This unfortunate remark was overheard by a teacher, who promptly marched both of them to the principal’s office and left them sitting on the bench outside the door. Lisa had never been to the principal’s office before, except to be congratulated for her grades. She was terrified. The last thing she wanted was to cause more grief for her mother, and if it hadn’t been for Josh, she could have failed her classes with no consequences until the midterm report cards were issued.
She crossed her arms and focused on despising him. Josh ignored her. Lisa considered suggesting that his mischief might damage the health of his mother, but she decided against it. The absence of her father had given her a glimpse into the misery Josh would have to endure if his mother died, and even though she wanted him to suffer, she didn’t feel comfortable exploiting him to such a cruel degree.
Despite Josh’s apologies and Lisa’s tears, the principal sentenced them to spend the afternoon picking up trash in various spots around the campus. Lisa felt humiliated, but Josh didn’t seem to mind. Lisa decided he was the most obnoxious person she had ever met. He didn’t even have the decency to pretend to be unhappy. He was too perfect. It was intolerable.
When the two hours ended, she went into the bathroom to wash her hands. When she emerged, she saw Richard standing in the office with Josh. Greatly alarmed, she looked around for her mother.
“Shall we go?” said Richard.
“I’m not going anywhere with you,” said Lisa.
“That’s funny,” said Richard. “Josh said the same thing. However, your parents are either too preoccupied or too annoyed to deal with you right now. I offered to fill in for them, and they accepted. Now, let’s not have any more fuss. Come along.”
Lisa knew there was no point in arguing. She picked up her backpack and followed them out to Richard’s truck. Josh climbed in, but Lisa hesitated. The interior of the truck was filthy, but that wasn’t what bothered her. She crossed her arms and pouted at Richard.
“I’m not sitting next to him,” she said.
“I’m afraid you don’t have much of a choice,” said Richard. “There’s plenty of room. Now, stop complaining.”
Lisa started crying.
“There she goes again,” said Josh.
“Josh, be quiet,” said Richard. “Lisa, calm down. It’s not the end of the world. I didn’t realize there was so much animosity between the two of you. I’ve made up my mind. We’re not going home until this situation is resolved.”
“You can’t do that,” said Lisa through her tears.
“Actually, I can,” said Richard. “It’s all for the best.”
He stood back and waited for her to get into the truck. Lisa didn’t know what to do. Still crying, she sat down beside Josh. He moved as far away from her as he could, but she still huddled into the corner with her forehead resting against the window and tried to pretend he didn’t exist. They drove away from the school, and it wasn’t long before they arrived at a restaurant. Richard pulled into the parking lot.
“Are either of you hungry?” he said.
“No,” said Josh. “Look, I know you want me and Lisa to get along, but it’s not going to happen. I made an ignorant comment. It was a mistake. It won’t happen again. I’ll just avoid her from now on. Is that good enough for you?”
Richard didn’t reply. He took a handkerchief out of his pocket and gave it to Lisa. She wiped her face, but her eyes remained red.
“I don’t want to go in there,” she said.
“I’m not leaving you out here by yourself,” said Richard. “This activity is mandatory, so stop trying to talk your way out of it.”
They went inside. The restaurant was packed. The hostess led them to a table, and they sat down. Lisa didn’t bother to look at the menu. She had no appetite. She rested her chin in her hands and stared across the aisle. A man was sitting alone at the table in front of the window. He looked about the same age as Lisa’s father. He was neatly dressed, but he kept fidgeting with his menu and glancing toward the door. Lisa was trying to figure out what was wrong with him when Richard’s voice dragged her back to reality.
“Tell me what happened,” he said.
“I don’t want to talk about it,” said Josh.
“Fine,” said Richard. “I can’t force you to testify against yourself. I’m sure Lisa would be delighted to give me her version of the story.”
Lisa wanted to accuse Josh of terrible things, but she didn’t have much to say against him.
“He was asking personal questions,” she said.
“You’ve been acting weird ever since your dad left,” said Josh. “It’s none of my business, but I wanted to make sure you were okay.”
“Of course I’m not okay,” said Lisa. “Are you stupid?”
“Apparently, when it comes to you,” said Josh. “I should’ve known better than to mention your dad. It was insensitive of me, and I’m sorry. I was thinking out loud, but I apologize. If you want to fail your junior year, ruin your future, and sabotage your life, go ahead. I’m not going to stop you.”
A shadow fell across the table.
“What a surprise,” said Graham’s voice.
Lisa looked up in disbelief. Sure enough, Graham was hovering over the table with a benign smile, wearing his typical suit. She wondered if he owned any other clothes. The only change since she had seen him last was the wedding ring gleaming on his finger. She looked around for Molly, but she was nowhere to be seen.
“Please pardon the interruption,” said Graham. “When I saw the three of you sitting here, I had to come over and say hello.”
“You’re too kind,” said Richard. “Are you here with Molly?”
“Not this time,” said Graham. “Actually, I’m meeting an old friend.”
He gestured at the man sitting at the table in front of the window. Lisa saw the color drain out of Josh’s face.
“We won’t
