Chapter 1
When she went to bed the night before, Nicole was Nine, sweet and innocent and trying to find her way in the world. As she slept, she became Three, infantile and without control of what she said or did. She woke as Nine, rejecting all everything she had done when she was Three.
Nicole cast off her saturated nighttime diaper. She wished she didn’t have to wear them. She didn’t really need them. When she was Nine she could control her bladder like a second place champion. But when she was Three she might as well be sucking her thumb and cuddling a bear.
In fact, as Nicole examined her thumb, she confirmed that Three had indeed dug her teeth into her favorite finger. In addition to not particularly grasping the concept of a toilet, Three could not process being in Nicole’s body and as such was unaware of the damage her three year old habits were doing to her nine year old body.
After a quick shower, Nicole dressed in a nice spring blouse and her favorite pair of Abigail’s old jeans, all in addition to a Pull-Up securely in place beneath her pants. She hated wearing those even more than the diaper. At least no one ever saw her at night. But everyone knew she had to wear a Pull-Up to school and everyone knew if they upset her enough they could get to see it in action.
“Good morning,” Mrs. Shepard stood in the kitchen, preparing two brown bags as Nicole stopped to put her shoes on.
“Morning,” Nicole said. She sat down, the padding of her Pull-Up smashing between her bottom and her chair. They were a constant reminder of who she used to be, who should could still turn into. She’d once theorized that if she did away with all Three things that she’d never have to go back there again. That resulted in tantrums the likes of which Harmony Hills has never seen. And puddles, of course.
Nicole made sure her homework for the day was packed in her bag. Her extra Pull-Ups were kept with the nurse, but she still brought along Three’s favorite teddy.
Like it or not, she was stuck with Three and that’s just the way things were going to be.
“How you doin?” Abigail said, appearing behind Nicole.
“I’m fine,” Nicole said.
“Have you decided about the party?” Abigail asked.
“I want to go,” Nicole said. “Even if she shows up. Nine or Three, Nicole Jones is going to be there. After all, everyone else is, right?”
After school that day, Nicole found herself faced with Emma, Penny, Lilly, Mimi, Abigail, Izzy, Susie, and even Rena and Josie. All together in one spot for the first time since Christmas.
“Deep breaths,” Abigail said as walked down to the basement.
“Seriously,” Nicole said “I feel great. I’m Nine and I’m fine.”
When they finally reached the foot of the stairs, Nicole looked around and saw the basement decorated with balloons and streamers with an entire table filled with snacks and candy and a huge cake.
“Hi, Nicole,” Izzy smiled. “It’s been awhile since we were all together, huh?”
Nicole walked right passed her, picked up a handful of cake, and shoved it in her face.
Abigail sighed and turned to Izzy as she said, “Feliz cumpleaños.”
***
“Really, I’m glad you’re here,” Izzy said.
“Yeah, well,” Rena blushed. “We’re still friends and all, right? You’ve been wetting the bed forever and it was never a problem so why should it be different now?”
“It wasn’t forever,” Izzy said, “Matter-o-fact I didn’t wear a diaper at any point when I was six or seven. It just came back a lot last year.”
“Look at you standing up for yourself,” Rena said, “I’m impressed.”
“So you’re going to the soccer camp this year?” Izzy asked.
Rena nodded. “That’s gonna be my spring break. Six days and five nights with girls from across the state.”
“But we’re your favorites, right?” Izzy asked
“NIKKI WHO GAVE YOU GUM?!”
Rena and Izzy turned around to see Abigail chasing Nicole around the basement. When she was finally cornered, Nicole looked Abigail dead in the eyes and swallowed.
“Great,” Abigail said, “That’s going to be in your stomach for seven years now. Are you happy?”
“Not seven years,” Nicole said, smiling as she entered a sitting down position. “I make it come out right now.”
“Oh no,” Abigail said.
“CODE BROWN!” Mimi jumped up on the couch and shouted.
“Is this what I’ve been missing?” Rena asked.
Izzy shrugged. “Sometimes we play Boggle.”
Chapter 2
Nicole came to on her back, staring up at an unfamiliar ceiling. “What happened?” she asked. “The last thing I remember was going downstairs and seeing cake.”
“You got a bit rowdy,” a familiar voice said, “And then you had a little accident.”
Nicole sat up and watched as Mrs. Perez tied a plastic bag in a not, dumping a baseball sized object into a garbage can.
“Three,” Nicole scowled, malicious yet still embarrassed. She fell back blushing and covering her face. “I am so sorry. I didn’t mean to. It won’t happen again.
“There, there,” Mrs. Perez said, “What’s one more diaper in this house? With Isabella and Noel we go through a lot more than you’d think.”
“I don’t want to be like this,” Nicole sat up and hugged her legs, hiding the fresh Pamper she was changed into by her friends mother. “I don’t want to change every time I see sugar or get yelled at. I don’t want to have to wear diapers because the other me is still a baby.”
“The other you?” Mrs. Perez asked.
Nicole nodded. “I am Nine and she is Three. When I sit in class and do my homework, I’m Nine. But during recess, or if I get hungry or scared, I become Three.”
“And this ‘Three’ is a different person?” Mrs. Perez asked.
“One time when we were in the mall, I was on the way to the bathroom. I was gonna make it. But as I passed the toy store, I got distracted. Well,” Nicole started to tear up. “Three got distracted. She walked right in the toy store, went straight for the doll aisle, and peed in my pants. After I convinced Mrs. Shepard I could go all by myself. ‘All by myself.’ Like I’m a toddler or something. I need to be potty trained. I need to be weaned off the bottle and taught not to run around or shove my face in a cake.”
“What happened to you was unusual, yes,” Mrs. Perez assured her, “But that does not mean you are not nine. My Isabella is nine today. She still wears diapers to bed and still keeps a scrapbook of stickers and when we go to the mall the first place she wants to visit is the doll section. And if I say no, believe you me, my nine year old Isabella throws a fit. Just because you are nine now does not mean you are an adult. You’re barely a preteen. You’re still a kid. Kids make mistakes. Kids have accidents. Kids learn. The sooner you embrace this truth, the sooner you will stop becoming this Three person and start being yourself.”
Nicole took Mrs. Perez’s words to hear. But there was still one thing that was bouncing around in her head. She had to start being herself. but just who was she?
***
“So I guess now everyone knows,” Emma said as Nicole walked back down to the basement.
“Knows what?” Nicole asked.
Everyone grew silent and looked at her.
“Uhm,” Emma looked around the room. Izzy looked away.
“Is something wrong?” Nicole was getting worried.
“Calm down, Nicole,” Abigail said, “There’s just something we can’t tell you because-”
“Because of her?” Nicole asked. “Because if you tell me than Three will blab to everyone, is that it?”
