The "Forgotten" Homework

[Piddly]

We're probably about 1/2 way through what's written of the story so far at this point - would absolutely love any feedback you guys may have.

I'll continue serialising it a few chapters at a time until it's caught up with the "Official" copy, but any feedback will help to shape new chapters which haven't been written yet. 

Hope you're all enjoying! 

[Piddly]

Part 2 - Chapter 21

Hearing the odd sound, feeling their compartment shudder to a halt and noticing the worried expression on the older girls face, Tom quickly asked “What’s the matter Ellie, why have we stopped?” 

“I’m not sure mate, but I don’t think we’re supposed to have. I think something’s wrong.” 

She craned her neck again to look over the side, noticing lots of movement around the base of the ride, quite a crowd was forming and there were people in high viz jackets running around. Whatever was going on, it didn’t look good at all. And she began to worry about her own predicament. 

“It looks like something’s gone wrong with the ride. Oh I hope they get it going again soon.” Ellie nervously bit her lip and shifted around in her seat, glancing around at the two boys and realising that they were starting to worry because she was. 

“Are you ok Ellie?” Jack was concerned, if this girl who was almost an adult was frightened, then maybe things really were bad? 

“What? Oh, yeah, yeah, it’s nothing. Don’t worry, I’m sure it will be sorted soon and we’ll be zooming back down to the ground again. They’re probably just trying to make it more exciting for us, that’s all.” 

The boys weren’t convinced, her smile was a bit too forced and she really did seem agitated, but they didn’t want to make a fuss. 10 minutes or so had passed, the ride still wasn’t moving and Ellie was looking more and more unhappy with each passing second. Then, from nowhere, a loud voice boomed around them. 

“This is a safety announcement for passengers riding the T-Rex ride. A mechanical breakdown has resulted in a number of carriages remaining suspended on the ride. Our engineers are working to resolve this situation as quickly and safely as possible. If you are currently on-board, please remain seated and listen out for further announcements. Dinoland would like to apologise for the inconvenience caused.” 

Ellie groaned loudly and again shifted in her seat, looking even more worried now. This really wasn’t supposed to happen, and she knew that if they didn’t get back down to the ground soon she was going to have a MAJOR problem. 

“What is it Ellie?” This time Tom was looking at her in concern. “It sounded like they’re trying to fix it real soon, so why’re you sad?” 

Blushing a little as she spoke, Ellie explained her predicament. “Oh boys, I’ve got a problem, and it’s getting really bad. You know when we set off I said I hoped it was a really fast ride? Yeah, well I didn’t just mean that I wanted it to go fast – I really meant that I wanted it to be over fast, because I kinda needed the toilet. Only, now, I don’t just kinda need to go, I really REALLY need to go. I needed to when we were in the line, but didn’t want to lose out place. Now I wish I’d just gone…if I had, I wouldn’t be stuck up here worrying about peeing in my pants. Ooh, I hope they hurry up, this is really really bad.” 

Both boys were amazed by what they’d just heard, surely 13 year olds didn’t have to worry about having an accident? They’d just wait until they got to the toilet, surely? 

“Hey, I know Ellie, how about we try to distract you? I know when I really need to go, it helps me to forget about it for a while if I talk about or do something else.” 

“Hmm, anything’s worth a try I guess. Right now it’s all I can think about. Go on then Jack, tell me about you and your family, and then you Tom. Then I’ll tell you all about mine. Hopefully by the time we’ve finished, the ride will be fixed and we will be back down on the ground.” 

For over half an hour they chatted easily about their families, with Ellie telling them all about her ‘annoying’ little brothers who they’d seen in the queue, Jack musing about Lucy and his Mum, and Tom talking about his life at home and the cousins he played with who lived down the street from them. The distraction seemed to work, as Ellie didn’t once mention her need to use the toilet, although both boys noticed her subconsciously shifting in her seat and even occasionally brushing a hand against her legs. 

Jack didn’t say anything, but he was also beginning to regret skipping the earlier bathroom break now – the water his Mum had made him drink had quickly made it’s way through him, and whilst he wasn’t yet desperate to go he knew it wouldn’t be long before he found himself as uncomfortable as Ellie appeared to be. Oh well, he thought, at least she had some company now, even if she didn’t realise it. 

Having ran out of family anecdotes, the three sat in silence for a short time, until the air was again punctured by the harsh sound of the loudhailer from below. 

“This is a safety announcement. A resolution to the malfunction on the T-Rex ride has been identified and a repair is currently being carried out. We anticipate the ride will be fully operational again within 30 minutes, and will begin evacuating passengers to the ground as soon as it is safe to do so. Thank you for your patience.” 

