Don't post about your dead mother

It's 6th grade science fair and you've drawn the worst straw of all: you're not going to do the Mentos and Coke bottle explosion. You're not going to do the volcano. You're not even going to do the baby carrots and the 9-volt battery. <br><br>No, you're going to build a cloud in a jar.<br><br>That means you need to get some shaving cream, water, ice, salt, a thin piece of wire, a metal washer, water, and a plastic bottle. Scavenging for supplies was fine, but you know your mom would have taken you to Walmart to buy everything. She always said saving money wasn't worth the amount of time you spent to get it. <br><br>You aren't sure of that. She's been dead for two years and you still find yourself hoping she's home when you get back from school. <br><br>So you start from scratch: you take the 2-liter bottle and you cut off the top with a box cutter. You flip it upside down and shove it inside the bottle itself. Scissors don't work nearly as well.<br><br>Next comes the cloud itself: the shaving cream. You grab a few handfuls of it and you stuff it into the bottle. You aren't entirely sure how much of it you need, but shaving cream is cheap and your dad isn't the kind of guy who will check prices. <br><br>The wire is the hardest part. You manage to get your fingers pinched twice by the pliers while you're twisting the wire into a spiral. Your dad has a few choice things to say when you start crying, but at least he lets you watch TV for the rest of the night. <br><br>The washer kills your thumbs. You lie in bed for hours, trying to fall asleep, but every time you close your eyes you see the washer and the pliers and you can't help but sob. <br><br>When you wake up you realize you forgot to buy water. You have to call the science fair off and you have to explain why to the teacher. You get a C+.<br><br>You still have to present it the next week and every kid in class asks why the cloud doesn't condense when you put the ice on it. You tell them it's supposed to do that and they laugh. <br><br>You tell your dad when you get home. <br><br>"Don't post about your dead mother on the internet," he says. "I know you think it's clever, but you're just begging for sympathy. You think you're the only 12-year old in the world who's had a parent die? You aren't special. And when you try to be, you're just making a fool of yourself." <br><br>He pauses, lets out a sigh. <br><br>"Did you get a B?"<br><br>"No, I got a C+."<br><br>"Well why aren't you studying then? You need to focus."<br><br>You're not sure. You're not sure about a lot of things.<br><br>When you go to bed you can't sleep. You keep thinking about your mom and the science fair and your dad and the cloud in a bottle. You cry, but you're quiet about it. You don't want to hear what your dad has to say.