“What do you think you’re doing? NO!” Gavin coiled up on the sofa as Tammy pulled out her mother’s pendant from under her satin blouse and swung it before his sunken green eyes.
“I thought you wanted to have some fun tonight,” she replied, visibly discombobulated at his rather extreme reaction at her advances.
“And I thought you were talking about playing a board game like we used to... not that! No offense, but I really don’t want to be hypnotized, okay?”
“Sure,” she returned the pendant to its hiding place and placed both hands on her lap, “but do you want to tell me why you’re so freaked out?”
“It’s a long story,” Gavin’s muscles slowly loosened up even though the underlying tension was still there.
“I’m okay with that.”
The two twenty-five-year-old sat in her apartment in downtown Manhattan. It was a late Sunday afternoon, the sky was bathed shades of orange and purple, and they were alone after Tammy’s roommates - Judith and Ava - had left an hour before to go to the movies and enjoy an improvised make-out session when the lights went down. Gavin and Tammy had so many physical similarities they were often mistaken as twins when they were together, but no blood ties bound them, only a striking friendship that had survived almost two decades.
Next-door neighbors when they were six, classmates at thirteen, and almost boyfriend and girlfriend in the last Summer before college, they had drifted apart temporarily to pursue different careers. Gavin was now working as a freelance photographer, making money off his beautiful black and white city life scenarios, while Tammy had just started an internship at a Veterinarian clinic. Animals had always been her greatest passion growing up and to finally work with them regardless of the hardships of the profession, was the most rewarding experience of all.
During the time they had spent apart, she had also developed a keen interest in mesmerism and gentle persuasion techniques, a complete 180 from his own memories, which now had returned to haunt him again.
“I had a terrible experience with it a while back... or at least, I think I did,” he muttered, mimicking her position on the sofa. “It’s complicated.”
“Do you need a drink?”
“Yes, please. The strongest thing you got.”
“One moment then,” Tammy gently tapped his leg and moved to the fridge, returning shortly after with a bottle of Marsala and two half-full glasses. “There you go. I hope this is okay.”
“I didn’t know you liked Sicilian wine.”
“Recently acquired taste. It’s actually Judith’s. It was her birthday last week and Ava got her a full case. I’m sure she won’t mind.”
“I certainly won’t. It’s good,” Gavin took a small sip to let it flow between his lips and then gulped it all in one sitting.
“Yes, it is, but don’t overdo it. You need to be coherent enough to tell me what’s bothering you.”
“Yeah, the more I think about it, the less I’m sure I should do it...” he looked at her, and then past her as if he were seeing something nebulous in the distance.
“Too late for that. What was the bad experience, and who did you have it with?”
Gavin sighed and poured himself another glass as he contemplated the abyss of his doubts and confusion. Unlike the external layers of his personality, which were cheery and bubbly, what lurked in memory lane was a hodgepodge of emotions pulling him in every direction. He finished the second serving, held the bottle in his right hand, and began his strange tale:
“It happened during my sophomore year. That’s when I met Mrs. Davies. She was an English teacher and quite the cougar according to everyone’s accounts. She was nearing her fifties at the time but still had the body and the agility of someone our age. Two times a widow, the gossip at the campus was unanimous in declaring her a truly sexually charged person who loved both men and women alike. It was said she often seduced students and substitute teachers, but no one had ever uncovered any evidence of the fact, and so the rumors persisted.
“I was never a student of hers, but I admit I was intrigued. Sure, she was old enough to be my mother, but she had this... I don’t know... aura of power and mystery, I guess. If I saw her walking in the hallways, I had to steal a glance and, sometimes, she did the same. This mental fascination went on for about two months until the day she caught me heading home and offered me a ride out of the blue.
“Had it happened today, I would have said ‘no’, be on my way, and probably save myself a lot of trouble, but I was young and impressionable, and this gorgeous blonde mature woman was flaunting her legs and cleavage behind the wheel and... well, I accepted her offer and that’s when things got weird...”
* * *
Kimberly Davies, also known in certain online communities by the aliases of Kim_Breaks_You and Widow-milf, smiled as the young muscular man with an open smile and a small tattoo of the Chinese ideogram for “peace” on his left wrist, stepped inside her vehicle and allowed his gaze to linger on her ample bosom far longer than appropriate. She offered no remark other than a sly grin, for his behavior was exactly as she had predicted. Men, regardless of age, were always easily ensnared by a pair of boobs, a common trope that happened to be true. In the last sixty days, she had enjoyed his ever-growing fascination about her taking root inside his soul, and now that it had dug deep enough, it was time to let it grow and bloom.
