Noah and the BMW -- (Author) Mehrabad98

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Author: Mehrabad98
Timestamp: Sep 13, 2023 at 7:43 AM
Content: This is what I have written so far for the story.
This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual events or persons is coincidental.

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The repetitive auditory pulsation of Noah’s alarm shook him awake from his dream. Although most boys hate it when their hypothetical kiss with the hot girl from math class is interrupted by reality, Noah was relieved to find out that there in fact was no manic bear rampaging in his house. He hit the snooze button and swiped up to check for any notifications that may have piled up overnight. Nothing of notice caught his attention. Reluctantly, he flung his body out of bed and went through the motions. He threw on his standard outfit, consisting of jeans, a t-shirt, and a slightly oversized hoodie, and had a bowl of cereal before heading off to school. Just the past weekend, he had bought himself a black 2004 BMW 325ci convertible with a manual transmission and an ungodly amount of kilometers on the odometer. He hopped into the driver’s seat, put in the clutch, and fired up the engine. After the car ran for about 20 seconds, Noah threw the car into gear and set off for school, gracefully piloting the old German automobile down the hilly streets of his neighborhood.

When Noah pulled into the parking lot of his school, his friend Grayson waved at him, gesturing to an empty parking spot near the door.

“Nice whip!” He commented. “How much?”

“Owner wanted 4,000 for it, but I managed to get him down to 3,300 and all the maintenance is up to date!” Noah proudly declared. “I can’t wait to take it up the coast when the weather gets better!”

“I’m assuming I’m invited?” Grayson inquired.

“Of course!” Noah replied, glancing down at his Apple Watch. “I think we should get to class; it starts in like 2 minutes.”

The two boys hustled through the hallways of the school and made it to film class with mere seconds to spare. Ms. Simmons was already at the front of the classroom.

“Good morning folks!” She began her announcement. “I hope you all had a great weekend. I don’t have anything planned for today, because I want to give you all of class to work on your short film project. I’ll be here if you have any questions, otherwise, you’re free to go!”

As soon as she said those last four words, the entire class sprung to action, dispersing like a crowd of flies. Grayson and Noah, being group mates, left the room and started to make a beeline for the parking lot.

“Imagine if we just ditched class and came back in time for English.” Noah suggested. “Remember last month when Bella, Jake, and Arwinder said they were going to go film their news piece in the parking lot but instead they ditched and went to the sauna at Bella’s condo building?”

Grayson laughed at the memory. “Yeah, and when they came back I saw a box of donuts in Arwinder’s backpack.” He paused and looked at Noah. “I mean, we’re already caught up with filming, all we really need is to work on post production, and you did just roll up in that sick car!”

“You have got to be joking!” Noah responded. “Or are you?” He flashed a naughty grin at Grayson, and they seemed to reach a nonverbal consensus as they both walked straight out of the doors of the school and right towards the car.

“Hang on a second,” Grayson said. “I have to tie my shoe.” He bent down and started fumbling with the laces on his left shoe when Noah nearly gasped. The back of Grayson’s t-shirt had ridden up, exposing an off-blue waistband he was all too familiar with.

“Alright, let’s go!” Grayson exclaimed, reaching for the door handle.

“Wait.” Noah commanded. “I saw something when you were tying your shoe and the back of your shirt rode up a bit.”

Grayson’s heart sank. “What?” He quickly shot back. “I don’t know what you mean.” Noah noticed his discomfort, so he decided to make it quick.

“You’re wearing Goodnites.” He stated. “I know what they are.”

“Oh boy.” Grayson sighed. Get in the car, I’ll explain.” Noah hit the unlock button and the boys got in the car.

“Promise you’re not going to think I’m weird or anything, right?” Grayson pleaded for reassurance from his friend. “And don’t tell anyone!”

“Of course not!” Noah responded. “What you say to me stays between you and me.”

“Alright,” Grayson started. “My relatives from Suiattle were visiting over the winter break, and my cousin wets the bed, so he wears these at night. I got curious and swiped an extra from his bag, and I ended up liking it so I went out and bought more.”

Noah punched the clutch and fired up the engine before turning to Grayson. “You know, you’re not the only one. I have something to show you.” He threw the car into reverse, backed out, and navigated out of the parking lot. The drive up the hills was rather quiet, save for the sound of the exhaust as Noah slammed the gears. As soon as the pair arrived at the house, they exited the vehicle and practically ran up the stairs to Noah’s room, where he opened a drawer and pushed away some clothes to reveal his stash.

“Feast your eyes on this!” He exclaimed, showing Grayson what appeared to be hundreds of dollars worth of diapers, a couple pacifiers, and a collection of Abu stickers.

Grayson stood there, stunned. “How did you get all of this?!”

“Let’s just say my parents have very predictable schedules, and I happen to be the one who gets the mail.” He chuckled. “You can take a few if you’d like; I have way too many.”

“I had an idea, actually.” Grayson suggested. “My dad’s on a work trip in Yerba Buena this week, and my mom is working the night shift at the border tonight. You want to come to my house?”

“Actually, that’s a great idea!” Noah grinned. “I can tell my parents we’re working on our film project at your place.”

“Great, then I’ll see you at 6 pm tonight. We should probably head back to school before people get suspicious.” Grayson suggested.

“Yeah, we probably should.” Noah grabbed a few diapers and put them in the trunk of his car before returning to school with Grayson. For the rest of the day, all he could think about was the bombshell that had been dropped on him. He had known Grayson since grade 9, but it had never occurred to him that he was also a DL. Of course, that’s not something that’s obvious. Still, he couldn’t stop asking himself what the probability is of there being others at his school. Most likely none, but nobody lives in the aggregate, and even if there weren’t others at his school, there has got to be a bunch living in his city. On a whim, he whipped out his phone during social studies and asked the TBDL discord server he was in a simple question:

“Anyone here from Broader Caledonia?”

Five minutes later his phone buzzed in his pocket. Excited, he snuck a peek at the screen. It was a DM from a username he didn’t recognize.

“I saw your message. Didn’t know there were more of us.”

His heart started racing faster than a supercar running from the police. He replied to the person:

“I’m in Kwikwetlem. Where are you located?”

“West End here. Want to meet up?”

He texted Grayson. “Change of plans, we’re going to the West End tonight. Will explain later.”

The rest of the school day felt like a drag to Noah. Even calculus, normally his favorite subject, was a mind numbing affair as he anticipated the upcoming events of the night. Just as he was getting carried a bit too far by the daydream, Mr. Sharif brought him back to reality.

“Noah, what was the analogy you told me the other day about integration?” He inquired. Noah jolted momentarily, noticing everyone’s eyes on him.

“Oh, ummm, so a derivative is when my mom asks for a towel from upstairs and I drop it down the stairs. An integral is when she disapproves of said towel and tosses it back up.” Noah explained. “See, the second part requires more effort, just like integration!”

“Well said, Noah!” Mr. Sharif praised him. Noah smiled in acknowledgement before drifting off again into the fantasy scenarios he was playing out in his head.

Eventually, 6 pm rolled by, and Noah slammed through the gears on his BMW as he raced down the street leading to Grayson’s apartment building. Soon enough, he came to a halt at the base of the towering 30 story building.

