Routine

Day Seven: The Absence of Chains

05:30 AM – The Sound of Freedom

Xander woke to an unusual silence. The familiar weight around his wrists was gone. His fingers twitched against his skin, feeling nothing but air.

The cuffs were gone.

For the first time in days, he flexed his hands without restraint. Yet, there was no thrill, no satisfaction. Only a quiet realization—

She wanted him to feel it.

The absence of control. The illusion of choice.

07:00 AM – The Unlocked Door

Valeria stood at the threshold, her silhouette sharp against the dim light.

“You’re free,” she said simply.

Xander let the words settle. He glanced at the cell door—unlocked. No tangled mechanisms, no chains, no tricks.

His fingers brushed the cold metal of the bars, but he didn’t move.

Valeria watched, waiting.

She already knew.

He wouldn’t leave.

Not yet.

10:00 AM – The Taste of Decision

Breakfast was served on the same silver tray. This time, no orders. No demands.

Xander ate slowly, deliberately. Not because he was forced. But because he chose to.

Because he wanted to see what she would do next.

Valeria sat across from him, silent. He could feel the weight of her gaze, waiting, measuring.

“Tell me,” he murmured, swirling the glass of water in his hand, “if I walk out that door, do you chase me?”

She didn’t answer.

He smirked. “Or do you wait for me to come back?”

She stood without a word, leaving him with nothing but silence.

And Xander laughed.

02:00 PM – The Restlessness of an Unchained Man

He wandered the small space. Pacing. Thinking.

His hands itched for the restraint he no longer had.

Funny, isn’t it? How quickly the mind adapts to captivity? How quickly freedom becomes a foreign thing?

His fingers traced his bare wrists.

The skin there still remembered.

06:00 PM – The First Step

As the sun dipped below the horizon, Xander finally reached the open door.

He placed a foot past the threshold.

A test. A challenge.

He could walk out. He could leave it all behind.

But where would he go?

A world that thought he was dead?

A life that no longer existed?

He exhaled, stepping back into the cell.

And when Valeria returned that night, finding him exactly where she left him, she didn’t look surprised.

She only said one thing.

“Tomorrow, the game changes.”

And Xander smiled.

Because finally, it would.

Day Eight: Moved

06:00 AM – The Change Begins

The morning arrived with an unfamiliar rhythm—no clinking chains, no forced routines. The air carried a strange tension, like a quiet storm waiting to break.

Xander sat on the cot, back against the cold wall, eyes on the cell door.

It opened.

Not the way it had yesterday, teasing him with freedom. This time, Valeria stood with two guards.

“Stand.”

Xander tilted his head, amused. “I thought we were past the dramatics.”

Valeria didn’t react. “You’re being moved.”

His smirk didn’t fade, but something in his chest tightened. Moved?

“To where?”

She stepped aside, gesturing. “You’ll see.”

07:30 AM – The Walk of the Unshackled

For the first time since his captivity began, he walked without cuffs. No restraints. No iron bars keeping him in.

Yet he still wasn’t free.

They led him down a long corridor, the air growing heavier with each step. This place—it was different. The echoes felt deeper, the walls taller, as if they were swallowing him whole.

It wasn’t just another cell.

It was something more.

08:00 AM – The New Cell

They stopped.

A door loomed before him; thicker, reinforced. The moment it opened, Xander realized why.

This wasn’t just a cell.

This was a room.

Larger. Isolated. A single window with thick glass, letting in a sliver of light. A bed instead of a cot. A desk. A chair. Even a bookshelf, half-filled with titles he once knew.

A slow exhale left his lips. This wasn’t punishment.

This was preparation.

Valeria watched his reaction, her gaze sharp. “You’ll stay here now.”

Xander chuckled, stepping inside. “What, no roommates?”

“You won’t need them.”

His fingers trailed the edge of the desk, thoughtful.

She was changing the rules.

Giving him space. Giving him comfort.

Why?

Valeria took a step back, the door beginning to close. “Settle in, Xander. Tomorrow, we start.”

Click.

The lock slid into place.

Xander leaned against the wall, gazing at the single window above.

Tomorrow.

What exactly were they starting?

Day Nine: Discipline Returns

06:00 AM – The Wake-Up Call

Xander barely slept. The ‘new cell’ felt too calculated, too comfortable; and that, more than anything, put him on edge.

He sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the door, waiting.

Right on cue, it opened.

Valeria.

But this time, she wasn’t alone. Two guards followed, their presence colder than the steel cuffs they carried.

“Get up.”

Xander tilted his head. “What, no ‘good morning’?”

The guards stepped in.

And then, without warning; a strike.

06:05 AM – The Lesson Begins

Xander’s jaw clenched as his cheek burned from the sudden hit. He barely had time to react before a hand grabbed his arm, yanking him to his feet.

“What’s the occasion?” His voice was smooth, but there was an edge to it now.

Valeria watched him, arms crossed. “You thought yesterday meant freedom?”

His lips twitched. “Would be foolish to hope.”

She took a step forward, her presence suffocating. “Exactly. You may not be in chains, but you are still mine to discipline.”

Another blow—this time to his gut.

Xander exhaled sharply, but his knees didn’t buckle. He wouldn’t give them the satisfaction.

Valeria signaled. The guards yanked his arms behind his back.

The cold bite of handcuffs returned.

Tighter than before.

Xander exhaled through his nose, gaze locked onto hers. “So, what’s the punishment this time?”

Valeria leaned in, voice a whisper.

“Obedience.”

07:00 AM – Training Obedience

They moved him to an open, empty space. No furniture. No distractions. Just him, his cuffs, and her.

Kneel.

Stand.

Walk.

Stop.

Every command was met with silence from him, but force from them. A pull, a shove, a strike when necessary. They wanted to mold him, to break him.

But Xander wasn’t easily broken.

He endured.

He smiled.

And that—more than anything—seemed to agitate Valeria.

09:00 AM – A Final Warning

The session ended with him back in his cell, wrists still bound, back against the cold wall.

Valeria stood at the doorway.

“I’ll teach you, Xander. Whether you want it or not.”

Xander only smirked, blood at the corner of his lips.

“I’d love to see you try.”

Day Ten: Tamed Again—And Touched by Romance

06:00 AM – The Aftermath of Defiance

Xander woke up to a dull ache running through his body. His wrists, still marked from yesterday’s cuffs, ached slightly, but the pain was nothing compared to what he had endured before.

The cell was quiet. Too quiet.

And then, the door clicked open.

Valeria stepped inside. But this time, there were no guards. No chains. No commands barked at him.

Just her.

She walked closer, eyes scanning him. Xander, still seated against the wall, tilted his head.

“No disciplinary session today?” His voice was hoarse but teasing.

Valeria crouched before him, an unreadable look in her eyes. Something had shifted.

07:00 AM – The Breaking Point

She reached for his wrists. He tensed. But instead of locking him in chains, she… tended to them.

Xander narrowed his eyes as her fingers brushed over the bruised skin. Gentle. Deliberate.

She sighed. “You force my hand, you know that?”

He chuckled softly. “And yet, here you are. Treating me instead of punishing me.”

Her grip on his wrist tightened. “Don’t mistake this for mercy.”

“But it is, isn’t it?” Xander’s gaze didn’t waver. “You enjoy taming me, Valeria. But what happens when you realize you’re the one being pulled into the cage?”

A flicker of something—hesitation.

And then, as if to silence his words, she kissed him.

07:05 AM – The Taste of Power

Xander was stunned for only a moment before he smirked against her lips. He didn’t push her away. He didn’t resist.

If Valeria thought she held control, she was wrong.

Because this? This was his game now.

His fingers trailed up her arm, slow, deliberate. She didn’t pull away.

“Taming me?” he murmured against her lips. “Or surrendering to me?”

She pulled back, breathing uneven. Her eyes searched his, looking for something; maybe resistance, maybe fear.

But Xander only smiled.

And this time, she was the one who stepped away first.

Day 11 - 100: Xander, the Obedient and Gentle Alpha

Day 11 – The Shift

Xander no longer wore chains. The cell was no longer his home. Instead, he stood beside Valeria; not as a prisoner, but as her man.

The transformation wasn’t immediate. It was a slow, deliberate breaking down of walls, an unspoken war of dominance and surrender. Yet in the end, it wasn’t just Valeria taming him. He tamed her too.

She tested him, watching for defiance. But Xander had already made his choice. He no longer needed to fight; because he had already won.

