There was a knock on the door and Mandy got up to open it.
Katherine was standing outside. She extended the phone to Mandy and said.
'Frank wants to talk to Jamie.'
Jamie's stomach plummeted. He nervously got up and took the phone from his girlfriend. Mandy's fingers briefly touched his. It was her way of showing him support.
He walked outside towards the end of the hallway.
He anxiously put the phone to his ear and greeted his father. 'Hey dad.'
'Oh, the signals are working here.' His father's sarcastic drawl reached his ears.
He winced and immediately said. 'I am sorry dad.'
For all those inner voices inside his head telling him that he didn't need to feel guilty; apologizing was a natural instinct for him.
'You're sorry?' Frank unbelievingly asked. 'Jamison Reagan, if you had been sorry for at least a moment, you would not have blatantly lied to us for almost a week.'
Jamie cringed at the truth in his father's words. He was right. He had kind of stopped feeling sorry after a while.
'Dad…' Jamie opened his mouth but stopped abruptly when he realized that he didn't have anything to say.
Frank on the other hand had a lot to say.
'Your mother and I have never been this disappointed in you. I didn't think you had it in you to deceive your family like this. I trusted you Jamison. I should have just double checked everything when you apparently couldn't talk to me due to signals. And believe me, if it was Danny, I would have. I am not making that mistake again.'
Jamie sucked in a breath when he realized how badly he had lost the trust of his parents. Guilt instantly surrounded him. 'Dad, I just wanted to have fun with my friends. I wasn't thinking about…'
'You weren't thinking at all!' His father interrupted him fiercely.
Jamie could feel waves of displeasure reaching him through the phone.
'You had the audacity to go to California of all places and then you decided to forgo all manners and called Amanda's mother…' Frank came to a sudden halt. His son could easily visualize him trying to breathe deeply to gain some patience.
Jamie gulped nervously.
'Jamison, you have nothing to say now but you better have some explanation of your actions when you get home. I am done treating you with kid gloves and I have Mary's complete support.'
If nothing else, then these words let Jamie know that he wasn't getting any leeway because he had lost his mom's backing too.
He said sorry once again but it was futile.
His dad ended the call after informing him that he better cherish sitting during the ride back home.
An ashen faced Jamie returned to the room.
He silently gave the phone to Mandy and threw himself on the bed. He grabbed a pillow and covered his face with it.
'Dude, that bad?' David asked sympathetically.
Jamie groaned through the pillow.
It was a long night and would have been an even longer ride back home if it hadn't been for his friends and their insistence that they enjoy the time they had before they all got grounded for a long time.
Jamie even managed to forget about his worries for a while as he enjoyed the road once again.
He reached home by Saturday night.
It was a bad timing since Sunday dinner was the next day and the whole family was going to be there. He had no doubts that everyone would have something to say about his actions.
He said goodbye to Sarah and David, kissed Mandy and got out of the car.
He opened the main door with his own keys and got inside. His parents had been in touch with him during the ride back home. Through the curt conversations, they knew that he was bound to be home anytime soon.
And there they were, expecting him in the living room.
His mom immediately got up and hugged him.
'Oh honey, you worried me a lot.' Jamie's remorse increased tenfold at her words.
She did not deter from making her displeasure known either.
'You are in so much trouble Jamie. In what world, did you think that what you were doing was the least bit okay?'
Jamie had no answer. He could see his dad in his peripheral vision.
Frank Reagan was silently sitting in his favorite armchair as he watched the exchange between his wife and son.
The youngest Reagan was shot back to his current plight when he felt sudden pain in his backside.
His mom had just smacked him!
She hadn't smacked him since he was younger, always leaving the unpleasable task of physical punishment up to her husband.
He looked at her unbelievingly.
'Do not pull anything like this ever again Jamie Reagan. And if you ever direct such disgusting language at a woman or anyone for that matter, it would not end well for you, not that it is going to end well for you now.' His mom warned quietly.
She unexpectedly hugged him once again and patted his cheek.
'You have your dad to deal with and for your own sake, I hope you are honest with him.'
Mary went to her husband, kissed him and then left for the bedroom.
Jamie had no choice but to look at his dad.
His dad leaned forward and glanced at the chair in front of him.
'Sit down, son.'
Jamie followed the quiet command.
Before his dad could say anything, Jamie cut him to the chase.
'Dad, I am sorry that I worried you guys.'
'We weren't worried till three days ago. We were secure in the knowledge that you were camping in Maine with Sam.'
It wasn't often that Frank raised his voice at his children. Jamie cringed.
'Dad…'
Frank ignored his one word plea and asked sternly.
'Is that all that you are sorry for?
'I am sorry for disrespecting Mandy's mom but she was being so unfair towards her and I couldn't deal with it.'
'So, you thought that her behavior justifies your comment?' His dad questioned sarcastically.
'No…but dad, Mandy was so hurt.'
