Power Play

Victoria Gray smoothed down the skirt of her Armani dress, anxious that it should not wrinkle. She wanted to look every bit the $500 it had cost. It looked marvellous on her tall, willowy form, and she knew it. The choice made specifically for her performance evaluation that afternoon, looked smart, professional, and elegant, a garment to suit board members from the highly conservative to the outright lascivious.
Victoria knew she was a hot contender for promotion to Assistant Regional Director of Highline Apparel, probably the fastest growing quality fashion chain on the east coast. She needed to look the part if she was going to go places within the company.
After serving four years and working on everything from basic accounting, ordering, store management, and even answering the phone when the need arose, she was admirably qualified to take the next step. Most importantly of all, she had the looks. Ray Michaels, the head honcho, had certainly noticed this fact, and often flirted with her, much to the chagrin of the other employees. Ray, it seemed, was enchanted by her sultry looks, and more than once he had touched her on the leg or the neck, his actions inappropriate. That would change once she had more power inside the company, perhaps even enough to play his game.
But that was the future. For now, she needed to concentrate on being the perfect employee.
Victoria sat in her office trying to mentally rehearse answers to questions she anticipated being asked, but the damned phone in the outer office just kept ringing. Where the hell was Mandy? The girl never seemed to be at her desk. That was something else that would change when Victoria got her promotion: deadwood like Mandy would be out the door before her three–inch heels could even touch the carpet.
At last, unable to tolerate the trilling phone any longer, Victoria rose impatiently to her feet and strode through into reception. She snatched up the telephone, took a deep breath to calm herself, and then said in her softest, most professional voice, “Highline Apparel. How may I direct your call?”
“Victoria?” an incredulous voice asked.
Damn, Victoria thought, and considered hanging up. It was Patrick Armitage, a critic for the magazine Fashion Today, not a man would wish to offend, but he was an insufferable little prick. She decided to try being nice to him.
“Why, hello Patrick. And how is the world treating you?”
“Like shit. That last batch of suits you sent me look like rip–offs. Have you seen the stitching? It’s terrible.”
Victoria sighed inwardly and sat down on the receptionist’s chair, crossing her legs because she knew it would now be some minutes before she could get to the bathroom to do something about her uncomfortably full bladder. She had to find a way to tactfully terminate the call in the next either minutes, however, or she would be late for her own promotion review.
But Armitage droned on and on, as he invariable did, the miserable little whiner. Victoria periodically re–crossed her legs as she tried to concentrate on what the man was saying, punctuating his conversation with the appropriate noises. She rested her free hand on her lap; wishing she could press on her crotch, but there were other staff around and it wouldn’t look very professional.
“Mr. Armitage, I can assure you,” she tried to interrupt the diatribe coming through the phone at her, “the garments were in pristine condition when they left us.”
“Are you accusing us of damaging them, Miss Gray?”
After a short pause, Victoria replied, “No, of course not. I was merely pointing out––.”
“––Because, to me, the implication was perfectly clear. I think I had better talk to Ray.”
“I’m afraid Ray is not––.”
“Vicky?” It was Ray’s voice coming from directly behind her.
She spun her chair around so that she could see him. He was accompanied by a diminutive Japanese businessman, the one he’d been ensconced with all day.
She covered the mouthpiece. “Ray, it’s Craig Frost. He’s complaining about that last batch of––.”
“Never mind that now,” Michaels interrupted her, making a dismissive gesture with his hand as if her concerns were too trivial to consider. Vicky stared at him in surprise as he went on, “This is Mr. Tanaki, from Saike, the big clothing chain in Japan.”
“Yes, I know who Saike is,” Victoria said sarcastically, resenting Ray’s condescending attitude towards her, treating as if she were just some lame secretary.
He turned to the little man and said in a tone that was, “Mr. Tanaki, this is Miss Gray, our local Manager. She’ll get you to JFK in time for your flight.”
Victoria’s eyes widened. “What?”
Michaels treated her to one of his you really need to do this for me looks. “Our meeting ran a little over time, and for some reason none of the drivers are around, so I need you to drive him. You can take one of the limos.”
“Me? But––.”
“There’s no time to lose,” Ray interrupted peevishly. “If you don’t get going right away, he’ll miss his flight to Tokyo.”
“But I have to––?”
“Whatever it is can wait,” Ray snapped. He was obviously pissed off about something. Was it something she had done? If so, his timing was lousy.
“But the evaluation.”
“I’ll square it with the board. We’ll reschedule.”
