Shifting Sands - Chapter 63 - 04/27

[Andyman3]

3 hours ago, littlebopeeper said:

Have to say that I'm a bit disappointed with this chapter.  It is beautifully detailed, but when you step back and look at it from afar, it returns to the basic formula of Kelly humiliates / Zack whines / Zach surrenders, only now in a public setting.  I'm with Andyman3 on this.   A kid wetting the bed and abusive parent putting him in diapers 24/7/365 is a dead horse, so how can any author tackle such a theme and make it seem fresh?  That's the problem, and it's an enormous challenge because right now there are 542 completed stories and 2,711 more in this forum, with scores more under the other stories heading.  I'm guessing that in this instance the best way would be to go Kelly humiliates / Zach whines / Zach plots / Zach fights back / Outcome uncertain until end.  It will be interesting to see if, in upcoming chapters, this or some such variation is what we get.  

Exactly! Superman, James bond, anime/manga characters you want stuff to happen to them but to much and the point is lost. This is a wonderful story with probably the best main character and a functional diaper challenge, the problem is the flow is messed up, the stepmother won't stop. She needs to chill and be the mature one, he's young he made a mistake ooooo. Trust him again and let him do things, so many wonderful possibilities. 

[A_Pale_Spirit]

I respectfully (but strongly) disagree with a couple of the last comments.

The story being a formulaic "diaper story" isn't a bad thing necessarily. The most important thing is quality of writing and this story clearly has that quality. Now obviously not everyone is going to like every story or every plot, so while some might not like a formulaic diaper story, some might.
"She needs to chill and be the mature one" makes sense in real life, but in a story there needs to be conflict otherwise it would just be pointless.

Also, that commenter cites the number of stories on this site, but from what I see, even though the "kid wetting the bed and abusive parent putting him in diapers" is the "deadhorse" the commenter mentions, the vast majority of stories on this site don't follow that "deadhorse" format, in fact it seems the majority of stories on this site don't even have a youth main character.

Either way, everyone has an opinion of how they'd like a story to go, but the decision is the author's (I know I have my opinion that I'm sure differs from the author's, but the story is the author's work, and they know how best how to continue it).

Not meaning to be confrontational at all, just my opinion.

[littlebopeeper]

4 hours ago, A_Pale_Spirit said:

Also, that commenter cites the number of stories on this site, but from what I see, even though the "kid wetting the bed and abusive parent putting him in diapers" is the "deadhorse" the commenter mentions, the vast majority of stories on this site don't follow that "deadhorse" format, in fact it seems the majority of stories on this site don't even have a youth main character.

Glad you posted this because it leads to the question of how many dead horses lead to a dead herd.  How many other themes can you come up with that are now overworked?  To name just one, how many times have you seen the boyfriend/husband give in when confronted with the diaper ultimatum?  Or to put it another way: how many times does the boyfriend/husband say "no?"  The story is easy to write when the guy doesn't fight back, but wouldn't you like to read one in which the author starts with the guy saying "heck no, and back off or I'm outta here" and then figuring out a way to wear him down that doesn't involve blackmail?

There's a lot of talent here, and that talent has now produced well over 3,000 pieces.  Going forward, it seems to me that the big challenge will be finding ways to keep story lines fresh.

 

[Little Sherri]

To quote Milhouse from The Simpsons, "Then why did I have the bowl, Bart?"

I have to admit to not having read very many diaper stories before trying to craft my own, and that is most probably a flawed approach, because while I had a gut feeling that many of these themes had to have been touched on before, I didn't think I was flogging horses that a lot of people wished would stay dead, which apparently is the case. But to get back to Milhouse's quote, if Kelly says "Hey, Zack, I'm tired of you wetting the bed and creating laundry and also I feel like you're not giving me the respect I deserve, so here's a wardrobe suggestion to both keep the sheets dry, and, to put you in your place...", and then Zack says "Go to hell, Kelly, I'll burn this place to the ground before I wear those", well, I don't have much latitude left to explore this character's feelings about wearing diapers in the "micro-moments" he's experiencing.

I'm using this to mine my own feelings to a certain extent, and while I was never deliberately humiliated about wearing diapers by my parents, they were very pragmatic people, and ours was a traditional top-down family structure, and I was not a defiant kid (until later in life when an alcoholic stepfather came into the picture and I had to quickly grow a backbone). So, I put my head down and wore the diapers I was put in, and occasionally, it was embarrassing. I don't know that rebellion would have done me much good, as my sheets would have been wet 5 nights out of 7.

Back to the bigger picture, I think a lot of these stories contain similar themes because they encapsulate the broad strokes of what people who wear diapers after around the age of 3 or 4 tend to experience, or at least, what they fear.

But that doesn't address the question of "Why bother writing another one, then?" To that, I would say, I wanted to try it out myself?

I have to admit that this has taken on a life of it's own and gone on much longer than I thought it would already - it seems that I'm writing a novel, when I'd set out to write a short story. But I have a lot of topography that I want to walk Zack through - I don't want to rush him to his victorious or inglorious finale. I'm sure some readers have already jumped ship and many more will do so - I hope I manage to keep a few of you entertained. 

In any case, I appreciate the feedback and will keep it in mind as I try to wrangle with this beast and hopefully steer it somewhere interesting. Maybe I'll do some wider reading before I try to write another! 

[Little Sherri]

Chapter 37 – Special

Zack thanked the stars that Kelly didn’t see anything she liked through any of the other shop windows, and eventually, they arrived at the line for Heather Lake Olde Time Ice Cream. The line was not insubstantial, although it shuffled forward with some regularity, and the sight of people walking out with heaping, frosty cones provided continuous evidence that there was a light at the end of the tunnel. Elaine fell in behind Zack, at times, actually leaning on him, and he stood as close to Kim as he could. Elaine whispered to Samantha, and she spoke to Maddy, and they took up positions on either side of Zack. Now he was just a kid in a lifejacket, surrounded by three girls. Even little kids, devoid of tact, did not stare or comment.

