Lib Novel Page 45
“Then, today there was another incident,” Principal Tucker went on. “And this one was a little more serious. He was joking around with his friend, Donny Brown, and the next thing Miss Sullivan knew Sylvester had Donny in a headlock and he was rubbing his knuckles into the other boy’s hair. It’s what the children call a noogie.”
Cora gulped, too stunned to even think about replying.
“At any rate,” the principal continued. “No one was hurt. And both boys are still fast friends. But you understand that this kind of roughhousing isn’t acceptable at school.”
“Of course,” Cora said, finding her breath. “It certainly isn’t.”
“Now, we’re not too worried, and we think both incidents are out of character for Sylvester,” Principal Tucker went on with a smile. “But we thought it best to get you involved early, so that you could help us prevent a pattern of the kind of behavior that could result in someone getting hurt.”
“I’m very grateful to you for bringing this to my attention,” Cora said. “We will have a serious talk at home, and you have my word that I’ll do everything in my power to help him course correct. You and Miss Sullivan are free to reach out at any time if you see him sliding. It’s important to me that Sylvester is a good school citizen.”
“He’s learning,” Principal Tucker said with a smile. “They all are, Mrs. Davies. They’re all still very young. We know they’ll be okay as long as we help them understand what’s acceptable and what isn’t.”
She stood, as if to let Cora know it was okay to head to the library to pick up her boy.
“Thank you again,” Cora said.
“I only wish all my parent meetings went this way,” the principal said kindly. “I know he’ll be just fine.”
Cora scurried out of the office and headed down the hall to the library, reminding herself to breathe. She stopped just outside, gathering herself to talk with her son.
His behavior was out of character, and yet something about it rang a bell. Jumping on a desk, giving someone a noogie…
Now that she had a minute to think, it came to her right away.
Jared Webb…
She had asked Sylvester how Jared got the men at the feed shop to volunteer, and he had instantly said, “He stood on a chair. Everyone looked at him like, wow. And it was so cool.”
And that business about a noogie, he had seen Jared do it to his brother when they were arguing over cookies.
Guilt landed heavily on her shoulders. She obviously should have anticipated this with the way Sylvester looked up to the impulsive cowboy. It wasn’t his fault. It was hers.
She took a deep breath and headed into the library.
Sylvester looked up at her, his eyes large and worried, even though the librarian was bent over a book with him. He clutched the football keychain tightly in one hand, a sure sign that he was upset.
“I’m in trouble,” he said softly, as Cora approached.
“It’s okay,” she told him right away. “Making mistakes is how we learn.”
The relief in his face and the sag of his thin shoulders made her feel even worse.
We just have to have a nice talk, she thought to herself.
But by the time they were piling into the car and her son’s face was still a mask of misery and embarrassment, she stopped feeling fear and sadness, and anger flowed in to take their places.
She had let her guard down for a few weeks and allowed herself to enjoy Jared’s company, her head in the clouds about whether she might be ready to open her heart, instead of keeping her focus on how the situation might impact her son.
And now he was in trouble at a brand-new school, where he should be making a lovely first impression.
No more, she thought to herself, pressing her lips together. No more.
Her son was her first and only priority, and she was going to do a better job of remembering that from now on.
He sat silently by her side all the way home, his little face angled out the window as her heart broke into a thousand pieces and she struggled to find a simple way to talk to him about his behavior, Jared’s role in it, and how she knew he would do better now that he understood the difference between classroom behavior and… whatever Jared’s behavior was. Sure, everyone liked the exuberant cowboy, but his impulsive ways weren’t a good example for an impressionable little boy.
She was so busy organizing her thoughts that she didn’t notice Jared’s truck in her driveway until she was practically pulling up next to it.