For a moment, Claire did not know what to say.
Then she moved her satchel.
“Of course.”
Ruth sat at the opposite end of the bench.
They ate quietly.
The silence was not uncomfortable.
Claire liked that.
After a while, Ruth glanced at her sweater.
“It’s a pretty color.”
Claire looked down.
“Thank you.”
“Your mother made it?”
“Yes.”
“She’s very clever.”
Claire smiled.
“She is.”
Ruth twisted the corner of her lunch cloth.
“I wish I knew how to make things like that.”
“My mother says anyone can learn if they’re patient.”
Ruth gave a small laugh.
“I’m not very patient.”
“Neither am I sometimes.”
They smiled at one another.
It was the longest pleasant conversation they had shared in months.
Then Mabel’s voice called from across the courtyard.
“Ruth!”
Both girls turned.
Vanessa and Mabel stood near the school doors.
Vanessa’s expression was difficult to read.
Ruth stiffened.
“I should go.”
Claire nodded.
“All right.”
Ruth hesitated.
“I’ll see you in class.”
“Yes.”
She walked away.
Claire watched her join the others.
Vanessa said something.
Ruth shook her head.
Mabel glanced toward Claire.
Then all three disappeared around the corner of the building.
Claire looked down at the remains of her lunch.
She felt an old sadness returning.
Ruth had chosen to sit beside her.
That mattered.
But she had also hurried away the moment Vanessa called.
Claire did not blame her.
Not entirely.
Still, it hurt.
She packed her food cloth and reached for her satchel.
A shadow fell across the bench.
Vanessa had returned.
Mabel stood on one side of her.
Ruth lingered a few steps behind.
“Having a pleasant lunch?”
Vanessa asked.
Claire stood.
“Yes.”
“How nice.”
Vanessa’s gaze moved toward the satchel.
“Is that the same bag you’ve carried since we were children?”
Claire held it close.
“Yes.”
Vanessa smiled.
“I thought so.
It looks older than the schoolhouse.”
Mabel laughed.
Claire started toward the classroom door.
Vanessa stepped in front of her.
“Where are you going?”
“Inside.”
“Why the hurry?”
“The bell will ring soon.”
Vanessa glanced at Mabel.
“Did you hear that?
The bell will ring soon.”
Mabel laughed again, though less confidently this time.
Claire shifted to the side.
Vanessa moved with her.
“You’re not very friendly today.”
“I just want to go to class.”
“After the way you spoke to me this morning?”
Claire stared at her.
“I didn’t say anything unkind.”
Vanessa’s smile faded.
“You embarrassed me.”
The accusation was so unexpected that Claire almost laughed.
Instead, she felt bewildered.
“I only said there was nothing wrong with my mother’s sweater.”
“Exactly.”
Vanessa stepped closer.
“You made me look foolish in front of everyone.”
Claire’s fingers tightened around the satchel strap.
“I wasn’t trying to.”
“Well, you did.”
Behind Vanessa, Ruth shifted uneasily.
“Perhaps we should go inside,” she suggested.
Vanessa ignored her.
She held out one hand.
“Give me your bag.”
Claire frowned.
“What?”
“Your bag.”
“Why?”
“Because I asked.”
Claire shook her head.
“No.”
Vanessa moved faster than Claire expected.
She caught the strap and pulled.
Claire tried to hold on.
The leather slid painfully across her fingers.
Then Vanessa tore the satchel from her grasp.
“Vanessa, give it back.”
Vanessa raised it above her shoulder.
“Come and get it.”
Claire reached toward the bag.
Vanessa stepped away.
Mabel moved between Claire and the classroom entrance, blocking the path.
Ruth remained near the bench.
Her face had gone pale.
A few nearby pupils stopped talking.
Claire felt the attention gathering around her.
She knew that feeling.
It was the terrible moment when a private embarrassment became public entertainment.
“Please,” Claire said.
“I need my books.”
Vanessa swung the satchel slightly.
“Then you should learn to be more polite.”
“I haven’t done anything to you.”
Vanessa laughed.
“Listen to her.
Now she’s innocent.”
Mabel made a nervous sound that might have been laughter.
Ruth said, “Vanessa, that’s enough.”
Vanessa turned sharply.
“Don’t start.”
Ruth fell silent.
Claire looked from one girl to another.
She could see the door.
She could see the school bell hanging beneath the porch roof.
She could see the open courtyard and the pupils beginning to gather.
She could also see that nobody was moving to help her.
For almost a year, this had been the pattern.
Vanessa did something cruel.
The others laughed or looked away.
Claire endured it.
Then everyone went back to their lessons.
But something inside Claire was tired.
Tired of walking home with a heavy heart.
Tired of pretending her mother’s hard work was something shameful.
Tired of waking each morning wondering what humiliation might be waiting for her.
She held out her hand.
“My satchel.”
Her voice was quiet.
Vanessa stared at her.
“What?”
“Give it back.”
The words were simple.
But Claire did not lower her eyes.
