This story is a work of fiction. All characters are over the age of 18.
I hope you enjoy it, and any feedback is appreciated.
(And thanks to kenjisato for his help with editing)
The Club With No Name
The only constant in life is change. Ted Billings was having this truism beat him senseless. As he sat on his back deck, a cold one in hand, he just wanted to dull his mind, and cut off a few of the rough edges of his current reality. He realized he needed more beer.
At thirty-five years of age, Ted Billings was in crisis. Or, so he thought. His job, though lucrative, was boring. That was boring with a capital 'B'. His love life was in shambles. His last girlfriend had moved on. That happens he thought, but she had moved on with one of his good friends. That produced a rather large, rough edge.
As he dwelled on her final phone call, his mind wandered. He began to relive some of his past history with Cindy, his now ex-girlfriend. He took a sip of beer. Damn, he realized she really was not that good in bed. Even though he spent what seemed like hours licking her between her legs, she rarely returned the favor. As the alcohol began to chip away at those rough edges, he realized he was actually relieved. He was still ticked off that his buddy Jim had started banging her, but he also realized he did not miss her that much at all.
Then his brain kicked back to the here and now, and he re-realized his need for more beer. He was mellow, so to speak, but felt just fine enough to make it to the Jiffy-Niffy down the street. He quickly found his brand of IPA, and on the way out he picked up a copy of the local underground weekly,
Gutter Trash
. It had all the local music listings, and he liked to laugh at the editorials. In the age of the internet, the old underground press was disappearing, but the
Gutter Trash
was still cranking out their alternative-lifestyle weekly. His edges were getting smaller and smaller.
As the sun began to make its way west, Ted sipped his fresh beer and began to read the weekly. He made a mental note to make it down to the Dirty Basement next Friday to see Stunted Growth, a local grunge band. As he flipped through the pages, he landed on the personal ads. He rarely read this part of the paper, but sometimes he found the ads very amusing. As he scanned the pages, one ad caught his eye. It was for the monthly meeting of The Club With No Name at a local steakhouse. They met in the party room, and visitors were always welcome.
Somewhere in the back of Ted's brain a little synapse lit up. He vaguely recalled a conversation with a guy at work about this group. They were like some kind of club where people were into spanking and bondage, and stuff like that. Ironically the ad and the wording sounded more like a local community garden club. Ted may have been a wee bit past mellow with his IPA, but he made a mental note. Why not check it out. It could be amusing at minimum.
*****
When Friday rolled around, Ted was having second thoughts about going to the monthly meeting of the Club With No Name. But, it did say that visitors were welcome. Finally, his curiosity, and maybe a bit of a fantasy projection, got him out the door.
He was familiar with the restaurant, and had a steak there on occasion. But as he entered, his apprehension level was red-lining. He was pretty sure the meeting room would be just left of the bar, and as he approached, he saw the sign above the door. As he entered, he was greeted by a bearded man that appeared to be in his sixties, or somewhere thereabouts.
"Good evening. My name is Ben," he said as he stuck out his hand to greet Ted. "I suspect you are new to our group?"
"Yes. I saw your ad and thought I would come by to, you know, check it out."
"Great! Come on in." Ben seemed to have the perfect personality for a greeter. He was cheerful, and actually put Ted at ease.
Ted then noticed a nice-looking plump lady at a small table to their left with a roll of stick-on name tags, and a felt pen. "Doris will get you set up with a name tag," Ben said, as he gazed around the room. "Oh, there. Over by George and Mary. There is an empty chair," he said as he pointed toward an older gentleman sitting next to a very attractive lady. "They are old-time members and they can help get you settled in. George loves to talk."
As Ted walked over to the empty chair, he could not help but think this looked more like a PTA meeting than a group of folks with alternative sexual appetites. There were a few exceptions of normality as he scanned the room. A few folks had some heavy ink and piercings, and a couple had pink and blue streaked hair. He also started to notice some discreet collars worn by some. There were a few leather collars, but some appeared to be more like jewelry, yet seemed to be of the same theme, indicating a submissive. Many, however, looked like they were in Friday casual-day work attire.
George and Mary were a married couple, and Ted found them very easy to talk to. They actually seemed to like being guides for a newbie. Ted learned this was a social group first, and they liked to hang out with others who understood different lifestyles. Also, they had a few parties during the year that were fun. It was a good place for folks to meet, and many found partners through the group. Some just found casual playmates.
