Level Three. Routinely.
Level Three. Routinely.
By Michelle Lloyd.
Dillon was fun, fast and frantic. He was lovely, lively and loud for much of the time. Having had a little brother had been an adjustment for RV and he had to admit that at times it had been a struggle for him to do what he thought a big brother should do.
Dillon needed a lot of attention and that was logical. RV knew that babies needed time with the parents, because they could do hardly anything for themselves, that was the babies of course and not the parents!
It had all been going quite well up to the day when RV noticed that MAYBE things were not as ok with him having a little brother as he had first thought…and he remembered how school had routinely that day ended at the usual time that it should do, RV went and waited where he had been told to, BUT then the parents did NOT arrive as they were meant to do.
RV was taken back into the school and asked to wait at the reception while his parents were contacted. The wait was a bit fraught. Thoughts started to trouble RV. He focused on why he would have been abandoned, he had tried to tell himself that he was being ridiculous and that surely something had happened to make his parents late to get him.
It was more and more difficult to explain what had happened as the time ticked on and RV was made to sit there questioning all the awful scenarios that could have happened to make his parents late for him. Awful the ideas had to be, because why else would he have been stranded at school?
No one had called. No one had told the reception that they would be late for RV. It made the situation worse and RV found himself eagerly observing everything that his teacher did. What would happen if they could not get in touch with either of his parents? What would happen if they never came for him again? Would he not see his mum or dad, or Dillon and what would happen to him?
It was strange how RV felt about Dillon, because fear made him question their relationship as he wondered if maybe his cuteness had won out and the parents had decided that one of them was enough for them. Sure his parents told him they loved him but was it true? Of course they said that to him, out of politeness, but really was it a me or him scenario?
Time seemed to take an age and when his teacher came out to talk to him, RV had convinced himself that it was a done deal. Dillon was lovely to look at because of his baby appeal. Adorable Dillon, was many things to many but while not everyone knew him that well, RV felt he did and he loved him. He did not think it fair that he should have to be abandoned because he had a brother, he had seen others families handle several young ones and do it well, but then he thought maybe it was not for him to decide…
RV was so busy in his thoughts that he did not notice his teacher indicating that his family were standing at the doors to get him. Waving, smiling and Dillon even blew a bubble at him for good measure, because apparently the delay had been because their vehicle had broken down and then on getting the pushchair out to walk the last bit of the journey that had broken down too. Phones had been either run down or not to hand and it was actually quite funny to hear all about it. RV looked at his family with utter relief. They loved him and he loved them and the is it me or him scenario seemed a distant and not too realistic problem for him anymore.