Chapter 8: Wednesday at School

Period 1 - Honors Seminar

"Good morning, students and staff," Holloway was just beginning. "This morning we have another student who's in The Program and who'd like to present some information about himself. As with Dee, who spoke yesterday, I'm hoping this will cut down on repetitive questions and answers that waste time for everyone. Go ahead, Ben."

"Uh, hi, my name is Ben Daire. A lot of you know me," he began. "Now that I'm in The Program, I guess everybody knows that I have two cocks. At least, everyone keeps asking me about it. So, like Ms. Holloway said, I have a list of frequently asked questions.

"First, how did this happen? No, I wasn't born this way. Until about a year ago, I had one cock, just like any other guy. Then it was time for my injection and the nanobot company ran a routine DNA analysis.

"The nanobot company was Progressive Genetics. That's another common question.

"Well, everybody knows the nanobot companies analyze DNA. That's how they detect susceptibility to various diseases and formulate the injections. But they also use those results to search for cures, and for ways to create enhancements.

"In my case, they found that I have a recessive trait that favors diphallic terata. That's the medical term for having two penises. Progressive Genetics was looking for that trait because they though they could make a product out of it."

"Pardon me, Ben," interrupted Holloway. "Progressive Genetics wanted to make double penises a standard option that anyone could order as part of their injection? Is that right"

"Uh, yeah, and they still do. But only one guy in a thousand has the recessive trait. And even among those guys, the nanobot treatment worked only one percent of the time.

"To improve those odds, they needed to keep testing. So they offered me $5,000 to try it, plus some new computers and other stuff. I'd never thought about having two cocks, and I didn't really want two cocks. But I figured there was a ninety-nine percent chance of nothing happening, so I took the money and they shot me with their nanobots.

"As to why it worked for me and not for ninety-nine other guys, I really have no idea. I guess I'm just lucky, or unlucky, or whatever. They keep wanting me to come in for blood tests and physical exams and stuff, and I have to do it.

"So, next question: Does it still only work for one guy in a hundred thousand? No, I guess the odds are about one in two or three thousand now. It's still considered experimental, though. They have to pick you as a research subject.

"How did they grow? My original penis and prostate split in half. Yeah, that was very weird.

"How do they work? For sex, they work independently. My left ball feeds my left prostate and my left cock. My right ball feeds my right prostate and my right cock. But because they share a common blood supply, they get aroused or soft at about the same time.

"I still have one urinary bladder. When I piss, it comes out of both cocks at once.

"How does it feel? That's hard to explain. It's like the difference between someone holding one of your hands and holding both of them.

"Do I like having two cocks? Not really. A lot of girls seem to like them, and I get lots of sex because of them. But I still feel like a freak.

"Are there any problems with having two cocks? Well, being a freak: That's one. Another is that I had to stop wearing pants. No matter how I stood or sat, I kept smashing one side or the other. That's why I switched to wearing kilts last week."

"How has being in The Program affected you?" Holloway asked.

"It's been a hassle," Ben explained. "Everywhere I go there's a crowd of people who insist on looking at 'em and touching 'em and asking questions about 'em. That gets old real fast. I guess it's good that everybody knows, though. I used to get paranoid about someone finding out."

"Ben, thank you for sharing your information and experiences," said Holloway. "If anyone else would like to share experiences or discuss problems related to The Program, don't forget the daily support group after school. It's in the drama shop.

"That's all for this morning," Holloway concluded. "Have an enjoyable and productive day."

After that Maharishi called on Petunia Pei and Yulan Yuan to present their report comparing recent social progress in three African countries. The report was interesting in its way, but I thought they spent too much time presenting facts and not enough on comparison and analysis. Kenya, for example, had emphasized tourism and high-tech industry. This brought in a lot of outside money but placed it in the hands of a few people. Tanganyika had concentrated on agriculture and infrastructure, which had more direct benefits to the general population. Tanganyika, however, had greater social unrest. Why was that?

Maybe I wasn't paying enough attention. I was still pretty frazzled from being swarmed in the athletic showers, and it just felt good to lean against Pietre's shoulder and relax. He was just so non-assertive, you know? Like, I'm sure he noticed I was wet in places -- water wet, that is, from showering -- but he never asked about it. I just relaxed and held his neck and, uh, leg.

