diaper dimension Done Adulting, Vol. 2 (Final chapter posted 12/21/20)

[Gentle Gemma]

So I was at the Kennedy space center a few weeks ago and spotted this... coincidence or homage Alex? 

 

Not gonna lie.  In my head I flawlessly read 'James Patrick Webb". ?

[Alex Bridges]

Chapter 73

 

Jamie slid the last of his eggs off his plate and onto the floor in the hopes that Kazoo would finish them before Manda got back. The dog happily obliged. He’d eat almost anything given to him but was good about not eating off tables or out of the trash, all of which would be a challenge for him anyway given his small size. “Good boy,” Jamie encouraged him. Jamie liked eggs, but he was also trying to lose some of the baby fat he’d acquired over the last few months of emotional eating and didn’t want Amanda or his mom to know that.

“Done with your breakfast already,” Manda asked him as she walked back into the kitchen.

“Yeah.”

“That was quick.”

“I was hungry.” Jamie gingerly hopped down from the chair and reached up to get his plate. He carried it to the sink and slid it onto the counter. “Do you think I could have a step stool at your house,” he asked.

“Our house, and let’s see after we’ve been there a while. You in a hurry to do dishes?”

“I just wanna help.”

“I know. But you don’t have to. You do plenty of chores.”

“I just keep my room clean and straighten the living room.”

“And you sweep sometimes,” Amanda reminded him. “And clean up after Kazoo ... Who has egg on his nose. Didn’t like your breakfast?”

“I was full.”

Amanda looked skeptical but didn’t say anything. She washed his plate and fork and set it in the drainer. “Sunshine time,” she declared and picked up Jamie as she she turned to carry him outside. “I think you’ve been inside too much. You’re normally much more tan this time of year.”

“That’s not necessarily a good thing.”

“Not necessarily a bad thing, either. We keep you covered in sunblock. You get lots of Vitamin D.”

“We could go to the pool today,” he suggested.

“As soon as Mom gets home. Arms up.” He lifted his arms, and she got his shirt off him before pouring lotion into her hand and massaging it into Jamie’s skin.

“How was your date last night,” he asked.

“Good. Sandbox or swing set?”

“Actually, I wanna talk about your date,” Jamie replied. He was nervous to bring this up, but it seemed pressing. He wanted to tell her before she did something rash like break up with this person just because she thought she needed to for his sake.

“I’m not sure that’s a good topic for us,” Amanda said, “and besides, you know no one is ever going to replace you”. She tried to say lightly, cheerfully even. She didn’t want to upset him. She just didn’t want to talk about dating right now, not when things were seeming simple for the first time in months, a state she didn’t expect to last with the move in a few days. Why not let it be and keep the day fun, just fun.

“Then can I talk?”

“Why don’t we start a new sand castle?”

“Manda, I have something to say.”

“Jamie, you know I value your opinion, but I really don’t want to talk about dating with you.” A hint of irritation came through in her voice. It wasn’t that he was a little bit Jamie, and perhaps more so that she spent enough time thinking about this on her own.

“But I do.” He was trying to sound pleasant and not make her defensive, at least not any more than she already was. He hadn’t thought it would be such a sensitive topic, and he hadn’t even actually said anything yet. He didn’t mean to pick a fight, and he wasn’t sure if he was, but he wanted to say his piece. He’d been waiting for a time, and this was the first good opportunity.

“But I don’t.”

“It’s kinda tiring having people worry about me all the time,” he decided to say. Perhaps approaching the topic from his perspective would disarm her. She never minded talking about his feelings, encouraged it even.

“What do you mean,” she asked.

“You and Mom are always so worried I’m going to get upset about something or how stuff is going to affect me. It makes me feel like I have to manage my emotions so that I can manage your emotions.”

“We don’t meant to do that. It’s just that we do worry about you. Kind of our job.”

“I know, but sometimes I think you worry about stuff you don’t need to worry about ... like dating.”

“Jamie ...”

“No. I’m gonna say this. Okay? I know when I first got here I was really upset by you dating, but I’m over it, and I said so months ago. If you want to date and be in relationships and make other people part of your life, you should. I don’t like you not having someone in your life because of me, and I don’t like you trying to protect me this way. Okay?”

“There are a lot of reasons I haven’t been in a long term relationship, Jamie. They’re not all about you.”

“You told Mel that you didn’t bring Ryan around because you didn’t want me to get attached to him with all the changes already going on.”

Manda shook her head and muttered, “I’m gonna kill her.”

“She didn’t tell me. I heard you tell her.”

“Jamie, sweetheart, if I wanted to tell you, I would, so let’s ...”

“No! How do you think it makes me feel to find out I’m the reason why you’re keeping this person at arm’s length? It makes me feel like I’m a drag on your life. Like a burden.”

Amanda closed her eyes in a long blink. She hadn’t considered that. She hadn’t thought of it in those terms, but the way he said it made the truth of it clear. By trying not to put it on him, she’d done exactly that. She wouldn’t have if he hadn’t heard her, but he had.

“And it’s not fair to you, either,” Jamie continued. “You need to make yourself happy if you want to make anybody else happy. That’s what I want. I want to see you put yourself first.”

“Are you done,” she asked.

“Yeah.”

“I will take some time to think about what you said, okay?”

“Okay.”

“I’m going to go pack your bag for the pool. Are you good out here alone?”

“Of course.”

“Okay.” Amanda slid Jamie off the chair and onto his feet and then walked back into the house. That was the closest she’d ever come to putting her foot down and declaring a topic off limits to him, and she prided herself on being able to talk to Jamie about anything. She bragged about it even, telling her friends she had a confidante in her little who was wise and smart and empathetic. But the topic of dating was different.

If the conversation were about any boy or dating in general, it would’ve been different. That she was already conflicted over what to do with what was supposed to have been a summer romance obviously made it hard to discuss. She wished Jamie hadn’t said anything. She was stringing this person along and knew it, and she didn’t know if Jamie were her excuse for it or if there were other reasons why she didn’t just end it or make it more serious. It made her angry, a little, that he had brought it up and made it seemingly more complicated than it already was. 

