Moana
Both Ella’s and my eyes widened when Edrick came out into the dining room early the next morning and announced his plans.
“Get dressed, both of you,” he said. “We’re going to look at a school today.”
Ella’s jaw dropped. “A school?!” she shrieked, jumping up from her chair excitedly. “Really?”
Edrick nodded with a slight smile. “Yep. We’re gonna look into sending you to school like all of the other kids. Would you like that?”
With a wide, ecstatic grin, Ella nodded vehemently and ran over to her father. She threw her little arms around his legs and hugged him tightly. “Yes, daddy!” she shouted. “I really really want to go to school!”
Ella’s excitement made me smile, and I could tell that Edrick was trying — and failing — to hide a smile of his own. “Go get dressed, then,” he said. “We don’t have a lot of time. I told the headmistress we’d be there soon.”
Ella took off at a full sprint toward her room. I thought I heard the sound of her tripping, falling, and skidding across the floor on her way, but she seemed fine. I stood, smiling, and placed my hands on my hips.
“So you really did think about it, huh?” I asked.
Edrick shrugged. “You were right. Ella does belong in school, and she deserves to socialize with other kids. Besides… With the baby coming, having her at school during the day will be a good thing for you.”
I didn’t necessarily agree with that last point — I was confident that I could easily handle both a baby and Ella on my own, so long as I had just a little help — but I wasn’t about to argue with Edrick. I was just glad that he had decided to send Ella to school after all. It was about time that she had a chance to make friends, try new experiences, and learn new things in a classroom setting.
After quickly getting dressed and helping Ella get ready, the three of us headed downstairs. It turned out that Edrick chose the school that was within walking distance, which made me happy, and so we walked to meet the headmistress. Ella walked between us, holding one of each of our hands, and it really did feel like we were a little family. The walk was nice, too, and I imagined that I would enjoy walking Ella to school every morning.
When we arrived, the school was just as lovely as the pictures. It was an old building with tall windows, stone facades, and arched wooden doors. There was a playground out front with lots of shade from trees and plenty of playground equipment, and there was even a garden on the other side with planter boxes for fruit and vegetables. As we walked up the long pebble pathway to the front door, an elderly woman stepped out onto the front stoop and waved to us. She had long white hair that was piled into a neat bun on top of her head, and wore an elegant suit jacket with a matching pencil skirt. As we approached, I saw that she had the school emblem — a golden crown — embroidered onto the lapel of her jacket.
“Good morning!” the old woman said with a bright smile. “You must be Mr. Morgan, Miss Ella, and…” she turned toward me, pausing and waiting for me to introduce myself.
“Moana,” I replied, holding out my hand. The old woman shook it with a smile.
“I’m Headmistress Hawkins,” she replied, then turned and held open the heavy wooden door for us. “Come on in. Let’s start your tour.”
Headmistress Hawkins was a spry woman for her age, and scurried around the school with ease as she showed us everything. The inside of the school was even more lovely, with tile floors, high ceilings, and a lot of natural light. There was a gymnasium, auditorium, countless classrooms, a cafeteria, a beautiful inner courtyard with a fountain, and plenty of recreation spaces. She showed us the music room, the science lab, the daycare room, and the library, and before we knew it we had spent well over an hour just touring the entire school.
“And this is the art room,” the headmistress said, gesturing to a closed and rather dusty looking door. “Well… It was the art room.”
I furrowed my brow and peered in through the window on the door to see a large, dark room with all of the furniture covered by white sheets. The curtains were closed and there were boxes everywhere, as though it was being used for storage.
“Is it not being used?” I asked, turning to face the headmistress.
She sighed and nodded. “I’m afraid our art program isn’t what it used to be,” she replied. “And by that I mean that it’s nonexistent right now.”
I frowned. “What happened?”
Headmistress Hawkins let out another sigh and lowered her voice a bit. “Our beloved art teacher passed away a couple of years ago,” she said. “She was getting on in age. We haven’t found a good enough replacement, so unfortunately our art department is currently on hold.”
Hearing that the art department was nonexistent now put a bit of a damper on my opinion of the school. Of course it was out of the headmistress’s control, but I wanted to make sure that Ella went to a school with a good art program, and now I wasn’t so sure if this would be the right fit.
Suddenly, however, Ella spoke up.
“Moana is a really good art teacher!” she exclaimed, causing my face to go red.
Headmistress Hawkins raised her eyebrows. “Oh?” she asked, looking at me. “You’re a teacher?”
I shook my head and blushed an even deeper shade of red. “No. Well, not really. I do have my degree in childhood education, but I only really teach art at an orphanage downtown. I don’t know if I would really call it teaching experience…”
Ella frowned and folded her little arms across her chest. Sometimes she really did look like a little adult, and right now was one of those times. “But you’re the best teacher ever,” she said. “She even taught my daddy how to paint, and he’s a terrible artist!”
I stifled a laugh and looked up at Edrick. He was still silent, but when he looked down at me, I could tell from the look in his eyes that we were thinking the same thing. I wondered at that moment if I should apply for the position of the art teacher here. I didn’t have any “real” teaching experience, but I did go to school for it, and if it had been years since they had found a teacher who was a good fit for the role, then what was the harm in applying?
“Well, do let me know if you’d like to apply,” Headmistress Hawkins said with a smile as we continued the tour. “I’d love to look at your resume. If you’re interested, of course.”
As we continued the tour, I couldn’t help but wonder if it would be good for me to apply. I had always wanted to be an art teacher, after all, and this would be the perfect place. I could be there for Ella all day if anything happened, and Edrick wouldn’t have to worry anymore. Every day, I could walk with her to school and walk home with her.
And as I looked up at Edrick, and he met my gaze, I knew that he was having the same thoughts.
