Title: Opening Night of Hockey
Matthew wanted to lay down in the back seat of the vehicle, but Rolf wouldn't allow it. He managed to get the front seat laid back, so he could put a lot less pressure on his ass, and still be buckled in. The short drive was torture, and Matthew was sobbing the whole way. Rolf hugged him, and sent him to bed when they arrived home, promising a lecture tomorrow about breaking restriction. Matthew fell asleep almost the instant his head hit the pillow, but it wasn't a real deep sleep, his ass hurt too bad.
The next morning, Rolf woke Matthew up, and over breakfast gave him a blistering lecture about breaking restriction, and the instant that he screwed up this week, Rolf was going to lay into him good, with the paddle. Matthew was left with no doubt about his future behavior. The lecture helped, because Matthew was the perfect companion, doing everything that was asked of him, without any backtalk. He only came close to getting spanked once, when he tried in vain to get Rolf to let him go to the hockey game this coming Saturday. Rolf was adamant. "No, you are not going, and that is FINAL. Receiving, and then lying about a ticket is a pretty serious offense. You are on restriction for another two and a half weeks, and that's that. I don't want to hear another word about it, and if you do, you might as well get that paddle and bring it here. Is that clear?"
"Yes, sir," Matt said, defeated. He still couldn't believe that he was going to miss opening night. That was always the biggest night of the whole, entire season, and they had been close to selling out each of the past three seasons. The team held the record for the biggest crowd. They were giving away such great prizes this time too. Matthew had been hearing all the ads on the radio, and reading the articles in the newspaper. He was beyond excited, and the thought of missing this game was killing him. He had even been able to see a little of the team on the television at work. He still wasn't allowed to watch at home, but thankfully the bar at work had several, so he wasn't missing everything. He was going to miss a total of five games, two the first weekend, and three the second weekend. One eighth of the season. Rolf had decided to give Matt's tickets to a good friend of theirs, Marc. All the rest of the group had the tickets they wanted.
When Rolf called Marc, he was happy to accept the tickets. Marc was wondering why he hadn't heard from Matt for the last two weeks. Rolf told him about the ticket and the punishment that Matt had received. Marc was aghast that Matthew had done something that stupid. He felt sorry for his friend, the punishment was harsh, but he knew, well deserved. He just hoped Matthew wouldn't be mad at him for "taking" his seat for the first five games. He knew how much hockey meant to him.
Matthew finished the week in fine fashion. He went to bed Thursday night, again, not sleeping too comfortably, nervous about his next strapping. Unbeknownst to him, Rolf had decided to get this next one out of the way, first thing in the morning. He didn't want to have to go through last week's fiasco, with Matt running off.
Rolf got up 30 minutes earlier than normal, and went straight into Matt's room. He was in his t-shirt and shorts that he normally slept in. He was carrying the belt. "Hey, Matthew, wake up." Rolf said, gently shaking him. He really hated to wake Matt up for this, but thought that it was better than making him wait all day.
"Whaaattt? It's early, let me sleep." Matthew was a hard one to get up in the morning, especially this early.
"Matthew, get up, please. We have some business to take care of."
"What business? Come on, it's still dark outside."
"We are going to get your strapping taken care of, right now. Get up, go relieve yourself, and get back here on the double." Rolf spoke a little more sharply, trying to get Matthew moving. He wanted to get this out of the way, and get his day started. He had a lot to do.
Matthew still wasn't paying too much attention to Rolf, but realized he did have to go to the bathroom. He stumbled out of bed, and hit the toilet. It wasn't until he was pulling his shorts back up that what Rolf had said hit him, like a ton of bricks. He was instantly and totally awake. Rolf was waiting outside, with the belt. It was going to happen in just a few minutes. His morning hunger pangs collided with the twisting feeling of fear, making him almost ill.
"Matthew, now, please," Rolf said from the bedroom.
Matthew slowly opened the door, and saw Rolf standing there, the belt in his hand. "Rolf, please, please, not now. I promise, I'll never ever do that again, please...please." Matt was desperate to keep this from happening.
Rolf remained where he was, and just pointed to the end of the bed. He said just one word "NOW!"
That one word carried such authority, and such a finality, that Matthew just walked over, albeit slowly, to the end of the bed.
