Professor Series - Andy Barber💜

Chapter 2

Andy watched Jacob look over the menu as they sat in their local diner. "I'm sorry your mom is working late again."

Jacob shrugged, not looking up, "it's fine dad. I like this place."

Angela sat in the back corner of the diner, reading when her manager, Linda came up to her.

"Table for you Angie. Front, father and son."

She sighed, shutting her book as she stood up. She tied her apron on as she approached the table, smiling when she saw who it was. "Mr. Barber."

Andy looked up at Angela's voice, shaking his head, "Ms. Pruitt."

She smiled, looking from Andy to Jacob, pointing at her name tag, "my name is Angela. What would you like to drink dear?"

Jacob smiled, "Jacob. And coke, please."

She nodded as she looked at Andy, "and you?"

Andy smiled, "just water. Thank you, Angela."

She winked at him before she walked away, returning back a minute later with their drinks. She took their orders, before going to sit back down at her booth, reading. She looked up to see Andy now watching her before going back to talking to Jacob.

"Dad?"

Andy looked back at Jacob, "yeah bud?"

"Are you and mom going to get a divorce?"

Andy leaned back as he crossed his arms, "why do you ask that?"

Jacob shrugged, "because you hardly ever talk. She's never home. When she is, you don't seem happy. It's been worse since the trial." Jacob looked down at his soda as he heard Andy groan.

"For one, I don't want you to think that any of it has anything at all to do with you, because it most definitely doesn't. I promise Jacob, we've been having trouble with communication for a few years. And I don't really know what's going to happen bud." He sighed, "I'm trying."

Jacob nodded as he watched Andy look past him again. He looked behind him to see their waitress at a booth, studying, "is she a student of yours?"

"What?" Andy heard Jacob laugh as he looked back at him, "what did you say, I'm sorry."

Jacob shook his head, "never mind."

Angela brought the Barber boys their food, smiling at them both, "anything else you boys need?" She saw Jacob chuckle before looking back at Andy.

"We're okay. Thank you." She nodded, walking away as Andy heard Jacob laughing, "what?"

Jacob shook his head, "you haven't stopped looking at her since we got here. Can I ask you something?"

Andy shrugged, "of course."

"Have you ever cheated on mom?"

Andy shook his head, "what?! No, never. Why do you ask?"

He shrugged, "I don't know. I've seen women looking at you, but I've never seen you pay attention to another woman. And with mom gone all the time, do you think she could be seeing someone?"

Andy sat looking at his son, unsure what to say. "Well, I hadn't thought about the possibility of her seeing someone else until right now, so thank you for that. And I've never even thought about cheating on your mother. I'm not dead though, I do look."

Jacob nodded, "our waitress is your student?"

Andy nodded, "one of them, yeah. Why?"

Jacob laughed, shrugging, "she's hot dad. I wouldn't blame you."

Andy chuckled, shaking his head, "despite the fact that I'm married and I love your mother, she's my student. I would be fired if not worse."

Jacob shrugged, "you love her, are you in love with her?"

Andy cleared his throat as Angela came back to the table, refilling their drinks for them.

She came back to the table, smiling at Jacob, "can we talk your dad into a milkshake or some ice cream?"

Jacob laughed, "I'm okay. Thank you though." He stood up from the table, "I'm gonna go to the bathroom. I'll be right back."

She shrugged, looking at Andy, "what about you? Anything else you need?" She leaned towards him at the table.

Andy chuckled, "I need you to stop flirting with me Ms. Pruitt."

She nodded, "you don't like it?" She saw him hesitate, making her laugh, "I thought so." She leaned in towards him, lowering her voice, "did you think about me?"

Andy shook his head, "why are you doing this?"

She shrugged, "you're hot and obviously neglected." She grabbed both their plates, "anything else Barber?" She smiled, placing the ticket on the table.

"No Ms. Pruitt. Thank you." He watched her walk away with the plates as Jacob came back to the table. "You do that on purpose?"

Jacob smiled, shrugging, "do what?" He laughed as Andy shook his head, standing up.

Andy grabbed the ticket as he pulled money from his wallet, "I'll be out in a minute." He put on his coat as Jacob went outside. He stopped Angela as she went to walk past him, handing her the ticket and the money as he leaned down to her ear, "of course I've thought about you."

Angela grinned as Andy pulled away, smiling at her before he left.

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Andy watched Laurie enter the bedroom late again as he sat there. "Can I ask you something?"

Laurie shrugged as she began to change clothes, "sure."

Andy sighed, "you'd never cheat, right? If you're unhappy, you would just say something?"

Laurie chuckled, crawling into bed, "why would you think I'm cheating?"

Andy shrugged, "working late. You're distant when you are here. You never touch me anymore. What's the point?"

Laurie scoffed as she laid down, pulling the blanket over her, "so this is because we don't have enough sex?"

"Not just. No." He laid down, resting himself up on one arm as he looked at her, "if you're unhappy, then you should just say so rather than finding someone else. I've had plenty of offers over the years, but I've never strayed."

"Offers? Trying to make me jealous? Are you unhappy Andy?"

"Yes! I've been saying I am for a while. You don't listen to me." He sighed, "and no. I'm not trying to make you jealous. I'm just saying that you're going to push me away."