5. Callie
Callie
MONDAY, AUGUST 18TH
I t’s been a few days since the “Herman Incident,” and I’m happy to report that he’s doing much better now. There have been no further abduction attempts, so all in all, I’m feeling pretty successful.
Since my students are in art class with Lana, I decide to head down the hall to the main office to make some word search copies.
Instead of the usually quiet space, however, I find myself trying to work my way through a crowd of teachers and students alike, just to get to the copy machine. To my right, I see five kids outside the nurse’s station, in various stages of distress.
“What is going on?” I ask anyone who happens to be listening.
“Couple of middle schoolers threw vegetable oil all over the gym floor,” Piper Longspur, the middle grade English teacher, answers. “We’ve got slip and fall injuries out the yin yang.”
“Oh my god, that’s terrible! Is there anything I can do to help?”
“Not unless you know how to degrease an entire basketball court.”
I open my mouth to suggest buying thirteen tons of kitty litter to soak it up, but think better of it.
“They caught the two who did it, my guess is they’ll be the ones on clean-up duty.”
I look towards the principal’s office to my left and see Herman’s would-be captors sitting in wait. The first girl looks completely unaffected, an expression I’ve seen a thousand times. I wonder what her story is?
Lexie, on the other hand, looks like she’s going to throw up. No amount of rhinestones can hide the green on her face, and it breaks my heart. Because I know she and her dad just moved here not too long ago, like me, I figure she could use someone to talk to.
I slowly angle myself through the chaos and lean on the counter by where the girls are sitting. “Psst. Psst!”
Both girls look at me; Bored Girl offering me a sneer, and Lexie still nauseated. I make eye contact with Lexie and tilt my head towards the door to get her to follow me. She’s confused but stands anyway. Bored Girl follows suit and stands as well.
“Not you,” I direct.
Bored Girl flops back down in the chair with an epic eye roll, and Lexie lets me lead her through the side door to the teacher’s lounge. Thankfully, it’s empty, so we’ll have at least a few minutes to talk.
I walk to the vending machine in the room and put in some change for a soda.
“You like Dr. Pepper?” I ask her. “That’s my personal favorite.”
“I’m, uh, not really…my dad doesn’t like me to have a lot of soda.”
“Is that because you have specific health issues or just general ‘don’t drink a bunch of sugar’ issues?”
“The second one.”
I push the button for a Dr. Pepper and buy myself one as well.
“I don’t think one will be a problem then,” I announce as I set the can down on the table. I pop open my drink and sit down. “Have a seat. Talk to me.”
Lexie reluctantly pulls out a chair and opens her can.
“So…you went from trying to steal a hamster to destroying public property. That escalated quickly.”
She closes her eyes and hangs her head. “My dad is going to kill me.”
“Well, he’s not going to throw you a parade, but he’ll get over it in time.”
After a brief stretch of silence, I hear a sniffle, and she wipes her eyes before taking another drink.
“It’s actually my first year here, too,” I tell her. “I moved here from Georgia and it’s been a huge adjustment. Where were you and your dad living before?”
“Joliet. It’s in Illinois.”
“I haven’t ever been there, is it nice?”
“It’s kind of a shithole, actually. At least where we were.”
I stifle a laugh, and she smirks a little. “But you still miss it?”
She swallows hard and plays with the tab on her soda can. “I miss my friend, Megan,” she chokes.
“I’m so sorry, Lexie.” I pause and give her some time to collect herself. “Did you guys steal small mammals together, too, or is that something new you started doing out here?” I smile at her, so she knows I’m joking.
She gives me a small grin back and shakes her head. “That stuff was Carissa’s idea. She’s new, too. We both hate it here.”
“You hate it here?” I add my best dramatic flair. “But there are so many bird puns! I thought all twelve-year-olds lived for bird puns.”
She rolls her eyes, but the corners of her mouth are still turned up. “We, uh…well, she thought that if we got expelled, then her parents and my dad would be forced to move back where we lived before.”