Why it was complicated, she didn’t really know. There were reasons besides Jamie that she’d never had a long term relationship, and some of them were probably the same reasons she didn’t commit to Ryan, but the case of Ryan specifically was different. She was keeping him at arm’s length, and she was well aware of it. She just didn’t know why that seemed right to her. For his part, Ryan didn’t care about not meeting her family, but neither did he meet her friends. He liked her, and he was becoming impatient because he knew she was putting him off. They both knew, and Amanda neither wanted to let him into her life or to let him go. What did that make Ryan to her, and what did that make her, she wondered.

And Jamie, for all his wisdom, was still a little. He didn’t always know what was best for him, and that’s where Manda’s and Becky’s judgment came in. Jamie didn’t need to make a new friend and then lose him, least of all because of Manda. But he did have a point. Jamie wasn’t going anywhere. She couldn’t let her concern for him stop her from pursuing new relationships. Ryan was beside the point, as far as that went. She never pictured being with him forever. He was just a symptom.

 

 

————————

 

“Amanda,” Becky said while Jamie napped in the shade by their chairs, “you want to tell me what’s going on between you and Jamie today?”

“We had a little argument, sort of.”

“About what?”

“Nothing. Dating. Not a big deal.”

“Well, whatever it was, when he wakes up, apologize.”

“How do you know I’m the one who should apologize?”

“Because you’re going to be the bigger person.”

“Mom!”

“No. He’s a little, and you’re going to make this right, understood?”

“Did he say something to you?”

“I can tell when there’s something bothering him, and you two aren’t acting like yourselves with each other.” Their demeanor seemed frosty, not like their usual playful selves. They’d hardly spoke to one another since Becky got home.

“He just crossed the line a little bit talking about dating. I’m not mad at him ... I don’t think he’s mad at me.”

“Did he tell you doesn’t want you dating, because, honey, littles get jealous.”

“No, he told me wanted me to date and actually try for a relationship ... I don’t wanna talk about it with you, either, alright?”

Becky was surprised and not. Jamie had spoken to her about wanting Amanda to have a normal life for someone her age. She hadn’t thought he’d say anything to Amanda about it, but it wasn’t a shock that he had. It was a rarity for Jamie to become blunt with them, but every once in a long while he would. Becky understood why Amanda wouldn’t want to discuss it with him. Still, Amanda needed to resolve whatever lingered over the conversation. It was her responsibility as the big to literally be the bigger person even if she didn’t want to be, and on top of that was the simple fact that they didn’t need any tension in their lives right now with moving day so close.

“Fine,” Becky said, “but talk to him when he wakes up, would you?”

“Yeah.”

 

—————————

 

Amanda had just gotten back from the snack bar, refilling her water bottle, when Jamie began to wake. His shade had moved, and he enjoyed the warm sun on the soles of his feet. He wasn’t in a especial hurry to get up. Perhaps he’d picked the wrong day or the wrong approach to what he’d said to his sister. It had been several days since he’d told Ella he was going to talk to Amanda about dating, and with the move bearing down, it seemed like time was short, even though Jamie knew it wasn’t.

Still, he hadn’t expected Amanda to become defensive, to try to close down the conversation entirely. It wasn’t how he envisioned or wanted the conversation to go, to the extent it had even been a conversation. He was only as direct as he was because she tried to shut down the discussion, leaving no room for subtlety. He regretted as well having told her how her decision made him feel. He knew there was something to what she’d said about her decision not being all about him, but more importantly, he shouldn’t have made a conversation about her welfare about his feelings, not when the entire point was to get her to put herself first, yet if making her appreciate the unintended consequence of her decision helped her to do that, than it seemed worth it.

Jamie reached his left foot up to scratch his right calf, and Amanda saw and suspected he was awake. He put his foot down, and she saw him tense, confirming it. She set her drink down and got down on all fours next to Jamie while her mom watched. Putting her mouth close to Jamie’s ear, she asked, “Are you done?”

After a moment, he replied, “Mhmm.”

“Let’s go get you cleaned up.” She reached for his sunglasses and held them in front of his face as he propped himself onto his elbows and then took his glasses, sliding them on. He sniffed and then coughed, clearing his throat. He liked napping outside more than his allergies did. Amanda came to her knees before picking him up and carrying him to the locker room on her hip.

Once there, she got his diaper bag from their locker and went into one of the changing rooms. Amanda remembered the locker room from when she was very young, when there was no such thing as an automated changing table that cleaned itself and most parents changed their babies and littles on the same benches where kids and adult bigs got dressed. Probably she was even changed on one of those benches herself. So much at the pool seemed to stay the same year after year - the concrete, the pump house, the smell of the water, the taste of the cheeseburgers, the owner at the front desk always in such a foul mood and his wife the exact opposite - but it hadn’t. Amanda certainly hadn’t.

She laid Jamie on the table and untaped his nap diaper. She cleaned him without speaking, and when she was done she washed her hands and handed him a wipe. He blew his nose and handed the wipe back, which she tossed into the chute along with the used diaper. “Wanna get back in the pool,” she asked.

“Yeah, if we’re not leaving soon.”

“We’re not,” she replied as she chose a swim diaper from the bag and threaded it up his legs. He lifted his hips to help her, and when it was on snug, she helped him up and then set him on his feet. Bag in hand, they walked back to their locker where Manda put the bag away and got Jamie’s speedo from the hook they’d put it on to dry. It was still damp and now cool as she held it open for Jamie to step into.

“C’mon,” she said as she took his hand and led him back into the sun. She headed straight for main pool where Jamie rarely went. He preferred the lap pool for laps and the littles’ pool for everything else. The main pool - the largest of the four at the club - was where kids played, and it was too chaotic for Jamie’s small frame even if he was a good swimmer, better than the kids for sure.

Jamie followed unsure why she took him over there but not minding. He wasn’t in a hurry to get back in either of his customary pools and suspected she wanted to talk away from their mother. She seemed to confirm it when she approached a woman seated next to the pool in a lounge chair and asked, “Excuse me? May my little and I borrow your raft?”

“Sure,” the woman said, smiling at the pretty young woman she often saw at the pool but whose name she didn’t know and the little who everybody recognized as the one who could swim, Jamie who you weren’t supposed to rescue if you saw him in the water alone.

