Unanticipated

Our divorce hearing was set for two weeks hence. I felt that the timing was right for my next move. Through courier services, I had copies of the audio recordings delivered to the wives of four of the thugs who had received blow jobs from Stacy. The fifth guy was unmarried but had a girlfriend. I provided details of the events of that night and asked them to think back if their guy had made arrangements to be out all night that particular night for evidentiary confirmation. The girls could confirm with Stacy if they wished her to substantiate the blow jobs. I heard that three of the five were kicked out of the home for an indeterminate period but no relationships were permanently severed. They convinced their partners that all they did was receive a blow job and never reciprocated with Stacy in any way. It was all one-sided.

I also ensured that Gerald 'Goliath' Jenkins' wife received a copy of the unedited audio recordings as well. He was my primary target because the entire contest idea and suggestion that I be drugged and memory wiped was solely his. Apparently, he had been unfaithful twice before. The third time's the charm, as they say. She'd forgiven him in the past due to their two small children. She wasn't about to repeat that mistake.

The divorce decree of Calvin Bostic versus Stacy Bostic was finally granted. Alimony was not required because of Stacy's income at the gym. I was glad of that. Immediately after the divorce was finalized, Lincoln advised me that I can't sue the gym for reparations as they do not have a no-fraternization policy. Therefore I did the next best thing I could think of. I went to the local press and detailed my entire story from beginning to end, naming names. The specter of publicity surrounding the contest and negative opinion fallout induced Stokes Fitness Palace to relieve Goliath and Stacy of their jobs. I realized that I probably would be the cause of them throwing in together but such things were no longer of any concern to me.

As it turned out, Goliath urgently wanted to reconcile with his wife. He loves his kids almost as much as he loves playing the field. Much like Stacy did to me, he swore to his wife that he'd not had sex yet with Stacy, though he couldn't defend against the recordings that my winning the arm wrestling contest was the only reason he hadn't. He tried to convince her that he intentionally threw the contest because he couldn't go through with it. He knew that if he had anything more to do with Stacy, his wife would never reconsider his position, so he ceased all contact with Stacy cold turkey.

Stacy returned to waitressing at Higgins Restaurant. I had always been a good tipper when I frequented the establishment and the girls would fight over where I would be seated to. I continued to tip generously when being served there. Stacy tried to talk with me a few times but I ignored her. She soon got the message. The other girls didn't want her to drive me away as a regular customer.

Hal nervously approached me one day, advising me that it was time to get out of my shell and start living again. The loss of companionship had been keenly felt if I was honest with myself. He told me that he was setting me up for a blind date this coming Saturday night. How could I refuse my best friend who had stuck with me through thick and thin? I owed him courtesy and respect and reluctantly agreed to his request this one time. Before parting, he asked me if he could borrow a thousand dollars. Without hesitation, I agreed and offered more if he needed it. After all, he'd saved my hide that night at the gym and has provided friendship support every day since then. As I handed him the cash, I told him it was a gift and not a loan. I didn't want to receive a penny back. He gave me a funny smile as he walked away.

He'd been evasive and secretive whenever I made any inquiries about the date. He asked me to show up at his house at 7 pm Saturday, dressed casually, where he'd greet me at the door and introduce me to my blind date. He said that his girlfriend, Melinda was as heavily involved and excited as he was. Melinda was a great girl, and I honestly had no idea why they had not married yet. They were a perfect match if ever there was one. I donned my newest casual clothes and made the well-traveled trip to Hal's place. There were quite a few cars parked all around, but conspicuously, there was one open parking spot right in his driveway which he waved me over to park in. We did the bro-hug and he eagerly led me into his abode. Nothing was going on in the house that I could sense but Hal led me downstairs into his basement. I heard some shushing right before we walked into his basement pool room where he and I had spent many hours.

I was shocked to see ten or more very attractive ladies all wearing bathrobes. I recognized a few of the ladies from grade school, some of whom I had not seen in years.

"Hi ladies," I nervously chimed.

"Hi, Army," they tried to reply in unison in smiling sing-song voices as melodically as could be.

"What's going on here? Are all of you beauties my blind date?" I chuckled. The women just giggled back at me as Hal took the floor.

"Not exactly, Army. I seriously doubt you could handle all of these lovelies at once," he commiserated.

Melinda helped Hal with the next part. "Okay, girls. It's time for the big reveal and parade. Let's strut our stuff for the champion," she instructed.

