Who We Have

Chapter 2

His eyes swept over the class quickly, before he thanked the substitute. Watching the man leave, Adam took a look at the name list of his class and looked at a few students here and there. He hadn’t managed to notice Andy’s presence just yet, and that wasn’t by accident. Andy faced Jennifer immediately in panic, letting her long, straight hair cover the side of her face. Jennifer stared in awe at the teacher for a moment, before noticing the nervous gaze that pierced into her. At first, Jennifer didn’t understand what Andy’s problem was, but when Andy motioned towards Adam with her whole expression and the constant tilting of her head, Jennifer finally put two and two together. Her eyes widened as she alternated glances between her best friend and the man, wondering how such a union could have happened.

Adam walked to the front of his desk and leaned against it for a moment as he began speaking. “I know I’ve been away for a couple of weeks, I have to apologize for it.” Having one hand leaning against the edge of the desk, he raised the other to motion as he spoke, and as he did, his eyes did travel to the one girl whose face was hidden. Jennifer lightly kicked Andy’s foot and she immediately knew that it was inevitable. Slowly, Andy faced forward and thus facing the clear problem ahead.

“There were a few…” Once his eyes broadcasted to his mind who the girl was and just what it all meant, it felt like a major punch to his guts and it pushed all the air out of his lungs. His hand slightly slipped from the edge, putting his balance off momentarily. As he regained his composure, he continued, “A few complications.”

Their eyes locked for a few seconds, but Adam had no choice to break it unless he wanted others to be suspicious. When others chuckled quietly at his break of attention, he decided to shake it off as a nervous slip and act as naturally as he could, but it was very obvious to Andy that there were words to be shared. “We will make up for all the lost time, I can assure you, but first things first!”

Adam stood up, walking back behind his desk and picking up the name list. “How about a quick game of introductions? That way I’ll get to know you all better and we’ll get along better as a class.”

A few voices called out in agreement, mostly the girls. They couldn’t be blamed; he was sweet on the eyes, and seductive music to the ears.

“I’ll start, so you guys can see how it goes, and then I’ll go in alphabetical order, by first name.” With that, he looked directly at Andy, knowing that she was bound to show up as one of the first few, which was his purpose.

Her nervous expression turned to disbelief and she whispered, “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“He really has it out for you, doesn’t he?” Jennifer whispered back, trying to stifle a low chuckle.

Adam’s icy blue eyes pierced her like daggers for a split second before he moved on. “Alright. Hello everyone, I’m Adam Coyle, I’m twenty six years old and I’m an English teacher. I like to go surfing in the summers and reading as a past time, I like pretty mellow, calming music and things like outdoor movie nights. Things I don’t like include garlic, the color yellow and dishonesty. If you guys have any questions, as away.” 

Jennifer leaned into Andy, whispering, “Sir, I wonder why dishonesty is one of those things.” Needless to say, Andy felt it the right time to kick Jennifer in the leg.

A girl raised her hand and was called up, “How long have you been a teacher?”

“A couple of years, this is to be my third,” Adam replied with a polite smile.

Another girl called out, “That young?”

A chuckle left his lips as he gave a nod, “I finished University at twenty four and got into teaching not long after at a public school, and eventually it brought me here.”