Allie and Friends at the Beach

Allie, who had often wondered the same, laughed until she cried tears of relief and joy. Her recounting of the whole story for Darlene and Rayma at the coffee shop brought on a similar reaction from them both. "I ought to read those stories, too," Rayma said. "I could use the reassurance."

"Oh no, you didn't have anyone mouth off at you about your body too, did you?" Allie asked with a sympathetic look.

"No," Rayma allowed. "It was more like I put myself down about it."

Allie was a bit confused by this, but Darlene wasn't. "This sounds similar to something I went through," she said. "Something you saw or overheard reminded you that you were different, didn't it?"

"Exactly," Rayma said. "I was walking past that swimming pool near where we live, and all those women in tiny bikinis...all I could think was 'That used to be me, and if I showed up dressed like that now I'd be treated like a freak of nature, even though I'm the one who actually is natural!'"

"Yep," Darlene said with a sympathetic nod. "I overheard a couple of little brats mouthing off about how real women only wear bikinis, and all I could think of was what would they say if they saw me in one?"

"I feel like a traitor saying it," Rayma said, "But the whole 'I can't wear a bikini' thing has always been so empowering before, and now it feels like, well, all I hear is the 'can't'. And why on earth can't I? Who says, you know?"

Allie thought about that, and remembered the last time she had tried wearing one, just after she had stopped shaving. The sight of her huge bush sticking out in every direction had made her laugh, precisely because the very idea of wearing it in public had been so absurd. She had since gone nude in public, but when it came to swimwear she had stuck to the most modest options available. "Well, you know," she said now with a sly grin. "I don't think anyone ever has said we couldn't, except us."

"I was actually thinking of just this for our big sendoff," Darlene said.

"Oh, God, Darlene, don't remind us you and Neill are leaving us!" Allie exclaimed. "Splitting up the I-can't-wear-a-bikini gang!"

"Well, that's just what I was thinking," Darlene continued. What if, for our last big hurrah, we did just what we've always said we couldn't do?"

Darlene had been fairly sure there would be some resistance, or at least the pretense of concern that the guys wouldn't like it. But there wasn't. Allie and Rayma only looked at each other and smiled.

"It would be a fine sendoff to our gang, wouldn't it?" Allie said.

"One more thing we'd never forget," Rayma agreed. "Starting with the Hallowe'en party, ending with that?"

Allie felt like crying as she realized just what a wonderful chapter of her life was coming to an end. But that was all the more reason to make it a memorable ending.

It was a modest beachside motel, old but well-kept, on a strip that had probably been glamorous back in their grandparents' day. A humble setting at best for their last hurrah, but the price was right for six friends with lots of student loan debt about to come knocking. They had reserved two adjoining rooms opening directly onto the beach, so that everyone had a bed and they'd all be able to share as much as they all felt comfortable with.

As all three women had anticipated, there had been no reservations at all on the guys' part. But as Darlene steered the rented minivan into the hotel parking lot, Scott felt the need to offer one last chance to turn back. "Are you all sure about this?" he asked, his hand poised on the sliding door but not opening it yet.

"Baby, we've talked about this!" Allie reminded him. "And we all bought new suits for the occasion, too."

"The first bikini I've ever owned," Darlene added. "I don't want it to go to waste!"

"Well, I didn't mean that, or at least not just that," Scott said. "I meant, if any of us would rather get a private room than share everything together..."

"Do you want that, Scott?" Allie asked.

Scott looked at Darlene and Rayma, and couldn't help bursting into nervous laughter.

"That's how we all feel, too, Scott," Rayma said. "It's part of the fun, and we have all seen each other naked twice before anyway."

"Twice?" Sam asked. "Hallowe'en and..."

"Christmas at Darlene's uncle's cabin," Allie reminded him.

"Oh right, I always forget about that one," Sam confessed. "It all felt so rushed."

"No need to feel rushed this time," Darlene said. "Or uncomfortable, unless you are, Neill?"

Neill, the only one who hadn't already said otherwise, said, "I confess, I'm a sucker for another look at Allie and Rayma!"

They all shared a cathartic laugh. "Thank you for saying what we were all thinking, Neill," Sam added.

"And what we're thinking about the three of you," Allie added with a look at Sam and Neill. They both looked delighted with that revelation.

