Little Lady Briana: Chapters

The convenience store’s automatic doors slid open, triggering a soft chime behind the counter. Ava looked up from the stack of lab data sheets she’d neatly stacked behind the counter and spotted an elderly woman with a slight blue tint to her curly hair. “Hi, Mrs. Besaw.”

“Ava, I didn’t expect to see you when I walked in here.” Mrs. Besaw walked up to the counter with a slight wobble. “Does Raj have you working back here when you’re home visiting?”

“Mom got called into work, so it’s either this or I sit at home by myself.” Ava smiled. “I don’t mind, and it gives Dad time to stock the store, so he doesn’t have to do it after hours.”

“You’re such a good girl.” Mrs. Besaw peered at the shelves behind Ava. “Could you be a dear and sell me a pack of Menthols?”

“Mrs. Besaw! I thought you quit last year.”

“I know, sweetie. I thought so, too, but it’s been a stressful month. I won’t smoke the whole pack; my cribbage group will go through them for me, you know that.”

“I think you might be the only lady who puts out cigarettes and tea for her guests.” Ava fetched a pack from the shelf and rang it up on the register. “Is there anything else you need?”

“Oh, I shouldn’t, but my grocery store doesn’t stock this brand of lemon drops.” Mrs. Besaw slyly placed a small bag of candy on the counter.

“I won’t tell anyone if you don’t.” Ava winked at Mrs. Besaw. “That’ll be nine dollars and twenty-six cents.”

While Mrs. Besaw painstakingly counted out dollar bills and coins, Ava waved to the store’s newest arrival. “Hi, Jeffery!” Jeffery returned the wave as he made his usual beeline for the beer cooler. His fashion uniform of denim on denim on denim was still going strong, but he’d added a pair of cowboy boots and a western hat since Ava had seen him. She hoped that fashion choice hadn’t come with a confederate flag on his truck; Jeffery had always been a chill guy.

“That should be right, dear; count it to make sure, won’t you?” Mrs. Besaw pushed her pile of cash over to Ava, who counted it as she put it in the register and printed out the receipt. The grandmotherly lady squeezed Ava’s hand warmly before collecting her purchases and wobbling out of the store.

Rather than returning to her data review immediately, Ava rested her chin in her hands and let her eyes wander over the convenience store. Growing up, she’d been embarrassed by the name Singh’s Sundries, but as an adult, she could appreciate how much it had helped her dad fit into Littleton’s New England village vibe while still putting his name on the business. The streets around the shop had become a second neighborhood while Ava grew up, with regulars like Mrs. Besaw becoming honorary family members.

The shop’s earth-toned walls were faded in places and the floor worn, but they were always clean and swept. Her Dad was humming to himself as he put bags of chips and hooks in the junk food aisle, which was perpetually in need of restocking. To her surprise, Ava recognized the song.

“Appa, I didn’t know you listened to Brooke Rapid.”

“She’s the only person they play on the radio these days, and Amrita watches her concerts on TV.” Raj shrugged. “I think she likes Brooke’s sparkly outfits better than the music, though.”

“But you’re not a fan, even though you’re on a first-name basis with her?” Ava laughed. “She’s not my first choice for music, but I like her too.”

“Then we can listen to her in the car when Bonnie arrives for her shift.” Raj walked around the counter and hugged Ava. “We’re worried about you, kanda. Your amma said you sounded stressed when you called her about coming up.”

Jeffery came to the counter with a triple stack of cheap beer cases. While she scanned the beer, Ava switched to Kannada to remind her father that Rohan must have told him about her bad medical news.

“Appa, Rohan nanna doctorinda kettavannu nimge helirabahudu.”

Rohan frowned and said, “Ninna anna yavude vivaragalannu tiliyade iddane. Idella gambhira na? Shalege break beku na?”

“That’ll be sixty-five eighteen.” Ava punched the button to send the total to the card reader and shook her head at her dad. It was sweet that Rohan hadn’t passed along details without asking her, but her privacy had come at the cost of Raj being worried enough to ask if she needed to take a break from school.

While Jeffery fiddled with the card reader, Ava squeezed her dad’s arm and reassured him that she’d simply needed her parents after some bad news. “Adenu alla. Kashtavada suddi kelalu bekaddu nanna amma mattu appane.”

