House of Sand

Anna stood up and stretched. "I do enjoy talking, Maddie, but I do actually need to get some work done today. So do you. I'll leave you to it."

"No problem," I grinned.

Anna pleaded, "promise me something, Maddie -- Don't stay too late. Don't burn yourself out by staying after dark."

"Okay," I grinned.

"Promise?" She repeated.

"We'll see," I returned.

She shook her head, "wrong answer, Maddie. You're leaving at the end of the workday. Period. I'll leave you alone so that you can be productive," she added. She glared at me in sternness, "but seriously, don't burn yourself out."

After only half an hour of diligent work, Jefferson joined me in the classroom. "Hey, Maddie," his crooked smile grew. "I just wanted to check in on you."

I couldn't help but think of Anna's dissension against Jefferson when I spoke to him, but I tried to listen to what he had to say. He asked, "how's the preparation going? You ready for Wednesday?"

"Just about," I let on a tight-lipped smile.

"That's good," he breathed as he pulled up a chair to my desk. He sat reversed so that his chest rested against the back of the seat.

"Remember to be firm on day one," he asserted. "You can't be a nice lady." I nodded along as he spoke. He persisted, "you have to be a dic -- tator." He paused intentionally between the "dic" and "tator" syllables. He supposed, "don't be like Ms. Bovine last year."

"Ms. Bovine?" I responded puzzled.

"She wanted to be as nice as pie on the first day of school. She let them do what they pleased because she worried they wouldn't like her. Before she knew it, kids were wandering around the room, cussing, climbing on the shelves, throwing pencil sharpeners -- altogether ignoring her. So be firm on day one. Be a dic -- tator."

My stomach sank to my hips as my nervousness rekindled. "I'll try my best," I murmured.

"I've been teaching twenty years," he noted. "And this strategy has always worked for me." I nodded again. "If anyone talks out of turn, kick them out." Jefferson checked his watch. He smiled again and patted my desk, "if you ever need anything, just let me know."

"Thanks," I murmured.

When Jefferson left, I worked for a while longer before Anna burst into my room without warning. "What's up!" She shouted.

"Jesus!" I jumped in my seat, nearly falling onto the floor. "Why did you do that?" I grabbed my hair into each fist.

Anna shrugged apathetically, "cause it's fun." I threw my head backward and rolled my eyes.

"You're weird," I quipped. "I'm going to shout a curse word and get in trouble."

"That would be hilarious," Anna chuckled.

"What?" I squeaked. "How would that be funny?"

What are you doing tonight?" Anna ignored my remark.

I pointed at the stack of papers mounted on my desk, "I want to read some of this stuff for AP World." Anna's countenance soured.

She shook her head, "I thought we talked about this? No, you're not gonna stay here after dark on a Friday. Let's go get some drinks."

I returned, "but it's a lot of reading--"

Anna raised her hand to stop me. "Trust me, you're going to get bogged down if you stay here every night. You'll find that you're more productive when you have a bit of 'me time'."

"Me time?" I challenged.

"Yup! Me time: drinking, hanging with friends, shopping, reading -- anything to let yourself relax. So, let's go get some drinks. I'll buy." She moved toward the door, expecting me to follow.

I protested, "but it's a lot of stuff to go over."

Anna persisted, "leave it for next week. School doesn't start until Wednesday. Let's go."

"I can't," I sighed. "It's just going to pile up even more."

"Maddie!" She raised her voice. Just leave it be. I know it sounds counterproductive. But you'll actually get more accomplished Monday if you have 'me time' tonight. Remember all those studies they did in Europe to determine that people who take more vacation weeks actually get more done? It's like that. Let yourself have time to do nothing work-related." She tilted her head and tightened her teeth. "Trust me, I've been at this job a decade."

"Okay," I conceded in a heavy breath, "let's get some drinks." I began stuffing papers into my bag.

"Seriously, Maddie, leave it be."

"Alright," I whispered in an annoyed tone.

Anna's face animated, "I know a place just over the Maryland border."

"All the way in Maryland?"

"It's not far," she waved. "You riding with me?"

"Sure."

* * *

The bar was not like any I had ever seen. Above the entrance, an illuminated sign proclaimed its name: "La Mer." Inside, an oval-shaped stage occupied the middle of a medium-sized room surrounded by booths and tables crammed into the space. The walls were brown and stale-scented, upon which hung memorabilia ranging from posters, license plates, and instruments. One side of the room had a traditional bar with high stools and a wall of liquor bottles. On the stage was an expensive-looking grand piano, a few stools, and a microphone. There weren't many people inside, though it was only four-thirty.

