The Truce

Chapter 1

The trouble all started when I had my tonsils out, in the third grade.

I didn't want to do it. Hospitals smelled funny and people died there. But Mom said I didn't have a choice, and my throat hurt too much to argue. At least I'd get a few weeks away from school. I figured almost anything was worth that.

Boy, was I wrong.

School work wasn't so bad. I actually liked some of it, but I hated being stuck in class all day long when I could be doing more interesting things. The only really good part about going to school was getting to spend the whole day with Sebastian. His family lived next door to mine and we'd been best friends since we were born. We did everything together. Sometimes even tagging along on each other's family vacations. We'd ride to school together and play together afterward. We went in and out of each other's houses like they were our own, and our parents would ask where the other one was if we ever appeared alone. We both thought anything mushy was disgusting, but we planned to be together forever, one way or another.

Despite my aversion to hospitals, the whole thing was kind of fun. Aside from the pain, of course. But the nurses all made it like an adventure and they'd bring me anything I wanted. Mom didn't even object, which she normally did when grown ups tried to give me things. And when I got home, she brought me almost anything I wanted too. Sebastian came over every day after school like always, and even though I wasn't allowed to do very much for the first few days, we had just as much fun as usual. I decided that staying home all day would be great if Mom would only let me keep it up.

Even though I was enjoying not having to go to school, when the last day of my recovery arrived, I was excited. Sebastian kept asking when I'd be able to return, but it was up to the doctor, so I hadn't known. But today, Mom said she was sure that the doctor would give me the all clear at my appointment in the morning. Which would mean I'd probably get to school just before lunch time. I couldn't wait to see Sebastian and tell him.

Natalie came to see me first though. She lived a few blocks away and had come to visit a few times, so it wasn't that surprising when she showed up. But she didn't seem very happy today. Judging by her expression, something had really upset her.

"Okay, what's wrong?" I asked after several minutes of Natalie doing a bad job of acting like everything was fine and talking about things I knew she didn't really care about.

She glanced uneasily at my closed bedroom door and then at me. "I guess I should hurry up before he gets here."

Instinctively, I knew she meant Sebastian, but I couldn't imagine why she'd use that tone when she talked about him. They weren't best friends the way he and I were, but they usually got along. Just now, it seemed like she almost hated him. Automatically, I wanted to defend him against whatever she was going to say, but Natalie didn't make things up. She was one of the nicest kids at school and she usually found something good to say about everyone.

I could tell she didn't want to continue, but after an awkward minute she said, "Sebastian has been saying some things about you. They weren't very nice."

"That's...." I shook my head, totally baffled. Sebastian was my best friend in the world. He always stood up for me. He wouldn't say mean things about me behind my back. "What?"

She frowned, seeming no less uncomfortable. "Billy and Zack and some of the other boys were teasing him about you guys being boyfriend and girlfriend. At first, he just said it wasn't true and told them to shut up, but they kept teasing him and he said..." She hesitated. "Other things."

I watched her skeptically. "What kind of things?"

Natalie sighed. "Things like how he hates girls and that he just felt sorry for you. That he let you follow him around because his mom made him and that he hoped you stayed home for a long time. That kind of thing."