Submission

His girlfriend, Cindy, was angry -- again. He was late picking her up and they had already missed the first ten minutes of the movie the two teenagers had planned to see.

"Shit! I don't want to start it in the middle. We'll have to do something else, though I should just make you spend he evening by yourself. You're such a ditz sometimes Fred!"

"I said I was sorry! I had to stop for gas."

"You had plenty of time earlier."

"Well, my watch stopped working." Cindy had given him the watch for Christmas. It worked fine until he had dropped it into the sink.

"I'm tired of your excuses, Fred. Something has to teach you to pay more attention." She was watching out the window as they drove slowly through town. Fred hadn't been going anywhere exactly, just driving.

Cindy noticed that they had left the main downtown section and were passing through a fringe area. There were lots of cheesy motels and adult theaters. She remembered reading in the newspaper that the town council was trying to get some of the places -- mostly the sex shops -- closed down.

Passing one of those shops, Cindy noticed a poster that showed through the front window. A tall thin brunette stood stiffly. She was dressed in black leather and was holding a riding crop. Behind her, a naked man was standing with his hands tied above his head. His back and ass were striped with red. I don't see what those guys get out of that, she thought. To me spanking has always been a punishment.

If she had been a cartoon, a light bulb would have popped into being over her head. Spanking! That's how she could teach Fred to be on time! She stole a glance at her boyfriend. He wore a hangdog look and was just staring at the road ahead. He looked like he was a mile away.

"Freddy..." she said, "what would you do to make this up to me?" He looked at her and frowned.

"We can always go tomorow night, and I'll take you to dinner first. How's that?"

Cindy grimaced and shook her head. "Not nearly good enough. Besides, you need to learn a lesson, too."

Fred snorted, "Well, what do you want me to do? Write an essay? Write on the blackboard, 'I will never be late again'?"

"Don't be a smartass!" she snapped at him. "I don't think you understand how pissed I am. Didn't you say your folks were going out tonight?"

"Yeah, but wha..."

"Take us to your house -- NOW!"

"Uh...Cin...I'm not supposed to..." he began.

"Shut up! I know that. It's just too bad! You're not supposed to pick me up late, either." She refused to say anything else.

Fred pulled into his driveway and shut off the engine and headlights. He turned to say something, but Cindy had grabbed the keys from the ignition and was halfway to the door. Fred sighed and got out to follow her.