Schooled 4.0

by Deena Bright

  “I just don’t get why you’re doing all this for her,” Megan said. “Leo, don’t you get it? You shouldn’t have to go to all of this trouble to make someone fall for you. The falling happens—it’s not something you can force.”

  “You can’t force it, but you can guide it,” I explained.

  “Just tell me why,” she said.

  “I can’t,” I said, standing on the ladder to hang the lights, before plugging them into the portable generator.

  “Uhhh, it’s my dying wish,” she said, staring at me.

  “Jesus Megan, how long are you going to keep pulling that card?” I asked, not thinking.

  “Doc says about another four to six weeks—at the most,” she said matter-of-factly.

  I hated when she talked like that, but she talked like that a lot. Meg was right. If I wanted to talk to her, confide in her, then I needed to do it now. There was no later. “Remember that song you used to listen to?” I asked.

  “I’m going to need a little more than that,” she said.

  “The Bryan Adams song. The one ‘Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman,’ from that movie with Johnny Depp?” I said.

  “Oh yeah, Don Juan DeMarco. He was way hotter in that movie than he’s ever been before,” Megan swooned, her face lighting up, looking more alive than she’s looked in a long time. A fictional character could do that to girls. It was crazy.

  “Down girl,” I said, joking with her like we used to do. “Well, there’s that line about seeing unborn children in someone’s eyes,” I said feeling stupid. There wasn’t anyone in the world that I was closer to than Megan, but telling her this much made me feel like a loser.

  Continuing to explain, “I always thought that was the dumbest line—absolutely absurd. But I get it now. Ever since I played with Janelle’s nieces, all I think about is what our kids would look like, how they’d act, how we’d parent them together,” I confessed. I picked up more lights and began stringing them through all the branches. “It’s like I can’t wait for my life with her to start. It’s already playing out in my mind. I’ve never had that before.”

  “Man, you got it bad, little brother,” she said, shaking her head. “But don’t you think that if she felt the same way that she wouldn’t have bolted home from our house to go out with some other guy? If she was thinking about your future kids, my future nieces and nephews, then she’d be sticking around, spending time with you.”

  I knew that she was right—that I was grasping at straws. “I just can’t explain it, Megan, I just know how I feel about her. And I can’t turn it off, because you think I should.”

  “Okay kiddo, then hand me those leaves and some vines, I’ll show you how to make little crowns,” she said, smiling at me, while the worry lines showed deeply on her forehead and around her eyes.

  Megan, my mom, my dad, Cliff, and I sat in the woods, talking and enjoying each other’s company, as each one of them helped me figure out the best route to stealing someone’s heart for my own. Even Cliff had some pretty romantic ideas—ideas I wouldn’t have thought he had in him. Megan must’ve brought out the sappy, romantic in him. He was a quiet guy, but a good husband, a great provider, and a doting and attentive father. Cliff was a lot like Jocelyn’s husband, Rick. I saw a lot of similarities in our families; something that I saw as a sign. I was close enough to my family to not feel too much like a douchebag admitting all this pansy-ass stuff to them. My dad was a softy, so I knew where I’d gotten it.

  Taking Janelle’s hand, leading her to the center of the reveal, and placing one of Megan’s crowns on her head, I said, “Okay, One. Two. Three. Surprise!” Then, I took my hands off from over her eyes.

  Janelle just stared in awe, taking it all in, not saying a word. Then, she looked at me in utter disbelief, her eyes filling with tears. “Leo. Oh my God! Leo, it’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”

  I’d cleared away an alcove in the trees; it was completely surrounded by greenery. I strung twinkling white Christmas lights all around it. Megan had sat on a chair out here—just to stay comfortable. However, I didn’t want furniture out here. It needed it to look more rustic, but yet, cozy and romantic. I bought fluffy outdoor cushions that normally went on patio furniture and placed them in the middle of the clearing. There were pillows of all shapes and sizes. After the lights were strung, I covered the strands of lights with a billowy white fabric (gossa-something), so the lights were muted. (My mom’s idea.) Finally, I had my buddy drop off the food and wine before we walked down here. He was waiting for my text and ran it all back here, so it was chilled and ready for us.

