The Show Must Go On

Prelude:

"Stop. Stop. It's too sensitive. I cant take any more!" Liv pushed against the top of his head while simultaneously clamping her thighs on his ears.

Martin said something muffled. The vibration and escaping air of his words tickled swollen lips. Blessedly, he stopped savaging her clitoris. Sudden relief produced the contented smile that had been warring with intense expressions on her face.

"God. That was unbelievable!" She giggled.

"I'm glad you liked it. It's a crime nobody went down on you before."

"Thank you."

"It was my pleasure. I'll treasure this memory in my spank bank."

"Hey. That's not the deal. This is 'Never Happened Night.' This never happened!"

"Well, technically, it's 'Never Happened Hour,' and that ended ten minutes ago when your pussy was trying to swallow my face."

"Never Happened Hour" had been a tradition on campus for decades. On the night when clocks were set back, events that transpired during the missing/repeated hour never happened. It usually coincided with Halloween parties, slutty costumes, excessive drinking, and coed curiosity. Liv spent her first "Never Happened Hour" performing an impromptu drunken strip tease for the girls in her dormitory suite and enjoyed her first passionate kiss from a girl. She hadn't planned to do anything like that again, but when Martin brought her a shot and asked her what naughty sexy thing she most wanted and never done, Liv inadvisedly admitted, "I'd love to be eaten."

One thing lead to another and the suede panties of her "Barbarian Princess" costume were balled up in her fist. Hot breath mingled with the scent of her own arousal. Martin's cheeks pressed against her thighs, and his tongue danced within her folds. It was delicious. It was frightening. After her orgasm, it was torture.

"Shit Martin! You aren't going to tell anybody are you?"

"That depends. Do you want to go again?"

"No. No. I have an appointment with my voice coach first thing in the morning."

"Speaking of that," he crooned in between nibbling and kissing at the edges of her pubic hair. "We need more singers for our musical production of "Les Liaisons Dangereuses."

"I've never acted, and I get stage fright singing in the back row of the choir."

"If you at least audition, I'll forget the way you're dripping on my chin right now." He smiled mischievously.

"I don't want to audition. I'm not that good. I was as surprised as anybody when I got my partial scholarship. I still think somebody made a mistake."

"They don't make mistakes. After all, they gave me a full scholarship. They know what they're doing."

"Exactly! You'll get a part for sure. It's just a waste of time for me."

"I think you're the most talented sophomore I've ever met, but you're probably right. If they aren't going to cast you, you have nothing to lose by auditioning."

"Quit teasing me. Seriously! You can't tell anybody about this. There's a guy I like. If he hears about this, he'll never ask me out again."

"Listen. I don't normally lick and tell, but this is for a good cause. The director is my best friend, and all of the proceeds go to "The Green Place."

"What's that?"

"It's a charity that plants trees and sponsors urban green fields. We're starting gardens in abandoned lots throughout the city next year. We need about fifty thousand for taxes, insurance, and maintenance for the greenhouse where we start the trees and stuff."

"That's a lot of money. How much have you raised so far?"

"We haven't raised much, but a bunch of us have been volunteering our time. There are just some things we can't accomplish without money. Ticket sales, t-shirts, and donations will raise at least ten thousand. If the show's as much of a hit as we hope, we could raise all of the money."

"When is the audition, and what should I sing?" She sighed.

"Open auditions are from 3:00 to 5:00 the rest of this week. Sign up for a time slot in the foyer of Rike Hall. Sing something from a musical or 80's pop."

"How many people are they going to cast?"

"It's a big production. The music is mostly original and scored for lots of voices. There are some choir parts and a big ballroom musical number with forty people on stage. A lot of dancers are needed too."

"Alright. If you promise that tonight never happened, I'll promise to audition. OK?"

"In that case, let me taste you one more time!"

Martin nuzzled into her. He kept away from her hot button, so the result was more playful than stimulating.

"Stop. Stop. Enough! I've got to run."

-----

Encounter:

"Hey Liv! Wait up."

"Hey Dan. Was Professor Gordon hard on you this morning?"

"He was about his usual cheerful self. How about you?"

"He said he wasn't too disappointed by my chest voice. He wants me to take yoga to strengthen core muscles."

