The Coffee Shop Pt. 03

"So, on behalf of The Panel, I would like to extend to you our most sincere and heartfelt apology to you for the painful experience we subjected you to. It was necessary, as I'm sure you have come to realize, but we still regret having taken that action. It is our hope that now that you are aware that we bare you no ill will personally or professionally, you might give serious consideration to working with us in the future. We leave this offer open, and hope you will accept contacts from us."

Perry held out his right hand as he finished speaking in a gesture to shake hands. He kept his eyes locked on mine and waited for me to respond. I didn't need to make enemies with these people. For all I knew there could be many more, some more powerful than I was. Trouble like that, I did not need. So, I shook Perry's hand and said to him, "Fair enough. I will not bare a grudge against The Panel for the actions that they took this afternoon. I will consider your offer to work together, but it will be some time before I will feel comfortable doing so."

"Thank you, Paul," Perry said and smiled gently at me. "We could not have expected anything more from you. But there is another reason why I came over here tonight." Perry paused to be sure he had my undivided attention, and then continued speaking. "I insisted that I be selected as the messenger to bring you that message from The Panel. My powers are still gone, so I felt sure that you would not feel threatened by having me show up unplanned on your doorstep. And...there is something that I wanted to say to you." Perry swallowed nervously and licked his lips. "Could I have a glass of water, please?" He asked me.

"Sure, the kitchen is right though that door," I answered and pointed at the kitchen door. Perry nodded his head, turned about and swiftly walked off to the kitchen. His arms were swinging strongly back and forth as he hurried away from me. I smiled at him as he left. The view was yummy. I could see his backside in those tight black tuxedo pants, move back and forth as he walked, because the tuxedo jacket was short enough to leave a clear view of Perry's butt. I sighed with delight. About a half a minute later Perry returned from the kitchen, glass of water in hand, sipping it slowly. He walked up to me and stood there in front of me drinking the water. I couldn't help but notice how his Adam's Apple bobbed up and down while he swallowed. It was kind of sexy, and frankly so was he. Perry finished off half the water in the glass before he stopped drinking. I guessed that he needed a minute or so to work up his courage to say what was on his mind.

"That's better. Thanks," he said to me, and then placed the glass on the front hall table. He looked me straight in the eyes, took a deep breath and started to speak. "I wanted to tell you that I am sorry for what I did this afternoon. I also wanted you to know that I understand that you had to punish me as you did. I didn't enjoy it, and the memory of the pain you inflicted on me makes me scared of you, even now." Perry's body shook as he said those words. It was clear that he was still afraid of me, to some degree anyway. I admired his courage, though, in facing his fear and coming here to talk with me. He took another deep breath to help stop his shaking, and then continued. "I know what it cost you to punish me. I had to do something like that to someone else, many years ago. It changes you forever....I know...." His voice trailed off.

I could not believe what I was seeing as I looked at Perry. There were tears coursing down Perry's cheeks, as he quietly cried. He wasn't sobbing or whaling in pain, only crying, soundlessly. "Paul, I forgive you, for what you had to do to me," he croaked between the tears. His voice was rough, broken and shattered, but still held the ring of truth in it. I held out my right hand to him, uncertain what to do. Blinking furiously to try and clear his vision, Perry reached out and took hold of my right hand with his left hand. "Scan me...so that you will know I speak the truth," he squeaked, his throat almost too tight to talk.

I could have done that without touching him, and I'm sure he knew it. Physical contact would make the scanning easier on me, which was probably why he had taken my hand. I sent forth a mental probe into Perry's mind. I was as gentle as I knew how to be, and slowly opened up his mind to mine. I searched his mind only long enough to be sure that he was telling me the truth about all this. It turned out that he was speaking the truth. He was crying not because of the pain I'd inflicted on him, but because of the remembered pain he felt now, from knowing what I had to be going though. I gently retrieved the probe and withdrew from his mind, still confused by all this.

