Autumn’s eyes light up. “Oh…wow. Way easier.”
“Most things are if you’re not afraid to ask for help. That is your real lesson of the day.”
Chairs scrape back as students pack up. I call out, “Math team meeting after school.”
They file past me, tossing out casual goodbyes. “Thanks, Ms. Delgadina.” They file out of the room but not before I overhear a hushed, “Did you hear? Brennan McCallister moved here?”
Great. Just great. He moved here.
After the room empties, I choose to sink into my desk chair instead of heading to the breakroom for lunch. A small groan escapes me in my solitude. Why couldn’t he have moved somewhere else? Just when I consider chucking my dry erase marker across the room, my phone rescues me.
Emery:
Checking in. Are we thriving or merely surviving?
Maya:
Buongiorno, babes. Drinking espresso and watching the sun set behind the vineyard.
Christin:
Maya’s in her best-life era. Tell me someone else has news to share.
I grin down at the text message even as my thumbs fly.
Me:
Taught quadratics and no one cried. Including me.
Maya:
You’re a badass.
Me:
I know.
Me:
Also, unrelated, a new resident moved to town. One who played hockey.
My stomach tightens imagining their responses when I reveal who it is.
Emery:
Hockey is rancid.
Maya:
The smell of their sweat is tragic. That’s for sure.
Christin:
Who?
Me:
Brennan.