  Finally, she said, “Exquisite. It’s breathtaking. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

  “My sentiments exactly,” I said staring only at her.

  “Oh Leo,” she said, walking over to me. “You’re incredible.” Janelle stretched up to kiss me, and I welcomed her lips on mine. I led her over to the cushions, easing her back onto the pillows. “I can’t believe you did all this.”

  “What does it remind you of?” I asked, hoping she would understand my motivation.

  “This?” she asked, looking around. “It’s like a dream. A summer dream.” Then, as if she put the final piece into the puzzle, her face lit up with knowledge and excitement. “You remembered. You remembered that I said the only Shakespeare play that I really loved was A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Oh my Leo, you made a vision in my head a reality.”

  I wanted to make every dream she had this summer come true. Every night. Every day. I wanted all of her dreams to become a reality. I wanted to be the one who made her fantasies come true.

  We spent the afternoon eating sushi on the pillows and drinking wine. Janelle and I listened to music. She actually convinced me to dance with her. It was impossible to deny her anything. Like I said, I wanted to give her everything. I wish I could say that I hit my goal of giving her pleasure eight different times. But after five, she kept whimpering, saying that she couldn’t handle any more. If truth be told, I didn’t know if I could handle much more. My resistance and self-control were waning. I’d spent the majority of the day with either a full erection or a slight erection. Either way, I was having a serious case of blue balls. It was way worse than normal too, because this time around, I was the one denying myself. And this time, I knew full well what I was missing.

  “Okay, we’ve got to get going. There’s still one more surprise,” I said checking my phone for the time. I sent another text and pulled her up off the cushions. (It was nice to have secret helpers. I just wish Megan were still in town to hear all about it.)

  Janelle jumped up immediately this time. “I’m ready. This day couldn’t get any better.” I loved hearing her say that.

  PULLING DOWN THE driveway, Janelle shrieked, “Leo! This one has a SOLD sign on it too. Holy shit, you didn’t buy both houses, did you?”

  Laughing, I said, “Yeah, I wish. But close… my parents bought it.”

  “Your parents? But their house… their house is gorgeous. Why would they buy this house? I mean, it’s beautiful too, but—”

  “My mom said that once Megan… after Megan… ummm… she doesn’t want all the memories. They’re going to move in here instead. Plus, there’s a lot for grandkids to do,” I explained, dropping my eyes from her gaze, worried I’d said too much.

  “Oh Leo,” she said, staring out the windows. “That’s so… so… I’m sorry.”

  “They’re beautiful houses any way you look at them,” I said, changing the subject.

  My dad had come over before we’d gotten here and set up the projector outside for us. My dad was awesome. He wasn’t quite as goofy, but he reminded me a lot of Jim’s dad from American Pie. He tried so hard to be a good dad, not realizing that he already was an incredible dad. I was lucky to have the parents I had.

  Janelle and I sat on a lounge chair on the back dock, facing the house, drinking wine, watching The Notebook projected onto the back wall of the house. It was our own personal outdo
or movie. The idea was Cliff’s. He admitted that he’d done the same thing for Megan when they were dating. After the movie ended, projected onto the wall was a message that read: “Now that you’ve been “Notebooked,” will you marry me?” It was brilliant.

  Although I wasn’t proposing, I did want her to feel like a queen, like I’d do anything for her. Sitting on the dock and watching the movie, cuddling in the same chair, it felt like everything was right in the world. I didn’t feel like I was in a lose-lose battle with Briggs or that my sister was in a lose-lose battle with Cancer. It felt like I could take on the world. I didn’t care that Janelle even saw me cry during the movie. Hell it’s The Notebook; I dare any of you not to cry. When it was time to take her home, I hated that it had to end. Every time I had to say “goodbye” to her, I worried that it would be the end, worried that the next day she’d call and tell me that she’d chosen Briggs. How could I be so completely in love with someone who didn’t feel the same way? It didn’t seem right. Yet, when I was with her, it was right in every way.

