Leah couldn't help it. She was so close. So close! And she couldn't make it! Sobs bubbled up from her throat. She morosely sat on the bathroom floor, not caring about the poop spreading over her butt. Tears rolled down her face.
She cried there for how long, she didn't know. She could feel herself getting more and more upset. Just sitting there crying wasn't helping anything. But she couldn't move. She was too upset.
Then she remembered something. When she was a toddler, she'd sucked her thumb. It was a crazy potential solution for her current situation, but the situation was crazy anyways. Might as well.
Without thinking about it further, Leah shoved her thumb into her mouth. Almost immediately, she felt calm sweep over her. Now she knew why her parents had such a hard time getting her to stop doing it. It was awesome!
Renewed energy filled her. She got to her feet and went to clumsily change herself, still sucking her thumb the whole time. With a clean diaper on, Leah went back to bed. She climbed in and, thanks to her thumb sucking, fell asleep quickly. As she drifted off, she decided that, while she was figuring out what was going on with her potty training, this was her best way to not completely lose it. She just had to...