"You see?" Perry asked me in a weak but clear voice. Tears still streamed down his face, but they were fewer. "I told you the truth. I do forgive you. Come and sit with me on the sofa." Perry pulled me into the living room. I let him lead me to the sofa, since I still wasn't sure exactly what he was up to. I was curious to find out. We sat down next to each other. He was dressed in that fine western tuxedo outfit, and I was wearing an old dingy blue golf shirt and my favorite pair of faded, broken in jeans. We didn't exactly go together. I almost felt ashamed of the way I was dressed, but then dismissed the thought as vain and foolish. This was my home after all. I could dress any way I wanted, here.

Perry smiled at me, and wiped away the last of the tears from his face with a white handkerchief that he had produced from inside his tuxedo jacket. He returned the handkerchief to his pocket, and then leaned over and kissed me full on the mouth! His lips pressed urgently on mine and there was no mistaking the message he was sending. This was not a friendly peek on the cheek! I backed away in surprise, and when I found my voice a few seconds later said, "What the HELL was that all about?"

"I'm gay. You're gay. I want you. You want me," Perry answered coyly.

"I think you presume a great deal, mister," I cautioned him. "Yes, I find you attractive, but that doesn't mean I want to go to bed with you." I was starting to recover my wits, now. "You're moving a bit too fast for me." "Maybe," Perry agreed. "But at least now I've gotten your undivided attention." He grinned at me. "I talked with Mary about you in some detail. That's how I knew where you lived. It's also the reason why I dressed like this before I came over here. From what she saw in your mind, she knew you'd find me attractive in this outfit. I wanted to catch your eye, and wear something that I knew you'd enjoy. I saw how you've been looking at me ever since I arrived. You've hidden your reaction well, but I can tell. I knew you would be feeling bad about yourself tonight, and I wanted to do something to help you feel better. You've enjoyed looking at me, and it has helped you feel better hasn't it?"

"Yes, it has," I reluctantly agreed. "But has that got to do with anything?"

"You have to forgive yourself for what you did, Paul," Perry said softly. "If you don't, it will eat you up inside. I've forgiven you, but only you can forgive yourself. You have to see and believe that what you did was necessary and expected of you. Remember the price that Mary told you you'd have to pay? Well this is another part of that price. I'm here to help you to accept this, and to work through your pain. If it means going to bed with you tonight, I'm prepared to do that." He smiled at me, and raked his eyes over me from head to foot. "Actually, that wouldn't be such a bad idea," he said and blew a kiss at me.

I sat where I was not knowing what to do, still taken aback by all this. Part of me wanted Perry to leave, since that would be the easiest solution. Another part of me want to explore that outfit of his, and him too. Perry looked at me and smiled that gentle understanding smile of his again. He blinked his eyes a few times, moved over to sit right next to me on the sofa and spoke. "Or we can do nothing but sit here and hold hands, if you like. I won't lie and say that I'm in love with you or anything like that. But I will do whatever you want me to, to help you through this. Think of me as one of your hypnotized subjects if that makes it easier for you, Paul." Perry cupped my face in his warm hands and kissed me gently on the lips. This was a warm and tender kiss, with very little pressure or urgency in it, and completely unlike the earlier kiss. His offer was kind and thoughtful, I suppose. I thought about what he said, and it did make some kind of sense, except that I didn't want to pretend with him. I actually wanted him to be super hypnotized and under my complete control. It wasn't revenge that motivated me to take this action. Perry was so damn good looking in that cowboy outfit of his, that it spurred (pun intended) my interest. I really wanted to hypnotize him and have him at my beck and call. It was selfish, and indulgent, and a very tempting idea.

"How about if we do it for real?" I asked Perry.

"Do what?" he replied looking at me quizzically.

"How about if I really hypnotize you?" I asked. "I'd enjoy that, a lot."

"I really don't have much of a choice in the matter, do I?" Perry responded and shrugged his shoulders philosophically.

"Actually, you do," I answered. "I could force you into a state of super hypnosis, but I would prefer it if you agreed to it willingly. I would not feel like I'm using you, then."

"And if I say 'no'?" Perry asked.

"Well, then you should leave, preferably now, before I'm tempted to do something that I know I'll regret in the morning," I answered him.

