Is there anyone in life that shapes the very foundation of our existence more than the mother figure? Not always biological, but the one tasked with caring for you during the outset of life. For better or worse, your mother has a lot of sway in how you turned out. Some ways are as obvious as the nose on your face, and some that are a bit more... subtle. Beneath the surface.

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"We're home."

Mom's voice echoes through the stillness of the foyer as we step inside. Her voice carries the tired weight of someone that's been carefully planning what she's been going to say the entire quiet car ride here. An uneasy stillness hangs between us. Watching her set her purse and keys down on the table, a familiar tingling in my spine puts me on edge. To my surprise, she turns to me and smiles.

"So? What was it this time? I know what the principal said but I wanna hear it in your words."

I swallow hard, feeling myself shrink under her gaze. The words begin flowing.

"Daniel and I were just minding our own business in Geography and started hearing some other boys laughing and pointing at me. It was Ethan and his dumb friends. They were the ones I was telling you about the other day, remember? The ones that made fun of my teeth. I just... got so mad. I know they were talking about me! So, I walked up to him after class and told him if he had something he wanted to say he should say it to my face! Then he just laughed and tried to shrug it off like it's no big deal! He called me crazy and... and."

Pausing to take a breath, I realized my eyes had been closed this entire time. Opening them, I realize that mom's a little bit closer than before. She's kneeling down, with an impartial expression on her face. She notices my pause, raising an eyebrow.

"And?"

"He said that I should go build a dam."

Mom isn't laughing. She's doing a very good job of not laughing. But I still see her eye twitch. I've had a gap in my front teeth since I was born. It's not even that big, but just big enough that a girl in my class started calling me beaver because of how they stick out. I remember telling big sis about it and she got really mad and told me she'd take care of it. I don't know what she did, but the girl definitely didn't bring it up again. Though that didn't stop the others from running with it. Boys like Ethan.

"So, you..." Mom beckons me to continue.

The words catch in my throat. Almost as if the events earlier today didn't happen and would only come true if I continued talking. But there's no point, we both know how this story ends.

"So, I... I... beat the crap out of him!" I finish. The words tumble out of me, as mom's eyes narrow.

It felt good jumping on him in front of his dumb friends. They didn't even bother to help until his nose got all bloody. Next thing I know the school resource officer is yanking me off of him and everyone's shouting. The trip to the principal's office and listening to him call my mom felt like a dream.

Mom sighs and pinches the bridge of her nose. Standing back up, her shadow envelops me.

"Derek, baby. I know it isn't fun to be called names but that isn't an excuse to go around pummeling people."

"But he started it! He shouldn't—"

Raising her voice, mom takes another step towards me. "No, YOU started it, sweetie. You told me in your own words that you approached him. Am I wrong?"

Realizing the real reason that she'd got me to explain the story, I try to formulate a counter argument. Ethan was pointing at me, right? But recalling seeing the blood on my hand from wailing on his face, the argument dies in my throat.

"Y-yes. But I—"

Mom presses her finger to my lips.

"No butts. Not yet anyway."

(TO BE CONTINUED IN PART 2)

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