Rae

 

Rae arrived early at the school the next day. She wanted to get there before all the craziness started so she could have a proper look around. She wanted to try and familiarize herself with the layout of the building. She was hoping it would make it easier for her getting around.

Though Father Stannis was right about the classes being easy to find, everything else was so hard to figure out, and she found herself getting lost several times the day before. She walked along the corridors of the beautiful old building and took notice of markers that would tell her where she was. Before long, she was confident she knew where everything was. She had even found herself another quiet little spot she was sure would be perfect for when she needed some peace during the day.

However, when Rae stumbled across a dance studio that was clearly no longer in use, her mind raced with so many feelings. There was the old familiar longing in the pit of her stomach she sometimes got when she longed for the joy dancing once gave her. She missed the exhilaration she felt when she became lost in the music.

But then, just like it always did, the longing faded and it gave way to the feeling off fear, and then shame. Memories of Dean filled her mind, and she instinctively ran her fingertips over the small scar on her wrist where she had to have surgery to repair what he had broken.

Rae shook her head and quickly pushed the memory of Dean from her mind, before she left the dance studio, and headed for the office.

When she finally reached the office, she smiled to herself when she saw that Mrs. Graham was already there just like she said she would be.

“Good morning, Rae,” she said brightly when she looked up and saw Rae standing there. “You’re here early.”

“I thought if I came in early,” Rae explained. “I could walk around the school and try to get my bearings. It was so busy yesterday; it was hard to figure out where everything is.”

“It can be pretty busy here once the day starts,” Mrs. Graham nodded with a smile. “It’s why I like to come in early and get some work done before all the craziness begins.”

“Sounds like a good plan,” Rae said with a laugh as she walked around the front desk.

“How was your first day?” The older lady asked. “Are you settling in okay?”

“Yes, thank you,” Rae replied and smiled brightly. “The kids seem lovely. I think that I’m going to love working with them.”

“Most of them are great kids,” Mrs. Graham agreed. “There are one or two that can be challenging, but if you show them who’s in charge from the start, you will be just fine.”

“I will remember that,” Rae replied and smiled once more before she turned and walked over to her cubby hole behind the desk. She began to sort through the notes and flyers that were in there. She was just reading through them when she heard someone walk up behind her.

“Good morning,” a familiar voice came from next to her. Rae’s heart raced a little because she instantly recognised that it was A.J.

“Good morning,” Rae said as she turned and greeted him with a warm smile.

“How was your first day?” A.J asked as he checked his own cubby and pulled out a stack of messages. “I was hoping I would see you around before you left yesterday afternoon.”

“You were?” Rae asked as her smile widened. She had no idea why, but there was just something about this man that got to her. Like something deep within him, spoke to her very soul.

“I wanted to make sure that the kids didn’t give you too hard a time,” he replied as he turned back to Rae, and she couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like to kiss him.

“No, they’re great,” Rae replied as she quickly pushed that thought from her mind. “Well, mostly, but it’s nothing I can’t handle.”

“Well, you get any crap from them,” A.J said with a grin. “Just tell them that you will get Father Alex to kick their ass. That usually works.”

“I will remember that,” Rae nodded and laughed. “Is he that scary?”

“He can be,” A.J replied and laughed too. “But some would say that his bark is worse than his bite.”

“Good to know,” Rae replied as she returned her attention back to her cubby hoping the distraction would calm her pounding heart. She reached in and pulled out some more papers that were in the back, but as she did, the ones she was already holding slipped from her arms and spilled all over the floor.

Rae and A.J both bent down at the same time, and bumped heads, making Rae lose her balance and land on her bottom.

“Oh God,” he said as he instantly reached out and offered her his hand. “I’m so sorry. That’s the second time I have knocked you over. You must think I’m out to kill you.”

“We do seem to have a habit of bumping into each other,” Rae laughed as she took hold of his hand and allowed him to pull her up from the floor. As she straightened up, she was suddenly very aware that she was barely inches from A.J and he made no attempt to release her hand from his. She took a deep breath, and the smell of his aftershave filled her nose, as her heart began to beat a little faster.

“Maybe I should take you down to the locker room,” A.J continued with a chuckle but made no move to distance himself from her. Instead, he held her eyes with his, and Rae could barely catch her breath. “Let you borrow some shoulder pads and a helmet.”

