I didn’t mean to hurt her. I should have known that this other girl had a disability. I realized that some people with disabilities did not respond well to yelling.
The girl’s name was Fiona. Fiona had interrupted me with some thought going on inside her head while I’d talked to my friend, Juliette. She’d spoken about something that happened at a game she’d seen. She’d done it over and over again until I snapped at her, saying, “Fiona, stop it! You’re being so freaking annoying! Go away!”
And right that second, Fiona had burst into tears. Another kid had said that Fiona had some disability. I had flushed after.
I now sat at my desk and did my homework. For health class, we had to research a disability. I was assigned Asperger’s Syndrome.
As I pulled up the Internet on my computer, I received a text message. It came from Juliette.
Hey Mandy
Fiona just told me she was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome over the weekend. She was too afraid to tell you.
I opened my mouth. I had not yet researched the symptoms of Asperger’s Syndrome. But maybe that explained why she had had trouble with understanding my feelings. Why she had been desperate to get her thoughts out. Why she had cried when I’d yelled at her.
When I did the research, I saw that people with Asperger’s can be eager to let their thoughts out as well as emotionally sensitive.
After finishing my homework, I texted Juliette back.
Tell Fiona I am sorry for yelling at her. Thanks.
I sent the message. Hopefully, Fiona would forgive me.
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