call connected.
“Hello?”
It was Mom.
Relief rushed through me.
“Mom? It’s Ethan.”
Instead of sounding concerned, she laughed.
“Oh, Ethan! Are you still upset about our little joke?”
My throat tightened.
“Mom, I’m still at the train station.”
“And?”
“You left me here.”
She sighed as though I were being unreasonable.
“Don’t be so dramatic. You’re perfectly capable of looking after yourself for a few hours.”
I gripped the receiver harder.
“Mom, it’s freezing. I don’t have my coat. I only have twelve dollars, and I don’t know how to get home.”
She paused.
For one brief moment, I hoped she finally understood.
Then she said something I’ll never forget.
“Your father thinks you need to learn how to be independent. You’re fourteen, Ethan. It’s time you stopped acting like a helpless baby.”
I swallowed.
“But you abandoned me.”
“No, sweetheart. We’re teaching you a lesson.”
Then I heard
