A Helping Hand

He had overheard it from Tobias in the boys' locker room. Something about 'jacking it' and 'getting off'. What could they possibly mean?

Gumball Watterson had heard these terms thrown around a few times before, and he had a vague idea of what those phrases could refer to, but he still had no idea about the specifics or what the big deal was. It did pique his curiosity though.

The little cat had gathered enough info to know it had to do with touching yourself down there. But he didn't really get how he was supposed to do it or what the point of it all was.

And given the subject matter, he was far too embarrassed to ask anybody about it. It was just too 'touchy'.

Like any other boy his age, Gumball wanted to fit in like everybody else at Elmore Junior High, despite the shenanigans he and his brother Darwin constantly found themselves in. Deep down, he knew he wasn't as cool as he liked to believe but he knew the old saying, 'fake it, til you make it'.

Yeah, that'll work. At least, Gumball hoped it would.

Following his terribly misguided logic, getting in on this new hot topic would be his key to being seen as one of the cool kids that knew all the dirty secrets. How he expected to achieve this, however, was entirely a different matter.

Still, as luck would have it, today would be the perfect day to go exploring.

With Darwin spending his Saturday afternoon at Carrie's house, Gumball had the bedroom all to himself. It was just what he needed - a couple hours of uninterrupted 'alone time' to figure out the secrets behind 'jacking it' and getting to the bottom of what 'getting off' meant.

He couldn't help looking back and forth in the empty room as a final precaution before turning his attention down south.

Boy, was this gonna be harder than he thought.

'Alright. So for this to work, I'm gonna need to get rid of these...'

He was clad in his usual nightwear; a T-shirt and some shorts. After all, it was the weekend: a time to relax, unwind and ignore the responsibilities of tomorrow.

Hastily, he discarded his pajama shorts and briefs and carelessly chucked them to the side, littering the bedroom floor with the unwanted articles of clothing.

Now bare from the waist down, Gumball tossed his covers aside and jumped into bed, keeping his upper half propped up with his elbows to ensure he had his lower half in full view.

'So… where do I go from here?'

This was an entirely new experience for the young cat. Never before had he given his anatomy this much attention and, before now, he simply thought that that part of his body existed for the sole purpose of urination. But that was all about to change…

Tentatively, his hand crept down until it reached what it sought. Upon making contact, a sharp shiver shot down his spine causing him to shudder.

'Whoa! That felt weird… but in a good way, I guess…'

How this sort of touching was any different from his typical bathroom trips was still a mystery to him. Clearly, he was still a novice at this strange new game. He continued to prod and fumble around with the appendage as he experimented with the 'funny' feelings it evoked.

Once he got a little bit more comfortable, he wrapped his digits around as he held his little guy, tilting his head and examining it as though it were some sort of alien artifact. Needless to say, his interest was piqued as he leaned forward to get a closer look at the odd thing.

As interested as he was, Gumball was still not seeing the whole appeal to this activity.

'Maybe I need to like, actually do something with it?'

As is the nature of experimentation, an idea came to his head. With his boyhood now firmly gripped in the palm of his paw, he began to forcefully massage it, unsure of what this would even achieve. 'Massage' may not have been the right term; it was rather more like tugging.

'Nope. Still don't get it.'

Despite his cluelessness, it worked to get him ready to some extent. The pumping was enough to get some blood flowing down there, and he took the change in hardness as a cue to explore further, confidently concluding that he was taking steps in the right direction.

Young as he was, he was no stranger to getting erections at this point. They were something he merely thought 'happened' and hadn't considered further, simply letting them go away on their own (with a generous helping of embarrassment to go along with it).

Recently, however, he had started getting them more often - commonly when thoughts of Penny Fitzgerald or other vaguely lewd scenarios graced his hormone-addled mind.

But this time? It felt much different. That's for sure.

Delicately, he pinched the tip of his member and slowly peeled back the skin. As small an action as this was, it drew a small squeak from him in the form of an undignified "Eep!", shockwaves rippling through his body as he tensed in response to the sensation.

'Woah… Now this is starting to get interesting…'

Quickly building an appetite for more, he repeated the motion and was rewarded with more waves of pleasure, throwing his head back as he revelled in these new feelings.