No one said a word.
“You’re not even gonna deny it?”
“Nicole,” Emma said, “We like you and all and we’re glad you’re here but ever since you got back… Well...”
“Well what?” Nicole demanded.
“You used to be great at keeping secrets,” Mimi spoke up, “But-”
“You’ve told the whole school what kinds of diapers everyone in this room wears,” Josie said, sitting in the back corner with a cookie.
“Josie!” Emma snapped.
“What?” her little sister said, “You were all dancing around it. Eventually she was just going to break down again anyway, right?”
“She’s not like that,” Izzy said, “She’s just special now.”
“I am standing right here,” Nicole spoke up. “And I can keep a secret. Three doesn’t know everything I know, just the things she hears when she slips out.”
“Which was like ten minutes ago,” Penny said.
“I honestly don’t care if anyone knows I wet the bed,” Izzy said. “But this is… Different.”
“I thought we were friends,” Nicole said as she turned around and headed upstairs.
Abigail got up and ran after her. She stopped at the bottom of the stairs to say, “Her doctor says she needs a sense of normalcy. Treating her like a freak is not going to help,” and then she ran up.
For a moment, no one said a word.
“So Abigail is the one with a moral compass now?” Josie asked.
Izzy walked over to Emma, who instinctively knew she needed a hug.
“I think we should cancel the sleepover,” Izzy said.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Emma said.
“If she doesn’t stay then that means everyone won’t be here,” Izzy said, tearing up. “And I want a sleepover with everyone. Just like on Christmas Eve Eve.”
“Well then,” Lilly said, adjusting her bandanna, “Susie, start having a baby. Mimi, call the hospital. It’s time to get this party started.”
“Why do I have to have the baby?” Susie asked.
“It’s your turn,” Lilly said.
“But… No one has had a baby yet,” Susie said, “Why is it my turn?”
“So you guys all still have stupid conversations, huh?” Rena asked.
Chapter 3
Abigail found Nicole coloring peacefully in Izzy’s room. She slowly opened the door and peaked inside. Nicole had found some ribbons and crudely tied her hair up in big pigtails. The nice party outfit she had picked out was cast aside. Nicole was laying down, on her stomach, coloring in just her Pull-Up.
Abigail knew the sings right away. This was not the Nicole that stormed out of the party moments ago.
This was Three.
“Aren’t you cold?” Abigail asked, as she slowly approached.
Nicole shook her head.
“I guess it is starting to get warmer outside,” Abigail said, sitting down across from her. “Maybe I’ll take off my clothes too.”
Nicole kept coloring.
“I kinda feel like coloring anyway,” Abigail said.
Nicole ignored her again.
“And then we’ll just be two normal girls,” Abigail said, “coloring on the floor without any clothes on. I might draw a present for Izzy. Maybe a nice picture of her and all of her friends playing in the nice warm weather. And you can continue to draw your scribbles. I’ll be in my Goodnite and you’ll be in your Pamper and that’s what we’ll all be up to.”
“You can color,” Nicole said, sliding a blank piece of paper across the floor.
Abigail grabbed some crayons and started drawing the playground just outside of their neighborhood. After a few minutes of silence, Nicole chuckled.
“What?” Abigail asked.
“You suck at coloring,” Nicole said.
Abigail laughed. “Welcome back, Nine” she said as she watched Nicole continue. “When did you get here?”
“Around the time you first threatened to strip,” Nicole said.
“You stripped before I got here,” Abigail reminded her.
“Are you really wearing a Goodnite already?” Nicole asked.
Abigail nodded. “We were planning to sleepover and I thought it would be easier than having to change in front of everyone.”
“Everyone already knows your secret,” Nicole said.
“Yes they do do,” Abigail said, continuing to color.
“But that wasn’t Three,” Nicole said, “You peed your pants in front of the whole town on Thanksgiving. And then you fainted.”
“I did do that,” Abigail said. “I remember thinking, ‘Wow, my legs are really warm,’ and then I thought my heart was going to explode. But Emma’s mom made some amazing mashed potatoes later and that made up for it a little bit.”
“You’re the only one who is good to me,” Nicole said, sitting up and pulling out her pigtails. “Nobody even talks to me at recess anymore. Rena plays soccer and Lilly plays with Zachary and Izzy is always hanging out with Emma and-”
Abigail looked up when Nicole stopped, “What?”
“Holy crap,” Nicole said, “They’re going out, aren’t they?”
Abigail tried to look away. “Whaaaaat? Nooo...”
“That’s what they don’t want Three finding out, right?” Nicole sat their and ponder on it. “Izzy’s really changed, hasn’t she?”
“A fourth grade crush?” Abigail thought about it. “Nah, what she’s doing is mostly normal. You’ve changed a bit though.”
Nicole looked down at herself and sighed. “You wanna know the worst part about this? Diapers are really, really comfortable.”
“Yeah,” Abigail said. “They really are.”
***
Back downstairs, Nicole was fully dressed and perfectly lucid. She handed Izzy her drawing and said, “Here, Three made this for you.”
“Oh,” Izzy held it up so she and Emma could get a better look. They were not impressed by the squiggles.
Nicole added. “I also got you a new game for your 3DS.”
“Oh, goodie!” Izzy smiled.
“And I know about you two,” Nicole said.
They looked at each other, than looked around for Abigail.
“No one told me,” Nicole said. “I was just able to figure it out. Honestly I don’t even know how everyone doesn’t know already.”
“You can’t tell anyone,” Izzy said.
“Duh,” Nicole said. “She might be your girlfriend but I’m still your best friend, remember? You should’ve told me sooner.”
“Sorry,” Izzy said, hugging Nicole.
“Well that wraps up that,” Mimi said, “A bit early for the climax but I guess this one’s a short one.”
“What is she talking about?” Rena turned to Penny.
“Why would I know anything about climaxing?” Penny asked, defensively.
“I meant,” Rena said, “Because she’s your sister.”
“Having a sister is nice,” Nicole said, looking over at Abigail, “I mean… Probably.”
Chapter 4
The next morning Nicole woke to a surprise. She was Nine, inside and out, just like she was the night before and just like she had been all night long. Surveying the room she confirmed that everyone surrounding her, all in bottomless pajamas, were in very wet diapers. She remembered all sorts of holding contests and wetting contests, all of which she refused to take part in. In fact, she’d woken in the very same dry diaper Mrs. Perez had changed her into the night before. She felt a sense of accomplishment as someone who “needs” diapers woke up drier than the recreational wearers in the room.
