Page 32 of Mr. Principal

Chapter Six

“Mom, come on, wake up. I’m going to be late to school.”

I groaned as I made myself sit up. I pushed my hair out of my face and sighed before falling back into the pillows.

“Mom, please… you’re going to make me late and then I’ll be embarrassed and sad and end up in juvenile detention because of neglect.”

I sat up instantly. Where had she gotten those crazy ideas from? “Have you been watching TV for adults again?”

She shook her head innocently. “Nope. Danny Schultz told me his cousin is in juvie for talking back to his parents and peeing on the neighbor’s front yard.”

I frowned. “Honey, can you talk to someone else at school besides Danny Schultz?”

She shrugged. “Sure. But I talk to everyone. It’s just that Danny is never boring.”

“You got that right,” I mumbled to myself.

“His mom is a parole officer. She gives sandwiches to criminals and sometimes she lets the really nice ones sleep on her couch.”

Now I was definitely awake. “No sleepovers at Danny’s place.”

She giggled. “Oh Mom, you’re so silly. Dad would NEVER let me go on a sleepover at a boy’s house. No way, no how.”

The way she said it was adorable but at the mention of her father I instantly became furious. After Piper’s confession, I went from thinking of Tom as the one who got away to the one who could have possibly given me an STD or STI, whatever the kids called sexually transmitted diseases nowadays.

I figured I’d been lucky all those years that my gyno recommended I get tested for everything even though I’d reassured her that I could completely trust my husband.

Joke’s on me, I could trust him as far as I could throw him. That asshole.

“Let’s get you dressed,” I said, climbing out of bed and pushing thoughts of Tom way out of my head.

Meredith looked at me as if I’d lost my mind. “I’m dressed, Mom.”

I finally took a good look at her and realized that she was right. My phone rang and I looked to see who was calling. It was Piper.

It had been a few days since the incident at her house and I was steadily avoiding her calls as well as Carter’s.

I was irrationally furious with Piper. And when it came to Carter, I didn’t know how I felt, so I was avoiding his phone calls too.

“Alright kiddo, apparently you’re more of an adult than I am. Teach me your ways,” I said, bowing to her.

She laughed. “You’re too funny, Mommy. But now’s not the time for jokes. We have things to do. Get dressed. Fast!”

She gave me a sweet smile and headed out. I stood there with my mouth agape and then laughed. Who was this bossy elementary schooler and what had she done with my sweet daughter?

Bemused, I did as I was told and then together we headed to the car.

I was asking her about her class project when she cut me off saying, “Why aren’t you answering Auntie Piper’s calls? She’s called you like six times and you haven’t picked up. Aren’t you guys friends anymore? Best of friends?”

I looked at her through my rearview mirror and instantly felt terrible. Her voice held so much concern. My heart went out to my considerate, thoughtful, sensitive daughter who was a way better person than I ever would be. Instead of her learning from me, it would serve me well to learn from her. Her viewpoint of the world wasn’t necessarily innocent, but she was a practical person who didn’t hold grudges or harbor any ill-will towards others. While I’d spent the past year bitter and angry, she had gracefully accepted that her life as she knew it was changing, but instead of being angry and uncompromising, she had tried to make the best of out a less than desirable situation.

At that moment, I knew I had to do better. So far the only thing I managed to accomplish was to alienate one of my best friends, ignore the other, and get fired.

What type of example was I setting for Meredith? I was a mess. My life was a mess and it was all because of my choices. I vowed from that moment on to make better choices. Beginning now…

“You know, you’re amazing,” I said to her, totally off topic, but I wanted her to know how special she was to me.

She grinned. “So are you, but you’re trying to change the subject.”