The locker room was crowded with more naked people than I’d ever seen in my life. There was just one student who looked out of place: fully clothed, wearing headphones and holding a microphone in front of Sandie. ‘So for the benefit of our listeners, describe what’s happening here.’

‘I’m part of the student union committee and we’ve organised this clothing-optional protest against the closure. We’re asking for a minimum one-year delay. We’ll be here as long as it takes to make our point. The committee wishes to make it clear that contrary to some rumours, this is not – I repeat – not an orgy. It is a clothing-optional protest with no sexual element whatsoever.’

Her message was undercut by Dawn entering the locker room with a carrier bag held above her head. ‘Anyone who needs condoms, we have supplies. Orgies make you do weird things, so stay safe.’

‘I repeat,’ said Sandie, looking directly at Dawn, ‘NOT an orgy.’

That message had long fallen on deaf ears. I was sitting on a bench where one of the swimming team was fingering his girlfriend on my left. On my right, a twink was kissing a bear deeply; I’d learnt to identify gay body types, thanks to Aidan. Aidan wasn’t yet at the protest because he was being driven to an emergency dental appointment by Ritchie.

‘I think we’ll edit her out,’ whispered the interviewer. Dawn wasn’t listening.

‘Sorry,’ continued Sandie, ‘go on.’

‘Why do you think the closure is wrong?’

‘Because it makes no sense from a financial perspective. Dame Helena has only just got the job, with nearly a ten percent pay rise, when you account for salary and fringe benefits, compared to the last principal, Sir Harry. Then she has the audacity to say this pool is surplus to requirements. In fact, it now turns a small profit.’

As she talked, another batch of students filed in, all undressing and struggling to find empty lockers to store their clothes.

‘So far,’ continued the interviewer, ‘Dame Helena hasn’t given us a comment. If she is listening to this, what is your message to her?’

‘Take your cue from Sir Harry. He invested in us, he recognised it was well overdue to bring in open-plan unisex changing like the rest of the world, and that’s a lifeline as a transwoman, and it’s because of that investment it’s become self-sustaining.’

Public speaking normally caused me terror, but I stepped forward. ‘Sorry to interrupt. I’m not a transwoman but I’m totally on board with Sandie. What Chuckles is doing is just plain nonsense.’

‘Sorry,’ said the interviewer, now interrupting me, ‘I know we all call her that, but we have to say Dame Helena for legal reasons.’

‘Oops.’

‘Let’s have a clean take and I’ll sort it out in the edit. So you’re on board with Sandie’s view. Tell us why that is.’

‘I’m also a woman, not a transwoman, but I’m glad the gender divides have gone. I wouldn’t have met my boyfriend for a start. My worry is: I’m part of the swimming team and if we can’t practice, there is no team. We’ve won so many trophies, it’s not big-headed to say we’ve built up a lot of respect for that and it’ll be gone overnight.’

‘How many members of the swimming team are here today?’

‘Most of us are. Have you spoken to Matt yet?’

‘He’s around here somewhere,’ said Sandie, pointing across the room. ‘There.’

We caught Matt’s attention and he walked over to us, dragging his placard: Closing The Pool Is Silly So I’m Showing My Willy. He’d been talking to Jamie, who was standing awkwardly in a corner. As Matt spoke to the interviewer, I excused myself.

When I walked over to Jamie, I passed someone in her twenties seemingly in heaven as both of her nipples were sucked by two women who must have been in their thirties. Right next to them, I saw a similar age divide as an older man sucked off a younger one. In fact, almost every clit and penis in that room was erect, but not in Jamie’s case.

‘Let me guess: it wouldn’t go down before and it won’t go up now. Am I right?’

‘Honestly,’ he said, ‘any other time, it’s just solid.’

I thought for a second. ‘Follow me,’ I said, beckoning him to the bathroom section.

There were two women bent over the sinks, one being pounded by a man, and the other by a woman with a strap-on. There was just enough of a gap between them to have him sit on the edge of the sink.

‘I’m just making you hard, nothing more. Our little secret, all right? Like the shower incident.’

‘All right.’

I took the tip of his soft penis in one hand and stretched it out, then used my other hand to move his foreskin up and down in increasingly rapid movements.

‘You can touch my clit as well,’ I said.

He reached out his fingers and made an up-and-down motion on me. They weren’t quite in the right position, but I didn’t correct him.

