Lock-In Tales

Caught up in red tape…

Day twenty-seven, and the inability to get out of the house was beginning to tell on my family and on my patience. So much so that I had already decided that, if any of my children were to start arguing or fighting today, then I was going to take steps to ensure some silence.

And it was my twelve year old daughter Abi who was the first to crack, throwing a book against the wall and saying she had to get out that day. She has short dark hair, and was wearing a long sleeved black top and leggings, with denim shorts over the leggings, as well as peach coloured pop socks and black trainers with a peach trim.

She turned round and saw me standing in the doorway, waving the roll of red tape, and knew she was in trouble. But my kids are at heart good kids, and they take their punishment, so she didn’t complain when I taped her wrists together in front of her, and then wound the red tape round her body, from her shoulders down to her ankles, only the cuffs of her leggings and the lower part of her sleeves showing.

To finish the effect, I put several strips of red tape over her mouth, and then carried her into the front room, putting her in the centre of the seat and smiling as the tape crinkled with her wriggles.

So when nine year old Andy appeared in the doorway, in his grey t-shirt and joggers, black socks and black trainers, he knew what was coming. He had curly black hair, which I tousled with my hand – and then taped his wrists together as well before winding the tape down from his shoulders.

I could hear Abi giggling as the tape went all the way down his stomach, past his waist and down his joggers, before he was sitting next to her and I was pressing red tape over his mouth as well.

That left the youngest of the bunch – five year old Josie. She was in her room, in her peach coloured top with white sleeves that had thin black stripes, matching joggers, and black trainers, but when I told her her brother and sister had already been made silent, she came with me to look at them and then giggled – giggling even more when I taped her crossed wrists together and then taped her arms to her sides above her elbows.

Sitting the other side of Abi from Andy, she watched as I wound the tape round her legs from above her knees to her ankles, and then nodded as I covered her mouth with red tape as well.

The three of them wriggled round, and I could hear their giggling under the tape, as I put Disney+ on, and went back to picking what pair of sneakers I would not be able to afford now…

Breakfast, interrupted

Mom and I were sitting at the breakfast table, Mom in her purple t-shirt and grey PJ bottoms, me in my purple nightdress with lots of lovely coloured dots all over it, and buttoned up the front. I had just finished my orange juice, and was eating a muffin when he came in.

He was wearing a grey sweatshirt and jeans, with black sunglasses and a face mask covering his nose and mouth, and he also had a gun in his hands as well as a paper bag. We both looked at him as he told us to finish eating and drinking, and then he told us to put our hands together in front of us.

Mom did it first, as he put the paper bag on the table and took out a length of white rope. He crossed her wrists in front of her and then wound the rope round both of them so that they were secured together – and then he put my hands together on front of me and wound the rope around and between my own wrists as well as he talked to Mom about the weather, the news, what the President had done last night…

He then told us to walk into the main room, which we did, him following after he had picked up the paper bag. In the room he told us both to sit on the brown carpet, both of us watching as he took some more white rope out of the bag, and tied my ankles tightly together, before he tied Mom’s as well. I wasn’t scared – it actually felt kinda nice to be like this.

I then watched as he took a roll of silver tape out of the bag, and tore a long strip off, before he pressed it down over Mom’s mouth with his gloved hands. He turned and looked at me, smiling as he tore another strip off, and then pressed it down over my mouth and jaw. That did feel a bit strange, but it didn’t hurt either.

Now, both Mom and I have long black hair, so I watched as he helped Mom to lie on her back, her hair neatly under her head, and then he helped me to lie down as well, my hair spread out under me as he rested my head on Mom’s arm.

He then left us there, as we listened to him in the kitchen, and then there was no noise, except for the news on the television set. After a few minutes, Mom nudged my head and I wriggled round, smiling under the tape as I carefully used my fingers to peel the tape away from her mouth. She then said well done to me before she used her teeth to loosen the knot at my wrists and allow me to get them free, and then I untied hers before I took the tape from my mouth.

We untied our own ankles before we went back into the kitchen, Mom pouring a glass of milk for me before she started to put the groceries Uncle Mike had left for us. It was great that he made such a good game out of getting the things we couldn’t go and buy to us…

Golf fun

“All right then,” Mary said as she looked at her daughters, “we start the tournament in ten minutes. Both ready?”

Soo and Lou both nodded. The twelve year old twins were in the front room of their house, ready for the planned activity on day twelve of the social restriction rules which meant they had not been able to go out for their golf lessons. Both girls were blonde, Soo in a white top with elbow length sleeves and red circles printed on it, as well as beige pants, and Lou in her pink top and t-shirt and grey jeans.

Mary smiled as she looked at them in her white vest top and shorts, and then checked the black tape that was holding their ankles together, as well as their legs below their knees. There was also black tape round their upper arms and body, as well as over their mouths, but they were happy as their mother turned them to face each other, before she checked the WI golf clubs were taped to their hands.

“Right,” she said as she started the Disney Golf game, “good luck…”

The Gibson Girls

There was Hettie, Letty and Betty – eleven, ten and nine years old, and all wanting something exciting to happen.

So who was I to deny them such an exciting time when I paid a surprise visit with my friend Bert? We both had face masks and latex gloves on as well as our usual outfits and balaclava masks, giving their mother the shock of their life when we walked into their kitchen – but Bert soon had her at ease, as well as secured before he walked her up to her bedroom, and I walked into the front room.

