Performance of a Lifetime

Author unknown.

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Performance of a Lifetime  

            Sue’s plan was to stop by the jewelry store to have them look at her engagements ring. She had bent the prongs cleaning out the garbage disposal and the stone had come loose. She was afraid that if she went another day without getting it fixed she would lose it. She hadn’t taken it off since the day Ron gave it to her two weeks ago. The thought of leaving it with strangers for the day, even if they were a reputable jewelry store, made her a little uneasy, but it had to be fixed and she would only be without it for a few hours. 

Sue walked into Christy’s and found the store empty, which was good because she needed to drop the ring off quickly and get down to Lord and Taylor to pick out a dress for tonight’s party. It was the first time Ron and her would be out in public together since the engagement, and she was nervous since the party was being hosted by friends of  Ron's, Dan and Alicia’s, and she wouldn’t know many people there. Who knows they might even run into an old girl friend or two of Ron’s.

She stood there for a few minutes before she heard voices from the room at the back of the store. She leaned over the counter trying to peer into the back room in the hopes of signaling someone to wait on her. After what seemed like a while, a pretty blonde stuck her head out the door and spied Sue up and down only to disappear again out of sight. A few second later, Sue heard the sound of muffled giggles. She walked to the back of the store puzzled, surely the woman saw her, what was that all about? As she neared the back of the store she could begin to understand a woman's voice. “So much for the commission on this one”; followed by a man’s voice “…Oh you mean you don’t think she’s here for the 2 carat emerald cut sapphire earrings?” The voices burst into laughter.

 “Judging from the JCPenney sweats and the hair clip, I’d say she’s probably in for the free ring cleaning”; followed by more giggling.

Sue looked at the giant mirror that covered the wall behind the counter. Her sweat suit was from JCPenney, and she wasn’t there shopping for an expensive piece of jewelry, the woman was right, but Sue wasn’t here for the free ring cleaning either  “How dare she judge me like that?” Sue thought.

As she stood there, she practiced all manner of things to say to the sales women when she finally came out. “Who does she think she is…?”; but Sue’s mental rant was cut short by the sound of high heels tapping on the marble floor, and Sue looked toward the front of the store and saw three women enter the store.

“Jennifer!” one of them called as she leaned over the counter and waved into the back room. 

 Out of the back room came the sales woman, walking with some difficulty, as fast as she could toward the front of the store.  She looked like some kind of movie star, with a huge pile of platinum blonde hair, and the tightest red dress Sue had ever seen stretched over an extremely curvy figure. The dress was a sleeveless red cotton knee length number, meeting in the front right at the collar.  While this effectively covered any hint of cleavage, it was abundantly clear what was incased below.  In between a flat stomach and a shapely neck exploded two mountainous peaks, each perfectly shaped and high on her chest.  They had to be DD in size. Sue’s first impression of this amazing sight was padding or silicone.  But two erect nipples almost punched through the red material, making padding impossible.  And with each step her globes bounced and trembled - no sign of implants.   Their size was emphasized by a complementary narrow waist and a very full yet shapely and firm rear.  The hemline of the dress was so tapered that she had to take small steps, and pivot from side to side on her shoes as she walked.  The woman towered over Sue, but the latter had to admit the former wore only slight heels.  In them, she was 5'9 if she was an inch.               

 “Excuse me.” Sue was all set to give ‘Jennifer’ a piece of her mind, but Jennifer didn’t give her a chance

“Someone else will be right with you” Jennifer said as she continued to walk toward the front of the store where the other women were.

“What a bitch!” Sue thought to herself

She looked with fascination, as Jennifer walked by her. At close range, Sue saw smooth tan skin and impossibly long dark eyelashes.  She was heavily done up, but not in a gaudy sort of way.  The dress was so tight, that the wrinkles, which a cotton dress like this would develop across the hips from simply sitting down, were pulled so flat they were barely visible, but something else was. As Jennifer walked, the dress straining across her legs, Sue spied through the fabric, a lace texture that was making horizontal depressions across each of her thighs.

