Chapter 5 Gabe
Monday August 25, 3:45 PM
Gabe’s phone vibrated as he sat in his truck in front of the grocery store.
A text from his ex? What did she want? He hadn’t heard from her since things ended a few weeks ago. That fateful day when Gabe had come by for a surprise visit with the idea to go up to Sedona for the weekend, something he believed was super serious. But he was ready to be serious—or so he thought. Her, not so much. He walked into see her with another guy, saying “Gabe? Oh he’s just a summer fling” as she wrapped her arms around the guy and kissed him.
Gabe had stopped in his tracks. The words stung like a scorpion. Gabe was almost thirty. Fling wasn’t really in his vocabulary anymore. He had thought their relationship was real. Going somewhere. Her nonchalant view of their relationship confirmed Gabe couldn’t read any woman’s signals. He had been so crushed, so embarrassed, he had sprinted out the door and never returned.
Gabe was still bitter about how everything ended. Mad at her. Mad at himself. But he was too curious not to at least read her text.
EX: Didn’t you say you were a substitute teacher during the school year? Where?
Why did she want to know? His life was no longer any of her business. He ignored the text and slipped his phone in his pocket and headed into the grocery store. The fridge at his apartment was getting dangerously empty. Gabe wandered the aisles, not really sure what he was looking for.
Until he saw a figure from far away. Long dark hair, athletic figure, and tall shoes, walking with purpose. It was Avery, in the pasta aisle. Pasta did sound good.
Another notification on his phone. Dang it, his ex again . Why? He wasn’t going to fall for whatever she was trying to do.
Avery moved to another aisle. Gabe sighed. Seriously, what was he doing watching this woman he had only met this morning? He had promised himself he’d never let his heart get broken again.
Besides his last relationship, there had been practically a girl in every city he had lived. Being an Air Force kid, there had been plenty. Senior year, Lexi in drama club literally dumped him on stage, inserting her own words in between the lines of the play. Paige, the fellow archeology major, basically flirted and kissed her way into copying off his work. Cynthia at the museum loved it when he took her to fancy dinners, but then ghosted him and told their co-worker to give him the message that she “wasn’t looking for anything serious right now.”
What was wrong with him? Gabe was too friendly. He liked people. He couldn’t help it. Class clown. Theater kid. Air Force brat who never got to have friends, or girlfriends, for long before they moved again.
He quickly got his hopes up, then his heart would get stomped on. So he had promised himself to be more careful. Yet, all day he had no trouble flirting with Avery every chance he got.
He ran his fingers through his hair and headed in the opposite direction of the pasta aisle. Deli time. Rotisserie chicken and potato salad. His go-to. Nothing lonelier than eating a whole chicken by yourself. At least he wouldn’t have to cook.
Oh, and he really needed dog food, which happened to be in the direction Avery went. So he could head her direction and maybe bump into her. Then they could talk, and he could flirt more with her, like he had at school, even though he shouldn’t have because he already couldn’t stop thinking about her. You gotta slow down, Gabe.
He casually went the long way around, skirting the back of the store. No sign of her. He peeked around the corner of the dog food aisle. The coast was clear. What in the world are you doing? Are you a grown man sneaking around avoiding a woman you met this morning?
He shook his head, then threw a bag of dog food over his shoulder. Oh yeah, he forgot his own human food. No need for a shopping cart, he could grab all he needed with his one free hand. From the dog food aisle to the deli, he glanced down each aisle as he went. Purely for purposes of avoiding her. Then across the store, he noticed Avery with her grocery bags heading toward the exit.
Usually the best parts of his day at school were making the kids laugh. But today had been different. He liked making Avery smile, too. If he were being honest, he liked it more than teaching the students. What did that say about him as the eternal sub? Or as a man who had promised himself not to get involved with someone?
A fraud, that’s what. Who was in control here, anyway? He paid for his food, left, and got in his truck.
Back at his apartment, his best friend met him at the front door. “Emmett!” Gabe maneuvered around while his spaniel mix jumped everywhere, throwing the dog food plus his own dinner down on the counter. He pulled open the bag of dog food and poured some into Emmett’s bowl.
