We Found Love
Prologue
Austin, Texas
1997
Mathematics was never Natalie Moore’s forte, and she felt a headache forming as she stared at the paper in front of her. Reading was a little easier, you can easily fake a word if need be. But she couldn’t fake math.
She let out a sigh as she looked out into the playground where her fourth grade classmates enjoyed their lunch. She hated that math was keeping her from joining them, almost as much as she hated counting those damn matchsticks. She had been staring at the damn things for so long they had begun to blur into each other, making her eyes hurt. However no matter how many times she counted them she always came up with the same answer – the wrong answer.
She tried to take her mind off her math problem for a minute, thinking of the tea her Aunt and her had planned for the weekend. They would bake the cupcakes in the morning, and ice them with baby blue icing to match the chiffon dress her Aunt had bought her just for the occasion. She would serve the tea, at least that was one thing she excelled in.
“Natalie Moore!”
Snapping to attention, she tried to look as if she had been concentrating “Yes, ma’am?”
“Stop your daydreaming! Did your Aunt take you to the doctor like we discussed last week?” Ms Hill asked from her desk.
“Did you get tested?”
Natalie nodded as she reflected on last week. For three whole days she had spent at the doctors doing puzzles and reading, it wasn’t the most exciting three days off from school ever.
“How are you going with the problem?” she asked as she approached her desk. She looked down at her paper meekly; she had erased her answers so many times the paper had become wafer thin. Ms Hill picked up her paper, her eyes scanning across the paper before letting out a sigh.
“You’ve done it again Natalie, I’ve told you that is not the answer so why do you keep writing it?” she said obviously getting irritated at the small girl in front of her.
“I don’t know,” she all but whispered as she looked at her shoes.
“I’ve told you six times the answer to the first problem is not 18!” she said running her hands through her hair in frustration. “See these two bundles here, there are 10 matches here. This one represents 5. How many is ten plus ten?”
The blonde hair girl furrowed her brows deep in thought “Twenty.”
“Good, now twenty plus five is?”
“Twenty five?”
“Correct! Now finish off the rest and you can head out to lunch.”
The day couldn’t of ended quick enough, as soon as the old bell rung Natalie was out the door and on her bike. Racing through the streets as fast as she could to get home away from the taunts of her peers and teachers. She burst through the backdoor, pausing to look around the kitchen. The yellow wallpaper was faded and so old it had begun to peel off the walls, the marble counters were clean and the smell of a freshly baked teacake hung in the air.
Voices sounded from the parlour, a room that was off limits to Natalie unless it was Christmas. She inched forward stopping just out of sight to eavesdrop. Her Aunt would be furious but curiosity got the best of her when she heard her name mentioned from an unknown male.
“Mrs Moore your daughter has what we call dyslexia. She doesn’t seem to grasp abstract concepts; she mirrors her words or she simply cant recall the word she is after. See here, I showed your daughter a picture of the sun and she called it ‘The thing that is bright and warm and is out during the day.’ Yet at the same time she could identify a dog, the fifty states and several European countries.”
Natalie stole a quick glance into the room and instantly recognized Doctor Martin, the annoying guy who made her do puzzles and asked stupid questions the week before.
“Your daughter comprehends everything she reads though, as you can see here from her comprehension results.”
“How is this possible?”
“There are many theories out there Mrs Moore, some people think it may be genetic, but simply we don’t know what causes these things. We can do more tests to find out exactly what she is finding difficult and with medication and therapy…”
“Where do you think I’ll get money for that? I am basically a single mother, and barely keep up as is.”
“Well enrol her in charm school. Find her a good husband who will be able to look after her. You may love your daughter Mrs Moore, but without proper help your daughter will never be very bright.”
Natalie felt her head spin, and chest tighten and she quickly walked back through the house to the backyard. She sat on the tyre swing her father had put up before he left. Had he known that she would never be bright before he left? Although her aunt always said he left cause he blamed her for her mothers death all those years ago, one couldn’t help but wonder. Her dreams of being a doctor where beginning to fade, dyslexia. Just thinking about trying to spell the word was giving her a headache.
The kids at school would surely make fun of her, like they did Sally Tucker who had a stutter. She would always be known as ‘S-S-S-Sally’, she shuddered to think what she would get called. Even if it killed her Natalie Moore was determined to never let anyone know that she would never be ‘very bright’.
