“You’re right. What’s your idea?” He softened his voice and dipped his head to show that he hadn’t meant to hurt her feelings. It was the last thing he wanted to do. He’d come to enjoy being around her, and hadn’t thought about that incident since the night it happened.
“Never mind.” Bekah rubbed her arms and went to the door.
“Bekah, I’m sorry. It was a horrible thing to say after ―” How could he tell her that his entire idea of her had changed so vastly? Not only did he respect her, he was beginning to care for her more than he’d thought possible.
“You’re never going to forgive me, are you?” she said without turning. “I don’t blame you.”
“No. Wait.” Ezekiel moved closer and touched her shoulder ever so briefly. “I won’t mention it again. You had your reasons. Tell me about your idea.”
Bekah stuck her hands in her front pockets. Her gaze searched his face, her eyes questioning. “Okay. Fine. I was thinking maybe we could get some sponsors. You know, ask around town, maybe we could get a lumber yard to donate some wood for props and ―”
“That’s a great idea. I bet we could get a couple of places to donate supplies. In return, we can mention them in our programs. They’d love the attention.”
“Not to mention the tax write-off.”
Chapter 19 — Bekah
On only the second day of class, Bekah had already seen an overwhelming turn-out. The kids were excited to learn, and she was happy to teach them. Especially the younger group. They were just so adorable that it didn’t matter if any of them had any talent at all.
“Okay everyone,” she called out to her first group of students for the morning. “Now that we have all gotten acquainted, we are going to take this morning to see what each of you is interested in doing. The play we will be performing is Peter Pan. I’m going to need several pirates, a couple of mermaids, and one or two lost boys from you guys.” The significant parts would go to the older group, but Bekah was determined to get the entire school involved.
One of the kindergarten girls raised her hand.
“Yes?” She still hadn’t learned everyone’s name.
“What about lost girls?”
“Well, there are no lost girls in the play, but I think you would make a beautiful mermaid.”
The little girl giggled. “I’d like that.”
“Girls can be pirates too,” another girl said. “Can’t they, Miss Bekah?”
“I don’t see why not.” Bekah smiled. “Do you know how to swab a deck?”
The class laughed.
“Can you talk like a pirate, matey?”
“I can!” a little boy raised his hand high. Bekah had no idea how she would remember all of their names.
“Good. Later in the week I will pick out some of you for the play, but don’t be disappointed if you don’t make it in, there will be plenty of opportunities in future plays.” Bekah planned to get as many as the little ones in as she could, but by the looks of it, the entire school had shown up for the class.
“Miss Bekah?” another little girl raised her hand.
Finally, she knew one of their names. “Yes, Ruby?” She’d only known it because Ezekiel had talked so much about her and her older brother and what they’d gone through after losing their mother.
“Jack said I can come to class, but I can’t be in the play. I hope that’s alright.” The girl's eyes seemed to hold fear in them.
“Oh?” She smiled at the little girl. “Well, that’s okay, honey. Maybe next time.”
“Yeah, maybe.” Ruby looked away.
Wanting to ask her why her brother had made that decision and not her father, Bekah held back. Bekah had no idea what it was like to lose a parent. She’d never known her own father. Something about the girl’s words bothered her. And now that she thought of it, Jack had not signed up for her class. Certainly, he wasn’t the only one. She hadn’t gotten the chance to ask.
“Oh, that reminds me. There are a few of you who haven't returned your permission slips. Today is the last day to collect those.” The original cut off had been extended a couple of days to give parents the chance to give it more thought.
A few kids reached into their bags and pulled out their sheets.
“Go ahead and set them on the table, and I’ll look through them tonight. For now, I want each of you to get out your pencils, and we’re going to go through a worksheet together.” She pulled out the assessment she’d made up for each class. “Ruby, can you pass these out for me?”
Ruby would get a lot of attention until Bekah remembered more of their names.