The screening seemed to be working, until they got inside the store, and there was a line on the floor, behind which customers waiting to order had to stand, while the next customer in line got called forward by the next available server. The queuing process allowed customers to quickly survey all the options in the buckets behind the glass freezer doors, without having to crane their heads around other customers. They called Kelly up, and then Zack stepped aside as they motioned for the next patron. Kim advanced, and then Maddy, and finally, Samantha, who gave him a squeeze on his shoulder as she stepped around him, while Zack remained glued to his spot on the floor. Finally, Zack was next. He blew air out between pursed lips and walked away from Elaine, feeling as he did so like he was on the runway in a fashion show. A dozen people stood behind him, old, young, and everything in between. He became very aware of the bulk of his diaper as it shifted lightly around him.

Zack felt more than heard his diaper crinkling as he walked up to the glass. He did not want to prolong his time there, so he said, simply, “Chocolate, please.” It was to be a fateful selection. The server asked how many scoops, so Zack asked how many Kim had gotten. “Two.” Was the reply. “Two,” Zack repeated. The cone was handed over to him, and then he walked to the far end of the store, where Kelly was digging through her purse and the younger girls were cleaning up the edges of their cones. Elaine came up behind him shortly, with a cone that had two flavours on it, one white, and one a mottled blue. Kelly paid the bill, and they headed out the door. In a vacant lot next to the ice cream shop were several picnic tables, most of them occupied, but there was one where an elderly couple were loading a preschooler into a stroller, so Kelly headed straight for it.

They stood politely back from the table while the couple finished packing up. Zack started eating his cone, but then Kelly shot him a perturbed glance and said “Stop, Zack, one second.”

Zack stopped, and Kelly walked up in front of him and took the cone from his hand, then gave it to Kim. She took a napkin and wiped his fingers, where a stray drizzle of melted ice cream was evident, and then she reached up and, in one fluid motion, unzipped the front of his lifejacket.

“Kel…!?!” Zack managed to utter, while she pressed in the sides of the crotch strap, and it fell between his legs. Then she pushed the lifejacket part way down his arms, before he managed to lock his elbows at his sides.

“Kelly, no, I don’t have anything on, please….”

“You are NOT getting chocolate all over Kim’s lifejacket,” she stated firmly.

Kelly let go of the sides of the jacket, and Zack relaxed slightly, thinking that she just wanted the front of it to be out of the drip zone. However, she walked around behind Zack, and in one swift motion, grabbed it by the collar, and pulled it downward faster than Zack could react to. It was almost like a magician pulling a tablecloth out from under a plate. Zack let out a low moan and folded in on himself, crossing his arms over his chest, as Kelly tossed the lifejacket to Kim. Tears welled up in his eyes and he issued a low sob.  

The couple had vacated the table and were tending to the stroller, so Kelly pointed to the bench on the far side and said, “What you’re doing right now is drawing attention to yourself. Sit down and shut up and people will stop looking at you.”

Zack sat down on the bench robotically. Kelly took the ice cream cone from Kim, walked over, and pried one of Zack’s hands open, placing it in his grip. He sat with his eyes closed, holding the cone away from himself like it was a torch. Elaine wished she had an article of clothing on her that she could throw over his lap, but all she was wearing was a bathing suit, so she sat down next to him as close as she could, to provide a bit of cover, and some moral support.

“Swing your legs under the table.” She whispered. Zack swung his legs around, without opening his eyes. His ice cream dripped freely onto the table.

“See?” Kelly said to no one in particular. “That’s what I’m talking about. I should have brought a bib.”

The lady, now pushing the stroller, addressed Kelly as they walked past. “How old is your son?”

Kelly raised her eyebrows. “He’s eleven.”

“I have a special needs child, too. He’s in his thirties now, but I know what it’s like. God bless you.”

“Yup, he’s special. Thank you. How old’s the little guy?”

“This is my grandson, my daughter’s youngest. He’s just turned three. Already potty trained. She’s got him reading, as well. He’s an amazing kid.”

“That’s great. Well, you have yourselves a nice day.”

The couple walked away with the stroller. Maddy and Samantha ate their ice cream with gusto. Zack held his above the table with an extended arm, like a robot that had run out of instructions. Elaine gently wrapped her hand around his wrist, and brought his arm in closer to him, resting it on the table. She took a napkin and swabbed at the ice cream that had dripped below the cone. Zack kept his eyes tightly shut.

Kelly addressed Elaine. “What he needs is to sit in a corner with a pacifier for a couple of hours, and pull himself together. I’m doing all the heavy lifting around here - THIS is what’s going to set him up for success later. All his anxiety is going to get burned away in this crucible. You watch! Once he accepts that he wears diapers, and he stops worrying about it, his life is going to get a lot better, and when that happens, maybe someday, he won’t need to be in diapers all the time anymore.”

Elaine listened respectfully to Kelly, but even in her limited experience, what she was hearing sounded crazy. People don’t respond to trauma and humiliation with reduced anxiety. Elaine knew something of these things. She had never been treated like Zack was currently, but, she had run around in unneeded cloth diapers at Grandma’s trailer, and likely would again. She had been the kid at the birthday party with Pampers on under her dress, terrified that someone would notice. She’d had to carry her box of pull-ups through the grocery store herself, and she’d had a diaper on under most of her Halloween costumes. All because of the ghosts in her mother’s head, ghosts that billowed on the clothes lines of her youth, stained yellow, sheets and cloth diapers in the bright sunshine of a trailer park in a small town with no fences, and a schoolhouse on a hill, overlooking it all.

