Nick awoke to the soft light of sunset coming through the white curtains. He could hear the shower running in the bathroom. There was a slightly humid feel to the air as steam drifted gently from the partially open door, not quite compensated for by the cool air conditioning. His mind picked its way through the memories of the day. It was still day one of his rotation with this woman, and she’d accepted him willingly. He’d used the compliance protocol to make her love doggy and oral sex, but what really blew his mind was that she didn’t want him to make it stop. She knew that she was being… Influenced, controlled, programmed? He honestly wasn’t sure what to call it. But she didn’t want him to end it or reverse it. As his brain switched on neuron by neuron, he slowly made connections and mulled them over.

He put his feet on the floor and stood, stretching his arms and legs. He felt a little groggy, and shook his head to clear it. As he did Kara appeared in the bathroom doorway, one towel wrapped around her body and another around her hair. “Can a girl get a little help?” she smiled. “Pass me my bra and panties?” She gestured to the chair where she’d flung them before all of this started. He obliged, scooping them up and handing them to her. “Thank you!” she sang as she popped back into the bathroom, gently closing the door. 

He could hear her moving around in there. The muffled sound of towels dropping, the clack of cosmetic cases being set on the counter, and finally the sound of the hairdryer penetrated the thin door. Shortly Kara herself appeared, clad in a matching padded bra and satin panties, and walked out to collect her gray wool skirt, shimmying it over her hips and zipping it up behind her. 

“Don’t get dressed on my account,” said Nick smiling, sitting naked on the bed..“I’ve seen what there is to see”.

“I want to talk about some things,” she said. “And I don’t want us… distracted. Would you mind?” And she gestured to his pants and underwear, still lying on the floor at the foot of the bed. 

“Uh, sure. I’ll just, um, I’ll be right back.” He scooped up his laundry and walked into the bathroom. If there was to be big talk, he wanted to look presentable. 

Ten minutes later Nick had showered, dressed, and ran his fingers through his short hair (not wanting to over-step by using her brush). He opened the door to Kara sitting in one of the chairs, so he took the sand-colored couch.

They looked nervously at each other, smiling and averting eyes shyly as if they had not copulated within the last hour.

“The compliance protocol…” he began.

She cut him off “That’s what I want to talk about. I don’t remember signing off on that.” She gazed out the window at the city. “I signed reams of papers, though. To be honest I didn’t read every single one. They kind of explained to me what it all meant, and I was signing as fast as I could… But it seems sneaky. You know, underhanded somehow.” She sighed. The sun was beginning its descent below the tops of the buildings, beginning to cast shadows that would grow ever longer until full dark. 

“The way it was explained to us,” Nick began again “is that the male end of… reproduction… is more difficult to guarantee than bending over and applying lube.” He winced a little, realizing how that sounded. “The point,” he hoped he could make a good one “is to make sure that the men get what they need, which is what they want. What turns them on, to achieve, uh, readiness. You know?”

She eyed him for a long moment, and when she spoke he expected anger, hate, or venom to be launched in his direction. He got none of the three, as her feelings pivoted to attack herself instead. She took a shuddering breath. “It’s sick isn’t it?” She looked on the verge of crying. “It’s sick to like that. It was a violation. I should be disgusted, I shouldn’t want that. But it turns me on! What kind of person is turned on by being violated?” The tears began to trickle down her cheeks now.

Nick moved in closer to her, placing his hand on her shoulder. “Whoa, whoa, whoa! It’s not that bad.” He struggled to get his head down into her line of sight. “Lots of people like… different things. I liked it too!” She raised her eyes slightly to meet his. “I did, it was really hot. You were doing what I wanted, and you were so… uninhibited. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that at all.”

She returned his gaze, her lips pouting, face red. “But wanting to be controlled? Wanting not to have a choice?” Her lower lip trembled.

“What if it’s more like not having to make the choice?” He offered. She lifted her head a little. “What if it’s about… not worrying?” She seemed to perk up at that. “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with just enjoying yourself. A lot of people like having their choice removed, so that they can just enjoy the moment.”

“They do?” she asked, sniffling

“Absolutely! What do you think all of the tying people up and handcuffing them is about?” He sounded a little more confident. He felt it, too, but maybe not until he heard it in his own words. “It’s about control, yes, but more than that it’s about trust. It feels good to trust someone else with your pleasure. Maybe it’s scary, too, but people love a little danger.”

“I don’t! I’m afraid of heights, I hate roller coasters, and I always wear a helmet when I ride my bike” She smirked a little, sheepishly. “But…” She trailed off, looking at his face again. “Maybe. Maybe it's that risk that makes it seem a little more…” She searched for the right word. Was it desirable? Sexy?

