Chapter 5 - No Proscenium (Greg Huff's POV) F/M, M/F [Part 7 of 7]
A few minutes later a large gong rang out and everybody began to look around see what was going on. Greg saw a couple people with headsets and clipboards spill out of the hallway on the upper story landing. They looked over the railing at the assembled guests. There were four of them but the one who appeared to be about to speak was the same woman who had taken their waivers at the beginning, Claudia. Slowly but surely the attention of the room began to shift in her direction and she bellowed at everybody in loud voice.
Claudia: Thank you for attending The High Society Heist by No Proscenium. We hope that you’ve all enjoyed yourselves this evening.
There were some fairly raucous cheers that erupted from the assembled crowd. Apparently, most people in attendance had had a pretty good time.
Claudia: We loved having you. There were a lot of very…INTERESTING…guesses tonight. Some of you have very wild imaginations and we LOVE it. We do however, have a winner tonight. Very few people solve the mystery on their first go. And we’re always watching so we can usually tell if they have inside information before attending. But one young lady was able to solve the mystery tonight through what appears to be pure tenacity, hustle, and intuition. And maybe a little help from another guest or two. Please give a big hand to your fellow party guest Lillian Fuller. Real name of Alexis Huff. Alexis, wherever you are, please take a bow.
Eyes started to dart around the room but eventually settled on Lexi as she raised her hand in the air and took a deep dramatic bow to a hearty round of applause from those assembled. She was really drinking in all of the praise and adulation. Greg could scarcely remember ever seeing her look happier. And he was oh so proud of her.
Claudia: Yes. Very impressive. If you want to continue to unravel the mystery of tonight you are welcome to join us any Friday, Saturday, or Sunday at this time for The High Society Heist. We also have a 9:15 show that’s a little darker. The Cromwell Mansion Murder. Please don’t share anything you did learn tonight with other potential future guests and solvers. We’d love to give them a chance to experience the mystery for themselves. We will be opening this room for the Cromwell Mansion Murders in about ten minutes. So we’d appreciate if you could all file out the back. Merchandise will be for sale through those doors, if you would like a souvenir of your time tonight. Please get home safely and it has been our pleasure to host you this evening.
Greg and Lexi walked with the throng of other attendees as they cleared out of the hall while some men in black shirts ran around rapidly trying to make the room look brand new for the show that was about to start. A quick turnaround Greg thought. His escape room took at least twenty minutes to re-set. They were doing this grand ballroom in ten. Yikes.
Outside Lexi continued to bask in the admiration of the other guests, with several of them congratulating her as they walked to their car. Just as they were getting to Greg’s RAV4 he heard a shout coming from his left.
Monty: Congrats, Lillian. Great work!
Lexi: Thanks, Monty. Couldn’t have done it without you.
Monty: I doubt that. How did you enjoy yourself, Raymond?
Greg: Total failure for me. I never did get one of those rum runners. Sad.
Monty: Our boy RT works at a bar downtown called The Neighborhood. Care to catch a drink this week? Tuesday perhaps?
Greg: Certainly. I’ll see you there.
Monty: Great. I’d love to see some more pictures of that ’64 Mustang.
Greg: Absolutely. I’m looking forward to it. 8:00?
Monty: 8:00.
Greg nodded at Monty and Monty returned the nod as they both got in their cars. Greg smiled. He badly needed some new friends after Dean had moved South Carolina. God, he missed Dean. But Monty seemed right up his alley. Lexi slid into the passenger seat.
Lexi: Father, you have a 1971 Mustang. Not a 1964 Mustang.
Greg: I know daughter. It’s an inside joke.
Lexi: An inside joke?
Greg: Yes.
Lexi: About the year of your Mustang?
Greg: Yes.
Lexi: You and Monty have inside jokes already?
Greg: Yes.
Lexi: Do you even know his real name?
Greg: Jim Akers.
Greg started the vehicle and began backing out of the spot.
Lexi: I see. Sorry I doubted you. But all joking about rum runners and Mustangs aside…how did you enjoy it?
Greg: I liked it. It was a very enjoyable evening with one of my favorite children.
Lexi: And how did you feel about having checked the box?
Greg could see in his periphery that his daughter was staring intently at him. She wanted to know if he was coming around to her way of thinking in regards to bondage.
Greg: It was…weird. I don’t know that I’m with you just yet. But I talked to some people, and I’m starting to see that bondage might be a little different than I thought.
