Aftercare can be fun, too. And between them, and the erections still present in the room, it may not be wholly after just yet. But the pacing has shifted, and Bruce likes this a lot, too. Spreading the cool gel over his still-heated skin, gliding his hands up, beginning to peel away winding ribbons of fabric all the way, unlocking cuffs.

"Pleasure and pain are controlled by the same pathways and neurotransmitters in the brain," Bruce tells him, his voice low and content. This could be a boring talk. He doesn't think so. "When the right factors come together, your mind can lose the ability to determine why one's supposed to be bad, even if it still hurts. And all that's left is the intensity."

He gets goes about helping Clark shift up onto his side, and he slips one arm around to his front. Getting more aloe, stroking it over his chest, and all the marks he left there. Over-pinched nipples and then lower, barely grazing over his cock, to the bruises from clothespins on his thighs. Bruce lets him lean back onto him, tucking his other arm under Clark's head.

"Some people can't ever find the right conditions. Others don't know how to accept pleasure on its own. I think you want... too much. The way I want too much."