Chapter 1 - The First Snowflakes
I could have asked him many times to move back, but I didn't want to. I understood his point; he was born here, and it was a big part of who he was. That was valid. The last thing I wanted him to do was to change because of me. It was our joint decision to live here together, and I accepted it. On my side, yes, I did it in the name of love, but it was not an obligation. I knew what I was getting myself into... Kind of.
I was not the type of person who would get blinded by a romance. I had loved other guys in the past, but when stars had refused to align, even if it had been heartbreaking sometimes, I had walked away, knowing I could fall in love with someone else eventually. Affection for someone else was not something causing me to make unintelligent decisions.
Three years ago, I went to the beach near Los Angeles to tan my little Latino body, and I bumped into this attractive guy. He looked so out of place, and his skin was white as a ghost. After making fun of him for looking like Casper, I learned he was from way up north in Canada. They didn't get as much sunlight as we did over there.
Outside this fun fact, I liked him a lot. He was going to be in L.A. for the next four months, so we decided to date casually, knowing it would eventually end. We had a lot of great sex because of the sense of urgency; the luxury of time wasn't on our side. What I didn't know back then, was that my feeling for him would grow beyond normal. He was different than the others I had met before, and I felt more and more as if he was a guy I would like to stay with for longer... possibly even for the rest of my life. This was problematic.
Months had flown by too fast, and he had to leave me behind reluctantly as his trip came to an end. Sadly, I missed him so much. I thought the feelings would fade over time, but they didn't. Plain and simple, I needed him.
Several discussions over the phone and Skype later, we decided the healthiest thing would be for me to visit for a while and see how it would go. Quicker than I was ready for, I was aboard a big plane, nervously playing with my fingers, wondering if this was a mistake or not. It was just a visit, not a wedding, but still, exploring what our future could look like was a bit nerve-wracking.
Once his arms wrapped around my narrow shoulders again, the nervousness vanished. He was the same down to earth man that I loved so much, and I didn't discover anything weird about him. The size of his house would put my little L.A. apartment to shame. Nicely surrounded by nature, it was only twenty minutes away from civilization. This new environment surprised me in a good way as it was so much better than the big city I was used to; I had discovered wilderness for the first time.
When I visited at that time, it was during summer and I fell in love with the weather so much; it was not crazy hot like home. It was important to him to draw me a true picture of reality, so his main warning was that winter would be the absolute opposite; cold and very snowy. I honestly had no concept of cold or snow, so I just trusted him without fully realizing what he meant.
My stay went well so we discussed, for the first time, the possibility of living together. It was more a matter of exploring our options in between two hot sex sessions rather than trying to rush things. Since it would be a life-changing commitment, we agreed that he would visit me once more in the fall, and I would revisit him in the middle of the winter, to see if I could survive the elements.
The next time he came down to L.A. was pretty much when I made my decision to move in with him, no matter where we would end up. I think it was pretty clear for him as well; he unarguably wanted to be with me. I made him visit my city as much as possible, but I could tell he wasn't in love with it.
I had to admit, I was not in love with it either. It was not a bad place to live, per se, but after experiencing his home in the forest for a bit, It was an eye opener on how crazy things were down here. Sure the beaches were beautiful, but the rest was a bit insane.
Soon enough, it was my turn to visit a second time; I would finally experience this supposedly infamous winter for the first time; it was January. The day before the flight, he asked me to dress warm because they expected a week of extreme cold temperature. I looked at the weather website and saw some numbers I had never seen before. My logic at the time told me to wear pants, socks, and a jacket. It was supposed to be -25F when I landed.
As soon as I got out of the plane, the inside of the jet bridge was insanely cold. It was like walking inside a big meat freezer. The terminal was much warmer, but this first semi-exposure experience made me a bit anxious. Would it be possible to survive in a place colder than a fridge?
I knew he was waiting for me in the cell phone parking lot, so I recovered my luggage and texted him to pick me up along with some pink hearts. I gave him my door number, put my jacket on, and foolishly walked outside to wait for him.
I thought my heart had stopped. I had never experienced something such as this. My face and fingers burned immediately, and I started a legit panic, not understanding what was happening to me. I quickly ran back to the terminal, burning my hand on the sub-zero door handle in the process. What was this frozen hell? There was no way people could live in this. It was impossible!
