The Lone Ranger and the Ho

"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea."

"Come on, Nat. At least get dressed and see how you feel. If it's too much, we can dial it back a little."

Natalie stripped down, amazed at how much more comfortable she'd become in front of her roomie, and pulled on a deep red thong and some torn fishnet stockings. The shimmery tight dress hugged her every curve and when she looked in the mirror, she was amazed at how different she looked. This was no college co-ed. This was a whore, no, this was a ho.

"Dayum, Girl, you look great. Uh, you can use some of this modeling tape to keep the dress from sliding off your boobs but remember, you gotta show them off. Now, for your hair I've got a surprise for you...ta-da!" Shawna held up a platinum blonde wig. "You're gonna look great. Here, let's slip it on you."

The transformation in the mirror was astounding. Natalie hardly recognized herself. Maybe she could pull this off. If no one knew who she was, she'd feel better and not be as embarrassed. "I look, uh, I look..."

"Fabulous, Girl, you look fabulous. Here, let me do your makeup."

Right before they left their room, they stood together in front of the mirror. Shawna's green lamé dress barely covered her ass, her boobs were practically falling out of her top, her hair extensions faded from black to bleached blonde and her makeup was gaudy and sultry. Natalie's dress was perhaps one millimeter longer than Shawna's and her boobs didn't hang out as much, but they were still front and center. Her similar makeup and wig disguised her even more.

"Dayum, we look like two fine Sista Hos. How ya doing? OK?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"Still gonna go?"

Natalie stared at herself a tiny bit more, took in a deep breath and said, "Heck yeah!"

"You go, Girl! Come on, get them heels on and away we go."

They could hear the music a block down from the frat house hosting the party. All kinds of superheroes, monsters, fake nurses and other costumed people were scattered across the front yard and up the stairs to the house. The two made their way past them and into the front room. Natalie was astounded at the variety of costumes. She noted most of the women were wearing outfits which were skimpy or revealing, similar to hers. This made her feel a tiny bit more relaxed. They made their way to the keg and each took a small cup of the cheap beer. Natalie hated its taste and discreetly put hers down when she grabbed some snacks and 'forgot' to pick it up again.

The invitations to dance came at them from all sides. Shawna leaned over and shouted in Natalie's ear, "Gonna get crazy in here. Stay out in this main room, dance, meet some guys but don't accept any drinks from anyone and don't go upstairs. Bad things can happen if you don't watch yourself. OK?"

Suddenly nervous, she nodded to Shawna right as a tall, hairy ape like creature came up to her. "Dance?" rumbled from his throat. She looked down at him and saw his feet were at least eighteen inches long.

"You Sasquatch?"

As he nodded yes, she grinned up at him and held out her hand. He was an awful dancer, no doubt hindered by his monstrous feet but she enjoyed being with him. He didn't talk much when they did a slow number but at the end of the song, she agreed to follow him to the front porch. They stood there for a few minutes talking until she decided to go back inside for more dancing.

"Nice meeting you, Sassy," she laughed as she turned to go inside, "But I want to meet more people tonight. Thanks for the dances."

Next up was a lean guy in a Spiderman outfit and after him she danced with a pirate who wore a fake hook over one hand. She teased him about how hard it must be for him to hug a girl. He jokingly hugged her while scratching her back with the hook. As she broke from his hug, she heard shouted words behind her.

"Hey, Beeyatch, this is my corner! Now haul your skanky ass down the road."

Startled, Natalie turned to see another coed dressed in a tight, short top which exposed her belly, a blue micro-skirt which barely covered her ass and thigh-high black boots with stiletto heels.

"Uh-uh, you filthy slut," she yelled back, "I was here first. My pimp will come and kick your ass if you think..." She couldn't continue and began to laugh along with the other coed. "So, you're a hooker, too?"

"Yeah! I've never done anything so wild. You?"

"No. My roomie made me do it. She's here somewhere dressed as a 'ho' also. You'll recognize her; black chick, green dress and blonde extensions. See what she does when you accuse her of being on her corner." They laughed and joked for a few minutes until they were asked to dance and they ended up drifting apart.

Eventually she got hungry and worked her way to the kitchen. There she was offered a beer which she declined, preferring to take a new can of Coke and a few crackers with cheese. She remained a few minutes enjoying the relative quiet in the kitchen until a tall Count Dracula walked up to her.

