Chapter 9
CHAPTER NINE
PRESENT DAY
On Friday during the third-grade lunch period, I stay in my classroom getting supplies ready for a mini zip-line experiment we’re going to conduct while we learn about force.
A knock on the classroom door interrupts me, so I place the stack of papers down and cross the room to check who it is.
The visitor flashes his staff badge on a red lanyard and then steps back so I can get a full look at him.
My heartbeat seems to fade out—a printer running out of ink rather than stopping all at once.
I jerk the door open.
“Banks? O-oh my god.”
He holds out both arms as if to say, it’s me. “When I heard your name on the announcements Monday, I thought I’d misheard. I’ve been trying to catch you at the end of the day, but we kept missing each other.” He pulls me into a hug. “Oh my god, hi.”
He looks just the same as in college somehow, just as beautiful as ever.
Dark-blond hair, with thick arms and the perfect amount of stubble on his chin.
My mind is working overtime to place him here, to make him fit into my world.
“I can’t believe it. What are you… Why are you here? Clinton? You…work here? How? Why?”
His smile is so big it looks like it must hurt. “I’m… I grew up here. You didn’t know that?”
“No. What? That’s insane. I…I guess we never really got to talk about much.
I…I knew you were from a small town, but…
not my small town. Wow. This is crazy. You’re from Clinton?
” I guess our seven-year age gap would mean I never really saw him around.
But it feels too perfect. “Is this a joke? I…I just can’t believe you’re here. ”
I can’t think of anything as strange as seeing your college crush years later, hours away, in a place they were never meant to be.
“Yeah. I moved away for school and stayed there for a while, but my dad got sick a few years ago, and it brought me back.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Oh, no. It’s okay. He’s still around, proving ’em all wrong. But…wow. It’s so good to see you.” His eyes dance over me like he can’t believe I’m real. “Small world. I don’t…remember why we lost touch.”
“Me either,” I admit, my voice faint. I feel like I’m in a dream. How is this possible? “I—”
A whistle in the distance interrupts us, and I turn my head to see—
Fucking Will.
He’s making his way down the hall with a blue-and-white name tag plastered on the pocket of his dress shirt and wearing glasses I’ve never seen before. He never wears his glasses at all, actually.
What the…
He grins at me, pleased with himself. “Fancy meeting you here, Teach.”
“What are you doing?” I demand, arms folded across my chest.
Will scoffs. “Parents’ Day, babe.” He winks.
Parents’…
My stomach does a weird little flip, and my skin turns cold. Will is not a parent. Will is not qualified to be a parent. How could he…? But then…of course he’s a parent. He’s exactly the kind of irresponsible man-child who would do something like this.
Not that I think ill of single parents, for the record. I was raised by three brilliant single moms. I just think ill of Will.
“Hey, Will.” Banks offers him his hand. They’re on a first-name basis. Friendly, almost. How odd…after the last time they saw each other. Then again, it wasn’t the last time, was it? Apparently not. I moved away, and the world kept turning.
“Banksy.” Will shakes his extended hand, holding on for a second longer than is necessary. “Are you taking care of our little girl?”
“You two are friends,” Banks says, like he’s just remembering. “Right.”
“Guess that thing about it being a small world was true all along,” Will jokes, but it falls flat. No one laughs. Banks just looks at me.
For a moment, I’m lost in what could’ve been. In the twisted timing of our fate, and in wondering if this time might somehow be different. If he’s as different as I feel. This was always his dream, being here. Settling down. And now, here I am, doing the same.
A rumble of kids down the hallway pulls me out of it.
Lunch is over.
“I should go.” I turn away, moving back toward my classroom. “But it was nice to see you, Banks.”
“You too. Maybe I’ll, uh, catch you…after class.”
“See you at home, sugar plum,” Will teases, walking past and on down the hall.
My skin burns as I ignore him, unlocking my door and slipping inside.