“Thrilling?” He ventured.

“Thrilling. You’re right, there’s a thrill there for me. It’s scary that you could make me do anything, but scary in the right way. It thrilled me a little to think you were in control…” she trailed off, and seemed to be nodding to herself. He knew some internal dialogue was happening. His curiosity almost led him to break the silence, but she stole his opportunity. 

“Nick, I think I’m really ok with it.” He peered at her, excited, but not willing to risk too much hope. Had he really helped her feel better about this?  

She seemed to be regaining her composure. “The time that I remember, the second time you did it I think,” he nodded “I felt so… relaxed. So content. My concerns were miles away. She wiped the last of the moisture from under her eyes. And then you told me that I’d enjoy giving you head, and it made so much sense. It sounded perfect. It was a wonderful idea, and I was so happy to have that thought and to know how to please you!” She was shaking her head slowly in disbelief. “And I… I loved it. I’ve only done it a couple of times, and before I hated it!” She wrinkled her nose. “I didn’t like having something shoved in my mouth, gagging me, forced into me like that.” She picked up her head and looked him in the eye. “But this time it was something else completely. I felt good at it,”

“You were good at it!” he blurted out.

“And I felt happy to do it, and do it well,” she continued “and I needed to do it. I needed your dick, you don’t know how much!” She shivered just a bit. “It was… wonderful to have. I feel like a traitor to women or something, but I want more of that.” She straightened visibly. “More of those feelings. I felt relaxed, then I knew just what to do and I enjoyed it. I enjoyed doggy, too, but I don't remember why. And I had maybe the strongest orgasms I’ve ever had.”

“Then I’d like to do a few things.” He said. “I think there are some small things that will help you enjoy it even more, and a few limits we need to test.” Was she looking at him with a little expectancy? “But first I think we should eat. This has all been tiring.”

As they entered the cafeteria on the first floor they saw all of the other pairs. Some were together, sitting close, but not touching. Others were, with one partner’s hand on the other’s arm or around their waist. A couple of women were draped over their mates like towels, feeding them or talking softly in their ears. One girl in particular caught Nick and Kara’s eyes simultaneously. She was standing at one of the stainless steel buffet tables with the clear plexiglass sneeze guards, assembling a salad from the various bowls of ingredients sitting on ice. She was a tall redhead with long straight hair that hung down almost to her very shapely bottom. Nick was certain that she was wearing a black lace panty and bra set with a garter belt holding up a pair of vintage-style seamed black stockings ending in tall black stiletto heels. He felt justified in this certainty because, unlike everyone else, she wasn’t wearing a stitch of clothing over her lingerie. Her pale white skin and red hair made her stand out like a beacon in the half-full cafe. 

“Well, that’s a choice,” Kara muttered under her breath. Nick gently took her by the elbow so that she took notice and looked up into his face.

“It’s probably not.” He gave her a meaningful look. “A choice.” He said, with some emphasis on the word. Kara’s eyes went wide. The girl just went about her business, collecting her meal as if nothing were going on, while every eye in the place was glued to her perfectly toned body. As both of them watched her, surprisingly similar thoughts raced through their heads. Unbeknownst to the other, each of them quietly considered the mechanics of how a suggestion would cause someone to walk around almost naked, what she must think was going on, and what she would think of her behavior later. Each suspected the other of one thought though, as they watched her, enrapt. That’s hot.

Finally sitting down at the tables with their trays of lunch, Nick was a little irked to realize he’d sat with his back to the redhead. Craning his head around wouldn’t exactly be subtle. For her part, Kara made a concerted effort to stay focused on Nick, but sometimes the redhead caught her eye over his shoulder.

Looking carefully around, trying not to get caught staring, Kara tried to identify couples who were clearly utilizing this hypnosis or influence. Was it the guy in the green button-down touching fingertips across the table with the girl in the burnt-orange maxi dress? She didn’t think so. The girl in the gray jumper with the short blonde pixie cut who was kneeling on the bench next to the scrawny guy in the plain black T-shirt was a yes. She had both her arms wrapped around his left arm. Her head was tilted up and her cheek was on his shoulder, her eyes locked on his face in pure adoration. She seemed to have forgotten the tray in front of her. Kara subtly inclined her head in their direction. “I think he’d better not forget to feed her,” she said with a little smirk. “She does look happy, though.” 

“Yeah, there must be some safeguard, though, right?” he mused. 

She cocked her head. “What do you mean? What kind of safeguard?”

“Well,” he said quietly, so as not to be overheard “If I were going to give a bunch of 18-30 year old guys control over a bunch of young women, I would put some kind of limits on things. Just so nobody got hurt. Don’t you think so?”