Then a man’s head appeared out of the back room, he was walking toward Sue, but his eyes were fixed on Jennifer’s derriere as her hips swayed back and forth. Sue noticed that Jennifer was glancing into a round vanity mirror that was on the counter as she walked past it. The mirror was facing behind her and Jennifer was using it to get a nice view of the admiring gentleman.  As the man looked on, Sue noticed a little extra wiggle developing in Jennifer’s walk, as a seductive, satisfying smile appeared on Jennifer’s face.

The man stopped at the counter in front of Sue, but his eyes never left Jennifer’s wiggle. Sue looked at him and realized he was mesmerized.

Jennifer walked to the front of the store where Missy, Tina, and Mary were waving frantically at the counter. As Jennifer approached, the girls took note of her sexy figure packed into the tight red dress and wondered. The girls, although friends, had always been jealous of Jennifer’s head turning good looks. They constantly searched for anything useful with which to put Jennifer down, but there was little ammo.  However some recent sightings at Jennifer’s apartment kept the suspicions about her appearance alive.  Tina found a tiny bra in Jennifer’s hamper on New Year’s Eve.  No way Jennifer could fit her oversized mounds in those minuscule cups.  A few weeks later Mary spotted a pair of maternity-like pants hanging over the shower rod.  Size 12, and with an elastic waist.  Had Jennifer’s mother been staying?  But the fun really started a few days ago when Missy told Mary and Tina that she had seen what looked like a hair net in the bathroom trash- the kind worn by stage actors to hide their real hair under a wig. The girls had been wondering if that’s what it really was ever since.

“Did you hear the news Jennifer?” Mary asked

“What news?” Jennifer said, pretending not to know.

“Ron got engaged!” Tina blurted out before Mary or Missy had a chance.

“Oh, that, I did hear something about that.” Jennifer said and nothing more.

“You’re not mad?” Missy asked as Tina, and Mary waited for the answer.

“No, not all, we had broken up. Ron’s free to do what he wants” Jennifer said.

The girls all looked at her skeptically.

“I haven’t seen her yet, have you?” Missy said

“No, but there isn’t much to see from what I hear” Jennifer said coolly as she checked her look in the mirror.

“Well I’m sure she’s nothing compared to you Jennifer” Tina said as she looked Jennifer up and down.

“Well, it’s just that I know what Ron likes, and I heard that she doesn’t have any of it.” Jennifer added.

“Any of what?” Missy said.

Jennifer briefly feigned not wanting to say. “Like breasts, and hips.” Jennifer finally said laughingly. “I heard she's one of those skinny little girls that looks like she runs a marathon everyday. Really I can’t imagine Ron would find someone like that attractive.”

“Yeah he always seemed to like the full figured girls, right Jen?” Tina said smirking at Jennifer.

“I beg your pardon, but full figured is another term for fat!.” Jennifer said defensively. She looked at Mary a little shocked and asked her “would you call me full figured?”

Mary played along “No, in fact I was just thinking how fabulous you look, have you lost weight?”

Jennifer ran her hands over her hips. "I don't know because I never weigh myself. So many girls are hung up on their weight, I mean, I know when I look good, so I don't need to step on a scale everyday to prove it.  I have been working out at the gym a lot more lately though, and all my clothes feel looser. You know, it's not the pounds, it's the inches, 'cause muscle weighs more than fat, so you can lose inches without losing weight.  Besides, the scale doesn’t take into account how the weight is distributed.”  “First of all, I’m much taller than the average girl, and...” Jennifer paused to dramatically thrust her impressive chest even higher into the air.  “... It’s not my fault I’m so busty.”           

The girls all looked at each other and laughed slyly

“Hello, can you help me?” Sue said with an I’ve-been -waiting -here-for ten-minutes-hoping-someone-would-notice-me tone in her voice.

The man awoke from his trance. “Yes, of course. I’m Monty, and how can I help you today?”

“Well Monty, I bent the prong on my engagement ring and I’m afraid the stone will fall out.” Sue explained

“Oh, I see. Yes of course.” Monty said. “Let’s just have a look, shall we?” He peered down at the ring on Sue finger. “Well now that doesn’t look to bad, we should be able to straighten that right out for you, no problem.”

