Carey had just come downstairs to begin rehearsing when her son Cody came in screaming.

"Honey, what's wrong?", she said to her nearly hysterical son.

Cody looked distressed as he replied, "It's Zack. We were jumping on the couch when he..er..fell".

"Is he okay?", Carey asked now worried.

Cody grabbed his moms hands and began pulling her towards the door as he rushed out the words, "He hit his eye on the corner of the glass table in the living room.."

Now Carey was the one dragging Cody a long, while also lecturing Cody about jumping on the couch.

When they arrived at the suite, Carey found Zack crying with one hand over his left eye, and lying on his back on the floor inbetween the couch and table. She rushed over to him, pulling him into a sitting position, and leaned him against the couch.

"Honey, are you okay?", Carey asked her oldest son.

"Mommy, my eye hurts.", Zack said through tears.

"I know sweetie, Cody go get the first aid kit, please". Carey tried to pry Zacks hand off his eye, so that she could see it better. "Honey, you have to move your hand so mommy can see, okay?".

"But..it..hurts!" Zack said between sobs.

"I bet it does, and its going to continue to hurt unless I help you make it better". She pulled at his hand with more force than she had before, forcing it to come down.

Cody came back with the medical kit.

There was blood all over Zacks hand, and the corner of his eye.

Zack let out a low wimpering sound as his mom still had a death grip on his hand and was now wiping at his eye with a wet nap.

"That stings..", whispered Zack.

"I know honey, I'm sorry", his mother replied.

Carey finished wiping at Zacks' eye, and then moved to applying antiseptic onto the wound. She then taped a bandage over it, making it look like Zack had an eye patch.

Carey helped Zack up and then kissed the top of his head, reassuring him that he would be okay.

Zack leaned into his mom as she hugged him, and continued to cry. Cody sat on the couch and watched.

Carey kept rubbing Zacks' back, trying to soothe him and ease up his crying.

"What have I told you boys about jumping on the couch? It was only a matter of time before one of you got hurt. I don't want to see either of you standing on the furniture again, do you hear me?", Carey lectured in her stern mother voice.

Cody looked at the floor. "Sorry mom"

Carey nudged her oldest. "What about you Zack?"

"Sorry", he said with a sniffle.

"Good. Now that its way past 9:00, you guys better get to bed. You can take baths in the morning."

"Kay", the boys replied in unison.

"Go and put on your jammies, I'll be back to tuck you in, in 5", Carey said.

The boys shuffled their way their way into their bedroom and began undressing.

"Are you okay?" Cody asked his brother.

Zack sniffled and looked at his brother with the toughest look managable. "I'm fine"

"You don't look fine" retorted Cody. "I'm sorry I jumped into you when we were jumping on the couch.

"Yeah, it kind of is your fault. If you hadn't jumped down right as I landed, I probably would've never fell." Zack angrily replied.

"Or.. maybe you are just uncoordinated" Cody suggested.

Zack was now standing on the bed next to Cody, who was sitting already in his PJ's. "Maybe we should test your hypothesis".

Cody stared up at his brother. "But mom said not to stand on the furniture anymore.."

Zack began moving up and down slightly, not quite jumping. "So?" He replied.

Just then, their mom walked into the room.

"Busted", Cody breathed, barely audible.

"Zackary, what are you doing? Get down from there!", an angry Carey yelled.

Zack stopped bouncing. "I'm just standing, mom. No need to freak".

"I don't care, I told you not to stand on the furniture. Sit down right now, or I'll spank you.", Carey threatened.

Zack reluctantly sat down on the bed and questioned, "You wouldn't really spank your injured son, would you?"

"Why not? Its not like your butt is injured. And why haven't you gotten in your PJ's yet? Get to it, I'll be back." Carey left the room.

Cody smirked. "Not yet, anyway"

Zack looked at his brother questioningly. "What?"

"Your butts not injured----yet." Cody repeated.

"Oh shut up!" Zack was now annoyed.

"Make me!" Cody stuck out his tongue.

Zack leapt off the bed and shoved his brother hard. Cody fell forward, only to smash his nose into their dresser and immediately started crying. He ran out of the room and to his mom yelling, "Zack pushed meee!".

"Oops..." Zack stated, as he watched his little brother run out of the room. It was at this moment that he realized how much trouble he was now in.

Carey took one look at Cody and then rushed over to him. She grabbed his arm and dragged him into the bathroom, pushing him onto the toilet. "Honey, what happened? Are you okay? I can't believe both of my boys need bandaging within 20 minutes of each other." She shook her head.

Cody just stared at the floor, silently crying while his mom cleaned him up.

Zack appeared in the doorway.

"You are in big trouble, Zackary.", Carey informed.

"Why do you always assume I did it?" Zack whined.

Carey locked eyes with Zack. "Well, did you?"

Zack remained silent with a guilty look on his face.

His mom waited.

"It was an accident, mom." Zack whispered.

Carey finished bandaging Cody and hugged him. She looked from Cody to Zack. "Which one of you is going to explain to me what just happened?"

"Cody..er..I...." Zack stammered.

"Yes?"
"..... I pushed Cody and uh.. he hit his nose on the dresser. But I didn't mean to hurt him! I'm sorry!" Zack gazed up at his mom.

Carey led Cody out of the bathroom, with Zack following close behind. Carey turned around and told Zack, "I'm not the one you should be apologizing to, and you can just stay in the bathroom for now."

"Why do I have to stay in the bathroom?"

"You'll find out, soon enough", Carey replied as she walked out of the bathroom, leaving Zack confused.

When Carey returned, she was holding a hair brush.

Zack, realizing what was about to happen, stuttered, "No... no mommy, please!".

Carey sat down on the edge of the bathtub. "Well, get over here"

Zack sighed, and walked over to his mom. As soon as he was within reach of her, she pulled him by his wrist and yanked his shorts and underwear down to the ground. Zack was teary eyed and went limp as his mom pulled him over her lap. She raised the brush high and brought it down hard, with no warning.

"Ow!" Zack yelped.

"I can't believe you, Zackary! You couldn't even wait an hour before you go and hurt your brother, right after you got hurt!" his mother ranted as she continued to spank him.

She brought the brush down many more times before letting Zack up. He had tears pouring down his face, as well as snot. She pulled him over to the sink, where she changed his eye patch, for it was drenched with tears.

"Now. We're going to go and apologize to Cody." His mother stated, looking Zack in the eyes.

"But.. I can't go looking like this!" Zack complained.

"Its either that, or you can go over my lap for a second spanking. Is that what you want?" Carey informed him.

"No!" Zack nearly shouted.

She pushed Zack out of the bathroom and walked him over to the couch, where his brother was sitting.

Cody looked up, Zack sniffled. "I'm.. I'm sorry I hurt your nose.." Zack forced out, between sobs, as he stared at the floor.

THE END