Published: May 9th 2023, 8:15:24 am
"Hold on a second. You're not even real!" I exclaimed, but Bear certainly felt real. He was big and soft and fuzzy, and being held by him felt like a big warm hug. It might have been enjoyable if I wasn't so confused. And to add to the confusion, I suddenly found myself on a big soft padded changing table.
"Alright, little guy. Let's get you changed," said Bear, raising his eyebrows. "Out of those silly grownup clothes and into something more comfortable, won't that be nice?"
"But I am comfortable. I'm in my pajamas," I said. "Wait, what am I doing arguing with an imaginary bear. This is obviously a dream."
"It is?" he asked, putting a finger up to his mouth in thought.
"Definitely," I said, nodding and crossing my arms.
"Ooh, I see! So you mean you dreamed all this up yourself?"
"Yup," I said, clearly getting the better of the situation.
"Even the nursery and the changing table?"
"Uh.. y-yeah," I said, feeling a little less certain of why that would be in my dream.
"Well then, you must be a baby! Only babies would dream of a nursery and changing table."
"No, wait... that's not..."
"And you know what else they dream of? They dream of cute and colorful pajamas the could wear around the house!"
"Wait, that's not right.... Is it?"
"Sure, it is! Why don't we take a look?"
My head was spinning as Bear brought out some colorful pajamas just like the ones I wore when I was little. They were two piece pajamas that made up a sort of costume.
"It's been a while since you visited, little one, but I remember your favorite!"
"My favorite? Little one? Look, I'm twenty nine years old!"
"Oh, wow, you can count so high! But you're still a little one to me. After all, only little ones visit my big blue house, so you must be a little one too. Otherwise, why would you be here?"
I tried to come up with a retort, but I realized he was right. It was my dream after all. At least, I thought it was a dream...
"Alright, fine, I'll try the pajamas," I said, looking at them and pretending not to be too excited to try them on. I had to admit there was a little nostalgic excitement to be able to wear my favorite pajamas again.
"Ah, ah, ah, young one. There's one more piece to your outfit to be extra cozy and comfy. Do you know what it is?"
"Oh, no. I don't wet the bed anymore, Bear. Really, I don't!"
"Come one, little one. You know that it's a part of your pajamas as much as the rest of it. Or do you really want to stick with your boring old pajamas you're in now?"
I looked down at my plaid button up pajamas. They really were pretty boring. It's not like I hadn't looked for something more fun, there just wasn't anything interesting when I went to the store. At least not in my size.
"But somebody might see me," I said, looking around.
"I thought you said you were dreaming? Who would see you in your dream?"
I didn't have an answer to that.
"Come on now. These are here for a reason. Besides, they're not really diapers. They're sleepy time pull-ups."
I was halfway convinced as he held up the night time 'underwear', but in Bear's paws they crinkled all the same. Still, I had pretty much run out of excuses. And if this was a dream, they were probably part of it for a reason.
"I can't believe I'm doing this," I said as I lay back on the changing table.
"That's the way," said Bear in his soft and soothing voice. "Don't worry at all. I'll take care of everything. Look! It's Ojo, look over at Ojo while I take care of the rest.
"Ojo?" I asked, looking over in surprise to see Ojo looking right at me. I was suddenly very self conscious, but my pajamas were already halfway off, and Ojo didn't seem to mind one bit.
"Hey, friend! Pilot Ojo here! Are you enjoying your flight?"
"Flight?" I asked, looking back at him incredulously. "What flight?"
"We're flying the friendly skies, of course!"
"Of course," called Bear, who was wrestling off my pants now that he had gotten my shirt off.
"Hey, hold on!" I said as he grabbed my underwear, but I was distracted as a green and white lemur jumped into the room and skittered across the table before jumping onto the bed. Before I knew it I was naked and trying to cover up.
"Diaper change! Diaper change!" was all I could make out from whatever language Treelo the lemur was speaking.
"Aw geez, could this get any more embarrassing?"
"Hey guys, what's all the hubbub?" asked a familiar mouse friend as he wandered into the room.
"Oh, just our special visitor," said Bear, shaking baby powder onto me like it was not big thing. He then stopped and sniffed me all over. "Mmm! Baby powder smell! That's the best smell of all!"
"S-stop, Bear! That's private!" I said, willing myself not to get to excited as he sniffed me. I was actually thankful when the crinkly plastic pull ups went up my legs, because they afforded me some privacy. They were followed shortly by the pajamas, which was even better. When I sat up, however, there was a distinct crinkle.
"These are old school," I said, knowing full well that all the pull-ups these days were cloth-backed.
"Nah, these are the hot new thing for little ones who need bigger diaper- I mean... undewear," said Bear, winking to the others.
"Hey, I saw that!" I said.
"There now," said Bear, dusting his hands. "Don't you feel so much better in your cute pajamas?" I looked down at myself and shifted around a little. It felt a little bit strange, but also so relaxing and nostalgic.
"Alright, I admit... this is kind of nice..." It was certainly a strange thing to dream about, but if relaxing at night in bed was nice and enjoyable, then this should be even better. Right?