When Gabe woke up, he was feeling very cold and his arm was sore. His legs were dangling over the edge of a giant table that must have been seven feet tall. He could see his shoes and shorts in a pile on the floor and considered jumping down to get them, but somehow it looked too far to jump…
Then he noticed what looked like his own t-shirt draped over his lap. He tried to pick it up and put it on, but it was stuck…
That's when he noticed his mouth was watering from the most incredible tasting thing he'd ever experienced; he was practically drooling. He looked past his nose to find the paper stick of a sucker protruding from between his lips. The flavor was indescribable. It seemed to penetrate his taste buds and completely dominate them with its delicious sweetness.
A muffled giggle escaped from his throat as a gooey, sticky, happy feeling pervaded his mind and body. He was ok… He was happy…
He smiled contentedly and started to swing his legs. There was nothing to worry about. He was going to be taken good care of. Somebody would come soon… There was nothing for him to do; he had no responsibilities.
Then he noticed the crinkling sound under the shirt in his lap. He pulled it away from his body and found a plastic baby diaper wrapped tightly around his hips. It popped and crinkled noisily with his every move. He knew he should be embarrassed and mortified to be wearing a diaper, but the sucker in his mouth was just so distracting. He couldn't bring himself to react the way he knew he should. He just felt way too blissful…
He continued to look himself over and couldn't help but smile at what he saw. He liked his pudgy tummy and his pudgy little arms too. It was so nice to swing his legs and see his toes pop in and out of view. He giggled when he saw them peek into view again and again.
He was ok… He was happy! He liked his diaper. It was so nice to have! And it was nice to have extras too. He grabbed the extra diaper that was sitting next to him on the table and stuffed it under his arm, enjoying the feeling of the cool plastic against his soft bare skin.
Gabe began to kick his legs with more and more energy. He was really waking up now and there was an unusual animated enthusiasm welling up inside him. He was getting so wiggly that the table was starting to shake.
Just then a syringe rolled into view at his side that was simply labeled "FOY".
What could that mean? It didn't matter. He was a happy boy…
He smiled dreamily.
Just then, two gigantic women in lab coats entered the room.
"You left him in here all alone?!"
"It's fine. I gave him a sucker."
"Well what if he'd spit it out. Shouldn't you have made sure he finished it first?"
"Didn't you read the manual? I don't think they can take it out by themselves. Isn't that right, sweety?"
Gabe grinned wider and hummed gleefully through his nose in confirmation while he ran his little tongue indulgently over his yummy sucker.
"That's a good boy." One of the ladies cooed as she scooped Gabe up into her arms. She took the diaper from under his arm and playfully bopped him on the head with it which caused him to smile super wide and squeal with delight.
"I think he's ready to join the rest." The other said with confidence and relief.
They carried him down a long hallway into a room the size of a warehouse that was filled with babies, and every one of them was a boy. It looked like some kind of enormous daycare center. Every surface was thickly covered and secured by cushy padding in bright playful colors. There were toys and giant TVs showing educational shows starring plush cuddly animals, and there were swings and play structures and a grassy outdoor area with every kind of sports ball that a little boy could want.
Gabe was confused about what was going on, but he felt so welcome and happy in that place. He would have loved to play there when he was little…
Just then the giant woman sat his crinkly butt onto the ground, and he was surprised to see a small group of toddler boys sitting close by who looked to be about the same size as him…
How could that be? He was a big boy… He wasn't a little baby like all those other LITTLE boys. He laughed to himself and grabbed his naked foot. It was so soft… He liked to hold it so much… A drop of drool fell down his tummy.
The women had already left and tightly secured the room when suddenly one of the little toddlers ran past Gabe and snatched his sucker right out of his mouth!
Tears started to well up in Gabe's eyes while his lungs began to spasm uncontrollably, and just when he thought he'd regained control of himself, the terrible, shrieking wail of an inconsolable toddler erupted from his empty mouth.