Idi opens the front door of Sam's townhome. "Hey, Mrs Z!" Zerah smiles at her cute accent and the nickname she has given her. "Afternoon, Idi, how are you today?" Idi keeps herself positioned in the door, blocking Zerah's view inside. "I'm good, but you know our Sam, stressed out, right?" Zerah nods her head knowingly. "What brings you by? I would let you in, but he's on his last call of the day, and you know how they are about their rules." She puts up her fingers to air quote 'they' and 'their rules'.

Zerah nods again and holds out a bag. "It is no problem...I do not need to come in. These are some of the costumes that Sam wanted me to sew up. I don't know what he is doing to it, but that is the fourth time I have had to fix that Wonder Woman one." Idi takes the bag and replies, "Yeah, he really wants Linda in the costume, but she is a different model number than the one that should be in that costume. I'll make sure he gets it. Thanks!" Zerah smiles again, a little sad she missed seeing Sammie today, but she has a little time, so she decides to extend her conversation.

"So, what are you doing over here today?"

Idi sets the bag behind the door, as she regrips the door knob from the inside. "Well, there's a presentation at Corporate tomorrow, so we need to box up some of the models and ship them in the morning across town for the set-up. Some of the Board members are new, and they wanted to see some of the products in-person. Did you know they don't keep them in stock here?" Zerah shakes her head, having not really given it much thought. "Anyway, Sam has the most of anybody in town at the moment, so we will move his operation over to the Corporate Branch office for the afternoon, and then I think they get shipped back here the next day. Not too sure about that."

Zerah comments, "That could be a good thing, as maybe he can take tomorrow night off, since he will not have any work to do with his 'harem' somewhere else." Idi laughs at 'harem', as she knows Sam's tendencies for the other gender. "Maybe...well, thanks again for dropping off and fixing the costumes!" Zerah waves, realizing she will not get to see Sam this trip afterall, and says, "Happy to help. Goodbye, dear."

I wish the movers would have been able to come in the morning, he complains internally as he adjusts his dress. Dressed in his usual female attire for demonstrations in the afternoon, he did not have time to change before the movers showed up. Still a little self-conscious about fooling people, he tries to make sure he acts overly "feminine", and he is still working on "her" voice. The good news is that he can flirt all he wants, because they think he is a woman, so his advances are usually well received. He just cannot talk very loud yet, as it seems to be easier to whisper at a higher pitch.

Putting his hand on the movers arm as "she" shows him the box on the left that will need to go as well, he surprises himself how much he enjoys being so open with his sexual tendency. I guess I never realized how much of it I have to keep bottled up everyday. The tall man with sharp facial features nods his head and makes a note, then attaches a sticky note to the front of the box. Ming stands inside of the box, uncaring that her vision is now blocked by the bright blue square.

"I'd like to put signs on each one," the man says in a deep voice, "Just to make sure we get the right ones." Samantha nods, "That is a great idea...you are so smart. Let's do that!" The man does not smile at "her" compliment, so maybe "she" played that up too much. The other man that is his co-worker seems less interested in talking, and more interested in looking. I'm not sure he has taken his eyes off Cindy since he walked in the room, Sam notes.

"So, when will you be coming in the morning? I will not be here, but my, uh, co-worker will."

Looking down at his clipboard, then back at "her", he replies, "I would expect us to be here by 9, and it should take us no longer than thirty minutes to get them loaded up, assuming they are boxed, labeled, and ready to go." They both look around the room, verifying that each box has either a blue sticky note or an orange one. Satisfied, they head to the door.

"Thanks again for your help!" Samantha says as "she" closes the door. Breathing a sigh of relief, he checks his phone before going to change his clothes. His message from his mom about whether he got the bag she dropped off earlier goes unanswered. She knows very well, he says with a determined look on his face, that I got them. Shaking his head, he checks to make sure he has no other messages from Idi. Seeing that his calendar is now open for the day, he can take a break. Maybe I'll watch a movie tonight, he ponders as he walks to his bedroom to reset it for his own sleeping tonight, I have not binged anything in a long time.