When Gumball had set out to explore his body; he never expected to find such buried pleasure. He decided to continue with his 'search'.

Now at the mercy of his hormones, he couldn't help but let out a few immodest moans of pleasure. Thank goodness nobody was around to hear that.

...

Nicole Watterson was an atypical woman. Sure, her life might seem normal to any outsider, married with three kids, two cars and a nice house.

However, what that list neglects to mention was the fact that the aforementioned kids and husband were as far from normal as could be.

As sweet as they were, her sons were two little troublemakers of the highest order. Her daughter was a prodigy, wise beyond her years but not above childish antics either. And speaking of which, her lazy hare of husband was perhaps the most immature of them all.

The point is, one would think she would be no stranger to all things weird and wonderful, allegedly having seen it all. Or, so she thought…

Boy, was there a lot in store for her today...

With a laundry basket tucked firmly under her arm, the hardworking feline approached the boys' bedroom. She was about to make for the door but stopped short of knocking, her ear giving a twitch as it picked up on a sound from the other side.

Pausing for a moment, she leaned in ever so slightly, straining to hear what it might have been. She was about to wave it off dismissively, until another sound - another muffled groan - could be heard.

'Gumball…? Is that… Is he..?'

Nicole had been around the block more than a couple of times. She had been young once too, even if that seemed like a long time ago, and she knew what happened behind closed teenage bedroom doors. She had a good hunch about what sort of activity was going on in there, and her cheeks began to burn up as a result of knowing.

She could call for him, but she was too embarrassed to do so, resigning herself to coming back later instead. Turning on her heel, she started to head towards the staircase when she could not help but hear him give another squeak.

Glancing back to the direction of the bedroom, a morbid curiosity began to bubble up inside of her. And what curiosity did to the cat was a tale as old as time…

Doubling back, she approached the boys' room once more, pressing an ear to the door.

There he was, beyond the bedroom door making a discovery that a boy exactly his age would be doing. And there she was, frozen by the door as her ears absorbed every small sound, every moan, every whimper.

Her free hand found itself clamped over her agape mouth, visibly taken aback. A heavy blush continued to plague her cheeks, her brain painting a mental picture of what was happening in that very room.

But why was she bothering with imagining things? If she wanted it so, she could just peer ever so slightly through a gap in the-

'No, what are you even thinking? He's your son for goodness sake! You should respect his privacy…'

Nicole caught herself slipping, stopping herself from mindlessly acting upon her foolish impulses. It was not easy being a mother sometimes. Her hand had already come to rest on the doorknob, a visual reminder for how close she was to risking it all. Risking it all for just a tiny glimpse.

But… could she really leave it at this?

What if he's injured, or at risk of hurting himself in some way? Nicole was well aware of her kids' destructive tendencies - the sheer size of some of their damage bills she'd had to pay off were evidence enough.

If she was worried enough about his well-being, surely it would not do any harm to check in on him?

'Just to make sure he's not hurt.' Her maternal instincts reasoned. This was all in the best interests of her son, nothing more.

And so, in a moment of weakness, her grip on the doorknob tightened, twisting it agonisingly slowly before sneakily pushing the door ajar.

Despite even knowing what to expect, Nicole still could not really believe what she was seeing. Before her very eyes was her son, working his length as he attempted to get his rocks off.

With Gumball too caught up in the novelty of it all, there was hardly a chance he would have noticed her presence in that moment. All of his attention was focused between his legs, leaving him as oblivious as the day he was born.

As she peeked through the small sliver of an opening, she spied in disbelief at the spectacle that was her son and his frantic jerking. With the way he had screwed his eyes shut, it looked to Nicole as though nothing mattered beyond his four walls to him.

Picking her jaw up, a small part of her also observed how oddly… amateurish his movements were. It was almost as though this was new to him.

She took a step back from the door, thinking hard as she tried to process the things she had just seen, heard and thought.

Thinking back on it now, Nicole should have expected that Gumball would take on more… adult interests. He was a growing boy, and something as private as that was only to be expected given that he was on the cusp of adolescence.

True, she was a bit shocked to see him doing it now, but that alone was not what was causing the motherly cat to feel so conflicted.

