The French Exchange (Chapter 27 - UPDATED 10/12)

[Back to Babyhood]

Preview: 

Will has always had trouble keeping the bed dry. After a recent turn in fortunes, he is delighted when his parents make a long overdue change to his bedroom which signals the start of a new chapter in his life.

When he is offered the chance to go on a French Exchange with school, he wants to show that he’s grown up and ready to be an adult . Unfortunately for Will, he quickly learns on the trip away that he’s not outgrown all of his babyish habits quite yet…

His story begins with the trip to France but the arc is scheduled to run over several years.

[Back to Babyhood]

Patreon: www.Patreon.com/backtobabyhood

I would love to write more frequently so I have setup a Patreon account. If I can raise enough then I will be able to dedicate more time to my writings and building the site. 

It currently contains over 100 curated letters and stories as well as support articles. I have over 50 story ideas planned so I will be adding new content on a regular basis. My initial focus will be on the French Exchange - I have over 60 chapters planned for this story alone so it will be a long story which I hope you’ll enjoy! You can view the first four chapters now on Patreon with updates being added on a regular basis. Any support would be great appreciated. Thank you?

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Chapter 1 - The French Exchange

“Wakey, wakey sleepy head. Time to get up!” Jacqui called out as she walked over towards the window. She drew back the curtains which filled the room with a ray of sunlight and abruptly ended Will’s attempt to prolong his lie-in.

“Mummm, it’s the weekend. I want to have a lie-in. It’s 8am!” he replied half asleep as he reluctantly opened his eyes.

“Well it’s your choice Darling, you can stay in bed and waste the day, or you can get up and help your Dad take that table down to the garage.”

His eyes opened as he excitedly responded to his Mum’s words: “Is he going to do it? Today?”

“Yes but only if you get up… he’s got golf later this morning so you know you father, it’s best you let him get started now before he gets distracted by something else.”

Will jumped out of bed and flipped his duvet aside. He grimaced as he heard the familiar rustling of the plastic sheet that his Mum had insisted remained on his bed.

Despite turning eighteen last week and now officially being an adult, his childhood bedroom had hardly changed from when he was at primary school. He had grown up with a love of dinosaurs and this was still reflected in his bedroom today.

The curtains featured a series of adorable dinosaur illustrations on a crisp white backdrop with a fun, jigsaw print reverse and the word ‘Roar’ splattered across them. The theme continued with a bright dinosaur mural on the four walls. Each was brightly coloured in shades of blue, red and yellow, adding a splash of colour to the room. And with dinosaur names prominently featured, the design had been chosen by Jacqui so that it was educational as well as fun.

Completing the childish theme was a plaque above Will’s bedroom door which spelled out his name. Will didn’t like the plaque and had often wanted to take it down but it had been given to him as a present by his Aunt when he was younger and she would often come into his room and comment how lovely it was that he had kept her sign. Will didn’t want to upset his Aunt's feeling so he had left it in place. 

He knew in his heart that it was not normal to have a bedroom like this at his age but it had never been a priority for Will or his parents to decorate it. There had been several discussions but it had always been put on the back burner.

It might have been different if Will regularly had friends to come and stay but during his time at secondary school, he had never invited a friend to the house because of his bedwetting issues. Even if his friends hadn’t of found out about the plastic sheet on his bed or the nappies he wore, there was an obvious giveaway in the room that revealed his secret.

In the far corner of his room, next to the wardrobe, there was a changing table, just like one you would normally see in a baby’s nursery, except much bigger.

It had been one of the worst days of Will’s life when he came home from school to find his Dad and Uncle building the table together. At the time, he had cried and protested profusely but to no avail. Jacqui had explained that having to change him on the bed was beginning to hurt her back and suggested that the ‘temporary’ addition would make it better for 'everyone’..... everyone but Will perhaps! 

The table had been custom built by Jacqui’s brother who was a carpenter. Much to Will’s dismay, he had received it as a tenth birthday present. To this day, it remained the worst present that he had ever received.

Will had often insisted he didn’t need the help of his parents but despite these pleas and Will’s desire to be independent, there was good reason why his parents still helped. 

There had been several occasions in the past when Will had fallen asleep without his nappy on and when he had been given the opportunity to put it on himself, it had often leaked, especially after his Mum decided to move from disposables to cloth in order to ‘save the planet and save some money’. 
Will had never been able to grasp how to put cloth nappies on himself and had defaulted to asking for help from his parents. He didn’t like to admit it but it was much easier when they did it.

The changing table was very embarrassing and he had campaigned for it to be removed from his room ever since its arrival.  His Mum had been reluctant to authorise its removal until she was certain that her son had outgrown the bedwetting phase and no longer needed nappies at night.

With the exception of a brief spell in his early teens, Will had consistently wet the bed and worn some form of protection at night. It was only in recent months that his parents had finally agreed that he didn’t need to wear nappies anymore after several months of dry nights.

After such a long period of wearing nappies, Will had accepted having to wear them and become accustomed to their role in his life, even if he still disliked the embarrassment they brought him. He could deal with the nappies but he had always hated that his parents didn’t trust him to deal with the issue himself and that they treated him like an infant who couldn’t look after himself.

Will was a kind and thoughtful boy so while he would never wish his condition on anyone, he did sometimes resent the fact that his younger brother Tom had never experienced any problems. When he was lying on the table being changed into his nappy by Mum or Dad, he would often think about how it should be his younger brother in his position.

Tom had never displayed any empathy to his older brother in relation to his nighttime issues. Rather than being sympathetic, he took every opportunity to tease Will, and found it especially amusing to remind his older brother when it was ‘time for the baby to go and get his nappy changed by Mummy’.

There had been several warnings from his parents that he would regret it, if he kept teasing Will, but the words always seemed to have little substance behind them and there had never been any form of serious consequence despite the threats.

Tom had turned thirteen earlier in the year and had just entered year eight at secondary school. Unlike his brother who was timid and well behaved, he was often in trouble at school and took pleasure in challenging authority. That led to a fractured relationship with Jacqui because she liked to be in charge and did not enjoy being challenged by her thirteen year old son.

Their appearances did not suggest that there was a five year age gap between them. Tom was often assumed to be the older of the two brothers, partly because he carried himself with more confidence than his older brother.

Will had often wished that he was more like his younger brother - confident, popular, sporty and most importantly, dry at night. While Tom was out seeing friends and inviting them to stay, Will had sat in his room keeping a low profile and playing games on his own.

He took a sip of water from the cup of water on his bedside table as he continued to process what he had been told by his Mum. He was out of nappies and after today, the changing table would be gone meaning that any visible evidence of his legacy nighttime issues would be gone.

Today was freedom day. He could move on and begin doing things that were never previously possible. He couldn’t wait to invite a friend to come and stay and enjoy his newfound freedom but as he looked around the bedroom, he smiled and thought to himself that it might finally be time to get his parents to re-decorate. After all, he didn’t want his friends thinking he was a baby.

[gp123]

Wow, I am very excited for this story. I feel it has huge potential and even more excited to hear that it will take place over a long period of time. 

I have subscribed to your Patreon, lots of great content on there so looking forward to reading more soon?

[Back to Babyhood]

@gp123 I am glad to hear that you enjoyed it and thanks for subscribing. To show my gratitude, I thought I’d share Chapter Two on here earlier than I planned? 

The first few chapters just set the scene. It’s a bit of a slow burner but stick with it - I hope you’ll enjoy where it goes??

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Chapter Two

Will shouted down the corridor to his Dad. He had been promising to take the table down for a long time but there had always been an excuse until now so Will wanted to make sure that he didn’t miss the boat again. 

A few minutes later, Keith entered the room with his toolbox and walked over to the corner of the room where he set about dismantling the table.

As he methodically began taking the table apart, he came across a number of items that were still in the bottom drawers and called out to his wife.

“Jacqui, do you want to keep the nappies or shall I throw them out?”

She entered the room and headed towards her husband who handed her one of the nappies. Will had always been small for his age and stood at about 5ft6. He had had a growth spurt recently though so she was keen to check if they would still fit her son.

She walked towards Will and asked him to stand up from the bed so that she could see if the nappy would still fit.

Will was almost speechless as he looked at her in astonishment - he didn’t need them anymore so why was she embarrassing him like this? 

Before he could process the request and react, she had grabbed his pyjama bottoms and pulled them down.