Once they each had a paper, Bekah instructed them to put a checkmark by each of the items they were interested in. She read down the list for the younger ones and explained some of the items in a little more detail for them.
The kids checked items excitedly, many of them checking all the way down the page. Bekah grinned. She would figure it out during the performance trials.
Once the class was over and they’d all turned in their papers, Bekah excused them to head back to their classes. Sitting at the desk, she first went through the permission slips, organizing them, and checking for signatures.
When she got to Ruby’s paper, she stared at it for a long time. The signature at the bottom was not written by an adult. In fact, it was printed in block letters across the bottom. Something was not right. Was Ruby afraid to ask her father? Had Jack signed for her?
Bekah bundled up the permission slips and stacked them on the end of her desk. She didn’t have another class until after lunch, so she picked up Ruby’s form and headed out. She wanted to speak to Ezekiel about it before going to Pastor Gaines. Something about the situation wasn’t adding up. Neither of the kids had brought their lunches the entire week, Ruby was getting her permission slip forged, and the comment about Jack telling her she couldn’t audition for the play were all items that when looked at separately could possibly be explained away.
There was nothing she could do about it until Ezekiel’s class went to lunch, so instead, she would go over to the other building to get a look at the kitchen area. Pastor Gaines had advised her that he would keep the electricity on and the doors open during school hours so they could go in and out of the buildings freely.
Bekah picked up a notebook and pen to take notes of what would need to be repaired and headed over. As she passed the room just before, she saw Mrs. Gaines sitting in the sewing room behind one of the machines.
“Oh!” Doris placed a hand over her heart. “You scared me, dear. I thought I was the only one in here.”
“Sorry about that.” Bekah stepped into the room. “I have a couple of hours off before I need to teach, so I thought I’d come check out the kitchen room.”
“That’s wonderful, Bekah. I hope you fare as well with them as I have in here. These old things are still running great. They don’t make things nowadays like they did back then.”
“They’re all working?” Bekah asked.
“Well, not all of them. Many of them are going to need a little oil, some tension adjustments, and all of them will need new needles and thread of course, but I don’t think it will take much to get them running smoothly. How many do you think we’ll need for the class?”
Bekah pulled up a chair from a nearby machine and sat next to Doris. “I guess as many as we can get running.” She wasn’t sure how to ask her next question. “Doris?”
“Yes, dear?” Doris looked up from the machine she was inspecting.
“Do you think you could teach the class? I mean, until Pastor Gaines finds it in the budget to hire someone else.”
“I’ve been giving that some serious thought, dear. I’ve always loved to cook and sew, but I just don’t know if I’d be the right person for the job. I think I’ve forgotten more than I’ve learned here lately.”
Bekah touched her arm. “I understand. Maybe you could teach me?”
“Well now, cooking I could teach you right away, but sewing. That
’s a little different. It would take years of experience before you could teach a class properly.”
“I’d love to learn how to cook. My mother, well, she didn’t ―” Bekah wasn’t going in that direction. She’d promised herself she would start taking responsibility for herself. “I didn’t get many kitchen skills growing up.”
“I’d love to teach you, dear. After all, they say the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach, and Ezekiel loves some good home cooking.”
Bekah stared at the woman in confusion. “Ezekiel? You think Zeke and I are ―”
Doris smiled up at her. “The light bulbs will need to be replaced in many of these too.”
The woman was very sneaky when it came to getting what she wanted. First, it was the drama class, and now she had it in her head that Bekah and Ezekiel had something going. Did they? Bekah had to admit that Ezekiel was an awesome guy. He was everything that every other guy she’d dated was not. He was thoughtful, caring, kind, not a criminal ... but Zeke?
“I better get over to the kitchens. I’m sure those ovens haven’t fared as well as the sewing machines.”
“You go ahead, dear. I’ll just finish up here.”
