Liz was feeling slightly giddy. She had just had one of the most erotic experiences of her 18-year life: witnessing her grown-up next-door neighbor Ben Richards having his temperature taken rectally, totally nude as if he had been a little boy, by their former high school classmate at the pediatrician’s office. His erection didn’t abate during the entire exam that followed. So, even though he had been allowed to put his briefs back on before the nurse practitioner arrived for the exam, the outline of his hard penis remained visible as he was auscultated and palpated. Helping to hold him down like a baby for a shot in his bottom at the end of the exam was the cherry on the cake for Liz. She had never felt so empowered.

Now, after having left Ben at his home with instructions to rest, Liz was at the drugstore and couldn’t believe her good fortune. She hadn’t really expected anything special when she handed over his prescription at the back counter. But when the pharmacist returned and explained that the antipyretic was in suppository form, she suddenly realised why Debra had smiled at her earlier when they checked out of Village Pediatrics. The anticipation of spreading Ben’s hairy cheeks and pushing the medicine deep inside him with her finger was almost too much to contain, and she felt the moisture returning to her hairy crotch. On the way to the check-out register, she walked through the “Coughs and Colds” aisle and stopped in front of the fever section. About half of the thermometer packages arrayed on the shelf were marked “rectal” or “baby” or “family use”. On a whim, she picked up a pink package that had the word “baby” prominently printed above the image of a toddler, and a stubby-tipped thermometer visible through the clear plastic packaging. She then grabbed a small jar of vaseline before going to pay. The cashier, a young woman whom she vaguely recognised from school, blushed slightly and smiled as she rang up Liz’s purchases and placed them in a white bag.

Evening was falling as Liz finished her other errands and stopped by home to check in on her brother Luke. Ben’s older sister Katie was still there, and Liz found them in the den watching television together. Katie had de facto taken on the role of nurse/babysitter for Luke while Mom was away on her latest business trip and was clearly giving him intimate care, which he didn’t seem to mind. She briefed Katie on Ben’s earlier appointment at Village Pediatrics including his persistent fever and his strep diagnosis. Then she inquired about Luke.

“I’m afraid he’s also still running a temperature,” Katie replied. “101.7, taken about an hour ago.”

Luke blushed at that announcement, and it was immediately obvious that their neighbor had again obtained a rectal reading. Liz was mildly disappointed not to have been at home to watch that. She slipped into a bit of a daydream as memories flooded back. The fact that Mom had continued to use the rectal thermometer on Luke long after Liz herself had switched to oral temperatures had always been a source of satisfaction for her, not to mention titillation. She recalled once when Luke had come down with the flu and Mom was caring for him at home. Liz had conveniently left one of her school papers on the desk in his bedroom and “accidentally” barged in when she knew that Mom was taking her brother’s temperature. Rather than shoo her out, Mom had allowed her to rummage through the desk to find her document, so she had at least a minute to admire the glass thermometer protruding from her brother’s bare bottom. That incident had contributed to her sense of power over him and cemented her fascination with rectal temperatures and boys’ bottoms.

Katie’s voice brought her out of her reverie: “So I called the pediatrics office, and they suggested he come in tomorrow morning at 10. Unfortunately, I have another job interview then. Do you think you could take him?”

“I can go by myself!” Luke chimed in in a rather weak voice.

“Don’t be silly, Luke,” Liz responded dismissively. “You’re in no shape to drive.” Turning back to Katie she added, “Sure, no problem, I’ll go with him. For this evening, I was going to make some soup for Ben, then I need to give him his medicine,” she said as she held up the white bag from the pharmacy. The women exchanged brief smiles with their shared knowledge of what Ben was in for. Luke, on the other hand, seemed oblivious, caught up in the embarrassment of knowing that his sister would be taking him to the doctor’s office in the morning.

Liz changed back into her shorts and sleeveless t-shirt and headed next door to door to Ben’s house with her pert breasts bouncing freely under the loose garment. She found him lounging listlessly in the den and frowned as she placed her hand on his forehead and felt the heat radiating from it. She was worried about his health, of course. But at the same time, she felt a kind of tingling inside at the idea that she was the one taking care of him. She wasn’t sure whether the sensation was real sexual attraction, or the excitement of knowing that she would soon be dominating him again. Either way, it was a pleasant feeling, and she wanted to make the most of the situation.

“Why don’t you go take a warm shower, Ben. I’ll prepare some soup for your dinner, then we’ll take care of your medicine afterward.”

