By MCF 74
“Michigan” Mike Flynn and “Arizona” Aaron Farris were two of the biggest rivals in archaeology. Both taking after their boyhood idol, Indiana Jones, they were young, brash guys with a passion for rare antiquities and an adventurous streak on top of it all. Both good-looking guys, they were also magnets for the opposite sex, not to mention many members of the same sex. Always trying to one-up the other, they constantly competed for the same treasures in dangerous, exotic places, usually at the same time. Having met only once or twice in person before, it was hard to say if they truly hated each other or were merely rivals who respected one another.
One hot, steamy afternoon in the South American jungle, Michigan Mike was wandering through an especially dense patch of forest with his guide when all of the sudden they were surrounded by natives. Mike had heard of these forest-dwellers, many of whom had never been photographed by man before. However, he was not nervous at their appearance, as he had heard they were not dangerous, but instead quite hospitable, even to total strangers. This is why it took him by surprise when they pointed their spears at him, tied his hands together with ropes, and blindfolded he and his guide. They led him through the forest in an erratic, circular fashion, as to not let him catch wind of where he was going. As it was, Mike was completely turned around by the time they led him to what sounded like a village. He could hear the chatter of voices all around, but one in particular stood out from the crowd. He recognized it immediately. It was Arizona Aaron, his nemesis. It was like a dagger had pierced Mike’s heart. His worst enemy had captured him, and he knew the exact reason why: It was the Aztec Gold he had spent the last two years pursuing. Only Mike knew the exact location of the treasure, and Aaron wanted in on the secret. Mike could feel the natives lead him into what sounded like a hut, with it’s stuffy, muted acoustics. Mike was laid down on a table, and his legs were tied down to it, with ropes similarly strong to the ones that bound his hands. Once he was firmly secured to the table, he could hear the other natives leave the room.
Only one person remained: Arizona Aaron.
“So, Michigan Mike, my old friend. Looks like you’ve gotten yourself into a perilous situation again”, Aaron quipped.
“Whatever you want, Farris, you’re not going to learn anything from me. You know I don’t crack under torture. And what did you do with my guide?”.
“Oh, don’t worry about him, Flynn. You should be MUCH more worried about yourself right now. I know ALL about your limitations, Mikey. I know all your strengths, weaknesses, and especially your breaking points!”, Aaron shot back at him. “Andt I know something extra-special that might just do the trick to make you spill your guts to me.”, he continued.
Just then, Mike could feel his shoelaces being undone, followed by the removal of his shoes one by one. “Why are you taking my shoes off? Do you want my shoes or something? You don’t have a shoe fetish, do you, Aaron? You know, I’d hate to have to tell everyone about that.” , Mike said sarcastically, trying to cover up his ever-building anxiety.
“Oh, I’ve got some fetishes all right, but a shoe fetish isn’t exactly one of them”, Aaron replied.
Then, he could feel Aaron grab his socks at the toes, and slowly pull them both off at the same time. The rush of air on his bare feet was actually refreshing since he had been walking all day, but Mike had little time to enjoy it. “What are you doing, Farris?” No response from Aaron. Mike wondered to himself what Aaron could possibly want to do to his feet. What was his angle? Mike waited for any sign or indication of what was to come.
A few moments passed. Just then, Mike felt a sensation that literally sent shockwaves through his body. Aaron was running his index finger upwards along the sole of Mike’s right foot. “AHHHHH!”, Mike yelped in reaction, and Aaron seemed to genuinely enjoy his reaction.
“Oh, so you ARE ticklish, huh Mike?”, Aaron teased.
“How would he know that?”, Mike wondered to himself silently. Only a couple of people knew he was ticklish at all, and they were close buddies of his from years back.
Aaron’s fingers slowly but surely probed Mike’s right sole for what seemed like an eternity. He could feel them glide gently along his arch from his heel to his toes and back down again. Almost unconsciously, Mike realized that he had been lightly giggling the whole time. “You’ve sure got some baby soft feet for such a tough guy, Mikey. Tickle tickle!”, Aaron taunted. Somehow, the tickle talk drove Mike absolutely crazy, and Aaron knew it.
Mike winced as he could feel Aaron’s fingers picking up their tickling pace, dancing all across his soles, as if they were probing for the most ticklish spots. He couldn’t hold it in any longer. “HAHAHAHAHA!!!!”, Mike belted out, his giggling turning into full-blown laughter.
“What’s so funny, Mikey? Are you enjoying this or something?” Aaron sneered mockingly.
“Kiss my ass, Aaron! Just wait until I get out of here!”, Mike shot back.
“Oooh, you’re a tough talker, even when you’re restrained. We’ll just see how tough you really are.”, Aaron threatened.
