"Alright folks, we're opening in less than an hour! Remember to stay in
character at all times! Most families only get one chance in their entire
life to come here so we're going to make sure they have lasting
memories!" a man yelled amongst a crowd of people.
Everyone in the crowd cheered in response and dispersed after being
dismissed by the man. A young woman by the name of Emmi Lams carefully
picked up the edges of her bright blue dress and slowly followed the
crowd. Her bright blonde hair was tied in a tight bun held by a headband
of the same color. She absolutely loved being Princess Cinderella; seeing
the bright faces of little girls and boys running up to her was such a
great feeling. Emmi was going to make sure everyone had a wonderful time
at the park, even if it meant using drastic measures...
***
Spring Break, the time of the year when students alike had a week off
from school to do whatever they want. A group of college seniors had
planned out a trip to stay at a Disneyland resort for the week. The plan
came into fruition way back when they were just freshmen. Over the past 4
years, the group had saved every bit of cash they could leading up to the
trip.
The six friends refused to sleep the night before they flew from
Baltimore, Maryland to California. Everyone but Mason was just too damn
excited and a little bit drunk as they celebrated. Mason Clark was your
average looking guy who suffered from depression but kept it hidden from
all his friends. Before going to school in Baltimore, he had grown up in
Austin, Texas. While in high school, his parents had always told him to
go outside of Texas and explore the world and that's exactly what he did.
Then there was his best friend since elementary school: Rub?n Ramirez.
The two had met in Kindergarten and had hit it off immediately. Rub?n was
a bit of a trickster and was always dragging his best friend Mason into
it. Even as a couple of twenty-four-year-olds, he still managed to get
them into some sort of trouble.
The rest of the group consisted of Addison Kade, Devin Joss, Logan
Ridley, and lastly Grant Hallos. Addison was your 4.0 GPA student who,
despite being a party girl, managed to maintain her extensive GPA. She
and Mason had a very brief history together in high school but decided it
was best to stay as friends.
Devin, Logan, and Grant met Mason and Rub?n in middle school after
getting into a lunchroom brawl. After having spent a month in the
Principal's office every day for lunch, the five realized they had quite
a bit in common and became friends. After the group turned twenty-one,
well, lots of late night drinking further strengthened their friendship.
Mason was on a plane flying back to Austin to meet up with everyone.
Right up until the plane took off, the group chat with everyone was
causing his phone to buzz almost every second. It was that or all the
snapchats from the five of them partying it up at Rub?n's apartment. When
the plane landed a few hours later and he turned off airplane mode, his
phone immediately went off with a lot of notifications. Rolling his eyes,
he put his phone back into his pocket as he waited for his chance to
depart from the plane.
After getting off the plane and getting his checked bags, he met up with
his parents who were standing right at the entrance of his gate. His mom,
Amelia Clark, ran up to him and gave him a big warm-hearted hug, as his
father, Oscar Clark, followed right behind her.
"It's so great to see you, Mason. How has college been? Are you getting
anywhere with that company you were talking about a few weeks ago? I hope
you get it, you've always wanted to be an architect, " his mom said in
rapid succession without taking a single breath.
"Honey, don't start bombarding him with questions. It can wait. It's late
and he's probably tired and jet-lagged from his long flight," Oscar
replied while winking at his son before he had a chance to talk.
Mason closed his mouth and just nodded with a smile and started to walk
with his parents to the exit. The ride home consisted of him passed out
in the backseat of the car. He was abruptly woken up by his mom after
they had pulled into the driveway of their home.
"I-I'm awake!" he said trying to save face.
"Is that what we're gonna call it? Mr. I-fell-asleep-in-the-first-thirty-
seconds-of-the-car-ride," his mom chuckled as she helped him out of the
backseat. "You can sleep in your old room; your friends will be over to
pick you up in the morning after breakfast."
He nodded sleepily and trudged into the house right behind his father.
Mason was too tired to notice or care that his folks had changed up the
place a bit since he came back for Christmas break. Going down the main
hallway, he dragged his feet across the hardwood flooring until he was
standing in front of the last door, which was blocking him from entering
his old room.
"Stupid door..." he muttered as he grabbed the handle and pushed it down.
His old room looked exactly like it always had, only with fresh sheets on
the bed. Smiling slightly, he threw his bags on the floor and undressed
till he was just in his boxers. Mason took one last look at his phone and
replied to the group chat, "Home. See you in the morning," before putting
it on silent mode and setting it down on the desk across from the bed.
Crawling under the covers and getting situated, Mason stared at the
ceiling until his eyes eventually closed and sleep overtook him.
***
Mason was woken up at 7 o'clock in the morning by the sound of someone
knocking on the bedroom door. Just as he opened his eyes, his mother
cracked the door open, "Morning sweetie! Time to get up. Your friends
will be over in just an hour."
Just barely awake, Mason grabbed the top of the sheets and ripped them
off of him. Swinging his legs off the side of the bed, he started to sit
up and ended up falling back on the bed. He just sighed and tried it
again, this time with success. Using his tired strength, he stood up and
walked towards the door leading to the hallway. Opening the door the rest
of the way, he stepped out and grabbed a door handle to his right, this
one leading right to the bathroom.
He stepped into the bathroom. The cold tiled floor made his body shiver
as his feet came into contact with it. Mason closed his eyes right as he
flipped the switch. Letting his closed eyes slowly adjust to the sudden
brightness flooding the room, he felt around for the knob to turn on the
sink faucet. Giving it a quick turn, he heard the water start to pour out
of the faucet. Mason finally opened his sleepy eyes and formed a cup with
his hands as he leaned closer to the sink.
With his cupped hands full of water, he brought it up to his face and
splashed it on him, immediately waking him up. He turned off the water
and dried his face with a hand towel before walking out of the bathroom
and going back into the bedroom to change.
Mason dug through his bags and pulled out a plain gray shirt and a pair
of clean jeans and put them on. After getting changed, he walked to the
dining room where his parents were sitting.
"Are you going to comb that messy hair of yours?" Amelia asked as she
looked up from her plate full of pancakes.
"Uhh yeah, I guess? I mean is it that bad?" Mason asked as he sat down in
the empty chair.
"Just a little there bedhead," Oscar said with a chuckle, briefly looking
up from his newspaper. "But eat first. You look like you've been starving
at that school."
He just shrugged and picked up the utensils and began to dig into the
pancakes sitting in front of him. In between bites he answered the
various questions his mom asked him. Even when he had finished the stack
of pancakes and grabbed some more she kept up with the questions.
Eventually, her mini questionnaire session came to an end, which both
Mason and his father were happy about. After he finished eating and
helping with the dishes, he went and combed his short brown hair and
styled it with some gel.
"Better?" he asked stepping back into the dining room.
"Much better, do you have all your clothes packed for the trip?" his mom
asked. She was still sitting at the dining room table working on the
crossword puzzle in the paper.
