Work Text:
“Kayla Kanahele, this has to be the craziest idea you’ve thought of yet!” I told my younger sister.
My tone betrayed my exhaustion with her antics, but it was itself betrayed by the fact that I was pulling the car to a stop in an empty parking lot. The sun was still in the sky, but it was setting fast, and the painted rainbows of sunset filled the view above us. At least the view we could see through the trees. The forest was just beyond the empty parking lot. Or at least, mostly empty parking lot. Another car was parked next to us, with the occupants already out and walking around, as if they were surveying the area. But my focus was on my sister.
“Come on, Rose,” Kayla smiled as she began checking over her backpack, “You know that I’ve had crazier ideas. Remember my idea for new pizza toppings? I don’t think mom will ever look at mayonnaise the same way again.”
“That’s not what I’m talking about!” I sniffed as I pulled my own backpack out of the back seat, “When I supported your wishes to be a full-time nudist, I never thought you’d develop an exhibitionist streak!”
Kayla looked at me with wide eyes, “I can’t believe you’d call me that! I ain’t doing anything like that!”
“Then why are you doing this?” I asked.
“Because it sounded fun.” Kayla smiled, “And everything else I’ve run into with nudism is boring. So forgive me, Rose, for actually wanting to do something fun.”
I rolled my eyes, “Still think this is your craziest idea.”
“Well, you didn’t have to come.” Kayla giggled.
“And let you get killed doing something stupid like this?” I asked her, “Absolutely not!”
Kayla just giggled, “Always got my back, don’t ya.”
I rolled my eyes. Two years ago, my class essay gave Kayla the excuse she needed to stop wearing clothes around the house. Over that time, she had fully drunk all the Kool-Aid she could get her hands on. And found very quickly that many of the Nudist Resorts and hotels were very boring, especially so around Hawaii. It wasn’t until she signed up for the Natural Living Appreciation Committee that Kayla began to find some fun and flair in nudism again.
Mom didn’t approve. But she never voiced her opinion. The agreement was still standing, of course, and Kayla was now old enough to start looking for places to live on her own. She wasn’t. Same reason I haven’t. And so Mom entrusted me to keep Kayla’s feet firmly on the ground.
“This was your doing,” She told me once, “You take care of it.”
Little did I realise all that would entail. It was quite normal at first to attend pool parties, beaches, and backyard gatherings. I was allowed to remain dressed, but Kayla was always naked. I was always a tad awkward whenever I attended, but the people there were always nice and welcoming, and every time we went, I always found a way to have fun. But then things got wacky.
It started with a trip to an indoor fair run by the NLAC. Then we attended a waterpark. Finally, it escalated to this! I don’t know how she found out about it, but apparently, some NLAC members on the mainland had integrated Urban Exploration into their nudie activities. Once Kayla heard about it from a friend, she was instantly keen to try it. I had spent the past week and a half trying to talk her out of it. But my sister’s very determined. So, as she put a GoPro on her head, I did the same and got out of the car.
Upon us both slamming the car doors, the other two people here noticed us and came up. Kalya ran up and hugged the young black woman who was about a year older than her, while I waved at her.
“Alesha!” Kayla greeted, “Told you we’d make it!”
“Glad you made it safe, Kay,” Alesha greeted. “Hey Rose, glad you could make it too.”
“Of course, Alesha, we…” I looked at Kayla before steeling myself, “...wouldn’t miss it. Who’s your friend?”
“Oh, this is my cousin Kurt. Eh, yo Kurt, come over here!” Alesha commanded.
The young man, roughly a year or so older than I was, came running over, “Oh, sorry! I got sidetracked. Hey, you two, I’m Kurt.”
“Rose,” I greeted before Kayla could, “Rose Kanahele, and this is my sister Kayla.”
“Ah, nice, so which one of you is…” Kurt asked.
“Me!” Kayla responded energetically.
“Sweet,” Kurt smiled before turning to me, “And you…?”
“Just the chaperone, I’m making sure Kayla doesn’t get into much trouble,” I answered.
Kurt laughed, “Oh, good, so you and I are in the same boat. Except I’m getting naked like my cousin.”
I chuckled, “Yeah, don’t worry, I’m used to it. Still, though, whose bright idea was this?”
“Uh…well,” Kurt rubbed the back of his head, “That’s kinda my fault.”
Alesha chuckled and stepped in, “I’ll step in before he embarrasses himself in front of you girls. He got into Urban Exploration through a boyfriend of his…”
“Eddie and I aren’t dating!” Kurt blushed.
“And he was showing me one of the videos they do on the mainland.” Alesha smiled sweetly, “So that led me to lean on my boyfriend, whose father is a member of our Hawaiian chapter of the NLAC, to get this little program started.”
