“Thank you for meeting with me, Mrs. Hayes.”
I smile at my son’s counselor. “It’s Ms. Hart now.”
Mrs. Webner’s face colors at her mistake. “That’s right. I’m so sorry.”
I wave a hand. “It’s no problem. We’re all still getting used to the changes.”
“Of course. Why don’t we step into my office? I promise to not take up too much of your time.”
She leads me down the hall to her office and shuts the door behind us. After she takes a seat at her desk, and I sit down across from her, she leans in with a smile. “I have to say, I was very saddened to hear about your divorce. That must have been difficult, considering that you two had been friends since childhood.”
My surprise causes me to reel back slightly. “I’m sorry. Did Brayden mention how long his dad and I knew each other?”
The woman’s eyes go wide, and she shakes her head. “Oh, I’m sorry. It’s such a small world on the islands, I thought you might remember me. I’m Patrice. We went to school together growing up.”
The name clicks immediately. “Patrice Zimmerman?”
She practically glows with her smile. “Well, it’s Webner now.”
“Of course. Oh my gosh, I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you. Clearly, my mind has been on other things these days.”
She raises a hand to tell me not to worry. “I absolutely understand. I think we shared several classes, but it’s been so long since then. Small-town gossip has managed to keep me updated.”
I laugh, knowing just how much truth there is in that statement. News certainly does travel fast around here.
Patrice relaxes again back in her chair. “To be honest, your marriage to Trevor was quite the surprise to a lot of us. I always suspected you and Jamison Bexley would end up together. You two were practically attached at the hip.”
My next smile comes out forced, but I can’t blame Patrice for her feelings. I’m well aware of what everyone was saying when Trevor and I quickly tied the knot. “We were, weren’t we? Gosh, it all feels like forever ago.” I lean forward in an attempt to change the subject. “Since you and I go way back, I guess that means you can call me Violet now.”
She smiles. “And you can call me Patrice. Actually, you might remember my husband, Jim. He played soccer with Trevor and Jamison. He’s the soccer coach at their old high school now.”
My mouth drops in surprise. “No way. I do remember Jim. And good for him. It all comes full circle, doesn’t it?”
She rests her hands on the table and smiles. “I like to believe so.”
Our icebreaker officially sets me at ease. Thank goodness, because for some reason I’m nervous to talk about Brayden’s challenges in school, like I’ve failed in some way.
“I want to start by assuring you that I absolutely adore your son. Brayden is a sweet and caring boy with a heart of gold. And while I know we’re here to discuss some of my observances, I’m not at all concerned with his behavior.”
My relief exhales with my next breath. “That is very good to hear. So, I take it whatever is going on isn't a disruption to the classroom then?”
She shakes her head. “No, not at all. While I can’t be in his classroom full time, I do speak with his teacher regularly. From what I gather, Brayden tends to zone out during certain instruction. I’m afraid in those instances, the only person he’s distracting is himself.”
“Can I ask how he zones out?”
Patrice reaches for a pencil and waves it around. “Usually, he’ll find something on his desk, like this, and he’ll start fidgeting with it. Sometimes I think he’s having an imaginary sword battle in his head.” She sets down the pencil. “If it weren’t for the timing of his brain breaks, as I refer to them, there would be no issue at all.”
I hate the uneasiness in my chest as I wade through how to approach each response and question. She said herself that Brayden is a good kid, so how much damage is he really causing by zoning out? “When does he tend to take these brain breaks?”
“Always during a new lesson. I suspect discomfort when it comes to new material, especially in reading and language arts. He’s a bright child. The minute he talks through things one-on-one with his teacher, he grasps the content immediately. Unfortunately, her giving one child individual attention isn’t fair to other children if there isn’t a documented plan for accommodations.”
“Accommodations?”
“Well, yes. We do have the ability to make accommodations for kids who have been evaluated for special needs.”
“Is that something Brayden needs?”
Patrice lifts her shoulders and relaxes them. “It can only benefit him at this point. If you’d like, I can set up an evaluation for him to determine next steps.”
A weight sinks deep down in my stomach. “I didn’t know it was this bad.”
Patrice shakes her head. “This isn’t a bad thing, Violet. I promise you. All a plan like this will do is protect Brayden from getting left behind. Like you’ve already said, this has been a hard enough year for him. The stress school can bring doesn’t make things any easier.”
I let out a sigh, wondering how I missed this about my son? I’m no stranger to Brayden’s lack of attention when it comes to schoolwork. He always seems to get wiggle butt, as I call it, whenever it’s time to sit down and work on school-related stuff, but I never thought it was a huge deal.
“I’m okay with having him evaluated if you believe that’s the next step. I also spoke with Trevor about possibly getting Brayden a tutor, but I don’t know if that will help.”
Patrice frowns slightly. “I’m not sure a tutor is the answer. However, extracurricular activities can do wonders for kids. They provide a healthy outlet while also serving as a distraction from the stressors in their lives. Oh!” Her eyes light up. “The Bexleys’ camp is offering a ton of daily activities for kids now. Daycare, sports, horseback riding, hiking, and swimming.”
I laugh at some of the suggestions. “Swimming in the winter? The water will be freezing right now.”
Patrice shrugs. “The pool is heated. Haven’t you seen all the new amenities they have now?”
I shake my head, almost embarrassed. When I stormed onto the campground the other day, I didn’t think to look around much beyond asking for directions and finding my way to the saloon. And yeah, I noticed some of the differences, but now I’m wondering how much I may have missed.
“Oh, well, it’s a whole new camp than it was when we were kids. I’m surprised you don’t know all about it, with you and Jamison being friends and all.” Her frown clouds her features. “Unless you two aren’t friends anymore. I guess I hadn’t even considered that.” She laughs almost sheepishly.
“Jami’s been working in Seattle, so we haven’t spoken in some time. But I’ll definitely look into the extracurriculars you mentioned. It might be just what he needs.”
Her face blooms with her smile. “Wonderful. I won’t keep you any longer today. I’ll start the paperwork to complete the evaluation, and we’ll go from there.”