Chapter 9 #2
Now in a foul mood, she switched back over to the Kinks app and answered Madison’s messages.
Daddy Vic: Birds fly south for the winter because, yikes, it’s too far to walk!
LOL. Wax can be exhilarating. Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.
Soft limits are there to be explored, right?
Remember when you were scared about “fun-ishments”?
And now you’re a fun-ishment junkie! (I’m teasing you).
Daddy Vic: I don’t remember who Kari is. Oh, wait. Yes, I do. She’s Jaleesa’s newest sub. Tall, pretty, plays the piano. Right? And…we’re all searching in one way or another, aren’t we? Searching for love, a place to belong, acceptance. All that.
Victoria sent the messages, wondering why she’d gotten so philosophical. “We’re all searching,” she mocked herself. “What the fuck was that?” She sighed and added a third message.
Daddy Vic: Good luck on your bird count thing. Let me know what the heck that’s all about. Do the birds line up, and you count them? LOL. Hey, Madison, why do hummingbirds hum?
Victoria sent the message and found herself in an infinitely better mood.
She switched over to the Sapphic D/s group she’d joined.
The topics were interesting, and she realized she had many opinions about the ones the admin posted.
She was ever mindful, however, of not turning into an Aunt Jenny offering advice no one wanted.
She’d been posting more often than she usually did in the Kinks groups she belonged to, and sometimes it seemed that she and the admin, Juicy_Babe, were talking back and forth to each other.
But that was cool, too. The woman was intelligent, had an intriguing homepage, and made everyone feel seen and welcome.
Such a mom. At first, Victoria thought she might be a Mommy Domme, but nothing in her posts and nothing on her homepage suggested that.
Some people were just naturally nurturing.
Victoria scoffed again. Aunt Jenny probably thought she was the epitome of a nurturing matriarch of the family, but her brand of interactions felt nothing like it.
She shook off her aunt, grateful she had only a week or so to sweat the dreaded family dinner and looked for a good topic to weigh in on.
Oh, shit, it had been a week since Juicy_Babe posted about her boss.
Victoria had wanted to muse on a suitable response but had forgotten.
She found the post, read some of the other people’s responses, all very supportive, but none had action points.
Hoping she wasn’t going to be an Aunt Jenny, Victoria responded.
Daddy_Vic: Sounds like you have a decision to make, Juicy_Babe.
If you’ve already handled your situation, then please disregard my following thoughts.
Is there some way you can balance this new task with your current obligations?
Maybe shave off a little of your current tasks to make room for the new one?
Can you talk this over with your supervisor or the big boss?
Have you researched what it would take to do this new task (have you “figured it out,” like your supervisor said)?
Maybe it won’t be as daunting as you first thought.
Can a co-worker be assigned to help with it?
Maybe that’s another thing to ask the supervisor?
Wow, I’m sorry. I’m trying to be helpful, but it seems I’m asking more questions than answering.
Without specific details, it’s hard to find the right way to help.
Anyway, it’s probably none of my business.
She was going to leave her comment at that, but then a niggling thought wouldn’t leave her alone, so she decided to voice it.
Daddy_Vic: You seem bothered by this new task being laid on you.
I caution you about always saying yes to things, especially if you’re overwhelmed, which you seem to be.
Also, are you in any kind of union? A union rep might be able to help you with this, since it sounds like it’s not explicitly in your contract (as you said earlier).
Feeling frisky, not that kind of frisky, she decided to post a few more topics in the group.
Hopefully, she wasn’t overstepping. The admin would most certainly curtail her posting fervor if she were.
The use of the word ‘contract’ had made her curious about something.
Her former bestie, Rikki, used to have written contracts with her submissives, outlining soft and hard limits, expectations, and so on.
Rikki had the subs sign them, and then she signed afterward.
Rikki’s Aunt Tilda had contracts with many of her subs, but she was a professional Domme and was paid for her services.
She was such a popular Domme that the waiting list of submissive men was long.
The only time Rikki got paid for her Domme services was when she moonlighted down at Dominiques, so Victoria never understood Rikki’s use of contracts with a submissive that she was only going to play with.
So, Victoria put this question to the group.
