The first thing after letting myself in the next morning was to get the pack of Virginia Slims from my desk. When I told Mom I had a key to the office, she decided to leave for work at her usual time, so it was 8:00 when I arrived. I had swiped one of Mom’s lighters from home and used it to light up my first cigarette of the day. I didn’t inhale on the initial light-up, but did take a small one on the next puff. I’m not sure if it was just the excitement of smoking, but that first inhale seemed to feel good. My next inhale was a little bigger, and I started to feel a little light-headed. I decided to take it easy. Staci would be here in an hour, so I wouldn’t have time to recuperate if I got sick. I took my cigarette with me as I went around the office turning the lights on. I clenched the Virginia Slim in my teeth as I started a pot of coffee. While I waited for the coffee to brew I strolled around the office, puffing on my cigarette, inhaling every third drag or so. I was getting a little aroused, and if I was still light-headed, I didn’t notice. I wasn’t dizzy, or nauseous, but still proceeded with caution. When I finished that first cigarette, the coffee was done brewing so I fixed myself a cup. I took it to my desk and set it down next to the pack of Virginia Slims. There was something about that pack, my pack, that I just loved looking at it there on the desk. I shook it so that a few filters popped out and looked at it a little more. I then removed one of the slender white cigarettes, removed the lighter from my pocket, and lit up. This time I inhaled while lighting up. I placed the lighter on top of the pack, and decided to take a sip of coffee. First I took a puff and inhaled, then used both hands to lift the mug, holding the Virginia Slim between the middle and index fingers of my right hand. I took a sip, set the mug down, then exhaled a fairly nice amount of smoke. This was great, I thought. I took three more inhales in the same manner, then set the cigarette in the ashtray and stood up to see how I felt. I was a little dizzy. I sat back down and smoked the rest of the cigarette by inhaling every third puff again, each of those puffs being nice-sized ones though. When I was down with that cigarette, I thought I should slow down a little. I was still aroused, and wanted to smoke again, but I decided to wait. It was 8:30, and I wanted to smoke before Staci got in at nine, so I decided I’d have another one at 8:45. I finished my coffee without smoking and got up to get another cup. I was thankful to notice that the dizziness was gone. Just as I got back to my desk, the phone rang. “Stuart Realty,” I answered, “How may I help you?” It was Staci. “Hey Honey,” she chirped, “How’s it going?” “Great,” I said, “Quiet so far.” “What are you up to so far?” she asked. It sounded like she had a cigarette dangling from her lips, and I thought I heard a lighter. “Just having my second cup of coffee,” I said as I shook a Virginia Slim from the pack. If Staci was going to smoke, I thought, I might as well join her. “Good,” she said, “You remembered rule number one.” “You better believe it,” I said with and unlit cigarette in my mouth, then pausing to light it, “How ‘bout you? What are you up to?” “I’m having coffee too, as a matter of fact,” she chuckled, “And a cigarette, of course.” I took an inhale, then said, “Soul-mates, huh?” before exhaling. “That’s right.” I was exaggerating every puff I took, in hopes that Staci would hear. There was a thrill in hoping she knew I was smoking. More-so than in me just telling her. Part of the fun was doing it right in front of her, even though it was just over the phone. There was also excitement in doing it behind her back. I had a pretty good idea that Staci would let me smoke with her. I knew that when I finally did smoke with her that it would be great. I also figured out, though, that once I did smoke with her that the thrill I was feeling now would be gone forever. I wanted to keep this feeling a little longer, but it was going to be tough. Sort of like masturbating, I realized. You know it’s going to feel good when you ejaculate, but it feels good while you’re doing it, so you hold off as long as you can. As I exhaled audibly into the phone, I wondered just how long I could hold it off. “The reason I called,” she said, not seeming to notice my exhale, “is because I was thinking about going to my appointment straight from here. It’s kind of on the way to the office, so it’d just be a waste to come in first.” “That sounds good,” I agreed. “I need you to do something for me though.” “That’s why I’m here,” I said, then took another puff. I was inhaling this entire cigarette so far. “I need you to tell me how to get to my appointment,” she laughed, “There’s a Thomas’ Guide atlas in my desk. If I give you my address can you let me know how to get there from here?” “Sure,” I said, hoping I could. “Great,” she said, “Finish your coffee first, then call me back when you’ve got