A/N: Thank you to everyone who has submitted reviews and encouragement! This chapter will be the longest one yet. I thought about dividing it up into two chapters, but I decided to keep it together as one. This will probably be my last post for this week and next week. I need to get caught up on my adulting.
Ana's first visit to Christian's red room is a bit different from anything else that I have read. I can't wait to hear your thoughts on this take!
Chapter 4
Anastasia Fierce
It has been 3 weeks since Christian and I had our date. Soon after, Christian texted me that he had to fly to Taiwan to deal with something about a shipyard.
Before Christian returned to Seattle, my boss Margaret and I had to fly to New York for a conference and to meet with some of our East Coast authors.
Trips with Margaret are the best. She is in her 40's and has 3 kids. She always refers to work trips as "Mom Spring Break." It is not that we party all night and go crazy on these trips. It is more like Margaret enjoys being with other adults, eating meals that do not involve ketchup, and coming back to a freshly cleaned hotel room each night.
Margaret is a great boss. She has taught me so much in the last year. She trusts my input on manuscripts. She even listened to me regarding a manuscript that I dug out from put in the rejection pile. It is by a new author, Boyce Foxx. His previous work has all been online. Even though he has not had anything published on paper, Boyce has a pretty significant online following. We plan to meet with him while we are traveling.
Margaret and I returned from New York five days ago. I texted Christian when I got home but we have not been able to coordinate our schedules for another date.
Whatever inner goddess came out in the backseat of Christian's sex-mobile the night of Kate's birthday party/engagement has long since disappeared. In her place is sweet Ana. The Ana who is too scared to ask her best friend forever when she is moving out.
I am the Ana who is too timid to text Christian with a "What the hey-hey? We got all steamy one night and then all romantic the next night. Can we please pick up the pace and get to third base territory?" Mama's got needs.
Yes, my inner goddess is gone. Left behind is the Ana who has kept her v-card intact waiting for her very own Mr. Darcy. Sweet Ana knows that Christian Grey is way out of her league. Super models want him. He is probably going to be People's next Sexiest Man Alive. Sweet Ana needs to stay in her own lane. She needs to find herself a nice librarian who wears wrinkled khakis and wire rimmed glasses.
Ok, so I should definitely make that appointment to see Dr. Green about getting a therapist referral. I add negative self-talk to my list of issues that I can tackle in therapy.
Just as I am about to google 'cat adoption' and start a Pinterest board for mu-mu's, I hear a tap on my bedroom door. It cracks open to reveal Kate.
"Ana, I'm worried about you. Ever since you got back from New York, you have come home every night all mopey. You shut yourself in your room. What's going on, Boo?" She sits on the side of my bed and rubs my back.
"I dunno. I think I am struggling with things. I mean, what if I never meet anyone? What if I end up being the old lady that never takes off her bath robe and yells at kids to get off her lawn?"
"Oh, Banana. The right guy is out there for you. I kissed a lot of frogs before I found Elliott. You have to put yourself out there to meet your Prince Charming."
I giggle. Kate is right.
Kate picks up her phone. "Look, I'm going to rally the troops. What you need is a good, old-fashioned night on the town. Let's see what's going on tonight. You need to drink too much and make questionable decisions. It is just what your fairy god mother ordered."
I laugh. I find it is always best to follow along when Hurricane Kate blows through. I am already feeling better. Kate drags me into her room to start styling me from her closet.
Mia has managed to get us on the list at the Mile High Club. Kate insists I wear a silver bandage dress that accents every curve and a really hot pair of get-some stilettos. She puts my hair in a high pony tail. I feel brave enough to go with a smoky eye and dark red lips. Truth? I feel hot. Really hot. Like, Victoria's Secret angel wing-wearing hot. I already feel better. To quote the Black-Eyed Peas 'Tonight's gonna be a good, good night.'
Elliott arrives to drive us to the club. We have to take a couple of detours through downtown. There is some sort of World Bank Conference happening in Seattle this weekend. Between the influx of foreign dignitaries and the concurrent protesters, several streets are blocked off.
It seems like groups are protesting everything from climate change to fair trade for third world countries. Even the religious crazies have organized. We even see a guy holding up a sign that says 'My Arms Are Tired." I am actually a bit surprised to see the volume of groups protesting.
