As Richard walked in, he said, “Think it’ll all fit in there?”
Cory looked at Richard and laughingly said, “We didn’t buy that much.”
Richard looked over at Cory and he seemed to be somewhere else. Cory’s eyes were focused in the center of the room. As Cory’s eyes began to play around the room, Richard knew that Cory was settling in – this was becoming his home.
Richard looked back to last Thursday night when he and Cory met on that rainy night. It seemed so long ago. In just a few short days, Cory had moved into Richard’s house and by Tuesday afternoon, Cory was placed officially in Richard’s care as a foster child, at least on an emergency basis. Something inside was telling him that he needed this boy in his home. It made his idea of family seem complete once again. He wondered if the word he was thinking of would ever become a reality. The word was son!
Richard loved his daughter and she loved him. He had no doubt about that. She was just like any other teenager when she was growing up, needing and depending on Richard back then, but she had grown and was now on her own. He remembered the day she had left for the university. She was gone. His wife was gone. And his business was gone. He couldn’t do anything more for them.
But this was a new chance that had come into his life.
On Wednesday, Cory was to start school, and he had to ride the bus that morning. That meant they had to get up early for Cory to be able to make it to the bus stop on time.
Richard was up before Cory, like most parents, to fix him a full breakfast. Well, that part wasn’t like most parents. As Cory entered the kitchen, Richard could immediately tell that Cory was quite apprehensive that morning. Cory had put on some of his new clothes, and it was the uniform of high school boys; blue jeans, white tee shirt, dark blue canvas Vans and a Tigers ball cap turned backwards. Cory had his back pack slung over one shoulder. His clothes didn’t say anything special about him, but Cory’s face was the front page of a tabloid newspaper. He could be read it like a freeway billboard. The furrowed forehead on Cory told Richard that Cory was deep in thought and probably scared to death right now. Cory didn’t know anyone at his new school yet, but Richard knew that he would make some new friends easily. Cory had that kid-like vulnerable personality that drew people to him. He wondered how much more had been there before his mother passed away, and how much was lost after his father starting abusing him.
He fried bacon and eggs for breakfast and served them with orange juice and toast. He figured a hearty breakfast would be just what he needed for a good start at Cory’s first day in a new school.
Cory plopped into his chair at the breakfast table and immediately placed his elbows down in front him and rested his chin on his knuckles. He looked straight ahead, hardly seeing the room around him.
Richard placed his breakfast on a plate and set it in front of Cory, but Cory, usually ready to engulf his food in one bite, just sat quietly without moving for a moment. Cory didn’t eat much as he played with most of his breakfast. Richard put his own plate on his side of the table, sat down and had been studying Cory while he started to eat. He then decided it was time to get Cory out of his doldrums.
“They sure came through fast enough. Here it is Wednesday and they were able to get you into school in just six days. That’s just amazing,” Richard opened the nonexistent conversation.
“Yeah, they did,” Cory said while still watching his plate as he continued to swirl his fork through the egg yolks.
“Nervous, aren’t you?” Richard asked.
“Yeah, a little,” Cory replied as he slowly looked up at Richard across the table. “Maybe a lot.”
“Don’t worry. You’ll be fine, Cory. Would you rather I drove you to school this morning?” Richard thought that Cory would like some company, any company, on his way to the new school.
“Would you mind?” Cory sheepishly asked. “I am just a little nervous. Actually, I’m scared shitless.”
“That’s really just because it’s something new. Everyone’s a little nervous facing something new. It’s kind of the unknown in front of you. And don’t swear.”
“Okay. And, yeah, I know what school’s like, but this is a new school and new people,” Cory replied.
“Cory, think about this. Once you’ve gotten through the day, it won’t be the ‘unknown’ anymore, right?”
“Hmmm, I guess you’re right, but that doesn’t mean that I’m not really nervous now. The day hasn’t started yet.”
“Well, hop to. Finish your breakfast and let’s get this day going then.”
Cory stared at Richard for a moment, but wasn’t willing to eat any more. “I’m not very hungry I guess,” Cory replied.
“Okay. Suit yourself, but you’ll be hungry by 10:00. Mark my words. I was a teenager once, you know?” Richard laughed.
