Surprise Offer 2 - Chapter 25 of 45

	Surprise Offer 2: is a direct continuation of the story about Lily and her ‘brother’ Lance. Can she find acceptance and her place in the world as Lily instead of Lance? Emotions run high as Lily’s new best friend and ‘adoptive’ family members move things forward at lightning speed. Can she handle it all? How will a surprise just before Thanksgiving change everything? Lily and Sammie are back, ready to take on the world with pigtails and dancing, in a way only ten-year-old little girls can do.

Lily Vanderbilt was twirling in front of the mirror. The image that reflected back showed an 18-month-old blonde hair girl. The pink dress had a hint of a diaper underneath it. She heard Mommie make some noise so she ran towards the sound.

“Sleepy girl, wake up!” Samantha Berger exclaimed Wednesday morning, shaking the ten-year-old awake.

Lily’s eyes opened up with a smile on her face. “Good Morning, Bestie.”

“That is Mommie to you right now, my Baby Girl.” Samantha was tickling the girl in the pink Minnie Mouse Christmas footed sleeper.

“Stop! Stop! I might actually wet the bed.”

Sammie quickly stopped tickling, “Sorry.”

Blushing, Lily thought, ‘I probably shouldn't tell her that I was wearing a diaper in my dreams.’

“Well, Mommie went and chose a dress for you, while you were sleeping.”

Lily just nodded as she sat up in the bed. Her ‘Mommie’ unzipped the footed sleeper before removing it. The ‘baby’ was helped into a gold dress with lace trim.

“What size is this dress?” Lily asked as the buttons on the back were done.

“Six. You are tiny my friend. You are completely wearing a dress I think I wore when I was six years old. Granted, some of those buttons look very tight.”

Lily nodded and lifted and pointed her feet for the white tights that Sammie was holding in front of her.

A pair of black mary janes went on Lily’s feet. As she was led to the bathroom across the hall, the regressed girl realized her shoes light-up whenever she took a step.

Once again, her Mommie took care of her bathroom routine before both girls went downstairs.

“Good morning, girls. Lily, that dress looks cute on you, though it's a bit short.”

“Well, I'm a ten-year-old, who normally wears clothes that an eight-year-old wears, dressed in clothes that a six-year-old would wear. It would be short.”

“Well if I remember correctly, that dress was short on Samantha, too.” Heather recalled. “Are all the buttons actually done?”

“Yes, Mommie. Lily's wearing it correctly.”

‘Not comfortably. It's very tight.’ Lily thought. “What are you doing, Mommie Samantha?”

“Braiding your pigtails.”

“Do you two want pancakes?”

“Yes, Mommie.” … “Yes, Mommie Two.”

As Sammie was tying her pigtails into bows, the ribbons would tickle Lily’s ears. When that was done, the regressed girl wasn't surprised when a bib was tied around her neck. Again the easy going girl just shook her head when the sippy cup was sat in front of her.

As Heather Berger sat the two plates of pancakes in front of the girls, she took in the sight in front of her. Her own daughter was dressed in jeans and a t-shirt, the neighbor girl was wearing a dress two or three sizes two small, underneath a bib, drinking from a sippy cup, making a surprised face. “Lily, would you like an actual cup?”

“No, this is quite fine.”

“OK. You just made a face.”

“The warm milk surprised me.”

“Samantha Allison!”

“Babies drink warm formula from bottles, Mommie. We don't have formula or a bottle. So I'm using what we have.”

“Here, give me that sippy cup, Lily.”

“No, I don't mind the warm milk or the fact it's in a sippy cup.” Lily responded while also adding in her head, ‘I actually like being the baby girl.’

Heather opened her mouth and closed it.

“So, Mommie, are you going to tell us about this gig we have?”

“Samantha, you’ll have to ask Lily’s mother about that.”

Samantha pushed her plate back like she was done.

“Absolutely not, young lady. You will eat it all, and sit patiently while your best friend eats too.”

When both girls were done eating, Sammie quickly pulled Lily out of her chair and toward the coat closet. “Can I at least lose the bib, Mommie Bestie?”

Blushing, Sammie removed Lily’s pink bib, before helping the baby into her pink coat. The two girls ran next door.

“Mommie, Mrs. Berger said you could tell me … us about the gig offer.”

