Principal Mom Killed Me to Avoid Favoritism

I'm born with severe allergies, the kind where a whiff of pollen can trigger a full-blown asthma attack. But my mom, who is also the principal of my school, insists that I go on a field trip to the botanical garden with the rest of my class. I plead with her, my eyes reddened, but she stays as cold and hard as ice. "You've got all your meds, don't you? It's just a little thing. Why are you being so dramatic? I'm the principal, so I have to treat every student the same. If anything, you have even more reason to go, so people don't think I'm playing favorites!" To show what a good relationship I have with my classmates, she publicly commands me to get into the flowerbeds and pick flowers to be given to the top student in our grade, Rachel White. The moment I get close to the flowers, I start coughing and wheezing violently. A crushing sense of suffocation floods over me. Mom doesn't look worried in the slightest. Instead, she bites out, "Penelope, how long are you going to keep this act going? You're doing this on purpose to cause trouble for me and embarrass me, aren't you?" She has no idea that my throat is already swelling and closing up. Every breath I take feels like I'm swallowing broken glass. It looks like I won't be a problem for her anymore. Chapter 1 I shook all over, my voice breaking. "Mom, I really don't feel good… I can't breathe…" The pollen had my throat in a chokehold, like a pair of invisible hands were squeezing it tight. My chest felt so heavy it was about to explode. Mom looked impatient. "All I asked was for you to pick a flower to be given to Rachel, and you're acting like it's the end of the world. You're just jealous she's top of the class, aren't you? "If you can't measure up to her, the least you can do is be nice to her, even if it's just on the surface. You won't even do that? You're such a disgrace!" As she spoke, she reached out and shoved me hard, forcing me deeper into the sea of flowers. "I don't expect you to be an exemplary student, but you can't even get along with your classmates? How did I end up with such a selfish daughter?" I stumbled and fell into the flowers. Pollen swirled up all around me, and I fumbled frantically for the allergy meds in my pocket. But the bottle was empty—I'd already finished every last pill. I collapsed and tilted my head up to look at Mom. Tears mixed with cold sweat as they slid down my face. "Mom, can I have one more pill? I really can't take it anymore…" By then, angry red rashes had started to spread across my skin in big patches, itching so badly they felt like they were burrowing under my flesh. I couldn't stop myself from scratching hard. In no time, I'd raked bloody lines down my arms, burning pain tangled up with the itch and flooding my whole body. Seeing this, Mom only got angrier. Her voice jumped an octave as she snapped, "Penelope Lakeworth, do you think the school belongs to us? In public, I'm the principal, not your mother! Stop putting on a show to fish for sympathy. No one here is going to baby you!" She kept yelling while my breathing grew more and more labored. Foam started to leak out from the corner of my mouth, and my mind began to blur. The classmates gathered around started laughing while pointing at me. One of them mocked, "Penelope, are you auditioning for some tragic drama or what? You're acting like you're about to die. I've gotta say it's pretty convincing!" Everyone else howled and made exaggerated choking noises, deliberately mimicking the way I was gasping for air. Mom, feeling humiliated, was convinced I was doing this on purpose just to embarrass her. She grabbed me and shoved me hard to the ground again. "How dare you clown around like this? You're stirring up trouble on purpose—I swear you're just asking for a good beating!" A dense cloud of pollen rushed into my lungs, ripping through them with searing pain. I lay on the cold ground, my body convulsing uncontrollably. The swelling in my throat was getting worse, and even the strength to struggle was draining away bit by bit. I kept telling myself that every other time I'd felt awful, I'd just gritted my teeth and gotten through it. This time had to be the same. But the agony hadn't gone on for long before I suddenly felt a kind of lightness I'd never known before. Chapter 2 My soul slowly drifted out of my body, hovering blankly in midair. Did I… just die? So death was this light. I didn't feel the slightest trace of pain. Right then, the top student in our grade, Rachel White, carefully pushed through the crowd and hurried over to Mom, clutching her own medicine box in her hand. "Ms. Lodge, we all brought our meds. I don't need mine, so I can give this to Penelope. She seems like she—" Before she could finish, Mom cut her off, her voice cold. "Don't indulge her! She's obviously faking it. Ever since she was little, she would start whining about her allergies the moment she felt a bit off—it's just an excuse to get out of chores and things. I saw through her act years ago!" Rachel didn't want to give up so easily. She stepped a little closer. "But Penelope isn't moving at all, and she's so pale. What if something really has happened to her?" Mom immediately threw an arm out