Petunia and Yulan were back to their schoolgirl outfits, except that their plaid pleated skirts were probably the shortest on record. They were more like belts with ruffles. I'm sure Pietre noticed that too but honestly, he mostly watched their eyes.

Period 2 - Communications

When the bell rang I got untangled from Pietre and told him so long until third period. Petunia, Yulan, and Ben left together for second period Physics. And I do mean together.

Once the room was empty I called the hospital about Aunt Marjorie. The receptionist said Marjorie was unavailable and not accepting calls, so I asked for the nurse's station. The nurse confirmed Marjorie's condition, said she wasn't accepting visitors either, and estimated she'd be in the hospital a couple more days at least.

When I got to the Communications classroom Adam was busy satisfying Reasonable Requests in the hall. Most of it seemed to be lookie-feelie stuff and he didn't seem terribly upset about it. Some chick with a crew cut, a sleeveless black motorcycle shirt, and denim chaps tried to get my attention but I gave her The Glare and she backed off.

In class I maneuvered Adam into sitting between Crystal and me but it didn't last. As soon as the bell rang Magnusson told everyone that our commercials for Bushie's Off-Road had started appearing on the air, and then he called Adam and me onto the talk show set.

First Magnusson played the commercials straight through. Then he played them again, this time hitting the pause button every few seconds and asking us to explain what had been going on at the shoot. When it became obvious that Nadia had been there too, Magnusson made her join us on stage. Tess Palmer, the drama princess, was peeved but kept trying to hide it. It was actually pretty funny but I had to hide that too.

At the end of class Magnusson asked us to bring in any out-takes, deleted scenes, or raw footage we could get. He also encouraged us, if possible, to film the filming next time.

The instant the bell ran a message from Bushman popped up on our PDAs. Adam had a long run to English and Nadia had a long one to Math so I placed the return call.

"Vivian, thanks for calling," Bushman answered. "Have you seen the commercials on TV?"

"Yes, I have. They look good," I replied. I figured that seeing them in Communications class was close enough. And for sure they were better than the Beep Beep the Jeep Creep commercials Bushman used to run.

"We're already getting a lot of phone calls because of them," Bushman continued. "I think sales are bound to go up. Great job! So, to keep that ball rolling, I'd like you kids to make a personal appearance at the shop Saturday. You know, like it says in the contract. Do you see any problem with that?"

"Not at the moment but I'll have to check everyone's schedule. Is it OK if Nadia calls you back later today?" I proposed.

"Sure, that'll be fine," Bushman agreed. "Now, there's one other thing: I'd like you and Adam to come in today and see what Ollie's been working on. I think you're going to like it."

"I have school until three this afternoon, then Adam, Nadia, and I have an after-school commitment until four. After that, Adam has swim practice and I have to work until eight," I explained. "So shortly after eight is the first time we'd be available."

"Hmm. OK, shortly after eight it is," Bushman agreed. "I'll have to pay Ollie some overtime, but we're backed up on repair jobs and maybe that'll give him some time to catch up. Hey, listen, those commercials really do look great. I'll see you this evening, then."

"OK, this evening," I confirmed, then I disconnected and hustled up to College English.

Period 3 - College English

Once again, nothing much happened in College English. Petunia Pei had lost her panties someplace, but Yulan Yuan was still in full possession of hers. Atkins droned on and on about Henry David Thoreau, occasionally writhing around his podium as if Loretta Manlesse and Brenda Geiss might take an interest in his oversized pierced dick. If so, he was even more clueless than I thought. Then again, I'm not a big fan of Henry David Thoreau.

Lunch Period

When the bell finally rang I headed straight for the door to the athletic shower room. Adam arrived a few minutes later. Nothing was going on in the wrestling room so that's where we parked.

The room was about fifty by a hundred feet. In one corner, a pair of double doors provided entry. The ceiling was about twenty feet high, supported by visible steel beams. Light fixtures hung between the beams but we didn't need them; a row of high windows admitted a soft light. There were mats on the floor, mats stacked in the corners, and a few rows of bleachers along the interior wall. The place had a musky smell to it.

