I had hoped that the decades of work experience would mean that college was a lot easier this time around, but that proved to be optimistic. I found it hard to focus in class, and it took more and more time to complete my assignments. Some of the other girls had formed a study group, but since I was old enough to be their mother, it felt a little embarrassing to ask if I could join them.
One evening, I was returning to the dorm after a trip to the pub, when I walked past the room of one of my classmates – a petite blonde by the name of Sheila Page. She was standing in the open doorway of her room, and Josephine, a lanky redhead, was giving her a hug. Neither of them appeared to have noticed my presence. "Thank you so much for your help, Sheila!" Josephine gushed.
"Anytime, Josephine," Sheila replied. "My door is always open!" She folded her arms in front of her chest, grinning. "And I suspect you won't be late to class again?"
Josephine pouted and gingerly rubbed the seat of her jeans. "Don't worry, I'll be on time – though for a few days, I'll probably have to stand up for the entire lecture!"
"Oh, don't be so dramatic," Sheila giggled. "There's no lasting damage, just a well-deserved sore seat. You'll sit down in a few hours – though you probably won't enjoy it much."
I stared wide-eyed at the two girls. What the hell was going on?
Josephine left, still rubbing her bottom, and Sheila finally spotted me. "Oh! You're Jacqueline, aren't you? We're classmates, right? Good evening!"
"What was that about?" I asked, staring at her.
"What do you mean?" Sheila replied, a confused expression on her face.
"Why did Josephine just leave your dorm room while rubbing her backside?"
"Oh, that. I've just spanked her," Sheila responded matter-of-factly.
I stared incredulously at her. "Are you being serious right now?"
"Entirely serious," she replied calmly. "Some of the girls are away from home for the very first time, and the total freedom and lack of consequences can have a detrimental effect on their mental health. Back home, misbehaviour earned them a trip over the parental lap, but here, there are no immediate repercussions. Some girls find that destabilizing, and they have a hard time focusing on their studies."
"So you SPANK them?" I couldn't believe what I was hearing!
"It's a service I provide to those that need or want it. People have told me I'm mature for my age, and they find it easy to rely on me."
That part, I could believe. When I first met Sheila, she seemed so grown-up that I assumed she was one of those twenty-somethings with a baby face who looked much younger than they were. It was a surprise to learn that she actually was the eighteen-year-old girl she looked like.
"So, you just drag them over your lap and whack away?"
She frowned. "I always ask them to bend over voluntarily – it shows that they know they deserve the punishment. Then I smack them long and hard with my hand. For serious offences, I reinforce the lesson with a good spanking with the back of my hairbrush. Then, I send them to the corner to reflect on their behaviour, before they get a hug and forgiveness." She shrugged. "It's simple, and it works."
The thought of these girls voluntarily seeking out a spanking from Sheila struck me as daft, but I decided not to tell her that.
"Going out for an evening walk?" she asked, looking at my jacket. "It's a lovely night, I believe."
"No, I'm returning to my room. I was at the pub," I explained.
She looked puzzled. "I thought you had an assignment that was due in the morning."
"I do," I confirmed.
"Oh, you finished it before you left?"
"No, not yet," I said quietly, suddenly feeling a little nervous for some reason I couldn't explain.
"I see," she responded, raising an eyebrow. She didn't SAY that she disapproved, but her expression certainly did.