Tale #120: The Same Respect (Thunderclouds Ahead)

Tale #120: The Same Respect (Thunderclouds Ahead) (A sequel to Tale #55 'Sawing Logs') (Content Tags: Bed-messing, bedwetting, Ninjamas, diapers, humiliation, role reversal, older and younger brother.) Theo had a calendar above his bed, and he'd had it for a while. Unlike a normal calendar, its function wasn't to keep track of events, but to chart progress made on the bedwetting front. As much as Theo tried to stay dry, each of those squares was usually filled with a rainy cloud sticker. By month's end, the grade schooler was lucky to have enough 'smiling suns' to count on one hand. That'd been something that PJ had enjoyed teasing the boy over. It was another piece of a humiliating puzzle, right there next to his Pull-Ups. "Looks like another rainy day for little Theo!" PJ would laugh, and then Theo would usually start crying and go to tattle on his older brother. In all those pages of the calendar though, Theo had never gotten a 'thunder cloud' sticker. That was hardly something to take pride in, to *not* be pooping the bed at eight years old, but it was certainly something to note more pointedly *now*. PJ missed those days of making fun of what was basically a potty chart. He missed the days where there wasn't one hanging over his own bed. It'd been about a week since Theo had found out about PJ's smelly little bedtime problem. In hindsight, it was an inevitability; they were brothers that lived in the same house, so such a secret couldn't stay hidden forever. A lot had changed in that week. In the most immediate aftermath, when Theo had wrestled him into discovery, it had almost felt like a dream. More-so a nightmare for PJ, but a truly surreal experience for the younger of the two. To find out that his older brother, who had been so cruel about Theo's bedwetting, was himself a bedPOOPER that wore diapers...! "Mommy! PJ pooped his bed! PJ pooped in a DIAPER!" Theo had loudly announced to the woman, as if she wasn't the one that'd taped his scrawny butt in that diaper to begin with. "Again, PJ?" She'd sighed, though the wipes in her hand suggested that she hadn't expected anything different. She'd at least told Theo to go get himself cleaned up, since his Ninjamas were clearly soaked, so PJ didn't have an unwanted audience whenever she peeled the mucky garment off of him. Breakfast had been an awkward affair. PJ had no words to defend himself and Theo was beyond curious about what exactly was going on. He pecked about it, asking questions at a mile a minute to their mother, who didn't seem to worry about guarding her eldest child's shameful secret. "Yes, your brother has been having some accidents at night too. He needed something a little thicker than you to keep his sheets clean." "He was wearing a diaper!" "Y-you do too! And a lot longer than me!" "Mine are Ninjamas, *not* diapers. I also don't POOP in mine." It was finally an argument where PJ was completely unequipped to clash sabers with his baby brother. In every way in terms of overnight accidents, Theo was in a better place than him; bedwetting was excusable for their respective ages, but messing? That was the thing that only a *baby* would do. "Stop bickering, boys. Now, Theo, I don't want you embarrassing your brother for his problem. Don't go telling all your friends about it, okay? I expect you'll give him the same respect that he's given your bedwetting." The same respect. It was completely tone-deaf and counterintuitive to the message she was trying to convey. PJ had been without any respect for Theo's bladder issues at night, and that wasn't a secret; Theo very often ran crying to their mother about the teasing. "Okay, mommy." Theo smiled, a glimmer of mischief in his eyes. "...Oh, and remember to put a sticker on your calendar. Okay, baby?" The gears started to turn in the younger boy's noggin. If he had to keep track of his many soggy mornings, then shouldn't PJ be made to do the same? He looked over at his brother and got a broad grin. "Doesn't PJ need some stickers too? He can have all my thundercloud ones, since I don't use *those*." Their mother considered it for a moment, "Well, it *has* been going on for a little while now... I think you could do with a little accountability, PJ." "I can't put that in my room! What if I have someone over?!" The older boy argued. "It's just put up with a thumbtack, sweetie. You can put it away if you have any of your little friends over." Theo furrowed his brow, "That's not fair! You don't let *me* take mine down!" That was true. As understanding as the woman had been over Theo's bedwetting, it had become such a lengthy issue, that she'd been trying to extract a little more progress. She didn't actively shame him, but there were things she enforced because of it: An earlier bedtime, a cutoff for liquids, zero soda, and the constant looming of that potty progress calendar. It didn't matter too much, since Theo didn't like to invite friends up to his room anyways, but it was truly embarrassing whenever they had any extended family over and he wasn't allowed to take it down. "Hmm, well..." The woman contemplated the current rule, "If either of you have friends over, then you can take it down. How's that sound?" PJ looked relieved, though Theo didn't look too moved by the edict. It technically benefited him, but he had hoped it would stay in place and hinder PJ more. Theo still wouldn't have friends up to his room, since his pull-ups were in there, both clean and dry, which cast a mild odor... Theo got a lightbulb above his head. "Doesn't he need