“Zora, come down here now!” Mother bellowed up to me, the gloomy walls echoing with the hollow sound of her voice. 

“Coming, Mother!” I replied quickly, turning my shy head towards the glowing, glass mirror for the last time before I returned it to its place beneath my creaky, tired bed. It rested along with the undiscovered, gloomy junk Mother shoved under it, a diamond among coal. Grandma gave it to me the day before she passed, and trashing it seemed like an injustice to her memory. 

“Let’s go, slowpoke! Someday you’ll encounter a person, less kind than me, who won’t allow for this kind of laziness. You’re lucky I didn’t send you off to the Council when you were a baby, and let them whip you into obedience like their other slaves. They tell babcontrols to bear children that are specifically obedient and hardworking.” Mother’s shallow voice pervaded my grey room, filling up every dusty corner and allowing for no breath of air. 

“I’m coming!” My feet scraped against the rough, overworked panels of wood as I threw the door open, letting in a small, hopeful ray of sunshine.

 As my rose-colored socks lifted from the final step, I noticed the letter Mother held in her pale, boney hand. Red and blue ribbons were strung around the pale pink envelope. Graceful neat handwriting took center stage, exclaiming ‘You Are Invited!’.  

“Velerie Mendez?” Mother questioned, narrowing her murky, grey eyes as she held the letter to the ray of sunshine, the one source of light in the room. A whiff of her cinnamon perfume clogged my nostrils, forcing me to let out a loud cough. “Why would a pretty girl want to invite such a hideous, timid girl like you? Why would anyone write to you?”

“I don’t know, Mother,” I lied innocently, quivering head held low, my frizzy brown hair hid my face. I couldn’t tell Mother I had a friend; I would be grounded forever! 

“We told the babcontrols to make you ugly and shy for a reason. Having multiple children alive at the same time is illegal,” she reminded me, her hollow voice rising and falling with tapping of her size nine, white shoes. Her words stung my heart, quickly spreading into every nook and cranny of my slim body. 

“I know that, you’ve told me many times,” I muttered under my breath. 

 “If you would just think about getting the shot, this wouldn’t be happening. You’d be in a better place, and your kind, caring mother could try again to make a strong male. That way I would be a powerful influence in court. Don’t you want that for your mother?” she asked, a crooked smile making a guest appearance on her pink, chapped lips.

***

The tired, cobalt door slammed itself against my belongings, trapping them inside the dungeon of dark, gloomy doom. The mixed sound of a dying cow and a bell were blasted into

   the empty, sweaty hallway as I forced my weak legs to run to room 212. 

Looking through the foggy window of the old, blue door, I searched for an empty spot. There was one just a few seats away from Valerie, which was conveniently close to the door. Score! Valerie’s hand shot up to cover her plump, pink lips curled into a smile, as Rose Thompson whispered something in her ear. Looks like no one realized I was gone. Although, I should have expected that. Even the teachers don’t notice when I raise my hand.

 I clutched my heavy binders, took a long, deep breath, wiped my sweaty hands on my purple striped shirt, grabbed the handle, twisted then pulled. 

The luxury of quiet was soon stolen away as the cacophony of kids giggling, chatting, and squeaking chairs raided my eardrums. Again, I forced my feeble, flimsy legs to carry me over and into my unstable, wooden seat. 

“Hey, Zora! Where were you? I was getting worried you wouldn’t come,” Valerie whispered in my ear, my body leaping back in response. I looked away from her perfectly plucked eyebrows and glowing hair, as a smile curved onto my lips. Someone did notice I was gone. 

“Hey, Frizz Head, can you show me how to look so ugly? I hear the guys find it desirable,” Caroline asked, wiggling her thick, black eyebrows with a smirk, receiving a high five from Rose and Shannon. I slouched down into my dirty old seat. 

“Zora, you can’t let them get to you. My mom likes to say, ‘Standing up for yourself can only elevate you. It never hinders.’ For all you know, she could be jealous of your luscious locks,” Valerie reassured, glancing over at their preoccupied faces. 

“Frizz Head, do you think you could catch a ball in that hair?” Henry asked with a grin, slamming Tommy’s hand down on the desk with a whoop of victory.

“Come on, Zora, tell them to back off,” Valerie encouraged, squeezing my sweaty hand.

“I can’t. They might laugh at me, or do something...worse. I can’t handle that pressure and embarrassment,” I groaned, sparing a quick glace at their preoccupied, smirking faces.

