Red

"Come on," Rowan said. "Let's get a drink and go listen."

Ariel was too flustered to point out the lack of a band to listen to and she followed them to the bar. The bartender got to them quickly and asked what they were having. Rowan looked at Ariel and her brain froze as she tried to think of literally any alcoholic beverage.

"Um, a dirty Shirley," she said, wincing as she did so.

The bartender looked to Rowan and they nodded and asked for two. Ariel looked at them, surprised.

They shrugged and said, "I don't drink much."

She smiled. "Me neither."

"There's an unfortunate lack of adult, evening activities without alcohol involved in one way or another."

"I know! I was just talking to my friends about that the other day."

The drinks arrived and Rowan led the way toward the back of the bar. Ariel followed, unsure where they were going until Rowan opened a door that led out into a back patio. The atmosphere was just as cozy as it was inside. The area was lit by string lights crisscrossing above them and there was a small stage at the far end of the patio where the band was playing. Picnic tables were spread through the rest of the area to provide seating and there were those standing space heaters that looked like lampposts spread through keeping it a comfortable temperature.

Rowan found an empty table near the back, furthest from the stage, and sat facing the band. They patted the bench next to them and Ariel slid in close enough to where their sleeves might brush against each other but no actual physical contact. Rowan then scoot closer to her, pressing their legs together beneath the table. Ariel glanced up at them and found them looking down at her with a soft smile, which caused her to blush and study her drink with great concentration.

The band was playing a soft, soothing tune on stage. It felt like their presence was meant to be background for the people on the patio, for most of the tables around them were engaged in low conversation, over which the music gently lilted. The band was composed of two guitarists, a man and a woman, and the woman was the main singer with her company providing supporting vocals now and then. Ariel couldn't focus enough on the music to really hear the words, but the melodies were calming.

"What do you think?" Rowan asked after the song finished.

Ariel nodded and took a drink. "You were right, I do like them."

"Good, I'm glad."

"Me too! And I'm glad you were also free tonight."

"I wasn't."

She frowned. "What do you mean?"

They looked over at her with a smirk. "I moved things around."

"Oh..." For some reason that made her feel warm inside. After a pause, Ariel ventured, "So, is this what you do then? Find random girls and bring them to cozy bars?"

Rowan laughed. "I wouldn't call you random."

"Oh? What do you mean?"

"The other day wasn't the first time I had seen you at the park."

Ariel was finding that surprise would be a consistent state of existence for her tonight. "What? So you've been stalking me?"

Rowan laughed again and shook their head. "More like we've both been frequenting the same park for some time now and only one of us pays attention to the other people there."

She blushed. "Seriously?"

Rowan nodded. "Oh yes."

"And you've just been watching me from afar?"

"Can you blame me? You're a beautiful woman who's been sitting under a tree regularly, sometimes for hours, reading a variety of queer smut novels. How is that not intriguing?"

The blush grew until her ears were burning up. "Oh my god, you knew!?"

"I was curious so I looked up the book titles."

"Oh god," she buried her face in her hands. "I'm sorry I-" she stopped, thinking back on the books she had read recently, and then looked up at them with apprehension in her eyes. "How long have you been watching me?"

Rowan grinned, as if waiting for the question. "I first noticed you several weeks ago."

"Oh." She looked back down to her drink and took a quick sip. "So you saw me reading the...the one with the...?"

Rowan nodded. "I did. I actually read that one when I got home that day, thank you for the suggestion."

"Oh god." Ariel didn't think it was physically possible for her face to get any redder.

Rowan leaned over and whispered in her ear, "I know what you want."

Ariel's heart thumped in her chest so loud it felt like a beat in the music. She glanced up at them and recognized what she had seen in their eyes that first time in the park. A lustful hunger. Her body instinctively responded to that look, a heat blossoming inside of her.

"H-how do you know I don't just like reading about it?" she asked.

Rowan's lips quirked up in a crooked smile and they raised an eyebrow at her. "I saw all the people you turned away. Why didn't you reject me?"

Ariel's hand quivered as she took another sip of her drink. Now that she had looked them in the eye, she couldn't look away.

"I have a feeling you already know," she said, her voice quiet.