I raised an eyebrow, “What program?”
Kayla chimed in, “Oh! Did you use my idea?”
“I pitched it, but I think it’s gonna take some time before they approve it.” Alesha grimaced.
I looked over my shoulder at Kayla, “What exactly did you pitch?”
“N.U.D.E!” She beamed, “Natural Urban Discovery and Exploration.”
“Natural, not Naked?” I asked, raising my eyebrow again.
“Isn’t nudity natural?” She asked me, referencing the class essay that started all of this for her.
I sighed and gave her a friendly smile. Honestly, this was exactly like Kayla; if she were going to do something, she’d go full force. Still, there was one thing I wasn’t sure about.
“I wanna ask something. We’re going into a place that’s been neglected for… about two decades, I wanna say. Shouldn’t we have a bit more protection than just you three being in your birthday suits?” I asked.
Kurt stepped forward, “I checked this place out already on my own…Before I got the nudity idea. It’s pretty safe if we don’t go into any of the enclosures, but if we want to go into the building, we’re gonna have to be very careful.”
“I brought gloves and cleaning supplies,” Alesha said, “And I did tell you, Kayla, to be well packed with your own.”
“I did!” Kayla said, “And I’ve got enough room for a towel and my clothes.”
“Oh, good, she figured that out,” Kurt smiled.
I kept my mouth shut, considering that was something I heavily pushed for her to do. But it was making Kayla feel special, so I didn’t speak up.
“Well, the sun’s getting lower, shall we get started?” Alesha asked.
Before Kurt or I responded, Kayla was stripping down. She didn’t have any underwear on, so her strip down was extremely quick. I rolled my eyes and put on my gloves as Kurt and Alesha soon joined. In no time at all, I was the only one dressed among a trio of nudists. Taking a deep breath, I was happy that at least Kayla was happy. I, however, still had a touch of uncomfortableness. The fact that my sister was so brazen with her body, so proud of her skin, and was willing to promote this lifestyle in ways I could never imagine…made me feel small.
“Ah, much better,” Kayla smiled.
I took a deep breath, “Okay, shall we begin?”
The trio nodded, and we all turned on our GoPros. I looked at Kayla as she smiled and waved. I waved back as Kurt led Alesha towards the only entrance available to us. Pretty soon, we were in the abandoned park. Thankfully, as we explored the park, we stayed mostly on the footpaths once used by tourists and park employees. Kurt was correct; we needed only gloves and boots. Nature had retaken this park with a vengeance.
Tree roots had forced their way through the concrete ground. Vines had covered every fence, bending the steel. There were many gaps between the fences and barriers of the enclosures. But Kayla had the wherewithal not to enter them. She was only wearing her shoes and gloves after all. Alesha was a bit more daring, but only in the way of climbing up to see how high one of the trees had grown. Pretty soon, we moved towards one of the main buildings that held the reptiles.
I’m sorry to say that the intrusive thoughts won out for Kayla as she walked her way into the building. Kurt and Alesha followed, and after sighing, I joined. The roof was caving in a few places, probably due to rain damage. The floor, despite being ground level, was unsteady, and we needed to be careful as we walked. There were times I was glad I was the only one dressed. But those same times made me concerned for my three companions.
I had found my way into the rundown remains of the women’s room. I wasn’t going to use it, for obvious reasons, but there I found myself thinking about things. Kayla was so proud of her nudity, so willing to take part in any fun activity that positively promoted nudity, and yet it was my written essay that started all this for us. Looking at myself in the cracked, faded, and stained mirror, I found myself wondering something.
Why wasn’t I taking part? Why was I so prudish?
“You know what is fun, though? Sharing nudism with friends; naturism has such a strong social element…” I had told Kayla once.
So why was I so prudish? I wasn’t difficult on the eyes. But I was a touch on the curvy side. Kayla, to her credit, had kept herself in very decent shape, especially through her escapades. Was I so shy that I couldn’t put myself out there for my sister? Then again, I found myself thinking. Kayla was never upset with me. She was never ashamed that I stayed dressed while she stripped down. She was just happy that I was there. She had even backed me up on my tattoo! Why was I always shaking my head at Kayla’s escapades?
The trio moving on snapped me out of my questioning. So I left the restroom and followed. In no time at all, night had fallen. Alesha and Kurt were willing to head over to the former snack court, but Kayla pulled me off towards the edge of the park.
“Come on, Rose,” She said with glee, “I wanna show you something.”
“Wait, Kayla, should we not split up?” I asked.