a trashcan for his poopy diapers too, mom?" It had become a little taxing to ferry the dirty diaper downstairs and bag it to take out to the can outside. It was every morning and added an unnecessary amount of time; she'd only been doing it to keep PJ's secret, but now that Theo knew... "...I guess I should look at getting you a diaper pail. It'll be your chore to take out every week." The woman decided. "I don't want a stinky diaper bucket in my room!" "Then you need to stop making number twos in your pants. I'll tell you what, if you can go two weeks without a 'thunderstorm' sticker, then you can take the diaper pail out. Go a whole month, and you can get the calendar off the wall. Two months and no more diapers." Any normal ten year old would be easily able to achieve that. Then again, a normal ten year old wouldn't be pooing his pajamas in the first place. Like it or not, he was getting treated in the same juvenile way that his brother was. For now, at least. Considering he was doing something *worse* than his brother, it was only a matter of time before his treatment was more severe too. Every day that week, Theo would take point in cracking jokes at his brother's expense. The usual juvenile wit that PJ had used like a blade, was now being turned against him. Before bed and first thing in the morning, there Theo would be to mock PJ. Thundercloud after thundercloud on his new calendar. Dirty diapers piling up in the diaper pail. Then came Saturday night. "Your father and I are going out for the evening. Judy is going to come over and watch you boys, okay?" Judy was their long-term babysitter. She was a teenager who had been babysitting for them for about two years now, for whenever their parents needed a date night. She was a mixed-bag, at least to PJ. "Okay, umm, when are you gonna come back home?" The boy sheepishly asked. "Not until late, honey. You'll be in bed by then. Which means..." His little brother finding out about his problem had been a nightmare, but it felt surmountable. His babysitter though? PJ wasn't ready to lose the kind of credibility, especially with someone like her! "W-which means?" "Well... I can diaper you before we leave, or she can get you in your diaper." Neither option felt good. He didn't want to wear a diaper all evening and he definitely didn't want Judy to put him in one. "Can't I put it on myself? Or just wear one of Theo's pull-ups?" The woman shook her head, "I don't want you to leak again." PJ anxiously squirmed and thought about his options. Wearing a diaper all evening sounded even less doable when considering that he'd undoubtedly need to use the toilet during that time, which would make things complicated. "...She doesn't already know, does she?" "No, I hadn't mentioned it. I set this up before you started having accidents, and I forgot to tell her about it. I was going to talk to her when she got here, but I don't think she'll get here before we have to leave, so I was going to leave a note." Their parents had gotten tickets to see this play months ago, and so the date had been set for a while with Judy. Their mother had almost forgotten the play was coming up, until their father had reminded her about it. That made his decision easier. "I'll have her help me with it, mom. I don't wanna wear one until I'm going to bed." That'd put the ball firmly in his court. He could hide the note and simply take matters into his own hands; Judy wouldn't have to know about him pooping the bed or having to wear diapers because of it. Their parents were finally ready to depart for the evening, looking their best for the occasion. "You boys be good for the babysitter. It's Saturday, so you can stay up until ten, but no later." Their father reminded. "And remember to give Judy that note; it's on the kitchen counter. Love you, see you in the morning!" They bid their parents a farewell and then PJ immediately made a beeline for the kitchen, while his brother was left looking confused. PJ snatched the note off the counter and folded it up to put in his pocket. "Why are you doing that? Don't you have to give that to Judy?" "Don't be a little nerd about it, Theo. You want Judy to be even stricter with us?" The younger boy didn't look convinced by that. It definitely looked to him that PJ was attempting to cover something up, not that PJ was trying to do something to both their benefit. "What's the note say?" "It says...Not to give us any dessert. You want dessert, don't you?" Theo didn't push back against that, instead he smiled wryly and changed the topic. "So is Judy gonna put you in your bedpooper diaper? I bet that's gonna be really embarrassing." "N-no! She doesn't know about any of that. M-mom said that you had to share your pull-ups with me tonight, since she won't be home." Theo put a finger to his chin, "My Ninjamas? Those aren't for little poo babies that stink up their pajamas." The older boy's face got a brighter red, "Don't call me that! And you better not say a word about my accidents, or else!" The threat was obviously violent in nature. The two boys weren't that far apart in age or size, but two years was enough to make PJ the physically superior specimen here, by a whisker at least. Theo didn't look too scared though. "Okay, stinkypants. I won't tell her." Whether or not that was the truth, now that remained to be seen. Not much later and Judy would show up. She was a fairly sweet young woman, though a strict one too; she always talked down to the boys like they were smaller than they were, which mostly chafed PJ. The older brother had no issue if she wanted