the moonlight accentuated the outline of her body. I had the strong impression I was admiring a statue of antiquity. Her skin was smooth and pale, alabaster like, in the half-light. Her stomach was gently curved and without a trace of marks of age or tiredness. Her breasts, pointed upwards to the sky as she stretched her arms high above her head, were large and soft and full.
I found myself unable to move. Some sense of propriety told me I should do something to make my presence known but I didn't have the nerve to act. I knew that she would most likely see me skulking in the shadows in the next few moments but out of embarrassment I could only bring myself to cling to the rock like a limpet unable to take my eyes from the unfolding scene. I summoned my courage and opened my mouth to cough. In the second before I could do so she looked up and saw me.
She didn't scream or shout. Instead she smiled and though I could not tell for sure in the moonlight I believe she blushed. Quickly she slipped back into the water and retrieved her robe from the rock.
'I'm so sorry. I didn't realise there was anyone there.' She whispered loud enough for me to hear as her hands struggled to fasten the robe underwater. I wanted to say something to ease the situation, to bring some playful light-heartedness to the moment but it was beyond me.
'I'm sorry.' I blushed and looked away.
The woman swam a few strokes nearer to me and alighted on another rock close by. 'You speak English?' she ventured.
'I'm from England.' I stammered.
'I'm American. My name's Lucy. Nice to meet someone I can chat with for a change.' She smiled once more. Her eyes shined, she seemed completely unfazed by the manner of their introduction.
'Usually we come down for a swim at this time and its completely deserted. I guess I've been taking things a bit for granted. It gets so busy during the day here. It's just so nice to be able to relax without anyone around, know what I mean.'
I nodded. I wondered whom she meant by 'we' but still dared not ask this elegant creature. I assumed she must be here with a boyfriend or husband but that was somehow too familiar a question to ask at that moment.
'Have you been in China long?' She asked.
'4 days.'
'This is our second week. Have you noticed how difficult it is to find any privacy in this country? I don't know about your room but the walls in ours are paper-thin. I think there's a guy in the next room to us with a severe nasal congestion problem.' She laughed. I nodded agreement and laughed too.
'I'm here with my parents. We've got a family room and I came down here to get away from them for a while.'
'Oh. If you're after some private time I'll find another spot to swim. I do apologise.'
I cut her off, perhaps a little too brusquely. I was a little perturbed by what she might mean by 'private time'.
'There's no need. You can stay here. It's fine.' I smiled and nodded my head a little.
Lucy smiled again and sat back on the rock the waterline around her waist. Out of the water the robe stuck to her body like a second skin. Her nipples were dark and large and were clearly visible through the thin material. I couldn't help admiring the contours of her chest and allowed my eyes to settle there slightly longer than was entirely appropriate. Looking across, Lucy's eyes caught mine. I flushed and looked away quickly. She didn't cover herself or even move; instead she smiled and lifted the robe slightly.
'Not exactly flattering are they?'
I wanted to tell her that she could make anything look flattering, but didn't.
'And they're not exactly modest either.' I replied, pointing to the wide gap down the side of my own robe. She giggled and lightly tugged at the gap in her own robe, which barely restrained her voluptuous curves.
'Not that I have much to hide anyway' I hurriedly added.
