A Beautiful Day Pt. 03

After about ten minutes of unpacking, a man appeared at her door. He was a middle-aged Melepria man with short hair and a wide nose. He wore a dark brown shirt and shorts, an outfit that made her think of a park ranger. When he spoke, he had a thick Melepria accent that made him a little difficult to understand. "Dr. Sara?" he asked. "I am Taloga. If you are ready, I will take you to Kokaya."

"Thank you, Taloga," she said. "Let's go."

***

Sitting in the dirt under a tall sagana tree, Sara wiped the sweat from her forehead and thought about Adam and Linda sitting in the air-conditioned cottage. She rolled her eyes. For all their advice, she was the one doing the actual work.

She dug at the foot of the tree with a small shovel to take a root sample. The sweat stung her eyes, despite the kerchief she'd tied around her hair. She tried to wipe the sweat away with a cloth, but found that the cloth was already filthy.

"Dr. Sara?" Taloga stood next to her, offering her a pristine white cloth to wipe her face with. She took it; it was even warm and damp.

"Thank you," she said, and wiped the mud and sweat off her face. Taloga was amazing. He seemed to know whatever she needed, and had it ready just as she needed it.

"It is nearly four o'clock, Dr. Sara," Taloga said. "If you will be going back to your hotel, you will need to leave soon."

"I still have a lot to do. Leon said I could spend the night in his cottage?"

"Of course, Dr. Sara. Is that what you would like to do?"

"Yes, please."

"I will let Leon know." Taloga stood for a moment, watching her, and Sara suspected that her decision to remain in the valley had already been anticipated. Taloga spoke again, "Dr. Sara. We will have dinner prepared for you. When may I let them know to have it ready?"

Sara looked down at the small hole in front of her, the exposed root. "I still have a lot to do. And then I need to clean up. Maybe I could work another hour... how about... six thirty?"

"I will tell them six thirty." Taloga disappeared.

Sara pulled out a chromatic camera and set it to take a picture of the root. Afterwards, she took out a corer and took a sample of the root, labelling it and putting it in a canister with the other samples. She didn't expect to find any issues with this tree. It looked perfectly healthy and robust, just like all the other trees she had checked that day. Leon really knew how to produce quality saganas.

She checked the crude map she'd drawn of the Kokaya orchard, then headed towards the sagana that was her next random sample.

Before she knew it, Taloga stood next to her again. "It is five o'clock, Dr. Sara," he said. "You have an hour and a half before dinner."

"Already?" Sara stood. She looked at her arms, which were coated in a layer of dirt. Her tank top was drenched in sweat and streaked with mud. While she'd been working, she'd been too focused to notice how dirty she was. But now her skin itched and she was dying for a shower.

"Yes," Taloga said. "Should I drive you back now, so you may prepare for dinner?"

"Yeah. We should head back." Sara could see Taloga's ATV a short distance away. To her eyes, it looked like a small jeep. She noticed movement to her left, and looked in that direction. Several Melepria men were walking through the orchard, about ten meters away. She had seen similar workers throughout the day. Some wore light green uniforms similar in style to the brown uniform that Taloga wore, while others chose to work naked.

"Are they done with their workday, too?" she asked.

"Yes, Dr. Sara. Their shift ends at five. Now they go to the showers."

"Showers? There are showers near here?"

"Yes. We provide a shower and changing area for our workers to become clean after their shifts. But I think you would prefer to shower at the cottage, Dr. Sara. You will not find privacy in these showers that our workers use."

Sara peered into the trees, trying to locate the showers, but the men had disappeared from view. "Are the showers for men only?"

"No. We employ women as well, and they are free to use the same showers. As I said, there is not the privacy that you are accustomed to, Dr. Sara. Our men and women shower together. No one minds. We are used to it here."

Sara looked down at her soiled clothes, considering. That morning, she had made a vow to be professional and hold herself to American standards of modesty while she was in the Perchuga Valley. But did she really need to drive all the way back to the cottage to clean off when she had an available shower right next to her?

"I'd love to wash some of this dirt off me," she said.

"Shall I drive you back then?" Taloga asked.