to baby Theo, but he took major offense when she was talking to *him* like a dumb little kid. Things went okay for most of the evening. She made them grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner, watched as they played video games, and let them watch a Disney movie from their collection. After a few hours, it was already a quarter past nine, and she was seeing the credits roll on 'Emperor's New Groove'. "Okay, why don't we go ahead and get into our jammies, alright? Go ahead and brush your teeth and wash those faces. I'll be checking that you have your Pull-Up on, Theo." The boys got off of the couch, and Theo decided to drop a bombshell. "Okay, Judy. Oh, also, PJ was supposed to give you a note from our mommy. It's in his pocket." It was a drive-by tattle, because Theo was already heading upstairs by the time that he'd finished being a fink. PJ looked shocked that his baby brother would have the balls to do that, after threats had been made, and he was left standing there with wide eyes. Judy looked down at him, "A note? Is that true, PJ? Have you been hiding something from me?" "N-no, he was just bein' dumb and joking..." She crossed her arms and glowered at him, "Is that so? Why don't you turn out your pockets then, hmm?" PJ just stood there, frozen. "Uhhh..." She started to crouch, as if she was just going to take a look for herself, and both of his hands went to cover his pockets. Seeing his defense, she swiftly reached out and started to tickle him. The little boy giggled and squirmed; within moments of the torment, he had to move his hands to stop her, and she shot her hand into his pocket. Judy pulled out the crumpled note and unfolded it. "I can't believe you hid this from me, PJ. That's *very* naughty. What if its something really important?" "It's not! It's stupid!" He whined. "You don't need to read it!" She stood back up and PJ was trying desperately to reach up for it. As she began to read it, her expression twisted into one of disbelief. Judy looked down at the ten year old, who was blushing as red as a tomato by this point. "You've been messing the bed? Oh, PJ..." She sounded somewhere between disappointed and sympathetic. "I thought you were a big boy?" "I *am* a big boy!" He sniffled. She scooped him up from under his armpits and positioned him as if she was picking up an exceptionally large toddler. "Big boys don't wear diapers, kiddo. You shouldn't have tried to hide that note: what if you had fallen asleep on the couch?" The implication there was Judy would have taped his butt into a diaper from the beginning if she knew about his nighttime issues, which was distinctly unfair, since his brother hadn't been treated the same. Judy carried the boy to his room and sat him on his bed. "Oh, that's a lot of angry looking thunderclouds." She said as she noticed his calendar. "Now where are your diapers?" He huffed and looked away, "I dunno." The girl frowned at the response and looked around the room. "I see a diaper pail, but I don't see any diapers...I guess I could try calling your mommy and daddy, but I'd hate to interrupt them, just because you're being naughty..." It was clearly a threat, and one that PJ had to acquiesce to. He was already going to be in trouble for hiding that note, no need to make things worse. With a pouty lip, he pointed a finger at his underwear drawer. "That's a good boy." The babysitter chirped as she opened the drawer and pulled out a diaper. "My, I don't think I've seen one this big before. I think the oldest boy I've had to diaper was in Kindergarten." Her commentary wasn't making this any easier for him. She found the powder nearby and arranged the items on the bed, before reaching over and unbuttoning the boy's jeans. She then unzipped him and pulled the pants off his legs, which required a good deal of hip-wiggling from him, until he was laying there in his stained underoos. "Yuck, I think your daytime training could use some work too." She chided his skidmarks and dribble stains. "Your mommy and daddy must really have their hands full with you." She pulled the briefs off of him and lifted his legs up to place the diaper underneath his butt, just as if he was a toddler. Taking the baby powder to his rump quite generously, before pulling the front of the diaper up and tautly getting the tapes into place. "All ready to put on some jammies!" PJ was looking off to the side with his arms folded; he was humiliated and upset, which his babysitter took as being grumpy. The girl suddenly lowered her face toward his tummy and gave him a big raspberry, which again caused an involuntary fit of giggling. "Stop being so cranky and get those teeth brushed, okay? I need to go check on your brother." Brushed up and pajama-clad, PJ would soon find himself off in dreamland. The door would creak open quietly, with Judy doing the last checks of the evening, before the boys' parents came home. There she would see him sucking his thumb with his padded posterior upturned. *frrrrrtt...* "He isn't really...?" **BRAAAAP! CRACKLE! PLOP! PLOP! PLOP!** The back of his pajama pants suddenly tented out with one lump, and then two more right after. PJ looked blissfully unaware of the noisy soiling, just drooling around his thumb as he broke more wind and pinched off more logs in his diaper. Judy watched with morbid curiosity as the diaper became packed with the sawed logs of a snoozing boy. She'd leave that dirty diapee for the parents to tend to... That'd be yet another stormy cloud for his calendar in the morning. Looked like there'd be a lot of stormy clouds ahead too.