I was at the orphanage the other day, like I am most afternoons, when Troll Baby projectile vomited all over me. It was actually really impressive that a child that small could throw up that much; it was a regular Old Faithful of formula milk. (Troll Baby, who has only existed in this world for 13 days, has thrown up on me roughly half of those. I think he doesn't like his nickname. Don't worry, baby, you'll grow into your face someday.) Anyway, I mopped up Troll Baby's little face, then went to the bathroom to clean myself. My skirt was pretty light and filmy and would dry fast, but my shirt was drenched in regurgitated formula, so I just took it off, scrubbed it in the sink, and one of the caretakers hung it on the roof to dry. It was 118 degrees that afternoon, which is awful on so many levels, but it does mean that laundry dries very quickly. I had worn a cardigan to work over my T-shirt (no short sleeves in site, so I end up wearing a lot of T-shirts with lightweight cardigans that I can take off once I'm no longer outside), but it was hot, so I didn't bother to button it up. Hey, we were all ladies or boys under the age of four; I wasn't too worried about spending an hour or so topless so long as I could avoid Troll Baby barfing in my bra. (My life is so glamorous.)
ANYWAYS, my shirt dried quickly (thank you extreme heat and total lack of humidity), but when Bouchra brought it back to me, Abdellatif was sitting in my lap and I didn't want to to move him just to put my shirt back on, so I tossed in on the counter and waited. It's not like anyone ever visits, right? Wrong. Around 6:00, right when the evening caretaker usually arrives, there was a knocking on the door, but instead of being Faiza, it was a woman I had never met before and her thirteen year old son. And there I am, sitting on the ground, topless. Oh, and did I mention it's the middle of Ramadan. It's not as bad as it could have been - I was wearing a cardigan, it just wasn't bottomed, so at least my shoulders and arms were covered, and the four year old on my lap was hiding my front. I clutched Abdellatif to my chested to hide my state of dress and hissed <i>sit</i> in his ear when he started to squirm. Luckily, mother and son weren't there long and they left without noticing, or at least commenting, on my state of dress. So yeah, the story of the time I was caught topless by a teenage boy.
ANYWAYS, my shirt dried quickly (thank you extreme heat and total lack of humidity), but when Bouchra brought it back to me, Abdellatif was sitting in my lap and I didn't want to to move him just to put my shirt back on, so I tossed in on the counter and waited. It's not like anyone ever visits, right? Wrong. Around 6:00, right when the evening caretaker usually arrives, there was a knocking on the door, but instead of being Faiza, it was a woman I had never met before and her thirteen year old son. And there I am, sitting on the ground, topless. Oh, and did I mention it's the middle of Ramadan. It's not as bad as it could have been - I was wearing a cardigan, it just wasn't bottomed, so at least my shoulders and arms were covered, and the four year old on my lap was hiding my front. I clutched Abdellatif to my chested to hide my state of dress and hissed <i>sit</i> in his ear when he started to squirm. Luckily, mother and son weren't there long and they left without noticing, or at least commenting, on my state of dress. So yeah, the story of the time I was caught topless by a teenage boy.
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