I went to my room.
My parents both breathed a sigh of relief.
Dad went to the living room to comfort Mom,
then came to my room to comfort me.
“Mia,” he said gently. “You know your mom
and Linda have been friends for a long time.
It’s hard for her to let go. But she loves you
more than anything. Please don’t be mad at
her.”
“I said, if Mom likes them, she can play with
them,” I repeated. “I don’t like them. I’ll stay
away from them. Just don’t make me play
with Olivia, and I won’t be mad.”
Dad smiled, relieved. He ruffled my hair. “My
Mia,” he said. “You’re such a sweet,
understanding girl. I’ll talk to your mom.
وو
After that fight on Friday, my mom didn’t
mention Linda or Olivia all weekend. It was a
nice, peaceful break.
L
It lasted until Monday.
Olivia and I went to the same preschool. And
because our moms had enrolled us together,
we were in the same class.
Seriously, what were the odds?
The second Olivia got to class, she marched
right up to me. “Ms. Evans praised me!” she
announced. “She said I’m smart and I’m
going to be a great pianist. Mia Thompson,
this time, I’m going to beat you!”
In my past life, after we both started piano
lessons, Olivia used to seek me out like this,
but back then, it was to insult me, and Ms.
Evans, because Ms. Evans was always
praising me. I even tried to reason with her.
This time, I didn’t say a word. I grabbed my
picture book and whacked her with it.
Since we were in the classroom, the teacher
stopped me after three hits.
But little kid skin is thin. I’d already made
く
Olivia cry, and her face was bright red.
The teacher saw I was the one who started it,
so she scolded me. “Mia! Didn’t I teach you
that hitting is wrong?”
“She started it!” I yelled back.
“That doesn’t mean you can hit her.” “If I don’t hit her, she’ll just do it again!”
The teacher paused, flustered. “Well, you
could tell me. I would talk to Olivia. You can’t
just hit people, okay?”
“Well, now you know! Tell her to stay away
from me! If she bothers me again, I’ll hit her
again!”
The teacher was speechless.
Olivia glared at me. “I’m telling my mom!”
she shrieked. “She’ll spank you!”
“Go ahead! Tell her! See if she does!” I
retorted. I pretended to be tough, but I let my
voice wobble a little. “You started it! You
called me names before, too! Why is everyone
く
on your side? I wouldn’t have hit you if your
hadn’t bothered me!”
The teacher saw I was about to cry. Not
wanting to disrupt the other kids, she quickly
took us to the office and called our moms.
Linda arrived first, screeching the second she
walked in. “Mia Thompson! You hit my Olivia
again?! I’m going to teach you a lesson!”
The teacher frowned, clearly used to dealing
with difficult parents. She blocked Linda from
getting to me and told her to calm down.
I stood my ground, hands on my hips. “Go
ahead! Hit me! The police will arrest you!”
Right then, my mom rushed in.
Linda turned on her. “Sarah! Look at the
wonderful daughter you raised! She just loves
hitting my Olivia, doesn’t she?”
My mom looked mortified. She apologized profusely, then turned to me. “Mia! What’s
going on? I told you hitting is wrong!”
く
“She started it!” I insisted. “She wouldn’t
leave me alone!”
Linda was even angrier. “You think that gives.
you the right to hit people?”
I pointed at her. “You’re one to talk! You
know I don’t like your daughter, but you still
let her bother me!”
“You…”
My mom snapped. “Mia Thompson! That’s no
way to talk to Ms. Linda!”
I pointed back at my mom. “I told you, you
can play with them if you like them! I don’t
like them. Tell them to stay away from me!”
My mom lost it. She swatted my bottom.
I burst into tears, wailing at the top of my
lungs. Everyone in the office covered their
ears. Olivia looked at me with a mixture of
disgust and annoyance.
Nothing my mom did could stop my crying. I
clung to a pillar in the office, refusing to
く
move. Finally, she gave up and called my dad.
He raced over to the preschool. As soon as I
saw him, my crying subsided. But I’d been.
wailing so loud for so long that my voice was
hoarse. Dad saw how upset I was and
immediately took my side.
“I know my daughter!” he said firmly. “She
wouldn’t do this unless she was provoked!
She wouldn’t cry like this! Ask the other kids
in her class! Has she ever hit any of them? If
your daughter hadn’t started it, my daughter
wouldn’t have reacted!”
He’d been running a business for a few years,
and it showed. His anger filled the room,
silencing everyone.
Dad gave Linda and Olivia a final warning,
then picked me up, took my mom’s hand, and
left.