"Well... maybe I'll just take a quick rinse in the showers here, before we drive back. That's okay, isn't it? Just to get some of the grime off." It wasn't as if Linda or Adam would see her. Just a handful of Melepria workers who probably wouldn't look twice at her.

"You are certainly free to do that if you wish," Taloga said. "I will have the clothes you are wearing cleaned, if you like, and I can have clean clothes waiting for you after your shower, as long as you don't mind wearing one of our uniforms?"

"That'd be wonderful," Sara said. "Can you point me to where I should go?"

"Of course." Taloga hailed a Melepria man who was walking by. "Mikka! Hai!" Mikka changed course to approach them. He was one of the naked workers, lean and muscled with a dangling penis that Sara tried not to look at. "Mikka, Dr. Sara would like to take a shower before I drive her back. Will you show her where the showers are?"

Mikka nodded. "Yes, sir." He looked at Sara. She waited for him to start walking, but he just stood there, gazing at her expectantly.

Taloga cleared his throat. "I can take your clothes to get cleaned now, if you like, Dr. Sara."

"Oh! Right." Sara looked back and forth between the two men, then down at herself. Of course. Her clothes. She reached down and popped the snap of her shorts. Feeling suddenly self-conscious, she started to push the shorts down her hips. Her pink panties showed for a moment, but she quickly decided they could go with the shorts and she pushed them both down at the same time. The shorts were lose enough that once they passed her hips they slid down on their own. She stepped out of them and knelt to pick them up. Somehow, Taloga had found a laundry bag, and he held it open while she dropped her shorts and panties into it.

She caught the bottom of her tank top and pulled that off next, twisting it free of her hair and dropping it into the bag. Before she had the chance to reach for the clasp of her bra, Mikka stepped behind her and helpfully undid it for her. He pulled the bra free of her breasts and gave it to Taloga.

Sara stood naked, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. The breeze that passed under the canopy of sagana branches flowed over her sweaty body and felt amazingly refreshing. She reached up to undo her ponytail, using it as an excuse to bring her arms up and let the air cool the sweat under her breasts and shoulders.

"I can have your boots and socks cleaned as well," Taloga offered. He held up a pair of sandals that he'd seemingly conjured from behind his back. Sara kicked off her boots and bent over to tug off her socks. She slipped her bare feet into the sandals, and, of course, they fit perfectly. Maybe Taloga had researched her shoe size.

"The showers are this way, Dr. Sara." Mikka took a couple steps and beckoned her to follow.

Sara glanced at her field kit and sample bags, but Taloga quickly reassured her, "I'll load your things into the ATV. They will be safe."

"Thanks, Taloga," Sara said, feeling suddenly timid. "For everything. You've been a big help today." She couldn't suppress her awareness that her nude body was now displayed to him. Did he still see her as Dr. Sara when she was naked?

Taloga just nodded to her, seemingly indifferent to her unclothed state. "Of course, Dr. Sara. Enjoy your shower." He turned away.

Sara looked at Mikka, and he smiled. "This way. Come with me." He led her into the orchard. After a minute of walking, she still couldn't see the shower building, or any building, only Mikka walking in front of her and the trees all around her.

We're like Adam and Eve, she thought to herself as she quickened her pace to walk beside Mikka. Adam and Eve before they cared that they were naked, and this is Eden.

She felt exhilarated. Taloga had departed in his ATV, and in every direction she looked, she couldn't see a single sign of civilization, only gorgeous sagana trees surrounded by the stubborn grass that grew in the dim light of the jungle. She walked naked through the wilderness, caressed by the wind, with a strong man who was also naked. Her sandals were the only reminder that the modern world existed, and she almost kicked them off for that reason.

When a concrete wall became visible through the trees, Sara felt disappointed. She could hear the hiss of water from behind the wall, and the murmur of voices. The sagana trees gave way to a clearing, and she could see the rectangular building filling the clearing, with an opening on one side. Mikka headed for this opening, and Sara followed him inside.

She expected just a wide room with shower heads, like the kind of crude shower area she'd encountered at beach parks in the United States. But inside, it looked more like the locker room of a gym. Several rows of lockers were available for workers to stow their private items, and a naked Melepria woman stood behind a window, distributing soap and towels. Mikka helped Sara to request a towel, a washcloth, a small bottle of body wash and a small bottle of shampoo. Then he walked with her into the shower.