"Wow! That's high praise from Maestro Hard Ass. He just tells me to climb out of legato hell and articulate for once."

They both laughed causing heads to turn in their direction. "Articulate! Articulate!" was Professor Gordon's mantra. He once made the freshman choir chant "Articulate" for a whole hour until he could hear all four syllables clearly at any tempo.

Dan looked into Liv's eyes while they enjoyed the moment. "Do you want to grab some lunch with me?"

"That sounds great, but I have to swing by Rike for a moment first."

"Oh, what's at Rike?"

"I promised an acquaintance I would audition for the spring musical. The sign-up sheet is there."

"You surprise me! I don't know that I have the nerve to try out for that. I'm impressed."

"I know. I have terrible stage fright. I just think about all those people in the audience and I cringe."

"Why are you doing it then?"

"It's for a good cause. I don't think I'll get a part anyway. I don't act, and there are plenty of better voices on campus. I guess I'm just doing it for the experience. I need to get used to rejection."

Dan shrugged in partial disbelief. If she was brave enough, he could try too. "Do you mind if I sign up too?"

"Sure, it'll be fun. Let's see if we can get audition times close together."

-----

Audition:

The stage manager opened the door as Liv and Dan walked up hand in hand. "Good. You're on time. Dan is it? You're up first. Give your music to the pianist. You - girl - what's your name?" The harried upperclassman consulted his clipboard. "Liv, hurry to the wardrobe room over there. See if there's a costume to fit you."

The wardrobe was an impressive collection of 18th century finery. A skinny guy wrapped a tape measure around her waist as soon as she crossed the threshold into his domain. He leaned back to appraise her thoroughly with a squint. Liv suddenly felt like a self conscious side of beef in the butcher shop window.

"You'll do. Try on the lavender courtesan dress over there."

"This one?"

"No, try the one hanging on the back of the chair."

"Is there someplace I can change?"

"Oh honey! This is theater." He said it with an exaggerated lisp.

Liv managed to squeak, "I'm really self conscious." Her chest was tightening in panic, and her throat felt like sandpaper.

The skinny guy looked impatient. "I've seen half the girls on this campus, and not one has gotten a rise out of me yet. Now, that stage manager is something else."

Liv rationalized: it would be OK since the guy was gay. The door to the wardrobe room hung wide open, so she scurried into the back corner for maximum privacy. With socks, shoes, and her folded trousers on a chair beside her, she stepped into the fancy gown. It was snug when pulled over her hips. It tugged her panties into an irritating wedgie. She simultaneously hauled up the bodice and jerked her sweater over her head.

Dan's high baritone or low tenor wafted back stage. He chose a Celtic love song from the last choir program. Liv thought he sounded better than the soloist the choir selected for that number. Choir politics sickened her, and the brown-nosers always got the best parts no matter the merit.

"Come on honey. You're up soon. Get that bra off, and I'll lace you."

Liv complied with the order, but she felt simultaneously ridiculous and embarrassed. The lacing was excruciatingly tight. Rods or sticks were built into the dress to compress her stomach and push up her breasts.

"Ha! Don't bend over too much. You have bigger tits than the last girl who wore this. I'll have to add an inch of lace."

"Is it decent?" Liv struggled to see in the full hight mirror obscured by a rack.

"It'll do for the audition. Now hurry. They're ready for you."

Liv rushed while picking at the wedgie and holding the tops of her breasts for fear she might pop out. Glancing at another reflection, she couldn't help observing that she was wearing something like the ultimate wonder bra. She never saw so much cleavage in a mirror before.

Dan passed her as she ambled onstage. He paused, and his eyes bugged out. "Awesome!" was all he said.

Liv was a sight to see in the dress. She hadn't used the hoops designed to flair the hips and raise the hem. Fabric dragged on the floor. The musical's director, a fifth year senior named Amanda Pringle, was nevertheless pleased to see how fetching Liv appeared. They'd been having trouble finding the combination of innocence and sex appeal demanded by the role of Cécile. Few underclassmen auditioned, and many of the accomplished students shied away from Amanda's production.

"What are you singing for us today? Do you have music?"

Liv cleared her throat nervously. She inhaled deeply and was surprised to find that she could fill her lungs. There must be elastic in the dress. "I have an a cappella piece."