“Why are you talking to ‘Frizz Head’, Val? Is your mom trying to get you more votes for when you run for prez? Or is this your charity case?” Rose asked Valerie quietly, her head tilted at 90 degrees, blocking her face from my view, although I could still hear her. Mother’s words echoed in my head, her low, disapproving tone striking home. “Why would anyone write to you?” 

“No, I would never use Zora to get more supporters. Is it bad to be friends with someone kind? Just because she’s teased doesn’t mean I can’t be friends with her,” she challenged, expanding her arms out wide with raised eyebrows. I sent Valerie a small, thankful smile.

“Hey, maybe I could come over after school today and convince your mom to stop being so hard on you,” she proposed, earning a short doubtful, laugh from me. 

“I can’t, my mother says I’m not supposed to interact with superiors, including you. Bringing a friend home would just get me in huge trouble,” I explained, lowering my head down to my beaten-up blue and gold sneakers Dad got me three years ago. What if Mother hurt her? What if she told everyone about my ugly room, and that I didn’t live in a mansion like everyone believed. No one wanted to be friends with a liar. 

“You can’t wait forever, cowering under a rock, while waiting for your mother to start caring for you. Trust me, a nice girl like you must have an accommodating mom. ” she assured me, resting a hand on my tense shoulder with a small, asymmetrical smile. 

Knowing a lost case when I saw one, I sighed, “Fine. But just for a little bit.” My head was spinning so much that I didn’t even hear the bell ring.

***

“Mother, I’m home.” I yelled, steading my fingers as I pushed open the rusty, old door. 

“Good. Have you thought about getting the shot? You know registration closes on Thursday. The next opportunity is in five years,” Mother pressed, her grey eyes seemed to dig down into my soul, ripping up any thought of hope. 

“No Mother, and I brought a… f-friend home.” I stuttered, eyes locked on the splintery floor.

“Hi Mrs. Salantathy, I’m Valerie Mendez. I was hoping you would let Zora come to my party. She is so nice, I would hate to leave her out,” Valerie cooed, eyes enlarging. Her sweet face was impossible to say no to. But she didn’t know what she had just gotten herself into.

“Valerie, hmm. Yes, I do recall seeing your letter. You see, Miss Mendez, I tried to tell my daughter to stay away from girls like you because she might convince herself that she belongs in this terrible world, but clearly she won’t listen to her mother. You must be a fool to care about someone like her, and let her ruin your campaign,” Mother stated coldly, hand tucked away in the back pocket of her jeans. 

The light in the room seemed to die slowly as her bitter voice slowly broke apart my heart, piece by piece. Mother’s lip curled in delight as she drank up my growing fury. Valerie gave me a nod of encouragement, including a small smile, as she discreetly backed away towards the door. 

I was accustomed to Mother’s disapproval, but to insult my friend? Well, she took it too far this time. “How dare you talk about Valerie that way! She’ll be the best president ever! I know you wanted a boy, and for me to get the shot, but this is my life. You got a girl, now deal with it. Can’t you just support me like a kind, caring mother would?  The whole reason Dad left was because you were such a terrible person!” I screeched, fists balled up at my sides, my fingers dug into my palms leaving little marks as I tried not to launch myself onto mother. 

Her face scrunched up, eyebrows tilted toward her long, pointy nose. Without even glancing at Valerie’s horrified face, she exploded. “Don’t you dare talk that way about Robert. Young lady, you have just made your sad life a lot worse. I now forbid you from talking to any other child or adult, besides me, for the next seven weeks. And no going to Miss Mendez’s party!” She raged, throwing her hands up into the air. My dad was the water to her fire, but now that he left, she was nothing but an open flame. 

“But...” I stuttered, looking at Valerie’s sympathetic face for any sort of help, but her innocent eyes were preoccupied, staring down the wooden planks on the floor.

“No buts, young lady, now up to your room before your punishment gets any worse. And as for you Miss Mendez, you will stay away from my daughter. You will also leave this house at once or I’ll inform your mother you were here,” Mother snapped at Valerie’s pale, innocent face. 

“Yes ma’am.” Her perfect body quivering as she shot me one last small, sorrowful smile. She then sprinted out the door, and she was gone before I had blinked.

“Up! Now Zora! Up!” Mother snarled at me, pointing her slim fingers at the small, sad staircase. 

“I will, in a minute.” I took long, slow, mocking strides towards the stairs. For the first time since dad left, my head was held high, and a strong smile was prominently displayed on my face.