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“I’m sorry, what?” she asks.
I ignore her question and begin packing up my shit. Carl returns to the table with a handful of mustard packets just as I’m getting up.
“Leaving us already?” Carl asks.
“Afraid so,” I say, shooting Erica a sideways glance. “I have to go pick up the keys to the van.”
“Have fun collecting acorns,” Carl says.
I can’t even muster a chuckle for Carl before I go.
As much as I hate to admit it, a small part of me always hoped Frank would someday realize he’d jumped to conclusions about how the Wayne letters ended up in my room. But if Erica can’t even get past her anger about something that had nothing to do with her, how the hell can I expect her father to change his tune?
Alexis is among the small group of students waiting by the van when I arrive. She greets me with a smile I can’t wholly return.
Once the rest of the class has arrived, we pile into the van and head to the wharf where the boat is waiting for us. I’m sure Alexis can tell something’s off, but she knows better than to ask about it while we’re packed inside a deck boat with eight other people. The concern in her gaze both warms me and makes me want to punch a hole in the hull.
She cares about my happiness, but she shouldn’t. Whether or not she’s my student makes no goddamn difference. Her family will never approve of us.
The pilot of the deck boat takes us as close to the island as he can without running aground. Once we’re anchored, he begins ferrying us in small groups to the beach in an inflatable dinghy.
The Dutch Island Management Area consists of over a hundred acres of beach, scrub, and forest. From the American Civil War to World War II, it was an active military base known as Fort Greble. Now the old fort sits in ruins, parts of it fenced off but not impenetrable. And nature reclaims a little more of it every year.
While waiting for the last of us to arrive on the beach, I spot something green among the rocks at my feet. I stoop to pick up the fragment of sea glass, smooth and cloudy.
Alexis had a pretty robust sea-glass collection that summer on Charlestown Beach. I used to save the pieces I found on my morning runs to give to her.
I pocket the fragment as the final batch of students climbs out of the dinghy.
After a brief history lesson about the island, I get to the meat of this week’s lesson.
“The tail-end of the Renaissance was a time when European rulers were looking to expand their power. Natural history also expanded beyond the medical field to become something nobles and rulers were interested in. A ruler who wanted to appear worldly to his court could build a collection of natural and manmade items from distant lands. These collections became known as cabinets of curiosity.”
I can tell my students are eager to explore the island, so I finish the rest of the lecture en route to the old gun battery, a truly impressive ruin, expansive in scale and reminiscent of a small city center. Alexis keeps to the back of the throng where I can’t see her without making an effort to do so.
I run through a few important dates and people before I cap off the lesson with an announcement.
“Your final project for this class will be to create a cabinet of curiosity of your own. These will be actual cabinets or storage units of some kind, and will contain objects you pick up on our field trips throughout the semester or items from your life that hold meaning for you. You’ll catalog them, describe them, and document their significance in some kind of record.”
A few hands go up. I answer questions with the assurance that written instructions will be posted with the online course materials either tonight or tomorrow.
“I’m going to cut you all loose now,” I say. “Do not do anything stupid. If something looks like it’s falling apart, do not try to climb it. Even if it appears sturdy, remember it’s over a hundred years old and nobody is maintaining it. Take lots of pictures. Make notes. Be liberal with the bug spray and definitely bring it again next week for our trip to Snake Den Park.”
“Snake what?” Felix’s eyes go wide behind his glasses.
“Be smart,” I say. “Have fun. Meet back on the beach in an hour.”
The group disperses. My initial plan is to hang around the gun battery in case anyone has questions.
Resting my forearms on the metal fence that’s been erected around the structure, I tell myself not to look for Alexis. Soon enough, I sense her presence at my side without having to turn my head.
“Hey,” she says quietly. “Is everything okay?”
“Why wouldn’t it be?”
“I don’t know. You seem kind of distracted.”
I keep my gaze pointed forward. If I look at her, it’ll be like staring into the sun. Her face will imprint on my mind’s eye, blinding me to everything else. “I shared a few choice words with your sister over lunch today.”
