The Curious Kinky Person’s Guide to Fifty Shades Darker: Chapter 8

False alarm. They settle into the apartment. And Ana dozes off by herself, only to wake with a glimpse of a Dark, Shadowy Figure staring at her, who Mysteriously Vanishes. She does not, of course, tell anybody about this. (Bet you she’d go down into the basement alone in a horror movie.)

Instead, she has another cutesy-couple talk with Christian. Yet another Christian-Ana tryst interrupted by the realization that the balcony door is open, and somehow Leila got into Christian’s penthouse. Ana has the temerity to ask if they are overreacting slightly, despite what she knows and has seen. This is one of those moments when Christian is being sensible and Ana acts like a dim-witted child.

Another example of just how materialist this story is that Ana doesn’t quite grasp a threat to her person, but seeing the damage inflicted on her car is what makes her realize she’s in danger.

We also learn that Christian buys the same particular make and model of car for all his submissives, on the ground that it is one of the safest cars in its class. This makes me wonder if Christian’s previous relationships were not so much Dom/sub as just plain sugar-daddy/sugar-baby. In fact, why didn’t he just hire sex workers? He’s used to controlling people with money anyway.

On the run, they have another relationship talk. Christian says he has finally acknowledged that Ana is not submissive, even though he has given her the same gifts and such as his submissives. Ana is still insecure.

He sighs heavily, closing his eyes for a moment, and for the longest time he doesn’t answer. “You cannot begin to understand the depths of my depravity, Anastasia. And it’s not something I want to share with you.”

This is a troubling suggestion that Christian has a streak of self-hatred related to his kink.

As they hide out in another luxury suite in another hotel, Christian marvels that Ana hasn’t run off because of this mess. She hasn’t asked any pertinent questions about Leila either, such as why she’s gone off the deep end.

Back to the vanilla sex. Don’t these people ever get tired? I can only conclude that they’re both getting off on the danger. This time, Ana’s on top, as much as she’s capable of.

Not only does the doctor Christian chose makes house calls, she makes house calls to hotels where her clients are hiding. There’s a pregnancy scare that doesn’t add anything to the story, except to show that on some level Ana is still afraid of Christian. “I think I’d tolerate any number of strange women standing at the end of my bed rather than confess to Christian that I might be pregnant.”

In the shower, they dance on the edge of Christian’s safe zone. Ridiculously, Ana assures Christian that he’s “easy to love,” and even cites Leila and Elena as people who love him. It suggests just how warped Ana’s notion (and therefore this book’s notion) of love is, that she cannot separate it from jealousy, obsession or control, which is why she can’t articulate the difference between Christian’s affection and his jealous, controlling and obsessive ways.

And here’s the money shot, the steel-hard man finally liquefying, the  “wounded man fetish”, Ana’s passive sadism at work:

He gazes down at me, his eyes wide and panicked, and all we can hear is the steady stream of water as it flows over us in the shower.
“You love me,” I whisper.
His eyes widen further and his mouth opens. He takes a huge breath as if winded. He looks tortured—vulnerable.

“Yes,” he whispers. “I do.”