This is a prompt from Rick and Maggie.
Disclaimer: I do not own Full House.
I've found a reason for me to change who I used to be. A reason to start over new, and the reason is you
-"The Reason" by Hoobastank
Gia could deny a lot of things, but she couldn't deny that she liked Michelle from the moment she saw her.
Gia had never had a little sister (or any siblings, actually), but when she met Michelle, she figured that having a little sister would feel like this.
Until Michelle found out the truth about Gia. The smoking, the bad grades, the stealing, criminal activity in general… basically, every bad thing Gia had done and was still doing.
"Michelle," Gia began, following the young girl out of the room and leaving a bewildered and nervous Stephanie behind. Stephanie had been talking to Gia about her bad habits and her trouble making ways, wanting to figure out a way to either get Gia to change her ways or (although she didn't prefer it) end their friendship entirely, when Michelle overheard.
"Michelle, what's wrong?" Gia asked, grabbing her hand before the young girl could begin her descent down the stairs.
Michelle spun around, and Gia was shocked to see tears in the little girl's eyes.
"How could you do all that stuff?" she asked. "Stealing, drinking, smoking, all of it! I was starting to see you as a friend and now, I find out this!"
"Michelle, I was starting to see you as a friend, too," Gia agreed. "Maybe even a little sister."
Michelle sniffled. "Well, I don't want you to be my sister if you're going to act like that!"
Gia gaped. "What?" she murmured, feeling an ache in her chest, as though Michelle had thrust a knife into her heart and twisted it.
"Nobody likes a troublemaker," Michelle spat before completely dissolving into tears and sprinting down the stairs and away from Gia.
Gia must've stood in that same spot for several minutes, opening and closing her mouth like a fish, before Stephanie joined her at the top of the stairs.
"She's not wrong, you know," Stephanie stated. "I'm sorry, Gia, but it's true."
Stephanie sighed before leaving her friend at the top of the stairs and heading down the steps to check on Michelle.
Gia stared after the middle Tanner child, Michelle's statement ringing in her ears, bouncing off the sides of her cranium like a ping pong ball.
Nobody likes a troublemaker.
Gia lightly knocked on the door of the Tanner house, and she smiled at the man who answered the door.
"Hello, Mr. Katsopolis!" she exclaimed. "I'm loving your hair today."
Jesse blinked. It had only been a little over a month since Gia last visited, but she had changed drastically since then. For one, he didn't remember her being so polite before. Two, she didn't carry the lingering scent of smoke that set the adults in the house on edge. And three, her smile was much brighter, and she looked much happier.
"Hello to you, too, Gia," he told her. "But you can just call me Jesse. Thanks for the compliment."
Gia nodded and stepped into the house when Jesse moved to the side and gestured her through the door.
"Are Stephanie or Michelle around?" she asked.
"They're in their room," he replied.
"Thank you," she chirped before walking up the stairs, beyond excited to share the new Gia to the two girls, particularly Michelle, who had given Gia a reason to change who she used to be.
Gia stood in the doorway for a moment, staring at Michelle and Stephanie, both seated on their beds and absorbed in the activities (Michelle was reading, and Stephanie was doing homework) before finally gathering the courage to knock.
Both girls glanced up and were surprised to see Gia standing in the doorway of their bedroom.
"May I come in?" she asked.
Stephanie nodded, and Michelle pointedly looked away, but she didn't tell Gia to leave, so Gia took that as a good sign.
Gia sat on the edge of Michelle's bed, and Stephanie walked over as Gia rummaged through her backpack and withdrew a simple looking (but in reality, a very significant) paper and placed it on Michelle's lap.
"What's this?" the young girl questioned.
"My most recent report card," Gia informed her. "I got straight A's."
Michelle glanced up, hope shining in her eyes, and Stephanie stared at Gia in bewilderment and shock.
"I haven't smoked a cigarette since we last spoke. I went cold turkey. I haven't sold drugs or stole anything or drank or even broken a single rule since we last talked. I promise."
Michelle glanced up. "Cross your heart and hope to die?"
Gia nodded, making the motion with her hand. "Cross my heart and hope to die, and… pinky promise," she stated as she offered her smallest finger, and with it, the unbreakable vow of all children under twelve, some teens, and some adults!
Michelle grinned and linked her pinky with Gia's before laughing as Gia pulled her into a hug.
"Michelle Tanner," Gia said. "Will you do me the honor of becoming my honorary little sister?"
Michelle giggled and nodded. "Thanks for… turning over a new leaf," she said, slowly, before looking at Stephanie. "Did I use that saying right?"
Stephanie nodded with a smile. "You used it perfectly."
Michelle grinned before looking back at Gia.
"Thanks for giving me a reason to change," Gia told her. "After all, you were right: nobody's likes a troublemaker."
Nobody likes a troublemaker because you can't befriend a troublemaker without becoming one. At some point, you'll get roped into their trouble making, their pranks, their cruel tricks, their rule breaking, even criminal activity, so people typically steer clear of the troublemakers. Thus, the troublemakers wind up friendless for the most part, and the few friends they do have are troublemakers just like them.
For all the troublemakers out there, if you find yourself sitting alone at the lunch table or playing by yourself at recess, and you refuse to change your ways and are instead left wondering why everyone seems to stay away from you, remember this:
Nobody likes a troublemaker.
When I say troublemaker, I mean someone who breaks rules everyday and doesn't do it in a joking manner. They do it to be rude or mean or annoying.
Thanks for reading!