Breaking Ground (A Shifting Sands Fanfic) Chapter 6

[Alutheria]

5 hours ago, Andyman3 said:

Wooo busy holidays. Now we can see more chapters from you. 😊

Yeah, fun times but busy times for me. 

 

I've got chapter 5 roughly outlined and I know what's going to happen and what its going to look like. Just need to sit down and write it up properly now. 

Sorry for keeping everyone waiting so long between chapters. I want to try and be more consistent and regular with chapter posts this coming year.

[Andyman3]

Can't wait to see how George and the moms friend interact and I know the girl he met will be fun😄

[Alutheria]

On 1/17/2024 at 9:18 PM, Andyman3 said:

Can't wait to see how George and the moms friend interact and I know the girl he met will be fun😄

First draft of chapter 5 is 90% done now. Sorry this has been taking so long.

[Emmi]

1 hour ago, Alutheria said:

First draft of chapter 5 is 90% done now. Sorry this has been taking so long.

Things happen. Glad to see the story will continue soon though. I've really been enjoying it so far.

[Alutheria]

Chapter 5: Skip 

 

Jane had changed out of her mud caked soccer uniform, George noticed. In its place she had donned a pair of full-length dark green cargo shorts and a Denim jacket over a simple white top. 

“Uh, hi.” George mumbled awkwardly at Alice and Jane, both of whom were smiling at him. He didn’t know if Alice was just in the habit of inviting the girl next door over for drinks or if this was some spur of the moment invitation, but either way it was an unwelcome surprise for him. At least now the nappies were out of sight. He noticed a third glass sitting untouched on the countertop filled with what looked like orange juice and realised that it must be for him. 

“Hi again!” Jane replied as she sipped her own drink. “I was just wondering if you wanted to come out and play this afternoon? I know you’ve probably got vacation plans already, but your mom invited me in and said you had some free time today.” George thought about clarifying that Alice was just his godmother but stayed quiet as he sipped his drink. Yup. Orange juice. 

Alice nodded. “We’re going into the city tomorrow to pick up some new clothes, but I thought we’d do that in the afternoon, given his jetlag issues. But he should be perfectly free come the evening if you two wanted to do something. I don't really want you out after dark, and I’m sure your dad would agree with me there Jane. If you wanted to play some games indoors or watch a movie or something, I’m sure I can arrange something.”  

“Sounds great! I'll let my dad know tonight.” Jane turned back to George. “You want to go out now then? We could go down to the creek and throw rocks or something.” She suggested. 

They both went quiet waiting for George to reply. He was still playing catchup on the conversation as he took gulps of his orange juice. Grateful that he had an excuse not to speak right away. 

“Uh, yeah, sure. Sounds good.” He muttered.  

Alice nodded towards the front door and smiled at George again. “Well, you’re wasting sunlight! Go on and play! I’m not letting you waste away your days playing Pokémon!”  

George blushed at this slightly.  

“After you then, I guess.” He left his mostly empty glass back on the counter and looked to Jane as she started moving out into the hallway where she’d left her shoes on the shoe rack and started pulling them on. A set of worn white sneakers that she quickly laced up. 

George followed suit and pulled his own white and grey trainers on, working on doing the laces up in a double bow as his mind raced. He didn’t mind going outside to play. Far from it, he enjoyed time outside. It was just a matter of finding someone to do it with. Now he had exactly that. He just wished it was someone who didn’t know about his bedtime issues. 

Jane moved to get the door as George finished with the last of the laces, and Alice called through from the kitchen as she heard the clunk of the handle being pulled.  

“Don’t go too far alright? You’ve got my number on your phones if you need me!” 

“We won’t Mrs Warding!” Jane replied as they opened the door. “I’m only going to take him to the creek, I promise!”  

George followed her outside and shut the door behind him, his eyes squinting as the blazing summer sun assaulted his corneas. He double checked that he had his phone in his pocket. His Nintendo, which was usually in his other pocket, was upstairs in his room charging. 

