So warm...

Zachary opened his eyes slowly, looking around but seeing nothing but darkness.

"Don't worry, sweetheart. I've got you."

He relaxed hearing Orion's voice, but when he tried to move it felt like something was wrapped around his ankles and wrists.

"What's going on? Orion?" He asked, voice quaking slightly from nervousness.

"You know, sweetheart. You're mine now. You let me put a collar on you, so now we're going to get down, to business, and very dirty."

Jerking upright, Zachary searched the dim room, realizing immediately that he had just been dreaming. Panting heavily, he forced himself to begin taking deep, slow breaths. When his eyes finally landed on Orion, passed out on his back beside him, he let the rest of his panic slip away.

Just a bad dream. He wouldn't do that.

As he worked on calming down, Zachary lifted his left hand to tug at the collar fastened around his neck. It was well-fitted, but not uncomfortable.

I have a collar on.

It was a funny thought at first, but when he remembered that it had Orion's real name on it, not just an M, he grinned. He still didn't know much about the lifestyle, but it meant so much more to him to have a collar with Orion's real name on it instead of just an alias. Glancing sideways, he used the glow from the lamp near the storage door to look down at Orion.

The man was out cold, his upper chest bare, as it looked like the blanket had migrated down to rest around his lower torso.

He must work out a lot. There's no way he got those muscles just from BDSM... I think.

Blushing, Zachary pushed that thought to the back of his mind and instead focused on Orion. His lips were slightly parted, allowing a near-mute snore to escape every few seconds. It was a cute sound coming from such a big guy. If he had to guess, he'd put Orion near one-ninety or two hundred pounds, but not a single bit of it was fat. That much he was sure of.

Just to check...

He reached down, pressing his fingers against the faint indentations in Orion's skin that the leather had left from earlier. It was already beginning to return to normal, but that didn't stop Zachary from getting lost in tracing them along the man's skin. When he finished with all of the indents he could see on Orion's belly, he switched to the arm he had folded overtop the blanket. Apparently the leather that had been wrapped there had been done a little tighter, and Zachary easily found the lines with his fingertips. He was just finishing near Orion's wrist when it slowly began to turn, the hand opening before its fingers wrapped around his own gently.

"Hey there, sweetheart."

Orion's words were nearly silent in the dark room, but they still drew Zachary's attention like a little moth to a big flame. Without even thinking about it, Zach scooted against him until their hips pressed together, then laid down. Orion's right arm came around him, helping him turn onto his side. Their bodies fit together nearly perfectly, and likely would be one hundred percent if he gained a couple pounds.

"Sorry for waking you." Zachary whispered as he let his eyes slide closed. His head was settled atop Orion's right shoulder, his taught muscle surprisingly comfortable. The man's arm tightened slightly around him as a chuckle reverberated through his chest.

"Waking up to you touching me? I don't think I mind."

The joking tone in his voice made Zach grunt and turn to face away from him, but Orion didn't let him get away with it for long. He didn't pull him back against him, but instead rolled his body on top of Zach's.

"Ah! Lemme up."

Orion chuckled again, but being pinned by him made the vibrations rumble from his chest straight into Zachary's back. Unable to help himself, he shivered and immediately hid his face in one of the soft pillows.

"Aww, so cute." Orion cooed, making Zach's face burn even more. Before he could try to squirm his way free Orion rolled off him. That gave the guy a chance to breathe a sigh of relief and relax as he watched Orion slide over to move his legs over the edge of the bed by the mini fridge. When he opened it the faint light from inside aided the small lamp in illuminating the room, but just long enough for him to reach inside and take out the package of strawberries he'd bought earlier. When he actually opened the package and popped one into his mouth, Zachary stared, then looked over his shoulder at a small clock on the nightstand.

Four.

"You're eating fruit at four in the morning?"

Orion paused with a strawberry at his lips and glanced over at him... then shrugged and ate the entire thing. When he finished chewing and swallowed, he grabbed another and smirked at Zachary, holding it up.

"Do you like strawberries, Zachary?"

