Independent Variables - Short Story Collection

Join Me - Romance

He had long dirty blonde hair tied back into a low ponytail. A ball cap pulled down, the brim just above his eyes. His skin was dark tan from the sun and his teeth flashed when he smiled. His arms were exposed up to the shoulder to reveal almost chiseled muscles.

I was in his class. He was my teacher. I was older than every other student there, but I had to learn sometime. And I was told he was the best teacher for the job. He always made me smile. He was hilarious, he made us all smile. Made us feel so comfortable in our skin. But when he walked up & down the rows of desks, as he got closer to me, I felt anything but comfortable in my skin. I honestly felt like I was sitting there naked. But then he'd give the last of us on our end eye contact and walk back to the other side of the classroom. And I could breathe again.

On the last day of class, a few of us were talking and laughing afterward with him. In my heart of hearts, I didn't want it to end. But soon the conversation was over and we had to go our separate ways. As I walked alone, my phone went off. I looked down and saw it was a message from him. I figured it was a class-wide group message. That kind of thing wasn't unusual, intended to remind us of assignments and special events. But this time, it was just addressed to me.

"Good luck out there." It read.

I smiled briefly then typed, "thank you."

A few moments later my phone buzzed again. This time with a photo of a ufo hovering over a field. "Don't let them change you for anything."

I laughed. "Oh, I plan to always remain this awesome."

"Lol." A pause. "But no. Really. Don't change."

I read a seriousness in his tone. But tried not to read into it. I figured he was just being encouraging. Something he'd be doing for the rest of his former students too.

Dinner that night seemed more crowded than usual. Students who had just finished semesters of classes were buzzing excitedly as adults and instructors kicked their feet up and chatted. I sat down alone with a new book.

"Hey." He texted.

"Hey." I texted back.

"Why are you sitting alone at dinner?" I scanned the room and met his eyes. He smiled a different smile than what he usually flashed in the classroom. It caused my face to flush.

"To read." Nice and simple, I was okay with the sudden warmth in my face.

"Oh. Reading. That's fun."

"It is. It is fun. When I can actually read." Possibly a bit too harsh. But space was my defense mechanism. Space would allow my cheeks to return to their normal color.

"Oh, i know what you mean. But if you ever feel like not sitting alone anymore, just let me know. I'll be right there."

I looked up to meet his eyes gazing at me again. He nodded slightly in my direction. I grabbed my book and an apple off my tray and sought solace alone. I found it on the bridge.

"Are you doing okay?" He allowed me maybe 20 minutes to myself.

"I'm fine." At first, I wasn't going to respond, but I figured in not responding he may assume the answer was no.

"Ok, well I'm just checking on you."

"I'm fine, really. Why does it matter to you so much? Do you text all your former students like this?"

Several minutes passed. I thought maybe he'd forgotten.

"It matters to me. And no. I can't text like this until they become former students. And you're the only one I've texted like this. Ever."

My brows furrowed. At that moment I had the fleeting thought that he may be courting me. I tried to brush it off, in no way could that be true.

"Um, I'm fine really. I'm kind of a loner."

"Well then, I'm going to prove that I'm worthy of joining you for dinner. Someday."

"Okay. Do it."