I was inspired to write this from a picture that captivated me. Unfortunately, my muse ran away with me leaving no way to complete this in one installment. Starting slow it gets pretty psychologically erotic as the story goes. It is not as overtly sexual as most stories tend to be on this site, though I believe it can be.
Long story short, I would love to know from the readership if this is something I should flesh out as a long piece. If you are interested, let me know and I will keep stitching away at the sensual threads. Thanks!
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Mallory pulled a coil of hair back from her cheek for the fortieth attempt, only to have it fall back down. All of it was supposed to be pulled up into a cute top knot deal; but rushing to get to the elevator had let one impolite clump wiggle out. Now she was sitting in this little but expensively decorated office trying not to sound too eager.
"Well yes, I have a background in performing. Dance mostly... well, and I learned some contortionism when I was with the ahhh, Solar Circus." Tremulous words and scattered thoughts.
She was blowing it!
She closed her eyes to calm her mind, cleared her thoughts and breathed for control. "Oh and I can play the viola. I mean I am no Chinese prodigy but- Oh, that sounded snarky didn't it?" Her mouth clamped shut, her eyes closed and she wanted to cry.
Yes, she was blowing it.
He chuckled at her. "It is ok, I get it. Would you like a drink or something?" His smile seemed real enough. Was his accent...Russian?
Ramon, Raphael, maybe Raul; Mallory fumbled with his name. His face was carved from wood, facial features sharply exaggerated with a pronounced brow bone and notched chin. His skin more of an olive color. The suit he wore was expensive but he wore it uncomfortably, neck and arms strained against the fabric to burst out of their confines. She was sure he was some sort of acrobat or contortionist who was somehow grounded to this desk job and interviewing silly flakes like her. She shook her head no and tried to look him in the eye.
"That is fine." R-man dismissed the offer smoothly. "If I may go on, Miss Mallory, how did you hear about us needing a new troupe performer?"
She knew why he was asking. She did some extensive searching of the group known as Intempora Faim and came up with little more than what her friend told her. Only people who partied above the 100th floor of jewel encrusted buildings knew anything about them. An elite performance group that specialized in lavish events for people who make celebrities look destitute. The average person would never know about them, let alone be able to walk into their corporate offices.
"Well, um yes, my friend Beatrice said she was sending both of our audition reels to you, I mean your company. I do not know where she heard of you. But that was months ago. I got an email to interview so-" She made the exaggerated jogging arms motion. As soon as she completed it she wanted to crawl under her chair. "I thought I would come down."
He just sat there, for what seemed to be an eternity, puzzling her out. His golden eyes bored through her. She was praying that she was not wincing. When he looked at the rest of her she felt fully exposed under his gaze, he knew exactly how her body looked in any position naked. She squirmed in her seat, her face warmed and she turned her head.
His words finally snapped the room back to normalcy. "Well, Miss Mallory, I think I have enough information here." He leaned over and placed his arms on the top of the oak desk , the suit straining against his rope coiled shoulders as the sleeves pulled up past his wrists. He spoke intently with a stern, fatherly expression. "You must understand, we do not have personal lives here, everyone is committed to their craft 16 hours a day. If you have a special someone or many friends, this place is not your fit."
"Oh no! You're my fit. I mean..." He looked at her entire body again. Her legs snapped together as she averted her gaze to the desktop. "I hardly see anyone and I have not been dating for months. I believe I will fit in well... in this company."
His eyes smiled, but his words kept the serious tone. "You may Miss Mallory. We have a few contracts for you to sign and employment forms."
Mallory nodded. R-man stood and she took his full body in. She imagined how he would look under his silk suit. A brilliant spectacle of a man that would make her insides ache. She could tell that each muscle was expertly crafted to work with the other and that included his abdomen. Realizing that she was gawking, she busied herself with the bratty tendril of hair that was laying against her cheek. R-man left the room, giving Mallory a respite from her insufferable embarrassment.
