Page 42 of Beyond Perfect

“I’m a little confused here. Start at the beginning.”

Chapter 7

The next day Maisy went in to work and spent the time packing up. She had no idea she’d acquired so many things. She made two categories: what the school paid for and what she’d bought. Some of her purchases might be useful if she got the job at the elementary school. Her interview was today at noon. Jackson had told the staff they were free to make their own hours. All the while she prayed he wouldn’t come to see her.

Annie did, though. “Need some help?”

“No, I’m only taking what I bought. I’ll leave most things for the next person you guys hire.”

“Ah. Feeling any better today?”

She folded her arms across her waist. “Yes. I should have called you last night. I’m sorry.”

“How’d it go with Jackson?”

“Not well. I left not long after you did.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

She thought of something pleasant to say. “I went to the first Foster Care Support Group last night.”

“That’s exciting. I heard Gemma Kendrick is teaching one of the sessions.”

“I’m sure it’ll be great. The moderator had us introduce ourselves and one of the participants is a principal from Westwood Elementary. He, um, asked me to come in for an interview. They have an at-risk class.”

“Maisy, I’m happy for you.”

“You weren’t yesterday.”

“Diego made me see I was going to lose you either way. If you got together with Jackson, you’d have to leave Pathways. If things went south with you two, you’d leave anyway thoughI’d prefer the former. So, I am happy for you. What time is the interview?”

“Noon. Jackson said we could make our own hours. But I’m probably not coming back.”

“I understand. He’s interviewing for your job.”

“Already?”

“Hmm.”

All morning, she tried not to think about Jackson picking someone to replace her. And the packing made her sad. She’d found a home here. At eleven forty-five, Maisy hugged Annie goodbye and left the campus. The elementary school was closer to her house than Pathways, so she reached it a few minutes early. She studied the building from the car. The school had been remodeled last year. She knew because she’d voted for the city to do the project. It was painted a nice terracotta and she could see that the doors and windows were new also.

Inside she followed directions to the principal’s office. His secretary told her he was ready for her and opened his door. “Maisy Shepherd is here, George.”

“Have her come right in.”

He stood. He was a big man, almost as tall as Jackson. “Hi, Maisy. Let’s both have a seat at the table over there.”

When they were settled, he asked, “So, you’re interested in the job?”

“Yes. Tell me about the kids.”

“We go to sixth grade here. The oldest students have been a…problem for a few years. Last year, we started a separate class for ten of them, and that’s worked better than when they were in other bigger classrooms.”

“In what way? Describe their behavior.”

“It runs from not staying in their seats to disrupting class to stealing. Academically, they just make passing.”

“Do you promote them to the next level automatically? I know some grade schools do that.”

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