Sarah Penguin Posted December 12, 2019 Share Posted December 12, 2019 59 minutes ago, Sparkle Dust said: I’m taking in the explosion full force and leaking from all the joy!! Just pweeeease don’t actually stab Bev with a stake. She’s very naughty, but tries to be a good girl! Also, funny story but you two are actually the same physical age. But trust me, me her wacky immature mentality of a reckless teenager will land her at swaddled immobile infant status where she’ll get occasionally pokes with a stick. LOL. Just spark her with your penguin flippers if she tries to snort anything. She’s trying to sober up. (FYI. Sorry to anybody whom my character may offend. Also, swrry Mee for fooling around in your story, but to be fair (points) Sarah Penguin started it. But I’m willing to share in the punishment. LOL). (Wink). *sparks sparkle dust with her penguin flipper* Link to comment
Sparkle Dust Posted December 12, 2019 Share Posted December 12, 2019 24 minutes ago, Sarah Penguin said: *sparks sparkle dust with her penguin flipper* Ouch!! ? JK. ? Gee hee hee! Link to comment
Scarlet Posted December 12, 2019 Share Posted December 12, 2019 Ooooh this one was really good. Those pancakes sound amazing. My mouth was watering while reading. That night scene was so heartwarming. I got scared as soon as the mom mentioned the bathroom. I think what's most distressing is that it looks like a baby diaper. Like normally, they'd be able to like say they're medical but the sesame street characters probably make that excuse very unconvincing. Link to comment
YourFNF Posted December 12, 2019 Share Posted December 12, 2019 On 12/11/2019 at 12:37 AM, Mee said: A wave of heat washed over Emily, and Joyce’s heart just about nearly stopped. Game over. 2 Link to comment
Baby Toni38 Posted January 16, 2020 Share Posted January 16, 2020 Please continue with this story , you are a talented writer. Link to comment
Mee Posted March 13, 2020 Author Share Posted March 13, 2020 On 12/12/2019 at 12:22 AM, Scarlet said: Ooooh this one was really good. Those pancakes sound amazing. My mouth was watering while reading. That night scene was so heartwarming. I got scared as soon as the mom mentioned the bathroom. I think what's most distressing is that it looks like a baby diaper. Like normally, they'd be able to like say they're medical but the sesame street characters probably make that excuse very unconvincing. Mhm, nothing like good ol' cakes with bananas and syrup. Also, who doesn't love cuddling before you sleep? Also, yeah, designed diapers is a whole new can of worms. Not knowing how Mary works though, who knows how she's reacting to that part... On 12/12/2019 at 9:54 AM, YourFNF said: [Homer Screaming gif] Yes. On 1/16/2020 at 8:26 AM, Baby Toni38 said: Please continue with this story , you are a talented writer. Never stopped continuing it! Just been having it sit secondary to some IRL things at the moment. Link to comment
Mee Posted March 13, 2020 Author Share Posted March 13, 2020 28 - Game Over? “Let me go check your bathroom.” Mary walked into Joyce’s bathroom, already spotting the first thing she needed on the counter: handsoap. She turned on the faucet to get the cold water running, now looking for something to fill it with. “Well, paper cups aren’t going to work...” she murmured, turning to the closet, finding nothing more than a box of cup refills, towels, amenities and nothing else that was useful. Next came the cabinets. Nothing in the top two on either side of the mirror, so the bottom ones were next… Though, when she got on her knees, she saw something peculiar in the bin underneath the counter. It was white - well, mostly white. It looked a bit yellow and discolored… She could see fringes of light green around the edges, and it had a bit of a smell to it. It was large and took up the entire base of the trash bin. Then, the more Mary stared at it, the more suspicion she had. No...it couldn’t be. A mother of many years, disasters and disgusting situations, reaching into a trash bin was the least of her worries. The only thing to be afraid of was touching a used needle, and she hardly expected to find something like that here. When she did pull it out, there was a brief moment of surprise, mainly because Mary wasn’t fully expecting to find what a mere inkling of herself thought it might be. Holding it from the top, the crotch of the diaper unfolded with a weighty slump. A wet diaper. It was covered in designs. Barney? No...it was Sesame Street, if she remembered right… Apart from being used, she smiled a little. The diaper did look cute, in a nostalgic sort of way. Designs had really progressed since the days when she was an active mom… Regardless, the diaper was large. Larger than a normal-sized baby would wear. Was...was this Emily’s? Naturally, it was the first connection she would make. Then she sighed, realizing that this was probably another “secret” she wasn’t supposed to find. Well, there was no helping it now. The discovery hardly phased Mary, because after all, she wasn’t going to tell anyone. But, if Joyce did want to keep it a secret and handle it properly, the least she should know is that a diaper shouldn’t go in the trash bin. After all, the smell would fester otherwise. Standing back up, she carried the diaper with her into the next room, casual on all fronts. If she didn’t make a big deal out of it, hopefully her daughter would feel the same way… But she didn’t stop to consider what Emily might think. She didn’t consider Emily at all, namely because she didn’t expect to find her in the room to begin with. So, you might imagine why such a calm and collected woman up until thus far since her introduction, could be so more-than slightly surprised by the sight of her. “O...oh! E-Emily,” Mary spoke, the only one even remotely composed enough to make words. Did she not hear her come in over the noise of the sink? Joyce and Emily were caught in headlights, still staring at the glaring contraband hanging from Mary’s hand. She said her name from shock, but Emily could feel the accusatory blows wallop her over the head. Her stomach churned. “...Th-that’s, th...” Emily’s lips were moving but the words wouldn’t come out like she wanted. Her tongue didn’t want to listen either, scaring her into thinking she might choke on it. Sheer panic was written all over her face and the best she could do was look to Joyce for help. “Uh...uhm...” She was starting to feel like a wobbly foundation as her legs trembled. Joyce was just as frazzled as Emily. Was she supposed to be angry? Upset? Worried for Emily? Writhing with guilt, because she let her mother into the bathroom to begin with? Only seeing the diaper now made it obvious how it may have been seen in the bathroom, but does that mean it was her fault to not expect her mom up and grabbing a diaper out of the trash for who in the hell knows what reason?! When would the divine punishments end? For that small sum of seconds a suffocating silence filled the room like a potent stench, and thankfully that wasn’t coming from the diaper. Instead, all they could seem to wade through was the dense muck known as sheer awkwardness, uncertainty and embarrassment. “Joyce,” Mary said again, garnering both of their attention, “it’s okay, you don’t need to keep beating around the bush. I think I understand now.” “Y-you,” Joyce nervously gulped, “you do?” Please, let there be some minute, miniscule speck of hope left in this vast and deep pit of misfortune. Anything to let her mom miss the mark even in the slightest. Just having to stand here like this hit both Joyce and Emily somewhere sensitive, an extremely raw place that was being scorched under the beating sun. Mary’s last three words were too much for Emily. While Joyce may have been ousted for being the puppetmaster, it was a bittersweet complement to Mary holding a diaper that Emily wet last night. Maybe for Joyce in the shadows, but right now it was Emily’s reputation on the line, exposed to a person so crucial to the wellbeing of her relationship with Joyce, and that very crucial and very fragile piece of information scared her in a way that not even a horror movie could. She was living a nightmare right now and it was starting to show. “Awhh, Emily, honey,” Mary spoke to her with a sympathetic smile, setting the diaper down and walking over to her. Why was she? What was she doing? Was she going to ridicule her? Berate her? Slap her? Why wouldn’t she? After all, she’d just been discovered to be a grown woman that likes acting like a full-on baby for her girlfriend. How could she not find it weird? She’d never look at Emily the same way again. She’d tell Frank and then he’d harbor the same doubts and disgust. Everything she’d worked so hard to build with Joyce and her parents would be ruined. Everything was ruined. Nothing would be left…! She suddenly hiccuped, feeling the tears rolling down her hot cheeks. Why did she have to cry so much? It was one crying fit after another! Then, she braced herself for what Mary might do or say, but in all honest truth, she was ready to collapse at the mere drop of a single syllable. However, instead she was thrown off her mental balance once Mary wrapped her arms around her. Emily expected to be touched, but not as softly as this. She was planning for a hand to the face, not arms around her torso. “It’s okay, sweetheart,” Mary soothed, much to Joyce and Emily’s stunned surprise, rubbing her hand up and down her back. She leaned back to get a better look at Emily, daring enough to wipe away one of her tears. “There’s no need to be embarrassed, okay?” The soothing was strange and unexpected, but Emily was still desperate to throw her off the trail, off the scent. They had one golden rule for the parent’s visit, and it’d just been shattered. “P-please, it’s not what y-you think...! It’s just...or it’s…!” Why? Why couldn’t she think of anything? But, above all else, in the face of fetishism and kinkdom, why was Mary hugging Emily, of all things? “Emily, I know you’re upset that I found out, but I don’t want you to think that I’d ever use it against you. There’s no shame in what you can’t help, sweetie.” No shame in…? Joyce kept looking on, just as confused, and only as an afterthought did Emily slightly pan her eyes over to Joyce. “M-mom…?” Joyce started to speak, and it did get her attention, but it was abundantly clear who was in control of the situation. “Here, would you feel better if you got to be next to Joyce?” She loosened the hug and gestured to her daughter. Emily was still distraught, but right beside terror sat a growing confusion as to what Mary might know. This was bad, most certainly, but neither Emily nor Joyce knew how bad. Above all else, Mary’s reaction seemed...awfully tame. But aside from that, she did speak to Emily’s tendencies, because she did want to be with Joyce right now. More than anything. She gave her strength and shelter, and there was a raging storm right now. So, like a child following a mother’s gentle suggestions, Emily did leave Mary, not even caring how it looked when she wrapped her arms around Joyce, nuzzling her head into her chest as her legs finally gave out. She needed this, otherwise she might really lose her mind. Though, she continued to vent through tears. Emily was ruined, and Joyce felt just about the same, but even under all the stress and disaster she couldn’t seem to collapse with Emily right beside her. She wanted to soothe her, tell her everything was going to be alright, but she wasn’t prepared to outright lie to her. Her partner. Her little girl. Joyce hugged her back, but she still kept looking at her mom. She tried to think of something that might dissuade her, but she had that look in her eyes, a look of pure determination. Nothing Joyce would say could change her mind. It really was over. She knew. The trio sat on the bed, which was where Mary dropped a bombshell. “Emily, it’s okay if you need to wear diapers sometimes. I don’t think anything bad about you because of it.” Joyce looked down at Emily, feeling her grip grow tighter and her cheeks still crimson. She was definitely going to need a minute. Much more than a minute. Meanwhile, Joyce had to fully digest what her mother just said. “Wh-what?” Joyce asked. “Joyce, I had some ideas after everything I’ve seen, but you can’t tell me I’m wrong after what I saw in the bin,” she said, reaching over, thoughtfully rubbing Emily’s shoulder. Did...did she have the right? That stung. Meaning, her mom had been suspecting something was up since the start? She didn’t even fully understand what her mom thought she knew. All she could think of now was that her mom didn’t know the full truth, thankfully enough, but on the flipside was painting her perception of Emily into a dangerous corner. “Please...it’s not what you think…” Emily mumbled past the tears and hugs, “Emmy, sweetheart,” did...did she just use her pet name? “It’s okay, you don’t have to pretend now.” “Mom...what are you talking about?” “What? Joyce, could we stop with the secrets?” Mary didn’t lose that look in her eyes; determined to pull back the curtain that was only hanging by just a few more threads. “I didn’t think much at first, but I started to see the signs, you know.” “S-signs?” Emily whimpered. “Oh, please don’t be mad, Emily,” Mary spoke apologetically, sounding more compassionate to her than Joyce could ever imagine for herself. Maybe she really did have a soft spot for Emily… The biggest thing to notice though was how it wasn't a total outrage right now. No one was blowing up, so...Joyce couldn’t help but think there was something amiss. The way her mom talked, it wasn’t what Joyce would expect. It was almost as if she thought something else? Need? Necessity? She talked about the diapers like Emily had to wear them, which she didn’t. So, then…? “I guess what got me thinking was when we were first at the zoo. When Emily disappeared and you went after her, well, I thought it may have been something else when you said it was bathroom-related, Joyce, but...seeing everything now, I guess it really was.” Joyce had to take a mental pause, taking stock of the many possessions she held in this house. She had to think, did she own a gun? Because if she did, she had every intention to shoot herself in the foot with it, considering what her mom just said. What was supposed to be a small lie to cover their relationship troubles had done the exact opposite of helping them. It only made her mom more suspicious of Emily, and Joyce never stopped to consider once how that might affect the future. “The next time was when we got home last night. Joyce, Emily, I promise I wasn’t snooping, but when I was walking down the hall to our room, well...the bathroom door was open.” She could feel it. The knife sticking into her. It was her fault for not closing the door. She could have prevented this. All that paranoia she’d been trying to shake