"Bend over, and take hold of the sheets. I'll leave the shorts on, but the minute you let go of the bed, those shorts will come down. So that I know I have your attention, I want you to count each one. Is that clear?" Rolf spoke sternly, making sure that Matthew understood the gravity of the situation.
"Yes, sir" Matthew said, almost on the verge of tears, without even feeling the first lick of the leather. He bent over the bed, at the ninety-degree angle, and grabbed the sheets as if his life depended upon it. He was thankful for the thin covering of shorts, as much as for the protection from the belt as well as the little bit of dignity it gave him. He waited for what seemed like hours, though it was only a short moment, before the belt made it's first of 50 descents. The belt thumped down, full force, leaving an instantaneous line of fire in it's wake. Matthew flinched, letting out a loud, "aaaauuuuggghhh" and when he could breathe in, managed to say, "one". The belt crashed down again, a little lower, and again, Matthew moaned, then managed to get out, "two". The third lick was placed across the fleshly part of his bottom, nearly lifting Matthew off his feet. Matthew was already losing his breath, so he croaked out three, without making any other sounds. By the tenth lick, tears were coursing down his face, but he was refusing to break out into full-fledged crying. The shorts were offering some protection, at least from the sting factor, but the heat was still building up, and quickly at that. By the twentieth, he was sobbing with each lick. There were no pleas or promises, they were all given during the first strapping. Matthew kept opening and closing his fists around the sheets and blankets he had in his hands. The thirtieth lick landed, and Matthew nearly stood up. He didn't let go of the bed, but that lick had landed across the very bottom of his seat, and it caused him to yell. His full-fledged crying began, as he leaned back over the bed. He was quickly becoming hoarse, as the belt bit into his flesh, again and again. Finally, the fiftieth one landed, and his crying became louder, relief that it was again, over.
Rolf helped Matthew lay back down in the bed, then went and threw the belt into his bedroom. He got a wet washcloth, and sat on the side of the bed, wiping Matthew's face, and neck, trying to calm him down. He was proud of Matthew, taking his punishment without complaint. When Matthew was over the worst of his crying, Rolf left to get ready for work. He had an extra 15 minutes when he finished, so he got some cream, and went back into Matthew's room to try to rub some of the sting out. Matthew moaned, as the hand hurt his tortured backside, but the cream did seem to cool it down. Rolf left shortly to head to work, leaving Matthew worn out, but glad that it was over, and only one more to go.
Matthew didn't get out of bed until close to noon. He didn't have anything he had to do, nor really, anything he could do. No computer and no television left Matthew very bored, but he realized how stupid his actions were, and that the punishment was fair. The only thing he had trouble with was talking on the phone. He felt like such a prisoner, and the only relief was when he was talking to a friend. He wandered out to the kitchen, and fixed himself some lunch. He ate, standing up, while reading the paper. The sports section had a huge, front page, feature section on the hockey game, tomorrow night. Oh, the knife to his heart. His boss knew how much Matthew loved hockey, so he didn't have to work. (His boss had no clue Matthew wasn't supposed to be going to the game.) Matthew was devastated about missing the game. Instead of moping about, which would probably cause trouble, he decided to get something on, and walk around the yard, picking up whatever trash was out there. That was something he could do, not something he was told to do. While he was out front, Chris drove up.
"Hey, Matt, how are you?"
"Okay," Matt wasn't in a talkative mood, his butt was still throbbing.
"Rolf is at work, isn't he? I mean, I won't get you into any more trouble, will I?"
"No, as long as you stay in your truck, I'll just say I was telling you to leave, if someone asks."
"Hey, you're not looking too hot. Oh." Chris just realized that Matthew probably already got his strapping for the day. "Did, did you get it this morning?"
Matthew hated to talk about his punishment, but when asked directly, just answered. "Yeah, first thing this morning."
Chris remembered last week, none too fondly. He had been sore for two days, and he had received nothing like Matt had. "You alright, buddy?"
"Yeah, I'm just glad it's over. When he woke me up this morning, I hated him for it, but now, I'm glad it happened that way. Now I can get on with my day, and have nothing to dread."
"Is he going to let you go to the game tomorrow?"
