"Fuck!"
Em cursed herself quietly, fumbling with her keys in the door, hands shaking. The day had been long and stressful, sending her anxiety into overdrive. After what felt like far too long, she slotted the key into the lock and opened the grubby metal door, letting herself into the small but cozy apartment she called home.
She shut the door behind her, let her bag fall from her shoulder to the floor, and kicked her shoes off haphazardly, blowing out a long sigh. "What a fucking day." She thought.
Em padded toward the kitchen; her thoughts clouded. Half-formed sentences rapidly swirled around in her head like a hurricane, none of them helpful or kind. From the other room, she could vaguely hear the sound of the television playing the 5 o'clock news, the anchor's robotic voice droning on in the background. She filled a cup with water and quickly drained the glass, running the events of the day on repeat in her head.
As she fell further into her thoughts, recounting the events of the day, her heart sped in her chest, and the walls seemed to begin to close in on her. Her lungs felt tight, like she couldn't get enough air. So many what-if's and should-haves toiled around in her head; the noise was thunderous. Her grip on the cup tightened.
"I'm so fucking stupid..." She mumbled to herself, setting the glass down hard on the counter. She raked her dark hair back from her face and shook her head as though she could shake away the mayhem.
Still lost in her thoughts, she made her way to the living room. She stopped in the doorway to take in the scene in front of her. The floor lamp cast the room in a soft, warm light, a candle lit on the table filled her nose with a spicy and comforting scent. Her boyfriend sat on the couch, backlit by the TV, book in hand with his back to her. For a brief moment as her eyes landed on him, the storm-like whirlwind of chaos in her brain quieted, and a small smile played on her lips.
Without a word, she closed the distance between her and the couch, leaning over the back to wrap her arms tightly around him. She tucked her face into the crook of his neck and inhaled deeply, taking in the comforting smell of his cologne, citrus and amber overwhelming her senses. She felt his weight shift and heard the sound of his book touching down on the side table. His jaw moved against her cheek as he smiled. She could feel his beard scratch pleasantly against her skin.
"Hey pet, welcome home."
She didn't speak, tightening her arms around him in response. He lifted a hand to the back of her head, coming to rest at the nape of her neck, and attempted to turn his head to look at her. She nuzzled her face deeper. He relented, choosing to hold her like that for a beat, one hand on her head and the other coming up to rest on her forearm, where it wrapped around his chest. A few minutes passed before he spoke again.
"Come on, then." He said softly, a smile still in his voice. He patted his lap. "Come here."
She didn't hesitate. She rounded the side of the couch, stepping over his knees and flopping heavily onto the cushion beside him, leaning into his arm.
"Mmm-mm, no baby."
Before she could settle into comfort against his side, he swiftly pulled the girl into his lap. She squeaked in surprise but relented, drawing her knees toward her chest as she leaned into him, resting her head against his shoulder once more. His arms wrapped around her waist, his chin coming to rest atop her head. Her eyes drifted shut as she listened to the drone of the news anchor, the rise and fall of his breathing, the thumping of his heart in his chest. Soon enough, they could both feel the tension start to release from her body.
"Okay, baby... talk to me." He murmured, bringing a hand up to stroke her hair.
The girl tensed again. She inhaled to speak, pausing with her mouth open while she rapidly tried to organize her thoughts to no avail. Her mouth snapped shut again, and she blew out a sigh, shrugged, and tried to relax into him once more. "I'm fine, Dan."
The hand in her hair came to a stop, his other arm pulling her impossibly closer. "Come on, pretty girl, you can do it." He pushed, an edge of authority tinting his voice.
She made no effort to speak, instead turning her face into his chest to hide. He tangled his fingers into the hair at the crown of her head, letting out a sigh of his own before he tightened his hand into a fist, tugging her head back. He forced her eyes to meet his. She gasped, green eyes flying open to look at him in shock. She was irritated he was being so insistent, but a small part of her brain couldn't help but soften at his unwillingness to let her be alone with her thoughts.