He texted me a minute later while I was still trembling in shock, asking where I was. I had no choice but to walk out again and find his car. It was painful. As soon as he saw me, I got scolded.
"What are you doing outside dressed like this! Get in the car right away, or you'll get sick!"
I remembered running to his SUV, not even hugging him. My fingers and nose were stinging, and I struggled to breathe. I couldn't comprehend what this was. He put my luggage in the trunk and calmly climbed in the driver seat, showing no hurry.
After a small hug and a kiss, it was his turn to make fun of me for not knowing the concept of 'freezing cold'. Of course, he was honest and explained that this extreme temperature was only an occasional occurrence and not the norm. However, if I were to move here, I would have to get used to it. He felt a bit guilty for not warning me better, though; my clothing selection was at the root of the problem.
After a few days, the weather got much more bearable, but it was still cold, and the snow wouldn't melt. At least with the clothes he bought me, I could walk outside without dying. My first discovery, outside the thermometer-splitting weather, was that winter turned everything into wonders. The snow-covered trees and the silence that came with it mesmerized me to the highest degree.
Things went very well again during this second visit, with lots of good sex and happy moments; there was no weirdness. So at the end of my stay, we were still madly in love, and it convinced us even more that we needed to live together.
I was the one who made the ultimate decision to move to his place. Winter was temporary, and summer would be lovely. The slower lifestyle pace and nature convinced me. I could probably endure winter for a few months per year. On top of it, I was considerate of his job. He was making much more than I did and wouldn't easily find something similar in the US.
The stars were aligned. The die was cast. I moved to his country.
***
"Mia? Where are you?"
"In the bedroom!"
Brian just came back from work. It was our second year officially together in this house, and he always had this routine; he stepped inside our home after work, asked where I was, and came to me to get a kiss. I considered myself lucky since he could have gone to the fridge for a beer instead, but no, even after all that time together, he always chose the pretty me first.
He entered the bedroom, wearing his usual work clothes. He did look like the teacher he was, but to me, he was good looking. Brian was not an athlete, but he kept himself active mostly by working outside our house. His free time activities consisted of chopping firewood to feed our fireplace, and working on random projects in his outdoor workshop. He just enjoyed spending a lot of time surrounded by nature. Fortunately, I was considered nature too; I was his favorite wild animal.
He sat down on the bed next to me, and I put my tablet aside to receive my daily "I missed you" little kiss.
"So, how are you surviving?" he asked.
"It's fine. Not that many things to do, though."
The library where I was working had burned down last week and I lost my job in the process. Fortunately, nobody got hurt, and I now received unemployment; it could have been much worse. Even with my salary drop, we were not very worried because Brian made enough for both of us. I worked just because I liked it.
The library was not in a big town, so over there, I was doing pretty much everything, such as interacting with members, and doing a bit of administrative work. It kept me busy, and that was how I liked it. Peaceful and quiet.
"It was a bit cold today too. Did you see the first snowflakes around lunchtime?" he asked.
"I KNOW! Please tell me winter is not coming this year."
"Hehe. No... it's coming like a lion. Not much you can do about it."
"Well, you love it... I don't."
I hated winter. The first time I experienced it, I almost died at the airport, but then Brian did his best to show me how beautiful it could be. I conceded it was indeed very pretty and thought I could get used to it for this reason… but I never did. With the appropriate items of clothing, it was bearable at most.
"Don't be like that, Mia. It's your second winter only. This year you should try to go outside more and maybe try some sports, like skiing or snowshoeing. You would get used to the cold and enjoy winter more."
"I don't think so... The only thing I like about winter is having sex with you in front of the fireplace."
Sex was always good. Not only was cumming my favorite thing in the world, but making Brian happy in the process was priceless. The happier he was, the happier I was. Not being very good at anything else, I was not shy to say I used sex to compensate for my inability to please him with a homemade meal. I had no problem being his food.