It was early and everyone was still sleeping, but it was Nicole’s ballooning bladder, about to pop in her pants, that had woken her in the first place. She raced to the bathroom, kicked off the diaper, and made it just in time. Even in days when Three spared Nicole a dry morning, she rarely let her celebrate for long. She was surprised Three didn’t take over and pee right there in her sleeping bag.
Naked from the waist down, Nicole found a spare diaper, God only knows which of her friends it belonged to, and put it on. She wasn’t fearing a Three-induced accident, but rather simply wanted something, anything, to wear.
She sincerely didn’t think Three was coming out today. Or any day. Something last night must have triggered something. Nicole didn’t feel like Nine was her identity, it was just her age.
The rest of the day, she was Nine. And the day after that, and the week after that. Her therapist could not explain it, but one day Nicole completely changed back to normal, or as normal as she could be.
She felt different.
She felt the same.
She felt better.
She was nine and that’s how she was going to be.
***
When the girls returned to school after spring break, Nicole struggled with Mrs. Shepard’s suggestion.
“I won’t make you wear one,” she said, “It’s up to you.”
Nicole had not turned into Three in over a week, and had not had an accident either. However, spring break was a quiet and relaxing time, whereas school would bring about more stress and more potential triggers.
Even though she felt like Three was gone, Nicole wasn’t sure she wanted to risk an accident. But Nicole had still spent countless days in diapers under the “care” if Miss Kathy. Even if she wasn’t constantly shifting between Three and Nine, her bladder had been weakened.
Nicole put on the Pull-Up and tossed an extra in her bag, just in case.
At school, Nicole tried her hardest to stay herself, and miraculously held out the entire time. At the end of the day, they were having one of their fireside chats as the teacher called them. Sometimes they would all just sit around in a circle and relax and talk about current events.
“I still can’t make piggy tails,” Lilly said, “But I don’t look bald anymore.”
“Well we’re all glad you’re healthy, Lilly,” the teacher said.
“So no more chemo?” one of the boys asked.
“What’s chemo?” another asked.
“Chemo is a kind of medicine for cancer that makes you go bald,” the teacher explained. “But Lilly didn’t have chemo, she got the cancer removed in surgery. They just had to shave her head so they could cut it open.”
“Ewwww!” half the class said.
“If she’s not bald anymore then why does she still get to wear a bandana?” Brittany asked.
“Why are you always so nasty, Brittany?” Lilly asked?
“Lilly, that’s not nice,” the teacher said.
“Brittanys are always nasty,” Mimi said.
“Least I’m potty trained,” Brittany whispered loudly.
Mimi sat up and spat out, “Least I’m not a stuck up-”
“That’s it!” the teacher shouted. “Mimi, in the corner. Brittany, other corner.” As the two girls headed to their respective time-outs, the teacher added, “Honestly, I know you two have fights now but I bet you become best friends when you’re older. Me and my girlfriends all used to fight when we were in school.”
“You have a girlfriend?” one of the boys snickered, “But your a girl.” A few more kids giggled.
Emma and Izzy inched away from each other.
“Women call their friends girlfriend,” the teacher explained, “just like men call their friends dude or bro.”
“And it’s okay to have a girlfriend and be a girl,” another boy said, “Like Miss Cynthia in the library.”
Another girl added, “And my cousin Viper.”
“And Emma and Izzy,” Nicole spoke up.
The class grew silent. Everyone’s eyes turned to Nicole, who didn’t seem to realize what she had said.
“Why is everyone looking at me?”
Chapter 5
“Okay,” Nicole said, “Tell me everything that happened after that.”
“Well,” Mimi said, “People all kinda started snickering and whispering among themselves and the teacher tried to quiet everyone down. Izzy started defending herself which everyone took as a confession and that started a whole ‘nother jumble of yelling. At this point you turned Three and started shouting for everyone to shut up cus it was too loud. You started crying and curled up into a ball. Mrs. Taylor came in from across the hall to see what was up. She took the rest of our class except you, Emma, and Izzy. I heard later that you basically passed out once it quieted down and started sucking your thumb. Teach asked Emma and Izzy what was going on and they said they were just best friends like how boys call each other dude and you must ahve gotten confused because you’re… You know. Anyway the bell rang and I guess that woke you up so you kinda went with the normal dismissal schedule and the last anyone saw of you you were getting into Abigail’s mom’s car.”
“And that’s everything?” Nicole asked.
Mimi nodded.
“I can’t believe it,” Nicole fell back on her bed and stared up at the blank ceiling. “They were worried of me blabbing when I was Three but I couldn’t even keep it a secret when I was Nine.”
“They’re not mad,” Mimi said, “Honest.”
Nicole stood up and started pulling clothes out of her dresser.
“What are you doing?” Mimi asked.
“Nothing,” Nicole said, “Aren’t you here for an Abigail makeover anyway?”
“Oh yeah!” Mimi waddled out the door.
No matter what Mimi said, no matter what anyone said, Nicole had failed. She couldn’t be Nine, it was just impossible. Three was who she was and as long as she kept fighting it the harder it was going to be for her to accept it.
But she couldn’t do that here. The therapy and all the attention wasn’t what Nicole wanted. Abigail and her parents were wonderful to her but that wasn’t what she needed. She needed the one person who treated her the way she truly felt on the inside. The one person she hadn’t seen in a long time.
Nicole pulled out her phone and dialed the number she had memorized for a time just like this. She sent a text reading: “I need to see you.”
Nicole snuck out the back door and found herself walking through the woods, on the trail Emma and the others marked off when they were younger. The further she went, the further she felt as though she was changing. But instead of turning into Three, she found Three walking beside her.
“Where are we going?” Three asked.
“You win, okay?” Nine said. “You wanna be a baby well you got it.”
“Miss Kathy?” Three lit up, “We’re going to see Miss Kathy!”
“Don’t go!”
Nine and Three looked ahead and saw someone standing in front of them.
“Not her,” Three said, “No like her.”
“You,” Nine slowly walked up to her, “I forgot all about you.”
“But I’m you,” the other one said, “From before she showed up.”
Three stuck her tongue out and hid behind Nine.
“Before Miss Kathy that is.”
Nine looked at the girl before her. Her hair was up and she wore a frilly leotard. It was the old Nicole. The one that punched Abigail. The one who watched her whole family fall apart.
The Mayor’s Daughter.
“I have to do this,” Nine told her and pushed on forward.
“So you like peeing yourself and going crazy?” the Mayor’s Daughter asked, following along next to Three.
“I need her,” Nine said. “I miss her.”
“You’re not going to get better,” the Mayor’s Daughter said. “You’re just making things worse.”
Nine ignored any thoughts but her own as she found her way to the designated meeting place. The place where they arranged to meet if Nicole ever tried to contact her.
