“You’re putting me in a very difficult position.”
I looked at Tessa’s backpack.
“I understand.”
“If you leave us hanging tonight, we’re going to have a serious conversation tomorrow.”
My stomach twisted.
But for once, I didn’t change my answer.
“Okay.”
“Okay?”
“I still can’t come.”
I hung up before I lost my nerve.
At 5:52, I walked into the school auditorium.
The lights were already dimming.
I slipped into a seat near the back and searched the stage.
There she was.
Tessa stood in the second row wearing a white choir blouse.
Without the beanie, her new haircut looked even shorter under the stage lights.
But that wasn’t what caught my attention.
It was the girl beside her.
June Alvarez.
I knew June’s name.
Tessa had mentioned her plenty of times.
They had become friends earlier that year.
June’s hair had always been long and dark.
Now it was cropped almost exactly like Tessa’s.
My heartbeat slowed.
Something was wrong.
After the first song, the choir director moved toward the microphone.
“As many of you know, before each performance, a few students are invited to recognize someone who made a difference to them this semester.”
Tessa stepped forward.
I sat straighter.
Her hands were shaking.
She looked smaller than usual standing alone under the bright lights.
“My friend June didn’t want me to say anything,” she began.
June immediately covered her face.
A few people laughed softly, but Tessa didn’t.
“Some girls at school have been bothering her for a while.”
The room became quiet.
I felt my fingers close around the note inside my purse.
Tessa continued.
“Last week, they put gum in her hair.”
My stomach dropped.
“A lot of it.”
I looked at June.
Her eyes were fixed on the floor.
“They pushed it really deep near the top, so it couldn’t just be washed out.”
A murmur moved through the parents.
“June called me from the bathroom because she didn’t want to call her mom yet. She was crying.”
Tessa swallowed.
“I called my grandma.”
Nadine.
I turned and spotted her three rows ahead of me.
She didn’t look back.
“Grandma came to get us,” Tessa continued. “She took June to a salon. The stylist tried for a long time, but she finally said the only way to fix it was to cut most of her hair off.”
June was crying now.
So was I.
Tessa reached for June’s hand.
“June kept saying everyone was going to laugh when she came back to school.”
Her voice cracked.
“So I asked the stylist to cut mine too.”
My hand flew to my mouth.
Beside her, June shook her head and started crying harder.
Tessa gave a nervous little smile.
“I’ve had long hair almost my whole life. I really loved it.”
The auditorium was completely silent.
“But I love my friend more.”
That was when I broke.
Not quietly.
I pressed my fist against my lips because a sob had escaped before I could stop it.
Everything I had believed for the past twenty-four hours fell apart.
No one had forced my daughter to cut her hair.
She had given it up so a frightened twelve-year-old girl wouldn’t have to walk into school alone.
Tessa continued.
“Grandma told me it had to be my choice. She asked me three times if I was sure.”
