✅ My Sister's Problem

104. The Baby Sitter

"Eww, no!" Lindy was immediately put off by that idea; which wasn't a big surprise. She probably imagined it briefly, and decided that she hated the idea even more than I did. And that was no big surprise; I suspected that Mum wouldn't even have mentioned it if she'd thought there was any chance that Lindy might say yes. "I just think she can wait, you don't need to change the baby every few minutes."

"Okay, dear. Do you need a change first? You seem awfully cranky today, I wonder if you're getting jealous of all the attention I'm giving your baby sister. Well, don't worry, you can have–"

"No!" Lindy yelled this time, seeming both nervous and angry. "I don't need a change. I'm not wet, I don't even wear diapers! It's more than a week since I even had one on, and there's no reason I'd ever need somebody else's help." And she stormed off like it was the most insulting thing someone had ever said to her. If she felt so bad about a joking offer of a diaper change, I wondered how she would possibly cope with the punishments I'd had over the last couple of weeks. She wouldn't, of course. She only thought of those punishments as things that could happen to someone else, and I bet she hadn't even imagined herself as the victim at any point.

"Let's get my baby changed, then," Mum said, punctuating the words with a half-shrug. I wondered what she thought of Lindy's sudden burst of anger; I couldn't understand how a joke could have upset her that much. But then, I was still just a little baby, so maybe it was some big girl stuff that I wouldn't understand until I was a bit more grown up.

Mum helped me to lie down on the changing mat, and gave me Mr Muggins to cuddle while she changed my diaper. I hugged the little bear tightly, and I felt a whole lot calmer, like there was nothing that could worry me now. And I couldn't help snuggling him tighter, like he was my best friend in the whole world. I barely even noticed my diaper being changed until Mum reached over to pat Mr Muggins on the head, and told me that I was all clean now.

I sat up with a smile, but kept on snuggling my toys while Mum went to the bottom of the stairs and shouted up to ask Lindy if she was ready yet. A few moments later I heard my sister thundering down the stairs, and I knew that if the last few minutes had made her feel bad, she would be happy to vent her frustrations as soon as Mum left.

"You girls be good while I get the shopping," Mum said, and my nervousness reached a new peak. I didn't know what Lindy could even do to hurt me; all she'd really done so far was accusing me of things that she thought Mum would believe. But in an instant I didn't want to be left alone with my sister. "Sally, Lindy is your babysitter until I get back. Be good for her."

"Yes, Mommy!" I found myself answering automatically, so eager to impress her with how good I could be. I picked up Mr Muggins and Bosnia, and made them answer too. And then I knew that Lindy was in charge again, while I found myself answering and thinking like a baby when I least expected it.

"Good girl," Lindy said, and laughed. "Does that work, then?"

"I dunno?" I mumbled, not quite sure what Mommy had told me. I knew it was another new thing; a scene that those videos had described, but I didn't remember all the details of what it had old me to imagine. Those videos had been so powerful, I didn't even know if it had been the same one each time or a series of different suggestions. I didn't need to understand, I was too little to think about those things. I just had to do what Mommy or my babysitter said.

"Aww, look at the little baby. You really are a baby, aren't you? Need Mommy to change your diapers, and you can't do anything by yourself."

"I'm not–" I started, before realising that I was talking in that weird voice, like I'd only just learned how to speak and it didn't quite sound right. Then I couldn't help blushing, and I knew that I didn't have any kind of choice. I was just a baby, and my big sister was in charge now. I knew something had changed, but my mind felt foggy and it was hard to pin down what it was. Even if I thought about trying to rebel against her decisions, I knew that I wouldn't be able to, and that was kind of scary. "I'll be good?"

"Of course you will. You need to be a good baby. You tried to treat me like a little baby, and now you're being punished. Isn't that great? Exactly what you deserve. So now I can do whatever I want, and little baby Sally just gets to sit around waiting for Mommy to get back so she can change your diapers. Doesn't that sound really humiliating?"

I tried not to think about that, and just let myself laugh. It was easy really: Even if I felt littler, I knew that it was just a kind of game, so I didn't have to take it too seriously. And every time Mommy had made me feel like this, it had only lasted for a few minutes. I could just laugh and not think a little, and then if I wasn't enjoying it I would be able to go back to normal.

"I can be a baby," I told her. "I'll be good. But I don't need changies now."

"Ohh, I think you do. Poop for Mommy."

As soon as she said it, I remembered the scene that the voice on the video had asked me to imagine, with all those spirals. But it was just something I was imagining, and even if I pushed a little I didn't think anything was going to happen. I didn't need to go yet, and even if I did it would only be a little hint to my imagination. Because when she jogged my memory to remember those words, it also reminded me that there was one important rule Lindy seemed to have forgotten.

"That only works for Mommy!" I laughed. "You're not Mommy, you can't say the words. And I don't gotta go!"

"Aww, just checking," she said, with a little laugh. "I'm amazed a baby so little even knows when you need to go. But that's okay, it's not anything important. I don't want to put up with your stink all morning anyway. I just want you to remember what a baby you are. Can you do that for me? Pee for Mommy."

I laughed, and remembered how good it felt when I listened to the words on the video, and imagined just letting go. It was like nothing mattered at all, and I could just let go. I didn't need to think, didn't need to worry, because I was such a little baby. Of course, I still didn't need to pee much. I had wet my diaper when the video ended, and it had only taken half an hour for Mommy to talk to us and change my diaper. But I could still feel my diaper growing a little warmer, and I felt a moment of pride for obeying that command.

"I did a wee!" I told Lindy, surprised that I could tell so easily. And it wasn't until I saw her laughing that I realised something had changed; I had to obey my babysitter just like I would for Mommy, and I would have to sit in a wet diaper for an hour now. And not just that, but I would have to wet myself whenever Lindy told me to. She had more power than the punishment had given her before, and I was such a little baby that I couldn't even think of resisting her commands.

But that was okay. I knew that grown-ups would never do anything mean. I could always trust Mommy to sort everything out, so nothing else mattered. I looked up at Lindy, and wondered what she was going to do now. Whatever it was, I knew that a good girl should alway try to help my big sister.