The Weekend Visit, Part 34

It turned out that my guess was correct. Our relatives apparently had a membership at a nearby country club, which wasn’t particularly surprising considering how they seemed to live in a more affluent neighborhood.

As we pulled into the parking lot, I continued to feel ridiculous about both my outfit and the fact that I was sitting in a booster seat. I only had so many excuses to get all dressed up in outfits like everyone else in the car was wearing, and instead had to attend a fancy dinner looking like a tween who was trying her best to look nice and coming up short. The only silver lining was that no one from my home town would be . . . Wait, what if someone from college recognized me?! I couldn’t believe the thought hadn’t crossed my mind at the mall. Now that I had done a year of undergrad, I knew people from all over the state. Not that I would consider myself popular, but still.

I made myself take a breath. The probability of something like that happening was crazy low, plus my immature image would hopefully keep me from being noticed on the off chance a classmate was around. After everything I had already gone through, including the fact that I was still wearing diapers and apparently would be for the foreseeable future, it was easy to leap to worst case scenarios.

After our aunt found a parking spot and Kate did her usual fussing over my seat and helping me out of the car even though I could have managed the simple task on my own, we were all heading for the main building. Of course, Kate took my hand almost immediately as we crossed the parking lot. As usual, the patronizing gesture not only reminded me of how I was supposed to be playing along with our current dynamic, but I also knew that anyone looking at the two of us walking together would definitely presume that she was the older sister.

Wearing clean diapers was an improvement to most of the time we had spent at the mall. I still wasn’t fully used to the thick padding between my thighs, though at least I didn’t need to be careful with every step. If anything, I was more concerned about how I was wearing a skirt. A mildly conservative skirt, yet a skirt nonetheless. The good news was, it did a great job of hiding my embarrassing underwear situation; the bad news was, I needed to be careful with all of my movements.

According to Aunt Miranda, our uncle had finished his round of golf, but would be socializing over cocktails with his friends for another few minutes. She said that we could do the same while we waited. Of course, underage drinking in college was far more commonplace than doing so as a tween. Not that I would attempt to order a drink around family, anyway. Kate ordered herself a diet soft drink, then proceeded to order me a Shirley Temple.

Even after a short nap, I was too exhausted to do anything but go along with her latest idea. Compared to the wine our aunt ordered and the soda our cousins asked for, my drink was easily the outlier, as well as the most noticeable. Luna was quick to comment on how it was cute that it matched my dress; all I could do was my usual giggle and agree. Admittedly, it did taste good, though I would have gone with just about anything else if I had been given the chance to place my own order at the bar.

The longer we sat in the lounge area, the more I was convinced that I was the only guest in the entire building that was wearing sneakers. We weren’t the only family around either. My false age didn’t exactly hold water as an excuse when there were a few teenagers who passed by here and there, all of whom were wearing heels or flats. I was honestly surprised our aunt hadn’t said something about what I had on.

I was barely paying attention to the conversation. Something about the last time our relatives had been here for some holiday event, how it was more for the golf than the overpriced outings–surprising that our visit made the cut for a special occasion, and also a surprise to be taken here in the first place when I hadn’t heard a word about it before the trip–I was more busy trying not to fidget in the padded underwear that would never feel as normal or as natural as what I usually wore, and also both replaying how things had snowballed since I first put on those pull-ups as well as projecting how I might ever get things back to normal where Kate was concerned.

She and our cousins hadn’t been serious about camp, right? It had sounded pretty real when they were talking about it earlier. Still, I was supposed to be picked up along with my sister on Monday. Our parents obviously knew I was the older sister, and this elaborate lie was going to crumble the moment they arrived. How would Luna and Lilah react? How would our parents react if I was wearing diapers? There were just too many daunting unknowns.

“Annie? Earth to Annie,” Kate nudged me, “Our table is ready. Want to walk with me?” She extended her hand.

‘Not particularly.’ Though holding my sister’s hand was next to nothing compared to everything else. And we both knew playing was still my best and only option. “Like, totally,” I smiled.

It wasn’t until I stood up and took a few steps with my fingers laced through hers that I felt a similar sensation to what had hit me on the obstacle course earlier. Why was my body acting up this weekend?! All I had since that mortifying accident was a kids’ meal and a small hot chocolate. Though I rarely ate fast food, it was difficult to believe a bit of grease would cause such a reaction. And the simple drink wouldn’t do nearly as much as an actual coffee would.

I cringed at the thought of being supervised through what I needed to do, as it had been bad enough back at the house, but I had also learned from my mistakes. Better to bring Kate with me than to fail with the diaper pins like I had last night. “Umm, Kate?” I quietly said. Giving her hand a tug, I murmured, “I need to, like . . . ” I really didn’t want to say it when the others were potentially in earshot.

“Already?” Kate asked. She picked up what I meant more quickly than I expected, “You just went.”

Yeah, but not like this. And not with this kind of urge that hit me out of nowhere. “Like, please?” I asked, “It’ll just take a minute.”

Kate thought about it for all of one second before shaking her head and tugging me towards the dining area the others were being escorted towards by one of the hosts. “Let’s wait until after we order, okay?” she replied, “A big girl would be able to hold it, Annie.”