✅ Potty Genius [NaNoWriMo 2022]

Fifty-Two (Epilogue)

This bonus chapter is dedicated to Jay, with thanks again for all the support you have given to me on Patreon.

¿Did you take diapers to university?

I took a pack in the end. As Dad had predicted, there was space for it by his feet in the back of the car, while my last suitcase sat in the seat beside him. And with all the relief of knowing that my family wouldn't judge me, I felt like I could partly explain what had happened with the app.

Mum jokingly asked if I wanted to wear a diaper for the journey, while we were going to be on the road for a couple of hours. And I agreed, but I knew that then I would have to explain that I didn't really use them. I told them about the app hypnotising me; and that it might take away my control sometimes. I was nervous to tell them that I hadn't really known what it would do until it was too late to turn it off again; I didn't want them to feel guilty. But I told them that there had been moments in the last few weeks that I tried to stop using it and it wouldn't let me. And I admitted that I was glad they'd done it; because it made me open up in a way I never had before.

As we drove onto the highway and the traffic surrounded us, I finally told them that every time it had made me use my diapers, the app and the hypnosis between them hadn't given me a choice. But as I said it, I found that I really was sure that it was a good thing. I'd needed to be pushed in at the deep end, or I would never have learned to enjoy being childish. Dad felt like he had to apologise again, but I told him it was okay. And I meant it.

A couple of minutes later, I could feel the curiosity in the air around me. And there was a part of me that wanted to know how different it would feel, if I set a potty timer or enabled one of the badges because I actually wanted to, now that I had the choice. And overcoming all my nerves, I offered to let my parents satisfy some of their curiosity as well. I'd told them about some of the things Britney and Theo had tried – describing them just as local people who had used the app before – and I knew they were intrigued. So I passed my phone to Dad in the back seat, and let him set a potty timer for me. It was no big deal, I was sure, because I could use the feature of the graduation badge to clear outstanding timers if I wanted to change back out of the diaper before it went off.

"It says you have to accept," he said, sounding confused, and handed the phone back to me. He'd never been that good with technology, and so I wasn't entirely surprised to discover that he'd somehow found his way into the badge selector and chosen 'puddle pants'. I quickly explained the difference between a timer and a badge, and then gave a shrug. I enabled the badge; there was no real reason not to.

¿You wet yourself in the car with your parents?

Yeah. It was about an hour later that I realised I was peeing. I blushed, but then there was nothing I could really do about it, so I decided just to ignore it. We were chatting randomly now, about everything that came to mind. After a little while, Dad got a folded piece of newspaper out of his pocket; this morning's crossword, and that entertained us for the rest of the journey.

By the time we reached Moistville, I had pretty much forgotten that I was wet. The diaper was a bit heavier, but still comfortable. And in a way, it was a reminder that I didn't need to worry about things anymore. I took a photo of the empty room with Junior sitting on the bed, to match the one I'd taken at home, and then Mum and Dad helped me to move all my bags and boxes in. I mostly stayed in my room starting to unpack stuff, while they both went back and forth with one bag at a time. I took some more photos as well, to chart my process of unpacking.

I couldn't have gotten moved in so quickly without help; once I had decided which cupboard, drawer, or shelf everything belonged on, my parents were quick to put things in the right place.