I covered my mouth.
He pointed again.
“Laura told her brother. He wasn’t home the day of the fire. He’s in fifth grade. Kids look up to him… he’s the ‘cool kid.’”
I noticed a taller boy sitting confidently nearby.
“Danny went to the art room, grabbed duct tape, and wrapped his own $150 Nike shoes. Then another kid did it. And another.”
I looked back across the gym.
What Andrew had been mocked for yesterday… was now everywhere.
“The meaning changed overnight,” the principal said softly. “What people laughed at yesterday… today it stands for something else.”
Andrew looked up.
Our eyes met.
And just like that—I saw it.
He looked steady again. Like himself.
“I’ve been in education a long time,” the principal said, wiping his face. “I’ve never seen anything like this.”