“I’m here. Shall I come upstairs?” He typed on his phone, but was met with a knock on the glass of the passenger window before he could hit send. Grayson was waiting for him with a grin on his face.

Noah rolled down the window. “We leaving now or should we go upstairs first?”

“Come upstairs, and bring the stuff!” Grayson responded. Noah smashed the semi-jammed trunk switch, which was met by an audible “thunk” as the trunk of the vehicle unlatched.

“Ummmmm…” Grayson muttered. “We need to hide this stuff if we’re going to take it upstairs” He gestured at the very obvious cartoon printed diapers in the back of the convertible. “Do you have space in your backpack?”

“Let’s see…” Noah unzipped his relatively empty backpack and shoved two matching diapers into the secret compartment behind his notebooks and laptop. They barely fit, but the zipper closed tight and properly concealed the contents.

“Let’s go!” Grayson held up his keys as the boys made their way to the door. The proximity card reader beeped affirmatively and flashed a green light when Grayson tapped his keycard to it, unlocking the double doors that led to the air conditioned lobby. Nobody stood in their way as they marched briskly towards the elevator. Once inside, Grayson presented his keycard a second time before selecting the 22nd floor. Neither of them spoke during the long elevator ride up. The doors of the elevator slid open, prompting them to make a mad dash for Grayson’s apartment at the end of the hall. He punched in the code to the lock and opened the door. They had made it to safety.

“Alright, let’s get to it!” Noah announced, unzipping his backpack and extracting the two diapers. “You need help putting it on?”

“Ummmmm…” Grayson pondered. “Can you help without needing me to get fully naked?”

“Yeah, just take off your shirt, pants, and underwear while I’m not looking, then just slide the diaper underneath and I’ll come tape it.” Noah unfolded the cartoon printed diaper and handed it to Grayson, then turned around and sat on the couch, facing away from his friend. Moments later, he was summoned over.

“How does it feel?” He asked, fastening the tapes tightly around his friend’s waist.

“It feels…weird.” Grayson replied. “But I like it.” He stood up after Noah fastened the last tape and ran to the bathroom to look at himself in the mirror.

“Whoa.” He exclaimed, awestruck. “Alright, your turn!” He pointed to Noah, who was already taking off his pants. Moments later, they were both wearing nothing but their shirts and matching diapers.

“So now what? Do we head out?” Grayson inquired. “You said plans changed and we’re going to the West End.”

“So there’s another one of us whom I met on Discord, and he lives in the West End.” Noah explained. “I was thinking we could chill for a bit here and then head out when the roads are a bit emptier. The bridge traffic is still hell right now.”

“Alright, that sounds good.” Grayson agreed. “So what do you want to do?”

“I want to go outside!” Noah smirked, pointing at the door to the balcony.

“Are you out of your mind?!” Grayson was gobsmacked. “You want to go out onto the balcony looking like this?!” He pointed rather dramatically at Noah’s getup. “You know I live here, right? I have a reputation to uphold!”

“Oh please, don’t be such a drama king!” Noah slid the door open and stepped out onto the balcony. “We’re on the 20th floor, the only people who might see us are from the building across from us, and they don’t even know who we are!”

“Fine.” Grayson grumbled, reluctantly setting foot onto the balcony alongside Noah.

“I love this view.” Noah proclaimed, taking a deep breath. “Look, you can even see Halkomelem from here!” He pointed at the cluster of high-rises in the distance.

“Actually I think I can see your house from here too.” Grayson pointed in the other direction at the houses on the slopes of the mountains where a racetrack once stood, decades ago.

“Hmmmm…” Noah pondered his friend’s statement. “I can’t really tell; they all look the same.” He whipped out his phone to reference the map, but a growing pressure in his bladder distracted him from the task at hand. He quickly glanced at his friend, who remained preoccupied by the sight of the setting sun glimmering on the houses in the distance. Instinctively, he released his bladder muscles and felt a warm rush as he unleashed a flood into the diaper he was wearing. It quickly spread all over the front and even trickled into the bottom. As the flow lessened, Grayson turned back around and was quickly drawn to the fact that the green cartoon aliens on Noah’s diaper had vanished.

“Looks like somebody’s wet!” He commented. “That didn’t take long.”

“Oh you’d be surprised how bad I am at staying dry!” Noah laughed. “Don’t forget; you’re next!”

“Tough talk for a toddler.” Grayson teased Noah. “Besides, I haven’t had much to drink anyways.”

“Well let’s change that!” Noah responded. “How about we make some iced tea lemonade?”

“I’m down for that.” Grayson agreed, reaching for the door. “What kind of tea should we use?”

“I normally use black tea, but green tea works too.” Noah followed him inside towards the kitchen. Grayson picked up the sleek electric kettle and opened the lid with a resounding “click” before filling it with crisp, clear water from the nearby Kwikwetlem Lake nestled in the hills.

“You might think this is funny,” Noah began. “But I’m convinced the quality of the local water influences the taste of the tea.”

“Explain.” Grayson requested, placing the kettle on the base. “Water tastes like water to me.”

“Well, Broader Caledonia is known for its water quality.” Noah explained. “I’ve had tea here and in other places, and it just tastes better here for some reason. Meanwhile I made a cup of tea in Baja California and it tasted…how can I put it…kinda dusty.”

“What about Mohkintsis?” Grayson challenged. “They always brag about how clean their air and water is.”

“It’s good but it’s firmly in second place compared to the water here.” Noah affirmed.

The kettle gurgled and glugged as the water came to a violent boil at 100 degrees celsius. The switch flicked off with a “tick” and Grayson reached for the handle.

“Can you grab a couple glasses?” He asked Noah.

“Sure.” Noah opened the cupboard above his head and grabbed two large drinking glasses. He turned to the refrigerator and filled them with a flurry of crushed ice.

“How’s the tea coming?” He turned to his friend who was measuring spoons of brown sugar and tea leaves before depositing them in the tea kettle and filling them with a shower of steaming hot water.

“Oh it’s coming along quite well.” He capped the teapot and set it down on a diffuse low flame, letting it simmer.

“Persian style, eh?” Noah quipped.

“Oh yeah.” Grayson responded. “It’s the best way to do it.” He turned around to face Noah, his eyes drifting to the soaked diaper his friend was in.

“How much can these hold before they leak?” He inquired.

“Well I have never actually leaked, so I’m going to assume innocent until proven guilty!” Noah satirized.

“Fair enough.” Grayson laughed at the reference. “By the way, did you bring your pacifiers?”

“Yeah, let me get them.” Noah waddled over to his backpack and fished out an opaque sandwich bag with two solid color pacifiers in it. One was deep blue, the other a light shade of green. He held both up to Grayson, offering him first dibs.

“Don’t worry, they’re thoroughly sanitized.” He reassured his friend.

“I want to try the green one!” Grayson stated, grabbing it just like an overenthusiastic 3 year old and sticking it into his mouth.

“Aww, you look so cute!” Noah exclaimed.

“Fanks!” Grayson mumbled through the pacifier. Noah picked up the blue one and stuck it in his mouth. Noah tried to say something, but his words got tangled and stifled by the pacifier in his mouth. He took it out for a brief moment and repeated the statement.

“I think we should check on the tea.” He gestured at the teapot. Grayson meandered over and lifted the lid to check for rising tea leaves.