Perry looked at me, thoughtfully, and the smile that had been residing on his lips slowly faded away. He stood up. I held my breath, as I silently prayed that he would not go. Perry turned to face the front door, and started walking towards it, not saying a word. He unlocked the door, opened it, called out "Goodbye", and left, closing the door behind him, firmly. The sound of the door closing echoed in my mind like thunder rolling on in the middle of a pitch black night.

I sat on the sofa, completely taken by surprise. I'd never thought that Perry would actually leave. He had said that he was here to help me, and now he left me alone. Yet, I could not find it in myself to feel angry or upset with him. Like any other of my countless subjects I'd given him a clear choice. He took the option to leave. Curiously, I felt better for having given him that choice. I felt more like my old self, not a lot, but a bit. Maybe I had started to forgive myself. Still I would have enjoyed finding forgiveness in Perry's arms. Now, more than ever.

My heart wasn't quite so heavy when I got up off the sofa a few minutes later, walked over the to door and locked it. I smiled weakly to myself as I headed off to the kitchen for my sure fire remedy for depression, a hot cup of herbal tea. It was only 8:15 PM, but it felt later. I felt that I had aged a few years this night as well.

I had finished my tea and was engrossed in my book once again when my doorbell rang for the second time that night. I sighed to myself, trying not to feel annoyed, as I got up and peered through the peephole to see that there was no one standing there. My first thought was that one of the local kids was playing games. I looked again and thought I saw a hint of white at the lower edge of the round field of vision of the peephole lens. Carefully, I unlocked the door, leaving the chain on and peered out. Again I did not see anyone, but when I looked down I could see a white envelope, leaning against the door. It must have been propped up against the door so that it would fall over and into my apartment when the door was opened. The envelope was thoughtfully, or intentionally, placed near the opening of the door so that it was within easy reach. I swatted down, darted my hand out, grabbed the enveloped and snatched it inside as I withdrew my hand and arm back inside the apartment. I closed the door, and locked it. I turned my attention to the envelope, grabbed the letter opener from the front hall table and slit the envelope open. I peeked inside. A white card was all I saw. I took it out and looked at it. It was blank. I turned it over. There was writing on the card, in handwriting that I was not familiar with. "Count to twenty, and open the door again, please," was all it said. I raised an eyebrow in surprise. In this day and age of crazy, sick people, and stalkers I would have been foolish to have done what the card said. Unless I checked first, and I don't mean the peephole. I scanned around my front door and for a distance of thirty or forty feet, or any hostile, unfriendly, or malevolent feelings, thoughts or impressions. All I sensed was a feeling of joy, excitement, and pleasure from someone who had just walked up and was now standing in front of my door. It would have ruined the surprise for me to have peeked through the peephole. So I didn't. I walked over to the door, unlocked, it flung it open.

The bouquet of red roses that were thrust into my face the instance the door opened, were overwhelming. All I could see was patches of red and green, and my nose was overwhelmed with the heavenly perfume that comes from the rose. My favorite flower, and not just because I'm a hopeless romantic. Instinctively I took a step or two back, which permitted the mystery person to walk into my apartment. I looked up from the heartwarming bouquet and into the devilishly grinning face of Perry! His grin became wider and wider as he smiled at the look of astonishment and surprise frozen on my face. My mouth was a small 'oh' of surprise, which probably made me look like a fish out of water as I tried to speak and could only move my lips soundlessly.

"I had a change of heart," Perry said, as he answered the unspoken question of what he was doing back here. "Take me, I'm yours."

I blinked a few times, and finally my mind shifted into gear. Thoughts flooded into my mind as I realized what Perry meant. I focused my attention on Perry and smiled at him as I sent my mental commands into his mind as quickly as I could. It took only a few seconds, during which all Perry did was blink a few times as his expression became blank. "When I ask you if you have smelled the roses, Perry, you will breath deeply and enjoy their sent. The wonderful sent of the roses will cause you slip into a wonderful state of hypnosis, with each breath that you take. After a few breaths, you will feel like doing nothing but smelling the roses, as we stand here and talk. Your mind will slowly go blank, as the smell of the roses causes you to feel more and more relaxed, and comfortable and at ease. Slowly as you go deeper into hypnosis, Perry, you will feel your legs become very relaxed. So much so that you will find it more and more difficult to stand up. So very slowly you will drop down to your knees, first onto your right knee and then down on both knees. When you are on both knees you will feel a rush of joy and pleasure as you feel yourself letting go completely, and find that the only thoughts you have are to listen to me and obey me. You will kneel there and think more and more about how good it feels to obey me. You will find yourself unable to think of anything else. You will soon come to realize that you must let me know how you feel, if I am to know that you want to obey me. You will do something, and say something to let me know. This is a one time, induction, Perry. However, you will return to this very deep state of hypnosis whenever you hear me say the phrase "roses are red, your jeans are blue, you want me, and I want you." (Okay so it was a corny trigger phrase, but you have to admit it was appropriate.)