“I already told Alesha we’re doing this, they’re gonna follow up in a bit, but come on, we’re gonna be late.” Kayla smiled.
“Late for what?” I asked, but before she could hear, Kayla was off.
Sighing, I followed. As we walked out of the park and up a well-worn trail, I was left to wonder where we were going.
“How did you find this thing?” I asked her.
“Google maps,” Kayla smiled, a step or two ahead.
I had to smile, “Of course you did.”
Soon enough, I began to hear a roaring in the distance. It was the sound of water rushing over a cliff, and quickly, I soon realised what Kayla was taking me to: Manoa Falls. At first, it was a bit difficult to see the waterfall due to the dim light, but as we approached a cliffside just off the trail, the moon began to rise over the mountain behind the waterfall. I couldn’t help but gasp and smile in wonder.
“Wow, Kayla…” I started.
“I know, right, Rose? Now come on, let’s sit and watch the moon rise!” she smiled.
I couldn’t help but smile as we set our backpacks down. But as I was moving to sit, I noticed Kayla had forgotten something, “Kayla…the towel.”
Kayla gave me a blank look for a moment before she realised, “Oh right!”
She quickly dug through her backpack and pulled out the towel. Once she had placed the towel to sit down, we sat next to each other. The moon’s rise was slow, but the scene before us looked absolutely beautiful. Distant birds, probably nocturnal birds, and distant animals spoke the speech of their peoples throughout the forest, all muffled by the roar of the waterfall. As the water fell, the light of the moon made every drop twinkle. There were moments, brief but noticeable, that I thought I saw a rainbow reflected through those droplets. Kayla gave a big sigh next to me.
“Ya know,” she started, “This is what it’s all about…”
There was a whimsical tone to her voice that I had never heard from her before. And it was that tone that caught me off guard. Looking over at her, she was leaning back, her arms behind her, supporting her. She took in a deep breath of air as I looked at her.
“Oh,” I asked, “What is?”
“You told me once that ‘Nudists go nude for reasons like health and getting in tune with nature and all that…’ and at the time I wasn’t too sure about it. Ya know? It sounded so hokey, so much like…cringe hippie stuff.” Kayla started, “But now that I’m here…naked and unafraid, in the middle of a jungle no less…I get it. This is how we’re supposed to be, how I’m supposed to be. Natural and free, with my big sister by my side. And yeah, I know you’re not taking part, but…I’m just happy you’re here.”
I smiled, even if it was a small smile. But Kayla continued.
“Roselani, I…I was struggling a lot when…Mom was just so…” She started.
“No, I get it.” I said, cutting her off when I realised where she was going, “Mom’s a very stern type of woman. She pretty much left you in my care when you signed up for the NLAC.”
Kayla chuckled, “Yeah, she threatened me with that, too. But I told her, ‘I’m a woman now, I’m my own woman, and I wanna do this.’ She shot back with lines about it being a phase and all…I gotta tell you, for a time I was worried this was.”
I shook my head, “You? I doubt it. You’ve never been a ‘just a phase’ kind of girl.”
“Right!?” Kayla laughed, “I guess that’s why I’ve been getting bolder with my nudism. I wanted to make sure that this wasn’t a phase. And ya know what I found out about myself? I look great! I feel great! I’m willing to meet people, go places I never thought of, and even learning more about who I am in the process. And I’m badass. Look at me! I’m doing Urbex now! Completely naked! Even got to throw in some Nude Night Hiking! How is that not badass?!”
I couldn’t help but laugh, “Yeah, Kayla, you are badass. You’re my sister after all.”
“Damn right!” Kayla cheered. A moment of silence took between us before she spoke again, “This is beautiful.”
I didn’t answer at first. I heard my sister’s words run through my head. After a moment of thinking about it, I couldn’t help but smile. Then, before Kayla could even comment, I reached down and pulled off my top. After I put the shirt away, I unclasped my bra and allowed my breasts to hang free before sighing in comfort.
“There, that’s better.” I smiled.
“Rose…?” Kayla gasped, sitting up.
I turned to her and smiled, “You’re right, this is beautiful.”
Kayla gave me a confused look, “You didn’t have to do this for me.”
“I didn’t do this for you,” I smiled, “I did this because of you.”
Kayla smiled and gave me a one-armed hug. I returned with one of my own as we then began to sit there and enjoy the moon-rise. One sister naked and one sister topless. In that moment, and thanks to the events of the day, I felt closer to my sister. I guess the two of us were more alike than I realised.
“Ya know,” Kayla smiled, “You’re only halfway there.”
“Don’t push it.” I smiled back.
“Sorry,” she giggled.
I smiled as I looked up at the moon.