“Sophia!” My mother’s furious voice echoed through the house. I looked up from the geography book that I was studying.

“Sophia! Get down here right now!” Fear fluttered in my chest. I knew what my mother was capable of.

I hurried down the stairs, my heart pounding like the thundering hooves of a thousand wild stallions. My white socks slipped across the pristine tile floor as I scurried to the living room.

As I entered the room, I noticed a yellow slip of paper in my mother’s hand. She turned to me, glaring down her nose and through her tiny glasses.

“Yes, Mother?” I asked politely, dipping my head in a desperate attempt to reduce my punishment. 

“How in the world did you end up with an A in math?” I could practically see steam coming out of her ears. Her face was so red that she looked like she might explode.

My face fell as I realized that I must have done horrible on my last math test.

“I-I’m very sorry, Mother. I didn’t mean to. I should’ve done better.” My eyes searched the carpet hairs on the ground.

“Yes. You should have done better. Daniel!” My father stalked out of his office and went to stand next to my mother.

“What has she done this time, Minerva?” He asked my mom, glaring at me.

“She- she got an- an A. In math!” My mother was choking on tears. “What will this mean for our perfect reputation, Daniel?” 

“I don’t know, honey. Sophia is the one who needs to make a change. We are both perfect.” 

My mother smiled up at my father and kissed him on his cheek. 

“Mother?” I asked. Her smile turned back into an ugly frown as she turned to me.

“What do you want?” 

“M- mother? Technically, I- I got way over one hundred percent. I take ninth grade advanced math, which is two grades ahead of mine. It just shows as the grade I got in that class, but being in an advanced class bumps my-”

“Blah Blah Blah. You still got an A!” My mother glared at me. “Go to your quarters. Your father and I will discuss your punishment.”

“Yes, mother.” I knew better than to argue with her. As much as I wanted to tromp up the stairs, I kept my posture straight until I reached my room. I collapsed on my rickety old bed. The room was cold with dull white walls. My bed was just a mattress on a weird, black, shaky contraption. A rusty desk was positioned on the far wall with all my school books piled high upon them. A small wooden dresser was placed next to my desk, which held a tiny mirror on top. I peered at my reflection.

My brown eyes glared back at me. My straight black hair curled at the ends of my light brown shoulders. I noticed the worry creases in my eyebrows. 

“You should’ve done better!” I yelled at my mirrored reflection. “How can you be so bad?” Tears streaked my face and I shivered in the cold air. I fell onto my bed, stuffing my face into my jean dress. The lace straps tightened as I pulled the dress towards my face. I whimpered, crying uncontrollably until my mother appeared in the doorway, a hungry gleam in her eyes.

“Sophia. We’ve decided your punishment.”