The Game: A Domination Prequel (by Mafisto)

Chapter 4
[Fantasy Casting: Mario Lopez as Mario, Noah Wyle as Dr. Carter]

Brad and Mario explored corridor after corridor of their prison. They soon discovered that its walls moved, creating openings where there was none a minute before, or blocking their way back behind them. They did not find any doors, and could not go back to their previous cell, the path having been cut off by a new wall.

“Man, I’m starting to be a bit scared,” said Mario.

“What if there is no way out of here, and we starve to death?”

“Don’t start thinking like that, it’ll get you nowhere,” said Brad, focusing on the way ahead. “With these walls appearing and disappearing, we have to find the way out… Wait! Are you hearing voices?”

“Yeah, I think so,” said Mario, listening carefully. “Let’s hide behind this corner…” They quickly hid in the shadows and waited patiently. Soon, they could make out what the male voices were saying: “I’m sorry sir, but I believe we already went in that direction, and there was no exit.” “So what? Maybe there is one now. We’re running out of options.”

Brad and Mario nodded to each other, and turned the corner to face their fellow prisoners. One was dressed in a doctor’s garb, the other as a Canadian Mountie.

“Hi!” Brad said.

“Hello,” said Fraser. “Would you explain to us where we are, and how to get out of here? We’re completely lost.”

“I’m sorry,” answered Mario, “but we are lost too. We also have no idea where we are, only that this is the weirdest place ever. We’ve been wandering around during the last hour trying to find a door, but haven’t been lucky.”

“What about this one?” asked Carter, pointing behind Brad and Mario.

“What?” said Mario as both of them turned around. They saw a metal door where wasn’t one before, with a plate next to it. The four of them ran to it. Brad pressed the plate, and the metal panel slid up. Behind the door was a rather large room, with a dinner table and eight chairs. The table was set, and plates with warm, delicious-looking food covered its center. The rest of the room was blank, and there were no other doors. The four of them entered the room, and the door slid back shut behind them.

“I guess one of us should have stayed behind,” said Brad. They circled the table, looking at the food and the wine bottles.

“I don’t know about you,” said Mario, “but I’m hungry.” He sat down and started to fill his plate with the food.

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea,” said Fraser. “Although it looks O.K., we’ve just had a bad experience with some product we found here. Maybe it’s poisonous.”

“If they wanted to kill us, they’d have done it while we were asleep,” said Carter, sitting down. “This looks delicious.” He opened a bottle of white wine, and poured himself a drink. He tasted it. “Wow, this is excellent wine. Do you want some?” he asked Mario.

“Why not?” said Mario, presenting his glass to Carter so he could fill it. Meanwhile, Brad was studying the door. He pressed a plate next to it that was similar to the one on the outside, and the metal panel slid up again.

“We’re not stuck here,” he said. “I’m not hungry for anything that comes from here, so I’m going to explore a bit more.”

“I’m going with you,” said Fraser.

They went out, and the door closed behind them. Carter and Mario finished their dinner quietly.

“This was great,” finally said Carter. “But I’m full now. And sleepy,” he said, yawning.

“I’m tired too,” said Mario. “Let’s look around for some place to crash.” They checked around the room, and found a plate on one wall, similar to the one next to the door. Carter pressed it, and part of the wall disappeared, creating an opening on a room similar to the one each was in earlier.

“Good, I can use some sleep,” said Mario, approaching the bed. He stripped from his football gear down to his pants. Carter stood there, looking at him as he got on the bed.

“So?” Mario asked him. He was lying down over the covers. “Are you coming or what? I don’t mind if you sleep next to me, as long as you don’t touch me.”

“Oh!” said Carter. “Actually, I was worried about you doing that.” He moved to the other side of the bed, took off his clothes down to his pants, and lied next to Mario. Mario quickly went to sleep. But Carter was feeling a bit dizzy from the wine, and had trouble getting to sleep. He eyed Mario’s chest next to him, listened to his deep breathing. He slid a bit closer to him, smelled Mario’s sweat. He suddenly realized he had a hard-on.