“Ready?” Noah inquired.

“Ummmmmm…” Grayson froze for a moment with the teapot lid in his hand. “Yeah, let me pour it.” He turned around and faced Noah, who instantly looked down at the faded print on his diaper.

“Looks like we’re both wet now!” Noah exclaimed. “Time for tea!” He held out his glass to Grayson, who poured a small amount of concentrated brew over the ice. A satisfying crackling noise rose from the arctic temperature ice cubes as they fractured under the intense heat of the tea. Grayson topped it off with a generous helping of piping hot water, followed by a dash of sugar and lemon juice. After preparing a second glass, they took a long sip, holding their pacifiers in the other hand.

“It turned out pretty well!” Noah chimed in after putting down his glass.

“Oh yeah it definitely hit the spot!” Grayson agreed.

“Bzzzzzzz” Noah’s phone vibrated on the countertop. He picked it up and read the message.

“You coming over now?”

Noah showed the message to Grayson without saying anything. They looked at each other with a sense of mutual agreement and grinned.

“Should we change?” Grayson asked.

Noah shook his head. “We’re barely wet. Let’s just throw on our normal clothes and split.”

Grayson rinsed out their glasses and placed them in the dishwasher, then walked over to Noah in the living room and put on his jeans. The diaper was rather thick, and the outline of it was somewhat visible from the outside. He threw on a hoodie that masked most of the obvious signs, and they headed out the door together, securing their pacifiers in Noah’s backpack.

The BMW eagerly awaited their return at the foot of the building. Noah hopped in the driver’s seat and Grayson jumped in beside him. The engine roared to life as expected, Noah put the car into first gear, lifted the clutch, and they drove off.

“Do you know where we’re going?” Grayson asked. “I noticed you don’t have navigation running.”

“I’ll get his address when we get closer. I’m just excited for the new highway pilot project!” Noah responded.

“What’s the project?” Grayson prodded.

“You’ll see” Noah grinned. “Just wait and see…” He put on his signal and banked the car into the onramp leading to the highway. He jammed the gear shifter into second gear and dumped the clutch, stepping on the accelerator with passion. The sudden downshift caused an awkward jerking motion followed by a powerful rush of torque.

“Woohoo!” Grayson threw his arms into the air. “This feels so good!”

“Best feeling ever!” Noah jammed the car into third, fourth, then fifth gear after reaching his cruising speed. The crisp late winter air gushed onto their faces as the stars sparkled. Traffic was light, given that most commuters had already returned to their homes. A Porsche Boxster flew past them in the left lane, also with its top down. A junction came into view, and Noah followed the arrows pointing towards “Kemkemelay”. After the split, Noah got Grayson’s attention and pointed at a magic series of signs that had just recently been erected on that stretch of the highway.

“Look!” He shouted over the gusts of wind blowing over them. Grayson read the signs with shock and awe.

“SPEED LIMIT AUDIT ZONE - DRIVE RESPONSIBLY” Read the first sign. The next was even more gobsmacking.

“END MAXIMUM 100” Read the second sign. A third sign also read “KEEP RIGHT EXCEPT TO PASS”

As soon as their vehicle passed the second sign, Noah punched the clutch and slammed the car down into third gear. The car jerked and the tachometer shot up. The engine roared as it accelerated the vehicle with a pleasant symphony of exhaust noise. Noah flicked the gear shifter into fourth gear and activated his turn signal, still accelerating. The speedometer began to tick past 150 km/h as he moved into the left lane to blow past a slow moving Toyota in the right lane. The speedometer ticked up to 160 and Noah put the car into fifth gear. The wind howled louder at their higher speed, and their hair began to blow everywhere like they were going through an industrial grade blow dryer. Before Noah could say anything, a bright flash came up from behind him, indicating a vehicle wanting to go faster. Noah quickly moved right and a BMW M5 flew past them, followed by a Porsche Panamera.

“What the hell is going on?” Grayson asked, perplexed. “Did we accidentally drive into Germany?”

“No!” Noah shouted over the wind. “It was a surprise audit by provincial authorities because an activist group kept badgering them with allegations of intentionally suppressed speed limits to generate money from bogus tickets. They responded by removing the speed limit from parts of highway 1 and highway 99 for two months to see what happens!”

“When did this start?” Grayson asked. “I didn’t hear about it.”

“They literally announced it yesterday via an ambiguous press release, I just happened to see it in a BMW owners’ Discord server and someone confirmed it would be a no speed limit thing!” Noah replied. “This guy who owns a M340i is going to take me on highway 99 tomorrow night and we’re going to top out his car!”

“That’s awesome!” Grayson shouted.

Noah’s grin quickly disappeared when a very disappointing sign came into view.

“MAXIMUM 100 km/h”

“Dammit!” He exclaimed, slamming on the brakes. The tachometer quickly dropped down below 110 km/h.

“That was a short stretch.” Grayson commented.

“Yeah, the last thing they want is for our highways to end up on TikTok.” Noah explained. The pair passed a police officer on the side of the road holding a radar gun. Despite being 7 km/h over the limit the officer flashed them a thumbs up.

“Oh yeah, and there’s always at least one cop waiting at the end to make sure nobody tries to extend their privileges."

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Author: Mehrabad98
Timestamp: Jan 22, 2024 at 3:41 AM
Content: PART 2 NOW POSTED. Thank you for your patience!

The rest of the drive was an uneventful series of stop and go through the gridded streets of East Kemkemelay. Driving with the manual transmission had become routine for Noah as he threw the car into first, got moving, shifted to second, then put the car back into neutral as they approached yet another red light. After a series of starts and stops, Noah banked the car to the right, merging onto the short bridge connecting the rest of the city to the downtown peninsula. The lights of downtown Kemkemelay came into view as the car drove straight into the heart of the urban jungle of high-rise buildings.

“In 500 meters, turn left” The calm voice of the navigation instructed. Noah flicked on his turn signal, dropped the car into second gear, and dumped the clutch, whipping a left turn in front of a wave of oncoming cars. The tires squealed loudly as the car gyrated into the turn.

“Sorry about that.” Noah calmly apologized.

“Yeah no worries.” Grayson replied.

The boys continued to make their way through the crowded downtown traffic until the streets calmed down as they drove out of the packed downtown core and into the calm, tree-lined west end. 1960s looking apartment towers and low rise buildings lined the side of the street. It felt almost European to Noah, who had just visited Athens mere months ago. Eventually, he brought the car to a gentle stop in front of one of the high-rise buildings, and double checked the address.

“He said he’s coming out now.” Noah told Grayson, flashing the screen of his phone in his face. They sat and waited in the cool night air as a gentle breeze wafted through their hair. Eventually, a boy emerged from the lobby of the apartment building and made a direct, orthogonal path towards the convertible.

“You guys from Kwikwetlem?” He asked nervously. Noah nodded his head and extended his hand over Grayson to shake the new guy’s hand.

“I’m Noah, nice to meet you!”

“And I’m Grayson, nice to meet you!” Grayson shook his hand as well.

“I’m Aiden, pleasure to meet y’all too!” He replied. It’s cool we were able to meet up on such short notice!”

“Yeah, I kinda knew there’d be more of us in the area.” Noah affirmed. “So what do you want to do?”

