Sitting in my room that evening I squirmed in my computer chair. The roasting of my bare bottom Maureen had just a hand, or more accurately, a strap, in, had left me having difficulty sitting.
I stood from my chair and walked to the door. Not wanting my sister, Heather, to see my discomfort I had shut the door behind me as I entered my room. Hanging on the back of the door is a full length mirror. Removing my pajama pants I placed them on the edge of the bed. I had to do so gingerly because my backside was still painful to the touch after the long talk Maureen's leather strap had with my bare bottom earlier in the day.
I turned and looked over my shoulder back towards the mirror. My naked ass was purple, with deep red areas covering each cheek. Slowly, I rubbed my bottom, feeling the pain with each movement.
My sister, Heather, aside from being my roommate, and three years older, is almost always home. In her job as a Marketing Director she has the luxury of working from home. Rarely a day went by that we did not sit and chat about our day, or what we had going on.
When I had gotten home that afternoon from my "talk" with Maureen, my sister was sitting at the counter in our kitchen. I had hurriedly walked past her, tossing out only a simple, "Hi sis," as I continued to my room. Her faced was buried in her phone to where she had replied with a casual, "Uh, huh," back at me.
That level of casual interaction was not the norm, however. It had, after all, been only this morning at breakfast that I had told Heather I was thinking of going back to Antique City. Her asking me if I did was a given. As I continued looking at my well-whipped bare bottom in the mirror I knew that is why I had not left my room since getting home.
There was no avoiding Heather, though. Sooner or later I would have to go out for dinner. The chicken she was cooking up this evening smelled delicious, even through my closed door.
Biting my lip, I pulled my pajama bottoms back on and opened my door, eventually making my way to the kitchen. Heather was standing at the stove with her back to me, using a spatula to move the chicken about in the pan. Thirsty, I walked to the refrigerator and pulled out a can of Pepsi.
Pulling on the tab I popped the can open. The sound of it opening caused Heather to turn around. She was wearing a red plaid apron with a chicken emblazoned across its front. Ironic, I thought.
"It's about time you made your presence known," Heather commented.
"Yeah, I know," I replied back. "It's been a long day."
"Antique stores will do that to you," she remarked.
I nodded in agreement and then went to a stool at the counter. Heather watched me as I winced while settling onto the hard, wood, surface of the stool.
"What is wrong with you?"
As I did a few weeks ago after my first visit with Maureen, I lied to Heather saying I had another leg cramp.
"It must be," I lied, "from all the walking around the shops today."
Rolling her eyes, she snarkily replied, "If you say so."
What did Heather mean by that? My mind told me to let it go. Unfortunately, my mouth wasn't listening. "What does that mean," I asked solemnly.
"Well," she began, "let's just say I don't think you go shopping when you go to Antique City."
Puzzled, I asked back," Why is that?"
"Well, you have gone out there twice in the last few weeks, and haven't bought a thing. At least not that you have shown me. And you know I love antiques yet you haven't even shared if you have seen anything I might like. And...then there's today..." she paused and looked at me intently.
"What about today?" I answered back, not knowing where she was going with her statement.
"I was at Antique City today, Keith. I saw you leaving Maureen's store well past when she closes. I mean, it was like 1:30pm."
"Wait, you know Maureen?"
"Duh, hello McFly, think," Maureen mimicked while softly knocking on my head with her right fist. "I go to the antique stores all the time. Of course I know Maureen. Hers is my favorite shop, even."
Heather then reached down and opened the kitchen drawer by her left leg. She pulled out a thick, heavy wooden spoon and it laid it on the counter. "Where do you think I got this spoon?"
I couldn't believe what my sister was saying. This conversation needed to be changed, and fast.
"Wow, what do you stir with a spoon that size," I asked with a feigned interest.
"No, no, don't try changing the subject. Why did you leave Maureen's store so late this afternoon? You were in there for over an hour after she closed. What were you doing?"
I knew I couldn't tell Heather the truth. I mean, what was I supposed to say? I was there getting my bare bottom whipped with a leather strap?
Looking up at her I told a half-truth. "Oh, I just go to help her with her paperwork." I reasoned it as a half-truth because Maureen's paperwork included her reading my note. I just omitted the end result.
Heather wasn't buying it. "But I saw her today give you a few pats on your butt as you were leaving. Seems like something more than just...," Heather air quoted, "helping her with paperwork."
I laughed, trying to end the discussion, and said, "Oh she was just being silly by doing that."
Her look was that of a skeptic as she tried to size up my answers. "This is too weird. Something seems up. I may not be able to put my finger on it right now...but I will sooner or later." Heather then opened the drawer and put the spoon away.
I shrugged my shoulders with an "I don't know" mumble and got up to make my plate.
I could sense Heather was still percolating as she sat eating her dinner. My mind, however, had turned away from our discussion and onto that long wooden spoon she brought out.
I had never seen it before. The drawer she took it out of I had gone into that morning to get a metal spoon for my cereal and it was not there. Now, Heather had this imposing wooden spoon, with a thick round handle with a large, dense end with a deep scoop.
"Hey Heather, when did you get that spoon? I don't remember seeing it before today," I asked.
Heather got out of her chair, walked to the kitchen sink, and placed her plate and silverware in the basin. Reaching to her left, she opened the drawer again and pulled out the spoon. She tapped it in her palm a few times. "You mean this one?"
