Inside, the hallway smelled like floor polish and paper. A woman with kind eyes and graying hair pulled back in a braid stood by a classroom door holding a clipboard. She smiled when she saw them.
"Mr. Bennett?" she said. "And you must be Eli. I am Ms. Parker. Welcome."
Eli pressed closer to Arthur's side. "Hi," he said quietly.
Ms. Parker crouched down so her eyes were level with his. "I am glad you are here, Eli. Your seat is right by the window, if you like windows."
Eli nodded.
"Good," Ms. Parker said. "If you need anything at all today, you can come to me."
Arthur crouched down too and looked Eli straight in the eye. "You belong in there, Eli. Go learn something. I will be here when you are done."
Eli took a deep breath. Then he nodded, stepped past Ms. Parker into the classroom, and did not look back.
Inside the classroom, Eli kept his head down. Ms. Parker introduced him simply, without making a fuss. He sat by the window and opened his notebook. He answered one question in a voice so quiet that Ms. Parker had to lean in to hear him, and she smiled and said his answer was right.
At lunch, he carried his tray to the end of a long table and sat alone. He opened his lunchbox. Margaret had packed a sandwich, an apple, and a small note that said, "You are doing great, sweetheart."
A boy with curly hair and a missing front tooth slid onto the bench across from him. "Hi," the boy said. "I am Noah. Are you new?"
Eli nodded. "I am Eli."
"Do you want to sit with me?" Noah asked. "I usually sit here. But there is room."
Eli looked at the empty space beside Noah, then at Noah's open, friendly face. "Okay," he said.
"What is that?" Noah asked, pointing at the chain around Eli's neck.
Eli touched the ring through his shirt. "It was my mom's," he said. "Now I wear it."
"Cool," Noah said. "My grandma gave me a rock. It is a lucky rock."
Eli almost smiled. "Does it work?"
"Sometimes," Noah said seriously. "Mostly for spelling tests."
They ate together. Noah talked about his dog, who had eaten a whole sock last week, and about the class guinea pig, who was named Biscuit. Eli listened, and then he started to talk too. For the first time that day, the knot in his stomach loosened.
After lunch, the afternoon went faster. There was a story about a boy who built a boat out of paper, and art, where he drew a house with many windows. When the bell rang, his heart jumped, but in a good way.
Ms. Parker walked him to the front doors herself, just as she had promised. "You did wonderfully today, Eli," she said. "Noah asked if you will sit with him again tomorrow."
Eli nodded. "Tell him yes."
Then he saw Arthur waiting on the sidewalk, and everything in him loosened at once. He broke into a run.
"Grandpa!" he shouted. "Grandpa, guess what!"
Arthur caught him, laughing, as Eli crashed into him. "Tell me everything."
"I sat by the window," Eli said, breathless. "And I got one answer right. And at lunch I met Noah, and the guinea pig is named Biscuit, and Ms. Parker said I did wonderfully."
"That sounds like a very good day," Arthur said.
"It was," Eli said. He took Arthur's hand as they started walking home. "Can I go back tomorrow?"
Arthur squeezed his hand. "You can go back tomorrow," he said. "And the day after that, and the day after that. As many tomorrows as you want."
Eli looked up at him and grinned. "Good," he said. "Because Noah is saving me a seat."
Chapter 18: Daniel's Choice
The doorbell rang on a Saturday morning while Eli was building a tower of wooden blocks on the living room rug. Arthur folded his newspaper and stood.
Margaret came to the doorway with a dish towel in her hands. "Mr. Bennett," she said, "it is Daniel."
Arthur straightened his cufflinks without thinking about it. He had not seen his son since the day Daniel signed the repayment agreement and left the foundation office.
"Tell him I will come to the door," Arthur said.
Eli stood up very slowly. The blocks stayed where they were, half a tower waiting for its top. "Is he here to see me?" Eli asked.
"I do not know yet," Arthur said. "Let us find out together."
Daniel stood on the step with his hands in his coat pockets. He looked thinner than Arthur remembered.
"Dad," Daniel said. "I should have called first. I wanted to ask something in person."
"Come in," Arthur said. "We can talk in the kitchen."
Daniel stepped inside and took off his coat. Margaret took it and hung it by the door. Eli watched from the doorway to the living room, his hands at his sides, his eyes steady. The ring hung on its chain around his neck, tucked under his shirt where he kept it at home.