Allure Tobacco Company

By Anonymous

Part 1: "A Lure" 

Maureen Connolley awoke to the beeping of her alarm clock, and began the morning routine that she had kept since moving out on her own earlier in the year. She reached over, clicked the alarm off, and in one motion grabbed the pack of cigarettes and the lighter that she kept on her nightstand. Rolling over on her back, she flipped open the pack, took out a cigarette, put it between her lips, clicked her lighter, and sucked deeply for a few seconds, with her eyes only slightly open. She briefly opened her mouth to breathe in, before beginning a second long drag, and then again breathed sharply in with a slight popping sound. As the smoke soaked into her lungs for the first time that day, she thought the same thing that she thought every morning after waking up- "ah, that feels soooo good." After a few more seconds, she exhaled, and then immediately repeated the process of taking a double drag, closing her eyes as the smoke permeated her lungs, and then reluctantly exhaling, only to take another immediate double pump. She closed her eyes, listening to the crackle of the cigarette as she dragged on it, the popping sound of her inhales, and the whoosh of her exhales. 

Maureen always smoked that way in the morning, and although she knew that it was probably not the healthiest way to indulge in an already unhealthy habit, she took an almost guilty pleasure in just giving in to her smoking addiction in an unrestrained way, at least first thing in the morning. Her morning nicotine was her favorite part of waking up. It felt very, very good. After basically sucking in as much smoke as she could from that first daily cigarette, Maureen always lit a second cigarette, which she would smoke a bit more leisurely, and got out of bed to get ready for the day ahead. 

Maureen was more or less your average, pretty college freshman girl. She was 5 ft. 5, 130 lbs, with very long brown hair, which she styled differently as suited her mood, and bright, cheerful blue eyes.

She got good grades, though not stellar, and she enjoyed pretty much the same things that most college girls like. She partied hard. She liked a wide variety of music, went to the movies frequently, and dated regularly, though she hadn't met anybody she felt she was ready to be serious with. She was physically in good shape; though she had become a heavy smoker since going away to school, she kept an active lifestyle and worked out regularly.

She continued her morning routine, looking at the day's news on the computer, while she enjoyed a cup of coffee along with her cigarette. After finishing both, she grabbed a quick shower, got dressed, smoked her third cigarette while doing her hair and makeup, and then headed off to class, lighting up her fourth cigarette of the day on her way out the door. 

After her classes, she went to the student center to look for a possible room for rent. She lived alone in an apartment off campus, but was looking for a place a little bit less expensive, since her budget was increasingly tight. Plus she was interested in getting a pet of some sort, maybe a little dog or a cat. While looking at different bulletins, one of them caught her eye. 

"Are you a female smoker? If so, you may qualify to participate in an important study. We will pay a select number of applicants $1000 a week during the duration of the study. If interested, please call (329) 764-8093 to set up an interview." 

Maureen's interest was aroused by the bulletin. She could definitely use the money, but it seemed strange to her that somebody was willing to pay so much. "Is this some sort of quit smoking program?" she thought. There were certainly plenty of potential applicants around campus. She hesitated only a moment, and then decided to write down the number and give them a call, more to satisfy her curiosity than anything else. 

She left the student center, and almost unconsciously reached into her purse for a cigarette while she walked back. In one smooth, well-practiced motion, she extracted a cigarette from the pack and put it in her mouth. She clicked her lighter, torched the end of her cig, and sucked hard on the filter, her cheeks caving in around it. When she'd taken a drag for a few seconds, she pulled the cigarette out of her mouth with her characteristic slight popping sound, and breathed audibly in. She felt herself instantly soothed, and held the smoke in her lungs for a few seconds before exhaling. She repeated this action about twenty more times, once every few seconds, while she made her way back to her car and then drove to her apartment. 

She arrived at her room, and went inside. She decided to call the number right away. 

Maureen was a bit surprised when a female voice answered, "A.T.C., how may I help you?" 

"Hi, I'm calling about a bulletin that I saw at the student center at my university." 

"Yes. Are you at least 18 years of age?" 

"I'm 19." 

"Wonderful. Would you like to set up an interview?" 

"Well, maybe. Could you tell me a little bit about what it involves?" Maureen took her cigarette pack out of her purse, fished out another cigarette, and put it between her lips. 

"I'm sorry, but I can't divulge the subject of the study until you have completed an interview." 

Maureen clicked her lighter and lit up, chuffing out a bit of smoke before taking a longer drag and breathing it in. She talked through her exhale, "Well, can you tell me if it's some quit smoking program, or something like that?" 

The girl on the other end of the line almost sounded amused. She said, "No. Nothing like that. If you'd like to come in for an interview, we can give you more information if you're selected. And I can offer to pay you $50 for your time in completing the interview process." 

"How long will it take?" Maureen asked after another puff. 

"Probably around an hour or so. It just involves a questionnaire, and an interview with our project manager." 

"Might as well make some free and easy money," Maureen thought. "Ok, when would be a good time to come in?" 

"Any time that's good for you. We'll be open till 5." 

"All right, I'm free this afternoon. I'll grab a bite to eat first. Would around 2 work?" 

"That'd be good. We'll be here. Our address is 140 Sycamore Dr., Ste 20. What's your name, Miss?" 

"I'm Maureen." 

"Nice to meet you, Maureen. We'll see you at 2:00." 

"Ok. Bye." 

Maureen took a thoughtful drag on her cigarette, and wondered what this study would be all about. 

At 2:00 exactly, Maureen arrived at the address she had been given, and walked into a nicely furnished waiting room type area, where she was greeted first with a strong and pleasant odor of tobacco smoke in the room. She approached the receptionist, and guessed that this had been the girl she had spoken with on the phone. She looked to be about her age, and was petite and attractive, with pretty, raven black hair. Maureen was somewhat interested to notice that the young girl had a lit cigarette between her fingers, which she took a deep drag on before looking up. 

"Are you Maureen?" she asked, smoke punctuating the query. 

"Yeah. I'm here for my interview." 

"Hi. I'm glad to meet you. My name is Emily. First, we have a questionnaire for you to fill out. Would you like to come in and have a seat?" 

Putting her cigarette between her lips and dragging on it, Emily rose from her desk and led Maureen into another nicely decorated room with a single desk in the middle. On the desk was a pen, some papers, and, interestingly, an empty ashtray. 

"If you would, please fill this out, and then bring it back to me." 

Maureen looked at her watch, and then sat down at the desk. On the desk there was an empty ashtray and a pen. She picked up the pen, and then began filling out the questionnaire. 

Please respond to the following questions as thoroughly and honestly as possible. 

Q. What is your full name? Maureen Connolley 

Q. How old are you? I turned 19 last month. 

Q. How old were you when you first tried smoking? I tried it for the first time in 7th grade. I think I was probably 12 or 13. 

(At this point, Maureen decided to have a cigarette while she completed her answers. As she lit up in her customary way, she reflected that it was nice to be in a place that seemed to be so smoker friendly.) 

Q. Why did you try smoking? 

(Maureen took another drag and filled her lungs as the memory came to her mind.) 

Seeing how much my parents enjoyed smoking, I was really curious about it for a long time, even though I knew that it was forbidden. I finally decided to try it one day when my parents were late coming home from work and there were some cigarettes around the house. 

Q. Did you start because of peer pressure? No. None of my friends smoked at the time. 

Q. How old were you when you began smoking regularly? The same age. I really liked it and kept doing it after I tried it. 

Q. Did you ever get in trouble for smoking? Explain. Once. My father found cigarettes in my room when I was a junior in high school and grounded me for a month. 

Q. Did you ever get any of your friends or siblings to try smoking? Explain. Yes. I taught a couple of my friends to smoke. 

Q. Have you ever tried to quit smoking? Explain. Once. When I got caught my parents made me quit. 

Q. If yes, then why did you start back up? Basically because it was hell. I started back up the very first chance I got and just kept it hidden really well till I moved out. 

Q. Do you regret starting to smoke? Not really. I don't regret anything that I've done in my life. I enjoy it and accept that I'm a smoker. 

Q. What are your feelings about the health risks of smoking? I'm still young, so I try not to worry about it. 

Q. What brand of cigarette do you prefer and why? I started with Marlboro Lights because that's what brand my parents smoked. Since starting at college I've been smoking Camel filters because they're strong, smooth, and satisfying. 

Q. How much do you smoke a day? Usually about a pack and a half a day. More on the weekends or if I'm stressed. 

Q. Do you think that you will ever quit? Maybe when I'm older, but right now my philosophy is to just enjoy myself while I'm young. 

Q. What is your opinion of anti-smoking laws in this state? I think that they're stupid, because people have a right to smoke if and when they want to. 

Q. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being very little, and 10 being very much, how much do you enjoy smoking? I'd have to say a 9. 

Q. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being very little, and 10 being very much, how addicted are you to smoking? Honestly, probably an 8 or 9. 

Maureen finished her cigarette shortly before she finished filling out her answers, and put it out in the ashtray that had been provided for her. She looked briefly over her answers, and decided that she had responded to the questions to her satisfaction. She got up, went back to the waiting room, and gave the papers to Emily, who had just lit another cigarette. Maureen noticed that Emily's ashtray was very full. 

"You're done already?" asked Emily through a cloud of smoke. "Ok. If you'd like to have a seat here, I'll take your questionnaire to the project manager, Dr. Monroe." 

Maureen waited for about 10 minutes while Dr. Cynthia Monroe looked over her answers to the questionnaire. Dr. Monroe was in her early thirties, blonde, and attractive in the sort of way that a sexy librarian might be. As the project manager for A.T.C., one of her responsibilities was to carefully screen potential subjects to ensure suitability for the study, as well as to minimize the risks of legal complications. As she examined the papers, she also studied for a second time the hidden camera's video footage taken of Maureen while she was completing the first step of the application process. Dr. Monroe's attention was drawn to the image of Maureen casually lighting up and dragging deeply on each puff while thoughtfully writing down her answers to the questions posed to her. Occasionally Maureen would take a double pump on her cigarette, and she varied her exhales through her mouth and nose. Before each hit, she emptied her lungs completely so that she could take a bigger dose of nicotine. "Best of all," Dr. Monroe thought, "Maureen seemed to do all of this automatically and easily, as if it was second nature." She would make a perfect test subject. 

Dr. Monroe picked up the phone and pressed a button on the console. "Hi- Yes- Yes, she did- Same here. All of her responses are perfect, so I think she might work out quite nicely. I'll call her in."

Part 2: "Hooked" 

Maureen tried to occupy her mind while she sat and waited. While she was waiting, the receptionist had lit up three more times. She seemed to be chain smoking, which was unusual, Maureen thought, in a work environment, even though A.T.C. seemed to be some sort of tobacco company. While the receptionist smoked, her attention seemed intently fixed on her work, which consisted of filing papers and typing on her computer. Maureen fidgeted, bored, and looked again at her watch, wondering what she had gotten herself into. She vaguely wished that she had brought something interesting to read. She was tempted to light up a cigarette, but resisted the urge. Further inside the office, a door opened, and an attractive blond woman in her early thirties emerged and smiled warmly at her. She was wearing a white lab coat that imperfectly concealed a buxom figure. "Hi Miss Connolley, would you like to step into my office to start our interview?" 

As Maureen sat down in the chair opposite Dr. Monroe, she felt momentarily awkward, and cleared her throat nervously. 

Dr. Monroe spoke first. "I suppose you're curious about what our study entails, and why it pays so well. A.T.C. is a small tobacco company that is doing research to develop cigarettes that are both safer and more satisfying. We are currently looking for committed smokers to help us as we refine and perfect a new product that we have been developing. Does this sound like something that might interest you?" 

Maureen didn't quite know what to think. She asked the first question that came to mind- "How long is the study, and what do I have to do?" 

"Well, you have to commit to coming in to our office each day for about an hour. You'll be paid $1000 each week. How many weeks or months you remain a part of the study is up to you. While you're here, we'll give you various cigarettes to try, and ask you questions about your experience of them. We'll also give you free samples to take home and try at your leisure. For liability purposes, we're also prepared to offer free medical exams and weekly physicals, since, of course, smoking is a health risk." 

Dr. Monroe paused for a second. "Would you like to try one of our newest cigarettes to see how you like them?" 

Maureen was curious what sort of smoke could be worth paying $1000 a week to try, and she felt like having a cigarette anyway. "Sure," she said, smiling. "Cigarettes are so expensive I never pass up a freebie." 

Dr. Monroe opened up her desk drawer and selected a pack of cigarettes from inside. The box was entirely white, without any markings on it. She withdrew two cigarettes, and handed one of them to Maureen. She kept the other one for herself. She also offered a lighter, which Maureen waved off. 

"No thanks, I got my own," she said, taking her lucky lighter out of her purse. Dr. Monroe lit up first, an expression of obvious pleasure crossing her face as she inhaled. Even more curious than before, Maureen held the cigarette to her lips with one hand while her other worked her lighter. Her cigarette now lit, Maureen inhaled sharply, mentally attentive to the taste and feeling of a new cigarette brand. 

Maureen could only smile as the smoke made its way through her body. She experienced an instant nicotine rush, much like when she first started smoking, but none of the nausea or other uncomfortable effects of her initial experimentation with cigarettes. The sensation of the smoke in her lungs was very pleasant, like the smoke simply belonged there. She looked down at the cigarette burning between her fingers, smiled, tilted her head back, and rather than blow the smoke out, merely let it escape through her nostrils and slightly parted lips. 

Dr. Monroe broke the silence as she took another puff of her own. "They're nice, aren't they?" 

Maureen nodded as she took a long drag and inhaled. She felt nicely dizzy, remarkably alert, and yet very relaxed. "This is easily the best cigarette I've ever had!" she said, smoke escaping her lips as they formed the words. "It gives a nice nic kick, but it's also really smooth, and it tastes really good too." She paused only to take in more of the smoke. "When can I start?" 

"You can start today, if you'd like. There's just a few forms you'll need to fill out first," said Dr. Monroe, as she indulged in another luxuriously long puff. "You'll find that this is the best job you could ever imagine." Dr. Monroe smiled expansively. "We take very good care of our employees." 

Maureen's heart was thumping rapidly in excitement as she tapped her ash and then continued to enjoy her cigarette. She wasn't sure if her excitement was from the cigarette itself, or from the prospect of being able to smoke more of these delightful cigs in the future. As the two women smoked in silence, questions came to Maureen's mind, but remained unasked; she was sure that she would find out the answers later. Although she had just met the mysterious Dr. Monroe, Maureen had an overall good impression of her. She felt as though the two of them had bonded over the past few minutes. 

The two women finished their cigarettes at about the same time, and Maureen felt a thrill of anticipation as Dr. Monroe withdrew two more cigarettes and handed her one, not even bothering to ask if she'd like another. The two of them lit up again, and Dr. Monroe opened her top desk drawer, and took out some papers. 

"Here are some forms for you to sign," said Dr. Monroe, pushing the papers and a pen across the desk. "They are basically some waivers so that you won't sue us, and a confidentiality clause. You must agree not to disclose the nature of your involvement with us to any third party." She took another huge puff before continuing. "Also, you may not share any of our product with any other third party for any reason, since it is still in development. For our part, we agree to pay you $1000 per week, and provide free medical exams and health screenings for the duration of your association with us. Feel free to look over everything before signing, and let me know if you have any questions." 

Maureen glanced at the contract as she smoked, and found everything to be straightforward. She put her cigarette in the middle of her mouth and held it there as she eagerly signed and initialed in all of the appropriate places, so that she could quickly get back to puffing. She gave the papers back to the older woman, who exchanged the papers for a fresh pack of cigarettes and handed them to Maureen. 

"Very good. Can you come in tomorrow afternoon at 3:00?" Maureen nodded. "In the meantime, enjoy these." 

"By the way," said Maureen, taking the pack and examining it, "What do you call them?" 

"We haven't started marketing them yet, but for now we're calling them `Allure 100's.'" 

"Nice name, very appropriate," Maureen said as she put the pack into her purse, smiling broadly. Dr. Monroe rose from her chair, and shook Maureen's left hand, since each of their right hands were occupied with their cigarettes. "Thank you for everything." 

"You're very welcome. I look forward to working with you." 

Maureen left Dr. Monroe, and made her way towards the exit. As she left, she inhaled more smoke, smiled and waved goodbye to Emily, who was still puffing away as she worked.

Part 3: "The Machine" 

As she drove home, Maureen resisted the urge to light up another Allure, but barely. She didn't feel like she was experiencing a physical craving. Quite the contrary, chain smoking the two Allures back in the office left her feeling quite satisfied, and the pleasant buzz she had experienced stayed with her for well-over the 10 minutes or so that it took her to drive home. Yet, the physical sensation of smoking the new cigarette had a definite, well, allure to it. It felt fantastic in her lungs, and she could almost feel the nicotine hitting her brain after every puff. 

As she walked in the door, she could no longer resist, so Maureen took her purse, and made a beeline to her favorite chair, where an ashtray was waiting. Trying her best to be casual, she unwrapped the pack and took out one of the Allures. Within moments, it was lit, and Maureen once again felt the pleasure wash over her as she hungrily smoked. 

She smoked freely throughout the night, smoking while studying for a while. She made remarkable progress in her school work; it seemed that smoking the new cigarettes sharpened her mind, and she grasped the material with little effort. When she finally rose from her chair, she was surprised both by the lateness of the hour, and by the unpleasant realization that she only had a few Allures left. Before bed, she smoked one of her normal brand, but found it much less satisfying than the Allure, so she finished it and then chained into her new favorite cigarette. That night, she slept soundly, with vivid dreams that she remembered quite clearly when she awoke the next morning. 

