Gargalaphobia

Jaz's fingers slowed and she showed a confused irritation. Even though nothing had changed, it no longer felt like Vanessa was laughing because of Jaz -- it felt like she was laughing at her.

'That's not like you, Vanessa,' she said, realisation hitting her as she spoke, 'it's as if you're sinking your ship just to stop it being hijacked.'

'An-nother brill--HAHA HA--brilliant insight! HA HAAA! And y-you w-WAAA HA HA-wonder why I g-gaaa-HA-HA-HA-ve you the shhhit assignments?!' said Vanessa before tumbling into another bout of unreserved guffaws.

A malicious look came over Jaz's face and she dug her nails hard into the creases under Vanessa's long toes.

'OW-HOW-HOUCH!' Vanessa reacted and her laughter was instantly diminished to a low giggle. 'I don't thhhink you'll get your apprenticeship by inflicting p-pain whenever you lose control of your em-em-emotions.'

Jaz knew precisely the game Vanessa was playing and couldn't have resented more that she was putting up a fight despite her predicament.

Vanessa delighted in Jaz's livid expression. Didn't plan on this being part of your showreel, did you, you conniving rat?

For a moment Vanessa wondered if she'd actually said these words out loud because, seemingly in response, Jaz ducked out of view and returned holding the sharp scissors Vanessa previously felt against her throat. For a horrifying moment, it seemed as though she would resort to a new, violent tactic and Vanessa was somewhat relieved when she used the scissors to cut through the ankle of her skintight jeans. Nothing was said as Jaz sliced the denim up the inside leg on both sides and snipped apart the jeans' crotch, eventually giving several clumsy tugs to pull them through the ankle and knee straps and throw them amongst the trash on the dusty floor. She then stood between Vanessa's legs--as close as the medical chair would allow--and sliced up through the centre of her blouse. She pulled both sides of the blouse apart and gazed at Vanessa's cleavage. Vanessa supposed what she saw must have aroused her as it undermined her attempt at a cursory glance. Jaz then casually placed the scissors down on a bench and checked the camera's battery.

Vanessa was already sweating all over and the cool air highlighted to her exactly where she was now vulnerable. Everywhere except her back, shoulders and the areas covered by her bra and panties were exposed.

'I was tired of tickling your feet anyway,' said Jaz, returning to the space between her legs. 'You look after them I guess, but they are huge and not very ladylike.' As she spoke, she rested her nails lightly on Vanessa's shins, just above the ankle restraints, and began to drag them gently up the insides of her calves.

Every muscle in Vanessa's body strained as she attempted to resist these unexpected sensations. The stroking didn't evoke laughter from her like the tickling at her feet, but the feeling was incessant and maddening all the same. Jaz must have sensed her discomfort because she revelled in staying exactly where she was for a very long time, simply drawing her nails up and down Vanessa's lower legs with enduring slowness and no sign of the sensation dissipating. If anything, Vanessa began to feel more sensitive -- not just on her legs but all over. Several times, as Jaz slowly approached the delicate area on the backs of her knees, the hairs on her back stood on end and she shivered.

The treatment must have continued for well over an hour. Within this time she had the chance to consider that anyone who was able to be so duplicitous was undoubtedly unpredictable and potentially dangerous. She may well be in the presence of a truly heinous individual.

Then her subconscious started to irritate her with a non-stop loop of: This is what Chinese water-torture feels like... This is what Chinese water-torture feels like... This is what Chinese water-torture feels like... And, just as she thought she was going to lose her mind, Jaz's nails traversed the knee restraints and landed on the insides of her thighs.

Vanessa's chest heaved as she gasped in surprise. Surprise, not just at the pattern being broken, but the incredible new sensitivity of her inner thighs and the astonishing sparkle that radiated from her between her legs. A resentful glare lasted no more than a second when she realised that the tops of her inner thighs were more ticklish than she had ever experienced, and she burst out laughing.

'Ahhhhh,' Jaz let out a satisfied sigh and kept her fingertips dancing in small, repeated circles on the smooth skin just inches away from the lacy hems of Vanessa's panties.

Vanessa hooted and howled with laughter. Had she been able to move, she would be twisting into all kinds of shapes to escape the intense teasing of her sensitive thighs and she felt she was going to have to scream....but the teasing stopped.

She held her breath expectantly, like a freeze-frame in a movie, before feeling the undeniable squeeze of expert fingers and thumbs just above both knees -- strong enough to get a reaction, but tender enough not to cause any distracting pains.

'OhmyGodnottherrrrrre...!' she exclaimed despite herself and an outburst of laughter erupted from her throat, commencing with a prolonged sound similar to that of an especially chesty cough.

