Chell's Story: Part C
Chapter Seven
I told Dad about everything the girls had said about me on the way home from school that day, as well as my new friend Pedro.
"They said what?"
"The girls said that you're not my real dad and that my real parents are dead."
He let off a sigh. "Look, it's going to be hard to explain it to you now, but we'll talk about it when you're older."
"You are my dad, aren't you?"
He paused a moment before speaking. "Tell you what. If you do well in school, I can show you where I work."
"Really?"
"You have to promise to get good grades in your classes."
"I promise."
He decided to change the subject. "So, have you made any friends yet?"
"Just a boy from Venezuela."
"Yeah? Tell me about him."
"His name is Pedro. He lost his parents in a bus accident when he was six, and he can't speak any English at all."
"So, how were you able to make friends with him?"
"I wasn't able to sit with anyone at lunch today, and when I went to the corner table, I saw him sitting there by himself. When I got there, he said I could sit with him in Spanish, and I sat down and explained that I could speak Spanish, too."
"So that's where all those books went."
"Yeah, sorry."
"Hey, you made good use of them, Chelsea."
"Yeah. Anyway, I had agreed to become study buddies with him and help him translate his work."
"Do you think you're up to doing that?"
"Yeah, I think I can do it."
"Okay. Let me know what I need to do to let you do what you need to do."
"I will."
It was February 13, 1998 when I finally got the chance to see Dad's workplace. That Friday, the class was having a math test, and I had been helping Pedro get ready for it. Dad had told me last week that if I passed the test, he would take me to his workplace the following day. So, I had a strong reason to do well. And with my help, Pedro had a decent chance of getting a good score as well.
"¿Crees que puedes hacerlo, Pedro?"
"Yo sé que puedo hacerlo, Chell."
"Bueno."
The test went by fairly well. The girls were talking between each other behind the teacher's back, and the boys couldn't concentrate because of that. Pedro couldn't understand what they were saying, and so was able to focus on his test. I was determined to pass the test so that I could see my dad's workplace.
Needless to say, Pedro and I were the only ones who passed.
But in spite of the results, the teacher blamed me for distracting the rest of the class and sent me to the principal's office.
Pedro was sent with me for trying to defend me because the teacher thought he said something inappropriate.
"So..." Mr. Brunswick sat up at his desk, "what brings the two of you to my office today?"
I knew I was going to have to do all of the talking for both of us. "The teacher said that I was distracting the class from taking a math test today."
"Were you?"
"No, I wasn't. Pedro and I were the only ones focused on taking the test. The other girls were talking to each other, and the other boys couldn't focus because of that."
"Do you know what they were talking about?"
"I was focused on the test, so I don't know. Pedro doesn't speak English, so he doesn't know either."
"So, why is Pedro here with you?"
"He tried to tell the teacher that I had nothing to do with the rest of the class not passing the test, but the teacher thought he said something bad."
"What did he say?"
"What he said was '¡Ella no hizo nada!', which means 'She didn't do anything!'. The teacher then told me to tell Pedro to come with me here."
Mr. Brunswick stroked his chin. "I'm going to call her and see what's going on." He picked up the phone and called the teacher.
As he did so, Pedro leaned toward me. "¿Qué hacemos ahora?"
"Yo creo que debemos esperar hasta él está terminado hablando al telefono."
"Vale."
Mr. Brunswick got through to the teacher. "Yes, Mrs. Berkeley? I'm here with Pedro Maneja and Chelsea... uh, do you have a last name for her? ... No? Hm. Anyway, I'm calling to get an understanding of why these two are here. ... Mm-hm. ... Mm-hm. ... Where did you get this information?" He started writing on a piece of paper. "Okay. For the time being, I see no reason for these two to receive any disciplinary action, so I'll send them back to class. ... But I would like to speak to the rest of the girls before the end of the day." He turned to us with the phone away from his face. "You two can head back to class now."
I turned to Pedro. "Podemos volver a la clase ahora."
With that, we left the office and headed back to the classroom.