“Ummmmm…” Aiden thought. “My parents are home and I just told them I’m going for a walk, so we could really do whatever, but I can’t invite you in.”

“That’s fine,” Noah began to respond, but got cut off.

“How about we head to Xwayxway Park?” Grayson interjected. “We’re so close to it and we could go for a walk there”

“I’d rather not go to a giant urban park after dark.” Noah shot back. “I know Kemkemelay is safe and all but it’s not like our murder rate is zero.”

“How about we go to the beach?” Aiden suggested. “We could walk there.”

“I’m down for that!” Noah exited the car and ventured over to the trunk where he extracted his backpack. “Oh yeah, we brought some stuff for you as well.” He opened the backpack and gestured to the extra diapers he put in there.

“Cool!” Aiden exclaimed. “I’ll put one on at the beach washroom.”

“Shall we head out?” Grayson asked. “I’m getting impatient.”

“Yeah, you two can start heading down there, I just have to put the top back up.” Noah said, reaching for the ignition. Grayson and Aiden took the backpack from Noah and started meandering down the tree-lined streets of the West End towards the beach.

“So…” Aiden broke the silence. “Tell me a bit about yourself.”

“Well, I’m 17, I like cars, and I run a small side gig doing real estate photos.” Noah told him. “What about you?”

“I’m 16, and I like statistics, so I want to study data science after high school.” Aiden explained.

“I could never see myself writing code!” Noah laughed. “It’s all Greek to me!”

“Oh don’t worry, it’s actually all in English!” Aiden remarked, eliciting another laugh from Noah. “So how did you meet Noah?” He followed up.

“We’ve actually known each since grade 9, we had math together and started studying together.” Noah explained.

Needless to say, Aiden was shocked, and he immediately asked, “How did you two find out you’re both TBDL?”

“My fault,” Grayson chuckled. “I went to school padded and let my shirt ride up, and he immediately called me out on it.”

“Damn, you got hella lucky!” Aiden laughed. “I’d die inside if my friend caught me padded.”

“Oh trust me, I died a thousand deaths!” Grayson reassured him. “The only saving grace was when he took me to his house and gave me this.” He pulled his pants down a bit, exposing his wet diaper.

“Speaking of which, I should go put mine on!” Aiden reached for the backpack, which Grayson gladly handed over.

“I’ll wait for you!” Grayson told Aiden as he made his way towards the washrooms on the beachfront. Briefly alone, he turned around and faced the towering skyline of the West End before him, every lit window a portal into the life of another resident of the city. The beach was rather empty at night, with the occasional couple walking hand in hand or an overworked professional walking their dog after a grueling day of work. Further afield, the bright headlights of cars could be seen crossing the bridge stretching over the narrow creek. The silence rang loudly in his ears as he absorbed the energy of the city slowly winding down for the night. Suddenly, he felt someone grab his shoulders.

“Surprise!” Noah exclaimed. Grayson jumped, startled.

“Oh, it’s you.” He said, relieved. “Aiden should be out soon.”

“You think we should change?” Grayson asked, concerned about getting a rash.

“Nah, I’ve done worse and didn’t leak!” Noah reassured him.

“What do you mean by worse?” Grayson prodded.

“Well…I was sick and I fell asleep in a pretty loaded diaper because I was too exhausted to change. Ended up waking up the next morning in a dry bed, so I consider that a win.” Noah explained.

“Good lord, that’s intense!” Aiden chimed in, walking towards them from the washroom holding the backpack. The diaper he had put on visibly bulged underneath his jeans. “Didn’t your room stink for days after that?”

“Nope, I just opened my window really wide and it vented quickly.” He explained. “I live in the Kwikwetlem Hills and the air is so nice I usually leave my window cracked open a bit all the time.”

“Do you ever get bears in your yard in Kwikwetlem?” Aiden inquired.

“I’ve heard about it happening but I’ve never seen it personally.” Noah told him.

“Interesting.” Aiden remarked. A moment of silence fell upon the group, with nobody knowing exactly how to break the awkward tension. Suddenly, Noah’s phone buzzed in his pocket. He extracted it and looked at the number on the screen.

“Emma Lafontaine”

“Hey Emma what’s up?” He answered nervously.

“What are you doing Friday night?” She inquired mischievously.

“Ummmmm…” Noah stammered. “Nothing?”

“Party at my house, 7:30 PM. I’ll send you the address. Open invite.”

“Ok, see you then!” Noah exclaimed. A few moments later, his phone dinged with a message from Emma.

“1604 Bramblewood Avenue. Party starts at 7:30 but you can show up a bit earlier if you’d like.” The message read.

“Guys,” Noah announced. “We’re going to a party this weekend!”

“Am I invited too?” Aiden asked.

“Of course!” Noah exclaimed. “It’s in Kwikwetlem though, so you’ll have to find a way to get there.”

“No problem, I have a transit pass. You ok if I crash at your place after the party?” Aiden inquired. “I think this party’s not going to end by 1:30 AM.”

“Yeah, I’ll just say you’re a friend from some BMW group, my mom will totally buy it.” Noah chuckled.

“Guys I had an idea.” Grayson piped up. “What if we wear diapers to the party?”

Noah and Aiden turned around and looked at him as if he had suggested robbing a bank.

“Are you out of your mind?” Noah grilled him. “Need I remind you that I actually like Emma and I want to go out with her?”

“Relax bud, everyone’s going to be so drunk out of their minds they’re not going to notice a thing, especially not with our oversized hoodies.” Grayson responded. “Plus, I’ve learned to never bank on the availability of a washroom at house parties. Someone’s always throwing up in there.”

“You have a point.” Noah conceded, looking over to Aiden for approval. Aiden shrugged.

“It’s not like I know anyone there enough to care.”

“So it’s settled, padded house party here we come!” Grayson cheered.

Friday could not have come sooner for Noah. The hours ticked away at the speed of molasses as he trudged through his classes one by one. The words of his teachers’ lectures drowned in the sea of his thoughts, which jumped between stress, anxiety, and excitement. After handing in his English Literature and Composition in class essay, he hastily stuffed his belongings into his backpack and darted out the door. The crisp breeze and sunlight after the rain hit his face as he stepped out into the parking lot and headed towards his car. Suddenly, a voice caught him off guard.

“Noah!” A girl shouted from behind. He turned around and saw Emma running towards him.

“Emma, what a surprise!” Noah beamed. “What’s up?”

“I was wondering if you could give me a ride home and maybe help me set up for the party.” She implored.

“Of course!” Noah exclaimed. “Get in!” He hit the unlock button on his key, resulting in a double beep confirmation from his car. “Top down or up?”

“Is that even a question?” Emma laughed. “Down, silly!”

“I knew you’d say that!” Noah chuckled, opening the passenger door for her.

“Why thank you, kind sir.” She said. Noah closed the door with a resounding thunk before hopping into the driver’s seat. He jammed the key into the ignition, shook the gearstick into neutral, and fired up the engine with a loud roar. Glancing at Emma with a smile, he stuck the gearstick into reverse and gently let off the clutch. The car hiccuped lightly as it backed out of the parking spot. Noah shook the gearstick back into neutral before clicking the button next to it to lower the top. Once the trunk clicked back into place, he grabbed the wood-trimmed gearstick, jammed it into first, and gently got the car moving. After reaching the end of the parking lot, he flicked on his right turn signal and rotated his head on a swivel, waiting for an opportunity to take a left turn onto the busy street ahead of them.

