Familial Bond Short Stories & Teacher Regret Novels

When Mom punishes me, her palms are sweaty. I know she's even more nervous than I am. She's scared that others will accuse her of favoring me. When the rest of my classmates perform poorly in class, all she does is tell them to review the lesson and do a few more exercises. But when I'm the one who does badly, she points at the field outside the window. Despite the burning midday heat of June, she commands, "Julia Swanson! You're going to stand out on the field and memorize all the words you messed up. You're not allowed to come back in until you know everything by heart!" Everyone in the classroom looks at me. One of my classmates mutters, "Ms. Campbell is being way too hard on her own daughter." Mom hears that comment, and her eyes flash with satisfaction. That's precisely what she wants everyone to see. No one will dare say she's biased toward me if she punishes me the most harshly out of all the students. "Why are you still here?" she barks at me. "Get out. You think you can get into a top college with grades like yours?" The classmate sitting next to me tugs on my sleeve and whispers, "Why don't you try asking her to go easier on you? It's blazing hot outside." I shake my head. The most futile thing I can ever do is ask Mom to go easier on me in school. She prides herself on her professionalism as a teacher. It's a matter of principle to her. But she has forgotten that it's over 104 degrees Fahrenheit outside. Not wanting to disappoint her, I stand out in the sun. The blazing hot air dries up my sweat—and my tears. Eventually, my vision goes blurry. The world seems to spin around me… As I collapse onto the ground, I hear Mom tell her colleague, "I'll just get a popsicle as a gesture and bring that stubborn daughter of mine back inside later." She has no idea that I won't be able to accept her olive branch anymore.

My mother was the grade dean at Westbridge Academy. To prove she would never favor her own daughter, she always used me to set an example. When I scored a 98 on her AP Statistics exam, she displayed my mistake in front of the class to prove she held me to a higher standard. When I picked up a calculator another student had dropped, she gave me a conduct notice. But Olivia, her favorite student aide, could cheat, lie, and break rules, and Mom always found a reason to believe her. Then two students were caught skipping PE to make out in a restricted equipment room behind the gym. I happened to have gone to the bathroom around the same time because my stomach hurt. That was enough for Mom to decide one of them had been me. She was furious. She said I had humiliated her and disgraced the school, then posted my name on the disciplinary board as if I were the most shameless student at Westbridge. She even revoked my National Honor Society membership. Later, the principal found security footage proving I had never entered the equipment room. But Mom only said, “It’s fine. Don’t make an announcement clearing her name. Otherwise everyone will say I made up an excuse to protect my own daughter.” What Mom didn’t know was that her refusal to defend me gave everyone else permission to hurt me. When I was shoved down the stairs, only one thought remained in my mind. Mom, if I die, will that finally be enough to prove you never favored me?