“Jen, did he buy the ring from you? “

“No, he didn’t, and don’t think for a moment I’m not going to let him know how much that hurt my feelings”

“I’m sure he would have felt funny coming to you Jennifer, I mean six months ago it might have been you he was buying that ring for.” said Tina

“If it wasn’t for little miss what’s her name it probably would have been!” said Mary

“Oh, as if this chick stole him from me! You girls know I broke up with him!  Things were just moving faster than I wanted.  He just wouldn’t respect my desire to wait.” Jennifer insisted.  “You know how it is, girls.  Half the run is having them pant like puppies for a while, by only giving them a hint of what’s in store.”  Jen again shifted her weight to emphasize each curve.  “He didn’t realize that this was worth waiting for.” 

"So are you going to go to Dan and Alicia's tonight?" Missy asked.

"Dan and Alicia's?" Jennifer sounded surprised.

"Oh yeah, aren't you invited?" Mary asked

"It's some kind of coming out party, so we can all meet his fiancé." Tina finished.

"No, I haven't heard a thing about it." Jennifer said as they all paused for what was an uncomfortable moment.

“Oh, good” Sue said “. Because tonight we’re to meet all his old friends at a party for the first time since the engagement, and I couldn’t possibly go without it, or with it bent like this.”

“Tonight?” Monty shook his head. “Oh I don’t think I can get it done tonight miss, I’m sorry but we’re closing up at five tonight and I’ve got a few others to finish up before I go.”

“I’m usually not one to be pushy, but is there anything you can do?” Sue asked

Monty looked at Sue and saw her for the first time. Even in her sweats and hair clip, she had a simple elegance and sincerity about her, that was unmistakable, and even though he didn’t think Sue had heard Jennifer’s comment earlier, he felt bad for having laughed at it anyway.

“Let’s have another look, shall we?” Monty said as he examined Sue’s ring again.

“You know this is an exquisite diamond miss…uh…”

“Wheatley, Susan Wheatley”

“Miss Wheatley, Yes.” Monty said as he looked back down at Sue’s ring. “The clarity and color are really quite exquisite, but the cut is something special.”

“Oh?” Sue wanted to know more.

"I guess they figured it would too uncomfortable for Sue with you there Jennifer." Tina said.

"Sue? is that her name?" Jennifer asked.

"Yeah, Sue Wheatley I think. That's what Alicia said." Tina added.

"You didn't say you knew her name!" Mary said, surprised

"What else do you know that you aren't saying?" Missy asked.

"Yeah, how's the ring, I'll bet it's the size of a basketball!"Mary said

"No I heard it's kind of small." Tina said quietly.

"That figures, Ron always used to say, ‘stars are meant to shine’” Jennifer cooed.  “He always thought I should be a movie star, you see, and always promised me a big diamond to shine under the set lights.  I guess this Wheatley girl would be better suited for a stage lackey.”

Monty elaborated. “This cut has more facets than any other cut…it’s extremely difficult to execute properly. Besides, most people think bigger is better and all those facets reduce the carat weight of the stone so most jewelers wont cut them like this.”

“No? Sue said a bit surprised

“No.” Monty continued. “This fiancé of yours, he…”

“Well I heard it was her idea” Tina said. “Something about not wanting a big rock.”

“Didn’t want a big rock!?” Jennifer said excitedly. "The girl's obviously an idiot!”

The girls all broke out in a howl of laughter.

 Monty paused in mid sentence as Jennifer's comments rang out from the front of the store. He and Sue looked up to see Jennifer and her friends laughing loudly. Jennifer's words rang through Sue's ears as she looked back at her ring and wondered what it said about her.

Monty was still looking at Jennifer as he continued, “…he passed on the big and flashy stone …” turning back to Sue “…for the smaller subdued stone that heels walking toward them grew nearer.

“Monty?” a sugary voice asked. “I’ll need to leave about fifteen minutes early tonight. OK?” Jennifer said as she sauntered up behind Monty.

“Sorry, Jennifer I have a lot of work to do in back, and I need you up front to work the counter and close up.” Monty said as he tagged and placed Sue’s ring in a plastic baggie.

Jennifer moved closer to Monty, a moved designed to appear as though she needed to whisper in his ear, but who’s actual purpose was to give him a panoramic view of her titanic chest. 

“Come on Monty it’s only fifteen minutes.” Jennifer said still using a soft controlled tone. “Afraid you’ll miss that customer who’s planning on running in the store at five minutes to five, wanting to by the star of India?” she laughed.

