Bad Influence - Chapter 4 (Patreon)

There were a few more flashes of what - now that she'd recognized them, knew, undoubtedly, that Carly wore them at least from time to time - were definitely diapers underneath the young woman's uniform, in the coming weeks, enough to make Ruth wonder if Carly was in them constantly. And, indeed, if she were in the uniforms every day as well. Shots of her in anything else were few and far between, and even when she wasn't, her style seemed much more immature, cutesy, flouncy skirts and t-shirts in big, bright colors, with cartoon characters on them.

While Ruth didn't like to admit she was looking, staring so hard at her daughter's girlfriend, she was pretty confident there were hints of diapers under those, too. There was one picture in particular, where Carly was in a pair of shorts, and the waistband of what she had underneath was very obviously poking out, and very obviously plastic, and not at all something that she'd seen on any pair of underwear she'd ever encountered.

Something had to be going on. There was no question about that now... She was just waiting for the right moment to bring it up, to ask delicately, in a way that wouldn't be offensive if Carly happened to look over Elle's shoulder at her computer or phone screen while she was answering. It must be recent, probably a tender subject... That, or Carly had gotten much worse at hiding it since she'd started dating Elle.

But... The whole thing still felt weird, in a way. If this was something new, something that Carly hadn't even been comfortable posting about, from what Ruth could tell looking at her page, why was Elle taking advantage of it this way, making her act like a little kid? That had to be like adding insult to injury, more like something a bully would do, rather than a caring partner.

And why did Carly not appear to mind? Ruth had to assume she didn't know how clear it was to the world - or those in it with experience changing them - that she was in diapers, and she pondered whether it would be a good idea to send her a message, either directly or through Elle, to make sure she did. Beyond that, however, she didn't really give any indication that she cared that Elle was doing all this to her, making her sit around in a classroom and write lines, and all that silly schoolgirl stuff. She was only pouting during the lines, or a few pictures where she was actually standing in the corner, apparently in time-out, the things where she was seemingly being punished, where it was appropriate... When she was just at her desk, she looked happy enough.

Was Carly simply that dedicated to helping Elle out? Ruth couldn't complain about that, but... She didn't know. It was difficult to judge from afar, and she wasn't going to barge in and demand an explanation now. It wasn't really any of her business, no matter how curious she was.

And then, she got the message. 'Hey, Mom,' Elle had written. 'Wanted to let you know, I've been working more with Carly, and I decided to change my focus a little. I know I decided on elementary school not that long ago, but this time, I feel like we definitely cracked it, once and for all. I want to work with younger kids, like those in daycare, or even preschool. They're just so cute! And I think I can do a lot of good there.'

'I'm sure you will,' Ruth replied. 'I'm glad you got it all figured out.'

She chose not to say anything more, not to mention the diapers. Not yet, at least, not until she saw what the next pictures would bring. Somehow, she had a feeling she knew exactly what that was going to be...

She was more right than she'd even expected. She had thought, perhaps, it would be a bit slower, that they'd take their time, but they'd apparently jumped straight into it. They may have done it already, and were waiting to put the photos up until Elle spoke to her mother, 'warned' her; she had said they'd been 'working' on it, after all.

But, despite her expectations, Ruth was still shocked at what she saw, at the boldness of it. The classroom was gone, turned into what appeared to be a makeshift daycare, the desk replaced with a colorful alphabet play mat, the whiteboard with a changing table and playpen, plenty of baby toys scattered all around...

And diapers. There were more than enough of those, not hidden in the slightest, stacked up on the shelves beneath the changing table for anyone to see, to make the connection to the older pictures. Ruth, indeed, saw right away the kind she was certain she'd caught peeking out from under Carly's shorts, folded up and waiting.

Of course, there was no real reason for them to be hidden now... There was no denying that Carly was wearing them because, in fact, that was all she was wearing. Ruth let out a tiny gasp when she saw the first shot, Carly lying there, on the floor, in nothing more than a diaper, peering up at the camera, scandalized at the sheer boldness of it.