“It must be that damned balm acting up again,” he rationalized. But he could not get his eyes away from Mario’s warm body next to him. He extended his hand towards Mario’s chest, touched it with the tips of his fingers, and then quickly took it back when he heard Mario grunt. “This can’t be possible,” he thought. “I can’t believe I’m doing that to a guy.” Mario, still sleeping, moved his hands to his hips and grabbed his football tights. He slid them down to his knees. He then turned around on his side, giving Carter a full view of his ass through his jockstrap. Carter stared at it gingerly, then moved a hand on it. It felt warm and soft. Carter took off his own pants, and moved even closer to Mario.

“Oh God, if he wakes up I’m gonna die of embarrassment,” he thought, just as he hugged Mario from behind, his arm around Mario’s chest, his hand playing with Mario’s nipples. Mario did not seem notice, and it encouraged Carter. He moved his hand down to Mario’s hot belly, then further down, and was shocked to find out that Mario’s dick was rock hard. He felt Mario’s erection in his jockstrap.

“Suck it!” Carter froze. Did he actually hear Mario whisper that? He moved away from him, and acted as if he had been sleeping. He heard Mario move next to him, and kept his eyes closed, his heart pounding in his chest. “Suck it!” he heard Mario whisper again. He dared open his eyes. Mario was on his back, his eyes closed. Yet, he had removed his tights and jockstrap, and was fully naked, his long erection pointing towards the ceiling, beckoning Carter.

“This is ridiculous!” thought Carter. “I’m not going to suck a guy’s cock. That’s disgusting…” But he moved his head closer to Mario, and rested it on Mario’s belly, his eyes on Mario’s erection his hand moving up and down Mario’s legs. He stared at the monster for a long while, felt Mario’s hand stroking his head. Then, without any more hesitation, he swallowed Mario’s cock whole, the sucked on it slowly. He took off his boxers, and started to masturbate. He had completely forgotten about his earlier doubt. For some reason, this felt like paradise, and he planned to enjoy it. Mario’s hand pushed his head at the right rhythm, and he whispered: “Good… this feels so good… hmm… suck on it…”

After a while, Carter stopped and looked at Mario, who was still asleep apparently. He turned him over on his belly, straddled him, and started massaging the muscled shoulders and back. He eventually reached Mario’s slightly hairy ass, which he squeezed and opened up. He spat on it, and lubricated it thoroughly, as if he had done that all his life. Mario lifted his ass up in response, and Carter heard him whisper: “Come on, fuck me! I want you inside me… I want your hard cock in me…” Carter awkwardly inserted his cock inside Mario’s ass.

Mario yelled: “Oww, it hurts… It hurts but I like it… Continue…” This felt so strange. Carter had always been so conservative in his sex with women. He never gave oral sex, and certainly not anal sex. And here he was, with his penis between a man’s butt cheeks, pumping away. It felt so good. He pumped for a while, then came all “over Mario’s back. He spread his hot cum, then put his boxers and pants back on. He put Mario’s jockstrap and tights back on, then moved him on his back again. He then went to sleep. A few hours later, they awoke when they heard the door to the dining room open…

The Game: A Domination Prequel (by Mafisto)

Chapter 5
[Fantasy Casting: Michael J. Fox as Michael, Matthew Broderick as Matthew]

Michael paced the plain conference room nervously. Matthew and he had been waiting for over an hour for their clients to show, and they had no idea how long they would take to show up. Still, for business deal of that magnitude, one could wait a bit. Their commission on the deal would be close to half a million dollars each, not bad for about a week’s work. They had only spoken to their clients on the phone, and they sounded peculiar to say the least. Having never heard of “Tests Inc.”, Matthew did some background research on them –he could not find any information, except that they were legit, and that they were huge. It was not their client’s secrecy which was disturbing them as much as the way they had been brought to this room –a secret meeting in a park, during which they had been blindfolded and led inside a car. Neither of them knew how long the trip took, because they had both fallen asleep during, and they had woken up in this conference room. Not a very impressive beginning for a pitch, getting there asleep… Yet, they suspected their mysterious host had planned their slumber.

They heard a voice coming from speakers inside the ceiling. It reverberated through the almost empty room. “Greetings, gentlemen. Tests Inc. is interested in marketing a new line of products and services, and ‘Prowlan & Graham’, your company, provided this interview goes well, has been chosen to represent us. You have fifteen minutes to tell us about the advantages of using your agency. Be concise and to the point.”

“Could we have an idea of which field you operate in?” asked Matthew. “It would give some direction to our pitch.”

