Leave Me Alone

Leave Me Alone...a “Missy” Story (F/ff, M/f)

We were all sitting at the table for lunch, and giggling and laughing. I thought maybe since everyone was home, we’d have a great afternoon. But I was mistaken. Right after we ate, Daddy announced that he was taking the boys out to do some errands.

“Oh, can I come, too?” I asked.

“No, baby, you stay home with Mommy. These are boy’s errands,” Daddy said, smiling.

Hmmph! He thought he was making a joke. But I wasn’t laughing.

“But what am I gonna do all afternoon?” I asked Mommy after Daddy kissed me, Katie and Debbie good-bye. “Can I invite a friend over?”

“No, Missy. Mommy has stuff to do around the house. I need you to keep your sisters occupied.”

“But I don’t want to keep them occupied. I wanna do something!” I whined.

“Missy! No whining!” Mommy scolded. “Go on, bring your plate in and take the girls with you.”

“Come on, Missy, we can play dress-up,” Katie suggested.

“No, girls. I have things to do upstairs. I want you down here, or even better, outside. Go on, now.”

I brought my plate in and turned to see two pairs of eyes staring up at me. Katie and Debbie were in awe of me. I guess it was okay sometimes, but today I didn’t feel like it.

“Come on, Missy,” Debbie said, beginning to drag me toward the back door. “Let’s go outside to pway.”

“Oh, okay!” I said.

My two little sisters smiled. I followed them outside reluctantly. I really wasn’t in the mood for them. Don’t get me wrong; I loved my little sisters. But sometimes I wanted to be by myself. Sometimes I wanted to hang out with kids my own age. But Mommy said I had to amuse them.

I followed Debbie and Katie outside. I sat on the back door stoop. “Okay, what do you want to do?” I asked, bored.

Katie came over to me and tried to physically turn my frown into a smile. “Smile, Missy,” she said.

She was so cute; I couldn’t help but smile.

“Betta!” she said.

Debbie jumped up. “Hey, I gotta good idea. Let’s do chalk.”

“Okay,” I said. We had a whole area in the backyard that was cement. I guess you could call it the patio. Mommy and Daddy were glad ‘cuz then we could be in the backyard, which was fenced in. We weren’t allowed out front or to leave the yard without permission.

I went to get the chalk. It was in a big bucket. I set it down in front of my sisters. I picked up the pink chalk and started to draw what I always drew: a rainbow.

The two of them just stared at me. “What?” I asked, alarmed. “What’s the matter?”

“Nothin,” Debbie said, “I just yike to watch you.”

“Well, stop watching me, and draw something,” I said, nudging the bucket towards her. At five, she could be so annoying sometimes.

Debbie picked up a pink chalk and started drawing a rainbow too. “Hey!” I said, “Draw something different.”

“But I wanna be just yike you, Missy,” Debbie explained.

“Me too!” Katie said.

She had started to draw a dinosaur but when she saw Debbie making a rainbow like me, she started to do it, too.

I threw my chalk down and stormed away. “I’m sick of this!” I yelled back to them. They just stared at me and then at each other.

Katie jumped up and started after me. “Where you goin, Missy?” she asked, a little scared.

“Yeah, where? Don’t you wanna do chalk wif us?” Debbie asked.

I stopped, turned around and shouted, “NO! I WANNA BE ALONE!”

Then I continued walking til I got to the treehouse. Joey and Billy said it was for boys only. But Daddy said I was allowed in it, if they weren’t using it. But Katie and Debbie weren’t allowed to go in it, unless Mommy or Daddy were around watching them.

I climbed up the ladder, went inside, and sat and sulked. I was so bored. Why couldn’t Mommy let me call one of my friends? I was seven years old. Katie was four and Debbie was five. I needed to be with my own friends. I didn’t feel like playing with them today.

“Missy! Missy!” I heard them calling me from beneath the tree.

“Go away!” I yelled down. “I want to be alone!”

There. That did it. They would go into the house and tell Mommy. But I didn’t care. I didn’t feel like playing with them. I wasn’t old enough to babysit them, after all. Why did Mommy have to be so mean sometimes?

I sat there for a long while. It had gotten really quiet. I looked out the treehouse window and did not see either Katie or Debbie. Good. Maybe they went in the house.

