“I’m not tired,” Kelly protested. The daycare worker that had put her in the crib smiled.
“That’s what you kiddos always say. Don’t worry, you’ll be out like a light soon.”
“But-” Kelly started.
“Here, this should help you calm down.” The daycare worker took something out of her pocket and stuck it into Kelly’s mouth. Kelly sucked on it instinctively. It was a pacifier. “Sleep well, sweetie.”
The other toddlers were placed into their own cribs and the lights turned off. Kelly sat in her crib, suckling on her pacifier, dread gnawing at her stomach as she realized that she had referred to the other people in cribs as the “other toddlers”.
“I’m not a toddler,” she whispered around the pacifier. “I’m not!” Determined to escape right away, Kelly decided to wait until the toddlers were asleep to attempt to do so. She curled up in the crib and closed her eyes.
“Wakey wakey, little babies!” a voice sang. Kelly opened her eyes. Oh, no! She had fallen asleep by accident! As Kelly sat up, she had another horrible realization. Her diaper was wet. She peed herself in her sleep! A daycare worker came over and stuck a finger down her diaper. “Ooh, someone needs a change.”
Kelly was whisked away to a changing table and changed into a fresh diaper.
“Go ahead and play, your mommy or daddy should be here to pick you up soon,” the daycare worker instructed her, setting her on the floor. Still sucking on her naptime pacifier, Kelly knew that if she was going to escape, it was now or never.