She gets an appointment with a psychotherapist

That call results in an appointment in a therapists office in a nondescript building some 20 minutes from her and her husband’s apartment, with Doctor Nicole Wynn.

She arrived and was greeted by a smiling, blonde woman seated behind a reception desk. “Amy Dean, right? You’re here for Dr. Wynn?” The placard on the desk says her name is Shirley.

“Yes, I am. I, uh, I called about my husband.” She had explained the basic details over the phone, but obviously not the full particulars.

“Yep!” She says brightly, “And don’t worry, Dr. Wynn is the best. She’ll have your husband straightened out in no time at all. But first, we have some intake forms.”

The packet she hands Amy more closely resembles a standardized test than medical paperwork. It’s a scantron, like she used back in highschool, along with a booklet, covered with open ended statements followed with a range of values from “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree” along with a “it’s complicated.” There are statements like “Socialism is the future of humanity (which she puts ‘neutral’ to),” “Having outdoor pets is unethical (which she slightly agrees to),” or “I prefer a hike to a boat ride (strongly disagree).”

After that, there’s a section based around a central question stem, “given the chance and without fear of consequent, I would…” followed by a list of items that finish that sentence, each with their own “agree/disagree” options. These items include mild things, like “take a wallet full of cash (It’s complicated.)” to “Kill someone, just to see what it feels like (strongly disagree).”

The next section appears to focus on sexual preferences ranging from common ones like “I prefer a man without body hair (disagree)” to ****, like “I fantasize about being a victim of sexual **** (it’s complicated),” to more vague items such as “I prefer my sexual partners understand their place—beneath me (slightly agree.)” There was also a whole section on body count, first sexual encounter, and past sexual practices, which she puts…a lot of information on. It honestly half reminds Amy of the Rice Purity Test.

There’s also a whole husband specific section. It starts out with basic details and personality traits; “my husband is more of a lover than a fighter (strongly agree),” “my husband puts my needs before his own (slightly disagree, she’s a little sore over the bedroom issue),” and “I find my husband as physically attractive as anyone else (neutral, but she erased a marking on “agree”).” Quickly, however, it progresses into more charged statements. “I wish my husband was more submissive (Slightly agree).” “I would prefer if my husband were in more **** kinks (strongly agree).” “I fantasize about cheating on my husband (Agree, though she wonders if she should put strongly.)”

All of this seems like things that could reasonably show up on a questionnaire for couples therapy, at least for this sort of problem, until the final section. There’s an entire section for Shirley, the receptionist. “If I had Shirley in alone and willing, I would:” “Ask her to eat me out.” “Sit on her face until she licks my asshole.” “Kiss her on the lips.” “Crush her balls.” “Shove my fist in her ass.” “Spank her until she’s nice and red.” “Suck her cute little cock.”

Looking over this material, Amy rises and approaches the reception desk. “Uh, excuse me, what’s all this about? These questions are absurd.”

Shirley looks confused for a second, then smiles broadly. “Oh, is it the cock stuff? People are always surprised, but I really do have one. Do you want to see?”

“What the fuck, no! That’s not what I’m asking about! What is this place?”

“It’s a branch of Purity Medical Group, which in turn is an organization dedicated to the notion that sexual fulfillment brings societal good.” Comes an answer from further within the office.

Amy turns to see a tall, rather statuesque black woman wearing a dark blouse and skirt, standing the in doorway.

“What the fuck does that even mean?” Amy says.

“It means we think people are generally happiest and least troublesome when they’re sexually satisfied, much like your current unhappiness stems from your husband failing to satisfy you.” She extends a hand to shake, which Amy takes more out of muscle memory than actual willing. “I’m Doctor Nicole Wynn. Please, come into my office and I’ll explain further. Shirley, you come as well.”

“Fine.” If Amy were asked why she followed Dr. Wynn into the office, she’d have to think about it for a minute, before ultimately concluding it was nothing short of sheer, self-destructive curiosity. Anyone sensible would’ve run screaming for sure.

The office is well decorated, with dark wooden panels lining the walls, bookshelves with a mixture of self-help books, psychology textbooks, and other such literature you’d expect to see. The desk is spartan, but for a closed laptop and a pen holder. Dr. Wynn takes a seat on the far side of the desk and gesture Amy to one of two chairs on the near side. “Please, have a seat. Shirley, remain standing.”

“So, you were explaining what this is all about?” Amy says, choosing to look past the weirdness of Shirley being ordered to stand.

“Yes, I was. How familiar are you with Freudian theory?” She asks.

“Freud’s the one who wanted to bang his mom, right?” Amy replies flippantly, causing Dr. Wynn to laugh.

“Among other fixations, yes. The details are beyond what’s needed for the explanation at present, but, in essence, we at Purity Health Services subscribe to a branch of Freudian theory which states that the human mind, when properly satiated, sexually, is quiescent. In the absence of such stimulation, it develops maladjustments and neuroses.”

Amy snorts. “You think the bad things people do are because they can’t get laid?”

“An oversimplification, but not far off. Our founder, Dr. Anthony Brinks, described it as the “bread and circuses” effect. So long as someone’s base physical needs are met, and their mind is appropriately entertained by the satisfaction of their sexual desires, they remain placid and cause no problems. They are satisfied. We aim to give them that satisfaction, and do we rather well at it.”

“Ok, this is nuts. There’s no way you’re a real doctor with that attitude. This sounds like a James Bond porno parody.”

Again, the doctor laughs. “In a sense, I suppose you can say I’m not a real doctor. That is, I went to medical school in France, and, was licensed as a psychotherapist there, and have since changed my name to avoid professionalism allegations, as is the practice of our organization, but I assured you, I am fully qualified, and we maintain a sufficient front that any billing can and will be handled through legitimate insurance under the guise of being…less carnally focused therapy.”

“So, what, your whole organization is just a bunch of sex therapists? And what’s with the weird bimbo secretary?” Amy asks, still rather unsure about all of this.

“We provide a range of medical services, ranging from psychosexual therapy to gender affirming care with far fewer hoops than normal providers, to more exotic procedures ordinary healthcare would refuse to perform, all after an extensive psych profiling to ensure the patient will be happy with their outcomes. For example, I have, in the past, ensured a woman who wished to undergo amputations to fulfill her dream of being truly helpless during sex would truly be best served by this procedure. In her case, she was, and our follow up has ensured she remains happy in her current state, but in other cases I have deemed such procedures unfit for the patient and recommended alternative therapy.”

“Ok, that’s kinda fucked—” And slightly hot—“But I can see what you people do, at least. What’s with the bimbo, then? She gets off on this?”

“I do!” Shirley says brightly.

Doctor Wynn looks slightly embarrassed. “She does...and doesn't.”

“Does and doesn't, what does that mean?” Amy asks, arching an eyebrow.

“Consider, if you will, that you are here because your husband, as he is, does not meet your current sexual needs. To provide you with these needs, we will need to, for lack of a better word, adjust your husband’s preferences and desires without his knowledge or consent. Lots of people have similar needs. In the case of Shirley, her now ex-wife had an intense need to see her husband, then a very abusive man, reduced to a helpless state and get his just desserts before she could go on to have a fulfilling relationship with someone else, which we also facilitated. Thus, we, over the course of several months of intensive training, physical alteration and therapy, formed Shirley here into her current state.”

“No fucking way.” Amy says, “This is a prank, or a joke, or something. That’s…there’s no way.”

“Would you like me to provide some evidence that might change your mind?” Dr. Wynn asks.