Time Out...a twin story
(M/f)
By Sampast and Don A.
Landhill
Copyright © 1999
(Any misspelling is due to
child's use of inventive language. It's not poor use of spell checker.)
At work, Charlie was called
to the phone. He answered it, only to find that it was his daughter, Robin, on
the line. It was not usual for either of the twins to call him at work, but it
was not unheard of, either.
"Hi, Daddy, It's
Robin."
"Hi, Robin, how was
your day?"
"Daddy? Can I tell you
somethin'?"
"Yes, you can, Robin.
What is it, please?" Charlie replied.
"Don't be mad,
okay?"
"I won't be mad
because you told me something, but if you have done something wrong, I may be
unhappy. But you know it is always worse if I find out from someone else before
you tell me."
"Daddy, Mommy put me
in time out, and she tole me to stay there for one hour. That's a long time,
isn't it?"
"Yes, it is. Are you
still supposed to be in time out?"
"Maybe," Robin
answers slyly.
"Do you know when you
were put in time-out?"
"Yes," Robin
answers, with a bit of a giggle in her voice.
"Well, when was
it?" Charlie was beginning to have a rather exasperated note in his voice.
"I don't wanna tell
you. You're gonna be mad." Robin says, in a particularly exasperating
manner, or at least that's how Charlie takes it.
"ROBIN! You are
getting yourself in more trouble right now. Now I want you to tell me when you
were put in time out, and why, before I have to ask Mommy."
"Mommy's not
here." Robin's voice lowers to a whisper. "She went to do
laundry."
"Robin, answer the
question right now, or I will talk with Mommy as soon as I get home -- and I
don't think you will like what will happen after that!"
"But I don't
wanta!" Robin whines.
"Robin!" Charlie
adds in his 'last chance' tone of voice.
"Okay, okay, I was
fresh to Mommy but it wasn't my fault. Jennifer was bothering me, and Mommy
didn't put *HER* in time out. It's not fair, Daddy! That's why I called you, to
tell you, it's not fair."
"Jennifer! You are to
do what Mommy says, whether you think it is fair or not. I want you to hang up
and go right back to time out. I will be home in a little while and we will
discuss this." Charlie was so frustrated, that he was confused about which
twin he was speaking to -- a most unfortunate lapse, which he usually took
pains to avoid.
"Daddy, I'm
Robin!" she whines. "Nobody ever listens to me! Well, I'm not gonna
be here when you get home." Then came the sound of the phone being hung
up.
Charlie tried to call back,
but there was no answer. He left work right away (he was almost ready to leave
anyway) and got home as fast as he safely could.
"Lisa, honey, I'm
home." Charlie calls out, as he walks in the door of the apartment.
"Hi, hon, I'm glad
you're here. Jennifer and I came back up from the laundry room and Robin was
not here. I was just about to go out looking for her. Jenn ran across the hall
to see if she's there."
Just then Jennifer runs
into the apartment, saying "She's not there, Mommy! Hi, Daddy!"
"Hon, she was in time
out when I went downstairs. I was only gone for about fifteen minutes. Where
could she have gone?" Lisa continued.
Charlie sighs. "She
called me, trying to tell me how unfair her time out was. Then I got mixed up
and called her Jennifer by mistake. She said 'Well, I'm not gonna be here when
you get home' and hung up. So I hurried home." Charlie says. "I think
we better check the playground."
Lisa is furious. "Oh,
she did, did she? I can't believe she got out of that chair! You should have
heard her fresh mouth, Charlie. Okay, why don't you and Jenn go? I'll stay here
in case she comes back."
"Okay, Hon. I'm sorry
she was a problem. Maybe she needs to do some time out with a soapy mouth and a
sore bottom. We'll find her." Charlie tries to be reassuring, thinking
that Lisa could use a few minutes without either twin, before having to contend
with a rather naughty Robin.
Taking Jennifer with him,
Charlie and Jenn get into the elevator, going down. They run quickly through
the lobby and out to the playground. Although it is right in their complex, and
the twins often play there after school, they know not to go there without
permission. He and Jennifer scan the area for Robin. Jennifer spots her sister
before Charlie.
