This Little Girl Forgot She Snuck Her Pet To School In Her Sippy Cup, And The Story Of How She Got Caught Red-Handed Is Hilarious

It may not look like it, but an adorable 3-year-old named Peyton is up to something fishy in this photo...

Here's the hilarious story — shared by Peyton's relative Connor Hughes — of how she snuck her pet fish into preschool:

Basically, Peyton took her pet fish to school in a sippy cup...

...and she only got caught because she forgot the fish was in her cup and DRANK THE FISH WATER, drawing the attention of her teacher, who noticed something (the fish) in her cup! ????????

BuzzFeed spoke to Peyton's mom, Lauren, to learn more about her shenanigans.

Peyton's fish, named Mermaid, became a member of their family in October after Peyton was infatuated with the fish during a trip to Petco. "Picking out the right one was a huge decision for her and, after a long 15 minutes, she finally made her choice," said Lauren.

However, a little over a week ago, Lauren received a call from Peyton's preschool program director. "I was absolutely not prepared to pick up the phone and hear, 'Mrs. Scanlan, did you happen to know that Peyton brought her Beta fish to school today in her sippy cup?!' I just replied with, 'Um, no Ms. Cheryl, I did NOT know that she smuggled her fish this morning in her sippy cup,'" laughed Lauren.

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Lauren said she was in shock and mortified, but she and the program director couldn't help but crack up. "I did ask, 'Please tell me something like this has happened before at the school.'" And her reply was, 'No, this is a first for our school!'"

So, what was Peyton's reason for taking Mermaid to school? Simply because she "loves her so much." Lauren said, "I couldn't even be mad at her. I opened the sippy cup lid and saw that she even put fish food in the cup! She was a good and responsible pet owner — pretty impressive for a 3-year-old to fill her cup with water, scoop her fish out of the tank, put it in the sippy cup, add food, close the lid, and put it in her backpack...all within a max of two minutes while I ran upstairs to get her clothes. She is truly wise beyond her years!"

Since the incident, Lauren has had a sit-down talk with Peyton about what she can and cannot bring to school. But, for now, she still checks to make sure all pets are accounted for before Peyton goes to school!

Oh, and if you're wondering if Mermaid is still alive, she is! Except now she has a tank with a lid that is secured by duct tape. You have seen more than most Beta fish, Mermaid. Cheers to a long, happy life!