Hi guys!
Surprise! Well, after I posted up my recent oneshot, I got some very very embarrassing but very very very nice comments from some people (esp Soxfan). I felt kinda obligated to post up something, so I decided to continue the story (although I have been toying with another story idea…). Anyway, hope you guys enjoy this instalment!
Links to previous chapters are provided below. Please don’t use the ones embedded within the other posts as they link to myfastforum posts, so you’ll get a blank screen if you do click on them.
Also, I removed one line from my previous post in order to avoid a logical error.
Chapter 1 - http://abdlstoryforum.info/forums/index.php/topic,1127.0.html
Chapter 2 - http://abdlstoryforum.info/forums/index.php/topic,1180.0.html
Chapter 3 - http://abdlstoryforum.info/forums/index.php/topic,2040.0.html
Chapter 4 - http://abdlstoryforum.info/forums/index.php/topic,2214.0.html
The usual - I hope that you all will take the time to read and maybe enjoy this. Constructive criticism is much appreciated and flaming will be ignored. Also, if you spot any definite plot holes, please point them out so I can fix them! Thanks!
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The first place I stopped as was – well, my own driveway, actually.
Just as I left the garage, I saw my mattress in the garden, and dragged it back into the house before I left. Thankfully, the wet spot appeared to be gone after a morning lying in the sun, or the house would smell like a sewer by the time I returned. Or worse. In any case, I liberally sprayed a can of deodorant over the mattress just to be certain.
After 15 minutes drive through the usual minefield of traffic, I arrived at a small cluster of diners and shops that I frequented. The stores there sold everything from petrol to wine, including a DVD rental shop and a couple of food outlets. There was even a (relatively) small Wal-Mart outlet.
“So, girls, what do you want to eat; Macs, Denny’s, Panda Express or that food court we ate at last time?” I queried.
Stupid question, really. Ask a kid where they want to eat, and they almost always say…
“McDonalds!” both shouted in unison, Claire adding “I want a happy meal!” and Chloe fervently agreeing.
I smiled and rolled my eyes as I pulled into an empty parking lot.
45 minutes, one Quarter Pounder with Cheese meal and two Happy Meals later, I sat back in my chair and watched Chloe and Claire playing with their new toys – characters from some new superhero cartoon flick, apparently. Chloe got this woman with long flexible arms, looking like Plasticman from the Justice League series, while Claire got this pull-back toy of a kid which she sent whizzing across the table.
After awhile, I noticed that Chloe was beginning to squirm and she had one hand pressing on her diaper through the front of her dress.
“Chloe, do you need to go potty?” I asked.
She looked up, startled, but then quickly nodded. “It’s very urgent,” she informed me.
I popped the last few fries into my mouth and stood up, grabbing the children’s bags as I did so. “Come along, then, both of you!” I led them to the family bathroom.
There was someone in the bathroom, so we had to wait awhile. By the time the person inside came out, Chloe’s knees were almost knocking together and she was desperately trying not to wet herself. I quickly locked the door behind us and pulled off her diaper, letting her climb onto the toilet seat. Her face took on a relieved expression as she began to pee, and I realised that this was the first time she had actually made it to the toilet on time since the funeral. I glanced at her diaper, which had a small wet spot (where a few drops had evidently leaked out) but was otherwise dry.
“Good job, Chloe!” I praised her and she stuck out her tongue at me. I laughed and turned to check Claire’s diaper, which she had obviously used during lunch and was now in need of a change. I lifted her onto the changing table at the sink, pulled the powder, wipes and a fresh diaper out of Chloe’s bag, and changed her.
As I lifted Claire down, Chloe tugged on my shirt and told me “Uncle Alex, I’m done!” with a big grin on her face.
“OK, then, your turn up!” I patted the surface of the changing table.
“But, Uncle Alex…” she began to whine, her smile transforming into a pout.
“Chloe…” I interrupted her with a stern look, and she cut herself off,
I softened my stance and squatted, placing myself at her eye level. “I’ll let you go without a diaper for awhile, alright?” I smiled as she broke into an excited smile. “But, only while we’re shopping here. When we go back to the car, you’ll have to wear your diaper again. OK?”
She vigorously nodded and gave me a spontaneous hug. “Thanks Uncle Alex!” I hugged her back before standing up and handing the two girls their backpacks. We then walked out of the restaurant and over to Wal-Mart.
I had a lot of shopping to do.
About an hour later, I emerged from the supermarket into the heat of the afternoon sun. The parking lot was now fairly deserted with lunch time being over, and most sane people going straight home. My trolley was piled high with various boxes, bags, tins, bottles – and I was carrying a sleeping 4 year old resting her head on my shoulder.
“You doing alright, Chloe?” I called as I glanced behind me.
