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“Yes, he gets it from me,” his dad chuckled and his mom rolled her eyes.
“Excuse him, he’d take credit for anything,” she replied.
His dad only winked at them. I watched them all talk without me. And I saw it. They, his parents, looked like my parents…happy. I didn’t understand. My parents told me to never be jealous of people because they had stuff we didn’t because they weren’t really happy. But they were. They had everything and were happy.
“Please enjoy the party, excuse us.” His parents walked arm in arm to their other son, who was standing victorious on top of the rock-climbing wall. He even did a weird dance, making Ethan shake his head and smile.
“Your smile is nice.” I didn’t mean to say that out loud and I didn’t even say it loudly, but he heard me, and his eyes were on me again.
He walked past us and maybe if I wasn’t so focused on him, I wouldn’t have heard him. But I did. As he brushed past me, he said, “I don’t want a compliment from you, ugly mouse.”
I stared wide-eyed as he left, my fist balled. I really wanted to hit him. Stupid dumbhead!
“Mom, can we go?” She pinched my arm hard. I kept my head down and kept quiet again.
“Can we?” Dad asked on a sigh.
“Just a few more minutes. We can’t leave after just saying hello to them,”
I frowned, looking around. “Can I go to the bathroom?”
Afraid she’d pinch me again, I broke out of her grasp and scooted further away.
“Wait—”
“Come back quickly and don’t go wandering, Calliope,” my dad said giving my mom a look. She didn’t say anything to me, just set a hard glare on me.
She’d be mad later. I turned and kept walking, passing by the rock-climbing wall when I heard of some of the ladies talking amongst themselves.
“Who are the Affinis?”
“Nobodies who started a small fashion house. But I hear it’s doing well.”
“You know the Callahans; they want even the smallest fish to be in their pond.”
“Oh my, look her dress. Are you sure they work in fashion?”
They laughed and I wasn’t sure what to do. They just kept laughing at my mom. My mom wasn’t the best mommy in the world, but she was still my mommy. I looked around, but I couldn’t find anything…except a maid preparing paint for the Dona’s art table.
“Do you need help?” I asked her, already lifting the tray.
“No, it’s all right, I have it.”
I pouted, holding on to the tray. “Please. Everyone knows Dona, and I want to say happy birthday, but I don’t think I can just walk over there…so m
any people are around.”
I watched as her gaze swept from the table then to me, a small smile on her face. “Okay, but be careful.”
“Thank you!” I waited for her to get the rest of her stuff, but she was going so slow. Finally, she started toward the table and I followed, slowly drifting further and further away from her and closer and closer to the ladies.
One.
Two.
“Don’t even try it.” I heard soft voice over me. I looked up to see Ethan’s mom. Staring at me with piercing brown eyes, she bent down and tried to take the tray from my hands, but I didn’t want to let go. She whispered so only I could hear her, “I don’t know exactly what they said to make you angry. But, I can guess it was about your mother, it’s what women like them do. I applaud you for trying to defend her. But this is my children’s party. I will not let you make a scene on their day because you are upset.”
“They laughed at her,” I whispered back angrily. “They laughed at my mom.”
