Randy's High School Reunion

There are a dozen or so stories that feature The Amazing Randy, all of which are to be found here in the Mind Control section. Thanks to the many readers who have "favorited" my stories. Special thanks to those who have either praised or criticized my work in writing here on the site. I write for you. Stories without reader feedback, no matter how much I like the tales, are failures; at least they are to me.

Randy's High School Reunion

Randy Baumgardner sat at his kitchen table and sorted through a week's worth of mail. Like most piles of mail, ninety percent of the paper was not worth even the minute it would take to decide whether or not he wanted to have his gutters cleaned, or his lawn professionally cared-for, or change his auto insurance. He had all but given up on finding anything interesting when his eye caught a single, thin envelope from his old high school. He opened it.

"Dear Randy," the letter read, "the class of 1980 wishes to invite you to attend our tenth reunion. The reunion will take place over the weekend of January 29th -31st. Please return the enclosed post card to let us know whether or not you can make it. Come if you can. Re-connect with your friends."

Randy allowed himself to slip into reverie as a flood of memories flowed through his mind. It was there in the high school that he'd had first become cognizant of his amazing gift. Without any warning at all, suddenly Randy had found that not only did he have the ability to read the innermost thoughts of people he met, but to control their behavior as well. The transition from typical high school boy, with all the uncertainties that teen years provide everyone who makes it through the experience, to a teenager with a new, powerful, and hidden power, had been sudden, almost instantaneous. One minute he was talking to one of his teachers after school and the next minute he was reading his teacher's mind. He'd spent his entire senior year probing and testing his powers on fellow students, male and female. It had been a good year.

Randy was tempted to attend, and there were several classmates and at least one teacher he very much wanted to see again. Randy, who for three years had been content to slide through high school more or less unnoticed, had come into his own once he had gained his power. School now had purpose, a purpose completely unrelated to the Treaty of Portsmouth, or the mastery of Warriner's grammatical guide. It was now a laboratory where Randy Baumgardner could investigate the extent of his new-found psychic abilities and, more importantly, learn how to conceal his gift from the rest of the world.

That was ten years ago. Since then, Randy, with guidance from his parents, had become a professional stage hypnotist and was packing them in all across the country, but only on the club circuit. Every attempt to entice him into bigger venues was politely refused. Notoriety was not his friend, nor would it ever be. He was comfortable in his niche.

His daydream ended as the phone on the wall rang.

"Hello?" said Randy.

"Hi, son. It's your mother," said the voice in the earpiece.

"Mom!" he exclaimed. "It's great to hear your voice. I was just thinking about you and Dad and Aunt Ivy."

"That's a lot of thinking, Randy," she said.

"Maybe so, Mom, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. What's up?"

"Randy, I have some bad news for you. Your Aunt Ivy has been diagnosed with cancer and it's very aggressive. The doctor says no more than six months."

Randy sat back down and took a deep breath. "Oh, no" said Randy, holding back tears. "What can I do? You know that she's to get the very best of everything, anything she wants."

"We know that, son," his mother said. "Right now, she's pretty spry, but that can change at any time. The only thing she really wants is to see you and have some time with family. Now look, Randy, there's no need for you to catch the red eye. Take a month or even two, but no longer."

"You're not going to believe this, Mom, but I just got an invitation to my tenth high school reunion. It's in three weeks. I was on the fence about going, but not now. I'm coming out. I'll call you when I have the particulars. What do you think? Would a two-week stay be about right? I'll stay at a hotel and spend lots of time with you and Aunt Ivy. I'll bet that she'll be thrilled that I can do both at once."

"She will and two weeks will be about right. You know she'll be at her very best for you and will be fawning all over you."

"Mom," said Randy, "I'm counting on it. Both of us want things to be just the way they were ten years ago. I love her so much, Mom. I'll make sure that she doesn't push it."

"I know you love her and so does she. Get me the details and I'll handle things on this end. I won't tell her you're coming for a while. Better still, why don't you call her in a week and give her the good news yourself."

"Great idea. I'll do my own reservations. You just take care of Aunt Ivy. See you soon."

Randy sat stunned, head in his hands and cried.