It was risky.
It was dangerous.
It was worth it.
Nine sat under the lone tree off the side of a beaten road. Three ran around it in circles while the Mayor’s Daughter continued to show her disaproval.
A small car pulled up.
“That not Miss Kathy’s car,” Three frowned.
The Mayor’s Daughter looked up, confused. “Oh no, not her.”
Nine grabbed her bag and walked up to the car. The passenger window lowered and she looked inside.
“Hi, mom.”
Chapter 6
“You want some water?”
Nicole shook her head. She sat on the couch, simple futon, in a Pull-Up she consciously dampened along the way. The house was small and messy. The carpet wasn’t taken care of well and there were plates of eaten food lying about.
A short, blond, and white woman came back from the kitchen and set a Barbie doll, still in the box, on Nicole’s lap.
“I was expecting your for Christmas,” she said, “but after he got locked up they wouldn’t tell me where I could send it.”
Nicole examined the Barbie. She was a dancer, black with a two leotards and a tutu.
“Thanks,” Nicole whispered.
“I would’ve tried to claim custody,” the woman said, “But… It was midterms and all.”
“His golf buddy,” Nicole said, “the one who forged the death certificate. He got caught.”
“Honestly,” the woman said, “I am surprised it lasted this long. You’re still a kid, barely out of diapers. How could you visit me every Christmas and not let anyone know I was still alive.”
Nicole pressed her legs together at the mention of diapers. “I am good at keeping secrets,” she said. “Or at least I used to be.”
“So Spike got caught with fake papers, huh?” the woman sat at the table with a big blue bottle in hand. “I kinda thought the money trail would’ve led them first. Do you know how much money he was sending me every month?”
Enough to buy a real couch, Nicole wanted to say. Enough to buy more than one baby’s toy, Nicole wanted to say.
Nicole said nothing.
“You sleepin’ over?” the woman asked, “I can get some blankets for yah.”
She wasn’t even going to let Nicole sleep on the bed. Across the living room, Nicole saw the Mayor’s Daughter shaking her head.
“Have I ever told you how I met the man?” the woman asked.
Nicole had, but she shook her head.
“I was in the school play. Even though I was only a sophomore I had speaking lines and everything. But the whole time I saw this handsome man staring back at me. I never even found out what he was doing there. After the show he came up to me and said how wonderful I was. I saw him again at the mall, he came into the American Eagle where I worked, and we got to talking. He came in a few more times and eventually he asked me to lunch one day. Of course I said now. I couldn’t be seen out with an older man and my parents would especially not want me out with any black man for that matter. But he was charming and eventually I said yes, only after he agreed to rent a private room at a restaurant out of town. First date, kiss, whole shebang. I never talked to him again, or at least that was the idea. told my parents I got drunk at a party and didn’t know what happened. My dad beat the crap out of the quarterback who waved at me once. Eventually this guy shows up and says he’ll pay for the hospital bills and then some as long as we can keep this hush hush. I got a full ride to Duquesne and he got a baby with a fake story of a dead lover. Then he starts parading you around on TV as a way to win some votes. Then he buys me a house here in this stupid town cus he wants you to be able to see me. Then he only lets you see me on Christmas. Then he goes to jail and I never hear from you again. Until today.”
This was not how Nicole’s mother started her visits. It was how she ended them. It was a sign. Nicole knew the truth. She knew she wasn’t going to be spending the rest of her life here. She wasn’t even going to be spending the night and that blanket was just a gesture.
“With him gone,” the woman said, “Money’s been gone. Had to quit grad school, got a job at the American Eagle in St. Harmony’s, and another job at the Taco Bell in the same mall. So what I am saying is-”
“I’ll leave,” Nicole said. She looked over to where the Mayor’s Daughter was standing, but instead saw Three with tears in her eyes. Nicole knew that Three wanted out and she knew what would happen if she let her.
But Nicole knew that if her mother wasn’t going to help her than she would what to help herself.
Nicole stood up and grabbed her bag, holding the Barbie in her other hand. Three verbally insulted Nicole for not letting her out. Nicole’s mind was a battlefield. When her body betrayed her, she was just glad she was already wearing a Pull-Up.
The smell came before the sound, but the women knew what happened right away.
“Geeze, what the hell?” the women asked.
Nicole stood still and started to cry.
“Calm down, I’m not a total monster,” the woman took Nicole’s things from her hands and said, “I’ll let you make a bath, c’mere.” The woman helped slide Nicole’s pants down, but stopped when she saw the soggy and stinky Pull-Up. “Wha… The… How old are you?”
Nicole sucked up her tears and said, “I’m nine.”
Chapter 7
Nicole didn’t tell anyone where she was. She simply showed up and endured the wrath of the Shepards, and the Harmony Hills Police Department. The fact that she showed up in a wet and messy Pull-Up did not help her either. She looked around as the police bent down and spoke to her, not listening to what they were saying. She could see Abigail looking down at her from the top steps.
Nicole looked up at her sister and mouthed, “Bye.”
***
A few weeks later, Abigail returned to dance class. It was the start of the summer session. Most of the class was filled with other girls she had danced with before, but some of them were new. Abigail walked out of the locker room, her Goodnite obviously visible, and took a deep breath.
“Look, pee girl came back and she’s wearing a diaper!” a random girl Abigail had no memory of said as she laughed and pointed with a posse of other girls. She had hideous freckles and a big curly, orange afro. Abigail could not believe that the bar for local bully was set so low.
“Don’t mind Gretchen,” a voice said, “She’s just a bitch.”
Abigail turned around and saw Nicole standing in the studio in a blue leotard with her hair pulled up. A quick glance down confirmed there wasn’t a diaper of any kind in sight.
“Nicole,” Abigail wanted to cry.
“Shh,” Nicole said, “I have an idea.”
Abigail followed Nicole to a separate room in the studio where she called, “Hey, Gretchen!” while disguising her voice.”
Abigail couldn’t contain herself. “We all miss you and-”
“Shh!” Nicole said again, “Remember how you got me? On Christmas Eve?”
Abigail heard footsteps and smiled, nodding.
Gretchen entered and said, “What do you want?”
Nicole and Abigail simultaneously punched their fists into their hands. Gretchen yelped and jumped back.
“Now listen here,” Nicole started.
“Aaah!” Gretchen yelped again as a river of pee ran down her tights and formed a puddle at her feet.
“Oh,” Nicole said, “I was just gonna scare her but that works too.”
Gretchen ran off crying.
Abigail was also in shock, but still over the sight of her old sister. “Listen, Nikki,” she started.
“I miss you too,” Abigail was interrupted, “And call me Nicole.”