Then Gabe made himself a plate, and in between bites, he scrolled his favorite apps, his For You Page showing videos of people traveling around Egypt, recent discoveries in the region, museum displays, and pretty much anything having to do with ancient Egypt. No recent emails from his former professor. Darn.
Another ding from his phone. Dang, his ex was pushy. He closed his email app and the social media apps. Wait, it wasn’t a text ding, but a notification from the Substitute Assignments app.
“High school band, eh? Haven’t done that in a while.” Last time he subbed in band was a kick. Noisy, but fun. The day moved fast because the kids played songs for him and he listened. Music had always been a way for him to escape. Every time they moved or his parents left him alone all weekend, he’d spend hours listening to every kind of music, singing and feeling like he wasn’t alone.
He clicked “accept.”
After dark when the pavement was cool enough, he took Emmett out for a walk. As much as he tried not to, he thought of Avery. Would she return to sub again tomorrow? He had tried to help her, but not be overly helpful. Was it not enough? Too much?
He doubted she would come back. Most substitute teachers didn’t last long. It was for the best, really. Gabe didn’t need any other distractions. He was supposed to hear by Friday if his professor had secured funding for the Egypt dig, which would start three weeks after. If he was lucky, he would finally say goodbye to substitute teaching forever.
As he went to bed that night, he couldn’t figure out if that was a good thing or a bad thing. He’d been subbing for a few years now, and he loved every minute of it. Turns out his goofy personality was whole-heartedly welcomed by teenagers. But shouldn’t he be grown up by now? He had obviously let his parents down by not being serious and getting a “real” job or a “real” relationship. Still, every time he had a sub job—which was pretty much every day, it was a big high school without a big pool of substitutes—he looked forward to going into work. And now a cute sub also worked there. He tried not to think about Avery as he fell asleep.
Tuesday August 26, 7:35 AM
Don’t look for Avery’s car. Don’t look for Avery’s car. Oh, will you look at that? There’s Avery’s car. With an open parking spot right next to it. Gabe considered moving to another spot, but there weren’t any so he pulled in.
His stomach rumbled as he sprinted to the front office. Time for his daily Doreen breakfast muffin.
“Good morning, Mr. Gabe. How are you this morning?” Doreen asked.
“Better now I’ve seen you,” he said.
As she smiled, he once again pondered on what it would have been like to have a doting mother. He’d never know. That’s what made these morning moments with Doreen all the more dear.
She slid over his sub binder with a napkin and muffin on top. He nodded, shoved the whole muffin in his mouth, and said a muffled “thank you!” and headed to the band room.
“Hey Mr. Manwaring.” Students greeted him in the hall and he waved. “What are you teaching today?”
“Band.” His voice was still muffled from the muffin.
“Aww, man. I don’t have band.”
“When are you going to sub in science?”
“Yay, see you after lunch.”
“Oh? Miss Williams is subbing in choir.”
Gabe stopped and took a drink at the water fountain. He already knew Avery was here–he had seen her car in the parking lot. But that tidbit of which class she was covering was interesting. Well, good for her. With her in choir, which was down a tiny hallway from the band room, he might see her. If he timed it right, he could catch her in the connecting hallway. Should he though? His extroverted nature wanted to befriend her immediately, but when it came to women he was a disaster. He shook his head at himself. No doubt if he spent any time with her, he wouldn’t be able to control himself. Even though he had tried to be straight up friendly as they both left the school the day before, he had chided himself for being too flirty. Maybe avoiding her altogether was the best plan.
Gabe exited the main building, heading toward the band and choir building, the hot desert sun blinding him. He bumped his shoulder into someone, causing him to fall back a few steps and drop his sub binder. “Oooof!” He got on balanced footing and rubbed his eyes.
“Sorry, the sun was in my eyes,” he said, as Avery’s face came into view. All he could do was stare. How was she prettier than yesterday?
She bent down and picked up his binder and handed it back with a smirk plastered on her face. Gabe wasn’t sure if it was a good smirk or a bad smirk.
“Thanks. Now you’re coming to my rescue, huh?” he said.
She snickered. “Something like that. Actually, can you tell me where the choir room is? Doris told me, but…”
“Doreen.”