            “No, but this young lady needs her ring back today and it’s going to be all I can do to get it finished by five.” Jennifer looked at Sue dismissively.

            With the seductive approach having failed, Jennifer decided to get aggressive. She slid between Monty and the counter with her back to Sue and pushed him back to arms length. Monty stepped back sheepishly as his whole demeanor seemed to change. Jennifer’s forcefulness seemed to have brought out the little boy in him. Sue watched, as Jennifer lobbied for an early release, fearful Monty might give in.

            “After all I do for you around here…” Jennifer said.

            “Yes, but Jennifer, do try to understand, I’m running a business here and the customers come first.”

            “Business? What do you think brings all the male clients in here? Your great customer service or me?” Jennifer put her hands on her hips and shifted her weight on to her left foot, sticking her hip out and her breasts up.

            Sue looked at the stuck up blonde bombshell and noticed that from up close and behind there might be more to Jennifer's dramatic curves then meets the eye. Sue could see what looked like boning running up from Jennifer's waist  and stopping at a point a few inches below her bra strap. Sue began to lean in for a closer look.  As she got closer, she couldn’t help but notice her hairline was strangely hidden where she thought it might show some dark roots.  The pile of blonde tresses truly was piled. 

            Finally Monty said “ I’m sorry Jennifer, you’ll just have to manage” He winked at Sue over Jennifer’s shoulder. Sue straightened up and said "Ok, see you at five then. Thanks so much. Bye." She hurried out of the store and down to Lord and Taylor's. Jennifer walked back over to Missy, Tina, and Mary. "looks like you struck out there Jennifer." Missy said teasingly. "Don't worry about him, you just be back here at a quarter 'til, and let me worry about the rest." Jennifer said reassuringly.

At 4:30, Monty walked out of the back room and to the front of the store where Jennifer was arranging rings in one of the display cases. "Well that didn't take as long as I thought." Monty said with an air of satisfaction.  "Here Jennifer, this is miss Wheatley's ring, I'm sure she'll be in any moment for it." Monty placed the ring on the counter in front of Jennifer. "OK," Jennifer said with out thinking as Monty walked back the rear of the store. "WHEATLEY!?" Jennifer grabbed the ring off the counter and read the tag... 'Susan Wheatley' it said in Monty's hand writing. It was her, Jennifer thought to her self as she stared down at the ring. She wished she had gotten a better look at her when she was in the store, but no matter she'd be back for the ring in a few moments and she could see her then. "Back for the ring?" Jennifer thought to herself. She walked back the cash register and grabbed the store keys and walked back up front where Tina, Mary and Missy had just arrived. "So can you get out early?" Mary asked.

"Oh you bet, wait til you hear this. You know that mousy little thing that was in here talking to Monty when you girls were in here before? It was her." Jennifer explained.  "It was who?" Tina asked.

"Susan Wheatley!" Jennifer said.

"You're kidding!" the girls all gasped at once. "What did you say to her?" Mary added.

"Nothing she left right after you girls did, but I'm going to love hearing her tonight. Trying to explain where her ring is at the party, that is." Jennifer smiled devilishly and held up the store keys for the girls to see.  "Jennifer you wouldn't." Mary said disbelievingly. "Oh yeah, watch me." Jennifer said as she bent down to the gate switch which was located in the molding at the bottom of the wall that ran the length of the store behind the counter. The girls watched as Jennifer inserted the key and turned it to the right. The entire front of the store was an electric roll up gate that rolled into the ceiling when the store was open and closed off the store from the rest of the shopping mall when closed. A moaning and clattering noise immediately began over head as the gate slowly descended from the ceiling. " Hurry, you girls get the car and I'll close up here and go out back and meet you there. Hurry before she comes back."

