Shimmer

Something shimmered at the corner of Gillian's eye. She turned her head, glancing around at the other partygoers. Some of the most prominent figures in town were laughing nearby, and an appellate court judge was explaining how he met his trophy wife. There's nothing there. Again.

The man standing across from her gave her a strange look, and Gillian laughed nervously. "Just thought I heard someone say my name." She took another sip of wine from her cocktail glass.

Colin nodded, his eyes subtly looking her over. She did not plan on going home with Mr. Rosen's son, but the night was still young. "Jill, right? So how do you know my parents?"

Gillian said something in response, only half aware that she was even speaking. The shimmer was there again, lingering just at the edge of sight. It took all of her willpower not to walk away from him and track it down. As Colin kept trying to charm his way into her bed, she smiled and finished her drink.

Gillian had ambitions, to be sure. When Charles Rosen had invited her to his party, she jumped at the chance to socialize with all of his rich and powerful friends, especially those in the legal profession. She got out her red cocktail dress, the one that was sexy without being slutty, and she went to a salon to have her blonde hair extravagantly styled. Money was no object, not when it came to impressing this crowd.

As far as Gillian was concerned, anyone who claimed that looks didn't matter was living in a fairy tale world. The trick was to make everyone want you without becoming a laughing stock the next day. Gillian had never slept with a superior, never dressed like a tramp in the office place, but she had the sultry good looks to stand out in a job interview or disarm an opposing witness. As with every other advantage at her disposal, she used her sex appeal to further an already promising career.

Now that she was a guest at her boss's house, though, the mysterious, shimmering light was distracting Gillian from her reason for coming in the first place. It seemed to appear the most when Colin was around her, which was growing more and more frequent. At first, he had been the one seeking her out. However, Gillian had gradually found herself thinking up new excuses to run into Mr. Rosen's son. She was hoping to get a closer look at whatever kept catching her eye, so that she could get it out of her mind. That Colin was handsome and charming certainly didn't hurt, either.

Something shimmered among the group mingling in the corner, but it was gone before Gillian could pinpoint it. She nodded at whatever Colin was now saying, not interested in a word of it. He only wanted to fuck her, anyway. The rest was just window dressing.

You're being rude. Someone's talking to you, and there's a good chance he'll be getting in your panties tonight, so quit worrying about some stupid light. Gillian smiled flirtatiously, stroking her leg without realizing it. "So tell me about this yacht of yours..."

Gillian grabbed a glass of wine from a waiter's tray and nervously downed it. She could not remember ever being so horny, but that was not the only thing eating away at her thoughts. There was some undefined longing that demanded satisfaction, and she knew only one way to scratch this particular itch. She had to find Colin again. She had to get close to the source of the shimmer.

Whatever it was, she hungered for it. She would do anything to have it. Gillian did not claim to understand what was happening to her, but the need was undeniable and growing stronger. Nothing else seemed to matter as much, not even her job.

She had just sighted Colin flirting with a waitress when the shimmer disappeared around a corner. Too distracted to be angry at him, she followed the light into a short hallway. Whatever happened next, she had to know what she was dealing with.

The door to the guest bedroom was ajar, and Gillian slipped inside without hesitation. She found a sexy redhead standing by the bed, wearing a slinky gold dress that was a bit small for her. The dress shimmered with every motion of her body, the light playing tricks on Gillian's eyes. She had never seen a more beautiful sight.

The redhead grinned in Gillian's direction, but her smile quickly faded. She looked down at the bed, holding back tears. "Sorry. I was expecting someone else." Then she smirked bitterly. "I guess he really doesn't see me."

Gillian closed the door behind her. "I see you." She slipped her dress down, and she was naked underneath. "I want you." She fingered herself, staring at the woman with growing lust. Her heart pounded fiercely in her chest. "I can't think about anything else."

The redhead glanced up and down Gillian's body, her eyes filled with sorrow. "I've never been with a woman before."

