Author's Note: Following on from the first Glencross Manor story, we turn our attention to Ruth's donor, Richard, and how he came to be a donor at the formidable yet mild-mannered Mrs. Elspeth McEill's rather unusual human reproduction and embryology institution, and his encounter with his first ever client. As always, all characters are over 18 and any similarities with any real life person either living or dead are entirely unintended and coincidental.
Right, on with the story! Enjoy!
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Glencross Manor - Richard's Story
How did I come to find myself here? Here in this place - this sprawling country estate in the wilds of the Scottish highlands where 'professional ladies' and 'stable but childless couples' come to help make their dreams of having children of their own a reality? Well, it's a question I've often asked myself, and now as I look back I never fail to smile at the memories of those first few weeks at Glencross Manor. To begin with, I only expected to be around for a few weeks - that was five years ago now, and I'm still here!
My story begins in my hometown of Leeds, in the summer of 2013. I was 23 at the time and studying accountancy at the University of West Yorkshire, and by now I'm sure you can guess the rest. Yes, I was the typical impoverished student trying to balance my studies with earning enough to keep myself fed and my share of the rent paid in the flat I shared with two girls, Heather and Molly. The three of us all came from similar working class backgrounds and were the first in our families to study at university. The girls both came from Sheffield, whilst I was a Leeds lad born and bred. I could have stayed at home with my parents in Wortley, a suburb of Leeds, but I wanted some independence from my folks. Another reason for living closer to the university was the shorter journey time to and from lectures and work.
I had a part time job, as did both of my flatmates, and I rather enjoyed my shifts in the fried chicken place near the city's main rail station, but it was hardly the most well paid of positions, and as a result money was always tight. During one of our many evenings in together watching TV and drinking beer, I groused about how the girl's jobs (they both worked in a shoe shop in the main shopping mall in the city centre) paid better than mine, and that if only I had the time for a second job to earn some more cash. It was then that Heather made a rather startling suggestion.
"You could always, y'know, donate some of your sperm!" she said, a proposition that immediately caused Molly to burst out laughing and almost choke on the mouthful of tortilla chips she'd just managed to swallow.
"You what?" I replied in bemusement at her idea. "Me? Becoming a sperm donor? One of those sad blokes who go and have a wank into a little pot in order to help some childless couple to have a kid because hubby's firing blanks? No way!"
"No, I'm serious!" Heather insisted. "My brother told me he did it when he was at uni - he said it was the easiest money he'd ever made!"
"What? Karl? As in Mister "I'm an alpha male but with a soft, sensitive side once you get to know me" Karl?" Molly chuckled.
"Of course I mean Karl - he
is
the only brother I have!" Heather retorted.
"Unless there's something your dad never told your mum about!" Molly giggled, which earned her a sharp jab in the ribs courtesy of Heather's elbow.
"Forty quid a go, he told me," Heather carried on in spite of Molly's continued mirth at the subject.
"Forty quid? Just for going into a little room and having a wank in front of some porno mags with dog-eared pages that are all stuck together with other men's jizz? Ewww!" Molly went on regardless of the frankly evil look that Heather was giving her.
"Look, it was just a suggestion, okay?" Heather said huffily as Molly continued to laugh unabatedly.
"Yeah, a bloody stupid one!" Molly fired back. "I mean, Richard? Becoming a sperm donor? That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard!"
"And what's so ridiculous about it?" I said, weighing in to the developing argument myself.
Well, I had to, didn't I - my virility was being called into question, and there was no way I was about to allow that to happen!
"You realise they only accept the highest quality cum, don't you?" Molly sniggered. "I doubt your little swimmers would ever make the grade!"
"Well, we shall see, won't we?" I said, feeling a sudden rush of bravado and determination to prove her wrong. "I'll do it! And then we'll see who's laughing!"
And that was how it all began.
A couple of weeks later, following a chat with my doctor who made me an appointment for a sperm count, I found myself sitting in the fertility and embryology department of Leeds City Infirmary. It was a fairly typical NHS facility - plastic chairs, posters on the wall about various ailments, a receptionist behind a glass screen and nurses to-ing and fro-ing through a set of double doors that led into the department's inner sanctum. I was feeling a mixture of excitement and nervousness - excitement of the thought of being able to masturbate in unfamiliar surroundings and being able for the first time in my life to say that it was for a reason other than for self-gratification, and nervousness at what the ultimate result of my sperm count might be. The nagging thought that I might be totally infertile refused to go away. Several times as I waited for my name to be called, I considered backing out and going home, and I was about to get to my feet and do just that, until at that very moment my name was called.
"Richard Selworth?" the nurse called out as she approached the waiting area.
"Umm, yeah, that's me," I said as I stood up.
"I see you're here for a sperm count," she said, a little too loudly for my liking, as she consulted her clipboard.
"Er, yeah, that's right," I replied, feeling somewhat embarrassed.