Steve was a normal guy with a normal job. Instead of going to college he entered the work force right out of high school so he could help support his mother and sister since his father had abandoned them years earlier after his mom had suffered an injury in a car accident that left her in a wheelchair. She had been able to support Steve and his sister for a while afterwards by doing closed captioning for live television broadcasts but then there was a medical issue with the tendons in one of her hands so she had to stop that and the only money she could get was through a bit of teaching she did with a distance learning website. It was never enough money so Steve didn't even entertain the idea of college. He got a job right out of high school.
Unlike Steve, his sister did go to university thanks to Steve and unlike the stereotype of the ungrateful brat little sister, Steve's sister Allie was at all times very appreciative. Sometimes, she was a little too appreciative and would hug or kiss Steve on the cheek causing him extreme discomfort.
There was a time when they were younger when a hug or kiss from his sister would be icky just because she was a girl. Then there was a time when they were a little older when a hug or a kiss would be nothing to say anything about one way or the other. Then there was the day in high school when Steve was looking at a cheerleader bending over to pick something up and he was at just the right angle to catch a glimpse of her underwear. Oh, nice. Then the cheerleader straightened up and he saw that it was his sister.
The normal thing that should have happened, the yucky feeling, didn't come. In fact, he felt nothing the same way as he might feel nothing if it had been that girl Sarah he liked. If it had been Sarah who gave him a show like that, all he might feel later was that the show was over and to move along. And with his sister, that was all he felt. The show was over. Move along.
But it wasn't over. He couldn't move along. He was supposed to be grossed out. Why wasn't he grossed out. Why didn't he feel ashamed. He did feel shame, but not about looking at his sister, rather for not feeling the initial shame. He was ashamed of not being ashamed.
So, yeah, that was a thing. That would have to be a thing he kept to himself.
He eventually dated Sarah and that relationship continued for almost a year after graduation. On Valentine's day she broke up with him with the reason that he hadn't showed her that he was really willing to commit to her. Steve acted heartbroken because he knew he was supposed to act heartbroken but really he was relieved. He'd known there was something wrong with the relationship for a long time. He didn't know what it was but he just couldn't put his finger on it. He heard a rumor later that Sarah had actually been cheating on him and that was why she broke up with him. He just shrugged and sent her a text saying he thanked her for the time she dated him and that he supported her in her new relationship while wishing her happiness in the future. There were no hard feelings.
Yes, well, a text offering positive feelings like that must be punished. Sarah took the text as some kind of insult and nothing Steve said in his defense got past her yelling. She just would not be happy until she cornered him and unloaded all her hateful feelings towards him. In the end Steve was just silently waiting for her to finish so he could leave and his silence just made her more and more pissed off when she saw she couldn't provoke him.
After Sarah, Steve took a break from dating for a bit and when he did go out again he found that he was rather picky. This one's too short. This one's not educated enough. This one wears too much pink. This one sounds like a high pitched hyena when she laughs.
Then after every date, when he'd be back at home and in the safe privacy of his own apartment he'd be honest with himself. That girl wasn't actually too short. She just wasn't as tall as Allie. That other girl was smart in her own way but hadn't gone to college like Allie had. Allie didn't usually wear pink so how could he want to date a girl that wore pink? And that last girl's laugh wasn't so bad really. It just didn't sound like Allie. And then he thought back to Sarah. He'd always secretly compared her to Allie. He always felt that Sarah was too blond because Allie had brown hair. He always thought Sarah was pretty but not pretty enough because Allie was prettier.
...
Steve was 22 and had a beard now. It was the day after his sister had turned 21 so he decided to take her out for a drink. He took her to a nice place and in his head he discovered that he both was and wasn't nervous. On the one hand he was able to act like he wasn't nervous. On the other hand, in his head he had to keep reprimanding himself for checking out her body. The internal battle raged as one part of him would wonder how to even start a topic that might lead to ... something. Then another part of his mind would shut that line of thought down as clearly impossible.
What could be said that wouldn't be crazy? What could be done to signal his real interest that wouldn't blow up in his face. How could he even ask if she felt the same way without showing his hand? He knew this was all a lost cause but he still wanted it.
His sister slammed back drink after drink like an old pro and in no time she was so drunk that she could no longer walk. She wouldn't listen when Steve told her to lay off and not to put down so many. She seemed to actually get enjoyment out of defying him and just drank more and more. Then she passed out. Steve had to actually carry her home. Well, the taxi carried them to his apartment but he carried her from the street to the bed.
She was there resting and she was so beautiful. He could just lean over and kiss her and she'd never know. That was all. Just kiss her. And not on the lips. He could kiss her some place normal like the forehead. There would be nothing wrong with that. Of course not.
He was almost going to do it. He was looking at her and resisting the urge to look at her body. He was looking at her face and thinking that it wouldn't be wrong to just kiss her forehead. But before he could do anything she suddenly started to throw up all over his bed.
"Gross, sis." he said.
What followed was him putting her in the shower while he cleaned up the mess and brought the sheets and the clothes down to be washed. When he got back up to the apartment, she was in a bad way and was in no condition to be kissed on any part of her body, even if her standing in the shower naked and flashing her bush at him made him really, really want to kiss her there.
Then she turned away from him, bent over to show her ass to him with her pussy lips showing between her thighs. He was just about to ask what the deal was but then he knew.
"Huuaagh." She started to spew puke all over.
...
About a week later one of Steve's coworkers had a request for him.
"What exactly are you asking?" Steve asked.
"Just come with me. You don't have to buy nothing." his friend John was saying.
"For what? What is it?"
John looked around the stock room and then decided that the other guys were just too close.
"Not here. I'll tell you but not here."
"You know, this doesn't sound like something I want to get involved in."
"Come on. Please."
"Is this something illegal?"
"Sh. No. It's just not for everyone."
The two men left the building but John wouldn't actually feel comfortable until they had gotten some distance. They went over to a nearby park that was on the small side and they stood by the water fountain.
"Ah'aight. Just listen. You heard about that paternity thing in the news, right?" John started.
"You didn't." Steve said. There had been this big controversy of men finding a way to fool dna tests and get out of paying child support.
"I did. Look man, I had four baby mommas coming after me trying to take me to court."
"But you said ..."
"Yeah, yeah, listen. The company got busted."
"I heard."
"Thankfully, they destroyed all the names of the customers but now every woman in the country wants new tests done."
"Wait. Explain to me exactly what they did, cause I'm a little hazy on that."
"Alright. Listen. They swap you with someone else."
