Leah wakes up the next day, hops out of bed, and goes to her closet. Her stomach plummets to her feet. That’s right. She made the stupid decision to let Tina revamp her entire wardrobe yesterday. Now, everything she owns is designed for either babies or toddlers, and her underwear has been replaced with training pants. She shudders, glad that she didn’t grab a diaper at the store instead.
“Leah, come get breakfast!” Tina calls. Dread growing, Leah gets ready for the day and dresses in some of her new clothes. The outfit she chooses consists of pink overalls, a T-shirt patterned with flowers, and sandals. She goes downstairs. Tina beams at her. “Now, don’t you look cute! I know the perfect finishing touch for your outfit.”
While Leah glumly eats her breakfast, Tina braids her hair with ribbons, making her look even more youthful. When she’s finished, Tina hands Leah a mirror to look at her hair. Leah swallows nervously. The little girl reflected in the mirror looks like she belongs in preschool or even daycare, not high school. But all she does is thank Tina for the hairdo.
For once, Leah is glad that Tina insists on driving her to school, rather than letting her take the bus. This delays her humiliation. And Leah can already tell she’ll be thoroughly humiliated. She didn’t realize until Tina pointed it out, but her training pants bulge slightly under her overalls.
“Have a great day at school, sweetie!” Tina chirps as she stops in front of the school. “Remember, I have to work late today, so you’ll have to walk home.”
“Got it,” Leah says, getting out of the car. The car pulls away. Leah stares at the school, dread continuing to build. A little boy with a visible diaper bulge exits a car with his parent and enters. Leah’s eyes widen. That’s right! There aren’t a lot of kids in her school district, so her school includes classes from preschool up to twelfth grade.
The fact that Tina expects Leah to find a way home on her own gives her freedom as to how her day goes. If she wants, she could spend the day in a class where her outfit won’t stand out. She could even go to the daycare across the street, or skip school altogether. Of course, she could also try to survive going to her regular classes dressed like this.