He wakes up the next morning to a knocking on his door and his cellphone chiming. Looking at the time, he realizes he overslept...big time. Why did I stay up so late watching that dumb series? Jumping out of bed, he rushes to the front door, pulling his robe around him. He replies to Idi's message with "of course, I'm up" and then to his mom's "good morning!" He opens it to see his mom, and she is wearing her black leather pants (even though they are loose on her, he keeps telling her not to wear them), a different cheetah print top, and her cream-fuzzy jacket. Her hair looks amazing, as usual, but with added body and bounce today. "Are you okay?" She asks in a worried tone, "You have not responded to any of my 12 texts this morning."

Sam coughs awkwardly and says sheepishly, "Well, I overslept, so I'm fine and not ignoring you." She smiles and hugs him, but says, "You know if you used a real alarm clock, like the one I gave you for Christmas two years ago, you might not have that problem." He does not even remember her giving him an alarm clock, but that is not surprising...on either account.

Trying to change the subject, he asks, "What are you doing here today?"

She replies while walking to the back room, "I'm looking for my sun hat with the black band. I need it today for a brunch social." Sam shrugs his shoulders and moves to the kitchen. With no Zoom calls today, and no meetings until this afternoon, he is not worried about her being here. He settles into some yogurt and granola while she hunts down her hat.

The text from Idi changes his day a little bit, as she needs him to come in a bit earlier than he had planned. Not a big deal, so he replies affirmative, and stands to get ready. "Mom, I gotta get ready to go, so let yourself out whenever you find it. Love, thanks!" He hears her mumble something from the room, and then he hears an "Okay, sweetie." Ugh, why does she keep calling me that?

After brushing his teeth and washing his face to make sure all the previous day's make-up was off, he starts to get dressed. He's got his ironed, button-down shirt on with his pressed pants when there is a knock at the door. His mom had taken way-more-time than she needed to iron them a few days ago, he recalls, but he admits that they look really good. Opening the door, he sees the same two movers from yesterday. For a brief second, he wonders if they will remember him from yesterday when he was a "she". They seem to make no connection, as the tall man says, "Sam Seels? Here to get your boxes for delivery."

"Yep, they are back here on the right," he says in a deeper voice than his usual, "Not sure if you are the same guys who were here yesterday, but they labeled them for you."

"We know," the older man replies, "It was us that labeled them with that attractive co-worker of yours." Attractive? Sam thinks to himself, not sure if I should be flattered or grossed out.

"Great! Well, I'll leave you two to it, as I still have to get myself ready for my presentation." The two guys look at each other and shrug, turning right while he turns left, at the end of the hall. "I like the chick who was here yesterday better than him. She was much nicer than this guy, and much kinder on the eyes."

The younger and taller man says, "You pervert...you are probably twice her age. Besides, she was clearly into me and not you." They both continue to banter back and forth as they start to move the boxes that are labeled in blue. As they get two boxes out the door and into the hallway, Sam Seels steps out of his bedroom. He sighs heavily as he dodges around the boxes, making the movers roll their eyes at each other. "I gotta step outside to take this important call, let me know if you need anything." But before they could respond, he is out the door, his voice carrying over the silence.

"I'll grab the hand truck, while you get the third box out," the tall mover says. The older one nods his head and steps back in the room. Huh, he says to himself, those two boxes don't have labels. Walking around the table to them, he sees the colored notes on the ground with their doors slightly open. "Must have bumped them this morning, or maybe he was in here before we got here." Bending down, he picks up both colors and says, "Left one on the left, and right one on the right." The one on the left has much darker skin than the one on the right, and while the one on the right is full-figured and shorter than the left one, his eyes are drawn to the smooth, deep-brown skin amazon. He takes a moment to cop a feel and admire her beauty.

Hearing the front door, he closes her door, with the orange sticker on the front. He then steps to the side to close and lock the door for the full-figured model in this box. He wonders why this one is wearing underwear when the others are not, but he does not mind: the bright blue silky smooth top and bottom look perfect on her. Blue label for blue bra and panties, he chuckles to himself. As his partner loads up the first box, he slides this one into the hallway.

