“Come on, Claire! The shopping won’t do itself!”

Cassie was getting really impatient. They needed to get to the store before it closed, and Claire was taking ages in her room getting changed…

Claire surfaced. Cassie promptly blew her stack.

“You can’t wear that, for fucks sake! We’re going to be in public! Where did you think we were going to shop?”

“But it’s the only thing I feel comfortable in; it takes ages to put on and take off, as well…!”

Claire was wearing a really thick vinyl dress, with buckles all down the front apart from laces over her cleavage. It had a raised neckline that held her head facing front and went right down to ankle level. She was also wearing platform boots under it.

The reason she couldn’t wear it in public was it was completely transparent. Everything was on show…

“You haven’t got time to change again.”, complained Cassie. “You stay here, and I’ll do the shopping.”

“You never get the brands I like!”, complained Claire.

“Ok, then, slap a coat on over the top, and let’s go”, Cassie said.

Grumbling, Claire vanished back into her room and came out with an ankle length coat over the dress.

“Defeats the object of tidying myself up…!”, she complained. “I’m proud of my body; what’s your problem?”

“My problem is if you go out in that dress you’ll be arrested!”, said Cassie.

“If my mistress sees me in public like this, I’ll be a lot worse off than that”, said Claire. “I’m not even wearing my collar.”

“Oh, not this crap again”, said Cassie. “Claire, you haven’t got a mistress. You’re just a goth with a weird clothing fetish…”

The pair headed off out to the superstore and started shopping.

Everything seemed to be going fine; then Claire saw something out of the corner of her eye…

“Oh, shit! She’s here! I’m screwed…!”

“Who’s here?”, asked Cassie. “What the hell are you talking about…?”

“My mistress! She’s just over there, in the café! Please, Cassie, she can’t see me like this! We need to go, now!”

Claire started pulling frantically on Cassie’s arm, steering her toward the exit.

“Damn it, Claire, calm down! We need this shopping!”

“Yes, and I need to keep on breathing! Come on, please…!”

Cassie gave up trying to calm Claire down. She abandoned the trolley of shopping in the middle of the store and left with Claire.

As soon as they got back to the flat, Claire ripped off her coat, flew into her room and came out wearing her collar. Only then did she start to calm down.

Cassie was furious.

“Claire, I’ve had enough of this! You need to get help! You aren’t someone’s slave! I’m going back to the store to get the shopping. Stay here!”

She went out and slammed the door behind her.

Claire just cried and cried…

Cassie’s trolley was still sitting where she left it at the store, so she just collected it, finished shopping and paid for everything.

She was loading everything into the car when she heard a voice.

“Can I help you with that?”

She looked over.

A grey-haired woman in a thick black coat was looking at her.

“Thanks, I’d appreciate it”, Cassie said. “My friend was supposed to be helping me, but she’s had to stay behind.”

“Yes; Claire’s a bit like that”, the woman said. “Keeps forgetting her responsibilities, and can never seem to dress properly.”

“What did you say…?”

“Well, you’re giving my slave a roof over her head and feeding her; the least I can do is help you with your shopping…!”

Cassie went as white as a sheet…

The woman held out a gloved hand.

“My name is Jaranda”, she said. “You must be Cassie. Pleased to meet you at last. Claire’s told me so much about you.”

“She’s told me nothing about you”, said Cassie, suspiciously. “She seems to be terrified of you. It’s an effort to get her to wear anything normal these days. All she wants to wear is transparent vinyl and a collar.”

“Of course; that’s her uniform, and she’s proud of it. I was sure I saw her in here with you earlier; that coat she had on was really boring. It did nothing for her figure…”

“Have you tried sleeping with her, yet?”, Jaranda asked Cassie. “She’s amazing in bed…”

Cassie reacted with shock and disgust.

“We’re just roommates!”, she almost shouted. “I don’t think of her that way.”

“You should; she’s really good. I don’t mind sharing her at all.”

Cassie was now just wanting to get away from Jaranda. At least now she knew Claire wasn’t delusional…

As Cassie went to get into her car, Jaranda said, “Let my pet know I need her tonight, will you? Also, don’t wait up…”

“Will I fuck”, Cassie muttered under her breath.

By the time she got back to the flat with the shopping, Claire was already gone…

Claire didn’t come back in that night.

It was mid afternoon before she slinked back in, went straight to her room and shut herself in.

Cassie knocked on her door.

“Clare? Are you alright?”

“Fuck off! You’ve done enough damage already!”

“Claire? What the hell are you talking about?”

“I said, fuck off and leave me alone!”

Hurt, Cassie went back into the front room to watch TV.

Claire didn’t want any food or drink.

Suddenly, her door opened. Claire was standing there.

The light glinted off of the collar round her neck; she was also wearing an ankle-length thick black latex raincoat. She was holding on to a wheeled case.

“Seeing as you can’t mind your own damn business, I’m leaving”, she said.

“Going to live with Jaranda, I expect!”, said Cassie, snappily. “You think it’s fine to just walk out and leave me with all the rent to pay.”

“You should have left things alone, shouldn’t you!”, said Clare, in tears. “I don’t know what you did to offend her, but it really pissed her off. You almost ruined things for me completely. I’ve still got the scars to prove it.”

Claire suddenly took her black coat off, and turned around…

Claire gasped as she saw the whip marks criss-crossing Claire’s back. They were still really red and fresh, some rubbing against the clear vinyl of her dress…

“She does that to you, and you want to live with her!?”, Cassie shrieked. “You’re insane!”

“No, I’m in love!”, said Clare. “I can’t live without her! However, I’m going to have to live without you…!”

Before Cassie could stop her, Claire left the flat, putting her coat back on as she did so.

Cassie just stood there, staring at the closed door…