Page 2 of His Love

“Are you sure this thing is safe?” The damn thing wobbled every time they jumped.

“Yes, I checked all the features. Weight limits, safety guidelines, and called the company that gave it the gold seal of safety. It’s good.”

I nodded my head in approval. My Little wouldn’t be allowed to have one of those death traps, but I was glad he had checked it out so thoroughly. I scoffed at the thought. My Little. Yeah, right. I was too damn old and crotchety to have a Little again. I had already lived my best life with my late wife, Junie. That was in the past, though. Nothing would ever bring those good times back, and I couldn’t see myself having them with anyone else. But I wasn’t bitter about it—I enjoyed watching my friends find their Little ones now. It seemed almost all of them were matched up. It was good seeing them so happy.

Giggles poured out of the bounce house and I found myself smiling. Even the grumpiest of bastards couldn’t help but enjoy the sounds of a Little’s laughter in the air.

“You know, you almost look like you had a good time playing Uncle Axel today,” Onyx commented as he handed me a beer.

“Oh, fuck you,” I grumbled as I took a sip of the cool liquid. He knew I was kidding, though. I loved being Uncle Axel. Since I never planned to have a Little of my own again, it was the next best thing.

***

Paisley

When Emily asked me to come over for a playdate, I’d been so excited. She left out the part about Axel being there, though, and I was pretty sure she’d done it on purpose. Emily thought her calling was to be a matchmaker, but I think she got it wrong because she was more of a trouble maker.

Axel was intimidating; that was the only reason I had been nervous. He was always growly and frowning. Surprise must have shown on my face when Emily told me he was watching us while her Daddy went to pick up her bounce house because she quickly explained the other Daddies were busy with work stuff. We’d had a good day, though. He’d even played Hungry Hungry Hippos with us. Board games probably weren’t his hobby, though, because he lost… a lot.

“How about you sit down and I’ll see how high I can bounce you?” Emily suggested as she stopped to catch her breath. Pink cheeks and flyaway hair made her look younger than she was. I liked seeing her like this. She’d been through a lot and she deserved to be carefree.

I plopped down onto my butt on the cold plastic and she started bouncing around me. The air from all the bouncing made her dress fly up and I caught a glimpse of her pink diaper every time she hopped. I wondered how I would feel about being diapered. My Little age was probably about three. Not the youngest in the friend group, but close.

“I’m gonna see how high I can bounce you by hopping on just one foot,” Emily giggled as she tried to balance.

“You’re going to fall,” I warned with a laugh.

“No, I’m the bestest one-foot hopper that ever hopped,” she argued. Her tongue stuck out in concentration. She was not the bestest one-foot hopper that ever hopped.

“Emily, I really think…” I tried, but it was too late. She was already falling forward and onto me. I couldn’t catch her in time and her knee landed on my ankle. I cried out in pain and fell flat on my back. The crunching sound came before the second wave of pain registered. Oh my gosh. It hurt so bad. I wiggled around on the plastic floor, trying to catch my breath. Pain was all that registered.

Emily tried to touch my foot and I screamed. It hurt to even touch. Tears ran down my face and onto the pink plastic material.

I tried to sit up, but couldn’t.

“Hey, let me see, Little one,” Onyx said. His voice was low and calm like he was trying to sooth a scared child. I wasn’t even sure when he’d gotten there. I hadn’t noticed him until I heard him right beside me.

“I-It hurts really bad,” I whimpered.

“Yeah?” he said, reaching for my foot.

“No! Don’t touch it!” I cried in panic. The pain was too much.

He jerked his hands back and held them up in a pacifying manner. “Okay, Paisley. I won’t touch it. Can you move it?”

“Yes.” Maybe. Probably not. I wasn’t telling him that, though.

“I’m so sorry, Paisley. I fell on you and hurt you!” Emily cried.

Duh. I was there. I knew what happened. I bit my tongue and didn’t say that. I kept it an inside thought. Apparently pain made me snarky.

The bounce house wiggled again and I cried out as the movements jarred me. “Is she okay?” Axel asked, poking his head through the opening.

Had my brain not been screaming due to all the neurons firing off in agony, I would have found the sight of grumpy Axel in the bounce house funny. His black band tee, ripped jeans, shit-kicker boots, and facial piercings made him look like a Skater Boy Prince Charming. He definitely didn’t belong in our princess castle.

“No, I think it’s sprained pretty badly at the least. We need to take her to the hospital,” Onyx answered.

“No,” I whispered. “I’m fine.”

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