Weirdly enough, when we got back home and Mom brought in the mail, there were holiday cards from both Julian’s family and August’s family. Julian’s holiday card was a picture of Julian wearing a tie, looking like he was about to go to the opera or something. August’s holiday card was of a cute old dog wearing reindeer antlers, a red nose, and red booties. There was a cartoon bubble above the dog’s head that read: “Ho-Ho-Ho!” On the inside of the card it read:
To the Will family, Peace on Earth.
Love, Nate, Isabel, Olivia, August (and Daisy)
“Cute card, huh?” I said to Mom, who had hardly said a word to me all the way home. I think she honestly just didn’t know what to say. “That must be their dog,” I said.
“Do you want to tell me what’s going on inside your head, Jack?” she answered me seriously.
“I bet you they put a picture of their dog on the card every year,” I said.
She took the card from my hands and looked at the picture carefully. Then she raised her eyebrows and her shoulders and gave me back the card. “We’re very lucky, Jack. There’s so much we take for granted.…”
“I know,” I said. I knew what she was talking about without her having to say it. “I heard that Julian’s mom actually Photoshopped August’s face out of the class picture when she got it. She gave a copy to a couple of the other moms.”
“That’s just awful,” said Mom. “People are just … they’re not always so great.”
“I know.”
“Is that why you hit Julian?” “No.”
And then I told her why I punched Julian. And I told her that August was my ex-friend now. And I told her about Halloween.