Waking up, this time before her alarm clock went off, she immediately thought, as she always did, of smoking. But this morning, it seemed that she couldn't get her cigarette lit fast enough. Her first few puffs, she smoked like a fiend, and was rewarded once again with the amazingly nice buzz that the Allures provided. Because she only had two left, she resisted smoking a second Allure, but instead substituted two of her regular brand, which combined to provide her needed fix. Maureen decided to save her remaining Allures to smoke after each of her morning classes, but didn't quite make it, instead chaining them in the car on the way to school. 

It seemed that the day dragged on and on. She found herself chain smoking her regular brand whenever she wasn't in class, but they weren't as satisfying, and they left a scratchy feeling in her throat and lungs that she didn't get at all from her Allures. Nevertheless, she continued to smoke quite heavily through the day until around 2:30, when Maureen decided to go in early to her new job. As she entered the building, all she could think about was getting more of that alluring smoke inside her, and she rushed to room 20. 

"Hi, Emily," she said, nervously, as she greeted the petite receptionist. "I wasn't supposed to come in for another half-hour, but I didn't have anything better to do." 

"Hi, Maureen," said Emily, exhaling smoke from the half-smoked cigarette she was enjoying. "Dr. Monroe won't be in until 3:00, but you're free to wait if you'd like, or you can come back." 

"I'll wait," Maureen said, trying not to sound exasperated. She sat down, but as an idea occurred to her she stood back up. "Hey, do you suppose I could bum a smoke off of you? I ran out." 

Sympathetic concern was evident on Emily's young and pretty face. "That's horrible. Of course you can." 

Maureen had her lighter in her hand and ready to go even before Emily handed her another Allure. She clicked her lighter as she took it between her trembling index and middle fingers. She lit it immediately, and took a series of short and powerful drags, inhaling the last as deeply as she could. As the smoke once more filled her body, Maureen felt her anxiety melt swiftly away, replaced by the now familiar tingle of warmth within her chest. She closed her eyes, and said, softly, "That's much better. Thank you." After a few more drags, Maureen felt completely wonderful once again. 

Emily continued to regard Maureen sympathetically. "I hate when I run out or can't smoke, which is part of why I enjoy my work so much," she said, taking a deep drag of her own. "I can pretty much smoke all day long, except when I'm eating or sleeping." 

Maureen thought that she didn't have to be a rocket scientist to realize that what she was smoking was incredibly addictive, much more so than the cigarettes that she had already grown so accustomed to. "What have you people done to me?" she asked between drags. "I'm like a heroin addict." She added, almost as an afterthought, "Not that I mind though." 

"I know what you mean. I just really, really like these Allures," replied Emily, taking an exceptionally big puff and smiling. "I've loved them since my first one." Maureen nodded her head in agreement as they each simultaneously took another drag. Emily continued, "I don't have to tell you how enjoyable they are. And you'll find that there are other aspects of this program that are even more pleasurable, if you can believe it." 

Maureen felt reassured by Emily's words, and even more curious about what she meant by the more pleasurable components of the study. She was about to ask for details, when Dr. Monroe walked in, smoke streaming from her own Allure, and from her lips and nostrils. 

"Hi Maureen! Good to see you. How are you liking our product?" 

"It's wonderful, thanks, but I have some questions." 

"That's understandable. I'll be completely candid with you and hopefully answer all of your questions to your satisfaction. Would you like to step into my office?" 

"Thanks, Emily," said Maureen, winking at the receptionist. She went into Dr. Monroe's office, followed by the older woman, who closed the door behind her. 

"Today I'll tell you a bit more about our study, and then I'll show you one of our new projects that we're working on. If you have any further questions, you can feel free to ask them, but hopefully I'll answer most of them for you during the tour. 

"First, I'll be very candid with you. Allures are very addictive, because they contain a very potent and unique form of nicotine that we've developed." Dr. Monroe pumped on her cigarette before she continued, "In the past, tobacco companies experimented with different additives in their cigarettes, hoping to develop a more enjoyable product. Rather than using additives, we have experimented with genetic modification in our tobacco plants. We have several goals in mind: to create a cigarette that is much safer, and also much more pleasurable. Allures represent a breakthrough towards both of those ends, although they are only one step forward, and we expect to make further progress." 

"So you mean to tell me that there are no health risks with Allures?" 

"I wouldn't say `no health risks,' but they're a significant improvement over other brands. Part of the reason is that we have successfully engineered tobacco plants that produce less carcinogenic byproducts when burned. Another part of the reason is that the smoke of Allures is absorbed much more quickly into the blood stream, with less dangerous residues left in the smoker's lungs. We've done significant animal testing, and while the animals are not as healthy as the control group, they are much better off than those exposed to regular tobacco smoke. 

"A second benefit to Allures, as I have mentioned, is that they provide a highly rewarding smoking experience." As if to accentuate this point, Dr. Monroe lit up again, and Maureen followed suit. 

"Conventional tobacco affects smokers less as the brain adjusts and adapts to the nicotine in them. Our product works differently, and provides lasting enjoyment, because the brain never grows desensitized to it. Every time is like your first time. 

"Finally, our product utilizes a form of nicotine that is non-poisonous, and so it is possible to have a higher concentration of nicotine in each cigarette. Conventional cigarettes actually contain several forms of nicotine, the most potent of which is commonly called `freebase nicotine' and is highly toxic. Allures also contain several forms of nicotine, each of which produces a different pleasurable effect in the smoker's brain. Our goal in this study is to further perfect Allures, and to make, in short, the perfect cigarette." 

Maureen found all of this information very interesting, and said very little, taking in every word as she also took in more of the allure smoke. As she took a final puff off of the last one she had lit, Dr. Monroe suddenly changed her demeanor, and smiled a mischievous grin at her. "You've been smoking our regular 100's. Would you like to try one of our newest pleasures?" 

"Um, ok." 

Dr. Monroe led Maureen out of her office and ushered her into an elevator. The two of them went up to the 4th floor, and got out of the elevator. They walked around a corner to a room with a little sign above it. "Room 414." 

The inside of the room resembled a dentist's office, with a reclining chair, and a machine with a tube coming out of one end. There was also a sort of cap, and a computer monitor. She sat back in the chair, while Dr. Monroe fastened the cap to her head. "This is to monitor how your brain responds to what you'll be smoking." Dr. Monroe turned on the screen, which showed a picture of Maureen's brain, colored red and yellow and orange and blue in various places. 

"Right now, your brain is showing heightened activity in the pleasure centers, as indicated by the places where you see light blue, here," she pointed with her lit cigarette, "and here. 

"Now I want you to take this tube, and, when you're ready, press the little button at the end of it and breathe in. I think you'll really like it." 

Maureen's head was already spinning with pleasure, but nonetheless, she put the tube in her mouth and pressed the little button. A smoky substance immediately jetted out, and filled her lungs. 

As the smoke made its way rapidly through her lungs and into her brain, Maureen felt an intense thrill of pleasure fill her entire body. She felt as if it was too much, and she almost passed out for a second. Her body twitched with the deepest and most powerfully amazing experience she had ever had. It was as if time stopped for a moment, and there was only the smoke within her lungs and the smoke tube in her hands begging for her to take another, longer inhale. Glancing at the computer monitor, she noticed the areas of her brain that had been a light shade of blue instantly turn dark purple and begin to glow brightly. She exhaled forcefully, eager to take in more. She put the tube again in her mouth, this time unabashedly taking in as much smoke as she could directly into her lungs. She held the smoke in, her face beaming. As she exhaled, she was speechless, and could only smile dreamily as she fixed her lips once again around the tube and took in more of this delightful and exhilarating smoke. Tears of ecstasy filled her eyes, and her whole body shook with orgasmic intensity. 

The voice of reason told Maureen that what she was smoking must be some variety of tobacco that was incredibly addictive, much more than anything she had ever tried before. But this reasonable voice was drowned out by the deep and intense experience of pleasure that commanded her to keep pumping this new smoke into her most willing body. Finally, Maureen spoke, in a whisper, between pumps, smoke spewing from her lips and nostrils as the words came forth. 

"Oh, yes. Yes. I love it. Yes. More." 

She breathed more in, repeatedly, franticly, until the bliss was too much, and she lost consciousness. 

Upon waking, Maureen found herself lying on a bed in an unfamiliar room. She looked up, and saw Dr. Monroe sitting across from her in a chair, smiling, and offering her another Allure, which she eagerly took. Her hands shook violently as she struggled to get it lit. As she inhaled, her hands immediately regained their dexterity. She took another puff as Dr. Monroe lit up. "How long-" 

"About 2 hours," Dr. Monroe answered her question before Maureen finished it. She smiled again, and added in a sensuous voice as she exhaled, "How did you like it?" 

"It was like heaven," said Maureen, between puffs. "When can do it again?" 

"Soon. Very soon. But not yet. There's something we need you to help us with first." 

"Anything. I'll do anything."

Part 4: "The Call" 

Somehow, she would make this happen. Getting back on the machine, as soon as possible, was Maureen's top priority right now, and she was willing to do whatever needed to be done to achieve her desire. 

Maureen sat in her favorite comfy chair, saturating her lungs again and again with Allure smoke, while she pondered her plan of action. She took a forceful drag on her cig, sighed as she exhaled, and took one more pull on it before crushing it out in the overflowing ashtray on her lap. Maureen told herself that this would be her last one for a little while, but soon felt an overwhelming need to light up again. Happily, she gave in, and felt the new influx of nicotine tickle the pleasure centers of her brain. Dr. Monroe had warned her that after coming off of the machine, she might experience an increased desire for her special cigarettes. 

On some level, Maureen felt guilty about what she was about to do. Her sister Julia was a happy, attractive, intelligent, and innocent high school sophomore. She totally disapproved of Maureen's smoking habit, even without knowing about her new Allure dependency. If she knew what becoming the newest ATC guinea pig would do to her, she would never consent to the test. 

Maureen looked down at the newly lit cigarette between her slender fingers, seeking some possible justification for involving her sister. She asked herself, "Knowing what I know now, would I have started to smoke these things if I had it to do over again?" With a strange, almost sinister looking smile, she sucked the smoke aggressively inside her body, and in that moment she had her answer. Without further hesitation, she picked up the phone to call her sister. 

"What's up, Sis?" Although the two sisters were different in terms of temperament, they remained close, even after Maureen went away to college. 

Maureen took a quick drag before speaking. "Hey! I got some exciting news for you. You know how Mom and Dad told you they can't afford to pay for your summer trip to Europe? I know a way to earn some quick money - enough to pay for the trip with a little bit extra spending cash." 

"Really? I'd do anything to be able to see Europe with my friends." 

The strange smile returned to Maureen's lips as she took another puff and then replied. "I can't tell you any specifics yet, but this is a really good opportunity for you. I know you'll be glad you took advantage of it." 

"Can't you tell me anything more?" Julia's tone indicated that her interest had been aroused. She asked, half-jokingly, "It's not anything illegal, is it?" 

Maureen laughed, lightly, "No, nothing like that." That was true enough, or at least would be in a few years. "All I can tell you is that you'll be a participant in a psychology study off-campus. It's an experiment in memory and concentration." This was also true. Dr. Monroe had told Maureen that while Julia was trying Allures, she would be given a series of mental tasks to measure their effects on a first time smoker. 

"That sounds interesting. Why does it pay so much?" 

Maureen preferred not to answer that question, so she replied, "All of your questions will be answered when you come in. Trust me, you'll enjoy the study, and maybe learn something. You've got to keep an open mind though." If there was one thing that Julia prided herself on, it was on being open minded. "Do you think you can come visit me tomorrow sometime?" 

"Well, I'm not sure what I'm getting myself into, but yeah, I'll drive over after school. I'm excited that I'll be able to afford my trip. What should I tell Mom and Dad?" 

This was another question that Maureen didn't want to reply to, so she took a sharp hit on her cigarette and said, "Don't tell them anything just yet. Wait to see if this is something you want to do. So, I'll see you around 5:00 or so?" Maureen wanted to wrap up the conversation before Julia asked more questions, or worse, changed her mind. 

"Um- ok. Sure. I'll see you then." 

"Sounds great. Hey, I gotta get going. Call me when you're on your way." 

"I will. Love you." 

Maureen took a final drag on her cigarette, and sucked the smoke into the furthest recesses of her lungs, which tingled with pleasure. "I love you too, little Sis. Bye." Maureen slept poorly that night, waking up several times for a cigarette. When she did sleep, she dreamed about smoking. Surprisingly, however, when it was time for her to get up the next morning, she felt refreshed, eager for another nicotine filled day. She supposed that she should have been concerned about her ever-deepening obsession with cigarettes, but as she lit up, she didn't really care about anything except getting as much smoke in her body as possible. If anything, she felt a sort of excitement about being totally dominated by her cravings for cigarettes. She inhaled the smoke almost mechanically, and surrendered herself to its soothing influence. 

She kept a cigarette lit pretty much all morning, and even opted to take a bath instead of a shower so that she could smoke as she washed herself. Maureen kept her cigarette in her mouth the whole time, and just let the ashes fall of into the bath water. Midway through the morning, she opened her third pack since yesterday, and smoked while she ate a bowl of cereal and some toast. Fortunately, after her experience of running out the previous day, she had made sure to pick up a couple of cartons of Allures from Dr. Monroe. 

Her day went smoothly. She smoked in the car on the way to school, and made sure that she smoked right before each of her classes. She felt like she aced her biology test, although all through the test she had the nagging desire to go out for a quick smoke. However, with the sharper concentration that her Allures gave her she was able to finish quickly, and rush right out for her fix. 

Around 3:30, Julia called to let her know that she was on her way, and Maureen immediately called Dr. Monroe to tell her the good news. Because she was instructed to avoid smoking around Julia until she was tested, Maureen spent the time until her sister arrived loading up on nicotine, so that the cravings wouldn't be too unbearable later. When Julia arrived a little bit after 4:30, Maureen met her outside. 

"Are you ready to earn your Europe money?" Maureen asked, smiling. Although she had just finished a cigarette before Julia got there, she already wanted another one. 

"Yeah. I'm still really curious what all this is about, though." 

Maureen replied with the answer that she had rehearsed. "All of your questions will be answered when we get there. It shouldn't take more than a half hour of your time, and I've been told that they'll pay you in cash. I took part in the study too. It's really easy." 

Julia smiled at her sister. Although she was 16, she looked much younger, perhaps because she wore her raven black hair short, with bangs, and still had braces, which were due to come off in a couple months. She adjusted her glasses on her button nose like she always did when she was nervous. "Ok. Let's go." 

On the way over to A.T.C., Maureen was careful to keep the conversation off of the study. She drove quickly, eager to have get her sister all set up so that she could smoke again. 

As they entered the building, Maureen immediately noticed the lack of smoke in the air. Dr. Monroe herself was waiting to greet them. 

"Hi. You must be Julia. It's a pleasure to meet you. Maureen has told me so much about you." Dr. Monroe's demeanor was entirely charming and disarming. "If you'd like, please come this way and my assistant, Emily, will have some papers for you to look at and sign before we begin." 

Maureen gave her sister a hug. "Trust me. You won't regret taking part in this study. Good luck, Sis, and have fun!" 

Julia gave her sister a wry smile and fiddled with her glasses again, before Dr. Monroe escorted her into a side room, where Emily was waiting. Dr. Monroe returned and said, "Very good, Maureen. Very good. Come with me, and we'll watch your sister's progress in a different room over a video feed." 

The two women reached into their purses for their cigarettes as they walked. Each lit up with an expression of intensity, and inhaled audibly. They sat down in some comfortable chairs, and turned on the monitor to see Julia.

Part 5: "Harpooned" 

Maureen and Dr. Monroe hungrily sucked smoke in and exhaled it out of their lungs as they watched Julia enter the room, which contained a table, two chairs, and a dentist-like chair not unlike the one where Maureen had sat only a couple of days ago. Above the chair was a network of wires and tubes connected to what looked like a helmet. 

"Hi Julia, I'm Emily. Emily Monroe." 

Maureen hadn't heard Emily's last name before. "She's related to you, Dr. Monroe?" she wondered. 

"Please, call me Cynthia. She's my sister. A.T.C. is a family business." 

"Interesting," said Maureen, who seemed lost in thought as she slowly and deeply dragged on her Allure cigarette. 

"Nice to meet you, Emily." Julia was always well mannered. "I'm very curious to know about this study, and why it pays so much." 

Emily smiled reassuringly. "We'll get to the study soon, but I can't tell you very much right now. Before we begin, I have some forms for you to sign." Emily opened up a briefcase, and took out some papers. "I'll let you read over the contract for a few minutes, and then we'll start the experiment. While you're doing that, I'm going to go do some preparation." 

Julia was left alone in the room. Dr. Monroe clicked a button on the monitor, and then the image of a different room popped onto the screen. The door opened, and Emily appeared. She whipped her pack of cigarettes out of a pocket in her white lab coat, and, in a smooth motion, lit up. 

Maureen had never seen anybody smoke so quickly as Emily did. Emily's cigarette glowed brightly in the monitor as she took a series of triple pumps, held the smoke in her lungs for a few seconds, and then blew it forcefully out, only to immediately repeat the process. However, far from appearing frenzied in her intense inhalation of nicotine, Emily smoked this way with a casual expression on her face, as if it was second nature. 

