Why Don't You Just Go Up to Your Room if You Want?

As a follow up to the last post, one of the other behavior problems Elias has, I also don't really understand. When he gets mad (or wants attention), he hits..don't worry, that's not the part I don't understand. Sometimes I think he hits just so he will get a time out. I'm pretty certain that he knows that if he hits, he goes into time out. Also (just to make it clear), we remind him that if he hits again, he will get a time out. It seems to me we give him plenty of attention when this is occurring as well.

So then he seems to purposefully hit, just so he can be sent to his room. What? He is in there for 2 minutes (crying for Mommy the entire time), and then when it is over he wants to be cuddled and is over the hitting. Does he just want some time alone? I keep trying to tell him if he wants to go to his room, to just go up there and please, skip the hitting part. On this issue, I guess his 2-year-old mind just doesn't get mine, and I certainly don't get his.