Authors Note: This story is about twelve year old country singer Billy Gilman. His biggest his so far has been "One Voice", but he has had others. Even though Billy and the other stars mentioned in this story are real people, it is all fiction. It's based on fact, though. Billy does have a leather outfit that makes him look _s_e_x_y. It was watching him perform in it at the American Music Awards that made me determined to write something. I moved the setting to the ACM Awards to bring on other country stars. As always, this story was posted first to my website, which contains many similar ones.
"Okay, Billy, that was great!" the director said. Billy Gilman slightly bowed his head to the man to acknowledge the complement and then walked to the side of the stage. It was only a couple of days before the Academy of Country Music's annual awards show so he was happy that his part in the dress rehearsal had gone so well. He sat down in a chair to watch the next act. Once everyone had this run-through, there would be a final one with all the lights and effects to test every thing out and to make sure that everyone knew exactly what would be happening.
The Dixie Chicks were up next, scheduled to sing their hit 'Goodbye Earl'. Billy quite liked the song. The fact that someone got killed in the song only made it funnier to him; he didn't understand why anyone would make a fuss about it. Unfortunately, the Chicks were having a problem with their sound. It wasn't their fault; someone was doing something wrong so when they broke into the chorus, there was a wail of feedback. Billy slapped his hands against his leather pants and walked over to one of the main sound control boards.
Because he'd been interested and because people were usually quite happy to explain things to a polite boy, he knew a fair amount about sound equipment. The controller was away, huddling with the director, trying to locate the problem. Glancing at the numerous dials and knobs, Billy saw one that was turned way down. Looking at the label, he realized that this was most likely the problem. He looked for the soundman, but he was still with the director. Wanting to be helpful, Billy turned the knob half way and stepped back. That would fix it! He didn't realize that the difference between recording music in the studio and playing it live made this not the best thing.
He was going to show the soundman, but just then he saw the refreshment lady. He ran over to her and got a Coke. After taking a few swigs, he noticed that everybody was back in their places.
"Okay, ladies, just before the chorus then," the director was saying. The three girls and their band struck up their instruments and started the song half way through.
"....and it didn't take them long to decide/that Earl had to DIE!" they sang. They never got to the 'Na, na, na, na, na, na/Goodbye Earl" part. The moment they said "DIE!" the left speaker exploded. Not like a bomb, but with a horrible screech and a bunch of smoke and sparks. Someone rushed in with a fire extinguisher and the startled Dixie Chicks moved quickly off the stage. Nathalie was holding her ears as if they'd been hurt by the unexpected noise.
"What the hell was that!" the director yelled, waving his notes in front of him to clear away the smoke. The soundman was franticly looking over his settings, trying to find what had gone wrong. He noticed the dial that Billy had turned and touched it.
"How did this happen?" he yelled. "What crazy idiot turned this up?"
Billy gulped. All he'd wanted to do was help. This was the last thing he'd expected. The director and the soundman were arguing, the soundman denying that he'd done it, he wasn't such a fool and the director yelling that somebody had, so he'd better find out who if it wasn't him. In the chaos around him, Billy stayed glued to the spot. He looked for his manager, but he wasn't there and he was the only person Billy would have told. Those speakers were expensive; he'd probably kicked off the show, despite the fact that he was scheduled to be there. Then everybody would know and he'd never be invited to perform again.
At last the producer came out and calmed the director down. After telling the man not to worry because the insurance would cover it, the sound crew was instructed to replace the speaker. This meant a delay of an hour and the various acts just had to kill time until then. Billy looked for someone to talk to; his parents would not be there for several more hours and his manager had obviously gone somewhere. Probably talking to one of the staff about Billy's number.
"Hey, Billy," he heard someone say. He turned around and Toby Keith put his hand on his shoulder.
"We were just going to one of the private lounges in the back to wait this thing out. You want to hang out with us for a while?"
'Us' included Garth Brooks and Alan Jackson. Billy was always happy to hang out with the older stars in the industry. They were always so nice and supportive to him so he quickly nodded, pleased that the man had noticed him. The four of them made their way back through the vacant press area and then down a long corridor. They reached a door that said 'Talent only' and Garth opened it, letting them all inside.
"Not that I mind fans, Billy, but sometimes it's nice to have a place where you know you won't be disturbed," Toby said.
