Chapter 24

Stephanie

Monday dawns bright and early, and I arrive at school earlier than normal, given that I left extra early due to having to catch an Uber. I’m ready to get back to my job. I’m feeling energized and excited about the week. I’m pretty sure part of that is the caffeine from the cold brew I drank coursing through my system. I meet up with Bri during our Monday morning teacher’s meeting. “Hey,” I say by way of greeting. She drops into her chair, looking glum. “What’s with you?”

“Aiden’s gone for the next almost two weeks.”

“Oh. Right. Maybe we can fit in some girl time while he’s gone,” I offer, trying to cheer her up.

She brightens at that. “Yes. We should do a girls’ night. Maybe I’ll see if Amber is up to joining us; she’s been so off lately.”

I frown. “Is she still dating that guy that you don’t like?”

“Yes. She refuses to listen to me about him. I’m afraid she’s going to get her heart broken, but there’s nothing I can do. I tried to get my mom to talk to her, but she says it will only push Amber further away.”

“Yeah, she gets a little prickly sometimes,” I add.

“Only sometimes?” Bri asks wryly.

We don’t get a chance to talk about it anymore because Principal Goodman starts our meeting. “It’s nice to have Miss Winston back with us today,” he says acknowledging me.

“It’s good to have my position back,” I say. Bri elbows me a moment later, but I can’t find it in myself to feel remorseful. I’m still frustrated that they made me sit out last week.

Principal Goodman clears his throat and recovers. “You may have noticed the two officers in our building. They are officers but are not dressed as such. They will be working inside and outside the school, making sure our students stay safe and of course our teachers.” He gives me somewhat of a side eye. “They are here on Mr. Hart’s behalf. He’s covering the security detail for the time being until things settle down. And I have no doubt that they will indeed settle down.” He says the words with another glance in my direction, and I can’t help but bristle. Like this is somehow all my fault. He talks through the schedule for the week, but I mostly tune it out. I’m still stuck on the fact that Sebastian hired security. I mean I know he said he would, but I can’t believe he actually did it.

After our meeting concludes, Bri turns to me, a big smile on her face. “You’ve got your own private security now?”

I scowl. “It’s not like that.”

“On the contrary, my Friend. I think it’s exactly like that.”

I sometimes forget she’s an English teacher until she says something like that and reminds me. I shake my head and stand. “Come on.” I head to my classroom, and she falls into step with me.

“What night do you want to do a girls’ night?”

I think through my week. “Friday?”

“Perfect. My house or yours?”

“Yours.” Somehow, I know I’m going to want out of my quiet house by Friday. “Besides, you have a bigger tv.”

Bri laughs. “Yeah, only so Aiden can watch hockey. I swear that’s all we watch.” There’s no real bitterness in her voice.

When we get to my classroom, I’m surprised to see a bouquet of flowers on my desk. Instantly, a wary feeling fills me. I wonder if they’re from whoever sent the flowers last week that sent my week into a tailspin. Of course, those were black; so maybe not. “Are you going to go see who they’re from?” Bri asks.

I snap out of my thoughts and walk hesitantly over to my desk. I pull out the little card stuck in the flowers and open it.

These are to replace the bad memories of last week’s flowers. I hope they bring a smile to your beautiful face and remind you of me. I’ll be thinking of you and missing you while I’m gone.

Sebastian

“I can tell from your smile that they’re from Sebastian.” Bri’s voice reminds me I’m not alone.

“Yeah.” I look at the flowers. They’re beautiful. They’re not huge and ostentatious, like what I think Sebastian would pick out. It’s a small bouquet of bright-colored daisies. In fact, it’s exactly what I would pick out for myself. I don’t actually know what to do about that.

Bri pats my back. “You’ll figure it out,” she says with a big smile. “Have a good day; I’ll see you at lunch.” She’s gone before I can form a reply. I’m still standing there when the bell rings, and my students begin filing into my room.

“Miss Winston, I didn’t get a chance to read the homework over the weekend. Can I read it this week?”

“Miss Winston, can I retake the quiz from last week? I didn’t know what I was supposed to study.”

“Miss Winston, the reading assignment was really long, and I only did half of it. Do I still have to take the quiz?”

I’m bombarded with questions from being absent last week. Suddenly, it all feels overwhelming. I love teaching; I really do. But some days, I wonder if this is what I want to do the rest of my life. A part of me wishes I could have just stayed home this morning, made another coffee, and worked on my next book. With a mental sigh, I push those thoughts away; they’re not going to help me now. I address all the questions and then start class.

My classes pass somewhat slowly, but that’s not unusual for Monday morning. I slog through the morning. The only thing that helps is when I catch a glimpse of the bright-colored flowers on my desk. They haven’t failed to put a smile on my face every single time I see them this morning.

When I finally dismiss for lunch, I take out my phone and open my text messages.

Stephanie—thank you for my flowers

I bite my lip and wait for a moment, and then I write another line.

