Daddy’s Gone...a “Mandy” story (F/f)

(c) 2001 by Sampast

 

Thanks, Lynne.  It did help.  Grab a few tissues for this one, folks.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Mandy lay on the bed.  She was writing on some paper, leaning on her big book of Mother Goose.  She was writing with a pencil, erasing and rewriting every now and then.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Dear Daddy,

 

Where are you?  I miss you.  Please come back soon.

 

xxx ooo

Love Mandy

~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Daddy?

I’m sorry.  I’ll be good.  Please come home.

xxx ooo

Love Mandy

~~~~~~~~~

 

Dear Daddy,

 

I miss you a lot.  I’m being a good girl.  Please come home.

 

xxx ooo

Love Mandy

~~~~~~~~~~

 

Dear Daddy,

 

I won’t be bad.  Please come back. 

I’ll be the best little girl ever.  I miss you.

 

xxx ooo

Love Mandy

~~~~~~~~~~

 

Dear Daddy,

 

Where are youuuuu?  I miss you.

 

xxx ooo

Love Mandy

~~~~~~~~~~

 

Her letters were starting to sound desperate.  Daddy never answered her, but she kept writing them.  She spent most of the day laying on her bed, writing those letters.

 

It was starting to worry her aunt.  Linda sat at the kitchen table with her best friend, Connie.

 

“I don’t know what to do about her.  She is so quiet.  She spends all her time in that room, writing those letters.”

 

Connie looked at her friend.  “Well does she know he’s not getting the letters? Where does she think the letters are going?”

 

Linda shrugged.  “I’m not sure if she realizes you have to mail letters.  She just keeps writing them.  I’ve taken her to see Dr. Collins, but he said she needs time to accept what’s happened.”

 

“Well it’s gotta be hard for her, Linda.  She’s all alone now,” Connie said.

 

“She’s not alone, Connie.  She has me,” Linda said, sounding hurt.

 

Connie got up and put her arm around Linda’s shoulder.  “You know what I meant.”

~~~~~~~~~~

 

Mandy finished the latest letter and looked at her Mother Goose book.  It had been a present from Mommy.  Mandy didn’t remember Mommy.  For as long as she could remember, it had always been just her and Daddy.  Mommy had gone to heaven when she was real little.  She had been too little to even talk or walk yet.

 

Daddy was the best.  He played with Mandy, took her places, and bought her all kinds of things.  He gave her a great big bubble bath every night and changed her into her pajamas.  He sat with her in the big rocking chair and read to her from her favorite books.  He read her nursery rhymes and Mother Goose stories too.

 

When she had started reading, Daddy let her read too.  They took turns.  But mostly Mandy just liked to hear Daddy read to her.  She would sit in his lap and help turn the pages, just listening to the sweet sound of his voice.  He had such a nice voice.

 

On the weekends, Daddy took Mandy places.  They ran errands together.  Daddy even took Mandy up in his little airplane.  He was a pilot.  She loved to fly.  She liked to pretend she was helping Daddy steer the plane.  It was a little plane.  But it was cute.  She had helped Daddy paint it, and name it.  They called it “Baby” cuz it was such a cute, little plane.

 

Mandy wondered where “Baby” was now.  She wondered where Daddy was now.  She wondered why he wasn’t answering her letters.  She missed him.

 

~~~~~~~~~~

 

“Mandy!” Aunt Linda called.

 

Mandy heard her aunt but chose to ignore her.  She didn’t feel like seeing anybody just then.  Mandy continued to turn the pages in the Mother Goose book.

 

“Amanda?” Aunt Linda said, poking her head in the door.

 

Mandy looked up.  “Yeah?” she said.

 

“Come, baby, you need to feed Goldie,” she said, putting out her hand.

 

Goldie was Mandy’s golden retriever.  She had come to stay with them when Mandy moved to Aunt Linda’s house.

 

“I don’t wanna,” Mandy said, sounding bored.

 

“You have to, Amanda Beth.  Goldie is your dog, and your responsibility.  You told me you would take care of her if I let her stay.”

 

Mandy stood up facing her aunt.  She put her hands on her hips and said quite loudly, “I don’t feel like it!”

 

Linda sighed.  She looked at her little niece and said, “Excuse me, young lady?”

