… silence you wanted to hear. You walk into the apartment and slam the door shut behind you. You are bone-tired. You’re still clutching your phone, trying to explain—quickly and nervously—some problem that came up at work today. Your mind is seized with tension, the words tumbling out in rapid succession, your shoulders locked in a defensive posture.

I stand leaning against the hallway wall, arms crossed over my chest, just watching you. I’m not listening to your words. I’m listening to your shattered nervous system.

I walk over to you. You’re still talking when I take the phone from your hand and toss it onto the couch.

“But I’m telling you, that contract…” you start to protest.

You don’t finish.

My hand shoots out and grips the back of your neck. Not roughly, but with such crushing, uncompromising certainty that it instantly knocks the breath out of you. You stop mid-sentence.

… silence you wanted to hear now.

In a split second, your body understands what has just happened. I press my thumb gently against the spot where your spine meets your skull.
“I told you to leave that world outside the door,” I whisper directly into your ear. My voice is deep and cold.

I can feel the last remnants of the general within you battling against that vast, dark wave of desire. You try to move, try to maintain your independent stance, but my grip on your neck doesn’t yield even a millimeter. I don’t force you to the ground with brute strength; I force you down with the gravity of my presence.

“Your mind is too loud today,” I say, and with the pressure of my hand on the back of your neck, I slowly force you to your knees. “We need to shut it off.”

You kneel on the floor before me. The moment your knees touch the ground and you have to tilt your head back to look into my eyes, the immense pressure in your chest breaks. Tears of relief mingle with searing arousal. You realize you no longer need to speak. You don’t need to think.

You are exactly where you wanted to be all day—completely captivated, utterly defenseless, and infinitely safe.