✅ The Last New Start [NaNoWriMo2021]

62. The Last Minute

Tess woke up to the sound of a rhythmic banging. It took her two or three seconds to realise that it was the sound of someone running on the stairs. Someone else was late; it made her feel a little more confident, like she wasn't the child making silly mistakes anymore. Someone else could screw up and be late too, although she hoped it wasn't Ffrances in such a panic.

After a moment's thought, she sat upright and forced herself to focus enough to check her clock. Just to make sure that the sounds of life elsewhere in the house weren't because she had slept through her own alarm. It wasn't; she still had twenty minutes before her alarm was going to sound. She allowed herself a little smile once she was sure that she was entirely on schedule, especially after she had checked her diaper and found that it was still dry. Without even using the hypnosis thing. Maybe she could take that as an omen, to tell her that she had a good day ahead.

After that, her next thought was of her presents for Spike. His birthday was technically tomorrow, and the last time they saw each other before Christmas couldn't be before school ended on Friday. But she wanted to give him both of his presents when they went to the cinema, because it seemed like a symbolic occasion. And that meant she should wrap them.

The comics were easy. She had a binder for them, designed to protect precious documents in transit. The shop had actually had a couple decorated with images that resembled the Tags posters... an interesting piece of merch that didn't really seem to have been advertised. Even now the movie was out, it didn't seem to be widely known that it was based on a series of comic books, but there was some stuff available. That might surprise Spike; Tess knew that she'd told him about some of the things she'd been reading, but wasn't sure if he knew that the movie they'd been to watch was a part of the same universe. So hopefully, all the stuff she'd packed inside that binder would pleasantly surprise him. She folded some tissue paper around it, and put a strip of tape across the join.

The other gift was harder. She'd seen it in Swaggery, a place where she was more likely to laugh at the stock than to buy anything. But one item had caught her eye as she passed, and she couldn't let it go. A bracelet; a simple faux-leather band joined by two pairs of letters which joined together as a clasp. The message printed around the band explained the letters 'WWDD', and as soon as she saw the slogan Tess had known that it was perfect for Spike. They could have been the words engraved on his heart.

She didn't know how to wrap something like that. In the end, she found a small bag with a vaguely christmassy print, and wrapped the bracelet up inside. She hoped that not being able to present it neatly wouldn't make too much of a difference. And somehow, she had both gifts wrapped by the time she had to slap the alarm clock into silence. Now all she needed to do was get dressed, and hope that she hadn't forgotten any of today's homework.

"Is that you, Tess?" Gabby's voice called from downstairs, just as Tess opened her bedroom door and took the first step towards the bathroom. "You awake? I'm going out early, so you can get breakfast now, or fix your own."

Tess hesitated. She wasn't dressed yet. She hadn't even taken off the overnight diaper, and she didn't want anyone to see that. But she was wearing loose pyjamas chosen more for comfort than style, and she doubted that her underwear would ever be noticeable behind the thick fabric. And she didn't want to miss out on fried bacon, not when the least-childish alternative in the cupboard was probably some kind of muesli. She turned around and headed downstairs right away, quickly tying her hair back as she ran to keep it out of her face.

"I'm not a baby," she muttered under her breath, in response to Gabby's usual greeting. After saying it so many times, the words didn't even mean anything now. A plate appeared in front of her as soon as she sat down, with a couple of slices of toast and a mound of scrambled egg with little pieces of chorizo in it. That was an immediate reason for a smile; she had already decided that one of the best things about day-to-day life in this house was getting a hot breakfast every day, and she was still being surprised by fried combinations she hadn't tried before. The coffee was welcome as well; supplied today in a large mug with the slogan 'WOLRD'S WORTS SPEELER' cheerfully emblazoned on the side.

Halfway down the mug, and with the first slice of toast quickly demolished, Tess started to wonder if running straight downstairs when Gabby called had been a good idea after all. Even if she didn't take the time to get dressed, she could have used the bathroom before attempting breakfast. And now a twinge from her bladder was screaming that would really have been a good idea. She hadn't realised how badly she needed to go until she thought about the size of that coffee, and a minute later she was squirming in her seat as she raced to clear her plate. She could have jumped up and run to the bathroom, but not without revealing her lack of forethought to Gabby. She couldn't bear to give her cousin any more excuse to call her a child. But while Gabby had already mentioned being in a rush this morning, it wouldn't arouse any suspicion if Tess bolted the rest of her breakfast and then ran straight for the bathroom. She was just in a hurry.

She focused on nothing but the food in front of her, trying to get it into her mouth as quickly as possible. So much that she was startled by a sudden vibration from her phone; the alarm that would normally be telling her that she needed to start getting dressed. She gasped and jumped in her seat, and a moment later felt warmth spreading around her diaper. She pressed her legs together, trying desperately to keep from peeing, but it was already too late.