Bekah headed into the kitchen with more on her mind than one person should hold. There was so much to do, and she wasn’t sure she could pull off a play in three months. Then there was Ruby and Jack, who might be in some kind of trouble. And Ezekiel. She liked him, that was obvious. But could she possibly settle down with a guy such as Ezekiel? The son of a preacher? No. That was preposterous. Laughable, really. Her mother would ― be proud? For once in her life, would her mother finally approve of one of her decisions?
Bekah shook her head. First things first ― the kitchen.
After checking each of the ovens visually, she concluded that they were in pretty good condition. They were each gas stoves, and it looked like the fuel was turned off to them because they were not heating. She wouldn’t be able to tell any more than that until the gas was turned back on to them.
“How’s it coming, dear?” Doris asked, peeking in the doorway.
“Plenty of years’ worth of dust on these old things, but they were kept fairly clean. I think once the gas is turned on to this part of the building, we might find that they are in good working order.”
“Jed paid a pretty penny to keep all of this stuff as part of the purchase. I hope we can get it all up and running.”
It was the first time Bekah had heard of Pastor Gaines being addressed as anything other than the formal name.
“Why did he pay extra to keep this stuff if he didn’t plan on using it?”
“Well, it’s always been a dream to get a full school up and running, but sometimes you have to let the bigger dream go for a while to accomplish a smaller goal. Our main purpose was to get a school going. But plans are made to be changed, and I think you being here is just the inspiration we need to get things up and running.”
Doris always seemed to have some hidden messages in her words. Maybe it wasn’t her intention to speak to Bekah about her own life, but somehow, her words did. Bekah did need to let the bigger dream in her own life go for a while and focus on accomplishing the smaller goal.
“There’s not much more I can do now. At least not until the gas gets turned back on to this area.” She turned to Doris, who was looking so vibrant in her light-blue flowered dress.
“I thought about what you said. About me teaching a sewing class.” Her eyes brightened, and Bekah was sure she saw excitement gleaming in them. “Maybe it would be fun hanging out with the kids again. I miss the days when Ezekiel was younger.”
“It might be more than you're used to, but it could be fun,” Bekah agreed.
“And it would help to not have to hire a teacher,” Doris said as if she were trying to convince Bekah.
“It sure would. Are you still willing to give me a few cooking tips?”
Bekah had dabbled a little in cooking since her mother was usually working, and she'd had to fend for herself many times, but anything more extensive than mac and cheese or an occasional banana bread when the bananas were too brown to eat, was about it. That in no way qualified her to teach a class, but she was willing to learn. Besides, the idea of cooking a meal for Zeke appealed to her. Not just because he'd asserted the dig in about her being inept in the kitchen, but because she liked him and wanted to impress him. She'd never cared to be accepted by any man before. Her philosophy had always been — I am who I am. Take me or leave me.
When had that changed?
Chapter 20 — Ezekiel
The lunch bell rang, and Ezekiel sighed with relief. The morning had been incredibly long with the kids talking about nothing but drama class and trying out for the play. Every student in his class, except for Jack, had turned in a permission slip.
The boy certainly had a right to not participate, but with his flair for the dramatic, Ezekiel was surprised that Jack hadn’t been the first to sign up.
“Jack,” Ezekiel called as the kids gathered their lunches and headed out.
“Yes, Mr. Gaines?” Jack looked up. Once again, there was no lunch in his hands.
“Jack, I’d like to talk to you about the new elective.”
“Drama is for girls, Mr. Gaines.”
Did his father tell him that? “Peter Pan is hardly a girl’s play. There are probably more boy roles than girls. There’s Peter Pan and Captain Hook, and then all the other pirates. There are the lost boys and―”
“I’m not interested.” Jack looked away, longing in his eyes.
“No lunch again today?” Ezekiel decided not to press the issue, but something told him that Jack was putting up a front. It irked him that he couldn't figure out why.
“It’s okay. I had a really big breakfast this morning. Dad made pancakes and eggs and bacon. I don’t think I’ll eat again until dinner.”