Jane had walked ahead and was waiting for him at the end of the driveway. As he caught up, she set of down the pavement in the opposite direction from where his godmother had driven him in. He had assumed that there wouldn’t be anything else back here but more rows of expensive looking houses, but if Jane was walking them this way there must be a way down to a creek somewhere. 

“There’s a big, wooded area behind the last houses here.” Jane told him as if reading his mind. “The whole place is part of a national park, I think. Its only twenty minutes from there to the creek.” 

“What do you wanna do there? Hide a body?” 

Jane laughed at his joke, and he felt his own tension ease slightly. “Depends, you got a body to hide? I was thinking we could throw pebbles and stuff. Do you know how to skip them? I can show you how.”  

“Yeah, that sounds cool.” He nodded, as the two of them kept up a quick pace and found themselves passing the last set of houses. The road ended in an abrupt cul-de-sac, and just beyond that was a small worn wooden fence separating the end of the suburb from the edge of the woods. A small dirt path led off the pavement up to a bolted wooden gate. Jane went ahead to open it and he walked through behind her. 

“We could just go exploring and stuff if you’d rather do that. The woods here are huge. I’ve lived here since I was in diapers and there’s still loads of it I’ve never been in.” She spoke casually as she closed the gate behind them.  

George didn’t react to her mention of diapers, but the word abruptly pulled his predicament back into the forefront of his mind, and he tried to force it back out by focusing on where he was. The dirt path winded into the forest before them. A sea of brown trunks smothered in green foliage spread before them and quickly cut them off from view of the homes that backed onto it. The sun still pierced through the canopy of leaves but was far less harsh than it had been under open sky, and he was thankful for that. He kicked himself as he realised, he’d left his sunglasses back in his room. Oh well, he’d have to manage without. 

“Well, we can do both, I guess. My god-mum didn’t say when she wanted me back, so I think we have until it gets dark? When is that, by the way?” 

“A couple of hours at least. We’ve got plenty of time, don't worry.” Jane replied as she continued forward, clearly knowing where she was going as they went deeper into the woods. “You ever skip stones before?” She asked, “I can show you how.” 

“Does seeing how far you can throw a rock out to sea count?” George asked. “Um, no, never skipped stones before. There was a kid in my class back home who could do it really well, he was always so smug about it.” He blinked. “Not saying you’re smug or anything.” he spoke sheepishly.  

“Oh, I can be smug alright, but let me show you why first.” Jane teased back, as the winding path they were following started to slope downwards, and Jane picked up the pace. George did his best to keep up, but the terrain wasn’t in his favour. The plants and trees grew tighter and narrowed more, whilst the dirt path itself seemed lodged with uneven stones and exposed roots pushing to the surface. He could feel the larger stones pushing uncomfortably through the thin soles of his shoes, and realised that stiff jeans and trainers weren’t the best clothes to be out exploring in. 

At last, the path suddenly widened, and he followed Jane out into an open rocky area where the sound of rushing water could be heard. They were on an outcropping that jutted into the bend of a moderately large river. Water that was so clear it was practically transparent flowed past them at a steady pace, and George could easily see the bed of rocks and occasional scrap of wood and other debris that made up the river floor. Treelines flanked either side of the river, a dozen or so feet back from the edge of the water. He could follow the path of the river down for what seemed like miles and miles as it carved and wound its way through the woods. A planked bridge crossed the water about thirty feet away or so at ground level, and in the distance, he could see another bridge, this one elevated about 20 feet above the river and looking substantially larger. 

“Wow, this is cool.” George said. He’d not been expecting the place to be this big. There were a few other people out here as well, further down the path at the side of the river they were on he could see a couple of grownups moving to cross the wooden bridge, their backs turned to him. It reminded him that they really weren’t that far from civilisation, but you wouldn’t have been able to tell from where they were.  

“Yeah, it's pretty good, huh?” Jane nodded, a slight smirk on her face. “Come on, let me show you how to skip!” She sounded excited as she did some skipping of her own towards the bank of the river, before squatting down and retrieving a handful of small, smooth, flat black stones. She discarded a few, then came back over to George. 

