Turkish Delight, Part 4

This fictional account contains adult language and themes.  If such language
and themes offend you, please do not read further.  Copyright 1999 by
SSTORYMAN.  All rights reserved.  Permission is granted to reproduce this
story in any form and for any purpose as long as this notice is reproduced
and no financial remuneration is received, directly or indirectly, by the
person reproducing it.  Thanks to AZ-MAN and STOGIE-MAN for their support,
ideas and encouragement.

TURKISH DELIGHT

4.	Picking Up the Pace.

   After Kelli left the house, Krissy was excited.  She had another ally!
Mrs. Martin's unexpected open-mindedness about her smoking augured well for
Leah, too.  She decided to say nothing to her baby-sitter.  But Sunday night
she planned to use Kelli's readiness to let her smoke as an opportunity for
Leah to come out of the closet.  She had an idea.

   When Linda came home, Krissy showed her the invitation.  She didn't
mention that Kelli smoked with her.  She felt certain her mother would
eventually accept her decision to take up the habit, but she wanted to move
carefully.  Part of her plan was to make her disclosure Sunday night at the
Martins.  It might be an interesting evening for everyone!

   In the meantime, she wanted to smoke even more.  In case Linda _didn't_
gracefully accept her decision, she wanted to be sure she was irreversibly
hooked.  If she was really addicted, she reasoned, her mom wouldn't be as
likely to lay down the law and forbid her to keep smoking.  Krissy knew of
her growing dependence on nicotine.  She did feel real cravings, she was sure
of it.  But she wanted her addiction to be uncontrollable, permanent, before
her mom learned she was smoking.

   The rest of the week Krissy boosted the number of cigarettes she had each
day.  It wasn't hard; she liked to smoke.  The more she smoked each day, the
better she felt.  Prior to that time she'd maxed out at nine or so a day
while Linda at work.  But by Friday she was up to fourteen in a day.  As
usual, Friday afternoon she finished her last smoke around four thirty, to
give the air time to clear before Linda got home.  As she crushed it in the
ashtray, she felt tremendously proud.  She loved how she felt when she
smoked.  She liked being in a smoky room.  She liked feeling smoke in her
lungs, and she loved watching it flow from her lips and nostrils when she
exhaled.  And soon, she knew, she'd smoke with her mom.  That thought greatly
excited her.

   Linda came home Friday night in a good mood.  Things were good at work.
She'd suggested a novel solution to a problem the rest of the IS department
had grappled with for weeks and, based on initial feedback, her innovative
idea looked like it'd resolve the dilemma.  Her boss went out of her way to
praise her ingenuity.  Linda was on top of the world.  She suggested to
Krissy they go out for dinner and a movie to celebrate.

   They got to the restaurant at six thirty.  Krissy was feeling edgy.  It'd
been two hours since her last cigarette.  She wanted another one.  When she
wanted to celebrate, Linda smoked.  Oblivious to her daughter's growing
angst, Linda chain-smoked in the car.  She lit up again when they sat down at
their table at the restaurant in the smoking section.  It was Friday night,
and the restaurant was packed.  The smoking section was full of smokers.  The
sight of other people, including her mom, enjoying cigarettes was everywhere.
Krissy wished she could join in, but didn't want to ruin her plan for Sunday
night.  She'd put up with her cravings for now.

   Dinner was great.  Her mom had two glasses of red wine, and the more she
drank the more she smoked.  Krissy counted eight cigarettes before, during
and after dinner.  As Linda did often when she was in a good mood, she
offered Krissy several sips of wine.  Krissy savored it.  It made her feel
grown-up.  But her small sips intensified her longing for a cigarette.  It
was eight o'clock and she'd not had one for three and a half hours.

   Krissy felt desperate.  She toyed with telling her mom about her distress.
But the plan she'd formulated required waiting till Sunday night at the
Evans'.  Even so, the thought of enduring a two hour movie after dinner
seemed insufferable.  Somehow she had to smoke!

   Then an idea occurred to her.  She'd begun carrying a couple cigarettes
and a lighter in her purse because when she went to the neighborhood pool,
she visited the nearby wooded area to smoke.  She had two cigarettes with her
that night.  It'd be gutsy to carry out the little scheme she'd hatched, but
she was desperate.  The cravings would only get worse till she could satisfy
them.  The restaurant and the adjacent bar area were both crowded.  The
restrooms were at the back of the smoking section.  She smiled serenely and
looked at Linda.

   "Mom, I'm going to go to the bathroom," she said carelessly, standing up.

   "Good idea," Linda smiled in return.  "I'll come, too."

   Damn, Krissy cursed to herself.  She hadn't counted on the possibility
that her mother would join her.  But she hid her disappointment.  "Okay," she
said brightly.  "Let's go."

   As they negotiated their way through the crowd to the back of the room,
Krissy was pleased to see her mother brought her just-lit cigarette.  That
might prove helpful.