Seeing Emily smoke this way made Maureen want another cigarette, so she removed another Allure from her pack, and lit it with the almost finished cig she was already smoking. Maureen was learning that whenever she craved a cigarette, she should just go ahead and have one. 

"She must have needed a cig pretty bad," she commented. 

Before two minutes had passed, Emily took one last, extra long drag on her cigarette, and sucked the smoke down as deeply in her lungs as she could. She made her way back into the room where Julia was waiting. Cynthia changed the channel on the T.V. back. 

Julia looked up as Emily entered the room. "Are you all done?" Emily asked. 

"Yeah. How long will this take?" 

"Only about half an hour. Forty-five minutes, tops." Emily looked over the paperwork, and finding it completed to her satisfaction, motioned for Julia to take a seat in the reclining chair in the corner. She hooked up all of the various wires and tubes and the helmet to Julia's head. Then she paused, almost dramatically, before speaking again. 

"I'm going to speak frankly, and answer some of the questions that you had earlier. The reason why we are paying you generously to participate in this experiment is because we are going to ask you to do something that you may not approve of, and which constitutes a minor health risk. The reason why we have chosen you for this study is because you have not previously used this product, and because we want to study its effects on a first time user." 

"What exactly is the product that I'm going to be testing?" asked Julia, concern plain to see on her innocent face. 

"We are going to ask you to smoke a single cigarette, and then we are going to give you a series of tasks that require memory and concentration. We asked you to participate in this study because you have never smoked before, and we want to see the effects of nicotine on a first time smoker." The expression Julia wore clearly showed she was not pleased. 

A long pause followed. In the other room, Maureen lit up again nervously as she waited for her sister to say something. 

Julia finally spoke. "I'm sorry. But I'm not really sure what to say. I don't want to risk my life for a few thousand dollars. Besides, what you're asking me to do is illegal." 

"Don't worry," Dr. Monroe commented between drags to Maureen, "Emily is very persuasive. She'll talk her into it." 

Emily said to Julia, "I understand your reluctance, and if you don't want to participate, then of course nobody is going to force you." She paused, as if finished speaking, but then spoke again, "But I can assure you that the health risk is very minimal indeed from just one cigarette. And I can assure you that you aren't going to go to jail for just trying a single cigarette. After this one time, you can walk away, and never smoke again, and then enjoy your graduation trip to Europe." Emily smiled again, exuding reassurance. 

Julia looked really uncomfortable, but she said, "Well, I'll probably be glad I did this when I get to go on my trip, so sure. I'll participate in your study. I'll smoke a cigarette for the first and the last time in my life." 

Maureen and the doctor watched on the monitor as Emily took the pack of cigarettes again out of the pocket of her lab coat, and set it down on the table next to Julia, along with a hot pink lighter. 

"It's important that Julia should reach for the cigarettes herself," Dr. Monroe commented, more to herself than to Maureen, as she extinguished her cigarette in the rapidly filling up ashtray. "It'll make the next time easier for her." 

Julia asked Emily, "Ok. What do I need to do?" 

"It might be easier if I showed you," said Emily, with a mischievous grin. "I got picked to work with you because I happen to smoke." Emily removed an Allure cigarette from the pack, put it between her lips, and then waited for Julia to do the same. Julia reached for the pack of cigarettes, took one out, examined it briefly with a frown, and then put it between her lips. 

Maureen thought about how different her little sister looked with a cigarette in her mouth, about to light up for the first time. 

Emily told Julia, the cigarette bobbing up and down between her lips as she spoke, "Just do what I do. Suck on the cigarette until it is lit, and then suck on it a little bit longer. Then, before you blow the smoke out, breathe in. Like this." Here, Emily sparked the lighter to life, and then lit up with evident pleasure. She breathed the smoke in deliberately, and then handed Julia the lighter. 

In the next room, Dr. Monroe was punching some buttons on the monitor, and an image appeared in the corner of the screen. "This is Julia's brain," she explained. 

"Here goes," said Julia. 

After one failed attempt, Julia succeeded in getting the lighter lit, and moved the flame towards the cigarette she still held in her mouth. In imitation of Emily, she touched the fire to the end of her Allure cigarette as she sucked on it. Then, it was lit, and Julia removed the cigarette from her mouth, as she had seen her sister do many times. After an awkward second or two, she breathed sharply in. 

As she held the smoke in her lungs, Julia's face remained momentarily expressionless, but then, suddenly, without wanting to, she smiled dreamily. A tear formed in the corner of one of her green eyes, and slowly slid down her pink cheek. After a couple of seconds, she released the smoke in her lungs in a downward exhale. 

"This is Julia's brain on nicotine," said Dr. Monroe, pleasantly. "Notice how the pleasure center of her brain is glowing a light blue, indicating heightened activity. The smoke she just inhaled stimulated the release of the hormones dopamine, adrenaline, and epinephrine, all of which activated her brain's reward mechanisms. The white spots on the image indicate where the nicotine is already attaching to her brain's acetylcholine receptors, which is giving her a sense of alertness." 

Emily took another drag before speaking, "How do you feel?" 

"Well, I can definitely see why people smoke, despite the health risks. I'm surprised how good it feels." As if to accentuate the point, Julia took another puff on her cigarette. 

"The yellow spots on the image," Dr. Monroe continued, "Indicate where Julia's brain is already starting to form more acetylcholine receptors. This is taking place much more rapidly than in people who start smoking regular cigarettes." 

"What does that mean?" asked Maureen. 

"It means that Julia isn't just getting hooked on nicotine. She's getting harpooned by it."

Part 6: "Just one more."

Maureen watched on the monitor as her younger sister Julia examined the long, newly lit cigarette between her fingers. Its smoke curled slowly upward from her slightly bent wrist, framing her face in bluish-gray cloud. Julia appeared transfixed in thought and sensation before she slowly, almost reluctantly, released her exhale. Smiling contentedly, her braces gleaming in the dim light, she watched the smoke disperse through the surrounding air through half-closed eyes.

Emily, Julia's mentor during the test, took another long pull on her own Allure cigarette. When it seemed that her cheeks could cave in no further, she suddenly popped the cig out of her mouth. A little ball of smoke appeared briefly, before she breathed it sharply in. She put her hand on Julia's knee and murmured in a low, sensuous voice. "Keep doing it. Just like that. Suck it all the way down and hold it. You're doing great!"

Julia hardly needed the encouragement. Her Allure cigarette glowed and crackled as she took an extended puff. She inhaled the smoke again, audibly, less timidly, and deliberately. Julia was no longer doing this just for the money, or to complete the experiment. She was smoking because it felt really, really good. She did not immediately exhale, but rather let the smoke soak into her lungs.

Maureen didn't need the image of Julia's brain to show her how much her sister was enjoying her experience; the pleasure she was feeling was etched on her face. However, if she had examined the brain scan closely, she would have noticed new pinpoints of yellow lights, indicating where her brain was growing more acetylcholine receptors. Moreover, the pleasure centers of Julia's brain were now wild with activity.

As Julia finally exhaled, she said, breathlessly, "I can't believe how good this is. I even like how it tastes. It's minty."

Emily replied, knowingly, "That's because it's menthol. I like menthols too. You can actually feel the smoke in your lungs."

Maureen commented to Dr. Monroe, "I didn't know you guys made Allures in menthol."

"We thought a menthol Allure cigarette might be better for a beginner," Dr. Monroe said.

Julia took another long puff before commenting, "I almost feel guilty, liking this so much."

Emily took a drag of her own, smiled ironically, and said, "Go ahead and enjoy it, since this is your first and last time smoking."

"Wow. Look at that." Dr. Monroe motioned towards Julia's brain image on the monitor. "Julia just had a response of fear and anxiety when Emily hinted that she might not ever smoke again. Her pulse rate and blood pressure instantly went up. Fascinating."

Emily and Julia continued taking big puffs into their bodies, and all too soon, their cigarettes were almost finished. Julia frowned, and took one last long drag, which she seemed to inhale especially deeply. She held it for a long time, and when she exhaled, very little smoke came out.

For a few seconds, neither of the girls spoke. Finally, Emily broke the silence. "Well, what did you think?"

Julia tried to be nonchalant. "Um, it was nice. Really nice. Not what I expected." She added, trying without success to conceal the hope in her voice, "I really wouldn't mind doing that again. Not all the time or anything, but just on occasion."

An expression of mischief came again into Emily's features. "Yeah, I enjoy it on occasion too." Emily stared fixedly at Julia, and then reached for the pack of Allure cigarettes that sat on the table between them. Still looking Julia in the eyes, she took one out, and held it, unlit, between her fingers. "Do you mind if I have one more?"

"Not at all," Julia said. Maureen knew enough of her sister to know that she was deliberately trying to sound disinterested.

Without taking her eyes off of Julia, Emily lit up, and breathed the smoke in as she did hundreds of times each day. She eventually blew the smoke out in Julia's general direction. Julia's attention was riveted on Emily.

"Here it comes," Dr. Monroe said, again to nobody in particular.

"Do you suppose I could have one more too?" Julia looked towards Emily with eager expectation. "Just one more."

"Sure. I'm sorry. I should have offered you one without you having to ask."

Dr. Monroe commented, "Actually, it was really important that Julia should ask for her second cigarette herself. Everything that Emily has said and done has been carefully scripted."

Julia removed a cigarette from the pack, and lit up her second cigarette ever, wearing a broad smile on her face. The way that she inhaled, she did not look like a smoking novice, but rather like somebody who had enjoyed a nicotine habit for many years.

Maureen became aware of Dr. Monroe was rummaging through her purse. She pulled out two long, dark green cigars. She unwrapped one, and then handed the other one to Maureen. "Your sister is doing better than we could have ever imagined. I think a victory cigar is in order."

"An Allure cigar?" Maureen was incredulous. "You're just full of surprises."

Dr. Monroe held her cigar between her two index fingers, and ran it back and forth under her nose, savoring its aroma. Maureen unwrapped her cigar and did the same. Next, Dr. Monroe began gently licking the cigar, in an almost sexual manner, to moisten it. Maureen imitated the pretty doctor. She was astonished at how sweet it tasted. "Have you ever had a cigar before?" Maureen shook her head no. "A lot of people just puff on cigars, but I prefer to inhale them deeply. I think you'll really like it."

Part 7: "Rewards"

As Maureen examined her cigar, she had a feeling of anticipation much like she remembered experiencing before her first cigarette six or seven years earlier. Looking at it, she could hardly believe that she was about to take so much smoke into her body.

"Are you ready for eight inches of pure pleasure?" Dr. Monroe asked.

Maureen nodded her head yes, and then Dr. Cynthia Monroe clicked her lighter and offered the flame to Maureen, who held the cigar between her fore and middle fingers as she puffed it alight.

When Maureen had seen other people light cigars, it always seemed to take a few puffs to get it going, but her cigar seemed to light almost immediately. A rich and very agreeable taste of tobacco greeted her taste buds as she dragged on her Allure cigar. Her heart palpitated quickly in her chest as Maureen removed the cigar from her mouth, and brought the delicious smoke inside.

She smiled broadly as it hit her. Maureen's chest had a sensation of fullness like she had never experienced before. The smoke was smooth, yet dense, almost like a liquid. She could actually feel its stickiness as it coated the deepest parts of her lungs. Maureen held her breath, and the dizzy nicotine buzz she experienced with each Allure cigarette smacked her with a new intensity. Her whole body began to quiver visibly.

Dr. Monroe lit her own cigar, and inhaled her own smoke, eager to get the nicotine it gave into her bloodstream. She placed her hand on Maureen's knee and rubbed it gently. "Isn't it just wonderful?" she asked, breathily.

Maureen reluctantly exhaled as she again nodded her head in the affirmative.

In the meantime, Maureen's sister Julia was having her own nicotine bonding session with Dr. Monroe's sister, Emily. With evident relish, Julia kept taking long drags on her long, freshly lit cigarette before inhaling the smoke with great enthusiasm. Each time, she held the smoke inside for a few seconds before exhaling and repeating the process. "This is fantastic," she said, before adding, almost breathlessly, "each puff seems to just get better and better."

"I know what you mean," Emily said, taking another aggressive drag. "When I very first started smoking these, I felt like all I wanted was more. It's like it's deeply satisfying, yet I can't get enough."

"That's it, exactly," Julia said, before taking still more of the smoke inside her body.

Emily put her cigarette in the corner of her mouth before she began to fiddle with a computer monitor. The whole time, she kept smoking on her cig hands free. When she was done with whatever she was doing, she spoke again to Julia.

"Part of this study, as I mentioned before, involves testing your memory and concentration after using our product. On the computer screen, there are 100 boxes, each with a number from 1 to 50 inside. The numbers will be visible to you for 5 seconds, and then they will disappear. Your task will be to click on the boxes with matching numbers. It's like the game of concentration, if you're familiar with that. I'll demonstrate for you first."

Here, Emily took a double pump on the cigarette, which was still in her mouth, and then touched a button on the computer console. As she inhaled her smoke, a bunch of random numbers popped up on the screen, and then disappeared after 5 seconds. Emily took a mouse pointer, and began clicking on boxes on the screen. Unerringly, she paired all 50 numbers. She smiled broadly, and then took a puff as if in celebration of her success.

"Wow. That's amazing," Julia exclaimed, speaking in the middle of an exhale. "You're really good at that."

"Well, to be honest, I had some help. Our product, as you will see, greatly improves both short and long term memory. Go ahead and take a turn."

Emily reset the computer program, and Julia took another drag on her cigarette as she had seen Emily do. When the numbers appeared, she concentrated on them for a moment before they disappeared. Julia inhaled more of the smoke greedily before she began matching numbers. After every ten or so matches, Julia took another puff on her cigarette.

In the other room, Dr. Monroe pointed at Julia with the lit end of her cigar, and commented, "How interesting. She's rewarding herself with another dose of nicotine after each success."

Maureen's cigar glowed brightly as she finished her drag and then forcefully inhaled. "I wasn't paying attention, I was too focused on this delicious smoke."

"It's easy to get lost in one of these cigars," Dr. Monroe said. She added, in a hushed tone, "Can I tell you a dirty secret?"

"That's the best kind," Maureen said after exhaling and then taking another luxuriously long pull on her rapidly diminishing cigar.

"I probably shouldn't tell you this, but every night, before bed, I enjoy one of these while I masturbate. When I come off while saturating my lungs with this smoke, the climaxes are simply overwhelming."

Maureen suddenly felt very wet down under. "I've got to try that sometime," she said. She found herself looking forward to getting home.

Part 8: "Bathroom break"

As the next puff of her Allure cigar hit her lungs, Maureen impulsively asked Dr. Monroe, "Can you show me where the bathroom is around here? I suddenly really have to go."

If Dr. Monroe knew what Maureen had in mind, she didn't let on. "Sure. Go out this door, make a right, and the bathroom is all the way at the end."

Hurriedly, Maureen made her way out the door, still chuffing away at her cigar and inhaling every last bit of its smoke. She followed Dr. Monroe's directions, and found herself in a small white bathroom. There were no stalls, but rather a single toilet with a full-length mirror in front of it. One switch on the wall turned on a single light bulb in the middle of the room, and the other switch turned on an exhaust fan. Maureen turned on the light, but then turned off the fan.

She put the cigar in her mouth and took a drag while she pulled down her tight fitting jeans and her dark green underwear together. As she inhaled, she was interested to note that her underwear had a small wet spot in the front. She looked at the cigar, half smoked, burning in her mouth in the mirror, and she knew what she had to do. She sucked down more of that smoke that she worshiped, put down the seat on the toilet and sat down with her legs spread apart.

Back in the room that Maureen had just left, Dr. Monroe turned on a second television monitor. Seeing Maureen's image on the screen, she rushed to the door and locked it, just in case someone should come in unexpectedly. Dr. Monroe began to do to herself what she saw Maureen doing in the bathroom.

Maureen began gently touching the outside of her vagina with the index finger of her left hand as she took several forceful puffs in succession from her cigar and snapped the creamy smoke down her windpipe and into her heaving chest. Her index finger got wet as her vagina opened to its touch. As she exhaled, she softly moaned, as much from the sexual stimulation as from the large dose of nicotine that she had flooded into her lungs, bloodstream, and brain.

Systematically, she began taking deep drags as she introduced her middle finger into the act. She moved it up and down, and then in a circular motion as she found her clitoris. She tapped off her ash into the toilet as she alternated between friction and pressure, just like she loved to do.

Her heart was already thumping because of the nicotine in her system, but the sexual stimulus accelerated its pace, and the nicotine she was pouring into her body moved even more rapidly from her lungs to her brain. Maureen began breathing more heavily, as her body required more oxygen, but she denied her body this oxygen in favor of more smoke. She began huffing her cigar as her fingers worked on her vagina's sweet spot with increasing rapidity.

She closed her eyes and moaned again in contemplation of the two intense sources of pleasure competing within her. Smoke coated her lungs like thickly applied paint, while her vagina tightened with building pressure. Both of her hands worked quickly. Her left continued to press and rub, press and rub, while her right took her cigar, now only about an inch long, in and out of her mouth as she breathed in as much smoke as she could. Maureen began thrusting her hips up and down, and looked through the now smoke filled room at her image in the mirror. Her long brown hair was disheveled, sweat dripped from her body, and her normally cheery blue eyes were vacant with pleasure. Suddenly orgasm was inevitable, and she took one last pull on her cigar, sucking its smoke directly into her lungs.