The actual shower area was twice as large as the locker area, and Sara estimated that about twenty workers could shower at the same time. Aside from Mikka, she only counted three other Melepria men showering. She was able to find a spot at a distance from them, although she could still clearly see them and they could clearly see her. Mikka seemed to respect her need for some space, and chose a spot near the other three men.

Sara turned on the water and adjusted it to the point where it was on the verge of being too hot. The water pressure was perfect, and she stood under the thundering spray, feeling a layer of dirt leave her body. She rinsed her hair, then started to scrub the dirt off her arms.

As she washed herself, she snuck peeks at the four men. They were all shaved, and they all had mapati tattoos. Was it because they were shaved that their penises looked so long, dangling like thick vines between their legs? She hoped they didn't notice her glances. She stared as one man lifted his penis in his hand and rubbed soap on it. Quickly, she turned away, facing the shower wall.

When she turned around again, she caught two of the men looking at her. They looked away as soon as she noticed them, pretending to be focused on scrubbing themselves. But she noticed one of the two men now had his penis jutting out from his body. As she stared, his penis continued to swell, becoming erect right in front of her eyes.

Was it because of her? Despite Taloga's assertion that the Melepria men were used to showering with women, was the sight of her naked body giving this man an erection? Sara looked nervously at the other man, and discovered he was looking right at her, and now he was becoming erect, too.

Sara squirmed, turning away again. So much for her assumption that the Melepria men would treat her with indifference while she showered. Actually, she should have known better. Just the day before, Leon had become erect in Miguel Korhika's waiting room, or "had stone" as they called it, and the receptionist had barely considered it to be significant. Leon had casually informed Sara that his "stone" was due to his finding her attractive. And she'd been wearing clothes at the time.

Now she was naked and wet, and two naked and wet men on the other side of the room had their stiff penises pointed at her, and probably that was just another day in Meleprija. Probably the women who showered here took no notice of the men's erections. As Taloga had said, they were used to it.

Sara turned back towards the men, letting them view her front. The fourth man was just turning off his shower, leaving the two erect men and Mikka. The two erect men avoided looking directly at Sara, only sneaking sidelong peeks. Their erections did not appear close to abating; if anything, they looked bigger than ever. Sara squeezed some shampoo into her palm and started to rub it into her hair, putting down the small bottle so she could use both hands. She knew that lifting her arms like that made her breasts sway, and she could see the men glancing at them. The lather washed through her hair, sending bubbles sliding down the front of her body.

They were turned on, it was obvious from their erections. But could they tell she was getting turned on as well? Were they experienced at reading the signs of arousal on a woman's naked body? She couldn't suppress the thrill she felt, standing naked in front of these two tall, muscular men, seeing their thick penises swollen and throbbing at the sight of her, yet knowing that they didn't dare make a move on her. She was a visitor, a guest, forbidden to them.

Or was she? Maybe that was just another assumption she was making, an assumption about Melepria culture that might turn out to be wrong. She admitted that was part of what made it exciting. Maybe they were just a minute away from walking across the room and asking to make love to her. What would she say if they did?

She would say no, of course. But it was still exciting to imagine them asking. She fought the urge to slide her hand between her legs and test her sensitivity. Maybe if she put some body wash on the washcloth... and pretended to be scrubbing down there... would they know what she was doing? Would it turn them on even more?

Mikka looked over at her and smiled. Sara turned her knee in nervously, pressing her thighs together. Had he read her thoughts?

He turned off his shower and walked in her direction, veering to the left towards the shower that was the neighbor to hers. Instead of turning on the shower, he leaned against the wall just under it, his body still dripping. "It bother you? That they look?" He nodded towards the other men. "They try not to. They just not use to see body like your."

"Really?" Sara had her head turned towards Mikka while he spoke, but her front was still angled towards the two men on the other side of the room. She knew their eyes were fixed on her, taking advantage of her distraction to gaze freely at her nudity. "But they're used to seeing women in these showers, right?"

"Yes. But not body like yours. Ah..." He struggled with his words. "Your body is like... ah... flower? Like, soft to touch like flower petal?"