"There she is,
Daddy", Jenn says, pointing to the swings.
Robin was sitting there,
not swinging, just pouting. When she sees her father she starts to run, but
Charlie quickly catches up with her and grabs her wrist.
"Robin Clemente! You
are in big trouble, young lady."
Charlie gives her a sharp
smack on the seat, and continues, "You are coming upstairs RIGHT NOW and
we will discuss your behavior today when we get there."
"Daddy! No! I wanna
play!."
Robin tries to run away
from Charlie, but his hold is too strong. Jennifer laughs at Robin, and Robin
reaches out to smack her, but Charlie smacks Robin's hand instead.
"Robin, keep your
hands to yourself. You are in enough trouble already. Jennifer, don't laugh at
your sister unless you want to share what is going to happen to her."
"No, sir."
Jennifer says meekly. She is enjoying not being the one in trouble, for once,
and she has NO desire to change that.
"Daddddddy! I'm
sorrrrry!" Robin wails.
"Come along, both of
you!", Charlie orders. He takes each child by the hand and they get back
in the elevator to go up to their apartment.
"Daddddddy! Please,
I'm sorry! " Robin repeats, as they come in the door.
Charlie replies, "It's
a little late for that, Robin. Jennifer, go to your room please. Mommy and
Robin and I need to have a little talk."
"NOOOOOO!" Robin
throws herself on the floor and has an all out temper tantrum, complete with
kicking and screaming. Jennifer is staring open-mouthed from the doorway, not
believing how stupid her sister is being.
Charlie waits for a moment,
then hugs Robin firmly, holding her down so that she can't kick but feels held
and loved. At the same time, he says, "Robin Clemente, you stop that right
now!"
Robin is now hysterically
crying, but she stops kicking and screaming. After a few minutes, she starts to
sob and hiccup. She looks at her father, and says, "Hi, Daddy."
Charlie responds,
"Hello there. Now sit up and talk to Mommy and Daddy. You are in a lot of
trouble, young lady. "
"Yes, sir."
She sits up and Lisa hands
her a tissue and helps her blow her nose. She looks down at the floor. She
speaks in a soft voice.
"I'm sorry, Daddy. I
just felt so mad. I couldn't stop myself. Please don't be mad at me," she
says.
"Well let's talk about
what you did and whether it is acceptable, even when you feel mad. Now, Mommy
put you in time out, right?"
"Yes, Daddy."
"And you got up long
before your time out was over to call me and complain about what Mommy did,
right?"
Robin hangs her head, and
says, "Yes, Daddy, but only 'cause I thought it was unfair of Mommy. I
sorry, Mommy."
"Robin, when Mommy or
Daddy gives you an order, or a punishment, we expect you to do as you are told.
If you think it is unfair we can talk about it at an appropriate time --
afterwards," Charlie replies.
"But, after is too
late. I wanna talk about it before I get punished...it's only fair!"
Robin, when you are in
trouble, don't we usually let you say your side of things?"
"Sometimes,"
Robin says, unwilling to concede her point completely.
"And when we don't,
there is a reason. You will just have to do as we say at the time. If you think
it is unfair, you will have to wait to bring it up. I don't think we punish you
unfairly very often, do we, Robin?"
"No, Daddy, I guess
not. Am I in BIG, BIG trouble?"
"Pretty big, young
lady. You got up out of the time out chair without permission. You argued about
a punishment after it was final. And most important of all, you left the house
without permission, and without anyone knowing where your were. Bad things
could have happened and we wouldn't have known where to find you."
"I know, I'm bad!
WAAAAAH!" Robin wails.
"No, you are NOT bad,
and I don't want to hear you say that. But you did make some very poor choices
today, and you are going to be punished for that. But first, come here."
Charlie unfolds Robin in a
big hug. Robin lets Charlie hug her tightly, and then she starts to play with
the buttons on his work shirt.
"Do you hafta punish
me, Daddy? I'm very sorry."
"Yes, Robin, I have to
punish you. When you act wrongly and break the rules, we punish you to help you
remember not to do that again. I am sure you are sorry, but I want to make sure
that this lesson sticks for a while. And you know that you don't get out of
punishments with an 'I'm sorry', don't you?"