Susan looked at her daughter who appeared to be wearing just tights, with her pink coat acting as a top. The braided pigtails that stuck out from her head, tied with gold ribbons did look cute. “First, what are you wearing besides tights, Lily?”

“We have been playing Mommie and baby. I'm wearing this gold dress.” Lily removed her jacket.

“What size is that?”

“Six, Mrs. Vanderbilt.”

‘I can't believe she willingly wore that outside.’ Susan thought. Recovering, “Katie Olsen wants both of you to do face painting at her daughter Molly’s birthday party on February 13th.”

“Both of us?” Lily asked.

Sammie exclaimed, “But I can't do face painting!”

“She wants Lala, Lily, to do the painting, and Samantha to help with the games.”

“She… she knows about me?” Sammie asked.

“Well yes and no. Katie thought your name was Sofia.”

“Bestie, I think that’s my lawyer’s wife.”

“Oh.”

“Yes, it is, Princess.”

“Details like day of the week, time of day, how long, and number and age of kids, Mommie?”

“Saturday at 2:30. Three hours. Four toddlers, a five-year-old, a ten-year-old, a 12-year-old, and five teenage girls, plus I'm told Katie will be acting young, whatever that means.”

“Wait! Three hours? Too many kids to count?”

“Which is why you need a helper.” Susan looked at Samantha. Lily followed her gaze.

“Where are we having this?”

“In Riverville.”

Lily mentally did the math. “$750 before Granny’s share.”

“Split between us, Lily?”

“No, Samantha. You’ll each earn that much.” Susan Vanderbilt said. “Plus we are thinking about charging for travel time.”

Samantha dropped onto the couch, “Over seven hundred dollars is my share?!?!?!”

“Not exactly Bestie. We owe 15 percent to Granny for paint and other costs.”

“Which still means a lot of money!” Samantha exclaimed.

“Correct, Sweetie.” Susan typed on her phone. “$637.50 to be exact, without tips and travel time.”

“But Sammie, that’s three hours of work.”

“True.”

Lily looked at her Mom, “Remind me which one is Molly?”

“Remember the girl you helped up at the recital?”

“Yes. That cutie was Molly?”

“Yes.”

“So how do we agree to do it?” Sammie excitedly asked.

“We tell Granny, Bestie.”

“Let’s go, Lily.” Sammie said, grabbing Lily’s hands.

Susan opened her mouth, ready to put her foot down and stop her daughter from leaving the house dressed like that…

Lily exclaimed, “Samantha Allison Berger, I'm absolutely not leaving the house dressed like this!”

Sammie blushed and remembered how she had dressed her best friend this morning.

“I had no problem walking between our houses like this, but I’m not going anywhere else in this dress.”

Sammie, already holding Lily’s hand, dragged her upstairs to Lily’s bedroom.

Fifteen minutes later, the two girls came downstairs again. Susan approved of the fact that Lily was now wearing jeans and a sweatshirt, though the mary janes and youthful hairstyle remained. She didn’t care, as long as the very short dress was gone.

After the girls had run one block towards the shops, Lily called out, “Slow down Sammie.”

Sammie turned around and came back to where Lily was walking, “What’s up, Bestie?”

“Let’s walk the last block. My legs hurt. I must be pushing myself too much in ballet recently, and your legs are way longer than mine. I have to run twice as fast to keep up with you.”

Sammie grinned, “You’re not that small Lily, but we can walk.”

As the girls walked past the consignment shop Sammie pointed out, “Now that we’re alone, I kinda want to go in there.”

“Okay,” Lily turned to walk into the shop.

Sammie grabbed Lily’s hand and pulled her a few steps farther down the sidewalk toward Gilbert’s Costumes, “No, later. We have more important things to do first.”

“Good morning, Lily and Samantha,” Ms. Gilbert said, as they walked in the costume shop.

“Morning, Granny.”

“Good morning, Ms. Gilbert.”

Granny smiled, “Are you here to play dress up again?”

“No, Ms. Gilbert.” Sammie said, ”We are here to say yes to the party in February.”

“Is this correct, Lily?” Granny glanced at the little one holding Sammie’s hand and looking more like a younger sibling than a best friend.

“Yes, Granny.”

“You, of course, will be Lala,” Ms. Gilbert said smoothly. “Which means we need to decide who Samantha will be.”

“Who I'll be?”

