Ashley was standing across the living room watching her dad put up the tree that they got from the tree farm. It was a Balsam Tree. She quickly ran upstairs into the attic to get the ornaments. She went to the far side of the attic and grabbed all the ornaments of all shapes and sizes and colors. Ashley was already half way down the stairs when her dad called.
“Ashley, where are those ornaments?” Her father yelled.Ashley came into the living room and set them on the couch.“Hey dad, what do we put on first, the tinsel, or the lights?”
She asked.“The lights go on first.” Her dad said.So Ashley grabbed the lights and handed them to her dad. He started at the top and when her dad was done, she would do the bottom.
After the lights were on, they put on all of the ornaments.“Now the tinsel Ashley.”Her father was being sarcastic. Ashley loved tinsel. She would grab it and sprinkle it on like little tiny candy hearts on her cupcakes. After they were finished, they took a step back to admire their masterpiece. Being the 12 year old that she is, Ashley eventually got bored and went up to her room. She had already eaten dinner so she did not need to go back downstairs to eat.
She ended up falling asleep and waking up to her alarm at 5:30 am. So she goes downstairs to eat breakfast. Then, back upstairs to brush her teeth and hair. Ashley quickly gets dressed and got her winter jacket and her winter boots on and went outside to wait for the bus. She got on the bus and sat in the front seat where she always sits.
After school, she was walking out of the school. Walking home, and then she saw one of the meanest girls in school. Stephanie Madison. She is always making fun of everyone and always has the latest fashion. Like today. She was wearing a pink sparkly headband with her pink shirt and a blue skirt and bright pink flats.
“Hey, Ashley, what are you doing over winter break?” Said Stephanie.
Ashley looked at her. And just walked away. She knew that if she started talking, she would never hear the end of it. She decided to walk home so she did not see Stephanie on the bus. When she got home she saw her dad on the roof. Probably hanging lights or something.
“Hey Ashley. How was school?” Her dad said. “Good. I got an A on my Algebra test.” “Good, good.” Said her father.
It was clear that he was into something else. So she went inside and saw something on the table. It was her mom’s angel ornament. Ashley’s mom always used to put in the same spot on the tree every year. But she is not here for Christmas. She is in Germany helping our Great Aunt. So, she goes outside and asked her dad,
“Dad, why is mom’s ornament on the table?”
He stops his work on the roof and says, “I was thinking that you could put it on the tree on Christmas Eve.” Ashley looked shocked,so she runs to her room while grabbing the ornament on the way to package it so she can take it to school.
The next morning, Ashley gets up and gets dressed, brushes her teeth and brushes her hair. She did not have time to eat, she went out the door and waits for the bus. She gets off the bus and goes to her locker and puts the ornament in her locker and locks it tight. Then, she heads to class. On the way to algebra, she saw Stephanie. Ashley tried to avoid eye contact. But, Stephanie still talked to her.
“Hey, Ashley, what was that thing in your locker?” Stephanie said.
“I don’t want to talk Stephanie.” Ashley said.
Ashley tried to walk away. But Stephanie tripped her and she fell and hit her face on the floor. Ashley got up and rubbed her face. It looked like it hurt. Then, Ashley ran to the nurse’s office. While Ashley was going to the nurse’s office, Stephanie went to Ashley’s locker and she grabbed a bobby pin and picked at her lock until, she finally opened it. She grabbed the box with the angel in it, and closed the locker. Locked it and left.
After school, Ashley went to her locker to get her ornament. She opened her locker and she saw that her ornament was GONE!!!!! Where could it have gone? She wondered. She never touched it. Except for this morning.
“Okay, let’s rethink our steps. I put in my locker at 8:31. And I am just now opening my locker. No one else could have gotten in. I need to tell dad” Said Ashley to herself.
Ashley went home to see her dad. She went inside and found her dad on the couch sleeping.
“Dad, I have something to tell you. I lost the ornament that mom always put on the tree.” Ashley said with a sound if worry.