“Nimma amma mattu naavu yavagalu nimmagagi iruve, kanda.” Sweet as ever, Raj let Ava know that he and Mom would always be there for her. He patted her back while he said goodbye to Jeffery. “Thank you for coming in, Jeff; please come again! Tell your father we have the spicy corn nuts he likes. It was just a little ordering error; we won’t run out of them again.”

“I will do, Mr. Singh, but he might buy you out of them anyway after his dry spell.” Jeffery hoisted his beer and nodded to Ava on his way out. “Good to see you, Ava.”

Brooke nearly collided with Jeffery on her way into the store, blurting out a quick apology and scurrying behind the counter. “I’m here! The register clock says I’m not late.” Brooke put her neon-pink purse under the counter and checked her blonde-highlighted hair on the security monitor. She was Ava’s age, with a housekeeper’s stout body and a clothes closet that must have had a portal to Barbieland.

“It’s fine, Brooke,” Raj said, handing Ava her crutches. “It’s an extra shift anyway; thank you for coming in.”

“You know I’ll always take extra hours.” Brooke leaned over to peek at Ava’s lab reports nosily. “That’s a lot of numbers. You still doing the big brain thing in the big city?”

“Ardenthill is hardly a big city.” Ava chuckled as she stuffed her papers in a binder. “It’s bigger than Littleton, but that doesn’t make a city big.”

“Ardenthill’s five times our size last I checked – seems big to me.” Brooke smiled. “Good to see you again. Are you staying long?”

“I wish. I have to be home tomorrow, so no time to visit with anybody but family.”

“I figured that if you were working the counter for extra time with your pops.” Brooke checked the register drawer and logged herself into the computer. “I’m all set here, Mr. Singh. You can get out of here and enjoy your afternoon.”

“Thank you again, Brooke.” Raj helped Ava to his car a bit heavy-handedly for her taste, but as her dad, he got a pass on taking care of her.

To Ava’s amusement, her dad had a Brooke Rapid song queued up that was precisely the length of his two-and-a-half-minute commute home. Mom pulled up behind them in the driveway. Between her mother’s profuse apologies about being called into work on her day off and her parents insisting on getting food into her, Ava was showered with the parental attention she’d been craving.

A less welcome example of mothering was waiting for Ava in her bedroom. Her mom had unpacked her suitcase, including the towel-wrapped bundle of diapers Ava had brought. When she turned to the door to ask her Mom why her stuff was unpacked, she found Amrita in the doorway.

“We should talk about what I found in your suitcase, kanda,” Amrita said.

“Amma, you didn’t have to unpack for me. I mean, you really did not need to unpack for me.”

“I’m a nurse and your amma; I wanted to make sure you had the medical supplies you needed.”

“Then what is there to talk about? You obviously talked to Dr. Adams’ office. I’m not excited about the news, but I’m being realistic about needing to wear protection.” Ava sighed.

“But the ones you have aren’t medical grade. They’re…” Amrita wrung her hands, lowering her voice to say, “Ava, kanda, they’re like children’s diapers. The kind that everyone on the news is upset about.”

Anxious goosebumps prickled across Ava’s arms. Luckily, she’d had a ready excuse for ABDL diapers ever since discovering the scene in Ardenthill. With her muscular issues elevated from “potential” to “intermittent” incontinence, her reason was even more ironclad than before.

“Amma, it’s not whatever weird thing you saw on TV. The medical ones are so ugly; they make me feel like an old lady. At least these have colors.”

Amrita took a seat on Ava’s bed. The worried furrow in her brows suggested that Ava’s excuse wasn’t doing the bang-up job she’d hoped it would. “Ava, you know you can tell me anything, and I’ll love you no matter what, right?”

“Of course, Amma.” Ava sighed and leaned against her mom, closing her eyes so that Mom couldn’t read her expression as easily. “I’m allowed to wear pretty things even if I’m disabled, aren’t I?”

“What a thing to say! Of course, you are.” Amrita pulled Ava close and kissed the top of her head. “I worry about you. Especially after someone has already assaulted you. Who knows what people would do if they thought you were part of that ABDL kink.”

“I’ll be fine. They already arrested the guy. My girlfriend’s family is ridiculously connected in Ardenthill; they’ve been pressuring the cops and making them run around.”