“It’s probably quicker if I just check this way…”

“Mummmmm…. what are you doing?” as he tried to wriggle free but was held back by his Mum’s firm hand on his stomach.

Tom overheard the commotion and ran into Will’s room to see his Mum trying to fit the nappy around Will’s waist. He laughed out loud as he saw Will lying on the bed with the nappy being strapped around him.

“Oh dear, is he back in nappies again?”.

Jacqui snapped back “Not funny Thomas, we’re just seeing if the nappies still fit. Now out you get”.

Jacqui finished fitting the nappy around Will’s waist as Tom went back to his bedroom. She confirmed back to her husband: 

“Yes, they still fit him so best to keep them just to be on the safe side”. 

Will was still in shock as she yanked the nappy out from under him and pulled his pyjama bottoms back up. It took Will a few moments to recover his composure but his face displayed a look of both anger and shock at what had just happened.

Today was supposed to be the day when he finally became a  'big boy' but instead his Mum had just humiliated him by putting a nappy on him in front of his Dad and brother.

“Mum, I’m 18, I don’t still need nappies and I’m not a baby so stop treating me like one.”

He paused for a moment before continuing his rant: “Why do you want to keep them? I don’t want them in my room and I don’t need that plastic sheet on my bed anymore.”

“Darling, I’m keeping them just in case - I am sure you won’t need them but you never know. As for bed, I know it’s a bit noisy but it protects your mattress if you have a slip up so it needs to stay I am afraid. We’re not buying another mattress - they’re not cheap. And don’t forget, you had an accident not so long ago so better safe than sorry”.

Will sighed loudly as he jumped off the bed and walked towards the computer in the opposite corner of the room where his Dad and Mum were standing.

He was used to being told what to do and rarely, if ever, managed to persuade his Mum to change her mind so he didn’t see any point in continuing the protests. But he did  want to express his feelings and for her to know that he was very cross at what just happened.

Keith gathered up the nappies and placed them into the empty bottom drawer. His son watched on as the jubilation of seeing the changing table being dismantled was dampened by his Mum’s lack of faith in his ability to keep dry at night.

In Jacqui’s defence, Will had been a lifelong bedwetter and had only stopped wetting at night consistently in the last year. And even since then, he'd had a few accidents.

Her fear that he would revert to his old ways was understandable but there was also another reason why Jacqui was reluctant to fully release her son from the nappies that he had worn all of his life. She wouldn’t admit it but Jacqui had always liked that her oldest son needed her and feared losing the sweet and docile boy that she had brought up for the last 18 years.

Bedwetting has an impact on anyone who was unlucky enough to experience it but in Will’s case, it had been somewhat exacerbated by Jacqui’s method of dealing with it.

It was not intentional and was meant in the right way but she had always treated Will in a very infantile way which had  made him feel inferior to others and given him little confidence to make decisions for himself. He had been dependent on his parents, especially his Mum, in nearly all aspects of his life.

He had become conditioned to being told what to do. He had always hoped that he would become a stronger character and more independent when he stopped wetting the bed but in his heart, he knew that he would always be very quiet and submissive. He didn’t like to admit it but he was the definition of a ‘Mommy’s Boy’.

Will found Jacqui overbearing at times and he wished that she would treat him more like an adult but he did adore her. In some ways, he had grown to quite enjoy being looked after - it made him feel secure and safe.

He wanted to start making more of his own decisions and develop a bit more independence but he also didn’t want to be too far from home. Breaking free of his Mum would be a challenge because it was all he had ever known but he was hopeful that he would be able to go and make a life for himself away from his family.

Keith removed the final bits of the changing table. He had told Jacqui and Will that it was a really big job but it had actually only taken 15 minutes.

It was a common occurrence for Keith to exaggerate how long a task would take because he hated being asked to do DIY and would much rather be out playing golf or relaxing in the garden. Jacqui’s long list of tasks would often take months to be done. It was normally only when she lost her patience and flipped that her husband would finally take action to keep her happy and get some peace.

Keith made his way towards the door with the remaining parts of the table and informed Will that he was finished.

“All done mate”

Will smiled back and replied “Thanks Dad, you’re the best. Enjoy your golf!”

As Keith made his way down the stairs to the garage, Tom peaked his head around the door. He walked casually into the room and looked over at his older brother who was now playing a computer game.

“Finally getting rid of your baby things I see. What a big boy you are”, Tom remarked sarcastically in a babyish voice.

“Shut up Tom, Mum’s warned you about teasing me”.

“Awww you’re going to tell Mummy… how cute.”

“Get out Tom, I’m not in the mood.”
Will rarely stood up to his brother but he was not in the mood to entertain him today after being humiliated by his Mum earlier.

He directed Tom towards the door and then slammed the door behind him as he left.

Will was still upset by what had happened earlier but as he reflected, the feeling of relief started to displace his earlier feelings of anger and upset. As he lay on his bed, he started to think of the possibilities in the next chapter of his life.

[Back to Babyhood]

Chapter 3
Will is offered a one in a lifetime opportunity to go on an exchange trip to France. He is reluctant to go but the decision is soon taken out of his hands.

 

The last two years of Will’s life had been disrupted, much like everyone else, due to the pandemic. The timing was not ideal as it had severely impacted his studies. He was a very bright boy and in 3 of his 4 a-level subjects, he was on course for a A*.

 

The only subject where he was struggling was French. He had never been a gifted linguist and despite his desire to learn the language, he had always struggled and without the ability to practice in a classroom setting, he had made very little progress.

 

Will had been advised against taking French by his teacher and others because he had not studied it at GCSE but he had been determined to do it and so the School supported his decision. He really liked his teacher, Mr Anderson, and had met a few good friends from the class but in hindsight, he knew he had made a mistake even if he wouldn’t publicly admit it.

 

With the worst of the pandemic now subsiding, Will was beginning to get back into a routine and some degree of normality. At the end of his French class, Mr Anderson announced that the school was going to be running the French Exchange programme for the first time since the pandemic. He shared his enthusiasm for the opportunity and told the class that it would be a great chance to immerse themselves in the French language and catch up on the learning they had missed as a result of the pandemic. The catch was that they needed to decide by the end of the week because the trip had been rescheduled at short notice now that the travel restrictions had been waived.

 

As Will considered what he had just been told, he was torn - in some ways, this was exactly what he needed. An opportunity to catch-up on his French, learn the language and improve his grades but it would also mean spending a month away from home. Due to his bedwetting issues, he had never gone to sleepovers or on school trips before and was worried at the prospect of being away from home for a month.

 

There was also a bit of fear within him about the idea of having a bedwetting mishap while away but his confidence had grown over the last 18 months and this was somewhat secondary to the fear of being away from his parents for such a long period of time, especially in a country where he didn’t know anyone and didn’t speak the language.

 

Jacqui had not allowed Will to learn to drive like most of his friends because she felt it was dangerous and had told him that it would be better if he waited until he was more mature and that she would drive him around in the meantime. This meant that Will still had to get the school bus home with the rest of the school children including his brother Tom. It was a short journey home but it gave him time to mull over the decision that he had to make. He knew he should go but he was leaning towards saying no because he just couldn’t face such a long period away from home.

 

As he entered the kitchen, he was greeted by his Mum who had a cup of apple juice ready for him. She looked excited about something and clearly wanted to tell Will something.

 

“I got an email from the School earlier and I’ve got some really exciting news - they have rescheduled the French Exchange. It’s just what you need so when I got the letter and saw there was limited spots and that you had to make a decision by the end of this week, I thought I better speak to the school and tell them you want to go. Luckily the lady in the reception office was very kind and let me book you on. I’ve paid the money so you just need to go and sign a few forms tomorrow. Isn’t it great news?”

 

Will looked in bewilderment at his Mum. This was typical of her. She always just took over and made decisions without checking with him. He was old enough to make his own decisions and he didn’t even want to go on this stupid trip. He rarely got angry with his Mum but on this occasion, he couldn’t contain it:

 

“It’s not your decision to make - it’s mine. I’m not even sure I want to go on this stupid trip. Keep out of my business next time”.

Jacqui was shocked as Will rarely spoke like that to her. He was normally so docile and quietly spoken. Normally she would have not taken this from

 

Will and she would have been lost her temple and put him in his place but on this occasion, she was slightly concerned and let him run upstairs to his bedroom unchallenged to cool down.

