The Right Mistake

Hands On Hands

What is the value of x in the equation 2x+(4•7)=30? I laugh mentally. What kind of a question is that? I scribble down "one" in the blank. I sigh and push my paper up to the top of my desk to show that I'm finished. Mr. Dennis looks up from his work when he hears me and smiles. Are you done? He mouths at me. I nod, and he gets up and walks over to me. "did everything make sense?" He asks, pulling up a chair.
"Yes... I learned this stuff when I was 12." I laughed softly. The girl sitting in front of me twists around in her seat.
"Me too," she says. "Where are you getting your lesson plans from, mr. Dennis?" Mr. Dennis turns a bit red.
"Other teachers give me some of their worksheets once and a while, so I just use those..." He pauses. "Now that I think of it, I don't know what grades those teachers teach..." Me and the other girl laugh. "I guess I should go find some new ones." He gets up sheepishly and leaves.
"Don't you love new teachers?" They girl laughs sarcastically. "I'm Tetris, by the way."
"I'm Ellie." I say shyly. She grins. There's a small gap between her front teeth, but it looks good on her. "Tetris is an interesting name," I say, trying to make conversation. She nods.
"My parents just chose it randomly. I'm pretty sure it's part of a castle or something." I laugh. She's really pretty, I think to myself. She has really bright blue eyes and dark black hair that reaches down to her waist. "Anyways, we should hang out some time." I nod eagerly. Yes! She smiles and turns back in her seat to face the front. I smile to myself contently and lean back. I'm getting somewhere, and it feels good.
_____
"All right, class dismissed." Mr. Dennis says just as the bell rings. Kids shuffle out quickly, and I'm leaving too, but slowly. I'm hoping mr. Dennis will call me over so we can talk. I'm roughly 10 feet from the door, and I take a quick glance at him. He's watching me inch towards the door, a slight smirk playing on his lips. I stop at the doorway and look back at him. He finally gives in.
"I could tell you I want you to go home," he sighs. "But that would a lie." I smile nervously. "Would you like to go for a walk by the river?" He asks. I nod. "It's always so beautiful there." He shoves some loose papers into a drawer and stands up, shrugging on his jacket. he walks over to me and I note how close he is to me. "Shall we?" He says, keeping his voice low. And sexy. I look up and smile. Okay.
_____
"I used to come here all the time when I was younger," Mr. Daniels says as we walk beside the river. "My brother and me used to play soccer on that field over there." He points to a large green space with multiple soccer nets placed on it.
"Oh?" I say.
"Yeah," he laughs. "Except I wasn't very good." I smile and look away, focusing on the scenery. The river- well, I wouldn't call it a river, exactly. It's more of a stream. This place also brings back memories for me. I can almost picture my dad standing right beside me, right where Mr. Dennis is standing. As we walk, I imagine that me and dad are going to the ice cream shop just a few blocks down. It's called Bessie's Place. The last time we went there was on my 14th birthday.
"Happy birthday, Pumpkin," dad had said, handing me a huge cone filled with cotton candy ice cream topped with gummy bears. I said thank you and eagerly dug into my treat. Dad watched me with sad eyes but forced a smile. Later that night when I was in bed, I heard Mom and Dad talking in the kitchen.
"Daryl, you need to get help." Mom had said. I had gotten up and tiptoed over to the stairs so I could hear them better.
"There's nothing a therapist can do to help me, Kathy." Dad sounded tired. Mom huffed angrily.
"Your daughter needs you, Damn it. You can't just leave her."
"She'll be better off without me." Dads voice was shaky.
"No, she won't. She needs a dad in her life. It's one thing if a child never knew her father, but you can't just go off and leave her like that. And what about me, Daryl? Your my husband." Dad didn't say anything, and I suspected he went to his workshop. He was a master at fixing odds and ends, and before he died, he was working on fixing an old doll from the 1900's. It was a beautiful doll; it's porcelain skin didn't have a scratch on it and the eyes were a gorgeous aquamarine. The only problem was that the arm of it was broken off, and being as old as it was, it was a delicate matter. I wonder if it's still there.
"What's going on in that pretty head of yours?" Mr. Daniels interrupts my thoughts. I shrug. We stop at a park bench thats sitting on top of a large cliff that overlooks the city. the view is breathtaking. As I take in my surroundings, I notice my teacher inching closer to me slowly. I feel heart rising to my face. I watch him out of the corner as he reaches for my hand, and I let him take it.
"Is this okay?" He asks. I nod. He looks away at the city below us. "It's amazing isn't it? How we feel like we're a big part of the world, but we're not?"
"Yes." I whisper. "Its funny." He squeezes my hand and I lean into him.
We stay silent for a while, just enjoying each other's company.
"We should go," mr. Daniels says. "You probably have to go home."
"I do," I say "but I'm not going to." He chuckles and takes his hand from mine and wraps it around my waist, giving me shivers. The small things he does to me makes me feel so special.
"I like it when you talk," Mr. Dennis sighs.
"Me too."