Excerpt from “Finishing School”
I was fortunate enough to grow up in times enlightened enough that I was never punished for being left-handed. My only punishment has been a mild awkwardness when using implements designed for the right-handed. I take a strange sort of pride in it, reading stories of how the left-handedness would, in the old days, be trained and beaten out of students. Of course, having ink stains on my hand is irritating at times, but after hearing how they used to be associated with the devil, homosexuality, and various other flavours of subversiveness, they feel almost like a badge of honour.
So, here’s a bondage story with a left-handed twist. It appears in its entirety Secret Slaves: Erotic Stories of Bondage, out this month from Alyson Books.
My heart sank as I realized what she meant. I had been writing with my left hand again, which the school had strictly forbidden, and the side of the offending hand was covered in telltale smudges of black ink. “You see? You have been writing incorrectly,” continued the schoolmistress. “Your teachers here, as well as myself, have constantly reminded you that for you to be a lady, it is necessary for you to learn to write in a style that reflects elegance and refinement. And yet, you continue to ignore our instructions, obeying us when in the classroom but flaunting your rebelliousness when out of it.”
“I am sorry, schoolmistress. It’s just that I find it difficult to –“
“– The left hand is the devil’s hand, Miss Elster, and makes an unholy mess of your hands and your papers. Surely you yourself can see the lack of decorum in a page that looks like this.” She held up a creased sheet of paper, the ink smears clearly visible.
My cheeks reddened and my heart began to pound as I recognized my own writing on the page, and realized that it was a letter I had been writing to my good friend Sara in the city. It was just a short note, nothing of consequence, but I was mortified by the thought that someone must have searched through my private papers in order to find it.
“Your handwriting is not the only reason you find yourself here. We shall discuss the other reasons soon enough. For the time being, I would like to impress upon you the seriousness of our requirements.”
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