the first one • j. hughes

43

Age 6:

I was sitting there running my tongue over the spots where my teeth were supposed to be. In about a month, I had lost four teeth. My two top teeth and the two middle ones on the bottom. Mom said it was good, that I'd finally start chewing with my back teeth and not the front all the time. I thought it was mighty inconvenient. My smile in the photos was wrong.

"Hey, there, toothless," Dad said, carrying groceries in for Christmas time. Pretty sure I glared at him. A real nasty one. As nasty as a 6-year-old could do at least. He laughed and shook his head. "Better shape up, kiddo. Hughes' should be here any moment. Quinn's gonna lay into you."

"Why?" I pouted.

"Because Penn has been doing the same," he reminded me, making my pout worse. "You know how it is. Those boys tease anyone about anything. It's how they show they love you."

"I think that's stupid."

There's a gasp from the entrance of the kitchen. Ellen's voice followed. "Is that my sweet girl using a word like stupid?"

Despite how much I hated my teeth missing from my smile, I grinned. I was in her arms in a second. She hoisted me up on her hip and grinned right back.

"What took you so long?" I asked.

"Someone had us stopping for a pee about a million times," she said. "Look at that smile. How much did you get for those teeth?"

"Twenty bucks!"

Penn, just then getting in from outside despite all the snow, sputtered out, "Toothless got 5 bucks for each tooth?! I've only got one!"

"Who's toothless?" Quinn's voice piped in from behind Ellen.

"Ken lost four teeth," Dad said.

"Where's Luke and Jack?" I asked because seriously I was over the topic of my toothlessness. Ellen set me down and nodded toward the living room and off I went sprinting.

My best friend had the same idea. Luke sprinted out from the hall to our rooms and tackled me to the ground in what was meant to be a hug but two kids running at each other full force creates a recipe for disaster. Our laughter filled the living room as we got back up. Little Jack stared at me with a frown on his face.

"How much did you get for your teeth?" He asked.

My hand shot up to my mouth. For some reason, little me didn't expect little Jack to notice I lost my teeth. Everyone around our age was losing teeth. I never noticed until someone brought up their missing teeth and the tooth fairy.

"Twenty bucks," I said with my words muffled by my hand.

"What?" Jack said.

Penn and Quinn apparently had joined us in the living room because Penn piped in with, "Yeah, Toothless lost four teeth and got five bucks for each tooth."

"Don't call me that," I whined.

"What?" Jack said. "Toothless? You don't like being called Toothless, Toothless?"

It stung worse coming from Jack. Quinn and Penn bursting into laughter at me didn't help. I pouted. I did. Honest to God pouting with the bottom lip popped out and arms crossed. All of it. Luke told them to shut up or something.

But Jack just went, "Aw, Lukey's protecting Toothless."

I stormed out after that. Went and found my sister and cried. Jack didn't make fun of me that much so when he did it would destroy little me. I grew more used to it over the years but at that point, I wasn't used to being teased by him. That was around the time he started to try and be one of the older kids. He wanted to be like Penn, Quinn, and Holly.

I wanted him to be like me and Luke. I wanted him to stay with the younger half and he didn't want that because, at one point, every younger sibling wants to be like their older sibling. And Quinn teased me. Jack didn't know how to tease me and he took it too far. But honestly? I was ready to get revenge.

Just like I had when Penn kept making fun of my tennis skills. If he wanted to be like the older kids, I'd give him the same treatment. I waited and waited and waited for opportunities to get him back in an appropriate way. It never happened.