   Reaching the ladies room, Linda saw a "no smoking" sign on the door.
"Shit," she muttered, to no one in particular.  A large sand-pit ashtray sat
by the door.  Looking around, she did a powerful double-pump and deposited
her cigarette in the ashtray.  She inhaled the smoke into her lungs as she
walked into the ladies room in front of her smiling daughter.

   Over successive breaths Linda exhaled smoke inside the ladies room.  They
both entered stalls and began their business.  Krissy locked her door, sat
down and waited.  She never lifted her dress.  She didn't have to pee, and
had no intention of leaving before her mother.

   She heard the toilet in the next stall flush, and the door open.  Water
ran in the sink.  She heard paper towels pulled from the dispenser.  Then
there was silence.

   "Krissy, aren't you done?" Linda asked impatiently.

   "I'm doing number two, Mom," Krissy lied.  "It's going to be awhile, I'm
afraid."

   "Well, okay," Linda edgily replied.  "Look, I'm going back to the table.
All right?  But hurry up, will you?  We need to get out of here if we're
going to make the movie."

   "Sure, Mom," the teenager said with forced cheerfulness.  She figured her
mom wanted to get back to the table to smoke.  Well, she wanted to smoke,
too!  "I'll be out in a few minutes," she added.  What she wanted to say was:
Get the hell out of the ladies room, Mom, will you?

   She heard the door open and shut.  Good!  Her mom was gone.  She heard no
other noise in the restroom.  This was her golden opportunity!

   In a flash she removed a cigarette from her purse and slipped it in her
mouth.  Trembling fingers clicked her lighter.  She touched the flame to the
unlit cigarette's tobacco end.  With her lips wrapped around the filter she
sucked hard while the fire caught the tip.  Yes!  At long last she was
pulling that magnificent smoke into her hungry body!  She double-pumped hard,
drawing the initial hit into her lungs while beginning a second
cheek-hollowing drag.  Oh, God!  This was so great!  She really needed this!
She held the smoke inside her young lungs as long as she could, reluctant to
let any of it escape prematurely.  

   She hoped no one would enter the ladies room while she smoked in the
stall.  But the restaurant was busy, and that was too much to expect.
Following her third consecutive drag, she heard the bathroom door open.  She
exhaled the smoke through her nostrils and began her fourth hit.  She
probably didn't have much time before someone complained.  She wanted to get
as much nicotine as possible before that happened.

   "Hey, good for you," she heard a woman's voice remark.  "I'm glad someone
has the courage to ignore those fuckin' no-smoking signs."  The lady's tone
reflected amusement.  "I know you're smoking in there.  But I say, bravo!"

   "Yeah," Krissy said aloud, trying to sound as mature as possible while
returning the cigarette to her eager lips.  "I really needed a smoke!"

   Her unseen female companion went on.  "You must be out with some jerky guy
who doesn't smoke.  God, I hate it when I have to sneak around to smoke in
that lousy situation.  Take my advice, honey.  Dump him!  If he won't let you
smoke, he's not worth it."

   She heard the door open again as another woman came in the room.  "Hey,
someone's smoking in here," a new voice complained.  This one was older and
impatient.

   "Hey, shut up," Krissy's unseen ally barked.  "Our girlfriend here needs a
place to hide out for a few and have a cigarette.  Cut her some slack!"

   The second woman shot back.  "No way.  I'll tell the manager if she
doesn't stop."  She entered the stall vacated by Linda and closed the door.
"The sign on the door says 'no smoking.'  That means you, kiddo.  God,
someone should turn you in!"

   "I'm almost done," Krissy pleaded, furiously pumping on her shrinking
cigarette.  "Please don't tell anyone.  I'll put it out soon."

   The door to the ladies room opened again and then shut.  A third entrant
didn't come in.  Oh, God, Krissy sighed.  The third lady was probably running
to tell the manager what she smelled!  Next she heard water run in the sink.
Her supporter was leaving.  She should, too.  But she felt better, thanks to
the welcome infusion of nicotine.  She took one last drag and dropped her
cigarette in the toilet.  She hoped to sneak out of her stall while the
bitchy woman was still inside hers.  The restroom door opened and closed once
more.  Her ally had left.  This was her chance!  There was no one in the main
part of the ladies room.

   Krissy opened her stall door and moved to the exit.  Wisps of smoke
trailed from her mouth, but she didn't care.  She wanted to reach the door
before the bitchy woman came out and realized she was only a teenager.
That'd motivate her to turn her in for sure.

   As she rushed through the door, she nearly ran into another woman coming
in.  "Whoa, I'm sorry," Krissy apologized.  "I didn't mean to run you down."

   "That's okay," the lady said breathlessly, bracing herself against the
wall after the near collision.  She wore a badge with her name on it.  She
was restaurant management!  "Hey, is someone smoking in here?  That's not
allowed in the restrooms, you know."

   "Yeah, obviously," Krissy smiled innocently.  She lowered her voice.  "I
think it's that lady in stall number two.  She was really puffing away in
there.  It was terrible!"

