"I'm still stuffed from our late lunch," I groaned, carefully sitting down on a chair in Denver's old bedroom.
Denver smiled and stroked my cheeks with his thumbs. "I'm sure you are. It was more food than you were used to eating."
I grinned and turned my head to kiss his left wrist. I hummed when Denver pressed his lips to my forehead.
"May we shower together, Daddy?"
"Of course, Em. I was just about to say that we should."
We grinned at each other. I pushed off the chair and hugged his waist, rubbing my face on his pecs. We were shirtless, so my daddy dominant could see my "food baby'' from lunch. Denver's large, warm hand stroked down my back, the trails of tingly heat sending a shudder throughout my body.
"I have three sessions this evening and night, sweetheart. Dad will be with you during those four and half hours."
"Okay, Daddy. I'll be a good boy."
"You always are, Em." whispered Daddy, quietly laughing under his breath. "You're never not a good boy. It's just not in your DNA to be a rebel."
I giggled. "I don't wanna be a rebel because my daddy is amazing, wonderful, protective, sweet, caring, loving, adorable, super handsome, super awesome, and so much more."
Daddy curled down and kissed my head. "Aww, thank you. You're giving me diabetes, my super sweet little boy."
My happy giggles made him grin and kiss my cheeks again.
We climbed into the shower about ten minutes later, and I admit that I felt aroused after seeing my daddy dominant's cock again. Thankfully, that completely wiped away the memory of the semi-traumatizing incident from earlier today. We didn't stay in the shower too long, though, which was a good thing. I was a bit too shy to arouse Denver more in the shower because we're in his dad's house.
Denver dressed me and then he got into a semi-formal shirt and pajama bottoms because he'd be sitting at his desk with his laptop a little later. He also helped dry my hair, then I helped him, so we thanked each other with gentle pecks to our faces. Denver hugged me one last time as I buried my nose into his hair, breathing deeply of his clean, fresh scent while he did the same with mine. I hugged his neck firmly and then kissed his cheek.
"I want to kiss you properly again after you're done with work, Daddy."
His breath hitched. "Yes, baby. Absolutely yes." he whispered, kissing my cheeks before setting my slippered feet on the hardwood floor.
"Thank you, Daddy. Good luck with work!" I exclaimed softly, blowing him kisses while retreating into the hallway.
I closed the door behind me and took a calming breath to ease my pounding heart as I quietly made my way down the hallway towards the living room. I could hear the TV, so Dallas must be watching something.
I actually really like Denver's father, but I'm still nervous that I'll make a mistake and cause him to get mad at me. That might break the happy, cheerful, and loving atmosphere between my daddy dominant and his father. Honestly, I really, really do not want that to happen.
Peering around the doorway at the end of the hallway, I saw Dallas watching TV as expected. He appeared to be a bit zoned out, not really paying attention to the barking weasels on the news. Maybe now would be a good time to approach him?
As if he heard my thoughts, Dallas' eyes cleared and they lifted from the coffee table to my face peeking out from behind the doorway. Dallas quietly snorted with a small smile on his face.
"Still scared of me?"
I shook my head as I pushed off the wall and stepped into the living room. "I told you before, I'm not scared of you. You remind me a lot of my daddy. Or rather, he really takes after you."
Dallas seemed pleased by my comment, which made me laugh. He patted the seat next to himself on the leather couch. I folded my legs underneath myself as I settled into the seat, although I really wanted to lean sideways and rest on my daddy dominant's chest to hear his steady heartbeat. But he's not beside me right now. It's Dallas instead.
Dallas moved his right arm behind my head along the top of the couch, as though he was silently inviting me to rest my head on his chest. Dallas didn't say anything when I cautiously scooted closer. He didn't even move a muscle when I pressed the left side of my body to his right one, so I slowly moved my head to rest it on Dallas' right pec. Suddenly, Dallas' right arm slipped down and curled around my right side, keeping me firmly pressed against his side. I was surprisingly relaxed, though, so I wasn't startled out of my skin.
"Denver told me to lay a trap for you if I really wanted to capture his baby boy for some snuggle time." remarked Dallas, which made my skin redden from embarrassment.
"R-really?"
Dallas chuckled. "Hook, line, and sinker."
I pouted. "I'm not an animal."
"No, but you are an adorable little boy who loves getting cuddled by people he likes. So this makes me feel better." he murmured, his thumb gently stroking my full stomach. I hummed and rubbed my left cheek on his chest. It was clear that Dallas was happy, so that made me feel the same way.
"What would you like to watch? The news is getting annoying."
I hummed. "What would you normally watch?"
Dallas sighed and shook his head. "Nothing that would interest you."
"Really?" I asked, then prompted him. "Try me, Dallas."
He smirked and lightly pinched my right cheek. I pouted at him. "I'm not a plushie!"
Dallas began to laugh while I huffed and hid my face against his shoulder. His paw of a hand cupped the back of my head and gently rubbed my nape. I shuddered with a sigh of pleasure when his fingertips began to massage the knots in my shoulders.
"Does that feel good?"
