[Modern Family] Ch: 53 [The Magic Fingers Experiment] (Patreon)

AN: I went into details. Penny deserves it. Couldn't help it lol. Also, a cliff at the end. I'll release the next part as soon as possible. 😬🫡👍

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[Ten Minutes Later] 

Jason stood in the living room, finishing the last of his wine while listening to Penny moving around in her bedroom. She'd gone inside her room nearly ten minutes earlier after accepting his offer, though she'd made it clear that she expected something considerably better than a few halfhearted shoulder rubs.

He'd heard drawers opening, the bathroom faucet running, and what sounded like Penny dropping something onto the floor.

Then her voice came from the bedroom.

"Okay, handsome, get in here! I'm ready when you are!"

Jason placed his empty glass on the coffee table and stood up. He took a deep breath before walking toward her bedroom, suddenly feeling a little nervous.

'Okay, Jason. You've read all kinds of massage books just for this day. You know what you're doing. Just don't act like an idiot.'

He pushed the door open...

...and immediately forgot half of his reassuring thoughts.

Penny was lying on her stomach across the bed, completely naked except for a white towel draped over her butt. Her blonde hair had been gathered loosely over one shoulder, leaving her neck and back exposed. A couple of pillows supported her head, and a small bottle of almond oil sat on the bedside table.

Jason stopped in the doorway.

'Jesus Christ. She's gorgeous.'

His body responded immediately, leaving him with an inconvenient boner and a sudden appreciation for the fact that Penny was facing the opposite direction.

Penny turned her head slightly when he didn't say anything. "Hello? Earth to Jason? It's a one-bedroom apartment, how'd you get lost?"

Jason cleared his throat and finally stepped inside. "Sorry. Just taking a moment to appreciate how seriously you're taking this appointment."

Penny laughed and settled her cheek against the pillow again. "Well, you talked a pretty big game out there, mister. Let's see if you actually have magic fingers or if you're just full of it."

Jason walked toward the bedside table and picked up the bottle of almond oil. "I never brag. Give me thirty seconds and you can judge for yourself."

"Just so you know," Penny warned, shifting slightly to get comfortable. "My friend Christy had a two-for-one coupon to this super fancy spa in Beverly Hills once, and this huge Swedish lady practically turned my bones into Jell-O. So that's what you're up against."

"Big Swedish lady. Got it. Pretty high bar."

"Yep. So bring your A-game."

Jason smiled and climbed onto the bed beside her, careful to leave enough room for himself to work comfortably. He placed the bottle within reach, then rubbed his palms together.

"Before we start, any sore spots or injuries I should know about?" He asked.

Penny considered the question. "Ugh, my shoulders are always killing me after a double at The Cheesecake Factory. Oh, and my feet. Seriously, whoever decided waitresses shouldn't be allowed to sit down for eight hours needs to be hit with a tray."

"Shoulders and feet. Got it. Tell me if anything feels uncomfortable or if I'm pressing too hard."

"Yes, Doctor. Now less talking, more rubbing."

Jason laughed and poured a little almond oil into his palm.

He warmed it between both hands before placing them gently on Penny's upper back. He began with long, slow strokes, moving from her shoulders toward the middle of her back and returning along the sides.

The oil spread easily across her skin, allowing his hands to glide without pulling or dragging.

Penny released a small, surprised breath.

"Oh... okay, yeah, that's actually really nice."

"I've barely even started."

"Hey, I'm giving you positive reinforcement here. Take the compliment or I'll withhold your tip."

"Fair enough. I am working for a five-star Yelp review."

Penny laughed into the pillow while Jason continued working.

After several passes, he shifted his attention toward her shoulders. He could feel how tense the muscles were, particularly around the upper trapezius, where stress and poor posture often caused soreness.

He began kneading the muscle with the heels of his palms, alternating between gentle compression and small circular motions. Once the area loosened slightly, he used his thumbs to apply controlled pressure along the muscles beside her neck.

Penny immediately made a pleased sound.

"Mmm... oh yeah, right there..."

Jason smiled. "Found a sore spot?"

"Oh, God, yes. Do not move from that spot."

He slowed down and worked carefully around the knot, gradually increasing the pressure as the muscle relaxed. He avoided pressing directly against her spine, concentrating on the surrounding muscle instead.

Penny's shoulders gradually sank toward the mattress. 'Okay, he definitely wasn't full of it. Holy crap, that feels amazing.' She thought. She'd been prepared for Jason to rub some oil across her back, tell her she looked beautiful, and spend the next twenty minutes trying to kiss her.

Instead, he was treating the whole thing like an actual massage.

And he was surprisingly good at it.

Jason moved toward her neck, supporting the side of her head gently with one hand while the other worked along the muscles beneath her skull. He used small, steady circles near the base of her neck before returning to the shoulders.

Penny's breathing slowed.

"God, I didn't even know my neck was that tight," She whispered.

"You spend half your working day carrying trays, looking down at customers, and turning around whenever somebody calls you," He replied.