   "Thanks, dear," the manager said kindly.  "Don't worry.  I'll take care of
her.  Someone told me a woman was smoking in the stall in the ladies room.
That's why we have no-smoking restrictions, to keep people like her from
smoking around kids like you."

   Krissy nodded politely.  "I understand.  And I appreciate your concern,
ma'am," she said coyly.  "I've gotta get back to my mom, though."

   "Goodbye, dear," the manager said politely as Krissy walked away.  "Hey,
in there," she heard her yell into the restroom.  "No smoking in there!  Cut
it out!"

   "Why the big smile?" Linda asked as Krissy sat down.  As expected, Linda
was smoking yet another cigarette.  "Is something funny going on?"

   "Oh, it's nothing, Mom.  There was someone smoking in her stall in the
ladies room after you left.  That's all.  A woman got into a real snit about
it.  You know what?  I don't understand all the fuss.  It's not like anyone
is gonna die from second hand smoke.  I mean, look at me.  I'm around you all
the time, and I'm perfectly fine."

   Linda smiled warmly at her daughter.  "You're much more tolerant recently,
Krissy.  I don't know what got into you, but I appreciate your new 'live and
let live' attitude."  She drew on her cigarette.  "You know, I did _try_ to
quit when you asked.  I just couldn't.  I guess I love it too much." She
turned her head and released a stream of smoke into the dim, hazy atmosphere.
"I hope you realize that."

   "Hey, you don't need to quit for me, Mom.  I understand completely.  You
want to do what you want to do.  That's fine with me.  You're right.  My new
motto is, 'live and let live.'"

   "Thanks, honey," Linda beamed.  "You're the best daughter a girl ever
had."

   "And you're the best mom, too" Krissy countered with a big grin.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

   Krissy enjoyed the movie after her little bathroom smoke.  By the time she
and her mom got home, though, she was edgy again.  Smelling her mother's
side-stream smoke on the way home in the car was both intoxicating and
excruciatingly painful.  She wanted a cigarette, too.  But she had to wait
till Sunday night to spring her plan on her mom.

   At home, Krissy went straight to bed.  She locked her bedroom door, opened
her window and retrieved her pack of Marlboro Lights 100's from her bedside
table drawer.  She'd never tried smoking in her bedroom after dark.  But she
_had_ to have one now, even if it was risky!  She knew she'd be unable to
sleep without smoking again!  She needed to have one more.

   "Only a couple more days of this torture," she muttered as she happily lit
up in the dark.  She took a long, luxurious first puff and inhaled deeply.
"Thank God for Turkish Delight," she sighed contentedly.  "I'll tell Mom
Sunday.  One way or the other, it'll be over then."  She pursed her lips and
exhaled a thick stream of smoke into the night air.  God, she loved to smoke!
She took a second drag, longer than her first, and inhaled again as deep as
she could.  Wow!  The smoke felt so damn good tonight soaking into her eager
lungs!  

   She worried her mom would figure out she'd been smoking in her room.  But
Linda had smoked many cigarettes herself that evening, and was probably still
smoking in her room.  It'd be unusual for her mom to re-enter her room after
she'd gone to bed.  Krissy figured it was definitely worth the risk.  The
euphoria that washed over her in the dark was superb.

   Even after finishing, however, Krissy felt slightly unsatisfied.  Well,
what the hell?  She smiled an evil smile.  There was no reason not to have a
second cigarette; was there?  So she lit up again.  As she did, she noticed
how really good she felt smoking.  It was her seventeenth cigarette of the
day!  But she enjoyed it just as much as her first one that morning.  She
pursed her lips and exhaled, switching in mid-exhale to pushing the smoke
through her nostrils in twin streams.  There was no doubt her level of
addiction had increased.  That made her happy.  And if all went well, she
hoped soon she'd be able to smoke whenever she wanted with her mom.

   Early on Saturday Krissy announced she was going to the pool.  Leah would
be there, since it was the weekend.  It'd be nice to see her friend again.
Inside the pocket of her cover-up she had an entire pack of Marlboro Lights
100's and a lighter.  Her real plan for the day was to spend more time in the
woods than at the pool.

   On her way she stopped in the wooded area.  Carefully checking to make
sure no one else was around, she lit up her first cigarette of the day.
She'd been waiting for it since the second she woke up.  As she pulled hard,
her cheeks hollowed.  She sucked the first puff of glorious smoke deep into
her impatient lungs and felt a wave of pure pleasure run through her body.
It wasn't unexpected, of course.  God, she loved being a smoker!  No longer
was she merely playing with cigarettes.  No, she was a real smoker now and,
just like her mother, she really _needed_ her cigarettes!  She took a second
long drag, and then a third.  Only a real smoker smokes like this, she told
herself.  Only real smokers smoke _this_ hard.  They do it because they just
can't get enough of that wonderful nicotine which their bodies depend on!