All at once, it hit her. She was going to be hired! Not a moment too soon; besides being a barista or store clerk there are not many job options when you have been trained to dance, twist your body into impossible positions and breathe fire while playing the violin. Her last 'real' paycheck was over a month ago. There was little in the fridge and bills were mounting.
In moments R-man returned with a stainless steel dossier. She scrawled signature after signature after signature. Some contracts were explained in great detail while others were rushed through, often given the explanation of a 'formality' or 'due to the type of clientele we have, precautions must be taken'.. In this line of work there was always more paperwork; injury waivers, non-disclosures, performer insurance, most normal jobs did not have as many circumstances. This was an entirely different situation, Mallory felt it would be easier to get a top secret clearance for the military. After an hour and a half she had finally come to the end of the dossier.
"The entry level pay is one hundred, seventy five thousand a year." R-man explained at the last form.
"Ok. Wait, a hundred and seventy five thousand?" Mallory breathed out the words with a squeak in her throat at the end.
"Yes, this is not to your liking?" R-man seemed annoyed.
"No, no, absolutely not. That is a great number. I am really happy with that number." She had never made more than sixty thousand a year and in the matter of a few hours she would be making three years of salary during the best time of her life. She could not wrap her mind around the number. This was happening so fast and so strangely, Mallory felt entranced and powerless. She blankly wondered what could possibly happen next.
R-man frowned a little. "I am sorry Miss Mallory, I have not been fully honest with you. You do not have a position with us yet."
Mallory blinked twice. "I'm sorry?"
"You see, all of the contracts had to be signed before you enter, due to legalities. It is then that you are to speak with my employer. If she accepts you, then you start your position with us." R-man weakly smiled, which did not suit his face and looked surreal. "But now we can go back if Miss Mallory is ready."
Distantly in Mallory's mind, this reminded her of video games. The inevitable scene where you are about to enter the lair of a boss and the game asks if you are ready to proceed. there are no saves from this point on and you must be prepared. Mallory could not think of anything that she could do to prepare, so she plunged in.
"That is ok, Ra-" What was his name, she was perturbed with herself. "...Sir, we can go now."
R-man walked to the oak wall behind his desk , pulled or gripped something and the wall swung away like a vault door, revealing a wide hallway of black tile and slate grey walls.
Epic video game boss lair unlocked.
She followed that stunning male figure down the long stretch of hallway. He moved like a jaguar. Just a little taller than Mallory, he was shorter than most men, yet fully proportional. He was a super hero sewn into a silk suit.
On either side of the wide hall were glass windows that revealed rehearsal studios. Almost all of them were occupied with abnormally beautiful people doing amazing things. In one, a group of near naked balancers were paired in male and female couples holding poses like sensual statues. they moved from one combination to the next ever so slowly. Curves and muscles pivoting seamlessly like two lovers underwater, teasing one another until the inevitable erotic embrace.
In another studio, scantily clad dancers were undulating in a fashion that was between ballet and belly dancing. It was then that Mallory began to notice something peculiar. Even the musicians were barely clothed while practicing or on break talking. Mallory had been around performing people for six years. Even if the costume they wore were not somewhat revealing, the performers usually practiced in sweats or something that was easy to move in, until stage rehearsals began. Yet, everyone looked as though they were in a strange lingerie modeling show.
"Uh, why is everyone barely dressed?" She could not help but to ask.
R-man never turned around. "Astrid wants all performers to be fully comfortable with their own skin. Our clients can have sensuous tastes and we must be able to fully accommodate that."
Mallory could not imagine ever getting used to the idea of being nearly fully stripped for 16 hours a day. She resigned herself to the idea that the pay compensated for the discomfort and to be around these people, she needed to exercise more.
The hallway ended with large ornate silver doors, two additional halls split left and right. R-man turned right. Besides the occasional stark piece of artwork in monochrome and red, this hallway was much less palpitating than the previous one. Mallory was relieved.
