Cryptid

For me that’s part of the romance. For both parties to make sure the other is alright during a vulnerable moment.

Y’all may or may not have noticed, I even have Quinn checking in on River during No Rest For The Wicked. It’s subtle but there’s a moment he’s making sure they’re into it, without stopping the scene.

But sometimes stopping to check in is good too. During River and Quinn’s first time having penetrative sex in The Devil In The Details, he pauses to make sure they’re alright.

That’s important to me. That’s sexy to me.

The comment was basically "the check ins were annoying at first but then they grew on me and you wrote them well." So that ended up being a nice comment... it still rubbed me the wrong way for the check ins to be called annoying but alas.

And in No Rest For The Wicked, I think I have both a moment where Quinn checks in subtly but then there is a more blatant check in at one point.

Now, Quinn doesn't stop and say "Are you alright? Do you want to keep going?" Not unless he senses something is genuinely off (which he can do easily because he feels River's suffering so if it spikes for no apparent reason, he knows he needs to check in). Instead he says "Are you with me?" Which feels less scene breaking, especially in the context. But is no less a check in.

"Are you with me?" means a lot to me personally. It means he's asking if they're still present in the moment, instead of checked out and letting it happen. He means he's asking if they're still with him in the pleasure, enjoying it as much as he is.

Do I write scenes with no check ins? Of fucking course. I write noncon.

But that makes it feel all the more important when I'm writing scenes meant to be consensual.

For me, maybe not for everyone, sex is a very special and vulnerable act. And for me, I know I'm not always the best at speaking up when I'm uncomfortable with something. So part of the romance, part of the fantasy, is having a partner that is both attuned to their companion's mood but also checking in instead of assuming they know everything.

Having a partner willing to stop everything just to ask "are you okay?" is peak romance to me.

Oh well. Nothing I can't fix by inserting my own characters into the format!

No Rest For The Wicked is a 4.6k word consensual non-consent Porn Without Plot work. That's right, I wrote CNC for once instead of straight up noncon! Unheard of!

We jump right into it with River house-sitting when two home invaders take advantage of their solitude.

L i c k