Her vagina felt like a water balloon that was too full and ready to burst, and burst she did. The convulsions began deep inside her vagina and then spread like a shockwave throughout her body, which shook violently with a thrill. Despite her best efforts, she let loose a high-pitched cry. As she did, smoke escaped through her open mouth and nostrils. As best she could, she held the smoke inside through the long climax, and then, as she pushed her fingers forcefully inside herself one more time, she climaxed a second time, and again her entire frame shook from its impact.

Back in the observation room, unbeknownst to Maureen, Dr. Monroe was experiencing much the same sensations.

Reluctantly, Maureen dropped her now spent cigar into the toilet and flushed it. With still trembling hands, she fished a cigarette out of the pack in her purse lit it, and inhaled slowly. After a few more deeply satisfying drags, she cleaned herself up as best she could. She felt remarkably alert, but her steps were unsteady as she headed back to the room where Dr. Monroe was waiting.

When she got back, Dr. Monroe had herself lit up a cigarette. "Did you get lost?" the gorgeous doctor asked.

Maureen remembered what Dr. Monroe had said about getting lost in a good cigar, and wondered if the question had a double meaning. "Yeah, I guess I did," she replied, taking another luxurious drag on her cigarette. Looking at her sister's image on the monitor, she asked, "So, what'd I miss while I was gone?"

Part 9: "Goodies"

Dr. Monroe seemed to have not heard the question, and Maureen didn't repeat it, but instead, took another drag on her cigarette. Dr. Monroe reached into her purse and took out a Kleenex. "Your mascara's running a bit," she almost whispered as she gazed into Maureen's eyes, just as Maureen was drawing in a thick ball of smoke from a snap inhale.

Maureen blushed as she demurely exhaled a long thin stream of smoke downward and accepted the tissue. As she looked into Dr. Monroe's inscrutable and bottomless brown eyes, she wondered to herself, "Does Cynthia have the hots for me?" Each of the women took another drag on their cigarettes and inhaled sharply before Maureen looked away and dabbled at her running mascara.

"While you were away, your sister finished her cigarette, and then completed a few more tests," Dr. Monroe said, finally answering Maureen's question. "She did very well at a math test we gave her, and was able to do some complex multiplication and long division problems quickly, without paper and pencil. She also did very well at a reading comprehension test, and on some abstract reasoning puzzles. However, the last test was a different matter."

Maureen glanced at her sister's image on the screen. Julia appeared a bit edgy. She kept licking her lips, and looking over at the pack of cigarettes left on the table. She was still hooked up to all of the monitoring equipment. Emily had apparently left the room. "Why? What was the last test?" Maureen asked, after taking an obligatory puff on her now almost finished cigarette.

"It was a test of her hand-eye coordination, which she failed miserably because by that time her hands were shaking a little bit. The test was designed for her to fail, though. It's part of the script. The stress and frustration will make her next cigarette that much more rewarding."

"You're very manipulative, you know," Maureen said laughingly, before lighting up another cigarette from the stub of her last one.

"You have no idea," Dr. Monroe replied. "Besides, I'm sure she'll thank me for it later."

As Emily returned to the room Julia jumped visibly. Maureen noticed that she still kept eyeing the cigarettes on the table and licking her lips.

"We're almost done," said Emily, cordially. "I hope it was a pleasant experience for you."

"It really was," Julia said with conviction, before adding, "To tell you the truth, I didn't want it to end."

"It doesn't have to," Emily murmured.

"She's about to pop the question!" Dr. Monroe said, excitedly.

Before Maureen could ask what question the doctor was talking about, Emily added, "If you'd like, you can sample our product for as long as you'd like, and we'll pay you $1000 each week. You can smoke as much or as little as you'd like, and all you have to do is come in once a week for further tests. What do you think?"

"Um, well, can I smoke one more cigarette while I think it over?" At this point, Julia seemed totally focused on just getting more nicotine in her body as soon as possible.

Before Emily had finished saying "Feel free," Julia was almost lunging for the cigarettes. She somehow managed to get one out of the pack, and then lit up in short order. The lighter's bright blue flame flashed its reflection off of Julia's stylish glasses for only an instant, and then only the reflection of the glowing tip of her cigarette could be seen in the lenses. Julia inhaled and exhaled quickly, before taking a second puff and holding the smoke inside.

"What have you people done to me?" Julia asked, rhetorically repeating a question her sister had asked only a few short days ago. "I should be really worried that I'm smoking my third cigarette in less than 45 minutes," she exhaled, took another puff, and then inhaled again before adding, "But I'm not. It's weird; it's like I want to be addicted to smoking."

"You do want to be addicted," Emily said, emphatically, reaching for the pack on the table. She took out another cigarette and examined it as she spoke. "Nicotine addiction is wonderful. Don't worry. Just give in to it." Emily clicked the lighter and brought her cigarette to life. She sucked the smoke in with a hiss and then said, "Every time I inhale this stuff it reminds me why I love smoking so much, and why I never want to quit."

Maureen expected her sister to be troubled by Emily's speech. Certainly the old Julia would have been. But instead, Julia nodded her head in agreement as she pulled hard on her cigarette and breathed it all in deep. She closed her eyes as she held in the smoke, and then opened them again as she let the smoke slowly escape from her lips and nostrils.

"Look how much more relaxed she is," Dr. Monroe pointed out. "She's learning to reach for a cigarette when she's stressed out."

"I know I always smoke a cigarette or two when I'm nervous or tired," replied Maureen through an exhale. She added, taking a short, hard hit on her Allure cigarette between each, "And when I wake up- when I go to bed- after eating- when I talk on the phone- before and after class- when I'm happy or sad- when I'm driving- and of course after sex."

Dr. Monroe was gazing at her again while taking a long drag on her own cigarette. "Me too," she said. "Julia will also learn to smoke at these times, and each of the thousands of times that she does so will only reinforce the primary lessons of nicotine dependency."

Julia took a pensive puff on her cigarette before speaking again. "What about the health risks?"

Emily smiled reassuringly. "There is no safe cigarette. However, you should know that our product is much less dangerous than any other tobacco on the market. It burns cleaner, and produces less carcinogens."

"Well, also there's my family. I still live at home with my parents, and even though they smoke, they'll be pretty upset if I start." Julia had always been eager to please her parents. "There's also all the time that I'm at school each day."

"No concerns there, either," Emily replied, little wisps of smoke floating from her lips. "You're a big girl, so you should be free to make your own decisions. Even so, there are ways of keeping it from your folks."

"Maureen wasn't able to keep it hidden for long when she started."

"She didn't have technology on her side," Emily giggled. "I have some goodies for you to take home, if, of course, you decide to work with us longer."

Emily put her cigarette in her mouth before moving across the room to a cabinet. Puffing hands free, she removed a key from her pocket and opened the cabinet. She removed a few items and then sat down again next to Julia.

"You've heard of the quit smoking patch and gum, but this is the keep smoking patch and gum. You can wear the patch while you're at school, or if you can't sneak away to smoke. If the cravings get more intense, chew on this gum, and you should be able to get your needed fix."

Maureen's eyes popped out in surprise just as she was lighting yet another Allure. "Can I get some of that?" she asked Dr. Monroe. "It'd be a great help when I'm in class and have to wait to smoke."

"Of course," Dr. Monroe replied. "You'll also be interested in the next thing."

Emily took another drag and smiled broadly as she snapped the smoke in, displaying her slightly yellowed but very straight teeth. "This is our `James Bond' product. I've used it myself in airplane bathrooms." She opened a small box, and took out what appeared to be a blue water bottle.

"Don't tell me you've invented nicotine water," laughed Julia.

"This is a special smokeless pipe." Emily crushed out her cigarette before retrieving another one from the pack. Instead of lighting it, however, she unscrewed the top of the bottle, revealing a chamber of some sort inside. "What you do," she continued, "is simply put your cigarette in this tube, screw back on the lid, and press this button while sucking in on the straw. When you've had a long enough drag, let go of the button, and whenever you want to exhale, blow back through the straw. The pipe captures everything you exhale, with no lingering odor. I'll show you how easy it is."

Emily put the cigarette in the tube, and screwed back on the lid. As she pressed the small button on the side of the bottle and sucked in on the straw, her chest expanded as she breathed deeply in. Smiling contentedly, she released the button, paused for a few seconds, evidently to savor the smoke that now filled her lungs, and then blew back into the bottle. She took a deep breath, and then blew once more into the straw, emptying her lungs.

"Wow. That's neat!" Julia said. "Can I try it?"

"I want to try it too," Maureen commented, taking note of her sister's gleeful reaction on the television monitor.

"I'll get you one. The best thing is that it can be used for more than just cigarettes," Dr. Monroe said, wryly.

Julia followed Emily's directions to the letter, and grinned, flashing her braces before taking another drag on the cigarette she held between her middle and index finger.

"Do you have to clean it?" Julia asked.

Emily unscrewed the bottom, and revealed some yellowish cotton on the bottom. "All you have to do is stuff the bottom of the bottle with cotton after every few uses, and the rest of the bottle is self-cleaning. So you'll be able to smoke anytime you can get away to a bathroom, or even in your car, without anybody knowing."

Julia's cigarette was almost finished. "I still don't really know what I'm getting involved with here. This is very tempting."

Emily lit up once more, and exhaled in Julia's direction. "Well, speaking just for myself, I'm glad that I'm involved. Smoking these helps me immensely in school, the health risks are minimal, and the pleasure-" her voice trailed away as she inhaled a powerful drag.

Julia took a final drag on her cigarette, and then, as she breathed in, her face brightened. "You've convinced me. Count me in!" she exclaimed.

"Fantastic," said Emily. "I'll just get a couple of forms for you to sign, and then you can be on your way home with a bag full of goodies."

In the other room, Maureen and Dr. Monroe sat quietly smoking their respective cigarettes. "So do I get a bag of goodies too?" asked Maureen.

Dr. Monroe removed her glasses and looked intently at Maureen. "You've demonstrated a lot of loyalty tonight, by bringing your sister to us. I would like to make a proposal to you, and was wondering if I could do it over dinner at my place after you've taken your sister home. I can give you the same goodies we're giving your sister, plus some extras that I know you'll really enjoy. What do you think?"

Maureen thought about it only for a moment. "I don't have any plans tonight, and it would be nice to get to know you a little bit better. So, sure, Cynthia. I'd love to come over."

"It's a date then," said Dr. Monroe. Back to top View user's profile

Part 10: "The date"

After Julia signed all of the necessary paperwork and received a small handbag full of goodies, she and Emily returned to the lobby, where they met Maureen and Dr. Monroe. Seeing her sister, Julia went to her and gave her a big hug.

"How did you like participating in the study?" Maureen asked.

Julia just smiled for a couple of seconds before replying. "It was really nice. I'm totally glad you asked me to come here."

"Just looking out for my little sister," Maureen said. "And I'm glad that you'll have enough money for your summer vacation."

"Yeah," Julia responded. "There's that too."

"I'll see you at what, about 7:30?" Dr. Monroe asked Maureen.

"I'm looking forward to it. Is there anything I can bring?"

"Just yourself. I'll provide all the refreshments," Dr. Monroe gave another of her puzzling smiles as she uttered these words.

"And you," Dr. Monroe turned towards Julia, "Can come back anytime you like. Just call first. Our number is in your bag."

"Definitely," Julia said, smiling. "I'm sure I'll be back here soon."

With that, Emily opened the door for Maureen and Julia, who walked out to the parking lot. Looking back over her shoulder, Maureen noticed both Dr. Monroe and Emily lighting up as the door closed. It made her want a cigarette too.

She was just contemplating whether to light up right away, or wait for Julia, when Julia opened her bag, and took out her fresh pack of Allure cigarettes. "I should tell you that I've decided to start smoking. Do you mind if I have one now?"

"I need one too," Maureen said, simply. She took out a cigarette while Julia tore into the first of thousands of packs of cigarettes she would consume during her lifetime.

Maureen held out her lighter to her sister first, and then clicked it. Although there was a slight breeze, the blue flame of the butane lighter was not extinguished. Julia put her cigarette in the center of her mouth, and her cheeks hollowed as she briefly touched the tip of the cigarette to the fire and ignited her smoke. She took an extended drag, her cigarette glowing orange in the night, and then inhaled sharply, wolfing the smoke down deep. Then Maureen lit up herself, and soon felt again the familiar and welcome sensation of nicotine working its way through her body. "Thank you," Julia said, speaking in the middle of her exhale.

"You're very welcome," replied Maureen. "Maybe I shouldn't feel this way, but I'm glad you've starting smoking. It's something we can share and enjoy together."

"I only wish I'd started sooner," Julia stated.

As the two young ladies drove home, Julia told her sister about her participation in the study, while Maureen asked questions she pretended not to already know the answers to. As Julia lit another cigarette, Maureen asked, "So what was the biggest reason why you decided to keep smoking?"

Julia's smile grew broader as she inhaled. A thin current of smoke issued forth from her mouth as she spoke. "Probably the same reason why you keep smoking. Filling my lungs with smoke feels fucking great!"

Her sister's profanity was out of character for her, but Maureen didn't comment on this and merely nodded her head in agreement, before adding, "I love it too." She looked over at Julia, energetically indulging in her new vice, and no longer saw her bratty little sister, but rather an equal; a good friend who now understood the joy of drugging herself with nicotine at every opportunity.

"So what did you and Dr. Monroe do while I was with Emily?" Julia asked.

"We just talked, and shared a cigar." Maureen did not elaborate. She added, "I think she may be attracted to me."

"No!" Julia laughed. "What gives you that idea?"

"Just the way she kept looking at me, and the tone of her voice. Non-verbal cues and clues, I guess. She asked me over for dinner tonight."

"So are you attracted to her?"

Maureen took a thoughtful drag before speaking. "Well, you know I've always been boy crazy. But I do like Dr. Monroe a lot. She is really gorgeous, and funny, and fun to be around. I've just never been with a woman before in that way."

"Well, before tonight, I'd never smoked, and look at me now," Julia exclaimed, waving her cigarette around in the air before taking another hit on it. "I say, `go for it.'"

The two sisters arrived back at Maureen's apartment, and the older sister began to say goodbye. However, Julia said, "Lemme come in and braid your hair. You want to look nice for your hot date tonight."

"I'm sure it's not a hot date. Well, maybe it is. I don't know," Maureen said, laughingly. "Sure, come on in. At least it'll give us the chance to enjoy a couple more cigs before you have to go home."

They came inside and finished their cigarettes, and then sat down together on the couch. Julia took a brush out of her purse, and began carefully combing Maureen's dark, Rapunzle-like hair. Before long, Maureen asked, "You want another cigarette, Julia?"

"Yeah, I'd love one." Both girls then automatically fired up another Allure.

It was a great bonding experience for the two, who, although they'd always gotten along fairly well, had nevertheless drifted apart over the last five or six years. Maureen felt totally relaxed as she breathed the smoke in and out, while Julia smoked hands free and braided her hair. Little flecks of ash kept landing in Maureen's hair, along with the residue from Julia's exhales.

"There you go," Julia said after finishing her work. "Cute as a button."

"What do you think I should wear?"

"If I were you, I'd go with the feminine and modest look. Maybe a nice blouse, with a skirt. Matching shoes too. Your fashion sense is better than mine though, so I'm sure whatever you wear will make a good impression." Julia got up to go. "I'd better be off. You don't want to be late for your hot date on account of your little sister," she said playfully.

"I wish you'd stop saying that," Maureen retorted, in mock annoyance. "Anyway, I'm really glad you came over tonight. Maybe this weekend you could come over and stay the night. We could rent chick flicks and stay up all night smoking cigarettes."

"I'm really glad I came too, and that sounds like a great idea. We need to start hanging out more," Julia said, hugging her sister.

Julia left, and Maureen quickly got ready, smoking one Allure after another the whole time. She picked out a cute teal colored blouse, a white sweater, a black skirt that wasn't too short, and matching shoes. After getting directions to Dr. Monroe's address online, and making sure she had a couple spare packs of cigarettes in her purse, she was out the door.

At 7:35, she arrived at her destination: a two-story house in an upscale neighborhood, with rows of various flowers and exotic plants adorning the front yard. The cigarette that she was smoking still had a few drags left on it, so she sucked them down rapidly, and then put out her cig in her perpetually overflowing car ashtray. Exhaling a bluish gray cloud into the night, she approached the door and rang the bell.

For a little while, there was no answer. However, just as Maureen was contemplating ringing the bell a second time, the door opened to reveal Cynthia. Gone was her drab, loose fitting white lab coat, along with the bun she styled her hair into. Rather, she was dressed in an elegant, strapless and somewhat revealing, black dress, while her hair, like Maureen's, was prettily braided, though blonde and significantly shorter.

"Hi," Cynthia said.

"Hi," Maureen said.

For a moment, the two women said nothing further, and then the moment passed, and Cynthia said, "Come on in. Dinner will be ready in a few minutes."

As Maureen stepped inside, a strong aroma of cigarette smoke assailed her senses, reminding her of her own apartment. There was a lingering odor, as well as a stronger smell indicating that Cynthia had just finished smoking recently.

Aside from that, however, the house was entirely different from Maureen's own place. For one thing, it was immaculately tidy. The dŽcor would have been pristinely white, if not for the slightly yellowish tinge that clung to the carpet, walls, and furniture.

"I really like your place; it's so spacious and warm," Maureen said, glancing at the crackling logs burning in the fireplace on the other side of the living room. Directly in front of her, a stairway led upward, while two passages led to other parts of the house. Cynthia took the first of the passages, and Maureen followed her into a large dining area, with place settings for two and a single ashtray on the table.

