This is the first chapter of the novella "Inspired - The erotic tale of an aspiring writer's journey into bondage". The rest can be found on Amazon (link in profile)
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If you want to be a writer, you must do the research. Emma’s words kept repeating in Isabel’s mind as she rang the doorbell. The dirty, unassuming back alley smelled like urine and beer, and the muted sound of dance music could be heard from the building behind her. Isabel looked down and tried to hide her face when a bartender emptied a box of bottles into a dumpster nearby.
What am I doing here? She considered leaving before the door opened, but she knew that Emma would interrogate her the next day; she had no choice. Whatever awaited at the other side of the door could not be worse than weeks of ridicule from her best friend.
She heard the lock turn. Her heart started racing.
“Yes?” A bearded face appeared in the doorway. Loud music blasted in the background.
“Good evening. I am… I am here for the …”
The man smiled. It was a pleasant, warm smile that made Isabel’s heart rate return to a healthier level. “First time?”
She nodded and blushed.
“Don’t worry, everyone here is very polite. Come on in.”
The man opened the door to a room with a small cloakroom to the side. The light was red and muted, exactly as Isabel had expected. She took off her coat and handed it to the pleasant man. She used the opportunity to check herself in a large mirror; the website had been very insistent on the dress code, but Isabel had found ‘black’ to be a vague requirement. She felt good in the tight, black jeans and the high-cut, black t-shirt; a small part of her midriff was showing, and she felt grateful that Emma had gotten her back into the gym half a year earlier. The auburn hair was tied in a long braid with a few strands of loose hair teasingly, and deliberately, flowing down on each side of her sun-kissed face.
She noticed the doorman checking her out in the mirror and sent him an awkward smile.
“Is this okay to wear in here?” she asked.
He blushed and nodded. “It’ll do fine. Have a nice evening.”
Isabel entered a large, industrial-looking area with plenty of exposed brick and piping in the ceiling. A bar occupied the left wall, and soft, inviting chairs and sofas were placed in small groups on the floor. The muted red light and loud music made it feel like an upscale bar, had it not been for the countless X-crosses, chains, and cages along the walls. Isabel shuddered at the thought of what was hiding in the hallways and rooms connected to the main room. Occasionally, the sound of whiplashes could be heard through the music, and Isabel noticed that several of the cages were occupied by men and women, some naked, some dressed in leather or latex.
You did it. You’re here, she thought. Now what? Isabel had never been to a club like this in her life, never even tried BDSM, and she felt like a fish thoroughly out of water. Groups of people were drinking and chatting at the bar and in the sofas, but Isabel did not feel like approaching. Nervousness mixed with excitement and made her fingers tingle.
At that moment, a woman sitting at the bar noticed her and came over. “You here alone?” she asked with a smile.
Isabel nodded and fiddled with her hair.
The woman shook Isabel’s hand and looked her up and down. “You are a gorgeous woman. Come sit with me before someone talks you into something you might regret. The first rule here: It’s okay to say no. I’m Kate.”
“Isabel. Isabel Mi …”
The woman raised a finger to interrupt her. “First names only, dear.” She smiled and led Isabel to the bar. “So, Isabel, what brings you here? What are your kinks?”
Isabel bit her lip while she pondered her answer. The woman had grey streaks in her dark hair and charming wrinkles around her eyes, but time had been kind to her, and the slim, black dress with leather midriff showed off a fit body. Her smile and posture exuded confidence and assertiveness.
Isabel told her the truth: “I… I don’t know. I’ve been trying to write an erotic novel for a while and …”
“Needed inspiration?” The woman laughed when Isabel blushed and looked down. “Don’t worry, I get it. You must be intimidated by what you are seeing. No one expects you to engage in BDSM, especially if you’re not into it.”
“I wouldn’t know, I never tried it. I have read about it, but whenever I write, it just falls flat.” Isabel paused. “I guess I don’t know what causes people to seek it out.” She looked questioning at Kate.
“There’s not one single reason. I’m a hardcore submissive myself.” Kate laughed. “Don’t look so surprised; I boss people around for a living, it’s an escape for me. There’s great freedom in being bound and told what to do, as long as the person in charge knows what they’re doing.”
A young man approached the two women and sent Isabel a confident smile. “I haven’t seen you here before. Would you like to join me in one of the adjoining rooms?”
Isabel became flabbergasted and looked at Kate, who just smiled. “I… I must decline, I… I have a boyfriend?”
The man laughed. “You don’t sound too sure. No hard feelings, enjoy your evening.” He winked at Kate and left.
“Saying ‘no’ is always acceptable here, Isabel, don’t feel bad.” Kate looked at the man, who was now sitting and laughing with a small group nearby. “Besides, going with Carlos would probably be a rough start.” She absent-mindedly stroked her lower lip with her finger. “Do you want to know how it feels to be bound?”
Isabel hesitated; it had not been part of the plan if there ever was one. “I’m not sure. Maybe.”