Ben seemed a bit suspicious about the medicine comment but was apparently too tired to inquire more deeply about what she meant. After he shuffled off to the bathroom, Liz went to the kitchen and removed her drugstore purchases from the white bag as she waited for the soup to warm up. She placed the suppositories in the refrigerator and removed her new “baby” thermometer from its pink packaging. The sight of the stubby bulb caused her to shudder briefly in anticipation, and she felt her nipples harden under her t-shirt. She rinsed the thermometer and shook it down to below 96 before putting it in its plastic case. She decided to leave the empty package with the toddler picture in plain view on the counter, just next to the jar of Vaseline.

Ben emerged in his bathrobe about 20 minutes later. He was slightly less pale, but still appeared sluggish. Liz sat him down at the table and served up a bowl of hot soup. They chatted for a while as Ben took an occasional spoonful, obviously struggling to swallow due to his swollen throat. Liz couldn’t help but notice that, despite his febrile condition, his gaze seemed fixated on her pert breasts across the table. Knowing that her large areolae were visible to him under the sheer fabric of her t-shirt excited her even more and made her nipples harden. When he wasn’t ogling her breasts, his eyes darted worriedly to the counter where the thermometer and Vaseline were visible.

When it became clear that Ben wouldn’t be eating any more, Liz rose and went to the refrigerator, where she retrieved one of the now chilled paracetamol suppositories. She then picked up the thermometer and Vaseline and turned to face him. His face seemed to lose a shade of color.

“What’s that?” he asked incredulously.

“This is the medicine that Jill prescribed. It will help you feel better. But first, since you’re still warm, I want to take your temperature. Let’s go into the den; you’ll be more comfortable there.”

With that, Liz walked over to Ben, took him gently but firmly by the hand and led him out of the kitchen to the den. She marvelled at how compliant he seemed to be. But as she sat down on the couch and set down the material next to her, she noticed that Ben was visibly troubled.

“Liz,” he said in an uncertain voice, “I think we should just wait until my sister gets home. She usually takes care of me when I’m sick and Mom’s not here.”

Liz began to sense a defiance in his voice and wondered what the source of his sudden angst was. She decided she needed to nip it in the bud.

“Don’t be such a baby, Ben. Katie is busy with Luke and asked me to help out. I don’t even know when she’ll be back, and you definitely need this now.”

Then she put a slightly harder edge into her voice. “You don’t want me to have to report back to her and to your mom that you didn’t cooperate with me, do you?”

“No,” he conceded with a slight bowing of his head. “But I’m old enough to take my medicine by myself. And besides, I can take my temperature in my mouth. Why don’t you just go home. I’ll be fine.”

“Well, I have to say that you acted like a little baby at the doctor’s office this afternoon when it was time for your shot.” She paused a moment for effect before continuing. “And you’re acting like a little baby now.” She paused again to judge the visible impact of her words before finishing. “So, I guess I’m just going to have to treat you like one. Now, take off your bathrobe.”

“What? No way, Liz! You can’t be serious!”

The look on Ben’s face was not quite the terror Liz had seen earlier at the doctor’s office when he learned he would be getting a shot. But he was clearly not comfortable with the situation. She suspected it was related to the now rather obvious bulge that had appeared under his robe as they talked. She was revelling in her control of the situation and was feeling highly aroused. She decided that she could afford to take a more conciliatory approach.

“Oh, come on, Ben. I already took your temperature this afternoon. And I saw you naked at the doctor’s office. There’s no need to be ashamed. Lots of boys have to have their temperature taken like that.” Liz paused again to let the reality of the power dynamic sink in, before adding in a more conspiratorial voice, “I’ll tell you something if you promise to keep it a secret.”

Ben immediately perked up and nodded meekly.

“When Luke is sick, our mom still uses the baby thermometer on him, as well.” Liz took a moment to enjoy watching as Ben’s eyes grow wide as saucers at this news before continuing. “And your sister has been taking his temperature in his bottom all week since he got strep. I’ve even taken it a couple of times myself,” she added smugly.

Been seemed flabbergasted at this news, and Liz watched his resistance melt away as he processed the idea that his best friend was also subjected to such intimate care by the three women. Liz took advantage of his momentary discomfiture to launch the coup de grace.

“Now, be a good boy for me and take off your bathrobe.”

