17

STRIKE—DAY 2

The next morning, I was still on the couch when my mom came in to wake me up for school.

“I’m not going.”

My mom looked around for help, but there was none. Nana was still asleep, and Dad was long gone. He usually left for work at like 5:45.

It was just the two of us, unless you count Maddie, who had wandered in to see what was going on.

“What do you mean, you’re not going?”

I rolled over and dug my head into the pillow. “I mean, I’m not going to school.”

“Are you sick?”

“Sure.”

“Let me get a thermometer.” As she left the room, I sat up and considered my options: Stop the madness and get up and go to school, stall and pretend to be sick, or take a stand.

I looked at Maddie, who was wagging her tail. She looked like she was ready for a little excitement in her life. And you know something? So was I.

When my mom came back with the thermometer, I said, “Actually, I’m not sick, Mom. I’m just not going to school.”

“And why not?” she asked, even though I think she knew the answer.

“Because I’m not getting up from the couch. Like I told you guys last night, I’m not getting up until you guys let me quit some of my stupid activities.”

“I’m going to call your father.”

“Fine. Go ahead.”

The lack of fear at the mention of my dad’s name made her stop in her tracks. She came back and sat down next to me on the couch. “What is up with you?”

“Nothing.” I sat up next to her. “It’s just that you always want Dad to do the dirty work, to be the bad guy and yell at me, or something. Well, he can’t make me change my mind this time, and neither can you. I’m staying on the couch. I’ll have Leo bring my homework, and I’ll keep up with my schoolwork, but I’m staying here. And that’s final.”

I waited to see what my mom would do. It was true that she was way too nice to ever get really angry at me, so she left all the unpleasant stuff to my dad (and then of course she got mad at him if he yelled at me too loudly). But this time I thought she might actually get mad at me, since I called her out on it.

Instead, she just sighed heavily, realizing she wasn’t going to change my mind.

“Well, I guess it’s okay, just for today. But what about when you’re hungry? How are you going to get food? And what about when you have to go to the bathroom?”

“I’ve already decided—there are some things I can get off the couch for,” I said. “Like, to get food from the kitchen, and to go to the bathroom, and to charge my phone. And Nana and I talked about doing some exercises to the TV, while standing next to the couch, but that’s it. Otherwise, I’m staying right here.” And I patted the cushion.

My mom smiled a little. “You’ve really thought this through, haven’t you?” I think she might even have been a little proud of me, in a way. “Okay, fine,” she added. “I’ll call the school. But we need to get all this figured out tonight when Dad gets home.”

Maddie somehow sensed that the situation was resolved—at least for now—and she jumped up onto the couch next to me.

“I know one family member who’s happy with your decision, anyway,” my mom said, petting Maddie.

“Two,” said Nana, plopping down on the other side.