(H)armless Cruise - Chapter 4

The following days of the cruise were lovely. Michelle spent most of her time with Tom exploring the ship and doing various activities. Whenever the ship entered a port, they went sightseeing on land. It was lovely, and Michelle had a great time. She was sad that the cruise only lasted a few more days. Soon they would reach their final destination, and after that, the ship turned around and sailed back to their starting port. 

Today there was a large party in the ship's ballroom, and most passengers would be there. Michelle was excited. She couldn't wait to dance with Tom through the night. She needed the perfect outfit for it, so she was in her cabin digging through her suitcase with her feet, discarding one piece after another. She had packed a lot of summer dresses, but she wanted something a little more elegant than that. Finally, she found the little black dress she had packed on a whim. It had three-quarter long sleeves that she hoped would swing around with her movements. It had a high collar and was very tailored in the midsection, then the skirt flared out and reached her knees. Michelle knew it was tight, and she would struggle to close the zipper in the back, but it would be worth it. Black also hid the unsightly bulge on her back, where her arms were compressed much better than other colors. The dim light in the ballroom would also help with that. For a moment, Michelle thought she might even go without a scarf to drape over her back as an extra precaution, but she wasn't that confident. It only took a curious spectator to look a little closer at the armless woman dancing, and her whole ruse would fall apart. 

Michelle chose a gold silk scarf to go with her black dress. She sat down on her bed in front of the mirror and used her feet to drape it around her neck. Her dress rose to her hips when Michelle brought her leg up to her neck and revealed her panties. She would have to be careful to not flash anybody accidentally. It meant Tom would have to feed her the entire evening, which Michelle was certainly not sad about. 

She completed her outfit with hoop earrings, which were a struggle to put in, but she eventually managed. When she was all done, she slipped into her sandals and admired her evening look in the mirror. Michelle would never get tired of seeing her armless shoulders adorned with empty sleeves. She twirled around to see how they would swing while she danced. It would really draw attention to her armless state, and she loved it. 

Michelle got a little lost in practicing dance moves in front of the mirror, and she was startled when someone knocked at the door. She remembered that Tom would pick her up and hurried around the cabin to look for her purse. 

"I'm coming, just a sec!" She shouted to the door and could hear Tom laugh in return. 

She found her purse on her night table and instinctively lifted her foot to pick it up, but realized she was already wearing shoes. Instead, she bent down, grabbed the strap between her teeth, and hurried to the door. She managed to get the door open by hooking her chin onto the handle and wriggling it open. 

"Do you need some help?" Tom chuckled as he saw Michelle with the strap between her teeth. 

"Yesh, please." Michelle was blushing bright red as Tom took the strap out of her mouth and gently placed it over her head, so the purse hung at her side. 

"There you go." Tom's fingertips brushed over her shoulders as he pulled his hands away, and Michelle had to suppress a shudder. Someone touching her 'armless' shoulders felt incredibly intimate to her, and she couldn't stop blushing. 

"Thank you," Michelle mumbled.

"Are you ready?" Tom asked and gestured towards the stairs that led to the lower deck. He placed one hand on Michelle's hip to turn her around, and she melted into his touch. She would have loved to feel his arm around her waist or even her shoulders, but her bound arms prevented it. After an awkward moment, Michelle finally found her composure again, and they headed toward the ballroom. 

The room was packed, but Tom quickly spotted some of their acquaintances at the back. The band played an assortment of upbeat music, and a couple hundred people were spread out around the room, with many couples dancing on the dance floor. 

They reached their group and greeted their friends, and Tom offered to get them drinks from the bar, which Michelle gladly accepted. Tom would have to hold her drink for her like usual, but he didn't seem to mind. They made idle small talk for the first half hour with their group of friends, and when they had finished their first round of drinks, Tom asked Michelle to dance with him. 

Butterflies instantly filled Michelle's stomach. This was what she had been looking forward to, but she was incredibly nervous about it as well. Would Tom hold her waist, or would he want to hold onto her shoulders? For a classical dance pose, the man usually had one arm wrapped around the woman's back while holding her hand with his other hand. With Michelle being armless, they couldn't do any of that, but she was also concerned he would want to hold her close and then feel her compressed arms on her back. 

He led her onto the dance floor. The band played a slower song, and many couples switched to a slow, swaying dance. 

"Where are you most comfortable being touched, Michelle?" Tom brought her attention back to him. 

"On my waist would be good," Michelle answered after a moment, and Tom stepped closer. He gently placed his strong hands on the curve of her waist just above her hips, and she closed her eyes. This was simply perfect. Never in her life had Michelle imagined that her cruise would turn out so amazing. Michelle leaned her head on Tom's shoulder as they gently swayed to the music. 

The remainder of the evening went on similarly, with Michelle downing more than a few fanciful as the night progressed. She knew she should have switched to alcohol-free drinks hours ago, but she had so much fun, and the alcohol helped her let loose. She just had to be careful not to get too careless and accidentally reveal her bound arms. While they were dancing, Michelle had to stop herself when she wanted to rub her back against Tom, which would have revealed her ruse. 

