The April Fool's Day Prank That Nearly Gave my Dad a Heart Attack

It's April Fool's Day, 2013 and my big sis calls me shocked out of her mind about a prank my dad had just pulled on her. After telling me the story, which I no longer remember, she says "we need to get him back good." Arousing my evil genius, I come up with the idea to trick my dad into believing that I've ended up in the hospital. Yes, it is as bad as it sounds. I am not a parent but I think the worst thing a parent can be encountered with is learning that their child's life has been threatened or put in danger in any way.

To make matters worse, I completely overlook my environment, as if it wasn't a tough situation to begin with. I graduated from Temple University, and though it's a great school and the foundation for which my person has been built upon, the truth is--TU is in just too dangerous of an environment for this suburban girl to have lived in. And my parents always hated the fact that that's where my twin and I decided to go.

But on to the prank. To make this believable, I couldn't call my dad myself. I needed to find someone to play "doctor" so I asked my guy friends. But so many of them turned me down! Most of them answered, "Vanessa, this is so wrong!" That should've given me the hint to just scrap the idea.

After begging my student government co-chair, he reluctantly, but finally, agrees.

I ask a non-New Yorker to use their phone because my co-chair and I just so happen to both be from the same area.

We call my dad.

Co-chair: Hello, Mr. D. This is Dr. Mitchell calling from Temple University Hospital.

Dad: Okay, how can I help you?

Co-chair: Mr. D, we have your daughter Vanessa here at the hospital. She was in an incident earlier this evening. Apparently she got into an altercation with someone who tried to steal her phone. They got into a bit of a fight. She has a broken arm and she lost a tooth.

Silence...

Dad: Is she okay? Can I talk to her?

Co-chair: Yes, she will be okay. You can speak with her. One second.

Me: (fake crying) Hello?

Dad: Vava, what happened?

Me: (still fake crying) Daddy, someone tried to steal my phone and I was going to give it to them but I thought I was stronger so I held onto it. They pushed me on the ground and I broke my arm and lost a tooth.

Dad: Vava, you should have just given them the phone. It's just a phone. We could get you another one. What hurts?

He was getting too concerned so I had to give the jig up.

Me: (loud and obnoxious) Ha! Ha! April Fools Day! It was a joke dad. I'm fine. That wasn't a real doctor. That was my friend.

Dad: Wait. What? So you're not in the hospital?

Me: Nope! I'm good. Za said you played a mean trick on her so we had to get you back.

Dad: Vanessa are you serious? (The first time he used my whole name in the convo) Okay. As long as you're okay.

We hang up. I feel like crap. My mom calls me later and tells me I'm cruel. I've always been a "daddy's girl" so I knew my dad would be shocked. I just didn't know how much. I called my dad daily apologizing and checking on him. My mom reported: he barely ate or talked that week.

I was soooo out of line.