FOUR
“SO YOU’VE BEEN around town all these years?” Victor Del Toro asked her.
Tammy nodded, “Yes… Victor. Gosh, it’s so weird calling you that.”
“Not to me,” Victor replied.
His smooth voice relaxed Tammy and she suddenly felt more comfortable with him.
“You can call me Victor by the way, and I was on sabbatical that year. That explains why I didn’t see you,” Victor replied.
“Really?” Tammy asked.
What the hell was that “really” supposed to mean? Tammy couldn’t believe she was acting like such a dweeb. She was always reduced to such a little girl when she came into contact with someone she had a crush on.
Victor’s body language confused Tammy too. He seemed to be sharing her interest, giving her gentle glances and smirking ever so often as she sat across from him.
Flirting with him even a little bit still felt wrong. He’d taught her after all…
“Tammy… I taught you over ten years ago. Of course you can call me Victor,” He responded.
He smiled at her. Tammy wondered if she was imagining some subtext in that smile.
Victor noticed Tammy biting down on her lip hard; he couldn’t help but crack a smile. The woman standing across from him was beyond beautiful. It was hard to believe she had been his student.
They weren’t even that distant in age…
Victor continued, “Your son could use a lot of work in this class. If he focused less on talking and more on working, he could be the smartest person in the class.”
Once Victor started speaking critically about Jabari in any way, Tammy’s attraction to him shriveled.
Tammy found him insensitive. Jabari was adjusting to a new school. Of course he wanted to make friends. She scowled, folding her arms and pouting just a little bit. Jabari worked diligently on his homework nightly and if Victor couldn’t see her son’s hard work, he didn’t deserve her attention.
“There must be some explanation for this. I watch him do his homework every night,” Tammy started.
She was starting to feel embarrassed as if Victor’s words were critiquing her parenting.
“Yes… Perhaps there is an explanation, but rather than an explanation I will have a solution for you. I think that he should come in for extra office hours a couple times a week. He might have to miss one soccer practice but for an A in Spanish it could be worth it, no?” Victor asked.
He cocked his head and smirked. Victor’s smile relaxed Tammy a bit and she acquiesced to his wishes. The last thing she wanted to do was to have problems at Willowcrest.
Tammy sighed, “Yes… I definitely agree you should come in for more help but I can’t make Jabari miss soccer. It’s where he is making so many friends and I’m worried about him fitting in in.”
Victor raised an eyebrow in a visibly judgmental way.
“Are you saying the soccer practice is more important than his grades?” He asked.
Tammy scowled even more fiercely. The last thing she wanted to do was blow up on this teacher. Especially because of how hard she’d worked to get here. Especially because this was Victor, her teenaged crush, and somehow she still felt like a nervous giggling teenager around him.
Keep your cool Tammy.
Losing her head couldn’t help the situation.
“It’s not — It’s just I want my son to be a well-rounded student. I’ll talk to him and see about the extra sessions,” Tammy replied tersely.
Victor could see her upset with him and he eased back in his chair, wondering if she deserved him being that harsh with her. He didn’t know what to say that wouldn’t offend her. He was trying to be honest with her, but that honesty seemed to be offending her.
If this were any other situation, Victor would have known how to handle her. But mothers? Mother’s were sensitive. He knew that. He cleared his throat and sat up, trying to ease the tension that had thickened between them.
Tammy was now no longer disguising her scowl.
Victor continued, “You know Tammy… I never expected to see you so soon with a child as old as Jabari. You were always a star student in my class. Perhaps you can help Jabari a little bit with some of your work ethic.”
Tammy stood up and approached the door. Staying here would only lead to more trouble and might lead to her saying something that she regretted. Tammy had still determined to remain coifed and professional.
Whether or not Victor was okay with it, this meeting was over. She couldn’t help but feel… insulted. And confused.
At first, Tammy had wondered if there was attraction between them. Now it was clear he believed the same lies about her that everyone else did. She was just another failure of a teen mother with a failure of a son. She stiffened her upper lip.
“Of course. I’ll work with him and if we don’t see an improvement in another two weeks perhaps we can come up with another solution,” Tammy replied.
