Chapter 9: The Body of the Future

Two years had passed since Larkin’s wedding. Two years of bingo games and blueberry harvests and quiet evenings by the river. Two years of watching the community grow, watching the freedom spread, watching the next generation take up the mantle.

I am sixty-three now. Sixty-three years old, still naked, still unashamed, still exactly who I’d always been. My body had changed—the wrinkles were deeper, the gray hair more prominent, the joints a little stiffer in the morning—but I didn’t care. I’d never cared. I’d never worn anything, and I never would.

The bingo hall was packed tonight. It was always packed these days—people came from all over the world to experience the legendary Randolph Bingo Hall. But tonight was special. Tonight was the annual Summer Solstice Bingo Extravaganza, a tradition we’d started years ago to celebrate the longest day of the year.

I was at my usual table, naked as always. Cape was beside me, his hand warm on my knee. He was seventy-four now, his hair white, his face lined with years of blueberry farming and love. He was still the most handsome man I’d ever seen.

“Are you ready?” he asked, squeezing my knee.

“I’m always ready.” I smiled at him. “I’ve been ready for twenty years.”

“Twenty years,” he said, shaking his head. “Twenty years since you made that bet.”

“Twenty years,” I agreed. “And I’ve never once regretted it.”

“Not even once?”

“Not even once.”

He leaned over and kissed me. It was a soft kiss, a tender kiss, the kiss of two people who’d been together for decades and still couldn’t get enough of each other.

“I love you,” he said.

“I love you too.”

Larkin was at the next table. She was twenty now, a young woman in the prime of her life, with a husband who adored her and a baby on the way. She was naked, as always, her body beautiful and free. Her belly was round with pregnancy, a small swell that she carried with pride.

Beside her was James, her husband of two years. He was naked too—it had taken him a while to get comfortable with it, but Larkin’s patience and love had won him over. Now he was as comfortable in his skin as the rest of us.

“Are you ready to lose, Nana?” Larkin called out, a teasing grin on her face.

“I never lose,” I called back. “You know that.”

“Everyone loses sometime.”

“Not me. Not ever.”

She laughed. “We’ll see about that.”

The room was buzzing with energy. The new electronic board was flickering, the numbers streaming across the screen. The fairy lights twinkled overhead. The flowers were everywhere—Myrtle Broadbent had outdone herself, as always.

I looked around the room. It was a sea of naked bodies, men and women of all ages, all sizes, all shapes. The nudity had spread so far that it was now the norm. The newcomers were the ones who wore clothes, and they were the ones who stood out.

It had taken twenty years, but we’d done it. We’d created a community where freedom was the default, where acceptance was the rule, where love was the foundation.

I was proud. I was so proud.

The game started. Floras called the numbers, her voice carrying across the room. She was seventy-eight now, still running the deli, still making her world-famous hot dogs. She was naked too—she’d finally shed her apron years ago, and she’d never looked back.

“B-12!” she called out.

I dabbed my card. The numbers continued.

“I-23! N-45! G-58! O-72!”

I was close on my blue card. One number away.

“O-72!” Flora called out.

I daubed the final number on my blue card. I stood up, my voice carrying across the room.

“BINGO!”

The room erupted into cheers. I’d won again. Of course I’d win again.

“Congratulations, Rill!” Flora called out. “You’ve done it again!”

“I told you,” I said, smiling. “I always win.”

“You always do.” She shook her head. “I don’t know how you do it.”

“Luck,” I said.

“You’re not lucky. You’re—” She paused, searching for the right word. “You’re eternal.”

I laughed. “You’ve said that before.”

“Because it’s true.” She walked over to my table and handed me my winnings. “You’re eternal, Rill. And we’re all lucky to know you.”

The game continued. I sat back down, my hand finding Cape’s under the table.

“Did you see that?” I asked. “I won again.”

“I saw.” He squeezed my hand. “You always win.”

“I know.” I leaned over and kissed his cheek. “It’s my superpower.”

“Your superpower is being stubborn.”

“That too.”

We laughed together, the sound warm and familiar. After all these years, we still laughed together. We still loved each other. We still chose each other, every single day.

“Can I tell you something?” I said, my voice soft.

“Anything.”

“I’m happy.” I looked at him, my eyes meeting his. “I’m so happy. I’ve never been happier.”

“Me too.” He kissed me. “Me too, Rill.”

Larkin called BINGO on the next game. She stood up, her voice bright and joyful, her body bare and unashamed. Her pregnant belly was prominent, a beautiful curve that she carried with pride.

“BINGO!” she shouted. “I won! I actually won!”

The room erupted into cheers. It was a rare thing—Larkin rarely won. She was too distracted, too busy chatting with the people around her. But tonight, she’d won. Tonight, she’d done it.

“Congratulations, sweetheart!” I called out. “I’m so proud of you!”

She ran over to my table, her face flushed with excitement. “Did you see that, Nana? I won! I actually won!”

“I saw.” I pulled her into a hug. “I’m so proud of you.”

“It’s because of you,” she said. “You taught me to pay attention. You taught me to focus. You taught me—”

“To be yourself,” I finished. “That’s all I ever taught you.”

“You taught me everything.” She hugged me tighter. “Everything that matters.”

The game continued. The evening wore on. People came and went, their laughter filling the room. The fairy lights twinkled. The electronic board flickered. The flowers bloomed.

I sat at my table, naked and unashamed, surrounded by the people I loved. Cape was beside me, his hand in mine. Larkin was at the next table, her body bare, her eyes on her cards. James was beside her, equally naked, his arm around her shoulders.