off, it had been a sign. A warning. “...” Emily had gone mute. Everything was slowly beginning to unravel, their poor facade they they used to hide away the truth for the sake of Joyce’s parents and themselves, but even then they couldn’t manage that! “It’s okay if you need help sometimes; I don’t mean to make fun of you at all, Emily,” and while she assured the girl, Emily felt herself growing smaller and smaller. Did they keep any rocks in here? She was just about ready to crawl under one and die. “I promise I didn’t look; I kept walking as soon as I saw.” Yet, nevertheless, she saw. Joyce standing in front of Emily while she used the toilet. Like she needed to be supervised. Holding a stuffed animal, no less. And if we were being technical, stuffed mochi, but this was hardly the time for technicalities. “Then I happened to wake up last night because of the thunder...” Joyce knew exactly what she was getting at, but Emily didn’t, which is why a whole new sinking feeling struck her. Emily may have been all out of sorts, but she wasn’t stupid. Mary wouldn’t need to speak any further and the message would have been crystal clear. Painfully clear. What Joyce thought of her mom, Emily was finally starting to understand… Yet, why did she have to learn in such a damaging way? All these secrets, every little moment of vulnerability Emily had shared with Joyce, cuddling with her and being so defenseless, even when at her worst… Emily had come to appreciate having someone sitting right behind her, looking thoughtfully over her shoulder. But beyond even that...an even larger shadow loomed over them both. With Joyce, having her eyes over your shoulder was too pleasant for words. It was a wonderful and warm atmosphere you could just lose yourself to. But with Mary...it felt more akin to a hunt than simple serenity. “Y-you...you saw?” Finally, Emily spoke, but hardly did she have the courage to tear her eyes away from Joyce’s body. She may have had the strength to speak, but even then her words were shotty at best. “I did,” Mary responded calmly, “but it’s okay, sweetheart, it’s nothing I never had to deal with before.” Well, that made everything better then, didn’t it? Fat chance. Sure, it may have been normal to Mary, a seasoned mother, but not to Emily, a 27-year old adult who just peed herself over a little thunder. Joyce looked at her mother, incredulous. She’d never had to deal with her in such a strange and compromising way, but with how things were going, should she expect any less? No one but her had the audacity and boldness to navigate through a conversation as difficult as this. A conversation she had no right in starting to begin with. “M-mom… What...” she already sighed, needing to take a breath. This was too much. “What...what are you even trying to say? What’s your point?” Joyce had buckled at first, but maybe knowing that it wasn’t a total gameover gave her some confidence. That, and even if she might be a poor excuse for it, she was what stood between Emily and her mother. “I want to say that you two don’t need to be walking on eggshells around me,” she paused. “Well, maybe be a bit more discreet around your dad, but apart from that, let’s call it a girl’s secret?” she smiled, whilst Joyce stared and Emily stopped her shaking just to process what she said. “E-Em...” Joyce looked to be fighting herself tooth and nail on the words she was going to use. Emily wasn’t going to like it, she was sure of it, but Joyce was willing to pay the consequences if it meant damage control. What her mom thought she knew about Emily was a notion that would never change. Unfortunately, once she makes up her mind it’s hard to reverse. In other words, the only way things could progress were if her mom found out it wasn’t some medical condition and in fact something much more deliberate… This was all bad, but the razor-thin silver lining was her mom at least taking it in a supportive light. If she knew the diapers were just for fun… “Emily’s condition...” she held her tongue, almost waiting for Emily to react. Thankfully she didn’t, because it was already taking plenty enough energy just to get this half-baked facade out of her mouth. She couldn’t remember the last time she struggled with lying so much. How long had she been doing business? Well, then again, she never lied per se, but instead...employed all the right rhetoric… Condition? Emily had pulled her face out of Joyce’s torso, daring enough to give a gradual turn towards Mary. She looked sympathetic, but it unfortunately only added to Emily’s confusion, anger and regret. It was like putting a fire out that you started, but expecting credit for it. There’s no merit in solving the problems you caused. But anyways, what was Joyce even saying? Was she actually going along with it? Her image had already plummeted, and Mary would probably never dissociate the girl from diapers. The world around them was falling apart and their ship was sinking and all Emily could do was cling onto Joyce for dear life, but now even that was starting to seem doubtful. “Her...condition is something private, Mom.” How to fix this was beyond her, but she could at least salvage what was left; dig a foothold before things slipped too far. “And it will stay private,” Mary agreed with a small smile. Joyce knew that look. It was the personal respect she held for herself whenever her deductive work felt validated. It was like telling herself what a good job she’d done solving this mystery… Joyce going along with this only fed into her delusion. “I won’t tell a soul.” Joyce was ready to fire back that her knowing made it not private, but she hesitated, feeling she held just as much blame as her mother… All she did was follow the crumb trail and Joyce was the one who made it. “I...I think it would be best if we dropped the topic here. I don’t think anyone here is comfortable talking about it, and I know for a fact that Emily doesn’t want to.” Please. Please listen. “I understand,” Mary nodded, though still looking happy behind her compassionate face. Joyce knew exactly why and she was trying not to boil over. This happened all the time. Even if you try to shut her out after she breaks the door down, it won’t matter much to her. After all, she got to know what was behind it. It wasn’t a secret to her anymore and she became that much more all-knowing. “I’ll be back. I, uhm, need a second with Emily,” she helped the girl onto her feet and they stood up. Her eyes looked a little puffy from the tears, and she couldn’t bear to look Mary in the eye. “Oh! Well, if you need the bathroom...” she spoke in a lowered voice, as if there were other people trying to sniff out this secret, “You can use the one in here.” It took a second, but Joyce finally realized what her mom was insinuating. This just looked like another ‘bathroom break’ to her. “I’ll be back,” Joyce said again, speaking much more plainly, coming off a bit cold. There was no doubt Joyce was expecting more questions from her, and seeing as she was part to blame for this mess, she’d rather that she was the one having to face them and not Emily. She didn’t deserve the shame, prying or overbearing nature of her mother. Her mom did have her good qualities, but this was a time when none of them seemed to come through. She led Emily by the hand to the hallway bathroom then made sure that it was closed this time. Then she locked it out of paranoia. Emily looked distraught. She was distraught. They were away from Mary, but she felt no less exposed. She knew Joyce had her reasons, but she couldn’t begin to fathom what those reasons might be. Why did she go along with something like that? “Why did you say I have a c-condition?” She nearly started tearing up again, settling for just a troubled hiccup. “First...is it okay if I hug you?” Joyce sounded cautious, mainly because she didn’t feel like she had the right to comfort Emily anymore. She was supposed to only bring her good feelings and experiences, but instead she brought total disaster. Her mom. Emily quite flung herself at Joyce wrapping her arms around her. Even if there was some animosity felt for Joyce, needing an emotional crutch far-trumped playing the blame game. “I might be upset,” Emily mumbled into her shirt, “but I’m gonna be even sadder if you start feeling awkward around me.” The fabrics to her shirt stretched a little bit tighter. “I’m scared that your mom found stuff out, but I also don’t understand why she said all that stuff… Why did you say that stuff?” For so many unexpected twists and turns, she was at a loss. Not even Joyce matched her mental playbook. “Y...yeah,” she hugged Emily back, tighter. “I...really wasn’t expecting a reaction like that. What I said was because I thought I could stop it from getting any worse… I think she really does believe you have a, uhm, weakened bladder, or something...” Hearing Joyce say it had her feeling hot again, and not in a good way. “Your mom must think I’m a total freak,” Emily hiccupped, squeezing her hands tighter. Self-loathing as she was, there was also aggravation, too. “But why did she have to snoop around so much? I get it that there were signs, but...b-but...” She felt terrible for thinking poorly of Joyce’s mom, but she had to be justified at least somewhat, right? “Emily,” Joyce pressed her forehead, “you’re not a freak. The only thing that’s freaky about you is your sleeping habits.” She let it sit for a moment, hoping to stir something even close to a smile. It didn’t, but hopefully it did something. “More importantly, it feels good to know someone else finally understands how much I can hate my mom at times...” “But I don’t--!” “Emily,” her hands ran down her partner’s shoulders. “It’s okay to be mad at my mom. I know I am right now... Or my dad,” she added as an afterthought, “but I can’t imagine he’d ever pull a stunt like this… Just because they’re my family doesn’t mean they get a free pass for being a crappy person. You’re allowed to feel how you want to, but if you feel like being the compassionate one, I’ll just be angry for us both.” “Can...can we take any of this back?” Emily shakily spoke. The gravity was starting to set in again. Her eyes were starting to water again. “W-what’s gonna happen, Joyce?” She didn’t know what was going to. “Nothing bad is going to happen, don’t worry,” she kissed her as assurance, both for Emily and herself. “I know it sounds bad, what I’m going to say, but please hear me out… Maybe in a way, it’s a good thing she found out...” Yeah, it definitely sounded bad to Emily. “Wh-what?” “As you can see, my mom snoops a lot,” she tried to smile a little, but it didn’t do much for the mood. If she couldn’t even convince Emily, there was little reason to think why it might work on herself. “But for our sake, if I can say anything to make you feel better, I’ve never known her to let a secret get out… She definitely likes to know things, but she doesn’t let that kind of information spread. I’m sorry for letting this happen, Emily. I really did betray you...” “Stop blaming yourself,” Emily spoke clearly, finally hitting a cue she recognized. “We’re a team,” she sniffled, “so we both messed up together.” Even if, objectively speaking, this hit Emily harder than it did Joyce. “A lot of those things she mentioned that she saw was stuff I’m responsible for… Like at the zoo, I was the one who ran off, and despite that you tried to cover for me. It’s not your fault if an excuse you had to make for me doesn’t work.” “Thank you,” Joyce could feel herself breathe a little. There’s a lot she can handle, but in coming to be together with Emily, she’d learned that just about the one soft spot she really had was Emily. On all other fronts she can withstand almost anything, but if the one person she loved the most, the person she kept so safely tucked away inside her armor and right next to her beating heart were to lash out, it would be beyond painful. “But,” she hated ‘buts’, particularly only a fan of Emily’s that was spelled with two t’s, “I wanted a second alone with you because my mom is going to ask questions. She’ll say she’ll drop it, but whenever we’re alone I’m sure she’s going to want to ask things. I’ll do my absolute best to make sure you never have to deal with that, but I can’t say the same for myself.” “...So are we really going with this?” Emily laced her fingers awkwardly. “Is she going to really think I sometimes have to wear...diapers?” Why did she have to look like that? Words were one thing, but tone, expression, body language and atmosphere told a completely different story. Even if she spoke with only reluctance, everything about this felt so terribly wrong. Was she putting up a front for Joyce? Just so she didn’t feel even worse about herself? “I...I think we have to. Because, after all, I think this might be better than her knowing the full truth...” Solemnly, Emily nodded. That was true. “So, I’m looking for your permission,” Joyce took Emily’s hands into hers. “If she asks me questions, is it okay if I ad-lib things? I don’t expect it to affect you, but I want permission to speak on your behalf. About your...condition,” she said the last part with air quotes. “...mhm...” meekly, she nodded. “Please,” Joyce came to be at eye-level with her, “what can I do to make you smile?” It was a foolish question. Emily had said Joyce was the one who understood her the most, so why couldn’t Joyce do something as simple as making her happy? Maybe she couldn’t because she knew the truth, something her own pride was keeping her from seeing. Emily exhaled a little, fading into a weak smile. “I don’t suppose you know how to turn back time?” Joyce pulled her closer, murmuring, “I’m so sorry...” There would be a great deal of things to talk about after all this was over. If their relationship survived for that long… “It’s okay...” really, it wasn’t, but to say anything right now meant Joyce would hog all the guilt to herself, and the idea of that made Emily ache more than the thought of her own predicament. “All I can really hope for though is that your mom doesn’t think too badly of me...” “It might sound strange, but I don’t really think that was her reaction…” Not even disgust, really, considering the woman could so nonchalantly carry a used adult diaper designed for kids like it was her handbag. “I can’t even begin to fathom what really goes on in that woman’s head, but if she’s bold enough to do what she did back there, she definitely doesn’t hold anything against you.” Words didn’t speak so loudly as actions did, hence why Emily wasn’t feeling much more optimistic. And if it weren’t bad enough, there was something else she didn’t consider, now knowing the things Mary had seen. “W...wait. If your mom saw what happened last night, then did she see my...” her gaze started to drift to the floor, “...Pip?” Joyce was at a loss. Blow after blow seemed to strike Emily, and all she could do was watch. But