“Take these ones.” She held out her right hand. “Don’t worry, I gave you a few good ones.” She joked. George wasn’t sure how you even knew which stones were good for skipping, but he smiled at her joke all the same. 

He held them in his hand, still wet and cold from being in the river. Tiny grains of dirt and debris clung to them and onto his palm as he thumbed through them. Ultimately picking one at random and holding it in his right hand, the remainder held in his left. 

“Alright, watch this!” He snapped his eyes up as Jane called to him and he watched her get ready to throw. A black oval glinted in her palm as she pulled her arm back and turned her body in a way that reminded him a bit of the shotput events he’d watched when the Olympics were on TV. Was stone skipping an Olympic sport? Even if it wasn’t, Jane made it look like it should be. 

With practiced movement she spun suddenly and loosed the stone at a perfect angle out downstream towards the bridges. George watched as it shot out over the water, a grin of amazement growing on his face as he watched it bounce once, twice, thrice against the surface of the river. It made a grand total of six skips before finally succumbing to gravity and sinking out of sight to the depths. 

“That was cool!” He exclaimed, as Jane looked confident and did a mock bow. “Show me!” He demanded in excitement, and Jane agreed, as he took up position close to her. 

“Hold it between your thumb and middle finger, like this.” She began explaining to him as he adjusted his grip. “Stand like I did and flick your wrist at the last second. Try and throw it out and down at the same time.” She kept giving him pointers as he adjusted his hold and his stance until she seemed satisfied, then did his best to mimic the moves she had done. 

The stone flew out into the water, but only managed a single tired skip before it drowned. It looked a rather paltry effort compared to what Jane had managed just before. He moved another stone from his left hand to his right and tried again. Once more only managing a single skip. He looked at Jane. 

“Just keep trying!” She told him. I’ve been doing it for years, and that was a good throw!” The words of encouragement stopped his spirits from deflating any further, and then he moved to try a third time, but was stopped just as he started to swing his arm. 

“Wait, why don’t you try the other hand, maybe that will help.” She suggested.  

“Does that really matter?” George asked. 

“I mean, it might.” She shrugged. “Are you right or left-handed?” 

“I’m left-handed.” 

“Try that then.” 

He nodded, switching hands before lining himself up to try again. He mentally went over the tips she’d told him, then took aim, remembering to flick his wrist just in time as the stone shot forward. Right away he could tell this one had a lot more energy behind it that the last two attempts. It bounced once, twice, three times in long flat arks, water rippling away with each impact on the water. 

“Yeah!” He laughed, and grinned.  

George had always sucked at sports. He was always last – or near enough to last – to get picked for teams, and Tuesdays were the worst day of the week because that was the day he had a double lesson of P.E. in the morning. This was different though. Away from school and mocking peers, from expectations and crowds, he was doing something because he wanted to and because it was fun. Not because the adults in his life told him he had to.  

He picked another stone and aimed for a repeat performance. It didn’t go quite as far as this time, but still managed three skips before sinking. For the first time since getting off the plane, he felt properly happy and excited about his summer holiday. Like his troubles and worries were being washed away in the current of the river. 

“That was great! Told you it would help.” Jane cheered him on and skipped one of her own now. Four skips. A target for him to match. They locked eyes, and wordlessly agreed to the contest as they began to take turns. The sun starting to sink in the sky as the evening hours whittled away, interrupted only by the wildlife of the woods and the splashing of stones in the water.

[CDfm]

Great to see this was continued.  I am happy that George finally got to relax a little bit and actually have some fun.  
I don’t know for sure but I have a feeling George is going to have too much fun and forget the restroom.  Hopefully the accident isn’t that bad and will mostly go unnoticed.  
I am looking forward to reading more. 

[A_Pale_Spirit]

Happy to see a new chapter! This story and the other two in the "Shifting Sands" universe are the only new stories here I've been interested in lately.

Well-written chapter, looking forward to more.