 

Mandy’s tone of voice had kind of taken Linda by surprise.  Mandy had been awfully quiet the past few months.  She barely spoke at all.  She came home from school, did her homework, watched TV sometimes, but mostly just laid on the bed in the guestroom and wrote those letters, or looked at the Mother Goose book.

 

Linda had been meaning to decorate the room for Mandy, but she hadn’t gotten around to it yet.  Now as she waited for her niece to answer, she looked around at the sparse walls.

 

Mandy still did not answer.  Linda decided to try one more time.  “Come on, Mandy.  Come help me feed Goldie.  Then you and I can look at those wallpaper books I got at the paint store.  We need to do something with these walls.  We’ll make the room the way you like it.”

 

“It don’t matter, Auntie.  As soon as Daddy comes back, I’m going home with him,” Mandy said, matter-of-factly.

 

Linda tried not to cry.  She pretty much knew her brother wasn’t coming back.  She didn’t know what to say to Mandy.  The therapist said Mandy would come to accept what had happened eventually and that she shouldn’t push it.

 

“Well, Goldie needs to eat.  So come on.”

 

“NO!  I told you I don’t want to!” Mandy shouted.

 

“Amanda Beth, you will not speak to me in that manner, young lady!”

 

“I can if I wanna!” Mandy said, flopping back down onto the bed.

 

Linda had had all that she was going to take.  “Very well, young lady,” she said, turning to leave the room.

 

Mandy thought to herself, “Good, now I can get back to my letters to Daddy.”

 

But Linda did not stay gone.  After feeding the dog, she returned to the guest room carrying a wooden spoon.  She walked over to where Mandy lay on the bed.  She sat down next to her and pulled Mandy to her feet at her side.

 

“What the...” Mandy said excitedly.  “What’re you doing, Auntie?”

 

“I’m going to spank that attitude out of your system.”

 

“No, I not wanna spanking!” Mandy yelled.  She started to cry.  “Pleeeease don’t spank me!”

 

“You may not speak to me in that tone, young lady,” Linda said, placing Mandy on the floor in front of her.  She reached down and pulled the little girl’s pants and panties to her ankles and lifted her over her lap.

 

Mandy kicked and wiggled.  “Nooooo!” she cried.  “I’m sorrrrrrry!”

 

“And so you should be!” Linda scolded her.  She picked up the wooden spoon and placed five spanks on Mandy’s bare bottom-one for each year of her life.

 

Mandy cried.  “I’m sorrrrrrrry!  Pleeeeeeeeease!  I’ll be gooddddddd!”

 

Her aunt continued the spanking.  Raising the wooden spoon, she spanked and scolded.  “You will not {Crack!} speak {Crack!} to me {Crack!} in that tone {Crack!} ever again, young lady.  {Crack!} Is that understood?” {Crack!} {Crack!}

 

Mandy nodded and cried.  “Yes, ma’am.  Please stop!  I’m sorrry!  I won’t do it again.”

 

Linda put the spoon down but gave Mandy another half dozen smacks to her sitspot with just her hand.  Then she stood her up.

 

Mandy stood there, the tears rolling down her face.  She didn’t know if she was allowed to rub her bottom or not.  It had been a long time since Auntie had had to spank her.  Certainly not since before she had come to live with her.  And it had been a while since Mandy had earned a spanking.

 

Linda tried not to cry herself as she stated, “Now go stand in the corner for a few minutes and think about why you got a spanking.  Then we will talk.”

 

Mandy walked slowly to the corner, her pants and panties still around her ankles.  She stood facing the wall, tears still falling.  Linda took a deep breath, left the room, put the spoon away and returned to the guest room.  She watched as her little niece stood in the corner, putting her hand back every few seconds to try to ease the burning in her rear.

 

After a few minutes, Linda said, “Okay, baby, come here.”

 

Mandy turned, her eyes tear-streaked.  She looked at her aunt.  “Are you going to leave me now, too?” she asked in a quiet voice.

 

“Leave you? What do you mean?” Linda asked, confused.

 

“Like Daddy did,” Mandy said.

 

“Come here, baby girl,” Aunt Linda said, beckoning her niece over.

 

Mandy walked slowly to her aunt.  Linda reached down and pulled up Mandy’s panties and pants and then pulled her onto the bed, next to her.  Mandy kneeled as it hurt too much to sit just then.  She stared up at her aunt’s face.

