Graves Interrogation
“Hey, Phillip! I just had an idea for a game!”
Immediately upon hearing you he turned around, putting down the papers he scorned oh so much. Every time he mentioned them, those goddamned papers, his expression would turn sour enough to put a lemon to shame. Upon seeing you, hearing you, even, his expression softened a bit, giving him time to think about something that wasn’t his work that he oh so adored otherwise. His darling had priority, everything else could wait at that moment. Having sat at his desk for a few hours, he didn’t even realize it had been this long, his butt was seemingly sore, even if his chair was usually so comfortable. It was time for a break. Maybe it was even time to stop for the day altogether. Certainly, he wouldn’t mind, spending time with you, no matter how stupid it may have been, always was superior to doing any work. Although Phillip may have had a knack for business work, even he had to admit that resting up was nice.
“What’ve you got for me this time, sweetheart?” Another silly game of yours, another evening that will be well spent. Seeing you this enthusiastic again put a smile on his face. He leaned his head on his hand, his eyes almost closing from how tired he was. Secretly, he did hope that whatever game of yours it may have been, it would be a short one. As much as he loved you, he could feel his energy having been sapped from doing paperwork all day. Being a CEO was rough work, if only he could rest his eyes for a bit and just sleep. Still, he was going to indulge you as much as he could. How many more times was he going to see you beaming like this? How many more times would he see you at all before the battlefield took him away from you? He had to make his remaining time on this planet count.
“You see, I wanna see something for myself. I wanna see just how good you are at your job. We’re going to play interrogation! You have five minutes to get something we agreed on out of me. If you’re incapable of doing that, then I win and you will do the dishes for a week. If you win then I’m going to agree to going grilling with you. How’s that sound?”
The very idea was so stupid. “You don’t believe me when I tell ya I’m good at what I do? I run an entire PMC, I gotta be good at my job.” He got up from his chair, putting his hands on your waist. Biting his cheek, he tried his best to suppress a smile, looking stern and serious instead. “I’ve interrogated more people than you know, I know what I’m doing. ‘Sides, I don’t wanna hurt you, you’re just too precious for that. Let’s just watch a movie together. We can watch one of your animes too, if you’re in the mood for it.”
“You don’t wanna hurt me? Phil, I’m so much stronger than I look! Besides, I know you would never hurt me, you just gotta get creative with it, then. You could try being the most annoying man on the planet, for example.” With you lightly hitting his chest, he lost his composure and started smiling again.
“Am I really that annoying?”
“Sometimes, yeah.” As you stuck your tongue out at him, he sighed and shook his head. Although he may have been well aware of the fact that you were annoyed with him whenever he was on leave for months on end, that he annoyed you when he was being overconfident and cocky again when he was hurt, that him hiding his wounds from you ticked you off in a way he couldn’t explain, he didn’t think much of what you said. Still, he put his forehead against yours, rubbing his thumbs gently over your waist. The way you quivered under his touch didn’t go unnoticed by him.
Truth be told, he knew why you wanted to play this little game of yours. The sadness that would overtake you so often, it doesn’t go unnoticed by him when he’s home. How you’d yearn for his touch, beg for him to finally come home, how you’d just want a reason to smile. It was likely one of those evenings again where you would love nothing more than to vent out your frustrations by screaming into the sky, with no one hearing you, with no one to answer you. All you wanted was to let go, all you needed was to finally have another reason to laugh again. And yet, for as difficult a request as it may have seemed at first, this was easily accomplished. Running his hand down your spine and giving you butterfly kisses were enough to get the first few giggles out of you. All you’d do was provoke him further and further, being annoying enough for Phillip to give into your desires himself. And it seemed as though this evening was another one where you’d try to coax him into giving you what you wanted. You’d never say it out loud, you’d never admit to it, the word doesn’t even leave your mouth, but it was evident what you wanted. Naturally, just to hear your laughter, he’d give in.
“Fine, we’ll play a round of your game. However, we’re gonna up the time by another five minutes, I need some time to get the information out of you as well.” Phillip’s voice was barely a whisper, but he knew you wanted to hear something like that. You would hear him either way, reading his mind if he gave you a single look. He pulled away from you, letting you lead him into the living room where it seems as though the game had already been set up. A chair was standing in the middle of it, a few handkerchiefs and bandanas laying neatly on top of it. From the get-go, you knew he was going to agree to your little game.
