This gun's for hire, even if we're just dancin' in the dark

Ella’s heart pounded in her chest. She still couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

Oh gosh… I never thought he’d actually agree to it! The possibility that Nick might genuinely be okay with giving in and allowing Ella to do whatever she wanted with him, without even knowing that it was Ella, had never crossed her mind. She was certain that Rose had just been kidding around when she said she’d arrange it, and then she was certain that Nick would say no.

But he’d said yes, and now…

She swallowed. Her trembling hand slowly drifted towards her wrist in an attempt to fight off her nervousness, but she caught herself.

No! If you snap that, then he’ll absolutely know it’s you! You can’t! He needs to stay in the dark! That… that’s the only way… the only way this can work.

Ella couldn’t risk Nick finding out it was her. Cinder’s tolerance of this had a limit. Her alter knew that Ella was trying to get closer to Nick. And the only way Ella could see her letting that happen was if she was in 100% control of the situation, and Nick didn’t even know it was her doing it.

Anything else, and, well…

This could go a whole other way. So better not let that happen.

Summoning up her courage, Ella fought off her natural impulse to run away, and instead drifted closer to Nick, hovering around him like she was examining a brand new life form.

Nick wasn’t any less nervous about this. He could sense the presence of another person in the room with him, and he could hear the sharpness of her breath. But he had no idea who it was. He wasn’t even sure that it wasn’t Rose herself, having doubled back in order to play a prank on him. It could be one of the other girls, hell, it could even be Dakota, and Rose had some kind of an arrangement with her!

Since he had no way of knowing, he decided to lie back and embrace whatever would come, and hope at least that Rose was telling the truth and no one would do anything he didn’t want them to.

Then he felt it. A hand cupping his shoulder. A little more intimate than just a touch, but not quite a caress, either; slender fingers brushed against his skin, feeling his muscles, faint as they were. (He should really work out with Dani one of these days.)

His arm twitched involuntarily from the sudden contact, and the hand suddenly left him. He heard a gasp from somewhere close by.

Ella stepped back, holding her trembling hand. Her eyes spun in her head as her face heated up. She had no idea Nick would react like that to just a light touch! Sure, that was far from the first time she’d ever touched him, but all those other times, it had just kind of… happened.

Or she was under the influence of Morgana’s… No! Don’t think about that! That wasn’t your fault! Ella shook her head from side to side, pushing those thoughts away. They were bad thoughts that would bring Cinder out! And she didn’t want to even think about what Cinder would do if she had Nick at her mercy!

She swallowed again and took another look at Nick.

Yeah… she had him at her mercy. This was different from before. She didn’t have to be nervous or shy. She could do whatever she wanted, and he would never know it was her.

Ella reached out and poked him in the cheek.

Nick flinched in surprise. What’s going on?! Groping me, poking me, this is not what I expected! When Rose said someone wanted to play with him, the implication had been a little more intimate than this! Even if she had said it wouldn’t go too far…

He heard a nervous hum from somewhere to his right, and then he felt it- a set of fingers running through his hair. Of all the bizarre interactions so far, this one definitely set a new record for weirdness.

Huh… huh. Ella thought as she massaged Nick’s scalp. Not even she quite knew why she was doing that. But running your fingers through someone’s hair, that was like a really romantic thing, right? She was sure of it!

But she quickly got bored of that and circled around him again, so she was face to face. Still nervous with excitement, she considered what she could possibly get away with, with him tied up like this.

Her eyes drifted from his face, which he was forcing to relax, down to his rumpled shirt, and then even lower, towards.

“Llllp.”

Ella hoped that her audible gulp wouldn’t clue him into her identity. She saw his ears perk up, and realized he must be subconsciously trying to figure out who she was. Well that wouldn’t do at all!

It wasn’t my fault! I-I was just looking… looking at… um… wow.

Nick wasn’t hard yet, she was pretty sure. Not that she had much experience with erect penises. Sure, maybe… maybe she knew a little bit, but… she wasn’t the kind of girl who would…

…And Cinder definitely wouldn’t like it! No, she just couldn’t! No matter how curious she was! Ella shook her head, fighting off the temptation to snap her rubber-band, and tried not to think about what the tied-up boy in front of her was hiding underneath his pants.

It’s just… a penis, she reminded herself, taking a few deep breaths to calm herself down. Who cares? It’s just a penis. You might be a virgin, but that doesn’t mean you have to keep thinking about his penis! That’s silly! Yeah, just silly… it’s silly.

As she was reminding herself over and over again to stop thinking about a sexual relationship with the boy in front of her, her body was moving against her will, and before she knew it, she found herself sitting in his lap.

That realization nearly made her fall out of his lap. She had to clasp both hands over her mouth to keep from letting out a scream!

It didn’t help either that Nick was having a reaction of his own. Not expecting the sudden weight on his lap and not really able to do anything about it, he started squirming underneath his mysterious molester. Not really trying to shake her off, he was just nervous and wary about what she was planning to do.

