“Ahem, can I talk to you for a minute, Miss Page?”
Karen looked up from the exams she was grading. The mother of one of her students, Mrs. Macgillivray, was standing in the doorway of the classroom. She pushed her giant Gucci sunglasses on to the top of her head and switched her Michael Kors handbag from her right to her left hand.
“Of course,” Karen replied with a smile and put down her pen.
Mrs. Macgillivray strutted towards her purposefully.
“I’d like to ask you to speak to Mr. Castle. Frank Jr. has been bullying several kids in his class and there is simply no talking to his father. We all know what a terrible time that family went through when their mother died last year –“ (‘cancer’ she mouthed conspirationally, and Karen nodded sympathetically) “- but it’s been almost 12 months now. There is no excuse for Frank Jr. to still be acting out like that!”
Karen knitted her brow. The principal had informed her about the fact that Frank’s mother had died the previous year when she started at the school a few months earlier, and she had watched Frank Jr. quite carefully as a result, but she hadn’t noticed anything particular about the boy. While he was a bit subdued at times – understandable given the loss of his mother – he’d also always been very outspoken, very concerned with fairness and doing the right thing, and often helped out weaker kids. He was also very sporty, loved to run and climb, and play soldier.
“To be honest I’m a little bit surprised to hear that Frank bullied other kids. Are there any concrete incidents that you could share with me?” she asked.
“Yeah, just this week! Out on the playground. The kids were playing tag and my son Lexington wanted to join in, but Frank refused. He said that the kids wouldn’t play with a – a fart head like Lex! Can you imagine! He called my Lexington a fart head!” she exclaimed, gesturing wildly with her free arm and air quoting the expletive.
“Did the two have a fight before that? There must be a reason why Frank calls Lex a name,” Karen asked.
“He says it’s because our family voted for Trump in the 2016 elections! Can you believe that? They’re kids! They don’t know anything about politics!” Mrs. Macgillivray replied agitatedly. “And it doesn’t stop there! Frank Jr. does that all the time - he excludes Lex and some of the other kids whose parents are Republicans from games and activities nearly every day! He’s even called the parents names! He called Diane Wrangham an asshole and stole her “America First” magnetic plaque from her car. And surely you remember that Frank Jr. also defiled the President’s picture in the hallway outside the principal’s office last month?”
Karen had to suppress a smile. Someone had drawn a moustache and vampire teeth on the picture with whiteboard marker, so the damage had been easily reversible.
“We don’t actually know who did that though. Besides, kids are kids, they test their limits sometimes. Every homeroom teacher gave their class a very serious talk about drawing graffiti on property that doesn’t belong to them, and also about the fact that the President represents the entire United States and should be treated with respect at all times,” she said gently.
“Oh come on, everybody knows it was him. Lex and some of the other kids said so. But it’s just one of the many ways in which Frank bullies and hurts others every day,” Mrs. Macgillivray shot back. “So, could you please talk to the boy’s father? We must put an end to this as soon as possible. Looking at how fond of soldiers and video games that boy is, I wouldn’t be surprised if he shows up with a gun one day.”
Karen’s facial expression turned hard.
“Frank is eight,” she said firmly. “And certainly not the only boy his age who is interested in videogames and the military.”
“In any case, he is disrespectful and if he continues like that, he’s going to turn into a hell of a problem when he hits puberty, I tell ya!” Mrs. Macgillivray said matter-of-factly.
Karen sighed inwardly.
“Ok, so what does his father say? Have you talked to Mr. Castle?” Karen asked. “From my experience, it’s usually best when the parents try to solve the issue together with the kids first.”
“Mr. Castle is never there! Do you know the kids take the bus home? Besides, every time one of us parents did try to talk to him, he was very rude and grouchy, didn’t even listen to us and never replied properly. Like last year, we asked him to bring muffins for the bake sale, and his were store-bought and not even gluten-free although we’d told him that all products should be home-made and not include anything the kids might react to allergically,” Mrs. Macgillivray explained exasperatedly.
“Ok, I can tell that it’s probably best if I talk to him then. He signed up for Parent-Teacher-Night next week, so I can discuss the issue with him then,” Karen said with a pacifying smile.
Mrs. Macgillivray raised an eyebrow.
“Really? He signed up for that?” she asked.
Karen nodded. “Yeah, he’s very attentive to his children’s school life. Always signs everything in time, the children are never late, their homework is always done, and the kids always have a lunchbox with them,” she said.
This was clearly not the answer Mrs. Macgillivray was expecting.
“Is there anything else I can do for you, Mrs. Macgillivray?” Karen asked sweetly.
“No, thank you. I will see you next week,” Mrs. Macgillivray said curtly. She turned on her heels, put her sunglasses back on, and left the room.