"Mom, this isn't funny," Sam says as loudly as he can while still maintaining a whisper, "Do you realize where we are today?" Do you?!"

Zerah stands there with a towel wrapped around her, as that was the only thing handy, in the empty conference room. The large table in the middle has lots of expensive-looking chairs all around it, but no one is sitting in them. She tries to push her personality over this situation, maintaining her usual control, but she is having a hard time doing what comes natural at the moment. "I know, I know, you don't need to yell. This was not what I expected to happen."

Waving his hands around the room, he asks, "Well, what did you expect?!"

Glancing at the 3 naked models leaning against the nearby wall, their boxes emptied and stacked to one side, she replies, "It was only to be for a moment, and I picked a box with the orange sticky note. Unfortunately, it fell off somehow, so they got switched when he put them back on. Clearly, not my fault or intent." Her facial expression becomes more like herself as she explains how she got there. To hear her restate it like that, the whole thing does not seem that bad, even though they both know it is.

"You purposefully put yourself in the box...on purpose, like you meant to do that all along," Sam states in disbelief.

Zerah grins for the first time today, "Yes, I did. Is that so hard to believe that I wanted to be mistaken for an object of beauty and sexual desire? Is it wrong to want a man to look at me with such passion and lust that he could not contain his excitement?"

Sam holds up his hands, "Please, no more...I'm about to throw up in my mouth." He slumps down into a chair, the hydraulics adjusting for this sudden weight with a slight hissing sound. I'm done, he says softly to himself, I'm done. I can't get out of this. Sure, I could hide that she was sewing in the back room while I Zoomed. Sure, I could hide her on screen while facing away from the camera. Sure, I could hide a living person amongst fake ones while people stood right next to them and touched them. He chuckles out loud at that last one. There would be no way to hide her...not like this.

His phone buzzes, but he ignores it. Seeing it on the table, Zerah looks at it and says, "Idi is coming up with the clothes for today from the mover's truck." She drops the towel on his bag, and walks over to the others. He does not respond or reply, as he sits in despair. Zerah walks to the end of the line of models, almost putting herself in the corner. She turns to face away from the wall like they do, then steps back from the wall a bit. Stiffening her muscles, she slowly leans back until she can feel her head supporting her body. She puts on a blank stare, a slight smile, and does her best to control her breathing.

Idi busts into the room in a few moments. She expected to see Sam in there, but he was not. She can see that he has the four models unpacked. "Hmm," she mumbles, "Must be in the bathroom." Shrugging her shoulders, she sets the garment bags on the table. Laying each of them out, she looks over at the models. "Okay, Ming will be in the stereotypical kimono outfit." Unzipping the bag, she begins to get out the bright red kimono, traditional wig with accessories, white gloves, and wooden-looking sandals.

Without looking anywhere else, Idi quickly begins to dress Ming. She knows Sam will want to check the finished work, but she can get started on her for now. The good part of this outfit, there is nothing on underneath, so Idi has Ming dressed in a few seconds. The sandals are weighted, so once she has her feet strapped in tight, Ming stands rigidly by herself.

Checking her phone and having no word from Sam. she moves onto Linda who will be wearing a lovely piece of lingerie. The red color is hard to discern from pink, as the material is basically see-through. Idi pulls the lingerie on Linda, but all you can really see are the straps, everything else is basically transparent. Idi takes a little more time with Linda, as she thinks she is the prettiest one of the group. It is nice to have a moment to take your time and truly enjoy the human body. "Well," Idi chuckles, "Something that is made like the human body." Linda has no shoes, so she will be leaned against the wall until the stands arrive.

Pamela gets the maid's costume, so that takes a bit longer, as it is really tight. Idi has to roll up the stockings and gloves from the toes and fingers, so this is much harder to do. Getting halfway through, she steps back to take a break. "Should have left her for Sam, wherever he is." Feeling some pressure below, she decides she can take a moment to run to the bathroom, and hope that Sam gets back to finish her up, as well as the other one which might be the wrong one. "I thought the Queen was making an appearance today," she shrugs as she leaves to find the restrooms.

