I See You (Campus Crush series)

13

Picture of Kealen
Never Be Like You lyric video
*

"We're baaack," Athena sang as she and Dawn walked into the lounge where David and I were.

"Dad, look!" Dawn skipped over to him to show her glittery white cotton candy while Athena wrapped an arm around my shoulder, leaning toward me.

"Uncle Cas," she whispered, "Can I talk to you?"

"Sure, what about?"

"Privately." I let her lead me to the kitchen. "Okay, something's fishy about this racist teacher situation." She splayed her fingers. "I-I'm not sticking up for Ms. Kurry but I've always known her to be... well, amazing. And sweet and caring. It's just so hard to imagine that someone so angelic could act monstrous to one of her own students, you know?"

"Oh, sweetheart, I know it's hard. I always thought the same about her, but Dawn couldn't have made up those words."

"No, I agree. I don't think she made them up. But we dance at the same studio so I keep a very close eye on her." She bit her lip, averting her eyes. "And I may or may not have noticed a couple girls who don't exactly like her very much."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "This is news."

"Yeah, but get this. They both go to her school, and one of them is playing Dorothy."

I sighed, running a hand through my hair. "And you think one of them said it."

"It makes the most sense. I also may have stalked Ms. Kurry on facebook-literally who has facebook anymore-but after about 30 boring scrolls, I gathered that she has an adopted 14-year-old son."

"Okay..."

"He's from Ghana. I mean, not to say someone couldn't possibly be racist just because they have a black child, but-"

"But it's unlikely and my daughter might've lied to us," I finished with another heavy sigh. "I've been bullied as a child. Somehow, this hurts a hundred times more."

"Of course it does; she's your baby."

I shook my head, feeling my heart fall. "A couple weeks ago... I missed her dance recital," I shared, disappointed in myself all over again. "She was really excited about it. She'd worked hard too. You went, didn't you?"

She nodded, but still listened to what I had to say.

"I was working. Can you believe it? David reminded me so that I'd be home in time to go with him and I just... I missed it. He said she was upset because she didn't do as well as she'd hoped and felt so discouraged. I wasn't there to hold her or tell her it would be okay. By the time I got home, she was asleep in bed."

"You forgot," Athena excused. "You're a surgeon for crying out loud."

"She's seven. She doesn't think 'well, he had surgery to do.' No, all she can comprehend is her daddy wasn't there to watch her or comfort her or even tuck her into bed."

"Then be there next time. Make it up to her because that's the best you can do."

I squeezed my niece's hand. "You're a godsend, Athena. Thank you for watching over her, and picking up on things we couldn't see."

"Of course! You guys aren't at the studio with her so it's the least I could do."

Those words hit me harder than they should've. They sounded so familiar. We weren't with Dawn at the dance studio, so there were certain things only Athena could know.

David told me last night that he wasn't at work with me, so when my coworker said I was romantic with a patient... he believed it. Despite knowing me so well, he believed it because I wasn't me lately.