“What’d she say?” Truck asked.
Annie sighed. “Just the usual stuff. That it was obvious I liked retarded guys since I was dating one, and now I was eating lunch with one. She wanted to know if Frankie knew I was cheating on him with Robert. Then she laughed and said something about me being a virgin for the rest of my life because no one would dare come anywhere near me, since I’m such a tomboy and like rolling around in the dirt.”
Annie took a deep breath and kept going. Now that she’d started talking about what happened, she couldn’t stop.
“She made fun of my hair being long and scraggly and said my face was so hideous, it was no wonder I didn’t wear any makeup because it would take two truckloads of it to cover my ugliness. The other two girls with her laughed a little. They looked uncomfortable, but they didn’t tell her to stop. Amy was scared Carrie would start in on her, so she just sat there.”
“What’d you do?” Truck asked softly.
“I wanted to hit her,” Annie admitted.
“But you didn’t,” Truck said confidently.
“No,” Annie mumbled. “But I threatened to. Told her she’d better hope I didn’t see her after school because I was gonna beat the crap out of her.”
Truck was silent, and Annie peeked up at him. She was slightly ashamed of what she’d said, but she wasn’t sorry. Carrie deserved to be taken down a bit, and Annie wasn’t scared of her. Not at all. She asked, “Aren’t you going to tell me that was wrong? That I shouldn’t have said that?”
“How long has this girl been picking on you?” Truck asked.
Annie shrugged. “Since the fourth grade,” she said tentatively.
“And how many times have you told her to leave you alone? How many times have you ignored her taunts and all the mean things she’s said to you?”
“Um…lots?” Annie said with a shrug.
“Sounds like she needs to be taken down a peg.”
Annie stared at her dad’s friend in confusion. Was he telling her it was okay to beat up Carrie?
“It seems to me as if you’ve given her way more chances than she deserves. Your mom would probably have a heart attack if she knew I was telling you this, but it’s obvious Carrie thinks she’s better than you. Which is bullshit—er…sorry…it’s bullcrap. No one’s better than you, Annie. Just as you aren’t better than anyone else. This Carrie chick isn’t going to leave you alone until you give her a reason to leave you alone.”
Annie couldn’t believe what she was hearing. But she couldn’t deny she was relieved. “She told me her boyfriend was gonna be waiting for me after school. I managed to avoid him today, but I’m sure he’ll be looking for me tomorrow,” she admitted.
“See? She knows you’ll kick her butt, so she’s sending someone else to do her dirty work. Can you take her boyfriend?” Truck asked.
Annie smiled. “Yes.” She had no doubt whatsoever that she could totally win in a fight against Doug Chamberlin. He was taller than her, but he was all talk. He couldn’t even climb the rope in gym class.
“Then do it,” Truck said. “I’m not saying it’ll shut stupid Carrie up forever, because I knew a lot of girls like her back when I was your age. But it’ll make her think twice about picking on you in the near future. It’ll also send a message that you won’t tolerate people making fun of those weaker or different from everyone else. I’m proud of you for eating lunch with that boy today.”
“I thought about Frankie. He told me how hard it was to adjust to the cochlear implant he got last year. All I could picture was him trying to make friends, self-conscious of the way he sounded when he talked, and no one sitting with him at lunch,” Annie admitted.
“But Frankie’s doing okay now?” Truck asked.
Annie nodded. “Yeah. He’s awesome.”
“Have you talked to him about what happened today?”
“Not yet.”
“But you will?” Truck said.
Annie frowned. “Of course. Why wouldn’t I?”
She didn’t understand the small smile that formed on Truck’s face. “No reason. You want to go to the backyard and practice some moves with me so you’ll be ready for Doug and anything sneaky he might plan to take you off guard?”
“Yes!” Annie exclaimed immediately, feeling much better than she had a little while ago. She loved sparring with her dad and his friends. She knew they took it easy on her, but it was fun all the same. Someday, after she was a special forces soldier herself, she’d come home and kick their butts for real. They wouldn’t need to go on easy on her just because she was smaller and not as strong as they were.
“Okay. But first I need a hug,” Truck said, sitting up and holding out his arms.
Annie knew what he was doing. He didn’t need a hug, but she had no doubt that he knew she needed one. Growing up was hard. She wasn’t sure she liked it much. Her boobs had started to grow, which she hated. She’d learned all about puberty in her health class and how she’d soon start bleeding between her legs. She had a hard time controlling her emotions and she felt off-kilter all the time. Annie despised every minute of it.
Some people, like Carrie, wanted to grow up as fast as possible, but Annie liked being little. She enjoyed being doted on by her dad and his friends. She liked not having to spend hours doing homework, and not having to try very hard to get good grades. But as she got older, the schoolwork got harder, she was expected to spend more time thinking about her appearance and less time playing outside. Growing old sucked.
She crawled out of her closet and snuggled into Truck’s lap. The man was huge, and he made her feel like she was little once more.
“I’m proud of the young woman you’re becoming, Annie,” Truck said. “Even though you’re growing up way too fast. If you keep growing like you are, you’re gonna be taller than me soon.”
Annie giggled. “Whatever. You’re a giant, Truck.”
“You worried your mom,” he said softly.
Annie closed her eyes. She had. She knew that. But she hadn’t been able to stop herself from slamming her door and telling her to go away.
“And Ethan’s wondering where his favorite sister is, why she didn’t greet him when she got home.”
Annie frowned. “Making me feel guilty is mean,” she told Truck.
It was his turn to chuckle. She felt the rumble of his chest under her cheek.
“You’re right. I’m sorry.”
“No, I’m sorry. I just…sometimes I just feel all these emotions. And I can’t control them. I was so mad when I got home. I didn’t want to talk to anyone.”
“I know,” Truck soothed. His hand kept her close, and Annie swore his palm was so big it covered her entire back. “I think that’s a part of being a teenager.”
Annie shifted so she could see Truck’s eyes. “Are you gonna tell Mom and Dad about what happened?”
Truck stared at her for a long moment, then he shook his head. “No. But that doesn’t mean I don’t think you should.”
Annie sighed. “Mom’s gonna want to go to the school and talk to the principal. You know how she is. And that’s not going to help anything. It’ll just make Carrie even worse. And if Fletch thinks someone wants to fight me, he’ll lose his mind. I can take care of myself, but I’ll always be seven to him.”