"Neither have I. But I'm willing to give it a shot." Gillian drew closer, sliding her hands over her butt. "We'll figure something out."

After a moment, the redhead nodded. She peeled off her tight dress before throwing it across the room. Gillian's eyes followed it like a beacon, only stopping when it disappeared behind the bed. Her lover now wore a silky black bra and panties, her stockings held up by a matching garter belt.

Gillian admired the woman's lingerie-clad body, feeling both lust and a deeper longing. The redhead stepped forward and kissed her sensuously. She stared into Gillian's eyes with undisguised pain. "I don't want to be alone. Not tonight."

"So stay." Gillian kissed the redhead back, unhooking her garters. "Let me take care of you."

As they came together in a passionate embrace, it occurred to Gillian just how lonely she was. She was always throwing herself into work, or into some frivolous affair, but it had never truly replaced having a loved one in her life. She needed someone to love, someone who would stay. Nothing else would satisfy her anymore.

They fell onto the bed, and then Gillian removed her lover's bra and tossed it aside. "I need you," she whispered into the redhead's ear, their bodies grinding against each other. She hoped that they would never be apart.

Her lover's only response was a plaintive moan. The redhead slipped off her panties, and then Gillian ran her mouth down the woman's curvaceous body. She had never wanted another woman before, but she desperately wanted this. She felt like her tongue had been created for the redhead's pleasure. Stay with me. Stay forever.

Gillian opened her eyes, squinting against light that was pouring through the bedroom window. The morning rays had spread across the bed, casting a glow on her naked form. The redhead was gone. She had never even learned her lover's name, and it made her heart ache.

Feeling cold as well as lonely, she pulled the covers around her and hugged her body tight. Gillian wondered what the Rosens thought of her staying the night, or if they even knew that she was here. It was a large house, after all, and there was a chance that she could sneak out unnoticed. For now, though, all that she wanted to do was sink under the covers, alone with her memories of the night before.

Then she rolled onto her side, and something on the floor caught her eye. The redhead had left her a gift, shining with golden brilliance in the early sunlight. Smiling, Gillian slipped out of bed and knelt on the carpet. She held the shimmering dress against her bare skin, her eyes filled with wonder. The fabric was warm to the touch, and the dress was a perfect fit, as if it had been tailored with her in mind. She had never felt sexier.

As she dressed herself and made the bed, Gillian knew that things would be different for her. She would get over the redhead. There would be someone else in her life, someone better, and she would never have to wake up alone again. She was meant to be happy. She was meant to be loved.

Gillian took one last look at the bed, remembering her lover with the sad eyes. Then she opened the window and climbed out.

Blaze

The blaze of the bonfire was strong now, beating back the dark of night. Justine could hear the boys laughing, but it seemed distant, trivial. Her eyes were fixed blankly on the charred marshmallow at the end of her stick. It fell into the flames, but her stare never wavered.

A voice was whispering in her ear, and she absorbed every last detail. Someone unbuckled and unzipped her jeans. It seemed so far away. Justine dropped the stick into the fire, and then she lay back. Someone's hands were fondling her breasts.

A boy pulled her pants down, and Justine smiled at him. She had a crush on Tommy. "Am I dreaming?" she muttered. It felt like a dream.

Tommy grinned and started to remove his clothes, and she could see the other boys doing the same. "Yeah, it's all just a dream, Justine. A very nice dream. It's one you've had before. You remember how it goes?"

A memory surfaced, very sharp in her mind. She slipped out of her silky white panties. "It's okay to have fun, because it's just a dream. It's okay to be a slut in my dreams."

Tommy climbed on top, and she could feel him inside of her. "That's a good girl, Justine. Good girls are slutty in their dreams, so they can be good in real life. So what happens next in your dream?"

"I get naked." Justine pulled her sweatshirt over her head, and someone else began to kiss her bare breasts. The warmth from the fire was nice against her skin.

