The Crushed Crayons

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"Uh oh," Marcus muttered under his breath as he stared down at the mess on the floor. His sister Amy's prized 64-crayon box lay crushed and scattered across the beige carpet. Reds, blues, greens - all jumbled together in a chaotic splatter.

Marcus knew how much Amy loved her crayons. She had gotten the big box for her 7th birthday just last month and carried it everywhere, using it to color elaborate pictures and designs. The one time Marcus had tried to borrow a crayon without asking, Amy had scolded him severely. "Don't touch my crayons without permission!" she had shouted.

And now here they all were, strewn brokenly on the floor. Amy would be home from soccer practice soon. Marcus had to fix this, and fast.

He scrambled to gather up all the fragmented crayons, wincing as he had to peel some of the wax sticks from the carpet fibers. He collected them into a pile. Maybe he could just shove them all back in the box? No, Amy would definitely notice. He had to figure out a way to piece them back together.

Marcus ran to get some Scotch tape from the kitchen drawer. He peeled off a long strip and tried wrapping it around a snapped blue crayon, sealing the two halves back together. But the tape showed clearly and the crayon didn't roll smoothly anymore. Frowning, Marcus tried again with a piece of red crayon, using just a small dot of tape on the break. Better, but still not perfect.

He kept trying, testing out different taping methods on crayon after crayon. Some he could fix well but most still looked damaged. Marcus groaned when he heard the front door open and his sister call out "I'm home!"

Panicking, Marcus scooped all the crayons back into the box and shoved it under the couch. He tried to look casual as Amy bounded into the room.

"Hi Marcus! Wanna see my new soccer trophy?" she said enthusiastically, holding up a glinting gold figurine.

"That's nice," Marcus said, trying not to look guilty. "Hey so, I'm kind of hungry. Want to see if Mom can take us out for ice cream?"

Amy's eyes lit up. "Yeah! Let me put my trophy away and get my crayons. I want to draw a picture of my sundae once we get it!"

Marcus's heart sank. "Um wait!" he called as Amy skipped toward her room. He had to stall her.

She turned. "What?"

"I, uh, I need your advice on something," Marcus improvised. "You know that really hard math worksheet I have to do? With the fractions and stuff? I'm stuck on it and could really use your help."

Amy looked pleased to be asked for help. "Okay, we can look at it," she said agreeably.

Marcus breathed a sigh of relief. He bought himself some time. But he still had to figure out a better solution.

Over bowls of rocky road ice cream, Marcus racked his brain while Amy babbled on about soccer strategies. There had to be a way to really fix the crayons. If only he could perfectly meld the pieces back together somehow...

Then suddenly Marcus had an idea. Dad always used the hot glue gun for his hobby projects! The glue melted and sealed things perfectly. Maybe that could fuse the broken crayons?

As soon as they got home, Marcus fished the hot glue gun out of Dad's workshop. He gathered the crayons and got to work, gingerly applying tiny drops of hot glue to the breaks and crevices. To his delight, the wax warmed and smoothed over perfectly. The crayons looked good as new!

"Amy, I have something to show you," Marcus called. She bounded over and Marcus presented the box of crayons with a flourish.

Amy's eyes widened. "My crayons! What happened?"

Marcus took a deep breath. "I'm really sorry Amy. I accidentally knocked them off the table and they broke. But look - I figured out how to fix them! I used hot glue and you can't even tell they were broken. They work perfectly now, see?" He demonstrated a seamlessly rolling green crayon.

Amy took the box and inspected the crayons carefully. "Wow, you really fixed them! Good job, Marcus." To his relief, she grinned. "But next time, just TELL me if you break something of mine. Don't try to hide it. I would have helped you fix them right away."

Marcus smiled. "You're right, that was dumb of me. Next time I'll just tell you. Deal?"

Amy gave him a playful punch on the arm. "Deal." She pulled out a purple crayon. "Now let's start planning what we'll draw next!"

Marcus laughed, happy he had been able to restore his sister's precious crayons. He knew now that owning up to mistakes right away was better than trying to cover them up. With Amy's help, he could fix anything - he just had to tell the truth.