I look up, and my heart stops.
Logan Matthews is standing in my doorway.
He looks different than he did the last time I saw him. Thinner, paler, with dark circles under his eyes. But it's definitely him.
"Ms. Allison," he says, and his voice cracks. "I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry."
I stand up, my chair scraping against the floor. "Logan, you shouldn't be here."
"I know, but I had to tell you. I had to say I'm sorry for what happened, for what I put you through." Tears are streaming down his face now. "I never meant for any of this to happen."
My hands are shaking again, and I can feel panic rising in my chest. But before I can respond, Chief Harrison appears behind Logan.
"Mr. Matthews," he says, his voice firm but not unkind. "You need to leave. Now."
"But I just wanted to apologize?—"
"And you have. Now leave before I call your parents and tell them you violated the conditions of your return to school."
Logan looks back at me one more time, his face crumpling. "I'm sorry," he says again, and then Chief Harrison is guiding him away.
I sink back into my chair, my whole body trembling. Chief Harrison returns a moment later, closing my classroom door behind him.
"You okay?" he asks.
"I don't know." I press my hands to my face. "He just showed up. I didn't know what to do."
"You did exactly what you should have done. You didn't engage, you didn't get emotional, you just asked him to leave." He pulls a chair over and sits down across from my desk. "For what it's worth, I think his apology was genuine. The kid's been through hell, and he knows what he did."
"That doesn't make it better."
"No, it doesn't. But it might help you understand that he's not some monster. He's just a kid who made a terrible mistake."
I nod, even though I'm not sure I agree. Maybe Logan is just a kid. Maybe he did make a mistake. But that mistake almost cost me my sense of safety, my sanctuary, my ability to do the job I love.
"I'll make sure he doesn't come near you again," Chief Harrison says. "He's been assigned a different class schedule, and I've instructed his teachers to keep him away from this hallway."
"Thank you."
He stands up, giving me a reassuring smile. "You're doing great, Allison. Don't let this shake you."
The rest of the day passes without incident. My afternoon classes go well, and by the time the final bell rings, I'm feeling steadier. I pack up my things, say goodbye to a few students who linger, and head out to the parking lot.
Dime's truck is already there, and he's leaning against the driver's side door, looking like every romance novel bad boy come to life. The jeans on his hips are tight enough to show off his muscles, but are baggy enough to give him a disheveled look. A hat turned backward on his head drags my attention to his chiseled jaw, and the t-shirt over his torso is just right. When he sees me, his face lights up.
"How was your day?" he asks as I approach.
"It was good. Really good, actually." I drop my bag and walk into his arms. "There was a moment where Logan showed up and tried to apologize, but Chief Harrison handled it."
I feel him tense. "Logan came to your classroom?"
"Just for a minute. Chief Harrison got rid of him before anything could happen."
"I'm going to kill that kid," he mutters.
"No, you're not." I pull back and look up at him. "You're going to take me home, and we're going to have a normal evening."
"Actually," he says, his expression shifting to something more careful, "I was thinking we'd have dinner at the clubhouse tonight. Devil's cooking, and Dani's going to be there. Might be good to be around people."
