Page 26 of Tangled Up In You
“Yes.” I didn’t even have to think about it.
There might’ve been a lot in life I didn’t know for certain, but I knew his love was real.
The memory faded with the ringing of the bell.
“Okay, quiet down, guys,” I said once everyone was seated. My afternoon classes were usually chattier than my earlier ones, because it was after lunch and the kids were more energized. “Did everyone write down their topic for the research paper? We’re going to the computer lab today so y’all can work on it.”
Some of them looked confused, and I suppressed a smile. They were one of my senior classes, and most of them were getting senioritis, which was a condition that caused a distracted mind, little motivation to work, and a lot of skipped school days.
However, I wasn’t going to let that keep me from doing my best to prepare them for college. The research paper was supposed to help them with their research skills—of course—but also to help them create a good hypothesis, followed by an introduction, body, and conclusion supporting that idea.
“I’ll go down the list and call out your topics. Again,” I said, walking to my desk. “Mark, you have the Enlightenment period and its importance. Heather, yours is on Arthur Conan Doyle.”
I continued reading the topics, and once the students knew their assignment, we left the classroom. They followed me down the hall toward the computer lab, and I had to tell them to keep it down along the way because they talked too loud to their friends.
Once we’d entered the room, they each took a seat at a computer, but five minutes into doing research most of them had started goofing off.
“Remember,” I said, getting their attention. “I’m letting you guys work on this during class for the next two weeks. What you don’t get donehere, you have to do at home. On your time.” I crossed my arms and looked at Jessie, who was googling pictures of averysexy Corbin during hisUnder Armourphotoshoot. “So, I’d be smart about how you use this class period.”
Jessie blushed once she caught me looking at her and quickly closed the tab.
I wasn’t too strict, but I wasn’t a pushover either. I understood them because I’d been just like them not too long ago.
Freshmen year, Corbin and I had been every teacher’s worst nightmare. We’d talked so much during class that they’d had to separate us, and even then, we’d thrown rolled-up notes back and forth to each other. I had gotten detention so many times that year, but every second had been worth it.
By junior year, we’d calmed down a lot and started thinking of our academic futures more, but we’d still had our obnoxious moments all the way up to graduation.
Why am I thinking of him so much?
I sighed and sat at the vacant computer toward the end of the row. To keep my mind preoccupied, I went to a site called Free Rice. It had multiple subjects to choose from—math, English, science—and whichever one you picked, you’d get multiple choice questions to answer. Each correct answer donated food to help end hunger.
It wasn’t most people’s idea of fun, but I liked it.
I selected theEnglish Vocabularyoption and began answering the questions. They started off easy at first and got harder as you went on. I got up to one thousand rice donated before a student needed me to clarify a part of the assignment.
Class ended, and I waited until all the students were out of the computer lab before walking back to my classroom. Only one hour left and then the work day would be over.
All week, I’d wanted to call Corbin and apologize for acting like an asshole over the weekend, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. I was too ashamed of my behavior, but also nervous: nervous about getting close to him again and not being able to stop myself from repeating the past.
Afraid of opening up to him and getting hurt.
He wasn’t going to stay in Willow forever. Once he took care of Bill’s estate, he was leaving. He had a big life to get back to, and it didn’t include me.
***
“Hey, Hunter,” Corbin said over the voicemail. “We need to talk. Call me when you can.”
I listened to it one more time, trying to get a read on him. I had a good idea of what he wanted to talk about, and once we went to that place there’d be no going back. It had to be done, though, for both his sake and mine.
After taking several deep breaths, I called him.
“Hello?” he answered before the third ring.
“Hey, what’s up?” God, that was such a teen thing to say, but it’s all I could come up with.
“Nothing much. You?”
So casual…and weird. I wasn’t used to things being awkward with Corbin.
