Juliana was a college freshman with the typical physique of a ballerina: slim and graceful, usually not attracting guys' interest.
Her first week in classes, hazing rituals, and parties passed by in which she made no friends, all alone in the courtyard, head hung low. She wore a loose tee shirt and carried herself timorously.
And then she saw him for the first time.
He leaned against a tree, surveying everything with detached calmness. Tall, with disheveled brown hair and an enigmatic expression, he showed not a whit of concern for the noise around him. His eyes had only one focus: Juliana. A shiver ran down her spine.
He smiled faintly and approached her, his steps at a languid, almost clock-slow pace, as if time would bend to his whim.
"Are you alone?" he asked, his deep, seductive voice ringing in her ears.
Juliana blushed and looked away, but something inside her refused to retreat. His smile grew wider, and for a moment, it almost seemed predatory.
"My name is Rafael."
"Juliana."
"I like you, freshman. I've got a special hazing ritual in mind. but it's only for those with courage. Do you have it?"
She should have said no. She should have laughed politely and moved on. But she couldn't.
"What kind of special ritual?"
"Something you won't forget." He held out his hand, not elaborating.
Curiosity got the better of her, and she placed her hand in his. He took her off-campus, down streets she didn't know, to a building that looked utterly unremarkable.
They climbed the stairs in silence, her heart racing at every step. On the top floor, he unlocked a door with a key from his pocket.
The room was both sumptuous and intimidating. The sun was shut out by heavy curtains, and the room was steeped in red. Juliana made out leather armchairs, shelves full of strange objects, and right in the middle of the room, a bed of solid wood.
"Welcome to my hideout."
Juliana swallowed hard.
"What. what are we going to do here?"
"Your initiation. Here, I push people's limits. But you have to agree to participate. If you don't want to, you can leave now, and we'll never speak of this again. But if you stay, you must follow all my instructions."
She should have run. Instead, Juliana took a step forward.
"I want to stay."
Rafael smiled, and in that moment, Juliana knew she had crossed an invisible line. He began circling her, studying her like a sculptor in front of a block of marble.
He led her into the middle of the room and asked her to take off her shoes and sit down in one of the armchairs.
"How many guys have you slept with?
The question caught her off guard. Though his eyes had been riveted to her body, she had naively not expected the ritual to involve anything sexual.
"N-none," she stammered, her face aflame.
Rafael laughed loudly. He had suspected her inexperience but had not expected her to be quite so innocent.
"A virgin?"
Juliana looked down, nodding.
