Luna awoke on a hot Summer morning. The sheets were sweaty and wadded around her, her pajamas were damp. She swung her legs over the edge of her bed and stared at the wall. It was still early in the morning as Luna couldn't hear anything going around anywhere else in the apartment.
The only other person she lived with was her father, in a small apartment building in Pittsburgh, where she'd lived for as long as she could remember. The truth was, she was born in New York City, on December the 24th in the year 2010.
Her parents brought her back to Pittsburgh two weeks later, and broke up soon after. In the eight years of her life, Luna had asked about her mother only a few times. And every time her father gave her a straight answer to her questions.
But Luna never asked her mother's name or where she was, but only what she was like and if she was nice. Occasionally, her father would offer to show her a picture. They were never good pictures and the face on them never stayed in Luna's memory long.
The apartment was on the fourth floor of a five story building. After passing a few doors, they lived in the furthest back part of the floor. Immediately through that door was the main room, the living room, which was directly connected to the kitchen. Down a small hallway, four more doors could be found.
They led to Luna's room, a bathroom, a small closet, and her father's room, which itself had its own, separate bathroom. Luna didn't like the fact that her father got a bigger room and his own bathroom, but to be fair, she didn't have a lot of stuff and only used the bathroom for a few things.
Luna looked at the clock in the kitchen. It was almost six in the morning. It took her a moment to realize how early that was. Not once in her life could she remember a time when she was awake at six in the morning.
She was planning on getting some cereal and sitting on the couch and watching some cartoons, but that was before she realized that waking up her father this early would be a bad idea.
Luna instead decided to go back to her room to try to sleep or at least rest until her dad was awake. She got under the covers and closed her eyes and before she knew it, her father was hovering over her shaking her awake.
"Hey," he said. "Luna, wake up. You're not gonna sleep all day, you hear me."
Her eyes shot open. Luna sat up and covered her eyes. The sunlight was glaring so strong it was hard to adjust to it. Luna could hear her father chuckle.
"Come on. If your up in ten minutes I'll make you some eggs." Luna could hear him walk out of her room. She sat in bed for a moment, still adjusting to the light.
After a couple minutes she eventually got up and dragged herself into the kitchen. Glancing at the clock from her seat at the table, Luna saw that it was almost ten. She must have slept for another four hours.
"So how do you want them today? " her dad asked.
"What?" Luna asked.
"The eggs?"
"Oh..." Luna thought about it for a moment. "Scrambled."
As her dad began to work on breakfast, Luna grabbed the newspaper and attempted to read it. She didn't understand more than half of the words, but she felt good trying. Reading was her best class in school, and the only class that she ever got above a B in. But she was better with books for kids her age, not local and national news stories.
After finishing her eggs and a slice of toast (her dad snuck some cinnamon into the butter), Luna went back to the couch and started watching some shows before she pulled a blanket over herself and started to drift off. Before here eyes grew too heavy, her dad came around and pulled off the blanket.
"Oh no you don't," he said. "No way are you gonna sleep the day away. I know it rained yesterday but you should try to stay awake. You've been out of school for two weeks and your already starting to sleep in way too late."
"Nuh-uh!" Luna snapped back. "I woke up really early today but I went back to bed. It’s boring here."
"You only woke up early because you fell asleep on the couch and I put you in bed before seven. You're schedule is all screwed up. If you spend all Summer like this, you'll be a complete disaster when school starts."
Luna rolled her eyes and said, "Fine, what do you want me to do?"
"I have to go to work soon," he saw a frown on her face when he said this. "Don't worry, I'll be back before dinner. The babysitter will be here any minute."
"Who is it?" Luna said with some excitement. She enjoyed having babysitters, and it was something she looked forward to at the end of the school year.
"It’s a friend from work," he replied. "You remember Jessica? She'll be here any minute."
And soon after that, there was a knock on the door. Jessica was let in by Luna's dad, and then reintroduced to Luna.
"Well, that just about does it," he told the girls. "I'll be back around six."