Zerah exhales deeply and stands up as Idi closes the conference room door behind her. Uh, she complains, that is hard on the neck. Stepping over to the table, she unzips the last garment bag. "Let's pretend Sam returned while you were gone, Idi." Zerah quickly pulls out the steam-punk outfit. She does not understand what 'steam-punk' is, but she knows what items go with it. She pulls on the full length dress, which has a mix of fabrics from cotton to silk to leather. The color is a dull bronze in places and a shiny brass in the others. The corset can be donned by the person wearing it, as the buttons are in the front. The dress is very heavy, but that must be the style, she reasons. The 4 layers of undergarments that push her dress outward are sewn together. I told Sammie that would make it easier when I stitched those up last week.

The dress has two sturdy straps over the shoulders, which is good, because the top does not cover as much as she would like, so cleavage will be the word for the day. The gloves go to her elbows and feel soft on the inside and look shiny on the outside. Her "neck brace" looks metallic, as it snaps around her neck and covers the top of her shoulders. It has the look of armor, but it would provide no actual benefit in combat. She pulls on the goggles, which again, look like thick metal frames, but are really plastic painted to look that way. The lenses are a dark red, so no one will be able to see her eyes clearly. She swaps out her earrings for a pair that look to be a series of gears or cogs, she admits not sure what the difference might be. The bronze-colored top hat with the maroon band around it, which is the cutest part of the whole outfit in her opinion, gets clipped into her hair at an angle. She touches up her lips with the bronze colored lipstick, and then steps into the ankle boots, which buckle easily (she does not even need to bend over, just tap the buckle with the toe of her other foot). The boots feel very heavy, as they were made for a model that could not keep their balance. She appreciates the platforms built in, as she gains a few inches once they are on, and whoever was supposed to wear them was really close to her size.

Having seen no one yet, she takes an extra moment to finish up Pamela. "Idi was nearly done," she whispers, "So, I'll make it look like Sam came by and finished the work." Zerah gets the choker around Pamela's neck, the white tiara in her hair, and clips the stockings to the garters just below the microskirt. Again, she touches up her make-up and leaves her standing at attention like Ming. As she moves back to the wall, she catches a glimpse of herself in the darkened TV screen hanging on the wall. Wow, she says to herself, I could get into this steam-punk thing. Winking to herself, she clomps back from the wall, standing rigidly near Pamela. "Remember," she whispers, "Just a fake model. Nothing more." Of course, she chides herself, a fake model would not have told herself that out loud.

The door to the conference room opens to the movers wheeling in another cart. They can see the four models in their outfits standing or leaning near the front. "Probably wants these stands up there," the tall one says to his partner. They wheel the squeaky cart to the front, where the four "ladies" do not even acknowledge their presence. Clang! The guys drop the stands on to the carpeted floor. "Well, that's the last of it," the tall one says. Before they leave, they take a quick look to make sure no one is around, and they stand and admire the beauty of the female body.

"Don't you love the way the waist curves in from the top and then back out to the hips?" The older mover says softly. His partner nods, "Yep, there is just something about a woman's curves that just drives me wild. And they are soft, oh so soft to touch." The older man grunts, "Yeah, doesn't matter what they look like...I could spend an hour just kissing my way up..." The tall man holds up his hands, "Geez, man, don't tell me the details! Ugh, got that image of you and a woman..." He shakes his head violently, trying to erase the image. The older man chuckles, "You started this awkward conversation. Let's go before these stiffs rat us out to their boss." As they are walking out of the room, Sam and Idi come in. "Thanks, guys!" Idi says as they walk past them. Sam and Idi look at the front of the room and say in unison, "Hey, you got them ready!" She laughs at that, but Sam grows silent again as they walk closer.