Matthew punched Chris in the arm. "Thanks, what the hell do you think? No, of course I can't go, dammit, I hate that."
"Owwww. Sorry I asked. I was just hoping. I guess I better motor on, don't need you to get into any more trouble. And I definitely don't want to see Rolf again, on the other end of that belt. I'll be thinking of you tomorrow." Chris started the truck.
"Thanks. Yell at them, for me, won't you?"
"Sure thing." Chris took off.
Matthew went back to the yard work, but could only think of the hockey game tomorrow. Everyone was going, that was everyone but him. He just had to go, there were no two ways about it. The only thing was trying to get hold of a ticket. He couldn't ask any of his close friends; they would probably give him up, unwillingly though. Rolf still had his car keys, and the bus would take too long, the arena was just a few minutes down the street. Finally, Matt had had enough. He decided to get the motorcycle out, and take a quick ride down the street to pick up a ticket. He'd just get one in the upper arena, above the group, where he couldn't be seen. He could get there in time for the opening drop, because everyone would be there at least an hour earlier, giving him plenty of time to catch the bus. He would have to leave early, but hopefully, it wouldn't be a close game. He could almost stand not making it to the other four games, but he absolutely had to see some of the opening night.
Matthew picked up his ticket, and was only gone about 15 minutes. He mostly stood on the entire trip, his butt still hurt terribly. No one saw him, and he put the motorcycle away, making sure it looked untouched. He hid the ticket in his room, and went on about his day.
Saturday arrived and Rolf decided to pick up who he can, and not have them gather at his house. That would only make Matthew feel more left out. He's sorry about Matthew missing the game, but he wants to make sure that Matthew remembers this lesson for a long time to come.
"Are you going to be listening on the radio?" Rolf asks as he ruffles Matthew's head.
"Yes, of course. Are you sure I can't go?" Matthew has to ask again.
"Yes, I'm sure you can't go. Make sure that the television and computer stay off, okay? Don't stay up for me; I'll probably grab something to drink after the game. Be good, and I'll see you in the morning." Rolf hugs Matthew, and heads out the door.
Matthew watches Rolf leave, and quickly heads into the bedroom to don his hockey jersey. He has a bus to catch. He gets to the game as they are dropping the opening puck. He enters the arena on the opposite side, and signs up for the giveaways. They are giving away HUGE prizes, and he hopes to win the monster color tv. He goes upstairs, and winds his way around the arena, making sure to stay away from the edge, where someone might see him. There are not too many people way up top, so he goes to the back row, and stands against the wall. His backside is still too tender to sit without a pillow, and these seats are hard.
The game is a good one, the home team scores in the opening two minutes. Matthew heads to the restroom with only ten minutes gone in the first period. To get to the restroom, he has to walk along the edge of the upper deck, where he might be seen. He looks, before taking that short walk, and doesn't see anyone. But, someone sees him. Marc had gone to the refreshment stand to buy a drink, and while waiting, was looking up. He sees Matthew fairly running along the edge, and disappear into the restroom. Marc is absolutely furious with Matthew. He can't believe that Matthew, in his infinite wisdom, thought he'd get away with this type of behavior. Marc knows that butt of his must still be sore, and he has the audacity to break restriction, and according to Rolf, a second time, to see this game? He heads upstairs to confront Matthew.
Marc had several things running through his head on the way up the stairs. His first instinct, and the reason Rolf liked him so much, was to drag the boy downstairs and let Rolf handle him. Marc had the same domineering, no nonsense personality that Rolf did, and when he and Matt got together, Marc made sure Matthew walked the line. He was so very tempted to do just that, but he also realized how Rolf would react. Rolf would take Matthew's direct disobedience about as well as a slap in the face. His friend would quickly find himself with an ass that resembled hamburger, and probably restricted for several more weeks. Rolf was a thorough, tough, but fair disciplinarian, but Marc was still undecided on whether to hand Matthew over to him. He would decide that, when he confronted him.
Marc made it upstairs and to the restroom door, right after Matthew had walked out. Marc took three quick strides, and grabbed Matthew by the back of his jersey. Matthew drew a quick breath in when he felt that hand on his shirt, but before he could say anything, Marc had swung him around and marched him straight back into the restroom, nearly choking Matthew with the force applied to his jersey. Matthew didn't know who had him until he was almost slammed up against the bathroom wall. He had started to feel relief that it wasn't Rolf, when he noticed how angry Marc was.
