Bound & Free Ch. 10

Ch. 10 - The Catalyst

Author's vanity note: don't know who anyone is or what's going on? Welcome, you'll fit right in - it's been awhile since the previous chapter, I barely remember myself (that, unfortunately, is a lie; in reality not a day went by when the characters didn't demand release). To help us, we meet a new person this chapter; Danielle. We don't know her and she doesn't know what's going on either - let's join her as she finds out. If I've done my job well (doubtful) then you won't need the more traditional recap in Chapter 9. I'm fascinated to know what you think... yes, every person.

For those of you who're returning, I make a commitment: this story will be completed - however long it takes there WILL be a proper ending. I can only apologize profusely for the hiatus and say that, though it's no defense at all, with work and private life... wait, what's that behind you? (*runs away*)

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Stacy's friend - Frat house

Barely anyone knew who Danielle was, least of all herself. You'd have thought that being rich, young and beautiful would've put Dani right at the center of campus, but in the circles she cared about, she was completely invisible. Even dying her hair pink and getting a bunch of tattoos got her practically no attention from anyone who was anyone. She was a mere access point to her best friend, a fucking side character in her own life. She had made it work to her advantage, though - she'd added in the fucking. No-one could blame her for what she'd done, and was about to do again.

Even now, her frenemy's beautiful face grinned at her from a framed photo on the nightstand, that pale white skin, those piercing blue eyes and the flawless ice-blonde hair. She was smirking with that infuriating smug silent superiority, and Danielle couldn't compete. She couldn't. She... Dani grabbed the picture and glared into Stacy's self-satisfied eyes. Before she could stop herself they were having a staring contest, idol and idiot. Come on, Dani... Danielle lost. Danielle always lost. Ugh. Well, that was okay - Stacy could watch as Dani took her man - well, ex-man. Making another microscopic dent in Stacy's armor. With enough effort, perhaps one day Danielle would get through it.

Dani started to get excited. Who wouldn't? He was coming - Ryan. The big college football star, quarterback and stud. She was about to be fucked to messy, quaking, exhausted oblivion. Without warning a lopsided smile crept onto her face. An odd feeling of failure - tinged with guilt and, somehow, hope - bubbled up inside her. It was disgusting. It was familiar. She threw Stacy's portrait into the no man's land off the bed and lay back on Ryan's bed until the feeling faded.

Let the main character experience some darkness for a change. Stacy, campus saint, a spotless holy divinity built for nothing but running committees, community events and brownnosing. Everyone loved her; the light was hers. Dani lived in the shadow; there was no spare light for her. Where Stacy was cold calculation, Dani had made herself into frothy chaos. Where Stacy built a network, Dani was like a snake in The Garden of Stacy, perverting innocents. It was the one area where she outclassed Stacy. It hadn't always been this way - if it had, things would have been different. Dani bit her lip, her hands making fists. Back in school...

With perfect timing, the shower cut off. She was beyond ready. Any moment now, Ryan would emerge from the bathroom and catch her, throw her down onto his mattress and just take her. That sounded wonderful. Dani tried to clamp down on her enthusiasm. It wouldn't be much longer. Danielle's tongue started to creep between her teeth. Her inner muscles clenched, begging for something huge and hot to grip. She felt her heartrate quickly escape her control and run free, creating chaos as it crashed through her body. Story of her life really. As much as she tried pretend she didn't care about anything, as much as she'd done this before...

Then his blow dryer started to wail. Dani sighed and fell back to the bed, silently wailing inside too. Ryan valued his vanity over sex, obviously. She'd make a point of messing up his hair as soon as possible. The passion drained from her, leaving the room lifeless. Stacy's photo had been the only thing in here with any spirit. Now it was gone? This place, so full of stuff, still seemed so empty. It smelled like a wild animal's nest and felt like a cave, but this dingy shit hole was where the frat president had always slept, so Ryan was stuck with the compromise... and so was she. Danielle had designed it for him, so maybe it was partially her fault. She'd planned for an eye-searing riot of rainbow color, to depict the bright future he'd so often boasted about. But the light in this space diluted everything. Each day the sun stole a little more of the vibrancy for itself - taking the best, leaving her with faded remnants. It felt like Stacy's fault. Maybe Danielle didn't want to be an interior designer anymore.

