THREE
AFTER TWO WEEKS at Willowcrest, Jabari’s attitude and happiness had improved. Tammy quickly saw that she’d made the correct choice.
Since Willowcrest was a little ways out from their house, Tammy had started picking him up from school again. During the drive home, Tammy could see the real change in her son. Jabari had gone from being sullen and hateful at school to experiencing life as a happy young man who seemed to be making quite a few friends.
Tammy was starting to feel secure in the fact that she’d made the right choice. All that needed to happen was Jabari needed to keep his nose clean and Tammy needed to maintain a good reputation around the town to ingratiate herself with the other parents and the board of trustees.
Jabari could be headed back to Southwest in shame if anything happened.
Tammy sat in her car, tapping the steering wheel with her fingers as she raced over to pick Jabari up. She stuck her head out of the window, but decided against cussing the guy driving at a snail’s pace in front of her.
Her doctor’s appointment had run a little long and she was going to be late picking up Jabari. He didn’t have soccer practice and they could get some much needed mother-son bonding time.
Jabari was already waiting by the time Tammy arrived. Today he looked a little bit less jubilant than he had the previous two weeks. Tammy’s heart sank as she imagined all the horrible things that may have happened. She hoped that Jabari hadn’t stumbled upon a new set of bullies looking for someone to pick on. He’d been fitting in, but he was still the new kid.
“Good afternoon mom,” Jabari mumbled as he got into the passenger seat. His brow was furrowed in frustration.
Tammy greeted him back and then pulled her Audi out of the school’s driveway.
“Is everything alright Jay?” Tammy questioned.
Jabari replied, “Yeah… Everything’s fine. I guess… Well my Spanish teacher wants you to come in tomorrow.”
Jabari was supposed to be doing everything right keep his place at Willowcrest Prep and now his Spanish teacher wanted her to come in? What was going on? If that boy is acting up in class I swear to God…
“Everything’s fine but your teacher wants me to come in? What the hell has been going on Jay?” Tammy said.
She realized she was raising her voice.
I need to calm down.
After the effort it had taken to get Jabari through the doors of Willowcrest, she didn’t want him taking it for granted.
Jabari sighed and rolled his eyes.
“It’s not that serious… I’m just having a little trouble and my teacher thinks for some reason you could help,” Jabari grumbled.
Tammy’s mind whirred too quickly for her to chastise him for his teenage attitude. She wanted the best for Jabari and she was concerned that he had managed to hide the fact that he wasn’t doing very well in Spanish from her.
Tammy agreed to go meet with Jabari’s teacher the next day. The rest of the drive home, she probed, trying to find out more and uncover anymore secrets Jabari happened to be keeping.
She couldn’t stand the idea of losing her friendship with her son, but first she had to be a parent to him. Tammy feared the older Jabari got, the more distant their relationship would become. He was all she had. He was all she’d worked for.
Once the subject of Spanish dissipated, Jabari happily waxed on about his new friends. He’d made five new ones which surprised Tammy due to his introversion.
Surrounded by so many people he got along with, Jabari had found more than two people who shared his interests. Everyone else thought he was cool either because he was new or because of his interest in math and science.
Jabari was also starting to become closer to the people in his soccer team. Although he was on junior varsity, the boys on the team encouraged him to try out for the varsity team. Tammy couldn’t have been more proud.
She had worked hard since she was 18 years old to raise her son to be the best man he could be. Tammy was a child raising a child, but she’d put her very best effort into Jabari. He wasn’t quite a man yet, but Tammy felt like he was getting close.
Each day, Jabari seemed just a little bit savvier and wiser. He had even gone through one massive growth spurt and he was still shooting up like a beanstalk. Within a year, Tammy was sure her son would tower over her.
At home, Jabari did his homework under Tammy’s somewhat watchful eye. She made them a simple potato leek soup for dinner and then left Jabari to read a book as she retired upstairs to her bedroom.
As Tammy watched reruns of her favorite show, she started to realize how lonely she was. Sure she had Jabari, but he couldn’t be her only company all the time. When her friends were out of state, Tammy was sometimes is forced to confront aching loneliness.
Where was the man who was going to turn this all around?
She had been single for almost 4 years now, and sometimes she felt like she was comfortable with it. Other times, Tammy wanted nothing more than to have a man she loved sharing her bed. Getting involved with men had its risks, especially with a young son. Jabari always came first.
Most guys saw Tammy’s teen pregnancy as a “red flag” without ever knowing the full story. Tammy’s life was not as cut and dry as people thought. She wasn’t a “slut”, but most people labelled her that way anyways.
Tammy decided she’d better put these depressing thoughts out of her mind. She had never imagined herself dying an old maid, but now it seemed like a definite possibility. Tammy didn’t throw herself these pity parties often, but sometimes it was unavoidable.
I’m too dramatic… Tammy thought to herself as she drifted off to sleep.
The next afternoon, Tammy prepared to see Jabari’s Spanish teacher. She wondered if she would recognize the man — or woman.
She knew many of the teachers stayed at Willowcrest for years but just as many of them left and pursued opportunities in busier towns.
Most of Tammy’s favorite teachers had already retired. Stanley Duffy was one of the few that remained and he was already pretty close to retiring.
Either way, Tammy wanted to make a good impression. For this meeting, she wore a gorgeous teal Calvin Klein shift dress with nude colored heels. The dress hugged her curves perfectly. The heels elongated her legs making her look even more like a model and even more professional. Tammy’s dark skin popped against the bright teal dress.
