***
Derek and Kelli had plans to spend the next day with Phil and Lisa at the zoo. The guys thought it would be a good way for the girls to relax and enjoy themselves after their grueling week of final exams. It worked, for the most part. Phil and Lisa had a wonderful, relaxed time, and Derek and Kelli enjoyed themselves, as well, but for Kelli, especially, it wasn't as relaxing as she would have liked.
More than once Kelli became quiet, and Derek could tell she was deep in thought. He usually left her to her thoughts, knowing what she was thinking about. One time when she had wandered off from the other three a little ways, he came up behind her and put his arms around her waist as he whispered into her ear, "Thinking about tonight, honey?"
She surprised him by quickly turning into his chest, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Yes," she assured him. "This is awful. It's all I've been able to think about all day." He looked down and saw her eyes were full of unshed tears.
He glanced over at Phil and Lisa, who had gone on to the next exhibit. He took out his phone and called Phil. "Hey, buddy, you guys go on ahead. We're going to hang back a few minutes."
"Everything okay?"
Derek heard the concern in his voice and quickly assured him, "Yeah, we're fine. Kelli just has something on her mind and we're going to talk a little while."
Phil chuckled and said, "I don't know what she did now, but you better actually just talk this time, Derek. You're in public, remember."
Now it was Derek's turn to chuckle as he assured his friend, "We are seriously going to talk, nothing more. We'll meet back up in a little while. Thanks."
He gave Kelli a little squeeze. "Okay, tell me what you're thinking."
"Do you mean besides the fact that I'm really sore now, and I'm scared of another one tonight?"
"Yes, I mean besides that. Have you given any thought as to why you're going to be hurting even more tonight?"
"Yes," she said quietly, eyes lowered.
Pulling her chin up to look at him, he asked, "And what thoughts have you had?"
"I feel terrible. I embarrassed you last night with my mouth, and I'm really sorry for that. You've been absolutely wonderful to me, and I never meant to embarrass you."
Derek saw her struggling to keep back the tears in her eyes, and he pulled her into him for a hug. "Thank you, sweetheart. Remember, you also made me very proud of you last night, too. Not too many people would have tried to help that lady, but you did. I was very proud to hold you in my arms as they thanked you for your help."
She smiled, but it was a sad smile. "I'm glad, but you're right. I embarrassed you first, and if you wouldn't have been able to prove my case, their first impression of me would have been the only impression they had."
Phil was glad to hear her saying these things. He knew that she had indeed been thinking about it, just as he'd hoped, even if it was a realization that didn't make her proud of herself. "Have you had any other thoughts?"
"Yes," she said rather reluctantly. "You're right about starting a new job as a professional. I'll never even get a chance to prove myself if my language keeps me from getting hired." Phil gave her a warm smile, and a gentle kiss to her forehead.
She continued, "And my temper. I didn't even realize it, but I did have a temper tantrum last night. I was mad because it wasn't fair that they were blaming me. I thought I did something good. I was just reacting to what I thought was them mistreating me."
Derek started to say something, but she continued, "This morning while we were walking, I saw a little girl who picked up a stone and was looking at it. Her brother took the stone from her and put it in his pocket, laughing. She pushed her brother and knocked him down, and it cut his knee. While their mom looked after the boy's knee, the dad scolded the little girl. She was upset at being scolded, and jerked free of her dad's hand and stomped away, arms crossed in front of her."
"Did he let her get away with it?"
"No. He went over to her and pulled her behind some bushes and spanked her. They came back out to join the mom and her brother a few minutes later, and she was crying. I left and didn't see what happened after that, but it dawned on me, last night I was a grown up version of that little girl. When he took her stone, instead of confronting him or their parents, she went off on a temper tantrum and pushed him. That obviously just made matters worse. Then again when her dad talked to her, if she would have talked to him, instead of having another tantrum, it would have ended totally differently."
Derek nodded and said, "It probably would have."
"I had a temper tantrum last night, didn't I?"
"Yes, you did."
"Thinking about it, I guess that's how I've handled several things."
With his eyebrows raised, Derek asked, "And how did it work out for you?"
"About like it did for the little girl. It made things worse." She looked at him, and her face turned red as she said, "But until lately I never got in trouble for it."
He smiled and pulled her in a little tighter against him and said, "But now you do."
"Yeah, now I do," she murmured. "Like last night, and again tonight."
"But I'm proud of the changes I've seen in you, and I hope you are, too, honey."
"I am," she assured him. "Thank you."
"You better wait until after tonight, and see if you still want to thank me."
She saw the smile on his face, and had to smile in return. "Yeah, maybe I better."
He held her for another minute, before asking, "Are you ready to go find Phil and Lisa?"
She nodded and they left, hand in hand, to meet back up with their friends.
The four of them spent all day at the zoo, having a wonderful time. Derek caught Kelli deep in thought a couple more times, but let her think things through on her own. He knew now she was giving it the thought he hoped she would when he gave her a day to contemplate her spanking.