"My shift starts at six thirty, Drew," Jessica snapped back, "so don't be late. If your still in the store at ten after, then just stay there and cover my shift. I’ll feed little Luna some mac and cheese or whatever you have in the pantry."
Drew handed her a twenty and said, “Order pizza for lunch. If I’m not back by six, bring Luna to work and I’ll take her home from there.
He kissed his daughter on the head and waved goodbye.
"Hurry back soon, daddy," Luna said. She didn't want to have to go to sleep without her dad in the house.
The only other person she lived with was her father, in a small apartment building in Pittsburgh, where she'd lived for as long as she could remember. The truth was, she was born in New York City, on December the 24th in the year 2010.
Her parents brought her back to Pittsburgh two weeks later, and broke up soon after. In the eight years of her life, Luna had asked about her mother only a few times. And every time her father gave her a straight answer to her questions.
But Luna never asked her mother's name or where she was, but only what she was like and if she was nice. Occasionally, her father would offer to show her a picture. They were never good pictures and the face on them never stayed in Luna's memory long.
The apartment was on the fourth floor of a five story building. After passing a few doors, they lived in the furthest back part of the floor. Immediately through that door was the main room, the living room, which was directly connected to the kitchen. Down a small hallway, four more doors could be found.
They led to Luna's room, a bathroom, a small closet, and her father's room, which itself had its own, separate bathroom. Luna didn't like the fact that her father got a bigger room and his own bathroom, but to be fair, she didn't have a lot of stuff and only used the bathroom for a few things.
Luna looked at the clock in the kitchen. It was almost six in the morning. It took her a moment to realize how early that was. Not once in her life could she remember a time when she was awake at six in the morning.
She was planning on getting some cereal and sitting on the couch and watching some cartoons, but that was before she realized that waking up her father this early would be a bad idea.
Luna instead decided to go back to her room to try to sleep or at least rest until her dad was awake. She got under the covers and closed her eyes and before she knew it, her father was hovering over her shaking her awake.
"Hey," he said. "Luna, wake up. You're not gonna sleep all day, you hear me."
Her eyes shot open. Luna sat up and covered her eyes. The sunlight was glaring so strong it was hard to adjust to it. Luna could hear her father chuckle.
"Come on. If your up in ten minutes I'll make you some eggs." Luna could hear him walk out of her room. She sat in bed for a moment, still adjusting to the light.
After a couple minutes she eventually got up and dragged herself into the kitchen. Glancing at the clock from her seat at the table, Luna saw that it was almost ten. She must have slept for another four hours.
"So how do you want them today? " her dad asked.
"What?" Luna asked.
"The eggs?"
"Oh..." Luna thought about it for a moment. "Scrambled."
As her dad began to work on breakfast, Luna grabbed the newspaper and attempted to read it. She didn't understand more than half of the words, but she felt good trying. Reading was her best class in school, and the only class that she ever got above a B in. But she was better with books for kids her age, not local and national news stories.
After finishing her eggs and a slice of toast (her dad snuck some cinnamon into the butter), Luna went back to the couch and started watching some shows before she pulled a blanket over herself and started to drift off. Before here eyes grew too heavy, her dad came around and pulled off the blanket.
"Oh no you don't," he said. "No way are you gonna sleep the day away. I know it rained yesterday but you should try to stay awake. You've been out of school for two weeks and your already starting to sleep in way too late."
"Nuh-uh!" Luna snapped back. "I woke up really early today but I went back to bed. It’s boring here."
"You only woke up early because you fell asleep on the couch and I put you in bed before seven. You're schedule is all screwed up. If you spend all Summer like this, you'll be a complete disaster when school starts."
Luna rolled her eyes and said, "Fine, what do you want me to do?"
"I have to go to work soon," he saw a frown on her face when he said this. "Don't worry, I'll be back before dinner. The babysitter will be here any minute."
"Who is it?" Luna said with some excitement. She enjoyed having babysitters, and it was something she looked forward to at the end of the school year.
"It’s a friend from work," he replied. "You remember Jessica? She'll be here any minute."
And soon after that, there was a knock on the door. Jessica was let in by Luna's dad, and then reintroduced to Luna.