“Thank you.” She let go of Jamie’s hand, and he stepped over the rim of the pool and jumped into with a hand in the gutter to keep himself from going under. They were closer to the shallow end where the water was feet over his head. Amanda followed suit and then clambered onto the raft. Straddling it like a chair, she reached down and plucked Jamie from the water, setting him on her lap and then putting her feet back onto the raft before reclining backward and gently pulling at Jamie so he did the same.

“How’s that feel,” she asked.

“Good,” he sighed. Water washed over her, swirling around Jamie’s head and cooling them both. He waited for her to speak first not out of stubbornness but uncertainty. She paddled gently away from the edge of the pool wary to stay out of the way of the kids at their games. Jamie couldn’t play with them. The pool games - splash, gutter ball, and even movie gave too much advantage to height and arm span. He could race the kids, but most of them found racing boring.

“I’m sorry I was curt with you earlier,” Amanda said.

“I’m sorry I was so blunt about it. I just wanted to say that, even if it’s not really my business.”

“It is your business.”

“Sorry I pushed it is all.”

“Just promise me that in the future if you want to talk about something and I don’t, that you’ll talk about it anyway. It wasn’t right of me to just cut you off.”

“I didn’t meant to be a jerk about it.”

“I know. And I didn’t mean to make you feel bad about my dating life. It’s not your fault. It’s my own hang up.”

“Thanks.”

“I think you’ve just been my excuse for a while.”

“So why haven’t you been in a long term relationship? Even a casual one?”

“I’m not sure, Jamie.”

“Do you wanna talk about it now?”

“No, not now.”

“When you’re ready, I’ll listen.”

“Ya know what I’m ready to do? I’m ready to toss you into the air and watch you make a big splash.”

“Okay,” Jamie said with a goofy laugh. 

“Ready?” Manda sat up and put her hands under Jamie’s butt. 

“Yeah!” Jamie answered with excited anticipation.

“Backwards!” She propelled Jamie up and over her head. Grabbing at air, he came down behind her and sunk beneath ten feet of water. He came up under the raft, grabbed his glasses before they sank, and grasped at the edge of it to pull himself back up.

“Sorry,” Amanda was saying to the lifeguard.

“Game over already,” Jamie asked.

“Guess that’s a beach game.”

“Let’s just float.”

He pushed himself onto the raft, and Amanda dragged him the rest of the way on. “We good,” she asked.

“Yeah.”

She bent her head down to kiss the top of his. “Whose bear are you?”

“Yours.”

“And you’re a good bear, always.”

 

 

[kerry]

Adorable, as always. 

Last night, at a Littles munch, someone asked me what I actually wanted, if I could get what I desired. I honestly was stumped for an answer. Talking about being a little and the things I'd like from a caregiver seemed suddenly very...selfish. But when I read this chapter I knew the answer readily: I want what Jamie has in his relationship with Amanda. I know that the DD is fantasy, but this is so sweet and wonderful that I can't help myself.

[Shotgun Diplomat]

36 minutes ago, Alex Bridges said:

grabbed his glasses

Jamie wears glasses? Why is this the first time in all of your saga that I am noticing this? 

[Alex Bridges]

21 minutes ago, Shotgun Diplomat said:

Jamie wears glasses? Why is this the first time in all of your saga that I am noticing this? 

Sunglasses 

34 minutes ago, kerry said:

Adorable, as always. 

Last night, at a Littles munch, someone asked me what I actually wanted, if I could get what I desired. I honestly was stumped for an answer. Talking about being a little and the things I'd like from a caregiver seemed suddenly very...selfish. But when I read this chapter I knew the answer readily: I want what Jamie has in his relationship with Amanda. I know that the DD is fantasy, but this is so sweet and wonderful that I can't help myself.

I know. Me too.

12 hours ago, Gentle Gemma said:

So I was at the Kennedy space center a few weeks ago and spotted this... coincidence or homage Alex? 

 

Not gonna lie.  In my head I flawlessly read 'James Patrick Webb". ?

You’re right: they named the observatory after Jamie. I’m gonna sue, though, because this wasn’t properly licensed. ?

[BaronBrook]

@kerry Yeah, the more I think about it, the more I think being little is about having relationships and emotional connections. The diapers, clothes, and props are mostly metaphors for or ways to get those interactions.

Thinking back on the character of Ella's sister, I think there may be a parallel. The other Bigs were respectful & distant, so she only got the props.

What really satisfied was Donna choosing to treat her like a regressed little. She got that type of interaction she craved.

@Shotgun Diplomat Sunglasses, I think. For sunbathing?

[SGTbaby]

Love the relationship and how Amanda doesn’t always know what to do but then again I also like how realistic this story is! 

[the diaper mike]

cute and sweet

[Sarah Penguin]

1 hour ago, Shotgun Diplomat said:

Jamie wears glasses? Why is this the first time in all of your saga that I am noticing this? 

Same here.  They might be magic earthside swim goggles that give him oceanic powers beyond those of mortal regressed men.

[Shotgun Diplomat]

2 hours ago, Alex Bridges said:

Sunglasses 

Thank-you. Both for the clarification, and for the new chapter. I am rather happy that both Jamie and Amanda were able to have a proper sussing out of what bothered them. Really well done. Thanks again. 

[WBDaddy]

6 hours ago, BaronBrook said:

@kerry Yeah, the more I think about it, the more I think being little is about having relationships and emotional connections. The diapers, clothes, and props are mostly metaphors for or ways to get those interactions.

Being a CG who did my share of experimenting on that side of the ledger (mostly by myself as I was figuring out who I was), I can emphatically agree with this.  

[littleTomás]

10 hours ago, Alex Bridges said:

You’re right: they named the observatory after Jamie. I’m gonna sue, though, because this wasn’t properly licensed. ?

I can see the headlines already: NASA Sued by Alex Bridges, a Writer of Kinky Fiction, Over Naming Rights To James Webb Space Telescope.

Great chapter. I like how you acknowledge that Jamie and Manda's relationship isn't always rainbows and cuddles, but they too sometimes have problems that need to be worked out.

[Alex Bridges]

Chapter 74

 

“So what’d you guys do last night,” Mel asked in the kitchen as Amanda ate a donut.

“We ordered pizza and watched a movie. Low key.”

“Watch anything good?”