  DRIVING TO THE school, I kept replaying in my head my entire date with Leo, comparing it to my date with Briggs. Both of them had pulled out all the stops. I felt like I was on some reality TV show, and was being romanced by the two most romantic and beautiful bachelors on the planet. How could I choose between them? After the Fourth of July, on the boat with Briggs, I had pretty much decided that he was the one. I knew I was in love with him. My heart skipped and fluttered whenever he was around. He was exciting and adventurous, but sexy and sincere, too.

  But after yesterday with Leo, I couldn’t deny it; I was in love with him too. Fuck me. Couldn’t one of them just suck? This was getting too hard, too out of control. If any chick ever told me that she was in love with two men, then I’d laugh at her and tell that she didn’t know what true love was. Well guess what? Leo and Briggs taught me what true love is. I didn’t know before this. I hadn’t realized that love was knowing that someone else’s happiness took priority over my own, which also meant that their sadness, their pain, was going to be mine as well. Shit.

  I should’ve been concentrating on my appointment. I needed to meet with my superintendent. Jasper and Professor Gavin Greenwick were meeting me there. Professor Greenwick, my magical attorney, talked to Vince Bentley, and persuaded him to talk to my superintendent and sign an affidavit, admitting that everything he’d posted and declared on all social media sites were false and had no validity whatsoever. Jasper and Gavin went to Vince’s apartment this morning and got the affidavit signed and notarized. They were bringing him to the super’s office with them to ensure he didn’t flee.

  After what he told me about missing Briggs and wanting to make things right, I didn’t think he’d bail, but Gavin wanted to be certain, absolutely certain, beyond a shadow of a doubt. He really talked that way. Sometimes, I wanted to remind him that court wasn’t in session. Gavin was a bit loopy. He’d probably been sipping the Polyjuice or butter beer. Who knew? However, Professor Greenwick was a damn good lawyer, one that I was thrilled to have on my side, fighting for me.

  The meeting went extremely well. Vince admitted everything, right down to posting what he thought he saw, being bribed by Marcus, and wanting to make all the accusations and rumors go away, so “Briggs and Miss G could be together.” When he said the last part, my superintendent eyed me a little too long for my comfort, but he never said anything more to me regarding the hearsay around our district.

  When I talked to him previously, he told me that he was getting letters from angry parents, referring to me as “Professor Pedophile.” I was mortified, apologizing and groaning profusely, but he took it well, stating that after all the research he’d done in the matter that the only people who were out of line were Marcus Flowers and Vince Bentley. As far as my job and my school district were concerned, the Janelle Garrity-Flowers scandal case was closed, and I could continue on happily for the rest of the summer. Yeah right.

  Just as we were wrapping up the meeting, my superintendent asked me to stay, so he could talk to me alone. Professor Greenwick stood immediately, and said, “Anything you say to my client, you say in front of me.”

  Then Tim Reinbrecht, my union president, added, “You’re not talking to a member of the union without me present.”

  Mr. Baker, the superintendent, said, “Mr. Greenwick, I understand your concern, yours too Tim. But, I would like to talk to my employee alone. We closed the case, but I’d like to say—”

  “Not going to happen,” Gavin declared.

  “Actually, Tim, Gavin, I’m okay with it. I trust him. He hired me… and I trust that you’ll both be outside waiting for me if I need anything,” I said, nodding toward the door. “Jasper.” I didn’t need to say more than that. Jasper hated unions, hated the whole idea of them. He stood up immediately, and led Tim and Gavin to the door after they each shook hands with my superintendent.

  “We’re right outside, Nelle, if you need us. Mr. Baker, nice to see you again. Thank you,” Jasper shook his hand and left.

  Once they left, I said, “Mr. Baker—”

  He cut me off immediately, “Janelle, I’m sorry you had to go through all of this. Public scrutiny can be brutal. Downright vicious at times,” he said, taking off his glasses, and cleaning the lenses. “But, I do want to say that I’m pretty disappointed in you.” Holy shit. I was going to get a lecture, a lecture from a man I respected and spent much of my career trying to impress. “You’re an incredible teacher, one of our district’s finest.”

