Naomi awoke from the dream with a start. She sat up in bed, flushed, panting, and trying to figure out what was going on. Brushing errant locks of ginger hair away from her pretty, freckled face, she took in a deep breath. She held it, exhaled, and took in another. Now calmer, she tried to remember what she had dreamed and why it had startled her out of sleep.
But the dream proved teasingly elusive. She closed her eyes and willed it to replay within her mind's eye. Faint, indistinct images returned to her, but nothing more. She grabbed hold of them, clung to them, enveloped them within conscious thought so that they would not escape.
Chair...restraints...bare feet...struggling...machine...head...resisting...losing...submitting...obeying....
As she mulled the images over in her head, she realized something. She didn't think of them as being sexual or erotic, yet they had apparently affected her sleeping mind in that way. The flushing and panting that she had experienced upon waking up, along with a pleasant, fading heat between her legs were definitively symptomatic for her:
She had been aroused to the point of climax in her sleep.
What about those images could arouse her to that extent? She had no answer. And even as she pondered the question, she began to lose her grip on the memories. Try as she might, they began to drift away, like mist burned off by the rising sun.
Soon, she was left with only the knowledge that she had dreamed something, and that it had affected her like no other dream ever had.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For half a second, Naomi thought she had heard something. She glanced around the office and didn't see anyone or anything nearby that would have made a sound. All the heads of her co-workers were down below the height of their cubicle walls, and nothing other than standard background noise reached her ears. So, she shrugged and turned her attention back to her own work.
Though now that she had interrupted herself, she had to take a moment to remember what she had been doing.
"Oh, right," she said to nobody, as her train of thought re-railed itself.
Taking a flash drive from her bag, she plugged it into her computer and copied a series of files onto it. When the copy had completed, she removed the drive. Then, she stood up and walked out of her cube.
She cut a striking figure against the backdrop of drably patterned half walls and industrial carpeting: Her lustrous copper hair was pulled back into a single, precise braid; her blouse and skirt were stylish and flattered her petite, feminine form; and her strappy high heels added both desired inches to her small stature and confidence to her gait.
In a moment, she reached her destination. She entered the printer room, found a machine that wasn't in use, and plugged her drive into it. She waited for the minute or so that it took to print her copies. Then, she removed her drive, gathered up the papers, and headed back to her desk.
Entering her cube, she placed the drive and printouts into her bag. Then, she sat down in her chair and swiveled back around to face her desk. That was when she knew something was wrong.
There were odd objects under her feet. She probed with her toes and realized what she felt was...her shoes. But that wasn't right. Because she was wearing her shoes. Had she brought another pair to work and left them under her desk? She pushed back her chair and looked down. The high heels she had been wearing all day laid discarded beneath her desk. And her feet were bare.
But that meant...she had walked barefoot to the printer room. No, she couldn't have. She would have noticed. She would have felt the coarse carpet beneath her bare soles. Wouldn't she have? Yes, of course she would have.
Had she spaced out and not remembered removing her shoes once she was back in her cube? Not that she ever took her shoes off at work, but there had to be some explanation, and that seemed at least a plausible one. But it wasn't plausible because she could see neither impressions, nor redness on her feet left from the shoes. That meant she hadn't worn them for at least a few minutes.
What was going on? Crazy dreams, spaciness on the job, and walking around barefoot in a professional environment just didn't compute for her. She needed some guidance to figure things out. And she knew just who to get it from.
When she went to pull out her phone, she realized it was already on her desk. That was weird, too. She always kept it in her bag. What was going on? Why hadn't she noticed it there? Why was she so discombobulated today?
She desperately wanted to scream or cry, or at least throw a stapler at something. But she settled for picking up her phone and reaching out to her friend, Vikki.
Treat you to lunch for some free psychiatric advice? she texted.
I'm getting the better end of that deal, so hell yes! Vikki texted back.
There was no need to state the time and place, as both women knew the routine: Meet at 12:05 at the diner half a block away from both of their buildings.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"So, am I nuts?" Naomi asked over her half sandwich and salad.
"Nuts? No," Vikki said, licking a stray bit of mayo off her lower lip. "Everybody has a weird day now and then. It's your turn today. Let it roll off."
"I don't think it's that simple."
"Look, just forget about it. Focus on other things. Important things, fun things, weekend plans, your birthday, a vacation."
"I don't know if I can. If it was just one thing, sure. But all of it happening to me all at once is just too much."
