Chapter 1: It’s just a game

Tia and Katie were best friends and had been since they met each other in third grade. Over the years, they had changed, their other friends had changed, and the school they attended had changed, but they remained best friends. Living three houses apart made it easy for one or the other to often be at the other’s house, and over time it was not surprising to find them sleeping over, or simply hanging and having dinner with the other’s family. Often, it was Tia spending time at Katie’s house, away from her three brothers and the constant madness that filled her home, however the two did spend time at Tia’s house as well, the single child Katie experiencing a bit of what it was like to have siblings, even if they were rambunctious boys.

Tonight had been like any of the other hundreds of nights Tia had spent the night at Katie’s home over the years. They had dinner with Katie’s mom, Tia had helped Katie with her few chores, and they had spent the bulk of the evening watching a couple of teen horror movies. The second one being a bit more risqué than either of their parents would have approved of. Thankfully, Katie’s mom was an early-to-bed, early-to-rise type, so they were used to having a couple of hours on their own before retiring to Katie’s bedroom and often spending a few more hours talking about anything and everything until the wee hours of the morning.

Snuggled up in Katie’s queen bed, both wearing their usual pajamas, Tia had been slowly running out of things to say and had begun to slow down and just be quiet, getting ready to drift off to sleep when Katie had broken the silence after a long two or three minutes.

“I can’t believe that blonde girl, Amber, let them do that to her.”

Tia roused herself a little, trying to make sense of Katie’s words, and wondering who Amber was for a moment.

“Oh, the sorority girl. Yeah, that was kinda weird. Initiations and stuff, I guess.”

Amber, the sorority girl in the second movie they’d watched, had gotten tied up and left in a dark room to escape early on in the movie. The darkness and the creepy sounds of the dim interior of the old house had made it especially creepy.

“Yeah, but it was like, she wanted to be tied up, remember?”

Tia did remember, and she had thought it was a little odd too. But she had been doing some reading in a story forum she was sure was not on her parent’s approved list, and she had a pretty good idea why Amber had done that. She turned towards her friend, noting for the thousandth time just how different they were. Tia had about as much shape as a board, she often thought, her long limbs rather coltish and lean, and her bosom, what there was of it, almost disappeared completely if she stretched her arms high. Katie on the other hand was round and soft where Tia was lean and firm. Katie wasn’t fat, not really, she just was round, and perhaps a little plump. Her short blonde hair framed her face giving her an almost nymph-like appearance. Tia’s long black hair was the exact opposite. Thick and flowing, she often felt her mass of hair dampening the back of her neck on warm days, and she sometimes envied Katie’s short and more refined hairstyle.

“Um, yeah, I think I’ve heard of that,” Tia said softly into the dim light of Katie’s room.

“Heard of what?”

“Girls, or, well, boys or girls I guess, who like to be tied up.”

‘Oh.” Katie said, then added after a long pause. “Really? I mean...”

“Yeah. I guess, um, for some, it feels good or something.”

“Weird.”

“Ya. Weird”.

Nothing more was said about it, and the two soon fell asleep, but not before Tia’s mind went back to one of the stories about the spy lady who kept finding herself tied up and having to free herself. She wondered if it truly felt good or not.

Tia had always known that her brothers were a little bit dense. At least her older brother Thomas was thick as a neanderthal sometimes. Tim, her twin, never showed much interest in anything besides his games, and Terrence was still young enough that innocence and naivete could be mistaken for being not so smart. Thomas did not have that excuse of course, and though she had never thought about taking advantage of his somewhat simple and trusting nature, lately she had been toying with an idea and she was sure he could get her brothers to go along with. It rarely failed that she couldn’t get them to do what she wanted, whether it was simply because she was the sole girl in the family, or because she had far more intelligence and creativity than any of her siblings. In the end, it was likely a bit of both, she mused, as she marshaled up her plan.

Ever since he had gotten old enough, Thomas (he hated to be called Tom or Tommy) was always left in charge of them when their parents went out, and for the most part, she and her brothers did not make life difficult for Thomas. They usually followed their nightly routine, cleaning up after dinner and going to bed at the appropriate time.

That wasn’t to say there were not times that they fought, or had disagreements - especially over what to watch next - but for the most part, they behaved and everyone got along. So, it was not unusual for their parents to take advantage of having four well-behaved kids and to have yet another date night, leaving Thomas in charge, making sure everyone knew that even though it was Friday, and they could stay up an hour later, Thomas was still in charge, and the rules still were in force.

It was those rules that had first gotten Tia thinking. She wanted to try something she had read about, but she did not dare ask any of her friends, not even Katie, since she didn’t want them to think she was weird. Tia figured if she could try it out, carefully and safely at home first, then perhaps she could mention it to her friends. Ever since she and Katie had watched that movie with the sorority girl being tied up, she had sort of been obsessing about it.

“Hey Thomas, I know you are the one in charge, so I was thinking, maybe we should have a new rule or game or something while Mom and Dad are gone. You know, something that would show it’s just you in charge.”

Thomas, his brown hair in a rather unkempt mess atop his head, looked at Tia confused, not quite comprehending. “What do you mean? I’m already in charge.”

“Yeah, but you are just enforcing their rules. None of your own. It’s not really the same.”

“Hmmph, whatever,” Thomas replied, dismissing Tia’s suggestion out of hand.

Tia waited. She had learned over time to give Thomas a bit of time to work things out. He might not be as quick as she was, but he wasn’t dumb; Just a bit slower.

Terrence passed through the room on the way upstairs, barely glancing at his two older siblings. His short brown hair was in much better shape than Thomas’s, though that was not much of a surprise. Terrence was far more self-aware of his looks than his older brothers, even if he was the baby of the family.

The moment that Terrence left the room Thomas asked, “What sort of rules?”

Tia smiled, she had known he would ask. He might have some of his own ideas, but he would never try them on his own. He almost always deferred to her. In fairness, she often had the best games and ideas for the four of them, and she was very good at explaining things in a way they all could understand. Whether it was explaining why it was best she took a shower first (making sure she had enough hot water), or why it was often best to end the night with something besides a scary show, they had all gotten used to Tia being the brains of the siblings.

“Oh, I dunno, you are the one in charge you know. But, maybe” she said, carefully insinuating her idea into the mix, sure that the thought would take hold, “mmm, maybe something like ‘Every time we are alone like this, after dinner, before we watch shows or go to bed, we have to play a game of your choice’. That way it’s like, you know, you have your own schedule - not in conflict with mom’s, but, you know, just different.”

Thomas nodded, following along, his brow furrowed in thought. “I see. Just another game. Like, um, Risk or Life?”

Tia smiled, confident now that the hook had been set. “Oh, yeah, of course, those would be fine. Though I’ve always wanted to play more real-life stuff, you know, like we did when we were little - cowboys and Indians, or cops and robbers.”