"Go ahead then." Amanda smiled. If this girl could sing at all, she was going to play Cécile.

-----

Exposure:

"Well, how did it go?" Dan was chatting with the costume master, Barry, while waiting for her in the wardrobe room.

"It was fine. Didn't you hear? I warbled a bit, but I think I did pretty well.

There was a tall girl picking through the racks in a probably futile search for a gown.

"I'll be with you in just a moment, Darling! Let me get Honey here out of her dress first." Gay Barry was already pulling on her laces to get slack for the knot.

Just as the strain was released, a group of six students that Liv recognized from the advanced choir walked in. Liv never made it very far into the room before she was accosted, so she was jostled and bumped by the newcomers squeezing past. Barry pulled the puffy sleeves down her arms from behind and suddenly bared her breasts to the crowd.

Hands flew up to protect her modesty, but Dan and everyone else already had a peek. She turned beet red. That wasn't the way she imagined showing herself to Dan for the first time. Her fantasy was more elaborate and required him to earn the privilege.

Barry laughed, "Aren't you sweet? This is theater!" His smile was huge. Almost everyone turned back to their own conversations. Barry pulled the dress down leaving Liv standing in panties and covering her breasts.

"Hand me my sweater," she leaned her head to indicate the chair across the room.

Gentleman Dan fetched her clothes, but he didn't look away while she pulled the sweater on. He leered. Liv squirmed and hurriedly dressed with marvelous motions.

"When do we find out? Will there be call-backs?" Dan asked.

Barry told them both to come to the first rehearsal next week. "You'll find out then."

-----

First Rehearsal:

Liv's jaw dropped to the floor. Abigail and Martin walked on stage from the wings, and both were completely naked. Liv's eyes darted from Martin's package to the floor and back to his package so many times she began to feel vertigo. She just didn't know where to look.

"When an actor or actress gets naked on stage, the audience becomes very vulnerable," Abigail observed. "Don't you all feel vulnerable now? You're all thinking: Are they going to be OK with this? Am I?"

"Today, we are going to start turning this cast into a company," Martin added with a penetrating look. "We are the principal actors. We spend a lot of time in someone else's skin. It can't be done while staying sane unless you are comfortable in your own skin."

Liv felt so vulnerable that her mind hardly processed the message being received. Her mind stuttered in belated realization: Wait. What? I'm a principal actor? What part?

Dan stared openly at Abigail's figure and chanced a few looks at Martin as well. Neither of them were spectacularly good looking, but they were young and fit. Dan estimated his cock was probably bigger than Martin's, but he couldn't be certain. It was a little chill onstage.

Of the five women and three men in attendance, Liv was the only one unable to overcome her inhibition and roll with this audacious maneuver. Some of the cast even walked over for a close inspection. One of the other girls said, "Don't tell Barry about the new costumes!" Everyone laughed nervously.

"A good performance is much more revealing to the audience than a little bit of skin," Abigail continued when the murmuring died down. "None of you should feel nervous with nudity. It's only skin deep. Actors reveal their souls."

There was a pause while Abigail waited for someone to contradict her. Liv looked at her own hands and wondered how soon she could get away.

Martin filled the void by adding, "Nudity is a means to an end. It can make funny moments funnier, plot twists more surprising, tragedy more cathartic. It works because nudity still makes people squirm."

Abigail continued as if the speech was rehearsed. "If what happens in a naked moment is painful or sad or inhumane, the audience's perception is heightened. They are more open emotionally, and then you nail them with something they aren't ready for."

On cue, the stage manager arrived with a cart supporting a large computer display.

Martin slouched and started clicking his way through various play lists. Liv took advantage of everyone's diverted attention to sneak a few more inspections of Martin's tight body. His round ass checks and muscular legs titillated her. She could see the bottom of his scrotum hanging. Her longing for him to bend over just a bit more produced another blush.

The first example on screen was a female magician from a Montreal festival. She walked out on stage dressed in a conservative business suit. She waved a small red handkerchief to the audience and then stuffed it into one closed fist. It appeared to be a standard disappearing handkerchief trick when she opened both hands and wiggled her fingers to show that the cloth was gone. Then she reached into a jacket pocked to indicate where the handkerchief went.