When she went to bed the night before, Nicole was Nine, sweet and innocent and trying to find her way in the world. As she slept, she became Three, infantile and without control of what she said or did. She woke as Nine, rejecting all everything she had done when she was Three.
Nicole cast off her saturated nighttime diaper. She wished she didn’t have to wear them. She didn’t really need them. When she was Nine she could control her bladder like a second place champion. But when she was Three she might as well be sucking her thumb and cuddling a bear.
In fact, as Nicole examined her thumb, she confirmed that Three had indeed dug her teeth into her favorite finger. In addition to not particularly grasping the concept of a toilet, Three could not process being in Nicole’s body and as such was unaware of the damage her three year old habits were doing to her nine year old body.
After a quick shower, Nicole dressed in a nice spring blouse and her favorite pair of Abigail’s old jeans, all in addition to a Pull-Up securely in place beneath her pants. She hated wearing those even more than the diaper. At least no one ever saw her at night. But everyone knew she had to wear a Pull-Up to school and everyone knew if they upset her enough they could get to see it in action.
“Good morning,” Mrs. Shepard stood in the kitchen, preparing two brown bags as Nicole stopped to put her shoes on.
“Morning,” Nicole said. She sat down, the padding of her Pull-Up smashing between her bottom and her chair. They were a constant reminder of who she used to be, who should could still turn into. She’d once theorized that if she did away with all Three things that she’d never have to go back there again. That resulted in tantrums the likes of which Harmony Hills has never seen. And puddles, of course.
Nicole made sure her homework for the day was packed in her bag. Her extra Pull-Ups were kept with the nurse, but she still brought along Three’s favorite teddy.
Like it or not, she was stuck with Three and that’s just the way things were going to be.
“How you doin?” Abigail said, appearing behind Nicole.
“I’m fine,” Nicole said.
“Have you decided about the party?” Abigail asked.
“I want to go,” Nicole said. “Even if she shows up. Nine or Three, Nicole Jones is going to be there. After all, everyone else is, right?”
After school that day, Nicole found herself faced with Emma, Penny, Lilly, Mimi, Abigail, Izzy, Susie, and even Rena and Josie. All together in one spot for the first time since Christmas.
“Deep breaths,” Abigail said as walked down to the basement.
“Seriously,” Nicole said “I feel great. I’m Nine and I’m fine.”
When they finally reached the foot of the stairs, Nicole looked around and saw the basement decorated with balloons and streamers with an entire table filled with snacks and candy and a huge cake.
“Hi, Nicole,” Izzy smiled. “It’s been awhile since we were all together, huh?”
Nicole walked right passed her, picked up a handful of cake, and shoved it in her face.
Abigail sighed and turned to Izzy as she said, “Feliz cumpleaños.”
***
“Really, I’m glad you’re here,” Izzy said.
“Yeah, well,” Rena blushed. “We’re still friends and all, right? You’ve been wetting the bed forever and it was never a problem so why should it be different now?”
“It wasn’t forever,” Izzy said, “Matter-o-fact I didn’t wear a diaper at any point when I was six or seven. It just came back a lot last year.”
“Look at you standing up for yourself,” Rena said, “I’m impressed.”
“So you’re going to the soccer camp this year?” Izzy asked.
Rena nodded. “That’s gonna be my spring break. Six days and five nights with girls from across the state.”
“But we’re your favorites, right?” Izzy asked
“NIKKI WHO GAVE YOU GUM?!”
Rena and Izzy turned around to see Abigail chasing Nicole around the basement. When she was finally cornered, Nicole looked Abigail dead in the eyes and swallowed.
“Great,” Abigail said, “That’s going to be in your stomach for seven years now. Are you happy?”
“Not seven years,” Nicole said, smiling as she entered a sitting down position. “I make it come out right now.”
“Oh no,” Abigail said.
“CODE BROWN!” Mimi jumped up on the couch and shouted.
“Is this what I’ve been missing?” Rena asked.
Izzy shrugged. “Sometimes we play Boggle.”
Chapter 2
Nicole came to on her back, staring up at an unfamiliar ceiling. “What happened?” she asked. “The last thing I remember was going downstairs and seeing cake.”
“You got a bit rowdy,” a familiar voice said, “And then you had a little accident.”
Nicole sat up and watched as Mrs. Perez tied a plastic bag in a not, dumping a baseball sized object into a garbage can.
“Three,” Nicole scowled, malicious yet still embarrassed. She fell back blushing and covering her face. “I am so sorry. I didn’t mean to. It won’t happen again.
“There, there,” Mrs. Perez said, “What’s one more diaper in this house? With Isabella and Noel we go through a lot more than you’d think.”
“I don’t want to be like this,” Nicole sat up and hugged her legs, hiding the fresh Pamper she was changed into by her friends mother. “I don’t want to change every time I see sugar or get yelled at. I don’t want to have to wear diapers because the other me is still a baby.”
“The other you?” Mrs. Perez asked.
Nicole nodded. “I am Nine and she is Three. When I sit in class and do my homework, I’m Nine. But during recess, or if I get hungry or scared, I become Three.”
“And this ‘Three’ is a different person?” Mrs. Perez asked.
“One time when we were in the mall, I was on the way to the bathroom. I was gonna make it. But as I passed the toy store, I got distracted. Well,” Nicole started to tear up. “Three got distracted. She walked right in the toy store, went straight for the doll aisle, and peed in my pants. After I convinced Mrs. Shepard I could go all by myself. ‘All by myself.’ Like I’m a toddler or something. I need to be potty trained. I need to be weaned off the bottle and taught not to run around or shove my face in a cake.”
“What happened to you was unusual, yes,” Mrs. Perez assured her, “But that does not mean you are not nine. My Isabella is nine today. She still wears diapers to bed and still keeps a scrapbook of stickers and when we go to the mall the first place she wants to visit is the doll section. And if I say no, believe you me, my nine year old Isabella throws a fit. Just because you are nine now does not mean you are an adult. You’re barely a preteen. You’re still a kid. Kids make mistakes. Kids have accidents. Kids learn. The sooner you embrace this truth, the sooner you will stop becoming this Three person and start being yourself.”
Nicole took Mrs. Perez’s words to hear. But there was still one thing that was bouncing around in her head. She had to start being herself. but just who was she?
***
“So I guess now everyone knows,” Emma said as Nicole walked back down to the basement.
“Knows what?” Nicole asked.
Everyone grew silent and looked at her.
“Uhm,” Emma looked around the room. Izzy looked away.
“Is something wrong?” Nicole was getting worried.
“Calm down, Nicole,” Abigail said, “There’s just something we can’t tell you because-”
“Because of her?” Nicole asked. “Because if you tell me than Three will blab to everyone, is that it?”