Perhaps a therapist? The blood-sucking suits who'd 'treated' Danielle made it look so easy. She was wasting her life on jealousy? They didn't understand. No way she could be worse at it than them. Dani was rich, young and beautiful, the doctors claimed. Yeah, right. Those fucking liars.

Rich? Well, Dani's rebranding hadn't gone down well with her stuffy society parents. Sure, society rumor was Stacy's folks were in massive debt, but come on, pull the other one. With their ancient pedigree that was utter nonsense. Dani actually had real problems; Dani was an Embarrassment, and was officially Cut Off. So fuck them. Dani had taken on several jobs, but she'd done it. She was completely done taking anyone else's money, accepting their control. Never, ever again.

Youth? At college Dani was flailing around chaotically, trying to figure out a new path through life. In kindergarten Danielle had known who she was; the leader, up front like she deserved, defending the shy blonde girl geek in the baggy clothes behind her, encouraging her to be more confident. Then one spring break, Stacy's brother died, and when Stacy returned, she'd been crushed into something utterly impenetrable. No matter what she tried, Danielle couldn't get through the mask and back to her friend. Then it got worse. People thought Stacy was a star, but she was a goddamn black hole, and her relentless consumption of every speck of attention radiated a captivating light, drawing in more victims. Soon, she'd eclipsed Danielle and taken everything she wanted. Despite her best effort, Danielle never managed to gather the momentum to escape the monstrous gravity of Stacy's relentless networking and scheming. Danielle was trapped in a cold, dead orbit around Stacy - never quite reaching her friend, never far enough away to make another. Beautiful things sped past Dani to their inevitable destruction at the heart of the heartless. Danielle was a mere satellite.

As for beauty? Yeah, in season one of the job Dani did on the side was a little fashion modelling, but that was little better than a whore in her father's eyes. Ex-father. But Stacy? She had taken what Danielle had taught her and used it to propel herself to the moon, starting her own fledgling clothing label despite being a student, probably making her daddy very proud. Dani couldn't compare, so she didn't even try. And Ryan? Ryan was perfect.

Once again Dani fought down the horrible feeling of scrambling for Stacy's leftovers. It was an old, familiar struggle. It had been wonderful until Stacy had ruined it by dumping Ryan. She'd loved the secrecy, the torturous plotting, the act, and then the sweet taste of revenge, lingering in her mind for weeks afterward. She'd been addicted. Truth be told, Dani had, er... tasted the forbidden fruit from Stacy's last meal too. Perhaps even the one before. Maybe even every time. Maybe Dani kept a little checklist of Stacy's past admirers... Maybe she called it her collection.

Monstrous? Absolutely, she knew that. Hell, even she was wracked by guilt from time to time. But so what? Fuck self-doubt. She'd been through that, she'd decided she wouldn't be a side character anymore. The guilt just added more spice. By now the flame of resentment had burned in Dani practically her entire life, and she'd turned it into an engine of progress. It was part of the magic that was her.

She bit her lip and put a hand between her legs, pressing at the ache in her core. She snatched her hand away, feeling her libido rise. Couldn't she wait 5 measly minutes? She tucked her feet up under herself. Or would a pose be better? No, her legs were better down, she should showcase her best feature (thanks to hours in the gym!). Maybe they would draw attention away from her flat chest - actually, no - she'd decided not to care about that this week. So she should sit up straight, if her resolution was important. Was it important? She was being ridiculous.

Mercifully, Dani heard the bathroom door open. Showtime! She took a moment to drink in the man who'd appeared in the doorway. He filled the frame, steam emerging from his recent shower - a superhero's entrance. He was talking about something, mindlessly narrating the petty injustices of his pampered life. Ryan sat heavily on the bed, broody and perfect, mere feet away, nearly close enough to touch. She admired the way that even hunched over, his bulging muscles drew hills and valleys across his gloriously naked body. The sunlight which drunkenly stumbled through the frat house's shutters eagerly caressed the landscape of his masculine figure, kissing the parts it could reach with light while leaving others in deep shadow. Looking at his magnificence made her forget how to breathe.

"Dani, are you paying attention?" his bass voice rumbled, rude and demanding, pulling her back to the present.