"Yes, I packed that back in Baltimore. Actually... I should probably go
grab it before I forget," he said turning around quickly and heading back
to his old room.
He returned a few moments later with his suitcase with a week's worth of
clothes, and some extras just in case, and set it down on the couch in
the living room. Mason had grabbed his phone while he was in his old room
and slipped it into his front pants pocket knowing that he'd have to
charge it on the way to the airport.
The rest of the morning consisted of Mason catching up with his parents
on what had been going on over the last few months that wasn't being
plastered over Facebook. Before long all three heard a knock on the door
and a familiar voice saying "Hola!"
"Come in Rub?n!" Amelia shouted from across the room.
Rub?n entered swiftly, shutting the door behind him. "What's up
everyone?! How's my bro been?" he said delightfully.
"Busting my ass at school, you?" Mason replied, standing up and giving
his best friend a hug.
"Living the dream, working part time at my Papi's mechanic shop while I
go to school to be a real certified mechanic," Rub?n said proudly while
returning the hug.
"Glad you stopped over, Rub?n. It feels like it's been way too long since
we last saw you. You know you can stop over at any time and come visit
your 'adopted' family," Oscar said with a smile while struggling to get
out of his recliner.
Rub?n just laughed and walked over and helped Mr. Clark out of his chair
and right into a hug. After they finished hugging, Amelia protested that
she better get a hug from her "son" before they took off.
"Of course! I wouldn't dare to not hug my adopted mom," Rub?n said with a
chuckle before walking over and giving Amelia a hug.
"Mase, make sure you double check that you have everything," his father
reminded him.
Mason just nodded and unzipped his suitcase for the trip and went through
everything for the umpteenth time just to make his parents satisfied. A
piece of paper that he had stashed under a pile of clothes slipped out
and he quickly buried it. Repacking everything else nicely once again, he
zipped the suitcase back up and picked it up.
"You ready?" he asked his friend, clearly wanting to get on with the
trip.
Before the two friends left to meet up with everyone else back at Rub?n's
apartment, both gave Mason's parents one last hug before quickly making
their way out the front door. Finally out of the house, the two quickly
hopped into Rub?n's 99' El Camino and drove off.
***
"You looking forward to this?" Rub?n asked as he got behind the wheel.
"Yeah man, of course I am," Mason replied. "We've been planning this trip
for years, of course I'm looking forward to it."
"I don't know what it is, I'm just not getting the vibe that you're hyped
up for this," Rub?n said as they drove through the tree-lined streets
leading away from the Clark homestead.
"I'm just tired man, seriously, who are you; my friend or my wife?" Mason
managed a chuckle. "I'll perk up; I just need to catch up on my sleep and
I just got over a cold last week."
"I noticed the red eyes; wasn't going to say anything cause it looked
like you had been crying or something," Rub?n said.
Mason cleared his throat, "Nah, don't stress out, we're going to have a
good time. I've been looking forward to this."
Rub?n shot his friend a sideways glance, but decided against pressing the
issue any further. He had known Mason long enough to know when something
wasn't right, but he couldn't quite put a finger on it just yet. He was
confident that by the time they were in California for a day or two, he'd
have it and could then put whatever it was right.
Rub?n rubbed his callused hands back and forth over the hard knobs on the
steering wheel before running a hand through his jet black hair. He
wasn't very tall, just 5'9" and while he weighed around 200 lbs, he wore
it well with a thick chest and broad shoulders.
Rub?n was wearing a pair of jeans and a black and white striped button
down shirt that he adjusted by sticking his neck in and out as they
passed into the heavier traffic around Rub?n's apartment.
"When's everybody supposed to be at your place?" Mason asked.
"Any time now...Addison will probably already be there, standing around
tapping her foot impatiently so get ready for her to chew our asses out,"
Rub?n laughed. Addison was always the first person ready to go. She knew
every movie trivia question because she was always at the theater 30
minutes early.
"Ha Ha, don't have to remind me," Mason added. He and Addison had dated
briefly before deciding that they were better off as just friends.
As they pulled up outside Rub?n's apartment building, he pointed to a
silver Honda Civic. "Told you she'd be here"
"Does she have a key to your place?" Mason asked.
"Yeah, I gave her one last year when I went to San Diego for my sister's
wedding; someone had to feed my fish and I wasn't going to trust Grant
with an important job like that," Rub?n said with a wide smile.
"No...that would be bad," Mason agreed, shaking his head.
***
"What took you so long?" Addison demanded, tapping her foot on the floor
as the two guys walked in.
Rub?n looked over at Mason with the guiltiest "I told you so" look before
grinning ear to ear. "Well, I had to drive around town to pick up Mason,
besides the other two aren't even here so chillax, Addy."
Addison swept her shoulder-length blonde hair behind her left shoulder as
she responded with a "Hmph!" before asking her ex-boyfriend how he was
doing since they last talked. Mason just shrugged his shoulders and tried
to avoid the conversation. He and Addison had been talking about his
depression for quite some time. She was the only one out of the group of
friends that actually knew what was going on, but Mason had made her
swear she would never tell another soul.
She frowned a little at him obviously skirting around her question, but
decided not to further press the issue. Addison knew how important it was
to him that Rub?n didn't know what was going on. Just as she finished
that thought, there was a loud knocking on the door followed by the last
three of the group to show up.
Devin, Logan, and Grant strolled right through the front door and each
one gave Mason a big bro hug. Devin was pretty stocky; wide shoulders and
a large build. Many times people asked him if he played on the college
football team and he'd always deny it. Logan and Grant actually were on
their college football team. Logan was the punter while Grant was the
backup quarterback.
After everyone finished catching up, they all walked out of Rub?n's
apartment. Logan had called shotgun right as they stepped into the
hallway and had charged out the front door of the apartment building with
Devin right on his tail.
"Oh hell no!" Devin shouted as he charged right after Logan.
"Good to see they still act like kids," Mason chuckled as the rest of
them followed at a normal walking pace.
Mason's comment made the others crack up as they all threw their bags
into the back of Grant's bright red Dodge Durango. They then all piled
into the vehicle, Logan having rightfully claimed his seat right up front
next to Grant while Devin purposely sat behind him to torment him. Rub?n
and Mason sat next to Devin while Addison had crawled into the very back.
Due to her small size compared to everyone else, she could actually fit
comfortably in the far back seats.
"Attention passengers. Please make sure you're buckled up before we
proceed with the ride to... MOTHER FUCKIN' DISNEYLAND!!!" said Grant in
his best imitation of a tour guide before shouting in excitement.
"YEAH!" the rest cheered, except Mason who's cheer was almost a whisper.
"Alright then, let's get the hell out of here!" Grant cheered back as he
put the key into the ignition and started up the car. Putting it into
reverse and carefully making sure there was no one running behind the
car, he slowly backed up out of the parking stall. Then they were off.
***
The group made it to the Austin International Airport about two hours
before their scheduled flight. They wanted to make sure they could get
through security in a decent amount of time and Grant had to find a
parking spot in one of the parking garages. His parents were coming to
pick it up the very next day so he wasn't really worried.
