Chapter 99

Thomas was standing directly behind Alicia with his hands on her shoulders. At least he thought it was his wife Alicia. After they were blindfolded each of the men had stripped and been led into the standing positions they were in now. He believed there were other couples standing in the same man-behind pose. He was right. Each of those couples had been blindfolded as well and all were waiting for the next part of the class to begin.

The leader was a man about fifty, Thomas thought, with graying hair and a bit more weight than Thomas had expected him to have. He was a happy man, who joked and laughed easily. Underneath that Thomas was feeling an intensity that made him just a bit uneasy. They had watched and listened to the leader, Nick, for two hours talking about the power of intention, the power of focus, the joy of sharing physically and mentally and spiritually. Some of what Nick said Thomas said, "Yeah, I've heard it before" in his head. Some of it he really wanted to be true.

"Listen to the sound of the world around you."

The leader's voice was soft and deep. From the direction of the voice Thomas knew the leader, Nick, had not moved and was still sitting on a table about ten feet in front of the group. Thomas could hear the sound of a windchime that he had seen on the front of the house when they had arrived. He also noticed the sounds of various people breathing, a bird somewhere, and another sound he wasn't sure of but thought it might be leaves rustling on a nearby tree. The normal sounds of a backyard, Thomas thought. "Notice your breathing. Feel the air as you allow it to fill your lungs. Feel the warmth of it as you let it go. Notice that you are breathing in the same pattern as your partner." Thomas noticed that Nick was right, he and Alicia were indeed breathing in sync. He noticed also that Alicia was wearing the perfume he had given her for her birthday. He loved that perfume.

"Step closer to your partner but not so close that you touch your chest to her back. Reach to the front of her clothing and discover the top button of her blouse. Undo it. Do not touch any part of her blouse except the cloth closest to the buttons and undo each button. Open each at my count. One."

Nick watched the clock they could not see. When fifteen seconds passed he spoke again. "Two."

Again he waited fifteen seconds. "Three."

At this point one man was having a bit of difficulty with a button and his partner's hands started toward the button to help him.

"Those being unbuttoned should not help, assist, take over or coach. Be patient. Some of these men are a bit out of practice."

Three women smiled and not one helped her partner.

When Thomas reached her waistband he stopped.

Nick called the next number, "Six" and Thomas didn't move.

He heard Nick suggest that if they hadn't reached the bottom of the shirt they should try pulling it out of her pants or skirt. That got Thomas to number six and then the blouse was completely unbuttoned.

"Seven" produced the last button being undone everywhere in the group.

"Take hold of the top part of the blouse and slowly remove it from your partner. Notice how it slides over her skin, how it feels and then hold it close to your nose and notice how it smells."

Nick watched as they did this and then he spoke again. "Hold the blouse out in your right hand and an assistant will take it from you."

Each couple had an assistant who took the items of clothing and hung them or placed them in the provided spaces at the edge of the deck. These same assistants helped move the blindfolded people when necessary.

"Find the clasping mechanism of your partner's bra and release it. Again, no helping. After it is released, grasp it by the shoulder straps and remove it, giving it to the assistant as you did the blouse." As if by command a gentle breeze touched all the women on the deck as soon as they were all braless. Some shivered; some took in a sharp breath.

"Put your hands on her shoulders and begin caressing her back. Be soft and very gentle. At times be touching so softly that you are starting to wonder if you are touching at all. Notice her warmth. The texture of her skin. The indention's made by her bra. Moles, scars, bumps and whatever other variations that you may notice. Remember these."

Nick watched as these men explored the backs of the women, discovering things that they hadn't noticed in years of being together. When two minutes had passed he spoke again.

"Put your hands at your sides and take a deep breath. Exhale. Now breathe normally. For the time being that concludes action commands for men. The following instructions are for women. Turn around and find your partner with your hands. As soon as you find him, you will notice he is nude. Put your hands on his shoulders. Now touch him and caress him getting to know the texture of his skin, the places where he is hairy, the moles, scars and other features of his skin that would identify him from other men. Do not touch him below the waist."

He waited two minutes while these women studied the chests of their partners.

At the end of the two minutes he had the women stop touching the men and remove the rest of their clothing. The assistants were there and assisted when necessary and collected all the clothing. Nothing was said.

"The assistants are going to put the men side by side. Please do not resist when they move you."

Soon all the men were standing quite close together and not in the order they had been in before. An assistant took each one of the women and helped her stand on a small platform in front of a man, so she was five inches taller than normal. The men were told that they should reach out and gently examine the back of the woman before them. After two minutes they were told to put their hands down. "If you think that the woman you just examined is your partner, raise your hand."

Of the ten men exactly half raised their hands. All were wrong.

"Those of you ladies who think you are standing in front of your partner, raise your hand."

Two women raised their hands. One of these women was wrong.

"Thank you. Please put your hands down."

Nick held up a card with these words printed in large bold marker on it: "WIVES IN FRONT OF HUSBANDS." As the assistants started moving people he said, "You are being moved. Do not resist."

When every husband was standing behind his wife Nick spoke again.