The Bet - Chapter 54 (Wednesday – week 8 Part 2 of 9)

The Bet

By Karen Singer

Chapter 54 (Wednesday – week 8 Part 2 of 9)

     Mel got up from her chair with her coffee cup and went back to leaning against the counter.  “I read the email you sent me,” she told him.  “We didn’t get a chance to talk about it last night.”

      “I just feel like we need a better way to decide,” Chad told her.  “What if it’s real close?”

      “Are you expecting it to be close?” she asked.

     Chad thought about that for a second.  “No.  Not really.”

      “Well you must be worried about it since you went to all the trouble of thinking up all the scenarios and arguments you put into your email.”

      “I just got to wondering, that’s all.”

     Mel nodded.  She never intended to ask the question, but it was becoming a sore point with her.  “Why can’t you just admit defeat now so we can get on with other things?”

     Chad wasn’t at all sure what “other things” meant, but that wasn’t the point.  “But I’m not going to lose!  I can’t lose!”

      “What do you mean you can’t?”

      “I can’t!  It can’t be done!  I know that for a fact!”

      “How?”

      “Because of what I’ve read!”

      “On the internet?”

     He nodded.  “Yeah… and… because I know myself too well.”

      “So you’re basing everything on what you believe from something you read on the internet.  And you think that if it’s on the internet it must be true?”

     Chad wasn’t exactly happy about the way she had put that question.  But…  “I believe it!” he replied.  “But not just because it’s on the internet.  I just… believe it.  And because I know my body too well.”

      His basic reasons for thinking he could win were the basis of their bet.  And he still believed those reasons.  And, it looked like he still thought he could win.  But…  “And yet, you’re still worried about this bet being close?”

      “No.  Not really.  But… well… maybe I am.  I mean… what if it is close?”

      “I still think you should just admit defeat… the sooner the better!”

      “I won’t!”

      “So I guess we’re going to have to decide how were going to decide!”  It was an odd way to phrase it – but accurate.

     Chad nodded.  “Yeah.  I guess so.”

      “You know of course, the only real way is to have someone else decide for us.”

      “But that’s just the problem!  Everyone else who knows about it is going to be biased toward you!  It won’t be fair!”

     Unfortunately, he was probably all too right about that.  “But it’s still the only way!  Besides, I think you’re wrong.  More wrong than you think.”

      “Why?  Who wouldn’t do what you say?  Nobody!”

     Mel shook her head.  “I happen to know that Cassie feels more sorry for you than you think!” she told him.

      “Then can we get Cassie to decide?”

      “But that wouldn’t be fair to my side.  We need someone else to balance Cassie’s vote.”

      “So ask Sandy… I guess.”

      “I can certainly do that.  But what if it really is close and Cassie votes for you and Sandy votes for me?”

     Chad could see where she was going with this.  “So we need a third person too.  And that’s where the problem comes in… because there isn’t anyone else who wouldn’t side with you!”

     And Mel knew for a fact that he was right.  But it still remained the only way.  So now it was time for her big proposal.  “What if… we asked everyone who knows about the bet to decide… but only if they completely agree to not be biased toward either one of us.  Only if they agree to judge things on the facts and not on which of us they would like to see win.”

     Chad shook his head.  “It’ll never happen.”

      “But if it’s close, it’s the only fair way.  Besides, to be totally honest with you, if it really is close, then I want it to be decided fairly myself.  I don’t want to win just because someone is more my friend than yours.  Not only would it not be right, but… I don’t think I could live with the fact if it came out wrong.”

     There was something about the way she had said the last statement that made Chad believe her.  “But who would do that?”

      “We’ll just have to ask,” she replied.  “And believe me, if I don’t feel perfectly sure that they’re going to be nonbiased, then I don’t want them deciding this thing either.  You know,” she added, “that as much as they are my friends, they could just as easily vote against me just because they don’t believe in what we’re doing.”

     That was something that he hadn’t thought of.  And he guessed it was possible.  But overall, he was more sure that everyone would side with her.  He was screwed.  But what choice did he have?  “I guess.” he replied somewhat noncommittally.

      “Do you want me to ask everyone for you?  Or would you like to do it yourself since you’re the one most concerned about it?”

     Chad knew he would rather make sure himself, but as he thought about that, he could just picture himself trying to ask everyone…  Curtsey, ask stupidly in his sissy voice, curtsey again like an idiot.  Yeah, they would be real convinced to be serious about it then.

      “No,” he finally replied.  “You better do it.  But please… please make sure they’ll try to be honest about it!”

      “I will,” Mel agreed, “I promise.”

