Comfortable Forever
>It was a Saturday morning, a bit warm for the time of year, but not overly unusual. Reggie was lying on the couch under a blanket enraptured by her cartoons, unaware of the doorbell ringing over and over.
>Judy came into the room with huff and a scowl on her face. "Honestly Regina, couldn't you have answered the door?"
>"Yeah yeah, just five more minutes mom." was the lazy, half muted response Reggie gave her.
>Judy opened the door with an eyeroll to find Todd and Esther both waiting there.
>"Hey Miss A., we're here to hang with Reggie."
>"Guys you're here" shouted Reggie as she jumped up from the couch "Let's go up to my room, come on!"
>Instantly Todd had turned his head away "Wooooaah!"
>Esther's hands were over her eyes "Oh my gosh! Reggie!"
>"For the love of.. Regina! Where are your clothes??" Judy was truly annoyed now.
>There Reggie stood in front of the three of them, wearing nothing but a pair of cotton underwear. She was slightly annoyed by that question, as if the answer were obvious to everyone. "It was hot, so I took my shirt off. No biggie. But then it was a little drafty with the fan on so I grabbed a blanket to balance it out." she said with a toothy, nonchalant grin.
>Judy was quite displeased, her hands on her hips, scowl bigger than ever. "Well whatever happened to that little bra I got you for your birthday? You couldn’t have been wearing that at least?"
>"Uuuuhhhhh.." The bra lay crumpled in a corner of her room upstairs.
>Judy lowered her head and pinched her nose between her eyes, her daughter’s shenanigans wearing her patience to the bone. "Reggie go upstairs and put on some clothes right this instant. You can't just walk around like that."
>"Well why not? It's like a million degrees in here!” Her arms waved wildly in the air above her head.
>”It’s just not how things work Reggie.”
>”But Dustin has his shirt off all the time when it's hot out."
>"That's different and you know it Reggie."
>"WHY?! What's so different? What does it matter??" Reggie's blood was really starting to boil at this point. None of this made any sense to her.
>"Because Dustin isn't a girl and he isn’t growing breasts Regina! That's why. You need to cover up."
>Reggie blushed with an angry frown at such a crass acknowledgment of her own body "SO WHAT?! Why does that even matter?! Why even bring THAT up?! IT'S. NOT. A. BIG. DEAL." Her emotions were all over the place.
>Now it was Esther's turn to blow her top, her arms getting tired from shielding her eyes. "Reggie Puhleease! Just go put some clothes on already!"
>"Yeah dude, you really need to get on that ASAP" Todd couldn't blush harder if he wanted to.
>"You see Reggie, even your friends agree. You need to go put some clothes on. Now."
>Reggie was a ball of rage. "ARRRRRRGH! Fine! If it'll make you all SOOO happy I'll go 'cover up'." And with that she stomped off up the stairs, much to the relief of Todd and Esther. They shared a look of relief and a sign. Though Esther could have sworn she saw Todd sneak a curious peak as Reggie went up the stairs. She was was about to frown at him, but decided to let it go. Better to put this whole incident behind them.
>Judy was calming down now and apologetic. "I'm sorry for all that guys, but you know Reggie.. Always the free spirit."
>A moment later Reggie's head poked down the stairs. "You guys coming or what?!"
>Todd and Esther followed her up to her room, where the awkwardness still lingered between them. And Reggie was still alight with the transgression. "Can you believe her? How can she tell me what I can and can't wear. If I wanna be comfortable, then I'm gonna be comfortable."
>Esther spoke up, just barely "Reggie we really didn't need to see all that though.."
>"I just don't get what the big deal is though. It's nothing everyone hasn't seen before any way, right? If Todd wasn’t wearing a shirt you wouldn’t complain, would you?
>Another shared look between the two, this time stained with guilt. She was right after all.
>”Ugh, whatever. Let's just go. I wanna get outta here and feel free for a change."