Ella didn’t really have a plan, though. But if she did, getting into Nick’s lap definitely hadn’t been part of it. But it was too late now- if she backed off, that would just seem weird! So she **** herself to move forward, and raised her trembling hands to his shirt, clinging to it to keep her balance.

Maybe, if Nick could think straight, process of elimination might have helped him narrow down the identity of who was sitting astride him at the moment. But that was the furthest thing from his mind, especially as he felt her trembling hands start to undo the buttons on his shirt one by one.

What’s she doing? He wondered, not even knowing who “she” was. If his suspicions were correct and this really was Rose, she was an even better actress than he thought.

Ella sucked in another breath of air as she stared at Nick’s chest in surprise. She wasn’t quite sure what she was expecting, really. She knew he wasn’t some big, buff muscular dude under his clothes. And she hadn’t been expecting him to be some scrawny weakling, either. She’d seen him without his shirt off (and regrettably, without a lot of other clothes) but this was probably the closest she’d ever come.

His body is so different than mine, she thought, running her finger down between his pecs, undefined as they were. She almost giggled as she felt him shiver and flinch to her touch. Even though he’s not bulky or muscular… he’s still so much bigger than me. So this is… a man’s body, huh?

The only body Ella was intimately familiar with was her own. As a girl, she knew how all her parts worked, but touching a boy like this for the first time, it was an enlightening experience. She could really feel just how different he was.

She kind of liked it.

Ella continued to let her fingers do the walking, feeling him up all over. She drew circles over his chest and down towards his stomach, where his abs would be if he was in better shape. Ella didn’t even care about any of that, though; a man’s body was new enough as it was.

Still, as much as she enjoyed herself, touching Nick’s body could only go so far before it made her want to do even more. She raised her head as he fingers traced up to his collarbone, and as she looked up into his blindfold, her eyes passed over his lips and she felt her heart skip a beat.

Swallowing her nerves, Ella suddenly felt that her own lips were terribly dry. She licked them softly, wetting them as she struggled to take her eyes off of Nick’s mouth, wondering just what it might taste like.

No! You can’t! She shouted at herself. But her body wasn’t her own in that moment. Ella felt like a helpless passenger as she leaned in closer and closer, parting her lips in anticipation. She knew what her body was prepping itself for, and she couldn’t let it happen. Touching him is one thing, but a kiss!? We can’t just kiss him! It’s not right! He- he wouldn’t want us to-! No! We have to maintain proper boundaries! If Cinder finds out that I kissed him-!

Ella could already hear Cinder raging in the back of her mind, wordlessly screaming at her to stop. And she couldn’t banish her alter with a snap of her rubber-band, either.

But in that moment, Ella didn’t care. If she could get that kiss, it would all be worth it, that was what her body was telling her. The consequences were something to think about later. Right now, neither she nor Cinder were in control, and it just felt so good, giving in like this…

NO!

At the last second, Ella jerked her body to the side, nearly headbutting Nick as she dodged his lips with everything she had. She couldn’t kiss him! Not like this! Their first kiss had to be special, meaningful! She couldn’t just snatch it from him when he didn’t even know who she was! So with every last fiber of willpower she could muster, both from herself and from Cinder, Ella adjusted her trajectory, and planted a wet smooch on the side of his cheek.

“Mwah!”

In that moment, when her lips made contact with his skin, it felt like a bolt of electricity shot through them both.

She could feel him stiffening beneath her in more ways than one, and her body was totally paralyzed as the nerves in her lips went haywire, sending signal after signal through her brain as pleasure blossomed through her body.

Ella trembled like a leaf atop of Nick and nearly slid right out of his lap, but she was able to recover just in time to pull her lips away from him, breaking the circuit and almost falling splat on the ground in the process.

Everything was spinning as Ella staggered off, and she could feel her body heating up with desire. It was like someone had doused her in gasoline and lit a match, and every inch of her was turning into a pyre as she stiffened up and nearly let Cinder take over on the spot.

It was only when she realized they weren’t alone that she was able to recover. As the room spun around her, her eyes landed on a familiar blonde, and she let out another gasp.

Rose looked pointedly at her and silently raised her finger to her wrist, tapping it to indicate a watch that wasn’t there. A sharp reminder that they were on a deadline here, and Ella needed to wrap things up.

She could be generous, but not THAT generous.

Ella didn’t realize what Rose was saying at first and glanced at her rubber-band in confusion. When she put it together, she blushed with shame, and then nodded.

They both agreed what they would do when the time came. So Ella, standing on her own feet now, circled behind Nick and began to give him a shoulder rub. As she did, Rose sauntered forth with a playful expression on her face. She leaned down, and blew a breath of air into Nick’s ear.

Rose took over the massage as Ella fumbled for the item that would allow them to pull of this little ruse- the mask she had won for her boon. She slipped it over her face just as Rose slipped the blindfold off of Nick’s, disappearing from sight as his vision returned.

Nick blinked, wincing. For some reason he had assumed they were in a dark room; apparently that blindfold was even better than he’d expected. But no, the lights of the closet were turned on full, illuminating the fact that he was alone with only Rose at his side.