Grabbing their bags from the back, they all walked to the nearest
elevator in the parking garage that would take them to the floor with the
catwalk that attached the buildings together. They were parked up on the
sixth floor and they needed to get to the second floor. After spending a
few minutes trying to find the nearest elevator, the group finally
managed to find one and piled into it.
"Would this be the worst time to fart?" Devin chuckled as everyone stared
at him in disgust.
"I swear to fuck..." Rub?n said still staring at him.
"I'm just kidding. Calm your tits," he replied smiling big.
Before anyone else was about to respond they heard the ding of the
elevator signal that they had made it to their designated floor. Mason
was the first to get out and didn't wait for the others as they followed
out one by one. Rub?n shouted out for him to wait up but it seemed to
have fallen on deaf ears as he kept walking.
Addison whispered to him, "Just leave him alone for a bit he'll come
around. You know how he is."
"What's his deal anyway?" one of the guys asked as they followed a few
steps behind Mason.
Mason let out a sigh as he heard his friends talking about him. He knew
they cared but they just didn't understand what he was going through.
It's not like he could just explain it to them either... He made it to
the doorway that led into the airport and pulled it open, keeping it
propped open with his foot. The others had caught up and no one said a
word as all six walked into the airport.
The first step was to get their bags checked which looked like it was
going to take a while with how big the lines were. Everyone got into line
and started to talk a bit but in hushed tones. It felt like an hour had
passed before they made it to the front of the line and got their bags
checked in. Once their bags were checked, they went over to a boarding
pass kiosk and printed out their plane boarding passes and checked what
gate they had to go to.
"Gate B12. Well, that's decently close," was the first words Mason had
said since they had stepped foot into the airport.
Everyone turned and looked at him with surprise, no one was expecting him
to talk, especially when he was having one of his "silent moments". Rub?n
patted him on the shoulder and nodded and led the way to Gate B12.
Getting through the TSA portion of the airport went by a lot faster than
any of them were expecting. Logan had even made a joke that they didn't
stop Rub?n because he wasn't white like the rest of them. He just
shrugged and responded with "it's cause they can't see my tats and I'm
surrounded by all of you."
Mason and Addison both rolled their eyes while Devin chuckled at his
comment. Out of the TSA section, they made their way to Gate B of the
airport. They still had about a half hour before their flight was
scheduled to start boarding so they went and found a spot where they all
could sit together. When they sat down, Mason had slipped a pair of
earbuds out of his pocket and put them in his ears, followed by plugging
it into his phone. He spent a few seconds on his phone browsing his music
selection before selecting his favorite band
It was just a little after noon when a lady behind a podium near Gate B12
announced they were going to start boarding and that anyone with small
children or who needed assistance to board first, followed by those who
had Group 1 on their boarding pass.
"Well, we're in Group 2 so that's not too bad," Addison stated looking at
her boarding pass. "Estimated arrival is a little under three hours, so
we won't be very jet lagged. We could walk around the park for a bit. Or
do nothing. We have all week!"
"Yeah, we do!" Rub?n cheered and nudged Mason.
"Huh? Wha-?" Mason replied, taking out one of his earbuds.
"We have the entire week to do whatever we want!" Rub?n reiterated, his
voice having a hinge of annoyance behind it.
"Oh... Yeah, we do." Mason agreed before putting his earbud back in and
continuing ignoring his friends.
"Rude much," Addison said shooting Mason a nasty glare before continuing
on her conversation with everyone else.
Everyone continued talking until their group was called, the five were
honestly debating on telling Mason that they were starting to board.
Deciding to be the better person, Rub?n shook him again and pointed to
the giant TV that said "Now boarding Group 2" before walking away to get
in line with everyone else.
Mason quickly paused his tunes and stood up, pulling his earbuds out of
his ears and shoving them into his pockets. A random stranger let him in
front of her so he could be right behind his friends. He turned around to
graciously thank her with a bright smile. The woman appeared to be in her
50's and just smiled back.
Turning back around, Mason was staring at the back of Grant's head who in
turn was staring at the back of Devin's head.
Grant had noticed who was behind him after turning his head slightly and
gave Mason a half smile. "Dude what's up with you? You've been kind of a
dick ever since we left Rub?'s apartment," his friend whispered as they
took a step forward.
"It's nothing... Just trying to unwind for the trip, you know?" Mason
replied, having once again successfully skirting around what was really
bothering him.
The two took another step forward, both getting their boarding passes
ready to give to the lady at the podium who was scanning the barcodes on
them. In just a few short minutes the two were following everyone else
down the walkway and eventually into the plane itself.
As they stepped onto the plane, the pilot and the stewardesses gave them
warm smiles and welcomed them onto the aircraft. Mason just nodded with a
slight smile before slowly walking through the plane to his assigned
seat. While passing through what was obviously First Class, he took
another look at his ticket and saw he was in seat 28D which after looking
up was right next to Rub?n who was sitting next to the window.
Finally getting to his seat next to his best friend, Mason looked around
and saw that Addison and Logan were right across the aisle from them
while Devin and Grant were in the seats right in front of them.
"This is going to be a long flight. I can already tell..." Mason thought
as he buckled up and leaned his head back into the headrest and closed
his eyes.
"I hope you plan on talking to us when we actually land, Mace," Rub?n
said in a concerned tone.
Mason just nodded not bothering to open his eyes. Soon everyone was on
board and with the door closed, the stewardesses began their normal
flight instructions. When that was done, the pilot announced that the
weather in California was bright and sunny at a nice 75 degrees out. Then
the plane gave a slight lurch as it started to back out of the gate
before slowly creeping along the runway.
***
The plane landed a good ten minutes ahead of schedule which didn't do
much good for the group when they were stuck waiting for people to get
their carry-ons out of the luggage bins and move out of the way. Devin
and Grant had somehow managed to get by quite a few people and were off
the plane before the rest of them. When they were of the plane, Devin
texted the group chat that they'd get everyone's bags off the baggage
claim if they weren't off the plane by then.
"How the hell did they manage that?" Addison asked the others as they
stood up, waiting for their turn to step into the aisle and get off the
plane.
"No freaking clue but hopefully they get our bags," Logan sighed. "How's
Mr. Quiet doing over there?"
Mason who was staring at the front of the plane, turned and looked over
at Logan. "He's doing fine."
Logan rolled his eyes and turned away from him. It wasn't before long
that their turn to get off the plane had come and they slowly walked out
of the plane. Eventually, they met up with Devin and Grant at the baggage
claim. They were off to the side with everyone's luggage in front of
them, both with bright beaming smiles on their faces.
"What took you so long?" Devin asked with his still big smile.
Rub?n flipped them off as they walked up. The two just laughed it off and
gave everyone their luggage.
"So there's a shuttle that'll take us directly to the park/resort and it
leaves here in fifteen-minute intervals." Grant told everyone.
