KO was able to get himself cleaned up with a little help from his mom after he arrived home, but he still felt a lot of embarrassment from what had happened. Why would he, a grown 6-11-year-old boy, all of a sudden not be able to tell when he goes to the bathroom? It was so strange to him. Did it have something to do with the video? Did it cloud up his thoughts so badly to the point where he forgot to do something that simple? He didn't know for sure, all he could do was pray to cob it didn't happen again.
For the rest of the day, KO and his mom hung out at the house, watching tv and eating cookies she had baked for him. At the end of the day, just before his bedtime, he received a text from Enid on his phone.
Hey KO. How come you bailed out of nowhere at the bodega today? You coulda told us you were leaving. Was there an emergency? Just checking on you to see if everything's alright. Also, I was gonna ask you earlier but since you left I didn't get the chance, do you wanna hang out with me, Red Action, and Rad over spring break at Red's new place? She managed to afford to rent out a really sweet apartment with some Technos she pulled out of her bank account from 301X. It's super sick. We could have a ton of fun! If your mom lets you come, there's a whole guest room with a bed you can sleep in. Hope you get to join us! Later bud :)
KO was conflicted. On one hand, he'd love to hang out with his best buds for a whole week, but on the other hand, what if he keeps having more accidents? How will they react? He didn't want them to think he's some dumb baby who poops his pants. But before he could think it over more, his mom interrupted.
"Time to get some sleep kiddo!" Carol said as she swiftly grabbed KO and lay him in his bed, tucking him in.
"Aw man, I'm not even that tired yet…" he said poutingly.
"You're still a growing boy, and you need plenty of sleep! Great heroes never lose out on it."
"Aw ok then…goodnight mommy. I love you."
"Goodnight peanut, love you too!" Carol kissed him on the cheek and walked off to her bedroom.
KO tried to lay down and fall asleep, but something kept bothering him. He couldn't get it out of his head. He tried as hard as he could to just close his eyes and drift off into a slumber, and while he ultimately did, he had a feeling that something just didn't feel right.
The next morning soon came. It was a lovely Saturday in Lakewood; birds chirping, sunshine, peace and quiet, and for KO, of course, a yummy breakfast as always.
"Wake up sleepyhead!" Said Carol as she woke up KO with the thunderous sound of her voice.
KO rose from his sleep feeling slightly more drowsy than usual. He rubbed his eyes before getting down from his bed and going to sit down at the kitchen table.
"It's already morning? Geez...I don't feel like I slept that much..." he said before letting out a big yawn.
"Maybe some yummy hotcakes will help to wake you up some more!" Carol then sat a plate of four huge pancakes drizzled in syrup and butter right in front of him. His mouth began to water quickly as he gazed upon them and quickly picked up a fork and butter knife. He gulped them down insanely fast, then preceded to let out a large burp.
"Those were so good...I feel stuffed already!" He said, wiping syrup off his chin.
"I knew you'd love them!" Carol said as she walked over and picked up a laundry basket. "I'm gonna start on some laundry here in a minute. I'm gonna wash your clothes from yesterday, hopefully, I won't have to do it too much more often" she said, chuckling.
"yeah...hopefully, no more accidents happen...maybe you were right about it being a one-off." He said, leaving the table and going to sit on the couch.
"Like I said yesterday, don't worry about it too much. I'm gonna start on laundry now, if you need anything just let me know kiddo!" She said walking with the basket into the hallway.
"Ok, mommy!" KO couldn't help but feel nervous as he turned on the TV to hopefully relax for a while. Maybe that video had nothing to do with what happened? Maybe it was just a random spell? Either way, he tried as hard as he could not to think about it.
KO spent the next few hours enjoying his day, watching TV, and keeping up with his buds through texting. Enid was the first to message him early on in the morning, following up on what she said last night.