For all the enthusiasm they all expressed, no one wanted to break the ice now that it was the moment of truth. So after checking in and dropping all their suitcases just inside the nearer of the two rooms, it was off to a light lunch across the street. Though it was perfect beach weather, there was no talk of rushing off to the beach, even after they made their way back to the motel. On their return, a bit of shuffling about ended with Allie and Scott claiming the inside bed in the first room, while the rest ended up in the other room and the outside bed remained the designated spot for all the suitcases.

Once Allie opened the door leading to the other room and Neill opened the door from the other side, there was nothing left to stall for. Allie and Neill looked at one another as the doorway opened up between them, and they both laughed a bit shyly.

"The beach, anyone?" Allie asked. She always had been the leader of the gang, she reasoned.

"Yes please!" said Scott, Rayma and Darlene in unison while Neill and Sam both nodded. Promptly they all descended upon the spare bed with the suitcases to retrieve their swimming garb. But when they all had their suits at the ready, once again there was an awkward silence.

"Anyone want to change in the bathroom?" Sam offered. "No hard feelings if you've got cold feet."

Everyone laughed, and it appeared as if they were all going to take him up on his suggestion. But then Darlene stepped back from the group and spoke up. "Wait, guys, do we really want to chicken out now?" she asked. "Let's be honest, I think we were all looking forward to this most of all. You guys are the most accepting group of friends I've ever had, and I know we don't want to miss our last chance to share that! I think we're all just afraid to be the first. So I'll volunteer."

Darlene was accustomed to prancing up and down the hallway of Neill's fraternity house in her underwear, and this was nothing compared to that. It was, she rationalized, nothing they hadn't all seen before. Still, there was a touch of trepidation as she pulled her shorts and panties down -- what if this didn't do the trick?

She needn't have worried, for once she bent down to retrieve her discarded garments, the ice was broken. "Thanks, Darlene," said Scott with a shameless gaze at her bush, which came into full view as Darlene pulled her shirt off as well.

When she had the shirt out of the way, she found all the others were now following her lead. A veritable whirlwind of jeans and shirts and bras ensued while Darlene watched, wearing a big smile and nothing else. Satisfied that her mission was accomplished, Darlene set to putting her swimsuit on. She began with the top, which gave Sam an opportunity to gaze quite shamelessly at her bare bush. Darlene saw this and responded with an amused giggle. She had no doubt he was thinking of that night at the frat house where they had touched one another in the shower. That fleeting encounter had been a thrill for her as well, and she found she would welcome a reprise of it. But she figured that would hardly do with Rayma and Neill right there with them, and it appeared Sam agreed. So their mutual memory was left hanging in the air as Darlene pulled on her blue and green swirled bikini panties and then turned to admire herself in the mirror.

"Well, yours almost cover everything, sweetie," Neill said, stepping up beside her to admire the flirtatious hint of dark curls that spilled over her waistband. "And just look at that beautiful bulge," he added, pressing gently on the strip of cloth that was taut with the barely-hidden hair. Neill's own trunks were bulging as well as he prodded Darlene's triangle playfully.

"That's beautiful all right," Darlene," Sam added.

"Thanks." She turned around to see Sam was also hard under his trunks. But she couldn't be sure she was the one who had inspired it in his case, for she looked past him to see Rayma in a tiny white bikini that was bursting with stray hair on all sides. There wasn't even any pretense of trying to preserve her modesty, and Rayma acknowledged as much with a nervous laugh as her eyes met Darlene's.

Allie's maroon bikini was likewise deliciously inadequate in its coverage. "I remember when I actually could wear this," she said, drinking in the guys' admiration as she took her turn before the mirror. "I was actually wearing this suit the day I decided to go natural."

"You still can wear it, silly," Scott said, looking adoringly from over her shoulder at her reflection.

"Yeah, you look fantastic!" Rayma added, stepping up to take her place beside Allie. Side by side, they burst into girlish giggles as they admired themselves, each with a happy trail on unapologetic display and leading down to a forest of promise that their suits scarcely even tried to hide. Darlene almost felt left out.

"Thanks," Allie said. "It's just...you should've seen how I looked in it back when I shaved."

"If you still shaved, we wouldn't be here," Scott reminded her.

"Yeah, I guess that's true," Allie said after a thoughtful pause, turning around. "Strange what one little tiff with a childhood friend can bring on, huh?"