"Fucking awesome," Logan replied, pumping his fist in the air.
"What are we waiting for? Let's go!" Rub?n cheered.
For once Mason was not behind everyone and seemed to be excited. Rub?n
quickly noticed, "See Mace? As soon as we got here you'd turn that frown
upside down."
"Yeah, just in a weird funk is all." he lied while leading the group to
the shuttle station. He figured it'd be easier to just fake that he was
happy then ruining everyone else's vacation. As they were walking up to
the shuttle station, the shuttle had just started to pull in.
"Holy shit what timing, right?" Grant joyfully said as he ran up to the
vehicle.
Everyone else ran after him, the shuttle driver opened the door and
welcomed the group on board. They all piled into empty seats and after a
few more people got on, the shuttle driver closed the door and after
making sure there was no traffic coming, pulled away from the station.
The drive from the airport to the actual park wasn't very long, probably
twenty minutes or so. Most of the group was too busy looking at all the
sights speeding by as the driver sped down the highway.
"If you look straight ahead folks you can see Disneyland!" the driver
announced; his finger up against the windshield.
"Holy shit! The castle is bigger than I could have imagined." Logan
stated as he looked out the front windshield in awe.
"Wow... that's what she said!" Grant said while trying hard not to laugh.
He got quite a few dirty looks from the other people on the shuttle but
he just shrugged it off and kept staring forward as they got closer and
closer to the castle.
When they arrived at the resort, the group were the first ones off the
shuttle and Addison gave him a nice tip even though she didn't need to.
The driver thanked her with a big smile and wished them a very happy trip
as the rest of the people got off. After making sure everyone was
accounted for and that they all had their bags still, the group made
their way into the building.
***
"Is this really our suite?" Rub?n asked as he opened the door to their
suite and stepped inside.
He walked over to a nearby couch and put his suitcase onto it before
walking around the open space. Mason was the last in and shut the door
behind him and locked it. Turning back around, the others were all
looking around their new home for the week.
The first thing he noticed was that the different rooms were separated by
giant wooden doors that seemed to slide out of the wall. Mason thought
that was pretty neat as he watched Devin and Grant messing around with
one of them. Stepping further into the suite, he saw that the coffee
table in the middle of what he assumed was the living room was in the
shape of Mickey Mouse's head.
He chuckled, it made sense, they were technically in Disneyland. As he
walked even further in, he heard a shout from across the suite, it
sounded like Rub?n but it was too hard to tell. Right as Mason was about
to investigate who was yelling, his friend stepped into the doorway that
led elsewhere and told everyone to come check out the bathroom.
The bathroom was quite the sight to see. The floor was a gray tile that
spanned the entire room and up the wall. The shower looked like it could
fit three people in their comfortably, which Grant stated they should try
at some point with a sly look on his face. All but Addison busted out
laughing.
"You guys are a bunch of doofuses," she said sternly before turning and
walking out of the bathroom.
"Oh well. Not the worst thing she's called us. But we should get going to
the park and scope it out." Devin said as the group filtered out of the
room.
The other guys agreed and started heading towards the exit of the suite.
Mason alerted Addison on what they were up to and she followed him as
they left the suite. If it weren't for the fact that there were signs
posted on where to go to get to the actual park, the group would have
gotten immediately lost. But they managed to find their way to the
entrance that was connected to the resort.
As they entered the park, they were immediately greeted by park staff
dressed up as various Disney characters. Everyone but Mason felt this
weird surge of happiness, like, they were actually in Disneyland, there
was no way they couldn't be happy.
"Hey Splash Mountain is the closest, otherwise there's that Dumbo ride
for kids. I don't think they'd really mind if a bunch of adults went and
rode it, do you?" Rub?n asked as they stopped near a tree in the middle
of the midway.
They stood there for a bit discussing what they wanted to do. Mason had
briefly glanced over at the Cinderella waving to children and taking
pictures with them nearby.
***
Emmi who was still dressed up as Princess Cinderella noticed one of the
park guests didn't look really happy despite keeping up quite the
appearance. As she greeted other guests who walked past her, she saw the
man was walking with a group of others and immediately decided that he
needed some of her magic. With a wave of her hand, she watched the group
begin to change...
***
"We should go get our picture taken with Cinderella! That would be
awesome!" Logan said suddenly.
Devin smiled "Sweet!" he added.
Mason sighed "You really want to stand in line to get your pictures taken
with Cinderella?" he said already exhausted. "I thought we were heading
to Splash Mountain?"
"Come on Daddy! It'll be fun!" Addison said, her voice slightly higher
than usual.
"What did you just call me?" Mason said. His eyes locked with Addison's
and for a brief moment, her eyes conveyed pure terror before softening as
a wide smile crossed her mouth. "Um" was all she said but she began to
pivot her foot back and forth off of her big toe.
Mason stared at her slightly confused by her expression and mannerisms
"What...what are you doing?" he asked.
"Um...dude," Rub?n said from behind him.
Mason spun and saw that same look of confusion and terror on his best
friends face.
"Something is seriously fucked up right now," Rub?n said softly.
"What are you talking about?!" Mason said coming closer. "What's going
on?"
"I don't know man, but I don't feel right," Rub?n said nervously. "I feel
all tingly and shit and my stomach is flipping up and down" he pressed
down and in on his stomach through his black and white striped shirt and
grimaced.
Mason got even closer, his mouth opening in shock as he began to see
light blonde hairs begin to sprout out of Rub?n's head as he bent
forward. The previously jet black hair on his friend's head was growing
out long and blonde. "Oh...oh shit!"
Mason leaned forward and put his hand out. He gently ran his fingers over
a few of the growing strands but he jerked his hand back as if shocked as
he felt the hairs grow and entwine over his fingers like a spinning vine.
Rub?n's head suddenly shot up and Mason jumped when he saw that his eyes
had changed into a bright blue color. The eyes conveyed shock and
confusion as he said: "What's going on man?"
"I..." Mason took a weak and stumbling step backward "I don't know" he
spun around and saw confused looks on all of his friend's faces.
Logan was now wearing a pair of Minnie Mouse ears on top of his head, the
bright pink bow set slightly off center to the left. His hand went up and
tapped them gingerly.
Devin, still wide and stocky was tugging on an insanely tight bright
green t-shirt with a glitter outlined Tinkerbell on it while Addison's
plain blue top was now emblazoned with Elsa on it.
Grant took a step backward, his eyes becoming glassy as he shook his
head. The backup quarterback, a big guy at 6'2" and 210 LBS now began to
shrink.
Grant had been the tallest of the group but his size began to diminish,
his clothes shrinking right along with him but with no other changes
besides getting smaller.
Rub?n now stood up straight and came up to stand next to Mason. He put
his hand on his shoulder getting Mason's attention.
Mason turned and jumped again, barely holding in a scream. "What
the...?!"
Rub?n's face was softening and changing shape before his eyes. The blonde
hair was now sweeping forward over his forehead; a forehead that was
lightening in skin tone. His eyebrows were thinning, arching and turning
a very light blonde as well.