As Idi slides one of the stands near Linda, who is the only one without shoes. She will have to be attached to a stand. She looks over at Sam who seems to be talking to the Steam-Punk model. "Uh, Sam?" She asks, "You gonna flirt or finish getting them ready?" Sam makes a face at her, but blushes none the same. "Uh, right," he stammers, "Just doing that now." He seems to be a stranger mood than usual, Idi thinks, but then he is under a lot of stress right now.

The conference room has a large screen TV in the middle, plus two smaller ones to either side. They put Linda just off-center on the right, as she will most likely be their centerpiece of lust. Pamela is a close second in the maid outfit, so she will be just off-center to the left. Since Ming and Elle have more costume-related outfits, they are pushed more to the sides. Each of the screens should be visible from most places around the room. As Sam goes to get his presentation up on the screens, Idi poses each model now that they are in their proper places. She puts chop sticks in Ming's hand and closes them tightly around them, showing their "dexterity". Pamela gets a feather duster, and is bent over more than the others, to show her flexibility, and a bit of her rear end sticking out from under her skirt. Linda is showing it all, so Idi decides to go all out with that, and moves her hands to go behind her head, making sure every part of her front is clearly visible. Elle is a bit tougher, as Idi cares nothing for steam-punk. However, Sam had a knife-wrench combination weapon that looks metallic but is actually plastic. Elle's arms rotate more easily than the others, but seems to hold the knife with her bended elbow up towards her top hat. Moving the other arm to bend so that Elle has her hand on her tight waist makes it almost perfect. A slight head tilt, and then Idi steps away smiling.

"Well, you happy with that?" She asks Sam who finally got the screens up and projecting his presentation. He looks up and then back down, "uh huh, yeah." Idi frowns and starts to remark, when his head snaps back up and says, "Wait, wow...great job!" His smile shows his genuine surprise. Idi smiles now as she walks back towards him. He walks to her and embraces her tightly. She is taken back by this show of affection, especially as he holds it longer than she figured he should. Yet, somehow, it feels right, and her body shifts slightly in his embrace, seemingly fitting perfectly together. Mmm, she says to herself, this is really nice.

When the door opens, they quickly separate as a group of men and women in business attire walk in. "Mr Seels," the balding man states, "We're ready for you now." Sam clears his throat and replies, "Uh, of course, come right in. My secretary just finished her work, so she will run the slides while I talk." Sam looks at Idi with a "please be my secretary and run my slides" look. Idi winks at him and says stiffly, "Of course, Mr Seels, happy to assist you today."

Over the next few minutes, each new person coming in finds a seat, but their eyes remain fixed on what is at the front of the room. Regardless of their gender, the room grows more and more quiet as each person finds a seat and begins studying the models standing stiffly, yet naturally, at the front of the room. The last person in closes the door, so Sam walks to the front of the room. He has seen many of these people on a Zoom call, or perhaps gotten an email from them too, but this is the first time he has physically talked to many of them. And for the most part, each of them are higher up the chain of command at Luvdll Inc, with the President sitting to Sam's left now.

"Good morning, uh, I mean, good afternoon! Thank you for taking day out of your time in being here." Sam clears his throat and tries to regain his composure, "I'm Sams Seel, one of the many marketing consultants and demonstration representatives for Luvdll Inc. Today, I want to show you some of your products, as well as the model I'm doing." Some of the people snicker at that, and he says quickly, "Uh, no, I mean, the doll I'm using...argh." Sam puts his hand to his forehead, realizing he is making a complete fool of himself. The older bald man says calmly, "It's okay, son. Take a deep breath and tell us about your work. Don't let my presence rattle you."

Sam nods his head and gulps some of the water in front of him. Geez, he thinks, I hope that glass was for me. Pressing forward, he says, "Thank you, sir. My apologies...I'm used to all of you being a face on the screen, and not sitting right in front of me." With that intro past him, Sam settles in, telling his daily routine and how he markets Luvdll's products. He then goes into the importance of the human interaction when trying to sell something so expensive. He starts to move into the demonstration section, when a man near the back stands up and walks forward.