Cory smiled, his spirits rising with the brief bit of humor.
They put the dishes in the dishwasher, Cory grabbed his back pack while Richard picked up his brief case and they left the house.
Cory was silent as they drove the two miles to the high school, and as they approached the school Cory was watching out the window at everything. He was trying to make it a familiar route, which it would be in a matter of days. Richard eventually pulled the car into the parking lot, stopped in the drop off area at the main entrance, and Cory sat there for a minute, his fears returning. Finally he moved over to Richard, gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, turned away and opened the door to leave.
“Cory, it’s just a school. Don’t worry. You’ll meet some kids you’ll like,” Richard said trying to give him a little encouragement.
“I hope so.”
“Know where you’re going first?”
“Yeah, I’m prepared. I’ve got Geometry first period.” Cory turned away, but quickly turned back to Richard. “See you tonight, bye,” and was off to face his destiny.
Cory walked into the building. He didn’t look back and was soon inside and out of sight. For a moment it seemed to Richard that the school had swallowed him and was not going to give him back, like a shark, ravaging its meal. Richard started to feel pangs of remorse for being the one that gave him up to the school. But, it had to be. Cory was growing up, just like Richard’s business and needed to be let go of.
Cory walked down a hall with lockers filling both walls. The solid wall of lockers was broken only by a doorway leading to an occasional classroom or an occasional window. The hallway was packed with kids either talking to friends, rummaging through their own lockers for books and whatever else they kept in there or hurrying to somewhere that Cory assumed was a class.
He glanced down at the piece of paper he’d been holding to remind him of the room number of his first class. The room numbers were above each door and Cory continued looking at them as he passed each classroom, buffeted by the herd. By now everyone in the hallway knew he was the new kid. They all seemed to be staring at him. Cory felt the stares, and knew he was acting like a dorky new kid with his room number on a piece of paper in front of him. What else could he do?
He suddenly stopped as he saw the number he’d been looking for. Checking one more time to make sure he wouldn’t walk into the wrong class, he put the piece of paper in his pocket and opened the door to his first class.
Inside, half of the students were still milling about, talking, while the other half were seated, waiting for the class to begin. All of a sudden, Cory realized that he didn’t know where to sit. He looked around for an empty seat, but he knew the empty seats may have been already claimed by some of those not yet seated. If he sat in one of them, and it was the wrong one, he knew he would be in trouble.
Mr. Parks, the teacher, was seated on the edge of his desk talking to a female student. Looking the part of a geometry teacher in a white shirt and a plain dark colored tie, he looked up and saw Cory standing at the side of the room. “Excuse me a moment,” he said to the student and then stood up looking at Cory.
“You must be Cory. They told me that you’d be coming to my class. Welcome to Geometry I.”
The classroom noise quieted as the students turned to look at the new kid in the class. Cory became very self-conscience and looked down at the floor.
Parks, sensing Cory’s embarrassment, eased the awkward silence. Pointing toward an open seat he said, “You can have that seat over there by the window.”
Cory walked over to Mr. Parks and handed him his admission slip. He was grateful that this new teacher seemed to understand the embarrassment he felt being in front of the class with all the kids looking at him. Mr. Parks didn’t make an issue of him on his first day.
“Thank you, Cory. Just have a seat and we can begin shortly,” the teacher said as he took the admission slip from Cory.
Cory nervously moved amongst the students toward his empty seat. He put his backpack on the floor and slid into the empty chair. As he looked up, he saw that the rest of the class had forgotten him as they rushed to take their seats. He was relieved at not being the center of attention anymore.
While looking around the classroom, Cory noticed a boy seated on the other side of the room many seats forward of his own. The boy was quiet and no one was talking to him, which seemed to Cory to be highly unusual in this classroom, everyone was talking to someone.
As he continued to look around the room, he was startled to meet the green eyes of the boy seated across the aisle from him. The boy was intently staring at Cory, unnerving him. The boy smiled, and Cory wrestled up a smile in return.
“Hey! New here, aren’t you?” the boy asked, startling Cory even more. He didn’t think he’d be talking to anyone on his first day.
“Yeah, my first day,” Cory replied.
“I’m Kevin.”