No one said a word.
“You’re not even gonna deny it?”
“Nicole,” Emma said, “We like you and all and we’re glad you’re here but ever since you got back… Well...”
“Well what?” Nicole demanded.
“You used to be great at keeping secrets,” Mimi spoke up, “But-”
“You’ve told the whole school what kinds of diapers everyone in this room wears,” Josie said, sitting in the back corner with a cookie.
“Josie!” Emma snapped.
“What?” her little sister said, “You were all dancing around it. Eventually she was just going to break down again anyway, right?”
“She’s not like that,” Izzy said, “She’s just special now.”
“I am standing right here,” Nicole spoke up. “And I can keep a secret. Three doesn’t know everything I know, just the things she hears when she slips out.”
“Which was like ten minutes ago,” Penny said.
“I honestly don’t care if anyone knows I wet the bed,” Izzy said. “But this is… Different.”
“I thought we were friends,” Nicole said as she turned around and headed upstairs.
Abigail got up and ran after her. She stopped at the bottom of the stairs to say, “Her doctor says she needs a sense of normalcy. Treating her like a freak is not going to help,” and then she ran up.
For a moment, no one said a word.
“So Abigail is the one with a moral compass now?” Josie asked.
Izzy walked over to Emma, who instinctively knew she needed a hug.
“I think we should cancel the sleepover,” Izzy said.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Emma said.
“If she doesn’t stay then that means everyone won’t be here,” Izzy said, tearing up. “And I want a sleepover with everyone. Just like on Christmas Eve Eve.”
“Well then,” Lilly said, adjusting her bandanna, “Susie, start having a baby. Mimi, call the hospital. It’s time to get this party started.”
“Why do I have to have the baby?” Susie asked.
“It’s your turn,” Lilly said.
“But… No one has had a baby yet,” Susie said, “Why is it my turn?”
“So you guys all still have stupid conversations, huh?” Rena asked.
Chapter 3
Abigail found Nicole coloring peacefully in Izzy’s room. She slowly opened the door and peaked inside. Nicole had found some ribbons and crudely tied her hair up in big pigtails. The nice party outfit she had picked out was cast aside. Nicole was laying down, on her stomach, coloring in just her Pull-Up.
Abigail knew the sings right away. This was not the Nicole that stormed out of the party moments ago.
This was Three.
“Aren’t you cold?” Abigail asked, as she slowly approached.
Nicole shook her head.
“I guess it is starting to get warmer outside,” Abigail said, sitting down across from her. “Maybe I’ll take off my clothes too.”
Nicole kept coloring.
“I kinda feel like coloring anyway,” Abigail said.
Nicole ignored her again.
“And then we’ll just be two normal girls,” Abigail said, “coloring on the floor without any clothes on. I might draw a present for Izzy. Maybe a nice picture of her and all of her friends playing in the nice warm weather. And you can continue to draw your scribbles. I’ll be in my Goodnite and you’ll be in your Pamper and that’s what we’ll all be up to.”
“You can color,” Nicole said, sliding a blank piece of paper across the floor.
Abigail grabbed some crayons and started drawing the playground just outside of their neighborhood. After a few minutes of silence, Nicole chuckled.
“What?” Abigail asked.
“You suck at coloring,” Nicole said.
Abigail laughed. “Welcome back, Nine” she said as she watched Nicole continue. “When did you get here?”
“Around the time you first threatened to strip,” Nicole said.
“You stripped before I got here,” Abigail reminded her.
“Are you really wearing a Goodnite already?” Nicole asked.
Abigail nodded. “We were planning to sleepover and I thought it would be easier than having to change in front of everyone.”
“Everyone already knows your secret,” Nicole said.
“Yes they do do,” Abigail said, continuing to color.
“But that wasn’t Three,” Nicole said, “You peed your pants in front of the whole town on Thanksgiving. And then you fainted.”
“I did do that,” Abigail said. “I remember thinking, ‘Wow, my legs are really warm,’ and then I thought my heart was going to explode. But Emma’s mom made some amazing mashed potatoes later and that made up for it a little bit.”
“You’re the only one who is good to me,” Nicole said, sitting up and pulling out her pigtails. “Nobody even talks to me at recess anymore. Rena plays soccer and Lilly plays with Zachary and Izzy is always hanging out with Emma and-”
Abigail looked up when Nicole stopped, “What?”
“Holy crap,” Nicole said, “They’re going out, aren’t they?”
Abigail tried to look away. “Whaaaaat? Nooo...”
“That’s what they don’t want Three finding out, right?” Nicole sat their and ponder on it. “Izzy’s really changed, hasn’t she?”
“A fourth grade crush?” Abigail thought about it. “Nah, what she’s doing is mostly normal. You’ve changed a bit though.”
Nicole looked down at herself and sighed. “You wanna know the worst part about this? Diapers are really, really comfortable.”
“Yeah,” Abigail said. “They really are.”
***
Back downstairs, Nicole was fully dressed and perfectly lucid. She handed Izzy her drawing and said, “Here, Three made this for you.”
“Oh,” Izzy held it up so she and Emma could get a better look. They were not impressed by the squiggles.
Nicole added. “I also got you a new game for your 3DS.”
“Oh, goodie!” Izzy smiled.
“And I know about you two,” Nicole said.
They looked at each other, than looked around for Abigail.
“No one told me,” Nicole said. “I was just able to figure it out. Honestly I don’t even know how everyone doesn’t know already.”
“You can’t tell anyone,” Izzy said.
“Duh,” Nicole said. “She might be your girlfriend but I’m still your best friend, remember? You should’ve told me sooner.”
“Sorry,” Izzy said, hugging Nicole.
“Well that wraps up that,” Mimi said, “A bit early for the climax but I guess this one’s a short one.”
“What is she talking about?” Rena turned to Penny.
“Why would I know anything about climaxing?” Penny asked, defensively.
“I meant,” Rena said, “Because she’s your sister.”
“Having a sister is nice,” Nicole said, looking over at Abigail, “I mean… Probably.”
Chapter 4
The next morning Nicole woke to a surprise. She was Nine, inside and out, just like she was the night before and just like she had been all night long. Surveying the room she confirmed that everyone surrounding her, all in bottomless pajamas, were in very wet diapers. She remembered all sorts of holding contests and wetting contests, all of which she refused to take part in. In fact, she’d woken in the very same dry diaper Mrs. Perez had changed her into the night before. She felt a sense of accomplishment as someone who “needs” diapers woke up drier than the recreational wearers in the room.