Ellie practically sobbed when she heard this, she doubted whether she could last another 10 minuted, never mind 30! Oh how she regretted the large Coke she’d ordered with lunch. She couldn’t wet herself, she was 13 for God’s sake, she just couldn’t! “AAARRRGGGHHHHH! Hurry up damnit, I need to peeeeeee!” 

The boys looked worried again, and Jack was secretly worrying about his own ability to ‘hold it’ until they were rescued. Trying desperately to distract both himself and Ellie, he began telling jokes, most of which were pretty lame but did make everybody smile, and more importantly kept their minds of more pressing matters. Then he had a burst of inspiration, and remembering the joke which Tom had found so hilarious in the car, he quickly recited it out loud. 

Tom was soon giggling again, but Ellie’s reaction was just like Tom’s had been in the car – it was the first time she’d heard the joke, and she roared with laughter, holding her sides as tears of mirth rolled down her cheeks. Jack was delighted to have made her laugh so much, it wasn’t often that you could impress somebody so much older than you, after all. 

And then, suddenly, Ellie stopped laughing. Her face set in a look of abject horror, and she burst into tears.

 

Chapter 22

Jack was concerned, what on earth had he said that had upset Ellie so much? “Ellie, are you ok? I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make you cry. What’s the matter?” 

The girl shook her head in an effort to reassure Jack that he’d not upset her, but it took a few moments before she was able to answer. When she did, she wore an expression of utter humiliation and spoke in barely a whisper. 

“Oh Jack, it’s not you. B..but I shouldn’t have laughed like that. What’m I going to do?” 

They boys both looked puzzled, not quite sure what Ellie meant – why shouldn’t she have laughed? It was a funny joke after all, if rather silly (and a little bit rude!). 

She noticed their confused faces and managed a giggle. “Oh boys, have you forgotten why you were trying to distract me? It’s because I really needed a wee! And when I laughed, I…oh my God I can’t believe I’m saying this. No, I can’t believe I did this! When I laughed like that, I…I wet my pants!” And with that Ellie broke down into sobs again and hid her face in her hands. 

A look of dawning realisation passed over both Jack and Tom’s faces, and instinctively they both glanced down at the top of Ellie’s legs, where there was no mistaking the tell-tale wet stain between her legs which spread across her light grey skinny jeans, she really had wet herself, and whilst it didn’t look like it was very bad, there was no denying that it was quite obvious and they weren’t sure how she’d be able to hide it. 

“Don’t worry Ellie, sometimes accidents happen. You couldn’t help it, you were stuck up here. Nobody’s going to make fun of you for it.” Tom tried to reassure the older girl, but he knew from bitter personal experience how embarrassing it could be to have an accident in public, and he was 6 years younger than she was. 

“I’m such a baby! Nobody wets themselves like this when they’re 13, I just can’t believe it. Who ever heard of anybody peeing in their pants when they were my age? Oh no, when we get off everybody’s going to see, everybody’s going to laugh. Any my brothers, they’ll never let me forget this. Nooooooo” 

Jack was worried by just how upset Ellie was getting, and tried to think of a way to make her feel better. Then a brainwave struck him. “You know Ellie, you’re not the only person your age to have an accident. Well, almost your age anyway. Look, she’d absolutely kill me for telling anybody, but my big sister…she’s going to high school in September, and she wet herself in school last week. So you’re not the only once.” 

“What? Your sister you were telling me about earlier, she’s what…11 isn’t she? And she really had an accident? Blimey, what happened?” 

Jack quickly recounted the tale as best as he could. He’d not been there in the classroom after all, but had witnessed the aftermath. And even Tom was able to chip in about seeing her clutching the bag of wet clothes and wearing the summer dress she’d been given to change into. It was only when Jack explained about the photo’s being shared online and the bullying that had followed that Ellie gasped loudly and clasped a hand to her mouth. 

“Oh my! Jack, is your sister that blonde haired girl from Moore St Primary School? Lucy I think her name was, is that her?” 

Jack nodded, amazed. “You know her? Please don’t tell her that I told you about what happened, she’d go mad!” 

“Don’t worry Jack, I don’t actually know her, and I wouldn’t say anything even if I did. But yeah I saw those photos you’re talking about, lots of the girls from my school were sharing them, it was pretty awful. Oh I’m so sorry that poor Lucy had to go through that, they were all being so very cruel.” 

“Well then, you know you’re not the only one. And if she can survive that and the whole town knowing, I’m sure you can get through this. Besides, you’ve got an excuse at least – she just didn’t want to use the school loos, haha.” 