 

After about 30 minutes, Jacqui took Will’s juice along with some sliced apple up to his room. Will had never liked the skin on apples so Jacqui had always taken care of it for her little soldier. She entered his room and he was face down in his pillow sobbing.

 

“I’m sorry my little soldier, I didn’t mean to upset you. I thought you’d want to go on this trip”

 

Will lifted his head but remained facing his pillow as he sobbed quietly.

 

“I know Mum, it’s not really your fault. I just don’t know if I want to go or not”.

 

“Why not? It will be great. You’re going to Lyon - you’ll love the food there and it’s going to really help you with your studies”.

 

“But…. I don’t know if I will be able to do it. What if I… Jacqui interrupted Will thinking that she had identified the issue that was concerning him.

 

“Don’t worry, I’ve already thought of that. I am sure you will be fine but I still have a few pairs of your old nightwear and I can get some more ordered in time. You’ll have your own room so no-one will know if you’re wearing them”

 

“Mum! It’s not that - I’ve told you, I’m 18. I don’t need nappies at night. I keep telling you. I only had one accident recently and that was because I had a few beers with Dad and it just went straight through me”

 

“You’re a big boy so it’s your decision. I just think it might be sensible just in case…’

 

“I am not a baby Mum. I am not taking nappies. And that’s not what I’m worried about”

Jacqui looked puzzled and quizzed Will further, “well what is it then my little soldier?”

 

“I’m just worried about being away for that long, I’m just wondered about being homesick. My French is also really bad. What happens if I get a horrible family that can’t speak any English”.

 

“That won’t happen Will, the school assured me that they make sure the family is right for you and you’re going to work on your French so even if it’s not so great now, I am sure you’ll come back fluent”, Jacqui smiled at Will and stroked his hair back and forth as she finished her words encouragement.

 

“I guess” Will said as he slowly lifted his head up from the pillow and smiled back at his Mum.

Jacqui kissed Will on the forehead before heading towards the door. As she left, she turned and said “Do your homework before supper and if you want to change your mind then you can but I’ll look rather silly and we will lose the deposit”.

 

That was a typical comment from Jacqui. She made Will think he had a choice and offered him the chance to object but in reality, she had already made the decision and her comments made it clear that pulling out was not really an option unless Will wanted to lose her a lot of face and money - neither of which she would have been pleased about!

 

Jacqui walked downstairs and out to the garage. It was clear that she knew exactly what she was looking for as she walked to the back and navigated the various obstacles on the way. She moved a few bits to the side to clear a path through and to reveal the dismantled changing table. She reached down to open one of the drawers and pulled out some of Will’s old nappies.

 

[BobbyDrago]

Wow these are a great start to a story. I hope to be able to see more in the future.

[Back to Babyhood]

The story will now begin to pick up after a few chapters introducing the characters. If you would like to get access to exclusive content (including original stories) then please consider subscribing to my Patreon account. All chapters of the French Exchange will be released early there and you will also receive access to over 125 pieces of content so far. I would be extremely grateful to anyone who is able to sponsor me. The link is www.patreon.com/backtobabyhood. 

 

Chapter Four
As the trip to France draws closer, Jacqui decides to speak with the School about her little soldier. On the night before his departure, Will makes a fatal mistake which will come back to haunt him when he wakes up....

Will opened the kitchen door as he returned from school. Jacqui was on the phone but seemed keen to shut the conversation down.

“Ok thank you Mr Anderson, I will get that sorted, just in case. Will has actually just come in the door so I better go”

Will looked quizzingly at his Mum and asked “Why are you speaking to Mr Anderson? It’s embarrassing that you still call my teachers. I’m 18 Mum”

Jacqui looked flustered as she replied “Nothing important my little soldier, I just wanted to check the arrangements for your departure on Saturday. Don’t get so stressed”

Will started to walk over towards the kitchen table as she told his Mum “I gave you all of the details. They’re on the letter by your laptop”.

“Stop where you are William Samuel Parry - I am doing something confidential for work on that laptop so don’t go near it please. Why don’t you go and play upstairs and I’ll call you for supper in a bit?”

Will was bemused by his Mother’s reaction. He had seen countless confidential documents from her work. Why was this one so important? It must have been very confidential as she never used his full name unless he was in real trouble.

As soon as Will started heading upstairs, Jacqui ran over to the laptop. She entered her card details and cross referenced the delivery address against some scribbles she had made on the back of an envelope. As soon as the purchase was confirmed, she closed the browser and shut the laptop screen down before recovering some of her normal composure and going back to making the boys supper.

As Saturday approached, Will started to pack his things but as normal, Jacqui had soon taken over.

She turned to Will “I don’t want you to get homesick and I want you to enjoy yourself so I think it would be best, in fact I insist, that we have as little contact as possible while you’re away. If you really need to speak with me then you can and likewise we can contact you but otherwise I want you to focus on having fun. If you’re in touch with us lots then you’ll get more homesick and you won’t get the best of the trip.

In the information guide, the school recommend that you leave your phone with Mr Anderson at the start of the trip because otherwise you’ll be using it the whole time and not practicing your French. I know you won’t be able to bear being without your phone but trust me, it will be much better if you can fully embrace the trip and not spend the whole time on Facebook, what do you think?”

“I don’t know Mum, I don’t think I want to not have my phone. What if I need to call you or want to speak with friends?”

“We’ll all be waiting for you. It’s only for a few weeks and it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity - if you waste it by being on your phone the whole time after I’ve paid over £2000 then I won’t be very happy with you young man".

Will’s Dad chimed in “And they’ve re-introduced roaming charges in Europe after Brexit so you won’t be able to use your phone out and about anyway. And we’re not having a repeat of last time you ran up a huge bill on your phone otherwise you’ll be working to pay it off this time…”

Will looked nervously to the floor as his Dad reminded him of the time that he accidentally ran up a £600 bill while on holiday abroad when he was 13. He then replied timidly to his parents.

“Ok, ok. I’ll give my phone to Mr Anderson if that’s what you want? As long as you promise me that you can ring me if there’s any problems.

His Mum happily replied “Well done my little soldier. And one last thing, are you sure you don’t think it would be wise to take a pair of your old nightwear pants just in case?”

Will responded sharply “Mum! How many times have I told you? I don’t need nappies anymore. I’m not a baby”.

As Will replied, Tom walked past the room and laughed as he heard his brother protesting.

Jacqui tugged Will’s ear playfully and whispered in his ear using a childish voice “Ok, I know you’re a big boy now so it’s your decision”. If Jacqui was supposed to want Will feel empowered and grown up then it didn’t really help how she spoke to him as it came across that she still thought of him as a little boy who was incapable of making decisions for himself.

As Will sat around the table with his family that evening, he contemplated that it would be his last meal with them for a while. Jacqui had done Will’s favourite meal which was chicken dinosaurs with chips and beans. It was a bit childish but Will and Tom had always loved it so it was regularly on the family menu, especially for special occasions such as tonight.

Will finished his meal with the family as they drank together and talked about old memories and had a fun evening. Even Tom was in good form and when he wished Will good luck for the trip, it did actually seem genuine for once. Of course the benefit of Will being away for a month was that Tom would have full control of the TV and Xbox which was probably the reason behind his good mood.

Will had an early start so he wanted to get an early night. He brushed his teeth, made a last check on his suitcase and then got his pyjamas on and jumped into bed. As he started to close his eyes, Jacqui opened the door quietly and came over to her son’s bed and kissed him on the forehead before reiterating her pride at his ‘decision’ to go on the trip.

“I’m so proud of my little soldier. I know this trip is a big deal for you but it will be brilliant. Sleep well, don’t let the bed bugs bite”.

“Thanks Mum. Night”.

Will and Jacqui both struggled to get to sleep because they were both nervous. They had always been very close so there was also an element of worry about spending four weeks apart.

Will finally managed to drift off to sleep but in all of the excitement, Will had cleaned his teeth but forgotten to go to the toilet before getting into bed.

Not long after he fell asleep, Will’s bedtime blues would return. He would be waking up in a wet bed…

 

[kirababy]

The premise is good, and somehow it feels like the trap has been set...how deep will he go, with no phone, and lifeline home?   Just how bad is his french, will he be able to communicate with the host family?

[kerry]

9 hours ago, Back to Babyhood said:

they’ve re-introduced roaming charges in Europe after Brexit

Is this true?

