my stuff out of Sherm’s room, making room for Lee.
Chapter 8
Adri
I put on makeup this morning. I think the last time I did that was when the one and only real boyfriend I’ve ever had took me to a concert our freshman year at Clemson. It seems especially stupid because we’re going on a field trip to the water, but here I am, all dolled up, nonetheless.
But, as I watch Sherm and Rob make their way from the parking lot to my classroom, I suddenly feel like scrubbing it off. It feels like a big neon sign that says, “I’m interested.”
He’s attached. And maybe dangerous. And even if he weren’t, I don’t think I’m his type—not if that bombshell he was with the other day is. She’s everything I’m not.
The door opens, and I struggle to keep my hand from gravitating to cover my face.
“Hi, Sherm,” I say as he leads the way through.
“Hi, Miss Wilson,” he answers. He’s started talking more over the last week, volunteering things that shed a little light on his life before. I now know he misses his friends and his Legos back home, and he likes to skateboard. His favorite movie is Transformers, and he wants to be a pilot when he grows up.
It’s progress.
Sherm crosses the room to his desk, and my eyes drift of their own accord to his big brother, who stops in the door. I catch my tongue darting over my lower lip and pull it back into my mouth. Today, instead of his standard button-down dress shirt, he’s wearing a snug T-shirt with the image of a melting Rubik’s Cube on it.
“You watch The Big Bang Theory?” I ask, recognizing the shirt as one of Sheldon’s from the show. Chuck got me into it when we started hanging out after he got back from the marines.
“Grant does,” Sherm says.
I take a step closer to Rob. “So, if your brother watches the show, why are you wearing the shirt?”
“It’s possible I borrowed it from him,” he answers, glancing down at the shirt in question.
The button-downs he usually wears are tailored and fit him in a way that shows off the taper of his body, from wide shoulders, down the V of his back, to a narrow waist and hips, but the way the black brushed cotton of this T-shirt hugs his chest makes me want to touch it.
I clear my throat and remember Sherm is my focus. I move closer and lower my voice. “Sherm seems to be doing better. As you probably noticed, he’s talking more. He’s also starting to make some friends,” I say, thinking of Macie. “Overall, he seems to be adjusting.”
“Good,” he says, but a mournful shadow passes over his face as I speak.
“But academically, he’s struggling a little in math. Do you know what math they were studying in his class in Philadelphia? If it’s just that their curriculum is a little behind ours, I can catch him up on what he’s missed.”
He physically bristles at the mention of Philadelphia, and all the edges that had softened a little harden to sharp points. “He’s good about doing his own homework, so I wasn’t really keeping track.”
“We’ll sort it out. Maybe I can give him some of our past chapter tests and see where he gets hung up.”
The bell rings, and students excited for the field trip start streaming in. Theresa and I get both classes organized, and when the bus rolls up, we load them on.
With thirty-eight students, plus teachers and chaperones, we have the bus full. Once everyone’s seated and I get my final headcount, I look around for a spot. Rob stands and lets me slide into his seat up front, then lowers himself back down. I look across the aisle and see Theresa giving me a “holy fill-in-the-blank” look.
I lean back against the window to make room between us. “Did you decide to go for that job?”
“No. Not yet.”
“I sort of filled Chuck in about you and he said his boss definitely wants to talk to you. She said you can come by any time.” I lift my phone and jiggle it. “I’ll text you the address.”
He gives a slow nod and his eyes narrow a little. I’m suddenly afraid Chuck and I have overstepped and he’s going to close down altogether, but then I realize it’s curiosity I see in his eyes as they sweep over my face. “Something about you is different today.”
“I’m sorry?” I say. And then I realize.