“Yes… your costume, and what name you’ll go by.”

“Oh, yeah. I didn't think of that.”

“It should complement Lily’s rag doll costume.”

Samantha went quiet, thinking.

“Would you like to be a clown,” Ms. Gilbert offered, “or another rag doll?”

“I think a clown, Ms. Gilbert.”

Very good. Perhaps you can help design it next week while Lily's away.”

Sammie’s face lit up with a mischievous smirk. “I’ll like that.”

Lily frowned. “That means I can't help.”

“Don't pout. I didn’t get to help design yours either.” Sammie pointed out.

“But … I didn’t get to help design Lala ei…” Lily started, just before Granny cut in.

“Hanna, can you come out here and measure Samantha for her event costume?” Ms. Gilbert called over the intercom, still busy with paperwork.

A moment later, Hanna stepped out. “Greetings, Sammie and Lily.” Hanna held back a chuckle at Lily’s unusual, for her, hairstyle. She decided not to point it out because the girl seemed perfectly fine with it.

“Hello, Aunty.”

“Hello, Mrs. Kane.”

“Shoes and jacket off, Sammie, then hop up on that box.”

Sammie quickly followed the instructions and climbed onto the measuring platform. She watched as her Girl Scout leader measured her in multiple locations before writing them down on the paper she brought with her.

“So,” Hanna said, wrapping the tape around Samantha’s forehead, “what am I making for you?”

“Some kind of clown costume that matches Raggedy Lala.”

Hanna looked at her mother nodding in agreement before continuing the measuring, “A clown to go with Lala,” Hanna said with a smile. “This will be fun to do. We'll need a name to match, too. That might take some thinking.”

Lily just stood back and watched, her attention drifting now and then toward the rack of flower girl dresses.

After checking the fit and confirming the size of the shoes Samantha was wearing, she added that information to her list of measurements, “Alright, you can put your shoes back on, sweetie.”

Once she finished writing everything down, Hanna glanced over at Lily again, her eyes briefly catching on the girl’s hair. “Are you two playing dress-up today?”

Lily opened her mouth, but before she could answer, Sammie jumped in. “Not today. I want to take Lily to a few shops to get her opinion on some things.”

Lily blinked, a little confused, but didn’t argue.

Sammie headed for her ‘baby girl’ while thinking, ‘It would have worked better if Lily was mentally my baby girl but that was too much for her to leave the house like that,’

The older girl by 16 days took Lily’s hand and led her outside, pulling her toward the toy store. They ended up in the doll aisle. Sammie didn’t say anything at first, but she let go of Lily’s hand, letting the regressed girl set the pace while Sammie just watched.

Lily barely glanced at the Barbies as they passed, but when they reached the baby dolls, she slowed.

That was enough.

Sammie leaned in slightly, her voice softer now. She was hoping for Lily to feel mentally young. “Does my baby girl want a new dolly to play with?”

Lily’s cheeks pinked, but she didn’t pull away. Her eyes stayed on the dolls.

They moved on, but Lily glanced back once… then again.

Sammie noticed.

At the dress-up section, Lily slowed again. This time it was more obvious.

Sammie smiled a little. “Most of these probably won’t fit anymore…” She nudged Lily gently. “…but you do have a whole costume shop to play in.”

Lily nodded her head, smiling faintly.

They passed the stuffed animals without stopping, but then came to the toddler aisle.

Sammie hesitated this time before speaking. “…Would you want a Fisher-Price toy for Christmas?” she asked quietly, pointing to where Lily was looking.

Lily didn’t answer right away. “Not for Christmas,” she finally whispered, her face warm.

Sammie tilted her head, watching Lily carefully. “But… you’d still want one?”

Lily gave the smallest nod.

Sammie caught it.

They left the toy store and headed down the street toward the consignment shop.

Sammie slowed in front of the window and pointed at a display inside. “What about that?” she said with a grin. “A crib for my baby girl?”

Lily’s face went bright red as she fell farther into little head space. At the next store over, someone entered, causing the door chimes to be heard. Lily suddenly glanced around quickly, actively trying to shake herself out of the regression that her ‘Mommie’ had successfully induced in the toy store. She shot her best friend a look before hissing under her breath, “Samantha, don’t say that so loud. Someone could hear you.”
Sammie raised an eyebrow, a teasing smile tugging at her lips. “So you’re not saying no…”

Lily opened her mouth, but then closed it again, her blush deepening.