So it had all been a bit of playacting after all.

“Well?” Rose circled around with a playful smile on her lips. “How did you enjoy your time with your ‘special guest’, hmm?” She teased him, giving him a knowing wink.

“…She wasn’t so bad,” Nick said, playing along. Now that he knew that he hadn’t actually been touched all over by someone else, he felt a little less awkward. Not that he would have minded if another girl from his harem wanted to do something like that- the only people he really might take issue with doing that was his stepmother, and maybe Sylvia.

It was easier if it was just Rose.

“So who do you think it was?” Rose teased, sliding into his lap with her arms draped around his neck. If Nick was more perceptive he might have noticed the difference in weight compared to his ‘special guest’ (not that mentioning that to Rose would go well) but the context of the situation was enough to fool his senses.

Just as Rose hoped.

“I… I’m not really sure,” Nick said, still playing along. “Was it… Gina, maybe?”

“Really? Gina?” Rose tapped her chin thoughtfully, like she was giving that idea serious consideration. “…But your pants are still on, remember?” She reached down and ran her finger along the quickly-growing bulge in Nick’s trousers.

Nick blushed, and squirmed a little in his seat. “Yeah, you raise a good point now that you mention it,” he admitted.

Rose tittered and shook her head. “So not Gina… …Mary, then? No, I can’t imagine your wife would be up for something this kinky.”

“Thump!”

Nick jerked up and looked around. He heard a sound, like someone had bumped into something hard, but there was no one else here.

Rose bit her lip.

Maybe I pushed it a little too far. Gotta keep this above board. She’d nearly insinuated that Ella was kinky for suggesting this, no wonder the other girl had gotten startled and bumped into one of the shelves by accident!

Thinking quick, Rose reached up and cupped Nick’s cheeks, turning his head to face her. Her eyes flashed.

“Looking away when you’ve got such a beautiful woman right in front of you?” She crooned in a teasing voice. “I’m almost offended…”

“Sorry,” Nick said, laughing sheepishly. “I thought I heard something.”

“Mmm, must have been the wind…” Rose leaned forward and planted a kiss on his lips. A nice, long one to take his mind over whatever he thought he heard.

Worked like a charm. Nick didn’t give that sound another thought.

A few seconds later, Rose pulled back and looked Nick in the eyes. “Serious time now,” she said firmly. “Would you like to know the truth?”

She kept her tone playful. She didn’t want to lie, but she didn’t want to betray Ella’s confidence, either. But it all depended on what Nick wanted.

Nick himself was a little confused. This had all been a game played by Rose, right? But on the off chance it wasn’t…

“No, it’s okay,” he said, shaking his head. “Whoever this ‘special guest’ is, I’m sure they had a good reason for doing what they did.”

Rose tittered, masking her relief with playfulness. “Of course they did,” she cooed. “She knew I was much better equipped for the job; that’s why all the secrecy, and why she turned things back over to me, I’m sure.”

To Nick’s ears, that was more of Rose stroking her ego at another girl’s expense.

Ella perceived things a little differently. Behind her masquerade guise, she puffed up her cheeks in frustration.

This had been HER idea, and now Rose was taking advantage of the stuff SHE did to further her own relationship with Nick!

But the fact that Ella wasn’t tearing off her mask and calling Rose a liar and taking credit for her actions sort of proved Rose’s point.

I’m not ready to do that stuff openly yet. I barely even did anything at all. So who am I to make a fuss about it?

It might not have been fair, but when was Ella’s life ever fair?

When I’m ready, I’ll tell him. And he’ll believe me. And Rose will tell the truth too… probably. But right now, it’s fine I guess. She can have the credit for now. She did help me, after all, and she gave me time from her date to do all that stuff. It’s only fair if she gets some kind of a benefit out of it.

That didn’t stop her from feeling jealous.

Ella’s fingers still burned from all the places she touched Nick. Her lips were still tingling from that kiss, even though it had only been on his cheek.

She had been as daring as she could. The rest, well… the rest, Rose would be taking for herself, as unfair as that might be.

“So I think we’ve spent enough time in this dusty old closet, don’t you?” Rose asked, untying Nick’s hands and letting him free from the chair. “Let’s continue this date somewhere with a little more ambience, shall we?”

“Sounds good to me,” Nick agreed, getting up and following her to the door. They headed out to continue the date.

Rose stopped in the doorway and glanced over her shoulder. She didn’t know exactly where Ella was in the room, but it didn’t really matter.

She winked, and whispered a “thank you” to the invisible latina, shooting her a coquettish smile as she closed the door behind her.

As soon as Ella heard the click of the door closing completely she removed her mask, and let out the breath she’d been holding.

“Haah…” she sighed, hearing the sound of her voice for the first time in a while. “That was way, way too close…”

Her heart was still pounding. Her lips were still tingling. And her thoughts… her thoughts were still racing.

“Thwap! Thwap! THWAP!”