Practice the dark art of

{if x=0}

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//attempt ****

//path 4

//mindy outfit need more description?

{elseif Day>0}

This time I let myself into her house without knocking. I drop my bag inside the door and find her reading at the table. She quickly gets up to give me the customary hug. I barely return it, making it a stiff and uncomfortable exchange.

{if CORRUPTION: Mindy=true}{if Got a black eye from angry hubby= true}

When she lets it go, she looks at me and gasps. ”Oh my! Is that... a black eye? What happened, honey?” Her fingers move to touch it, but I jerk my head away.

“I’ll tell you the story later,” I say gravely, sitting myself in the same chair that we had sex on less than 48 hours ago.

Her pleasant smile droops. She follows my eyes to the coffee machine and hops to fetch a mug for me. While she pours, I realize she is wearing a new workout outfit. It is not overly flashy, but the matching red and grey tank top, and yoga pants are a significant upgrade, much more form fitting than her former baggy sweatpants and t-shirt look.

I suddenly realize that I can use the black eye to my advantage, while twisting the story to play off of her worst motherly fears... Wow. I’m a real monster.

I start my gambit with a small request. “When we first started personal training, you offered to make me breakfast in the mornings. I’m just not giving myself enough time to eat before coming for these visits, so I will take you up on it after all.”

“Oh... oh yes! Of course. I’d be happy to. I didn’t make anything for you ahead of time. Are eggs alright?” She seems relieved to have something to keep her busy instead of addressing the elephant in the room.

“Eggs would be fine.” I keep my tone neutral to keep her on edge.

“So, how did the rest your Sunday go?” she asks with a **** casualness as the eggs sizzle.

“Some good, some bad. I did a lot of running around. Had a few surprising conversations.”

“That sounds... eventful,” she says carefully. “Toast?”

“Sure.”

“And... did you talk to Lewis then?”

“Yeah, I did,” I say with a sigh then take a long sip coffee.

“So... How is he?”

I purse my lips thoughtfully. “How is he, indeed? You know... sometimes I imagine he’s crossing a canyon on a tightrope. He’s made it halfway across, taking one step at a time. You and I are holding opposite ends of the rope steady and hoping the wind stays calm...” I flick crumb off the table and watch it fall out of sight. I look up and see Mindy’s tense expression. I make a wry smile and give her a gift of fragile hope. “Sorry, I’m in a mood... I gave him a pep talk before I left.”

“Oh that’s good. So you... didn’t tell him... about...” she turns back to the stove to mask her wavering voice.

“No-no... not yet. He isn’t ready to hear it.”

“Okay, good... That’s probably best.” She lets out a shaky breath.

“It is. Trust me. He wouldn’t handle hearing about our arrangement very well, and we have worked too hard to keep him on the straight and narrow. “

Mindy cocks her head subtly. She puts the plate of eggs and toast in front of me. I take a few bites while she refills the coffee cup and sits, many questions poised on her lips.

“So, I didn’t tell him, but I tested the waters. I threw a mom joke to him. Just a typical thing, you know? Guys do it all the time. I teased him about having such a hot, single mom ready to start dating soon. He lost his cool real quick. I didn’t realize how angry he was until I started to make a second joke and he interrupted me with a right jab.” I point to my fresh shiner.

Mindy flinches like she was struck herself. “What? No! He would never hit you!”

I wiggle my face and wince. ”Oh—I’m fairly certain he did. Remember all the fights he got in when things were really bad? He still has that temper, but he is better at hiding it now. He is incredibly protective of you, maybe even more now that he isn’t living in the house anymore. He socked me and at cursed me out, even though it was obviously a lame joke. I guess he finds it a particularly unfunny subject.”

Mindy sits uneasily, watching me, waiting to hear more.

I scratch at the eggs with a fork, feigning a loss of appetite. “And... if he knew what actually happened here, he'd probably have beaten me bloody.”

“No! He coul—” she nearly shouted, caught herself, then scanned in the direction of Tonya's room. I look over my shoulder but see no one in the hallway. When I turn back to Mindy, she is leaning closer to me, biting her lips to control her outburst.

