Infinite

Chapter 7: Only Temporary- Part 1

Seabrook, Texas, at Vanguard Preparatory, on Friday, September 20th, 2030 at 7:00 am

Rachel

Anne and I pull up to the school and I park in my usual spot in the side lot. It's the closest entrance to my office.

"Wow," Anne says from the passenger seat. The school is a beautiful tan masonry with vines traveling up the sides. It's three stories tall and looks like an English mansion. The lawn is a rich dark green with a small fountain in the middle. The pathways are newer stonework because it had to be replaced a few years ago.

"Yeah, I feel like royalty every day!" I say to her as I hop out of the car. We head towards the side doors, and as I'm about to unlock the door it swings open.

"Howdy!" Tyler says as he holds it open for us. "Anne! What do we owe the pleasure?" Tyler has on a colorful sweater vest over a light blue button down. He almost always wears khakis.

"Long story short, my house has termites so I'm staying at Rachel's, and I was supposed to be in court today but the judge got sick, so Rachel brought me with her!"

Tyler's mouth falls open when he hears the word 'termite'. He shivers dramatically and Anne laughs.

"That's gnarly," Tyler says, still freaking out.

"Can we all stay at Rachel's?" Erika says as she pops out of her office. All of our doors are in the same hallway. It makes the day more fun, for sure. "A slumber party!" she squeals as she hugs Anne. She has on a bright blue loose fitting dress and a white sweater. She's always so colorful. We all chat for a moment before Artemis comes down the hall.

"Hello beautiful people!" she sings. Artemis has on a floor length poncho that looks like it's made of silk. It's full of different colored flowers. "We have an emergency meeting to get to!" she continues to belt out to us.

"What? I didn't see an email this morning," I say quickly as I pull out my phone.

"It was just sent out a few minutes ago. Let's walk together and talk about this slumber party we are having at Rachel's." Artemis giggles and we all head down the hall to the band room.

We hold meetings here when it's all staff because it has enough seats for everyone. The room is mostly full when we arrive, and I see our Dean of Students, Casey, standing at the podium in front. She doesn't look stressed, she looks more excited.

"Okay, it looks like almost everyone is here," she says, her voice immediately quieting down the room. "Thank you all for responding promptly to your emails, I apologize for the last minute notification." She nods at us sympathetically, knowing that these kinds of things throw off our morning prep. "I called you all here today to let you know that Principal Jeffreys had her baby at four in the morning!" Everyone cheers and claps.

We have been waiting for this day.

"She and baby Jonas are doing great, and we flew in her long term replacement early this morning, he should be getting here any minute." The staff starts chattering about the principal and her new baby.

"Oh, welcome!" Casey says warmly as she turns to shake the hand of the man who just walked in.

"Pleasure to meet ya."

My jaw drops as I hear a very familiar voice.

"Oh my god, there's no way," Artemis says quietly next to me.

"What's wrong?" Anne asks, turning her attention towards the podium.

"Everyone, I would like you to meet the long term replacement for Principal Jeffreys. This is Sam Marconi, the Vice Principal at Westlake Academy up in Dallas."

I can hear Anne audibly gasp next to me. My hands are starting to sweat, and my heart is either beating so fast that I can't feel it, or it has stopped beating altogether.

"Hello, everyone. I'm happy to be here. I hope to be a support system for all of you here." Sam smiles broadly at the room, his eyes searching the small crowd. They finally meet mine, sending a jolt down my spine. "Please don't hesitate to come and talk to me and ask me questions." He doesn't look surprised to see me at all, but like he has been anticipating this moment for a while. A few staff members walk up to introduce themselves to Sam.

"Let's go," I whisper to my friends. They're all still staring at me, totally shocked. "Now, please!" I push my way through the staff and out into the hallway.

I let out a deep exhale. I think I had been holding my breath that whole time. I check my digital watch.

7:10 am.

The students are going to be released from the cafeteria soon.

"Oh my god!" Artemis exclaims as she puts a hand on my arm. "What are you gonna do?" she asks me in a whisper. I shake my head at her, at a total loss for words. "What is he doing here?"

"I have no clue, what am I supposed to do?" My friends offer me sympathetic looks, but no one says anything. "How do I tell Lucas? Do I even tell him?" I start panicking.

"Hey, let's go to your office," Anne says quietly as she places a hand on my shoulder. I nod at her and she starts to guide me back. My friends follow closely behind us. I don't even pay attention to where we are walking, but Anne finds the offices again.

"Let us know if you need anything, today!" Erika calls out.

"Yeah, absolutely," Tyler adds before ducking into his office. Artemis joins Anne and I in my office as she closes the door behind her. Kids begin filling the halls as they move to their first class.

"Oh, sugar plum," Artemis says as she sighs deeply. "You just can't catch a break, can ya?"

I laugh uncomfortably as I lean against my desk. I look at all the pictures I have on my walls of friends and family. My eyes focus on a photo of Lucas and I from Halloween. He was dressed as an alien and I was dressed as an astronaut. My heart starts to ache.

"Lucas and I are just starting to work things out and communicate with each other," I say quietly.

"You have to tell him, Rach," Anne says gently. "He will be furious with you if you don't and he finds out."

"What if it hurts him more knowing that he's here, though?" I begin. They look at me confused. "He's only going to be here until the end of the semester, and then he leaves again," Artemis shrugs.

"I'm not sure which option is better. They both suck," we all chuckle lightly. The bell rings through the halls. It's time to head to my classroom for the first period. "We can talk about this later, pumpkin," Artemis smiles and gives me a quick hug before leaving the room. I look over at Anne, pressing my tongue against my bottom lip and shaking my head. She bursts out laughing.

"Oh man, what are you going to do, Rach?" I laugh with her, trying to release some anxiety.

"I am going to go and teach about linear and nonlinear relationships because there's nothing that I can do about it right now," I pick up the folder off of my desk marked with my lesson plan for today and head down to my classroom with Anne.