"Can I get you anything to drink?" Cynthia's movement toward a well-stocked bar along the far wall implied an offer of an alcoholic beverage.

"What are you having?" Maureen asked.

"I make a pretty good Long Island iced tea, if you'd like to have one of those. I just finished one, but I'm ready for another."

"That sounds great. I never pass up free booze." Maureen liked alcohol, but usually her drink of choice was a wine cooler. She didn't have much experience with cocktails.

Maureen took a seat at the table and looked on. With a dexterity that showed that Cynthia had plenty of practice tending bar, the doctor fixed two drinks into a large pitcher, mixing in equal rum, gin, vodka, tequila, and two other drinks Maureen didn't recognize, along with a splash of Pepsi from an open can. She poured two generous glasses, and placed a lemon wedge in each. There was plenty of the drink left in the pitcher.

"Cheers," she said, as she handed the alcohol to Maureen and placed the pitcher to the side. Cynthia took a couple aggressive gulps at her beverage, and then Maureen did the same. It seemed that the buzz from the drink came within seconds of consuming it, along with an urge to light up.

Cynthia must have had the same craving, because she produced a pack of cigarettes and shook it. As a single cigarette appeared, she took it out of the pack with her mouth and clicked her lighter, swiftly lighting up. She inhaled like she really needed some smoke.

Maureen laughed as she took her own pack out of her purse. She was already beginning to feel a little bit giddy. "I was just getting ready to have a cigarette too. Drinking and smoking just go together," she said, before igniting the white tube of tobacco between her lips and snapping its smoke down inside.

Her companion smiled in agreement before taking another drag, and another drink of her beverage before she exhaled. Maureen smiled too, and did the same.

"So what's for dinner?" Maureen asked.

"I hope you don't mind, but I made something light and simple. I'm not the world's best cook. Some rice, steamed beans, biscuits, and chicken. It should be ready about now. I'll be right back." Smoke trailed behind her as Cynthia got up and went into another room, presumably the kitchen.

During the few minutes she waited, Maureen alternated taking hits off of her cigarette, and drinks from her large glass. She noticed that she was definitely feeling the effects of her cocktail, and yet made a conscious decision to accept another drink when it was offered. The alcohol and nicotine really did go nicely together.

Right when Maureen finished her cigarette, Cynthia returned with a couple of plates of food. Immediately upon handing Maureen her dinner, Cynthia refilled both of their glasses. Both of the women were hungry, and they dug right into their dishes with relish. For whatever reason, perhaps the alcohol, they talked animatedly about a variety of subjects, laughing frequently.

"That was great!" Maureen said as she took her last bite. "Thank you very much."

"My pleasure. Would you like any more to eat?"

"Not right now, though I will have another refill on my drink. It's very good."

Cynthia refilled both glasses yet again.

"So-" said Maureen, pausing briefly after the word, and pushing her plate aside. "You mentioned earlier that you have a proposal. I'm very curious."

"Actually, I have a few proposals, but first a question. I hope it isn't too personal."

"I'm an open book. What do you want to know?"

"Let's go into the living room to talk." Both women took their drinks, along with their cigarettes, and made their way back into the living room. Maureen sat down on the couch, while Cynthia put another log on the fire, before sitting down next to the younger woman.

Cynthia took another drink before proceeding with her question. "Well, I was curious. Have you ever smoked anything besides cigarettes?"

Maureen laughed again, because she felt increasingly like laughing. "No. Surprisingly, I've never tried pot or anything, because I know that I have an addictive personality." She paused again, before adding, "Though to be honest, I've been really tempted to try it sometime."

Cynthia smiled sensually. "In that case, I'd like to tempt you tonight. I'll be right back."

She went away and obtained a small wooden box, which she brought back to the living room. Opening it, she revealed a small glass pipe, some rolling papers, and a baggie filled with weed. "Would you like to get high with me?" Cynthia asked Maureen.

"Ok," Maureen said.

Maureen felt nervous about her first experience with marijuana, despite her increasing intoxication. She resisted lighting up a cigarette while Cynthia opened the baggie and began rolling a fat joint. Instead, Maureen finished her drink. She had lost track of how much she had drunk before, during, and after dinner, but she was sure that it was a substantial amount.

Maureen looked on in amazement as her hostess put the joint in her mouth and casually lit it. She sucked fiercely on it and then smiled dreamily. The smoke pouring out of the joint smelled pungently sweet.

After a time, Cynthia exhaled a sweet smelling thin stream of smoke and extended the joint to her guest, "It's ok. Go ahead and try a puff. Be forewarned though, it is very potent."

As if in a dream, Maureen reached out and took the joint from between Cynthia's fingers. Cynthia instructed her, "Don't drag on it like a cigarette. Instead, put it to your lips, and breathe it directly in."

Maureen examined the fiercely burning joint between her fingers. She could hardly believe that she was about to take illegal drugs.

With some apprehension, she followed her friend's instructions, and sucked the marijuana smoke deeply into her lungs. The smoke tasted as sweet as it smelled, and inhaling it made her a bit dizzy, much like the first time she had inhaled tobacco smoke. From what seemed like some distance away, she heard Cynthia say, "Good. Now hold it in for as long as you can."

Her hostess took back the joint and took another hit as she exhaled. Then, Cynthia handed the joint to her, saying, "It might take you a few puffs before you feel anything. Just keep taking hits till you feel it."

Maureen did just that, taking another drag, before handing it back to her friend, who did the same thing. Then she took the joint back, and took another drag. The two of them repeated this process once more.

Maureen was just about to ask her friend if she was doing it right when the thc hit her, and hit her hard. Suddenly, she felt pleasantly disorientated, and all of her senses seemed somehow different. She closed her eyes half way, and sighed, "Oh, this is wonderful. Thank you so much."

Cynthia gave her a tight hug, and whispered into her ear, "Keep doing it. It'll keep getting better."

Maureen did not need encouragement to continue hitting the joint. Each time she filled her lungs with the smoke, she felt like she was drifting up higher and higher. A sense of exhilaration thrilled her, along with a deepening sense of well-being and contentment. She wanted to say something, but couldn't think of any words. So she just stared vacantly ahead of her, her mouth hanging slightly open.

After some indefinite interval of time, she became aware that the joint was almost done. She had quite quickly lost track of how long or how much she had been smoking. Then, after another indefinite interval of time, she became aware that her hostess was rolling another joint. With a smile Cynthia asked her, "Would you like some more?" Maureen nodded eagerly as her friend fired it up and handed it to her.

She took hit after hit, until she was positive that she couldn't take anymore. She had never before been in a state of mind anything like this. As Cynthia offered her yet another drag, Maureen said, "I can't take anymore after this." Then, she took one last hit, and held it in as long as she could.

Cynthia finished the joint while her guest sat, pleasantly stupefied. Then, Maureen distantly heard the click of her friend's lighter once again. When she looked up, Cynthia asked her, "Honey, would you like some nicotine now?"

Maureen knew that she wanted nicotine, but she didn't know how to answer, so she just continued staring blankly ahead and giggled.

"I'll take that as a yes," Cynthia said, breathily. "But first, I want to take you to my bedroom. There, we can get more comfortable before I fuck you."

"Ok," Maureen said.

Part 11: "Foreplay."

Maureen's eyes widened as, several seconds later, her brain processed what Cynthia had just said, and what her own reply had been. She looked up at Cynthia, who was now very close, and again their eyes met.

"Ok," Maureen said again with finality, as if to emphasize that she was sure that this was what she wanted. Her eyes never left Cynthia's as she moved even closer, opening her mouth to kiss her. Cynthia also moved closer, with her lips parted, but then, at the last moment, pulled back playfully, putting her forefinger on Maureen's mouth.

"Not yet," Cynthia whispered. "Upstairs first."

Maureen stood up suddenly and impulsively. "I'll race you," she said, darting for the stairs.

Caught momentarily off guard, Cynthia likewise dashed for the staircase. The younger woman was ahead of her, but Cynthia grabbed her from behind, causing both of them to wobble comically at the foot of the stairs. Maureen squealed with laughter, saying, "I don't think so!" as she struggled to pull herself free. Instead, Cynthia pushed her way ahead, and leaped up the stairs. Maureen struggled to regain her balance, and came close behind.

Cynthia reached the top of the stairs, and made a right into an open doorway, which led to a dark room. Maureen followed her in, and before her eyes could adjust to the darkness Cynthia seized her from behind and threw her down on top of a bed in the middle of the room. Both women howled giddily with laughter as they struggled to get the upper hand, and Cynthia began tickling Maureen mercilessly. Maureen tried tickling Cynthia back, but her hostess was relentless. Finally, Maureen cried, "Ok, ok, I give up." Tears streamed from her slightly bloodshot eyes.

Cynthia sat atop Maureen, pinning her on her back. For a moment, both women lay still, panting. Then, without letting the younger woman up, Cynthia reached over to the nightstand next to the bed, and picked up a long black case. Opening it revealed a black lighter, and about a dozen of the longest cigarettes Maureen had ever seen, more than twice the length of a regular cigarette, and much thicker. As they eyed the cigarettes, their demeanors instantly became more serious and focused.

Maureen opened her mouth without speaking. She knew that, even in the dim light, Cynthia could read the desire in her eyes. Cynthia did not disappoint her, and took out two of the cigarettes, and put one between Maureen's open lips, and one between her own. Even accounting for its extra weight and thickness, the weight of the long cigarette surprised her.

"Tobacco time," Cynthia murmured, as much to herself as to Maureen, whose eyes, at these words, seemed to flash cat-like in the darkness. Cynthia clicked the lighter between their two extended cigarettes, illuminating each of their faces. Maureen squinted at the sudden brightness, and then lifted her head slightly to reach the light, while Cynthia moved her head downward. Both of their cigarettes made contact with the fire at the same time, and for a moment their long cigarettes touched within the flame.

Although she was still out of breath from Cynthia's playful tickling, it had been about forty minutes since her last cigarette, and Maureen was famished for nicotine. She dragged as hard as she could, drawing the smoke in with her lung power instead of with her cheeks. Above her, Cynthia was doing the same thing.

Both women popped their cigarettes out of their mouths, and huffed the smoke remaining in their mouths way down into their bodies. Cynthia slid gracefully down, moving from straddling her partner to lying down on top of her. Cynthia's weight pushed the smoke even further into Maureen's lungs. With her long cigarette still between the fingers of her left hand, she put her hands on Maureen's cheeks, caressing them.

Without exhaling, both women parted their mouths and gazed at one another, as they moved even closer. Then, they kissed each other, at first with their lips only, and then after a few seconds they began to timidly taste each other with their tobacco tinged tongues. Maureen moved her free hand onto Cynthia's firm bottom and began to squeeze it. Still they held their smoke in, until finally it began to escape from their noses and mingle around their faces.

With grins of delight, the two women then simultaneously pulled again on their cigarettes, in a seeming competition to see which one could burn their cigarette down faster. Maureen took a series of short and powerful pumps, sucking the smoke into her lungs each time her mouth couldn't hold any more, while Cynthia continued her direct inhale technique, her cigarette's ash slowly getting longer. After they inhaled their smoke, they kissed again through their exhales, and Maureen spread her legs apart underneath Cynthia.

"Maureen, I have wanted this from the first moment I saw you," the doctor said before again making her cigarette glow from a potent drag and inhaling its warmth. "You are simply beautiful, with your long, long hair, and gorgeous face, and perfect ten figure. From the first moment I saw you, I knew that I wanted to make you purr with pleasure."

Still strongly affected by the various substances she had imbibed during the course of the evening, Maureen smiled mischievously, and took another luxurious drag on her long Allure cigarette, which had increased her alertness while neither diminishing her euphoria nor restoring her inhibitions. After she snapped down a thick ball of smoke, she made a purring sound, as smoke slowly drifted out of her nostrils. "Please Ma'am," she pleaded, smoke puffing out of her mouth with each word, "Pet my kitty."

Cynthia sat up, tapped the ash of her cigarette into the nearby ashtray, and then began to puff hands free while she slowly unbuttoned Maureen's blouse, revealing white lingerie beneath. Then Maureen sat up, tapped off her ash, and unzipped and removed Cynthia's dress, which, unlike Maureen's blouse, had nothing but bare skin beneath. Maureen inhaled more smoke, and moaned out her exhale with pleasure and yearning as in the dimness of the room she spied the wild bushy hair growing atop Cynthia's vagina.

As Cynthia breathed in her latest drag, her abundant breasts lifted noticeably as her chest expanded. She gently removed Maureen's bra, and exhaled a thin stream seductively onto Maureen's erect nipples. Then, less gently, she pulled down Maureen's skirt and underwear, and cast them aside almost impatiently. Unlike her own private area, Maureen's was cleanly shaven, and by the looks of it fairly recently. She tapped off more of her ash, and then pushed Maureen back down on the bed, and then lay down beside her.

The two women began to explore each other's bodies with their hands, not yet daring to go for the erogenous zones, but rather softly stroking each other's knees, backs, thighs, and necks while they smoked and kissed. They began taking long drags in alternation, and then blowing the smoke directly into their partner's lungs as if giving mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

All too soon, their cigarettes were spent, though their desire for nicotine was insatiable. Without comment, Cynthia took out two more of the long, long Allure cigarettes, and put one in Maureen's mouth as before.

"After I light you, can I pet your kitty?" Cynthia asked.

"Ok," Maureen said, quivering with anticipation.

Part 12: "The part with the girls having hot smoking sex."

Once again, Maureen spread her legs widely apart. She said, with her unlit cigarette bobbing up and down in her mouth as she spoke, "You know, I've never been with a woman this way before."

"That's ok, Maureen. I have," Cynthia declared, chuckling at her friend's admission. "Just so you know, we don't have to be in a romantic relationship or anything. We're just two good friends showing each other a good time."

With those words, Cynthia ignited her lighter, and chivalrously offered its flame to Maureen as she very gently probed her vagina with the index finger of her free hand. It was soft and slightly sticky to the touch, and Maureen forcefully dragged on her long Allure cigarette until she ecstatically gasped in her inhale. Cynthia then lit the cigarette in her own mouth, and as she breathed it swiftly down, Maureen began to reciprocate, ever-so-lightly stroking the supple flesh just within the pretty doctor's genital opening.

Maureen exhaled lustily through her nose as she gazed again into Cynthia's dark, half-closed eyes. The two women continued to gingerly manipulate each other's sexual organs as they each pumped more smoke through their bodies. Periodically, one or another of them would discharge a low grunt of gratification as she inhaled or exhaled the nicotine from her cigarette, or as the other woman touched her in a particularly pleasing way.

As she snapped down more smoke, Maureen wondered briefly what it was that drew her to Dr. Cynthia Monroe. Was it the thrill of being noticed and liked by a brilliant and elegant older woman? Was it her wry sense of humor, her confidence, or some other aspect of her personality?

Or, was it the fact that she completely understood and accepted Maureen's dependency on cigarettes and not only understood and accepted it, but shared in and encouraged it? Was she attracted to the woman out of some sort of mental or psychological association with Allure cigarettes, or simply because she plied her with the powerfully addictive and pretty poison she so compulsively craved? Perhaps the cigarettes contained some form of aphrodisiac. Very likely, all of these factors brought Maureen here to this bed, where she sucked down smoke as she and Cynthia pleasured each other.

And what about this new connection between smoking and sex? Maureen was no prude; she enjoyed each activity thoroughly, and indulged in both of them whenever she could. But before today, she had never considered doing them both at once. Yet, since her cigar in the bathroom earlier in the day, smoking and sex had become inexorably linked in her mind, and partaking in the one immediately triggered a desire to partake in the other. Rather than sating her desires, her experience earlier in the day had only whetted her appetites.

Reflecting on these things, she realized that she liked the change that had taken place within her psyche, and right then she made the conscious decision to abandon herself to her pursuit of orgasms and smoking. Maureen filled her lungs with more smoke, and as she began to work Cynthia's clitoris with increased vigor it became noticeably more wet and tacky. Cynthia's rate of breathing increased, and she panted out smoke as she accelerated her own fingering of her partner's genitals.

As the two women took their last few puffs on their respective cigarettes, they each began pumping their hips up and down to increase the pressure of their partner's touch, and their moans of intense sexual gratification grew in frequency and volume. Maureen would have been disappointed that her cigarette was almost gone, except that she knew another one was waiting to be sucked into her body.

As Maureen expected, Cynthia again removed two cigarettes from the pack, and, after each of them had put out their finished cigarettes, Cynthia lit both cigarettes in her mouth at the same time, performed a long French inhale, and handed one of the cigarettes to Maureen as she made the smoke disappear. As before, the two of them took turns blowing the smoke directly into the others lungs, only this time they were fingering each other's G spots.

The two women did not rush; they each knew how a woman likes to receive sexual pleasure. Maureen in particular was struck by how Cynthia seemed to innately know how and where she liked to be touched. As the two of them exchanged numerous smoky kisses and occasionally blew smoke rings into the space above them, Cynthia stroked her clit very softly, driving Maureen crazy with lust as she got more and more aroused.

After one last deep drag, Cynthia crushed out her cigarette into the ashtray beside her, and Maureen did the same. She expected Cynthia to reach for yet another cigarette on the nightstand, but instead Cynthia said, "Remember the other day, when you were using the smoking machine?"

Maureen almost came just thinking about what she hoped Cynthia had in store.

After one last push of her finger into and out of Maureen's opening, Cynthia momentarily sat up on the bed and opened the nightstand cabinet. From inside, she took out several items: a box with two tubes coming out of it, a smaller box that fit in the palm of her hand, some lubricant, and two identical long ribbed rubber vibrators.

