Beth: Can I come upstairs?

Val: Sure. I have a couple things to talk to you about.

Beth: Cool. I’ll be up in a minute.

Beth grabbed her jacket and put her hair in a quick braid. She went upstairs to Val’s apartment. They were sitting on the couch with a coffee mug and a newspaper.

“Where’s everyone else?” she asked, taking off her shoes.

“Roman’s at school, Thomas and Rose are working, and everyone else went out for the day.”

“Oh.”

“Which is my nice way of saying I kicked them out so I could have some peace and quiet while I clean the house.” Beth giggled. “So, what do you need?”

“Oh. Um… I don’t know.” She sat on the couch with them. “I was just getting kinda lonely.”

“I see.” Beth leaned in, closing her eyes. “Ah. That kind of lonely.”

“I made my decision.”

“About?”

“I want to be your partner.” Val hummed and caressed her cheek, kissing her. “Oh… Katie was right.”

“There’s no way that’s a good thing,” Val joked.

“You’re a really good kisser.”

“May I kiss you again?”

“Yes, please.” They set their coffee down and deeply kissed her. Beth slid closer, melting into the kiss. “Mm, Val…”

“Do you wear Chapstick?” they asked, pulling away.

“Yeah. Strawberry flavor for life,” Beth mumbled, dazed from the kiss.

“Huh. I like it.” They grabbed their coffee and took a drink. “So, you were talking about watching Roman after dinner the other night?”

“Hm? Oh, yeah. Yeah, he’d be nice.”

*Well, I talked to him and Thomas. They both agreed to have a playdate tomorrow, if that works for you.”

“Why does Thomas need to agree?”

“Well, Thomas is Roman’s Dom. He’s…” Val trailed off at Beth’s confused expression.

“I wondered you were everyone’s Dom?” she asked.

“I am. But Thomas is… How do I explain this best? Umm… Thomas and Roman have been together for longer than they’ve been with me. Thomas is Roman’s Daddy, and Roman is a little. He age-regresses and likes to act like a child.”

“Okay.” Beth slowly nodded.

“It’ll make more sense when you spend time with him. Anyways, they spend most of their time with each other, but sometimes they come to me for a little extra attention. Does that make sense?”

“Sure.” She kissed their cheek. “Um, so now that I’m sort of your partner, am I supposed to, um, call you Sir?”

“If you want. Call me whatever you want. Hell, you can call me a fucking asshole, if you want,” they chuckled.

“And, um… you- you asked me a while ago about your open relationship and if- if I was comfortable with it.”

“Beth, I want you to do whatever you’re comfortable with. If you’re comfortable with just me, we can do that. If you wanna hang out with my other partners, we can do that, too.”

“Just you.”

“And you’re good with me being with others?”

“Mhmm.”

“Okay, sweetheart.” They leaned in and kissed her again. “I have cleaning to do. So, unless you’d like to clean with me, I’ll see you tomorrow at four.”

“Four o’clock. Got it. Uh, what should I wear?”

“Whatever you’re comfortable in.” She gave them a final peck and got up from the couch.

•••

Beth took a deep breath, scanning her keycard. The elevator doors opened and Val smiled at her.

“Hey, sweetheart.” They took her by the waist, leaning down to kiss her. “I want you to remember that you can leave at any time for any reason.”

“I know.”

“I have to finish setting up the playroom. You can wait out here for a few minutes. Roman and Thomas should be here any minute.” They kissed her again and walked away. She sat on the couch, bouncing her leg nervously. She didn’t know what she was supposed to do.

“Sir! We’re here!” Roman called as soon as the elevator opened. “Hi, Beth!”

“Hey, Roman.” He skipped over, sitting next to her. Thomas made a beeline to the kitchen.

“How are you?” Roman asked.

“A- A little nervous.”

“I get it.” He smiled at her. “My first time was a little scary, too. But Daddy was there to help me and Val was really nice. They’re an amazing Dom. You’ll have fun, even if you’re just watching.”

“Thanks, Roman.” Val walked into the living room and Beth’s heart almost stopped. They were wearing a half-unbuttoned shirt tucked into their high-waisted pants. It looked incredibly Hot.

“Roman? Are you ready, Princey?” He hopped up from the couch and Thomas stepped out from the kitchen. “Ah, there you are.”

