Leah, The Dropout

"Aw, thanks Leah! It's good running into you. I will be in touch about the party -- it's this Saturday," Meghan said.

Then the girl handed Leah a $5 tip, but something about taking the money from Meghan was profoundly demeaning. It cemented their new relationship: Leah slavishly tending to Meghan's feet for a small pittance compared the blonde girl's vast fortune.

Mrs. Kim sent Leah out to Meghan's car, to open the door for her so she wouldn't smudge her manicure. Although Meghan was gracious about everything, something about her smile made Leah suspect that she savored this sort of treatment. Leah could put all this aside: was more focused on how great it would be to have that four hundred dollars!

As Leah marched back to the salon to sweep up the nail clippings and foot filings, she mentally calculated how much the money would help. The mousy girl was in such a good mood she wasn't even bothered by the fact that Mrs. Kim made her use a nail brush and a little dustpan to sweep up her pedicure station.

While it was going to be a challenge for Leah to do beauty treatments at Meghan's party, she really believed this was the first good thing that had happened to her in a long time.

**

Leah's mom dropped her off in front of Meghan's place, but they didn't speak much on the ride over.

Leah was still mad that her parents wouldn't raise her allowance, despite the fact that she was doing practically all of the household chores at this point. Every morning consisted of her waking up, making breakfast for everyone, doing all their dishes, then making her parents' bed (!) before beginning whatever chores they assigned her that day. Sure, they would make comments on how 'helpful' Leah was and how they liked her 'new attitude,' but they refused to give her more than $20 a week for what Leah had calculated to be over 20 hours of work. And as an apprentice at Mrs. Kim's nail salon she wasn't paid normal wages, and only kept a small portion of the tips her clients left her.

Leah focused on the four hundred dollars as she walked up to Meghan's house, knocking on the carved wooden door.

As Leah knocked, she observed the stupid white gloves that Mrs. Kim recently began making her wear, also full of collagen gel. Mrs. Kim explained that Leah's hands needed to be soft, to be more pleasing on womens' feet. Leah didn't argue, although she couldn't believe that she was basing so much of her life now around how she could be better at servicing womens' feet.

The girl who opened the door looked like a younger, meaner Meghan. The teenager snorted as she saw Leah's uniform, eyeing her up and down subtly. Leah dimly recognized her as Meghan's little sister. Leah knew her to be at least 18, but she definitely had that catty personality she'd expect in a young woman.

"You must be Leah," the girl said plainly.

Even in bare feet she was quite a bit taller than Leah, and a little intimidating in her haughty beauty. She wore a tank top and short shorts that really emphasized how long her legs were --apparently that trait ran in the family. The girl didn't offer to shake hands and ushered Leah in the house right away, apparently in a hurry to get back to whatever she was doing before.

"I'm Kara, Meghan's sister. She's busy right now, but could you help clean the kitchen? I'm a little busy giving directions," Kara said.

She didn't really wait for Leah's response, and went to sit down on the black leather sofa, picking up her cell phone to resume talking to whoever was on the other line. Leah wasn't really comfortable asserting herself here -- she wanted that money -- so she showed herself to the kitchen and started doing the considerable dishes in the sink. Judging by the tone of Kara's phone call, she was mostly just chatting with her friends.

"Leah! Could you bring me a water?" Kara called out, and Leah rolled her eyes as she got a glass of water for this snotty teenage girl.

Kara didn't even bother saying 'thank you,' and just waved Leah back to her work. It became apparent that Kara wasn't going to help with anything -- she seemed very content to sit on the sofa and tell Leah what to do. Over the next hour, Leah was hanging decorations, setting out refreshments, and even emptying the trash as Kara just sat there barking out commands. Leah resented taking orders from this girl who couldn't have been more than nineteen years old, but without Meghan present she didn't have much leverage here.

To make things worse, Kara had a habit of pointing at things with her feet instead of her hands. And the only personal conversation she made with Leah was pointing out that she needed a pedicure and she was happy that Meghan had hired a girl to do that for her. But wasn't Leah just hired to do 'mini manicures'?

Soon Kara got up from the couch, to change into something more appropriate for the party. Leah was taking a much-needed break when Kara came back down, dressed in an eye-catching red dress that emphasized her trim, athletic figure. She had something in her hands that she thrust into Leah's -- the girl couldn't contain her disappointment when she saw that it was some kind of maid's cap!