[Andyman3]

Nice chapter. It was so peaceful and focused on the basic details, I really loved that. It's really easy to follow and can't wait for more. 😊

[Andyman3]

Awww it was such a good story. Don't stop 😊

[Alutheria]

On 2/24/2024 at 9:06 PM, Andyman3 said:

Awww it was such a good story. Don't stop 😊

I've no plans to stop, don't worry. I'm writing chapter 6 as we speak. 

[Andyman3]

The suspense 😊

[Alutheria]

On 3/26/2024 at 9:25 PM, Andyman3 said:

The suspense 😊

Chapter 6 is about 50% written at this point. 

I'm sorry for the long delay. I'd love nothing more than to spend my days writing this story and others, but unfortunately my work has been taking a lot of my energy as of late. 

I've got a lot if ideas and scenes I want to get to with this story and I hope you can bear with me a little longer until the next instalment. 

[Andyman3]

7 hours ago, Alutheria said:

Chapter 6 is about 50% written at this point. 

I'm sorry for the long delay. I'd love nothing more than to spend my days writing this story and others, but unfortunately my work has been taking a lot of my energy as of late. 

I've got a lot if ideas and scenes I want to get to with this story and I hope you can bear with me a little longer until the next instalment. 

Woooo. Just as long as you don't give up 😊, it breaks my heart when artist give up. I can't wait to see what you do. 

[Little Sherri]

22 hours ago, Alutheria said:

I'd love nothing more than to spend my days writing this story and others, but unfortunately my work has been taking a lot of my energy as of late. 

I know your pain! 

[Alutheria]

5 hours ago, Little Sherri said:

I know your pain! 

Glad to hear I'm not alone!

[Alutheria]

Ugh,  A month later and the first draft of chapter 6 is done, finally! Should have it polished and edited in the next few days for posting. Thanks for all the patience, I know its been too long since I updated this story.

[Alutheria]

Chapter 6: Conference Call

 

Alice heard George close the door behind him – a bit too hard for her liking – and the lock clicked shut. She adjusted her position on the kitchen stool and took another sip of her coffee. Two and a half sugars, and plenty of milk. She liked her coffee sweet. 

Jane coming back from practice when she had was great timing. She’d hoped to get George to meet the neighbours soon, but Jane meeting him first like that was excellent news. George would really need to make friends over the summer, and it looked like he’d already made one.  With any luck the two of them could spend the rest of the day getting to know each other. George could lose the sullen mood and start to have some fun. 

Alice knew from personal experience how isolating it could be moving to an entirely new country. How much the loneliness weighed down on you and how hard it was to pull yourself out of that rut of disconnection and unease. George’s mother had been there to help Alice out of that many years ago. Now it was time to return the favour.  

She placed the rounded black mug back down on the plastic coaster gently, then leaned over and pulled her tablet out of its charging cradle and powered it on. She needed to write an email. Pulling up the app icon she typed slowly with one hand. The dull pink tablet resting on the countertop as her other hand shuttled the coffee mug back and forth from the coaster to her mouth.  

 

Hi Mary,  

It's the middle of the night over in England as I’m typing this, but I just wanted to give you an update on things since it's been a few days.  

George is settling in slowly but surely. It's a bid adjustment for him being so far from home, but he’s a resilient boy. He’s already made a friend with the girl who lives across the street. The two of them are out exploring the nearby woods right now. I’m sure he can tell you all about it when he calls you – Don't worry, I'll make sure he does just as soon as the jet lag has worn off! 

I’m taking him into town tomorrow to pick up some swim-shorts and a baseball uniform.  His first game is the day after. I’ll take pictures to send you. Did he ever play rounders much at school at home? I remember them having similar rules. 

I’m hoping I can make this a summer for him to remember. We’re going out to the lodge in a few weeks, and I’m sure he’s going to love it there. Should help him take his mind of things. 

I hope things are better for you these days. You and George deserve better than what you’ve been through. If you need anything at all, let me know. And call me when you’ve got the chance. It's been too long.  

