Unsolved Mystery

So, I’ve started tutoring a little girl after school. Both of her parents work and neither is available to help with homework—even though the father works from home he works on American time so is shut up in his office. They have a nanny but she is illiterate so while she loves the children dearly she can’t help them with spelling homework. I can.

It’s been working out great for me so far, although I’m hoping it will get easier as the girls get used to going over there everyday. I take them with me, which is nice.

Rachel usually plays around with the kindergartener while I help his older sister since he doesn’t usually have any homework.

Today Rachel was very shy at first, as she normally is, and was grumpy until she started playing. Then the sounds of laughter and rapturous screaming filled the house while they chased each other about, playing who knows what.

Then all of a sudden Rachel’s little friend ran into the dining room at full speed.

“Oh, my gosh! Rachel fell into the tub!” he informed us, panting.

The nanny and I ran to the bathroom and the nanny pulled out a very sorry, very wet Rachel from the bathtub. She was drenched through her coat, shirt, pants, underwear, everything. Her hair was dripping and her eyes were brimming over with tears. She was still clinging to the stuffed Snoopy dog she had been carrying around. He was equally soaked.

We tried to find out what happened but we couldn’t get a straight story from either of the kids.

He said that she was trying to reach for the bubbles…but since the tub comes up to her armpits I don’t know how she would fall in unless she had a little help getting up high enough for her center of gravity to be off the floor.

Rachel just kept repeating our questions back to us. That’s one way to tick off an interrogator.

“What were you doing in there?”

“What was I doing in there?”

“Yes. What were you doing in the bathroom?”

“What was I doing in the bathroom?”

“Why were you in the bathroom?

“Why was I in the bathroom?”

“How did you fall into the tub?”

“How did I do that? How?

I guess we’ll never know exactly what happened, but at least she didn’t drown and hopefully the family I tutor for won’t think it’s too much of a bother to have a pre-schooler around the house…