"Hm."
"What?" Naomi asked. "What are you thinking?"
"Relax," Vikki said. "Everything's going to be okay. I'm going to make it okay."
"How are you going to do that?"
Vikki smiled sweetly and leaned in close over the table.
"Ginger girl...watch the swirl," she said in a soft, but commanding tone.
Naomi twitched and blinked, and then all trace of worry left her face.
"The swirl in my eyes...has me hypnotized," she said in quiet, monotone voice.
Vikki nodded at the expected response.
"Time to prepare...your feet must be bare."
Two soft thumps below the table informed Vikki that her directive had been followed.
"I have bared my feet...all is complete," Naomi said, staring blankly off into the distance.
Vikki sighed and half slumped over.
"Jeez, McVie, way to give me a heart attack," she said, addressing her friend, but in reality talking to herself. "I can't have you realizing that you're losing time during the day and noticing that you're barefoot when you carry out my instructions. That's not good. Not good at all. And I'm sure this mysterious sex dream of yours is related, too. Girl, when you take a dive, you plunge all the way to the deep, dark bottom. But that's okay. At least you let me know there's a problem. Now that I know, I can fix it. I'm just glad you told me before things got any worse."
She took Naomi's hand and spoke directly to her.
"Listen carefully: You're going to forget all the craziness from today, as well as your concern about it. Nothing bad happened. Everything is fine. You're having a good day. We didn't meet for lunch. Instead, you'll meet me at my office after work. I'm going to show you the project I'm working on, which you can't wait to see. Now, repeat back everything I've told you."
Like a robot following its programming, Naomi did as instructed.
"Good," Vikki said. "Now, I'm going to leave. When I stand up, count to 20 under your breath. At 20, you will wake up, finish your lunch, and go back to work. Oh, and put on your shoes before you forget them and have another meltdown that I have to deal with."
With that, Vikki stood up from the table, as Naomi slipped her feet back into her shoes and quietly counted to 20.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"So, this is the famous start-up that aims to put my company out of business," Naomi said.
"Not so much put you guys out of business, but at least give you a run for your money," Vikki said.
The two friends strode through Vikki's office suite, which was empty after the end of the work day.
"Not impressed," Naomi said, though with a giggle that meant she was just teasing.
"Nor should you be," Vikki said, playing along. "I mean, I'm just a VP, with my own office, a view of the city, and an expense account."
"And a salary that's almost as much as I make as a mid-level manager."
"Yeah, that is the drawback to working for the little guy."
They both smiled and nodded knowingly.
"Enough chit-chat. I'm here to see this super cool project of yours."
"Right this way."
They walked down the hallway, turned a corner, and stopped before a door labeled, PRIVATE. Vikki took out a key, unlocked the door, pushed it open, and beckoned Naomi inside. She then followed after.
As the door swung slowly shut behind them, motion sensing lights turned on automatically. They revealed a small room that housed only a computer workstation on the left and an oversized chair against the opposite wall.
"Not impressed," Naomi said with the same tone and giggle as before.
"Yeah, it's not much to look at," Vikki said in agreement. "But, what it does is impressive."
"Do tell. Or, do show, anyway. It's what I came to see."
"You got it. I just need to--"
A jarring buzz interrupted Vikki. Both women immediately reached for their phones.
"Yours or mine?" Naomi asked.
"Mine," Vikki said, "and I have to take this. Hello...Yeah...Yeah..."
"Do you want me to leave?" Naomi mouthed to her friend.
Vikki shook her head and held up a finger.
"Right...Right...Yeah...Hold on just a second," she said, then to Naomi, "No, you don't need to leave. But, I do need to do this: Ginger girl....watch the swirl."
"The swirl in my eyes...has me hypnotized."
"Time to prepare...your feet must be bare."
"I have bared my feet...all is complete."
Naomi now stood blank and barefoot in the small room. Vikki eyed her, nodded, and returned to her call.
"Yes, she's here with me now...It's fine, she's under...Yes, she made the copies earlier today...No, I haven't gotten them from her yet. But, I will...Yes, she is a good subject. Completely suggestible. Easily triggered. The only thing is...Well, yeah, there is a slight problem...Relax, I said 'slight'...She's remembering things...No, nothing major, just fragments...I know that's bad. I'm on it. That's why she's here...No, I don't think a full rewash is necessary, just an incremental one to fill in any gaps...Fine, if you say so...All right, I'll do a full rewash on her...Yes, I'll give you a complete report when I'm done...Right, along with the files...Bye."
