Page 51 of His Surrender
“What were you going to say?”
“Nothing. It was dumb. Forget about it.”
“Okay.” I clicked and unclicked my pen before leaning back in my chair. “I hope you find something for your brother.”
“I still have two weeks,” he said. “My free time is a bit all over the place right now with this trial, so I wanted to take advantage while I could. I’m not interrupting your class, am I?”
“I wouldn’t have answered the phone if I was teaching class.”
“Good.” Static sounded before clearing. He must’ve been walking around. “I want to see you tonight. If you aren’t busy.”
“I’d love to,” I said, perhaps a bit too quickly.
I couldn’t help my eagerness. The last time I’d physically been with him had been Tuesday morning when he’d shown up at the school. Other than that, it had just been texts, phone calls, and a few video chats where things had gotten nice and steamy. I missed the feel of him. His smell. I missed the feel of his lips on mine.
“I’ll call you when I’m done at the office,” Jay said.
“Paka,” I responded. I had researched how to say “bye” in Russian after he’d taught me how to say hello.
“That’s hot,” he said. “You even had the right enunciation too.”
“I’m a fast learner.”
“Bye, Remi.”
The call ended, and I put my phone on the desk as a—probably stupid-looking—smile crossed my face. The bell rang, ending my free period. Students would file into my class any moment. From outside in the hall, I heard sneakers on the squeaky floor, kids talking, and locker doors slamming.
“Hey, Mr. Barnett!” Dillon said as he barreled into the band room, slinging his backpack over his shoulder. He went to the back room to grab his tuba. I allowed him to keep it there so he didn’t have to haul it around school all day.
Lacey and Whitney entered the room next, talking about some new pop star and their hit song. They started singing it and bouncing around each other before plopping down into their seats. Others came in behind them, some extroverted and talking ninety-to-nothing while others kept to themselves.
When Foster arrived, he was beaming with a smile. The group of friends he’d found beginning of January stood outside the band room door, waving at him before leaving. He held his instrument case to his chest and sat down at the end of his row.
“Good afternoon,” I said once the tardy bell rang. “So… I’m ready to announce who will get the solo for the Moana piece.” All heads turned my way, and some of the students shifted in their seats with the anticipation. My gaze moved to Foster. “Congratulations, Foster. The solo’s yours if you still want it.”
His eyes bugged out, and he smiled through his shock as people clapped him on the back and congratulated him. Though he’d been nervous during his audition, I’d seen how much passion he had while playing—something I could relate to.
“For those of you who wanted a solo, you’ll still get a chance, so please don’t be upset,” I said, glancing at a few of the girls who were visibly pouting.
“Foster deserves it,” Lacy said, jumping up and throwing her arms around his neck from behind.
Foster’s cheeks turned bright pink, and he adjusted his glasses.
“You all have done amazing with the Disney medley,” I said, grabbing the stack of sheet music from the top of the piano and placing it on my podium. “Let’s start from the top and work our way through. I’d like to get it down more before moving on to the next group of songs.”
They readied their instruments and watched for my signal. When I instructed them to, they started playing. It wasn’t perfect, but they were working hard, and that’s all I could ask of them. Judging from their smiles, they were having a great time.
And that’s what mattered.
After class, I was packing my things and getting ready to leave when I sensed someone behind me.
“Mr. Barnett?”
“Yes, Foster?” I asked, turning to him. He looked… upset. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah. I think so.” He held his arm in an awkward stance, his gaze flickering from me to the floor. “Can I ask a question?”
“Of course.”
