Kat didn’t seem to know how to take that. She was surprised but also pleased. There was just a hint of a blush on her face.
“Second. I know this took a lot of courage for you to ask, but….” Arthur hesitated. He didn’t want to upset her, and she looked like she was on the verge of being very upset by the upcoming rejection. The conjunction ‘but’ was always a red flag.
“But?” Kat’s voice was quiet, but there was still a hint of defensive anger.
“I’m not sure we qualify for friends with benefits.” Arthur shook his head. “We’re not really friends, are we? We barely know each other. I know Selene pretty well, and we get along pretty well. I don’t know you at all, and we don’t get along at all sometimes. And now you want to be my sex slave?”
“No.” Kat snapped. “You weren’t listening. I don’t want to be your sex slave. I’m not a fuck toy like she is. I want to be your… student, I guess. I want you to tutor me on this stuff.”
“This stuff being sex.” Arthur reminded her. “Specifically, kinky sex?”
“Yes.” Kat nodded. “I want to try things out.”
Arthur was silent for a moment. His gaze on her face was intense, but she refused to meet his eyes. She was staring at the coffee table as though it were going to burst into flames. Arthur was staring at her, waiting to see if she would realize what he did, but she didn’t seem to think this was a bad idea. She wanted this. Did he?
He already Selene, who had gone from something like a friend with benefits with bondage to a practically full-time sex slave inside a couple of days. Then there was Kelly, who he was dating and would probably be spending roleplay nights with once a week until they either got together for real or called it off. This was, of course, not counting Mindy. Ji-Min, who apparently had a crush on him strong enough to get her to ask him out, and who was eager for their date on Sunday. Now, Kat wanted to join the mix?
“How…” Arthur started, then held up his hand. “How would you want it to work if we did this?”
Kat’s smile burst from her face like sunshine, and she eagerly moved to the opposite corner of the sofa. She tucked one leg under her and sat sideways so she could face him while she talked animatedly with her hands.
“Okay. So, I thought we could get together once a week. During our time together, I would follow your lead. We would go over the limits like you did with Selene and try things out. But I’d need to be sure you know what you’re doing. That means I want lesson plans. Ahead of time.”
“Lesson plans?” Arthur raised an eyebrow. This was already starting to sound like more work than he might be able to handle.
“Lesson plans.” Kat nodded. “I want to know what we’ll try a week ahead of time if possible, a few days minimum. That way you can let me know if I need to bring anything, where it’s going to be, what we’re going to do, that kind of thing. And you have a few days to change things up if I veto anything.”
Arthur thought about it.
“And it gives us time to reschedule if we’re busy.” She added. “If we set a regular night, like Tuesdays, we can schedule around it, but if we need to reschedule for any reason, we can at least have a few days’ notice.”
“I think I’d have to see an example lesson plan. Have a format to follow.” Arthur found himself speaking before he really meant to.
Kat shifted in her seat. “I can help you with that.” She nodded. “We could go over one for… today?”
“Today?” Arthur asked, slightly surprised.
“Well, I thought you might want to- never mind.” Kat looked down again, and her shoulders drooped.
“I’m…” Arthur started. “I’m not saying no.” He didn’t know that he wanted to say yes either. He wasn’t sure at all what he thought of the idea if he were being honest. It sounded like a dream in some ways, a nightmare in others. Kat was volatile, and she could be… strong-willed. Beyond that, he really didn’t know much about her at all. He wouldn’t mind being her friend before being her friend with benefits to determine if they could even be friends in the first place.
“That doesn’t sound like a yes either.” Kat grimaced. “Are you serious?” She asked. “I’m offering to fuck you, and you’re not sure you want to? Way to boost a girl’s ego.”
“I want to fuck you.” Arthur said sternly. Kat looked up at him. She looked like she was about to cry, stopping him short. “I do. I’m not lying about that.” He wasn’t. “I just feel like, maybe we should start simple. Get to know one another a little. You know? Maybe we could be friends before we become friends with benefits?”
“What do you want to know?” Kat asked as she crossed her arms across her chest.
“I don’t know.” Arthur answered. “Anything about you? I guess? All I know is that you’re Selene’s sister. You grew up together. You’re older than her. She followed you to college, essentially, and the two of you started rooming together last year?” He wasn’t sure when they started rooming together, but he thought that sounded right. “And your mom is a bit of a prude, according to Selene, but she might even consider me a prude by her standards.” He tried to insert a joke to lighten the mood, but Kat didn’t laugh.
“My name’s Katerine. I’m named after my father’s mother. I’m 23, two years older than Selene, even though we’re only a year apart academically. I took a gap year between high school and college because I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. I took four classes at a community college that year and then transferred here.” Kat explained. “My mom is a prude. We were raised in a very strict household with some very archaic ideas when it came to sex and things like that, which didn’t exactly stop me. I was a bit of a rebel in high school. Unfortunately, my boyfriend senior year wasn’t the best, but I lost my virginity to him anyway. In college, I’ve been more dedicated to my school work, and I’ve flirted a bit, but I’m not into one-night stands or hook-up culture, and the guys here treat their girls like shit, and I’m not into that. And I don’t mean like the kinky stuff you and Selene do. I mean relationship-wise. I need to be able to respect the person I’m in a relationship with, and I have no respect for them if they need me to be their mother for them.”
Arthur nodded in response. He didn’t have time to do much else before she continued.
“I was never into ballet like Selene, but I was into music. I play the violin; my mother insisted on something classical. I was in the marching band in high school. I still practice but don’t play in any of the school bands. I was never into the nerd stuff Selene likes, like Lord of the Rings or anime.” Kat shrugged. “Some of them are okay, but I always preferred live-action mysteries and detective stories or reality TV. I like sports and know as much about baseball statistics as any gatekeeping asshole.” She sounded angry on that last bit, but Arthur let it slide.
“Do you play?” Arthur asked.
“I play volleyball.” Kat answered.
“Nice.” Arthur nodded. He hadn’t known that, but it didn’t surprise him. She was fit enough that he figured she had to do something. “What’s your major, anyway?”