“No need to thank me,” I tell her, meaning it differently than she thinks. “You need to get to work and I need to go home and get some sleep.” We hug briefly in the parking lot before heading to our individual cars.
I’m awake and showered by the time Jeremy knocks on my door after school. Once again I’m in my baggy sweatshirt and loose fitting jeans but this time I have a surprise for him.
“Hi Aunt Sara,” Jeremy says, setting his backpack on one of the kitchen chairs. “Did you still want to get together today?” he asks.
“Yes!” I say, maybe a little too enthusiastically. “I’ve got your program all mapped out, I just need to discuss it with you,” I tell him. “Have a seat,” I say, pulling out the chair to the right of his.
“I did some research and I think we can conquer this arousal based stuttering problem of yours,” I smile at his anxiousness. “Are you familiar with the concept of behavior modification?” I ask.
“B.F. Skinner?” he asks and I nod. “Sure, we learned about him last summer during that course I took at the university.” Sometimes I forget I’m dealing with a genius level IQ. Okay, here goes. I take a deep breath.
“Okay, so you’re familiar with cause and effect and stimulus and response?” I ask.
“Sure but Aunt Sara, we already know what the cause and effect is… I don’t see…” I cut him off before he can continue.
“Wait,” I assert, and he just sighs. “There has been some success with a process called Total Immersion Therapy,” I suddenly realize what the acronym is but I decide not to share this with Jeremy. Of course, he’s too fast for me.
“TIT?” he laughs. “You’re putting me on.” At least he’s smiling.
“I just realized that myself,” I smile and get back to the strategy. “Anyway, the idea is to build up your tolerance to the stimuli so it doesn’t trigger the response.” “Okaaaaaay,” he drags it out, emphasizing his disbelief. “Which stimuli are we talking about here?” he asks skeptically.
“The sexual stimulus that causes your erection. Without the erection the stuttering should stop,” I tell him as matter-of-factly as I can with my heart beating fast inside my chest. Why am I finding this so hard? Maybe because he looks just like his daddy and I’m talking about building up his sexual resistance!
“How do we do that?” he asks, seriously curious.
“Like this,” I say, pulling my sweatshirt over my head and revealing the same bikini top I was wearing yesterday. “You’re going to come up here everyday after school, until you can be around me in my bikini and not stutter,” I announce proudly as I pull my jeans down and kick them off.
“Aunt S-S-Sara!” Jeremy stutters. “I c-c-can’t!” He moves his hand under the table, obviously adjusting himself.
“Yes you c-c-can!” I laugh, mimicking him and hoping he doesn’t take offense. He doesn’t.
“Your girlfriend is in your calculus class, right. So get out your calculus book and start explaining to me what you’re currently studying.” He’s just staring at my tits, which are now swelling over the top of my tiny bikini as I take a deep breath.