home tonight. And I’d be willing to bet money that everyone else Nate just blabbed to is going to do the same thing.”
“Okay.” I leaned against the post separating two of the stalls.
“I’m sure I’ll find a lot of kick-ass artwork. But I’m guessing a pretty picture isn’t the reason you’re currently hiding out in a smelly bathroom.”
I shifted my weight from one foot to the other and stared at the pattern in the floor tiles. “He left when I was seven. I was dealing with a bunch of other crap — that I don’t want to talk about — at the same time. And it was all more than he could handle. So he just skipped town.”
“Ouch, I probably wouldn’t want to brag about a dad like that either.”
“Yeah, he’s definitely not a candidate for parent of the year, but he has made some pretty kick-ass artwork. You can Google him if you want to.”
“Okay, I will.” Lissa jumped down from her seat in the sink. “You know, not all guys run away. Nate shouldn’t have blabbed about your dad, but deep down, he’s one of the good ones.”
“I know.”
The bell rang, and she swatted me on the butt. “Now get to class and go chew out your lab partner.”
I laughed. “Thanks, Lissa.”
I managed to forgive Nate. He apologized about a million times for bringing it up. I didn’t think he fully understood why I’d been so upset, but oddly, that’s what made it easy for me to forgive him. Lissa had been right — Nate was an idiot, but that also meant he was human. That made him a lot easier to be around. I’d been growing weary of Mr. Perfect.
I’d almost forgotten about the whole thing by the time our art history exams were returned the following week. Everyone in the class received their graded test packet — except me. When Ms. Ball passed my desk, she simply whispered, “Samantha, will you see me after class?”
I nodded and scanned the room, hoping nobody else had noticed. Nate and Miles had, but Graham was busy studying his own paper.
When the final bell rang, everyone got up to leave but me. Nate set his hand on my shoulder. “I’ll meet you by your locker?”
“K,” I said.
Once the classroom had emptied, I walked up to Ms. Ball’s desk, where she was busy organizing her belongings. “Samantha, thanks for staying after. I wanted to discuss some things with you.”
“Okay, what’s up?”
She lifted a large messenger bag off her desk and slung it over her shoulder. “I actually wanted to discuss things with your mom too. She’s meeting us in Ms. Sterling’s office.”
My mom was in the principal’s office? I’d thought I was doing well in this class. How bad had I bombed the test?
Sure enough, when I followed Ms. Ball to the principal’s office, my mom was sitting in front of a large desk facing Ms. Sterling. Another woman with graying hair sat in a chair off to the side. I took the seat next to my mom and reached for her hand. This was second grade all over again. I wanted to throw up.
“Ms. Ball raised some concerns regarding Samantha’s art history exam.” Ms. Sterling placed an exam packet on her desk facing my mom and me.
I scanned the first page of the exam. About half of the words I’d written down were now crossed out and rewritten in red pen. It wasn’t pretty.
“Mrs. Wilson.” Ms. Ball turned to face my mom. “I want you to know, Samantha is an absolute joy to have in class. She’s always engaged and animated. She gets along well with the other students, and her contributions to class discussions help further the knowledge of the class as a whole. I had very high expectations for Samantha on this exam. And once I managed to figure out what she was trying to say, I found that all her answers were correct.”
Were they holding a summit meeting to tell me I’d gotten 100 percent on my art history exam? I waited for the but.
Ms. Sterling recovered control of the room. “We knew that Samantha was different than the other students when we agreed to her
“Okay.” I leaned against the post separating two of the stalls.
“I’m sure I’ll find a lot of kick-ass artwork. But I’m guessing a pretty picture isn’t the reason you’re currently hiding out in a smelly bathroom.”
I shifted my weight from one foot to the other and stared at the pattern in the floor tiles. “He left when I was seven. I was dealing with a bunch of other crap — that I don’t want to talk about — at the same time. And it was all more than he could handle. So he just skipped town.”
“Ouch, I probably wouldn’t want to brag about a dad like that either.”
“Yeah, he’s definitely not a candidate for parent of the year, but he has made some pretty kick-ass artwork. You can Google him if you want to.”
“Okay, I will.” Lissa jumped down from her seat in the sink. “You know, not all guys run away. Nate shouldn’t have blabbed about your dad, but deep down, he’s one of the good ones.”
“I know.”
The bell rang, and she swatted me on the butt. “Now get to class and go chew out your lab partner.”
I laughed. “Thanks, Lissa.”
I managed to forgive Nate. He apologized about a million times for bringing it up. I didn’t think he fully understood why I’d been so upset, but oddly, that’s what made it easy for me to forgive him. Lissa had been right — Nate was an idiot, but that also meant he was human. That made him a lot easier to be around. I’d been growing weary of Mr. Perfect.
I’d almost forgotten about the whole thing by the time our art history exams were returned the following week. Everyone in the class received their graded test packet — except me. When Ms. Ball passed my desk, she simply whispered, “Samantha, will you see me after class?”
I nodded and scanned the room, hoping nobody else had noticed. Nate and Miles had, but Graham was busy studying his own paper.
When the final bell rang, everyone got up to leave but me. Nate set his hand on my shoulder. “I’ll meet you by your locker?”
“K,” I said.
Once the classroom had emptied, I walked up to Ms. Ball’s desk, where she was busy organizing her belongings. “Samantha, thanks for staying after. I wanted to discuss some things with you.”
“Okay, what’s up?”
She lifted a large messenger bag off her desk and slung it over her shoulder. “I actually wanted to discuss things with your mom too. She’s meeting us in Ms. Sterling’s office.”
My mom was in the principal’s office? I’d thought I was doing well in this class. How bad had I bombed the test?
Sure enough, when I followed Ms. Ball to the principal’s office, my mom was sitting in front of a large desk facing Ms. Sterling. Another woman with graying hair sat in a chair off to the side. I took the seat next to my mom and reached for her hand. This was second grade all over again. I wanted to throw up.
“Ms. Ball raised some concerns regarding Samantha’s art history exam.” Ms. Sterling placed an exam packet on her desk facing my mom and me.
I scanned the first page of the exam. About half of the words I’d written down were now crossed out and rewritten in red pen. It wasn’t pretty.
“Mrs. Wilson.” Ms. Ball turned to face my mom. “I want you to know, Samantha is an absolute joy to have in class. She’s always engaged and animated. She gets along well with the other students, and her contributions to class discussions help further the knowledge of the class as a whole. I had very high expectations for Samantha on this exam. And once I managed to figure out what she was trying to say, I found that all her answers were correct.”
Were they holding a summit meeting to tell me I’d gotten 100 percent on my art history exam? I waited for the but.
Ms. Sterling recovered control of the room. “We knew that Samantha was different than the other students when we agreed to her
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