Last week was my birthday.
My parents gave me a cool gift—my own smartphone.
"Enjoying your new phone, Ella?" Dad asked.
"Don't forget your online manners.
"Number one: Think before you send or post."
I groaned as Dad started listing our family's "netiquette rules."
"Two: Never chat or share pictures with strangers . . ."
By now I'd heard these rules a million times.
While Dad continued reciting them, I looked down at my phone.
I had a new message from my friend, Josh.
Josh: Hey! Still want to go to the movies tomorrow?
Ella: Yes!
Josh: Great! Violet?
I rolled my eyes.
Josh, Violet, and I had been friends since third grade.
But things started to change when we entered middle school.
Violet had joined the drama club and made new friends.
Now whenever she hung around with us, she sang songs from musicals—loudly.
It got on my nerves.
"Ella?"
"Oops, sorry, Dad. Josh asked me something."
He frowned.
"Dad, you don't have to tell me about netiquette again," I said quickly.
"Trust me—I know all the rules already."
"Good." He nodded.
"Then it's time to follow rule number five: no screen time until your chores are done."
I saluted him. "Got it."
Ella: No Violet tomorrow. I'm sick of her loud singing!
I inserted an emoticon with a person plugging her ears, and then I went to fold laundry.
The next day when I met Josh at the movie theater, he rushed up to me.
"So, is Violet really angry?"
"Angry about what?" I asked.
"About what you said about her."
"I don't know what you're talking about."
Josh looked worried.
"Yesterday when we were talking, it was a group chat."
I blinked. "Does that mean . . .?"
"Yep, Violet was in our chat too."
Josh and I bought tickets and sat down.
He started laughing at something on his phone, but I was too anxious to laugh at anything.
I was thinking about how I'd insulted Violet.
No Violet tomorrow. I'm sick of her loud singing!
I felt terrible. Violet and I had grown apart, but she was still my friend.
"Rule number one," I thought as tears slipped down my cheeks.
"Think before you send."
After the movie I biked over to Violet’s house.
"I'm sorry, Violet," I blurted out.
"I didn't realize it was a group chat and . . ." I kept talking, desperately trying to apologize.
Violet looked away. "It's okay."
I shook my head. "No, it's not."
We stood in silence for a few moments, and then Violet looked up.
"You definitely hurt my feelings, Ella.
But my family says I do talk about theater stuff too much."
She flashed a weak smile at me.
"I'll try to stop singing show tunes, I promise."
"I made such a stupid mistake," I mumbled.
Violet nodded. "My parents always say to be cautious online.
You can't take something back once you send it or post it."
I swallowed. I'd learned that lesson the hard way.
She shrugged and opened the door wider.
"Want to come in for a while?"
"Sure." I turned off my phone and then went inside.