There it is.
“You know,” I begin, “my mom and I moved a lot when I was growing up. I don’t think we ever stayed in the same place for more than a year.”
“Oh my god. Why?”
“Well, that’s kind of a long story. But I know how hard it is to leave your home and your friends and start all over somewhere new. It’s frustrating and scary.”
“How did you deal with it?”
I sit back and think for a second. “Well, to be honest with you, there were a lot of years that I just didn’t deal with it. I spent a ton of time being mad at my mom, mad at life. But you know what changed?”
The snarky kid from the other day is gone, and sitting next to me is a lost girl who genuinely wants to figure out how to cope. “What?” she asks.
“I was about your age, and I met a kid named Hitoshi. We’re actually still friends to this day. He was an Army brat, so he was used to moving around a lot. And he was nice enough to give me some advice that I still use when I relocate. Can I tell you?”
She nods.
“So first, you basically lie to yourself. Sort of a fake-it-til-you-make-it situation, right? And that lie is that it’s not a depressing move, it’s an adventure. You’re in a new place that has tons of new experiences! Which isn’t even a lie, technically. But sometimes it takes our brains a little while to catch up.”
That gets her interest a little, although she still looks skeptical. “But I don’t really want to go on adventures by myself.”
“Okay, well, that’s a life skill we can work on another time. But if I can offer just a small suggestion when it comes to friends? Maybe don’t pick ones who are going to leave you high and dry when things get tough.”
Her face falls.
“I don’t know you or Carissa very well,” I say gently. “But it seems like she’s all too happy to make you do the dirty work and take the fall if anything goes wrong. I’m honestly surprised that she got caught.”
“She probably wouldn’t have,” Lexie admits. “But she kept slipping on the oil and couldn’t get up.”
I bark out a laugh, even though I know it’s wrong. I shouldn’t think it’s funny, but I can’t help it. Lexie must feel the same because she laughs, too.
“Just a thought, but it might be time to branch out a little. I know that’s easier said than done in sixth grade, but you seem like a tough kid. I think you can handle it.”
“It’s just so awkward talking to new people. I never know what to say.”
“The key that’s always worked for me is just to talk to everyone like you’ve known them your whole life. Don’t mess with the small talk. Also, this school has a ton of great extracurricular clubs—look through those and see if you can find one that interests you. Then you’re set up naturally for conversations because you all already have something in common.”
She doesn’t look fully convinced, but the green has at least faded from her cheeks.
“Promise me you’ll think about it.”
She nods and takes a sip of her soda. “I promise.”
“And then also promise me you’re done with the pranks? You scared the sh—crap out of my poor hamster and there are quite a few kids out there waiting to see the nurse. I have a feeling that you aren’t the type of person who wants anyone to get hurt like that.”
A look of shame crosses her bedazzled face, and I can see her genuine regret. “I’m…I’m really sorry about the hamster.”
“I know you are,” I tell her. “Thank you for saying it. It would probably go a long way with Principal Field if you apologized to your classmates out there, too.”
“Do I have to?” she sighs.
“Hey, I’m not going to force you to do anything, I’m just giving you some advice. Now go face the music, kid.”
“Thanks, Ms…”
“Miss Callie is fine.”
“Thanks, Miss Callie.”
As she quietly leaves, I stand and take a minute to stare out the window. I don’t regret talking to Lexie at all, but there’s something gnawing at me.
You think you just helped her because she’s Finn’s daughter.
Is that true?
I feel like I would have helped any student who looked that distressed.
Maybe…but you can’t be sure, can you? Could just be because you’re trying to get in good with Coach Hot-Ass McBaggy Sweats.
“Dear god, I need to get laid,” I mumble and turn back to throw my empty Dr. Pepper can in the trash.
Except standing there in the doorway is the Coach himself, his expression completely unreadable.
“Is that an invitation?” he asks.