Vikki sighed, as she put away her phone.
"Oh, McVie, the boss in not happy right now. And that's not something I needed today. So let's you and me fix that, huh? First things first, give me the files."
Naomi opened her bag, pulled out the requested items, and handed them to Vikki.
"Good. Now, go sit in that chair."
Stepping obliviously over her shoes, Naomi moved to the large chair, turned around, and sat down in it. As she did, Vikki sat at the workstation, placed the flash drive and papers down on the desk, and began typing commands into the computer.
Mechanisms with the chair awoke with a hum, though Naomi took no notice of them, nor anything. Thin metals bands slid out of hidden housings and encircled the entranced girl's stomach, wrists, and ankles. Then, the chair began to unfold into a semi-reclined position, raising up its occupant's legs until they were parallel to the ground. Naomi's bare soles now faced Vikki.
"Mm-mm, you are quite a delicious sight, Ms. McVie. I love seeing you like this--bound, barefoot, helpless, and hypnotized. It is a bigger turn-on than you could ever know, that is if I hadn't brainwashed you to be turned on by it, too. You better believe that if I have to start over with you, I'm going to program you to have that fetish again. I think I'll even ramp it up a bit this time."
Vikki grinned fiendishly and entered additional commands into the computer. The chair responded with more mechanical noises and movement, while Naomi gave no response.
An attachment not dissimilar to a salon hair dryer rose up on two jointed, robotic arms from behind the chair. At the apex of its ascent, it moved forward, then down. It stopped when it covered the top of Naomi's head. Lights within it began to pulse rhythmically, in time with a whirring sound that emanated from it.
Almost immediately, Naomi reacted to the machine. Various parts of her body began to twitch in sync with it--her eyes, lips, fingers, and toes. Soon, a cloying drowsiness bore down on her. Her eyes started drooping shut, and seconds later they closed and stayed that way. Her body then relaxed, as the pulsing and whirring around her head ceased.
Then, under Vikki's direction from the workstation, the machine washed Noami's brain once again.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"How have you been feeling lately?" Vikki asked over her half-eaten tomato soup.
"Fine. Really good, actually," Naomi said, after finishing a bite of her sandwich.
"Any bad dreams?"
"Nope."
"Weird feelings or forgetfulness?"
"Okay, what's with the checklist of symptoms, Vikki? I know I sometimes trade a meal for free mental health advice. But that wasn't on the table today. I just wanted to have lunch with my friend, who I haven't seen in over a week."
"Right. Got it. Sorry."
Vikki smiled apologetically. Naomi glared at her for a moment, but then softened her gaze and nodded her acceptance.
"Speaking of not seeing each other for a while, why don't you come over Friday night?" Vikki said after a brief pause to continue eating. "We can share a bottle of wine with dinner, then a bottle of gin with movies."
"That sounds great, except that I can't. I have plans that night."
"Saturday?"
"Sorry, I'm booked all weekend."
"Hm."
"What?"
Vikki leaned in close over the table.
"Ginger girl...watch the swirl," she said in a soft, but commanding tone.
Naomi twitched and blinked, and then all trace of emotion left her face.
"The swirl in my eyes...has me hypnotized," she said in quiet, monotone voice.
Vikki nodded at the expected response.
"Time to prepare...your feet must be bare."
Two soft thumps below the table informed Vikki that her directive had been followed.
"I have bared my feet...all is complete," Naomi said, staring blankly off into the distance.
"Good," Vikki said. "Listen carefully: Cancel all your plans for the weekend. They aren't important and can be rescheduled. You very much want to come over to my place Friday night. In fact, you desire it. And you desire me, as well. You hope that the evening will take a turn toward your fantasy of being bound, barefoot, helpless, and hypnotized. You will do everything you can to ensure that happens. Now, repeat back everything I've told you."
Like a robot following its programming, Naomi did as instructed. Vikki smiled, satisfied with this new outcome. She snapped her fingers.
Naomi twitched and blinked again. Then her eyes refocused, and her expression returned to normal.
"You know what?" she said. "My other plans aren't important. I'd rather hang out with you Friday night."
She lifted one bare foot and began gently caressing Vikki's leg with it under the table. As she did, she blushed and sheepishly hoped that she wasn't being too forward with her friend. But Vikki continued smiling and made no move to pull away.
Friday night couldn't come soon enough for either of them.