I looked through my brothers’ things. I counted to one hundred. I sang some songs I had learned in school. Then I was bored. I wondered what Katie and Debbie were doing then. Maybe Mommy had given them a snack. I was kind of hungry.

Maybe I would go inside now. The mad feelings were pretty much gone. Yeah, that’s what I’d do. I’d go inside and have a snack and then see if the three of us could watch a video.

I pushed myself out of the treehouse, and put my feet on the ladder to go down. Then I saw something that made me want to jump. Debbie was almost halfway up the ladder.

“Debbie, no!” I yelled.

But she was determined to climb up. “I wanna come up, Missy,” she said. “I wanna be wif you.”

At the bottom, Katie stared. She was too scared to move. I saw that they had brought over the bucket from the chalk. It was turned over and on top of a crate. I realized Debbie must have climbed up to reach the ladder.

“Debbie, you can’t,” I cried. “You’re not allowed! Go back down.”

“No, Missy! I comin up,” she insisted.

I didn’t know what to do. If she came all the way up, she’d get into trouble, and I probably would, too. But then again, I don’t think she could have gotten down now, even if she tried.

Katie was still down at the bottom. She didn’t know what to do. I heard Debbie telling her to come up, also.

“Don’t, Katie,” I yelled down. “Stay on the ground.”

I was relieved when I saw Katie nod. She could be a daredevil, but she usually listened to me. Debbie was still climbing up. I climbed back into the treehouse, turned around, and peeked out.

“Debbie, you have to go back down,” I said. “Mommy’ll be mad.”

“Mommy’ll be mad dat you left us to come up here, Missy. I wanna come up, too.”

I sighed. I still didn’t know what to do. “Oh, okay,” I said. “But as soon as you get up here, we’re both climbing down.”

Debbie let go with one hand. “Why? That not fair,” she said.

“HOLD ON, DEBBIE!” I shouted. I was so scared she was going to fall.

I must have scared her when I screamed, cuz she lost her footing and was holding on with one hand. She started to cry.

“MISSY! I SCARED!” she screamed.

She was scared? I was frightened half to death. The treehouse was pretty high up. I realized now why Mommy and Daddy didn’t want them climbing up here. I looked down and said, “Put your feet back on, Deb. Hold on!”

“I can’ttttttt!” Debbie cried.

I looked down past Debbie and saw Katie at the bottom, crying. “Katie, go get Mommy!” I yelled.

She seemed frozen in her spot. She didn’t know if she should move or not. “GO!” I yelled.

While I waited for her to get Mommy, I climbed back out of the treehouse, and put my foot on the top step. I thought maybe it wasn’t a good idea that we had a rope ladder. I would have to talk to Daddy ‘bout this.

I climbed down almost to where Debbie was. Then I heard Mommy at the bottom.

“Deborah Nicole, what are you doing, young lady?” she called up.

“I hangin’ on, Mommieeee!” she yelled back.

I’m sure Mommy sighed. I couldn’t quite hear the sigh from way up here, but that’s something she would have done.

“Melissa Erin, what is going on?” Mommy called up to me, holding onto the rope to keep it steady. All she could see was that her five-year-old daughter was barely hanging on about three feet up, and that I was making my way down.

“I’m trying to get to her, Mommy!” I cried.

Mommy looked up. Then she told Katie something. Katie was crying, but she nodded. I saw her reach up and take the rope from Mommy. She tried to hold it steady, as Mommy started to climb.

Wow! Mommy was gonna climb the treehouse ladder? I didn’t think Mommy liked heights.

I continued to go down. I was almost to my sister. Debbie was crying. She had managed to put both feet and her other hand onto the ladder again, but was too scared to move.

Mommy reached Debbie at the same time that I did. Mommy grabbed her and told her to hold on. Then the two of them climbed down the ladder. I got to the bottom a few seconds later. Mommy was holding Debbie to her, very tightly.

Debbie was crying hysterically and holding onto Mommy. I jumped to the ground and looked up at Mommy. I wasn’t sure, but had a feeling that maybe I was in trouble.

I went to Debbie. “You okay, sis?” I asked her.

She nodded her head. Mommy just stared at me. She sat down on the ground and pulled Debbie into her lap and held her.

“What were you thinking, Deborah Nicole?” Mommy asked her. “You know not to go up that ladder.”

“I wuz followin Missy. I wanted to be jus yike her, Mommy,” Debbie said, between tears.