Your best friend, 

Alice Warding 

Alice sat back and looked over what she’d just wrote. She frowned. She hadn’t mentioned the bedwetting. Should she? Mary didn’t need to be worrying about that right now. She had that leach of a husband to finalise divorce papers with and a dozen other going concerns after that. There was no need to add to it.  

As much as Alice loved her best friend, she had to admit she wasn’t the best at problem solving. Or even problem spotting. If she was, she might have thought to listen to her best friends' warnings now and then. She’d had suspicions that Mary’s decision to marry Alex had been a mistake. Now she felt rather vindicated. 

She could see a lot of Mary in her son. George had her same shy demeanour, the same wariness that seemed to weight down on them. They shared the anxious tendency Alice had seen in Mary since their own childhoods. The same – what was the term, catastrophising? George had seemed to react to the bedwetting as if it was the end of the world when she’d found out. Mortified and apologising profusely as if he’d done her harm somehow. 

Her decision to omit the bedwetting from her report was the correct decision, she decided. One person fussing and worrying over it was enough. It wasn’t like she’d be able to help from across a continent and an ocean anyway. If George wanted to mention it in their call that was his prerogative. Just as solving the issue in the here and now was hers. 

Running her eye over the draft for spelling errors one last time, she hit send. The rest of her inbox received a brief inspection as well. With nothing of importance being found, it felt like a good idea to make some preparations for George tonight. The tablet screen went black with a click, and she set it aside to make her way upstairs to George’s room. 

The bed sat unmade, and she busied herself straightening pillows and getting the duvet in alignment once again as she looked around. She was happy to see that aside from the bed, everything else seemed to have been left in a presentable condition. 

 His Nintendo sat on the bedside table next to the empty phone charging cradle. A solitary light flickering orange as a light grey wire feed from it down into an adaptor and then the wall socket. A backpack now emptied of its change of clothes, toiletries and other sundries lay slouching on the wall next to the sliding wardrobe. As far as she could see from outside the bathroom was in an acceptable condition as well.  

“Spoke too soon.” She tutted only to herself as she stepped into the en-suite. Her eyes catching the towel that had been hung back up crookedly on the chrome rack. As she quickly smoothed the fluffy white cloth out properly, she caught sight of the toilet itself, and a spattering of yellow drops on the seat. 

Now Alice sighed. Grabbing a wad of toilet paper, she wiped it up quicky. Lifting the seat up to conduct a proper inspection. Nothing had escaped underneath thankfully, but she did find a dribble of pee had fallen on the outside of the bowl. Sliding down all the way to the bathroom floor. This too was scoured clean with toilet paper as she made a mental note to gently remind George to clean up after himself properly in the bathroom. 

Speaking of peeing where you shouldn’t, George’s new protection didn’t seem anywhere to be found. Not in the bathroom cabinets or his chest of drawers or the sliding wardrobe.  She knew for a fact he had carried them up to his room. She’d watched him climb the stairs with them with her own eyes. Having exhausted all other options, she grumbled and got down uncomfortably on her knees to peer under the bed. There in the gloomy darkness a glint of light reflected on the plastic sheen of one of the packages. Both were almost all the way at the back, right up against the skirting board. 

Getting back up onto her feet she winced at the slight joint aches as she thought about how to get them out of there without having to crawl around in the cramped space like the world's most ill-prepared cave diver. She walked over towards the wardrobe and retrieved the longest looking coat hanger there. If she briefly got down on her knees again and leaned forward with the coat hanger, she could just about snag the end of the packages with it. It reached, just barely, and a few tugs later she managed to pull the package of easy ups out into the daylight again, quickly followed by the Goodnites.  

“What am I going to do with you George?” She asked herself as she placed the packages on top of the Duvet cover. He didn’t have to like the idea of wearing protection but throwing them about like this and trying to hide from the problem wasn’t helping anyone.  

Using her thumbnail, she cut a seam in the thin plastic bag and opened it out to reveal the tightly stacked row of disposable underwear.  She pulled a handful of them out to look and saw the muted purple and pinks of the girls Goodnites patterns that came about the waist and leg holes. The front panel was dominated by a cartoon of Princess Jasmine from Aladin, whilst yellow and violet flower patterns served as wetness indicators. 

