The ASMRtist Ch. 02

"You guys sell so much cool stuff," Kacey said. "Do you get all the props for your videos from here?"

"Mmm-hmm," she said absently, nodding while building herself up internally as they moved through the back half of the store toward the warehouse. It wasn't until they pushed through the two swinging doors and into the party that it occurred to her that she was nervous for Kacey to meet Olivia too.

'Nervous' was a dangerous understatement.

"So this is her, huh?" Olivia wasted no time giving Kacey a very obvious head-to-toe inspection as she stepped out from another conversation she was barely participating in. Her expression gave away nothing, but she did give a very minor head nod. Kacey braced herself and got a half step in front of Stephanie while they walked, but Olivia forestalled her by extending a hand for shaking. "Took long enough. It's nice to finally meet you."

Kacey, slightly crestfallen, took the proffered hand and shook it firmly. Olivia leaned in slightly closer and lowered her voice while she held Kacey's hand.

"I only hug people I'm trying to grope covertly," she said, keeping her expression neutral as always. Olivia's husband, a mountain of a man with a beard as thick as his arms, and Stephanie both nodded knowingly. Kacey's eyebrows rose higher and higher. "Here. Come with me to get something to drink. Steph, you remember Bonner?"

"Yup," Stephanie said, trying to stamp down the bile that was threatening to erupt as the two people with whom she had most recently slept walked off together.

The mountain nodded and smiled as he moved to stand next to her. "Stephanie," he said, voice deep and resonating.

"Bonner," Stephanie replied, smiling lightly. "How've you been?"

The mountain shrugged. "Can't complain."

"How is/are the little one...s?"

"You forgot how many kids we have, didn't you?" he said, smiling, to which Stephanie nodded. "The girls are good. Both of 'em."

"Delilah and..."

Bonner smiled and let her wriggle on the hook for another few seconds before adding "Genevieve."

"Thaat's right. Genevieve's older, right?"

The mountain nodded again. "Gonna be fifteen this year."

"That's right.," Stephanie said, scanning the crowd until she found Olivia and Kacey again. The mountain chuckled. "What?"

"You know the only reason she pulled your new friend over there is to screw with your head, right?"

Stephanie stared, slack jawed, across the room. "That sounds exactly like something she'd do."

He chuckled again, taking his time between sentences. "Don't worry. She's just letting 'er know there's nothing happening between the two o'ya anymore."

"I suppose I already know the answer but... Olivia's... like... she's alright with that, right?"

"She's crying on the inside," Bonner said, but he could only keep a straight face for a few seconds before breaking into a wide grin. "Naw, she's good. A lil' disappointed, I think, but not broken up."

"Disappointed?" she asked, looking back up at him.

"Yeah." The mountain gazed across the room, staring fondly at his wife. "It's hard enough finding people that she gets along with, and then tryin'ta find someone that'll be cool with... yanno... the open thing."

"Yeah..."

"She's definitely glad it ended for the right reasons though." He paused to take a bite-sized piece of cheese off the plate in his hand, and pop it into his mouth. "That was important to her, even if she'll never say it."

She looked uphill, overcome with an abundance of respect. "Thanks, Bonner."

"Anytime," he replied, around a mouthful of cheese, and then nodded meaningfully behind her. She turned around just as Olivia was leading a nervous-looking Kacey back toward them. "Babe, you know how hard it is to get 'em back to the kill room if ya scare 'em first." Olivia came to a quick stop and slapped her open palm against her forehead.

"He's joking," Stephanie said, as she reached her arm around Kacey's shoulder. "Was that okay?" she added, in a softer voice. "Was she nice?"

"It was-it was good," Kacey said, nodding. "I'm just, you know..."

"I know," Stephanie said, planting a soft kiss on the top of her forehead.

"But yeah."

"Good."

Stephanie was friendly with most of her coworkers and, over the next couple hours, spent time talking with most of them on a level commensurate with how much she liked them. She tried to be respectful of Kacey, and stayed across the room from Olivia. Every time she looked over, though, all she could think about was how old Olivia and Bonner must have been when they'd had their first child and how much that had changed how she thought about Olivia as a MILF. Which she definitely did. Olivia's black dress clung to her hips in a way that made Stephanie hate their uniforms even more.

