Lie, Lie Again(10)
“He will.” Riki smiled as she looked on. “He’s a great kid.”
“Yes, he is.”
Riki turned at the sudden sharp tone in his mom’s voice.
Mrs. Tau continued. “Were you aware that he was shamed in class the other day?”
“What? No! When did this happen?”
Her lips formed a tight line. “It was during the nutrition lesson. Apparently, the docent asked what they’d eaten for breakfast. Jeremy raised his hand and shared that he’d had Cheerios.”
Riki nodded, keeping an eye on her joggers. “I remember that.”
“Well, her response could’ve been kinder. According to my son, she told him Cheerios aren’t a good choice because they’re processed. He said he’d added milk, thinking that milk is healthy because that’s what I’ve always told him, but then she went on to lecture him about milk. She actually said if he used cow’s milk, it made things worse, because cow’s milk is meant for calves.” Mrs. Tau turned to Riki. “Unbelievable. I wish he’d told her that her nut milk was meant for nuts, but of course, he would never think to say that. Our nanny said he wasn’t himself all afternoon. I thought he was coming down with something and got out the thermometer, but he ran for the kitchen, where I caught him dumping the entire box of Cheerios into the trash. It was then that he finally told me what had happened. Poor kid. He’d gone the whole afternoon feeling bad. That woman was so focused on delivering her ‘healthy eating spiel’”—she made air quotes with her fingers as she spoke—“that she didn’t bother to check the students’ reactions.”
Here we go, Riki thought. The parents were worse than bickering children. “I’m really sorry. Now that I’m hearing it from Jeremy’s point of view, I can see how upsetting it would be. When we’re back in the classroom, I’ll talk about how moving our bodies is healthy, and then I can transition it back to eating and how there are lots of healthy ways to eat.”
“I really wish you would’ve taken more notice the day of. That being said, I know how difficult it can be to reel in some of the parents, especially ones like Cassandra Trainor.” She stepped closer and lowered her voice. “Is she here?”
Riki scanned the line of parents that flanked the field. “I don’t see her. Huh. She typically shows up for everything.”
“It’s probably best. I’m not sure what I would say to her. That woman knows how to get under my skin.”
Cassandra Trainor was a little bossy, perhaps, but not mean. Well, not lately, at least. There had been a situation earlier in the year involving some alleged bullying of Darcy, her daughter. Alleged, because as it turned out, Darcy had been the one who was causing trouble with some of the other girls. As she recalled, Mrs. Trainor’s reaction had been exaggerated. Riki hadn’t taken it personally. She’d been warned about the hyper parents who were always right, even when they were proven wrong. “To be fair, I’m sure she didn’t intend to upset Jeremy.”
With a smirk, Mrs. Tau said, “That’s to be debated. You don’t know her the way I do. You’re aware she sits on the board of directors, right? Everyone has to tiptoe around her because she thinks she owns this place.”
A boom blasted the air, followed by a screech that caused everyone to slap their hands to their ears. They looked to see the principal, dressed in a brown sports coat and yellow shirt, fumbling with the microphone. “Sorry, Ocean Avenue families! A little bit of a technical problem here, but I’ve got it all worked out.” He laughed. “I think,” he said with another hearty laugh.
Riki wondered if anyone else thought he resembled the annoying-but-meant-to-be-funny uncle from an eighties sitcom she used to watch on Nick at Nite. She liked Principal Rosenkrantz—he was very supportive of the teachers—she just wished he wouldn’t try so hard in front of the parents. He came across as a total clown.
“Thank you for coming to the sixth annual Ocean Avenue Jog-a-Thon! Let’s give a big round of applause to all our suuuperstar joggers!”
Parents and teachers clapped and cheered. Riki whispered to Mrs. Tau, “Thanks again for filling me in. I’ll keep an eye on things.”
“If it happens again,” she muttered, “I’m going to have a word with that woman.”
Riki nodded and edged closer to her friend Amelia. “Can it be Friday yet?” she whispered.
Amelia laughed. “Right? It can’t come soon enough. I bought some Girl Scout Cookies from one of my kids this morning. We can indulge at lunch.”
“Can’t wait,” Riki replied.
As Principal Rosenkrantz led the students in a cheer, she clapped along, but her mind traveled to last night. The cheer reached a rowdy finale, and she stretched luxuriously, remembering how good it felt to have Chris’s hands trailing down her back, teasing her as he dragged his fingertips across her thighs. She touched a hand to her cheek. I can’t think about that now, she thought. Not in front of all these kids. But the fact that she had thought about it with such pleasure was a good sign. They would be a great couple. It could totally work. She was certain of it. She clapped and gave a loud whoop. The jog-a-thon was over. Thank God.
CHAPTER FOUR
Sylvia turned onto the long driveway of the fourplex on Mockingbird Lane, slowing her car to wave to Embry and Riki, who stood just outside the white picket fence that enclosed the small square that Embry laughingly referred to as her yard. Apparently, front yards were bigger where she came from. Bigger and cheaper.