Rub?n's cheeks drained of his usual tan coloring as pink came into them
while they lifted and rounded off to apple shaped perkiness. His nose
thinned greatly across the bridge and pulled up from the bottom into a
pert, slightly upturned end.
His chin rounded and his jawline softened as all traces of hair and
stubble vanished. He quickly snapped his teeth together, teeth which were
getting smaller as his mouth shrank down and his lips plumped up.
Bright pink lips soon concealed those small straight white teeth as even
his ears shrank down and pulled up as gold hoop earrings appeared in
them.
"Rub?n? Are you okay?" Mason said putting his hands on Rub?n's shoulders
and gripping tightly.
"Something really..." he coughed and cleared his throat "...strange?!"
his hands shot and clutched his throat as his voice changed mid-word.
Rub?n's bright blue eyes bulged in surprise at the sound of his voice.
The color of his skin continued to change and lighten down his body. "My
Tats!!" he yelled as the tattoos that lined his arms began to fade
lighter and lighter even as his arms and shoulders and chest began to
thin and diminish in size.
Rub?n ran his hands frantically up and down his thinning and whitening
arms. "What's happening to me Honey?" he asked before stopping dead in
his tracks.
"Honey?" Mason said amazed at hearing a female voice call him honey.
Mason watched Rub?n diminish in size. A few inches ticked off his overall
height but it was more the modification to his muscled, barrel-chested
frame that had Mason's attention.
Rub?n's chest caved inward taking his shoulders and back with them and
making his frame rather slight. The sleeves of his shirt now lifted up
exposing his smooth and thin upper arms. The black stripes merged until
the shirt became a totally white sleeveless blouse. Rub?n's eyes bulged
anew and he squirmed trying to get to one of the arm holes. He pulled it
down and to the side enough to show both of them that he was now wearing
a white bra.
"What does this mean? Why..." he trailed off. Rub?n looked down; he
slowly raised his hands to the neck of his loose fitting shirt and pulled
it forward so he could peer down and inside.
"Ah...AH!" was the only sound he could manage to make as he saw flesh
begin to rise up in mounds on the front of his chest.
To Rub?n's wide eyes, the skin lifted, goosebumps breaking out across
them as his nipples puffed and his areolas widened. More and more weight
shifted forward; he could almost hear his skin stretching to accommodate
them until he lost sight of the nipples as they pressed into the front of
the waiting satin cups. He felt the support afforded by his new bra as
his breasts settled in. "Tits?!" he looked around "Tits for Tats?!"
"I'm turning into a..." Rub?n looked to Mason "...a woman?!"
Mason couldn't comprehend what was happening to Rub?n, but he had almost
forgotten that he had help behind him, or at least he thought he did.
"Guys!" he shouted but no response "Guys you have to help me here!"
No one came forward; Mason heard nothing behind him as Rub?n put his
hands up and watched them thin and soften. The hard-earned calluses
disappeared into soft smooth palms and his constantly scraped up fingers
and dirty nails also changed into long, thin and delicate fingers topped
off by a light feminine coating of pink blush nail polish.
A single change happened to Mason at that moment, but he was too
distracted to notice it; a simple band of gold wrapped around his left
ring finger.
Rub?n felt his stomach pulling in as his hips pulled out. They jutted out
and threw him forward as his ass began to grow larger and rounder. His
simple pair of jeans began to rise up, exposing his hairy legs as they
crawled upward eventually changing into a pair of blue cotton shorts.
"Fu..." Rub?n panted and shook his head, his blonde hair flying wildly
back and forth "Oh my" he finished much more modestly.
He bent at the waist as his penis went numb. New feelings and sensations
then broke forth in a wave that began at the base of his spine and shot
forward like a wave. His testicles tingled and began to lift, rising up
closer to his body as his penis shrunk and pulled back.
Rub?n's hands flailed outside for a moment before he attempted to tuck
them inside and dig away. By the time his hand got under his shorts, his
boxers had pulled up and changed into a pair of simple cotton panties.
His fingers touched the now taut skin of his scrotum just as his
testicles sucked up and inside his changing body. His penis was nothing
but a nub as his skin now began to fold and rearrange itself. Butterflies
exploded in Rub?n's stomach as his body reprogrammed and repurposed
itself. A uterus formed along with ovaries and fallopian tubes. His penis
became his clitoris as his vagina and vulva took shape.
"Oh God," he said taking his hand out from his shorts.
Mason still stared as he watched his friend shrink again, losing more
height as his legs changed. His thighs plumped and became full and round
as his calves trimmed and lifted. All hair vanished leaving behind
nothing but smooth pale and soft skin.
His socks vanished and his black Converse sneakers changed into a pair of
black sandals, well-worn and broken in as his hairy and knobby feet began
to shrink as well. The few hairs on his big toes thinned to nothing as
his feet softened and pulled in along the back and sides. His toes shrank
and his nails thinned, trimmed and changed shape.
The same pink blush color nail polish now appeared on his small feminine
toes and he lifted them up and gave them a slight wiggle.
Mason cleared his throat and Rub?n looked up at him. A thin gold band and
a small diamond ring both appeared on her left hand "Mason?" she said
cautiously.
"Ruby" he replied knowing deep down that it was her name now.
***
"I..." Ruby said turning her hands over and back before her face while
her eyes scanned up and down her new body "I...holy shit what's happening
to them!" she pointed behind Mason.
Mason now swung around, Addison, Devin, Logan, and Grant were all
standing still in shock but all were beginning to get smaller. "Addy?" he
said focusing his attention on his former girlfriend.
Addison cocked her head and looked up at Mason, her hair beginning to
thin and lighten. She looked down and pulled out her shirt and a look of
confusion crossed her face as she took in the portrait of a smirking
Queen Elsa on it. Her Capri jeans began to creep up her legs and tighten,
stopping just above her knees and her designer brown sandals turned into
a pair of pink jellies. "What the...?" she managed to say.
"I'm getting little," she said in a voice that continued to pitch up. Her
features were rounding and softening as they lost maturity rapidly. Her
cheeks went from sleek to puffy and chubby and her brown eyes turned blue
and narrowed above her shrinking nose.
Addison's lips thinned, almost surrounded by her cheeks they came in as
her teeth shrank down. She soon lost her two front upper teeth as the
rest became baby teeth in her mouth. Her earring vanished as her ears
shrank down minuscule on the sides of her small face.
Addison rapidly lost height, shrinking down from 5'4". Her breasts pulled
inward as her chest and back shrank down. Her arms pulled up and muscles
turned weak. Her hands puffed up and her fingers pulled back.
Her hips pulled in along with her stomach as she lost her curves of
adulthood and maturity. Her rear pulled in flat as her legs shrank and
weakened as well. "Daddy?" she questioned looking up at Mason before
looking beyond him to Ruby "Mommy?" she asked.