it.” “Got it,” I replied. “How is your coffee, by the way?” she asked. “Pretty good,” I said after taking a puff and a sip, “How’s yours?” “Eh,” she said, “It’s instant, so not too good.” “And your cigarette?” I asked. “Uh?” she said, sounding confused. “How’s your cigarette?” I clarified. “Oh,” she said, understanding now, “Those are always good.” “Good,” I said, getting more aroused, “I’ll call you soon with the directions.” We hung up and I finished my cigarette. When I was done with my coffee, I got up and headed for Staci’s office to get the atlas. I sat down at her desk and opened up the top drawer to look for the atlas. It wasn’t there, but there was an open pack of Virginia Slims. I took one out and lit it up with the lighter on her desk. I then continued to search for the atlas as I smoked. When I found it I went back to my desk and got out the questionnaire I had taken yesterday to get the address of Staci’s appointment. It took me two more cigarettes before I figured out the best route for Staci to take. Before calling her back, I got myself another cup of coffee. I lit up yet another cigarette and dialed Staci’s house. I gave her the directions and she said she’d see me later, probably around noon. “One more thing,” she remembered, “A lady from the Chamber of Commerce might be calling this morning. She keeps trying to get me to join and I keep putting her off. She wants to come over and welcome me to the business community, and then pressure me to sign up.” “So what do you need me to do?” I asked. “Maybe you could just handle this for me. I mean, I guess I should join the Chamber, but these people can be kind of pushy and I’d just as soon not deal with it now. So, if you don’t mind, I’d like to make you in charge of this Chamber of Commerce business.” “That’s great,” I said, loving that she’d give me the responsibility. I then asked her what the Chamber of Commerce was, and she laughed a little before explaining. We hung up and as I finished my cigarette I thought about what I could do for the next three hours. Besides smoking Virginia Slims, that is. I decided to really give the office a good cleaning. When I had been sitting at Staci’s desk earlier I had noticed a closet I hadn’t seen yesterday. I went to it now and found a vacuum cleaner in front of an unorganized mess of boxes and folding chairs. It took me about a half hour to get it clean. I decided to vacuum the whole office next, after having a cigarette first. I smoked it with some coffee sitting on the couch in Staci’s office. I was really starting to enjoy the taste of the cigarette and coffee together. Halfway through the cigarette the phone rang. I answered it at my desk. “Stuart Realty,” I said while exhaling, “How may I help you?” It was the lady from the Chamber of Commerce asking for Ms. Stuart. She had a kind of raspy voice, and I guessed she was a smoker. “Ms. Stuart isn’t in,” I said, then took a drag, “I’m Joey, her secretary. She asked me to take care of you when you called.” Staci was right. She was pushy. She asked if she could come over right then and talk about the benefits of the Chamber. It was 9:30, so I asked if ten would be alright. She said that was fine and I got off the phone with her. I put out my cigarette and got to vacuuming. While I was vacuuming I decided that I would smoke in front of this lady. Probably. I was still a little chicken. Maybe I’ll smoke in front of her. If she smokes, then I will. Maybe. I guess I’d just play it by ear. At about 10 to ten I was done cleaning. I made a fresh pot of coffee then sat at my desk to wait for the Chamber lady. I lit a cigarette and smoked it until the clock said ten. I made sure to leave the pack on the desk, and I didn’t bother to empty my ashtray. At 10:02 the door opened. “Good morning,” said a cheery woman in her 50s or 60s, “I’m looking for Joey.” Like I said, I’m not good at describing people, but as it happens, this woman bares a striking resemblance to another woman found on Southern Charms. A lady who goes by Luscious Lynn on that site. “Good morning,” I replied, “I’m Joey.” “Oh,” she said, confused, obviously expecting a woman named Joey, “Are you the one I spoke with this morning?” “That’s me,” I said, standing up from my desk and walking around to her with my hand extended towards her, “Nice to meet you.” “Uh,” she stumbled, then accepted my hand and shook it, “I’m- uh- I’m Linda Plum with the San Gabriel Chamber of Commerce. Is Ms. Stuart in?” I could tell she wasn’t quite sure about dealing with a kid. “No,” I smiled, “She’ll be out for most of the morning.” “You’re her son?” she asked in her raspy voice. “No, I’m her secretary. Staci doesn’t have any children.” “Ah,” she said,” Well, maybe I should-“ I knew she was going to back out, so I interrupted her before she could. “I’m so glad I was able to talk Staci into joining the Chamber.” “Oh,” she said, perking up a little, “You talked her into it?” “This is her first business, and she’s been really