✅1️⃣ Trusting the Babysitter

Chapter 5 - Old Grudge

"Blakey can't have any," Lorelei explained, pushing the plate away from her with two hands. "He's been a bad kitty. They was fighting. I didn't eat any yet. You can have some. If you want."

By her side, the tiger and the bear were looking appropriately sheepish. Maybe they were regretting their quarrel now, as it looked like neither of them would be getting to share the cupcake.

"We could share it?" Claudia asked, sitting down on the other side of the table. "Mum said it's for you, but if you don't mind sharing that would be really nice." Lorelei just nodded, and pushed the cake as far as her arms would reach, which turned out to be about halfway across the table.

Claudia didn't mention the finger marks on the top of the little cake, or the obviously missing bits of topping. She just took the little child-sized fork and cut the cake roughly in two. The syrupy filling oozed out of the middle, which seemed to surprise her as much as it had Adam a few minutes before. It seemed she really hadn't ever tasted these treats, which seemed unfair for any parent. But Adam really didn't know the dynamics of this family; he couldn't imagine who would think a 16 year old still needs a babysitter, but Mrs Cartwright's list of rules had given him the impression that she had a very clear vision of what she would accept, and in the circumstances he thought he was starting to understand why Claudia would have thought it necessary to lie about the day's plans.

Lorelei was hugging both of her toys again, telling them to be good and to stop fighting. She didn't seem to object to waiting for her half of the snack. Maybe she wasn't hungry, if she had already waited so long. Normally Adam wouldn't even have thought about something like that, but there was something about the whole situation that was heartwarming. A grudge forgiven, a misunderstanding cleared up. It was something to restore his faith in humanity, and he was sure that the gift of confectionery would be a good symbol to remind them both that they were friends again.

"Is it good?" Lorelei asked, with a big grin on her face as her sister pushed the plate back towards her. "Mum makes the bestest cakes. You know it's super special? With a secret ingredient too! You finish it."

"You should have some. It's nice, but I can't leave you with nothing. We're sisters, aren't we? So we should share."

"No, it's okay. You have to finish it. Or it's not fair." She seemed very firm, and that was another surprise. Adam couldn't imagine any child of that age turning down a treat, but that was strange in a sweet way, not something he could imagine coming from the kind of juvenile hellspawn who would terrify John Burbage and Jordyn Clark.

That train of thought was derailed by the sound of the front door rattling. Claudia jumped to her feet and took a quick glance outside through the blinds.

"Mum's back," she said. "Must have forgotten something. Don't tell her I'm back, please? She won't want to pay a babysitter if I'm home. I'll go to my room, I don't want to miss incursion."

"Don't go!" Lorelei squeaked up. "Please. Finish the cake first." Claudia glanced down at the plate. It had been so delicious, and now the sauce was leaking out from where she'd cut it. If it meant that much to her sister, she could justify a few more seconds to finish it. She picked up the plate while Adam went through into the front hallway, possibly to find out what the girls' mother wanted. And the second half of the snack was just as delicious as the first. It felt like some kind of apology, giving her such a wonderful treat. But she was sure that it should be on her to say she was sorry, if anyone. She didn't remember clearly, but she could imagine she had snapped angrily when she had to get the carpet cleaner out, and Lorelei had said she laughed. She promised herself that she would try to make amends properly, just as soon as she had polished off the delicious treat in front of her.

"I wanna be big sis," Lorelei said a few seconds later. "I can be big. And you're the baby."

"You're not a baby, sweetie," Claudia tried to console her. Glad that her sister was talking to her more than she had in years, but with no real idea what she could say to make it better. "It was years ago, and there's nothing wrong with a little accident when you were that small. It's never going to happen again, and you don't need to think about it anymore."

"NO!" this time Lorelei yelled, and jumped to her feet so suddenly that the chair rocked. If she was a little heavier it would probably have fallen straight down to the floor. "No, you laughed at me. You and Troy. You were mean. He made me wear diapers. It's not fair. And you laugh at me. All the time. For two years. You need to be sorry."

"I wasn't laughing, sweetie. I just wanted you to feel better. And I'm sorry if I seemed mean. I really didn't..."

"No! It's my turn to be big. You got to be the baby. And we can laugh at you. Make jokes. I'm gonna be mean big sis!"

"If that makes you feel better, sweetie. You can be the big sister today. Can I go play my game? The first wave's about to start, and –"

"Okay," Adam interrupted, stepping back into the room. The sound of a car driving off again was just audible. "Sorry to interrupt, but I need to tell you. Your mum says–"

"NO!" Lorelei yelled again. "I'm big sis now. She's a baby, so it's fair. Tell her she's a baby. Laugh at her!"

"Aww, Claudia makes such a cute little baby," Adam said with a chuckle, playing along for now. He didn't understand what he'd missed, but he was obviously trying his best. Claudia was wondering if even teasing her might be a positive quality. Maybe in a situation like this, where it was to help her little sister get over whatever hangups had been eating away at her for two years. "Do you need somebody to help you walk up to your room?"

"No," Lorelei repeated what seemed to be her new favourite word. "Like last time! You gotta do a wee. So as we can laugh at you. Cause you're a baby."

"Little babies can't help it," Adam chipped in, earning a warning glare from Claudia this time.

"I think that's a bit too much, sweetie," Claudia shook her head. "I don't mind playing if it helps you to feel better, but you know I'm not really a baby. You can pretend if you want to tease me."

"No, you gotta play!" Lorelei growled, stomping her foot in a way that would have been comical if she weren't so angry. "You're a baby! Make peepee in your pants! Do it! NOW!" She practically screamed the last word, which was followed by a shocked silence from both of the adults. A silence in which it was impossible to ignore the splashes of the streams of pee hitting the tiles. A puddle rapidly grew around Claudia's feet, fed by streams running down both legs or falling in a cascade as the wet patch around the crotch of her jeans spread unevenly.

Lorelei laughed, with a huge grin on her face. At last she could feel like the one in charge. Adam stared, unable to take his eyes away as Claudia obediently wet herself. He was surprised, unable to believe that anyone would go so far. But not nearly as surprised as Claudia, who was astonished as she found it impossible to refuse her sister's outrageous demand.

Author's Note: I've done a lot of writing today; the next 2 chapters are already sitting there waiting to be shared. And I think I've decided now which order the main characters will change their age. But I'd still like to hear if anyone can work out what's happening; and if anyone has ideas for different things they could do during the day. Thank you.

I'm posting a little earlier than usual (it's 2 o'clock in the morning here) because we need to go out early in the morning. So if you have any comments for me, I'll be glad to read them when I get home. Thank you all for your interest! And if you're new to my stories in general, then I'd like to let you know that supporting me (kittyangel) on Patreon can give you access to more than a hundred chapters that are currently waiting to be posted; and give me the opportunity to spend more time writing for you.