“I’m going to send you home with a basket of kaju katli to thank them for that. But that’s not enough for me to stop worrying.”

Ava smiled; her mom’s cashew fudge would earn her some excellent points with Briana’s family. She was sure she could also get in on Briana’s share of it. “They’ll love that, thanks amma. I’ll be more careful, okay?”

Amrita didn’t look convinced about Ava’s safety – or her diapers – luckily, the need to make an early dinner freed Ava from the uncomfortable conversation. The rest of her home time flew by. Ava had tears in her eyes to match her parents when she hugged them goodbye.

~~~*~~~

At home in her apartment, Ava went through her physical therapy routine restlessly. A two-hour drive each way hadn’t left room for as much of a family weekend as she’d wanted. That was especially true since she’d returned to Ardenthill early enough that she wouldn’t be anxious about getting ready for the week. Well, she was prepared for the week as soon as she finished her leg lifts, and there was still an entire evening to account for. As she stretched her legs, the yoga mat under her butt seemed especially squishy. Another accident. Ava sighed.

She had a lot of reservations about living the way Briana did, but at that moment, Ava would have given anything to have a half-dozen caregivers to pick from. At least one of Briana’s roommates had to be strong enough to scoop Ava off the floor and carry her to a proper changing table instead of the sad little blanket Ava had laid out in a corner of her bedroom.

Ava’s phone beeped to let her know that physical therapy was done. Without thinking, she shut off the alarm and dialed Briana.

“Hi, Ava!” Despite the way they’d last parted, Briana was as bubbly as ever.

“Hey, girlfriend.” Ava laid back on her mat, surrendering her clothes to the sweat she’d worked up. “I wish you were here.”

“Me too!” Briana sounded as wistful as Ava was. “I’d invite you over, but Mom and Dad don’t usually let me bring friends over on a school night.”

“Is that a hard rule?” Ava knew she should be embarrassed at the whine in her voice, but the way she was feeling, she couldn’t be bothered with such niceties. “Maybe the rules are different if you come over here.”

“I could ask Mom.” Briana sounded eager but not hopeful. “I don’t think she’ll say yes, though.”

“Please, Briana? Tell her I really need to see you. It’s the truth!”

“I’ll do my best, but I have to bring out the big guns. Arnold the Pangolin is going to help me convince them. Also, stay on the phone in case they need extra convincing from you.”

Ava giggled. “Please tell Arnold the Pangolin that I appreciate Arnold the Pangolin’s assistance in this matter.”

The only reply from Briana was a big giggle and the sound of feet loudly marching on a hardwood floor. Faintly, Ava heard Veronica admonishing Briana for stomping in the hall. That was followed by a surprisingly amusing back and forth between Veronica, Jane, Briana, and Briana’s over-the-top orator voice for Arnold the Pangolin. Despite how pompous Arnold the Pangolin sounded, Arnold the Pangolin was making some excellent points. By the end, Ava wasn’t sure if Briana’s parents had been convinced or worn down by how many times they’d had to say Arnold the Pangolin’s full name.

“Ava, they said yes! We can have a sleepover! A big girl sleepover with no adults, even!”

Ava squealed in delight. “Yeah! Well, a mostly big-girl sleepover; we’ll both be in diapers.”

“Dad is going to bring me. She’ll stay long enough to get both of us ready for bed.”

“That’s perfect. She can bring back the fudge my mom made for her and the rest of your family.”

“But not all of it, right? I’m in the family, too; I get some of my own, don’t I?”

“Of course you do, dummy.” Ava rolled over and kicked her feet idly on the yoga mat. “It’s separated into pretty bags for each person. More importantly, will you share yours with your pretty girlfriend?”

“Share? I um – I can share, but didn’t you get some at home?” Briana was whining to match Ava earlier. It was a sure sign of love that Ava found her whines cute.

“No way, Amma never lets us have some of the stuff she makes for thank you baskets.”

“Oh, she’s strict, huh? I can’t wait to meet her!”

“Yeah – you can do that sometime, sure. Anyway, when are you going to be here?”

“Soon! I’m packing stuffies now.”

Ava giggled. “Don’t you need more than stuffies for a sleepover on a school night?”

“Yeah, Dad is packing the rest. She doesn’t trust me to bring all my stuff or something. I’ll be there soon; I love you, Ava!”

“I love you, Bri.” Ava sighed happily and closed the call.

After her physical therapy, Ava didn’t have the energy to clean herself up. She could have forced herself, but there was always the chance that Jane would be willing to help when she brought Briana over. It wasn’t clear what getting ready for bed entailed, but it had to involve some caregiving and, therefore, sounded lovely.

