(This is my first attempt at writing for a wider audience. I hope you enjoy my story. Thank you to kenjisato for taking the time to read through and edit for me.)
Her feet were beginning to ache. Sarah glanced at the clock and saw it was almost three in the afternoon. It had been a busy Friday so far, but she was grateful, at least, that she could work inside. Her little room was warm, the smell of essential oils lightly filled the air and the soft lighting just added to its calming ambiance. Although there was no window to the outside world, Sarah knew the best of the winter weather was swirling outside. She briefly wondered if she would have to scrape the ice off her windscreen again when she left later.
Sighing, Sarah took one last sip of her now tepid tea, and made her way back to the staff kitchen. She rinsed the cup and left it to dry; patted her hands dry in a towel, and headed back to reception. The waiting room was as full, as it had been all day. All three sofas were taken; all here for one treatment or another, all eyes looked up at her expectantly to see if it was their name she would call next. Sarah went to the desk opposite and picked up the form for her next client.
"Mr. Thomas?" she called out.
Jake abruptly stood at the sound of his name being called. As calm as he may have appeared on the outside, inside he was burning with embarrassment as all the ladies surrounding him looked up, quizzical looks on some of their faces as if they had never seen a man in a beauty shop before. He couldn't blame them, he wouldn't have ever dreamt of being here, let alone having a massage, it was always something he perceived as being a girl's thing; but his mate had sworn by them, and after a few heavy weeks in the gym, he was sure his muscles could use the help.
Finally, he locked eyes with the person whose voice had called his name, and he was sure his mouth fell open. Oh man, why so young, he thought to himself as he took her in. For the last fifteen minutes, he had watched a bustle of older ladies filter in and out calling names and leading people off through the archway which he was sure he was about to follow. He was already feeling self-conscious about being here, he knew it was just his luck he would be called by the prettiest one here. Her dark hair was pulled back into a messy bun and she wore little make up, but it was still enough to enhance her delicate features. The standard pale pink tunic and cropped trousers they all seemed to be wearing as a uniform, hugged her perfectly formed frame and did nothing to hide the curves underneath.
"If you would like to follow me," her voice bringing his attention back to her, and he merely nodded as he followed her through.
She opened the door and indicated for him to go in first. He looked in awe.
"It's a full body massage today, yes?" she asked, and again he just nodded, taking in the bed in the middle of the room.
"If you would like to take off your clothes, leaving your underwear on, and lie face down under the blankets, putting your face into the hole." She smiled reassuringly at him and closed the door. His mind spun back to the "leave your underwear on," and he felt stupid as he never wore any and hadn't thought to bother today. Shrugging, he undressed quickly, put his clothes in the chair in the corner, and got under the thick, fluffy blanket, and marveled that the blankets were warm. No wonder chicks dig this, he thought to himself, as he finally put his face into the hole.
Sarah waited outside the closed door until she was confident her client would be under the covers. She smiled at how uneasy he appeared, and gathered it was his first time having a massage. Sarah had plenty of male clients, and for her it wasn't anything out the ordinary; although she hadn't had one the same age as her before.
Lightly knocking on the door, Sarah entered slowly, the way they had been taught to.
"Everything okay?" she asked softly, and when she heard his muffled reply, she entered the room, closing the door behind her. Gentle music played in the background, and Sarah got to work. The first thing she always did was rearrange the blanket so it covered the client completely, it was hard to do yourself. She pulled the top hem to his shoulders and firmly brushed her hands across his shoulders, almost like she was pushing him flat onto the table. Moving to the side of the table, she did the same again, starting in the middle of his back and pushing one hand towards his head and the other towards his feet.
Sarah took the top of the blanket again, and pulled it towards his waist, she went to tuck it into his underwear, which is something they all did to stop it from moving during the massage and to help protect their clothing from the oils. Surprise flickered across her face when she realised he wasn't wearing any. Without hesitation, she folded the blanket, picked up the warm oil, poured it onto her hands to check the temperature, and then down his back.
She slowly started to work the muscles in his back; feeling several knots which had formed across his shoulders.
"How's the pressure for you?" she asked quietly. Jake mumbled a great thanks, and she smiled as she worked through one knot after another. Sarah could tell he used the gym; his muscles were hard and quite unforgiving under her fingers. She worked his back, shoulder and neck muscles in turn, her hands moving through the sequence they just knew. He closed his eyes, feeling the aches leave his body with each passing moment.
Jake felt the sudden absence of her hands from his back and a hint of disappointment, as he felt the blanket cover his back again, although it felt warm and she pressed her hands across his back like before. For a little thing, he was surprised at the strength she had.
Suddenly, he was aware of the cooler air hitting his leg, and he realised she was lifting the blanket off. He knew she had already seen he wasn't wearing any underwear, and he felt himself blush again as he felt her carefully fold the blanket around so he was still covered. He hoped she wouldn't see anything else.