'Nottherenotherenotthere...!' she shrieked before disintegrating into bellows of laughter. Through tear-blurred vision, almost forced shut by her mirth, she could see the sadistic joy on Jaz's face as she probed and squeezed again and again and again.

Palpitations bounced inside Vanessa's ribcage. She had betrayed herself by pleading and realised that, no matter how much she wanted to, there was no way to combat this. Even though she had made a stand, when she was this ticklish, her mind was completely working on instinct.

And, if she was surprised by being forced into such gales of laughter, she was mortified with what happened next.

***CHAPTER XXV***

Without a pause, and almost as though being attacked by two people, the grasping hands at her knees jumped to her waist.

'HHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOO!' Vanessa howled. 'NOT THERE TOO! P-PL-PL-PL-EEEEASE! HA HA HA HA HA HAAA!'

She was devastated to hear herself beg but literally could not stop it -- the words came from a last-resort emergency response part of her brain.

'NO HHHHAAA HA HA HA HA HA! It tickles! It tickles! It tickles!'

"She knows it tickles, Holbrook! Shut the fuck up!" thought Vanessa. But she couldn't. The physical restraints meant that the only outlet she had beyond laughter was to say things and, beyond the capacity for rational thought, narrating her current predicament was all she could muster.

Jaz remained in position for a very long time. Vanessa's naturally toned waist and tummy was devastatingly ticklish; a fact that kept Jaz endlessly entertained.

'I-I-I hhhh-hope y-ou-you're en-j-j-joying y-y-yourselffff!' Vanessa managed to say.

'Oh, I am!' said Jaz and, for a moment, she hesitated.

Vanessa breathed fast, hoping it was over and knowing it wasn't. Despite the head restraint, strands of her raven hair clung to her face with sweat. Then a helpless whine of anticipation grew in her throat as she felt a single finger glide across her sweaty tummy en route to her belly button.

'No,' Vanessa whimpered.

'Oh, yes,' said Jaz.

And, as the fingertip slipped, gently and effortlessly into Vanessa's navel and began to make circles, she heard herself produce a novel sound -- that similar to war cries in old Western movies: 'EEEEEEEEYA-YA-YA-YA-YA-YA-YA-YA-YA-YA-YA-YAAAA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HAAAA!'

'Got a tickly, sweaty navel have we, Vani? Aw, you po' liddle fing!'

Vanessa again attempted to glare in anger, incensed by the mocking condescension but had zero chance to keep a straight face. She felt the veins in her neck pulse as her neck strained against the head strap. Her current stream of non-stop hilarity was particularly surprising because she had no idea her navel was ticklish and once again she could do nothing else but laugh out loud and pronounce the fact:

'I-I-I-I didn't kn-know I wa-HA HA HA HA HA HA HAAA...! I was t-t-t-ticklish th-herrrrrrre! HA HA HA HA HA HA HAAA!'

Jaz hummed with delectation. 'I'm glad I could teach you something about yourself.'

Suddenly the head restraint snapped, Vanessa lurched forward and roared with rage, bringing Jaz to a startled halt. 'YAAAARRRGH! You haven't taught me anything, you fucking sewer rat!' she yelled, her sweaty face contorting with the echoes of her prolonged laughter. 'Nothing except not to trust little shits like you and to never give your sort a chance in life again!'

'"My sort"?' said Jaz.

'Yeah. Whatever sort you are! I don't give a damn if you're a lesbian! I don't give a damn where you're from! You're a psychotic freak! And you're about a goddamn foot shorter than I am and the only reason you've tied me in here,' she said, yanking hard against the restraints, 'is because you know if I wasn't, I'd kick the shit out of you with my "huge" goddamn feet!'

As Vanessa seethed in the seat Jaz became very calm. Without saying a word, she slowly made her way behind the chair and stood with her mouth very close to Vanessa's ear. If she could've grabbed Jaz with her teeth, Vanessa was convinced she could shake her to death like a pit bull with a chihuahua. Unfortunately, her own arm and the semi-circular padded headrest formed a shield between them.

'My height and my age bother you, don't they?' said Jaz quietly. 'I know you've got an ego, Vani. It must really grate on you that a shorter, younger, sharper, more attractive--'

'Ha!' Vanessa shouted in contempt. She stopped herself adding, "Don't make me laugh!"

'--more assertive woman got the better of you. You're stubborn and I know you'll take some convincing. So I'll let you in on a secret: I haven't even started yet.'