Cory thought that this guy was bold, and he felt that boldness was pulling an answer out of him. He just wasn’t sure how much to say. Kevin’s voice was friendly enough so he thought he would answer in the same way that Kevin asked his question, friendly.
“My name’s Cory.”
Kevin leaned over, sticking out his hand, “Nice to meet you, Cory.”
Looking at Kevin for a moment, Cory noticed his green eyes again. They were smiling at him. But then he saw something that startled him. It was a sparkle: that little bit of light that was the reflection from the sunlight through the window. The eyes were creeping him out, pulling him in. Cory had to shake off the feeling, but then decided that it’s okay to at least be friendly. After all, this boy, Kevin, was being friendly to him. Cory returned the handshake.
“Where’re you from?” asked Kevin.
“I was going to Plymouth High, but I’ve moved down here now.”
“Well, I’ve spent my whole life here, so if there’s anything you want to know, just yell, okay?”
Cory relaxed a little more and thought that maybe this new school won’t be so bad after all.
“Thanks, man,” Cory said with a defining smile.
“Not a problem,” Kevin replied as the bell rang, signaling the start of class. Kevin looked forward as the teacher began to ramble about the lesson for the day, but soon turned back toward Cory. Under his breath, Kevin whispered, “He’s not so bad. He’s got a bark that can rattle you sometimes, but you’ll get used to him.”
Cory smiled at Kevin feeling comfortable for the first time today. This boy had spoken to him in confidence about the teacher, and Cory liked it. Cory was about to make his first friend at his new school. He smiled at Kevin and returned his gaze toward the front of the room to pay attention to the teacher.
After his first class, Cory went to his locker to drop off his books, and as he approached his locker he noticed a boy putting his books into the locker next to his. He was slightly shorter than Cory’s 5’-10”, but much more muscular. As Cory opened his locker, he thought of the easy way that Kevin had said ‘Hi’ to him. Kevin made it sound so easy.
He turned to the boy, with a little of Kevin’s boldness, and said it, “Hi.” Immediately Cory felt his insides tighten, realizing that maybe this boy didn’t want to be friendly at all. Not everyone would be like Kevin.
The boy glanced in Cory’s direction. “Hi,” was all he said back to Cory and then turned back to his own locker.
Cory thought that went well.
Cory turned back to his locker, but stopped. He knew him. He’d seen him someplace before. And then it hit him. He was the boy who no one was talking to in his first class.
Cory looked at the boy next to him and said, “Didn’t I see you in Park’s Geometry class this morning?”
“Ah, yeah,” was all Cory heard in reply.
Cory thought back at Kevin’s boldness and wanted to try it on this new boy. It might work for him, he thought.
“My name’s Cory. I’m new here.”
The boy’s face looked up quickly and then at Cory.
“Really? Me, too. Oh, sorry, my name’s Matt.”
It worked. Cory had just initiated his first conversation.
“Glad to meet you, Matt. Yeah, I just started today.”
“I started at the beginning of the school year in September. My dad was transferred here, so we all packed up and moved here this past summer.”
“Where did you go to school before?”
“California,” Matt replied.
“Wow. I only came down from Plymouth. That’s only like 20 or 25 miles away.”
As the boys chatted, talking about their old schools, a very pretty girl of about 15 walked up to them. She had long brown hair that shone from the sunlight in the hallway. She was carrying an armful of books, the studious type, even down to the glasses. Her eyes were focused on Matt, and Cory noticed a gleam. He immediately recognized that look. She obviously had a crush on Matt.
“Hey, Matt,” She whined to him.
“Oh. Hi, Kelly.”
Looking at Cory, Matt introduced them. “Ah, this is Cory. He’s new here too like me. Cory, this is Kelly. I met her my first day here.”
Kelly turned toward Cory, thrusting out her hand as she fumbled with her books. She almost dropped one. Cory thought that she was even bolder than Kevin.
“Hey, Cory,” she said as they shook hands, but Kelly had her eyes fixed on Matt. “Hey, I gotta run, Matt. It was nice to meet you, Cory,” she said, not taking her eyes off Matt. “See you in History?” as she looked deep into Matt’s eyes, searching for a positive answer.