Sammie took that as her answer and laced their fingers together, gently pulling her toward the door. “Come on.”

Lily hesitated for half a second… then followed.

A bell chimed as the door opened.

“I’ll be right there!” a voice called from the back of the shop.

Sammie didn’t wait. She stepped inside and pointed toward a nearby display, lowering her voice
just enough to make it feel like a secret.

“I didn’t know they came in size seven. I bet those would fit my baby girl.…”

Lily followed her gaze —and immediately flushed. “Sammie …”

Before she could finish, a voice came from behind them.

“Well now … Lily Vanderbilt… and a friend. What brings you into my shop today?”

Lily spun around. “Mrs. Kester!?!”

“Who’s your friend, Lily?”

Lily froze. For half a second, all she could think about was playing with the toys in the church nursery. She gave a small shake of her head, pulling herself back together. “My best friend… Sammie.”

“Sammie… short for Samantha?” Robin Kester asked, studying her.

Remembering what she had told Lily before this lady showed up, she felt her face get warm. “Yes, ma’am. Samantha Berger.”

Robin’s expression shifted with recognition.

“Berger… oh! You live next to the Vanderbilts, don’t you? I’m one of your mother’s clients.”

Sammie’s eyes widened. “Oh.” She started edging slowly toward the door.

“I like that hairstyle on you, Lily,” Mrs. Kester said, a hint of surprise in her voice. It wasn’t something she could imagine her own daughter agreeing to. In fact, she’d tried something similar a few months ago and gotten a very firm refusal.

Lily reached up, touching her hair as she remembered how Sammie braided it that morning. Her cheeks warmed. Her hair was currently very different from how Stacy and her friends usually fixed her hair at church.

“Um… thank you, Mrs. Kester,” she said softly. “Sammie just… did it this morning. We were kind of playing around.”

“You should do your hair like that next time you’re in the nursery during church, but those little pigtails you had did match a few of the other girls in the nursery on Sunday.”

Lily reached up and touched her twin braids high on her head, done in such a way to cause the braids to stick out sideways. Her cheeks warmed.

“You were in the church nursery!?” Sammie blurted, stopping mid-step and turning to stare at the one she had been trying to mentally regress all morning.

Lily froze. “Um… I… I just lost track of time,” she said quickly. “I was helping Lauren get settled, and then she started showing me the Fisher Price Little People Noah’s Ark and… I didn’t realize how long I’d been in there. I wasn’t one of the kids. I was just in the nursery.”

Sammie narrowed her eyes, clearly not convinced. “That’s not the way the nursery works at church. Did a grown-up have to come in order for you to get out of the nursery at the end of church?”

“But enough of that story,” Robin Kester said, holding back a chuckle. “I believe I asked you two girls a question.”

Lily blinked, then looked over at Sammie, who looked just as lost. “Which question, Mrs. Kester?”

Robin smiled patiently. “What brings you two girls in here today?”

Sammie glanced at Lily.

Lily immediately pointed at Sammie.

Sammie sighed. “Mrs. Kester… I kinda just brought Lily in here to tease her…” Sammie admitted, then trailed off, her voice dropping. “…and maybe figure out what she likes.”

“Samantha,” Robin Kester said, one brow lifting, “when I walked up, I’m pretty sure I heard something about a baby girl and diapers. Who were you talking about? Maybe I can help you figure out what size diapers would fit best.”

Sammie’s face went bright red. She slowly raised a finger and pointed at Lily.

At the exact same moment, Lily, just as red, pointed at herself.

Robin paused. For a brief second, her mind flicked back to Sunday in the nursery, the teasing comment about checking Lily’s diaper and her reaction.

Her gaze shifted to the nearby stack of size seven diapers… then back to Lily…Oh.

The girl only told her she wasn't wearing one when she asked. Obviously, that extensive blush had more significance than just some joking around. Keeping her expression carefully neutral, Robin turned and walked back toward the new consignments she’d been sorting. “Well,” she said lightly, realizing she shouldn't say any more without talking to the parents, “carry on, you two.”

Sammie, suddenly out of steam, kept inching toward the door. “Goodbye, Mrs. Kester.” Then she grabbed Lily’s hand and bolted out of the shop.