"So are you sure about this, Perry?" I asked him as he awakened from the daze that my intensive suggestions had temporarily placed him in. "Have you smelled these roses yet?" "What? Oh, yeah, sure. I'm sure," he assured me. "I thought about it for a while, and decided that if you were going to be kind enough to give me a choice then what Marry had said about you probably was true." Perry brought the bouquet of flowers over to his face and inhaled deeply. "I love the smell of roses," he sighed, and his eyes fluttered a couple of times. Either he was being coy with me, or he was starting to slip into hypnosis, and I hoped it was the latter.

"So do I," I said to him, referring to the roses. "What was it that Mary said about me, anyway?" I asked him as I moved past him, closed the door and locked it. I didn't want anyone to see him going under after all. That was to be my pleasure alone.

"Only that you really do care about your subjects, more so than most people who have the gift," Perry answered. He took a couple more deep sniffs of the bouquet and his eyes started to turn glassy. 'Heaven..." he sighed dreamily, and smiled.

"Buying me that bouquet of roses was a sweet gesture, but totally unnecessary, Perry," I said to him.

Perry smelled the roses a few more times and his expression gradually melted into a glassy eyed blank, zombie like stare, as he slowly said, "I...wanted...to. I...wanted...to...do...that. I...want......." His voice trailed off as he seemed to lose his train of thought. Perry stood there for a few more moments staring at nothing. He was lost in his own world, his own thoughts. Slowly his arms dropped down to his sides and hung there limply, his right hand still clutching the bouquet of roses securely. I had to admit the sight of this handsome cowboy dressed in a tuxedo, standing there hypnotized was extremely exciting! I had to control my urge to whip out my hard cock and start stroking myself then and there! Not that Perry would have noticed or cared, but there would be time enough for that later. It was more important to pay attention to what Perry was doing, and to savor the sight of him slowly sinking deeper and deeper in to a state of super hypnosis.

Slowly and gracefully Perry raised the bouquet of roses to his face and inhaled deeply. As he exhaled, the expression on his face became completely empty, without even a hint of a smile. He carefully dropped down to kneel on his right knee. His face broke into a smile as soon as he was kneeling in that position. His eyes retained their vacant look. He took another deep breath, inhaling the fragrance of the roses deeply. Slowly he shifted his weight to his right leg on his right knee, moved his left leg out slightly and back down, as he lowered his left knee to the floor. In only a few seconds Perry's left knee was beside his right one, and he had shifted his weight back so that he was kneeling on both knees. Perry let out a long low loud moan of pleasure as he knelt there. He looked up at me. Like a long awaited sunrise, he face blossomed into an expression of profound joy and euphoria. He positively beamed at me, he was so happy to be there kneeling in front of me. He tried to speak but when he opened his mouth no sound emerged. He quickly shut his mouth and swallowed a few times as he tried to find the strength to talk to me. I merely smiled benevolently down at him, thoroughly enjoying the situation. (Who wouldn't? A cute cowboy in a western tuxedo, kneeling in front of you holding up a bouquet of roses. If that isn't romantic, sexy and a turn on, I don't know what is.)

"I...I.....I....want," he said brokenly, as he tried to say what was on his mind. "I...want you to have these." Perry thrust out the bouquet of roses to me with his right arm, while his left arm dangled from his side. I slowly took the flowers from him.

"Thank you, Perry," I said to him. "They are lovely."

Perry clasped his hands in front of him, and looked up at me, soulfully. "Please, will you take me too?" He trembled slightly as he spoke.