Chapter 5
CHAPTER FIVE
Ivy showed up no worse for the wear after her night alone, and for the rest of the week the girl came to Nora’s room during first period without incident, which was good because Principal Coleman hadn’t had to stop by her office. And now Nora was about to get two glorious days off for the weekend. Except she still had the counselor issue hanging over her head.
Nora sat at her desk, drumming her fingers, her office phone pressed to her ear.
“Hi, Mr. Ryman, this is Nora Jenkins again. I wanted to see if we could touch base on a time to meet. Give me a call at the school at your earliest convenience.” Nora left the call-back number once more and hung up the phone.
She’d left messages since Wednesday with no response.
“Hey, girly!” Kim said, poking her head in. “Ready for the weekend?”
“I am.”
Kim frowned. “You don’t look like you’re ready. What’s stressing you out?”
“Is it that obvious?”
“Definitely.”
Nora sighed. “For the last three days, I’ve tried to get Blaze Ryman, Ivy’s dad, on the phone to no avail. I’ve left message after message, and I’m starting to worry.”
Did Blaze have any regard for people other than himself and his clients? His social media feed was overflowing with his daily goings-on, yet he couldn’t pick up the phone even once to return her calls?
“You can only do what you can do, Nora. Don’t take it personally.”
“It’s tough not to.”
“If you need a sounding board, come by my room later. I’m free fourth period because of the assembly.”
“Thanks.”
At least Ivy hadn’t done anything monumental recently. She’d ridden the bus all week and been a perfect angel. Nora had let her skip geography, as promised, but made her go today, reminding her that it was Friday, and she could do anything for one day.
Ivy had also been serving detention for the biology virus stunt in Nora’s room each day after school. The girl seemed to look forward to it. She enjoyed being with Nora. She’d even stopped by that morning to ask when the end-of-year pep-rally was going to start, a question she could’ve posed to her homeroom teacher. Nora got the sense Ivy had been looking for an excuse to touch base.
Nora was happy the girl had had a better week, but she wasn’t any closer to resolving Ivy’s situation. And while she tried not to take baggage home with her, she always did. Even with her trip getting closer. Gram had piled their bathroom counters with sunscreen, aloe vera gel, and travel-sized bottles of shampoo, gotten Nora a new sunhat, and even left her laptop open to swimsuits so Nora could order a new one. But Nora struggled to get excited about the trip. She had too much to do in the next two weeks. She had to make sure Ivy was okay before she left so she could enjoy herself.
Just when she’d gathered up a stack of paperwork she needed to file before Ivy showed up for detention, her office phone buzzed. She picked it up.
“Hey, it’s Joyce,” the office receptionist said. “I’ve got Blaze Ryman on the line for you. Can I transfer him?”
Nora’s mouth dried out and she lowered herself at her desk. “Of course.”
As the line beeped three times to alert her the call was being transferred, Nora set the papers on top of her keyboard and braced herself.
“Hello, this is Nora Jenkins.”
“Hi. Blaze Ryman. I’m returning your call.”
Calls. Plural.
“Hi, Mr. Ryman. Thank you for calling back,” she said through gritted teeth. Glad you could grace us with your attention.
“I’m so terribly sorry,” he said. “I’ve been a complete jerk.”
Nora sat up a little straighter. This is unexpected .
“My schedule has been absolutely slammed. I’ve been trying to squeeze six months into the last four weeks so I can try to figure out how to be there for my daughter.” He let out a breath. “I can come in next week, if you’re free.”
He sounded sincere. How quickly she could forgive him.
“That’s fantastic news,” she said. She decided to wait to tell him about the family counselor until they met in person. “What are you doing on Monday?”
“My schedule’s open. What time works best for you?”
“I can do ten o’clock. That way you and I can talk before Ivy gets out of class. Then she can join us during fourth period.”
“Perfect,” he said. “I’ll bring some paperwork about a few programs I’d like to get her involved in this summer.”
