ALL NOVEL Ch 2.78: ❤ Flush
Elaina was trying to keep her wits about her, really trying. She was approaching the front of stage, sliding her dress off and kicking it towards a roaring crowd of over a hundred people at least. She’d only been near this many people a handful of times in her life, much less the center of attention, stripping down to her underwear. She had a moment of panic as she saw a hand reach out towards her dress as it hung off the stage, but a bouncer intercepted the casino-goer, shoving them back into the mass of people, the mass of people ogling her as she sheepishly covered herself with her arms, eyes wide with wonder, breathing heavy to try and control her emotions, her whole body flush with arousal. Gods was this situation fucked; she had to win, but for some reason losing felt so good…
Looking back at Prisma didn’t make the situation any better. Black, lacy underwear contrasting under the lights on her pale skin, breasts held perfectly high as she did her best to cover them as well, the thin triangle just below her waist, it all gripped Elaina’s mind. There was a little bit of hesitancy, a little bit of guilt in knowing what had to happen for Elaina to win. Elaina would do her best not to ogle, would try to convince Shein to let Prisma cover up of course, but right now her head was too light, too dizzy with adrenaline and her own horniness to to not stare at Prisma.
“Alright crowd, that’s enough of a look for now. Ready for the next go?” The responding cheer of approval hit like a wave, washing over the stage as Elaina tried her best to ignore it, tried to focus on strategy.
Because there really was strategy, especially at this point. Both players having two items of clothing left was officially the danger zone, where one win with shears would officially end it all. That made going for shears so appealing, but Elaina knew Prisma would realize that as well, meaning she might be more likely to throw stone, but if that were true, parchment was stronger here, right?
Except that still risked an instant loss. No, parchment was out for sure. Elaina couldn’t risk a complete loss, so she had to choose between the other two. “Stone! Parchment! Shears! STRIP!”
Elaina kept her eyes on Prisma the entire time, watching as they each threw out their options. Stone for Elaina, stone for Prisma.“Again,” Shein announced, no time for thinking.
“Stone! Parchment! Shears! STRIP!” Elaina threw out her choice, instantly regretting it. Parchment was the one option she couldn’t safely do, and she’d done it anyway, cringing and closing her eyes as she realized what she’d just sentenced herself to. She heard the boos from the crowd before she even stopped to consider she might not have lost, peaking out and seeing a shaking, nervous Prisma holding out stone.
“Now now, no need to boo, my good friends,” Shein said. “We’ll all still get our reward in the end. Go ahead Elaina, take back your dress.”
Elaina’s mind began to clear a little bit at that as she put her hands down, walking over to her clothes pile in front of the jeering flock of people, even managing to put aside just how embarrassing putting her dress back on was in front of all those eyes. She’d won the hand, actually, wasn’t punished for her short-thinking brain, and that meant the game was different from here on out.
Elaina wasn’t one hand away from losing anymore, but Prisma still was. Elaina could see that Prisma knew too, the wide-eyed stare, the heavy breathing, skin growing flush, all from the anxiety of it all. Prisma was going to be eager to cover up, to try and preserve her modesty, and Elaina could exploit that.
“Stone! Parchment! Shears! STRIP!” Elaina threw shears with no hesitation, no doubt in her mind that it was the right choice. But Prisma wasn’t as eager to cover up as she’d thought, and had thrown out stone instead.
It was a dulled cheer from the crowd as Elaina realized she had to take off the dress she’d just gotten back. She was honestly more annoyed at having lost the round than having to strip. She was sure Prisma would’ve been eager to get dressed again, or at least throw shears to try and take the lead. The middle option though? Now they were just back where they started. Even Shein seemed to not care about that fact, listening and nodding along as some employee who’d ran on stage whispered in her ear.
“There, that’s better,” Shein said , waving the bouncer off the stage and returning her attention back to the game and Elaina kicking her dress over once more. ‘But let’s keep it going! Stone! Parchment! Shears! STRIP!”
Elaina was once again caught without time to think, barely having gotten back to her place on stage. But she knew in a instant what to do. Prisma had the momentum, would want to finish this now without risking more embarrassment for herself. Prisma would throw shears to try and end it all, and Elaina would throw stone to counter.
But the damn girl threw parchment! Why was she acting like this? Prisma seemed surprised herself as the boos went out once more, but she still skittered over to her clothes. Elaina and Shein both raised an eyebrow as she grabbed her hair ribbon though, tying it onto her arm instead of donning her dress once more. “I’m not gonna keep taking my dress off over and over!” she said, answering the question no one had asked, but that everyone had though.
It made sense, Elaina realized. She had felt just as embarrassed putting on her dress as she had felt taking it off, and taking it off the second time had someone been even more mortifying than the first. But that was the past, and Shein was calling for another chant already.
“Stone! Parchment! Shears! STRIP!”
Elaina wasn’t really sure why she’d thrown stone this time. Maybe out of annoyance, maybe because she was scared of Prisma taking her last two items with one swoop like she’d done before, but the clash of two stones together cause the audience to freeze again, but Shein didn’t skip a beat.
“Again! Stone! Parchment! Shears! STRIP!”
Elaina was angry. Prisma wasn’t making any sense to her, and all she wanted to do was win. There was one fastest way to do that, one way to make sure she won as soon as possible, right?
Shears, she said to herself, throwing it out with far more force than she needed, as if slicing through the air would somehow make Prisma more likely to throw parchment. By far, the loudest roar from the crowd yet. “My good friends,” Shein said, “the first win of the night with shears!”