"You said it was like heaven, and then you asked when you could do it again. Are you ready?"

Maureen's response was to shower Cynthia's whole body with kisses, the remnants of her last puff lingering over the various places her lips touched. Her last kiss was on Cynthia's vagina, which she licked slowly with her tongue as she looked up at her hostess. Her twinkling blue eyes spoke eloquently about her desire, and, looking down at her friend, Cynthia groaned in delight.

Cynthia placed the larger box on the bed beside Maureen, and opened a compartment in it. Into this compartment, she poured the contents of the smaller box.

"Last time you used a machine like this one, you were smoking crystallized Allure nicotine, very potent, very addictive, and very, very pleasurable, as you know. Last time, you passed out because you took too much too quickly, so this time, take it in slow and deep, slow and deep. Be forewarned though, it is hard to be disciplined with this stuff."

Cynthia spread the lubricant over the two vibrators, and handed one of them to Maureen. Then, she gave one of the two tubes to Maureen, who enthusiastically clamped it inside her mouth. Cynthia did the same, and then the two women flipped on their vibrators, which emitted a low hum as they began working. Maureen and Cynthia moved them up and down on their partner's private areas, and very soon each of the toys slipped inside.

"Remember, slow and deep," the blonde woman said, breathlessly, before pushing a button on the machine. Maureen and Cynthia sucked fiercely on their tubes, and the pure smoke came pouring directly into their lungs.

Once again, Maureen had the sensation of rocketing upward as the pure Allure nicotine slammed into her brain, and her entire body convulsed in sheer rapture. She thrust her vibrator deep into Cynthia. The slightly older woman issued a small cry, and then a piercing scream as her vagina contracted and distended around the toy. As Cynthia worked the vibrator up and down inside her, Maureen wailed aloud uninhibitedly, and soon she was climaxing too. As smoke spewed out of her mouth, her vaginal juices squirted out between her legs, creating a small, sticky swamp on the bedspread.

Not wanting to overdo it, Maureen took a deep breath before again sucking hard on the tube and feeling the smoke jet into her. As more of the nicotine blasted the pleasure areas of her mind, Maureen stared at Cynthia, who was twitching uncontrollably as presumably the pleasures of the smoke and the vaginal stimulation flooded her consciousness as well. Maureen rammed her vibrator in and out of Cynthia, and was again treated to an unabashed display of sexual release from the attractive doctor. Again, not wanting to be outdone, Cynthia jerked the long rubber phallus around inside Maureen, who barked primally as climax washed over her again.

At this, the two women totally lost control, and began hyperventilating with the smoke, ravenously indulging their lust for increasing doses of nicotine. With each lungful of the pure smoke, they successively reached higher and higher peaks of sexual climax, until, with one last deep breath of the smoke, their vaginas each erupted with one final and robustly intense orgasm. Their eyes lolled back in their heads, and they collapsed, exhausted and unconscious, onto the bed.

Maureen awoke to the sound of a clicking lighter, and opened her dazed eyes to see Cynthia lighting up an Allure cigar. There was another Allure cigar on the pillow next to her. It seemed to be either night or very early morning, and as she sniffed the exhaust of Cynthia's cigar, she became aware that her body was telling her it wanted more smoke.

With a sly grin, she put the cigar in her mouth, and accepted a light from Cynthia, drawing the cigar smoke down into her lungs with a sigh of contentment. Neither one of them spoke, because they didn't feel like they needed to say anything. Rather, they cuddled close to each other, and smoked their cigar smoke down as they gradually awoke.

"That was amazing, totally amazing," Maureen said after some time, stroking Cynthia's blonde hair softly. "I've never felt anything like that." Putting her cigar in her mouth and puffing on it, Maureen stopped petting Cynthia's hair, and then snuggled even closer to her. She playfully ran her fingers through Cynthia's genital hair instead. "You're an amazing person, Cynthia. I never thought a woman could make me feel what you've made me feel."

Taking a deep pull on her cigar, Cynthia inhaled and said, "Thank you so much for last night. You're right. Our time together last night was fabulous. I'm glad we can share such pleasures."

Maureen paused for a moment, relishing the feeling of cigar smoke deep within. While the previous evening's smoke was exhilarating, now it was very soothing and relaxing. For a moment she thought about how interesting it was that the same substance could do so many different things for her.

With a feeling of deep affection for Cynthia, she spoke again, "Tell me more about yourself," she said, exhaling. "How did you get started with what you do? What are your plans for the company? What are you a doctor of? I want to know all about Dr. Cynthia Monroe."

Cynthia clamped her cigar down with her teeth and smiled. "Are you ready for a long story?"

"Definitely," came Maureen's response. "We can just sit here and smoke and talk forever, as far as I'm concerned."

Part 13: "Cynthia's story."

"I suppose," Cynthia began, "I should begin my little story by telling you about my first cigarette."

"How old were you when you started?" For whatever reason, it was a question that Maureen was always curious to ask when the subject of first cigarettes came up in conversations with other smokers. She took a bold pull on her Allure cigar and performed a long French inhale as she lay her head down on Cynthia's naked lap and gazed up at her.

"Well- let's just say I was old enough to know better, but not old enough to realize all of the consequences," Cynthia replied after blowing out her latest puff of cigar smoke.

"Anyway, back to my story. A little bit of background is maybe in order. My mother smoked, a lot, and she worked for a big tobacco company. I probably shouldn't tell you which one, not that it really matters anyway. At the time I didn't know exactly what she did for the company, though I was soon to find out.

"She was a single mother, because she had gotten pregnant with me at a very early age, and my young father split on us. However, she was very bright, extremely bright I would say, and she persevered in school while my grandparents helped raise me, and after she got her degree in chemistry she went right to work for the company and made good money."

"Is she still alive?" Maureen asked, politely, as she began to fidget on Cynthia's lap.

"Very much so," Cynthia replied, smiling. "She was very pleased when I called her to discuss hiring you as a test subject."

Maureen was surprised to learn that Cynthia's mother was involved with A.T.C. "I guess it really is a family business," she said, returning the doctor's smile after taking a long hit off of her cigar.

"Well, to continue, the day I started my love affair with nicotine, I came home to find my mother back early from work, and clearly upset, though giving no outward sign other than smoking even more than usual. I was a brat, in many ways, and even though I knew that the tobacco company was putting bread on the table, I had constantly nagged her to quit, while she just shined me on.

"After she had lit up her umpteenth cigarette in a row, I felt irritated at her, and said, `Isn't it enough that you expose me to your shitty smelling smoke? Do you have to smoke this much? Why don't you just quit already?' Or some words to that effect. All I really remember is that I consciously tried to be nasty towards her.

"Something in her snapped. It must have, or else she wouldn't have done what she proceeded to do. Very deliberately, she took a deep inhale, held it for a few seconds while she considered the course of action she was taking, and exhaled in my direction. Even though I ragged on her smoking, I have to admit that it also fascinated me, and seeing the deep satisfaction with which she smoked had an effect.

"She said, sweetly, `I'd maybe consider quitting, honey, if you knew what you were talking about.'

"And I said, `What are you talking about?'

"She replied, `You've given me grief for my smoking for years, and I've taken it for years, yet, you've never been on the other side of the fence. I've been a non-smoker before, and I've even been an ex-smoker before, but you've never even tried it. You don't know both sides, and so you can't have an objective opinion.' She took another deep inhale, her chest heaving upward, and continued, `So please lay off of the guilt trip. I don't need it, especially right now.'"

With another puff, Maureen's cigar glowed orange in the early morning light that had just begun to illuminate the room. "I don't understand. Was she asking you to try a cigarette?" She listened with rapt attention as Cynthia continued her narrative.

"It turned out that was exactly what she was doing, without explicitly saying so just yet. I asked her for clarification, saying, `So what you're saying is that I can't criticize you for smoking so much because I've never tried it. That's nonsense.'

"Yet, despite my words, my curiosity was piqued, and somehow my mom could tell. `I tell you what.' She paused, maybe looking for the right words, and maybe wrestling somehow within her conscience. She took another drag, which seemed to help her form her words and set her resolve. `Try a cigarette with me right now. Just one. Then, after you've seen the other side, if you ask me again to quit, I'll do my best. I can't make any promises other than to try, but I'll really work hard at it.'"

As Maureen listened to the story, spellbound, she accelerated her intake of cigar smoke, and suddenly found herself fighting off an irrational desire to masturbate. For reasons she did not yet fully understand, the story of how Cynthia picked up her habit was making her horny.

"My mother's offer immediately attracted me, since it gave me an excuse to try something that some part of me had secretly wanted to do. I looked up at her, just as she was inhaling smoke with scarcely concealed delight. `It's ok,' she said. `Just try one with me, and then we can make up our minds from there about whether I should quit.'

I nodded my head in assent, and my mom removed a long, all-white cigarette from a pack without any markings. I reached out my hand, and took it."

"Was it an Allure cigarette?" Maureen shifted positions on the bed, and pulled up the covers, feigning coldness. Underneath the covers, she spread her legs apart, and began softly and discretely touching herself with her free hand, while with her other hand she pumped her cigar smoke even more rapidly inside her chest.

Cynthia climbed under the covers too, and gently displaced the hand Maureen had underneath the sheets with her own as she spoke. "You guessed it," she said, as she began petting her friend. "It was an earlier, mid 1980's version of the tobacco strain we are today bringing ever closer to perfection. Still, it proved to be highly effective at inducing rapid addiction.

"I remember feeling my heart resounding within my chest as I brought my first cigarette to my lips. I felt scared, and excited all at once. My mom said, `Just suck the filter, and when your mouth is full, breathe it in.' I trembled slightly, as I leaned towards the light that my mom then offered me, and lit up for my first time."

Maureen finished the nub of her cigar, and put it out, as Cynthia stroked her sex tenderly. Maureen helped herself to one of the luxury length Allure cigarettes still on the nightstand, and lit it immediately up. "Tell me more," she cried, after inhaling, as she began to return Cynthia's attentions.

"As I pulled the smoke into my mouth, I was surprised that it didn't taste anything like it smelled. On the contrary, it tasted very pleasant. I followed my mother's instructions and pulled on the cigarette until my mouth was full, and then, not knowing what to expect, I inhaled for my first time."

As Cynthia pronounced the words, "I inhaled for my first time," Maureen drew a thick cloud of smoke into her lungs, and sighed deeply as Cynthia's fingers danced inside her open vagina. Maureen poked her own fingers inside Cynthia, who began rhythmically moving her hips up and down as she continued speaking.

"I expect that almost every smoker remembers his or her first inhale. It is always a defining moment, the first time the smoke enters your pink lungs, and your brain becomes acquainted with nicotine. Most people cough the first time, or feel sick to their stomachs, yet they continue to smoke because, despite these physical effects, the nicotine begins to affect their brain's pleasure centers, and the seeds of a lifelong addiction are planted."

"Yes," Maureen half-agreed, half moaned. "Oh yes."

Cynthia finished her cigar, and lit up her own long Allure cigarette before she resumed her story. "In my case, I neither coughed, nor felt nauseous. Instead, I felt instantly wonderful, really, really fabulous, as I'm now sure my mother knew I would. You can relate somewhat from your first Allure cigarette, but it wasn't the same because you already smoked. Your sister probably would understand best, though what she felt far surpassed the pleasure I experienced that first time.

"I smiled as I exhaled. I couldn't help myself, since it felt so very good. Right away, I took another drag, and sucked that one down too, deep into my chest. I don't have to explain to you how it felt. We both know the feeling well. We can't get enough of it."

Maureen inhaled another thick cloud from her pleasure stick. "Yes, I need more. More nicotine." As she exhaled, she added, "And I need you to fuck me, right now."

Cynthia never broke stride in her story, even as she reached over to the nightstand, and removed a large, strap on dildo. She calmly continued her speech. "I kept inhaling smoke, more and more, right there with my mom watching, and I decided that I had been wrong to criticize her."

Cynthia strapped on the prosthetic dick, slipped it inside Maureen, and began riding her. She bounced up and down on Maureen, and in and out of her, with almost ferocious fervor, as both of the women chuffed smoke in and out of their mouths and lungs. She waited until she sensed the inevitable climax building in her friend, and then she said, "And when I finished that first cigarette, I decided to join her; to take her habit and make it my own. I was glad I had started smoking."

"Oh, me too. Me too. I wouldn't quit now for anything," Maureen trumpeted, taking multiple drags before sucking the contents of those drags through her respiratory tract into her body. Down below, her vagina pulsated as the orgasm seized her.

The strikingly beautiful blonde woman smiled, taking a drag, inhaling quickly, and then blowing it in the face of the younger brunette. "And that, my dear, is how I started smoking."

Part 14: "Cynthia's development"

The rising sun in the eastern window made visible the thick blue smoke clouding the room. Maureen was lighting up another luxury length Allure from the short cherry on the butt of her last one, while Cynthia was taking long, easy drags off of her own half-smoked cig, and blowing ring after ring into the sunlight, where they hovered for a long time before slowly breaking up and dissipating.

Although Maureen had a class later in the morning, she decided to skip it, and Cynthia didn't seem to be making any sort of move towards getting up either. This pleased Maureen, who was more curious than ever about the origins of the strange and beautiful variety of smoke that evermore dominated her thoughts and actions.

"So what did your mother say, after you finished your first cigarette?" Maureen asked, breaking the long mutual lull in the conversation.

"My mom is an unusual person. You'll see if you ever meet her. She's not a overly talkative person. Anyway, true to form, she never said anything about me smoking. Not a single word. She just kept smoking her cigarette, lost in deep thoughts.

"Finally, I spoke up. `I really liked that,' I said. `I won't bother you again about your smoking. Who knows? Maybe I'll want to try it again.'

"After I said that, my mother seemed to brighten a bit, which meant that she seemed somewhat less pensive. I spoke again, `What's the matter, Mom. You seem really distracted. Is everything ok?'

"Mom began to cry, which was very unusual for her. She wasn't bawling or anything, but tears were coming steadily down her cheeks, as if a crack appeared in her tear ducts. As I said before, she's a person of few words, and not overly expressive. I went to her, and put my arms around her. I noticed then, for the first time, that besides smoking a lot, she had put on a little bit of weight, which was also highly unusual for her, since she had what you might call a fit figure. `Do you want to talk about it?' I asked.

"She stood up and took a few steps away from me before she turned around and spoke. Her voice was hardly more than a whisper. `Today, I lost my job. I got fired. I had seen it coming for a few weeks, but today, it became official. I don't know what I'm going to do.'"

Maureen popped in her inhale. Lately, it seemed to her that she always took a drag before speaking, as if the smoke helped her form the words in her mind before it drifted out of her lips with her words' utterance. "The company fired her? Why would they do that, when she is obviously so brilliant?"

Cynthia blew out a few more rings as she reached again for the long black cigarette case. Finding it empty, she frowned in mild annoyance as she removed a pack of regular Allures from the nightstand drawer. "Somebody at the company thought she was becoming a liability, particularly given what she did. I'll tell you more about that soon. Back in 1987, tobacco companies were just beginning to come under increasing scrutiny for business practices considered unethical by the anti-smoking establishment." She rapped the pack against her wrist and opened it. "However, as questionable as their ethics were, my mom went further in her pursuits."

"How do you mean?"

"I found out about it all that very day. When my mom told me she'd lost her job, my heart sank for her, because I knew that she loved her work." Cynthia gave another one of her cryptic smiles as she lit up. "Exactly how much she loved her job, and why, I would learn from my own experiences.

"About this time, I began having my first craving for a cigarette, a strong, gnawing sensation like all I wanted in the world was more smoke in my body. As I spied the unadorned package of cigarettes on the table, I didn't even consider not giving in to the urge to smoke. Briefly, I considered asking my mom if I could have another one, but instead of speaking the words, I just helped myself to my second cigarette, and lit it up myself, inhaling just like my mom did. She still didn't acknowledge my sudden change in attitude, but she did smile at me, in a motherly way, like she did whenever I made her proud.

"It was as if my embrace of her habit gave her encouragement to open up to me, and, for the first and one of the only times in our relationship together, we had a long and meaningful talk, while we enjoyed some cigarettes together. She didn't confide everything to me, but she did tell me all about what she did at her work. There was something else she was worried about, which I found out about some time later, but I don't want to go into that now.

"As we sat and smoked, she told me about how she had come to be involved in research for the company in the late 70's, working on product development to attract new smokers and keep them hooked. Some of the documentation of this is pretty interesting, though very technical for a layperson. If you are ever interested, look up tobaccodocuments.org on the web, and you'll see what I mean.

"Anyway, while we smoked together, she told me how, while others she worked with discussed additives in their company's product, she envisioned using the emerging technology of genetic engineering to create a whole new and improved breed of tobacco. She studied agricultural techniques, processing methods, and crossbreeding procedures. She even told me how, when other researchers wanted to test the addictiveness of their product on rats, she wanted to up the ante and test primates. Though she didn't tell the company, she wanted to go even further, with human experimentation. She was a very driven woman, without scruples." Dr. Monroe fired up another cigarette and wolfed the smoke down inside her chest. "She still is.

"The final straw for the company was when she developed a prototype of a new product, without their knowledge, and, after she had gone as far as she could with rats and chimps, she went far over the line by testing it on herself. By the time the company found out what she was doing, my mom had managed to stockpile a sizeable quantity of the prototype cigarettes, and she absconded with them, but not before also taking all of her research notes. The company didn't exactly want to attract the attention of law enforcement or public attention, so they just let her go, and made a clean break of it.

