I peered up hesitantly into my fathers' dark brown eyes and struggled to think of a less offensive way to confess to my naughtiness. He held my eyes captive, his narrowing at mine as he studied my face and awaited my explanation.
"Daddy.....I....umm....." I fought to piece together the sentence. He sighed audibly and turned away from me and began pacing as he spoke in his firm all-business tone of voice. "I can just call the school; I'm sure they will tell me why my little girl is home so early and my calendar has no mention of a teacher workshop today. Yes, I'll just call the school." He stated as he reached into his pocket and took out his cell phone.
"Wait...um, Uncle Nick......don't call the school." Kristina said. Dad turned to again look at her and I and asked again, "Do you ladies have something you'd like to tell me?" I lowered my eyes again, his stare is penetrating. My stomach was in knots as I stood there fidgeting with my skirt. "Yes Sir.....um, Uncle Nick, you can't call the school to ask about the workshop. You see, it's tragic really, but our principal has just been diagnosed with alzheimers so he remembers like nothing. It's a horrible shame, but I guess you'll just have to take our word for it. Okee dokee?" Kristina explained. I spun around, turning my back to my father as I laughed.....almost hysterically.....at her excuse. I hadn't expected an excuse that brazen.......while it was hilarious, I would have *never* said something that obviously smart-assed to my Daddy.
"I see." Dad said as I regained my composure and turned back to face him, still grinning ear to ear at my cousins ridiculous explanation. Dad's eyes immediately pinned me to the desk and my smile quickly faded. He glared at me and slowly approached me. I watched quietly, my eyes not leaving his, but my mind panicking. "Last chance, little girl." Dad warned as he stopped directly in front of me, folding his arms across his broad chest. I took a deep breath and looked at the physically imposing wall that is my father......and I decided I'd better confess before Kristina's mouth made this any worse.
"Daddy there wasn't a teacher workshop today." I quickly mumbled. His eyes seemed to soften briefly, obviously pleased that I was going to tell him the truth. "We gave a note to the school office so we could leave early today Daddy." He sighed and asked, "The school now accepts notes from you to excuse you from classes?" I took a deep breath and looked down at the floor....I couldn't look at his face as I made my next confession. I quickly and very quietly answered, "They do when your signature is on it." I saw his legs quickly approaching me and I closed my eyes tight.....I knew I was toast and I didn't want to see it coming.
"My what, young lady?" He asked. I stood frozen, staring at our feet and remained tight lipped. Daddy grabbed hold of my chin and turned my face to again meet his as he spoke, "MY SIGNATURE???" I closed my eyes tightly and jumped as he yelled at me......my father *very* rarely raises his voice at me and when he does, it scares me. I cautiously peered up at him again, my eyes welling with tears as I searched my fathers' face for softening.....it was not there. He had that determined, grim, steely look on his face and I knew I was going to be a very sorry little girl before this day was done. "I'm sorry Daddy." He nodded his head at me as he turned and began to pace again.
"So you are here, skipping school and you were able to skip without the school calling me because you forged MY signature on a note? Am I right?" I nodded my head. "Why?" He asked. Now ordinarily I would have remained quiet and contrite, accepting my punishment and focusing on showing my father that I truly was sorry......but today, my best friend and cousin was standing right next to me and I couldn't possibly be seen as a repentant little girl......I have an image to uphold......and besides, I was 100% certain that whatever consequences I was facing, would not be handed out with her being here. So.....I was "safe."
"Well Daddy, I didn't feel very good but you leave so early for work and I didn't want to interrupt your classes to have you sign a note so I just did it for you." I stated confidently. "Yeah Uncle Nick....it's morning sickness." Kristina added with a giggle. I slapped her arm and quickly addressed that as my father glared at me, "No daddy....it's not morning sickness, she is a smart ass....but I totally was sick......of school." I bit my bottom lip to fight back the giggles but it was too late......I was laughing hysterically at my smart-assed wit. "You didn't look sick or mention anything to me this morning about not feeling well Natalie.....oh wait, sick of school.....of course, this is so damn humorous, isn't it? Absolutely hysterical that MY daughter thinks she can ditch school, forge my name on her bullshit excuses and then make clever comments to justify her behavior to me in front of her girlfriend.......wait....what's that?" He lectured as he walked to the other side of my dresser. My heart sunk.
"And so the plot thickens...." He said sarcastically as he pulled out the two open cans of beer from beside my television. "Daddy.....I" I began but he slammed the cans onto the desk causing me to jump and he spun and gave me one of those death stares that immediately shuts me up. I froze and immediately lowered my eyes. "I don't want to hear it, young lady. This is just unbelievable." He said as he shook his head. I watched him closely, I knew he was getting very agitated and I knew I was on thin ice. Now my focus was convincing him that I was sorry so I wouldn't be humiliated by being punished in front of my cousin, Kristina.
Dad approached me and I looked down again, needing to escape his piercing gaze. He grabbed a handful of my long, red hair and tugged my head back to raise my face to his as his other hand reached into his pocket and pulled out a stack of papers, lifting them to my vision. My mouth gaped as I saw the papers......several excuses I had written to ditch class over the last several weeks. "Anything else you have to tell me, young lady before I tell you what I know?" He asked. I pouted up at him, my heart racing and my stomach turning. I knew right now I was in more trouble with my father than I had probably ever been and I knew it was time to just fess up and hope he wouldn't mention punishment until my naughty accomplice was gone.