Aaron then turned his attention to Mike’s left foot, which happened to be even more ticklish than the right one. He started slowly again, using one finger to tease Mike’s sole in a painfully slow fashion, almost as if he was drawing pictures with his fingers on Mike’s bare soles. Then, as before with the right foot, he picked up the pace and started tickling Mike’s left sole more aggressively. At this point, he moved his tickling fingers up to the area at the base of Mike’s toes, which instantly caused Mike’s body to thrash. Mike started laughing hysterically, begging Aaron to stop. “PLEHEHEHEASE. Sto-HA-HA…STOP IT! ARRGHH!”
“What’s the matter, buddy. Does that tickle? Looks like we found your sweet spot! Coochie coochie coo!”, Aaron taunted, laughing as he tormented Mike’s feet.
A wildly hysterical “HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!”, was all Mike could muster in response. Mike couldn’t stop laughing, as much as he tried and resisted. The exploitation of Mike’s sweet spots at the base of and underneath the toes of both of his feet went on for what seemed like fifteen or twenty minutes. Aaron often tickled both of Mike’s feet at the same time to get double the reaction. “NOOOOOOOO!!!! PLEASE, Aaron, STO-HAHAHA-P!!! Stop tickling me, please!”, Mike begged with tears stated to come out of his eyes.
“Okay, tell you what, Mikey. I’ll stop if you tell me where the Aztec gold is located. I want details, too. As a matter of fact, I’ll let you go altogether, no questions asked if you tell me.” Aaron promised.
“Come on man, you know I worked my ass off for two years trying to find that gold. You think I’m going to just give it away in a few minutes? You’re freaking crazy!”, Mike retorted.
“Have it your way”, Aaron responded, indicating by the tone of his voice that he was only half-disappointed. As a matter of fact, he seemed to genuinely be enjoying this experience.
Then came the worst thing that could have ever happened to Mike! Any hopes of an easy escape from this ticklish situation vanished into thin air. Mike figured that Aaron would just give up since most people are most ticklish on the soles and toes of their feet. Mike was different, though, and this gave him an advantage when being tickled by people….until now. Aaron clearly had done his homework, learning that Mike was hyper-ticklish on the tops and sides of his feet! He immediately went to work on Mike’s “true” sweet spots. Mike thrashed so hard in reaction, it was a wonder he didn’t break free from his ropes right then and there. He started laughing harder and with more intensity than ever before during the session.
“HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! NOOOOO!!!! NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! I CAN’T, HAHAHA, I CAN’T TAKE THAT!!! PLEAHEHEHEASE STOP!!!”, Mike begged, knowing full well he was getting his butt kicked by Aaron. The sensation of Aaron fingers tickling Mike’s foot tops and sides was almost unbearable and he felt as if he could pass out at any moment. Except the moment seemed to go on and on and on. Mike was laughing so hard that tears were starting to pour out of his eyes. This non-stop tickling of the tops and sides of Mike’s feet went on for about twenty more minutes before Mike felt that he was left with no choice but to confess. He had to tell Aaron something, as he couldn’t take any more of his tickle torture, as he was beginning to struggle to even breathe normally.
“Okay, okay, you BASTARD! I’ll talk!! HAHAHA!! Please just stop tickling my feet!!! I really can’t take anymore! Seriously!”, Mike begged Aaron.
Aaron immediately stopped tickling him, and asked insistently, “Where is the gold, Mike? No more games!”, he said insistently.
Mike then told him the exact location of the gold in as much detail as was possible. It all sounded reasonable to Aaron, who thanked Mike for finally cracking. “Well, it’s been fun, Mikey! Really, it has! Honestly, I was kind of hoping that you would hold out a little longer so I could work on your feet some more.”, Aaron laughed mockingly as he said. Just for kicks, Aaron tickled the tops and sides of Mike’s feet for another minute or two, even sneaking in a little sole tickling before finally quitting. “HAHAHAHA!!!!”
“Thanks again, buddy!”, Aaron said as he departed the room in the hut. Mike could feel the natives put his shoes and socks back on his tired feet. He was so exhausted from laughing at his merciless tickle torture that he probably would have struggled to do it himself. Then, the natives carried him our of the hut and dropped him in the woods where they first captured him in what seemed to be an eternity ago.
Mike undid his blindfold when he felt it was safe to do so, and began walking towards the direction he had originally come from, knowing he would probably run into a town with food and shelter not too far away. As he made his way, he felt a building sense of satisfaction, knowing full well he had sent Arizona Aaron Farris on the kind of wild goose chase that could last for weeks. The location of the gold that he confessed to Aaron was FAR OFF from the real one, and Mike absolutely loved deceiving Aaron like he had. Plus, he had really needed a break from the incessant foot tickling that Arizona Aaron had been giving him. Still, he knew that once Aaron discovered he had lied, he would come after him, and that the tickling would be all the worse if he was captured again. Deep down, Mike honestly hoped that he would be on the receiving end of a tickle torture session from Arizona Aaron again someday. A grin spread out across Mike’s face as he walked into the sunset.