2 4 | I N T E R V E N T I O N

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2 4 | I N T E R V E N T I O N

leila

I'm a fool

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I'm a fool.

I shouldn't have called him.

I knew the second I heard his voice I'd fall back, and I did. And now I can't stop thinking about him. About the conversation I had with him. For Christ's sake, someone died and I'm obsessing over someone I was never in a real relationship with!

What the hell is wrong with me?

"Ms. Cole?" Xavier's big brown eyes are all over me. He sees sorrow cloaking me in darkness and is helpless to help. I hold his hand and continue leading him to the bus. "Will you be better tomorrow?" He asks.

I don't know what to say. How do you explain to a child that you can't just turn on and off your feelings? You have to work through them. You have to process them. Let yourself feel them and understand them so you can get better. Get stronger.

And isn't that what I'm doing?

Isn't it?

I watch my students file onto the bus and feel myself dreading going home. I'd told Joe to give me some time; that I'd get back to him on the weekend, and here we were. Friday.

Evan told me I was a fool for even considering taking him back. But after showing him my worst side and having him respect me- I don't know.

I felt like I owed him another shot.

I sigh, pull out my phone, and hook it up to my car radio. I black out as I drive home. Everything just kind of muddles together making me feel so...numb.

I park at my house and am surprised to see Don, Peter, and Mark on my porch waiting for me.

"Don?" I slam the door shut letting my face puzzle up with confusion. "When did you get back?"

"Just now." Mark answers for his boyfriend, letting a goofy giddy grin slither all the way across his face. "And we need to talk to you. Now."

My head falls off to one side as I look over the three men standing before me. I can only imagine what they want to say, and I can't help but feel like I've walked into some sort of intervention. Peter can't look me in the eye. Mark is smiling nervously. And Don's face is hard as ever.

What the hell.

"What did I do?"

"Oh, honey! Nothing." Mark coos. "Well, except for calling that Joe guy. We need to talk about that."

Oh. "Evan called you?"

"She called Hope," Peter explains, "but Hope and Jacary are going out of town this weekend, so she called us."

"Small neighborhood?" I joked. It didn't land well. No one even smiled. I frowned, still unable to bring myself to step away from my car. "What do you guys want to say?"

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