"I want you to say it."

Her eyes widened and she glanced around. "Here?"

Rowan put their arm around her shoulder and pulled her close so that her head was resting in the crook of their shoulder. Ariel's brain couldn't handle the sudden physical contact and her breath caught in her throat. Part of her was terrified at being this close with someone she had met only once before, "met" being a very generous term. The other part, the part that Rowan somehow seemed to know about, was thrilled and it was triggering very inappropriate reactions. That heat was spreading, she felt it between her legs and she clenched them together in a panic.

"Say it."

They whispered the words with a level of command that Ariel had never felt from another person, a level that she could not refuse.

"I want you..." she faltered, knowing the words they wanted, the words she wanted.

"Say. It."

She could feel their heartbeat matching her own, a deep, echoing connection and she tilted her head back just enough to look up at them. The desire, the hunger, the need in their eyes parted her lips in a small gasp.

"Take me," she said, barely able to hear her own words. "I want you to take me."

They leaned down and kissed her.

Every part of her body reacted without thought. She twisted in her seat, pressing her body to them. The heat between her legs that was smoldering now roared to life, burning through her, aching with her lust. Her hand went to their chest, gripping their shirt for dear life. And their lips, oh god their lips. It was a gentle kiss, yet within that softness, within the heat of their breath and the way their arm slipped off her shoulders to wrap around her neck, she felt that primal hunger she had seen in their eyes and she reveled in it.

When Rowan pulled back, they looked into her eyes. She returned their gaze, enraptured, a stupid smile on her face. They kissed her forehead and smiled back at her.

"I'm going to take you home with me," they said, their voice still soft.

The words sent a shiver down her spine and she nodded, unable to speak. They stood up and offered their hand to her. She took it and they led her away from the table, leaving their untouched drink behind. Her head was empty of all thought as she followed them out through the bar and onto the street. Her body moved on autopilot, placing full trust in this absolute stranger.

They led her a few blocks away from the bar, still holding her hand in a firm grip. Normally she would be apprehensive about walking around town this late at night, but Rowan exuded such confident and steadfast energy that she didn't even think about it.

Without warning, their grip on her hand tightened and they pulled her around and pressed her against a car parked on the street. She looked up at them, trembling, whether in fear or excitement she couldn't say. They pressed their body against hers, pinning her to the car, and kissed her. There was nothing gentle about it this time, only pure desire and a need for her lips. Her arms wrapped around their waist, her hands gripping their coat as she strained up into them. Their hand went to the back of her head and grabbed her ponytail, pulling her head back. She gasped with delight as their lips found her neck and a moan slipped out of her as they devoured her. Their knee pushed between her thighs and her body tensed in response, her mouth open in a soundless cry as pressure sent spikes of pleasure shooting through her. She wanted more, so much more and she tried to bring their lips back to hers, but, as if sensing her desperation, they pulled away, leaving her leaning against the car, panting for breath. She whimpered in protest and they smiled at her.

Then they unlocked the car, walked around it, and got into the driver's seat. Ariel was flummoxed for a moment before her senses returned and she got into the passenger side. She glanced at them, expectant, but they didn't say anything. They pulled into the street and drove in silence while she fidgeted next to them. It wasn't long before they arrived at their destination, which apparently was a quiet looking apartment complex. They parked in the 126 spot, shut the car off, and turned to look at her.

Ariel returned their gaze, still fidgeting, uncertain what was expected of her.

"I can take you home right now if you want," Rowan said.

She blinked. That wasn't what she had expected. Did she want to go home? No, she wanted this. She wanted them. She had never done anything like this before and now that she had started down this path she needed to find what was at the end.

"I want to stay," she said.

"If you stay, I'm going to use you. Do you understand what that means?"

She sucked in a sharp breath and nodded.

"I'm going to push you to your limits. Maybe beyond them."

She nodded again.

"If it ever becomes too much, say Red and I'll stop immediately."

The tension was building in her chest. She didn't want to talk or listen, she just wanted their hands on her body. They were waiting for some kind of confirmation though, so she nodded yet again, hoping it was the last time.

"Good girl."

Her heart leapt and they led her inside.