Something about the way the boy wouldn’t look him in the eye and shuffled on his feet told Ezekiel that he was not telling the truth about that either. “Okay, then. I hope you’ll reconsider taking drama class. I think you’d really be an asset.”
“I’ll think about it. Thanks. I better go now.” Jack rushed out of the classroom, nearly running Bekah over as she came through the door.
“Are we all set to head over to the hardware store?” Ezekiel asked as Bekah ducked out of Jack’s way. “I have a good feeling―”
“Yes. But there’s something I wanted to talk to you about first.”
“Sure.” Ezekiel watched her sway into the room. How had he not seen how beautiful she was from the start? That was an easy answer. Bekah hadn't appealed to him then because she had been dressed so provocatively that he hadn't gotten the chance to see the part of her that really counted — her heart.
Bekah held out a piece of paper to him.
“What’s this?”
“Take a look.” She nodded to the paper. “It’s Ruby’s permission slip.”
Ezekiel looked it over, noticing Jack’s blocky handwriting at the bottom immediately. “Jack forged his father’s signature?”
“So it seems. And not very well, I might add. And Ruby told me today that Jack forbade her to try out for the play.”
“Since when does an eleven-year-old hold so much power over his little sister?”
“I don’t know, but something’s not right about this. I’m worried that ― do you think their father is working too much to know what’s going on in his children's lives? When I was working in the cafeteria, I noticed that neither of them had brought lunch all week.”
“That has been a bit of an ongoing issue. We've mostly just provided lunch for them here when they forgot, but lately it has become an everyday thing.” Ezekiel stood. “I was supposed to make a visit to their home but with everything going on ...”
“Maybe you should go tonight. I’ll go with you.”
“It’s a date.” He winked at her. Whatever it was with these new feelings he had for her, he wasn’t sure. All he
knew was that he was very much attracted to her. He'd dated off and on but had never been as interested in any woman as much as he was Bekah. He'd begun to think that God had willed him to be single like Paul in the Bible, but deep inside, he'd yearned for a family.
“Good. Let’s go see if we can get some sponsors before your kids come back.”
As they headed out, Ezekiel couldn’t help worrying about Jack and his sister Ruby. Something wasn’t right, but he couldn’t put his finger on it. He just hoped there was a reasonable explanation for it.
“You know,” Bekah said as she climbed into the passenger’s seat. “When I was a kid, my mom wasn’t around much. Being a single parent and all, I guess she was busy providing for us, but sometimes it’s easy to overlook the fact that your kids need more than just food on the table.”
“What do you mean?” Ezekiel started the car.
“Well, I always had what I needed, but somehow, that didn’t seem enough. It was like we were just living. Nothing more, nothing less.”
Ezekiel had been brought up in a very family-oriented home, so it was hard for him to understand what she was saying. “You mean like attention?”
“Yeah. I guess. It seemed like the only time I got attention was when I was in trouble. I’m not saying my mom was bad, but she wasn’t a good one either. It’s hard to explain.”
“Like you were just there?”
“Yeah. Like every day was the same old thing. We never went anywhere. We hardly ever talked. She didn’t encourage me to ... we just ... existed.”
“You think Jack and Ruby are just existing?”
“Maybe so. It’s got to be hard on their father, raising two kids by himself, but if he wants to keep them healthy, I mean mentally, he needs to take an interest in them. Maybe I’m just reflecting on my own past, but something about them tells me they are just going through day to day life.”
Ezekiel drove up to the lumber yard with Bekah’s words on his mind. Were Jack and Ruby merely existing in a world where no one took an interest in them? As a child, he’d done everything with his family. They wanted to know everything that was going on. Good or bad. They’d always been supportive. What would it have been like to not have the support of his parents? Admittedly, sometimes his parents were too involved. They drove him crazy at times, always wanting to do things together. They took trips, attended church, Bible studies, vacation bible school, everything they did was done as a family and was to encourage him to be a better person. He was grateful that he’d grown up with such a strong value system.
The Act of Falling Page 9