Most of the conversations started with, or at least touched on, that Stephanie was gay, had a girlfriend, and whether or not that was something her coworkers had expected or ever considered. It was more conversation on her sex life than Stephanie had ever had, which was shocking when she really thought about it. It felt a little personal, but it was the kind of thing she was hoping to power through once, at a party, and then never hear about again.

"How're you holding up?" Stephanie whispered, about two hours later, to a visibly-weary Kacey. When Kacey didn't immediately respond, Stephanie nodded and pulled Kacey to the side after a polite exit from the conversation she'd been participating in. "Are you okay, Baby?"

Kacey folded her arms across her chest. "I think I'd like to go."

"Okay," Stephanie said, rubbing her hands lightly up and down Kacey's biceps. "Was it, like, because of someone?"

"Kind of," Kacey said. Stephanie nodded, smiling, and they turned and headed for doors. She felt that protective pull again, and had to fight down the urge to snarl at Olivia when the older woman peeked out from behind a larger crowd.

"Checking out early?"

"Yes," Stephanie said briskly.

"Okay," Olivia said, tilting her head. "Kacey, it was nice meeting you."

"You too," Kacey said, as they pushed through the double doors.

It was quiet in her Jeep as they passed through town. Kacey kept pulling at the hem of her dress, trying to keep it down over her knees, and her quiet grunts of frustration were the only real sound. Stephanie gripped the wheel tightly, knuckles whitening, as she tried to figure out a way to start the conversation. In truth, though, half of her plan was to wait for Kacey to start talking on her own.

From a certain point of view, her plan succeeded.

"Why do you work there?" Kacey was all ice, with her arms folded tightly across her slim chest.

"Uhm..." Stephanie hadn't been prepared for that. She swallowed, and ran her tongue over her lips as she scrambled to recover. "I don- I don't understand."

"Why. Do. You. Work. There."

"Money. Baby, did someone say somet—"

"Wrong." Kacey crossed her stockinged legs too. "I've seen how much you get from Patreon."

"You looked that up?" Stephanie said, voice rising in panic.

"It's on your page," she snapped. "It's right there on the front page. Don't change the subject."

"I..." Stephanie collected her thoughts for a moment. "I mean... I'm always a little worried about Patreon not being steady. Or reliable. You know, not like a 40-hour-a-week job is... so... I've stayed away from trying to make videos full time, if that's what you're asking."

"No, I get that. I get having 'a' job. Why do you have 'that' job?"

"I... I had that job first," Stephanie said, as they pulled up to a red light. "After my year of college, I got that job. I always felt like Martel was the fallback."

"The fallback," Kacey said icily.

"Baby, did someone there make you feel uncomfortable? Did..." She sighed, leaning back into the headrest. "Olivia said something, didn't she?"

"It wasn't Olivia."

"It's okay, Baby. You don't have to—"

"It wasn't Olivia," Kacey yelled. "It was you!"

"Me?" The light turned green, but it took several more seconds before it registered for Stephanie. They crept slowly through the intersection. "I... I don't..."

"She was fine. Olivia was upfront and direct, and she treated me respectfully. I appreciated that. You, though..." Kacey uncrossed and re-crossed her legs tightly. "You hurried me away from her as fast as you could, like you were worried about what she was going to say to me, and then you stared at her from across the room, all night, like that was where you really wanted to be."

"That's... That's not—"

"Are you're settling? Like you don't want to be with me, you want to be with her... and you're just waiting for her to be... to be... emotionally available." A quiver slipped into Kacey's voice.

"Baby... no..."

Kacey shook her head, staring straight forward, "I was already feeling kind of alone before tonight, and now..."

"You're right," Stephanie blurted. "I was trying to keep you apart. I was so worried about you meeting her that I went to... to great lengths to keep us away from her and her husband tonight. I didn't want you to feel like you were, like, competing with her."

"But all you did was stare at her all night! I was there next to you, and you were staring at her."

"Yes!" Stephanie shouted. "Fine! I was staring at her! For a lot of reasons! Partially because, you know, I was trying to keep distance so I had to know where she was. Partially because, yeah, I still think she's attractive."

"Great."

"And partially because she's my friend. She's funny. I missed talking to her."

"I was right there, and you barely talked to me at all."

Stephanie hung her head and nodded. "I'm sorry."

"I don't understand what happened tonight at all, and I'm trying really hard not to be defeatist right now, but that was... that was not good."