“Bramblewood Avenue, right?” He confirmed with Emma, engaging first gear on the shifter.

“Yeah, just climb up Lansdowne and you’re pretty much there.” She reassured him. As soon as a small gap emerged between the vehicles on the road, Noah spiked the tachometer to 3,000 rpm and dumped the clutch, peeling out of the parking lot with a loud squeal and a violent jerk.

“So sorry about that.” He apologized profusely. “Still getting a hand of this whole driving manual thing.”

Emma chucked. “It’s ok, you’re still a better driver than half the people on our roads.”

As the BMW began to move uphill, Noah lifted his foot off the accelerator, pushed in the clutch, and pulled the gearshift from 3rd gear back into second, releasing the clutch with a jab to the accelerator. The RPMs shot up as he continued to depress the gas pedal, powering the convertible up the hill. With two hands on the steering wheel, he elegantly navigated the smooth curves of the road, zooming past houses and parked cars. Gently, he continued to lay into the throttle, and the engine roared boldly as the vehicle picked up speed up the hill. Noah pushed in the clutch and slammed the shifter into third gear, dropping the RPMs back down to a slightly more respectable level. Eventually, they neared the stoplight, and Noah pushed in the clutch and threw the shifter into neutral, coasting to a slow roll towards the red light. Cross traffic zoomed by on the thoroughfare in front of them, a mix of parents rushing to pick up their kids, commuters returning home, and the occasional pickup truck driven by a tradesperson. Eventually, their light turned green, and Noah went through the motions once again.

Clutch in. Shifter in first. Gradual release of the clutch while gently depressing the accelerator. Once they were mobile again, he pushed the accelerator down hard, sending the RPMs flying quickly before he slammed the clutch and slotted the shifter into second. The road continued to curve upwards, and Noah responded appropriately, keeping the car in second gear as he powered uphill through the gentle curves.

“Where do I go from here?” He asked Emma, coming to a halt at a stop sign in front of the elementary school he used to attend.

“Take a right here, then take the first left. My house is a bit up the street, to the right.” She instructed him. Noah flicked on his turn signal and slowly crept into the right turn, trying to negotiate the after-school traffic. Checking to make sure there were no kids trying to cross the road, he banked into a left turn onto Emma’s street while staying in second gear. The convertible gyrated while remaining firmly planted on the street. Once again, Noah hit the gas, flying up the straight incline.

“It’s that one!” Emma pointed to an off-white house up ahead with a car in the driveway. Noah slowed down and pulled in to the right of the black late 90s Acura CL.

“That car is pristine, it looks like it just rolled off the showroom yesterday!” He commented to Emma.

She smiled, and replied “Oh yeah that’s my dad’s car; he bought it brand new back in 1999 and he’s been obsessed with keeping it all original and brand new. He’s even kept the original license plates through some miracle; it’s still legible.”

Noah exited his vehicle with Emma and walked over to the rear of the Acura, glancing down at the license plate. The text, albeit heavily faded and slowly peeling away, was still legible.

Beautiful Broader Caledonia
XNK ~ 656

“Damn, that’s so cool!” Noah exclaimed. “Mine got replated a few years back; the ordering of the numbers and letters is the current format.”

“You know, I think my dad would let you take it for a spin once he gets to know you a bit better.” Emma hinted. “Come on, we got a party to set up!”

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Author: Mehrabad98
Timestamp: Jan 22, 2024 at 6:02 PM
Content:

LuckyRed23 said:

Great story, although I can't see his gearbox surviving much longer with those heavy fast and furious style shifts!

[End of quote]

Haha you're absolutely right! Guess we'll have to see what part 3 brings

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Author: Mehrabad98
Timestamp: Jan 22, 2024 at 6:15 PM
Content:

Diaperman0723 said:

Great chapter can't wait for more

[End of quote]

Thank you!

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Author: Mehrabad98
Timestamp: Jan 22, 2024 at 6:21 PM
Content:

LuckyRed23 said:

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.



Accept third party cookies

[End of quote]

That is quite literally how I imagine Noah driving through his hilly neighborhood. Good thing snow season is pretty much over for him otherwise he'd be getting stuck!

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Author: Mehrabad98
Timestamp: Jan 26, 2024 at 4:46 AM
Content:

kerry said:

This is a fun start and I'm not even a gearhead. . One thing though: what's with the weird and weirder place names? Kwikwetlem? Xwayxway Park? (How do you even pronounce that one?)

[End of quote]

You're the first one who noticed! All I'll divulge is that they're not made up! Broader Caledonia may be a figment of my imagination, but said imagination loves to blur the lines between reality and alternative timelines.

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Author: Mehrabad98
Timestamp: Feb 2, 2024 at 4:54 AM
Content:

Growler0128 said:

take it from someone who has driven in CALF RUSH HOUR. A STICK SHIFT is nice but traffic starts playing hell on your knees.

[End of quote]

My mom drove a Hillman Hunter in chronically traffic-jammed Tehran for 2 decades and she swears the clutch gave her arthritis

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Author: Mehrabad98
Timestamp: Feb 8, 2024 at 10:05 PM
Content:

oreobaby89 said:

I will admit I had to look it up but I had guessed from your writing that this was in Canada. Mainly becuse you talk of distance and speed in Kilomerters but the said diapers and Goodnites. In Europe and every where else it is Drynight. For reference the names he is using are First Canadian names so they are indigenous names.

[End of quote]

You are correct, I drew a lot of inspiration from Canadian First Nations and locations, although the driving is very much German in speed, vehicles, and discipline!

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Author: Mehrabad98
Timestamp: Mar 12, 2024 at 3:58 PM
Content: I'm still working on the next part, but in the meantime, here's an AI generated image of Noah with his car in the hills behind his house.



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Author: Mehrabad98
Timestamp: Apr 2, 2024 at 9:15 PM
Content:

Diaperedlife13 said:

Part 3?

[End of quote]

Coming soon, I've been a bit busy with school lately. Should have more time to write this month before finals season

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Author: Mehrabad98
Timestamp: Apr 7, 2024 at 7:14 AM
Content: Part 3 is here! Part 4 should be coming before the end of the semester and will include the party, and Aiden will make an appearance again.

Emma extracted her phone out of her pink Prada handbag and tapped it on the smart lock, which beeped affirmatively and unlocked her front door.
“After you.” She gestured to Noah, pushing the door open for him.
As soon as he stepped through the threshold, Noah was awash with a strong apple cinnamon aroma. The interior of Emma’s house was immaculate, with not a speck of dust in sight. Noah took off his shoes at the entrance and placed them gently on the shoe rack.
“Can I get you anything to drink?” Emma asked, taking off her manteau and laying it on the couch. “I got a sparkling French limeade from Trader Joes I think you’d like.”
“Yeah that sounds great!” Noah responded. “I haven’t been to Trader Joes in ages.”
Emma unscrewed the top of the glass bottle with a resounding “pop” and poured it into a glass for Noah. “Here you go.” She handed it to him.
“What do we need to do to setup for the party tonight?” Noah asked, taking a big sip of the refreshing sparkling beverage. “Are we moving the furniture around?”
Emma pointed to the living room and said “I want the middle of the room to be open so people can walk around and mingle, so we need to push the coffee table off to the side where people can put their drinks down. Also, we need to set up the bar on the dining table.”