"Hang on," the man with jet-black slicked back hair says, "You're telling me all of these are fake and not real people?" Sam's knees nearly give out with that question. The man coming up the left side of Sam, which is the side that his mom is on. "I've been watching them, and I can tell you that she is a she, not an it." Sam puts his hand down on the table to steady himself, as he weakly states, "All four models...are of the...highest quality." All eyes are on the man who walks swiftly towards Elle. Sam's heart is nearly out of his chest. The man takes a quick turn and walks up to Linda. He extends his arm and takes a full handful of Linda's left breast.

As Sam's expression of shock disappears, the slick-haired man puts on a face of shock. "Wha?" He states in disbelief. Shaking her chest, Linda shakes slightly, only the stand holding her upright. He then spanks her butt with his other hand, still holding onto her chest. The spank has a very real sound that echos in the silent room. "Sheesh, Ray, do you need a room?" the President says, "Although, that does sound pretty real...how does she feel, Ray?" The room snickers a bit, as Ray responds with, "Really close to real, but not quite. I mean, don't get me wrong, Uncle, it's fake, but feels really close." Sam is trying to catch his breath, as this interruption nearly cost him his job, when a voice from the other side says, "How would you know? Didn't Helen get a boob job years ago?"

Ray pulls his hands back quickly, nearly undressing Linda, spinning to see who said that, "Hey, if you think you could get...", but the President says over him, "Gentlemen...enough! Sorry, Sam, but we get a little...excited...about our work. Thank you, Nephew, for verifying that Sam did not bring in real women to this presentation. So that we are not spending all our time feeling them up, could you briefly introduce us to each model and what they have on and why?"

Sam gulps and replies, "Sure...sure...yes, so this is Ming, or as you know her: M-Dolly. She is a compilation of two TikTok and TV actresses. Her kimono is a traditional one to show that one can have old-school looks with our product. Note, she has chopsticks...no other love doll company can boast that." As he regains some of his confidence, he can see some of the people writing things down. A few of them have catalogs in their hand, adding some notes and highlights to it.

"This is Pamela or P-Dolly," he says moving onto the maid. "She is modeled after a model-turned-actress. She is wearing one of our most popular costumes, and in actuality, this was our #1 costume sold last year. Her hair, unlike some of the models, is removable." He pulls the blonde hair off the maid, leaving her head bald. Walking over to the side, he comes back with a pink wig that looks to be more of a bob cut, with very straight, short hair. He settles it on her, adding, "The wigs have an elastic in them, so they are easy to remove, but not too easy. They will not fall off, unless you are trying to remove it." Again, hands are feverishly writing down what he says.

"As you already know, this is Linda or L-Dolly. She was modeled after a popular actress and model. Even though we offer lots of lingerie items, they are not as popular as you might think. I am not sure why, as Ray showed us, what could be more real than this, right?" They all nod their heads, as he reties her straps, Linda being completely unconcerned with her flashing the audience for the past few minutes.

"Lastly, we have Elle or E-Dolly. This is our mature woman model, which was taken from a model who became a mom. You can see her waist, even with the corset is perhaps a bit larger, and if you note her legs," he holds up Elle's dress, "Are thicker, which turns out to be a very popular model." He lets her dress fall as he smooths it out, "And she has the latest Steam-Punk costume. This one is supposed to be in the new catalog." One of the ladies to the left says with her hands raised, "Yep, it is here, along with lots of accessories. In fact, I think the catalog has an Elle model wearing it." Sam gulps and smiles awkwardly and says, "Thanks...appreciate that."

Another hand goes up, as another woman speaks sternly, "Do we have no more diversity than some Asian model?" Her skin is very dark, and Sam could feel heat coming from her. Holding out his hands, "Yes, we do, and that is my fault. You see, I was supposed to bring Q-Dolly or Queen with me today. Unfortunately, the movers grabbed the wrong one. Linda here should have been the Queen. My apologies...uh, Idi, would you forward a few slides. I think I got a pic of...yes, here, see? Q-dolly on the left, and here on this slide is J-Dolly or Jennifer, clearly not-white." The woman who spoke up nods her head, but Sam can tell she felt very offended that he showed mostly white models from his very-white presentation.