Day 20 – The Perfect Obedience

Xander moved through Valeria’s world with a quiet, effortless control. He listened. He followed. But never in weakness.

Obedience, from him, was powerful.

When she spoke, he acted. When she commanded, he obeyed. But only because he allowed it.

And Valeria? She was intoxicated by the sight of a man who could break the world but chose to kneel only for her.

Day 35 – The Gentle Alpha

Valeria expected compliance. What she didn’t expect was gentleness.

Xander never raised his voice. Never questioned. But in every touch, every glance, there was an undeniable dominance.

It was in the way he kissed her; not in hunger, but in quiet possession.

It was in the way he wrapped a coat around her shoulders when she worked late, his fingers lingering at her collarbone.

It was in the way he whispered, “You own me, but you are mine.”

Day 50 – The Lovers’ War

There were moments of fire. Xander would challenge her—not with words, but with looks that burned, with the press of his body that reminded her exactly who he was.

“You wanted an obedient man,” he murmured one night, lips brushing her jaw. “But I never said I was weak.”

Valeria gripped his collar, her breathing unsteady. “And I never wanted weak.”

Their battles were fought in sheets and shadows.

And every night, he proved to her; obedience is not surrender.

Day 75 – A Man Worth Keeping

The world still feared Xander Alekto. They whispered his name with caution, remembering the man who once stood behind iron bars.

But Valeria knew better.

She knew the way his hands traced patterns on her skin at night. She knew the way his voice softened when he spoke her name.

She knew that, in taming him, she had given him something far greater than freedom.

She had given him a purpose.

Day 100 – Forever Hers

Xander no longer needed chains.

Because he had already decided to stay.

Day 101 - 365: Disciplinary Imprisonment

Even when free, Xander was still imprisoned.

_____

Day 101 – Shackled Again

"You lock me up, but I let you."

Xander’s wrists were bound once more, the cold bite of metal against his skin a cruel contrast to the warmth of Valeria’s hand tracing his jaw.

"If you think I’ve forgotten how to be a beast, try me."

_______

Day 150 – The Handsome Captive

He leaned against the cell’s bars, the dim light casting golden shadows over his sculpted cheekbones.

"You can tie me down, Valeria." He smirked. "But you still look at me like I’m the one holding the chains."

________

Day 200 – Unbreakable, Beautiful

He walked, unhurried, across the small space he was given. A caged wolf—majestic, patient, terrifyingly controlled.

"Do you like seeing me like this?" His voice was silk over steel. "Or are you afraid I’ll stop letting you win?"

______

Day 250 – The Discipline Never Ends

The whip never broke him. The chains never humbled him. He only knelt because he allowed it.

"Discipline me all you want," he whispered, his lips brushing Valeria’s ear as she tightened the cuffs around his wrists. "But don’t expect me to beg."

______

Day 300 – The Caged King

He could open the door. He always could.

Yet he stayed. Staring at her through the iron bars, his presence still so powerful it made the room feel smaller.

"Even if I kneel, you still look at me like a king."

_____

Day 365 – The Beauty of His Captivity

Xander, imprisoned. Restrained. Disciplined.

But in his silence, in his unshaken confidence, in the way he still held her gaze like a conqueror;

It was clear.

Valeria could never truly tame him.

Day 366: The Released Alpha

The heavy gates opened. For the first time in a year, Xander Alekto stepped out—not as a prisoner, not as a beast in chains, but as a man who had been reshaped by discipline, by time, and by her.

The world outside felt vast, yet it was Valeria’s presence that anchored him.

She stood before him, watching, waiting. Doubt flickered in her eyes—was he still hers? Or would he break free the moment his shackles were gone?

Xander moved.

Not to run.

Not to dominate.

But to embrace.

His arms wrapped around her, strong yet gentle, pulling Valeria into his warmth. He held her like she was the only thing real, the only thing that mattered.

Then, he kissed her.

Slow. Deep. Intentional.

A kiss not of vengeance, nor of conquest—but devotion.

When he pulled back, his forehead rested against hers, his voice smooth, reassuring.

"I will never forget." His fingers traced her jaw, reverent. "I will not avenge. I will not tame you."

His lips curved into something softer, something rare.

"Because you already tamed me, Valeria."

His submission was not weakness.

His obedience was not defeat.

He was still an Alpha; powerful, commanding; but now, he was hers.

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