“Just prepping aftercare.” Val nodded and took Roman’s hand. Beth got up and followed the three of them down the hall. She froze in the doorway of the playroom, unable to take another step.

“Beth?” Val gently knocked on the doorframe and she snapped out of her trance. They nodded and looked back in the room. “Give us a minute, you two.”

“Yes, Sir,” Roman and Thomas said together. Val stepped into the hallway, shutting the door most of the way. They looked down at Beth, concerned.

“What’s wrong, sweetheart? Are you okay? Do you need to leave?”

“I- I haven’t been in a playroom since Jake. And he–” Beth shuddered.

“It’s okay.” Val gently caressed her face, looking into her eyes. “Do you want to do this?”

“Y- Yes.”

“You’re sure?”

“No.”

“Do you want to look around the playroom first? Would that help your anxiety?”

“Maybe.”

“Okay. If it’s too much for you, you can leave at any time.” Val opened the door and Beth tightly grabbed their hand as they walked in. She heard a scream and flinched, but it was just Roman squealing as Thomas ran a feather duster over his neck.

“Sorry, Sir,” Thomas said, quickly putting the feather duster back. Val smiled and Beth let go of their hand, looking around the room.

“What do you think?” they asked, quiet enough that only she could hear them. The playroom was large, with dark blue walls that were lined with toys, and a few pieces of furniture scattered around the room.

“Okay,” she breathed. “Okay. There’s… a lot of toys.”

“Are the toys scaring you?” they asked. She gave a small nod and they walked to a rolling cart in the middle of the room. They picked up a tablet and tapped the screen a couple times. The lights dimmed around the walls so Beth could hardly see the toys.

“Oh…” she breathed, her eyes watering. This had to be the only thing anyone had ever done to make her comfortable. Val looked at her questioningly and she nodded.

“The chair’s all yours, or you can sit on the bed with Thomas,” they said. She sat in a black chair in the corner, easily sinking into the cushion. “Come here, Princey.”

Val stood in the center of the room, their tablet in hand. Roman skipped over, looking up at them with an eager grin.

“Tell me your safewords,” Val said, holding his chin.

“Green means go, yellow means slow, red means stop, blue means end scene.”

“Good boy,” Val cooed. Roman flushed proudly, clasping his hands behind his back. “Take your clothes off.”

“Yes, Sir.” Roman turned towards Thomas, slowly taking off his t-shirt to reveal a skin-toned binder.

“Take off your binder, baby. I don’t want you getting hurt.”

“Actually, Sir,” Thomas piped up, “I told Roman to leave his underwear on tonight.”

“No. Nothing above the waist, Prince,” Val said. “Not when you’re getting tied up.”

“Okay, Sir,” he mumbled. He took off his binder, looking at his feet. “Can I talk to Daddy for a second?”

“Of course, Prince.” Roman ran over to Thomas and he tightly hugged him, whispering sweetly. After a minute, Roman was standing in front of Val again.

“I’m green again.”

“Good boy.” Val kissed the top of his head. They walked to the table and picked up a long piece of red rope. Beth watched as they wove an intricate pattern across Roman’s body, tying knots in different spots. “Color?”

“Green.” Val stepped back to admire their work. Roman’s arms were tied in a prayer position behind his back, and Val had created a decorative rope harness over his torso. Beth was surprisingly excited by it.

“Beth?” She snapped her attention to Val. “Any questions?”

“Uh, how did you do that?”

“It’s called kinbaku. Japanese bondage. I have a lot of practice.”

“They can do it blindfolded, even!” Roman said excitedly. He bounced on his toes and Val gently tousled his hair.

“Calm down,” they said. “Show’s not over yet, Princey.”

“It’s not?” Roman sounded fearful and excited at the same time.

“Color?”

“Green.”

“Good. Thomas, can I get an extra hand?” Thomas got up from the bed. He gently tugged on the ropes around Roman, nodding in approval. “Baby, tell me your suspension rules.”

“I’m getting suspended?” Roman asked excitedly.

“Rules, Roman,” Val said sternly. They grabbed the tablet from the table and ropes descended from the ceiling.

“I will do exactly what you tell me to do. And I will tell you as soon as something hurts or feels wrong.”

“Good.” Val nodded. “And?”