Sam had his hand on the doorknob. "Are we all sure we're ready for this?" he asked.

"I'd say it's a little late to turn back now," said Rayma. Since she was putting the most on display, no one argued the point.

There had been a lot of debate on the drive about how they would be received by the other beach-goers. But all six had agreed on two things: it wouldn't take very long for the haters to take notice of them, and there was no use in trying to predict just what would happen or how to handle it. So they all kept their gaze focused on the gentle waves as they strode down the sand. Allie and Darlene struck up a conversation about Darlene's new job, and they remained stubbornly focused on that as the first random stares and catcalls occurred.

And occur they did. Not even a minute had passed before the first call of "Hey, look at these freaks!" rang out. This was followed shortly by a "What the fuck?", and by more pointing and ogling than any of the six friends could hope to be aware of as they did their best to ignore it all.

The guys, of course, had rather less to prove when it came to ignoring them. "You okay?" Sam asked Rayma, who was clinging rather tightly to his arm with a defiant smile on her face, ignoring the numerous stares they had already attracted.

"Fine, thanks," she said. "Really kind of proud that we were all strong enough to do this. I figure they're the losers, after all."

There was a recently-vacated spot just above the remnants of the last high-tide. They set their blanket down to stake their claim, and set to work rubbing sunblock on one another. Rayma joked that she likely didn't need it, but she joined in with the others anyway, enjoying their camaraderie and preferring to have something to do besides ignore the latest round of stares. The women were careful only to look at one another, but the men took the opportunity to make eye-contact with the rude neighbors who were staring at them. Sam went as far as to talk to one while Rayma was rubbing lotion on his back. "Hey, how're you doing?"

"Huh? Yeah, fine." The young man turned away, and darted an eye at Rayma a time or two before Sam looked away, always averting his gaze when he saw Sam was still watching him.

"That was brilliant, Sam," Allie whispered in his ear. Then she stood up. "Neill, you brought a Frisbee, didn't you?" she asked.

"Yep." Neill was already digging through the beach-bag for it, and the others followed Allie's lead in standing up to wait. All three of the women had been reminding themselves all day to smile through their embarrassment at this moment. But, as they would all learn on comparing notes later on, there was little embarrassment to work past for any of them. They were among friends, and whatever their detractors had muttered on the way by, few were willing to say anything out of line when presented with the prospect of having to spend any time near them.

The tide was out, and there was plenty of room for the six friends to spread out on the wet sand to toss the Frisbee about among them. Allie, Darlene and Rayma were under no illusions about forgetting what was on display or the attention they were attracting, especially not with the occasional leap that was necessary to catch the Frisbee. But they were able to get lost in the joys of summer and camaraderie and forget about self-consciousness in favor of embracing their uniqueness. Many of the laughs and shrieks that ensued were inspired as much by their sense of exhibitionism as by the game. The few looks they -- and the guys -- gave the rest of the crowd suggested just what they had hoped for: after the initial shock, most of the other sunbathers paid them little or no mind.

They had also anticipated that not all the attention they received would be negative -- after all, they had all found guys who loved their bodies just as they were; surely there were a lot more out there -- and that guess was also proven right. Allie was aware of the first one when she let her eyes wander just after tossing the Frisbee to Neill. As she looked out across the crowd, morbidly curious about any prudes still staring at her, she found herself looking into the eyes of a young man who was following an older couple -- his parents? -- down the beach. He'd been checking her out, no mistaking that, and on realizing he'd been caught he was smart enough not to bother pretending otherwise. He broke down into what Allie was sure was an embarrassed laugh, and she softened the blow by smiling and waving at him. The poor dear waved back and then turned away, and Allie had no doubt she was going to be the subject of his fantasies for years to come. Though she couldn't very well check in public, Allie had little doubt the encounter had left her a little wet.

For all the funny, dirty and admiring looks they weathered, all was well until Rayma missed a long throw and had to retrieve the Frisbee from its landing place near a blanket with a clutch of jocks and bottle-blondes. In defiance of the repulsed looks from the blanket's occupants, Rayma was all smiles as she approached them and bent down to retrieve the toy. "Sorry to disturb you there," she said. "That throw was a bit over my head."

"It's not that you should be sorry for!" snapped one of the blondes.

