Page 35 of Sugar
She sighs and goes back to eating.
To her credit, she eats the entire serving and two packages of crackers. She also drains the mug of ginger ale. There’s a flush in her cheeks again—a good sign, for sure. “Want more?” I ask.
She shakes her head.
I’m about to ask her how her stomach’s feeling, by my phone rings, the loud tune echoing through the small kitchen. I pull it out from my back pocket and see that it’s my mother.
“Hey, Mom,” I say when I answer. Ava shifts her eyes down to her empty bowl.
“Hi, honey. You in the barn?”
“I’m at home. I’m probably headed out there soon though. Is everything okay?” The dread is immediate. Anxiety claws at me, my mind flashing with images of a full army of sheriff deputies surrounding the main house.
“School called. Liam’s gotten himself into some trouble, and I was hopin’ you might be able to go get him. I’m home with James and . . .” She hesitates. “Well, Brooks isn’t havin’ a good day.”
“What happened?” I ask. My tone must change, because Ava’s gaze cuts back to me.
She sighs. “He got in a fight with another boy. Apparently made his nose bleed.”
“Fuck,” I mutter. “All right, I’ll go get him.” Mom had Brooks add all of us to the emergency pick-up list after Melody died in case something like this happened. “Want me to bring him to you?”
“Yes,” she confirms. I know by the way she says it, Liam is in for some tough love. “I’ll be here waiting for y’all.”
“Yes, ma’am. Love you.”
“Love you too, honey. And thank you.”
“No problem,” I say before hanging up. I look at Ava, who’s still watching me from the table. “I have to go. Shouldn’t be long.”
“Where to?” she asks.
“My nephew got in a fight at school and needs to be picked up.”
“Can I come?”
I look at her. “You want to?”
She shrugs. “Why not?”
“How do you feel?”
“Better, now that I’ve eaten.” She stands to bring her bowl to the sink, turning on the faucet to give it a quick rinse. It’s . . .strange, to see her moving so comfortably around my kitchen. “Is he at Rattlesnake Ridge?”
“Yeah.” It’s the elementary school we all went to, Ava included.
Turning the water off, she looks around for a towel to dry her hands. When she doesn’t find one, she wipes them along her jeans, leaving streaks of water around her thighs. “Let’s go,” she says, heading for the door.
The school’sadministration office is stuffy and loud with children flowing in and out for various reasons: to call home, to get a bandage from the nurse, and one young boy even came in to declare he thinks he has lice, which led to more hustle and bustle as the receptionist and vice principal worked to get him into the latter’s office for a thorough examination.
Ava and I wait for a whole twenty minutes before finally being called on by a woman with graying hair who looks to be about sixty. I was expecting to be met with haughty impatience over Liam’s actions, but there’s a warm and gentle smile spread across her face. “Kasey Bennett?” she asks.
I stand, nodding and reaching a hand out. “Yes, that’s me.”
She takes my hand. “I’m Principal Wuthers. I’ve got Liam in my office, if you’d like to follow me.”
“I’ll wait here,” Ava says from her seat.
“You’re more than welcome to come too,” Principal Wuthers offers.
