Jimmy ran along the edge of the parking lot and didn't slow down until he was two blocks away down the main road. His heart was pounding too hard to keep running, though, and he also wanted to avoid getting sweaty in all these clothes. The weather was cold, but his blood was still quite warm.

It was very hard to think straight. He kept returning to the image of "Miss Elizabeth" straddling him, with his hands resting on her thighs. How ironic, it seemed, that where once such an experience would have been the realization of so much fantasy, now he felt repelled, horrified, and alone. He quickened his pace and tried to simply empty his mind of all thoughts as he paced against the wind.

When he finished the long hike back to the Dale house, he was relieved to see that the girls had not made it home yet. But as he fumbled to get the key from the hiding place, a small black sports car pulled into the driveway. Liz Brown lowered the window and called to him, wearing dark sunglasses and a furry jacket. "Change of plans. I want you at the school tomorrow, same time. I'll meet you at the door. You better be dressed appropriately for your next 'lesson', or you'll be sorry. And here, put some of this on before I see you or I'll put you in detention." She tossed a small shiny object to the ground near his feet.

She pulled her car out of the driveway and called to him one more time, "As long as you're wearing Mommie's bra thing, I know you'll keep your mouth shut. Hahahaha!" She sped away down the street and out of sight.

Jimmy picked up the object and immediately recognized it as a tube of lipstick. Pink. This day could not possibly be more surreal, he thought. His heart kept racing as he turned to enter the house, wondering if any of the neighbors were home and whether they heard what "Miss Elizabeth" had just yelled across the yard.

Once inside, he made a beeline for Jenny's room and closed the door behind him. He thought about taking a shower before the girls came home -- he felt completely unclean. But as he ripped off his shirt and kicked his shoes away, he saw the blue leotard, and paused in front of the mirror. This garment was unbelievable, yet he wanted never to wear it again. Insanity. He traced along the bust, feeling for the cups of the body briefer.

He peeled off his pants and socks, more slowly now in spite of his anxiety about the girls coming home. His tights made his legs look almost as good as Jenny's, and yet even the feel of his toes wriggling in the plush carpet failed to cause the slightest stir in his inert anatomy. He turned on the light and tried to see if he could detect any telltale bumps through the leotard. The bra straps seemed clearly visible, at least to him. There definitely seemed to be some extra puffiness around his chest, most likely due to the unfilled lacy cups, but it seemed possible that the pinched pleat design of the leotard masked that. He stepped closer to the mirror and slowly zoomed in to see if the lace pattern was visible through the tight material.

Then the sound of another car in the driveway snapped him out of the trance he was in.

There was no time to think, anymore. He wormed his way out of the leotard sleeves and pushed it down and off like a pair of panties. Then he did the same thing with the body briefer, being a little more deliberate and careful, so as not to damage the lace. The tights came off next, and he was more than relieved to take off the sheer lace panties he'd been wearing since the night before. To his horror, there was a large white stain plainly visible on the front panel, near the waistband!

Clearly he had to put off dealing with that until later. The leotard had to be hidden at the very least. It was essential that no one find it, yet he knew of no safe hiding spots in the house. He resorted to stuffing it into his backpack and zipping it closed. The tights were okay -- they were Jenny's and she would expect to see them somewhere. The body briefer, though, was another trick. Jen didn't know about it, so he couldn't leave it out, but Mrs. Dale would want it back at some point that evening. He folded it up and put it neatly under his pillow, making sure that no part of it was visible. For good measure, he folded up the nightgown and panties and laid them on top, again securing the pillow. He would try to find a way to deal with the stains later.

Then he realized that Jen knew about the nightie and panties, too. If she were to take a look, she would see the briefer underneath them. This was such a tangled mess. How did he get so mixed up in all this? Was he so desperate to wear their undergarments that he went along with absolutely any excuse to keep them dressing him up every night? He had felt uneasy about the duplicity all day, and ten times more so after the encounter at the ballet school. Should he tell them about what happened? Should he just tell everyone about everything, so that there would be no more secrets?

There was no solving this now, not with his brain seizing up. He grabbed his towel and the small robe and ran for the bathroom. A moment later, he was washing and scrubbing away his anxieties. The hot water gave him a chance to remove himself from the world and focus on the mundane and not at all tingly task of removing a thick layer of dried sweat and nervousness. Slowly, he calmed down and felt his heart return to a normal rhythm.

His shower went longer than he had intended, but he needed it. After toweling off, he put on the robe and stepped out of the steamy bathroom. He felt much better now. Although he still didn't know how to handle what had happened at the ballet school, he felt grounded standing there in the Dale's house. It seemed safe -- even more than safe. It felt like a second home. Some of the craziest things he'd ever experienced had happened here, and yet he felt like nothing bad would ever happen and no ill would ever be thought of him while he stood here, surrounded by these crazy girls.