I shrug. “He sorta... snapped for a moment. He stomped around like I haven’t seen in years. After that, he chugged a few beers and... Well, I had my hands full walking the jokes back and calming him down. He was better by the time I left, but I’m worried that... it’s possible that the truth might cause him to have a relapse. Senior year all over again.”

Mindy chews her lip harder and stares into space, her forehead knitting with dormant dreads being reawakened. “Crap... No... Crap.”

I extend my hand palm up on the table and maintain a calm gaze. She looks at my offered hand, then takes it. I give it a sustained squeeze.

“Whatever we do together should never reach his ears, for his sake. Are we agreed on that?"

"Of course..." she rasps quickly. She studies my face for a moment; something is bothering her.

“Don’t worry, it looks worse than it feels.” I release her hand and slide the plate away. "Thank you for the breakfast, Mindy.”

“You’re wel—“

“Now thank me properly for not telling him.”

Mindy blinks at me, lip poised to say another thank-you, but as I slide my chair away from the table, she grows confused, her instincts buzzing.

“Get on your knees.” I unzip my jeans and pull my semi hard dick out. It slumps forward from my fly, steadily rising in time with my wicked heartbeats.

Mindy's face goes slack in shock, looking first at me, then at my erection.

{elseif Got a black eye from angry hubby= false}

She follows my eyes to the coffee machine and hops to fetch a mug for me. While she pours, I realize she is wearing a new workout outfit. It is not overly flashy, but the matching red and grey tank top, and yoga pants are a significant upgrade, much more form fitting than her former baggy sweatpants and t-shirt look.

I start my gambit with a small request. “When we first started personal training, you offered to make me breakfast in the mornings. I’m just not giving myself enough time to eat before coming for these visits, so I will take you up on it after all.”

“Oh... oh yes! Of course. I’d be happy to. I didn’t make anything for you ahead of time. Are eggs alright?” She seems relieved to have something to keep her busy instead of addressing the elephant in the room.

“Eggs would be fine.” I keep my tone neutral to keep her on edge. She gets a frying pan out of the cabinet and opens the refrigerator. The pan sizzles with hot butter.

“So, how did the rest your Sunday go?” she asks with a **** casualness.

“Some good, some bad. I did a lot of running around. Had a lot of surprising conversations.”

“That sounds... eventful,” she says carefully. She adds some eggs to the pan. “Toast?”

“Sure.”

“And did you talk to Lewis then?” She tries to ask the question breezily, but the strain in her voice is unmistakable.

“Yeah, I did.” I sip coffee and let her squirm in the silence. Her worst fears as a mother might be her weakness. How should I frame it though?

“How is he?”

“How is he? He’s still crossing a canyon on a tightrope, halfway across and trying not to look down... I gave him a pep talk to keep him going.”

“Oh that’s good. So you... didn’t tell him... about...” she looks at me from the stove, hope and fear in her eyes.

“No... No, not yet. He isn’t ready to hear it.”

“Oh, good...”

“I’ve worked too hard to help him keep on track. He wouldn’t handle knowing about our arrangement very well.”

Her head cocks at my choice of words. She puts the plate of eggs and toast in front of me. I take a few bites while she refills the coffee cup with a question on her lips. I beat her to it. “I’m pretty sure that if I tell him, he will have a full relapse.”

“Gosh, really? Then we should put it all behind us and—“

“He’s very overprotective of you, which makes this whole situation difficult. I’m not going to tell him what you did to me. In fact, I’m going to lie for you.” Her anxious smile is falls away as my words smack her in the face, bringing fresh, painful guilt to the surface. “What we do together never needs to reach his ears. Are we agreed on that?"

"Of course!" she agrees too quickly, then her eyes search me. “Wait—what do you mean?”

"I’m not going to tell him, and you are going to get on your knees and thank me.”

Mindy blinks at me, lip formed to say a confused thank-you, but she turns ashen as her buzzing instincts scream at her. I slide my chair away from the table and unzip my jeans and pull my semi hard dick out. It slumps forward from my fly, steadily rising in time with my wicked heartbeats, casting a looming shadow on the floor.

Mindy's face goes slack in shock, looking first at me, then at my erection.

{endif}

{else}{if Got a black eye from angry hubby= true}

When she lets it go, she looks at me and gasps. ”Oh my! Is that... a black eye? What happened, honey?” Her fingers move to touch it, but I jerk my head away.

