12MY SON, THE BRIDESMAID

in the mirror, gave his mother the "go" signal she was looking for. Her nagging doubts of the past few nights were completely dispelled. This was going to be a dream.

Chapter 3

In all things, be patient. Those were the words Evelyn Wilkes stood by. She would have liked to drag poor Robin straight to the beauty salon, get him into make-up and dresses that evening, but she restrained herself. Let him ease into it, don't scare him. Use positive reinforcement for each step he took in the right direction. Make him think that everything is perfectly natural and very practical. Well, if it's enjoyable as well, so much the better!

So, for the next few days, she didn't push Robin any further. Then again, neither did she let him slip an inch backwards. That first evening she showed him how to brush out his hair thoroughly before going to bed. To protect it from possible split ends and damage from tangling at night, she showed him how to tuck it neatly under a nylon hairnet, like she wore to bed. In the mornings, she helped him brush it out again, then she would show him several other "practical" hairstyles. "After all, nobody but I will see you in the backroom of the shop."

These included a simple braid, a French braid, even a tight bun. All of these were done with both mother and son pretending that they thought of them as another good way to keep long hair under control, yeah, right! Each one was inwardly jumping up and down with excitement.

After several days of maintaining a status quo, Mrs. Wilkes thought it was time for step 2. Another minor move for her son in the direction she wanted him to go. During the past week, she had been ensuring that his three sets of pyjamas made it to the laundry bin. The set he had worn last night was added after breakfast. She knew that he hated to sleep in the nude, and she didn't allow sleeping in underwear. It was sort of the family routine to get into their nightclothes and watch TV in the den for an hour or two before turning in for the night. This night there was a slight hitch.

"Mom, where are my pyjamas?" Robin called from his bedroom.

TV FICTION CLASSICS-13

"I threw the ones you wore last night into the laundry hamper. Aren't there any clean ones in your drawer?" his mother replied, knowing full well the answer. She had started the washing machine with its last load for the day. All three sets of Robin's pyjamas were in it and wouldn't be dry until after midnight.

"No, they're not here," came the expected reply from the boy's bedroom.

"Hmmmm, let me look," Evelyn Wilkes responded as she came in wearing a lace-trimmed, pink silk pyjamas outfit with a matching silk robe over top. Robin's mother pretended to be surprised by the result of her search. "Let me check downstairs."

In a couple of minutes, Mrs. Wilkes returned upstairs with a sheepish look on her face.

"Oops. I just checked the washer and all three sets of your pyjamas are in the wash right now. Sorry, my mistake. But, let me see...I may have a temporary solution." And with that she whisked out of his room on her way to her own bedroom. As Robin sat on his bed waiting, he wondered what this temporary solution might be.

"These should fit," said his mother as she returned with something light blue draped over her arm. "Why don't you try them on." She held the articles out for Robin to take. He took them and examined them more closely, then began to blush. He was holding light "baby" blue, silk women's pyjamas. He recognized them as his mother's. He'd always thought that they looked beautiful on her when she wore them. They had loose, elastic-waisted pants with cuffs that ended in 3 inches of white lace, a kind of harem pants effect. The top was really a camisole design, with lots of white lace on the bodice, lace-trimmed spaghetti strap shoulders and a little bow tie at the neckline. There was also a matching blue silk robe with lace cuffs and lapels. He knew what he wanted to do, but did he dare? What would his mother think of him?!

"Uh, mom, I can't wear this. It's... it's... too girlish," he finally mumbled, all the while staring at the beautiful garment in his hands.

"Oh, and so what. Go on," his mother proclaimed, "it's better than sleeping without anything on, and besides, I think it will fit you just perfectly. It is a size 8.