"I'm A Baby Now!" Pt.2

Chapter 2: WTF Am I Thinking? Lauren sat at her desk, surrounded by the all too familiar walls of her cubical, staring at the clock longingly. It had been a particularly difficult week, tough deadlines were barely met and her boss was acting like a dick, claiming that the quality of her work was slipping. She didn't think much about work anymore due to what had happened to her best friend. Lauren couldn't stop thinking about how one day Abbigail just went from being a normal adult to that oversized infant. As the weeks passed by, it consumed her thoughts, it was all she could think about.  And now, with how things were going around the office, she couldn't shake off this lingering thought that maybe Abbigail was right all along. 'No, the irritability and annoyance of how things are going could just be from quitting pot.' The young professional reasoned. Ever since she walked into the Yoshikawa household, that day, almost a month ago, she had quit smoking and drinking, not wanting to wake up as a twenty four year old baby like Abbie most likely did. Then again, she knew her friend experimented with pills from time to time. Maybe she took a pill that was too much for her to handle? A hand on her shoulder snapped her from her thought, making her look over at her coworker, Kylonie. The short, tan woman, with a dark haired pixie cut, chopped and layered, smiled before opening her mouth. "Dude, it's time to quit the old grindstone." "Finally!" Lauren sighed. "I thought today would never end." "Yeah, I know how you feel. Maybe you'd like to join me and the other girls at the Axiom? They got some tasty micro brews on tap." Kylonie offered. "Nah, I appreciate it, but I don't really party anymore." Lauren stated, getting up from her office chair and grabbing her purse as the two twenty somethings walked towards the exit. "You sure? It's Friday." "I'm sure." Lauren smiled. "I'm just a bit stressed out about stuff lately." "Well, if you change your mind, you got my number. I normally don't do this, but my cousin's a good connection if you want to ever pick up something to elevate your mood." Kylonie winked.  "So, that's why you're so perky all the time?" Lauren laughed. "Uh oh, you know my secret." Kylonie grinned.  "I'll think about it, I am going to hang out with my friend, Abbigail tonight." Lauren explained as she stopped in front of her blue Nissan Juke. "Oh, how's she doing?" Kylonie asked, genuinely interested. "I haven't seen her since we hung out that night she lost her job." "She's happy." Lauren answered with a longing look on her face. "I'll see you tomorrow, I guess." Lauren opened her car door and stepped in, swinging her purse onto the passenger seat. "Take care, Lauren!" Kylonie waved to her coworker and water cooler friend, watching her drive out of the parking lot. "That girl could use some Maiden." A few miles down the road, Lauren finds herself back in the old neighborhood, large homes lined each side of a tree lined residential street. Not quite suburbia since it had stood here since before the Great War. It was an old wealth neighborhood which Abbigail's family was apart of. That was another thing that kind of bugged Lauren, Abbigail always had a bigger room than her growing up and, even though Lauren had snagged an apartment, in one of the stack and pack style developments popping up in the "ghetto" part of town, she had always been jealous of her friend even though she never moved out. Mrs. Yoshikawa had always been a traditionalist, "save up your money and try to get a house, renting is for fools" was what she recalled Abbigail saying, mimicking her mom, when she'd bug the girl, asking about when she'd move out of her parent's house. As she parked her car in front of the luxurious Tudor style home, once again, she couldn't help but feel a wave of jealousy wash over her. She just wished that her family, her background, hadn't been from working class roots. Her mother still worked as a waitress and her father had retired, years ago, from the warehouse job he held for decades. They were the typical immigrant family, refugees from Cambodia who escaped in the late eighties and, Lauren realized that deep down, she had always been envious of Abbigail and her family.   Meanwhile, even though Abbigail literally transformed into a baby, Mrs. Yoshikawa was still there for her daughter. Probably wiping her ass. Could Lauren say that same fact for her own parents? Would they literally baby her if she ended up in Abbigail's booties? Probably not, she'd be shipped off to a mental health facility in a heartbeat.  Lauren stared at the steering wheel, thinking about her life. She could barely afford her overpriced rent and struggled with her car payments thanks to her student loan debt. Up until a few weeks ago, she had always been proud of all that she had accomplished. The child of immigrants, she had her own place, a car and a decent life. She was the first person, in her entire family, to graduate college. Sure, she wasn't a captain of industry or an overnight millionaire, like Zuckerberg, but she had been proud. Now, she just wanted to visit Abbigail, to see if this is what she really wanted. She could still recall, quite clearly, her friend playing with her toys in a carefree manner while wearing a very big diaper. Lauren wondered how such an infantile garment must feel, she was sure that it was probably very soft and comfortable. She could see herself, laying in bed, taped in a nice thick diaper if she did join Abbigail. Regardless of whatever happened, she'd never use her diaper for its intended purpose.  Then again, if she did just give up everything she worked for and decided to be like Abbigail, she would be just be a baby, wouldn't she? Toilets would be off limits and the adults would make sure that her diapers be put to good use. All her activities would be scheduled and she'd have no true freedom except from adulthood. Who would take care of such a burden?  'Hell, maybe Mrs. Yoshikawa will adopt me?" The girl laughed an unsure laugh as she got out of her midsized crossover. *Knock* *Knock* The familiar face of Mrs. Yoshikawa answered the door, smiling. Something looked off, like she looked like she had a maternal glow about her, that and she looked about ten years younger. Maybe Lauren's mind was playing tricks on her? Shit, she was standing at her infantile best friend's house, hoping to babysit the girl just so she could see if it was what she wanted. 'Yep, I'm losing it...' "Lauren, it's so good to see you. May I ask what brings you by?" "Well, I was in the neighborhood and thought that maybe you could use a sitter for Abbigail." Lauren explained, instantly realizing how lame her reason for stopping by sounded. She was trying to avoid using the word "baby" if she could do so. It was so hard for her to think of her best friend as such, and yet, she wanted to see her again. Conflicted emotions wasn't enough to describe her mental state: she was a whirlpool of envy, doubt, sorrow and oddly, hope. "You know what?" The older Asian woman's eyes lit up. "I'd love to actually get out of the house for a little bit, plus I can actually trust you." "Of course you can trust me. It'll be just like old times, save for the diapers." Lauren joked. "I've alway trusted you, Lauren. You are my daughter's best friend and you managed to keep her motivated throughout the years. Not only that, but you even got her that job at your office. I don't think I have to say it, but you're like a daughter to me." Mrs. Yoshikawa looked proudly at the young woman before her." What I meant was that I just don't like leaving Abbigail with one of the local high school girls. They have no clue how to babysit my giant bundle of joy and usually go home looking quite lost."  "Thanks, Mrs. Yoshikawa." The young professional agreed. She could only imagine some ditsy blond cheerleader trying to change her friend's enormous diaper. Ultimately, she knew it was more awkward for the sitter than Abbigail. 'I bet the poor brat who tried to change her got pissed on. I mean, even before this happened, Abbigail was a hellraiser.'  "You're welcome." Mrs. Yoshikawa leaned forward and hugged Lauren for a brief moment. "So, just to let you know, Abbigail hasn't been changed since this morning, but I just checked her, about ten minutes, and she was dry. Also, there's a few bottles in the fridge that should hold her over until I get back." Mrs. Yoshikawa explained. "Sounds good!" Lauren watched the woman grab a set of keys from the wall and leave the house. "Thank you again for watching my baby, Lauren!" Mrs. Yoshikawa yelled from her Mercedes Benz SUV. Lauren waved to the older lady, watching her leave the driveway before closing the door. "Okay, I can do this. It'll be just like old times."  To Be Continued...