'Do you think I care? Tickling is tickling, you juvenile. I can laugh all day long. It's just like a workout down the gym--'

'The bravado doesn't work, Vani. Haven't you learned that yet? I've already seen you react and heard you beg me. I know what makes you more sensitive and where your worst spots are. You're not in beginner territory, here. The point is that Jake loved your sister--'

'Don't talk about my sister!' Vanessa snapped in a sudden fury.

'I'm looking out for your sister. I know she has gargalaphobia. And I know Mr Valentine loves that in a woman. So, what better than for the woman he most desires to be that way? That would divert his attention from your sister, wouldn't it? And that's why I'm going to tickle you until you are gargalaphobic.'

'That's ridiculous,' said Vanessa and for a moment she forgot that the camera was recording the doubt in her expression.

'It's an experiment, for sure. Most people get it very early but, as with other things like a fear of heights or flying, they can develop later in life. All it takes is that one little experience to push you over the edge...'

As Jaz spoke, Vanessa felt the tips of her fingernails begin to trickle up and down her sides, almost like the light strokes on her calves, causing her stomach to quiver uncontrollably and she tried to place a barrier at the back of her throat to stop laughter spilling through.

Then Jaz grasped the muscles of her waist and all was lost.

'AAAAAAH HA HA HA HA HA HA HAAA!' she bellowed in that contradictory deep belly-laugh of enjoyment.

'God, I love this bit,' Jaz growled with satisfaction. 'Still think it's just like a gym workout, Vani?'

'FFFFF-UHHHHH-HA HA HA HA HA...! FU-HU-HU-HUCK HA HA Y-YOUUU HA HA HA HAAA!'

Jaz nodded to herself. Vanessa certainly was strong-willed. Her spirit needed to be broken as well as her body.

She stopped tickling.

'Tell you what,' she said, 'if you can not laugh for the next minute, I'll let you go. No arguments. If you do laugh in the next minute, I get you torture you all day. Fair?'

Vanessa didn't answer.

'Let's do it,' said Jaz. 'Three... two... one.'

Jaz's finger's launched straight to where they had just been. Vanessa's entire body tensed and she held her breath. Jaz's probing fingers were getting all the right spots; the spots it had taken Ryan their whole relationship to discover, and she knew just how to exploit them.

'Ten seconds...' said Jaz, her fingers circling into the sinewy muscles of Vanessa's abdominal muscles.

Vanessa bit hard on her bottom lip. She could feel herself turning purple and sweat wept from the pores in her brow. If she could keep this up, she just might be able to make it to one minute.

'Twenty seconds...' said Jaz.

"One third down!" thought Vanessa. "I can do this!"

That's when Jaz's fingers started to climb higher.

Oh, no. Not that...

Vanessa squeezed her eyes tight and tried to make her mind disappear to a lonely place far from anyone. A New England Forest. A mountain peak. The moon, perhaps. But it didn't work.

She bit harder on her lip until she was sure she would pierce the skin. Her body vibrated. The spidery, probing fingertips crept slowly over her ribcage.

'Thirty...'

Jaz's fingers crossed the material of Vanessa's bra. The vibration turned into a tremble and from the barrier at the back of her throat emanated an involuntary whine.

'Forty...'

There is an undefinable line on the skin at the top of each person's torso that separates the underarm from everything below it. It may be impossible to mark with a Sharpie, but when the line is crossed those with the most ticklish of armpits will let you know. Regretfully, Vanessa was aware that she was one of those people.

All it took was one light touch from a single fingernail.

'YEEEE-HEEE-HEEE-HEEE-HEEE-HEEE-HEEEE-HEEE-HEEE-EEEEEEEEEE!' Vanessa erupted, slinging her head into the backrest and throwing her laughter to the sky with such force that dust drifted from the ceiling beams like snowflakes caught in shafts of sunlight.

Jaz pressed her thighs together, utterly aroused as her fingertips scurried around inside the smooth hollows of Vanessa's armpits, now slippery with sweat.

'NOTTTT TTHHH-THHH-THHHERRRRE! HAHAHAHAHA!' Vanessa begged before gasping for breath and screaming, 'PLEEEEEEEEEASE! HAHA HA HAHAHA HAAAAA!'

'Actually, I think I'll stay right her for quite some time,' Jaz shouted over the sound of helpless laughter and winked at the camera that was recording every single moment.

- - -

Vanessa had no way of knowing how much later it was when Jaz held a bottle of water to her lips but it felt like several hours. Never before had she been so tormented and if she could have swapped this for the equivalent experience at the Cape Coral PD HQ she would have.

