Chapter 2: Gavin
“Fucking hell…” My eyes opened slowly and when I reached over to stop my alarm block from blaring, I knocked over an empty whiskey bottle.
Life had been hard since my divorce. I married my high school sweetheart before we graduated from college, but we were both too young to understand how the world worked. The marriage was rocky from the start and the baby fixed things for a little bit, but then it went completely off the rails. We were both to blame. It ended with a whimper instead of an explosion, but we both agreed it wasn’t working. The worst part was losing my son. I still got to see him every other weekend, but it wasn’t nearly enough.
Shower. Coffee. Maybe I should go for coffee first.
I was never much of a drinker when I was younger. I didn’t party in high school, and college was spent focusing on my GPA. What little free time I had was spent with Amy, the girl I would eventually marry. After the divorce was finalized, I found comfort in the bottle. By day, I was Mr. King, the studious literature teacher at Glendale High School. By night, I was a slave to the only thing that helped me sleep. I wasn’t looking for love or a second chance at eternal happiness. I was just looking to numb the pain so I could put one foot in front of the other when the sun came up. The routine kept me going. The end of the summer meant that my drinking had to be scaled back, at least during the day.
PLEASE GOD, JUST FOCUS on your work and stop looking at me.
I was tired of the high school brats I had to teach every day. They were annoying Post-Millennials that barely put any effort into their work. I had considered tendering my resignation over the summer, but I stayed too drunk for any real productivity.
The worst thing about high school girls was the way they looked at me. I knew I was physically attractive. I had never been much of a narcissist, but when the students weren’t fawning over me, it was my co-workers. There were enough sexual innuendos and silly smiles on both fronts to let me know exactly what they fantasized about. I used to think it was cute, but it had become nothing short of annoying as the years went on.
“So, will you be up all night grading my paper or thinking about me?” A pretty blonde student that was nothing but jailbait winked at me as she put her paper on my desk.
“If it is half as bad as your first paragraph, it won’t take me long to write an F on it.” I sighed as I looked at her paper.
“You’re an asshole.” She glared at me and wrinkled her nose.
“And you just got yourself a trip to detention, young lady.” I slammed my hand down on the desk. “Go ahead and find a comfortable seat in Principal Wilson’s office.”
“Whatever.” She rolled her eyes and flipped her hair as she walked towards the door.
MY STINT AS THE DETENTION warden was over, and while I expected it to be rather boring, I got an interesting surprise when parents started arriv
ing to pick up their brats. Most of them ignored me and concealed their shame with a quick smile. Some gave me a stare that indicated they blamed me, even if I wasn’t the one that made their shining star stay after school.
One of the brats turned out to be Charlotte Baker’s little sister. Charlotte was one student I would never forget. She had so much potential, but she wasted it because she wanted to be the cool kid. She never gave a shit about her grades and half the work she turned in was crap she stole off the Internet. I had to applaud her creativity though, because she always rewrote her assignments with enough of a change to get by.
Charlotte Baker. Damn, you got hot.
It was a brief conversation, but I couldn’t easily ignore the woman she had become. She was one of the brats that always liked to tease me with her innuendos, but I wasn’t interested when I was married and she was young enough to get me arrested. Three years had passed since I had seen her at graduation and while it wasn’t that long, she had developed quite nicely. I never looked at another woman while I was married, much less a high school girl, but I didn’t just look twice at Charlotte—I watched her until she disappeared out of sight. Our conversation had been brief, but it replayed in my head when I got home and twisted the top off of my nightly alcoholic distraction.
I probably should have just asked her out. She’s not a student at Glendale High School anymore…
I WAS STILL THINKING about Charlotte the next day when my hangover started to wear off. She was so damn beautiful and I was curious to know if she really had come into her own at college. I didn’t have detention duty on the second day of school, but there was still enough work to keep me busy until most of the teachers were gone. The students that took my class got several assignments to complete over the summer, so I started the year with a backlog of work. I didn’t mind because it gave me a good idea of what I needed to work on when the school year started. Even if was drowning my sorrows nightly, I still wanted to be a good teacher.
My eyes must be deceiving me. I really have been staring at these papers for too long.
When Charlotte appeared at the door of my classroom, I was convinced that I was hallucinating. Surprisingly, she took the initiative and suggested that I ask her out. I wasn’t sure if it was still some obsession left over from her high school days, but I couldn’t say no. I hadn’t been on an actual date since my divorce and while a date with Charlotte wasn’t going to be applauded by the principal or the school board, I was willing to take the risk. I would have been a fool to reject her. If she really was the kind of girl her reputation suggested she was, it would be one hell of date—a happy ending was almost guaranteed.
OKAY, THIS IS HER ADDRESS.
I parked my car in Charlotte’s driveway and turned off the ignition. It had been so long since I had been out on a date that I could feel uneasiness in my stomach. I opened the door and walked up her steps, pausing when my finger was inches from the doorbell. Once I rang it, there would be no turning back. Charlotte was so incredibly hot, so unbelievably beautiful, and if her reputation was any indication, there was a good chance I wouldn’t be going to bed alone.
Here goes nothing.
I hit the doorbell with my finger and took a step back, clutching a bouquet of flowers in my hands. I wasn’t sure if flowers were still a respectable gift, but it felt right. I heard footsteps inside and I waited to see the face of my date, but when the door opened, I saw her sister Veronica instead. Veronica wrinkled her nose as if she was disgusted and shook her head. After a couple of seconds, she pulled the door back.
“Come in, Mr. King.” She stared as I walked inside. “Are those for me?”
“No.” I shook my head back and forth. “They’re for your sister.”
“Way to win me over. I’m the one you should be trying to impress. She’s already going on a date with you. I’m the judgmental little sister.” She narrowed her eyes and then turned towards the stairs. “He’s here!”
“Sorry, Veronica. Maybe I’ll remember to bring flowers for you next time.” My lips formed a half smile. “Perhaps if you stay out of detention…”