"Wait, wait!" Sue yelled running with a shopping bag in one hand and her new dress on a hanger over her other shoulder. "I'm here, I'm here." Tina, Mary, and Missy, stepped away from the gate but they didn't go to the car, they stayed to see if any fireworks would erupt. "I'm sorry Ma'am, we're closed for the day." Jennifer said as polite as she could. "But I have to get my ring! The gentle man said If I got here by five it would be OK and it's only ten to five. I ran all the way." Sue pleaded.  "Well the gentleman isn't here now, I am, and my watch says five O'clock, I'm sorry but you'll just have to come back tomorrow." Jennifer said smugly and turned back to retrieve the keys from the switch. "Listen, Jennifer..." Sue said reading her name tag in an effort to butter her up "...you don't understand, I have to go to a party tonight and..." Jennifer cut her off. "No, you're the one who doesn't seem to understand, I have to leave too, so why don't you go and put on your new little dress there, and stop wasting my time and yours, and go to your party. Thanks. Bye." She gave  Sue a little wave.  

Sue couldn't believe it. "Why are you so up tight?" Sue asked in frustration.  "I'm not the one who's up tight lady!" Jennifer shot back and bent down to get the keys.

"Jennifer is everything all right?" Monty asked sticking his head out from the back room. "Yes, fine." Jennifer said.

"Hi, it's me I'm here for my ring!" Sue yelled. Monty looked puzzled and began to walk toward the front of the store. Jennifer spun and shot Sue a look that could have frozen hell over.

"Did you get it?" Monty asked.

"No. There seems to be some problem..." Sue looked at Jennifer with eyes full of fury. "... with the actual time. Jennifer here is in some other time zone, that I'm not aware of. I think it's the End-of-daylight savings time zone! You only set your watch ahead by fifteen minutes."

Monty laughed "I see." He looked at Jennifer, took the keys from her, knelt down and inserted them into the gate switch and turned it left to OPEN.  The gate hummed and started to move upward.

Jennifer stood there with egg on her face and looked over at Tina, Mary, and Missy, who did nothing to help that feeling go away. She wasn't going to let Monty get away with embarrassing her that easily. Monty was still kneeling on the floor holding the key. She stepped between him and the gate, keeping her back to it in an attempt to keep Sue from hearing what she was saying. She bent over at the waist with her legs spread apart as far as her tight dress would allow, and with her hands on her hips said "What's that supposed to mean? 'I see.' What do you see?" She demanded of Monty as her backside brushed up against the gate. Sue watched as the slit in the back of Jennifer's dress slapped the passing bars of the rising gate one by one like a baseball card in the spokes of a kid's bicycle. As the slit flapped open something caught Sue's eye. It was a band of white lace wrapped around Jennifer's thigh. "I'll tell you what I can see...maybe that's why you're so uptight." Sue laughed to herself and looked over at Jennifer's friends to see if they had noticed too, but they hadn't. She looked down at the dress now draped over her arm and how the hanger was at the same height as the slit in Jennifer's dress as a strange idea popped into her head. The bottom of the gate was about to pass the slit and then, before she really had time to think about what she was doing, Sue leaned forward and the swivel top of the hanger went through the gate and right into the slit in Jennifer's dress. At the same time Monty got up and started walking to the counter to get Sue's ring.

            Jennifer straightened up and took a step to follow Monty only to find she couldn't move, as something was tugging on her dress. She tried to turn to see who was holding her but the dress wouldn't move, and it was so tight there was no chance of her spinning inside it. "What the..? Jennifer muttered as she reached both hands behind her to find out what she was caught on. She slid her hands down the dress and over her well rounded bum until she felt the hanger, just as Sue slipped her dress off the hanger and into the shopping bag. "Hey?" She said, confused, and then her eyes popped wide open as she felt the hanger moving upward and realized she was caught on the gate. "Monty,...the gate!...I'm stuck!" But Monty, figuring she was still ranting about having to open the gate, wasn't really listening.

            Jennifer tried to bend down to turn the key herself, but the hook had her pinned to the gate and she couldn't reach it. She began to wiggle and shake her hips back and forth but the dress wouldn't come loose. She looked down and noticed that her hem had risen to the point where she could see white lace on both of her thighs. She gasped as she reached down and grabbed the hem of the dress and stretch it down to cover her thighs once more, hoping desperately that no one had seen it. The motor strained and the gate slowed. Jennifer squeezed as tight as she could and felt the tension building in her dress, wondering if it could hold. With no help coming from Monty she looked down at the key in the switch near the floor and  decided to try to turn it off with her foot. She kicked at it clumsily and to her horror it snapped off in the cylinder. "Oh no!" she whispered to herself.