She flashed Victor a smile which looked suspiciously like a grimace. Living in a town like this, Tammy’s fake smile had been perfected over the years. She stiffened her spine and exhaled, exuding a peace that didn’t truly exist.
“Very well Ms. Powers. I’ll be in touch. I’ll have the admissions office send me your contact information,” Victor nodded.
The way he stared at her looked almost regretful.
“Alrighty. Good afternoon Victor,” Tammy answered before walking away.
Tammy felt like a rejected high school girl all over again. Her disappointment with Jabari’s performance at his new school didn’t help either. Why was he so difficult? Was this somehow her fault?
Once Tammy was out of the office and seated in her car she slammed her hands down on the steering wheel in frustration.
“Ugh!” She squealed.
She glanced at her watch. Jabari had thirty minutes left in class.
As he finished classes, her mind wandered to the worst places.
What would happen if Jabari lost his spot at Willowcrest? What would happen if she failed him as a mother? Would talking to Jabari about his grades making feel animosity for her?
Tammy struggled juggling being both the good cop and the bad cop. If she just had someone else to bounce this off of, maybe parenting would be easier.
Tammy knew her son was talented -- he wasn’t failing Spanish because he was a fool -- and she needed him to start showing it so that his teachers would have no reason to doubt the reason he had been accepted at Willowcrest.
Tammy had called in a favor in this particular instance, but Jabari had more than the grades to get there on his own. The only reason he wouldn’t have been accepted was because of possible resentment people on the board of trustees would have about Tammy being a teen mother. That was it.
He can do this.
Finally, Jabari made his way to the car. He looked exhausted. Tammy could tell that he had a long day. She greeted her son and drove home.
After a few minutes of silence, Tammy began to speak with Jabari about what had gone on in the meeting between her and Señor Del Toro.
“Jabari… I need you to tell me what’s going on. Señor Del Toro tells me that you are not finishing your homework assignments and ‘cause of that, your grades are suffering. What’s going on? It’s not like you to leave something so serious up to chance. I’m getting worried about you,” Tammy began.
She hated talking to Jabari in such a stern manner but sometimes it really was necessary.
Jabari turned to the side and looked out the window as if he didn’t plan to respond. Just when Tammy was about to get his attention again, he answered.
“It has nothing to do with Spanish class. I’m trying to keep things together but it’s hard. Mom… I don’t mean to sound weak or nothing but… I just miss dad. It’s been hitting me hard lately that he doesn’t wanna be in my life or nothing. All my other classes are fine ‘cause I’m naturally good at them. But I just don’t have the effort to try in Spanish. Like I’m tired all the time…” Jabari said.
Tammy could tell he was close to tearing up. Jabari was sensitive about his relationship with his father. In a town where everyone had two competent parents, he felt isolated. Not to mention all the racist jokes kids made about his black daddy who’d left him behind.
Tammy choked back tears. Was Randall her fault too? Had her stupidity in relationships doomed her son?
“I didn’t realize you missed Randall,” Tammy answered.
Thinking about her ex sent her into a boiling rage usually.
She cleared her throat and tried to keep a judgmental tone out of her voice. She had to understand that Jabari’s relationship to Randall was far different from hers. He still saw potential in Randall. He had hope she’d lost long ago.
Jabari mumbled, “Yeah… It’s just… I never know when he’s going to be around. Can you talk to him ma.”
Jabari glanced over at his mother with widened, pleading eyes. He was desperate for that connection to his father.
Tammy couldn’t believe what she was hearing. But she couldn’t say no to her son. If he was worrying about not having a relationship with his father, the least she could do was help without judging him.
If she tried to push them away from each other, she knew they would only end up getting closer together.
Tammy wanted Jabari to make his own judgments about Randall Combs. As far as Tammy was concerned, she won by getting the Powers last name on Jabari’s birth certificate.
He’d have to see the truth on his own.
“I don’t know… I’ll see if I can get through to him,” Tammy answered.
She smiled at her son to let him know that broaching such a taboo topic was alright. Tammy empathized with her son. She knew what it was like to end things on a bad note with a parent…
They were getting close their house and she was glad that their conversation about Randall could come to an end. His name had put her on edge since the day he’d left her high and dry with a baby boy and no money to speak of.
