A Tortured Soul

Chapter 6
Chapter 6

The car came to a stop in the driveway and Laura shut the engine off. A minute later, she had several bags in her arms as she walked through the front door. A glance to the couch showed her that Eddy was sleeping. "The poor guy probably didn’t get any sleep last night," she thought as she made her way to the kitchen.

She had just set the bags down on the table when Katie walked in. "Hi Honey, thank you again for tending to Eddy’s wet bed."

"Oh, it’s okay, I don’t mind. I had to change Bobby’s..." Katie began, and stopped suddenly, her voice breaking and tears forming in her eyes.

"Oh, come here." Laura told her as she hugged her close.

"I’m sorry," Katie cried.

"It’s okay, don’t you worry," Laura responded with a kiss to her cheek.

"Thank you."

"Hey, I tell you what, how about I make us some tea?"

Katie replied with a tearful, "I’d like that."

"Alright, go wash your hands, and I’ll get started."

"Okay," Katie answered and headed toward the bathroom. Laura never saw the satisfied smile on Katie’s face as she left.

When she returned to the kitchen, the bags were gone, but a package of two orthodontic pacifiers were laying on the table. Next to them was a large bag of size seven Pampers. "Are you babysitting?"

Laura smiled and told her, "No. Listen Honey, sit down, I need to talk to you about something."

"What is it?" Katie asked, concern plain on her face.

"Well, Eddy’s been having a hard time with everything going on; that’s why he wet the bed. When I woke him up, he was nursing his thumb like a little boy. I tried to get him not to, but he cried terribly, so I left the subject alone. Before he left the bedroom to go shower, he asked me for his pacifier. I spoke with someone that helped him with Amy’s passing, and they advised me to let him do what he needs to without making him feel bad about it. Don’t get me wrong, we don’t want to encourage him, but if he wants to snuggle like a little boy, or sleep with his paci, I think we’re going to let him." She let Katie digest this for a moment before telling her, "I need you to be mature about this, Honey. If you tease him, then it could cause big problems for him."

Katie, with tears forming in her eyes, replied, "I promise, I won’t tease him Aunt Laura, I love Eddy. I would never hurt him."

Laura hugged her close, kissed her cheek and said, "I know you wouldn’t Honey, I just wanted you to know what’s going on. I haven’t talked with you’re Uncle Jim about this yet, but I don’t think he’ll have a problem with it."

"Do you want me to give him his paci now? He was nursing his thumb the last time I checked on him," Katie asked earnestly.

"No, not yet, I haven’t talked to his dad yet. Eddy doesn’t know about this, and I don’t want him to until bedtime. I’m going to diaper him for bed tonight and we’ll deal with it then. Besides, I want to wait until he asks for it again."

"Okay. Oh, I forgot, he asked me to get his old bear for him. I didn’t know if it would be all right, but he was crying and I hated to see him so upset, so I found it in his closet and he’s sleeping with it now."

"Thank you, Honey, you’re so good with him," Laura told her. "Poor baby," she thought. She remembered the last time he came toddling along with that bear; he had to have been six or seven then. A second later, she look startled, and started to get up as she said, "I hope he hasn’t wet on the couch."

Katie stopped her and explained, "No, I put a garbage bag under his bottom with three towels laid over it. If he wets, it won’t make the couch wet."

"Thank you!" Laura said with relief. "I hadn’t thought of that."

"Oh, no problem, I’ve had to do it before," Katie replied with a sad look.

"It’ll be all right, Honey, I promise. It’ll take some time, but things will get better," she reassured her niece.

Katie hugged her Aunt and said, "Thank you."

A moment later, Laura got up from the table and asked, "Can you please put Eddy’s diapers and wipes in his closet for me? I don’t want him to see them until tonight."

"Sure, but how come you didn’t get those good night things?"

"With all that he wet last night, they wouldn’t hold it. He isn’t going to like it, but he needs the added protection of a diaper," Laura sighed.

"Oh," Katie replied, and headed to Eddy’s room, the bag of diapers in her hand. When she turned the corner and glanced at Eddy, a smile creased her face. She looked back toward the kitchen, then did a little dance before taking Eddy’s diapers to his room.

