Dib had enough of everything.
The lectures about what he should do in life and doing 'real science'. The constant put-downs and insults. The cold shoulders and rumors.
He had walked home in the rain. No umbrella or boots or rain slicker. The boy walked in the front door, ignoring his sister's question about what took so long and his father getting ready to yell at him. He walked right upstairs to his room, grabbed a blanket and some pillows, and then pulled down the attic stairs, which was right in the hallway. He unfolded them, and went up them, carrying everything in his arms.
Throwing everything on the floor, he turned and pulled up the stairs, latching them so no one could go up without him letting them in. Dib then set up the blanket and took off his soaked coat and sopping wet shirt. He then looked through a box and found what he was looking for.
He held the picture frame tight against his chest, and lay down on the make-shift bed. He snuggled down with it and sighed softly as he looked at the woman in it. She was barely in her mid-twenties, with a tiny baby in purple in her arms, and a young boy in dark green and black holding her free hand.
Dib smiled a tiny bit, "I love you, Mom… I wish you were still here…"
He felt better looking at the picture, because it seemed like nothing bad had ever happened when his mom was around. She helped all the bad things go away and made all the boo-boos feel better.
He smiled one more time as he studied the photo, then pulled it against his chest again before eventually dozing off.