Chapter 16 - The Night It Rained
Rain reached Rockwell Elementary in fat gray sheets at four-thirty. Parents dashed across the parking lot shielding cardboard boxes beneath coats. The donated books arrived in the back of Mr. Flores's van smelling faintly of old paper and the peppermint candies he kept near the gearshift.
Nate parked beside the gym and started to get out. Josie caught his sleeve.
"You said you weren't doing every job tonight."
"I'm just moving boxes."
"That's what you said before."
He looked at the doors, where Meredith was trying to keep a cart from rolling down the ramp. His hands twitched with the urge to take over.
"You're right. Come on. I'll get you to Ms. Bell first."
He walked Josie inside, signed her in, and showed her the seat where he would be. She inspected it like a building permit.
"Right there?"
"Right there."
Only then did he go back outside. Meredith had already secured the cart with Mr. Flores's help. She pointed at a stack of books.
"Could you carry those to the hall? If you have time."
"I have twelve minutes."
"Twelve is plenty."
By five the first families were arriving. The rain pushed everybody through the one sheltered entrance, exactly where Nate had marked the likely congestion. Tessa directed them into two lines without raising her voice. Mrs. Ortiz unlocked the side corridor for an emergency accessibility route after confirming with Ms. Patel that it could be supervised. Nate held a door for a grandfather using a walker and then returned to his chair.
His phone vibrated. Martin again. Nate switched it to silent.
Leah slipped into the seat beside him, damp hair curling around her face. "I missed the first ten minutes of the book tables. Did you survive?"
"Somehow."
"Did you boss everybody?"
"Only the weather. It didn't listen."
Onstage, Maeve read a funny paragraph about a dog that kept stealing socks. When she finished, Josie clapped so hard her palms turned pink. Meredith stood at the back near the exit, mouthing the words along with Maeve.
Then Ms. Bell called Josie's name.
Josie stepped up to the microphone and looked directly at Nate. He sat still, hands folded. She began the first line, got halfway through the second stanza, and stopped.
The silence stretched. Behind Nate, a little boy dropped a pencil.
Josie's mouth moved once without sound. Nate's fingers found the edge of his seat.
"It's okay," Ms. Bell whispered. "You can take a breath."
Josie did. She looked toward her mother, then at the ceiling, where the gym lights hummed. Finally she started the stanza over, this time slower.
Nate didn't whisper a word.
When she finished, her voice cracked on the final syllable. She bowed too early and almost walked off before the applause began.
May you like
Leah reached for Nate's hand. His phone kept vibrating in his pocket, but he didn't take it out.
