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I run to my gym bag and grab one of the Bully Proof brochures. It has all of the class times and the venue address on it, pretty much everything he will need.
Glancing out of the front window to make sure he is not around anywhere, I quickly run across the street and pop the brochure into his mailbox. When I close the lid the box beeps and I get a fright realizing that it is a notification system that has let him know that he has new mail. I freeze for a second and then bolt back across to my side of the street. As I reach my front door he comes out of his house and walks towards the mailbox. He sees me standing in my doorway and I know it will be so obvious when he takes the brochure out of the box, so I just stand there, smiling awkwardly. I feel like a complete idiot, and I feel exposed standing here with nothing to do. I fidget with my feet, kicking my shoes on the step.
He looks down at the paper in his hand and his expression changes. He is furious again. He glares at me from across the street and I feel small and exposed. I think if he had laser beams for eyes, he would have cut me in half right then and there.
Then in full view - while staring dead into my eyes - he crumples up the paper and walks over to his bin - tosses it into the recycling.
I cannot believe he just did that. It was so ridiculously rude. I am a little startled at his blunt and underhandedly aggressive reaction to me just trying to help his daughter. What a stubborn asshole. He did not have to be so rude about it. That was outright nasty actually.
He is still glaring at me when he walks back to his front door and all I can do is stand there and look back at him, not moving or going inside yet because I can't quite make my feet move. I can feel my eyes are wide, still a little in shock at his reaction.
A small, tight smile reaches my lips and I shrug my shoulders just slightly trying to ease the discomfort of this silent interaction across the street. I guess I should've stayed out of it, but at least I know I tried - even if he is going to be a dick about it. I wouldn't have been able to sleep tonight if I had not at least tried.
Oh well, I will leave it now. I can't force anyone into anything so I will have to leave it be and maybe some time in the future he will change his mind.
His front door slams.
Or maybe he will never change his mind.
I step into my own home and close the door softly. I am feeling very uncomfortable and just want to get back inside now and out of view.
I see him closing his living room curtain with a hard tug and I turn my back on the big window and let out a frustrated sigh. What an obnoxious man. Why does he have to be so hot though? Even when he is angry it is hard to look away from him.
I roll my eyes at myself. Girl, you need to get a life. I hope I have not made the situation between my neighbor and me too much worse - if it could actually be any worse.
CHAPTER 4
ALEX
My phone beeps and I know that my post box has been opened. It's a bit early for mail, so I get up curiously to see who has put what in my box.
Going outside I notice Gabi in her front yard. She is standing near her front door looking oddly uncomfortable.
I am still pretty pissed off with her after everything she said to Isabella in the park. I really don't need her to be putting those ridiculous ideas in my daughter's head. I reach into my mailbox and pull out a piece of paper.
Staring down at the brochure in my hand I am shocked to see it's a pamphlet advertising a class at a nearby gym - a Bully Proof self-defense class. I stare across at Gabi, knowing that she was the one who put this in my mailbox. Now I know why she is standing there looking so awkward. Maybe she thought she could sneak it in, and Bella would find it before me. Who the hell does she think she is? The audacity of this woman clearly has no bounds. I was one hundred percent sure I made it clear to her in the park that this was not the method I would ever choose for my own daughter. Yet she is still pushing for it and this time she has pushed too far.
I glare at her. She just stands there, no longer fidgeting, but now looking very uncomfortable. Good. I hope she does feel horrible. I look down at the paper again and then decide to make it very, unquestionably clear to her that I do not want her interfering or putting these stupid ideas in my daughter's head. I crumple the pamphlet up, making a big gesture of it so that she can see without doubt what I am doing. I march over to the recycling bin and toss it inside. slamming the lid shut.
When I look at my neighbor again her eyes are wide, and her beautiful lips are parted in shock. Good. I hope she got it this time. I will not be talking about this again and she better not be putting any more spam, or junk mail in my mailbox again.
Under no circumstance is violence the answer.
I slam my front door shut.
Then I march over the window and pull the curtains closed.
My family life has nothing to do with this woman and she needs to mind her own business.
I can hear Isabella in the bathroom, running a hot bath, when I go through to the kitchen to start prepping our dinner.
While I am cutting veggies and seasoning the meat, I can't stop thinking about what Gabi did.
I know kids can be cruel. I know my daughter is going through a really tough experience with all of this, but she just needs to get stronger and toughen up. In the military, I learned that life is cruel. Then when my wife died, I learned it all over again - in a much bigger way. I was left with a little five-year-old kid - no wife - a broken heart - and I had to suck it up and get over it. You can't just sit around crying about things. You have to pick yourself up and learn to overcome these adversities.
I toss the veggies into the pan, and they sizzle in protest.
No. Violence is not the answer. Learning how to punch back will not fix this situation. I think I must set another meeting with the school and talk to the principal again; there must be something they can do. Bullying should not be tolerated.
