Jessica wrapped him in his arms as she studied his face. Eric’s expression was blank and entirely focused on her, as it should be. The bulge in his sweatpants was impossible to ignore, and she licked her lips in delight. The opportunity before her was too good to pass by.

“Kiss me,” she commanded.

Eric’s hands slid from her hips to cradle her face. He tilted his head forward, his lips reaching for hers. The tenderness of the gesture made her stomach flutter, a feeling of completeness she hadn’t experienced since he had lost his job. He was such a sweetheart when he wanted to.

She pulled back slightly, her heart racing. Her skin was all tingly, and they had only just begun to have fun. “That was great,” she said. “Now, kneel.”

Eric happily sank to the floor before her,  his trembling fingers resting on her thighs. His gaze remained fixed on her, unwavering in its devotion as dictated by whatever tech made the smartwatch work.  He didn’t understand it, but he really didn’t need to.

Jessica was pleased with his obedience. The power bestowed upon her was intoxicating, but she reminded herself to control her emotions. Cruelty had no place in this game. It was all about pleasure and guiding him to a place where they could both feel good.

“Take off my shoes,” she said.

Eric’s hands moved to her ankles, carefully slipping off her heels one by one. He was so enthralled that he could hold on to her petite feet forever, but she didn’t want that. His arousal grew even more.

“Stand up.”

He obeyed instantly, rising to his full height. “You’re doing so well,” she whispered, her voice tinged with warmth. “Now, take off your shirt.”

Eric’s hands moved to the hem of his T-shirt. He pulled it over his head and sent it flying across the room. The sight of his bare chest was always a treat, and one she cherished like the rarest of delicacies. Her fingers tickled his sternum, but he didn’t flinch, absorbed by her power and the technological connection blooming between them. In silence, he removed his pants as well.

“Lie down on the couch,” she said.

Eric returned to his original spot, stretching out with his arms at his sides. Jessica climbed onto him, straddling his hips. As a teenager, she had been a proficient horse rider, but while riding on a saddle was great, nothing beat the satisfaction of feeling a hard cock under her.

“Good boy,” she whispered. “You’re mine, and I’m going to take care of you.”

Eric gasped, his body responding to her words. She kissed his neck and almost risked a small bite, her hands roaming over his warm skin. He was hard beneath her, reacting automatically to every touch and command.

“Worship me, Eric. Treat me like the goddess you know I am.”

He groped her waist, and then his hands slid up to cup her breasts through her blouse. Jessica moaned softly, arching into his touch. The watch on his wrist hummed faintly, a reminder of the power she held, but she pushed the thought aside. Right now, all she cared about was the heat building between them.

“Yes,” she moaned. “More! That feels so good.”

She rocked against him, her hips grinding against his, the friction sending sparks through her veins. Eric gripped her tighter, as if letting her go meant losing her forever. Obedience moved him. It was in the very air he breathed, leading him one step closer to ecstasy.

“Let go,” she continued. “I’m here to take care of you.”

Eric groaned, his body shuddering beneath her. Jessica closed her eyes, savoring the moment and the subsequent pleasure. Taking charge was the perfect thing to do.

When the initial wave of bliss passed, she rested her head on his chest and said. “You’re amazing. I’m so glad you’re mine.”

Eric’s eyes met hers. They were still glazed, but not entirely vacant, as if he recognized the gravity of her words. Jessica smiled, brushing a stray strand of hair from his forehead.

“Now,” she said softly, “let’s see what else we can do.”

Jessica yanked him from the sofa and pulled him into the kitchen. It was the only place in the apartment where they hadn’t had sex yet, an oversight she was ready to correct.

The tiles were cool against her back, as opposed to the heat of his hands as they explored her hips. Her fingers tangled in his hair, pulling him closer until there was no space left between them.

Every touch was filled with meaning, a deliberate reverence that enthroned her above all women. His mouth tasted his collarbone while his palms cradled her ribs as if she were too precious for this world. 

She gasped when his teeth grazed her nipple, always wondering in the back of her mind if he was going to suck on it or not. He lingered there, in the void, worshiping her with his tongue until her thighs shivered and parted.

