The Uncle Buck Experience
There’s something eerie about being summoned to a primary school as an adult. I don’t even know why I’m here but something tells me that I’m not going to like it. I lock my car and wipe my clammy hands on my jeans as I approach the front doors. I catch my reflection in the plastic covered display on the wall and realize that I have panda eyes from the night before. That’ll teach me to take off my make up before bed. Let’s just say I wasn’t prepared to be out of the house this early. Oh well, we’re down the rabbit hole now. As soon as I open the door I’m hit with the smell of anti bac and old underwear. I wonder around, receiving curious glances from the teachers. Eventually one of them approaches me and directs me to the headmaster’s office. I immediately see Amelia with her head down, shoulders hunched over, swinging her legs that fall just short of the ground. Hearing my footsteps, she looks up and the second she sees me, her face drops. Poor kid. I wink at her as I walk past to let her know everything will be ok and she smiles back at me. Ok, so far so good. I haven’t messed this up yet. I knock on the headmaster’s door and hear a voice tell me to come in.
“Ah, you must be Miss…?” Judgmental eyes look up at me from beneath long thick eyelashes. The headmaster sits behind a large mahogany desk, which looks out of place in a primary school.
“Please, call me Daisy.” I hold out my hand and he looks like I’ve just handed him a dead fish. He’s looking at my chipped metallic blue nail varnish and thumb ring. His nose wrinkles and after an awkward moment, he accepts my outstretched hand.
“I understand that Amelia’s parents couldn’t make the meeting on such short notice?” I grit my teeth.
“Yes, unfortunately they couldn’t get out of work.”
“I see.” He looks down at a piece of paper in front of him. I try to peer over the desk to see what he’s examining. “Well, I’m sorry to have called you in so abruptly, but there was an incident today that I need to discuss with you. It involves Amelia and a boy in her class.”
“When you say incident?”
He looks at me, clearly not impressed with me messing up his rehearsed speech. “There was a fight.”
“A fight?! Amelia was in a fight?”
“She started it.”
“I beg your pardon?” I blurt out before my brain has a chance to stop me. He leans forward and places his elbows on the desk. The move is so deliberate I half expect him to peer over his glasses to drive the point home. I compose myself. “Sorry. Please continue.”
He pauses for effect. “We don’t tolerate any behaviour of this kind at our school. We take this very seriously. I’ve had a chance to speak to both children and I’ve explained the severity of the situation.”
I frown. “They’re six years old.” I suddenly feel like Uncle Buck, when he’s told his niece is a silly heart and a dreamer. I didn’t think this actually happened in real life. I uncross my legs and sit up. “This sounds very out of character for Amelia. She’s such a sweet kid. Did she tell you what happened?”
“She was very quiet when I asked. I’m hoping that you’ll be able to get to the bottom of it.”
“I’ll speak to her. Is the boy ok? He wasn’t harmed, was he?”
He shakes his head. “Luckily both of them are unharmed, just a little shaken up.”
I process the information, still trying to figure out how this is happening. “Can I take Amelia home?”
He nods and I get the feeling it’s ok for me to leave now. I feel awkward as I stand up to leave, his haughtiness makes me feel like I should courtesy, but then his patronizing tone makes me want to give him the finger. I feel conflicted but I promised Rose that I would behave and as she kept reminding me, she has a good reputation at the school. So, instead I open the door and make my way to Amelia. Her shoulders have dropped again, her blonde hair hiding her face. I hear a sniffle as I approach.
“Am I in trouble?” She asks as a single tear hits her hand. My heart aches for her. It’s the worst thing in the world as a kid, feeling like you’re in trouble with the grownups.
I kneel down in front of her and tuck her hair behind her ear. “No sweetie, but how about you tell me what happened?”
She opens her mouth to speak but changes her mind at the sound of approaching footsteps. I look up to see a tall figure glaring down at me. “You’re not Amelia’s mum.” He says gruffly. Judging by the flaring nostrils and clenched jaw, I can only assume this is the boy’s dad. I slowly stand up, trying not to wince. Movements like this were a lot easier in my 20s.
“No, I’m not. I’m the aunt. And you must be…” I give him a once over trying to find the right words. I don’t know the kid’s name. I get momentarily distracted by his paint covered combats and when I eventually look up, I find hazel green eyes glaring at me.
“I’m Charlie’s dad. I believe there was an incident with your niece and I’d like to talk to her mum about it when she’s next up at the school.” Incident. He’s one of those.
I take a deep breath. “I completely understand. See the thing is, I’m doing the drop offs and picks up at the moment so Rose won’t be here for a while. But I’m happy to pass on anything you’d like to make her aware of.”
“With all due respect-“
“Whenever someone starts a sentence with ‘with all due respect’ there’s usually no respect involved.” I say without thinking. Plus, his tone of voice is grating on me. I get that he’s pissed but does everyone at this school talk like this? Is there a special douchebag vocab class I missed? “I’m not taking this situation lightly. But my niece is a good kid, I’m sure your son is as well. Right now, I’d like to take Amelia home because she’s very upset and I need to talk to her. If you want to talk about this further, then I’m happy to.” Nicely recovered.
He crosses his arms across his chest and I hold my nerve. He might be taller and broader, but my knee could find his groin really easily. Please don’t make a scene, just pick her up and bring her home. That’s all I ask. I hear Rose’s panicked voice in my head and I know I can’t mess this up. My family already think I’m a trouble maker, last thing I need is to prove them right.
“Ok, fine. Tomorrow morning after drop off?”
I nod. I’m just picking up Amelia’s school bag when I hear him clear his throat. “Sorry I didn’t catch your name.”
“I’m Daisy.” I hold out my hand and he looks at my outstretched hand. Does no one shake hands around here?! He accepts my hand with a firmer grip than I would like.
“Thomas.” We both stand shaking hands about ten seconds longer than is necessary. I can feel him sizing me up and I can only imagine what he’s seeing. Wild burgundy hair, smudged eyeliner and bloodshot eyes. I know already he’s gotten the wrong impression; the single, boozy aunt who only cares about having a good time. And something tells me he doesn’t care about finding out the truth.
This sort of thing wouldn’t normally bother me, I can handle people making snap judgements. It’s just that, I knew coming home was always going to be hard, I just didn’t know it was going to be this hard. People just stare at me, whispering. About what, I couldn’t tell you. God knows the lies my family have been circulating about me. Well, one family member in particular. But for the sake of my niece, I grin and bare it. I meant what I said, she’s a great kid and I plan on shielding her from this for as long as I can.
Once we’re back home, I grab a couple of chocolate biscuits and try to get the truth out of Amelia. After two hobnobs, she tells me everything.
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s ok. But you know, violence is never the answer.” She looks down at her half-eaten biscuit, the chocolate melting on her small chubby hands. She looks so deflated and my heart can’t take it. I tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear. “Sometimes we feel things and it’s so strong it’s like if we don’t let it out, we’re going to explode. And it’s scary, not knowing how to deal with it.” She looks at me, hope in her eyes. “But next time you get angry, or upset, take a deep breath. Talk to a teacher, or your mummy and daddy. Or even me! You can always talk to me. And we’ll figure it out. Ok kiddo?”
She gives me a small nod. As I put my arm around her and kiss the top of her head, she wraps her small arms around my waist and squeezes tight. I instantly feel a warmth spread through my chest. She’s the only one who’s hugged me since I’ve been back and I didn’t realize how much I needed it.
“What if someone is mean to me first?”
“Oh, then all bets are off!” I hear her giggle and exhale a shaky breath. That’s one difficult discussion down. Now what the hell do I say to Charlie’s dad?
Love is blind...so are bats. 