Sometimes it was easy for Adam to express affection, he just withheld it out of insecurity. He was full of it actually, but under a perfectly thin layer of insanity, hidden it stayed.

Still, he was at least comfortable with himself, even becoming as far enough as his genitalia. He didn't get bottom surgery, too much of a task and all that work for almost nothing but visual validation. He already had plenty with all of the hotties that he apparently lived and loved with.

However, there was one person in particular today that was getting on the ghost of his last nerve. Or something like that.

"Steven." He glared at the man on his knees in front of him, elbows digging into his thighs on purpose. "What is it you need so badly? My attention is yours."

He smirked and batted his lashes innocently. "Good, that's the way I like it."

A corner of his lip twitched upwards. "Stop that."

"Stop what?"

"Stop being needy little bitch," He demanded. "I'm busy."

Steven groaned and pushed his head into Adam's stomach. "I am not."

"You are." He slouched a bit in his seat, holding Stevens hulking body against his knees with humor in his eyes. He perched an elbow on the arm rest and tried to hide his smile behind a hand as he watched him squirm. "Look at you. You're on your knees shooting me bedroom eyes. Say it."

He struggled with that for a moment. The call to submit was strong, but with Adam being so tiny comparatively to his nearly seven foot stature, he couldn't help but test the boundaries. "Or what?"

Adam grabbed his chin and shoved the hair from his eyes to fully take him in. Stevens cheeks flushed and he let go. "I don't threaten, Steven. I just do."

"Cryptic. You should write us poetry."

This man. Adam adored his more submissive behavior and its facets. But the soft and needy Steven, that was apparently saved for Hazel. No, he got the whining teasing overconfident brat who for some reason liked to underestimate him just to royally piss him off. "I'll write a haiku on your ass with a whip if you love my poetry so much."

"If you must, Big Poppa," He teased lowly, pushing his fingers under his tank.

Ah, so that was what he wanted. "You're just aching for a little pain, aren't you?"

He nodded shyly. "Please."

"I didn't hear you."

Steven pouted and rested his chin on Adam's lap, trying his very hardest to look absolutely adorable. He strained harder when Adam's eyes flickered away. At any second he would crack, and because Adam had such a big ego, he refused to keep his eyes off of him. He'd be annoyed he looked away first, and that would piss him off enough that he would double his resolve to keep the eye contact. From then it was just Steven letting his blush go full force since Adam's other defenses were clearly down to focus on the eye contact. A tiny whimper was all it took for Adam to do a single hand signal that had him on his knees with his head down.

Steven was much smarter than most perceived him as.

"I suppose I can find time in my busy schedule to attend to you." He sighed and stood, scooting the chair backwards with his foot. "Steven, sit."

When he sat on his ass immediately and pressed his palms onto the floor, Adams smile grew. "Since you're so eager to be such a good boy, why don't you follow me on all fours like a pup?"

And like a very good boy, Steven happily obeyed and took the stairs to their dungeon without a single slip. "What level are you willing to take?"

Steven pondered that and answered surely. "Eight."

"Would you take nine?"

Like he always did, he nodded. "I can take anything you give me."

There it was again, that overconfidence he loved to beat back to a manageable size. Satisfaction coursed through him when Steven stripped his shirt off without being asked and got down on his hands and knees. There was satisfaction in a submissive understanding their tasks with a single movement of his hand or two. Stevens affinity for learning them stemmed just from wanting praise, so he used it as sparingly as possible until the very end. The visible dopamine rush was worth even his own joy, and there were few things better than getting his partner to a place of complete peace and release.

"I'm going to start at one and work my way up as I see fit," Adam explained clearly. "When I get bored, I'm switching it up."

His extensive knowledge about pain rooted back to his very first test in Mrs. Belle's class. He'd already known about his kink for blood, but it wasn't like he could have (or would have) spoken it out loud. It was one of those things he just didn't share with people.

But the test had opened his eyes in more ways than one.

== Results from bdsmtest.org ==
100% Brat tamer
100% Brat
100% Rigger
100% Sadist
100% Daddy/Mommy
100% Degrader
98% Dominant
94% Master/Mistress
86% Non-monogamist
77% Primal (Hunter)
74% Experimentalist
74% Voyeur
72% Owner
60% Exhibitionist
55% Degradee
52% Masochist
51% Switch
26% Rope bunny
13% Vanilla
7% Submissive
0% Ageplayer
0% Boy/Girl
0% Pet
0% Primal (Prey)
0% Slave

He was vastly unsurprised at his lack of submission, he'd never had a submissive bone in his body back then not that he was very experienced. But then he'd started to shy away from Anna. He already had fantasies, every person did, but it seemed to heighten in his 20's into things he'd be so concerned by he'd shoot out of his seat to use the bathroom and pace for a minute to clear his head. Adams self control could border on a bit too good, which could sometimes make for a messy ending to whatever conquest he was embarking on because he could really just go for hours. Whether it was a sore receiving party, tears or blue balling, he had no qualms about how far he'd go to please himself and his partner (sometimes was the key, they had to earn it). Little had he known Anna was truly free use, and that meant for anything he wanted her for within reason. She was the world's best kiss ass. If it pleased him greatly, it got her off.