He’s planned activities this summer?
“There’s a young creatives group I think she’d like, and I also have information from Youth on a Mission, since I know she enjoys helping underprivileged people.”
Nora cocked her head to the side. “She does?”
“Yeah. At least she did when she lived with her mom.”
This news initially shocked Nora, but then again, she could see Ivy having a heart for people who didn’t have a lot, given her need to separate herself from her father’s money.
“Well, I’ll see ya Monday,” he said.
“Okay. Thanks again for calling me back.”
“Thank you for your patience. Losing Candace hasn’t been easy for me either.”
Another surprising admission.
Nora said her goodbyes and hung up the phone, then stared at her black computer screen, still processing the call. She felt a tiny bit lighter, knowing she might finally be able to make some small difference with Ivy and her dad before removing herself from the situation over the break.
She clicked on her computer and focused on her work until the final bell when Ivy arrived for detention.
“Hey,” Ivy said, coming into the room right on cue and dropping her sack of books onto the table. “Last day.”
Nora checked the time on the wall clock. “The bell only just rang. You’re earlier than usual.”
“Yeah. Trying to win student of the year.” Ivy smirked.
“What kind of student were you in your old school?” she asked, standing up and moving over to Ivy. “Were you different?”
Ivy’s gaze dropped to the bag of books. “Yeah, I was different.”
“How so?”
“I didn’t get into trouble as much.”
“Why do you think that is?”
Ivy’s face dropped. “I was too busy being happy.” The girl went over to the window and leaned against the white-painted cinderblock ledge, the sun shining on her hair, making it a lighter pink, like cotton candy. She squinted toward the football field. A few kids were running around the track that encircled it.
“Thank God for summer,” she said, making her way to the corner of the room where she dropped into the beanbag and started braiding a lock of her hair. “I can’t wait to get out of here.” She looked up. “No offense.”
“None taken.” Nora sat across from the girl. “I’m excited for school to end too. Remember that day when my grandmother was texting me about the beach? I’m going to go with her.”
Ivy’s eyebrows rose, and she nodded.
“What makes you excited for summer? Have anything planned?” Nora asked.
Ivy shook her head. “No, but I can do what I want. Dad won’t be there to tell me I can’t.”
Had Blaze gotten information on the young creatives group and mission work to keep Ivy busy since he wouldn’t be there? Were the activities a form of babysitting?
The girl stared at Nora for a tick before she said, “Not all of us get to run off to the beach.”
“It wasn’t my idea, but I’m not complaining. It will be nice to get away.”
“When are you leaving?”
“The day after school gets out.”
Ivy smiled politely and shifted her gaze. Nora suspected the girl wasn’t as excited about her summer as she made out to be. If her dad didn’t follow through on the activities he’d planned, what would her days be like, all alone for eight or more hours at a time? As much as Ivy hated it, she needed the routine that school brought. What kind of trouble would she get into unsupervised all day?
They were down to two weeks. Two weeks to find a suitable family counselor to take over.
“You said you can do what you want this summer,” Nora said. “What do you want to do?”
“Probably sleep in and then…” Ivy frowned, and for the first time her hard outer shell crumbled, a vulnerability took over her features, and tears welled in her eyes. “I don’t know.” Her voice broke on the last word. “Nothing, I guess.” She closed her eyes, and flopped back onto the beanbag chair, throwing her arm over her face.
Nora felt for Ivy. She could see that, deep down, a little brown-haired girl with big gray eyes like her father’s was inside this teen, frantically building walls to protect herself from any more pain.
“What are you doing the rest of today?” Nora heard herself say.
Ivy peeked out from under her arm. “Nothing. My dad’s at work and my car’s still out of commission.”
“Want to help me organize my office for the summer?”
Ivy sat up and grimaced. “No. Why would you do that?”
