The Pleasure Boy 06

The Pleasure Boy 06

Next morning, I was awakened pleasantly at 6 AM by lively music from speakers in the hallway, just outside my room. I shaved quickly and brushed my teeth. There was no need to dress yet. Shortly, Mitch came in, showed me the right way to make my bed, then stripped it and had me do it from scratch while he watched. "This is how you will do it every morning," he told me. Then he took me down to the dining room for a buffet breakfast laid out on a sideboard along one wall of the room -- one of Joe's chores that morning.

He showed me the weekly roster of assignments, hanging by a mag­netic clip from a wall of the fridge, with four tasks that we would take turns doing:

• laying out breakfast,

• cooking the evening meal,

• serving dinner and doing dishes,

• laundry and maintenance cleaning.

Saturday mornings we all pitched in and cleaned the house. I saw I was down for serving dinner that week, starting tomorrow. As Mistress Lotte's husband, Mitch supervised us in these tasks, and he handled all other chores, partly with outside help. This house work was considered an important part of our training: It was expected that we would learn, not only to serve, but to find and give pleasure in doing so. In the class on Training and Guild Membership -- on what it meant to be a registered, qualified geisho -- we were warned early on that house chores were among the attributes on which we would be graded; that probationers who did not give satisfaction in this area would not be accepted as registered apprentices, and that apprentices marked unsatisfactory in house work would not be recommended for qualification.

After breakfast, I was told to dress 'properly' (as distinct from 'formally' or 'casually') -- for going out with Mistress in public. She would be taking me to the Guild that morning, to be enrolled and assigned to classes. I did so, quickly, then went to her office as I'd been told to show her that I was ready. She had me wait for a few minutes while she finished something, then rose from her desk and came round to me. "You're my escort this morning," she said. "A gentleman offers his arm."

I did so, and she took it. Thus, we walked to the elevator, and from there to the car in the garage, with Mistress giving instruction on the basics of escort service -- a key skill I'd be expected to master. "When you go out with me," she explained, "except at the Guild where I'll take the lead, think of me as a client paying you to take her somewhere. You must use your judgment to match my mood. If I am friendly, respond in kind, making general conversation as may feel appropriate. If I seem preoccupied, be silent and do not intrude. When with others, be subtly but not obtrusively subservient -- doing what you can to enhance my status without appearing to do so. In general, be good company, but judge the situation. You are to make your client feel that it is pleasant to be with you, without making efforts to charm her (unless that is explicitly your role). You should dress well, but never in a way that outshines your client. In all situations, you are to complement and adorn him or her as best you can -- like a good hand bag or hat or parasol -- without being obtrusive. As a professional, remember that your goal is to be hired again next time this service is needed."

"Yes, Mistress," I understand. "I've seen my mom behave this way around my father in public. She's his wife now, of course, but her geisha background shows."

"Ah, good," Mistress sighed. "What you got from Mitch that first evening was a pleasure-spanking. I've been looking for a sound reason to introduce you to the corporal punishment that will be used in your training, and you've just given it to me. You've done no harm on this occasion, but you've just committed one of the cardinal sins of our profession. You've been indiscreet! You've told me something about another person that she might not want to have known. As we finish dinner tonight, remind me to punish you. It won't be pleasant at all, but it will help you and the others remember that indiscretion is a no-no for us."

She was silent after that, and so was I. When we arrived at the Guild building, she parked in its lot and told me to help her out. That too was a skill my mother had taught me, and I did it well. Mistress smiled at me, but said nothing. And I kept my mouth shut, as well.

Inside, she led me to the registration office, asked for a form for me and filled it out. The registration secretary took a digital photo of me which was then printed onto the form and onto a card that she clipped and laminated for my wallet. I was now officially enrolled, and the next step was to get me into a training class. This would be done by the Guild, I was told, within the next few days, as new groups were starting at the beginning of the month. "Your instructor will explain the system to you," the secretary said. "Meanwhile, you can get a head start on your reading." She handed me a reading list. "These books should be provided to you."

"They're the books in your room," Mistress Charlotte said. She thanked the secretary, and we left.

On the way home, she gave me an orienting talk on the classes I would be taking and on the training system as a whole. "Think of my training house as a kind of Home Room," she said. "You will live with me, and come to introductory classes in the four core areas at the Pleasure Workers Guildbuilding where we just were. The subway will get you there or home in about 30 minutes. Classes are scheduled so that your travel will be outside of rush hour. It's not a painful commute."

• "The core class on Pleasure Work covers the recognized modalities of pleasure (recognized and served by the Guild, that is), with an introduction to their skills and marketing. It also introduces you to the Guild itself: its structure, its facilities, the rules that we must follow to remain members in good standing. It involves a lot of reading and discussion, with some lab work to give you personal experience.

• "A second class on Group Facilitation is just what its name implies. You will learn to lead, co-lead, or advise on the leading of various types of groups -- from parties (gatherings which are explicitly for pleasure) to task groups that will run more smoothly and accomplish more if its members feel comfortable together."