The voice answered immediately, with a trace of impatience in its otherwise cold tone: “At this stage, we only wish a general view of your company.” Michael scowled at Matthew. Not knowing the main business of their client made the pitch a lot harder. They used their fifteen minutes well, concentrating on the flexibility of the agency, on their wide range of clientele. They managed to keep all options open. But, in the end, they had no idea if they were right on target or totally off. Both were sweating in their business suits, waiting for feedback.

“Excellent,” said the voice after a few minutes, which brought instant smiles on their faces. “You passed the first test.” The smiles disappeared.

A woman entered the room, pushing a cart full of unlabeled bottles and electronic equipment. She was about forty, red-haired, and sour looking. Her pink lab coat had a nametag identifying her as “Georgia Winters, Lab Assistant”.

“Ms. Winters will now have you try on a few of our products, after which I will ask you some questions. The more precise you will be in describing our products, the more chances you will have to awarded our account.”

“Thank you, sir,” said Michael, sincerely. At last, they would know what they had to market. “I must say we are quite curious at this stage.”

He turned towards the stern assistant, scanning the contents of the cart. “So, Ms. Winters, what do we have to do?”

“Take off your shirts,” she said in an austere voice, “and put some of this body lotion.” She held out a green bottle in front of them. It startled them, and they looked at each other, confused.

“Go on,” she ordered, “we don’t have all day.”

“Well, all right,” said Matthew. Both slowly proceeded to remove their ties, which they laid neatly on the table. Next were the jackets, carefully wrapped on the back of conference chairs. The stressed situation had made them sweat, and they both had wet circles on their shirts’ underarms. They unbuttoned their shirts, and placed them, folded, on the table. Finally, they slid off their T-shirts, baring their smooth chests, and also placed them on the table. They both had light tans on swimmer’s builds. Grabbing the green bottle offered by Mrs. Winters, Michael put some lotion in his hands –it was milky green with a eerily spicy, musky smell –and gave the bottle to Matthew to do the same. They studied the smell attentively before they rubbed the lotion on their faces and chests.

Matthew was the first to dare express an opinion. “The odor, of hot spices and strong musk, is very masculine. It is soothing and comfortable.”

“I feel like a ton of bricks has been removed from my shoulders,” said Michael, sincerely. “I sense muscles I never knew I had, relaxing. This is great. I feel like it penetrates every pore of body, and massages inside the skin. That would be a great idea for an animation in a TV commercial!” he exclaimed.

“True,” approved Matthew. “I can see it, little green masseuses working their fingers on tensed muscles under a layer of skin… Good idea.”

“You have to put some on your legs too,” interrupted Ms. Winters, without a smile.

“I don’t really think it’s necessary,” countered Michael, uneasily. The thought of stripping before that woman, who looked like his fourth grade teacher, was making him shiver.

“You have to put some on your legs too,” repeated Ms. Winters, unmoved. The two managers looked at each other, but did not dare contradict her. Hell, for such a big account, they could fuck her for all they cared. They detached their belts, unzipped their pants and dropped them to the floor, after taking off their shoes and socks. When Matthew had stripped down to his purple boxers and Michael to his gray briefs, they rubbed more lotion on their legs and feet. They felt the cold stare of Mrs. Winters on their bodies, and it made them feel helpless.

“It tingles,” said Michael. “It really removes every sign of stress. And the smell,” he said, inhaling deeply from his hands, “is just so stimulating, so invigorating.”

“You’re right,” said Matthew, sniffing his body, “the smell really makes one feel sexy… alive. We’ll have no trouble selling that product.”

“No, not at all,” said Michael. “I think it has some aphrodisiac qualities too. I feel horny as hell…” he blurted out, then blushed when he looked at Mrs. Winters. “Sorry.”

“No apologies necessary,” she said icily. “Do not censor yourselves, we are all adults here. The lotion does contain a new chemical which stimulates libido.”

“Well, it works,” approved Michael. He turned his back at Matthew. “Eh, Matthew, could you do my back? I want the full treatment. I have some tense muscles in there.”

“No problem, as long as you do mine afterwards.”

“Deal.”

