The 'Other' Bucket List

"Because, I'm willing to tell you everything," she interrupted. "I know you aren't as outgoing as I am and that's okay. I think it's cute—really cute, actually. But I still want to know."

"Know what, exactly?"

"You... everything...your hopes...your dreams...everything you think you'd want to do but are too afraid to tell anyone."

I think I audibly gulped. The thought of letting my mind go, much less confessing to her where my deprived mind might venture, terrified me.

"You know I love you, right?"

"Jules...of course, I do. How could you even ask that?"

"Then, it's settled. I'll need your list on my desk by the end of class tomorrow."

"Um..." I wasn't sure what to say. I wasn't even sure what I was thinking. I do know my feelings were a witches' brew of emotions. From unconditional love and acceptance to swirling fear, embarrassment and shyness—and yes, even a bit of horniness.

She seemed to be reading my mind as she studied my face. I hate it when she does that.

"Can we just get going, Jules? It's getting really dark now."

"Ummm...Nope. Not yet. Tell me one thing you want on your list, and then we'll go."

"Julie, no. Please."

"You know I'm not moving. Come on. Just one thing."

Indeed, I did know she wouldn't be moving. She wasn't just outgoing; she was also strong-willed. A hard-headed free spirit. That's my wife.

"Okay, fine. I'd like to have a blowjob outdoors, okay? Can we go now?"

"Uh, no. We already knew that one."

"Nu-uh."

"Seriously, Benji? Every man on earth has that one on his list."

"Oh," she was probably right about that. "Okay...well...there is this one thing..."

She turned off her headlamp and wiggled closer to me, standing close enough that she could easily kiss me, except that she didn't. "I'm waiting," she purred seductively into my ear.

"I...I've...No, Jules...I can't say it."

She leaned back. "Bullshit. And you really are going to hurt my feelings if you don't."

"Jules, this isn't about you. It's me. It scares me to death to say things like this out loud. You know that! I don't even know why. It just does."

"But it shouldn't—not to me. You do remember who you're talking to, right? And you know I love you, no matter what crazy perverted thing comes out of your mouth in the next 10 seconds."

"But Jules..."

"10..."

"What?"

"...9..."

"Julie..."

"...8..."

"No! ..."

"...7..."

My mind went into a swirl. How did this happen? How did we get to this point? In the background, I could hear the countdown continuing as a deluge of thoughts hurled themselves into my mind. Some I recognized from my teenage years even—fantasies I'd long suppressed but suddenly realized had never ventured all that far away from my conscience.

"...4..."

"Jules, please don't make me..."

"...3..."

I wondered what would happen when the countdown reached one. The urgency and expectation were palpable. My face suddenly felt flush.

"...2..."

My throat tightened.

"...1..."

What comes after one? A kick in the shin? A slap across my face? No, neither of those things. It only took an instant, but I knew exactly what would come after one; I would break her heart. Julie's face would turn sad. She'd turn on her headlamp. She'd turn around. And she'd finish hiking the rest of the way down the mountain. She'd do it silently, but she would probably be crying.

That's what would come after one—I would break her heart simply by not trusting her with just one stupid, measly little secret.

"A nude beach!" I suddenly blurted, not even sure where that particular thought came from.

You know, despite the fact that a headlamp is incredibly bright and can light up every pore of a person's face, especially from only a few inches away, it's surprisingly difficult to read someone's expression under its light. The color of the light just isn't natural. Shadows get washed out. Warm colors are reduced to cool pale blues that merely resemble the person's actual skin tones.

It wasn't until I saw two tiny shadows as her dimples emerged from their hiding places that I realized I hadn't broken her heart. Not at all, in fact.

She leaned forward and kissed me gently. Then she pulled back and looked lovingly into my eyes. "Thank you, Ben. I love you so much—to the moon and back and a thousand times over."

"I know, Julie. I know. Can we go now?"

"Sure, but...do you know what today is?" she asked.

"Thursday."

"No, do you know day it is?"

"Um, I don't know...the fourteenth...July fourteenth. Why?"

"Wow. You really don't know, do you?"

"I just told you, Jules. Why are you asking anyway?"

"Hmm, no reason in particular."

She was obviously lying. The smirk on her face made that painfully obvious. But she offered no further explanation and I gave up trying to get one.

