Narrow Escape

Martina didn't know Julieta all that well. They lived in the same dormitory, but Julieta's room was about three floors down and they only ever saw each other on the mornings when neither one of them skipped breakfast, which was about one in four. They both showed up to meetings at the Latinx Cultural Group in the student union sometimes, but Julieta was on the basketball team and Martina worked nights at her father's veterinary clinic, so neither one of them could commit. Basically, Martina knew Julieta on sight and knew that she had an athletic scholarship, and that was it.

So when Julieta sprinted up to her mid-knock, snagged her wrist halfway through its arc, and yanked it away from Professor Trenton's door before it could connect with the wooden surface, Martina understood perfectly well how she could do it. But not why. "What the-?" she managed to get out, before Julieta put her other hand over Martina's mouth and stifled Martina's question before she could finish it.

Martina's confusion persisted pretty much the whole time the other girl half-shoved, half-dragged her down the hall, around the corner, and into the stairwell. Half of her shock simply derived from how easily Julieta maneuvered her body around like a child's plaything-Martina didn't think of herself as weak or out of shape, but up close Julieta proved to have a good foot of height and eighty pounds of weight advantage on her. And judging from the ease with which she lifted Martina clean off her feet, that extra weight was pretty much all muscle. Martina suddenly had a pretty good idea why Julieta had an athletic scholarship.

They wound up going down a whole flight of stairs and into the study lounge on the third floor before Julieta let go of Martina's mouth. Martina tamped down her instinct to struggle while they were going down the staircase, but she definitely struggled the last twenty or thirty feet. It didn't do any good, which may have been part of the reason why Martina let out her frustrations so loudly when she got the chance. "What the fuck?" she shouted, grateful that the room was empty. "Seriously, what the fucking fuck was that?" Not that she wouldn't have said the same thing otherwise, but she would have at least felt a little weird about making a scene.

Julieta looked...not sorry, exactly, but at least like she knew she had something to be sorry about. "Look, I can explain, okay?" she said, gesturing placatingly with the hand that wasn't still holding Martina's wrist in a firm-but-not-tight grip. "I just wanted to get you away from there before Professor Trenton heard us and came out to see what was going on." Martina wondered if the other woman even noticed her attempts to pull free. It sure didn't look like it.

"Why?" Martina asked, trying to remind herself that she didn't have to freak out over this. Julieta wasn't actually trying to hurt her, she just wasn't letting go. "What the fu-" She sighed, forcing herself to calm down. It's just like at the clinic, she told herself. Getting agitated never helps anything. "What did you think he was going to do? I just had a few questions about the final, that's all. I screwed up a couple of questions, and I wanted to make sure I understood what I did wrong. It's not like he's going to flip out on me over that."

Julieta's dark brown eyes widened in incredulous amazement. "You really don't know at all, do you? I mean, I thought you just didn't believe it, but...what's your major again? Pre-med?"

"Veterinary medicine," Martina corrected sheepishly. "But I mean, it's stuff I all know. My dad's been a vet since before I was born, I'm just going to school to get the paper so I can take over the clinic when he retires. I was taking Psych 101 so I could...could..." She trailed into silence, unable to continue in the face of Julieta's astonished stare.

"Holy fuck," Julieta whispered in quiet amazement. "Like, I thought everybody knew about Professor Trenton's 'office hours'. And here's you about to knock on his door with the whole damn campus just about empty. You are so lucky I saw you, girl." She sat down on one of the low benches that ringed the room, seemingly oblivious to the fact that she dragged Martina right down along with her.

Martina felt a sinking sensation in her stomach. "You're not saying Professor Trenton's, like...a perv or something?" she whispered. The image of her hand swinging toward the door kept flashing through her head like it was on a loop. "Only, I mean...Clarissa and Theresa both said that he was really nice to them, really helped them understand the material a lot better. They didn't say anything about..." She shrugged, not wanting to think about what her pause might imply. "About anything."

Julieta rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Well, of course they didn't. Clarissa's an English major, and Theresa's studying physics. They're only taking the Psych 101 because it's a requirement like you. They didn't have the first idea what to look for. He probably got to them before they even knew what hit them, less than a minute after they walked through his door, and by the time he was done with them they told everyone exactly what he wanted them to say. Just like you, if I hadn't been there. If you want to know what Professor Trenton's really like, you have to ask a psych major like me."

Martina felt a little sheepish at not knowing Julieta's major-she just kind of assumed that Julieta was at school for basketball, and whatever classes she was taking were just ones she could pass easily to keep her scholarship. Martina would have examined that feeling a little more if she wasn't so totally bewildered by the rest of what Julieta was saying. "Got to them? Got to them how? Like, did he bribe them with good grades, or...?"

