“What’s this? Can I open it?”
He shakes his head teasingly. “Don’t you have class now? Open it after your meeting with Goodwin. As a reward for not getting fired.”
“Very funny,” I call as he opens the door and slips into the hallway. But it’s not. Not yet. I finger the envelope as my class fills with students. Inspect it. My first name is sketched on the front in messy guy handwriting. I can’t help smiling. In a place where everything is perfectly scripted and flawless, I love that he’s a little messy. I love that he’s real.
chapter six
Elle,
I can’t believe I’m about to write this, but how was your first day of school? We don’t start till next week. I can’t decide whether going back will save me or kill me. I can’t stand being home anymore. It’s so quiet. But what if I can’t face everyone at school? I don’t know how to be, really. Am I supposed to hate him? Because I can’t.
He called yesterday. I couldn’t answer.
Love you for infinity,
A
“Wait! Don’t start till I get out there!” Waverly yells from inside the cottage. Gwen and I are sitting beneath the umbrella in the outdoor courtyard, sipping cucumber water from mason jars as the sun goes down. Gwen’s flipping through an Us Weekly. The air outside is thick and wet after a short afternoon rain; the amaryllis and other tropical plants dotted with raindrops. I’m so exhausted I can barely keep my eyes open.
“Head of School’s office on the first day, man.” Gwen rests her bare feet on the
wrought iron table between us and tilts her chair on its back legs. “Are you secretly some
sort of badass?”
“I want a do-over,” I groan at the canopy of palm fronds overhead. I roll down the hem of my cutoffs and roll them up again. “And people who pay money to read about Taylor Swift’s latest breakup shouldn’t throw stones.”
“Guilty pleasure,” Gwen admits. “And just so you know, Tay Tay will not be defined by her relationship status.”
“Okay. Go.” Waverly rests a plate of hummus, warm pita bread, dates, and honey on the table and peels back the layer of plastic wrap. “Theater had a welcome back reception.”
I reach for a pita wedge and swirl it mindlessly in the honey.
“So Guttierez just calls you up after first period and says Goodwin wants to see you,” Gwen prompts me. She closes the magazine and tosses it on the table. “That’s so weird, setting up a formal meeting like that.”
“It gets worse.” I’m not hungry, so I leave the pita wedge to drown. Just thinking about the walk from my classroom to Dr. Goodwin’s office makes my stomach turn. His office was in a separate house across campus, and nothing like the rest of the buildings. His space was traditional: all wood paneling, brass, and other intimidating materials.
“Oh, and of course I had no idea that Dr. Goodwin’s office was so far away, so by the time I got there, I was basically drenched in sweat. And limping.” I don’t mention the black bra/white blouse fiasco.
“Poor thing.” Waverly plucks a date from the platter and pops it in her mouth. She’s obviously enjoying this.
“And so I get there, and Dr. Goodwin is sweet, and pretends not to notice that I’m a total wreck. And he says…” I gulp the last of my water. “…he got a parent phone call.”
“Oh, God.” Gwen smacks the table. “On day one? That’s a fucking record.”
“Hush. Let her finish.” Waverly is practically salivating.
I pause. “From Hayden Santiago’s father.”
“SENATOR SANTIAGO?” The girls screech, literally in unison. It would be a perfect comedic chick flick moment, if there were anything funny about this. Which there isn’t.
“I’m NEW!” I wail. “I didn’t know!” I give them background on my less than professional exchange with Hayden that morning.
Waverly giggles. “He does look like he spends too much time on his hair, though. I never thought about that.”
“Apparently, the second I left class he texted his dad and said I was bullying him.”
“I taught Hayden last year. And I have him for AP again this year. AND he’s one of my staff writers for the paper. That kid is such a prick.” Gwen twirls her nose ring.
Dr. Goodwin had been kind, but clear: The Santiago family was of vital importance to the school. And it was in my best interest for Hayden to feel comfortable in class.
He might be a tool, but he’s an important tool. Message received.
“I got off with a warning, but I’m gonna have to be careful. The kid has it out for me now.”