she couldn’t lie to her. If it meant preserving a surprise or the excitement, then maybe a white lie went a long way, but a lie like this would be crude and damaging. For all the fuck-ups Joyce had caused this visit, she owed it to Emily to be as transparent as possible, even if it made things worse. “Yes, she did...” even Joyce hesitated, seeing Emily’s expression worsen just a little more. “But...she already knew about it...” “What?” That perked Emily’s look, straight into Joyce’s eyes. It was a look of confusion and Joyce could feel herself becoming physically ill. “How? How did she know? Did you tell her?” Even if she didn’t mean it, her words sounded accusatory and they struck Joyce like bullets. She didn’t tell her, but in trying not to she pretty much did. “N-no! I...when, when they first came into the house and you went back to the room, my mom saw Pip on the couch… I tried to say it was mine,” yeah, tried with a lowercase ‘t’. “But...I wasn’t so great at convincing her.” Emily didn’t give much of a response, adding to the deafening atmosphere that tortured Joyce. It was starting to feel so eerily similar to her days of isolation. Her days without Emily, shaking her heart as it did the tears in her eyes. “You know, as bad as Jack was...I can’t remember going through this much when I met his parents...” Joyce creased her brows, ridden with guilt. Why wouldn’t she be regretting their relationship by now? She was looking down so low she could barely even see Emily’s feet, already blurred by her tears. As if the atmosphere couldn’t have been any worse, a meek sigh from Emily’s passing breath soured things just a little more. Even the smallest form of rejection from her was more than Joyce could handle. “Fine, I admit it,” and then, Joyce felt something lean into her. “I...I’m not happy with your mom right now… Actually, no, I am mad at her.” Even if Joyce was busy looking at the floor, with Emily hugging her, looking right up, it was impossible for their eyes not to meet. “Not you. So don’t cry, okay?” The mood had changed on a dime, when of all people having to deal with the most stress, it was Emily shining a toothy smile up at Joyce. “You promise you’re not mad at me…? Y-you have every right to be, though?” “Even if I do,” Emily paused to sniff away her own teary residue, “I can’t expect you to be perfect at handling everything, even if you tell me to butt out~...” she looked at her suspiciously, funnily enough making Joyce look flustered. “And about Pip -- I can’t really get so worked up over that, considering she would’ve found out last night if not earlier… Even still, what’s finding out I have a stuffed toy if she already thinks I have to wear...you know...” “I...” She told herself she could handle this, but whenever Emily confronted her, none of that bravado, calculated thought, or composure ever seemed to exist. “I’m sorr--” but before she could finish her somber resolve, Emily pushed a finger against her lips. “New rule, as decreed by the Emily Magistrate,” she spoke in a wonderfully exaggerated posh manner, “that under any circumstances is Joyce to apologize to me, it shall be one kiss deducted from the debt which I owe--no, ten kisses!” Then her serious look transitioned into something a bit more goofy. “Or something, like that?” Joyce then had a look of pure adoration for her. “Thank you. I promise I’m going to do better.” “At least for something like this, I don’t want you to promise me anything.” “Why not?” “Because then you’ll start holding yourself to a standard, which is fine, I think, but I don’t wanna ever have to feel critical about you. I never will, so if you’re gonna set the bar for yourself, don’t tell me about it. Just knowing you want to be better is enough for me.” “Did...did Michael tell you that?” Emily scoffed. “Rude! I can come up with cool things to say on my own too, you know?” Of course, she can’t imagine it’d be articulated in a very wisdom-like way… She stared at the perplexing girl for a little bit longer, until finally the tears had subsided and she laughed a little. “Thank you. You’ve taught me another important lesson.” “Well, I’ve definitely learned a lot about myself...and relationships in general, since being with you...” she smushed her thumbs together, “I’ve done a lot of things I’d never imagine myself doing. And to think, finding out I’m attracted to more than just men is only the vanilla tip to a very, uhm, metro...politan iceberg. Yeah, like that.” Joyce seemed on-board with her words, up until the tail end, reasoning why her brow was cocked. “W-well, they can’t always be cool...” Emily mumbled under her own embarrassed breath. The horrible stench from earlier had dissipated and all that was left was a refreshing gust blowing through Joyce’s lungs and heart. Laughing some more, she squeezed Emily in a brief hug. Though, if only paradise could continue on forever. There was a gentle knock on the locked door. “Joyce? Emily?” They were in high spirits, but even Mary was enough to ground them. Emily could see the look on Joyce’s face transition to agitation, but thankfully it was directed rather than self-loathing. And really, even in Emily’s perspective this was getting to be too much… Standing up, Joyce walked over to the door, leaning close beside it. “Yes?” she answered back. “I just wanted to make sure everything was...well…’okay’. It’s been a little bit...” “Yes, everything is fine. We’ll be out soon.” Joyce looked about ready to strangle something. “Alright then. If, uhm...” it was the beginning of a gesture Joyce had no intention in humoring. “It’s alright. We’ll be out soon.” Emily, meanwhile, remained where she was, as confused as ever by her partner’s mother. Internally, Emily wondered why she could feel such strongly opposing emotions at the same time? Sympathy and Anger, somehow co-existing by living on their side of the fence. She meant well, but that doesn’t excuse all the doors she kicks down to achieve it. “She really thinks I have bladder issues...” she lowly spoke and wallowed in disbelief. They’d just shared a few good moments, but reality was catching up fast. Even now, to Mary, being in here probably looked like another one of those “moments” to her. “But, I guess it could be worse...” Yet even still, how was she supposed to face her? There was still that terrible feeling of vulnerability… “Don’t worry, I’ll talk to her,” Joyce comforted, walking back from the door. “Just a little longer then she’ll be out of our hair.” She would’ve said ‘they’, but that would be rude to her dad. Unlike his wife, Frank wasn’t bad company. “I can’t imagine you even want to look at my mom now,” Joyce certainly didn’t. “So, how about I tackle her while you go hang out with my dad?” “Alright,” Emily shrugged. Nothing against Frank, truly, but interacting with people seemed so stressful right now. She’d just been script-casted as the pants-pisser and it was already taking a lot not to collapse over that. Funny, considering peeing a diaper was once enough to put her to tears. Despite the recent tears, maybe she really was taking this in stride. That, or it was shock. She wasn’t exactly eager about getting back on her feet, walking to the door. Yes, their secret wasn’t out, but something dangerously close to it was. Play their cards wrong, it’d stand to be even worse than it already was right now. “Do you feel okay?” Joyce asked. Joyce sure wasn’t, and she didn’t expect Emily to be much different, yet she still felt compelled to check. “No, but I’ll be better once this is all over… You?” “I couldn’t put it any better than you already have.” “...It just doesn’t feel real… We’ve been...exposed, in a way, but maybe we’re not totally panicking because it’s sort of like limbo...” And with an even greater sigh, by the touch of Emily’s finger the toilet erupted with a swirling and plummeting flush. Joyce, though, looked at her questioningly for a second, considering neither of them actually “used” the bathroom. “Gotta make it believable, I guess.” Emily shrugged. “I hate to say it, but that’s honestly not a bad idea...” The pair stepped back into the hall, a bit cautious as to what might jump out at them, but thankfully there was no surprise ambush waiting. “I’ll go...finish up with my mom, then how about we find some way to get out of the house? Take our minds off of this?” Emily agreed. This house was starting to feel more suffocating by the second. Every footprint she left behind felt incriminating somehow. If they didn’t think they were on thin ice before, they sure as hell were now. Emily walked to the right, back into the living room whereas Joyce took the left, into the dragon’s den. And there she was, Ground Zero herself sitting on the bed, waiting for someone to come back. That someone was Joyce. “Is Emily alright?” Mary asked, and to her credit, she did sound concerned. Her mother wasn’t a monster by intention, which made dealing with her so much harder. It was like punishing a puppy that didn’t know any better. But only puppies got a free pass; not grown dogs. “No, she isn’t, but hopefully some time will help. You really crossed a line, mom.” “Is...is she mad at me?” It was almost amazing how this hit her only in retrospect. “You’d need to ask her, but if I were in her shoes, I know I’d be. I get you were trying to help, mom, but don’t you understand how embarrassing it can be to have someone find out your deepest secret?” “I wasn’t planning to see her when I pulled her diaper out of the bath--” “You shouldn’t have been doing that to begin with,” Joyce sharply cut her off. “What were you even thinking?” There was a whole secondary argument to her even finding the diaper to begin with, but that fell short on account of Joyce’s own fault and her shortened time to argue with her mother. “Since we were cleaning up, when I saw the diaper I thought I could help show you how to get rid of those properly. You can’t let them sit in an open bin or else it’s going to--” “Smell. Yes, I know. It was only temporary. Can we go back to cleaning the carpet now?” Mary stood up and brought them over to Joyce’s bedside where a sponge and bucket of foamy water sat. “It’s a couple things mixed with warm, soapy water. Just use the sponge to wet the carpet a bit and it’ll start to come out.” Despite Mary explaining it, she looked as if she were going to do the actual cleaning herself, however Joyce was simply faster. She was on her knees and grabbed the sponge, soaking it and touching the floor without hesitation. “...So where do you throw them away normally?” “In the trash.” It was a less than enthusiastic response. “...Well, which bin do you use? If it’s not that bathroom one is it the other one? I don’t think that’s a good idea either, since it’s still open...” How badly Joyce wanted to tell her off. She knew how to clean up. She knew how to handle a used diaper. But she couldn’t be so upfront, otherwise it’d make things worse. Her fuse was already short, so she’d do her best not to light it. “I use the kitchen garbage. It’s closed and contained so there’s no smell.” Did that satisfy her? She continued to scrub. By now the small stain from earlier was overshadowed by the mass of wet carpet. Now with calmer emotions, she was really starting to hope this home remedy did work… “Do you always?” “...Yes?” Why wouldn’t she? “Well, I guess that should be fine, but have you had any guests over since Emily’s been here? What happens if someone sees it in the trash?” Every response from Joyce was slow and methodical, simply because she couldn’t prevent another outburst otherwise. Her mom was trying to be helpful, but damn if it wasn’t annoying to have hole after hole be poked into simple lies that meant nothing to begin with! “W-well...” she sighed, thinking of no easy answer other than resigning themselves to being recluse. “It hasn’t happened, so we’re not worried about it.” “...But what if it did?” Joyce plunged the sponge into the bucket with a bit more force. “How about I take over?” Mary was on her knees, gently taking the sponge from Joyce. With a small huff, she grabbed a towel, rubbing her hands. Might as well nip it in the bud… “What are you trying to suggest, Mom?” “All I’m saying is you might want to consider getting a separate trash bin for Emily’s, you know...” “Mom… Emily’s...condition isn't as bad as you think. She doesn’t have to wear them often...” “Really? How often does she wear them?” It wasn’t accusatory, but rather concerningly curious. Yeah, she definitely didn’t think badly of Emily. She was trying too hard than someone who didn’t care would. The worst was that Joyce was right on the money. Already she’d need to take some of those “creative liberties” Emily allowed her. “...At the most, t-...two times a week?” “Only two?” Only? Had she honestly been expecting more? “Y-yes. Only that much...” “So is it stress that affects her then?” More than anything Joyce wanted to anticipate her questions, so she could come up with better answers, but she was too frazzled to expect anything. She was working overtime just to keep up with her mother’s pace. If she’d been cleaning at the same time, she didn’t know what might’ve slipped from her mouth... “Stress? What? What do you mean?” “It’s not much different from when you were kids, Joyce. Sometimes things can be a little too exciting or stressful. It can affect the body more than we think, so if Emily already has a medical condition, she might be more susceptible to it.” While Joyce ran a medical company, she wasn’t exactly the all-knowing figure of all medical knowledge, especially her girlfriend’s made-up bladder troubles. “Are you saying you think you and Dad might be affecting her?” Her mom was certainly a stressor, considering Joyce’d be like a fountain if she had a “condition” too. “Meeting someone’s parents for the first time can be exciting...and a bit stressful. After all these bathroom trips, it just seemed a little more than once or twice a week, I suppose.” “W-well, maybe you have been stressing her out a bit...” Nothing like using her mom’s own medicine against her. “Besides, all those trips were just...” yes, extreme liberties were being taken, “just making sure she...made it on time.” A hand touched Joyce’s knee. “You’re a very good person, you know? A lot of people wouldn’t be able to get past that in a relationship.” Ugh, if only she knew. The way she spun her tale, it sounded as if Joyce were doing Emily a favor. When in reality, the opposite couldn’t have been any more true. That, and it was anything but a nuisance if it had been true. “R-right...” Joyce mumbled. “So does she change her own diapers?” Out of the pan and into the fire. “What? What are you--? N-no, she doesn-- I mea--” damnit, damnit! Why couldn’t she keep her tongue in line?! “Yes, she does!” “I’m sure she can, Joyce,” Mary chuckled, “she’s in her late twenties, so I can imagine she has the practice. But you know there’s no shame in having someone else help too, right? I imagine it’s a lot easier when someone else does the job for her.” Joyce looked down, crestfallen. She said something again she wasn’t supposed to… “Honey, I promise, I’d never use something like that against her, or you. It might sound a little strange, but it’s something unique that you two can share?” From Joyce’s mouth, it might sound a little more digestible, but hearing it from her mom, an outsider, now it did feel a little weird. Could they stop talking about this now? Why did she need to know so much? “...Can I ask you a personal question?” Oh? Did nothing before this count as personal? It truly must be a wonderland in this woman’s head… “What?” “Be honest,” Mary chuckled a little, “how did changing her for the first time go?” “M-mom!” So uh, Merry Christmas and happy new year! I know I'm a couple days late, so... Better late than never? This has been a particularly difficult chapter to write, largely because of life and the content is difficult to do justice. Even now I'm not sure if it's perfect because I've only been using myself as a sounding board. Now it's your turn! Please, as always, let me know what you thought and if there's anything that seems a bit off, let me know! Also, just celebrated my birthday a couple days ago, but Corona has unfortunately affected that in a couple ways. My Spring Break is longer, but all my college courses are now turning to online. Lots of stress; plans have been canceled. Just wanna relax! Hope everyone out there is doing alright, and double hope the next chapter won't take so long! PS: Highlight the chapter title at the top of this post for a small Easter egg 18 2 Link to comment