When we finally arrive at the club, Elliott pulls around to the VIP entrance on the side. Who knew VIP entrances are a thing? This feels super fancy. My inner goddess rubs her hands together in delight.
Things get even fancier when we meet José and Frederic at a table in some sort of roped-off, boujee area.
Frederic is a great partner for José. They met when Frederic hired José to shoot a spread for Seattle Style magazine where Frederic is the Editor-in-Chief. If Mia is the Homecoming Queen of Seattle, Frederic is the King. He knows everyone and everything. He is at every gallery opening and posh charity event.
Before Frederic, José did not really embrace his homosexuality. We all knew José was gay, but he never once discussed it with us. Once he got together with Frederic, José became much more open about his sexuality. I mean, I've kind of always known José is gay, but it is nice to see him finally being open about it.
Elliott summons the cocktail waitress and orders a round of brain-bending beverages for the table. This feels fun.
After our second round of shots, I ask Mia and Kate if they want to hit the dance floor. Kate's eyes grow big with delight.
"You want to dance? Hells yeah! Anastasia Fierce is coming out tonight."
"Anastasia Fierce?" Elliott asks.
"Oh babe, you are gonna love Anastasia Fierce! That is what we call Ana's inner goddess. She doesn't come out often, but when she does, watch out! Keep your phone close, because Ana's about to go viral."
"Does Anastasia Fierce only come out when Banana is drinking?"
"Mostly, but sometimes sober Anastasia Fierce shows her face."
"Like when?"
"Jack Hyde." Mia quips in.
"Jack Hyde definitely met Anastasia Fierce," Kate laughs.
"Who's Jack Hyde?"
"He was her boss when she first got to SIP. He straight up made an after-hours move on our girl. She got all self-defense ninja on him. Banana knee'd him in the nads. Rumor has it that she injured him so badly that he is only juggling with one ball now. He went out on an extended medical leave and never came back."
Elliott high-fives me for my ninja moves. I giggle as I sip another cold beverage.
Mia and José are cheering and chanting "Anastasia Fierce." Elliott looks positively giddy.
These clowns want to see Anastasia Fierce? My inner goddess puts on her party shoes and hops off her bar stool. I toss back another shot. I raise my hand over my head and summon Anastasia Fierce's loyal subjects to follow me to the dance floor.
We have the most fun. Our group dances and dances and drinks and dances. Mia has found a hunky piece of eye candy with whom she shakes her tail feathers. I alternate between busting a move with Kate and being the middle of a José/Frederic dance sandwich. We laugh and let loose. This feels so good. I get lost in the music and merriment. At some point, Kate's brother Ethan joins us. I love Ethan. He is the big brother that I always wanted.
Just as we return to our table to rehydrate, I feel that tingling in my lady bits. This can only mean one thing. Christian Grey is about to join us. I start sniffing the air to detect which direction from which the sex god will appear. Before I can smell him, the sea of people parts and Mr. Sex-on-legs is among us.
I am just about to unleash Ms. Fierce on Christian when he grabs my arm and starts barking orders at our group.
"Get your things. The protesters are beginning to riot. It's not safe to stay here. Come with me. I have cars to get us out of here."
What?! There are riots happening and Christian is here to save us? Ok. Anastasia Fierce decides to keep her mouth closed, for now.
It does not take us long to gather our group plus Ethan. Outside, we find three black SUVs waiting for us. Taylor is driving one and another man in black is driving one. Christian herds our band of merry makers into the vehicles. He grabs my arm by the elbow and steers me to the passenger side of the middle SUV. He gets behind the wheel. We are moving before I can even click my seat belt. Just a block from the club, we start seeing groups of people smashing store fronts and throwing rocks. Sirens blare from every direction. I can smell smoke in the air. Holy Batman, this is some 'as seen on tv' business.
Taylor leads our caravan quickly through the streets. We run red lights and swerve around barricades. Taylor is definitely worth whatever Christian is paying him. It feels like we are in a Bourne movie. I look over at Christian. Despite the chaos and the technical driving, he looks unphased. By his appearance, he could be driving us to the opera. I am a little mad at myself for letting his cool-under-pressure demeanor turn me on. Come on, Anastasia Fierce! This is the same jack rabbit that left you hanging for three weeks.
