Nanny Susan lowered the cot rail and gently ushered Robert toward the waiting bunny rabbit motif covered bedding. He was slightly reluctant at first but her firm hand placed strategically on his backside guided him as he climbed on the mattress.
The base of the cot was only a few inches from the floor, yet the rail extended to the level of the alcove.
"Into beddy-byes, there's a good Baby Bobbykins, time to go sleepy byes, snuggle down now." She cooed. Instead, Robert stood defiantly on the cot mattress.
"It's vewy erwee fo beddy-byes Nanny Thusan, too erwee, me no thleepy." Nanny Susan didn't argue, instead she raised the cot rail, secured it in place, opened the skylight window and went to fetch another bottle of sleepy time milk.
Robert felt a bit silly, it didn't feel right somehow. He was seventeen after all, and there he was standing in the cot, in his babyish pyjamas, wearing nappies and rubber pants, so he grabbed hold of the metal bars of the cot and gave, what he imagined was a firm rattle. Instead of course he hardly disturbed them. Next he turned his attention to climbing out. Disturbingly though, he discovered that due to the incline of the alcove, the widest gap available was far too small to climb through. He was effectively imprisoned in the cot. His thoughts clouded once again and he sat down with a plonk.
Nanny Susan returned with a large bottle of sleepy time milk, passing it to Baby Bobbykins through the bars of his cot he eagerly took it. He liked sleepy time milk.
"That's a good boy, all gone." Time for night-nights, Nanny will see you in the morning when we will be extra loving to Aunty won't we?"
Robert nodded, the chill from the open window encouraged him to snuggle under his blanket and he sleepily took his dummy from Nanny Susan and settled down to a very early bedtime for a seventeen year old.
The next morning Robert was taken downstairs and put into his high chair. Nanny Susan was feeding him the usual detestable milky pudding and his bib was once again encrusted with the spillage. He was still wearing his yellow, footed bunny rabbit pyjamas and underneath his jim-jams were the thick fluffy nappies and rubber baby pants which, up until ten minutes ago had been quite dry. He had begged Nanny Susan to let him go to the bathroom but she had been insistent that he had to wait until after breakfast, of course the inevitable had occurred and he now sat uncomfortably in flooded nappies and having to swallow semolina pudding for breakfast.
"Here comes the choo-choo train." Nanny Susan's spoon was poised to insert the yuckiest mouthful of semolina yet into Baby Bobbykins reluctant mouth when Aunty walked into the kitchen.
It is difficult to convey Roberts reaction to seeing Aunty. Nanny Susan's spoon was swept aside as he bobbed up and down in his high chair, clapping his mittened hands together in a frenzy of delirium as semolina was sent cascading around the kitchen.
"Well, well what a welcome. It has been a long time since anyone has been that pleased to see me."
Aunty took Robert under the arms and lifted him out of the high chair and sat her seventeen year old nephew on her lap, just as she used to.
"Oh Baby Bobbykins, how sweet you look wearing your bunny rabbit jim-jams, you told me you didn’t want to wear them any more, you said they were far too babyish for a big boy of seventeen like you, remember?"
Robert blushed. He did recall the big argument they had.
"Me sowwy Aunty. Baby Bobbykwins wuvs his bunny wunny jim-jams. Me weally sowwy for being a naughty boy and making you sad. Pwease fogive mi. Pweeeese?"
Aunty stroked his hair.
"Do you promise to be a good boy for Aunty and Nanny Susan from now on?
"Oh yeth Aunty, I do, I do."
Aunty directed a smile toward Nanny Susan.
"Well then, let's get you cleaned up and ready for a new start to a new day shall we."
From then on, every time Aunty entered a room, Robert would gleefully run toward her and hug her tightly. He clapped excitedly when she spoke to him and he snuggled into her and chatted happily to her in baby talk as she sat him on her knee. Baby Bobbykins had indeed embraced Nanny Susan's recommendation.
What's more, he had come to accept his daily routine of trips out to the park in his pushchair, a walk around the duck pond holding Nanny's or Aunty's hand dressed in his little boy outfits for all the world to see. Indeed he was now so well known in town that hardly anyone took notice of them any more.
The young man who regressed almost to babyhood. A sad case but still, he was well looked after, and you never know, he may snap out of it one day.
Then home again, a bath, nappies pinned on, rubbers, jim-jams and an early bedtime in his snug little cot, from which there is no escape. And all achieved with the help of daily doses of sleepy time milk. What more could Baby Bobbykins want?