“And… Oh! I will not squirm or fidget.”

“Why?”

“Because I could get seriously injured if I break these rules.”

“Good boy.” Roman grinned and reached up for a kiss. Val deeply kissed him as Beth watched, feeling slightly jealous. “Leg back.”

“Which one?”

“Your choice.” Roman kicked his left leg back and Val grabbed his ankle. They grabbed the rope that had come from the ceiling and cuffed the rope around his ankle. Val grabbed another rope, this one lacking a cuff, and began carefully tying it around Roman’s torso.

“Color.”

“Green.”

“Everything’s tight?”

“But not too tight,” Roman said. Beth stood up and walked closer, getting a better view of Roman’s bondage. He proudly showed off the ropes to her. “I’m ready, Sir.”

“Okay. Thomas, spot.”

“On it,” Thomas said. He came around in front of Roman. “Having fun, baby?”

“Mhmm.” Roman gasped as the ropes suddenly tightened, lifting him into the air. Val sharply looked up at the noise. “Green. I’m green, Sir.”

“Oh, you look so cute like that, baby,” Thomas cooed. Roman’s left leg was lifted into the air so he was almost doing the splits. He was resting on the toes of his right foot, and the ropes around his torso were helping so not all of his weight was on his right leg.

“You have five minutes like that, Princey.”

“Aww, but, Sir~” Roman whined. He pouted cutely and Val sighed.

“Fine. Ten.” He smiled as Val tapped on the tablet. Beth stepped over to them. “Hey, sweetheart. Enjoying the demonstration?”

“Can you do that to me?”

“Okay, calm down,” Val chuckled. “You haven’t even tried basic bondage. I’m not throwing you in the deep end when I don’t even know if you’ll enjoy it. Besides, seeing something done and experiencing it are two very different things.”

“I’ve done bondage before.”

“Did you enjoy it?” Beth was silent. “Beth, I Love your enthusiasm, but I don’t want to risk you getting hurt. Suspension is dangerous, even for people who know what they’re doing.”

“Oh~” Roman sighed. Thomas was running a finger over his panties.

“Thomas…” Val said warningly. “No fidgeting. You can wait until after.”

“But ten minutes is so long~!” Roman whined.

“Eight minutes. Keep whining and I’ll cut it back down to five.” Roman fell quiet and Beth giggled.

“How do you do that?”

“Do what?”

“Just, like, tell them what to do?”

“I don’t know. Dominance just comes naturally to me, I guess. Why?”

“I’ve at all times wanted to try being a top,” Beth sighed wistfully. The tablet beeped and Roman was lowered to the ground. Thomas helped him keep his balance. Val walked over to untie the suspension ropes.

“Good job, baby,” they murmured, kissing the top of his head. They reached for the ropes on his body but he pulled away.

“Can I stay tied, Sir? Please?”

“Ask your Daddy.” Roman batted his eyelashes at Thomas.

“Sure, baby.” He looked at Val. “Can you Free his arms?”

“Yep.” Val carefully untied the knots around Roman’s arms, freeing his arms while still keeping the rest of the ropes on his body. Roman jumped up and tightly hugged them.

“Thank you, Sir!”

“You’re welcome, baby.” Thomas grabbed one of the ropes on Roman’s body and dragged him over to the bed. Val chuckled and turned to Beth. “We should give them some alone time.”

“Yep.” They left the playroom as Roman started moaning. “Thanks for the demonstration.”

“Of course. I’m glad you enjoyed it.”

“Can we, um, can I, I mean–“

“Use your words,” they teased.

“How do you be a Dom?”

“Maybe once you’ve learned more about kink, maybe we’ll have to do a little… demonstration.” They ran a hand along her jaw and she blushed. They took her hand and led her out to the living room. “You’ll have to learn to be a good sub first.”

“Is that how you learned?” They suddenly dropped to their knees and Beth blushed as they looked up at her.

“Oh, Mistress, how may I serve you?” they purred, running a hand up her stomach. She grabbed their wrist, deeply inhaling.

“Did I say you could touch me?” she asked, trying to make her voice firm. Val smirked and got up.

“Needs a little more confidence, but very good. Almost creamed my shorts.” They gave her a kiss and she could see a faint blush on their cheeks. “Don’t worry. We’ll make a dominatrix out of you, yet.”