Matthew massaged Michael’s back with the lotion, starting with the shoulders, and working his way down. When he reached Michael’s lower back, Michael repeated Mrs. Winters words: “We are all adults here? No censoring?” Mrs. Winters nodded. Michael routinely stepped out of his briefs, apparently not self-conscious at all to face her completely naked. Matthew gave him a good buttock massage, during which Michael gradually got a hard-on.

“My turn now,” said Matthew, taking off his boxers.

“This is a very exciting product. I feel hot and horny,” said Michael. He started Matthew’s back massage, but stopped periodically to jerk off for a few seconds. His cock was oozing pre-cum. When he finished Matthew’s ass, Michael continued rubbing lotion on Matthew’s balls and dick, stroking the latter until it was long and hard.

“My turn now,” whispered Michael to Matthew’s ear. Matthew grabbed Michael’s body, sat him on the conference table, making him lean his back on it. He rubbed some lotion on Michael’s genitalia, jerking him off.

Then, he swallowed his cock, sucking on it, all the while breathing the spicy smell of the lotion on Michael’s belly. Ms. Winters watched the scene with limited interest.

Matthew then started to lick Michael’s chest all over, working his way up to Michael’s mouth. He then leaned on Michael, rubbing the length of his body on his, while kissing Michael, invading Michael’s mouth with his tongue, his hands playing with Michael’s hair. They were now completely oblivious to Mrs. Winters, and had lost all self-control.

“Now, is that a way to behave?” she asked, with a parental tone. “Stand up and face me.”

The two managers stopped immediately and fumbled to their feet. They stood there, red with embarrassment, their erections pointing towards her. She circled them, and ordered: “Bend over, both of you, you will get what you deserve.” They obeyed her, not because they recognized her authority, but because they were so turned on that they enjoyed the role-playing. In a way, they sensed that their clients were watching the developments with interest. Slam! Her dry, rigid opened palm hit Matthew’s butt square. He yelled: “Oww… I apologize Mrs. Winters…” Slam! “…for our unforgivable public display…” Slam! She moved to Michael. Slam! “Yow!” the shorter one yelled in turn, “We will try to establish a company policy…” Slam! “…preventing managers from having sex in front of clients.” Slam! She stared at their darkened asses, which they were rubbing slowly.

Suddenly, the voice in the speakers could be heard: “Thank you for your presentation. We enjoyed it immensely. We still have some other products for you to test, so Mrs. Winters will accompany you to your quarters, where you will shower and wait for further instructions.”

“But we are not guinea pigs,” dared to protest Matthew, “we’re account managers.”

The voice from the speakers was clear. “If you want our account, you will obey our orders.”

Michael was picking up his gray briefs on the floor, when he felt a painful grip on his arm. “We will supply you with proper clothes. Leave your belongings here, they will be returned to you later.”

Mrs. Winters pushed the cart out of the room, and the two naked managers followed behind pathetically, into a long, white corridor.

The Game: A Domination Prequel (by Mafisto)

Chapter 6
[Fantasy Casting: Joey Lawrence as Joey, Chris O’Donnell as Chris, Marky Mark as Mark, Julia Louis-Dreyfuss as Ms. Dreyfuss]

“So, what do you think? Are we working for the Mafia or not?”

Joey wiped the excess oil from his fingers with a greasy rag as he looked towards Chris’s feet sticking out from under the van, awaiting an answer. Instead, the answer came from Mark, who was balancing a tire on a high-tech machine.

“Well, for the Mafia, they sure spend a lot on equipment. I’ve never seen a repair shop that was so full of electronic gizmos. Most of this stuff, I didn’t even know that it existed! It sure make our work simpler, so I’m not complaining, as long as I get the paycheck.”

Chris rolled from under the van. He was holding a large wrench, which he exchanged for a smaller one in his toolbox. Before sliding back, he mentioned: “We’ll see today. I heard the boss is bringing our first paycheck himself. I wonder what he looks like.”

Joey could not contain himself. “I don’t get you guys! They bring us here in a van with no windows, so we don’t even know where we are; they keep us prisoners here all week…”

“I would not go that far…” interrupted Mark. “I’m sure if there was an emergency or something, they would drive us back. Plus, we can use the phone, and we have TV’s in our rooms with 150 channels, and we have access to a gym. I don’t call that being a prisoner.”

