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2 Weeks Ago
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#173 (permalink) |
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Bouncy Bouncy Fun Fun
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Oh procrastination gods, I worship thee! So very very sorry fans, for putting this last chapter off, but alas, here it is. There is a little something special I put in just for Icey (see if you notice.) It has been really really fun. Perhaps there could be another story about the Rehab Center someday, but for now I'll take a break from it.
Happy Holidays Luvs MyWorld -------------------------------------------------- Epilogue The nightmare would not go away. Night after night, Jules awoke crying having relived the house fire and the sound of his friends dying. And, day after day he prayed he could become like Crystal and let go of his past life, yet it would not happen. Unlike Ms. Booth, his new caretaker Melissa would come in the night when he cried. She would hold and sooth him and tuck him back in. Ms. Booth had left about the same time Will had escaped. Also, around that same time most of the staff at the daycare were replaced. Jules figured this had been in response to Will’s successful escape. He hoped that Will was happy having his old life back, but Jules knew he could never return himself. He knew the drugs would eventually find him. In the daycare room and on the playground Jules had little difficulty blending in with the other children. He truly enjoyed play, and he found copying their speech and behavior to be intuitive and natural. The diapers he hardly noticed or cared about anymore, except for the few times he developed diaper rash, which really burned. But, his teachers always put a soothing ointment on him and the rash never lasted long after that. Back in his room, Melissa would feed him dinner, bathe him, cuddle him and read him stories. It was such a comforting, predictable routine. By the end of each day, Jules could almost forget the person he used to be. Then, he would fall asleep and the nightmare would be waiting for him, always. Jules could not shake it. He simply could not lose his past. Meanwhile, the seasons continued to pass at Buttons and Blocks. Slowly the summer came to a close and the air took on the cool crisp smells of Fall. Halloween brought pumpkins, ghosts and witches decorating the walls – needless to say, the happy variety, nothing too scary for young children. Jules got to dress up as bunny rabbit for Trick-or-Treat for the Halloween night party at Buttons and Blocks. All the parents “oohed” and “awed” at the costumes pretending to be scared, and snapping pictures of their cute children. At the party, there was one small detail that few noticed. About half the kids at the party did not have parents with them. The excuse was, their parents were busy and had dropped them off at the party and would pick them up later. The reality, as Jules was aware, was that the children were being replaced by more and more Rehab Clients, regressed clients…happy clients. Jules didn’t mind. He welcomed each new “kid” into the daycare as if this were his best friend. He was quickly becoming a favorite among teachers and children at Buttons and Blocks. His only wish was to become like them himself. A few days before Thanksgiving, Jules was surprised by a second crib in his room. He would have a room mate named Rick. Jules immediately tried to engage the boy in play, but Rick would have none of it. Rick still remembered he was a man. “Stay away from me, you FREAK!” he would yell, tearing off the diaper they had put him in and throwing it across the room. Jules would play along side him anyway not saying a word, and before long Rick opened up about his sordid life. “It started when I was just 10 years old. I stole drugs from my Dad.” On and on he would go about the details of his drugs and near death close-calls. “After my last stay in the ICU, I ended up at a new Rehab Center, Forever Safe or something like that. Then I woke up like this. How can this be real!?” Rick would stay in the room during the day, while Jules went to daycare. He would be waiting to talk whenever Jules returned. This went on for maybe three or four days. Then Rick – now Ricky – was diapered full time and ready for daycare himself. Jules and Ricky became very good friends. Jules only felt a small amount of envy that Ricky was now free from his painful past, while Jules’ nightmare went on every night. Christmas season was now upon them, and Button and Blocks transformed into a make-believe winter wonderland. Jules loved everything about it – the lights, the tinsel, the music. The sense of magic was palpable in the air. He could almost convince himself that Santa was real. Almost, but not quite. Jules’ adult mind refused to let go. One day he saw Ricky playing with a toy car but believing it to be a train. Jules tried doing the same thing, picking up a plastic hippo and calling it a dinosaur. It just wouldn’t work. He knew it was still a hippo. Finally, the day came when “Santa” visited the daycare to hand out presents and have kids up on his lap. Jules was on the verge of believing, but when he was placed on Santa’s lap, he knew it was just a guy with a fake beard. “What do you want for Christmas?” the fake Santa asked Jules. In Pinocchio style he chimed, “to be a REAL BOY!” It was Christmas Eve! Jules was so excited he could hardly sleep, even though he knew it was all just pretend. He wished his real-boy wish over and over, wanting to awake in the morning a real child. Instead, the nightmare came again, this time with extra sharp clarity. In his dream he could smell the smoke, hear his friends screaming - trapped, dying. He felt the panic and the shards of glass as he broke through the window to escape while his friends remained behind. Jules fell to the ground, sobbing. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” he cried over and over. Then, in his dream, he began to run away from the burning home. He ran and ran and ran. Before long there were no more houses around, and he had entered a small wooded lane. He collapsed on a patch of grass, crying for forgiveness. It was then, in his dream, that he felt he was not alone. Someone was watching him. He looked up. There were Kanga and Little Roo from the Winnie-the-Pooh children’s books he had read so many years ago. She hopped in a motherly fashion over to Jules, apparently growing larger and larger as she approached. At his side, Jules realized she had not grown larger, but he had shrunk smaller. Kanga patted the now toddler sized Jules on the head. “Now now, don’t cry little one. I’ll take care of you.” “But the fire, and my friends,” Jules began to object with a voice – no longer a man’s – but his little boy voice from Buttons and Blocks. Kanga spoke soothingly. “That is all gone. It can’t hurt you any more. We’re here for you.” As she said that, Eiyore, Rabbit, Piglet and Owl came walking out of the wood. “We’ll all look after you,” they said together. Jules looked down at himself. Sure enough he was his toddler self again, all the way down to a rather ridiculously large diaper. He felt a moment of disorientation where he wasn’t sure who the real Jules was. Then, it passed, and he knew – THIS was the real Jules – the one in diapers – the one he preferred to be. Last of all, Pooh came wandering out of the Wood, humpfing and huffing. “You wouldn’t happen to have some honey, would you?” he said to Jules and gave him a warm welcome hug. “Not with me, but we can find some,” Jules said eager to go into the Wood on a honey hunt. “What about Tigger? Where is he?” “I already sent him ahead looking for honey,” Pooh responded. “We must go and find him.” With that, the whole gang started into the 100 Acre Wood with Kanga, Roo and Jules bringing up the rear. Jules was happy to be with his new family. As he stepped into the magic forest, Jules had a strange feeling he would never come out. That didn’t mater anymore. There was nothing for him to come back to. His nightmare was over forever. This was the real Jules – the one in diapers – and he was happy at last. The End. |
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1 Week Ago
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#175 (permalink) | |
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Kraiden's Proud Big Sis!!
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Aww, thank you, MyWorld!! I feel so special that you put something special in this chapter for me & yes, I did notice!! ^_^
Quote:
I liked the festive pictures you painted too, with the Halloween & Christmas decor!! Very nicely done & it was detailed enough, that you could almost see it!! Jules Christmas wish was so cute too & his excitement about it on Eve's night, was a cute touch & made me smile!! So was the Pooh & friends dream & how it finally allowed him to let go & make his wish come true, that he would become a real boy!! Now everything is nice & everyone is happy, Will, Crystal, Ricky & now, little Jules!! This was such a great story to read, MyWorld!! Great work here!! ^_^ |
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