Chapter 3: The Sex

Ariel didn't get a chance to even look at the apartment. As soon as the door was shut behind them, Rowan's hand wrapped around her throat and shoved her back against it. She yelped, stumbled, and would've fallen if Rowan didn't press their body to hers long enough for her to find her feet with the door stabilizing her from behind. Their grip on her neck was firm but not hard enough to cut off her air. It terrified and thrilled her, a combination of experiences that she hoped to never get used to because the way they electrified her entire system together was remarkable. The light in the entranceway was dim, lit by some source behind Rowan. Ariel's eyes were still adjusting to the dark, so when she looked up at them she could only see a shadowy outline of their face. She didn't need to see them to know what they were feeling. The lust was radiating off them, she felt it in the eyes she couldn't see and in the tension of their fingers around her neck.

They held her there for several seconds before whispering, "I've been thinking about all the things that I want to do to you since the first day I saw you."

Ariel shuddered at the heat in their voice. She hadn't realized how long they had been contemplating this. What sort of things had they come up with? What exactly had she signed up for? The fact that she had no idea sent a shiver of delight down her spine.

Her eyes were beginning to adjust right as Rowan leaned down and kissed her. Ariel moaned at the contact, unable to help it, her body shuddering and almost falling limp. They had a power over her that she didn't fully understand. She didn't want to understand, she wanted to revel in it. Their hand slid down her throat, their thumb caressing her trachea for a moment before moving around to the back of her neck to pull her deeper into their lips. This kiss was not gentle, but neither was it filled with the need like back at the car. This was filled with command. They maintained full control, their hand on the back of her neck guiding her where they wanted, moving her, not requesting. She whimpered into their mouth as they explored each other. Their lips were so soft and they merged with hers so perfectly.

Without warning, they grabbed her ponytail and pulled her head back. She gasped, feeling incredibly exposed before them.

"Are you going to be good for me?" they whispered into her ear.

She nodded and they shook her head, pulling a whimper of pain from her.

"Say it," they hissed.

"I'll be good for you," she gasped. "I'll be so so good for you, I promise!"

"Oh," they said, a hint of surprise in their voice. "You're very good at that."

Pride swelled in her chest and she wiggled happily in their grip.

"I'll have to make you do more for me," they said, their fingers working at something in her hair.

"I'm happy to do anything you want," Ariel whispered, realizing it was true as she said it.

They got her hair tie out and slipped it around their wrist, letting her locks fall down and around her face. She brushed them out of her face and looked up at them, confused.

"I like you messy," they said as they grabbed a fistful of her now loose hair and yanked her head back again.

She cried out at the pain. It hurt more this way yet also felt so much better? She loved the way they gripped her and the increased level of control it gave them. They bent down and kissed her exposed neck, their hot breath sending shivers through her. Then her legs were spread and they pulled her skirt up so their knee could push between her thighs fully

"Oh god!" she groaned at the sudden pressure.

They pushed against her and she found herself instinctively matching their movements, grinding herself on their leg. With only her tights between their leg and her cunt, every move brought new, delicious waves of pleasure. Her arms went around their waist, grabbing at their jacket for support. She was shocked at how good this felt and how ready she already was. Her mouth was open in a wordless cry and the sound of their labored breath filled her ears.

"You're such a slut," they groaned, never halting their motions. Her breath was caught in her throat, she couldn't respond. That wasn't good enough for them. They yanked on her hair, forcing a whimper from her. "Say it."

"I'm a slut!" she cried out.

"Whose slut?" they asked, their grip tightening.

"Yours," she moaned. "I'm your slut, I'm your little whore, please please please don't stop."

The ease with which the words slipped out of her surprised her. She had never felt this kind of desperation for someone before and she knew that she would do anything they wanted, anything she could so that they wouldn't stop.

"Good girl," they said, shoving their leg up, practically lifting her off the ground.

"Fffuuck!" she groaned, clinging to them, riding their leg, burning with pleasure feeling herself getting so close.

"Tell me when you're close," they whispered.

With their hand in her hair, their voice in her ear, and their leg rubbing her so perfectly, she didn't have a chance. She was in shock, normally she would never get this close this quickly. It was something about Rowan, something about them that connected with every part of her in a way she still didn't understand. It didn't matter. She couldn't hold it back if she wanted to. She felt it building inside of her and she clung to them as she rode them.

