It's funny how fear of the unknown can seem to be such an insurmountable obstacle. Afterwards, you laugh, and wonder what you were so afraid of, but this was still before, and my stomach was alive with butterflies. Like everything I ever ate in my entire life was rolling around, considering making a reappearance. I could pretend that I was only doing this for Wolf, but deep down, I had a lot of curiosity, and more than a little desire. I was going through with it, even if it killed me.
We'd read all about the Mine Shaft, a BDSM club, and had been making our plans for ages, but somehow that didn't make me less nervous. Eating dinner, Wolf talked casually, and I listened with one ear, hoping for distraction, but pushed my plate away after only a couple of bites. We were headed to the club right after we ate, and throwing up in front of a bunch of strangers was just one more fear to add to the list. I don't remember one word of our conversation except for his assurances that I was his, and he would take care of me.
I had spent two days agonizing over what to wear, but Wolf just laughed at me. He told me that I was going to take it off as soon as we got there anyway, and that unnerved me even more. It felt like a psychological advantage to look good when I got there; as if starting the evening out in a nice sexy outfit would make me less vulnerable afterwards. I had spent entirely too much time surfing the internet looking at perfect bodies, knowing that mine couldn't measure up. Fuck-me heels seemed like the next best thing, with black lace lingerie thrown in under my skirt and blouse for good measure.
I was as ready as I would ever be when we pulled up to the club. It was rather innocuous on the outside, and it felt kind of silly to be afraid of an establishment headquartered in an industrial office complex. Once inside, though, the butterflies returned, at least until I was able to surreptitiously examine the other guests. Just as Wolf had assured me, there were no perfect bodies, just ordinary people like us, hoping for an extraordinary night.
The front rooms looked like any small retail office, or that of a chiropractor, though the display of wares for sale would make the average housewife blush, including whips, chains, ropes, and various BDSM implements. There was also a changing room and small sitting room. Well lit, clean and white, they would prove to be a complete contrast to the playroom, and were probably designed that way intentionally, to ease the fears of people just like me.
After filling out paperwork, we were given a tour by a young woman with easily the most nearly perfect body there. I couldn't help but stare at her mocha colored breasts, as they strained to escape the beautiful corset she wore. It was a lovely distraction, and I spent as much time looking at her body as listening to the information she gave us sotto voce as we walked around the dimly lit, cavernous interior. She explained each station, and there were many, including a big area with lots of comfy couches, for talking, aftercare, and watching scenes being played out.
The playroom itself was a large warehouse space, unfinished concrete, with 20' ceilings, and the center of it was dominated by a winch, for serious shibari suspension. A heavy set young woman was swinging naked on the rope harness, and it was terribly hard for me to peel my eyes away, but the tour moved on, passing a spanking bench, an entire rack of various tools of discipline, and an area off to one side with a large table, that looked like a kitchenette. The beautiful young woman explained that this was for wax play, and I saw a gleam in Wolf's eye, as this was something we'd been dying to try. All too soon, though, the tour was over, and I began to feel anxious again, but Wolf took my hand, looked in my eyes, and said, simply, "Are you ready for me to tie you up?"
The combination of his words and the eye contact were the psychological equivalent of flipping a switch. Our surroundings and my nervousness melted away, and I smiled and took his hand. There are no secrets between us, and we talk about everything. There is no greater joy for me than submitting to him, and he can make me weak in the knees with his tone of voice. It isn't blind faith, though, but rather trust built from experience. He knows me frighteningly well, and constantly strives to know me better. Once we begin a scene, there are no choices for me, but he takes great pains to know what I need and want beforehand. And if something doesn't work, we discuss that, too, and fix it. He understands me better than anyone. I need his control, and my gift to him is my surrender.
Without another word, Wolf led me to the shibari station; a large oriental carpet under an ornate pergola frame in one corner of the room. It looked like an over-sized Japanese arbor, 8 feet high, and about the same dimensions square. He quietly but firmly instructed me to take off my blouse and skirt, allowing me to retain my panties and bra. I smiled, wordlessly thanking him for allowing me that security. He sat on the rug, opened his bag, set out the rope, and positioned me in front of him. Ritual and familiarity quickly took over, and the room and the few people watching quickly faded from my consciousness as I watched him with fascination. When he ties me, the knots he lays upon my body are his only focus, and I wait eagerly, willing him to be done so that I become a woman again, and not just the canvas he is painting. It is the most delicious sort of foreplay, forcing me to be patient, as I grow more and more desperate for his caress.