The Error, by LittleMatt

Chapter 10
Chapter 10

Chapter Description: By LittleMatt

Chapter 10

In his dreams Tom walked through a forest beside a babbling brook. He came to a clearing and found a large wooden table stacked with candy. At the head of the table was his teddy bear. “Come Tommy. Sit with me.” He felt almost like he was floating right into a chair besides his teddy.

Everything was vivid and real. He could even feel damp grass beneath his bare feet. He looked down and saw he was wearing his pajamas. “Where am I?” he asked.

“You’re in Teddy Bear Forrest of course” said the bear.

 Tom glanced up and saw clouds forming in the sky. He started to get up.

“No you need to stay here” said the bear. “The more time you spend here the better you’ll do in school. Here have some tea.” The bear reached over and poured some tea into a cup that had suddenly appeared. He poured it to the very top of the brim and small trickle ran down the side.

Before Tom could say another thing the clouds above him opened up and he was drenched by the falling rain.

His room was bright and sunny. He could hear his mother coming from down the hall. For a moment he couldn’t understand how the rain had gotten inside, how it had soaked him in his bed. But then he remembered.

The door opened and his mother stepped in. “Good morning hon, how are you doing?”

Tom just looked down at the wetness between his legs. “I’m sorry mom. I really tried.”

 “Oh no.” She said as she sat down on the side of his bed and embraced him. “It’s OK baby, it’s not your fault. Just go get showered and we’ll talk about what movie you want to go see.”

Tom’s mood brightened slightly “You mean we’re still going to do that?”

“I don’t see why not. Now go get cleaned up and I’ll take care of your sheets.”

Later as she pulled into the movie theater’s parking lot Karen asked one last time “Are you sure you want to see this movie? It’s supposed to be really scary.”

“Mom, I can totally handle it. I’m not really some little kid.”

“We can still go to the Floppy Bunny movie, Haley said you really liked that video game.”

“You said I could pick the movie and I want to see Ghost Invaders.”

“OK, but if you start getting too scared I’m marching you right out of that theater.”

They bought their tickets and Tom strode confidently to his seat. All he had to do, he thought, was sit through one dumb movie and he’d convince his mother that he wasn’t a total baby. The lights dimmed, the film rolled, and the screen came alive with images more vivid than he’d imagined.

Theaters back home weren’t like this. The movie wasn’t 3D but he could almost swear the pictures were coming off the screen. Every rustle of leaves, every footstep, every sinister growl sounded like it was right behind him. He could almost feel the breath on the back of his neck.

Without thinking about it he sought out his mother’s hand to hold his own. In his horror he inched closer to her, instinctively seeking her protection. Finally he couldn’t bear to look at the screen any longer and buried his face in her shoulder.

Suddenly he felt himself lifted from his seat. Gentle hands cradled his back and bottom before his feet finally found the ground again in the brightly lit lobby.

“It’s OK baby it’s just a movie” she said stroking his chin.

“I know. It was just really... scary I guess.”

She wiped the fearful tears from his cheek. “Do you see why I thought Floppy Bunny might be better?”

He nodded.

“How’s your pull-up doing? Did you have an accident?”

Tom became aware of a familiar dampness. “Maybe”

Karen took her son’s hand and led him to the baby changing room. Tom was still too shaken to do anymore than go along. She lowered his pants and checked his pull-up. She began untying his shoes. 

“I’m sorry Mom” He said “I just wanted to show you I wasn’t a baby”

“I know you want to be a big boy” She replied while she helped him out of his pants.”But just remember that it’s OK to be little too.”

She cleaned him up and got him back into dry pants. “I have few errands I need to do. Do you feel OK enough to come along? We can stop at the ice-cream place at the mall if you’d like.”

Tom nodded “That sounds OK.”

“Come on then.” She took his hand and they walked back to the car.

The mall parking lot was packed. Tom remembered their last visit and looked around nervously.

“Don’t worry” his mother said while she searched for a place to park “I’ll make sure you don’t get lost again.”

She found a spot at the edge of the lot and opened the trunk. Tom watched as she retrieved something from the trunk, unfolded it, and sat it on the ground in front of him. He couldn’t believe what he was looking at. She rolled a stroller back and forth a few times to get the wheels straight.  “Hop in sweety. I’d like to start shopping before the lines get any longer.”

“But that’s for babies.” Tom said incredulously.