"I'm gonna cum," she gasped. "Oh god don't stop I'm gonna cum."

They dropped her. She fell to the floor, a trembling mess, her body screaming as the pleasure faded away without their pressure. She looked up at them, her hair covering her face, tears in the corners of her eyes.

"Why?"

They knelt in front of her and brushed the hair out of her face, wiping away her tears with their thumbs. "Because," they said, their voice soft. "You don't get to cum." Ariel whimpered but they continued. "Not until I say so."

She trembled under their touch, looking up at them with desperation. "Why not?"

The slap came out of nowhere. Her head jerked to the side, her face burned, and it took her a second to realize what happened. Then, their hand was under her chin and their lips were kissing her red cheek.

"What are you?" they asked, their lips hovering just above her ear.

"I'm your slut," she said, blinking her tears away.

Their hand slipped around her throat. "Do good sluts ask questions?"

She gulped, feeling the deep, intense pressure on the front and sides of her throat gradually increasing. "No."

"No? What do good sluts do then?"

Her lips parted, searching for air as their grip tightened. "They obey," she managed to gasp.

"That's right. Do you get to decide when you cum?"

She felt her lungs beginning to burn. "No."

"Who does?"

Her vision began to flicker and she felt a panic growing inside her. "You...do."

They didn't say anything for what felt like hours. Every second was a lifetime, every heartbeat pulsed through her entire body, the world faded around her. Nothing existed except the burning, piercing pain in her lungs and their hand, choking the life out of her.

They let go and she collapsed into their arms. Everything slammed back into her and she gasped, sucking in a huge breath and gagging on it. They held her limp body in their lap and she clung to them, gasping and choking.

"There you go, good girl," they whispered, their voice sounding far away. "You did such a good job for me, sweet girl."

The pain in her lungs was matched with pride from the praise and she nuzzled against them as they brushed the hair from her face and kissed her forehead.

"Don't forget," they said. "You're my slut. I decide when you cum."

She nodded, hoping that would be enough because she didn't know if she could form words yet. They held her there for several minutes, cradling her and whispering soft affirmations and covering her with gentle kisses as she melted into them. She didn't understand why she wasn't terrified or upset. All she felt was their affection radiating through her. Every breath was a blessing that they allowed her to have and she was grateful for each one. She looked up at them with adoration in her eyes and they smiled.

"My good little slut," they whispered and she hummed, burying her face in their chest.

They gave her a few more moments before getting to their feet, pulling her up with them. She was a little unsteady at first and they allowed her to hang onto their arm as they walked her into the kitchen. There she saw the source of the light, which was just the lamp in the stovetop. Rowan then lifted her up to sit on the counter with an ease that surprised and delighted her. They got a glass out of a cabinet, filled it with water, and handed it to her. She accepted it gratefully and started gulping it down. They put their hand on hers, lowering the glass.

"Slow," they said. "Take it slow."

She obeyed, drinking in sips until it was all gone. She sighed, her throat feeling much better.

"Thank you," she said, happy that her voice barely cracked at all.

They stood between her legs and, with her up on the counter, they were at eye level for once. They brushed her hair back and gave her a light kiss.

"How are you feeling?" they asked.

She nodded. "Good."

"Yeah?" they searched her face. "Did you like that?"

She nodded again but wasn't able to meet their eyes. "I did. It was scary but...in a good way?"

They smiled and kissed her again. "Good, I'm glad you enjoyed it."

Ariel wrapped her arms around their neck and kissed them back with a freshly awoken passion. Rowan seemed startled for a moment, but then their arms slipped around her waist and pulled her body to theirs. Her skirt was still pushed up around her hips and she pressed into them. Their tongue reached out, questioning, and her tongue met them, swirling together as they drank deeply of each other. Her hands scrambled at the edges of their jacket, pulling it off them and dropping it to the floor. They took her flannel off and tossed it to the side and not a moment later her blouse followed, exposing her bare breasts to them. Their hands moved up to cup her perky tits and they gasped, pulling back from the kiss to admire her chest.