Noah downed the last of his drink and walked over to the living room by way of the kitchen, depositing his empty glass in the sink.
“Just off to the side over there?” He pointed at an empty corner of the room. Emma nodded, so he grabbed the mahogany wood table and yanked it across Emma’s pristine hardwood floor.
“Bar time?” He asked Emma.
“Yeah, let’s get the drinks out of the garage.” She gestured at Noah to follow her through the side door into the large attached garage. She flipped on the light switch, revealing an empty parking spot where her mom usually parks her cherry red 2008 Lexus IS350, and a series of boxes with large glass bottles in them, and a few other boxes with cans of soda.
“Any kombucha?” He jokingly asked.
“Where do you think this is, the North Shore?” Emma rolled her eyes playfully. “This is going to be a raging house party full of high schoolers, not an overpriced craft brewery where hipster millennials go to complain about not being able to buy a house by the beach and only 10 minutes from downtown for 5 shillings like their parents did back in 1969.”
“Damn, that’s a good one.” Noah chucked, lifting a box full of 1 liter bottles of soda and hauling them into the dining area. “Below the table?” He asked.
“Yeah, leave the box down there and we can switch out the bottles as they empty. When we’re done with this can you help me take out the trash?” Emma asked, setting down two full glass bottles on the table.
“Sure thing!” Noah responded. After hauling in more soda bottles and a case of water bottles, he wandered into the kitchen and opened the cabinet under the sink, pulling out the trash can.
“I can take care of that and the organics; if you could do the recycling I’d really appreciate it!” Noah turned around to see Emma standing behind him holding a green bag full of food scraps.
“Uhhh…” He thought for a moment, then responded in the affirmative. “Sure, I can do that.” He reached for the trash can adjacent to the garbage, which was overflowing with a myriad of bottles, cans, cardboard boxes, and the occasional glass bottle. It was mildly heavy, but he hoisted it up effortlessly in a pathetic attempt to impress the girl he very much had a crush on. He hauled the can to the garage, where he found Emma’s waste containers neatly arranged against a wall opposite from her mom’s parking spot. Emma followed behind him, chucking a small white bag of trash into the garbage cart and the bag of food scraps into the organic cart.
“Let me get you a bag for the paper.” She reached into a storage bin and pulled out a yellow bag labeled “MIXED PAPER” and handed it to Noah. He dumped the bulk of the recycling into the blue box in front of him and started sifting through it to take out the paper and glass. The few glass bottles quickly ended up in the gray box beside the blue one, and Noah spent the rest of his effort wrestling a couple cereal boxes into the yellow plastic bag. As soon as he walked back into the house and returned the recycling trash can under the sink, his phone buzzed with a message. He took it out and read the notification on his screen.

Grayson Lougheed
sent you a Snap

Noah clicked on the icon and opened the snap Grayson had sent him. He was standing in his kitchen, wearing a white T shirt, polarized sunglasses, and a Lion Guard pull up. The caption on the screen read “rockstar toddler”

Noah quickly closed the snap and replied “where the hell did you get that from? They’ve been off the market for years!”
Grayson quickly replied “Family next door had some left over and was about to take them to the trash room; I offered to take their trash down because I was headed out, and I liberated them.”
“I’m surprised you fit them tbh.” Noah wrote back. “I guess I gotta try them too if you have some left.”
“Swing by my place at 5.” Grayson commanded. “You won’t regret it.”

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Author: Mehrabad98
Timestamp: Jun 24, 2024 at 5:14 AM
Content: Thanks for bearing with me through finals and the start of summer. Here's the next part of the story!
(Disclaimer: any home addresses/phone numbers/small businesses mentioned in the story are fake and do not actually exist in real life)

Noah stood at the foot of Grayson’s building promptly at 5 pm and called him to come down. Within minutes, Grayson emerged from the front door and beckoned for Noah to follow him inside. When they were in the safety of the elevator, Noah broke the silence.

“So what exactly am I not going to regret?” Noah asked, slightly perplexed.

“The pull-ups, duh!” Grayson rolled his eyes. “You don’t want this girl to notice, so it’ll be perfect for you!”

“Probably” Noah remarked. The elevator arrived on Grayson’s floor and the boys stepped out. Once in Grayson’s apartment, they resumed their conversation safely, with both of Grayson’s parents gone.

“Alright, show me the money!” Noah exclaimed. Grayson ran into his room and fetched a ripped but nearly full pack of Lion Guard pull ups from years ago. He threw one to Noah.

“Put it on, I want to see how it looks on you!” He turned around to give Noah privacy.

Noah took off his jeans and underwear and carefully slipped on the pull up. Much to his surprise, it slid up with minimal effort, although the fit was noticeably tight, much tighter than Goodnites and certainly tighter than the ABDL diapers he was used to wearing.

“Wow, it fits!” He exclaimed, to which Grayson turned around and grinned when he saw his friend dressed like a toddler hopelessly attempting toilet training.

“Not bad, eh?” Grayson remarked. “So you ready to wear this to the party?”

“Guess so.” Noah sighed, a wave of dread washing over him. Even if the girl he likes doesn’t notice, he’ll eventually have to tell her if things end up working out between them. Before he could dive down that rabbit hole of thoughts, his phone buzzed with a Discord message from Aiden.

“I’m changing trains at Waterfront, which station should I get off at?”

Noah thought for a moment, then typed back “Get off at Lincoln; call me when you’re a few stations away.”

Aiden typed for a moment, then sent, “Can I have your phone number? Trust me I’m not a stalker LOL”

“Sure” Noah responded, reacting to Aiden’s message with a laughing-so-hard-I’m-crying emoji. “It’s (778) 310-4060”

“Bet” Aiden replied.

Noah turned to Grayson, who had stood there patiently waiting. “Now what?” He asked.

“Dunno, I’m bored.” He admitted. “Want to get boba and watch tv while we wait for Aiden?”

“I’m down! Noah exclaimed, grabbing his jeans off the floor. “Which boba place should we hit?”

“Taipei Teahouse maybe?” Grayson suggested. “They’re kinda pricey but I like the exotic flair they offer.”

“Sure, why not?” Noah buckled his belt and stuffed his underwear into his pocket. After Grayson got dressed, they left his apartment and took the elevator down to the lobby.

“It’s right around the corner.” Grayson pointed as they exited the building. “We can walk there in like five minutes.”

They set off on foot, walking straight down the street lined with a wide variety of storefronts, beauty spas, and medical clinics. Despite it being a Friday evening, very few people were out on the streets, save for the occasional elderly Persian couple slowly meandering down the sidewalk, deeply engaged in conversation about how the kids these days seem to be glued to their phones, or how outrageous 2 dollar a liter gasoline is. A cool breeze blew on Noah and Grayson, making strands of their hair dance in the wind. Eventually, one of the storefronts had a massive GRAND OPENING banner hanging, and the sign read “Taipei Teahouse”. Noah opened the door and held it for Grayson. They stepped into the empty cafe, which was staffed by an early-20s looking Taiwanese lady.