  “Thank you sir… I’m… I’m so sorry.”

  “Marriage is hard. I get that. I know your husband… ex husband… was a creep and made some rather horrendous choices,” he said, shaking his head. “I suppose that I just thought you’d make better decisions.”

  “Mr. Baker—” he raised his hand, cutting me off.

  “Briggs Alexander and Leo Cling are fine gentlemen. Probably the best this district’s ever turned out… next to your brother, of course,” he stated. I smiled. Of course. Leave it to Jasper to get accolades at a meeting about me. Living in an older sibling’s shadow was awful, especially if you knew that the light kept getting brighter for him and darker for you.

  “But… Janelle… they were your students. They should’ve been off limits, people you’d never consider…” He didn’t finish the statement, handing me a tissue as he recognized the tears streaming down my face. “I’m just disappointed. I thought better of you.”

  He walked around the desk and grabbed two files off his desk, sitting in the chair next to me, and said, “But like I said, you’re in the clear. I’d hate to lose such a valuable teacher.” He handed me the first file and said, “Look at this.” I took the file and began leafing through it. “Those are the letters from angry parents in the district, who want to see you gone… hanged in a public venue.”

  I looked at the letters; there were 15 of them total. Mr. Baker or his secretary blackened all the names within each letter. I couldn’t see who’d written what. I didn’t know who hated me, who wanted me gone. The letters were vicious and defeating. My reputation was ruined, and for what? What did I really gain from this past month? More heartache and pain, that’s what.

  “Now look at these,” he said handing me the second file. I started thumbing through the documents inside. There were over 50 of them. “These are the letters that I received in your favor, supporting you.”

  The names were there, in black and white. Parents had written to him singing my praises. I couldn’t believe it. I’d made connections with some students and their parents; those particular letters weren’t surprising. However, some parents I’d never spoken to, never actually bonded with, but had their child in class. They’d written letters, supporting me. I’d made a positive impression on my students and their parents and had never even known.

  “You’re an incredible teacher. One who makes an impact—one we cannot afford to lose. You need to decide if the picture you’re currently painting of
yourself is how you want to be seen, publicly displayed,” he said, standing up, indicating that we were done.

  As I was walking to the door, he added, “And Janelle… two more things.” I waited, afraid of what was coming. “All those names that were crossed out. You’ve only had three of their kids in your class; the rest never knew you.” I smiled, knowing that I shouldn’t be too proud or happy, but feeling much better. “And that ex of yours, I never liked him. You could do a lot better.”

  “Thank you, Mr. Baker. Again, I’m so sorry,” I said, opening the door.

  “I know. I’m sorry too. Enjoy the rest of your summer,” he said, sitting back down at his desk, focusing on his computer screen.

  SHOCKED, I PULLED into the driveway, not believing my eyes. Briggs and Leo were tossing a football back and forth to each other. Leo looked extremely out of place, playing catch in the yard in a suit and tie. Glancing at my watch, I wondered why Leo wasn’t at work. Maybe he didn’t really have a job. Maybe he was an undercover spy, trying to find terrorists in the country. Maybe he thought Briggs was, or had reason to believe that Jasper was a spy on a secret mission to overthrow the country. That was why he was hanging around all the time. Okay, so most likely Leo Cling was not a spy, but he wasn’t at work. That was fishy and suspicious in itself. Maybe, I should quit my job and become a spy. I’m leery of people and their motives. When people become spies, then to whom do they send their resumes? What would be the career objective? To use my secret spy decoder ring in real life situations to pursue and capture villains, who threaten the well-being and happiness of our good nation? I’ll Google it later, for sure.

  Focus Janelle! Christ. Pull yourself together, you nut job. Realizing that they were at my house waiting for me to get home from my meeting, I heard Mr. Baker’s words again: “You need to decide if the picture you’re currently painting of yourself is how you want to be seen, publicly displayed.” Looking at both of them, in all their glory, I thought “fuck the Hell yeah.”