[Back to Babyhood]

58 minutes ago, kerry said:

Is this true?

Yes, sadly. You used to be able to use your UK data allowance in Europe but now it's dependent on the provider and many are either already charging, or plan to in the near future.

[Back to Babyhood]

All chapters of the French Exchange and Step-Brother to Step-Baby will be released early and you will also receive access to over 125 posts. I would be extremely grateful to anyone who is able to sponsor me. The link is www.patreon.com/backtobabyhood. 

Part 5

Will's trip to France gets off to the worst possible start when he wakes up to a familiar problem. 

Keith had regularly told his wife that Will was past his bedtime blues and they should let him take the plastic sheet off his bed but a mother’s intuition is normally right.

Jacqui knew her son better than anyone and her reluctance to dismiss Will’s protests to remove that plastic sheet seemed unfair at the time but her decision now seemed to have been vindicated as her son started to awake to a familiar feeling that he thought he had put behind him.

It took Will a few moments to wake up and realise what had happened. He initially thought it was a dream or more accurately, a nightmare but it soon became clear that this was reality and he had regressed and soaked his bed. He wanted to cry but knew he couldn’t at this point - he only had half an hour to get ready and his Mum would be walking through the door any moment.

He whispered under his breath to himself “Why today? Why just before I’m going off for a month? I can’t believe it..”

He mulled over why it had happened. Was it the nerves or perhaps that they drank a lot last night? He then recalled that he forgot to go to the bathroom in all of the excitement. This revelation actually gave Will quite a bit of reassurance as it was not nerves or anything like that. It was just because he made the mistake of forgetting to go to the toilet before bed and he wouldn’t make that mistake in France.

As he hesitated over what to do next, his Mum opened the door. She straight away identified the smell and recognised the problem that Will had.

“Oh dear soldier, I am sure it’s just the nerves. You’ll be fine once you get there. Don’t worry about it. Take off your clothes and put them in a pile by the door then jump in the shower while I get this cleaned up for you”.

When Will was in this situation, he always felt like a child and became very quiet and docile. He would do whatever he was told and became dependent on his Mum to help sort out the mess he found himself in.

He walked towards the landing to get into the shower. As he got to the door, he pulled his wet pyjamas bottoms down while his Mum stripped his bed in the background. He jumped a towel to cover him up and opened his door ready to make his way across the landing to the shower.

Unfortunately, at the very moment he opened his door, his brother walked out of the bathroom and saw Will’s wet bedding being stripped and put on the floor. He sniggered before making a sly remark.

“Oh dear, looks like you’re not quite ready to be out of pampers after all. Hopefully you’ll keep your pants dry while you’re away..”

The cruel comment really hit home to Will. He put his head down to the floor and said nothing back as Tom walked past him. Will quickly ran to the shower and locked the door behind him.

He felt better after his shower. At least he didn’t smell like a baby anymore however he was now doubting if he could go on the trip and he expressed his concerns to his Mum while his Dad listened in the background:

“Mum, I don’t think I want to go. I want to withdraw from the trip”

“Don’t be silly Darling, you can’t withdraw now. It’s too late - you’re all packed and ready to go. It’s just a few last minute nerves. Once you’re on your way with your friends, it will be fine.

Will really wasn’t so sure but his Mum’s empathic response made it clear that he had no choice - like most things, it had been decided by his Mum. He was going to France if he liked it or not.

He looked around his house and took a moment to think about how much he’ll miss it. He had lived in this house for nearly all of his life and it had mostly good memories. He knew that he would be home soon but a month seemed a long time away. Is it bad that he was already starting to count down the days till he was home and he hadn’t even left yet?

His Mum and Dad were going to drop him off so both grabbed some of the bags and helped load the car. The meeting spot for the bus was close - in normal traffic, it would take about 15 minutes but as it was early in the morning and there was no traffic, it would probably be a lot quicker, especially given that his Dad was driving.

It was going to be a long day for Will. Once they were on the bus, they were then going to get the ferry to Calais and head on to their destination which was near Lyon. His Mum had been researching places to visit and had given Will a long list of places to go. While he was very reserved in the car and generally about the trip, he was quite excited about the food as they had visited Lyon many years ago and he remembered having some of the best food of his life.

As they arrived at the car park, they parked up and unloaded all of Will’s bags onto the bus. His parents hugged Will, said their goodbyes and returned to their car with Jacqui taking a short detour on the way back to speak briefly with Mr Anderson. They had agreed to keep the farewell as short as possible to minimise the risk of anyone crying.

For many of his classmates, this was just another trip but for Will, this was a big deal. He had never been on any overnight school trips, at primary or secondary school, because of his bedwetting so he felt a bit like a primary school child probably feels when they go off on their first school trip without their parents.

He was holding back the tears as he watched his parents walk away but he knew he had to pull it together. He would never live it down if he started crying because he was leaving his parents. His classmates would think he was a total baby.

Luckily a friend called his name so he turned around and was pleased to be distracted. Simon was a very kind boy and a long term friend of Wills. Neither of the boys would be considered to be particularly cool but both were generally well liked by their classmates and never caused any bother. They agreed to sit next to each other on the coach which was a relief as Will found out that Year 9 were also on the same coach as Year 13 and he didn’t want to end up sitting next to one of them if he couldn’t find a friend to sit by.

As they stood waiting and chatting in the car park, Will spotted Phoebe in the distance who he always had a secret crush on. She was very pretty and popular so he had always known that she was out of his league. As a timid boy, Will had never had any success with girls and found them quite scary.

He was pleasantly surprised when she smiled over at him and waved. He blushed as he awkwardly smiled back and waved. He turned to his parents’ car and saw his Dad proudly looking over - Keith put his thumb up to signal his approval which embarrassed Will even more.

Despite the embarrassment, he was secretly delighted that she had acknowledged him and seemed to know who he was, but he was equally nervous about what he would say if she started trying to speak with him.

That event with Phoebe had really calmed Will’s nerves and now that he was there, he was beginning to be a bit excited. He just wanted to get there and meet his host family as the waiting was the worst bit.

As they stood by the car waiting for the bus to depart, Keith turned to his wife.

“I know you normally worry enough for both of us but do you think he’ll be ok? What if it happens out there again? I mean it probably will happen again won’t it?

“Don’t worry Darling, I’ve already sorted it”

Keith looked confused as he enquired for more information from his wife. “What do you mean? How have you sorted it?”

“Now you’re worrying - I thought this might happen so I put a contingency plan in place just in case”.

Keith didn’t know what his wife had done but knowing Jacqui, she had a plan in place. As the bus set off, they stood outside their car to wave Will off. He waved with a nervous smile on his face as the bus turned around the corner and out of sight.

There was no going back now…

[Back to Babyhood]

If you would like to get access to exclusive content (including original stories) then please consider subscribing to my Patreon (BacktoBabyhood). All chapters of the French Exchange will be released early there and you will also receive access to over 125 pieces of content so far including Step-Brother to Step-Baby and a new story set to be released imminently. I would be extremely grateful to anyone who is able to sponsor me.

Part Six 
Will’s trip to France gets off to the worse possible start but he luckily finds an ally on the coach. 

Will had always been the type who took the front seats on the coach. Rather than fighting for the back seats like everyone else, Will and Simon were content to just get a seat and get settled.

After the early start, both boys were tired and after a brief period of talking, they took an opportunity to have a brief nap. When they woke up, the coach had arrived in Calais and was boarding the ferry. The actual boat trip from Dover to Calais was about 90 minutes so by the time they had got off the boat and grabbed a drink, it was time to return to the bus for the next leg of the journey which was a seven hour drive to their final destination.

As the bus drove off the ferry, Mr Anderson stood at the front of the bus to inform the group that the next scheduled stop would be in two hours time.

“The ferry was late departing so we’re behind schedule and need to make up some time. As I told you all earlier, we will only be stopping at schedule points. The next stop is about two hours away. There is no toilet on board the coach so hopefully everyone has been to the bathroom on the ferry. Right, let’s get on the road”

Will’s heart sank as he winced at the announcement. He realised that he must have been asleep earlier when Mr Anderson briefed the group. He was instantly regretting his decision to drink about three glasses of coke after buying a bottomless soda. While he did pop to the bathroom when he first got on to the ferry, he didn’t have time before they got off.