It hadn’t occurred to her, but now that she considered it a lot could go wrong without some kind of checks and balances. What if someone were into something physically dangerous? What if they actually did forget to let the girls eat? The more she thought about it, the more sense it made. “We should figure this out,” she said. If there were limits to what she could be made to do, she thought she deserved to know what those were. “I’m done, I think.” She looked down at her plate, realizing she’d been so deep in thought she’d eaten mostly without thinking.

“Yeah, me too,” said Nick. “Let’s swing by the buffet and grab some apples and bananas for the room.” He planned on working up an appetite, after all. The things he was puzzling over were interesting, yes, but they were also exciting in other ways.

“Sounds good,” Kara said, smiling at him. “You get those and I’ll grab a few granola bars and some water.” She stood and walked toward the serving area. Her hips may have been swaying just a touch more than her usual businesslike walk, but she thought that helped her fit into the charged environment even more. The fact that she could feel Nick’s eyes on her shapely behind had nothing at all to do with it, certainly.

The elevator ride, though brief, had been a little tense. Neither one of them said anything, but one could almost hear the mental gears turning for the entire ride. When the “ding” sounded and the doors opened there was an audible exhalation from both. They looked at each other and chuckled, realizing the other was on the same path. Arriving at the door, Nick pulled out his keycard and opened it, holding the door for Kara. Watching her walk through the door, he thought about the temptation that was control. He’d decided he didn’t think it was total, but it was a lot. 

Kara sat down on the couch and Nick pulled up a chair to face her. “My first thought,” he said seriously “is to interrogate you. I think we need answers to some pretty basic questions.”

“I can agree to that.” She answered slowly. “I want to know what I don’t know.” 

“Alright then.” he said, placing his hands on his knees in a gesture of resolve “Kara,”

“Wait!” she shouted. “ Uh, I wanted… What I mean is…” She seemed to gain control of her thoughts. Her lips tightened, then loosened again. Calmly, she asked “Would you make sure I remember this? Please?” Her tone wasn’t plaintive. She clearly believed she should have that choice, but she seemed to understand she was not in a position to insist on much at the moment.

“Ok. I’ll make sure you remember,” he replied. She believed him, she thought. This was going to be the weirdest experience. “Now, Kara, I need you to do something for me.”

There it was again. She was looking at him, but not seeing him. Her hands were open, her mouth slack behind her lips. “I’d do anything for you”. There was even a high blush on her cheekbones that he didn’t recall seeing before. It made her face look a shade paler by comparison. He couldn’t imagine what that must be like. “Kara, when you wake up you’re going to remember everything you and I talk about. Do you understand?”

“I understand,” she said, mechanically.

He started gently. “Kara, how did you get hypnotized? What did they do to you?”

She suddenly sat up straight. It was such a quick change that Nick flinched. “I’ll never remember. I won’t even try.” she intoned. “I agreed to everything and I feel good about my decision.” It sounded odd, almost sing-song. It reminded Nick of how children recite the US’s Pledge of Allegiance in school. She relaxed with a small exhalation the moment she was done. Nick considered that she hadn’t really been concerned with the process. The thing that seemed to upset her was the moral implication of enjoying it. Nick tucked that away for future consideration. Maybe he should try a different angle.

He watched her very carefully this time. “Kara, will you actually do anything I say? What are your limits?”

She stiffened again. He began to understand that it was like a pre-recorded answer. The thought disturbed and thrilled him in equal measure. “My goal is to be bred. I will take good care of myself. I cannot let real harm come to me. I cannot cause real harm to anyone else. I will only inflict minor pain in the service of pleasure. I cannot be bound to anyone beyond our assigned time. These things can never be changed.” She began to sag back into the couch as soon as the last word left her mouth. He supposed those ideas were clear and broad enough to cover all the bases. He wondered if there were ways around it, though.

“What happened to the other girls with you during the compliance protocol training?”

She sat up straighter. “I’ll never remember. I won’t even try.” she repeated. “I agreed to everything and I feel good about my decision.” Damn, he’d thought that was pretty clever. If she couldn’t tell him what happened, then who could? 

“Kara, who was with you at these sessions?”

“I’ll never remember. I won’t even try…”

“Ok, ok, I get it!” he interrupted her. At least that stopped her repetitions. They were creeping him out. Nick ran his fingers through his hair. He had to focus on the problem, but there was this giant curtain hiding it from him. What could be behind it? He just couldn’t seem to get through it, not even a peek. 

So he couldn’t see through it, he thought. It was like one of those censorship wrappers on the dirty magazines he used to see at the corner store when he was a kid. I mean, you kinda knew what was behind those. There was some pretty girl’s face and maybe arms above, and long enticing legs below. The middle was where the interest was of course, but you could tell a lot by what was around it. What if that was the key here? What if the clues were around it, like before and after?