"What the HELL do you think you are doing here Matthew? Have you lost your _f_u_c_k_ING mind?"
Matthew cringed, Marc was spitting mad. "I....I had to see the game. It's opening night, Marc, you know that I couldn't stay away. Please, Pl...."
"I know what _f_u_c_k_ing night it is, and I also know why I'm here. I HAVE YOUR TICKETS! What the hell is wrong with you? You're grounded, you just had your ass belted yesterday, and you come here? TONIGHT? Don't you ever think?" Marc was almost foaming at the mouth he was so upset.
Matthew shrank up against the wall. He was glad that there was no one in the restroom, and hoped with every fiber of his being that someone wouldn't come in anytime soon. Marc was waiting for an answer, and Matthew didn't have a good one. He just dropped his eyes to the floor.
Marc wasn't anywhere near done with Matthew. "Do you even have one, SINGLE, SOLITARY DROP OF SENSE IN THAT HEAD OF YOURS? You want to pay the high price of coming to this game, and getting your ass beat fifteen shades of red, and losing even more freedom? WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING? You obviously weren't, WERE YOU?"
Matthew wanted to crawl away and hide. Marc had the same talent that Rolf did, of making you feel very, very ashamed. He could tell that there were several people that had walked by and gotten an earful, before deciding they could go to another restroom. He was so sorry he came to the game, and wanted so badly to leave. But, he wasn't getting off the hook that easy. Marc continued to grill, lecture, and berate Matthew, busting his chops good. All Matthew could do was look at the floor, give the requisite yes, sir and no, sir answers, and shift his weight from foot to foot. He dreaded the ending of Marc's lecture, knowing that he would soon be facing Rolf, and that thought terrified him.
Marc's anger was running out. He could tell his lecture had made a significant imprint on Matthew. "So, Matthew, what are we going to do about this?"
Matthew was relieved, the lecture was over. Now it was time to face his punishment. He was absolutely terrified of what Rolf would say when Marc took him downstairs, even more so, what he would do. He collapsed into Marc, hugging him tightly, saying over and over, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, please let me go home, please"
Marc could tell how afraid Matthew was, he was shaking like a leaf. He decided, against his better judgment, to send Matthew home, without telling Rolf. If Rolf found out though, Marc knew he was dead meat, just as much at fault as Matthew. He was sending Matthew home, since Matthew had only seen about 10 minutes of the game, and he had had the fear of God put into him. He pushed Matthew away, back against the wall, took his chin, and guided his eyes upwards. "I want your belt. I'm giving you 10 licks, to remind you how close you came to disaster tonight. Then, you are to go straight home, and straight to bed. I will think about telling Rolf I saw you here, and decide what I will do about that later. If you even THINK of breaking your restriction again, I will be on your ass so fast it will make your head spin, whether or not Rolf has laid a hand on you. DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?" Marc said very deliberately.
Matthew sniffled, and said "Yes, sir".
Matthew slowly undid his buckle, and slid the belt out of the loops. Ten licks didn't sound like much, but with the beating he took yesterday, it was going to hurt like hell. And, it was in a public place, something that Matthew hated. Just then, two men came in and headed for the stalls. Matthew wanted to melt into the floor.
"Get over to sink, drop your pants, and bend over."
"Matthew, this isn't up for discussion. One more word from you, I'll double it, and do it bare."
Matthew was so embarrassed. He had no choice but to do as Marc asked, he was going to get it, right here, right now. Better that he had the protection of the shorts, even if someone saw. He shuffled over to the sink, slowly unbuttoned his jeans, and pushed them down around his knees. He widened his stance, bent over slightly, and placed his hands on the sink. He looked into the mirror, and saw Marc taking the first swing.
Matthew screwed up his face, tensing for the first lick, vowing to keep quiet no matter how bad it hurt. The belt landed with a loud, slapping sound, breaking the near silence in the quiet restroom. Matt lunged forward, and without any control whatsoever, yelled. It was as if Rolf had just given him lick number 51, without the day and a half of recovery. Tears instantly formed in his eyes, and rolled down his cheeks. He started to wonder what the guys in the stalls were thinking, when lick number two descended, clearing his mind of everything but the pain. He yelled again, not caring who heard. Marc gave him all ten, Matthew dancing from foot to foot. As soon as Marc finished, Matthew rubbed furiously, trying to lessen the sting. He didn't even care that the two guys were looking at him while washing their hands.
