Ratchets and Clamps

"Now we will have a brief intermission," she announced, "while my assistant helps me straighten our two lovebirds up. Please don't go away!"

And with that she began turning a handle on Mary's chair while the assistant did the same on Bill's, raising their backrests to an upright position. Their leg stirrups were straightened out and their legs brought together, so that at the end of the process they were standing up, facing each other. The assistant wheeled Bill forward until he was about a yard from Mary.

"I see from the web entries that a couple of our viewers have already anticipated my next feature presentation. As you can see, Jill here has a pair of wonderfully sweet raspberries for nipples and Jack's are actually quite well-developed for a male, without looking effeminate, I should add."

"You are familiar with the procedure by now. I mark the desired locations and attach the clamps. Here, here, here and here. I add the needle attachments, but here is the twist. I give Jill's two handles to Jack and Jack's two handles to Jill!"

"So, love-birds. Our next step is that you pierce each other. What's it going to be, fast or slow? One at a time or together? The call is all yours!"

Bill looked Mary in the eyes. She looked back without blinking.

"Fast?" he asked.

"Yes," she replied. "Together on three?"

"Yes! One, two, thraaargh!"

"Oh, that's so sweet," chirped Jane, deftly catching the clamps and inserting rings in their nipples. "Nearly done, now. Just one more for each of you and we'll let you down."

"Here's the deal: I'm releasing the catches on your right-arm support, Jack. As you can see, you can now touch your love's face but the restraints prevent you from touching yourself."

"Jill, the same goes for you. Now, here's a clamp for each of you. As a special memory of today, you are each to clamp and pierce someplace visible on your lover's face where I will place one of these,"

Jane held up two screwball rings, identical to the ones she'd already affixed to their nipples and to Mary's labia. "Except that these two" Jane explained, "I will seal in place with super-glue in the threads so you will not be able to remove them. So, choose wisely. Where do you want your lover to wear a public sign of belonging to you for the rest of your lives?"

Bill's hand trembled as he held up the clamp towards Mary. He moved it close to her earlobe, thinking that an earring, although an unusually heavy one, would be least conspicuous to wear but she shook her head slightly, as far as the strap around her forehead would let her.

He moved his hand to the front of her face and she smiled, but when he made for the side of her nose she shook "no" again. Trembling even more, he moved the clamp towards the center of her nose and she smiled.

Gingerly, he inserted the clamp into her nostrils and held it here. She looked him straight in the eyes.

"Yours forever," she mouthed, "I love you!" And as Bill squeezed the clamp closed on her septum, she continued looking him straight in the eyes and smiling.

When the tell-tale series of clicks told them the clamp was irreversibly in place on her septum, she raised her hand with the other clamp toward Bill. Questioningly, she held it up in front of his nose.

"Do it," he whispered hoarsely. "I love you!" She clamped it on his septum and he let out a sigh as he felt the weight of the clamp on his nose.

"Wow, that was not quite what I had expected," said Jane as she attached the needle assemblies to both clamps. "So, final choice, lovers. Who gets to do the honors? Will you push the handles yourselves or would you have me give your handle to your better half?"

"I want Jack to do me!" said Mary in a firm and clear voice. "Will you, please, honey?"

"Of course I will," said Bill, with tears running down his cheeks. "Will you do mine?" Mary just smiled and held out her hand. Jane placed the handle in it and gave the other handle to Bill.

"Ready, my love?" asked Mary.

"Always!" answered Bill.

"On three?"

"Yes! One, two, three!"

This time neither of them made a sound or as much as blinked as the needles penetrated their flesh. Mary continued smiling beatifully at Bill as Jane inserted the ring in her nose and affixed the screwball. Bill's tears continued to run down his cheeks as the procedure was repeated on him.

"I can smell bitter almonds," said Mary.

"It's the cyanide in the glue," said Bill.

"I know, silly," replied Mary and continued "But every time I smell almonds from now on, I will think of this moment!"

"Me, too," said Bill.

Epilogue: They stepped out of the limo hand in hand outside the Starbuck's by the campus gates. They ignored the astonished gasps from their class-mates at the outside tables, as they paraded their new septum rings towards their co-ed housing complex, halting only as they reached the center of the main lawn.

There they stood for a moment, hand in hand, before they turned to each other, smiled and kissed. They giggled as their nose rings clinked when they made contact but then continued kissing despite the merry chiming from their rings.

"I want to get my tongue pierced," said Mary.

"Me, too," said Bill. "But let's heal the ones we have, first."

"Sure," Mary agreed. "And let's save up to pay a regular piercer next time!"

"Yeah, I guess," sighed Bill. "But it sure was hot, doing it to you!"

"Yes," Mary whispered, "Perhaps we could buy needles and stuff on the net? I'll do you again if you'll do me!"

"YES!" moaned Bill. "Oh, baby, I love you so much!"

"I love you, too," said Mary and snuggled into his arms. Together they walked towards the dormitories.