'He's grown so much…'

She was torn. It was all so wrong. Some primal urge within her compelled her to watch on - maybe even join in. To take what she should never have sought. And the thought that she was seriously beginning to consider taking on the offer was enough to scare her.

Before long, the groans that could once be heard from within the room ceased and a new sound replaced the silence of the household.

It was a rhythmic creaking noise, and if you had asked Nicole, she would have told you that it sounded a lot like…

...

Gumball had successfully managed to stroke himself to peak stiffness. Although he could have continued to pump himself like that, he found himself wanting to try other things, his excited mind racing to explore new possibilities in pursuit of greater pleasure.

Shifting over onto his elbows and knees, he brought himself forward until his member made contact with the bed. Steadily, he began to slowly rock back and forth, the friction giving way to ample stimulation as he rocked the frame of the bunk bed, gradually upping the pace with great enthusiasm as he got into the swing of things.

Nicole cautiously squinted through the gap of the door. Her suspicions were proven correct as Gumball could be seen humping his bed sheets, his head hanging loosely on his shoulders as he mustered the effort to carry on.

Entranced by this display, she watched on intently in awe and mild amusement as her son continued to rub himself against the mattress, complimented with ragged grunts as his stamina began to deplete rapidly.

As good an idea as that was, it was done in vain, for his energy had petered out entirely for the time being and he wound up keeling over from fatigue, burying his head into his pillow.

Gumball was many things. To his dismay, 'athletic' was not one of them. If only he had managed to inherit those genes from his mom...

And so, with an immodest squeak, he let himself collapse onto his bed as his body gave in to defeat.

"Nope. Not worth it," he mumbled disappointedly, his voice muffled by the pillow.

He simply lay there, resting as he recovered his energy before exploring any further.

Nicole regained enough control to step out of the doorway once more, an eyebrow raised to match her equally puzzled expression. From what she saw and gathered, his odd movements and overexcitement pointed towards one thing.

There was only one conclusion that she could come to, and she was certain she wasn't mistaking it for something else. This had to be Gumball's first time playing with himself.

Her temptations increased tenfold upon realising this. In some twisted way, Nicole now wanted to help him even more, in any way she could.

But she knew shouldn't. She couldn't. And she wouldn't, would she?

As his mother, it was undoubtedly wrong for her to meddle in such matters. Interfering here would probably only cause him more confusion than he was already experiencing, navigating a world full of hormones, new feelings, and a changing body. And she knew this.

But as his mother, she also felt a strong duty to help her son out in whatever way she could, and even if there may be more potential for harm than good, she was confident she would be there to see things through. After all, wasn't that just what being a good mother was about?

Truthfully, her intentions probably were not entirely pure, and Nicole hated to admit it. She was afraid to come to terms with the idea that she could also be using him for her own selfish needs, or that she could be taking advantage of him at such a vulnerable stage of his life.

In all honesty, the idea of… sex had not crossed her mind in quite some time. But seeing him in such an uninhibited state of pleasure stirred something deep inside her, and suddenly the repercussions of having so many intimate advances shunned by an ignorant husband came crashing down all at once.

Despite the doubts weighing down on her conscience, the motherly cat took solace in knowing that she cared for her son dearly, and that whatever may happen as a result of her actions would have been coming from a place of love. She could never hurt him.

'I'm doing this for him…'

Nicole took a cursory glance towards the staircase.

From the sounds of things, Richard was probably fast asleep in his usual spot on the couch after an intense veg-out session. Waking him up from his slumber would be nigh-impossible, not even with the TV blaring on.

It sounded like 'Daisy the Donkey' was playing, which meant Anais probably had her eyes glued to the set. Prodigious as she was, that show was the one thing that could keep her preoccupied for hours on end. So she was of no concern either.

At this stage, checking in on those two was a mere formality anyway - whether or not they were truly occupied would have likely failed to dissuade her from pressing on either way.

She had made up her mind.

...

An awful knock on the door tore Gumball away from his tranquil state of bliss.

"G-Gumball sweetie, I need to come in, okay?" Nicole called from outside.

The young cat swallowed hard and his swollen pride suddenly went soft.

"U-Uh, just a second, Mom!" He frantically called back, quickly yanking the bedsheets over himself for protection.

