Page 36 of My Only

“I’m all set.”

“Aight, cool.”

He turned to leave, then cursed under his breath and doubled back.

Before I could blink, he was in front of me, crouching down and pressing a long, deep kiss to my lips.

I cupped his face, my thumbs stroking his jaw.

“I love you, A,” he whispered against my lips.

“I love you.”

Then he was gone, leaving me alone for breakfast—one of the rarest times that had ever happened.

During the summer, my car got more action, but even then, I mostly used my days to catch up on the rest I never got during the school year.

I couldn’t remember the last time I had driven to work.

The drive was smooth. Parking, however, was a nightmare.

It felt weird sitting in the car alone.

Without Hassani beside me, the ride felt quiet.

Lonely.

When he drove, my mind could wander as I ran my mouth in the passenger seat, while he leaned forward in his seat, checking his mirrors or cussing under his breath at whoever he swore had no business in the left lane.

I missed that already.

Still, I got to my destination safely, and hopefully, Hassani and I could still meet for lunch.

Then he could tell me everything about his meeting.

From what he had explained, Bryant Greene’s project was major.

Hassani hadn’t been given much detail for confidentiality reasons, but he knew the job would have him as the principal architect overseeing several projects.

I wondered if this meeting would finally give him more insight—whether today was the day he found out exactly what he was being asked to design.

I parked a few blocks north of my school, as usual.

As I crossed the street, I noticed a few teachers gathered outside near the entrance.

Unusual.

At this hour—half an hour before our students arrived—we were usually setting up our classrooms or catching up in the breakroom over coffee.

Seeing some of the ladies outside the doors made me quicken my steps.

Something was wrong.

“Hey, good morning, y’all.” I greeted them as I walked up, scanning their faces. “What’s going on?”

Valerie pressed a hand to my shoulder.

“Girl.”

---