Chapter 3
"I have no interest in being at the mercy of an overconfident, wannabe-dom who thinks it would be fun to live out some The Billionaire's Claim fantasy.
Just find a partner on one of the dating apps you assuredly use who's willing to have mildly rough sex with you," Ryo says.
"I'm sure it won't be difficult for you to find a volunteer."
He then hikes his bag up onto his shoulder and gets ready to leave.
"Harsh, Ryo-Ryo!" Sota says, clutching his chest dramatically.
"But I'm not askin' ya to let me dom you.
One of the websites said it's good to try subbing first, at least once or twice so ya know what it feels like, and since ya said you dom I thought it might work perfectly."
Ryo hesitates for just a moment.
He hadn't expected that—Sota being interested in subbing—nor had he expected him to have any sort of fleshed-out thought process behind it.
Apparently he
been reading.
Still...
"Still no," Ryo says and then heads right out the door.
Sota will not be deterred so easily.
He can't really blame Tachibana for making assumptions about his intentions and seriousness, so he'll just have to prove him wrong.
He tries again next time they're in the locker room alone.
"Ryo-kun."
"No," Tachibana starts, which isn't the best sign.
"You don't even know what I was gonna
say
yet," Sota says.
"I coulda meant to talk to ya about a new counter attack idea."
Tachibana raises one devastating brow, sending his distinct twin moles towards his hairline.
"Were you?"
"No, but-"
Tachibana sighs deeply through his mask.
"I just really think ya should give me a shot with the whole sub thing," Sota says, stretching on a rolled out yoga mat.
"You can create a SceneHub profile and look for a dom there like everyone else," Tachibana says dismissively.
Sota scrunches his nose up in disgust at the idea.
He tucks his knees up against his chest and tries not to visibly pout.
"I did that!
All the profiles are so weird an' intense.
I don't want to try stuff like this with a total stranger.
What if they're a weirdo?
What if someone recognizes me?"
"You're not famous, Nakamura."
"I'm a public figure!"
Tachibana snorts, extremely rudely in Sota's opinion.
They're on
TV—
that's at least famous-
ish
Tachibana zips up his SRT jacket with finality.
"Look, Nakamura.
If you're genuinely interested," he says, with a notable amount of skepticism.
"I'll reach out through my network and see if anyone in the area is willing to take on someone who just wants to try kink out.
I wouldn't get your hopes up and I won't make any promises."
Sota frowns again, running his hand through his hair.
It could be better than a random profile on the internet, but it doesn't make him feel good to think about.
Sure the articles and porn got him going, but whenever he's been alone, it's always been Tachibana's impassive face looking down on him.
He shivers and tries not to let it show on his face.
He's imprinted on Tachibana, like a kinky baby duckling.
"But
Ryo-kun-
"Goodbye, Nakamura."
Then he's out the door again.
Sota tries to hop up to go after him, but standing up out of a stretch gives him a wicked thigh cramp.
"Ow, ow, ow!"
He flops down onto the mat.
Maybe he really should give up on this whole thing.
On the other hand... giving up really isn't in his nature.
Ryo sits at his kitchen table with his laptop in front of him, perusing an email from a man that had been recommended to him as a potential sub. For a few years now, Ryo has been part of a closed, online group of doms.
They primarily discuss techniques, gear, and the community in general.
The group is also a great resource for connecting with other people in the community.
It's only been a few months since Ryo moved to Solara to join the Solara Blades after graduating university.
He's met up with different subs twice since his arrival.
While Ryo prefers to be nonexclusive and uncommitted, he likes to be able to develop an ongoing relationship with his subs.
The few he's been able to do so with in the past have produced the most satisfying experiences.
There's only so much you can do to a person without an existing bond of trust and experience.
Unfortunately, neither of the subs he's met in Solara have been a good match.
While the first was a decent fit when it came to shared interests, he spent most of their scene, for lack of a better word,
wailing
Ryo found the sound... grating.
Plus, it made it extremely difficult to tell what actually hit his buttons when he
started
at a ten.
The second, whose cleanup Sota unfortunately stumbled upon, was better, but he overstayed his welcome a bit by asking to sleep over, which Ryo respectfully declined.
That alone might not have disqualified him from a second scene, but he was also... tiny, frankly.
He probably stood at 165cm tops and looked like a stiff wind could blow him over.
Ryo's self-aware enough to know that a lot of the pleasure and satisfaction he gains from domming is controlling something, a person, that otherwise couldn't necessarily be controlled.
He likes his subs strong, and vital.
He likes to see their muscles bunch up under their skin as they fight Ryo's carefully tied knots, as they stop themselves from pushing him away, as they bow to the dom's power.
Everyone has preferences, and it seems like this newest candidate at least fits that one as Ryo reads
weight lifting
as one of the sub's hobbies in the endearing 'about me' section he put at the top of his interests checklist.
Unfortunately, the positives pretty much end there.
Ryo sighs as he reads through the rest: heavy into roleplaying and passionate about ongoing master/slave play.
Ryo likes to keep his play behind closed doors.
The idea of texting someone what they're supposed to wear or eat sounds like hell.
He types up a thank you and politely declines the offer to meet up.
With that done, Ryo considers his words to Sota the day before about connecting him to a local dom.
He knows there are at least a couple doms in his group in the greater Solara area.
Some of them would probably even like the idea of 'training' a new sub, so to speak.
That's definitely an area of interest for many doms.
Yet, this group has been the only one Ryo's found that boasts a mature, almost professional culture.
He'd absolutely loathe to end up kicked out because he set someone up with the trainwreck that Sota is guaranteed to be.
Ryo steeples his fingers in front of his face, chin resting on the pads of his thumbs.
Perhaps it wouldn't be the worst idea to take Sota on just for one session.
It's not like he has anyone to work with right now, and inflicting Sota on others seems cruel.
His eyes suddenly widen in horror and he snaps his laptop shut.
If Ryo's having ideas that stupid, he'd better go find a book or some other way to better himself as a human being.
That train of thought is too dangerous to take.
It doesn't end.
"Ryo-kun, is this a good source of info?"
A phone is shoved in Ryo's face and he's hit with images of various implements of impact play and their respective effects and pain levels.
He quickly glances around the locker room, which has only just started filling up before practice.
He then levels a baleful glare at Sota.
The setter just waits expectantly.
Banning Sota from texting him about BDSM may have backfired, if it results in it continuously coming up in the locker room.
Not wanting Sota to ask again, Ryo looks at the graphic as quickly as possible.
"Seems accurate enough," Ryo murmurs through his mask.
"Thanks, Ryo-Ryo," Sota says and begins to walk away.
He looks over his shoulder, smirking.
"Let me know if there's anything ya need to double check, though.
I'd be willin' ta selflessly volunteer."