'There are better ways of dealing with stuff than letting your mouth utter foul words.' Frank said what Jamie already knew because of the way he had been raised. His dad agreed with his thoughts.
'You were raised better than this Jamison and to be very honest, I was quite embarrassed when Katherine apprised me. I profusely apologized to her on your behalf and rest assured, you will be making a call to her too. And you will be apologizing to Amanda too for calling her mom what you did.'
Jamie suddenly felt irritated at the prospect of making that call.
'Dad, come on.'
Frank blew a breath. 'You're going to do as you are told and you will do it gracefully.'
'Yes sir,' Jamie lowered his head.
'Now, let's talk about all the lies you told us.' Frank's voice was quiet but it was tinged with fury at his son's dishonesty and deceit.
Jamie's head drooped even further.
'You let us believe through your words and actions that you were going to Maine. We trusted you completely and you threw that trust back in our faces without any regard whatsoever. You have a long way to go to earn it back again son because right now, I am not willing to believe a word that comes out of your mouth.'
Jamie's head shot up and he looked at his dad beseechingly. He couldn't digest his dad's harsh words. But Frank ignored his son's pained look.
'And you put yourself in a hell lot of danger. You belong to a family of cops Jamison. You better than anyone should know about the peril you and your friends placed yourselves in. You know what goes on in the streets and you still decided to go ahead with your dumb plan.'
His dad was laying out all his misgivings clearly and Jamie was becoming speechless by the moment.
He looked at his lap once again.
'Eyes up.' His dad suddenly snapped. 'If you could look in our eyes when you were telling all those lies, you surely can look in my eyes now too.'
Jamie slowly raised his head and stared in his dad's eyes which were filled with rage. At that moment, he wanted the ground to open up and swallow him. He was a fool for thinking that he could tell his dad that he didn't regret the trip.
Jamie looked up to his dad and his severe disappointment had filled him with shame.
'You stayed with a girl named Jess?'
'Yes sir.'
'And she knows Sarah from her childhood?'
'Yes sir.'
Frank breathed deeply and Jamie could easily see that his dad was in completely control of his emotions at that moment.
'Do you want to get the punishment done with now or in the morning?' Frank's abrupt change of topic caught him off guard and he was left gaping.
Frank impatiently asked. 'Well?'
'Uh…' Jamie was surprised that his dad was giving him even that option.
He definitely did not want to get punished with the entire family in the house. He murmured. 'Now.'
Frank got to his feet and walked towards Jamie's room.
He did not say anything, he obviously expected his son to follow him.
He sat down on the bed and Jamie awkwardly stood next to him.
'Jamie…' His dad was finally calling him Jamie which was a good sign for sure. 'What you did was so incredibly stupid. You put yourself in harm's way and that will never be acceptable.'
He gently grabbed his arm and lowered him over his lap.
Jamie hid his face in his arms and groaned inwardly as his dad lowered his jeans and underwear.
The first smack was hard which let Jamie know in certain terms that he was in for a bad ride.
His dad paced his swats evenly.
Jamie squirmed around miserably as the pain built up but his dad had a tight hold on him.
The punishment was proportionate to his actions so he had silent tears streaming down his face soon enough.
He did not know where his dad suddenly got the paddle-which all Reagan kids abhorred-from but the first smack from it brought out a yelp which he couldn't hold in. The pain spread quickly in the whole area.
Soon after that, he was outright sobbing.
His dad continued silently as he had said all that need to be said.
Jamie finally became tired and ran out of tears. He lay over his dad's lap and accepted the punishment quietly.
Frank stopped moments after that and Jamie heard the sound of the paddle hitting the floor.
It was the harshest punishment Jamie had ever received. He did not think he could sit for a week.
He stayed in his position while his dad rested a comforting hand on his back and with the other one, righted his clothes.
After some silent minutes, Jamie got a hold of himself and got off his dad. He wanted to sit next to him but decided against the idea and instead kept standing.
Frank also stood up and walked over to Jamie's cupboard to retrieve some pajamas. He handed them to his son and said that he would grab some milk for him.
He walked out of the room giving Jamie time to change.
His dad returned to his room with a mug of warm milk.
Jamie took it gratefully and drank it. He knew he was forgiven so he couldn't help but joke and ask.
'Can I have some pain pills with that?'
His dad threw him an exasperated look but said nothing.
Jamie put the empty mug on the nightstand and gently lay down on his side in the bed.
Frank settled himself next to him with his head against the crown and legs lay out before him.
He ran his fingers through Jamie's hair and murmured.
'I love you, son and I am so glad that you are safe.'
Jamie smiled at Frank's words and asked.
'Can you stay with me until I sleep?'
'Of course son.'
TBC…
A/N: The next update might take a week too. Please review.
A/N2: I am not comfortable with writing full-fledged spanking scenes so they are always going to be brief in my stories.
A/N3: This story is coming to an end. One more chapter left. You can always leave suggestions for any plots you want me to write on. Thanks for your support and encouraging words.