They did not stay too long after that. They had gotten way more than what they came for, and I, like a ditz had played into the foolish trap set by my own pride. I had been so certain there was no way I would have to admit my true hair color. As they left the restaurant, I realized that soon they would be seeing the glaring proof with their own eyes. I was already so embarrassed, I couldn't imagine how I would soon feel when I had to, God-help-me, waitress for them in my birthday suit. The fact that they were making me wear my white socks and shoes only seemed, in my mind to accentuate how exposed the rest of me would really be.
I went home to my small apartment that had been such a luxurious upgrade from the dorm room and sat down on my futon. As I had said earlier, I came from a small town and had been the prettiest girl in my high school. I was also the bustiest. The fact that my development had sort of been explosive my junior year had led to a very typical self consciousness about my own body. Just working at Hooters had been a huge, and frankly, unbelievable step that had come about because of an almost pathological need to please and fit in and that had manifested in the person of Gena the sophomore that seemed to have all the answers and the world by the tail.
"Gena," I thought she will know what to do. I picked up the phone, but just as I was dialing, I realized that I wanted as few people to know about this as possible and I set the princess receiver back in the cradle. Absently I twisted the coiled phone line, thinking.
"Maybe, I could just do it and no one would ever know," I thought. I looked at the small coffee table and saw the overdue notice for the car payment. They were going to pay a thousand dollars, and they had said the guy the party was for was sick. Oddly the fact that it was for a sick friend was the most convincing part. I had always been especially susceptible to peer pressure and a group mentality, and some might even say gullible. More though, I had always been very emotionally sympathetic and if I could not be convinced by other methods, playing on the "Awwwww" factor had never failed with me. I sat there struggling. They had challenged me...and the guy was sick and could not go out anymore.
"But nude?" I thought, my tummy almost turning with a sort of sick cringing embarrassment. "Nude! In front of a bunch of middle aged guys, and not just a quick look either...waitressing."
I went through the potential of that. I thought of having the stares and the looks at areas that were bad enough when covered in orange satin or white cotton and how it would just kill me when there was nothing obstructing their view of every detail. I swallowed hard at the thought of these customers seeing my bare breasts and worse...my..."bush". Sitting there all alone in my apartment, I turned red at the thought. Based on their behavior at the restaurant, they would not exactly be gentlemanly. The truth was that they were a lot more like over-aged high-schoolers. I doubted they would do anything that would amount to an assault, but the comments, and how they would be grinning would be hard to take. I went into the bathroom, undressed, and turned on the shower. That helped. The warm water was like a steamy, cascading cocoon and for a bit I forgot that I had been prancing around the restaurant just an hour ago, sporting an aggravated camel toe and giving a near see through t shirt show of my boobs. I turned off the water and stepped out. The bathroom was steamy, but the mirror had not fogged up and as I dried off I saw my reflection. That body was soon going to be seen, just like that. I looked at my breasts and the moderately narrow rectangle of trimmed black hair over the really bare lips below and cringed again. In a microsecond all the nervous dread returned.
I went into the kitchen and opened a bottle of White Zinfandel and drank a glass quickly. I was not much of an alcohol drinker and being small it had a quick effect. I turned on the TV. I will never forget, there was a movie about a stripper on one of the cable channels. (The money I thought would keep rolling in from that job based on that first month had led me to overspend on a lot of stuff). I knew that like the car note, the cable bill was overdue. I watched about ten seconds of the show and switched the channel over to something else. I had a second glass and already pretty blotto, I went into the bedroom, pulled on my old soft high school t shirt and a pair of panties and climbed into bed.
"Maybe," I thought slightly drunkenly it won't be as bad as you think.
Ah, alcohol.
The next day was the day before the party. I awakened to the phone ringing. Even though I had not had a huge amount to drink, my head hurt a little and I looked around with a sort of desperate thought of "what time is it?" I looked at the clock. It was eight forty and I had a nine o'clock class. I jumped out of bed and ran to the living room of the apartment and picked up the phone. Despite my intense panic about class, the voice on the other end stopped me dead in my tracks.
"Hey sleepy head, did I wake you?" The voice was distinctly male and recognizable. Suddenly it all came flooding back. I had given them my number.
"Idiot!" I thought to myself.
"Uh, yeah. I was just getting up," I said.
"Yeah, guess it was a long night. We all had fun though. You are a great sport ," he said.
"Oh...uh...thanks," was all I could come back with.
"Yeah, hey listen. I had a chance to talk with our sick friend and he is really looking forward to this. This will really lift his spirits and I just wanted you to know we are all just going to have a really great time and you are great for honoring the bet."
He was smooth. In retrospect I have to give him that. Had he taken a different approach I might have backed out despite the money. But suddenly he was acting like such a nice guy, and it was a good cause for his sick friend. I was being played and did not even catch on.
"Yeah. He has really not been doing too well, but when we told him about the party and you, it was amazing. I think it is really sweet of you to help out like this. Really sweet."
"Oh.....uh...yeah...you're welcome," I said.
"Yeah? Don't forget now, just the white socks and the shoes ok?"
"Uh yeah, I remember," said
"That's super.
"Hey," I said, "look, I don't...I haven't done anything like this before...I want to make sure....none of you guys will tell anyone, right?"
Thinking back I realize I might as well have asked them if they loved me.