[OliverSykes] The Only Way I'll Really Smile

Five

The phone rings in the classroom, and I groan, watching as all of my students look up from their exams. It’s a distraction that I wasn’t planning on, and I hate that they get distracted during an exam with an essay to write.

Forcing myself up out of my chair behind my desk, I walk over to the other end of the classroom as quickly as I can in heels. The faster I pick up the phone, the sooner the distraction is over, and the more time my students have to write. “Hello,” I answer as I look back at my students, pointing to the clock, as if to tell them to finish their exams.

“Miss. Taylor, there is a caller on the line who wishes to speak with you. He says that he’s your cousin and it is about your grandmother.” My chest constricts at her words, fearing the worst. In her old age, all things have been going wrong, and I've been dreading the call that she’s in the hospital, or worse. “I'm going to transfer to him to this line, okay?”

I open my mouth to get a word out, but my voice is caught in my throat. My grandmother is my best friend. I couldn’t imagine life without her. There would be no other reason for him to call me during work.

“I saw you last night, Reed.” That voice, that accent: Oliver.

Tears fill my eyes, and it’s not because it’s him on the line. My entire life was about to change with one phone call, and it’s not even true. “This is Miss. Taylor. I cannot help you right now, sir. I'm at work.” Going to hang up the phone, I hear his pleading voice, calling out my name, and I stop, waiting for him to talk.

“You left last night. I didn’t get to talk to you. Why is that?” He’s still slurring his words slightly, and I have a feeling that he doesn’t really understand what he’s doing. Calling the school for a personal reason, it’s just not acceptable.

“How do you know where I work?” I say it quietly, not needing my students to hear anything from this conversation. Gossip in this school spreads fast, and anything about teachers is the most valuable information, so it spreads even faster.

Groaning, as if he’s forcing himself out of a bed, he coughs in my ear. “I talked to that friend you were with. You downgraded in the friends department, if I must say so myself, mate.” I don’t say anything, and he realizes that I have nothing to say to him.

I tried to keep in contact with him, and he knows that. He can’t blame me. I can blame him.

“You left last night. Did you not enjoy yourself?”

Rolling my eyes, I glance back at my students, to see one craning his neck a little too far to the side. “Cheat one more time during my exam and you’re getting a zero.” They all look at me, and I specifically didn’t single him out. I'm not here to embarrass him. And this way, it’s a warning to every student. I can hear Oliver start to question why I said what I did, and I can’t deal with him. I can’t handle this right now. I'm working and I hate that he thought it was appropriate to call the school to call me. So, without another word, I hang up the phone, hoping it’s the last time I hear from him.

Walking back to my desk, I sit down on the chair, suddenly not caring if the kids cheat on the exam. There’s too much going on in my mind to even pay attention to what’s going on in my classroom.

He’s changed so much. I mean, people change, so I didn’t think he would be the same exact person he was when I left.

But, he’s a drunk. I'm pretty sure he was snorting something backstage. Hell, last night I read that he peed on some girl. That’s fucking disgusting.

For whatever reason, he had to turn to this. I emailed him constantly for the longest time; each time I didn’t get a response, but I had to keep speaking to him. I had to be there for him, even though he wasn’t there for me.

Life for him, when I was there, wasn’t the best, but it wasn’t the worst.

He was bullied, a lot. There was a ton of times when he would come home with a black eye. His parents loved him, and they were always good to him. Their love for him was beyond unconditional.

I swallow the sudden lump in my throat, not wanting to think about him anymore. I can’t think of him anymore. He has way too many problems that I don’t know how to deal with. At this point, he’s the only one who can help himself. I don’t have the luxury of being associated with him; I would lose my job.

His actions are stupid. His choices are even more stupid.

He’s not the Oliver I once knew.

And he’s not the Oliver I want to know now.