Chapter 237

“The reason I was in this place no longer mattered. The harsh reality stared me in the face and demanded an immediate decision.”
—Laura Anderson Kurk, Perfect Glass

16 JULY 2023

I need to decide what I’m going to do, or at least what I want to do. Everyone has agreed to write down their feelings about the service and extending our contract. Then we’ll meet this afternoon and decide as a family what we want to do.

Will Forsythe has made a very kind and generous offer to our whole group. He wants Marvel and Hopkins and Company to continue deputation work, touring around the country to expound on the benefits of the National Service and the progress it is making under the new law. The law has only been in effect two months and it’s taking a little time to work out the kinks. He’s offered most of us who entered the service a year ago a five-year extension so Rachel and Livy don’t have to commit for more than six years total since they are a year ahead of the rest of us. We would all have the same release date. The contract would include promotions and significant pay increases, effective immediately. In addition, we are encouraged to continue developing our patron base and producing an independent program each month. Since our deputation concerts are mostly repeated content, the only way to get new Marvel and Hopkins content would be through our network.

So, should we take it?

Dad records our birthday words each year. On my sixteenth birthday, I said, “I don’t know what the future holds, but I’m thinking I might want to do something service oriented. I don’t know what it is. I just think we need to take more responsibility for the condition our world is in.”

At the time, I was thinking of service as being something like serving meals to the homeless at a community center or counseling distressed people. I thought we needed to not depend on the purchased service provided by churches who got government grants to run shelters and food shelves. We needed to be more individually responsible.

Maybe I needed to expand my idea of what service really is.

“Is your head clearer now?” Rachel asked before I’d finished spurting inside her. She held me and milked my cock with her incredible pussy muscles. I’d been in my room all day. I spent some time playing the guitar and some time writing. Mostly, I sat and thought about what I’d vote for.

“I think you cleared my entire body,” I chuckled.

“Well, I came up here to fetch you down for family meeting. Everyone has been going crazy trying to keep their decision private until we are all together. You were smart to stay in here.” It hadn’t been my idea to have everything in private and a group reveal, but it was easy to go along with. We got a quick rinse in the shower and then went to the dining room where we’d gather before dinner.

“Who wants to go first?” Donna asked. Livy practically bounced out of her seat. “Yes, legs?” Donna laughed.

“I vote we stick with the service. I’m already out as of last month, but they gave me a limited extension so I could run in the Internationals. There is no place I could possibly get as good training as I can at Blacksburg. And no way I could pay for it. If we don’t extend as a group, I’ll extend for two years so I can compete as part of Team USA in the Olympics. I’m going to win this.”

“I think that’s the best choice you could make,” Rachel said. “You really have a chance at this. If we do this as a group, though, we should negotiate in the extension that we all get to go watch Livy in Paris.”

“She was amazing,” Nanette agreed. “We should all have been there in Bulgaria.”

“Rachel?”

“I’ve got a good job I really enjoy. With the service commitment to keep us together, I don’t see any reason not to sign on.”

“Me, either,” Beca said. “Not only am I getting to work closely with Joan, I’m in school and learning lots more about content management. This is a good job.”

“Ditto,” Joan said.

“I’m one of those who will get nine years’ service out of this,” Em said. “I’ve gotten my certificate in logistics management this year and could probably walk out and get a job anywhere. But this one’s fun. I’d like to stick with it.”

“It’s rare to get selected for a dance company for a season. This is almost a sure thing for seven years,” Brittany said. “If Sophie will continue to choreograph and lead us, I’m in.”

“It’s a little more complicated for me,” Sophie said. “You are all discussing the option of extending your service. I discussed my position with the National School and they’ve assured me that I am secure as long as the group is here.”

“I’m up for another good role this fall and they are talking about a touring production in the spring. I might not always get to be with the rest of the family when we tour, but I’ll get far more opportunities here than I could manage going from regional theater to theater trying to catch a big break. I’m willing to sign the extension if everyone does,” Desi said.

“Cindy?”

“Oh. Um ... I like playing with the orchestras, but I really just want to perform with Jacob most of the time. It will be hard work for us to build up our following with new music each month, but I have faith in Jacob. I’m with him wherever he goes.”