Scarlet Posted March 13, 2020 Share Posted March 13, 2020 This was a really good chapter. I was just as frustrated as them with Mary. Like I get it you care a lot and thankfully dont think anything negative about it. But please , woman. Take a hint and lay off the topic for a bit at least. It's late at night, just clean the carpet and go to sleep. I am surprised she hasn't asked about the designs yet though. As I'm pretty sure, she has seen adult diapers in stores sometimes. And even if she hadn't, I'm pretty sure it's kinda inherently apparent that adult diapers wouldn't normally have Sesame street designs on them. And oh boy, will Joyce have to grow quite the silver tongue to explain that one. Link to comment
kerry Posted March 13, 2020 Share Posted March 13, 2020 My very favorite current story is back! And with yet another wonderful chapter! Mary is indeed a bit overbearing, but I think she means well. She just doesn't seem to get the signals that she's prying into terribly personal territory (as evidenced by her asking about asking a personal question. But it does seem that Joyce and Emily can/will weather this. Now...what is the Easter egg? Nothing is revealed to me when I highlight the title. ? Link to comment
YourFNF Posted March 14, 2020 Share Posted March 14, 2020 20 hours ago, kerry said: My very favorite current story is back! And with yet another wonderful chapter! Mary is indeed a bit overbearing, but I think she means well. She just doesn't seem to get the signals that she's prying into terribly personal territory (as evidenced by her asking about asking a personal question. But it does seem that Joyce and Emily can/will weather this. Now...what is the Easter egg? Nothing is revealed to me when I highlight the title. ? It shows a question mark Just so many feels from this one.... I get the well entitioned but overbearing parents only mine were all about the judgement. ...... Also Trip got me a small plush and I named them Pip ?? Link to comment
kerry Posted March 14, 2020 Share Posted March 14, 2020 3 hours ago, YourFNF said: It shows a question mark Just so many feels from this one.... I get the well entitioned but overbearing parents only mine were all about the judgement. ...... Also Trip got me a small plush and I named them Pip ?? Yeah, I found it late yesterday. ? And...yay Trip! Link to comment
NyanAnne Posted April 15, 2020 Share Posted April 15, 2020 Can we just throw her mom out of the apartment yet Everytime I just think I want to strangle you woman Link to comment
Sarah Penguin Posted April 20, 2020 Share Posted April 20, 2020 Enjoyed this update *nodsnods* :) Link to comment
Baby Toni38 Posted May 17, 2020 Share Posted May 17, 2020 Enjoy the updates and looking forward to the next installment Link to comment
Neversaynopanda Posted July 1, 2020 Share Posted July 1, 2020 I hope things habe settled in your life somewhat. I wait with bated breath foe the next instalment of this story. Cheers Panda Link to comment
Neversaynopanda Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 I do devoutly hope that this story is not dead, not normally my cup of tea but this story would not let me go. Hoping your life is going well!! Cheers Panda Link to comment
Bel George Posted September 4, 2020 Share Posted September 4, 2020 I just read this story, for the second time. It is a wonderful story and I would really love it if it would be continued. Emily has'nt showed her outfit to Amy yet. She hasn't used all of the outfits, and I'm curious if she will be happy with the pyjamas with the zipper in the back. Please continue. Link to comment
ruby03 Posted September 6, 2020 Share Posted September 6, 2020 I know this is an older one, but it's one of my all time favorites so far, and I'm so eager to see more of their story ! Link to comment
Mee Posted September 30, 2020 Author Share Posted September 30, 2020 On 3/13/2020 at 3:07 AM, Scarlet said: This was a really good chapter. I was just as frustrated as them with Mary. Like I get it you care a lot and thankfully dont think anything negative about it. But please , woman. Take a hint and lay off the topic for a bit at least. It's late at night, just clean the carpet and go to sleep. I am surprised she hasn't asked about the designs yet though. As I'm pretty sure, she has seen adult diapers in stores sometimes. And even if she hadn't, I'm pretty sure it's kinda inherently apparent that adult diapers wouldn't normally have Sesame street designs on them. And oh boy, will Joyce have to grow quite the silver tongue to explain that one. Hey! Late reply, but...better late than never? Mary at her best! And worst? I might play with Mary's character a little bit more; it's fun having the overbearing archetype, though I want to keep it grounded, somewhat. As for how the diapers look, yeah, that's definitely a worthwhile comment. Who knows though, even if it's not explicitly put to paper, these characters still have thoughts going through their head...! On 3/13/2020 at 10:48 AM, Hopsalot said: I’m so glad to see another chapter! I’ve been checking a couple different forums just to see if it’s been updated. I imagined it would be pretty hard to follow chapter 27 up with how complicated all the relationships and emotions have become. So many different ways for this to go. It’s hard to write something that feels emotionally accurate. I myself really love happy endings and I can’t really write long stories, so I would not have the patience to do all the sad emotions and fragile relationships needed for this. But It makes it Feel more realistic. Anyway I can’t wait for another chapter and most importantly, Happy birthday??? Hm. I apologize that I'm not replying directly with a new chapter! Also, thanks for the happy birthday! Granted, I think I'm acknowledging it at right about the midpoint between my last birthday and my next, LOL. Hopefully next year goes better! Thanks for commenting, and I hope to find some more time to post! On 3/13/2020 at 3:30 PM, kerry said: My very favorite current story is back! And with yet another wonderful chapter! Mary is indeed a bit overbearing, but I think she means well. She just doesn't seem to get the signals that she's prying into terribly personal territory (as evidenced by her asking about asking a personal question. But it does seem that Joyce and Emily can/will weather this. Now...what is the Easter egg? Nothing is revealed to me when I highlight the title. ? ...And the story is gone again. And...it's back? Uhm, I think people elaborated on the easter egg in the comments, but truthfully I was only thinking in terms of dark mode, I think. I'm a bit too all over the place right now to confirm it, but at least on one website, there wasn't really an easter egg depending on your website theme. Wasn't thinking that far ahead... On 3/14/2020 at 12:15 PM, YourFNF said: It shows a question mark Just so many feels from this one.... I get the well entitioned but overbearing parents only mine were all about the judgement. ...... Also Trip got me a small plush and I named them Pip What? Another Pip? Two? Impossible! Haha, jokes aside, it's cool to hear that my characters are cherished, even some less animate than others! I feel bad though, it's been so long since I've seen this comment, the image expired for me and I can't remember what the plush was! Thank you for commenting! On 4/15/2020 at 11:29 AM, NyanAnne said: Can we just throw her mom out of the apartment yet Everytime I just think I want to strangle you woman Whoa, whoa, easy there now. Peaceful negotiations first. Violence after they break down! On 8/26/2020 at 12:08 AM, Neversaynopanda said: I do devoutly hope that this story is not dead, not normally my cup of tea but this story would not let me go. Hoping your life is going well!! Cheers Panda Hey! Not dead, just unfortunately busy. Although I may be gone for periods of time, I do stand by my little chart in my bio. Unless I update a story to be on hold or discontinued, I intend to keep writing for it. Haven't stopped thinking about Sheltered, although I haven't been writing for it much lately. Link to comment
Mee Posted September 30, 2020 Author Share Posted September 30, 2020 29 - Closing Remarks “What happened? Get lost on the way?” Frank joked to Emily while he quartered off another piece of pancake. “Hit a pothole...” Emily slumped onto a stool by the island. Frank’s association with Mary was enough to make him out as an imaginary proxy, as if she were being ogled by the woman herself right now. The thought itself was enough to make her shiver. “Did you forget to change shirts, too?” More lighthearted fun, but facts were facts. Unless she had a duplicate shirt with the same syrup stain in the same spot, bigger fish had taken her attention. “Yeah, guess I did,” her voice danced, yet turned like gears. “I sorta got wrapped up with Joyce in something...” Frank nodded along, his eyes closed as if the reality were too grave to witness. “The way Mary moves like a tornado, half the time I feel like she’s knocking thing after thing outta my own head,” he laughed, then quickly composed himself. “Don’t tell her I said that, though...” Emily did smirk then. “Pinky promise.” Had she been drinking a beer, there’d have been a toast to that. “Joyce doesn’t fall too far from the tree,” he sipped from his glass, “she can be about just as driven as her mom.” Maybe, but at least Joyce knows where the brakes are… Still, the Summers family was certainly coming off more as a matriarchy than anything else. Very, very strong-willed women… “Is her whole side of the family like that?” For her sake, hopefully Mary’s type was a rare breed. “Well…Christmas and Thanksgiving definitely get a little hectic, but it’s always lively?” Out of sight, Emily practically shuddered. Frank was too nice for his own good, especially when it came to dishing out the details that mattered. Then again, trying to be indirect was just about the same as being totally direct, just with a little more class. “How big are your get-togethers?” “Thanksgiving can get a bit big, but Christmas definitely takes the cake,” he scratched his chin. “Let’s see...there’s me, Mary, our son John, Hannah, then we have Mary’s two sisters Carol and Martha along with their husbands. Carol has a girl and a boy, Martha has a son. Who else...” he tapped his finger. “Sometimes we have more, but those’re the regulars… Oh! Right,” he heartily dropped his open palm on the table with a laugh, “I forgot about my own brother, Mark! He and his wife Laura pop around for at least a second.” Meanwhile, Emily had been counting one finger after the next, until there were more people than fingers, and she didn’t plan on moving to the toes. “Fifteen, I think,” Frank answered her thoughts for her, realizing he’d been watching her simple arithmetic. “Fifteen? Really?” For a split-second, all those fifteen faces were that of Mary’s. Quickly she shook her head, trying to physically knock the traumatizing thought out of her. “I thought it was a little less...” Maybe she counted wrong? “Well, let’s see...” Frank blew some wind from his mouth. “Thirteen of us...then that leaves you and Joyce, so plus two. Fifteen sounds right?” “Oh,” Emily looked a little dumbfounded for a second, then laughed. “Guess I forgot to count us.” “Well, of course Joyce would come, but you know you’re more than welcome too, right? Don’t worry about us though, we won’t be offended if you can’t come. I’ll only cry a little,” already he went to wipe one of his eyes. “Stop, stop! I haven’t said no yet!” Emily laughed. “I take it Mary would really want me to go?” The mere mention of her name was a sore spot for conversation, but if Emily didn’t mention it, she figured Frank sure would. “Oh,” he jokingly scoffed, “you and Joyce have it easy, you know that? You two get to have her for the weekend, but I live with her, ya know?” Emily snickered. That was one of the best things about Frank. He was self-aware and could take and make jokes about it. He’d never insult his wife, obviously, but he wasn’t scared to joke about her less-than-perfect qualities. “Don’t worry about Mary. Whether you choose to go or not, I’m still never gonna hear the end of it until the actual day comes,” he chuckled. “Maybe even a few days after!” They shared a few more laughs until the city streets below were louder than themselves. Who’d have thought Emily would be bonding with Frank over Mary? “But to set the record straight,” he paused to finish his last bite of breakfast. “Mary does mean well; she’s been very excited to meet you. Though, she’s always been known to...come off a bit strong. So if you do ever get upset with her, no one’s gonna be too hard on ya. I’ll try my best to keep her on a leash.” A leash was definitely what she needed. Frank would have been a godsend just a little bit ago… Hopefully Mary wasn’t a liar though. The thought of facing her was already scary, so having to think what it would be like facing Frank after Mary told him anything was terrifying. Frank stood up to wash his plate in the sink, toweling off his hands. Leaning his head out into the hallway, he looked back at Emily. “Speaking of tornadoes, where are the other two?” “Uh...still cleaning, I think.” Half-true. Cleaning