His revery came to an abrupt end as he turned off the water and covered himself in a large fluffy white towel. He could hear Jenny and Laura chatting loudly downstairs. They must have heard the shower running. Blood rushed to his cheeks as he sprinted into Jenny's room and closed the door. The room seemed presentable enough, but he felt panic regardless, knowing she'd be looking for him. He ripped off the towel and put on a clean set of boxers, jeans and t-shirt. Then he stood in front of the door for a moment, looking at the clock. The fact that Jenny hadn't given a little knock surprised him. He felt disappointment as well, mixed in with relief. This swirl of contradictory feelings was driving him crazy, but he also welcomed it as a sign of relative normalcy. At length, he took a deep breath, opened the door, and went downstairs to join them.

They were both in the kitchen, putting together some snacks and laughing over some idle gossip. Laura saw him first, and the Jenny jumped around. "Jimmy! You're here! I was worried about you when I didn't see you after school!" She gave him a hug and smiled warmly. "How did you get home?"

"Oh, I walked. You know, it was a nice day and all."

"It's a beautiful day, but cold! Thank goodness you had my tights on, right? But why didn't you come meet us at ballet school? I thought you might come there and get a ballet vibe or something, you know? Get psyched up for trying on a leotard before Mom gets home?"

"Oh, yeah, I..."

"Oh but you might have run into Liz Brown -- yuck! It was probably a good idea to stay clear. Like I said before, I don't think I want to share you with a whole school full of crazed ballerinas. Someone would probably end up jumping you in the hallway or something." To this Laura laughed out loud.

"Well, I..." He felt a pit forming in his stomach. What should he do? He could barely speak.

"You smell so clean and pretty! Sorry about our girlie soap, but I do like what it does for your neck." She leaned into him and breathed deeply. "Oh come on! Let's play dress-up right now! Mom's going to be home soon, and I don't want her to spoil our fun! Come on!!!" She pulled him firmly by the hand, and Jimmy could muster up no reason to resist. He could only manage a backward glance at Laura, who winked at him and smiled through the half of a mini-bagel clutched in her mouth.

On their way up the stairs, Jenny asked, "Are you embarrassed that I talked about dressing you up in front of Laura? Don't worry, she already knows all about those ballet lessons you took when you were little. I told her I wanted to see what you looked like in costume, and she agreed that we should dress you up in our stuff. She said something about it being right up your alley, whatever that means, and then she got excited with me. So you don't have to be embarrassed about wearing a leotard because she's as excited as I am." She pulled him into her room and gave him a long firm kiss on the lips. "For me?"

Jimmy smiled and nodded as he felt a wave of tingles wash over his body. He couldn't resist Jen, as confused as he was at this moment. She giggled and pranced over to the dresser to pull out a package. "Here's a new pair of ballet tights. They're just like the ones you wore today, but you probably don't want to wear smelly tights now that you're nice and clean. And besides, I was thinking you could have your own pair of tights if you ever want to be my ballet student." She pecked him on the lips as she dropped them on the bed. "But first," she sang as she returned to the dresser, "I want you to wear my bra and panties! Yes, I'm one of those freak girls who wears them under my leotard. Call me crazy! But since this might be my one and only chance to dress you up like a ballerina, I want you in a bra." She smiled and lay the garments down next to him.

He returned the smile, but dared not move for fear of betraying his physical excitement. His erection seemed to have come out of nowhere, surging wildly with every word Jenny uttered. She looked at him expectantly for only a moment before exclaiming, "Oh my gosh! You're still in your boy clothes and I'm standing here waiting for you to put on my undies! I'm so sorry! I'm going to go to Laura's room and see if she has any cool leotards. You stay here and put on your panties and tights, but leave the bra for me okay? Well wait -- I want to put it on you myself. Sort of set the mood and get things going, right? Here, just take off your shirt."

She helped pull his shirt off over his head, and turned him around so his back faced her. In an instant, she had stretched the white bra around his chest, holding the straps loosely for him to put his arms through. "I have to thank Laura for giving me the idea to strap this bra on extra tight, so you can't get out of it. God, I can't get enough of seeing you in a bra. Maybe I'll let you see me in one, huh? How come I get to see you wearing one, but you don't get to see me wearing one? I mean, if we were at the pool, you'd see me in a bikini, right?" She turned him around again. "Still, there's something extra good about this lacy stuff." She planted a firm kiss on his lips, smiled, and pranced out of the room, calling back, "I'll let you get those tights on, now! Don't even think about it, just do it!"