Hey KO. Did you ask your mom yet? Rad and I are planning to head over there around 3 today. If she lets you come, we can pick you up over there. Let me know, we're already getting ready! Hope you can join us :)
Ko began typing a response. I haven't asked her yet. Actually, I'll do it right now. I hope she lets me go, I wanna hang with you guys and have fun! :)
He then hit send before putting down his phone and walking to the laundry room where his mom was folding clothes.
"Hey mommy, can I ask you something?" He said as she turned to him.
"Sure peanut, what is it?"
"Enid wants me to go to a sleepover with her and Rad at Red Action's new place during spring break...I think it'd be really fun. Can I go please?"
"Hmmm...I'm not sure kiddo. Does she live with her parents? Will there be any adults in charge?"
"I don't think so...she said she got the place herself...but they're super responsible! We won't get into any trouble, I promise! Please can I go, mommy, please?" KO looked up at her with pouty puppy dog eyes.
Carol thought about it for a brief moment before ultimately caving into his cuteness.
"Alright, sweetie, you can go. I'll make sure to pack you plenty of clothes for while your there, along with everything else you'll need. Make sure you message me to check in when you get there and let me know you're doing ok. And are you sure the accidents are over?"
KO felt a little more confident they were past him, given he hadn't thought about "it" since last night.
"I'm super sure! Thank you so much, mommy! I'm so excited!" Ko jumped up onto her and gave her a big hug.
"Aw, no problem sweetie. When are you going over there? And how long will you stay again?"
"Enid said they could come here and get me today at 3...it's 10:30 now...I should have enough time to get ready. And I think we'll be there until next Sunday...but I'm not sure."
"Alright then. I've got some clean clothes here for you. Just be ready by the time they get here. Hope you have a lot of fun!" She then kissed him on the cheek and handed him some clean clothes. "I'll get started packing your stuff soon!"
"Ok mommy, thank you so so much.." he said as he walked back into the living room.
KO was overrun with joy. He couldn't stop thinking about spending an entire week with his best friends in the whole wide world. Certainly, nothing bad would happen right before he got there. He definitely wouldn't have to deal with not dealing able to get a certain something out of his head. Or so he thought...
Around 1:30, instead of being ready and prepared to leave with Rad and Enid, KO found himself sobbing as his mom threw one of many pairs of his clothes in the washer once again.
"KO, what's going on with you. That's the EIGHTH time today you've had an accident! I thought you said they were over?" She said, slightly irritated as KO had gotten into his last clean pair of pants and threw on a black t-shirt.
"I'm sorry mommy...I really thought they were, I don't know what's wrong with me..." he said as he wiped his eyes.
Carol leaned down to him and lifted his chin. "Sweetie, don't cry. I'm not trying to bark at you. But there's something not right going on. If you're not able to use the potty like normal, we're going to have to do something about it. You wouldn't want this to happen while you're with your friends, would you?"
"N-no...but what're you gonna do?" He said while having stopped crying.
"Before you leave, I'm gonna run to the store real quick and pick up some things. And just remember, I'm not doing anything to hurt or embarrass you, I care about you and wanna help you. You know that."
"I know mommy...I just don't wanna do this anymore..."
"I know it's hard, sweetie. But I'll help you as much as I can. Do you think you'll be alright here for a bit by yourself?"
"Yeah I'll be fine...but it's already 2, please don't be too long." Carol walked over to the door and grabbed her keys.
"I'll be super quick. Just hold the fort down for me until I get back. Love you!" She preceded to walk out the door and head down to the store.
"What could she be getting..." KO had an unnerving feeling. He knew he didn't wanna keep doing this, especially around his friends. Why didn't his mom tell him what she was gonna get? After thinking for a minute, KO figured out exactly what it was, but was too mortified to believe it.
Is it? Is she really gonna make me...no...no way...mommy wouldn't do that to me. I hope not...
Ko sat still on the couch patiently awaiting his mom's return. He didn't watch TV, he didn't look at his phone, he just sat there, patiently. Before he knew it, 15 minutes had gone by, and as he heard his mom pull into the driveway, he braced for her to enter.