Stephanie—they’re perfect

I watch my phone for a moment, but there’s nothing in response. It doesn’t surprise me. I know they’re on the road for a while. I’m not sure if I’ll hear from him while they’re on the road. I know he asked if he could call me, but I’m not naive enough to think he’ll find the time. Feeling somewhat melancholy, I push away from my desk and head to the teacher’s room to meet Brielle for lunch.

Bri’s eyes brighten when I enter the room. “Hey, Best Friend.”

“Hey.” I settle in next to her; Rob’s at our table as well. He nods at me but doesn’t say anything. I’m pretty sure he’s still afraid to even talk to Brielle after Aiden showed up here last semester and staked his claim on her in front of Rob. I do feel slightly bad for Rob, but it was pretty epic watching Aiden get jealous and go all caveman over Brielle. I check my phone, but there’s still nothing. I fight the urge to sigh and pull out my lunch.

Brielle stops me with a hand on my arm. “There’s lunch provided today.”

I notice for the first time that everybody is eating lunch on paper plates. I glance over and see the foil containers lining the counter. I make my way over to the counter to peruse. My stomach growls when I take in the taco meat, black beans, fresh salsa, guacamole, fresh limes, and more. I fill a plate and carry it over to the table. I take a bite, and my eyes widen. Bri grins. “I know, right?”

“Where is this from?” I ask, glancing behind me again.

“I’ve never heard of the place before, but you can find out,” she says with a knowing grin. I frown at her words, wondering what I’m missing. “Did you see the card in the corner?” I shake my head and take another bite, fighting the urge to groan. It’s sooo good; Mexican food is one of my favorites. “Go read it,” Bri pushes. I finally stand and walk over to the counter. I pick up the small card I missed.

To the amazing teachers at Bluebell Valley Middle School, esp. one in particular. Thank you for all you do.

Sebastian Hart, #85 Green Thunder

I stare at the words and then put the card back down. Part of me wants to take it and shove it in my purse, but I leave it in place. I”m not sure if I want to hide it so that others don’t see it and read into it; or if I want to save it to savor it. Bri’s grinning when I walk back to the table and take a seat. “Soooo,” she draws out. “How are things going with number 85?”

“Really well right now,” I say as I take another bite of my food. She laughs out loud; she knows how much I love Mexican food.

“I think he’s a keeper,” she says.

I don’t disagree with her. After lunch, I head back to my classroom. I check my phone, but there’s still no texts or calls from him. I shake myself; there is no need to feel so melancholy. I need to focus on my job.

____________

The next few days pass without a word from Sebastian. I’ve gone through a range of emotions, the latest being anger at myself. I’m angry I let myself think there was anything between us. He’s on the road now; he’s obviously distracted. I try not to think about the women he’s probably spending time with now that he’s on the road again. A sick feeling wells up inside me every time I have those thoughts, but I scold myself every time. We never said we were anything. He simply asked if he could call me; I’m the one that read into it, clearly assuming there was more between us than there actually is. They’ve had two games this week, but I couldn”t bring myself to watch either of them. I didn’t want to see his smiling face on camera. It’s better for my mental health if I let myself think something happened to him and that’s why he’s unable to respond to me or to reach out. I did allow myself one moment of weakness yesterday when I googled his name just to make sure he wasn’t really sick or something. But he isn’t. There were highlights of his last game; he looked perfectly healthy, healthy enough to score two goals.

I’m thankful it’s Friday. Brielle and I have a movie night planned for tonight, and I’m looking forward to it. I need something to take my mind off Sebastian. Just that thought makes me livid; I was never going to be that girl. Mad at myself, I plan my weekend. I’m planning a long workday tomorrow and Sunday, hoping to get lots of chapters written. I’m getting excited about this book. I sent my cover designer ideas for the cover this week, and I should hear back from her soon. Getting a new cover is one of the most exhilarating experiences of writing. My mind drifts back to Sebastian for a moment before I yank it away. It’s hard not to think about the guy. Even though he’s ignored me this week, he’s provided lunch for the staff every single day this week. I don’t know what to think about that. My co-workers are loving me because of the food ”my boyfriend” is providing; I don’t know how to tell them he’s not my boyfriend. I’ve tried a few times, but people just give me weird looks. So I’ve just let it go.

The bell rings, snapping me out of my thoughts. Focus, Stephanie, I scold myself. My students begin arriving, and I let thoughts of Sebastian fade from my mind. Class gets started. It’s about halfway through the hour when Kayla, Sebastian’s niece raises her arm.

“Can I go to the bathroom?”

“Of course.” I go back to teaching. It’s only a few seconds later that I hear a beeping sound. I ignore it at first. But when it comes again, it gives me pause because I recognize that sound. I walk over to Kayla’s desk. When I hear it again, I pick up her bag. Normally, I would never go through a student’s bag, but this is different. I dig out her glucose monitoring device. My stomach plummets when I see there’s not even a number there, it just says LOW in all caps. I know from being friends with Bri that Kayla is low, severely, dangerously low. I grab her medic bag. “Read the next two pages to yourself please.” I’m heading out the door a moment later. I need to track down Kayla and make sure she’s okay. I don’t make it two steps down the hallway when I see her. Facedown in the hallway.