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Aaron suddenly turned. “Everything okay?”

“I just… nothing. It was silly.”

“If you say so.” Aaron studied Caleb closely for another minute, leaving him feeling very exposed. It wasn’t like Aaron could see what he was thinking, but it sure felt like he was trying to.

“Hope you like pinot noir. I think it’s the best thing to go with this dish.”

“Works for me.” Aaron sat, and Caleb took the adjacent seat, where Aaron had put the other place setting. He poured a generous glass for each of them.

“Cheers,” Caleb said, raising his glass.

Aaron clinked his glass against Caleb’s. “Cheers. To old acquaintances.”

“Just acquaintances?”

He watched as Aaron took a moment to thoughtfully reconsider.

“How about,” Aaron offered, “old friends becoming reacquainted?”

“I like the sound of that.”

They toasted again and each took a drink before they dug into the meal. “This is delicious,” Aaron finally said between bites.

“Glad you like it. It’s certainly nothing like Nate’s food, but what I lack in culinary expertise I more than make up in… I don’t know, enthusiasm, I guess.”

“Well, I enthusiastically declare this meal a success. Do you cook often?”

“On days I’m home and it’s not game day. Those are too busy, and on the road, it’s impossible to.”

“Me too. I cook a lot because it’s affordable. Plus, I like to bring my lunch because I can’t stand cafeteria food.”

“I have to say,” Caleb said, focusing on Aaron, “you look very handsome tonight. The shirt, the tie—it’s a great look.”

“Oh, thanks.” Caleb’s compliment seemed to leave Aaron momentarily flustered. Aaron set his fork down and picked up his napkin, absently wiping at the corner of his mouth. “I can be more casual, but I kind of like dressing like this. And it shows the students a good, professional look too. You spiff up really well. I’ve seen those suits you wear to the arena.”

“I love that you still follow hockey,” Caleb said, smiling as he held Aaron’s gaze. “I would’ve never suspected it.”

“It’s your fault, you know.”

“Pam’s the one who dragged you to games not—”

“Right, when her boyfriends had some other sporty thing to do. Then I caught on that I could explain some of the geometry based on how the puck moved. By the time I graduated, I was hooked.”

Caleb refilled their wineglasses. So far, the meal had gone well. Good conversation, good food, great company. “And that helped my game too. The way you taught that helped me see new patterns—not only how the puck moved, but players too, and how I could intercept them.”

“See, math can be used after you graduate.” Aaron took a bite of garlic bread and then made a sound of realization, which caused him to chew faster so he could talk. “Since you’re coming to observe tomorrow, why don’t you help me teach? It won’t be actual geometry, of course, but we could talk about basic shapes and principles and connect it to hockey. The kids would love that.”

Caleb nodded. “Sure. But if you’re going to make me state any theorems or something, you’d better be offering a refresher course.”

“I promise I won’t put the hockey player on the spot.”

Aaron looked excited, and it was an expression Caleb wanted to see more often. His instincts said to lean over and kiss Aaron, but that wouldn’t be right. As much as he wanted a date, a real date, he had to settle for the friendly get-togethers. But the more time they spent in each other’s company, the more Caleb wanted to move to that level. But he needed some signal from Aaron that it’d be okay.

Instead Caleb moved to safer topics. “Since I’m back on skates tomorrow, I have an idea. How about we skate together after school? I watch you teach, and then I coach you.”

“Okay,” Aaron said without a pause to even think about it.

“I’ll do my rehab workout in the morning, join you for the second half of the school day, and then we have skating school and on to team practice?”