A week later he made the call to his aunt. A week after that he was back home and checked-in at the local hotel. As soon as he was un-packed, he was on the way to his aunt's house, a house which was meticulously maintained by workers who were well-paid in advance to make sure that everything was up-to-date and working, from the lawn to the laundry. He'd seen to that.

When his aunt met him at the door, the two hugged each other until Aunt Ivy broke it off and beamed a smile which went from ear to ear. Randy, of course, took the opportunity to probe his aunt's mind. He was relieved to sense no physical pain other than typical elderly complaints. For her part, Randy's aunt was overjoyed to see her favorite nephew. Randy made a mental note to be sure to hypnotize his aunt before he left. He'd never done it before, but he was certain that he could direct her mind to screen out the lion's share, if not all of the pain when it announced itself.

"I know that smell," he said. "Aunt Ivy, you made my favorite pecan rolls."

Randy spent the week sleeping at the hotel and spending as much time at his aunt's as he could. Before he knew it, the first night of the reunion had arrived. He put on a pair of khakis and a dress shirt and made his way to the hotel lobby, fashionably late. The function room was buzzing with his classmates. After shaking hands with the men and gently hugging the women, Randy had absorbed the equivalent of an hour of small talk knowledge with each in ten minutes. Excusing himself he moved from the function room to the bar to get himself a drink. Maybe this hadn't been such a good idea after all.

"Randy? Randy Baumgardner? Is that really you?" said a voice from one of the two-person tables in the corner away from the bar. Randy turned around and saw his steady girlfriend from senior year, who he had neither seen nor heard from in a decade.

"Michelle," he said, "It's great to see you. Mind if I come over and join you?"

"Of course, Randy, I'd love to catch up with my high school sweetheart. It's been a long time. You've kept in shape, I see."

Randy sat down at the table. "Not as well as you have, Michelle. You look like a goddess. I mean it, 'Chele," he said. "You're even better looking than you were in high school, and you were a 'stunner' then."

"You're making me blush, Randy," she said with a smile.

"I call 'em like I see them, said Randy, but if my gushing makes it uncomfortable for you, let's change the subject. What have you been up to?"

"You first," said the ravishing brunette, smiling.

"OK, 'Chele," said Randy. "Where to start?" he said out loud. "Michelle, since high school I've been in show business. As you know, my parents were entertainers on the state and county fair circuit. That's why I lived with my aunt while my folks were out on the road. At any rate, my work in the planetarium gave me a taste of what it was like to perform on stage and I liked it. After high school I decided to follow in my parents' footsteps. After a year or so on the carnival circuit, I struck out on my own, working a "stage hypnosis" act on the supper club circuit. I'm good at it, Michelle, and, more importantly, I really like it."

"There's the obvious travel aspect, I mean my job takes me all over the country, but it's the people, the friendships I've made with the club owners and some of the other acts, that I like the most. The money's pretty good. I take care of my parents in their retirement and my aunt. My lifestyle is simple. I don't need a lot of money to be happy."

"Wow!" said Michelle. "Can you really hypnotize people?"

"The folks who pay to see my act seem to think so. I won't lie to you, 'Chele; like I said, I'm very good at what I do."

"How come I haven't heard of you? Why aren't you on TV or in Las Vegas?"

"That's difficult to explain, 'Chele. I guess that I'm just happy with the rewards that my lifestyle already provides. I'm not driven to achieve the Las Vegas kind of fame. Why? Have you been looking? Do you follow the acts on the supper club circuit?"

"Well, said Michelle as she extended her hand across the table, "yes and no." I don't know the ins and outs of the supper club circuit, but I will admit that I was looking for you tonight. I arrived early and when I couldn't find you, I just came into the bar and had a couple drinks while I decided whether or not I was going to hang around. Then, you walked in and I called-out to you."

"I'm glad you didn't leave, Michelle," said Randy as he took her proffered hand and gave it a delicate squeeze. "This reunion has suddenly gotten a lot more interesting. It's so good to see you. Your turn; tell me about yourself. What have you been up to?"

Had he chosen to get the information directly from her mind, he could have, but he was enjoying the uncertainty and wanted to hear her story direct from her own lips.

"OK, Randy," said Michelle. "Well, like you I'm not married. I assume that you're single because you aren't wearing a ring and you haven't mentioned a wife. Am I wrong?"

