Magdalena Porter sat at the back of the classroom pressing her thumb and forefinger together. It was something she had always done, there was a strange electricity to it. She wondered what it felt like when Ms. Clark pressed her fingers together. Did the same current run inside her? Maggie didn't think so, though it was impossible to understand what other people felt. It was all a matter of subjective perspective, she knew no mathematical way to quantify the sense of touch. Maybe one day there would be, maybe she would develop the perfect algorithm to describe the median pain of a stubbed toe. Of course it would have be a controlled stubbing,further down this rabbit hole Maggie's mind wandered until the bell rang ending the school day. The children of Ms. Clark's third grade class stuffed graded papers and homework assignments into their school bags in a chaotic flurry as cheerful voices hummed with the giddiness of freedom on a Friday afternoon. Maggie didn't rush like her classmates. She closed her notebook careful not the bend the pages and slipped into her sweater that had been hanging neatly over the back of her chair. The back wall of the classroom held 25 identical cubbies with two brass hooks and shelves dividend by thick pieces of dark wood, so that none of the students coats or backpacks would touch each other. It was Maggie's favorite part of the classroom. Ms. Clark had made signs with each child's name and hung them above their spot. On her first day of school at Holy Cross Lutheran School, it had been waiting for her, her whole name, in beautiful red calligraphy. No one had ever called her Magdalena but it looked so pretty Maggie decided she didn't care. Maggie had not gone to school until the second week of the third grade. Maggie didn't think it ever occurred to her mother to send her school, it was her father who had finally forced the issue. Everything changed so fast. It was October now, it seemed like another #life but in truth it had only been a few weeks. Maggie's mother was not as nervous in the mornings on the way to school, in fact this morning she seemed happy. She had ate dinner with them last night, it was the first time Maggie had seen her eat since the night before she was enrolled. She must have ate, Maggie thought but not at the table, not smiling at her father. Maggie hadn't care much one way or the other. She knew that normal children went to school, but she knew that she wasn't normal. The other children were clambering out of the door pouring into the hallway while Maggie methodically packed her bag. Ms. Clark was distractedly looking after Mitchell Freeze, who was always getting into trouble. Maggie had not seen what he had done to attract attention this time, but she liked him. "Have a nice weekend Ms. Clark," Maggie said cutting the strange silence that had settled in the room. "You as well, Miss Porter. Do you have anything fun planned?" Ms. Clark's smile noted the shock in her voice, a little glint of victory was there too. This was the first time Maggie had spoke to her in anything other then response or necessity. Mitchell was past the bend now, out of sight, safe. "No ma'm," Maggie grinned back and walked passed her into now empty hall. Maggie swung her bag over her shoulder and zipped up her sweater as she exited the school. The cool fall air entered her lungs and she felt relaxed for the first time that day. She "Hey Magpie," her mother was waiting for her, leaning against the empty bike rack. "Where's Dad?" Maggie gave her mother a worried look. Maggie's mother hugged her from behind down bending kissing her cheek, " He and Granny Edy are playing in the garden, Did you learn stuff today?" Her tone was meant to be light and cheerful Maggie knew but she could hear her effort. Her mother was a terrible actress which was ironic as she had been hiding from the world all her #life. Her hand rested on Maggie's shoulder as they walked the four blocks home. "Don't you trust me, don't you think I know what things to say. What not to do?" Maggie shook her mothers hand off her shoulder. Everyone had been tiptoeing around her, and in that moment Maggie could not do it for another second. For the first time Maggie could ever remember she didn't care if her mother was upset at her. She didn't look back at her she kept walking but there was an empty feeling where her mother's hand just been. Txt