The President adds, "Good point, Uthalla, we need to make sure everyone has a model that fits their comfort level and desire." He turns to Sam, "Make it work better for the future." Sam nods his head, apologizing again. There are a few other questions, but nothing of consequence after that. The President shakes Sam's hand, and exits quickly, with half of the room following him out. The rest of the room comes forward to ask more questions about accessories and poses and stands and costumes. Sam gets Idi to come up front to help, as she knows much of what they are asking.

Before they leave, several of them want selfies, so Sam and Idi watch as these junior execs pose in front of each of the models. The men and women seem content with a quick pic and maybe a quick feel. The only scare came near the end when a lady asks, "Does the Elle have a removable wig? I wouldn't mind changing it if we could." Sam adds quickly, "Oh, sorry, but no, you are stuck with that one." She shrugs her shoulders, gets her selfie and leaves content with getting what she could.

Sam collapses in a chair as the door closes. "I'm exhausted." he mumbles. Idi pats his shoulder as she comes around him to rub them. "Your shoulders feel like they are filled with rocks...it's over, ease up." Sam moans softly, "I know, I know. I'm just not used to dealing with people in person, you know. Thank you so much for your help! Literally, I could not have done it without you." Idi chuckles, "I know." The next few moments pass slowly, as he sits in silence while she rubs his shoulders. Sam's phone ringing breaks the silence.

"Hello? Yes...yep...thanks." Sam moves to stand up as Idi backs away slightly. "Movers are back. Let's keep it simple. Box them all up with their costumes on. I can undress them later." Idi nods her head and starts removing the stands from each of them, while Sam gets the boxes. "You need me to come over then?" Idi asks. Sam shakes his head as he moves a box into place, "Nope, but thanks. Carl is coming by. He says he needs the hours, so I told him he could help me. Hope that's okay?" Idi shrugged her shoulders while standing back up, "I'm good...might be nice to go home after work rather than going by your place first." As Sam opens the lid of a box, Idi adds, "Not that your place is bad...I enjoy working with you, so that's not it, you know?" Sam chuckles, "Nope, I get it. Enjoy a break...you've earned it!"

Working together, they get each of the models into the boxes (clothes and accessories)  and tied to the backing. On the last box, as he faces his mom while Idi is tightening the ties in the back, he mouths, "You okay?" She does not react, but he can see her wink behind the goggles, now that he is close to her. Closing the lid with a smile and push to get her entire dress compressed in there, he locks it, and they lay it down. "Thank you," he says to her, while Idi responds, "You're welcome!" Sam smiles while Idi and him make small talk, as the movers come in and start loading the models up. Whew, Sam exhales loudly, what a day! Watching his mom being wheeled away, he tells himself that she got here fine, so I got to hope she can get back fine.

Sam stops for a late lunch. It is not often he gets out at this time, so it is nice to be in public. Since he has no obligations for the afternoon, he decides to stop by the office to check a few things that he has been putting off, and he figures he can stop by the grocery store, too. He is not sure how long the movers will take, but he wants to give them time to do their thing, as if everything is normal.

While checking his email at a borrowed workstation in the office, he gets a text from Carl. It reads, "Movers are gone. If you aren't back just yet, I'm gonna use the demo room." Sam tilts the phone, trying to figure out what emoji Carl put after that last word. It kinda looks like a...oh...oh, I see it now. Sam chuckles and replies, "Yeah, have fun. I'm in the office and might be a little while longer."

As he comes home with two bags of groceries, Carl opens his front door. His light brown hair looks like he just combed it, and his clothes are a little wrinkled. "I saw you pull up," he says with an awkward smile, "Need any help?" Sam shakes his head, "No, I'm good, Thanks though! Everything go okay?" Carl closes the door behind him and walks over to Sam's office. "Yeah, here is the invoice. Four delivered models, although I only unpacked three of them." Sam puts his bags on the counter, "3?" Carl nods, "Yeah, it was weird. The fourth box was already openned when I got here. It looked like the movers were trying to help or something. Seemed strange to me."