"I know, Daddy,"
Robin grins, "I just thought I'd try."
"Nice try, but not a
chance." Charlie grins back at her, glad to have a little break in the
tension.
Charlie turns to his wife
and asks, "Honey, do you have anything to say about how Robin should be
punished? You were here when this started, after all."
Lisa purses her lips.
"Well, she was very fresh to me, so I gave her time out instead of washing
her mouth out with soap, but obviously I made a wrong choice--"
Robin interrupts,
"See, Daddy? Mommy makes bad choices sometimes, too, and you don't punish
her."
"Robin!" Lisa's
tone warns Robin not to interrupt again. "Anyway, then she disobeyed me by
getting out of the chair. I think she needs a spanking! And a mouth wash!"
"Yes, I agree and then
I think she needs to start her time out over again. But the spanking
first," Charlie says.
Charlie leads Robin to his
bedroom. He takes Robin's pants and panties down and pulls her over his knees.
Robin whimpers at the thought of the impending spanking.
"Daddy, NO! I'm sorry!
" she cries.
"Hand me the hairbrush
would you, hon?" Charlie asks Lisa. "Thanks," he says as she
puts it in his hand.
<Whack!>
<Whack!> <Whack!> Charlie starts Robin's spanking.
"Not the hairbrush,
no, Daddy! "
"Be still, Robin.
You've been very naughty today," Lisa admonishes.
<Whack!> "Yes,
Robin. Running away is Big trouble" <Whack!> "and that means a
big spanking." <Whack!>
Charlie is spanking hard,
and Robin's bottom is turning pink.
"Wah! wah! wah! Ow, it
hurts, I'm sorrrrrry!"
Robin tries to reach back
but Lisa grabs her arms and holds them out of the way. Robin is crying very
loudly. 'Probaly half the apartment building can hear me,' she thinks.
<Whack!>
<Whack!> <Whack!> "You will NOT <Whack!> run away
<Whack!> ever again. <Whack!> Six years old <Whack> is much
too young <Whack!> to be out <Whack!> by yourself <Whack!>.
Do you <Whack!> understand me?" Charlie continues to scold as he
spanks Robin with the brush.
"Yes, Daddy. I won't,
Daddy, I won't, I promise...waaaaaaah!"
<Whack!> "And
when Mommy puts you in time out, <Whack!> you will stay there
<Whack!> "until she says you can <Whack!> get up."
<Whack!>
"OKAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
<Whack!> "You
will not throw tantrums. <Whack!> That is not acceptable. <Whack!>
Not ever." <Whack!>
"I sorry! I won't,
Daddy! "
<Whack!>
<Whack!> <Whack!> <Whack!> <Whack!> <Whack!>
"Have you learned your lesson, young lady?"
Robin's bottom is a bright
red. She is sobbing and laying limp over Charlie's lap. She can't even speak
but manages to nod her head. She is thinking this is the worst spanking she's
ever gotten, and that she won't ever do it again, because she never wants
another spanking like this.
<Whack!>
<Whack!> <Whack!> "Okay, your spanking is over, Robin. You may
stand up. You are forgiven for what you did."
Robin furiously rubs her
bottom and jumps up and down, and then she surprises Charlie by throwing
herself into his lap and putting her arms around his neck and holding on for
dear life! After a moment's pause, Charlie hugs her right back.
"There, there, lovey.
I, we, love you very much and we always will." He turns to Lisa,
"Hey, honey, room for one more in this hug. "
Lisa gets in, too, and then
Jennifer peeks into the room and comes over to be hugged, too. There is a long
four-way hug.
After a while Robin says,
"Ah, I'm getting squished, Daddy."
Charlie and Lisa loosen the
hug a bit.
A little later Charlie
says, "All right Robin, now you KNOW we love you. But right now, you have
an appointment with a time out chair."
He releases the hug, and
everybody disentangles from everybody else.
"Yes, Daddy,"
Robin responds.
She goes into the kitchen
and over to the time out chair, and kneels down on it. Her bottom still hurts
too much to sit. The chair faces the wall, leaving its occupant a very boring
view.
