In the Dark Ch. 02

After lunch, the video player had been put away. The researchers began explaining more about what would happen the following day.

Apparently, I would be sleeping in a hotel-like bedroom suite tonight. My wake-up call was scheduled for 6:00AM, and I would be taken to the "laboratory" shortly before 7:00AM. I would then spend the next 12 hours in the lab with a man I would meet tomorrow.

The room where my partner and I would be was actually like a small studio apartment. There was a bedroom and seating area, plus a bathroom. There would be a refrigerator in the room, and plenty of food, drinks, and snacks for the long day. There would be no television and no telephone.

There would also be no windows, and the main seating area and bedroom would be darkened. Very dim lighting would be provided only to the extent that it was strictly necessary for gathering our food and using the bathroom. They explained that the darkening of the room was actually one of the important study variables, so we would not have the option of turning on lamps. The darkness was meant to encourage and foster intimacy.

I asked if there would be cameras filming the day. The answer was yes, something like a video camera would be recording the study, but the equipment would not be noticeable to us Apparently, the technology involved in the filming was not available in 2005.

I started speaking. "OK, so I'm going to spend 12 hours in this room with a man who is a total stranger to me. What, exactly, do you expect us to do together?"

"We expect you to develop an intimate relationship with him, to have sex with him, to learn enough about one another in that short time that you can share great sexual pleasure."

"We are trying to study how intimacy evolves, and how a perceived level of intimacy affects whether sexual acts result in mutual sexual pleasure. Yes, we are talking about orgasm, but more than that, we are talking about giving pleasure to your partner, not merely achieving orgasm yourself in someone else's presence."

I sat quietly, trying to digest all this information. "So, this isn't just about having sex with someone you barely know."

"No, definitely not. Building intimacy is expected. The two of you will have to decide how to go about that. Obviously, you'll spend a lot of time talking to one another." The man handed me a notepad and pen. "You might want to brainstorm a little about this, and jot down any ideas that come to your mind. We'll give you about a half hour right now."

As the couple exited the room, I wandered over to the bookshelf and picked up the dictionary, flipping quickly to the letter "i".

intimate:

1. inmost; essential; most inward; internal

2. most private or personal

3. closely acquainted or associated; very familiar

I sighed. I already knew that there was a big difference between having sex and achieving intimacy. The first was pretty straightforward, but the second...well, that was a much more challenging task.

I started jotting down a few possible topics of conversation that might get our thoughts on the right track.

- first kiss, when/where/with whom?

- details about first intercourse

- any bisexual, homosexual or group experiences?

- any fetishes?

- unfulfilled attractions and/or unrequited loves

- favorite fantasies

The researchers returned to the room. "Did you come up with some ideas?"

"Yes, I thought of a few things," I replied.

"Good, good. OK, now that you've had time to do some thinking on your own, we're going to give you a list of some suggestions that you may or may not find useful. You're not required to do any of the things on this list, but we wanted you to have a number of ideas to help your day go more smoothly tomorrow."

The list was amazing. Most of the ideas were familiar acts, like giving a back and shoulder massage, but some of the things listed were both beyond my experience and beyond my comfort zone, like "woman uses strap-on dildo to fuck male partner in the ass."

"Pretty extensive list," I commented.

"Yes, we've been working on it for some time now." they explained.

The rest of my afternoon was spent selecting clothing for me to wear, and allowing me to give some input on food choices for the next day. The clothing part was odd, but rather fun.

Sue accompanied me to what she called "the wardrobe room." It was rather like a scaled-down version of a department store, but with only women's clothing items. The clothing was basically casual, but styles varied greatly. The items were all clearly new, with manufacturer's tags still on them, but no price tags.

I considered choosing a simple tee shirt and shorts, but was immediately tempted by the feminine blouses. "Oh, this is lovely," I commented, touching a blue cotton top with a slightly scooped neckline and small ornate buttons running down the front. The neckline and bottom edge of the blouse were trimmed with a touch of matching blue lace.

"Oh, yes," she encouraged, "I think that would look quite nice on you. I'm pretty sure there's a matching skirt over here." She led me to a rack of tiered style skirts that were about knee length. The blue lace trim from the blouse also adorned the bottom edge of the coordinating skirt. "Try this on with the top."

So, I chose a couple size options in each piece, and headed to the dressing room. The outfit was really great, both cute and a little sexy, but still casual rather than formal looking.

When I exited the room with my outfit, the researcher next led me to an area with bras and panties. "Of course you can wear the undergarments that you brought with you, but you are also free to choose something new, if you'd like."

I hesitated a bit. It was no secret that a man would be seeing these items on me, and I recalled that the bra and panties I had packed were pretty plain. "Maybe I should look a little."

After trying on a number of bras, I chose a white one that was both pretty, and relatively comfortable. The bra I picked did have panties that matched, so I picked those up, too. "OK, let's add these."

As it turned out, shoes were no problem. I was informed that my partner and I would both be barefoot for the day.

Finally, it was time for dinner. Afterwards, I was taken to my room for the evening, bringing my notes from earlier and the list they had given me. Rick walked me to my room, explaining that there would be a packet in the room with sleep medication, if I thought it might help me rest better.

After getting settled in my room, I decided that I would "study" for a while, then take the sleeping pill. Otherwise, I knew that I would be tossing and turning all night.

I woke once at about 2AM, moaning a bit as I slowly exited my dream state and became conscious. I had been dreaming about Rick and Sue. Rick and Sue and me, to be exact.

I'd dreamt that we were all together at some kind of party. The music was loud, and the lights were sort of throbbing and irregular.

