The walk home was slow, uncomfortable, and filled with a tense kind of silence that only humiliation could create. Jennifer kept her pace careful, mindful of her aching chest and the slight dampness in her training pants, while Maya waddled beside her in the frilliest, most infantilizing outfit imaginable—her thick pink princess diaper rustling with every step beneath her glittery skirt.
Her arms were crossed, her mouth tight around her braces, the occasional sniffle betraying how close she was to breaking again.
They were just a few blocks from the apartment when it happened.
Maya froze mid-step. Her eyes widened in panic.
Jennifer turned immediately. “Maya?”
“I… I can’t—” Maya’s voice was barely more than a whisper. “I can’t hold it.”
Then came the soft, muffled crkshh sound—the sound no one wants to hear. Maya’s eyes fluttered shut, her body tensed as her face flushed a deep crimson. Her knees bent slightly, and she let out a soft, helpless whimper.
Jennifer stepped closer, not saying anything.
“I tried,” Maya said shakily, the lisp thick in her voice, her fists balled at her sides. “I tried, Jen… I didn’t even feel it coming.”
The smell hit a moment later—subtle, but unmistakable.
Jennifer placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Come on. Let’s get you home.”
Neither of them spoke the rest of the way.
By the time they made it inside the apartment, Maya was walking stiffly, her skirt barely doing anything to hide the sagging, messy diaper beneath it. She rushed to the bathroom the moment they closed the door, muttering, “I can clean mythelf, I can do it—” but Jennifer followed, just in case.
After a moment, there was silence. Then:
“…Jen?”
Jennifer stepped into the doorway.
Maya stood by the sink, frozen, her cheeks redder than ever. She looked down at herself, then at the unopened package of wipes, the fresh diaper she’d pulled out… and back to Jennifer.
“I… I can’t. My arms—my fingers—thith body won’t let me. I can’t reach the right way. It’th like—like I’m not even coordinated enough.”
Jennifer felt her stomach twist.
“Are you saying… you can’t change yourself?”
Maya nodded, her lower lip trembling. “Not without help.”
For a long second, they just stared at each other.
Then Jennifer walked forward and gently picked up the wipes.
“Okay,” she said softly. “We’ll figure this out. Together.”
Maya blinked, tears threatening again—but she didn’t speak.
She just nodded, and let Jennifer help.