Kids can be so cruel.
A lot of people don't know why or how it begins, but most of the blame can be placed squarely on the parents. Oh these parents will tell you that their children would never do such things or misbehave and embarass them as parents, because let's face facts; no parents wants to admit their short comings in raising their children.
Look at all these cases in the school system. It's sad but true that teachers just don't have any real authority these days. They are powerless to enforce any rules or to reign in these children when what they really need is a good swat across the butt. I had my share of spankings and I grew of healthy mentally and physically. But the government has just gotten too nosy for their own good, inserting themselves into every aspect of our lives, both personal and professional. Neither a parent nor a teacher can discipline an unruly child these days without being accosted by childrens services for the slightest thing.
Spanking a child? That's physical abuse. Raising your voice? Verbal abuse. Putting them in a corner? If you don't give them a chair then that's a form of abuse. Deny them treats or send them to bed without supper. To these children's services hounds, it's all abuse, and it all amounts to making these brats into holy terrors.
Haven't we heard enough reports on the news about children who tragically killed themselves in order to escape these bullies and their cruel mistreatment? One girl who commited suicide was laying in her casket at her own memorial and still the bullies responsible for her death actually had the gall to show up and laugh at her at her own funeral. And if the parents or family of that girl, what would have happened if they stepped in and threw those gurls out or yelled at them? Siple; the government would accost them for abuse and we can all agree the parents of the bullies would never believe their precious angels would do anything so horrific.
"Cookie is so fat she sat on a quarter and a booger shot out of George Washington’s nose!"
"Cookie is so fat when she gets cut she bleeds gravy!"
"Water buffalo!"
The little children's taunts were heard all around the school hallway when the seven year old Cookie would walk down the hallway. Even at such a young age, Cookie was a pleasantly plump little girl. Her mother would, on occassion, hint that she might be happier if she would lose a little weight so the other kids would leave her alone, but her father disagreed. He thought his little girl was beautiful as she was and she didn't need to change for those kids or anyone else for that matter. Her father pointed out that at her last doctor visit, her pediatrician said she was perfectly healthy, despite the extra weight. So her father would always come out ahead on the subject of a diet, but she knew her mom's heart was in the right place.
One day when she was dropped off at school, Cookie's mom saw first-hand the torment her baby giirl was put through as a group of little girls standing by the school entrance started calling after her and taunting her as she headed up the path and toward the entrance, thus, bringing her closer to the bullies. Her mom was just too stunned to react immediately. She didn't think these children would be so brazen as to do something right in front of her but not only were they taunting her daughter, it turned into physical abuse as well. Cookie had almost made it to the steps when one of the girls came up from behind and with a hefty shove, she sent Cookie sprawling into the concrete steps at their feet. the other girls squeeled in laughter and Cookie's mom had seen quite enough. She turned off the car motor and stepped out and the tormentors froze. No sooner did the car door slam shut than the little 'cowards' raced past Cookie who was climbing to her feet and into the relative safety of the school building.
Cookie's mom didn't have a chance to help her daughter up as Cookie scrambled to her feet before she even got to her and made her way inside of the school. her little girl put on a brave front but mothers always know. She could see the tears streaking down her daughter's face.
She watched Cookie go up the steps to the school's second story where her classroom was, but she herself walked inside of the school's foyer and went down the three immediate steps inside and to the main hall where the principal's office was, and that was where the man in charge of Carson elementary got to deal with a very enraged mother about the bullying he tolerated at his school.
The man stood no chance against this woman's tirade. She was a mother who just witnessed her daughter's degradation and humiliation in front of her own eyes and she was determined that he put a stop to it, or she and her husband would.
"Damn." Christian Underwood said as he leaned back in the booth at the Village Inn diner, watching as the woman seated opposite him took a bite of a large steak, well done. "I know you told me you went through some bullying as a kid but that sounds more like absolute hell."
Cookie set her fork down and picked up her glass of Sprite. "Oh trust me, it was a heck of a lot more than just bullying." She took a drink to wash her meal down and set the glass back on the table. "Those girls made my life a living hell. At least right up to that point anyway. Even at that age, in school there are cliques. They were the 'pretty girls' who would one day reign as the prom queens and the most popular girls who had all the boys interested in them. Any girl who didn't meaure up to their standards might just as well have been wearing targets on their backs because it was usually the end result anyway. You know the types. the ones who make jokes about ugly or fat girls and call other girls sluts when they're the ones who are always on their backs with their legs in the air on a Saturday night."
Christian had just taken a bite of his salmon when Cookie made her statement and he almost choked, laughing. He closed his eyes tightly and waited until his air passe cleared before he wiped at his eyes with his napkin and looked at the woman who was wearing a slight smile.
"You don't pull any punches, do you?"
"Not any more." Cookie answered. "Sweety, everything I say about girls like that is absolutely true. They're little hypocrites. They call these other girls names in an attempt to appease their own egos about their own looks. Oh maybe if they make one little girl feel ugly or fat, then they'll look better in comparison. They'll go and screw the captain of the football team and half his teammates just because she wants him to like her and if he likes her, then that just has to mean she's the most popular girl at school."
"Boys are no better." Christian countered. "They can be pretty rough on their peers, too."