“Thank you, it means more to me than you know.” He knew. He knew that very well. “So, now we gotta agree on something you wanna find out. Any suggestions?” You grabbed his wrist and gently rubbed some circles into them. It was a sweet gesture, but it was evident you were nervous. You always were before your games. However, you had nothing to fear, Phillip would never go overboard with you, preferring to keep you whole and well rather than broken and hurt. “How about my crush? What I do when you’re not home? Or… What else could be considered a secret? Hm…”
Ever the opportunist, he chimed in, knowing fully well that this was about the best opportunity he’d get to getting a definitive answer out of. Either way, he was likely going to get you saying “yes” to his question. Maybe you were going to ask him to stop, admitting to it via that single word, maybe you were going to play stubborn, enjoying what he was about to do to you, as you always did, and give him a satisfying and true answer like that. The answer would be obvious either way, but he’d give you the freedom of choice. “I’ve got a suggestion: Do you enjoy being tickled?”
“Oh…” You went quiet for a moment after that, avoiding his gaze altogether. Picking up the speed at which you rubbed the circles into his wrist, you smiled timidly at him before finally meeting his gaze again. You knew he knew. “I mean, if that’s what you wanna find out, sure.” Swallowing a lump in your throat, you slowed the massage on his wrists again. It was adorable how you couldn’t even say something as simple as “tickle”. In all the time you’ve been together, in all the time you’ve teased him into tickling you, you maybe said the word out loud once, if at all.
Without another word, you sat down on the chair, putting the handkerchiefs and bandanas on your lap. Failing at biting back a nervous smile, you beckoned him closer. “Alright, you can use these to restrain me. You know, like in a real interrogation.”
“If I wanted to, I wouldn’t even need any restraints to get you to sing. But for this time I’m gonna take you up on your offer. Timer starts once I’m done tying you up, alright?” Moving in, he took one of the bandanas from your lap and tied your first arm to the chair. “If it gets too much for you, then just say ‘kiwi’ to the best of your abilities. Wouldn’t want you to go unconscious on me or hate me for going too far.” It truly didn’t take long for your first arm to be immobile, with your second one soon to follow. Even with just a piece of cloth, he could restrain you perfectly, he really was just that good.
“Understood. Just, uh, don’t rough me up too badly?” You struggled against your restraints, but to not avail, you could only move your arms a bit. Not nearly enough to make a difference while struggling against what was to come.
“Wouldn’t dream of it, sugar.” Giving you a sly grin, he took out his phone and tapped the screen a few times. “Alright, ten minutes. If you need anything, you tell me. If there’s nothing you need, then we’ll start now, alright?”
“Alright, green light. Go ahead, I’m ready.” Your brave face was just the cutest, Phillip couldn’t suppress a smile from forming. However, with your approval, he started the timer, set the phone down nearby and made his way towards you.
The beginning was simple enough: Before he was going to make you laugh to your heart’s content he was going to make you a giggly mess first. Massaging your sides usually did the trick. Lo and behold, he could feel you trying to get away from him already. The shy smile on your lips was soon replaced with a wide grin as you intently watched his hands. Yet, as precious as your smile may have been, it wasn’t what Phillip was looking forward to, opting for gently fluttering his fingers against your sides instead. An instinctual reaction, as always, with you slowly trying to get away from him, but to no avail. For a second he considered straddling your hips as well, but he didn’t want to crush you under his weight. Besides, who knows if the chair would actually hold up. Deciding against it, he watched your face scrunch up, your eyes squeezing shut as you focused on not letting the first giggles overtake you. His favorite part of it all, watching you fail to hold back any reactions you may have had.
Soon enough, he grew a bit more impatient, wanting to hear nothing more than your sweet, melodious laughter. Slowly scribbling over your ribs would usually do the trick, and you complied. The first muffled sounds left you as you jerked your arms against your restraints. Then it dawned on him that he likely should have restrained your legs as well, lest you actually kick him in the face in your tickle frenzy. But would thin cloth like that actually do the trick? Likely not. However, he could pretend to do something else, but that would have to wait until you actually started kicking him. Still, he persisted, lightly scratching along your underarms.
“Come on now, I’m starting to think the answer to my question might be a ‘yes’.”
“I’m not going to give you an answer to your question. This means nothing!” Your eyes were still squeezed shut as you struggled to keep your breaths from being too shaky, twisting and turning to get away from him. You still had everything under control, for now. Phillip would make sure this would change soon enough, regardless of how many “tickle sessions” you’ve had and how much you’ve “played” together. You certainly weren’t immune to him, you never would be.