“But that will look really bad for me, Ray. Why can’t Mandy drive him? No offense, Mr. Tanaki.”
The little man bowed his head politely and smiled.
“Mandy? Are you serious? She can’t even control a bicycle. Look, there’s no one else I can ask at the moment, and the situation is urgent.”
Yes it is, Victoria thought, re–crossing her legs again. Ray was growing impatient, so reluctantly she sighed and nodded her agreement. “Okay,” she said, “but first I have to––.”
“Leave it,” Ray interrupted yet again. “Your number one priority is to get Mr. Tanaki to JFK in time for his flight. Now go.”
“But I–––”
“Go!” Victoria felt the muscles around her abdomen tighten as she thought about having to control her bladder until she reached the airport. How long would the drive take? Half an hour– no, it was rush hour – more like an hour. Ouch. She really needed to pee, and wasn’t sure she could wait that long.
“What are you waiting for?” Ray demanded, unable to keep the irritation out of his voice. “You’ll make Mr. Tanaki miss his flight.”
And you might make me piss myself if I don’t visit the bathroom first. “Nothing,” she answered with sudden resolve, and standing up, beamed a smile at their Japanese visitor. “Come along, Mr. Tanaki. Let’s get you to your plane.”
“Thank you,” the diminutive man responded with another small bow on his head. Victoria smiled; she’d always loved the oriental propensity for politeness.
“This way, Mr. Tanaki,” she said, leading the way towards the elevator and the parking garage where the company cars were located.
As they rode the elevator down, Victoria stood with her thighs squeezed together. She really could have done with a visit to the bathroom before doing this, but she supposed she could wait until she reached the airport. It wouldn’t take that long, after all: half an hour… Then she remembered the time: four–fifteen. Rush hour would just be getting underway. Shit, she cursed inwardly. Oh well, there was nothing for it now. She would just have to wait, and that was that.
Tanaki was, she knew, an important contact for Highline, so she elected to drive him in the firm’s 1987 Camaro Iroc–Z, its white paintwork an ideal contrast for her black dress. Moreover, she adored the blue–tinted windows. The car was amazing, and certainly not the kind of thing one should drive to an airport, but then what the hell: the whole business was all about appearances when it really came down to it.
After signing out the Camaro and collecting the keys, she opened the rear door for her little Japanese charge. He hesitated. “Would you mind if I rode up front with you? The back seat of cars often makes me feel ill.”
“Oh. Of course not,” Victoria replied, smiling sweetly as her bladder muscles contracted and made her wish the little man would hurry up. She opened the front passenger door for him and he nimbly clambered in, his grace of movement belying his sixty–plus years of life.
Victoria maneuvered the limousine out of the parking garage and joined the ponderous flow of traffic heading out of the city. It was really busy, which put arriving at the airport at least an hour away. A whole hour of waiting to pee! As luxurious as the limo was, the ride was going to be far from comfortable for her.
“Mr. Tanaki,” she said, “what time is your flight? We’re not going to make very good time, I’m afraid.”
“My flight is scheduled to depart at seven o’clock, but I am supposed to check in at least ninety minutes sooner.”
“Right,” Victoria acknowledged, performing the simple calculation. “That’s at five thirty. Well, we may be all right if there are no serious delays.”
They had only been on the road a few minutes when the traffic slowed to a crawl. Victoria pressed her knees together and did her best not to fidget, but her bladder was really aching now. Why had she let Ray force her to leave the office without visiting the bathroom first?
Unexpectedly then, Tanaki said, “I am so sorry.”
“Pardon me?” Victoria glanced across at him, surprised.
“It is clear you have no wish to be here. I apologize for causing you discomfort.”
“Oh, no, no. Please don’t think that, Mr. Tanaki. It’s just that I was all psyched up for a job evaluation this afternoon, and––.”
“Ah yes,” Tanaki interrupted. “For your promotion, yes?”
Victoria glanced over at the little man again. “That’s right. How––?”
“Mr. Michaels mentioned it.”
“Oh.” Victoria said, and lapsed into a brooding silence, annoyed that Ray would discuss her career with someone outside the company.
Noting her reaction to this news, Tanaki went on, “It is not my business, Miss Gray, but I am not sure you will get your promotion to Assistant Regional Director.”
“What? How…How do you…?”
The little man adopted a look of contrition, something Victoria sensed he could do at will. “Mr. Michaels seems to think you may not have the…personality to cope with the job.”
