to fight and defend, it also taught me how to land by distributing
the impact across my trunk. I leapt up, my hands in fists at my sides.
"Oh
sorry," she said, covering her mouth with a perfectly manicured hand.
"I thought you were ready."
"I
wasn't." I said it through gritted teeth. She'd just confirmed everything
I thought about these small town kids. I looked at the other girls, but only
Callie would look me in the eyes. There was some sympathy there, but why bother
to standing up for me when she was surrounded by her friends. "You ready
for that taekwondo lesson?"
I ran
at the girl who'd tossed me, grabbed her right wrist and twisted her arm behind
her back. With just a teeny amount of pressure applied to her bent wrist, she dropped
to her knees whimpering. I knew it hurt, but only a little, and I also knew it
wouldn't break anything, just tell her not to mess with me again.
"Tabitha
Smith!" Mrs. Jordan yelled across the gym as she returned from her office.
I released the girl, who was now crying, mascara running down her face. She
crumpled on the floor, holding her arm as if I'd just tried to tear it off.
Little kids in taekwondo learned that as one of their first self-defense
techniques. It was only meant to stop an attack so they could get away. Not
because it would actually hurt anyone.
I threw
my hands up. "Hey! She tossed me first. She tried to hurt me. I was just
defending myself."
Mrs. Jordan
shook her head. "I have to send you to the principal's office. And I'll
need to call your grandmother. I can't tolerate this kind of behavior in my
gym."
"But
I –"
Mrs.
Jordan held up a hand, cutting me off. I knew better than to argue. I'd already
lost.
"Kailey
is one of my best cheerleaders and a straight-A student. She'd never purposely
hurt anyone." Mrs. Jordan kept talking, but I couldn't hear a word of it.
So that's who she was. The girl Alex broke up with yesterday.
Over
Mrs. Jordan’s shoulders, I could see Kailey screw up her face, mocking the
teacher who had put so much trust in her. She fluttered her eyelashes toward
the ceiling and held her hands in a circle above her head. Angel, my ass.
Kailey was paying me back for taking her boyfriend. One I hadn't even
officially talked to for more than three seconds.
"Fine."
I grabbed my gym back and flung it over my shoulder. "I'll go there and
wait for Mimi."
As I
stalked out of the gym, I heard Kailey whisper loudly, "Aw, she calls her
grandma Mimi. What is she, three?"
Bitch. I mumbled it under my
breath, not needing to get in trouble for anything else. I didn't know how to
fit in in this place. It was worse than a jungle filled with malaria and
poisonous frogs. When the tears started to burn my eyelids, I pulled my hoodie
over my head, hiding inside, hoping this morning would just turn out to be a
bad dream.
Chapter Nine
My
first visit with the school therapist. What did the universe have against me?
After getting caught defending myself, and really how is that a bad thing, the
principal said I should spend some time with the school counselor. He said that
maybe I had some feelings of abandonment due to my mom just leaving me here.
So, yeah, she'd basically abandoned me. So what? I was better off here.
Everyone else here said her job was too dangerous this year. Just because I
thought she was holing up with my dad in some British love nest of fish and
chips didn't mean I wanted to beat up other girls.
They
came after me first. They tricked me and I showed them exactly what a black
belt could do. C'mon, we all know ignoring a bully doesn't do any good. You
have to stand up to them and that's what I did. There's no shame in that.
Certainly nothing that qualified sending me to see a therapist.
So
there I sat, slouched in a fluffy floral chair with Mimi silently next to me, glaring
at posters of smiley faces, kittens, and potbellied pigs. It was insulting and
embarrassing. For the most torturous thirty minutes of my life, I sat there
listening to
the impact across my trunk. I leapt up, my hands in fists at my sides.
"Oh
sorry," she said, covering her mouth with a perfectly manicured hand.
"I thought you were ready."
"I
wasn't." I said it through gritted teeth. She'd just confirmed everything
I thought about these small town kids. I looked at the other girls, but only
Callie would look me in the eyes. There was some sympathy there, but why bother
to standing up for me when she was surrounded by her friends. "You ready
for that taekwondo lesson?"
I ran
at the girl who'd tossed me, grabbed her right wrist and twisted her arm behind
her back. With just a teeny amount of pressure applied to her bent wrist, she dropped
to her knees whimpering. I knew it hurt, but only a little, and I also knew it
wouldn't break anything, just tell her not to mess with me again.
"Tabitha
Smith!" Mrs. Jordan yelled across the gym as she returned from her office.
I released the girl, who was now crying, mascara running down her face. She
crumpled on the floor, holding her arm as if I'd just tried to tear it off.
Little kids in taekwondo learned that as one of their first self-defense
techniques. It was only meant to stop an attack so they could get away. Not
because it would actually hurt anyone.
I threw
my hands up. "Hey! She tossed me first. She tried to hurt me. I was just
defending myself."
Mrs. Jordan
shook her head. "I have to send you to the principal's office. And I'll
need to call your grandmother. I can't tolerate this kind of behavior in my
gym."
"But
I –"
Mrs.
Jordan held up a hand, cutting me off. I knew better than to argue. I'd already
lost.
"Kailey
is one of my best cheerleaders and a straight-A student. She'd never purposely
hurt anyone." Mrs. Jordan kept talking, but I couldn't hear a word of it.
So that's who she was. The girl Alex broke up with yesterday.
Over
Mrs. Jordan’s shoulders, I could see Kailey screw up her face, mocking the
teacher who had put so much trust in her. She fluttered her eyelashes toward
the ceiling and held her hands in a circle above her head. Angel, my ass.
Kailey was paying me back for taking her boyfriend. One I hadn't even
officially talked to for more than three seconds.
"Fine."
I grabbed my gym back and flung it over my shoulder. "I'll go there and
wait for Mimi."
As I
stalked out of the gym, I heard Kailey whisper loudly, "Aw, she calls her
grandma Mimi. What is she, three?"
Bitch. I mumbled it under my
breath, not needing to get in trouble for anything else. I didn't know how to
fit in in this place. It was worse than a jungle filled with malaria and
poisonous frogs. When the tears started to burn my eyelids, I pulled my hoodie
over my head, hiding inside, hoping this morning would just turn out to be a
bad dream.
Chapter Nine
My
first visit with the school therapist. What did the universe have against me?
After getting caught defending myself, and really how is that a bad thing, the
principal said I should spend some time with the school counselor. He said that
maybe I had some feelings of abandonment due to my mom just leaving me here.
So, yeah, she'd basically abandoned me. So what? I was better off here.
Everyone else here said her job was too dangerous this year. Just because I
thought she was holing up with my dad in some British love nest of fish and
chips didn't mean I wanted to beat up other girls.
They
came after me first. They tricked me and I showed them exactly what a black
belt could do. C'mon, we all know ignoring a bully doesn't do any good. You
have to stand up to them and that's what I did. There's no shame in that.
Certainly nothing that qualified sending me to see a therapist.
So
there I sat, slouched in a fluffy floral chair with Mimi silently next to me, glaring
at posters of smiley faces, kittens, and potbellied pigs. It was insulting and
embarrassing. For the most torturous thirty minutes of my life, I sat there
listening to
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