Chapter 7
After his outburst, Bruno felt slightly better. People always said that getting things off your chest helped you feel better, and Bruno had to agree. Like he predicted however, he felt guilty because he yelled at Maria. So once he finished replacing the books, he went down to the kitchen and found her.
Her eyes were red. Bruno felt guilt hit him like a brick wall. She turned when he came in and must have seen the guilt on his face, because she quickly showed him a sliced onion and said, "I was cutting onions."
Bruno looked down at his feet.
"Bruno," she said, "If I had known – If anyone had known – "
"I'm fine, Maria. I'm…erm," Bruno felt his cheeks grow hot with shame. "I'm sorry I yelled at you. And threw books on the floor," he added as an afterthought.
Maria smiled and said, "Bruno, you're fifteen, and you've had a very hard six years. You have a right to be furious. You may think you're too old," she said, "but you'll always be the nine year old boy I knew, who hated being called 'little man'."
Bruno smiled. "I hate it when people call me little."
"We can hardly call you that anymore, Bruno," she laughed, "you've grown that tall. You're just as tall as your father."
It was true. Bruno towered over Maria's 5'5'' figure. "Any taller and I may not fit through the door."
They laughed, and just as Maria began to answer, the doorbell rang. Maria hurried to answer it.
When she returned, her face was positively glowing. "Your father is returning! He'll be here tomorrow!"
Bruno felt his heart plummet. What was he going to say?