>With that Reggie grabbed her key, held it aloft with an annoyed look on her face and was whisked away. Todd and Esther shared another concerned look before they followed her off to Endless.

>They arrived just after she did, but apparently that was all the time she needed to finally be free. There before Esther and Todd was Reggie, once again without a shirt on.
>Her fists on her hips and a triumphant grin on her face. "Ah, the feeling of wind in your pits, now that's the good stuff. Huh?"
>Todd and Esther had both looked away, Esther visibly panicking. "Just, why Reggie??"
>"Oh come on guys don't be like that. This is Endless! We can do whatever we want here!"
>Todd was facing the other way at this point. "Yeaahh, I think I'm good."
>"Reggie, seriously this is ridiculous. You can't just go around like that. It just feels too.. weird, even for here."
>"Hey, Endless is MY island. And I can wear or not wear whatever I want here! You’re not my mom so stop acting like it.”
>Those last words bit at Esther, annoyed at the comparison and mad on behalf of Judy. "Reggie it's not YOUR island. We all know it. And we all share it. And what you're doing is just plain uncomfortable for us." The sting in Esther's voice cut into Reggie more than she expected.
>A bit of hurt showed through "Well, fine then, if you guys are gonna be that way, then I'll go enjoy the day by myself. See if I care. Hmpf!" And with that Reggie stomped off through the woods. Todd and Esther both let out a sigh, unsure of what their next move should be.

>Reggie plodded through the forest in a huff, grumbling to herself. She encountered Brown Roger along the way, who gleefully scuttled up her body to her shoulder in a spiral.
>"Hey buddy!" a smile came back to her face. "You're always glad to see me, no matter what I wear". Brown Roger agreed with a flurry of purrs and cute trills as she scratched his head.
>As they walked on, suddenly Reggie came upon a group of the islanders, Collin, Galaxander, and the trio of Beth, Pretty Please, and Tater Tot.
>"Twelve!" was the resounding chorus.
>"Oh, hey guys. Whatchya doin'?" A hint of annoyance still lingered in her words, but not directed at these friends.
>Pretty Please was the first to speak "We're looking for Collin's lost shoe Twelve."
>"I-It's around here somewhere, I just know it!" Collin's voice was full of worry as always as we began to frantically claw at the sand.
>"But you don't wear shoes Collin." was Reggie’s confused answer.
>"Not since I lost the left one!" He continued to look around the area before settling his gaze on Reggie. "Say, something's different about you today." His eyes squinted extra hard.
>"Did you cut your hair?" asked Tater Tot.
>"Did you cut your face?" asked Pretty Please with a smile and her hands on her cheeks.
>"What? No. Guys I'm not wearing my chest armor. See?" She stood with her arms outstretched.
>"OOOohhh" went the islander chorus.
>"Nice to know you guys don't make a huge deal out of seeing my nipples.." a bit more anger had returned to Reggie's voice, bringing to attention the elephant in the room.
>"Well of course not Twelve" said Pretty Please “We love you no matter what you wear.”
>"Uhm, Twelve.. What are nipples?" Beth's question almost confused Reggie for a moment, before remembering that she was staring at a group of weird and fabulous creatures.
>She was suddenly a bit self conscious, the thought of explaining it to them making her feel a bit embarrassed perhaps? She rallied quickly. "They're.. these." She said, pointing both thumbs at her chest.
>"Ooohhhh" echoed the chorus.
>"Uhm, I don't have nipples." said Beth meekly.
>"I don't have any either.” Collin grabbed at his chest “Oh man, I hope I didn’t lose those too with my shoes!" he began digging around again in a panic.
>"I don't even have skin." said Galaxander with his blank smiling stare.
>Just then there was a rustling in the bush nearby, from which Dr. Champion burst forth. "I used to have nipples but they couldn't afford the rent" he began in his flamboyant way "so I had to KICK ‘EM TO THE CURB! HEY THERE THEY ARE! COME BACK HERE! YOU OWE ME MONEY!" He ran off into the undergrowth, chasing and screaming at what only he could see.