“Wasn’t bad. Probably wouldn’t have rented it on my own.”

“One of Jamie’s movies or one of your mom’s?”

“Mom’s. She should be down soon. Thanks for watching Jamie today.”

“Between helping you move stuff and watching Jamie, I’m super glad you asked me to watch Jamie.”

“We loaded the truck yesterday,” Amanda said. They’d rented a moving truck to move all the furniture that wouldn’t fit in Becky’s SUV. It made it more convenient anyway since everything fit in there and they’d only need to make the one trip. Unloading it would be more of a chore, but  Kyle was meeting them at the apartment to help. Amanda hadn’t asked Ryan; it didn’t feel right to ask someone she was planning on breaking up with soon.

“Even better for me,” Mel said. “How’s Jamie doing?”

“A little subdued even though I’m not actually sleeping there tonight. The bed’s being delivered the day after tomorrow. Just figured we’d knock this out and not have to screw with it all in one day.”

“Makes sense.”

“I wanted to give Jamie a little treat today, though,” Amanda said nervously.

“What’d you get him?”

“Just ...” Amanda lowered her voice. “Promise you’ll keep it a secret?”

“Yeah,” Mel whispered, anxious to know what it was and why Amanda was being secretive about it.

“Remember when he and Ella took the little extract?”

“Of course,” Mel laughed. “How could I forget?”

“I put a drop in his bottle. The blue one.”

“Won’t that make him sick?”

“Just a drop should be fine. I just wanted him to be in a good mood today,” Amanda explained. She’d been so worried he’d have a miserable day and sulk through the entire week. The idea to slip him a drop of little extract had come to her after she’d decided against giving him one of the leftover motion sickness pills. She didn’t want him to know she gave him something. That was a whole other ethical dilemma, but she was certain if she asked Jamie if he wanted a drop, the answer would be a resounding yes. After a little internet research, she learned a drop wouldn’t make him ill, and so she snuck it in his bottle with the blue ring.

“I’m surprised at you,” Mel said. It wasn’t chastisement exactly, but Amanda had been the one most displeased with Jamie and Ella’s experimental misbehavior that day. It didn’t bother Mel. She still let him have beer when he slept over; it was a secret the two of them had.

“Not that big a deal when it’s supervised. Like when mom let us have wine coolers when we were in secondary school. Besides, not really any different than if he ate a whole thing of cookies. He’ll just be silly.”

“So feed him the blue bottle for breakfast. Any other instructions?”

“Yeah. Just have fun with him today. I want him to have a good day.”

“We’ll do our best.” She’d been looking forward to having Jamie for a whole day. She didn’t have anything planned except to spend the day playing and trying to distract him from any unhappy thoughts about the move. That would be a lot easier with what Amanda had done.

“Morning, Mel,” Becky said as she stepped into the kitchen.

“Morning. Big day.”

“Thanks again for watching Jamie.”

“My pleasure.”

“Ready to go, Amanda?”

“Yeah. Before it starts to get too hot.” 

“We’re off then,” Becky said. She took the keys to the truck from the counter, and Amanda took her mom’s keys. She usually left her car for Mel, but this time it was because they’d packed some items into the SUV.

After another round of thanks and byes, Mel looked at the box of donuts and took a bite from one. There was just one other left, for Jamie. She looked at the clock on the oven and decided to wake him.

In the nursery, Mel leaned over the crib rail and watched Jamie’s chest rise and fall, his little form wrapped around his bear and his pacifier not very firmly between his lips. She lowered the rail and got a diaper from the changing table. She wanted to feed him before his bath and suspected he was too wet to wait for a change. She straightened him out and began to change his diaper, waking him as she did.

“Morning, Jamie bear,” she sang to him. “Who’s a rested little boy this morning?”

“Morning,” he said as he wiped the sleep from his eyes. “Did they leave already?”

“Yes, which means,” she said as she sealed the tape on his new diaper, “that you and I are on our own to have fun today. Staring with getting you a donut.”

“Little donut,” Jamie asked hopefully.

“I think so.” He let go of his bear, and she lifted him from the crib onto her hip, leaning over and giving him a peck on the cheek. “I think today is the day I finally gobble you up.”

Jamie giggled and wiggled his hips. Mel had done a very good job with his diaper. It felt reassuringly snug. She put him on a chair, and he reached for his donut, wasting no time in indulging in the chocolatey goodness.

“Wait for me,” Mel said as she took his bottle from the fridge along with a carton of cow’s milk for her. She put his bottle on the table and poured a glass for herself, then sat down to work on her donut. She wondered if he’d taste anything different in his bottle. “I thought we’d just stay in today. How does that sound?”

“Good,” he said as he finished his donut. Jamie had a way of gobbling up little food like it was nothing.

“Uh oh,” Mel said. “No more donut!”

“You’re being kinda silly this morning,” Jamie said.

“I’m just a morning person.”

“Since when?”

“Since I get to spend the morning with you, Mr. Chocolate Face.” She spit on a napkin and wiped around Jamie’s mouth, getting the icing off. “What a mess you can make,” she said lightheartedly.

Jamie smiled and looked at his bottle. If she wanted to be silly and play what Jamie thought of as the Little Game with him, he was happy to oblige. “Aunt Mel, how does a baba work,” he asked.

She smiled knowingly and reached for him, picking him up and cradling him in her arms. “Like this,” she said as she reached for the bottle. “First we take the Jamie Bear; then we take the baba; and then the Jamie Bear goes ‘ah,’ and we put the baba in.”

“Ahhhhh,” Jamie said as Mel put the nipple in between his lips.

“Silly bear.”

“You’re silwy,” Jamie lisped around the bottle as he nursed. Mel patted his butt as he drank.

“Wanna bath when you’re finished,” she asked. Jamie shook his head. In one more long draw, he finished his bottle.

“All gone,” he said, surprised at how quickly he’d finished it. Mel set the bottle on the table and shifted Jamie so he was seated on her lap looking up at her. She looked at his eyes. They seemed bright.

“Can I ask you a question,” she asked.

“Uh huh.”

“What’s it like being the only Jamie Bear?”

He chuckled once. “It’s a lot of responsibility. Gotta represent the bwand. Brand. And demonstrate fortitude in the face of advwersity. Huh ... Adversity.” 

