Page 18 of The Overdue Kiss

I pull down the bin on top of my textbook cabinet, the one I keep stocked year-round, and let him peruse it. He grabs basic hygiene supplies and a handful of granola bars.

“Um...” I put a hand on his arm to stop him before he puts the deodorant in his bag.What’s the nicest way I can word this?“Go ahead and put a little of that on before you put it away.”

“Oh, good call, Mr. B.”

“You won’t be attracting Kiera smelling like you do.” I wink, remembering his red-headed crush from last year.

“Pfft. Kiera be print and I’m going digital. Belle be dazzlin’ now.”

What-the-what?Digital? Dazzlin’? I shake my head. Trying to keep up with their lingo is a full-time job.

“I think I translated what you said, but you know the rules. You gotta speak ‘old school’ in my classroom.”

“Real deal.”

I raise a brow.

“Yes, sir,” he amends.

“Much better. Now take what you need and leave the rest for the others.”

“Real—yes, sir.”

He digs back into the bin, grabbing more snacks. I return to my desk, giving the boy some privacy. My fists uncurl as suppressed memories of my past, of being in Robbie’s shoes, spring from the mental vault I’d locked them in. Being a mountain town, the population ranged from billionaires to welfare. It’s hard to have such a mix. The struggling kids never want to speak up, hoping to fit in.

I remember what that was like. I remember being the weird, skinny geek with the intoxicated mother everyone joked about. It was my motivation to make something of myself, but somehow, I still ended up back here in Rocosa.

“Thanks for all the help, Mr. B,” Robbie says, hiking up his backpack strap on one shoulder. “You da prez, real deal.” He’s joking, but his eyes are unexpectedly misty.

Or maybe God placed me right where I’m needed most?

“Thanks.” I smile as he heads back into the hall, munching on his granola bar.

With a sigh, I turn back to the ginormous Smart Board behind me. Things like numbers and facts come easily to me, but sometimes learning new electronics... does not. I brace myself for the painful learning curve I’m facing with only minutes before school starts.

I’ve managed to get my syllabus up on the screen, though it’s zoomed in too closely, when the first bell chimes and students funnel into my classroom.

“Mr. B,” a few of them shout.

After a few seconds, the sound spikes to a painful decibel that rattles my skull.

“Class,” I say with my stern teacher’s voice and point down. “Noise level needs to go dooown. The louder you are, the more I feel like giving you homework next period. Remember that...”

A few of them grumble, mostly the new kids. My usual students know I mean business, leaning in to whisper with their friends before the second bell rings and homeroom starts. Since it’s a small school, their homeroom and first period are the same class. So I always let them catch up with their friends—quietly—or work on homework before first period starts. But since it’s the first day, I have to give them all the mandatory spiel even if they’ve heard it before.

“All right, let’s see if I can work this thing.” I pick up a stylus and write my name on the screen just as the second bell rings. Instant relief hits me when my chicken-scratch print appears over the syllabus. “Quiet, everyone. Let me start with introductions for the new students. I’m Mr. Brooks, your homeroom and Geometry teacher.”

“Or as we like to call him, Mr. B,” Drake shouts from the back row.

I chuckle. “Yes, I’ll answer to Mr. Brooks and Mr. B, but no ‘Prez,’ ‘Bruh,’ ‘Bro,’ ‘My boy,’ ‘Teach,’ etc. I have a firm rule that while you’re in my class, we only speak ‘old school.’ Aka, standard English.”

I open my mouth to continue when a new student blurts out a question.

“What about ‘Wheels’? I’ve seen your sweet ride. It’s siiick. If that’s what teachers can afford, sign me up.”

The new kid holds out a fist for Robbie to bump in agreement, but he ignores it. Robbie knows it’s not worth it to rile me up.

My brain sorts through the attendance list, searching for this kid’s name, and stops at Evan Mortan. His father recently inherited a few million and is investing in the new luxury resort and time-shares in the mountains just north of us.

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