"Yes, Dally."
"Dally? Is that my nickname?"
I sleepily nodded. "Dally is Daddy's dad—both important and precious."
Dallas' chest vibrated with a pleased rumble, just like Daddy. It was really comforting and comfortable. I rubbed my face on his shoulder again, then silently exhaled as I sank into his side.
"Oh my, you shouldn't fall asleep right now. You won't be able to sleep tonight."
"Dally, please don't underestimate my sleeping skills." I mumbled sleepily, then added, "And they're not sleeping pills."
Dallas chuckled. "All right, then I'll trust you."
I yawned and nuzzled closer. "Mhm."
Not too long afterwards, I closed my eyes for the final time and descended into darkness.
__________________________
Gentle swaying and delicious aromas slowly awakened me from slumber. I noticed my arms were folded and pressed against someone's back. It took me a good minute to realize that I was swaddled against Dallas' back using a kind of blanket that he'd wrapped around his back and shoulders. Thanks to the blanket, Dallas had full use of his arms so he could prepare dinner. I was really impressed. Maybe Denver can do this thing sometime?
I slowly curled my fingers into fists and relaxed them again. I wiggled my toes and then inhaled deeply.
"Awake?"
"Mhm, just awakened."
Dallas seemed to smile. "You slept very soundly."
"I must have slept deeply for you to wrap me up like this on your back. Am I heavy?"
He snorted. "Hardly, but this is a benefit from working on the ranch."
I grinned. "I imagine it would be."
Dallas reached down and patted my left knee against his corresponding side. "Do you want to get down?"
"Do you want me to?"
"Hey now, don't dodge."
I chuckled and pressed my nose to the back of his left shoulder. "I'm asking seriously, Dally. I'm comfortable here, but I don't want you to hurt yourself because of me."
"Don't worry about things like that, Emil. I will put you down if I need to, but I am happy to keep you close while I get dinner ready."
"Okay, Dally. Thank you." I said softly, then rubbed his shoulders with my fingertips.
"You are very welcome." he replied in a low croon, almost guiding me back into a sleepy state.
It was quiet between us after that, so I closed my eyes again for a little while to pass the time. My stomach, despite being full earlier, was starting to rumble from the enticing aromas swirling around us.
Dallas hummed. "I was wondering when I should bring this up, Emil, but I debated if I should even tell you."
I perked up. "Tell me what?"
"You and Denver were the stars of today. I kept getting asked if my son was single and even if you were available to date. Apparently, adorable little boys who are actually adults like you are quite popular amongst people like Denver."
I pursed my lips and hummed to myself. "That's interesting, but it's not news to me. I experienced that at my sister's college. Daddy and I were very popular."
Dallas laughed. "Well, then I suppose I shouldn't have been so worried."
"You didn't know, so don't worry about it. But why did it bother you so much?" I asked quietly.
"Because I believe this situation will keep happening. Especially the one with Charles."
"Wren?" I confirmed, and Dallas agreed. I continued, "Well, what do you want me to do? Claim your son as my man by grabbing his backside in public? Or maybe flash my passport anytime I initiate a French kiss with my lover?"
Dallas' neck had flushed and his ears were red. I thought that was cute.
"W-well, no, but..." he trailed off and remained silent from embarrassment.
I chuckled. "I was just teasing you, Dallas." I said softly, rubbing his shoulder blades with my palms.
"I noticed," huffed Dallas. "But I was serious."
"I am certain my daddy knew the consequences that would come with having a very short lover with a somewhat youthful appearance the moment he met me. My sister, Charlie, brought him over to the house in order to save me before it became too late."
"Too late?" rumbled Dallas.
"I don't know how much Daddy told you, if anything."
Dallas scooped the contents of the pan into a bowl while he responded, "He mentioned that your parents deserved to suffer more than they deserved to be in the ground. But Hell is a place full of agony and suffering, so I believe they are getting what they deserve."
I smiled a bit. "Even though you don't know what happened?"
"My son has a good judgment of character and he always wants to find the ray of light that others have lost in their darkness of hopelessnesses. For Denver to be that—excuse my language—pissed off with your parents, I am certain that my thoughts aren't wrong."
I hummed, then murmured, "You're not wrong, but Daddy is biased towards me. And my parents were not that bad. It's not like I was getting slashed up, stabbed, used as an ashtray, sold for cash, or so on. I was taken care of every day—every hour, practically. My father was really doting and diligent in taking care of me while my mother worked hard..."
"Or hardly worked?"
I shook my head. "She'd clean when I'd accidentally make a mess, she would make breakfast, lunch, and dinner for me—whatever I asked for, as long as I was polite and sweet."
Dallas was quiet for a few seconds as he continued to put food into serving dishes. Then he uttered, "So why did my son have to save you? Why did your sister feel that she had to bring Denver to rescue you from that place?"
"Because I was a burden."
Dallas' breath hitched and he dropped the metal utensil, making it clang against the countertop. "What?"