Julie turned her head and flipped on her headlamp. Then finished swiveling her body to face forward and began walking again down the trail.

I hesitated a couple of seconds, unsure what had just happened, and quickly caught back up to her.

"Um, Jules...you know, just because I said that...well, it doesn't mean I actually want to do it...like, in real life..."

"Mm hmm," her response clearly indicated that she wasn't buying it.

"Jules, I mean it. I don't think I want to actually do that." There was that word 'that' again. I felt a little pathetic. "I mean, getting naked, like...in public...it's...it's crazy, right?"

"Was I crazy, then, Benjamin? When I was naked not so very long ago? When you were..."

"But that's different," I interrupted before she could really get going, "'cause you're different. I'm...I'm not like you..."

"Not like me?" she sounded a little perturbed. "Not crazy, you mean?"

"No, Jules, not crazy. More like...brave..."

"Hmm." Any tension that seemed to be building dissolved in an instant. "Well, you're probably right."

"I am?"

"Yeah," she stopped walking again.

"Wha...what do you mean, I'm right?" I sensed a setup in the making.

She turned to face me again. "You're probably not ready for a nude beach. So that might not be exactly what you're wanting—not yet, anyway." She was clearly thinking more than she was saying. "Tell me again, how much further do you think we have, Benji?"

"I...I don't know," my mind struggled to shift, grinding its gears as I diverted mental energy solve a puzzle I might actually be able to figure out. "Maybe a quarter-mile? I mean, it's hard to tell when it's dark and we're not walking our usual pace. I...I guess it might even be longer."

"Okay. It's settled, then."

"What is?"

"Let me see the backpack, please."

I shrugged the daypack off and handed it to her. The sweat on my back being suddenly exposed to the open air was refreshing.

"Oh, my, you've really worked up a sweat, haven't you?"

"Yeah...I guess so."

"Take off your shirt."

"Huh? Why?"

"Because it's sopping wet, that's why. Give me your shirt."

It made sense. I mean, it didn't make sense, right? No, it didn't make sense. But I did it anyway. Why? I don't even know. I suppose that didn't make sense, either.

Maybe the only thing I knew at all was that the open air felt really good on my skin. I watched as Julie unzipped the main compartment of the daypack, wadded up my drenched shirt, and shoved it in.

"Can I have your keys? And your phone? Oh...and your wallet."

I didn't say anything, though I'm sure I had a confused look on my face. It sure felt like I did, anyway. But I reached into the pockets of my shorts and handed her what she asked for. She safely tucked them into the backpack as well, before looking back up at me.

"Okay, now your shorts," she said calmly—firmly.

"Um...my shorts?" My mind was a jumble but too overwhelmed to actually protest.

"Stop thinking, Benji! Just do it!"

"But..."

SLAP!!

It happened in an instant. It was startling—shocking. Like having your head dunked under water when you're not ready for it. My chest stung immediately where she slapped my damp skin with her open hand.

I shined my headlamp onto her face. Still hard to read her expression, but it was hard...stern...demanding...insistent.

"Are you serio..."

She raised her hand again before I could even finish asking.

"Okay!" I offered quickly, instinctively reaching to cover the red spot where she'd just slapped me a moment prior.

I fumbled with the drawstring, attempting to untie it completely. I suppose I didn't actually need to do that, but it seemed like it might buy me some time—time for her to reconsider whatever it was she was doing, maybe? In reality, I was only delaying the inevitable. I let go of the two ends of the drawstring and looked up. She stretched out her hand again and waved it with a come-on-already motion with her fingers.

I numbly slid them down and over my shoes, and handed them to her. She quickly shoved them into the daypack, then reached her hand out again, palm up.

I was now standing in front of her, wearing only my boxer briefs, mini crew wool socks, and hiking shoes...and nothing else. What she wanted next was pretty obvious, and it wasn't my socks.

I slipped my thumbs behind the waistband and slowly pressed down, unsure if this was actually happening. Perhaps, the vision of Julie in front of me was just an apparition. Maybe I was having a dream—a lucid dream, except that she was the one in control, not me. But still, just a dream? Perhaps?

I was snapped out of my delusion when I heard her snap her fingers to get my attention. I blinked twice, only to find her outstretched hand still open before me.