Leah looked at the thing like it was radioactive. It was a dome-shaped white hairpiece with long ribbons hanging from it, and a band to secure it beneath Leah's chin.

"I dressed up as Chun-Li for Halloween, and when I saw this I thought it would look really cute on you. Try it on!" Kara said, and Leah cringed as she put the thing atop her head.

Maybe on a different costume this thing would be cute or stylish, but on Leah it just gave her the unmistakable look of a maid. Kara laughed and complimented the look, but it did nothing to lessen Leah's embarrassment.

Then there was a knock on the door.

"Oh, go answer it!" Kara announced, looking at Leah as though a brilliant idea had just struck her.

"Tell them 'welcome to the O'Conner house' then send them in. Try to call Meghan Mrs. Davenport -- she loves using Declan's last name."

Leah nervously approached the front door, aghast at how this would appear. To her dismay, it was none other than London Bechtold. The mocha-skinned girl was sipping a frost beverage, and gawked openly at Leah's appearance. London was speechless as Leah welcomed her to the party.

"Leah?!" London asked in her prissy voice, "are you like, a maid now?"

"No! I'm--" Leah tried to get out, but Kara interrupted her.

"London! Come in! No, Leah's not a maid. She's just doing nails at the party today. Here, come try these coconut shrimp, they're delicious!"

London disregarded Leah, but the girl's ears were burning as she imagined London telling Kara about their history in high school. Leah didn't even begin doing nails right away -- Kara seemed happier to have her answering the door and giving the appearance that she was the maid of the house. Leah recognized several of her former classmates such as Tanya Day and Kelly Davis. Literally everyone thought she was Meghan's maid, and what could she say in response?

Soon, Meghan came down the staircase looking breathtaking in a white Valentino dress she must have snatched from the runway. Her hair was amazingly well-done, curled and primped in a way that gave her a regal appearance. After greeting the other guests Meghan came over and said 'hi' to Leah and thanked her for putting up with Kara.

With her usual poise, Meghan promised Leah that she would get a little bonus for dealing with her annoying sister. Kara laughed -- apparently taking no offense at this comment.

"Well, are you ready to do pedicures?" Meghan asked.

Leah tried to object -- she thought it was only going to be manicures!

"Yeah, I was thinking about it and manicures don't really make sense," Meghan explained, "like, ladies are going to be using their hands. But if you do their feet, it's a lot easier. Do you mind?"

Kara and London were both listening into the conversation and looked at Leah expectantly. Now she felt way too self-conscious to object.

"Yeah, that's fine," Leah muttered.

"Awesome! Thank you, Leah. I really appreciate this," Meghan said, before another friend pulled her away.

"I get first dibs!" London called out, dragging Leah over to the black couch.

"I'm sorry in advance for the state of my feet," the girl said, stretching her legs out expectantly. Leah sighed -- London didn't even bother removing her own shoes. First Leah took off her own gloves, then she unzipped the ankle-high boots that London was wearing, noticing that London didn't wear socks beneath. The girl had long toes with dainty little nail beds, and judging by how grown-out her polish was, it had been a while since her last pedicure.

Leah set to work, going largely ignored by the rest of the guests. She immediately realized that she hadn't brought a water bowl to soak London's feet in, or any way to sanitize or clean them. The result was that she had to massage London's feet right out of her shoes, the smell of leather and sweat absorbing into her hands.

There were several people from her school there, and pretty soon they didn't even bother asking Leah about her circumstances. Although they were surprised at first, after some quick conversation they seemed to accept that this was her lot now, massaging their feet and painting their nails.

Leah was beside herself with humiliation: Meghan had hired a professional photographer who snapped several photos of her working on girls' feet. As soon as she had finished with London, Tanya took her place and put her feet in Leah's lap.

"Give me the works," Tanya said, sipping champagne. She wiggled her toes playfully, as the flash of the camera went off.

"So what got you into this feet thing? I mean, doesn't it bother you at all having to dig the gunk out from beneath my toenails?" Tanya asked, causing some people nearby to laugh.

Leah explained her situation lamely, but Tanya was barely interested in hearing her story.

"Oh, if all you need is money, I'm looking for some help around my house!" a mature woman said, breaking into their conversation.