Billy nodded his head in understanding. Places like this were often the worst because not only did fans know that stars would be there; often the staff themselves were fans and would want to talk of get an autograph. Billy never turned anyone away, but he realized the attraction of a place that only other starts were allowed in.
"So Billy," Alan was saying, "Pity about that mess down there. That delay's gonna make me late getting home."
"Me too," Billy said, a little uncomfortable with the topic of discussion. Still, it was the most logical thing to talk about, since that was the reason they were there.
"Yep," Toby said, "A real nuisance, that. Even more so for the staff than for us."
"Sound men usually aren't so careless as that," Garth was saying, "I can't imagine how it happened."
Billy started to sweat inside his leather outfit. The men were being friendly enough, but there was a serious tone. This was not just idle banter to kill time. It was too purposeful. Plus, they kept giving him very direct looks as they continued to talk about how unlikely the accident had been.
"I did it!" he said in a rush. "I thought I was helping. I was gonna tell the soundman, but then I got distracted and then they started up again and I didn't know that was gonna happen!"
The look the three men gave him made him realize that he hadn't told them something they didn't already know.
"I saw you go up to the board, Billy," Toby was saying. "I saw you touch it, but I didn't realize you'd turned any dials. When the speaker exploded, I saw your face and realized what had happened."
"At least let me tell my manager before you tell the producer," Billy begged. The man would know how best to handle it, but Billy knew it would be a big mess. At the very least it would become a joke that he'd never get rid of.
"Actually Billy, we're not sure if we're going to tell the producer," Garth said. "Toby mentioned it to the two of us and we thought that the four of us should have a little talk."
"Okay," Billy said, his voice squeaking. What did they want him to say?
"You see Billy," Toby was saying, "If we tell the producer, he can't just claim on the insurance. Since it was caused by you, they'd probably have to sue you and then it would get to be a big mess. Your lawyer, their lawyer, your manager, both insurance companies, by the time it got sorted out, a lot more money would be spent than that speaker ever cost. And all because a boy did something a bit careless. Seems kind of excessive to me."
Billy had gone white at the suggestion that me might be sued. He didn't know how much the speaker cost, but he was pretty sure it wasn't cheap. And he knew all those lawyers would cost money. His nervous eyes darted back and forth between the three men.
"When I was a boy, they had a different way of dealing with foolishness," Alan said. "We don't feel right about not doing anything since you ought to have known better, but we figured to give you a choice."
"What did they do when you were a boy?" Billy asked, though he had a grim suspicion he knew the answer.
"Why, my Daddy'd whoop my behind," Alan said. "Toby and Garth got it the same way, didn't you fellas?"
The other two men nodded in agreement.
"Does that mean you're gonna tell my Dad?" Billy asked. That didn't seem so bad, he'd expected that he would find out about it.
"Well, we could do that," Toby drawled, "but I want you to tell us what he'd do."
"He'd ground me right away," Billy said. "He'd be real mad. He'd probably take away all my privileges, too. Like watching TV and playing with my computer."
"But he wouldn't whoop you?" Alan pressed.
"If that means would he spank me, no. He wouldn't." Billy admitted.
"See, Billy, we got a bit of a problem with that," Toby said. "No disrespect to your Dad, but we think you need to learn a big lesson, here. Wasn't so long ago that I was a boy myself. Sometimes my folks let me off with grounding and the like, but I tell you that I never learned much from that. Most of the time it'd take a whoopin' to get something through my thick skull."
"So we thought we'd offer you this choice," Garth said. "We can tell the producer and let everything get all complicated...."
"Or we can deal with it ourselves," Alan continued. "The three of us will give you a whoopin', or spankin' if you like that word better. And then no one gets told. Not even your folks."
There it was, all on the table. Billy thought about the first option. He could just picture the whole scenario. He knew how these things took a life of their own. Of course, his people would put the best possible spin on it, but there was only so much damage control they could do. It would make it's way to the CMT news room and would be mentioned in as a humorous item, but he knew there would be a big dash of condensation there. At the end of the day he'd come out looking like a stupid, unprofessional little boy. Just the thing he'd worked so hard to avoid being perceived as. On the other hand....
He knew all three of these men. They were all good guys. It would be fair to say that they were friends. If they gave their word, they would keep it. Granted, being spanked was going to damage his pride but much less than being made to look like a fool in front of the whole industry. He clenched his hands to the side of the chair to stop them from trembling.
