Lust Or Love

Chapter 14: You Signed Up For This

Arackniss made sure to follow the instructions to the T, no matter how awkward it was. He was sure that at least one of his neighbors would have questions as to why he, someone who dressed nicely every day, never brought anyone home, and never caused any type of scene, had suddenly woken up this morning and chosen such a path. He'd walked to his car completely nude carrying a duffle bag with clothes and all of his things in it, for all to see. No where had Val said he had to go home like this, after all. Due to the early hour, there was nobody on the road, but he made sure to take his time. The workaholic in him screamed at the idea of showing up right on time instead of at least fifteen minutes early, but it was another requirement, so he didn't have a choice.

Pulling up to the location he'd been given, he found the space interesting. Unlike the last place, this one didn't appear to be an official studio but an off-site shoot, similar to where he'd first met Valentino. It was an old factory that was still in good shape. The thick brick walls were in good condition, and the windows, while being fogged from lack of cleaning, weren't cracked or missing. Hell, the building even had a fire escape, proving it had been built in the last century at least, unlike some of the warehouses he'd seen. Pulling out his phone, he checked the time and took a deep breath. He had two minutes before it hit 8 am, and that was just enough time for him to grab his things and walk inside. Which he knew was exactly what Valentino wanted, especially since it had started snowing on his way there.

The bitter cold hit his skin and began to burn until it tingled. The short walk was one he did with his head held high, reminding himself that the cold couldn't kill him, just sting a little. He stepped inside the door just in time for the 8 am alarm he'd set to go off. Quickly turning it off, he looked up and was immediately met with the red and zebra fluff of a certain moth's jacket. Looking up until he met the man's eyes, he found him with his arms crossed and scowl on his face. "You're... on time." The overlord huffed.

"You told me to be, so I am. If there's one thing I was taught, it's how to follow instructions." He said as he motioned to his very naked self. He would have kept holding his head up high out of pride, but it was hard to do such a thing while looking straight up. Either way, he could tell the answer mixed with the fact that he'd been on time, didn't make the moth happy in the slightest. The man looked like he might burst a blood vessel just by standing there.

"Yes, it does seem like... someone taught that to you well." Valentino said through gritted teeth. "In any case, did you follow the other instructions I gave you?" Of course he had, and he was starving for it. Not to mention how badly he felt like he had to pee, but he'd be fine holding it a little longer. Acting like it didn't bother him was more important right now, since it did seem to be the thing that was getting to the Overlord the most.

"Of course. Remember? I can follow orders." The man hummed at him. Valentino turned and began to walk away, but Arackniss still heard the last remark he mumbled before he was out of sight.

"We'll see about that." It felt more like a threat than anything else, but it didn't phase him. Clearly the man had already been trying, right? So what would even change except for how hard the challenges got? A quick glance around the room and he found hair and makeup and headed there immediately. This space was one hundred percent different from the previous shoot he'd done, and he didn't know how he felt about that. This set was very simple; instead of looking like a cozy living room, it was made to look like some twisted version of Santa's workshop. "Toys" were spread throughout the area and ranged from an over sized rocking horse, to a group of large jacks very carefully laid out on the ground. There were, of course, a few things that he recognized as not being toys at all, like the tool off to one side that definitely didn't look like one, but he wasn't super sure of what it was called. It looked similar to a tiny version of gymnastics bars, one higher than the other, and it had restraints for hands, feet, and even a collar. And of course, there were numerous other things that he didn't know what they were, but he didn't want to think about it all too closely.