Joey sat on the worktable, and threw the rag beside him. “Not being able to go out IS being a prisoner, and…”

“So we meet again,” interrupted a confident female voice. “How nice…” Joey and Mark turned towards the doorframe. A short woman with long black hair had just entered the room, dressed in black business clothes, and holding envelopes. Chris rolled from under the car, as he also had recognized the voice. It was the voice of Ms. Dreyfuss, a woman who had her car repaired at their former shop about a month ago, and whose bill they had salted and peppered in abundance. When she complained, they had refused to give her car back. She was in urgent need of it, and so she had paid. But not before warning them that they would regret it…

“Are you… I mean,” stuttered Mark, “are you our boss?” She walked toward them, smiling. She stopped at Chris’s feet, handing them their paychecks envelopes.

“Yes,” she said arrogantly. “I own your asses.”

“Well, you’re gonna answer a few questions,” said Joey, snatching his envelope from her hands. “First of all, where are we? Who are we working for?”

“You know very well that under your contract, you are not to ask any questions…” she said. She laughed. “You only need to know that you’re working for me.”

“Well, I quit,” said Joey. He walked towards the door. “I’m not working for you. I hate this place anyway.”

“Look at your paycheck,” she asked.

Joey stopped. “I don’t care…” he started to say, but stopped when he saw the amount. “There must be a mistake.”

“There… isn’t,” she said, smiling, dragging her words.

“Then what’s the catch?” asked Chris. “This is a check for $5,000. That’s twenty times as much as what we usually earn.”

“I’m not complaining,” said Mark. “Thank you boss!” He saluted her, smiling.

“The catch is…” She was dragging her words again. “…We need your full cooperation. This is the easiest way to obtain it.”

“And if we refuse?” asked Joey, defiantly. She walked towards him, her eyes locked on his. “We have other means to obtain what we want. They can be nasty. You don’t really want to know about them, do you, Mr. Robert Hays?”

Joey started at the name. She knew his real identity! Damn witness protection program. The law could not protect him. He had testified against the fucking mob, for God’s sake! How could he be so naive: these people were good.

“I take your silence for a no, then.” She looked triumphant. She walked towards the worktable and sat on it, as a queen on her throne. “Now, let’s start with a few changes. First of all, the dress code. I don’t like your uniforms, so take them off.”

“What? You mean work in our underwear?” asked Chris. “What are you, some kind of pervert? Is that what we’re paid for, to be your little showboys?”

“It’s a start,” she laughed. “Now, don’t discuss my commands, obey them, silently.”

The men dared not oppose her. Joey had his will crushed, and the two others were afraid of what the woman could do to them. So what if they played gigolo, the pay was good. They unzipped their overalls, and threw them in a pile under the worktable. None of them wore T-shirts, all of them wore work boots and gray wool socks. Mark was wearing white tight Calvin Klein drawers that did not leave much to the imagination; his chest was smooth and athletic. Chris had gray sweatshorts, and his body had more of a swimmer’s built. Joey’s body was covered with soft, blond hair; he wore black jockeys. They laughed nervously as they went back to work, under Ms. Dreyfuss’s close scrutiny. They felt uneasy, and powerless. They were also a bit fearful of the next “commands”. For surely, she had other things in mind…

Ms. Dreyfuss enjoyed the view from her throne. She watched them, hard at work, their bodies dirty with grease. She gazed at their bare muscles, contracting and expanding in the natural course of their work. She stared at their crotches which, with every move and stretch, gave hints as to the shape of what was hidden from her view. They finished their work for the day, and cleaned the workshop, all the while being watched by Ms. Dreyfuss. They were about to get to their clothes when she interrupted: “No, no, no, you guys. No way. Your day has just started. Now, you’ll be really be earning your paycheck.” They stood there, speechless.

“What else?” finally asked Chris. “We’ve finished the work here, they’ll only bring the other vans tomorrow.”

“Well, I’m not satisfied with your work,” she said mockingly. “You do want your boss to be satisfied, don’t you?”

Silence.

“Don’t you?” she repeated, with some authority. “Answer me.”

“I guess…” trailed Chris. “What do we have to do?”

“The three of you will stand before me. With the price I am paying for your services, I expect to conduct a full inspection of what I am buying –your bodies, in fact.”

“No way,” said Joey. “I was expecting something like that. Working in our underwear is one thing, but letting you ‘inspect’ our privates is another. You can’t buy that.”

“Same for me,” said Chris.

