Chapter 6
FORREST TRIED not to smile as he arrived at school early.
He went in through the outside door to his room and locked it again after himself.
Then he got to work setting up some activities for the day and changing over some of the bulletin boards.
Fall was in full swing, and he wanted his classroom to reflect that.
As he worked, he couldn’t help thinking about the night he’d spent with Conrad.
Part of him knew it was foolish to make too much of it.
After all, Conrad hadn’t been feeling well, but he had held him for much of the night, and Forrest had liked that.
It made his heart feel right, like he had found someone he’d been looking for.
A knock on the door startled him a little. “Harlon, good morning.” He checked the time to make sure it hadn’t gotten away from him. “What’s going on?”
The principal came inside and closed the door. “I saw your light and thought I’d talk to you before the kids arrived.” Harlon paused and knitted his eyebrows together.
Forrest put down the scissors and the leaves he’d cut out.
“I’ve had contact with two parents. One is Billy’s father, and I gave him the facts.
He tried the argument that you were somehow at fault.
I cut that off at the knees and told him in no uncertain terms that Billy has a behavior issue that we consider bullying and that it needs to be headed off at home. ”
“What did he say?” Forrest asked.
Harlon nodded slowly. “I think he was already aware of the behavior because his arguments faded into nothing. But it’s the other parent meeting I’m concerned about.
It’s not so much a complaint about you… but…
well, one of the mothers… was worried about her kids at recess while you’re the monitor.
” He rolled his eyes. “This has to be the dumbest complaint I have ever heard, and I wouldn’t bring it up, but if one parents has registered a complaint, then there are others who have kept quiet. ”
“You know I can’t change how I look.” Forrest was devastated. He had searched for this job for the longest time, and he knew Harlon had taken a chance on him. This was his first year, and he really liked what he was doing.
“I know, and I explained to her that the kids liked you and that she was judging the book by its cover. I think that might have gotten to her. But next month there’s a parent/teacher social, and I think you really need to go.
Get to know some of the parents so they can see beyond the exterior, which admittedly can seem intimidating, to the person underneath.
The kids love you. That’s obvious by the way they act.
Kindergarteners show what they feel most of the time, and those kids are excited to come to school. ”
Forrest sighed. “I wish the parents understood that.” He recalled Conrad’s first reaction in the grocery store. “They take one look at me….”
“I know. I did the same thing. But you are a good teacher. Your kids are learning, and they are excited to come to school. So don’t let any of this get you down.
We’ll deal with each issue as it comes up.
But I wanted you to know.” He left the room, and Forrest pushed the issue away.
He was well aware of how people reacted to him, and these were parents who often became protective and sometimes irrational when it came to their children.
He shook his head and went back to work.
The kids would be arriving soon, and he wanted to get this done before they did.
“GOOD-BYE,” HEIDI said as she hurried out of the room and past him, waving and smiling before hurrying across the school lawn to where her father waited for her.
“Yeah, bye,” another of his students said as he hurried out to take his mom’s hand.
Forrest always loved the end of the day.
The kids were excited about going home, but so many of them said good-bye and waved every night.
It made him feel really good about what he was doing.
There was no fooling these kids. They saw right to your heart, and that was always amazing.
“Night,” Lizzie said as she waved good-bye and rushed out to where Conrad’s mother waited for her.
He waved in return. It was surprising how quickly the school went from noisy to almost silent.
He closed the door and locked it before sitting at his desk.
He sent Conrad a message asking how his day was going before reviewing his plans for the following day.
Forrest leaned over his desk, head in his hands and just held still.
All his life he had been a big guy. In high school they had wanted him to wrestle, so he’d done it because it was sort of expected.
Not that he’d wanted to, necessarily. He’d also played football.
Again, it had been expected, and his father had been overjoyed.
And he had been intimidating as hell with his bald head, so he always initially ran out on the field without his helmet, putting it on before play began.