Again, Tammy put on some light makeup and wore an old pair of pearls that she had received from her mother back when she went to Willowcrest. Tammy wished she looked a little older…
When she was satisfied with her appearance, she drove up to the school. The humanities building was just like it was back when Tammy attended Willowcrest.
Not a single change had been made; not even the interior was remodeled. There were only a few buildings left like that. The old hardwood still had that familiar smell that took Tammy back to her childhood. As Tammy walked through the building to the office number she had been given, she couldn’t help but worry about meeting with this teacher.
What would they think of her? Would they judge her for being a young mother and consider this case hopeless? Would this affect the teacher’s view of her son? Tammy tried to carry herself tall and proud. But she didn’t feel very tall at all. She still felt insecure even after years of dealing with judgment.
When Tammy knocked on room 221, a familiar voice called out, “Si!”
Tammy stopped, stunned that she was hearing that voice again. It couldn’t be him. She figured it was the nostalgia was playing tricks on her mind…
Tammy opened the door and her mouth hung open in shock when she saw the teacher sitting behind the desk. This was Jabari’s Spanish teacher?!
Victor Del Toro had been a young intern when Tammy Powers attended Willowcrest Prep. When she was 16 years old, he had started teaching as a fresh out of college 23-year-old.
Every single girl in Tammy’s class had a huge crush on Señor Del Toro. Tammy couldn’t believe that he had continued to teach at Willowcrest.
Tammy couldn’t imagine what a handsome man like him was doing still working at a prep school tucked in the middle of nowhere. Señor Del Toro seemed like he was a rolling stone, always moving on to the next thing. But here he was so many years later, sitting behind a desk in a classroom very similar to the one Tammy sat in.
Tammy’s sixteen year old crush came rising to the surface again. Victor looked like he hadn’t aged much. Over ten years had passed and he still looked attractive. Tammy wondered if he had been married…
Age had served him well. The lines on his face only accentuated his sharp Spanish features. His parents were real estate moguls from Barcelona and Victor had always looked like more of a model than a teacher.
He was well over six feet tall. His Spanish heritage gave his skin a more olive complexion, well complimented by his dark hair.
He was in incredible shape, even if he was quite large for a runner. Standing before him, still stunned into silence, Tammy could see his large biceps rippling through his Oxford shirt.
Back then, there had been rumors he had worked for Calvin Klein before becoming a teacher. He had an angular, rugged face with a square jaw and bright blue eyes. Victor had dark chestnut brown hair that he always wore a little bit long.
She wondered if he would remember her…
“Good afternoon… I’m Jabari’s mother, Tammy Powers,” Tammy said confidently.
She glanced at his face for signs of recognition. He raised his brows and furrowed them again as if he recognized her, but wasn’t sure from where.
“Ah… Si… Are you sure it’s not Tammy Steele or have you married since I last knew you?” Señor Del Toro replied with a bright smile.
He really did remember her.
Tammy had only taken the name “Powers” after she had her baby. It was her mother’s maiden name. Due to her disagreements with her father, she’d changed her last name.
“Yes, Tammy Steele. Not married, just a name change,” Tammy began.
He stared at her and smiled. Tammy couldn’t place the intentions behind the smile and his eyes lingered on her frame just a little longer than she expected.
He cleared his throat.
“Si. Jabari’s mother?”
“Yes,” Tammy replied, “I’m worried actually.”
Victor pointed her to a seat.
“Sit down, Miss Powers. We’ll talk. And call me Victor.”
Tammy sat down, resting her purse on her lap and fidgeting as she waited for Victor to spell out her son’s fate.
Tammy couldn’t deny that she felt madly attracted to Victor. As a teen, her attraction had been totally inappropriate. Now whether it was appropriate or not was more ambiguous. Sitting before him she grew painfully aware of her crush and hot color rose to her cheeks.
While she sat there flustered, Victor was probably calling to mind all the embarrassing memories of her as a teen.
“You mustn’t worry Tammy. Victor’s problems are fixable.”
“But he has problems?” Tammy replied concerned.
Victor smiled, showing off his pearly white teeth.
“He isn’t doing well, but he is new here and not used to the rigorous work of Willowcrest. These issues can be solved without involving the administration.”
He’d picked up on Tammy’s worries and assuaged them immediately.
“Thank you,” she replied, relaxing into the chair a little more.
Victor smiled at her, recalling his first days teaching at Willowcrest. Those days had seemed forever ago, but with one of his first students sitting before him, the mood for reminiscing sprung upon him.
Victor cleared his throat, “I remember that first Spanish literature class I taught.”
Tammy smiled, welcoming the subject change and the memory of days gone by. She’d received her best grades in that class.
“I remember that class,” Tammy replied.
She twirled one of her two-strand twists around her finger. Something about Victor was causing her to regress into her high school “I have a crush” state of being. Tammy unconsciously bit down on her lip.
She also remembered during that Spanish Literature class she would always get in trouble for passing notes to Marco, a crush in her year, and for letting him copy her homework once. Those memories caused her to blush too.
She wondered if that was what Victor Del Toro remembered about her too.
Why do I feel like such a little girl right now? I’m supposed to be dignified.
Tammy hadn’t felt the tender shyness that came along with having a crush for a while.