Her changed clothes shrunk in tandem with her body, changing and
modifying as they went. Her bra disappeared when it was no longer
necessary and her panties kept up with her changes as well changing from
Victoria's Secret to ones with hearts and kitties on them.
Her body reversed through puberty; her body lost functionality as
butterflies lifted in her stomach, taking with them all thoughts and
concerns of adulthood. Her legs lost definition and became the chubby
legs of a six-year-old girl.
Her feet shrank down inside the cheap jelly sandals, her nail polish
changed from expensive to pink glitter that was chipped and peeled.
Addy put her hands on her hips "We weren't going to Splash Mountain; you
said we could ride the Dumbo ride!"
She looked to her right and said "Tell em, Dana"
Devin looked at the small girl next to him and then to Mason and Ruby.
His mouth opened and shut but no words exited. With a shudder that
wracked his entire body, he too began to shrink and compress down.
The stocky build began to pull up and in as he lost size and mass in
sudden bursts.
Mason was even more amazed as he watched a greater transformation take
hold of Devin. "That's not a boy's face," he thought as he watched
Devin's facial features begin to change.
His narrow brown eyes widened with expressive wonder as thick eyelashes
filled in over baby blue eyes. His short brown hair grew long but thin,
coming down in waves over his shoulders changing to blonde as it went.
His thick and broad nose, broken a few times during fights as a kid first
straightened before pulling up and back and shrinking down super small as
chubby cheeks also became his.
Small and thin pink lips, now covered in glittery lip gloss appeared as
all of his teeth changed into baby teeth. His chin was more pointed than
Addy's but their smiles matched.
Devin's body shuddered and shrank, shuddered and shrank as height and
weight came off in waves taking his body down smaller and smaller each
time. His pants flashed a bright pink and changed to shorts and his white
sneakers became a glittery pair of cheap jelly sandals that matched
Addy's but yet looked a bit more worn out.
"They were Addy's and they got passed down to her...little sister"
flashed through both Mason and Ruby's minds simultaneously.
"Oh God" Ruby whispered as Devin continued his downward journey. His
small and thin arms pulled up allowing his bright green and glittery
Tinkerbell shirt to keep getting smaller around him.
"What ride are we going to next Mommy?" he asked; his high-pitched and
innocent voice in stark contrast with his still changing body.
Devin's legs pulled up and in, his hips, stomach, rear and chest still
getting smaller. "This is impossible!" Mason thought as Devin lost a
tremendous amount of size in such a short span of time.
His feet became tiny, his legs short and thin "My Pe..." he began, a look
of shock on his innocent looking childish face.
"We don't talk about that Dana!" Addy yelled "Don't get in trouble!" she
stomped her small foot.
Devin's penis and testicles had vanished under his tiny pink shorts
changing Devin into 4-year-old Dana.
"Devin man..." Mason said weakly looking down at the girl even smaller
than Addison.
Ruby's attention now shifted to Logan, whose eyes rolled up and back. His
shaggier brown hair began to lighten and thin, turning much lighter than
even the other two's hair. It was almost white and as his eyes refocused,
they too had turned blue.
Logan had a lean and lithe build, his powerful and muscular legs allowed
him to be a punter for a college football team, but now, those muscles
weakened to the point where he was having trouble even standing. His
knees wobbled as he began the same pattern as Devin of shudder and
shrink, shudder and shrink.
Logan's white t-shirt now had the body of Minnie Mouse leading up to the
collar where his face would take Minnie's place. His khaki cargo shorts
changed into simple purple cotton ones that hugged up close and tight on
his thighs.
His legs and feet began to diminish, his sneakers changed into the same
glittery jelly sandals but now they looked like they were on their last
legs.
Smaller and smaller he became, his face passing even toddler status and
looking downright babyish in appearance. His blue eyes crinkled when he
smiled against the sun, his lips thinning, his teeth changing to baby
teeth where not even all of those had come in yet. His nose just a tiny
button.
All muscle definition was lost as his arms, legs and body contracted and
shrank through adolescence stages down to that of a 2-year-old.
Logan's boxer shorts puffed up and out, changing into a diaper as he too
lost his penis and testicles along with his adult cares and worries.
A stroller sat unnoticed by Ruby behind her which now contained her purse
and a diaper bag as Logan sat down hard on the pavement. An instinct
overcame her and she rushed over to Lily who sat confused on the warm
pavement.
"Grant?" Mason said turning his attention to the last friend on the right
as Ruby fussed over Lily.
Grant had stood perfectly still as he began to get smaller and younger,
but unlike the others, his clothes did not change. He still wore a black
t-shirt and jeans and sneakers that steadily shrank with him.
"Grant?" Mason snapped his fingers but got no response at all.
Grant was shrinking rapidly, his face a blank slate. Smaller and smaller
he went; first getting smaller than Addison, then Dana, then even Lilith.
"Say something Grant!" Mason yelled at his dwindling friend.
Grant's head turned slightly and in a flash, all his clothes vanished
leaving a small and naked female infant.
"Oh Shit," Mason said. He crouched down to reach for Grant and then...he
was gone.
Mason scrambled backward. At the same time, he saw Ruby lurch forward and
heard her yell out "WHOA!" as he said, "What the..."
Mason was on his rear end "Where did he go...what happened to Grant?"
***
Ruby was crouched down soothing Lily. Out of the corner of her eye, she
saw Grant getting smaller and smaller until she suddenly felt pushed
forward with a great shove in her back.
"WHOA!" she yelled and put her hands down to catch herself as a wave of
nausea and pressure slammed into her.
Her weight shifted forward, her center of gravity changed drastically and
she heard that same skin stretching sound as before when her breasts had
arrived. "What the fuck?" she muttered as she heard Mason behind her
scrambling and calling for Grant.
Time swirled and it took every ounce of strength to keep from passing out
due to the sudden change and realization to what had just happened to her
body.
Ruby looked down and saw her loose shirt was no longer loose; it was now
quite tight over her swollen and pregnant belly. "Mason," she said
quietly.
Mason was still scrambling around and looking frantically for Grant.
Ruby stuck her hand up in front of him and as calmly as she could said
"Help me up" as she got onto her knees.
Mason looked down at the hand "What?" he said for the umpteenth time but
he took it and lifted, somewhat surprised at the weight behind it.
"You've got to help me find Grant, he disappeared!"
"Mason," Ruby said.
"Help me find Grant!" Mason repeated.
"I know where Grant's at," Ruby said.
Mason spun around looking her in the eyes. He put his hands on her
shoulders "Where is he?" he said frantically.
Ruby simply looked down.
Mason's eyes trained down "Whoa!" he said taking a step back upon seeing
her now bulging belly.
Ruby put her hand beneath it and supported her pregnant bulge. She looked
back up and into Mason's eyes. Tears formed in her own "I have never been
more scared and confused in my entire life" she said.
"Uh" Mason was shocked and dumbfounded, He staggered back only to have 6-
year-old Addison come rushing up to him.