Alice nodded in approval as she examined it further. The stretch at the sides looked a little flimsy to her eyes, but she was no expert. The packaging had talked about the placement of a surge layer tailored for girls to better absorb wetness, and she wondered if that would factor into their effectiveness when worn by a boy. George would have to let her know how they felt when worn, and only time would tell them how well they held up to the “up to 100% leak free” advertisement claim. George would be wearing these tonight. She’d need to make that clear to him. He wasn’t going to deal with problems by hiding them under the bed. 

The easy ups received a similar inspection, and this time Alice was far less impressed. They, like the Goodnites, were a slip-on design, yet seemed smaller than them and even a bit thinner. It was obvious from the packaging that these were meant for potty training toddlers, not bedwetting pre-teens. She might have been better off with just the Goodnites. 

Picking up both bags she strode over to the wardrobe and opened the large top drawer. The inside was mostly empty aside from a dozen pairs of boxer shorts stacked in two neat piles. Shifting those to the side, she set the diaper packs on the top of the unit and began to stack them in the space she made. All except for a single Goodnite, which she left on the top of the unit for him to wear that night. The drawer closed with a gentle sliding sound and the rest of the diapers vanished from view. 

She turned and looked out of the window. Enjoying the view it offered of the back garden. They should have a barbeque out there if the weather decided to hold, invite Jane and her family over, and a few others. She looked beyond the garden. From the upper floor of the house, she could see out over the wide expanse of woodland that hugged the suburb she called home.  

Somewhere out there George was hopefully having some fun with Jane. Making memories and becoming less of a hermit. She hoped, at least. She’d need to ask how they got on once they were back. Speaking of, she’d need to start thinking about dinner soon. She was tempted to order takeout, but they’d already eaten out for lunch earlier. As much as she wanted to spoil her godson, a bit of home cooking would do him some good. She hoped he liked beef tacos. 

She went through a mental checklist of what she’d need. Alice had stocked up the fridge and freezer in preparation for George’s visit, but she’d need to think about other things. If Jane wanted to stay for dinner, what they might watch on tv. Inevitably her train of thought chugged along, and the issue of bedtime began to come into view of the tracks.  

How was she meant to convince George to wear protection to bed? She couldn’t even convince him to stop slamming the car door. 

Alice was, at heart, a manager. She organised, she planned, she delegated. No one could be an expert at everything, but you didn’t need to be if you knew the right people for a task or a situation. It was a skill that served her well in business, giving her company the edge it needed to thrive. 

Of course, that was the business world and not childcare. But surely some principles of organising and delegation were transferable, right? She made her way back down the stairs. With George outside playing, it was time to talk to someone with experience. 

In the kitchen she retrieved her tablet once more, this time swiping into the group chat she maintained with her friends. It was a small group, just a half dozen or so of Alice’s confidants and friends. When one of them – Alice couldn’t quite remember who - had first suggested forming it a few years ago they’d struggled to think of what to name it. Eventually they’d settled on “Alice’s Wonderland” as a joke and it had stuck. It was a fitting name though. Alice was very much the queen bee of their little cabal and the more than once had tongue in cheek comparisons to the queen of hearts been made. 

It had been a couple of days since Alice had looked, and she found herself scrolling past missed conversations. Book recommendations, plans for their next get together, suggestions for a poker night, pictures of cute pets being cute. Eventually Alice caught herself up to speed and, after giving an approving emote reaction to the idea of a poker night, started typing. 

Alice: Hi girls! Still getting my little guest settled in for the summer, but I’ve got some free time to catch up. What have I missed? Was hoping to ask you all for some advice as well. 

Melissa: The queen returns! How’s George settling in? Must be good to have some use for all those spare rooms! 

Katie: Yes! Details, give them! And shoot. Whatever you need, let us know! 