It was early and everyone was still sleeping, but it was Nicole’s ballooning bladder, about to pop in her pants, that had woken her in the first place. She raced to the bathroom, kicked off the diaper, and made it just in time. Even in days when Three spared Nicole a dry morning, she rarely let her celebrate for long. She was surprised Three didn’t take over and pee right there in her sleeping bag.
Naked from the waist down, Nicole found a spare diaper, God only knows which of her friends it belonged to, and put it on. She wasn’t fearing a Three-induced accident, but rather simply wanted something, anything, to wear.
She sincerely didn’t think Three was coming out today. Or any day. Something last night must have triggered something. Nicole didn’t feel like Nine was her identity, it was just her age.
The rest of the day, she was Nine. And the day after that, and the week after that. Her therapist could not explain it, but one day Nicole completely changed back to normal, or as normal as she could be.
She felt different.
She felt the same.
She felt better.
She was nine and that’s how she was going to be.
***
When the girls returned to school after spring break, Nicole struggled with Mrs. Shepard’s suggestion.
“I won’t make you wear one,” she said, “It’s up to you.”
Nicole had not turned into Three in over a week, and had not had an accident either. However, spring break was a quiet and relaxing time, whereas school would bring about more stress and more potential triggers.
Even though she felt like Three was gone, Nicole wasn’t sure she wanted to risk an accident. But Nicole had still spent countless days in diapers under the “care” if Miss Kathy. Even if she wasn’t constantly shifting between Three and Nine, her bladder had been weakened.
Nicole put on the Pull-Up and tossed an extra in her bag, just in case.
At school, Nicole tried her hardest to stay herself, and miraculously held out the entire time. At the end of the day, they were having one of their fireside chats as the teacher called them. Sometimes they would all just sit around in a circle and relax and talk about current events.
“I still can’t make piggy tails,” Lilly said, “But I don’t look bald anymore.”
“Well we’re all glad you’re healthy, Lilly,” the teacher said.
“So no more chemo?” one of the boys asked.
“What’s chemo?” another asked.
“Chemo is a kind of medicine for cancer that makes you go bald,” the teacher explained. “But Lilly didn’t have chemo, she got the cancer removed in surgery. They just had to shave her head so they could cut it open.”
“Ewwww!” half the class said.
“If she’s not bald anymore then why does she still get to wear a bandana?” Brittany asked.
“Why are you always so nasty, Brittany?” Lilly asked?
“Lilly, that’s not nice,” the teacher said.
“Brittanys are always nasty,” Mimi said.
“Least I’m potty trained,” Brittany whispered loudly.
Mimi sat up and spat out, “Least I’m not a stuck up-”
“That’s it!” the teacher shouted. “Mimi, in the corner. Brittany, other corner.” As the two girls headed to their respective time-outs, the teacher added, “Honestly, I know you two have fights now but I bet you become best friends when you’re older. Me and my girlfriends all used to fight when we were in school.”
“You have a girlfriend?” one of the boys snickered, “But your a girl.” A few more kids giggled.
Emma and Izzy inched away from each other.
“Women call their friends girlfriend,” the teacher explained, “just like men call their friends dude or bro.”
“And it’s okay to have a girlfriend and be a girl,” another boy said, “Like Miss Cynthia in the library.”
Another girl added, “And my cousin Viper.”
“And Emma and Izzy,” Nicole spoke up.
The class grew silent. Everyone’s eyes turned to Nicole, who didn’t seem to realize what she had said.
“Why is everyone looking at me?”
Chapter 5
“Okay,” Nicole said, “Tell me everything that happened after that.”
“Well,” Mimi said, “People all kinda started snickering and whispering among themselves and the teacher tried to quiet everyone down. Izzy started defending herself which everyone took as a confession and that started a whole ‘nother jumble of yelling. At this point you turned Three and started shouting for everyone to shut up cus it was too loud. You started crying and curled up into a ball. Mrs. Taylor came in from across the hall to see what was up. She took the rest of our class except you, Emma, and Izzy. I heard later that you basically passed out once it quieted down and started sucking your thumb. Teach asked Emma and Izzy what was going on and they said they were just best friends like how boys call each other dude and you must ahve gotten confused because you’re… You know. Anyway the bell rang and I guess that woke you up so you kinda went with the normal dismissal schedule and the last anyone saw of you you were getting into Abigail’s mom’s car.”
“And that’s everything?” Nicole asked.
Mimi nodded.
“I can’t believe it,” Nicole fell back on her bed and stared up at the blank ceiling. “They were worried of me blabbing when I was Three but I couldn’t even keep it a secret when I was Nine.”
“They’re not mad,” Mimi said, “Honest.”
Nicole stood up and started pulling clothes out of her dresser.
“What are you doing?” Mimi asked.
“Nothing,” Nicole said, “Aren’t you here for an Abigail makeover anyway?”
“Oh yeah!” Mimi waddled out the door.
No matter what Mimi said, no matter what anyone said, Nicole had failed. She couldn’t be Nine, it was just impossible. Three was who she was and as long as she kept fighting it the harder it was going to be for her to accept it.
But she couldn’t do that here. The therapy and all the attention wasn’t what Nicole wanted. Abigail and her parents were wonderful to her but that wasn’t what she needed. She needed the one person who treated her the way she truly felt on the inside. The one person she hadn’t seen in a long time.
Nicole pulled out her phone and dialed the number she had memorized for a time just like this. She sent a text reading: “I need to see you.”
Nicole snuck out the back door and found herself walking through the woods, on the trail Emma and the others marked off when they were younger. The further she went, the further she felt as though she was changing. But instead of turning into Three, she found Three walking beside her.
“Where are we going?” Three asked.
“You win, okay?” Nine said. “You wanna be a baby well you got it.”
“Miss Kathy?” Three lit up, “We’re going to see Miss Kathy!”
“Don’t go!”
Nine and Three looked ahead and saw someone standing in front of them.
“Not her,” Three said, “No like her.”
“You,” Nine slowly walked up to her, “I forgot all about you.”
“But I’m you,” the other one said, “From before she showed up.”
Three stuck her tongue out and hid behind Nine.
“Before Miss Kathy that is.”
Nine looked at the girl before her. Her hair was up and she wore a frilly leotard. It was the old Nicole. The one that punched Abigail. The one who watched her whole family fall apart.
The Mayor’s Daughter.
“I have to do this,” Nine told her and pushed on forward.
“So you like peeing yourself and going crazy?” the Mayor’s Daughter asked, following along next to Three.
“I need her,” Nine said. “I miss her.”
“You’re not going to get better,” the Mayor’s Daughter said. “You’re just making things worse.”
Nine ignored any thoughts but her own as she found her way to the designated meeting place. The place where they arranged to meet if Nicole ever tried to contact her.