"Care to dance?"

"Sure. Let me finish this snack first."

"First time to this frat?"

"Yeah, but I'm having fun. I'm one of at least three hookers here."

"Yeah, I saw the other two. You're the best one of the bunch."

Embarrassed, she thanked him and finished off her snack. "OK, I'll dance with you now."

"Great. You know, it's kinda crowded down here. We can still hear the music upstairs and dance there."

"Uh, no thanks. I'm not really interested."

"Cool. Follow me." He led her to the far side of the room before turning to her and starting to dance. He was a good dancer, kept time with the music and didn't merely stand there jerking his arms around while pretending to dance. When a slow tune came on, she nodded 'yes' to him as he took her in his arms. He was a little bit too handsy and when he pulled her close, she could feel his erection under his cloak. When she tried to back away, his hand on her low back slid down to her ass and pulled her tighter. Although she was uncomfortable with the situation, she decided to play along. Maybe that was expected in a slow dance and besides, his erection gave her a sense of pride. She was attractive enough to get a guy and get him excited.

As the music wound down, he guided her back towards the far wall before fumbling with something behind her.

"Let's go in here where it's more private," he told her as he pushed her through a door. She found herself in a small library and upon hearing the door close behind him, panic rose in her chest. Shawna had warned her about going upstairs but here she was equally as alone with a guy she didn't know.

"Ah, you need to let me leave," she said with as strong a voice as possible.

"No need, we can just get acquainted in here without anyone bothering us. I'm Jerry. What's your name?"

"Jerry, I'm not telling you my name. Now let me go."

"Come on, Sweetheart, just your name and maybe a few minutes for some fun."

"No, dammit, now let me go!" she said with increasing tension in her voice.

"Now, listen here," he said as he advanced on her, "No need to ruin a perfectly good night. A little grope, maybe a BJ and you can be on your way."

As he reached out to touch her, she loudly swore, "Fuck no, now let me go!" She emphasized her displeasure by bringing her foot up and driving it down, stiletto heel first, onto his instep but breaking the heel off.

"Ow, you fuckin' little shit," he swore as he reached for her. She stepped back but not before his hand grasped the front of her top. He looked at her with an evil gleam in his eye and said, "You, you bitch, you're mine!" He yanked the cloth down, tearing her top and exposing her bare breasts to him.

A piercing "Help!" screamed from her lips as she staggered back. He took another step towards her right as the door behind him opened. Before she could say anything more, she realized her attacker was writhing on the floor with his arm twisted oddly behind him while being pinned down by the Lone Ranger!

"Oh, shit, let me go!" There was an ominous cracking sound followed by screaming.

"Uh, was he hurting you?"

"He was attacking me and tore my clothes." As she spoke, she realized her boobs were hanging out for both guys to see. She gathered the ripped pieces together in an attempt to regain her modesty.

"So, you fucker, is that how we treat women in this day and age?"

"Oh, fuck, you broke my arm!"

"I don't believe I did. I have a witness here who saw you fall after I came in the room. You must have broken it when you fell. Now listen very carefully. This nice lady and I are going to leave this room and shut the door. You will sit here for five minutes before you leave. Got that?"

"Why?"

"Because I said so and if you don't, you will regret it," he said before turning his attention to Natalie. "Here, take my hat and hold it casually in front of you. No one will know your dress is torn. Got it?"

"Um-hmm."

"OK, now hold my hand like we're a couple and let's get out of here. And don't forget, Fucker, don't move for five minutes."

The Lone Ranger led her by the left hand while her right held his hat over her chest. There were no odd looks, no stares and no gawking, so she figured they looked like a couple wanting to leave early. Once they were outside the house, the adrenaline finally caught up with her. She began shaking while silently crying.

"Hey, it's OK to be scared but I've got you now," he said as he draped one arm across her shoulders and gave a small side-hug. "You're gonna be alright."

"I guess," she sniffed, "Thank God, you heard me."

"Barely did, the music was so loud. I was watching you dance with him and I could tell you weren't too happy so when he dragged you through the door, I went over to make sure you were OK. I heard you only because I was right there."

"You have no idea how grateful I am to you."

"I'm glad I got there in time. Uh, since you were assaulted, you gonna report it?"

