Meet Me After Class

Chapter 42: Things Slowly Changing

As days passed, talk of the play mostly died out. And it had been a week since my fight with Adam, and Mr. Scott was acting as though nothing had happened between us—as if he hadn't kissed me behind the curtains in the auditorium after the play. During class, he would glance my way now and then, flashing the same benign smile he gave to nearly everyone. The special attention he had shown me before was gone.

After the bell rang, he would retreat behind his desk, always keeping himself busy with a stack of papers or a book.

I told Penny it was weird.

"I mean, what is going on?" I whispered as we walked out of class. "He used to talk to me all the time, and now it's like I don't even exist."

Penny shrugged. "He's just covering his tracks. Can you blame him after sucking face backstage with a student? I'm surprised he can even look at you without having Nam-style flashbacks of ending up behind bars."

"Gee, thanks for the sympathy, Penny. And seriously, he didn't... I mean, come on, that kiss was totally innocent. It was like something out of a retro romance movie, you know? His lips on mine, no open-mouths or French-fry action involved. It was all PG, I swear."

"Fine! It was all pure and wholesome. Now, what do you want from me? A pep talk about how dreamy Teacher Man finds you? Wake up and smell the pending lawsuit if someone finds out other than me."

I rolled my eyes. "Wow, tell me how you really feel."

She nudged me with her elbow. "Oh, lighten up. You know I've got your back. But someone needs to splash a little cold reality on the situation."

"Just wow!"

"What? I can't honestly say you have a promising love life right now." She leaned in with a mischievous grin. "Now tell me—who's the better kisser? I'd say him, given his age and experience."

"Penny! I've just told you that he didn't—forget it." I hissed, though I couldn't help an embarrassed smile. And I was never going to answer her question. I shook my head. "Do you think he regrets kissing me? "

When we could speak freely away from listening ears, Penny mulled it over. "I'd say yes; he likely feels regret about complicating things. But if he didn't regret the actual kiss..." She raised her eyebrows at me. "He's probably just being ultra-cautious about showing you any favoritism now. I can't exactly let a repeat incident slide."

As I thought over Penny's logic, it made sense. Mr. Scott's smile seemed forced now when it met my eyes, and he avoided lingering near me for longer than necessary. Perhaps he was worried about what might happen if he let his guard down again.

As for Adam, he was usually MIA during lunch period after our fight. He and Jay had stopped joining me, Penny, and Melissa at our usual table. Instead, Adam and Jay sat with Megan and Brinson—an odd pairing since they were never really friends before.

Or maybe I'd missed another entire episode of how their friendship was suddenly formed.

Penny eyed them shrewdly across the cafeteria. "Okay, what's Brinson's deal being all buddy-buddy with Adam all of a sudden? I mean, sure, Adam's got that whole tall, dark, and broody thing going on. Kinda like if Eliot from Mr. Robot had a moody lovechild with Thom Yorke, you het me? But since when did that make someone cool enough? And Jay consistently follows him like a devoted puppy. And just like that, a new clique is formed."

Penny was right, except for her odd description of Adam. It was like, after the play, social lines had been redrawn. Even Mason hung with a new crowd after splitting with Megan.

While we ate, some student council members hung prom banners. Penny usually scorned prom as 'an excuse for girls to cake on makeup and guys to spike the punch.' But now her eyes followed the decoration eagerly.

I raised an eyebrow. "Since when are you pro-prom?"

She shrugged. "It's our last year—we have to go out with a bang! Besides," she smirked, "I know which teacher is chaperoning."

Melissa perked up. "You definitely should go too, Wendy! We'll find you a hot date."

"Gee thanks," I laughed. "Meanwhile my usual prom plans are at Brown's with Adam." Just saying his name stung now.

"Oh, I thought you two were on a speaking hiatus," Penny quipped.

"What makes you say that?"

She shot me a look that screamed,'seriously?? '. Then she rolled her eyes.

"I've not seen you guys talk," Melissa chimed in. "And these days, he's not even sitting with us at lunch," she gestured towards Adam sitting across the cafeteria.

Penny's eyebrow arched. She had a knack for turning secrets into front-page news, but I'm grateful she kept quiet about what I confided in her regarding Adam and Mr. Scott to Melissa.

"Did you and Adam fight?" Melissa asked.

I sighed. "No. Just some silly argument."

"Forget about it." Penny dismissed this with a wave of her hand. "Leave Adam to sulk. You need to go to prom. You need a night of dancing with a guy whose palms don't sweat just holding your hand." She and Melissa laughed, already tossing around names of potential dates.

I almost laughed out loud. Had Penny forgotten who she was talking to? My palms turned into slippery pools of nerves if a guy so much as glanced my way. And I was the queen of overanalyzing. Guys don't exactly flock to girls who dissect every little thing.

Finding me a date would be like finding a diamond in a coal mine. For one, I needed to find someone who could hold my hand without it feeling like we both grabbed onto live wires. Someone calm and collected enough for the both of us—a smooth operator to balance out my jittery self.

It was easier said than done when it came to potential prom dates. But trust Penny to have boundless confidence in the face of my awkward anxiety.

Penny was still gushing about prom plans during Creative Writing. I tried to stay attentive as Mr. Scott lectured, but it was difficult with him up there. At one point, Penny slyly passed me a new note. Unable to resist, I glanced down to see yet another absurd prom date suggestion scrawled in her messy handwriting.

I stifled a smile just as Mr. Scott halted mid-sentence. My breath caught as his eyes snapped to the note in my hand. The classroom seemed to freeze around us. After a moment, Mr. Scott strode silently to my desk and plucked the paper from my rigid fingers.

"I'll speak with you after class, Ms. Greene."

I sat paralyzed as he returned to the front, my heart pounding. I couldn't focus on his words, hyperaware of each tick of the clock. The final 15 minutes of class crawled by. My palms grew slick, and my mouth was dry.

When the bell finally tore through the tension, I jumped. Students bustled around me while I sat anchored to my seat. As Penny left, she shot me a weak thumbs up.

"This is your fault," I told her between gritted teeth.

"Just play it cool," she whispered. I almost laughed at the absurdity. There was nothing remotely cool about sitting alone under Mr. Scott's simmering gaze, awaiting my judgment.

"Good luck. Who knows, maybe you'll finally get your answer," Penny whispered again.

"Answer to what?"

"Why is he avoiding you." She winked at me then walked away.

After a week of tense distance from Mr. Scott, approaching his desk felt strangely nerve-wracking. He didn't look up right away. "Have a seat, Ms. Greene. Let me just finish this up."

As the last student exited, Mr. Scott lifted his gaze to mine. My heart pounded so loudly that I wondered if he could hear it. But then he gave a small, closed-lip smile and retrieved our note. Amusement danced in his eyes as he skimmed our words.

"So...planning on attending prom this year, Wendy?"

I nearly slid straight off my chair at the sound of my nickname on his lips. After days of clipped formalities between us, it felt foreign and familiar all at once.