“Yup!” Chloe was pushing a miniature trolley with a few small items inside. Those kid-sized trolleys were really cute; they even had a tall flag waving at eye level so people would see them coming. It really encouraged children to learn to shop and feel more ‘grown-up’.
It was also probably a good marketing ploy by the company, cause I was pretty sure that the mysteriously-appearing bag of jelly beans and tube of M&Ms weren’t on my shopping list.
As I approached my car, I noticed several teenagers lurking at a street corner, seemingly casually glancing at me. Knowing the crime rate in this particular stretch of shops, it was more than probable that they were out to cause trouble or possibly from one of the three gangs who regularly fought outside this area for turf. So, before I reached into my pocket to take out my car keys, I casually stared at them while lifting a corner of my shirt to display my revolver.
Yes, I always carry a revolver. And one set of handcuffs, and my badge.
Though since I now have kids around, maybe I should switch to a Taser instead. Hmm.
Anyway, my guess was apparently right as one of them blanched, said something, and the entire group nonchalantly walked off around the corner.
After ensuring the area was clear, I unlocked my vehicle and turned the air-conditioning up to full blast. I placed Claire down in the back seat, I then loaded most of the groceries into the boot except for one bag.
“Chloe, come here,” I told her as I tore open the contents of the bag and took out a diaper.
Chloe shook her head. “No! I don’t want to wear a diaper!” she declared, folding her arms.
“Come on, didn’t I say that you have to wear one once we return to the car?”
“I don’t want to!” she stubbornly refused.
“Chloe, I’ve told you why you must wear a diaper several times already -”
“No!”
“Chloe, we agreed that when we came back, you had to wear your diaper, right?”
“NO!” She stomped her foot on the ground and shouted angrily at me. “I’m a big girl! I don’t need to wear diapers!”
“Chloe, behave!” I snapped. “I’ve told you why…”
“NO NO NO NO NO!!!” She screamed at me.
I finally had enough, so I picked her up and put her over my knee. Right there, in the parking lot, I administered five strong smacks to her buttock.
Whack! Whack! Whack! Whack! Whack!
Chloe screamed and broke down into tears. When I finished and put her down, she stood, sobbing and looking so pitiful that I lost any anger I had left at her.
Just then, I noticed that my pants leg was slightly damp and there was a large dark spot growing on Chloe’s dress. As I watched, a stream of liquid poured down Chloe’s legs , collecting into a small puddle around her feet. I sighed.
“See, this is why you have to wear a diaper,” I told her. Seeing the flow of liquid stop, I reached out to comfort her but she pushed me away. “Go away! I don’t want you!” she screamed into my face.
“Chloe…”
“Go away” She screamed again, taking several steps backwards. I looked around and noticed bystanders staring in my direction.
“Chloe Shantel Farrel, behave yourself and stop making a scene or I’m so going to punish you when we get home!” I warned.
She shrieked back “I hate you I hate you I hate you! Go away!”.
That really cut. Stung, I almost let my emotions get the better of me. First looking around to ensure that no other cars were nearbly, I put on a cold, uncaring face.
“Fine!” I snapped at her. “Enough! If you want me to go away, I’ll go and you can stay here by yourself!” I walked over to the driver’s seat, got behind the wheel, and eased the car out of the parking lot. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Chloe stop crying as her face took on a stunned look. As I slowly drove away, I saw her began to run after me in the rear-view mirror, her hands outstreched, and heard her distant scream for me to stop.
I stopped the car, turned on the hazard lights and left the vehicle to face Chloe, who just managed to catch up with me.
“What, I thought you wanted me to go away?” I asked. “Didn’t you say you didn’t want me any more?” Chloe flinched away and cried even harder.
“So do you want me to go away now?”
“No!” she cried.
“Fine, then get in the – wait.” I went to the boot and took out a plastic bag, which I placed onto the car seat.
“Get in. Sit on the plastic bag.” I told her curtly. Sniffing, she complied. After making sure she was buckled in, I got behind the wheel again and left the carpark.
Amazingly enough, Claire was still sound asleep.
Before everyone begins to censure me for being a heartless bastard, let me get something clear. I had absolutely no intention of actually leaving her behind. I also knew that her wet clothing must have been extremely uncomfortable to her and that she needed to be cleaned up as soon as possible. However, I do believe in the saying “spare the rod; spoil the child”.
Chloe needed to learn a lesson. So I decided to let her ‘stew in her own juices’, so to speak, for awhile.
I drove for about 5 minutes before I pulled into another carpark just before the the freeway. The air in the car quickly grew stale, so I wound down a window to ventilate it.
The entire drive, I had heard little sniffles coming from the rear seat. I resolutely ignored them until I parked the car.
I got out and opened the rear door. “Come out,” I ordered Chloe, who timidly complied. She stood on the pavement, looking down, occasionally sniffing.
“Do you have anything you want to say for yourself?” I asked sternly.
