Jane casually wandered over to Sophia, pretending to want to hug her leg, and snuck her tiny hand into Sophia's pocket. Her fingers closed around the phone, and she quickly palmed it, trying not to draw attention. Sophia didn't notice a thing, busy greeting Mr. Thomson and helping the other children into their coats.
Jane's heart was racing as she hid the phone behind her back. She waited until Sophia was distracted, then made a beeline for a quiet corner of the room. She opened the phone and frantically searched for the app. When it loaded, she generated a sentence, but her eyes widened in horror as she realized she couldn't read the words properly. The letters seemed to swim on the screen. Panic set in – she was only 2 years old, and her reading skills were those of a toddler.
Undeterred, Jane tried to make out the words, guessing at the sentence's meaning. She edited it as best she could, hoping it would reverse the changes that had turned her into a toddler. But before she could hit confirm, Sophia swooped in, playfully scolding her for taking her phone again. "Oh, Jane, what did I say about taking things that aren't yours?" Sophia teased, scooping Jane up in her arms. As Sophia handed Jane over to Mr. Thompson, she caught sight of the app open on the phone. Her curiosity got the better of her, and she read the sentence Jane had generated: "Mrs. Thompson is taking Jane and her sisters to home". On a whim, Sophia hit Confirm.
The room around them dissolved into chaos as reality shifted. Mr. Thomson transformed into a tall, strong woman with styled hair and a business suit. The five boys who had been Jane's brothers now stood as identical little girls, all with pigtails and daycare uniforms. Jane's jaw dropped in shock, and Sophia's eyes sparkled with wonder.
As the new Mrs. Thomson gathered her daughters to leave, Sophia's coworkers began calling her for help. But Sophia's mind was already racing ahead, thinking about the possibilities the app offered. She wondered what would happen if she turned herself into a toddler. She loved working here, but sometimes it could get a little tiring and maybe she could rest a little by pretending to be one of the children here. With a mischievous glint in her eye, Sophia generated a new sentence: "Sophia is a 33 year old employee at the daycare during the afternoon". She edited it to read: "Sophia is a 24 months old attendee at female daycare during the morning". With a thrill of excitement and a dash of trepidation, Sophia hit Confirm.
In an instant, Sophia felt herself changing. She shrunk down, her balance tipped, and a soft crinkle echoed beneath her as a pacifier appeared in her mouth. Her uniform shifted into a toddler’s version: bright colors, a cartoon animal on the bib, and a name tag. She looked down at herself, diapered and pacified, and giggled a little bit. Before she could try using the phone again, she heard footsteps approaching. Panicked, Sophia hid the phone inside a giraffe plushie.
A daycare worker peeked in. “Aww, who’s this new cutie?” the woman cooed, gently patting Sophia’s head. “You must be one of the new drop-ins. Well, welcome to Rainbow Tots, sweetheart.”
As the worker walked away, Sophia started toddling around the whole room, her mind whirling with thoughts of what she could do next.