✅2️⃣ Testing the Babysitter

Seventh Test: Testing the Water

Claudia quickly came back from the kitchen with three glasses of milk on a tray, and a little smile. Adam's eyebrows raised, and he wondered what was going on here. He'd been pretty sure that Claudia hadn't actually taken any of the drug; or that if she had, it had already worn off. But Lorelei had said they should all have milk, and her big sister just complied. He didn't know what to think now.

"Want your drink in here, or would you rather come to the dining room?" she asked. "The pizza's nearly ready now."

"We'll come in there, thanks." Adam managed to answer first this time, though he didn't think there had been any chance of Lorelei making his situation any worse. He was only slightly surprised when the little devil complied meekly without any sign of argument. They were going to have pizza for dinner, which he doubted was a common occurrence in this household, so she probably didn't want to cause any more trouble.

Adam helped Lorelei to her seat, and then sat down on the other side of the big dining table. There were three glasses of milk on the table, and he assumed the smaller one would be for the child. He half expected her to protest that she wanted the biggest, like she had with lemonade on his previous visit, but he couldn't have guessed why.

Only a few seconds passed before Claudia came in again, carrying a couple of pizzas on a tray. She quickly set out a plate in front of each of them, and then the food in the middle. Adam guessed they would be helping themselves. It might be a little messy, especially with a small child at the table, but perhaps Claudia hoped that her little sister would see this as a treat enough to moderate her behaviour for the rest of the evening. She didn't know yet that Lorelei had already been up to her old tricks, and Adam could only hope that it wouldn't be too long before she thought to ask.

"Help yourself," Claudia said with a smile. Her little sister hadn't waited, and had reached for a slice as soon as the pizzas were on the table. Adam hesitated a second before reaching out for one of his own. His mind conjured images of his fingers meeting Claudia's as they reached for the same slice, a chance touch that might have a meaning too intense for words. He knew it was an idle fantasy that would never come to pass; she'd said clearly enough that she only saw him as a friend, and friends exploring a fetish together didn't have to lead to any kind of emotional connection. But now, that fantasy was something to fear. He had to avoid touching Claudia's hand, whether innocently or not, until the last traces of the drug in his system had worn off.

He managed to pick up a slice of pizza without any problems, and even got it to his mouth without dripping melted cheese onto his shirt, which was quite an achievement with this particular meal. Then he reached for his drink, and hesitated. It still felt weird to have a large glass of milk at the table, and he wasn't sure if this was part of some masterplan by Lorelei. Claudia had gone along with it happily enough, but he had no idea what she might be thinking of him right now.

"Thank you," she said with a sideways smile, as if that might answer the unspoken question. "I hope it's not too weird. Milk, I mean. Healthy for a little kid, but it's a challenge to get her to drink it. But I guess it's different if we all play along, so when she asked I thought I don't mind cheating on my own diet a little."

"I wondered," he whispered back. Lorelei didn't seem to be paying any attention now, as she struggled to get more of the pizza in her mouth than on her face. "I'd like to set a good example for the kid. Get me in your mum's good books too."

"I'm glad. Too many guys will only help someone if they get something out of it. And you seem to be a natural with kids. You don't mind playing with her a bit more later, do you? I know I said I had some things I'd like to try, but I don't want to wear you out too fast. And if we're going to be spending a lot of time together, at least some of it will be babysitting."

"As long as she stops giving me commands," Adam thought. But the words didn't reach his lips, because he knew he wasn't allowed to say something like that. He had to pretend nothing weird was going on, and try to hide it from Claudia.

"Yeah, sure. I'm glad she's behaving a little better after last time. Are you two getting on okay now?"

Claudia paused a long time before answering that, trying to eat her pizza without trails of melted cheese dripping onto her clothes. But by the time the slice was gone, she rested her hands beside her plate and looked across at Lorelei. The kid was entirely wrapped up in her food, which seemed to dominate her attention as easily as it covered her shirt. Claudia watched for a second to be sure before answering Adam's question with the same smile as always.

"Yeah. And a lot of that's down to you, something else I should thank you for. After last time I made her a peace offering, and she actually listened. Now I can give her something she wants, and she'll act like we're best friends again. At least she'll confide in me when she has problems, which I think is essential if you want to get on well with your sister. I think she needs friends her own age as well, but there's not much I can do about that."

"So long as she doesn't want to turn us into babies, that's fine by me."

"Yeah. We've made sure she doesn't have any of the brownies or cupcakes hidden away in her room, so she's not going to be giving commands to the babysitter while we're away. But if you want to be her little friend again, I wouldn't mind."

"What?" Adam mumbled through a mouthful of food. He swallowed quickly before continuing: "What? I mean, why would anyone want to do that?"

"I don't know, but there were parts of it that looked like you were enjoying yourself last time. Playing with building blocks?"

Adam couldn't argue with that. There had been some fun moments in his last visit, although fighting over Lorelei's toys like a little kid wasn't the memory he would have homed in on. But now he thought about it, he had seemed to enjoy acting out the role he'd been given. Just for a few moments.

"Anyway," Claudia continued, "I think the evening will go a lot more smoothly if she's having fun. If you'd be willing to play dolls with her, be her equal while I'm the strict substitute-parent, I think she'd love that. I won't tell you to, because that wouldn't be fair. But it would be a big help. I don't mean letting her turn you into a baby, unless you want to. Just maybe playing along, acting like her little friend rather than a babysitter. If you're comfortable with that, I'll treat you according to how you act."