Mommy looked over at me. I had sat down on the ground, too, right next to her. I had pulled Katie into my lap and held her, like Mommy was doing with Debbie.

“What?” I asked.

“Melissa, what were you doing up in the treehouse? I thought I asked you to keep your sisters occupied,” Mommy said sternly.

“She was mad,” Katie volunteered.

Mommy looked at me again. “You were mad. Why were you mad, Melissa?”

“I wasn’t mad. I was, uh, um,” I didn’t know what I was.

“You were what?” Mommy asked.

Debbie cried, “She wanted us to leave her ‘lone.”

“I see,” Mommy said. “Well, let’s all get up and go into the house. Debbie, I’m going to want to talk to you, young lady.”

Mommy stood up and took Debbie’s hand. I stood up then, too. I picked up the bucket for the chalk. Katie took my hand. “I not mad at you no more, Missy,” she said.

I looked down at her. “I’m not mad at you anymore, either, sis,” I said, giving her a big hug.

She smiled. We followed Mommy toward the back door. When we got to the patio, Katie and I stopped to put the chalk away. We didn’t want to get into any more trouble by leaving our things out.

We went inside. Mommy was waiting. Debbie was nowhere to be seen. Mommy probably had her in the corner, somewhere. “Katie, you go into the den and watch some tv. Your sisters will join you there in a few minutes.”

Katie looked at me. “Go ahead,” I said, “I’ll be there soon.”

“Okay,” Katie said, running toward the den.

Mommy just looked at me. “Melissa, what happened?”

I looked down. I knew Mommy had depended on me to do something for her, and I had messed up. I didn’t know what to say. “I’m sorry, Mommy, I guess I got mad.”

“Mad at what?” she asked.

I knew this wasn’t the time, but I started to get defensive. “I got mad cuz I didn’t feel like watching them,” I whined.

“Melissa Erin, do NOT whine!” Mommy said.

Somehow all the mad feelings came back. “But Mommy, I didn’t feel like playing with them. I’m seven. And they’re only four and five. I wanted to play with kids my own age!”

“You had better watch that tone of voice, young lady,” Mommy scolded.

I guess I hadn’t realized that my voice had started to rise.

“I asked you to watch your sisters so I could get some things done around here. I didn’t ask you to help. I surely could have done that, young lady!” Mommy said sternly.

“But Mommy! It’s not fair. Joey and Billy got to go out with Daddy. I had to watch Katie and Debbie. I wanted to do something fun!” I cried.

“Well, was it fun almost watching your sister fall off the ladder rope?” Mommy asked.

“No,” I said. “But I didn’t know Debbie was gonna follow me up there. I was mad and wanted some alone time.”

I crossed my arms then and pouted. I knew I wasn’t going to win, but I wasn’t going to go down without pleading my case.

“Well, you can have some alone time right now. I want you to go up to your room and lie down. You don’t have to sleep. But I think you need some time to think about how you could have handled things differently.”

“But WHY?” I asked. “I DIDN’T DO NOTHING!”

“Melissa Erin, I suggest you go right this minute, before I send you up to time out with a warm bottom. Now go!” Mommy said, giving me one smack to the seat of my shorts.

“Fine!” I said, and ran up the stairs to my room. I decided against slamming the door. That would only make things worse.

I lay on my bed, and kicked the mattress. Why was I in trouble? I asked myself. I didn’t even do nothing. I pouted for a long time. I didn’t even hear what was going on in the room next door.

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“Deborah Nicole, come here,” Mommy said, calling Debbie out of the corner.

She walked over to Mommy, in just her t-shirt. Her shorts and panties were wet, and she had put them in the tub.

“What were you thinking of, young lady?” she asked. “You know better than to climb that ladder.”

“I jus wanted to be wif Missy,” Debbie cried.

“Well, Missy is in time out right now, and you are getting a spanking. Was it worth it?”

Debbie shook her head no.

“Come closer,” Mommy said. Debbie did. Mommy pulled her over her lap and started to spank her bottom with her hand.

“I do not {Smack!} want {Smack!} to see you {Smack!} doing things that you know {Smack!} not to do. {Smack!} If Missy was being mean {Smack!} to you and Katie, {Smack!} then you should {Smack!} have come {Smack!} in to get me. {Smack!} Is that understood {Smack!}, young lady?” {Smack!} {Smack!}

Debbie cried, “Yes, Mommy! I sorrry!”

