Chapter 4: Dress Rehearsal

When Jana rang the bell at the club door at exactly 3:00 p.m., Ralph actually looked a little surprised to see her—as if he’d expected her to back out after all. But he greeted her warmly and let her in. He was still alone; the club wouldn’t open until 6:00 p.m.

Inside, the box was already set up at the edge of the stage and connected to two huge monitors. It was too large for the stage itself, and besides, it couldn’t simply be lifted up there.

Jana set her bag down and went straight to the box.

“Naked or dressed—how do you want me?” she asked, deliberately casual, watching his reaction closely.

For a brief moment she thought she saw desire flicker in his eyes—then it was gone. Maybe she’d imagined it.

His answer came completely neutral. “You can keep your clothes on. I just want to see all the functions.”

Jana nodded, opened the doors, and swung the bench out.

“As you can see, a woman can now climb onto the bench fairly comfortably,” she began. “Once I’m lying down, I pull this strap, and the bench swings inside.”

She lay down, lifted her legs apart, and placed her ankles into the mounts.

With a click, two padded cuffs snapped shut and held her ankles.

“Instead of straps there are cuffs now. They can be released with a single button press.”

She pressed a button on the side, and both cuffs popped open.

“The lock is electromagnetic. If the power fails, the cuffs open automatically.”

She closed them again.

“There’s an emergency stop on the side of the box. It does the same thing. All locks release.”

Ralph nodded. None of this was new to him.

Jana fastened the belt over her waist. It was now a rigid safety belt like in a car, with a proper buckle.

“The length is adjusted here on the side. The belt does not open automatically, so I can’t fall off the bench while it swings in—if I panic or feel sick.”

She suddenly realized she’d drifted from “a woman” into “I.” It threw her for a second—and then she realized she’d forgotten something else.

She unfastened herself and sat up.

“What’s wrong—was that it already?” Ralph asked, irritated.

“No. But I do have to undress if I’m going to show you everything. At least topless!”

With brisk determination she pulled off her blouse and bra and laid them on top of the box. Then she took her phone out of her bag, unlocked it, and placed it next to her clothes. Only then did she lie down again, buckle herself in, and lock her ankles in place.

After that, she reached down and swung two padded thigh supports upward.

“These are so my legs aren’t hanging in the cuffs. It makes it more comfortable. And their shape also prevents me from moving my thighs.”

Then she swung the bench inside.

From a side compartment she took out two odd-looking cups—like a plastic bra, connected by cables to the box—and fitted them over her breasts.

“That’s the new addition I mentioned, but didn’t explain yet. No idea whether you’ll like it.”

“Ah,” Ralph said. “I was curious. Pavel wouldn’t tell me either, even though I tried to squeeze it out of him.” He grinned. “What is it?”

“Well, it’s great if someone plays with you down below, but the breasts clearly get neglected. I didn’t design these. They’re a finished product you can buy. They suck on the nipples and stimulate the breasts—by remote control.”

“Only problem,” Ralph said dryly, “it hides your tits. Not great for the audience.”

“They’ll see plenty of me,” Jana shot back.

Ralph didn’t answer that. “What’s next?”

“The armrests no longer go straight out to the sides—that didn’t work with the swivel mechanism. They’re angled, about thirty degrees forward now. There are two options: the model just rests her arms here ... or she does this.”

She pressed a couple of buttons at the ends of the armrests. On each side, two leather loops rose up from hidden compartments. Jana slid her arms through them—one loop around the wrist, one around the upper arm. As soon as her arms were in place, the loops tightened.

“Now I’m fully restrained—but I can free myself easily. I just press the button. Same rule: if the power fails, the restraints open automatically.”

Ralph pointed. “You’ve got several buttons within reach of your fingers.”

“Of course. The next one pushes my lower body forward.”

She pressed it. With a soft hiss, the mechanism moved, and her lower body slid forward.

“So that’s what the compressor is for—compressed air,” Ralph noted.

“Yes. The air pressure pushes me forward and tensions a spring. If I open the valve, this happens.”

Slowly the bench moved back into its starting position. Jana pressed the button again, pushing herself forward once more.

“The next button is the panic button.”

With a sudden jolt, the bench snapped back inside. At the same time, two external sliding shutters closed over the front opening.

“Once those are closed, they can’t just be slid open from the outside. My lower body is secured. At the same time, the top doors are locked. The rear doors I have to lock separately—using the last button.”

“You already explained that,” Ralph said. “But if you can’t open the doors from inside anymore—do I open it with the emergency stop?”

“Yes. That unlocks everything—arms, legs, rear doors. Just not the front shutters.”

“Good. Let’s test it. I’ll close the doors.”

Jana opened the front shutters again and pushed her lower body forward. Ralph walked around to the front.

“So. Here’s someone doing something you don’t like.”