While Will’s bathroom troubles had primarily been at night, he had also had several accidents over the years when he couldn’t get to a bathroom in time. He hadn’t had an accident in the day for a few years but he was also very aware that his bladder was not the best and certainly wouldn’t be able to hold on for two hours. This was the sort of situation that Will had dreaded.

He shut his eyes and scrunched his lips against his nose as he sat in his seat paralysed with fear that he was about to have an accident. When he opened his eyes, he saw his teacher, Mr Anderson, walking up the aisle of the coach. Simon had taken the window seat and again fallen asleep so Will took the opportunity to quietly whisper his issue to the young teacher who was very nice and had always been supportive of Will in his studies.

“Sir, I drank quite a lot of coke on the ferry and didn’t have the chance to use the bathroom. Is there any chance we could stop quickly?”

Unbeknown to Will, Jacqui had briefed his teacher on his bed wetting challenges. As a result, Mr Anderson was sympathetic to the situation and asked the driver to stop at the next service station. Will might not have been aware of his Mum’s interference but on this occasion, it had been a very valuable intervention.

“On this occasion, I will ask the driver to stop at the next available point”. Will clearly wanted to jump in but before he had the chance, Mr Anderson anticipated what he was going to ask, “And no Will, we can’t stop on the side of the road to let you go. It’s an offence here to pee in public and I don’t want to end up using my French vocabulary with the local police”, he joked

To avoid drawing attention to Will, he made an excuse for stopping and told everyone on the coach that they would have 5 minutes to run to the toilet and then they would be straight back on the road.

It was a relief that the coach would be stopping but his bladder was struggling to hold on and every minute seemed like an hour. Mr Anderson looked back down the coach and could see the panic on Will’s face and that his legs were doing the dance that is normally associated with little children who have only recently been potty trained.

He walked down the coach and discreetly told Will that the bus was very close to the stop point and it should only be a few minutes longer. The news gave Will some welcome encouragement as he was increasingly worried that he was about to lose his battle - if that happened then he was in real trouble and it would be the worst possible start to the trip. He would never live it down and would have to spend a month with a bus full of people who would know that he wet his pants at the age of 18.

As his legs jumped around and he tried to hold on, he started to wonder if his Mum was right after all and if he should have taken some of his old protection just in case. After last night and now this, he was not as confident about his ability to stay dry as he previously had been.

The main advantage of being at the front of the coach is that you can get off quickly. Before it had even stopped, Will was up and ready to get off and run towards the toilet. As the door opened, he desperately ran off the coach in search of the toilet. He looked for signs to the toilet - they were all in French which made it more difficult but he could see them in the distance so ran as fast as he could while holding his bladder with his hand in the hope that it would help him hold on for a bit longer.

As he finally approached the mens toilet, his heart sank as he saw a queue outside. It was a small queue but any queue at this point was disastrous. Just like when he woke up after wetting the bed, he was talking under his breath airing his inner thoughts. These reflected the desperate situation that he find himself in.

“I can’t hold on much longer. Why didn’t they have urinals? Surely everywhere has urinals? Bloody France - I hate this place already. Can’t they hurry up. What’s taking them so long?”.

He could feel pee starting to trickle into his pants - at any moment, he was going to lose control as he grabbed his pants even tighter with his hand. The man in front seemed to have noticed Will’s desperate need and kindly signalled for him to go in front.

He was very grateful but also embarrassed that it was obvious that he was so close to wetting his pants that a grown man had stepped aside to let him use the toilet first. Will was now first in the queue and could now feel a small trickle of pee leaking out. As the door opened, he ran towards it, almost knocking over the man who was exiting the cubicle. The man shouted something in French at Will but he really didn’t care at this point.

As he locked the cubicle door, the small trickle turned into a constant flow of pee as he lost the battle with his bladder. His Mum had to insisted that he wore a belt to keep his jeans up but at this moment, that belt was not what Will needed, especially as it always got stuck which made it difficult to get off as pee continued to flow into his pants. As this happened, he cursed his Mum for making him wear the belt while also lamenting the fact that he hadn’t removed his belt while he had the chance in the queue or on the bus.

He finally got it off and was able to pull his pants back and direct the stream of pee towards the toilet. He felt a sense of relief as he had averted a total crisis and wouldn’t have urine dripping down the legs. He was however still not sure how much he had soaked his pants so he needed to assess the severity of the situation once he finished peeing in the toilet.

He pulled a large number of toilet sheets from the holder ready to try and minimise the damage. His underwear was clearly wet so Will did his best to dry the pants with the toilet paper but it was to little avail.

Will’s bigger concern at this point was the clear wet patch on the crotch of his trousers. He had stupidly decided to wear a pair of light beige coloured chinos. In hindsight, a pair of dark jeans would have been a much better choice as it would have concealed the problem more effectively.

As he contemplated his options, he heard Mr Anderson calling his name which was not a good sign. He looked at his watch and realised that he had already taken five minutes. When Mr Anderson knocked on the cubical door, Will sheepishly confirmed his location.

“I’m in here Sir’’….

[Back to Babyhood]

If you would like to get access to exclusive content (including original stories) then please consider subscribing to my Patreon (BacktoBabyhood). All chapters of the French Exchange and Step-Brother to Step-Baby will be released early there and you will also receive access to over 140 posts so far. I would be extremely grateful to anyone who is able to sponsor me.

The next chapter of the French Exchange is available now on Patreon. You will also be able to read a 30,000 word exclusive Patreon story - 'A Secret Love of Diapers' as well as receiving early access to future chapters of 'Step Brother to Step-Baby'.

---

Part 7

Will arrives in France and meets his host family, but before then, he has had to deal with the aftermath of his earlier incident...

Will opened the door slowly. As he opened it further, the issue was visible to Mr Anderson who asked Will to let him into the cubicle for a moment. In normal times, he would never have considered letting his teacher into the toilet cubicle while he was in there but this was a very unusual situation and he needed help. 

“Sorry Sir, I made it here but I couldn’t get my belt and trousers off before I started peeing”.

“It’s not actually that bad - it’s certainly better than I feared it might have been. Take this jumper and put it around waist and it will cover up the wet patch on the trousers. By the time we get to the next stop, it should have dried a bit”

Will took the jumper and did as he was told, tying it around his waist. 

Mr Anderson was right, it did cover it up. As they exited the cubicle, they got a few funny looks but at this point, Will’s greatest concern was his classmates rather than random French men giving him funny looks. 

Will thanked his teacher profusely for being so helpful and kind as they headed back to the bus. 

“Don’t sweat it, I can assure you that you are not the only person to sometimes have accidents. Believe me”. Mr Anderson replied in a reassuring tone. 

As Will headed back to his seat, he wasn’t sure if it was him just being paranoid but it did feel like he was getting a few funny looks. 

Once the bus was on its way again, he soon settled back into reading his book. He did however keep thinking about the last thing that Mr Anderson said. Was there other children on the trip who had similar challenges to Will? He didn’t expect he would ever find out but it had made him a little better about recent events. 

The rest of the journey was uneventful as they slowly made their way to Lyon. After the last 24 hours, Will was relieved to have a quiet and uneventful end to the journey. He just wanted to get there now and meet his host family. At this point, his biggest fear was that he wouldn’t be able to communicate with anyone, if the family didn’t speak a bit of English. He prayed that he would get a host family who were nice and able to speak with him. 

As they pulled into the car park, they were greeted by hundreds of people all huddled together ready to pick up their respective exchange students. Will’s nerves began to reach fever point. 

Mr Anderson took to the front of the bus and made his final announcement to the group before they departed.

“To make this as simple as possible, we’re going to call you off one at a time. As you all know, this trip is about immersing yourself in the French language and culture so the school actively encourages you to avoid taking a mobile phone to your host family’s house. This is your choice but you will not need it while you’re here and if you’re serious about improving your language skills then I urge you to speak and read as little English as possible and make the best of this unique opportunity”.

Will had promised to hand over his mobile phone but after reflecting, he had decided to keep it so he could say in touch with friends and call home if needed. 

As Will’s name was called, he said his goodbyes to Simon and walked towards the door where Mr Anderson was waiting. 

“Phone please Will” 

“I was going to keep it actually Sir”

“I don’t think so. Hand it over. Your Mum was very insistent. If she finds out I’ve let you keep it then I’ll be for the high jump”

Will got that familiar feeling that his Mum had won the argument and she wasn’t even in France. 

“Ok Sir, here it is”, Will said despondently.