Yeah, I was not super useful in general and felt a bit bad because of it. On top of not being able to cook, I had other flaws. I didn't like cleaning, so I was always doing a sloppy job, and I was leaving all my things here and there in random places. Even if this house was huge, I managed to populate its entirety with my clothes, books, dirty dishes, and half-empty glasses. It was a repeat of my tiny L.A. apartment, times a hundred.
Now that the cursed season was on our doorstep, my bad behaviors would get even worse.
"I think I will stay indoors all winter and only go out when the snow starts melting," I said.
"You can do that if you want, but what are you going to do for the next four months? Surf the web for cat videos? You'll get depressed quickly."
"I knoooow. After a week I'm already bored to tears... I don't know what to do with my skin."
"I know you are. That's why I'm asking you to put your fears aside and go have fun in the snow."
"Not a chance!"
I was a bit stubborn. I understood the rationale behind Brian's words; he was right. But winter was cold, and it was deterrent enough to justify hiding inside our warm house. My parents didn't conceive me to withstand anything below 60F. I was just a cute and fragile Latino girl.
"Alright, then. Suit yourself. You'll hate your life until you find a new job. I tell you," he said.
"I know! I will need to find a hobby or something. Once the new library is ready, they said they would hire me back. But that will probably be a year from now. I'll need something entertaining before that."
"You'll need quite a hobby... or a new job. Anyway. Think about what I said; winter is not evil if you embrace it. I'm going to cook now. Is chicken okay?"
"Yeah... Chicken is good."
Guilt gnawed at me. I did nothing all day while Brian was at work, and now he was going to cook for me on top of it. This cursed winter was to be blamed, it drained all motivation out of me. At least, I was fortunate enough that my boyfriend never complained about my lazy attitude.
***
The remainder of the week was more of the same. I stayed home, purging the internet from all cat videos I could find, and my morale dropped lower and lower. Before hitting rock bottom, I remembered what Brian had told me. Perhaps he was right, and I should try to embrace winter a bit more. Maybe a walk in the snow would be what I needed, and if I had that one positive experience, it would motivate me to do it again.
Through the large living room window, I could see our first snow of the winter; it was beautiful. The ground was all white, and those scintillating water crystals neatly covered the trees. The wind was absent, making everything look so peaceful. A bunch of squirrels played around and tried to find some food. I envied them and wanted to share their joy.
I made up my mind. Today I would go out and walk the trail next to our place, and I would try to absorb the beauty of winter. Only a few minutes would be necessary as overdoing would be counterproductive. The entryway closet contained all the gears I needed to thrive in a cold environment. My winter boots, my warm coat, toque with cat ears, and gloves would allow me to push through this challenge.
Brian was so right; he chose to live here because he appreciated how amazing this land was. There was nothing like nature. We were animals, and we had the innate ability to live in symbiosis with our environment. Wilderness's offering was the source of true happiness.
I opened the front door and smiled when the hot hair rushed out of the house, undulating my vision slightly. I stepped on the front porch, opened my arms wide to take in a giant breath of fresh air, and appreciate within my nose the smell of the frozen pine trees!
"... GAH!... FUCK THAT!"
The freezing air rushed to my lungs, turning them into blocks of ice. It burned my throat and made me choke instantaneously. I turned around, dove back into the house, and back-kicked the door shut behind me before screaming some more of my distress.
"NO WAY I'M GOING OUT FOR A WALK IN THIS FROZEN HELL!"
I jumped out of my boots and randomly threw my winter clothes on the floor. I ran to the couch and curled on it under a warm blanket, shivering and crying like a traumatized fawn. I was so sad. I wanted to enjoy winter, but I just couldn't do it. I was too sensitive. How come Brian was capable of going outside with only a wool pullover and not me?
I stayed there for a while until my phone ringtone brought me back to the world of the living. The call was from Brian.
"Hey, Brian."
"Hey, Mia. How is your day going."
"Great... just fantastic."
"That good, uh? Listen... I have a weird question. Are you susceptible to hypnosis?"
"That's random! I don't know... Nobody ever hypnotized me before, but I think it's bullshit. Why do you ask?"
"Yeah... It is just that I found a gadget at the store, but it is a bit expensive. The guy said it doesn't work well on most people, but I find the idea super fun. I think I'm going to buy it."