and probably chatting; a subject-matter that made Emily feel small and embarrassed, and Joyce probably downright uncomfortable. “Hmm. Well, how about we have them get a move on?” Before Emily could answer, he was already walking ahead. Emily’s heart skipped a beat. Where was he going? He wasn’t going to the room, was he? He couldn’t! The scarring image flashed in her head, all in its swollen and infantile splendor. Under no circumstances could Frank enter that room. If he saw, then for sure he’d--! “Joyce? Mary?” Frank stopped short halfway down the hall, calling to Joyce’s room. “You two kids ready to get the day started?” A couple feet behind him was Emily, frozen mid-step. The door opened in response and it was Joyce’s head that stuck itself out. “Huh? Oh, sorry, Dad. Mom was showing me one of her ‘home remedies’. We just finished up now.” She opened the door some more to show her full figure in the frame. Stepping to the side Mary came out next. “Did you just finish your breakfast now?” Mary asked as she walked by. In her hand hung a filled black plastic bag. Emily only knew because she couldn’t help but keep her eyes on the ground, otherwise she might accidentally see Mary’s. “It takes time to enjoy food, ya know,” Frank stepped around Emily, following his wife. “What did you show her? How to get dust between the drawers?” “Oh shush, what would our house look like without me...” their conversation faded away the farther they were. Looking back at Joyce, they both exchanged blank faces for a second, each stuck on their factory reset smiles. Joyce was first to break the silence. “Wait, didn’t you come to change your shirt last time?” Emily pupils were doing cartwheels. “First your dad says it, now you? I feel like I’m the only one who forgets...” Joyce stroked her nails across Emily’s head as she walked in the room. It smelled different; not that the smell was bad before. Just more...refreshing? Like soap, almost. “To her credit,” Joyce sighed, “she does know how to clean...” “Sorry...” Emily meekly spoke, guessing what may have needed to be cleaned. “It’s fine regardless, but if the carpets come out of this unscathed too, that’ll be a nice bonus.” She was mindful to shut the door. “So...” other than the stain, Emily couldn’t help but feel the need to address the other elephant in the room. Rather, the one that just left. “...How did it go?” Joyce frowned a little, and Emily’s heart and expression sank. “Considering what it could’ve been if she found everything out…it went really well, actually. Just...very weird.” Emily looked a bit more hopeful. “So it did go well? What happened? What did she say?” Then she remembered what Joyce had asked her in the bathroom. “...What did you say?” “Are you sure you want to know?” Joyce asked a bit reluctantly. “Nothing bad happened,” nothing worse than what already did happen, “but the whole conversation was...well,” her linguistic skills weren’t so sharp at the moment. “Weird...” “Do I wanna know?” It was her right, but the truth wasn’t always a good thing. “Go change your shirt. I’ll try and summarize all the noteworthy stuff.” And so she did, whilst Joyce did her best to package recent events. “So, she definitely thinks you have a medical condition...” It wasn’t very shocking to either, since they could gather that much from their initial conversation. “She sort of talked herself into it, but I first made it clear that you wear protection next to never, though she thinks stress and excitement is why your ‘accidents’ are so ‘frequent’ right now.” They were Joyce’s words, but even to her they sounded ridiculous, simply because she knew they weren’t true. “Stress? Excited? So she really thinks I am a kid?” “No...” she didn’t completely think that, but even Joyce couldn’t give a flat ‘no’. “But...I definitely think she has a soft spot for you. Face it, Emily, you’re cute.” She spoke like it was an absolute truth, though it heated Emily up a little. “I’m not saying that to be flirty, just as a reason why, objectively speaking, my mom is taking so well to this… Maybe on some level, even if she won’t admit it to herself, yeah, she sort of does see you like one.” “So...so like, what? I get a free pass, or something?” She wanted to be offended, being seen as anything less than an adult, but after everything thus far, had she given Mary much reason to think otherwise? “Maybe? I really don’t know. From the sound of it, she really doesn’t seem to mind you wearing diapers. If anything,” Joyce cringed a little, “...she turned into a talking point...” “...That does sound a little weird.” Joyce merely nodded. “And included with that, she also tried to ‘educate’ me on how we should be throwing away your diapers...” she blew at a loose strand of hair. “How…what?” Even with context, the mere mention of Mary seemed to encrypt it all again entirely. “Since she doesn’t know about the nursery and the diaper pail inside it, she thinks it’s a bad idea to use any normal bin in the house. She’s not wrong...” Joyce sighed, falling through the same hoops yet again. “But I’m not wrong either. I wanted to tell her so badly I know what I’m doing!” Tightly she clutched her intangible gripes. “But…” she relented with a sigh. “That’d defeat the purpose of damage control.” “Thanks for swallowing your pride,” Emily awarded her with a peck on the cheek. She happened to look around a little. “Where did the other thing go, by the way?” She already sounded uncomfortable, and for good reason. Quite frankly she’d had enough of using the ‘d’ word for one day, especially in ‘Emily’ mode. “Hm? Oh, it should be right over...” she started to explain as her eyes fell on an empty space, then her tone reared into an agitated growl. “Rrrgh, damnit, why does she have to be so persistent?!” Her little outburst was enough for Emily to inch away, causing Joyce to put back on some restraint. “I’m sorry,” her face sunk into her hand, “I didn’t even notice she slipped away with it.” Thinking back, what else could have been in that black bag? What’s more, if Emily decided to think about it any harder, she just saw her girlfriend’s mother throwing away her very own used diaper. And the fact that they acknowledged it and were still sitting there was cause for concern in Emily’s eyes. Joyce could see the slight bit of expectancy in her eyes. “Don’t worry, after the whole lesson about getting a separate trash bin for diaper duty, I highly doubt she’ll be doing anything other than what her mantra preaches.” “A-are you sure?” Emily didn’t exactly doubt it either, but Mary was proving to be an irritatingly unpredictable person. “Positive,” she nodded. “She’s definitely a headstrong mother, which is why I choose to believe in her motherly conviction...” Finally, she ran her hands through her own hair for a second. “Were you still looking to get those extra five minutes from this morning?” Joyce slumped her head into Emily’s lap. “It’s either that or I need a drink...” “You said we were gonna go out, right?” The raindrops against the window faded into earshot. “Somewhere indoors, hopefully?” “A very good idea,” Joyce continued to mull, stirring in Emily’s lap. Begrudgingly, she lifted herself from such a wonderful position. “Actually, that new shopping center finished their renovations a few days ago?” “Like a mall?” “Sort of… Along the lines of lots of different stores, just without the parking and it’s built into the city.” “That could be fun. Browsing could kill some time.” “It could, but so does actually shopping, you know?” Emily frowned. “I don’t need any new clothes.” “Very true. You don’t need anything new right now, and neither do I. But, that doesn’t mean we can’t want things?” “Why do you have to make so much money?” “So I can get nice and comfy homes to put nice and comfy beds in. With how high maintenance your wardrobe is, I’ve had to start working overtime, you know?” “I would call that a first world problem, but I feel like you’re too rich for that. That’s like a...a zeroth world problem, or something.” “Well, my money is your money, so by association you’re a ‘zeroth’ worlder too,” Joyce snickered as she slung her arms over Emily’s shoulders. She suddenly groaned. “After all this, I’m gonna need a vacation. Where are we gonna go? France? Italy? The UK?” She almost picked one, but considering Joyce’s wealth, Emily couldn’t say for certain she was joking… “It’s too soon to talk about that stuff. I’m just getting off vacation, you know. And hopefully back to work...” she spoke pensively. “Everything’s gonna be fine. F - I - N - E.” Not that Emily doubted her, but she tended to be pessimistic at times like these. “How do you know?” “Because I’m the breadwinner?” She didn’t say it mockingly, but more like it was a given. “Well, yeah, I know you are, but...it’s a mental thing; having a job. It proves to me that I’m independent. I don’t wanna be the stay-at-home girlfriend.” Even if that sort of was what she was being right now... “Or what? Then I’d be a real sugarmama? Huh?” Joyce teased, starting to peck her on the cheek. While Emily did laugh, it wasn’t at the forefront of thought. “I appreciate it, but like I said, it’s nothing to do with you. It’s a personal thing… I already depend on you so much, voluntarily. If I didn’t have my own income...then I’d really be a freeloader.” She looked over to the head sitting beside her shoulder. “Did I kill the mood?” “Yes,” Joyce said quite plainly, pointing her tongue at the offender. “You know, did you ever consider that you’re maybe being a worrywart for no reason right now? I’m gonna make the executive decision and close this topic of discussion. We’re only gonna go in circles and you’re only gonna be upset.” “Kay...” For a moment they merely existed, apart from Emily shifting sides on the mattress. “I don’t want any new stuff.” “No promises~.” Thankfully it wasn’t as much of a show this time getting to the car and driving to their destination. And to Emily’s credit, she fought quite hard to stay awake this time and her efforts had paid off. However, relying on a public parking garage wasn’t as successful. “Guess everyone else in the city had the same idea as us...” Joyce miffed. For a moment, all you could hear was her thumb rapping the steering wheel. That, and the downpour cascading all the windows and windshield. “It can’t be a fun day if it’s only easy,” Frank assured her with a hand on the shoulder. “Honestly, why can’t they have reserved parking, or something?” She hated standstills, especially when she was trying to host a group of people. “You never know,” Mary leaned over, just to see the line of cars in front of them. “There’s probably some section for bigwigs?” “Why couldn’t they put this next to my company...” Joyce groaned. “When I come to visit you guys, I want you driving, Dad.” “I woulda drove here, you know? Though, you can’t charge me if I scratch your car.” “First one’s free!” her voice stretched an octave as her arms did so. “Should’ve seen the old model before Emily totaled it,” she snickered. “Hu...what?” Her head had been rocking back and forth like a pendulum in the backseat, but the snide remark snapped her back into reality. “I never crashed your car!” “See? Total denial!” Everyone laughed but Emily. “More importantly,” Mary started to shift gears, “it looks like it’ll be a bit until we can get in...” “Maybe it’d be worth trying a different parking garage?” Frank suggested. “There probably is...” Joyce pondered, still keeping her eyes forward. “We may have to walk a little though...” The windshield wipers swept across their view. “In this rain...” “Did we bring umbrellas?” Unfortunately. Only one. The only one Joyce knew of. In hindsight, she was the fool for not even considering… “I packed a couple,” Emily spoke up. “Really?” Joyce asked from the front. “When?” And as an aside she also thought to herself about how many umbrellas she actually owned? One for the car...for the office… She continued to ramble. “I figured just in case.” Emily played it off nonchalantly. She looked under her feet and funnily enough there were in fact two umbrellas sitting there. “It’s only two though...” Well-placed intentions, though only half-baked. “That makes three then,” Joyce already turned out of the lane, sacrificing their hard-fought space. They turned just enough to see the countless other cars sitting in a long line behind them. “Mom and Dad can use those two and we’ll use mine.” “How far of a walk is it gonna be?” Emily couldn’t help but ask, seeing the farther they drifted away in the pouring rain. “Under ten minutes, hopefully...” Joyce sighed. She could feel exactly what was going through the girl’s head, precisely because it was the same thing she was going through too. “Let’s call it a lesson learned, then.” Frank chuckled. “I’m sure we’ll survive!” “E-Emily?” Joyce spoke, her voice could be heard right next to splashing raindrops. “Yeah?” Emily looked up, finding Joyce’s hesitant expression close to the roof of their umbrella. “Don’t you think it’d be better if I held the umbrella?” Willing, yet dumbly, she said, “I guess…? Why?” Joyce laughed a little. “So I don’t have to keep slouching over?” It finally clicked once Joyce slapped her in the face with it. For some reason Emily the much shorter girl elected herself to hold the umbrella. What she thought was a kind gesture had actually been a hindrance… “S-sorry...” Emily kept her eyes forward but held the umbrella a bit higher. Joyce politely received the torch and raised their shield a bit higher. Higher than Emily would have been comfortable doing. “I can finally see again!” Joyce laughed as the pair continued to walk. Mary and Frank were right behind, each with their own respective umbrella. “At least it’s not windy,” Mary offered some encouragement from the rear. Emily didn’t answer, but took down the note. She cautiously eyed her own shoes which were starting to look a bit wet on the edges. “Something on your shoe?” Joyce asked. She couldn’t help but notice she’d been staring at them. “Water.” Emily answered conflictingly. “Ye-...” Joyce cracked a grin. “That so?” “Forget it,” Emily dismissed herself. “It’s stupid.” Joyce had paused, yet nodded. “You’re right, it probably is.” Then, she could see the girl’s eyelashes flutter, as if she’d just blinked. The kind of blink to be followed by a stupefied look. Emily was stupefied. Of course she was being hard on herself, but she didn’t exactly expect Joyce to feed into it. “What?” Joyce kept a neutral look. “What is it?” “Nothing...” “You’re right. It probably is nothing.” Now Emily did look at her, only with narrowed eyes. “Stop it.” “Stop what?” “Stop doing that.” “Stop doing what?” Joyce innocently chuckled, willingly oblivious to any crime she may have committed. “Stop agreeing with me!” “What? What do you mean? All I said was that--” “--It was stupid, yes.” Emily cut her off. “Then I said it was nothing, and then you said