Sebastian's Flight - Chapter 1 (Patreon)

A short story, commissioned by an anonymous Patron.

Sebastian breathed a sigh of relief, glancing down at his phone one last time to confirm that he was right, that he was, indeed, in the boarding group that had just been called, despite having done so a million times already, having been reciting that number in his head like a protection charm ever since he'd sat down in the waiting area for his flight.

On one hand, he felt silly, getting all worked up like this. It was an airplane ride, that was all... People did them all the time. Littles, even, with no trouble. And at the end of it, he was finally going to get to meet Hallie, the woman he'd been talking to online for months now, almost a year. She was another little, one who seemed so cool, so fiercely independent, so mature. His main worry should be that he would be disappointing to her, when she actually saw him in person.

Perhaps it was, and he was trying to avoid thinking about that by focusing on other things, like the fact that he saw almost no other littles waiting for this flight. When he'd first arrived, he hadn't thought much of it, since there weren't many people there at all, but the longer he stayed there, the more pronounced it became, as plenty of 'tweeners and Amazons filled in the seats around him. There were a few littles, yes; they all seemed to be under the care of the Amazons, however, heavily diapered up for the ride, looking dazed and sleepy as their caretakers apologized to the others around them, promising that their 'child' would be quiet during the flight... Or else.

Sebastian didn't want to say that he looked down on those littles, that he considered himself better than them. They could have wound up in that situation in any one of a million ways, most of which weren't their fault, that they couldn't do anything about it once it had been decided that they belonged in diapers. And, with his curly, red hair and bright green eyes, he suspected he would be a prime candidate to join them. But it had never happened, and he was determined that it never would.

Sitting there, though, watching the clock, and the arrivals board, praying there wouldn't be a delay, he couldn't help growing anxious. The seats were filling up, and he was certain that, eventually, one of those Amazons would have to sit right next to him, would take an interest... He was sure he felt their eyes on him, staring at him, wondering if he truly was as alone as he appeared, or if his Mommy or Daddy was going to show up from the bathroom, or buying a snack, at any moment.

But, at last, it was time. He stepped into line, adjusting the strap on the backpack he was using as a carry-on, turning up the brightness on his phone so the scanner would have no issue reading the QR code for his ticket, keeping his head down. If he could get on the plane, he told himself, he'd be safe, and then when he landed, all he had to do was get to the gate, find Hallie... There was strength in numbers, after all; that was why he wanted to get to her, of course, he definitely wasn't going to depend on her to protect him, even if, from the stories she'd told him, she seemed so much stronger than him.

"Good morning, dear!" the 'tweener at the counter chirped. "Look at you, scanning your ticket all by yourself! Hold on, let me get you something to stand on!" She dragged a stool out from behind the counter. He would have liked to complain, to ask why it hadn't been there already, since that would be more accommodating for everyone, but he bit his tongue, reminding himself he wasn't on the plane yet. All the other littles had, no doubt, had their caretakers scan their tickets for them, so he was the only person who would need it. "Are you going to meet your Mommy or Daddy?" the woman asked cheerfully, while Sebastian waved his phone over the scanner. 

This was also not the time to launch into a lecture about how littles didn't need those, he thought. His chances of ever seeing this woman again were extremely low, and it would be simpler to go with the flow. "Yeah," he lied. "My, uh... Daddy."

Why he said that, he wasn't sure. Maybe it was because she was female, and he was worried hearing he had a Mommy, she'd get jealous, or just identify with his fictional 'parent' and try to look after him in her stead, although, considering that, unless something went wrong, he was moments away from walking past her and out of her life forever, it was probably an unnecessary precaution.

"How sweet," the woman smiled. "Here, let me try." She didn't wait for a response, taking the phone out of his hand. Of course, for her, the scanner beeped immediately. "You just need the right touch," she winked. "Have a good flight, cutie! Just let one of the attendants know if you need anything!"

"Yeah, uh... I will," he nodded, taking his phone back, hopping off the step-stool, fully intending to do nothing of the sort.

It didn't take long at all before he had no choice, however, as soon as he got to his seat and discovered that, somehow, his backpack refused to fit under the seat in front of him. He groaned, staring up at the luggage compartment, far overhead, unsure if he'd be able to reach it even if he climbed up onto the seat, which he doubted was allowed anyway.

He stood there, anxiously, watching passengers file in, flight attendants walk by. He was surprised how many of the latter were Amazons, and male, and while they certainly could have helped him with his problem, he was too intimidated to speak to them, especially after what he'd told the woman at the ticket counter. Finally, he spotted a female 'tweener in one of the uniforms, and called out, "Umm... Excuse me?"

"Yes?" she turned, eyes brightening as she spotted him. She bent over, delighted. "Hello there!"

"H-Hi," he blushed, struggling not to stare down the front of her uniform, despite how easy she was making it. "I-I just... I-I need..."

"What's that?" she asked. "What can I do for you? Do you need me to find your Mommy? Did you get separated?"

"N-No!" he shook his head. "B-But..." He picked up his backpack, glancing upwards.

"Oh, I see," she chuckled. "Here, let me handle that! Do you need anything out of it first?" He shook his head again, and she stashed it away. He was satisfied to see that even she had to get up on her tip-toes to do so. "There you go! Anything else?"

"N-No, thank you," he replied politely. 

"Can you get yourself buckled in?" she inquired, prompting him to hop up into his seat and demonstrate for her. "Good job!"

He was going to have to find her again at the end of the flight, have her help him get the bag back down, but otherwise, he felt another wave of comfort wash over him, almost as big as what he'd felt when it was time to board. He was on the plane, in his seat, backpack safely tucked away... What could possibly go wrong now?

It didn't take long to get his answer, as he saw the woman who had assisted him speaking to two of the male Amazon flight attendants, peering back at him. His cheeks darkened and he squirmed in place, positive they were talking about him. Thankfully, when they were finished, the woman walked away, and the men went back to what they'd been doing, and he was able to relax again, looking down at his phone to turn the brightness back down and turn airplane mode on.

There were plenty of people still walking by, so he thought nothing of it, at first, when he felt the presence of someone standing over him, assuming they were waiting for the aisle ahead of them to clear so they could get to their seats. After a few moments, however, they cleared their throat, and he lifted his head, blushing instantly at the sight of the two male flight attendants looming over him.

"Hey, little man," one of them said. "My name is Levi, and this is Brett. Could you come with us for a second?"

Sebastian gulped, glancing around, feet swinging nervously below him. "Wh-What for?"

"Don't worry," Brett assured him. "You aren't in trouble. We just thought you'd like to meet the pilot. Wouldn't that be fun?"

Sebastian's blush deepened, knowing that was the sort of thing they did for kids. "N-No, that's okay," he told them.

The two bigger men peered at each other, surprised. "Well," Levi spoke up first, "he wants to meet you, and you don't want to disappoint him, do you? Come on." 

He reached into Sebastian's lap, starting to undo his seat-belt. "Hey, stop it!" Sebastian squeaked.

"Calm down," Brett ordered. "We're trying to make this easier on you... We heard you had a Daddy, so we thought you'd feel better if we did this, instead of Brook."

Sebastian's heart began to beat faster, harder. "D-Did what?" he asked. "Take me to see the pilot?"

All they would tell him was, "Be a good boy," as they brushed his hand away easily, removing his seat-belt, but he was certain, deep down, that there was much more to it, and that getting onto the plane hadn't given him nearly the protection he'd thought it would.