Wow, Mel thought, that was fast. Wonder how long it’ll last.

“What kind of adversity?”

“Rival bears. Wannabes.”

“There are other bears?”

“Oh, yeah. This one time, at little care, there was this girl who was wearing a bear a sleeper like mine, and I said to myself, I said, ‘No, Devil, you lie!’ Because I knew she wasn’t really a bear like me. Hahahahahaha!”

Mel laughed so hard she snorted. “Any other bears out there you gotta watch out for?”

Jamie looked left and right conspiratorially, as though making sure no one was listening except Mel. “Can you keep a secret?”

“I think I can.”

“It’s about Kazoo. He’s a bear.”

“I though he was a dog.”

“No!” Jamie pounded his fist into his palm. “Everybody says that, but dogs are bears. They are bears bears bears! I am not crazy!”

“Settle down,” Mel cooed, “No need to get loud.”

“Was I loud? I’m not a loud person. I’m very quiet,” he whispered. “I feel funny.”

“Oh, you do, huh?”

“In fact, I feel hilariosity. Hilaritietious. Hiwarlity ... hiwarwity ... hilariharry ... very funny.”

Mel kept her lips tightly together and asked, “Ready for a bath yet?”

“Is it bath time already? We just had dinner.”

“Breakfast.”

“No need to be loud.”

“I’m not being loud.”

“O ... what’s it like being fourteen feet tall? Do you get dizzy when you stand up?”

“It’s ... tall. And no. What’s it like being five-and-half feet tall?”

“I worry about getting stepped on sometimes. You gotta be quick. You gotta be agile. You gotta have moves! Like a ninja ... ninja bears. O my god, that’s a scary thought. They’d take over the whole world.”

“You’d be their king.”

“Maybe. But it’d be risky, like, what if they find out my secret?”

“What’s your secret?”

Jamie rolled his eyes. “That’s not how secrets work.”

“O,” she chuckled. 

“Can I tell you a secret?”

“I thought that wasn’t how secrets work.”

“O. You’re right.” He thought for a moment. “I guess I won’t tell you a secret.”

“How about a bath instead?”

“Why?”

“So we can clean you up?”

“Why?”

“So when I eat you all up I don’t get food poisoning.”

Jamie visibly shrank and went limp. “No. Please don’t. I don’t wanna be eaten up all,” A tear escaped his eye. “I don’t wanna be eaten up all!”

“Shh,” Mel said, stroking his cheek. “I was only teasing. I won’t eat you all up.”

“I knew it! That’s called acting! Hahahahahahaha!”

Mel shook her head. This was a silly, hyper, weird bear. “Bath time,” she said as she stood up and carried him toward the bathroom. Jamie was easy to bathe, except perhaps not when he was ready to start bouncing off walls like a toddler. She set him on the rug and knelt down to turn the warm water on, then took off her shirt to keep it dry, expecting him to be a splasher today. Jamie watched her, and she watched Jamie, and he pulled his diaper down and stepped out of it. She smiled at him and turned to test the water. Jamie, totally naked and seeing his chance, sprinted away.

“Jamie,” Mel called after him. She shut the water off and made a right out of the bathroom toward the living room.

“Can’t catch me,” she heard him say. She turned into the living room just as he streaked by her into the dining room.

“Jamie, you silly bear, I’ma get you!”

“Only if you catch me!” She made an exaggerated show of reaching down to swoop him into her arms and let him get away. He dashed into the kitchen and paused at the table with a mischievous look in his eye. She looked back at him. Smiling, he reached up onto the table and took ahold of the half eaten donut still sitting there and took a big bite as he laughed.

“That’s my donut, you thieving bear,” Mel said as she bent down and put her hands on her knees. “Now I’m really gonna get ya!”

“No, you won’t!”

“Yes, I will!”

“No!” He dropped the donut back on the table and ran toward the door to the garage. Not wanting to chase a naked little around the front yard, Mel moved toward him ready to snatch him up for real, but this time he actually did avoid her arms and ran under her legs. He really does have moves, she marveled. He was gone when she spun around, leaving only a trail of breathless giggles.

She followed it back toward the living room. “I’ma get this bear, and then it’s bath time!” She heard his feet climbing the stairs and let him keep his head start, taking big, loud steps behind him as he disappeared around the corner. “That bear better hide if he knows what’s good for him,” she called out.

Jamie headed into Manda’s room. There were plenty of places for him to hide. Her closet, under the bed. He could even have gotten into one of her empty dresser drawers, but they were all too obvious, or so he thought. He chose instead the boxes that were still there in the corner, the ones Amanda wasn’t moving until the day she actually moved in, and hid behind them. He did his best to not giggle so loud.

“I bet he’s in here,” Mel said loudly as she looked in Becky’s room. “Aha!” She cried out as she made an audible show of jumping around the corner into the empty room. 

She headed toward the bathroom, saying loudly, “That bear tricked me! He’s gonna be so got he’s gonna wish I didn’t get him so bad!” She could hear Jamie laughing from Manda’s room. “Aha!” She yanked back the shower curtain. “Ooh! That tricky bear!”

She headed for Amanda’s room. “If he’s not in here, I guess he escaped and I’m gonna hafta find a new Bear before Manda gets home.” She could hear him tittering from behind the boxes and checked under the bed first, then the covers, then the closet. 

Then she heard it, the unmistakable sound of a stream of liquid hitting carpet from several feet in the air. Crap, she thought. Oh well, just another chore.

“Found you,” she said as she stood over the little boy and the puddle he’d just made. Jamie’s lips trembled. “Oh, don’t cry,” she said as she bent over and scooped him up. “It’s just an accident. It’s a pretty exciting game!”

“I lost,” he whined, the real reason he was upset.

“You lost?”

“You found me!” Jamie didn’t like losing, and playing was more fun than being caught.

“But you tricked me so bad. You’re good at that game. What do you call it?”

“I dunno.”

“What if we called it ‘Naked Hide ‘n Seek’?” It wasn’t really hide ‘n seek, but close enough.

“Can we play it naked?”

Mel laughed hard at that. “Well, you can, silly bear.” She went downstairs to the kitchen and got the paper towels and carpet spray, then walked back upstairs with Jamie on her hip. He sat on the carpet while she cleaned the spot he’d been standing on, scrubbing at it.