He saw Lexi cringe a little bit when he said the word “bondage”.
Lexi: That’s such a loaded word. Let’s call it “restraint”, for our purposes.
Greg: Does "bondage" sound too stigmatized?
Lexi: Maybe. It’s just not a word that I like to hear my father say.
Greg: If you’re uncomfortable having this conversation. Then that makes two of us. I see now that bondage is capable of being an asexual endeavor. That it leads into story telling and wish fulfillment that isn’t arousal based. You got very excited when you saw me tied up. I don’t think that there was anything tawdry in that.
Lexi: Ewww. Of course not. It was about power exchange. You’re my father. You’re my boss. I’ve spent the better part of my life having you in charge. It was nice to see the roles reversed a little bit.
Greg: I’m sure it was. I can see how that would be fun.
Lexi: I’m sorry for screwing with you. I guess I let the power trip go a little too far.
Greg: Relax. It’s fine. You were having fun.
Lexi: You’d have let me go right away.
Greg: Protecting my daughters is hard-wired into my DNA. That’s different.
Lexi: I guess.
Greg: That’s why I’m so concerned about you getting tied up at work. I understand that it makes the game more enjoyable for our customers. But I’m concerned about you. It carries inherent risk with it and I don’t want to see you get hurt. I’m not going to put an immediate end to it. You’re an adult. You get to make decisions for yourself. But I don’t have to like people ogling my daughter.
Lexi: People are going to ogle me no matter what. Every time I wear a tank top or go barefoot or dance or eat a bratwurst or exist…I’m being ogled. I can’t stop them. Being tied up is just one more thing to ogle me for. I’ll deal with it. And I’ve got somebody watching over me at work. Drew will be in that room in a second if anything goes wrong.
Greg thought about this.
Greg: Maybe Drew is the one that I’m worried about. I think he probably likes seeing you tied up just as much as any of them.
Lexi: Dad, how comfortable are you with a little TMI?
Greg: We’re already in the TMI Zone. Don’t give me a heart attack. But go ahead and hit me.
Greg was secretly bracing himself for whatever depraved thing his daughter was about to tell him. If she’d had to preface it…surely it was going to shock him.
Lexi: Maybe I want Drew to feel that way when he sees me tied up. Maybe I want him to think of me in that way. But I don’t think that he does. I like to think that I’ve tried to make it pretty obvious that I’m into him. I’ve tried to push him in my direction romantically. But he appears to be reticent in that regard. I don’t think that he feels that way about me.
Greg scoffed. He let out an audible guffaw and started chuckling to himself. Oh, Lexi. You sweet, innocent little buffoon.
Lexi: What was that?
Greg: What was what?
Lexi: That scoff. Are you laughing at me? I’m trying to open up to you.
Greg: I just realized that I owe your sister an apology.
Lexi: What? Why?
Now Lexi was growing a little paranoid. She was wondering if her family was talking about her love life behind her back. They weren’t. Greg was just setting up his punchline. Time to deliver that punchline.
Greg: For the fact that your mother and I call you “The Smart One”. Because clearly you’re a dummy. Just a big old dum dum.
Lexi: What?
Greg: You’re an absolute, oblivious blockhead.
Lexi: Hey!
Greg: I’m sorry. But Drew Bannon is VERY into you. He is utterly besotted with you and if you can’t see that then you’re the only one who can’t see it.
Lexi: I’ve given him several openings. Why wouldn’t he make a move?
Greg: Because you’re amazing.
Lexi: You’re just saying that because you’re my father. And that makes ABSOLUTELY NO sense. Why wouldn’t Drew want amazing? Why wouldn’t he feel that he deserves amazing?
Greg: No. The problem isn’t that he doesn’t think he deserves amazing. It’s that he already HAS amazing.
Lexi: What?
Greg: You’re an amazing person, Lexi. I’m not just saying that as your father. Anybody who is paying even a modicum of attention can see it. And Drew has an amazing friend. And he’s worried that the risk of losing what he already has might not be worth the risk if things don’t work out romantically. You might need to be a little more proactive if Drew is what you’re after. I’ve known the kid since he was five. He’s an upstanding young man. But I can see him as somebody who is plagued by inertia.
Lexi: Thanks, Father.
Greg: No problem, Daughter.
Lexi: Do you and mom really call me “The Smart One”?
Greg: Yes. But if you tell your sister about that, I’ll ground you.
Lexi: I have my own place. You can’t ground me.