it was nothing!” “I-...” Joyce scratched her temple with a confused smile. “I don’t see the issue here...” “Because whenever I talk like that you always say ‘it’s not stupid’ or ‘tell me anyways’, no matter what it is. You’re not doing that this time.” “Mmm...well?” She gave Emily a hopeless look. “Do I do that?” “Okay, fine, I’ll tell you!” Emily gave up, leading to another smile from Joyce. “I hate it when you tease me...” “You really are like a cat...” Joyce fawningly mused. She simply had too many tells, hence why she considered Emily such a bad liar. Not because she couldn’t lie per say...but because Joyce simply knew her too well. “So? What’s on your mind?” “It’s just… You’re gonna think this sounds ridiculous...” “Probably will,” Joyce chimed in with a grin. “...I don’t like getting stuff you bought me dirty...” she mumbled more the longer her speech carried on. “Even the shoes...” “But clothes already get dirty when we wear them, don’t they?” Joyce retorted. To her credit, Emily expected some kind of joke about her silly logic. Instead, she knew exactly how to stoop to Emily’s mindset. “W-well...I don’t mean that kind of dirty.” “Dirty isn’t a very selective thing, though?” “You know what I mean,” Emily sulked. “Somehow, I do,” with her umbrella hand, she stuck out her pinky to trace the small crevice behind Emily’s ear, leading to her visible shudder. “But also, somehow, you don’t know better by now than to not fret over that kind of stuff… I’m gonna have to look into hypnotism or something...” “Sorry for being thoughtful,” Emily ‘humphed’ and puffed out her chest. “Maybe I should hog the umbrella a bit? Just to get you wet enough to finally break those shoes in?” She started to twirl the handle, teasing as their overhead drifted slightly more to Joyce’s side. “Then if you do that I’m gonna stomp in every puddle we walk by,” Emily haughtily fired back. “Oh? I’m not wearing heels, you know? I can always outrun someone as tiny as you!” “I changed my mind. I want the umbrella back.” “Hey girls? Watch out up ahead,” a distant Frank called from the back, though he went unheard. “Really?” Joyce exclaimed. “You want my umbrella?” “No, our umbrella,” Emily corrected. “What’s yours is mine and mine is also mine!” She could only raise a brow to her twisted logic. “R-really…?” “Exactly. So, I’m gonna give you until the count of three. One!--” And ‘one’ was as far as she got. Had they heeded Frank’s warning to keep their eyes forward, they would have noticed the gradual incline in the aged sidewalk that’d been filled to the brim in near ankle-deep water. Joyce was the first to go as she wasn’t prepared for the sudden drop, leading to the collapse of her entire balance. Emily wasn’t more than half a second behind, but somehow her nobility gave her the reactionary speed to at least try and grab for the tumbling Joyce. Not that it meant much. Because Joyce was the larger of the two and Emily was...well, Emily, the smaller of the two merely accelerated their own tumble and descent by grabbing on to another sinking weight. They both fell to their knees with a loud and heavy splash. Water soaked their pants, shoes and socks, and had even reached their shirts from the splash. What’s worse, dirt was in the water and covered them in mud as well. Their umbrella lay discarded nearby, washing themselves anew in the downpour. “Ugh...” Emily groaned in disgust. “‘Ugh’ is right...” Joyce sighed in a similar fashion. “Don’t say we didn’t warn you!” Mary said from behind, holding an umbrella over Joyce’s head. Frank did the same for Emily. “You two were so busy with your little argument that you didn’t see this up ahead.” Both stood up, feeling no less worse. There were large dark stains all over the front of their pants, seeping into the material and clinging to their skin. “Let’s table our ‘discussions’ for when we’re not in the rain.” Joyce did her best to stay positive, but even she wasn’t immune to a shitty situation. “I’m ready to go home now...” Emily whined. She pinched at her pants, trying to separate it from her skin. Instantly reminded of her last ‘adventure’ in the rain, she was utterly disgusted to force the memory of being totally drenched. “Well, guess this makes a good excuse for us to go shopping now,” Joyce muttered, doing her best to separate Emily’s strands of hair. “If you say it like that then I’m gonna think you planned this all to happen...” Emily moped, sitting on the public bathroom counter. For no visible reason she let out an agitated groan. “This sucks! Why can’t anything we try to do go right?!” Her expression turned down another level. “I think even my underwear is wet...” And need it be mentioned, the not good kind of wet. Sulking some more, she took stock of their close surroundings. “Is it okay for us to use the family bathroom like this?” “We’re family, aren’t we?” Joyce spoke as she looked into the mirror, adjusting herself. “At least we’re with my mom and dad. I guess that counts? Should I ask my mom to come in and help?” “Not a funny joke,” Emily deadpanned, thinking to just a few minutes earlier. After their little “dip” in the water, the group trudged onwards to the mall which was a very much less than exciting journey, especially when you’re covered in water and have to walk around in squishy shoes. They made it to a bathroom before catching the social spotlight, but had to strictly forbid Mary from entering. Of course she was insistent on helping them clean up, but thankfully Frank had reigned her in. That in itself triggered another recent memory related to eating pancakes, where Frank promised he’d keep a tight leash. Such a nice man… Emily’s eyes glistened, which in eyeshot left Joyce looking at her weirdly. “You wouldn’t get it,” Emily had read her mind. “It’s a pancake thing.” “Don’t tell me you hit your head when you fell...” “What are we gonna do about our clothes?” They at least weren’t dripping anymore, but they could certainly feel an uncomfortable wetness all over still. And an unfortunate thought crossed Emily’s mind. Be it the rain or my own pee, somehow I always end up wet… “Get as dry as we can then find something new to wear. Even once it all dries off, we can’t do much about mud.” “Mm...” Emily nodded, looking down at her shoes. They were certainly dirty now. Had the puddle water not been enough, they decorated in streaks of mud. What was going to come off already had, and now the rest was starting to stain and crust. “I’m sorry, I know you don’t like throwing away gifts, but I like keeping clean clothes on our backs,” Joyce sympathized, squeezing her shoulder. “Can we just clean them back home?” “Of course,” probably. She’d never cleaned a pair of shoes in her life, but certainly it could be done. “But for the time being let’s find something else to wear? Just so we can finally start this day on a high note?” They weren’t much longer before they had done enough maintenance to at least be passable. Faces and expressions were back in order, but the clothes… “You two clean up awfully nice!” Mary smiled as the quartet formed again. “Best we can, at least...” Joyce groaned, Emily choosing to stay passive. “It’s a new shopping center and all, but do you think we could go for some clothes first?” “Clothes?” Frank exasperated. “All the new and fancy things here and that’s where ya two wanna go first?” “Oh quit giving them such a hard time,” Mary nudged her husband. “He’s probably been thinking of all the things he could say while you two were in there...” “In and out, Dad, promise!” Joyce already panned her eyes for a map or nearby store. Somewhere above the many passing heads or through the weaving crowds. They’d managed to hit another busy attraction for the second day in a row. Funny how coincidences worked like that, as Joyce could feel someone’s hand slip into hers. I swear, thinking how the zoo went, this is like reverse psychology… She nearly rolled her eyes over how amusing it was and loved it all the same. They did find a map and glanced over it, trying to find someplace that sold clothes. “Oh, perfect. Look,” Joyce pointed to it on the screen, “they have a Capital Star here?” “Like the brand name?” Emily asked, following her finger. That was a lucrative brand...in part to its limited sales at a high price. Wealthy people’s kind of shopping. “I didn’t even think they had in-person stores...” “I saw one of them once when I was on a business trip...” Joyce pondered. “But that should do the trick. Let’s hop to it.” “Guess we’ll finally get to see how our daughter shops for clothes,” Mary confided in Frank with a chuckle. “...Mmm...” Frank agreed, scratching his chin. “They even have a kitchenware kind of store here...” he continued to gloss over the map. “Okay, fine, you can go,” Joyce beckoned. “Huh? What do you mean?” Frank asked. “I know clothes aren’t your thing. Especially price tags?” “No, what do you mean? It’s alright, I’ll tag along,” Frank shrugged. “Take your chances while you get them, hon!” Mary urged. “Maybe we can find you something while they’re getting their stuff?” “Not at those prices!” Frank outraged, leading to their laughter. “See? Point exactly. Get going, have fun. We’ll find you after.” “If you’re sure...” Frank started to say. “We are,” Mary confirmed. “You’re already moving, so get going!” He wasn’t making a dash, but he walked in a way that couldn’t mask the excitement. Unfortunately, Emily was kind of sad to see him go. Not only did he make great company, but… “Looks like it’s just us three!” Mary exclaimed, putting her hands together. “Hey Joyce,” Emily murmured, squeezing her hand. “Hm? What’s up?” “Why not somewhere, uhm...cheaper?” “Mmm...well, I haven’t been to one in a bit, so I’m curious about their new collections.” And just what might there be for Emily? The thought incited pleasure across her face. Then she toned down the expressions a bit. “Remember, my treat today?” “It’s always your treat...” Emily blew hot air. She looked a bit more bashful. “Thank you...” It was enough reason for Joyce to walk onwards with a pleasant feeling in her chest. After all, being able to do for Emily was all she wanted. That and so much love in return, all of which she got. Emily managed to stop them in their tracks. “Uh, actually,” she fished her hand into a pocket, extracting a buzzing phone from it. “I think someone’s calling me… Is it alright if I go back to the bathroom real quick just to answer? It’s kinda noisy out here.” Joyce looked back, seeing the bathroom doors were still within view. “Okay, we’ll be waiting right by the map sign.” Letting go of Emily’s hand was tough, but she had to relinquish both her unnecessary fears as a lover and a mother. After taking her time to see she did in fact make it, Joyce could convince herself that it was okay to give her mom the lion’s share of attention now. “It’ll be nice to get some new clothes,” Joyce sighed. “I’m sure it will be,” Mary nodded. A wardrobe malfunction’s never any good… Speaking of which, Emily’s cleanup wasn’t any worse, was it? “No? Why would it be?” “Well...” Mary seemed hushed, looking for the privacy a conversation like theirs could have among a sea of strangers, said in a lower voice, “she’s in a diaper after all, isn’t she?” “A…--Mom!” Were they already back to this? “No, she isn’t.” and why was Joyce even humoring the question? “Why would she even be?” “There’s been a lot of excitement and stress lately, so I figured it wasn’t impossible...” “Well she isn’t. Don’t ask her about it, either. It’s private...” she forcibly closed herself off. Only now she realized that being in a public space came first rather than second to chewing her mom out. “I just want to make sure today goes well for everyone, that’s all...” Mary said. Joyce could hardly imagine the woman’s intentions ever working as intended. But, she didn’t disagree with her mother’s sentiment. Everyone in their own way was trying to make today a good one. Well, almost everyone, as the empty outline of Frank’s figure stood beside them. They didn’t speak until Emily came back, but the longer the silence persisted the more impatient Joyce started to look. She kept eyeing the bathroom where Emily went, but a troubling thought plagued her mind. A conundrum she couldn’t seem to detach herself from. How would Emily look in a diaper right now? Such an elated fantasy made the woman’s eyes sparkle. “Joyce? Are you alright?” Mary asked with an uncertain look. “Hu--huh?” Joyce snapped out of her dreaming. “It...it’s nothing.” She shrugged it off with an almost flustered look. Where’s Emily? Some time later, approximately 33 hours later, after a peculiar shopping trip, delicious meals and constant back-and-forths: Frank, Mary, Joyce, and Emily were somehow able to finish their time together without any further apparent upset. Much like the chaos which ensued for the past day and a half, the time the Summers’ husband and wife spent with Joyce and Emily had come to an end. Hence the time now reading 8:30PM on a Monday evening as, well...a small bit more of chaos was taking place. “Hon? Have you seen my toothbrush?” Frank called from the bathroom. He could be heard rummaging through the few odds and ends laid on the counter. “Already packed them for us!” Mary answered back with just as much volume while she handled her end of preparing. Meanwhile, Joyce is sitting on the large and spacious sofa, poised upright as she tensely taps her foot on the floor, one leg crossed over the other. Every so often she leans her head back, likely hoping to see a mother and father arriving with fully packed suitcases in tow. Unfortunately she’s had yet to see this. “Unbelievable...” Joyce muttered under her breath, trying to trace the gymnastics of today in her brain, trying to occupy herself with a thought exercise of how it came to this. But she cut herself short, calling down the hall, “Mom! Dad? Are you two almost ready? Your flight is at 10 and it’s going to take us at least twenty minutes to get to the airport!” She glanced at the clock again. “Not including traffic!” She waited for a response, but only reprieved her short-burned patience by groaning aloud. Rubbing her temples she continued to whisper agitated and annoyed pieces to herself. “I swear, if they don’t make it to their flight on time I’m sticking them in a hotel… Like hell they’re coming back here…!” No offense to Frank, really. Not so much Mary either, although she was certainly the one in the hot seat. Today and late night yesterday, the day they went to the shopping center were filled with reminders of increasing frequency for the married couple to start getting ready to go home. Maybe pack a few things here or there; put away old clothes or keep their toiletries nearby. But somehow, magically, there “was no time for it,” as spoken by Joyce’s headstrong mother. Mary for the final day had been insistent on doing as many things as possible. Shopping, a movie (Not a horror