I took a deep breath and let it out, then began to explain something I hadn't told anyone before. "I don't know if my parents ever really loved me. Even at a young age, my parents weren't interested in me. Charlie was their focus. So I turned to my plushies—my friends—to keep me happy. As Charlie began to grow older and more rebellious, our parents' frustrations were turned towards me. I think Charlie still feels guilty because of that time."
Dallas shut off the stove and covered everything to keep it all warm, then walked to the side door and stepped onto the porch. It was already dusk, and the slight chill felt nice on my skin. Dallas wrapped his hands around my knees and gently rubbed them. His heat soaked through my pajama pants. Dallas released a heavy sigh as I took a deep breath in to ready myself for the next stage.
"When I was ten, my mind had already started regressing. It wasn't very noticeable at the time, but Charlie did see it. She'd started to realize that I was different from other kids my age." I said quietly. "When I turned twelve, my mind often regressed to a mental age that halved my own. Charlie, being four years older, used a bit of her savings from her first part-time job to buy me a panda plushie. His name is Panda."
Dallas gently squeezed my legs but didn't utter a word. I felt a bit less nervous about sharing my story thanks to his comforting squeezes.
"When I entered high school, I was bullied a lot because of my appearance. Every time I was pushed into the lockers or locked inside a storage closet and even while I was being tripped, kicked, and shoved, my mind regressed. I desperately tried to make it stop, for me to focus and be normal, but it never worked." I exhaled harshly, then sighed again.
"At this point, my parents knew that my mind regressed. They had known about it for several years. But before I could even say anything, they had already started to encourage my needs of being an unstable little, which made it even harder for me to fight off the mental regression at school. But so as not to embarrass the family, I was forced to wear monotone colors, nothing bright and cheery like my room, my plushies, or my clothes at home. My mother probably thought she was helping me. All it made me want to do was burst into tears and regress even further."
"Then what happened?" whispered Dallas.
"I met a boy about two and a half years later; a transfer student. He liked me first, knew about my little side, and still wanted to be with me even after a trial of friendship. Then my parents saw us. That night was the scariest I had ever seen them become at that time. They talked with less words than fists. My boyfriend was upset, but my parents told his father and then he moved away on my birthday—not too long before graduation.
"After graduation, I was confined to the house with invisible shackles and manacles, all so I wouldn't shame my parents. They kept me in the clothes I had been accustomed to wearing as a little, keeping me in my varying ages of mental regression for months at a time—sometimes even a full year. Eventually, I forgot everything about my time outside. I forgot about the bullies, the mean teachers, Tigre, and even the plushie that he'd given me before he left. That present had been ripped to shreds by my father the day I was stripped of my rights to be an adult."
Dallas inhaled deeply and held his breath, rubbing my knees with his thumbs until he exhaled.
"Charlie came to visit as much as she was allowed, and even then we were under surveillance. Charlie was the breadwinner—the smart one. I was the dumb one. I was the disgrace. I was the disappointment. I was their burden." I whispered brokenly, and then felt Dallas move me around in the blanket so that he could hold me to his front.
I pressed my nose against his neck and sighed softly. "They forced me to be an adult whenever it benefited them, and they punished me if I slipped up and regressed. They punished me for little things like splashing water from the sink or tub, even when I slipped and knocked a cup of water over. I tried so hard to be their good little boy—for them to love me. I tried so hard to do everything right, even when all I did was wrong in their eyes."
I was trembling, currently trying so hard not to cry. "Th-they would often hurt me for no reason, just because they felt like it. I thought I deserved it. I really, truly did because I knew something was wrong with me and they had to deal with me. Denver was the first to help me understand that this wasn't my fault and that I wasn't weird or a bad boy, so I didn't deserve the way I was being treated. I called it stress relief, but my daddy called it abuse. I didn't understand what he meant at the time, but I could understand what real love and affection felt like thanks to him. I could finally see that my parents really didn't love me."
Dallas started, "I'm..." He stopped himself, though.
"It's okay. Just let me finish, please."
"All right."
I swallowed thickly. "I was kidnapped and shackled by my mother a little over three weeks ago. She and my father could never say that they loved me. What they were able to say was that I was their responsibility and their burden, so Daddy wasn't allowed to have me. My father couldn't let me go, but my mother planned to kill me so that he would have no choice. She said she needed more time until then as well, though. But then intruders came knocking and my father locked me in a closet. I heard things, then I was saved by my parents' murderers. I never got to know what real parental love was like, Dallas."
Dallas petted my head as tears gushed down my face. He didn't say a word as I sobbed into his shoulder.
I know there was some repeat of him retelling his past in this chapter, but I really needed Emil to lay it all out on the table with a loving parent hearing it as part of his healing process.
Honestly, I've been repeatedly editing and proofreading this story every week since mid-August, so I can imagine what some of you are feeling. But I legitimately teared up while rereading this chapter several times. It had an emotional impact on me because of the way I wrote it, so you'll have to forgive the slight repetitiveness of the content in this chapter. :)
See you again next Saturday. I love you all very much. <3
- Alessa (Kelpie) xoxo
Updated: 1/21/2023
Word count: 3224