“Well, I had to put my head in a different space than where I was in order to agree,” I said. “I need to change our message some, but I’d like to stay focused on the idea that we’re making the world a better place. I’m in this to perform a service, not just for the National Service, but for humanity. I’ll sign. Donna?”

“Oh, yes, well. I don’t want to be locked to a contract, but I’m not a member of the National Service. If you are all okay with it, I’ll keep doing my job as contract producer until I need to find someone to take over.”

“Why would you need that, Donna?” I asked naively. There were a few giggles and titters around the table. “What?”

“You might recall a conversation we had some time ago,” Donna said. “After you complete your second year of service, you can have your birth control implant removed. I’ll be in my thirties and would like to get started on our first little one.”

“Little one? Baby?! Oh! Just call me dense,” I said. I looked around the table for backup and Nanette stepped in.

“I guess that leaves it to me,” she said. “I know you were all surprised when I didn’t go out and find a job when we got here. I’d probably be on Donna’s track if I were ten years younger. The thing is, I like being the family manager, making sure the lights stay on, food is on the table, and my wives and husband are healthy and well-cared-for. I don’t sit around eating bonbons and watching soap operas. I go out and volunteer at a couple of free clinics. But I like Jacob’s idea of doing our extended service as a service and letting that be our focus. Whither thou goest, husband and wives, I will follow.”

I guess that settled it.

“We should go out for our dinner now,” Donna said, glancing at her watch.

“Are we going out?” I asked.

“Outside. The crew is all set up and waiting.”

Dana rushed into my arms as soon as I walked through the lower level doors to the back yard. A dozen red and yellow tents were neatly set up in the yard. Four dogs started yapping.

“Dana! What’s going on? Have we been lost?” I laughed.

“No! We’re celebrating and wanted to be with you. Nanette said we could camp here. We’ll be gone tomorrow night.”

“What’s the celebration?”

“We’re being recommissioned.”

“Have you been out of commission?”

“No. But we’re being reformed into a training camp. Tomorrow we are all going in to the OCS to sign an extension to our contracts. Our base next to Andrews is being refurbished with more facilities and the first of August we’re expecting our first class of recruits for training.”

“Wow! That’s great. When did you get dogs?”

“They’ll be training with us. We’ve been in a lot of circumstances in the past year when we could have used search dogs. The twins over there joined service in June and as soon as the computer realized what it had, it assigned them to us. They’re both champion dog trainers and have been working with rescue dogs for fire departments since they were kids. They brought four dogs in training with them and we’ve all been learning how to work together.” I looked over at the dog handlers, dressed in the same green coveralls as everyone else. They were identical. At least from across the yard, I couldn’t tell the difference between the pair of stocky dirty blondes settling the dogs.

We all got dinner off the grill and caught up on our lives in the service and what the new responsibilities would mean after we all signed our extensions.

In the morning, our entire crew was joined by SSR as we ran a full 10k. It was my first run at that length since the shooting and felt good, even though I was way off a six-minute pace. Dana and crew were kind enough to slow down and run with us. The dogs and handlers peeled off at 5k to walk back with most of my pod. Nanette, Livy, Emily, and I ran the full distance.

The four of us found ourselves in the upstairs shower with Dana while the others used the multi-head shower next to the hot tub. The girls showed as much fondness for Dana’s firm round tits as I did. Dana was happy to return the attention as I plowed into her from behind. When we were all sated, we dressed and headed down to breakfast.

This time, when we all headed out to go to the OCS, we were joined by another crew led by Abigail next door. Pod Cheer-up was right with her. Rosie came straight to me to give me a kiss and was quickly followed by Celia, who had paused to kiss Beca first.

“Hey, what brings all you guys here?” I asked.

“Probably the same thing that brings you,” Abigail said. “We’re going to OCS to sign extensions.”

“Are you part of pod Cheer-up now, too?” Beca asked.

“Yep! Much to mother’s shock and horror. Now, not only does she have a fat daughter, she has one who is part of a plural domestic partnership.”

“So, you tied the knot legally?” I asked.

“That’s what’s taken so long for us to sign our extension. We wanted to make sure Abbie was on board with us and then get our partnership recognized officially before we started negotiating the terms of our extension,” Rosie said.