After dinner they went to Phil and Kelli's apartment and visited a little while. Before long, Kelli grew quiet and distracted, and when she looked at him with the saddest eyes he'd ever seen, Derek gave her a little nod, and stood. "It's been a lovely day, but if you'll excuse us, I'm taking Kelli to my apartment. When we weren't yet officially a couple, as her probation officer I had no logical excuse to take her to my home. Now that that's finally changed, it's time she sees where I live."
Phil and Lisa both looked at Kelli with sorrow. Lisa got up and went to Kelli and hugged her. "Remember what you told me, Kelli. Hang in there."
Kelli looked at her friend and whispered, "I will. Thank you." She bravely raised her chin and told Derek, "Okay, I'm ready."
Phil gave her a hug and quietly said, "I am really proud of you, you know."
Kelli gave him a weak smile and said, "Thanks."
Derek looked at the three of them and asked, "What am I missing?"
Phil told him, "There's no secret among friends, Derek. We all know Kelli's getting another spanking tonight."
Derek was obviously surprised. He looked at Kelli and said, "I never said a word to either of them, Kelli. Honest."
"I know, and I also know you never would, and I appreciate that. I told them this morning before you got here." His eyes went directly to Lisa, and Kelli knew what he was thinking, and answered his question for him. "Lisa was upset last week and wanted to talk. It seems she occasionally has a problem with her temper and her attitude, and Phil threatened to spank her for it."
Phil interjected, "I don't know what it is with parents who can't seem to correct little girls when they're growing up. I think I know why these two hit it off so well."
Derek studied Phil a few seconds. "So when we talked about a week ago, you were considering it. Did you—"
"I told her one night when she was being a real brat that if she had another tantrum like that I was going to spank her. She was outraged, and I suggested to her that she talk to Kelli. Two days later she said she had talked to Kelli, and was thinking it over. She said she wasn't ready to accept
that in a relationship yet, but she was thinking about what Kelli and I both had said. Later that night the little brat appeared again, and I decided I'd help her make up her mind. I got her over my knee, and after a fairly mild spanking, she sat on my lap while we talked. The rest is history."
Phil had pulled her onto his lap while he related that story, and while she hid her face in his shoulder while he told it, she looked over at Kelli when he finished and said, "And Kelli was right. It hurts and it's awful at the time, but when you hold me afterward and tell me that I'm forgiven, and I don't feel all that guilt anymore, it's not quite so bad. And it does make me think the next time I start doing it again. She looked back to Phil. "Like Kelli said, though, the best part is that I know you're looking out for me."
Derek kissed Kelli on the cheek and looked back to Lisa. "Kelli told you that?"
Lisa smiled and said, "In almost those exact words."
Derek looked at all three of them and said, "Thank you for sharing that. Kelli, are you ready to go see my apartment?"
She sighed and said, "I'm ready to see your apartment, and I'm ready for this to finally be over, so let's go."
It was a quiet trip to Derek's apartment. Kelli wasn't too talkative, and he didn't push her. When they got there, she was impressed with his apartment from the moment she walked in the door. He gave her a tour, and she told him, "I really like this, Derek, and it suits you perfectly."
"I'm happy with it," he agreed. "Let's get this over with, Kelli, so we can enjoy what's left of this evening." She nodded, and he led her to his couch. He sat down and positioned her in front of him, between his knees. He unfastened her jeans and pulled them down to her knees, and quickly tugged her down across his knee.
Her upper body was again lying on the couch, and he handed her a pillow. She looked at him questioningly, and he explained his thought. "The walls are thinner here. If you want to scream, scream into the pillow." She nodded, and grabbed onto the pillow.
He gently slipped his fingers under the waistband of her panties and pulled them down, as well. He could easily see the pink from the night before, and knew it was still tender. Laying his hand on her bare bottom, he said, "Kelli, tell me why we're here, why you're getting spanked tonight."
She took a deep breath and said, "Because I had a temper tantrum last night when there was a misunderstanding, and instead of politely explaining my story to the policemen, who might have believed me and helped me prove it, I decided to cuss them out, so they thought awful of me and believed the men who were lying, but doing it politely."
Derek smiled a little at that, and patted her bottom lightly and said, "That was a good observation, honey."
She continued, "And by doing that I put you in a bad situation, but you stood up for me anyway, even after I made a fool of myself in front of the officers that you knew, and you went out and got the proof I needed. I know you had to have been embarrassed of me, but you hugged me in front of them anyway."
She started crying, and he told her, "You're right, honey, I was embarrassed about your behavior then. I won't lie about that. But I was extremely proud of you when I gave them the evidence that proved you were not the one in the wrong."
"Thank you." She was crying harder now, but she struggled to pull herself together enough to say, "This is also because I ignored my safety again. I've thought about that today, too, and I realized that even though I knew I couldn't let that guy get away with hurting that lady, I could have gone about it differently."
Derek smiled, proud of her. "How could you have done things differently?"
"Well, I should have yelled, called attention to him. I could have chased him, but if I would have yelled for someone to help, stop this man, he stole a lady's purse, someone might have helped me. I know that people would have at least noticed us, and would have seen he was holding a lady's purse and running from me. Someone probably would have called 911 and gotten an officer out there sooner, too."
"Kelli, I can see you've put a lot of thought into this, and I'm glad."