“Oh and Will, I need my jumper back I’m afraid but the worst is dry luckily so no-one should notice your pants. I suggest you change as soon as you can though. You don’t want to make a bad first impression do you? Good luck - here’s your host family coming over now”.

Will thanked Mr Anderson and nervously walked over towards his host family. 

He was greeted by Guillaume who looked just like the picture that the school had shared. He was however much shorter than Will had expected and could easily have passed as one of the Year 9 Exchange students. There was a friendly albeit awkward exchange of hellos between the two boys before Will followed Guillaume to meet the rest of his family. 

He was first introduced to Audrey, who was Guillaume’s mother. She was an attractive looking lady and smiled sweetly. She spoke very quickly so while Will appreciated her efforts to engage, he struggled to understand what was being said and just nodded along politely. 

After Will had navigated his way though the conversations with Audrey, he was introduced to the father who was called Louis. He was short, like his eldest son, but dressed very smartly and seemed softly spoken. Like his wife, it did not appear that he spoke very limited English. 

Finally, Will was introduced to the youngest brother, Karim. He was a similar age to Tom and seemed very shy which was understandable in the circumstances.

After all of the pleasantries had been exchanged, Audrey instructed her husband to pick up the bags and directed them all towards their car. 

The family had a brand new Range Rover Sport which Will concluded made them wealthy and therefore likely to have a nice home. 

Once the bags were loaded into the box of the car, they set off. Once on the road, Audrey and Louis tried to make conversation with Will but it was quickly evident that the language barrier was going to be a challenge. His wish for a family that spoke English certainly hadn’t been granted. 

After a few failed attempts at conversation, there was a period of awkward silence before Louis was directed by his wife to turn the radio on to fill the void of conversation. It was early days but it seemed that Audrey wore the trousers in this family, much like Jacqui did back home. 

Will listened intently to the radio in an attempt to pick up what was being discussed. Despite his best efforts, it was to little avail as with the exception of a few words, Will struggled to understand what was being discussed.

As he gave up on radio, his thoughts turned to the adventure ahead and his first impressions of the family. They all seemed lovely and friendly but it was evident that communicating would be a challenge as neither Guillaume or his family could speak English and Will certainly couldn’t speak much French. While he remained nervous, the talks on the coach had left Will feeling a bit more optimistic and inspired. 

As Mr Anderson had said, this was a once in a lifetime opportunity to be immersed in the French language and culture. If Guillaume and his family didn’t speak much English then it wasn’t the end of the world. It would give Will the chance to really work on his French - the very reason he was there. And they weren’t able to communicate easily then they would just have to find a way. After all, what is the worst that could happen?

[BobbyDrago]

Oh my not being able to understand the language is a sure fire way to make me regress as i feel like a baby that cant understand anyone.

[D503]

Loving this story.

[kirababy]

The inability to communicate or understand sure would increase feelings of being little and helpless.  Looking forward to seeing how this goes.

[Bel George]

After reading about Phoebe in on of the previous chapters, I expected Will and Phoebe to be together in the same host family, having the same issue at night.

That doesn't seem the be the case now, but with Mr. Anderson hinting that someone else on the trip might have a similar problem, I believe that we have a lot to look forward to in the next chapter(s).

[Back to Babyhood]

6 hours ago, Bel George said:

After reading about Phoebe in on of the previous chapters, I expected Will and Phoebe to be together in the same host family, having the same issue at night.

That doesn't seem the be the case now, but with Mr. Anderson hinting that someone else on the trip might have a similar problem, I believe that we have a lot to look forward to in the next chapter(s).

Thank you for your comments. You’ll have to wait and see but Phoebe will certainly have a (big) part in the story. 

I am looking forward to sharing the next few chapters with you all as things are about to heat up.

There’s lots more to come.…. 

[Back to Babyhood]

If you would like to get access to exclusive content (including original stories) then please consider subscribing to my Patreon (www.patreon.com/backtobabyhood). All chapters of the French Exchange and Step-Brother to Step-Baby will be released early there and you will also receive access to over 140 posts so far. I would be extremely grateful to anyone who is able to sponsor me.

The next chapter of the French Exchange is available now on Patreon. You will also be able to read a 30,000 word exclusive Patreon story - 'A Secret Love of Diapers' as well as receiving early access to future chapters of 'Step Brother to Step-Baby'.

---

Part 8

Will arrives at his home for the next four weeks and is delighted to find a feast of food waiting for him. The wet patch on his trousers draw the attention of Audrey...

 

The car journey took about twenty minutes. There was no traffic on the roads which helped and while there were a few bakeries and shops on route, the family seemed to live in a relatively quiet residential area of Lyon.

 

Audrey clearly was keen to make Will feel comfortable. She had turned to smile at him several times on the journey back and when they were close by, she used her hand to signal when they were only five minutes away.

 

Will appreciated her efforts to make them feel welcome but was also slightly unnerved by her not so subtle efforts to look at his crotch. He thought he was probably just tired and being paranoid but it did definitely seem that she kept looking at his trousers. He thought that the wet patch was not that obvious but the way Audrey was acting was making Will concerned that she had noticed his little accident.

 

As they pulled up into a large driveway, he was amazed at how big the house was. It was more like a Chateau - it was certainly the biggest place that he had ever had the pleasure of living in.

 

He remembered reading that Louis was a lawyer so assumed they would have a lovely house but this had far exceeded his expectations.

 

There was a large gravel driveway and front garden which was overlooked by the road. To the side and back of the house, there was a large garden and in the distance, Will could see a clay tennis court and swimming pool.

 

He had always enjoyed playing tennis and swimming so he was very excited at the prospect of being able to use the facilities while he was staying. Will also hoped that Guillaume might like tennis because it was a sport that could be played with limited communication so even with the language barrier, he thought it would be a fun way to pass the time.

 

As they entered the house, he was greeted by a huge entrance hall with a grand staircase. It felt very odd being in someone else’s house and knowing that he would be living here for the next few weeks. His nerves were starting to be replaced by excitement as he couldn’t believe that he would be able to stay in this incredible place.

 

Louis and Guillaume carried all of the bags upstairs while Audrey showed Will into a large open plan kitchen diner. On the table, there was a feast of food. He was starving after the journey so this was a very welcome surprise.

 

Guillaume returned from upstairs and showed Will to a seat at the table. He offered him some bread and then began tucking into the food himself. Will did temporarily consider if he should wait for the others to sit down at the table but given that his host had already started, he assumed it was ok.

 

The Dad offered Will beer and wine as he sat down at the table. He didn’t want to be rude and reject the offer but he was also very conscious that beer had led to him having accidents in the past and that was not a risk that he wanted to take.

 

He thanked Louis for the offer but made the decision to stick with his water. It was however flattering to be offered a beer because it made Will feel like a real adult.

 

During the course of the meal, the family tried to involve Will in conversation where they could but it was clearly challenging with the language barrier. They did also make a conscious effort to smile a lot which made him feel more at ease.

 

While the family chatted in the background, Will contemplated what a big step he had taken and commended himself for taking the leap. His concerns of being away from home and his troubles over the last 24 hours seemed to have faded away for now and he was enjoying the moment. It was early days but he was relieved as he had not felt homesick at all yet. That was a surprise to Will as he had expected to really struggle being away from home.

 

At the end of the main course, Will was shown to the fridge where there were a range of desert options. He picked an ice cream from the fridge and as he turned around, he caught the eye of Audrey again who was clearly staring down at his crotch. She smiled kindly at him as he returned to his seat.

 

Now that he was in the light, Will realised how evident the urine stain around the crotch of his trousers was. He should have taken Mr Anderson’s advice and changed them as soon as he got in but he hadn’t got the chance because the food was waiting.

 

After they had finished dessert, Guillaume offered Will offered a tour of his temporary home. He wanted to go and change his trousers but his host had already set off on the tour and Will was not sure how to communicate his desire.

 

As the tour commenced, Will quickly realised how lucky he was to be able to stay in such a nice home. It was on a different level to anywhere that he had seen before - there was an indoor cinema, play room, gym and all sorts of other incredible things.

 

Half way through the tour, he was shown where he would be staying. The room was probably triple the size of his room at home and it had a 40” TV on the wall as well as an en-suite bathroom and private balcony. As he continued his tour of this incredible place, his thoughts turned to Simon and his other classmates. Surely none of them had a better deal than Will?

