The next thing I knew she had stuck the nipple of a baby bottle in my mouth. I wanted to spit it out, but my thirst betrayed me. I had to have something to drink! I sucked on the bottle until it was half finished and then slowed. I felt like I wanted to throw up! I wasn’t nauseated, but it felt like I had eaten too much. Gina saw the expression in my eyes and immediately got up and stood behind me. She started patting me gently on the back and I belched loudly. I sighed in relief and sat back in the high chair.
It slowly dawned on me what I had just done! I had drunk nearly three-quarters of a bottle of infant formula without making a fuss! Would Gina notice? Had they somehow discovered my secret? I looked at Gina for some sign that she was pleased with my reaction to her treatment of me. Nothing. A coincidence, nothing more. I sighed again in repletion. Oh well, if she was bound and determined to treat me like a baby, I was going to sit back and enjoy it. Paul would find the solution quickly enough and I’d never get a better chance to actually live out my secret fantasies. I waited patiently while Gina finished her lunch and nursed occasionally on my bottle.
When Paul came home that night, he was surprised to see me crawling around the floor in diapers. After Gina explained to him the mess I had made in my pants, he nodded and agreed it was the only thing she could have done. Besides, he told her, it didn’t look like it had made me unhappy. By eight o’clock my eyelids were drooping and I was falling asleep in Gina’s lap. She carried me to bed and tucked me in with a kiss. What a wonderful mother she’s going to make some child, I thought as I drifted off to sleep.
The days became weeks and still Paul was no closer to reaching a solution than when he started. Everything had become routine under Gina’s care; first my diaper change in the morning followed by my bottle of water and back to sleep. Then Gina would wake me and take me to the kitchen for my breakfast, followed by cartoons until it was time for my nap. After my nap, Gina would change my diaper again and then it was time for lunch. A few more hours of play and then time for my afternoon nap. Then a diaper change, dinner, play and my evening bottle and back to sleep for the night.
I was in heaven. Gina mothered me and coddled me unceasingly. Paul went to check on my apartment on a Saturday and was surprised by the number of bills that had accumulated in my mailbox. He came home and talked with Gina in private before coming to me. Paul told me that I had to appoint someone to take care of my affairs while I was in this condition and suggested they ask my attorney. I told him that I didn’t trust my attorney that far and asked if Paul couldn’t do it for me. Paul said that he’d be happy to do it, but he’d need a power-of-attorney to be able to handle my affairs. I agreed and we contacted my attorney to arrange a meeting.
Three days later, my attorney was sitting on the couch and having coffee with Paul and Gina while I sat on the floor with my bottle. My lawyer kept looking at me and shaking his head as if he couldn’t believe what had happened to me. He arranged for someone to come over and take my fingerprints to use in the event that the judge required proof of my identity. He told us that he couldn’t have sworn in court that the person sitting on the floor at his feet was his client and with the exception of Paul, he didn’t think anyone else could either. He recommended that I grant Paul a full power of attorney and I agreed. I signed some papers granting him limited power of attorney to handle my affairs until we had a final ruling from the court.
Two weeks later, Paul had been empowered with my full power of attorney by the court. (My attorney had pulled some strings and had gotten it moved up on the docket.) Paul went to my apartment to box my things and put them in storage. Paul came home looking stunned and said he had to talk to Gina in private. When they came out they were looking at me strangely. I asked them what was the matter and Paul said that he didn’t know how to tell me, perhaps it would be best if he showed me. He went to his car and returned with a large cardboard shipping carton and set it on the floor.