Sitting up, Zach nodded, licking his lips without realizing it as he stared at the little red fruit.

"If you would like some, you may come take some... however, if you will allow it, I think they might help us begin our new relationship with some very basic training."

Zachary glanced down at the blanket his lower half was still beneath, worrying his hands with each other for a moment before looking back up at Orion with determination.

I can do this. Remember, he said he'll never do anything I don't want him to. What harm could come from just trying?

"O-okay." He mumbled, trying his best to look like he wasn't worried. He hadn't even gotten a chance to read the book Orion had mentioned, but he knew the man wouldn't just rush him into something he wasn't ready for.

When Orion slid off the bed Zachary noticed, a bit late, that he was just wearing a pair of black silk boxers. Not wanting to stare... well, okay, maybe a little. But not wanting to get caught staring, out of curiosity only, of course, Zach slid from the other side of the bed to meet Orion near his closet. Instead of opening the door right away, the man looked down at him with a warm smile. "I'd like to just see how you react to some of the leather I normally wear. It's customary, to a point, but I don't mind if you end up not wanting to wear it. I would, however, like you to try it before you decide."

That's understandable.

"Okay. I don't mind trying on some of your stuff." He said, smiling nervously.

"Great. Also, another part of this is going to be positive and negative reinforcement." He held up the strawberries, comfortably settled in their container. "If you do well, like stand still while I work and listen to what I say, you'll get strawberries. Simple as that."

Delicious strawberries just for standing still and listening? I can totally do that!

"Sure, that sounds good." Zach said, honestly interested. The idea of being ordered around and punished wasn't exactly appealing, but Orion didn't seem like someone who would let the ability to command someone else get to his head.

"I'm glad. Let's give it a try, then catch up on a bit more sleep before I have to get ready for work."

Zachary nodded, turning when Orion opened the closet door and stepped inside, flicking the light on so that Zach could follow him without worrying about running into him. When they got inside Zachary took in the large area with more attention than he had previously. It was a rather large room, about half the size of Orion's bedroom. There was normal clothing hung up on either side of the entrance, but the middle and back area had quite a bit of different leather items. Their color was mainly black, but there were a few dark brown, dark red, and one... oh!

"This one," Zachary said as he carefully tugged a length of leather off a hanger and showed it to Orion with an eager smile. To his surprise, Orion seemed to hesitate, but then he smiled and nodded before kneeling down and reaching for the rope of leather. Zach handed it over right away.

"Hold out your left arm for me, sweetheart," Orion said. Zachary obeyed immediately, holding still when Orion pressed one of the end pieces to the inside of his arm and began to wrap. He stopped after two loops, then looked up to meet his eyes. "Tell me if it gets too tight, okay? This isn't supposed to be as tight as mine had been. It's just to see how it feels to you."

Zachary nodded, getting one back from Orion before the man continued to work. At a few points he felt like it was beginning to get too tight, but he finally broke his silence when it felt like the leather was pinching badly. "Th-that's too tight."

Orion stopped immediately and unwound the last three wraps, making Zachary sigh with relief. His skin was a little red where the second wrap had been, and Orion quickly began rubbing it with his thumb. "Good boy. Thank you for telling me."

After a moment more of rubbing Orion reached into the container of strawberries and pulled one out, handing it up to Zachary. "Here, you earned it for being truthful."

It seemed a bit odd, but Zach wasn't going to argue with free strawberries. He took it with a quiet "Thank you," then got busy nibbling at the delicious fruit while Orion continued to work on the leather. He finished after another minute, at the same time Zachary hesitantly finished his yummy strawberry.

"How does that feel, sweetheart?"

After licking his lips clean of berry juice, Zach flexed his hand, then arm. The leather tightened with the actions, coiling around his skinny arm. He thought it might be uncomfortable, which it was at first. What he didn't expect, however, was the other sensation that came with it.

I can't believe it, but he's right. It's constricting, but it's also almost... reassuring?