Mommy finished up Debbie’s spanking with a few smacks to her sit spot. {Smack!} {Smack!} {Smack!}

Then she stood Debbie up and held her close. Debbie cried over Mommy’s shoulder. “There, there, sweetie, it’s all over now. Shhhhh, it’s okay!”

Mommy soothed and comforted Debbie until she was just sniffling. “No more ladder climbing, okay?”

Debbie nodded. “I won’t, Mommy, I promise.”

“Okay, good. It’s time for you to take a nap then.” Mommy got some pull-ups for Debbie and fastened then on. Then she laid Debbie down on her and Daddy’s bed. “I’ll come and wake you in a little while.”

“K, Mommy,” Debbie said, already starting to fall asleep. Spankings always wore her out. Mommy gave Debbie a kiss on the forehead, closed the door, and walked out.

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Mommy peeked in my door. I pretended I was asleep. But I wasn’t. I was still too busy steaming. It wasn’t fair. I hadn’t done anything. It wasn’t my fault that Debbie followed me up that ladder. I didn’t want to stay in my bed any longer. I waited a few more minutes.

Then I got up and peeked into the hall. No sign of Mommy. I crept down the stairs and into the kitchen. She was sitting at the kitchen table with Katie. They were eating grapes. I remembered I was still hungry.

I went in. “Can I have some?” I asked.

Mommy looked up at me, startled. “Melissa, did I tell you that you could come down?” she asked.

“No, Mommy, but I’m hungry,” I said, trying not to whine.

“I’ll tell you what, Melissa,” Mommy began. I just looked at her. “You can have a handful of grapes and then I want you back up in your room.”

“But Mommy...” I said.

“And this time you will stay up there until I tell you to come out. Here,” she said, handing me a small bunch. “Now go!”

“That’s not fair!” I cried, taking the grapes. My first impulse was to throw them, but something stopped me. Maybe it was the look my four-year-old sister, Katie, gave me.

“Melissa, go now. Before I change my mind, and decided to spank you,” Mommy said.

I ran from the room. But I didn’t go upstairs. I sat on the stairs and put my shoes on. I wasn’t gonna stay in this house.

I heard Mommy tell Katie to go back and finish her video while she went to the basement to do laundry and some other things. Mommy and Daddy didn’t like us to be down in the basement. It wasn’t finished and there were all kinds of wires and things. Also, Daddy had a workroom with tools down there that he didn’t want us getting into. Basically, the basement was off limits to all the kids in my house.

I opened the front door and peeked back towards the kitchen. Katie came out of the kitchen and saw me at the door. “Missy! Where you goin?” she cried.

“Shhhh, go watch your video,” I said, still clutching onto my grapes.

“No, I wanna be wif you,” she said sadly.

“Well, you can’t. I have to be alone now,” I told her.

“I’m tellin Mommy,” she said. “You can’t go nowhere, Missy.”

“Katie, get lost. And you better not tell Mommy,” I said, going out and closing the door behind me.

I walked to the end of the driveway. I looked up and down the street. I knew I wasn’t supposed to leave the yard, but I felt so mad. Mommy was being so unfair. I hadn’t really done anything. But she put me in time-out anyway. I guess I should have been thankful that I hadn’t gotten a spanking, but at the time, I wasn’t thinking like that.

I decided to take a walk to the park. It wasn’t that far away...only a few blocks. But I wasn’t supposed to go there by myself. That was a big no-no. I decided I didn’t care. Besides, I told myself, I would be back before anyone knew I was gone.

What I didn’t know was what Katie did after I left the house.

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Apparently she didn’t want me to get into any more trouble, so she didn’t go down to tell Mommy I left. But she did go upstairs and wake up Debbie. After Debbie got dressed, both girls put on their shoes and snuck out of the house, in search of me.

I, in the meantime, was on my way to the park. I doubt neither of them knew how to get there. But nevertheless, they started out of the house and down the driveway.

Not fifteen minutes later, Daddy and the boys came home from their errands. They walked into the house, which was impossibly quiet.

“Hey, I wonder where everyone is,” Joey said.

“Hmmm, I don’t know,” Daddy replied. “Hon!” he called out. No answer.

“Come on, Joey, let’s go put this stuff up into the treehouse,” Billy said.

“Yeah, can we, Daddy?” Joey asked.