"Yeah, haven't you and your friends got any shame?" added the guy next to her.

"That's disgusting, can't you see that?" chimed in the woman on her other side. "Get a Brazilian already, we all do!"

"Yeah, I feel sorry for you!" added the first woman.

Rayma, though hurt, had been prepared for this, and she remembered to smile through her rage. "The feeling is mutual," she said as she stood up straight and placed her free hand on her hip, forcing her detractors to either drink in the sight of her hairy body or look away. She was delighted to notice that one of the guys who hadn't spoken up chose the former and gave every sign of enjoying the view.

"Excuse me?" She stood up as well. Though Rayma now saw her nemesis was at least a head taller, she looked tiny as ever.

Scott, who had been nearest to Rayma of the bunch, arrived at her side just then. "Everything okay?" he asked.

"No!" snapped the guy who had lectured Rayma about shame. "Just what is the deal with your lady friends here? Some kind of practical joke?"

"It's no joke," Scott said. "And it's none of your business."

"Is too!" snapped the woman who had stood up. "Everyone here has to look at this shit now! We came to the beach to relax, not to be grossed out. And your friend here says she feels sorry for me? What the hell?"

"I do," Rayma said. "If just the sight of another human being is enough to ruin your vacation, I feel very sorry for you!"

"Hear hear," added Allie, and Rayma turned to see all her friends had by then gathered around her and Scott.

"Guys, this isn't the seventh grade," Sam chimed in. "No need for body shaming, especially when we were minding our own business, all right?"

"You freaks," Rayma's nemesis muttered under her breath, and then she turned on her heel and marched up towards the hotel.

"Where you going?" asked the other woman, who was still lying down and doing her best not to look at Rayma, Darlene or Allie.

"To get help!" she called over her shoulder.

At this, the six friends all looked at one another, Neill shrugged and turned back towards the water, and they all followed suit. Just before she turned away, though, Rayma took one last look at the guy who had appeared to be admiring her. He still was, and she was almost sure he mouthed the word "Sorry" at her. In case she was right, she nodded and smiled. She concluded that if she was wrong and he was just as repulsed as his friends, it would just aggravate him further.

No one knew just what the angry blonde had meant by "help," but whatever it was, no one wanted to turn tail and run. There was no discussion of that, and there didn't need to be -- they had all known there would likely be a bit of flack. So they returned to the game and waited for the other shoe to drop. Soon enough, it did. From between Darlene and Sam, a voice up the beach called out, "Excuse me?"

Scott had just tossed the Frisbee to Rayma. It landed forgotten beside her in the wet sand as she, and all the others, turned to see a female police officer standing before them. The angry blonde stood just behind her, a smug look on her face.

Darlene happened to be the one closest to her, and so she spoke up. "Yes, officer?"

"Has there been an altercation of some kind here?" the cop asked. Darlene was relieved to note that she maintained eye-contact with her, taking no notice of her body that Darlene could discern.

"You could say that, officer," Scott said. "We were minding our own business, playing Frisbee, and this woman and her friends began harassing my friend here" -- he put an arm around Rayma, a gesture she eagerly returned -- "over her appearance."

The cop looked Rayma up and down, her eyes lingering between Rayma's legs, but said nothing. Sensing that her ploy wasn't going to work on its own, the blonde prodded the cop. "It's indecent exposure, isn't it, officer? It must be!"

"It's gross, whatever else," added her male friend, who had finally stood up to join the huddle.

"I'm sorry, sir, did she ask your opinion?" the cop asked him.

"No, I didn't." Rayma piped up. "I only went near him in the first place to get our Frisbee."

"So you weren't taunting them in any way," the cop continued.

"Absolutely not, officer," Allie chimed in. "We weren't paying them any mind at all."

"But they were prancing all over the place with their...hair hanging out!" insisted the blonde. "That must be indecent exposure, right?"

The cop gave Rayma, Darlene and Allie a sympathetic look in turn. "There are times I hate this job," she said. "Ladies, could you please line up here?" She gestured just in front of her, and they obeyed. The officer got down on one knee and gave each of their crotches the once-over. Then she stood up and brushed the sand off her knee, and turned back to the blonde and her friends. "Indecent exposure would only apply if their labia were exposed. I've taken a closer look than anyone ought to in public, and they're not."