Chapter 4: Something Spicy, Something Sweet
The Sugar
Ben stirred as he awoke, on the floor of the isolation cell, trussed in a straitjacket, just as he'd done in the last 14 days. Two weeks had passed since he'd come here, two weeks of forced exercise, inventive 'games' where his innermost thoughts were quite literally extracted from him followed by tender aftercare. He'd been subjected to painful enemas, electro-sounding, flogging and other tortures as Christina had deemed fit. His body was sore, covered in bruises and welts. He could feel it, his body was almost at the breaking point.
His mental state was not much better. The constant pain, exertion, isolation and, weirdly, repetition was grinding him down. This room, in particular, trapped him with his thoughts and pretty much forced him to face his darkest recesses. He was not sure how much more of the physical or emotional toll he could take. And yet, he wanted to stay. Despite it all, he desperately wanted to stay.
Part of him wondered if this was abusive and he was just being traumatized. He certainly imagined that many people would label it as such but...well, he did not feel abused. He wanted to be here and he still felt safe. She took great pains to reiterate that he could stop it anytime he wanted, a point that had been proven just yesterday.
It had been during the exercise session, while he was being forced to march in place. It was surprisingly taxing, something he was rapidly learning the hard way. His legs were sore, his back was sore, he could feel tears welling up in his eyes as he could barely lift his legs up. The exertion was agony and he could feel what little strength he had fading with every step. Through it all, she stood behind him, correcting every mistake with a swat of her crop, mistakes that were increasing in frequency. He struggled, with every ounce of fortitude he had, until he finally broke.
"Mercy! Please, Mercy!" He felt the dam break, tears streaming down his eyes as he sobbed out the slowdown word. He collapsed to his knees bawling. After 2 weeks, he hit his breaking point. The tears flowed freely as she came up to him, wrapping her arms around him.
"Do you need out of the restraints, Ben?" She asked, her tone serious and concerned, as she gently guided him to the ground, firmly holding him. He meekly shook his head, leaning into her touch as the tears flowed down his cheeks and on her blouse. She stroked his face softly, planting little kisses on the top of his head. "Too much, Ben?" He nodded. "It's ok, Ben, you're ok, you're safe...." They laid like that for a while, locked in her embrace.
It was oddly comforting to him, reaching that point. She stopped when he could not bear it anymore, respecting his limits. He always knew that she would have, at least, his detached, intellectual side did, but it was greatly comforting to actually know that, especially emotionally.
Ben rolled over in the cell, laying on his back. In the darkness he had little else to do but ruminate on his experiences so far. He had been pushed, that much was undeniable, but not...overly so. And not without respect to his limits. He'd had intensely personal secrets pulled out of him, yes, but it was...cathartic to finally put words to thoughts he tried to suppress. How he felt overwhelmed, how he felt slightly ashamed of his sexuality at times, how that shame made him feel guilty.
He'd have thoughts extracted out of him and afterwards they'd talk it through. No judgements, no recriminations, just honest, equal conversations. She called him Ben when they talked about things like that and that really helped him feel...heard. Valued. Seen. It was comforting to be open about things like that, even in those circumstances.
Suddenly, the light flickered on and the door swung open to reveal the eternally stunning form of Christina. She was dressed in black, frilly lingerie, beautiful as ever. Her breasts were especially complimented by her outfit as she stepped in, sauntering over to the restrained man at the floor of the cell.
"Good morning, Slave. Sleep well?" She knelt down, stroking his face as she smiled at him.
"Yes, Master..." Came his muted reply as he nuzzled her hand.
She beamed, chucking a bit, as she gave his cheek a gentle squeeze. "Good boy." He smiled, a warm, fuzzy feeling in his chest. She kept stroking his face for a minute or so before pulling him up to his feet.
"I have a surprise for you today, Slave." She raised a blindfold in her hands, smirking a little. "Which means you go blind for a bit. Don't want to ruin the surprise, do we?" She giggled a bit, not waiting for a response, before pulling the blindfold down over his eyes.
He felt her guide him out of the cell slowly, both hands on each of his shoulders. Outside, she fixed a leash to his collar before slowly and carefully leading him off.
He had to admit, he felt more than a little trepidation as he was led. A million different scenarios ran through his eyes, not many of them particularly pleasant, at least not in a conventional way. He trusted her, though, and followed dutifully.
Eventually, after some time walking, she stopped and stood behind him, pressing her body into his. He felt a tingle down his spine as she slowly trailed her fingers along his restrained arms. The room had a distinct smell, almost of lavender, which lent a certain ambiance to the situation. "Ready for your surprise, Slave?"
He inhaled deeply, his voice a tad shaky. "Yes, Master..." She trailed a finger up his neck, past his cheek and then gently pulled off the blindfold.
