Just Before the Concert

It was Mark's lousy luck that the men's choir was to perform at uber-liberal Jenkins College on April 1. At least that was how his sophomore mentor on the choir, Charles, felt about it when he arrived at breakfast that morning just before they left for the concert. Or it just might prove to be a stroke of great luck for Mark. That, Charles figured, was probably up to him at this point. But it did assuage his guilt a bit.

The guys had been teasing Mark all week with hints about how utterly, perversely radical Jenkins College was, including one particular quirk that Mark would just have to partake of when they got there. Charles reported to Chris and Mike at breakfast that their April Fool's ruse had been a complete success, whether he approved or not. "Guys, I think you could tell him the place is a nudist colony at this point, and he'd probably believe you!"

"Thank heavens it isn't," Chris quipped. "The one weekend out of the whole season that the women aren't joining us!"

"Would you really want to go to a nudist colony with that crowd anyway?" Mike asked.

"Dude, what are you talking about?" Chris replied. "Our ladies are beautiful!" He cast a longing eye across the dining hall at the table where the women's choir was congregating for their own solo trip. Most of them were in sweatshirts and jeans, their gowns packed away to be changed into at their destination; but even dressed casually they were a lovely bunch, with their coiffed hair and well-tended figures. Though some of them were longtime platonic friends, Chris had no qualms about admiring them all without a stitch of clothing among them. That was one drawback to a college as conservative as his own politics and attitude -- it did mean the women didn't put out for the most part.

"No, I mean the Jenkins girls," Mike said. "Bunch of smelly hippies -- I do

not

need to see them naked, and I don't want them corroding our lovely ladies with their crazy feminist ideas either."

"Sure gonna miss our ladies on the bus, though," Charles said. "No offense, but it's gonna be a long two hours with all you guys and just Patty, Lynn and Tanya."

"Speaking of whom," Mike asked, "Charles, I take it you've got them in on the joke?"

"Oh, uh, of course." Charles hoped he didn't sound too nervous. "Yeah, they're fine with it," he said.

"You don't look too sure," Chris said.

"Well, guys, I'm not," Charles confessed. "Doesn't this all seem kind of mean-spirited for an April Fool's joke? What's Mark really done to deserve to be humiliated like this?"

"Don't go soft on us, Charles," Mike ordered. "We all went through it when we were freshmen. I got handcuffed to my bed at a hotel on the spring break tour, and they freed me with just about one minute to get dressed before the bus left. I got my suit on, no harm done."

"I guess that just doesn't seem as bad as this, though," Charles said. "I feel sorry for Mark."

"Don't," Chris said. "If anything, the little brat ought to thank us for helping him grow up."

"I do feel kind of bad for Patty and them, though," Mike said, "Having to bother with a brat like Mark at all."

"Then maybe they should've kept their tits out of our men-only trip," Chris said. "I don't know what Miles was thinking, having us do a piece that needs three women on the only trip we've got to ourselves."

"It's a beautiful piece," Charles countered. "And I wonder if the girls want to be there any more than we want them there."

"They volunteered," Mike said. "Mrs. Peters asked for one soprano and two altos, and apparently she had plenty of volunteers to choose from."

"Figures they wouldn't want to leave us alone even this one lousy weekend," grumbled Chris. "Good for them agreeing to help us out with Mark, though."

"I guess." Charles figured it was best not to push the subject any harder anyway. His own April Fool's initiation having involved a fairly harmless prank about wearing his tux to a dress-down party, he concluded there were certain things he was never going to understand. Like why the men's choir called their director by his first name -- Miles -- while his wife's charges in the women's choir called her Mrs. Peters. Or why their very conservative Catholic college had anything to do with radical colleges like Jenkins in the first place. Or why anyone felt it was necessary to humiliate the new arrivals in the choir before welcoming them fully into the fold. Did the women do that, he wondered, letting his gaze wander to their table? Most of all, would his role in today's April Fool's trick put an end to the whole silly thing? He could only hope, both for himself and for Mark!

He was still thinking about all that when several other choir members -- including Mark -- arrived, so there was no further opportunity to comment on the matter. Just as well, Charles figured. A burst of screeches and laughs as Andy Burwell was treated to his freshman April Fool's joke -- a spurt of what looked like hot sauce but was really disappearing ink -- turned Charles' attention elsewhere for the moment anyway.