"Well, some folks like baseball, but can't stand hockey, and vice versa," George said. "Others are so into hockey that that is all they talk about. You like apples, I like pears. Simple as that."
The meeting was more of a social gathering than any real business. There was a committee set up to coordinate the annual gala, they had regular lunches, as well as a Christmas party. It all seemed very normal. Except for the activities, as Ted was informed, that were rated for adults only. This statement made Mary giggle. But the bottom line was, it was a group of folks of various sexual subcultures.
George looked at me with a serious face. "You need to know that trust is the number-one thing that any partner needs. Every now and then someone shows up and tries to take advantage of less experienced members of the group. They are quickly found out and asked to leave. The word gets around quickly. There are many kinky things some folks like, but trust is number one with any partner."
Ted took that as George's, not so subtle, warning to a new face at the meeting.
The meeting itself was very uneventful, and Ted spent most of the time looking around at the people, and trying to imagine what type of activities they might engage in. As the meeting was ending, they exchanged phone numbers, and George said he and Mary looked forward to seeing him sometime.
*****
Over the next couple of weeks Ted and George got together several times for a beer after work. He learned that George and Mary were into, what George called, bondage lite. Mary loved to be spanked, or whipped, played with toys, and such. George was very open about their marriage, and their hobbies.
One afternoon, after a few beers, Ted felt comfortable talking about more personal things with George, and expressed his insecurity about how to actually start a relationship. He had yet to meet a girl that had the same predilections as he had.
"I know you are still trying to figure out exactly how to establish something with a young lady who may complement your needs with hers," George said one afternoon. "I think what you need is a woman's perspective about some of this."
"Yes, I think that would be helpful."
"Why don't you come over to our place Saturday night? Mary said she would love to talk with you. We both are open to helping you with this," George said with a big smile.
Ted was more than happy to accept the invitation, and with some lingering apprehension, the next Saturday night found him cruising through a suburban maze of homes. This was one of the many upper-middle-class-neighborhood developments that had sprung up about twenty years ago. As the city had expanded, the property values of these nice, but rather unassuming three-bedroom ranchers, had skyrocketed.
Ted once again was thankful for his trusted GPS, which had one of the most soothing female voices he had ever heard, as he pulled up in front of the address George had given him. The home was neat as a pin, and like the others around it, had its own unique front-porch area. It seemed like there were maybe a dozen or so different styles that gave the appearance of uniqueness, while they were all basically the same home inside.
As Ted made his way up their sidewalk, the front door opened and George stepped out and waved. "I heard you pull up, come on in," he said as he held the front door open.
As Ted entered the living room, he felt like he had walked into a Norman Rockwell painting. It was as neat as a pin and the furniture was immaculate. It all looked like something straight out of the 1950s.
George noticed Ted's reaction. "This was Mary's idea. She just loved the old styles, and I had no preference, so we settled for a retro-style living room," he gestured with a wink.
"It is lovely," Ted said as he gazed around the room.
George just let out a small laugh. "Thank you for being so polite. It grows on you," he said with a big grin.
At that moment Mary appeared with a tray of coffee cups and a pot of coffee. "Sit down gentlemen. I made some fresh coffee," she said in a wonderful mother-like tone.
Mary looked even prettier than he remembered. Many women her age would not have looked half as good as Mary. She wore a nice white blouse, and a short skirt. The blouse was a tight fit, and made of light material. Ted realized it was close to being transparent in the light. He could see the outlines of her bra, which seemed to strain in an attempt to hold her ample chest. When she bent over to pour coffee, he could see the outlines of her protruding nipples poking through the blouse. It was all he could do to keep from staring. He had a feeling it was not by accident.
When she took a seat on the couch, he noticed she was wearing hosiery. Rarely did he see women wearing nylons these days. When she sat down, she shifted slightly, and he could plainly see the straps of a black garter belt. Ted just smiled, sipped his coffee, and decided to just enjoy the show.
Polite chit-chat ensued as they sipped their coffee. Ted was beginning to have a difficult time keeping his focus on the conversation, as Mary began to slowly shift her legs apart, revealing more, and more of her nylons and garter belt.