He managed to cover up just in the nick of time as his mother entered the room. He tried his best to look natural so as to not raise any suspicions, but his frayed mind and jittery nerves did little to help sell the story.

"Oh uh, hi Mom," Gumball grinned nervously. "I was just uh… taking a nap! Yeah, that's it. Um, did you want something?"

Yikes! His voice was awfully laced with anxiety and even the slightest tremor in his tone could set her 'mother-senses' on fire.

He awkwardly hid behind his duvet, which in his haste to pull over himself was messily facing horizontally from the bed, causing his paws to poke out from underneath.

While trying to shift the covers back in place, he unintentionally made eye contact with his mother. She wore a curious expression on her face, meaning that she probably suspected that he was up to something.

Man, was he dead. He was deader than dead.

"Your clothes, sweetie…" Nicole smiled at him warmly.

"W-What!?" he gasped.

"...For the laundry basket," Nicole clarified.

"Oh uh, yeah sure, right, haha…" sighed Gumball, barely managing to keep his composure.

Nicole kept up her innocent façade as she deftly made her way around the room, picking up any loose items of clothing that were in dire need of a good wash. Her son watched on, strangely impressed by how effortlessly elegant her movements were even in a task as mundane as picking up laundry.

Once she was done, she had collected all but two pieces of clothing: a pair of navy blue pajama shorts and a pair of used underwear. Nicole simply raised an eyebrow at him.

'Oh no, I forgot! Oh man, what am I gonna say? What could I even say? Surely she already knows I'm basically naked right now, right? Why isn't she saying anything?'

These were only a few of the thoughts that raced through his head a million miles a minute as he silently squirmed, intimidated under her solemn stare.

She opened her mouth as if to speak, but then closed it again after no words fell out, instead merely sighing softly with hesitation. Inwardly, Gumball felt a huge rush of relief as he watched his mother make for the door, grateful she had not noticed anything and would leave him be.

But instead of leaving and giving him that much wanted privacy that he so desperately needed, she closed the door with the both of them still in the room.

His spirits were instantly crushed. If his fears proved to be true and she had caught wind of what activities he'd been up to, he had a much-dreaded 'talk' to be had with his mom ahead of him.

Nicole, on the other hand, was faring no better. She herself was beginning to have doubts and second thoughts on taking this any further. With an apprehensive glimpse at her son, who was now shrinking under his covers, she steeled herself.

She had to be the brave one here. She agreed to go through with it. It was now or never.

Gingerly, she sat down on the bed by Gumball's feet. Nicole knew she would have to ease into things; it was only a matter of choosing the right words so as to not discourage him. She twiddled her fingers before lacing them together on her lap in restraint.

Gumball observed her uneasy body language and posture. It had become clear to him that she was just as tense as he was in this situation, and it was only becoming increasingly more awkward with every passing second.

He studied her face, noting that she appeared to be deep in thought about what to say. A part of him begged for her to just spit it out and be done with it so that this painstakingly dreadful silence would come to its rightful end. Another part of him did not want to hear her talk at all out of fear and reluctance for whatever she had to say.

Either way, things would turn out to be humiliatingly awkward for the young boy.

It had been a gruelling few seconds before his mother finally decided to speak up. When she moved to face her son, he timidly averted his gaze, suddenly taking an interest in studying the details of the wall next to him. Clearing her throat, she spoke as calmly as she could.

"Gumball…"

He subtly winced upon hearing his name, bracing himself for the trial of shame that he would have to endure. A momentary glance at his mother's shy gaze only doubled the embarrassment he felt, his highly strung demeanour only worsening from there. His head retreated into his shoulders as his cheeks burned red hot.

"We need to talk about your new um… hobby…"

Good grief… This was going to be one to laugh at in future. Or cringe at. Or both.

"Mom, please don't… This is embarrassing enough as it is… I… I promise I won't do it again, I swear!" He stammered, trying his best to avoid a confrontational intervention, but to no avail.

"Sweetie, that's not what I want for you. I just…" She drew in a breath to compose herself. "I just want to talk to you about it. And I want you to understand that I am in no way whatsoever mad at you or anything," she explained in her best soothing and understanding manner.

"...Y-you're not angry with me?"