   She rapidly finished her first cigarette and immediately chained into a
second.  It seemed she always wanted two in a row now.  She imagined her
mother doing the same thing, having two in a row because she needed more
nicotine than one cigarette could provide.  That thought made her feel closer
to her mom.  In their life together they'd always shared everything, ever
since her dad disappeared years before.  This was something else they'd share
now, something new, once she told her about her decision to follow in her
footsteps as a smoker.  She hoped she wouldn't be upset.  Her mom told Kelli
Martin not to worry about Leah and smoking.  Certainly she'd accept her own
daughter as a smoker, too.  That was her hope.

   The pool was just opening when Krissy arrived.  She commandeered a
poolside chair and peeled off her cover-up, exposing her well-formed, young
body in a smart bikini.  Her body was still developing, but it looked good,
and she knew it.  She was proud of the contour of her emerging breasts and
well-rounded hips.  At her old school, few of her friends had developed so
well or so early.  She stretched her arms.  It was already warm.  The sun was
shining.  She felt good.  She walked to the lifeguard chair where Leah was
sitting.

   Leah wore a tight, one-piece black suit and a visor.  Her long blond hair
was pulled back in a ponytail.  She squinted at Krissy as she approached.

   "How are you doing, kid?" she asked.  "What's up this morning?"

   "I've got exciting news," Krissy whispered animatedly.  "I did something
last night I've never done before."

   Leah made a face.  "Don't tell me you're playing with yourself?" she asked
acerbically.

   "God, no," giggled Krissy.  "That wouldn't be a _new_ thing, for God's
sake," she said brazenly with an evil wink.  "No, something else."  She
looked around.  No one was paying attention to the two girls.  "Last night I
smoked two cigarettes in my bedroom before bed!"

   "No way," Leah shook her head.  "God, I can't believe it!  You're getting
awfully bold in your old age, aren't you?  Aren't you afraid you'll get
caught?  Then what would you do?"

   She replied brashly.  "I'm not worried about getting caught.  I think I'm
really hooked.  Do you know how many cigarettes I had yesterday?  I'll give
you a hint.  It was a new record."

   "I dunno," Leah said, trying to sound disinterested.  "Maybe twelve?"

   "Not even," Krissy beamed confidently.  "I had seventeen cigarettes
yesterday!"

   Leah looked surprised.  "God, you're becoming little miss nicotine, aren't
you?"  She frowned.  "I don't think I've ever had more than ten or eleven in
one day," she admitted sadly.  "Tell me.  What was it like?"

   "It was cool," Krissy gushed.  "Smoking that much is really great.  I've
been working all week on upping my intake.  I want to make sure I'm good and
hooked.  I'm getting ready to spring it on my mom that I'm a smoker."

   Leah rolled her eyes.  "I hope you know what you're doing, Krissy," she
lamented.  "If my mom knew I smoked I'd be grounded for life; in fact, maybe
longer."

   "Don't be so sure," Krissy twinkled.  "Adults can be more understanding
than you think.  Your mom was a teenager once, you know.  She might be cooler
about it than you expect."

   "Well, I expect nothing," bemoaned Leah.  She never bothered to ask how
Krissy knew her mother was a teenage smoker.  "And I'm sure not going to let
her in on my little secret."

   A mother and her toddler ambled by on their way to the baby pool.  Krissy
smiled at the woman and waited for her to pass.

   "On your break at ten, do you want to duck into the woods for a quick
smoke?"  She asked, but knew full well that Leah's answer would be 'yes' if
at all possible.

   "Sure," Leah shrugged.  "I haven't had one yet today.  I could really use
one, too.  Ariel Wilson is life-guarding with me this morning.  You know her?
The good-looking red-head?  She smokes, too.  So Ariel's cool with letting me
sneak out for a quick one when we're on break."

   "Does Ariel want to come with us?" Krissy asked hopefully.  She didn't
know that pretty red-head was a smoker.

   "No, one of us has to stay at the pool during the break," Leah answered
matter-of-factly.  "So if I go at ten, Ariel will want to smoke at eleven.
But I can go first.  She had a couple cigarettes in her car on the way over
this morning.  Her parents know she smokes, and they don't care, even though
she's only seventeen.  God, she's so damn lucky!"

   "Maybe you'll have the same luck, and soon," Krissy said mysteriously,
with a slight laugh.  "I have a feeling something good is going to happen to
you, Leah."

   "Do you know something I don't?"

   "No," Krissy said coyly.  "I just have a feeling.  That's all."

   At ten o'clock Leah and Krissy walked from the pool into the woods.
Krissy was ready to smoke again, and Leah was, too.  The sixteen year old
seemed embarrassed to have apparently fallen behind her younger friend.  From
Krissy's point of view it wasn't a competition.  But Leah seemed determined
to prove she was just as much a smoker as her thirteen year old comrade.

   Both girls put cigarettes in their mouths when they were out of sight of
the pool.  As had become her habit recently, Krissy double-pumped on hers.
Leah, not to be outdone, did, too.

