Delia

Kate was surprised to see that Delia was standing right in front of the door. Obviously, the teacher must have realized that Kate had left the room and went to search for her. And judging by the look on her face that was a mixture of shock and concern, the slightly older woman must have heard everything that had transpired over the phone.

"Katie...?" Delia asked, finally finding her voice. "Were... Were you really telling me the truth this whole time?"

Kate felt her legs turn into jello as her entire face turned neon red, her eyes watering and her lip quivering. The little woman then began to loudly wail as she ran forward, hugging Delia's legs tightly as she cried her eyes out.

Instinctively, Delia kneeled down and wrapped her arms around the little woman, allowing Kate to bury her face into the crook of the teacher's neck. Delia began to gently rub Kate's back, making shushing noises in an attempt to calm her down.

"Shh, it's okay, Katie." Delia said softly, gently rocking the little woman back and forth. "Just tell me what happened. Why did you pretend to be a child?"

"I... I didn't!" Kate explained through her sobs. "I w-was just here to become a teacher and... And then Winnie... Oh, that devil woman! She dragged me in here and... And stripped and spanked me! T-then she - "

"She stripped you? And she SPANKED you?!" Delia cried out in shock, her eyes widening in horror. Without waiting for a response, the teacher spun Kate around, lifted up the dress, and pulled back on waistband of Kate's pull-up. She narrowed her eyes angrily as she saw Kate's naked butt was a bright pink, a stark contrast to the woman's pale skin. "When did she do this?"

"B-before she put me in a... A p-pull-up." Kate replied, blushing as she felt Delia put said garment back into place and lower the dress back down. "I... I told her that she was making a mistake and that I'm not... N-not a child. Then I c-called her an old bat and... You know what happened next. But maybe I... Maybe I am! I was playing with Barbie dolls a while ago, and I'm supposed to be twenty-three! Maybe I am just a little girl who deserves to be spanked for being - "

"No, Kate!" Delia interrupted, spinning the little woman back around to face her. Kate wiped the tears from her eyes as she saw the stern look on the teacher's face, her green eyes staring into the little woman's soul. "You are NOT a child! Yes, you are a lot smaller than a woman your age is supposed to be. But you are still a beautiful young woman! No one deserves what you got, adult or student! And I'm sorry for mistaking you for a child as well, and for not believing your side of the story." She chuckled halfheartedly for a second before adding, "Which, in my defense, sounded a little far-fetched. But I'm sorry nonetheless."

"It doesn't matter anyway..." Kate said downhearted. "With my ID gone, I may as well be a lost child. I mean, I look like a child and I'm wearing a diaper. Who is to say that I'm not one? And that says nothing about the fact that I'm now..." She felt her lip quivering as her eyes watered up again, "homeless."

"No, no, no, Sweetie. No more tears." Delia said as she tried to comfort the young woman. "We can get this all straightened out. We can just call your parents, have them bring your birth certificate, and - "

"I don't have parents!" Kate nearly shouted, **** back a sob. "I... I have nobody. I was found on the doorstep of The Home for Little Hopes. I lived there until I was eighteen and moved out."

Kate began to cry again as Delia wiped a tear from her eye before hugging the little woman tightly. The teacher could feel her heart breaking. Kate didn't deserve this. She didn't deserve ANY of what had just happened to her in the span of not even one day! There had to be something she could do to help Kate... But what? Suddenly, an idea popped into her head. It was probably the weirdest idea that she had ever had in her twenty-seven years of existence, but if it meant helping Kate...

"Kate." Delia began, getting the little woman's attention as she looked up at the teacher. Wiping a few tears from the little woman's eyes, she continued. "You can stay with me."

"W-what?" Kate asked, confused.

"You don't have anywhere to go." Delia explained, "You have no clothes, no ID, and I'm guessing no car either. You can live with me for free. Long-term, if you'd like."

"Delia." Kate said with a shocked gasp, her eyes widening slightly. "I... I couldn't just mooch off of you like - "

"You wouldn't be mooching!" Delia interrupted, shaking her head as she stared into Kate's eyes. "You don't need to worry about financial gain or paying rent. I'm actually really well off. I only became a teacher because I love kids and can't have any of my own. I can provide for the both of us. I'll make sure that nothing bad ever happens to you again. I'll take very good care of you and keep you safe. I'll..." Delia gulped nervously as she took a shaky breath, "I'll adopt you and become your mother."

Kate stood there in a stunned silence, only blinking every ten seconds. After a minute, her eyes began to tear up again. "Why? You only just met me, why would you want to do this for me?"

"Because I can see that you're beyond stressed right now." Delia replied, "You have nowhere to go and no one to turn to in your time of need, and you desperately need help! I can see that you you have been hurt, physically and mentally, in not even the span of one day. And as for being your mother..." She took a deep breath before continuing, "You seem to be under the impression that you're just a little kid. And until your ready to come back to adulthood, you are going to need someone to help and take care of you."

"A-and what if I'm never ready to go back?" Kate whimpered as her cheeks blushed slightly.

"Then I've always wanted a child of my own to love and protect," Delia responded with a chuckle, "so it would be a win-win situation for the both of us."

For the second time today, Kate stood there in a stunned silence. Staring into the warm eyes and smile of Delia, the little woman realized that she wasn't going to convince this woman that this plan wouldn't work. On the other hand, what else was she going to do? She had no proof of her age or identity, no car, no home, no clothes. She was practically in diapers right now! And she couldn't go back to the orphanage again; eighteen years of being passed by potential adopters and bullied by other kids for her small size (among other things) was more than enough one lifetime around!

Not to mention, the workers would be smart enough to see that, after another eighteen years, the supposed young woman was just entering her forties.

And while Kate had just met Delia today, there was something just so... Trusting about her. In only an hours, this stranger had been more of a mother to her than anyone else had been throughout her entire life. And Kate had thought of her as an idiot before!

Looking back up at the teacher, Kate smiled as she let out a whine. She ran towards Delia and hugged her tightly.

"Yes!" She sobbed happily, "Please let me stay with you! Please keep me safe! Please be my..." She sniffled as she pulled away, smiling at the larger woman and saying, "Please be my mommy."

Delia merely smiled as she wiped a tear from her eye. Inside, the teacher squealed with joy as she felt her heart doing somersaults in her chest. All her life she wanted a child, and now she was getting a daughter.

"Right then." Delia finally said as she cleared her throat, "I'll go sign out early and we can go shopping for new supplies for you before we take you home. But first," she face grew stern and angry as she got to her feet, "I need to have a little chat with Ms. Winifred."

Kate merely gulped but nodded as she grabbed Delia's hand, the taller woman leading them both out of the bathroom.