Eric’s body weight pressed her into the floor, grounding her even as she felt herself unraveling. His name spilled from her lips, half plea, half praise, and he answered with a groan. Skin slid against skin, enveloping them in raw, animalistic heat that would not subside. His body moved over hers, sometimes slowly, sometimes frantically, drawing out every shuddering breath until she couldn’t tell where she ended and he began.

Time passed. How long exactly? They couldn’t tell. But after their breathing evened and the sweat cooled on their skin, they cuddled together, still wrapped in joyous harmony. She traced idle circles over his heart, listening to the steady rhythm beneath her fingertips. Everything around them was messy, but she couldn’t bring herself to care. Not when his arms around her were the closest thing to heaven on Earth.

After the fun was over, Jessica lay beside Eric, smiling. The room was quiet except for the soft hum of the watch still strapped to his wrist. She was pleased, her body still humming from their shared intimacy, but her mind was beginning to churn with questions she hadn’t allowed herself to consider earlier.

It had been so easy to take the smartwatch. Too easy. The lab’s security wasn’t lax, exactly, but it hadn’t been tight enough to stop her. She hadn’t even planned it, not really. The opportunity had just presented itself, and she’d taken it without hesitation. Now, lying there in the aftermath, she couldn’t shake the feeling that something wasn’t right.

Why hadn’t anyone noticed? The prototype was valuable, cutting-edge. They’d been working on it for so long. Surely there were safeguards, protocols. Yet she’d walked out with it tucked in her purse like it was nothing. No alarms, no questions, nothing. It didn’t add up.

She glanced at Eric’s wrist again. The watch gleamed faintly in the low light, its interface dormant but still pulsing with an eerie, almost lifelike energy. It had done exactly what she’d wanted. But now, with the adrenaline fading, she couldn’t ignore the gnawing doubt creeping into her thoughts.

What if they let her take it? What if all of this was some kind of test? Or worse, a trap? She’d been so focused on Eric, on fixing him, that she hadn’t stopped to think about the bigger picture. More than a place of innovation, the company was a fortress of secrets. Secrets they didn’t just hand out to interns who happened to be in the right place at the right time.

Jessica bit her nails. She sat up slowly, careful not to wake Eric. Her mind was in turmoil now, piecing together fragments of the day. The way Kyle had looked at her, the casual glance from Marcus at the security desk. Had they been watching her? Was she being watched now?

She stood, padding silently across the room to the window. The street outside was quiet. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, but that didn’t mean anything. She pulled the curtain closed, trying to keep the paranoia away.

The watch was still humming faintly, a sound she could hear even from across the room. It was mesmerizing, almost hypnotic, but it also felt... wrong. Everything was off.

Jessica’s fingers drifted to her own wrist, tracing the smooth metal band she’d worn for weeks. The familiar weight of her everyday smartwatch pressed against her skin. Except...

She twisted her arm, and the watch face shimmered with that same eerie green glow she’d seen on Eric’s device. The holographic interface flickered to life, displaying the same minimalist icons. Her stomach dropped like a stone.

The lab. The hallway. The way no one had stopped her. It all clicked into place at the same time. She’d never taken the prototype at all. She’d been wearing it this whole time. The watch had made her think she’d stolen it, and made her believe this was all her idea.

Her pulse pounded in her ears as she stared at the device. How long had it been influencing her? Since this morning? Since last week? Her eyes grew dark as she tried to remember when she’d first put it on, but the memory slipped through her fingers like smoke.

The watch hummed softly against her skin, a vibration that traveled up her arm and settled in her chest like a second heartbeat. She should take it off. Rip it from her wrist and smash it against the tiles, but her fingers only tightened around the band, protecting it from harm.

Eric stirred on the floor, his glassy eyes looking for hers. “Is everything okay?” he asked in that flat, obedient tone.

Jessica opened her mouth to answer, but the watch pulsed once, warm against her skin. Calmness washed over her. Of course, everything was okay. Better than okay.

She smiled at Eric, her fingers still wrapped around the watch. “Perfect,” she replied.

The holographic display shifted, new icons appearing. One pulsed gently. Jessica reached out with her free hand, her fingertip hovering over the glowing symbol.

Some distant part of her screamed to stop, but the sound faded beneath the watch’s steady hum. Her finger touched the icon.