It was risky.
It was dangerous.
It was worth it.
Nine sat under the lone tree off the side of a beaten road. Three ran around it in circles while the Mayor’s Daughter continued to show her disaproval.
A small car pulled up.
“That not Miss Kathy’s car,” Three frowned.
The Mayor’s Daughter looked up, confused. “Oh no, not her.”
Nine grabbed her bag and walked up to the car. The passenger window lowered and she looked inside.
“Hi, mom.”
Chapter 6
“You want some water?”
Nicole shook her head. She sat on the couch, simple futon, in a Pull-Up she consciously dampened along the way. The house was small and messy. The carpet wasn’t taken care of well and there were plates of eaten food lying about.
A short, blond, and white woman came back from the kitchen and set a Barbie doll, still in the box, on Nicole’s lap.
“I was expecting your for Christmas,” she said, “but after he got locked up they wouldn’t tell me where I could send it.”
Nicole examined the Barbie. She was a dancer, black with a two leotards and a tutu.
“Thanks,” Nicole whispered.
“I would’ve tried to claim custody,” the woman said, “But… It was midterms and all.”
“His golf buddy,” Nicole said, “the one who forged the death certificate. He got caught.”
“Honestly,” the woman said, “I am surprised it lasted this long. You’re still a kid, barely out of diapers. How could you visit me every Christmas and not let anyone know I was still alive.”
Nicole pressed her legs together at the mention of diapers. “I am good at keeping secrets,” she said. “Or at least I used to be.”
“So Spike got caught with fake papers, huh?” the woman sat at the table with a big blue bottle in hand. “I kinda thought the money trail would’ve led them first. Do you know how much money he was sending me every month?”
Enough to buy a real couch, Nicole wanted to say. Enough to buy more than one baby’s toy, Nicole wanted to say.
Nicole said nothing.
“You sleepin’ over?” the woman asked, “I can get some blankets for yah.”
She wasn’t even going to let Nicole sleep on the bed. Across the living room, Nicole saw the Mayor’s Daughter shaking her head.
“Have I ever told you how I met the man?” the woman asked.
Nicole had, but she shook her head.
“I was in the school play. Even though I was only a sophomore I had speaking lines and everything. But the whole time I saw this handsome man staring back at me. I never even found out what he was doing there. After the show he came up to me and said how wonderful I was. I saw him again at the mall, he came into the American Eagle where I worked, and we got to talking. He came in a few more times and eventually he asked me to lunch one day. Of course I said now. I couldn’t be seen out with an older man and my parents would especially not want me out with any black man for that matter. But he was charming and eventually I said yes, only after he agreed to rent a private room at a restaurant out of town. First date, kiss, whole shebang. I never talked to him again, or at least that was the idea. told my parents I got drunk at a party and didn’t know what happened. My dad beat the crap out of the quarterback who waved at me once. Eventually this guy shows up and says he’ll pay for the hospital bills and then some as long as we can keep this hush hush. I got a full ride to Duquesne and he got a baby with a fake story of a dead lover. Then he starts parading you around on TV as a way to win some votes. Then he buys me a house here in this stupid town cus he wants you to be able to see me. Then he only lets you see me on Christmas. Then he goes to jail and I never hear from you again. Until today.”
This was not how Nicole’s mother started her visits. It was how she ended them. It was a sign. Nicole knew the truth. She knew she wasn’t going to be spending the rest of her life here. She wasn’t even going to be spending the night and that blanket was just a gesture.
“With him gone,” the woman said, “Money’s been gone. Had to quit grad school, got a job at the American Eagle in St. Harmony’s, and another job at the Taco Bell in the same mall. So what I am saying is-”
“I’ll leave,” Nicole said. She looked over to where the Mayor’s Daughter was standing, but instead saw Three with tears in her eyes. Nicole knew that Three wanted out and she knew what would happen if she let her.
But Nicole knew that if her mother wasn’t going to help her than she would what to help herself.
Nicole stood up and grabbed her bag, holding the Barbie in her other hand. Three verbally insulted Nicole for not letting her out. Nicole’s mind was a battlefield. When her body betrayed her, she was just glad she was already wearing a Pull-Up.
The smell came before the sound, but the women knew what happened right away.
“Geeze, what the hell?” the women asked.
Nicole stood still and started to cry.
“Calm down, I’m not a total monster,” the woman took Nicole’s things from her hands and said, “I’ll let you make a bath, c’mere.” The woman helped slide Nicole’s pants down, but stopped when she saw the soggy and stinky Pull-Up. “Wha… The… How old are you?”
Nicole sucked up her tears and said, “I’m nine.”
Chapter 7
Nicole didn’t tell anyone where she was. She simply showed up and endured the wrath of the Shepards, and the Harmony Hills Police Department. The fact that she showed up in a wet and messy Pull-Up did not help her either. She looked around as the police bent down and spoke to her, not listening to what they were saying. She could see Abigail looking down at her from the top steps.
Nicole looked up at her sister and mouthed, “Bye.”
***
A few weeks later, Abigail returned to dance class. It was the start of the summer session. Most of the class was filled with other girls she had danced with before, but some of them were new. Abigail walked out of the locker room, her Goodnite obviously visible, and took a deep breath.
“Look, pee girl came back and she’s wearing a diaper!” a random girl Abigail had no memory of said as she laughed and pointed with a posse of other girls. She had hideous freckles and a big curly, orange afro. Abigail could not believe that the bar for local bully was set so low.
“Don’t mind Gretchen,” a voice said, “She’s just a bitch.”
Abigail turned around and saw Nicole standing in the studio in a blue leotard with her hair pulled up. A quick glance down confirmed there wasn’t a diaper of any kind in sight.
“Nicole,” Abigail wanted to cry.
“Shh,” Nicole said, “I have an idea.”
Abigail followed Nicole to a separate room in the studio where she called, “Hey, Gretchen!” while disguising her voice.”
Abigail couldn’t contain herself. “We all miss you and-”
“Shh!” Nicole said again, “Remember how you got me? On Christmas Eve?”
Abigail heard footsteps and smiled, nodding.
Gretchen entered and said, “What do you want?”
Nicole and Abigail simultaneously punched their fists into their hands. Gretchen yelped and jumped back.
“Now listen here,” Nicole started.
“Aaah!” Gretchen yelped again as a river of pee ran down her tights and formed a puddle at her feet.
“Oh,” Nicole said, “I was just gonna scare her but that works too.”
Gretchen ran off crying.
Abigail was also in shock, but still over the sight of her old sister. “Listen, Nikki,” she started.
“I miss you too,” Abigail was interrupted, “And call me Nicole.”