Promises Kept

Written By: LJ


“Be still! Relax! Think!”

Darby stood quietly in his corner trying to do what Rowan had told him to do. Well at least he was standing still and thinking, even though he really felt like stomping.

‘Two out of three should count for something,’ Darby sighed and let his mind wander over the events of the past few weeks.

They had been partners for several weeks now. At first Rowan had not been too happy to learn about Darby’s carelessness in regards to his health. And to say Rowan had been displeased, when he learned the young student had neglected to do a couple of his course assignments, was definitely an understatement. Of course these courses were not prerequisites and were not directly connected to the music the young man loved and Darby had planned to get around to them sooner or later.

So Rowan stepped in and helped Darby get back on track. He had promised to take on the responsibility of all meal preparations and had guaranteed the younger man’s schoolwork would be brought up-to-date so as not to interfere with Darby’s up-coming graduation. Rowan had kept his promises. He enjoyed cooking and set out well-balanced, tasty meals. He had worked out and overseen a schedule for Darby’s academic responsibilities as well as enforcing chore obligations and bedtimes. They had spent a great deal of time together, getting closer and learning more about each other. Last week’s check-up at the hospital had revealed an impressive improvement in Darby’s overall health and his assignments had been turned in on time for the end of his final semester.

Today, Darby had finished the last of his graduation requirements. He had completed all the necessary courses for his Bachelor of Education degree and that was when his present trouble started. He had gone out to celebrate the end of school with a few of his classmates and had not only arrived home several hours later than he was expected but had failed to keep his partner informed of his whereabouts.

‘After last weekend, I should have known better,’ Darby silently admonished himself.

Rowan was sitting at the kitchen table to prevent Darby from feeling alone. He was also thinking of all they had accomplished during their first month together. Rowan had learned that due to past experiences, Darby had very little self-esteem and often felt lost or abandoned. Rowan made it a point to spend quality time with his new partner every day. He frequently told Darby how important the younger man was to him as was their blossoming relationship.

The month had held several surprises. Along with Darby’s health and school problems, Rowan learned his new partner had never made love before. The younger man had only dated off and on over the past few years. Darby was still a virgin, so the two men were allowing this part of their relationship to develop slowly. They now shared the master bedroom but had been curtailing their activities to manual or oral gratification while exploring to familiarize themselves with each other’s bodies and preferences. Darby had settled down and complied with the schedule Rowan had made for him and it had produced positive results. There had been a few incidences of rebellion regarding chores or bedtime which had resulted in a talking to or a firm swat. But all in all things had gone smoothly and Darby was beginning to understand talking back, stomping, and tantrums were not permitted.

Forcing his mind back to the present, Rowan realized that twenty minutes had passed since he’d put Darby in the corner. ‘Thinking time was over! Time to talk!’ he thought, getting to his feet.

“Come here, Beethoven.” Rowan’s gentle request pulled Darby from his musings.

Darby turned and immediately found himself in Rowan’s strong embrace.

“I know it is well after midnight but I feel we need to discuss tonight’s events before we go to bed,” Rowan said as he took Darby’s hand and led him over to sit on the sofa in the living room. “Tomorrow is Saturday so we can sleep late in the morning.” At the other man’s nod, he continued, “I understand your wanting to go and celebrate school’s end with your friends, Darby, but to come home six hours after you were expected and to not even call is totally unacceptable.”

“I’m sorry.” Darby’s head was down and his fingers nervously picked at a frayed area on his pant leg.

“Darby, that’s not good enough! We just went over this only a week ago. Do you remember what happened then?”

Darby remembered all right. Classes over with only final exams left, he and his friends had held an impromptu pizza party. Darby had arrived home at ten o'clock in the evening to a very irate partner. Unknown to the young man, Rowan had planned a special night out to celebrate Darby’s clean bill of health and their first month together. Not only had Darby been late, he hadn’t called to let Rowan know where he was going to be or what he was doing. He had been grounded for the weekend and had spent over an hour writing lines.

“Yes, Rowan, I remember,” was Darby’s quiet answer.

“Yet you still repeated the same offence while I had to sit and worry because I had no idea where you were or if you had gotten sick or injured.” Rowan spoke firmly but without sounding angry.

“But I was okay!” was the younger man’s belligerent response.

“How was I to know that, Darby?” Rowan asked gently, hoping to keep the conversation reasonably calm.

“I don’t know,” Darby mumbled as the attitude quickly faded.

“Where was your cell phone?’

“In my backpack, on the front seat of my car.”

“Which is where exactly?’

“Still in the campus parking lot. Shelley is going to drive it over here in the morning.”

“Apparently, writing lines and being grounded for the weekend didn’t make much of an impression last week. Do you have any memory of what I said would happen the next time you came home late without calling?”

Darby nodded but didn’t make eye contact.

“Look at me and answer properly please, young man!” Rowan demanded. “What did I say would happen?”

