CHAPTER 4: SEEING THE LIGHT

Violet and Patty (Swanson) were by themselves. They were thinking about all the cruel things they did to Charlie Brown and what an effect it had on him. He made sure they knew that when he moved to Kansas City, he wouldn't miss them in the slightest. In fact, when he moved there, aside from Lucy through Linus, he didn't contact any of his former tormentors.

They felt guilty about how they treated him and alienated him. They finally saw that he didn't deserve their constant teasing and belittling. But now it seemingly was too late, and it was a possibility that he would not move back to town anytime soon, if ever. So unless they happen to run into him in the wild, there was a slim chance that Charlie Brown would re-enter their lives, IF they ever saw him again in life.

"Why were we so mean to him, Violet?" asked a sad Patty. "What did he do to deserve our total hatred?"

"Nothing that I can think of," answered an even sadder Violet. "Aside from his clumsiness and sometimes not-so-smart answers, he didn't do anything to any of us but try to be a good friend. But we wouldn't let him. It wouldn't had hurt us to be nice to him. Even if we wouldn't have been close friends, we could have at least treated him with some respect."

"As bad as we treated him, everyone agrees that Lucy was probably worse to him than the two of us combined."

"True. Even I wouldn't have done half the things to Charlie Brown that Lucy did."

"If he ever comes back, will he ever forgive us for how we treated him?"

"I don't know, Patty. I don't know."

Elsewhere, Lucy was watching TV. Linus walked in and looked at her for a moment. He wondered why his sister was the way she was. Why she treated Charlie Brown so cruel, at times worse than Violet and Patty combined. He wondered if she was even aware that she was doing stuff cruel and that she was being mean to others, himself, included. Or that she knew and just didn't care.

"Lucy, do you have a moment?" he began.

"Not now, blockhead!" she snapped. "I'm watching my favorite show."

"This cannot wait, Lucy! I need to talk to you. It's important!" Lucy sighed and turned off the TV.

"All right, Linus, what is sooooo important you had to interrupt my program?!"

"Just wanted to know why are you the way you are?"

"What are you talking about?!"

"Why do you have to be so mean to everyone?! Aside from Schroeder and, to a lesser degree, Rerun, you are basically mean to everybody, friends and enemies alike. You dole out lousy advice at the psychiatric booth, you criticize anything, you don't like anyone being happy, and I won't get into how lousy you treat me, but everyone agrees you were worse to Charlie Brown than everyone else combined! But the worst part about all of that is, you don't even seem to realize you were being cruel, or at the very worse, didn't even give a rip! Do you hate the world or something?! Or were you just born crabby and mean?!"

Lucy was ready to slug her brother, but Linus stood firm.

"I knew that would be the first thing you'd go to. Slug Linus, and that will shut him up. Go ahead and I will do what I should have done a long time ago: tell our parents."

Lucy raised her fist, but couldn't follow through. Eventually, she let go of his collar and lowered her fist.

"All he wanted was to be your friend. To say you and the other girls treated him like dirt would be an understatement. You, Violet, and Patty treated him worse than dirt. If you ever wonder why he said he'd never miss you when he moved to Kansas City, that's why! From what I heard, Violet and Patty are now realizing that, but you? HA! You will never understand it. For I have a uncaring sociopath for a sister." And Linus walked away. Lucy stood frozen in her spot. Did she alienate Charlie Brown with her taunts and tricks? She left the living room and went to her bedroom and closed the door.

END OF PART 3