Tilda walked around me, checking out my dress, and said, “Well, you’re definitely working that dress today. You’re gonna have guys all over you. What are you doing today?”
We’d made our way to the front of the line where Dominic was piling our food onto Styrofoam plates and bowls. He handed me mine and we smiled at each other for a moment. I’d always thought Dominic was a cutie, a little too quiet, but a cutie. Too bad everyone knew he was gay.
“Is that enough food for you, my Dove?” Dominic asked.
Wow, my Dove. That was definitely going to take some getting used to.
“Yes, sweetie. This will be fine. Thank you.”
As I took my plate from his hand, our fingertips touched, and he didn’t pull back right away. For a second it seemed like he might be blushing.
“Today is your day, Jess,” he said. “It’s all for you.”
I felt chills run through my body. It was for me. Today everything was for me.
When I got to the church, the Seven were already seated and waiting for me. It was a private meeting. If I’d had a mom in the community, she would’ve been invited too, but since I was basically an orphan, the Seven were my mother. I loved each of these women in my own way.
The twins, Samantha and Sienna. I always envied the way their long black hair always seemed so shiny. My light brown, kind of dirty blond hair seemed dull in comparison. And their eyes…emerald green. They were both so stunning.
Adriana, the Latina goddess. Every single man in the community stopped when she walked by. She moved with such gracefulness, her ass rocking from side to side. If there was one woman in the building that I’d love to watch have sex, it would be her. I had so much to learn and something told me she was the most passionate with her lovers.
Bethany was the funniest of the group. I loved her. When I got my first period, Bethany told me the story of when she first got hers and how she’d fallen to the ground and curled up in a ball cause she thought she’d cut herself and was dying. She’d even told her little brother her will, what she wanted to leave for each of her family members. By the end of her story she had me laughing so hard that I felt silly for being so worried about a little blood between my legs.
Jewels, I had kind of a secret crush on. I saw her naked body once when I was sent to her house to give her a message. I didn’t know she was in the shower and she didn’t know I’d entered her house. She stepped out completely naked, her beautiful black body dripping with water. Her nipples were so dark and big and I was in awe staring at them.
I’m not gay. I suppose I might have a very slight curiosity. But beauty is beauty and she was stunning. And so classy. Even when she found me in her living room she simply wrapped a towel around herself and told me nicely that I should always knock before entering someone’s house.
Twyla was the craziest of the bunch and was the one who’d recently taken me aside to have a little girl’s night slumber party. She showed me, using a banana, how to go down on a man. And she wouldn’t let me stop until she was positive I was a pro.
Then there was Lauren. Oh, how I envied Lauren. She was the most like a mother to me. I always looked up to how mature she was and how she had such a great family. She took care of each of her husbands and they took care of her. And I loved her husbands. They were all so great. Alejandro was my favorite.
My first sexual experience involved Lauren and Alejandro, or Alé as most people called him. I hadn’t meant to watch them. I was hanging out with a boy named Ryan. He liked me. I was only fifteen at the time when he told me, “Jess, you gotta see this.”
“This” turned out to be a spot on the side of Lauren’s house where we could peek through their bedroom blinds without getting caught. I knew it was wrong but once I saw, I couldn’t stop watching.
That was the day I realized I wasn’t quite as innocent as everyone thought. Through the window I watched as Lauren removed her clothes and bent naked over the side of the bed. Her face was facing us, her big beautiful tits smashed against the bed, her ass raised up and waiting for him.
Alé stripped down and I’ll never forget the size of his cock. It was huge and it was so hard. He wrapped his hand around the base of it and positioned it somewhere behind Lauren. It was her face that turned me on so much. The way her eyes shot open and her mouth stretched wide in agony as he fed his cock into her pussy.
Even thinking about it now makes me wet. Her face. It was clear that it felt so good, so good I could almost feel it myself.
And he started fucking her. Lauren had her face buried in the pillow and each time she picked up her head, that look…oh, how I wanted to feel that feeling that made my face look like hers.
Ryan definitely enjoyed the night as I’d reached out at some point, pulled him out of his zipper, and jerked him off.
Each time Alé plunged into her, I shoved downward on him, mimicking their fuck outside their window.
I’d always secretly hoped that somehow, someday, I’d have my own chance at Alé. Now, as I looked at Lauren in the church, I remembered what she’d done to him and I felt a bit of anger toward her. She’d considered taking Pike as a fourth husband, knowing how much Bentley, Connor, and definitely Alé didn’t want her to.
Alé hated Pike. And in a passionate fight, Alé had thrown Pike through a window, breaking the number one rule in the Daughters of Venus community, a rule I’d read carved into the wooden sign at the entrance to the church. It read: No violence. If a hand is raised to another, other than for consensual sexual pleasure, the MAN committing the act will be banished.