The world went white.

When her vision cleared, Eric was kneeling before her, his face upturned like a worshipper before an altar. The watch on his wrist synchronized with hers, their vibrations harmonizing into a single, soothing frequency.

Jessica looked down at her own device, at the new command now displayed in glowing letters: Deeper.

Her lips parted as the word Deeper infiltrated her brain. The hum of the watch grew louder, resonating in her skull like a mantra she couldn’t escape. Eric’s eyes remained locked on hers, unblinking, obedient. She felt a strange pull, as if the watch was guiding her, urging her to take the next step. Her finger hovered over the icon again, trembling slightly.

Before she could press it, the room flickered. The walls dissolved into a blur of light and shadow, and for a moment, she felt weightless, untethered. When her vision cleared, she wasn’t in her apartment anymore.

She stood in a sleek, modern room bathed in soft, artificial light. The air was sterile, and large monitors lined the walls, displaying streams of data she couldn’t decipher. In the center of the room, a group of people in sharp suits and lab coats stood around a long table, their attention fixed on a holographic projection suspended above it.

Jessica bit her tongue. She recognized the projection immediately. It was Eric, kneeling exactly as he had been moments ago, his glassy eyes staring into nothing.

At the head of the table stood Dr. Nathalie Blake, her blonde hair pulled back into a flawless bun. She tapped a sleek tablet in her hand. Jessica’s mouth went dry. She tried to move, but her body wouldn’t obey. She was frozen, a spectator in her own skin.

“As you can see,” Dr. Blake began, her voice smooth and confident, “the latest iteration of the device has overcome the initial flaws in neural synchronization. The subject’s compliance is almost seamless now.”

Jessica’s thoughts went into overdrive. Subject? Her gaze darted to the hologram of Eric, and she realized she wasn’t that much different from it. She wanted to scream, to demand answers, but her voice was trapped somewhere deep inside her, along with the rest of her free will.

“The psychological recalibration is particularly impressive,” Dr. Blake continued, gesturing to the hologram. “The subject’s emotional responses have been effectively neutralized, replaced by complete adherence to command. This level of control opens up unprecedented possibilities for application.”

Jessica shivered from the inside out. Application? What the fuck was she talking about? She clenched her fists, trying to break free from the forced stupor. She was talking about a tool to strip people of their autonomy. And she’d been wearing it all along.

Dr. Blake turned to the group, seemingly satisfied with everything happening around her. “As you can see, we’re back on track,” she announced. “Phase two testing will commence immediately. I want full reports on every interaction, every variable. We need to ensure the device’s stability before proceeding to wider implementation.”

Jessica’s chest tightened. The implications hit her like a punch to the gut. Her fantasies had been shattered in the service of a technological apocalypse waiting to happen.

The group murmured their assent, their voices blending into a low hum that echoed in Jessica’s ears. She felt a sudden pressure in her head, a throbbing ache that made it hard to think. The watch on her wrist vibrated softly, its hum syncing with the rhythm of her heartbeat.

Dr. Blake’s gaze flicked toward Jessica, her piercing blue eyes keeping her sedated and compliant. The woman’s expression was cold. She turned back to the group, her voice firm. “Let’s proceed. We have no time to waste.”

The room began to fade again, the walls dissolving into a haze of light and shadow. Jessica’s stomach lurched as the sensation of weightlessness returned. When she was allowed to blink again, she was back in her apartment, standing in the center of the living room.

Eric kneeled before her, just as he had before, his eyes glassy, his face blank. The watch on his wrist hummed softly, its green glow keeping the fantasy going for as long as the company wanted. Jessica stared at him, her mind reeling.

She looked down at her own wrist, at the sleek black band that now felt like a shackle. The holographic interface flickered, displaying a single word in glowing letters: Continue.

Jessica’s shoulders dropped. She didn’t know what to do. Her thoughts were a tangled mess of fear and confusion. The watch hummed again, louder this time, dictating what had to be done. She sighed.

Of course, she would continue. There was no other choice.

Her finger hovered over the icon, trembling slightly. She pressed it, cementing the illusion and turning it into an inescapable reality.

Jessica closed her eyes and surrendered.

The End