"Perfect," I said. "Do you know how impossible it was to get good sweet tea in Colorado?"
"Is that where you're from?" Meredith asked.
"Nope. I'm from Houston originally. Graduated high school at Southwind, and college in Aurora, Colorado. Lived in Denver until recently, when I got the chance to come back to Southwind."
"What were you in for?" Brody asked.
"I was a runaway, actually. Got picked up living on the streets, and Southwind gave me a second chance." It wasn't the whole truth, but close enough, and I knew my record would come up as clean as could be.
"Why'd you run away?" Meredith asked. "And do you think that it's appropriate for you to be working with children?"
"Unfortunately, not all parents are good," I told her, aware that Faith still stood behind me, almost like she was using me as a shield. "I also think that having experienced certain things makes me more able to relate to the problems my patients may be going through. I was bullied. I had issues with my parents. I know what it feels like, but I also know why the juvenile mind makes poor decisions, and I know how to help kids make better choices."
Brody flicked his hand my way. "So what exactly do you want to know, Cy?"
"Well, what can you tell me about Faith's friends?" I looked from him to Meredith and back, making it clear that question was for either of them.
"She doesn't have any," Meredith said.
"Honey," Brody chided. "I'm sure she has a few. Don't you, Faith?"
She just shrugged. "Not really. Those girls last year made everyone hate me, so I don't have anyone to hang out with this summer."
"No boyfriends?" I asked.
"Please!" Meredith said. "She's twelve."
"Almost thirteen," Faith reminded her.
So I looked over at Brody. "No boys she talks about a lot?"
"No, she's not interested in little boys." He gestured for Faith to come over to him. "Why don't you go in the other room, huh?"
Faith all but slunk toward him. "Cy doesn't mind if I stay. And you're talking about me anyway."
"Yeah," Brody said, wrapping his arm around her waist. The problem was that his hand didn't land on either her arm or her side. It was on her hip. Then he pulled her closer, trying to be affectionate. "But you keep interrupting, and good girls know when to let the adults talk."
She sighed. "I'll be quiet, Brody."
The man hugged her to his side and held her there, almost like he was trying to keep her from me. "Ok." Then he looked at me again. "So, no, she has no boyfriends or puppy loves."
"Any complaints or concerns from her teachers?" I asked, looking up at Meredith this time. Then I gestured to the seat beside me. "I promise you don't have to entertain, ma'am. Just need to pick your brain."
She walked around the table to take the chair beside Brody, but the man barely looked at her. His arm was still around Faith, and the girl looked annoyed about it. Then Meredith reached over for her fiancé’s hand. Brody let her hold it, but he made no move to hold back. His fingers just lay limply under her palm.
"She gets good enough grades," Meredith finally said. "Last year, she got into trouble for mouthing off to a few of the other kids in class, but those were the ones that were bullying her."
"They'd whisper things or throw things," Faith said. "And when I told them to quit, I was the one who got in trouble."
"Which is what they wanted," I told her. "Bullying is nothing more than forcing you to react."
"So what am I supposed to do?" she asked.
"Tell your teacher. Tell your parents. Tell me." My eyes checked Brody and Meredith again. Meredith seemed bored, but Brody was glaring at me in a way I didn't like. "I'm not saying you're wrong, Faith. I'm just saying that they were pushing your buttons. It's natural for you to react to that, but the trick is to learn how not to."
"Oh." She nodded like I had a good point.
"What about her daily routine?" I asked them both. "Since she doesn't have friends to spend the summer with, what does Faith's normal day look like?"