Tommy finished soon enough, and then he moved aside. Another boy rode Justine, his hands massaging her breasts as he rammed into her. Her tranquil eyes never left Tommy.

They were lining up now, and Justine waited patiently until each of the boys had taken a turn. Then she took someone's cock in her mouth and sucked it like the slutty girls did. She was only slutty in her dreams, though.

The boy came hard. They told her to swallow, and they laughed when she did. Someone called her a whore. It all seemed so unimportant.

Tommy called Justine over to him, and she crawled naked through the dirt. She sucked his cock eagerly, pretending that she was his slut. When she woke up, maybe he would let her be his girlfriend. Tommy liked girls that put out, but maybe he would make an exception this time. He came in her mouth, and she swallowed without being told. She was acting like a slut, and that was what sluts did.

Justine sat on Tommy's lap and began to ride him, moaning. Her legs wrapped tight around his waist as he sucked on her breasts. Just a dream. It's okay to have fun, because it's just a dream. The fire crackled, heating her naked flesh, and she orgasmed in his arms. Just a dream.

Justine was curled up on her bed in a long t-shirt, staring at nothing in particular. Her room was dark and quiet, but haunting laughter kept playing in her head.

The police would not help her. They said that it had been consensual, that there had been no drugs and no force. They said that she had let the boys do those things to her. She knew better.

Now all she needed was a gun.

Glisten

Gordon checked his watch one last time, and then he opened the bathroom door. The shower curtain was still closed, and the water was running. According to the directions on the shampoo bottle, Faith would be ready by now. He had already gotten naked in anticipation.

He slid the shower curtain open and found Faith standing there, fingering herself. Gorgeous as always, she turned her lustful blue eyes toward him. His friend seemed confused at first, but then she smiled seductively. "Gordon. I fuck." She stepped out of the shower and into his arms. Her hands felt soapy against his back, but he barely noticed.

Faith moaned as Gordon ran his mouth over her large, beautiful breasts. She fell to her knees and took his cock in her mouth. He smiled down at her, his thoughts growing slippery. A pleasant tingling sensation had spread through his back. This nice. Faith and mouth fucking. Sucking cock.

When Faith had finished pleasuring him, she began to fondle herself. Gordon climbed on top of her, his mouth making love to the curves of her body. There was something that he was supposed to do, something important, but it was too hard to think. His eyes wandered over smooth, glistening skin and slick blond hair, and lust drowned out everything else. I fuck. Then he slid his cock deep inside.

The bathroom mirror had steamed over. Gordon ran his tongue between Faith's breasts, and she bucked underneath him, moaning. "Gordon ... yes..."

Groping her breasts, he began to ram into her again. She was radiant and spirited, everything he had imagined she would be, and he wished that this moment could last forever.

Faith orgasmed, and then she stared into his eyes with a sleepy grin. "How did this happen? I never thought ... not with you..."

Gordon shook his head, dizzy from lust. "I can't remember. But it was nice." Something I was supposed to do...

She kissed him softly. "The shower's running. I think you should join me." Gordon agreed with every fiber of his being.

Glare

"Forget about that girl," his mother said when he came home from the festival, smiling and full of spirit. "Marissa's just too pretty. There's plenty of other girls you could have, Travis."

Travis didn't want the other girls, though. Marissa was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, and he even thought that he might love her. He told himself that there was always hope.

It was a lie.

Travis was lingering in the marketplace when the Leaders came into town. Their golden hovercraft was blinding in the afternoon sun, and he had to squint to make anything out. He briefly wondered what business had brought them here, and how it would affect him and rest of the town. Then he saw her, and nothing else seemed to matter.

As usual, the Leaders had each brought two concubines for show. Marissa was with the Leader at the back of the platform, the only one that could be considered handsome. She was wearing a flowing purple gown, its slit revealing a lacy black stocking. Her brown hair was in stylish curls, her lips red and glistening. She looked more beautiful than ever, and his heart ached for her.