>"Riiight. Well have fun you guys. I'm just gonna keep walking around a bit and enjoy the day. See you all later!"
>"Good-bye Twelve!" chimed the chorus as she pushed onward through the woods.

>Todd and Esther were sitting next to a lake on the far side of the island, both deep in thought and feeling a bit guilty about their fight earlier. Todd skipped a rock out across the water. Halfway there an orange catfish with too many whiskers and large hands popped up and grabbed the stone.
>Thank you!" it yelled before diving to the depths of the lake again.
>Esther pulled one knee into her chest and drew small circles in the sand with her finger. "Hey Todd.." she began timidly "Do you think we were too hard on Reggie before?"
>"No. No way, she was being totally weird." the blush returned to his cheeks slightly as he remembered the scene. "Right? I mean, that was weird.. right?"
>"I guess so. I mean, I guess she does have a point though. No one would bat an eye if you didn’t have a shirt on. Like it shouldn't be weird. But it just.. is?"
>"Yeah.. yeah totally. I mean, I guess she's right.. that we all don’t really look that different." Esther shot him a bit of a look, both annoyed at the comment and with a twinge of self consciousness at her own body. "A-And I help the Jennifers take a bath all the time, so it's not like I haven't seen it all before.."
>"Yeaah..I guess it's just a cultural thing. Nature vs. Nurture. I once read about a group of people that live in the Amazon River Basin and they don't wear any clothes at all. And they seem perfectly fine with it.." Esther's voice trailed off in thought as the two continued to sit quietly, not looking at each other.
>Todd was the first to break the silence. "I guess we should go apologize to Reggie. I mean, it's her body. Who're we to say what she can and can't wear. We’ll just have to deal with it and get used to it is all."
>"Yeah, you're right. We should go join her."
>"Join her? Do you mean join her join her?..."

>As Reggie walked on, not quite enjoying the day as she had hoped to do, she heard the faint sound of humming and the rhythmic clacking of metal on metal just beyond the trees. She parted the bushes to find she was at the home of Mack and Beefhouse. The latter was hunched over, studiously attending to his rose garden. Mack on the other hand was doing bicep curls with an over sized barbell. He called out to her as soon as he saw her face poking through one of bushes lining the property with early blooming flowers here and there.
>"Twelve! I was wondering where you were today. Would you and Brown Roger care to get in a few reps with me?"
>"No thanks Mack. Normally I would, but I've just got a lot on my mind today." They could see just how forlorn she was feeling as we approached them. Brown Roger ran ahead and tried pointlessly to lift one of the weights.
>"What's the matter Twelve? Did something happen?"
>"Everyone is just getting on my nerves today Beefhouse. They're all mad because I just wanna be comfortable and wear whatever I do or don't want." her arms were folded across her chest and she kicked a small stone clear over the island.
>"Ah, is that why you aren't wearing your usual outfit today?"
>"Yeah. But they all say that it's weird and freaked out on me. I just don't get it. It's not a big deal at all!" Reggie was beginning to fume again.
>"Hmm, maybe some casserole would make you feel better. Mack can you go grab it?"
>"Sure thing!" Mack threw down the heavy weights with a thunderous thud. He flew into the house and was back out again before Reggie could protest.
>As he made his way from the house he stopped running and carefully began to tiptoe gently around Beefhouse and his roses before presenting the hot dish to Reggie, who was visibly confused by his sudden course of action.
>"Here Twelve. It's rutabaga and pineapple!" His grin stretched completely across his face.
>Reggie gave a light wince at the deep dish of vegetables and mounds of pineapple "That's alright Mack, I'm ok. Say, why did you go all the way around the garden like that, instead of straight through?"
>"Oh well that's Beefhouse's special rose garden. I can't just walk through there."
>"But you guys share this place, can't you just go wherever you want to?"