     Chad had no other option.  He would have to trust her.  But he was still worried about it… and he wasn’t happy about it either.  But hopefully it wouldn’t matter.  Hopefully he would win this thing easily and quickly.  All he really needed was just a few hours to completely get his body back to normal again.  Just a few hours!  Half a day at the most!  He was sure that’s all it would take.  He did still believe he would win – and easily! 

     He felt himself uncontrollably peeing again.  Yeah, he was sure he could win!  He had to win!  He had to!  Just a few hours of normalcy, that’s all it would take!

     Chad got out of his car at work with his diaper bag and his purse slung over each of his shoulders.  He was glad for the way he was dressed today – compared to the way he was dressed yesterday.  The shoes he was wearing could be a lot more comfortable, but compared to everything else, he simply felt a lot better. 

      “Hi Sissy!” one of the women he knew called as he headed toward the door.  He waved his hand and returned a quick greeting, then hurried on toward his desk.  He was a few minutes earlier than usual this morning – which was good!  Very good!  He was determined to once again greet Robin the way she wanted him to.

     He went straight past his desk to check Robin’s cubicle first – not there yet!  Good.  He was about to turn around and go back to his desk, but he decided to drop his diaper bag off on her desk first – it was only going to wind up there soon anyway.  Then he went back to his desk where he stashed his purse in his bottom drawer and hit the start button on his computer.  Then he went back out to stand in the hallway and wait for Robin.

     As Robin got out of her car, her thoughts were focused solely on Sissy – just as they had been on him all the way to work.  What would he be wearing today?  After yesterday, a small part of her wasn’t sure she wanted to find out, but a bigger part couldn’t wait.  His outfit yesterday had provided her with plenty of entertainment… the rest of the company too!

     When she finally turned the corner and saw him, she didn’t know if she was disappointed or not that he looked so… normal.  But after what had happened yesterday, it was probably for the best.  Still, there was something big in her that was disappointed.

     Chad curtseyed.  “Good morning Robin,” he said in his sissy voice before curtseying once again.

     Robin smiled.  “I can’t tell you how nice it is for someone to show me a little courtesy and respect!  Morning Sissy,” she added as she walked past him into her own cubicle.  She noticed that he had already put his diaper bag on her desk.  “You’re learning… finally!” she said as she dumped her usual armload of things on her desk.  She dug her mirror out of her large bag and checked her face and hair.  Then she stowed her bag in her desk drawer. 

     She quickly checked his diaper bag – everything looked the usual.  She looked back at him to tell him to get to work, but something about him was bothering her.  What was it?  Part of the problem was that he looked so… normal!  And maybe that was it.  That and the fact that she didn’t want to see him as normal.  But she also knew that he had things to get done.  The tiny course of action she thought up was the only thing she could think of quickly.  “What’s it going to take to get you used to keeping your thumb in your mouth whenever you’re not talking?”

     Chad said nothing, but his right thumb slowly found its way into his mouth.

     Robin nodded.  Even little things like that helped a lot!  “You still have work to do?” she asked, knowing full well that he did.

     Chad removed the thumb from his mouth and curtseyed.  “Yes. Lots.”  Curtsey – thumb back again.

      “Good!”  She pulled one of the baby bottles out of the bag and handed it to him.  “You can get started on your work just as soon as you finish this!”

     Mel yawned again as she hung up her phone after talking with another client. 

      “Need some coffee?” Andrea asked from the doorway to her office.

      “Absolutely!” Mel agreed.

      “I’ll put a fresh pot on while you sign these!” she said as she carried the stack of paperwork in and set it on the desk for her.

      “Thanks!  I appreciate it!” Mel replied.  “How bad is my schedule today?”

      “Light.  Just a few clients this morning.  You said you wanted the time to work on the latest version of the contract from Feinbaum that’s due today.  I’ll let you know as soon as it gets here.  Oh, and don’t forget, you have a fitting scheduled for later this morning for your new suits.”

      “Yeah, I remember,” Mel said as if the thought of the fitting bothered her, but actually, she found herself pleased by the appointment.  Not only was it a chance to do a bit of shopping, but it would get her away from the office and her mind off of business for a while – on a day when her brain was foggy and tired to begin with.

     Andrea left and Mel got busy on the stack of paperwork.  But she was interrupted a short while later by her phone.  “Mel,” Andrea’s voice came over the receiver, “Your friend Gloria is calling.”

      “Thanks Andrea,” Mel replied before pushing one of the buttons on her desk phone.  “Hi Gloria.”

      “Mel,” Gloria’s voice came back.  “You won’t believe what happened last night!”

     Mel realized that Gloria sounded excited by something.  “You sound like you just won the lottery or something.  What is it?”

      “I had a visitor waiting for me out in the parking lot when my last patient left.”

      “Oh?  Who?”