"Well, how much is it? You know we have to talk about big purchases together before buying anything. That's our rule."
"I know... That's why I'm calling you. We can return it if we are not happy. We have 30 days."
I didn't often hear Brian being this excited about something. Not having a clue why he was this fired up about something, it got me curious. Facing this rare occurrence of "kid in a candy store" behavior from him, I chose not to destroy his mood.
"So, what is it?"
"It's a surprise... Can I buy it?"
"A surprise? Sure... If you can return it, I don't have a problem."
"I love you so much, Mia. I can't wait to try it. I'll see you in an hour or so."
"Love you too, honey."
What was he talking about? I curled some more under my blanket and kept browsing for cat videos; there must be more. Hopefully, what he just bought would be somewhat entertaining for me as well. I could use some distraction.
***
An hour later, Brian showed up at the house, carrying a small package under his arm. The unimpressive sized item didn't look too expensive. He was smiling so much, though; it was slightly suspicious.
"Mia! Look! This is awesome!"
"What is... that?"
He handed me the box, and on the picture, there were some sort of fancy wireless headphones.
"You bought new headphones? If you needed new ones, you didn't need my permission, you know. Were they that expensive?"
"No, they are not headphones. Read."
I looked back at the box and read the description. "SusceptGear: Hypnotic inducer." That didn't help. On the side, there was a long list of features I didn't care to read, along with a few logos I was familiar with, like the wifi and LTE symbols.
"What the hell is this for? You want to meditate or something? If you are stressed, we can have more hot sex instead."
"Hehe. No. My understanding is that it puts the person into a hypnotic trance, and depending on how you configure the gear, the subject will act accordingly. It is for entertainment purposes."
"Aaaah, Brian! There is no such thing as hypnosis. It is not even a real thing. How much did you pay for this."
"I'm pretty sure it is real. Hypnosis works. I'm convinced."
"Brian, don't dodge the question. How much?"
He looked back at the product, probably apprehensive of my reaction.
"... 3400$... but listen, Mia..."
"WHAT!? 3400$!? ... Return it now!"
"No... wait..."
"Now! It's an order! I know you make good money, but we still make those decisions together and we have bills to pay. This is a toy that we don't need, and it won't even work. You must return it."
I gave him back his box along with a severe Latino stare. There was some sadness in his face. It was very unlike him to buy a gadget this odd and for such an insane price. Why was this so important to him? He was not even a tech guy, and what he liked the most was the outdoors. I couldn't even remotely picture him sitting in on a couch meditating.
He placed the box on the console table and walked away to the kitchen to prepare dinner. I felt terrible for him, but he probably knew I was right deep down. It was unreasonable to pay more on a toy than what we spent on everything else in an entire month. It was clearly a scam.
I walked up to Brian and pulled him into a gentle hug.
"Sorry, I was a bit harsh. But you know what I mean, right?" I asked.
"Yeah... I don't know why I wanted to try it. I looked special. It was the only one they had in stock."
"There is probably a reason for that. You want to try it that badly?"
"I would have loved to, yes."
" Alright, I'm sorry. If you are sure we can return it even if you open the box, we can give it a shot, I guess."
"Yes, I asked. The seller will take it back. It's even written on the bill."
"Okay, then. We will give your toy a try, but don't get your hopes up. I don't want you to be disappointed."
"If it doesn't work, then it doesn't work. That's all."
"... Then I can comfort you with my naked body?"
"Oooh... Then I hope it won't work."
After playfully kissing and grabbing each other's butt, we cooked dinner together and agreed to test his device after our meal. As usual, I was not very useful in the kitchen. I peeled one potato while he peeled five, and he took care of everything else. One thing I knew for sure, he wasn't dating me for my cooking skills.
We ate our food without even talking about the SusceptGear. Brian told me about his work and the students who paid him and not paying attention to his teachings. He was quite worried about the workforce of the future; people had trouble finding a life purpose these days.
When it was my turn to talk, I told him about my failed attempt to go outside and enjoy winter, and how I almost died, frozen, on the front porch before being nibbled by hungry squirrels. He was not too impressed nor convinced my tale was entirely accurate; I was so misunderstood.