            Monty finally looked up and saw what was going on. He rushed to the switch to find the key broken off, there was nothing he could do. "Shit! This can't be happening! Don't just stand there you idiot, do something" Jennifer screamed at Monty. Suddenly Jennifer heard a loud rip from behind her. "Oh no, my dress!". Just then,  eight of her fake nail tips popped off and hit the floor like a broken string of pearls.

            “I didn’t know you wore those, Jen!” exclaimed Tina with a slight giggle.  “You were always so proud of those long nails”

            Jennifer brushed off the comment - she had bigger concerns than fake nails.  Thinking the rip may have exposed her, and in more of a state of panic then a well thought out move, Jennifer let go of the hem of the dress and reached behind her to feel for the rip.  With the tension removed, the hem of her dress shot up to her hips revealing to everyone that her firm derriere was not the result of more frequent trips to the gym as she had said, but instead came courtesy of a heavy looking white long leg panty girdle.  It was clearly working hard to hold in her bulges, but at the price of flattening into a shapeless mess.  The feminine curves came courtesy of two removable thick “butt boosting” silicone pads.  Tina, Missy and Mary burst out laughing. Jennifer slid her hands over her bum still trying to feel for the rip, but instead of the soft cotton material of her dress, all she could feel was the scratchy Lycra spandex of her girdle and realized her secret was out. As the hem of her dress slipped over her hips to her waist, Jennifer let out a whimper and made a vain attempt to hide her girdle by crossing her legs and bending down so she could cover it with her arms and hands.  She couldn't stay bent over for long as her dress was showing no signs of slowing down. It bunched up like a sash around her waist and rode up under her arm pits exposing Jennifer’s now clearly deceivingly narrow mid drift, which was incased in a body colored waist cincher that looked as though it were ready to burst. It too was a heavy looking foundation, with stays for support, a quadruple stiched front panel, and a sturdy zipper up the back. It overlapped the waistband of her girdle and went all the way up to a few inches below her bra.

            "So that's how you lose inches without losing weight, Huh Jennifer!" Missy blurted out to Tina and Mary, who tried to say something but were laughing so hard they were beyond the point of being able to speak.                               

            Suddenly there was another loud ripping sound as the dress began to rip in half and Jennifer spun around like a wound top that had it's string pulled until she was facing out of the store toward Sue and the girls who were all still howling with laughter. The gate was almost at head level now. Jennifer put one leg forward and one leg back, reached up with both hands and tugged while she nervously rotated her ankles.  With the maneuver she sent the rest of her fake nails in all directions and fell right out of her 2 inch heels.  The fall revealed another 3 inches of lifts within.  Sue and the girls now looked down at a 5'4 Jennifer. 

            “Taller than average?!  You’re not EVEN average!” chuckled Mary. 

            The dress would still not come free of the gate. As she tugged and tugged, the dress pulled on the top of her waist cincher causing it to ride up, creating a gap between it and her girdle. Jennifer's soft middle bulged out between the two constricting garments in a most unflattering way.  The cincher continued to ride up until the sound of another rip echoed through the doorway.  It snapped in two.  Within moments, a large tummy literally spilled out over the top of the girdle, and what once was a dramatically curved waistline had vanished along with the foundation garment.  All that was left were several large rolls.  This proved to be too much pressure for the girdle, as all her excess needed someplace to go.  It split down the back.  Out poured a formidable and soft backside, sticking out at least a few inches further than Jennifer would have had the world ever see.  Cellulite seemed to have taken up permanent residence on her butt cheeks and upper thighs.  It was the kind of body that could have only come from years of eating Ben and Jerry pints and mounds of cheese fries in front of the television.  What just a few seconds before had been a beautiful woman in a sexy red dress, now looked more like a ship wreck victim being pulled out of the water by the Coast Guard as her sexy red dress looked like a harness under her full rack.