Adam threw a couple of towels on one of the mats; then we sat cross-legged facing each other.

"Are you OK, skipping lunch?" I began.

"Oh, yeah, I am. It sounds terrible anyway. The choices are habanero glazed liver strips and chicken-fried beets. And to tell you the truth, my stomach is still a little off from that dinner last night."

"Why, what did you have?" I innocently asked.

"Well, my mom was supposed to pick up some tacos on her way home last night," Adam began. "But somehow they screwed up and gave her two fancy dinners as well. One was a stack of fish and vegetables with sauce all over it..."

"El Tinaco," I interrupted. "That's grilled Chilean sea bass with roasted fingerling Peruvian purple potatoes, chanterelle, and baby carrots. The sauce was mole negro Zaachila."

"What's chanterelle? Or Zaachila?" Adam asked dubiously.

"Chanterelle are trumpet-shaped mushrooms. They have a gold or yellow color and taste a bit like apricots. Mole negro Zaachila is a black sauce from Oaxaca, "I explained. "What was the other dinner?"

"It was a steak with some kind of cheese inside and a seafood tamale on the side."

"Did it have a thick black sauce?" I asked. "Sauce that was sweet and spicy?"

"Yeah, like that," Adam confirmed.

"Well, then it was El Tajin. That's grilled filet mignon stuffed with Maytag blue cheese, served with a crabmeat tamale. They make the sauce from ancho peppers and madjool dates."

"Maytag, like a washing machine?" Adam probed. "You're making this up, right?"

"No, not at all. Maytag is a gourmet brand of blue cheese. Ancho peppers are dried poblanos. Madjools are the king of dates. They're the largest, the softest, and the best tasting kind," I explained. "Did they give you an appetizer?"

"Yes, some round chips with dabs of chicken stuff on them."

"Those are salbute, " I explained. "The topping is baked shredded chicken breast marinated in achiote, bitter orange juice, spices and fresh herbs. They serve it on miniature tostadas."

Adam just stared at me.

"Achiote comes from the annatto tree. It's both a red food coloring and a musky seasoning. The Mayans were the first to use it."

Adam stared at me a moment longer, then asked, "Did you mess with my dinner?"

"I didn't touch your dinner," I replied. "Did you eat any of those tacos?"

"Well, yeah. My mom and I ate a little of everything."

"Well, that's probably the reason. You need to keep away from those greasy tacos."

Adam was staring again.

"OK, I mighta made a phone call," I admitted.

"What kind of phone call?" Adam demanded. "You don't get food like that from Erubio's Super Mex."

"You do if you know Ruby," I explained. "Erubio's happens to share a kitchen with Las Tres Sirenas, you know. The cellars connect."

"Why would they do that?"

"It goes back to the 1920's. You know: prohibition, speakeasies, violin cases, all that stuff. Ruby's family goes way back."

"And you know him because... ?" Adam probed.

"He used to run a taco stand and, ah, catering business along the coast. I used to spend a lot of time on the coast. It's as simple as that."

"How come both of you are here now?"

"Neither of us could go west. The ocean was there. So we both happened to go east. The rest was luck."

"So, you came here from the coast?"

"Uh, look; I didn't suggest skipping lunch so we could talk about yesterday's dinner. That business this morning: What was that all about?"

"I just thought it would be a surprise," Adam replied, "like that scene you set up in the lounge yesterday."

"What made you think I wanted to get swarmed?" I wondered.

"What makes you think I did yesterday?" Adam countered.

"Look: Monday you were pissed because of that business with me and Fischbak in the gym. As far as I'm concerned, Fischbak started that with a Reasonable Request. I can assure you, he's not my type. Then you had a scene with Olivia, and I guess you thought that was all right."

"I was trying to get back at you," Adam admitted.

"For all of Monday?" I questioned him. "How many girls did you mess with on Monday? Because after that silly business with Fischbak, I didn't make it with anyone! You wanted exclusive: Fine, I did exclusive. But you weren't exclusive, were you?"

"Vivian, those were Reasonable Requests. None of them were my idea."