Jimmy could barely stand himself. All the physical excitement from earlier had returned, only this time it was accompanied by all the tingles that seemed to attend anything related to Jenny. But as much as he wanted to do this with Jen, he couldn't stop thinking about what had happened to him at the ballet school. That whole experience seemed to have ruined him in some strange way. He was clearly still excited by the prospect of wearing Jen's ballet clothes, but he had betrayed her with Liz. He had done almost everything he could to avoid doing so, but *it* happened anyway. His heart ached to the core.

Jen would be back any moment. Not knowing what else to do, he closed the door and took off the rest of his clothes. He could smell the lingering scent of Jen's perfume. Then, moving more quickly, he pulled on the panties she had laid out for him. They were white, lacy, and very pretty, even as they stretched to contain his surging anatomy. Then he opened the package of tights. They were pale pink and seemed too small, but he somehow managed to get them on and pulled up high over his panties, again marveling at the feel of the plush carpet on his nylon-clad toes. His bulge was embarrassingly obvious, so he sat down on the bed and put the pillow on his lap, the way Laura had coached him.

A moment later, Jen knocked on the door. He asked her to enter, and she burst in, wearing a dark gray leotard and pink tights. She was stunning. "I couldn't find a yellow leotard, but Laura has a tan one that we might be able to use for a chicken outfit, or I have an old white one in my drawer that might still fit." She said this as she walked straight from the door to her dresser, pulling out the white one. But hearing no response from him, she looked up and seemed to deflate somewhat as she saw him sitting there on the bed.

"Jimmy, what's wrong?" She walked up to him.

"...Huh? Uh, nothing." He felt a pit in his stomach. How could anything be wrong with this incredible girl standing in front of him?

"Well, so which leotard do you want to try on?" She held them both up, studying his face.

"I don't know, I guess the white one." His eyes drooped down to the carpet.

"Hmm, okay. We can try it, anyway. But you might have some trouble keeping your bra straps inside -- just the way that it's cut. Not that I mind. If anything... Hey, what's that?" He didn't know what she was talking about, and had to look up as she stepped to the side and picked up the nightie that he had folded earlier. "What is this under here? Jimmy?"

All remaining color drained from his face. He had used the pillow to hide his erection, but had inadvertently exposed last night's "pajamas". Somehow, a loose bra strap had drawn Jenny's attention. With the nightie out of the way, there sat a small pair of panties and Mrs. Dale's body briefer, folded neatly. Jenny dropped the nightie, and slowly picked up the body briefer by the bra straps, letting it fall open and holding it up for them both to see.

"Jimmy? Were you wearing this?"

"I..."

"Jimmy? What's going on? Are you okay? Why are you so freaked out right now? What is it?" Jimmy had been on the edge of a breakdown from the moment Jenny had entered the room, but the fact that she was concerned about his well-being -- about *him* -- in spite of the strange circumstances... He immediately burst into tears and threw himself down on the bed, thrusting his face into the pillow.

"Hey! Oh my god, Jimmy! Hey now! What's going on? Did I push you too much? Is this ballet thing getting to you? Hey..." She sat on the bed and put her hand on his naked shoulder. He was only dimly aware that his rear end was exposed for all the world to see.

"Jenny, I... It's not that. It's... I feel... I have to tell you something!" He wiped his face on the pillow and slowly sat up. She enveloped him in her arms.

"Anything, Jimmy, tell me anything at all. It's okay. I swear, just tell me what's on your mind. Shhh..."

"I... I don't know where to begin. It's awful. I don't know -- you're going to hate me!"

"Oh Jimmy, I couldn't possibly hate you. Ever! Oh my god, my pretty boy. Shhh. Just tell me. Just start at the beginning. What happened?"

Somehow, Jimmy composed himself enough to start talking. Her care and concern seemed to give him a moment of clarity, and he knew it was time to come out with everything. He could no longer keep anything secret from her. There was just no other way.

He started with the body briefer. He explained that Mrs. Dale had asked him to wear it, but then discovered his tights. Not wanting to spoil Jen's "secret", she asked that Jimmy keep the body briefer out of sight. Then he explained how he had been too rushed to take it off the next morning. He told her about getting Laura to explain how to unhook the crotch -- as much as he wanted to clear the air, he couldn't admit that Laura had actually unhooked it herself.

Then he told her about coming to the ballet school to find them, and being pulled into a private room by Liz Brown. He described everything that happened -- how he had tried repeatedly to get out of there without tipping her off to what he was wearing. And how he couldn't just walk out after she had discovered the body briefer. And how she had threatened to expose him. And how she started kissing him and pushing him down on the table and climbing on top of him. And how he had finally managed to break away.