Zack gradually recovered enough of his faculties to mechanically eat a bit of his ice cream cone, while staring off across the lot, over the heads of the happy-looking families enjoying frozen dairy confections. Kelly continued making acerbic comments and veiled threats about the humiliations that awaited Zack if he didn’t ‘control his behaviour’, but Zack was unresponsive. Elaine took the remains of the cone he was holding, now brimming with liquid, over to a trash can with her when she disposed of her own. She was no longer hungry, either.

When they pushed off from the table, to head back over to the pier, Kelly handed the lifejacket to Zack, but he just carried it under his arm like a briefcase. Elaine took it from him and tried to drape it over his shoulders, but it wouldn’t stay, and she ended up carrying it. He walked slowly back down Main Street, in his slightly sagging diaper with a yellow bulldozer on it, and flipflops. Kids craned their heads, and polite parents whispered at them to stop staring, while other adults openly raised their eyebrows. When they got to the boat, Zack stood while the nautical crowd milled around him, until Kim took the lifejacket from Elaine, held it up like a dinner jacket, and said it was time to get in the boat. He threaded his arms through it, and let her fasten it shut. The crotch strap lifted his diaper and partially bisected it as she cinched it tight.

Once in the boat, Kelly produced a pacifier, and held it on her palm for Zack. He picked it up, turning it over a couple of times, and then held it up to the sky, as though he was examining a diamond. Elaine held her breath, because she thought for a moment that he was going to throw it overboard, and even God didn’t know for sure what would have happened then, but instead, he just put it in his mouth, and sat looking unwaveringly off the front of the boat, making no effort to conceal it from the people on the pier.

As the boat bounced over the waves, Zack’s head bobbed loosely, as if he didn’t have sufficient energy to fully support it. When they pulled up to the dock, he sat mutely while the boat was tied off, staying on his seat while everyone made their way back up to the cottage. He watched the girls fold the cloth diapers that had been drying in the sun and hand them to Kim. Kelly reappeared and stood at the top of the stairs, looking at him. Zack got up, climbed out of the boat, and made his way up the deck. As he got closer, he saw that she was holding the tamper mitts.

 

[Andyman3]

21 minutes ago, Little Sherri said:

To quote Milhouse from The Simpsons, "Then why did I have the bowl, Bart?"

I have to admit to not having read very many diaper stories before trying to craft my own, and that is most probably a flawed approach, because while I had a gut feeling that many of these themes had to have been touched on before, I didn't think I was flogging horses that a lot of people wished would stay dead, which apparently is the case. But to get back to Milhouse's quote, if Kelly says "Hey, Zack, I'm tired of you wetting the bed and creating laundry and also I feel like you're not giving me the respect I deserve, so here's a wardrobe suggestion to both keep the sheets dry, and, to put you in your place...", and then Zack says "Go to hell, Kelly, I'll burn this place to the ground before I wear those", well, I don't have much latitude left to explore this character's feelings about wearing diapers in the "micro-moments" he's experiencing.

I'm using this to mine my own feelings to a certain extent, and while I was never deliberately humiliated about wearing diapers by my parents, they were very pragmatic people, and ours was a traditional top-down family structure, and I was not a defiant kid (until later in life when an alcoholic stepfather came into the picture and I had to quickly grow a backbone). So, I put my head down and wore the diapers I was put in, and occasionally, it was embarrassing. I don't know that rebellion would have done me much good, as my sheets would have been wet 5 nights out of 7.

Back to the bigger picture, I think a lot of these stories contain similar themes because they encapsulate the broad strokes of what people who wear diapers after around the age of 3 or 4 tend to experience, or at least, what they fear.

But that doesn't address the question of "Why bother writing another one, then?" To that, I would say, I wanted to try it out myself?

I have to admit that this has taken on a life of it's own and gone on much longer than I thought it would already - it seems that I'm writing a novel, when I'd set out to write a short story. But I have a lot of topography that I want to walk Zack through - I don't want to rush him to his victorious or inglorious finale. I'm sure some readers have already jumped ship and many more will do so - I hope I manage to keep a few of you entertained. 

In any case, I appreciate the feedback and will keep it in mind as I try to wrangle with this beast and hopefully steer it somewhere interesting. Maybe I'll do some wider reading before I try to write another! 

"I have to admit to not having read very many diaper stories before trying to craft my own", that's probably why it's so good othwise it would be like everything else. 

We are not writing these comments to be super negative, we love this story and want you to succeed. I love this story because It feels unique, it focuses on the basics being more realistic, haven't seen much of that in a while. Don't want to get super serious but the realistic style makes me feel it more then going all out. 

And I get the point of these stories is the diaper stuff you know people's personal experiences. I'm not saying don't have stuff happen just flow, batman and joker wouldn't be fun if one won and that's it. And yes take it slow, so much can be done in this story. 

I love this story, it just has something other stories don't so im really enjoying it. I've read hundreds of these diaper, I'm not trying to ruin thing please relax and take it slow. I just hope for it to be the best it can be😊. 

[A_Pale_Spirit]

Another very well-written chapter!

As always, excellent writing! I'm looking forward to where this story continues.

1 hour ago, Andyman3 said:

batman and joker wouldn't be fun if one won and that's it. And yes take it slow, so much can be done in this story. 

I'm a big fan of long stories that develop slowly (actually also in regards to films and tv series), so I definitely like the idea of taking it slow, which works especially well with the author's descriptive writing.

 

As much as I don't like superhero stories, I do agree with your Batman and Joker analogy too. You don't want the Joker to just win all the time because then it can get boring, but you also don't want Batman to win all the time either for the same reason; if a story (or movie) has no conflict, then it just isn't entertaining. 

[CCApril]

How far can Kelly push Zack before he breaks? By breaking I don't mean becoming a happy accepting toddler. I'm surprised he didn't cast himself off the front of the boat. Will he run away into the woods? Good writing and good story. Not often you read one of these stories and get truly angry at a character. Did Kelly have her empathy burned out of her by her mother? There is no carrot only stick with her.