"Daddy when we left school this morning and were on our way home I got stopped on your campus for speeding and I wasn't exactly polite to the officer who stopped me." I spilled out quickly. Kristina, still standing next to me, laughed and added, "Yeah, no we were nowhere close to polite." Dad shook his head and again paced, sighing audibly several times before slapping the forged notes down on the desk top and approaching us again. I glanced at the clock and said, "Um Dad it's 1 o'clock, you've got to get back to work, you have a class at 2pm. I'll hurry and make you a sandwich to take with you." I said as I started to walk away, hoping this would work to get him out of the house and save my bottom for another couple hours at least. He quickly grabbed me by my wrist and pulled me back to him again. "Nope, I've got several important lessons to teach here this afternoon." I glanced nervously up at my cousin, who returned my concerned look.
"So now young ladies.....you skipped school for the 6th time this month with notes that you forged my signature on. You broke into my liquor cabinet and were drinking my beer underage in my house. You were pulled over for speeding and were sassy to the police officer who corrected you. You then, when caught, lie to my face and then when you finally confess you do so with witty sarcasm and seem to find this entire scenario absolutely hilarious. Unfortunately for you....we have very different senses of humor." He scolded. "Now, however, I have a dilemma. What to do. You both deserve to be punished....and you, Natalie Lynn, will be .....but you, Kristina Ann, are not my daughter......so what to do? Shall I call and send you home to your parents?" He asked.
I glanced up at Kristina as she answered my father, "You could call em but they don't care Uncle Nick. I do what I want because they don't care to fight with me." Dad shook his head as he replied, "I see.....that makes sense to me. You see, my daughter is typically a very well behaved young lady because she has been raised right.....however, particularly lately, when you two ladies are together, my little girl gets into trouble. I am not at all surprised that you have no consequences at home, if you did then this wouldn't keep happening. Right?" He asked as he watched Kristina closely. "Yes Uncle Nick." Dad again paced, thinking deeply as I stood nervously fidgeting and clasping my hands inside of one another.
"I have two options right now. I can send you home Kristina, where you have no consequences and ban you from being around my daughter so this sort of thing does not repeat itself. Or.....and perhaps the most fitting in my opinion, is that if you don't want my daughter grounded from you then I will punish you, the same as I do her.....the two of you misbehaved together and can be punished together......then if I am satisfied that you've learned your lessons and can behave appropriately together, then I wont have to ground you from one another right now." He explained. I thought I might throw up.....I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I cautiously glanced up at Kristina, who now looked as nervous as I was but seemed almost curious. "Kristina Ann.....which is it?" Dad asked. I held my breath. "Natalie is my best friend and I can't be kept away from her.....and you're right, we did misbehave together and it wouldn't be fair for only her to be punished so I'd like to be punished with her Uncle Nick." Kristina quietly stated. I felt as if I might faint. I could not believe this!!!
"Okay then. Just last week you ladies got into a fight at school and you were punished for that rather harshly, or so I thought, Natalie Lynn.....but obviously I was not hard enough on you because you didn't learn your lesson and now here we are just a week later and you AGAIN are misbehaving with your cousin." Dad scolded. I pouted up at him and softly asked, "Daddy, can you just ground me for this please?" I was willing to beg for anything at all other than what I knew was going to happen. Dad glared at me and my legs felt as if they might give out as he spoke again, "Shut your mouth, Natalie Lynn. It is NOT your place to negotiate discipline with me, little girl." He barked. I hung my head and started feeling sorry for myself.
"Now, as I was saying, last week you were punished for misbehaving with your cousin, Natalie Lynn. Kristina has no consequences at home so this is probably foreign to her. But in my house, my children have all been raised with discipline and consequences when they misbehave. Natalie has been punished the same way since she was a little girl when she is naughty. Natalie.....look at your cousin and tell her how you are punished when you are a bad girl." Dad instructed. I just wanted to go crawl under a rock and disappear. I peered up at my father, silently pleading for mercy but was met with his penetrating stare that conveyed his resolve and displeasure. I turned to look at Kristina, who met my panicked face with her curious but nervous look. I took a deep breath and softly whispered, "When I'm a bad girl, my Daddy spanks me."
Kristina's face seemed to drain of its color as the word escaped my lips. I was so embarrassed that I had just said that to her. She is my cousin and my best friend but I'd never discussed discipline with her. I wasn't going to admit to any of my friends that at 16, my Daddy still spanks my bottom when I am naughty. Most teenage girls get grounded when they are in trouble......I do, on occasion get grounded, but from the time I was a little girl when I misbehave, my Daddy has *always* spanked me good for it.
"Don't want to change your mind about your two punishment options, Kristina?" Dad asked.....providing her with one last chance to get out of this. I watched Kristina closely and she looked from me back to my father and confidently answered him, "No Uncle Nick. If Natalie is getting spanked then I deserve to be too." I was almost stunned by her calm, cool reaction.......she had *no* idea what she was getting herself into. I, on the other hand, did know. When my Daddy says I am getting a spanking....he means it. Not a couple swats either......when I'm naughty and Daddy punishes me, he makes certain that it is effective......and memorable!
*****************TO BE CONTINUED****************************
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