Anyways, Stevens legs gave out two before the top. Lost in thought, Adam snapped out of his focus on Stevens back and circled to his front. No glow, which was probably good in the long run. What Steven was searching for was intensity outside of his body. He'd made it clear to Adam that sometimes things inside of him felt too... strong. His power overwhelmed him to the point of physical pain in his chest. Adam was more than happy to redirect it in a safe way.

He reached up to pull at the buckle and grabbed his wrists to hold them in place. Just dropping them might be another unneeded injury, and aftercare was incredibly and deeply important to him. "How are you feeling?"

Steven winced slightly but nodded. "Thank you." His lips curved and he leaned forward to rest his head on Adam's head. "I really needed that."

As much as Adam wanted to grab him a water, he let him cling a little before pushing him back to check for tears. People often hit on pain for the painfulness but Adam enjoyed the aftermath just as much. Checking for cuts (which rarely occurred right away when done correctly), welts, bruises and tears. He wiped a few away and patted Stevens cheek. "Good job, Steven. You always take it like a champion. Let me check your back and then we can cuddle. Are you healing or hustling?"

He hummed, still stuck in a distant headspace. "Hustling. Pain is gain?"

There were a few darker red strips that gave Adam pride, and a few he'd keep his eye on for bruising since sometimes it took him a bit to show them. Steven had goaded him to hit harder, which had pissed him off, which Steven knew damn well would piss him off. Stevens himbo facade didn't fool Adam in the slightest, he knew that Steven knew exactly what he was doing at almost all times. No one with that much empathy could be as oblivious as he acted.

On the couch, it was like they were attached at the hip. Steven wanted nothing if it meant Adam had to get up, and he was perfectly content with that. Everything could wait for Steven to melt back into his body and finally be placated for a little while.

"Would you sing me?" He mumbled, resting his head on his thighs. "Just one song."

Adam blushed. He typically preferred not to, he was a honestly a mixer and a rapper at heart than a soloist, even if people liked when he did sing. "You're lucky you're so cute."

Stevens favorite lullaby was Lullaby For A Stormy Night, and it was way too high to hit so he walked it down to a C. Steven grinned and whispered the key instinctively just to prove to himself he knew it and promptly passed out before he even hit the first chorus. The appliances in the commons varied from normal people sized to Steven sized, and the couch could more than easily fit the two of them sleeping the long way. Adam kicked off his boots and moved Steven to lay halfway on top of him like a giant, heated, weighted blanket and passed out too.

*

Connie slipped the keys into the house and tip toed in, deciding 11 was a bit late to come in slamming the doors. It was dark, but fiddling for the dimmer switch brought two surprises.

She smiled and picked the note up off of the sleeping boys.

'We're all in the basement, they've been asleep since noon and haven't moved an inch lol

Love you <3'

Stevens pain tolerance was just not something she could fulfill, she ached when he was in actual pain at her hand. Once again her nosiness got the best of her and she peeked at Stevens back. Not nearly as bad as last week, but unhealed. She dropped a kiss there and then to his curls and lips. He was so pretty. Adam was next, but her kiss to his cheek ended up being a much deeper one when he revealed himself to have already been awake.

"Welcome home, Ni." He smiled up at her and squeezed her hand. "I don't tell you when I miss you enough. We both missed you today."

Being greeted by her puppy husband was the most special thing in the world. Being greeted lovingly by all her best friends and partners made her cherish life even more. Being greeted by Adam in such an intimate way made her heart skip over too many beats to be healthy.

She knelt and poked out a lip. "What if I wanted to cuddle after dealing with The Diamonds all day?" He scooted Steven forward a little and she sandwiched herself in the middle.

Steven shifted a bit. "I know that body." He flipped over and didn't even kiss her first, he went straight to bury his face in between her breasts and sigh wantonly. "I missed you. We missed you." His sparkling kisses provided only the tiniest bit of light. Bright eyes always meant he was just having a happy boy moment and his kiss said the same. "My Connie. Diamonds?"

"Entitled bitches as always. They can't wait for your birthday to meet everyone else. White wants to–,"

"Vetoed," He interrupted. "Every idea White has is hot garbage in a shit sack."

Adam laughed into Connie's neck as quietly as he could. Steven wasn't a cynical person, he was rarely even cynical about Allison, but The Diamonds pissed him off by existing sometimes. It was totally fair, but funny.

Connie was braver and laughed out loud. "She wanted to stay for a couple of days as 'earth style' and learn how we live."

Steven gagged and did his best impression of Garnet. "I just had a vision of an aunt catching me balls deep in a guy. It's also a large possibility that their closeness makes me nervous, which will make me more powerful, which makes me dangerous." He ceased and found her bare skin with his lips
and Adam's toned stomach with his fingers. "Vetoed twice."

"I'll let them know they are only welcome with no politics and no longer than four hours," Connie assured, filing that away in her brain.

Adam reached over her to rub Steven's cheek. "You'll survive, Steven."

*

Jacob barked out a laugh and snapped a picture to send to the rest of the night owls.

'Looks like Connie didn't make it more than a yard before she got trapped.'