44 pages • 1 hour read
Maggie is furious at both her brothers and Claire, telling her that she isn’t like Claire, who gets everything she wants. Claire angrily walks away, and Maggie runs up to her room. Maggie overhears her parents talking later that night about how they feel bad that she can’t have a pet and how the pet store will take all of the mice. Maggie’s dad sits with her on the floor and explains how, as her father, he has a responsibility to keep her healthy, and that is why he must take the mice to the pet store. She tells him that all she wanted was someone or something all her own because the twins have each other, as do her parents. Her father acknowledges that she must be really frustrated and then tells her about how she used to help take care of the boys when they were born. After her father takes the mice away, she sleeps under her bed.
The next morning, the boys wake Maggie up, telling her that their mother is in labor. She finds a note of apology from her brothers, but she’s still angry and puts the letter back where she found it. She tells her mom that she doesn’t want her to leave, but her mother says that even though things are going to change, they may change for the better.
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