I pushed further down, helping gravity pull my underwear past my pubic hair, across my groin, down to my knees, and then to the earth. I picked up one shoe-covered foot and wiggled it until my foot was extracted. Then I lifted my other foot until I could reach it and pulled my briefs the rest of the way off. I timidly handed them to Julie, who immediately stuffed them into the daypack.

She zipped up the daypack, slung it over her shoulder, and cinched it tight against her chest. Then she stepped back, shining her headlamp over my body—from my leather-covered feet, to my now naked everything else.

She hovered several seconds when the light reached my crotch.

Her dimples. Her grin. It was all I could do to focus on her and not the state I was in.

She stepped forward and wrapped me in a hug. "I love you, Benji. And I don't know about you, but I am so turned on right now." She reached down and touched my shaft, quickly bringing it to life.

The cobwebs in my brain quickly disappeared and the realization hit. "Jules! I'm naked!" I yelped.

She giggled.

I lowered my volume, though I was still quietly yelling, "I'm...I'm naked!...In the woods...In a national park!...Jules!?"

"You're also getting a hard-on," she gloated while fondling me to an even fuller and harder erection. "You...look...so...hot! I hope you enjoy this."

Then she turned around, adjusted her headlamp to the trail, and walked away.

For a second, I did nothing but watch as she left me behind—nearly disappearing with all of my clothes, my keys, my phone, my wallet—everything—tucked into the daypack.

A rush of clarity hit me. Was it adrenaline? Arousal? Something else? I'm really not sure. But as I looked down at myself, it somehow dawned on me that what I was looking at wasn't merely a 'penis' any longer, or even an 'erect penis' like we were taught to describe it in high school Sex Ed class.

No, what I was sporting was no longer simply a clinically describable body appendage. Rather, it was a lewd, vulgar, hot-to-the-touch and hard-as-steel cock!

It seemed to be forged with the same volcanic heat and seismic tension that formed the very mountains we were hiking in. And even without the obstacles of clothing, it appeared to be straining against restrictions and confines that weren't even there any longer. As it bobbed rhythmically in the air, I reached for it, feeling the heat radiating from it, well before my hand actually grasped it.

Then I looked up, just in time to see Julie rounding a corner several yards ahead of me. I started walking, too. What else could I do?

I picked up my pace, mindlessly feeling my shaft as I walked, eventually catching up to Julie. The sensations were indescribable. Freedom...Acceptance...Sensuality...

There was indeed still a part of me that desperately wanted to beg her to stop, to give me my clothes back, to let me cover my nakedness and hide my embarrassment. But a newly discovered, seemingly stronger part of me thrilled in the salacious excitement of it all.

A furnace had been lit and for the first time in my life I felt like a truly sexual being as opposed to just a being that sometimes engaged in sex.

My exposed skin tingled with the still warm evening breeze. My senses heightened. I started walking faster and with more energy. And as I came to within a couple of steps of Julie, she moved to the side, silently motioning for me to lead the way.

I didn't hesitate, even though I was fully aware of her leering gaze, locked onto my turgid dick as her light shined down on it. I passed by her, like I would have done any other time—any other time when I was wearing clothes, that is—as if it were perfectly normal.

From behind, I could again imagine Julie's expressions. I envisioned a smile crossing her face, feeding a wider grin, her dimples deep, her freckles adding color to her smile-stretched cheeks. Her expression, in my mind, was not one of victory or even being smug, but simply one of pride. I was hers. I belonged to her. I would do anything for her—I'd even strip off all my clothes and hike completely nude in front of her in a national park. And in the moment, I was surprisingly okay with that.

As we finally approached the trailhead, my courage began to wane. I quickly scanned the area for any unwanted signs of life. I remembered our truck was still another hundred yards or so down the road since there were only a couple of spots left when we arrived. Thankfully, I saw no other cars. Julie reached out and held my hand, as if sensing my trepidation.

She pulled me close. "I'm so proud of you."

It didn't even matter that the reason for her praise was so absurd. I felt my chest rise and felt proud as well, of myself.

There would be no shortcut for these last hundred yards. The obvious solution—to simply ask Julie for my clothes—didn't cross my mind. Perhaps I assumed she'd just say no, even if I did. So, we quietly waited, watching a long line of cars following one slower car, as they ambled their way back toward Gatlinburg. All the while, Julie either held my hand, or fondled my cock, ensuring I stayed fully engorged and at the height of arousal.