“Kara, I know you don’t remember being programmed, but where were you when you stopped remembering?”

“I was in the waiting room at the clinic with the nurses,” she replied, looking off into space. Maybe she was envisioning it all. Maybe she was just… spaced out. It was hard to tell.

“Who was there with you before they took you back?” He asked, trying to get a little more of the picture.

“Girls in the program, and the new nurses”. she said calmly. 

The new nurses? Why would orientees be hanging out in a lobby? Well, that was something to start with. If they knew where it had happened and who was around, maybe they could piece together more. He thought that was a reasonable amount to start with. Besides, they had weeks to figure this out before they were rotated.

“Kara, when we’re done talking you’re going to be so horny that you won’t be able to control yourself. You’ll want to get fucked in any way I want.” She couldn’t blame him for this, right? She would want it too, and he’d make sure she enjoyed it. He wasn’t a porn star, but he’d never had any complaints from the girls. That gave him an idea. “In fact, as we fuck, you can feel my cock getting a little bit bigger with every stroke, until you’re really struggling to take it all, and you feel stretched in the best possible ways. ” This would be interesting. “Alright Kara, resume.”

Her eyes came back into focus. “What was that?” She blurted out. He thought she was mad about that last suggestion. She took two quick steps to close the gap between them. She was suddenly very close.

“I do recall being in the lobby of the clinic with all those other girls, and then it’s just…gone,” she said, grabbing his belt and unbuckling it. “It’s lost time for me, which is weird.” She whipped his zipper down and grabbed his waistband, throwing it down his legs. She continued looking him square in the face, her speech becoming more pressured. “And why were the new nurses in the waiting area? I guess I didn’t think anything of it.” His boxers followed the slacks.

Kara looked down at his cock hanging there and gave a frustrated grunt. “You’re not hard? I need you erect!” Nick swallowed hard. Frankly, he was taken aback. She was a little out of control. This might have been an error in judgment or a stroke of genius. He would have to wait and see. Kara was already down on her knees, and starting to pull him into her mouth. She put her hand around the base of his penis and covered the head with her lips. Leaning forward, she took him as deep as she comfortably could, and used her hand to stroke the remainder of his shaft. She used her other hand to push her shirt and bra straps off her shoulders, exposing her breasts to him. Then she looked him in the eyes and made little plaintive noises around his cock. Well, that was it. What had started as mild-mannered Clark Kent was now a man of steel. She smiled as she pulled herself free and stood up.

“Oh thank God!” she exclaimed. She hooked her thumbs in her own waistband and performed the quickest removal of pants and panties Nick had ever seen. Her pale legs looked smoother than the luxury sheets they slept on. She laid her top half onto the bed, palms flat against the bed, shirt and bra still around her waist, and turned her head back to him. “Is this how you want it? Do you want me to roll over? Maybe on my side?” 

Nick weighed his options and stumbled forward, his pants still around his legs. He placed his cock between her lips and observed a couple of drops of her wetness roll out. Without another word, he sank into her. He buried himself deep inside her. She was so warm and so hot! Each thrust brought a little grunt, which began to grow in volume and gutteralness. 

“How are you doing that?” she shouted. 

“Doing what?” he asked, grinning.

“It’s growing!” she said between the pants and grunts. “It just keeps getting bigger. What is happening? Fuck it, it feels so good!” He picked up the pace, wanting to amplify the effect. “I… I can’t! I can’t! Nick! Oh God! Fucking Jesus!” Nick wasn’t sure if Kara had been religious before the encounter, but she was becoming downright zealous in her invocations now as her narrative devolved into incoherence. He could feel her squeezing and tightening on him, which was making that proverbial finish line loom ever closer. He buckled down and concentrated on her, and on slamming into her with all his force. He felt the violent spasming within before he heard her cry out. It was too much; too good, too hot. 

He loosed his own cry as he spilled himself into her with an involuntary rhythmic pumping that left him simultaneously ecstatic and disbelieving. He felt like his mind had become two separate beings. One struggled to understand why he felt the way he did, while the other reveled in sensation. As soon as his body’s expulsions were finished the hypersensitivity of his cock, still in her internal grip, caused him to pull out and away. His arms, holding him above her, felt watery and weak. His brain felt numb and euphoric like that time the dentist had overdone it on the “happy gas”. He rolled to one side as she rolled to the other.

Facing each other across the bed, breathing heavily, she regained the power of speech before he could. “I think… you might be the devil” she said, her brow furrowing as her chest continued to heave “... and I fucking love it.”