“I need to go through my cabinets and get things packed away for the break, when the custodians wax the floors. You’re welcome to just hang out while I organize, if you’d like. I think there’s a special Friday coffee station in the teacher’s lounge. There were baskets of snacks. I could see if they have any sodas.”
She really needed to keep to school hours with Ivy, but the girl’s despair was heartbreaking, and it had hit a nerve. Helping people to love life had been her original goal in getting a counseling degree. She was drawn to Ivy because the teen had a need that Nora could fill. The need just didn’t fit within her job description.
Ivy pulled out her phone, her thumbs flying across the surface. After a ping, she looked up. “Dad says it’s fine with him.”
They spent the rest of the detention period cleaning up Nora’s office for the weekend and getting ready to tackle her two large rolling cabinets.
“What do you think you’ll do at the beach?” Ivy asked as she sorted class papers by teacher and filed them.
“I’m not sure,” Nora replied. “Probably read.”
She expected the girl to scoff, but she seemed interested.
Ivy dropped the last of her stack of papers into its file, shut the drawer, and asked, “What kind of books do you like?”
Nora stapled packets for her lesson with Mr. Atkins’ class. “It depends on my mood. But I’m guessing I’ll grab a couple beach reads and some mysteries.”
Ivy moved to the white board and erased the old lists on it at Nora’s request.
“What do you like to do to pass the time?” Nora asked, licking her thumb to gather up another stack of papers.
Ivy shrugged.
“I won’t let you off that easily,” Nora said. “I told you I like beach reads and mysteries. I also put an herbal mud mask on my face in the evenings. It’s supposed to have antioxidants that will keep my skin looking young.”
Ivy snorted.
“What? You think it’s not working?”
Ivy fluffed a pillow on the sofa in the corner. “I think you don’t need it.”
“But maybe that’s because it’s working,” Nora countered.
Ivy let out a little laugh. The sound filled Nora with happiness. She finished setting out the papers she’d need for Monday’s lessons and her meeting with Blaze.
“What are you going to tell my dad when you have your meeting?” Ivy asked, eyeing the discipline forms on the corner of Nora’s desk.
“What would you like me to tell him?”
“That school is pointless. I can learn everything they teach in ten minutes on the internet.”
“But would you?”
Ivy opened the first cabinet and made a face at the disorganized mess. “Would I what?”
“Would you actually spend the ten minutes—or I’d argue longer—to teach yourself all the subjects you learn in a day?”
Ivy wrinkled her nose. “Probably not.”
“Then school isn’t pointless.” Nora reached around her, pulled two overflowing bins from the cabinet, and set them on her table.
Ivy shuffled after her, hooking a finger under the elastic band on her wrist and pulling it off. She piled her hair into a ponytail and secured it, then rummaged around in the bin. “What is all this?”
“Papers I never look at, but should probably keep.”
Ivy rolled her eyes. “Do you have any file folders?”
“Yep.” Nora retrieved a new pack from the other cabinet and removed the cellophane wrapping. She handed them to Ivy.
“What are you really going to tell Dad?”
“Probably that in order for a family therapist to be beneficial, they have to be a good match.” She went around to the other side of the table and began sorting the papers in the second bin.
“I don’t think any of them will be good matches,” Ivy said, adjusting her ponytail.
“How do you know? Have you tried them all?”
“Therapy’s just not my kind of thing.”
Nora sorted the papers into three piles: keep, trash, and not sure. “Having someone to help you work through your emotions can be beneficial in your healing process.”
Ivy shook her head and looked out the window.
“Hey, are you thirsty or hungry? Want to check the teacher’s lounge for goodies? You can go in with me.”
“All right,” Ivy said.
They walked down the hallway to the lounge that was usually off-limits to students. But with Nora, Ivy floated right on in. The girl put her hands on her hips, her mouth hanging open.
“Y’all get all this stuff and we have to eat chicken nuggets that could pass for small rocks?”
“This is just a special treat, since it’s Friday.”