Marissa did not notice him, of course. She stared at the Leader as if he were the only man in the world, her eyes broadcasting love and lust for everyone to see. Travis grew hard as he thought of the things she would do for him later. They were things she had never done for Travis, because she had wanted to wait. The girls always wanted to wait, even if there was nothing to wait for.

A part of him wished that he was the Leader, that Marissa was worshipping him, and he hated himself for it. He hated them more, though. As the hovercraft turned the corner and disappeared from view, Travis made his way to the flour mill.

When the girls in town turned eighteen, the Leaders came for the ones that they wanted. They were always the most beautiful, because their minds ended up being whatever the Leaders wanted them to be. The girls that were passed over stayed in town and married. Marissa had not been passed over, to no one's surprise.

Travis grimaced and shoveled more grain into the mill, trying to keep his thoughts off of Marissa. When he was angry, it seemed that work was the only thing that helped. Right now, it was not helping.

"Travis." Emily startled him, and he dropped the shovel. He found her leaning against the machine, her arms crossed. "I guess you saw."

Emily was the closest thing that Travis had to a girlfriend, now that Marissa was gone. She was also the smartest girl that he knew, which was a constant source of frustration for him.

Travis nodded and went back to shoveling. "Yeah. I'd like to be alone, if that's okay."

Smiling, she sat down on a nearby table. "Nice try. Get over here." Emily was a pretty redhead, with little freckles dotting her nose, but maybe not attractive enough for the Leaders. If she was still around a year from now, Travis would marry her. He could live with that.

There was a light in Emily's eyes, and he glanced at her breasts with mild longing. He sat beside her and leaned in for a kiss, but she turned her head away. Travis grimaced. "Fine, whatever."

She grabbed his arm before he could stand. "We need to talk first. I have a theory about the Leaders."

Travis rolled his eyes. "Wait, let me guess. They're a bunch of assholes that boss us around all the time. And we can't do shit about it, because we just end up doing whatever they want. Something like that?"

Emily placed her hand on his. "Listen to me. The Leaders have been around for as long as anyone can remember, so we don't really know how they came into power. Any history we've been taught might be lies."

"You know how they came into power." He tapped a finger against his temple.

"Right, but we don't how they do it. Growing up, we were always told that they can control our thoughts and our emotions. I believe the first part, but I don't think they can control what we feel. I think ... I think they redirect the emotions we already have."

Travis sighed. Half of the things that Emily said went over his head. "What does that mean?"

"Well, take the way that everyone always works when we get angry. We don't fight. We don't run away. We work, which just means more for the Leaders to take. So why do it?"

"Because they make us." He ran his hand up and down her leg.

"Yes. But why not make it so we don't feel angry? Maybe they couldn't take our anger away, and bottling it up only made us snap and go crazy. So they redirected it into work. That way, we let off some steam, and they get more production."

Travis kissed her, groping her thigh. "Fuck it. I don't want to talk about them anymore."

She gently pulled away. "And then there's how the girls in town always wait for marriage. It's one thing from the girls who know they won't get taken, but why would Marissa wait? She knew what was coming, so why not be with someone while she still had a choice?"

He looked away in pain and frustration. "I don't know." I wish I did.

"Travis, they use it to control the girls more easily. All of that pent-up desire just gets redirected onto the Leaders."

Travis slowly nodded, biting his lip. "That's really great, Emily. Here I thought those dickheads were controlling my whole mind, and now I know they're controlling just enough that I can't do shit about it. That's so much better. Now can we please just make out, so I don't have to think about it? I just ... I can't win. I can't do a fucking thing, and I don't want to think about it anymore." He stared at her. "Please."

Emily smiled warmly at him, and then she began taking her shoes off. "For a long time, I was afraid of being with a boy. I knew that my fear was the fear of something else, and they just redirected it onto that, but I couldn't shake it."