Published: July 12th 2020, 2:00:02 pm
"Are you ready for daycare, Dani?" Tessa exclaimed excitedly, bounding into the kitchen.
It was a question she'd been asking pretty much every weekday morning since Tessa's summer vacation had begun, so, really, Danielle should have expected it, should have known she was going to have to do something about it, but she'd been surprised, too, to head into the kitchen for a cup of coffee and find her mother still there, having been asked to cover a friend's later shift at the last minute instead of her own usual one.
She was grateful she'd slept in today, or else she might have marched into the room dressed for daycare, in one of the childish outfits she'd gone and bought for herself so she'd blend in better, and a diaper. She definitely felt like she needed the latter, after the shock of her mother's presence made her dribble into her panties, making her quickly check to ensure she hadn't leaked through her pajama shorts.
She was already nervous enough about her parents somehow discovering her new wardrobe - and, especially, the pack of diapers in the back of her closet - and asking her why she had them, where she'd gotten the money for them. Her plan had been to use her graduation money for textbooks in the fall, but she didn't want to make the workers suspicious of her. She'd always had trouble finding grown-up clothes in her size; intentionally buying kids' clothes that fit her was a snap, no matter how silly she felt spending the money she'd earned for finally finishing high school on them.
Danielle gulped, forcing a laugh as her eyes flicked over towards her mom, terrified that she would somehow be able to figure out what her younger daughter meant by that, would use those words, along with the fact that Dani still hadn't found a job after supposedly searching for two weeks, to know that Danielle was spending her days in diapers. "Y-Yeah," she said through a dry mouth, "I-I'll be ready to take you in just a minute, sweetie."
"You know what?" their mother asked, setting down her own cup of coffee. "I could take you! You get to ride with your sister all the time! Wouldn't that be fun? And then Dani can get to applying for jobs sooner... She wouldn't even have to get out of her PJs!"
Was this it? Dani wondered, stomach twisting, feeling surprisingly upset at the idea. She'd had so much fun, these past two weeks... She kept telling herself she needed to stop, to actually look for a job. Maybe this was a sign it was time to do that, and stop procrastinating. She knew it was the smart thing to do... And yet, the very idea made her want to burst into tears, although she could blame that partially on spending so much time around kids who cried at the drop of a pin, and trying to blend in with them.
"No, Mommy!" Tessa pouted, shuffling over to her 'big' sister and grabbing her free hand. "Dani takes me!"
"All right, all right," their mom chuckled. "Far be it from me to interrupt your routine."
"I-I'd better go get dressed, then," Danielle drained her coffee, setting the cup into the sink. "Are you sure you have everything, Tessa?"
Tessa thought for a moment, nibbling her bottom lip, then shook her head, the two of them leaving the kitchen together, Dani hardly able to wait until they were out of sight of their mother to give her sister a big hug. "Good job," she whispered. "That was some quick thinking!"
She pulled on some cute, brightly colored shorts and a t-shirt, and the Velcro, light-up shoes she'd bought for herself, but she couldn't bring herself to change into a diaper, not when she knew her mom was in the other room, that she might be seen before they left. She should have known the shoes would be the more obvious thing to get spotted, however.
"Those are some cute shoes," her mother pointed out as her daughters hurried through the house, out to the car.
"Y-Yeah," Danielle blushed. "You know how it is... They were on clearance, and they fit me... I-I was just trying to be frugal, so I can buy nice shoes for myself if I need them when I get that job."
"Very smart," the older woman nodded. "Well, good luck with that! I'll probably be gone by the time you get back from daycare, so have a good day, both of you!"
They stood by, holding hands, as she walked over, kissing both of them on the forehead, which only made Dani feel all the more like she was more of an equal to her baby sister than anything else as they bustled out the door.
Of course, once they got to the daycare, things shifted again, as Miss Katie greeted them with a hug, and a quick check. "Still dry!" she smiled at Tessa after examining her Pull-Ups. "You're just about ready for big girl panties, aren't you?"
"Uh-huh!" the girl beamed.
"You're almost all grown up," Miss Katie said playfully. "Now, how are you do...? Dani? Why aren't you wearing a diaper?"
"I-I don't..." Danielle started to protest, but, obviously, there wasn't much she could do, especially since she'd stupidly forgotten to change out of her damp panties before she left home.
"Dani!" Miss Katie scolded. "Do I have to send a note home with you?"
"N-No, ma'am!" Danielle squeaked, cheeks burning at the idea of having the show her parents a note from the daycare, one telling them that they needed to make sure they sent their daughter in diapered every day... But not their younger daughter, the one who was still being potty trained; their older one, the one who was heading to college in a couple months.
"I'm not mad at you, sweetie," Miss Katie assured her, leading her over to the changing tables, "but your chart proves you just aren't ready for those... I don't know why your mommy and daddy keep trying, unless you're actually trying for them, and not for me."
"No," Dani shook her head. "I-I put them on myself... I was just playing, a-and I forgot to have mommy put my diaper back on after." She blushed, imagining having done that, asking her mother to diaper her up before sending her away to the daycare... That would have been a much different morning.
"I see," Miss Katie nodded. "Well, your mommy should have checked before she brought you here, but I'm sure she has a lot on her mind, raising the two of you. And just so you know, you can play dress-up in your big girl panties without having to worry that you're going to have an accident. Just pull them up over your diaper!"