"I don't know. I mean, he didn't do anything other than rip my dress. It probably isn't worth the effort."

"It's up to you but if he's not held to account right now, he might do it again."

"You're right, I know, but I don't want the hassle right now. I just wanna go home."

"OK, lead the way."

"I'm over at Waterton Towers. Oh, and one more thing. If I report it, you could maybe get charged with assault, you know, the arm."

"Hmm. Hadn't thought about that. Well, the decision is yours. Uh, why are you walking so funny?"

"The heel on my one shoe broke when I stomped him and I'm having to walk tip-toe on that foot now."

"Here, let me have your good shoe." He leaned over, slipped her good shoe off, snapped the heel off with his bare hands and chuckled, "Now you've got two flats. Should be easier."

They were silent for the rest of the walk back to her dorm. When they arrived, she turned to him, slid the hat away and gave him a big hug. "Thank you, you have no idea how glad I am you were there. Uh, what's your name, anyway?"

"John. John Reid."

"Thank you, John," she said into his chest before giving him his hat and turning to enter her dorm.

When Shawna arrived a few hours later, she was in great spirits until she saw Natalie lying in her bed staring at the ceiling. "Nat, we missed you. You took off early?"

"Uh-huh."

"How come?"

"Oh, Shaw, it was horrible," she said as she broke down into tears and began to tell the entire story. Shawna sat there with her arm comforting Natalie the whole time.

"That fucker. Who was it?"

"Don't know. Said his name was Jerry. He was wearing a Count Dracula costume and I have no idea what he looks like."

"You think his arm is broke?"

"Sounded like it. I think the Lone Ranger could get into trouble and that's part of the reason I don't want to report it."

"Well, at least you're OK now and other than a torn dress, no damage, well, your shoes, too. Uh, what was the Lone Ranger's real name?"

"John Reid."

"Maybe you can look him up next week and tell him again how much you appreciate all he did."

"Yeah, good idea. I feel better telling you about it. I think I'll crash now, OK?"

"Sure. Get some good sleep and you'll feel better in the morning."

-----

Two evenings later at dinner, Natalie looked up and had a sudden jolt of fear. There across the dining room was a guy with his arm casted and in a sling. "Shawna, that might be him."

"Who?"

"The guy named Jerry who attacked me. See? The arm? He's about the right size."

"Yeah, I see. Wait here."

"Shawna, what are you gonna do?"

"I'm gonna ask a question or two, that's all."

Natalie could see her walk up to the table and lean over him. She had a big smile, laid her hand on his shoulder and seemed to be friendly, though at one point it appeared she was slyly taking his photo with her phone. Natalie wondered what was going on when she saw Shawna pull out a chair and stand up on it.

"Everyone," she shouted to the room, "I have an important announcement!" After a few seconds, the dining room went silent. "Thank you for your attention. I want to let y'all know, particularly you girls, that this guy Jerry right here is a predator! At the Halloween party he attacked a girl, ripped her dress and if it hadn't been for someone who came to her rescue, this asshole could have raped her."

"That's bullshit!" he screamed as a murmur went through the dining room.

"Is it? Your arm is broken because someone came to help her and had to deal with you."

"I fell and broke it!"

"I've got two people who will tell all y'all the truth," she announced to the room. "You want me to get them?" she asked him before turning to the crowd again, "This guy is bad news and you girls should stay the fuck away from him." She got down from the chair as two coeds got up from his table and moved away from him. He stormed out of the dining room to jeers from several of the other students.

"What'd you say to him?" she asked after her roomie returned.

"I went up all smiling and asked if he was Jerry. He said 'yes' and I kept up the polite chatter and even snuck in a picture of him on my phone. On the spot, I decided public shaming was in order. It seems to have worked but I plan to put it online on CollegeBook. That should get lots of attention."

"You could get in trouble for that!"

"Maybe, but do you think he for one second is going to complain? If he does, we'll get you and John to swear out a statement. By the way, have you contacted John yet?"

"No, and maybe I should. I'll do it tomorrow."

The next day she went to the registrar's office only to be told there was no student by the name of John Reid. She tried several similar sounding last names but was told 'no' to each one. It seems her hero the Lone Ranger had disappeared.

-----

"OK, everyone, welcome to the Chem 102 lab section. I'm your TA Amir and will be in charge for zis term. You will work together with one partner for all of zee sessions. I want to see who sits by a friend.....OK, you must move around so you are working with new partner."