“Y’know, you’re probably right, thanks Jack. I can’t believe I’m sitting here in pee soaked jeans even talking about it, but I guess it could’ve been so much worse. If they don’t hurry up and get this damned ride fixed though they it may be, because now I’ve started I REALLY need to finish my wee!” 

Tom laughed at that. “You’ve already wet yourself now Ellie, why not just finish off? Besides, it’ll look more convincing that you just couldn’t hold on if you’re soaked, rather than just peeing a bit from laughing too hard.” 

Ellie looked pensive for a moment, but then snapped back out of her thoughts. “No, no, I can’t possibly wet myself – well, wet myself more – on purpose. That’s just disgusting. I’m not a baby, I can hang on until we get down I’m sure. And who knows, maybe nobody will notice…this.” she gestured to the wet patch on her jeans and blushed again. 

The three carried on chatting, making a point of changing the subject, with both boys questioning Ellie about high school life. They knew they had a few years left yet before they’d be going, but it was good to know what kind of things went on. As they talked, Ellie continued to wriggle around as her need to pee got steadily worse, although she resisted the urge to grab herself again as every time she did the feeling of wet denim reminded her what she’d done. After more than half an hour had passed, with no end in sight and worried that she was going to have a real accident at any moment, she looked over at both boys and blushed furiously. 

“Maybe you were right. I’m not sure I can hang on until we get down to the ground, and it’s really hurting me trying to hold on. I’m going to have to wet myself. Please, please don’t tell anybody I did it on purpose, but it somehow seems better than to lose control and have an accident.” 

Ellie really hadn’t been kidding when she said how badly she needed to go, and as she wee’d both Jack and Tom could hear the distinct hissing sound. To spare her blushes, they made a point of looking away until she’d finished, but then both couldn’t resist stealing a glance and were astounded by just how soaked her pants were, the wet stain covering all of the front right the way down past her knees. 

“Wow, you really did have to go, didn’t you” 

Ellie couldn’t answer, she just sniffed and tried her hardest not to cry again. There really was no hiding it now, she’d well and truly wet herself and the whole world would be able to see it. She could even feel her warm, wet shame pooling on the seat beneath her and dripping from the sides. Oh what had she done? 

Suddenly, without any warning, they felt a jolt and the ride capsule began its descent back to safety. The engineers must have fixed the fault, and within seconds they had touched back down onto the platform. 

Ellie was in shock, why hadn’t she waited just a few more seconds. She’d have made it. But now…now she had to deal with the shame of what she had done. How would she explain this?

 

Chapter 23

The carriage arrived at the landing platform, and the safety gate was opened by a staff member, who was quick to make sure that all of the kids were safe and that nobody had been injured. Satisfied that the three of them were all in once piece, although doing a bit of a double-take at the sight of a teenage girl who had very clearly wet her pants, she stood aside to let them exit, assuming they were one family group. 

Waiting on the platform, having just exited their own carriage, were Ellie’s Dad and her two younger brothers – the two boy looking like they’d enjoyed their little unexpected adventure, and the older man looking more than a little stressed by it all. He was relieved to see Ellie, and smiled at her, but was astounded by her reaction. 

“DADDDDDDDDDDYYYYYY! Oh Daddy, I had an accident!” She bawled, running towards him with her arms outstretched. The sight of him had caused her tough exterior to crack, and the shame of realising just what had happened on the ride had hit her hard. 

Graham, her dad, didn’t quite know what to make of this. She’d not called him Daddy for at least half of her lifetime, and being a typical teen would usually be mortified by such a public spectacle. He was hard pressed to get a hug goodnight, never mind right in the middle of hundreds of people. In his shock, he hadn’t actually taken in what she had shouted, only that she was clearly distressed and needed his comfort. Wrapping his arms around her, he drew her into a tight embrace and held her whilst she calmed down. 

As her sobs subsided, Ellie seemed to realise just what a scene she had just made, and blushed furiously. Well, even if the whole world couldn’t see her jeans, they’d not be in any doubt now as to what had happened to her. She was mortified, and buried her face into her Dad’s jacket as he held her close and whispered gently into her ear. 

“Oh Dad, I’m such a baby. I’m sorry, I just couldn’t hold it.” Her embarrassment was clear, and now Graham understood what had happened. 

“Shhhh, sweetheart, it’s really not your fault. It doesn’t matter, honestly. Come on now, calm yourself down and dry those tears. Please don’t cry, you couldn’t help it. Accidents happen, especially in emergencies like that.” 

Her Dad’s soothing words helped to calm Ellie down, and she was soon untangling herself from him, blushing again as she did so. 