She had aged gracefully, and wore an elegant black dress. Her thick black hair had only a few grey streaks, but this didn't take away from her beauty.

"I will warn you, I fired my last housekeeper because she put my delicates in the laundry and ruined them all," the woman continued, "they need to be hand-washed. It's so hard to find someone willing to do that."

The woman sipped her wine, then gave Leah a thoughtful look. Apparently, she was quite pleased to see a girl willing to kneel in place for hours. Leah knew that her maid's look was apparently having an effect on how people treated her.

"You seem like a hard worker," the woman said.

"Would you like to stop by my place once or twice a month?"

Leah felt put on the spot. Something about the woman's condescending tone made her believe that she would be terrible to work for. Seriously, what sort of person expected someone to wash their soiled panties by hand??

"I don't know," Leah said, "I only have Sundays off work, and--"

"Sundays are perfect!" The woman said, "I have them off too, so I can be there to supervise you. Just think about it, okay? The pay is ten dollars an hour in cash, which is very fair considering the labor market."

Leah nodded, although she wasn't seriously considering it. When she finished painting Tanya's nails a bright pink color, the mature woman was next. She preferred to be called Miss Delaney, and had the most stringent requirements of any of Leah's clients so far. It felt like everything Leah did was wrong and the woman was quick to complain about even the smallest thing. Leah was glad when she had finished Miss Delaney's pedicure, but as soon as she was finished another girl took her place.

Leah lost track of the amount of feet she worked on -- it felt like while the party was raging around her all she could do was stare at womens' feet and remain in her uncomfortable position on the floor. Soon, the guests were all quite drunk, and playing the sorts of racy games that happen at a bachelorette's party. They were gathered around a table when it happened.

"Okay, this next question is pretty bad!" London announced, holding up a bright pink index card.

"What is your favorite thing to do in bed, that your fiancee isn't in to doing?"

The girls all squealed, and looked over at a blushing Meghan. She was seated in the hot seat, answering all the ridiculous and personal questions being asked of her. She was bright red -- partially from the liquor and partially from all the attention but Leah knew she loved being the center of everything.

"Okay," Meghan began, "this is really embarrassing. But, I kind of like it when he kisses my feet!"

Everyone listening burst into laughter, and Meghan hid her face in her hands.

"Hey!" Tanya cut in, "I have an idea. Why doesn't Leah do that for you? It will be like a party game!"

Everyone looked over at Leah, who was sitting down with a girl's feet in her lap. She wished she could sink into the ground and disappear.

"I don't know.." Meghan demurred.

"Seriously, Megs!" Tanya persisted. "She's already massaged your feet for like half an hour, she obviously likes them. What difference is a little kissing??"

Leah bit her cheek -- did all these girls think she got pleasure out of being down here at their feet? She shook her head resolutely. There was no way she was going to kiss Meghan O'Conner's feet in front of everyone. But few people seemed to notice, the group seemed to be very taken with this idea. Already several of Meghan's friends were encouraging her, and the girl was starting to agree with some of their points!

"I mean, would it be alright with you, Leah? I know it's a lot to ask, but this is my last hurrah as a bachelorette. Then I have to live my whole life with a husband who won't kiss my feet!" Meghan said, sitting close enough that her bare feet were uncomfortably close to Leah already. Leah wasn't having it.

"Do it for me please? I'll pay you a hundred dollars extra!"

Leah looked down at Meghan's feet, with the perfect coat of red nail polish on. Somehow the promise of money made it more acceptable, but deep down Leah knew she was basically turning tricks at this point. But Tanya did have a point -- she had already rubbed Leah's feet and was this SO different from what she did at the salon?

"Okay," Leah finally said, and the entire crowd hooted to hear it.

"Let's go to your room," she said when the noise had died down a little.

"No!" Meghan said, her eyes lighting up, "do it right here!"

Meghan held her foot up expectantly. It was scant inches from Leah's face, and the girl could see how smooth her soles were. Blushing to her thighs, Leah leaned in and planted a little peck on the ball of Meghan O'Conner's feet. They were soft and smooth against her lips, but the psychological impact of it was nothing less than devastating. At first, Leah tried to plant the smallest kisses possible, but Meghan wasn't having it.

"Come on, Leah!" Meghan scolded her, "put your heart into it! Otherwise, I won't pay!"

