"You look like you're in a good mood," Stacey Kitt said to Candice, as she entered the middle school. Stacey was the representative of the Concerned Mother's Society at the middle school. Every school in Lake Point had a representative.
Candice smiled at her. "Yeah, I am. I don't know why, but I feel really energized this morning. Did you see my new shoes?"
Stacey looked down and saw the shoes poking out from beneath Candice's long skirt. "Wow, those are nice. Did you just get them?"
"Yeah. At a new store that just opened up."
When they reached the principal's office, Stacey said "You'll have to tell me all about it later. You know how much I like to shop."
"Maybe a little too much," Candice said, a little sourly.
Then they walked into the office. A man wearing a suit and tie sat behind the desk. Dark neatly-combed hair, blue-gray eyes, and a sort of chiseled physique. He was quite handsome, but a little young for Candice. While she was in her mid-forties, this man seemed to be no older than thirty. She'd prefer that someone so young (or male) wouldn't be in charge of a middle school, but perhaps he had all the right qualifications.
"Thank you for meeting with us," Stacey said, sitting down in one of the two chairs across from the desk. Candice sat down in the other one.
"It's not a problem," the principal said. According to the name plate on his desk, his name was Thomas White. "Now," he said, leaning back in his chair. "The proposals you've made are acceptable, but there are some ..."
Candice was watching him talk, but not hearing him. He was so hot, so dreamy. It was so weird. She hadn't thought about a guy like this since she was in high school and that was thirty years ago! What was wrong with her?
She looked down at her new shoes. Ever since she put them on, she felt ... different. But not "bad" different. If she could feel like this all the time, she could accomplish almost anything. She just felt so full of energy. She had never felt anything like this in her life.
"Excuse me, Mrs. ...?"
Candice snapped out of her thoughts and looked up at the principal. "It's Miss, actually. I'm not married."
"Oh, but I thought that ... I mean ... the organization ..."
"Yes, that's true. But my goals are the same as the organization's. And all the members are happy to have me lead them. Isn't that right?" she asked Stacey, turning towards her. The brunette nodded her head.
"Well," the principal said. "I just wanted to know if you were alright. You seemed a bit dazed there for a moment."
Candice smiled. "You could say that," she said softly, looking dreamily into his eyes.
"Well," the principal said, this time coughing. "If I could continue?" He paused, then picked up a sheet of paper from his desk. "The figures from last year ..."
Candice began to zone out again, this time wondering whether she had just attempted to flirt with the principal. Candice didn't flirt. She wasn't that kind of a woman. What was happening to her?
Noticing that she was spacing off again, she focused her attention back to what the principal was saying. It was mostly just technical stuff, most of which Stacey would be handling, but still important stuff nonetheless. Candice should have been more in tune with what was being said, but she still couldn't quite concentrate right. She found herself concentrating more on Tom ... er, Thomas ... more than what was being said. He was such a dreamboat. Wait a minute. Did I just think he was ...
The next thing she knew, Thomas was standing up and shaking hands with Stacey, who was also standing up. Candice shook her head, trying to focus, and then stood up with her associate.
When they were out of the office, Stacey looked at her. "Candice, are you okay? You were acting really weird in there."
"Yeah, I don't know. I just feel ... strange ... this morning."
"Well, you don't really look all that great. Maybe you're coming down with something."
"You might be right."
"Maybe you should take some time off," Stacey suggested. "I mean, you're just around for show."
"Excuse me?" Candice asked.
"I mean, you don't need to attend every meeting. Me and the other mothers have it covered. Just go home and get some rest."
Candice smiled weakly and nodded. Then she left the school and walked back to her car, in a bit of a hurry, actually. She didn't know what had come over her, but her high level of energy was starting to feel like something altogether different now. It's like she was restless and in a constant state of stimulation.
On her drive home, she tried to think of some way to relieve all of this energy but her mind came up blank. She just had never felt like this before, so she had no idea what to do.