“I peed on Manda’s carpet,” he announced. “I shouldn’t do that at her new place.”

“No,” Mel chuckled, “you shouldn’t, but accidents happen. That’s why little boys wear diapers.”

“I didn’t used to need them.”

“What’s that?”

“Diapers. Mom made me and then Manda said it was a good idea and I went along with it.”

“What,” Mel asked as she sprayed more cleaner on the carpet.

“After breakfast, may I have a bath,” he asked. Just more nonsense from a hopped up Jamie Bear. 

Mel folded a bunch of paper towels together and laid them over the spot, then stood up and put her foot on them, getting as much out of the pad under the carpet as she could. “I think that’s the best we can do.” She reached down to put Jamie back on her hip and carried him and the paper towels and the cleaner back to the downstairs bathroom. She threw the paper towels away, set the cleaner on the vanity, and set Jamie in the tub, where the water was now cold and came up to his ankles.

“You’re not getting away from me again,” she said in a sing-song voice. She turned the hot water back on and let it fill until the water was warm, then turned the faucet back to a tolerable temperature and sat Jamie down, sweeping his knees out from under him into her arms and plopping him onto his butt. She let the water run until it covered his belly and turned it off.

“How ya feeling,” she asked him.

“Can you turn down the lines?”

“The what?”

“The lines.”

“What lines?”

“The wavy ones on the wall.” Mel looked at the pattern painted onto the wall, a series of white, wavy lines just above the rim of the bathtub as an accent against the blue paint.

“Um, sure.” She touched the wall and rotated her fingers a quarter turn. “Better?”

“Yeah. You never answered me.”

“Sorry. What was the question?”

“After breakfast, can I have a bath?”

Mel lost it and cracked up, which confused Jamie but so long as she was laughing hysterically, why not him as well, and they both laughed until they were crying. They sighed when they were done and looked at each other.

Jamie’s eyes flitted to his right and then back to Mel. “So is that a yes?”

“Yes,” she said as she began to laugh again and reached for the washcloth and soap.

“Thank you.” He relaxed as she washed him all over until the water was murky with soap before pouring a tiny bit of shampoo onto his hair and lathering his scalp. She styled it into a mohawk and got her phone from her pocket.

“Look at me,” she said so Jamie would look at the camera and not his toy shark for a moment. She snapped the picture and he went back to looking at his shark.

“That your favorite bath toy,” she asked.

“Yeah. I wanna play with it later when I take my bath. After breakfast.”

“Okay,” she tittered. “Close your eyes for me.” He did, and she dipped the pitcher under and then poured it over his head, then filled it again and poured it again.

“You can open.” He did, and he reached for his rubber ducky.

“It’s very unusual,” he said, “for a shark and a duck to get along. We should tell someone.”

“About your shark and duck?”

“Yes. It could be a breakfrough. Peace between the species. Shark goes vegan.”

“Maybe the duck started eating meat.”

“Woah.” Jamie was wide eyed. “Woah. That could ... we have to keep it a secwet. Secwet. See-ker-wit,” he whispered.

“Why is that a secret?”

“It’s pronounced ‘see-ker-wit.’”

“Okay,” Mel chuckled, “why is it a see-ker-wit?”

“Because meat eating ducks could be misconstwued. Mis- fuck it. People wouldn’t let their littles have their ducks in the bath. They’d be afraid the ducks would eat their littles. They’d be taking the ducks away. We can’t let that happen.”

“You’re not afraid of being eaten by your duck?”

“Well, I am now,” he said. He put the duck back on the rim of the tub.

“I think this duck is safe,” she said as she took off the rim and set it afloat. “See? But I think we can keep the see-ker-wit just between the two of us.”

“Ahem.”

“And your duck. Ready to get out?”

“Of what?”

Mel laughed again as she pulled the plug. Jamie certainly seemed no worse for the wear even if he was talking like a drug addled toddler. He seemed to be having a great time, and he was being so freaking funny.

“You stay right there,” she directed him as she reached behind her for the towel. She didn’t want to chase a wet little through the house or see him slip and hurt himself. “Stand.” He did, and she wrapped the towel around him. She picked him up, cradling him once again, and carried him straight to the nursery to get him into a diaper before doing anything else. She then carried him back to the bathroom, combed his hair, and handed him his toothbrush.

“I usually do this after my breakfast and bath,” he said as he handed her the brush back.

“Okay,” Mel said as she took her shirt from the vanity and put it back on. “Then how about we feed you some water. Lots of it, just in case.” She didn’t know if he’d be hung over or not, but it wouldn’t hurt anything. 

In just his diaper, she made him a bottle of water and carried him to the breezeway. The day was warm now, but it was cool under the shade. Mel sat down in the swing and let Jamie drink his bottle on his own as he sat on her thigh. After ten minutes, Amy walked by with her summer charges in tow.

“Hey,” Mel waved from the swing. Amy waved back and crossed the Webbs’ yard to the breezeway.

“You on Jamie duty today,” Amy asked. The two of them were familiar with each other now, having hung out a few times.

“Yeah. Amanda is moving her things today.”

“I think you got the better deal.”

“Of course I did,” Mel said as she bounced Jamie on her knee. “I got this guy, and they got a buncha boxes.”

“Hi, Jamie,” Chelsea said. Davis stood there and pretended to be bored. He hoped no one saw him and realized he’d spent the last half of the summer being babysat, all because of one stupid drink. Jamie took the bottle from his lips and said, “Enjoy your walk.”

“Rushing us away so soon,” Amy asked.

“Jamie just had a bit too much milk,” Mel explained, “and ...” Mel paused, and Amy watched Mel make a face as she felt something new and warm against her leg. Amy smiled and gave Mel a knowing look back.

“Still better than moving boxes?”

“Not my first,” she said.

“Your first what,” Jamie asked.

“Time little sitting you, buddy,” Mel said.

“Guess we will keep walking,” Amy said.