~~~*~~~

As Jane set Ava down on her changing blanket and handed her a baby bottle, Ava reflected that she had not been prepared for the Briana Bedtime Experience. She was so busy being embarrassed about the bottle that she paid no attention to Jane changing her. Ava’s inattention robbed her of her chance to protest the massive amount of padding that was apparently normal for Briana at night. Her legs wouldn’t close around the bulky nighttime diaper with what felt like at least one booster pad inside it.

Whatever was in the bottle was not straight milk, thankfully. It was creamy and tasted like an oat milk drink or a protein shake. Either way, there was more than Ava planned on drinking before bed. Though she hated making Jane undo her work on the huge diaper, Ava felt she couldn’t let the absurd padding go without saying something.

“Uh, Briana’s dad?” Ava’s actual protest died on her lips when she realized how much her Littleness had taken over her speech. Before she could gather her wits, Jane fetched a pillow and propped Ava up on her changing blanket.

“It’s hard to drink a bottle lying down, isn’t it?” Jane patted Ava on the head. “You should be able to finish now without needing me to burp you.”

Burp me?! Embarrassed to her core, Ava hid behind her bottle. Worse, she felt obligated by her silence to start working on the bottle again. It was a good thing the stuff inside was tasty. Jane left Ava’s bedroom and gave Briana a very giggly change into her nighttime diaper out of Ava’s sight. Sucking away at her bottle on autopilot, Ava decided that she had one more out from the situation she’d let herself slide into passively. If Briana’s diaper was one centimeter smaller than Ava’s, she could protest on the grounds of fairness.

Ava’s last hope – other than actually asserting herself – was dashed when Briana crawled into the bedroom with her legs splayed by a ridiculously puffy diaper. “Ava! You look ready for snuggles!”

“How many diapers did your dad put on you, Looney Tunes?” Before Ava could grumble about Jane’s overzealous diapering directly, Briana’s dad returned from the living room. Ava had never known Jane to be anything but mild-mannered, but she couldn’t bring herself to do or say anything that might get her even slightly in trouble.

“She’s going all out tonight because of our special sleepover. Right, Daddy?” Briana grinned at the kiss Jane planted on her head by way of affirmation.

“Did you finish your bottle, Ava?” Jane asked.

“Uh – almost.” Ava held out the bottle to show the little bit left in the bottom. Surely, Jane would agree that she’d drunk enough.

Instead, Jane sat beside Ava and held the bottle to her lips. Briana scooted in to snuggle against Ava, and the Little girl found herself leaning against Jane’s chest, dutifully finishing her drink. No sooner was the bottle done than Jane brought a toothbrush to Ava’s lips. She wasn’t surprised that the toothbrush went in when she opened her mouth. What surprised Ava was that she had run out of annoyance. Begging Briana to come over with a caregiver had come from a place of emotional and physical exhaustion. It was easy to accept Jane’s help passively – more importantly, surrendering to Jane felt safe. When it was Briana’s turn to have her teeth brushed, Ava cuddled quietly against Jane’s side.

The next step was being put to bed at a frighteningly early hour. Jane sat on the edge of the bed with an honest-to-goodness storybook, and Ava had to blink away tears. She spooned close to her wiggly girlfriend, listening to the exploits of a brave little girl who journeyed to a land of monsters and taught them to bake cakes together instead of fighting.

At the story’s end, Briana trained an adorable puppy dog look on Jane. “Daddy, it’s still early. You could read us another story or sing us a song or something.”

“I’m putting you two to bed early because I expect you won’t sleep until some time after I leave.” Jane smiled indulgently and kissed both girls on the head. “Future sleepovers like this will hinge on how I find you tomorrow morning. Happy, well-rested girls will get to do this again. Tired, grumpy girls will have their next sleepover supervised.”

“We’ll be good.” Ava nodded sincerely. For more than another sleepover, it seemed important for them to be good girls for Jane. “I had a long day; I won’t be able to stay up all night.”