“Suit yourself, I’m not gonna let up.” As he squeezed your side with one hand, the other gently scratching under your chin, you squealed, your first kicking reflexes already setting in. However, this time it seemed as though you were able to hold back still and the tickling continued as if nothing had happened. Phillip took note of the fact that he was likely going to have to restrain you some more soon enough. That way it could be more of a proper interrogation as well, but he wasn’t going to push his luck. Continuing to squeeze your side, his other hand moved to your knee and started squeezing it. Finally, the first giggles escaped you, even if it didn’t take too long. It was obvious you were enjoying this, you weren’t protesting anything in the slightest. Why would you? It was just a fun bonding activity between the both of you.
Still, Phillip was going to speed things up a little bit from here on out, opting for a faster pace. Going for your armpits was next, scratching at the tender flesh there. Your reactions, as per usual, were delicious, jerking away from him, he was afraid you’d make the chair topple over with your sudden movement. And yet, you still persisted, but you wouldn’t much longer, the giggles slowly building up into that melodious laughter he wanted to hear so bad.
“Giggle bug, stop lying to yourself and me, you’re truly enjoying this, aren’t-” You kicked him in the shin. He stopped. “Well now, seems like I’m gonna have to stop you from moving altogether now.”
“Sorry, didn’t mean to hurt you. You okay?” The sentiment seemed almost insincere given how giggly you were still.
“It’s nothin’, don’t worry about it. I’ll be right back, so sit tight, alright?” Grabbing his phone, he stopped the timer for a few moments before he’d return. seven and a half minutes were still left, so he could still “rough you up” some more before then fun had to end. But why stop there?
Phillip left for the garage, grabbing some rope and then swiftly returning to you, who seemed excited to see him. You, who wasn’t nervous anymore in the slightest, gave him a big smile upon seeing him enter. You, who was teasingly calling out to him to hurry up so you can continue playing your game, watched him as he tied the rope around your legs to keep them still as well. Phillip held his phone in his hand again, turned away from you so you couldn’t see what he was doing. Well, why should he start the timer again? You were clearly enjoying yourself, subjecting yourself to some silly torture that would most certainly annoy many other people. In fact, all this time you haven’t asked him to stop, and it was likely he was going to grow bored of your game before you would. Either that or he’d have to be a whole lot rougher with you until you would laugh out your safeword. This evening was going to be fun either way. You likely would never notice him not turning on the timer anyway. So why should he? To let the fun end prematurely? Not this time. He set the device on the table again.
“Alright, honey, let’s continue where we left off. Hope you’re still giddy enough for some more tickles.”
“O-oh, well… Yes, I can take it! Do as you please, I refuse to break under you! You can do that to me all you want!”
“Awh, can’t even say something as harmless as tickle?”
“I can! I just don’t feel like it!” Defiant to the very end, but not forever. A new goal just came to mind: Making you admit you like tickles by making you include the word in a sentence. A simple yes won’t cut it anymore, Phillip wanted to get as much enjoyment out of this as you were.
“Tell you what, how about I continue to tickle you for a bit longer and then you tell me everything I want to hear? Sounds like a pretty good deal to me, both of us get what we want.” He even leaned down a bit to be on level with you, putting his hand on your cheeks and caressing it with his thumb. “We’ll both end up happy people in the end. So, how’s that sound?”
“I don’t enjoy being tick-” You paused, your mouth opened for a bit and eyes wide. Seemingly flustered by your own choice of words, you quickly corrected yourself. “Do as you like, you’ll never get a confession out of me. Not like this, because I do not enjoy it! Don’t like it, I hate it! It’s ew, it’s gross, it’s weird! And you’re a weirdo for suggesting such a thing!”
“You know, if you keep insulting me like this it will feel more and more like a proper interrogation, you’re playing your part quite well. Anyway, back to business, shall we?” And with that he attacked your tummy this time, watching you lose your composure almost immediately as he scribbled, squeezed and scratched it, feeling it quiver underneath him as you tried to break free from your binds. Worst you could do was knock over the chair with your squirming, but if you did that then Phillip would simply catch you and make sure you stayed upright.
“You’re such a ticklish little thing, I’m sure even the lightest of breezes would get a snort out of you. But for now you’re all mine and I’m gonna do with you as I please.” Pulling your legs apart, his next victims were going to be your inner thighs. Still, he waited for a moment to have you look at him before he relentlessly attacked. “Can’t squirm, can’t move away, you’re helplessly trapped here with no backup to help you out. I’m gonna get ya good and make sure you cry a few tears of joy for me while I’m at it.” And with that he started scratching your inner thigh.
Immediately, you tried to jerk away from him. As soon as he started you could not contain your laughter, trying your best to get away from him. You were going to see why he was good at his job, even when it came to interrogations. “You’re such a fuck!!” In between laughter, you were able to insult him. More swears were to come, but it wouldn’t deter him. You were well aware of that and you were glad he wasn’t easily deterred by such a thing.