Alice: I think we’re doing alright, all things considered. Obviously, this is a big deal for him and he’s going through a lot at the moment. Poor guy been out of it with jetlag since we arrived back home. I’m taking him shopping for a baseball uniform tomorrow, so hopefully he’s over this before his first time on the pitch. 

I was hoping the moms amongst us might be able to give me some pointers? I’ve not had to look after a kid since my high school babysitting gigs, so a bit rusty! 

Also, bit of a more serious topic, but he had a bit of an accident his first night here. Found the poor guy trying to strip his bed to cover it up. 

Katie: Oh, the poor thing. Do you know if that’s happened before? Its more common than you’d think with kids that age. Half the kids I’ve looked after had night problems like that. 

Melissa: Can confirm. We had issues with my boys for years with this. Caused lot of problems before we found a solution that worked. What have you tried so far? 

Alice: I’ve taken some preventative measures for tonight. 

Katie: That sounds rather cryptic. 

Alice: Just trying to be delicate. He’s a sensitive boy. We picked up some protection for him to wear tonight. Though I’m not impressed with what we were able to find. 

Melissa: I’m not surprised. It's a real struggle to find anything that works for boys of that age. There’s Goodnites of course, but both of my boys managed to soak through them every night. 

Alice: Oh, well that’s what I’ve got for him. That and some easy up training pants that *might* fit him, but I think they’d perform worse than the Goodnites. Honestly, I wish I’d not bothered getting them. I was seriously struggling to find anything that might work for George.  

Katie: Yeah, even if he fits those, a boy his age would leak right through them I’m afraid. They’re much more meant for kids learning to use the potty. Sorry Alice. 

Alice: Well, too late now. Maybe I can donate them. 

Katie: I suppose you might be able to use them as stuffers for the Goodnites. But I doubt that would be comfortable for George. 

Melissa: I hate to pry further Alice, but is this a new development?  

Alice: As far as I know. George claims it's never happened before, but he might just be embarrassed about it. 

Melissa: He might just be stressed. 

Alice: That’s what I’ve been thinking. It's a big change for him. Poor guy has got a lot on his plate at home, and this was meant to be a nice getaway for him over the summer. Let him make some friends and get away from his troubles. But he just seems all mopey and moody with me so far. I don’t know where I’m going wrong. 

Melissa: You’re not going wrong. You just need the right help and advice. We’re here to help. My boys went through a similar phase, and it didn’t get better until we went to see a specialist for the help we needed. 

Alice: I suppose. But isn’t that a bit drastic at this stage? Its only happened once so far. We might not have to deal with it again at all. 

Katie: I hope so. But in my experience kids with wetting issues are usual repeat offenders. Not every night for a lot of them, but I’ve also never seen a case of it being a one-time thing. 

Melissa: Let me give you the contacts info for the therapist my boys go to. She’s an absolute life saver and I can’t tell you how much things have improved since we started her program. See how things go with him tonight and if it's still an issue, give her a call. You won’t regret it. 

The key to remember right now is staying consistent and staying in charge. Make it clear to him that this is to help him and that you know best. Don’t flip-flop or concede if he pushes back on it. Boys need strong parental figures in their lives, and they need to rely on you to make the best decisions for them. 

Alice: Thanks Melissa.  I owe you. Oh, and speaking of your boys, I was wondering how you’d feel about maybe doing some sort of get-together with them and George? He’s made friends with the girl next door already, but I think it would be good for him to make friends with some boys his own age as well.  

Melissa: I’d be delighted to! Give me a call soon and we can discuss details. You should come over as well. I can show you how we do things with my boys, and young George can make some friends. Win-win. 

Alice: Sounds like a plan! I’ve got to go and make dinner together for me and George, but I’l be in contact. Thanks girls, you’ve been a real help. 

Melissa: It's what we’re here for! 

Katie: Let us know how things go with George.  I hope it goes well for you both tonight. 

Alice reacted to Katie’s last message with a thumb's up emoji, then closed the app and set her phone down on the table. She felt a bit better already. Glad to know she wasn’t dealing with an unprecedented problem in the field of caring for children. 