Her dad woke up and said, “What?”
She could not say it again. She regretted it so much. Ashley thinks that he heard her. Hopefully.
“I cannot believe you! Go to your room and think about what you've done. Said her dad.
Ashley ran in tears. She did not even do it. Instead of crying, she is going to figure out who took the ornament. She thinks there are only 3 people that can get into my locker. The janitor, me and Stephanie. Because what locker can she not open? And for the janitor, he just goes in there for his monthly clean up. And it is not Monday for the janitor, and Ashley was not able to open her locker, so, it had to be Stephanie!!
Ashley was starting to talk to herself like a crazy person. “I am going to get in that bus and tell Stephanie that she can't get into my locker and steal my things!! I WILL get my ornament.”
The next morning, Ashley just gets out of bed brushed teeth and hair and soon runs to the bus to tell Stephanie off. She got on and saw Stephanie in the back seat staring at her. She knew that this was going to happen.
But Ashley did it anyway. “Stephanie!! You stole my mom's ornament!! What do you have to explain for yourself?”
Stephanie gets up. Looks down at her and smiles.
Stephanie said, “Yea, I stole it, what is the big deal? I mean, it is just a piece of plastic? Right Ashley?” She even chuckled.
Ashley was so mad. But, she kept it calm. Otherwise it would be tomorrow's news.
So she says, “You know what Stephanie, I would like it if you could please give it back?”
Stephanie nodded. Then, she just started crying, and in between her sobs, she says,
“I'm sorry, I don't know what I was,thinking, I mean, I knew why I took it because you would not talk to me when I try to talk to you. Will you please forgive me?”
I nodded my head and Stephanie gave her my package and they both sat down.
When Ashley got home from school, she went to see her dad in his office. So, she just starts being all happy and calm and said,
“Dad, I found the ornament.” Ashley smiled. Her father turned around and then he said,
“Then we better put it on the tree before you lose it again.”
Ashley and her dad go to their tree and Ashley put the little angel on the same spot it always went. She looked at the angel and decided that maybe she was a little too hard on Stephanie. She could have been more nice to Stephanie.
It is Christmas after all. And maybe in the end, Ashley and Stephanie could actually, be friends. After that whole thing about the ornament, Ashley went to go see her mom for Christmas and celebrate there. And Stephanie had Christmas with her family. In Haiti. But when she came back, she was a better person than she has ever been. Either Haiti set her straight, or Ashley did. Who knows.
Works Cited
Stephanie. Digital image. Web. 13 Feb. 2017. <https://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/closeup-hand-little-blond-girl-giving-christmas-gift-box-forward-face-not-visible-horizontal-image-orientation-64725971.jpg>.
Angel On Tree. Digital image. Web. 3 Feb. 2017. <https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51piIWXvDqL._SY355_.jpg>.
CHristmas Tree. Digital image. Web. 1 Feb. 2017. <https://www.flickr.com/photos/64889264@N00/3145476754/in/photolist-5MXoDQ-7Hj5Z7-7CKd9g-4bNsip-iASUyG-4m2Pqb-dxFcZ2-jj22DU-u4pbE-9ag7Y8-ba3S5a-aYqkPc-4bSt3o-qxxLmc-bg6F1x-94sALd-7>.
Opened Box. Digital image. Web. 3 Feb. 2017. <https://pixabay.com/p-24547/?no_redirect>.
Thinking Ashley. Digital image. Web. 3 Feb. 2017. <https://pixabay.com/p-15814/?no_redirect>.
Yellow Bus. Digital image. Web. 3 Feb. 2017. <https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/Yellow_school_buses_Pittsburgh.JPG>.
Credits:
Created with images by kevin dooley - "Happy Bokeh Christmas Eve! Add your favorite Christmas Quotes!" • john47kent - "Christmas Tree" • PublicDomainPictures - "christmas bauble red ball"