“You sure you’re in the position to be insulting me? When I’ve got you like this?” Snaking his hand under your leg, he tickled the back of your thigh to the best of his abilities. Throwing your head back, you tried to kick him again. You insulted him again. You almost fell over from the intensity of your movement, but Phillip caught you just in time before you could hit the floor. “Easy there, I’m not here to pay for any injuries you might sustain, You could easily make this stop, and you know exactly how. Come on, just give me the right words and I’ll let ya go.” The chair was put in an upright position and the tickling continued.
“Bastard!! Stop, you fiend!!”
“No can do, sugar. Give me the magic words and you’ll be spared. But until then, I’m just gonna make sure you’re thoroughly tickled.” Getting his hand away from your thigh, he opted for your feet next. He sat down in front of the chair and got to work, lightly tracing the first finger down your sole, holding your foot with his other hand. No matter how much you wiggled, he held you tight. “You’re gonna be singing for me either way now. Come on, a bit louder.”
And that you were when he used all five of his fingers to get you good. Looking up at you, he watched the first tears brimming in your eyes. It honestly felt kind of bad, making you properly cry like this, but Phillip reminded himself that you were enjoying this. Considering this is something you ask for time and time again, he was certain you wouldn’t mind staining your shirt with a few tears. Besides, you could always opt out if it got too much for you, a safeword had been established.
And that you used soon enough.
“Kiwi! Kiwi!” The tickling immediately ceased and Phillip started working on untying you.
“You alright there?” Although he was concerned, he couldn’t help but chuckle a bit as the residual giggles left your mouth. “Didn’t go overboard now, did I?”
“Fine, the answer is yes.”
Oh. So you were finally willing to admit the obvious to him.
“A bit late, are we? Besides, I wanna hear a full sentence. Say ‘Yes, Phillip, I like it when you tickle me’.” He worked on untying your arms as you moved your head in a position where you could wipe the tears away with the sleeves of your shirt.”
“I can’t say that word. Any alternatives?” You were completely tuckered out, it seemed, not even too embarrassed anymore to admit your “secret” to him.
“Nope, you’re gonna have to say exactly that, sorry.” Phillip watched you take a few breaths.
“Fine, dickhead. Yes, Phillip, I like it when you ti… I like it when you TICKLE me.”
“Didn’t have to enunciate the word like that. But I think this is the first or second time you’ve ever said it out loud. I’m proud of ya.” You were finally free from your restraints, but you were sitting in your chair still, limp as a noodle, taking deep breaths. Phillip slung an arm around your shoulders and gave them a small rub before going for his phone again. “You lasted roughly twelve minutes this time. I don’t have a time to compare this to, but it’s probably longer than other ‘sessions’ we’ve had so far.”
Finally, you got up and moved the chair away, having regained some of your energy again. “I’m sure I could last longer eventually. But for now I’m completely tuckered out. Still, thanks for playing my game with me, I appreciate it. I’m tired now. Wait, didn’t we agree on ten minutes?”
Having set his phone down on the table again, he sat down on the couch, reaching out his arms so you would come join him. “We did, but I knew you didn’t mind, so I decided to make our game last a little longer this time. Are you mad?”
“Mad? Ha, no. I appreciate it. But I really can’t keep a secret from you for too long, now can I?” You followed suit, walking straight into his arms. Phillip wrapped them around you and held you tight, rubbing your back ever so gently.
“You’ve got a very attentive boyfriend, I’ll give you that much.”
You pushed him onto the couch, making him fall onto his back. “Guess not, but I don’t mind. At least I don’t have to tell you every single little thing. Still, it’s a little embarrassing. Do you think me to be weird because of it?”
He adjusted himself so he’d lie a bit more comfortable on the couch, with you lying atop him. “No, I think that’s just plain adorable. You like to laugh, what’s not to love about that? Besides, it’s not like you’ve never tried to tickle me before. Even though I’m 90% sure you were just trying to get a rise out of me so I’d tickle ya.”
“That’s true. But sometimes I just do it for the sake of making you laugh. I love laughing as much as I love making others love. Besides, you have such a sweet laugh, I really like hearing it. You should laugh more often, and I’ll make it my mission that you do. With your permission, of course.”
“Permission granted, my little jester.” He pressed a kiss to your forehead.
“So, how about we watch one of my anime now?”
Phillip chuckled. “You know what, I did say that. Suppose I can’t go back on my word, now can I?”
“Not this time!”
