Page 19 of Unsupervised
She reaches out and turns the knob to off.
“If you smell gas, give the area time to vent before you go any further. If you continue to smell gas once it’s off, get out of the house and call your gas company. If you can’t reach them, call the fire department. Once the air has cleared, pop off the access door and use a flashlight to see the burner inside.”
Kelly has no problem following the directions while the others watch.
“Now, we’re going to light it. There are two ways to do so. This heater has an ignition button, but some older models need to be lit with an actual flame.” I look into anxious blue eyes. “You’re going to push down on the red pilot mode switch and hold it down. That lets the gas flow. Then push the ignition button here which should light the flame. You may have to push it more than once, but keep holding down the pilot switch, understand? Even after it lights.”
Glancing back, I gesture for everyone to move closer. They don’t have a great view and the fact they seem to be inching away makes me fight back a smile. “Come on,” I implore.
“Great news, guys!” Owen announces cheerfully. “We won’t be dying of natural causes.”
Kelly follows the directions and luckily, the flame lights with one push of the button. “Don’t let go of the pilot switch,” I caution. “You’re going to keep holding it down for about thirty seconds.”
“Got it,” she says, and I hear a sliver of satisfaction in her voice.
“Alright, now slowly release it and watch to see if the flame stays lit.”
She sits up with a stunning smile. “It’s still burning!”
“Good. Now turn the gas knob toon. We should hear awhumpkind of noise when the main burner lights.”
The silence filling the small space and the intense expressions on their faces as they wait to see if it works makes me chuckle. As does the cheer they let out when the main burner fires up.
“Good job. Now just replace the access cover and you’re done. Now if your pilot ever goes out, you know how to fix it yourself.”
Getting to my feet, I turn to add. “Every direction I just gave is printed on the side of the heater as well and will be in the owner’s manual. If you don’t have that, I know you can Google.”
The rest of the lesson is spent showing them how to turn off the water to specific fixtures and appliances. As we’re wrapping up for the day, I take a moment to also point out the compartment in the side yard where the main water shutoff is buried.
“Life pro tip,” Milo speaks up. “If you can’t pay a water bill, that’s where the company will shut off your water. Sometimes they don’t padlock it and you can just turn it back on.”
“Why can’t you just cut the padlock?” Harriet asks.
“Because you’ll go to jail for destroying property.”
“Jails have water. Still not a total loss,” Harriet laughs.
Owen shakes his head. “No way, noooo. I’d rather stink than have a big dude named Bubba want to wash me.”
They’ll get no comment from me. I didn’t grow up poor, but I’ve had friends who did. Sometimes, you do what’s necessary to make it through the day.
After I inform them that we’ll be meeting here the next time, the group breaks up, climbing into their respective cars to head back to campus. I’m happy with how this has gone so far. They joke and have fun but they’re learning stuff I had to figure out on my own. I’ll never forget how embarrassed I was when I moved in my first apartment and my furnace wouldn’t come on. The landlord had to send maintenance over and all he did was flip the breaker on. Problem solved.
I pull into the campus lot in time to see Kelly hop out of Owen’s car and wave as she walks away. There’s something about her that intrigues me. She gets flustered easily, gets anxious when she gets put on the spot, but she was determined and eager to learn today. It was a joy to see how satisfied she was with herself when she lit the pilot light, the way her face lit up when the others cheered. She gained some confidence, and that makes me feel even better about this program.
I’m only on campus for a few minutes, just long enough to grab a few things and lock my classroom. Thunder rumbles overhead, and I dart to my truck, jumping inside just as rain starts to dot the windshield. The air is oppressive, heavy with the scent of ozone, and the clouds rolling in hang dark and low. It’s going to storm like a bitch.
The thought of beating the storm is all I’m focused on when I turn onto the main road, but a flash of color in the growing downpour catches my eye. Kelly rides a bike along the edge of the road, as far over as she can get without being in the mud. Her head is tucked down and she’s pedaling like mad but facing the wind.
She usually drives to school. Maybe her car is broken down or in the shop. Whatever the reason, this was not the day to try biking. I pull my truck over in front of her, and she looks up as she approaches, the alarm on her face fading when she recognizes me. “Mr. Aldrich.”
“Get in,” I tell her, hopping out of the truck. I have to raise my voice to get over the sound of the thunder. “It’s going to get worse before it gets better. I’ll give you a ride home.”
Her momentary hesitation comes to a quick end when lightning streaks overhead, followed almost instantly by a loud crack. The speed at which she scrambles off the bike makes me laugh, and I lift her bike into the truck bed as she climbs into the passenger seat.
“God, I’m so wet,” she moans, tossing her long red hair back.
Oh no, I’ve stepped into a student teacher porno. At least my brain has. It only takes a moment of observing her to realize she isn’t trying to sound that way. She’s oblivious, innocent. And now I feel like a pervert.
