“No, Amanda,” Michelle sighed into the phone. “The HEXBUG nano Habitat & Bugs Bundle isn’t some kind of cursed insect robot.”

“Well, how am I supposed to know THAT?” Amanda huffed back. “I’ve been reading things, Michelle. Apparently hexes and vampires are what all the kids are talking about today. My little Mackenzie, I caught her babysitter with a novel about vampires. I’m not even sure I can trust her to sit for us any more. I’ve been thinking about looking for someone new.”

“It’s not vampires, Amanda,” said Michelle. “Tim wouldn’t buy your kids a toy about vampires. The HEXBUG nano Habitat & Bugs Bundle is about robots. It’s a starter kit that teaches science.”

Amanda clicked her tongue. “I’ve been reading that vampires might be science-based too.” Michelle made a face at the phone.

“Where? Where did you read that, Amanda? Because there’s no such thing as vampires! Look, the HEXBUG nano Habitat & Bugs Bundle is just a couple of robots and some really cool pieces of track, all of which lock together to make a maze where the robots can run around and sometimes maybe fight.”

“Fight?” Amanda sounded worried. “I’m not sure Gavin’s old enough to be around violence.”

“Amanda, it’s not real violence when it’s robots. Seriously. The reason Tim got your kids the HEXBUG nano Habitat & Bugs Bundle is because kids just love these things. My kids love these things. Every one of their friends love these things. They’re a great gift and you can even change the battery when they run down. You turn ‘em on, they wiggle and shake and look cool, and they fit perfectly in a pocket so you can sneak them into school and play with them at lunch. What more could a kid want?”

“Michelle, I’m surprised at you! My Mackenzie would never disrupt school. Not like your Olivia with her volcano science project. Do you know how quickly that vinegar might have stained everyone’s sweater if the mixture had been slightly wrong? If you ask me, it was a very irresponsible dare.”

Michelle silently counted to ten.

“Just try them, Amanda. If Mackenzie doesn’t like the HEXBUG nano Habitat & Bugs Bundle, give it all back, and we’ll get her a book.”

“But not about-”

”-No, not about vampires. I promise.”

Amanda sniffed. “I suppose Tim does know how children think. Maybe I’ll let Mackenzie try some supervised play later tonight, and see if the robots give her bad dreams.”

“I’m sure she’ll be fine, Amanda.”

“Well… we’ll see. But, regardless, thank you, Michelle. And thank Tim. It was a lovely gift, and very thoughtful of you both.”

“Don’t mention it, Amanda,” said Michelle, her finger just over the “disconnect” button. “And wait until she figures out how to activate the death beam!”

Tim didn’t ask why the phone kept ringing for the rest of the night. He just knew that Michelle had forbidden him to pick it up.

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