Bottom of The Rabbit Hole

Larry stepped into the diner at half past midday, sharp. He wore a pair of grey jeans, a white T-shirt, and a jacket that matched his sailor-style canvas shoes in navy blue.

With only an old Police sunglasses as an accessory, there wasn't even a speck of fantasy in his outfit. The worst of this generic, mind numbing normalcy was his soft, plump upper body.

At first glance, he was a man-baby to boot. A total momma's boy who got taller by time, but never really grew up. 

Alex could guess Larry's speed date answers just by looking at his slightly sweaty forehead. Whatever hopes she had about this encounter, it was time to face reality.

After a sigh of resignation, she stood up to collect her phone and notebook from the table. The second she grabbed the second item, she noticed another body's heat on the back of her neck.

"I'm honoured to be in your graceful presence, Lady X." Said Larry in a voice low enough to mistake it as a whisper.

Although the breath reaching Alex's skin was uncomfortably warm, a chill ran down her spine freezing her every movement for a brief moment. 

< How the hell did he get behind me this fast? I was sitting opposite of him, facing the damned door! > She thought.

Despite her surprise, she kept her poker face in check. She smoothly finished packing and assumed a regal posture, still looking at the entrance. Without turning her head, she handed her purse to Larry. 

"Count yourself lucky, too! This is the first and last time I waited for even a second for a dirty mutt like you. The agreed meeting time marks my arrival. You better be early to avoid repercussions." She scolded Larry in an aloof tone.

"Please forgive my insolence, milady!" An immediate reply arrived. He bowed his head too, like an experienced butler. 

"Silence, now! We'll talk later. That is, if you manage to earn the chance to talk at all." 

With that, she left the diner with Larry right behind her.

Alex had learnt long ago that first impressions mean jack shit with her kind of people. However, her well-polished instincts hardly ever betrayed her. She was genuinely taken aback earlier. For a moment, her paranoid side surfaced and she decided to test him.

Suddenly she stopped dead in her tracks, and expected Larry to bump into her. The man was practically glued to her heels. Yet, the awaited physical impact never arrived. 

< You're a nimble piece of shit, aren't you?! >

Half turning her head, she kept Larry in her peripheral vision and asked in a pensive tone:

"What was your safeword again? I train so many puppies, my memory needs a hint every now and then. I will allow you one word."

Instead of replying, Larry crouched down to one knee, hung his head as low as he possibly could and stretched his arms forward with palms up. He kept this position in silence. 

Alex was an eye-catching sight on her own. She wore a black, knee-long pencil dress with a deep, laced cut-out on the back. Her belt, leather driving gloves, lacquered purse and high heeled pin-up pumps all were of the same blood-red colour. She had her brown hair in an elegant bun with interlocking braids.

They were standing in the middle of the street during lunch hour, fairly hindering pedestrian traffic. Many slowed down their pace, or stopped completely to steal a glance at her.

Without batting an eye, she made Larry wait. She kept this up for minutes, staring at seemingly nothing in the distance. More and more people stared at them with increasing interest. Eventually, a few started recording with phone cameras.

Completely undisturbed, Alex kept waiting.

Only when concern slowly rose in the crowd, she turned toward the man behind her.

"Speak." She sounded gentle. Alarmingly so. Larry had no idea that such a neutral word can carry so much threat.

"Apologies, Milady. My safeword is longer than one word, actually." He said.

Alex feigned slight surprise. 

"You don't say?! Oh my, you must've been in a pickle. On your feet now, I have places to be." She cut the conversation abruptly.

Seizing her purse from Larry's hand, she turned again, and continued her march. The man returned to his earlier position, following her closely in silence.

The first test didn't yield the desired result. Alex was not out of ideas, though. She grabbed her phone and started texting.

At a certain point, she mumbled a few words aloud unfocused, as if speaking to herself.

"I need a cab to the crib."

Larry immediately passed her, rushed ahead along the street, and fetched said cab. By the time Alex reached him, he was holding the yellow car door open for her. She got inside without looking up from her phone. 

< He does show some promise, I have to admit. >

"To The Crib." She instructed the driver after Larry got in the car too, then stopped minding her surroundings altogether.

During the ride, none of them spoke a word. Alex took her time to decide how to proceed. She knew all of her clients inside out. That was her job, after all. She wouldn't ever arrive on a first meeting unprepared.

After the ambivalent first contact at the diner, she gave Larry a chance to fuck up for good - and for herself to send him on his marry way. He took the safeword test better than she expected, and with perfect ease.

Since he passed with flying colours, she decided to postpone the final verdict. There were some unclear details in the man's application anyway.

Not enough to raise red flags in her head, but it definitely piqued her interest. Further discussion was needed. 

< If he doesn't drop the ball during initiation, I'll have to take a good hard look at my vetting methods. >