And Alé was banished.
I sat silently watching and listening to the witty banter between the members of the Seven. They were like sisters. I wouldn’t be one of them. I would be like any other Dove who’d come of age. But a meeting with them was tradition on the day of the ceremony.
“Jessica, how are you feeling?” Samantha asked.
She looked at her sister and grinned.
“I’m excited,” I said. “It feels surreal. I knew this day was coming but now that it’s here it just feels like…like everyone’s walking on eggshells or something. Nobody’s really talking to me.”
“That’s normal,” Lauren said. “We’re all so proud of you. It’s not often that a girl child is born and that makes it not often when one comes of age.”
“You’ve been eighteen years in the making!” Bethany joked.
We all laughed.
“You’re like fine, aged wine,” Twyla said, blowing me a kiss.
“Or cheese or pickles,” Bethany added.
“I swear all you think about is food,” Adriana said.
“I love you guys,” I said. “I umm…”
I didn’t expect to get so emotional. But I was.
“I haven’t had a mother you know…and that’s…that’s kind of hard sometimes.”
I broke into tears and started sobbing. I don’t know what came over me but I just lost it. I covered my face with my arms and leaned against a wooden beam to let loose my tears.
“Oh honey,” Lauren said as she jumped up and rushed to me.
She wrapped her arms around me and suddenly I felt guilty for feeling anger toward her. I had no right to judge her.
“I just…I love you guys,” I said through my arms.
“We know, baby,” Lauren said. “We love you too. We’ve watched you grow and change so much. You’re amazing.”
I sat up and wiped my tears to see all the women surrounding me with that “oh poor baby” look on their faces. They did love me. I knew they did.
It took a little while to regain my composure but once I did I was okay. I was back to normal.
“Things are going to be different for you from today on,” Sienna informed me.
I’d heard all this before. I’d been prepped for this day for a long time. I’d seen the doctor to get started on my fertility vitamins, a special souped up concoction of herbs and special ingredients that were supposed to make me more likely
to have a female child.
“Tonight, you may be invited for suitor visits. That’s a big deal. That means your innocence will be gone. And…”
Sienna stopped as if not sure which words to use.
“I think what Sienna wants to say, Jessica,” Adriana said, “is once you have sex for the first time, there’s a good chance that you’re going to want to do it again and again. It’s kind of addictive.”
“It’s like cocaine, baby!” Bethany shouted.
Everyone laughed.
“It’s a special kind of drug,” Twyla agreed.
“It’s just special. You may find that all you have on your mind is sex,” Jewels said. “And that might not be your attitude forever, but we’ve all been there. Especially when your second and third suitors come along. The most important thing is that you don’t become addicted to the sex. Some women have denied suitors only because they want to continue to have suitor visits. Does that make sense?”
I thought it did. So they were saying some new Doves become whores. It made sense and I could totally see some girls doing that. I could almost see myself doing it. Whoever had started that tradition was one smart chick.
“Be prepared for Gavin to ask you for a suitor visit,” Samantha said.
“Gavin?” I asked. “Oh gross. I think I’m gonna be sick.”
The women all laughed.
“Gavin isn’t that bad,” Twyla said. “If you’re looking for a sexual partner who will never tire, that’s your dude. Just put on your rocker girl hat and do the business. He could be your third husband, you know, the one you go to when the other two aren’t around or you’re not having sex as often as you’d like. Or if you really want to try for a daughter. Gavin will never tell you no that’s for sure. He might be a bit older but he’s insatiable in the sack.”
“I can’t,” I said. “I’m sorry.”
It’s not that Gavin was ugly or anything. I mean he was okay. He was just…old. Not even that old…more like used. He was like a used tire.
“Just something to think about,” Sienna added. “Cause I’m sure he will ask you.”
“And how do you say no, graciously?” I asked. “I mean if he asks me tonight the whole town will be watching.”
“Good question,” Lauren said. “Just say…say that you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed and that you’d like to take all of the requests into consideration and get back to all potential suitors.”
Everyone clapped and said things like, “Good idea,” and “Yeah, that oughtta work.”
I asked her to repeat it and then committed it to memory.
***
The gazebo at town center was lit up like a Christmas tree. White lights were wrapped around the base and crown. I stood at the back end, lined up with the steps, alone except for Lauren who was by my side. The crown was on the opposite end, sitting in foldable chairs and on blankets on the grass. I knew because I’d been on that end many times in the past. It’s how all events were handled. All throughout the year the kids would put on plays, some of the men would put on musical concerts, and the Seven held several town meetings.
“Just relax and be yourself,” Lauren told me.