   Krissy sighed and exhaled, slowly releasing her first lungful of smoke.
"Oh, God!  The more I smoke, the more I love it," she sighed with sincere
appreciation.  She drew again on her cigarette.  "There's no way I'm ever
giving _this_ up," she went on, holding the smoke inside.  "Soon I'll tell my
mom.  And if she doesn't like it, the only way she'll ever get me to quit is
if she quits, too.  Because as long as there are cigarettes in our house, I
tell you what.  I'll be smoking 'em!"  She turned her head and released an
endless stream of smoke into the air.

   "Me, too," Leah answered, trying to sound equally committed.  "I'm not
quitting either."

   "So, you're not afraid of your mom finding out you smoke?"

   "I didn't say that," Leah retorted.  "I just said that even if she finds
out, I'm not quitting."

   The girls smoked in silence for several minutes.  Krissy finished hers
first, crushing it on the ground in the grass.  Immediately she reached into
her pocket for another cigarette.

   "Whoa, there," Leah said, watching Krissy put her second cigarette between
her lips.  "What are you doing?"

   "I'm having another one," she answered simply.  "I'm not done yet." She
clicked her lighter and lit up again.

   Slightly confused, Leah took a final drag on her Merit Menthol 100.  "But
we don't have time.  We've gotta go."

   "No, we don't," Krissy said confidently, releasing an initial exhale
through her nostrils.  "We've got another five minutes.  That's plenty of
time.  I always smoke two in a row now.  You should try it, Leah."

   Leah frowned.  "Okay," she agreed.  "But I'm afraid we'll run out of
time."

   "We won't as long as you'd hurry up and get started on your second
cigarette," Krissy teased.  "C'mon.  Let's get going."  She held out her
lighter for Leah as the older girl readied the second cigarette in her mouth.

   "Mmm, thanks," Leah sighed as she caught the flame.  She took an initial
drag.  "God, this is so decadent," she giggled.  "I mean, I'm not sure I've
ever smoked two in a row like this."

   "It's very addictive," Krissy smiled knowingly.  She released more smoke
from her pert little mouth.  "All week I've been doing this.  But I mean,
look, if you only have ten minutes to smoke, then why not have two?" She
giggled.  "Plus, it's great for building up your tolerance."

   "You mean building up your addiction," Leah corrected her.  "Don't get me
wrong.  I'm hooked on these things and I know it.  But I also know you can't
walk back down the stairs once you've gone up.  As soon as your body's used
to a certain level of nicotine, it's hell to reduce it."

   "Right," Krissy agreed.  "So, what's your point?"

   "My point is, don't get used to smoking more if you can't continue at that
level.  That's all."

   "But I agree," Krissy shrugged.  "What's your point?  I fully intend to
maintain my smoking at this level.  In fact, I'll probably increase it at
least a little more before I'm satisfied."

   "But how in the hell will you do that?" Leah wanted to know.

   "I told you.  I'm planning on telling my mother.  Real soon, like."

   Leah's face assumed a quizzical look.  "How and when are you going to do
that?"

   "You'll see," Krissy smiled.  She took another long drag on her cigarette.
"You'll see very soon," she added, looking directly at Leah and directing a
cloud of smoke into her face.

   "Stop," giggled Leah.  "My God!  By encouraging you to smoke, I've created
a fuckin' monster!"

   "That you have, Leah," she agreed, still expelling smoke from her
nostrils.  "I'm not turning back.  Not for anyone or anything."

   The rest of the day at the pool went fine.  The high point for Krissy came
when Ariel Wilson, the other lifeguard, left the area to grab a quick smoke
before lunch.  Krissy followed Ariel and told her she smoked, too.  She asked
if she could join her.  Ariel didn't care.  She was a smoker and had nothing
to hide, except that the pool owners didn't like the lifeguards smoking on
premises.  She didn't mind the younger girl's company.  She rather enjoyed
having someone to smoke with.  Like Krissy, Ariel routinely smoked two in a
row.  When Krissy said she was about to tell her mother she was smoking,
Ariel wished the younger girl luck.

   Ariel frowned.  "Both my parents smoke, and have for years.  Even though I
was almost sixteen when I told 'em I was smoking, it didn't go well.  That's
because you never know with parents," she counseled.  "You think you've got
'em figured out, but you never know for sure."

   "But they're obviously cool with it now," Krissy interjected.  "I mean,
the fact that you smoke.  They're okay with it now?"

   "Yeah, marginally," Ariel shrugged.  "I dunno.  My dad still freaks out
about it now and then.  I think he feels guilty for setting a bad example.  I
don't think my mom is as upset.  I mean, Mom and I smoke together all the
time now."  She grinned.  "Actually, it's kinda cool."

   "That's what I want," Krissy exclaimed.  "I want to be able to smoke with
my mom.  I've watched her enjoy it for my whole life.  Now I want to share it
with her, to smoke with her."