“…” she murmured something.
“What was that? Speak up.”
“I’m sorry!” she cried, and the tears began to flow in earnest again.
I finally knelt down and opened my arms, and she jumped into them, hiding her head in my shoulder. She continued to sob out “I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”
After awhile, I pushed her to arms length where she continued to cry.
“Did you like what happened just now?” I asked. She vigorously shook her head. “Do you want that to happen again?” Chloe shook her head again. “Good.”
“Uncle Alex, I’m really really super sorry,” she choked out.
“So am I, Chloe.” I wrapped my arms around her and lifted her up, patting her back as she resumed her cries into my shoulder. “I’m sorry too. Can you forgive me?”
The cries got louder, but I could sense her profound relief and feel her fear and tension ebb away.
After her crying had reduced to small sniffs again, I put her down and went to the boot. I pulled out Chloe’s bag and took out a change of clothes, the wet wipes, powder and a new diaper. After digging around in a grocery bag, I also pulled out a tube of rash cream - just to be safe
“Come on, let’s get you cleaned up.” I took off her sandals and helped her remove her soaked undergarments. I used the wet wipes liberally over her skin, then asked her to lie down on the car seat. She hesitated, but complied. I rubbed some cream and liberally sprinkled powder over her diaper area, before pulling the absorbent undergarment onto her and fastening the tapes. I then helped her out of her wet dress and into a new set of t-shirt and pants.
I didn’t tell her, but the diaper was quite noticeable when she stood up.
“So Chloe, do you understand why Uncle Alex makes you wear diapers?” I asked. “If I had let you go into the car, you would have wet yourself there and my car would be really smelly after that, wouldn’t it?” She nodded. “Did you know that you needed to pee?”
“…No…” she softly replied.
“See, this is why you have to wear diapers.” I noticed tears forming in her eyes again, so I picked her up and sat her on my lap.
“Wearing diapers doesn’t make you a baby,” I told her. “Chloe, when you have a problem, you cannot just pretend it doesn’t exist. No problem goes away on it’s own.” I paused while Chloe shifted her weight, then continued. “When you have a problem, any problem, you need to do 3 things. The first thing is to admit the problem exists. You get me so far?”
She nodded.
“Good. The second thing is what I call ‘damage control’. What it means is to deal with the direct effects of the problem and stop it from growing bigger. In your case, do you know what’s your problem?”
She thought awhile before answering. “Sometimes I don’t know when I need to pee, so I wet myself?”
“Clever girl! Though it’s more like ‘all the time’, isn’t it?” She flushed, but slowly nodded in agreement. “Right. So, what we have to do is to deal with the direct effects of the problem, which in your case is wetting yourself. The best way I can think of to do that is to have you in diapers for the time being. I know you don’t like the diapers, but until someone can think of a better solution, you have to stay in them, alright? Do you agree, or do you have another way to suggest?”
Chloe considered awhile, before reluctantly agreeing. “But Uncle Alex, if I can think of another way, can we try that way instead?” she pleaded.
“Of course, dear!” I smiled at her and she smiled back.
“So what’s the third thing, Uncle Alex?” she inquired.
“Can you guess?”
Shefrowned and considered awhile, then understanding dawned on her face. “We fix the problem!”
“Clever girl!” I applauded her. “Yes, we find ways to fix the problem! Sometimes you need to do something, but sometimes, all you have to do is to wait and make sure the problem doesn’t become bigger in the meantime.” I planted a kiss on her forehead. “You are such an intelligent girl!”
She squirmed happily and kissed me back.
“So…do you understand why you have to wear diapers for now?” I asked, and Chloe nodded.
“So…will I have any more problems from you about having to wear diapers?” She shook her head.
“Promise?” I stuck out my little finger.
“Promise!” She enthusiastically wrapped her own pinky around mine.
“Good!” I lifted her off my lap and buckled her in again. I used the plastic bag she had sat on to wrap up the dirty wipes and tied it up, throwing it into a nearby bin.
“Alright, lets get moving!” I looked at the dashboard clock. “Oh my gosh, it’s 3 already! We’re late!” I got back into the car and drove out of the carpark.
“Where’re we going?” Chloe asked.
“We’re going to see your new school,” I unthinkingly replied as I entered the freeway.
A wail of protest – a long, drawn-out “whaaaatttt!!!” - immediately erupted from the back seat.
I sighed. Here we go again…
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Yay, theres actually a line function here! ^^ Haha!
Don’t judge Alex too harshly - remember, he’s a first-time parent thrust suddenly into the role, and he’s also a cop - used to dealing harshly with offenders and juvenile delinquents to put the fear of God (or at least just fear) into them. He’s used to reacting an a certain way when faced with ‘lip’, and although he does try to temper it down because Chloe is his niece, some of this instinctive reaction still shows.