A Lie Unraveled by Constance Masters

television on. When she looked up through the dim light in the room, Sophia was standing in the doorway staring at her.
    “Hi, Soph,” she said.
    “Hi, can we talk?” she asked.
    Destiny immediately flipped back her covers. “Anytime, you know that.”
    Sophia ran across the room and jumped into the bed, although she didn’t immediately fall into her mother’s arms. She lay there on the opposite pillow just staring at the ceiling.
    “Do you have something on your mind?” Destiny prompted gently.
    “I’m sorry that I said I hated you, Mommy, I didn’t mean to make you cry.” Sophia said. “I don’t hate you, but I am mad at you.”
    “Yeah, I guess you have reason to be mad.”
    “What the hell happened that you would keep me a secret from my dad?”
    “Look, just so you know, this is not really stuff for kids so I’m going to give you the abridged version; though it is the truth. The whole thing was a misunderstanding. I thought I saw something that I didn’t really see and that’s all.”
    “Okay, I guess. Will you tell me the unabridged version when I’m older?” Sophia asked.
    “I don’t know, let’s just get through what we have to get through now, okay? It’s not such a bad thing spending some time with Justin and with Lily-Grace is it?”
    “Told you she’s a goody two-shoes.”
    “Name calling isn’t nice now is it? She’s your sister and she seems really nice to me.”
    “I guess, she okay.”
    “What about Justin, what do you think about him?”
    “I think that if he asks you to marry him you just better say yes that’s all.”
    “Good to know.”
    “Can I sleep in here with you tonight, Mom?”
    “You sure can.”
    * * *
    “Send her in please, Katie,” Justin said.
    “Hi,” Sophia said.
    “Here’s what I think we’re going to do with the school situation,” Justin said. “The same way I handle things with Lily-Grace. School is school and home is home. So what happens at school is handled at school and what happens at home is handled at home, that is the good stuff and the bad stuff, sound okay to you?”
    “I guess,” Sophia said.
    “Good, that will make life easier for both of us I think. So yesterday when we were on the way to the classroom, you fed me a story that was designed to make your mother look bad, agreed?”
    “Kind of,” Sophia said.
    “That was wrong and I won’t accept that kind of behavior. I am the principal, Sophia, what you told me could have gotten your mother in a lot of trouble. From now on I only want you to tell the truth. Do you understand?”
    “Yes, Justin, I get it.”
    “That’s the other thing, while we’re at school, I want you to call me sir, not Justin, okay? At home you can call me Justin but at school it wouldn’t be right.”
    “Okay,”
    “Now, there’s the matter of your punishment.”
    Sophia rolled her eyes.
    “Did you just roll your eyes at me, miss?” he asked.
    “I don’t know, not on purpose, maybe it was an accident,” Sophia said. “It’s just that you said things would be different and you would help me be happier. How can I be happier if you're punishing me?”
    “That is an interesting question, Sophia. Punishing you will show you how to be happier. If you don’t do the right thing, you get punished and if you do the right thing, good things happen. It isn’t all about punishment, the rewards can be worth getting too.”
    “What good things?”
    “Well, I hear that Mr. Jenkins and one of the other teachers are going to be having a game of softball after lunch. If you had behaved, you would be playing too. However, you made a poor choice, so while the children are playing, you’re going to be doing an important task for me.”
    “That’s not fair,” she whined.
    “Well, if you want to play next time, all you have to do is play by the rules and make better choices,” he said. “Now, you may go to class. After lunch, I want you to go to Mrs. Grady’s first grade class, where you are going