Page 41 of Wolves' Midlife Reunion
“Wait, don’t we need to bring the decorations?”
“No, honey. Vanessa’s bringing all those.”
“Oh, the lady we met at the haunted house?”
Dex turned off the main road. He could see a few people out on the football field, throwing balls around. “Yep.”
“She seemed nice. Did she go to school with you?”
Sage was chock full of questions that afternoon, but he wasn’t about to make that stop. It was far better than the way she’d been when he’d first woken her up with pancakes and scrambled eggs. Sage had eaten them begrudgingly, only deigning to speak to her father when she needed him to pass the butter.
What had followed was a long and exhausting discussion about magic. Sage had managed to convince him to at least let her continue to do the magic she knew. Dex had convinced herthat she still had plenty to learn and that she’d have to heed his advice.
He worried that he’d caved, but some of Tina and Debbie’s arguments had haunted him through the night. Telling Sage not to do any magic was akin to telling her not to read or color or laugh. It was a natural part of her, and he had to settle for things slowing down, even if he couldn’t get them to stop completely.
At least the two of them were back on good terms. Dex just wondered how long it’d be before Sage started negotiating for more. Kids would always push the envelope.
“Here we are.” He secured a spot right next to the school, as it was a late Saturday afternoon and very few others were present.
Sage got out of the car and tipped her head all the way back as she took in the height of the building. “This is where you went to school?”
“Sure is.”
“But it’s so old!” she exclaimed.
Dex had to laugh a little at that. “This building had already been standing for well over a hundred years by the time I went to school here, so it’s always been old.” He’d never appreciated that when he was younger, thinking that the shiny new buildings he saw elsewhere had to be far better. Granted, their heating was probably a lot more even, and they might not have creaky wooden floors, but Dex knew now that a place like this had a lot more character.
He brought her into the entryway. It’d felt strange to see it all again when he’d come there for the reunion, but now he was taking it in through the eyes of someone completely new to it. “There’s the trophy case. It shows all the various awards that the school has won over the years. And if you look right up there on the wall, there’s a class photo for every single class of students who graduated from here.”
Sage peered at a photo of the graduating class of ’52. “Which one are you?”
“That’s around the time your great-grandpa graduated!” He laughed, bringing her further down the hall and pointing at his own class. “I’m in this one. See if you can find me.”
“Umm…” Sage leaned close, tapping her finger on her lips. “That one!”
“Are you sure?” Dex asked. “Why do you think that one is me?”
“Because you’re making that face when you’re trying not to laugh,” she replied wisely.
“So I am. If I remember right, some of the other guys were clowning around. Let’s get in the gym and see what Vanessa needs.” He headed for the door.
“Wait!” She was still staring at the photo.
“What is it?” Dex patiently walked backward a couple of steps.
Sage pointed, keeping her finger hovering just above the glass. “That’s Tina!”
“Yes.” He didn’t have to push his face up to the frame to know what she looked like. Dex had seen that photo many times. He’d flipped through his yearbook every now and then for several years after graduating, wondering what could’ve been between them. It was usually when he was feeling most alone, or when yet another one of his friends had found their true mate and paired off.
“She’s really pretty,” Sage said, a wistful note in her voice.
Tina was sitting in the front row of the bleachers. Her hair was a bit longer back then, draping down in front of her and hiding some of her natural curves. She had cat-eye glasses that were popular at the time, although they truly looked good on her. The camera had caught her with just a hint of a smile, as though she knew something that no one else did.
“Yes, she was,” Dex agreed.
“She still is,” Sage countered.
“Vanessa is waiting for us.” He gestured toward the gym doors, glad when Sage left the photo and followed him. Dex didn’t want to think about Tina. He’d known for a very long time that he was never going to have her. Recent events had only proven him right.
