Chapter 1 - The arrival

I had never met anyone with as much influence as Vittoria Venezia. She was gorgeous, insanely smart, and unbelievably wealthy. When she approached me, I never would have dreamed that this was where I’d end up. Truth be told, I never would have dreamed that she’d approach me in the first place.
Vittoria was strange. I had no idea who she was, or what she did, but everyone else seemed to. So when she approached me at the company party and quite bluntly told me that I could use some meat on my bones, I was a little taken aback. I knew of her, but only vaguely. I’d seen her face on ads around the building, and I’d heard her name murmured nearly everywhere, but had no real understanding of her outside of that. She seemed to be built perfectly to my standards, which I felt was odd. Her breasts were modest, and her small waist blossomed out into deliciously wide hips and thick thighs. The tight dress she wore left little to the imagination, but a chunky blazer covered most of the indecent bits. The shape of her nose hinted at her Italian roots, and I focused on it intensely as she leaned in close.
“I have a proposition for you, and if you want to talk about it in private then come to my office.” She said, and leaned back just as quick as she’d leaned in. I was baffled. Left speechless. Saying no didn’t feel like an option, so I stammered and let her grab my wrist and drag me into her office. It was a floor above the company party, and her eyes bore holes into me in the deafening silence of the elevator. When we got to her office, she sat me down and got to it.
“I want you to be the subject of a nutritional experiment of mine.” She said simply. At my silence, she continued. “All you’ll have to do is reside in one of my luxury properties and abide by the nutritional plan laid out for you. You’ll be provided with all of the creature comforts, of course. Whatever your little heart desires.” As this strange woman droned on, listing anything anyone could ever want in a life without work, I found myself only growing more confused.
“Um. Miss Venezia?” I spoke timidly. “Why exactly… me?”
“Oh Mr. Davies,” She laughed. “I find you quite cute, honestly.”

As odd as I found Vittoria’s request, I soon found the two of us standing in the front hall of a staggeringly opulent house. It was an imposing thing, with large televisions in every room, an extra bedroom with its own ensuite, an enormous kitchen, and all sorts of tech scattered about that made me feel rather paranoid. But all in all, it was a lovely place. Felt more like a hotel than a home.
I made my way to the main bedroom and unpacked. It was huge, with a bed that looked like it had to at least be a California King. A mini fridge had been placed on one of the night stands by it, and there was what looked like a call button, like you’d have in a hospital, on the other night stand. I stared at it curiously for a moment before moving my attention back to my duffel bag. I’d been instructed to travel light, as apparently most things would be provided for me. My cell had already been surrendered to Vittoria upon entry, and the ride to the place was nothing short of beautiful. Trees and greenery all around us. It did mildly worry me that I was to be living somewhere that seemed to be in a sparsely occupied area, but I was reassured that I wouldn’t be totally disconnected from civilization.
Vittoria offered me a tour, and I focused on the sharp click of her heels against the hall tile as she walked. There weren’t many separate areas to the place, its open concept made it feel very wide and grand. The kitchen, living and dining areas were all vaguely separated in the same space. The kitchen was massive and already stocked full of all sorts of foods and the latest appliances. The dining room was less a dining room and more of an extension of the living room, with sofas placed around a tall coffee table instead of chairs around a dining table. The living room itself was a sight to see. Tall ceilings gave way to tall windows, a massive television wall-mounted in front of a sofa with seats so large, I was sure I could scoot all the way back and have my feet not touch the ground. Surround sound speakers were mounted in the corners of the room, and I could see a multitude of game consoles lined up on the shelf under the TV. There was even an infinity pool just off the back deck, and an entire library complete with double doors and full floor to ceiling shelves..
The last thing Vittoria showed me was the main ensuite. We walked back into my room, and she slid open the pocket door to the bathroom smoothly. A wide double vanity lined the wall closest to the door, and further in was an enormous inlaid tub, and a massive walk-in shower. The wall opposite the tub was entirely made of mirrors, and the adjacent wall housed the door to an incredible walk-in closet. That closet alone could have been the size of my bedroom back home.
I wasn’t sure how to feel, having a little trouble taking everything in, and Vittoria seemed to notice that. She ghosted a perfectly manicured hand across the small of my back and led me back to the bedroom. I sat on the edge of the bed, not sure what else to do.
“So, what do you think?” She asked. Her tone was light, but careful. I looked up at her and she appeared to be calculating something in her head. I took a breath, and spoke carefully, trying to sort out my thoughts.
“It’s… insane.” I laughed. “Not in a bad way, just… it’s strange. Is this really going to be my life for the next year?” Vittoria’s contract stated that I was to be engaged in this program for exactly 365 days. An entire year away from my friends and family, living a more decadent lifestyle than I ever could have imagined. All I was supposed to do was abide by the instructions given to me, and I would get $500,000. It felt too good to be true, even now. But Vittoria Venezia was a woman of her word, and our contract was binding. I hadn’t thought about the idea of breaking it, backing out, until she’d explained it to me unprompted. If I, at any point, decided that I did not want to continue the experiment, I would have to pay back the cost of all resources used for the portion of the experiment I was a part of. Whether that meant paying the sum in cash, or in work. And given how much money I was being offered to see this through, I really didn’t think I’d be indebting myself anytime soon.
“I will be around.” Vittoria smiled. She reached into the pocket of her skirt and handed me a slim smart phone. It was not my own. “This is to reach myself, and other assistance should you need it. It also can act as a remote for any one of the televisions in this house. As per the contract, there are no social media apps on it, nor can you download them. All activity will be tracked, so we will be aware if you try to contact anyone outside of what’s permitted.” She reminded me of the basics of our contract and told me to get some rest. The next day would officially be Day 1 for all of us, and she wanted me to be ready.
I took another look around my room and put up the few clothes I had brought. There was a fresh toothbrush and tube of toothpaste in the bathroom for me, so I brushed my teeth and slipped into the well-worn pair of pajama pants I’d brought with me. I checked the mini fridge by the bed and pulled out a bottle of water. Sitting with my back against the headboard of the bed, I found the phone’s remote app and got into Netflix. Each TV had been labelled for me, and pretty much every streaming service was at my disposal. This was going to be strange, but I couldn’t deny how nice it felt to just relax.