Danger Us

He walked back into his room slightly more relaxed. He felt bad that he got so angry with Keri and punished the class for it, but it was too late to go back. He fretted it even more when he realized he'd have to read and grade all of the papers. He shook his head thanking the maker he wasn't an English Literature teacher.

***

It was in the fourth period when Julie had her lunch that she heard the rumors.

"Julie, what's with the shirt?" Alice Reynolds one of the other Math teachers asked. "Half the school thinks you're sleeping with him and the other half thinks you're making fun of him."

"Oh my God!" Julie said. "I was just trying to break the ice with him. He's been cold to me and I thought he'd find it funny. I didn't think anyone would think that I'm sleeping with him or making fun of him."

Alice shook her head and said, "Well, dear, you failed." She began to laugh and walked away.

Julie couldn't understand how she could've been so ignorant. She didn't even consider other people's reactions to the shirt. She only wore it for Kyle's reaction.

No wonder he was so mad at me when he saw it this morning.

***

The period bell rang and Kyle had his lunch break. He typically stayed in his room and ate at his desk. A few minutes into the period, Principal Danning walked into the room.

"Kyle, what the hell is going on between you and Julie Tyson? The school is in an uproar of rumor and gossip."

"I have no idea," he said. "I don't know why she wore that damn shirt and I'm pretty upset over it."

"What shirt?"

"The cartoon character on her shirt is named Mr. Mackey."

She laughed and said, "Ah. That explains the rumors. What's the real reason, I wonder?"

"Who knows. I was pretty upset when I saw it and didn't bother asking her. I figure she's just making fun of my name again."

"Again? Do we have a problem I have to get involved in?"

"No, Vickie. Until today, it hasn't bothered anyone and was a minor irritant. We can handle it between us. You don't have to get involved any further."

"Alright. Just get it settled and over with. I don't need any more scandals," she said only half-joking.

Kyle got even angrier over the shirt. Principal Danning getting involved was the last straw, even though the camel's back was already broken in his opinion.

***

After the last period, Kyle was packing his bag when there was a knock at his door. He looked up and saw that it was Julie.

"Ah! Just the person I wanted to talk with," he said.

She hesitated walking in when she heard his angry tone but steeled herself to apologize through his anger.

She closed the door behind her and walked to his desk. He didn't rise or invite her to sit, so she took a deep breath and said, "I'm sorry that I upset you by wearing this shirt. I didn't consider what the students would think, I screwed up."

"Yeah. Big time," he said. "Vickie paid me a visit because of the rumors."

She hung her head and said, "I was only trying to make you laugh. You've been so cold to me, I wanted to overcome..."

"You think that you can make fun of me again and that will make some kind of friendship blossom? Are you crazy?"

She flinched at his anger but was confused.

"What do you mean again, I've never..."

"Please, just leave. I'll tell Vickie everything is fine between us. Lord knows I don't want any issues with her because of you. Just leave me alone, I'll leave you alone, and everything will be fine."

She was shocked. He wouldn't accept her apology and was talking about her making fun of him again. She couldn't understand why he'd think that she had once, let alone that she was doing it again. She wished he wasn't so mad so they could just talk about it.

She quietly said, "I never meant for any of this. I'm very sorry," and walked out of the room with a tear streaming down her cheek.

She almost bumped into Jenny walking across the hall. Jenny saw her face and pulled her into her classroom closing the door behind her.

"Jesus, what happened in there?"

"I tried to apologize. This whole thing has blown up the school. I never considered what the kids would think and they ran off and started all kinds of rumors. I just thought he would find it funny that I wore a Mr. Mackey t-shirt. I didn't mean to embarrass him."

"Oh, girl, he's not embarrassed, he's pissed. He thinks you're making fun of him. He's got a real complex over it."

"Oh no! That explains why he shut down on the day we met. I said m'kay to him. He thought I was making fun of him. Damn, I wasn't. I'm just a fan of the show and thought he'd get a kick out of it. I didn't know he had emotional issues over it."

"Sounds to me as if he needs a shrink," Jenny said.

"I have to clear this up. I have to make him understand," Julie said. "Let's see if he's still here."

They walked out and saw that his door was closed and the light out.

"Damn! He left," Julie said. "I'll talk to him tomorrow and try to make it right."

