“You’re not going to believe this, but my sister! I ran into her at the grocery store, and we’ve been texting ever since.” I look up at him, bouncing on my heels. “It’s been amazing, Nate. I’ve missed her so much.”
He wraps an arm around my shoulder, pulling me close.“That’s great, Darlin’!”
Before I can respond, Vice Principal Holloway catches his eye, crossing the parking lot toward his car. Nate turns to me apologetically. “I gotta talk to Holloway about something real quick.”
“That’s fine,” I say easily, feeling like I’m glowing with happiness.
He cups my face and presses a quick kiss to my lips. “I’ll call you later. And you better answer this time.”
“I will,” I say sheepishly, because Ihavebeen ignoring his calls. But the smile is right back on my face as I watch him jog toward Mr. Holloway.
I feel lighter than I have in forever.
Like, for the first time, the future doesn’t look so scary.
Maybe it even feels exciting.
Nate
The echo of a basketball bouncing is the only sound in the gym. I catch it on the rebound and take another shot from the free-throw line, landing it with a clean swish.
The janitor let me in early this morning after I said something about getting a head start on lesson plans.
Truth is, I ain’t worried about lesson plans. I just couldn’t sit still.
Not after yesterday.
My next shot clanks off the backboard, but it still drops in. I’m not too bad at basketball, but football was always my sport. But I got some pent-up energy after yesterday.
All I’ve been able to think about is kissing her in her classroom, her shirt off, letting me—
The double doors to the gym creak open, and I shove the memory down before I got a public problem.
Layla strolls in like she owns the place, carrying a travel mug the size of her head in both hands. “Coach Wesley, what the hell are you doing playing basketball at seven in the morning?”
“Just working off some energy.”
She stalks toward me. “What kind of energy has you coming to work this early?”
I catch the ball as it bounces back. “The good kind.”
“Alright, spill. What happened?”
I spin the ball in my hand, building up suspense for only a moment before I blurt it out. “We’re back together.”
She freezes mid-sip from her massive cup. “You and Iris?”
“Yeah. We talked for a long time after school yesterday. We made up, some stuff happened.” I wonder if Iris would maybe want to do that again later. Or, the idea springs to life, surging a wave of want through me, maybe she’ll want to do more.
I just gotta remember to be respectful, not ask stupid shit.
“No way,” Layla challenges.
“Yes way.”
“Like, for real-for real?”
“For real. I think we’re in a good spot, Layla. All that stuff we had going on, we got it sorted out.”
