I looked toward Lincoln but immediately got distracted by Naomi. It felt impossible to focus on anything else when she was in the room. Her dress clung to her waist today. The shade of yellow made her skin look more beautiful than usual. Her dark hair was piled at the top of her head, giving her more height. I desperately wanted to press a kiss to her perfect smile and play with the escaped strands of hair framing her face. I wanted to hold her close against me and to whisper words of admiration and lust in her ear.
If Lincoln was far gone, I was right there with him.
“HenrikandSamarein room C.” Naomi gestured to a room full of unruly children who couldn’t have been older than six. Henrik took a deep, steadying breath. Sam nudged him forward.
“Relax, they won’t bite,” Sam insisted.
“No promises on that,” Naomi teased and turned on her heel before either of them could question the validity of her statement. We passed two more rooms before we stopped again and she said, “Lincoln will be here with the third graders. There’s only three, so you’ll be able to handle it until Celeste sends the floater, right?”
Lincoln nodded while scratching his head. “Oh, yeah. I got this…”
“Call if you need help. We’re right down the hall.” Naomi gave him a warm smile, which he was too nervous to return.
She led me to the last room without saying anything. I tried not to steal too many glances in her direction, but it was difficult when we walked next to each other.
“And here we are.” Naomi stopped in front of the open door. “English. Fun.”
I noted the sarcasm because I could finally understand how to pick it out in her tone. “You don’t like English?”
She laughed. “No… I wouldn’t say don’t like it. Hate is a better word.”
“It’s a very strong word, too.”
“You would know, wouldn’t you?” She pointed at me. “English major. God, I can’t fathom.”
“It’s not too hard.”
“Brag a little more, why don’t you?” she joked.
“Sorry,” I said, in case I’d truly offended her. “What I meant to say is, I think we’re going to be a good team. You lead and I’ll follow.”
Her smile faltered as she took me in. I stared back, trying to figure out what I said wrong. One kid inside of the room called out a complaint while another threw back an insult. The heated exchange forced Naomi and me to redirect our attention. She fixed her face into its usual cheery glory and walked into the room. I followed, doing my best not to get distracted by the swing of her hips.
This classroom was the smallest I’d seen since we got here. It was only large enough to fit two long tables that were shoved on opposite walls. There were six kids, and they’d split themselves up with girls on one side and boys on the other. Though the space was small, large ceiling to floor windows facing the playground outside made up for it.
“Morning, guys,” Naomi greeted. “I’m Naomi and this is Finn.”
She glanced over at me. I didn’t know what else to add, so I just gave them a nod of acknowledgment. They stared back at us with glassed over eyes—understandable considering it was ten AM on a Saturday. Two of the girls whispered to each other behind their hands. Their eyes met mine for a moment, but they quickly diverted their gaze.
“You take boys and I take girls?” Naomi asked.
I nodded. “Yup. That feels right.”
She laughed under her breath. I felt my shoulders relax at the sound.
“Let me know if you need any help or tips.” She leaned in a little closer as she whispered, “Kids can be a little difficult to keep on track. Also…”
“Also?” My forehead wrinkled when she bit her lip like she was re-considering what she was about to say.
Naomi scratched the back of her neck. “Try to be easy, you know? Chill. Not so…grumpy.”
“Grumpy?”
“Yeah, you know, you frown all the time. Personally, it’s grown on me, but it could intimidate the kids.” She shrugged. I stood there, stuck on the ‘grown on’ part.
“Excuse me, Miss?” One of the whispering girls raised her hand.
Naomi’s eyes flickered in her direction. “Coming right over.” And then to me whispered, “Less grumpy. More chill.”