Cookie countered, "Yeah but with boys it's usually physical. Girls target the emotional vulnerability of their victims, and believe me when I tell you emotional scars are a lot harder to deal with and recover from than the physical side of things."
Christian nodded as he contemplated this. He reached forward for his glass of iced tea and had a drink, taking great care to make sure Cookie would do ntohing to cause him another choking scene. She seemed to take great pleasure in making people laugh, and it was even better for her if they were doing something awkward where her joking around could catch them unaware and make a bit of a scene. He could still recall the interview he conducted before hiring her when she had again caused him to choke on something he was eating. She gave him the Heimlich maneuver, unwillingly, but he strongly suspected that she just used this as an excuse to cop a cheap feel.
After returning his glass to it's coaster, he asked, "So indulge my curiousity. What happened with those girls?"
Cookie shrugged, "My mom confronted the principal and he pretty much knew the guilty parties. They were the so-called mean girls' clique of my grade school. They had a bit of a file for their treatment of the other children in our year."
"A file?" Christian repeated in disbelief. "At their age? you're joking."
"No, I'm not." Cookie responded. "Pardon how I phrase this but they were mean little bitches, and they grew up to bee even meaner big bitches. That day the principal called their parents, and of course, they refused to admit their precious babies were capable of such actions, even when my mom met them and told them what she saw. They called her a liar and in the same sentence, suggested things like this wouldn't happen if her daughter didn't make herself out to be such an easy target."
Christian asked, holding his hand outward, "How exactly did you make yourself a target? What, like their kids' actions were all your fault?"
"According to them," Cookie said. "Apparently, so. After another little incident, one of their daughters got suspended for hitting me in the head with a book because my mom 'tattled'. My dad had enough and he met that girls' dad and made it clear in no uncertain terms that her bullying was to stop."
Christian sat up in interest. "And...?"
Cookie shrugged, "And the bastard took exception to being told how he should parent and took a swing at my dad, and my dad beat the hell out of him for doing so. The man's wife tried calling the police but the neighbors saw what happened and took my dad's side and it was the other girl's dad who got hauled tossed in the back of the police car. Needless to say, that girl wasn't a problem any more."
"But the other girls were."
Cookie said, "Oh sure. They weren't going to let a little thing like what happened to their buddy's dad stop them from having their fun. Practically every day they'd do something or say something to try to get me to cry or run away. the teachers tried to control it but there's only so much the adults can do. Once their backs are turned, kids will act out like kids."
Christian raised his eyebrows and leaned forward and propped his forearms on the table. He observed, "Then I'm feeling sort of obligated to apologize for signing you to this Bombshell tag match against these two women. It has to rbing back a lot of bad memories."
"Psht!" Cookie frowned and waved his concern off. "I appreciate the sentiment but there's really nothing those two little hos can say or do to get to me. I watched the promos for Climax Control and on the show itself and that Veronica Taylor is nothing more than a little girl in a woman's world. And if this Jesse Atlas is a friend of her's then you know she's cut from the same cloth. Bitches usually travel in packs anyway, am I right?"
Christian smiles and holds up his hand, "I'm one of the bosses, so I have to at least try to remain impartial."
"Which answered my question just fine." Cookie winked. "Trust me, I know these types. Did anyone even watch that girl's match? Cheat, cheat, cheat. Hairpulling and eye rakes and pulling tights. She took every short cut she could think of until one finally paid off and she got the win."
"And she's going to be taking those same short cuts in your tag team match, too." Christian pointed out.
"And?" Cookie countered. "What, you don't think I'm capable of doing the exact same and giving her and her little tart, er, partner, a taste of their own medicine? You don't think my own partner is going to be able to bend the rules and kick some bony model butt?"
Christian nodded, conceding the point, "Jesse and Veronica are going to have their hands full, I have to give you that."
Cookie smiled, "Literally and figuratively, sweet cakes. I can already hear them, laughing and pointing at me. Telling their required number of fat jokes." She shrugged. "Well let them have their fun, because when that bell rings baby, it's going to be Cookie and Brandi's turn to have some fun and neither of those two Project Runway failures will be strutting their junk down any runway any time soon after this."
Christian chuckled, "I was wondering if there would be any Project Runway references tossed around for this one."
"Oh I could do better, sure." Cookie smiled. "I could stoop to their level and make with the model jokes. i could say that Jesse Atlas is so anorexic that if she put on a fur coat she'd look like a pipe cleaner."
Christian barked out a snort of laughter before he could contain himself, and Cookie went on.
She said, "Or I could tell a skinny joke about Veronica too....."
There was an awkward pause for a scant number of seconds and Christian raised his brow and asked inquiringly, "Yessss?"
Cookie looked up from her plate and blinked.
"What?" She asked. "I said I 'could' tell one, but if you've seen that chick's picture then you'd know she looks like she could have swallowed Snooki from Jersey Shore and had room left for dessert. if she's 116 pounds then I'm an A-cup."
Christian propped his elbow on the table and rested his chin in the palm of his hand.
"Something tells me you're looking forward to this match young lady." he observed.
"Just a little bit." She smiled, pinching her thumb to her forefinger. "Just a little bit. Think of it as past conversion therapy. Everything those mean girls put me through as a little girl, Veronica and Jesse are going to answer for as adults."