There was a murmur of discontent while some students got up and moved around. A tall, smiling, nicely-built blond guy sat down next to her.

"Well, Partner, I guess we're a team this term. I'm Wilson, though I go by Wil."

"Natalie, but you can call me Nat."

"Hi, Nat. What's your major?"

"Undecided, but I think I'm aiming for one of the biosciences or medicine. Maybe veterinary medicine."

"Like animals?"

"I do, love 'em. I had a golden growing up and when she got older, our vet helped her a lot. She was so cool and even let me go help her in surgery a few times."

"I understand vet school is hard to get into."

"Yeah, it is. And they say it's harder than usual med school 'cause you've gotta learn so many more diseases on so many more species. What about you?"

"Uh, probably geology. I love the outdoors and have always liked hearing how the mountains were made, what kinds of rocks there are, you know."

"OK, everybody," announced Amir, "Now that you meet your new lab partner, we get busy. I need to give you safety rules and zen we do our first experiment. First, eyes. You wear goggles every second you are doing lab work. No exceptions ever. If you don't, you get F for zee day. OK?"

The students nodded their understanding before he went on, "Over here you see shower with a chain. Zees ees emergency wash station. If you get chemicals or fire on you, you must stand there, pull zee chain and wash. Zen you take off zee cloths, uh, zee clothes and wash more. Understand?"

"But we might be naked underneath!"

"Your life ees more important. We can give you robe, too. OK, turn to lab book, page seeks..."

The three-hour lab session flew by. Natalie liked working with Wil who was smart, self-deprecating and wickedly funny. Much of what he said had a humorous twist and she found herself laughing off and on throughout the session but he was serious and meticulous about the work. After the lab, they walked together towards the quad through a few flurries of snow.

"Think it will stick?"

"Maybe," she answered, "I wonder if Amir will let us bring snowballs to use instead of the shower."

"Mmm, I kinda think I'd like to see someone use the shower."

"Oh, you just wanna see naked chicks, I bet."

"I won't deny that. You know, if I hadn't taken biology last term, I wouldn't know that girls look different down there."

"You are such a nut! I can't believe you," she laughed as he grinned back at her.

"Yeah, you're right. I knew girls don't have hair there and..."

"Jeez, you're such a goofball," she laughed along with him.

Once they got near the dorms, he told her he lived off campus and would see her the next week. He turned to head for the parking lot and while Natalie watched him go, she thought, 'Not a bad guy. And crazy funny.'

-----

The lab sessions became the highlight of her week. She loved working with Wil who, though with a funny sense of humor, was serious about the work, worked well as a partner and didn't try to take over because he was the guy. And he was attractive. She liked his short, blond hair, chiseled jaw and deep blue eyes. Winter clothes hid most of him but she could still tell he had a decent bod under there. She dropped hints multiple times about her not having a boyfriend hoping he would ask her out but he seemed immune. They both did well getting A's in the class. At the end of their final session, he seemed to walk particularly slowly towards the quad and she found him to be anxious and jumpy.

When they came to their usual parting spot, he nervously cleared his throat and asked, "Uh, Nat, uh would you maybe want to grab a coffee with me, to celebrate or something?"

Her heart sang! She had wanted to go out with him for weeks but her subtle hints were seemingly ignored or not picked up on. "Sure, coffee it is. Student union?"

"Yeah, unless you want to go off campus."

"What'd you have in mind?"

"Java Guava Hut over on third."

"Yeah! Love that place but I don't get there too often. Kinda far to walk."

"Good. My car's right over here."

He led her to an older but clean, silver SUV, opened the passenger door for her before getting in behind the wheel.

"Let's see if I can get old Silver to turn over."

It took a few cranks but once it started, the engine hummed nicely. A few minutes later he escorted her into the coffee shop. There they had coffee, split a sweet roll and laughed until tears were streaming down her face. Will was truly funny as he seemed to find humor in the oddest of places.

At one point after she had laughed until her sides hurt, she gently placed her hand on his. "You know, geology may not be your best field."

"No?"

"Stand up. That's the field for you!"

"So, you think I'd rock doing comedy?"

"That was sooo bad," she groaned, "But see? That's an example of how you immediately put things together in a funny light."