"You won't tell anybody?" he pressed.
"Not a soul, Billy," Toby said. "It'll just be between the four of us in this room."
"And you won't tease me about it later?" he asked. This was very important to him.
"No, Billy, that's the good think about a spanking," Garth said. "Once it's over, all debts are square. We'll never bring it up again if you don't."
"Okay, then," he whispered.
"Smart boy," Alan said, "I'll get the first round then I guess you Garth and then Toby."
With trembling legs, Billy got up and walked towards Alan, his hands in his pockets.
"Be a good sport about this, Billy," Alan whispered. "This might see pretty rough for a boy from Rhode Island, but it 'aint all that uncommon down here. How you take it's what matters."
That clinched it for Billy. He knew that he could kick up enough of a ruckus to where the men would let him off, but then they'd always consider him a sissy. Only by submitting would he gain their respect.
Alan pulled him over his knees and he found himself looking at the green carpet. His arms were dangling, but his fingers could just barely touch the floor. The jackknifed position of his body meant that his ass was sticking up high. He gritted his teeth and closed his eyes.
WHAP! The sound of Alan Jackson's firm hand hitting the tight leather that was stretched over his bottom filled the room. For a half second, he thought that the sturdy material had completely shielded him from the effect but then a hot wave of pain shot through him. Alan was strong, after all, and his first spank had quite an impact.
WHAP! it went again. He heard Toby and Garth cheering Alan on, but that was only in the background. All of his primary attention was focused on the burning heat that was building in his rear.
WHAP! WHAP! WHAP! WHAP! He was still trying to keep quiet, but was now making high-pitched grunts. It did hurt a lot, but he felt that he could handle it if he had to. Which he did, because draped over Alan's knee he had no way to stop it, now.
WHAP! WHAP!! WHAP!! WHAP!! As the spanking continued, it seemed to reach a certain degree of pain and then level off. He realized that his pants were taking the brunt of it and he thanked God above that his parents had let him get them. There were several more blows, but then Alan stopped. Billy had not forgotten that all three of them had promised to have a go at him, but at least there would be a momentary break. He did entertain a slim hope that they would let him off, but he considered this most unlikely.
"Well, you did a good job warming him up, Alan," Garth said. "Now it's my turn!"
Billy found himself stood up and being led to where Garth was already sitting on the couch. Pleased with himself for how well he was holding up, he let the man maneuver him over his lap. That was when he got a rude shock.
"These pants are nice, Billy, but they're gonna get in the way," Garth said. Before Billy even realized what the man was up to, the front was unsnapped and his zipper pulled down. Two things stopped him from protesting right away. The first was that he was so surprised, by the time he thought about it the tight pants were down to his thighs and still going. The other thing was what Alan had said. He had to take it if he wanted their respect. This spanking would only go so far, he knew. Billy just hadn't expected to find himself over Garth Brooks' lap with only his white cotton briefs between his bottom and a firm, spanking hand.
WHACK! For a moment, he almost forgot his pledge not to cry out. That STUNG! Now he had a better understanding of just how much his pants had protected him.
WHACK! WHACK! Garth wasn't wasting any time. Whatever little bit of relief he'd gotten from his few seconds of rest was gone. The twin globes of his bubble butt burned with new heat. With each new spank, his struggle to keep from crying grew harder. His grunts were changing in tone to become more urgent and he could feel tears forming in the corners of his eyes.
WHACK!! WHACK!! WHACK!! WHACK!!! Each time his bottom was spanked, his legs wanted to kick. As he fought to control that, he was aware that the volume of his cries was increasing. After several more stinging smacks, Garth stopped and he was stood back up. His pants were now around his ankles and he had to hold on to the arm of the couch with one hand to avoid falling over. Without really wanting to, he found his other hand rubbing the thin cotton of the back of his briefs. He knew just how that made him look, with his pants down rubbing his spanked bottom, but if he wasn't doing that, he'd be wiping his tears away, and that seemed worse somehow. Garth stood up and was replaced by Toby.
"Time for the third and final round, Billy," Toby said. He removed Billy's hand from his rear. That Billy expected, but when Toby took hold of his briefs, panic set in.
"No!" he pleaded, holding on for dear life so that the man could not pull his underpants down. There was no way he could handle that! Not just the increased pain of the man's hand on his bare flesh, but the thought of being spanked bare bottomed!