April

[Andyman3]

15 minutes ago, CCApril said:

How far can Kelly push Zack before he breaks? By breaking I don't mean becoming a happy accepting toddler. I'm surprised he didn't cast himself off the front of the boat. Will he run away into the woods? Good writing and good story. Not often you read one of these stories and get truly angry at a character. Did Kelly have her empathy burned out of her by her mother? There is no carrot only stick with her.

April

Yes, there is a difference between a big challenge and being dominated. Running away probably won't go well like the movie thing. Him not breaking is more mental, inner strength like keeping his independent mind and standing up to his stepmother just in a smart way. 

Kelly trusted Zack in the beginning and you got some epic back and forth. That's were compromise comes in😄. 

[007specialk]

I really like the style of your writing and story line... A+

[Andyman3]

11 hours ago, Babypants said:

Elaine seems to sense that he is withdrawing physically and emotionally from the world around him.  Once a child crosses this bridge, he rarely turns back. This sets him up for psychiatric treatment, which for obvious reasons in this story should not go well at all.  Keeping in mind that school has just let out for the summer, Kelly now has roughly three months to finish destroying him.  In my childhood, the end result would have been for Zack to be institutionalized.  I have no idea how this sort of thing plays out in the contemporary universe.

I had hoped that he would go inert as a strategy.  He weighs some 85 pounds, and diapering him without his cooperation would be quite a chore.  But going inert as a matter of tactics is one thing, going inert because your will to live has been broken is another.  Like CCApril is hinting, it would not surprise me if he attempted suicide. 

Oh school is out for summer, crap I missed that part! He needs his friends, when family annoys you go to friends 😄. 

Wow he really is screwed then, nothing he can do. Well this isn't real life cause what you said would happen, so what could happen is this story. His friend is waiting for him when he gets back and his cousin Is there. 

That's why I suggested overalls 😄. Both parties would be benefit. 

[TheJ]

18 hours ago, CCApril said:

How far can Kelly push Zack before he breaks? By breaking I don't mean becoming a happy accepting toddler.

He has already started dissociating. It's definitely a more realistic reaction to the treatment than starting to play the part. I'm starting to think Zack won't do anything drastic in response to Kelly's actions anymore, but I wish someone eventually does on his behalf. Hopefully his father at least won't just be happy with having an "easy" child, and realises what's happening to Zack. 

[D503]

Uh oh, she might double-down and bring-out the gingham or pink plastic pants and nightie.

[Andyman3]

5 hours ago, TheJ said:

He has already started dissociating. It's definitely a more realistic reaction to the treatment than starting to play the part. I'm starting to think Zack won't do anything drastic in response to Kelly's actions anymore, but I wish someone eventually does on his behalf. Hopefully his father at least won't just be happy with having an "easy" child, and realises what's happening to Zack. 

Yes that's what it seems. But yes his dad is pretty reasonable. There is a difference between obedient and servant-like. 

[Tracey]

On 6/24/2023 at 3:26 AM, Little Sherri said:

Back to the bigger picture, I think a lot of these stories contain similar themes because they encapsulate the broad strokes of what people who wear diapers after around the age of 3 or 4 tend to experience, or at least, what they fear.

But that doesn't address the question of "Why bother writing another one, then?" To that, I would say, I wanted to try it out myself?

You have created a story that has many on and off ramps to potential diverging paths. The chapter where Maddie was treated as a toddler, fed wearing a bib, and pushed around the block in a jogging stroller in pullups, a sundress and nursing a paci by Kelly and her friend on a run was highlight. It had a lot of potential because if Maddie can still fit in a stroller then she is still petite enough to still fit real toddler diapers, a highchair, crib and a playpen.. Hopefully she crosses the line again and it is little Maddie who gets to spend the summer as Zachs toddler sister while he is given a reprieve from fulltime diapers. 

[Tracey]

On 4/14/2023 at 5:29 AM, Little Sherri said:

Downstairs, he heard his sister’s voice rise plaintively, and then Kelly barked something, and the door slammed shut. He went over and looked out his window. A moment later, Kelly and her friend, both wearing running shorts and tank tops, walked up to the street. Kelly was pushing a red elongated stroller with three bicycle wheels and had Maddy by the hand, wearing a yellow sundress. Kelly pivoted the running stroller so that it was facing back towards the house, picked Maddy up under the armpits, and plunked her inside it, then leaned over and fastened her into the built-in five-point harness. When she stood up and walked behind the three-wheeled conveyance, Zack swore that he made eye contact with Maddy. She looked up at him from in the stroller. He couldn’t read her facial expression because of the pacifier she had in her mouth. The harness kept her from pulling her dress convincingly over her pull-up. Kelly and her friend did some quick leg stretches. Zack shook his head. Maddy was about to go for a 45-minute jog around the neighbourhood, in a stroller, with a pacifier in her mouth.

Maddy was definitely headed toward a second toddlerhood at this point of the story until Stepmom Kelly let her off the hook to focus on Zach.

Now that they are at the lake house and Kelly has seen that Maddie is still small enough to be put back in real cotton baby diapers still fit toddler size plastic baby pants that should have her mommy hormones kicking off.

Little Maddie could easily fit the change table in the cabin which no doubt also has a crib in the spare room or master bedroom. They also still need to spend the week at Grandmas trailer in the woods where all the girl’s will be diapered.

Kelly's running friend Donna most likely still has a crib, change table, highchair and playpen and toddler clothes she can borrow along with the stroller that Maddie has already ridden in. Maddie will be a much easier option than Zach and could even look the part for real.

Little Maddie being transformed into Stepmom Kelly’s fulltime diapered toddler daughter for the summer and then being sent back to preschool instead of Kindergarten at the end of summer is a real possibility. 