He cleaned up the table, and at that point, I could sense he was in a bit of a hurry; the reason was obvious. I didn't want to play the downer anymore today, still feeling guilty about my overreaction, so I tried to match his mood the best I could. He grabbed his hypnosis gear, and we headed to our bedroom to test it.
We installed ourselves on the bed and carefully unboxed it together. Since he would have to return it, we didn't want to damage anything; this thing was scary costly. After slicing the tape, he opened the side and pulled the cardboard tray out, revealing its content.
There was a small manual, a charging cable, the SusceptGear, and a MicroSD card. I delicately picked the high tech piece of equipment... it was so light and fancy. It looked made of carbon fiber and titanium or something expensive like that. In terms of size, It was much smaller and delicate than I expected; it was a cute little device.
I found the power button and switched it on. A small red light turned on in the middle of the headband.
"It seems charged already. What now?" I asked.
"It says to insert the test SD card in it."
I pinched the tiny memory card and the light turned blue when I inserted it in the appropriate slot. It was a good sign that it did something at all. At least it looked like a legit device now. I showed Brian it was on and asked him for the next step.
"Here. Now what? You wear it?"
"I guess... I have to put it on like the picture shows. The headband has to go around my forehead, and the two nodes should go just above my ears."
"Hehe. Forehead glasses. Okay, don't move."
It was quite funny to put the device on Brian's head. It was like crowning a royalty. Again, I didn't want to spoil his fun, but he looked pretty ridiculous with this bright blue light in the middle of his forehead, plus it would definitely look better on a girl. I smiled a bit too much, though, and he read my mind.
"Are you making fun of me, Mia?"
"Haha... No!... I just... pfff..."
"Right. You are totally making fun of me. Anyway, Here is the remote. You can press the button right there to engage it. There is a cell phone app too, but this will do for now. Once it is on, just follow the test procedure from the manual. If it works, I'm supposed to do what you will ask."
"Mmm... An obedient boyfriend. I hope it will work. Okay. Well? Are you ready?"
"Yeah, I think so."
I pressed the button and looked at him. I heard an audible beep coming from the SusceptGear, which was good, but Brian stared at me, waiting for something magical to happen. There was nothing different with him so far.
"Brian? Are you okay?"
"Mmm... Yes... Are you sure it's on?"
"I think so. But you look normal."
"I feel normal too. I feel the same."
"Okay. Let's see... I have to ask for your name, and if it works, you are going to say SusceptGear instead. So... What is your name?"
"... Brian?"
"Well... Are you sure?"
"Yes... I'm Brian..."
"Okay, well, it didn't quite work. I can ask you to get me a glass of water too, so, go get me some water."
"... No?"
His face changed while he slowly realized he bought a piece of junk; it didn't work at all. We restarted from the beginning several times just to get the same result try after try. We even attempted many positions for the headgear, and it didn't change a thing. There was a bit of shame in his eyes now, and he looked down at the useless item before apologizing to me.
"I'm sorry, Mia... You were right; I should have known better. At least I know the store is a serious one and they will take this thing back. I was so dumb to think it would work."
"Haha. Don't worry. I'll cheer you up tonight in front of the fireplace. Everybody makes mistakes, right?. Think about all the people that bought 3D TVs early 2000 because it was going to be the future. At least you can get your money back. Oh... or you can turn me into a princess, look."
I placed the high tech tiara on my forehead and posed cutely to cheer him up.
"Look! I'm a fairy!"
"Hehe. A cute one too, but don't break it, else we are in trouble."
"If it didn't break on your head, it won't break on mine. It is too bad there is nothing helpful in the troubleshooting section of the manual. There is not even a phone number or a website."
I flipped the pages, still finding nothing useful. I grabbed the remote and inspected it again, but why would there be anything new.
"Anyway, hypnosis is fake. People just do things because they want to during the shows and stuff," I said.
"Yeah, I guess you are right. It would have been cool, though."
I pressed the power button on the remote, and the SusceptGear beeped, like it did with Brian earlier, nothing special there. Then a few seconds later, it beeped two more times. I felt something a bit odd happening to me, but I was not too sure what it was. There was a bit of confusion in my mind and Brian looked at me funny. He was as surprised by the double beep as I was; It never did this when we tried the SusceptGear on him.