"No, you're correct. I'm not married. My work and the huge amount of travel- I'm on the road for over three quarters of the year or more- have pushed marriage to the back burner."

"Actually, I'm in show business myself. I'm an actress and a model. I also do a lot of travel for work. I've been all over the world, but I work mostly in L.A. now."

"I knew it," said Randy. "I knew it had to be something like that. You're positively radiant, Michelle. Are you happy?"

"Sure, I guess I'm happy, Randy."

"You don't know?"

"Randy, remember back in high school how lonely I was until you asked me out?" Randy nodded agreement. "I developed early. All of the boys were afraid to ask me out, thinking that I was "too good" for them. The girls were just jealous. I had a few close friends, but I was pretty lonely and then you asked me to the dance. We were close, Randy, weren't we?"

"Michelle, we were lovers, each other's first. I remember nothing but good times until you left for college."

The conversation was becoming romantic, from both sides of the table. It was time for Randy to discover her true intentions, to see if her thoughts matched her words. Randy extended his hand, lightly grasping her long, lovely fingers.

Instantly he connected with Michelle's mind. Because he had connected with her mind on multiple occasions back when they were in high school, he already knew the territory, so to speak. What he was looking for was any red flags, like mental illness, but he found something more akin to world weariness and just a little anxiety, which he attributed to their mounting sexual tension. Michelle had, indeed, come to the reunion with hopes of seeing him. She wanted to regain some of the feelings she had felt a decade ago. She wasn't still lonely, but there was something else, but no red flags or flashing lights.

Randy had hooked up with a hundred women or more in the past decade. He was, after all, the world's greatest hypnotist. All her thoughts painted a picture of opportunity. Michelle was amenable to seduction. Randy suggested compliance with his future commands and released her. It was time for the party to move upstairs.

Randy spoke to Michelle. "Michelle, would you like to get a bottle and adjourn to my room upstairs?"

"No, Randy, but I would be interested in getting a bottle and re-living old times up in my suite. Shall we?"

Immediately, Randy rose from his chair and moved around to help his high school sweetheart out of her chair. Although she could have come in high fashion, Michelle had chosen a simple blue cocktail dress which neither hid nor hugged her figure.

"Randy", she said softly into his ear, "I'm in the suite on the fourth floor, room 401. Why don't you give me a peck on the cheek while I go upstairs to do my makeup? Finish your drink. Come up in twenty minutes or so. Here's my spare key. You can let yourself in if I'm in the bathroom."

Randy received the promised peck, while Michelle palmed him the key. She waved good-bye and Randy sat back down at the table to finish his drink. After fifteen minutes he rose from the table, paid the bartender for a bottle of scotch, tipping him handsomely, and made his way to the elevators. Four floors later he was knocking on the door of room 401.

He inserted the key and walked into the suite. "Michelle?" Randy called.

A voice from behind the bathroom door said "I'll be out in a couple of minutes. Why don't you pour us both a drink? There's ice in the bucket. And, would you please light the fire in the fireplace?"

"I will," he replied. He went over to the fireplace and, after making sure that the damper was open and a draft was ready to draw the smoke up the chimney, put a lit fireplace match to the small, but perfectly constructed woodpile. He poured them both a drink over ice and sat down on the sofa in front of the now crackling fire, back to the bathroom door.

A few minutes later, the bathroom door opened and Michelle entered the room. Immediately Randy rose from the couch and turned to face his old flame. There she stood like a centerfold come to life. Her hair, which was chocolate brown, hung almost to her waist. She wore a diaphanous, sheer white robe, tied at the waist. Randy couldn't tell what she had worn under the robe, if anything. His face beamed with a heady mixture of admiration, joy and lust.

"That's what I call makeup," laughed the hypnotist. "Trust me on that. I use makeup every day. I know about these things." He laughed.

Michelle, whose entrance had had exactly the effect she'd anticipated, chuckled. "Did I happen to mention that I used to be a lingerie model?"

"Well, if you aren't still, you sure ought to be. Michelle, you're beautiful." Putting his glass down on the end table, The Amazing Randy stepped up to his hostess and took her in his arms. Their lips came together and instantly ten years of intervening haze simply dissipated. Their kiss was one of recognition and familiarity, warm and loving. It was as if all the hormone surges of high school had re-emerged ten years later.

