The Date: Charlotte and Veronique, Part 5

"It's a little quiet tonight," Veronique observed as her gaze swept over the room. "Let's head upstairs..." That said, the raven-haired beauty made her way toward a spiral staircase in the corner of the room.

Charlotte trailed behind her date, gaping at the freak show on display out on the dance floor. There were several more people who looked part animal, and a woman whose skin had a glossy sheen like latex. She stumbled as Jay gave her a shove from behind.

"No dawdling!" the drunk redhead chided.

The second floor was mostly empty, aside from three people; a woman seated on a couch and two nude women posing for her on a raised platform. Charlotte's eyes were drawn to the woman on the couch. The woman was hot! She was wearing a skin-tight leather outfit that showed off her fit physique to best effect. Charlotte turned her attention to the naked women, and she noted with approval that they were both in excellent shape as well. Then she noticed something strange. From just above the knees down, their legs had been painted gold...

"Thatsh the hardbody challenge!" Jay proclaimed. "Thatsh how we're gonna prove which of ush lovesh Ronnie more!"

Veronique flashed a rueful smile at her tipsy ex. "The rules are pretty simple," she explained. "It's sort of like a game of chicken. You each pick a safe word and stand on the cursed platform. Once you are both posed suitably, your bodies will start to slowly turn into brass... from the feet up..."

"Turned to... brass?!" Charlotte blurted out in shock.

"Yeah, like the shtatuesh downstairsh by the door!" Jay interjected.

Veronique nodded. "At any point during the transformation, you can say your safe word - and that reverses the changes. However, the first one to say their safe word loses the challenge."

Charlotte frowned. "What happens if you don't use your safe word before the transformation is complete?"

"Then you become a shtatue like the ones downstairsh!" Jay replied, grinning. With a giddy cackle, she began to pull her top up over her shoulders and staggered toward and empty platform.

"That's true," Veronique confirmed. "If you fail to use the safe word before your mouth is transformed... well, there's no going back. The transformation becomes permanent at that point." She followed her ex toward the pedestal.

Jay had kicked off her heels and was now shimmying out of her skirt. "Letsh get thish show on the road!" she declared, and hopped up onto the platform. "Come on, Charlotte! Get outta thoshe duds and face me like a woman!"

Veronique's eyes were drawn to her ex's toned body, which was now fully on display. It was clear that she liked what she saw. The dark-haired woman turned to Charlotte and pursed her lips. "You know, this is our first date... it's a bit soon to ask you for such a display of, um, commitment. If you want to bail out, I won't hold it against you." She glanced over at the other challenge already underway. "Or, maybe you'd like to watch the other challenge reach its conclusion before you make up your mind?"

What does Charlotte decide?