"And after that," Cynthia said, pausing to exhale out her nose while she dragged and inhaled, "She pushed the envelope even further, by making an addict out of her only daughter."

"What did you think, when she told you all this? Were you upset that she had turned you into the subject of her experimentation?" Maureen knew that she, for one, felt honored to be a test subject for Allure cigarettes, and she took a deep puff as this thought crossed her mind.

"I suppose that I would have been upset, except that smoking those cigarettes felt so fantastic. Instead of being upset, I just lit up again, and thanked her for confiding in me, and for introducing me to such an alluring pleasure. That was how our cigarettes got their name.

"Obviously," Cynthia said, taking a long puff for emphasis, "I happily continued to smoke. My habit quickly grew. I'm sure you could figure out how it went. One day I thought smoking was disgusting, and the next I wanted to smoke all the time, and the next I needed to smoke all the time. Before I knew it, my life revolved around getting my nicotine fixes, but I never minded. It's weird, how a person can actually like being hooked on cigarettes."

Maureen nodded her head sagely in agreement, taking a puff as if Cynthia's words reminded her that she needed to. Cynthia likewise took a drag and a deep inhale, as if to show how much she liked being enslaved to her little white friends.

"As I got older, my mom trained me in the rudiments of botany, organic chemistry, engineering, psychology, and applied genetics, along with any other discipline that could help us reach our goal. Although I was young, I was an apt pupil, and she was an equally effective teacher." Cynthia grinned, a little bit too broadly and a little bit too abruptly, while she sharply pulled in more smoke. "She had special ways of motivating me to reach for the stars.

"It turned out to be a good thing that she got me involved; I provided at least some degree of moral redemption for the product. My mother didn't care about anything but increasing the addictiveness of her invention. I, on the other hand, became interested in developing a cigarette that would have other benefits in addition to the pleasure component, such as the increased energy and mental prowess, and the diminished health risks that Allures provide their users. Although my mother wasn't interested in this at first, she conceded that this did increase their marketability, and so we began developing the next generation of Allures. When Emily grew up and began work on the aphrodisiac properties of our cigarettes, we took Allure cigarettes to a whole new level!"

At this, Maureen helped herself to yet another cigarette. She exclaimed, "Emily? I thought she just did filing and answered the phones, and all of that."

"Well, there's only her, my mom, and me, and somebody's got to do the grunt work. She's the youngest, so she got picked for that sort of stuff. But don't underestimate her. She's probably the brightest one in my family. It was her idea that we begin recruiting new people to work with us, although of course my mother made the final decision."

"How old is your sister, by the way?"

"She's the same age as you are," Cynthia said, as she chain lit another smoke.

"That's very interesting," Maureen said, sucking down more nicotine as she did some quick math and turned over some details of Cynthia's story in her mind. "Very interesting indeed."

After a pause while she held the smoke in her lungs, Maureen exhaled as she said, "You mentioned that she thought of recruiting new people to work with you. Does that have anything to do with the proposal that you mentioned yesterday?"

"As a matter of fact, it does. You proved your loyalty when you sold your sister into nicotine slavery, and you are beautiful and intelligent." Maureen blushed at these words, while performing a nice snap inhale. Cynthia gave her quirky smile as she continued, "My mother is, of course, the C.E.O. of our company, while I will be working in human resources, and my sister will continue with product development. We need a team to do marketing for us, and you and your sister came to mind. What do you think?"

Maureen snuggled up to Cynthia, and kissed her on her nose affectionately. "I think that's an excellent idea," she said, taking a seductive drag on her cig, "Just so long as there aren't any policies at A.T.C. against sleeping with your boss."

With that, she kicked off the covers, and went down on Dr. Cynthia Monroe, sending up frequent puffs of smoke as she explored her new boss' clit with her tongue. Cynthia laid down on her back, smiling her strange and mysterious smile, blowing up countless smoke rings, and trying not to cry out too loudly as a consequence of her friend's sexual attentions.

Part 15: "Cutting class."

After Cynthia was thoroughly pleasured, she switched places with Maureen, and lit up another long Allure cigar. Between puffs and inhales from her stogie, she lapped up her partner's vaginal juices with a skillful tongue. Occasionally, while she held in her smoke for maximum absorption, she substituted the cigar for her tongue, using it, to Maureen's evident delight, to massage her clitoris.

Maureen, on the other hand, decided to chain down cigarette after cigarette and practice different smoking techniques. One cigarette she would smoke unhurriedly, drawing the smoke in deeply and holding it as long as she could, while the next she would intentionally rush, pulling the smoke powerfully into her lungs, and exhaling through her nose while she immediately took her next drag.

Through it all, she issued prodigious moans, grunts, and cries of excitement, as Cynthia ensured that her lungs weren't the only part of her body receiving intense pleasure. After six amazing climaxes, Maureen guided Cynthia up toward her, and gave her a long, smoky kiss. "I like how you taste," Maureen told her new boss, exhaling faint remnants of the smoke that had passed back and forth between their lungs. "Like cigars, and like my pussy."

By the time they finished treating each other to oral sex, it was late morning. While they both wanted to just stay in bed all day, and repeat exactly the previous night's activities, they reluctantly got up. Cynthia had to go in to work, while Maureen didn't want to also miss her afternoon class.

Cynthia guided her to the bathroom, where they showered together, thoroughly lathering up each others' bodies in the steaming tub as they periodically kissed. Despite their enjoyment of the experience, they showered fairly quickly, eager to get out and smoke again.

As soon as they were out and minimally dry, Cynthia took out two more cigarettes from the pack they were sharing, and gave one to her friend. She operated her lighter, and the two naked and dripping women once again shared the same flame as they performed the ritual of lighting up, and sucking down that first puff of nicotine from their cigs. When finally they exhaled, their smoke mixed with the balmy air still in the room. The two women dried off quickly, smoking in silence the whole time.

Maureen got dressed in the same outfit she wore the previous evening, wondering if it was a bit too formal to wear to class. "I can't wear this," she told Cynthia with a smirk as she blew out her smoke forcefully. "It absolutely reeks of smoke." She took a sniff of her blouse as she put it up over her head, and sure enough, it smelled like every fiber of the garment had been exposed to heavy concentrations of smoke from various substances.

Cynthia took a drag on her own cigarette, inhaled only partially, then leaned over to smell the blouse, right in the middle where it covered Maureen's breasts. Sniffing in completed her inhale. "I think you smell marvelous," Cynthia said in a low, sensual voice. Exhaling through her nose directly onto the top, Cynthia added, "Your smell makes me want you again."

It was all Maureen could do to avoid tearing her clothes off again, but somehow she resisted, proof in her mind that despite ample evidence to the contrary, she still possessed some measure of self-control, at least as far as sex went. With smoking, though, it was a different matter. She breathed in more smoke as she tore herself away and sat down on the bed put on her stockings.. "Tonight, definitely tonight."

"I can't wait," Cynthia said. "Maybe around 6, could meet at my work and go over your new duties, your pay increase, and our marketing strategy." She took a puff and offered her characteristic smile. "After we finish working, then, of course, it is playtime."

Maureen got up to go, and then remembered something. "Before I forget, last night you said I could have some of the goodies that Julia got, specifically the Allure gum and patch, for when I'm in class. I can't bear the idea of having to sit through an hour and a half lecture without at least some nicotine going into my body."

"I'm glad you remembered. Let me get that for you." With that, Cynthia disappeared for a moment, and then returned with two cigar sized boxes, one black, and the other wrapped in red paper. "I had this ready before you got here last night, but I sort of got distracted," Cynthia smiled again, taking a thoughtful drag on her almost finished Allure before she spoke again. "The black box contains the promised goodies, to help get you through class. Open the other box when you get home, before our meeting."

"Ok," Maureen said, curious as to the contents of the second box.

Cynthia offered her friend a hug. "I really had a wonderful time last night. It was the first time I've really been able to be totally myself in bed with somebody." Maureen assumed this was because they both enjoyed smoking while they were together.

"Me too," Maureen said, with deep sincerity. I'm totally looking forward to seeing you again."

After one last, smoky, lingering kiss with Cynthia at the door, Maureen compulsively checked her purse to make sure she had her cigarettes, and then headed to her car. Cynthia waited at the door to see her off, and, with her cigarette in her hand, waved goodbye. The last thing Maureen saw as she drove off was Cynthia taking a long puff and then blowing a smoky goodbye kiss.

"Oh shit," Maureen muttered to herself, looking down at the digital clock on her car's radio. She had only a short time to drive to the campus, park, and get to class. As she liked to do whenever she felt stressed out, she took a deep puff into her lungs, and immediately felt better.

While she held her smoke in and let it soak into her body, she glanced down at the two boxes next to her on the passenger's seat. She exhaled through her nose as she took another drag and looked at the clock again. "I'll never make it on time," she told herself. Sighing out her exhale, she resolved to just go home, and skip her class. She was getting an A in it anyway, though her professor had told the students that this particular meeting would be important.

Again displaying her formidable self-discipline, she held off opening the red box while she drove home. As she pulled her car into her parking spot, she snapped off the car's ignition, grabbed her goodies, and rushed inside, the smoke from her freshly lit cigarette streaming behind her as she walked.

Maureen plopped down in her favorite chair, and planted her cigarette in her mouth, puffing on it as she ripped open the red wrapping paper. She opened the box, and first found a folded piece of paper on top. She put the paper aside for the moment, and then examined the rest of the contents. Inside she found a long black cigarette case, ten Allure cigars, a small glass pipe, and two different baggies, one filled with the crystallized nicotine pellets she and Cynthia had smoked the previous evening, and one filled with the other "tobacco" she had tried for the first time with Cynthia. Maureen's heart beat faster as she took a drag off of the cigarette still in her mouth. It was exactly everything she had been hoping would be inside.

Picking up the note, Maureen sucked down more nicotine as she read: ______________________________________ I knew you'd cut class, you naughty girl.

Have fun!

Cyn ______________________________________

Although her vagina was beginning to feel a bit tender, Maureen couldn't help taking off the underwear beneath her skirt, spreading her legs apart in her chair, taking a deep inhale, and fondling herself while she pondered which of her goodies to indulge in first.

Part 16: "An unexpected surprise"

Maureen Connolley awoke, somewhat dazed, to the ringing of her cell phone, which was sitting on the table next to her favorite chair. Her underwear was still down around her ankles, the ashtray next to her was full, the glass pipe had fallen unharmed onto the carpet, and the chair beneath her was slightly damp, as were the insides of her thighs. She blinked hard to wake herself up, and then grabbed her cell phone, along with the long black cigarette case that also sat on the table next to her. She extracted one of her extra-long Allure cigarettes as she answered the phone. She already knew from the ring tone who it was.

"Hi, Sis, what's up?" As with last night, she was having difficulty finding even the simplest words when speaking. As her sister spoke, Maureen lit up her long, long Allure cigarette and inhaled, perking up a bit as the smoke entered her.

"Not too much. Just calling to say `hi.'" Julia never called just to say hi. "Do you mind if I come over tonight? I kinda want to get out of the house for a while."

"I understand," Maureen replied. She remembered well all of the times when she used to feel stuck at home. Of course, it was probably harder on her sister. "You're welcome to come over and hang out here, but I kinda have plans for tonight." Maureen inhaled more smoke, smiling as she remembered what the evening had in store for her.

"What sort of plans?" Her little sister always wanted to know what was going on.

Maureen exhaled audibly into the receiver as she gave her reply. "I have to go in to A.T.C. to discuss something with Cyn, er, Dr. Monroe."

There was a long pause before Julia spoke again. Maureen wondered if she smoking.

"Discuss something with Cynthia?" Julia sounded amused on the other end of the line.

"Yeah," Maureen didn't elaborate. Instead, she took another long pull on her cigarette. She wasn't sure what to tell Julia about the previous evening.

Again, there was a long pause on Julia's end, confirming in Maureen's mind her hypothesis.

When Julia spoke again, her voice was playful and merry. "So, how was your hot date?"

Maureen tried to make her voice sound sarcastic as she gave her reply. "We had hot, steamy sex all night, ok?" Again, Maureen took in more smoke.

"You really did, didn't you?" Julia had always been amazingly perceptive. "I can't say I blame you, though her sister is more my type."

"So are you coming over, or what?"

A knock came at Maureen's door, as on the other side, Julia cheerfully said, "I'm already here."

Maureen leapt out of her comfortable chair, thrust her goodies into their box and closed the lid. As she went for the door, she tripped over the panties still around her ankles, and went down with a thud, still holding her long lit cigarette daintily in her left hand.

"Are you ok in there?" Julia's laughing voice could be heard both on the other end of the cell phone, and also on the other side of the door. Maureen cursed silently as she got up, pulled up her panties, and, ever so gracefully moved towards the door and opened it.

Maureen opened the door, and Julia blew into the room, holding an almost finished cigarette between her fingers. "Nice long cigarette you've got," she said as she moved towards the ashtray near Maureen's favorite chair. Maureen hastened to say, "Don't sit there. I- I spilled some juice there."

"I'm sure you did," Julia said, grinning, as she helped herself to one of the luxury length Allures in the black cigarette case, and lit it from the dying butt of her own cig. She popped in her inhale with her lips parted, revealing her cute braces. "Maybe that's why you didn't answer your phone. I'm almost out of smokes, and I called you like three times." With smoke seeping out of her smiling lips, she put out her cigarette in the overflowing ashtray on the table, adding to its collection of butts. "Hey, what's in the box?"

Before Maureen could get a word in edgewise, Julia had opened the box sitting next to the ashtray, and examined its contents. Increasingly exasperated with her sister, Maureen simply frowned as she took a forceful drag off of her cigarette and inhaled it.

"I thought I smelled something funny when I walked in," Julia said, throwing her head back and exhaling upwards. "Don't worry," she added with another smirk, "It isn't like I'm gonna tell Mom and Dad or anything, at least as long as you let me try."

"Maybe it'll calm you down, at least," Maureen said, finally cracking a smile despite her best efforts. "You've been bouncing off of the walls."

"You don't understand, Maureen. Or maybe you do. I feel *fantastic* since I started smoking these things," she said, her glance falling on her cigarette. She took a quick, robust drag to highlight her words, again revealing her shiny teeth when she inhaled. "Every molecule of this smoke that I breathe makes me feel just peachy."

Maureen smiled again at her sister, as she took the box out of Julia's hands and sat down on the couch. "Just peachy, huh? I guess that about sums it up."

Julia sat down next to her sister, and let forth a thick exhale from her lips. "So are you serious about letting me sample some of the contents of that box?"

Maureen smiled at her sister's smoothness. "Wait a minute," she said, "I never said I was going to." She paused and took a drag, deliberately letting her sister's anticipation build while she enjoyed a lingering French inhale. "Are you serious about wanting to try it?"

Julia popped in another drag, as she pushed her stylish glasses further up her shapely little nose. "I just feel like doing something wild. I'm not sure why. Maybe it's these cigs, or maybe I'm just in the mood to do something crazy." Although Julia had a naturally bubbly personality, she wasn't exactly a free spirit. Usually she only made decisions after careful deliberation. "Come on, Sis. Smoke me out. Then you can tell me about your hot date last night."

Maureen laughed as she put her cigarette in her mouth as she removed some of the sticky green weed from the baggie, and stuffed it into her glass pipe. She was still feeling quite a bit of the effects from her last use of the pipe. "Ok," she said, "If that's really what you want. I have to warn you though," she continued, taking a drag on her cigarette and sucking swiftly in, "This stuff will mess you up pretty good." Julia was watching her intently, plainly eager to experiment. "Just do what I do, and hold it in as long as you can."

The older sister held her cigarette between her left index and middle fingers, while grasping the pipe with her remaining fingers and thumb. She exhaled the puff she had taken from her cigarette, raised the pipe to her pursed lips, and clicked her lighter. The contents of the pipe's bowl ignited as Maureen pulled the hot smoke directly into her lungs. She smiled blearily, held out the pipe to her little sister, and croaked, "Your turn."

Julia showed no hesitation as she accepted the pipe from her sister, and likewise held her lit cigarette in the same hand as the pipe while she flicked her own lighter. Again the contents of the pipe burned orange as Julia fearlessly sucked the smoke deep inside. Handing the pipe nonchalantly back to her sister, she smiled, as if with some sense of accomplishment, once again revealing the orthodontic work that adorned her teeth.

Maureen exhaled a thin stream of pungent smelling smoke, and took a quick puff on her cigarette, inhaling and exhaling quickly, before she repeated the action of sparking up her pipe. As she inhaled, she immediately felt the characteristic giddiness and exuberance return. "I could get really used to doing this," she thought as she passed the piece back to Julia.

Evidently, Julia liked it, because she took it eagerly, exhaled her last hit, inhaled and exhaled a puff of her Allure, and then lit the pipe back up, just like her sister did. The bowl glowed briefly before the embers within died.

"I'll pack some more," Maureen said, taking the pipe again from her sister, rapping the pipe against her ashtray to empty the used ash, and putting some more chronic in it. While she did this, Julia puffed contentedly on her cigarette, inhaling each time with a small sigh. Maureen too used the opportunity to catch up with her Allure, smoking hands free while she adroitly prepared the pipe for further use.

"You get the first hit this time," she told Julia, who smiled in delight. Julia fired up the pipe like she was getting the hang of it, and as she inhaled more of its smoke, she was smiling so broadly that she looked about ready to crack up. "Do you like it?" Maureen asked. She took the pipe out of Julia's hands, since she had forgotten to pass it to her.