Danielle had to act impressed, like she'd never thought of that... Which, she supposed, she hadn't, though that was mostly because she only played dress-up here, at daycare. "Th-That's a good idea," she told Miss Katie. "You're smart!" The worker chuckled, helping Dani off the table, where Tessa was waiting to grab her hand and pull her away so they could get to playing.
It was another fun day, with lots of finger-painting and naps, but, at the end, as Miss Katie was getting her ready to leave with one, final diaper change, she handed her a note. "You're not in trouble," she promised, "I just want you to have your mommy or daddy sign this for me, okay? Can I trust you to give it to them, or do I need to come out to pick-up with you and hand it to them myself?"
"I-I'll do it," Dani promised. She didn't, of course, which made her feel very naughty... But how could she explain this?! It was exactly what she'd worried it would be, a plea to ensure she was diapered before daycare every day. She signed it herself, blushing the whole time she was reading it, and writing out her mother's name, wondering if this whole thing was going too far.
It didn't stop her from putting a diaper onto herself the next day, however, and hanging the note back to Miss Katie, eyes fixed firmly on the carpet in front of herself, feet shuffling, terrified she was going to get in trouble. She was still in diapers; she was too little for them to think she could have signed it herself... Right?
Thankfully, that seemed to be the case, with Miss Katie smiling, hugging her, and taking her for her first diaper change of the day, Dani having been too nervous about the note to remember to use the bathroom before diapering up.
She hated to say it, or even think it, but diapers really were convenient... It was nice, knowing she could just pee whenever. She hadn't had to pull over at a gas station and drag Tessa inside when she'd realized she wasn't going to be able to make it all the way to daycare without an accident... She'd simply tinkled in her pants, without a care in the world.
It was nice at daycare, too. She was still worried that her injecting herself into the potty line would take the place of someone who didn't know what they were doing, who was actually learning to use it, so she could just keep coloring, or playing, instead, and know that, no matter how bad her chart got, she'd just sign off on it herself.
She had, of course, heard the phrase 'time flies when you're having fun', but it had never felt more true than the day when, at supper, she'd launched into her usual spiel about how nobody would call her back after the phone interview, because she had no experience, and her father had told her, "Well, that's all right. I'd say at this point, there's not much of a point, is there?"
"Th-There's not?" Dani frowned, squirming in her seat, blushing as she felt a wetness in her panties from her anxiety over what he could possibly mean with that. Had they found out how she was really spending her days?!
"By the time you get your first paycheck now, classes will be starting," he said. "Were you planning on trying to work and go to school at the same time?"
Danielle shook her head. "N-No," she told him. "I-I want to concentrate on my grades." That had been the plan all along... But was she really that close to the beginning of the semester? As soon as she was done with supper - and after she'd changed her panties - she checked the calendar and saw that, sure enough, there were less than two weeks left in summer vacation. Where had the time gone?!
She felt awful the next day, and even Miss Katie picked up on it. "What's wrong, sweetie?" she asked, after Dani - who was normally very good at sharing her toys - had gotten into a shouting match with another little girl who wanted one of the dolls out of the dollhouse she and Tessa were playing with. "This isn't like you."
"I-I'm sorry," Dani sniffled, feeling ashamed of herself... And embarrassed that she was about to get sent to the corner, like the bad kids she'd always watch misbehaving and shake her head. "I-I just..."
But what could she say?! She couldn't exactly tell Miss Katie that she was upset this was all about to end, that, after getting to experience this total lack of stress for a couple months, she wasn't quite ready to give it up. "I dunno," she shrugged.
"Everybody's grumpy sometimes," Miss Katie told her. "I think some time alone would be good, don't you?"
"Nooo!" Dani stomped her foot, pouting, knowing what that meant, but that didn't stop her from being pulled over to the corner and sat on the naughty stool. While she was there, she did think - there wasn't much else to do - although it was less about her behavior that day, and more about her future.
Would it really be that big a deal, she pondered, if she held off on school for a semester? It was just a few classes... She could fit those in over the course of the next three and a half years, probably, and still graduate on time with nobody the wiser. Besides, at this point, she was going to have to ask her parents for money for her textbooks, since her graduation money was running thin. If she skipped this semester, she'd have her birthday and Christmas before the next, and she'd definitely get some money from both of them...
And why not? She'd been able to go this whole time without her parents suspecting anything... If she could make up stories about job hunting, she could make up some others about going to classes. At least with that, she had experience, even if she knew college wouldn't be exactly the same as high school.
That night, she looked up the school's classes, mapped out a schedule for herself, making sure that, every morning, she had a class at just the right time, and that none of them went too late. Some of her friends had already posted their schedules online, so it was simple enough to use those as a template and create a fake one for herself to show to her parents.
"You know what?" she told them. "I think it would be easier if I kept taking Tessa to daycare... It's not too far out of my way, and my classes line up pretty well with her drop-off and pick-up times."
"That would be a huge help!" her mother said. "You are becoming such a helpful, responsible young lady, Danielle."
Dani blushed, certain her mom wouldn't say that if she knew how her daughter truly intended to spend her first semester... Or how she'd really spent her summer break. It was too late to back out, though; she'd already missed the registration date at college now. The only school she could go to this semester was daycare... And she couldn't be happier about it.