And that was only the beginning. She kept scrolling through, unable to help herself, watching as Carly sat up, as she played with a simple, baby's ring toy, as she put one of those rings in her mouth and started sucking on it, drooling, her chest still completely bare... Then, she grew tired of that, went to grab another toy, squatting down, facing away from the camera.

There were several pictures of that, mostly identical, and Ruth began to wonder if Elle had meant to post all of them, or if she'd intended to pick her favorite. Only after a few did Ruth realize that they weren't, in fact, the same, that something was changing... Growing... Bulging outwards... Even through her screen, Ruth could practically hear the soft grunts, the crinkling, her nose wrinkling with remembered odors from the past...

She could hardly believe what she was seeing, what a huge difference it was from where those first pictures she'd seen. She had to scroll back on Carly's profile, to confirm that it was real, that it was the same girl in those. It definitely was, somehow, as impossible as it seemed. She couldn't help thinking back to what she'd assumed when she'd seen those initially, having to admit now that she might have been wrong... Perhaps it hadn't been Carly who was the bad influence in their relationship...

It was strange how, despite wearing more in those early pictures, they still made her look more exposed than the newest, where she was basically naked. Ruth found herself slowly moving back towards the present, taking in the progression - or, rather, regression - of the girl, watching her go from the slutty rebel to what she was now.

And the biggest thing she noticed was how happy she seemed now, how much more she was smiling, even in the most recent photos, as she turned back around from grabbing a teddy bear and sat down on her heavily used diaper, giving the toy a hug as the hand from behind the camera slid a pacifier between her lips.

As weird as this was, as confused as she felt, as much as she wanted to continue to watch from afar, to keep from interfering, Ruth couldn't stop herself from reacting to the post, giving it a big, red heart as she saw the eyes of her daughter's girlfriend on screen, saw the look in them as she stared past the camera, at the person holding it with pure love.

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Ruth chuckled to herself, shaking her head, forcing herself to sit back down on her sofa, rather than continuing to pace across her living room floor. She wasn't sure why she was the one feeling nervous... She was the parent, after all. The girl dating her daughter ought to be the one freaking out.

And, she had to assume, Carly was, too. How could she not be, considering... everything? But there was no reason for the anxiety to have spread to her, except, perhaps, if there was some part of her that suspected this whole thing had been a con, some game Elle was playing with her, to teach her a lesson about snooping on her. That couldn't possibly be the case, though, could it? It felt like it had gone too far for that...

She did, however, have to wonder as she saw Elle's car pull into her driveway which version of Carly was going to step out of the passenger's seat. Would it be the sweet, innocent one she'd devolved into, or the one Ruth had seen initially, that she hadn't wanted to see spending time with her daughter?

The question was very quickly answered as Elle stepped out of the car, waving to the window Ruth was watching from, and walked around to the rear passenger's side, opening up the door and helping an over-sized toddler out. Carly was wearing a soft pink onesie, a bulky diaper bulging out around the waist, clearly visible beneath the tiny, lavender tutu skirt she had on as well, with a plastic tiara on her head and a pair of pink Velcro sneakers on her feet.

Ruth smiled, observing Carly squirm, tugging anxiously at the hem of Elle's shirt as the other girl got a diaper bag out of the back seat, looking, for all the world, like any other nervous little girl until Elle stroked her hair, saying something Ruth couldn't hear from inside, kissing her on the forehead and slipping a pacifier into her mouth.

Ruth was waiting for them at the door, giving Elle a big hug while Carly stood by on the porch awkwardly. "Hello, there," Ruth greeted her. "Did you have a good car ride, sweetie?" Carly nodded shyly. "That's good! I'm so happy to meet you finally... I'm... What do you want her to call me?" She turned to Elle, not wanting to step on her toes, unsure, given the dynamic they'd demonstrated in their pictures, and even in the brief interactions she'd seen here, what would be proper. Somehow, making the bashful toddler, fidgeting in her crinkly diapers, sucking hard on her paci, address her as Ms. Thayer felt wrong, especially when she saw a look in her eyes she thought she recognized from long ago, one that indicated she might be in the middle of wetting her pants right then.

