*** AUTHOR'S NOTE****
*** Thanks to everyone who's been keeping up with this story of mine.
*** I appreciate all of your encouraging words and serious suggestions.
*** I'm sorry for such long delays between chapters, but with married life, work,
*** an infant, and going back to school in middle age... time is at a premium.
*** I welcome your comments and communication.
*** Thank you! - HW
*
With a sigh of relief, Jason threw the last load of cardboard up and over the rim into the apartment building's dumpster.
'Oh, thank the flat-pack gods, I'm finished!'
he thought.
The sun was setting on a pleasant Sunday evening. But Jason hadn't enjoyed the lovely day (nor much of the previous day, for that matter). No, he had been stuck in his new apartment/office putting together furniture.
While he still intended to mostly stay at his family home, he wanted to work and sleep at the new apartment as needed. He also wanted Evie and her friends to have a studio for their photo and video shoots.
So, Jason had told Evie--his eighteen-year-old little sister, business partner, and lover--to get some basic furniture for the new place. When Jason showed up Saturday afternoon to give his sister a hand setting up the new place, he was gobsmacked by the number of boxes waiting for him.
Thankfully, Evelin had batted her eyelashes and shook her rump a bit at the delivery drivers. That's probably why they'd agreed to wheel each heavy box to its appropriate room. He suspected that had he been there at the time, they would have been much less accommodating.
Regardless, the task was now complete. Their new place was kitted out with more put-together furniture than a freshman dormitory.
Evie also purchased some basic photography gear, lights, and a green screen that she had set up in the living room before heading out the day before.
As it stood, a few items were still outstanding--chief among them were mattresses--but all in all, the new place was coming together nicely.
The apartment had two bedrooms. The master came equipped with a private bathroom and a walk-in closet. It was reserved for the girls.
The smaller bedroom was Jason's new "office." It was very similar to Jason's current bedroom. A nice-sized computer desk took up about half the space, and a bed took up the other half.
Evie and Jason had spent many nights cuddled up together in his twin-sized bed at home. It could be nice, but also a bit cramped. So, they'd opted for a larger bed at the apartment. As a result, the room was rather full, but Jason didn't mind.
Even though there were no mattresses, Jason had decided to spend Saturday night at the new apartment to get right to work on Sunday.
It hadn't been horrible, their new couch being more than adequate, but he was looking forward to sleeping in his own bed tonight.
Leaving the remaining cleanup for later, Jason gathered up his things and headed for the bus stop.
About an hour later, as he stepped through the front door of his lifelong home, Jason's mood immediately changed. Being at the apartment had been light, fun, and hopeful for the future. Being back home just felt heavy.
Even setting aside the years of painful memories, just the past week had been a bit rough.
A little over a week ago, after months of prep work, Jason finally had sex with his mother. It had been nothing like he'd imagined. Indeed calling it "awkward" would far be too generous.
Janice, Jason's mother, had given in to Jason's secret hypnotic programming. After weeks of hypnotic conditioning, she'd finally allowed him to bed her. Still, clearly, it was a duty for her, mostly devoid of any lust or passion.
First, she'd almost backed out, and Jason had to constantly reassure her, even guilt her into keeping her word.
And while it seemed she really enjoyed the actual act, once Jason finished, she'd nearly broken down into tears as she quickly kicked him out of her bedroom.
To be fair, it was a massive breakthrough in Jason's plan, and he was thrilled at the time. But all-in-all, it hadn't been as satisfying as he'd hoped.
After their first encounter, Jason had altered her programming. He'd changed the focus away from feeling obligated toward Jason. He wanted her to genuinely desire to please him and submit to him.
He wanted her to believe that doing so was the only way to save their family. He hoped that her motherly instincts to put family first would help break down the mental barriers that were getting in his way.
However, to his frustration, in the nine days since their encounter, Janice had avoided her son like the plague.
At first, Jason figured she'd just needed to process things, but after a few days, it became clear to him that she was actively avoiding him.
She continued to use the app on a daily basis, and Jason had hoped she'd come around, but after an entire week of no contact, he'd all but given up.
That's why being home felt so heavy to him. He really wasn't sure what to do. Maybe it was really time to move out. He'd promised both of his sisters that he'd save this family, but perhaps he wasn't up to the task.
Those thoughts weighing him down, Jason didn't even notice his mother sitting quietly and alone in the dark living room.
"Jason, I'm glad," Janice started.
"Whoa! Holy shit! Mom, you scared the crap out of me. Why are you sitting in the dark? Where is everyone?"
"Beth is in her room, studying, I think. And Evelin is in the kitchen," she responded, gesturing toward the kitchen with a flick of her eyes and a nod of her head.
"In here, big bro!" came Evie's voice as if on cue, "You hungry? I'll fix you a plate."
"Uh, sure," Jason called back as he stepped toward the kitchen.
"Jason," his mother interrupted him, whispering. "You didn't come home last night." Her voice was tight, obviously attempting to conceal some severe emotion.
"No, I spent the night at my new apartment," Jason said somewhat abruptly. He didn't want to sound too angry and thereby put his mother on the defensive, but he also wanted her to know that she had played a role in that decision.
"A-Apartment!?" Janice blurted out, tripping over the word and forgetting they were whispering. "But, we...uh...I thought we'd addressed that," she added, returning to hushed tones.
"Yeah, I thought we had too," Jason responded, a hint of venom in his voice. "But then you avoided me for the past week."
At that point, Jason turned, fully facing his mother, and looked her square in her eyes. "This might be a game to you, Janice. But I'm not playing anymore.
"I thought...," he continued, dropping his gaze and changing his tone to one of anguish. "I thought you were ready to save this family, to protect this family," he said, referencing her hypnotic programming. "But, clearly not. I'm done, Janice."
With that, he walked out of the room, ignoring his mother's whispered pleas calling out after him, "Jason... Wait, Son... Please..."
Moments later, Janice stood and retreated to her bedroom. As she passed by the kitchen, Jason was pretty sure she was sobbing, but she was clearly trying to hide it, so he couldn't be sure.
For her part, Evelin seemed utterly oblivious to the exchange as she busied herself making a plate for her brother.
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