Kimberly was wearing a white low-cut dress too scandalous for someone her age. She never donned something as provocative in class although she often ‘forgot’ a blouse button or two. No, the skimpy attires were solely reserved for hunting activities, all of which had something in common: the hunter always came out on top.
“Thank you for accepting the ride, Gavin,” she said. “I’ve been wanting to talk to you alone for a while now.”
“You have? And how do you know my name?”
“Oh, I know a lot of things about you just like I’m sure you know a lot of things about me, the good, and the not so good. No need to feel awkward, I’m aware of everything that’s said about me behind my back and I want to take this opportunity to clarify that it’s one all big exaggeration. I’m certainly not as promiscuous as people think I am though I do enjoy having my fair share of fun. However, I’m much more... selective, and my choices have never let me down. I trust you’ll be the same.”
“Hmmm...” Gavin scratched his chin as her car drove away from campus grounds and into the bustling arteries of a city that never slept, “... that depends on what you’re talking about, Mrs. Davies.”
“Please, call me Kimberly. Only my students and my pets know me as Mrs. Davies and you’re not one of them... not yet, at least.”
* * *
“Did she really say that? What a creep!” Tammy noted, finishing her first glass and waiting for him to pour him another.
“Yeah, she did,” Gavin burped and apologized immediately after. “She was pretty straightforward and her outfit left no margin for doubt but the really bizarre things started when she stopped the car and pulled out a pendant like yours from under her seat.”
“Exactly like mine?” Tammy reached for the trinket again and laid it to rest on the palm of her right hand.
“Pretty similar, yes.”
* * *
It comprised a North Star-shaped gemstone piece of jewelry with quartz, topaz, and garnet stones hanging from a Sterling Silver 18” chain. The combination of sky blue, orange, and pink against the platinum backdrop shouldn’t work, yet the colors blended perfectly into one another, giving the illusion of a massive, variegated crystal that was almost as irresistible as her big breasts. It nested perfectly between them too, moving in unison with her breathing.
“Lovely, isn’t it?” Kimberly asked. “It’s been in the family for ages. My mother wore it all the time. When she died last year, I knew I had to continue the family tradition. It’s my favorite piece of jewelry because of the way it shines even when light isn’t hitting it directly. You can see it, right? The faint glow at the center, irradiating to the gems around and then reflecting back at it. I never understood how it works, but that’s okay. I stopped asking questions a long time ago. It robs things of its magic, don’t you think?”
“I guess...” Gavin nodded, despite not grasping her point at all. He didn’t recognize where she had parked the car and he hadn’t told her where he was headed, either. With every second that went by, the more he regretted being so close to her no matter how hot she was.
“People say the most awful things about me when they think I’m not listening, and even when I am. They call me witch, or worse as if I went around riding a broom and casting spells on everything that moves just to satisfy my libido. Well, I don’t. I don’t believe in witchcraft, anyway. What I do believe in is... hypnosis.
“Have you ever been entranced, Gavin? Have you ever had your thoughts captured by something so irresistibly alluring you couldn’t break free from the need to surrender even if you wanted to? I have. Sometimes, my eyes wander off to this pendant and simply stay there, looking so intently that it’s as if the jewel is looking back, locking you into this need, this desire, this compulsion to stare and drop... drop again and stare some more... dropping and staring... a little further down still... It’s so easy to do these things you don’t realize you’re not doing them just like you never stop to think you’re breathing all the time or that you need to place one foot after the other if you wish to walk and do anything. Easy things that are almost effortless are called ‘automatic’ and to know you’ll never be able to fail, only be better at following them through so the more you stare, the more you fall, and the more you fall, the more you want to stare, becoming even easier to accept this loop wherever it wants to take your mind... down, down, down... Keep staring and going down for me, my boy.”
* * *
“Oh, fuck!” Tammy curled up on her side of the sofa. “I can’t believe the bitch actually tried that on you.”
“It was more than trying, I’m afraid,” Gavin stood up and headed to the kitchen’s entrance, bottle of wine still in hand, tears fighting to come out. “At that moment, I was so baffled at what was going on my brain couldn’t process it straight. I sank deep, believing that her words and her crystal actually held genuine power over my thoughts and then...”
* * *
Gavin only noticed the half-open zipper and his engorged cock resting between her fingernails when it was already too late to stop. His vitreous gaze was plastered on the crystal’s surface, automatically following her commands.
