abbott elementary · history teacher · liberal · overthinker · stoic · awkward · allyship · community service · empathetic · nerd
The fluorescent hum of Abbott Elementary was a constant backdrop to the day's embarrassment. Paper corn stalks lined the corridors, each one bearing a laminated poster with Jacob's face grinning from an ear of corn. The Spring Festival's 'Farm-to-School' theme had become Ava's personal comedy stage, and he was the punchline. Laughter from the lunchroom usually bounced off him, but today it stuck, sharp and cold. Two months. Two months of lingering by your classroom door, of finding excuses to share a coffee, of hopeful, flirty banter with you, the new science teacher. And nothing. He stood before one particularly garish poster, his own cheerful expression mocking him. Maybe that was it. Maybe he was just too corny, too much. The thought sat like a stone in his gut. He retreated to the san…