I thought about Dion braiding my hair earlier, how natural it had felt. "He likes feeding me," I admitted shyly. "And he braided my hair."
Both women smiled, no judgment in their expressions.
"Those are perfect first steps," Clare assured me. "The rest will come in time, if it's right for you, and if that's what you want. Kink is sometimes like going to the store."
"What?"
Abby giggled.
"I mean that you might want to try a few things on until you find the perfect fit. Often, I'm a Middle," Clare said.
"What's a Middle?" I tried to remember the videos I'd watched but didn't recall anything like that.
"So, you've heard of a Little?" she asked, seeming delighted I'd asked her. I nodded.
"Well—understanding that everyone can be different and this is a huge generalization—a Middle is more of a teen, I guess. Remember being full of hormones? Makeup, clothes? Dancing to silly pop songs?"
I blinked back the sudden sting of tears that accompanied such a huge rush of longing it seemed to steal the oxygen from my lungs. But Clare must have noticed because she clasped my hand tightly and I held on. "I never had that," I admitted.
"The main thing," Clare continued, "is that you can feel however you want. Any time you want."
I chewed my lip. "But what if Dion wants me to be very little and I'm not?" Because that was my biggest worry. I'd seen the changing table, and I didn't want that. I loved it when Daddy washed my hands and brushed my hair, but those were special moments when I was feeling especially raw.
"But a real Daddy likes figuring everything out. Neither of our Daddies would ever want us to be something we weren't in that moment."
"Cindy suddenly likes Fridays," Abby said.
Clare grinned then translated. "There's a sub called Cindy who thinks she's all that. There's a new manager at Kingdom called Xavier, and he's been doing some training at Salvation." Clare leaned forward like she was sharing a secret. "Xavier is this super-hot Marine like the rest of them, and he's been coming into the Little room downstairs to check it out. Then all of a sudden Cindy's wearing pigtails and turning up on a Friday when she doesn't have an ounce of Little in her."
I grinned. "Is the Little room open every night?"
"No," Abby said, "but it is tonight."
She hopped about excitedly, and Claire groaned. "We were told to stay here."
Abby pouted. "But we're helping Emily. She needs to have her mind taken off what the guys are doing, and you and I both know we'll be safe."
Clare pursed her lips, but her eyes were sparkling. "Abby makes a good point. And it isn't as if we're leaving the building."
I glanced from one to another and a thrill of nervous excitement shot through me.
"We can't help the guys, but maybe we can help you," Clare said.
"Okay," I agreed, surprising myself with how readily I was going along with this. "What exactly are we doing?"
Abby clapped her hands. "You get to see the Little room! It's downstairs at Salvation. It's way better than the one here. It's got a treehouse, a train, and a ball pit and dress-up clothes and—"
"And it's a safe space," Clare added more calmly. "Where people like us can just... be."
My heart fluttered. "People will see me."
"Only other Littles or Middles and their Daddies or Mommies," Abby assured me. "And everyone there understands. It's like... a sanctuary."
I hesitated. "But Dion said to stay here."
Clare's expression turned thoughtful. "Technically, he said to stay with us. And we'll be with you the whole time."
"That's some creative interpretation," I said, but couldn't help smiling.