"Okay... Okay." Stephanie closed her eyes and took a deep breath, as they pulled onto her street. "I had a hard time balancing things tonight, and I didn't... I don't know. It was hard having so many people find out I'm gay. Or whatever."

"Yeah," Kacey said, her voice getting smaller. "That was weird for me too."

"And we just kept having that same conversation over and over."

"I know," the smaller girl squeaked.

"I'm sorry."

"I'm not saying you need to quit your job, but... I need to feel like I matter to you."

"You do," Stephanie said quickly.

"It's scary to be vulnerable. I'm having to fight my instincts constantly to trust you at all."

"You do?"

Kacey shook her head, squinting her eyes. "That's not because of you, that's just... because..."

"Oh."

"You have to do better."

"I can do better," Stephanie said, as they pulled to a stop in the driveway. Her stomach felt like she was in freefall. "I can."

"I know that, like, you get in your own head—"

Stephanie nodded vigorously.

"-and I don't know, maybe other people could handle that... but I need more."

The pulsing in Stephanie's ears reached a deafening volume. Painful levels of guilt and self-hatred. This was not the first time Stephanie had blundered in the six months they'd been together, and her self-absorption had been at the root of the end of nearly important relationship she'd ever had. Even though she was acutely aware of her shortcomings and failings, it wasn't enough to stop them from becoming problems. Repeatedly.

"Knock knock," Kacey said. Stephanie blinked in surprise and looked over. "Are you in there?"

"Yeah," she said, drawing a shuddered breath. "I'm sorry."

"Were you doing that thing again?"

She nodded.

"A wise woman told me that 'some self-doubt is important, but too much can be very harmful'."

"Touche," Stephanie said, eyes watering.

"It's not all you," Kacey said, after another minute of quiet. "I've been feeling like I... just... I don't know where I'm going. You know? I don't have a degree or anything. I hate my job. I don't..." She sighed and hung her head. "I don't know what I'm doing, and I feel lost... and for a little while, I kinda forgot about all that and got swept up in you. You know?"

"Yeah." Stephanie had certainly gotten swept up as well.

"Can we just... can we just go inside?"

Stephanie quickly grabbed her girlfriend's hand and gave it a tight squeeze before nodding again. They each opened their doors, and Stephanie was waiting with her hand extended just beyond the front of her Jeep. It took every ounce of Stephanie's will to put their night aside.

"Don't answer this," she said, "but do you know how important you are to me?"

Kacey blinked, her expression neutral if a bit fearful, as Stephanie led her to the front door. It took all of the strength she could muster to step away from her inner turmoil and focus on the moment.

"Stay."

Kacey stopped, instantly stiffening. Stephanie opened the door, stepped through, and then turned around. She stared back across the threshold at her diminutive girlfriend, in her flowing, one piece green dress, matching three-inch heels, and black thigh-high stockings. Kacey's skin pebbled, and not from the chill in the air.

"Remove your panties," Stephanie said, planting herself.

Kacey turned her head microscopically, but got no further than looking out of the corner of her eye before Stephanie cleared her throat meaningfully. Kacey licked her lips as she bent at the waist, and Stephanie felt a terrific thrill as she saw the beginnings of embarrassed flush in her girlfriend's cheeks.

"I have spent months learning your body language, and your body. Learning everything I can." She ran her fingertips through the short hair at the top of Kacey's neck. Kacey stepped carefully, one heeled foot at a time, out of her panties, and then straightened, and as she did, Stephanie's fingertips came around the side of her neck to caress the line of her jaw. She held up her panties with both hands, as an offering, and Stephanie smiled.

"Very good," Stephanie said, accepting the gift with both of her own hands. "Now lift up the front of your dress."

Kacey's eyes went wide, but she hunched forward and grabbed the hem of the skirt with only a little hesitation. Her breath was shuddered, puffing out of her mouth in stilted bursts barely visible in the cool winter air. Stephanie was only just able to keep her expression neutral as Kacey exposed the middle of her thighs, and then the dark stripe at the tops of her stockings, and then the tops of her thighs, and then finally her groin. Stephanie took a deep breath, inhaling the powerful scent of her girlfriend's pussy, and exhaled with a happy sigh.

"I've paid attention to your... limits. The real ones and the imagined ones. Learned when I should back off, and when to push you." A very slight upward twitching of her fingers. "Higher."

