"Have a good night!" Kimiko smirked as she left with the rest of the class. I glared at her.

"Well then." The teacher said, walking towards the door. "You stay here. I'll go call your parents."

I remained in my seat.

My papa would not be coming. He never leaves work until he is finished.

Mama shouldn't come. She's still not comfortable with things yet.

I swallowed my tears. This could upset her enough that she ends up going back to the hospital. I pressed my hands onto my face and took a deep breath.

This wasn't even my fault.

It was...

It was actually my friends fault.

"You gotta do it! You gotta!"

I should of said no and sat back down. Why? Why did she have to make me go? Why do those girls have to be mean?

My heart stopped as the door opened. I instantly sat up and swallowed hard. I watched as the teacher entered, followed by mama. They stood in front of me.

"What is it?" Mama calmly asked. I held my breath, dreading her reaction.

"Your daughter-" My teacher began. Mama showed a quick, pained expression on her face. "She caused a fight today." Mama stayed silent, making the pain in my heart worse. "She tried to beat up one of our students..." She droned on, waiting for mother to reply. She stayed silent, staring blankly at the floor. "And on top of that, Momaji has been late to class recently, and has failed two tests in a row."

She just kept piling it up. I felt as if the world was depending on mother to speak. But in my view, the world would crash and shatter around me. Mama just stared at the teacher. She gave her a slow nod.

"I'm sorry to have called you here. You may leave now." Teacher dismissed.

Mama turned and left. I followed from a safe distance all the way home. I knew that nothing good was going to happen. We entered the house. I shut the door. Mama set her purse on the table. Her hands clenched into fists.

"Why!" She spoke through clenched teeth. "Why do you insist on making my life hell?" She turned to face me. "How can I even call you my children!" I dared not to answer. "You just turned out to be one disappointment after another." Her words stung as her hands trembled angrily. "You're a disappointment!"

She smacked me hard across the face, causing me to fall onto the ground. Tears entered my eyes. Momiji ran out of our room and dropped to his knees to comfort me. Tears filled his eyes also.

"I hate you! I hate you both!" She broke down into tears. "You can't be my children! You just can't be!" Her words dissolved into huge sobs that shook her whole body.

Momiji and I retreated into our room. We sat against the door, wrapped in a crying mess. It's true. She does hate us. It's all my fault. It's our fault. If we were never born then mama would be happy. She would never be sad or hurt. She would never reject us if we were normal.

We finally calmed down. We didn't dare to leave the room. The house was quiet now, waiting for papa's arrival. Mama would then tell papa about what happened, and who knows what will happen after that...

I gripped Momiji in a tight hug. No matter what happens, Momiji and I will always be together.

We sadly crawled into our beds and fell asleep without dinner. I suddenly woke up in entire darkness. When I stood up I figured out that I had transformed into a rat. I sighed and found my way out from under my covers. I slid to the floor, hearing the front door shut.

Papa was home.

I scurried over to my door and watched him from the doorway.

He set his briefcase on the kitchen counter and looked around. The rest of his family was in their rooms. He knew exactly what had happened. Mama was upset, and we had caused it. I scurried out of my room to follow papa, who nervously walked into his and mama's room. I stopped at the door. Mama sat on the bed, holding her head in the darkness. Papa turned on the lamp and sat beside her, rubbing her back.

"What happened?" He sighed.

Mama looked up at him. She looked so hurt. She barely looked like herself. "Her teacher called me today..." She began.

She. Mama can't even say my name.

"She caused a fight today... Tardy to class... Failing tests..." Mama continued. She stared insanely at the floor. "She made me go to that school... Just to show me how terrible she is..."

My heart broke. It was nothing like that. Mama...

"Momaji's teacher called you?" Mama replied with a pained nod.

"And...when we got home... I yelled at her... And then hit her..." Tears flowed down her face. "I don't think I can take this anymore."

"What?" Papa nervously said.

"I can't... I just can't..."

"What are you saying?"

"I don't love them." Mama stabbed at my heart. "How can I just pretend that I love these children? I-i think... They should go."

"You..." Papa answered, short of breath. "Want to get rid of the children?" Mama nodded, not meeting his broken eyes. "We can't just do that! They're-" He stopped.

Our children, papa. Our children. I deeply wanted to hear those words, but when I looked at his concerned expression, I understood.

If we didn't go, then mama would end up in the hospital again.

Mama looked up at him. "Don't you side with them!" She began to yell, but her voice weakened and cracked. "Can't you see what they're doing to me?" She gripped his arm and calmed down. "I've been thinking... If they weren't here... Then I wouldn't be this sick... Please. Do this for me."

I turned around and retreated to my room, crying. I didn't need to hear papa's response. I knew that he would say yes. Even though papa loves us... He is more concerned for mama. I guess he should be... I sighed as a rat entered our room from outside and snuggled up next to me. At least i'll have Momiji with me.

When I transformed back into a human, I put my clothes back on and went to bed. My rat friend followed me, causing a few more to join us in my bed. They snuggled in by my neck to give me comfort.