1997
Mathematics was never Natalie Moore’s forte, and she felt a headache forming as she stared at the paper in front of her. Reading was a little easier, you can easily fake a word if need be. But she couldn’t fake math.
She let out a sigh as she looked out into the playground where her fourth grade classmates enjoyed their lunch. She hated that math was keeping her from joining them, almost as much as she hated counting those damn matchsticks. She had been staring at the damn things for so long they had begun to blur into each other, making her eyes hurt. However no matter how many times she counted them she always came up with the same answer – the wrong answer.
She tried to take her mind off her math problem for a minute, thinking of the tea her Aunt and her had planned for the weekend. They would bake the cupcakes in the morning, and ice them with baby blue icing to match the chiffon dress her Aunt had bought her just for the occasion. She would serve the tea, at least that was one thing she excelled in.
“Natalie Moore!”
Snapping to attention, she tried to look as if she had been concentrating “Yes, ma’am?”
“Stop your daydreaming! Did your Aunt take you to the doctor like we discussed last week?” Ms Hill asked from her desk.
“Did you get tested?”
Natalie nodded as she reflected on last week. For three whole days she had spent at the doctors doing puzzles and reading, it wasn’t the most exciting three days off from school ever.
“How are you going with the problem?” she asked as she approached her desk. She looked down at her paper meekly; she had erased her answers so many times the paper had become wafer thin. Ms Hill picked up her paper, her eyes scanning across the paper before letting out a sigh.
“You’ve done it again Natalie, I’ve told you that is not the answer so why do you keep writing it?” she said obviously getting irritated at the small girl in front of her.
“I don’t know,” she all but whispered as she looked at her shoes.
“I’ve told you six times the answer to the first problem is not 18!” she said running her hands through her hair in frustration. “See these two bundles here, there are 10 matches here. This one represents 5. How many is ten plus ten?”
The blonde hair girl furrowed her brows deep in thought “Twenty.”
“Good, now twenty plus five is?”
“Twenty five?”
“Correct! Now finish off the rest and you can head out to lunch.”
The day couldn’t of ended quick enough, as soon as the old bell rung Natalie was out the door and on her bike. Racing through the streets as fast as she could to get home away from the taunts of her peers and teachers. She burst through the backdoor, pausing to look around the kitchen. The yellow wallpaper was faded and so old it had begun to peel off the walls, the marble counters were clean and the smell of a freshly baked teacake hung in the air.
Voices sounded from the parlour, a room that was off limits to Natalie unless it was Christmas. She inched forward stopping just out of sight to eavesdrop. Her Aunt would be furious but curiosity got the best of her when she heard her name mentioned from an unknown male.
“Mrs Moore your daughter has what we call dyslexia. She doesn’t seem to grasp abstract concepts; she mirrors her words or she simply cant recall the word she is after. See here, I showed your daughter a picture of the sun and she called it ‘The thing that is bright and warm and is out during the day.’ Yet at the same time she could identify a dog, the fifty states and several European countries.”
Natalie stole a quick glance into the room and instantly recognized Doctor Martin, the annoying guy who made her do puzzles and asked stupid questions the week before.
“Your daughter comprehends everything she reads though, as you can see here from her comprehension results.”
“How is this possible?”
“There are many theories out there Mrs Moore, some people think it may be genetic, but simply we don’t know what causes these things. We can do more tests to find out exactly what she is finding difficult and with medication and therapy…”
“Where do you think I’ll get money for that? I am basically a single mother, and barely keep up as is.”
“Well enrol her in charm school. Find her a good husband who will be able to look after her. You may love your daughter Mrs Moore, but without proper help your daughter will never be very bright.”
Natalie felt her head spin, and chest tighten and she quickly walked back through the house to the backyard. She sat on the tyre swing her father had put up before he left. Had he known that she would never be bright before he left? Although her aunt always said he left cause he blamed her for her mothers death all those years ago, one couldn’t help but wonder. Her dreams of being a doctor where beginning to fade, dyslexia. Just thinking about trying to spell the word was giving her a headache.
The kids at school would surely make fun of her, like they did Sally Tucker who had a stutter. She would always be known as ‘S-S-S-Sally’, she shuddered to think what she would get called. Even if it killed her Natalie Moore was determined to never let anyone know that she would never be ‘very bright’.