Topic: Contracts
Question: Do you require (or have you ever filled out) a contract with a Domme or submissive? Why or why not?
Victoria laughed when she reread the post. “Oh, shit. That sounds so teacher-like.” She added a post underneath.
Daddy Vic: Sorry about that. My post reads like a high school English essay prompt. “Was the theme of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein one of horror? Why or why not? Justify your choice.” LOL. (And, no, please don’t answer this one.)
She was just about to formulate an answer to her own question when someone responded.
Juicy_Babe: “If the theme of Frankenstein is horror, explain why and give examples. If not, what themes are prominent? The novel was published in 1818; are those themes still relevant today?” LOL. Couldn’t help it.
Victoria laughed out loud in the cold, empty security office. Juicy_Babe had a real sense of humor. She was just about to respond when Juicy_Babe put up another response.
Juicy_Babe: I’ve had Dommes discuss contracts with me, but I don’t like them.
I prefer not to have anything in writing.
Paper trails can bite you later (and not in a fun way).
They’re certainly not legally binding, but maybe they just keep both (or all) participants in check and on the same literal page.
Daddy Vic: Picture this. Mid-spanking, the sub says, “Excuse me, Domme XYZ, our contract explicitly says no more than 5 hand smacks on either cheek, and these are to be followed up with a faux fur soothing. Page 15, I believe.” LOL.
Daddy Vic: Sorry. I’m punchy this evening. Bored at work again.
Juicy_Babe: You’re cracking me up. I like you “punchy.” And no. Getting punched is NOT one of my kinks. LOL
Victoria chuckled. Since Juicy_Babe seemed up for fun, she posted another new topic.
Topic: Best Pickup Lines Ever
Question: You’ve heard them. You may have even used some. Tell us the best pickup lines you’ve ever heard (or used).
Daddy Vic: There must be something wrong with my eyes. I can’t take them off you. (And, yes, I cringe to say that I have used that one)
Juicy_Babe didn’t waste a moment.
Juicy_Babe: What’s your name? It will look good in my phone contacts next to your number. (Said to me at a local munch). And, no, I did not give him my name or my number.
Daddy Vic: Good call, Juicy_Babe. Here’s another one: Have we met? Because you look exactly like the woman I’m taking home tonight.
Juicy_Babe: Have you ever used that one?
Daddy Vic: No. Too cheesy. But all of these are cheesy, aren’t they?
Juicy_Babe: Yeah, they are. Cringe-worthy even. LOL
Daddy Vic: Wait! Here’s a variation on that theme: You see my friend over there? She wants to know if you’ll go home with me tonight.
Juicy_Babe: If you let me borrow a kiss, I promise I’ll give it right back.
Daddy Vic: OMG. That’s such a good one. I may use that.
Juicy_Babe: We’re going to have to start calling you Daddy Cheese, I think.
Victoria laughed, literally out loud, and then typed another.
Daddy Vic: I hold out my hand and say, “Hey, I’m going for a walk. Would you mind holding this for me?”
Juicy_Babe: Aww, that one is kind of sweet. Here’s one a Domme actually said to me, and I laughed, but she was right because they did. “Those jeans look great on you. They’d look better on my bedroom floor.”
Daddy Vic: That one’s gold!
Rachels_Toy: Get a room, you two! LOL. We’re having a laugh fest here tonight. Glad I checked in on the group. I’ve got one for you. Knock Knock.
Juicy_Babe: Who’s there?
Rachels_Toy: When where.
Juicy_Babe: When where who?
Rachels_Toy: Tonight, my place, you and me.
Victoria burst out laughing again. This group was turning out to be a lot of fun.
It was a great distractor. Distractor from what, though?
An unsettled life? Couch-surfing in her cousin’s small apartment?
Family dinners out of obligation? Missing…
what? Something. Her friends? Yes, for sure.
Her community? Yeah. But she had botched that one up, hadn’t she?
She took a breath and stopped herself from going down that rabbit hole again.
Why bother? She couldn’t go back there. She took another breath and re-read the punch line. A smile crept back up her face.
Daddy Vic: Another gold one! Stealing that one, too.
The three of them bantered back and forth a bit, and Victoria was glad she’d put up a post that got lively, fun responses.
They were both fun and intelligent women.