Julia nodded her assent as Maureen took her own hit and passed it back to her.

"How long have you been doing this?" Julia asked, staring at the pipe in her hands.

"Actually, I just started," Maureen replied. "Cynthia taught me."

By the time the girls finished their long, long Allure cigarettes, they had shared four bowls. Soon, they were howling with laughter, about nothing in particular, and intensely feeling the effects of the smoke.

Julia was about to help herself to another luxury length Allure, when Maureen stopped her. "I have something else you should try," she said, removing the baggie of crystallized nicotine from the box. Julia's green eyes sparkled in excitement. "Be forewarned about this too. It's very potent."

"I hope it's not what I think it is," Julia said, suddenly betraying a bit of nervousness.

"It's better than what you think it is. It's a potent form of nicotine." Maureen put one of the crystals in the same pipe. "Here, you go first."

Julia lit the pipe again, and this time it crackled and hissed as its contents were rapidly consumed by the flame. Her lungs expanded as the smoke filled them. Behind her stylish glasses, Julia's eyes flew open wide in astonishment as the pleasure centers of her brain went suddenly haywire.

"Oooh my gawd. Oh my fucking gawwwd. That was so fucking incredible," Julia cried, when she finally exhaled. "Hurry up and take your hit, so I can do that again. That was unfuckingbelievable."

"Yeah, I love it too. We should only take a couple of hits each though, or else we'll pass out." With a shaking hand, Maureen put another crystal in the bowl and ignited it. Her own brain's pleasure centers were soon berserk with activity, and if her sister were not right there with her, she would definitely have started masturbating again.

Julia already had a crystal ready in between her fingers when Maureen finished with the pipe. Very quickly, she put it in the pipe, and fired it up, pulling on the pipe with what seemed like every ounce of her strength. When she couldn't inhale any deeper, she reluctantly passed the pipe back to Maureen, closed her eyes, and just felt the tsunami of nicotine crash into her mind.

Maureen took one more hit, sucked it down frantically, and then quickly put the pipe and baggie back in the box while she could still resist the desire to smoke still more. Before closing the box, however, she took out two Allure cigars and, beaming from ear to ear with sheer glee, handed one over to her sister. The two young ladies unwrapped their cigars, and lit them up hungrily.

Julia, holding the smoke inside, looked lost in thought. Suddenly, she turned to Maureen and said, in a strange voice, "I'll be back in a few minutes. I really have to go to the bathroom." Without waiting for a reply, Julia took her cigar, and rushed across the apartment to the commode, closing the door behind her. A further click signaled that she locked the door as well.

Maureen smiled blissfully, as she suspected what her sister might be up to inside. She was about to take a great pull on her cigar, when her cell phone rang unexpectedly.

"Hello?" she said, answering the phone after taking a quick puff.

"Maureen?" It was Cynthia. "Hi. Are you still coming to discuss your new duties with A.T.C.?"

"Cynthia! What time is it?"

Maureen heard Cynthia's lighter click on the other end of the phone. "It's 6:20. This isn't a great start to your new job." Maureen could tell by Cynthia's voice, however, that her boss was being playful. "Besides," Cynthia added, after taking a sharp breath into the phone's mouthpiece, "I'm not surprised that you lost track of time."

Maureen smiled at her friend's characteristically indirect statement. "Actually, my sister is here," she said, before exhaling her cigar smoke through her nose while she took another drag.

"What an unexpected surprise!" Maureen could by now tell from Cynthia's tone that Julia's visit wasn't entirely unexpected. "That's wonderful, because my sister's here with me, and would like very much to spend some more time with Julia. What do you say we come over to your place. Besides, I'm sure you don't feel like driving just now." Maureen heard Cynthia inhale another puff of whatever she happened to be smoking at the moment.

"That would be really great." Maureen was eager to see Cynthia again, but also would have preferred to see her in private. However, she smiled as she realized that her apartment had two bedrooms.

"Stupendous! We'll take care of business first, and then we'll take care of pleasure. I'll bring some drinks and some other refreshments. Ciao."

"Can't wait," Maureen said into the phone, before Cynthia hung up. She took as much cigar smoke inside as her lungs would allow, considering whether to tell her bratty sister about the company she now expected, or instead let it be a surprise.

She had a while to make up her mind, because Julia didn't seem to be in any sort of hurry to finish her business in the bathroom and come back out.

Conclusion: "Business and Pleasure"

Maureen pulled cigar smoke into her lungs and practiced making smoke rings while she waited for either her sister to come back, or for their guests to arrive. It turned out that Cynthia and Emily got there before Julia was finished. Hearing them talking as they approached the door, Maureen went and opened it before they knocked. Both of them were wearing fashionable business attire, and they held their freshly lit cigarettes between their long fingers, with their wrists bent at the same feminine angle. In addition, Cynthia was carrying a fairly large black briefcase. Maureen noticed that Emily had her raven black hair carefully braided, and was wearing more makeup than usual.

"Come on in," she whispered to the pair, taking her cigar out of her mouth as she spoke, and then putting it back in to take a long drag. "Try to be quiet though. Julia is in the bathroom, and I want her to be surprised when she sees you."

"She doesn't know we're coming?" Emily asked, smiling.

"She's been in the bathroom since Cynthia called," Maureen told her guests, exhaling partially before she spoke, and then, after a secondary inhale, breathing out the rest of the smoke.

Cynthia moved close to Maureen, pressed their bodies close, and gave her a kiss on her lips, exhaling her latest puff and then biting gently on Maureen's lower lip as she drew away. "It smells like you guys started the party without us," she said in a low voice. Turning to her sister, she said, "Looks like we have a little bit of catching up to do." The two sisters shared a knowing look and matching cryptic smiles.

As her guests made their way quietly into the cozy living room, Maureen hastened to her favorite chair, claiming it before either of her guests asked any embarrassing questions. As she sat down, she puffed in her cigar smoke in relief. She wouldn't have minded if it was just Cynthia, but she didn't know Emily as intimately, and she was sure that if her sister was reminded it would become a running joke throughout the evening.

She had no sooner sat down, when Cynthia asked, "Do you have a bottle of water?"

"Um, sure. Do you want anything Emily?"

"Not to drink right now, thank you," Emily said politely before making the tip of her cigarette glow brightly.

Maureen got up, taking her almost spent cigar with her as she hurried into the kitchen to fetch the required drink. Taking a final puff and inhale on her cigar before putting it out in the ashtray she kept in the room, she hoped that her sitting down in the chair had effectively claimed it, so that neither of the sisters would take the seat.

She rushed back to the room, and was happy to notice that Cynthia and Emily had taken places at the couch, with Cynthia sitting closest to Maureen's favorite chair. Moreover, as she handed the bottle of water to Cynthia, she observed that the doctor had opened her briefcase and had removed from it a decently sized water pipe, which she held between her legs. Smoking on the cigarette she had sticking out of her mouth, she was filling the bowl with smelly green bud while Emily looked on.

"Thank you, honey," Cynthia said, her words of gratitude carrying small puffs of smoke with them. She opened the bottle, and poured some into the water pipe. Taking her cigarette out of her mouth, she held it between the fingers of her free hand while her other hand reached for a lighter. She lost no time in blazing up the contents of the water pipe's bowl, saying smilingly before she did so, "Age before beauty."

Maureen and Emily watched intently as Cynthia put her mouth slightly inside the top of the pipe, her cheeks hollowing with the effort of sucking as the clear water pipe began bubble festively and fill with thick smoke. After about five seconds, Cynthia suddenly removed the stem, and the smoke went shooting into her rising chest.

Emily casually grabbed the pipe, and, focusing her gaze intently on the bowl, clicked the lighter and repeated her sister's actions, filling the bong again with white smoke. As the pipe bubbled once again and filled with smoke, the toilet in the bathroom suddenly flushed, and Julia made her way back into the room. Emily looked up from the pipe, and met Julia's gaze with her own. Maureen thought she saw Emily's parted lips smile in happiness as she pulled the stem out and sucked the smoke forcefully through the pipe and into her lungs.

"Did you get lost?" Maureen asked her sister, prompting Cynthia to snort unexpectedly as she tried to keep from laughing. Two little wisps of smoke came out of her nostrils before she released a full exhale of still thick smoke in Julia's direction. Immediately, she took a strong drag from her cigarette.

Julia's pretty face flushed, but she shot back, "I thought you spilled something on that chair you're sitting in. Is it still wet?"

Now it was Maureen's turn to flush. She considered saying something further, but decided to let her little sister have the last word, at least for now.

Julia went over to her sister and helped herself to a luxury length Allure. She popped it in her mouth and lit it in one fluid motion. "You didn't tell me we were expecting company," she said after she had completed her snap inhale.

"Don't you hate it when company drops by unexpectedly? Actually, Cynthia called right after you got in the bathroom, about fifteen minutes ago or so."

Emily, still looking at Julia intently patted the empty space on the sofa beside her. "You're next in the rotation," she croaked, keeping most of the smoke inside. The way Emily was scrutinizing Julia reminded Maureen of the way that Cynthia had looked at her after her own bathroom break yesterday.

"You'll have to help me with that pipe. I'm new at this," Julia said, softly, as she sat down, continuing to gaze into Emily's eyes.

"Open your mouth," Emily told Julia, who complied readily. Emily put her face very close to Julia's, and exhaled into Julia's parted lips, while Julia breathed slowly in. The two girls continued to stare into each other's eyes, and Emily's tongue made fleeting contact with Julia's braces before she turned her face away.

"After you exhale, put your mouth into the tube on the top, and I'll take care of the rest," Emily said, smiling. Julia again followed Emily's instructions, exhaling the remnants of Emily's bong hit, and fully emptying her lungs before putting her mouth in the appropriate place. Emily smiled as she lit the bowl and Julia began to make the bong bubble. After a few seconds, Emily removed the stem, and the smoke rushed into Julia. Emily took a drag on her cigarette and, after inhaling a ball of smoke from a large snap inhale, whispered something into Julia's ear, causing Maureen's sister to once again smile and blush.

Cynthia reached over and took the water pipe from Julia. Sucking on it quickly, she took in the smoke that remained in the chamber, and proceeded to pack up another bowl. She exhaled, and took another drag on her cigarette before passing the pipe to Maureen, who herself had just exhaled a stream of smoke from her freshly lit Allure.

"By the way, you were right about me cutting class," Maureen told Cynthia, who smiled her puzzling smile and blew a cloud of smoke into the air.

As Maureen operated the pipe as she had seen the other women do, Cynthia began to speak. Maureen struggled to concentrate on the words.

"I told you we'd take care of business first, then pleasure, but there's no good reason why we can't do both at once. Maureen, I take it you haven't mentioned the job offer to Julia yet?"

Right after she removed the stem, and sucked the thick smoke inside, Maureen pinched her eyes shut and shook her head no.

"Well, Julia, I'd like to offer you and your sister a job in marketing for our little company. We'll pay you each $70,000 a year, plus bonuses. Does that sound like something you'd be interested in?"

Julia pumped in several drags off of her cig, and said, "Yeah, definitely." Maureen reflected, before exhaling and taking a drag off of her cigarette, that Julia was considerably quiet, especially since Emily had arrived.

Cynthia broke into her thoughts. "Are you gonna pass that over here, babe?" Maureen started, and then handed the water pipe over to Cynthia, who began to hit it.

Emily continued her sister's speech, while her sister was otherwise occupied. "We would like Maureen to start immediately, and Julia to start right after her braces come off."

"Who exactly would we be marketing your product to?" Maureen asked.

Cynthia handed the pipe over to her sister and continued, speaking while still holding in her smoke. "Well, how would the two of you like to begin a career in modeling?"

Maureen took another puff on her Allure before she replied. "I don't understand."

"We would like to begin distributing our product carefully, especially considering all of the scrutiny that larger tobacco companies receive from an over-zealous media and from all of the health Nazis. Yet, we would also like for our customers to be people of glamour and influence. Since a disproportionate number of fashion models smoke, it seems like a good place to begin. As you meet others in the modeling business, you could casually introduce them to our product. Once they try it, I'm sure they'll keep coming back for more."" Julia asked, "How do you know that we could make it as models? Thousands of girls try modeling, and even some very good looking women don't succeed?"

Cynthia spoke through an exhale. "You both have the looks to be a model, definitely, and I think you could actually make it big in the industry. In fact, if you would like, we are prepared to pay for you to have any cosmetic enhancements you see fit to have, although," she hastened to add, "I don't think you need them. To further ensure your success, we have some important connections in the modeling world, and certain ways of making sure that you get noticed. "One further benefit of your career in modeling is that it is a plausible explanation for Julia's sudden large income, and a way for her to become more independent." Julia looked very pleased, and took an extra long drag on her cigarette to show it.

Emily finished her hit, and passed to Julia before she took a turn speaking. "Our newest product, designer cigarettes, seem especially suited to the modeling lifestyle. We're working on ways to custom make Allure cigarettes to fully compliment individual users' unique brain chemistry. Of course, you and your sister will be among the first to get to try what we consider to be the future of smoking pleasure."

"Which way is this going," Julia said suddenly, obviously disorientated. Emily patted her on the inside of her knee, and passed the pipe over to Maureen by way of Cynthia.

"Part of the reason why we introduced you to "tobacco," (Cynthia made little quotation marks with her fingers, two of which were holding the Allure she had just lit), was because its use is so common in the fashion world. We think Maureen would have great success if she plied her potential customers with high quality Mary Jane before introducing them to the pleasure of Allures."

"I have a question," Julia raised her hand, which was holding her Allure, in the air as if she was calling a teacher's attention in class. "Why do you seem to peddle Allures exclusively to females?"

"It's a woman thing, darling," Emily answered, smiling, before taking a lengthy puff on her cig and breathing it down.

"Emily's right," Cynthia said. "Women just respond better to our product. Study after study has demonstrated that women get more addicted to nicotine than men. Our brains just react to it differently. We specifically use smoking to cope with stress, anger, sadness, fear, and other negative emotions. We also use cigarettes when we have positive emotions such as happiness." She sucked on her cigarette and drew the smoke down. "Our nicotine use is linked to our passions. Therefore, women make very good test subjects and initial consumers."

Maureen said, "I have a question too, about the crystallized nicotine. I read somewhere that pure nicotine was extremely toxic and unstable, and that it was actually explosive. How do you make it so that it is safe?"

"That's a company secret," Emily said, jokingly. "Actually, we're able to slightly tweak the chemical structure of our nicotine, so that the product that we're enjoying is similar to, but at the same time, quite different from what people get in traditional cigarettes. Any more questions?"

Maureen was sure she had more, but couldn't think of them just then, considering her state of mind. She was almost relieved when Cynthia took the bong away from her and set it on the table. A quiet settled over the room as each woman escaped into their own thoughts. Maureen closed her eyes and enjoyed the intense high that the quality herb had given her, while she breathed her Allure smoke in and out. All around her, she could hear various pops, whooshes, crackles, and sighs as her companions sucked in their nicotine methodically. She almost didn't need to smoke to get nicotine; there was more than enough second hand smoke in the surrounding air to keep her satisfied. Nevertheless, she continued taking in more puffs.

When she sensed that her cigarette was almost finished, she opened her eyes, and saw that the other three women were likewise finished or finishing their smokes. Cynthia produced four cigars, and handed one to each of them.

The four women puffed their cigars alight at once from the flame that Emily offered from her extended lighter. Each inhaled deeply, and held it in, before reluctantly releasing their breath into the room, adding to the dense layers of nicotine residue in the air.

"I'd like to propose a toast," Cynthia said. "To new partnerships!" Emily and Julia's eyes met once again, and Emily reached over and took Julia's hand into her own. Although the women didn't have any drinks at hand, they followed Cynthia's lead, raising their cigars, and touching the lit ends together, before they took more of the smoke into their already smoke soaked lungs.

Maureen was just beginning to plot how to get rid of Emily and Julia, so that she and Cynthia could have more time to themselves, when Julia solved her problem.

"Come with me," Julia suddenly told Emily in a low voice, smoke sputtering from her lips. She helped herself to the box whose contents she and Maureen had enjoyed earlier in the evening, and led her partner into Maureen's bedroom. "Don't wait up," she called out to Maureen, prompting a girlish giggle from Emily. Behind them, the door to Maureen's bedroom swung quietly shut.

Taking a long drag, Cynthia shrugged her shoulders and pulled Maureen over on the couch, and the two women exchanged a few long, tender smoky kisses. Maureen began to caress Cynthia's chest tenderly as it expanded and contracted with each inhale and exhale of smoke.

She was just beginning to wonder if they could go further without being disturbed, when, faintly, she began to hear a rhythmic creaking, presumably from her bed. She also heard periodic giggles from behind the door, and occasional clicks of a lighter besides. The crack of light that showed forth from beneath the door soon went out.

Cynthia smiled sweetly as she reached over and turned off the light in the living room as well. All that could be seen in the room were two small orange lights, which would frequently glow brighter for a few seconds, revealing one or another of the women's faces, before their luminosity once again diminished.

In the darkness, Cynthia and Maureen pleasured their lungs while they pleasured each other, trying, as doubtless Emily and Julia were, not to make too much noise. An exciting new chapter was beginning in their lives, and Maureen was elated at the turn her life had taken during one short week.

"I love you," Cynthia said, before taking a final drag off of her cigar and blowing it directly into Maureen.

"I love you, too," Maureen replied, breathlessly.

The two orange lights became three, and then four, before suddenly becoming two again. So it would continue all through the night. 

The End.