[Andyman3]

Elaine seems understanding because she has been through it too. Quite wise actually understands what the adult is doing and really helps Zack. Got some interesting stuff but his stepmother is still insane, stuck on this control ritual. 

[Tracey]

On 6/26/2023 at 1:36 AM, Andyman3 said:

Elaine seems understanding because she has been through it too. Quite wise actually understands what the adult is doing and really helps Zack. Got some interesting stuff but his stepmother is still insane, stuck on this control ritual

Stepmon Kelly wants one of her kiddos in diapers fulltime. Will Elaine realise that the only way she can get Zach out of diapers is to have Kelly demote little Maddie to be his baby sister?

[Andyman3]

1 hour ago, Tracey said:

Stepmon Kelly wants one of her kiddos in diapers fulltime. Will Elaine realise that the only way she can get Zach out of diapers is to have Kelly demote little Maddie to be his baby sister?

Oh now that makes sense. Maddie has had strong role and could help Zach put. She Is young so easy deal to get her to shoulder the burden. 

[Tracey]

1 hour ago, Andyman3 said:

Oh now that makes sense. Maddie has had strong role and could help Zach put. She Is young so easy deal to get her to shoulder the burden. 

Being younger and petite Maddie could easily pass for a toddler, she will resist but as we read Stepmom Kelly making her use bib, sippy cup, pacifier and stroller She can be easily controlled because she is still small and can still fit into the necessities of babyhood and not look out of place. Go Kelly, here is your chance to play Momma for real.

[Little Sherri]

Chapter 38 – Dressing Down

Zack held his hands out at the top of the stairs, and Kelly wordlessly secured his tamper mitts. She pointed to a blanket that she’d laid out on the deck, between two Muskoka chairs that faced out toward the lake.

“You’re getting some tummy time, little man. This blanket is now your North, South, East and West. Unless the deck catches fire, I don’t want to see any part of you off that blanket, understood?”

Zack said nothing. He went and sat down on the blanket.

“Lay down on your tummy, Zack.”

Zack stretched out on the blanket in the warm sunshine, and closed his eyes. He was hoping to fall asleep, or at least feign sleeping for a while. He heard the girls come back out onto the deck, and arrange themselves around a table to play cards, but he didn’t look up. He couldn’t very well play cards with tamper mitts on.

Kim came out next, and put something cold down next to his arm. He opened his eyes briefly; it was a baby bottle filled with water and ice. He let his pacifier fall out of his mouth, and suckled on the bottle, sideways on the ground. The occasional droplet of water escaped from the downward side of his mouth and ran across his cheek and into the blanket.

Kelly conversed casually with Kim from behind him.

“I don’t know what we’re going to do with this little man. I feel like we’re making so much progress, and then he melts down again, and we’re back to square one.”

“It seems like he doesn’t deal well with transitions right now.” Kim responded.

“You’re spot-on, Kim. Every time we change settings or outfits, there’s a chance he’s going to lose control of his emotions. I think the best bet for now is just to keep him in his diaper, on that blanket. I’m going to run into town in the car and get some formula for him. Can you think of anything else we could use?”

“Maybe some pickles? I’m thinking of doing burgers tonight.”

“Okay, I’ll grab those as well. When I’m gone tomorrow, have you given any thoughts as to what you want to do with him? What do you want him wearing?”

“Maybe a nighttime disposable under plastic panties? Then I can go the whole day without worrying about his baby nappies, basically. And he won’t need to wear those mitts, so he won’t be totally useless if we decide to do anything.”

“Okay, that’s what I’ll put him in tonight after dinner.”

Kelly got up off her chair and kneeled down beside Zack, taking a quick look in the back of his diaper.

“If there’s anything you need to do in there, little man, you should get it over with before bedtime. I’m leaving first thing in the morning, and you won’t be changed again until late tomorrow.” She kissed him on the top of the head, causing Zack’s eyes to open, then she stood up. Zack watched her feet at eye level as they crossed the deck towards the garden door.

Kim picked up a book and started reading.

Sometime later, Zack started to feel like maybe he could use the potty, but he knew no such option was on the table. He rolled over to his side, and tried to push as lightly and silently as he could, so as not to attract any attention from Kim or the girls. A solitary stool glided into his diaper and rolled downward. He laid on the blanket, aware of it for a while, and then his awareness drifted off, and he fell asleep while suckling fitfully on the bottle.

An unknown time later, Zack woke up to Kim and Kelly’s feet crossing the deck with thumping noises that transmitted through the blanket and into his ear. The sun had dropped lower in the sky and the air was a bit cooler. He could see that the cover was off the barbecue. The girls were congregated around the table again, still in their bathing suits.  

Kelly’s feet clomped over towards Zack, and she kneeled and lifted the waistband of his diaper again, first a small amount, then, a bit wider.

“Good boy, Zackie.”  She tussled his hair lightly. “After the big people have eaten dinner, we’ll have some Zack and Kelly time on your blankie, and you can drink your baby formula.”  

Kelly stood up and walked away. Zack watched the back of her calves as they receded toward the table, pulled out a chair and sat down. Kelly, Kim and the girls passed items back and forth on the table top, which was outside of his view, and chitchatted. A couple of times, Elaine looked over at him.

The girls started clearing dishes, and Kelly pushed back from the table, walked over to Zack, and took his bottle from beside his cheek, where he’d let it come to rest, half-full, after tiring of sucking on it. She picked up his pacifier and touched it to his lips. Listlessly, he accepted it.

Kelly’s footfalls faded as she went inside the house for a few minutes. Then, Zack saw her emerge from the garden door, and make her way back over to his blanket. She pulled a Muskoka chair over to the edge of the blanket to use as a backrest, then sat down with her back against it, and invited Zack to put his head down on her lap. Beside her, she had placed the bottle he was drinking from earlier, now topped up with an off-white liquid.