busy. No offense,” I said, guiding her subtly away from the door towards the chairs in the ‘waiting room,’ “but she didn’t realize the value of joining an organization such as yours.” “And you did?” she seemed amused. “Are you kidding,” I said, then repeated something Staci had said while explaining the Chamber, “The support the business community can provide itself is invaluable. And the networking is something you can’t get anywhere else.” “That’s right,” she agreed. “Please have a seat,” I said, holding my hand towards one of the chairs, “Plus all the services you provide, well- I’m sorry, look who I’m talking to. I don’t need to tell you the benefits of the Chamber of Commerce.” “If I may ask,” she said, taking a seat and placing her purse and a folder on the coffee table in front of her, “How old are you?” “Thirteen,” I said, then moved off that subject, “May I get you some coffee?” “I’m dying for coffee,” she almost moaned. “Well I just mad a fresh pot,” I said walking towards the coffee, “How do you take it?” “Black,” she said, looking around the room, “Is it okay to smoke in here?” “Please do,” I said. I went over and poured her a cup. She was pulling a long brown pack of cigarettes out of her purse as I set the coffee down on the table in front of her. It took me a while before I noticed they were Saratoga 120s. She took one out of her purse and put it in her mouth, then set the elegant looking box of 120s on the table. As I went to fix myself a cup of coffee I couldn’t help but notice how long the cigarette dangling from her lips looked. She was digging through her purse, obviously looking fro a light. As I set my mug down on the coffee table next to hers, she looked up at me. “Could I borrow that lighter,” she asked with the Saratoga bouncing between her lips. She was pointing to the lighter on top of my Virginia Slims that I had left on the desk. “Certainly,” I said. I went to my desk and got the lighter, along with the pack of Virginia Slims, and went back to sit in the chair next to hers. I handed her the lighter and set the pack of Virginia Slims on the table next to her Saratoga’s. My heart was pounding as I tried to get up the nerve to smoke in front of her. She lit up the Saratoga and handed the lighter back to me. “Thanks,” she said, then took a big sip of coffee, “That hits the spot. I guess we should get started. She re-positioned her coffee and cigarettes so that she could open up the folder she brought. Seeing that my Virginia Slims were in the way, I reached down for them.” “Let me get those out of your way,” I said as I picked them up, hoping she’d say something about it. She didn’t. She just opened the folder all the way up and took another sip and drag. I decided to go for it. I took a cigarette out of my pack and held between my fingers. Using the same hand holding the cigarette, I reached across her and set the Virginia Slim pack down next to her Saratoga’s. She didn’t seem to notice. My hands were trembling a little as I brought the cigarette to my mouth and lit it. I exhaled in her direction, and still she didn’t notice. She also didn’t notice when I used the hand holding the freshly lit Virginia Slim to reach in front of her and place the lighter on my pack of cigarettes. She just started talking about the benefits of the Chamber of Commerce. I still got hard. This was the first time I’d ever smoked in front of someone, even if they didn’t seem to take notice. I was taking a drag when she all of a sudden stopped talking about one of the Chamber’s many benefits and sat up and looked right at me. “You know,” she smiled as I removed the Virginia Slim from my mouth and inhaled a rather big drag, “I’m telling you things you already seem to know.” “That’s okay,” I said turning my head and exhaling a huge stream of smoke. Surely she had to notice me smoking now. She didn’t mention it though. Instead, she took a drag of her own, then asked while exhaling, “Do you know about the breakfasts and mixers?” “No,” I said after taking an even bigger drag. At this point I noticed my ash was getting long. Linda Plum from the Chamber of Commerce must have noticed too, because she moved the ashtray from her side of the table closer to me. “Thank you, Ms. Plum,” I said as I de-ashed my cigarette. “Please,” she said, “Ms. Plum is my mother’s name. Call me Linda.” “Okay, Linda,” I said, then took another puff. Now that I knew she noticed I was smoking I hoped she wouldn’t be able to notice the bulge in my pants. She still hadn’t questioned that a 13-year-old was smoking though. She took a sip of coffee, flicked the ash from the Saratoga and took a puff before going on. “Well, every Wednesday morning we have a Networking Breakfast at Dawn’s Coffee Shop. It’s a chance for members to meet, offer discounted services to one another, and just let everyone know what it is we do.” We each took a drag and tapped the ashes off our respective cigarettes and sipped our coffee before she went on. “And once a month we