"No, Gumball. I'm not," she reaffirmed him. "It's natural for boys your age to um, experiment with these sorts of things. And, I just thought you should know that it's perfectly normal to enjoy touching yourself, if it's any sort of consolation..."

In some weird way, hearing this did offer a bit of reassurance for him. It helped calm his nerves slightly, but it did not help at all in taking away from the awkward vibes hanging in the air.

"...Uh, yeah. Okay. I… I did like how it felt…" he admitted gently. "Thanks Mom, I guess…"

Try as he might, he didn't really know what else he could say to make the situation any better though. All he could think of was how badly he wanted to get out of it.

"So…" Gumball continued. "If it's alright with you, could I please have a little bit of privacy now? Please?"

At this, Nicole turned her head away and a heavy silence quickly overwhelmed the room. Her son grew worried he had said something wrong, and looked to her for comfort.

She was many things. Brave. Smart. Strong. But she was also sensitive, and above all else currently, needy. Probably just as needy as her son at this moment, despite outward appearances.

"Well, maybe…" Nicole started with a mutter, barely audible enough for Gumball to pick up on.

"...Maybe what?" he probed after a short pause.

"Maybe… I could help you… with that," she finished, her voice now barely above a mumble.

Gumball was not even sure if he had heard that right. He opened his mouth to speak but before he could find any words to say, his mother turned to him with an unreadable expression, one he had never seen before. One he couldn't quite place.

It was a mix of pleading and nervousness, but her eyes glinted with something more akin to desire. Whatever it was, there was an intensity to her that had him entranced, both afraid but eager to know more.

"Mom...?" was all he could ask, more concerned than anything else.

She could see the confusion in his eyes and understood that it would take a lot of explaining, much too much to make any sense of this. A hot flush filled her face as she looked down upon her shirt.

'Actions speak louder than words, Nicole.'

She undid a button.

Her son quickly went red in the face to match. "Wha… what are you doing?.."

She undid another.

'When did it get so warm in here?'

And another.

Following the third button, Gumball was suddenly reminded of his own state of undress as his arousal began to make itself known. Conflicted, he had barely the chance to react before his mother cosied up next to him on the bed, invading a lot more than just his personal space.

"Don't be afraid, Gummypuss," she half-whispered, resting a hand on his head. "Just let mommy take care of you."

Reflexively, he tugged at the covers to help cover his growing shame, yet when his mother began to reach underneath he put up very little resistance. The instinct to trust in her proved stronger than the instincts of his distraught moral compass.

Still, the young boy knew this didn't feel quite right.

"Mom, is this… is this really okay?.."

"Don't worry, sweetie," she comforted. "Let me look after you."

He tensed up when he felt her take him in her hand. It was hot and hard, starved for attention. Strangely enough, he didn't feel as mortified as he'd expected to. Right now, more than anything, he could only feel the anticipation.

"Just relax, Gumball."

Gently, she began to move her hand, stroking his modest length tenderly. He could not help but softly melt under her delicate touch, nuzzling against the crook of her neck with a needy whimper.

"Mom…"

It was a calmer moment, and bit by bit Gumball's apprehension began to wear away. His heart, on the other hand, continued to hammer in his chest. He closed his eyes as he sank deeper into a state of blissful euphoria.

Before long, sweet mewls started to slip out from his throat as he tried his best to keep them trapped. Hearing such sweet sounds only further fuelled Nicole's desire to pleasure him. The cute little noises he made carried to her ears like music.

Gradually, she began to move her hand faster, her son clinging to her shirt with a nervous whine in response. The bed was certainly a tight fit for the pair of them, and Nicole took this opportunity to snuggle even closer to him, tucking his head under her chin.

"I'm here, Gummypuss. Don't be scared."

She loved the way he stirred gently beneath her, his warmth putting her mind at ease. Closing her eyes herself, she breathed deeply as she took in his scent. His familiar smell soothed her to no end. Why, she could just…

She began to affectionately lick her son's head. Atop his head and behind the ears, she groomed his fur, her maternal feline instincts surging strongly as ever. How nostalgic were the times when she felt this closely bonded with her first-born child. Her little boy.

The feeling of her tongue surprised Gumball pleasantly - how long had it been since she last did that? Underneath her hold, he felt tiny in a way that was oddly comforting. He felt like a small kitten again.

