A Ticklish Goodbye

Admitting

Kim called for her car to come pick them up, and Steph's house turned out to be a short ride away. It was large, without quite being ostentatious. As they stepped in, Kim's eyes widened. The place was full of art and antiques, all tastefully set out and arranged. She wasn't usually impressed by large houses or fancy interior decoration. But this was impressive.

"What do you do, Steph?" Kim let her appreciation show in her voice.

"Do? Who says I have to do anything?" Then Steph's face got a little more serious. "I did own my own business. I had several art galleries, handmade-furniture stores, places like that. Then I sold everything. I'm looking for something else. But we don't need to talk about that now."

Kim stopped in front of a bookcase full of old-fashioned printed books. Most of them looked like real antiques, at least a century old.

"You're quite the collector," said Kim.

"Thanks. So do you want a tour, or is there something else you'd like to get to first?"

Kim felt her face get hot.

"Come on," said Steph. "Don't be embarrassed. I want this to be a great night for you. I mean, really, I want to give you a special sendoff. If you have any fantasies, anything you've never had a chance to do before, just let me know."

A thought popped up in Kim's mind, way too silly to mention. She hadn't been thinking along those lines at all. Still, it was enough to make her face get hotter.

"Oh!" said Steph. "There is something! Tell me, please!"

Kim shook her head. "It's nothing."

"Oh, it's something all right. Tell me."

Kim stared at the floor. It was hard to imagine admitting something as ridiculous as what she was thinking. She'd never admitted it to anyone, not even to Sandra. But maybe, just maybe....

Steph took her hand. "I promise I won't laugh. I won't say it's weird, whatever it is. Maybe I can do it, maybe I can't. But first you'll have to tell me what it is."

Kim swallowed. Her body felt weak, like it was about to start shaking. "It's just, well, I've sort of always had a thing--I've always wondered--"

"Yes?"

"I've always sort of wanted to get tickled...hard."

True to her word, Steph didn't laugh. She just gave a little bit of a smile as she leaned forward and whispered. "I can do that for you, my friend. I can definitely do that."

Kim felt her heart begin to pound.