Daddy nodded. “Sure, boys, go ahead.”

As the boys ran to the back door, Daddy called out to them and they stopped. “Boys, if Mommy’s out there, please tell her I was looking for her, okay?”

“Sure,” Billy said. “Okay, Daddy,” Joey said. They both ran out.

Daddy checked the living room, dining room, and den, but no one was around. He went into the kitchen, saw a bowl of grapes lying on the table and helped himself to a few.

“Gee, I guess they must all be upstairs taking naps,” Daddy said to himself.

He figured the boys were okay out back by themselves. After all, they were nine and ten. He went to the basement door; figuring he’d put his new tools and things away.

When he got downstairs, he saw Mommy in the laundry room. “Well, there you are!” he said.

Mommy turned around and smiled. “Oh, good, you’re home!” She ran to him and hugged him tight.

“Rough afternoon?” he asked.

“Very,” she said.

“Where are the girls?”

Mommy frowned. “Well, Debbie is sleeping on our bed. I had to spank her.” She went on to tell Daddy about what happened with that. “And Missy is having a time-out in her room. She was very fussy. I probably should have spanked her, too. And Katie is watching a video in the den.”

“No, she isn’t,” Daddy said.

“What?” Mommy looked at Daddy in surprise.

“No one’s in the den. I just looked.”

“Oh, I hope she didn’t go up to her room. I really don’t want her with Missy now.”

“I’ll go check on them. Let me just put these tools away. The boys are out back,” Daddy told her.

“Okay, I’ll be up in a minute. I just want to fold these towels,” Mommy explained.

Daddy went upstairs and looked out the back window. He could see the boys in the treehouse. He smiled and headed up the stairs. He went to his bedroom first. No sign of Debbie. “Hmmm,” he said to himself.

He went to our room next, figuring on finding all three of us in there. But what he found was an empty room. Daddy was surprised. He checked the playroom and the boys’ room but they were empty, too.

He ran down the stairs and down to the basement. “Christine!” he said sharply.

Mommy looked up. “David, what is it? You look white as a ghost!”

“The girls are not upstairs. They are nowhere in this entire house.”

“What? What do you mean?” Mommy asked, suddenly alarmed.

Daddy and Mommy didn’t know what to think. “I’ll check the front of the house and the garage. You check the backyard,” Daddy told her.

Mommy ran to the backyard and called to the boys up in the treehouse. She asked them if they had seen their sisters. Of course, they said no. They came right down to help look.

Daddy checked the garage. He knew they weren’t in there, though, cuz he had parked the car there, and had gone into the house through there. But he checked it anyway. Then he looked over the front yard. At the end of the driveway, he saw someone.

“Deborah?” he called out.

Debbie turned around. She had tears streaming down her face. “Daddddddy!” she cried, running into his arms.

Daddy met her halfway and picked her up and hugged her to him. “Baby, what are you doing out here?” he asked.

She tried to talk, but Daddy couldn’t understand a word she said. He brought her into the house, and into the kitchen. Mommy was in there with Joey and Billy.

“Debbie!” Mommy said, running to them and hugging her.

Debbie let go of Daddy in favor of going into Mommy’s arms. She hugged her tightly. Daddy poured some juice into a sippy cup and handed it to Debbie. Mommy sat down at the table, with Debbie on her lap, while Debbie drank the juice.

Daddy got some wet paper towels and wiped off Debbie’s face. He sat down at the table. The boys sat down, too.

“Okay?” Daddy asked. Debbie nodded. Daddy sighed and said, “Okay, how about you tell me why you were at the end of the driveway, and then where your sisters are.”

He was very calm, so Debbie didn’t get scared. “I didn’t want to leave the yard!” she said, tearfully.

Mommy looked at Daddy and nodded. “Good girl,” Mommy said, “but where are Katie and Missy?”

Debbie looked up at them. “Katie went to look for Missy. Missy was mad at you, Mommy and lef the house. Katie wanted me to come. But I din’t want to, cuz I wuz awready in trouble today.”

Mommy sighed. Daddy sighed, too. Joey and Billy just looked at their little sister.

Daddy turned to Mommy and said, “Christine, where do you think they would go?”

“I don’t know, David. We don’t even know if they met up yet. They could be anywhere.”

Daddy looked at Debbie. She was still sniffling.

“Am I in trouble, Daddy?” she asked.