Zack looked up from her lap as she smiled down at him. She removed his pacifier, then guided the bottle’s nipple to his lips, and he took a test pull on it. Formula. It was warm and bland and vaguely chalky and just slightly sweet. Zack reluctantly settled into a suckling rhythm.

How much does she want me to drink?!?

While he was nursing, Maddy and Samantha walked over and sat down on the edge of his blanket with a deck of cards. Samantha wrinkled her nose briefly, looking at Zack and Kelly.

“Did he do poopoo in his diaper?” She asked.

“He did,” Kelly responded.

“Are you gonna change him?”

“When it’s time for his bedtime diaper.”

“Can we help?” Samantha asked in a hopeful tone.

“I think that’s a splendid idea, Sam. Maybe you can bring me a diaper for Zack when you get your diaper for bedtime. We can do the changing out here on the deck – it’s a lovely evening.”

Samantha jumped up to run into the house.

“Hang on – I want to tell you what I need. Get the cloth baby nappies for you and Maddy, and four pins, and plastic panties, and babydoll nighties, and your pacifiers. Go into the big rolling suitcase on the floor in my bedroom, and get one of the disposables with lambs on it, for Zack, and a pair of plastic panties for him as well. Maddy…” Kelly looked at Maddy now, who was still seated on blanket. “Why don’t you go with Samantha, because she won’t know what I’m asking for; get me one of the snap-suits for Zack as well, the short-sleeved ones that show some of his diaper, in case Kim needs to check it. Your choice which colour.”

Maddy jumped up and followed Samantha into the house. Zack continued to drink, even though his stomach was only reluctantly accepting the bland concoction. He wondered if he was going to get anything else to eat, or if we he was expected to drink his meal this evening.

As though interpreting his thoughts, Kelly stroked his cheek with the hand that wasn’t holding his bottle up. “You finish up your formula like a good boy, and I’ll cut up a burger for you.” Zack blinked and continued to suckle.

Eventually Maddy and Samantha returned, with an arm full of supplies each; flat cloth diapers, plastic panties, pins, Zack’s disposable, and a light blue short-sleeved snap-suit.

“Good job ladies, well done. Let’s see what you brought over.” Kelly did a quick inventory. “The only issue is, all the plastic panties you brought are pink, and none of them lock. But that’s fine – the snap-suit has a lock.” She tussled his hair. Zack heard his bottle gurgle and felt bubbles come through the nipple.

“Okay, Zack’s done his bottle. Samantha, you wanted to help – can you take Zack over to the table and feed him some of the burger patty that I cut up in the plastic bowl, while I diaper Maddy for the night?”

Samantha nodded.

“Put some ketchup on it for him. Once I’m done with Maddy, you can switch places, and I’ll diaper you. Go on, Zack – go to the table with Maddy.”

Kelly took the bottle out of his mouth, and was about to put his pacifier back, but before she had it in place, Zack spoke up. “Can I eat my burger myself?”

Kelly smiled. “Sorry, little man, not with your mitts on.” She popped the pacifier back into his mouth.

“Help him take his paci out and put it on the table, Sam. I don’t want it falling on the floor or the dog might run off with it.”

Zack got up and walked after Samantha, who directed him to a chair next to hers. Kelly watched as she carefully extracted his pacifier and placed it in the center of the table, then picked up the ketchup and consulted with Zack as to how much he wanted in his bowl. Maddy took her bathing suit off and laid down on the blanket in front of Kelly.

“Now I’m not a pro at fastening these baby nappies solo yet, so I can use the practice. I’ll get you just lend me a hand.” Kelly directed Maddy to put some tension on one side of the cloth flat, so that she could pin it, and then move over to the other. Then she picked up a pair of pink plastic panties and slid them up over Maddy’s feet and legs, letting her get to her feet and pull them the rest of the way up, and then she put on a purple nightie. Kelly clipped her pacifier to the collar, and left it dangling, then called Samantha over.

“Samantha, diaper time.” Samantha waited for Maddy to get over to the table, then handed her the fork she’d been using to feed Zack, and then headed over to where Kelly was seated on the blanket.

Samantha took her bathing suit off while Kelly laid out a cloth flat for her. Once she had centered herself on the diaper, Kelly folded it on, again asking Sam to hold the sides together while she finished pining it, and then she threaded plastic pants over her feet as well.

“Do you want your paci now, Sam, or do you normally wait for bedtime?”

“I might as well clip it to my nightdress like Maddy.” She said, taking the pacifier from Kelly. Maddy clipped it to the ruffled collar of her dress.

Kelly furrowed her eyebrows, noticing that there was an extra nightie on the deck.

“Sam, looks like you brought one too many,” she said.

Sam smiled and blushed lightly. “I thought that maybe you’d want one for Zack?” she asked softly.

Kelly smiled, gave her a wink, then stood up and walked over to where Zack was seated. Maddy had just given him the last bite of burger, and he had ketchup, and a dribble of formula on one of his cheeks.

“Wipe your brother’s face with a napkin before he gets up.” Maddy obliged, dragging a dry napkin back and forth across Zack’s cheek like she was polishing it. Zack grimaced and turned his head away.

“Good enough, Maddy. Now give him his pacifier. Zack, come over to your blankie and we’ll get your bum cleaned up.”

Zack stood up from the table, hung his head, and did a slow gallows walk over to the blankie.

Is she really going to ask the girls to help with this?

“Maddy, why don’t you and Sam run inside for a minute and see if Kim and Elaine need any help with dessert? I have to deal with Zackie’s messy bum, and I don’t think you want to watch that. You can help me dress him when I’m done.”

Zack was so relieved that there wasn’t going to be an audience for this part of his diaper change that he just laid back and let it happen, looking up at the darkening sky and realizing that he’d sucked so many bottles and pacifiers over the past couple of days that his cheeks ached. He closed his eyes and tried to think about something else.