to block her. "Don't go over there! There's pollen everywhere. What if you end up having an allergy attack, too?" With that, she swept a glance over my motionless body on the ground, the corner of her lips curling into a mocking smile. "Look at her, lying there all still and stiff. It's obvious this is part of her act. Everyone, ignore her. Go back to what you were doing. She'll be fine after lying there for a bit." Honestly, this was what Mom had always been like. When I wheezed from allergies so badly I could barely breathe, she acted like she didn't see it. When I actually passed out, she didn't bother to check on me. Only when I finally came around on my own would she look at me frostily and ask if I was done putting on a show. Around us, my classmates slung their backpacks over their shoulders and headed up the hill in small groups, chatting as they went. Not a single one of them looked down at me lying there on the ground. As they walked past, they even paused just long enough to crack jokes. "Man, Princess Penny is still lying there. Does she think she's a sleeping beauty or something?" "She thinks so highly of herself. Newsflash, sweetheart—nobody cares about you!" I hovered in the air, watching the disdain, gloating, and amusement flicker across their faces. Inside, I felt numb and hollow. Not even the faintest ripple stirred in my heart. My gaze drifted, almost against my will, to Mom's hand, which clasped Rachel's tightly. That hand looked warm, steady, and protective. Before, a sight like that might have made me feel bitter or stirred up jealousy. But now, all I felt was a bone-deep chill and a strange sense of relief. Chapter 3 I watched Mom settle each student in, one after another. Then, she thoughtfully handed Rachel a brand-new lunchbox, filled with a hot meal she'd gotten up early to cook herself. "Here, eat up. I know things are tight at home, and you can't usually afford good food at school. I made this especially for you. Make sure you take care of your health. Being able to study well is more important than anything." Rachel looked down the hill with a naive look on her face and asked softly, "Is Penelope not eating?" Mom gave a cold snort. She didn't even spare a glance in my direction. "She always acts like she's so delicate and allergic to everything, doesn't she? Even if I gave it to her, she doesn't deserve a hot meal like this. Let her go hungry a few times and she'll finally learn her place." I lowered my head and looked at my worn-out backpack by my feet. Stuffed inside it was the cheapest cold boxed meal I'd bought that morning from the school cafeteria. For as long as I could remember, Mom had always said I was fussy and hard to raise, that I was nothing like her at all. I'd grown up without ever once tasting a meal she'd cooked just for me. Rachel cradled the lunchbox and said contentedly, "Ms. Lodge, I'd be so happy if you were my mom." Mom looked at her lovingly. "What are you talking about, silly? You're all my children." As she spoke, her gaze drifted slightly in my direction. Then, she turned away again and went right back to fussing over Rachel, reminding her to eat slowly so she wouldn't choke. Once all the students had found their own spots to rest and no one was crowding around her anymore, Mom finally cast another glance down the hill. Her expression was slightly darker than before. A moment later, she let out a sigh and started walking down the slope toward me. When she stopped beside my body, she snarled, "Penelope, stop pushing your luck. Or have you developed a liking for playing dead now? "I'm giving you one last chance. Get up right now and come along with everyone, or I'll just leave you to fend for yourself from now on!" I wanted to tell her that I was already dead. I could no longer cry and beg for mercy; I couldn't respond to anything she said anymore. Mom's initial anger slowly faded when she saw me lying there motionless. She crouched down, and for the first time, there was a hint of uncertainty in her voice. "Penelope, what's wrong with you?" She reached out carefully, wanting to touch my cheek. But in the very next second, an urgent shout came from up the hill, where everyone was resting. "Ms. Lodge, something happened!" Chapter 4 Mom immediately turned around and left me behind. It turned out that Rachel had accidentally fallen and hurt her leg. Mom's face blanched with panic when she saw the thin line of blood on Rachel's knee. Without another word, she crouched down and let Rachel climb onto her back, her voice full of alarm. "Don't be scared. I'll carry you to the infirmary. We can't let this scar. What if it affects your classes?" Rachel squirmed a little on her back. "But Penelope's still passed out down there. Are we just going to leave her?" Mom didn't so much as falter. "Don't worry about her right now. She's always putting on an act, anyway. She won't die. You're hurt worse than she is. Worry about yourself first." She hurried down the hill with Rachel on her back. After a few quick strides, she seemed to suddenly remember something and turned back to call out to my deskmate, Stephanie Barker. "Go keep an eye on Penelope. Shake her awake and have her rejoin the group. Don't let her linger here and cause