Her finger, responding to her desire to move on to the fun part, brushed against his warm bronze skin like a feather's caress. Ryan was a hulking monolith of a man, the spitting image of some ancient hero, lovingly sculpted out of marble over a lifetime of hard work. He was nude, of course - like all the best statues were. He was the jewel of her collection. Danielle's stomach fluttered as she traced the ray of luminescence painting his spine in copper. Damn. His body really was godly, and she was so sinful. She bit her lip - even after so long, his masculine scent still made her all gooey inside. She crawled closer hungrily; who wouldn't? Fuck studying art history, this was art present. A present she was hoped would soon unwrap and make a mess out of her.

Dani moaned, her thoughts heavy with desire, her hands stroking him, feeling the potency of his muscles. With one meaty hand he could hold her down, with the other he could rub every inch of her body, and with his powerful hips he could make her forget her own name for a week. And afterward, a warm lingering pulse would linger in her limbs, a pleasant ache that would remind her she'd been truly well fucked. Damn she needed it. Right now.

She put a her finger on his lips, and he stopped.

"Stud..." she managed, her voice heavy with need. "Can we stop talking about Stacy and just get to the good stuff?"

Ryan opened his mouth, and long experience as his mistress told her this wouldn't be a short lecture. Of course she wouldn't get what she wanted. Danielle never got what she wanted.

"No, Dani, you're not listening. I said..." and he proceeded to repeat himself, word for word, at a louder volume.

If Ryan would only shut up they could have some fun. She had just enough self-respect not to make a move while Ryan was whining about Stacy. She'd have to work on that. Why had Stacy dumped this prime male specimen? How could there be anything better? And if there was, well, Ryan was rich enough to buy his competition and smash them to tiny pieces until he was the only one left. Plus he was famous, easily manipulated by sex, and now, emotionally vulnerable. What more could she want?

"Oh, I'm so sorry, that's too awful" Danielle recited listlessly, making rote soothing noises, her mind elsewhere.

"... and you rich bitches from those old families are all alike." Ryan was ranting. "I thought we were closer than that, Dani. You're still more her friend than mine. My parents were poor. They brought me up in a..."

Danielle suppressed a groan as her libido slipped out of her grasp, crumbling away despite touching this powerful demigod. Perhaps she expected too much, but it was like the man had spent years in the gym and less than a second on his charm. Not only did she have to deal with his complaints about Stacy, but now with the chip on his shoulder in the pissing contest that was breeding and social pecking order. To Dani it was simple. Money was money. Who cared which generation made it?

Trying to preserve some ember of her cooling arousal, she pressed herself against his back, and buried her fingers in Ryan's hair. When they were deeply tangled in her partner's lustrous mane, she massaged his scalp as he narrated his troubles. His baritone voice filled the room, the vibrations passing through him to her, seated behind him on his bed. She clenched her thighs tighter around his muscular ass. He barely even paused. She pressed her breasts tighter against his broad back. He may as well have been a statue. Irritated, she yanked her hand through his hair. Still he didn't notice her. Dickhead.

Dani was ready to make him pay attention. She got off the bed, walking into Ryan's eyeline, drawing his gaze. She swayed her hips from side to side hypnotically - she'd practiced this a lot in the mirror and gotten pretty good at it. Aha! He was looking! Encouraged, Dani gripped her tank top by the hem, and in one smooth movement she lifted it up and over her head, grinning triumphantly as she exposed her stomach and cute black bra. This is what they should have been doing all along, this was fun. She felt inspired, impressive, and... ignored. Fuck.

What had Stacy done? It didn't matter, she didn't need to listen - she could have recited Ryan's grievances for him. The complaints from Stacy's lovers were always identical. Danielle, the kind-hearted soul she was, would listen. Being a little kinky, once they had finished crying, Danielle would then... comfort them. Very thoroughly. She was practically a goddamned saint.

"... that Stacy likes being chained up in public?" he demanded, panting.

Every single time, the complaints were identical. Danielle's life was stuck in a time loop, and... Wait, what did he say? She couldn't have heard that right.

"What?" Danielle gaped at him, her thoughts derailed.

"She loves it." He said with conviction.

"Wait, you tied up Stacy, the queen bitch?!" Danielle stared in disbelief. "And she let you?"