His mother adopted a patient but slightly sterner tone. “It’s for children who have trouble keeping up with their mothers. You remember what happened last time right?”

“Yeah, but...” Tom stopped himself. It was just getting harder and harder to argue what he could be in this strange place without being treated the way he was.

“I’m know how this must look to you but I also know this is better for you. If we have to turn around and go back home there will be consequences.”

Without further protest he settled himself into the stroller. It wasn’t awkward and uncomfortable like he’d expected, instead he was nicely accommodated among the babyish designs of the stroller.

“I knew you’d be a good boy. Let’s go get you some ice-cream.”

Securely within his mother’s charge Tom was pushed into the thronging mall and to a small ice-cream stand near the entrance.  He really just wanted to make as few stops as possible, but he couldn’t pass up the scoop Triple Chocolate Fudge he was offered. He ate greedily, enjoying the treat so much he nearly forgot his situation. And with the rich desert settled satisfyingly in his stomach and the steady pace of his mother’s pushing he began to feel drowsy.

His stroller came to a stop outside a clothing store. His mother knelt down beside him with a baby wipe in her hand and cleaned a stray bit of chocolate from the edge of his mouth. She saw the heaviness in his eyes, she smiled and smoothed his hair. “You can have a little nap if you want honey, I’m just going to be shopping for a while.” She resumed navigating her son through the crowd as he slowly felt himself drift off to sleep.

He heard his mother’s voice somewhere nearby as he came back to reality.

“I’ve thought about it. I’m just not sure yet. It would be a lot easier than taking off his pants every time though.”

“I’m sure you’ll make the best decision for him.” An unfamiliar woman’s voice answered “Either way he’s simply adorable in his little stroller.”

He opened his eyes and glanced around. He was parked next to his mother in a small cafe. The unfamiliar voice belonged to a happy looking round faced woman.

“Look who’s waking up.” she said “Hi there Tommy, your mother and I have just been chatting.”

His mother looked over at him. “Hon, this is Mrs. Kerner, she lives in our neighborhood.”

Tom squirmed a bit, realizing the women had been talking about him. “Oh, uh... hi.”

“Are you still dry?” his mom inquired.

“I think so.”

“Are you sure? You were out like a light?”

“Mom I only wet the be... I mean I’m sure.”

“OK then, I won’t check as long as you’re sure. I think it’s time to start heading home now anyway.”

Karen paid for her coffee and said goodbye to Mrs. Kerner before taking Tom back out to the car and driving back home.

Tom went straight to his room and flopped onto the bed. He’d hoped a weekend away from school would be a chance to be his own age for two days. But he just kept getting treated like a little kid everywhere he went. Worse than that it all seemed necessary.

Absentmindedly he began fiddling with a button on the front of his teddy bear. It’s eyes lit up and a speaker hidden within emitted a soft happy song. “Would you like to play the Algebra game with me?” chirped the bear.

Tom turned the bear over, looking for some way to start the game. After a minute he looked around to make sure nobody was watching. “Yes” he almost whispered into the bear.

“Oh good” said the bear “I’ve been waiting a long time to play with you.”

Tom found the answer and response style of the game immediately intuitive and, for once, the subject matter was something he was at least a little bit familiar. He became so engrossed that he didn’t notice his mother at the doorway.

“Good to see you enjoying your teddy.”

Tom tried to compose himself “It’s OK. I was just sort of bored I guess.”

“I was just going to remind you to try using the potty. You haven’t had an accident yet have you?”

Tom’s eye’s widened and he sprinted past his mother and to the bathroom. Even without the disadvantage of his button being too difficult for him it would have been nearly too late. Fatefully he had another accident.

He returned to his mother to get cleaned up and changed.

“You can stay up a little while longer” she said tossing his pants into the hamper and starting to help him with his shirt. “But it’s getting close to your bedtime so I want to get you into your jammies now.”

With the sun barely down Tom was dressed in his night clothes. He spent the rest of the evening watching TV until he was tucked into bed after having his Pull-Up checked and found dry. His mother turned out the light on her way out and darkness fell across his room.

Memories of the movie flooded back. Every shadow seemed to be a ghost and the world beyond his darkened window looked cold and foreboding. He took his teddy from it’s place near his pillow and held it against his chest. As though sensing his fear it began to play a soft soothing lullaby. He hugged it tighter.