“See you around,” Mel replied. She reached around Jamie and put her hand on his belly, rubbing it in circles. Amy and the kids walked on, and Mel patted Jamie’s thigh and said, “Finish your baba, and then we’ll clean you up.” She felt him going again and wondered if Amanda had gotten some bad information online, if just that drop would make him sick after all. Perhaps it wasn’t the amount but that fact that it hadn’t been cooked that made him sick. The extract was for baking and cooking, not drinking.

Jamie held up his bottle and turned it upside down. “Pounded it,” he declared.

“You’re being so goofy today.”

“I know ... Ya know what we should do today?”

“What’s that?

“Make jello.”

“Seriously, that’s what you wanna do today?”

“Yeah. I wanna watch it wiggle.” Mel couldn’t help but laugh out loud again.

“We’ll see if we have any,” she said. She put him down. “Let’s go change your pants.”

Jamie dashed inside ahead of Mel, waddling as he did. Mel stood up, sighed, and walked back in, heading for the nursery. When she got there, Jamie wasn’t in the room.

“Jamie,” she called. “C’mon, buddy! Let’s change your diaper so we can play some more.” She checked his closet just in case and then headed upstairs. So one drop makes him bounce off the walls but half a dropper makes him taste colors and sing about buffaloes, whatever those are, she thought. Thinking like a toddler, or a high, unregressed little, she headed for Manda’s room. “You’re not leaving me much choice,” she called out. “When I find you, I’m gonna hafta gobble the belly.”

He was hiding in the exact same spot. “Found ya,” she said.

“Her vision is based on movement. She can’t see us if we don’t move,” he said.

“What?”

“Haaaaaahahahahahahaha.” Jamie collapsed in a fit of guffaws at his own joke. Mel scooped him up off the floor and gave his butt a pat. One more diaper like this, and he’s gonna get that second bath, she thought.

As she carried him downstairs to his nursery, he asked, “Can I tell you something?”

“What?”

“Well, I don’t wanna point any fingers, or cast any blame, but someone pooped in this diaper.”

Mel stopped walking and looked at him, trying to tell if he was telling another joke or was just that out of it. When he didn’t say anything else, she replied, “Okay” with a smile and resumed the walk to the nursery.

She laid him on his changing table and strapped him in for good measure. “Can’t get away now,” she said. “And you owe me one tickle belly!”

“Well, let’s change spots then,” he said as he tried for sit up. He was happy to tickle her belly if it would make her happy, too.

“I’ma tickle this belly,” she said as she went after his naked tummy with her fingers. Jamie squeed and thrashed and couldn’t get away. “I’ma tickle this belly til you can’t stand it anymore,” Mel cried as she redoubled her efforts.

“Hehehehehehehehehehehehehehehe,” Jamie giggled until his sides hurt and cheeks cramped.

“And I’ma gobble this belly til it’s all gone!”

“Nooooooooo!”

“Nomnomnomnom a-nomnomnomnom. Pbbbbbbbt! Pbbbt pbbbt pbbbbbbbbt!”

“Hehehehehahahahehehahoo! I give! I give! Uncle!”

“Uncle,” she squeaked. “I’m not your uncle! NOMNOMNOMNOM! PBBBBBBBBT!!!”

“Hehehehehehe! I give up! I hehehehehe I surrender!”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“Good,” Mel said as she straightened up. “Then let’s change this dirty diaper, and then we can look into this jello situation.”

An hour later, while the jello was setting in the fridge and Jamie was asleep on Mel’s chest, Amanda texted to see how things were going.

Mel texted her back, He’s exhausted, I’m tired. Your room smells like carpet cleaner and poopy diapers - don’t worry; separate incidents. There’s jello for dessert. Maybe don’t make a habit of this?

It was fun, though. She just hoped he’d still be feeling good when he woke up; good but sober. She didn’t think she could handle a whole afternoon with him like that. It wasn’t even lunch time yet.

“Such a little nut,” she whispered as she patted his back. “Who’s my little guy? It’s Jamie Bear. Even when he’s crazy.”

[Pierry Louys]

Hahaha what a fun chapter we all need some crazy time haha

[Little Andrea]

Definitely a fun chapter, I totally needed one like this today.

[Gentle Gemma]

What a fun chapter! 

[YourFNF]

Damn where can I get some of that shit? ?

[SGTbaby]

Like giving a kid sugar for the first time...poor Mel...lol. Great little chapter!

[littleTomás]

Well that's one way to go on a drug-crazed trip, lol. Love our high Jamie Bear.

[Alex Bridges]

Chapter 75

 

“How’d it go,” Mel asked when Becky and Amanda came through the door from the garage.

“Good. Dropped off the truck. Brought dinner,” Becky said, holding up a paper sack.

“Tacos,” Amanda said. “We’re gonna have to go back to eating healthy food when we’re done with this. Enjoy it while we can,” she said as she set down a second sack.

“Where’s my boy,” Becky asked.

“Here,” Jamie said as he walked into the kitchen.

“Did you wear pants at all today,” Becky asked with a laugh. 

“Pants are for losers,” Mel replied for him.

“Why the nighttime diaper,” Becky asked.

“His tummy has been a little upset. Nothing serious.”

“Ya feeling okay,” Becky asked as she knelt down and put the back of her palm to his forehead. Mel gave Manda a look.

“Fine,” Jamie said. “How was moving?”

“Also fine,” Becky said as she straightened up while plucking Jamie from the floor. “Dinner time.” She put him on his chair and scooted it close to the table.

Mel stood up to help, explaining, “I made some Littlelyte for him.” She got it from the fridge and made him another glass. She put it front of him.

“How’s the apartment looking,” Jamie asked.

“Good. We got everything unpacked,” Manda said.

“Cleaned as we went.”

“Probably won’t ever be so clean again,” Manda said.

Becky got plates from the cabinet while Amanda opened the bags and laid out the spread.

“Queso,” Jamie said happily.

“I think the cheese would do him good today,” Mel joked.

“We can go over tomorrow and show you,” Manda said to Jamie. “You guys have fun today?”

“Yeah,” Jamie said. “Felt kinda funny this morning, though.”

“Oh yeah? How so,” Amanda asked.

“Milk hit me a little hard this morning. Feel fine now, but maybe I was dehydrated or something.”

“Feeling better now,” Becky asked.

“Yeah.” Amanda put a taco on his plate. “So what did you guys do all day?”