"Mia? Are you okay? Your eyes look a bit different. And why did the light on your forehead turn green?"
"I... I am not sure... I feel... relaxed."
"No way, Mia! Don't tell me it works on you?"
"Mia? What works on me?"
"What is your name?"
"SusceptGear."
Wait? What? Why did I say that? My name was not SusceptGear... It was a stupid name. No, my name was cute... It was ...
"SusceptGear!"
"Ah, stop it, Mia! It's not nice to tease me like this. I admitted my mistake. You don't need to make fun of me any further."
"I... I am not... what is going on?"
"Are you serious?"
"Yes... I swear... I... I know it is not my name... but... I don't get it."
"Go get me some water."
"Sure, one sec."
Without second-guessing what I was doing, I stood up and went to the bathroom, filled up a glass of water, and brought it back to Brian. I did this willingly, but yet... Why? This was so confusing. It didn't make any sense. Then, Brian asked me another question.
"How many fingers do you have?"
"Six."
"No, Mia, you have ten fingers. How many fingers do you have?"
"Six."
No! I didn't have six fingers. I knew that. Why did I keep saying six? That was so messed up. Then, I heard three beeps and I slowly came back to my senses; Brian had turned the device off using the remote, and it came back to me...
"TEN! I have ten fingers! Wait... What? What just happened to me?"
"Well, it looks like you are the chosen one. The SusceptGear works perfectly on you."
"No! It can't be. Hypnosis is fake. I know that."
"Well, you were wrong. Hehe. I think we should wait a bit before returning the device. I'm a bit frustrated it didn't work on me, but if you are receptive to it, it could be fun too. How did it feel?"
"I was confused... it didn't feel bad. I could think by myself and all, but I was just doing and saying things without being able to resist, I really wanted to give those answers and get you some water. I had also forgotten my name. It was unsettling."
I was in trouble. If this device worked that well on me, I wondered how many more things it could force me to do. In all honesty, it scared me a little. Hypnosis was not my idea, and I didn't think I desired to be part of this. I removed the SusceptGear and placed it back in the box, along with the manual.
"Okay, it was fun and all, but you return this thing tomorrow."
"Ah, really? You don't want to give it a shot."
"No. You return it. I don't want it."
"Okay, okay. I will. Too bad though, I would have loved to experiment with it a bit more. I'm sure it would have been fun. Let's sleep on it, and if you do not change your mind by tomorrow, I will return it. I think you were just a little surprised, that's all."
"I won't change my mind, thank you."
That night, I went to bed early. This device had troubled me. Brian wanted to have sex, but I was no longer in the mood, which was rare. The understanding man he was just retreated downstairs with his new toy and left me alone. I could hear him work on his computer until I fell asleep.
***
The next morning I woke up way too early. I spent the night tossing and turning like a crocodile trying to digest an antelope. I didn't know if it was the dinner or the hypnosis that caused me to be restless, but something was bugging me. In fact, I knew exactly what it was but didn’t want to admit it; curiosity.
It was only 6 am when I got out of bed. Brian was still deeply asleep, probably exhausted by my incessant overnight bacon dance. I walked out of the room silently and went downstairs to the kitchen. I filled up the coffee machine and turned it on. I would need a couple of cups today. Then on the corner of my eye, I saw it.
The box was there, half-opened on the countertop. Brian probably played with it all evening, perhaps trying to make it work on himself. When he saw it working so well on me, he got a bit jealous; I could tell just by the tone of his voice. Yeah... It worked well on me. Why? It wasn't even my idea.
I grabbed the SusceptGear and inspected it. Like it or not, it was a neat well-built little device. They hid the electronics well, and it was no heavier than a pair of glasses. I turned it on and placed it on my forehead before going to the washroom to look at myself in the mirror.
"It's kind of cute on me. I wonder how it works exactly. It probably does more than just convincing people they have a stupid name and force them to fetch water."
I didn't like this little blue light on my forehead; it was teasing me. I remembered yesterday when this device made me a bit confused, it had not hurt me or taken my soul away, it had just convinced me that I had a different name. I guess it was how people felt when they got hypnotized by a therapist. I couldn't recall any horror stories about people forced to kill others while under hypnosis. Sold as entertainment, the SusceptGear was probably quite safe to use.
