ONE WEEK LATER
Christy sighed for a countless time. She was incensed. She was confused. She was hurt. And she was sitting in a classroom full of children who all would notice her inner turmoil if she let it show even slightly.
They were each working on their separate projects for the recitation. Christy could hardly believe her first year of teaching was nearly over. The events of the past year would surely change her life, she already knew that. If not by the way of something so permanent as marriage, she was changed as a person for good. These children, all these people, had changed her.
David was in a far brighter light for promising her Cutter Gap as 'home' as long as she wanted. It meant so much to her. These people had so readily embraced her and it was mutual. Christy did not want to leave them anytime soon. If at all. She had mentioned to David she might never want to ever leave. David returned instantly he did not want to leave her so he would stay in the Cove for her. It warmed Christy's heart he cared about her so much.
Christy looked over her raptly attentive pupils as they diligently, eagerly even, worked on their projects. How dear they were to her! She wondered if she could ever leave the children of this place. They were so very previous individually, yes, that, too. But they, as a whole, were incredibly charming. She wondered if she could feel completed without them. They seemed to fill a void in her left from years of doing meaningless socials with equally meaningless goals being allowed out in the open. Dr.MacNeill helped fill that vacuum.
Dr.MacNeill. Neil. The name rung in her head. He was gone. With Margaret. She did not know where they had gone. No one did. They had just left one day without telling anyone but Jeb Spencer where they were going. And Jeb would not let anyone know where they went, just that they were OK.
Christy supposed it was better that way. Without having Neil around as a constant distraction she would be able to think more logically about whether to accept David's wonderful proposal or not.
Logic. Ah, the next word to bounce through her mind. She wanted to forget logic. It always seemed to ruin the best of times. But Christy could not help but think logically. First, that was how she was and who she was. Second,it was how one should approach something so lasting and important as a marriage proposal. She knew this was David's last proposal. Christy did not want David to forget about courting her. Whether that came from the purely feminine side of her which wanted male attention and was flattered by it or it was for her love for him was uncertain. It was what she had to decide.
Christy forced herself with great difficulty to focus on the tasks at hand. She had sixty plus students to tend to. The job had never been easy but it had always been fairly natural for her to aggressively tackle the job and accomplish it with all the heart she possessed.
"Creed Allen!" Christy exclaimed. She had just caught sight of him about to do one of his favorite activities. Shooting spitwads at children. She found the act particularly repulsive since her grammar school had been coed. Boys had fired spitwads at her, and several other girls, just for being short and female. It annoyed her. But she had been shifted into a stuffy, all-girls school when she was eight and the problem ceased, though Christy occasionally got the temptation to fire spitballs at certain particularly snobbish girls. She found it hard to keep from committing this act.
Creed Allen pretended to hide what they all knew he had been about to do had 'Teacher' not caught him. He tried his humor to get him off the hook. "Shorely ye ain't gonna fault ma fer jest wantin' ta toss a li'l spitball, Miz Christy."
There was a lively, mischievous twinkle in Creed Allen's eyes. He was daring her with those large eyes to be angry at him. Christy found him the hardest to remain strict and serious with her in class. She would often laugh at his antics after school but always needed to keep a straight face in the classroom to maintain order.
"Creed, come up here, please," Christy said calmly. She found they would cooperate with her better when she spoke to them like equals and asked them to do something as opposed to scaring them into doing it an order.
Creed moved up the aisle meekly. He thought it was funny and Christy pointed out this to him, if indeed it could be counted as a fault. Creed grinned up at her as he handed her the 'weapon' he had so many times used against her when her back was turned. She knew it was Creed. Everyone knew it was Creed. But she had to keep an example set for the children. Christy could not punish him for something she had not truly seen with her own eyes. Christy could not find it in her heart to punish him much anyway. He was so cute and charming.
And he knew it.
"Cain't blame me fer findin' hit funny, kin ya, Teacher?" Creed challenged.
Christy was unsure how to respond to that. She did not lie. Creed knew that. He dared her to tell him she thought he was not funny. Christy could not do that and he knew it well. She had to remain firm, though. "Creed, you know you're not allowed to shoot spitballs," Christy said, avoiding his question.
"Why, Teacher, when you's think 'bout it, I won't," Creed said innocently. "I only was a-aimin' this here thang at 'em. I won't really shootin' at no one." He extracted a muffled giggle from every classmate as he had hoped. It was always a battle with this boy. He humored Christy and exasperated her, usually at the same moment.
"I won't get into a debate with you, Creed," Christy said, a tint of a smile on her lips. Tell me you weren't going to shoot this spitball and I'll let you sit back down." Creed faltered.
Creed took pride in telling the truth. He had agreed with 'Miz Christy' it took a stronger man to tell truth, despite the consequences, than to lie. She knew this and felt slightly guilty for preying on that knowledge. But she had to discipline him for what he had planned to do, had almost done, in deliberate disobedience to the rules she had set so firmly for the past year.
"I won't gonna hurt nobody," Creed Allen defended himself, knowing his battle was lost.
"Thank you for telling me the truth," Christy said. 'Because we're so close to finishing out the year, I won't be so harsh with you. But you still must write, twenty times, you will not shoot spitballs. And you already know that. But if this happens again this year I won't be so lenient. And I won't accept it next year, either."
"Yer comin' back next year?" Creed asked excitedly.
Christy smiled. "Why, of course I am, Creed," she said. "I wouldn't be able to stay away."
"Oh, that be right nice," Creed enthused.
Christy grinned and lightly smacked his face affectionately. "You're not getting out of your sentences, Creed."
She pointed to the board and Creed grinned at her as he realized she had easily seen through his act. But the generally harmless troublemaker really was glad to know his teacher would be back the next year. Truth be known, the young Allen boy, as all the children, loved this teacher dearly. Christy was a wonderful person and they were delighted she was teaching them. Each of them had something to say, or whisper, about her promise to return the next year.
Christy dismissed them an hour later. They all asked her if she really was returning and Christy smiled, promising each and everyone she would come back.
She *would* come back. Of that she was certain.