The next morning, he was sure the whole thing had been a dream.
Sleepwalking, probably. He comforted himself with this conclusion as
he drove by the elementary school on his way to work. He slowed as a
kickball bounced lazily into the road. An older child with an orange
crossing-guard sash carefully crossed the street to get it. Justin
turned toward the school. A number of children were playing outside.
Then he saw Roosevelt again. Standing in the middle of some children.
The smallest children. The kindergarten class, Justin supposed. Then
Roosevelt was gone. The ball had been retrieved, and a car behind him
honked, but Justin couldn't drive on. Instead, he parked his truck by
the curb and walked to kindergarten the doors. Inside, Mrs. Nolla was
straightening a few chairs when he entered.
When she turned and saw him, she gasped and put her hand to her chest.
"I..." she stammered, "I wasn't expecting... to see... you... there."
Justin apologized and muttered something about stopping by. They had
met a few times during the last round of school board meetings when the
latest draconian cuts had been proposed.
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