Greg: Remember that I’m your boss. I can cut your pay.
Lexi: Do you call her “The Pretty One”?
Greg was a little taken aback. Lexi was a beautiful girl but she’d always been a little insecure and unsure of herself about her looks. Whereas her younger sister was also a beautiful girl. But absolutely knew it.
Greg: No. That’s terrible. You’re both very beautiful.
Lexi smiled at him wickedly.
Lexi: That’s not what I meant. We’re both smart. I’m assuming the titles were relative.
Greg: God Damn It. No telling her I said that either.
Lexi chuckled. She semantically trapped him.
Greg: You’re both equally beautiful.
Lexi: Can I tell her you said that?
Greg (sarcastically): Please don’t. You’re both also intelligent girls. But intelligence is quantifiable.
Lexi: IQ tests are a load of crap.
Greg: Of course they are. And you know that because you’re intelligent. I meant it’s quantifiable in dollars. Your college education cost your mother and I nothing. Full scholarship. Your sister’s college education is the reason that I don’t own a yacht.
Lexi laughed again.
Lexi: Then what do you call her.
Greg: The Charismatic One.
Lexi: Hey! I’m charismatic.
Greg smiled to himself. He was getting under her skin.
Greg: Yeah. But it’s relative.
Soon they pulled into the driveway of their house. Lexi had parked her Honda Accord in front of the house.
Lexi: Should I stop in and say Hi to mom?
Greg: I think she’d like that. Speaking of your mother. How did she respond to the picture that I texted her?
Lexi: Three of those Laughing So Hard I’m Crying emojis.
Greg: Does your mother communicate with you in any other form than emoji?
Lexi: Hey. It works for us.
Greg and Lexi got out of the car and went into the house. His wife, Jessica, met them at the door. She gave Lexi a big hug.
Jessica: How was the show?
Lexi: It was great!! I won! I had an absolute blast. You and dad HAVE to go to their later show. The murder themed one. You’d love it.
Jessica: I’m sure I would. Tell me about it.
Lexi proceeded to excitedly recap the night’s events to her mother while Greg went to get a water from the fridge. He was there. He thought he knew most of the story. But apparently Lexi had had a lot of interesting adventures and encounters while they were separated. Eventually the story ended.
Lexi: Do you guys care if I use the TV in the main room to watch Only Murders in the Building?
Jessica: Go right ahead, honey.
Lexi got up to go catch up on a show that she was watching. She might be 24 years old and have her own place, but she still bummed Hulu and Prime TV and probably Peaco*ck off her parents. Jessica turned eagerly to Greg with a mischievous smile on her face.
Jessica: And how did YOU enjoy the evening?
Greg: It was great. It was a very interesting experience and I always have a great time with our daughters.
Jessica: And how did you enjoy the experience with the little picture that Daughter sent me?
Greg: Oh. That.
Jessica grinned from ear to ear. Her Cheshire Cat smile was a little hard to read. Was she as into his potential embarrassment as he had been.
Greg: I don’t know. I’m still figuring it out. It was a little awkward and uncomfortable.
Not a lie. Not the whole truth. He still was confused about how he felt about it. However, he knew that it wasn’t a great answer with how quickly he saw his wife’s wild smile fade from her face. A look of disappointment was now settling in behind her beautiful blue eyes.
Jessica: That’s a shame. I was really hoping that you might find that you enjoyed it.
Jessica was not shy about expressing her desires to him. And he always wanted to oblige her. She’d never once in their 27 years of marriage showed any real interest in bondage. But he was pretty sure that it was there. That it was lurking. That it had been awakened. And that it was something that she wanted to try. And there was no way that he was going to deny her. He still wasn’t entirely sure how he felt about it. But if there was one person that he was more than willing to figure that out with…it was the most caring, most charming, most thoughtful woman that he’d ever known. Greg looked her in the eyes and she scanned him curiously. He leaned in close and whispered in his most seductive voice.
Greg: The only reason that it was awkward and uncomfortable was because YOU weren’t the one doing it.
The smile that had vanished a moment ago returned to her lips. It started as a small grin and then curled back into it’s former face-monopolizing glory.
Jessica: God. That is such a sexy answer.
She gave him a flirty kiss on the lips and he could see an eager, starry look in her eyes. Clearly her mind was running around inside her thoughts at a mile a minute.
Jessica: I really hope you mean that. Because I think I have some online shopping to do tonight.
END OF CHAPTER FIVE