“Oh, did he,” Victoria responded angrily, slamming the steering wheel with the palm of her left hand. “The bast–––.” She checked herself, aware that she was not sounding very professional. “I’m sorry. The news came as a bit of a shock. I thought…well, I suppose I assumed…”
“I do not agree with Mr. Michaels’ assessment. I believe you do have what it takes.”
Victoria glanced at him suspiciously, suddenly aware that he was steering the conversation in a specific, and potentially undesirable, direction. “Forgive me, Mr. Tanaki, but how would you know that?”
“Ah. You have dealt extensively with a girl called Mai Wan.”
“Yes.”
“Mai Wan is my daughter, Miss Gray, and she speaks highly of your business acumen.”
Victoria sat in stunned silence, trying to ignore the burning sensation that always accompanied the urge to pee when things were growing serious. Involuntarily, she began to wiggle her left leg, her knee trembling as she battled the urge to start urinating into her panties. The airport was still at least forty–five minutes away, and she badly needed to piss. What the hell was she going to do?
“I see,” she said at last. “Yes, we’ve always got along rather well.”
“Indeed,” Tanaki agreed, and beamed a smile at her.
Victoria caught his subsequent glance at her knees, and did her best to stop fidgeting. She caught herself drawing in a sharp breath through her teeth as a sudden urge to release pulsed through her abdomen. She tightened her muscles and held her breath as she fought the compelling desire to let her pee go.
Oh God, she thought again. What am I going to do? My bladder’s so full. I’m never going to make it to the airport in time.
She looked over at Tanaki again and saw him nod his head, a tiny gesture in keeping with his tiny frame. He seemed to have made up his mind about something. “Do you think you will make it?” he asked.
Victoria frowned, trying to place a suitable interpretation on his remark. “Excuse me?” she asked.
“Do you think you will make it to the airport in time?” Tanaki asked.
“For your flight. I hope so.”
“No, not the flight. Before you are forced to urinate in the car?”
Victoria felt her cheeks flush with embarrassment at the realization that he predicament had been so obvious to her passenger. She swallowed and tried to maintain her composure, but it was no longer an easy matter. “Oh, I didn’t think––,” she began, and let the sentence trail off. “I’m very sorry, Mr. Tanaki,” she resumed, deciding to be honest rather than fall back on the usual platitudes. “I’m afraid I needed to visit the bathroom before we left, but I allowed my colleague to coerce me into hurrying.”
“It’s quite all right, Miss Gray,” Tanaki said. “In fact, it is very all right.”
Victoria shot the little man a worried look. “What–what do you mean?”
“I mean,” Tanaki explained, “that I am enjoying your predicament, although I confess I am a little ashamed to admit this.”
“I don’t understand,” Victoria said, groping for a thread of reason in this increasingly bizarre conversation.
“Ah, it is, shall I say, um, a fetish of mine. It is, actually, quite common in Japan for men to admit to this, at least in certain company. It is very… stimulating to watch a woman struggle with the need to relieve herself when she is in a situation where she cannot do so.”
Victoria was tempted to tell the little creep–for she now thought of him this way; what to go and do with himself; but again her loyalty to Highline overmastered her. Tanaki was not only important, but, she knew, forging an alliance with his company was the only way to break into the Japanese market, something Highline had been trying to do since its inception. If she said something to offend the man now, all hope of such an alliance would probably be gone, for good.
“Well,” she said finally, her words carefully measured, “in western society, people don’t usually admit to things of that nature. It’s more…”
“Taboo,” Tanaki finished for her. “Yes, I know this. Unfortunately, western women, especially tall women like yourself, Mr. Gray, are especially enticing, to me and to other men in my country.”
“I hope you’re not suggesting what I think you are,” Victoria warned, her tone sharp as the idea of this middle–aged oriental pawing her body sent a shiver of repulsion down her spine, briefly attacking her muscles and making her absolutely frantic to pee. She slammed her knees together so hard that her foot almost slipped off the brake pedal and allowed the car to move dangerously close to the vehicle in front.
“Oh no, please rest assured that I am not suggesting…any kind of physical liaison, Miss Gray. But I do have a request.”
Oh no, Victoria thought, trying to keep her expression and voice neutral as she asked, “And what’s that?”
“I have decided to delay my departure from the United States. I would like you to take me back to the Highline building where I shall speak again with Mr. Michaels and tell him that you have persuaded me it would be a good idea if I signed a contract to handle the distribution and sale of your merchandise in my country. That way, I think he will give you the promotion you so much desire.”
