Chapter 28

28

The school day ended, and on this day, since his mother was not at work and was at a conference, Abraham Lincoln Panim had to walk home all by his lonesome.

After his class filed out of the room, he got together whatever work he needed to take home, put his scarf around his neck—not around his face--and made his own way down the hall to the exit.

As he did this, he noticed both male and female teachers, school workers and aides, lunch room ladies and whatever students were still in school, almost moving to the sides of the hall, to the left and to the right, parting the hall in half and clearing the way to him to proceed to the exit.

Teachers, students, aides and whoever else was there—both male and female--stared at him as he walked past them, and he had a slight smile on his face as he moved past them, knowing that he was being stared at—and liking the feeling.

Some people whispered, not thinking that he could hear them.

“He is the most handsome man I have ever seen,” said one female teacher to another as “Mr. Abraham” walked past them.

“Rat face? That is the face of an Adonis,” said another.

“Now we have competition,” said a male teacher. “What chance do I have against this guy?”

“My goodness. He is just so handsome,” said one lunch lady to another. “I wish he was my son.”

“I wish I had him as a teacher,” said one of the female students who stood near the exit. “He is so … I mean so—

“Oh dry up,” said a male student standing nearby. “He is way out of your league!”

“Mr. Abraham” opened the door and left the school for the day, walking on the same streets he and his mother regularly passed when they drove by car to and from the school.

And if Abraham Lincoln Panim got a great reaction when he walked down the school hall to the exit, that reaction continued as he walked up and down the streets to his home, from people who did not know him.

“My, what a good-looking young man,” said and elderly lady to her friend, who had just come out of the local supermarket.

“Yes, wouldn’t we all love to have him as our grandchild,” said her friend.

‘No, dear, I want him as my … husband!” the other woman said, and both chuckled but never lost their gaze of him.

Abraham Lincoln Panim could see out of the corner of his eyes that male and female, young and old, were staring at him as he walked home, and staring at him with awe.

He thought to himself, “I like it, I really do,” as he tugged on his scarf. And why shouldn’t I like it … I have been through hell all through my life because of that … that … rat face that I have, err, had, so why shouldn’t I like all the attention I am getting now?”

Abraham Lincoln Panim came to the front door of his home, took out his key, and put it into the keyhole as two young girls stopped in their tracks to look at him. The key was already in the keyhole, but he purposely took extra time to turn the key and let himself in as the young girls giggled when he turned around and winked at him.

“Yes, I can get used to this, I can get used to this every day,” he thought to himself. “I can never tire of this … and I deserve it, anyway.”