We finally arrive at Escala, the super-luxe high rise where Christian lives. I have never been to his apartment, but Kate has told me that it is extra extra. The SUVs pull into an underground parking garage that is fortified with some pretty menacing metal gaits. Rioters won't be able to penetrate this entrance.
We all take an elevator that requires Christian's fingerprint to access. It whisks us straight up to the penthouse. We exit into a breathtaking white marble foyer and enter through imposing doors. As soon as we are on the inside of the apartment, Taylor's sidekick goes to a keypad on the wall. I can hear clanking and what sounds like some sort of loud door banging shut from the other side of the wall.
"We should be safe in here." Christian states. My apartment is completely impenetrable. The rest of the building could catch on fire and we would still be safe. We can stay here until things settle down on the streets."
José and I make eye contact. This really is some Jason Bourne stuff right here. Our group walks into an enormous great room with floor to ceiling windows. A kitchen is on the far side of the room. I see an older woman assembling what appears to be snack trays. Oooh, I hope those are for us. I am starving!
Elliott makes his way over to a wet bar. He starts taking drink orders. I decide to go with a glass of wine from the bottle that Christian is opening. I might still be mad at Mr. Sex-on-Legs, but that does not mean that I need to refuse his hospitality.
We learn that the older woman from the kitchen is Christian's housekeeper, Ms. Jones. She brings us several platters of finger bites. Perfect for our drunk selves. I notice she also puts out a crystal pitcher of water and empty cups. Perhaps that is a hint to us?
The girls kick off our shoes and settle on the world's largest sectional sofa. The guys gather at the windows to survey the scenes below. We can see a fire burning several blocks away. Christian's penthouse feels safe. We can not hear the sounds of windows breaking or the rallying cries of the vandals down below. I am a bit nervous about what might be happening near Kate's and my apartment. I hope that the Pike Market district is still safe.
Christian is busy pointing out landmarks so that we can get an idea for where the fire may be burning. Elliott hits some buttons on a remote and a television descends from the ceiling above the fireplace. The guys join us on the sofa. We all sit frozen as we watch reports of downtown businesses falling victims to the street mobs.
After a spot of time, Elliott turns the tv off. It is too disturbing to watch at length.
Mia suggests we play a game. Frederic and José nix the suggestion of 'Never have I ever.' We end up agreeing on 'Truth or Dare.' Nothing brings back a party mood like juvenile pranks and revealing secrets.
Kate begins. "Elliott, truth or dare?"
"Dare"
"How old were you when you lost your virginity?"
"Fifteen. Mia, truth or dare?"
"Ummm…dare."
"I dare you to call mom and dad crying and pretend like you are pregnant."
"NO WAY, ELLIOTT."
"Ok, then you have to take a shot."
Elliott produces a bottle of tequila and a shot glass. Mia complies. We clap for her.
The game continues for several rounds. We find out that Ethan has slept with 9 women. José eats a raw jalapeño, whole. Kate chooses to drink instead of reveal what she did with a local while on Spring Break in Cabo. I drink when Frederic asks me to reveal the craziest place I have ever had sex. Kate winks at me knowing I would rather take a shot than discuss my virginity with this group.
At some point in the game, Christian excuses himself to go into his study with Taylor to discuss potential looting that is happening near Grey House, the skyscraper that house his business GEH. We keep playing the game. Everyone is getting pretty toasty. Mia is dared to show us her tattoo (or as Elliott calls it, her tramp stamp). She pulls up her dress to reveal an Asian symbol on her booty cheek. She tells us the hilarious story of how she and her friends wanted to get tattoos while in Micronesia last year. Due to the language barrier between Mia and the tattoo artist, she ended up with a symbol that may or may not mean 'Peace comes from within." This story is so Mia.
Mia turns to me. "Ana, truth or dare?"
"Dare."
Mia gets up and walks over to a drawer in the kitchen. She returns with an old fashioned skeleton key attached to a red, silk tassel.
"There is a room upstairs with an extra lock on the door. I dare you to use this key to see if you can get the door open."
"That doesn't sound hard. What is in the room?"
Elliott uses his spookiest voice. "None of us knows. Christian has always kept that door locked. He says that the room is for storage, but he has a big locker in the basement so that doesn't make sense."
