Mommy hangs up the phone and looks at me with her serious face. She puts her hands on her hips. She says I hafta tell her the truth or I’m gonna be in trouble. She says she won’t be mad if I tell her the truth but that’s what she said last time and she still wouldn’t let me go swimmin’ with Noah. 

My tummy hurts. Maybe I gotta poop. Mommy says when my tummy hurts it means it’s time for the bathroom. I want to tell Mommy I hafta poop, but she looks mad, so I’d better hold it.

“Just tell me the truth,” Mommy says again.

I stare at her. I want to tell her, but I know I’m gonna be in big trouble. She’s shakin’ her head a little bit and I know she’s thinkin’ about what to say next. Her earrings wobble when she shakes her head.  She doesn’t like those earrings ‘cause she said they make her ears look like bobbleheads. I told Daddy we should get Mommy a kitty for her birthday, but Daddy said she would like earrings better. My tummy hurts. The poop is comin’. I open my mouth to tell Mommy I hafta go…

“…And don’t even think about lying to me!” Mommy says in her mad voice. 

I wanna tell Mommy what happened, but I know she’ll be super mad. Maybe she’ll even call the police. Maybe I’ll go to jail. Maybe the police will be a bunny like Riley on Zootopia. She’s a nice police. I love Zootopia! It’s my favourite movie and I already watched it like six times. Daddy even watched it with me, and he laughed. Sometimes he laughed and I didn’t know what he was laughin’ at. I tried to ask him, but he just said, “never mind.” I know real police aren’t bunnies, but maybe they dress up like bunnies for Halloween? I really feel the poop coming.

“Brian!” cries Mommy. “Are you listening to me?”

“Ya,” I say. I squeeze my bum together, so the poop won’t come out.

“Tell me what happened, right now!” Mommy says again.

“I have to poop.”

“No, you don’t. You’re just saying that because you don’t want to answer me.”

“No, Mommy, I REEAALLLY have to go. Like it’s comin’ out.”

Mommy crosses her arms and rolls her eyes, “Okay, go. And make it quick. We’re not done talking!”

I run to the bathroom. I wonder where my bobblehead is. Not the junky old one from the dollar store, the real one Grampa gave me from the baseball game. 

I sit on the toilet and think about what to tell Mommy. Where did the poop go? It was there a minute ago but now it’s gone. I see a black spider in the corner. Mommy told me to squish spiders with a Kleenex but I’m too scared. I think my bobblehead is under my bed. I'd better stay in here for a minute in case the poop comes back.

“Brian, are you done yet?” Mommy calls.

“Not yet!” I say in my outside voice.

“You’d better not be fooling around in there!” Mommy shouts.

I hear the doorbell. Koda barks. Uh oh. Maybe it’s Mr. Henley. Maybe he’ll tell Mommy. I kick my feet together to make my poop come out, but it won’t.

“Briiiiaaaannnn,” yells Mommy. “Come here.”

I pull up my Spider-Man track pants and look at the sink. Mommy says I always hafta wash but I didn’t poop so does it still count? I wonder who’s at the door. I’m afraid to tell Mommy the bad thing. 

I open the door. My head feels sad. Me and Koda were only practicin’ fetch. I walk slowly to the front door and see my bobblehead under the table. The one Grampa gave me. I’d better get it later. My heart is jumpy and my tummy hurts again. I go around the corner and see Mr. Henley in our house. He and Mommy are both lookin’ at me.

My face feels hot and my breath goes away. I look at the floor. 

“Brian, please tell me what happened,” Mommy says in her nice voice. 

Isn’t she mad anymore? Where did her mad voice go? I look at Mommy and Mr. Henley. They are both still lookin’ at me. I won’t cry ‘cause Noah said big boys don’t cry. My tears start to come and I squeeze my eyes to hold them in.
 
“Brian?” says Mommy.

I open my eyes and the tears fall out. “I, I b-broke Mr. Henley’s window.”

Mommy and Mr. Henley look at each other. Maybe they already called the police. Maybe I’ll go to jail. Do kids go to jail? Noah said his cousin went to jail. But not real jail. Like a kid jail. Where do you sleep in jail? I wonder if they have Fruit Loops in jail.

Mommy comes close to me and kneels down. Her hair smells like peaches. She puts her hand on my shoulder and says, “Please tell me how you broke Mr. Henley’s window.”

I look at Mr. Henley. He’s still lookin’ at me. I open my mouth, but nothin’ comes out. I feel thirsty. I look at Mommy, take a big breath and all my words start comin’ out really fast.

“I, I was playin’ ball with Koda and he was gettin’ it pretty good. But then he lost his tennis ball. I threw it really far, like my farthest throw ever, but he couldn’t find it. I went to look for it too, but we still couldn’t find it. You shoulda’ seen Koda Mom!  He was lookin’ soooo hard for his ball. He was sniffin’ everywhere but it was still gone. So, I got my baseball from the shed to see if Koda would fetch it instead. He did! He didn’t even care it wasn’t his tennis ball. He liked it just the same. And then, I wanted to practice my farthest throw ever again. I wound up as hard as I could and threw. But the ball went the wrong way and hit Mr. Henley’s window. It didn’t break though! It only cracked a little. Koda still got the ball though. He’s gettin’ really super good at fetchin’!”

Mr. Henley and Mommy look at each other again. They look like they have a secret. I know I’m in trouble. “You know you should have told me right away, don’t you?” says Mommy.

I squeeze my lips together ‘cause the tears are comin’ again. “Yes, Mommy…”

“And, you will have to use your allowance to help pay for Mr. Henley’s new window, alright?”

“Okay…”

“Now,” says Mommy, “what do you say to Mr. Henley?”

I look at Mr. Henley. He has the same white hair as Grampa. There’s even some comin’ outta his ears. He’s sorta’ smilin’ at me. “Sorry, Mr. Henley. It was an accident,” I say.

“I know it was Brian,” says Mr. Henley. “You and Koda are still welcome to come over anytime.”

I feel my poop comin’ back. “Can I go now?” I ask. Mommy smiles and nods her head.

I run for the bathroom. Wait! I dive under the table and grab my bobblehead. I take him to the bathroom with me and close the door.  I sit on the toilet and feel happy I’m not going to jail. The spider is still in the corner. I hear Koda outside the bathroom door, sniffin’ to get in. I shake my bobblehead ‘cause it's funny.

“Hey, Brian!” Mommy shouts. “I have a few phone calls to make. Wanna’ watch Zootopia for a while?”

Yes! I thought for sure I was going to my room. Did Mommy forget I’m in trouble? Sometimes she forgets things. Like that time she said “no more cookies” but Gramma came over and she let me have one more anyways. Zootopia! My favourite movie. Riley is a cool police bunny. I know she’s not real, but I don’t care.

I hop off the toilet and wash my hands with my new Tutti-Frutti soap we got at Walmart. Daddy says I’m a big boy now ‘cause I can reach the tap without my stool. 

I open the door and go to the couch. Mommy already pressed ‘play’ and I missed the start. The couch smells stinky from when I barfed on it last week. I call Koda to come watch Zootopia with me. He runs around the corner and hops up beside me. He’s got the baseball in his mouth. He drops the ball, sniffs the barf spot, and lies down on it. I remember the broken window and my cheeks get hot again. I put the ball on the table and hug Koda’s neck.

“No, Koda. No more ball today.” His eyes look sad. I snuggle up close to him ‘cause I feel sad too and his fur makes me happy. I whisper in his ear, “Tomorrow we can practice our farthest throw ever again.” Koda’s ears point up and he licks my face, and then we watch Zootopia together.