“I’m sorry Dad. I’m just so ashamed of myself, I’m 13 not 3, I shouldn’t be wetting my pants. Even the boys managed not to do that, why couldn’t I?” 

At first Graham thought she was talking about her little brothers, who were stood beside him in a shocked silence at what they’d just seen, but then he noticed the other two boys who had followed Ellie off the ride. 

“Who are your friends El?” 

“Ah, sorry, this is Jack and Tom. They weren’t allowed to ride on their own, so got in with me. Although it looks like I’m the little kid here, doesn’t it! These guys have been great company when we got stuck, and even helped me when I…well, when I had a problem.” 

The boys beamed, delighted that the older girl had spoken so highly of them. 

“Well, very well done young men, thank you for helping to look after our Ellie here.” And he shook each of their hands as they smiled broadly. 

“Come on El, let’s go and get you cleaned up shall we. I’m afraid I don’t have a change of clothes for you, didn’t think you’d still be needing one at 13 really, but I’m sure we can sort something.” 

The family began to walk away, when suddenly Ellie turned back, smiled at Jack and Tom, and called over to them. “Thanks lads, you’re amazing! And Jack, tell Lucy to look out for me when she starts at my school. I’ll make sure she’s ok.” 

“JAAAAACK! TOM! Oh thank goodness you’re both ok!” Lesley had spotted the boys now that Ellie and her family had moved to the side, and ran towards them, clearly worried out of her mind. 

______________________ 

Daniel strode confidently from behind the bush, leaving the 3 girls hidden from view. Danielle and the other girls who had arrived with her were waiting over near the playground, looking expectantly and wondering why the boy was returning alone. When they’d found him, he’d gone to fetch Em and the other girls who were with them. 

“LOOK OUT, BEHIND YOU” he bellowed as loudly as he could, making sure that not only the group in front of him could hear, but also the 3 girls he’d left in hiding. 

Danielle, Laura and Katy all spun around at once, wondering what on earth Daniel was shouting about, but not taking any chances. Of course, they saw nothing, and spent a few moments gazing into the distance trying to see what had him so spooked. 

“That’s our cue” Emily whispered to Becky and Lucy, and without a backward glance the three girls ran as fast as they could in the opposite direction, hoping that even if the others did spot them they wouldn’t be able to tell who it was from behind, and even more so that they wouldn’t notice pore Lucy’s jeans! 

Hearing the scurrying behind him, Dan was confident their plan had worked. Now he just had to explain why he was shouting, and where the others had disappeared too. 

“Daniel, what on earth are you shouting about? There’s nothing behind us at all!” 

Jogging to reach them, Dan panted “Sorry Danielle, that boy over there was kicking his football – hard – and I thought he was going to hit you with it. From over there it looked like he was closer than he is, sorry for startling you!” And he blushed a little for effect. 

Katy glanced back over her shoulder and picked out the lad he was talking about. “Blimey, if he can kick a ball that far, maybe he should be playing for a professional team! Honestly Daniel, you should get your eyes tested, haha.” 

Dan just chuckled “Yeah, probably, sorry about that. Anyway, Em and the girls have nipped back to the shop for some more snacks for us all to share, they shouldn’t be too long.” 

“How rude! They could have at least come and said hello. Ah well, as long as they bring something tasty, I’m starving.” 

The 4 of them wandered back over to the same space that Dan had sat with the other 3 girls a short while earlier, and sat and chatted amongst themselves for a while. Well, the girls chatted, Dan mostly watched and listened. He didn’t really know any of them that well, and whilst he’d managed to be a bit more outgoing around Lucy and Becky, and obviously knew Em, he always struggled a bit with people he didn’t know. 

Lucy, Becky and Emily had made it safely out of the park without being spotted, so far as they could tell, and were now running through the housing estate that separated Em’s home from the park, hoping against hope that they wouldn’t bump into anybody that they knew, with Lucy doing her best to hide behind the other two girls so that nobody could see what had happened to her. Finally, the house came into view, and they agreed that Em would run ahead to check that the coast was clear whilst Lucy and Becky waited hidden just around the corner. 

Then, suddenly, a voice from behind them called out “Becky, Lucy, what are you doing hanging around out here?” causing both girls to freeze, they recognised that voice! 

[Sarah Penguin]

[kerry]

Reading this again has been a joy, though I admit that it is a tad confusing to have a Daniel, a Danielle, and a family named Daniels in the same story. ?

[Piddly]

Ah, thanks @kerry and @Sarah Penguin, so glad to hear there are still people here who are enjoying reading this. Apologies for the extended hiatus, I'll be honest I totally lost all motivation for it for a while, but the spark is back now.  The good news is that there are still dozens of chapters written which haven't yet been shared here, so I'll crack on with that - and I'm also finally working on new chapters too.