Before long, he began to purr, and he could feel his mother purr back in return.

Slowly but surely, Nicole sensed a shift in the way her son felt beneath her. Noticing this, she briefly withdrew her hand and he sighed deeply, wanting to groan contentiously but holding back. He didn't want to let this moment end so soon.

With the infinite care of unwrapping a gift, she peeled back his covers. As Gumball's boyhood sprang free, Nicole had to suppress a moan and swallowed hard, seeing it twitch under her scrutiny.

"You're so adorable, Gummypuss," she whispered absentmindedly, before pressing her cheek to his.

Even for all the intimacy that had already transpired, he was still only a young boy, and could not help but feel a little embarrassed at her affections.

Eyes shut, she ran her fingers delicately over his body. Giving a loving pat-down of her boy, she could feel the vitality of his heartbeat, alongside the steady rising and falling of his chest.

With his senses heightened, Gumball was proving highly receptive to her touch, his member continuing to leak with arousal as she caressed his body.

Flustered, he watched on with half-lidded eyes as her paw teasingly inched back towards his nethers. He shuddered as she rubbed over the tip, using his slick as lubrication and resumed her pumping, unhurried but with an unspoken sense of urgency to it.

As she began to double her efforts, Gumball began to unconsciously meet her movements with a muted gasp, thrusting his hips subtly as his body chased after its long awaited release. Rocking against her hand, he gave a few choked groans at the mercy of the pleasure.

"Good boy…" she murmured. "That's it. Keep it up, sweetie."

Her words of encouragement seemed to make the situation even more intense, and Gumball shivered.

He felt… strange. Subdued, almost like he had been lulled into a meditative-like state. Yet at the same time, he had felt the sensation of butterflies in his stomach, which had long since begun to transform into an unfamiliar pressure deep within his loins.

"Mom, I… I feel really weird…" he mumbled, his eyes round with uncertainty.

Sensing his fear, she simply hushed him, her other hand moving to softly stroke the back of his head. In her arms like this, he felt safe.

As the pressure in his nethers began to climb to its peak, the young cat once again clung to her for support. His mother knew he was close, she could tell by the way his member throbbed in her hand.

Hearing his breathing turn into shallow pants, she took this as an invite to speed up her strokes. With a pained moan, her son attempted to match her in desperate thrusts, begging for closure.

"Something's… something's coming out…" He whimpered, sweating profusely.

"It's okay, sweetie. Let it out."

With a sharp cry, Gumball felt himself release, pressing tightly to his mother's chest as he came. Several thick strands of his seed coated his chest and stomach, as well as his mom's hand which continued to pump and milk him dry.

Even when his climax began to subside, he continued to grind against her, as if on automatic, until he was well and truly spent.

Thoroughly drained and winded, his breath escaped his lungs in long whoops as his body finally relaxed, falling limp in his mother's embrace.

Nicole gave her son's shaft one final gentle squeeze, making sure he had properly emptied all he had left to give. He gave a strained whine at this and his legs kicked lightly in response. Overcooked and overstimulated, it was all a bit too much for him.

Dipping her fingers into her mouth, she relished the flavour of his essence with a satisfied hum. Her tongue rolled between the gaps to savour his taste as fully as she possibly could.

Turning over, she swept up the used underwear her son had discarded earlier from the floor and used it to mop up the rest of the mess littered on her and her son's fur, before chucking it into the laundry basket. That could wait until later.

His first time had been exhausting for the young cat, and sleep found him easily. Nicole drank in the sight of her son in such a peaceful state and made it a memory she would treasure forever.

Drawing the covers over the both of them, she wondered if maybe next time they would get to go all the way. She pressed her thighs tightly together at the thought.

But right now, that didn't matter so much to her. She just liked to see her little boy happy.

Snuggling closer to him, she wanted nothing more than to close her eyes and listen to the faint sound of his breathing, hugging him tight as she nibbled lightly on his ear.

Under his breath, Nicole could just about hear him mumble something incomprehensible with a purr, only managing to make sense of one word.

She smiled and kissed him on the forehead.

"I love you too, sweetie."

Author's Note: Special thanks to Captain 'Whiskers' Mooncat for their diligence in co-editing. Without them, I could not have finished this story. Many thanks!