Once Kelly had the Little Lambs taped snugly into place, she called back Maddy and Sam.

“Girls, it’s time to dress baby Zack!”

Zack’s eyes popped open. Kelly was looking down at him. “Well, Zack, based on your recent history, I’m not sure if you’re going to love this or hate it, but the girls brought you pink underpants and a nightie for tonight.”

Zack looked at them, and blushed deeply, but after everything else he had been through, he couldn’t summon the energy to verbalize a protest. Kelly had him stand up, and Maddy held the plastic panties for him. He watched himself step into them limply, as though observing someone else. She slid them carefully up over his diaper, and then Kelly held a light blue snap suit just above the deck, for him to repeat the stepping action. Once it was drawn up over his shoulders, the leg gathers on his diaper were visible around the back of his legs. Kelly and Maddy tucked them into his panties simultaneously, and then she zipped up the back of his snap-suit and pushed the mag lock into place with a click.

Sam stepped forward next, dangling a short pink nightdress expectantly. Zack made no motion to participate, keeping his arms resolutely at his sides, and narrowing his eyes.

This is it. If Kelly expects me to put that thing on, I’m going to jump off the end of the dock before anyone can stop me, and swim for the other side.

Sam tilted her head and smiled. Zack felt his heart beating inside his chest. Maddy looked at Kelly, confused – where had the nightie come from, and why?

Kelly smiled broadly at Zack. Sam held the nightie, a ruffled pink affair, higher, as though the height of it were the only issue.

“Zackie, we talked about this. Baby clothes are genderless. I want you in pajamas that let me see your bottom, because your bottom is my responsibility. So let’s not make a fuss. Sam was nice enough to pick out a pretty nightie for you. You’ll be adorable. Everyone else is wearing their nighties, aren’t they? You’re a guest in this house. Let’s not be ungrateful.”

Kelly nodded to Zack, as though her logic was inescapable. She seemed to be on the cusp of saying something else, when the moment was punctured by the sound of Elaine opening the garden door.

All eyes went to her, causing her to pause, mid-step. Sam dropped her hands and folded the nightie quickly.

“Just kidding!” she proclaimed.

Elaine took in the scene, pivoted, and walked towards them. She eyed the folded garment in Samantha’s hands. Directing a glare at Samantha, she spoke primarily to Kelly.

“He’s not a mannequin, girls. If you want to play dress-up, do it with your dolls.”

Sam dropped her eyes. “Sorry, yes, I was just kidding around.”

Maddy let out a breath, relieved that the strange moment had been interrupted. She felt guilty for not saying anything herself.

Kelly busied herself by affixing Zack’s pacifier to his collar, before pushing it curtly into his mouth, and then handing him the balled-up Mighty Digger.

“Go ask Kim where she wants your poopy diaper,” Kelly said abruptly. Zack cradled it against his chest because he couldn’t grip it with his covered hands. At least he’d been dismissed from confines of the blanket.

And I’m not in that stupid nightie.

Elaine put an arm over his shoulder and walked him back towards the door, through the sitting room and into the kitchen, where Kelly was portioning ice cream into bowls.

“Kim, weaw thould I puth thith thiaper?”

“There’s a bin for baby diapers in the garage, Zack.”

Elaine said, “Come with me,” in a low voice.

Elaine and Zack returned a minute later. Kim went to hand each of them a bowl of ice cream, but then reconsidered, when she saw Zack’s mitts. She carried his bowl for him, while Elaine carried bowls for the girls.

When they filed through the garden door, Elaine addressed the group.

“Since Zack is locked in his diaper shirt, can his mitts come off?”

Kelly looked at Elaine, then at Zack. “Fine, but I want him in a bib. I do not want stains on his new outfit. Maddy, go inside the house and get my keys from the rack at the front door.”

Maddy skipped inside, returning quickly with the keys, which Kelly used to unlatch and remove Zack’s mitts. Zack opened and closed his fingers a couple of times. He took his pacifier out of his mouth and sat patiently for Elaine to affix a bib on him.  

Kelly held up her key ring, and then made a show of dropping it into her purse. “Zack, just so you don’t waste any time searching for them, THESE are going with me when I leave in the morning. There’ll be no sneaking your diaper off while I’m gone.”

Kim smiled. “We’ll all make sure he stays in his nappies like a good boy. At least with those magic mitts off, he can help the girls do the dishes.”

The kids ate their ice cream, and then they got up and went down to the dock to watch the sun set over the lake, Zack reflexively putting his pacifier back in his mouth. Although the snap-suit wouldn’t have been Zack’s first wardrobe choice, it was worlds better than the nightie that Sam had been waving around, and he felt a little better having something, anything on over his underclothes. Maddy and Samantha seemed completely oblivious to the fact that they were running around in plastic panties; they did handstands on the dock and cartwheels on the grass with abandon. Elaine sat next to Zack at the end of the dock, and tugged his pacifier out playfully by the tether.

“As long as we’re facing the lake, they can’t see anything from up there.”

Zack said nothing.

“Sam bringing you that dress was bullshit, Zack, and I’m going to give her shit for it. She’s not going to be trying to get points with Kelly by torturing you.”

Zack looked back at Maddy and Sam. “I don’t think she realized she was being mean. Look at them – I think they think this is normal.”

“I think you’re being too kind, Zack.”

Zack looked at Elaine. “When did you not have to wear…” and then he put on an English accent while finishing his sentence: “Baby nappies anymore?” 

Elaine rolled her eyes. “It wasn’t until I’d been dry overnight for like a year. I think my mom just got tired of washing diapers that didn’t really need washing.”

“That must have been a relief.”

“Oh yeah, on a hot summer night, sleeping in plastic panties… when you don’t have to? It sucks. Also, sleepovers… I rarely bothered even going. My mom would pin two cloth diapers on me before we left the house, so I looked like I had a planet in my pants. One time, for, I think it was maybe my seventh or eighth birthday, I begged her to get me pull-ups so that I could wear them when my friends came over, but she came home with Pampers because she said they were better.”