"Hey, Anna!" A waitress shouted from across the room.

"What's up, Cathy?" Anna waved.

Cathy approached as Anna and I took a seat at a booth. She looked to be about forty years old and had a tattoo sleeve on her left arm. "New girlfriend, huh?" Cathy winked as she looked at me. My eyes shuffled away in embarrassment.

"No, no, Maddie's a coworker," Anna clarified.

"Oh, no! My apologies," Cathy breathed, giggling as she subtly bowed her head. "Can I get you anything to drink, sweetie?"

"Uhh," I mumbled. "Uhh -- what do you have?"

"Everything, dear. Tell you what, let me give you this and I'll be back in a minute." She handed me a drink menu. My finger caught against her wedding ring, the diamond so large it nearly sliced my skin.

She yanked her hand back. "Oh! Sorry about that."

I smiled, "no problem."

Cathy tended to another table. "I used to bring my girlfriend here," Anna elaborated, her voice shrinking.

"Seems like you've been here a time or two," I observed. "And I'm guessing things didn't work out between you and your girlfriend."

Anna turned her head away, brushing her hair from her eyes. "You guessed right."

"Sorry," I apologized.

Anna locked her eyes to me again, "okay, Blue, let's make a deal."

I squinted, "wait a minute. Did you call me Blue?" I turned my palms upward.

"Yup, and let's make a deal, Blue."

"Who's Blue?" I squealed.

"You're Blue. Your eyes -- they're blue like the sea. Blue!"

"Okay----," I spoke slowly, confounded by my new name. "And what's the deal?"

"Let's stop saying sorry for things that aren't our fault. We've said 'sorry' to one another a million times. No more frivolous apologizing."

"Okay," I confirmed. "No more sorries."

When Cathy returned, Anna ordered a straight bourbon.

I wrinkled my nose in disgust. "Don't turn your nose up at my drink choice, Blue. You don't like bourbon?"

"It's a bit strong for me. I'm not much into hard liquors."

Cathy interjected, "she drinks like an old man."

Anna scoffed, "you're dipping into your tip money, Cathy."

"Mmm," Cathy droned. She turned to me, "and you, dear?"

"I think I'll have this blue raspberry drink," I pointed at the drink menu. "And what about some of these nachos as well? I'm a bit hungry."

Anna interjected, "and some of that dark chocolate that you guys have."

Cathy nodded and disappeared. "Dark chocolate?" I squinted. "At a bar?"

"It's a special bar," Anna defended. "And chocolate goes well with bourbon."

"If you say so."

She rolled her eyes in good nature. "It does," she claimed.

I prodded, "are you going to smoke a cigar too?"

"Oh, don't be ridiculous," she waved. "I inherited it from my family. Dad is a liquor drinker."

"Vodka?" I joked.

She ignored the stereotype. "Na, my dad took a liking to whiskey. I did too when I was of age."

"Yeah, between the two of us, you're definitely the tough one," I mentioned. "I couldn't drink that stuff if you paid me. One time I tried and coughed for five minutes."

"Ah, it takes some getting used to. After a few tries, the stinging taste goes away."

"Couldn't be me," I shook my head. "It takes a certain palate."

"But toughness has nothing to do with it," Anna considered.

"Sure it does," I contented, leaning toward her. "You say you worked on a farm during the summers. All that builds into making a tough character."

"I've never thought about it," she pondered. "I spent my childhood evenings wrestling in the dirt with the neighbor boys rather than having Barbie parties -- or whatever nonsense girls play with nowadays. If anything, I learned about fending for myself. They weren't the ladies-first or be-easy-on-girls kind of kids. They treated me like I was a guy just like them." Anna looked at her hands as she spoke.

Cathy delivered our strange order of drinks, nachos, and chocolate. Anna took a sip of her bourbon, puckering her lips and smacking her teeth. Mine was sweet with only a faint hint of alcohol. "The drink matches your eyes," Anna noted appealingly. "Blue!"

She set her glass down and pushed her hand toward me. "See this mark on my index finger?"

I nodded.

"That's where my neighbor and I had a sword fight?"

"And you used real swords?"

"No, we used hammers. But they're sharper than you might imagine. There was a family with three brothers that lived about five minutes away. We hung out quite a bit. Other than them, there weren't many playmates in the countryside."

