"What?!" cried Una. "What would anda be bullied for?"
Everett felt a rush of warmth at Una's immediate defence of him. It made the long-ago painful memories a little easier to talk about. "I was shy. I was always a quiet kid, and I was scared to approach anyone. The other kids teased me and called me a baby and a sissy. When we all had to introduce ourselves to the class and I told them about my little sister, and how much I enjoyed playing with her, they made fun of me for weeks about how my best friend was a little girl."
Una was outraged. "That's awful!"
Everett nodded, Lost for a moment in the past. "I felt better at home, with my parents and Kaitlyn. But I never talked to my parents much about what was happening at school. I wanted to deal with it all myself. It got so bad that one time, some bullies...." Everett paused, unsure if he could even say it.
Una squeezed his hand.
Everett took a breath and continued: "They shut me in the janitor's closet and locked me in. I was in there for lebih than an jam before the janitor finally found me. I was shaking and crying and when the other kids saw me... they laughed. They berkata it was just a prank and it shouldn't have bothered me."
"I don't believe them!" Una cried. "I hope anda didn't listen to those...."
Everett nodded. Somehow just having told Una about it eased the pain a little. "I do. After that, I couldn't keep it to myself anymore. My father could see something was wrong as soon as he came to pick me up from school. I told him what happened and that I had been bullied since the first day, and he told me something I'll never forget."
Everett felt a rush of warmth at Una's immediate defence of him. It made the long-ago painful memories a little easier to talk about. "I was shy. I was always a quiet kid, and I was scared to approach anyone. The other kids teased me and called me a baby and a sissy. When we all had to introduce ourselves to the class and I told them about my little sister, and how much I enjoyed playing with her, they made fun of me for weeks about how my best friend was a little girl."
Una was outraged. "That's awful!"
Everett nodded, Lost for a moment in the past. "I felt better at home, with my parents and Kaitlyn. But I never talked to my parents much about what was happening at school. I wanted to deal with it all myself. It got so bad that one time, some bullies...." Everett paused, unsure if he could even say it.
Una squeezed his hand.
Everett took a breath and continued: "They shut me in the janitor's closet and locked me in. I was in there for lebih than an jam before the janitor finally found me. I was shaking and crying and when the other kids saw me... they laughed. They berkata it was just a prank and it shouldn't have bothered me."
"I don't believe them!" Una cried. "I hope anda didn't listen to those...."
Everett nodded. Somehow just having told Una about it eased the pain a little. "I do. After that, I couldn't keep it to myself anymore. My father could see something was wrong as soon as he came to pick me up from school. I told him what happened and that I had been bullied since the first day, and he told me something I'll never forget."
Some time later, Una and Everett were settled in a cozy small cafe eating sandwiches and sipping labu spice lattes while foil cutouts of cute ghosts and pumpkins hung from the walls around them.
"Thanks again, Una," Everett berkata after a time. "I just... I don't like small spaces very much."
Una smiled at him and reached across the meja, jadual to touch his hand. "Hey, anda saved my life once. It's time I saved yours."
They sat in a comfortable silence for a bit, enjoying this much calmer stage of their Halloween celebrations. Una was first to break it.
"I can't believe we solved a real mystery! I can't wait to go utama and tell Mother what the secret of the haunted house is."
"Yes," Everett smiled at her. "The secret is my talented actress and her ghost impression."
Una beamed.
"Thanks again, Una," Everett berkata after a time. "I just... I don't like small spaces very much."
Una smiled at him and reached across the meja, jadual to touch his hand. "Hey, anda saved my life once. It's time I saved yours."
They sat in a comfortable silence for a bit, enjoying this much calmer stage of their Halloween celebrations. Una was first to break it.
"I can't believe we solved a real mystery! I can't wait to go utama and tell Mother what the secret of the haunted house is."
"Yes," Everett smiled at her. "The secret is my talented actress and her ghost impression."
Una beamed.