"No!" Julieta was looking at Martina like she had two heads or something. "Got to them like hypnotized them, duh! Like, that's Professor Trenton's whole specialty, hypnosis and operant conditioning. He's famous for it, he's got dozens of papers and stuff. People come to this campus just to study under him because he's so good at it. He's got whole books on how to deal with difficult subjects, how to do rapid inductions, how to overcome subconscious resistance when implanting suggestions...he's like, Mister Grand King Hypnotist. Did you seriously not know any of this?"

Martina shook her head, her eyes widening in shock and surprise. "No, we, um...we didn't study hypnosis. He said he didn't have time to do the material justice." The words sounded so stupid when she said them out loud, like it should have been obvious to her all along that he was covering up something. She couldn't have known about all this, though, could she? It's not like she had time to do a background check on every teacher on top of taking their classes.

Julieta seemed to think otherwise. "Well, no shit," she said, a trace of irritation in her voice. "If he doesn't teach you hypnosis, that makes it a whole lot easier to put you into a trance without realizing he's doing it. That's probably what happened to Clarissa and Theresa, you know. He started talking to them, maybe sat them down right next to him so that they'd have to look up to see him because you know that stresses your eye muscles and makes you feel tired, and just started using language that got into their heads."

Martina felt a little bit relieved at finally placing the weird tired sensation she'd been feeling ever since she started talking to Julieta. At five foot nothing, she thought she was used to having to look up at everyone she talked to, but Julieta made everyone she knew look short in comparison. No wonder she felt a little eye strain. She looked down for a second, hoping to relieve the stress, but that just meant she was staring straight at Julieta's tits, and that felt kind of weird. She went back to staring up into the other girl's gaze, sleepy eyes or not. "Like, um, like what?" she said, feeling like she had to respond somehow.

"Oh, you know, the usual," Julieta responded dismissively. "Probably starts by telling them it's okay to be confused, that it's a lot to take in all at once and it's just fine if it seems a little bit overwhelming." Martina could relate-it still didn't feel like any of the information Julieta had given her had quite sunken in. Everything felt like it was floating on the surface, all the revelations bouncing off each other and leaving her almost dizzy with shock.

"But it's just not the words," Julieta went on, "it's the tone of voice and the body language. You probably know what that's like working with animals. You don't need to say anything in particular, you just need to say it in a low, soothing voice that lets them know it's okay to relax and listen." She said it softly, almost like she was demonstrating the technique while she was discussing it, and Martina found herself nodding along in agreement. She did know what that was like, how easy it was to calm a frightened animal if you just gave it the right responses.

"And when you combine those two," Julieta said, shifting position slightly so that her stare took on an even steeper angle, "it's very easy to induce a trance state before the other person even knows it. You start by emphasizing those words that create a receptive state-confused, overwhelmed, bewildered, exhausted. You give them an environment where they feel safe giving in to those feelings, where they look at the other person and see a figure they can trust, a person with authority and power who's also comforting and soothing." Martina nodded again. She didn't feel like she had much to contribute to the conversation-her head felt overstuffed with everything Julieta was telling her-but thankfully the other woman seemed content simply to talk while Martina listened.

"The professor probably didn't have to do anything to present himself as an authority figure," Julieta said. She had a hint of a smile on her face, but Martina was paying more attention to her deep brown eyes. "Someone else, they'd probably have to assert themselves in another way, maybe through a display of physical strength and dominance-" She demonstrated by pinning Martina's arm to the wall, showing no apparent effort as she used the grip she still had on Martina's wrist to hold her tightly in place. Martina struggled slightly, suddenly very aware of how close the move brought the two of them together, but Julieta ignored Martina's efforts with an almost casual ease. "But the effect is the same. You accept the other person's power over you."

Julieta smiled a little wider. "It's just like at your clinic again," she said, her voice still maddeningly soothing. "You hold the animal, you whisper to it softly, you pet it gently and let it know that nothing bad is going to happen..." Her free hand gently stroked Martina's long dark hair, brushing against Martina's neck before returning to the crown of Martina's head. "And before long, the resistance fades away into docile compliance. It's just so much easier to relax, to let go, to accept that passive feeling and allow it to take over completely."

Martina blinked heavily, her eyes not quite wanting to open again once she closed them. Her thoughts seemed strangely sluggish, her body inexplicably weak and exhausted from an effort she didn't even remember making. She wanted to speak, to break the spell that Julieta wove with her words, but her mind felt so...passive. So docile. So compliant. She realized that Julieta's lips had just moved in time to her thoughts, and that seemed so bizarre, but she couldn't quite make herself think about what was happening to her.

"Of course, it happens so much more easily with a person with an animal." Julieta's hand kept moving, roaming all over Martina's body as she spoke. "An animal can only hear the soft, soothing tone of voice, but you understand exactly what it means when someone tells you to give in to the blank, peaceful sensation. You can follow instructions perfectly, Martina, and so you can be hypnotized so much more easily. You're so lucky that I'm here to keep you safe. You're so lucky that you can relax around me, just let yourself focus on my eyes and the sound of my voice and let everything else slip away into the background while you drift into warm, gentle relaxation."