“I see,” Victoria said cautiously. “And what would you want from me in return for this?”
“Simply this. You must drive me back to your building without stopping to use the toilet anywhere along the route. Then, when we arrive, you will accompany me in the elevator to Mr. Michaels’ office, and back me up when I tell him how you persuaded me to change my mind. Only then will you visit the toilet and relieve yourself.”
“Oh my God,” Victoria said, her voice becoming tense as she fought another build–up in pressure on her urethra. “I really need to go to the bathroom, and what you ask is impossible. There’s no way I can’t wait that long.”
“Think, Miss Gray. If you do this, your promotion will be assured. All you have to do is not wet your clothes before we have had the discussion with Mr. Michaels.”
“Look, Mr. Tanaki, I wish I could do as you ask, but I am so desperate to pee, I know I’ll never even make it back to the Highline offices without…going on the seat. And even if I could, as soon as I got out of the car and had to stand, I would just lose it completely. What you’re asking me to do is impossible.”
“Nothing is impossible, Miss Gray. You must balance how badly you need to pee with how badly you want your promotion, and then make your choice.”
“But it’s not a choice,” Victoria objected, her voice shaking as her knees trembled with the effort of maintaining control of her sphincter muscles. “I can only prevent myself peeing up to a point, and then nature takes over. I mean, you know that, so why are you asking me to wait so long when you know I can’t?”
“Reach down inside yourself, Miss Gray, and look for that hidden strength. You can do this. If you want your promotion, you do this.”
Victoria closed her eyes, biting down on her upper lip and she tried to imagine holding on to a painfully full bladder for another half hour or longer. Surely it couldn’t be done? Oh, but she had to try.
It took several minutes to manoeuvre the Camaro out of the nearly stationary traffic and onto an exit ramp. She then circled round to join the same street going in the opposite direction. She was relieved to find the traffic lighter in this direction, and entertained a glimmer of hope that she could do what Tanaki had asked of her. Her bladder felt incredibly tight, however, literally as hard as rock and making her abdomen bulge. She had never been so desperate to release her pee in her life, and she had no idea how long she could endure the agony of holding back this much.
She drove as fast as she dare, fighting to keep from grabbing her crotch, although she felt sure that Tanaki was waiting for her to do just that. What she would have given to be able to cross her legs at that moment, but the act of driving made that absolutely impossible. She compromised by raising her left foot a few inches and sliding her knee over to top of her right thigh, until the steering wheel obstructed the movement. She let out a moan of frustration and, almost without realizing she was doing so, began to rock on her seat, stretching and slackening the seat belt between her breasts.
Periodically, she glanced at Tanaki to find him watching her struggled, his attention fixed mostly on her restless legs. Once, looking up and meeting her gaze, he smiled. Victoria could have sworn at him at that moment, but bit off the word before it could leave her throat. Instead, she made herself concentrate on the road ahead, whimpering each time she encountered a red light and had to stop. Every minute was precious, and each one lost meant having to hold on a little longer.
Suddenly, she squirted pee into her panties, suppressed the gasp that it tried to produce, and tensed her entire body in order to stem the flow. God–that had been so close. Next time, she doubted she would be able to cut it off, and she would be forced to piss all over the car seat, and her beautiful Armani dress.
“Mr. Tanaki,” she said, breaking the long silence. “I really am at my limit. I’ve held it in for you as long as I can, but I have to find somewhere now, or I’m going to have an accident right in front of you. Please, let me find somewhere before I go out of my mind trying to hold it.”
“No,” Tanaki replied firmly. “You must honor our agreement, or I will not pave the way for you with Mr. Michaels.”
“But I can’t hold it any longer,’ Victoria pleaded, panic now clearly audible in her voice. “I’m absolutely bursting to pee. You have to let me go.”
“No,’ Tanaki repeated in the same, uncompromising tone. “You must wait.”
“Oh God. Oh Goodddddd!”
Victoria began rocking her torso my vigorously, and finally succumbed to the temptation to thrust her hand up inside the skirt of her dress and grab herself, pressing on her pee–hole as hard as she could. Her eyes were bulging now with the strain of holding in so much pee. She knew she had no chance of making it, but she kept fighting anyway, clinging to the tenuous hope that she would find a way to do what Tanaki had asked of her. It was sheer agony, but then, surely it was worth a few tens of minutes like this to have a lifetime of promotional opportunities open up before he. Wasn’t it? Her bladder, had it possessed the capacity for cogent thought, would not have agreed. At the moment, it didn’t even possess the capacity to accommodate all her pee!
