I don’t really know where to begin here but I guess it kind of all started around the beginning of the 2nd semester in 6th grade. So before I tell the ‘story’ of when my hatred began, I’m gonna say some essential stuff first. When I was around 3 and a half years old, my parents split up. So since they split up, there was a court thing set up for custody. But before the court thing happened, my dad started dating some lady named Sheila. Sheila kind of knew my mom, And she didn’t really like her. They used to be friends but then they kinda stopped being friends. And since they used to be friends, Sheila knew where my mom lived. Since Sheila also never really wanted to see her, she tampered with my moms mail. She took the envelope that would tell my mom when the court dates were. So when court time arrived, my mom wasn’t there. Why? Because that stupid idiot Sheila took the god dang envelope!! So as you can guess, because my mom wasn’t there, my dad got full custody. Later on my dad married Sheila. And she made my life hell. She always said that she was going to call the cops and crap. I hated her guts. I had to deal with her till I was about 8 years old. Then Sheila and my dad divorced and bla bla bla. Ok now time for the ‘good’ stuff. During the summer that would transition me from elementary school to middle school (5th grade to 6th grade) I got my first working phone. So as anyone else would do, I got all the main social media apps. Instagram, Snapchat, and Tik Tok. So that went well and it was pretty epic. But then around a third way through 6th grade, I decided to get Facebook and messenger (keeping it secret from my dad of course) because I really wanted to find my mom. I didn’t find her on Facebook, but I did find my aunt Nikki. She gave me my moms Snapchat and phone number. So, I texted her on Snapchat and it was ‘the best month’ or two of my life. Then eventually I decided I wanted to tell my dad. So I told my mom that I was going to tell him. But I still needed a way to tell him that I was talking to her. Then I decided I was going to write him a ‘letter’ (I emailed it to him). So when the ‘letter’ was complete, I sent it to him before school. Then when I got home later that day he talked to me about the email and how I’m not allowed to talk to my mom because he has full custody. So he made me delete Snapchat AND Instagram (I had already deleted Facebook/Messenger). He didn’t ground me though. Then 11 year old me decided ‘I’m gonna run away’. So about a week later I had my bag packed and I was gonna run away right after school the next day. But then my dad woke me up the next day, saw, my bag, looked in it, and then figured I was gonna try to run away. So then, he made me give him my phone. But I had Instagram on my phone because.. well I needed my memes back. So I had to try and delete it right there in front of him without him noticing. He saw me delete it. Know what he did? He grounded me until school was over that year. That would Be 7 MONTHS. Bla bla bla the seven months go by And.. surprise, I hated it. Whatever I get my phone back now because the 7 months are finally over. So he lets me get Instagram back because he saw that I didn’t have my mom on instagram. So then time goes by, and guess what. I found my mom on instagram. We talked hours on hours, days on days. We talked so much. And she was making a room for me in her and her boyfriends house. Her boyfriends name is Cj and he’s really nice. They’ve been together for over 7 years. I can probably even call him the dad I never had. Ok that’s off topic now lol. So months go by and now it’s march. We’ve been talking for over half a year, and the room is basically done except for carpeting. So we start talking about lawyers and stuff so that I can start seeing her again and hopefully she gets full custody. But then, one night, I didn’t want to fold my laundry, so my dad said he was gonna take away my phone until I got it’s folded. So I was almost done folding the laundry and my dad comes in my room and says “because I’m your dad I can look at this notification. The notification was from instagram... it was just a new follower. So I ask if I can have my phone back now because I have like one piece of laundry left and he says no. Crap. He starts looking all around my instagram. Next thing I know, he knows I’m talking to my mom. So he takes away my phone for about a week (And my iPad). Then he gives them back after the week. And this was the weekend before Minnesota schools shut down due to coronavirus. So for a while I try to obey my dad And not talk to my mom. But then after like 3 days, I made a new Instagram account and started taking to her again. It’s going good for about a month. Then one day my dad walks into my room while I was texting her. Crap. I hide my phone as quick as I can and he sees me hiding it. Crap. He makes me show him what I’m doing. Crap. He finds out I was talking to her again so he takes away my phone. (Also just gonna say this quick when I was talking to her for the ‘last’ time she downloaded roblox because I kept talking about it..LOL). He didn’t take away my iPad so I was happy about that. About a day later my mom messaged me on roblox saying “why are you grounded?”. I never said I was grounded to her though??... my stupid dad must’ve texted her while pretending to be me ‘I’m grounded’. I didn’t respond to her though because I just couldn’t risk it. I can’t have roblox talked away. Like at all. But then about 5 days later my dad comes in my room, takes my iPad, and says “I know you can talk to your mom on Roblox. If you keep talking to her I will put a restraining order on her and make her pay up the $50,000 that I haven’t made her pay for that make 9 years.” ARE YOU KIDDING ME. My dad I so god dang stupid. If he does that crap it’s going to make me REALLY hate him. And seriously dad?! You can see for a fact that I saw her message on Roblox And DIDN’T RESPOND. So now I’m stuck in quarantine because of coronavirus (I don’t have it) with nothing but a dumb school iPad so that I can do my online school crap, and a dang Tv. And just a ‘by the way’ it’s been 9 years since I’ve seen her. Oh also yes, I am a twelve year old. (I’m turning thirteen July 28th this year though).

So Dad if you see this. Mom was right. You doing all this Crap is ‘tearing us apart’ in other words dad, I hate you.

Written by: Leyla Fitzgerald

Date written: Tuesday April 7th 2020

Written on: The dumb school iPad

Captain's Dear Diary