Bernadette had been intelligent, too. She groaned.
That rabbit hole kept presenting itself.
Okay, she had to do something else right now.
She excused herself from the conversation.
Patrolling would take her mind off her shit that kept creeping back up.
She stepped outside the office, but dove right back in.
The wind had kicked up, making it feel colder than it was.
She found Erin’s stash of gloves in a desk drawer and even found a scarf to go with them.
Most of her own winter gear was safely stored in a box in one of Rowena’s spare bedrooms. She stepped outside again and was assaulted by a wind gust that almost knocked her over. It was only mid-October, what the hell?
She didn’t skimp through her rounds, but she didn’t dawdle, either.
All seemed well and quiet. Although she was working the next night, she made appointments to look at two apartment complexes in the afternoon.
Hopefully, something would pan out; she was eager not only to unburden her cousin but also to get on with her life.
The apartments she’d already seen were either seriously lacking or too expensive for her now-meager income.
She was not going to get a roommate. No fucking way.
Back in the office, she found some cleaning supplies and tidied up the office and small bathroom, trying to make use of the time. She had nervous energy for some reason. Maybe a cup of tea would help.
“Thank you, Erin,” she said, thanking her cousin for stocking teas, coffee, and hot chocolate in the security office.
She put her feet up on the desk, leaned back, and had a quickish power nap.
The kind she’d learned to take in her Army Reserve days.
When she woke, she had managed to burn enough time that there were now only a couple more hours to go in her shift.
She opened the Kinks app again and was pleased to see that a few other members, lesbo_submisso, Curl_My_Toes, and Knees Now, had joined in the fun and added a few more pickup lines to the post. Juicy_Babe and Rachels_Toy had continued to banter after Victoria left.
It seemed like those two had a nice friendship going.
Friendship on Kinks. Huh. Victoria had never thought of it that way, beyond her local Denton Heights friends.
For some reason, Victoria felt good. Maybe because she’d brought some fun to the Kinks group.
The responses to her question about contracts had garnered mixed responses, so Victoria concluded what she’d already known.
Contracts work for some and not for others.
Rachels_Toy said quite seriously that her contract was called a marriage license.
Interesting. Victoria had never thought about a marriage license as a contract before.
She supposed it was. It was certainly more than a simple piece of paper showing the world two people’s commitment to each other.
Marriage was kind of like a business arrangement, wasn’t it?
With entwined finances and everything. Nevertheless, Victoria was going to remain a non-contract person, and for some reason, she was glad to see that Juicy_Babe wasn’t a fan of contracts, either.
Marriage and contracts got Victoria thinking about something else. She put up another post. No one would be awake at four a.m., so she could put up the post and figuratively run.
Topic: Casual sex. One-night stands.
Question: Can one-night stands sustain you?
She was just about to click out of the group space and start another round of bird jokes with Madison when her message light lit up. She had nothing better to do, so she opened it.
Juicy_Babe: Hope it was okay to DM you. I’m up late, I know (eastern time zone). I’m glad you joined the group. You’ve brought new life to it. You’re very thoughtful and kind to everyone. And your questions are making me (and everyone else) think!
Juicy_Babe: I may find a way to phrase this in your public post, but I wanted to say this to you directly because I think you’re searching.
I may be waaaay off base, but I recognize a kindred spirit in that regard.
One of the themes in Frankenstein is loneliness for both the (not so) good doctor and his created creature.
Their absence of love, family, and community ties ruins them both.
I’ve recently moved. New job, new apartment, new town.
No friends here, and I’m searching for the comfort of these things.
Family is two states away (and that’s kind of okay. LOL).
Juicy_Babe: Let me know if communicating directly like this is okay or NOT okay.
I’m kind of sleep-deprived at the moment and probably not thinking clearly.
And…if it IS okay, do you require honorifics?
I’m going back to bed now. I’ll read your response in the morning (if you do respond). Good night, DV. Or is it DC now?
“Huh,” Victoria said. “That was brave, poor thing. She’s lonely.” She sat breathing for a while, digesting Juicy_Babe’s direct messages. “I’m lonely, too.” Tears burned her eyes, but she shook them off.
She would answer the messages, but she needed time to digest them first.