"So, tell me again," Mark said to Charles as the bus hurtled through the drizzly early spring morning not long afterward. "A coed locker room? And isn't it mostly guys using it, hoping to see a girl or two?"

"I dunno, probably," Charles said reluctantly. Figuring he had no choice, he went on. "But this is Jenkins College we're talking about. Maybe you've heard how most of the students there are gay anyway. Maybe that's why they started the coed locker room, some of them might be more comfortable that way."

"I hope Patty and Tanya and Lynn are okay with it," Mark said, casting a glance at the back of the bus where the trip's three token women were immersed in their own conversation. They all looked quite happy at least -- no sign of trepidation at being cast in with all the guys when it was time to change for the concert.

Charles laughed. "No, Mark, it's optional! There's a locker room for men only and one for women only, and then there's the coed one. Anyone who doesn't feel comfortable with it doesn't have to have anything to do with it! But you never know about Patty and them -- they did volunteer for this trip, after all."

"God, I hope so," Mark said with another, unapologetically longing look at the trio. Lynn, a lithe Asian, and flaxen haired Tanya were both cute, but it was tall Patty with her shaggy red hair and full figure whom Mark found truly enticing. As Mark took another discreet look at their corner of the bus, he saw Patty was in the midst of a joke that the others found hilarious, and was even treated to the sight of her generous breasts jiggling a bit as she laughed.

"You like Patty, don't you?" Charles had only the slightest reason to believe as much, but he was hopeful about it.

"Well...yeah," Mark admitted. "She's really nice, the few times we've talked at least, and I've been hoping to get to know her better. And that body!"

"You don't mind a woman taller than you, then?" Charles asked.

"Not at all! Those long legs...and she's just so...big, but not fat, you know? Proportional, I guess."

"Proportional! Yeah, that's sexy, Mark. Honestly, I'm a bit intimidated by women who are bigger than me." But privately he was delighted with Mark's revelation.

"Careful what you wish for," said Chris from behind them, having overheard the whole conversation. "Amazons like her are usually ball-busters. A guy who graduated last year, Sam Huritz -- Charles knows him -- she once slugged him just for flirting with her."

Charles couldn't keep up the charade for that. "Yeah, I remember Sam," he said. "The guy was a creep, always coming on like a freight train. I don't know what Patty did to him, but he probably deserved it. Pretty sure Mark wouldn't mistreat her like that."

"We'll see, if they do end up together in the coed locker room and you show too much interest, Mark," Chris warned. "I'd avert my gaze if I were you. Even if she doesn't attack you, you might not like what you see anyway. Anyone that big and tall probably has a dick hidden in there somewhere anyway."

"Aw, I don't know if I want to use the coed locker room anyway," Mark confessed, with another look back at the women. "Look at them, comfortable with us...I don't want to abuse that."

"Mister Sensitive here," Chris grumbled. "If they use the coed room, then they don't mind having you there, don't you think?"

"Makes sense to me, Mark," Charles said.

Mark thought longingly of the chance at a discreet look at Patty in her underwear -- he didn't even dare imagining her naked; it just felt disrespectful -- and felt a salacious smile growing on his face. Charles and Chris clearly approved. "We'll see," he said at last, wondering if he could be brave enough to put on the same show for Patty, and if she'd even want to see it. But there was only one way to find out!

It was a long drive, and as the bus approached Jenkins, the conversations died down as many of the students fell asleep. Mark did his best to join them, but the potential of later in the day was just too enticing. Chris was no doubt right, if Patty and the others were brave enough to change in the coed room, they ought to be fine with seeing and being seen by others. He did his best not to get his hopes up too high on the whole thing, but it was a losing battle and he knew it.

The bus finally pulled to a stop just in time for lunch, which was to be served at the Jenkins dining hall. Charles was tasked with detaining Mark after the meal long enough for Chris and Mike to get to the concert hall and complete the ruse. Despite his misgivings, he was now happy to do that as he saw things just might go perfectly. Throughout lunch he did his best to engage Mark in conversation, which was easier than usual as Mark was unusually talkative. "So this is crazy Jenkins," he said, looking around the dining hall at the students. "Funny, they don't really look that different from us, do they?" he asked. "Maybe dressed a little more casually than we usually do, but otherwise?"

