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I've been playing with this story idea for a while. I still don't have a title... I had been calling it "Lockdown", but that title was recently taken, so now I need another one. Comments and feedback are, of course, strongly encouraged... ======================== It was a great day. My contract was finally ending, and my manager had confirmed that the customer had signed off on a very significant bonus. What had started as a lucrative 6 month project had turned into 12, and then 18 months of no vacations, rarely a full weekend off, and lots and lots of overtime. On the bright side, my bank account was in great shape, my loans were paid off, and I was looking at getting a new car for the first time ever. But, I really, really needed a break. A quick call to my wife let her know that I was grabbing dinner for tonight, and with a smile and a hop in my step I entered the grocery store. A bouquet of roses. Steaks. A bagged salad. A good bottle of wine. A second good bottle of wine. Some chocolates. And, as an impromptu purchase, a balloon with “I Love You” on it. I guess it didn’t take a genius to figure out what was on my mind as I made my way through the checkout line, paid, and drove the short distance home. “Karen! I’m free! I’m free! No more work for me! Yipee!” I shouted as I came in the door. Placing the groceries on the table, I gave my wife a hug and kiss. She still smelled of sawdust, not yet having cleaned up after coming in from the barn housing her workshop in our backyard. I got the meal ready while she showered, and when she returned wearing some clothing that left little of her beautiful body to the imagination, the evening progressed much as I had hoped for. Soon, we were laying in bed next to each other, cuddling. “So, you think that they’re actually going to lock down the whole state like China did? Can they even do that?” The worry in my voice must have come through. “Well, it’s probably the best thing. If they can do it. I don’t know if it’s even legal. But we’ll be OK.” She hugged me close, my head landing on her oh-so-comfortable chest. “At least my contract is done. We can just hang here. It can’t be more than 2 weeks or so, right? That’s what people are saying.” “Well… I don’t know. The way the government has been handling this, I tend to doubt there’s a real plan to begin with. At least I can just work here, and you were going to take some time anyway. So, we’re set, right?” “I guess so.” I paused. “This is going to suck, isn’t it?” She hugged me closer. “I’m sure we can find a way of making it fun. Wouldn’t want you to get bored.” I kissed her, and snuggled closer. “Yeah, that would be terrible.” And we both fell asleep. ==== The next morning, Karen was gently trying to wake me. I quickly realized why as I felt the wetness around me. Crap. “Oh. I’m so sorry honey.” She gave me a kiss on my forehead while allowing me to wake up a little more. “It’s ok. Not a big deal. You didn’t get me this time.” “Oh. Good. I. Uh. OK, let me clean up and I’ll take care of it.” Well, today was off to a pretty bad start. Sigh. She kissed me again. “Go shower, babe. I’ll throw this in the wash.” I moved the wet covers to see my sopping wet boxers. The waterproof mattress cover ensured that there was a puddle of my pee right under me. “Um, could I get a” “Towel? Yeah, just a second.” She disappeared into the bathroom, returning with a bath towel. “Just leave the underwear there. I’ll throw them in with the sheets.“ I stripped down, wrapped the towel around myself, and did the walk of shame to the bathroom for a shower. A few minutes later I was downstairs, refreshed, making coffee and a bagel. I could hear the washing machine start, and Karen joined me in the kitchen. I gave her the first brewed cup, and then poured another for myself. I was feeling down, as I always am after waking up after one of my accidents. Not that I have many accidents, of course. They’re rare. I mean, there was that one other this week, but it had been… a month since the last time, and like three months before that. So it’s not like I’m a regular bed wetter, or anything. I just have some occasional accidents. But it still makes me not feel great about myself. She put her non-coffee-holding arm around me in a half hug. Neither of us were the type to put coffee down, even for a hug. “It’s not a big deal.” She always says that, of course. “It is the second time this week, though. Are you OK?” I nodded. “Yeah. I guess the wine just got to me, or something. Sorry.” “It’s OK.” She paused. “The governor is supposed to make some kind of announcement later today. Maybe you should go get some groceries? A week or so worth? Just in case, you know. Maybe go to Costco?” “Probably a good idea. I should go do that now before the crowds get worse…”, and so after a second cup of coffee I gave her a kiss, collected my wallet and jacket, and headed out the door. Everyone else had the same idea, of course. Costco was mobbed, with everyone grabbing everything as though they wouldn’t be able to shop for weeks. There was enough meat, veggies, bread, and of course alcohol left that I got most of what we’d need to avoid shopping for a few weeks, if it came to it. We had a chest freezer in Karen’s workshop that could hold a lot of food, so why not. As an afterthought, I grabbed one of the last packages of toilet paper before the mob wiped the store out. Why was there a run on toilet paper? What the hell? It’s not like this virus gave you diarrhea or something. As I walked past the diaper aisle, I paused and thought for a fleeting second about picking up a package of Goodnights. Karen was very tolerant of my accidents, but she of course didn’t like waking up wet, and had in the past suggested that maybe, perhaps, I should consider wearing some protection. With a shiver I continued on. I was not ready for that. I mean, I sometimes wore them if we were travelling or something, but those were special cases. Not at home. As I was getting ready to brave the long checkout line, I realized that the mornings’ coffee was ready to come out. Parking my cart on the side I used the facilities, only to return to see that someone had taken the toilet paper from the bottom of my cart. And, of course, there was none left now. Argh. Time to get out here