“Apparently, there has been some tension between Charlie and the other boy. It erupted today in science.” Mrs. Ferber looked at Charlie. “Charlie, perhaps you could explain it to your aunt.”
I looked back to him. “Charlie? Please tell me what’s going on here!”
He didn’t answer.
“He won’t say anything about it,” Mrs. Ferber said, “but we have Miss Lehrer’s account. She says that everything was fine, but then without warning they were wrestling on the floor.” Mrs. Ferber sighed. “She was very nearly struck herself while trying to separate them, and that would have been very serious.”
“Charlie?” I asked him. Again, he wouldn’t respond.
“We have never had any issues at all with Charlie, and as I told you when we last met, he is very popular with the staff here.” She looked at Charlie. “You are a bright, friendly, polite young man, and in general, you are a credit to Whitaker Elementary. I’m not sure what happened today, but I would like you to explain yourself.”
Charlie stared at his hands, balled into fists in his lap.
“Mrs. Ferber, I’ve made you aware of the difficulties we’ve had in our family lately.” I glanced at Charlie.
“Yes, I received your email, and as I said, I’m very sorry.” She took off her glasses. “Charlie, I’m going to ask your aunt to take you home for the day, just to let the situation cool down. And I would like you to think about explaining to me what happened. I’m your principal, and I’m here to help you if you need it.”
He kept looking down, and I saw the tears streaking down his cheeks.
Mrs. Ferber clicked on her mouse and looked at her computer screen. “Emily, we were unable to reach Charlie’s father.”
“He’s out of town,” I said quickly. “I’m in charge of Charlie.”
“I’m glad,” she said. “But it might behoove you to make that a more permanent situation, legally speaking.”
I nodded at her. She was right.
Mrs. Ferber stood up. “Charlie, if you’d like to talk to me about this more, my door is always open. And just so you’re both aware, the other boy involved in this incident has been punished more severely. There’s a bit of history there,” she explained to me.
I realized that Charlie was crying again as we left the school. I put my arm around him, and gave him a tissue from my purse. As soon as he closed his car door, I swung around.
“Why did you fight with Rivers?”
No answer.
“Charlie, we won’t leave this parking lot until you tell me. I don’t care if we spend the night here.”
Nothing.
“Did it have something to do with me? Working at Roy’s?”
He nodded slowly. “And my mom.”
“What about your mom?”
“Rivers said his mom said my mom was a slut who got what she deserved. A slut is bad, right?”
Holy Mary. That’s what he had been hearing, crap about me and about his mom too? That his dead mom deserved cancer, suicide? “You know that’s all baloney, pal. That Rivers and his mom don’t know diddly squat. So why did you wrestle in the middle of science class?”
“He just kept saying it! He says it every day! Miss Lehrer was having us watch this dumb movie and she didn’t notice, and I told her but she wouldn’t listen, so I asked her if I could move seats and she wouldn’t let me. And…I just got real mad.”
I rubbed my eyes. “Ok. We’re going back to the NGS now. I have to get back to work.”
“Emmy, you said you might quit and not work at that place anymore, right?”
I’d had enough. “I’ll call Roy tonight and let him know that I’m quitting. I may have to keep coming in for a while, until he finds my replacement, but yes, I’ll stop working there.” Monetarily it would be hard, but it would be better for both of us.
We went back to the store, where Martha replaced the lukewarm icepack with a bag of frozen peas, and gave Charlie about ten cookies. “I’m sure that other boy is just a bad seed,” she whispered to me. “Don’t be too hard on Charlie.” Martha was a softie. I called Tara to fill her in, and she felt the same way. But she had different advice.