one), lunch at a restaurant, dinner at a restaurant, which only ended just about an hour ago. Mary always has a special way of being a thorn in Joyce’s side, but a lackadaisical approach to keeping appointments is what bothered Joyce the most, and has always been a peeve of hers. It’s no secret that Joyce is a busy woman and she understands the importance of time and what little of it there is in a single day. She well understands being late for a good reason (such as making time to spend with Emily), but not a one could be found in these circumstances. She was just about to call for her parents again, only until a delicate finger pointed itself into her vulnerable cheek. Turning her head to the source, Joyce couldn’t help but feel her steeled will and firing cylinders be calmed at least somewhat by the sight of her loving antagonizer. “Are you really that upset?” Emily asked, crawling across the cushions over to Joyce. “Yes…!” Joyce openly vented. “Well…! Ugh...for now, I am...” As silly as it seems, the question that appeared to have an obvious answer actually gave Joyce a moment of valuable pause. “I just...I told them they should start focusing on packing, but my mom hasn’t stopped between yesterday and today!” “W-well...” Emily supposed while poking her fingers together. “Maybe she was just excited to see you, so she wanted to do as much as possible…?” Probably more so to see you, Joyce silently thought to herself as she looked at Emily fondly, without a doubt in her mind. She wasn’t completely wrong. “God forbid if this is her way of trying to figure an excuse of why they should get to stay here another night...” “You...” Emily was about to laugh at Joyce’s ridiculous notion, but then gravely reflected on all her interactions with Mary thus far. “Y-...you’re kidding, right?” Joyce rubbed her eyes while they fell back on Emily, a bit surprised to see her concerned look. The smaller girl’s wariness was met with a warm smile however. “Yes, I am. My mom is...unique, in a lot of ways, but I think even for her that crosses a line of courtesy and decency...” Granted, it’s a twisted mindset to think keeping someone’s diapers a secret falls second to intentionally being late. “What time should we be leaving for the airport?” Emily asked, resting her head on Joyce’s thigh. “Thirty minutes ago?” Joyce said, carrying a tone of disbelief that could hopefully rub off on Emily. She sighed. “Maybe if I let Mom pack you up and take you with her that’d convince her to move a bit faster…?” “Hey…!” Emily whined, reaching her grabby hands up at Joyce, who deftly disarmed her by clutching her wrists and leaning her head down for a kiss on the lips. “Kidding~” Joyce said with a snicker. “As if I’d ever let someone else have my little treasure.” She said fondly, stroking a hair on the girl’s head. But Joyce then shifted her expression to a curious one. “And what’s all this talk about ‘we’? I was planning to take them to the airport on my own?” “Huh?” Emily replied, just as confused. “Who’s gonna keep you company on the way back though?” “I can handle myself.” Joyce blew a cool chill on Emily’s forehead, inspiring confidence. “Don’t want me, that it?” Emily teased, sticking her tongue out. “Always and forever the absolute opposite, actually,” She stuck her tongue out in retaliation. “But no; what I’m concerned about is giving you a fair chance to sleep. You didn’t go in for work today, after all. Didn’t you say Sunday was the latest you’d hear from them? You’re probably gonna be on call at any point by now...” Emily didn’t offer much of a response as she stewed there for a bit longer. Not too much longer, thankfully, as Frank and Mary finally did come with their belongings right beside them into the main room. “I know, I know,” Frank already started before Joyce could speak. “I humbly and wholly agree with your issues and complaints.” He paused for dramatic effect. “I blame Mom, too.” “Wha--?!” Mary shouted in surprise, but was quickly and curtly cut by a forced smile and usher from Joyce. “Great! Let’s go before we have to stick you on a bus instead of a plane!” Joyce moved them along to the mudroom. Emily watched for a moment as they stepped into the shoe area. “Emily?” Emily blinked, looking forward, realizing she was watching Joyce’s face. “Are you coming? If so, we really gotta get a move on!” Reserved just for Emily, she kept that same tone of urgency she felt for the moment, but made sure to generously coat it in the sweetness and patience she felt for Emily, and Emily alone. “Oh, I think I may have forgotten to pack my--” Mary started to say, but Joyce’s expression of love and affection snapped back to one of order and authority. “Forget it! Tell me about it later; I’ll ship it or buy you a new one!” Joyce cut her off. “Y-yeah, I’ll go.” Emily said back, a little surprised by how Joyce could manage to keep her mom on a leash. Maybe Joyce really could withstand her if she tried… Walking around the couch and following the trio into the small space, she was just about to start looking for her shoes when they were already set aside for her. “Frank, do we really need to go back for that thing of yours? We haven’t seen Joyce in so long, and now we finally got to--” Mary started to say, having second thoughts, yet was interjected by her husband. “Hon, we see Joyce plenty, and the holidays are right around the corner. We gotta give them some cooldown time before we start suffocating them all over again.” “Dad...” Joyce rolled her eyes, trying not to be made out as the villain, although she didn’t totally disagree with the metaphor… “Wait!” Mary suddenly piped up. Everyone turned their heads. “We never did anything for Emily’s birthday!” The disappointment in her voice was akin to kicking a puppy. “Uhm, that’s okay,” Emily meekly replied. “We’ll just have to make a rain check,” Joyce reasoned, saying just about anything at this point to get her mom out the door. So caught in the moment, Joyce even turned her head to Emily’s feet for a moment, wondering if the laces had been tied yet. As quick as the doting thought came though she dashed it aside, trying to focus. “Sorry we didn’t make good on the promise, Em,” Frank said to Emily, even offering his own apologies, although not as dramatic. Emily giggled awkwardly, trying to wave it off. “R-really, it’s not that big a deal, haha. I already got to have a great birthday with Joyce?” It was enough to make Frank smile, but Mary seemed no further convinced, as much like Joyce, or vice versa, she seemed to hold herself to a high standard. Joyce held out her hands for Emily and lifted her back onto her feet once she was ready to go. All it took was another check of the time to have Joyce moving the group along. “Okay, no more idle chat. You’re gonna be sitting on the wing of the plane at this rate!” All four moved out of the apartment and into the hall, down the elevator and finally in the garage. Somehow fortune seemed to have favored them that night, whether it be for Joyce and Emily’s sanity or Frank and Mary’s convenience, but their ride to the airport wasn’t as long as you’d might expect. Reaching the dropoff lane they slowed down in front of the terminal entrance. Frank and Mary were quick out the door, and Joyce and Emily soon followed after. Naturally Emily wanted to give her goodbyes, and to be honest, more so for Frank, but Mary meant well in her own way… “Okay, those are your suitcases in the back...” Joyce spoke slowly as she made a mental note. There was nothing else other than to see them off. “Okay,” she turned her attention back to her parents. “We’ll go find a place to park then make sure you get on your flight and take off...” “Oh, hon,” Frank waved her off. “Don’t worry about us old seniors. You two have work in the morning, don’t you?” “Well you two come first, obviously...” Joyce started to reason, but Mary even chimed in. “We know you can move your schedule around, but we don’t want to force the same thing on Emily?” Joyce grew quiet, feeling a bit ashamed for not considering that. Even more to consider, just how might Emily take it? Now she might think she was the reason Joyce didn’t get to stay to see her parents off… “You’re right,” Joyce said, dialing it back. “Truthfully, I’m tired as it is...” Sighing a breath of relief. “You two are really exhausting, you know that?” “Guilty as charged.” Frank chuckled. “Alright, come on now, you know the drill,” he said with open arms. “Awh, it was great seeing you, dad!” Joyce said as she wrapped her arms around Frank. Emily watched from the side with a smile, but was quickly included by the smothering of Mary. “Emmy, it was so-so-so-so wonderful finally being able to meet you!” Mary endlessly fawned with words of praise and compliments. “I’m so sorry we didn’t get to celebrate your birthday, and I’m so sorry we didn’t get to do more. I know we had our hiccups, but I hope you had as much fun meeting me as I did, you!” While Emily’s first instinct may not have been to hug her, she wouldn’t need to solve that indecisiveness due to her arms being pinned to her sides by Mary’s smothering hug. “It..was nice meeting you too, Mary…!” Emily squeaked through the snug embrace she was trapped in. Things were moving too fast for Emily to remember the massive embarrassments she’d suffered in front of Mary, so she was able to keep face for their goodbyes. Mary finally let her go, swapping to having her hands on Emily’s shoulders. “You’ll be coming for Thanksgiving, right? Christmas, too?” “Mom, she has her own family,” Joyce butt in, long since done hugging her dad and remaining a spectator. “W-well…” Mary started, but felt the momentum of her emotions tripping over realistic expectations. “We’ll figure something out.” She sufficed. “Cross that bridge when we get to it.” Joyce dismissed it, stepping in to hug her mom, leaving Emily and Frank to the side now. Emily looked at Frank, who gave a warm smile. Stepping in, he surprised Emily by instead of giving a hug, holding out a fist. He shrugged at his own gesture. “Figured my wife hugged you enough for the two of us?” Instinctively, Emily bit her lower lip, bursting into a laugh as she returned the “totally radical” gesture. Both seemed to find it equally as weird though, because it ended in a hug as well. “You’re really funny, Frank! I think Joyce is gonna kill me if I start sounding like you!” “Not to worry,” Frank assured, leaning in for a whisper. “I’ll teach you the rest of my secrets the next holiday we see each other.” Emily reared back out, stifling a giggle at the gaze of a suspicious girlfriend. Joyce could only raise a brow, panning her eyes between Frank and Emily. “Forget it,” she sighed. “Better I don’t even know… More importantly, go get on your flight now!” Joyce shooed them. “Love you guys, talk to you soon!” The parents waved their hands as they wheeled their suitcases off, both Emily and Joyce doing the same to them. Once they reached through the double doors and started to phase into check-in, they were out of sight. Both Emily and Joyce stood side by side for a few moments longer, watching the same way Joyce’s parents left. It was as if they were waiting for the other to make a move. Their little unspoken test of endurance though was ended by the shivers of Emily. “Finally free!” Joyce practically shouted, taking Emily by the hand and stuffing her in the passenger seat. She scurried around the front as fast as her boots would let her and was not long after behind the wheel. “One word, to summarize this whole ‘adventure’?” Joyce asked, turning her head over. “Chaos.” Emily replied, without a second thought. “Quite certainly Pandora’s Box.” Joyce nodded, putting the car into drive. After being on the road for a few more minutes, she did speak again, only a bit more serious now. “...Would you be willing to meet them again?” “Of course I would...” Emily answered again without much consideration, although she exhaled by the end of her answer. “Frank was awesome, and so was Mary. Just...” “I know, there’s no need to explain. I know I must be sounding like a broken record by now, but she means well. Not that it’s any excuse…” And Joyce could most certainly imagine her future phone calls with her mom being just as non-discrete. “Do you always see them for Thanksgiving and Christmas?” Emily asked. Joyce nodded. “Every year. Maybe one Thanksgiving I was a day late to because of work, though… I was there the day of, but not the day before. For both Christmas and Thanksgiving we usually have a pre-day before the actual thing.” Emily gave a short moment of awe as she respected her dedication. “That’s really cool. I’m usually home for the holidays, too, but usually for the day of, and maybe one or two after to spend with my mom and dad… Oh, and also, Frank told me you guys always have like fourteen people?” “Mm...” Joyce paused to comment while she tried to run the numbers. “Uhm...that sounds about right. Yeah, it’s a good number. How big are yours?” “Maybe six at the most!” Emily laughed. “Usually it’s my mom, dad, me, my dad’s parents, and sometimes my cousin if she’s around.” There was more silence after that, back to that same awkwardness from before; waiting for the other to break the silence. With her hands on the wheel, Joyce was idly pressing her thumbs into each other. “...I know you’re probably going to be busy like me during the holidays...but maybe we could celebrate together, somehow?” Emily giggled in response, a little bit bashful. “I...” she scratched her cheek. “I sort of thought we were gonna do that already...” “O-of course!” Joyce stammered, quick to emphasize. “I just didn’t want to assume...I know you have your obligations, too...” “Well, I do want to see my parents, but I’m sure we can figure something out.” “I just can’t wait to get home!” Joyce could feel herself growing more giddy by the minute. It honestly felt like a monumental step to even feel this way. She wasn’t going back to just a husk where she holed up until it was time for work. She could see Emily just in the corner of her eye, and it only stirred warmer feelings. It was a home, and she had someone so wonderful to share it with. “Ugh, being able to have the house to ourselves again almost makes me want to take another day off...” Joyce mused. It was only a couple of days, but any amount of time Joyce has to throttle herself already feels like an eternity. Nothing needed to happen tonight, because just being able to be alone with each other was enough. “Home again, home again! Jiggity--!” Emily started to shout with glee, right before a hand muffled her cheers. “Yep, you’re definitely gonna need some dad detox.” Joyce said as she continued to restrain Emily’s speech while sitting down on the floor. She was quick to let go though once she felt something wet and odd on her hand where Emily’s mouth was. “Ew! Did you just lick my hand? You little munchkin!” Joyce waved her hand