"Can't really tell by looking, I guess," Mark said, noticing with some relief out of the corner of his eye that Mike and Chris were getting up to leave. "They say the girls here are a lot freer, but a lot of them like other girls, too."

"I think I could get used to being around that," Mark said. Inevitably, though, his eye was drawn two tables over to Tanya, Lynn and Patty, who were engaged in comfortable conversation with a couple of their senior guys.

"Yeah, I'll bet you could, Mark," Charles said with a grin. "But all the time? I think the place would run us ragged." Figuring Mike and Chris had enough of a head start, he stood up and flashed the agreed-upon hand signal at the women; Tanya saw him and nodded. "Shall we head over now?"

Mark looked as nervous as he felt. "Sure," he said, standing up. "I'm still not entirely sure I want to try this coed locker room, but..."

"Oh, do it!" Charles said. "Just this once, do it, then you'll always know you were brave enough to give it a try!"

"Are you going to?" Mark asked.

"Me? No, sorry," Charles said. "I did last year and it was great fun, but...well, Lynn is a good friend of mine from way back. It'd be like my sister seeing me naked. No thanks!"

"I guess I've got no such excuse," Mark said.

"Yes, and come on, you're hoping for a look at Patty, aren't you?"

"I cannot tell a lie," Mark said with a grin. "Not sure how I feel about being able to look but not touch, but hey."

"But hey," Charles repeated, once again torn between shame at being roped into the whole thing and pride at what he might well be pulling off. "Well said, Mark. Just relax and enjoy it. After all, she'll probably enjoy the view too!"

They made their way to the back door of the concert hall, where their suits were waiting on a portable rack that Miles and Mrs. Peters had managed to get in from the bus without getting anything wet in the early spring drizzle; Mark and Charles each found theirs and took them off the rack. Mark had of course gotten a bit wet on the walk over, and a shower before changing was sounding just delightful at the moment. And if he got to share the communal shower with a willing female, why not? That thought did away with the last of his reservations about the coed locker room. "Okay, where is it?" he asked Charles.

"It's over here," said Mike, who was standing with Chris by a swinging door they had propped open. Both were dressed for the show. "It's empty at the moment, but odds are you'll get some company soon enough."

"We did," added Chris. "I know Mike doesn't think so, but I think these hippie chicks are hot. What a show!"

"Go ahead, Mark," said Charles, patting him on the back. "Wish I could join you."

"The feeling isn't mutual," Mark quipped, eyeing the doorway hungrily. "I don't need the competition!"

"See you backstage," Mike said, as Mark stepped inside. As soon as he was all the way into the locker room, he and Chris stepped back and let the door swing shut, revealing the WOMEN sign on it.

Charles took a long look at the sign. "Man, that's cold, guys," he said.

"He'll get over it," Mike said. "Might get him to grow up a bit, too."

Indeed, Charles thought with a spark of hope that he managed not to show.

Mark wasn't sure what to expect. But what he found was a perfectly ordinary locker room, the absence of urinals being the only difference he could detect from any other locker room he'd ever been in. That raised no red flags with him, as he figured even in a coed locker room there were certain things that were not to be shared. He had half-hoped, half-feared that Mike had been wrong and there would be a woman in the room. But he had the place to himself for the moment. His damp skin prickling with naughty excitement, Mark opened an empty locker and hung his suit inside, and set about undressing for the shower.

He sat down on the bench to remove his sneakers and socks first, and only just had them off when he heard the door swing open. His heart leapt into his throat as he heard Patty's voice approaching. "I don't think she'd read the book," she was saying.

"Does she ever, you think?" came another voice, which Mark was nearly sure was Lynn's. Mark picked up his shoes and socks and looked expectantly in the direction of their fast approaching voices and footsteps.

Tanya appeared first, with Patty and Lynn just behind her. Mark had just enough time to wonder if he should just look down and act casual before Tanya saw him and dropped the hanger holding her gown in shock. "Eeeeee! Mark?! What the hell? This is the women's locker room!"

Mark somehow wasn't surprised that his presence hadn't gone over well. But he stuck to his guns. "No, it's the coed locker room. Didn't they tell you about that? There's one for men and one for women, and then there's this one."