The ballroom started to clear out slowly after one in the morning, leaving more space on the dance floor for Michelle and Tom. The life band had retired a while ago and was replaced by a playlist coming over the room's speaker. Michelle was getting bolder, and when another slow song was played, she pressed closer to Tom and had to restrain herself from straight up humping his leg. His grip on her waist tightened, and Michelle was sure he was thinking the same thing. 

Tom leaned down. His breath was hot against her neck when he whispered in her ear. 

"Let's get out of here." 

Michelle gladly obliged when he broke their close dance and guided her to the edge of the ballroom with a hand on the small of her back. She had to be careful not to stumble in her inebriated state. Her mind was also clouded with lust, and she could feel her panties had gotten wet as she walked. 

Tom led her to an inconspicuous door on the side of the room that Michelle hadn't noticed before. It had to be a service entryway for employees of the ship, but Michelle couldn't care less about possibly trespassing. 

It was dark inside the hallway, and the music from the ballroom was muffled as soon as the door fell close behind them. 

Tom was suddenly unstoppable, and his gentle touch turned firm and determined as he pressed Michelle against the wall. He used his whole body to block her and captured her mouth in his in a heated kiss. Michelle's back and shoulders started to hurt almost immediately as her bound arms were pressed into the wall, but she wasn't bothered. The heat flooding her body and pooling in her groin overshadowed any pain. 

Tom's hands were on her face, and he was practically devouring her and wished she could hold onto him as well, but that she couldn't turn her on even more. She had never experienced a making out with her arms bound, which was exhilarating. One of his hands traveled down to her thigh and slipped under her dress. 

"Is this okay?" Tom briefly pulled back, touching their foreheads together. 

"Yes," Michelle breathed, realizing how desperate she sounded. "Please, if I had arms, I would be climbing all over you." 

Tom chuckled. 

"I like it when I have to do more of the work." His hand had now found her dripping panties, and he pushed them aside to slip a finger into her slit. His touch was electrifying, and Michelle almost came just from him rubbing her clit. She let out a desperate cry when Tom pulled his hand back. He shut her up by kissing her again, and she could feel he was working open his belt. 

The instant Tom dropped his pants, Michelle hooked her leg over his hip, giving him access to her pussy, and she didn't care how forward she was. She needed him. It was all up to Tom. He had to do everything, from holding her upright against the ship's sway to lining himself up with her pussy. Michelle was barely staying upright, balancing on one foot and leaning against the wall. For some reason, the ship was swaying more than ever, but Michelle wasn't sure if it wasn't the alcohol affecting her balance. She could feel Tom guiding his erection towards her entrance, and she was holding her breath. Any moment now, they'll be joined, and she would find release. 

The ship suddenly lurched to the side, and a deafening screech of metal reverberated through its hull. Michelle lost her balance and fell over, landing on her shoulder and side. Her head hit the metal floor, dazing her momentarily. Tom fell and stumbled backward, his legs tangled in his dropped pants, and he hit the wall with his back, then slid down until he sat on the floor. 

A moment later, the light in the hallway turned off, casting them in complete darkness. 

Michelle groaned as she came to her senses. Her shoulder hurt severely, but she was sure she hadn't broken any bones. 

"Tom?" Michelle called out. She could hear him moaning and hoped he wasn't hurt. 

"Michelle?" 

"I'm fine. Are you hurt?" 

"A little banged up, but I'm alright. What a way to be interrupted, huh?" 

Michelle chuckled but then realized the bang, and the noise might be something serious. 

"Do you think we hit something?" 

"Sounded like it. It's probably nothing serious. I'm sure they will announce that everything is fine any moment now, and then the lights will turn on again." 

Michelle could hear Tom moving about and remembered that she should probably make an effort to get up from the floor. Her shoulder was still hurting, and the fall had really jostled her arms. Despite the pain, Michelle tried to get her legs back under her body and sit up. It was a lot harder than she expected, the floor seemed to still be tilted, and Michelle didn't trust her sense of balance yet, so she didn't try to stand up. At least not until the lights came back on. 

They both sat in silence for a few moments, waiting for the lights, but as the minutes stretched by, nothing happened. 

"Maybe this hallway doesn't get lit up with the backup generators," Tom eventually said. "I think I'll just check the ballroom and see what's going on. Michelle heard him get up and take a few steps, then curse. 

"The ship is still rolling," he exclaimed. "I think we're taking on water. We have to get out of here and go to the muster station, Michelle." 

"What?" Michelle struggled to her feet, leaning against the wall with her injured shoulder. She took a few steps in the direction of the door, hoping that Tom would open the door and she could finally see what was going on. Now even her muddled brain could tell the floor was tilted to an extreme degree, and it was an upward battle to get to the door. It suddenly became clear that they were in a real emergency and possibly in danger. At this point, Michelle wished she could use her arms to keep her balance. 

Suddenly there was a sliver of light appearing above her. Tom had managed to open the door. As soon as the spark of hope had appeared in front of them, the ship groaned underneath them. A moment later, the floor disappeared underneath Michelle's feet. She lost her footing, landed on her knees, and started sliding. Screaming, she tried to reach for anything to hold onto to stop her from tumbling down the hallway but with her arms bound, there was nothing she could do. 

After falling for an eternity, Michelle landed hard on her back, excruciating pain shot through her arms, and she blacked out.