Page 8 of Hunting Little Hope
Master Lee had been wonderful during the art class. Kind. Gentle. And patient in a way that made my chest feel warm and safe. When he asked me whether I’d stay with the Littles or try the submissive program, I felt convinced I’d be going to the dark side.
Well... it would probably be more accurate to describe it as the light side. Everything about the Littles had been bright, fluffy and sweet.
But after I carried my painting back to my room and set it carefully on the dresser, the courage he’d built in me leaked out like air from a punctured balloon.
So when it came time to sign in for the next event, a speed-dating round with Dominants or Daddies, my mouth worked before my brain caught up.
I went with the Dominants.
The big hall looked like every cheesy romantic comedy montage I’d ever watched. Round tables were set with little number cards, and fairy lights had been strung along the rafters.There was a long bar glittering in the corner and another table piled with finger foods that smelled buttery and warm.
A woman with hair streaked with some of the same colors I’d painted with this morning gave me a dimpled smile. “Hi, I’m Luna and you’re…”
When I gave her my name, she checked it off a clipboard and slipped a blue wristband over my hand.
“Blue means you’re meeting with male Dominants,” she explained. “Just normal conversation today. Other than referring to them as Master there are no further protocols or pressure. If you click, you can mark your cards at the end of your time together.”
I heaved a sigh, trying to calm my nerves. This wasn’t a big deal.
But my stomach still felt like it was trying to escape my body.
I almost asked if it was too late to switch back to the Littles’ session. Or maybe I could plead a headache and run back to my room.
Or call a cab and just go all the way home.
Better yet, I could fake my own death and move to a small island where no one expected me to flirt with complete strangers.
Again, I wondered at this sudden change in my own personality. I was good with meeting new people, so I wondered if it was that for the first time in a long time, I was looking for more than meaningless connections.
The stakes were so much higher.
You can do this, Hope. You’re a grown-ass woman who has survived so much more than awkward conversations.
People drifted in around me. There was a shy girl with freckles, twisting her bracelet, and a silver-haired man laughing too loudly at his own jokes as he spoke to someone at a table next to him. Some of the submissives looked barely old enough todrink while others had wrinkles at the corners of their kind eyes and eager expressions.
But the underlying vibe was a kind of cautious optimism. Everyone was nervous and hopeful.
Just like me.
Somehow, that helped me calm down quite a bit.
When the bell rang and the first Dominant sat down across from me, I smiled easily and introduced myself.
He spent almost the entire time with me talking about his workout routine. If someone had held a gun to my head after ourdateI would have been unable to name him or describe what he looked like.
The next one was tall, handsome, and had a very confident air about him. He also corrected my grammar twice and asked my opinion on a keto diet versus a low-carb one.Andhe wasn’t very impressed with my answer.
Another one kept checking his watch, clearly not impressed with what he saw in me, and not very excited to be wasting an entire date with me either.
The one after him wanted to know if I was “obedient” before he even asked my name.
By the fifth round, my shoulders were slumped and my apple juice tasted bland. With each failed date, my answers got shorter and my mood plummeted more and more.
Maybe this had been a mistake. Maybe Master Leehadbeen right and I belonged with the crayons, glitter glue and giggles of the Littles and Daddies.
The bell went off again, and the chair across from me scraped softly against the floor.
I looked up.