 

The final part of the tour was Karim’s room. Like all of the rooms, his was huge too but as he entered through the door, something else caught Will’s eye....

 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Guillaume led him into the room and took him towards Karim’s massive Xbox games collection. But it was not the games collection that had caught Will’s eye. On the left side of the room, there was a large changing table and nappies clearly on display. He couldn’t believe it - he had never met someone older who wore nappies.

 

Guillaume was still distracted by the games so while he wasn’t paying attention, Will used the opportunity to discreetly take a closer look. He was surprised to see that some of the nappies on display were identical to the ones he had used.

 

While Will was occupied looking at the nappies on display, Karim entered the room. Will knew how mortified he would have been if one of Tom’s friend had seen his nappies when he was younger so he felt very bad about the situation.

 

He was expecting Karim to be furious at his brother but he actually seemed very relaxed about the situation which was a surprise for Will who couldn’t quite process how much brothers didn’t mind a stranger knowing about such an embarrassing secret.

 

As the two brothers continued to chat, Will decided that it was time for him to head to bed. Making best use of his very limited vocabulary, he tried to let them know that he was tired and was going to bed. After he let the brothers know, he proceeded downstairs to say goodnight to Audrey and Louis.

 

“Je Suis Fatigue. Bonsoir”

 

Audrey nodded and replied in broken English “Yes, you need…..?”.

 

Will was not clear on what she was saying but assumed that she was enquiring if he needed anything to take to bed with him. He shook his head and smiled to indicate that he was ok before heading back upstairs to his bedroom.

 

After last night’s accident, he made sure to use the bathroom. He cleaned his teeth and jumped into bed. It had been a very long day and it had taken its toll so he was ready to get some sleep.

 

As he pulled back the covers and climbed into the bed, he was surprised to hear a familiar sound. As he moved positions, his initial suspicion was confirmed - there was a plastic bed sheet on his bed, just like the one his Mum used.

 

He peeled back the duvet to observe the covers below and investigate further. The bed had been fitted with a thick rubber sheet which Will could only assume was there to protect the mattress in case of any night-time accidents. As he pulled the duvet back over him, he tried to get comfortable but these sheets were even thicker and more noisy than ones he was used to.

 

To some extent, it was a bit of a relief because it took the pressure off Will. He was confident that he wouldn’t have an accident and last night was just a blip but if he did then at least he wouldn’t ruin the family’s mattress. The whole situation was a bit odd though - he contemplated if the bed always had a rubber sheet on or if they had fitted it specifically for his visit.

 

It seemed quite a coincidence that he had ended up staying with a host family who were experienced dealing with an older child who had night-time issues and now he found that his bed had a plastic sheet on it. It was almost as if someone had told the family about Will’s issues or the school had deliberately matched him with Guillaume’s family as a result.

 

As he started to drift off to sleep, he reassured himself that he was just being paranoid as the school couldn’t possibly have known before the trip. Or could they?

[gp123]

Fantastic. I’m loving this story, it’s got so much potential to be incredible! Keep it up.

[starman]

I can find your old Tumblr account, can find you on deviant art, but nothing found on patreon ,or google ,please you need to send a proper link that you can click on,, 

[Back to Babyhood]

Sorry to hear that you’re having issues finding my Patreon @starman. Hopefully the below link works: 

https://www.patreon.com/BacktoBabyhood

[Back to Babyhood]

If you would like to get access to exclusive content then please consider subscribing to my Patreon (www.patreon.com/backtobabyhood).

All chapters of the French Exchange and Step-Brother to Step-Baby will be released early there and you will also receive access to over 160 posts including a 30,000 word exclusive Patreon story - 'A Secret Love of Diapers' 

Part Nine

Will is delighted to wake up dry on his first morning in France but soon recalls some memories from home which trigger a vivid and frightening flashback to a traumatic event from his past.

It was Will’s first morning waking up in France. After his accident the day before, he breathed a sigh of relief when he felt underneath him and felt a dry bed.

He picked up the TV remote from the side of his bed and scanned through hundreds of channels until he found an English channel which was showing The Simpsons. Will had always loved it and used to religiously watch every evening at 6pm on Channel 4. He was normally joined by his brother and Dad who used to also enjoying watching it as a way to unwind. Jacqui however was not a fan and would express her displeasure whenever the boys sat to watch what she described as ‘trash television’.

This was the first time that Will had felt any homesickness and had an urge to speak with his family. Although he was missing them and would have liked to have spoken to his Mum, he was quite glad that he had been persuaded to give his mobile phone to Mr Anderson because he knew that calling home only would have made him feel worse.

Once the Simpsons had finished, he jumped out of bed and headed for the shower. As he turned the water on, his thoughts soon turned to the perk of being able to use the bathroom and have a shower without leaving his room. In the UK, he had to leave his room to cross the landing in order to use the family bathroom while hoping that it was vacant and neither his parents or Tom were already in there.

Despite Jacqui’s best efforts to organise the morning schedule, it was often a scramble to get into the bathroom in the morning. Arguments were a common occurrence, especially when Tom was in the bathroom because he would often take a long time in the shower and on several occasions, he had caused Will to miss the bus.

There was something great about the feeling of a power shower - it was such a refreshing way to wake up in the morning. Will turned the pressure up and felt a renewed jet of water blast against his body. As the water continued to rein down, his mind turned back to the family bathroom situation at home. He had become so accustomed to sharing with his brother and parents over the years but there had been a few times when it had caused problems. There was one incident in particular that still haunted Will.

Despite many years passing since, Will could still vividly recall that morning. He had experienced nightmares about what happened but as he shut his eyes in the shower and thought about that day, he started to get a flashback…..

The incident in question had occurred on a dark and cold January morning. Will had been at secondary school for about four months and it had been going pretty well. He had wanted to avoid drawing attention to himself so he had been pleased to sneak under the radar and avoid getting into any issues. He had also managed to make a few friends including Simon.

At the time, Will was still having nighttime issues and was waking up wet most days. Despite being much younger, Tom had never wet the bed - a point that he was always quick to remind his older brother of. On the particular morning, Will had woken up dry which he was delighted about because it was his second day in a row. Just like the previous morning, he had woken up with a very strong urge to pee which was a good sign because his bladder had been able to hold on until morning despite being full.

In the weeks leading up to this morning, Jacqui had become infuriated at the mess Tom and Will left everywhere they went. She had got especially annoyed when she found their pyjamas on the soaking wet bathroom floor after they had been for a shower in the morning. To avoid this happening, she had implemented a rule that the boys would have to leave their pyjamas in their bedrooms and wear a towel to the bathroom. Jacqui had also insisted on this rule to avoid Will leaving wet nappies in the bathroom which had happened on occasion and this had normally led to ridicule from Tom.

Given his urgent need for a pee, Will wanted to get to the bathroom before anyone else. He grabbed his towel ready and then pulled off his pyjama top. He then removed his pyjama shorts leaving him stood there in just a dry nappy. As he went to remove the nappy, he had heard a door open. He quickly grabbed the towel and loosely pulled it around him before he ran to the door.

By the time Will opened his bedroom door, Tom had made it across the landing and entered the bathroom. As his desperation grew, Will pleaded with Tom to be able to use the toilet before he took his shower.

“Tom, I…. I really need to use the bathroom…… I’m desperate”. Will hoped his pleas would be answered by Tom but as he held his hands out to signal an almost pray like motion, his towel came loose and fell to the floor.

Tom smirked back at Will as he replied: “Afraid not brother…. I’m heading off early this morning and I’m already running late”.

With the towel still on the floor, Will responded with an even more desperate plea: “Tom, please. I will be really quick”.

“Sorry Will but on the positive side, I read that it’s good to practice holding it in when you’re potty training and if you can’t hold on then at least you have your nappy on ready. Looks like you were dry last night. What a big boy you are” Tom had little compassion for his brother as he mocked him further in a babyish tone before he shut the door and slammed the lock in place.

While Will was very pleased to have woken up dry, it had made the situation even worse in some ways. Tom had seen Will’s dry nappy so there was no way to blame the accident on his nighttime troubles. If he couldn’t hold on then Tom would be sure to tell his parents that Will had wet his nappy after waking up which was a prospect that would be very embarrassing.

