Dance, Belle, Dance!. Beth Huffman
in there very long. I didn’t know if that was good news or bad news for me. When she walked out smiling like she’d won, I was pretty sure how things were going to end. I didn’t let on that it bothered me.
“Have a nice day, Brooklyn. It’s been fun spending time with you. We should do it again.”
When my name was called, Mrs. Basinger didn’t waste any time in asking questions. “Macey, you’re a leader in your class. Why did you do this? Fortunately, Brooklyn wasn’t hurt but she could have been. Tell me what happened and what you were thinking.”
For a few seconds, my mind went blank. The more I stared at the pale green tile, the dizzier I felt. I took a deep breath and said, “Miss Rex asked us to share something about ourselves with everyone. Kylie is my best friend and she stuttered when she gave her answer. She does that when she’s nervous. I could see Brooklyn making fun of her but Miss Rex couldn’t. So I was already mad when we got to gym class. Everybody knows she’s a bully and she always gets away with it. Then my sister saw me in the gym and hugged me. Brooklyn made fun of her. She said that Belle and Kylie are losers and act weird. That’s why I blew up.”
“Are you sorry at all for what you did?”
“Not really.”
“Do you think you should apologize to Brooklyn?”
“No.”
“Would you do things differently if you had the chance?”
“Not really.”
“Then you’ll need to miss recess for an entire week, starting this afternoon.”
“Okay.”
“Macey, I’m sorry that she said hurtful things. That was wrong. What bothers me is that you don’t seem worried about your actions.”
“The only thing I’m worried about is disappointing Miss Rex. I’m afraid she’ll think I’m a troublemaker and I’m not.”
“Then go ahead and return to class.”
I didn’t hurry back to my room. I had to stop and go to the restroom first. When I was washing my hands, I looked in the mirror and saw a few tears in my eyes. I quickly wiped them away. I didn’t want anyone to see me crying, especially Brooklyn. When I got to the room, I stood around the corner to hear what Miss Rex was saying. I was so relieved when she said, “Let’s line up for lunch now.” It gave me a chance to walk to my desk without drawing a lot of attention. When it was time for my row to get in line, I followed along.
As soon as Kylie and I started eating, she wanted to hear about everything. I said my stomach was too upset and I’d tell her on the bus. That didn’t satisfy her. “Macey, I know you’re in trouble because you stood up for me against Brooklyn. She made fun of my stuttering last year. I cried a lot at first but now I try to stay away from her. Just walk away.”
“I can’t, Kylie. She has no right to hurt your feelings. She shouldn’t be allowed to say terrible things about you and Belle and get by with it. I don’t even care about missing recess for a week. It’s worth it.”
“What are you going to say when you get home and your parents ask how your day went?”
“I think I’ll say that I learned where the principal’s office is.”
She couldn’t keep a straight face and neither could I. So we did what we always do. We cracked up laughing.
The Talk
I wasn’t sure what to do when we went back to class and Miss Rex said it was time for recess. I didn’t know if I should stay in my seat or go straight to the principal’s office. When she dismissed everyone in my row, she stood right beside my desk. I knew then that I shouldn’t stand up.
Some teachers make it worse for kids who are already in trouble. They might say, “Everyone but Macey can go out for recess.” Miss Rex isn’t like that. She waited until everyone was gone. Then she handed me a tissue when she saw the tears that were dripping off my chin.
“Take a deep breath. I’m not going to scold you. I’m going with you to Mrs. Basinger’s office. You and I are going to talk privately about the problem with Brooklyn.”
She held my hand after I stood up. That made me feel a lot better. When we started up the steps, I said, “Miss Rex, my legs felt heavy when I was going up these this morning. Now they feel a lot better.” She didn’t say a word. I figured that meant I should keep my mouth shut the rest of the way.
Since Mrs. Basinger wasn’t in her office, I was hoping Miss Rex would say we’d go back to her room to talk. Instead, we went into a small room that had one desk and one chair. Even with the light on, the room seemed dark because there weren’t any windows. It felt a little creepy.
“Macey, sit down. I want you to listen very carefully to everything I say. I also want you to feel comfortable in telling me what you’re thinking. I want to know why you lost your temper and pushed Brooklyn so hard.”
“Kylie stutters when she gets nervous. She can’t help it. Brooklyn teased her all the time last year when we were at recess. She called her Stutter Girl. She always made sure that the recess monitor didn’t hear her. She makes fun of kids all the time. She always gets by with it and that’s not fair.”
“A lot of things in life don’t seem fair. What matters is how you handle tough situations. Let me ask you this. Did you see Brooklyn make fun of Kylie in class this morning?”
“Yes.”
“When she stood up to talk, I noticed your extra loud coughing. You did that on purpose, didn’t you?”
“Yes. I’m fed up with her.”
“So tell me what happened after I walked all of you to gym class.”
“My sister is probably the wildest kindergarten kid that Mrs. Heldman has ever had. Mom and Dad are constantly telling her to calm down but it really doesn’t help. When she saw me in the gym, she ran over and hugged me.”
“Then what happened?”
“Belle finally let go of me when Miss Richmond told her it was time for lunch. When they were walking to the other end of the gym, Brooklyn acted like a big snob and said how weird Belle was. Then she said that Belle and Kylie are losers. That’s when I shoved her. I’m sorry if you’re disappointed in me but what was I supposed to do?”
“First of all, I’m not disappointed in you. I’m actually proud of you for defending Kylie and Belle. I just don’t like the way you went about it. Bullies want attention. When you shoved her, she got that attention she wanted. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
“I understand but it still isn’t fair. She didn’t get in trouble at all.”
“You made your mistake by doing something that could have physically hurt her. The best way to defeat a bully is to ignore them. She wanted to get a reaction from you and she did. You shouldn’t have responded at all.”
“What good would that have done?”
“It would have taken away her power.”
“I need some more suggestions, Miss Rex. I really don’t think I can walk away from her when she says horrible things about Belle and Kylie.”
“Then tell a teacher or the guidance counselor. We’re trained in dealing with this. Nothing makes us madder than bullies.”
“Then why doesn’t she have to miss recess?”
“Don’t worry about her. I need for you to give me your word that you’ll use better judgment from now on. Do you promise?”
“I promise.”
“Good. I have high hopes for you. Don’t let me down.”
“I won’t.”
“Then