"What?!" Lynn asked. "Don't be absurd, Mark, there's no coed locker room here. Or anywhere, I don't think! Is this your idea of an April Fool's prank or what? I know some of the other guys have issues with us horning in on their trip, but I didn't have you pegged as one of those!"

"Yeah, why didn't you tell them if they wanted to harass us, they ought to do it themselves?" Tanya added.

"No, it's not an April Fool's trick!" Mark insisted. "I wouldn't do that to you! They told me..." And then it dawned on him. "Oh my God." He sat down on the bench and buried his face in his hands. "This is so embarrassing. Yeah. It

is

an April Fool's trick, and I'm the victim. They told me this was a coed locker room, and I was so stupid I believed them!" He dared look back up at the three women, and was pleasantly surprised that they all looked sympathetic rather than angry. "Please, you've got to believe me, I would never invade your private space like that! Not on purpose, anyway."

To his immense relief, Tanya, who had been by far the most strident of the three, was the first to reply. "I believe you, Mark. It sounds exactly like something Chris and Mike would pull. Patty, Lynn, what do you think?"

"I agree," Patty said. "It's okay, Mark, we know it's not your fault. I know the men's choir has this tradition where they humiliate all the freshmen one way or another on April Fool's Day. You should see some of the stuff they pulled my freshman year. I remember thinking, why would you do that to a friend?"

"I believe you too," Lynn added. "No hard feelings, Mark."

"Thank you," Mark said. He picked up his shoes and socks and stood up hurriedly. "I'd better get out of here before someone else comes in, I guess. The sooner I let the guys get their digs in over this, the sooner it's over." He turned his back to retrieve his suit from the open locker, giving the women just enough time to exchange knowing looks.

"Actually, Mark, don't leave," Patty said.

Mark turned back to her in disbelief. "What?"

"Stay," Patty said. "Let's have the joke be on them instead of you."

"If you don't mind, that is," Lynn said, teasingly unbuttoning the top button of her blouse and offering him a glimpse at her bra. "We wouldn't want to make you uncomfortable, after all."

"But you're not making us uncomfortable," Tanya reassured him. "In fact, I think it sounds like a kick having you join us."

"You're sure..." Mark was so excited he could barely breathe, but he also knew too-good-to-be-true when he saw it.

"Have we got to undress to convince you that we are?" Patty said, hanging her gown in another empty locker. "Because we all want to shower after that bus ride anyway, and we're running out of time for that." Without another word, she pulled her sweatshirt and t-shirt over her head, and Mark found himself treated to the beautiful sight of Patty's generous breasts cupped in a lacy forest green bra. Eventually remembering his manners, he tore his gaze away and looked back up at her face, which met his eyes with an uninhibited look of welcome.

"What's the matter, Mark?" said Lynn. "Surely you've seen a bra before?"

Mark looked over to see she and Tanya were also in their bras. "I have now," he admitted. "It's beautiful, too. So very feminine and you fill it out really well."

He immediately regretted that last comment, but Patty smiled and said, "Thanks! You're sweet. Most guys just want to tear it off."

I guess I'd better follow your lead." He hastily took his shirt off.

"You're a virgin?" asked Patty, who now had her jeans off as well. "I mean, if this is the first time you've seen a woman in her bra..."

"Aren't most of us virgins at that place?" asked Mark. "Conservative school and all."

"I think you'll find most of your buddies don't take all that as seriously as you'd think, Mark," Tanya said. She was the first to have all her clothes off, and showed no sign of annoyance at Mark's adoring gaze at her body. He had heard most blondes were nearly hairless down below, and sure enough, Tanya was. Just a few light wisps of hair framed the readily-visible cleft of her vulva. Lynn's dainty but dark bush was a fascinating contrast, and she was equally unashamed to have it on display for Mark.

Last but not least, he turned back to Patty just in time to see her pulling her panties down to reveal a thick, dark triangle that rivaled his own bush. Instantly his crush on Patty intensified with the sight of the delightful feminine mystery cloaked between her long legs. It was going to be an awful trial to be so close by her in the shower and not get to run his fingers through that, but he was beyond thrilled just to have seen it. She had saved her bra for last, and seemed to enjoy his admiration as she removed it. "Like what you see, Mark?" she asked, rubbing under her breasts and returning his gaze as he pulled his jeans and boxers off in one swoop, thus revealing that he did indeed like it.