Laura opened the package of pacifiers and washed them before putting them out of sight. A moment later, she made her way quietly to the couch. When she looked upon Eddy laying there snuggled up with his teddy bear, nursing his thumb, she thought her heart would melt. Very gingerly, she slid her hand under the covers and wasn’t surprised when her fingers met with wet cloth. "Oh, Honey," she whispered. She was tempted to go get a diaper now and try to get him changed without waking him up in order to better protect the couch, but thought better of it. She hadn’t talked with Jim about any of this, and wanted him to know what was going on. She planned on talking with him as soon as he got home from work.

With a gentle kiss to his forehead, she whispered, "I love you." As she stood, she saw Eddy begin nursing his thumb as he shifted on the couch. She went to the closet, pulled a heavy blanket out and covered him with it. She didn’t want him to get cold with wet pants on.

Eddy turned over to face her without opening his eyes. When he got situated, he pulled his bear close and nursed his thumb. His mouth slowed a little at a time until he lay sound asleep.

"He’s such a cute little boy," Katie whispered from behind Laura.

"Yes, he is. And a really good boy too." Laura turned to look at Katie and asked, "Did he give you any trouble?"

"No, he was great. When he was done with his shower, we sat and snuggled for a while. He nursed his thumb until he fell asleep," Katie answered with a loving gaze at Eddy.

Laura smiled. She was so glad Katie was with them, she would be able to help Eddy feel better. "They’ll probably help each other through this," she thought. "Well, I need to do something about his mattress before I make up his bed. If you need me, I’ll be in Eddy’s room with a hair dryer."

"Okay, I think I’ll sit here and read for a while."

****************

Fifteen minutes later, Eddy woke up when he felt a hand shake him gently. He could hear the hum of a hair dryer from somewhere up the hall. Fear gripped him when Katie placed her finger over her mouth, indicating he wasn’t to make a sound. Leaning close, she whispered in his ear, "Hi Baby, when your Mommy comes out here, you’re going to pretend to wake up Sweety. When she tells you to go get changed, you say, ’You do Mommy’. You better sound just like a little boy, do you understand?"

Eddy started crying. He knew Mommy would get mad if he didn’t change his clothes by himself. Not only that, Katie wanted him to talk like a baby. "She’we get mad," he whimpered, upset that he sounded just like a baby.

"Are you going to do as I told you?" she whispered angrily.

"Yeth," he cried. She had that crazy look again.

"Good Boy," Katie told him. "And Baby, you nurse your thumb, and keep Mister Bear with you for the rest of the day, got it?"

Nursing hard, he answered, "Mmmm Hmmm."

"Good Boy, now pretend you’re asleep until Mommy comes out here," she instructed as she stood up. She turned, took a step and then returned to his side. "I almost forgot Baby, when Mommy starts to clean you up, you tell her you have to go potty, understand?"

Eddy really started crying then. He didn’t want Mommy to be there when he went potty. He could feel he had to go pee pee already. "Mmmm Hmmm," he replied, tears streaming now.

"Good Boy," Katie said with a smile and a kiss to his forehead. She returned to the recliner and sat down, lifting her book from the end table.

Eddy lay there with his eyes closed, crying softly around his thumb. He felt the soft fuzz of his bear and snuggled it close. The wet underpants on his bottom didn’t feel good, but at least they weren’t cold. Thinking about his wet state made him need to pee pee, and he hoped Mommy would come soon.

*************

Laura shut the hair dryer off. She’d finally managed to get the mattress dry, but it was hopelessly stained now. Hefting one side up, she flipped it over and was thankful that the pee hadn’t worked all the way to the other side. Picking up the vinyl mattress cover, she slid it over one end, and quickly had it in place, zippering the end closed. Fresh sheets were next, and then the comforter.

With that done, she went to the closet, picked up the package of diapers and pulled the end open. Taking four of them out, she opened Eddy’s top drawer and put them next to his underpants. Next came the wipes. When she’d pulled the plastic open and threaded the first one through the inner lid, she slid the box just under his bed and was satisfied that the comforter hid them.

“As much as he wet last night, I’ll have to check on him or the diapers won’t be enough,” she mused. When she thought about having to get up in the middle of the night to change her ten year old’s diaper, she sighed. Laura really felt bad for him. She knew things were difficult for him. A picture of him crying his eyes out at his little sister’s funeral brought tears to her eyes.