"Well, that just about does it," he told the girls. "I'll be back around six."
"My shift starts at six thirty, Drew," Jessica snapped back, "so don't be late. If your still in the store at ten after, then just stay there and cover my shift. I’ll feed little Luna some mac and cheese or whatever you have in the pantry."
Drew handed her a twenty and said, “Order pizza for lunch. If I’m not back by six, bring Luna to work and I’ll take her home from there.
He kissed his daughter on the head and waved goodbye.
"Hurry back soon, daddy," Luna said. She didn't want to have to go to sleep without her dad in the house.
After Drew left, Luna went back to the couch. Jessica came over and asked, "So, what do you want to do?"
"I'm kinda tired," Luna said, hiding under the blanket.
"Your father already told me you've been sleeping all day for two weeks," she said, pulling the blanket off of Luna. "Why don't you at least get some real clothes on?"
Luna decided to agree with her and wondered off to her room. Jessica followed her but was cut off when Luna turned around and said, rather matter-of-factly, "Don't watch me change," before closing the door.
Now alone, Luna felt a bit more free. She chose to actually at least take off her pajamas, but she didn't have much intention to put anything else on. Last year she was content walking around the house in nothing but her underwear. It just didn’t make sense to wear perfectly fine clothes when she wasn’t going anywhere or doing anything.
Luna pulled off her pink bottoms and shirt, then disposed her pajamas in the hamper. She then moved to her dresser to look for something to wear.
She put on a white t-shirt with long, purple sleeves and walked back into the living room and sat back on the couch.
"That's all your wearing?" Jessica asked. Luna ignored her and focused on the television. Since they didn’t have cable, Luna turned on the PS4 and navigated to some streaming apps.
At some point, Jessica said something, but Luna was to entangled in the show (Trollhunters) to pay attention. A few moments later she felt some kind of pressure in her belly, but ignored it.
Not long after, a sudden sensation excited Luna. She felt a warm liquid fill the gap between her legs and form a puddle around her. Her eyes shot wide open. She couldn't believe it had happened at first, and it took a second to figure out what was happening.
Like a detective, she gathered the clues. Warm, wet, underwear, skin, couch. She paused her show and stared down. It took longer than it should have for Luna to realize she was peeing herself. Urine gushed out of her, wetting her pants and soaking into the couch cushion beneath her.
Before she knew it, Luna’s bladder was completely emptied, she stared down at her accident another second or two, still in shock and awe. She couldn't think of a reason for this to have happened, but it did. She wet herself.
"Je.... Jessica...," she muttered to herself. "Jessica can you come here."
"What is it?" Luna heard her call back to her, but she heard no attempt from her babysitter to move at first. Jessica didn’t really need to do much as an 8 year old’s babysitter, and she didn’t seem to interested in Trollhunters.
"I..." Luna could get the words out. "I think... I think I wet my pants. "
Now Jessica was listening. She didn't move, she simply changed her tone and asked, "What do you mean you think? Did you or didn’t you?" She got up and ran to see the puddle around Luna. "Oh my god, go to the bathroom, now!"
Luna jumped to action and ran to the bathroom where she removed her underpants, letting them drop to the floor.
"I take it you don't want your father to know about this?” Jessica apparently followed Luna, now naked from the waist down, to the bathroom. "Do you?"
Luna blushed and shook her head. She was still processing what had happened.
"How about you get cleaned up in here," Jessica said, "and I'll take care of the couch."
Before she knew it, Luna was alone in the bathroom. She looked at the trail of urine that had dripped from her when she dashed from the living room down the hall. The trail ended at her underwear, soaking in a small puddle as the displayed a yellow stain.
Luna stood up on her bathroom stool, dropped her wet underwear in the sink, and turned the knob to let the water rinse it out. She was well over three feet tall, but the sink was still to high for her. Her father bought her the stepping stool for that reason.