***

Kyle was sitting in his favorite Italian restaurant later that day having dinner alone. He calmed down after the argument with Julie, but he was in one of his depressed states.

He knew that he was overreacting, unfortunately for him, he couldn't control his feelings sometimes. He was trying to figure out why it angered him so much that Julie did it when he heard a voice from behind him.

"May I sit for a moment," Julie said.

She watched his shoulders slump and then he silently extended his hand towards the chair opposite his.

He watched her sit and before he could speak the waiter came over with her meal.

"I had already ordered when I saw you sitting here. I hope you don't mind?" She asked.

"No, the Eggplant Parmesan is very good here. I don't mind you having it."

She smiled and said, "Well, it seems you're a comedian away from school."

"Look, Julie..."

"No, wait. Please let me apologize again. I'm truly sorry about saying m'kay to you when we met. I'm a fan of the show and I honestly thought you'd find it funny. I had no idea that you would take it differently."

He looked into her pretty blue eyes as she spoke and he believed her. In an instant, his anger melted and he was lost in her eyes.

She reached across the table and took his hand, "Kyle, I swear on my life I did not wear that shirt today to make fun of you. I thought that you'd get a kick out of it and start talking to me."

He smiled softly and said, "I know that now. For whatever reason, I'm over-sensitive about the Mr. Mackey thing. I've tried over the years to bury it and for the most part, I have. I've been thinking about it and I think I got angry with you because I was immediately attracted to you. I didn't want you to be like the kids that tormented me in high school."

She took a sip of her wine and said, "You like me huh?"

She smiled as he shifted uncomfortably.

He said, "I did for about twenty seconds. You kinda ruined my first impression of you."

"Will you forgive me for that? Can we start again?" She pleaded.

He took a deep breath and said, "I'd like to."

"Good. I'll consider this our first date then."

He almost choked on his wine when she said that.

"How can I go from wanting to scream at you to being on a date with you in a matter of a few hours?"

She smirked and said, "Good luck."

***

"So what brought you to Jeff High, Julie?" He asked as they walked in the crisp Spring air.

"I was a sub bouncing around a large district upstate. I had taken the job as part of a program where they will pay for a portion of your student loans if you work in low-income areas."

"I considered that myself," he said. "Math and science teachers get more of a benefit."

"Exactly. It was a large enough district that I was able to be full-time while substitute teaching. Bouncing around isn't fun, let me assure you."

"I bet."

"I did have some longer-term assignments with several teachers having maternity leave and other FMLA leaves, so it wasn't a horrible five years. But when the five-year commitment was up, I left."

"Kind of a big leap, going from the inner city to Jefferson," he said.

"Yes, I had to. I wanted to be in an environment where the teachers wanted to teach and the students wanted to learn. Don't get me wrong, there are many kids in those schools that do their best, but the gangs and other bad elements are tough to handle."

He looked at her and wondered how she could've handled it at all.

"I had to get out of there, Kyle. I was constantly harassed and had little control of the classrooms. I'm not a very strong person, I guess I'm too much of a wimp for those kids. They walked all over me."

She took his hand as they walked on.

"I guess I wanted my job to be easier. Please don't think lesser of me for that, but after all of the abuse I've taken from some of those kids, I needed a break."

"Were you assaulted?"

"Yes," she said with a tear falling down her cheek.

"He was a thug from the neighborhood. He grabbed me and told me I needed a real man. I was saved by the security guard, who just happened to be walking by. He had my blouse ripped open but got no farther. He's in jail now."

"Jesus, I'm sorry," he said pulling her into a hug.

She sniffed back another tear and said, "I saw a shrink for a year after that. I didn't want to look at men let alone talk to any. It's only been the last few months where I have the desire to date again."

"Funny how that coincides with your move here."

"Actually, yes. I finally feel safe again. You don't know how hard it is to live in fear of being attacked again."

"No, I suppose I don't."

"We've been walking for a while. Where are we?" She asked.

"We're about a mile from Main Street and the restaurant."

"This is a nice little neighborhood. It looks familiar, is Cherry Street around here?"

He looked around and said, "Yes, two streets over. Why?"

"I live on Cherry Street. I walked to the restaurant."

"Do you know where Kenworth Street is?" He asked.

"Yes. Two streets over from Cherry."

"I live on Kenworth."