Almost as if he were in a trance, Ben unfastened the belt of his robe and let the garment fall to the ground, leaving him standing naked in front of the couch where Liz was seated. His erect penis was just inches from her face, and she admired both the size and the strange mushroom-shaped tip of his circumcised organ. After a few seconds, she couldn’t resist and reached out, grabbing hold of it and fondling it for a few seconds as she examined its contours. Then she took his hand to pull him down across her lap. She almost had an orgasm as she admired his tight, hairy butt and felt his engorged penis stuck between her bare legs.

Liz removed her new “baby” thermometer from its case and uncapped the Vaseline. She dipped the thermometer into the jelly and removed it with a thick glob around the tip. The sight of the lubricated instrument made her even wetter.

“Time to take Baby Ben’s temperature!” she announced in a singsong voice slightly mocking the man-boy who was now so exposed to her.

She caressed his butt cheeks for a minute with her left hand, then pushed her thumb and forefinger deep into his crack and spread him open. For the third time that day, she was able to admire the sight of his tight pink rosebud and scrotum as well as his slightly musky odor. Ben gasped slightly as the cool Vaseline came into contact with his anus, then moaned as Liz pushed the glass rod deep inside. Liz felt his erection get even harder between her legs and again had to suppress the stirrings of an orgasm.

They both remained silent for a minute as the thermometer began to register. Liz couldn’t decide if the erotic urges that she felt were due to the sight of her cute neighbor’s naked body, the satisfaction of being in total control of him, the glass instrument protruding from his rectum or the shared intimacy of the moment. Probably a combination all four, she finally surmised.

After a while, Liz decided to follow up on her earlier line of questioning about his home care. She realized she was prying, but her desire to know more was irresistible. And the intimacy of their current situation somehow made it seem permissible.

“So, Ben, did your mom ever try to switch you to oral temperatures when you were sick?” she asked as nonchalantly as possible.

“Yeah, I guess. A couple of times, when I was 10 or 11,” he replied curtly after a brief hesitation.

“Oh really? So, why did she stop?”

There was another hesitation. Was he trying to figure out how much Katie had told her before answering?

“Um, I don’t know. I guess it just didn’t really register properly. Do we have to talk about this?”

Liz remained determined to draw out as many details as she could.

“So, did she ever try it again after that?” Liz pressed on.

“No, I don’t think so. After that, she started working again, so it was mostly Katie who took care of me when I was sick. Anyway, they both say it’s more accurate this way, so I didn’t really have a choice. Can we please talk about something else?”

“OK, Ben,” Liz replied, finally agreeing to drop the subject and immensely pleased with herself. “Looks like 5 minutes are up. Let’s check your temp.”

She reluctantly retrieved the thermometer from Ben’s rectum, enjoying the soft sucking sound it made from the wet Vaseline as it came out. She wiped it and held it up to read it.

“Your temperature is still rising despite the penicillin,” she announced. “It’s now up to 102.5. No wonder you’re still not feeling well.”

Can I get up now?” Ben asked plaintively.

“No, sorry, Ben, but I need to administer your medicine,” Liz replied as she picked up the suppository and unwrapped it. It was shaped like a bullet and was about twice the diameter of the thermometer.

“What do you mean?” Ben asked, apprehension creeping once again into his voice. He tried to rise, but Liz pushed him firmly back onto her lap and pinned him in place as he continued to squirm.

“The pharmacist says this works faster than oral medicine. And with your throat in its present condition, you probably couldn’t swallow pills anyway.”

“Liz, please don’t!” Ben begged.

Liz was slightly taken aback at how much she was actually enjoying Ben’s struggling. In fact, she found his entreaties oddly erotic. Even though his penis had become flaccid between her legs, her vagina was nonetheless now dripping wet.

Without waiting, she again moved the fingers of her left hand sensuously down his crack and spread his buttocks wide open. Ben stopped twitching the moment the cold suppository touched him. Liz pushed it quickly inside and watched it get swallowed up. She then continued with her finger, pushing the medicine as deeply as she could into his rectum.

Ben whimpered, most likely from embarrassment. Liz felt his penis immediately harden again as his sphincter involuntarily clenched her finger. She had never imagined anything so erotic. She teasingly moved her finger in and out a few times, admiring the strength of the muscles. Finally, after about a minute, she withdrew her finger and released Ben. He immediately jumped up and ran naked to his room.

Liz slumped back on the couch, too dizzy from her emotions to move. After about 10 minutes, she headed home to relieve Katie from her “Luke” duty. Tomorrow was promising to be another eventful day.