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"Shannon, I'm so freaked out for you right now. He's five and psychotic and his
head is huge. He's like a little circus freak except he's five. Shit, no wonder you're
miserable. I would have just packed up and walked out about a week ago! The big
headed midget is a fucking psycho! And screw those parents, good lord."

Jen would know everything that happened with those kids. I told her as much
as I could about Mario and Maria that night as a secret 21 st birthday present to
myself, and I kept her informed every single day since. She saw their crazy, saw
them hit, bite, yell, abuse, and torment each other and me. She knew about the
housekeeper, who cooked me salmon because she learned it was my favorite dish
and who had slanderously told my host parents that I hit their children. She knew
all of the things that I didn't tell my parents or Bradley, things that had eaten at
me like Mario. She knew about the last day before I left them, about how I did
nothing to stop Mario and Maria from their indecent behavior in the baby pool, as
we both laughed through spiteful tears. But she didn't know that our first day as
friends, sitting on the couch at 11 pm, was the last hour of my 21 st birthday.