"You jerk!" She said, slapping his bicep.

"Yeah, I guess I lied about not living in town. Sorry."

"You're forgiven. No more lies, buster."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Kyle, may I ask you an odd question that's been bothering me?"

"Sure."

"Why do you dress so well for school. I mean, most male teachers wear a pretty standard white shirt, khakis, and ugly tie. You, well you just look yummy."

He laughed and said, "It's my Mr. Mackey issue. I never want students to have a reason for disliking me or picking on me, so I try to be a nice guy and I dress nicely. I guess it's all in my head but I'm used to it. My ex called it some technical term, but I don't remember what it was."

"Your ex?"

"Yeah, she was my therapist. It was kind of strange but sparks flew and she told me that she'd rather date me than be my counselor. So I dropped her and began to date her."

"May I ask what happened?"

"Sure. I proposed last Summer and she said no. She told me that she was holding out for someone more wealthy."

"Wow!"

"I know, right? She knew I was a teacher when we met. She knew what she was getting into and still dated me. I'm not sure if she decided later that she wanted finer things or if I was always just a place-holder. I didn't care to ask."

"It's silly really. We make pretty good money in our district. I've got a nice house in a nice neighborhood. I have a decent car and some money in the bank. I don't know what more she wanted."

"Maybe it was just the idea of being married and starting a family that scared her?"

"Maybe. I wanted to start a family right away."

She was glad to hear that. She loved kids and wanted a big family as well.

"Here's Cherry. Which way to your house?"

"This way," she said, as she led him down the lamp-lit street.

Her house was a few blocks down and when she said, "That's me there. Number sixty-six," they were saddened that their date was coming to an end.

While she was internally debating inviting him in, he stopped at the top of her steps and kissed her cheek.

"I had a very nice time tonight, Julie. I'm glad we were able to start over."

"Me too, Kyle. Would you like to come in for some coffee?" She asked hopefully.

"No, it's a school night. I'd better get on home."

"Alright. Thank you, again for dinner and the company. I hope you want to do it again."

He smiled and said, "I'd love to. Let's talk in the morning."

As he walked home, he felt a happiness he hadn't felt since before his break-up.

***

Julie and Jenny, we talking the next morning, when Jenny said, "Posts!"

Julie laughed at her obsession with watching Kyle walk into his class every morning.

Kyle walked up the stairs and turned the corner at exactly 7:15 carrying a bouquet. He walked towards the ladies and they saw him turn towards Julie's room instead of his own.

"What's he doing?" Jenny asked.

"Let's find out," Julie said grinning.

"Hey, jerk! Your room is across the hall," Julie said sternly.

Jenny looked on shocked when he turned around and smiled.

He walked over and handed the vase to Jenny and said, "Hold these, please."

Before she could say anything she had the vase in her hands and he took Julie's face in his large hands and kissed her.

"Holy shit!" Jenny shrieked, as Kyle and Julie broke the kiss and laughed.

"When the hell did you two hook up?"

"We haven't hooked up," Julie said defensively.

"Let's just say we cleared the air last night over Eggplant Parmesan and Chianti," Kyle said.

"Wow! You went from wanting to kill her to kissing her in a day? Must've been a helluva of an Eggplant Parmesan."

They laughed and Julie brought her up to date on the events of the previous night.

***

They met in the hallway in between periods and Kyle said, "We have to be careful at school. There are no rules against us dating, but I'd rather the kids not know."

"I get it and I agree. It's our business and it should stay that way."

He nodded and walked off to his room as the bell rang.

"Class, you've been blessed by the gods of chemistry. Forget about the report I assigned you."

The class applauded his gesture and he waved his hands to quiet them down.

"If you'd like, you can still turn it in Monday for extra credit."

"You're the best, m'kay!" Someone shouted from the back of the class. Kyle took a deep breath and calmed himself before carrying on with the class.

***

Later that day, Kyle was taking a walk and was near a park a few blocks from his house. He saw Julie approach from the other way and waved to her.

"Hey, beautiful," he said.

"I should have called you. We could've walked together," she said with a bright smile.

"Nah, you don't have my phone number. We never exchanged them."

She laughed and said, "Yeah, it all happened pretty quickly. Give me your phone."

She dialed her phone, took a selfie, and created a contact for her number.

"There you go."