"Who fights with hammers?" I giggled. I took another sip of my drink before adding, "I mostly stayed inside and read books and listened to music -- at least when I wasn't working or doing chores. I was -- or still am -- a loner."

"You're with me, aren't you?"

"Loner plus one," I joked.

Anna stretched out her arms longways and leaned back against the booth. Her breasts became larger in this position. Oh, Jesus. Why am I looking?

She noted, "books and music are good. We did play in a band -- the neighbor boys and me."

"You're not just saying that to impress me, are you?" I jabbed.

Anna grunted, faking annoyance. "Piano," she said pointing at herself. "Thomas played guitar; Andrew, bass; and George, trumpet. We were a good little group for a while."

"You said you still play, right?"

"On occasion. I have a keyboard at home I fiddle around with from time to time." Anna took another sip, wrinkling her nose at the taste.

"I wish I could do something cool."

Anna pointed at me with her glass in hand, "so far you've done a remarkable job at work. That's something, right?"

"What do you mean?" I blurted. "It's been three days."

Anna shrugged. "So far, you haven't pissed me off. That's quite an achievement."

I chuckled, "does anybody make you happy, Anna?"

"Not many," she smirked.

I eyed the piano on the center stage. "You know, there's a piano over there."

Anna looked where my eyes pointed. "Indeed there is."

"So?" I bantered.

"So what?" She threw her hands up.

"Why don't you play it?" I gleamed.

"You couldn't ask that in the first place instead of dropping clues with your eyes?"

"I thought you'd be able to connect the dots," I retorted facetiously.

She huffed, "you're such a woman."

"A woman? I am a woman, dummy."

Anna smiled aloofly. "Not tonight. Maybe some other day." She gaped at me longingly for a few moments, to the point it was almost awkward. Her fingers stroked the side of her glass. Her eyes were deep, a vivid shade of green glimmering in the artificial light of the bar.

She inhaled heavily and her trance broke. "You know what?" She leaned forward as if she were telling a secret. I lifted my head to signal her to proceed. "Why don't we do this again on a Saturday in the future? There'll be a lot more people here and it'll be a lot of fun. And if you come, I'll play the piano."

"I'm not very good with crowds," I said sarcastically, shuffling my lips to the left. "But I do want to see you play the piano."

"Oh, shut up, Blue. I know you want to come," she said before signaling Cathy for another bourbon.

I threw back the last sip of my drink and smirked, "okay, I'll come."

Chapter IV - Heaven and Earth

School began. The career was not without its promised stresses and tensions. Anna maintained that I must learn to distance myself from the job outside of working hours to keep my sanity. She appointed herself to ensure that I was having "me time," consistently checking in on me. By the third week of school, I was already exhausted.

Anna burst into my classroom after school. My scalp jumped when she shouted, "you think your leg is up for a run this evening? It's a beautiful day."

I threw my head backward and replied in a tense whisper, "dammit, Anna."

A devious grin girded her face. "What's wrong, Maddie?" She let on a false frown.

I held my hand over my racing heart. "You know perfectly well what's wrong. You keep scaring me." I whispered harshly, "what if I piss myself one day?" Anna's smile disarmed me.

"Okay, I'll bring you an extra pair of panties to keep in your desk."

The muscles in my face shriveled in disgust. "Anna, that's nasty."

"Are you coming or not?" She demanded.

"I haven't been running very frequently. I'll just slow you down."

"Why can't you ever say 'yes' or 'no?'" she pleaded. "It's like you want me to make the decision for you."

"That's not true," I guarded. "And yes, I'll go."

Anna's face brightened. "Go home and get changed. I'll pick you up at 4:30."

"Where are we going?"

"Just go home and change clothes -- unless you want to run in your heels."

"Umm, no thanks," I groaned. "But where are we going?"

"You'll see," she grinned. She started to close the door. "I know a place."

"Wait!" I commanded. Her eyebrows raised.

"Come look at this email from a student," I requested. "I don't know what to do." She stood over my shoulder and read the message aloud:

"Ms. King, Im emailing you this because I trust you. I feel like Mr. Jefferson is not being fair to his students. He has his favorites and if he doesn't like you then you're in trouble. I got into a disagreement with his daughter (who also is a student here). Now I feel like he's taking it out on me. He is ignoring me, won't fix my grade, and is kinda being a bully because of something that happened outside of school. What can I do? Thanks."