Leah's heart sank -- it was clear that Meghan was enjoying this degree of control over her, holding a few hundred dollars over her head. But Leah was already so deep in that she didn't want to quit, so she started kissing Leah's feet more passionately. The gorgeous blonde girl gasped as Leah kissed the space beneath her toes, then started planting kisses on the nails she had just painted the other day.

Everyone from the party was encouraging her to do more.

"Lick between her toes!" London called out, "I had a guy do that for me one time and it was unbelievable."

Leah darted her tongue between Meghan's big toe and second toe. It tasted salty and a little sweet, and her feet were very warm. Meghan moaned openly -- she was enjoying this way too much. As soon as Leah had licked Meghan's feet, the pretenses were abandoned. The crowd was giving her endless requests, telling her to "suck on her toes now!" and "lick the entire length of her foot, from heel to toe!"

Leah had given up any claim to self-respect at this point. She put the flat of her tongue against Meghan's heel and ran it all up her long foot, feeling each individual crevice in the girl's soles. It wasn't a straight shot, either -- her tongue had to travel into the valley of Meghan's high arches before emerging near her long toes. She could see Meghan's feet slick with her own saliva, and some of it was even coming off on her own lips and cheeks.

Sucking on Meghan's toes was another level of debasement. Meghan practically moaned in ecstasy, biting her inner lip and smiling. Leah had thought it would be a quick kiss, but Meghan obviously expected a lot more for her money. So the foot worship (Leah couldn't even deny it was anything else at this point) went on for quite some time.

"Oh my god, this is like the best thing ever. I want my intern to do this for me every day!" Meghan announced, and the inebriated crowd all laughed.

Minutes passed. To Leah's shame, Meghan even carried on a conversation about her sex life with Declan, ignoring Leah for a time. But she would always have another thing she wanted, looking down at the mousy brunette girl and saying things like "nibble on my toes a little now," or "suck on the balls of my feet!"

After a time, Meghan said it was too much, and excused herself to the restroom. The party dispersed a little at this point, although people were still commenting on Leah's enthusiasm and openly speculating on what their favorite things were in bed.

Leah was sitting by herself, awash in shame from how she had just acted but she wasn't alone for long. Soon Miss Delaney had taken the seat Meghan had just vacated. She had a crisp hundred dollar bill in her hands, and she forcefully put both of her bare feet in Leah's lap, making a silent demand of the defeated girl.

Leah sighed, and nodded her head. She looked down at Miss Delaney's milky white feet and hoped that her nail polish had dried as she lifted them up to kiss them for the very first time...

***

Leah knelt on the cream carpet, holding one of Miss Delaney's stilettos in her hands. She was scrubbing it with a toothbrush, slowly making her way though the woman's jaw-dropping collection of expensive footwear. Her knees ached. She had been at it for an hour.

Miss Delaney had shut Leah in her walk-in closet for this specific task. The brunette girl sat facing the mirror, appalled as usual at her own appearance. Miss Delaney required that Leah wear a uniform for cleaning her house, nominally so she wouldn't get her own clothes dirty but Leah knew she had other reasons.

The uniform was a schoolgirl's outfit that the woman had found conveniently lying around. Leah had on a pleated green skirt, a white blouse, and even a green tie that the demanding woman would always make uncomfortably tight against her neck. On her feet, she wore tissue-thin white socks, and never any shoes while indoors.

As she polished Miss Delaney's shoes, Leah thought about the turns her life had taken after Meghan's party.

Meghan had raved about Leah's service, which Mrs. Kim was happy to hear about but still felt that Leah didn't deserve a promotion. Now, the other technicians teased Leah endlessly about her little foot escapades, and would openly ask her to give them the same sorts of treatments. In her weaker moments, Leah considered actually doing it. But she knew that once she did, they would nickle and dime her each time until she was worshiping their feet for next to nothing.

She was much busier now at the salon, thanks to Kara. The girl had a mind for business, and had partnered with Mrs. Kim to make her business the official nail salon of Meghan and Leah's old high school. Essentially, this meant that high school girls could get a serious discount on their pedicures with Leah, as long as they posted lots of photos to their social media pages. The offer only extended to students eighteen and older, but even then Leah had more work than she could handle. Kara had also floated the idea of Leah doing mobile pedicures at the high school -- something that Leah was sure she would never recover from.