“We played hide and seek, and we took a couple baths, and we napped outside, and played with the hose,” Mel told them.

“A lot of water today,” Becky said.

“May I have some queso please,” Jamie asked. Manda put a small pile of chips on his plate and used another to spoon some queso on top.

“I guess you don’t need another bath tonight,” Manda said.

“I think I’m good,” Jamie chuckled. It was three baths.

After dinner, Becky took Jamie upstairs, leaving Mel and Amanda downstairs. Mel stood next to Manda while she did the dishes. “You need to tell him. I don’t feel so good about what we did,” Mel said.

“Yeah, I’ve been thinking about it, too. Was he sick?”

“Not sick. Just loose and frequent. I don’t think he’d have minded if you just told him.”

“I just wanted ... I don’t know. Give him a treat, some time out of his head. Not sitting here all day moping. Not like I can give him a beer to take the edge off.”

“Well, one, you can, actually. Two, just go tell him. I gotta get home.”

“Sorry. Did you at least enjoy the day?”

Mel chuckled. “He was funny. And adorable. And bouncing around like a wind up toy up until he feel asleep and snored like my dad. Jello is in the fridge.”

“He hates jello.”

“He wanted to watch it wiggle.” Mel couldn’t stop herself from laughing once more, lightly. “Next time just tell him.”

“Sorry, again. See you tomorrow?”

“Probably. Can’t wait to see the place,” Mel said. “Goodnight.” Amanda closed the door behind her and headed upstairs only to find Becky heading down them with Jamie on her hip.

“Someone is stinky,” Becky sang.

“I’ll take him, Mom. My thanks for everything today.”

“Happily. No offense, Jamie.”

“None taken,” Jamie assured her as Becky passed him to Manda.

“I’m gonna go shower. Bring him back up? We’re gonna share the bed tonight.”

“Will do. Let’s go, stinky,” Manda said as she turned and carried him to the nursery.

“Who you calling ‘stinky,’” Jamie asked.

“You, stinky.”

“That’s fair,” Jamie decided.

“You sure you’re feeling okay?”

“Yeah. Just went a lot today.”

“Was it a good day?”

“Yeah. Weird morning.” It was a little fuzzy in his memory.

Manda laid him on his changing table and rolled his shirt up his tummy before laying several wipes on the table next to his feet. She heard the shower running upstairs.

“Let’s see what we’re dealing with,” She said as she untaped his diaper. She grimaced when she opened it. “Let’s get that off you.” She started to clean him. “About today,” she said.

“I’m okay with it,” he quickly said.

“Okay with what?”

“The move. It’s okay.”

“Not that,” Manda said. “I did something stupid today. Remember when you took the little extract? I put a drop in your bottle this morning.”

Jamie’s face clouded over. Amanda didn’t look him in the eye, focusing or pretending to focus on her task. “Why would you do that?”

“I ... aw, shit, Jamie. I’m sorry. I know I fucked up.”

“I’m not mad, exactly. But why?”

“I ... “ Amanda wiped at her eyes with her clean hand. 

“Manda, stop. Don’t get upset.”

“I just wanted you to have a good day,” she said as she started to choke up. “I wanted you to have fun and not sit here all day and be sad because of the move.”

“Stop crying,” he asked her. He’d sit up and hug her, but ... “Manda, please. I’m not mad. Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I was afraid you wouldn’t want to. I was ... hhh ... afraid you’d get mad for ... I don’t even know.”

Jamie was mad, in fact. Only a little. He’d have been happy to experiment with the little extract. He just didn’t like that she hadn’t told him. “Finish what you were doing.”

She made quick work of the rest of the change but took the time to smear a thick layer of rash cream on his butt and bits before sealing him into another thick, nighttime diaper and throwing the badly used one away.

He sat up and held out his arms. She picked him up. “I’m sorry,” she said again.

“I forgive you. Just tell me next time.”

“It’s just ...” She sighed and shook her head. “This is hard for me, too. I thought giving you a fun day was the only good thing I could do for you right now. I didn’t want you to say no.”

“You do a lot of good things for me,” he said while hanging around her neck. She rocked him, and he patted her back.

“I just mean that I know you don’t wanna do this, and there’s nothing I can do to stop it. I have to do this.”

“I know, Manda. It’s okay.”

“I don’t want to not see you everyday,” she said as she teared up again.

“I know. But we’ll make it work. We’ll see each other so much, we’ll be sick of each other.”

“I’m sorry I have to grow up.”

“Me, too.” He picked his head up and kissed her neck. “But we have each other always. It’ll be different, but we’ll make it work.”

“I love you, Jamie.”

“I love you, Manda Bear. Let’s go back upstairs. Will you share the bed with us tonight?”

“Yeah. I’d like that.”

“I did have fun today. Thank you for trying to give me a good day ... It worked.”

“Good.”

“You should go take a shower before Mom sees you’ve been crying.”

“Okay.” She reached into the crib and got his bear. She started back upstairs with him on her chest.

“Manda?”

“Yeah, buddy?”

“You have to eat all the jello.”

“You don’t like jello.”

“I’m not sure why we made it.”

“Such a silly bear,” she said as she sniffed. “I really am sorry.”

“It’s behind us. Let’s just focus on tonight.”

“Okay. I won’t be long,” she said as she put him on their mom’s bed.

“I’ll still be up,” he promised. “Hey,” he said as she reached the door, “Come back for a sec.” She crossed the room again and knelt down next to the bed. “Everything you’ve done to get us ready, picking out a new place for us, all the thought you’ve put into it. Those are all good things you’ve done for me.”

“Thanks for saying so.”

“We’re gonna make a home together.”

She put her hands on his cheeks and kissed him on the forehead. “Yeah we are.”

[Guilend]

?

[Sarah Penguin]

Whee

[Shotgun Diplomat]

What a cute chapter, a great way to start my Tuesday de-stress after work. Thank-you. reading all about Jamie and his life, makes me happy, and I am glad that you write him so very well. 

[littleTomás]

Jamie has really grown in dealing with his emotions. I’m glad he’s come to terms with the move.

[Alex Bridges]

12 minutes ago, littleTomás said:

Jamie has really grown in dealing with his emotions. I’m glad he’s come to terms with the move.

Idk. He might just be trying to make Manda feel better.