"Ugh, don't remind me," Penny murmured. "I had this lady yesterday who sent her iced tea back three times because the ice cubes were 'too aggressive.' Like, what does that even mean?"

Jason laughed as he moved down toward her shoulder blades, using the flats of his palms to work across the broad muscles of her upper back. Whenever he encountered a particularly tense area, he slowed down and used alternating pressure with his thumbs.

His movements remained measured and consistent.

There was something satisfying about figuring out where Penny carried her tension and feeling the muscles gradually become less resistant beneath his hands.

His enhanced ability to absorb information certainly helped, and performing them now felt remarkably natural. 'It's almost like my hands remember things after I understand them once.' He thought.

Penny interrupted his thoughts with another contented sound. "Mmm... please tell me you're not stopping anytime soon."

Jason replied, "Hey, you're the one who brought up the Swedish lady. I have a point to prove."

"Well, consider it proven. You officially win."

Jason moved to her right arm, applying a little more oil before working from the shoulder down toward the elbow. He used long strokes over the larger muscles, then reduced the pressure as he approached her wrist. He gently lifted her hand and supported it in his palm, using his thumb to work across the fleshy area beneath her fingers.

Penny flexed her hand experimentally.

"Oh, wow. Is it weird that my hands were sore and I didn't even know it?"

"Not at all. Think about how tight you're gripping heavy plates and coffee pots all shift."

He worked across her palm, carefully loosening each finger, and repeated the process on her other arm.

By the time he finished, Penny had stopped making sarcastic comments every thirty seconds.

That alone felt like a significant accomplishment.

Jason returned to her back, moving gradually downward with broad strokes along either side of her spine. He used the heel of his palm for gentle compression around her lower back, then reduced the pressure as he approached her tailbone.

He stopped there and moved his hands away.

Penny shifted her head slightly.

"Hey, why'd you stop?" She asked.

"Moving down to your legs. You said your feet were killing you, remember?"

"Oh. Right. Sorry, I think my brain just melted a little bit."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

Jason carefully moved toward the foot of the bed, giving Penny enough time to adjust her position. He checked that the towel remained securely in place before pouring a little more oil into his hands.

Then he gently lifted her right foot and began with her heel, supporting her ankle in one hand while using the thumb of his other hand to apply steady pressure across the underside of her foot.

He moved toward the arch, working slowly from the heel toward the ball of the foot.

Penny's reaction was immediate. "Ohhh, sweet baby Jesus..."

Jason paused. "Too much pressure?"

"No, no, don't you dare stop. That hurts so good."

He continued, using short, firm strokes along the arch before switching to gentle circular movements. He worked across the ball of her foot, then carefully stretched her toes.

Penny let her head fall against the pillow. 'Mmm. Okay, this is getting ridiculous. How is one guy this good at everything? I thought the sisters were joking, but guess not.'

She'd spent the morning rushing around her apartment, the afternoon laughing through their date, and the evening trying to decide whether she was ready to take things further with Jason.

Now those concerns seemed very far away.

Her eyelids felt heavy, her shoulders were wonderfully loose, and she was beginning to suspect she'd happily sleep through an earthquake if he kept going.

Jason moved to her other foot and repeated the process, adjusting the pressure whenever Penny reacted to a particularly tender spot.

Once both feet were finished, he worked upward toward her calves.

He applied long strokes from her ankles toward her knees, followed by gentle kneading along the larger calf muscles. When he found a particularly tight section, he supported her leg and used slow, alternating compressions to loosen it.

Penny released another pleased sigh. 

Jason slowly worked higher, using broad, controlled strokes across the backs of her thighs and concentrating on the larger muscles. He maintained a comfortable distance from the towel, since he didn't want to push too much. Her trusting him like this was a big step for their first official date. Now, if he does something stupid, he will definitely get kicked out. Well, unless she gives him a hint that she wants to take this a step further.

Then he returned to her shoulders for a final series of gentle strokes, gradually reducing the pressure until his hands barely skimmed across the skin.

"Alright," he said quietly. "That's your full-body maintenance session completed."

Penny didn't move.

Jason looked toward her face.

Her eyes were closed, her cheek rested comfortably against the pillow, and her breathing had become so slow and even that he wondered whether she'd fallen asleep.

"Penny?"

"Mmm?"

"Still awake?"

"Sadly."

Jason laughed softly. "Sadly?"

"Yeah, 'cause if I was asleep, I wouldn't be mad that you stopped."

He set the almond oil aside.

Penny finally opened one eye and looked toward him. "Okay, seriously, where the hell did you learn to do that?" She asked.

"A little reading, a little practice, and a natural gift for putting women to sleep. Wait! That came out wrong," Jason replied.

Penny slowly stretched her arms before settling back against the pillow.

'Great. He's hot, funny, smart, a great kisser, and he has magic hands, and... I'm horny. This isn't even fair anymore.'

"Well, hate to break it to you, Doctor, but I think you missed a couple spots back there," She said without looking back. 'Take the hint, Jason.'