jim had really tried to be supportive of rain's relationship. he didn't want to be possessive, and overprotective, and patronizing about it. and her boyfriend, adrianus, was polite, and well groomed, and calm. there really shouldn't have been anything to worry about.

there was just something about them together, about the way they talked to her, about the way they touched her and held her. he couldn't even articulate exactly what it was, at first. adrianus was always gentle and loving with her, and yet... watching it left a pit in his stomach.

he thought it must have been his own problem, until one day, when he visited adrianus' house, he found rain sitting there with them, with blank, glassy eyes, nodding and mumbling agreement to just about everything adrianus murmured to her.

"she's just feeling a bit tired today," adrianus said to jim, holding her shoulder and rubbing it with their thumb as they spoke.

the sight made his skin crawl. he couldn't take his eyes off of that slight movement, that affectionate touch on her still, drowsy body.

she looked almost like a doll.

"that's quite an intense stare," adrianus remarked. "she looks nice like this, doesn't she?" they slowly caressed her cheek.

"you're- you're treating her like an object," jim finally said.

"it's relaxing for her," they replied. "isn't it, sweetheart? just nod your head for me..."

she nodded her head sleepily.

"you just told her to nod," jim said. "she didn't... you didn't let her answer on her own."

adrianus still had the same calm, placid smile on their face that they always seemed to have. they were petting her head now, running their fingers through her hair. it felt like they just enjoyed petting her, like they did it without a second thought.

"it's hard for her to answer on her own, when she feels like this," they said. "she likes it, when i tell her exactly how to respond."

"you really are treating her like an object," jim said, his voice quiet and strained.

"you don't believe that she wants this?"

"it's... it's hard not to believe that you're just... controlling her."

it wasn't that he thought he could even reason with them, or change their mind. he just felt compelled to say something, at least. he had to express the wrongness of it. he couldn't just sit and watch this, as if it was all just normal.

he had known rain for a long time. it made it all the more unsettling to see her like this. to see her in a man's arms, with that empty look...

"are you jealous?" they asked gently.

"i don't want to own someone like an object," he said quickly, his voice firmer now. "i don't want to just-"

"i didn't ask if you were jealous of me, jim," they replied, cutting him off. "though you might be."

"you're-" it took him a moment to process what they said. "you mean- jealous of her? why would i be..."

the idea caught him completely off guard, to the point where, as much as he just wanted to argue, he couldn't. he was too baffled, too at a loss for words.

"how would you like to take her place?" adrianus asked in a slow murmur.

he stared blankly for a moment, looking back to adrianus' hands, to those soft, loving touches on rain's skin and hair. it had been so sickening to him just moments ago, but when he tried to put himself in her place... he didn't feel that same disgust.

he wasn't sure what to do with that realization. he didn't know what to make of it.

but he didn't need to think about it. not right now, at least.

"do you actually mean that?" he asked. "i mean, if i... if i took her place..."

"i know that rain cares about you, jim," they said, still talking at that strangely slow pace. "i think that she would be willing to take a break from our relationship, if it would give you some peace of mind."

"just a break?"

"well, it would be her choice, of course. are you thinking that maybe, if she was away from me for a while, and saw you being controlled in the same way she had been, seeing it from an outside perspective, she might not want to get back together with me?"

"assuming you... really did... give her that choice, and didn't just..."

"i can tell her to forget all of this. to forget how good it felt. and i could tell her that i no longer have any control over her. she would only regain those memories and become susceptible again if she truly felt and thought that she wanted it, without anyone telling her to. if she wanted it badly enough to say it, to tell me. would that be enough?"

he hesitated, but he supposed he didn't have any argument. "i guess so."

"well, before i get started, and give her all of those suggestions to your satisfaction... i do want to make sure that you absolutely agree with this. i will say this in no uncertain terms, jim. you would be agreeing to take her place. to be my lover. to be mine. you would be deeply hypnotized frequently. we would kiss. we would embrace. i would touch and caress you, just like this, and whisper and murmur into your ears. we would go on dates together. and, as much as possible... i would want you to fall in love with me. i think it will be easy for me to fall in love with you, so that isn't something you'll need to worry about. do you agree to all of this? i want you to be completely sure of it. and i want you to give me a timeframe. if you're willing to do this, how long are you willing to do it?"

it was a bizarre, surreal feeling, to be told to fall in love with someone. he really should have rejected it. the entire idea was absurd, and he knew it.

but strangely, he had the sense that he could manage it. he wanted to get rid of that discomfort he felt, seeing them with rain. he could become adrianus' boyfriend, if he had to.

"how long were you thinking?" he asked.

"you really want to leave that up to me, jim?"