"Remember, you are to
stay there, quiet and still, for one full hour, Robin", Charlie warns her.
"A whole hour?"
she protests, looking around, but then she sees the look on her father's face.
"Oh, okay, Daddy. But,
Daddy? Can I please have a piece of cheese? I'm starving." Robin asks.
"Well, Okay, just one
small piece, though." Charlie cuts a piece of cheese and hands it to her.
"Here it is. And that
is the last I want to hear from you unless there is an emergency, until your
hour is up."
* * *
"Daddy? Has it been a
hour yet? I'm done contaplating my behavior."
Charlie smiles at his
daughter's attempt at the word "contemplating" and looks at the clock.
Robin has been in time-out for just over an hour. "Yes, you may come out
now," he says.
"I gotta go pee",
she says, and hurries off, still bare bottomed from her spanking. When she
comes back, she finds her shorts and panties and puts them on. She then sits on
Charlie's lap.
"Daddy?" she
says.
"Yes? What is it,
lovey?"
"I'm sorry I left the
apartment without permission. That was really wrong of me. I won't ever do it
again. "
"Yes, I'm glad you
understand that. It worried us very much. We love you and wouldn't want
ANYthing to happen to you. "
"I know. I’m
sorry," Robin says in a small voice.
"Okay. You are
forgiven for that. Here!" And with that Charlie hugs her again.
"I love you,
Daddy." Robin hugs Charlie back.
"And I love you, too,"
Charlie confirms.
"Am I still in
trouble?"
"No, I think you have
been punished enough. Do you understand what you did that was wrong?"
"Yes, Daddy. I ran
away, and went to the park without permission, and I threw a tantrum."
Lisa interjects, "Um,
Honey, remember Robin still has a mouth soaping coming for her sassiness to
me."
"Mommy, no!"
Robin says.
"Oh yes, honey, that's
right. We decided that the time out wasn't enough." Charlie says,
"Okay, Robin, time for your mouth soaping for sassing your mommy."
"Daddy, NO! I'm sorry.
I’m sorry, Mommy! Please!"
"This will help you
remember to be polite and have a good attitude when you talk -- particularly to
your mommy and me," Charlie says.
"Yes, Robin. You were
really very mouthy. You have got to learn to keep a civil tongue in your
head," Lisa adds.
Robin doesn't know what
that means, but figures it's not very good. She cries, as Charlie leads her
into the bathroom, and sits her down on the toilet. It hurts her to sit, so she
jumps right back up.
"Sit down, Robin. You
have done enough disobeying for today," Charlie says.
Robin does as she is told,
but not without whimpering. When she look ups, her father is standing there
holding out a bar of soap.
"PLEASE, DADDY,
NO!" she yells.
"Robin, don't make
things worse. You earned this with your sassy language. Now open up, unless you
want another spanking first."
Slowly and reluctantly,
Robin opens her mouth and Charlie sticks the soap in.
"Now close your mouth
and hold the soap there. Don't take it out until I tell you to," Charlie
says.
She does as she is told,
with a look of disgust on her face. Charlie leaves the room, and lets Robin sit
and taste the soap. It tastes yucky but she doesn't take it out; she knows
better. Instead she sits and yells at herself for talking mean to her mommy and
getting into trouble.
Five minutes later, Charlie
comes back into the bathroom.
"Okay you can take the
soap out, and rinse if you want to," he says.
Robin doesn't wait to be
asked twice. She quickly removes the soap, and rinses her mouth several times
at the sink. Then she puts her arms up for Charlie to pick her up. He does so,
and cuddles her.
"There now, you are
ALL forgiven. I hope we don't ever have to do this again, Robin," he says.
"No, Daddy, I hope
not, too. [Pause] "I'm hungry, is dinner ready yet?" she asks, being
careful not to whine.
"Let's go see."
Charlie carries her into the kitchen and addresses his wife, "Lisa, Honey,
how long 'til dinner? I have a hungry little girl here."
"It's ready now,
hon," Lisa replies.
The Clemente family sits
down to dinner, the day's troubles behind them. Robin's place has a pillow on
the seat, but no one mentions it.
-The End-