Annie leaned in, voice hushed.“Did it not go well?”
“Leon had a tough day.We had an incident.”She pulled a sheet of paper from Leon’s cubby and handed it to Annie.“Leon hit another student.”
Annie winced.At home, they talked about not hitting.They read books about not hitting, practiced taking deep breaths, and talked about what he could do instead of hitting.
Yet Leon, red-faced and fury-fisted, kept hitting, and he didn’t have the words to tell her why.Since her mom had disappeared to the rehab facility, he’d stopped speaking entirely.
“I am so sorry,” Annie said.
The teacher cut her off.“It’s okay.Something to be aware of.Something we’re working on.Leon had difficulty engaging with the speech therapist today.Next time will be better.”
Did her optimism come from years of experience, or was she offering an empty kindness?Annie swallowed the thought behind a stiff nod.
Leon caught her eye from across the room, and a grin spread across his face.
Annie smiled back.“Yes.Next time will be better.”
She grabbed their backpacks, took Noel’s left hand and Leon’s right, and led them out to the car.
They made great time to the grocery store, and Annie managed to get them into the shopping cart without protest, pleased that her snack cup offering had satisfied them both.
Maybe things weren’t perfect, but she could hack it.She wasn’t going to lose her cool during this blitz-shopping trip.She was going to get them home, make dinner, feed everyone, then pack them into the car to get dinner to her mom, too.
A bit ambitious, but Annie was going to do it.Annie was going to do it all.
She pushed the cart into the store.No time to waste.Leon looked around, wide-eyed and chewing, and Noel sang, “I’m a cup, I’m a cup!”over and over – her rendition ofI’m a Little Teacup.
Annie reached into her pocket for the grocery list she’d put together on her lunch break.
Nothing but crumbs.
She searched her other pockets, then her purse.
Empty.
Annie shut her eyes.What good was a list if she’d forgotten it?
She tried to remember what she’d written from her new cookbook with the perfect combination of affordable, fast recipes that her twins might eat and with enough leftovers for her mom to enjoy at the rehab facility.
The ingredients refused to surface in her mind.Annie opened her eyes.
It was fine.She wasn’t going to lose it over a silly list.She had a vague memory of what was required, and all at once, she realized the recipe might be on the author’s blog.
She started a search on her phone, and as it was loading, a word floated into her mind.
Enchilada sauce!That was it, the oddball ingredient.
She was standing right in front of them, as though her subconscious had guided her here.She stooped down, eyeing the prices for the cheapest one.
“Well, if it isn’t my favorite set of twins!”
Annie looked up, swiveling her head to see who had interrupted her thoughts.An older lady stood above her, beaming at the twins.
She recognized her from church but couldn’t remember her name on the four hours of broken sleep she’d gotten last night.
“Hi, how are you?”Annie said brightly, standing up.
A drop of sweat slipped down her back.Maybe she needed a snack, too.Her hands were shaking ever so slightly.