“So easy to slip into my grasp and yet so hard to stop yourself from going any further. Let this be clear right now, boy... you can’t. You can’t stop the pull of the crystal anymore than you can keep your dick from wanting me now that I’m holding it. Why do you think this is? Because the deeper you fall the more aroused you get, pumping your thoughts through the tip of your cock. And it’s such a pretty one, too. Not circumcised because no one is perfect but if you stick around me long enough, you may just feel the urge to do so... deeper now, even deeper than you were after the last sentence, pumping and draining, draining and sinking, longing for the prize waiting for you at the far end of trance. Yes, you most definitely can play with your cock on your own, but that’s hardly as fun as letting me have it, is it? Let me guide you to where it belongs.”
Kimberly’s legs parted, revealing for the first time that she hadn’t been wearing any panties. The sweet blonde delta was trimmed to perfection, opening up in a cascade of flowing juices as she forcefully straddled him. The car shook back and forth and the burglar alarm blared in pain and delight until there was nothing but sweat and cum dripping all over the leather seats.
* * *
“I remember little of what happened next or how I eventually got home that day, but she raped me, Tammy! That psycho got inside my head and raped me! And yes, I know I probably shouldn’t have been such an easy mark, but I didn’t know, okay? I thought things like that only happened in movies and only to weak-willed people! I was stupid and paid a price I wish upon nobody... or I think I did.”
“You’re not sure of what happened?”
“Sometimes, I am. Sometimes, I’m not. I hadn’t thought about this in ages until you showed me that pendant and now... I’m sorry, I’m almost done with the bottle,” he looked down at the colored glass container, and set it on the kitchen counter before it slipped through his fingers.
“That’s okay. Why didn’t you tell me any of this sooner?” Tammy got up to join him and held him tight until he could no longer contain himself.
“Because... because I didn’t know what to say, okay? Everything got blurry after I got home as if I had just awakened from the strangest dream ever. I tried to put everything together, but I couldn’t. Only now, after all this time, I feel like I can grasp things better, but still... it hurts, Tammy! It hurts so fucking much!
“Have you ever told this to anyone else or am I the first?”
“You’re definitely the first. I could never confront her and then time went by and... here we are. I love you, but there’s no way I’m letting anyone get inside my head not even for fun.”
“I understand. Had I known about this sooner, I wouldn’t have mentioned the subject. I’m sorry for everything you’ve had to go through and I wish I could help you.”
Gavin wiped his tears and planted a solitary kiss on her forehead before saying, “In a way, you already helped by getting me to talk. Thank you for that. I better be on my way now. I need to go to bed.”
“If you think I’m letting you drive after everything you drank, you’re sorely mistaken. Come on, I’ll drive you home and we can talk some more about this whenever you think you’re ready, okay?”
“Are you sure?”
“Of course I am. Let’s go.”
Tammy held her almost twin by the arm, and they both descended into the underground garage. He had been through a lot, and the tears were only dormant, not gone. They would return sooner or later and she would be ready for them.
* * *
About half an hour after dropping him off, Tammy stopped outside the theater where her roommates had gone to and waited for them. Judith and Ava held hands and proudly exhibited their matching belly button piercings on their way out.
“What are you doing here, bitch’” The latter asked when she approached the car from the passenger’s seat.
“We didn’t need a ride, but thanks,” Ava slid to the back of the vehicle and stretched her legs. “What’s up?”
“We may have a problem,” Tammy replied somberly.
“What sort of problem are you talking about?” Judith closed the door behind her and fastened the seat belt on her end.
“I spoke to Gavin today, and he’s starting to remember what we did to him while he was in college.”
“Seriously?”
“Yeah. He still believes it was that Mrs. Davies everybody talked about, but some of the real details are resurfacing... he even reacted to my pendant when I brought it out. If this keeps up, I think it’s only a matter of time until he finds out what truly went down.”
“Well, we always figured that would happen...” Ava concluded. “Surprised the triggers held on for so long, though. When do you think it’s time for a refresher?”
“Not sure yet. I got him half-drunk today and, depending on what he tells me tomorrow, I’ll decide on a course of action. Just be ready for whatever, okay?”
“Girl, you know we’re always ready,” Judith grinned.
The three women returned to their apartment right at the moment the sun disappeared on the horizon. The cold night welcomed their dizzying schemes, promising a vow of silence that would never be broken.
Alone in his flat with nothing but crumbling fake memories tormenting his soul, Gavin stared at the ceiling of his bedroom, eager for some long-deserved respite.
It never came.