“No, sweetie. You did the right thing by not going. But you should have come in to get Mommy. You’ll remember that for next time, if there’s ever a next time?”

Debbie nodded. “Okay,” Daddy said. He turned to the boys. “Boys, you stay home with Debbie. Mommy and I are going to go out to look for Katie and Missy.”

“But Dad, we can come too, and help you look,” Billy said.

“No, I want someone home in case they come back,” Daddy said.

Billy nodded. Joey piped up. “Can’t I come, Daddy? Please?”

Daddy looked at Mommy. He could tell she didn’t know what to say or do. Finally, Daddy said, “Okay, Joey, you can come. Billy, you and Debbie stay here.”

“Yes, sir,” Billy said, taking Debbie’s hand. “Come on, we’ll go watch tv.”

Mommy, Daddy, and Joey started out. Mommy and Joey went one way, and Daddy went another. About halfway around the block, Mommy stopped.

“What’s wrong, Mommy?” Joey asked.

Mommy was speechless, but she pointed. Joey squinted and looked. There was a little girl at the end of the block, right at the corner. She looked as if she were about to step out into the street.

“Mommy, it’s Katie,” Joey said, all excited.

“Kaitlyn Rose!” Mommy called out. “Freeze!”

Katie jumped at the sound of Mommy’s voice, even though it was from far away. She turned just as Joey and Mommy ran over to her.

When they got to her, Mommy reached down and scooped Katie up into her arms. “Oh, thank god you’re all right.” Mommy hugged Katie to her, much the same way Daddy had, when he had found Debbie.

Katie was crying. She wasn’t sure, but she figured she was probably in big trouble. But Mommy didn’t say a word. She just carried her home. When they got into the house, Joey ran to find Billy and Debbie and let them know they had found Katie.

Mommy took Katie up to her own room. She set Katie on her bed and just looked at her. “Are you okay?” she asked. Katie nodded.

“Well, I’m glad, sweetheart. But you are in very big trouble, young lady. What were you thinking, leaving the house like that, and walking around the corner?” Mommy asked, her voice rising.

“I, I, I wuz lookin for Missy, Mommy,” she replied, teary-eyed.

Mommy sighed. “Katie, are you supposed to leave the yard, let alone the house, without permission or an adult?”

“N-n-no, Mommy!” she replied.

“When Missy left, why didn’t you come to get me?” Mommy asked.

“I din’t want her to get in any more trouble, Mommy. You wuz awready real mad at her,” Katie said.

“Well, now you’re in trouble, too, aren’t you, little girl?” she asked.

Katie nodded. “I-I-I’s sowwwwy!” she cried. “But Mommy, I din’t cross the stweet.”

Mommy nodded now, too. “Is that why you were at the corner, Kaitlyn?”

“Yeah. I wuz standin there foreva. I din’t know what to do. I wanted to fine Missy but I wuz ‘fraid to cross the stweet.”

“Well, that was a good thing. But you should have come back to get me. In fact, you should never have gone out on your own at all. You should have stayed like Debbie did,” Mommy said sternly.

Katie looked up at Mommy. “Is Debbie in twouble, too?”

“No, she isn’t, Kaitlyn, because she stayed on the property. But you, young lady, left the yard and walked all the way around the block. And now you’re going to get a spanking. Do you understand why?”

Katie nodded. “Cuz I leaved the yard and din’t tell you Missy leaved.”

“Well, it’s not your fault that Missy left. That was naughty of her. And when we find her, she will be in big trouble, too. But that’s not for you to worry about right now.”

Mommy placed Katie on the floor in front of her, and pulled down her shorts and panties. She made Katie step out of them. Then Mommy pulled Katie over her lap and started to lecture and spank with her hand.

“Mommy and Daddy {Smack!} want to {Smack!} know where you {Smack!} are at all times. {Smack!} {Smack!} We want {Smack!} you to be safe. {Smack!} {Smack!} You are much {Smack!} too little {Smack!} to do something {Smack!} like what you did.” {Smack!} {Smack!}

Katie cried and wiggled over Mommy’s lap. This was a hard spanking for her.

“You will not {Smack!} leave this house {Smack!} or the yard {Smack!} without permission or {Smack!} without a grownup, {Smack!} young lady. {Smack!} Is that understood?”

“Yesssss, Mommmieeeeee!” cried Katie.