"i mean, if you said something over a year, i wouldn't agree to that, but..."

adrianus' smile widened, just a bit. "so a couple of months would be fine?"

that was nothing, really. it probably should have sounded like an unreasonably long time, but it didn't. "that is fine," he said, without a trace of hesitation in his voice.

"you know, for all you worry about rain, you don't think your own behavior is the slightest bit concerning?"

"i don't really care if it is."

they looked at him with a kind of softness, a kind of affection. he felt just the slightest bit of relaxation, of satisfaction. he wasn't sure if it was just because if their attention was on him, it wasn't on rain, or if it was something else. he wasn't sure what he would have preferred it to be. but it didn't particularly matter.

adrianus' words to rain were careful and precise. telling her exactly what she was going to forget, how she was going to forget it, and how they weren't going to have any hypnotic influence on her at all unless she asked for it of her own free will. jim was laser focused on every last syllable, every single change in tone, every touch, every movement. but he couldn't find any issues. he couldn't find any tricks. they even told her that she could use self hypnosis to relax and calm herself whenever she wanted, even if she didn't remember that adrianus had taught her that. that she could remember that she was loved and cared for, even if she didn't remember it from them. and that it was alright, whatever happened, whatever conclusion she ultimately came to.

she was told that all of this would take effect the next morning when she woke up.

they all went home, and jim was told to return the next day.

after having time to sleep on it, everything only seemed stranger. he wondered if it really was alright to interfere with her relationship.

at the same time, he still felt just as prepared as he had when he had made the decision, if not more. he supposed if he went through it himself... he could understand what it really felt like. and if she really wanted to be with adrianus in the end, after all... he would have to accept it.

when he arrived at adrianus' house, they already greeted him like a lover, pulling him into an embrace.

"i'm glad to see you came, jim... i'd missed you," they murmured into his ear, in that sweet, slow, affectionate voice.

a wave of tingles ran through his body, his mind already going blank. he hadn't expected them to act this way so quickly, and so convincingly.

after that moment of shock, he wrapped his own arms around them, supposing that he was meant to go along with it. "i... i wanted to see you," he mumbled. it was technically a true statement, but it felt odd to say like that. it felt like he was in a dream.

"let's go sit down," they said. "do you want me to hypnotize you?"

well, he wanted to know how it felt, and it was part of their agreement. "yes," he said quietly.

they sat down together on the couch, with jim in the same position rain had been in, adrianus touching and caressing him in exactly the same way.

it was so gentle, and tender, and delicate. physically, it felt... nice, he had to admit.

"just relax for me... just let go, jim... it feels good to be hypnotized... just let me make you feel good."

their voice and their words were so much more intimate than he'd expected.

"that's it... just relax those shoulders... you always have so much tension there, don't you? you can just let that go now..."

he let out a deep sigh as his shoulders sank.

"there you go... just like that..."

the praise sent pleasure through his whole body.

they planted a soft kiss on his ear. "you're doing so good, jim..."

there was blood rushing to his face, but their touches told him to relax. he took deep, slow breaths, just sinking into the intense, overwhelming feelings.

he really thought he would have to put more effort into his role as their lover, and had come with the resolve to put on his best performance, but instead of playing a role, he already found himself just being... pulled along. like they were melting him, and then just massaging him into exactly the right shape.

he supposed he could call that manipulation, but it didn't really feel that way, or at least, it wasn't the kind of thing he imagined when he thought of that word.

"it feels nice, doesn't it? you're already in a bit of a trance... you're really enjoying yourself, aren't you?"

it was all just so soft. "it... it feels good," he muttered, almost in bewilderment.

they pulled him just a little closer. "you're so cute..." they whispered. "can you turn your head, and look into my eyes?"

he did it almost without thinking.

"that's it... just look deep into my eyes..."

their eyes did have a way of pulling him in. they always did, really. they had this sort of calm look, almost tired, but not exhausted... and they seemed to look inside of him, all the way into his head.

"i love seeing that blank, glassy look in your eyes, jim... you look so good like this..."

did his eyes really look like that? he supposed he could feel something change in the way he was staring.

their affection seemed so genuine, too. the more time passed, the more he realized... that they really did like him. that it wasn't just an act.

"are you feeling sleepy?" they asked, in a teasing, hushed voice. "are your eyelids getting heavy?"

drowsiness suddenly came over him. he couldn't help but blink, as much as he wanted to just keep staring.

he wanted to just keep staring?

"that's right... so sleepy... so dreamy..." they murmured, brushing a strand of hair out of his face as they continued to look into his eyes. "are you trying to fight it?"

they were holding up his chin now, as if he was going to sink down if they didn't.

