Crime And Punishment

Ned leaned back against the doorway that led to his small son's bedroom and gave a great sigh. He looked, and also felt, completely miserable. He sighed again and looked down at the small wooden paddle he held in his right hand and wearily tossed it aside.

'Oh Jojo, why did you drive me to this?' he thought sadly. 'You left me no choice! Couldn't you have seen that?'

He could hear coming from the other side of the door, low heart-rending muffled sobs. Ned turned slightly, longing to go back inside, hold his son close and tell him he was sorry, sorry oh so sorry! But he also knew if he did, the lesson wouldn't be learned and the problem continuing.

It was just the week before when he made the threat. Jojo had suddenly began to cut school for apparantly no reason.. While his parents didn't mind him spending his spare time at the observatory away from his family, school was one thing they both firmly believed in, if for different reasons.

"You can't be much of a mayor if you don't have the education to back yourself up!" Ned had declared. Sally had just added "And for anything else you'd like to do when you're grown, as well."

Jojo seemed to take both as a challenge and more reports of cutting had come in. First the punishments metered out were simple, staying in his room, then adding extra work such as mowing the house roof lawn. Neither seemed to have any effect.

Then Ned forbade Jojo from even going up to the observatory, a statement that made Jojo even more sullen. It worked for a bit but after that privilege had been restored, the same school news started up again.

Ned had had it at the last note. He had sat silent during breakfast while Sally took care of the girls. When the chair of his son's came around, he didn't remain seated himself, but got up and stood over his son. Jojo looked up, startled at the change of events and also startled at the look on his father's face.

"Young man, your mother and I had tried to be reasonable. We have tried all we could think of to make you realize that cutting school is not acceptable, and never will be acceptable. You have been given chance after chance after chance. Well, no more!"

Jojo stared up silently, and gave a small gulp. Ned continued.

"I hate to do this, but you leave us no choice. The next time, the VERY next time we hear you have cut class, you, young man, will be going over my knee! Do you understand me?!"

Jojo had actually blinked at that, then when the clock rang noting his time was up, he slowly slipped off the chair and, edging carefully around Ned, quickly made his way out.

Ned let out a long breath as if he had suddenly deflated. He felt the same too. Sally came over and put a hand on his shoulder. "Dear, are you sure about this? It's been ages since we had to take a hand to any of them!"

"Sally, we tried everything else! I have to get it through to him that he just can't go gallivanting around as he pleases! He has to become responsible for his own actions. He's no longer a mere toddler, after all."

Sally gave a sad nod. He was right. "Well, I hope this time he listens."

Ned sadly looked in the direction Jojo had gone. "I hope so too."

The threat seemed to have worked for the next few weeks. Things apparently turned back to normal. Then…

Ned came back in with the morning paper, ready for the breakfast ritual as always when he noted Sally regarding him with large sad eyes. "What?" he asked, puzzled.

Wordlessly Sally handed him the note from school. Ned scanned it, then once more gave a great sigh. "."

"You don't have to go through with it," Sally told him. "Just let him have another chance."

"And then what? He'll just keep on doing this!" Ned put his head in his hands. "I told him the very next time. Well, this IS the very next time! And as Horton would say, 'I said what I meant and I meant what I said.' The other stuff doesn't apply however."

"Yes, I suppose you're right. But let's get through the girls first."

Ned tried to put on a bright false face as he and Sally greeted each of their young girls and sent them on their way. Then the last chair came up. Ned steeled himself by glancing down at the school note. Once again he stood up to the last chair. He spun it around, and he held up the note so Jojo would see it immediately.

Only, there was no Jojo there.

"What?" Ned glanced about, but there was no sign of his small son. If he was thinking about backing out of dealing out the punishment, his mind was quickly set. "Jojo! "

He stalked over to the door that led to Jojo's bedroom. Along the way he wondered to himself just what method he was going to use in his son's punishment. His hand? No, might not be enough. A belt? No, too much. A switch? He gave a mental wince. Waay too much! Then his foot snagged a toy and he looked down. The long rubber line connecting a rubber ball to a small wooden paddle was tangled around his foot. He bent down to free himself, then looked at the wooden paddle. Setting his jaw, he yanked off the line and ball, then continued to the door. He knocked.

"Jojo. Jojo!"

He did hear someone move about. He wasn't sure if Jojo was trying to hide or what. But now, the moment of truth. He took a deep breath, told himself to be stern, then opened the door and went inside.

Jojo was sitting on the bed staring at the floor with the same brooding look he wore every morning. Ned drew himself up and said sternly, "We've gotten another note from the school about you cutting." Jojo seemed to shrink within himself. "Do you have a reason for this? Any explanation at all? Anything?" Ned desperately hoped Jojo did have one. Just one simple excuse and both of them would be spared. But Jojo just looked down, bit his lip and silently shook his head. Ned sighed heavily and steeled himself. "Remember what I told you a few days ago?"

Jojo then noticed the paddle in Ned's hand and his eyes widened a bit. He swallowed, then gave a slight nod.

"Then you know what's going to happen now." Ned sat down on the chair next to the bed. "Come here."

Jojo slowly got off the bed and made his way over, still staring at the floor. When he reached Ned, the mayor picked him up and positioned him over his knees. Jojo struggled a bit, after all it was hardly a comfortable position. Then Ned brought down the paddle for the first blow.

Jojo gave a sharp yelp and struggled more but Ned didn't release him until he had dealt out what he thought was enough. Then he carried the small Who back over and set him back down on the bed. Jojo shrank away and curled up in a ball of misery, grabbing the pillow to stifle his sobs.

"Remember this," his father said in the same stern voice. "Each time you cut, I will be ready with this." He tapped the paddle against the bed post. "So just remember."

He turned and strode out and calmly closed the door. As soon as he was out of Jojo's sight he went limp and fell back against the door. Tears came to his own eyes at what he had done to his son. "Oh Jojo. If you only knew," he whispered. Something that his own father had told him when he was around Jojo's age came to the mayor's mind. In his flashback he himself was squirming in the undignified position across his father's knees and just before the spanking started he heard the words he never really understood until now.

"This hurts me far more than it hurts you, son!"

At the time he had thought it was just some grownup nonsense his dad thought up but now the truth came to him. He looked up.

"Dad, you were right. I understand now. Oh, how I understand." He sadly walked off.