“This isn’t helping,” Laura berated herself, wiping her eyes dry. Looking around the room, she was satisfied and went to check on Eddy. When she got out to the livingroom, she saw he was still sleeping.

“Hi, that was quick,” Katie offered.

“Yeah, once the mattress was dry, everything else was easy.” Eddy opened his eyes and she smiled and said, “Hi Honey, did you sleep okay?”

“Uh huh,” he answered and resumed nursing.

Laura wondered why he didn’t move, but brushed it off because he probably didn’t want to be cold. “Why don’t you get up and go get some dry pants on Sweety, you’re all wet.”

A fly could have knocked her over when Eddy sat up, began to cry around his thumb and said, “You do Mommy,” sounding like a sweet little boy.

She thought a second and replied, “You can do it Honey, I know you can.”

When Eddy started to cry harder and pleaded, “Pweathe Mommy, you do,” she couldn’t help herself. Kneeling down, she pulled him into a hug, tears stinging her eyes.

“Okay Sweety, Mommy do,” she comforted. Rocking him back and forth, she forgot his pants were wet, and started patting his bottom. She felt him snuggle closer, as he laid his head down on her shoulder. Facing away from Katie, she never saw her glare at Eddy and mouth the word paci.

“Pathi Mommy? Pathi?” Eddy cried in a pitiful little voice.

It took all of her resolve to tell him, “No, Sweety, not right now. We need to get your pants changed.” He started crying harder, and she almost started sobbing. “Come on Baby, let’s get you changed,” she told him in a thick voice, as she took his hand and started leading him from the livingroom.

She thought her heart would break when he stopped suddenly, turned around with fear in his eyes and dashed to the couch crying, “Mithter Beaw,” around his thumb. She watched him pick up the bear and hug it tight.

Laura turned to look at Katie when she heard her say, “Awww...” and noticed she was crying. Turning back to Eddy, the sight was too much, and her tears got the best of her. The ten year old she knew wasn’t there. She hurt so bad for the little boy she saw standing there clinging to his bear with a fearful look, crying as he nursed his thumb.

She couldn’t take anymore, went to him and picked him up in her arms. Hugging him close, she hurried to the kitchen, opened a drawer and pulled a pacifier from it. “Here Baby, here’s your paci,” she told him, and watched as he pulled his thumb out, and latched on to the pacifier, nursing furiously.

He snuggled close then, clinging to her as if his life depended on it. “I’ve got you Sweety, Mommy’s got you,” she said as she rocked him gently. She really hoped that Jim would be all right with this, because she knew she couldn’t face seeing her little boy look like that again.

When he stopped crying, she carried him to the bathroom. Standing him in front of the sink, she took a washcloth from the drawer and turned the water on. Before she could wet the washcloth, Eddy told her, “I gotta go potty Mommy,” dancing in place.

Quick as her hands would allow, she pulled his wet pants and underpants down as one, and said, “Step out Sweety.” When he did, she picked him up and sat him on the toilet. He looked so cute, sitting there nursing his paci as he cuddled his little bear. The sound of him peeing tapered off, and she lifted him up off the seat, standing him back in front of the sink.

“Let’s get you all nice and clean Sweety,” she told him sweetly. It took all she had to not cuddle him when he smiled at her around his paci. Once the washcloth was soapy, she started washing his privates, and smiled when he stepped his feet apart to let her wash between his legs. “You’re such a good boy,” she praised. It didn’t take long to get his bottom washed and get him rinsed off. When he was dried off, she picked him up and carried him to his room, sitting him down on the bed.

After getting clean clothes, she turned to call him over and saw he was laying down on his back, snuggling his bear, content nursing his paci. “Okay, my little streaker, let’s get some clothes on you,” she said as she tickled him. The sound of his laughter made her feel so much better. Grabbing a foot, she threaded it through his underpants and tickled it before letting go. More laughter filled the room, making her smile. Too soon, she had him dressed, and sat down, pulling him into her lap. She snuggled him close and told him, “I love you so much Sweety...so much.”

A sweet, “I wub you too Mommy,” sounded from her shoulder, making her feel warm all over.