Page 28 of We Can Forever

I’ll need to ask around town.

“Michael, honey. You’re early.” My mom steps out of the elementary school office to greet me.

I freeze in the hallway. She must have seen me through the glass door. If I’d known she would be in there, I would have taken the other way around.

“Yeah, I want to talk to one of Katie’s teachers before school gets out.” I stuff my hands into my jeans, hoping she doesn’t ask any more questions but knowing she will.

It’s not like I was avoiding running into my mother here—she does teach at this school after all—I just would prefer to skip an interrogation. Jenny got it from somewhere, and, well…this is where she got it from.

It doesn’t help that the two of them live together, which means it’s just a tornado of probing and unsolicited advice over at their house.

“Oh?” Her eyebrows rise. “Who?”

“Maya.”

She cocks her head and folds her arms. “Is something going on in art class? Katie?—”

“No, it’s about something else.”

She studies me. “I thought you were seeing the owner of the yarn shop. Are you dating Maya too?”

A couple teachers walk by, glancing at us in interest.

“No, Mom,” I say quickly, not wanting to start a rumor about my dating multiple women.

Not that Hannah and I are exclusive. We’ve only been out a couple times—three, if you count coffee—but I don’t want to date anyone else. Most of all, I want Hannah to know that I don’t want to.

“Hmm.” She’s still giving me that look like I’ve been caught doing something at the back of the classroom I shouldn’t be, passing notes or hiding my Game Boy behind my textbook.

It wasn’t fun when I was her actual student twenty-five years ago, and it isn’t fun now.

“I’ll see you later.” I walk past her.

“Oh. Michael,” she calls out, but I’m already around the corner and pretending like I don’t hear.

A part of me feels guilty about that, but I didn’t come here to catch up with family. I came here for information.

Maya’s classroom door is propped open and empty, but I knock on it anyway. She looks up from where she’s standing at her desk, a brown-haired young woman that I’ve spotted working the drop-off and pickup lines.

“Hello,” she says softly.

“Hi.” I take a cautious step into the classroom, not wanting to intrude too much on her space without an invitation. “I’m?—”

“Michael. Katie’s dad.”

“Yeah.” My shoulders relax. If she knows I’m Katie’s dad, does that mean she knows I’m dating Hannah? According to Jenny, Maya has been going to Hannah’s crafting group for women with chronic pain.

What sort of condition does Maya have? Looking at her now, she doesn’t seem any different from anyone else. But that’s just a reminder that we never truly know what people are going through. We can take a quick glance at someone and make all kinds of assumptions that don’t even come close to hitting the mark.

“Is this an all right time?” I ask. There aren’t any students in her room, so I’m praying that I’ve scored when it comes to timing.

“It’s perfect. This is my planning period for the week.”

I clear my throat. “I wanted to ask you some questions…about Hannah.”

Her eyes widen. “Oh. Sure. Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, yeah. I just…” I shift my weight, surprised at how nervous I am. “We’ve gone out on a few dates, and I would really like to get your advice on…on planning a date that works for someone with chronic pain.”

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