“Right, but we got the chicken nuggets on a Friday, so…” Ivy scooped up a handful of mini candy bars and dropped them into the pocket of her vest. Then she perused the coffee selection.
“Are you allowed to have coffee?” Nora asked.
Ivy rolled her eyes again and laughed. “I was a barista in the evenings last year, and I get coffee every morning on my way to school.”
Nora put her hands in the air. “Just checking.”
But Ivy had already passed. “There’s nothing good.” She opened the lid of the ice box on the table and dug around in the melting ice, pulling out a can of soda. “This’ll do. Want one?””
“Sure. I’ll take one of the decaf drinks.”
Nora grabbed herself a bag of chips, and she and Ivy walked back to the classroom. Ivy popped the top of her soda and took a sip.
“It’s 4:57. Won’t that keep you up all night?”
Ivy shrugged. “I don’t sleep very well anyway.” She entered the office, set her chips on the table, and dropped into one of the chairs.
Nora sat across from her, the piles of sorted papers between them.
“Why don’t you sleep well?”
“I don’t know.” Ivy tapped her black-painted nails on the table, her attention on the bag of chips. She reached over and grabbed it, tugging at the edges until the bag tore open.
“Have you always had trouble sleeping, or is the issue recent?”
“Just since my mom died.” Ivy inspected the chips in her bag before pinching one and popping it into her mouth.
“I’d definitely mention that in therapy once we find you a family therapist.”
“Sure,” she said, as if it tortured her to say the word.
“Being open-minded is the first step, you know,” Nora said.
Ivy took out another chip, the bag rattling. “Some therapist isn’t going to help me sleep.”
“They might offer strategies to calm you so you can drift off more easily.”
Ivy took a drink of soda.
“I’m serious,” Nora said. “What’s the worst that could happen if you actually tried a therapist’s suggestions? They might not work for you, right? That’s it. So what do you have to lose?”
“It’s a waste of time. So I lose time.” Ivy took another drink and licked her lips. “Besides, I’d rather just talk like you and I do. Why do I have to do all these strategies and things?”
“The strategies might surprise you.”
“You surprised me.”
Nora tapped her chest. “I did? How?”
“You weren’t like the other teachers or that crazy counselor. You’re easy to talk to.”
“I’m glad.” Nora scooted a pile of papers out of the way and opened her own snack. Then she stood up and nibbled while she sorted.
Ivy fell in line as well, the two of them working together in silence. Ivy probably liked the quiet space where she could have Nora’s support without the busy atmosphere of the school day. Nora didn’t mind having Ivy there either. She went over to her desk and stacked up a few things. Every now and again, she stole a glance at the girl. Ivy alternated between sips of her soda and scrutinizing various papers to determine where they should be filed.
“It’s about time to stop for the day,” Nora said. The dinner hour was quickly approaching and they both needed more than a bag of chips. “Do you mind taking these books down to the library and dropping them off? I’ll get everything put away.”
Ivy set down her papers and came over, taking the stack of books from Nora. “No problem.”
While Ivy ran her errand, Nora collected all the unsorted papers and got them back into her bins, placing them into the cabinet—quite a job in itself, but they’d gotten more done than she’d expected. When she finally finished, she filed the folder Ivy had created with the papers they’d been able to sort and then put the finishing touches on the things she wanted to have ready for Monday.
After quite a while, Ivy hadn’t returned, so Nora went to check on her. She walked the hallways until she came to a stop outside the library. She peered in through the window. Ivy was browsing the fiction section. The girl crouched down to get a book off the bottom shelf, and she looked a lot less menacing than she often did in a school setting. She sat down cross-legged on the floor, her head bowed over the open novel in her hands. She looked up and caught Nora’s eye. By her pause, her mind seemed busy. She put the book back on the shelf and met Nora at the entrance.
“What were you thinking about?” she asked the girl.
“Just how maybe I don’t want school to end after all.”