   "I know what you mean," Ariel agreed.  "That's not why I started smoking,
but is has been great to smoke with my mom.  We never used to get along.  But
now?"  She took a long hit on her shrinking cigarette.  "Now, we're like
smoking buddies or something.  It's pretty weird."

   Krissy grinned.  "But it _can_ work.  It's not impossible.  That's what I
think.  That's why I'm going to tell my mom about my smoking.  I'm sure
she'll be okay with it."

   "I hope so, for your sake, Krissy."  Ariel worried the youngster was too
naïve.  She gave a hopeful smile.  "C'mon.  Let's get back to the pool." She
dropped her cigarette to the ground and exhaled a long stream of smoke
through pursed lips.  "Leah will be pissed at us if we stay long enough to
smoke three in a row."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

   To meet her goal, Krissy left the pool each hour for two cigarettes in the
woods.  By the end of the afternoon she'd had fourteen.  Walking back to her
house, she felt exhilarated.  Seventeen yesterday; fourteen already today.
The only discouraging thing was that she doubted she'd be able to smoke
again.  Her mom would be home tonight.  That meant no more smoking, except
for maybe one or two after hours when her bedroom door was closed for the
night.

   Linda was indeed home, and in a good mood.  She'd spent the day running
errands, and was happy to be home to rest.  Linda played games on the
computer awhile, and then watched some TV with her daughter.  Krissy tried to
keep up her spirits, but she was jealous of her mom's smoking.  The older
woman averaged three cigarettes an hour.  By nine o'clock the smoky aroma was
driving Krissy crazy.  Leaving Linda smoking in the family room with the TV,
she migrated into the office to call up one of her games on the computer.

   "You want some ice cream?" she heard her mother's voice ask from the
hallway.

   "No, no thanks," Krissy listlessly replied.  "I don't feel much like
eating tonight."  The only thing I feel like doing right now is smoking, she
wanted to add.

   "Boy, _I_ sure do," Linda smiled, sticking her head in the office.  "I'm
running to the store to get myself some chocolate chip cookie dough ice
cream.  God, that sounds good to me right now!"  She eyeballed her daughter.
"You sure you don't want anything?"

   "No, thanks, though, Mom."  She continued to move the mouse
absent-mindedly.  "I don't want anything."

   Linda smiled.  "You know what?  I think I'll run to 31 Flavors to get mine
instead of going to the supermarket down on the corner.  It's a little
farther, but it's worth it!"  She squinted her eyes at Krissy.  "Are you
_sure_ you don't want to come?"

   Krissy dearly loved 31 Flavors' ice cream.  She started to say yes, but
then realized what it meant.  Her mom would be gone at least twenty minutes.
The house was already full of ambient smoke.  Krissy smiled for the first
time in over an hour.  "No thanks, Mom.  I think I'll stay here.  But go
right ahead.  I don't mind.  Get yourself something nice."

   Linda smiled in return.  "Okay, I will.  Party-pooper," she chided.
"Maybe, just maybe, if you're really nice to me, I'll bring you back
something good, too."  There was a tantalizing tone in her mother's voice.

   "Mom, I _am_ nice.  I'd just rather stay home.  I don’t want to go out.
But if you're serious about it, I'd drink a chocolate milkshake if you bring
one home!"  She grinned.

   "That's my girl," Linda replied, patting her on the head.  "Okay.  I'm
going to 31 Flavors.  I'll be back in 25, 30 minutes tops."  She reached for
her purse and the car keys hanging on the rack on the wall.  "Take care of
yourself while I'm gone," she winked.

   "Don’t worry, Mom.  I'm just going to fool around on the computer."

   As soon as she heard the car leave the driveway, Krissy made a bee-line
for the family room.  As usual her mother left a half-open pack of Marlboro
Lights 100's on the table.  Not wanting to take time to go upstairs for her
own supply, she shook one of her mom's from the pack.  On the table was one
of many lighters Linda used.  Krissy clicked it.  The cigarette ignited.
Thank God!  She was smoking again!

   It tasted and felt heavenly!  She pulled the smoke deep into her lungs and
held it there.  Damn!  She _loved_ this!  Reluctantly she began expelling
smoke through her nostrils, stopping in mid-exhale to re-inhale the smoke
back inside.  She smiled and returned the cigarette to her lips.  "Only real
smokers do this," she mumbled with satisfaction as she started an immediate
follow-up drag while smoke spurted from her nostrils.

   Over and over, drag after drag, Krissy pulled smoke deep into her lung and
exhaled it back out.  Her edginess vanished after only a few puffs.  As soon
as her system acquired the minimum accretion of nicotine via her lungs, she
felt better.  She settled back to enjoy the experience of smoking once more.
At the end of her first cigarette she chained into a second one.  She did it
almost without thinking.  It was almost a reflex reaction during the last few
days.  She enjoyed the second one as much as the first.  She smoked it as far
down as possible, right to the filter.  She didn't want to miss out on any of
that precious smoke.  She knew it'd be her last for at least a few hours.
Until bedtime, that is, when she'd smoke again in the dark!