"Come on, Billy," Toby said softly as he continued to hold on to the boy's white briefs. "You knew it was gonna end this way, didn't you?"
Through the fog of pain and embarrassment, Billy realized a few things. No, he had not expected this. But plainly the men had thought that he had expected it. They thought he'd understood and agreed. He could tell them the truth and they might let him off with just an underpants spanking. They might even believe that he'd not understood fully. But they would not respect him. In their hearts, they would think he had whimped out. And, truth be told, it felt like whimping out to Billy, too. He'd authorized them to punish him for his mistake and he had to let them do what they thought appropriate. And if they thought it appropriate that his underpants be pulled down and he be spanked on his naked bottom, then that's just what he'd have to take.
Toby had let go of Billy's underpants and was looking a little reflective. Billy realized that his delaying and protesting had given them second thoughts. Now that he'd made up his mind, he didn't want to have to explain all this to them. He just wanted to take his spanking and get it over with. He was going to tell Toby that it was all right, to just do what he'd been planning to, but he found a more direct way. He pushed his own underpants down to his knees and climbed over Toby's lap.
"Good boy," Toby said, pushing Billy's shirt up his back so that there were no clothes anywhere in the vicinity of his red bottom.
SPANK! went the man's hand. There was no question of holding back now. Billy cried out in pain as his tenderized backside experienced the first naked spank. Without even thinking about it, he tried to push up with his arms, but Toby had his back pinned. Holding him down with his left arm, he continued spanking him with his right, SPANK! SPANK! SPANK! SPANK!!
Before he'd just barely been holding it together, but now it was all gone. He kicked his legs on the couch and pleaded fruitlessly for Toby to stop, or at least not spank him so hard. None of it had any effect. Fresh, hard strokes continued to fall, first on the left cheek, then on the right, then in the middle, then right on the sensitive edge where his bottom met his smooth thighs. Nor was there any pattern. Each spank landed in a random place that bore no relation to the last one. All thoughts of embarrassment were gone, overtaken completely by the complete awareness of pain in his bottom. He didn't care about anything; not the fact that he was all but naked, not the fact that he was crying so loud that someone passing in the hallway might here, not the fact that he looked more like and seven year old than a twelve year old. All he cared about was the searing pain in his butt and the wish that it be over soon.
But 'soon' is a relative term. To someone watching, it would seem that Billy got his wish. But to him, every second the spanking continued was an eternity. It only continued for another ninety seconds, but Toby was not using a slow pace and so that minute and a half contained dozens more spanks, each one at least as hard as the one before. Billy would not have been surprised to see that his bottom was as red as the stripes on the flag when the last spank finally fell.
"All right, Billy, it's over," Toby was saying. "You've done paid your dues." Billy was exhausted from struggling and couldn't even reach behind himself to try and bring some relief to his toasted posterior. However, that didn't seem necessary. Someone (Toby?) was gently rubbing the smooth skin, getting fresh blood to flow and ever so slowly lowering the heat.
His breath was coming in hitches and Toby sat him up in his lap. Alan and Garth sat on either side and Garth handed him a handkerchief to clean up his face. He gratefully took it and wiped it dry after blowing his nose. Toby hugged him around his chest and Alan gave him a reassuring squeeze on his shoulder.
"You done yourself proud, boy," Alan was saying. "Don't worry about crying or nothin'. A spankin' 'aint been done properly if a boy don't cry."
"And we weren't really going to tell the producer," Garth said. "We'd have told your folks, but that'd been it. We just wanted to make sure you were done right by."
Young Billy was, but he understood how much these men were looking out for him. This industry could be tough and they wanted to make sure he stayed out of trouble. He no longer felt embarrassed, even though his pants and briefs were still around his ankles and he was sitting half-naked in Toby Keith's lap. Knowing that men like this were there to help look after him made him feel safe and secure.
"Thanks guys," he said softly as soon as he regained complete control, "for everything."
They let him stand up and he pulled his pants back up without the least trace of self-conciseness. Then the three men hugged him and patted him on the back. True to their word, they didn't bring it up again. They sat in the room for the rest of the time it took to replace the speaker talking about music and who they thought might win the various awards. Afterwards, the dress rehearsal went perfectly. And when Billy's parents came to pick him up, he made sure that they did not notice how carefully he was sitting in the back of the car.