The Punishment Daniela Needed on That Trip

—One more shop, I swear, just one —said Daniela, tugging her friend by the arm through the crowded stalls of the Cusco market.

—I’m dead on my feet, darling —Renata protested—. I’d rather go back to the hostel and get these sandals off once and for all.

—Then go on ahead. I’ll be back in half an hour, I promise. I just want to have a look at that last stall.

Daniela pointed to a little place packed with brightly colored fabrics, blankets, shawls, and trinkets hanging even from the entrance. Renata eyed her with suspicion. They were in a country neither of them knew, and the idea of leaving that petite blonde alone in the middle of a foreign market did not reassure her. But the hostel was half a block away, and her feet were killing her.

—Fine. At five o’clock, not a minute later —she stressed—. We’ll rest a while and then go out to dinner.

Daniela smiled with that light of hers, almost childlike, and disappeared into the fabrics before Renata finished her sentence. It wasn’t the first time they had traveled together. It was the second trip, actually, and Renata had learned to love that lively, curious nature, the way Daniela looked at everything as if she were discovering it for the first time, even though she was already over thirty. She had also learned to put up with the rest: the lateness, the whims, that habit of thinking of herself first and everyone else afterward.

They had spent months flirting with the idea that this might be more than a friendship. The tension was there, latent, in every brush of skin and every look that lingered a second too long. Renata thought it was just a matter of finding the right moment. What she could not stand was that spoiled little-girl stubbornness that got Daniela into trouble and then made Renata rescue her.

At six o’clock, Daniela still hadn’t shown up. Renata was sitting on the edge of the bed, starving, and her anger grew with every minute that ticked by. Part of her wanted to strangle her; the other part was starting to worry, imagining something might have happened to her.

The door flew open.

—Look what I found —Daniela blurted out, her cheeks flushed and her arms full of bags.

—Do you have any idea what time it is? —Renata cut her off, not looking at a single package.

—Oh. —Daniela stopped dead, deflating.

—It’s six fifteen. You’re more than an hour late.

—I’m sorry, sweetheart, I lost track of time. —She lifted a hand to her face. Renata did not soften—. I’m truly sorry. How can I make it up to you?

Renata held her gaze. She knew exactly what she wanted to do, though she wasn’t sure she had the nerve. It was bold, yes, but maybe it was exactly what that woman needed.

—I don’t know. I feel like putting you over my knee and giving you a good spanking. I’m sick of your thoughtlessness.

She watched Daniela’s eyes fly wide open. What she saw there wasn’t horror. It was something else.

—Would you really do it? Would you spank me? —she asked, biting her lip.

—Maybe I would.

—So I really made you mad this time, huh?

—Of course I’m mad. We’re in a foreign country, I trusted your word that you’d be here at a certain time, and you’re wandering around as if nothing happened, not even remembering I was waiting for you.

There was something curious in Daniela’s gaze, a mix of a pout and anticipation that Renata couldn’t quite decipher. She didn’t know if her friend was afraid of her or if, deep down, she wanted it. But something clicked inside her and she decided.

She pulled a straight-backed chair to the center of the room, sat down, and slapped her thigh.

—Come here.

—You’re really going to do it? —Daniela came over on tiptoe, blushing.

—Yes. Don’t you think you deserve it?

—I suppose so —she admitted, swallowing hard.

—Then don’t make me wait.

She took her by the wrist and bent her over her lap. Daniela ended up draped across it, her hips right where Renata could aim firmly.

—Please, don’t be too rough.

—I’ll be as rough as I want. This is a punishment, darling. I hope it teaches you a lesson.

Renata hoisted her denim skirt up to her waist. Daniela muttered a protest, but she didn’t move. Her ass was now on display, still covered by the cotton of her panties, and Renata thought she wouldn’t have felt a thing through the denim anyway.

The first smack cracked sharply. Another followed on the other cheek, and the flesh shuddered beneath her hand. Starting was easier than she had imagined; the idea of making that ass go red turned her on in a way she hadn’t expected. All the grievances of the past few months came flooding back, one after another, and she went at it in earnest, peppering her friend with rhythmic swats.

—Ow, ow, ow! —Daniela squealed, and each cry only reinforced Renata’s resolve.

—I hope this teaches you something. You’ve needed it for a long time.

A few more spanks and she stopped. Daniela slid to the floor at her feet, crying, her face wet and swollen. Her skin was burning, but it was the humiliation that weighed on her most.

—I’m so sorry. I guess I deserved that.

—I’m glad we agree —said Renata, stern but not harsh. Her anger had evaporated, replaced by its usual warm affection. Daniela, instead of protesting, rested her head in her lap, and Renata stroked her hair. A strange, electric current ran through both of them. Neither knew what to do with it.

—I think it’s time for dinner —Renata said at last.