I went back to the kitchen and looked in the box for the remote. I was wondering if I could shut it down by myself after I turned it on. I couldn't think of a reason why not. Since Brian was asleep, it was my golden opportunity to test it once more without him being aware before he returned it to the store. If he were to discover I tried it again, he would make fun of me for the rest of the year, or he would simply ask me to keep it. I would prefer to go outside and freeze to death in the snow with the carnivorous squirrels.
I looked at the remote and clicked on the button. After the double-beep, I experienced the same feelings as yesterday. It was as if it placed my mind into a dream right before waking up. I pressed the button again and felt myself returning to normal. I had to admit; it felt very good. It was like an instant relaxation.
Now that I was confident I could turn the device off by myself, I wanted to know how autonomous I would be while the SusceptGear was on. I poured myself a mug of coffee and pressed the button again. The good feeling came back instantaneously, and I struggled a bit to remember what I wanted to try. I had just enough willpower to grab the mug and take a sip from it.
It was not too bad. I could still think by myself and do whatever I wanted, but when I looked around me, in the kitchen, something started to bug me. My eyes landed on the sink area where the dirty dishes from last night were waiting for attention. I felt compelled to take care of it. Why? I didn't even like to do the dishes... What was wrong with me? I placed the remote somewhere on the counter and went to the sink to get to work.
What was going on? It made me so happy because, at the moment, it was the thing I loved the most in the entire world; washing the dishes. I was conscious of the fact it made no sense whatsoever, but the emotion I had was unmistakable. It was fun. I painstakingly scrubbed the plates and piled them up next to the sink before drying them with a soft towel and putting them away in the cabinets.
My focus went back to the sink, and I started scrubbing it clean. Why did I even think about that? Doing the dishes wouldn't come to my mind, let alone clearing the sink itself. It was so strange, but also so cool. I was very proud of myself for doing a perfect job. This achievement was, however, followed by a sensation of emptiness; I wanted to do more.
Still fighting against what the device tried to tell me, I refocused on my coffee. During the past few minutes, I didn't think a single time about stopping the SusceptGear; I couldn't recall what I wanted to do before the dishes. But now that my task was done, I got some freedom back.
Just as I was about to pick up the mug to take another sip, my eyes landed on the stove clock, indicating 6:34 am.
"Oh, no! I'm late!"
What? What was I late for? I hurried, almost panicking, and climbed up the stairs, and rushed to our bedroom. Silently, I pulled the duvet off Brian's naked body, and then understood what I wanted to do; his morning wood would make it even easier for me.
I sat on the bed next to him and lowered my face to his cock. I had an insuppressible desire to give him a blowjob. I wrapped my lips around his shaft and started to suck him softly. Same as with the dishes earlier, a wave of happiness flooded my soul. This time it made more sense since it was something loved to do. I abandoned myself to the task, letting the headgear guide me.
Of course, Brian woke up and moaned of pleasure before placing one of his hands behind my head.
"Mia! Oh, my God. Talk about a good morning!"
"Mmmm…"
My mouth was full, and I couldn't reply to him nor wanted to. And who was this Mia, anyway? I was Crystal... Not Mia. Wait... No... I was not Crystal. I know it was my name but... was it me? This was so weird. All that mattered to me right now was sucking Brian off efficiently, and thinking about anything else was just confusing. For the next few minutes, I gave it my all until I got rewarded with a big load of sperm down my throat. Gratefulness invaded my mind.
"Thank you, Master," I said.
"Master? Why are you calling me... Oh, God!... Why are you wearing the SusceptGear?"
"Did I do something wrong?"
"What is your name?"
"Crystal, Master."
"I'll be damned... It works! And... you are so going to kill me."
"I would never harm you! I'm here to make you happy."
"Oh yeah?... No. Believe me on that one. You are going to kill me. Where is the remote?"
"I do not know."
He got out of bed, grabbed my hand, and led me downstairs and to the kitchen. He found the remote to turn the SusceptGear off. It took a bit more time than before, but I eventually regained my senses. I got flooded with the memories of everything I had done since I put it on. My face became redder and redder the more I became aware of what I had done and knowing I had been exposed.