“Oh man,” Zack said. “I feel you. Kelly made me go play baseball in one of those diapers with the tractors on the front. Might as well have been Pampers. I had a uniform on over it, but I swear that people in the stands could hear it when I ran past.”

“Wow.”

Elaine listened to the lake water gently lapping against the supports of the dock, before turning her head towards Zack.

“Zack, if you don’t mind me asking… did you start wetting yourself, is that why she took you to the doctor?”

Zack blushed. “Well, I started wearing pull-ups to bed because I had accidents once in a while. When we moved into Kelly’s place, that was the rule. Then they leaked a couple of times, and the next thing I knew, she’d bought boxes of giant diapers and lockable clothes from… this crazy doctor I’d never met before.”

Elaine turned and looked Zack in the eyes. “I heard from my mom that you wet yourself at a movie?”

Zack turned red and looked down at his lap. “She was makin’ me wear one of these stupid diapers…” Zack poked the front of his onesie. “The really big ones for overnight, out with my friend, and I had a panic attack. She’d left the key for the shirt lock at the front door when she went out jogging, so I took the diaper off and I hid it in the backyard, and I went to the movie without one. However then I dumped pop in my lap accidentally and she thought I’d peed my pants and she went ballistic and locked me in the backyard in a diaper.”

“Oh, wow, that’s some bad luck. I think she thinks you dumped pop on yourself because you peed your pants.”

Zack’s cheeks were glowing bright red now.

“Is that…. kinda what happened…? Or not at all?”

Zack swallowed hard. “Yeah, well, maybe a little bit, but dumping pop on myself made it ten times worse. I just thought she might see where I was a little wet, and she’d know I’d taken my diaper off. Now she thinks I completely flooded my pants, and I’m gonna spend the rest of my life wearin’ diapers, and I gotta do whatever she says or else she’ll tell my dad the whole story.”

“Would your dad get that upset? He seems pretty laid back. Or is there something else?”

Zack leaned his head onto his hands. “Well, there kinda was somethin’ else, Elaine. But I don’t want to talk about it.”

Elaine lowered her voice. “It had something to do with Maddy’s clothes, didn’t it? My mom told Sam and I to keep an eye on our clothes while you’re here, which was kinda weird.”

Zack let out a low moan again. “She’s freakin’ tellin’ everybody everything.”

Elaine put a hand on Zack’s back, and leaned forward so that she could look at his downturned face. “Did you sneak out in some of Maddy’s clothes when you were supposed to be wearing that diaper?”

Zack nodded wordlessly.

“Was it… her panties?”

Zack looked at his knees, and looped his hands behind them. “I wanted some black shorts, but when I couldn’t find anything but pink ones, I ended up finding the plainest white underwear on the planet, in a new package. So I… borrowed them. I wish I’d jumped off a bridge instead.”

“I’m glad you didn’t jump off a bridge, Zack. Imagine how that would have been, a broken boy found under an overpass gets rushed to the hospital, and they cut off all his clothes, and he’s wearin’ his sister’s underpants…”

Zack laughed out loud, then stopped. “It’s not funny.”

Elaine smiled. “Believe me, I’m not judging you. My mom used to send me outside to play in just a diaper, because if I had clothes on, I’d take my diapers off sometimes and hide them in the wheels of her car, so that she’d go drivin’ down the road, and see diapers come flying up in the mirrors.”

Zack laughed again. “Seriously? You couldn’t think of anywhere better to hide them?”

“We weren’t allowed off the driveway, but I could go around behind the car and take my diaper off and quickly stuff it into the wheels.”

“You’d take them off because you were embarrassed?”

“The neighbourhood kids would see them under our dresses. I preferred to be the neighbourhood flasher, rather than the kid who wore diapers. But it drove my mom nuts, she’d scream at me that people were sayin’ she couldn’t afford diapers for her kids. So she started sending me out to play in just a diaper, to make sure I couldn’t take it off.”

“Wow.” Zack raised his eyebrows.

“Kelly and my mom had the same messed up upbringing. They must have been terrible bedwetters and traumatized grandma or something. She’s absolutely loopy about wearin’ diapers up at her place. Even I’m going to wear them. I half think she makes my mom sleep in them. Meanwhile, she’s like ninety-eight or something. She should be the one wearin’ diapers.”

“Does she?”

“I’ve never had the courage to ask. Maybe you should put the question to her.”

A raised voice came from the deck. “KIDS…. Time to brush your teeth….”

Elaine picked up Zack’s pacifier, holding it playfully in front of his face, mimicking the British accent he’d used earlier. “May I, good sir?”

Zack cracked a smile. Maddy held it out for him, and he took it between his teeth. Maddy and Samantha were already running up the path toward the deck, as Elaine and Zack got up and started walking across the dock. The sun glowed orange just above the horizon, tinting the sky pink above them.

[sklawlor]

the part about putting the diapers in the wheels of the car was really funny.  I still think that Kelly is unspeakably cruel and  malicious.

[kerry]

3 hours ago, sklawlor said:

the part about putting the diapers in the wheels of the car was really funny.  I still think that Kelly is unspeakably cruel and  malicious.

Agree with both parts. But at least this chapter includes some explanation for her actions, even if it is nowhere near any kind of excuse.

 

[Andyman3]

Well it's wonderfully written but it seems like the idea is Zack falling to diapers. Seems the main characters are now the girls, Elaine is cool. Cool story but if something doesn't happen then we know the ending. His stepmother wins. 

[Alutheria]

Absolutely fantastic chapter. I'm loving the relationship that's developing between Zach and Elaine. Its very cute. And poor, poor Zach. Kid seriously needs a hug.