The following Thursday, Karen was patiently going through almost every child and their parent starting in the late afternoon. She had a class of 20 kids and slots of 15 minutes for each, so it took a while. Most discussions were quite constructive, save for a few odd ones in which the parents either didn’t seem to take an interest in their child’s performance at all, or in which the parents took too much interest and Karen was close to asking them if they’d like to trade places.
Frank Jr. and his father had signed up for the last slot and after what Mrs. Macgillivray had told her and what Karen had seen herself of Frank and also of his sister Lisa, she was immensely curious to finally meet Mr. Castle herself.
Somehow Karen was surprised when she first saw him, although she couldn’t really tell why – she didn’t actually know what she had expected him to be like.
Frank Castle Sr. had neatly trimmed hair, an upright posture, and bright eyes. He was wearing a dark grey Henley, Jeans and boots, and gave her a small smile when Karen greeted him.
“Mr. Castle, it is so good to meet you,” Karen said warmly as she shook his hand. “Hello again, Frank Jr. Please, sit.”
Mr. Castle and Frank took a seat in the two chairs opposite her desk.
“’s nice to meet you, too, ma’am,” Mr. Castle said. He leant back and rested his hands on his thighs. “Frank’s really been enjoying this year and he’s full of stories every dinner.”
Karen smiled happily. It was rare for her to get any praise herself; most parents were too focused on their child’s performance.
“Thank you. I’m glad you like the classes,” Karen said as she looked at Frank Jr. who just nodded sheepishly and fidgeted in his chair a bit. “And it definitely shows in your performance.” She handed Mr. Castle Frank’s current list of grades. “Only A’s and B’s. Frank speaks up a lot in class and makes some very interesting points, he’s very honest and interested in what’s happening in the world, and he looks out for others a lot, especially those who need a bit more help.”
A proud smile spread across Mr. Castle’s face, and he ruffled Frank Jr.’s hair. “Well done, kiddo,” he said. Frank Jr. smiled shyly, but clearly happy with his father’s praise.
“The only thing that Frank might still have to work on is, let’s say, handling someone who has a different opinion,” Karen said diplomatically.
Mr. Castle scowled. “How’s that?” he asked.
“It really isn’t anything serious, but it is something important for the future,” Karen said. “I’ve been told and I’ve then also seen that you exclude people from games whose parents support Trump,” Karen said as she fixed Frank Jr. with a gentle but firm look. “You’ve also called them names several times. And I’ve talked to Mrs. Wrangham whose ‘America First’ plaque you stole.”
Frank Jr. crossed his arms and lowered his head with a defiant look.
“That right?” Mr. Castle asked, bracing one arm on his leg as he turned towards his son with an earnest expression.
“They’re assholes. You said it yourself, they say they want to make America great again but they just hurt a lot of people and make us look stupid for other countries,” Frank said spitefully.
Mr. Castle hung his head for a second. Then he reached out and placed his hand against the back of Frank’s neck.
“Ok, I think I might’ve something to do with this. Not on purpose, but yeah,” he said gruffly. “Think I gotta keep it down when I watch the news or talk to Curt and you kids are around, yeah?”
He looked at Karen almost guiltily.
“I can kinda get a bit carried away sometimes when I hear what’s going on in the world.” Then he looked back at Frank Jr. “And it’s ok if you think like that, and if you speak up when you disagree. What’s not ok is when you call others names, or when you steal their stuff, yeah? That’s never ok. You can disagree with people all you want, but you have to do it in a polite way, yeah? ‘s called being civil. Do you see me insultin’ people like Mrs. Wrangham?”
Frank Jr. bit his lip and shook his head.
“That’s right, ‘cos we gotta be civil with each other, ok? You don’t gotta be friends with everyone, you don’t gotta agree with everyone, but you gotta treat them politely, ok? ‘sides, d’you even know if those other kids actually think the same as their parents? Or if they even know what they’re talking about?”
Frank Jr. didn’t say anything. Mr. Castle ruffled his hair once more.
“So, if you see injustice, if you disagree, you speak up, but you’re not being rude about it, yeah?” he summarized. Frank Jr. nodded.
“’kay. So, what’d you do with that plaque you stole from Mrs. Wrangham?” Mr. Castle asked.
“I put it in the trash,” Frank Jr. said quietly.
“Ok, then we’re gonna buy a new one tomorrow, and you’re gonna give that to Mrs. Wrangham and apologize, yeah?” Frank Jr. nodded.
Mr. Castle gave Frank one last squeeze on the shoulder and then turned back to Karen.
“That ok?” he asked.
“Ah, yeah, definitely, I think that sounds like a great plan,” Karen said cheerfully. “Frank, have you already showed your father the picture you drew for art class last Friday?”
Frank shook his head.