He opened his eyes and immediately recognized where he was. It was the massage room. There was a massage table set up in the middle, some scented candles were lit in the room and the lighting was pleasantly dim. She continued to run her hands over his body as she leaned in close, whispering in his ear, "You've been such a good boy these last two weeks, I thought I'd give you a little reward." She pecked his cheek and laughed, just a little. "You get to give me a full body massage as a token of my appreciation."
She took a step back, unbuckling his straitjacket. It was odd to think but he felt incredibly...well, grateful, for this. The past week she'd been showering him with attention, it felt nice to do something for her. Once the jacket was off he turned to her, a slight but genuine smile on his face as he spoke softly, "Thank you, Master...."
She reached out, cupping his chin, a smile on her face too. "Anything for you, Ben..." He looked into her eyes and, for that moment, they both enjoyed the connection they felt.
After a short while, she ordered him to go get whatever he needed ready, gesturing to a cabinet full of oils and the like. She stripped down herself, a coquettish smile as she bared herself to him again and laid down on the table.
The momentary distraction aside, he picked out a couple of body oils he knew she liked, set them out and got to work. He'd been looking up techniques and had even attended a class on massage techniques. He did enjoy giving them on the rare occasions she allowed such a treat for him.
She also seemed to enjoy them, the soft moans of pleasure a decent indication of her satisfaction. As he pressed his thumbs into her back, making small circles along her spine, she spoke casually. "Your form has really gotten better, Ben."
He smiled as he continued, his cheeks blushing a bit. "Thank you, Master." He felt the smile on her face as her tone took a more playful turn.
"You don't have to call me that right now, you know. Go ahead and use my real name, at least for now."
He kept moving his hands though his face raised in surprise. Never, not once, ever, had she ever let him call her anything other than Master outside of their initial meetings. "Ok, as you wish, Christina." He heard a slight chuckle as her playful tone continued.
"I said my real name, Ben."
This prompted a pause as he stopped completely from the surprise. "Don't stop," Came the slightly forceful command, jumpstarting him to carry on even as he tried to process what she had said.
He knew her real name, he had been her attorney, but even before he'd met her his boss was quite clear that she did not stand it being used, ever. His hands worked on muscle memory as his mind tried to comprehend.
"I know it's been a while but surely you must remember my name, Ben?" The playfulness still in her voice.
"No, uh, I..I..I remember." He stuttered as he tried to think of the right thing to say before she spoke again.
"You asked a week ago, why you. Allow me to give you a little hint, Ben. I said I wanted you to be my Slave, back when this all began. While true, it's not all I want. I've had any number of live-in, full time slaves, here for a time then gone when they have their fill. I could ask you to fill that role and I have no doubt that you would agree, willingly."
She rolled over and sat up, looking straight into his eyes. "But would you stay if that was all this was? If I was but a Master, playing a role at all times? Even with the more tender moments, you would want more, rightly so. A lasting relationship, even a Slave's relationship to a Master, requires a connection. A real one. It requires work, compromise, give and take. And it requires you to see me as more than the person who ties you up and who whips you and for me to see you as more than the compliant little slave I can bend over and fuck as I see fit." She leaned in close, a smile on her face. "It can be a lot of that, it can even be mostly that. But it cannot be only that. Understand?"
He tilted his head down a little, a smile on his face. She was right. He enjoyed her company, even enjoyed being her Slave. He enjoyed letting go completely but he also knew he wanted more than that. He looked at her, a soft smile on his face.
"I understand....Sarah."
It was her turn to blush, as her smile grew slightly. They looked at each other for a while more before she laughed. "You know, for a Master and her Slave, we spend a lot of time being sappy."
He laughed too. "Fit for a dime store romance novel." They enjoyed a laugh together before she turned and laid back down.
"Well, don't let me break up your rhythm, maestro, work your magic."
He let his hands get back to work, applying a bit more oil as he joked, "You know me, just your run of the mill magician maestro masseuse." That drew a laugh and a promise of retribution.
The rest of the session went along the same vein, chatting as he worked out some knots in her back. It felt...well, nice. A different kind of nice. Not one he'd felt much before but one he truly felt he could embrace fully. Together, they enjoyed the moment and each other, sweet as can be.
The Spice
"Did you enjoy it?"
She turned to face him, contemplating his question and smiling. Her body felt more relaxed, a testimony to his efforts learning massage techniques. She hooked a finger in the d-ring of his collar and pulled him in close.
"Very much so."
She pulled him in for a kiss, savouring it as their lips met and passions briefly overtook them. Finally, and with a degree of longing, she pulled back, keeping her finger looped around his collar's ring. "Did you enjoy yourself, Slave?"
That word immediately telegraphed the shifting nature of the interaction and with it, he shifted gears, back into a submissive headspace. The shift was coming pretty naturally now, he had to admit. "I did, Master.."
She took note of his tone shift, giggling a little. "You complete sub."
She got up, sauntering over to her robe, allowing him to take in the sight as she did so.