"Randy, I have a great idea. Let's get our drinks and sit together on the sofa and pretend we're in your aunt's car at P.P. making out."

P.P. was what the kids used to call Prospect Point, a local lover's lane. Randy and Michelle had spent many weekend evenings making out and more at P.P. "I'll turn down the lights, said Randy. "The drinks are there on the table."

The lights went down and the light in the room came only from the small wood fire. "Maybe it's a little too dark now."

"It's fine," said Michelle, who had burrowed into the sofa and waved for Randy to join her. "Your eyes will adjust to the darkness. The fire is perfect. Please come to me."

Randy joined Michelle and leaned over to kiss her again. When they had shared the back seat of his aunt's 1966 Plymouth station wagon, neither one knew where or how far the encounter would take them. Every sensation was new and exciting. Tonight, there was no doubt where the evening would go. They would be lovers again.

"Randy, she said, "I want to ask you something. It's kind of odd, but I'd like to ask you anyway. In high school you always seemed to have the right answer. You never once judged me. I know I can trust you."

"This sounds serious, 'Chele," said Randy. "Is everything OK? You know I'll do my best to help if I can," said Randy who was tempted to re-establish contact with his old flame and find out the truth using his hypnotic gift. Instead, he decided to let Michelle play out the scene, ask her questions and then he'd decide what to do.

"Randy, do you ever watch pornography?"

"I've seen pornography, you know, the occasional stag film, but no, I'm not someone who spends a lot of time watching smut movies. Why do you ask?

"Because I'm not a lingerie model anymore. I'm a porn actress, and have been for two years," said Michelle as she stared at her high school sweetheart searching for a reaction.

Randy returned her gaze with neither surprise nor judgement. Instead, relying on years of stage experience as well as his genuine feelings, he smiled a smile of understanding friendship. "Michelle, if you are expecting me to be shocked or aghast, well, I'm not. If that's how you make your living, who am I to judge? I earn my money by entertaining people with a show filled with sexual innuendo and slightly off-color humor. I don't see much of a difference between us. 'Chele, I live my life and do my work the way I do because I'm good at it and I like it. I hypnotize people for money. As I look at you here, in this light, sitting next to me, I see a woman who reminds me so much of my first love, a beautiful and frail young woman who brought me into the world sexually. I've already judged you. I'm here because of you, not what you do."

"I know that the emotions you show, and your feelings for me are real," he continued, "as are mine towards you." Michelle, whose face was filled with relief and affection moved to kiss her companion, but the master hypnotist gently held her at a distance while he finished what he had to say. "If you want to talk, I'll listen, 'Chele. This is very intimate. It's been a long time since I've felt so comfortable. I really do feel our original connection."

"Now, kiss me, Randy. Be my boyfriend. Let me tell you my secrets." Randy stopped speaking and moved to kiss the brunette beauty. It was intimate and tasted like "more." "Sit back and let me snuggle up, Randy."

Randy shifted his body into snuggle position and opened his shoulder to receive her delicate neck. Randy asked, "Can we still talk for a while, 'Chele, maybe freshen our drinks? I am so curious about your life now. I'll tell you what. I promise to tell you the truth about my act for any three questions you want to ask if you'll do the same. I'm talking about real answers, not 'Yes' and 'No' answers. We can alternate asking questions while we get re-acquainted with each other physically as well. We'll stop anytime you want. What do you say?"

"OK, Randy, said Michelle, "I'll freshen the drinks if you want to use the bathroom." She rose and walked to the sink to pour each of them another scotch, a modest one. Randy took a few moments to watch his beautiful companion walk away. She was as breathtaking from the back as she was from the front. In a minute and a half, he was back. Michelle was standing, holding his drink. "This evening has barely begun and it's already gone so much better than I could ever have hoped."

"Me too," said Randy. "Now, do you want to go first, or should I?" he asked.

"Me first."

"Ok, go ahead," said Randy.

"Randy," she said as she leaned in close, can you really hypnotize people?"

Yes, Michelle, I really can hypnotize people. I'm a professional hypnotist. I really can make people do silly things on stage, or other things they might not do normally. I'll save you a question. Yes, I can hypnotize you, if you'd like. My turn."