April's Fool

Now when I'm an older Blumaroo, and looking back to my past, the bad things and mistakes I've made mostly seem less severe than they seemed at the time. I mean, I never intended to be cruel or hurt anyone, I simply didn't think anything through and ponder what kind of impacts my actions would have.

     I'd like to believe that no one thinks that I'm... evil. Only one of my pranks was actually mean, and only now I really understand that. But how could I have known it back then? She had never mentioned anything before...

     At that time, I was only a young girl, going to neoschool just like every other kid. I was so pretty and popular. Painted as rainbow, I was as bubbly, carefree and happy as you can expect. Such a cliché, really. But everybody liked me and my mischievous nature.

     My best friend in the whole wide world was a quieter, sweeter girl, a yellow Zafara named Ailee, and she liked to spend much of her free time in the library, always studying. But at evenings when I visited her – or managed to persuade her to stay at my place overnight, we could talk and giggle for hours. Even though she wasn't nearly as popular as I was, pets generally were nice to her. Many wondered why we were such inseparable friends as we couldn't be more different.

     Ailee had a loving family, something I sometimes envied. I was the only pet my owner had, and it was a little lonely at times. Even though we had more money to spare than they had, I could have traded places with her anytime. Mom was never there with me, and refused to even discuss about getting me a sibling. Perhaps that is why I so craved attention at school, pulled mostly innocent pranks on bystanders. But I was still so nice to everyone they couldn't help but to like me. After all, it was way better to receive admiring grins and even sit in detention and get bored than to return to empty home.

     So, as you may have guessed, when April Fool's Day was approaching, I was busy as a bee planning all kinds of practical jokes. I bought buckets so I could fill them with ice-cold water and put them on top of doors, so that the unsuspecting victim who would open them would receive an ice-cold shower. I searched for tongue-coloring candies and whoopie-cushions, hand buzzers, squirting flowers and such things. All the normal stuff you can think of. I wanted to make this April Fools memorable.

     Mom hadn't come home in the last two weeks.

     All around neoschool I heard whispers. Pets followed my steps carefully, since at this time of the year no one could be sure what might pop up. Oh, how I enjoyed the attention. I had hidden a few balloons in the school, and as they eventually popped loudly, startled screams and jumps were seen, followed by giggles. I never saw those annoyed glances shot at my bag, or those rolling eyes. I was ever so sure everyone was having a good time. I suppose some pets even were.

     So, the day before the April Fool's Day, I was sitting in my room with Ailee. We were drinking some thornberry tea and eating some crumpets.

     “So please,” Ailee began, “give me a hint. What are you planning for tomorrow,” she said, and grinned sheepishly. “You know, I hate this suspense.”

     I looked at her, and carefully, carefully pretending to think, I bit my finger. “Oh, I don't know,” I said. “Do you really want to know? I mean, everyone else will be so surprised, and I don't want to ruin it for you.”

     “Really, Mav,” she said, using my nickname. I hated my real name, Maleiven, so I had asked everyone to ignore that. Only my mom used it. And even she only called me that when she was angry at me for some reason. Ailee had suddenly gotten serious. “Thank you so much that you promised to leave me out of this. I really do appreciate it.” She paused, and for a few seconds looked at me like she was planning to tell me something. “I really do.”

     “Don't mention it,” I said, and smiled. If only she knew what I had planned....

     And we continued chatting as if nothing had happened. And I, not for a second, stopped to think what she would have wanted to say.

     So, the April Fool's Day finally dawned. I excitedly took my backpack and rushed out of the door just five minutes after I had woken up. There was no point, really, to force myself to eat a solitary breakfast. I had never really liked to eat alone anyway.

     When I arrived at the school, the courtyard was still empty. It was a little too early yet for the students to arrive, which suited me and my diabolical plan perfectly. I put those buckets of water over doors, put the squirting water on, and made arrangements for my ultimate prank.

     When the students arrived, I was ready.

     No one dared to shake hands with me that day. It didn't matter, because I was amused through the whole morning as I heard yelps when pets got soaked with ice-cold water. Somehow I managed to ignore all the annoyed – and possibly – hurt looks I received.

     As the classes finally began, I sat among the few shivering pets (the water I had used really had been icy). I sat innocently and looked at our teacher when slightly late Ailee came next to me, smiling friendly as always. She opened her desk.

     A water-balloon, full of rainbow fountain water, exploded all over her.

     A shocked silence fell to the room, until I began to laugh. “You look great being rainbow too,” I managed to say between my giggles.

     At that point, many others on our class were giggling as well. Ailee hadn't managed to say anything yet; she just frantically tried to get the water off of her. No one was able to see her face.

     When the giggles didn't stop, Ailee's scrubbing slowed. And I managed to hear a small sob.

     Then she dashed out of the room.

     She didn't return to school the day after that. Or day after that. She didn't answer to any of my neomails I sent her, and I sent many. When I tried to get to her home, I was always told with toneless voice that she wasn't there, with completely expressionless face.

     On the third day, her little brother, looking extremely angry, came to me.

     “Happy now?” he spat. “Your prank was such a success. She ran away this morning.”

     I was speechless.

     “Did you ever manage to listen to her between your rants?”

     Then he threw a letter to my feet and stomped off.

     The letter explained quite a few things. First of all, apparently my friend had been very much teased behind my back, and often because she had been just yellow. Also because she spent so much time in the library. So, with my little prank I had managed to point everyone's attention to the fact she was unpainted, and ruin the books she had loved so much. And I had also lied to her, as I had promised not to pull a prank on her. But I had simply thought Ailee would have enjoyed the surprise.

     She also said she never wanted to see me again, or hear of me.

     I never forgave this incident for my self. Ailee had been so much better friend to me than I had ever been to her. I never met anyone as wonderful as she had been again.

     What really haunts me is, that I lost a dear friend and hurt her. And only because I never really listened to her.

The End