Eventually, a gap formed where there was no traffic from either direction. Quickly, Julie pulled me out to the pavement. I hesitated a split-second right until she yanked me further into the open.

"Don't move!" she suddenly ordered, as she fumbled in her pockets.

I watched her take a few steps down the road away from me, before turning around and quickly taking a photo with her phone.

"What are you doing?!" I nearly screamed. "We have to hurry!"

No sooner had I said that, I saw headlights about to round the corner in front of me.

Julie ran back and grabbed my hand, leading us both back to the relative safety of

a wide-trunked pine tree, only a few feet off the roadway. The rough bark pressed firmly into my skin as I tried to melt into the tree while car after car passed by us, their passengers unaware that a few mere feet from them, a naked man with a lurid erection was being obscenely fondled by his mischievous wife.

Fortunately, that line of traffic had been travelling the same direction and as soon as the last car passed, Julie was pulling me back out to the pavement.

She denied my request to walk faster as she led me down the double-yellow centerline of Newfound Gap Road, keeping a tight grasp on my cock to ensure I didn't run off.

Twice more we had to sprint off the pavement and hide behind a tree until another gap in traffic came along, but eventually we got to within a few yards of the truck. It felt so close, yet still so very far away.

Again, I tried to will myself into the tree bark, as we waited for the traffic to disappear, this time from both directions.

"Oh great," I whispered, as if anyone in the cars would actually be able to hear me. "Do you smell that?"

Julie didn't answer and I couldn't see her face since we'd turned off our headlamps temporarily.

"I think it's a skunk," I finally whispered again.

"Oh!" Julie finally giggled. "Yeah, Benji, I bet you're right...It's just a skunk..."

The traffic disappeared and Julie quickly turned on her headlamp and lured me out from the shadows. I followed her light to the pavement until I was once again standing on the centerline.

Julie adjusted her headlamp so it was shining directly on me. I was mostly blinded by it, but I had a suspicion she might be taking more pictures with her phone, as she walked backwards the rest of the way to the truck. I reached the passenger side, just as another line of vehicles came up from the north, heading uphill toward Newfound Gap.

Though still nude and hard, I finally felt safe. So long as I stayed on the passenger side of the truck, I was pretty certain no one would ever see me.

Julie opened the truck, causing the dome light to come on. I was still safe from the view of passersby, yet it shocked me into feeling totally exposed again, even though nothing had really changed.

"So, do I get my clothes back now?" I asked Julie, not at all confident what her answer might be.

"Oh, I thought maybe you'd want a little relief, first," she answered with a flippant tone, "but hey, if you just want to get dressed and head back to town..." she taunted.

"No, no, no!" I interrupted as quickly as I could. "You have no idea how badly I want some relief!"

"In that case," she purred as she reached down, the dome light still illuminating my shaft, her velvety fingers teasing nearly every nerve ending, drawing me even closer to the release I'd been priming for, for nearly an hour.

"Oh my god, Jules," I moaned, surprised at how quickly I'd reached a point so close to climax. "I'm not going to last much longer."

"No!" she suddenly let go of my cock and slapped my balls really quick.

"What the hell?!" I begged as I keeled over, "I was so close!"

"I know, Ben, and I'm sorry. But not here! Not here!"

She took my headlamp from me and tossed it into the truck before closing the door. It was now fully dark again and though I couldn't see her, I could tell she was taking off her flannel shirt.

Just when my eyes were starting to adjust to the darkness again, she reached up and wrapped her shirt around my face, covering my eyes, and tying it behind my head with her sleeves.

"What are you doing, Jules?!" I was beyond confusion.

"Just trust me," she chimed enthusiastically as she grabbed my hand.

"Where are you taking me?"

She didn't answer.

"Jules! What are you doing?! Are you taking me to the road? We're going to get arrested!"

"Hush! We're not going into the road. I just don't want you to think about the traffic anymore."

"But I wasn't!" I protested. Even in my confused state, that didn't make any sense. But when I felt her fingers touching my cock again, I gave up trying to figure anything out.

As she gently traced her fingers up one side of my shaft, I heard the tell-tale sound of car tires, whirring on the pavement. "Jules! A car!" If anything, this new setup made me even more aware of my surroundings. How was a blindfold supposed to help anything?