Page 43 of João
Her house decor was everything I expected it to be: homey, with pictures of family and church events. Her religion was present but not overbearing, same as her. A small crystal cross was on one of her mantels. In the hallway, there was a two-tone art piece of a Black Jesus wearing Jordans. She clearly loved cooking because her kitchen had that well-lived look.
Her room must be her main sanctuary. Peace reigned here. Light blue walls, light gray carpet, a large bed with white bedding. Shelves with knickknacks. All seem to be in perfect harmony. No wonder she didn’t want to leave.
In one corner, her Book of Common Prayer sat on a small glass table next to a navy blue recliner. On the other side of the recliner, there was a small whitewashed wooden shelf with…
“Are those erotica books?”
She whirled around and the Cheshire smile she gave me hit right in the chest.
“Yes, Master, those are my books. This is how I knew about the lifestyle before meeting you. All book knowledge, but knowledge still.”
“So you finally moved to living your life versus reading what you wanted to happen?”
“Oh no, Master. I love reading. I don’t read to see a life I couldn’t live on my own; I read because it broadens my perspective. And in the broadening, I discovered things about myself.”
“A’ight, that makes a lot of sense. So you gonna take some of your books?”
“The ones I want to read are in my e-book reader, so I’m set. That’s my closet. The luggage is there.”
What I expected to be one bag was actually her entire three-piece luggage set.
“You moving in?” I asked, and for a second there, I waited for the response. This woman had me acting like a damn fool and I couldn’t even front. I liked it. I was feeling. Finally fucking feeling. I wasn’t ready for some of the feelings, but I embraced the light she brought. The peace.
“Ahhh, no. I just have a lot of stuff, sorry. My closet is still full. I clearly haven’t done the best job of donating to my fellowChristians. That’s gonna be a task when I come back to my house when we are…”
I chuckled and sidestepped the end of her sentence. Not wanting things to get awkward, I grabbed the luggage, easily maneuvering her weekender bag over my shoulder and rolling the other two pieces.
“Ready, boa menina?”
“Yes, Master. Oh, actually, let me grab this. I can’t believe I almost left it!”
Stopping to wait for her, Gisele ran to her nightstand and grabbed a small picture frame. The profile of a Black man in his fifties wearing a three-piece suit proudly stared toward the side of the frame. An aura of assuredness was obvious. This must be her father, whom she talked about sometimes. Weirdly, she mentioned him a lot, but I didn’t have a lot of details on him. Something about the picture struck me, and I studied the photo as she placed it in her purse.
“Alright, let’s do it. Are you ready, Master?” Gisele extended her hand to me, trying to take a suitcase. I could feel my brow scrunching up. After all of this, she still hadn’t learned.
“I just want to be of service, Master,” Gisele said. “Oh, fine!” She shrugged and walked in front of me while I carried her luggage.
I must be having gas now because what was happening in my stomach couldn’t be anything but that. Certainly no fucking butterflies from hearing Gisele say she wanted to be of service.
Certainly not that.
the act of service
“Ineed the whole entire video tour of Master Q’s house right the fuck now! Girl!” Vincent’s loud voice boomed in Master’s kitchen.
“I need you to calm down, please!” I giggled as I navigated this new space for cooking. João and I had been cohabiting for a day now. I decided to call off from work, taking advantage of my unused PTO to get settled into my temporary home. João coming to my house yesterday demanding I move in had triggered something in me at first. I wasn’t one to brat when I didn’t get my way, but the idea of moving into João’s, knowing it would be for our dynamic and our dynamic only, felt like getting vegan cheese in my mac n cheese. Not quite what I was looking for.
Fantasizing about a relationship that I had already determined was doomed to fail was not the best of looks, but clearly I didn’t care because I kept building these damn castles in my head—a castle where João was my Master and my man. No matter how long I’d known him, moving in would have been a delight under those circumstances. So I bratted, but then I realized the moment he thought his demand was outside the scope of our agreement.
It wasn’t, but something clouded his face, and then he retreated.
That retreat had snapped me out of my inner child tantrum. My Master needed me close, so I needed to be close to my Master. It was that simple. Once I came to that realization, the rest had all been easy.
“Nah, how do you mean calm down? You’re living with one of the most coveted Doms in our community. Girl, this is a dream come true. And it happens to you? Damn it, where is my Dom coming to rescue me, a prince in distress?” Vincent said, drama oozing out of every word. My eyes rolled before I even had a thought, my smile wide as he kept on going about how lucky I was.
“I know, I know, this is nice but also nerve-racking. I’m not trying to fall in love with Master; this is just what our dynamic needs at the moment.”
João’s pantry was well-stocked. Every seasoning I could possibly need, all the dry goods to whip up a quick meal. Right next to the pantry, there were two baskets full of onions, bell peppers, ginger, garlic, cilantro, parsley, plantains, banana, and mangoes… The man clearly loved cooking.
