nebirosity

Will finds his family. --- “Habbee... habbee fortha...joo-why?” “That's it, sweetheart! Can you try saying it all together?” “...habbeeforthajoowhy! Habbee fortha joo-why!” “Happy Fourth of July to you too, Will!” The beaming middle-aged woman declared as she bounced the padded tush of the chortling, kicking toddler on her knee. “Do you wanna go find Liam and say it for him?” “YEAH!” The burbling baby boy declared, dashing off as soon as she set his tiny bare feet on the tickly grass of the apartment complex's common lawn. Grace watched him head off in his frantic waddle until he disappeared into the fray of running screaming laughing children. Since there were plenty of parents overseeing the chaos – chatting and laughing and enjoying mediocre barbecue drowned in ketchup as they watched their kids – she felt free to finally relax for a moment, sighing as she deflated into her plastic lawn chair. “You doing okay?” Jane asked from the seat beside her, lowering her sunglasses

Will's courage comes at a heavy cost. --- Will's rounded jaw dropped as he stepped into the center of the space and slowly spun to take in every last little detail, the dumbfounded boy so overwhelmed by all the cool stuff he was seeing that he could barely believe all of it was his. In the corner there was a whole construction site's worth of heavy equipment, trucks and bulldozers and cranes just begging to be scooted around on the felt, road-themed rug spread out beneath them. Beside the collected vehicles there sat a stout wooden trunk lovingly hand-painted to resemble a treasure chest, built so solidly that Will could just barely heft open its lid. He was rewarded for his efforts when he discovered the small arsenal of Nerf and squirt guns within, to say nothing of the huge bucket of Lego bricks and the simple accompanying sets designed to test the five-year-old's dexterity and attention span. Mommy had even set up a cool bed that looked like it was made from the kind of trees

Will says goodbye to a friend as he prepares for an exciting new adventure. --- Will hummed contentedly to himself, clutching a thick brown crayon tightly in his fist and scribbling the vague shape of a horse in the space on the back of the kids’ menu. Eyes still locked on his masterpiece, he extended a blind probing hand towards his plate to spear a chunk of waffle and tear it away from the devastated golden-brown disc, shoveling his chocolate chip studded and whipped cream topped breakfast into his open mouth as he began to outline the shape of the dashing cowboy atop his steed. His legs swinging freely from his perch on the edge of the booth bench, Will knew for certain that he was being a very good boy. Mommy was sure to be proud. He had been trying very hard to be on his best behavior. He hadn’t fussed at all about his new car seat, even though the horrible immobilizing harness that fastened around his crotch made him feel very babyish; he hadn’t complained when Jane had told

Will has a tumultuous first morning as a five-year-old. --- In the early morning twilight haze, Will’s tiny form was stretched out like a starfish on the big queen size bed. A tangled mess of golden hair cradled his head securely amidst a jumble of blankets and the tangled-up comforter, a thumb planted safely in his mouth and a few barely perceptible high-pitched kitten-like snores squeaking out occasionally from between his soft pink lips. As the sun rose higher into the sky, a shimmering ray of light angled precisely through the blinds – tickling playfully against the boy’s button nose and prompting a single satisfied sigh as he rolled over instinctively onto his side. Grasping for a hug, he found the place beside him empty. Instead, he latched onto a pillow – clutching it possessively between his stubby fingers and surrendering his mind once again into the murky unreality between waking and sleep. In his memories, Will was sitting morosely on the steps outside the huge looming

Will slips further and further into a younger mindset as Liam struggles with his new role as the older brother. --- “...but, um, you can't use your hands when you're playing soccer 'cause then it's a penalty? An', an', that means the other team gets to try an' kick the ball in without anybody trying to stop him an' stuff, except for the goalie. He can still stop the goal from scoring even though it's really hard to do it by himself but that's why it's my favorite position, 'cause the goalie can save the whole team all on his own if he's really really good. Hi Liam!” Will had babbled nonstop on the way home and kept going once they got there, the boy's first pause from his breathless rambling coming when he spotted his stunned brother standing in the doorway to the living room. The mud-speckled second-grader stared in wide-eyed horror at the oblivious five-year-old, so much so that the excited grin Will wore upon seeing Liam quickly soured into a befuddled frown. When he looked up at