“Why don’t you go get it? I’m sure your dad would love to see it,” Karen said kindly.
Frank nodded and slipped off his chair to get the picture from the back of the classroom.
“The topic was ‘What I want to be when I grow up’,” Karen told Mr. Castle. “You get one guess what Frank Jr. painted.”
Mr. Castle chuckled. “Soldier?” he asked. Karen nodded.
“Yeah, he’s crazy about the military. Keeps askin’ me about the time I served. Don’t know why, I never pushed it on them or anything,” Mr. Castle said with a fond smile.
“Well, at that age, you’re your son’s hero,” Karen replied. “And it looks like you’re setting a really good example, too.” At that, Mr. Castle’s facial expression became startled, and if Karen wasn’t mistaken, he was blushing lightly. Karen found it quite endearing.
“Just doing what I can. ‘s not been easy, gotta work most days and with Maria - “ Mr. Castle stopped abruptly and averted his eyes. Karen felt her heart go out to him.
“What is it that you work as?” she asked to steer the conversation into a different direction.
“I, uh, I gotta renovation business. We’re fixing up houses, doing repairs, that sorta thing. ‘s doing well, but it’s takin’ up a lot of hours,” Mr. Castle said, clearly glad to have been granted a change of topic.
In that moment, Frank Jr. turned up next to them again. He shoved the paper towards his father and looked at him expectantly.
Mr. Castle raised his eyebrows.
“That’s really good, you know that? Look at those details. And the colors.” He threw his son an appreciative look. “Think that should go on the fridge, don’t you think?”
Frank Jr. nodded happily.
“Right, I think it’s time to leave Mrs. Page here to her evening,” Mr. Castle said. “I’m sure she’s about had enough of talking to us parents.”
“Miss,” Frank Jr. corrected him. “It’s Miss Page. She’s not married.”
Now it was Karen’s turn to blush, even though she didn’t quite know why.
“Ah sorry, Miss Page. We’re gonna leave you to your evening then,” Mr. Castle said.
“That’s ok, don’t worry. Thank you for coming, it was a pleasure to meet you,” Karen said and offered Mr. Castle her hand. He shook it firmly, and held it for a beat longer than normal. Karen found that she didn’t mind it at all.
“Have a good evening, Frank,” she said and also shook the boy’s hand.
Frank nodded.
“What’d you say?” Mr. Castle asked with a quick touch against the boy’s back.
“Have a good evening, ma’am,” Frank Jr. said courteously.
Karen smiled.
“Alright,” Mr. Castle said. “Bye.”
Karen looked after them until they’d left the room and closed the door. Then she sat back down to take a few notes on the conversations she had over the last few hours. When she finally left the classroom, there were still a few parents standing around and talking while their kids were playing.
“Ohh, Miss Page, Miss Page,” Karen heard Mrs. Macgillivray’s voice to her right and found the woman trailed by Mrs. Wrangham.
“Were you able to talk to Mr. Castle about, you know,” Mrs. Macgillivray asked quietly as she eyed the man in question, who was just leaving another classroom down the hall with Frank’s sister Lisa.
“Ah, yeah, and it’s all good,” Karen said as she ran a hand through her hair.
“Really?” Mrs. Wrangham asked her with a confused expression.
“Yes, he was actually very friendly and forthcoming. We talked about the way Frank Jr. has been behaving, Mr. Castle addressed the issue on the spot, and so it was a very good conversation,” Karen said. She really didn’t understand how that was so hard to believe. Even now as she looked over to Frank and the way he was listening to Lisa so attentively, it was clear what a great father and what a kind man he was.
“Well, as long as the issue is resolved,” Mrs. Macgillivray said sceptically. “Good night, Miss Page. Lexington! We’re leaving! Lexington!”
Karen murmured her goodbyes and slipped into her coat. As she was pulling out her hair from the back of it, her eyes caught Mr. Castle’s across the hall, and she gave him another smile and a wave before she turned around and left the building.
“Susan. Susan! Look!” Mrs. Wrangham excitedly pulled at Mrs. Macgillivray’s arm and pointed towards Mr. Castle with her head.
Mrs. Macgillivray followed her friend’s gaze and found Mr. Castle’s eyes following Miss Page’s retreating form down the hallway.
“Oh my, if that doesn’t look like someone nearing lovestruck,” Mrs. Macgillivray murmured as she seized up the sight in front of them.
“I think it’s sweet. He could use a wife, and the kids could definitely do with a mother,” Mrs. Wrangham gushed.
“Yeah, just as long as Miss Page doesn’t end up favoring Frank over the other kids,” Mrs. Macgillivray replied a tad disdainfully. Then she looked around. “Lexington! LEXINGTON! How many times do I have to say it? We’re leaving!”