His heart hadn’t been in either game, but he’d played.
Then in college he’d gone into education.
It was what he really wanted to do. He was still big, but no one really seemed to care.
Some of the women had been afraid of him at first, but he became friends with a lot of the ones in his classes and that reticence had slipped away.
He’d finally felt like he belonged somewhere.
And he was hoping that would continue here.
But maybe that was just more than he could have hoped for.
Lifted his head, he checked his phone, but Conrad hadn’t answered his message. It was possible that he was busy at the office, and there was plenty he needed to do, so Forrest put his worries out of his mind and got to work.
BY THE time he got ready to leave, he still hadn’t heard from Conrad. “Are you okay? Do you still feel under the weather?” he sent and pushed his phone into his pocket. Then he packed up his things and headed out. He had made a lot of progress and was in good shape for the next few days.
As he got in the car, he received a response from Conrad saying that they needed to talk and asking him to come over if he could. Forrest pulled to the side and answered before continuing on to Conrad’s. He was curious as he got out of the car and knocked on the door.
Lizzie let him inside with a hug. “Daddy’s grumpy.”
“I see. Maybe I can help with that.” She shrugged and hurried off to play while Forrest followed the muttering from the kitchen. “What’s going on?”
“I’m trying to make something other than pasta and kid food, but it isn’t working out.
” He closed the oven door. “And I think that maybe it’s too complicated for you and me to see each other.
I mean, you are Lizzie’s teacher, and you’re the one who will pay a price if people find out we’re seeing each other. And I don’t want to do that.”
“I see. Is that what you wanted to tell me? Because you could have just called or texted and I would have understood.” Well, maybe it would have been easier to hear from a distance.
“Is that the only reason? Because I had a shi… crappy day today, and this is the icing on the crap cake. So I’m just going to go, and… .”
“I’m sorry. What happened?”
Forrest felt like he was in a car crash, getting whiplash in slow motion. “How about you don’t worry about it, and I can go back to just being Lizzie’s teacher? I’ll see you at the next parent/teacher conference.”
Conrad blew out the air from his lungs. “I’m sorry for being a jerk and all. I just don’t want you to get in trouble. And I know that if people find out we’re seeing each other, they’ll be all up in arms, and you’ll be the one who gets the ugliness.”
“You mean more than a parent complaining about me. And their kid isn’t even in my class. But they complained because I’m the recess monitor sometimes, and their kid said they were scared of me.”
“Holy hell, that really happened?” Conrad’s mouth hung open.
“What is wrong with people? You’re a kind person and the kids love you.
At least the ones who have you. So what if some mama’s boy is scared of you?
It probably means he has plenty to be scared about because he’s the kid who will bully the others. ”
“Yeah, well, I’m a public school teacher.
So that means that I’m generally to blame for whatever their child does.
If they’re afraid of me, then it’s my fault.
” He turned to Conrad. “And you’re almost as bad.
Don’t you think I’m capable of making my own decisions about who I might want to have a relationship with?
” He decided to take the bull by the horns.
“If you aren’t interested in me, that’s fine.
I can take that. But don’t try to hide behind what I may need or want.
That’s a copout. I can make my own decisions.
And yes, it could be problematic if we date and become serious.
Then it might really be an issue if Lizzie is still in my class.
But there are options that we can explore together.
If that’s what you want. But if you don’t, just say so and stop hiding. ”
“Are you gonna play hide and seek? I’m a good hider,” Lizzie said as she hurried into the room.
“That’s not what we’re talking about,” Conrad told her.
“Go on and play with your dolls. Dinner should be ready in a little while. I hope.” He sighed as she left.
“Okay. I’m sorry. I thought I was doing what was best. I worry about Lizzie, and I’m worried about you too.
I don’t want either of you to get hurt.”
Forrest was willing to concede that meant Conrad did have feelings for him, even if he had reacted poorly. “I can make my own decisions.”