After her underwear had been more or less cleaned out she sat on the toilet. She had completely emptied her bladder into her underwear and onto the couch, and it was now like a deflated balloon. Luna grabbed some toilet paper and started wiping herself off. It didn’t really have much of an effect. There was usually a pack of baby wipes under the sink for various emergency (some related to wiping butts, others not) but Luna figured if she used some of them her father might notice. She instead dampened some toilet paper in the sink and used that. It kinda worked.
After that she bent over on the floor and tried to wipe off the urine that was on the tiles. She opened the door and saw that Jessica had already cleaned up the rest of the floor and was working on the couch cushion.
"I found some cleaner under the sink that did miracles for the smell," Jessica said. "The cushion is mostly dark colors, so if we flip it over then your dad will never know."
"Thanks..." Luna blushed.
Jessica peaked into the sink and said, "I'll throw these in the dryer. They should be done in no time. Your dad won't be back for a while, so you'll be fine." Jessica saw a bit of relief on Luna's eyes when she said that. "What do you want to do now?"
Jessica ordered pizza while Luna got dressed. By the time she returned, Jessica had the PS4 controller in her hands. “You like Power Rangers? I loved it when I was a kid. I wonder if the movie is on Netflix.”
“It’s okay,” Luna sat down next to her. Power Rangers is infamous for taking eight month hiatus every year. Kids who were fans in the beginning of the year (like Luna) had almost completely forgotten about the show by the time it came back.
Power Rangers was not on Netflix, but they did find a similar movie on Amazon (Super Taskforce One) and watched that instead. When the movie arrived, Jessica burned a bag of popcorn, masking any remaining urine smell, and then Luna showed her the correct way to do it. Never trust the “Popcorn” button.
When the movie was over, the dryer dinged and Jessica got Luna’s underwear. Luna started watching more Trollhunters and Jessica went back to doing her own thing.
“How are my two girls,” Drew asked when he arrived at 5:59PM.
“How was work, Daddy?” Luna asked.
Drew put his hands on his hips. “Did you just answer a question with a question?” he asked.
Luna covered her mouth. “Oops! Sorry.”
She ran off to her room, shook her piggy bank until it produced a quarter, and then dropped the quarter in the “Answer a Question with a Question” jar in the kitchen.
“Well,” Jessica said. “I’ll leave you two weirdos to it.”
Jessica left, giving a sneak wink to Luna. Luna’s little accident would be a secret they’d take to their graves. A secret bond between women.
Jessica would return to Luna’s life one day. But so would Luna’s accidents. Because this is a story that has just begun.
"I'm kinda tired," Luna said, hiding under the blanket.
"Your father already told me you've been sleeping all day for two weeks," she said, pulling the blanket off of Luna. "Why don't you at least get some real clothes on?"
Luna decided to agree with her and wondered off to her room. Jessica followed her but was cut off when Luna turned around and said, rather matter-of-factly, "Don't watch me change," before closing the door.
Now alone, Luna felt a bit more free. She chose to actually at least take off her pajamas, but she didn't have much intention to put anything else on. Last year she was content walking around the house in nothing but her underwear. It just didn’t make sense to wear perfectly fine clothes when she wasn’t going anywhere or doing anything.
Luna pulled off her pink bottoms and shirt, then disposed her pajamas in the hamper. She then moved to her dresser to look for something to wear.
She put on a white t-shirt with long, purple sleeves and walked back into the living room and sat back on the couch.
"That's all your wearing?" Jessica asked. Luna ignored her and focused on the television. Since they didn’t have cable, Luna turned on the PS4 and navigated to some streaming apps.
At some point, Jessica said something, but Luna was to entangled in the show (Trollhunters) to pay attention. A few moments later she felt some kind of pressure in her belly, but ignored it.
Not long after, a sudden sensation excited Luna. She felt a warm liquid fill the gap between her legs and form a puddle around her. Her eyes shot wide open. She couldn't believe it had happened at first, and it took a second to figure out what was happening.
Like a detective, she gathered the clues. Warm, wet, underwear, skin, couch. She paused her show and stared down. It took longer than it should have for Luna to realize she was peeing herself. Urine gushed out of her, wetting her pants and soaking into the couch cushion beneath her.
