Jordan and her ‘other’ family went bowling together that Friday night and then out to eat. Both of those activities happened with the now ‘ever-present-with-Dad’ Melissa. Over dinner at the spaghetti factory, Jordan started reminding her dad about her Mars story she had been working on.
“Dad do you remember that story I was writing about Mars?”
“Um…yeah…I think so…” he said partially cut off by Jordan’s nervous and thorough run-on-sentence storytelling…
“…Well this fall at school, I had this teacher Mr. Johns – he’s an English teacher and he’s amazing and he told us about this competition that NPR is was doing where kids would write and enter short stories for a chance to have them read on live radio and win a trip to Washington DC and so Mr. Johns told the whole class that if we wrote good enough stuff he would help us win the competition – he’s so great isn’t he? I love how…….” Jordan went on and on and on and on about Mr. Johns and how he had been the biggest bright spot in her school year so far, about her story and how he had glowed about her talent and ability, about how he had edited it and helped her submit it to the competition – and how they were supposed to get word within days or weeks as to the results. She also told him about how he has been so strange and distant the past couple times she interacted with him.
The speech came out like vomit. Jordan herself didn’t even know why she was saying what she was saying; it just kept coming and coming and coming, uncontrollably. It was possible that a part of her wanted recognition from her dad for her writing acumen –perhaps the kind of recognition that Mr. Johns offered. The speech may have been a kind of demonstration: “see, this is how to be a loving male presence in my life Dad”, she could’ve been saying.
Oddly, during this soliloquy, Ted became quiet – listening rather than interrupting – appearing introspective instead of the court jester. In fact, Melissa actually had to help out the younger two with their meals during Jordan’s monologue because of Ted’s stone faced focus (and ‘mothering’ was most certainly not her forte).
Well isn’t that poetic, he thought to himself, the do-gooder board member raises his ugly head once again in my life. I honestly hope Jordan doesn’t get too close to this guy for her own good – because it ain’t gonna end well for him if he keeps pushing like he’s been.
Although Ted hadn’t before specifically known that Mr. Johns was negatively affected by what had taken place, Ted did happen to know exactly why he was having such a bad day that day. He needs to keep his mouth shut, thought Ted.