I believe the premise was that she saved his soul by healing his trauma.

Interesting that you saw the red room as the battlefield. I didn't. I didn't see any fear of virginity in the protagonist either. Also, I doubt readers want to revisit that fear of sex. It really ruins first experiences for women. The fact that Ana doesn't display any sign or hesitation of giving it up, yet she's still a virgin I'm her mid 20s seems to be more of a delivery of rewriting the way thinfs usually go with how they wished it was and more fully appreciate when they're older.

I can see how those already in the kink scene would view it more as you did. Different people aren't going to get the same things from it. From outside the scene, there was a curiosity about how relationships in the scene work. Women are pretty much endlessly fascinated in how and why other people live their lives they say they do. It doesn't follow that that curiosity means they want that life for themselves. It's like trying on clothes. Some things fit and look good. Some things don't. Not everyone has a dark pathology, sexual or otherwise. Not everyone secret yearns to be dominated. Some of us can orgasm quite easily without all the theatrics of being trussed up like a Cbristmas goose. Not everyone enjoys being an object or any of the other stuff you hear coming from the scene.

And that's okay. Both are okay. We don't Al have to follow the same rules or playbooks in life. We just need to be honest and upfront about our desires and intentions with each other and not jerk each other around.

From an outsiders perspective, that's what happened here. They both did it to each other. He set himself up for that fall you described. She didn't manipulate him any more than he did her.

He knew she wasn't part of the scene. He knew she wanted a relationship rather than a time limites sexual contract. He also knew that she was young, naive, and inexperienced. He knew she was a bad fit for what he wanted.

He also knew that having had those things many times over was not satisfying. He had his own dark pathology and I don't mean the sadism. I mean his fear of intimacy and trust issues.

You cannot have real love without trust and a willingness to be intimate beyond fucking.

So. He was attracted to her because she was unspoiled. Fresh territory. Unploughed fields. So he decided to engage in a build a bitch workshop with her that he dangled as a relstionship. A "compromise" to get what he wants without having to truly put himself out there. And he found he really liked the challenge. In the end domination is all just playacting unless there's resistance to it. Christian was no different than Jonas Hill and Keke Palmer's now ex (?). He just mitigated his violence level with BDSM..

I've already been through her manipulation so I won't go over it again.

Neither one of these two were saints or angels. They were both people who lacked impulse control, fooled themselves into thinking ice cream and cookies were their birthright and would be free. Then, to ensure they got that ice cream and cookies they each set out to manipulate the other into being who they wanted them to be.

Funny as hell. It yes, the later two drug so bad.