ChristopherI got to class early, but instead of hoping to catch a few minutes with Leila, I wanted to talk with Alan. It was the last day of the class and I wanted to make sure I kept in touch with him. He was the only friend I had made in Texas thus far. Leila had made it very clear she didn’t want to talk with me outside the classroom. Hell, she didn’t want to talk to me in the classroom, for that matter.Class had been tense. At least it had been tense for me. She’d been very cool, ignoring me as best she could. I had stopped asking questions about the material and opted to do my own research. I hated that one blip in time had created a huge divide between us.I liked her. Not just because of the attraction I felt towards her, but I liked her in general. I had enjoyed talking with her and getting to know her better. Now, I hoped I never had to see her again and be reminded of the momentary lapse in judgment.I paused in the hallway, almost afraid to see her sitting at her desk. It

LeilaI had finished my last class for the year. I was officially on break. It was freeing and alienating at the same time. I liked teaching. I liked the interactions. I liked having somewhere to be. If I was smart, I would take advantage of the break and get some of those little projects done around the house. Unfortunately, I had been saying that with every break, and usually very little actually got done.I shut the door to the class and headed for my office. I would spend the night grading tests, which might not sound exciting to some people, but I was thrilled with the idea. I liked the quiet nights at home when I could burn a fire in the fireplace and sip wine while wearing my pajamas. Grading papers could be cathartic at times.Other times it could be a serious headache, but mostly, I liked to see the fruits of my labor. I liked to see how much or how little of an impression I made on my students. I needed to pick up a couple of things from my office, swing by the grocery store

ChristopherI woke up early. The feeling of being back home in my own bed I had not been as inviting as one would think. It felt wrong. I had just finally gotten used to the new mattress in Texas. The bed in Minnesota was the same bed I had shared with my wife.It felt strange to be in the house. We’d only been gone a short time, but it already felt different. Like we were visiting a rental and not truly home. At least that was how I felt. Olin had settled right in. He’d spent the last couple days with his friends. I had worried he would get into trouble, but he promised me that was behind him.I hoped so.I sipped my coffee, staring out the window at the white landscape. I missed my view in the mornings. I missed seeing the sun coming up. It was snowing again, which I supposed was okay given the day, but I had about enough snow in my lifetime.I headed into the main living room where Olin and I had set up the huge live tree we had picked out together. We’d decorated it with the ornam

ChristopherI stared at the bubbles for several minutes. How long did it take to type out a damn message? I was all thumbs and I managed to text relatively quickly. I stared at the screen so long my eyes began to water from lack of blinking as I made my way downstairs.“Come on, come on,” I whispered.The bubbles disappeared. I waited, thinking maybe there was a minor delay. Nothing.“No!”“What’s wrong?” Olin asked coming down the stairs.I shook my head. “Nothing.”“Does this mean dinner isn’t coming?” he asked, straightening his tie.“It should be here any minute,” I answered. “You look nice.”He scoffed. “I hate wearing ties.”“Wait until you get a job that requires ties,” I said with a laugh.“Nope. I’m not going to get that kind of a job.”“You planning on going into construction?”He grimaced. “No.”“Then get used to ties.”The doorbell rang, bringing a halt to the conversation. I walked to the door, opening it for the small parade of caterers. The smell of the roast turkey fil

LeilaWe were crazy. I knew we were crazy, but it never stopped us. The best sales, sales that paled in comparison to the Black Friday sales, were the day after Christmas. It was a tradition for me and Kami to get up early and hit the stores, scooping up some great deals. It was one of the few days of the year we were both off.We trudged our way into a sea of people all with the same idea. Kids were hyped up on Christmas candy, waving gift cards around and acting like they had won the lottery. I stepped around a crowd of blonde kids that were all shouting at their poor parents at once. The noise level in the Target we had walked into was just below that of a rock concert.“I think I would take them one at a time,” I said to Kami as we walked by.“No kidding. That would give me a headache. Those are some brave parents.”“I think I would rather shop online,” I said.She laughed. “I don’t think those kids think that is nearly as fun.”“Then I would drag them out at midnight. It’s like h