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The Tooth Fairy Trick

 

    When Emma was seven, she lost a tooth. It was white as snow, shiny and as tiny as a pearl. Emma loved her tooth.

    “Put it under your pillow tonight so the tooth fairy will come,” said her big brother Eric. “You’ll get some money for it!”

    But Emma did not want money. She wanted to keep her tooth. She had lost other teeth already, but this one she wanted to keep.

    She felt the empty space with her tongue. She gripped her tooth in her hand and would not let it go.

    Emma ran to her room. She felt like crying. “I don’t want to give you up.” She opened her palm and looked at her tiny tooth. Then Emma thought of something. She grabbed a piece of paper and a crayon and in her best handwriting she wrote:

Dear Tooth Fairy,
I will give you my tooth for 3 dimes, 1 nickel and 1 quarter.
Love, Emma

    That night, Emma made a ball out of a tiny piece of paper. The tooth fairy will think this is my tooth and give me money too, she thought. Emma giggled. She would be able to keep her tooth and get some money. She tucked the paper under her pillow and fell fast asleep.

    The next morning, Emma awoke excited to see how much money she got. But first, she pulled open the drawer in her bed stand. There sat her pearly white, tiny tooth.

    Emma giggled.

    She grabbed under her pillow and felt around. Instead of coins, she felt a piece of paper--a letter.

    Uh oh, Emma thought.

    She slowly pulled the paper out and opened it.

Dear Emma,
    It is not nice to trick the tooth fairy. I flew a long way before I realized you had given me a crumpled tiny piece of paper. I had to fly all the way back and get the coins I left for you under your pillow. If you don’t want to give up your tooth, that is fine. You may keep it for as long as you’d like. However, no tooth, no money!
          Love, The Tooth Fairy

    Emma did not think that it was funny. She showed the letter to her mother.

    Her mother giggled. “You cannot trick the tooth fairy, Emma. It’s not nice.”

    Emma showed the letter to her brother.

    “Nothing ever gets by the tooth fairy, Em. Do you want the money or your tiny tooth?”

    Emma stomped off. But she made her decision. She wrote another letter to the tooth fairy:

Dear Tooth Fairy,
I am very sorry I tricked you last night. I decided to keep my tooth. I hope you understand.
          Love, Emma

    The next morning when Emma awoke she found a letter under her pillow. It simply read,

Dear Emma,
    I forgive you and I understand! But if you change your mind, just put the tooth under your pillow!
Love, The Tooth Fairy

    Emma held her tiny tooth tightly in her hand and smiled. It felt good to do the right thing!

 

 

 

 

illustration by Samantha Bell