Unexpected reactions

Part 5 (kids)

A 17-year-old boy was pacing around his room. He didn't know how he should say it to anyone, let alone his parents. He didn't think of it as a failure or that his parents would think of it that way, but his school gave that kind of impression with all the bullying and the way teachers talked about it.

Then his year-and-a-half younger sister knocked and came into the room. "Hey, you okay over there?"

He looked at her and started biting his nails. It felt less helpful so he got back to pacing. "I have no idea."

She gave him a look. "Come on. Let's sit down and talk." She took his arm and pulled him to his bed. She sat down with her legs crossed and waited. "No more pacing, if you keep doing it, I will go crazy."

He sighed and sat down. He took one of his hands into the other and started massaging the back of his hand. He looked at her. "One of the boys a year or two below me got beaten up yesterday at school. I know, nothing new, but I heard the boys yelling 'f*gg*t' (use it and I will be VERY upset with you) at him. Since I didn't know what that meant, you know that I don't really follow certain things. I just do what I like and try to keep up with some of your favorite things." He started mumbling.

She got her hand on his mouth. "To the point, please, I'm going to meet Gene today."

He nodded. "Well, the word fascinated me since they yelled it out and nobody bothered to do anything. So I started looking and I think I dug myself into a big hole." His pressure of one hand on the other got bigger.

Angel took her brother's hands and pulled them away. "Hey, it's okay, breathe. In... and out. In... and out." She kept nodding her head to show when to take a breath and when to release it. "I'm here and mom and dad are always here for us too. No need to worry, you're not alone."

Then the door opened again and a 12-year-old head peeked in. "Hey." A smile got the older siblings to smile too. "What are you guys talking about?"

The eldest quickly stuttered out. "Nothing that should bother you just yet. What's going on, big bear?" He motioned for the kid to come to them.

The little sibling ran up to them and when they noticed his notebook in his hand, they knew where the problem was - math was there yet again. "Okay, sit here." Angel pushed herself a little bit away so the kiddo could sit between them. "You and math, you two must hate each other with passion." She chuckled.

They got to work and after half an hour they were done. There wasn't that much, but it was math. They had trouble with it too. Not as much as the kid, but it still wasn't their favorite.

"Did you talk to your teacher about this?" The eldest asked.

Head went down. "Yes, but I didn't really get any help."

"Why don't we talk about that with mom? Dad is with uncle Scott at the moment and we should talk about it with someone." Angel said and stood up pulling her younger sibling with her. "I'll be back and we're going to keep talking if you want to." She smiled at her older brother and left with the child to find their mom.

She looked at her younger sibling studying her face as they walked. "Is he in trouble or something?"

She shook her head. "He just has trouble understanding something, but don't worry, I will help him. You just smile and learn your school stuff." She kissed the head of her younger sibling. They walked into the living room, where their mom was just cleaning one of the shelves. "Mom?"

She turned around. "Yes? How can I help you two?" She smiled and walked to them to hug them. Angel was getting taller than her mother, she was nearly as tall as her father.