—Okay —murmured Daniela, nodding.

***

At the restaurant they sat across from each other. Renata steered the conversation toward neutral topics, but halfway through the meal she decided she didn’t want to let the matter drop.

—How are you feeling now?

—About the spanking? —Daniela smiled, embarrassed—. It still stings a little. Almost not at all now.

—Let it serve as a reminder. And let’s be clear: if you give me cause, it won’t be the last time. I think that’s exactly what you need. I should have done it months ago.

—I guess I didn’t realize how inconsiderate I am —she admitted—. Maybe I was asking for it?

—Maybe. And next time I’ll find something better than my hand. Today I stopped early because my palm was hurting.

—What would you use? —Daniela asked, with that astonished look of hers, half alarm, half fascination.

—I don’t know. A hairbrush, a paddle, something leather, maybe. Whatever it is, it’ll hurt. And if you really piss me off, I’ll pull down your panties and give it to you with your ass bare.

—Would you do that?

—If that’s what it takes to get the message across.

Daniela nodded slowly, thoughtful. And then, with dessert nearly in front of them, she said something that had been circling in her mind for a while.

—I know why you spanked me, Renata. I even know I deserved it. But something else happened to me while you were doing it. The idea of spanking is kind of… sexual to me. Sometimes I think it turns me on.

—Really? —Renata arched an eyebrow.

—Doesn’t it turn you on?

Renata thought about it for a moment.

—I suppose so —she admitted—. Watching your ass go that red, the whole thing itself, was a rush.

The same current from before rose up between them again, that uncomfortable, delicious heat. Daniela shifted in her chair. Renata, still reluctant to push their relationship into that territory, changed the subject abruptly.

—I heard there are some beautiful ruins about an hour from here. We should go tomorrow.

***

For all their efforts to push the idea aside, the next day took them straight into another clash. They had arranged to visit the ruins, and Daniela started getting on her friend’s nerves from early on: she went back to the room twice before getting into the taxi, once for her hat, once for sunscreen. Renata glared at her when she finally settled into the seat.

—Sorry, sorry, really sorry —Daniela hurried to say. She wasn’t sure she wanted to provoke another spanking so soon.

The dirt road wound between hills to an ancient clearing, crumbling stone walls, terraces climbing the slope, all of it centuries older than anything they had seen. They were alone; few tourists dared take such a remote route.

—Should I come back in a couple of hours? —the driver asked.

—No, we’ll walk back —Renata decided, looking at the terraced path that climbed to the top. She loved walking.

—No way! —Daniela exclaimed when she saw the incline.

—We’re walking. If you spent yesterday going through every shop in the village, you can do this too. —And she waved the taxi off.

The mere idea enraged the blonde. She hadn’t wanted to go in the first place, and now, knowing she was forced to walk back, she spent the next hour lobbing sarcastic comments one after another. When Daniela didn’t get her way, she turned into a mood that poisoned the air.

Renata endured it as long as she could. Then she turned and looked her straight in the eyes.

—Either you stop acting like a spoiled brat, or I put you over my knee again. Right here.

—You wouldn’t dare —Daniela challenged her, eyes blazing, though something in her voice wavered.

—Don’t test me.

—I don’t understand your obsession with this stupid hike! I hate hiking and you did it on purpose just to annoy me.

—What doesn’t seem fair to me is that you never want to enjoy the things I like. I followed you for three days through every store in this town and you’re still not satisfied.

—I never said I didn’t want to go.

—No, because I knew you liked it. But the moment it’s something I enjoy, you turn into a selfish little thing who only thinks about herself.

—That’s not true! —Daniela shouted, arms crossed and chest heaving.

—Look at yourself —Renata said, perfectly calm. She knew she was right, and Daniela was having a textbook tantrum.

—You need more spankings —Renata concluded. She was done. If that was the only way her friend would understand, so be it.

—Oh, no, I don’t need them.

But Renata had no intention of backing down. They were in an inner chamber of the ruins, sheltered from any eyes. She quickly looked around: no one. It would be right there.

While they stared each other down, she slipped a hand into her bag and took out the hairbrush. She was glad she had brought it; she didn’t want to hurt her palm again, and this round promised to be harder than the first. She grabbed her friend by the arm and dragged her toward a stone bench set against the wall. Daniela tried to wriggle free, twisted her wrist as she resisted, and ended up falling across Renata’s lap, exactly where the woman wanted her.

—Renata, please, no! —she begged. But when she saw that Renata wasn’t listening, anger flared again—. Stop! You’re not going to do this to me!

—Yes, I am.

Before she could protest further, Renata lifted her skirt over her hips and hooked the edge of her panties with one finger.

—Stop, stop right now! —Daniela shouted. The idea of losing that last barrier here, in an open place, was unbearable—. I’ll hate you forever for this!