The magician winked to the crowd and removed the jacked to reveal nothing but a bra underneath. She strutted and worked the stage to repeat the trick. The handkerchief once again disappeared, but this time the magician discovered it under the waistband of her skirt. Of course, the skirt had to go. By this time, the reaction of the audience was as interesting as the magician standing in bra and panties.

Once again, the handkerchief disappeared into a fist. Low and behold, it was found in one cup of the bra. A teasing reveal with back initially turned to the audience left the magician standing there topless. The festival audience squirmed. The camera showed men smiling nervously or looking at their toes. Women glanced side to said as if silently asking, "Is this OK?"

Once again, the disappearing square of cloth was found, and the panties had to go. Exposed, the magician spent a few moments strutting on stage, shaking her tits, and thrusting her pelvis. She cupped one hand to her ear to encourage loud cat calls and cheers. Finally, the handkerchief disappeared into her fist one last time. The magician looked confused. She patted her own body in a sensual way. She turned around and looked over her shoulder. Then she smiled and winked. She bent over slightly with her knees spread. It looked for all the world like she was pulling the handkerchief out of her vagina. She pulled the taught cloth slowly and really milked the moment. When it was finally free, she tossed it into the seats to thunderous applause.

Martin halted the video. "Do you see. The magician only had one trick, and it was a fairly routine one too. You were all riveted to the performance just like the live audience. Every emotion - every conjecture about where she could be hiding the prop was magnified by the nudity!"

Liv noted that everyone seemed to be nodding their heads. Even Dan appeared to agree with the analysis. Liv just wanted to sneak away and play with herself. Stripping like that in front of a regular audience that wasn't expecting nudity had to be the hottest thing she ever saw. How could that woman do it?

Abigail introduced the next one. "Leo Butler's 'Faces in the Crowd' is maybe the best example of all. The audience was perched high above the action looking down into a living area where the actors not only stripped naked, made violent love, and went to the toilet -- all in full view -- but also masturbated and blamed the hopelessness of their lives on British politics."

The clips Martin played proved the truth of everything Abigail described. The love scene was extra hot because the characters were trying to conceive a baby. Liv's greatest fear was getting pregnant. Making a baby, even pretending, was the ultimate taboo for her. She was also fascinated to see a man masturbate. Everyone had heard about nudity on stage. Liv even saw a production of the musical, "Hair", where the actors got naked for a few seconds. Sex could be simulated. But this actor actually got an erection. He stroked, and he came. It was all in front of an audience. Could he do that on cue every performance? Just the thought of having an orgasm in public made Liv feel faint.

"Alright. That's enough for today. We've used up our two hours, but I expect you all here on Thursday. I have some acting exercises I want to try."

-----

Dousing the Fire:

Dan walked Liv home to her dorm. She enjoyed his company but really just wanted to get herself off as soon as possible. They made out on her bed for a while and chatted about the first rehearsal.

"Dan, Do you think Abigail was sexy?"

"Of course she was. I'm just glad I didn't have to get naked because I had a boner from the moment I saw her. Did you think Martin was sexy?"

"Yah, I guess. It was really hard for me to look at him. I mostly looked at the floor."

"Too bad. They pulled that stunt because they wanted you to look. You should have walked right over and inspected the meat."

"That's so naughty! What about the magician? Do you think she had that handkerchief inside her the whole time?"

"No. That's all part of the illusion. It was really good though." Dan paused and searched her eyes for guidance. "I still have a boner. I was gunna go home and jerk off a dozen times, but if you're as horny as I am, do you want to mess around a bit?"

"I don't know. My roommate will be back from dinner soon."

"Don't you have a signal like a sock on the door knob?"

"It's never come up before."

"I'm willing to chance it if you are." His look of longing mirrored her own.

"Do you have a condom?"

"Are you kidding, I've been carrying one in my wallet since high school."

"Hurry-up and put it on. We'll have a quickie!"

Dan stripped without the least self consciousness. Liv took off her shoes and pants, but she was afraid to get naked. She didn't know Dan that well yet.

He positioned her on the bed and then rolled the condom down his shaft. She shuddered with anticipation and fear. He settled his naked body on top of her while he kissed her neck and then sucked an ear lobe. His hand slid under her shirt and stroked a nipple through the fabric of her bra. After a while, she arched her back so he could reach around and unhook her.