 

“Mandy, where do you think I’m going?  I’m not going anywhere!” Aunt Linda said gently.

 

“Daddy did.  He left me,” Mandy said.

 

Linda tried hard not to cry.  “He didn’t mean to, Mandy.  Your daddy didn’t know he was going to leave you.”

 

“But he said good-bye.  He also said, ‘See you tomorrow.’  But Auntie, he didn’t come back.  He left me, for good.”

 

Linda pulled the little girl tight to her chest.  She rubbed her back and let Mandy cry against her.  She didn’t know what to say.  They hadn’t found her brother’s plane after it crashed.  Who knew whether he was alive or dead?  She knew in her heart, though, that he wasn’t coming back.  What could she possibly say to Mandy now?

 

Linda turned Mandy around so that she was facing her.  “But why did you think I was leaving, Mandy?”  She would address the issue of his probable death at a later time.

 

“Cuz Daddy spanked me that night.  I had been naughty, and he spanked me.  Then the next day he was gone.  You spanked me, so I thought you were going too,” Mandy said point blank.

 

“Oh, no, baby.  I am never going to leave you.  I spanked you because you were sassy to me.  But I still love you.”

 

“Forever, Auntie?” Mandy asked, biting her lip.

 

“Oh yes, baby, I will love you forever.  I promise!”

 

Mandy pulled away from her aunt then.  “That’s what Daddy always said.  He said he would love me forever and ever, and he always promised.  But he didn’t do it.  He left me instead!”  Mandy picked up the teddy bear that Daddy had bought her at the zoo and hurled it across the room.  “I hate him!  I hate him! I hate him! I hate him!”

 

Mandy threw herself on the bed and cried into her pillow.  Linda took a step back.  She wasn’t sure how to help her niece.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

A few weeks later, Linda sat again at the kitchen table with Connie.  “So we went to the paint store, and Mandy picked out a light yellow for the walls.  That’s it, yellow.”

 

“Did she say why?” Connie asked.

 

Linda nodded.  “She said she didn’t care what the room looked like.  She said she was only having it painted cuz I kept insisting.  Oh, Connie, I don’t know what to do.  She still thinks Rob is coming back.”

 

Connie sighed.  “Have you tried talking to her about it?”

 

“Several times.  Now I’m not so sure I should go through with the adoption.  I would have to have Rob declared legally dead.  I don’t know if I can do it, Con.”

 

“You need to, Linda.  You both need to go on.  And if you want Mandy to be yours, you have to do what the lawyers tell you.”

 

“But what if they find him?”

 

But Connie just shook her head.  And Linda knew.  Even if they found the plane at this point, her brother was dead.  She had known it for a while, just didn’t want to face the facts.  She would have to explain all this to Mandy, as well.  That part was going to be the toughest.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

A few weeks later when all the paperwork was done, Linda knew it was time to sit Mandy down and tell her what was going on.  Mandy was still writing the letters to Daddy, and still acting like he was just away on a trip.

 

It was after dinner; Mandy was sitting in the yellow rocking chair that Linda had had brought from her brother’s house.  As usual, she was sitting with her teddy bear and reading the Mother Goose book.  Mandy was a bright girl, and even though only in kindergarten, could already read most picture books.  Rob had been very proud of his little girl.

 

Linda came in and sat on Mandy’s bed.  The room had been painted a light yellow.  She planned to use red paint and sponge print some flowers on it, but Mandy hadn’t seemed too thrilled, so she had waited.

 

“Hey, baby girl, come and sit with me for a few minutes,” Linda said.

 

Mandy looked up.  “Am I in trouble, Auntie?” she asked.

 

“No, sweetie.  I just want to talk to you.  Okay?”

 

Mandy nodded.  She put her bear and book down and walked over to her aunt.  She climbed up on the bed and sat down.

 

“About your daddy,” Linda began.  She was trying so hard not to cry.

 

Mandy looked up at her aunt.  “He isn’t coming back, is he, Auntie?”

 

“No, baby.  But he loved you so much.  You mustn’t think he left you on purpose.  He didn’t mean to leave.”

 

“I know,” Mandy admitted.  “He died.”

 

Linda was shocked.  She didn’t know that Mandy understood what had happened to her daddy.  This was the first time she had heard the little girl say it aloud.  She was afraid to speak, or it might break the spell, so she just nodded.

