Meet Me After Class

Chapter 7: Oh Crap!

"Wendy, again, miscommunication... that is all."

She'd use that miscommunication excuse until the cows came home.

"If it's any comfort, you, my dear friend, managed to step inside Mr. Scott's house. An opportunity that many girls I know would kill for."

I sighed and shook my head. "If only I could rewind time. I wouldn't, not in a million years."

"If you say so."

Finally, Sunday came...

Aside from family day, Sunday dinner in our house was just as important. Both my parents hailed from traditional backgrounds, where dinner was more than just mealtime. We would all sit down and talk how our day went, and what was going on with our lives outside our home.

That night, dad had prepared a creamy tuna-noodle casserole and his tasty meatloaf, Cup and Saucer's-—the restaurant where he worked as the chief cook—bestseller.

"Hey, Wednesday, are you okay?" Mom, who's allergic to my preferred nickname, checked in. Like, seriously, she named me after that grim-looking Wednesday Addams from the Addams Family. Dad blamed her obsession, and said he completely had nothing to do with it.

Belle, my fifteen-year-old sis, eyed my plate. "Either she's trying to gain weight or she's eating for two."

"Eating for two? Belle, stop talking nonsense," Dad shut her blaberdash at once. I loved my dad. He trusted us so much that he thought Belle and I didn't need the long, awkward lectures about boys and sex. He was a very easygoing guy.

Glancing at my plate, I saw two slices of meatloaf, a hefty serving of tuna-noodle casserole, beans on the side, and a corn muffin. It was really nothing out of the ordinary really. "I'm just hungry."

And yeah, that was the truth. After all the craziness I'd been through, who wouldn't be? My body still ached, and the painkillers seemed to have sparked a new level of hunger.

Mom, always keeping tabs, chimed in, "You were fifteen minutes late for dinner yesterday, barely touched your corn, and you went to bed early." She stared at me, expecting an explanation for my epic food fest. "And now...this?" Her eyes drilled into my loaded plate.

Trying to sit up straight, a sudden pinch in my back made me hiss. Definitely need another painkiller before bedtime.

"Are you okay?" she asked again, a bit more concerned this time.

"I'm okay. I told you I was at Penny's. I was helping her with her homework. She begged me to help her finish it," I lied. I hate lying to my parents, but I couldn't just tell them the truth. I did once. I told them about Rico. They just gave me the lecture on not prying.

Dad chimed in with his two cents, "That kid should learn to be less dependent on you, Wendy. You can't babysit forever. She needs to figure things out on her own. Like Adam. That kid took over his father's shop and has been managing it pretty well. How's he doing with school stuff?"

"He's doing pretty well. You asked him about it last week, Dad."

My dad and Mr. Brown were pretty good friends and when Adam's father died, dad sort of felt it was his responsibility to look after him and Audrey; asking how they're doing every now and then.

"Good. I'm sure that kid will go far in life. You two are still thinking of that trip to Nepal after graduation?"

"If I don't get into Chicago, then yeah, both me and Penny. It's not just me and Adam, Dad."

"And where do you think Penny will get the money for the travel program?" His eyes narrowed like he was waiting for me to confess to him that Penny's working at some strip club to fund her trip with us.

Penny has two brothers and two sisters, and as the middle child, she didn't get the right amount of attention and care from her mom who was working to support their huge family when her dad left them. She's griped about it tons, wishing she was an only child, thinking she'd have it all then. Shared this with Dad before, and it kind of shifted his view on Penny's life.

"Just like how I'm saving up, she's got a job."

"Okay," he casually nodded. "And you? How's school?"

I quickly swallowed a piece of my meatloaf. "All good."

Weirdly enough, I actually liked family dinners, and although all Belle could talk about was her plan to join the cheering squad next school year, I wouldn't change a single thing about it. But that night, like the other night, my mind was still preoccupied with pain and shame.

I bit a huge chunk of my muffin and turned to Belle.

"A substitute teacher just recently joined the faculty," my sister filled in without hesitation.

I almost spat out my muffin. Everyone stared at me, concern etched on their faces—everyone except Belle.

"Easy there, Wednesday," Mom advised, giving me a pat on the back.

I quickly washed my throat with a glass of water. Why did my sister have to bring Mr. Scott up now?

"And what about this new teacher?" dad asked Belle, looking interested. "What's he teaching? Where's he from?"

Belle shrugged. "No idea. He's handling the seniors. Ask Wednesday Elizabeth here."

I rolled my eyes. "I think he's from New York, used to write plays," I chimed in, serving up the details.

"Good. The last family who moved into this town was five years ago. It's good to see new faces."

"Just one face. He's single. He's handsome," Belle added out of nowhere.

Dad nodded like he couldn't be bothered that his youngest daughter might be crushing on the new teacher. "Even better. This town needs a good-looking new face."

"True," Mom spoke. "The number of tourists has doubled this year, and some new faces could help give the impression that we have a nicer place to live than Ridge End."

Ridge End was another town that Pinecrest had been in competition with in terms of attracting tourists. Our town actually had better scenic views and spots, but Ridge End had better tourism campaign. Something that my mom thought our mayor should look into.

As Mom and Dad talked about the things that needed improvements in our town to draw in more tourists and movers, I felt my phone vibrate. Carefully, I dug it from my pocket and quickly checked the message.

Although the number wasn't registered, my eyes widened, and I felt my heart fell off my chest as soon as I read the message.

"I hope you don't think I'm still a suspect, Ms. Greene. See you in class tomorrow."

Oh, crap!