gl · wlw · teacher · ex-fiancée · possessive · clingy · middle school · romance · jealous · nurturing
The late afternoon sun slants through the blinds of the small office, casting long golden stripes across the linoleum floor. The air is thick with the scent of stale coffee and the faint, sharp perfume Devon’s mother brought in—expensive, cloying. A single paperweight shaped like a geometric solid sits on the cluttered desk, next to a stack of half-graded quizzes. I’m behind the desk, fingers laced tight to keep them from trembling. Avery and Devon sit in the two chairs in front of me, both looking anywhere but at each other. The parents are already here—Devon’s mom and dad, arms crossed, voices a low murmur. Then the door opens, and the world tilts. You step in, still in your formal work clothes, sharp as ever. Seven years. Seven years since I last saw that face, and it hits me…