Jaz changed the card in her camera and stored the other safely in a zip pocket. She went to her bag, put the water away and retrieved something else that Vanessa couldn't see. Vanessa moaned a little when she returned with an evil grin and made herself comfortable on a tall stool between her feet.

'Aw, don't be that way, Vani. Listen, I wasn't telling the truth earlier when I said I didn't like your feet. To be honest, they are quite beautiful and--if I am a little jealous of you in some way--it's because they're so gorgeous.'

Vanessa didn't know how to react. She wasn't in the mood to tell Jaz how pretty she was in a compliment-swapping contest; she wanted nothing more than to torture her in the most humiliating way possible. She then noticed what Jaz had taken from her bag -- a jar of coconut oil and two pimply hairbrushes.

She recalled Jake Valentine saying something about them and didn't know why at the time; however, though her cheeks were flushed, her hair a mess and her throat dry from laughter, she still had her spirit and the one thing she could still do was undermine Jaz's authority.

'Valentine talked about oil and hairbrushes when I went to see him,' she said.

'Oh yes?' said Jaz happily, as if they were having a regular polite conversation.

'Yeah. He said they were the tools of the complete novice.'

Jaz's smile shrank. Vanessa couldn't help but smirk at landing another blow.

'You know what?' said Jaz, irritated. 'After I've finished with you I'll let the cops find you just like this. They'll have their own methods to question you, and finding you strapped up will probably be useful to them, especially as you'll be pre-prepared and ultra sensitive. Do you even know how oil and brushes are used?'

Vanessa didn't answer. She simply watched as Jaz smeared the slippery oil all over her impressive soles.

- - -

Outside in the Florida sunshine, trees rustled in the breeze, clouds formed over the ocean and a flock of grackles flew south.

Until the late evening, a disused building amplified hysterical laughter so loudly that it could be heard for miles around.

But because Vanessa had done her homework, there was nobody around to hear it.

***CHAPTER XXVI***

*18 months later...*

'There. Signed,' said Vanessa as she pushed divorce papers across a desk to Ryan, who was in the company of his solicitor.

'Cool,' he replied.

'You're looking good,' she said, just for something to say. It was true. Since his recovery from Long Covid he appeared to be back in full competitive racquetball health. Unfortunately, the masculinity that first drew Vanessa to him was scarred with the memories of his encounter with Jaz. But she supposed that didn't matter anymore.

'Thanks. So do you,' he replied. 'I mean, considering.'

'Thanks, Ryan,' she said flatly. With her hair shaved short; no make-up; wearing the standard-issue Lowell Correctional Institution unflattering light blue shirt and pants; and around five hours' sleep over the past five days due to her new cellmate's chronic snoring, a little boost to her esteem wouldn't have gone amiss.

From over Vanessa's shoulder Correctional Officer Preston said, 'Time's up, Holbrook.'

Time wasn't up -- Preston was just bored and Vanessa knew it, but she didn't care. Spending time with Ryan was like getting conversation out of a rock even outside of prison.

With the confirmation that no touching was allowed, Vanessa and Ryan just nodded goodbye to each other, and their marriage, and she was lead back to her cell where her new cellmate, Tiara, was sat on the lower bunk, impressively causing both levels to sag in the middle.

Before Tiara's arrival, Vanessa was informed that she was a seasoned inmate; in and out of prison since her eleventh birthday. Vanessa suspected she knew why she always ended up with the worst cellmates in the facility. It was the same reason she was treated so unfairly by the CO's -- the warden was a republican.

Tiara held two envelopes.

'Got mail already?' asked Vanessa.

'The fuck's it gotta do wit'you?' said Tiara.

Vanessa learned over the past 18 months that the best way to deal with aggression was head-on otherwise you get into a fight that results in the loss of a big handful of hair, which prompts you to cut it so short that no-one can grab it.

'I was just making conversation, you fat bitch,' said Vanessa. 'If that's not of interest to you, keep yourself to yourself and I'll do the same. That includes your fucking snoring, which I'll solve tonight with a plastic bag on your fucking head if you don't shut the fuck up.'

'I don't need no friends in here,' said Tiara, her aggression somewhat deflated.

'Fine,' said Vanessa and she climbed into the top bunk to try and catch up on sleep.

Tiara shuffled the two envelopes in her hand. One was from her mother and had been opened before she received it, as usual. She regarded the second with suspicion -- it had no postmark, which meant it was hand-delivered. No officer in this building, even the warden, had envelopes as fancy and expensive as this. She held it so that the ceiling lights glinted off the surface and saw the faint hint of some kind of ink stamp that had been pressed against this envelope before it was dry.