"I had to," she whispered. "It's all I could think about all day."
He smiled a little at her words. "And that was just what I was hoping. I'm sorry it kind of ruined your day at the zoo, but I thought it was important that you give this some serious thought, and I'm glad to see you did. Let me ask you one more thing; do you deserve this spanking, Kelli?"
She cried harder again as she quietly answered him sincerely. "Yes."
"Then show me you mean that by accepting this punishment. Don't fight me tooth and nail like you usually do. I know this is going to hurt because you're still tender from last night, but if you're serious about deserving it, accept it without all the fuss. You can yell or scream if you have to, but remember to use the pillow."
He gave her a few seconds to come to grips with what he just said, then started the spanking. He didn't put a lot of force behind the spanks since he knew she would definitely feel them on an already sore bottom. She flinched with each one, but he could tell she was trying to accept it without all the wriggling and squirming he usually saw from her. He picked up the tempo a little, and put just a little more force into each one, and she started yelling her ows into her pillow.
He didn't talk as much as he usually did during a spanking, because it was obvious she'd already done a lot of thinking. This spanking would drive home his point, but since she'd already thought things through, he mainly wanted to release her of her guilt. She was struggling now, trying to stay as still as she could, yelling into the pillow. He put slightly more force into each swat now, and concentrated on the tender spot between her bottom and her thighs. He wanted her to think about these spankings for the next couple days, and he felt sure that would do it.
She was now promising to try harder next time, and screaming with every swat. She was trying not to move too much, but she was starting to lose that battle. She was squirming more and more, and he knew it was an unconscious attempt to avoid the pain. He knew how much she had to be hurting now, and brought the spanking to an end. He rubbed her back gently, and quietly told her it was over, although he doubted she heard him over her sobs.
He kept rubbing her back, and when she calmed enough to start breathing regularly again, he pulled her gently to his lap, and smiled as she grabbed his shirt and cuddled into his chest, her head resting against it like it belonged there. He rested his chin on her head and just held her for a while. As she calmed some, he ran his fingers through her hair and whispered assurances into her ear. "It's all over, honey. I forgive you, and I love you."
She clutched his shirt even tighter and whispered, "I love you, too, Derek." She looked up at him, and was surprised to see a tear streaming down his face. She wiped it away as he handed her his hankie, and they smiled at each other. "You're crying," she said, more as a question.
"Kelli, I hate hurting you like that. If I didn't love you, I'd never be able to do it. I keep having to remind myself that I know it's what you need, but it's still hard, especially when I have to be as harsh as I did these last two nights. I know you're really sore now, and I hate knowing that I'm the one who caused it. I just hope you know how much I love you."
Her tears came harder now, but for a different reason. She looked into his eyes and said, "I see now how hard that is for you, but thank you for loving me enough to do it. No one else ever has."
Derek hugged her tighter and said, "Well, I do. And I'll keep loving you, and spanking you when you need it." Chuckling a little, he added, "Just please don't make me love you that much too many times."
"I'll try not to, believe me," she said, rubbing her bright red bottom.
Derek kissed her and said, "Now that we're a couple and I'm no longer going to be your probation officer, there's a different kind of spanking I'd much rather give you, but only if you can behave yourself."
She looked at him with a look of total confusion. "A different kind of spanking? But only if I can behave? What are you talking about? I thought a spanking
is a spanking, and they hurt. Why would I want to behave if that's what I'd have to look forward to?"
He smiled and kissed her hair. "Trust me, little girl, there's another kind of spanking, and you'll like this kind."
She looked at him doubtfully. "If it involves your hand smacking my butt, I don't know how I'd enjoy it."
"You'll just have to trust me," he said with a smile, "and behave." When she looked doubtful, he said, "You'll see sometime. For now, though, are you okay?" She nodded.
They enjoyed the rest of the evening, with her perched on his lap and cuddled into his arms. When he took her home, Phil and Lisa were gone. Derek kissed her good night and left, and she headed for her bedroom.
Ten minutes later, Phil got home. He knocked on her bedroom door. "Are you home, Kelli?"
She emerged from her room, wearing her pajamas and a bathrobe. "I just got back a few minutes ago," she said. "You took Lisa home?"
"Yeah," he nodded, and hesitated a minute before asking, "Can we talk a minute, or are you tired?"
"No, we can talk," she said, going into the living room. She looked around at her choice of chairs or couch, and grimaced as she carefully sat in the softest chair there.
Phil grinned at her. "A little sore?"
She smiled and said, "No, a lot sore."
"Are you okay?"
She narrowed her eyes as she looked at him. "Of course I'm okay. I can't believe you're asking me that. Derek's your best friend. You should know he'd never hurt me."
Phil smiled. "I know that, but it's good to hear that you know it, too."
She returned his smile and settled into the chair. "Okay, I see what you're saying. But why did you ask me if I'm okay then?"
"When Derek and I talked the other week, before I spanked Lisa the first time, he said it's important to make sure the lady is okay afterwards. He said that physically she'll be fine, a little sore, but nothing physically wrong that needs attention. Emotionally, though, is what you should worry more about."
On Probation Page 15