Jenny was gripped in silence throughout the story. Jimmy finished by detailing the final threats and instructions Liz had given him -- the leotard, the lipstick, everything.

He was exhausted, crushed, and almost empty inside, but some of the weight on his shoulders had been lifted. After a moment of silence, he wiped his face and turned to look at Jenny. "I don't know what to do. I'm not going, tomorrow, that's for sure, but I don't know what to do about Liz. What am I going to do?"

Jen seemed uncharacteristically tense. She spoke in a rapid manner as she stood up. "So wait. Let me think. Let me, let me just think. She's going to meet you at... You put on her leotard? She saw you put on her leotard, right there in front of her?"

"No, she wasn't looking..."

"You wore her leotard? I'm sorry, but I'm having a little trouble seeing her force you into a leotard."

"Jen, she didn't force me. Maybe I didn't say it the right way. She..."

"She didn't force you, so you got dressed up in a leotard with some girl at the ballet school? Without me? With some girl? With THAT girl? Oh my god. Oh gosh..."

"Jen, wait. Hold on. I didn't..."

"And you knew I was going to dress you up, but you did it yourself? Why? I mean, here I thought I was practically forcing you into wearing tights, and now I see you're jumping into Liz Brown's leotard and making out with her!"

"No! Jen! It's not like that!" He grabbed her hand.

"You totally did! You just went off and did the one thing I was most looking forward to doing with you, and you did it with LIZ BROWN!" She was yelling now. "You men are all ALIKE! You're just like my stupid stupid dad! You just can't wait to get in bed with the nearest slut you can find and forget about everyone else! Forget about me! Oh god! I have to get out of here! Get away!" She tore her hand away and stormed out in tears, slamming the door behind her. He heard her slam Laura's door next, and then heard a muffled scream.

Jimmy's stomach turned into a black hole. He had told her everything, and now she had called him out on it. She was wrong about what she had said, but it didn't matter. Jimmy knew that he hadn't fought Liz off forcefully enough. He had let her kiss him. He had worried about his own embarrassment instead of the situation this might put the Dale girls into. He could have called things off somehow. Somehow. He could have refused to even enter that room. He could have just gone home after school. Why couldn't he have just gone home and looked forward to an incredible afternoon with Jen? Why had he been so passive this whole week, only to mess everything up now? How had he gone so wrong, so fast?

He sank into bed, under the covers, pulling the pillow tightly around his head. He couldn't even cry. He hurt so much that he pulled himself nearly to a fetal position. Very faintly, he heard Laura talking in the hallway, and another scream from Jen. He heard more sobbing. After a while, he hear a car drive up, and heard Mrs. Dale's voice in the hallway. He heard all this, but it barely registered. He was wrapped up in his own pain, and couldn't move. Part of him wanted to die, knowing he had betrayed the person he truly loved. He was madly in love with Jen -- it was clear to him now. And he had ruined it.

After a long time, Jimmy woke to the sound of a gentle tapping on the door. Mrs. Dale came in and sat on the bed, putting her hand on Jimmy's forehead as he turned to face her. Under ordinary circumstances, he would have been embarrassed to be seen by her wearing a bra and tights, but none of that mattered now. She seemed not to think anything of it and gave him a gentle hug.

"Jimmy, dear boy. I'm afraid I might have made a mess of things for you with that body briefer. Oh, but that was just the tip of the iceberg, wasn't it?" He didn't respond. He felt her rubbing his shoulder, and drew some small comfort from that. "Jimmy, I don't know this girl at the ballet school. I have heard a few things about her, and most of them are unflattering. But I feel like I know you. You've been here in our house this whole week, and I feel like I know you better than ever. Jimmy, you didn't break Jenny's trust today, did you? Is what Jen just told me the whole truth? Or is there more to the story?"

"Mrs. Dale, I feel so awful. I didn't want to hurt Jenny. I just wanted to meet her at the ballet school. I should never have gone there. I should have gone straight home. I should have known that girl would be there, and when she got me into that room, I should have just walked right back out. And when she found out I was wearing tights, she told me I had to wear her leotard or I'd be in trouble, but I shouldn't have worried about myself like that. I still could have left. And when she saw that I was wearing your -- your body briefer, she started talking to me and I couldn't move and she started touching me and kissing and pushing me and I still should have gotten up! I should have just told her 'No!'" Tears streamed down Jimmy's cheeks as the words poured out of him.