Anna's cheeks turned the color of a rose and her hands tightened into pale fists. "See?" She said, her tone hushed and hardened. "This is why he needs to go. He's a problem teacher. His kids hate him." She looked at the floor as she walked away from me. She paced with her hands on her hips, shaking her head back and forth, pondering her next action. "Seriously, I've never heard someone say something positive about him."

"So, what do I do?"

Anna exhaled, now throwing her head toward the ceiling. "Ugh -- forward that to me, Dr. Clamp, and Dr. Mitchell. Say something along the lines of 'FYI, this student shared this with me.' Don't put any of your own opinion in there; only include what the student said and that you are obligated to forward it."

"Okay," I started typing.

Anna tightened her lips. "Dammit," she whispered, squeezing her fists again. "This is not the first time he's had someone complain like this. "Regardless, you're morally obligated to pass this along, probably legally obligated too."

"What should I tell the student?"

Anna tilted her head from side to side as she considered. "Be vague, but tell her you're working on getting it resolved. But that's it. Don't say anything to Jefferson. It's not your job or my job to do anything about it. We're not his boss, so let the admin handle it."

"Okay," I nodded.

"Let me know if anything else happens." Suddenly, her color returned, the anger drained from her face, and she became excitable once more. She pointed toward me as she exited the room, "and don't forget -- 4:30."

"Got it," I chirped. "See ya."

* * *

After picking me up, Anna drove me outside the city and into Virginia. "Don't you think you're going a little fast?" I examined as the weight of my body hurled from side to side.

"You're not a backseat driver, are you Blue?" She weaved in and out of traffic with one hand on the wheel, the other flailing about as she spoke.

"No," I gulped. "You're going to get a ticket."

"There ain't no cops around," she declared. "And we'll get there faster if we go my speed."

"So, we're driving an hour to go running? "That doesn't sound weird to you?"

"I know a place," she maintained. "And it's not an hour."

"But where is it?" I prodded, begging like a child.

"Potomac," she caved, glancing at me before looking back toward the road.

"What?"

"It's a river, Blue. You'll see."

"What's wrong with running in DC?"

"The river is more peaceful," she insisted. "It'll be fun. DC is too crowded and you have to stop at lights and intersections. And there's too many people on the sidewalks."

"If you say so," I exhaled.

We parked in an area alongside the river. It was warm outside, but with the slight crispness of autumn's coming. Anna's green tank top hugged the curves of her figure. She stuffed her hair beneath a light red baseball cap, an action that briefly gave her breasts more prominence. I did not realize I was staring until her eyes met mine. I yanked my gaze and threw it to the river. Finally, she divulged her plan: "let's start down this paved path here and see where it takes us." She gestured vaguely in a southerly direction.

"You don't know where it leads?" I jested.

"I know what I'm doing," she winked. Her wink whirled my heart, an unexplainable punch of excitement. She added, "but if I tell you, you'll protest."

I turned my nose up at her. "You look like you're going to do something devious."

Anna retorted, "and you look like you're enjoying it."

I side-eyed her and clenched my lips together to conceal my smile. "And -- and you're dressed like a watermelon."

Her shoulders buckled. "You're weird, Blue." She looked down at herself. "But I guess you're not wrong."

She started running without warning. I followed along. We jogged a mile on a sidewalk along the banks of the Potomac. Anna ran circles around me as I struggled to keep up. I quickly came to understand the magnitude of my injury; before long, my skin was drenched with sweat, my chest pounded, and my legs burned. It felt as if I had never run before. But Anna seemed to persist with ease. She halted at a fork where one path continued along the paved walkway and the other diverged onto a wooded trail.

"Stopping?" I heaved, pretending not to be winded. I bent down and rested my weight on my knees, my windpipe enflamed as I gasped for air. My skin was flushed, but Anna's -- beautiful -- glistening in the sun.

"Tired?" She joked as she jogged in place, silently mocking my lack of stamina.

I complained, "three months without running -- some of that without walking." My lungs felt like ice amid the hot air. "I'm peachy," I groaned in sarcasm.

"Good! Let's go this way," she pointed toward the woods.

"The trail through the woods? What's wrong with the sidewalk?"

"What's the matter, Blue?" She jested.

"What was wrong with the paved pathway?" I countered.

"It's not as fun as the trail. Come on," she instructed, starting down the path with a deliberate speed.

"Dammit," I said, but Anna was already far enough along that she couldn't hear me.

She only ran for a few minutes before stopping again. "Here," she looked gladly into the woods. But this time, there was no second trail.

"What do you mean 'here?' That's not part of the trail," I huffed.