in her office tossing things into her purse. “What’s going on?” I asked.
“Jace was in a fight at school,” she said. “I have to go pick him up.”
“I’ll go with you.”
“You don’t have to,” she mumbled.
She was distracted and worried. I knew the situation with Jace was weighing on her. “I’ll drive.”
I went back to my office and grabbed my things. I ran into Lana on the way out. “Can you make sure everyone gets enough food? I’ve got to go. Saige is leaving as well.”
“Is everything okay?” she asked.
“It’s fine. Have a good weekend.”
Saige was already at the elevator. “I can’t believe this is happening,” she said as we rode down together. “Does it ever end? What are they trying to do to him? When did kids get this mean?”
“I think they’ve always been mean. It sucks that they are after Jace.”
I drove to the school with her providing me directions. She went right to the front desk and demanded to speak to the principal. She was pissed. I didn’t blame her. I was pissed and it wasn’t even my kid. We were led into the principal’s office which was just a little too familiar to me.
“Have a seat, Miss Conway,” the principal said. “You are?” he asked and looked at me.
“A family friend,” I replied. “I’m here for them both.”
He nodded but I got the feeling he wasn’t thrilled to have someone else involved. “What happened?” Saige asked. “Did they attack him again? I told you I would not stand by and let this continue. I want to talk to parents. Either you facilitate the meeting, or I will.”
“Miss Conway,” the man said and held up a hand.
“Don’t call me that,” she snapped. “I’ve told you to call me Saige.”
“Saige, Jace didn’t get attacked. He did the attacking.”
“What?” we both said together.
“There was a situation on the playground after lunch. The boys aren’t talking but every kid we talked to said Jace started it. He threw the first punch.”
“Why?” Saige asked. “Were they provoking him?”
“I’ve been unable to get the full story, but Jace has admitted to starting the fight. This is an ongoing issue and I have to stop it. Jace is suspended next week. I’m only suspending him for one day, but if this nonsense continues, there will be further action taken.”
Saige snorted. “Of course, you start suspending now. Jace is likely standing up for himself and you’re punishing him.”
“The other boy involved has been punished as well. This is my final warning. I will not tolerate this kind of behavior in my school.”
Saige got to her feet. “Good. You shouldn’t. For anyone. I’ll talk to Jace and I expect this problem to be solved because we both know Jace is not the instigator.”
I got up and stood beside her. I was getting to see her fierce warrior mama come out. I didn’t think she needed me as backup, but I was there just in case. I put my hand on her shoulder. “Let’s get Jace,” I told her. I was a little concerned she was going to launch herself across the desk. She looked pissed. She looked scary. I would not want to be in her way if she lost her cool.
She walked out of the office and stomped down the hall. She clearly knew her way around the place. Jace was sitting in a small room with another kid and a teacher. “I’m here to get Jace,” Saige announced.
I stayed out of the way. When Jace came into the hall and saw me, he smiled. “How come you’re here, Nash?”
I shrugged. “I brought your mom.”
“Oh.”
“Car, young man,” Saige ordered. “We are going to talk.”
I felt bad for the kid. He was only sticking up for himself. I hoped she didn’t get too mad at him. I would have loved to give him a high-five. I kept it to myself and walked to the car. Once inside, Saige turned around to look at Jace in the backseat. “What happened?”
“That same bully that said mean things to me was being really mean to Caitlyn,” he said. “She was crying, and all the kids were laughing at her.”
“What?” Saige gasped. “Is Caitlyn okay?”
Jace nodded. “They said she was ugly, and I was her boyfriend. He was really mad at her for getting him in trouble last week.”
“What did you do, Jace?” Saige asked.
Jace raised his little chin. “I hit him.”
I grinned, and this time, I did hold up my hand for a high-five. “Good job, man!”