Will strikes a deal with Jane, but will Abby let him see it through? --- It was three o’clock when Will left class early for his meeting with Jane. The relentless pouring rain had begun to peter off into a dull intermittent drizzle and the clouds were just starting to part, occasional shimmering bursts of sunlight piercing through the gray gloomy sky and lighting up the black asphalt playground with sporadic spirals of color. He knocked politely on the office door, fidgeting excitedly as he waited for a response. After being cooped up inside all day, the little boy was practically bursting with energy – his knees knocking together while he waited on the spot as if he’d downed a half dozen shots of espresso. He was just starting out towards the soccer pitch, fantasizing about pulling off an awesome sliding tackle in the slippery mud, when Jane opened the door. “Hi Will.” She welcomed him with a short nod, sounding strangely tired. “Come on in.” “Hi Jane!” Will replied, entirely

Will's blissful day in second grade is disturbed when he's confronted once more by the harsh realities of Viridia. --- A drippy day, thought Will. All mucky and yucky and soggy and boggy. It's raining on the mountains, it's raining on the sea, it's raining on the roads, it's raining...when I pee! The boy made himself giggle as he stared out the window of the second grade classroom, humming off-key and making up silly rhymes as he took in the downpour occurring outside. He didn't realize that Mrs. Murphy had caught him daydreaming until he felt a gentle touch on his shoulder, frowning as he looked up at the patient smile the teacher employed to gently nudge him back on task. Will dramatically sighed as only a child can before returning to his sheet of construction paper, swinging his sneakered feet absently above the ground as he grabbed a colored pencil and continued drawing. It wasn't that the boy was bored by the activity, far from it. His young mind nearly burst with ideas when

Will is drawn deeper and deeper into a childish mindset during a sleepover at Jane's place. --- “Attack!!!” Liam screamed, howling in fury as he charged down the carpeted hallways. The hulking Nerf rifle clutched in his skinny arms, practically a mini gun in comparison to the boy’s diminutive form, whirred aggressively as he gunned down on the trigger – spitting foam darts in all directions. Will ducked down skillfully into his hiding place behind a nearby side table, flicking open the revolver chamber of his own simple nerf-pistol to find that he had just one dart remaining. He locked his smooth curve of an undeveloped jaw into a steely scowl and scrunched up his cherubic cheeks into a determined pout, imagining himself as a grizzled, battle-worn cowboy – outmatched, outgunned and with his back firmly against the wall. Grimacing, he cocked the brightly colored plastic hammer back and squinted his right eye over the sight, peeking up over the table to take steady aim at his prey

Will has a breakthrough at the park, but has he drawn too much attention to himself? --- As much as he buzzed from the information he'd overheard, the boy had to admit that not everything he'd learned helped his case that Viridia was irredeemably vile. Granted, most of it pointed squarely in that direction – he needed only to get confirmation of how Mr. Green had traded a regression for a favor to be sure of that. And though he was too scared and fascinated in that moment for any other feelings to flourish, his small fists clenched of their own accord when he thought back now to how self-assured Julio's parents had been in gushing over their boy's gradual transformation through multiple regressions. It infuriated and terrified him to consider that a person could be molded into an ideal child by being reset over and over again, aghast that Julio's parents believed themselves to be loving and helping him by doing just that. Despite all that, Will kept stealing glances at the front

Will gets a glimpse at the inner machinations of the town council. --- “Hey guys!” Jane greeted the pair – one enthusiastic, one far less so – as she welcomed them into her office. “Come on in. I heard you two had an interesting recess.” “Jeeeeeeeez.” Liam huffed as he hopped back into a chair and crossed his arms. “Does everyone in the whole world know?” “Yep, I posted about it on the Internet just now.” Jane snickered at the twin looks of shocked betrayal. “I'm kidding, I'm kidding. Have a seat, Will, how are you?” “I’m fine.” He chirped in a small voice, not feeling up for another heated argument about the virtues of Viridian society after all the stresses of the day. “Have you been settling in to your new class well?” She continued, clearly unwilling to let him avoid at least a brief discussion of the elephant in the room. Will just shrugged, swinging his legs impatiently back and forth under the desk and deliberately averting his eyes. He noticed that Liam had already