I tried to make conversation. ‘How’s school?’

‘We got the mixed changing room, like here. I hate it. Well, not entirely. The girls are fine, they just get on with it, but some of the boys act up and say things like, “If you don’t get hard, you’re gay.” It’s so stupid.’

‘You’ll all be used to it before long,’ I said, now keeping a constant pace. ‘But you’d think they’d be a bit more mature by now, like you are.

‘They should be. They’re nearly seventeen as well.’

‘Wait, I’m seventeen,’ said a female voice. We looked around and the girl smiled, revealing a mouth full of tooth braces. ‘Finally, somebody my own age.’ A sneaky look down her body revealed large areolas and a protruding clit.

‘Brilliant. This is Jamie. Maybe you could take over, if you’re both up for that.’

‘Yes, please,’ she said enthusiastically. Jamie had no objections. He was now fully erect and looked ready to burst at any moment.

‘Great. Just watch out, he shoots a lot.’ As I handed him over to the girl, I kissed him on the cheek. ‘Little secret, right?’

The girl took over her stroking from where I left off. I allowed myself a quick look at the action.

The guy next to them turned to the girl and said, ‘I’m seventeen as well. Can I play with your boobs?’

He looked older than that to me, but she still said, ‘Yes, please,’ as enthusiastically as she did to me, and turned her boobs towards him.

The woman with the strap-on then asked, ‘Are you into girls as well?’

I didn’t hear the answer because a scream sounded in the main locker room and I went to investigate. The two older women were now making the younger one orgasm over and over with their fingers. As soon as one of them stopped, the other took over. There was a large homemade placard at their feet reading Save Our ‘Ool – Stop Taking the P.

The interviewer was packing up and Sandie was now wandering around, saying, ‘Everybody, will you listen up? This was not the intention of the protest. It was supposed to be naked but not sexual.’

Nobody was listening, aside from Dawn, who answered, ‘Join in, you might enjoy yourself.’

‘This is a serious matter and I’m really disappointed in my fellow committee members for lowering themselves to this.’

‘You have really nice tits, by the way. They’re just a perfect size. Can I touch them?’

‘If you must.’

At this point, Aidan finally turned up with a large piece of folded cardboard. Ritchie followed him a few seconds later, commenting, ‘It’s all popping off in here, isn’t it?’

‘I’m glad it is,’ I said. ‘I was worried nobody would show up. Did you know Jamie was here?’

‘Oh, where?’

‘Enjoying himself with a young lady in the bathroom.’

‘Really? He’s so shy, though. How?’

‘Leave him be just now,’ I placed a hand on his arm and turned to Aidan. ‘How’s the toothache? Is it fixed?’

‘For the moment. I’ll need to go back at some point. But when I was in the dentist’s chair, I came up with a slogan.’ He unfolded the cardboard to reveal We’re Barely Amused, Chuckles. ‘Ta-da.’

‘That’s perfect, but you’re both overdressed for a naked protest, so go and find a locker. Matt’s here, so we can all have a bit of fun. I’ll go and find a space for us.’

With all the bench space taken up in the main changing room, I moved back to the bathroom section. Jamie was still sitting on the sink. He’d just finished ejaculating, with much of his spunk covering the girl’s hand and the rest on her body and chin. Beside them, the two women were still going strong, with the strap-on owner also rubbing the girl’s clit, although the boob-playing guy and his partner had gone.

‘Somebody’s had a nice time,’ I offered.

‘You weren’t wrong about the mess,’ said the girl, looking at the drips over her boobs.

‘I’ll grab you some paper towels.’

Before I did, I scooped up a little spunk from Jamie. I made eye contact with him and he watched me slowly lick it off my hand and swallow as I winked at him. I then asked them to stay there and keep the sink reserved for a few minutes.

As I shouted the boys from the bathroom doorway, I heard a conversation between the ladies.

‘I’m Alannah, by the way,’ said the one with the strap-on, ‘and this is Hannah.’ The one bent over the sink raised a hand and waved a little.

‘I’m Susannah,’ said the seventeen-year-old.

‘We all rhyme, I can’t believe it,’ she said without withdrawing. ‘Do you want to try taking the strap-on?’

‘Yes please,’ said Susannah, who still sounded as enthusiastic as ever.