Tammy was always worried that some grave negative detail about Randall would slip in front of her son. She just wanted to protect him, even if that meant lying about the depth of his father’s cruelty.
Once they arrived home, Tammy sent Jabari upstairs to do all of his homework. Even Spanish. In exchange, she promised to call his father and confront him about the noted absence in his son’s life.
Tammy prepared herself for war as she dialed Randall’s number.
He does nothing. He does nothing and Jabari still fawns after him. I’m the one embarrassing myself in front of teachers.
Tammy wasn’t convinced anyone would understand the pain single mothers went through.
“Randall,” Tammy greeted him in a huff.
She wanted him to know that she meant business. Randall interpreted any type of kindness as an invitation to re-enter Tammy’s life.
Randall coughed and took a swig of something. He replied, “Yes baby, finally showing your man some love?”
Tammy rolled her eyes in disgust.
As usual, Randall tried to turn the topic of conversation from her disappointment in him to something nasty and sexual.
“No. I need you to start taking an interest in your son! Randall! Jabari misses you. Now I can’t tell him you ain’t shit… But if you don’t get involved more I might have to!” Tammy half-yelled, half-whispered.
Randall coughed again and then replied, “What you mean involved baby?”
“Don’t play stupid with me…” Tammy growled.
“Alright, alright… I’ll call him or something,” Randall grumbled.
Good. Tammy finally seem to have gotten through to him on some level. A promise to call was more than she usually got out of Randall. She didn’t want to have to tell Jabari that his father wasn’t interested in seeing him so she was happy things didn’t get a lot nastier between them.
Tammy hoped that Randall would get his butt into action fast. If Randall was what it took for Jabari to take school seriously, she’d try to work things out.
The second Tammy hung up the phone, she received a call from an unknown number. Who could it be? She didn’t have many people who called her on her cell phone. Most of her friends used video chat or Facebook.
Tammy picked up. Hopefully it’s not a stupid telemarketer.
“Hello?” She asked. Tammy was still out for blood since her conversation with Randall and it showed in her tone.
“Tammy. It’s Victor Del Toro,” Victor said. His voice was gruff and sexy.
Tammy had never felt so close to swooning before. Her heart stopped when she heard his voice at the other end of the line. He’d taken her by surprise — a welcome surprise considering her conversation with Randall.
Again, Tammy was reduced to a high school girl with a crush. She giggled before sitting down.
“Oh. Hi. Is everything alright? I just sent Jabari off to do his homework like you suggested during our meeting today,” Tammy answered.
Her mood changed the moment she recognized Victor’s voice. But then, just thinking about the meeting they’d had earlier reminded her of the line Victor had crossed. She wasn’t too happy about that. Being sexy didn’t give him the right to be disrespectful. Tammy pursed her lips. Now that she wasn’t in the same room as Victor, she didn’t have to hide how she felt about the exchange.
Then Victor redeemed himself.
Victor cleared his throat and then replied in his suave gravely accent, “Right. About that meeting. That’s why I’m calling… Heh.”
He sounded nervous too.
Victor continued, “I didn’t like the way it ended. I said some pretty offensive things and you took it gracefully but didn’t have to. I’ve been thinking about you… I mean… I’ve been thinking about this since you left my office. Can I make it up to you over coffee? Consider it a parent teacher conference with a free drink.”
Was he asking her out on a date? Tammy put the idea out of her mind. He probably just felt bad and and wanted things to end on a better note. After all, it was a good idea to have the wealthy parents of students on your good side.
That was how Stan Duffy got the board of trustees to appoint him the headmaster of Willowcrest. Tammy didn’t want to say no to such a generous offer. She assumed no romantic intent.
I’m dreaming if I think Victor’s interested in me.
Tammy answered, “Sure. We can do coffee Saturday at 11 if that works for you.”
Victor paused for a second. “That sounds wonderful,” he sighed.
Even over the phone, his relief was palpable. Tammy set the phone down and squealed. Not a date, but closer to him all the same.