            Then, when she thought the situation couldn't get any worse, the dress popped inside out and slid up over her arms and shoulders, stopping just below the jaw.  But it didn’t pull up alone.  Along with it came her full-size underwired bra, revealing another, possibly more embarrassing secret.  What looked like two cantaloupe halves– almost the size of footballs fell to the ground at Jennifer’s feet.  Her hipline and waistline were not the only things she was trying to hide, but she wasn’t trying to make this feature smaller.  She was trying to make it look bigger: much bigger.  Jennifer had stuffed her bra with what must have been the biggest enhancer pads available on the market, complete with fake turgid nipples to throw off the suspecting.  And they now lay on the ground for all to see. The girls and Monty allowed their gazes of horror to slowly move up from the enormous falsies and  now stared at a flat-chested version of Jennifer.  Not much more than two small nipples on a 12-year-old boy-like chest.  It was featureless - the nubs would have even gotten lost in that hampered training bra.  This along with her straight waist and paunch belly?  She could easily have PASSED for a 12-year-old boy.  Jennifer let out a blood-curdling scream as her unparalleled assets vanished before the small crowd.  She realized now that the only thing to do was get out of the damned dress and run for the back room. She let go and began to pull herself backwards.  With some effort, her head popped out her arms were still stuck in the torn, twisted Versace. The gate pulled it's way up into the ceiling leaving Jennifer standing there trapped with her arms over her head in her girdle and stilettos for all to see.

            But Jennifer’s nightmare was not over yet.  Another item fell to the ground, right next to the humongous pads, nail tips, and the tattered remains of heavy Lycra. The entire group of onlookers gasped.  The item was a full-coverage blonde wig. 

            You never would have been able to tell by looking at her even everyday.  It was clearly all real hair, stitched together so expertly and shaped with such care, the intent was immediately obvious: it was made to look as natural as possible, regardless of the price.  The owner had a shameful secret to hide. 

            That secret was now out.  The only thing piled on top of Jennifer’s head now was a ratty mesh hairnet and dozens of hair clips, meant to firmly hold the false piece to her naturally fine, scraggly, dull brown hair. 

            Monty chimed in, choking with laughter.  “What happened to that blonde bombshell I hired to bring the fellows into my store?!” 

            Those oodles of blonde curls were nothing more than an illusion.  It didn’t help that her real hair was now matted down with sweat.      

            That sweat continued to flow down from her brow, causing her gorgeous, beckoning eyelashes to pull away from the shorter lashes that anchored them.  The hits just kept on coming.  Jennifer’s heavy bronzer makeup became splotchy and inconsistent.  What lay below was a mix of pale skin and rather vicious acne. 

            The next remark came from Missy.  “You know, that would clear up if you peeled back those layers and let your SKIN see the light of day!”  Mary and Tina burst out with laughter yet again.  Those pangs of jealousy were being stripped away with Jennifer’s artificiality.  The transformation was complete.

            Jennifer wanted to cover something.  ANYTHING.  But her hands were still cuffed to the dress and gate.  What she wouldn’t have given to place a hand over her fleshy gut, or her uninspiring non-breasts.  To shield her short brown hair or craters from plain sight.  To simply run away and never come back.  Instead, she was on display for all to see.  Made to stand captive in what, in her superficial mind ,was the scariest place in the world: Reality. 

            “H-help”, she stuttered in panic.  “Get me out of here, I b-beg you.  This isn’t right.  This isn’t how it’s sup-p-posed to be.”

            The group continued to gawk for several more minutes, despite Jennifer’s pleas for release.  They felt she deserved that much, for subjecting them to the pompous attitude that seemed to have come free with her many artificial supports.  Sue finally felt satisfied and offered a hand.  With one final lurch from both, Jennifer pulled her hands free of the dress and ran to the back room.  Sue, Monty and the girls could only watch in humorous horror  Her excess jiggled with every motion in a most unattractive way.  On the contrary, what moments ago were pendulous breasts now did no jiggling at all.  Her sweaty mess of hair showed even duller under the store lights. 

            Sue looked at the other witnesses to the unveiling and seemed to sum up the events with just one line: a most Shakespearean one at that. 

            “When I walked in here this morning, I thought I saw a gorgeous movie star.  Well, those Hollywood looks were fake, but the talent was real.  We just saw the acting performance of a lifetime.”

            The party was a riot, with word about Jennifer’s true form spreading like wildfire.  Sue wore that modest ring everyday for the rest of her life, and boy did it shine bright in the lights.  Missy, Mary, and Tina made lovely bridesmaids. 

            Monty never saw Jennifer - either version - walk into his store again.