Christopher“Done?” I asked Olin“Fishing. This was supposed to be us bonding, right? We bonded. I’d like to go home and eat.”“Olin, we’ve been out here for thirty minutes and haven’t even gotten a bite.”He groaned. “This is stupid.”“Olin, listen, we need to talk. I know things haven’t been great between us. I know that, and I take full responsibility for it, but it’s time to make a change. We’re all we have in this world. Wouldn’t you rather have me to depend on then no one at all?”He scoffed. “You make it sound like we’re the last two people on earth.”“We are in some ways. You lost your mother. I can’t imagine what that must be like for a teenage boy, but I also need you to understand that I lost my wife. My best friend.”“Dave was your best friend,” he retorted.I could tell he was trying to be tough, but I could hear the pain in his voice. “Dave was my best guy friend, but your mom was my partner in all things. She was my other half.”“You guys hardly talked. You were always
LeilaI hung the picture I had picked up at the store the day before and took a step back to make sure it was even. I felt like I was constantly changing the house. It was never quite good enough. I’d get it all put together and then I was ready for a change. Truthfully, I felt a little unsettled, like I was still looking for the right fit.I hadn’t found it yet.I heard a knock on the door and assumed it would be Kami. I didn’t have a lot of company just dropping by for a visit on a Sunday afternoon.She took one look at the hammer in my hand and shook her head. “I’m afraid to ask.”“Just a new picture,” I assured her.“Mom’s cooking a big dinner tonight and asked me to invite you,” she said, flopping into one of my chairs.“Hell yeah. I could use some good home cooking.”“She’s always cooking, and her door is always open, you know that,” she said.I sighed. “I know, but I don’t want to appear like a stray dog, scratching on the door for some scraps.”She laughed. “My mom would happi
LeilaKami walked into the kitchen, shaking her head and rolling her eyes. “Mama, I swear, you need to get laid.”“Kami Gaston! Don’t you dare speak like that in my house!”“You’re the one talking about having a man kiss all your bits and pieces,” she argued.“But I speak like a lady, you talk like a trollop.”I couldn’t help but laugh. “She has a point,” I interjected.“Shut up. Kiss ass.”“Kami!” Nancy scolded. “I swear I didn’t raise you to talk like a trucker.”“Oh, Mom, please,” Kami groaned. “I’ve heard you and the ladies from your so-called book club. You guys are dirtier than a boys’ locker room.”She frowned at her daughter. “First of all, young lady, you shouldn’t be eavesdropping. Second of all, we’re all old married women.”“Mom, you don’t think I’m a virgin, do you?” Kami asked with feigned horror.Nancy scowled. “I swear I don’t know where I went wrong with you. I blame your father, bless his soul. He ruined you. His background was troubled. I should have known better, b
ChristopherI parked my truck, checked my watch and cringed. I was thirty minutes early. My reprieve with Olin had been extremely brief. Saturday had been great. When the kid emerged downstairs Sunday morning, it was like something out of the exorcist. He’d been possessed by a demon. While the attitude had sucked and the day had been generally unpleasant, it had been more of a typical teen unpleasantness. That I expected.Didn’t make it any easier, but I expected to deal with some rotten days now and again. I had sent him to school, damn near begging him not to start any shit, and headed for my own school. The traffic had been light and now I was sitting in my truck trying to decide what to do.Coffee sounded like a good option. There was a small café on campus that served about a million different kinds of caffeine. That’s where I could kill some time before I went to class. I didn’t want the teacher to think I was trying to suck up by showing up so damn early. I was already feeling
Christopher“I think my wife would be happy to see me trying, but she would not be happy to see me failing.”He studied me. “I don’t think you’re failing. You don’t strike me as the kind of man who fails at anything. You might not be doing it perfect, but none of us do. It helps to have a good woman to guide you and slap you upside the head when you’re really screwing up.”I chuckled. “I know she’s probably looking for something to smack me with.”“I bet things will settle down soon. All you can do is be there. Pull them back when they get close to the edge and try to steer them down the right path. It’s a fine line to be right beside and just behind them. They have to spread their wings in order to learn who they are, but it can get tricky.”I sighed, thinking about Olin’s need to find out who he was. “I wish there was a way to know for sure. I keep thinking back to my childhood and those little moments that seemed insignificant to myself and my parents, but ultimately helped shape w
LeilaI flipped the page on my notes and saw I had covered all I needed to for the day. I was on a roll. Class was going to be over right on time. That was always the sign of a good day. I tended to get a little long-winded at times and ended up speed talking through the final minutes of my lecture.“All right, that’s all I have today, but I do have one more tidbit of information to share,” I teased. “Wednesday will be your first test.”There were groans. As expected. “You’ll all do fine. This is an easy one—assuming you’ve been paying attention.”I watched as the smiles slipped away and the students filed out. Did they actually think they were going to sail through the entire class without a test? It was a class with credits. I looked up and saw Christopher waiting.“Hey,” I greeted him. “What’s up?”“I wanted to personally apologize for not being able to take you up on your offer to help me out, especially after I had asked for it.”“It’s no problem, really.”“I hope you didn’t clea
LeilaMy stomach turned. He was going to fire me. I could see it on his face. “I’m sorry to hear that,” I managed to get out the words despite my tongue trying to embed itself on the roof of my mouth.“It’s part of the job.”“What’s going on Dean Johnson?” I asked, not interested in beating around the bush. If he was going to fire me, I wanted it over with. I was already writing my resume in my head.“We’ve got a situation. I was informed last week that one of our esteemed professors has been involved in a sexual relationship with a student.”My mouth fell open. “What?”He nodded, rubbing a hand over his forehead. “Yes. It’s not something I ever want to deal with. Our school has some very clear policies about this. It is never okay to sleep with a student.”“I understand,” I said, still not sure why he was telling me.“I have been running an investigation and the things I have uncovered are not only disturbing, but disappointing. I just don’t understand what is happening these days. S
ChristopherI was a little embarrassed to admit I had to ask directions to the library. Twice. I wasn’t the library type. Never had been. Even when I was in school, I hadn’t used the library. It was so quiet. It creeped me out a little. I kind of liked chaos.I walked into the library, finding it nearly empty. I reminded myself that most students were at home enjoying their winter break. I scanned the many empty tables and wondered if there was somewhere specific I was supposed to be meeting Leila. I was a few minutes early, I reminded myself.“Christopher,” I heard my name and spun around.“Hi,” I whispered.She laughed softly. “I don’t think you have to whisper.”There was a whispered shushing noise. I turned to see a couple of what could only be called geeks, sitting at a table with a stack of thick books. I was going to make the assumption they were some kind of science majors.“Sorry,” I whispered, earning more scowls.“Over here,” Leila said gesturing with her head.I followed h