She tried to imagine her nemesis bound and helpless, but it was inconceivable. Her imagination only managed to conjure blank people with blank faces in a blank room. That priggish face and restraints just didn't go together, like princesses and pornography. Ryan's bombshell announcement was about as likely as Stacy enthusiastically licking Danielle's pussy as she came on her boyfriend's cock. Not that she'd imagined that - well, not today. He was deluded - that's all this could be.

"Slave Stacy." he spat. "She'd be in charge of nothing if people knew what a submissive slut she is. She's gonna get hers. But I shouldn't be talking about this."

What an asshole! She'd been there for him all along, and yet she wasn't worthy of knowing this juicy bit of explosive gossip about Stacy? The one thing she'd sell her soul to acquire? Yeah, Dani was going to have to dump Ryan too, but he didn't know that. After making time for him and doing all the fun - er - depraved, degrading things Stacy wouldn't? When Dani had told him "shame is stupid", and shown him what that meant - where was his gratitude? Does becoming someone's lover mean you can't share secrets anymore?

"Fine. Asshole. See if I tell you any of MY secrets." she hissed.

Ryan stared dumbly at her, as if the concept held no meaning for him. His disinterest was a sharp, familiar pain - but today it was one insult too many. She returned the injury, slapping him hard on the shoulder. Ouch - her hand stung. Hopefully that'd hurt him just as much. She could see his skin redden visibly. She was instantly filled with guilt - she wasn't a monster, just...

Ryan growled, caught her wrist, and suddenly her world spun. She fell on the bed, the mountain that was Ryan loomed above her, a predator about to pounce.

Something within her awoke, as it always did. Danielle bit her lip, searching his eyes for something. Missing his cue, Ryan started to move away. Anger took its place.

"Pussy." she whispered as he retreated.

Then he was back. Before she knew what was happening, before she could resist, she was trapped beneath the immovable mass of his body. She didn't have a chance. Ryan was double her body weight and pure muscle. Danielle was trapped, helpless beneath him, her face caught between the walls of his thick arms. crushing her into the mattress, forcing the air from her lungs. Her heart beat faster, exulting. Finally! This was more like it. He frowned at her, their faces inches apart... then Ryan grinned.

"Is this what you wanted?" he growled, his bass rumble passing right through her body to the mattress below.

She lifted her head, violently lunging the couple of inches to Ryan's face. She kissed him roughly, recklessly mashing his stubble into her sensitive skin. He kissed her back, filled with the raw animal intensity she craved. For a moment their mingled breath and dueling tongues were the only sound in the room. Then his anger abated. She broke it off, letting herself fall back onto to the mattress with a frustrated sigh.

"Tell me what YOU want" Danielle hissed, breathlessly imploring the man looming above her. "Command me. If you've got the balls to do it."

She let herself fall onto his bed, vulnerable, quivering with desire, begging to be taken.

Yet he did nothing.

"You can't be that dumb." she continued vindictively. "You've always come to me for real sex - and see what happened? She was gonna dump you the second you tied her up. She must've hated that shit."

"Dani, you don't know. Stacy...." he began, frowning at her in annoyance.

Fucking Stacy. Always interfering, always first, even when she wasn't here. Dani stared into his eyes defiantly, a couple of inches away from him. His hot breath tickled her nose, the scent of his sweat coming in a second later. She panted, her body heated up and ready.

"Stacy loves it." He repeated.

"Prove it." She challenged him, her eyes blazing back up at his.

"Get my phone." He ordered, to her surprise.

Dani eagerly lunged for the side of the bed, snatching Ryan's phone from his nightstand. She hung awkwardly, her top half dangling over the side of the mattress, one arm braced on the cheap veneer of the stand. As she fiddled with his irritating charging cable, she felt Ryan's hands paw at her waistband. Slipping his fingers beneath the fabric, he abruptly pulled both her shorts and panties down in one sudden movement. Her butt tingled as it was exposed to the cool air.

So he wasn't even going to wait? She was game; hell, his focus on her was flattering, particularly because Stacy was the topic. Danielle felt herself getting wetter. She teased him, wiggling her naked ass from side to side. He grabbed her flesh, squeezing her ass hard, pushing her further off the mattress. She gasped as she fell to the disgusting carpet.

"Passcode?" she requested.

"Bite me." he replied, childish as ever.

Ryan kneaded her pliant butt, using alternately too much and too little pressure. Still, the pressure was massaging her muscles and his attention was turning her on.