With a few more smacks to her sit spot, Mommy stopped. She stood Katie up and hugged her to her chest. “There, there, sweetie, it’s over now and Mommy forgives you.”

Katie cried into Mommy’s chest for a long time. Mommy soothed and caressed her back and bottom until she saw that Katie’s eyes had closed. Mommy took a diaper and fastened it on her, and laid her down on the big bed. Silently, Mommy closed the door and walked downstairs. She hoped Daddy was having good luck, and had found me, and was on his way home.

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Meanwhile, I was sitting on a swing in the park. It felt like I had been there forever. But it was probably only an hour or so. I had played in the sandbox and took a few turns down the slide, but it wasn’t the same. There was no one to help me build, and no one to catch me at the bottom of the slide. Even on the swings, there was no one to push me, and no one to say I was going higher than. The park was just no fun by myself.

I started to wonder if I should just give up and go home. Surely by now Mommy wouldn’t still be mad at me. I could come out of my room and play with Katie and Debbie. I didn’t mind them now. All the mad feelings had definitely gone away.

I was about to get up when I heard my name. “Melissa?” I looked up. It was Daddy. Uh oh. He saw me and ran over to me. I thought he was gonna turn me over and spank the daylights out of me, but he didn’t. He picked me up and hugged me tight to him.

He looked me over. “Melissa, are you all right?” he asked.

I nodded. “Yes, sir, I’m fine,” I said.

“Thank god.” He put me down then and sat in the swing next to me. I sat back down in my swing and just looked at him.

“Daddy? Are you very angry at me right now?” I asked in a small voice.

Daddy sighed. “I’m not sure I’m angry, Melissa. I’m relieved that I found you and that you’re all right. But I’m confused as to why you are here, alone I may add.”

I just looked at Daddy. “Well, I came here cuz I was mad. And I wanted to be left alone.”

Daddy looked around. “Well, you are alone. Are you happy now?”

I shook my head no and started to cry. “No, I’m sad and lonely. I wanna go home now, Daddy.”

I got off my swing and went to Daddy. He stood up and picked me up and just held me for a minute. I cried over his shoulder and he rubbed my back. He was being very caring. I knew soon, though, that I would be over his lap. I knew for sure that I was in very big trouble.

Daddy pulled me away from his chest and looked at me. “I think we need to go home and talk, Melissa. Besides, we still have to find your sister.”

“Which one?” I asked, suddenly becoming alarmed.

Daddy put me down and said, “Katie. She followed you out of the house and off the property. We don’t know where she is.”

Suddenly my last words to her leapt back into my throat. I had told Katie to get lost. And now she really did. Oh, I was a horrid sister.

I started to cry real hard. “Oh, Daddy, I told her to get lost. But I didn’t really mean it. I just didn’t want her to come with me. I wanted to be left alone,” I cried.

Daddy leaned down then and looked me in the eyes. “Missy, I won’t lie to you; you are in very big trouble, and you and I will be having a very firm discussion about all this in a little while. I hope you will think about why you did what you did, and the consequences, while we walk home. Now let’s go!”

I took Daddy’s hand and walked the few blocks home. I was so miserable. I knew that I was in major big trouble, and if they couldn’t find Katie or if something happened to her, it would be all my fault.

The walk home was so slow and yet so fast. I kept thinking the whole way about Katie...and what might have happened to her. She was so little. Maybe a bad man had taken her. Or she had gotten hit by a car. Ohmigod, what was I gonna do if they never found her?

When we got to the house, and Daddy opened the door, Joey ran up to it and said, “Daddy, you found her! Mommy and I found Katie.”

Daddy sighed a big sigh of relief and I did, too. We walked into the kitchen. Mommy put down the phone. “Melissa Erin, I just called all your friends. Where on earth were you?” While Mommy and I stared at each other, Daddy went to check up on Katie, and the others.

I looked at Mommy and started to cry. Maybe she wasn’t so bad after all. “I w-was at the p-p-park, Mommy,” I said.

Mommy stood up then and came over to me and gave me a big hug. When she let go, I realized she had started to cry, too. That made me cry even more.

“Don’t cry, Mommy,” I said. “I’m sorrrrrrrrry!”

“Oh, Melissa, I was so worried about you,” Mommy said. “Don’t ever do this again. Do you understand me?”

