Tristan was so precious as he crawled around the floor to find the egg. When he got close to the railing, Daniel called out to let him know to approach with caution. I, however, was so excited that he was close that I cheered. “You’re burning up, bestie.”
Tristan’s hands shot out as he cautiously felt the wooden bars. His shoulders relaxed when he realized where he was, and he crawled over the railing and plopped right onto the egg with a sharp yelp. I couldn’t help but giggle as he felt around for it.
Tristan cheered in triumph when he pulled the egg out from underneath him. “I did it! I did it!” His joy was contagious, and it bubbled up inside me, and before I knew it, I was throwing myself on top of him. “You did it, bestie! You looked so cute crawling around in your onesie. I have the most precious bestie ever.”
I threw my arms around him and buried my face in the crook of his neck. My voice was soft as I held back unshed tears. “I love you, bestie. Thanks for inviting me. I missed you.”
Tristan wrapped his arms around me, and we both started to sniffle, our cheeks becoming wet with tears. We were both emotional messes, and I loved that this moment meant as much to him as it did to me. “I missed you too... I promise we’ll hang out lots.”
We stayed that way for a few minutes, just soaking up each other’s touch. Perfectly content just being together.
I had it all. A successful small business and a best friend I loved like family... now, if only I could find my forever Daddy.
Chapter two
Ellery
“Would you boys like to play a few more rounds?” Tristan and I both shouted in agreement as I leaped off him.
Daniel picked Tristan up and planted him on his hip as I crawled over the bars and bounced with excitement.
Tristan and Daniel spoke softly to one another, staring at each other like the lovesick fools they were. My heart nearly melted when Daniel placed a kiss on the tip of Tristan’s nose.
Grabbing the discarded blindfold, I made my way to the center of the room before tying it over my own eyes so they could have the moment to themselves.
Being more used to the blindfold, my movements weren’t as cautious as they had been before. I moved around the room with ease as Tristan shouted “hot” or “cold.”
“Stinking cold.” I huffed in frustration and took a sharp turn to my right, and gasped when I felt my forehead bang against the wall.
After the initial shock wore off, I laughed at the ridiculousness of it and rubbed where my forehead had hit the wall.
The impact wasn’t super hard. It was more the shock than anything. Tristan gasped in shock too, but when I started laughing, he joined in. After a few seconds, he stopped, and I heard soft sobs echo through the room. When I removed my blindfold to see what was going on, panic and confusion filled me. Tristan was frozen, sitting on his Daddy’s lap, tears streaming down his face. He looked so scared.
My heart hammered in my chest. The pain in my forehead was forgotten as concern for my friend won out. I had no idea what could have happened to make him look so panicked, but I had to try to help. I walked over to him cautiously and placed my hand on his shoulder.
“Bestie, what’s wrong? Are you okay?” I kept my hand steady on his shoulder and waited. Daniel traced soothing circles across his back, attempting to calm his panic.
“Hey, sweetheart, I promise it’s going to be okay. Can I explain the situation to Ellie, or should I ask them to leave the room?”
My heart ached. I desperately wanted to help my friend, but if this were something he didn’t want me to know, I would respect that. Tristan sobbed his words, barely coherent, but Daniel must’ve understood them because he turned his focus to me.
“Ellery, as you know, with me, Tristan has been regressing younger than usual. He’s always wanted to wear diapers, but he wanted to take it slow. Before we had a chance to try them, he had an accident. I thinkit’s all just been too overwhelming, especially with feeling like he has to go all in with diapers every time he’s little in case he has an accident.”
Daniel gave me a tight smile and kissed the top of Tristan’s head before continuing. “He was also hoping that not wearing one would help him not go as deep, so he could keep up with you. When you hit your head, he started laughing so hard it made him wet himself.”
I stayed silent for a moment, letting his words sink in. It made a lot of sense. Tristan had always been overwhelmed with change, so it didn’t shock me one bit that he was struggling to adjust. Even if those changes were good, they were still changes. I lifted my hand from his shoulder and shifted so I could meet his gaze.
“I’m sorry that happened, bestie. I bet it’s so scary. You’ve always dreamed of wearing a diaper with your Daddy, and you know I support that... We want you to have fun and be comfortable, and if that’s with a diaper, that’s perfectly okay. For the record, I love seeing you so small and carefree with your Daddy. It makes me so happy. So please don’t hide away. Embrace how it feels to be cared for that way and forget everything else. I can tell he loves you so much; nothing is going to change that.”
Tristan sobbed harder, his hand reaching out for mine. I placed my hand in his, and he rubbed soft circles into my palm. The repetitive motion seemed to calm him.
A few moments later, after his tears slowed, he let go of my hand and looked up at me with a shy smile.
“Thank you, Ellie. I’m so happy I met Daddy, but it’s only been a few weeks, and all the changes at once is difficult. I never expected tofall so hard and fast. It was a little scary, and I may have overthought everything a little bit.”
His apprehension was more than understandable. Tristan needed time to adjust, but the past few weeks had been one change after another, and my chest ached for my bestie.
I smiled, wanting to help ease some of his anxiety and make sure he knew we were okay. “My bestie overthinking? He would never!”