 

Mandy started to cry.  “I didn’t want to believe it, Auntie.  I kept writing to him.  I was hoping he’d see that I was a good girl and come back to me.  I thought he left because I was naughty.  But then you spanked me a few times, and you didn’t go away.”

 

Linda was amazed at the depth of her niece’s understanding.  “That’s right, pumpkin.  I only spank you to help you learn right from wrong.  That’s why all parents spank their children.”

 

There she had said it.  Parents.  She waited to see how Mandy would react to that.  But she didn’t question what her aunt said.  She just nodded.

 

Linda took the adoption papers from her pocket and held them out to Mandy.  “I was wondering if maybe perhaps you would want me to sign this,” she tried.

 

Mandy looked at the papers.  “What is that? Is it a note from my teacher?  I didn’t do anything, Auntie, honest.”

 

“Oh, baby, I know you didn’t.  This isn’t from your teacher.  It’s from my lawyer.”

 

“Is a lawyer a good thing, Auntie?”

 

“Yes, sweetie, a lawyer helps people who want to adopt little girls.  Do you know what adoption means?”

 

Mandy nodded.  “You’re gonna be my mommy?”

 

Linda could barely talk.  This was going too smoothly.  “I would like to be.  Would you like that?”

 

“And you’d take care of me? And give me my baths.  And help me get ready for bed.  And take me to school?”

 

“Yes, baby.  Just like I have been doing for the past few months.  But it would be legal.  That means forever.”

 

Mandy nodded.  “Okay,” she said.

 

“Okay?  Are you sure, Mandy?  You know that your daddy won’t be here anymore, right?”

 

“I know.  He’s in heaven, with Mommy.  Other Mommy.”

 

“Yes, sweetie, he is.  And they’re both watching over you, making sure you’re all right.  I’m going to try very hard to be a good Mommy for you.  But you have to promise me one thing, too, okay?”

 

“What, Auntie? I mean, Mommy?”

 

Linda smiled so wide; she thought her teeth would pop out.

 

“You must always have fun, and know that your Mommy, me, loves you dearly.”

 

Mandy smiled.  “I will.”

 

“That’s my girl.”

 

Mandy put her arms around Linda’s neck and squeezed hard.  “I love you, Mommy.”

 

“I love you, too.”

 

“Always and forever?” Mandy asked.

 

Linda hesitated.  She remembered what happened after that first spanking and didn’t want Mandy to pull away after such a close moment.

 

But Mandy surprised Linda.  She leaned over and whispered in her ear.  “It’s okay; you can say it.”

 

Linda smiled and said, “I will love you always and forever.  I promise.  I will love you no matter what.”

 

Mandy smiled.  She got up and got her teddy bear and brought it back over to Linda.  She thought for a minute and then said, “And you’re still gonna be strict with me?”

 

“Yes, baby, I will be.  I want you to grow up right and sometimes that means I will have to spank you.”

 

“Cuz I need it, right?”

 

“Yes, and why else?”

 

“Cuz you love me?”

 

“Yes, I do.”

 

“I will try to be good.”

 

“You usually are, Amanda Beth.  But you know what?  It will be okay if you make a mistake every once in a while.”

 

Mandy smiled.  “Mommy?” Mandy asked, still trying out the new word.  “Thanks for adopting me.”

 

“Thanks for letting me,” Linda said.  She then reached down and kissed Mandy on the forehead.  Then she leaned down and kissed the teddy bear, too.  Mandy laughed.

 

Linda got up, telling Mandy she wanted to start on dinner.  Mandy said she would help and got up to follow her mommy to the kitchen.  But she stopped on the way out of the room.  “Mommy?”

 

Linda turned around.  “Yes, pumpkin?

 

“I don’t like yellow.”

 

Linda smiled.  “You don’t?”

 

Mandy shook her head.  “Nope.”

 

“Well, what color would you like? We can go to the paint store this weekend.”

 

“Okay, I’ll think about it, Mommy,” Mandy said and smiled, like Linda had not seen in a long while.

 

The adoption was final, only a short time later.  Mandy still thought about her daddy a lot.  She had bad dreams sometimes, but her new mommy was there to help her through them.  Times would not always be great, but at least Mandy, and Goldie, too, had a chance to live happily ever after.

 

The end.