"Come on Daddy," she said taking him by the hand.
Four-year-old Dana now rushed up the other side and took his left and
pulled "Yeah...you said we could go see Dumbo Daddy"
"Umbo...Umbo..." Two-year-old Lily said as she happily clapped standing
up. "No roller" she pointed to the stroller.
Mason looked at Ruby with pleading eyes "What the hell are we going to
do?"
***
If Ruby responded, Mason didn't hear her as he was practically dragged
away by Addy and Dana. The line for the Dumbo ride was starting to clear
up by the time the three walked over. Addy and Dana continued to pull
Mason until they were in line. The two little girls were super giddy with
excitement and kept talking about how excited they were to ride the ride.
Mason, on the other hand, was absolutely terrified. To him, all of this
was one huge nightmare that he'd wake up from in the comfort of the bed
back in the resort suite. There was just no logical explanation for what
he just witnessed.
First, there was watching Rub?n turning into a woman, then watching
Addison reverse in age. Mason's thought immediately stopped there as he
remembered the look in Addison's eyes right after she first called him
"Daddy".
"And now look at her," he thought. "She's a six-year-old girl with no
recollection of ever being the twenty-something woman she formerly was."
His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Addison and Dana yelling
for him to move up. Blinking a few times and quickly shaking his head as
if he just woke up. Mason noticed he was a good ten feet behind the
girls. A brief sense of fatherly worry passed through him as he walked
forward.
"What would their mother think if something happened to them all because
you're in La-La Land?" the thought rushing through Mason's head.
Again he stopped. Wondering why he even thought that. He didn't have very
long as Dana grabbed his hand and kept a hold of it.
"What's wrong Daddy?" Dana asked sweetly while looking up at him with her
bright blue eyes.
"N-nothing..." he lied, looking down at her. Something about looking at
the four-year-old girl made his heart melt, as if he'd had this undying
love for the little girl and would do anything to keep her safe. Looking
over at Addison, who looked like she was getting impatient waiting in
line, he noticed he felt the same way about her.
Eventually, the three were at the front of the line and the two young
girls were super excited to finally get on the ride. The attendant was
just as eager to get the three into their "Dumbo". Dana was the first to
crawl into the ride followed by Addison and then Mason. After making sure
everyone was properly seated the attendant walked away to start the ride.
As the ride began, Addison grabbed the plastic stick in front of them
that controlled whether they went up or down. She slammed it upward and
the three got higher and higher.
Mason looked out beyond the ride to see if he could see Ruby and Lilith.
It wasn't until the second time they went around in a circle that he
noticed they were over by Cinderella.
"I wonder how she's handling all of this?" he thought as he turned his
head back to the two little girls squealing in delight as Dana grabbed
the controls.
***
"Where are you?" Ruby said in a daze as the two small blonde girls
grabbed Mason by the hands and led him off. "I need...I need to...uh..."
her hand went to her temple and she flipped her hair away from her face.
"I need to think" she finally said with a long sigh.
Crowds of people pushed around her, claustrophobia and panic began to set
into her chest "I can't breathe" she said panting. Her mind swam "This is
a dream...I have to be dreaming...this isn't real...this can't be
real...I...what Honey?" she asked looking down at the very small girl
tugging at her bare leg.
"Momma...Rella!" Lily said pointing.
"What?" Ruby replied.
"RELLA!" Lilly screamed and squealed and clapped and hopped up and down
swinging her arms.
Ruby turned and saw a woman in full Cinderella makeup and costume
standing before her. "Are you okay?" Cinderella asked with a voice
sounding full of concern.
"I..." Ruby managed to say but nothing more.
"I saw you over here and you looked a bit overwhelmed," Cinderella said
calmly. She bent and picked up a purse and set it on top of the stroller.
She gathered up a stray diaper bag and put it underneath "My that is full
but it looks like you know what you're doing"
"No I don't," Ruby said, her voice shaking and quivering
"What's the matter?" Cinderella asked, she put her hand on Ruby's slight
shoulder and pressed down.
Ruby felt calmer than she had been at the touch of this stranger's hand.
"Take a deep breath and close your eyes for just a moment" Cinderella
advised. "My name is actually Emmi...close enough to Ella but also
different" she confided. "I see this all the time; family vacation...kids
are wound up...it can be so much"
"You have no idea...really...I can't even begin to tell you what just
happened" Ruby said.
Emmi locked eyes with Ruby "I know it's a bit much for you Ruby, but
trust me...it's for the best"
"How did you know...how did you...what did you call me?" Ruby said
confused.
"I said that I know you're overwhelmed and you're expected to be...three
girls and another on the way...first trip to Disney" she smiled down at
Lily. "I bet you want to get your picture taken with me right?"
Lily bounced up and down and smiled wide "Yes!"
Emmi pulled Ruby's cell phone out and handed it to another worker who was
nearby "Please take our picture together"
Emmi lifted Lillith up onto a bench and stood to one side as Ruby stood
on the other. Ruby smiled despite her confusion as the worker took
several shots and handed the phone over.
"You need to talk to Mason," Emmi said. "Enjoy your stay"
Ruby's jaw opened to speak but nothing came out. Emmi was gone, moving in
a crowd to another location to take more pictures.
Ruby slumped down onto the bench, sitting down hard. Lily danced away
next to her, bouncing and yelling "I met Cinderella"
A pain shot through Ruby's lower back that made her wince and hold her
breath as the baby inside of her kicked and rolled. She stuck her foot
out and hooked the stroller, pulling it closer to her. She grabbed the
diaper bag and brought out a sippy cup which she handed to Lillith.
Lillith sat and started to drink her apple juice while she watched people
pass by "Balloon!" she yelled when a little boy went by with one.
"Mickey!" she yelled when a man went by wearing Mickey's ears.
Ruby sighed and rubbed her extended belly "I can't be a pregnant
woman...how can I be sitting here...Logan..." she looked at the girl
playing happily with a stuffed Pluto on the bench next to her.
She opened her phone which was totally different than it should be. The
background wallpaper was a picture of Mason and some skinny blonde "Me?"
she said to the photo.
She brought up the pictures just taken and shook her head in disbelief "I
need to talk to Mason" She said "Time to go into the stroller"
"No!" Lily yelled.
"We need to go find Daddy and your sisters" and with those words Lily
jumped down and climbed into the stroller. Ruby bent and fastened her in,
her breath catching and a pain shooting down from her hip through her
left leg "Oh this sucks" she hissed out as she wheeled the stroller
around and began to make her way to the Dumbo ride. She saw them up on
the ride as she made her way over to the exit.
"Mommy!" Dana yelled and waved.
"Mom! Look at us!" Addy yelled nearly bouncing out of her seat "Look at
Us Mom!"
Mason looked like a deer in the headlights, a faint smile on his lips as
the ride came to a stop. An attendant came and unbuckled them and the
girls ran well ahead of Mason as they left. "Mom! Mommy! Did you see us?