Most younger brothers would have been terrified of speaking to their older sibling in the way Tom did. He had never been worried about getting any form of retribution from Will as he knew that he always had the upper hand and Will didn’t want to risk his secret being revealed to his friends and family. And despite the large age difference between the two boys, Tom had naturally assumed the role of the older brother over the years, with little resistance from Will.

Will would have liked to have stood up for himself more and been more assertive with his younger brother but whether due to nature or nurture, it was just not in his character. Of course the humiliation of his little brother knowing that he was fastened into a nappy by their Mum each night did not help his case. Jacqui had always been very protective of her ‘little soldier’ and her treatment had only served to make Will even more docile and submissive while reinforcing his inferior position to Tom. Over the years, Will had come to accept his role in the family and resigned himself to the fact that acting submissively would draw less attention to him and minimise the risk of humiliation.

Will groaned in despair as he picked up his towel and returned back to his room. He paraded up and down his room frantically while he tried to consider his options. He was well enough acquainted with his bladder by now to know that he was in real trouble and about to lose control any moment - he needed to do something fast....

[Back to Babyhood]

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Part 10

Will continues to relive a vivid flashback from his past... 

It was bad enough wetting the bed at night but this would be an all time low. He had started to accept that he couldn’t stop the accidents at night but this was different - he was awake and in the comfort of his own home so he should have been able to keep himself dry.

It certainly wouldn’t be the first time Will had a daytime accident, even in recent times, but he had never had a daytime accident at home - not since he was a toddler anyway. It would be an admission to his family that he was no better than a toddler who had recently been potty trained, and that he couldn’t be trusted to keep dry during the day, even in the family home.

He didn’t know what to do. He toyed with the idea of waking his parents up to see if they could help get Tom to come out of the bathroom quicker but he was reluctant to do this as his parents had been out until very late last night and they had specifically asked both boys to let them have a lie-in. They certainly wouldn’t be happy at being woken up at 7am to deal with this. Will also cringed at the embarrassing prospect of having to wake his parents to tell them that he was on the verge of wetting himself and couldn’t hold on for a few minutes.

As he became more desperate, Will considered sneaking into the back garden to relieve himself. His fear was that it was overlooked by several houses so he would need to take the nappy off and put some clothes on before he went outside. By this point, Will was so close to an accident that he not was sure that he trusted himself to make it downstairs and to the garden without having an accident on route anyway so decided it was safer to keep his nappy on for now, just in case.

As by leaned out of the window to survey the garden from afar, he noticed his neighbour, Mrs Sanders, at her bedroom window looking at. Will tried to retreat back without being seen but it was too late. He reluctantly smiled and waved back at her. It was inevitable that she would have ruined the plan - she spent her life looking into everyone’s else business and being nosey so it was no surprise that she was on lookout. Mrs Sanders had scuppered Will’s plan. He knew that she would be closely watching the garden and would take great delight in telling his parents, if she saw him up to no good. And if that did happen then his parents would be furious!

Despite being in the bathroom for what seemed like forever, Tom had only just turned on the shower so any prospect of him coming out before Will had an accident faded away. He had run out of ideas and was resigned to his fate. And then suddenly he heard the sound of a door opening….

Throwing his towel to the floor, he dashed out to the landing. In hope more than expectation, he was praying that Tom had changed his mind and decided to let Will use the toilet.

Unfortunately he was disappointed. Tom was still in the shower, sarcastically singing along to the lyrics of ‘Hold On’ by Adele, in an attempt to remind Will of the challenge he was facing.

Jacqui was still half asleep when she spotted Will standing sheepishly on the landing, wearing just his nappy. Her immediate reaction was one of happiness as he noticed the dry nappy.

She leant back, raised her eyebrows and opened her mouth to express her positive surprise at the fact that Will was dry again. With her mouth still open, she then shook her lower face to convey her excitement at the situation, in a similar way to how you would when playing with a toddler who has something exciting to show.

“Look at you. Well done my little soldier, two days dry in a row. I’m so proud of you. If you carry on at this rate then we’ll be getting rid of these before long…”. before she playfully prodded the front of his nappy.

Will could say nothing back as his full focus remained on preventing an accident but in the circumstances, her words were not what Will needed to hear and the playful prod to the front of his nappy certainly wasn’t helpful because it made Will flinch and the sudden movement worsened the need to use the release his bladder.

On the verge of tears, he looked at the floor in despair because he knew he was about to flood his nappy and let his Mum down, straight after her words of encouragement. Looking just like a toddler, he crossed his legs and thighs together as they started involuntarily dancing while he also pushed both hands against the front of the nappy in an attempt to prolong the inevitable. At the same time, his lips pushed up against his nose and he closed his eyes.

Jacqui didn’t need to be told anything further. She had seen the ‘Pee Pee Dance’ many times over the years with Tom and Will when they back in their potty training phase. She knew from experience that this was a tell-tale sign that her little boy needed to go to the toilet and fast and without a quick intervention, it would be too late. She just could see Will’s desperation on his face.

“Hold on Will…”, she urged before she turned quickly towards the bathroom and banged on the front of the door several times.

“Tom, your brother needs to use the toilet straight away. Can you come out of there now?”

She could knew Will was running out of time and needed to get to the toilet fast.

“Two more minutes my little soldier, hold on.. you can do it”

As Jacqui tried to reassure Will, Tom responded sarcastically to her question.

“I am not finished yet. Can’t he just use his nappy?”

Jacqui blew a fuse as she banged on the door even more frantically this time.

“Thomas James Stewart, out here NOW!”

Tom turned the shower off and began to gather his clothes but unfortunately it was too late for Will. The Pee Pee dance stopped as he lost control of his bladder and a constant flow urine started to soak the nappy. He tried to push his hands right against the front of the nappy in an effort to stop the flow of pee but it was no good. He felt utterly humiliated and started to sob. He had just soaked a dry nappy just like a toddler. To make it even worse, it had leaked and had run down the inside of his legs on to the floor below.

As Tom opened the bathroom door, he saw Will crying as standing there clenching his crotch head down to the floor with clearly a very wet nappy. He sarcastically mocked the poor lad:

“Aww no, poor little soldier, did you not make it to the toilet on time? Your birthday is coming up, perhaps I can buy you a potty to keep in your room for emergencies?”

Will burst out crying hysterically as Tom shared his final dig: “Don’t get upset, if you don’t want a potty then maybe I can get you a new dummy?”

He sniggered under his breath as he walked out of the bathroom in the direction of his bedroom.

His laughter abruptly stopped when he crossed eyes with her Mum who was looking at him with absolute fury.

“Get to your room NOW Thomas James Stewart. You’re grounded for two weeks. And if you think this is so funny then perhaps you should spend a week wearing your brothers nappies and you can see how funny you find it when I’m changing your wet nappy”

Tom knew his Mum wasn’t being serious but he shivered at the very thought that he should would even contemplate it. He looked down at the floor to avoid Jacqui’s glare and dashed along the landing back into his room.

Keith had clearly been awoken by the commotion and poked his head out on to the landing.

“How many times have I been asking you Keith? I said this would happen. I told you we needed to get a downstairs toilet before something like this. You better get it sorted and quick…..”

It was too early for an argument so Keith wisely returned to the bedroom without responding to his wife. He knew he was not going to hear the end of it until he had completed the work that was long overdue….

Jacqui smiled at Will and directed him towards his bedroom.

“Let’s get you sorted, little soldier. Go and jump up on your changing table and wait for me. I will be two minutes…’

Will looked like a helpless toddler as he waddled back to his room. The nappy was soaked and sagged between his legs which prevented him walking like he normally would. As Will waited patiently on the changing table for his Mum, he heard her enter Tom’s room.

Will could overhear the conversation. His Mum sounded furious “So what do you have to say for yourself? I’m serious….”

Will’s vivid flashback was interrupted by a knock on the bedroom door.

 

[Back to Babyhood]

The last two chapters were a throwback to Will's earlier life because I wanted to set the scene for future chapters and give an insight into his relationship with his family back home given that it will be important when he returns to the UK. 

In hindsight, I may have focused on setting the scene too much and perhaps could have got to the punchline earlier but I thought it was important for the audience to know his back story and get to know him as a character. Things are definitely about to heat up though so stay tuned.... 

I have over 70 chapters planned with a long-term arc covering Will's trip to France and then the subsequent years - I won't spoil the exact plot but if you have any ideas or feedback then I would love to hear it. While I have a clear plan developed, I am very open to amending it to incorporate feedback.