"You don't wanna be here."
Steve pauses in the doorway of Tommy's bedroom, his backpack halfway off his shoulders. His eyes narrow as he frowns, "Why not? I said I was comin' over."
"Yeah, but that was before Mom got mad," Tommy sighs dramatically. "She's mad at everyone and she said she doesn't want to hear a peep from us until Dad gets home. No one is allowed to leave their room."
"But!" Tommy jumps. "You should talk to her!"
"Because you're never in trouble," He replies. "You can tell Mom that I'm sorry and it wasn't my fault. It's Tyler's fault. Or Theo's 'cause he's the oldest. Or Travis', just not mine."
He gets in trouble all the time at home and at school but...his mom doesn't talk to him either when she's mad at him and he hates it.
He's gotten pretty good at making it up to her so, "I'll try to fix it."
"Awesome," Tommy cheers. "Remember, it wasn't my fault. I just pushed him. I didn't break the wall."
Steve slides his backpack off his shoulders the rest of the way and digs around for what he needs inside before heading back downstairs. He follows the sound of Tommy's mom to the dining room where she stood in front of a head-sized hole in the wall, "Hi, Miss Maria."
"Hi, Stevie," She says, not sounding particularly angry. "I didn't hear you come in."
"It's 'cause I’m like a ninja," He says."I got you something. It's a present. From Tommy."
He presents her - "A rock?"
"It's a lucky rock," Steve informs her. "The weird kid at the park that bites m- Tommy says that it has good luck magic. He says that there's not a lot of magic in the world no more so you have to be real careful who you share it with when you find some."
"The weird kid said that he's got a lot of good luck already," Steve continues. "So he gave me - I mean, Tommy - this magic rock. He said you have to carry it with you all the time and if you squeeze it real tight, it'll steal your sad away. That's good 'cause you don't want to be sad anyways."
He pauses and adds, "Now I'm giving - I mean, Tommy is giving you the magic. As a present 'cause he's sorry and he loves you. Do you like it?"
"This is a very nice rock and a very thoughtful gift," She says. "I think it was really nice of your friend to give it to you, Steve. I think you should keep it."
"But - but it's a present," Steve says. "It's a present from Tommy so you stop being mad at him."
"Take my stupid rock and stop being mad at Tommy!" Steve snaps. "Stop ignoring him! It hurts people's feelings when their mama ignores them and-"
"Hey," Maria says firmly. "Steve, I’m not ignoring Tommy. I’m not ignoring anyone. I sent the boys to their rooms so they could think about their actions and to calm down."
"I’m not happy that they damaged the wall," She concedes. "One of them could have gotten hurt and we're lucky that they didn't, but I’m not mad at them. I’m disappointed."
"That's worse!" Steve complains, scrubbing at his dry eyes. "Tommy said you told him not to leave 'til Mr David got here."
"That's true," She says. "When Mr David comes home, we're going to discuss their punishment."
"What if he doesn't come home for a long time?" Steve asks. "What if Tommy had to stay in his room all by himself forever? He's gonna get hungry."
"Mr David will be home in fifteen minutes, hon," She assures. "I wouldn't make them stay in there all day otherwise. Is that something that happens at your house?"
"I don't want Tommy to get punished."
"Me neither," She admits. "But there are consequences to our actions and sometimes the consequences aren't very fun but they're necessary. They teach us not to do things that can hurt us."
She gestures Steve over to her. He comes easily, allowing her to pick him up into a hug. She presses a kiss to the top of his head and asks, "What kind of punishment do you think my boys should get?"
"I dunno," Steve shrugs. "Just don't take their allowance away."
"Deal," She says, feeling a little unease at the request. She pushes the concern to the side for now with a hum and asks, "You think I can fix this hole?"
"No away," Steve says. "Your wall is a goner."