Did you get your picture taken with Cinderella? Where are we going next?
I'm thirsty!" both girls talked at the same time.
"Mason" she yelled over the nonstop noise "Please tell me you have some
idea of what's going on"
Mason shook his head "I don't" he said sheepishly.
"Well we can't just keep going around like nothing's happened; we need to
figure this out I mean look at us, man; you're the only one who looks
like himself" Ruby said as Dana and Addy argued about if they should go
to It's a Small World or the Tea Cups next.
"But..." Mason began.
"But nothing! Grant is inside me, man! I'm a woman and everybody else has
been turned into kids!" Ruby said grabbing Mason by the shoulders.
"SMALL WORLD!" Addy and Dana yelled together. Addy grabbed her Dad and
Dana grabbed her Mom and off they went, Lily riding in the stroller that
Ruby grabbed and began to push.
***
"She was right. They desperately needed to talk about what had happened
but with three screaming kids around, that was proving to be difficult."
Mason thought as they walked to the ride.
"Mommy when is Robin coming?" Dana asked out of the blue.
"Robin?" Ruby asked before realizing who she meant. "Er... in a few
months, hon."
"I can't wait to meet her," Dana said while giving her Mom's leg a hug.
"Me too...?" Ruby replied looking over at Mason with a fearful look.
He didn't say a word as they kept walking. At one point he checked his
phone to see what time it was and noticed it was getting to be later in
the evening.
"After this ride, we should probably think about eating supper and then
relax a bit before bed." Mason finally chimed in.
"Aww...! But I wanna ride more rides!" Addison whined.
"We have all week, Addy."
"B-but..."
"No buts missy."
Mason didn't realize how much he sounded like a father scolding his child
until a few minutes later. It bothered him how well he seemed to be
fitting into this new role of his. When it came to talking to Ruby,
though, he was pretty clueless.
Ruby was getting more and more annoyed that Mason seemed to ignore her
every time she mentioned they needed to talk about their situation. He
seemed to be more focused on the kids than her.
"Mason, why are you ignoring me?" Ruby leaned against him and whispered
into his ear as they sat down for the ride.
"Sorry," he started. "We do need to talk about what happened but not with
little ears around. When we get them to bed, we'll have all the time to
talk. Okay?"
"Promise?" Ruby replied feeling unsure.
"Yes," said Mason as he tried to drown out the sound of the high-pitched
voices singing 'it's a small world after all'.
When the ride was finally over, both Mason and Ruby swore they'd never
ever ride that cursed thing again. If they never heard "It's a Small
World" again, it'd be too soon. The new "family" made their way back to
the resort where they went in search of food. Thankfully the buffet was
still open when they arrived a little past 7.
There weren't as many choices as their normally would as the buffet would
close in just a little under an hour. Mason helped Addison and Dana get
some pieces of chicken onto their plates with some veggies on the side;
he decided to get the same thing. Ruby had helped Lilly pick out some
things before helping herself to a warm bowl of cheddar broccoli soup.
The dining area was full of tables and booths to sit in. Most of the
tables had their chairs on them already so Mason and Ruby opted for a
booth. Addy and Dana slid into the left side and urged for their Mommy to
sit with them. Mason just stuck his tongue out at them and said: "That's
fine I'll sit with my baby Lilly".
He slid in next to Lilly who was sitting in a dark plastic booster seat
and extremely happy that she was sitting next to her Daddy. Their late
supper wasn't all that spectacular and the oldest girls were quick to
voice their opinion on the matter.
"Shh. Don't say that so loudly." Ruby tried to hush them as she looked
over at the buffet stations. The chefs either didn't hear the young girls
or didn't care as they were busy cleaning up their various stations.
"Sorry!" both girls said in a much quieter voice as they picked at the
veggies still on their plate.
When the girls had finally finished their veggies, they all trudged back
to their room. Mason was carrying Lilly who was trying her best not to
fall asleep as she rested her head on his shoulder. Ruby was holding both
Dana and Addison's hands as they all stepped into the elevator and headed
up to the fifth floor.
***
Luckily all three girls began to yawn as they were getting their baths,
barely even staying awake enough to splash around. Once in their PJ's,
they were all out like lights, lined up in bed.
Ruby had held her tongue long enough, she and Mason had sat by quietly as
the kids drifted off to sleep but once she was sure they were all out,
she pointed at him "You. Me. Bathroom.Now!"
Mason got up and followed her as she shut the door behind her. "What the
living Hell Mas..." she began running her hands through her long blonde
hair "I am scared to death. I turned into a fucking pregnant woman for
God's sake today! We lost Grant...we fucking lost him!" she was
whispering as loud and as forcefully as she could but she took a break to
pat her stomach.
"Our other three best friends...and need I remind you your former
girlfriend are all changed into little girls and calling us Mommy and
Daddy! What the fuck are we going to do?"
"Calm down...I think that's first. We both need to stay calm and keep our
cool and try to figure this out" Mason said.
"How am I supposed to stay calm Dude...I have a vagina! I am now a fully
functioning female and I know this because of this...Grant...Robin?
Sitting on my bladder makes me have to pee like every hour" Ruby
complained "I mean he was always kind of a pain in the ass...but this is
ridiculous"
Mason laughed and after a second of keeping a straight face, Ruby did
too. "I have to laugh about it or else I'm going to start to cry" she
admitted.
Then, just like that, she did begin to cry. Big tears ran down her cheeks
and she was whimpering and sobbing in seconds "I...I'm so messed up
right now" she sat down on the closed toilet seat as Mason handed her a
box of tissues. "You know I did a Google search on us...it says that
we've been married for 7 years, did you know that?"
"Um...no...I hadn't looked at any of that stuff yet" Mason admitted. He
rubbed Ruby's shoulder and she gave him a mouthed "Thanks"
"I also found out that my name is Ruby Clark-Ramirez...I kept my maiden
name but I have no idea why I'm white now. I have a Hispanic last name
and somehow I turned out to be a blonde" she shook her head. "Those are
our children...birth records for all of them are online but nothing comes
up if you type in their real names"
"I don't even know where to begin honestly. I'm tired, I'm confused..."
Mason said.
"I'm a pregnant woman!" Ruby interrupted him to restate the obvious.
"I know, I know...I don't want to sound flippant but at least you're
still an adult" Mason shot back.
Ruby took a deep breath finally calming down from her crying jag. "They
seem to not remember anything about who they used to be; it's like they
were mind wiped or something when they transformed"
"But you remember everything?" Mason asked.
"Yes and I'm freaking out" She looked down at her burgeoning belly "I
can't give birth, I'm not prepared for that" She was calming down,
though.
Mason watched her for a moment in silence, she began to squirm around and
her hand shot up "Are you going to help me stand up or are you just going
to stare at me...help a pregnant lady out why don't ya?"
"Oh...sorry" he helped pull her to her feet and she let out a long
breath.
"I think I'm calm for the moment" Ruby announced and she opened the
bathr