She took her cup over to the sink and began to wash out the dregs of her now cold coffee, watching the murky brow water swill around and around the mug as she thought about the coming evening. Looking out the window, the light was just starting to dim. She’d been taking to her friends for longer than she’d thought. 

She set the cup upside down to let it drip-dry as she heard the phone vibrate where she’d left it on the table. She picked it back up and glanced at the flashing notification to see she’d already gotten an email from Melissa with the details of the therapist she was recommending. A Dr Paige, it looked like. 

She’d read it later. Right now she had dinner to think about it, and what would come after. Her mind switched tracks as she focused on the beef tacos she was planning to make. As she pulled down two plates from the cupboard and retrieved a pack of frozen beef from the freezer section of the fridge, she glanced out the window again and hoped George was having a good time. A good mood and a full belly would hopefully break him out of his grumpy mood, and let bedtime go all the smoother. 

[A_Pale_Spirit]

It was a long wait but it was worth it.

Excellent chapter! Really sets the stage for what's going to happen next, definitely looking forward to a lot more!

[CDfm]

Awesome chapter.  Thanks!  
I might have missed it earlier but I was a bit surprised to learn that they had purchased girls goodnights for George.  Why didn’t they get the ones for boys?  I think he wouldn’t be quite as reluctant to wear them if they were designed for boys rather than girls. Based on the advice Alice is getting, I don’t think the goodnights are going to be an issue for George anyway.  He is going to be more concerned about how the diapers he will be wearing look. 
I am enjoying the story and hope to see more soon. 

[Alutheria]

3 hours ago, A_Pale_Spirit said:

It was a long wait but it was worth it.

Excellent chapter! Really sets the stage for what's going to happen next, definitely looking forward to a lot more!

Thank you! I might try and speed things up a bit from here. I'm aware we're on chapter 6 but haven't actually gotten much into the meat of the story yet.

1 hour ago, CDfm said:

Awesome chapter.  Thanks!  
I might have missed it earlier but I was a bit surprised to learn that they had purchased girls goodnights for George.  Why didn’t they get the ones for boys?  I think he wouldn’t be quite as reluctant to wear them if they were designed for boys rather than girls. Based on the advice Alice is getting, I don’t think the goodnights are going to be an issue for George anyway.  He is going to be more concerned about how the diapers he will be wearing look. 
I am enjoying the story and hope to see more soon. 

They bought them back in chapter 1. The girls version were the only ones they still had in stock, hence Alice buying them. 

I hope you enjoy what's to come!

[zzzz50]

Doing well on the setup, only recommendation would be to try to use “American” English. A skirting board would be a baseboard, the garden would be a lawn, and most definitely baseball is not played on a pitch, it would be a field or baseball diamond.  I think it would be unusual for someone in the US to use these terms. Just a minor detail.

[Alutheria]

4 hours ago, zzzz50 said:

Doing well on the setup, only recommendation would be to try to use “American” English. A skirting board would be a baseboard, the garden would be a lawn, and most definitely baseball is not played on a pitch, it would be a field or baseball diamond.  I think it would be unusual for someone in the US to use these terms. Just a minor detail.

Thanks for the advice. Its just something I'm going to have to be on the lookout for as I write.

[zzzz50]

Just remember we talk funny on this side of the pond.

[CDfm]

On 5/5/2024 at 12:52 PM, zzzz50 said:

Doing well on the setup, only recommendation would be to try to use “American” English. A skirting board would be a baseboard, the garden would be a lawn, and most definitely baseball is not played on a pitch, it would be a field or baseball diamond.  I think it would be unusual for someone in the US to use these terms. Just a minor detail.

I really don’t have an issue with the terminology in this story so far.  George has just come over to the US and we know Alice had spent a considerable amount of time overseas where it would be completely normal for her to pick up some of their terms. 
If Alutheria is really all that concerned about it, I suppose another character could correct them with the US terms. I am pretty sure we all know that is meant when we see these terms. 

[Andyman3]

I love it. Nice setup really paints the picture. Can't wait to see what happens with Alice and George, and having to wear diapers.  😊