The girls, apparently having practiced before my arrival, all doffed their robes and set them aside. I counted twelve beautiful women standing before me in conservative, classy one-piece swimsuits. The swimsuits were revealing enough for me to appreciate the shapes and curves of each one, yet were not slutty in any way. I was immediately impressed. This was mildly reminiscent of Stacy's disrobing to reveal her slutty postage-stamp micro-bikini. But these ladies were a hundred times classier than Stacy had been that night. Hal began again.

"Army, all of these girls are aware of what happened to you and how you humiliated Goliath that night at the gym. So you're a kind of folk hero to them. They know that you're a free agent now, so Melinda and I did some brainstorming and came up with what we believe is a fantastic idea. She and I hand-picked every woman you see here tonight. They're all single; none of them are in a committed relationship, and each one is a vision of beauty as you can see. Melinda and I recruited these girls to participate in an arm wrestling competition tonight. This is more of a fun competition than a fierce one. No one here tonight is a bodybuilder or weight lifter. They're all fit and take care of themselves, but everyone here expects nothing more than to have a load of fun."

Hal continued, "They're here for three reasons: 1) to have fun, 2) to win some cash prizes, and 3) to be your blind date for the night. The top cash prize for the overall winner is $500.00, second place, $200.00, third, $70.00, fourth $50.00, and fifth place wins $40.00. Everyone else placing sixth through twelfth will take home $20.00 apiece, mainly to cover gas costs. So the total cash outlay for tonight's event is $1,000.00 total. By the way, thank you for sponsoring this event. That was very kind of you," Hal chuckled.

I replied, "I knew you were up to something, I just had no idea what it was."

Hal announced, "Okay ladies, all of you know the scoop about tonight. But everything is a surprise to our friend, Army, so if you'll indulge me, I'd like to explain how this will work to him. Army, this is to be a double elimination contest, like those that you are accustomed to. We'd like for you to start each match, and Melinda will referee and call each winner. During the course of the arm wrestling matches, the girls will get to see you and know you a bit better. Once the overall winner has been established, she has the option of being your blind date for the night but she is in no way obligated to follow through. Sometimes the chemistry isn't there and we place no pressure on any of the ladies here tonight. If the first-place winner opts out, then the second place has a shot, and so forth and so on. Honestly, from the way they're all looking at you as a delicacy, I don't think that will be a problem," he chuckled.

I was game for the experience. I certainly was no stranger to arm wrestling and this would be a fun way to secure a blind date. No one had a clue who the winner would be, least of all me. Hal was right, each lady was vivacious and attractive. I had no idea that twelve women were available for dating in our area, so this was a very pleasant surprise. There was a table set up for arm wrestling adjacent to the pool table. Hal had assigned each contestant a number and used a random number generator to select the matches. The ladies would be seated on opposite sides of the table. I linked their hands together in proper form, and held them straight on centered between them before calling, 'Go'.

Melinda and Hal were right. This was a barrel of fun. It was all light-hearted and even the losers were laughing and enjoying the comradery. Each of the girls asked me for a peck on the cheek for good luck and I was only too happy to oblige. The winner was determined in less than thirty minutes. Bobby Sue Baker was awarded the $500.00 top prize for competing. Bobby Sue looked remarkably like Hannah Jeter, the actress. Seeing her in her modest one-piece swimsuit was a feast for my eyes. After accepting her plastic trophy and the cash prize, she nervously looked over at me.

"Well, Army, I've never asked a man out on a date before, so this is new territory for me. I'd be honored to be your blind date tonight if you're up to it," she uttered.

"I graciously accept your generous offer, Bobby Sue. I look forward to us both getting to know one another better."

She smiled and gave me a peck on the cheek. "Let me go change out of this swimsuit right quickly and we can go wherever you want to take me. Hal and Melinda vouch for you in the strongest terms and that's good enough for me."

While Bobby Sue was changing, seven other girls came up to me, reminded me of their names, handed me a card with their contact information on it, and told me to call them if it didn't work out with Bobby Sue. I treated Bobby Sue to a very nice dinner and a movie for our first date, as the rest of the girls had a party with Hal and Melinda playing pool.

As one might surmise, Bobby Sue and I hit it off from the get-go. She nicely filled the gap left by Stacy. Over time we had many discussions about fidelity. Her previous boyfriend had two-timed her as well, so we both keenly felt the aftermath of cheating and betrayal. Bobby Sue Baker became Bobby Sue Bostic. She worked as a stenographer in our county seat court and was well respected. Since I still had most of my winnings from the forty grand contest, we decided not to wait to start having children. Within five years we had one of each. We still frequented Higgins Restaurant and Stacy continued to waitress there. I'd see tears form in her eyes as she watched the family that should have been hers lovingly enjoy themselves.

Note: Part of the inspiration for this story was derived from the 1987 Sylvester Stallone movie, Over the Top.