before they took my sanity along with the toilet paper. After a few other stops, I finally returned home. I found Karen in the barn listening to a stream of the governor speaking. “And so therefore, I am directing all citizens to shelter in place … Only essential workers may travel… orders shall stay in effect....” “So, it’s begun, eh?” She turned to me from the cabinet base she had been working on, her eyes betraying her anxiousness. “Yeah, it looks like it. Everything is shut down. Everything. Did you get groceries?” “Everything but the toilet paper. Someone stole that. It’s a mob scene out there.” She looked at me, incredulous. “Someone stole your toilet paper? Do people think that COVID gives you the runs or something? What the hell?” I laughed. “Yeah, that was exactly my thought. It was on my cart, but I had to leave it to use the restroom, and when I came back…” “Wow.” “Yeah. Wow. Glad I’m back now.” We hugged. I looked her in the eyes. “This is going to be a mess, isn’t it?” Sigh. “Yeah. It’s unprecedented here in so many ways. And… well… I don’t think people are going to do well with it.” “Can you help me get the rest of the groceries? What’s left in the car needs to go in the chest freezer, I think, and, urm.” I gestured to the box I had brought in. “There are two more boxes in the car. I’ll go get those.” Karen laughed. “Of course, honey.” She took the box over to the freezer and started unloading as I brought the other two boxes in, loaded with frozen food. I look over the edge of the freezer. This is where my height was a problem, of course. At only four and a half feet, only my shoulders were above the freezer, and I couldn’t really reach in to help without going to get a stool. Oh well. I was used to having others handle these kinds of things; it was just easier, really. Most of the time my small stature didn’t matter, but there were some things that were just not designed for short people. Lunch was a quick sandwich affair, and then she was back to work. She had talked to her company, but since she was working in her own shop here the shutdown didn’t really change anything for her. If anything, would give her a chance to catch up while everyone else paused. I, on the other hand, was bound and determined to not let a little lockdown get in the way of my hard-earned time off. So, groceries put away and lunch cleaned up, I lay down with a book, and promptly fell asleep.

Changing Roles Chapter 1 Chris sat miserably silent in the passenger seat of the car as his wife chatted to the couple standing outside in the mall carpark. The couple were Dave and Anna. Anna was a firm friend of Chris’s wife Sue and Chris had teamed up with Dave on the golf course a few times. At least they said hello to me, thought Chris unhappily. Since Chris had been ill he’d become used to the type of awkward greeting he had just received as both Anna and Dave had ducked their heads down and said hello. They said it with the usual look of concern, and as usual they waited until Chris had returned their greeting in the halting, stuttering manner which was now the best he could manage. Their faces had then gone back out of Chris’s sight, probably with relief, Chris thought. There wasn’t much they could say to each other since Chris’s problems had begun. Conversation was as difficult for them as it was for Chris. ‘We’ve been looking at a new driver for Dave,’ Chris heard Anna say before returning to his jumbled thoughts. ‘Just a bit of shopping,’ he heard his wife reply a moment later, and he felt a jolt of despair. Sue had been buying diapers for Chris. He was wetting every night now, and the doctor had recommended a thicker diaper from the medical supply firm next to the mall. Dave and Anna were looking for a golf club for Dave, and Sue was buying diapers for Chris. As if to underline Chris’s new needs, he felt another jolt, this time from his lower body. He turned to say something to Sue, but couldn’t get the words out. He put his hand on her thigh, and gave it a squeeze. Sue turned to him, and saw the look on his face. ‘Well,’ she said to the two torsos Chris could see next to the driver’s window. ‘We’d better get home.’ ‘OK,’ Chris heard Anna say. ‘Good to see you. Bye Chris,’ she added with another quick look inside the car. ‘Yeah, see ya Chris,’ he heard Dave say. As they drove out of the carpark, Sue turned again to Chris. ‘Are you OK, honey?’ she asked. Chris nodded, but Sue could see that he wasn’t comfortable. She guessed the reason. ‘Honey, we’re going straight home. I asked you if you needed to wee in the mall. Why didn’t you say so then?’ she said. ‘It’s OK,’ Chris stammered. Sue turned out onto the main road, then reached across and put her hand to Chris’s crotch. ‘Oh, it’s not OK, honey. You’re wet again,’ she said. Chris looked down at the crotch of his chinos. It was soaked. He hadn’t been aware of peeing. ‘Honestly, Chris…’ she began, but was interrupted by Chris’s tears. Sue took a deep breath. ‘Chris, please, it’s not the end of the world. Just be thankful it didn’t…’ ‘They were buying golf clubs for Dave,’ Chris blurted out, managing to string all the words together without stalling. He took a breath. ‘And we were, you were, buying, d, d, diapers for m, m, me,’ said as his tears overwhelmed him. Sue loved Chris deeply, and her caring instincts welled up. Chris often cried now. The doctor said it was a result of his lowered ability to cope with his emotions. ‘Honey, we’ll just get you home, then we can fix you up, OK?’ said Sue. Chris nodded through his tears. Neither spoke as they drove on. Chris was worrying that his problems were taking over more of his life, while Sue was thinking this meant another discussion about daytime protection. She decided she would be much firmer with Chris this time. After all, the doctor had said that it would be better for both of them if she took a firm hand with Chris. ‘Whether you like it or not, Sue, your roles have changed. You need to take charge of the situation a little more. He needs that, and it’s better for both of you,’ she had told Sue. She was thinking about the doctor’s words as she looked across at her unhappy husband. ‘I love you, sweetie,’ she said. Chris returned her words with gratitude in his eyes. He was trying to say something. ‘It’s ok,’ Sue said. ‘We’ll be home soon.’ To be continued.