"Brian? What... What happened? Oh, my God! This is so embarrassing..."
"You remember everything, right?"
"Y... yes. I... I just wanted to try it again... but then I started to do weird things. It was very different than yesterday. I was doing things on my own."
"Haha. Did you like it?"
"I... I guess... I was thrilled to clean the dishes and..."
"You cleaned the dishes!? Wow! Then there is no doubt about it... it really works well."
"Hey! Enough with the sarcasm! I do the dishes... occasionally..."
"No, you don't, and you know it."
"..."
He was right earlier; I was going to kill him. Also, I was not dumb; I knew he did something to the SusceptGear. The experience was too different from last night, which convinced me there was much more to it this time around.
"Brian! Tell me what you have done!"
"Nothing! I just fiddled with the thing last night trying to upload programs to it."
"What program?"
He clicked the remote button again, and I drifted back into my confused persona. He grabbed my hand and led me to the couch. He sat next to me and automatically my arms wrapped around him. I loved him so much all of a sudden. He began explaining something, but I didn't care; I just wanted to cuddle him; it was my purpose.
"I found a couple of program bases that people created for the SusceptGear. The one running right now is to turn you into a kinky maid. I swear, I didn't intend to use it on you. It was just the most complete one I could find to test how it was working. I didn't expect you to wear it by yourself; I thought you hated it. Do you understand?"
"I do. I love you so much."
"I love you too, Mia."
"I'm Crystal. I don't know who Mia is. You are confusing me."
"Well, Crystal. Would you like to have sex? I think you are beautiful and fun, and I would love to enjoy your body a bit before we turn it off again."
"I would love that, Master."
I was so turned on. At the moment, I just wanted to make love to him, my master.
"Alright then, Crystal, get naked."
"Yes, Master."
I took off my girly pajamas and climbed on top of him. I was wet like a sponge, which made it too easy for his cock to slide deep inside of me. The happiness mixed with sexual pleasure was incredible. He was probably not doing anything special to me, but I felt all submissive while we fucked. Like the earlier blowjob, the SusceptGear suggestions aligned with what I loved to do, which took away any desire to resist.
I perceived the reality so differently even if, deep down, I knew it was irrational. I had to fulfill my role to the best of my abilities, and it was making me feel horny like a bunny. When Brian nibbled my nipples, I felt so much pleasure. Not only because it was one of my favorite erogenous zones, but also because it convinced me I was doing a good job. All the body parts he touched translated to me as a rewarding success.
We had wild sex like this for a little while; I couldn't keep track of time. I don't think I came, even when Brian did, but I was so satisfied, so happy. I couldn't stop moaning as If my body was supposed to react this way.
We ended up cuddling on the couch for a bit longer before he turned my headgear off. I slowly regained my composure, and the more I realized what had just happened, the happier I got. I even started laughing.
"Hahaha! Did I just do all that?"
"Yep. It was so hot. This SusceptGear is really cool if you ask me."
"Yeah... You know what? I think we should wait before returning it... It is a bit more interesting than I expected."
"Is that so? You liked being my submissive maid?"
I pulled the device off my head and turned it off.
"Don't make fun of me, but... I loved it! You know, at first, I tried to resist, but once I just decided to let it do its thing and follow the suggestions, it kicked in hard."
"I'm glad you changed your mind about it. I read a lot about this device last night, and there is so much more we can do with it. We can edit the base programs and even write our own. We could customize it to what you like. I think the first thing I'll do is to change your name. I'll make sure you keep your real name. Mia is too cute."
"Yeah... Crystal... Seriously? I'm not a pole dancer."
Brian and I were on the same wavelength now. The little experience we had with the SusceptGear boosted our confidence in the product. I would never really know why it scared me that much yesterday. What happened to me so far this morning was just good fun and entertainment. I even liked to wash the dishes, how could this be a bad thing? For once, I felt useful around the house. Maybe it could help me improve my non-controlled being a little bit?
I got the feeling this coming winter would not be as dull as I anticipated it to be.
Continues in chapter two