"Oh, I don't know, I hadn't thought about that," Elle claimed, although she kept going almost immediately. "Grandma feels too old, so what about Nana?"

"That sounds lovely," Ruth agreed. "You can call me Nana, little one."

"O-Okay," Carly nodded again. Elle ushered her into the house with a pat on the bottom, guiding her to the living room, where she took out a blanket, spreading it on the floor for Carly to sit on, Carly seemingly not even considering asking to join them on the sofa, despite there being plenty of room.

Ruth wanted to pry, to ask more about what had led to this, how this had all begun, but she didn't. They'd tell her in time, if they wanted, and if not... Well, the end result was what mattered, wasn't it? And it was hard to argue with that, seeing how cute Carly was, playing on the floor with her dolls, mumbling a response from behind her paci when Elle pushed her to join the conversation.

The cuteness was only amplified when Carly began to wiggle in a very particular way, cheeks turning red as she peered up at Ruth and Elle every minute or two, and then every few moments, until, at last, she scrambled to her feet, tugging at Elle's sleeve to pull her ear closer and whisper into it.

"Carly," Elle sighed, shaking her head. "I asked you before we left if you needed to use the potty for that! I'm visiting with my mother right now, and..."

"B-But...!" Carly scowled, stomping her foot. "Y-You fed me my special oatmeal this morning! You know what...!"

Ruth knew her daughter well enough to know it was a lie, and Carly surely did, too, though that didn't stop Elle from smirking, "I don't know what you're talking about, silly. Be a polite little girl and sit down until we're done talking, and then I can help you..."

It was already too late. Ruth watched with fascination as Carly's knees began to bend, ever so slightly, as her face turned red, and she heard the faint sound of grunting from behind her pacifier, along with another sound coming from inside her diaper. She probably should have pretended not to see it, to give the girl some privacy, but she couldn't keep herself from staring, watching the seat of her onesie as it began to expand while Carly filled her diaper, right in the middle of the living room.

"Carly," Elle scolded gently. "You see? This is why you couldn't try wearing Pull-Ups today! You're way too little for those, and you know it! You haven't made it to the potty at home in weeks, so why did you think you'd be able to do it here, somewhere you've never been?"

Carly's gaze fell downwards, towards her toes, pointing inwards shyly. Ruth's heart melted at the sight. "I don't mind," she assured the girl. "It's all right, honey. Why don't we go get you cleaned up?"

She stood up, offering her hand. Carly looked from it to Elle, brow furrowed. "Go on," Elle urged. "If she wants to do it, I'm not going to stop her... I change you plenty."

Carly hesitated for a second, then reached out, grabbing Ruth's hand. Ruth picked up the diaper bag, leading Carly into the bathroom, helping her out of her tutu and onesie, then untaping her diaper, being careful not to say anything to embarrass the girl further as she wiped her off. It would have been a perfect opportunity for more questions, but she stuck to one, once she had the new diaper on the girl, and was getting her re-dressed, when Carly was blushing less deeply, when she seemed at least a bit more comfortable. "So, is she a good Mommy?" 

Carly nodded immediately. "Uh-huh," she grinned. "The best."

Ruth smiled, fastening the final snap and standing up, patting her new grandbaby on the bottom. "Good."

Carly took her by surprise, giving her a huge hug, burbling out, "Thank you, Nana!" 

Ruth felt herself getting a little misty-eyed as she returned the hug, rubbing the girl's back. "Any time," she promised. "I'm so happy Elle found you, sweetie... Now, let's go show her how I did. It's been a while since I've changed a diaper, so I'd better be sure I didn't mess up."

Carly nodded, toddling ahead of her out of the bathroom while Ruth watched, chuckling to herself, already making a mental checklist of all the things she was going to have to buy now to set up a nursery for Carly for when they came to visit next, hopefully for more than just an afternoon that time.