“Yes,” I replied.
“Are you nervous?”
“A little bit.”
I wasn’t so worried about seeing the crowd. I was worried about the changes that were to come. At the end of this night, I would either leave with a potential suitor, or if I decided I needed more time I could leave alone, but either way I would be headed to my new home. I was getting one of the big ones built on the other side of town. I’d seen the work crews busy preparing my house. My house.
Yes, life would change.
“I’m ready,” I said.
“Okay,” Lauren said. “Just remember. When you get up there, walk back and forth in front of the crowd a couple of times and then take your seat at the center.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
I could hear Samantha at the microphone. She usually handled ceremonies.
“…our newest Dove, Jessica Meadows, to the stage! Each new Dove is a dawning day.”
The crowd repeated, “Each new Dove is a dawning day.”
And that was my cue. I stepped forward in my snow white dress, trying hard not to step on the bottom of it as it hung as low as the bottoms of my shoes. Lauren took my hand and helped me up the first step. Then I was on my own.
As I ascended each step, the crowd came more and more into view. First only the tops of people’s heads and then their entire faces. The whole town was there. Then someone lifted the lid off the jar of butterflies in my stomach. All my insides were fluttering and I felt as if I could take flight.
It was all a blur. I barely remember reaching the platform and walking back and forth. I passed a little wave to the audience and they cheered louder. Then I was sitting in my seat, wearing my myrtle crown, which I don’t even remember receiving. I just felt the weight of it on my head.
Members of the Original Seven were walking back and forth in front of me, saying the customary speech that accompanied every coming-of-age ceremony, which almost never happened. Tilda would be the next to turn eighteen so they’d have two more years before they’d have the opportunity to do this again.
Samantha took the reins again and made a gesture for everyone to pipe down. The crowd settled.
Bethany walked onto the stage, or I should say right in front of me on the gazebo, and read a passage from Our Divine Book which was basically, from what I’ve been told, a compilation of passages from The Bible that gave positive remarks about the female form mingled with the thoughts, quotes, and stories from the Original Seven. It was a book that had constant additions.
The book was small but was so important to our way of life. It was mandatory reading for all Doves and fellows.
Samantha reclaimed the mic and the crowd grew silent. Everyone knew what was coming. The fluttering in my gut turned to plain ol’ bile and I felt like I might puke. I wasn’t ready. I wasn’t ready to leave my home and be with men. I thought I was. I thought I wanted sex but there was so much more to it.
I scanned the crowd, searching for Kent. I didn’t see him. Where was he? I needed him. He was a constant in my life and I needed that grounding, to know I was still in the life I knew.
“Each new Dove is a dawning day,” Samantha began.
I couldn’t make out her words. I felt as if I were sitting in an underwater throne. Blurred faces and slowly moving people made up the crowd. Where the fuck was Kent? Or even Pike? No, Kent. Where was Lauren? I’d left her at the back of the gazebo. I took a deep breath. I was losing it and needed to regain control.
Another deep breath. It calmed me and I focused on Samantha’s words. They became louder and clearer.
“And for each dawning day must a fellow be present. For a Dove to bear a child, whether it be male or the one true special gift, a female child, a fellow must come forth to plant the seed within the womb. Our new virgin Dove requires seed of another. And for that purpose we ask if there are any suitors among us wishing to vie for the opportunity to plant a seed in this beautiful womb?
“Now, this is more than the sexual act. To step forward means to offer oneself truly and wholeheartedly. It means every day from this one forth to be honestly dedicated to the happiness of this Dove. To put a smile on her face and warmth in her heart means to truly live a satisfied life. It means working, building, and living solely with the intention of pleasing this Dove.
“And on that note, I must ask, do we have any suitors with us tonight?”
The crowd was silent. I scanned the many faces and they sharpened from their earlier blurred forms. I saw familiar faces. Then I was waiting to see who would speak up. No one did.
Oh my God. How embarrassing.
“Don’t be shy. Who among you would like the opportunity to be the first husband to Jessica?”
Still no one. I put my hand to my mouth, trying to hide my shock, and fought back tears. The crowd b
egan to grow restless. Nobody wanted me. Blurriness again as tears filled my eyes, threatening to spill over and show the crowd how embarrassed I was.
I saw Pike. He stood with his tattooed arms folded in front of his chest. He wore a smug look on his face. He grinned at me, raised a hand, and was about to speak up when another voice was louder.
“I request a suitor visit!”
The crowd went nuts and I couldn’t tell who had spoken.
“Who is it?” someone asked.
“Who’s requesting?” came another voice.
The Trouble with Virgins (A Dystopian Romance Novella): Daughters of Venus Book 2 Page 3