“Welcome to Taipei Teahouse, what can I get started for you guys?” She asked with a smile on her face.

“What’s good here? It’s my first time.” Noah asked, to which the employee responded with a friendly chuckle.

“Everything! But if you want a recommendation, I’d say the matcha milk tea with maple boba is a must try!” She exclaimed.

“Sure, I’ll take that in the small size please.” Noah requested, turning to Grayson.

“I’ll take the same.” He told her, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a mangled, colorful wad of cash. “Paying together.” He told the employee, pulling out a ten dollar bill and a five dollar bill and handing them to her.

“Are you serious?” Noah asked in shock, still holding his wallet in his hand.

“Hell yeah bro, that’s for being a real one.” Grayson winked at Noah, who instantly got the message.

“I’ll be right out with your drinks!” The employee informed them, heading to the back of the cafe to prepare their orders. After she was out of earshot, Noah turned to Grayson.

“Thanks. I really appreciate it.” He told his friend.

“No, thank you!” Grayson responded. “I’m really lucky to have you as a friend.”

“Me too.” Noah told him.

“Two matcha milk teas with maple boba!” The employee announced, setting two plastic cups down on the counter. Noah and Grayson picked up a cup each and punctured the thick plastic film covering with the comically large straws provided by the teahouse.

“Damn this maple boba tastes good.” Noah commented, taking a big slurp of his drink. “By the way, what should we do for dinner?”

“I was thinking we could grab something before Aiden gets here, unless he wants to have dinner with us.” Grayson suggested. As if by magic, Noah’s phone buzzed as soon as Grayson uttered that sentence. Noah extracted his phone and checked the caller ID, but the number wasn’t saved in his contacts.

Noah slid on the “slide to answer” and put the phone to his ear.

“Doofenshmirtz Evil Incorporated, how may I help you.” He greeted the unknown caller, assuming it was someone calling about the extended warranty on his car.

“Hey bro it’s Aiden.” The voice on the other end responded.

“Oh, hey Aiden.” Noah replied, startled. “Sorry about the intro, I thought you wanted to sell me oceanfront property in Nebraska.”

“Well, now that you’re curious, I have a killer deal for you!” Aiden played along with the joke. “For a low low downpayment of 20,000 dollars YOU can be the owner of a beachfront estate in Nebraska!”

“Yeahhhhhh no.” Noah laughed. “I think I’ll pass.”

“So anyways I just wanted to call and ask about dinner.” Aiden explained. “We just passed Renfrew station, so it’ll be a while until I get there.”

“Grayson and I just got boba, so we’re fine for now.” Noah explained. “We’re going to head to Emma’s to pregame; when I come pick you up we can grab something to take and we can all eat dinner at the pregame.”

“Sounds good.” Aiden affirmed. “See you soon.”

“See ya!” Noah exclaimed, hitting the giant red button to end the call. On their way back to Grayson’s apartment, Noah explained the plan to him.

“So we’re headed to Emma’s right now?” Grayson inquired.

“Indeed!” Noah confirmed. “Do you think we need spare pull ups?”

“Don’t think so.” Grayson told him. “The whole point of pull ups is to use the toilet if possible, like the big kids we think we are.” He smirked.

“Totally.” Noah rolled his eyes at the joke. “I’m so big; look at my big boy underwear!” He briefly pulled down his jeans, flashing the waistband of his pull ups at his friend.

The boys jubilantly hopped into the convertible, and Noah put the top down as soon as he started the engine, seeking to enjoy spring to its fullest after months of nonstop rain and a constant cover of clouds.

“Off we go!” He announced, jamming the shifter into first and gently modulating the clutch and accelerator. Despite driving a BMW, he flicked on his turn signal at every turn and lane change. After taking a right turn, the road began to slope upwards, indicating their ascent into the hills. The scenery changed from towers and townhomes to sprawling single family homes with giant front yards built into the foothills of the mountains. Being on a much straighter street this time, Noah slammed the shifter back into second gear and mashed the accelerator as soon as he lifted the clutch. The vehicle jerked violently, much to Grayson’s distaste. The tachometer went flying towards the redline and the engine roared like a hungry lion. Noah focused in on the straight incline ahead, flicking the shifter into third, then fourth as the needle of the speedometer kept ticking upwards. The gusts of wind blew ever more violently over their heads as they blew through a green light at an intersection. Eventually, they reached another intersection where Noah flicked on his turn signal and began aggressively downshifting before pushing the brake and clutch.

“That was fun!” Grayson exclaimed.

“Yeah I know, it’s always so exhilarating going up that street with no red lights in my way.” Noah replied, shoving the shifter into first and taking off again, headed towards the left. On the tree-lined straightaway, he laid into the accelerator and the vehicle rocketed forwards. A few turns later, they were pulling up in front of Emma’s house, parking behind a blue Honda Civic on the side of the curb. They got out and rang the doorbell, and Emma greeted them.

“Hey, so glad you guys could make it! Come on in!” She gestured for them to walk into the house. Noah and Grayson took off their shoes and stacked them on the shoe rack beside the door before following Emma into the living room.

“Is anyone else here?” Noah asked Emma, walking into the kitchen behind her.

“Nope, I thought it would be nice to start the night with just us.” She told him, reaching for a corkscrew on the countertop. “Care for a glass of wine?”

“I’d love to, but I actually have to go and pick up a friend at Lincoln station, he’s coming in from downtown.” Noah explained. “We can have some after I bring him over; I’m also going to pick up dinner.”

“Actually,” Grayson chimed in. “You can give me your keys and I can go pick up your friend.” He realized that Emma was trying to have a romantic moment with Noah, and he didn’t want to interfere, as his presence already had done.

“You know how to drive stick?” Noah challenged. “Especially in these hills.”

“Yeah I do, actually.” Grayson asserted. “It’s not that difficult.”

“Cool, you can go pick up Aiden once he arrives; then you two can go get the food.” Noah conceded. “Y’all want shawarma poutine?”

“What’s shawarma poutine?” Emma asked, shoving a corkscrew into the wine bottle. “Is it a shawarma wrap with French fries and gravy in it?”

“No, actually, it’s basically just poutine with some shawarma meat in it; you can also add hot sauce or garlic sauce if that’s your style.” Noah explained. “Trust me, it’s the bomb.”

“That sounds really interesting; let’s try it!” Emma exclaimed. An audible “pop” followed her statement, and the cork came right off the wine bottle. “I’ll see you later, Grayson.”