“Do you hear that, Briana? Ava needs sleep tonight.”

“Yes, Daddy!” Briana sounded as sincere as Ava, but she was wiggling far too much for a Little girl who was planning to sleep.

“You’ve both had a bottle and a change. Mango is already in his bed.” Jane tucked the covers up to the Little girls’ chins. “Do you need anything else before I go?”

“You said you’re coming back early tomorrow?” Ava asked.

“That’s right. More than early enough to get you both changed, fed, dressed, and off to school.” Jane stroked Ava’s hair gently.

“Then I’m good; thank you for taking care of me.”

“You’re a wonderful Little girl; it was my pleasure.” Jane planted a kiss on Ava’s cheek.

“I’m good too, Daddy! See you in the morning, and thanks for letting me sleep over!” Briana sighed happily when Jane kissed her cheek.

“Remember that you can call Veronica or myself any time tonight if necessary.” Jane packed the diaper supplies in their bag and set it on Ava’s changing blanket.

“I’m surprised you didn’t get some kind of long-distance baby monitor.” Briana giggled.

“Hmm, that’s not a bad idea, and it wouldn’t be too difficult to rig up with a hobby computer…”

“Daddy, no!” Briana laughed. “We’re having a big girl sleepover.”

Ava giggled. After everything Jane had done for her that evening, she’d never felt less like a big girl. Jane seemed just as amused, though, in her typical reserved manner, that meant a simple smile. When Jane departed, it seemed to happen as suddenly as every other phase of the evening. Ava couldn’t figure out what had her so off-guard about Jane; it could have been the German efficiency everyone teased Briana’s dad about. More likely, she was feeling too Little to anticipate the next thing coming.

The theory that Ava was overly distracted gained a lot of weight when she realized she was kissing Briana. It wasn’t a peck like Jane had given them or the exploratory kisses she and Briana had shared. Ava gasped and clung close to her girlfriend in response to the passion behind that kiss. The padding around their hips crinkled loudly as their legs entwined. Ava shivered with delight. Though everything felt good, there was something odd about the situation. Ava couldn’t identify a worry or complication, but she couldn’t bring herself to do more than passively kiss either.

“I want to touch you.” Briana squirmed restlessly against Ava. Her voice was still Little despite the activity they were heading toward.

“In naughty ways?” Ava’s brain buzzed with the realization that Briana had no intention of dropping out of Littlespace and might not be able to. That meant that Ava didn’t need to get Big, either. She’d played with people at the Green Fairy but never done more than flirted there. Leah had been accepting of Ava wearing diapers and even mommied her a couple of times, but she hadn’t wanted to have sex with a Little Ava.

“Is it okay? I don’t wanna upset you.” Briana was trembling with desire. Obviously, she was aching to put her hands all over Ava, but she was managing to be a very good girl about it.

“What kind of naughty touching do you want to do?” Ava nuzzled Briana’s neck. “Under my PJ top? Under my diaper?”

“Yes, and I want to kiss you all over.” Briana’s restless hand hesitated just under Ava’s breast. The Little girl moaned when Ava shifted to put Briana’s hand on the object of her desire.

“We promised we wouldn’t stay up too late, but we’re kinda small, especially you. I bet there’s time for kissing all over. And touching.” An electric thrill ran through Ava’s fingertips when she slipped a hand under Briana’s PJ top. She’d touched that much on Briana before, especially at the sleepover, but there was no audience or chaperone anymore.

“We can be good girls. We can be very good girls.” Briana panted, kissing Ava’s collarbone. “How much is too much for you?”

“Your dad did such a nice job with our diapers; we shouldn’t take them off.” Ava teased her fingers along the waistband of Briana’s diaper. “But they’re sturdy enough for us to reach inside if we’re careful.”

“That sounds good. For me, other than taking diapers off, you can do whatever you want.”

“Me too.” Ava kiss-bit Briana’s lip before squirming out of her PJ top. Briana caught on fast, flailing her way out of her top by the time Ava was out of hers. Skin to skin, everything was warm and tingly. Ava tangled tongues with Briana, groaning softly into the kiss. It wouldn’t be easy to be good girls and go to sleep at a reasonable hour – unless they wore each other out. Pleased at her brilliant idea, Ava pulled her girlfriend tightly against her.