“You don’t have to take your clothes off, and no one will start whipping you or do anything you don’t feel comfortable with. I’ll be with you the whole time.”
Isabel felt warm and dizzy as Kate took her hand and dragged her down a nearby hallway. They passed several rooms; most doors were closed with ‘Occupied’ signs on them, but some were open and offered Isabel a glimpse of various sexual acts as well as sessions of what her mind perceived as torture. The brief image of a man with needles in his penis stuck in her mind as Kate pulled her into a small room with mats on the floor. It was pleasantly lit and reminded Isabel of a yoga studio.
“Oh, hi Kate. Didn’t know you were here tonight,” said a friendly-looking, older man. A crystal-white smile lit up the tanned face. He was in the middle of tying up a young woman, who sat calmly on a stool in the middle of the room. “And who is your friend?”
“This is Isabel. It’s her first time, and she has never tried bondage.” Kate smiled. “Ever.”
“Ah, say no more.” The man finished a knot and put a gentle hand on the young woman’s shoulder. “Do you mind sitting here for a bit, dear?”
The woman looked up and smiled. “Not at all.” The ropes were wrapped tightly around her naked body in complex, beautiful patterns, her legs tied together, and her arms pulled behind her back. She winked at Isabel before closing her eyes.
“Bondage can be scary at first, so I’ll start you off very easy,” the man said and grabbed a coil of rope from the wall. “Tell me if it at any point becomes uncomfortable. Please, hold out your hands.”
Isabel had had no intention of engaging in bondage herself when she had left her apartment earlier that evening, but she felt oddly comfortable in the company of Kate and the friendly man. She watched, mesmerized, as the man quickly tied her hands. The feeling of the rope, the restrictiveness, surprised her. It was not unpleasant or scary, but she was very aware that she could not get out.
“Interesting,” she said. It was the only word that came to mind.
“Are you up for more?” Kate asked. She was visibly turned on by looking at Isabel’s tied hands.
Isabel nodded. “I think so.”
“You should probably not go much further tonight, but how about being ‘decoration’? You can experience being tied up, but you do not need to engage with anyone.”
Decoration? The thought was weirdly exciting, to Isabel’s surprise, but scary.
“Alright, I’ll try it. I guess I need more research.”
Kate thanked the man and pulled Isabel back into the main room by her tied hands. A few people turned and looked at them with a smile, and for a moment, Isabel was scared that anyone from work would walk in and see her tied up. She had spent an hour on the train to get far away from her home and work to avoid it, but the fear still lingered.
They entered a medium-sized playroom adjacent to the main area. A man was strapped face-down to a table in the middle of the room, being caned by a fierce-looking dominatrix in latex and the highest heels, Isabel had ever seen, while a woman was being flogged in the corner, tied to an X-shaped cross.
Kate started untying Isabel’s hands. “When I first came here, I would spend the evenings tied up like I’m about to do to you. It was a nice way in.”
Isabel was not sure how she felt about it, but Kate assured her that no one would try anything. She locked Isabel’s wrists in wide, stainless steel shackles that were attached to the wall with chains, leaving her hands slightly above shoulder height. Similar manacles were locked around Isabel’s knee-high, high-heeled boots.
“Isabel, you look amazing like this.” Kate took a step back and admired her handiwork. “This shouldn’t be too uncomfortable, but it is impossible to escape. I’ll check in on you regularly.”
Isabel nodded. An unpleasant knot formed in her stomach after Kate left the room; Isabel took a deep breath and tried to focus on how the restraints felt, tried to absorb the sensations so she could use them in her writing later. The cold metal felt strange against her wrists, and she was not sure she liked it. She felt a slight panic starting to set in, and Isabel was suddenly very aware that she had lost control, that she could not escape until someone unlocked her shackles. She tested the restraints, rattled the chains, but they were too tight to slip out of.
She looked around the room, tried to distract herself. Isabel was fascinated by the whipping session taking place not far from where she was standing. The woman both moaned and screamed when the flogger hit her exposed breasts, and after a while, tears flowed down her cheeks. Her breasts were red and bruised, yet she smiled when the man with the whip approached to release her. Isabel could not imagine how pain could make any person smile like that.
The couple left the room, and Isabel’s attention once again returned to her predicament. I am standing in a dark room, an hour from home. No one knows where I am, and I am shackled to a wall. She could not help but laugh, but it did not alleviate the return of the panic, and she once again started pulling at her restraints. Luckily, Kate returned at that same moment.
“You look like you’ve had enough,” she said and smiled.
Isabel nodded. “Please let me out.” For a split second, Isabel wondered what she would do if Kate refused.
“Of course,” Kate said and unlocked the shackles. “How was it?”
“Scary,” Isabel said and looked at her wrist. Her struggles had left red marks. Shit. He’s coming home tomorrow, what if he sees this?
“It can be.” Kate gave Isabel a reassuring hug. “Will we see you here again?”
Probably not. “Maybe. I’m not sure.”
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