THE DARE “I know we haven’t been the best of friends,” my fraternity brother said, “but I need you to do a favor for me. I would really appreciate it.” “What favor?” I asked, for I had no wish to make our cool relations worse. “Last Friday, I made a bet with the Alphas on the Bears game. And the Bears lost. I owe them a dare,” Harris explained. “It’s due tonight, but I have the flu. Can you do my dare for me?” He sniffled...

It’s fun to look back at innocent times, especially those during our carefree school days. This was an incident that caught me by surprise, though it shouldn’t have. Now that eight years have passed, and I have a good job with a successful company, it’s easier to talk about. My name is Emma Walker, twenty-one years old at the time. Jenny and I had been dorm mates since our freshman year at Midville Valley in northern Indi...

So, here we were on a commercial airliner headed to an exotic tropical island. Mike had paid for the tickets, looking forward to a week of adventure. And why not? To prevent the sales reports that I had mishandled from being discovered by corporate headquarters, I had promised to do whatever he wanted for the entire trip. And I was still vague about what he wanted, and uncomfortable with the way he kept smiling at me. But...

Sometimes we need to be careful about discussing our fantasies. My friend Stan was a graduate student at USC studying psychology. We played on the same soccer club and often shared stories. He approached me on a Wednesday night at The Blue Duckling, our local bar. “Jenny, I’m working on my thesis and need your help,” he said. “Sure, Stan. What is it?” I asked, drinking the beer but barely touching my salad. “I’m asking pe...

“That’s it. You lost the bet!” Jessie declared. “Now you owe us a dare.” It was true. We sat in the campus tavern as the game ended. My beloved Chicago Bears had been defeated 27-24 by those rascally Detroit Lions. Most fans in the bar were as unhappy as I was, though they hadn’t made such a stupid wager. “Don’t forget, you were warned,” Billie Hammer said, pointing at me with her smirking grin. The long-haired blonde had...

I was shopping in the local gift shop when I noticed a book on lost amusement parks and discovered there was one just outside of town. I hadn’t lived in Midvale very long, only since graduating college and moving there for a job, so everything was still new to me. On a Saturday morning, I drove ten miles south but had trouble finding anything, and then realized I could use the GPS. And there it was, off an old road barely...

“You owe us a dare,” Mike insisted. “We did ours. Now you do yours,” Karl added. “You did your dares two years ago. We were still in college,” I protested. “We’re out of school now. Have jobs. We’re past that kid stuff.” “That just means your dare is long overdue,” Annie demanded. I sighed, knowing my three best friends were right. Mike had streaked the women’s volleyball game. Karl posed nude for an art class. Annie, bei...

I was stuck in a dead-end job, no money, and not even a boyfriend. For the second time in three months, I wasn’t able to pay rent when it was due. “You’re in a rut,” my old school chum Julie Cummings said as we sat at the kitchen table. It was a nice condo overlooking a country club golf course. Three bedrooms, three baths, and conveniently located near the city. More than I could afford. “Have you considered a new exhibi...

High-end real estate is a competitive field. Having been selling exclusive properties for four years, my girlfriends and I often bet on which clients would put a particular estate into their vast portfolios. My guessing was generally good but not perfect. Those who lost bets would have to give up a dare. And even more audacious, we were allowed to sell someone’s dare to another party, a danger intended to keep us on our t...

“This weekend is going to be so much fun,” Janet said as we parked in front of a two-story beach house in North Bay. It was a nice spring morning with a blue sky, miles from civilization. “How did you get such a great place?” I asked, for all of the homes on this stretch of coastline were very exclusive. “My cousin works for a real estate company,” Janet explained. “This house has been on the market since last winter. The...

The five young businesswomen entered Saul’s Bistro just before noon. Ranging from their early-20s to mid-30s, they were casually dressed for the summer weather. Four were excited about their regularly scheduled gathering. One was hesitant but resigned to fulfill her obligations. “Okay, here we are,” Tricia said, being the leader. “Once again, we meet for our monthly Friday Dare Club. As a reminder, this confidence-buildin...

THE DARE Times had not been good. Kemper & Kemper Imports in Portland where I was a financial analysis laid off half the staff, and just when it looked like we’d be hired back, it folded. The meager weekly checks from unemployment weren’t going to keep me in my apartment and buy food at the same time. My savings were shrinking, what little family I had couldn’t help, and my credit cards were maxed. Still, I figured someth...

I was new in town without any acquaintances when my old Chrysler needed work. The auto shop a few blocks down the street looked promising, so I checked it out. The owner was Joe Milton, in his late-20’s like I was. A knowledgeable mechanic with many clients owning classic cars. Regular visitors to the shop were his best friends Charley and Harry. It seemed they had all gone to high school together. “Haven’t seen you in he...

Jennie thought she should never have taken the dare, but Melinda and Holly had done dares at the lake. If she wanted to keep these new friends, she needed to be a good sport. “What do you want me to do?” Jennie asked. They were in the forest, a hundred yards down from the lake. It had been a warm summer day of hiking and swimming. When it was decided to make the trek back down the mountain to the riverside campgrounds, Ho...