"Get your pants up, and get home NOW, young man. Remember what I said."
Matthew pulled up his pants, and buttoned them quickly. He grabbed a couple of paper towels, grabbed his belt, and ran out of the bathroom. He quickly ran outside to relative privacy, to clean his face and gather some shred of dignity before he headed to the bus stop. He was embarrassed that Marc had belted him in the restroom, but thankful that he hadn't had to face Rolf in public. He hoped that Marc wouldn't say anything to Rolf, but he knew he deserved it if he did. He jumped on the next bus, standing, and trying to face no one. He was still having trouble breathing without hiccupping, and his eyes told the story, to anyone who saw him. As soon as he got home, he dressed for, and jumped into, bed. He didn't even care that he was missing both the second and third periods of the game. He even missed his name, called for winning the large screen television.
But Marc didn't miss it. He had returned to his seat, with Rolf questioning him on his extended absence. Marc wouldn't lie, he just told him he had seen someone he knew, and talked to him for a short while. When Matthew's name was called as the winner of the television, Marc mentally cursed Matthew's stupidity. Marc looked over at Rolf, and could see the blood pressure rising, his eyes turning into daggers, as he scanned the crowd. Marc didn't know what to do. Rolf did, he picked up his cell phone and called home. The phone rang 4 times, before the answering machine picked it up. "Matthew, pick up the phone. Matthew, PICK UP THE _d_a_m_n_ PHONE!"
The phone had awakened Matthew, but he didn't get up, since he wasn't supposed to be on it. He did run, though, when he heard Rolf on the machine. "Yeah, I'm here." Matthew said, out of breath.
"You're there?" Rolf was dumbfounded; he had really expected no answer.
"Yeah, where.... where did you think I was?" Matthew was scared; he thought that Marc had told on him.
Rolf was confused. "Sorry, they just called your name as a winner of a prize here. I thought that you were here."
Matthew breathed a sigh of relief. He was still safe. Then, he got excited. "What did I win?"
Rolf turned to Marc. "What did they call Matt's name for? Oh yeah, the big screen television. But, how did they get your name?"
Matthew jumped up and down. HE WON! He won the television! Now maybe Rolf would let him have a tv in his room, it was his after all. "I don't know, maybe one of the guys put it down. I won! Yippee, I won!"
Marc listened to Rolf's side of the conversation, and realized that he had to do something. That brat wasn't getting away with murder. When Rolf hung up the phone, Marc told him that it was he that had signed Matthew's name up, instead of his own. He was shy, after all, and didn't want his name over the arena sound system. Rolf asked him what he was going to do with the television. Matthew would be devastated. Marc said he had an idea, could he take Matthew out tomorrow, for just a few minutes, even if he was on restriction? He would explain it to Matthew then. Rolf agreed.
The next day, Matthew was peppering Rolf with questions, begging to be allowed to get the television. Rolf told him to pipe down, that Marc wanted to see him about it, that it was Marc who had put Matt's name down. Matthew was mystified, but was happy to get to see Marc. When Marc arrived, he told Matthew to go get in the car; they had an errand to run. Matthew looked questioningly at Rolf, and was shocked when Rolf nodded his acceptance. Matthew bounded out of the house. Marc followed a minute later.
"Where are we going? To get the tv? Are we, are we?" Matthew could hardly contain his excitement, the near miss of last night totally forgotten.
Marc didn't say anything, just drove a few short miles to the Salvation Army. Matt was totally confused, but followed Marc inside. Once inside, Matthew's quizzical look turned into one of total disbelief the instant he heard Marc tell the officer in charge "I want to donate this large screen television to your center. You need only to take this card to the store, and they will redeem it for the prize listed on the front." The officer shook Marc's hand warmly, thanking him profusely for his generous act. Matthew burst into tears when they returned to the car, and as soon as they got home, he ran to his room, sulking for the rest of the day.