‘You’re quite young, so this might be a tight fit.’

‘I’m sure I’ll manage.’

As my acquaintances entered the bathroom, I added. ‘We have Aidan, Matt and Ritchie, who’s Jamie’s brother.’

Quite reasonably, the boy didn’t want to witness his brother pounding me. He and Susannah kissed quickly before he moved back to the main locker area.

Alannah withdrew from Hannah, then bent Susannah over the sink. Matt and I squeezed in beside them, also bent over the sink, while Aidan penetrated him and Ritchie did so with me. There was only just enough room for us all.

Despite our poundings, I somehow ended up in a casual conversation with Susannah.

‘I’m studying mathematics,’ she told me, ‘I’ve always been good at numbers. How about you?’

‘I started off in philosophy, but I got really into swimming, so I switched to sports science. It’s funny; I was never into sport before I got here. I think it’s the way they teach it at school.’

‘Tell me about it. I hated PE. I can’t run, for a start. I’m only here to support Dawn. She was my neighbour growing up and I don’t want to see her out of a job.’

‘Thank you. She’s a good egg.’

Throughout the conversation, I hadn’t been paying much attention to Richie, so it was a surprise how quickly he unloaded inside me. Matt and I had done a lot of swapping practice since Loch Forstie and he swallowed all the semen from me. I did the same from him when Aidan finished. We cleaned up and left the lesbians to their fun before going back to the main locker room.

With no other available spaces for sex, someone had brought in large gym mats so people could use the floor. To our surprise, we found Dawn and Sandie using one, with Dawn on top.

‘Really?’ I asked. ‘I thought this wasn’t an orgy.’

‘It was futile trying to stop everybody,’ said Sandie. ‘Sometimes you just need to cut your losses.’

‘And Dawn, I’ve been thinking about your comment from earlier. You said orgies make you do weird things. Have you been to one before?’

‘Oh, just the once. It wasn’t planned. I lived in a bedsit for a while and it just kind of happened one night. It was a lot of fun but not a patch on this one. Wait, orgasm incoming.’

I spotted Jamie watching silently from a corner. He tried to look casual while holding a placard reading We All Need to Pool Together, but I could tell it was really a strategy to cover his genitals. We joined him.

‘Susannah seems like a nice girl,’ said Ritchie. ‘Have you thought about asking her out?’

‘Maybe.’

‘So that’s a no. Jamie, you can’t be scared of a little knockback every now and then.’

‘I’m not scared. Anyway, we’ve only just met.’

‘All the more reason to set out your stall early.’

A woman appeared at the door, perhaps in her 60s, wearing an outdoor jacket and a red lightweight scarf. ‘May I speak with the student union committee, please?’ she announced, followed by a nervous laugh that sounded like, ‘Uh huh huh huh.’ She wasn’t looking at anyone; instead, her eyes were fixed to the ceiling. ‘In the gym, five minutes, and could they at least wear towels or some decent clothes?’ The laugh was repeated.

It was unmistakably Dame Helena. A few people shouted, ‘Boo!’ in her general direction and raised their placards.

Sandie and Dawn were finished having sex and were kissing on the gym mat. Sandie stood up and wrapped a towel around her boobs and waist, then left the locker room. She was followed by the rest of the committee members.

Dawn stood in a vacated space on one of the benches to announce, ‘Remember, the protest isn’t over until this is resolved. Don’t stop doing what you’re doing just yet.’

I could see the interviewer setting up the microphone again. ‘Do you think we’ll be here overnight?’ I asked Dawn.

‘No idea, but I’ll make sure at least a few people are here at all times because if Chuckles gets her way, I’m out of a job.’ She reached down to her vagina and pulled something out. ‘Do you ever use female condoms?’

‘I can’t say I have.’

‘I love them. They give you a bit more freedom than the normal kind.’ She inspected the clear fluid inside as she tied a knot in the top. ‘Sandie said she doesn’t have much sperm these days. That’s fine by me, but by God, that woman knows how to give an orgasm. How does she do it?’

‘My thoughts exactly,’ nodded Matt.

Hannah and Susannah entered the main locker room again, both with sweat pasting their hair to their foreheads. Alannah followed, with the strap-on still bouncing in front of her, telling us, ‘We’re just taking a water break. There’s plenty more fuel in the tank, no matter how long this protest goes on.’