Prisma looked dumbfounded, like she couldn’t believe what had just happened. Elaina felt the same way, really. It made no sense for Prisma to throw parchment there, not when she was up on points, up on clothes already. Elaina had just thrown shears out frustration, with no strategy at all. Maybe that was why it had worked, Prisma thinking Elaina wouldn’t expect parchment, getting a leg up on her with an unexpected win.
But that wasn’t what had happened. The crowd steadied, didn’t silence, but the buzz of a hundred murmurs filled the room as Prisma pulled at her ribbon, the strip of silk undoing and falling off her arm. She paused then, looking down at it as it flowed to the ground, still holding it in her hand.
And then she looked up, Elaina catching just a glimpse of Prisma’s blue eyes. It was just a glimpse at first anyway, as Prisma’s head darted away, but she slowly turned her head forward again. It was the first time they’d made eye contact since the game started, Elaina realized. Prisma had been avoiding her, as much as she could while they were on stage together anyway. They’d only been looking at each others hands, occasionally at each other bodies too, but now they were really together.
The girl continued eye contact as she reached for her chest, grabbing the cups of her bra, an action that confused Elaina until the cups themselves pulled apart from each other, Prisma’s breasts spilling out into the open from the front-clasped lingerie, drawing Elaina’s gaze towards them, the pale, barely visible areola and nipples resting atop them as the breasts themselves swooped downward. The crowd was wild, the loudest thing that Elaina had heard in her whole life, but she barely noticed it, lost on the stage with Prisma, her acquaintance, as the girl slid the bra over her shoulders and tossed it to the side. She may have done it on stage, in front of dozens of classmates and strangers alike, but as their eyes met again, somehow Elaina knew that it was meant for her specifically.
Prisma tossed the items aside, covering her her chest as she looked back at the crowd, biting her lip as she somehow grew more red, face more like a tomato then a person at this point. Even Elaina would be embarrassed in the situation, but things did feel different now. They were in a contest, but they were in it together. One of them would lose, the other would win, it may be uncomfortable, it may be thrilling, but they weren’t going to hold and hard feelings about it after. That’s what Prisma’s eyes had told her, anyway.
“Settle down, now, settle down,” Shein said waving the crowd down as Prisma bit her lip, staring at the floor. “Once again, this could be it. Two items on one of them, one on the other. How will it end? One way to find out!” As annoying as the woman was, the enthusiasm in the room made it so Elaina couldn’t deny she was good at working the crowd, at putting on the show.
Elaina was prepared this time, ready to play with intention. Prisma could still try to end it with shears, but she could try to cover herself up again, a likely option, really. And why would Elaina go for shears, after all? She only needed one point to win, so rock would do. That was it, the trap she’d catch Prisma in to end it all.
“Stone! Parchment! Shears! STRIP!”
But Prisma had evaded her again, throwing stone and turning the tables.
“Fuck,” Elaina muttered under her breath as the crowd cheered again.
“Lucky us,” Shein said. “Both contestants down to their last article of clothing. We as an audience are getting quite the show tonight, maybe even the ultimate show if we’re lucky! But first, what’s it going to be, Elaina?”
Not really a question, was it? She could take off her panties, she guessed. If she’d been wearing a smaller pair she may have seriously considered it, but this was already the most covering pair she owned. No, she reached behind her back, struggling to get at her bra. It was surprisingly hard after only a couple weeks of using her aspect to unhook it, but with the bracelet still on that wasn’t an option; she couldn’t even sense the damn thing. But she did manage to find it, letting the straps loose and feeling the garment bounce forward just a little before she caught it.
She looked back up at Prisma. It was only fair, after all. Prisma had already seen Elaina down below thanks to that regrettable incident on the day Elaina had no underwear, but this would be the first time she saw Elaina’s chest, and Elaina felt she owed it to the girl to look at her while it happened, offer the same courtesy that Prisma had
The crowd still roared, just as loud as when Prisma stripped, but it faded into the background once more as Elaina let the straps slip off her shoulders, the cups fall completely into her arms. For that moment, it was just them again.
Only for that moment though, as the room shot back into focus as Elaina turned to the crowd, holding her chest and throwing the bra to the front of the stage. Her heart was like a hammer in her chest, her breath as fast as an arrow as she saw the people staring at her, men, woman, every eye in the building on her. No, there was no way she could’ve taken off her panties, not with how wet she could feel she was growing. She was lucky they were dark green, because any lighter and it’d be showing through regardless.
“All good things must come to an end, I’m afraid,” Shein said. “Let’s see who is really lucky tonight, shall we?”
The crowd yelled in approval again, starting the chant off on their own this time, “Stone! Parchment! Shears! STRIP!”
Elaina threw out stone without thinking, mind still addled by the high she was feeling, the pressure and pleasure in her crotch, and Prisma had done the same. Maybe they were both too nervous to even open their hand to another shape, or maybe Prisma was actually thinking, actually strategizing.
“Again! Stone! Parchment! Shears! STRIP!”
Stone again, from both of them. Think, breathe, Elaina told herself. She closed her eyes, was finally thinking now, and she needed to shut out all distractions. She could do this, could win this.
“Once more! Stone! Parchment! Shears! STRIP!”
Elaina was too nervous to check what the results were.
“This lovely lady has won the hand,” Shein said, cutting in before the crowd could even react, Elaina’s eyes still closed. “And with that, it is a fabulous end to our marvelous game!”
The silence after was deafening, and Elaina couldn’t see which girl Shein was referring to as the winner. But with her having announced that there was a winner at all, Elaina already knew the outcome. She opened her eyes to see for herself, even though she already knew the game was over.
Still, what she saw confused her.