“Yep, you too, buddy. It’s kind of a school rule. You have to have a really good doctor’s note to get out of it.
“Why would you want to?” Kevin asked, clearly confused.
“Oh believe me, there’s plenty of times you don’t feel like going out and freezing you’re a... butt,” he said, quickly correcting himself.
“Oh you can say ass, I hear it all the time.”
“Kevin!” I said, shooting him a warning look.
“Oops, sorry, Katelyn,” he said, looking instantly remorseful. He knew speaking about our home life with others was taboo.
Max looked at us puzzled, but I ignored him.
“So, is this Kevin’s class?” I asked, pointing to the door we had stopped in front of.
“Huh? Oh, right. Yeah, this is Ms. Davis’s class,” he answered, pulling the door open so we could enter.
Kevin’s teacher, Ms. Davis, was busy writing on the dry erase board that lined the front of the classroom. She was barely five foot tall and I wouldn’t say she was chunky, she just looked more round than if she would have been a foot taller. She did have cute, short blonde hair that was cut in a flattering style that framed and enhanced her face. Her most striking attribute was her blue eyes which seemed to sparkle like the ocean would if the sun was hitting it.
She looked over as the three of us entered the room.
“Ms. Davis, this is Kevin and his sister Katelyn,” Max said, introducing us.
“It’s a pleasure to have you Kevin,” she said, bustling over to us as her hips knocked into the desks in the front row. “We’re going to have a fun and entertaining year together,” she said in a warm bubbling voice that instantly put Kevin at ease.
I smiled in relief, feeling comfortable that Kevin would be in good hands. Glancing around his room, I was almost envious that I couldn’t stay when I saw the inviting interactive centers that were spaced around the room, including a comfy book nook that sat in the far corner surrounded by books and comfortable throw pillows.
“Okay punk, I'll see you after school,” I said affectionately, giving Kevin a light tap on the arm before Max and I left the room.
“This school's something else,” I said to Max after a few awkward moments of silence.
“Yeah, I guess it's nice here, but aren’t all schools pretty much like this?” Max asked.
“Really?" I asked sarcastically. "Try not at all. Do you ever watch TV?”
“Sure, but if I believed everything I saw on TV there'd be vampires and werewolves running around everywhere,” he said, shooting me another one of his dimpled smiles.
“True,” I said grinning, forgetting that I was supposed to be keeping my distance from him. “But at least they’re not bad to look at,” I teased.
He threw his head back and laughed. “You got me there,” he said when he finally stopped laughing.
“So, how do you guys survive out here so far from any fast food places or movie theaters?”
“Well, there’s a McDonald’s about fifteen miles up the road, off the main highway. Movies, on the other hand, are another story. It has to be a real blockbuster for us to make the long drive to the city. Usually, we'll all hang out at my house or my buddy Clint’s. We both have big TVs so it’s all cool.”
“Hmmm,” I said a bit skeptically.
“Trust me, you can come hang with us sometime and see,” he said as he stopped in front of a door at the opposite end of the long hallway. “Ta-da, this is us,” he said, enthusiastically opening the door.
Max held the door wide open so I could step into the brightly, lit, room. All sound suddenly evaporated as every eye in the room pivoted toward us. I forced myself to keep from staring uncomfortably at the floor, trying not to look too embarrassingly flush as I felt everyone studying me like a lab rat. Being new was an old hat for me.
“Making your own hours, Maxwell?” the teacher asked good-naturedly, breaking the silence.
Max laughed, “Nah, not this time. Mrs. Johnson asked me if I would take Katelyn here and her brother to their classes,” Max said coolly, obviously sharing a good rapport with the teacher.
“Katelyn is it? Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you. Welcome to our crazy class,” he said, spreading his hands out to indicate the students who were sitting behind their desks throughout the room.
“Um, thanks,” I said, responding to his laid back demeanor. He reached out to shake my hand, and I couldn’t help returning his welcoming smile. He instantly eased my tension, which was a rarity for me on the first day of school. Perhaps it was the kind laugh lines in the corners of his eyes or the plentiful amount of grey hairs lining his head, beard and mustache, but something about him instantly engaged me.