“You said you would increase my punishment. You said you would spank me if it happened again, but I didn’t think you meant it. I mean, you’re not really going to spank me, are you? I haven’t been spanked since I was a little kid.” Darby’s eyes were glistening with unshed tears.

“Yes, I’m going to spank you. You are going to learn when I make a promise I keep it. You are also grounded for the next ten days and you’ll do double the amount of lines you did last weekend.”

The grounding part of his sentence really got Darby’s attention. “But there’s a party tomorrow night,” he wailed.

“Then it’s a party that you will not be attending!” Rowan was adamant.

Quickly deciding not to let things drag out any longer, Rowan reached over, took Darby’s arm and pulled the young man over his knee. This was the first time he would be spanking his young partner. Rowan tucked Darby close to his body to hold him securely. He raised his hand and brought it down for the first of several hard smacks on the jean-covered bottom in front of him.

Darby yelped and tried to scramble off the older man’s lap. When that failed, he reached his hand around to try and block the painful swats. Rowan grabbed and held onto the smaller hand and continued to administer a thorough spanking until Darby had stopped kicking, lay limp across his thighs, and was crying into the sofa cushion. Lifting up his sobbing partner and being mindful of his stinging backside, Rowan cuddled Darby against his chest while murmuring soft words of comfort to calm him.

“I love you, Darby. I want us to have a long-lasting partnership but I need your help to ensure we have the best possible life together. We need to keep each other informed of our whereabouts. Communication is very important in building a loving, trusting relationship.” Rowan was speaking softly but added in a firmer voice, “And, young man, if this happens again it will be with your pants down and my hand discussing things with your bare bottom. Do you understand me?”

This time Darby didn’t have to wonder if Rowan meant it. He had just learned the hard way the older man always meant what he said. “I understand and I’m really, really sorry. I promise to try harder. I want us to be together for as long as possible. I love you, too.” Darby sniffled and snuggled deeper into Rowan’s arms.

“I know you do. It’s over now except for your grounding and lines. Everything is going to be fine because we both want the same things. We’re just going to have to work a little harder, that’s all. It’s been a long night and we’re both tired so let’s get up and go to bed. We can talk up there until you fall asleep if you’d like.” Rowan helped Darby to his feet and after tuning off the lights, they headed up the stairs.

************

Darby was gingerly squirming at the kitchen table the next morning, when he decided to try and get Rowan to change his mind about his grounding. “Rowan, I think I should be allowed to go to the party tonight. How am I going to explain it to my friends if I don’t go? None of them will be getting grounded.”

“Don’t start, Darby. You are grounded and that’s all there is to it. You don’t have to explain anything to anyone, as it is no one else’s business.”

“It’s just not fair.” The young man’s voice rose in frustration. “You already spanked me and I have to write more lines.”

“There was nothing fair about last night’s events, young man, but you brought it on yourself. There is no need to argue about it and get yourself in deeper.”

Darby slammed his hands down on the table. “This sucks, man! I want to go to the party!” he yelled. Before he had a chance to rethink what he was doing, Darby found himself hauled out of his chair, steered across the room and parked in the nearest corner.

“You can stay there until you calm down and are ready to talk properly.”

“But I don’t want….” SMACK “Owww!” Darby leaned against the wall and used one hand to wipe tears from his face and the other to try and erase the handprint blazing across his bottom. He spent several minutes standing as still as possible, gradually allowing the peacefulness of the kitchen to surround him. He could hear Rowan quietly cleaning up from breakfast and softly humming along with a tune on the radio. He thought about his actions last night, the older man calling his cell phone and not getting an answer, of Rowan waiting and worrying, and finally realized he deserved the punishments his partner had handed out.

Rowan was reading at the table when he heard the softly spoken words, ‘I’m ready to talk properly now.’ He got up, turned Darby around and pulled him into his arms for a comforting hug. “Thank you! I’ve got a project to do on the computer, so why don’t we spend the time together in the office and you can get your lines written while I work? We’ll talk later, okay?”

“Okay,” Darby answered in a subdued voice, still trying to figure out how friendly he wanted to be just yet.

A couple of hours later, Rowan shut down the computer and, swinging around in his chair, he held his arms out to his young partner.

Darby immediately crawled into the safe haven on Rowan’s lap. “I’m sorry for the way I acted earlier and I’m really, really sorry for my thoughtlessness last night. Are you still mad at me?”

“I was never mad at you, little one. I was disappointed in your behaviour but all is forgiven and behind us now,” Rowan assured his partner. “You know, we never did celebrate your good check-up or our first month together. How about we do something a little different tonight?”

“What did you have in mind?”

“I was thinking of ordering pizza and cuddling up with a good movie.”

“Okay, but can you make your homemade pizza instead? It’s much better than anything we can buy.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

It was later in the evening when Darby informed Rowan about the plans for his upcoming graduation exercises in two weeks time. “I only got two invitations to give away. One is for you, of course, but I don’t know anyone else who would want to attend.”

“What about your mother?”

“NO!” The young man was adamant.