have what we call the Chamber Mixer. Each month a different member hosts it on a Thursday night. Like the breakfast, everyone brings their business cards and any promotional materiel they may have, but it’s more like a cocktail party.” “Cool,” I said, taking a drag. “They really are productive,” Linda said after taking another drag then stubbing out her finished Saratoga, “As a matter of fact we’re having one this Thursday at the Ames Insurance. Do you think Ms. Stuart could make it?” “I’m not sure,” I said, not wanting to commit Staci to anything without asking her first, “She’s been really busy.” “Well here,” she said as she pulled a flyer from her folder, “Give her this and hopefully she can attend.” “Great,” I said, accepting the flyer while taking a final drag from my cigarette and putting it out, “Can I get you some more coffee?” “That would be great,” she said as she handed me her cup. As I got up to refill our coffee I noticed her picking up her Saratoga’s. “Those are very elegant looking cigarettes,” I said as I brought her coffee to her, “What are they called?” “Saratoga’s” she said, taking one out, then holding to box out towards me, “Would you like to try one?” “Certainly,” I said, taking one from the pack as I felt myself getting stiffer. Luckily I was wearing loose-fitting pants. I placed the cigarette in my mouth while she was lighting hers and it actually felt heavier than a Virginia Slim. “They’re so long,” I said as I sat back down. “They’re 120s,” she explained, holding the flame of the lighter out to the end of my Saratoga. I took a puff and turned the cigarette in my hand to get a good look at it. I loved the look of such a long cigarette in my hand. “What do you think?” she asked. “Pretty good,” I said after taking another puff to make sure. “I used to smoke yours,” she said with a nod towards the Virginia Slims, “but once you switch to 120s it hard going back to 100s.” “I know what you mean,” I said after another drag, “I could get used to these.” “So,” she said, changing the subject, “Can I sign you guys up for the Chamber?” “Of course,” I said, “I just know it will help Staci’s business grow.” “Good,” she said, letting the Saratoga dangle from her lips as she pulled out some papers from her folder,” The dues are just $100 a year. Just fill out this form and put it in this envelope with a check.” I dangled my Saratoga from my lips as I took the paper and envelope from her and got up to set them on the desk. I then took my first hands-free inhale. “You really like those, huh?” she asked with a smile as she too had a hands-free exhale. "I do," I said, keeping the Saratoga in my mouth just as she was. I took another hands-free drag. “They really suit you,” she said, matching my last hands-free drag, “They compliment your maturity.” I was really hard now. “They’re just so classy,” I said, keeping the Saratoga in my mouth for another drag. I liked the length a lot, but preferred the taste and smell of the Virginia Slims. “I think so too,” she said with a wink as she picked up the pack and stood up, “Why don’t I leave the rest of these here for you.” She kept the long cigarette in her mouth as she walked towards me holding the pack out. “No,” I said, hoping she didn’t think I was hinting for her to make the offer. “No, really. There are only a few left and I’ve got plenty.” “Are you sure?” I asked. “Please,” she said, as we both took another hands free drag. “Okay,” I said, accepting the pack, “but you have to take the rest of my Virginia Slims.” “Don’t be silly,” she said, “You don’t need to do that.” “It’s only fair,” I said, “There are only a few left, and I’ve got plenty.” She giggled at my repeating her earlier argument towards me and agreed. “Okay. It’ll be a nice change to try my old brand again.” At this point, both of us had very long ashes on the end of our cigarettes. “I think we’re going to have to use our hands now,” she joked, removing the Saratoga to flick the ash. I laughed a little and did the same. While we finished our coffee and Saratogas she mentioned that she owned a printing shop a couple of blocks away and could get Staci a great deal on business cards or any flyers we might need. She added that even if Staci couldn’t come to the Mixer I should give her some flyers and cards for her to pass out Thursday night. I grabbed some of Staci’s business cards from my desk and handed them to her. “We don’t really have any flyers,” I said. “I’ll tell you what,” she said, gathering her stuff and standing up, “If you can get me something she’d want to say on a flyer by tomorrow, I can have it printed up by Thursday.” “I’ll see what I can do,” I said, picking up the Virginia Slims she’d left on the coffee table, “Don’t forget these.” She smiled and took them from me and said good-bye. It was now eleven. I figured I’d have another hour before Staci got to the office. I grabbed the Saratoga’s and lighter and headed for the bathroom. I was only able to have three puffs before I came.
