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“Swear, that’s what happened,” Brennon said. “This kid brought a crowbar to school for this fight and I had to wrestle it out of his hand. That was the worst.”
“Yeah, that sounds light to some of the risks there are now,” Katy admitted. “I can’t deny that I do think about what if some kid comes into the classroom with a gun and is mad at someone.”
Brennon gently placed his hand on Katy’s arm. “You can’t think that way,” he said, locking eyes with her. “You can’t let that kind of stuff deter you. I remember… You always did want to be a teacher.”
Something about Brennon’s approach rubbed Katy the right way. She smiled, feeling consoled in her fears. “Yeah, I did… I do. I love the little kids… The look of innocence in their faces. How they greet me when I come in in the morning.” Katy smiled.
“Yeah, for me it was sharing the information,” Brennon said. “Well, let me put it a different way. I liked being a teacher because I was still young and trying to figure it out and it was nice to be around so much….so much...so much inspiration. I liked hearing what the kids wanted to be when they grow up. You know how life kind of zaps the feeling of anything is possible out of your sometimes.”
Katy laughed at how Brennon’s said it so sarcastically, but it was true. “Yeah, you can say that again. Sometimes those parents.”
Brennon’s eyes bulged. “Yeah, I was just about to get to that. People act like being a teacher is hard just because of the kids. Yeah, the kids can be a problem...especially if they come from troubled homes or whatever. But, really, some of my worst days were with the parents.”
Katy picked up on the tone in Brennon’s voice that maybe he had a story or two to share about dealing with parents. “Anything you wanna share about that? I have a story… This mother...She was making me so mad I really wanted to get the principal. She was one of those mothers that basically think the school system is supposed to raise their child and was getting mad at me. But the kid isn’t doing his homework because of this and that.”
Brennon laughed at Katy’s frustration, then said, “Oh, is that the worse you’ve dealt with so far? Just wait. I almost got into a fist fight with this one dad.”
Katy covered her mouth with her hands in shock. “Seriously? How in the world did that happen?”
“Um, well,” Brennon said, looking away bashfully, “it’s a long story. You wouldn’t want to hear it.”
“Yeah, I do,” Katy said, scooting closer to Brennon. “And you’re going to tell me. I’m not going to let you leave until you do?”
Brennon laughed. “Not let me leave until I do? Well, okay, I’ll tell you...but it’s not one of my better moments in my profession.” Brennon sighed, rolling his eyes and shaking his head as he thought his ways when he was younger. “So, basically, you know I was like the hot teacher.” He smiled.
Katy squinted. “Uh, huh,” she said. This is about to be funny, she thought. I can already tell. “And?”
“Well, this one little girl’s mother seemed to love when her daughter had problems,” Brennon explained. “If I called home about one thing, she would want it to be a meeting where I sat down with her. And the way she talked, she kept the meetings going as long as she could. Stuff like that. The woman clearly had a thing for me. Well, okay, so it was like that for a little bit then next thing I know, the father is coming up to the school and saying how I’m flirting with his wife and this and that. I didn’t even know the woman was married and I wasn’t even interested in her, to be honest. So, things get kind of heated. You know… I was young and hadn’t even done anything, so my temper was a little, you know.”
“Oh, wow,” Katy said. “That sounds ridiculous.”
“Yeah, well,” Brennon said. “What’s ridiculous is where the guy came up to me trying to start that.” He shook his head. “It was out on the sidewalk, at like 3 o’clock in the afternoon, when the kids were coming out of the school to come and get on the buses. Next thing I know, they're crowding ar
ound talking about ‘Go Mister Hicks!’ Then they started shouting my name, throwing fists up into the air.”
Katy laughed, just trying to imagine such a scene. Even though her job was to obviously break up any kinds of fights or disputes she saw going on or knew of, the teachers did sometimes chat in passing about brewing rivalries among the children. Some teachers would even go as far as joking about who they thought would win the fight between the two kids.
Katy found herself lost in conversation with Brennon for the next thirty minutes or so. The exterior lights popped on around 8:30. They talked back and forth about their experiences in the teaching profession. Numerous times, they got off topic. By the time they finally stood up, deciding it was time to at least head inside if for no other reason than the falling temperature, the conversation had gotten to some of the real estate opportunities going on down in the city. Katy brought up how she was considering buying a home in the near future and was thinking about maybe a fixer-upper. As coincidence would have it, Brennon was thinking the same thing. He was tired of renting; Katy was growing tired of living at home with her parents.
After a long pause where their eyes locked, they headed inside. Brennon made sure to hold the door open for Katy then watched as she headed inside. They were somewhat surprised to find the house so quiet. Both wondered just how long they’d been outside. Light chatter echoed from the living room. Katy peaked around the corner and saw it was her parents sitting down with a couple of older family members. From the looks – and sounds – of things, everybody else had already gone. Katy was shocked she hadn’t heard that many engines starting up then tires scraping against the gravel from around back.
“Wow, time just flew by,” Katy said.
“Yeah, that’s just what I was thinking,” Brennon said. He glanced at his watch. “I guess I had better get going too. I have a long day ahead of me.”
Katy walked Brennon around through the living room. They stopped for a moment, allowing Brennon so say goodbye to Linda as well as Ruby and Aunt Paula. When they stepped out onto the porch, they discovered Katy’s father Richard finishing up a conversation with a distant relative. The two men waved at one another as his car pulled off then Richard headed up to the porch with a big smile on his face. The 6’1”, slender man stepped up onto the porch, feeling the wear and tear in his knees. He looked at Katy then Brennon. “I was meaning to get a chance to talk to you tonight, but things got too busy.”
“No, I understand Richard,” Brennon said. “Seriously. I was actually talking to Katy about her teaching career.”
The gray-haired man smiled and nodded approvingly. “Well, that’s good. I was actually thinking of that too. So, last time we saw one another at the gallery downtown, you said you were back here for good. Is that still the case?”
Brennon nodded. “Yes, it is. Back here for good. Finally made my way back.”
Katy stood to the side while Brennon and her father carried on a brief conversation. She noticed how confidently Brennon addressed her father, a man at least twenty years his senior. When he talked about some of his accomplishments, Katy liked how he’d done so without sounding braggadocios. Richard finally hugged his step-cousin then headed inside. Brennon stepped off of the porch then turned around. “Katy, I don’t know if you still have my number. Did Melanie ever give it to you?”
Katy paused to think for a moment. “If she did, it would’ve been back when I was just starting college...when you and I talked. I don’t think I have it now.”
The two quickly traded phone numbers. Brennon mentioned how he would definitely like to keep in touch. Furthermore, there were some people he would work up to introducing her to if she decided to get her master’s. When they finished and put their phones away, they locked eyes.
