Page 12 of Along Came Amor
She nodded. “Sixth grade. I teach English and social studies.”
“Where?”
“Spanish Harlem.”
“You live in New York?”
“In the Bronx.”
Good to know. “Do you enjoy teaching?”
“Mostly, but...”
She trailed off, something he noticed she tended to do when she didn’t want to say what she was really thinking. He couldn’t resist digging further. “But?”
She sighed and turned away from the sky, now painted a vivid orange, pink, and blue. “My students are great, but what I really want to do is teach drama.”
“Why can’t you?”
“When I was hired, my school’s principal promised I could implement a theater program. It’s part of why I took the position—to make theater more accessible for New York City kids. They grow up with Broadway in their backyard, but the high ticket prices make my students feel like it’s not ‘for them.’ But it’s been five years now, and the principal keeps putting me off.”
He noted her passion and her frustration. It piqued his interest, and also made him think of his sister, who could spend hours discussing the ins and outs of Broadway. It was as good a way as any of getting to know Ava better, and he found he wanted that very much.
“Musicals or plays?” he asked, since it was a topic that never failed to get Mikayla going.
“I love musicals, but I’d teach plays too.”
“What’s your favorite musical?”
“Oh, that’s a tough one. It changes all the time, and for different reasons.”
“All right, if not your favorite, what was the first show you ever saw?”
“The Phantom of the Opera,” she replied. “It was a school trip. After that, I was obsessed.”
“With the Phantom?” It was a joke, but when she hid her face, he had to know more. “What, did I just guess your secret Broadway crush?”
“Don’t laugh,” she warned.
He schooled his features. “I won’t.”
“Keep in mind that I wastwelve,” she said as a caveat. “I loved the show so much, I begged my dad to get me the CD so I could pretend to be Christine.”
“Is that...?”
“The female lead, a soprano. I used to belt the soundtrack when no one was home, and—oh god, this is too embarrassing.”
“Now youhaveto tell me.”
She put a hand over her eyes like she couldn’t look him in the face. “I also concocted elaborate fantasies about a teenage Phantom who bore a striking resemblance to Anakin Skywalker.”
“Anakin—” He broke off and swallowed a chuckle. “As in, Darth Vader?”
She pointed an accusatory finger at him. “You said you wouldn’t laugh!”
“Apologies.” He fought valiantly to keep his expression blankand his tone even. “I swear I am taking your prepubescent crushes on the Phantom of the Opera and Darth Vader very seriously.”
She sighed. “In hindsight, it was probably the first indication that I have terrible taste in men.” She ticked them off on her fingers. “Exhibit A: a man who terrorized an opera house. Exhibit B: the scourge of the galaxy. And Exhibit C: my ex-husband, a mama’s boy who never learned how to use a washing machine or write a check.”
