Co-Workers With Benefits

V E N I C E

"So everyone follow me. We take our pens around like we're drawing a c shape... then we go up and come back down. Just like that." I instruct my class of four and five year olds.

I turn away from the board to face them. "Okay, now hold up your whiteboards, lemme see."

A few of them hold theirs up immediately showing me their attempt at writing the letter "d", smiling proudly from ear to ear, whilst others still have their heads down trying their hardest to copy mine as accurately as they possibly can.

"Wow guys they look great!" I scope around the class as many more boards are lifted. I praise each student individually, giving them each a thumbs up.

"Miss Carter look at mine." Ava shouts from the back, holding her board as high as she can.

"Ava that's perfect, it looks just like mine." I tell her.

She gives me a huge smile. "Thank you."

I turn my eyes away from her and look at the table by the door. I notice that Stanley hasn't yet shown me his whiteboard and I walk up to him.
He's frowning down at it with his arms crossed over his chest like he's given up trying.

"I can't do it." He sulks.

"Stanley, sweetheart it's okay if you can't get it. I'll show you again." I take his pen and demonstrate the letter again twice at the sides of his board, as I explain the steps to him once more. "Now you try."

I hand him back his pen and I watch as his eyes flicker from my "d" to the empty space. He places his pen on the board and copies mine amazingly.

"See Stanley, you can do it, that's amazing."

His face lights up and he stares at his letter. I raise my hand to him and he slaps his against it, giving me a high five.

I walk back to the front of the class and move onto the letter "e".
This one is much easier for them to write and we manage to speed past it.

By the end of the first hour, we've completed every letter up to "k" and it's time for their first break of the day.

The bell rings and my students start chatting amongst each other, calling their friends from the other end of the room and planning their coming playground adventures.

I place my finger on my lip and raise my hand and a couple students notice and copy.

I point to the ones that understood and nod my head towards the door as they get up to form a line.

The others notice and also stop talking.

"Okay, good." I say, removing my finger from my lip. "Now can I have Isabella line up please. Isaiah line up. Kaleb line up. Jessica line up..."

Once every student is in a straight line I walk to the front and open the door leading them out of the building to the playground. As soon as we get outside they all separate, running for different activities with their friends from the other pre-k classes.

I nod to the teachers on playground duty today and head back towards my class room. I tidy up the tables, placing pencils back in pots, tucking in chairs and bending down to pick ripped pieces of paper off the floor.

"Looking good Venice."

I roll my eyes, place my hand on the closest table and use it to lift myself up.

"What do you want Dion?" I look over at him as he leans against the door frame to my room.

Dion teaches the fourth grade. He's a really gorgeous brown skin man with a sleeve tattoo that he often covers with his white shirt during work hours. He's got a stud piercing on his nose and in his right ear, he's extremely buff and the braids atop his head only help to make him sexier than I already find him.