   By the time she finished the room seemed too smoky.  She looked at the
clock.  Her mom would be back in a few minutes!  She tried opening the
window, but without success.  There was no breeze that pleasant summer
evening.  Eventually she gave up, hoping her mother wouldn't notice the
additional accumulation of second-hand smoke in the room.

   Linda returned as if on cue.  Twenty five minutes after the garage door
closed, it opened again and her car pulled inside.  In the house she found
Krissy in the office at the computer.  She smiled at her daughter as she
handed her a milkshake.

   "Here you go, bubblehead," she teased, using one of her pet nicknames.  "I
don't know why I'm so nice to you all the time.  Party-pooper," she repeated.

   "Thanks, Mom," she smiled broadly, taking a sip.  "This is great."

   "You're welcome," Linda grinned back.  She headed to the kitchen to get a
spoon for her ice cream.  "You look a little perkier than when I left," she
observed, muttering in an off-hand way.  "But you know what?  I think I'm
going to have myself a cigarette.  I'm such an idiot!  I didn't think to
bring any with me in the car.  Krissy, would you think I was a terrible
person if I smoked a cigarette while I ate my ice cream?"

   "No, not at all, Mom," Krissy answered, following her into the kitchen.
"I mean, you can do whatever you want.  You're an adult.  If it makes you
happy, go for it.  That's what I say!"

   Linda placed an all-white Marlboro Light 100 in her lips.  She smiled.  "I
agree with you, kiddo."  She lit up.  "Everyone should do whatever makes them
happy.  That's what I think, too."  She removed the cigarette from her mouth
and released a plume of smoke from her smiling lips.  "And what's going to
make me happy right now is eating some ice cream!"

   "And smoking," her daughter slyly added.

   "And smoking," Linda confirmed with a smile.

   They ate their ice cream and had a pleasant time talking about nothing.  A
couple hours later Krissy headed to bed.  Linda bade her good-night.  She
wanted to stay up and watch Saturday Night Live after the local news.

   Inside her room Krissy locked the door and lit the day's last cigarette.
She counted.  This was her seventeenth!  For the second day in a row she'd
done it.  She took a long, luxurious drag.  She _was_ a smoker now, and she
so much wanted to tell her mom.  She wondered if Linda noticed the haziness
in the air when she got back from 31 Flavors.  Probably not.  She took
another drag.  But tomorrow she'd tell her for sure.  It'd happen either at
the Evans' or, if not there, then as soon as they got home afterward.  She
hoped her little plan for making the announcement at Leah's house would work
out for everyone's benefit.  Especially Leah's!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

   The next day was Sunday.  Linda surprised Krissy by insisting they go to
church.  Krissy wasn't interested, but Linda seemed adamant.  They attended a
Catholic parish church in their old town, but Linda never mentioned it here.
Now she wanted to check out the neighborhood parish.  Krissy tried to beg
off, but without success.  They got dressed and headed off together.

   The church service was boring.  Krissy always felt that way about church.
She never thought it meant much to her mom.  She was surprised at Linda's
enthusiastic response.  Afterwards Linda insisted they go to brunch.  Again,
Krissy tried to beg off, but to no avail.

   Linda smoked before church, in the car on the way, and on the trip to the
restaurant.  The place Linda chose for brunch had a smoking section, of
course, and so she smoked there, too.  Krissy counted 'em.  Linda smoked at
least ten cigarettes, and she'd had none.  It was the longest Krissy'd gone
without a cigarette in two weeks.  As a result, she wasn't good company.  At
brunch everything was wrong.  She was unhappy with her food, unhappy with the
service, and unhappy with the irrelevant subjects her mom wanted to discuss
as they ate.  Watching Linda repeatedly smoke cigarette after cigarette
seemed incredibly unfair.  When they got home, it was after one o'clock.
Krissy was fit to be tied.  She announced to Linda she was going to the pool.

   "Okay, honey," Linda replied.  "But be back by three.  We need to go
shopping for new summer clothes.  I want you to have a new outfit to wear to
the Martins' tonight."

   Normally Krissy loved shopping.  Nothing pleased her more than buying new
outfits.  It was true; her wardrobe badly needed updating for summer.  Most
outfits she wore last year were too small, particularly in the chest.  Her
expanding bust line caused her to outgrow her old tops.  Today, however, she
could've cared less about getting new clothes.  Instead, she wanted to smoke,
not spend more time with her mom.  Again, however, when she tried to protest,
Linda wouldn't hear of it.  They were going shopping at the mall at three.
That was all there was to it.

   Krissy donned her bikini.  It was too small, but that didn't trouble her.
She liked showing off her curvaceous body in the tight swimsuit.  Carefully
placing her cigarettes and lighter in the pocket of her cover-up she bolted
from the house as fast as she could go.