She reached up and cupped Martina's chin, gently but firmly rocking it up and down. "That's right," she said, the motion fooling Martina's brain into acceptance. "Your eyes are so heavy, your mind is so confused and relaxed and focused on my voice, but you know you're safe with me. You know you can just let go, let your thoughts stop for a little while and allow my words to sink into your drowsy, sleepy mind, and I'll make sure that you don't get hypnotized. Simply listen to my words, follow my instructions, and you can't be hypnotized. Doesn't that sound nice?" Martina's head kept bobbing up and down automatically, even though Julieta's hand had long ago moved down to caress her breasts and belly. She made a vague murmur of acceptance, but words seemed to be difficult to come by at the moment.

"Because now you know just what to be aware of," Julieta said, her fingers creeping down under the hem of Martina's skirt and inching it up. "You know all the signs of a deep, hypnotic trance, and you're going to remember them perfectly whenever you're in this situation again. When your eyes start getting heavy from staring up into someone else's powerful hypnotic gaze...when your body starts to feel all floaty and passive and all you want to do is relax and let another person take control of it...when your head begins to feel so deliciously empty, so overwhelmed with the burden of thought that all you want to do is give it up completely. That's when you'll know that you're going into hypnosis, Martina. That's when you'll realize that you're falling into an irresistible trance."

Julieta shifted position again, using her knees to spread Martina's legs apart. Her fingers pressed against Martina's pussy, stroking through Martina's panties until they were soaked with arousal and Martina's eyelids fluttered with pleasure. "And you'll only give into that feeling when it's safe, won't you?" Martina tried to nod, but her head felt impossibly heavy and she found that her neck wouldn't support it anymore. She slumped forward, her body supported by Julieta, her head resting on the other woman's shoulder and their chests rubbing together through their clothes. "That's right, good girl. You'll only give in when you know you're with someone you can trust, someone strong and powerful and caring who will help you sink deeper and deeper into those feelings. Deeper and deeper. Deeper..." Julieta's hand slid up and over the waistband of the panties, plunging into Martina's wet cunt. "And deeper."

Martina's breath came out in a constant, keening sigh as Julieta fucked her. She couldn't keep track of the words anymore, only the sensation mattered. She heard Julieta whisper in her ears, telling her she'd waited so long for this, telling her that she'd been watching her across the room at the student union and staring at her every morning over breakfast and hungering for her touch and her body...but none of it stayed. It all just sank down into the back of Martina's mind, borne on a tide of endless drifting pleasure while she squirmed and whimpered under the other woman's touch. She knew it, but she couldn't think about it. Somehow that made it even hotter.

Martina wasn't sure exactly when she came. Time had ceased to have any meaning for her, she was floating in warm, thoughtless bliss and bucking her hips helplessly against Julieta's thrusting fingers and then suddenly the pleasure crested into orgasm. All she could do was give in to the feeling, burying her face into Julieta's shoulder as she squealed in ecstatic release and soaked Julieta's slippery digits with her juices. "That's right," Julieta cooed to her as she came, "that's it, cumming for me, cumming just for me, all that pleasure stroking your mind deeper into my power. Deeper into my will. More and more mine as you keep right on cumming for me, my beautiful girl. That's it. Don't stop. Cum for me. Cum for me."

Martina shook and quivered as Julieta kept purring in her ears, sustaining the orgasm longer than Martina ever thought possible. Every time she felt like she was about to relax, Julieta changed the angle of her thrusts, or whispered, "Good girl, keep going, don't stop," and Martina found a new peak to her release. She knew that the pleasure was messing with her head, binding her ever tighter to Julieta's inexorable control, but she didn't care if it meant that she got to feel this good. She felt her resistance crumble under the onslaught of bliss and she welcomed the sensation.

The climax eventually faded into a warm, delicious afterglow, but that only made Martina feel even more blank. Her whole body felt light and floaty, and it didn't surprise her at all when Julieta scooped her up as if she weighed next to nothing and carried her out of the study lounge. "Whm, whh..." she mumbled, the closest she could get to a question in her current state.

Julieta seemed to understand. "Back to the dorm, good girl," she said, her voice filled with tender affection. "You don't need to think about it right now. Just relax, enjoy the way your body feels, and I'll tell you just what to put in that pretty head of yours. That sounds nice, doesn't it?"

"Mhmm," Martina murmured, her body sagging in Julieta's arms as she let herself sink into blissful passivity. The warmth of Julieta's body lulled her into a half-slumber, a mental sleep that brushed against a physical one. She didn't know when Julieta would release her mind from trance, or what state she would find herself in once she woke. But as her mind inexorably circled around the strength and seductive pleasure that Julieta offered, her fears melted into obedience. All she knew-all she could know-was that she was safe now. And even if she could have resisted Julieta's hypnosis, Martina knew that the feeling of safety in her new lover's arms was entirely irresistible.

THE END