"I guess I did finally say 'no', and that's when she started threatening me. I don't know what to do, but that doesn't even matter now! I hurt Jenny and when we were back home I didn't know what to do and I finally had to tell her and now everything is ruined! Jenny is hurt, and there were so many ways I could have done the right thing and instead I messed everything up! You have all been so wonderful to me this whole week, and I messed it all up now! I wish I could just die! I am so sorry! I just want to die!" He cried openly into her blouse. Mrs. Dale said nothing. She was stunned by this flood coming from Jimmy. Jenny had told her some parts of this story, but not all of it. His sincerity was obvious.

After a few moments, she squeezed him tightly, and then pulled back slightly so she could look at his face. "Jimmy, I believe you. I think I understand what happened, and I want you to know that you did not do anything wrong. Well, not as much as you think you did. Oh, you sweet thing." She wiped away the tears from one cheek, and kissed the other.

"You are so innocent. It just breaks my heart. Both of you. I feel so awful for the small part I played in all of this. I put you in that hideous girdle, and didn't take the time to make sure you got out of it this morning! What was I thinking?" She kissed his nose. Her hand fell to his shoulder, directly on a bra strap, and her other hand continued to hold him in a loose embrace.

"You were just trying to please everybody, weren't you? Jenny's tights, my girdle, this awful girl at the ballet school -- you were just trying to make your way through some very difficult circumstances, weren't you?" She kissed his lips softly, and he could taste the salt of his own tears.

"We've put you in such a predicament here, every night, and sometimes even all day, and you just want everyone to be happy. Never a thought about yourself." She kissed him again. He could feel the hand she held at his back slide over the clasp of his bra.

"And now you've been taken advantage of. Totally innocent. Jenny just got the wrong idea. She's not used to feeling this way about someone, you know. It's, well, it has been difficult since her father left us. We've managed. Most would say we've done rather well here, but there are still some soft spots where it hurts. I think you stumbled onto one of those soft spots, Jimmy. It's not your fault." She kissed him again. He had been kissed by Mrs Dale several times before, and still couldn't quite get used to it. His own mother never paid this kind of attention to him, that was for sure.

"I know you're not like her father. You're not like him at all. You're different from anyone else we've ever met. You're a breath of fresh air, and Jenny has never been happier than she has been this week, with you. She's hurt, now, but if she only knew. If she only knew what a gentleman -- what a gentle young man -- that you are..." Her next kiss was longer than a peck. He smiled at such unexpected praise, and his eyes dropped down to the hand she now held over one of his bra cups.

"I don't even want to know why you are wearing a bra right now! It was Jenny, right?" He nodded and smiled again. After another pair of kisses, she said, "She certainly has a way of getting you involved in her interests. You know, I got her this bra as a gift for getting a B on a math test. She has struggled with school, ever since he... Well, anyway, she has been so good about studying, this week. She's been working so hard. I try to indulge her when I can." Her fingers traced along the lacy edge of the cup. "I imagine you've got the matching panties on underneath that blanket?"

Jimmy's face went deep red as he nodded. "It's alright, sweetie. You have tried to make her happy, and it's worked. I'm going to talk to her, now. I think I understand what happened, and I want her to know a few things about you." Two more kisses followed, and then Mrs Dale stood up. "You can stay here if you like. But I do have some pizza in the kitchen. If you want to eat, don't worry about what you're wearing. Just put on your robe and come on down. Or stay here as long as you like. Just give me some time with poor Jenny." She rubbed his shoulder one last time and walked out the door, closing it gently behind her. Jimmy realized that for the first time he could remember, he had no idea what Mrs Dale was wearing -- he simply hadn't noticed her clothes at all during this entire conversation.

Jimmy felt like he was back on planet earth. His stomach was still tied up in knots, but he attributed at least part of that to hunger. He wanted to go downstairs, but he didn't want to move until Jen had a chance to hear from her mother. He waited there, in her bed, until the silence seemed to have gone on too long. Stretching his legs, he finally rose out of bed.

Under the circumstances, he thought it best to take off the underwear and get back into his regular clothing. He needed a bit of normalcy very badly, even as he marveled at the feeling of the pink tights as he pulled them and the panties off. Dropping them on the floor, he then caught sight of himself in the mirror and considered wrestling the bra off somehow. He tried to poke his fingers back near the clasp, but they only barely reached and he could not figure out how the clasp worked while it was stretched around him so tightly. He had a mental image of peeling it off over his head, like a shirt, but he didn't want to damage the delicate material. So he just put his t-shirt on over it and tried not to think about it. Once he had his jeans and boxers back on, he felt steady enough to walk out the door.

And as if by magic, Jen stepped out of Laura's room at the same moment.