“I don’t mind,” said Mark. “You’re the boss.”

“Well, both of you should imitate Mark,” she said to Joey and Chris. “He has the right attitude. I have access to a lot of resources here to help me get what I want, but I much rather like to get from you willingly… or at least with your minds clear.”

Chris shuddered at her words. He and Joey were playing tough, but they were terrified of her, and most importantly, the organization behind her, be it the Mafia or something else. “All right,” said Joey, “I’ll play the game. For now.”

Chris simply nodded. Ms. Dreyfuss jumped down from the table, and approached Joey and Chris. She cupped their genitals through their underwear with each hand, looking at Joey straight in the eyes. He lowered his gaze. She had won. For now. She fondled their packages from outside, then inserted her hands into their drawers, feeling their pubic hair, and working down to their cocks. “But I think you like that. You’re both a bit hard. Let me see if I can improve that.”

She gave a look at Mark, whose hard dick struggled to come out of his tights. “For God’s sake, Mark, take it out.” He instantly freed his dick, sliding his undies halfway down. She was impressed by its size; and Mark, stroking it without further demand, managed to make it even bigger. She felt some pre-cum oozing from Chris’s cock. She rubbed it on the tip of her finger, took it out, and tasted it, looking at him straight in the face. He dared not look at her, ashamed at his arousal. She took out her other hand from Joey’s briefs, grabbed Chris’s sweats with both hands, and pulled them down, without ever looking away from his face. Only then did she look at his swollen member, glistening with pre-cum. Her hands cupped each of his butt-cheeks, and she turned towards Mark. Mark, why don’t you do the same to Joey? He needs a little attention…”

“What?” said Joey, alarmed. “He’s not touching my cock.”

Mark was already near him. “You heard her,” he said rudely.

“You’re not touching my cock, Mark, this has gone far enough. What’s wrong with you? Are you gay or something? You seem to enjoy this.”

“I don’t think I’m gay or anything, it’s just that I like carrying out orders from gorgeous ladies. It arouses me. This is just like one of my fantasies.”

“Well, it’s not one of mine,” Joey said, pushing him. “Go away.”

Mark grabbed Joey’s shoulders, and forced a kiss on him. Joey tried to pull away, but Mark’s grip was strong. He suddenly snatched Joey’s briefs and tore them off in one easy move. Joey’s cock had returned to a soft state, but it was beefy even then. Both men struggled together for a while, as Ms. Dreyfuss sucked Chris, eyeing them, one hand on Chris’s ass, the other stroking her pussy. Chris had closed his eyes, and groaned from time to time. Mark finally pinned down Joey on the floor, panting. He had torn off his own underwear, which was getting in the way of the fight. Both men were thus naked save for their boots and socks. Joey offered no more resistance as Mark went down on his cock, and engulfed it. Joey struggled to stay indifferent, but when his cock came out of Mark’s mouth temporarily, it was hard as rock. “OK, now,” said Ms. Dreyfuss, as she got back on her feet. Mark and Joey got back to their feet too. The three men were now facing her, completely nude except for their work boots which made them even more virile. Their hard cocks pointed towards her.

“Let’s finish your training for today with a bang. Joey, get on your knees.” Joey, crushed, obeyed without protest this time. “Now, Chris, you will kneel behind Joey, and Mark before him.” She waited until they took their positions, then she approached Joey, opened his mouth, and filled it with Mark’s cock. “Suck on this!” she ordered. Joey slowly started to suck with empty eyes. She then went to Joey’s ass, spit on her fingers, and prepared it, gradually inserting her fingers until his anus was completely loosened. She then inserted Chris’s dick in it, and said: “Fuck him!” before returning to her throne. She masturbated, watching them clumsily play out her fantasies. As it went along, they got better at it. She had more than a few orgasms, watching those three virile men at each other, and even more pleasure at watching Joey being fucked by a friend, while sucking another.

“Mark,” suddenly exclaimed Joey, letting go of Mark’s cock with a jerk. “You could have warned me. I swallowed it.” Some of Mark’s cum was oozing out of Joey’s mouth. Meanwhile, Chris covered Joey’s back with hot cum, spurt after spurt.

“Well, now to the showers, my boys,” said Ms. Dreyfuss. “The van will leave in an hour. Have a good weekend, and see you on Monday.” She strutted out of the room.