Nanny Susan lowered the cot rail and gently ushered Robert toward the waiting bunny rabbit motif covered bedding. He was slightly reluctant at first but her firm hand placed strategically on his backside guided him as he climbed on the mattress.
The base of the cot was only a few inches from the floor, yet the rail extended to the level of the alcove.
"Into beddy-byes, there's a good Baby Bobbykins, time to go sleepy byes, snuggle down now." She cooed. Instead, Robert stood defiantly on the cot mattress.
"It's vewy erwee fo beddy-byes Nanny Thusan, too erwee, me no thleepy." Nanny Susan didn't argue, instead she raised the cot rail, secured it in place, opened the skylight window and went to fetch another bottle of sleepy time milk.
Robert felt a bit silly, standing there in the cot in his babyish pyjamas, wearing nappies, so he grabbed hold of the metal bars of the cot and gave, what he imagined was a firm rattle. Instead of course he hardly disturbed them. Next he turned his attention to climbing out. Disturbingly though, he discovered, that due to the incline of the alcove the widest gap available was far too small to climb through. He was effectively imprisoned in the cot. His thoughts clouded once again and he sat down with a plonk.
Nanny Susan returned with a large bottle of sleepy time milk, passing it to Baby Bobbykins through the bars of his cot he eagerly took it. He liked sleepy time milk.
"That's a good boy, all gone." Time for night-nights, Nanny will see you in the morning when we will be extra loving to Aunty won't we?"
Robert nodded, the chill from the open window encouraged him to snuggle under his blanket and he sleepily took his dummy from Nanny Susan and settled down to a very early bedtime for a seventeen year old.
The next morning Robert was taken downstairs and put into his high chair. Nanny Susan was feeding him detestable milky pudding and his bib was once again encrusted with the spillage. he was still wearing his yellow, footed bunny rabbit pyjamas and underneath his thick fluffy nappies and rubber baby pants which, up until ten minutes ago had been quite dry. He had begged Nanny Susan to let him go to the bathroom but se had been insistent that he had to wait until after breakfast, of course the inevitable had occurred and he now sat uncomfortably in flooded nappies and having to swallow semolina pudding for breakfast.
"Here comes the choo-choo train." Nanny Susan's spoon was poised to insert the yuckiest mouthful of semolina yet into Baby Bobbykins reluctant mouth, when Aunty walked in the kitchen.
It is difficult to convey Roberts reaction to seeing Aunty. Nanny Susan's spoon was swept aside as he bobbed up and down in his high chair, clapping his mittened hands together in a frenzy of delirium as semolina was sent cascading around the kitchen.
"Well, well what a welcome. It has been a long time since anyone has been that pleased to see me."
Aunty took Robert under the arms and lifted him out of the high chair and sat her seventeen year old nephew on her lap, just as she used to.
"Oh Baby Bobbykins, how sweet you look wearing your bunny rabbit jim-jams, you told me you didn’t want to wear them any more, you said they were far too babyish for a big boy of seventeen like you, remember?"
Robert blushed. He did recall the big argument they had.
"Me sowwy Aunty. Baby Bobbykwins wuvs his bunny wunny jim-jams. Me weally sowwy for being a naughty boy and making you sad. Pwease fogive mi. Pweeeese?"
Aunty stroked his hair.
"Do you promise to be a good boy and obey Aunty and Nanny Susan without question?
"Oh yeth Aunty, I do, I do."
Aunty directed a smile toward Nanny Susan.
"Well then, let's get you cleaned up and ready for a new start to a new day shall we."
Every time Aunty entered the room, Robert would gleefully run toward her and hug her tightly. He clapped excitedly when she spoke to him and he snuggled into her and chatted happily to her in baby talk as she sat him on her knee. Baby Bobbykins had indeed embraced Nanny Susan's recommendation.
What's more, he had come to accept his daily routine of trips out to the park in his pushchair, a walk around the duck pond holding Nanny's or Aunty's hand dressed in his little boy outfits for all the world to see. Indeed he was now so well known in town that hardly anyone took notice of them any more.
The young man who regressed almost to babyhood. A sad case but still, he was well looked after, and you never know, he may snap out of it one day.
Then home again, a bath, nappies pinned on, rubbers, jim-jams and an early bedtime in his snug little cot, of which there is no escape. And all really achieved with the help of daily doses of sleepy time milk.
One afternoon as Robert had been put to bed particularly early after happily consuming a second bottle of sleepy time milk, he was hazily aware of Aunty and Nanny Susan staring down at the seventeen-year-old youth as he lay in his cot.
He woke up to find he was lying naked on a blanket downstairs. Where was Nanny? Where was Aunty? Sitting himself up his hand brushed against on object. It was a traditional baby’s dummy. He placed it straight into his mouth and happily began to suck upon it.
Objects were strewn about the floor, he attempted to stand up but was unsteady and quickly sat down before he fell. Sucking on his dummy he crawled forward and was happy to discover his nappy, loosely pinned and a pair of his rubber pants. Knowing he should be in bed he attempted to pull on the nappy himself before he also came across his bunny rabbit pyjamas, at finding them he cuddled them to his body before pulling on the footed pyjama bottoms before buttoning on the top.