I'd never picked up on the Dan/Danielle/Daniels thing, oops! ? Although to be honest I don't see Danielle as being a recurring character really anyway - well, at least I don't think I do. This thing has pretty much written itself, so who knows what this lot will do if I let them run with it again. ?  The "Jack Daniels" one snuck in without me realising too, haha.

 

Anyway...Chapter 24

The girls spun around to face the person speaking to them, and just as they did so they heard Emily walking down the driveway calling out “I’ve not got my key, and my Mum’s not…” She topped dead in her tracks as she turned the corner and came face to face with not only her two friends, but also her Mum! 

“…answering the door?” Lisa finished the sentence for her. It was difficult to tell who was the most taken aback by this meeting, clearly neither party had expected to bump into the other. 

Surveying the scene, Lisa was trying to understand just why the 3 girls were looking to shifty, and why she’d found 2 of them lurking on the corner outside her house. Then she noticed Lucy’s jeans, which Dan’s jacket hadn’t quite managed to cover fully. 

“Oh my dear, whatever has happened? Come on inside all of you, quickly.” 

Lucy blushed at having been caught out, but realised that it was probably far better than being seen by her friends in this state. Em’s mum knowing was going to be bad enough, but if the other girls had seen she’d have been teased mercilessly. 

The three of them followed her into the house, Em explaining that Lucy hadn’t actually had an accident and wet herself, even though that’s exactly what it looked like, but had in fact been having a wee at the park and completely missed her aim, soaking her clothes in the process! Lisa shook her head and laughed, but understood. 

“Oh dear Lucy, what a mess eh! Well, don’t worry about it, these things happen. You nip upstairs and get yourself changed – bring your things down and I’ll pop them in the wash for you, so you don’t have to explain to your Mum too, as I’m sure that would be pretty embarrassing.” 

Lucy smiled gratefully, thanked Lisa and slunk off upstairs to change into the shorts she’d brought with her, along with a fresh pair of undies, suddenly grateful that she’d had the foresight to bring spares. 

“What happened to Daniel?” Lisa asked her daughter, suddenly noticing that the boy wasn’t with them. 

“Oh, yeah, we left him at the park. You see, Mum, when Lucy had her little mishap, we were trying to come up with a way of hiding it, and then Dan told us that some of the other girls had arrived, so we had to let him in on the secret so that he could distract the rest whilst we sneaked Lucy out of the park and back here to get changed. If they’d seen, she’d have been so embarrassed.” 

Lisa nodded “Ah yes, a couple more of your friends did turn up here not long after you’d gone out, so they dropped their bags off and then set out in search of you. I guess they tracked you…well, Daniel at any rate…down. I have to say, well done girls, you’ve been so very mature by helping Lucy with this, and I’m sure she really appreciates it. I hope Daniel wasn’t teasing her?” Lisa knew all too well what tween boys could be like, and whilst her nephew was usually well behaved she didn’t want the poor girl to be given a hard time, as she must be feeling lousy enough as it was. 

Both Becky and Em giggled. “Oh, don’t worry, I don’t think there’s much chance of Dan teasing Lucy. They’re quite ‘close’ y’know, and I reckon he’s got a bit of a crush on her.” 

Upstairs, realising that she really didn’t have time to shower and also that somebody was bound to notice if she turned up at the park with wet hair, Lucy had found a packet of wet wipes in Emily’s bedroom and quickly gave herself a wipe down to freshen up, before pulling on her black cut-off jean shorts and bundling her wet clothes up. She was glad none of the others had seen her earlier, so at least she wouldn’t have to explain why she’d changed her clothes. 

As she was making her way back downstairs, her phone tinged in her pocket. Fishing it out, she saw a new friend request on one of the social media sites she used – a girl called Ellie Peters. Hmm, odd, she didn’t recognise the name. 

She found Lisa in the kitchen, bust preparing snacks for the sleepover guests, and shamefacedly handed the bundle of jeans and pants over to her with a husky “Thanks, and I’m sorry for making work for you.” 

“Don’t be silly Lucy, it’s no problem at all. Sometimes accidents happen, but it sounds like you’ve mostly got away with it. Go on, off you go back to the park and enjoy your afternoon. The girls are waiting out front for you.” 

“That’s much better” Lucy announced, as she made her way down the driveway to meet her two friends. “And thanks for helping, and not laughing. Honestly, I’ll be glad when this week is over with! Say, do either of you know an Ellie Peters?” She pulled her phone back out of her pocket as she asked the question, finding Ellie’s profile and showing them both the friend request.