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"I can't believe my little girl is starting kindergarten in a week!" I whined to my mother.
"Kelly, calm down. It's not like you're shipping her off to boot camp."
Sighing in resignation, I asked, "Are you sure that you can watch Mandy tonight? I can find another way to juggle the open house if she's going to be too much of a handful."
"Young lady, I am 58 years old, not 80. I think I can handle a 22-month-old for three hours. Besides, Mazie needs you focused completely on her tonight. I heard her telling Barbie that Daddy doesn't love her anymore and that she hopes her mommy won't stop loving her too. So, you have to be on your A game for that little angel. "
I knew that Geoff loved our girls, but I was continuously saddened by the damage his lack of empathy continued to inflict upon them. For years he'd refused to go to counseling, instead of living a "woe is me" lifestyle.
You can't do that when you're a parent. Didn't Adam Sandler say in the movie Blended that, "Being a parent means sacrificing 99% of the time."
"You're right, Mom. Maybe I'll treat her to some ice cream on the way there. Thanks again!"
"Anytime baby!" my Mom said as she kissed Mazie and me goodbye.
Arriving at Danville Elementary, I was instructed by a member of the PTA to take Mazie directly to her new classroom. When Mazie reached her new teacher's room, she would get to spend some quality time with her doing crafts and getting to know her new class. Parents were then to proceed to the auditorium for orientation.
Coming from Cecil County last year, which is about an hour north of Danville, I didn't recognize many of the faces in attendance. Hopefully, as I became more involved in the PTA, I could make some new mom friends.
It had been a while since I had any mom friends.
In the years since Mazie's birth, I had come to rely on my close-knit group of moms near the house where Geoff and I were raising our family. With my best friends Joanie and Rane being childless, it was hard for them to relate to my daily struggles as a new mom, and with a screaming baby in tow, I suddenly became reliant on the women in my mom's group in Cecil County.
That's why when I decided to divorce Geoff, I found myself with a tough decision. Be the better person and bow out of our friendships with other couples, or make them chose?
In the end, I bowed out. This action was especially necessary since Geoff had been close friends with many of them for over 35 years and I had only known them for around 15 years. Either way, the loss of mom companionship had been tough over the last year, but I was hopeful that my luck was about to change.
The few moms that I was sitting near seemed friendly and genuinely smiled in my direction when we made eye contact, which was always a good sign of a kind soul.
Around me, old friends were chatting, and I was desperate to find something to offer me a distraction and avoid appearing socially needy.
Maybe if I began to study the parent handbook diligently, I could eavesdrop on a few conversations and see who might make good friends and who may not.
"Did you hear about Mr. Wilson?" asked a woman behind me with a voice like whiskey.
"Now you know I don't listen to gossip, Patricia Samson," her seatmate said.
"Well, you're going to want to hear this. Polly, he's divorced! As in Single! As in yes, please!" the woman named Patricia stated before emitting a quant squeal of excitement.
"You're making that up Trish. There is no way a woman would give up a sweet and handsome man like our principal."
"I swear Polly. I even updated my Tinder account in the hopes that he would sign up and I could hook up with him. I heard that his wife Maggie was having an affair with the yoga instructor at the Y for almost five years! Can you believe it?"
"If that is true Trish, you cannot call dibs, and Maggie is a fool. Damn! I knew I should have changed out of my scrubs before coming here tonight."
Though Polly sounded a little sarcastic, I decided not to assume that that was her intent since I didn't know her.
"Good luck and take a ticket, Polly. That man is going to have every single woman in the county on his tail."
Before Polly could reply, a hush came over the crowd as the PTA co-presidents, a couple by the name of Rebecca and Michael Fawcett, called out to start the meeting. Trying to stay focused on the speaker, so that I could obtain as much information about my daughter's new school as possible, I was completely unaware of anyone around the stage other than the dynamic co-presidents who worked together like peanut butter and jelly.
Maybe I should rephrase that. I was completely unaware until Rebecca said, "Now if our esteemed Principal Mr. Wilson will join us on stage for a rundown of school policies. Mr. Wilson."
And then I understood why every single woman in the county would be lining up for Mr. Wilson.
"Hi, my name is Dale Wilson," (Yep that Dale!) "... and I'd like to welcome you to this year's Open House...." and everything after that was un-absorbable.
WHAT THE FUCK!!!!!!
After the speeches were complete, the rest of my evening consisted of my head hanging low, so that my long hair could shield my face from his view and avoiding the 100-foot radius surrounding Dale Wilson.
If felt like ages until parents were given the green light to collect their children, but as soon as that green light was provided, I proceeded to jet towards my daughter's classroom in the hopes of a quick escape.
Unfortunately, Mrs. Dalton was not in her room, and neither were the children. Instead, on the chalkboard was a note that they were in the school gymnasium visiting with the coach and that we should pick up our children there.
Trying to blend in with the other parents heading in that direction and still keeping my head low, I finally located the school gym and was immediately attacked by Mazie who was happier than I'd seen her in months.
"Mommy, Mommy!!! I made a new friend! Her name is Katie, and she said she'd be my best friend and wants to have play dates and wants to have sleepovers, and we are going to be friends FOREVER!!"
"That's so wonderful baby!" Maybe this new friend will help distract my sweet girl from the hurt her father, and I have caused.
"Come ON Mommy! You have to meet her and her twin brother John."
Dragging me impatiently, Mazie began to walk me in the direction of two little brown-haired kids with the most stunning blue eyes.
"Mommy, this is my best friend Katie and her brother John. He's ok, but he's not my best friend."
Trying to suppress my laugh, I squatted down to offer my hand in introduction just as I heard someone approach from behind.
Katie's eyes lit up before I could shake her hand and rushed to grab Mazie's instead. "Mazie, Mazie now you get to meet my daddy! Daddy, this is my new best friend Mazie, and we are going to be friends FOR-EVER!"
And as I turned around my eyes locked with the only man to ever sexually rock my world.
Dale Wilson.