The next few roller coasters were more popular, and the lines were much longer. Hailey, aware of Erin’s desire to avoid using her diaper (and of her own unwillingness to use hers without a good way to avoid being caught by her father), made sure that they visited a toilet before entering each roller coaster line. It was probably excessive, but it was also much better to err on the side of caution.
Dinner was a quick stop at an in-park pizza restaurant, followed by more riding of roller coasters. Yes, the other rides were entertaining too, but now that Erin had tried the coasters, she preferred to keep riding them, which Hailey was perfectly happy with as well.
Martin was glad that Erin was enjoying herself. He’d been worried that she might not like the bigger rides, and while he would have been perfectly willing to take Erin to the smaller ones while his thrill-loving daughter queued for the coasters, he suspected Hailey wouldn’t want to leave Erin and would instead ride all the small stuff with Erin, pretending for Erin’s sake that she was having fun the whole time.
The girls were having a great time. As it approached ten in the evening, Martin suggested that they should consider going home soon. Both girls jokingly complained, but they were both fairly worn out from walking all day.
Erin decided it was just as well. She was beginning to get mild complaints from her abdomen, as if her body were thinking about becoming nauseous, but hadn’t quite made up its mind. It was probably some combination of her dinner and the constant jerky motions that the roller coasters placed on her, she figured. She was fine for now, but more rides would make it worse. The park was probably closing soon, anyway.
They headed back to the front of the park to retrieve Erin’s backpack from the lockers. “Do you need one of these?” he asked Erin.
“No, I’ve stayed dry,” replied Erin.
Martin was glad to hear that, but he didn’t dare patronize her with a “Good job.” It was probably embarrassing enough having to wear the diaper all day at her age; praising her for keeping them dry would have implied that he was surprised she was able to. Instead, he simply stated, “I’m going to visit the restroom. If you girls need to go before we leave, now would be a good time.”
The girls agreed with this suggestion and visited the toilet, Erin holding the backpack. She was glad that she hadn’t needed it, although she really had Hailey’s constant trips to the bathroom to thank for that.
They left the bathroom, met up with Martin, and headed out across the parking lot.
“Thanks for taking me here today,” said Erin. “I had a great time.”
“Yeah, thanks, Dad,” echoed Hailey.
“No problem, girls. I’m glad you enjoyed it.”
“Oh,” said Erin, in a slightly quieter voice, “thanks, Hailey, for reminding me to go to the bathroom so often. I don’t know if I would have stayed dry if you hadn’t.”
“No problem, Erin.”
“And thanks for agreeing to, um, wear the diapers too.” She had to make help Hailey look responsible to her father.
“Any time, Erin.”