Words

Eleven

After a rather eventful day of school, I gratefully welcomed the tranquility of my abode. The carpet that flattened under my bare feet once I removed my shoes was a gentle reminder of what awaited me. Even if my birthday has been unpleasant so far, minus Abigail and Sophie's treatment of course, the day isn't over yet.

Though I knew that I would have to speak with them about my predicament soon, I didn't want to ruin the special day with bad news. I shut my eyes, balling my hand into a fist. I wasn't going to give up yet. I swore that I would find out what was happening to me, and whether or not it was dangerous.

Only the guest room above was splashed with fluorescent light as I searched the perimeter. Given the time of day, I wasn't expecting either of them to be home from work yet. I briefly wondered if they had stayed home because of my birthday. No, that didn't seem right. Maybe one of them was released from work early?

Regardless of my suspicions, my feet were taking me up the steps to the dim source of light. As the distance from the door lessened with every step, I started to hear muffled voices. Were they here? As unbelievable as it sounded, a glimmer of hope sparked from within. It was rare for them to be home at the same time since their working schedules were normally always parallel; only on some days of the month did they intersect. Even so we were still a close family, and I wouldn't have had it any other way.

I tried my best to not step on the wood that would give out an agonizing creak under my feet. Luckily, I remembered the basic pattern of the top floor, so I maneuvered my way to the closed door to surprise them. Yet when I listened to the tone of their voices, they didn't sound happy at all.

"Why didn't you tell me something like this?" I heard Dad's voice yell in a tone that I had never heard before. Were they arguing? That's rare, my young self thought.

"I wanted to let her come to us; to see if what the teacher said was right."

"So... you were just going to let this slide?" He sounded confused―baffled, even. What were they talking about?

"No! David, I'm only doing this for her protection―we can't ignore something like this!" Mom retorted with a voice that thundered in the hallways.

"But what if she's wrong? Ziva's a smart girl―there's no way that she could..."

Before he could finish the sentence, I had already wrapped my hand around the doorknob. With a gust of courage I twisted it, opening the door. I couldn't stand hiding when they were speaking of me. They both immediately froze with wide eyes.

"Z-Ziv... what're you doing here so late?" Mom asked, stiffly pushing her white hair behind her ear as Father looked away.

"Well, I just got home from school? I accidentally fell asleep in the garden," I said while laughing nervously. I was guilty of eavesdropping, evident from my face that was dusted by warmth.

"I guess this is perfect timing, then. Ziv, come here. We have something that we need to discuss with you." A hard, concentrated expression overcasted his normally easy-going features. I fidgeted under their gaze for a moment before walking inside of the room.

They looked between each other, making silent frustrated gestures before Dad cleared his throat. I sighed and sat up, suddenly uncomfortable from the rising tension.

"A teacher called earlier," he mentioned nonchalantly. He left his sentence hanging in the air, hoping that his love could take it and mold it into something better. By the looks on their faces, I could tell that it was about my grades. Looks like I would have to tell them a little earlier than I planned.

Mom spoke next. "She said your academic average is dropping, so the school wants to have a conference with us to determine what the problem concerning your grades is."