Taking her cue, Grayson exited the house, closing the door behind himself. A chilly Pacific breeze blew as he walked to the BMW parked on the side of the road beside the house. He hopped behind the wheel of his friend’s car for the first time, and despite having been in the vehicle multiple times, he felt slightly disoriented. He toyed with the levers and handles controlling the seat before adjusting the mirrors. After getting comfortable, he pushed in the clutch, shook the shifter into neutral, and turned the key. The engine reliably awoke, but as soon as he put the vehicle into first gear, he realized a problem. It was parked uphill, and he needed to do a hill start. Keeping the handbrake on, he gently fluttered the RPMs up while feeling out the biting point of the clutch. As soon as he felt the clutch bite, he dropped the handbrake and laid into the accelerator, moving forward with a violent jerk. The leather covered steering wheel felt buttery in his hands as he rotated it, positioning the vehicle for descent. Before setting off, he whipped out his phone and inputted directions to the station where Aiden was coming in. The hills felt like a labyrinth to Grayson, despite living in the foothills. A myriad of tangled winding streets with a host of branching courts and circles. It seemed like every other intersection had a street sign with the ominous yellow “NO EXIT” tag on it. When the directions loaded, he clicked the button to start navigation and threw his phone haphazardly onto the passenger seat before setting off on his journey to pick up Aiden. The school traffic had died down, making the drive significantly easier for Grayson and his limited manual skills. When he turned onto the thoroughfare, he laid into the accelerator and let it rip. The RPMs shot up to about 5,000 before he mashed the clutch and slammed the car into second gear. He repeated it into third, but almost immediately had to hit the brakes when the navigation lady loudly interrupted his racing aspirations with instructions to turn right. Instead of popping the car into neutral, he downshifted to second gear and attempted to rev match, albeit rather poorly. The vehicle jerked violently when he lifted the clutch, and Grayson responded by executing a right turn at a rather high speed, causing the tires to chirp and the vehicle to slide ever so gently.

“Now this is living!” He yelled to nobody in particular, popping the shifter into neutral to allow Isaac Newton to pull the car downwards. And of course, Newton delivered, with the speedometer creeping upwards in the absence of braking, physical or engine. By the time the vehicle started to approach 90 km/h, however, Grayson felt a wave of fear over going that fast down a suburban street, and he slammed on the brakes, which obediently slowed the vehicle. His phone went flying off the passenger seat.

“I’ll deal with that when I get to the station.” He thought.

When he parked at the station, Grayson went over to the passenger side to retrieve his phone from the floor. Picking it up, he saw a text from Noah instructing him to stand beside the car so Aiden could see him when he exited the station. Sure enough, when he looked up his eyes locked onto Aiden in the crowd of commuters returning from downtown. Grayson waved at him. Aiden noticed him and headed towards him like a T cell sensing sphingosine-1-phosphate.

“Bro you won’t believe this!” Aiden exclaimed. “There was a rave on the Skytrain!”

Grayson pretended to spit out a sip of coffee. “WHAT?! How does one even do that?”

“Dude I was as shocked as you; the doors opened at Brentwood and all of a sudden this guy gets on with a whole entourage carrying a DJ table, lights, and speakers. Next thing you know we were partying on a train going 80 kilometers an hour.” Aiden pulled out his phone to show a video to prove he wasn’t fabricating the story.

“What in the-“ Grayson stood there with his jaw hanging open. “How long did this last?”

“Oh it went on for a while; the transit cops boarded at the next station but they joined in on the party. Eventually they shut it down though and got off at Moody Centre.” Aiden elaborated. “Anyways, I’m hungry like a dog, what are we doing for dinner?”

“Oh we’re getting shawarma poutine.” Grayson told him.

“What the hell is that?” Aiden inquired, opening the door of the car.

“Well it’s just poutine, but,” Grayson interrupted himself to get in the car. “But it’s with shawarma meat shredded on it alongside the cheese curds.”

“Sounds delicious.” Aiden buckled his seatbelt. “Let’s go!”

“Wait!” Grayson exclaimed. “Are you dressed properly for tonight?”

Aiden lifted his shirt to reveal the waistband of a Tykables Little Builders diaper. “Just got these delivered today!”

“Excellent!” Grayson turned the key and set off for the shawarma place. Within a matter of minutes, he was coming to a halt in front of an unassuming storefront with the sign “Al-Abbas Shawarma”.

Ten minutes later, they walked out of the store holding a bag with four paper takeout boxes.

“Trust me, you’re going to love this.” Grayson reassured Aiden before turning the key. When it came to climbing the hills, he took a more conservative approach, gliding through the curves in second gear trying to minimize the amount of rough shifts. When they arrived at Emma’s house, Aiden hesitated for a moment before exiting the vehicle.

“They’re not going to notice the diaper, are they?” He asked Grayson, hoping for a reassuring answer.

“Nah, everyone’s going to be wasted out of their minds, plus you’re wearing one that’s not bulky.” He explained. “I took it one step further and went with pull ups for tonight.” Grayson pulled down his jeans to reveal part of the pull up he had on. The boys walked up to the door and knocked. A very eager Emma opened the door and beckoned for them to enter.

“Thank goodness you two came with the food, we were getting pretty hungry up here.” She gestured to Noah, who was sprawled out on the couch gazing aimlessly at the ceiling.

“Come on buddy, food’s here.” She gently grabbed his arm and he stood up.

“Oh hey guys.” He muttered. “I’m famished.”

“Emma how much wine did you give him?” Grayson questioned. “He looks drunk already.”

“Relax, he only had a glass.” Emma brushed off his concern.

“I’m fine; don’t worry.” Noah chucked. “Just a little tired, that’s all.” He took a seat at the dining table, away from the drinks that had been set up on one side.

“Alright we got chicken for me and Emma, lamb for you, and beef for Aiden.” Grayson explained as he took out the boxes and set them in front of his friends. “Bon appetit!”

Noah opened the box with enthusiasm and struck it with his fork vigorously. He shoveled a hot mouthful of cheese curds and French fries covered in gravy into his mouth.

“Delicious as always!” He muttered, his mouth full of food.

“I’m hooked!” Aiden exclaimed, shoveling another forkful into his mouth. “I’m addicted.”

“Yeah I took my cousin there when he was visiting and he loved it.” Grayson said, taking a bite. “Hey Emma, can we open some of the drinks? I’m getting thirsty.”

“Sure thing!” Emma got up and opened a fresh 1 liter bottle of Coca Cola, which was promptly drank dry by the four of them over the course of 15 minutes. When Noah got up to dump the to-go boxes in the organics bin in the garage, he felt a pressure on his bladder from all the wine and coke he had drank. For a moment he thought about going in his pull up instead of trying to make it to the toilet, but he realized he had no way of disposing of the evidence. He resigned himself to using the toilet, sparing his pull up for later when he might need it more. As he was washing his hands in the sink, he heard the doorbell ring. Glancing down at his watch, he noticed that the party was supposed to have started six minutes ago. He quickly dried his hands and stepped outside to see who had arrived. It was a group of four girls he recognized vaguely from school, presumably close friends of Emma. After greeting them quickly he stepped outside to see what car they had arrived in. A black Lexus NX SUV.

“Typical.” He thought to himself, stepping inside again. He stepped outside right after however, summoned by the screeching sound of tires scraping on pavement. A blacked out Ford Mustang sat in front of the driveway with skid marks on the pavement. One could practically smell the Axe body spray emanating from the tastelessly modified muscle car, with its knockoff eBay rims, blacked out taillights, fart can exhaust, and a sideways mounted novice driver decal in the rear window.

“Who invited Mehdi?” One of the girls sneered.

“It’s a high school party, Ella.” Emma explained. “Can’t really control who shows up or doesn’t show up.”

“Whatever.” Ella shrugged and walked inside. The driver of the Mustang exited, a teenage boy with a beard and excessively dark shades.

“Wazzup party people!” He shouted. “Who wants to get TRASHED tonight?”

“Good Lord.” Noah muttered under his breath. “If this guy catches me with my pants down tonight my reputation is toast.”