“Hmm. I see.” Said a strange female figure carrying a briefcase, alongside her stood another strange female.
Roberts lower lip began to quiver before the comforting arms of Nanny Susan sat him upon her lap. Apparently they both wanted to talk to Baby Bobbykins but he was much more interested in being entertained by her gently bouncing him up and down. He always seemed to enjoy those sessions and she had to shush him quiet as he started to giggle and laugh and wanted to talk to her.
“It’s very unusual regressive behaviour indeed.” Said the strange female as she copiously made notes.
“Yes it was a quite rapid regression over quite a short period." Aunty proclaimed.
"As you saw for yourself, his urge to act in an infantile manner is still well established.”
Robert began to take more notice of the conversation.
“This behaviour was witnessed at its onset you say?” Asked the briefcase lady who was taking notes.
“Oh yes.” It was Nanny Susan speaking now.
"He was seen outdoors by the girls from the local school here in his babyish pyjamas acting as if he was a little boy. Then he insisted we buy him a pushchair and take him into town sucking on a baby’s dummy dressed as a child in short trousers."
Aunty continued. "It was soon after that I discovered the nappy and the bunny rabbit pyjamas in his bedclothes, soiled, I am afraid to say.”
She dabbed her eyes with her handkerchief as she spoke.
Roberts head was losing its haziness and the meaning of the conversation was penetrating his rapidly clearing mind.
“Wait a minute, not baby.. baby…boy.."
He murmured. Unfortunately for Robert, Nanny Susan quickly popped the baby’s dummy into his mouth and held it firmly in place.
“Mmmmmmmpfh!”
“Is he trying to say something?” Asked the note taking female.
Robert's hand reached up onto Nanny Susan's but hers was the stronger she held the dummy firm.
“Oh dear, he was telling me he needs a drink, will you excuse us please?”
“Of course young lady, we have seen enough. Off you go and look after Robert. I do so admire you for standing by him. A lot of girls your age would have been reluctant to help. Goodbye and goodbye to you too Robert I hope you get better soon.”
The female tousled his hair; Robert widened his eyes in a desperate, plaintiff cry for help and started to flail his arms about wildly. Nanny Susan held the dummy tightly and rapidly exited the room.
Robert was in the nursery; lying on the changing table his hands and feet encased in mittens and bootees. He was tightly pinned into nappies and plastic pants and resplendently buttoned into a pair of Thomas the Tank Engine, flannel footed pyjamas. The quieter was firmly positioned in his mouth and a dribble of saliva was already wending its way down his chin toward his, “Baby Bobbykins” bib. His peek-a-boo bonnet was in place and tied neatly under his chin.
His Aunty, Nanny Susan and Miss Bracegirdle stared at the helpless Baby Bobbykins .
Nanny Susan tweaked the brim of his bonnet “He took me by surprise at how quickly the medication wore off, I will have to increase the dosage.”
“Well,” Aunty said, looking down at Robert, “thanks to you Nanny, it worked to our advantage. In a short while, once the committee’s recommendation is confirmed I will legally have jurisdiction over Roberts affairs.
Robert looked up at his mother with puzzlement.
She tickled his chin, as she spoke.
“My dear when your parents died their assets were left in trust for you. I had to make do with a limited amount each year.
When you turn eighteen in a few months time you will have access to a substantial amount of wealth. Far too much for a boy like you to be entrusted with. I couldn’t possibly have allowed you to have control of all that money."
Aunt Harriet paused to fussily adjust the frills on his bonnet.
“Fortunately, I now have power of attorney over your financial affairs, thanks to your awful regressive illness. No one would let a little boy have access to all that money would they Baby Bobbykins?”
Robert tried to sit up, his head quite clear and his anger manifest, but surrounded by three women he was quickly pushed back down and his wrists and ankles were quickly secured in the restraint cuffs on the changing table.
“Mmmmmmmpfh!”
“Now, now Robert,” his Aunt went on.
“Miss Bracegirdle has kindly agreed to join our little team. he so enjoyed meeting you she will be designing and making some delightfully infantile outfits for you to wear that will confirm your regressive natures to the good people of this little town of ours.
Susan will continue in the role of Nanny, she and her mother will be joining Miss Bracegirdle in living with us in our lovely new house in the country. There is a big garden where you will be able to sit in your pushchair and have lots of naps; I may even buy you a special baby’s pram so we can take you out for a stroll, won’t that be nice? No need to thank me I can easily afford it.
Your days will be short. Up at nine, plenty of exercise, walks in the garden and into town to show off your new little boy outfits then back for bath time and jim-jams at three and beddy byes by three thirty.
Robert struggled against his restraints as the teat of the bottle was forced into his mouth.
“Of you go to sleepy-byes Baby Bobbykins,” his Aunts voice was saying from a long way off.
“Only three more years as a little boy until you are twenty-one, then we must persuade the authorities all over again to renew my jurisdiction. But don’t worry, by then you will be used to your nappies and jim-jams and you won’t ever remember being anything other than an obedient little Baby Bobbykins.”
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