He accepted the phone and she asked, "Wanna come over for dinner? I'm making a chicken stir fry."

"Oh! Sorry I can't. I do a Thursday night game night bi-weekly."

"Game night?"

"Yeah. Board games like Risk, Monopoly, Trivial Pursuit, and sometimes Stratego."

"Nice. You know, I'm quite the Monopoly player myself."

"Really? Would you like to come over and play? We've only got three tonight and could use another. I'm hosting tonight, so it's close to home."

"Sure, sounds like fun. What time?"

"Seven. You can come anytime you like. I can give you the nickel tour of my house."

"Okay. I'll go home now to shower and dress and then I'll see you soon."

He kissed her cheek and said, "See you soon."

***

He opened the door for her and his eyes lit up brightly and his smile made her tingle. She could get used to someone being that happy to see her.

"Hey! Come on in. No one's here yet, so I'll give you the tour. I have something to show you that you're gonna love."

She smirked at his comment and said, "Oh yeah? It's that impressive huh?"

He was confused for a moment until she started to laugh at him.

"Oh!" He said slowly. "Yeah, you just might like that too. Come on."

He walked her through the main floor showing her the kitchen and bathroom. then the living room and formal dining room. She was impressed by his neatness. She thought that he must hire a cleaning service.

He led her down to a half-finished basement that had a man cave feel to it. She noticed he had at least three game systems sitting on a table. On the walls were movie posters from various sci-fi films.

"This Star Wars one is original and signed by Mark Hamil," he said.

"Really? That must have been expensive."

"Probably. It came with the house. They all did actually. The lady I bought it from didn't want the reminders of her deceased husband. There were also a lot of collectibles. That's not my thing, so my friends bought most of them from me. The rest I sold on eBay."

"Hey what's that?" She asked as she saw his open game closet.

"That's what I wanted you to see. That's my Monopoly collection."

"Wow. You must have over a hundred of them."

"Hundred and six. Take look they are all organized by genre. I have movie editions like Pirates of the Caribbean, IT, and Avengers. I've got Sci-Fi editions like several Star Wars versions and Doctor Who. All of the major sports. Wineopoly, Elvisopoly, and I've even got a Monopoly version that inflates for the swimming pool."

He was proud of his collection and she was impressed. She truly was an avid player and had several versions of her own.

"That's so amazing, I do love it. You'll have to have me over to play sometime. I noticed they are all opened, so I want to play them all."

He held her hand and said, "I have played every one of them at least once. How about if you pick the one we play tonight?"

"Wow! A tremendous honor for my first time."

After looking over the games, she said, "How about the James Bond Edition."

"Excellent choice, m'lady. Grab it and I'll grab Scrabble, in case we get a second game in tonight."

He had a second closet with all of his other board games in it.

***

The doorbell rang and then the door opened. "Anyone home?" Shouted a man who was followed in by a tall skinny lady.

"Hey, guys. Come into the dining room," Kyle called out.

As they walked in, Kyle made introductions. "Al and Gina Farley, this is my...well, hopefully, she'll let me call her my girlfriend, Julie."

"Nice to meet you both," Julie said shaking hands.

"Girlfriend?" Gina shrieked. "When did that happen?"

"About fifteen seconds ago," Julie said making everyone except Kyle laugh.

"I'm sorry, Jules. I kinda get carried away sometimes."

She kissed his cheek and said, "It's okay, boyfriend. Don't sweat it. Gina, we work together and I guess you'd call this our second date."

"Wait, is she the..."

"Ahem," Kyle coughed.

"Sorry," Gina said.

"Am I the what?" Julie asked.

"Nothing. Nothing at all. I have to learn to keep my mouth shut," Gina said.

Al laughed and asked Julie, "Are you the teacher across the hall?"

"Yes."

"There you go. Then you are the what."

He laughed and Gina slapped his arm.

"Kyle, you have to tell me now. What am I?" Julie demanded.

Gina smiled and said, "The infuriating future mother of his children."

Julie's head snapped over to look at Kyle and he couldn't make eye contact.

"Julie, for the last month or so this doofus has been telling us about the drop-dead gorgeous teacher across the hall. He bitches constantly that he wished you weren't so infuriating. He called you the infuriating future mother of his children."

"I meant it in the nicest possible way," Kyle said causing everyone to laugh.