“Sex dolls offer therapeutic benefits, not just sex,” says romance consultant Angie Ang

Sitting upright, Angie Ang swivels in her chair to face me. “Yes, I'm aware that sales of sex dolls have spiked because of the COVID pandemic.”  Her sideways glance offers a teasing flutter of eyelashes above small eyes. “I read it in Forbes dot com.”  She stretches out one shapely leg shod in a white pump straight. “Another news portal reported that a China sex-doll maker had doubled their exports to Japan, USA and Europe last year.”  

“The need for sexual release during a lockdown.” With some effort, I tear my gaze from her killer legs to her smooth porcelain-like face.  “Well, pandemic or no pandemic, men always want sex, it seems. When they can’t do it with a real woman, they do it with a sex doll."

I dart my gaze out the glass window of her office to the city skyline and back to her face in a flash.  

“A sex doll is not necessarily for sex. In an online survey, Durham University found that sex dolls offered therapeutic benefits to their owners.” Her eyes narrow, as if revealing a secret. “Such as companionship and lessening of depression and anxiety. That’s why a sex doll is also called a love doll.”

 I cross my legs at the knees. “Who were the researchers?”

 

“Mitchell Langcaster-James and Gillian R Bentley. The results were published in Robotics, 2018 issue. The men have dinner with their dolls, watch TV with them and even talk to them, fantasizing replies mentally. They even buy lingerie for them, like a girl dressing up a Barbie doll.  Other men own sex dolls for creative photography, nothing more.”

The air-conditioner sweeps the scent of jasmine from her perfume to me and I try not to sniff the air like a wolf. “Do you think a sex doll has a role in romance?”

“Well, the owner – if he’s a nervous dude -- can practise pick-up lines on her. Or rehearse a witty conversation with the doll before chatting with a real-life babe so he won’t stutter. Not all sex-doll owners are sickos. There's a case of a man in China whose wife died in a car accident. He missed her so much, he ordered a customised doll that looked exactly like his late wife by supplying the factory with her photos. That’s love…” Angie’s eyes soften before she gives me a perky smile.  “Another case concerns a rich man’s son in Korea. He ordered several dolls modelled after his favourite K-pop singers. In Ringgit terms, a premium sex doll made of silicon – which looks very realistic -- can set you back fifteen thousand and more. So, another reason for sex doll-ownership is to have the woman you can’t have, sort of.” 

“Heard of sex-doll brothels? They’re increasingly popular. A sex doll doesn’t have an attitude, doesn’t mind that her client is fat or ugly or old.”

“Of course.”  Angie grins, her white teeth twinkling as much as her eyes. “Two years ago, police in Shenzhen shut down Ai Ai Land, a sex-doll brothel. The news report’s on caixinglobal dot com.” Mischief curls on her lips as she tugs the hem of her skirt down. “Maybe bordoll dot de may interest you more!”   She shoots me a smile sealed with sass.  “It’s the website of a sex-doll brothel.”  

My chuckle bounces off the office walls. 

Angie slips off her pumps and hikes her feet on her chair, almost exposing her panties in my field of vision. “Sex dolls are nothing new, actually.”  She hugs her lower legs with both hands, the creamy complexion of her thighs gleaming under the overhead lights. 

My pulse takes off in a sprint while my heart near pumps out of my chest.

“Roman poet Ovid,” continues Angie, “wrote in his poem Metamorphoses about Pygmalion who was a sculptor.  This bloke fell in love with his statue which he named Galatea. He beseeched to Goddess Aphrodite to grant him a wish that his future wife would look like his statue. His wish was granted and Galatea turned into a woman, whom he married.”   

 My gaze flicks out the window to an azure sky tufted with clouds and down to the roads below. “The traffic has cleared. Better make a move.” I rise from my chair and flop a hand in the air on my way to the door. “Thanks for the chat. So long, Angie.”

/end