I nodded. Daddy had come back in then, took my hand, and said, “Let’s go, young lady, you and I have some business to take care of upstairs in your room.”

“Yes, sir,” I said, going with Daddy.

We walked up to my bedroom. Daddy pulled my desk chair away from the desk and sat in it. He motioned for me to stand in front of him. “All right, Melissa, it’s your turn to talk. I want you to tell me everything, including why you’re in trouble, and why I’m going to spank you.”

I took a deep breath. I told Daddy all about the day’s events and how I didn’t want Debbie and Katie hanging over me. I told him about the treehouse and how Mommy had spanked Debbie. I told him about being sent to my room and coming down for the grapes. All the while, he listened. He nodded, too, but he didn’t say a word.

“And then Mommy said I had to go back to my room. I felt so mad, Daddy. I didn’t do anything. I felt like Mommy was being so mean, and I wanted to be mad somewheres else. So I decided to go to the park.”

“But Katie saw you?” Daddy asked.

I nodded again. “Yes, sir, and she wanted to come, but I told her no.”

“But she went anyway, Melissa, and luckily she didn’t go very far. Are you ever supposed to leave this yard, young lady?”

“No, Daddy.”

“And why not? Why did Mommy and I make such a rule?”

“Cuz it could be dangerous. Cuz a bad man could come and take me, or I could get hurt, and you wouldn’t know where to find me.” I stated these things, rather than asked, cuz pretty much I knew them by heart. I started to cry again.

“That’s right, baby. Mommy and I would be very upset if something were to happen to one of you. Or if you were hurt and we couldn’t find you. We love you very much,” Daddy said.

“I know, I know, and I’m sorrrrrrrryyyy!” I declared. “I knew I shouldn’ta done it, but I was feeling so mad. You must hate me!”

Daddy took ahold of my shoulders then and looked me straight in the eye. “Melissa Erin, we could never hate you. Mommy and I love you so much. We might not like your behavior, but we like you. You are a good girl inside. Do you understand me?”

“Yes, Daddy,” I said, wiping at my tears.

“Okay,” Daddy said. “Now as much as I love you, and because I love you, it is my job to teach you right from wrong. And what you did today, young lady, was very, very wrong.”

At that, Daddy reached down and pulled my shorts and panties down. He lifted me up and placed me over his lap. He started to hand-spank me, and the lecture started.

“Young lady, {Smack!} you will {Smack!} never, ever, {Smack!} leave this house {Smack!} or yard {Smack!} again without permission. {Smack!} That {Smack!} is a rule {Smack!} that you must {Smack!} absolutely {Smack!} not break. {Smack!} Is that understood?” {Smack!} {Smack!}

“Owwww, yes, Dadddddy!” I cried.

Then from nowhere, Daddy had my hairbrush in his hand. I don’t know when he took it off my dresser. It was just suddenly there.

He raised it and my spanking continued. “Mommy and I {Whack!} love you so much. {Whack!} It is okay to get mad sometimes. {Whack!} But you may not just do whatever you want. {Whack!} And, Melissa Erin, {Whack!} you will treat your sisters nicely. {Whack!} If they are really {Whack!} bothering you, {Whack!} you will tell Mommy or me, {Whack!} and we will help you. {Whack!} You are their older sister {Whack!} and they look up to you. {Whack!} You have got {Whack!} to set a good example for them. {Whack!} Got it?” {Whack!} {Whack!}

“OWWWWWW, yes, Dadddddy!” I cried again. “I’m so sorry, I’ll be good, I’ll be nice. I won’t ever act this way again.”

Daddy gave a few last whacks of the hairbrush to my sit spot, and then put the brush down. He pulled me up onto his lap and held me close. I couldn’t see his face, but he was crying. Of course, I didn’t know it. I guess being a grown-up and a Daddy is hard sometimes.

Daddy held me for a long time after that. He rubbed my back and bottom and soothed and comforted me. I continued to cry. I kept thinking of what could have happened, to me, and to my sisters. Daddy kept saying comforting words. “Shhh, baby, it’s okay now; everything’s all right. It’s all over. I forgive you.”

We stayed that way for a long time. Finally, Daddy placed me on my feet and helped me fix my clothes. “How ‘bout we go downstairs and see what the rest of the family is up to? Huh?”

I just nodded and took Daddy’s hand. It felt good to be forgiven and to be a part of the family again. I didn’t want to be alone anymore.

The end.