Avery nodded. “Doreen. Sorry.”
“I’m headed that way. I’m teaching band today.”
“Oh,” she said as she fell into step beside him.
“Hoping I’d be far away from you today, huh?” he blurted without thinking.
“Oh yeah. In fact, I think we should coordinate our sub jobs to be on opposite ends of campus.”
Wait, was she flirting with him? Avery had seemed so annoyed with him yesterday, so this was unexpected. Her open invitation to flirt back would be hard to resist. He tried not to smile too obviously.
"Coordinate sub assignments?” Gabe asked, then smirked. “Well, that would mean we would have to exchange phone numbers. Sure you're ready for that?"
She coughed.
Score. All right, so despite his better judgment, he was flirting back. Gabe would make sure to keep it professional and NOT let it lead to anything. Protect the heart.
He stopped at the choir room door and waited for her to unlock it. She looked up at him with narrowed eyes as he reached for the door handle and opened the door for her. Being a gentleman was still allowed, wasn’t it? Gabe justified lingering a minute or two longer.
“Nice shoes,” he said. “They’re… bright,” he added with a double hitch of his eyebrows.
Avery blushed at his teasing, and his heart leapt a little too much. “After those wedges yesterday, I thought sensible shoes would be a better option. But, as it turns out, all they had left at the back-to-school sale was Dora the Explorer or these.”
“Hey, don’t knock Dora. She’s an expert adventurer.” What should he say that was professional but not super flirty? “They, uh, complement your outfit.” What was he saying? Toeing his shoes, he looked at the ground to hide his awkwardness. Gabe held the door and let her pass. Her long brown hair wooshed and he caught her scent. She smelled like warm vanilla. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath to smell it longer.
Avery turned on the lights, surveyed the room, and headed straight for the piano.
“Do you play?” he asked.
She started playing something familiar, but he couldn’t place it. “A little,” she said, switching to a more complicated classical piece. “Ten years of lessons.”
It took every ounce of willpower not to stay, to sit right by her and listen. But students were already pouring into the room, and unfortunately, he had a class to teach, too.
“I’ll be next door,” he called to her. “If the students get too rowdy.” He pointed at one student who was probably going to be the valedictorian.
“Hey!” the student replied. “I’m never rowdy!”
The kids laughed.
“I won’t be good,” the kid’s friend said. “Because we want you to come back.”
Avery stopped playing and glanced at Gabe, who laughed it off and left. He ran his fingers through his hair and headed toward the band room. Yes, if the kids were too rowdy, she would need him again. And it was nice to be needed.
Gabe went back and sat at the band teacher’s desk, reclining as far back as he could, his feet resting on the edge of the desk. The bell rang and he welcomed the students, though his brain was in a bit of a trance. He mindlessly threw a stress ball back and forth while staring ahead.
“Don’t forget, Desert Scorpions,” a voice blared over the loudspeaker. “This weekend is the first dance of the year. Grab a date or come with a group of friends. Hope to see you this Saturday at the Fall Fling.”
The students buzzed with excitement as they chatted about the dance. Gabe’s brain buzzed with… something. Gabe wanted to go to that dance. One of the best parts of his high school experience was dances—he could be around a ton of people in an energetic way. But, he wasn’t a student anymore. He shook his head and opened the sub binder.
Inside was only one sheet of paper with these instructions: “Have students play the set list on the white board for the first half of class, then the choir will come in and sing as they all go over the songs together. Keep kids on task. These are the songs they’re performing at the competition in two weeks.”
Choir. The choir class was coming into the band room. Each class period, all day. Avery was coming in. All day. His heart skipped a beat. He cleared his throat and smoothed his shirt as if it would help him erase anything he was feeling.
Should he clean up the band room a bit? It wasn’t like this was his apartment or something. But the band room was about as messy as his place. Stacks of music covered every surface; extra band instrument cases littered every corner; the students’ chairs were set up every which way. Gabe normally didn’t pay attention to such things, but today was different.