“Don’t,” I warn.

She freezes. “Are you okay?”

I suddenly realize that the back eye could be useful to coerce her, that is, if I can spin a good enough story to go along with it. “I’ll tell you while we eat. I’m going to take you up on the offer to make breakfasts after all.”

“Oh... oh yes! Of course. I’d be happy to. I didn’t make anything for you ahead of time. Are eggs alright?”

“Eggs would be fine.” I keep my tone neutral to keep her on edge. She gets a frying pan out of the cabinet and opens the refrigerator. The pan sizzles with hot butter, followed by two eggs. She seems relieved to have something to keep her busy instead of addressing the elephant in the room. I use the few minutes of silence while she finishes cooking to find my angle. I decide to play up my emotional trauma.

“So, how did the rest your Sunday go?” she asks with a **** casualness.

“It was... rough,” I say with a sigh.

When I don’t elaborate, she speaks carefully. “It sure looks that way... Here you go.” She sets the plate in front of me and sits next to me. She watches me attentively, hands slowly wringing under the table. After watching me eat for a few silent minutes she can’t take it anymore. “So... how did you get that black eye?”

I act like I can’t bear to look at her. “By being an idiot yesterday. I was getting more and more upset about what happened.”

Her eyes drop to the table.

“I couldn’t focus all day. I needed to vent... I visited Lewis and had a few beers, but I couldn’t talk to him about it.”

“So he doesn’t know?”

I shake my head. “He could tell something was wrong and tried to pry it out of me. I lied to get him off my back. I just got up and left. It was awful.”

“You shouldn’t feel bad about anything. You didn’t do anything wrong,” she says emphatically. She reaches for my hand, but I flinch from her. She takes the hint and gives me more space.

“But I do. After that I went to a bar to get everything off my mind somehow. After a few cocktails, I noticed a nice lady all by herself and started talking to her. I thought was single, but as it turns out, she was not.” I point to my eye.

She cringes. “Husband?”

I shrug. “Eh, who knows. Didn’t ask. So I did what any self respecting man would; I punched him back and got thrown out, wandered to a different bar, drank until close, then stumbled home drunk. Like Lewis often says, I was feeling no pain.”

The specter of Lewis’ dark times evoked as an aphorism soured her. “Warren... You know that isn’t healthy.”

“Yeah, I know, but at some point I realized how we can fix this.”

“How’s that?”

“I feel angry and powerless every time I remember it... So we are going to overwrite those memories with new ones.” I slide my chair back and open my fly. “This time I need to be in control.”

{else}

“When we started, you offered to make breakfasts for me. I’m going to take you up on that after all.”

“Oh... oh yes! Of course. I’d be happy to. I didn’t make anything for you ahead of time. Are eggs alright?”

“Eggs would be fine.” I keep my tone neutral to keep her on edge. She gets a frying pan out of the cabinet and opens the refrigerator. The pan sizzles with hot butter, followed by two eggs. She seems relieved to have something to keep her busy instead of addressing the elephant in the room. I use the few minutes of silence while she finishes cooking to find my angle. I decide to play up my emotional trauma.

“So, how did the rest your Sunday go?” she asks with a **** casualness.

“It was... rough,” I say with a sigh.

“Oh? Here you go.” She sets the plate in front of me and sits next to me. She watches me attentively, hands slowly wringing under the table. “Tell me about it”

“I couldn’t focus all day. I needed to vent... I visited Lewis and had a few beers, but I couldn’t talk to him about it.”

“So he doesn’t know?”

I shake my head. “He could tell something was wrong and tried to pry it out of me. I lied to get him off my back and left. It was awful.”

“You shouldn’t feel bad about anything. You didn’t do anything wrong,” she says emphatically. She reaches for my hand, but I flinch from her. She takes the hint and gives me more space.

“Yeah, I know, but at some point I realized how we can fix this.”

“How’s that?”

“Every time I remember it... I feel sick, like I have lost something...”

“Oh, Warren, no...” She leans forward, then remembers to keep some distance.

“So we are going to overwrite those memories with new ones.” I slide my chair back and pull out my cock. “This time I need to be in control, to get my agency back.”

{endif}{endif}

{else}Play in game mode.{endif}