adrianus' fingers crawled across shark's skin. "that's it... just relaxing..."

it was different from the usual soft petting motion, the fingers slowly wiggling along, barely touching them, light and feathery.

when his fingers reached their side, shark twitched, an especially noticeable reaction when they'd been so still before.

adrianus moved closer, holding them more tightly. "oh, did that tickle?" he murmured, his voice gentle, teasing, and intimate.

it felt like being caught. it was inexplicably exciting, their whole body freezing in anticipation.

his fingers crawled on them again, in the exact same spot that made them twitch, still moving slowly, testing, exploring.

it was just a faint tickle, like a bug, or a spider. they were a little more prepared for it, so they didn't twitch as much, but it gave them goosebumps.

adrianus was clearly amused, in a way that was a little different from usual. just that feeling of attention and focus coming from him made them squirm a little.

"you said you don't really want to be tickled... but you don't mind this?"

"well, like, it's just, like... i don't want it to be, like... a lot. and i don't know, i just kinda... i learned to just suppress my reaction to it a long time ago, so..."

"oh, i see," he whispered, his hand stopping for a moment, hovering just over their skin. they could hear the smile on his lips. "so you're embarrassed to react to it?"

"yeah, kind of..."

their heart was pounding. after all they'd done together, it was a little funny how much anticipation and nervousness they were feeling over this.

it wasn't even like they were particularly into tickling in general, but when it was him...

"tickling is interesting, isn't it?" adrianus murmured, his fingers just barely touching them, still not moving. "it's considered playful, and it makes you smile and laugh... but it's nervous laughter. it's almost a painful sensation, even though you react as if it's pleasant... and your ticklish spots are such vulnerable areas... and, of course... it makes you feel dominated, doesn't it? because someone can force you to feel such an intense and incapacitating sensation... with just their fingers... they can hold you down... so you can't resist..."

their breath was heavy. he was definitely gauging their reaction, and building even more anticipation. his fingers approached their armpit, still just hovering nearby, as he held them with his other arm, and put more of his weight on their body.

it might have made them feel more like a prey animal than anything else they'd ever done.

"lift your arm for me," he said softly.

even when they knew what he was going to do, they obeyed. it was such a bizarre, surreal feeling.

"there you go. very good."

his fingers crawled up, unbearably slowly. they were already laughing quietly under their breath.

"mm, i thought you said you were good at suppressing it?"

"well, like... i mean... i just, like... it's not that ticklish right now, i just..."

"are you nervous?" he asked, his voice still low and teasing.

his fingers stopped just below their armpit.

"it's not bad or anything... but... well, yeah," they said.

"that's cute... i like it, when you're a little nervous... when you're a little tense... you know that i'll help you relax later, anyway... so it's alright... i won't completely overwhelm you."

it was such a weird feeling of vulnerability. they were used to him fucking them, and hypnotizing them, and stuff like that, but they weren't used to being tickled. they couldn't really predict how it was going to feel. and they weren't in control of it. he seemed pretty into it, too.

there was something about him being into something that they weren't as sure about. he usually focused a lot on what they liked, what they wanted, even if they still both pretended it was about him. this was different.

suddenly, without warning, his fingers wiggled against their armpit, faster than they'd been moving before.

it went through them like a shock, and they squirmed and twitched uncontrollably, at least as much as they could while adrianus was holding them down. they laughed, quietly and helplessly.

it was so much, it was dizzying. but just knowing that he was making them feel it changed it. somehow, even as they squirmed and laughed, it had this weirdly hypnotic quality that they couldn't really describe. it was a little bit like the way they twitched when they felt intense asmr.

after a moment, the movements slowed down, back to that spidery crawl.

"how did that feel?" he asked.

they had to catch their breath. "it was... kinda weird...? but..."

"but you kind of liked it, didn't you?"

well, they did.

"yeah..." they muttered.

even his slower movements made them twitch a little.

"are you still squirming just from this?"

"it still kinda tickles..." they said. "but it's, like... it's kinda nice...? it's just a lot..."

"oh, but you can handle a little more, can't you?"

it was the kind of sentence that pushed their mind down and kept it there.

"i-i can..." they said blankly.

"that's it... try not to squirm too much, alright?"

he went for it again, his fingertips and nails fluttering against the sensitive skin, staying right in the most ticklish part of their armpit.

they really didn't squirm as much as last time, but it was more intense. they tried to hold back their laughter, the way they'd learned to as a kid, but it was so much harder now.

"there's no need to hold back," he murmured as he tickled them. "just let yourself feel it. it tickles, doesn't it? it's too much, isn't it?"

they almost hated it, but that kind of growing discomfort was fun, at the same time. it was embarrassing, it was overwhelming, but it was exactly what adrianus was trying to coax out of them. there was something satisfying about that, no matter how tired they were getting of laughing already.

mercifully, he slowed down again, but now even that slow, gentle crawl was kind of sensitive.

"you're getting more vulnerable to it, aren't you?"

they couldn't tell if that was something he actually noticed, or if it was a suggestion, and it didn't even matter.

"yeah, i guess so..."

"even this tickles a little, doesn't it?"

they felt it more when he said that, letting out a tiny, soft laugh under their breath again.

"that's right..." he muttered. "tickle tickle..."

it felt good. it was weird, because it still felt ticklish, and that wasn't a feeling they particularly liked, but it felt good, it was the good version of that, somehow.

it was a good word to hear in adrianus' voice, too, the way he repeated it, the way he enunciated it. and his long, slender fingers felt like they were meant to wiggle and crawl like that. and something about that playfulness combined with that intensity and that kind of... creepy feeling of someone being a little too into it... really suited him.

"i already think too many things are hot, you can't just make me like everything," they said.

adrianus chuckled quietly, stopping for a moment. "well, it works out very well for me if you like it... maybe next time i should tie you down, and focus on your feet?"

"are you seriously, actually into this? like you really wanna do that?!"

"what, do you think i'm pretending?"

"well, you could be, just for a reaction..."

"it's very satisfying, seeing you twitch and squirm just from such a simple little movement... i felt how your leg twitched just hearing me mention it... you're already imagining it, aren't you? you already felt it in the sole of your foot..."

it made them twitch a little more.

"you already know i mean it, don't you? the question is whether you're willing to indulge me."

they wondered how there was still anything left for them to be embarrassed about. they'd already admitted to and tried all kinds of different kinks.

"well, like... i mean, i'd try it..."

"is that all? you're just willing to try?" he teased. "or do you want me to tickle you?"

"man..." they muttered. "i really do want it."

"i'm glad to hear it. but for now, let's just relax... that was so overwhelming for you, wasn't it?"

his cooing just made everything feel even better. they sure were ready to relax. "yeah..."

"and i'll be sure to be extra careful when i pet and stroke your skin now..."

"thank you..." they said quietly, their mind already collapsing.