      “Ray!  Would you believe it?  He showed up with a bottle of Champaign!”

      “Holy cow!  You’re kidding?”

      “No!  He was there!”

      “I can’t wait to hear all about it at lunch!”

      “Eat your heart out girl, because he was here… and it was juicy!  If you know what I mean.”

     Mel laughed.  “I don’t have to eat my heart out because I had company last night too!”

      “Derek?”

      “You guessed it!”

      “Lunch girl!”

      “Definitely!  Oh… Gloria… while I’ve got you on the phone…  I wonder if you’d do a favor for me?  Well, actually, it’s a favor for both Sissy and me.”

     Gloria was instantly hesitant.  “What?”

      “Well…  Just in case this bet between us is real close, we’re looking for people who can judge us fairly and make the decision for us.  And I don’t think anyone can be more fair about this thing than you.”

      “No way!  Sorry Mel but I told you before, I’m staying as far away from your bet as I can now – aside from the little info gathering I’m doing during your sessions.  But that’s it from now on.  Sorry.”

     Mel was disappointed.  “Okay, Gloria.  Thanks.  I’ll talk to you at lunch.”  She hung up her phone.  Gloria was out.  But she had half expected that. 

     Andrea came in bearing a cup of steaming coffee.  She set it on Mel’s desk.  “At the rate you were yawning earlier, I figured I better bring this to you before you fell asleep!”

     Mel smiled.  “Thanks Andrea,” she said as she took the cup and immediately took a small sip.  “Oh, Andrea, while you’re here.  Sissy and I are looking for people to help judge our bet in case it’s a too close for us to decide on our own.  But the thing is, you’d have to be perfectly honest about it and not be biased by our relationship.

     Andrea was very surprised.  She took a moment to mull it over.  “I guess I can,” she replied.  “I do feel kind of sorry for him.  Not as much as I love hearing about what you do to him, but I guess I can try to be fair.  To tell the truth, if you had asked me to do this without asking me to be fair, I still wouldn’t do it any other way.  Yeah, I think I can be fair about it – whether it goes against you or not.  So if you don’t like that, don’t ask me.”

     Mel smiled.  “No, that’s exactly what I need… what we need.  Thanks.”

      “When is this supposed to happen?”

      “If… we need you,” Mel corrected.  “There’s only about a week and a half left.”  She looked at her calendar.  “According to the terms in the contract, he has two days to get his control back.  His first day will be a week from Friday, so if we need you to judge it will be on Saturday.  Will that be okay?”

     Andrea nodded.  “Sure.  Saturday should be good.  If you need me, let me know.”

      “Thanks, Andrea.  I appreciate it.”

      “You might not appreciate it if you lose!”

      “It doesn’t matter!” Mel replied.  “I still appreciate it.”  One down Mel thought as Andrea walked out.  Now who should I call next?

      Robin glanced at her clock.  It had been almost forty-five minutes since Sissy had finished his first bottle.  She had decided that today she was going to try to get him to drink all six bottles before he went to lunch, then make sure he finished all six again before he went home for the day.  He would get those… as well as the cups of coffee he usually got during his break periods.  She made a mental note to make sure he got a good sized drink of something with his lunch too.  She figured if that didn’t keep him wetting, nothing would!

     Since it was about time again, she gabbed another baby bottle and called over the wall.  “Sissy…”

     It was a moment before Chad could get there.  He curtseyed – like he was supposed to.  “Yes?”  Then he curtseyed again.

     Robin started to hold out the bottle for him to take, then she stopped and shook her head.  “Go back and come over here again.  And this time I want to see you turning the corner to come in with your thumb already in your mouth!”

     Totally surprised, Chad curtseyed, put his thumb in his mouth and left.  A moment later, he returned again – with his thumb still in his mouth.  Then he removed it and curtseyed again.  “Yes Robin?” he asked.  Then he curtseyed again… and reluctantly stuck his thumb back in his mouth again.

      “Much better!” Robin declared as she held out the baby bottle for him to take. 

     A moment later, Chad was slumped down on her cubicle floor with the bottle in his mouth.  It hadn’t even been an hour yet since he had finished his last bottle!  In fact, it was much less than an hour!  Why?  Was Robin bored or something and just wanted to see him acting like a fool?  His usual state? 

     His whole life lately seemed to revolve around two things – drinking baby bottles, and doing everything possible to keep wetting to make his diapers leak.  Fortunately… or unfortunately, depending on how he looked at it, the bottles helped a lot with the leaking.  The problem was though, that he didn’t want to be wetting here at work!  And even trying to hold back at all had become impossible!  With a bit of a mental sigh, he closed his eyes and resigned himself to drinking yet one more baby bottle.