—I don’t care —Renata replied.

The panties were not any real protection, but the gesture mattered: the idea of punishing her with her ass bare. Daniela’s resistance only convinced her even more that her friend needed a good dose of discipline to straighten out that temper. She pulled the garment down to her ankles, raised the brush, and brought down the first blow.

—Ow! —Daniela yelped.

Half a dozen more smacks followed, alternating from one cheek to the other, both reddening at once. The wooden back against bare skin hurt far more than the hand over cotton.

—It hurts! It really hurts!

—Of course it hurts, brat. That’s exactly what I’m after.

Renata kept the rhythm, firm and steady, making the flesh bounce with every strike. Daniela’s protests, far from stopping her, only fueled her enthusiasm. She loved watching that blazing ass tremble beneath the brush.

—For God’s sake, stop! —the blonde sobbed, arms and legs flailing.

—I suggest you stop whining. You never know if someone might be nearby listening.

—You know there’s no one here, that’s why you’re doing it here! —Daniela exclaimed.

Renata paused for a moment, though she was not finished.

—I’ll tell you one thing: I’m not stopping until I hear a sincere apology.

And she resumed, half a dozen more to drive the point home. Daniela’s ass burned like an ember, red all the way down to her thighs and sides.

—Ow, stop, pleeease! —she sobbed, tears streaming uncontrollably. She was at her limit—. I’m sorry, Renata, I’m truly sorry…

The blows began to space out, though they did not lose force. When she finally set the brush down on a stone, Daniela collapsed exhausted across her lap, wrecked with hiccups.

Only then did Renata feel compassion. A wild current ran through them again, and she found herself more attracted to her friend than ever. She couldn’t help stroking the red, warm skin in front of her. To her surprise, Daniela did not protest; she gave a low moan, as if that turned her on too.

The interlude was abruptly cut short. In a corner of the site appeared two faces: a pair of tourists who froze at the scene. There was no doubt about what had just happened, and they had surely heard the screams and the brush striking from the path. They hurried away, leaving behind a look of triumph on Renata’s face and one of burning shame on Daniela’s.

—Get up —Renata said softly.

Daniela adjusted her skirt over her reddened cheeks. She was wrecked by the whole episode, and yet she still couldn’t hold back the excitement that had been building since the night before. Looking into her friend’s eyes, she saw a new facet, that dominant role Renata had taken on without asking permission. And she discovered, bewildered, that she accepted it. That she even appreciated it, perhaps precisely because she had resisted it so much. Renata was no longer going to let her get her way, and there was something fair in that which made Daniela want her even more.

***

They walked back in near silence. The way felt shorter than she feared; both of them were burning with a desire they could no longer hide.

Back in the room, neither of them doubted where the afternoon was headed.

—How’s that ass? —Renata asked, reaching out to stroke it over the skirt.

—Hot. Still hot. And sore —Daniela murmured, not seeming bothered.

—I hope you understand why I had to do it.

—Yes —she nodded—. I know I’m horrible to you. I hate myself for it. But… it looks like you fixed things.

The more she spoke, the closer she wanted to be. They kissed, lips warm, soft, lingering. Renata’s hand slid the skirt back up little by little until that ass was bare again beneath her fingers.

—Ow, it hurts so much —Daniela whispered.

—Does it really?

—But I don’t regret it —she said, hugging her.

—I’m glad —Renata replied, sincerely, and lost herself in her arms while Daniela began a careful exploration of her body. She traced her chest, the curve of her hips, the firm thighs she had so often felt beneath her own weight. She wanted to touch everything, please her, truly mend the damage between them.

They fell together onto the bed, tangled up in learning every detail of one another. Clothes ended up on the floor, naked bodies seeking each other, hands discovering every pleasure they had denied themselves for months. When Daniela finally spread her legs and buried her head between them, Renata leaned back moaning, transported to a place she had only ever imagined.

They spent the whole afternoon satisfying themselves, never tiring of each other, until they lay stretched out beneath the golden light of dusk, exchanging slow caresses that threatened to set them off again.

—I’m glad it happened —Renata murmured lazily.

—Me too —Daniela replied, stroking her torso—. I don’t think it would have happened if you hadn’t spanked me.

—I think you’re right. I suppose keeping you in line serves more than one purpose.

—So are you going to spank me again? —she asked, as if she doubted it, though she knew the answer.

—I think you want me to —Renata guessed, looking at her.

—What makes you think that? —Daniela asked shyly.

—The way you move that ass like that —Renata said, watching her friend get on all fours, teasing her, her skin almost white again.

—Mmm —purred Daniela when a playful swat lit up her cheek once more.

—With how much you like this, it looks like I’m going to have a naughty girl to discipline.

—I suppose being bad once in a while has its advantages, don’t you think? —she replied, offering her ass to her lover so she could paint it pink again.