‘You might need it. I’m not holding out much hope.’

Susannah spotted Jamie in the corner. She went over to speak to him, smiling broadly. I genuinely wasn’t trying to listen, but it was difficult not to be curious about their conversation.

‘Hi, you recovered yet?’ Without waiting for an answer, she looked behind the sign he was still holding in front of him. ‘I think that answers my question.’ There was a pause. ‘Put that sign down and let’s see you. Nobody else is covered up.’

‘Um, okay.’ He leaned the sign against the wall and his erection stood out. I was impressed after the slow start. Susannah’s clit and nipples were more swollen than ever, but Jamie was consciously trying to keep his gaze away.

The girl could read him like a book. ‘You can look if you like.’

He looked down her body slowly and stiltedly, as if he were expecting her to shout Only kidding! But the shout never happened. After taking in her entire body, he looked over at his brother, then into Susannah’s eyes.

‘Could I…? Could I see you again. I mean… obviously I’m seeing you now, in front of me. I mean when this… this is all over?’

I redoubled my efforts to pretend I wasn’t watching or listening. I don’t know how successful I was, but I was willing her to take him on. A knockback might have been character-building, according to Ritchie, but I wanted the boy to feel as though he’d taken a gamble and achieved something.

‘Er, wow,’ she said.

‘Oh, it doesn’t matter, then. I’m sorry for asking, I was just…’

‘No, stop, you’ve got it wrong. I was just… I was going to ask you the same. Of course I want to see you again. But like I said…’ She whispered something in his ear, which might have been, ‘I don’t swallow,’ but it was too indistinct to make out. I’m sure he would tell me later if I asked. ‘Is that okay?’

He nodded eagerly, and I was so pleased when they ended up kissing. It was so cute how he was initially scared to push his chest against her boobs until she gently brought him closer.

After about ten minutes, Dame Helena and the committee re-entered the locker room.

‘Thank you for your patience,’ said Sandie, ‘we’ve talked with the principal and the good news is that the pool will remain open for at least the next twelve months.’ A cheer arose from the crowd, but she made a gesture telling them to settle down. ‘It’s good news, but there are some conditions attached…’

‘Is Chuckles taking a pay cut to fund it?’ someone heckled.

‘That’ll do, thank you,’ said Dame Helena, still with her eyes fixed on the ceiling instead of the naked bodies, ‘but Sandie is correct. There are stipulations that go along with this reprieve.’ She laughed nervously. ‘However, for today, you can call off your protest.’ Another nervous laugh. ‘I now need to be at another meeting and I expect you all to have dispersed by the time I return. Goodbye.’ She left immediately, not seeing the obscene gestures a couple of people were making.

‘To reiterate,’ added Sandie, ‘this protest is over and we’ll publish the full statement on the website. Thank you so much for your help. You really have made a difference.’

‘Right,’ said Matt. ‘Celebration time. I have a shift tomorrow, though, so it can’t be long.’

‘If it’s all right,’ said Susannah, ‘it’s been a sweaty day and I’d like to shower here, and I need some help to wash my back.’ She looked at Jamie.

‘Yes, that’s fine,’ said Ritchie, ‘you take your time. You got enough bus money?’

‘I’ll be fine,’ he said.

Putting on a Grampa Simpson voice, he said, ‘You kids have fun, then.’

They made their way hand-in-hand to the showers while the rest of us put our clothes back on. Allanah, who had now removed her strap-on, caught up with them both. ‘Can me and Hannah join you?’ I didn’t hear the rest of the conversation as they disappeared into the showers, but I liked to imagine they were planning something spicy.

My mind wandered, thinking about what we’d achieved. Without that pool, I wouldn’t even know Matt or Ritchie, and I certainly wouldn't be studying Sports Science or winning any swimming trophies. I was so lost in my thoughts that I barely registered my own name when Dawn proffered the carrier bag.

‘Do you need any rubbers, Lauren? Plenty spare to go round.’

‘Um… no, we’re fine.’

‘You’ll want to ask Jamie,’ said Ritchie.’

‘I did. Susannah grabbed a good handful.’

‘Good girl.’

Despite the tiring day, I was still horny and I wondered how long Aidan and Ritchie might take to recover. ‘Right, boys. Who wants to come back to mine for a quick shower and dessert?’

They all did.