Chapter 1

“Oops.” Ella laughed, her two friends giggling behind her. “You dropped it, Nicole. Aren’t you going to pick it up?”

Nicole’s face burned, but she bent down quickly and gathered the book. The cover was smudged with mud now. She wiped it on her sleeve and stood up, keeping her eyes down. The morning sun was still low, painting long shadows across the schoolyard. Children were playing on the swings and chasing each other near the fence. No one looked her way.

“What’s the matter? Cat got your tongue?” Ella stepped closer, her white sneakers almost touching Nicole’s worn brown shoes. Nicole could smell Ella’s sweet bubblegum. She stayed quiet, just like always.

“I said,” Ella’s voice dropped, “what’s in your bag today?”

Nicole’s hand tightened on her backpack strap. Inside was her lunch—half a sandwich wrapped in wax paper, an apple, and a small note from Grandma. It always said the same thing: “Seventy times of grace, my love. Be kind.”

“Nothing special,” Nicole whispered.

“Let me see.” Ella grabbed the bag. Nicole held on, but she was smaller and lighter. The strap slipped, and Ella yanked the bag open. Her friend Rachel reached in and pulled out the wax-paper packet.

“Lunch! Called it.” Rachel tossed the packet to Ella.

Ella unwrapped it quickly. “Peanut butter again? You’re so poor, Nicole.” She took a bite, chewed, and made a face. “Boring.”

Nicole’s throat tightened. She wanted to say something, to grab her lunch back, but the words stuck. She always tried to remember what Grandma said about grace—forgiving even when it hurt—but it was hard. Her stomach growled softly.

“Give it back, please,” she managed.

Ella looked at her, then at her friends. “Say ‘Ella is the best’ and maybe I will.”

Nicole pressed her lips together. The playground noise seemed to fade. She could feel the eyes of a few kids nearby, but they quickly looked away. No one helped.

“Ella is the best,” she said quietly, her voice trembling.

Ella grinned, tossed the half-eaten sandwich on the ground, and walked away with Rachel and the other girl.

Nicole stood still for a long moment. Then she knelt and picked up the sandwich, brushing off a bit of grass. It was ruined, but she wrapped it back in the wax paper and put it in her bag. She would throw it away later.

At lunch, she sat alone on the end of a bench near the old oak tree. She ate only the apple, her eyes on the other children laughing and sharing food. She pulled out Grandma’s note and read it again. The words were in careful blue ink: “Seventy times of grace. Be kind.” She folded it and put it back.

After lunch, they had art class. Mrs. Chen handed out paper and crayons. “Today we draw something that makes us happy,” she said.

Nicole thought of her grandma’s kitchen, the smell of bread, the warm hug, the little garden out back. She started drawing flowers—yellow and pink ones, like the ones in Grandma’s garden. Her crayon moved steadily.

Ella was sitting two tables away, whispering with Rachel. Nicole tried not to listen, but she heard her name. She kept drawing, her hand slowing. Then something tapped her shoulder. She turned. Rachel held out a crumpled piece of paper.

“From Ella,” Rachel said, smirking.

Nicole unfolded it. In messy handwriting: “You draw like a baby. No wonder you have no friends.”

She crumpled the note and stuffed it in her desk, her face hot. She finished her drawing anyway. Yellow and pink flowers on a green hill, a blue sky. It looked cheerful, but her heart was heavy.

When the bell rang, she gathered her things and headed for the door. Ella blocked her path.

“Wait.” Ella held up something shiny. “You dropped this earlier.” It was a small silver bracelet with a little heart charm. Nicole had never seen it before. It must have fallen from another girl’s bag.

“That’s not mine,” Nicole said.

“I know. But I saw you find it. You were going to keep it, weren’t you?” Ella dangled it in front of her.

“No! I didn’t—”

“Prove it. Take it and give it to Mrs. Chen.” Ella’s eyes narrowed. “Go on. If you don’t, I’ll tell everyone you stole it.”

Nicole’s hand trembled as she reached out. The bracelet’s metal felt cool. She looked at Mrs. Chen, who was cleaning the board. She could walk over, hand it in, and tell the truth. But what if Ella told lies anyway? She always did.

Ella laughed and walked away, leaving Nicole alone in the doorway with the bracelet in her palm.

The bracelet was not hers. She knew the right thing. But she also knew that doing the right thing had never stopped Ella before. She closed her fingers around the bracelet, the heart charm pressing into her skin. She took a step toward the teacher’s desk—then stopped.

From the corner of her eye, she saw a girl from another class—Maya—standing by the hallway drinking fountain. Maya was new, shy, and often alone. And right now, Rachel was walking over to her, smirking.

Nicole looked from the bracelet in her hand to Maya, who was shrinking against the wall. She thought of Grandma’s note. “Seventy times of grace.”

She tucked the bracelet into her pocket and walked toward Maya, her heart beating fast. She didn’t know what she would say yet. But for once, she didn’t stay quiet.