I can do this. It is better than getting asked another question about my non-existent sex life. I grab my glass of wine. I get to the bottom of the stairs and motion for Kate and Mia to follow me up.
We reach the door with the fancy brass lock. The key slides in and turns with ease. The door creeks open, haunted house style. Giggling, Mia pushes me into the room. I hear someone fumbling to find a light switch. Soft ambient lighting begins to reveal the room's contents.
Holy. Mother. Of. Pearl...
It takes a moment for the three of us to digest what we are seeing. Against one wall is a huge, wooden, four-poster bed. There is a leather chesterfield couch. I see a wooden cross with clips and rings and assorted hardware. What looks to be some sort of Victorian-era doctor's exam table sits close to a wall, a very intriguing wall. Everything in the room is covered in varying shades of red leather and silk. The smell of leather and lemons hangs heavy in the air.
Hanging from the wall are all sorts of things. I see riding crops, whips, something that looks like a leather dusting tool, just to name the things I can identify. Heavens to Betsy, what is that bar with a leather cuff on each end? Intriguing.
Kate and Mia are speechless. That's a first. Mia is walking around, slowly examining each piece of furniture. She seems to be lost somewhere between processing and understanding.
Kate is drawn to the wall of...what does one call this collection? A wall of toys? of torture devices? of sex props? None of these seem to be the right moniker.
Kate reaches out to touch each of the hanging items. She runs her hand across the top of a chest of drawers.
Me? I put my glass of wine down and stand in the middle of the room to take it all in. It feels like we have entered some sort of alternate universe: part Opium den, a bit of Indiana Jones, a dash of mad scientist, and whole lot of kinky fuckery.
Ehr mah gawd. Christian Grey is a man with very specific tastes.
It feels very voyeuristic to be invading Christian's private space. My heart is racing with...excitement. This room pulses with...naughtiness.
Before the three of us can even begin to compare notes, we hear noise in the hallway.
"Quick, hide!" Mia hisses. We three dive under the bed. The silk of my party dress hastens my slide under the behemoth piece of leather and wood. Kate, Mia, and I huddle together.
Son of a biscuit, we left the lights on and the door open. We are shit for criminals. Has CSI taught us nothing about covering our trail?
From under the bed, we see four pairs of feet enter the room. None of the shoes appear nice enough to belong to Christian. Phew! It must be Elliott, Ethan, José, and Frederick.
I hear sharp inhales. I imagine their reactions mimic ours from minutes earlier.
"Kate, are you in hear?" Elliott whispers.
Before Kate can respond, we hear more noise in the hallway. Suddenly, more bodies come diving under the bed. I can't help but giggle as José and Frederic join us. From this vantage point, we see Ethan and Elliott duck down behind the chesterfield. Kate is motioning for Elliott to join us under the bed. Safety in numbers and all.
Elliott is Army crawling to us when Christian enters the room. Hells bells, the gangs all here now.
While we remain hidden, Christian would be hard pressed to miss the 6'2" drunk Elliott that is frozen, face down in the middle of the room.
A brighter light flicks on.
Christian growls. Surely Elliott realizes he lacks the super hero powers of invisibility. We watch as Elliott pops up to standing in one swift move. Dusting his shirt off, Elliott flashes his most dazzling smile.
"What's up little bro?"
"What. The. Fuck. Are. You. Doing. In. This. Room?" Christian roars.
"Settle down, Chrissy. I was looking for Kate. She wandered off.
"Kate? Katie girl are you in hear?" Elliott calls out innocently.
When Kate does not answer, José and Frederic begin pushing her out like a sacrificial lamb. Kate resists but she is no match for the guys. Mia and I cannot resist a giggle.
Kate pops up to stand next to her fiancé. Her moves are not as impressive as Elliott's. She wobbles on her Louboutins for a second. Elliott grabs her waist to steady her.
"Oh, hi Christian. I was just taking a bit of a tour. I must have taken a wrong turn. Thanks for finding me, babe." Kate plants a loud smack on Elliott's lips.
Christian is at a loss for words. He makes several unintelligible sounds as he begins to pull at his hair.
Mia can no longer control her giggles. She slides out from under the bed just as Ethan reveals himself from behind the couch. Christian begins to pace the floor, pulling his hair and moaning. I wait to see if smoke comes from his ears.
