Amelia had been taking part in medical trials for several years as a way to earn some extra money. She had taken a cocktail of drugs, and been involved in a wide range of therapies, all with no issue.
She had almost saved enough for a deposit on a flat, and was looking through a list of current available medical trials to see if there were any that could give her the money she needed. Most of the adverts were not suitable - looking for men, or elderly people, or people with a disease - but at the very bottom of the list:
Young women sought for study into female sexual stimulation and orgasm. Duration: One day. £5000 pay. Contact Doctor Harris on xxxxx.
£5000 was an incredible amount of money for a one day trial, and would get her well over the deposit she was aiming for. But a trial looking at sexual stimulation and orgasm? She wasn't innocent by any means, but she hadn't had sex since she had broken up with her boyfriend, and she didn't know how she felt about doctors and nurses seeing her in that way. She'd never even had a smear test. £5000 was such a lot of money though, and she would only have to endure a day of whatever the trial was.
Before she talked herself out of it, she picked up her phone, and typed in Doctor Harris' number. He answered on the third ring.
"Hello, Doctor Harris speaking." It was a man's voice.
"Hi. Um, I'm calling about the study. I saw your advert."
"The study into female sexual stimulation and orgasm?" He said, casually.
"Yes, um, that one. Are you still looking for someone?" She asked.
"We are indeed. Can I ask who is calling?"
"Amelia. Amelia Collins."
"Right, Amelia, yes I see your details on the database. You're 22?"
"Yeah."
"And have you had any sexual experience?"
"Yeah, uh, with my boyfriend. But it's been a while." Amelia blushed.
"That won't be a problem. Will you be able to attend the study this Friday?"
"Um, yeah. I should be able to."
"I'll email you the details. Thanks Amelia, looking forward to seeing you on Friday." Doctor Harris said. Amelia couldn't help but notice the eager tone with which he said he was looking forward to seeing her.
"See you then."
The instructions he sent were simple compared to other trials Amelia had been part of, and didn't give much detail with regards to what would actually be happening. She couldn't have sex 24 hours prior (which really wouldn't be an issue with her current sex life), and she had to remove all of her pubic hair.
___________
On Friday morning, she woke to her alarm, unlocking her phone to see the notification labelled 'Trial Day'. She felt like a whole swarm of butterflies were whizzing around in her stomach as she ate her breakfast. 'It will be fine' she said to herself. 'It's only one day, how bad can it be? And then you'll have the money to buy a flat, and you can decorate it and get a cat. It will all be worth it.'
She got the bus to the trial centre. It was a small, brick building, with lots of windows. She entered through the sliding automatic doors, and walked up to the reception desk.
"Hi, I'm Amelia Collins. I'm here to see Doctor Harris."
"Ah yes, for the trial? Doctor Harris will be just with you. If you would like to take a seat, and start filling out the consent form." The receptionist handed her a clipboard and a pen.
The consent form had the standard questions - name, birthdate, medical history. But, there was also a section labelled 'Sexual Experience' which required Amelia to answer a variety of questions such as her ability to orgasm, and detail about her previous sexual encounters. She understood the nature of the study she was signing up for, but she felt uneasy answering those private questions.
She turned to the last page, which had a long statement like that you would find on a contract. A section at the bottom was bold:
This form acts as consent for contact to sexual organs from staff members, in addition to sexual stimulation from the Rubyâ„¢ 250 machine. It also acts as consent for control of movement in aid of the trial.
Amelia's stomach tied in a knot reading about the 'Ruby Machine' and 'control of movement' but she wasn't about to back out now. She scribbled her signature at the bottom of the form.
"Amelia Collins?"
Amelia looked up to see Doctor Harris standing in the waiting room. He looked to be in his early 40s, and was very handsome. He wore a blue button up shirt, and tortoiseshell rimmed glasses.
"Hiya." Amelia said, shyly. She noticed him staring at her as she walked towards him, probing her with her eyes. It made her feel uneasy.
Amelia followed him into a small office. They sat, and Doctor Harris started looking through the consent form.
"All looks okay. So you're probably wondering what it is we're going to be doing today?"
"Yeah." Amelia said, laughing nervously.
"Well, we're testing a new machine called the Rubyâ„¢ 250. It's designed for female sexual stimulation, for use in sex shops and, most importantly, for research into female sexuality and orgasm." Doctor Harris explained.
"Okay."
"You will be strapped into the machine, and we will monitor your reaction to the stimulation. We run a traffic light system - amber for pause, red for stop, green for go. Do you have any questions?"
"Um, yeah, I did want to ask about the bit in the consent form talking about 'control of movement'?"
"Ah yes. You will be restrained while in the machine. The Ruby detects and stimulates nerves, so the margin of error is very small, and it is required that you keep completely still. Still sound okay?"
"Yeah. Uh, yes." Amelia said, as if trying to convince herself.
"Okay. Let's go through."
They entered a door into a large room that looked disturbingly like an operating theatre. In the middle of the room stood the Rubyâ„¢ 250. It looked a bit like a CT scanner, with the bed enclosed in a tube. At the end of the bed were a set of stirrups, and there were metal prongs sticking out with various attachments.
"If you could remove all of your clothes, including your underwear, and put this on please." Doctor Harris handed her a medical gown.
"Sure."
She felt very exposed walking out in the medical gown, which barely covered her. But then, they were going to see her completely naked so there was no point in getting embarrassed at this stage.
Another man, and a women had joined the room while she was getting changed and they were busy getting things set up.
"Ah good, you're all dressed. We have been joined by Peter Grant, who is the project manager of the group that design the Ruby machines, and our nurse, Kate. Do you need to go to the toilet before we get started?"
"Um, no. I'm good, thank you."
"Okay. Excellent."
Doctor Harris got Amelia to lie down on the bed, which he slid forward into the Ruby machine.
"If you could put your arms by your side, we're just going to pop your legs in these stirrups, and then the machine will do the rest of the work."
Doctor Harris placed Amelia's legs in the stirrups, strapping them in tightly. He walked over to the control panel and pressed a button. The machine whirred to life. An opaque screen with padding at the bottom came down on her torso, acting to hold down her body and arms, and block her view. The stirrups moved so her legs were wide and held back, giving full access. She could feel cool air on her labia, and felt very exposed knowing that the three of them were looking at her most intimate area. She experimentally tried to shift, but with the screen and the stirrups, it was impossible to move more than a centimeter in any direction.
"Comfortable?" The nurse asked.
"As I can be, yes." Amelia replied.
"Okay, let's start." Doctor Harris said, retreating to the end of the bed.
Amelia couldn't see Doctor Harris or the nurse through the screen, but she could hear their faint voices, and the sound of them setting up. She tried to calm her breathing.
She heard the squirt of a bottle.