“For what?” Rae asked giving him a look of confusion.

“To stop you from getting hurt the next time I bump into you,” A.J explained with a loud laugh.

“So you plan on bumping into me again?” Rae asked as her heart beat quickened a little more. She was not naturally a flirty person. She usually sucked at it, so she never bothered. But there was something about A.J, something that made her want to be reckless. She gave him a smile that said, she wanted him to bump into her again.

“Well, it’s a small school,” A.J replied as he looked down into her eyes once more and Rae could feel something change between them. She held her breath and for a moment she almost forgot where she was. “And I don’t want to be responsible for injuring the newest member of staff.”

Rae could feel her face flush with embarrassment as what she was doing and where she actually was came crashing into her head like a wrecking ball. She quickly stepped back from A.J and tried to act as unfazed as she could. She bent down once more and picked up her letters from the floor, taking a moment to gather her thoughts too.

“Let me help you,” A.J insisted as once more he crouched down and began to pick up Rae’s things also. As he did, his hand brushed against hers and Rae froze, so did A.J’s. They both looked up at each other, and A.J opened his mouth as if he was going to speak, but then he stopped and just held her gaze for a moment.

“Ah, Rae,” a voice came from behind them, and Rae instantly stood up and turned to find Father Stannis standing there. He gave her a warm smile as Rae could feel her cheeks flame more. “How was your first day?”

“It was good, thanks, Fa…um… Stan,” Rae replied quickly correcting herself. “The kids are great.”

“Well, I wouldn’t go that far,” Father Stannis laughed. “I’m sorry, I was hoping to catch up with you before you left yesterday, but I was called away to another meeting. I’m glad you are settling in. But you know where my door is, should you need anything.”

“I do, thank you,” Rae nodded and gave him a smile just as A.J stood up next to her.

“A.J,” Stan said, as he too turned his attention to him. “Are we all set for the game today?”

“We are,” A.J replied with a grin. “I think this is our year for sure. The team has never looked better.”

“The team?” Rae asked as she looked from Father Stannis to A.J.

“The basketball team,” A.J explained. “I’m the coach, and we have our first game today.”

“Wow,” Rae replied with a smile. “Well, I hope you win.”

“You should come to the game,” A.J suggested, as he gave Rae a broad smile. “I mean, everyone else is going to be there; seems as it’s the first game and all. You might even have some fun.”

“I would love to come,” Rae replied and returned A.J’s smile, before she turned and looked at Father Stannis, and gave him a smiled too.

“Wonderful!” Father Stannis exclaimed. “It’s important to all the kids that they have the support of the whole teaching staff. It helps build a positive morale.”

Before Rae could reply, the first bell sounded and made her jump with fright.

“I should be going,” she said as she turned back to her cubby and pushed her papers back into the square box that had her name on it.

“I think these belong to you,” A.J said holding out the things he had gathered from the floor as Father Stannis headed towards his office. As Rae took them from him, he gave her a warm smile. “I will see you at the game.”

“I look forward to it,” Rae replied and returned his smile before she turned and walked towards the door of the office.

As she walked to her classroom, she smiled to herself. Despite her determination to not mix business with pleasure, she couldn’t help but like A.J. It wasn’t just because he was gorgeous, and he really was gorgeous, it was more than that. He had a kindness about him, a kindness that shone from his eyes. He was charming and confident without being cocky or conceited.

When Rae reached her classroom, she pushed A.J to the back of her mind for the time being. Right now she needed to be on top of her game as she took her place at the front of her class. She had thirty fifteen-year-olds arriving at any moment, and they would need her full attention.

It was a little before four when Rae walked into the school gym. It was buzzing with excitement, and Rae couldn’t help but feel excited too. The gym hummed with the chatter of the entire school gathered there, waiting patiently for their team to make its appearance.

Rae climbed up on the bleachers and took her place, as she waited for the game to start. She would have been lying if she said she wasn’t looking forward to seeing A.J once more too, but she found the excitement in the gymnasium was contagious, and she was looking forward to the game as well.

