Mateo’s voice filled the room—sixteen, with the cracked optimism of a boy who still believed in the fifth act. “Testing. Okay. So. If anyone finds this—don’t tell my mom. Actually, no. Tell her. But wait until I’m… you know. Famous. Or dead. Whichever comes first.” A nervous laugh. “I’m not sad. I’m just… practicing. For when I have to be brave. Mom thinks I don’t notice she works double shifts. She thinks I don’t see her crying in the car before she comes inside. So here’s the secret: I love her more than I hate the silence. That’s my whole personality. Just that.”
She hadn’t wanted to come. But the email from Mr. Davison, the guidance counselor, had been… peculiar. “We have some remaining artifacts from Mateo’s file we’d like to discuss. Please attend the final session.” Artifacts. Not records. Not grades. Artifacts, as if her son had been unearthed from a dig. Mama-s Secret Parent Teacher Conference -Final-
“Mateo wrote this in Mrs. Hargrove’s class,” Davison said. “The assignment was ‘My Future, Age 35.’ He refused to submit it. Said it was ‘classified.’ Mrs. Hargrove kept it.” Mateo’s voice filled the room—sixteen, with the cracked