Never ones to miss a party, José and Frederic are the next two to reveal themselves. Once out, they turn around to help me slither out. As I stand, I note that there is not one speck of dirt on my dress. Ms. Jones really is an excellent housekeeper.
Aside from Kate and Mia's occasional giggle, no one speaks. We all stand around like teenagers caught sneaking out. Christian looks pissed!
Elliott finally breaks the ice. Rubbing his hands together, he grins like a Cheshire cat.
"So little brother, am I to understand that you have already had your cherry popped? Well, I'll be a monkey's uncle..."
"Dios mio," José mutters. "The rumors are true."
Mia, Kate, and I all nod our heads in agreement.
"What rumors?" Christian roars while continuing to pull at his copper locks.
"We have all heard them big brother. Everyone has. This room is kind of an urban legend." Mia air quotes, "Billionaire bachelor likes to get his freak on with whips and chains."
Christian freezes, his mouth open but no sounds coming out.
"Come on Christian, you had to know people knew about this," Kate waves her hand to motion the room. "I mean there are whole Reddit threads dedicated to the possible existence of your secret sex dungeon."
"It is not a dungeon," Christian whimper-moans. "It is a playroom."
Frederic speaks, "I have to say, the rumors do not do this room justice." He walks over to the cross. "This is professional-grade kink you have here."
Frederic whips his head towards Christian. "You have to let the magazine do a spread in here. José, you could photograph the shoot. We will call it CEO is a master in the boardroom and a dom in the bedroom."
"Oh, that's brilliant Frederick! José could do the pictures. I could style the shoot. Kate could write the copy. It will be hot big brother!" Mia claps her hands and bounces with excitement.
With the exception of one very sickly appearing billionaire, our little group begins to bubble with excitement. In a hot second, Elliott and Kate are opening the drawers of the chest, pulling out items for inspection. Mia is bouncing on the bed. Frederic is trying to cuff José to the cross.
"Quick, Katie girl. Go grab your purse. We need to try some of this shit out." Elliott starts making a pile of sexified accessories. I see vibrators and dildos and things that must go in the back door.
Out of the corner of my eye I see Mia fly through the air from the bed to grab the rings that are hanging from some sort of grid attached to the ceiling. She is now swinging from the ceiling like a trapeze artist.
Frederick has found some sort of crank system attached to the cross. He now has José fully fastened and is cranking the cross to bring José horizontal.
"STOP!" Booms Christian's voice. "Get out! Everybody just Get. The. Fuck. Out!"
We all freeze for a minute. Nobody makes a move to the door. I feel bad for Christian. He seems embarrassed. Maybe he should talk to Dr. Flynn about this. Why have a Red Room of Pleasure if you are not going to show it off?
Christian repeats himself. Still, no one moves. Ugh, must I always be the moral compass for our group?
"Come on guys. Let's go." I make my way to the door. "Christian can invite us back another time when he is ready to share. Kate, Elliott put those toys down. They are not yours to play with. Ethan, help Frederic straighten up that contraption and unhook José. Mia you shouldn't be swinging from the ceiling. You could hurt yourself. Honestly, you are all behaving rather alarmingly?" I hold my head up high with indignation.
I see Elliott stuff several sex gadgets in his pockets. I get to the door and realize I've left my glass of wine on the chest of drawers. As I turn back around to retrieve it, I hear a petulant Kate mutter "virgin" as I walk by her. This just pisses me off. I grab my wine, pause and then grab the prettiest dildo I see. I tuck it under my arm and stomp towards the door.
"Ana, wait!" Elliott calls out. I spin around to see a tube of lube flying towards me. I manage to catch it before I make my exit.
Geez! I can't take these drunkards anywhere! I stomp down the hall to a guest room. I slam the door behind me and click the lock. It isn't until I put my drink and treasure down on the dressing table that I fully appraise the situation.
I have just seen the Master of the Universe's fabled sex room. I am drunk, absolutely hammered. I have locked myself in a hoity-toity bedroom with a fancy glass of wine, a sparkly fake penis, and a tube of what is sure to be high-end, organic lube. All of this while rioters and looters destroy buildings just blocks away.
I fall onto the bed laughing hysterically. Best. Night. Ever!