Even with less traffic in the return direction, the journey back to the office still took an agonizing length of time. As the minutes passed, Victoria grew increasingly certain that her bladder would explode before she could get to a bathroom, lift her dress, tear down her panties and release the open–up dam of piss. She could feel her skin starting to prickle with sweat and her body shuddered with the strain of holding on. Whenever she could spare a hand from the steering wheel, she rammed it against her crotch, pressing, squirming, and quivering as she fought to delay the inevitable.
At last, although she could hardly believe it, she finally turned into the entrance of the underground garage beneath the Highline building. She pulled the Camaro into its allotted space, snatched the keys from the ignition and clambered out of the car, not pausing to wait for Tanaki. She needn’t have worried; he was scurrying along close behind her, watching the show. The little bastard, Victoria thought as she staggered almost cross–legged into the key room and deposited the keys carelessly on the counter. She was turned to hobble back into the garage and make for the elevator when an irate voice called after her.
“Just a minute. You have to sign the vehicle back in.”
“Later,” she answered shortly, feeling pee starting to leak through her panties and begin snaking down her inner thighs.
“No, you have to do it when the vehicle is returned. It’s company policy. You of all people should know that, Miss Gray.”
Tensing her muscles, Victoria turned back to the counter. “Okay. Where’s the sheet?”
She stood hopping from foot to foot, her heels clicking on the tiled floor as she waited for the attendant to ponderously retrieve the appropriate paperwork. She glanced round to find Tanaki standing in the doorway behind her, watching her struggling antics with almost glittering eyes. She noticed the bulge in his pants and knew he really was excited by her desperate–to–pee performance.
“Here you are, Miss,” the attendant finally brought the form.
With trembling fingers, Victoria took the pen he proffered, scribbled a shaky signature, then turned and dashed from the room. She ran towards the elevator, taking small, noisy steps, Tanaki right behind her. She then had to pace up and down as she waited for the elevator to descend. The pee was still seeping out between her legs, and was working its way down towards the hem of her dress where it might become visible to Tanaki’s watchful eyes. She bent her right knee, rubbing her thighs together briskly, trying to deflect the flow, to absorb it somehow.
The elevator doors slid slowly open, and Victoria almost fell through the opening, Tanaki right on her heels. She pressed the button for the sixth floor where Ray Michaels’ office was located, then paced around the tiny room, knees bending, heels tapping, arms folded across her stomach. She was still leaking pee into her panties and had no idea how to stop it. Worse still, it was seeping faster than before, and her tired muscles could do nothing more to arrest it. She was seconds away from a total, explosive accident!
“Mr. Tanaki,” she gasped out, hardly able to breathe now. “I can’t…I can’t…”
“You must hold it,” Tanakiu responded. “You are so close to that promotion. So close.”
Victoria whimpered as tears glistened in her eyes. She was at her wit’s end, reading to burst! She simply couldn’t hold back the flood any longer. She certainly couldn’t sit in Michaels’ office discussing the Highline–Saiki alliance. She would just piss uncontrollably all over Michaels’ chair and carpet.
Suddenly, Victoria let out a loud gasp just as the elevator doors slid open. She bent forward, thrust her hands under her dress and danced around in a heel–tapping frenzy. She was peeing, and there was absolutely nothing she could do to stop it. She realized with horror that she was visible from the main office, and that people had stopped work to see what was going on.
In a last, desperate bid to save her dignity, Victoria hobbled from the elevator and took a few steps in the direction of the bathrooms, but pee was already streaming down her calves and hitting on the floor in a stream as she continued to advance. At last, the dam broke and pee gushed out with breath–taking force, gushing through her panties as if they were not even there. Some of the urine found its way onto the skirt of her dress, but most of it just splashed down onto the floor with a loud splatter.
Her face burning with humiliation, Victoria continued to do battle with her throbbing bladder, but she could not make her muscles contract anymore. They were totally spent, abandoning her to her humiliating accident.
At last, she gave up trying to get to the bathroom and just stood still as her bladder emptied itself all over the office floor. Her abdomen still felt swollen and ached abominably, just as badly as if her bladder were still full. The muscles had been tortured for so long that it would be some time before they managed to resume their normal shape.
Victoria stood there with her eyes closed, wishing the pee–soaked floor would just open up and swallow her. Even the quiet words muttered by Tanaki as he passed her on his way to Ray Michaels’ office did little to make her feel better: “You did really well. I think the job is yours.”
By: David North