   The pool was five streets from their house.  Usually Krissy waited to
light up till she reached the wooded area by the pool.  Today, however, she
was desperate, too desperate to wait.  As soon as she rounded the corner, she
reached in her pocket and retrieved a cigarette.  She didn't care who saw
her.  She just _had_ to smoke.  Waiting another five minutes would be
unbearable.

   She cupped her hands around the lighter and clicked it.  She'd seen her
mother do that maneuver a million times, though she'd never tried it herself.
On the third try, she made contact.  Her mouth filled with glorious smoke!
She sucked hard on the cigarette, once, twice, three times in a row, getting
as much smoke inside her body as she could.  Inhaling it deep into her
anxious lungs, she refused to breathe out or remove the cigarette from her
lips.  She stopped for a moment, holding the smoke in.  God, it felt so
fuckin' good!  The relief she felt was sensual, almost sexual in nature and
intensity.  Smoke escaped from her nostrils as she took another long drag,
finally removing the cigarette and inhaling more smoke.

   She sighed and slowly began walking.  Bits of smoke escaped from her mouth
and nostrils, though she wasn't intentionally exhaling.  No!  She wanted it
to stay inside her body.  She took another cheek-hollowing hit, again pulling
the smoke far into the innermost recesses of her chest.  It was fabulous!  If
Krissy ever doubted if she'd really become addicted to nicotine, this
experience answered the question finally and definitively.  She needed to
smoke now.  It was no longer a matter of preference; it was a matter of
survival!

   By the time she reached her wooded refuge near the pool she'd finished her
first cigarette.  During her journey she received odd stares from both
children and adults, but she didn’t care.  She was intent on one thing;
relieving her need for nicotine as quickly as possible.  Once within the
wooded area she lit up again.  This time she smoked less frantically, though
still with more intensity than normal.  She sat on a tree stump and finished
her second cigarette.  She began to feel better.  To be on the safe side, she
decided to light up a third one.  Never before had she smoked three
consecutive cigarettes.  This time it seemed like an amazingly good idea.

   Part way through her third cigarette, Ariel Wilson wandered into the
woods.  "Hi, Krissy," she greeted.  "Getting a little nicotine fix, I see?"

   Krissy just nodded.  The lovely, buxom, red-headed seventeen year old
joined in by lighting up.  Ariel smoked Virginia Slims Menthols, not lights
but full flavored ones.  Watching the beautiful older girl smoke the long,
slim cigarette so casually and unafraid made Krissy insanely jealous.  Ariel
never worried about people seeing her smoke.  It never crossed her mind.  She
smoked when she wanted, with no worry whether someone would disapprove or
tell her parents.  Krissy _had_ to have that freedom.  More than ever she was
determined to tell her mom tonight that she, too, was a smoker.  Whether the
plan she'd hatched worked, she had to spill the beans.  It was insane to live
like this, suffering through hour after hour of forced abstinence.

   As usual, Ariel proceeded to smoke a second cigarette.  Although she'd
already had three, Krissy joined her for another one.  Her desperation was
gone, replaced by a pleasant, savory satisfaction.  She was enjoying it.  It
was no longer a matter of necessity, like earlier, but now pure pleasure.
The relief she'd experienced while frantic was wonderful.  But the pleasure
of continuing to smoke, despite the fact she was satiated, was just as
wonderful, though completely different.

   At two o'clock Krissy went to the woods with Leah, and at three she had
two more cigarettes with Ariel before heading home.  She'd be late, but she
didn't care.  She'd tell her mom she lost track of time.  It was a white lie,
but it gave her a chance to load up with more nicotine.  Depending on the
length of the shopping trip, she feared she'd need it!

   Her worst fears were realized.  Linda was a notoriously slow shopper.  She
lingered in each store, looking at every possible item several times.  The
trip was supposedly for Krissy, but Linda couldn't help buying a few items
for herself.  They got home a little after six thirty.  They were due at the
Martins' at seven.

   "Hurry and get ready," Linda urged as they ascended the stairs.  "Put on
that navy outfit we just bought.  It'll look great tonight."

   Both bedroom doors were open, and Krissy heard the tell-tale sound of her
mom lighting another cigarette.  Damn!  She'd been fine during the first part
of their shopping expedition.  But for the last hour she began feeling that
nagging desire for another cigarette.  She remembered Kelli Martin's promise
to help her steal a puff or two tonight.  God, she was going to need it in
the worst way!

   Krissy's new outfit looked absolutely adorable.  It was a navy blue skirt
and matching top.  Linda, too, looked quite fetching in a new black and white
sleeveless dress.  But that was no surprise; her mom always looked great,
Krissy thought.  She peeked in her mother's bedroom.  Linda was in front of
the mirror with a cigarette dangling from her lips, calmly putting on a gold
necklace while puffing contentedly on her Marlboro.  Fuck!  Krissy was beside
herself.  She was _so_ jealous!  It took every ounce of self-control in her
adolescent body not to run to her mother's room, grab the cigarette out of
her mouth, and take three or four deep drags of her own!

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