I completely agree. Steven and Nick skipped the part of their relationship where they should have negotiated together and determined limits to their relationship. Right now they're slowly working that out, but they do need a frank and nonjudgmental conversation - not as muscle king and house boi but as Nick and Steven.Red86 wrote: 3 years ago Maybe the time is coming when Nick and Steven set the dom/sub thing aside and have a real one on one conversation. They really should have it, it'll be healthier for their relationship.
So, [mention]OrdinaryWorld[/mention], I definitely do agree that this is rape and is extremely concerning. Steven does deny his consent and is ignored by Nick multiple times. It is also important to note that BF never intended this as an exploration of a healthy 24/7 Dom/sub relationship. Nick and Steven are flawed and their relationship can be toxic, but I think most of us are reading to see if their relationship can realistically form into something more healthy.
So, there is something known as CNC, or consensual non-consent, and it can be present in a healthy relationship if it has been prenegotiated - I feel like Nick (though in not so many words) believes this is how their relationship works. "What Nick says goes," and Nick believes this entitles him to sex from Steven at any point, whether he agrees or not. Normally, this would be considered rape (also just fyi, this can occur between married couples, and is known as marital rape) - a surprising number of vanilla couples, particularly traditional-minded and/or religious ones, believe it's a wife's duty to have sex with her husband at his discretion - with Nick's preoccupation with wanting a "housewife," I wouldn't be surprised if he subscribed to this ideology.
Ultimately, this all goes back to Nick and Steven's lack of proper communication regarding their relationship. It was immoral of Nick to take advantage of Steven while he was so emotionally amd financially vulnerable - not to mention heinous of him to actually kidnap Steven and sexually torture him in the first place, but look - it's unlikely Steven will leave Nick or even consider what he did to be rape. So what we need to give Steven even a somewhat happy ending is to promote more honest communication, as well as putting Nick closer to more positive influences like Zack. Steven's current actions suggest he's taking back some of his own power and now might be a great time for actual communication, negotiation, and consent to be had.
I just have to say, I'm actually really worried about meeting Nick's dad. Because Nick had to learn that his behavior is okay from somewhere, right? I just wonder what kind of man Mr. Hoffman really is and how he treats his own partner.
) I could have actually said that I grew a beard in my absence! 
) this time I agree with him. The whole kidnapping was a very traumatizing experience for him, and so I sympathies with his fear and agree with his anger. He has every right to be stubborn about it and give Nick the biggest cold shoulder. And I also connect with him on a personal level when he said that he found it hard to not even cuddle up to Nick in bed at night. Had I been in his place and had Zack been Nick I too would have been grumpy about what happened; yet I'd also need a protective ( or even over-protective ) hulk to make me feel safe, regardless of the carelessness, and craziness he had shown earlier. Maybe just get close to him, place myself between those tree-trunk thighs but specify that: " I'm still angry!". But that's already fan fiction 
*faints*
. The only option that works for me, is being Nick's friend/buddy. Nothing wrong with it though as that would hopefully mean I get to partake in the binding of his captive(s) 