She had seen A.J several times during the day, and each time she saw him, he greeted her with a warm, amazing smile. They talked briefly at one point during the day, and once more Rae found herself drawn to him. There was just something about A.J that Rae instantly liked. He seemed open and honest, and for the first time in forever, she allowed herself to think, what if.

“Hi, Ms. Sullivan,” a pretty girl said as she sat down next to Rae. She recognised her from one of her morning classes, but she couldn’t remember her name.

“Hi,” Rae replied, giving her a warm smile.

“Rebecca,” the girl said, clearly sensing that Rae couldn’t recall her name.

“Third period, English,” Rae said as she remembered which class the girl was from. “I’m sorry, I’m still trying to get used to the names.”

“It’s okay,” Rebecca replied with a bright smile, as she turned and looked around the gym. “I guess you have a lot of names to remember.”

“I guess I do,” Rae laughed just as the door at the far side of the gymnasium opened and the whole place erupted with a loud scream. Before Rae had time to think, everyone that was sitting around her stood up, and the noise got even louder.

As Rae stood up, A.J appeared in the doorway, and she instantly felt her smile widen. She watched him closely as he stood and clapped as all the team came running through the door behind him. Rae could see the pride that shone from his face, and she couldn’t help but feel that pride too. She clapped her hands hard, hoping that the team could do what needed to be done, to win the game.

Finally, A.J’s eyes met Rae’s and his smile widened as he raised his hand to greet her. Rae instantly waved back as she could feel her face warm with embarrassment.

Suddenly the cheerleading squad took to the centre of the court and started performing their routine, as the crowd continued to scream. Rae tried to remain focused on the girls, but she could feel her eyes search out A.J over and over again.

On more than one occasion, A.J was watching her, and when their eyes met, he would give her a smile before he would quickly look away.

A loud buzzer sounded, and everyone finally took their seats, as the game got underway. Rae tried her hardest to focus on the game, but time and time again, she found her eyes drift back to A.J, but now the game was his sole focus.

At the end of the first quarter, Saint Mike’s were already ahead by ten points. Rae watched A.J as he talked to his team. She could see he was pumping with adrenaline as much as his players were, and Rae liked that he seemed to care so much.

“I think this year they are going to take the championship,” Rebecca said as she turned to Rae and gave her a happy smile.

“They are pretty awesome,” Rae agreed and once more her eyes searched out A.J.

“Since Father Alex came to the school,” the girl continued. “The team have been working harder. So have the swim team. He is the best teacher at Saint Mike’s.”

“Father Alex?” Rae asked, remembering A.J had mentioned him earlier that day too. She remembered that A.J told her to use his name as a threat for any of the kids that stepped out of line. Still, she was confused; she thought that A.J was the coach. “Which one is Father Alex?”

The girl raised her hand and pointed her finger. The moment Rae realised who she was talking about her heart slammed against her chest.

A.J was Father Alex.

HE’S A PRIEST! She cried in her mind. HE’S A FUCKING PRIEST!

Just at that moment, A.J looked up at Rae and gave her a smile, and her stomach heaved. She was completely mortified. She tried to smile back, but she knew that she wasn’t convincing by the way A.J’s smile dropped a little.

Rae suddenly needed some fresh air. She stood up just as the buzzer sounded for the second quarter and everyone else in the bleachers was on their feet too.

“Are you leaving?” Rebecca asked, giving Rae a surprised look.

“I just remembered, I need to be somewhere,” Rae offered before she gave the girl a smile. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Rebecca.”

Rae didn’t wait for a reply. She quickly pushed her way through the screaming crowd until she finally reached the quieter hallway. She paused for a moment as she considered what she was doing.

So you flirted with him, so what? She thought to herself. It’s no big deal.

She turned back to the door but stopped before she pulled it open.

He’s a priest! She thought miserably. You like a priest.

She laughed at how ridiculous the whole thing was. So she liked him. It was no big deal, was it?

Rae closed her eyes and sighed.

Yes, it was a big deal, because she more than just liked him. She actually thought he liked her too. He asked her to come to the game, and she had let herself believe that meant something.

“YOU IDIOT!” She screamed at the top of her voice, and the sound echoed along the empty corridor.

She turned once more to the exit and made her way out into the late afternoon sun. She just wanted to go home, and never come back to Saint Mike’s again.