Before she knew it, Luna’s bladder was completely emptied, she stared down at her accident another second or two, still in shock and awe. She couldn't think of a reason for this to have happened, but it did. She wet herself.
"Je.... Jessica...," she muttered to herself. "Jessica can you come here."
"What is it?" Luna heard her call back to her, but she heard no attempt from her babysitter to move at first. Jessica didn’t really need to do much as an 8 year old’s babysitter, and she didn’t seem to interested in Trollhunters.
"I..." Luna could get the words out. "I think... I think I wet my pants. "
Now Jessica was listening. She didn't move, she simply changed her tone and asked, "What do you mean you think? Did you or didn’t you?" She got up and ran to see the puddle around Luna. "Oh my god, go to the bathroom, now!"
Luna jumped to action and ran to the bathroom where she removed her underpants, letting them drop to the floor.
"I take it you don't want your father to know about this?” Jessica apparently followed Luna, now naked from the waist down, to the bathroom. "Do you?"
Luna blushed and shook her head. She was still processing what had happened.
"How about you get cleaned up in here," Jessica said, "and I'll take care of the couch."
Before she knew it, Luna was alone in the bathroom. She looked at the trail of urine that had dripped from her when she dashed from the living room down the hall. The trail ended at her underwear, soaking in a small puddle as the displayed a yellow stain.
Luna stood up on her bathroom stool, dropped her wet underwear in the sink, and turned the knob to let the water rinse it out. She was well over three feet tall, but the sink was still to high for her. Her father bought her the stepping stool for that reason.
After her underwear had been more or less cleaned out she sat on the toilet. She had completely emptied her bladder into her underwear and onto the couch, and it was now like a deflated balloon. Luna grabbed some toilet paper and started wiping herself off. It didn’t really have much of an effect. There was usually a pack of baby wipes under the sink for various emergency (some related to wiping butts, others not) but Luna figured if she used some of them her father might notice. She instead dampened some toilet paper in the sink and used that. It kinda worked.
After that she bent over on the floor and tried to wipe off the urine that was on the tiles. She opened the door and saw that Jessica had already cleaned up the rest of the floor and was working on the couch cushion.
"I found some cleaner under the sink that did miracles for the smell," Jessica said. "The cushion is mostly dark colors, so if we flip it over then your dad will never know."
"Thanks..." Luna blushed.
Jessica peaked into the sink and said, "I'll throw these in the dryer. They should be done in no time. Your dad won't be back for a while, so you'll be fine." Jessica saw a bit of relief on Luna's eyes when she said that. "What do you want to do now?"
Jessica ordered pizza while Luna got dressed. By the time she returned, Jessica had the PS4 controller in her hands. “You like Power Rangers? I loved it when I was a kid. I wonder if the movie is on Netflix.”
“It’s okay,” Luna sat down next to her. Power Rangers is infamous for taking eight month hiatus every year. Kids who were fans in the beginning of the year (like Luna) had almost completely forgotten about the show by the time it came back.
Power Rangers was not on Netflix, but they did find a similar movie on Amazon (Super Taskforce One) and watched that instead. When the movie arrived, Jessica burned a bag of popcorn, masking any remaining urine smell, and then Luna showed her the correct way to do it. Never trust the “Popcorn” button.
When the movie was over, the dryer dinged and Jessica got Luna’s underwear. Luna started watching more Trollhunters and Jessica went back to doing her own thing.
“How are my two girls,” Drew asked when he arrived at 5:59PM.
“How was work, Daddy?” Luna asked.
Drew put his hands on his hips. “Did you just answer a question with a question?” he asked.
Luna covered her mouth. “Oops! Sorry.”
She ran off to her room, shook her piggy bank until it produced a quarter, and then dropped the quarter in the “Answer a Question with a Question” jar in the kitchen.
“Well,” Jessica said. “I’ll leave you two weirdos to it.”
Jessica left, giving a sneak wink to Luna. Luna’s little accident would be a secret they’d take to their graves. A secret bond between women.
Jessica would return to Luna’s life one day. But so would Luna’s accidents. Because this is a story that has just begun.