"I wasn't asking." He spoke firmly. "Talk. Now."
His sharp tone shot lightning down her spine, her limbs feeling like jello. She looked up into his piercing eyes, her own silently pleading for him to leave it be. Dan raised an eyebrow at her expectantly. She couldn't help but let her eyes flicker to his lips as her tongue darted out to wet her own, his domineering behavior placating her. She felt a sense of calm in the fact that he was taking control, despite her attitude getting the better of her. When she still didn't speak, he smiled and shook his head. He leaned in close, his lips barely brushing against hers. She strained against the hand in her hair uselessly, desperate to close the gap.
"Be good for me," he breathed, and without warning, he stood and walked with her in his arms behind the couch before unceremoniously flopping her facedown over the back of it.
"Hey! What the fu- HEY!!!" She whipped her head around to look over her shoulder to see him standing between her legs, grinning widely down at her. In one smooth motion, he had yanked her leggings and panties together down to her mid-thigh and landed a hard open-palmed smack to her left asscheek. "What the fuck was th-"
*SMACK!*
She yelped as he cut her off with a sharp spank to the other side.
"Something's up." *smack* "You aren't talking," *smack* "So I'm going," *smack* "to" *smack* "make you." *smack smack*
He punctuated his sentence with two more firm slaps to her backside.
She yelped with each blow and shook her head in protest. "I don't want to talk about it." She argued, squirming forward to free herself.
He chuckled, sliding a hand into her hair again. He wrenched her head back, freezing her in place once more. "That's too bad, baby." He spoke softly again, his tone still firm but tinted with a smile.
Wordlessly, he began raining blows down upon her ass, alternating cheeks, smirking as he did so. Watching her ass recoil and redden under his hand, seeing her flinch and writhe with each hit, mesmerized him. Her protests quickly turned into mewls. She knew she was stuck. He spoke over the sound of his barrage, "The sooner you talk, the sooner this stops, pet. Tell me what has you stuck in your pretty little head."
Em hesitated. Each time his hand connected with her skin, there was a moment of silence and clarity among the turmoil in her head. Another thirty seconds passed, her gasps of pain tinged with desire, soft whimpers punctuating the end of each breath. Every blow caused a growing need within her sex. "D-Dan- I don't wan-ow! I really don't want to-"
Dan landed a final hit before pausing, cupping her ass in his palm. He rubbed soft circles into her warm skin to soothe the burn. She relaxed into his touch as he spoke again. "I know, pet, I know... just try for me." With that, he made one last circle with his palm, dipping his thumb down between her legs to brush ever so gently across her slit, already slippery with her wetness.
She shuddered, too distracted by the heat on her ass to have noticed the heat pooling between her legs. He drew his hand back, and she tensed, waiting for the blow to land. Five seconds passed. Then ten. She started to let out the breath she had been holding, and just as she began to deflate, his hand came down hard against her upper thigh, sending a fiery sting through her, wrenching a cry of surprised pain from her lips.
"Fine!!" She choked out, and he finally released the grip on her hair, letting her head drop forward. His torrent of hits slowed, barely. "I slept like sh-ow.. shit. I forg- ow. Forgot my medicine this morning... I'm g-grumpy and insecure, and my hair looks awfu-FUCK!"
He landed an intentionally extra-hard blow across her sit spot in response to the self-deprecation. The sound hung in the air as he paused briefly to make his point.
She sucked in a breath and started again, correcting herself. "I... don't like how my hair looks today..." she mumbled hesitantly, glancing back over her shoulder to meet his gaze. Her lover watched her pensively, lowering his hand to rest on the curve of her ass. He nodded, encouraging her to keep going. He began to make soft circles on her skin again as she continued.
"I... Um, I messed up a customer's order... It was really busy; we had a line to the door, and I handed him the wrong drink in the drive-through." She lowered her eyes to the cushion in front of her as she spoke, absentmindedly picking her cuticles as she spoke faster. "I should have been paying more attention, but I- what are you...? Oh."