“I- I mean, no, Sir.” Her heart was caught in her throat and her chest rose too quickly as she tried to find her words. It felt like there wasn’t enough air in the room and far too many eyes on her face. Before she even realized she was standing, her chair scraped against the floor and she was running from the room.Colorful posters and cubbies filled her vision as she fled, her only hope to escape the classroom. She didn’t know where she was going, but she knew she couldn’t stay there.
She hadn’t meant to be bad. She hadn’t even wanted to talk. She definitely didn’t mean to mess everything up. If Master Grayson was mad at her, did that mean the other teachers would be too? Would Master Derek? Master Beau? That thought made her feel like someone had kicked her in the tummy.
Pushing through the double doors, she ran past the library, uniform room, and cafeteria. She still didn’t know where she was going, but if felt like something really, really bad was chasing her.
“Whoa, sweetie. Where’s the fire?” Soft arms wrapped around her and even in her fright, Palmer was far too nice to push them away.
“Hey, Palmer. It’s okay. It’s okay,” the gentle voice soothed. Palmer knew the voice. It was kind and familiar.
“Sam, can you take Pippi back to class?”
Catherine Denton.
She was a therapist at Rawhide Ranch. Palmer had been to play in her office once before because Master Derek had suggested it, but Palmer hadn’t committed to therapy. She was trying to leave the past behind her, not dredge it up.
“I’m sorry,” Palmer said, feeling guilty she’d taken the Mommy Dom from her husband and Little girl. “I d-didn’t mean to mess up your time together.” Palmer felt like she was messing upeverything.
“You don’t need to be sorry, honey. Having big feelings is perfectly okay. I just want to make sure your heart and body are safe, okay?”
“Y-yes, Ma’am,” Palmer said. She tried wiping her eyes so she could see.
Much to her horror, she saw Catherine was leading her to the double doors that led back to the school-aged program. “No, please. I d-don’t want to go back.”
“Hey, hey,” Catherine soothed. “I promise I’m not taking you back to class. We’re going to the aftercare room so we can talk.”
“You p-promise?” Palmer asked, silently begging the older woman not to lie to her.
“I absolutely promise. You’re safe with me, honey.”
Just as they pushed through the double doors, Headmaster Nathan, who was in charge of the school-aged program, rushed towards them. “There you are, Palmer. You scared us!”
Palmer bit her lip, trying to stop the fresh wave of tears.
“I think she is a bit overwhelmed right now, so we are headed to the aftercare room,” Catherine said. She placed her hand firmly in the middle of Palmer’s back, assuring Palmer she wasn’t alone.
“Okay, let me know if you need anything, Catherine,” Headmaster Nathan said before sending Palmer a soft smile.
Palmer did her very best to return it.
“We’re really sorry, Palmer. We told Master Grayson it was us talking. We didn’t mean to make you upset,” Sadie said, sticking her head out from the classroom. A hand gently guided her back in before Master Grayson peeked his head out.
“Catherine, I would like to speak to Ms. Presley when you are done, please. It seems I owe her an apology,” Master Grayson said before he stepped back into the classroom and shut the door.
An apology?
It was nice that Master Grayson wanted to apologize to her, that meant he still liked her…. Before she could even follow that train of thought, a dull throbbing pain started at the base of her skull and Palmer reached up, trying to rub it away.
Catherine guided her into the aftercare room. The room was much dimmer and quieter than the hallway. The throbbing in her head lessened significantly.
Miss Catherine lowered herself into a rocking chair before motioning for Palmer to take the other. She sank into the chair and a silence settled over the pair.
“I’m sorry,” Palmer said, feeling all kind of wonky. Her feelings were big and small and everywhere in between.
“I don’t think you have anything to be sorry for, honey, but would you like to tell me what happened?”
“I was b-bad,” Palmer sobbed.
Catherine’s voice softened and took on much more of a parental tone. “I don’t believe anyone at Rawhide Ranch is bad. I think maybe sometimes we make mistakes, but we’re not bad.”