"Soft...?" Sara glanced nervously at the two men, who quickly looked away.

"Yes... ah... you know orchid? Orchid flower?"

"I know orchid."

Mikka nodded, grinning. "Like orchid. Right."

The two men across the room turned off their showers. Sara watched them as they walked towards the locker area. Both men carefully avoided looking at her, as if Mikka had scolded them for their interest. They still both had erections, though, and Sara watched their penises swing back and forth as the men walked.

That left Sara alone with Mikka in the shower, and he leaned against the wall patiently, as if he felt obligated to wait for her. Sara pushed her wet hair out of her eyes and peeked down at her body. She was like an orchid? What did that mean? Did it refer to all of her? Or just a specific part?

"Do you think Taloga is back with clean clothes for me?" she asked.

Mikka shrugged. "He is fast. Yes, maybe he is back. If he is not, I can find you uniform. You wear uniform?"

"Yes. I mean, I don't have anything else to wear."

"Right. You finish your shower, I check." He nodded at her, then turned and walked toward the locker area. Sara didn't even wait until she was out of sight; as soon as he turned away, her hand dropped to press against her pussy. She stroked herself while she watched his muscular backside striding away. The tip of her finger wriggled between her labia, then explored upward towards her clitoris. She shivered as her finger touched that swollen, sensitive nub. Her other hand went to her breast, squeezing it and tugging on her nipple.

She played with herself for a few minutes, aware that at any moment a new group of Melepria men could walk in and see her. The responsiveness of her body and the ease at which she kindled the pleasure between her legs convinced her that she could bring herself to orgasm very quickly. But she wasn't prepared to be that daring.

She turned off the shower, starting with the hot water, so that cold water enveloped her body for several seconds before she turned that off as well. The cold water invigorated her, although it didn't seem to do anything to lessen her state of arousal. She walked over to her towel and slowly, methodically dried her body. It gave her time to cool down and get control of herself. No one new entered the shower; perhaps all the workers done with work at five had already cleaned up.

She tied the towel around her waist, leaving her breasts exposed, and walked through the door to the locker area.

Taloga waited for her there. He presented her with a neat stack of clothes. "These should fit, Dr. Sara," he said. "Your other clothes are being cleaned, and will be returned to your room in the guest cottage."

"Thank you, Taloga." Sara removed her towel and draped it on a bench. She riffled through the clothes. A green uniform shirt with pockets on the front and shoulders, matching green shorts, plus a white bra and panties. Taloga stood patiently, watching while she dressed. She pulled on the panties, then looped her arms through the straps of the bra, pausing to position her breasts properly before snapping it. The bra fit her perfectly. Had Taloga learned her bra size from the dirty bra she'd given him to clean, and then retrieved a new one that matched? Or was it just a lucky guess?

The shorts were a little snugger than she was used to, but the shirt fit her fine. "How are these clothes, Dr. Sara?" Taloga asked.

"Perfect," she replied. "I'm ready to drive back if you are."

She followed Taloga outside. His ATV was parked just a few meters away from the shower entrance. As Sara took her seat in the ATV, she noticed a man leaning against the building, just around the corner from the entrance. She recognized him as one of the Melepria men who had become erect in the shower. He was still naked and still erect, and now he was stroking his penis with a togoja. Sara couldn't help but stare as the man openly masturbated in front of her. He noticed her watching and nodded to her casually, as if acknowledging an acquaintance on the street. The rhythm of his stroke remained steady.

Suddenly, he had a mapa bag in his hand. He pulled the togoja to the base of his penis and slipped the mapa bag over the swollen head. The ATV roared to life just as the man's penis began to twitch, no doubt spattering the inside of the bag with his ejaculate. The ATV accelerated, following the road through the trees, and the man disappeared from sight.

Taloga guided the ATV along the dirt road, threading through the endless sea of sagana trees. He drove faster than Sara expected, faster than seemed safe, but she felt confident that he knew what he was doing. The wind rushed through her hair, pulling at the wet strands and making them dance. She closed her eyes, breathing deeply the earthy smells of the forest, letting her body sway and bounce against her seat belt as the ATV sped through the orchards.