"i want to... i want to keep... looking at your eyes..." he mumbled, his voice more blank and dull than he thought it would be.

he was acting so strange. he really was acting... like their subject. like he was hypnotized.

but the look of satisfaction and affection on their face made him feel like he was doing something right.

"but... most people close their eyes when they kiss... don't they?"

with a mindlessness and automacity that actually mystified him, jim let his eyes close, leaning in closer to them.

"that's right," they murmured under their breath, pressing their lips against his. "going deeper with each kiss..."

another kiss. they wrapped their arms around him, and he just melted, almost going limp against them.

another kiss. he was trying to kiss them back, but they were more forward, more in control, pushing him back. even without a single word from them about it, he had the sense that he was meant to let them do everything.

they were kissing, he thought distantly, and stupidly. he would have thought this would feel less natural, that it would feel awkward. but it was just happening.

one of their hands was on the small of his back now, the other on the back of his head. they were leaning over him, not quite on top of him, but it certainly felt like a dominant position. his limbs felt heavy, and he didn't think he was meant to do much of anything, but he still draped his arms around them.

it was strange, how empty he felt. but it was a good kind of emptiness. it was relaxing. he could still feel their affection, how lovingly they were touching him and kissing him. he felt... his own kind of affection, a distant kind, something he'd never really felt before.

they hadn't even slipped their tongue in. it was just their lips. but even that felt so sensitive. it felt... sweet, really. he had the feeling they could have done just about anything to him, in that moment. but it still felt more romantic and sensual than sexual. as forward as they'd been, as much as they had taken control, it still didn't feel forceful, somehow.

they still muttered soft, hypnotic words between kisses. praise, reassurance, words of love, reminders to relax.

he wasn't sure how long it had gone on for. eventually, he was on his back, with them on top of him, but they were still just kissing.

eventually, adrianus pulled away, taking a moment just to breathe. jim's eyes were still closed, but he could feel them looking down at him.

"how was that?" they asked. "you can wake up to answer, if you'd like. or you can stay in trance, if it feels good."

his eyes opened slowly, his eyelids still heavy, his vision a little blurry at first.

he already understood. they didn't need to do a whole two months of this. he already trusted them.

but then, that was exactly why, selfishly, he wanted to continue.

"it felt good," he said, this time a bit more lucidly, a bit more soberly. he steadily sat up, shifting his position, adrianus backing up to give him space.

really, he was only sitting up because he thought that might make him feel less drowsy. he moved closer to them afterward, closing the gap that they'd made.

"you enjoy being hypnotized, don't you?" they asked, their tone more casual now. it was a genuine remark.

"i do," he said quietly. "but i don't... i don't just want to be passive all of the time... i mean... you don't have to hypnotize me to..."

"to kiss me?"

"yeah," he said. his breath was heavy, the tension hanging over him. he really was acting strangely. but they weren't making him do this.

"i wondered," they said softly. "you were very quick to agree to this. and with the way you always stared at me..."

he moved even closer. "i just... i at least need to see how it feels when i'm awake, i guess..." he muttered.

"go ahead. you don't need my permission." their hands rested on this waist.

his self consciousness over whether or not he was even good at kissing didn't really matter. he pressed his lips against theirs.

when they kissed back, he really almost just melted back again.

he sighed against their lips as he broke the kiss. "it really is hypnotic..."

"i can just hypnotize you to take a more active role, you know. you don't have to be completely passive. that's just what rain likes."

the casual mention of rain, of her preferences, in this context, made him pulse, in the strangest, most confusing way. he wasn't really sure how he felt about it.

"you can... i'm sorry for... i shouldn't have..."

they only laughed softly. "i think she's going to tell me that she wants to be back together very quickly, jim, even with the suggestions i gave her. because she really does like it. that's why i was willing to do this."

"then, what about..."

"you could always join us."

so many feelings flooded through him at once, feelings he didn't even have the capacity to sort through yet.

"well, it's just a thought," they said. "but you're going to be stuck with me for two months, anyway, aren't you? and if she says that she wants to be with me before that time is up... it seems a bit unfair to make her wait, doesn't it?"

he wondered how deliberate this entire scenario was. if they'd really planned all of this, somehow. if they understood him better than he knew himself, if they'd thought about the best way to make him realize all of this.

it was probably a very self-centered thought, exacerbated by that trance-y haze that he still hadn't quite come out of. adrianus just oozed such a sense of power.

"you're... you're right," he finally muttered.

"but for right now, it's just you and me..." they whispered. "how do you feel about that?"

"i guess that's... exciting in its own way."

"kiss me," they said.

he did exactly what he was told, his thoughts melting away again.

it really was relaxing, to be told exactly what to do...