That’s where I found Hettie, sitting in an armchair and watching a program about plants. She had a white headband holding back her long blonde hair, a white t-shirt with a multi-coloured snail on it, and pink shorts – and a look of complete surprise as I smiled under the mask, and told her to lean forward as I took a roll of blue tape out of my bag.

It only took me a few minutes to tape her wrists together behind her back, and then she watched me as I taped her ankles tightly together, her legs hanging over the edge of the seat.

She asked why I was doing this, and I said I was doing it to her sisters as well – just before I covered her mouth with the blue tape.

“Well, I hate the colour blue!”

I smiled as Hettie looked over my shoulder and I turned to see her sister Betty standing there. She had long red-brown hair, and was wearing a pink t-shirt, blue jeans and white socks. I said that was all right – I had other colours, and then saw the pair of her mother’s long pink socks she had in her hands. As she walked over to look at Hettie, I told her to give me the gloves, and then I pulled them up over her arms – way over her elbows – before I took some green tape form my bag, and taped her wrists together in front of her, as well as bands around her upper body.

She then lay on the floor as I bent her legs, and taped her wrists down to her thighs, then taped her legs together above and below her knees, as well as around her ankles. Finally, I pressed several strips of the tape over her mouth, and told Hettie to ait there as I picked her younger sister up and carried her into what served as a home office.

Why there? Because I figured the middle sister would be working on something there, with her mother out of the way – and I was right. Letty had long blonde hair like Hettie, and was wearing a short sleeved pink nightdress with a picture of Hannah Montana on the front. She looked at me, with my balaclava mask, and then at Betty as I out her down on the floor to wriggle round – then produced a roll of silver tape and told her sister to put her hands, palm down, on the armrests of the computer chair she was sitting on…

So when Bert brought their mother into the room, Letty had her wrists taped down to the armrests, her ankles taped together and silver tape over her mouth, while Betty was wriggling round on the floor, and Hettie sat against the wall. That’s where her mother joined her – after I had used the silver tape to make sure she could not get away either – before we left them happily struggling…

The bet

It was BORING! Stuck in the house all day, with only schoolwork to try and break the monotony! So when Dad suggested a little game for the three of us, we nodded in agreement.

I’m Billy – short for Wilhelmina – and I’m thirteen, the oldest sister. I’d broken my wrists a couple of weeks ago, so I had a cast on my right arm, and I was wearing a white crop top and black jogging pants. Celia, my eleven year old sister, had on her blue Fila sweatshirt and blue floral leggings, while seven year old Kate had on a purple t-shirt and light coloured jeans.

Anyway – the bet. He held up a ten dollar bill, and said this would go to the one of us who managed not to take something off our mouth the longest. Katy asked what, and that’s when he held up the roll of silver tape and said it was this.

Well, I knew we could not go out and spend it, but it was ten dollars – so a few minutes later we were standing in a row, Dad tearing off strips of the silver tape and pressing them firmly down over our mouths as we looked at each other. The tape meant we could see our lips as we tried to talk, and Katy giggled as she wriggled round, while Celia and I exchanged a look – and Dad left the roll of tape on the coffee table as he left the room.

Katy looked at both of us, with a look that said she knew what was coming, and she tried to move away – but I wrapped my arms round her as Celia grabbed the tape, and wound it round her ankles, then up her legs to her waist as she stood there, knowing she was defeated. I then took the roll of tape and wound it from her shoulders down to her waist, trapping her arms against her sides before she jumped over to the couch and lay on her side.

You see, she had guessed what was coming next as well, as I took Celia’s hands behind her back and taped her wrists together, then took the tape round her arms before she sat down and watched me tape her ankles and legs.

Which left me the winner – until Dad grabbed me…

Surprise!

The brat twins were playing up that morning, which I can understand, because we had not gone out for four days. Belinda was wearing her MLP onesie, while Timmy had on a red sweatshirt and black joggers.

So when I suggested we did a photo for Mum and Dad when they came back, they asked what kind of photo. Well, we had done a Silent night one before, so when I produced the roll of pink tape they both nodded in agreement – so long as the usual rules applied.

Which they did – I covered my mouth with strips of the tape first, then set up my phone before covering their mouths with the pink tape as well. I should say I had on a black and red striped onesie.

We then stood there, Katy next to me and Timmy in front, their hands raised and making victory signs while I slipped my hand up next to Timmy – my hand the wrong way round – and the photo was taken.

And that was when the men came in, wearing surgical masks and white one piece suits, and told us not to move. They had come to rob us! I looked at the twins, and mumbled something about don’t panic, as one of the men told me to sue the tape and make sure they stayed in this room.

So ‘I motioned to them both to sit on the floor, and I taped their wrists together on front of them while one of the men stood over us. I then taped their ankles, and told them to bend their legs before I taped their wrists down to their thighs, and took tape round their arms. I had done that for that Silent Night photo, so I knew they could cope with that for a while, but they were looking at the men as well…

I then handed the roll of tape to the man, as he took my hands behind my back and taped my wrists together, then wound the tape round my arms and body. I was then made to lie on the couch behind them, the man taping my ankles and legs before they left us struggling.

Mum and Dad found us there when they got back from their hospital jobs – I’m just grateful they could help others as well as us…

Return to the DiD Channel index

Return to the main index