He couldn't quite put words to what he was feeling, but he was definitely not against the idea of wearing the leather now. "It feels kind of like what you said. Like it's kind of helping me calm down a little."

He thought the opposite might have been true, but it wasn't.

"Would you like me to do the other arm?" Orion asked.

Zachary pursed his lips and looked around, noticing something that looked like what Orion had worn last night. He took it from its hanger and held it out to Orion. "I wanna try this."

Orion looked surprised for a moment before he grinned and nodded, taking the item and standing. "Of course." He replied as he slipped the leather over Zachary's head, then began fastening the leather around his upper chest.

While the item Orion had worn last night buckled mainly on the belly and torso, the one Zach had picked, he noticed, fastened more on the chest. He didn't mind though, it still held his attention as Orion worked on shortening the straps, then fastening them. He did feel his muscles flex a couple times when the man's fingers brushed against his skin, but he forced himself not to move anymore than that. After the third strap was fastened Orion sat back on his heels and handed Zach another strawberry, then took one for himself.

"Mm," they said together after a bite, grinning at the humor of thinking the same thing. The grins evolved into quiet chuckles, then full on laughter as Zach dropped and snagged another strawberry. The serious atmosphere had all-but disappeared as he downed the fruit, then went for another. Being intercepted by Orion's hand wasn't a surprise, but being flipped onto his back on the carpeted floor definitely was. He tried to get up, but the other man easily kept him down with just a hand on his chest.

"No fair," Zach grumbled, pouting up at Orion.

"Ah ah. The first strawberry was earned, the second, however, was not."

"I-I'll earn it." Zachary said nervously.

"Nope. Subs don't take their rewards before they earn them."

Swallowing, Zach looked past Orion to the ceiling.

"Zachary, look me in the eyes, please."

It took him a minute to finally comply, and when he did manage to keep his gaze steadily locked onto Orion's, his heart twisted in a sudden sadness he'd never felt in any situation. Without even thinking about it, Zachary practically yelled "I'm sorry!"

Orion seemed a bit taken aback, but when he noticed Zachary beginning to cry he didn't hesitate to pull him into his arms. "Shhh, it's okay." Zach shook his head, messy hair rustling against Orion's bare chest.

"Y-you're upset," he whispered against his skin.

He thought Orion might tell him that he wasn't, that it was okay but to not do it again. For some reason, he was glad when the man ended up giving him a reassuring squeeze, then moved him to arms length and spoke. "I am upset. There are times for fooling around. Many of them, but when training a new sub, I take things very seriously because, sweetheart..." He reached over, gently running his thumb over Zachary's lower, slightly trembling lip. "It can be dangerous when communication isn't one hundred percent. I need to know that you will listen, and if you don't, you need to know that a punishment will occur in most instances because I care for your safety."

Zach nodded slowly, trying to force his mind to stop imagining all of the things Orion could do to punish him for stealing the strawberry.

"Remember, I want to make this as enjoyable for you as it will be for me. So, Zachary, what do you believe your punishment should be?" Orion asked as he carefully undid the leather on Zach's arm.

Fidgeting after the piece of leather was removed, Zach looked down as his hands twisted together in his lap. He could only think of two things that would be negative to him right then, so he mumbled them both and hunched, waiting to hear which Orion would choose.

"U-um, n-no food f-for today or m-make me l-leave fo---" His words were cut off when he was snatched back into Orion's arms and nearly smothered to death by his hug.

"That is never a punishment I will ever consider. Do you hear me, Zachary? Do not think of that again. I know we are taking this slow, but that is an order. I don't want to hear those words from you ever again."

Unable to talk because he was so focused on sniffling to keep his nose from running, Zachary just nodded. "Good boy."

Feeling his body being lifted, Zach automatically wrapped his legs around Orion's waist and let him carry him to the bed. He thought they might lay down to sleep again, his punishment perhaps that he couldn't use the blanket, but when Orion reached over into the nightstand and fished out a small book, Zachary understood.

"Your punishment is to read this book, starting now, and then tell me exactly what you've learned from it tonight."