“Darby, I know you were hurt by her reaction when you told her you were gay, but didn’t you realize she would be a little shocked. Maybe dealing with your father’s recent death at the time didn’t help either,” Rowan said as he sat down beside Darby and held his partner’s hand.

“Nooo? I was only seventeen and had just informed my father a few months before he was killed in a car accident. He told me he had already figured it out and I thought my mother had as well. Of course, I had forgotten she hardly acknowledged I was alive at times, so no wonder she hardly knew anything about me.”

Rowan sensed the lingering pain in Darby’s voice and he wondered once again if this was where the young man’s feeling of abandonment started. Rowan knew his partner had been very close to his father and the man’s death had left a big void in his son’s life. That void was only intensified by his mother’s rejection of him because of who he was. Rowan himself came from a large, happy family. Neither his parents nor siblings had ever voiced any disapproval of the person he was. They were always loving and supportive. He knew his family would become the family Darby needed and deserved.

“Darby, that was almost five years ago. Maybe you could make the first move towards reconciling things with her by sending an invitation.”

“She won’t come. I know it!”

“No! You don’t know for sure. She just may surprise you and show up. But whether she does or not, you will have done the proper thing.” Rowan recognized Darby’s fear of being rejected by his mother yet again, but he continued to encourage the young student to invite her. “I know you’re afraid. But whatever happens, I’ll be here and I’ll always love you. More importantly, you will have done what you know is right! I promise, we’ll work things out together.”

“Okay, I’ll send her an invitation,” Darby sighed in a still slightly uncertain agreement.

************

The next two weeks passed quickly and the graduation ceremony went off without a hitch. Darby introduced Rowan to many of his fellow graduates and Rowan made sure to get plenty of pictures.

The drive home was a sharp contrast to the gaiety of the afternoon’s activities. Darby had gone completely silent. Walking into their home, Darby threw down his jacket and started pacing as he waited impatiently for Rowan to place his diploma on the mantel.

“I told you she wouldn’t come,” Darby began. “I never should have let you talk me into inviting her.” The young man was upset and working himself into a fury.

To keep the temper tantrum from escalating, Rowan called a halt by pulling his partner over to the large recliner and gathering him onto his lap. Then he just held the younger man close while talking softly and waiting for him to calm down.

“Shhh. It’s going to be fine! Trust me! Just hang on and listen. You’ve had a wonderful afternoon. You have so much to feel good about. You graduated with honors in music. You’ve won a scholarship to continue your studies. Do you have any idea of how proud I am of you?” Rowan spoke calmly but with a settling firmness. “You didn’t lose anything by her not coming. The only person who lost something here today was your mother. You still did the right thing. And remember, as long as we’re together everything will eventually work out.”

Rowan waited for the young man to relax and allow the words to sink in. After soothing Darby for several more minutes, Rowan stood him up and walked him upstairs. Leaving the younger man sitting on their bed, Rowan went in to the bathroom and ran the bath water. He wanted Darby to have a nap and knew from experience, a warm bubble bath would be relaxing enough for his partner to fall sleep. Once Darby was softly snoring, Rowan went downstairs to put his plans for the evening in motion.

************

Rowan entered their bedroom a couple of hours later to discover Darby just waking up. He sat down on the side of the bed and reached up to brush the hair off the young man’s forehead. “How are you feeling now, little one?”

“Much better. I’m sorry for earlier. It wasn’t your fault and I shouldn’t have taken it out on you. I really hadn’t expected her to show up but I guess I was still hoping she might.”

“I know. It’s okay, sweetheart. I’m glad you’re back to your usual self because I have a special evening planned just for the two of us. We’re going to start off with a candlelight dinner consisting of some of your favorite foods. I’ve even got champagne. We have so much to celebrate, my love. You are always going to remember this as the night we finally became lovers in every sense of the word. Everything will be fine, I promise.”

Later that evening, Darby was curled up on their bed, watching Rowan light the candles in their room. They had enjoyed a wonderful dinner, showered together and were now preparing for bed. Although Darby was nervous, he trusted everything would be fine because Rowan had promised. After getting into bed, Rowan pulled Darby closer and began to softly kiss his face and neck. Darby’s heart was pounding in his chest, both from fear and anticipation. It was not fear of the man lying next to him, but fear he would not satisfy this man whom he loved with all his heart. He wanted so much to please Rowan and make him as happy as Rowan had made him. His fears quickly evaporated when he heard his lover’s voice tenderly whisper in his ear.

“It’s okay, little one. We’ll take this one step at a time. Don’t be afraid to tell me to slow down or to stop if you wish. I’ll understand.”

Darby looked up at his partner and nodded before lifting his head up to kiss Rowan softly on the lips as a sign to keep going. Rowan gently made love to the young man he was fully committing to. He kept whispering words of encouragement while he slowly eased into his partner. Darby finally felt someone else in his body for the first time. There had been a little pain, but even that was gone and now Darby knew how wonderful making love could be.

Much later the two sated lovers fell asleep in each other’s arms and their last thoughts were, ‘Everything is fine; the promises kept.’

The End