[ noun ] An award-winning freelance writer and all-around nice guy.
[ origin ] It’s the first day of high school and the teacher is taking attendance. Julia? Here. Adam? Here. Sadia? Here. She nears the end of the list and calls out Kaidy. There’s no answer. A young man raises his hand from the back of the room. It’s Katie, he says confidently. I’m sorry, Katie, the teacher replies. It’s only once he hears it back does he realize his mistake. Since kindergarten, everyone has wrongly pronounced his name as Katie. His name sounds more like Heidi, but with a K. The teacher has pronounced it correctly. This is the first time anyone has. The young man raises his hand again. Actually, he says. My name is Kaidy. She stares at him blankly and the whole class follows suit. You were right before, he explains. It’s Kaidy, not Katie. He doesn’t even know his own name, someone whispers in the silence. Kaidy? The teacher repeats. That’s right, he says, voice cracking, upper lip sweating, face shining with the colour of a fire truck racing towards a car crash.
[ contact ] kaidy.w@gmail.com