• "A third class introduces three areas of Body Knowledge: fitness, massage and sexuality. It is taught mainly as a practicum with some background reading and discussion." The training and practice that you'll get in this class is complemented and specialized a bit by pointers you'll get from me.

• "Finally there is a class called 'Hedonics' on the history, philosophy and neuroscience of pleasure. Through classroom discussion of assigned readings, it surveys the academic findings on our profession. There is a long and fascinating history of attitudes and practices regarding sexuality, dining, the arts and other pleasure-giving fields. In philosophy, there are the Epicureans, who taught that pleasure is a human good, against the Stoics and several religious traditions who regarded pleasure with fear, dislike or suspicion. Today, we have a science of the brain and its hormones which shed light on physiology of pleasure, and its role in mood and motivation."

She went on, "With Mitch and me, and the other apprentices, you'll get as much hands-on experience as we can give you in sexuality, escort work, group facilitation and mutual support. Because geishi often work in teams, this last is very important. To qualify as a journeyman, you will have to convince a Guild examiner that you can work under a licensed master or mistress, take direction, and competently perform the tasks assigned to you. You should also be aware that guild training does not end when you pass the journeyman's exam. You will be licensed to work, and to earn a decent living -- enough to pay your college tuition, if you go that route -- but to win a master's license and the right to practice on your own, you'll still need quite a lot of reading and classwork and many hours of logged, accredited experience. This can be done part-time while you're at university. You may even get some course-credit for Guild training and experience. The Guild may give you credits for some university classes or other academic work. And you may change your mind, and decide to make your career with us. Or do part-time pleasure work for pleasure, or to enhance your income."

"In the Guild classes, all your classmates will be beginners like yourself. They wait, usually just a few weeks before they have enough new probationers to start a group."

"It's different from a training house (like mine), where all the apprentices and probationers like you are at different levels -- to give the more senior a chance to practice their skills by teaching the beginners. Remember that in just a few months, you will be where Lisa is now: the most senior of my small troop because the others will have passed their exam and gone off to work somewhere."

I sat and listened to her, trying to take it in, feeling mostly awe at how tightly organized everything seemed, despite its strangeness. Pleasure was not just an art and science, I now realized. It was also a bureaucracy. As I thought about this pleasure industry and the training for it, I wondered how I would fit in.

It was late in the morning when we got home. "Why don't you go to your room, get out of your clothes and start in on your reading," Mistress suggested. "Come down for lunch when you get hungry. It's buffet style, just like breakfast. Dinner -- usually at 6 PM -- is our only sit-down meal. Don't forget to check the schedule to see what your assignments are. Mitch and I prepare it every evening; and you must check it at breakfast every morning, as part of your routine. This is the last time someone will tell you how you'll spend your day."

"You've got the rest of the morning and afternoon to read and study. Get your nose into the Textbook of Hedonics; read its Introduction and Preface, and be prepared to be questioned on them -- by Mitch or myself tomorrow."

"You're due a punishment after dinner -- six cane stripes on your bottom -- but that won't take long, and won't make anyone think less of you. You just have to show that you can accept and learn from it."

"From 7:30 to 9:30 you will meet and socialize with the other apprentices. Usually, after dinner is free time that you can use for personal business or study, but tonight you're to make friends with the others, and get to know them. They've been instructed to welcome you and help you, but they will be curious about you as I'm sure you are about them."

"At 10 PM you will come to my bedroom to serve Mitch and me, and sleep with us. You have half an hour to shower and make yourself presentable as our bed pet. You don't need to fuss tonight. Just be sure you're clean."

I wasn't sure what she meant by 'fussing,' but decided not to ask. "I'll find out soon enough," I thought. Meanwhile, the thought of spending the night as a dominant couple's 'bed pet' went straight to a certain part of my anatomy. Mistress glanced at my tenting trousers and stopped me when I tried to turn away and cover myself. "No, don't try to hide it from me," she said. "I'm pleased that the thought of sleeping with us gives you a woody. I'm not embarrassed by it, and you shouldn't be. Just keep your hands off it, for now. As an apprentice here, you're not allowed to masturbate or cum without permission from either Mitch or myself. You'll get lots of permission though. We're out to teach you pleasure, not abstinence. But you'll soon learn that one way to heighten pleasure is some self-control."

She gave me her hand. "When I instruct you and offer a hand like this, you are to kiss my hand and thank me." I did so. "Now scram," she said. "Use your time well. See how much reading you can do." As she turned and walked away, again I whispered "Thank you, Mistress," at her, and went to my room. With its door closed behind me, I stripped, put my clothes away in my dresser, and sat down with the reading list that the Guild secretary had given me, noting as I did so that the armchair was covered by a synthetic fabric that felt pleasant on my bare skin, and would not be stained by perspiration. I really did want to masturbate; I had all I could do to keep my hands off my stiffening cock; but I managed to refrain.