trouble for everyone." Stephanie had been hoping to get back to school and rest as soon as possible. Reluctance and resentment filled her face at being singled out like this, but she could only duck her head and mumble an agreement. Once Mom had disappeared down the path with Rachel on her back, Stephanie finally dragged her feet over to me. She kicked my arm, irritation written all over her face. "Are you getting up or not? Cut it out already, will you? Your own mom doesn't even care about you. If you weren't lying here playing dead, I'd have gone back with everyone else a long time ago. "Instead, I'm stuck here wasting time because of you. God, you're so annoying. How can you just lie there and keep acting like you're out cold? You haven't budged at all!" The more she talked, the angrier she got. She kicked me again, harder this time. My head slammed into the cold stones lining the flowerbeds. Blood instantly spilled from my forehead, running down and staining the ground red. Stephanie's face turned ashen. She froze for a split second, then bolted, sprinting all the way back to school. In the classroom, Mom sat with her head lowered, staring blankly at my empty seat like she'd already been waiting there for a long time. When she saw Stephanie come back alone, she couldn't help looking surprised. "Why are you alone? Where's Penelope?" Stephanie's eyes darted around shiftily. She hastily said, "She's still out there sulking! I tried to get her to listen—I said everything I could think of, but she refused to listen. She even snapped at me and flat-out refused to get up!" To my surprise, Mom merely listened quietly without getting angry the way she used to. Instead, she just let out a long sigh. She said in resignation, "Even now, she's being so childish. She really has no idea where to draw the line." Then, she turned to Stephanie and said gently, "You've done enough. It's Penelope who's being reasonable. She made you waste your time and effort." Outside, the sky slowly turned completely dark, until only the sound of the wind remained. Small creatures crept closer to my body, drawn by the smell of blood. At first, they cautiously sniffed the blood on my forehead. When I still didn't move, they grew bolder, even starting to lick my flesh. I used to be terrified of the dark and of pain. Because of my allergies, even the tiniest cut would make me miserable for hours. But now, I didn't need to worry about that. I was dead, so I couldn't feel anything anymore. Chapter 5 Mom watched the students get picked up one by one, then made sure Rachel was settled and reminded her to get plenty of rest. By the time she was done with everything, it was already close to 11:00 pm. She dragged her tired body home. My backpack wasn't by the entryway, but she didn't think anything of it. She just assumed I had come back early and was sulking in my room. She stood in front of my tightly shut bedroom door and raised her voice, calling out, "Penelope, how long are you going to give me attitude over something so trivial?" When there was no response from inside, Mom thought I was just deliberately ignoring her. She shook her head helplessly and lowered her voice. "Honestly, when is she ever going to grow up? She's so insensible and always makes me worry." She didn't knock, nor did she ask any more questions. She just turned around and went back to her own room. The next morning, Mom got up, washed up, and got ready for work like she always did. She didn't think about me at all. Normally, the two of us lived our separate lives. I'd long since gotten used to waking up, getting ready, and heading to school on my own. I didn't need Mom to fuss over me at all. But on this day, she was different. On a normal day, Mom would stand firmly at the school gate, greeting students as they arrived and chatting with the teachers. But on this day, she walked straight past the gate with a frown, looking a little out of it, her steps hurried as she headed toward my classroom. She didn't even have the presence of mind to properly respond to her colleagues when they greeted her on the way. On her way, she ran into my homeroom teacher, Marilyn Bronson. Ms. Bronson walked up with a smile, her voice full of delight. "Ms. Lodge, Penelope has improved so much lately. She ranked fourth in the whole grade this time!" Mom forced a smile when she heard that. Then, she asked, "Did she… come in today?" Ms. Bronson's reply carried a note of concern that made Mom freeze in place. She said, "No, Ms. Lodge. She didn't come to school today, and she didn't turn in the homework that was due yesterday. I was actually just about to ask you if something might have happened to her." In that instant, Mom's mind went completely blank. The helpless frustration she'd felt last night turned into full-blown panic. Right at that moment, a police officer hurried into the school building. His eyes quickly landed on Mom. "Excuse me, are you Ms. Angela Lodge?" he asked. "We got a call from a morning jogger. They found a student collapsed on the hillside in the botanical garden. She's in your school's uniform." He paused. Before Mom could respond, he lowered his voice and continued, "We called an ambulance, but… I'm afraid the child has already passed on."