I was sitting on a small couch, with some type of drink in my hand, moving my shoulders and head a bit in time to the music. Everyone at the party seemed to be laughing and smiling and just generally having a good time.

"Hi, Shea," I heard, and looked up to see Rick and Sue approaching me. Rick sat down on my left side, and Sue on my right.

"Hey! Good to see you two," I said, turning to kiss each of them on the cheek in turn.

"You, too, sweetie," Rick replied. He then leaned close and whispered in my ear, "You look hot tonight!" He eyed my skimpy halter top and tight jeans appreciatively.

I smiled at him and winked. "Wanna dance?" I offered.

Rick and I headed for the dance floor. The song that was playing had a fast beat. I raised my arms, moving my hips and body in time to the beat. Rick danced near me, occasionally coming close enough to briefly grind his hips against my hip or ass.

I could feel his stiff erection as he rocked against me. I responded suggestively, matching his moves at times and prolonging the contact a few extra seconds.

When the song finished, we moved back to the couch. The three of us chatted for several minutes about the party, the hostess, and some of the guests that we knew. Rick's hand was at the small of my back, and Sue had her hands kind of wrapped around my right arm, leaning close and brushing her breasts against me repeatedly.

"Let's get out of here," Sue suggested. "We can go back to my place."

"Sure, that sounds good," I agreed, standing up and grabbing Rick's hand, pulling him up off the couch. The three of us wove our way through the crowd, stopping briefly to say good bye to a few people and thank the hostess.

"We can take my car," Rick suggested.

"You can drive," Sue agreed, "but Shea and I are going to sit in the back!" Rick just laughed, unlocking the doors. We all climbed in, and Rick headed for Sue's apartment.

Sue flirted with me on the drive home, one hand on my knee and thigh, and the fingertips of her other hand doodling little swirls along my upper arm. Sue was wearing a V-neck top with a very deep V. Every time she leaned forward the least bit, I could see the top edge of her lacy black bra. It was an enticing view.

We arrived at Sue's less than 10 minutes later. The three of us all headed up the stairs to Sue's second-floor apartment. Sue was trying to unlock the door, but Rick kept distracting her with his aggressive hands. "Rick!" she laughed, "I'm never going to get this door opened if you keep that up!" She turned to him and he immediately began kissing her.

I grabbed the keys out of Sue's hand, and unlocked the door while they kissed. "C'mon, you two, unless you plan to do it right here!" They reluctantly pulled away from one another, and we all walked into the dark living room.

Sue turned on the light in the kitchen, which partially illuminated the area by the front door. She grabbed a few bottles of various drinks from the fridge, and headed towards her bedroom. Rick and I smiled at each other, and followed her to her bedroom.

I could tell, in the context of the dream, that the three of us had been together like this many times before. There was a familiarity to our contact, an easy sort of interaction. However this threesome had originally formed, it was apparently stable, and enjoyable for all of us.

Sue was already pulling off her top by the time Rick and I reached the room. I walked over to her and began tracing that lace at the top edge of her bra that I had been admiring earlier. "Nice bra," I said.

Rick was standing behind her, and he reached around to unsnap and unzip her denim skirt. As her skirt fell to the floor, the black lacy thong she was wearing was revealed. Rick reached for the hook on her bra, and quickly removed that, too.

Rick guided Sue towards the bed. As she lay down on her back, he began squeezing her breasts. I followed them to the bed, laying down on my side near Sue, watching them. Rick's tongue began flicking across Sue's pink nipples. As they crinkled and hardened in response to his teasing, Sue's hands began reaching for the button on Rick's pants.

"Off!" she commanded, and Rick hastily complied. I helped him take them off, pulling them down quickly.

"What about these?" I asked, reaching for his briefs.

"Oh, yeah, those, too." I pulled them off also, tossing them into the growing heap of clothing.

Rick continued to suck at Sue's breasts, simultaneously rubbing his hand over her crotch. Sue moaned and squirmed, her hips lifting off the bed periodically to prolong the contact with Rick's hand.

"Bring that hard cock up here," Sue demanded, pulling Rick's body upwards. As he reached the level of her mouth, she grabbed him and quickly began sucking on the head. "Mmmmm," she hummed.

As Sue started to slide her mouth up and down his length, I leaned over her wet panties and bit her lightly through the fabric. "You're so wet," I told her, pulling the fabric over to one side, uncovering her slick, shaved pussy.

Rick was obviously enjoying himself, and Sue took him a tiny bit deeper with every stroke.

I began kissing Sue's puffy outer lips, occasionally slipping my tongue between the lips. I kept my hands busy, touching her breasts and her inner thighs, rubbing her clit briefly at times.

Rick was beginning to pant a bit, moaning, and saying words of encouragement. "Oh, baby, yes! Feels so good, sooo good. Yes, suck me hard, suck me, baby. Oh! Yes, that's it. Take it, baby, take it all the way down."

I decided it was time to give Sue a bit more, so I started licking her in long strokes, dragging my tongue upwards along her slippery slit. I pushed two fingers up into her, coordinating the twisting in and out movement of my hand with the strokes of my tongue.

Rick was about to explode, and Sue wanted to swallow his salty seed. I could sense him starting to cum, and I began sucking Sue's clit rhythmically. The timing wasn't quite perfect, but Sue's orgasm flooded over her a few seconds after Rick finished. Between Rick's groans and Sue's near scream, the room was far from silent.

I released Sue's clit long enough to ask "More?"

"omigod, omigod, omigod..." her voice trailed off just as I awakened from the dream. I was alone in that hotel-like bedroom, the sheets slightly damp with my sweat, twisted tightly between my legs.

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to be continued...