He wrote “Mr. Manwaring” on the white board. “Before we get started, let’s move our chairs in a more circular formation.” He had noticed on the rolls that each band class indicated each class size wasn’t big, but the instruments did take up a lot of space. “The choir class will be joining us later and we need more space for them to stand.”
“Wait, the choir is coming today?” a student asked.
“Isn’t Miss Williams subbing in choir today?” one student commented.
“Should we be on our best behavior?” a snarky kid joked.
“Oooooh! Miss Williams. He totally saved the day in her class yesterday. Are they dating yet?”
Gabe rolled his eyes. He’d already gotten a few comments of people assuming they were dating. Was it because they were similar ages—or had he already been caught looking at her? He should be less obvious.
Gabe tried to ignore their comments. “Who wants to be band leader today? Let’s get started on the set list, shall we?”
There was always, always a student in band who was more than willing to act as band director and do a much better job than him. He chose one of the students, who got right to work getting started on the set list. They sounded pretty good. Now that they were busy, he got to work on tidying up the place. Moving extra chairs and band instruments. Putting all the music away on a shelf. Picking up garbage off the teacher’s desk.
So many teachers’ classrooms looked like this. They didn’t have the time to do anything but teach, grade, and go home. Maybe he should tidy up more often to help them out.
Gabe kept checking the clock. Only a few minutes left. Would Avery be okay about having to come into the band room? With him? If the students got rowdy, he’d at least be able to help.
In between songs, a knock came to the door. His attention jetted to the sound. Should he go answer it like a doorman?
“Uh, come in!” he yelled.
The small choir class filed in and Gabe directed them to stand around the band. At the end of the line was Avery.
He wasn’t sure where she should stand. Not that he would tell her what to do.
She looked around, found his eyes, and a friendly smile. Gabe wasn’t sure if it was a co-worker smile or a happy to see him smile. Then she headed toward the keyboard at the front of the class and sat, placing sheet music in front of her. Avery nodded at the student band leader, who waited for everyone’s attention.
For once, he wasn’t involved in anything going on. His hands and feet were antsy—they needed to be doing something. Was there a stress ball anywhere?
Then Avery started to play. Gabe looked at the board. “Brave” by Sara Bareilles. Her hands flew across the keys, the sound vibrating through his chest. He closed his eyes for a minute, getting lost in the music.
The band played the intro, followed by the choir. Their sound filled the room, and they hit the notes and blended well. Gabe opened his eyes. The band leader was trying his best to keep everyone together, and for the most part did a good job. But Gabe only had ears for the piano and eyes for the pianist.
They hadn’t even practiced the entire set list together by the time the bell rang, so everyone scattered before he had a chance to talk to Avery. Second period passed like the first, except this was concert band, and concert choir joined them. They did different songs than first period, and they were just as impressive. Third period was a freshman class of band with a year one choir class that came in, and their simpler songs needed a little ironing out, but still they held their own.
Each time Gabe never got tired of listening to her play.
Finally, it was fourth period. Prep period. All the students had left, and Avery stayed seated at the keyboard, tinkering around.
“Wait,” he said, “do you have prep this period, too?”
She nodded.
“Then lunch is after.” His stomach rumbled thinking about food. But he’d be lying to himself if he hadn’t anticipated spending prep and lunch with Avery. “You want to, you know, go get some food?”
Avery stopped playing and looked up. “Uh, are we allowed to leave campus?”
Gabe offered a goofy grin. “We’re subs. What are they going to do, fire us?”
She went back to playing as he approached. “Or we could stay here, and you could keep playing,” Gabe said.
“I have a better idea.” She stood. “I have food in the choir room, plus there’s an actual piano.”
Wait a second. She was inviting him over? To her classroom? His neck tingled until it was warm.
They both approached the band room door, and he opened it for her. “So is this, like, a date?” he asked. Dang it. He didn’t mean to say that out loud. But he really did want to know. Because if it was, he’d know Avery liked him, but if it wasn’t, well good because he shouldn’t be developing feelings for someone right now. Why did being an adult have to be so complicated?
She scoffed lightly. “Um, no. We’re co-workers. And we’re at work. So, this is lunch.”
“Right,” he said. But something in the way she looked up at him—her eyes soft and curious—as she passed made him think this could be something more.