Page 222 - The Life of A Teenage Girl (Stories About Finding Your Way)

THE LIFE OF A TEENAGE GIRL

I interrupted Mom. “No, you listen—all of you. I’m fine, I’m okay.
I don’t need your guidance or worries. As you can see, I’m living,

breathing well, and I came out of that hospital well and okay. Why can’t

you get that?”
Mom looked like she was about to cry and said, “Honey, we do

understand it, okay? It’s just…”
“It’s just what? You can’t trust me? That I’ll be fine? It was just

an accident—it wasn’t that bad. Why can’t you just let it go?!”
Dad interrupted me and yelled, “Alright, that’s enough, Dahlia!

You can’t just keep trying to convince us—it’s not going to work!”

He sighed, and I cooled down a little.
“Like your mom said, we get it, we really do. It’s just that we can’t

trust your hormones or enzymes. Anytime we go for an appointment to

check your body, it’s always bad news. It’s barely ever good news.”
“But at my last appointment, Dr. Donach said my enzymes were

getting okay and that I could start school.”
“Yeah, but not for long,” Mom muttered.

“Huh? What do you mean?”
“You’re not going to that school anymore, Dahlia. We’ll probably

start homeschooling again. I think that’s better for your health.” Mom

crossed her arms.
“What? No way! First, you make me stay home every day and not

go out, and now you’re making me be homeschooled again?”
“I’m really sorry, Dahlia, but it’s the only choice—just to make

sure you don’t get another injury from your disease.”

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