>"Sure, I COULD go do that, but I wouldn't want to risk stepping on any of Beefhouse's exquisite roses. I'm such a klutz at times, I'd hate to squash them by accident."
>"And I appreciate you taking the time and care to avoid  such an incident Mack."
>"It's all about respecting each other Twelve. Just because I may want to do something, it doesn't mean others would be comfortable with it. And it's important to respect feelings of those you love and make sure they're comfortable with your actions." Beefhouse had placed his arm around Mack's shoulders at this point and the two were beaming at always.
>Reggie thought about this for a moment "Huh, I guess I never thought of it like that." She began to put her chestplate back on, "I think I better go find my friends."
>Suddenly familiar voices were heard calling out from just beyond the trees.
>"Reeeeggie! Reggieeeee! Are you over here??" Todd and Esther came out from the woods. For a moment their faces looked ready to deal with much more of Reggie than they were used to, but quickly changed to smiles when they saw she was back to normal.
>"Hey guys! I was just coming to find you. I-I wanna say I’m sorry. I shouldn't have made you uncomfortable like that. I didn't really think about how it would make you feel."
>"No Reggie we're sorry. We should have respected your choice of, uhm.. outfit. It's not our place to tell you how to dress."
>"Yeah dude, totally normal. I guess. Even if it is still a bit.."
>"Weird?"
>"Yeah." Todd was blushing ever so slightly.
>"It might be normal, or natural, or whatever you wanna call it. But sometimes things are just uncomfortable to people. And something like.. that.. it takes some getting used to."
>"Yeah, you're right Esther.” The three friends embraced in a deep hug. “You guys ready to split?"
>"Yeah I gotta get home soon anyway."
>"Me too."
>"Alright, Bye Mack and Beefhouse thanks for everything! Bye Brown Roger! You're still the best!"
>The sentient fuzzball cheered as the three kids disappeared in a swirl of color. Mack leaned over the small creature.
>"Would you like to try some casserole Brown Roger?"

>Back in her room, Reggie said good bye to her friends as they marched down the stairs. As she was turning towards her bed, she saw that little robot bra crumpled in the corner.
>She thought about it for a moment, pulled a slight face, then made her decision resolutely. Off came her shirt and on it went, awkwardly. It was misaligned and took a few minutes to get right. It felt weird to her. A bit tight on one side, maybe too loose on the other. Just weird all around to be wearing this thing on her chest.
>She stared at it in the mirror. She felt so awkward. Perhaps even self conscious. But then again, the robots were kinda cool looking. She began to do jerky robot poses and laugh at herself.
>"We. Are. Here. To. Destroy. Your. Dirty. Laundry. And. Plunder. Your. Snack. Receptacles. Heh heh"
>At that moment Judy happened to walk by, seeing the door slightly ajar she pushed her way in and startled Reggie.
>"Mom!" Reggie quickly pulled her shirt off the floor and held it in front of herself. "I-I'm sorry, I'm not dressed.." Her eyes darted around the room before resting on her mother.
>"No, no I'm sorry! I should have knocked, this is your room after all. Can I come in?"
>Reggie nodded and Judy walked in slowly and sat on her bed.
>Reggie sat next to her, her shirt still held in front on her, eyes cast downwards. "I'm sorry for yelling before and being weird. I guess I wasn't being considerate of everyone else.."
>"It's alright Reggie. I know it can be difficult for a girl your age to understand these kinds of things. It's tough being a woman sometimes. To not have that kind of freedom that you want. But it's just how things are, you know? Maybe someday the world will wise up and be comfortable with that. But at the moment.." She looked down at her daughter with caring eyes, a bit sorry for the world she had to live in. "Just don't let it get you down too much. You have nothing to be ashamed of. Be proud of yourself, of being a free spirit at heart. Ok?" Judy put her arm around Reggie in a little hug.
>"I know Mom. Thanks. And I’ll try to be a bit more considerate."