Sam's heart begins beating faster, "But you are sure 4 models showed up, right? Which ones did you unbox?" Carl looks at the ceiling thinking, "Let's see...I saw China girl, maid girl, and naked girl." Sam is now walking to the back room, "What about steam punk girl?" He says trying to keep the worry down in his voice. "Oh, her? Your sister said she talked to the movers, and she saw her unloaded." Sam stops in the doorway of the harem room and turns around. "My sister?!"

Carl hangs his head, looking rather sheepish. "Uh yeah. You see she was over here when I showed up. I have talked to her before sometimes when I've called over here. Dude, why didn't you tell me you had such a hottie for a sister?"

Sam holds up one finger, "First: gross. Second," holding up two fingers, "Gross. And lastly, how do you know it was my mo...uh, sister?"

Carl shrugged, "Well, she said she was when I asked her. She seemed a little nervous, since I told her she was not supposed to be here during work hours. I would not have turned her in, but she wanted to be sure her presence did not mess up your job." Carl, again avoided eye contact with Sam, and just left it at that.

Sam, relieved all four returned, turns and walks into the harem room. Looking around, he can see all the models staring out in front of their spots, naked with their clothes laying on the table in the middle. Hmm, he thinks, Ming is in a new spot now, having swapped with Linda. That will be a nice change. He can see there are no empty boxes, so instead of "Elle", Cindy is over to his left. As far as he can tell, there is no trace of his mom anywhere, and Carl seems content with her story.

Turning back to Carl, he asks, "Who did you take in the demo room? I want to make sure they are cleaned up for later." Carl becomes all nervous again, and stammers, "Oh...uh...it was...the...uh...one that grabbed...I mean, I grabbed...first." Sam nods his head, waiting for a name. Carl avoids his eye contact again and says, "We...uh, I mean...I cleaned up, so you...don't...won't have to. It's all good." Carl turns and walks back to the front door.

Sam is unsure of what is bothering Carl. True, it's not company policy to allow that, but Carl had never asked before, and Sam really appreciated his help today. I'm just glad my mom was able to get out and dressed before he got here. I should have hustled home to make sure she was okay, he chides himself. Sam shakes his head, trying to clear it from all the things that have been spinning up there all day. If Carl said he got it, then he got it. I'm too tired to worry about it now anyway.

Carl opens the front door, "So, I'll see ya later then." Sam waves at him and goes back into the kitchen to finish putting the groceries away, as the front door closes. Whew, Sam breathes a heavy sigh, that could have gone much worse. Completing the task quickly, he walks back to his bedroom. The bed looks perfectly made, and the room has a somewhat sterile look to it. He can smell the cleaning wipes, so he knows Carl cleaned up any mess. As he turns to go to the bathroom, something shiny catches his eye. "Huh, what's that?" Picking up a pair of earrings, he recognizes them as ones his mom likes to wear. Pulling out his phone, he texts her: you still wearing the gear earrings?

She responds back immediately: oh my goodness, I am! How did you know?

He sends back: found yours in my bedroom.

She responds: Oh, I must have put them there on my way to the bathroom. I was headed to the bathroom to use it, which would be the only reason I would be in your room. So, the earrings are mine that I left on my way to use the bathroom."

He chuckles: it's fine...not worried about it. You can get them next time your here. Thanks again for making today work!"

She sends back a red heart emoji.

I must be more tired than I thought. Her texting seemed off just then. First Carl, then mom...I need a nap. Looking at his bed, he mumbles with a smirk, "Maybe I'll do that on the couch in the Zoom room." Setting her earrings down on the bedside table where he found them, he walks slowly out of his bedroom, already forgetting why he came in here in the first place. Thirty minute power nap...that's all I need. Everything will make more sense then.

About 45 minutes later...

Sam sits up with a start from the couch he had been napping on. His eyes are wide in disbelief as he yells with his fists clenched. "Carl did my mom!"