thinking about a dom casually calling their sub a good boy and seeing a flicker of doubt on their face… asking them sternly if they’ve done anything to be bad recently, broken any rules? and when their sub denies it- and of course, their dom can tell they’re not lying- they soften a bit, and ask why they don’t think they’ve been good. their sub can’t really say- it’s just a sourceless feeling of guilt and that’s tricky to articulate, but being called good made them feel ashamed, like they didn’t deserve it.
their dom asks if punishing them might help them feel better, since of course, it will continue until they take it like a good boy, as it does when they’ve been bad. their sub agrees, relieved not to have to take praise or rewards that feel unearned. the dom encourages them to climb over their lap, and strokes their hair, reminding them this isn’t really a punishment and they haven’t done anything wrong, this is all to make them feel better.
they warm their sub up with a hand spanking first, not wanting to push too far too fast. they’ve sensed they could use a good, cathartic cry, and they need to get them there slowly, not make them tense up and fight the pain and the tears. once they’ve taken a good few blows on the bare, and their skin is turning a pretty shade of pink, their dom picks up the paddle.
usually, their sub has to count blows from the paddle, thank their dom and ask for more. but this isn’t a punishment. so their dom asks them for something else: to repeat that they’re a good boy with every stroke. their sub is reluctant at first- they still don’t feel like a good boy, but their dom reminds them they don’t get to decide whether they’ve been good or not, that’s all up to the dom. and their dom would never let them get away with being a bad boy, would they? they’d punish them immediately, just like this. so they must be a good boy, if their dom says so.
still, it takes a few strikes for their sub to say anything at all, and when the words first come, they’re muffled, mumbled. but their dom reminds them they won’t be finishing until they’re satisfied that their sub knows they’re a good boy, and have convinced their dom they believe it, too. whispers become stammered words become tearful cries as the paddling gets too much, breaks down their resistance.
once they’ve said it enough times that their dom is satisfied, they cast the paddle aside and pull their sub into their arms. their sub is almost inconsolable by now, still repeating the words through sobs and hiccups, “I’m a good boy,” while their dom pets their hair and shushes them and agrees, tells them over and over what a good boy they are.