Chapter 6
Lenny was standing in the hallway just outside the bedroom, staring at his reflection in the full length mirror mounted on the bathroom door.
“What’s happening to me?” he squealed, staring wide-eyed into the glass. “Jesus Christ, what IS this?” Pulling at the plastic pants, he looked up, searching desperately for an explanation. “Tell me you didn’t dress me in a fucking diaper!”
I sat in bed, pulling a sheet up to cover myself. I wasn’t surprised to see that Lenny had gotten yet smaller during the night. “You passed out on the couch,” I shrugged, “And I couldn’t have you peeing all over my mattress.” I successfully resisted the urge to smile as he pivoted his little frame in the mirror, inspecting his tiny body from every angle. The diaper that I’d snuggly pinned on him hours before now hung at his hips. Pulling on a t-shirt, I got up and stood in the doorway.
“I’ve changed my mind,” he babbled. “I have to get to a hospital; there’s got to be a way to stop this!”
“It’s too late for that,” I replied quietly. “We made a deal.” Walking over to Lenny, I reached down and effortless slid the diaper and plastic pants to his ankles. His diaper was saturated. I gave his bare little bottom a playful swat, and gently guided him into the bathroom to get dressed. The poor guy seemed completely bewildered.
I wasn’t surprised to find that among all of my Wal-Mart purchases, I had just one outfit that fit Lenny’s rapidly diminishing body perfectly: a set of brown corduroy bib overalls and a white cotton shirt imprinted with tiny smiling dinosaurs. After a short discussion, I decided to let him wear big boy underpants for the time being, although the tiny white briefs were ridiculously big. I didn’t have any shoes for him, but that wouldn’t be a problem. I didn’t have any plans to go out for the next few days.
A few days later, we returned to the Waffle House.
Lenny’s regression slowly ground to a halt the day before. He ended up weighing just sixteen pounds, and measured twenty-six inches in length. He lost his ability to speak rather suddenly, but I had no doubt that he could understand everything I was saying.
“How old is your baby?” an elderly lady asked as she held open the door for us at the diner. I paused, allowing the woman to pat the top of Lenny’s head as he twisted and squirmed in his little carrier.
“Three months,” I answered proudly, bracing myself for criticism for having a baby out at that time of night.
“She’s absolutely adorable,” the lady rambled. “They’re just so cute at that age, aren’t they?”
“He’s a boy,” I corrected with a giggle. “I just couldn’t resist the outfit.” I’d dressed Lenny in a little yellow sundress, complete with coordinating plastic panties. The tiny lace-trimmed yellow socks completed the outfit.
Even at three in the morning, the place was packed with people, yet the booth that we’d taken on previous visits was empty. I put Lenny on the table and sat down. When the Mexican girl saw us, she abandoned her mop in the corner and came over immediately. At first, she ignored me completely; all of her attention was on baby Lenny.
“You must have been a very bad man,” the girl whispered, marveling wide-eyed at Lenny. She placed her brown finger into one of Lenny’s palms; his fingers, pink and nearly translucent, closed around the proffered digit.
“I’m sorry?” The girl had spoken so softy, I wasn’t sure what I’d heard.
“I was a bad man once,” she hissed, looking up at me. “And now I’m being punished.” She glanced around, as if someone might be listening. “I’m not very smart now. And I have boobies. And I have to sit down to pee.” Lenny had released the girl’s finger, and was swatting clumsily at her with both of his hands. This made the girl smile mischievously. “He doesn’t look very happy. Maybe he’s poopy. Babies are poopy sometimes.”
Suddenly I noticed that the diner had cleared out. There wasn’t a soul in the place except for baby Lenny, the girl, and me.
The door opened and the hot, dry Texas night air rushed in. A tall, lanky man, dressed all in black, stepped into the restaurant. The man turned toward us. At first, I didn’t think that it was the same man from last week, and then the smell hit me. I immediately understood that it was the same entity, just a different form. He was young, with a tanned friendly face that included a bright, easy smile. He sat down across from me and extended his hand. I reluctantly shook it. His skin was cold; it was like touching a corpse.
He was dressed in a black blazer, black pants and a black shirt. The only thing that wasn’t black was the priest’s collar that he was wearing.
“Belinda, dear, would you mind watching the baby while Mary and I have a little talk?”
Without waiting for my permission, the girl reached into the carrier and scooped up Lenny. My little guy must have been terrified. He squealed like a piglet as she gently nestled the squirming infant to her chest and carried him to the far end of the small diner.
‘Even now, Leonard can be quite a handful, can’t he?” The priest observed, shaking his head. “But at least he can’t hurt anybody.”
“Who ARE you?” I boldly asked.
“Oh, Mary, that’s not important.” He seemed distracted by Lenny’s crying, and then suddenly pointed his index finger in the air and gave it a wag, as if admonishing a disobedient child. Suddenly Lenny was quiet. “That clerk that he beat up died a few hours ago,” he continued. “She was a real nice kid. She’s in a better place now.”
I knew that he was telling the truth. There was no reason for him to lie. I got the feeling that there was never a reason for this man to lie.
“And how are YOU doing?” he asked. His eyes seemed to peer directly into my soul.
To this day, I don’t know what I told him. I do remember that we had a long conversation, and when I left the Waffle House, baby in tow, I knew that Lenny would always be mine and I knew that we were bound together forever in a union even stronger than mother-child.
We’d see him again next week at the same time; he’d probably be in yet a different form, but we’d recognize him. I’m now not sure whether he’s Satan, God, or something in between. I am sure that he doles out punishment for some who need it, and rewards others, offering them their fondest desire. I’m also sure that if I take care of all of Lenny’s needs, keeping him warm and dry, and his little tummy full of my milk, then the man dressed in black will take care of all of mine.
The End