away, trying to dry it. Emily snickered over her devious acts. “Girl’s gotta have her own defense measures!” “Yes, well, maybe after a bit more thought, you licking my hand isn’t the worst I’ve had to deal with you...” She then noticed her words seemed to have carried an unintended effect, as Emily grew quiet. She reaffirmed with a hug and a kiss. She nuzzled her cheek against Emily’s, speaking in a tender voice. “That being said, I wouldn’t want any less from you.” She created a long pause by kissing her cheek. “Sorry if my words came out a bit off...” “No, I know,” Emily nodded, hanging her hands off of Joyce’s wrists. “That stuff is always gonna be sort of embarrassing, though...” “Well, then I guess I’ll always need to be reminding you of how amazing you are!” Joyce finally let go of Emily, standing up once her own shoes were off. “It was really cool getting to meet your parents,” for the most part, minus the moments that involved Mary at her...strongest? “But is it weird if I say that it’s...kinda nice to be alone now?” Joyce stifled a laugh, making Emily feel flustered. “What…?” Emily whined with embarrassment. “It’s nothing. Well, it is something, but nothing that you said wrong.” She smiled brightly. “I feel the exact same way, and it’s why I’m so happy to hear you think the same. Guests are fun, but it’s natural to want our home back to ourselves. Our home.” She emphasized again to Emily with tender affection. Whether Emily could fully accept it or not, Joyce truly did figure this place to be her own home as much as Emily’s. Her name was on no paperwork and she certainly made no financial contributions. But even still, to Joyce, she was one of the very pillars that made this place worthwhile. Before Emily, getting this place was maybe continuing a habit of maintaining a high standard of living, along with other reasons. “Oh! And uhm, is it alright if I move my stuff out of your room tomorrow? I kinda just want to go to bed...” Emily asked, already stretching. “Hm?”Joyce raised an eyebrow. “I don’t mind you keeping clothes in there,” she chuckled. “Wouldn’t it be weird having to go across the hall every time you want to get dressed?” “What do you mean?” Emily looked confused. “I...it’s okay to call it my room, right?” She reservedly asked, referring to the room she’d been sleeping in before Frank and Mary commandeered it. “Well, no, I wouldn’t be.” Joyce said quite plainly, surprising Emily a little. Emily had asked, but of course she was expecting a different answer. “That’s the guest room. Unless you really didn’t like sleeping with me?” She asked as if feigning offense, but was amused to see Emily catching up to her own assumptions. “Though, my own girlfriend not wanting to share a bed with me...” She pretended to ramble as Emily cut her off. “W-wait, you meant I was permanently moving into your room? Is...is that okay?” Obviously Emily had no objections to it, but somehow in her own twisted logic, despite being tenderly cared for and intimately handled by Joyce, she somehow thought this was an intrusion of space. Objectively, it was, but their context thus far was more than enough to make it seem trivial. Joyce rolled her eyes. “Of course it’s okay! I won’t force you, so if you really want your own space, naturally I’ll respect that. But yes, bringing you into my bed while my parents were here was to me a bit more of a permanent transition...” “So...we’d be sleeping together? Every night?” Emily asked. Joyce was putting on a wonderful poker face. Honestly, she couldn’t believe how much Emily was sounding like an innocent schoolgirl. Obviously she’s been with at least one other guy, so she’s no stranger to the inner workings of a relationship. In Emily’s head though, the prospect of being so in love with another woman that also acts as her caregiver seems to have muddied the waters for her. But before Joyce could offer a response, a quivering smirk started to form on Emily’s face as she shifted her gaze away somewhat. Clearly the thought was exciting to her. “Ideally,” Joyce gave a small laugh, “yes. Besides, you’ll get to have another small sample tonight anyways. I still need to wash the bedding in the other room, so you’re gonna have to be my little spoon again, tonight.” After a brief moment of trying to hide her own excited look Emily started drifting her eyes to the kitchen. “What?” Joyce noticed her staring. “Kinda want ice cream...” “Definite no.” Joyce was curt to shut the idea down. “Huh?” Emily giggled. “Why not?” “Because we both need to sleep.” Joyce let out a small sigh. “Still nothing from work yet?” Earlier on the couch Emily didn’t seem to have a chance to speak on it because Joyce’s parents came out, but now… “Uhm...I maybe got something?” Emily said. “I’m gonna go wash up before bed...” She quickly excused herself. “Great, I’ll wash up, too.” Joyce said, following along. And so they did, with more strangeness between the two, expressed in the form of silence. Joyce had been thinking of something to say, but she didn’t actually. Instead she spent the whole time observing, starting to seem concerned. With a toothbrush in her mouth she started to say, “Emil--...” But the girl was already on her way out of the bathroom. It was likely she heard Joyce, but she didn’t come back. In the bedroom Emily was turned with her back to the door, still getting her pajamas on. Joyce started to do the same. They both got into bed but Joyce hadn’t shut off the lights like she normally did. Instead she reached her arms over, sliding Emily across and close to her bosom. “Okay, come on. No more games.” Joyce spoke calmly, stroking her back. “What’s up?” “Wh...what?” Emily looked up at her, seemingly confused. Joyce then looked a bit hurt. “Please, I’d never accuse you of lying, and I know you’re not now. But I know something’s up.” “It’s...” Emily inhaled through her nose, letting out a shaky breath, followed by a sniffle. It was all silent for a few moments. “W-was it that obvious…?” Joyce could only give her sympathy, hugging her a bit tighter. “It’s my job to notice these things. Come on, you can talk to me; you know that already. What’s wrong?” As Emily trembled, Joyce continued to soothe her in a warm embrace. “Is it about work?” Joyce calmly asked. Emily hiccuped, and Joyce could feel her clutch tighter as she buried her head into her chest. Up until now she’d been putting on a front, but with nowhere else to go, she crumbled so easily under what little confrontation there was. It was only the partial truth though, as maybe some part of Emily did want to confide in Joyce. “I...I wanted to talk about it, but I just didn’t…” She rubbed her teary eyes. “I didn’t know how…!” “How long have you known?” Joyce rubbed her back.. “Since yesterday morning… At the department store...” It was when she excused herself to answer a call in the bathroom. It hadn’t fully hit her then, but it sure was starting to now. While Emily couldn’t see it, Joyce furrowed her brow, remorseful in her own right. “I’m sorry I didn’t notice any sooner until now...” “What?” Emily craned her neck to look up at her. “I never even said anything...how could you be expected to know?” “I just don’t like the idea of you having to face stuff on your own...” Joyce explained briefly. “You’re an adult, obviously, and I know you’re more than capable, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to always be supporting you.” Emily hugged her for a bit longer before continuing to speak. She braced herself, but putting the thoughts into words put a sick feeling in her stomach. “I’m...I’m not going back to work…” It felt like a bombshell. Joyce nodded with complete understanding. “It’s okay, you’re gonna be just fine. You have my support, 200% of the way.” “Did...did you know?” Emily quietly asked, in reference to foreseeing her sudden unemployment. Joyce paused to choose her words carefully while stroking her hair. She didn’t want Emily to think she expected disaster, as if she were waiting for it to happen. “I didn’t know anything. I didn’t have any expectations for either or. All I planned for was being there for you. And, well? Here I am!” She chuckled a little. “You’re my rock, and I’m yours. Lean on me.” Emily sobbed as she lay there, facing her reality head on. “It was my first job away from home…! I...I applied out of state then came out here to work...” Forty hours a week, full time employment, benefits; all of it was gone. It’d be one thing to be laid off from some mundane position that didn’t feel like a gaping hole in your work career, but it’s another to lose your lifeline in a strange place far from home with few steady connections. Joyce nodded her head, continuing to make noises that made it clear she was listening attentively. “They said they were closing my department indefinitely...” She sniffled. “I can pick up whatever I left at the office tomorrow...” “Was it all at least on good terms? They can still be used as a reference, right?” “Yeah, I think so...” Emily sadly spoke. The idea of trying to find a new job was daunting. As said, this was her first away from home. She’d have to start searching the web, find something related to her skills, update her resume… “I want you to know how proud of you I am,” Joyce said to Emily, holding her close. “What is there to be proud of…?” Emily sniffled. “All I did was lose my job…!” “Of no fault of your own?” Joyce reminded her. “You didn’t do anything wrong, Emily. It’s unfortunately just bad luck...” She hated leaving it to superstition. There were obvious reasons for why things were the way they were, but of course Joyce wasn’t in a position to see those reasons, nor did she think that’s what Emily needed to hear. “It’s just...” she sniffled. “I don’t know what I’m gonna do…!” “You,” Joyce gently hushed her. “You are going to get a well-deserved rest, and as am I. Then tomorrow we’re gonna wake up, go to your office, get what you need, then get you home so you can destress.” “No...I can’t do that to you.” Emily moped, wiping her tears. “You already didn’t work today because of your parents.” If her own troubles weren’t enough, the guilt of causing the same for Joyce was worse. “What do you mean?” Joyce asked with a sense of emotional hurt. “You’re not doing anything to me; I’m just worried about you...” “Thank you...but tomorrow I’ll go on my own. But, uhm...” Joyce placed a finger to her lips, with a tender smile. “Already taken care of. I told Charles he should be on standby since yesterday.” “Th...thank you...” The room fell quiet once again as they laid there, apart from Emily’s tears. Although, she was trying to make an earnest effort in shushing herself. “You know it’s okay to let it all out, right?” Joyce smiled. “If you have any more you want to get out of your system, that’s perfectly alright.” Emily didn’t give much for words other than the squint of her eyes as they started to water again. It quickly became a muffled sob as she was once more tight in Joyce’s arms. All the while her rock looked down at her so fondly, but of course with troves of care and concern backing her every affection. “And here...” Joyce leaned in, pressing her lips on Emily’s forehead. “One magic charm for a good night’s sleep. On the house!” The odd transition was enough to stun Emily’s tears for a moment, enough that she giggled a small bit before going back to her tears. Joyce did look up at the ceiling with a slight bit of uncertainty. For now, I suppose we may have to consider what a new normal looks like for us... Hey everyone! So, it goes without saying that it's been a solid minute since I last posted here. Anywhere at all, really. Crazy to think I last touched base with everyone almost half a year ago...Time really flies. College has been an experience, to say the least. Thankfully I'm taking classes on campus, but not so thankfully that 95% of the experience is still online, and I'm limited in what I can do here. May have to consider taking classes from home next semester. I'm extremely sorry for keeping you all in the dark; I've touched on this before, but I feel guilty when I'm active on this forum in any capacity and it doesn't somehow involve a content addition to any of my stories/a new short. I guess it sort of feels like an obligation to you guys, but maybe that's something I need to work on. Sheltered is not dead, and neither is Illegal Immigrant. I'll say it once more, Unless I make an official announcement, and it will be super official and be made abundantly clear for its respective story, a story of mine is not discontinued/abandoned unless I say so. Thank you for being so invested in my stuff; it means so much hearing the kind words, especially people I can identify as readers of mine for over a year now. I want to be more active, and hopefully this isn't just wishful thinking. I'll try to do better with this and sincerely want to start writing again. I have been, truthfully, but I need to redirect that a little bit to get back into the groove. So thanks for putting up with me, and I love to hear and read all your comments! If you've sent me messages and I haven't responded at the time of this comment, I promise I will get back to you, it's just very late/early at the moment for me, and pesky 8am classes beckon to me. P.S. I cannot vent my frustration enough about getting a new graphics card. All I want is an RTX 3080 ("All", I know, it sounds silly), but alas stock is at an all-time low and every bot underneath the sun is so driven to inflate prices. I wanna scream every time I get one of these things into my virtual cart and its gone faster than I can click a button. Just venting though! Hopefully that has a turn of good luck soon... 24 1 Link to comment
Scarlet Posted September 30, 2020 Share Posted September 30, 2020 Great to see this back. This was a really good chapter. It was a great way to end the parents visit. Very sad to see that Emily lost her job but at least it seems like it was more circumstances surrounding her department rather than a specific failure of hers causing her to lose her job. Link to comment
Bel George Posted September 30, 2020 Share Posted September 30, 2020 What a nice surprise to see a new chapter here. This is one of my all-time favourite stories and I'm so happy to read that it will be continued. 1 Link to comment
BabySofia Posted October 1, 2020 Share Posted October 1, 2020 I was excited to see this when I came home tonight! Looking forward to more! Link to comment
sparky_dude Posted October 2, 2020 Share Posted October 2, 2020 Thank you for continuing. This may sound weird seen as I'm a new user but I have being reading AB/DL stores for a long time and this one has being my absolute favourite. I hope college treats and hope to see more as this story continues. (hear about the graphics card, give it a bit and they will be back in stock before you know it.) Link to comment
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