Kacey bit her lip, fingers spidering across her palm to gather more and more of her dark green dress within her hands.

"Higher."

Little by little, while the front of her dress folded up and away to expose her belly button, the back of the dress rode up the back of her thighs. Exposing the tops of her thigh-highs behind her. Creeping ever closer to the beautifully sculpted muscle of her ass. Stephanie held her gaze, watching her cheeks turn redder and redder. They both froze, soaking in the moment, as a car rolled down the street. Stephanie moaned as her girlfriend eyelids became heavy, with a miniscule whine escaping from her throat.

And then, just as Kacey began to tremble, Stephanie stepped forward and pushed down on her hands. Lowering the dress. A long, low groan, carrying tremendous relief, poured out of Kacey.

"I know you," Stephanie said, as she held Kacey closely. "I know you down to your bones." Kacey had to tilt her head upward to maintain eye contact, and she swallowed hard as she nodded. "I know every hair." Kacey nodded again, trembling powerfully as Stephanie leaned closer. Until their lips were brushing against each other. Her right hand slid into the gentle curve of Kacey's lower back, pressing in supportively, while the right came up to cradle the back of Kacey's head. A tender, gentle pressing of lips. Soft kisses. Soft moaning.

It was only under the glare of headlights, coming toward them from down the street, that Stephanie progressed. Her hands moved down, each cupping one of Kacey's cheeks through her now-lowered dress. Kacey squealed and rose up on the tips of her toes, with the spikes of her heels hovering in the air. Inadvertently pressing their bodies even more tightly together. Stephanie squeezed, lewdly outlining the incredible shape she already knew her girlfriend's ass to have. Her fingertips found little cushion to sink into.

It did not happen often, but there had been a few moments in Stephanie's life where she wished she'd been born a man. She could feel the urge to pick Kacey up, sweep her into the house, and kick the door shut behind them with authority. It was always a fleeting thought, though, and instead she turned her attention toward what she could do.

She gave Kacey's ass one final squeeze as the car passed them, and then brought her hands around and up to Kacey's ribs. Twisting, keeping her palms flat, as she moved her hands over Kacey's small breasts. She brought her fingers to bear, through the thin fabric of the dress and sheer bra, on Kacey's extremely hard nipples. Kacey stifled a moan, trying hard not to look behind herself, as Stephanie began to pull and step back.

"Door," Stephanie grunted, her hands otherwise detained. Kacey swung her left arm out and slammed the door behind them, as she shuffled her feet to keep up. As soon as the outside world was shut away, Stephanie relented. She put Kacey's panties down on an end table, and circled Kacey, who for her part was standing with her feet together and her arms at her sides. It was a posture she'd begun assuming all on her own, without direction from Stephanie. Stephanie had found no reason to dissuade or discourage it.

She stopped behind Kacey and ran her hands across Kacey's shoulders. Out to the edges, and then back to the base of the neck. She unhooked the retaining button, and then took her time lowering the zipper. Parting the fabric, and exposing the tender flesh beneath. Kacey shivered, turning her head very slightly to look back.

Stephanie spread the back of the dress open, pushing it out until it sat perched on the very edges of Kacey's shoulders. The ends of the dress peeled away to expose much of Kacey's back. Delicate intent in her fingers, as she worked the clasps on the black strapless bra beneath. When the last hook finally came loose, Kacey took a deep breath. Stephanie brushed outward, fingertips trailing along Kacey's skin, and the dress fell to the floor. Bunched in a circle around Kacey's feet.

Stephanie stepped back and gazed in awe. Kacey's legs and cheeks were enough to make her wet when Kacey was standing flat footed. In heels, though? In stockings?

Smack!

Kacey gasped in shock, bouncing up on her toes and trembling. Stephanie kept her hand pressed on the spot, cupping and gently massaging the rounded muscle. Teasing it in the wake of the acute sting of a full-arm spank. Soothing. Keeping the sensation fresh, and in the front of Kacey's mind.

"I need you," Stephanie whispered, as she leaned over Kacey's shoulder. Putting her face right on the edge of Kacey's peripheral vision. "It wasn't until I met you that I realized how much I hide from the world. How... reluctant I am to expose myself."

Smack! Kacey bit down on her lip, muffling her soft moan.